An end. A beginning.

The little magpie has flown the nest.

Life has changed a great deal since my last post, well over a year ago, and having now settled into a rhythm of motherhood and part-time work, I am keen to return to blogging. Naturally though, my posts may have something of a different flavour now that I have entered this next chapter of my life and I wanted my blog to reflect that, so I took the decision to start over. New year, new blog and all that.

Many of the things I have written about here in the past will still feature as part of the new blog, but there will also be some parenting-related content. Without further ado then, I welcome you to visit me over at http://www.lifeandloves.me/ where I will resume sharing snippets of my life and the things that I love.

I have a great deal of affection for this little blog and I am so very grateful to each of you that has taken the time to read my ramblings over the years. Apologies for the radio silence in 2016. I do hope you will join me over at life & loves...

pp x

Café Royal

Indulging in afternoon tea is one of my absolute favourite things to do. Whether to celebrate a special occasion, to dedicate an afternoon to a long overdue catch-up with a friend or to treat someone you love just because, sitting in pleasant surroundings consuming tasty morsels for several hours is always a wonderful way to spend an afternoon, don't you think..?

[Source]

Sand dunes and salty air

Last year, hubby and I decided that we wanted to prioritise seeing a little more of this wonderful world of ours, so we saved and spent the vast majority of our disposable income on travel. We have since visited six destinations across four continents and made a lot of very happy memories along the way. I must emphasise at this point that I am not sharing this in order to boast about our good fortune in any way; we are very aware of and truly grateful for the privilege of being able to afford to travel abroad. The reason for this ~ what is to become a series of travel posts ~ is rather that I can honestly say the experiences we shared during our various trips have made us far richer than the money we spent ever could. Travel really does enrich your life in ways you cannot imagine, and for us, being away from home gives us the time and space to reconnect and enjoy one another's company without the distraction of the petty necessities of everyday life.

[Source]

Over the coming weeks, I will be blogging about various destinations that we would recommend, starting today with our summer holiday from last year...

What a difference a year makes...

This little blog has lain dormant for almost a year <sigh>, but I am finally trying to commit some time to resurrecting it now that I find myself on maternity leave!

sketch

There is no doubt about it, sketch certainly has the kind of je ne sais quoi necessary to distinguish itself from pedestrian afternoon teas. The deliciously tactile pink and gold interior of The Gallery contrives a sense of having taken up residence inside a giant clam shell, for instance.

   

Life, lately.

Original quote: Benjamin Franklin [Source]

2014, to date, has been relentlessly busy. It has been characterised, for the most part, by significant change and punctuated by such beautiful, exciting things that I simply haven't had any time at all to document along the way. Since my very brief Japan post back in June, which in itself was a couple of months overdue, I have been rather preoccupied with (in no particular order):

• Moving house - the third time in four years.
• Leaving one job and starting another - exhausting, but I love it.
• Attending five weddings - I was lucky enough to be a bridesmaid for my closest friends at three of them, which was just wonderful.
• Helping to organise - and being present at! - three hen dos.
• Directing a musical.
• Welcoming a new niece into the world.

I am not, in any way, glorifying 'busy'. I only mean to say that my evenings and weekends have been tied up one way or another for quite some time. I felt it was really important to enjoy being present and mindful during all of these important life experiences, which didn't leave much time or energy for blogging about them! The new job, which is great, has also been full on. I start at 7:30am and have often been working late, till 9pm some nights. Needless to say, I'm glad to be writing again and I will do my best to fit it in as often as I can.

Japan ~ Part I

I know, I know - it's been ages again. Life lately has been busier than I could ever have imagined, both at work and at home, and I am now counting down the days to what will be the most eagerly awaited and well-deserved Summer hols I have ever had. I am not complaining about being busy, please don't misunderstand, but I am physically exhausted and rather poorly, truth be told, after burning the candle at both ends for far too long (I have just had two back-to-back Hen weekends, for example, in the middle of exam and report writing season...). I'm going to try really hard to make more time for doing nothing at the weekends over the next few weeks, so I'm hoping I'll get back on track with blogging asap.

Anyway, moving on to the important part of this post - time at last for some Japan snaps! This is just a very brief overview of some of my favourite moments from our two and a half week trip, more detailed posts on each of the different areas we visited coming soon(ish!).

Shinjuku, Tokyo

Sunday Smörgåsbord

Well, it's been a while (much to my regret), but here I am with a few snaps of life lately, shortly to be followed by the first of my Japan posts! Happy Sunday, everyone :-)

1 Easter haul! Still wading our way through it all... I'm on the look out for a new recipe to use up the last of it.

2 Our new baby girl, Cobweb! Snout is very happy to be living next door to his little sister, but Snug isn't yet convinced. They have been out to hop about the living room together, but we won't be bonding them to live together until littl'un is a bit bigger and has been spayed.

3 Pastel nails for Spring.

4 Dior Addict, Eau Sensuelle. We had some leftover Yen at the airport, so decided to treat ourselves to new fragrances. I just love this subtle scent - perfect for sunnier months.

5 Scrumptious doughnuts with hot chocolate dipping sauce from Bill's.

6 Tulips brightening up the kitchen.

7 A recent simple French supper: onion soup, fresh French bread, baked Camembert and candlelight!

8 One of my favourite Japan keepsakes - an Alice in Wonderland t-shirt dress from franche lippée.

9 Incredible seabass at The Olive Branch in Horsham.

Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead...

pp x

Easter Essentials

I don't know about you, but it seems to me that 2014 has been flying by absurdly fast, so much so that Easter is now only a few weeks away! We will be in Japan in the lead up to Easter, so we're unlikely to go overboard with decorations this year, but these seasonal treats are certainly inspiring me...

Splat egg, Hotel Chocolat

Sunday Smörgåsbord

This week has been SO busy at work that our weekend has been a relatively quiet one, as you will see from this week's Smörgåsbord... I cannot tell you how much we have been enjoying the Sun on our skin these past two weekends, and how excited we are counting down the days until we leave for Japan!

I hope you have all had a wonderful weekend!

1 Pretty pastels for Spring! Loving this gorgeous pale pink tennis drop waist dress from French Connection.

2 Tulips ~ my favourite Spring flower.

3 Celebrating a very dear friend's 30th with cheeky litres of Erdinger in the Bavarian Beerhouse, Old Street. I spent a year living in Bavaria (where said friend and I first met in fact, nearly ten years ago), and it is extremely close to my heart. Not an authentic German beerhouse experience, but a fun one all the same!

4 Terramundi pot for the boy's birthday last week. He just LOVES Disney World (so much so that we spent our honeymoon there!), so we're now planning an anniversary trip this Christmas.

5 Essie 'lilacism' ~ the perfect seasonal shade.

6 A Springtime stroll took us past this handsome fella ~ just look at all those beautiful spots!

pp x

Magpie Make & Do ~ Snickerbocker Shake

I'm not an out-and-out milkshake fan, I'll be honest. Much as I wish I did, I just don't like milk, so milkshakes for me always have to be one part milk to nine parts anything but! I don't even want to think about how many calories there are in this devilishly naughty concoction, but frankly, it tastes so good that I'm willing to overlook it, and so should you.

Magpie Top Picks ~ asos.com 25% off dresses

Asos prices are always so reasonable, that an extra 25% off seems almost too good to be true! We are off to Japan in a fortnight (squeal!), so I am trying to be good and save my pennies, but even so I am sorely tempted by these beauties...

Warehouse Textured Crepe Shift Dress

Sunday Smörgåsbord

I was so disappointed in failing to meet my blogging target last weekend, but we were just so busy and I've been rather run down of late. My Sunday afternoon/evening blogging spot came and went in a flurry of laundering and ironing, with me heading to bed uncharacteristically early. I fully intend to make up for it though with some extras this week and next...

Bloomin' marvellous.

My month in plants and flowers...

Cotton balls belong in the bathroom, which is where I've hung this wreath from M&S.

In Bruges

Over the half term break, I surprised my Mr with a trip to the beautiful town of Bruges. Our first ever holiday abroad together was in fact a city break to Brussels, where we had such a wonderful time that we have been eager to return to Belgium ever since.

Sartorial narcissism.

I have always wanted to post in a more personal way on the fashion front, but loathe selfies of myself and sadly cannot rely on my husband to direct me into flattering poses. Having said this, with the recent purchase of a superior camera (not quite into the full swing of it yet, so I am still relying on my iPhone 5 rather a lot at present) and a new found 'bite the bullet' attitude, I have started posting outfits on WIWT - What I Wore Today.

Blog Loving

My little corner of the internet may only be a very tiny spec in the grand scheme of lifestyle blogging, but for me at least it's a valuable space to share some of my favourite things and experiences. I am thrilled and encouraged to see the number of visitors gradually increasing month by month (thank you so much for dropping by!), but with a busy full time job I know it's unlikely ever to become more than a hobby and a way of keeping friends and family up to date.

Scent of a Woman.

Since I was a little girl, I have had an obsession for certain scents. Even as a very small baby, I would pull the clean bed sheet out and over my face to inhale the scent of washing powder and fabric conditioner. When I stayed away from home for the first time, I asked my mum if I could take one of her (worn) jumpers with me. I'll never forget the comforting smell of my mum's perfume lulling me off to sleep that night.

I have the usual favourites - freshly mown grass, bread warm from the oven, the smell of the earth after the rain - but I also love the smells of new puppy, paperbacks, clean sawdust and compost. My more unusual predilections aside, I love perfume, and spritz my pressure points every day - it may be a cliché, but I genuinely feel naked without it! My taste is generally for fresh scents that err on the sweet side, with florals such as Neroli, Jasmine or Lily of the Valley, and notes of vanilla, spice and musk.

The following are my Top 8 fragrances; I pick one according to my mood each morning. If I had to choose one signature scent, I would probably plump for Lady Million, but I wear all these perfumes (not at once, mind!). I should also point out that I don't currently own a bottle of each of these, but I tend to purchase bottles in rotation to change things up a bit.

Paco Rabane, Lady Million, Eau de Parfum

City Spotlight: Brighton

Brighton is amongst my favourite places on this glorious Earth. The waft of chips and ketchup carried on the crisp sea breeze, the cosmopolitan melange of inked hipsters and free-spirited bohemians, the harmony of old world charm and avant-garde intrigue. This enigmatic seaside town stole my heart on a school trip, at the tender age of fifteen, and our love affair continues to this day. Indeed, the hubby and I chose to stage our engagement shoot within its labyrinthine Lanes and along its shingled shore (do take a peek if you would like to see pictures of Brighton far more beautiful than my  crude iPhone snaps!). We even made a point of purchasing my engagement ring and our wedding bands from Brighton, such is our affinity for the place.

Happily, we now find ourselves living only twenty minutes away, though we don't find the time to visit as much as we might like (and the traffic getting in and out can be enough to put you off bothering at all, frankly!). Today, however, we took advantage of the unexpected spot of sunshine and visited a few of our favourite haunts...

© Ria Mishaal Cooke Snaddon

V is very, very extraordinary.

Nat King Cole had it right, love is certainly more than just a game for two, and never is that more true than on Valentine's Day. Love it or loathe it, V day is just around the corner, and I always think it's a great day to celebrate the love in your life, be it for a partner, a friend, a parent or a sibling. Here are a few of my seasonally befitting picks for you, in case you are on the look out for a gift, or just something to get you in the mood...

Boux Avenue, Tori satin and lace chemise