London

I'm back home after a 4 day work shopping trip to London, we tried to get in as much as our legs would allow, couple new spots to report and our hotel was great.
We stayed at the hoxton hotel in Shoreditch...I know it's a little of a trek out of the city but with Liverpool Street Station a 5 minute walk it really made no difference to us...plus with all that's happening in Shoreditch at the moment...surely it's the place to be...
A nice breakfast spot was at the book club  decked out in a mixture of old school furniture (the type of chairs that snagged your tights as a 6 year old) and vintage Ercol... I imagine it can get a little young and hip after 5.30pm but it's literally just around the corner from the hotel and en route to the underground...

The Book Club

Pizza East for a bite to eat on Shoreditch High Street (I advise booking) 

Folklore  If you head up to Islington be sure to stop by.

Bills  nice easy food spot.

Folklore

We stopped off at Somerset House to view the Tim Walker exhibit which would have been great except the space was too cramped and they should've had a limit on the number of people in the space. But all their exhibits are free, so one can't complain too much...well just a little.

Tim Walker

Sunday is Market Day...headed out early to Columbia Road Flower Market which is a short walk from our hotel...unfortunately no flower purchases for us but we enjoyed fresh sausage rolls from The Lily Vanilli Bakery hiding just around the back in The Courtyard. Along with some other cute stores.

daylesford organic A favorite for lunch

I only picked up a couple treasures, some fabric from Liberty's the plan is to make a dress for an upcoming wedding in May...I'll keep you posted.
As always the cloth house  had plenty for me to feast my eyes on the temptation was obviously too great and I picked up  some beautiful indigo striped linen mix I must have something that needs covering...

End of a year

I have to get this posted before February...
Welcome 2013....it's been a while I don't have any excuses except this precious invisable thing called time has passed me by in a flash.
There's been plenty to enjoy and celebrate and now here we are in 2013,

The festivities have been and gone I feel rested, a little rounder, and so grateful to have spent this precious time with my wonderful husband, just the two of us relaxing, enjoying our home and enjoying time together. 

It was a tough decision not to go home for the holidays this year, but we decided we wanted to stay in Italy and start to create some of our own new Christmas traditions.

Decorating our home...we went out a week or so before Christmas hunted and gathering some festive sprigs and colour to add to our already fully trimmed tree.

With Christmas Day being our own...turkey in the oven we headed out for a Christmas breakfast at Lake Garda...we were totally spoiled with the peace and quiet enjoying our very own first Christmas alone together with a yummy breakfast - on a jetty with only the passing swans for company.

:: Christmas Day Breakfast ::

Scrambled Eggs

Smoked Salmon

Tea

Bloody Marys

As the day was ours to be as leisurely as we wanted Christmas lunch was extended to late afternoon lunch early evening dinner.

With enough food to feed a family we were done in and crashed out on the sofa.

:: Christmas Day Lunch ::

Turkey

Roast Potatoes

Carrot & Swede cheese mash

Roast Parsnips & squash

Stuffing

Gravy

Cereriac Mash

No room for dessert

Boxing Day we headed up to Cortina...for our well anticipated snow shoe walking with our two friends.
It was the best way to spend the day after Christmas, out in the most breathtaking scenery with friends followed by a well deserved lunch at the refuge at the top.

With days spent watching films, eating and snuggled up on the sofa the idea of a grand New Years celebration inspire either of us. Instead we gathered two friends and headed to Slovenia...with a real treat in store at a multiplex cinema showing films in original language... 6 hours later we left having eaten our way through too much chocolate & popcorn filled with excitement for the next installment of The Hobbit and James Bond.

To see in the New Year we celebrated over a great dinner in Ljubljana.

News Years Day will always hold a special place in my heart as it's the day my husband & I made the commitment that we wanted to become Mr & Mrs. This year we spent a beautiful morning at Lake Bled in Slovenia, followed by a slightly hairy drive back towards Italy through the mountains and National Park. Another perfect way to start the New Year.

Bench mark

Every week we seem to have a new idea about how we want our living space...the furniture gets moved around...again, we discover we desperately need something to fill the space we've just created, I can't say I surprised this has become part of my adult life, ask my parents and they will say I was forever moving my room around and wanting to redecorate even at a very young age, my personal space & what I fill it with & how I live it in has always been incredible important.

This weekend however we were a little hesitant...somehow (all be it unknown to us) we had ordered two benches to be made for our new table...I have a recollection about asking for a quote, but beyond that nothing...no measurements or specifics were passed, the only thing we received was a phone call saying our benches were ready for collection...

They're not exactly what we would have asked for, but they function and we no longer feel like hobbits sat at our table (it's not an average height) to help them blend in some more I finally have a use for these lovely linen feed sacks, that fit perfectly. All be it we should have caused more of a fuss over the order,  we now have a dining space that we love even more and the excuse to have our friends over for more often.

Trying out the new benches

November Pick-Me-Ups

With the denial that Christmas is just around the corner, I decided the Christmas Pick-Me-Ups can wait and we can still enjoy the Autumn before really cosying up for the much colder months.

1. Roots  - enjoying the seasonal vegetables
2. Extension cord  - make visable & love your cords
3. Margaret Howell - does it again, a favorite of mine in the garden on the bike a Cornish Smock
4. Bourbon - a new winter warmer Bourbon & Ginger Beer
5. Panniers  - out and about on the bike LOVE I need these.
6. Autumnal wedges - I can live without them...but...

Friends Gathering

We headed down to NYC not sure what we'd find in the wake of Sandy, knowing that many of our friends were still without power and access to Manhattan was pretty difficult, thankfully we missed all the chaos and headed straight into Brooklyn.
We were invited to stay with our friends Karuna & Vipal who have a beautiful home in Crown Heights, I love their home, from the first moment I stepped inside just over a year ago before all the hard work and before moving in, it felt like their home and their hearts, warm, peaceful & welcoming.
We spent our time with wonderful friends hanging out, eating, movie watching, sofa lounging, walking, record shop perusing for the boy - contentment for all.

jimmys diner brooklyn  - great wholesome breakfast

friend of a farmer - we stopped off for pie, peacon, cherry & pumpkin

wythe hotel - we had a nosey around this new hotel, the view of Manhatten from some of the rooms is pretty cool!

cheryls global soul - stopped off for hot apple cider, black bean soup & a sandwich

Powerless

Wakefield MA

My husband and I have just got back from our first trip together to the USA...I loved being there with him rather than always with work,  and it was just the break that we needed. 

It was a little touch & go if we'd make it, due to the mega storm Sandy that hit 2 days before our departure, thankfully Boston missed out on the full extent of the rage so we landed to relative calm. A couple of days spent with my family, enjoying much needed niece time, which included pumpkin carving out on the porch in preparation for that evenings halloween activities.

It was a really short trip with my family, but we'll be back again in the Spring...

Rockport MA

Favorites

Pumpkin Carving

Curry, wine and pumpkin carving with friends...