WOYWW #394: First day of Winter!!!

Happy Winter Solstice, Peeps! Isn't it strange how the first day of Winter marks the point when the daylight hours start getting longer? I always find this amazing - and somehow comforting at this time of year, as if we were already coming out of winter, although we still have a few more cold months ahead.

If you're here from WOYWW, I haven't got anything to show on my desk today. Although I've been busy binding my LifeBook, I forgot to take photos of the proceedings on my desk. I decided to use the 'hidden hinge' binding method and I've got all my pages glued together, which is most of the hard work done. All I need now is a cover, but I didn't have a big enough piece of suitable fabric for this, so I had to order it online. As soon as it comes, I'm good to go! This is as far I've got:

LifeBook pages stuck together with hidden hinges

In other news, I've received a wonderful parcel from my online arty friend Lynette all the way from New Zealand! She sent me a pretty stencil, a Christmas card, a bookmark and loads of papers, fabrics, napkins and postage stamps to play with. Thank you so much, Lynette! I feel thoroughly spoilt!

Happy mail from Lynette

One of the papers is of paua shells, which I had never heard of before, so I looked them up. Here's what I've found on Google Images. They truly are stunning artworks of nature!

Now that school is out and hubby is off work, we aim to do something together as a family every day. On Monday we went to Hay-on-Wye just over the Welsh border. This town is famous for its many book stores and book festivals. Here are a few photos I took:

Open air 'honesty' book stalls

A window display for a shop that sells maps

Old books in the Cinema Book Store

I loved the atmosphere of this small town and it was lovely to see some quirky shops and being surrounded by so many books everywhere. I love reading my Kindle for practical reasons, but nothing beats the physical feel of a real book in your hands!

Thanks for popping in today! I'd like to wish all my visitors a very Happy Christmas! Here's a festive shot of Oreo that my son took. Oreo only tolerates dressing up costumes when he's asleep and can't be bothered to protest, so we took advantage of him being dopey! 

Oreo in his festive gear

We're going to the cinema later today, but I'll visit as many desks as I can before and after! Cheerio!