1916 Silver Trophy Cup: Dog Show

I love old sterling presentation cups with unique engraving.

This one is dated 1916 and was won by a Scottish Terrier.

She was a good dog!

Maybe this post will encourage me to polish some silver.

I'll do it along with my spring cleaning.

I did my bedroom yesterday, all but the dusting.

It was still dark this morning at 7am.

Have a great Sunday.

xo

White on White Scottish Christmas

Glencoe Village Scotland

Image from Instagram @map_of_europe 

Click to learn more about this village in the Scottish Highlands

Photo by @garyhook2 

Too pretty for words, isn't it?

xo

AMAZING GRACE by Royal Scots Dragoon Guards 1972

I have never heard this rendition of Amazing Grace and it is wonderful. I love bagpipes and military band music as well. This recording topped the charts 50 years ago this month. Listen and enjoy.

Read the history behind this recording here. xo

Now Watching: MONARCH OF THE GLEN

MONARCH OF THE GLEN on Tubi

https://tubitv.com/series/300006800/monarch-of-the-glen

 I stumbled on this BBC series with seven seasons that aired 2000-2005 and I absolutely love it. The characters are wonderful as is the Scottish castle and the countryside of the vast estate. It is on Amazon Prime if you are a member and on Tubi to watch free with ads. I put the link for TUBI if you are a cord cutter like me. I think it might be on BritBox too. January is the perfect month to start watching a long series with a total of 64 episodes. I'm so glad I found it. I'm sure many of you saw it years ago and might want to watch again. 

A list of all the episodes can be found here.

Enjoy! xo

UPDATE: At the time of the above posting I knew one of the main characters was familiar gut couldn't quite figure out who he was. Mystery solved! It was Julian Fellowes of Downton Abbey fame. I thought he might have been influenced by this Scottish series and did some research. I found this link very informative. There are other links within the article that are interesting too.

https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/downton-abbey-loosely-based-creator-julian-fellowes-life.html/

Reading Room in The Bookshop, Wigtown Scotland

It couldn't be cozier, could it? The Bookshop in Wigtown is the largest second-hand bookshop in Scotland with over a mile of shelving supporting roughly 100,000 books. Sounds wonderful, doesn't it. Don't you love the quote by Sir Terry Pratchett over the fireplace? 

"Give a man a fire and he's warm for the day. But set fire to him and he's warm for the rest of his life." Take an armchair visit to their website: https://www.the-bookshop.com/

Enjoy. xo

Grand Scottish Country House

So much beauty in one photograph. 

Read more on Instagram @peter.lyden 

This aerial view shows Kinross House and the patchwork of beauty that surrounds this grand Country Estate in Scotland.

xo

Currently Watching: DOCTOR FINLAY

I am loving this series with 4 seasons. I am on the last one and will be SO sorry when it's over. It is a Scottish series with lovable characters and stories. I know many of you have mentioned Doctor Finlay on Acorn TV each time I post about something I have been watching. 

You were all right; I love it♡

Here is the link for a very old original Doctor Finlay's Casebook from the 1960s on YouTube. It is a full-length episode. Enjoy.

Edinburgh's Hogmanay (New Year) with Drones

Due to Covid-19, 150 individual drones took the place of fireworks this year in Edinburgh Scotland's New Year's Celebration called Hogmanay. I have never heard of this term mentioned on Instagram and I'm glad I decided see what it was all about. I am posting the celebration in 3 videos below:

Fare Well Part 1 - Edinburgh Hogmanay 2020

Fare Well Part 2 - Edinburgh Hogmanay 2020

Fare Well Part 3 - Edinburgh Hogmanay 2020

History of Hogmanay

I took a photo of the one-pound bag of frozen Chopped Collard Greens I use. I have seen them at Walmart too under their private label. I searched Google Images if you want to look for brands in your area. I had a replay of my New Year's Day supper today with the addition of a slow, oven-baked sweet potato and it was delicious. I had a very productive day moving bits around and putting them back where they belong. I am on one of my organizing frenzies and it feels good. Enjoy the rest of your long weekend. xo

New Village Homes: Tornagrain Inverness Scotland

I adore this new planned village in Scotland. See more here. Their Instagram account is named @tornagrain_newtown and the photos there capture the charm of this village. Be sure to check it out.

Daffodil Cottage

Garden Goals. via

Scottish Blackface Sheep: Ewe + Lamb

via

Mother and child portrait. Click on the link above to learn more about this easy-care breed.

Dunmore Pineapple in Airth Scotland

The Dunmore Pineapple House in Airth Scotland

This folly in Scotland looks so beautiful in the early morning light on a frosty morning. via

Stone Cottage: Highlands of Scotland

I adore this photo and would love to know more about this tiny Scottish Highlands Cottage with its stone steps and steep stone walls. The stone mason who constructed it certainly knew what he was doing, and it has stood the test of time. via

Angus, The Scottish Cat

Artist Amber Alexander’s Cat in A Classic Outfit. She sells her artwork on Etsy. I found Angus, The Scottish here.

The Queen Mother's Decorating Style

The Queen Mother’s collection of Vanity Fair caricature prints at Birkhall in Scotland. Often called SPY prints in the trade as this was the signature of the artist on many. Love the tartan carpet on the stairs! via

Aud Lang Syne: Happy New Year ! ! !

This is an interesting history of the song we sing to ring in the New Year. I did not realize it was written in 1788 by Scottish poet Robert Burns. Read the complete article in The Independent with the words of the original poem and the English translation in case you want to sing along tonight at midnight.

London. New Year's Eve last year.

The Water Horse Movie: Ardkinglas House, Scottish Manor House

Ardkinglas House on the shore of Loch Fyne, Argyll

Situated on the shores of Loch Fyne in Argyll, against a spectacular background of mountain and forest, Ardkinglas House is an architectural gem.

This manor house is the real star of the 2007 movie, The Water Horse. I watched it several days ago and loved it. The manor house if full of antiques and the decorating is wonderful, better than Downton Abbey.

Read Roger Ebert's two thumbs up review here.

Like most British family films, "Water Horse" doesn't dumb down its young characters or insult the intelligence of the audience. It has a lot of sly humor about what we know, or have heard, about the Loch Ness monster and various frauds associated with it, and fills the edges of the screen with first-rate supporting performance. Imagine a family film with actors the caliber of Emily Watson, Ben Chaplin and Brian Cox as an old-timer who spins stories in the local pub."

I ran across this film quite by accident and decided to watch it because it stars Emily Watson, one of my favorite British stars. Watch it, you'll like it.
photos via Google images

UPDATE: I found the complete movie of The Water Horse for you on YouTube. WATCH IT HERE. Yay!

Antique Globe on Stand

Vintage (circa 1914-1924) Terrestrial Table Globe on Tripod Stand from W. and A.K. Johnston Limited, Edinburgh via

Seaside Village in Crovie Scotland

via

Crovie, a small village in Aberdeenshire, is comprised of a single row of houses directly on the sea. Unlike the similar neighboring village called Pennan, Crovie is situated on such a narrow ledge that any cars have to be left at the south of the village. The cars in the foreground are parked as close as you can get by automobile. Hope you don't have something large to deliver on foot to the last cottage. Wow, what an amazing village!

A Truly Beautiful Scottish Landscape

This takes my breath away. Gribun Rocks on the West Coast of the Isle of Mull, Scotland via It has everything I love to go with the perfect cottage and outbuildings -- a stream, the sea, the mountains, a meadow, a big sky view, and sheep.