Things of beauty...

Hello blue eyes...

There is something about my house that comes into its own this time of year. This house was just meant for the cooler months. Although warm temperatures are predicted for this weekend, I am sticking with my Autumnal vibe. The garden has that early-morning dew that this time of year brings. The leaves just starting to turn, the windfall apples each day scattered on the grass.

I went to see 'Eat, Pray, Love' and here is what I thought: I have not read the book, I had lots of preconceptions from other's commentary about whether the book and/or the film were actually any good. I had heard the words 'self indulgence' repeatedly mentioned. So, I found it...thought-provoking. It wasn't the best film ever, it lacked pace, but visually I loved it. And Julia - she is just a pleasure to watch.  The food in the 'Eat' part - OH MY GOD - the Italians have got it so right.

...is that semi fredo Julia?

Daryl Hannah...those cheekbones...

I love this drizzly image of New York City...with the incongruous lush green border...

via Coffee and Cognac

This is just my cup of tea...an out-of-context item for decoration.

via crush cul de sac

 Gorgeous Gwyneth Paltrow from Vanity Fair...

via dress, design, decor

Country Living

Knitted, autumnal dressing...

via crush cul de sac

As ever, he captures the new season perfectly...

via The Sartorialist

My wallpaper affliction persists...

'Vanilla' by Paul Ferney found here.

Words of wisdom for a Friday...

via it's mary ruffle

Have a lovely, lovely weekend... xxx

Thank you, thank you, thank you...

My blog and I (for we are one and the same) been given some awards. Always such a pleasure to see my name on someone else's post. Anyway, here goes...

The gorgeous Julia Roberts

From the lovely Chania at Razmataz, a versatile blogger award. Chania has been following my blog and I hers, since I started this year. She has her own shop, which I think looks absolutely dreamy when she share shots of it. Chania is one of those blog friends who always leaves some wisdom for me...drop by drop, I think she has a life lived if her insights are anything to go by. There is so much to be said for quality life experience...

This award requires I list seven things about myself, so being versatile, I will list 7 wishes of mine; things I wish I had done had I known better!

One
I wish I'd have bought a bright cherry red Kitchen Aid instead of a black one. To be fair it was a gift for my husband who cooks - but deep down I knew it was for me.

 

Two
We once viewed a wonderful Art Deco house that I always wished we had been brave enough to buy. It needed so much work, but was going for so little, it would have been amazing. At the time I could not get past the old fashioned brown decor. But then, if we had of bought it, we would never have got this farmhouse.

Three
I wish I had listened to my Mum's advice that being tall was a good thing; instead of spending years feeling gangly and having slouched posture. Now I stand tall.

Four
I really wish I had taken better care of my teeth! Enough said.

Five
I wish I was one of those party all night, last one home girls. But I never have been. Even at University I had a friend who used to feel the same as I did and we would slip away before the rest (N - you know who you are!) We had this unspoken agreement that if there was a chance to go home, we would grasp it! I remain eternally attached to my bed...singular favourite place to be.

Six
In my first job in Publishing I really did think I knew it all. Looking back it actually makes me cringe now; I was fresh out of University, at the grand age of 21 and full of newly-graduated bluster. I wish I had been slightly more gracious. I wish I could have seen what I had to learn, not what I had to tell! Suffice to say when my temporary contract was due for renewal there, it was not renewed. A big lesson learned.

Seven
I do wish I had never had that Zooey Deschanel fringe cut. It's taking forever to grow out.

I pass this award on to:

Jeanne at Collage of Life
Alison at Cowparsley
Mary at Mary Loves

The second award is from Carrie at This Free Bird, she gave me a blog with substance award. Carrie and the word 'substance' go together like peas and carrots. Almost immediately I felt an affinity to Carrie...it's funny how that happens, given that I am a country bumpkin in rural England and she is an achingly cool Californian fashionista.

Here I detail my feelings, motivations, philosophy about blogging in just five words! Now that's a big ask for me; you know I am usually quite verbose..

Firstly I am grateful that I 'found' blogging. It has rocked my world.

I never thought that friendship would stem from blogging in the way it has for me. For all that people scorn making friends in the virtual world and not the real one, I have found more compassion, openness and interest through this blog than I have at the school gates. Strange but true.

Blogging has formulated what I like, it has drawn out the aesthetic side of my brain. As one lovely commenter said, my blog posts are like a scrapbook of me. The things of beauty that move me.

Blogging has shrunk the world for me. I now have a much deeper appreciation of which country people come from and how that forms their thinking.

Blogging has made me write again and has made me see that I like it, that I can do it and that others like reading what I have to say.

I pass this award on to:

Simone at The Bottom of the Ironing Basket.
Amanda at Forty not out.
Natasha at She Left on a Monday.

From Melissa at Miss Sew and So, a Sunshine award. Now similarly Melissa and I had a connection from the start. We are living parallel lives but she has done the one thing in life that scares me - leaving her homeland! She asked me to chat about seven random things as if we were having a cuppa tea at her kitchen table. Earl grey for me...

One
I am superstitious, I apply this to certain areas of life and not others. I don't mind walking under ladders but I always, always touch wood when I feel I need to! Lilacs should not be brought inside the house. And on no account, under any circumstances should shoes ever be placed on the kitchen table.

Two
The first single record I ever bought was 'The Lovecats' By The Cure. I was an 80's child...

Three
I am Louise Elisabeth - with an 's' not a 'z' - it's a Danish thing and causes all sorts of problems on passports, driving licenses etc. I was going to be called Susanna after my aunt, but my Mum changed her mind at the last moment.

Four
People who know me think I am a complete shopper but I have stuff in my wardrobe that I bought 10-15 years ago. I do that test of 'have I worn it in the past year?' when I sort through and then think 'might I wear in the next year?' and decide to keep! I like to think I am not a hoarder - more than I made a good choice when I bought the item in the first place...

Five
Talking of being an 80's child, I can pretty much recite the script of every John Hughes film...from 'Ferris Bueller' to 'Breakfast Club'. Literally.

Six
I am not sure if you guessed, but I am ridiculously nostalgic. I see value in shared history, the fact that my kids are growing up in the same town as me pleases me. That my daughter is starting to take footsteps that I took. That my husband and I have this shared appreciation of where we are in life. I do wonder whether we should have left - gone away - made a new history. But there is something wonderful and sentimental in seeing your family grow in a way you did, but with a chance to edit out the less favourable bits!

Seven
In my job, I advise on risk - when to take it, what happens if you take it, consequences, ramifications. I spend my time weighing things up, considering. Over time this has become a trait that has spilled over into how I think about everything, so I am now making an effort to stop thinking about risks and start just doing it!

I pass this award on to:

Amanda at Small Acorns
Marcie at Lemons and Laundry
Annelise at A Box of Crayons

White mind...

I sense that when considering these past months in future, I will look back and think 'what a strange time that was...!' I am so pleased that I have blogged my way through it, as although it's only been peppered with mundanes of the day-to-day; behind the scenes in the 'world of me' there has been some quite big stuff going on. I am busier than ever and things have happened that have made me really question what how I am living this little life of mine.

What I am like as a mother, my integrity in my job,  how I value friends, how I seem to others; it's all been food for thought lately. My conclusion: I've never been happier, but even with that lovely assertion, I do need to learn to find a way to make all the elements work in some sort of harmony!

I feel I need to rest on my laurels, very temporarily, but nonetheless...to ponder. We have our annual summer holiday coming and never before have I felt such a need to just escape my day-to-day. That's not because I don't love my day-to-day, but its time to step out of it. We need to not to be coming or going for a few weeks; but to be still.

What I would really like is to have a reflective state of mind like these wonderful whites...

Atlanta Bartlett

via are so happy

Atlanta Bartlett

Things of beauty...

May Day Bank holiday, spent largely lolling around the house, hosting visitors who punctuated the day. Back to work tomorrow after last week's absence; back to reality. There is so much going on at the moment, it's hard to keep perspective...

Country Living loveliness...bunting on May Day.

I have a thing about milk glass...so I think this picture is just dreamy...

Sad to say I am growing out the Zooey Deschanel fringe...it's just not me (anymore). But every time I see a picture like this I think 'I likey'...must work on divorcing the reality of my hairdo with that of a beautiful model...

It's children's birthday season in our house...getting ready for the annual party planning...

'The Woman in Blue' by Andre Derain. This painting is in Copenhagen's State Museum for Art...

Pretty pink peonies...

At the moment the most beautiful thing for me will be to NOT HAVE TOOTHACHE anymore. Love Julia Roberts in this shot - her teeth look super-duper healthy. I bet she doesn't get toothache...I will be back to the dentist this week.

Boodles Raindance ring...

So, this is so typical me: We went to a wedding a few months ago and there was someone there (who I didn't know that well) wearing this grey dress. I took one look at it, loved it, but did not ask her where it was from but assumed it was a designer number, probably cost a fortune, as she was that kind of girl. Months passed, I decided that I had to find out who it was by, eventually asked, to find it was from French Connection. Not that I have anything against French Connection but don't really shop there as it's...how to say...kinda young for me. So after all that, I found it online (God bless the internet) and have one winging its way to me now...

LOVE this whole outfit...

Julia Roberts last night at the 2010 Golden Globes - I love everything about this. The necklace is such a statement, a short little black dress looks sharp and modern, and those legs!! And those shoes!! Its all beautifully simple and stylish...and appropriate to the season, it has sleeves. As it is January afterall... Everything is as it should be. Julia Roberts manages to look undone with loose hair, but entirely 'done' at the same time...perfect.