It's simple, really - we need the 1950s back again

Image via here.

I am here! Oh, yes I am! Yes, no post yesterday - we were too busy, sorry! But I was thinking of you, oh yes I was...

I am surrounded by vintage fabric - I think it is crawling up the walls. I have 15 pieces going up soon and I have around 50 of more gorgeous Liberty and Sanderson samplers ready to (hopefully) go up this afternoon. Oh, they are divine! If you love florals and kitsch 1980s design you will surely adore them, too...

We are still working on updating our website and have lots to come - another new section created is the SOLD category of the website. We felt this was vital for customer orders - they will be transfered to this section of the website and customers shall be able to view their fabrics for weeks and months, if required. It's also great for new customers to see what other crafty peeps have been buying - and it's a nice part of the website for us owners to look and sigh and say "....awww....remember that fabric?......"

I was reading the Simple Savings newsletter this morning and this section jumped out at me - I have copied it below for you. We were a bit appalled last week when a student from our son's school experienced an attempted abduction after school. The school asks us to let our kids walk home - but how can we? I want the 1950s back again, please!

"...Times have changed - and not all for the better. Do you have happy memories of your neighbours when you were growing up? Back then we thought nothing of popping round to see them. It didn't matter whether you needed to borrow a cup of sugar, or if you simply felt like a chat; everyone's doors were always open.

But over the years the friendly, open homes which used to make up our neighbourhoods have turned into protective bubbles. Television and the Internet have made us scared to open our front doors. The awful images and scenarios we are subjected to are not actually happening in our backyard - but when we see them on a giant screen we feel as though they are.

It has even made us stop interacting with each other. People are so busy collecting virtual friends on Facebook or watching pretend neighbours on TV that they have lost contact with their real ones. This is a huge shame because real neighbours are incredibly valuable. Real neighbours will call the police if someone suspicious has a truck outside your home. Pretend neighbours on TV will not. Real neighbours will collect your mail, water your garden or feed your cat while you're away. Facebook neighbours or characters on TV will not. Real neighbours will care about you. Pretend neighbours will not. You see what we are getting at? We are isolating ourselves in our own neighbourhoods and this is leaving us vulnerable, lonely and sad.

When we were growing up, our neighbourhoods were safe because there was an unofficial parent co-op. All the parents were tag teaming. The children thought they were roaming free but you could always rely on someone to keep watch. Mums all over the neighbourhood had their own network of backyard fence broadband.

Now technology has taken over and chatting over the fence has been replaced by posting on Facebook and 'tweeting' on Twitter. Instead of sharing, we are buying - and that sucks. We've let money replace friendship and it is costing us much more than just the money. Sure it may seem easier to drive to the shop and buy a bag of sugar instead of borrowing one but it is SO much more fun to get it from your neighbour!

Knowing your neighbours provides you with a sense of security nothing else in this world can provide; that feeling of being comfortable in your own space and place. So this month I want you to go back to the old times. The frugal times, the fun times! This month, choose your real friends over your imaginary 'friends' on TV or cyber friends and 'followers' on Facebook and Twitter. Make the effort to get to know your neighbours."