blue skies x

today the skies are blue, although clouds are beginning to appear. procrastination seems to be the order of the day, well to be honest it seems to be the order of the week....how many lovely distractions i can find, pinning, blogging, reading lovely blogs, tweeting...oh, & spending many hours spending oodles of virtual cash on etsy...

{lily moon via etsy}

aren't they lovely, so whimsical...

for now

xx

down to business x

i am thinking of setting up my own business at the moment....a very scary proposition, but at times no scarier than the thought of going back to work for other people. do you think everyone reaches a point where they can no longer think of being an employee or do you think this is peculiar to people who work in creative environments....sometimes you want to dictate the pace & direction of your creativity, not feel as if you're strolling along in someone else's footprints?

anyway...thoughts of a new business led to a few delicious hours spent wandering around several websites in search of inspiration for lovely business cards, something that will make me stand out from the crowd, something that people want to keep. cardonizer had an amazing selection of business cards, some were so creative, although a little out of my league at the moment as first ones will be handmade. oh, hello friend, a blog which is always so inspiring, had some lovely examples, & gave me plenty of ideas. here are some of my favourites...

{top: ginger&george; next: oh,hello friend; next: loulou dreaming via oh,hello friend; next: here's looking at me kid via oh,hello friend; next: cardonizer; & last: puglypixel via oh,hello friend}

for now

xx

chinese new year x

{top: romantic chinatown via etsy; next: kung hei fai choi via flickr; & last: getty images}

i have always wanted to be in china to celebrate chinese new year. it seems such an occasion of celebration & the sense of tradition it brings doesn't seem to have dimmed over the years...

whether you are celebrating or not, lets share the sentiment of wishing peace & happiness to everyone...

for now

xx

hugs x

{hugging}

today is national hug day

so

give someone you love a hug today

for now

xx

walking x

{via pinterest}

at the moment i am walking to most of the places i need to go; a new spirit of frugality, originally imposed by circumstances, now something i am meeting head on as a personal challenge. i'm lucky that the days, for the most part, have been cold, but a blue sky, sunny, kind of cold, perfect for wrapping up in gloves & scarves, slipping on the uggs & marching out, my ipod on shuffle, these walks somehow have the ability to give me time to think, but also to take my mind off things if i wish.....

.....yesterday i think i may have overdone it, as a half hour walk to a dental appointment turned into a 6mile round walk.....that's an awful lot of thinking, or forgetting....the sense of achievement is great, but, i think i may have broken myself....

for now

xx

cross-stitch x

a slightly strange day today...one where i found it difficult to settle to anything...perhaps i need something to take my mind off things, something that demands concentration & engrosses you to the point you forget other things....

.....i love the idea of these oversized cross stitch designs....ordinary cross stitch can take so long to complete, but these spark ideas of things that could be completed in a day...

{top: eline pelinkhof via bloesem; next & next: lulu guinness; last: via babyology}

i think i can put this on the 'to do' list for tomorrow

for now

xx

vintage whimsey x

spent a lovely couple of hours yesterday browsing through etsy, spoilt for choice as to what i should include in a little treasury....having worked out that the total cost of my 'whimsey' would be, oh a little over £500, unfortunately they will just have to continue to be just that, but a girl can wish....

{top: alice through the looking glass & resin daisies; next: once upon a time;}

{next: welcoming & flamingo love; last: alexis blouse}

"in a Wonderland they lie, Dreaming as the days go by,

Dreaming as the summers die:

Ever drifting down the stream - Lingering in the golden gleam - Life, what is it but a dream?"

{lewis carroll, through the looking glass}

i hope you can take a few minutes to take a look at my treasury & would love to hear your thoughts either here or there

for now

xx

paper loveliness x

i spent a lovely day in nottingham yesterday, catching up with old friends, drinking copious amounts of tea & coffee & taking in the wonderful artists & craftspeople around the area..... from the chatty, homely, round the table environment of the textile workshop in sherwood, to the gorgeous interiors shop nash {i could happily have bought half the shop had i the money....}, and finally the lovely studio shop of debbie bryan in the lace market area of the town. alongside her own buttons, brooches & knitted loveliness, is work from many other artists, including these beautiful paper creations from jennifer collier.....

it was a very inspiring day

today the bread has been baked, the house tidied, & i'm just debating what to do with some plums that have just been stewed; pie, crumble or smother with a lovely sponge.....choices, choices......

for now

xx

both sides x

listening to joni mitchel

feeling melancholic

{top: in love with wonderland; next: we♥it; & last: piccsy}

{joni mitchel}

meeting old friends tomorrow

I think it's possible cake my make an appearance during the day

for now

xx

bake me a cake x

have just finished watching the great sport relief bake off, a celeb spin off of the great british bake off, which i managed to miss the first time around, and now want to start baking meringues & scones. as it's a little late here to start baking i'm resisting the urge by looking through recipes to tackle...after a lot of baking lots of simpler things over the last couple of weeks, i'm planning to give myself a challenge & inspired by the trailer for next weeks show, want to try this amazing multi layer chocolate cake....

{via sweetapolita}

how yummy does this look?

6 layers of rich chocolate malted & toasted marshmallow cake

this is my challenge for the weekend

for now

xx

good morning x

breakfast is one of my favourite meals of the day, think of the choice it affords you; sweet or savoury, fresh yogurts & fruit in the summer, comforting cooked breakfasts in the winter, eggs in so many different guises....what's not to like?

{via simply breakfast}

i love the quiet of early mornings, the chance to potter around the house & being able to take time over a lovely breakfast, catching up on the latest pinnings & the latest posts from favourite blogs. for the past few years my mornings have been a race to leave the house as early as possible to miss the morning traffic & to spend those first few quiet hours in work catching up on emails. for the past few weeks i've not been working, the longest i've not worked for over fifteen years, & although the circumstances of not being in a job are hard, the silver lining has been the chance to rediscover the luxury of time spent at home in the morning.....

for now

xx

gardening x

i'm still thinking about & making plans for the garden, although i've yet to set foot out there this year....although the weather has been bright & sunny today, it's still cold & I'm yet to muster the courage to get out there & start digging...

so far thoughts have been a small herb garden, tomatoes & lettuces are a must, new & old potatoes, onions & peppers, and then some fruit bushes, raspberries & blackcurrants, and my favourite rhubarb...

{top: box of basil; next: we♥it; & last: via whatkatieate}

a busy day tomorrow, lots to do

for now

xx

eve arnold x

{malcolmX}

{marilyn}

if a photographer cares about the people before the lens and is compassionate, much is given.

it is the photographer, not the camera, that is the instrument

eve arnold

1912-2012

for now

xx

thoughts of spring x

it's so cold & here in the uk the weather is wet & so very windy & it's hard to believe that spring will ever be arrive, so while we're waiting lets indulge in some lovely whimsical images...

{tim walker via we♥it}

starting to think about the garden & trying to decide what fruit & vegetables to plant & {try to} grow...any suggestions?

for now

xx

resolutions x

a quick post today....thinking of resolutions for the new year & without wanting to come across as a recovering addict, for me this seems apt....

{via pinterest}

for now

xx

lily&Bloom x

i have a new blog, a blog which i'm using to share my 'professional' life so to speak. my day job is being a childrenswear designer, & so much of my time is spent finding lovely images of little ones, thinking of new stories, finding gorgeous new childrenswear ranges, & it seemed silly not to share that with everyone.....so please say a big hello to lily&Bloom....who knows, maybe in the not so distant future this will be more than a blog....

{lily&Bloom}

for now

xx

happy new year x

xx