Tenterfield and Tuesday Treasures

We were away again this weekend.  This time we travelled to Tenterfield to meet some friends of ours from Rockhampton.  Each year we try to meet somewhere approximately half way and go out to dinner.

Once again the countryside was looking magnificent.  However, for most of the trip up we had drizzly rain.

When we arrived the shops were about to close, but I found this lovely old cushion in a second hand shop for the princely sum of $2.00.  She has had a little repair job to the fabric above her head, but is generally in good condition.   I can’t get over the amount of work in her skirt.  It is all long and short satin stitch. Notice the darker stripe where the maker obviously had a slightly different dye lot of thread.

We had intended to ride up, but due to the weather forecast decided to take the car. We are so glad we did, as after lunch we all piled in the car and went for a drive into the National Park.  We had no idea where we were headed and when we saw a sign for Boonoo Boonoo Falls headed that way.  Hopefully they would be worth seeing, following all the rain.

We weren’t disappointed.

While we were down there it started to rain again, so not as many photos as we’d have liked of the wild flowers.  This little fellow was just poking his head out of the ground.

Then we kept driving and found Mt McKenzie lookout.  Isn’t it a stunning view!!  …. Well, apparently it is on a good day.

After a pleasant evening with our friends we headed towards home on Sunday.

We took a detour through Ben Lomond.  I spent many school holidays in the area with family, but they have all left the district now.

We saw a few old relics along the way.

Our next stop was at a country pub for the night.  We arrived in time to watch the Chooks get done by the Dragons in the grand final.  Oh well, maybe next year.  It was a great atmosphere to watch the game.

However, the main reason for our stay in that area was to catch up with Bec of Oh Sew Busy and her family. It was so good to finally meet her.

She gave me this little gift to use when I take some small stitching away with me.  It will be very handy and I love Verna.

I really enjoyed the company of their children and was given these colourful drawings to take home.

Of course, despite saying we must not forget to take a photo of us both, we forgot.  Doh!  Not to worry.

You will probably be wondering by now when I will get to my Tuesday Treasure.  Well, this week it is friends.  New friends, old friends, friends that you see all the time and ones that you very  rarely see.  They are all such special treasures that contribute so much to our lives.

Pop over to Clare’s to see what other treasures there are this week.

By the way, we intend to sleep in our own bed next weekend.

Green Treasure

I’m running a bit late with sharing my Treasure this week, but better late than never.

I started collecting Green Depression Glass just before we were married.

As I’ve said before, I’ve always been quite sentimental, especially with things relating to my Grandma.  Whenever we were at her house, morning and afternoon tea would be served on a green glass sandwich plate very similar to this.

Grandma’s has a simpler edge.  The original is still at Uncle Chris’.  I know of at least three different edging patterns on these plates and I would have sworn I had one like Grandma’s but apparently not.  I’ll have to remedy that. 

Just before our wedding I saw a photo in a Better Homes and Gardens magazine of a kitchen with lots of green glass and cream and green vintage kitchenalia.  I commented to one of my friends that I liked it and she and another friend then snuck off and  bought quite a few pieces of glass for my kitchen tea gift.  This was back in the days when it was very plentiful and lovely big bowls cost around $2.00.

The collection has grown from there, mainly from garage sales and white elephant stalls, to the stage that I don’t really look for it now as I have no room to house it.  I don’t know any of the technical side of it, I just collect it because I like it.

However, this vase has very special meaning, as it was Grandma’s.  Uncle Chris gave it to me for Christmas one year, which was just lovely.

I actually have three of this design, but I can tell which was Grandma’s as it has a big chip on the base, you can just see it at the front.  It may be worth less because of the chip, but to me it is priceless.

Pop over to Clare’s to see what other treasures are on show this week.

Sydney Sidecar Rally 2010

We had a another weekend of motorcycling this week.  Now that the weather is warming up there are lots of events around the traps.

This time we went to the Sidecar Rally held beside the Macquarie River on the Bridle Track.  The track was one of the routes from Bathurst to Hill End during the gold rush era and is still quite a narrow, winding, dirt road.  It is actually closed further on due to a rockfall from all the recent rain.

We took “Olga” the old girl this time and she performed well.  The rough roads don’t bother her at all.  Our camping site had water views and everything was lovely and green.

It was a really friendly, family oriented rally and wasn’t too big, which was nice.  The fellows love checking out all the different set ups.  Everyone has a different idea on what will work best.

While Mick checked them all out I stitched.  You can always fit a little bit of stitching in when you pack.

The fellow who owns this one was having a bit of fun.  He comes from Melbourne and puts sidecars on a lot of bikes for people. He won “Best Engineered Sidecar”.

To Mick’s delight, he won “Best Sidecar” at the rally.  He was chuffed.  He won “Best Engineered” with the other sidecar a couple of years ago.

This morning there was a slight mist, so it was nice around the fire.

Unlike yesterday, the sun came through fairly quickly.

It ended up a beautiful sunny morning.

So, once again, I sat and stitched.  I got quite a bit done yesterday afternoon and this morning.  A very pleasant way to pass the time.

The Bridle Track is a rather minor road, but on our way home we decided to detour via an even more minor road,”Box Ridge Road”.   We had to open gates, wait for chooks to get out of the way, go through water, dodge the rough bits of the road and hope the rather meagre brakes held up down the really steep bits.

We ended up on top of the world.  This country is normally  quite desolate, but at the moment looks a picture.

Now that the weather is finally warming up at home the local canola is coming into flower and looking spectacular.

And when we arrived home we were greeted by this sweet little heartsease which has self sown in the pavers.

So, all in all, it was a really enjoyable weekend.

Wash Cloth Swap

My swap recipient in this great swap organised by Jodie of Jellywares was Tracy.  I hadn’t discovered Tracy’s blog before, so spent an enjoyable time reading.

Now that Tracy has received her wash cloths I can share a photo of what I sent.

  

It was fun getting out the knitting needles again, so thanks Jodie for arranging this swap.

Tuesday Treasure

Mick and I met in mid December 1984.  He had been working his way around Australia, travelling in an old school bus with some mates, for the previous 18 months and had come home for Christmas.  At the end of January he was to ride his motorcycle to Queensland to be best man at his mate’s wedding and then continue riding to Darwin to catch up with the bus again. I knew of him, but didn’t know him.

We met through a workmate of mine and hit it off straight away.  On the second day we met he asked me if I would like to enter into “a not so serious relationship until the end of January”. That sounded ideal.  No strings attached, no pressure, just someone to hang out with.

Christmas came and I gave him the usual gift when you don’t know someone very well – a record voucher.  Mick gave me this!

 

I couldn’t believe it.  It was the sweetest necklace with a real diamond.  Did I feel inadequate with the gift I gave him, or what.

The end of January came and Mick rode his bike to Queensland to his mate’s wedding and then turned around and rode home again.  He was the one that was thought to be the least likely to settle back here, but in the end he was the only one who came home early.

We were engaged at the beginning of February, after only knowing each other for seven weeks, and, as they say, the rest is history.

Pop over to Clare’s to see some other treasures.

Tottenham Part 2 – Far Cairn Rally.

After our little detour to the Trash and  Treasure we kept on our merry way to Tottenham.  We were lucky with the weather, after another wet week, but we saw very little sun.

What we did see were lovely paddocks of wheat and canola. They were so tall and lush after the miserable, stunted crops of the last few years.

We stopped for morning tea in Parkes at the park.

Before travelling through Bogan Gate.

There was water over the road at some places. This one was a little deeper than it looked and just moments after this photo I was drenched.  THE CAMERA WAS ALSO DRENCHED. I dried it out as best I could and put up with the wet lap…just as well my jeans were a dark colour or it would have looked like I’d had a little accident.

Once we arrived in Tottenham we caught up with our other friends from Bathurst and set up camp.  The showground was a picture with manicured lawns and excellent amenities…very civilized for a rally…. and  very different from the last couple of rallies when it was so terribly dry.

Then it was back to town where we had a lovely lunch in the one and only cafe.

 

The rally is called the “Far Cairn Rally”, as Tottenham is the closest town to the Geographical Centre of New South Wales.  The cairn is actually about 40kms out of town and Mick and I weren’t going to come all this way without seeing it.  We were a bit iffy about the dirt road, with all the rain they’d had, but it was excellent.

When we reached the cairn we were the only two there, so we played with the cameras.

 

We’d seen quite a few wild flowers on our way up, and to my delight, there were lots around the cairn.  We’d seen drifts of these little white flowers.

When you get up close, they are the most delicate paper daisy.

I don’t know what this bush was, but it was covered in little red flowers.

And of course these delicate little blue star flowers are always pretty.

Purple daisies growing wild, the same ones you can buy from your garden centre.

This everlasting daisy was beautiful and stood nearly three feet high.

  Just gorgeous.

We then stopped for a photo opportunity at a creek.  The reflections were stunning.  I was disappointed that all my photos turned out cloudy.  There must have been a bit of residual moisture in my camera, which fogged up the lens. Fortunately, it seems to have cleared again now.

Back at the rally we had a pleasant evening sitting  around the fire.  Apparently the rally was smaller this year due to two other rallies being held on the same weekend, which was a pity, as this rally is a major fund raiser for assisting motorcycle accident victims.

 

Sunday was just a leisurely trip back home.

It was a great weekend away and we hope to make it out there again next year.  Now it is back to work for another week.

Cheers

Janice

Tottenham and Flea Market Finds

We went to Tottenham this weekend. 

Why?

Well, the BMW Touring Club were having a rally out there, and we’d never been to Tottenham.  It’s as good an excuse as any.

So, we set off bright and early on Saturday with our friends Andrew and Lyn.  First stop was a loo break at Manildra.  When we pulled up I noticed this over the road from the park.

It was a Trash and Treasure Market run by the pre-school.  Lyn and I made a bee line for the hall.  It doesn’t matter that we were on motorcycles, you can always fit something little in.  Anyway, we had packed light, but still had all the panniers on the bike, just in case.

Initially we didn’t see much, then eagle eyed Mick spotted some boxes all made up.  In the $2 box and $3 box he spied some green depression glass.  Well done.

Then, in the $5 box I spied this.

Nah! It couldn’t be. So I turned it over.

I told Mick I was buying this box.  He told me not to be stupid until I showed him what was in my hand.  I was not leaving that box there, even if I had to carry it on my lap all weekend.

It was then that I asked the lady on the desk if it was $5 for the box or $5 for each item in the box.

She assured us that it was definitely $5 for the entire box. I took the 70s Japanese tea set out of the box and said I’d just take the rest.

This is what was left in the box.  I was a little excited to say the least. It wasn’t until I was wrapping it all that I truly started to grasp what was underneath the other tea set.

There is a hairline crack on the base of the milk jug and some slight crazing on the cake plate.  Other than that, apart from being dusty, there was not a mark on it, not one chip.  I think I got the bargain of the century.  I never thought I’d ever own a Royal Doulton Tea Set.  I’m still dumbfounded. 

By the way I also bought two cute saucers for $1 each.

And how did we fit it all in?  No worries, Mick did a bit of a repack and the box fitted just nicely in the top box.  Excuse the dusty bike, but you get that out that way.

 

Now I just have to reshuffle the big display cabinet to fit it in, but I think I’ll manage.

As for the rest of the weekend.  I’ll have to save that for another day.

It has been ages since I’ve had anything to report for Flea Market Finds, so it has been nice to play again.  You’ll find other great finds over here.