Weekend Shenanigans…

Ugh. Monday! Why do weekends go by so quickly? Here’s hoping this Monday is as painless and stress-free as a Monday can be! Also Happy Valentine’s to my fiancé (even though we don’t celebrate it)!!! 

Here are some of the highlights of my weekend…

Lofty

TGIF! Is it just me or has it taken an incredibly long time to get to Friday? I am looking forward to letting loose this weekend and having a little bit of fun (which has seriously been lacking in my life at the moment). In the meantime, take a look at some of these loft spaces designed by New York based architects Diana Kellogg. I came across her loft apartment that she shares with her family in this month’s issue of Elle Décor and had to see more of her work. I really love loft spaces - the high ceilings, the endless amount of light and the overall rustic industrial look of them. I really had a hard time choosing my favourite piccies to blog about because I wanted to add them all! (P.S How gorgeous is that window seat in the little sitting room and the façade of the little Beaux-ArtsTownhouse)?



IMAGE CREDITS: Diana Kellogg Architects



And the forecast for today is….

 

Of course it is! Enough said on the matter. Here’s what I am Wishful Thinking about today:

IMAGE CREDIT: Shoot Factory

Mid week pick-me-up!

I have never really liked wallpaper. I've always thought of it as a bit out-dated/old fashioned, this probably has a lot to do with the fact that my granny (like most grannies I guess) loved everything lavender and use to wallpaper her bathroom in floral lavender paper. YUCK! I recently had to source some William Morris wallpaper and I came across these fantastic contemporary designs and colours during my search (and fell in love with the William Morris designs all over again). I am now a wallpaper convert and am seriously considering doing a feature wall somewhere in my house with one of these designs! What do you think? Wallpaper here to stay?

IMAGE CREDITS:  Fabrics and Papers

FeatherFan

Insects

Follow Me

Parisienne

Crysanthemum Toile

Grove Garden

Anemone

Cactus Paisley

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Let them eat CAKE!

Take a look at these quirky cake dishes made by Italian company Secondome. It almost makes me want to bake… almost. (FYI I hate baking, mostly because I have never managed to bake anything edible and I can’t face the amount of dishes it uses). But I can picture these arty pieces grouped together on my kitchen counter or catching the light on the window cill, I might even have to buy cakes daily to put in them. Now there’s a thought?!

IMAGE CREDITS: Secondome

Glamping… err… camping?

With the recession looming over us, there has been a big push to get people to holiday within the UK, instead of seeking sunnier and warmer climates elsewhere. I must admit that after having only about 2 days of sunshine in January, I am sceptical about this concept. But this was before I found out about Canopy and Stars – a company offering fun, quirky places to stay/camp! Apparently, this is called ‘glamping’ - definitely my kind of camping!

IMAGE CREDITS: Canopy and Stars

Have a pie

Take it from me, food poisoning is NOT fun! I got incredibly sick this week and spent 2 days lying on the couch groaning, shivering and gagging at food adverts on television! My life pretty much revolves around food, so not being able to eat properly really sucked! I felt much better this weekend and so I completely pigged out! I thought I would share this fantastic Jamie Oliver recipe I tried for spinach and feta pie. It was the first time I have ever used filo pastry (and baked a pie) so I was really proud of how it turned out – it was dead easy too! (There is a link in the recipe that will take you to a ‘how to’ video on the Jamie Oliver website). 

spinach & feta filo pie

ingredients:
• 100g pinenuts
• 5 eggs
• 300g feta cheese
• 50g Cheddar cheese
• dried oregano
• 1 lemon
• a knob of butter
• 400g prewashed baby spinach
• 1 x 270g pack of filo pastry
• cayenne pepper
• 1 whole nutmeg, for grating

Put the pinenuts into the dry ovenproof frying pan to toast, tossing occasionally. Keep an eye on them. Crack 5 eggs into a mixing bowl and crumble in 300g of feta. Grate in 50g of Cheddar. Add a pinch of pepper, a couple of pinches of dried oregano, zest of 1 lemon and a lug of olive oil. Once the nuts are light golden, add them to the egg mixture and mix well. 

Put the empty frying pan back on the heat, add a little olive oil and a knob of butter and pile in half of the spinach. Gently push and move it around and add more as it wilts down. Make sure it doesn’t catch on the bottom and when there’s room, start adding the rest, stirring frequently.

Meanwhile, take the pastry out of the fridge. Lay a large sheet of greaseproof paper, approximately 50cm long, on the worktop, rub a little olive oil all over it, then scrunch it up and lay it out flat again. Arrange 4 filo pastry sheets in a large rectangle, overlapping at the edges, so they almost cover the paper. Rub some olive oil over them. Sprinkle over a good pinch of salt & pepper and a pinch of cayenne. Repeat until you have 3 layers. Don’t worry about any cracked bits. Remember to keep stirring the spinach.

Once the spinach is really nice and dense, take the pan off the heat. Add the wilted spinach to the egg mixture and grate in ½ a nutmeg. Mix well. 

Carefully move the greaseproof paper and filo into the empty frying pan so the edges spill over. Push it down into the sides of the pan, then pour in the egg mixture and spread it out. Fold the filo sheets over the top and let them fall where they will (see how to video). Put the pan back on a medium heat for a couple of minutes to get the bottom cooking, then put the pan into the oven on the top shelf to cook for 18 to 20 minutes, or until golden and crisp.