Do You Pin?

I joined Pinterest ages ago, but with a lot on my plate, I kind of never got around to doing anything more than accepting my invite.... Until this week.

Suffice to say I'm totally hooked - it is just so darn cool!

While looking at new stuff on there this morning (circa 5am), I came across this image and I must say it seems quite fitting.

{source}

I've managed to pin everything from wedding dresses to home decor to puppy dogs! (And apparently tapped into a slightly cheesy side of my personality along the way!)

So my question for today is - do you pin?

Have a fantastic Friday!

Snowy Weather and a new look for my header!

I love snow. I think after a lifetime in the sun, the novelty of the soft white flakes drifting downwards has yet to wear off! So with the first snow falling and after a very hectic month away with friends and family over November, I've decided my first post now that I'm back seems like a fitting time to show off my new blog header, complete with seasonal snowy images.

(Okay, I had to cheat with some from last year, but you get the idea! :) )

I have to say a big thank you to my sis, Letitia from The White Shed, for the lovely photo of my linen ruffle cushions (you can buy them at her gorgeous shop over here). The rest of these are my own photos, and it seemed like it was about time I got some things that I made up there.

Of course, snow goes hand in hand with Christmas, so while the snow is falling outside, I'm going to be snuggled up indoors making some handmade Christmas decorations which I'll hope to share with you over the next few weeks counting down to the big day!

Have a lovely week!

Loveliness from Australia and heading home from the UK to Oz!

A couple of weeks back I was super excited to learn that I had actually won something from a blog giveaway! (I never win anything!) And just a few days ago this gorgeous package arrived in the post from the lovely Rebecca at Life in the Country Lane.



I can't tell you how excited to finally be able to prove to all my English friends that yes, Lifesavers (the lollies/sweets) are real and not a figment of my imagination!

I decided to squeeze this quick post in before I leave in a couple of hours for London and then head on to Australia. I'm super excited to be visiting my family and catching up with friends during this month back in Oz, but I will also miss the amazing people who are part of my life here in England while I'm away.

I plan to continue this theme a little further once I get to Australia, but here's a super brief look at what I'm leaving in the UK and what awaits in Australia....


UK - Unseasonably warm British weather in April saw English sun seekers flock to Brighton Beach on the south coast - fully clothed! Brighton Beach, England {via Daily Mail}



Australia - an almost deserted Bondi Beach in April as the chillier weather sets in {source}

I think the lone person swimming is going to be me, I've been keeping an eye on the forecast and that 'unusually warm' English weather is actually cooler than the weather in Adelaide!

Have a lovely week! xx

Around The World in a Day

Today I'm doing something a little different for this post. I'm joining up with Laura @ Happy Homemaker UK for her 'Around the World in a Day' party. Like me, Laura is an expat living in the UK and I was very excited when she posted about this idea.

So today I'm going to share a little bit about what makes my part of the world so special. I live in Cumbria, in the North West of England (yep, right at the top just before Scotland). This area is famous for the very beautiful Lakes District and has been my home for the last 2 years. Poet William Wordsworth lived here and wrote often of the beauty of this area.



Having come all the way from South Australia, this place is incredibly different to where I grew up with its hot, dry climate. What is similar is that Cumbria and The Lakes District feels very vast and open.

So to share a little of 'my place' with you, here are some photos I've taken since I arrived in this remote little corner of England...

(Words by William Wordsworth)

I wandered lonely as a Cloud

That floats on high o'er Vales and Hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd

A host of dancing Daffodils;

Along the Lake, beneath the trees,

Ten thousand dancing in the breeze.

I hope you enjoyed sharing a little piece of my corner of England
- Have a wonderful weekend xx

Winter Wonderland

Firstly, a big hello to everyone and thank you for all the comments. I have been visiting and reading lots of blogs, but I've been so busy this last week and I must confess I've been a little bit lazy about leaving comments. When it finally reached the weekend and I was ready to make ammends, my internet promptly crashed. And well, I'm so glad that I have such a great IP provider - I'm so pleased that they make the effort to open for a few hours on the weekend and that they don't go to peices at the first sign of snow.... (Yep, that's my sarcastic comment for the day!)



Anyhoo... As everyone in the UK has undoubtedly noticed by now - it's a wee bit chilly over here! (See my local forecast courtesy of the BBC below). I thought this would give all my fellow Aussies back home a bit of an idea of the kind of weather we're geting over here. As you can see, snow, snow and more snow - with a maximum temp of 0C for the whole week! I have to admit however, I do just love the snow. This is my fourth winter in Europe and being a born and bred Aussie, snow has yet to loose the novelty factor for me. I suppose it doesn't hurt that I work from home, so I get all the good bits and can just stay rugged up indoors when it gets too cold.



After chatting with my mum and hearing about the 36C temps in Australia, I thought I should do some exploring of the wintry landscape over here, so here are a few snapshots to share from this snowy side of the world.

Hope you're having a lovely week - whether soaking up the sun in Oz or surrounded by snow in England! xx

An Autumn Morning at Lowther Park

About 20 minutes or so down the road from where I live there's a beautiful parkland with lots of walking trails (and lots of sheep!). At the centre of this parkland lies the ruins of Lowther Park. I was fortunate enough this Halloween to spend the morning walking in the (slightly sodden) park and surrounding area.

I didn't do much else that was especially 'Halloweeny' - but I think you'll agree that the house is suitably spooky looking and the parkland is pretty amazing with all the Autumn colours (despite the obligatory English rain). Had to take these photos with my phone unfortunately, as I couldn't take my 'baby' (my Nikon SLR) with me - she wouldn't have stood up to several hours in the rain.

Happy (belated) Halloween! xx

Autumn's On Its Way

This last week or two, the weather has been getting decidely chillier and there is a freshness in the air that signals one thing - autumn is coming. The leaves are just starting to turn on the trees and the hedgerows are full bright red berries.

I have a definite sense to the seasons being distinct from each other in the UK whereas they seem to kind of slide into each other back in Australia. Despite the fact that I'm a bit sad to see summer go, I do love autumn here and watching the leaves turn on the trees.

I've not been taking many of my own photos lately, so earlier in the week when the rain decided to buzz off for an hour or two, I went for a hike up the one of the country lanes just opposite my house and took a few snaps to try and capture that autumn feel.

I think this is my favourite shot...

I've yet to take a photo that truly captures how vast these mountains actually look, but I intend to keep trying!

I just had to snap these mushrooms which were growing about 15 feet up this old tree

I just loved the colour of this cow parsley against the fields

I think these red berries just look so bright against all the green. It might look like a muddy field in the background, but once upon a time that was a Roman fortification from which the village I live in got its name.

I hope you're having a lovely week! xx

Coco Chanel

As some of the people who read will already know, when I'm not busy running my copywriting business and preparing to 'officially' launch my handmade/sewing business - I'm also studying Textile Art through Open University.

This week I've been working hard to finish an essay for my course on the inspirational Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel. Without Chanel, we wouldn't have that fashion essential - the little black dress. I love to gather inspiration from a wide range of sources, and I can't think of any better place to find it than looking to the achievements of a strong and truly inspiring woman. So to celebrate finishing my essay, I gathered together some photos of the one and only Coco Chanel.

I hope you like the photos and I hope you've all had a wonderful weekend xx

Photos from the web; final image from Conde Nast publications

Sunny Days

Since the weather has been so nice the last few days, I couldn't think of any better place to be than in the garden soaking up the sunshine. Since sewing was not really high on the agenda outdoors, I decided to take the camera with me instead and see what I could find!



Elderberry bush by the old ice house - Can't wait to harvest this for Elderberry cordial - yum!



Gimli - the most spoilt pooch in the world. Not only did he need that bit of carpet before he would park his precious bot on the lawn, he then decided that sitting on the ground simply wasn't on and had to have a chair!


Froggy friends - loads of these around in the ponds at the moment



Flowers...


Flowers...


...And more flowers!



I love forget-me-nots - these are a teensy bit blurry though!