Tagged: Italy

June 23, 2015

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

April 10, 2014

La Vita e Bella..

Spring has really sprung in London..you can almost leave the house without a coat… it means all I want to do is pour myself into summer…

It doesn’t help that the Dolce & Gabbana Spring Summer advertising campaign has cherry picked everything my heart is yearning for…

The effervescence of the simple life – the joy of cooking with fresh ingredients, the passion of creating, the aroma of flowers and fruit ripening in the sun, blue skies and al fresco suppers in the garden…the extra long brown legs don’t help either (where I can find them and how much do they cost?!) all sharpened up with a hint of Mafia.

There’s a haunting beauty that’s still grounded in the past, capturing a time when there was time to roam and relax into natural rhythms..

There’s still laughter and fun..the fluidity of life rushing on the slow side with everything in broad strokes.

I want to hold it like a snow globe and treasure it forever..

Laters, Kate x

May 9, 2013

Thing of Beauty 3

Looking at a beautiful floor lets me breathe..it’s like visual porn for the mind’s eye. The best are not glossy, gossip columns but tell a story, wearing their battle scars with pride and an undeniable polishing of age. My ultimate joys are marbled mosaic floors as found in St Pauls Cathedral, the Victorian tessellated floors like those found here in the UK and possibly my favourites: Encaustic cement floor tiles from places such as Cuba, France and Italy..the artisanal flair, patterns and colours are literally chocolate for my soul. I can understand if people find them ‘too seventies’ or too dominant…..but come into my world…see if I can change your mind..

And a true font of knowledge and know-how is an amazing website called Villa Lagoon Tiles based in the States where all the pictures on this post came from. They collect pictures and information and best of all, make these tiles. Go loose yourself in their website..the options and designs are both endless and fascinating..I was lucky enough to order tiles from them for our bathrooms..but I still head back whenever I need a creative fix to see what new ideas they have come up with.They can copy old tiles or you can choose from their classics range..the following are from their Cuban heritage section. I literally die.