Touches of Red

Saturday in the Bloom house and DIY is in progress. Mr. Bloom is sanding the stairs and banisters (I don't envy him!) and I am generally faffing about.

Yesterday afternoon we popped out to the craft store as I needed a few supplies. I was thrilled to find these red toadstools in the Christmas section.

I bought some of these several years ago, I can't remember where, and every year I attach them to the Christmas tree because they look really sweet and pretty on the ends of the branches. They are only made of polystyrene and had started to disintegrate and the wires fall out. I couldn't find any last year but now I have a whole new supply.

I love them so much I had to take several photos, you'll see them again later.

Mr. Bloom rather liked these little feather robin redbreasts (they look better from a distance) to put on the Christmas tree. Trouble is, I've planned to have a rather sparkly and sumptuous theme for the Christmas tree this year and I don't think the robins will quite fit in. Come to think of it, I'm not sure the toadstools will either, may have to re-think that one.

Anyway, in the meantime I have found a temporary home for the robins, on my geranium plant which I brought in today from the garden. I think they look rather cute here, it's a family of 6.

I had this geranium outside for the whole summer thinking it would grow some beautiful lush foliage ready for the winter indoors - something went wrong. During the summer it produced a rather pathetic display of red flowers. I think it probably needs a trim, still, the robins brighten it up.

On the way home yesteday we stopped off some charity shops. I found these folksy red and black wooden eggcups. They are decorative really, as if you put an egg in it plops right inside and you can't see it.

Actually, I didn't really want these but they came in a job lot with some lovely painted wooden easter eggs which I did want. There were also a couple of these matching egg-shaped pots. I didn't photograph the eggs as I'd already put them away for Easter.

I think the red makes them quite festive-looking though and I think they'd look nice dotted around other pieces on a dresser.

I hadn't set out to buy red things, but I found this pretty red spotty handkerchief glass bowl, don't come across these very often.

This juicy red apple pegboard caught my eye. I'd seen these in House of Fraser a few years ago and thought they were really sweet - until I looked at the price. This one was in my price range at 50p.

I've hung it in the kitchen in the space behind the cooker, which looked rather empty before. We hadn't tiled here as the cooker has a glass lid which protects the wall when in use. I've resisted the temptation to hang anything from the knobs, sometimes less is enough.