A room full of curious things .......

As we have no television, and haven't done so for nearly ten years, the focal point of our living room is the fireplace. We have fires almost every night from when it gets chilly in October until it is too warm in the spring. The room is very important to us and is filled with gathered and found things from our travels and oddments bought because we loved them.
This is the only room in the house with white walls. I didn't want it that way but that is how it has ended up. White walls, to me, are un-painted ones. I have an unhealthy urge to paint all walls in lovely colours and surround myself with interesting, unusual and usually colourful bits and pieces. Dust gatherers I call them! Apparently these white walls are showing off our fabulously colourful sofas. No pictures of them though today. I thought I'd take you on a tour of the mantlepiece as it is full of an ever changing assortment of bits and, inevitably, dust, and a couple of other parts of the room too. So, deep breath - off we go .....

1. Three ceramic discs bought in Zion, Utah. Two have faces on and one a hand with a tree in the palm. We spent a fabulous holiday walking in the National Parks in Utah - eating smash and corned beef hash round our little camp fire and drinking Jack Daniels out of mugs.
2. An original John Bond painting 'The Groundsmen' bought on a total whim after having been given a bit of money that was meant to be saved or to do something responsible with. I saw it and I bought it. End of. Oh the luxury of that moment of wealth!
3. A little picture of fish by Christina Ulander
4. The metal dragon we bought at a craft fair but didn't have any money on us! We wanted it sooo much that we drove all the way home just to get the money to pay for it and only just made it back before the fair shut it's gates.

5. A ceramic pot with bird on top by Susie Lear.
6. My Christmas present this year - a ceramic peapod!
7. The Dragon Pot - by Eddie Kent - bought at another craft fair. It has holes all round it and a glittery inside so when you take the lid off and peer in it looks very magical.
8. see 5 above
9. A clock also by Susie Lear. We've had if for around 10 years and those birdies are about to come unstuck. I brought it home from Liberty's on the bus. We've moved house four times and the birds' beaks are still un-damaged.
10. A very small pointy wooden pot made from diseased beech (I think) wood - the spread of the fungus gives the amazing patterns in the wood.
Also: A small curled up crouched figure - a present for my husband one birthday.
Also: a strange piece of wood, all worn smooth, with a turquiose stone pushed into a hole in the centre (put in by me) - described to the boys as a goblin charm we found in the woods!
11. Two little bees. We spent another one of our holidays, pre-kids, pre-marriage, pre-everything mundane, hiking in Utah. (ahhh those days........). We had spent almost all our dollars but had a few coins left. My husband went wandering around the airport to kill time and came back with these for me - bought with the very last of our travelling money. They are amongst my favourite things.
12. A Half an Acre Pointy fish - of course!
13. A glass suncatcher from Ocracoke Island, NC, hanging on some beady string. I spent the summers of four years over there - hanging out and living the beach life. Heaven.
14. Geocache Geocoins which are too nice to send off!!! www.geocaching.com
15. Our Christmas monsters from Cutesy But Not Cutesy on Etsy.
17. A very strange seed pod found in France - it has opened out to look like the skull of a small rodent. Together with a dried up creeper tendril curled round another twig. I was in Atlanta, GA, staying with my friend Debbie. We were pulling out of a car park when I saw it just hanging down from a tree. I yelled "Hold on!" and lept out of the car to grab it.
18. A curious pot/box with an orange tree on top and exquisit paintings of topiary on all four sides. Bought from a shop in Stratford-upon-Avon - long since closed.


The lefthand picture here shows just to the right of the fireplace with the four masks coming from the same shop in Zion, Utah as the little face discs. The helmet is ceramic and came from yet another craft fair we went to. The glass jar contains easter eggs which I paint each year for my husband. To the right: a lovely wooden painted horse on wheels from Angel Bill. A plastic star globe (£2.99 The Works!) and a box of cashere chocolates made from upcycled knitwear by the fabulous Naive.

And we've made it! A lightening tour of the more interesting bits of my living room - although the chair fabrics are extremely lush, I have to say! So, my husband was right - damn it! He wanted the white wall to show off all the colourful fabrics and our 'stuff' against. Grrrrrrrrr. I would still paint the walls a colour but not there is too much stuff to move............and I'd have to tackle the dust!