Bundy Mini Break comes to an end - and after my return home....

An end to my Mini Break .......

Unfotunately Day 10 was an early start for the drive to Hervey Bay to catch the plane home to Sydney.  Bundaberg does have an airport but it doesn't take the large jets, so to fly direct there costs three times as much.  Jan was generous and offered to collect me from Hervey Bay and also drive me back there for the return flight.

a mini disaster.......

You will have noticed a distinct lack of photos of the lovely Tuscan Villa lately.  Well, unfortunately there was a construction disaster with the roof.  Jan has been waiting for some replacement tiles to arrive, and they haven't as yet so things have ground to a standstill.  .  To further compound the situation the furniture kits that Jan has ordered haven't arrived either because poor Karen Carey is very ill.  So the whole project  has been put aside until such time as everything arrives, which is unlikely to be in time for everything to be done in time for the Fair.  That is just 4 weeks away now, so Jan is going to finish off a project that she has been working on and display that instead.  Of course she is very disappointed not to be able to continue with the Villa but philosophical too.  And I was keen for her to exhibit Sea Cliff anyway, so I am pleased about that aspect of it all.

& a change of name for the cottage .......

I don't know why but my feet and ankles swelled terribly on the flight home, and were very painful indeed.  Note to self: do not ever take only brand new, unbroken-in sandals away next time I go away.  My left ear also blocked totally with the change in pressure and won't unblock, even a full week later.  Go figure. 

So I haven't been feeling wonderful.  And I've been spending time making flowers for the garden around the cottage.  I remembered all too well the patience required to make clematis vines - and the experience of making another one over a good three days has shown me that my recollection is quite accurate. I think I have used a full sheet of flowers and another of leaves to make this climbing vine.  That's probably equivalent to two kits.

 I changed the garden arch to a wider one, but made the mistake of leaving it the brown colour instead of painting it white or pale green.  The white flowers at the base do brighten it up a bit but unfortunately the lovely bright clematis flowers don't show to their best advantage on the brown.  And there is no way at all that I am even considering removing the stems to re-paint the arch, even if I could - which I doubt.

As for the change of name, it could hardly continue to be called 'The English Cottage', could it?  So Miss Emmaline and I put our heads together and decided that since the garden will feature lots of hollyhocks (which I've also been making, samples below) - that would be a perfect name: Hollyhock Cottage.

Of course these are just the first of several that will be in the garden - when I became tired of gluing tiny little clematis leaves (around 1/16" )  onto the stems I changed to doing some of the hollyhocks.  I am still waiting for my flower kits to arrive; I ordered a whole pile more of them about 2 weeks before I left for Bundaberg and they still haven't arrived, which is most unusual.   And I know Susan posted them the day after I ordered them, so there is something strange going on with the mail from the US.

Now if only I could find the shutters for the cottage I could make them up and attach them and get on with the window boxes and climbing vines!  I was sure that I had packed them in the kit, along with the quilling paper strips for the skirting boards (baseboards) - but neither were there when I arrived and I have been unable to locate them since I've been home.  When I took things out to check the kit before I left (I had planned to do the plastic with primer but ran out of time) they must have been left out.  Very careless of me.

Now I need to make lots more flowers from kits  for the garden at the front and the side with the birdhouse..  For the other  sides I will probably use landscaping shrubbery and floral foam,but the cottage cannot be attached to the base properly until my LED lights arrive and the wiring is completed.  Hopefully it will be in time for the Fair - or else I will have to fudge by adding greenery  to cover the join and leave the cottage loose.

And of course there are all those extras still to add to the interior.  That is always enjoyable.  Hope you noticed the book on the tray - it is a scanned copy of the one I am reading at the moment.  And I have the pictures selected to hang on the wall.  I'm looking for some ornaments, and waiting for some oddments to arrive in the post.

So as usual - keep posted.......