Category: summer
Successsssssssss!!
Joy is simply producing a whopping, great bubble…and wanting to do it again, and again, and again…
Yesterday, we finally go our giant bubble mixture to really work…YAAAAAAYYYYYY!
The recipe was:
One and a half teaspoons of guar gum (bought from Amazon).
Mixed with enough glycerin (from local chemist) to turn it into a paste.
To which 4 litres of hottest tap water is slowly added.
And a tablespoon of baking powder.
Then finally 6 oz of the best fairy liquid you can buy (we used platinum).
(The trick is lots of vigorous stirring..and then let it sit for 20 minutes).
(The bubbles wands are simply made from wooden spoons and cotton string, tied in a triangular shape with a weight (keys/keyrings work well) at the bottom).
We learnt that if you blew into the bubble..
You could get bubbles inside the bubble!
Hours and hours of pure, unadulterated FUN!
Laters, Kate x
Cooking..
Damn it’s hot. Feverishly hot enough to melt a bottle..or poach an egg in an unsuspecting armpit..really unpleasant.
It’s hard to find anything to wear that doesn’t stick or itch. The best thing would be a large,cool lake or natural swimming pool but unfortunately my wardrobe’s not large enough, neither is my wallet.
I have found these kimono’s ..
They might not cut it on the school run..
(All kimonos from South Beach Official)
But will be perfect with a large hat for wafting on holiday.
And at only £18, they’re a bargain..
Laters, Kate x
Elina Linardaki x
I didn’t go to Glastonbury this year..but if I had, I would’ve worn a pair of these beauties by Elina Linardaki. (Until it rained of course, and then they’d transform into a pair of hunter wellies, because that’s just how magical they are).
I could do with a pair today..last week it was tights and scarves..this week temperatures are set to hit 36 degrees. London in this kind of heat is not good, we seem to specialise in the really heavy, oppressive variety that saps the very life from your bones where 36 on the thermometer feels more like 46. It’s partly because we’re just not equipped to cope..lots of glass, no shutters, no air con, no swimming pools, just a sprinkler in the garden. We have Prize Day at the kids school today and thank God it’s no blazers, but no doubt we will all gently boil.
I’ll be sitting their, quietly sweating away…dreaming of leather gladiators and a beach….
Laters, Kate x
A Green Summer x
Is there a place for fast, wallet-friendly fashion?
Can you really have your cake and eat it?
Monki would certainly like to think so.
There’s nothing in this post that costs over £50.
But this is a Company with principles..their Care Label represents their ideals regarding organic cotton and their better cotton initiative which is to ensure the cotton they buy uses less chemicals, less water and gives the people involved in production more benefits. It also stands for their Code of Conduct, which all their suppliers must comply with, to ensure decent working standards and conditions for the employees of their suppliers. And finally it’s a promise to minimise the impact of fashion, both in production and regarding landfill, by re-using existing materials and re-cycling them into new cotton, polyester and wool.
With designs like these…..it’s cream teas all round..
Laters, kate x
Instant Gratification x
Heading to the sewing superstore today to re-stock the portable summer craft box…
(All pictures Pinterest)
I love the idea that one hook and some coloured yarn can do all this..
Laters, Kate x
Babe-li-cious x
Time..the beast that no man can stop. It’s almost the end of summer term, which has nearly the same madness of Christmas with it’s particular frenzy of Sports Days, concerts, exhibitions, class parties and Prize Days. The children finally break up on Thursday, we leave for three days glamping on Friday (yay!), arrive back on Monday..kids leave with their Grandparents for Greece on the Tuesday…(we leave the following week). It feels a bit like being in a tumble dryer. Or a piece of bread dough being pulled and pushed.
And I still need to get my swimwear sorted…I don’t think I’ll ever move away from the retro look..
It was designed for curves..
Best I’ve found so far are from Bettylicious..Great shapes, fab prints.
(Pictures from Bettylicious and Pinterest)
Now it’s just a matter of committing to one quickly as Sports Day starts at 9.30…
Laters, Kate x
Summer Lovin’ x
The weather in the UK has yet to settle down. The majority of the hurrying figures I saw this morning on my way to school were wearing thick tights and scarfs, held tight against the wind. Give it two hours, the sun could be shining and all those layers will peel off in the time it takes for a corn kernel to pop in a hot pan. It’s confusing and disappointing and makes me dream of consistent kingfisher blue skies, warm, heavy air and the compelling rasp of cicadas.
If I won the lottery tomorrow, I’d head straight to Christophe Sauvat and fill my battered leather backpack with all his summer wonders…summer dresses to float in..
Summer tops to laugh in (a glass of rose in one hand, a good book in another…)
And shoes to die for.
We’d pile into the car, fill the petrol tank to brimming and head for the coast…
And keep driving to the sun..through France, stopping wherever to indulge in gastronomic delights to tantalise the tastebuds..or just to admire the view.
Then on to Italy, to visit friends and wrap them up with us in our hedonistic cloud..nostalgic for the past..loving the present.
Before heading to Greece, to pitch a tent and live a completely free few months, brown, barefoot and under the stars, knowing that the best things in life are the simplest.
A girl can dream…
Laters, Kate
Sun Rocking..
If you’re wanting to uncover your inner Bond girl this summer, Australian label Duskii – designed for swimmers, surfers, divers, sailors and beautiful beach babes – maybe just the one for you..
(This style plus others are on sale NOW at Net-a-porter..)
(Unfortunately the perfectly pert buttocks aren’t included)
If you’re liking the neoprene look but not the designer price tag, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel with southbeachofficial.com and their range of bikinis.
They’re not in the same league, but at £28 for a set…it’s hard to go wrong.
If you’ve got it. Flaunt it.
Laters, Kate x
Lemaire x
Who can say no to effortless, elegant Parisian chic?
Lemaire is a collective led by Paris-based uber pair Christophe Lemaire and Sarah-Linh Tran who appear to feed off style instead of calories.
Their aim is exceptional everyday clothing heavily influenced by the atmospheric, historical, heady, cosmopolitan mix of Paris.
Expect deceptively simple pieces in modest, natural materials, updated to modern with a different kick and swing. It’s a palette that oozes cool from catwalk to couch.
There’s a sophisticated allure that’s hard to define.
It’s full of evocative elegance with the sense of languid air, white wine spirtzers and hazy, long days watching the world walk by.
(All pics from Lemaire)
Impossible to resist, undeniably covetable…
Laters, Kate x
Brush strokes..
Start praying the suns going to shine tomorrow as we’re celebrating a lovely, joyous, wonderful wedding – happy, happy happy! In preparation of being a good guest and loving some of the styles around at the mo, I’ve booked a session to have my hair poofed at the Braid Bar in Selfridges.
There’s a list of style to choose from (I’m hoping there’s a degree of flexibility…personally I’m less high pressured horsewhip slash warrior woman, more loose artisan meets Heidi’s Grandma-ish type of gal..so I’m a wee bit nervous..)
I’d like gentler..like this.
(Maybe the answer is to go very simple..even hair down..)
There are options of accessories and bits you can have woven in. But they have no appeal – I like those easy styles that look like a fairy with large but nimble fingers has been at work..
The best thing is it’s only £15 and 30 minutes, so if it goes tits up..or it’s a fairy with little fingers..it’s coming out.
I’m ready to rumble…
Laters, Kate x
Maison Bentley Style 