* Keeping busy – I’ve been sorting lots of “real life” things out this week, as well as planning lots of social events and generally getting on with things I’ve been putting off for a while. I feel rather energised and accomplished.

* Great shops – Or rather, [...]]]> Photo Credit

* Keeping busy – I’ve been sorting lots of “real life” things out this week, as well as planning lots of social events and generally getting on with things I’ve been putting off for a while. I feel rather energised and accomplished.

* Great shops – Or rather, realising that Loughborough really isn’t so bad after all, as there are a handful of really unique shopping havens including a couple of great vintage shops and a handmade chocolate cafe!

* Cooking success – Nothing particularly complicated or exciting, but it’s always great to make something from scratch and for it to come out tasting perfect. Last night I made a delicious shepherds pie, of which we still have half for dinner tonight, and earlier in the week I perfected my chicken yakitori recipe.

* Hair changes – I’m having the red professionally removed from my hair, and although I’ll miss it, I’ve dyed my hair for so long it’ll be a relief eventually to be able to leave it alone and let it recover from all the damage I’ve caused! It’s always nice to have a new style too, I’m tempted by a fringe (bangs), but I haven’t quite decided yet.

*Other – Gin and tonic lollies, reading zines in the sunshine, pink cava, fun days with friends, Inception – it’s brilliant!, Watching lots and lots of Farscape, watching the Farnborough air show streaming Online (in the office, when I should have been working, shhh!).

What’s making your week sparkle?

TiLT is inspired by Gala Darling

This one’s all about the blog posts, as I’ve read some absolute gems this week!

* Firstly, Yes and Yes showcased a wonderful lady who’s doing a great job for kids in Uganda. I urge you all to help if you can!

* I am somewhat [...]]]> Photo Credit

This one’s all about the blog posts, as I’ve read some absolute gems this week!

* Firstly, Yes and Yes showcased a wonderful lady who’s doing a great job for kids in Uganda. I urge you all to help if you can!

* I am somewhat in awe of Tavi, so young yet such a force to be reckoned with! Her “Open Letter to Seventeen Magazine” makes some really excellent points.

* Aspiring writers listen up! Chrissy has written a beginner’s guide to “Submitting to Literary Journals“.

* Marta has written a brilliant guide: “How to Arrange Fresh Flowers“. Since I don’t have a garden anymore, I’m tempted to start buying myself flowers to brighten the apartment up a bit!

* Corrine’s “The Blogger’s Guide to Hustling” series is shaping up to be a brilliant read. Part 1 is here, part 2; here and I’m definitely looking forward to the third installment!

* “The Fashion Internship Guide” from Flying Saucer looks like it’s going to be an excellent series too. Part one is packed with useful information, much of which I think is applicable to all internships, not just in fashion.

* Finally, this kitty video that was posted by Shanalogic is both adorable and utterly hilarious!

I hope you have a fabulous week!

This week I love

* Watching thunderstorms from the comfort of my living room * The sound the rain makes on the roof windows * Re-watching all of Farscape from the beginning * Shopping around for laptop stickers * Ice cold Diet Coke * M.A.C. Viva Glam Gaga lipstick * Feeling [...]]]> Photo Credit

This week I love

* Watching thunderstorms from the comfort of my living room * The sound the rain makes on the roof windows * Re-watching all of Farscape from the beginning * Shopping around for laptop stickers * Ice cold Diet Coke * M.A.C. Viva Glam Gaga lipstick * Feeling energised * Making lists and getting things done * Pretty eBay purchases * Planning fabulous events *

What’s making your week sparkle?

Why don’t you:

* Wear something beautiful to work just because you love it, be a little bit overdressed and embrace it!

* Make lemonade from scratch, it’s always so much more delicious than the shop-bought / powdered stuff.

* Find clips of your favourite childhood TV shows on YouTube and reminisce! My favourite was [...]]]> Image Credit

Why don’t you:

* Wear something beautiful to work just because you love it, be a little bit overdressed and embrace it!

* Make lemonade from scratch, it’s always so much more delicious than the shop-bought / powdered stuff.

* Find clips of your favourite childhood TV shows on YouTube and reminisce! My favourite was Knightmare, I loved that show!

* Make a list of all the little jobs you’ve been procrastinating over, and start checking them off, it’s most satisfying!

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Blog posts:

* Gala Darling’s “Mo’ Money Mo’ Problems” series has been doing the rounds and I’m sure you’ve all read it by now but just in case you haven’t. check it out! Particularly the comments, there’s some great discussion there. (Part 2, Part 3.)

* Erica Lee’s “10 Self-Imposed Rules For Better Blogging” is pretty good advice, I could do well to follow quite a few of her points.

* “Facets of Feminism” from the always-fabulous Already Pretty is a list of thought-provoking quotations about… you guessed it… Feminism.

* “Adventures in the Photo-Pit – Melvins” makes me want to add gig photographer to my ever-growing list of aspirations!

I hope you have a fabulous week ahead of you!

This week, I totally adore:

* My new Vivienne Westwood for Melissa 3-strap elevated red heels * Weekends full of socialising * Smoked salmon for lunch * Watching a documentary on To Kill a Mockingbird with a glass of delicious wine * Getting coffee with a new friend and chatting for hours [...]]]> Photo Credit

This week, I totally adore:

* My new Vivienne Westwood for Melissa 3-strap elevated red heels * Weekends full of socialising * Smoked salmon for lunch * Watching a documentary on To Kill a Mockingbird with a glass of delicious wine * Getting coffee with a new friend and chatting for hours * Home-made char siu pork * Planning to spend this weekend reading and relaxing * Meeting new cats that live nearby * Matching my eye makeup to my skirt – a few years ago I’d never have had the guts to wear bright metallic blue eyeshadow as eyeliner * The cool evening breeze*

What’s making your week sparkle?

TiLT is inspired by Gala Darling

Why Don’t You:

* Let a little nature into your life – grow some mint on your windowsill and make fresh mojitos, buy yourself a bunch of your favourite flowers to brighten up your living room, or simply sit under a tree and read a good book.

Photo Credit

Why Don’t You:

* Let a little nature into your life – grow some mint on your windowsill and make fresh mojitos, buy yourself a bunch of your favourite flowers to brighten up your living room, or simply sit under a tree and read a good book.

* Ask for recommendations from someone whose taste is vastly different from your own – books, movies, music, ask them what they think is the one book everyone should read, the film everyone should see. If you don’t enjoy it, then no harm done, but it may open your eyes to a whole new genre.

* Make a zine, even if you have no intention of ever letting anyone else read it – cutting and pasting is fun!

* Make some gorgeous fabric flowers using Emybloom’s brilliant tutorial (part 2 here!).

* Read these super-inspiring articles:

• How to Stay Afloat When Everyone’s Trying to Pull You Down
• This body is mine to love, not yours to criticize
• Ask Nubby: I am 19 and want to be a designer. What should I do?
• A letter to the editor - of Vogue Italia, well worth a read.

* Pick up an old point and shoot film camera and remind yourself of what it was like to have to take 24 or 36 photos then wait for them to be developed before you could see how they came out!

* Write a letter by hand.

How are you planning to make this week sparkle?

Whew, I can’t believe it’s July already! It has been a bit of a struggle, but I think I’ve finally rediscovered my “blogging mojo” (which in itself is something to be happy about) and I’m feeling rather inspired at the moment! This week has been particularly enjoyable due to:

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Whew, I can’t believe it’s July already! It has been a bit of a struggle, but I think I’ve finally rediscovered my “blogging mojo” (which in itself is something to be happy about) and I’m feeling rather inspired at the moment! This week has been particularly enjoyable due to:

* Cats – Specifically my parents’ cat, Daisy. Much of my weekend was spent playing with her, with the occasional visit from her friend, the imaginatively-named Kitty, who lives up the road.

* Doctor Who – I swear this last series was one of the best pieces of television ever! The attention to detail was superb and I intend to watch every episode back-to-back sometime soon to see with hindsight what I missed the first time around!

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* Air Shows – I love them! I went to the Biggin Hill Air Fair on Saturday and it was marvellous fun! I even managed to come home without any sunburn – a rare event indeed!

* Photography – I have a marvellous new Diana F+ that I can’t wait to start using once I’ve bought some film (yes, I changed my mind againand decided that yes, I would try lomography) and I had a great time taking air show photos on Saturday.

* Shooooooes- Yesterday I placed an order for a pair of Vivienne Westwood for Melissa 3-strap elevated heels in bright beautiful red! I was going to order the black originally (more versatile) but then I found the red ones for only £80 (around £110 everywhere else) and realised I already have lots of black shoes. I hope they fit me properly, with the platform making the height difference only 2.5″ they seem like perfect “training heels” and they’re beautiful to boot! I may even buy other colours if they’re as awesome as I hope they will be!

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* Wine Recommendations – Specifically the ones some of you lovely people left on my previous TiLT – they’re all written in my Moleskine ready for next time I go shopping for wine!

* Zines – I recently received all of Eleanor Jane’s Girl Photographer zines, and they are rather fabulous. I keep meaning to have a go at producing my own, maybe this summer will be the right time to give it a shot.

* Other – Weekend party plans, My morning coffee, Travelling on empty trains during football matches, Having motivation again, Clinique City Block (total lifesaver), Booking driving lessons, Buying gifts for family, Joining IFB (add me as a friend!),  Watching documentaries when I can’t sleep, Cool showers.

What’s making your week sparkle?

TiLT is inspired by Gala Darling

Books have always been a big love of mine. As a child, I used to go to bed early to read, then when my mother left after telling me to switch off my light and get some sleep, I’d wait until I heard the living room door close again and [...]]]> Photo Credit

Books have always been a big love of mine. As a child, I used to go to bed early to read, then when my mother left after telling me to switch off my light and get some sleep, I’d wait until I heard the living room door close again and switch the light back on to read some more. As I grew up, new interests emerged. Magazines, computer games and later the Internet all cut into my reading time, but I still found the pull of a really good book irresistible, and indeed the Internet helped me to discover yet more books I wanted to read!

University, and in particular the Graduate Diploma in Law that I have just recently completed meant that academic books had to take priority, but my book shopping habit seemed to grow to compensate for the fact! I now have an enormous “to read” pile that I finally have time to devour, so I thought I would share with you five of the books that shaped my formative years.

Andra by Louise Lawrence

If I recall correctly, this is the first book I read when my local library finally let me loose on the “teen” section when I was 10. Set in a future where the surface of the Earth is no-longer inhabitable, Andra is a teenage girl who awakens from the first successful brain graft operation to see her world in a new way as she inherits some of the traits and memories of the donor who died in 1987. Andra’s rebellion against the harsh rules of the society in which she lives is a really engaging read even as an adult (I recently re-read it and loved it just as much as I did the first time around) and I credit this book as helping to shape me into the geek that I became!

Children of the Dust by Louise Lawrence

Of course having read one of her books I needed to read more, and thus, Children of the Dust is another title from my childhood that really stands out in my memory (and another that I have subsequently re-purchased and still enjoyed as an adult). Surprisingly harrowing for a children’s’ book, it opens with the outbreak of nuclear war, and tells first the story of the immediate aftermath, followed by the emergence of a brave new world in three parts from the perspectives of three different but connected characters.

This book still managed to have a huge impact on me, even though I’m a few years too young to really remember the threat of impending nuclear war (though there was something of a close call the year I was born).

The Complete Borrowers by Mary Norton

Nowadays I always insist upon reading a book before seeing the TV show / movie adaptation, but in this case I watched the BBC series and read the books because I loved it so much. The Hollywood version really didn’t compare at all to the original book or the TV show.

I re-christened my dolls house a borrowers house and then built it an extension out of an old shoe box after reading this!

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

I know I’m not alone in citing this as one of my favourite books and the single best novel I ever had to read at school, but it would be a crime not to include it in this post. I believe I was around 14 when I studied it, and I think it was around then I first started to think about studying Law. Atticus Finch is my fictional idol!

A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett

As a young girl I lived in my own little world a lot of the time and loved making up stories and playing games that relied almost entirely on my own imagination. It’s not surprising then, that this book really resonated with me as a child! I had an absolutely beautiful copy of it too, with gorgeous illustrations many of which depicted fabulous dresses, and I think it helped foster my desire for frills and finery too!

What were your favourite books when you were a child?

The new content is coming, I promise, it’s just currently in the form of multiple un-finished posts, and I’m away this weekend so it’s likely to be further delayed, but rest-assured there will be some “proper” content here as soon as possible.

This week I love:

* [...]]]> Photo Credit

The new content is coming, I promise, it’s just currently in the form of multiple un-finished posts, and I’m away this weekend so it’s likely to be further delayed, but rest-assured there will be some “proper” content here as soon as possible.

This week I love:

* Chanel No. 5 – truly the most perfect fragrance in the world * Discovering amazing sweet shops that sell popping candy and gin & tonic lollipops * Sunblock that doesn’t make my face look like a grease factory *Eating delicious beef carpaccio followed by rhubarb cupcakes in The Walk Cafe *Seeing my Daisy Cat tomorrow (and my family, heh) * Milkshakes as a post-work snack * The fact that True Bloodis back, yay! * The cool night air *Making summer playlists * The fact that TV Catchup now works onthe Palm Pre * Farmers markets * Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough – I have developed an obsession with New Zealand white wine *

What’s making your week sparkle?

Why Don’t You:

* Treat yourself to something you’ve coveted for ages but always talk yourself out of buying for one reason or another. We all deserve an occasional indulgence after all! I finally bought a bottle of Chanel No. 5 on Saturday, having never found a fragrance that tops it, [...]]]> Photo Credit

Why Don’t You:

* Treat yourself to something you’ve coveted for ages but always talk yourself out of buying for one reason or another. We all deserve an occasional indulgence after all! I finally bought a bottle of Chanel No. 5 on Saturday, having never found a fragrance that tops it, but always having talked myself out of it in the past because my mother wears it – a ridiculous reason really!

* Sing- in the shower, in public, after a few drinks, on a deserted hilltop channeling your inner Julie Andrews, I always find belting out one of my favourite tunes, badly or otherwise, is such a mood-lifter!

* Read your favourite childhood books again! I recently re-read Mathilda and loved it just as much as I did as a kid. The bonus is that easy-to-read childrens’ books are brilliant for noisy work lunchrooms or short bus trips as they don’t require much concentration.

* Blog Posts:

Cool Tools from Yes and Yesis a one-stop resource for bloggers looking for image hosts, editing software, photo sources etc.

The Value of Reading from Tres Lola is a great post if your RSS reader is looking a bit tired, or you’re just in the need of some great bloggy inspiration.

On Clothes and Identity, plus the follow-up post from No Signposts in the Sea is ally interesting look at how what we wear matters.

Even though I’ve no intention of emigrating any time soon, Amanda Lee’s post; Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me Before I Moved To New York is never-the-less really great advice for anyone moving anywhere new.

What’s inspiring you this week?