Bloom



Magnolia from my mother's garden

Lily pad at Kew

Pink Azaleas at Kew

Flame Azaleas at Kew

Lily of the Valley from my mother

Alliums in Cambridge

Lavender at Ham House

Bluebells in Blake's Wood, Essex

Regents Park

Rose's at Lifehouse Spa

Phone box in Archway (sorry didn't come out well on my phone!)

So many beautiful flowers.  The Boyfriend and I visited Kew yesterday.  My mother brings us flowers from her garden when we are at work.  In April it was Magnolia.  On Friday lily of the valley.  So pretty and smells amazing.   Unfortunately we didn't make it back to Blake's Wood for the Bluebells this year, although I hear it was a particularly beautiful year because of the rain. Blake's wood is, for many reason's, one of my favourite places on earth.

We have made a start with our own little garden with masses of help from our parents, who have given us lots of cuttings from their own gardens and bought us some lovely plants. There's still lots to do and we plan to run errands over the bank holiday. I think it is shaping up nicely.

I'm getting my wedding flowers done by the Urban Flower Company although I'm also doing some of myself too. I just want something very simple for decoration's and I think doing it myself will be fun.  Although you might remember that I did also think about making my wedding cake a while back. I have conveniently forgotten that I ever though that that was a good idea! 

In other news, I started back at work after my secondment about a month ago.  I have found it more difficult than I expected.  People have generally been lovely, from the security guards who remember my name, to the head of the organisation stopping by my desk to say hello, to people I barely remember suggesting we go for coffee. However my confidence has suffered a bit and it feels like so much has changed.  But I think I'm starting to get my mojo back. I think.

Paris (in) spring

Lovely hot chocolate at Angelina's

So we got a cheap deal to go Paris for the weekend. The Boyfriend's brother lives in Paris and he knows his way around quite well.  So we walked from the Latin Quarter over Ile-de-France, to the Marais, then the Tuileries Gardens and then Luxembourg Gardens.  



It was 22 degrees under a cloudless sky. City flowers everywhere. Lots of lovely things to eat (including tasty authentic Moroccan food with friendly service near Place des Gobelin). Things to make you look everywhere. Insanely delicious hot chocolate with whipped cream at Angelina's.  

The Patheon

Graffiti in the Marais

Little park by Rue de Parve in La Marais

Goats cheese salad for a yummy lunch

Salted caramel and hazelnut
 ice cream on Ile de France

Doors!

Paris flowers

Love locks on Passerelle Léopold-Sédar-Senghor

Jardin du Luxembourg

Graffiti in the Marais

On Sunday morning we ate waffles and fruit at my brother-in-law (to be's...) place before catching the Eurostar. Vive la France!

Out foxed

One of the things I've been looking forward to most about the new flat is the garden.  Our garden is not huge by any means but its just right for us and its the first time I've had a one since I moved to London.

The garden is a blank canvas at the moment with a small patio, lawn and decked area at the back to catch the sun.  There's also a pathway and pebbles leading to a shed.   And we have plans.  I'm imagining lovely terracotta pots filled with fragrant lavender and thyme as I open our bedroom doors onto the patio in spring. Beds and borders with fruit trees and pretty bushes.  Runner beans, tomatoes, potatoes. I've got a lot to learn, but luckily The Boyfriend has more experience than I do we both have green fingered parents.

So in my smug sunny garden fantasy haze imagine how I felt waking up to find our garden strewn with filthy rubbish. And then my pure horror when it happened the next night too!  Clearing up in my rubber gloves, I briefly contemplated whether we were being targeted by a dememented neighbour, but I realised very quickly that it was more likely to be a fox.  Bumping into our friendly upstairs neighbour confirmed that we do indeed have a fox living on our road and she (he?) used to make a mess in the previous owners garden too.  Apparently the fox is quite confident and is sometimes seen on our road in early evening.

I am looking forward to seeing the fox for myself, but keen to discourage her from messing up our garden again.  The obvious answer would be to make sure there is no food around to tempt her, but we have no idea where the rubbish bags are coming from as ours are on the other side of the building and impossible to access from the garden.

I'm not sure if there's anybody left who still reads my blog, but do let me know if you have any experience or ideas on discouraging foxes.   I think it goes without saying that we definitely do not want to hurt her.

I've already found some advice on the internet of things we might try, but this guide on the Kensington and Chelsea website is my favourite.  It reads like a spoof straight from the pages of Viz. You can really imagine the type of council officer responsible for writing it. Enjoy.

November

No sun - no moon!
No morn - no noon -
No dawn - no dusk - no proper time of day.
No warmth, no cheerfulness, no healthful ease,
No comfortable feel in any member -
No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,
No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds! -
November!

Thomas Hood 1789 - 1845

Pah Thomas Hood! Pah and Pah! November has been glorious! I didn't get the chance to write much last month as both work and house buying have gone bonkers. Here are some of my highlights from November.

The Gerhardt Richter exhibition at Tate Modern is one of the best exhibitions of the year. Really well thought out exhibition and introduced me to some new work.  Definitely worth seeing if you're in London between now and 8 January. 

Gerhardt Richter - Seascape

Gerhardt Richter Gerric

Turning 34, gaining a donkey and watching Manon at the Royal Opera House.

Watching the Fireworks from Blackfriars Bridge in our snugly coats and scarves.  My mum always tries to catch a bit of the Lord Mayors Show on television every year as it reminds her of the day she brought me home from hospital all those years ago.

Looking out at the moons of Jupiter through binoculars.  We've not done it apparently there's an observation site in Hampstead where members of the public can pretend to be astronomers using amazing telescopes and speak to scientist for free.

The Wolseley

Afternoon tea at the Wolseley.  I love the Wolseley and if you've not been you really should go.  It is an impossibly glamorous grand European style art deco cafe.  Lovely dark wood, marble and chandeliers. The service is fabulous and unlike some of the other places you can go for tea in Piccadilly its not the tiniest bit stuffy or gimmicky or outrageously expensive. Lots of people were quite dainty with their cakes but The Boyfriend and I really enjoyed them - particularly the pistachio macaroon.

This was our first time for afternoon tea, but The Boyfriend and I have had some fabulous breakfasts at the Wolseley. The Eggs Benedict is the nicest that I've ever tasted.  A sister restaurant The Delaunay is also opening on Monday 5 December.  Let me know if its good if you try it out first!

Discovering all the little birds at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust.

Eating and drinking too much cheese, cake, wine and Crabbies ginger beer.  There's too much going on to worry about diet - plenty of brides wear wedding dresses with elasticated waists nowadays.

St Pancras Hotel Kings Cross

Celebrating my anniversary with The Boyfriend with an amazing massage at the St Pancras Hotel Spa.  We have happy memories of the hotel. We had cocktails in the hotel the night we got engaged and we even thought about the hotel as a wedding venue option at one stage. [Note to self: I should post about the places we aren't getting married soon...].  

Anyhow, for our anniversary treat I had a massage and a facial and The Boyfriend had a massage.  It had been a particularly stressful week at work and a stressful week chasing solicitors, buyers and estate agents.  However I left feeling fantastic, with light behind my eyes and skin that actually glowed. There are lots of day spas and hotel spa's in London.  I would happily recommend this as one of the better ones.

See you soon x

Birds of a feather...

The golden warm autumn days returned briefly to London.  Briefly, as in on Saturday I only needed a cardigan, but by this morning there was fog everywhere when I woke up. Gloves and scarves c-o-l-d.   But as I say, Saturday was glorious. So The Boyfriend and I headed down to Barnes to the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust.

We spent the first part of our visit in the hides overlooking the wetland and saw cormorants, great crested grebes, little grebes, bittern, wigeon, cranes, oyster catchers, different kinds of gulls, swans, ducks and geese. There was a rumour that mallard ducklings had hatched because of the weather fluctuations, but we didn't see any. Hope they've survived.

I particularly liked this little chap who we think is a Nene or Hawaiian Goose. He took a shine to The Boyfriend and tried to peck a chunk of his Redwings. Yes that's right, once again The Boyfriend cut a dash as a Shoreditch squire on an outdoorsy day out.  

The highlight of the day was just before dusk when all the birds started to flock in the half light and we were surrounded by tens of whistling ducks making high pitched calls to each other.  And just as we left the bats started to cluster.  Such a lovely day out and only an hour across London too.  I think we'll go back in spring or summer to see how things have changed.

The Only Way is Essex (And a Little Bit of Suffolk)

So after the hot weather last weekend, this Sunday was the real start of autumn. The boyfriend and I went for a long walk in Manningtree following some of the Essex Way footpaths to Dedham along the river Stour and to Flatford. 

It was the most perfect autumn day with clear bright sunshine, a sharp breeze and fresh earthy smells.  Autumn colours were everywhere.  Wide open green meadows, brown, orange and yellow leaves, trees and lichens. 

The first five miles or so we didn't encounter any other people.  We did get a little intimidated by some horses crossing the footpath through a farmers field and so we hid under a fence.  But the horses were just being friendly.  Oh dear!

There was just something fantastic and romantic about being outside in the countryside. Hay barns, acorns, conkers, lichen growing up walls, little streams, kissing gates, styles, weirs, rusting roofes and an abandoned tractor.  For lunch we stopped off at a beautiful old yellow beamed pub in Dedham Vale for a ploughman's and pint of cider.



I grew up in Essex and can remember punting on the Stour in summer holidays so loved seeing the little fleet of boats as we wandered along the river after lunch.  There were more people on this stretch, although it was still quiet.
  

We reached Flatford, the home of John Constable and the inspiration for much of his art.  Willy Lott's cottage has been preserved and there's also a teaching facility in a national trust centre. Here is my almost Hay Wain. 

We made it back to Manningtree just before it got dark, slightly achy from a long day but happy and contended.  I've felt rejuvenated and calm all day.  We will go back. x

PS. I think  have mentioned before how outstandingly stylish The Boyfriend is? Well I thought I might add that while I wore old leggings and my gym trainers for our walk The Boyfriend was dressed head to foot in Albam. 

Baking Hot in Finsbury Park

It was our friend Andy's birthday party yesterday and we started off the afternoon in Finsbury Park. The grass was covered in beautiful red and brown autumn leaves.  The sun was strong and golden at an unseasonable 30 degrees in London. One of those gorgeous afternoons catching up with an extended circle of friends and drinking lots of wine and eating lots of cake in the park. The only thing was we were able to do this in October rather than August!

I made chocolate Guinness cupcakes based on a Nigella Lawson recipe. I was originally worried that the cake mixture was too runny as all the ingredients are melted together on the stove before they are cooked and I hadn't made cake this way before.  But I shouldn't have worried the cakes turned out really moist and chocolatey with an undertone of spice from the Guinness.

The picture above is from Nigella's website.  And my cakes are below!  I made cupcakes and a few special cakes in little heart shaped moulds.  The Boyfriend argued against the use of strawberries but I thought it was a nice accompaniment and the cakes went down very well with everyone at the picnic.  

I mentioned before that I want to get some practice baking as I'm thinking of making my own wedding cake when The Boyfriend and I get married next year.  I've not baked much in the past at all and I really enjoyed the practice.  I've also discovered that one of my favourite bloggers is going to do a series on baking classic cakes.  I may try to bake along with the blog. All advice very welcome.

Long Lazy Days: Post

So Tuesday was the last day of our holiday and it went out with a satisfyingly silent bang.  The Boyfriend and I had a pub lunch and then a long ramble around the nature reserve near us searching for blackberries which I cooked up when we got home with pears and a little sugar and nutmeg.  Long lazy days made the first day back at work a bit of a struggle.   Which is why I've been quiet for a few days.  Will be back soon.


Good night x