new year's eve x

"hope

smiles from the threshold of the year to come,

whispering 'it will be happier'..."

{alfred lord tennyson}

{top: pinterest via dropstitch; next: via piccsy; & last: pinterest via la douleur exquise}

for now

xx

it's early....x

....& very cold....fruit bread is baking {& yes, i'm cheating a little today with the breadmaker....}, & plans for the day are simple; a walk to our local market, sharing the chocolate cake i made yesterday with family {to ensure i don't eat the whole lot myself...}, the final coat of paint, & still in pursuit of that perfect charcoal flooring

oh, and maybe a little bit of knitting.....

{top: via sundayinbed; next: via cherry blossom world; & last: there's nothing like a cold day via flickr}

{the knitting song by sophie madeleine}

for now

xx

in memoriam x

yesterday i walked through our local cemetery, a walk i'd taken many times before as a child, as we passed it on the way to the cinema.....i was fascinated by the care that people had taken when visiting the graves, flowers, xmas gifts, a glass of brandy on one grave, a bottle of beer on another...

images of highgate cemetery, london

{top: child's grave; next: highgate cemetery east; last: sleeping angel}

i hold it true, whate'er befall;

i feel it when i sorrow most;

'tis better to have loved and lost

than never to have loved at all

{alfred, lord tennyson}

for now

xx

shades of grey x

with a pop of pink

{top: pinterest via paper treasure; next: pinterest via moa; next: pinterest via vintage; & last: via pinterest}

today;

painting, searching for the perfect charcoal grey flooring, walking off all that extra xmas food

for now

xx

quiet reflection x

today has been quiet, a little bit of tidying, a little bit of cooking, a little bit of reading....a little bit of lots of things, not a lot of anything...

{all from we heart it}

are we all now holding our breath for the new year?

for now

xx

over for another year x

{pinterest via style-files}

christmas gifts opened, turkey & christmas pudding eaten

christmas day over for another year

now for the lull that settles in between christmas & new year

a time for reflection maybe

thinking of what's been achieved over the past year

&

the hopes & wishes for the year to come

for now

xx

merry christmas x

{pinterest via greylikesweddings}

merry christmas

i hope everyone has a very wonderful day

for now

xx

christmas eve x

{via ica carlsson}

happy christmas eve

hope all your presents are wrapped & you're ready for christmas

for now

xx

let it snow x

{via ica carlsson}

this time last year we were knee deep in snow, annoying for those who still had christmas shopping to finish, but giving a wonderful christmassy feeling for those of us who had nothing more to do than sit indoors & wait for christmas to arrive. this year we have rain, lots & lots of rain....not particularly christmassy if you look out of the window, but with cinnamon rolls baking in the oven, presents wrapped & ready under the tree, tealights ready to be lit as soon as the sun goes down, christmas eve eve has arrived.....lets just not look out the window....

for now

xx

blush & bashful x

i love the line from steel magnolia's where shelby declares her wedding colours to be blush & bashful...so much more poetic than simply describing them as pink...

{top: kari herer; next: gaultier via dazed digital; next: via dress design decor; next: tim walker via making records; next: dylan thomas via madebygirl; & last: audrey in breakfast at tiffany's}

for now

xx

solitude x

{via pinterest}

winter solitude -

in a world of one colour

the sound of wind

{matsuo bash0}

today; walking, wondering, thinking, searching, waiting

for now

xx

movie time....x

today i need to tackle things i'd rather not, uninteresting but necessary things, so i figure i need something to look forward to? i'm thinking a day indulgently spent watching favourite christmas films.....

{it's a wonderful life 1946}

{miracle on 34th street 1947}

i so love both of these

& then there are 'new' classics....i think only the hardest heart would admit to not liking 'love actually', especially this clip, but i love 'the holiday', mainly as i completely covet iris's cottage & love the wonderful play tent.....

{the holiday 2006}

for now

xx

a vintage christmas....x

after days of promising to decorate the house for xmas the baubles were finally unwrapped on saturday....i always love unwrapping them from the layers of tissue paper & bubble wrap & always forget how many beautiful ornaments i have, each one holding a different memory; baubles bought in anthropologie on trips to new york, baubles received as gifts from friends & i always forget that i have so many.....

my mum & dad still have all the baubles from when we were children & {somewhere in the house} i still have a suitcase of baubles that adorned my grandparents tree each year. i love the look of my baubles, burnished gold, glass & opalescent, but next year maybe i'll have a nostalgic vintage xmas...

{top: vintage christmas colours via lovely clusters; next: vintage via allthebeautifulthings; last: a 1950's xmas via pinterest}

for now

xx

strictly ballroom....x

after many days of promising myself that i'd make time to unwrap all my xmas baubles, today i finally took time to put on some xmas songs & with an ever growing pile of tissue paper & bubble wrap, xmas finally took over in my house. whilst i'm writing this i can catch the xmas lights twinkling on the tree & the 'strictly come dancing' final is on the tv adding to the sparkle & sequins....

{top: via pinterest; next: via cori kindred; next: faded memories via flickr; last: fairytale for grownups via flickr}

hope your saturday has been just as sparkly

for now

xx

vintage tea party....x

my lovely friends at work were planning a surprise tea party for my birthday....unfortunately unexpected events meant the tea party didn't end up going ahead, but i did receive some beautiful vintage tea china that is just perfect for my next tea party......

{top: vintage tea party mugs from bombay duck; next: dirty love via we heart it & the vintage tea party book; next: alice, clocks & clocks via we heart it; last: the vintage tea party book}

i also received a beautiful book 'the vintage tea party book' by angel adoree {no idea if that is her real name, but isn't it cute....} which is a lovely book full of recipes & perfect hosting ideas....read more about her here, & take a look at the vintage patisserie her vintage tea party business....

for now

xx

vintage neon....x

it was my birthday recently & one of my favourite presents was a beautiful cushion from rockett st george, which i have coveted for a long while. i love the blurb used to describe this cushion..

"i think there is a new disease called 'cushionitus' {the need to continually buy cushions - which i have} - but these are just the more beautiful cushions i have ever seen"

{top: girl in a pretty dress cushion; next: via teeseme; next: yuval hen via pinterest & last: pinterest via abundance}

there's something so classy & lovely about black & white with hints of neon bright. today i'll mostly be finding the perfect home for my new cushion.

for now

xx

words....x

i love pinterest, along with so many others....i love the way that after a few weeks of pinning you wonder what you did before it came along.

one of my favourite boards is my board of words....some are wise, some are sad, some poignant, some profound, & some are just very very funny....

{pinned from zsazsabellagio}

{pinned from 28media}

i love the last one & i've had it pinned above my desk for a while now.....it always makes me smile no matter how bad a day i'm having

for now

xx

cosy....x

brrrrrrr.....it's so cold at the moment, well probably no colder than usual but i seem to be feeling the cold so much more at the moment & just want to wrap myself in cosy cardi's and oversized chunky socks, and then huddle on the sofa under snuggly knitted blankets indulging in hot chocolate....

{top & middle images via toast, bottom image via gourmet traveller}

....actually i'd quite like to live in the toast catalogue....

{baby it's cold outside}

for now

xx