Tuesday 31 May 2011

Attic living

Our bathroom used to look like this:


After 7 years of ablutions in a room that resembled nothing so much as the deep end of a public swimming bath, we finally decided to renovate. Now it looks like this:


So we are in hiding in the attic (us and the cat and the cat food bowls) while our very good but very dusty builders work their way towards creating a blissful white and grey haven.

Last week was a bit bleak up here so this weekend I assembled a bower of posies to combat the mustiness of below. We have little Brooklyn Dairy bottles of forget-me-nots and honeysuckle; jam jars of wee rosy-red apples, overblown roses and foxgloves; and old stilton pots of love-in-the-mist and fennel fronds. Twee delights. Heartfelt thanks to Mum for giving me free range in the garden and accompanying me on a hedgerow forage down the lane (narrowly avoiding a cattle stampede).







Monday 30 May 2011

Christmas comes early...

I was pottering around Hastings Old Town yesterday afternoon looking for a new lightshade for the bathroom. I went to visit my friend Sue in Nelson House Antiques and as we chattered, my eyes alit on this old oil painting...



Isn't it lovely? Needless to say, it came home.

And then something marvelous happened. I spotted a promising box of Edwardian glass Christmas baubles behind the door. Sue noticed my enthusiasm and LO, she only went gave me the whole box! I couldn't get back up the hill quick enough to unwrap the enticing crackly candy stripe bag...








What a lucky girl...

And my good fortune didn't stop there. The lovely Rose in Butler's Emporium had exactly the holophane lightshade and very kindly gave me a couple of outsized gold kirby grips to tame my hair. Then we bought another glass French number from Mick who threw in a pair of perfect bakelite switches. They are going straight into the trousseau of all things too wonderful to install into anything other than our forever house.


Sunday 29 May 2011

Spring flowers amongst the fairy chimneys

Mum and I recently returned from an incredible trip to Turkey. I'll be back to post far too many photos of Cappadocian fairy chimneys, hot air balloons floating blissfully above volcanic valleys and perfect cave houses but first, oh the flowers...




















Friday 13 May 2011

Blue sky thinking

and it's to Cappadocia and Istanbul. Back in a week! Have a good one. x



Thursday 12 May 2011

Mortified

After work I dashed into Westfield to buy some couscous, a chicken and some harem pants. An obvious combination, I hear you cry. I went in search of the pants first because, let's face it, no one wants to take a chicken into a changing room.

And, on the way across the centre, guess who I very nearly bumped into? Only Penelope Cruz. I had stumbled into the premiere of the new Pirates of the Caribbean film. I felt mortified on behalf of the nation that the lovely lady had been prevailed upon to debut her film in a shopping centre. Even if it does have a nice roof.


There are just some things that don't go. Chickens and changing rooms. Beautiful senoritas in couture in shopping centres. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Bring back Leicester Square.

Oh, and Johnnie Depp was there too. I, unlike the screaming throng, could've cared less that he was hanging in my mall. He didn't look as though he'd made much effort with the sartorials. Perhaps he knew where he was heading this evening.

Monday 9 May 2011

A chink

It's been one of those beastly work days. When I finally left the building, I knew I needed to walk 4 tube stops worth to shake it off. So I did. In flip flops. Now I've got flat feet! Silly girl.

I fumed along for the first 10 minutes. Then I started to calm down at which point I looked up and saw this.


It's basically my perfect view. Old green brick tiles, a crescent moon, a quirky roof top and clouds.


A chink of perfection. And I felt much better.

Saturday 7 May 2011

Un sac formidable

I finally replaced my stolen handbag today with a beautiful French sac. It was worth the six month search. Here's the pattern. Je l'adore.


And here's Mag enjoying the packaging. That's my girl.



In other news the man downstairs got his tree surgeon mate round while we were out shopping it up. We return to a much denuded sycamore behind the flat. I can no longer see leaves from my bed. Feeling a bit grumpy. On the plus side, the kitchen is much lighter and our back yard won't be covered in pollen and green fly all summer. It's probably for the best but I keep catching sight of a truncated branch and wincing. Poor old tree.

Oh, and I found another 50p. This time on the floor in Marble Arch tube. I'm over the £2 mark. Huzzah.

Thursday 5 May 2011

4 days, AV and some balloons

These short weeks are absolutely excellent in theory but - sadly - in practice they seem to involve doing 5 days work in 4.

Also our nation seems distinctly unenthused about its first referendum in 30 odd years. We tipped up at 9 this morning to put our X in the box...


The polling station is usually a church. The religious bit with the flowers and happy Caribbean ladies was fairly busy. The roped off bit with ballot boxes and pencils that are never quite sharpened enough was deserted. The electoral officers made a big fuss of us and even went as far as admiring Ben's surname. Only 107 people had voted before us. I know this because, expecting a morning rush, they'd slightly unwisely put a tally board outside. Not sure that democracy's heart is beating particularly strongly in our neck of the woods. Perhaps they should have had a third, I don't care, box. I have a nasty feeling a lot of people would have ticked it.

Mustn't be gloomy though. Our boss had a significant birthday today and we duly covered her desk in helium balloons, cakes and - wait for it - table confetti. Terrible sucks, of course, but it was fun to fill an office with things that shouldn't really be there and then conduct meetings beneath a canopy of bobbing birthday girl balloons all day!


Also, it's 8 days until Mum and I fly off to the land of fairy chimneys and hot air balloons ... I CAN'T WAIT.
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