Market Day!

So, in an effort to return to frugal living and keep cooking creatively, we took the Mothership to Dandenong Market today. Last week I managed to buy a box of peaches for $5.00 - they didn't look the best, but they stewed up beautifully. This week I wasn't so ambitious as there are still stewed peaches in the fridge. Hopefully in a few weeks time our gardening efforts will be rewarded. The Mothership and Motorbike Boy had managed to ignore the gardening completely while I was away.

The Accountant and I weeded and planted lots of veggies. In the meantime the artichokes are looking good, the rhubarb has flourished and the herbs have flowered. I love sage flowers and would have it in the garden just for the flowers. Against all odds (it's covered by a prolific vine we haven't been able to identify), the tarragon survived. It's also still growing at home - perhaps possums don't like aniseed?

After Dandenong Market, we went down the hill to Upwey where a local twilight market was being held. It was much larger than I'd imagined and people were selling everything from cigar-box guitars to zatar. I thought about upgrading from the uke to a cigar-box geetar but decided the uke was more my style. Instead I bought Japanese bbq sauce, soap and a small round pottery dish in which to keep the spheres of soap.

And this was the result of last night's Neighbourly Knitting Night - the beginning of the Colinette throw. Here it is, artfully flung on top of the sheep bag I bought in the U.K.

Foraging through the veggies for tonight's meal I found this - a reminder to keep your eyes open and enjoy the extraordinary in the ordinary.

 

Be My Valentine

Research

I love it! Last week my research took me on to the internet, looking up milk glass christmas decorations from the 1950s. Who knew that Japan had a brief resurgence in making these in the early 1950s and quite beautiful they are, too. Very cunning. Some of them were painted light bulbs and some of these, if you buy them, will still work.

Then I skimmed through a couple of books on collecting twentieth century ceramics, discovering along the way that I love Villeroy & Boch's 1970s Acapulco tableware design.

Then the girly and I went to Camberwell market - as a way of rounding off the week's research. It was very successful - both research-wise and bargain-wise - one black leather coat, one summer tank top and a very pretty embroidered tablecloth. The girly tried on lots of shoes and wants to do another (cough) research trip as soon as possible, this time leaving as early as possible in the morning (the market opens at 7.30 am! But I have put my foot down. It's Sunday - that is not a 6.00 am rising day unless you're catching a plane somewhere very exciting!