Serious Swoonage…

I’ve been doing some serious Pinteresting lately. I have even started to pin before I check my emails in the morning [gasp]. I’m not worried about this excess browsing though as I have made some amazing discoveries. One of which is the breath-taking portfolio of M Elle Design. I’d come across one or two of the images below before (you might recognise that dark and moody living room with the iconic orange Hermes throw) – but I had never had the privilege of experiencing the impact of seeing all these beautiful spaces together. I was shocked to realise that there was not one room in their portfolio that I didn’t fall head-over-heels for. Based in both Santa Monica and Newport CA, M Elle Design is “a mother-daughter team that strives to combine understated elegance and comfort, while staying mindful of patina, provenance, and texture of all the materials involved”.

Want to swoon along?

All images via M Elle Design

It's all about the flares...

Ok, so I know this is slightly unusual…. (hardcore eclectics might be scratching their head at this but it’s progressive for me)! The jeans, top and accessories are my wardrobe staples but the glasses might be a little out there. I’m starting to realise that the older I get, the more eclectic my fashion taste is becoming. I think it’s good to take yourself out of your comfort zone once in a while [note to self: take this advice more often], if only to have your children laugh at the pictures one day! 

Have a lovely weekend all!

Miss Selfridge long sleeve blouse
missselfridge.com

Diesel mid rise jeans
$150 - johnlewis.com

Lanvin high heel shoes
shopzoeonline.com

Azzaro
modewalk.com

LOFT stone jewelry
loft.com

Faliero Sarti scarve
$680 - farfetch.com

Rag bone black fedora
rag-bone.com

Pieces leather belt
asos.com

Retro eyewear
ocshades.com

Tom ford nail polish
bloomingdales.com

Blackberry Farm…

Every time we stay at a charming guest house, I come back home with visions of starting my own. I’d bake fresh bread for guests, I’d sew my own curtains and be warm and welcoming every day. Of course I have my husband to ground me and point out that I am far beyond a “people person”… and I can’t bake! But it’s still a silly dream of mine nonetheless. I guess it’s one of the reasons I fell in love with Blackberry Farm – a luxury hotel nestled on a pastoral Estate in the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. Turns out that owner Sandy Beall, after becoming a new mom, made Blackberry the family’s home and decided to open up their beautiful property to create a six-bedroom inn. Along with her husband Ian, the couple have implemented their vision of traditional Southern hospitality, gourmet cuisine and cherished experiences. From the looks of it, they have achieved just that… and more!

All images via Blackberry Farm

Just a hint of twinkle…

If you followed my blog last year you might remember how much I adore Christmas. I start to get excited about it round about July and contrary to what my loved ones think, I never ever “peak too soon”! I realise that not everyone gets that excited about it (scrooges) and as a compromise to not putting my decorations up in October (because that would be wrong… right??) I always keep a healthy dose of festivity around by keeping fairy lights in various rooms of the house throughout the year – wound around the banister of our spiral staircase and an old mirror we found in the attic of our first London house share.

What do you think about a little dose of festivity throughout the year?

1; 2; 3; 4; 5; 6; 7; 8; 9

Weekend at the Smiths…

Things have been snowballing lately. Work has been manic so my weekends have been spent ‘recharging’ on the sofa whilst simultaneously ignoring most aspects of my personal life. It started with an ignored email and an ignored trip to the bank, then I shunned some boring DVLA forms, a broken button on my favourite winter coat, a cancelled appointment with my hairdresser, packing away the duffle bag that holds my summer clothes (this has lived in the middle of our bedroom floor for about a month). And before I knew it, I was drowning in the mundane tasks that slowly suck the life out of you (a tad dramatic but you get the point). So this weekend I vowed to take control of my life and finally get stuff done and you know what I did? Nada. Sweet nothing. Zip. Zilch. Zero. It was blissful. I figured the every-growing list could wait another weekend.

saturday mornings; hearts and ribbons; woolly blankets; winter socks; homemade pizza dough; a wee bit of veuve

Imagine the quiet…

Remember when I told you I wanted to go camping in this post? Well that feeling hasn’t gone away since. I’m still pining for some peace and quiet in dense fresh forest air so it’s no wonder the house below sucked me in like a tractor beam! Trees as far as the eye can see, no visible neighbours and no sign of any roads… aah that would be a dream-come-true for me! I really love the colour of the exterior and the way the house seems to nestle into its surroundings (take a minute to imagine what it would look like in the middle of autumn). There is also a noticeable lack of modern technology in the interior, further adding to the sense of seclusion.

Do you favour seclusion or the hustle and bustle of the city?

Images via