Away from it

I have a board on Pinterest - 'Away from it' and today have been posting this amazing guest house I've been reading about called Miss'Opo. It looks and sounds right up my street. 

love the logo on the door and the intensity of the light coming through the glass

theatrical shelves

industrial meets opulence

Set up by 2 long-standing friends in 2011, they decided to create a project together, local to where they grew up and converted an old textile factory into a guest house. 

The location is Porto, Portugal and having visited the Algarve for the first time last year, it makes me want to jump on a plane and experience some more, particularly as Porto benefits from a by the sea location, similar to Barcelona!

What I'm loving about it, is that it has the backdrop of the old town, I'm always drawn to that part of a city, and they have paid specific attention to making their guests feel at home by providing local food and culture as the cafe is open to the public and hosts art events and small concerts!

Just checking flights for Autumn as I think by then, I'll need a little break to celebrate a successful launch! 

quote of the day

Spring in our step

Its not quite time to move to the country, though I yearn for the day, but instead we have brought the country to us in the shape of an allotment or as my little 3 year old keeps telling us 'its our 2nd home, mummy!'

 

Not technically a 2nd home but it certainly is the first piece of land I have been able to rent and pay for in full for a whole year! yippeee! Already we felt the community spirit of our 'other home' as we met some of our neighbours yesterday. Tim also noticed a root vegetable ready for harvest that had fortunately been left on 'our land' and so I got stuck into digging for treasure and found a whole load of parsnips!

 


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Parsnip and Apple soup c/o Prue Leith with sour dough bread from the Blackbird Bakery - yummy!

By the way, check out the edible bustop. What a blinkin great idea! one lives round the corner from me - we spotted strawberry plants emerging - and the other has the most fantastically tall sunflowers and courgettes growing in the height of Summer. Love it! and I totally support the social element behind it - imputting time and energy as a community. Wouldnt it be great if this was implemented all over the country?!

Hang that bun!

Our Easter celebrations began at The Widow's Son pub involving a bizarre Good Friday tradition which came recommended by the fab, slightly leftfield, Whats on in London Blogger, IanVisits! 

The Widow’s Son was built in 1848 upon the former site of an old widow’s cottage, so the tale goes. When her only son left to be a sailor, she promised to bake him a Hot Cross Bun and keep it for his return. But although he drowned at sea, the widow refused to give up hope, preserving the bun upon his return and making a fresh one each year to add to the collection. This annual tradition has been continued in the pub as a remembrance of the widow and her son, and of the bond between all those on land and sea, with sailors of the Royal Navy coming to place the bun in the net every year.

teehee! listen carefully and you can hear my Cecilia shouting the countdown!

Hats glorious hats!

Looking for a hat for a special occasion? May I recommend this bonkers hat shop in Burnham Market.
Merchandised by colour, let it not be said that you'll come away with nothing!!

For her......

 

and for him.......

Going East

Ventured East to pick up my business cards from the Moo Shop this afternoon. The first time I have used Moo and I have to say they are blinkin good at what they do with a very quick turnaround! 

An opportunity arises this weekend to present my product to some local boutiques in Burnham Market so I have had to quickly throw together some business cards to attract these potential customers. Prospectives need to visually keep you in mind and as not all independent stores have the same customer profile, I chose these 3 different images:

modern

modern classic

classic

I selected Luxe Green with a matt finish, though maybe should have gone for gloss in hindsight but overall, as I cant miss out on possible business this Easter in 'Chelsea-on-Sea', I'm pleased with my initial print run. 

Cecilia and I made a day of it as Going East with a small child has to be counted as a day trip! So by fulfilling Cecilia's desire to 'go somewhere exciting mummy!' we braved the freezing weather and initially hung out at Spitalfields City Farm. 

so much fun! 

I lived East for a year and loved it for its balls-out, anything goes, vibrancy literally on its streets!

 

and we passed a really interesting looking shop down Commercial Street that has always been an intrigue but I have never felt the need to go in.....until now! 

Gardners' is Spitalfields' oldest family run business since 1870. A paper bag shop stuffed to the hilt with.........paper bags and it's proprietor is Paul Gardner. I'm almost sure if you met him you'd agree with Spitalfields Life 

"With his wavy grey locks, gentle face, sociable manner and innate decency,  Paul could have stepped from another age and it is a joy to meet someone who has successfully resisted the relentless imperative to haste and efficiency at any cost, that tyrannises our age and threatens to enslave us all. When you enter the shop, you enter Paul’s world and you discover it is a better place than the one outside."

So, we got chatting, of course we did..........and I concluded that he has to be the guy to work with on the branded cotton bags needed for the cuvcuv home storage range. Bespoke and made in England! Love it! 

So I bid him farewell by handing him a business card (ahem! haha!) and toddled off very happily to get warm in Spitalfields Market and to appease the little 'un with scrummy coffee and cake. 

SS2014

I'm off for a jaunt to Belgium and so will be getting inspired at a great friend of mine's 40th birthday shindig! And believe me, Liege is certainly a hive of activity! I love it!

So whilst I'm supping a Faro, quaffing a Mort Subide, and sliding off my chair with a Judas, I thought I'd show you what I have in mind for SS2014. 

I'm thinking animal print (still a big trend!)

and geometrics - very commercial. Working in some metallic thread.

And I'm liking landscapes and scenes! Inspiration from the intriguing Timorous Beasties , Linwood Fabrics and Wallpapers and the talented mother & daughter duo MissPrint

Not an easy project to interpret in a print on a box but I like the representation of nature - trees and mountains and I think it would work well.

Off kilter spots, crosses, letters and numbers too!

motifs shmotifs!!! but I think these add something a little more masculine!

So I bid farewell as I tie up loose ends before total relaxation into party mode! First stop Brussels' Cafe Arcadi famed for its flans and tarts! The Anchovy Butter option being a great fave! Cant wait!

Bon Voyage mes amis!!!