big news revealed!

You may remember that a while ago I mentioned we had something quite major in the works and were having to make all sorts of big life changing decisions...Well I'm happy to say that I can now reveal all. We will soon be moving to the other side of the world (literally!) to live in New Zealand!

Curt has been offered a job transfer to Auckland with the company he works for and we will be saying goodbye to London at the start of July and heading off to New Zealand. We're really excited about a more relaxed lifestyle, the beautiful scenery and a better climate to mention just a few things. Though right now there is an overwhelming amount of things to be done, friends and family to enjoy our last month here in the UK with and possessions to be sorted through and shipped off. I barely know where to begin! So apologies if the posting here is a little light over the next few weeks.

I look forward to sharing the events of our new life and adventure in New Zealand :)

Image above by Chris Gin on flickr.

happy birthday to...lila!

On Saturday we celebrated Lila's 2nd birthday. Yes, I can't believe I actually have a two year old daughter now either! Our beautiful baby is now officially a little girl. It is absolutely insane the speed with which those years have passed though when I think back to being a child, a year felt like a lifetime. Funny how time speeds up like that.

The sun was kind enough to cooperate and shone extra brightly for the garden party and BBQ we had planned. It was an all round beautiful day and the birthday girl had a fantastic time playing in her new tipee tent (very impressively hand sewn by my mother and then constructed with poles from the garden centre) and playing with her little friends. The cupcake decorating activity was a highlight and Lila especially enjoyed joining in and singing happy birthday to herself when it was time to blow her candles out!

Update on pictures! Managed to fix them- think I had somehow managed to upload the thumbnails originally which is why they were so blurry.

can i live here please?

I feel like I've been focusing quite heavily on interiors related posts lately, but I just couldn't help myself from sharing these images of the home of Liza Giles, a Senior Stylist at the legendary Designers Guild.

I've fallen for her home in a huge way and I couldn't believe it when I saw that these images were taken back in 2007, which shows that this perfectly exemplified glam boho/flea market- esque style is still going strong three years later (well, for me anyway!) She clearly shares my love of the green and blue colour combo, and her grouping of pictures on the walls and the mirrors in the bathroom is amazing. Hope you find them as inspirational as I do.

All images from Elle Decoration, UK Edition October 2007. Photography by James Merrell.

(Discovered via This is Glamorous)

visual journals

I thought I'd share pictures from some inspiring visual journals I came across on flickr. (Image above by laura_rivera)

I have kept an inspirational journal for as long as I can remember- though for me they have focused on words- quotes, extracts from books and song lyrics, rather than pictures, drawings and mementos. That said, I am constantly ripping images out of magazines and catalogues and squirreling away scraps of pretty paper- all with the intention of one distant day collaging them together to create a beautiful journal. I have the images, the materials, the glue and even the book. All I need now is to make some time!

Image source

Image source

Image source

Image source

london living

This is the home of Emily Chambers- stylist, author and owner of the amazing homeware shop Caravan which I've posted about before here. She and her husband live in a converted warehouse in Shoreditch (a trendy area of East London) which is the ideal backdrop for her eclectic, quirky style and showcases her talent for bringing together an array of different objects, prints and colours and fusing them all perfectly. Beautiful and very inspiring. The white walls really allow the many textures and patterns to take centre stage and it looks so light and airy.

All images found on Marie Claire Maison.

loving right now...

Things currently making me pretty happy...

My little home grown herbs which are making a good start in life- the initial shoots appeared about a week ago and I don't seem to have killed them off yet. This is my very first attempt at gardening so I am prepared for anything to happen. We got the cute wooden herb planter as a wedding present (we had a gift registry at Not on the High Street) and it's only taken me eight months to actually get around to planting them!

This sleep easy herbal tea infusion by Clipper is divine- I'm not sure if it does actually help me to sleep better (it's not something I really have a problem with- being one of those annoying people that can fall asleep within two minutes and sleep through an earthquake) but I really love the taste of it and have taken to having a cup of it every night before I hit the sack. It's a mixture of cinnamon and chamomile amongst other things. Awesome packaging design too. Actually, that's probably why I bought it in the first place.

My new summer sandals from Zara. Which, by the way is one of my all time favourite shops. I've been doing a big clear out of the house over the past couple of weeks and as I disposed of a fair few shoes there was room in the wardrobe and a good excuse to treat myself to a new pair. Now I just need a couple of days of sun to get a bit of colour to my feet- I'm thinking pasty white skin with nude sandals is probably not the best look!

priceless

An episode that occured earlier this week that still brings a smile to my face every time I think of it...

Lila takes her socks off ready to get in the bath

Curt: "Good girl Lila"

Lila: "Socks off Dada"

Curt takes his socks off too

Lila: "Good girl Dada"

This reminds me that the time now would be a very good time to embark upon creating our own jar of magical thinking.

Photo's of Lila courtesy of the highly talented photographer (and friend!) Andrew Vowles.