Magpie Monday - Spring Greens

Apologies for my slackness last week.  The Easter holidays have been full-on, and I forgot what it was like to have Ruby at home full-time!  I promise I will catch up on last week's link ups as soon as I can.

We've had a busy week, but managed to squeeze in an adults-only weekend away which was bliss.  We stayed on a cottage boat - a static canal barge with Clifton Cruisers, and it was the perfect break.

The boat is moored in the village of Clifton just outside Rugby and there's plenty to see and do in the area. We had walks and a cycle ride along the tow paths, the Old Man found an old quarry pit to indulge his passion for outdoor swimming in, we had a fabulous night at the boatyard's dinner club joining their Australian themed evening.  The bustling and historic Warwick, Leamington Spa, and Coventry are all nearby.

Rugby is just a few minutes drive away, and it was to here I gravitated on the Saturday.  Last time we visited I was in seventh heaven with the amount of charity shops in town, and I overheard one customer proclaim that Rugby boasted 18 in total.  I'm sure that's right, and it even has a charity shop attached to the tip (of course, we managed a detour to visit this too!)

Unlike a lot of towns which have an abundance of charity shops, Rugby is still a thriving centre, with lots of independent shops, boutiques and lovely bistros and cafes - try the amazing Somersault vegetarian restaurant and deli or the Cafe Vin Cinq French bistro next door.

So, enough of the tourist information, what did I buy?

Well sadly the Old Man wasn't 'in the zone' which was annoying as I'd traipsed round muddy lakes for him earlier in the morning and held his clothes while he swam...

I did manage to buy some lovely spring clothes though, both for myself and Ruby.  I spotted this dress and looked to him for approval.  He wrinkled his face, ummed and finally declared that it reminded him of an old pair of kitchen curtains.

Green light for me then.  Any dress that looks like a pair of vintage curtains is a winner for me, so I ignored his exasperated why-do-you-ask-my-opinion-then-ignore-it look, and paid the £6 price tag.

I also bought this cute little blouse which I thought would look nice with jeans on a sunny spring day.

I like the detail of the gingham edging and the mother-of-pearl buttons.

For Ruby I found this pretty broderie anglaise dress with green print.

It has a lovely big bow at the back.

She also got this sparkly Next T shirt with ruched sides.

I also treated her to a Sylvanian Families Riverside Lodge house for £7 - a quick Google search on my phone told me these cost about £45, so I snapped that up sharpish.

All in all, a pretty perfect weekend!

What have you been up to?  Has boot sale season started where you are yet?

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