happy easter time

I'm very excited about Easter this year, I've been looking forward to the 4 day weekend for a long time. We've plenty planned which I'll share with you once the holiday is over. Till then Happy Easter! 

• we've been saving up Tit's eggs for the occasion.
• my grandad Appy gave me this giant egg when I was little. 

garden moodboard - march 2013

I'm joining Karin again in her monthly moodboard series - a collection of seasonal flowers, and foliage from the garden. Last week felt so spring like and I would never have imagined then that I'd be rummaging in the snow for this month's garden moodboard!

chaenomeles • daffodil • hellebore • plum blossom • grape hyacinth • primula • hyacinth • daffodil • forsythia • honeysuckle [names left to right as they appear in top picture]

nature in the home

Thought I'd join in with Lou's series nature in the home. Daffodils on the dining table, these are really quite a pale lemon colour and were a bargain at just 69p! We've a few out in the garden too, but I can't bring myself to pick a whole bunch and ruin the outdoor display. I love the vase they are in too, I can't work out if the colour has been added at a later date or if it was made that way. 

11 facts, 11 questions and 11 more

A few weeks (OK a month or so) back I was the lucky enough to be nominated by Karen to receive The Liebster Award, this is actually the second time I've been nominated, but since the first was such a long time ago (see way back here) I thought I'd accept again! Since then I've been nominated again! This time by Alexis. So thank you Karen and Alexis I'm flattered to have been chosen.

So the rules seem to have changed a bit since the first time I took part, back then it was pretty easy - I just needed to nominate 5 blogs. Now that's increased to 11 which I've found quite a challenge, hence it's taken me so long to participate. And in all honesty I completely understand if my nominees don't have the time to forward this on. But I love a question and answer, so that spurred me to give it a go! 

11 Random Facts About Me
1. I'm prefer savoury to sweet. 2. I'm an only child. 3. I'm always happy riding my bike. 4. I love adventure. 5. I can't sing, but wish I could. 6. I've got loads of moles, I used to hate them, now I just think they make me a bit like a leopard and I like leopards. 7. I'm in denial that I'm an adult (still). 8. My favourite day out is to an exhibition. 9. I hated tomatos when I was a child, I find that hard to understand now. 10. I love finding treasure, and could rummage through car boot sales and charity shops all day long. 11. I'm a shower girl. I hate baths, I get bored within a minute, it would be OK if I could swim about.

Here are my answers to Karen's questions:
1. What did you want to be when you grew up? An artist. 2. What's your guilty pleasure? I'm not sure I have one. 3. Have you ever met anyone famous? Timmy Mallet when I was a kid, I asked for his autograph and he was really grumpy about it! 4. Why did you start your blog? Because I enjoyed reading others and was curious if anyone would read mine. 5. What do you do when you need some creative inspiration? Get out. Preferably to a city, explore, hangout, watch people, drink coffee and just take stuff in. 6. What is your 'day' job? I design kids non-fiction books. 7. Who is your greatest inspiration? No one person. 8. If you could pass on any kind of advice, what would it be? Believe in yourself even if others don't. 9. If you could do anything for a day, what would it be? I'd like to fly, either a plane or better still a magic carpet. 10. What is your greatest achievement? D and I went away for 18 months cycling all over the world, it was incredibly hard, incredibly rewarding, and an incredible eyeopener, we had the best time. 11. What books or magazines are on your bedside table? Betty Magazine, Anorak, Kinfolk, Uppercase, Keith Haring's Journals and My old school newsletter.


And here are my answers to Alexis' questions:
1. Which is your favourite post on your own blog? I like xmas at ours it's filled with my favourite people! But I also really love the lately posts which are formatted into colourful grids using my recent instagram pictures 2. Do your 'real' friends know about/care about/read your blog? I tend not to tell them, of those that do know I only know of one who actually reads it, she lives overseas so it's a good way to keep up with what I'm doing. I just wish she had one too! 3. Is there anything that you regret NOT doing in your life (so far)? I really regret not making more use of the printing facilities when I was at University, I should have been using them every day! 4. Camping or Boutique Hotel? I'll take both. I love camping in our tiny tent - I love hearing the sounds of the night, I love waking up to the world around me and the security that that flimsy cocoon can provide. I've not yet stayed in a Boutique Hotel, but if someone's paying, I'm staying! 5. Best way to get from A to B? Bicycle 6. It's 8pm on a Friday night, what are you doing (in your ideal world)? I'd be sat with D, having a drink discussing our day, with the knowledge we are about to order a delicious meal. 7. Done any good projects recently? Our home and garden is an ongoing project, it's slow moving and we're at it most weekends (not that you could really tell by the look of it perhaps), but that's how we like it, no rushed decisions, it's coming together and one day it'll be pretty perfect. 8. Best thing to do within a few minutes of your home? Tidy round and throw/recycle all those piles of stuff that accumulate so easily, it's amazing what a difference that makes to your whole outlook. 9. If you could learn a new skill, what would you choose? I'd love to be able to sing, and entertain. 10. ... and your superpower, if you had one? Flying - that magic carpet really would make me happy. 11. Finally, why did you decide to start a blog? See above Q4.


11 Questions for my nominees:
1. Savory or sweet? 2. What country were you born in? 3. Do you have any pets? 4. What are your favourite magazines? 5. If you could travel to anywhere in the world, where would you most like to visit? 6. If you could choose any painting from any gallery to hang on your wall which would you choose? 7. Where is your favourite place to have a picnic? 8. Which coffee do you order? 9. If could be an animal for a day, which would you be and why? 10. Do you have an ambition still waiting to be accomplished? 11. What is your favourite song?


Here is my list of nominees:
it's simply max
hello olive
little helsinki
fast times in münchen
two add two
hajottamo
at-rubik
bunnies and stripes
tracy english
postcards from battersea
toot as in foot

wool house

Wool House, the worlds largest showcase of wool is currently on at Somerset House, but the last day is tomorrow, Sunday the 24th March. I had a quick visit during my lunch hour on Friday and absolutely loved it. Well worth a visit if your at a loose end tomorrow or can squeeze it in with your other plans. 

Cristian Zuzunaga | Claudy Jongstra | Cristian Zuzunaga
missed this designers name | Donna Wilson | Shauna Richardson
Anne Kyyrö-Quinn |  Anne Kyyrö-Quinn | Josephine Ryan

lately

• workday lunches at home are the best [crab sandwiches and fruit salad]
• coffee with D at Morgan Howell exhibition here
• looking up whilst enjoying lunch here 
• race night in the village hall
• joining in with this lady and #tinyposie
• another workday lunch at home [salmon pate and caper berries on toast]
• it's still light as the train pulls out of London

How was your weekend? We popped into Cambridge, taking the bikes so we could explore a little more than we would on foot. We popped into Belvisi and fell in love with these chairs! So comfy we'd love one for the head of the dining table. Still in the mood for chairs we had a look in John Lewis and ended up treating ourselves to an Eames DSW chair [an ex display with £100 off, we couldn't resist having wanted one for so long]. We ate a delicious lunch of vegetarian food at the Rainbow Cafe. Back home we spent our evening in the village hall for a charity race night - lots of fun, though I wasn't lucky in any of the races I did win a bottle of wine and a couple of Agapanthus bulbs in the raffle, plus I'm sure lots of money was raised for the charity. Sunday was spent in the garden - getting on top of things. Pie was a naughty duck and flew off leaving Tit for another lady, thankfully he saw the error of his ways and came home to Tit [though I'm hoping she hasn't forgiven him quite yet]. As with all weekends of late it was gone in a flash and now we're back to the trudgy working week again, thank goodness for that four day weekend around the corner!

lately

• H E L L O
• simple dinner, as D was out (Tit's eggs)
• Mr Mouse
• wrapping presents - tape from here 
• crossing the bridge to take the train in the other direction
• weekend breakfast
• lunch when I work from home
• sunshine through the train window
• fun times away with work

Yay the weekend is here again! This weeks gone quicker than most, I had a day and a night away with work which broke it up a bit. Tired now though - let's hope I don't snooze the weekend away! 

treating myself

Life seems to have been non-stop lately, a busy time of year at work seems even busier than ever and home life too - we've been working hard in the garden every weekend since Xmas and being sociable with friends and family too. I feel pretty shattered, but I know it's not over yet, the month looks set for more of the same, I know I just have to carry on - better not to pause at all otherwise I might not be able to pick up momentum again! Instead I've fueled myself with a few treats. 

• lush nectarine blush from Laura Mercier
• strawberry sorbet lipstick from Laura Mercier
• AAAAGHHHHH necklace from Tatty Devine
• and 3 pretty MT tapes from here

What do you do to keep going?

we woke to this...

A dusting of white. Quite a change from the lovely spring weather at the start of the week. I'd spent yesterday afternoon clearing last years dead from the beds, and then hearing the weather forecast decided to make little makeshift igloos for the new shoots. Hopefully they're nice and warm under there. After what felt like the busiest week ever it was nice to get out and potter for a couple of hours. 

lately

• we always sit down to eat breakfast together, I get very grumpy if ever we don't.
• a favourite dinner - teriyaki salmon, pasta, plenty of greens and chilli
• waiting for the train
• dismantling the shed at the garden centre
• the shed now up in the garden, D adds the finishing touches
• misty and bright, pretty views from the train window
• daffodils brighten the table
• presents for D's little niece
• waiting for that train again

spring has sprung

Today felt really spring-like here in the UK. I popped out briefly this morning and had to grab sunglasses as I left the house! I also enjoyed eating lunch in the garden with the warmth of the sun on my back as Tit and Pie quacked and pecked at my feet. 

We had a busy weekend spent entirely in the garden. We got a new shed (a mini dutch barn), a gift from my parents, they bought it for a good price in the sale at our local garden centre. The good price meant we had to dismantle it ourselves, hire a lorry to transport it home and then re-erect it in the garden. D and my Dad did most of the hard work, Mum and I just helped out when needed and carried on with other jobs; pruning the last of the apple trees - a job I finally finished, as well as moving our compost heap to its new home. We all ache a bit today! But the shed is up - it looks wonderful, feels like the garden is really taking shape. I'll show you another time.

• this cute old ted caught my eye, last weekend, when a friend and I went rummaging through the junk shops of Clare in Suffolk. 
• the metal sign was an 18th birthday gift from my parents (quite a while ago now, but I still love it)
• sunglasses and a pretty woodland vase