Five Friday Faves!

Sometimes it's the little things in life that bring the greater pleasure; a smile on a Monday morning; a fresh cup of coffee; a thoughtful note from a friend; a good book or a chilled glass of wine (or even better, the last two together!).  This week has been so busy; lots on at work and a birthday celebration for me.  In the midst of it all I've taken some time to just appreciate the small things around me.

Everyone knows my penchant for hearts and this is a new addition that I've draped round my sparkly birdcage...

More new additions - to my bathroom...a cross-looking blusher brush and cute tweezers.  They are fun and quirky and I'm never going to lose them in my make-up bag as they're stuck to the mirror.  You can buy these and a whole host of other cutees like this from here.

We all need to dream, and a lovely friend gave me this to help my dreams come true.  The question is, which dream do I save for?

A beautiful Begonia, a present to cheer up my office window-ledge.

Last, but very much not least...this beautiful hand-painted fresco.  Another birthday gift.  Isn't it beautiful.  The colours are far more vibrant than this photo shows and I absolutely love it.  It's by Sarah Hocombe and she has painted a series of beautiful fresco's on small pieces of reclaimed brick. Many of the brick fragments have been salvaged from the river Thames, some date from the 17th century. The frescoes have different subject matter: hands, faces, buildings, wings and landscape. These small pieces have backgrounds painted in fresco (mineral pigment painted onto damp lime plaster) and details painted in egg tempera (egg yolk mixed with water and pigment).  I keep staring at this beautiful scene and can just imagine myself sailing away into my dreams...


Have a wonderful, whimsy weekend...xox

Five things making me....happy

It's so easy to get drawn into the bigger and better scenario - more belongings, bigger houses, better labels, until the collecting becomes the point and the pleasure is lost because we're drowning under things and expectations.  Stand back.  Stop.  Look.  Here's what I found...

Five simple things, that don't cost money, aren't competative and really mean you live in the moment, just for the simple pleasure of it; because, the simple things are often the best.

5 lovely links for summer

There's nothing I like more than to while away the time looking for inspiration on-line.  Propped up on the sofa or bed, with a cup of coffee and my ipad I can 'waste' hours very happily!  Just in case you find yourself with some browsing time to spare,  here are some of my latest finds...enjoy....

* for summer inspiration and ideas galore on making the most of the sunshine...
* delicious icecream in summer flavours
* obsessed with the shabby-chicness of these blogs
* make this delicious summery salad
* a delectable lipscrub - for kissable lips

*image

Five things...making me happy

It's been a long, long week with a few not so good moments, but despite that there are the little things around me that still make me smile and realise how lucky I am...

I love this book, full of gorgeous photos, and the shells came from a beach in Dubai, the dome from Two Sisters in Wimbledon Village. 

Dutch Peonies, bravely withstanding the torrential rain.

Piles of vintage napkins and bedlinen, waiting patiently on the shelf.

This gorgeous light and airy (pink!) bedroom

Here's to a relaxing weekend for us all x

Best of the rest...

Who doesn't like to browse the internet and if you're a blogger there's nothing nicer than having time to trawl the virtual hemisphere looking for inspiring writers and sites.  In fact, it can become quite compulsively addictive!  I impose a time limit on my browsing or I'd never get any work done and it's usually at the weekend that I have time to sit and appreciate all the hard work my fellow bloggers have put in during the week.  Here are some of my favourite sites at the moment - they showcase creativity at its best and always give me something to go away and think about or put into practise, so if you've time to kill, take a quick peek...
1. Camille Styles a fabulous blog from Camille and her team; featuring fashion, DIY projects, food and interior decor.  She's been seen in Apartment Therapy and Design Sponge, both great sites for decor inspiration. 

*credit: Chris Perez for Apartment Therapy

2.  The Life Styled by Catherine Shepherd.  I've only just discovered this one and I LOVE it!  Based in LA Catherine is a stylist and her blog covers beauty, fashion and other inspirational things from her daily life.  Beautifully put together and great photos too.  What's not to love!

*credit: Catherine Shepherd for The Life Styled

3. Three Beautiful Things by Claire from Tunbridge Wells.  It's the simplicity of this blog that makes it so attractive.  Everyday Claire journals three things about her day that have been noteworthy.  It's a sort of meditation on mindfulness right there in front of you; a reminder to be in the moment and that even on a bad day, there are good things!
"When I have a cold, to make up hot apple juice and honey, to take another paracetamol and have some breakfast. It's amazing how much better everything seems" *credit: TBT


4. Cupcakes and Cashmere by Emily.  Another LA blogger who is just about to release a book of the same name.   A good go-to for fashion inspiration as she mostly chronicles her daily outfits, with other bits of inspiration for variety.  She's also an ambassador for Estee Lauder and you can check out her beauty tips here.

*credit: Cupcakes and Cashmere

5.  Pure Vegetarian by Lakshmi a gorgeously simple food blog with exquisite photographs.  She is a follower of Krishna and her recipes are all about healthy wholesome food cooked with love.  She lives in Finland and not only can she cook, but her food styling is beautiful.

*Credit: Pure Vegetarian

I hope you find something inspirational to take away, enjoy your reading and have a wonderful weekend...x

Happiness is...

The start of a new week; Monday; usually associated with feelings of gloom and general down-hearted expectations and I'm no exception, especially when I've just had a week off.  So, just to buck the trend a little and start the week off on a good note I'm thinking happy thoughts (we love you Pollyanna!).  I'm always drawn to things 'happy'; books promising you greater happiness in 10 days/12 months/3 hours etc - you get the drift!  I've covered this before here and I recently discovered the blog Simply Enough and a post about happiness that directed me to the True Happiness Test.  It takes about four minutes and I scored a pretty decent B+.  It recommended that I spend more time in nature, be sure to surround myself with positive people and take more exercise.  I wasn't sure about the positive people thing, as I thought I was quite ruthless about the company I keep, but when I thought about it I realised that I tend to absorb others' dramas so maybe I need to be mindful of that...

Anyway, enough rambling and onto the things that are currently making me happy.

A print from the Book of Hours that hung in my Granny's bedroom for many years.  I remember it arriving from MIDNAG as a child and being utterly captivated by it - the gold leaf and the beautiful people.  It seemed like a fairytale to me.  Now it hangs on my bedroom wall, and is often the first thing I see in the morning...

 These gorgeous flowers on the big table in MasterChef judge Greg Wallace's cafe Wallace & Co.  I went to meet a friend for tea and cakes and it didn't disappoint.  Light and airy with fabulous cakes and a relaxed vibe I think it's set to become a favourite afternoon haunt.  The takeaway salads were fab including a wonderful Panzanella Salad which just smells of summer.

My new work space, complete with Diptique candle which smells heavenly; a calm and inspiring place to write and work.

This gorgeous Silver Birch Tree that looks over our garden.  To be honest, it's taken me a while to make friends with this tree because as you can see it's pretty big.  In summer it tends to block out the sun late afternoon which I really resented; however, we've made friends now because after a bout of insomnia I used to go out into the garden at ridiculous hours (ie 5am!) and somehow it won me over - just rustling in the breeze, the wonderful limeness of its leaves and it's sturdyness.

NOTHING beats drying your washing on the line!  Especially after weeks of rain ... Watching my towels dry in the sunshine, flapping in the breeze, made me inordinately happy. Small things...

As I'm reminded daily by my framed 2011 New Year Resolutions, "Find joy in the small things". So true.

So, what's making you happy?  I'd love you to share...

Do something new this weekend...

The UK is all set for an extra-long bank holiday weekend to celebrate the Queen's Jubilee.  I'm taking advantage of the four days to head north to see family so will take a blog break until next week, but, hopefully will return with some lovely pictures of Northumberland.  To keep you going here are some lovely links and ideas for the next few days if you find yourself with time to indulge...

1. If you're in London head for the river on Sunday to watch the 1,000 strong flotilla .

The formal river procession will be between 2pm and 6pm, starting upriver of Battersea Bridge and finishing downriver of Tower Bridge. The boats will muster between Hammersmith and Battersea and disperse from Tower Bridge to West India Docks.
It will be one of the largest flotillas ever assembled on the river. Rowed boats and working boats and pleasure vessels of all shapes and sizes will be beautifully dressed with streamers and Union Flags, their crews and passengers turned out in their finest rigs. The armed forces, fire, police, rescue and other services will be afloat and there will be an exuberance of historic boats, wooden launches, steam vessels and other boats of note.

2. Make your own Granola using this receipe from Rosaline of This is Glamorous

3. Ring the changes with a cocktail cake as recommended by The Glitter Guide

4.  Fuschia pink and gold leaf - make these gorgeous notebooks

5. Get organised.  Get out your makeup bag, clean and throwaway anything older than 3 months or not  used.  Wash your brushes in baby shampoo and leave to dry before organising like this

 
Have a wonderfully relaxed and beautiful weekend whatever you have planned...
 
Photo sources 1)Google 2) The Glitter Guide 3)Eat,Sleep, Cuddle 4)Deliciously Organized
 

Five Things Making Me...Smile

Sometimes we just need to gaze upon something that makes us feel better on a bad day.  Here are some of the things that are currently making me smile...

How cute is this?

This makes me happy!  Fun in the sea and sun

A leafy green tunnel - I wonder where it goes?

Make a wish and watch it come true

Just being silly

What's making you smile today?

Five things...making me smile

Sunnyside up - my favourite way to start the day

 Smiling at all of these...

Cupcakes covered in sprinkles...

So cute - Sweet Paul

Gorgeous neutrals

So real I can smell it and imagine I am in a Parisian cafe watching the world go by...aaah...

Tell me, what's making you smile today?

Image 4/5 from here

Happy Things

Kitten heels made out of paper

Somehow today I managed to hurt my back - again!  I don't know how I did it; I wasn't lifting anything, turning awkwardly or any of the triggers that normally seem to tip the balance, yet by 2pm I was unable to bend, turn and had a constant nagging pain in my lower back and hips.  So, my trip to the gym has had to be postponed and instead I'm home early feeling grumpy and short-changed.  In an attempt to lighten my mood I've been round looking at some of the things that are giving me pleasure, in the hope that they will banish my heavy mood and remind me how lucky I really am.

A glass heart motif plaque and rusty heart bell tag that hangs next to my bed

Translucent shells collected on a beach by my granny

My new White Company candle in Tuberose (smells divine)

Feather 'Shabby Chic' cushion in faded vintage rose fabric and snug woollen throw from Otterburn Mill.  The very same Mill that made the first pram rug for our current Queen Elizabeth when she was born

Five Things...

My 'Sarah likes...' list from Tom and Moo

It only takes a few days of unwinding to make me begin to notice and re-appreciate some of the things around me.  Normally the days are so busy that there's no time to pause, enjoy, and take in my surroundings.  So here are a few things making me happy today...

My new stainless steel water feature with LED light!

My fav deckchair in which I'm sitting writing this right now!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Antique writing box/desk

Vintage French shabby-chic tray

You can find similar 'List' frames from here...

Five things making me happy

Watching the news, wave after wave of disasters, literally and metaphorically, has made me take a more pragmatic view of my own life.  Be glad for the small things and as ever, live in the moment, the past is history, the future a mystery, the moment a present...

So, here are five things currently making me happy....

Tiny Narcissus and Grape Hyacinths

Tiger Primulas

Geordie Cat!

Olive tree against a terracotta wall, reminding me of holidays

'chanelling' coral, my new fav colour!