Southern Yacht

Saturday, 20 February 2016

Plus40Fabulous - things that make me happy

Hello there,

This months theme for Plus40Fabulous is things that make you happy.

Now, lots of things make me happy, family and friends and days spent with them. But I thought I'd look at something else that makes me very happy (and yes, will probably make one or two of you laugh).

As some of you will know, I collect smurfs - remember those little blue figurines with the annoying theme song? (I'm tempted to link that here, but I'll be kind...).

I've been collecting since I was about 8. As I child I was terrified of puppets and dolls and cartoons (I still can't watch the Muppets today without feeling panicky). So what on earth do you buy a small child that screams and cries at most things? Well, one day when I was shopping, I saw a display of smurfs. They didn't scare me, they were small, cute and tactile and most importantly, pocket money prices. I bought one and that was it, I was hooked. After that, everybody bought me smurfs as they were so damn grateful to find something I liked!

Since then, it's not stopped. With the introduction of the internet I found online communities that share the same passion. With Ebay I could add to my collection with pieces I never knew existed. And I met and made the most amazing friends from all over the world.

These people all make me so happy. We've known each other for years and they are some of the kindest most generous people you could hope to meet. And all of this through a shared love of smurfs - those little blue guys have got a lot to answer for!

Every year, we make the trip to Belgium for the largest smurf fair of the year - Blue Paradise. Here you'll find collectors and sellers from around the world of all ages. It's not just about the buying and selling, it's about catching up with old friends and having a laugh.

There never seems to be enough room in the car for all the smurfs!

So there you have it - this is what makes me very happy. When I've had a bad day, I can lose myself in my smurf collection and discuss the intricacies of markings and colour variations.

These are the other lovely ladies taking part and I'm looking forward to seeing what makes them happy as well.

Christy: http://www.sprintingwithscissors.blogspot.co.uk/
Daisy: http://daisysays.co.uk/

Kate: https://wearingmywardrobein2016.wordpress.com/
Kath: https://fatheffalump.wordpress.com/

Kaye: http://www.polishedcurves.com/

Kellie: http://www.bigfashionista.co.uk/

Leah: http://www.justmeleah.co.uk
Lisa: http://www.kitandkoboodle75.blogspot.co.uk/
Mookie: http://www.mookieslife.com/

Nikki :http://www.nattynikki.com/
Perelandra: http://www.pamperandcurves.com/

Sarah: http://www.plussizeproud.co.uk
Steph: http://misskittenheel.com/

Vicky: http://www.therandomnessoftwee.blogspot.co.uk
Yvonne: http://woosangwashere.blogspot.co.uk/

Thanks for reading

Cathy

A day out in The Wallops

Hello there,

Now, chances are unless you live in or know Hampshire, you're probably wondering what on earth The Wallops are.

The Wallops are a group of villages in Hampshire - Middle Wallop, Over Wallop and Nether Wallop. Middle Wallop is home to a British Army Base which houses The Museum of Army Flying.

Now I appreciate this isn't everyone's idea of an exciting day out, but both my hobbies and work deal with military history and aviation so when I saw a 2 for 1 offer on Groupon, it seemed too good an offer to miss.

On the day we went, the weather was glorious, a real crisp sunny winters day. But even if it was wet, it would be an ideal place to visit as most of it is indoors.

They certainly pack a lot in! And for kids (or should I say me) there was plenty of exhibitions where you poke, prod and pull stuff. I love being hands on in a museum and it's such a good way to keep children engaged. They even let you climb on some of the exhibits...

The Groupon voucher we'd bought also included a hot drink and a cake. All the cakes were homemade - and very yummy... and no, these aren't both mine...honest....

The site is a working army base, so from the cafe you can watch planes and helicopters taking off and landing. For a plane spotter, it would be easy to spend a whole day here with an endless supply of cake and tea to hand.

And to finish the day - the obligatory pose in front of a tank shot

As it was chilly day and I knew I'd be clambering around, I opted for a casual look. Jumper is from Evans (22/24), jeans from Marks and Spencer (22, old), coat from George at Asda (22) and boots are from Primark. I've mentioned these boots before, but my goodness! These are the comfiest and warmest footwear I own at the moment - best purchase ever from Primark,

I love days out like this and anything to do with history, esp military really interests me. I would definitely recommend keeping an eye out on any Groupon or similar type offers (this post isn't sponsored by any of them btw). There's a few more museums and days out I have my eye on which helps with my 16 for 16 goal of finding new places to visit.

Thanks for reading and hopefully I might have given a few of you some ideas for a day out.

Cathy
xx

OOTD - My new Joe Browns jumper, and why I cut it up

Hello there,

Oh my goodness, is it cold enough for everyone? I think I've gotten so used to the unseasonably mild weather that this cold snap has really caught me off guard.

But cold weather is the perfect time to dig out all those cosy jumpers so out came my Joe Browns jumper from Simply Be.

Now I bought this a while back and to be honest, I didn't know how to wear it. I fell in love with it, but somehow I couldn't get it to work for me. I'm 5'3 so I think that played a part in it. The skirt part of the jumper was too long. It fell just above the knees and made me look shorter than I already was. Now sensible Cathy would have returned it for a refund. But nope, I kept it and kept looking at it. I could have worn it with leggings and boots as a short jumper dress, but that really wasn't my style.

I think another reason I wasn't working for me was the ra-ra skirt. I'm old enough to remember these the first time round and I didn't like them then. So what to do? One early morning and a bright idea later and this happened:

You guessed it, I cut the bottom layer off. Now, I'm quite happy to cut up and alter older clothes, charity shop finds etc, but I don't normally do it with brand new items. But, for me, I think it works.

(please excuse the wobbly pictures, it was too damn cold to pose in the garden like normal)

Oh look - it even has pockets too!

The underskirt is attached to a lining that goes up the complete length of the jumper. Making it extra cosy without feeling too bulky, this is a size 22.

I now have a jumper that I love wearing and have worn lots in this cold weather. While I wouldn't necessarily advise buying new clothes to cut up, it is worth looking at items that you don't enjoy wearing or have fallen out of love with to see what you could do to give them a new lease of life.

And what's happening with the bits I cut off? The plan at the moment is to find a cheap denim skirt or dress so that I can sew a ruffle hem onto. And if I have enough left over, maybe a few fabric brooches as well.

Thanks for reading and I hope it's given you some ideas

Cathy
xx

Post40Fabulous - childhood influences

Hello there,

This months topic was to talk about how our teens/childhood have influenced our choices.

Now, I have to admit, this was a hard one for me. I know lots of people have childhood icons or people they admire during their teenage years, but me, nope!

Don't get me wrong, there was and is plenty of music, artists, groups etc I liked. But apart from a few years where I loved Bucks Fizz (which I'm not ashamed to admit!) and the non-stop playing of Garbage while I was attempting to write my dissertation, no artist, group or person has ever stood out for me. I don't recall ever admiring anybody's style or aspiring to be like anybody. Maybe that makes me unique? I don't know, but over the last few days, I tried hard to think if this really was right.Was I going to draw a blank on this topic??

And then I realised, there was one big, almost huge influence that was just so big, I couldn't see it for looking. As a child I was intrigued by all things American. I watched as many tv shows and films from there as I could. I loved the Bionic Woman (anyone remember that?).

Early influences - how many do you remember?

I thought Las Vegas sounded like a dreamland, the deserts were full of cowboys and everyone in New York carried a gun. As I got older, it became an obsession, a goal to visit, to go and see all the places I'd watched on TV and experience all the things that Americans take for granted.

And so I did. To date, I've visited 37 US states. I've watched sunrises in Hawaii and sunsets in Key West. Drove through desert floods in Arizona and snow in the Rockies. Ate pizza at the top of the Twin Towers in New York and days later watched them fall while sat in a bar in Las Vegas. I've met the most amazing people, and been treated to wonderful hospitality and kindness.

How can you not fall in love with views like this?

I kind of dress American when I'm there!

They say you should never meet your idol, that they can never live up your expectations. I half expected this before visiting Las Vegas, after all, this was the big dream - and you know what? It exceeded all expectations. So much so that I've revisited the city many times since. I am the person you will find wandering through the casino at 2 in the morning people watching.

So I truly think that America, it's people and culture was and still is my biggest influence. Look carefully and there's pictures of America all over the walls at home, the bookcases are filled with American books, fiction and non-fiction. One wall in the kitchen is covered with an American map and my inbox is full of American newsletters. If we could move there tomorrow, we would.

For me, it's an everlasting love and my biggest influence in terms of what I read, watch and aspire to travel to. There's nothing better than picking up a car and just heading out far away from all the tourist areas into the heartland and meeting real people. Whenever the plane lands on American soil - I feel like I've come home. I don't know how else to describe it.