Lust Have - Diane Von Furstenburg

Famous for her universally flattering wrap dresses, DVF has wiggled her way into the affections of many women, myself included.  I spent a happy hour in her shop in Wimbledon Village recently, trying on a series of gorgeous dresses and some fab sunnies.  I've got my holiday in Antibes in mind when I show you these...

Lindsay Sunglasses - tortoiseshell and gold accents for effortless chic

Diane Hanky Band Dress - a gorgeous cocktail dress in a sheer print with a detachable slip, so this could also double up as a round-the-pool cover-up for instant poolside glamour.

What are you hankering after for the summer?

Wrap it up!

I'm always on the look-out for new paper fripperies; drawn towards racks with trailing ribbons in multi-coloured hues, polka dots, neons, gilts and pastels.  I have draws full of luggage labels ready to be customised with bright washi tapes, boxes full of stampers to create my own messages and different coloured inks to write in.  I recently discovered this glue pen which is fine enough to write with and still add glitter for a sparkly effect.  I compulsively buy and then hoard gorgeous cards and postcards, loathe to part with them just in case they aren't loved by the receiver in the same way!

Although I love different wrapping papers and fine tissues, my go-to favourite has always been good old brown parcel paper.  It's SO versatile - customise with stamps, decorate with washi, write on it with glitter, bind with velvety ribbon or just add a beautiful tag; simple but effective and always made wth love!
It embues the act of giving with as much anticipation of somebody elses pleasure as the joy of receiving.

If you're into all things crafty and you live in London Papered Parlour in Clapham, South West London, is having a Papermash event tomorrow - tickets free, so register now and pop along for some crafting fun.

Making a herb garden

If like me you live in the city, it's not always easy to find the space to grow things, whether that be flowers or food, but that doesn't mean it can't be done.  I've found some ingenious ideas to help you create a herb garden.  Herbs are a good safe bet for the most part, as the majority of herbs need very little looking after (the exception is Basil which I never seem to manage to keep alive for very long - I'm told they need gravelly soil).  A few herb pots planted up imaginatively can make you feel very Nigella ish with relatively little outlay in terms of effort or money...who doesn't like to add fresh herbs to their dishes, wandering round the house or garden with a pair of kitchen scissors, snipping merrily!

There are many, many gorgeous pots out there that can be planted up with herbs - it's fine to mix and match plants in containers,  BUT NEVER put mint in anything but it's own pot.  It grows rapidly and takes over, spreading very quickly, so needs to be solitary and contained - don't say you haven't been warned...

You could try layering them like this planting - a smaller shallow bowl placed on top of a larger shallow bowl..

Or this...

layered effect herb garden.  This would work equally well indoors.

Some of my favourite ideas however, are the ingenious, eclectic ones.  How about using an old crate like this one

or plant in separate pots and group together for impact like this:

Check out these ideas - a great use for tin cans don't you think?

and Mason jars!


These ideas tho' are my favourites - for those with no outdoor space here are some fabulous ideas straight from the Summer edition of Sweet Paul Magazine.

You can buy your herbs from any good Garden Centre or order on-line at Norfolk Herbs or Laurel Farm Herbs.

Lovely pots to grow them in can be found again at good garden centres or on-line at Primrose Garden where they have a great range of different types of planters.

For tips on planting up your pot have a look at this

Then sit back and reap the rewards...happy gardening...

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...

Fiction Friday

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry first came to my attention with a recommendation by this Sunday Times columnist.  I like her novels and I find her funny; I also trust her judgement when it comes to reading, so when she raved about it I was quick to download it onto my kindle.  It didn't disappoint.  Joyce's novel began life as a radio play in 2006, when her father was diagnosed with cancer "it was a way of trying to keep him alive". 

The book begins by introducing the main character Harold Fry and his wife as he receives a letter from Queenie Hennessy, telling him that she has cancer and not long to live.  Queenie and Harold were work colleagues but hadn't been in touch for many years.  Harold was moved by her letter and quickly penned a short reply, setting off to post it on foot at the post box at the bottom of the street.  Instead of just posting the letter, he decides that he will walk to visit Queenie (in Berwick-on-Tweed) and he sets off on his Bunyanesque journey, convinced that as long as she knows he is coming, she will continue to live.  He passes through many towns and cities, Exeter, Warwick, Darlington, and he writes to Queenie "I am on my way. All you have to do is wait. Because I'm going to save you. I will keep walking, and you must keep living."  For Harold, the act of walking becomes an act of faith.  Along the way, as he atones for his mistakes, he meets a random cross-section of life and the people who inhabit it; It is a novel that touches on grief - Rex their neighbour who is coming to terms with the death of his wife - "I miss her all the time. I know in my head that she has gone. the only difference is that I am getting used to the pain. It's like discovering a great hole in the ground. To begin with, you forget it's there and keep falling in. After a while, it's still there, but you learn to walk round it."  But it's also a novel about hope and the ability of the human spirit to persuade the body to turn something normal like walking, into a courageous and redeeming act.  If you want to feel good, this is a book that will help you get there...

Northumberland (2)

I'm back! So sorry for delay in posts - what with the Jubilee celebrations and long weekend I couldn't post as I was away, and then, on my return I discovered my internet connection was down and I had to wait 48 hours for a technician to come and fix it! Anyway, dramas aside, I hope everyone has had a wonderful weekend - if you're a UK reader then maybe you've been celebrating?  I headed up North to Newcastle and Northumberland for a family party...so lovely to see everyone and catch up with extended family...it was a feast of festivities with a 70th birthday celebration on Sunday in Holystone and a street party on Monday in Newcastle.  Inbetween I managed some shopping in Newcastle town centre and also a trip to the coast...


The Grainger Market in Newcastle Town Centre gears up for the Jubiliee

Blowsy poppies in the churchyard, Holystone, Northumberland

A fishing boat picking up the lobster pots outside Craster Village, Northumberland

 Craster Village is an unspoilt gem on the Northumberland coastline. Just north of Alnwick, its inhabitants still make a living from the sea and it's famous for it's smoked kippers.  As you walk through the village you pass the harbour and up the hill following the smell of the smoking fish.  There's a little pub that overlooks the harbour and out to sea from where we watched a small fishing vessel picking up its catch.  From Craster, you can do a wonderful walk to the ruins of Dunstanburgh Castle which began life in 1313 and saw many fierce battles before falling into decay after the War of the Roses. 

Dunstanburgh Castle, looking north from Craster

We ended our northern jaunt with a ritual visit to the best fish and chip shop in the northeast! (that's my opinion anyway) set right outside the North Shields Fish Quay, it's fish caught and fried within hours of the catch landing.  It was also a chance to reflect on the changes on the Tyne, the boat yards gone, even the fisherman's mission is now home to a growing collection of yuppified pubs and bars, but the fishing industry lives on regardless.

The Tyne, looking downriver and the local fishing boats at North Shields

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
 

Hampton Court

With only a few days to go now until the Jubilee celebrations begin, it seems fitting to look at one of the most beautiful royal palaces in London - Hampton Court.  I've visited Hampton Court many times now, it's always top of the list for guests and I never tire of it.  I've seen it in brilliant sunshine, in the depths of winter, lit up as people skate in the grounds, in the pouring rain, but my favourite memory involves a boat trip down the Thames at dusk; as we approached the palace, those infamous chimneys came into view, sillouetted against the darkening sky.  Truly magical and evocative.

Home to many Kings and Queens - including Queen Caroline, Henry VIII and some of his wives, notably Anne Boleyn, Hampton Court has a prominent place in English history.

Kitchen Utensils in the Palace kitchens

This is what I call a fireplace!

Beautiful embossed ceilings and intricate plasterwork cover the palace

The Great Hall - one of the few remaining rooms from Henry VIII time

When he died in 1547 Henry VIII had more than 60 houses, but – in the second half of his reign – none were more important to him, nor more sumptuously decorated, than Hampton Court Palace.

Henry VIII is probably Hampton Court's most famous inhabitant and he loved the palace, lavashing time and money on it. By the time Henry finished his building works at Hampton Court Palace in about 1540, the palace was one of the most modern, sophisticated and magnificent in England.
There were tennis courts, bowling alleys and pleasure gardens for recreation, a hunting park of more than 1,100 acres, kitchens covering 36,000 square feet, a fine chapel, a vast communal dining room (the Great Hall) and a multiple garderobe (or lavatory) - known as the Great House of Easement - which could sit 28 people at a time. Water flowed to the palace from Coombe Hill in Kingston, three miles away, through lead pipes.

All of Henry’s six wives came to the palace and most had new and lavish lodgings. The King rebuilt his own rooms at least half a dozen times.

The palace also provided accommodation for each of the King's children and for a large number of courtiers, visitors and servants.

Even the staircases are ornate

Hampton Court is of course famous for it's ghosts; rumoured to haunt it's corridors and cloisters are Queen Caroline and Anne Boleyn.  A few years ago a CCTV camera caught this ghostly image on it's screen, and the palace have not been able to explain it away rationally...

What do you think?

Zara Shoe Love

Who doesn't love new shoes - and bags for that matter?!  The thing that I love about Zara is that you can get relatively decent quality clothes for a relatively decent price and they're always on trend.  As London edges out of the drab grey rain into the sunshine I'm being drawn more and more to the bright colours that Zara has in store...especially in the shoe department.  Have a look at these

Gorgeous raffia heels

Orange and pink - such a great combination

Fuschia colours

Neon brights

Coral contrast

Then once you've bought your favourite shoe - accessorise your nails with these gorgeous bright colours from Nars...

and go strut your stuff!

Jubilee Dresses

If like me you're suddenly having a panic about what to wear this coming Jubilee weekend - then fear not!  The Jubilee celebrations seemed so far away and now, suddenly, they're upon us, and it's true, I haven't got a thing to wear! Anyway, I was having a trawl through the on-line shopping mall and came up with a few little things to inspire...

this gorgeous strappy blue, red and white dress

and this one I LOVE - London buses, Big Ben telephone boxes

These come from River Island.  Also check out here for these...

In the event of sartorial failure, just throw on your prettiest sundress, paint your nails red and hit the street party anyway!

Moments from the Weekend

Scenes from the beach

Summer has finally arrived and I made the most of it this weekend...It's been a crazy, crazy few weeks so I needed some down-time badly.  I spent Saturday indulging my inner child by taking my Godaughter for lunch and joining her on the Victorian funfare ride as well as catching up with an old friend and having a long overdue chat. Sunday was a blissful day by the beach at the Witterings.  It's amazing how if you walk just ten minutes along the beach you can have the entire place to yourself.  I had a magic moment too, when I was floating in the sea, no one around but me and right in front of me a bird did a perfect dive into the blue waters emerging with a fish. 

The cutest mini-bar cocktails (Thank you Lisa!) and glasses of wine in the sunshine with my bestie (was going to say 'oldest' friend!!!), followed by kisses in the sky, love all round ...

Gorgeous clapboard house and garden in West Wittering (want, want, want!)  If you look closely behind the white picket fence, you can see not only a wall-mounted shower to get rid of the sand, BUT a big bath too..

What did you do to celebrate the sunshine this weekend?

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?