Horse Chestnut Series - February

Here is our February Horse Chestnut...

 

 

Not looking much different to last month, perhaps just a hint more bud, and a couple of crows. Of course with every passing day, we get a few minutes more evening light to appreciate its still skeletal form.

As it is February, I thought it appropriate to explore some of the Horse Chestnut's romantic connections.

Indeed it has been the subject of song...

 "There beneath the boughs we used to meet
All his kisses were so sweet
All the little birdies went 'tweet-tweet'
'Neath the spreading chestnut tree"
(The Chestnut Tree by Glenn Miller)

 and verse...

 "Under the spreading chestnut tree
I sold you and you sold me
There they lie, and here lie we
Under the spreading chestnut tree"
(George Orwell)

 And what could be more romantic than a proposal of marriage?

 

In chapter XXIII of Jane Eyre, Mr. Rochester proposes marriage to Jane under "the great horse-chestnut at the bottom of the orchard,"...

...."here is the chestnut tree: here is the bench at its old roots. Come, we will sit there in peace to-night, though we should never more be destined to sit there together"...

..."My bride is here," he said, "because my equal is here, and my likeness. Jane, will you marry me?"

 

 

(Best not to dwell on the impending 'sign' from nature in the form of a lightning bolt which splits said tree in half in the night!)

 Jane is elated and accepts Mr. Rochester's proposal!!

Well she was obviously a Horse Chestnut lover!

 



Love is...

a many splendid thing!

 

With St. Valentine's Day this week, it seemed love was all around but not just romantic love, love in all its forms...

 

On Saturday I found this LOVEly card in Aldi. I loved the colours, the delicate print in the background and the subject matter of course, I can feel a little art project coming on!
 

On Sunday, my heart skipped a beat when I found this cute couple at a market…

 

 I do love some chintz! These two will fit nicely into my growing collection.
 

While the weather got less and less clement (Atlantic Storms!) as this week wore on, the flurries of snow around the country on Tuesday were just a picture…

 

Who doesn't love a light dusting of snow with their Tuesday?

 

On Wednesday, love was in the Air from Piano Sonata No. 11 as my mother and I enjoyed an evening of magical Mozart by candlelight provided by a European Baroque Ensemble and three excellent soloists...

 

Mozart knew a thing or two about love…

“Neither a lofty degree of intelligence nor imagination nor both together go to the making of genius.
Love, love, love, that is the soul of genius.”

Friday of course was Valentine's Day, the day of love!
Some red velvet cupcakes to spread the love to my fellow workmates...

 

And a romantic dinner for two at our favourite local restaurant where we celebrated our engagement, the Motte and Bailey...

 

 

Cosy surroundings, roaring fires, flickering candles, roses, champagne and amazing food, all the ingredients for a LOVEly evening with Mr. Auburn.

 

Hope you had a love filled week...

"Sometimes it feels like there are so many things we can't control, earthquakes, floods, reality shows. But it's important to remember the things we can, like forgiveness, second chances, fresh starts. Because the one thing that turns the world from a lonely place to a beautiful place, is love.
Love in any of its forms." 

The Feast Of Saint Brigid!

Today is the feast of Saint Brigid.

Last year I told you all about St. Brigid here and why I like to celebrate this feast.

St. Brigid shares the title "Patron of Ireland" with St. Patrick, and is renowned for her great generosity to the poor, her care of the sick and infirm and her rapport with animals.

I also told you the story of St. Brigid and the cross she wove from rushes off the floor to baptise her father on his death bed. Hundreds of years later this cross is still made on St. Brigid's day. It is traditionally believed that a St. Brigid's Cross hung by the door protects a house from fire and harm. A new cross is made each February 1st as the previous years cross is burned.

Well, last year I told you that I never learned to make a cross at school as most Irish children would have done. So, as promised I have learned!

St. Brigid usually brings the Spring but I don't think she could manage it today. The weather is just terrible; icy cold, wet and windy! So I am glad to report that Mr. Auburn very kindly went to the end of our garden to pick the rushes.

I am told that 12 rushes make a good cross, as mine were a little skinny I went for 16.

Starting with one rush held upright, fold a second over it to the right as shown below...

Fold another rush over the horizontal piece and turn this anti-clockwise...

Keep folding over a rush and turning anti-clockwise until you get something that looks like this...

You will recognise the traditional weave forming as you go.

At this point you are supposed to secure the ends with a flattened rush like this...

It worked for the first arm and then I resorted to string!

Now trim the ends using a scissors...

And there you have it...

My very first Crosóg Bhríde!

Okay it doesn't compare to the one I bought in Knock some years ago (which I won't be burning!) but I'm quite pleased with my first attempt!

And here it is hanging by the door to protect our little home from fire and harm...

  

Well wouldn't you know it, the rain has stopped, the clouds have parted and that is the sun shining through the front door!

Happy St. Brigid's Day!!

Horse Chestnut Series - January

I do love trees. I have been in love with a particular tree for almost 6 yrs now. It is of course the horse chestnut tree at the front of our house. Every morning I spy a circular ever-changing snapshot of this beauty through the owl window on the landing. I have often thought it would be nice to share these snapshots with you all and really appreciate the amazing changes this tree goes through in a year.

 

While they are to be seen all over Ireland the horse chestnut tree is not a native Irish species. Originating in Asia and Eastern Europe they are now considered by many to be naturalised in Ireland as they have been growing here for hundreds of years.

 

And so here it is in all its January bareness. No leaves, no flowers, no fruit, just a magnificent skeleton. It's mature trunk covered in grey-brown scaly bark. It's branches arching downwards, it's twigs curving gracefully upwards towards the winter sky. Last seasons horse-shoe shaped leaf scars clearly visible and attributing to its name.
 

"Towering high, majestic and proud

Lining street, avenue and road

Every great bough sweeping down low

Sweeping the ground with a glorious show

 

Winter sees the big sticky buds swell

Ready to burst like a magical spell

Silhouetted stark against the grey of the sky

The magnificent tree the cold will defy"
 

Farewell Tea Party!

This week one of my work colleagues retired and her farewell was carefully planned by one and all. There was a collection from which we purchased a beautiful Waterford crystal cake stand, most appropriate as the lady in question is a keen baker. Her treats of a morning, just when you needed them the most, we will miss very much! There was a lovely lunch in a local restaurant with the colleagues she worked closely with and then a surprise retirement tea party on her last day! 

 

I was up at 6am that morning packing all the cake stands, candles, china and chintz I could find into the car.
 

 

 

Everyone assembled, bought or baked an offering and the resulting spread was fantastic!

 

 

 

 

The pièce de résistance however was the amazing chocolate box cake made by one of the girls.

 

 

Absolutely a work of art like none I have ever seen. It had a coffee cake inside somewhere! It went home with the retiree, uncut, who would have the heart?

 

 

As the afternoon wore on, the mood got a little sombre with her departure imminent. I think everyone felt a little sad including myself. She will be sadly missed, her good humour and quick wit in particular! She sees her retirement as just the next stage in her life. She won't stop working; the 'work' will just be different. The following morning her alarm would not be set for 7am but a little later. And the first item on the agenda... to swim more and why not? The plan seems to be to simply do all the things she wishes to do, that perhaps she hadn't the time for up to now, the things that truly make her happy whatever they might be.

 

 

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

Mark Twain

Bhliain Nua Sásta!!

 Okay, I appreciate I'm catapulting towards the end of January here, a little late for ringing in the new year perhaps but sásta bhliain nua a thabhairt daoibh none the less!! That's happy new year to you all but sásta also means satisfied or fulfilled which I think is a nice wish for the year ahead!

 

 

Well Mr. Auburn and I greeted 2014 in style. We spent New Year's at the lovely Farnham Estate hotel in Co. Cavan with some dear friends. I'm never really one for celebrating New Year's but I so enjoyed our time at Farnham.

 

 

On New Year's Eve we had a mulled wine reception followed by a sumptuous five course meal and champagne and fireworks at midnight! Beautiful surroundings, great food, great company, what could be better?

 

The following day we awoke (not too early!) to the 'full Irish' and a day at the spa and checked out at 4pm! Late check out is where it's at folks!! It was sheer bliss and just what the doctor ordered after an exhausting Christmas countdown and thus spending Christmas very much under the weather.

 

Christmas wasn't all bad though, while he didn't manage the 48 hour days I asked for Santa did leave some beauties under the tree!

 

 I'm not big on New Year's resolutions as they tend to leave me disappointed with myself at the end of the following year! Last year my blog was my 'sort of' resolution and while I didn't do too badly, there are improvements to be made! I just don't know how you super people manage to have exciting fun-filled crafty lives and then find the time to blog about them! The answer anyone??

 

So while once again I didn't commit to any real resolutions, there are some improvements to be made which these lovely gifts are going to help with...

 

To get out and about more in the lovely Irish countryside...

 

 

To organise my thoughts if nothing else...

 

 

To inspire some home and garden improvements...

 

 

To preserve the taste of summer...

 

 

To make more 'me' time....

 

Well if I manage all the above I will be more than sásta, beidh mé a bheith os cionn an ghealach!! I'll be over the moon!!

 

Wishing you all a fulfilling 2014...

 

Beets Me!!

Leaving work on Friday evening I was delighted to be given a bag of fantastic home-grown goodies from a fellow workmate which included these beauties straight out of the ground...

 

Well I can't say I have much experience cooking fresh beets so I had a look on the net for potential recipes. Recipes, I might add, that did not require a trip to the shop as the beautiful autumn weather we had been having turned sooooo wet over the weekend.

 

I came up with Roasted Beet and Feta Salad!

 

I peeled the beets, cut them into wedges and roasted them in the oven (1 hour at 180 degrees Celsius) with a little olive oil, sea salt and garlic. I thought they looked pretty appealing at this stage!

 

 

When cooled, I used the garlicky oil to make a dressing with some balsamic vinegar, toasted some walnuts and assembled...mixed leaved with balsamic dressing, peppered salami, roasted beets, crumbled feta, and toasted walnuts!

 

 

 I'm sure there are more sophisticated beet recipes out there (suggestions welcome should I get another food parcel!) but I have to say this was delicious!!

 

Instant Art!

 

On a recent trip to Ikea, I came across some items which I thought could be the makings of some instant artwork!
 

These tiny wooden frames at €1.75 each...

 

 

...these lovely gift tags at 70c, which look like they were drawn in ink...

 

And voilà!!
 

More dust catchers for my black and cream water closet!
At the risk of over doing it now, I think I should leave well enough alone in this room! 
You can have too much of a good thing!

 

 

And because I couldn't resist these little frames, I bought them in this colour also...
 

 

So I thought what else could I put in something which has a mount the size of a postage stamp?

Why of course, a postage stamp!

 

With philately being one of my many hobbies, I had these little beauties ready for framing.

They are from a Flora and Fauna series from the year Mr. Auburn and I were born.

 

 

Just one problem, four stamps, three frames, think it's back to Ikea for me!

 

To be continued......