Slipping On a Pair of Holidays

I have this dress which makes me happy. It’s not my prettiest dress, or the most expensive. When I wear it though, it is like slipping on summer; like the first day of holidays. That feeling is priceless.

Tired of wearing pants all week, I pulled it off the hanger to wear on Friday. It meant I had to wear shoes with some sort of elevation to them, but they had to be comfortable to walk in; thongs certainly wouldn’t do. I found a pair of leather wedges in a soft red and slipped them on. On my way to school, I pulled out a favourite red and white striped shawl from my tote and wrapped it round to ward off the chill.

Ohhh! Suddenly I realised I was wearing an outfit entirely composed of items I had bought on holiday a couple of years earlier. I’ve already recounted the stories of the Zara dress and the pashmina. Here is the tale of the shoes.

When I wear [the dress], it is like slipping on summer; like the first day of holidays…

I’d gone out one afternoon already dressed for evening festivities (a Christmas do on a yacht), intending to while away two or three hours shopping in one of Dubai’s enormous malls. Whilst out, the shank on one of my cream leather mules snapped in half, which meant suddenly this casual shopping trip assumed a sense of urgency, as I had to find a suitable pair of shoes to replace them.

Frantically I shuffled from shop to shop in the broken shoes, trying to find a pair of footwear that I a) liked, b) were leather and c) were not too expensive. It was more difficult than you would imagine. Eventually I ran these wedges to earth in a Bata boutique. I didn’t love them, but they would pass muster.

I distinctly recall the pleasure with which I threw the broken shoe in a bin in the middle of the mall.

On the yacht, my escort accurately gauged my true feelings. He nevertheless whole-heartedly approved of the shoes. They are a bit too preppy for me, with their blanket-stitched edges, but nowadays I wear them occasionally, and they make me smile fondly.

It’s not all eggs

Easter is not all about eggs. It is not even all about chocolate. Surprise! That’s not a chocolate I’m holding in my hand, but the fruit of the American sycamore, a tree widespread across the cooler southern states of the Australian continent.

You might be celebrating Easter, or you might have celebrated Passover – or maybe you are just eating lots of chocolate while you enjoy a break from your workaday world.

But traditionally it is a time to celebrate new life; a time of reflection – and yes, a time of Easter egg hunts in the bottom of the garden.

Unfortunately for myself, I am spending much of the time working and instead I contemplate something else I found in the garden. This golden truffle is chock-full of dormant life, did you know? If I were to break into this, I’d have a handful of fluffy little seeds, each holding the promise of an enormous life.

These seeds can lie dormant for years before suddenly bursting into life – all that is required are the right conditions: a period of cold followed by warmth. I find that beautiful – what a metaphor for hope! Whichever hemisphere you are in, spring is coming, sooner or later.

Now, I’m sure I saw some Ferrero Rochers lurking in my pantry…

Vote For Meeee!

If you’re not spending delicious moments browsing through my pages (heaven forbid!), do take the time to check out The Lovelies.

Not only a pretty place to shop all sorts of blogs, but here you can vote for your favourites. (Meeeee! Vote for me!*) If you don’t want to vote for me, don’t go there, stay here, pleeease! Just kidding.

My jolie French friend Lulue agreed to cast a pink-enveloped vote for me in this quaint vintage post box… if only you could see the ghastly original, all covered in graffiti and bumper stickers. She looks lovely herself in this late summer sunshine, wearing a sweet floral dress by label Gyegi, from design a space and little vanilla snakeskin sandals from Nine West.

Go forth and enjoy!

*Don’t feel obliged to sign in, you can comment anonymously. Or drop me a line – I’d love to hear from you!

Get Into the 21st Century, Cupid!

What’s with Cupid these days anyway? Has he been carousing too much with Bacchus or something? Whatever, but his aim has turned CRAP! He’s either missing targets entirely, or bagging the wrong bird. You just can’t rely on him anymore.

Or maybe he’s just not using SatNav?

Time for Princess to take over. Send me your global recognition points peoples, and I’ll engage to hit the bullseye.

Happy Valentine’s Day.

Ornaments That Keep on Giving

Wondering what to do with all your Christmas ornaments now that the festivities are over?

Don’t throw them out! Yes, you can recycle them to use next year, but FIRST here’s a nifty idea to give them a second life: turn them into earrings!

These adorable little matryoshka glass ornaments are vintage 1950s, and travelled all the way to me in the Antipodes from Russia with love.

Battered and scratched as they are, they are still shiny like sweets, too delicious to be put away yet. I don’t know who delighted in them first, but I’ll be hanging them again and again – on ears as well as trees.

That’s what I call ‘tricycling’!

An array of vintage 1950s Russian glass Christmas ornaments, found on eBay.