The past week and a half has been FULL of food. I have literally not stopped eating for what seems like days now.
The Easter chocolate was more than ever before and we spent this past weekend in Somerset celebrating Jane and Val's birthdays, which obviously meant a spot of overindulgence. Here are some pictures of the food, and fun I've been having, over the past few days.
Clockwise from top left: An exceedingly early train journey from St Pancras - A lunch date with The Boy at Yo Sushi - Train views - A morning of relaxation at Monet in Warsash - A Thursday night dinner date with these two weirdos at The Rockstone - Home sweet home for the Easter break - The beautiful Reiss store in Nottingham (fast becoming my favourite shopping destination) - My new favourite pink nail varnish (which just so happens to be by George at Asda)
Clockwise from
top left: A sunny Saturday on the South Coast - Death by blue cheese at The Rockstone - Scouting out the lake next to the wedding venue - Essentials for another early start for a day of store visits - An afternoon treat at Lee On Solent - On a quick river walk on Saturday whilst waiting for our pizza (see what I mean about the eating) we spotted these cute ducklings - Scouting out photo locations for the wedding at Titchfield Abbey - Closing off the bank holiday in bed with a stinking cold
Clockwise from
top left: Dippy eggs with soldiers for brunch on my day off on Friday - Rocking out my new necklace (K-Middy style) - Gearing up to surprise The Boy's Mum on her birthday - Rambling around the wedding venue - Mike's Bar for Val's birthday party - Prepping for my store visits in M&S Nottingham - Blossoms and blue sky - Glastonbury Tor from Grandads garden
Way back in March Mum came to stay and we spent a blissful weekend exploring, shopping and talking all things wedding.
As much as the wedding is top of my thoughts most days I'm keen for Lost and Found to remain truly as it is, a rambling collection of musings about my life in general - never fear this won't become a purely wedding based blog space.
That being said, I did want to share with you some of the images from this particular weekend.
I took the afternoon off on Friday and ventured down to Knightsbridge to meet Mother. I tried on a few dresses and we drank a glass of fizz or two but generally the experience wasn't quite what I'd hoped and I came away feeling pretty down on the whole thing. It's amazing what trying on dresses next to a size 6 girl, while all the dresses in the showroom are a maximum of a size 8, can do for an average size girl.
To compensate we headed for an early evening wander around the V&A followed swiftly by a cream tea. I was feeling so rubbish about my waistline by this stage that there was no holding me back. Bring on the clotted cream.
The Saturday morning dawned bright and sunny so we headed for Kensington Olympia as I had bought us tickets for the National Wedding Show. Still reeling from the changing room meltdown which took place the day before I was in no mood for trying on dresses but some kind words from a lady on the Berketex Bride stand had me in a gown in no time. Although it didn't turn out to be the dress of my dreams this experience immediately put me in a happier place for the day ahead.
Mum and I had arrived early so took our seats in the front row for the fashion show which was pretty amazing and really showcased all the different types of dresses there are available these days. Mum had the chance to get some inspiration for her MOTB get-up and there was even some Suits for The Boy.
It was a lovely morning and we came away with lots of leaflets to peruse over lunch. I must confess we only lasted a couple of hours as the venue had started to fill up and there's only so much Wedding paraphernalia two women can take before needing a cup of tea and a sit down.
We strolled along Kensington High Street, stopping off at My Old Dutch for a pancake and Zara for a bargain before resting our legs in Hyde Park near Kensington Palace.
We even stopped off at Reiss to do a covert store visit and for Mum to see the original Biba fountain which takes pride of place on the womenswear floor.
It was a lovely day, full of laughs and giggles and really got me excited for all the wedding planning ahead.
We've reached that time of year again when The Boy starts actually paying attention to my ramblings when we are out shopping rather than playing with his phone, which can only mean one thing: he has no clue what to get me for Christmas.
Now, I actually think I'm easy to buy gifts for (lets face it a girl who loves fashion/reading/writing/bathing is far easier to buy for than a boy who has no hobbies to speak of other than watching TV and reading the occasional graphic novel) but The Boy doesn't seem to think so. So, for those of you out there who are facing a similar conundrum, here's my guide for gifts us girls (me in particular) would love to receive. Just in case anyone's feeling generous.*
1. You can't go wrong with Zara Vouchers
Zara's been on my radar for a while now but it's only really been in the past twelve months that I've become a true, die-hard fan. It's pretty much the only high street store that I want to buy something in every time I pay them a visit, which can't always happen due to my bank balance. More's the pity.
2. Selfridges (aka the shop that has everything)
Whilst we're on gift vouchers I thought Selfridges would be worth a mention. I can spend hours wandering around and the beauty of Selfridges is that it stocks brands at a variety of price points. H&m? Check. All Saints? Check. Chanel? Check. Pretty much a shopaholics dream store.
3. Face Paint
Make-up is quite a personal thing but as long as the colours are nothing too outrageous and the brand is good quality an eyeshadow palette, set of lip glosses or a box set is a great gift. My personal favourites are Benefit who do some nice sets, Mac and Urban Decay.
4. Books
I used to love receiving book tokens when I was younger and I still love them now - I can ALWAYS find a book to buy and spend many an afternoon wandering in Waterstones. I love the idea of a kindle (if only to lighten the load on my poor shoulder) but there's something about actually holding a brand new (or well loved) copy of a favourite tale that, well, just makes me happy.
I recommend The Passage by Justin Cronin (I already have two copies so this is not on my own personal Christmas list but I'd love some more people to talk to about it!).
5. Bath & Body products
My personal favourites are Soap and Glory, Rituals and Body Shop
- pretty much anything that smells good enough to eat is fine by me,
and most other girls I'm sure. There's normally some nice gift packs
available at this time of year which can be great value for money, or,
if you can hold of until nearer the day there's usually some fantastic
discounts on offer.
6.Cold hard cash
Spring 2013 will (finally) see The Boy and I take a holiday together to New York and I CANNOT WAIT. I find that vouchers have a habit of lurking in the bottom of my handbag for months (why is it that when you have money to spend you can never find anything you want to buy?) but currency for a special trip is always greatly appreciated and can often be put towards a memorable experience or nice dinner.
7. Stocking fillers
There are many inexpensive bits and pieces out there that make great gifts, my favourites are: patterned socks (the cuter the better, there are lots on offer in Primark for mere penny's), pretty pyjamma sets (again, lots of variety at Primark), nail varnishes, and costume jewellery from Freedom at Topshop.
And there you have it. Of course there's plenty more perfect gifts out there for girls but I'll leave it at that or I'll be here all night!
* I will be posting The Christmas list: Volume 2 this week which will have gift suggestions for all the family, so watch this space.
