Circle Of Friends Award

The lovely Annie from Birdcages and Butterflies recently gave me this award. The conditions of accepting the award are to list five things I like doing and then to pass the award on to five more bloggers I would like to know a little more about. So here goes ....

1)Pottering around charity shops, car boot sales, flea markets and generally anywhere I might find some vintage treasure (that includes the local tip where they sell things on). I seem to have developed a real aversion to proper shops and only venture in to town when I absolutely have to. There is nothing better than getting up early on a warm , sunny morning on a Sunday in the summertime and heading off to a boot sale. We always take a picnic of fresh coffee and croissants and a rug to sit on next to the car when we have finished. I usually spread out all of my finds for closer inspection.

These are some of this week's finds including a lovely Deco tea set. This wasn't cheap by charity shop standards but still a bargain for such a complete and pretty set. There's also an old BOAC fan and various bags of vintage buttons and buckles as well as some pretty china posy ornaments and a child's gondola basket that was only 10p !

2) Reading- I do love reading but seem to get very little time to do it any more. I read every night before going to sleep, it can be a novel, a reference book, magazines or the newspaper. I love curling up on the sofa with a snuggly eiderdown, a large mug of Earl Grey tea and a pile of my favourite magazines.

3) Going for walks with Josh my loveable and naughty rescue dog. He is a Bearded Collie crossed with a Border Collie and seems to enjoy herding me around the

house like one of his flock. It is so relaxing to take him out for a long walk and watch him run around so excitedly. He is great fun and makes us smile every day even though some days he can be very naughty !

4)Visiting new places- I love visiting new places both in the UK and abroad. In December I took my lovely girl on a trip to New York which was a real adventure. I love the British countryside too and especially the coast. One of my favourite places is the North Devon coast but parts of the coast in Northern Ireland are stunning too

I have had lots of holidays in Northern Ireland and there is always somewhere new

to explore. I love history and wherever I go in England I try and visit a National Trust property or site. We have been members for years and have visited some

wonderful places.

5) 'Home is where the heart is '- I love just spending time at

home with family and on my own. Life is so hectic and work so demanding the bits of time I get just to relax at home are precious. The photos are of some of the windows in my house. There is a lot of original stained glass but where there was plain glass Mr Cornerhouse had windows made to his design. He had the heart windows made for me to go in the kitchen shortly after we moved in. The colours don't show up too well on the photo but the heart is a gorgeous deep pink and the little diamonds are also shades of pink. They cast wonderful patterns around the room when the sun is shining.

Now to pass on the award, this hasn't been easy because I follow so many great blogs but I have had to narrow it down to five so here they are....

Andi- andisenglishattic

Clair-pepperpi

Bridie-vintageflair1

Wendy-Wendy House

Karen-Tilly Rose