What a treat! When it seems that the supply of good, unused vintage yarn has finally dried up then just a little more turns up here and there. In 3 and 4 ply too – perfect for fair isle knits and crochet projects. And at bargain prices it’s all the more welcome to supplement the depleting supplies of new yarn when the cost [...]

There were a couple of  vintage toys lingering about the place and in need of some attention. It was time for the animal hospital: Firstly this little lamb was in a poorly way. He was already threadbare in places, his tail had obviously received attention in the past. Eyes missing and almost no nose left. But his [...]

 The Girl’s Own Store bantams are getting back into the swing of egg laying after their Winter break. This is a real sign that Spring will soon be here. Folklore has is that chickens start laying again on St Valentines day. This is nonsense of course, it having much more to do with day length [...]

What to do? Sunday afternoon and the need for a sweet teatime treat. But not so much as a rich tea biscuit in the house, ingredients in the cupboard very limited and the nearest supermarket a 10 mile round trip away. This was an emergency. But there was flour and just enough butter and vegetable fat [...]

For those who don’t really like traditional Christmas cake there is a delicious alternative. Tunis Cake is a lemon flavoured madeira cake topped with an extremely thick and luscious layer of chocolate. In the 1970′s the one made by McVities was decorated with exuberant frills of pink and yellow icing. Traditionally it is decorated with marzipan fruits, but since these [...]