Roses, Vintage Finds and Friendship

Reporting from a house which is slowly getting organised.

I admit, things might go a wee bit faster if I did not take time to smell the roses.

But..that's no fun!

I thought I would be inventive.

I have been taking pics of our belongings for our shipping records.

Well...kind of.

ok..maybe by this point I got a tad carried away...

but they behaved so well....

just a few more...

Mr. H left on Saturday...as he climbed into the car on the

way to the airport he said something about me not

getting distracted and keeping my eye on the packing.

At least I think that is what he said...

Before I get back to work...

I am sending my deepest and sincerest thanks

to one lovely lady who is the reason I have

all of the items shown above. We spent a day together and

I took her to a few of my favourite spots, Loseley Park 

and Bridge Road Antiques. Her excitement was contagious, 

we think alike and the result was a few treasures.

I will miss our excursions..they have been so memorable.

She helped me find my writing voice and introduced me 

to a wonderful side of Paris I had not seen before...

here and here. She is a remarkable woman...

Thank You Vicki.. :)

images~jeanne

flowers from my garden

The best remedy...

Reflections of my 'time out'  place.

I am procrastinating...but...I always say, when the spirit moves you..you just have to go with it. In the midst of sorting, moving and shuffling our belongings, I stopped and looked around. This time next month we will have arrived in our new home, new country. I am trying not to feel nostalgic about it...moving away from England. This is always the hard part. We have been here two and a half years, our shortest posting. This is when the 'should have, could have, wished we had' starts to move in. I try not to dwell on those thoughts, they never really get you anywhere. We have had a wonderful experience in England..it has changed our lives in more ways than one. 

Two and a half years ago, I sat at my computer, feeling much the same about moving from New Zealand. We had lived in Auckland for four years...roots were set. I started this blog and a few others to help me with the transition. It worked.

I wrote and wrote and wrote...and I felt better...Cry me a river

I thought about my friends and realised something...Best Friends

I reflected on life...Expat Life: comforting thoughts
I kept my sense of humour...Can I please, please, please
and then we arrived...First Impressions

All the while.. many of you left comments and offered encouragement, just as you have done about our move to Vietnam. I can't tell you how much that means to me

. 

I came across a quote today, by Winston Churchill.

A pessimist sees the difficulty 

in every opportunity; 

an optimist sees the opportunity

in every difficulty.

I am optimistic and I am still keeping my sense of humour... strange as it may be. Last week, Mr. H and I spent time going through our belongings deciding what should go and what should stay. For 25 years, I have watched him hold on tightly to his possessions...the bags upon bags of t-shirts won at his college rowing regattas, steamer trunks filled with old comic books, knick knacks from his summers in Maine and countless other objects that he could not bare to part with. 

I had visions of Steve Martin playing a scene in the movie, 'The Jerk'...the one where he wanders

around claiming all the objects he needs...arms full, shouting out that it is all that he needs. I spent a week acting out the part...every time Mr. H picked up another object that he had to keep...I pretended I was Steve Martin.

Laughter is always the best remedy... don't you think?



http://youtu.be/4VbI5zcB8Ac

Winston Churchill quote

My Dressing Table...deconstructed

'Woman reading at a Dressing Table
by Henri Matisse, 1919
 via

I want to send a big heartfelt thanks to the many kind comments on my last post.

I really and truly and sincerely thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Speaking of heart...
I have had a fascinations with dressing tables...ever since I received
my first at the age of ten in 1967. My mother and father chose well
as the notion of having a dressing table has stayed with me ever since.

Christmas 1967 and my first dressing table.

I have to be honest...my dressing tables have not been very glamorous
over the years and  I wouldn't say I am the frilly, ruffly type.
I love looking at them but I have something else in mind.

via

I am fasincated by dressing tables.
They can say so much about a person. 

via

My dressing tables have come in all shapes and sizes over the years.

some built in..most free standing. Space has often been at a premium so I have 

made do with what I could. I have been looking for just the right table

but it has eluded me. I know what I want but finding it has been difficult.

via

I consider a few things when placing my dressing table. Good lighting is essential.

I look for natural light near or in front of a window...with a view. This is often

where I start my day. Make-up, hair styling, jewellery..the lighting has to be just right.

via

I  also like to find a spot that is quiet...my dressing table sits in the master bedroom, 

a room where I know I can go if I need time to myself. The kids know that if

Mom is in there with the door closed, she needs 'time out'. I like my 'time outs'.

via

As many of you know, we are expats, travelling nomads of sorts

ready to embark on another adventure. I travelled to Vietnam in 

April to have a look at our next home. I breathed a sigh of a relief

as I passed through the master bedroom. For in it sits a window,

with good light and a view of a garden. :)

With that in mind....

Mr. H and I were doing a bit of antiquing yesterday. He wanted

to see my favourite haunts and I was only to happy to oblige.

When I spotted this dressing table in the corner of the room

I could hear him thinking out loud... 'oh dear'.

 Have you ever come across furniture that was calling your name?

This thought quickly came to mind as I glanced upon this dressing table.

It spoke to me loud and clear. 

Dressing table speaking to me...

Weathered, worn and tattered...no matter. Behind every cloud there is a silver lining.

When the dealer told me the price, I did not even bargain. I was too excited.

My expectations were much higher. I paid for it as quickly as I could 

and left with an extra skip in my step.

It has draws and secret hiding places. I love secret hiding places.

Best of all, under the skirting I found this label

from Peter Jones of Sloane Square.

Purchased September 7, 1964 by Mrs. R Shaw.

Three years before my first dressing table. 

It was a sign!

I have a plan.

When we move to Vietnam, I am going to take my time 

and find just the right fabric and accents.

 If it were in better shape, I would leave it as is.

Just my style.

Speaking of style, some of you may remember my travelling chaise?

Mr. H spotted this umbrella yesterday and now I am thinking....

I really need to stop procrastinating and get back to work!

Before I go, a few of my haunts...

Bridge Road Antiques

77 Bridge Road

East Molesey, KT8 9HH

Palace Antiques

29 Bridge Road

East Molesey, KT3 9ER

The French House

41-43 Parsons Green Lane

London SW6 4HH

Living Life Large

My favourite photo of my father 'Tom'.

I have two reasons to celebrate this Father's Day.

The first is that Mr. H surprised us with a visit yesterday. We were not

 expecting to see him until we arrived in Vietnam next month. 

In the early morning hours he arrived, a bottle of my

favourite champagne in his arms. What a guy, just in time for Father's Day.

There is another man I think of and one who I celebrate quietly, 

in my own way, every Father's Day, my dad. It has been several

years since he passed but a day doesn't go by that I do not think of him.

On Father's Day I take out all my photo boxes, files and folders and

lose myself in them. I always start with one letter...the one that says it all.

My brother-in-law, Scott, wrote the following for my father's eulogy. 

Every time I read the letter, it fills my heart. 

He captured the essence of the man and what a man he was. 

My dad, a father to six children who still miss him dearly.

Scott wrote...

It never dawned on me until I sat down to write this how very appropriate it was that I met Tom in Las

Vegas. The bright lights, that reminds me of his holiday displays. The atmosphere is filled with the

same eternal sense of optimism that surrounded Tom. The gamblers unshakable conviction that the

big win is right around the corner. The belief that life should be lived large.

Living large at Christmas.
My father's Christmas lights in our front yard.

We had an almost instant connection, and spent a lot of time talking over that first weekend and many other times on his porch. I learned the first night that Tom had two things he was passionate about: his family and his work. He spoke a lot of how he cared for his family and how proud he was of his children. He wanted everything for them. Unlike many fathers when they speak of what they want for their children, he wanted his children to have things their way, to be happy in their own way. He made it clear that their happiness was his happiness.

When he talked about his work, it wasn't about deals or profits, it was about "the trill of the chase" and the pride he felt teaching his sons a way to make a living. He told me "Life's too short to do something you don't enjoy". Though the topic was business, it was clear he meant more. Many conversations over the years the topic would concern his philosophies in life. One strong belief he held is that people should always pursue what they wanted rather, than wait around for it to happen.

Tom knew how to live. He truly believed that life was meant to be a pleasure, and pursued life the way he went about everything: full tilt and in a big way. A meal at this home was never just a meal...it was a feast. A party wasn't a party unless it was a big affair. He had two Christmas trees because one was always obscured by all the presents. And pleasure wasn't pleasure unless it was shared, and the more people he shared it with, the more he enjoyed it.

My father... living large on the sea.

Tom was the most giving person I ever met, the only person I've ever known who always gave selflessly, He would actually seem embarrassed when someone thanked him, as if he thought that, had he given enough, there would be no room for thanks. He rarely spoke of what he did for people...he just did it. Tom showed his love through actions more than words, and his actions showed that he always thought of the happiness of others, and that there weren't enough words to express how much he loved his family more than anything in the world.

Tom's actions gave pleasure and happiness to everyone who has ever known him. Remembering that happiness is remembering Tom.

Remembering my dad, 

who gave me more happiness 

than a daughter could wish for.

Father and daughter living large with dance and a kiss.

And when great souls die,

after a period peace blooms,

slowly and always

irregularly. Spaces fill

with a kind of

soothing electric vibration.

Our senses, restored, never

to be the same, whisper to us.

They existed. They existed.

We can be. Be and be

better. For they existed.

from

'When Great Trees Fall'

by Mary Angelou

here

with special thanks to Scott

for making each Father's Day 

so special to me.

Winning Bathing Beauties and a Peignoir

via

I have two requests for you.

The first is to join me in congratulating the three winners

of my English Givewaway.

Three ravishing beauties.
Three ravishing winners.

From the blue shores of Sydney, the blue book,
Her Ladyship's Guide to Running One's Home by Caroline Taggart....
 to Francesca @ Postcard Pictures

To the woman who could never say no to red tartan and plaid,
to one who loves her Scottish tea, the book 'Tea and Cake ' to
 Deb from Aberdeen, Scotland.

Yellow to me is about fun and warmth, two things The Queen seems to have
in spades. The Solar Queen will soon be winging her way to Melbourne, Australia
to the lovely Jane @ My Pear Tree House

Thank you all for responding to the last of my English giveaways.
There will be more...I have a few in mind once we settle into Vietnam.


My next request is to help me decide what to do about the bathing season.
I really, really, really do not like this season but with a tropical climate, I have
to face facts...or stay in an air conditioned house all day.

via

I am more of a 'cover-up' kind of girl.

via

Summer hats are easy... I have decided that one can never have to many.

via

Ruching in swimsuits is something that I am growing more and more fond of.

via

I think this one has potential...maybe in black? or red?

What do you think?

via

or perhaps from Anthropologie, something black.

via

But then again...I took one look at this cape 

and thought that it could be the solution to all my problems.

via

I think Esther Williams had the right idea in this cover up.

via

Hold that thought...I took one look at the image below,

'Peignoir in Soft Breeze' and thought...

it is white, it is light...and one could comfortably 

stand on a windy veranda looking out to sea in this outfit. 

It has sun worthy potential and would suit 

a reluctant bather like me perfectly.

"Peignoir in Soft Breeze"- 1936 Martin Munkacsi

Now.. I have to ask.

How do you hit the beach/pool?

All swimsuit or all cover-up?

Or are you like me...

waiting it out for sweater weather.

Yes..I know what some of you are thinking.

"But she is moving to Vietnam 

where it is hot, hot, hot."

To this I say...

Peignoirs work in air conditioning too don't they?

All I need is a really big fan....  :)

Happy thoughts...Happy Weekend 

to one and all!!

Jeanne xx

images as noted above

The day has come...GIVEAWAY

Personal note card of 'Sempe Dancing in the Park' @ New Yorker
Artist: Jean-Jacques Sempé

I knew one day it would happen...I just wasn't sure when.

I picked up this card in a shop a few months ago...

thinking that someday...this is how I would feel. 

I have been waiting....

Ok..

so I am not prancing through a garden,

I am not soaking up sunshine and

thankfully, I am not wearing a red vest or that grey onesie

but I do own a pair of lime green garden gloves. :)

I do have a big smile...a giddy one...

One may wonder if I am losing my marbles,

I think my dog does.

If you are like me,

we know that... such is life.

Giddy, crazy, happy, delirious...

mad as a hatter in our own wonderland.

We wouldn't have it any other way.

Tip toe through life?

Couldn't if I tried.

How about you?

On that note....

I mustn't forget to remind you 

about my little giveaway.

The Special Edition Solar Queen 

The Solar Queen is in the yellow dress that she wore 

to the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton last year. 

She has a little solar panel on her purse allowing her 

to wave proudly all day long. My Queen stands front and center

on my kitchen windowsill, giving me the royal wave as I wash along.

Tea And Cake 

by Emma Block

click on link here to view book

"There is no better way to enjoy a naughty slice of cake than with a steaming pot of your favourite tea, brewed to perfection. And whether you want to throw a tea party with your friends, or monobrew with pudding for one, this delightful book on tea and cake contains everything you need to know. Starting with how to make the perfect cuppa to planning a tea party from invites to soundtrack, to washing your vintage tea set without any tears you are bound to be the hostess from cake heaven. Packed with over 50 teatime recipes, including classics like Victoria sponge to modern fancies such as whoopie pies, cake pops and more, Tea and Cake is a charming must-have for ladies who take tea, 

and anyone who can't resist a slice of cake."

via Amazon UK

Her Ladyship's Guide to Running One's Home

by Caroline Taggart

 "Her Ladyship, star of Her Ladyship's Guide to the Queen's English and Her Ladyship's Guide to Modern Manners, turns her attention to another tricky area of modern life: how to run a home * She gives you the proper advice on burning domestic issues ranging from everyday housework and how to behave around house guests to dealing with cleaners and childminders * The perfect gift for anyone who wants to run their home 'properly' but practically Ever wondered how to fit the ironing into an already overcrowded schedule? Or needed advice on how to deal with house guests whose political opinions you abhor? In this charming follow-up to the popular Her Ladyship's Guide to the Queen's

English, Her Ladyship dons the mantle of a modern Mrs Beeton to provide the answers to these

pressing domestic questions, and many more." 

via Amazon UK

The giveaway ends on Friday, 15 June at 6:00pm.

If you would like to enter, leave a comment below.

If you have already done so earlier in the week and would like

to comment again..that is ok too! 

If you are unable to leave a comment, 

you can write to me 

jeannecollageoflife@gmail.com

and I will enter your name for you. 

Over and Out. 

:)

Detective Work-London

click on photo to view larger image

The pitter patter of raindrops can be heard on rooftops 

and sidewalks around London.

I ventured in today, walking across the Vauxhall Bridge.

With rain, wind and an inverted umbrella in one hand

and my trusty iPhone in the other, I leaned over the railing...

phone extended as far as I could..to catch this lovely lady.

She is one of four bronze figures created by English sculptor, 

Alfred Drury in 1907.

The sculptures are situated above the piers on the bridge.  

Each one represents a discipline of study..

Science, Fine Arts, Education and Local Government.

The sculpture above represents Science. 

In the photo, I managed to detect... 

One newly budded branch reaching out to embrace a woman of science.

Two lion's heads with steel rings to warn of impending floods. 

One junction, where the River Effra meets the River Thames.

One woman with an umbrella walking along the forecourt 

of the headquarters of the British Secret Intelligence Service ('M16' building).

A bit of scientific work on my part but I think I found it all.

Did I miss anything?

image~jeanne

detective work~ wikipedia