One step forward and two steps back.

It's clearly too early for Spring Cleaning.  I started yesterday morning by emptying my cupboards and all I have to show for it today is huge piles of clothes all around the house.  I wanted to set up the old dining room, which is currently a junk room into a lovely spare bedroom.  I also want it to be home to all my clothes to give my shift-working husband some extra peace. I was interrupted by a spur of the moment project which would have been ok if the project had not ended in tragedy. 
One of the first things we did when we bought this house was to rip up the old jellybean-patterned lino in this dining room and underneath I found newspapers and magazines from 1962.  Apparently it was very common then to lay newspapers under lino- interesting time capsule.  Of course, I couldn't throw them away and this weekend decided to frame some. 

I love the ads from the Women's Weekly best.  So we have one for the bathroom: Johnsons and Johnsons Modess- with a "magic channel of protection" and one for the laundry: Dickies- Towels for EveryBody.  Some of the adds are a crack up, the way that they were worded- "She's gorgeous, she's engaged, she uses Ponds."  Then I realised that most advertising today is just as bad. 

I also made a collage to decorate the spare-room-to-be.  Complete with advice on how not to kill you husband and some more tampon ads which are classic!  Also some great advice for mothers: "Is you child sulky or listless? Your answer is simple.  One or two chocolate Laxettes at bedtime and your child can be happy and well again the next day."  Then there's the recipe for 'Cherry Delight' which just involves piling cans of different products into a serving glass. 

It turned out ok.  It took longer than one would think because I wanted to include everything.  I used a cheap old frame which had a Van Gogh print in it (which my husband had bought before we lived together) and sprayed it red.  Disaster struck when I tried to place it back in the frame and the glass cracked (that's what the green masking tape is doing there).  So, even though I do like it, I am wondering if it's special enough to bother getting it reframed.

The only thing that turned out ok this weekend were the shortbread cookies we made- yum.  But then again, the cookies have all been eaten and there is still flour all over my kitchen floor.