Life lessons...

All that time he was working away, he really would have rather been at home more.

I would do pretty much anything to preserve my children's happiness.

Getting a puppy was one of the best decisions I ever made.

Natalie Portman in Teen Vogue

I can feed our family of four, good square meals that don't cost much, with enough careful planning and clever shopping.

My hair is really going grey and I really don't like it.

The pangs I get when I miss my oldest and dearest friends are common to us all; life got busy and we got less time together. It's a sad fact.

I do care what others think of me.

It's OK that I  spend a lot of time thinking about my outfits.

Christy Turlington

That time I first felt a wave of pain in my jaw, I so should have seen a Physiotherapist and not a dentist. Or a doctor. Or a consultant.

A strong marriage is one where you are not both competing to be the one working the hardest. It's not a contest.

via foxontherunbride

I have too heavy a reliance on earl grey tea.

There is only so much housework I can do; there is more to life than laundry.

I heart the 1980's in the way my parents hearted the 1960's.

Ohhhh Rob Lowe...80's heart throb

Relinquishing control of my influence over my child's future is exceptionally hard. (As in: I can't sit the exam for her)

In order to be truly physically fit, to the extent that you are your optimum weight and are thoroughly toned, requires daily training. Three times a week actually doesn't do it...unbelievable, but true.

In most matters, what goes around comes around.

Good writing still has the capacity to take my breath away; just like it did when I was 13 and started studying literature.

It really was a mistake to get rid of that fur-collared, wool coat I had at University. Same goes for that perfect pleated skirt that formed my burgeoning 'work wardrobe'. Not to mention that vintage red Mulberry clutch. Ditto those perfectly faded Levi 501s.

Tell me...what is your latest life lesson?

Things of beauty...

Crazy busy week...not quite back in the swing but on my way, I hope. I wish I could say I was having a quiet weekend but the opposite is true - we are hosting a double birthday party for both children, in the garden. It will be sunny! I can feel my yearning for a holiday heightening, starting to count down the weeks to July. We need some family time and quite simply to have nothing to do and nowhere to be for a while. In amazes me how much life ramps up even when you make a conscious effort to keep it edited and easy.

Cameron Diaz...photograph by Mario Testino

j crew summer 2010

via 79 ideas from fri

from voy

by me - my back garden

Kate Bosworth

via edgar modern, painting by Jessica Cooper

photograph by Melissa Schollaert

via poise and vogue

via simple sparrow flickr

via pretty stuff from sushi pedro

Natalie Portman

Olivia P style from from Zara

via modern country style from Cabbages and Roses

via poise and vogue from jak and jil

photograph by Stephanie Rausser

Until next time...

Things of beauty...giveaway day two!

I have always had an affliction - I love to shop. I like to get new things. My Dad was an airline pilot and when I was a child, he used to return from his route with party dresses from America; with puffed sleeves and frills = big impact in my little world.

I was that child who pined for brand new, red, patent Mary Janes. To this day that feeling of excitement of taking a package or bag of newly purchased items home persists. It is an affliction. I wish I could get over it. But sometimes you just have to accept who you are. It is shallow. Clothes and shoes are not everything in life, for sure. But they are nice aren't they?!

I do maintain a life-long search for the perfect pair of red shoes, the perfect LBD, the perfect antiqued brown leather belt. Obsessed? Yep, pretty much. Over the years I have had some partners in this crime; they know who they are but they are - the friends who I still email with links to online shops where I am considering a purchase! For me, it's all about the little details; those things that make your heart beat just that little bit faster.

So this week's things of beauty starts with the incredible face of Natalie Portman; I want to see 'Black Swan' when it comes but I am also scared to; horror is so not my cup of tea! I am taking Boo to the ballet this weekend to see 'The Nutcracker'. It's an annual tradition. Have a wonderful weekend and enjoy the giveaways! Keep scrolling down...

...breath-taking Natalie Portman...

...love the short retro veil...photograph by Elizabeth Messina

...the delectable Blake Liveley...

 

 

...so simple, the winged eye, the pale lips..

 

...detailing by Emerson Made...

...'today, she thought as she looked at the map, we shall go here!'

...a feast of bow ties!

...such a cutie!

...the original: Brigitte Bardot...

simple monochrome dressing...via Dust Jacket Attic

Emma Gordon clutches...gorgeous detailing!

So the next giveaway of my blog birthday week is a little bit of that shopping happiness...

A HANDMADE 'GEORGIA' CLUTCH BAG BY EMMA GORDON, LONDON IN THE COLOUR OF YOUR CHOICE...

To be in with a chance of winning one of these, you simply need to be a follower of my blog and leave me a comment saying which colour you would pick! 
Closes midnight Sunday 9th January.

see the choices here...ivory, silver, lemon, berry, blue, peach, navy, lime, fuchsia, turquoise, taupe, purple, gunmetal, leopard, champagne, black...

I have had such sweet comments as part of this giveaway week, so thank you so much; without you...well, without you I am just someone who posts their thoughts on the web for no apparent reason!  

Do come back for more in a day or two...

Things of beauty...

It's a big day; my children break up today for the summer. Who can believe another school year has passed? They have 'Speech Day' where annual prizes are awarded for everything from academics to cricket to ballet. Always a misty-eyed occasion for me...

This weekend we are at a friend's 40th - very much looking forward to kicking back with a Pimms, which I am pretty sure will be on the agenda! A chance to wear a new dress and some strappy sandals (despite the inclement weather that has descended!). Life seems to be easing up for me, finally...

I have been really touched by the comments left this week, so thank you for dropping by and leaving me your gems of wisdom. It never ceases to amaze me how this lovely blogging community can inform a topic with insightful analysis! How people have been compelled to say something, so many comments started with 'I just had to comment...' which I think it a real compliment.

Natalie Portman...just look at those eyes...

All paths lead somewhere...isn't this a whimsical tree-lined walk?

Delicate and striking at the same time...

This girl is just so natural and beautiful. I absolutely love these images...I have a soft spot for green eyes (and green dresses). The combination of ponytails and bicycles, pretty much nears perfection to me!

images via from me to you

Tiffany's key pendants in platinum and gold...

I want this chaise...quite badly. Not that it would go in my ramshackle cottage, but still...

Atlanta Bartlett

Cake happiness: baked goods wrapped in paper and string.

Summer loveliness...oh, for that view. I am longing for a sea-view and nothing to do but sit and watch. Maybe interspersed with reading a really good book and lovingly watching the Boos build sandcastles... ;-)

Lush, powdery tea roses in antique pewter pots...

Mint-adorned summer drinks...supped through a straw.

Laid-back dressing...can't beat it.

Blue-tinged posies and petals...

via 100 Layer Cake

'Girl with a Pearl Earring' painted by Johannes Vermeer, around 1665.

Wonderful decorations from the achingly lovely Emerson Made...

A free-flowing outfit...all of the elements of this are simple, I think she looks effortlessly great.

Balls of string...the utility quality of them is right up my street.

via it's mary ruffle

Have a great, big, smiling, happy weekend...