Saturday, July 31, 2010

Retail therapy

Don't get me wrong - I'm not mired in the Slough of despond. Not by any means. I remain fairly chipper. Quite chipper anyway. The cream jug is still half full.

I can't help feeling though that a few days of sunshine would lift the spirits; the summer I can recall with certainty was on May 21st, 22nd and 23rd and it's been downhill since. The cooler, damper, more humid weather has made the garden grow for certain. This is a Good Thing. (See how even in the face of massive weed invasion and borders like the Mato Grosso I remain resolutely upbeat?) Our holiday is ages off as well....

And another thing: those bastard poultry mites can clear off. I've given eradication my best shot. I've blow-torched out the three houses and sprayed each 3 times as per the instructions on the container. I've begun a course of treatment for the birds which they are not being terribly cooperative about. I've itched and scratched, looked stupid in all sorts of hats, masks, overalls and gloves and still some buggers remain in the nooks and crannies.  But ha! I know for a fact there are many thousands of thousands less. And this is A Good Thing too.

Retail therapy is called for. I believe it is a proven fact that shopping is good for you. Not the grocery/toilet paper/compost/petrol-for-lawnmower/new tyres sort of shopping but the uplifting feel-good sort involving frivolous things of utter gorgeousness.  It's a bit limited round here but still possible. What did I come up with?

Here's my purchase: a scrumptious leather bag from Matt Fothergill's shop in Clun.

Soft and smooth, it smells divine - to me at least. We think the colour - it's not a brown or a grey or a black - is best described as 'dark elephant'.
The inside is soft and green, like a hawthorn hedge in spring. Lots of handy capacious pockets to hold life's essentials. I make a mental note to keep the detritus of till receipts, tissues and toffees that tend to lurk at the bottom of my bags to a minimum. This is a bag. Not a bin.
I also - and I will say this very, very, quietly because it is still July - bought a Christmas present. Quite a successful outing.

I'm off now to stroke it's lovely sides and inhale a bit of  that new leather aroma. For medicinal purposes only.....ah, that's better. I feel quite restored.

13 comments:

Fennie said...

Wonderful to buy yourself something for real pleasure and that bag looks most useful too.

It's sunny here today. Am off to cut the grass to prove it.

Exam Crisis said...

the bag looks lovely. the lining is a nice colour. am trying to hold back from frivolous spending myself due to the amount of radley stuff i bought last month. hope you and alan are both well xx

snailbeachshepherdess said...

love the elephant bag
how did you manage to find the shop open??
I treated myself yesterday - 1 pair of jeanss and a bottle of anias anais perfume - sometimes a girls has just got to do what a girl has to do

Molly said...

Love the bag and the colour of the lining. I love the smell of leather too - wonder if they could bring a new fragrance out - oh yes - 'Imperial Leather' forgot about that one.

Elizabeth Musgrave said...

Now that is beautiful. How about a bit of speeding off and having a day out? I think I could do with some glorious indulgence if you are up for it.

Pondside said...

I've just spent an obscene amount of time drooling over the site. Almost as good as the real retail therapy. I've decided, after a long session of virtual shopping that I will buy a virtual bag - the two-colour postman bag is the only one that will do.

Chris Stovell said...

Green with envy here! (And not about hen mites!).

rachel said...

Love the optimism. It's a bag (a lovely one too!), not a bin..... I may have said something like that with every bag I ever bought, and yet............

Just when I started my "just a handful of chickens" fantasy again, here you are with the aversion therapy mites. Thank you - I needed that.

Kitty said...

Dark elehpant - sounds like a very useful colour, neither black nor brown nor grey nor navy either - one bag to suit all coats? Perfect. Now, don't let me see the bottom of it littered with receipts and paperclips like mine always end up!

bayou said...

Hope the bag won't be itchy.
Elizabeth had a good idea! We are planning to come over and go to Bodnant - you have certainly been there before?
I had to "borrow" this garage men's clever saying, forgive me. still rofling

Twiglet said...

Lovely dark elephant bag - what a treat - good for you!

Nikki - Notes of Life said...

Having just popped to the website to take a look at the bags, I'm not going to enquire as to how much it cost. Though I have to admit, they are VERY nice bags!

I've also treated myself to a present this week, but I'm going to have to wait a month for it to arrive.

Nikki - Notes of Life said...

P.S. - I didn't know there was a bag shop in Clun. There's not much in Clun!