Here is a list of five things i have enjoyed, appreciated or that have made me smile in the last 7 days. Its my Thursday Favourites. 🙂
Spring Flowers. Crocus in the park.
Its nice to see a few crocus and snowdrops popping up all spring like. I recently walked home from work via the castle park and spied a few blooms peeping through the grass. And I got to meet a playful black lab called Luke. Always a bonus to meet a labrador. 🙂 I feel a springy post coming on soon.
Daisys on a dress.
I bought this dress at the weekend from a shop in Clitheroe called ‘Style Diva’ on Wellgate. There was one displayed in the window enticing me inside. Goes to show the power of shop window dressing! I love that it is covered in daisies ( a nod to warmer weather) and yet still has winter sleeves.
Cute Kittens. 🙂
At the weekend I met this treasured twosome. Sisi and Mau belong to some friends. They have been hand rearing them because they were abandoned by their Mum. Its hard work but their love and dedication is paying off and the sisters are full of mischief at five weeks old. 😀
Tv Crime Dramas.
Enjoying the return of Silk featuring the marvelous Maxine Peak as barister Martha Costello. Great BBC series! And also The Mentalist starring Simon Baker on ch 5. Monday and Tuesday eves sorted for a bit!
Dairy Milk Ritz.
This is a really naughty way to end my post ! Because I work in a supermarket means i’m surrounded by temptations in the chocolate bar department. These new Cadburys Dairy Milk chocolate Ritz crackers are a yummy combination of sweet and savoury. They are pretty delicious I have to say. But I am thinking this should be my last treat …..as i really do need to lose some pounds for the summer. Healthy Eating starts ( Again!) right now.
Yesterday I took part in a photo an hour challenge started up by Janey at Is that You Darling , linking with other snap happy folk at #photoanhour on twitter. I instagramed my way through the day, atempting to post a pic on the hour, every hour. I enjoyed the challenge! So here is what I got up to on Saturday. I’m sorry I didn’t have a more adventurous day…….but it does include cute kittens and a new frock. 🙂
8am ~ woken up by my cat Slinky. She had been demanding breakfast noisely for at least an hour!
9am ~ Wil surprised me by nipping out for croissants. Yummy breakfast.
10am ~ Nipped into town to do some errands and noticed the lovely spring flowers outside the florist.
11am ~ One of my errands was getting some new passport pics. Well they turned out absolutely awful! I look like a depressed convict. And these were the best ones !
12pm ~ To cheer myself up after passport pics trauma I ending up buying a new daisy print dress in town.
1pm ~ On my way to a friends to cuddle her cute kittens. The sky is blue. Hurrah!
2pm ~ Here are Mau and Sisi. Gorgeous girls. They are five weeks old and are being hand reared by my friend Lisa and her family after their mother abandoned them. This was one of the rare times they sat still. 🙂
3pm ~ Admired the vintage vending machines at Lisa’s house. Very Cool !
4pm ~ Popped to the supermarket to buy tea supplies and some pink wine to take to a birthday party later.
5pm ~ Time for a soak in the bath with a lush bath bomb. 😀
6pm ~ Beef Buritos for tea.
7pm ~ Posting this pic has reminded me , I need to check this. Who knows I may be a millionaire !
8pm ~ A cheeky Amaretto before going to a friends 40th.
10pm ~ or maybe later. A pic with the birthday girl. Happy 40th Fiona. X
Well thats it. After this last pic I would have been classed as drunk in charge of a camera. But I enjoyed the challenge and can’t wait for the next one. 🙂
Feeling Blue ? I thought I would look through my photos and find inspiration from this fresh colour that lends itself so well to summer and winter. I would say Blue is my favourite colour. 🙂
Early morning blue sea one summer at Durdle door, Dorset.Blue blooms in boots. 🙂
Blue wall art, Essaouira, Morocco.Out of the blue. fancy a brew? 🙂Bluetit enjoys breakfast.
Blue sea, Blue sky ~ Sorrento, ItalyBlue fishing boats, Essaouira,Morocco.Beautiful statue, Island st Honourait, FranceSniff the blue flower. 🙂
Its Thursday Favourites time again. I write a list every Thursday of five things I have enjoyed or appreciated in the past seven days. So here goes~~ recently I have loved……
Burtons Fish & Chips.
Remember these??
Fish n Chips were a popular brand back in the 80s ~ I certainly remember enjoying the salt & vinegar snacks wrapped in newspaper printed foil bags ~ with fishy headlines. They still taste the same too! And share bags are on the shelves at Tesco so I had to buy a couple of course. Lets just say they didn’t last the wknd. 🙂
Travel Listography.
Do you love lists? Do you love writing lists? I actually do ~ could be to do with my birth name which is Lister. Must be in the genes! Anyway at the wknd we were in a wonderful book shop in Salt Mill, Saltaire and I noticed the Listography journals. Right up my street !
I treated myself to this Travel Listography book and I am looking fwd to listing all my travel adventures past and future. Each page is set out with different topics such as Cities you’ve visited and hope to visit , restaurants around the world, animals you’ve seen and would like to see. etc. etc. I’ve already started filling it in. 🙂
Newton Faulkner.
We went to a gig on Sat night in leeds. Newton Faulkner is one of my favourite singers. Wil bought his first album just before we went on holiday to Sorrento back in 2007 and just listening to his records sends me back to lazing around in the sunshine by the marina . He’s made three more albums since then and we have them all. As a live performer he is really fantastic and it felt so good to see him. 🙂 As you can see from this pic I took, he’s not short of guitars !
Sunshine Tea Cup
I had to include a picture of my new teacup trio ( another Saltaire purchase) , I love the colour and the pretty flower pattern. The make says Pareek~ Johnsons brothers, England and I think it may be from the 1930's. I'm thinking of maybe turning this into a cactus planter. What do you think?
Missing Our Pup
Still feeling incredibly sad about the loss of our old labrador Jake. It happened a few weeks ago now and it still hits me hard sometimes. I am so glad we have plenty of photo’s and memories of this lovely guy. To end this post here is one of my favourite pictures , taken on Shell Island.
Well i’ve been participating in the #take12trips challenge for a few months now. The idea was thought up by Clare over at Need Another Holiday as a way of encouraging folk to travel somewhere new every month over 12 months. And you don’t have to travel far.Often places on your own doorstep are worth a visit. So far I have blogged about a nature reserve off the motorway and a quirky tea rooms in Manchester amongst other things.
If you fancy joining in head over to twitter and have a nosy at #take12trips.
This month I am posting about my recent trip to Leeds and Saltaire with my boyfriend. Back in September we discovered that a singer we both like ‘Newton Faulkner’ would be performing at the 02 academy in Leeds in February. Well Feb is here and at the wknd we went to see him, having decided that we may as well stop over in this vibrant Yorkshire City.
Our Hotel.
We booked a room in the Radisson Blu hotel in the city centre. Unknown to us the hotel was literally 2 mins walk to the venue. Result! Our room was a standard double at a very reasonable rate £68 ( room only) with all the usual facilities you would expect such as crisp white bed linen, tv,kettle,free safe,free wifi and a lovely powerful hot shower in the bathroom.
Our room with a cylinder shaped wardrobe.
The hotels interior is decorated in an art deco style which gives the welcoming lounge and dining area a sophisticated air.
Dining room.
Its quite handy that the Radisson Blu is part of the The Light Complex which also features a Vue Cinema and several chain eateries such as Cafe Rouge, Nando’s and Browns Restaurant. So no shortage of places extremely close by to grab a bite to eat.
Victoria Shopping Arcade.
We arrived just before noon but still found we could check in ( another result! ) so we soon headed into town for a nosy round the shops, interspersed with a few drinks in several pubs. 🙂
Leeds is a great city for shopping and culture. I’m afraid I didn’t really have my bloggers head on in the afternoon ( I was to busy relaxing and enjoying the company of my other half! ) so the only pictures I took are of the impressive Town Hall ( future scene of the Tour De France Grand Depart 2014) and a romantic valentine Hearts Wall.
In the evening after some rather nice food at Cafe Rouge we headed up to the 02 Academy for the gig. I don’t know if you’ve ever heard Newton Faulkner but it was an amazing concert. We were so chuffed to finally see him! Newton. 🙂
The next morning we decided to buy breakfast in the hotel which was quite reasonably priced for a hotel~ £8 each for a cooked breakfast. At checkout we got a discount for parking in The Light car park so instead of £18 we paid £13. This did bring the price up of our night away just a tad but not to worry !
About half an hours drive from Leeds is Saltaire Village which is named after Sir Titus Salt who built a textile mill and the village to house its workers in the 1800s. It is now a UNESCO world Heritage site and people still live here today. Salt Mill houses a Hackney exhibition and a fab book shop, restaurant and large spaces for contempary home wear and furniture. Salt Mill.
As it was actually sunny on Sunday morning we had a pleasant but bracing stroll round the park that Sir Titus created, had a wander up Victoria Rd where there were a couple of vintage shops 🙂 and had a lovely lunch in the Don’t Tell Titus cafe. Here are some pics. 🙂
Hello There!Salt Lion.Roberts Park and the River Aire.Swanning about.Vintage Delights. 🙂Don't tell Titus
We are hoping to visit Paris this year. We haven’t booked anything and it may not even happen. This has not stopped me from inventing itinaries and planning Paris inspired Pinterest boards though! Maybe ( if we go), When we have finished gazing up in awe at the Eiffel Tower and admiring the Arc De Triumph ,maybe we can explore a little bit more………:)
1)Vintage Carousels are seemingly popular in Paris.Several are dotted round the city including this one near the Eiffel Tower. How lovely to photograph the famous landmark from the vantage point of a vintage merry go round.
There are others in various parcs and gardens including the jardin du luxembourg and forum les halles.For many grouped together visit le musee de art forain~ a museum of all things carnival related. I’m surely not to old to take a ride on a beautiful carousel horse am I……..
2)Outdoor Swimming is not something one associates with the River Seine but maybe that is because I didn’t know about le piscine Josephine Baker a large barge moored on the banks near the Bastille containing an impressive pool. Named for the American born entertainer/resistance heroine Josephine Baker who found love and acceptance in Paris, it has a magnificent glass roof that opens up in the summer to reveal spacious sun decks.Make sure to take your speedo’s if your a boy and swim cap if your a girl ~ the general rules in french swimming baths. Piscine Josephine Baker.
3) Pavement cafe’s in Paris are there to entice you to sit and watch the world go by I presume. Relax with a cafe au lait, a copy of Cherie by Colette and a sumptious french pastry.:-) Parisienne cafe.
Paris Brest ~ named after a french bike race apparently.
4) Hunt out the miniature Statues of Liberty of which there are two in Paris. The original was of course a gift to New York from Paris so it is only fitting that the city has its own. The tallest is situated on a small island in the Seine (le Ill aux Cygnes) and at 37ft is tiny in comparision to its legendary counterpart.
I love the fact that the Eiffel tower rises majestically in the distance. An even smaller replica can be found in the jardin du luxembourg.
5) In the film Sabrina , Audrey Hepburn’s character says ‘paris is always a good idea’. She must have thought so herself as Audrey made several films in the city. I have only seen Funny Face where she danced with Fred Astaire and Charade in which she starred with Cary Grant. There are several more including Sabrina and Paris When It Sizzles. Audrey with balloons in Funny Face.
To trace Audrey’s film locations saunter over to this charming blog My French Life for inspiration. 🙂
6) Two bridges over the Seine River in Paris are covered in ‘love locks’. Pont de Arts and Pont de l’Archeveche. Buy a padlock from rue de Rivoli , write your names on the padlock, lock it onto one of the bridges and throw away the key. Your love is now eternal! The river bed must be carpeted with keys.
Love Lock ❤
7) Browse the fabulous antiques, art and flea markets for that perfect book, print or trinket.
8) If you are feeling brave why not delve into the shadowy world of vampires. Le Musee des Vampires is a small private museum on the outskirts of Paris dedicated to Vampires and the undead. I myself may just be to scared. By private appointment only. Vampire Museum ( picture found on the cool stuff to do in Paris website.
9) I would quite like to wander round the Pere Lachaise Cemetery however ~ a vast acreage of ornate statues and elaborate mausoleums dedicated to many famous names. Edith Piaf, Oscar Wilde, Chopin, Sarah Bernart and the french novelist Colette to name but a few. The most visited grave is that of The Doors frontman Jim Morrison apparently.
statue at Pere Lachaise. ( Picture by Christopher Levy)
The cemetery is home to a multitude of cats ( they are fed by people who live near by ) and it is said that the flowers on the grave of Colette ( a noted cat lover) are replaced regularly by her feline admirers ,come night fall……
10) And of course in Paris it would be wonderful to stay in a chic Parisienne apartment. I have noticed that a few bloggers I read have used Airbnb which is a website where people advertise rooms and also whole apartments relatively inexpensively. I may have to try them out !
Parisienne Apartment. 🙂
I hope you have enjoyed my bucket list. Have you been to any of the places featured ? Where do you love to go in Paris?
* note ~ none of the beautiful pictures in this post are my own. They are pinned off pins off pins on Pinterest and it was hard to find all there sources.
Here are five things that I have enjoyed and/or appreciated in the last seven days. Its my Thursday Favourites. 🙂
Winter Jasmine.
I was overjoyed to spy the beautiful blooms of a winter jasmine shrub in my friend Becky’s back yard. I didn’t realise she had one! I have a soft spot for the sunshine yellow flowers as I remember the bush in our garden when I was growing up. Those cheery yellow blossoms brightened up winter and meant spring was round the corner.
Yogi Choco Chilli Tea.
A friend gave me a sachet of this tasty tea in the summer. She didn’t like it at all! However I loved it and this wknd I bought a box from the local health food store. It has a lingering chocolate taste which I admit is kind of strange for tea but I think it works.A kick of chilli with warming cinnamon makes it the perfect brew for a winters day. 🙂 I quite like to read tea reviews and about beautiful vintage china on Nancys Tea Shop Blog.
Ben Fogles Lives In The Wild.
I’ve been enjoying watching this tv show that features different people each week who have made their homes and new lives in remote places. The guy above with Ben ( Mr Fogle is on the left) lives in an alligator infested swamp! Ben Fogle goes to stay with these often eccentric and resilliant characters in order to experience their extroadinary lives in the wild. Airs Friday nights on channel 5.
Fab and 40. 😀
I’m glad my friends are all starting to catch up with me now I’ve hit the big scary 4 0. We celebrated our friend Anne’s over the wknd. Thats four of us in our fabulous forties. 🙂 I only wish I could grow a bit taller instead of older!
Pinterest Paris.
I have become a bit obsessed with Pinterest over the past week. I had neglected it for months then had the sudden impulse to construct several boards imcluding one devoted to Paris. Expect a Parisienne Inspired blog post very soon. 🙂 Audrey Hepburn in Paris when it Sizzles.
Well its approaching that Hearts and Flowers time of year again…..so I thought I would share with you my TOP TEN list of movies to watch with your Valentine, or on a girls night in, or snuggled up with a furry cat face and a grumpy black labrador. 🙂 Some of my choices are old, some are more recent.They are all firm favorites of mine!
10) Under The Tuscan Sun(2003)
Diane Lane plays a writer whose life is in a real mess when a good friend offers her ten days in Tuscany.Once there she impulsively buys a ramshackle old villa,throwing herself into a life changing adventure filled with unexpected surprises,friendship and romance.Could well make you rush and book a dream holiday to Italy!
9) The Ghost and Mrs Muir(1947) A gentle atmospheric romantic comedy about a young widow (Gene Tierney) and her little daughter who move into a lonely English…
I’ve been meaning to do this post for a while, though it hasn’t really been, well, winter’y enough! What I mean is sure its been rainy, wet and muddy but we haven’t really had much of the cold crisp frosty weather we imagine winter should have. And not a sniff of snow like on the front cover of my Ladybird ‘ What To Look For In Winter’ book above…
I purchased the book back in November and my plan was to take it with me on my ramblings and compare the wildlife that we see now with what features inside this pretty illustrated guide , first published in 1959. Happily it seems that most of the animals, birds and plant life that appear, I have seen this season, though not always managed to photograph. Today I put on my wellies and headed out over the squelchy fields to the river. I spied clusters of snowdrops on the opposite side of the river which were to tiny for my camera to capture and a grey squirrel jumping from branch to branch of a very high oak tree. I need a new camera.Sigh. So anyway here are the pictures I did take along with some others taken on a previous winter walk.
Wood Pigeon.Ivy berries have ripened over the winter. Singing robin.Snow Berries.Shame there has been no snow…..yet!Bird feeder near the campsite by the Ribble. I spy a bullfinch. 🙂Horses snug in their blankets.And donkeys too !Catkins.Ducky Duck.Winter river ribble.
I shall have to have a nosy for the other Ladybird Nature books in the series. I am looking forward to Spring. 🙂
A list of five things i have enjoyed and /or appreciated in the last seven days. My Thursday Favourites.
Rush.
Watched this entertaining biopic about the intense rivalry between two of Formula One’s greats ~ Niki Lauda and James Hunt ,over the wknd. In the days when racing was only frequented by ‘rebels, lunatics and dreamers’ ( Lauda’s words at the start of the movie) , the 1976 championships were cursed with horrific accidents and contraversy. Lauda’s methodical approach and Hunts colourful lifestyle make for a fantastic film. Starring Chris Hemsworth ( Thor) and Daniel Bruhl ( Inglorious basterds).
Land of Ice and Fire.
Finally booked a trip to Iceland ! For years and years I have wanted to visit this land of geysers and hotsprings and volcano’s. To say i’m excited about it is an understatement :)). How will I manage to wait until October! Got a really good deal through keeping an eye on Travel Zoo .
A cup of Chai.
A work collegue told me how much she had enjoyed a tasty chai latte ~ so as i’ve never even tried a chai anything ( Whaaat!) I thought I should give it a go. Yesterday I enjoyed a lovely cup of Tweedle Dum’s and Tweedle Tea at Callooh Callay , my favourite tea rooms in my home town of Clitheroe. Chai is traditionally an Indian tea infused with spices such as cinnamon and cardamom. I enjoyed it very much ~ even more so with a generous helping of Plum and almond cake. 🙂
Teacup Candles.
I finally started making a few candles in teacups this week. I’ve been a bit lazy since Christmas with the whole candle making thing. But I think these brightly coloured ones look vibrant and pretty ~ so i’m on a mission to make more!
Sunshine On Leith.
And finally on Tues eve I went to a Ladies Film night at The Grand venue in Clitheroe with the girls. We got to eat a delicious scottish themed meal of Scotch Broth for starters and Raspberry Cranachan for dessert and then we tapped our feet along to the Proclaimers songs in this feel good film set in Edinburgh. Strange that an entertaining and heartwarming movie can be made around a back catalogue of Proclaimers hits
… but it really can. 🙂
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sunshine and celandines 