he sleeps in drawers

I turn my back for a second and he's in there snuggling up to my favourite black t-shirt, now adorned with cat- hair..... a new trend perhaps?!

Green holiday...

Tonight I am off on my summer holiday to beautiful Ireland, and will be staying in the town of Tullow, in County Carlow.

I will be off for a week for a well earned family holiday, 2 kids in our 30's and 1 in his 20's, who turn into teenagers when we are around our parents - ridiculous but it keeps us young and happy :-)

I'm looking forward to stumbling upon some charity shops and antique markets whilst there, and picking up some treasures to bring home with me!

Scallops....

Picture is from a still of the film Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistlestop cafe.

Loving the scalloped edge on this top, I think it would make a beautiful detail on a wrap-dress.

cupcake

Just a little something I whipped on a journey this weekend - very satisfying!

windmills

a blowing in the breeze...

A dress for amy

This is a little dress that I made on a whim last night for the daughter of one of my colleagues, it is made with a free pattern from the lovely Oliver + S website (available via THIS link) who make sewing patterns for children and is called the Popover dress!

I used some lovely pink micro-dot Jacquard poplin and some Alexander Henry 'Birdseed' print in the pink colourway, both of which I bought from my favourite fabric shop Fabrics Galore in Clapham/Battersea.

I think my favourite part is the jumbo Ric-Rac trim though - I'm a sucker for a bit of contrast trimming :-)

stormy skies

Amazing looking skies on my way home last night, the sky was glowing....

contrast

salsa verde....

Image found at Jamie Oliver.com

Where have you been all my life?!

I made a Salsa Verde to have with my Alaskan salmon for dinner tonight and I cannot believe I have never made it before - its so easy and mouth-wateringly delish, perfect for a quick summer supper....

Here is the LINK to the recipe courtesy of Mr Jamie Oliver, whose recipes are delighting and inspiring me this summer :-)

The King of Pops....

This guy is amazing... he lost his job with a big finance company in The States and started his own handmade Iced Lollies business which he runs in Atlanta!

I seriously love the fact he is making iced lollipops and a success out of his idea, its such an inspiring story, I wish we could have him in London I love an iced lolly on a hot day!

Check out his story HERE and his website HERE.

vintage roses

Photographed in my local park and smelling beautiful.

Autumn DIY list

Here are some of the Autumn trends that I have seen and like, and plan on making my own DIY versions....

Leather sash belt by Vionnet - found via Net-a-Porter

I particularly like how this looks tied at the back in a big bow with a simple dress

Asymmetrical Hem T-shirt by Bassike - found via Net-a-porter

This would be so easy, buy a t-shirt dress from Primark or Uniqlo and hack off the hem at an angle - pair with skinnies and a blazer and off you go!


T-shirt dress by Edun - found via Net-a-porter

Again, a simple T-shirt dress could be the basis of this dress, and then a little work on the dress-form and some careful scissor action and something similar could be achieved.

FFFFound......

I love THIS website - it brings together all the beat visual treats from around the web and is so great for inspiration!

Here are my faves from today's visit:

Image found on ffffound via :
www.booooooom.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/ginette_lapalme.jpg

Image found on ffffound via :
www.them-thangs.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/tumblr_kzm3n2Np6A1qaue19o1_1280.jpg

Image found on ffffound via :
www.alleewillis.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/owl-transistor-radio_3549.jpg

Can you believe this owl is a radio?! I love it :-)

face it....

Quote found via Colour me Katie

Earring stand idea

I love THIS tutorial from 'Kevin & Amanda' for a Shabby Chic style dangly earring display, I think its a wonderful idea because mine are all jumbled up in a box and easily forgotten about, so this would be a lovely way to see what you have and an easy tangle-free way to keep them.

It is so easy to find frames in your local charity shop, just remove the back and the often questionable art within, give it a lick of paint and gather the required bits and bobs in the tutorial and you are ready to create!

Happy birthday Jessica!

I WISH....

Photographs by Max Wanger, courtesy of Joanna Goddard and Alex Williams

To have this one day.....isnt it lovely?!

Floral arrangements

Found via 100 Layer Cake - guest post by Kelly of 'Yes, Please' blog

I found this tutorial for a beautiful idea for a flower arrangement on the wonderful wedding blog '100 layer cake' (yes, everything will be influenced by weddings from now on...just kidding) and thought it would actually make a lovely idea to have at home too!

Now that I have discovered I have a passion for Peonies this really appealed to me :)

My best friend is engaged!

My best friend Jodie has just got engaged!

Her wonderful gentleman friend Dom proposed today and I have been asked to be the Maid of Honour, and I honestly couldn't be more honoured!

I am so happy and excited because I love them both (and not forgetting Peanut the cat!) and I cant wait for them to get back from their holiday so we can start planning :-)

Angry kitty....

wimbledon graffiti

This is some cool graffiti that I photographed in January and thought it was worth a posting on here, I love how original it is.....

Red nails

I love painting my nails red, and I love these 2 colours together :-)

fish face

This photo was taken on a stroll along the Thames River one lunchtime.

Scarf Refashion Tutorial

Picture from The Glamourai

The ever talented and glamorous Glamourai has posted THIS amazing tutorial on how to create a dress from 2 vintage silk scarves like the picture above - AMAZING!!

I'm definitely going to pop to my local charity shop for a couple of these to make up - thank you Glamourai!

Shoes....

Twit-twooo

Jumping on the Anthropologie bandwagon!

Anthropologie 'Sugar On Top' Tank - available here

I have seen so many Anthropologie re-fashion tutorials in the blogging world recently, so I thought I would have a go at trying one myself.

This is the first one I plan to have a go at, and I think I know how to do it, with a few modifications of my own of course :-)

I plan on using simple Rectangles for the shoulders/sleeves, and pleating and pressing them to achieve the detail in the picture.
Then for the bust part, I think the Contour bust tutorial by Miasu on burdastyle.com would be perfect, and because I prefer my tops and dresses to have an empire line I will be taking the bottom part out from that line and either gathering or pleating it to give it some volume and flare.

I bought some really nice stretch poplin from my fave fabric shop : Fabrics Galore in Battersea, which is an end of line Paul Smith fabric in a teal blue/green with little jacquard dots all over, which I think will be perfect for this project!

Lunchtime Tate Britain excursion

Yesterday lunchtime I took a stroll to the Tate Britain gallery, as I am lucky enough to work just around the corner, and found this colourful painting, which I can only describe as a 'Riot of colour'!

I also noticed the domed roof at the front entrance for the first time, and how beautiful the upper galleries were, its amazing to think how long ago this was built and how much thought went into the details.

Things I enjoy looking at....

Monday night was ridiculously humid where I live, and although highly uncomfortable, I was still able to enjoy the beauty of these gorgeous Peonies that I bought the other day, they have bloomed so nicely and it seemed such a shame not to capture them before they wilt in the heat...

Then for my supper I had a delicious fresh beetroot and smoked Mackerel salad with baby spinach - and was amazed by how beautiful the colour of the beetroot is - how bright - the centers are almost glowing!

The Trainers of Glory....

The only pair in the whole world, and they couldn't be more perfect, I love you JSykes - for many things but amongst them designing the perfect pair of trainers for a girl like me......

A Happy Bedroom

Pretty things in my bedroom make me happy - these are a couple of my favourites.... the patchwork quilt I made last year, my first crocheted cushion and my beautiful Cath Kidston bedding....

Crocheted shrug

This is a little crocheted shrug / cover up, that I made a couple of years ago and never really got round to photographing it or even wearing it! So in our current hot climate I threw it on over a little dress that I made the other day and it served just the right purpose, enough shoulder coverage to be demure and loose enough to still be cool on a hot day :)

The pattern is from Stitch n Bitch Crochet : The Happy Hooker, and is 'Short n Sweet' by Angela Best. Its a little tricky to get the hang of but I found close inspection of the charts helped me along when I got stuck.

Mushroom Family

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Holiday pining

I'm pining for a hot holiday.

Now - I'm not being ungrateful here because I went on a lovely break to Dorset a month ago and that was pretty warm and I had a fabulous time, but there is nothing quite like going on a break to lie on the beach and read a book, and have that warm salty glowing feeling at the end of each day from the sea air, and eating delicious food at a beach front restaurant with a cold beer, I would give anything for that at the moment..... I'll just have to make do with the memories of my favourite holidays instead xxx

Magic Theatre

I went to see an open Artists Studios evening in Dalston on Friday and whilst there I discovered the work of Ali Hutchinson and I fell in love with and bought this beautiful print.....