Christmas is coming .......

Have just had a reminder that it's time to think about my annual christmas shopping trip. Every year I go to the One of a Kind Show in Toronto to do my present shopping. Apart from the fact that I original gifts for everyone, I also SAVE money because of the exchange rate! [Well, I actually spend the same amount of money but get more so that's saving isn't it?] Then when I have done at the show, I have the rest of the time to visit my favourite malls - Yorkdale and the Eaton Centre and then there's Yorkville Bloor to explore. All this retail therapy takes in such wonderful shops as Holt Renfrew, Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn [who doesn't remember Pheobe and the apothecary table?] Tiffany & Co, fabulous M.A.C stores and then I usually manage a short trip down to Niagara Falls and Niagara-on-the-Lake for those final gifts that I don't manage to get in the city! Whew - what a weekend. But I LOVE it!

Seriously though, if there is anyone that fancies it - get in touch and I'm happy to point you in all directions. Christmas in the city is AMAZING!!!

Winter weddings

I have continued looking at the new wedding mags. Oh dear! I must be in a bad mood today because here I go with another complaint.

I quote ' You can't use too much sparkle at a winter wedding!' This is part of the response to a reader who wants help with her December wedding and wants a look that's not Christmasy. The other part of the response was silver and purple. Heaven help me.

Check out these colour suggestions for winter themes.

The first two photo sets are from Wedding Nouveau and all of the others are from The Perfect Palette. Just type winter into the search and see what comes up. Lots of inspiration comes up and yes, some of it is Christmasy and there is even a purple suggestion! But what I really wanted to show was a LACK of sparkle - even when silver and gold are used.

Page boys, flowers girls and little bridesmaids

I will start by saying in general I try not to say anything if I can't be positive. If you are mean and nasty, particularly for no reason, it WILL come back and bite you. That said, I have been looking through the just out bridal mags. I appreciate that I spend a lot of time in Canada and research the North American market constantly. I have more mags from there than from the UK. However, I have to ask why does the majority of the UK wedding press miss the mark - not that far off admittedly, but far enough not to hit the bull's eye! I also appreciate that everyone is entitled to their own opinion, thoughts and style. But for heaven's sake ..... One of the magazines has a feature on dresses for flower girls and little bridesmaids. Is this truly the best they can do? I would actually go as far as to say there's not a original idea there.

I'm not going to name these two magazines but I have done some research and here are my suggestions for the little people. Feel free to comment as harshly as you see fit.

These come from Tulip & Nettle, The Button Tree, Priscilla of Boston. Handmadebyme [Etsy], JCrew and Otilly

whilst the ones below are from Jane Packer at the Conran Shop NYC, Poppy, Bugs & Fairies, 

 and Designer Christenings

and lastly, I think this outfit from No Added Sugar takes a lot of beating.

AND, isn't he just THE cutest little poppet ?

Blog circles

There are some days that you look at your fav blogs and think nah, not today. There are other days when the instant you see the page you know why they are your fav blogs. Today the postcardsandpretties email hit the in box and  off I went ..... the virtual love quilt is just amazing and so thoughtful of the followers to get together and do something like that.

Next I went to notyouraverage ordinary and found a post about Mulberry which, of course, is English - so very English - and we are frightfully proud of it! BUT earlier this year, they did go a little 'off piste' as it were. They sponsored a book of photos by Venetia Dearden of Glastonbury [not the town, the festival] or Glasto as it is sometimes known. With the book came a reusable shopping bag [which smelt of grass & fields & the countryside & Glasto], a postcard from one of the photos, a card of badges and a page of stickers. The bag, the postcard and the badges have been loving stored whilst the sticker sheet is on my inspiration board. This highly successful business was formed in 1971 and look where it is now! Inspiration indeed!!

Camping at the festival

The sticker sheet

Oh, just in case you wondered - I do own Mulberry 'stuff' but not as much as my daughter, Hannah !!!!!

More about the continuing circle later.

Chelsea Clinton's wedding

I was just looking through some of the photos in the papers of Chelsea Clinton's wedding. It is reported [up to you if you believe it or not] that during the ceremony the following words were read out. I think they are beautiful. A copy of them was once left on my desk - I forgave him a lot and he's long gone! Glad I can now read them for their own value.

The poem was written about his girlfriend who was killed in an aircrash in Canada. He also used it as a code for a British SOE agent Violette Szabot.

I hadn't realised any of this and I so am now off to find out more about Leo Marks, [his father co-owned the bookshop at 84 Charing Cross Road - there's a book of the same name] and Ruth Hambro, his girlfriend as well as Violette.

No pictures for these words, either.