A little of my favourite music while you read this…
Day 16 – Sunday – we woke up to an unexpectedly bright and sunny day here – we really had plenty of jobs to do; my Advent task was to make some tiny mince pies to take in for the girls at my old workplace sometime during the week, but instead we left all that at home and drove down into Derbyshire for a bit of a break and the mince pies would just have to wait. Of course we had been the weekend before with my mum but it was difficult to really do very much or spend any time looking around the shops and there was a couple of gifts I needed to sort out and I knew just the places for some inspiration.
We packed the usual picnic and set off – this time we drove up high above Hathersage to sit and eat our lunch in the car whilst admiring the stunning view – just us and the sheep. Bliss.
Then on to the David Mellor cutlery factory just outside of Hathersage where they have a shop with the most beautiful (and expensive) kitchen and tableware. As well as the unusual round building that houses the cutlery factory there is also the museum where you can see all his wonderful design pieces. Like me he was born in Sheffield and was well-known for his metal work specialising in cutlery. If I ever had enough money to splash out I would buy a set of his original Pride silver plate cutlery with the white ivory coloured knife handles only £136 per place setting of 6 pieces and the cute little Embassy sterling silver toast rack only £750. Of course I have made sure DH knows of my desire to own these should he ever find himself with a little spare cash.
David Mellor is also famous for his industrial design of a few recognisable pieces of metal work that you will no doubt see everyday. Here are a few of them laid out in his outdoor museum in front of the shop.
Sadly he died in 2009 but the work he has left behind still stands the test of time. If you want to see and read more click-through here.
Even though we cannot afford most of his products I just love to browse around the shop, especially as it is all displayed like a piece of artwork. This is actually the window display from last year which I preferred to this year’s snowman.
As you might expect the shop only stocks quality linen tea towels and amongst them I found these old-fashioned oven gloves which I bought as they were only £6 – I have been searching for ages to replace mine as they have developed a hole from overuse – I like them to be quite soft and flexible as I do not get on well with those quilted stiff ones. These passed the test for flexibility.
On our way to Bakewell we stopped off at the pretty little village of Baslow. There are a couple of independent shops selling gifts and plants and vintage finds. In the vintage flower shop we came across a round zinc tub perfect for holding our Christmas tree and at a very reasonable price (photo later when I take one of the finished tree). We then stopped briefly at the Derbyshire Craft centre looking for a small gift that would be light enough to post, but nothing really fit the bill.
By the time we reached Bakewell most of the shops were closing and it was going dark but it was the best time to have a walk around, see the lights and soak up the Christmas atmosphere – everywhere has that old-fashioned Christmas card feel – streets lined with little stone cottages adorned with wreaths and pretty decorations and curtains left open inviting you to peep inside; all that was lacking was a sprinkling of snow.
The huge Nativity scene outside the church on the hill is certainly something to see – we climbed up through the grave yard to capture this photo – I wasn’t sure it would come out very well but it has.
There is another Nativity scene in a little glass case in the gardens down in the town centre just at the right height for children to be able to see inside easily and it brought back memories of when I was a child and would run up to similar display cases pressing my nose up against the cold glass for a better look. 
We had a ‘perfick’ day – I do love doing something impulsive from time to time just as the mood takes us and we chose a good day to do it – and I did manage to fit in the mince pies the following day – photos tomorrow. x
Day 14 – on Friday my Advent task was to make a tray of my now famous chocolate for the neighbour’s get together that evening. This year I found a tub of miniature meringues reduced to 30p in Waitrose and these were sprinkled on the half with tiny fudge and honeycomb pieces. The other half of the chocolate had fruit, nuts and ginger pieces. The whole slab is laced like a spider’s web with white chocolate and when it is set chopped or broken into square pieces. It is as my friends say ‘just far too moreish’.
I kept some of the chocolates to take a packet in to my old work place for my colleagues to share.
Day 15 – Saturday – after getting home at 2am in the morning (it was a good night!) I didn’t have a very early start and it took a while to come round and eventually I had another go at printing my lino cut Christmas card. 
This year I tried creating a more stylised robin and nothing has gone well with it. The black ink has taken ages to dry and I swear some of the cards were still sticky when I put them into the envelopes – even after being in the airing cupboard all weekend. 
All I can say is that it is ‘different’ and I certainly need more practice but I had fun doing them and I shall miss my ’round’ of robins now they are gone to new homes. Each one was so individual I could have given them names!
On the Saturday the Advent activity was our traditional annual visit to Tissington in Derbyshire for lunch at Herbert’s Tea Rooms and a browse around the tiny gift shop in the village. It was heavy rain and with mum’s inability to walk far we skipped the usual walk around the village which we love to do and moved on by car to Ashbourne. Mum managed a few shops and the little Waitrose and then we came home for tea.
We ate our little feast in the car parked high above Abney in Derbyshire and watched the hang gliders taking off over Great Hucklow. Afterwards we visited more of mum’s favourite places – Pilsley farm shop and the Derbyshire Craft Centre.
The lights which are accompanied by music were quite spectacular – some are activated by and keep time with the music and were pretty amazing – we followed the trail around; each section just as breathtaking as the last. (Did you spot the picture just for you Sadie if you are reading this!) 
So it has been a few hectic days and I am now having a quieter time of reflection. Mum is becoming increasingly high maintenance now when she visits and needs a lot more attention to help her do all those little things that she would have done herself at one time – it can be a bit exhausting. On the other hand though how lucky am I to still have my mum around and that she is still able to look after herself in her little apartment with a little help from my sister. But I do fear for the future and how she will continue to cope.
I made two tiny posies – one to give to her mum and one for her two daughters in remembrance of Helen. I just quietly leave them on the doorstep – it is just a little something to let them know we are thinking of them.
It is a community in mourning, feeling the loss of a friend and neighbour – many of the locals are calling for a road barrier to be put in place now so this loss of life does not happen again in the future when the sea is at high tide. The sea that I love so much has suddenly become quite a fearful place but even so now I am back in landlocked Yorkshire I miss going to sleep with the roar of the waves in the background.
Our nearest store is – a bit too far away for a our weekly shopping but we always call in on our way to or back from Scotland at the Penrith or Kendal branch. It is packed with photographs of deliciously tempting Christmas fayre to order or buy in store interspersed with a few recipes to make.
So I collected mine yesterday and spent my elevenses this morning pouring over all the Christmas food on offer and a quick look at the recipes in the back. I find it remarkable that Booths can produce such a lovely little book and give it away free – I was a truly happy bunny.
As you may remember from last year I decided to do something different to the usual wreath on our front door so I hung my chicken wire cone 
Pack the front and sides with moss (I had collected a small heap in the summer in readiness). Find an empty jam jar and push down into the cone as far as it will fit and so it is not visible.
Remove the jar again and push some chicken wire into the jar to hold the stems steady when filling with foliage. Fill the jar with cold water and start arranging pieces of foliage. Hold the cone steady in a small bucket then lower the jar into the cone making sure it is a snug fit.
At the moment I am using some dried red hydrangea heads and a dried white one, some ivy and a few holly stems. As we get closer to Christmas I will swap these for eucalyptus, holly and Hypericum like last years.
As you can see I am no florist but it is not too difficult to get a pleasing arrangement. You could add sprayed leaves, ribbon or pretty much anything. Just remember to keep topping up the jar of water.
…a pack of watercolour notelets (right) painted by a local artist to support the Aldouran Wetland Garden and these two pretty little felted Christmas tree cards for each of my daughters – made by a local crafter.
The frilly cake band takes me back to my childhood and reminds me of Christmases past – they would appear each Christmas round our Christmas cake – at 99p I just had to have one. The packet contains an iced ginger cake – we always buy one when we are at the cottage but usually we get the un-iced version – these too are only £1 from Tesco or Morrisons but I have never seen them south of the border. I thought the iced one would be a nice treat for Christmas. 
And on the way home a few small inexpensive things for Christmas from Tebay services of all places – each of these little tissue parcels were a £1 – you will have to wait a while until I unwrap them to find out what is in them.
where the journey takes me 2 