My mother called me silver

hi everybody!

the reason why i disappeared from the world of blogging was that in May i gave birth to my baby boy! We have been trying for years  so after 3 IVFs, a few operations and one ectopic pregnancy, Alexander Nicholas came!

My mother came promptly from Greece to help and of course she brought the traditional silver presents. For those that don't know in Greece when a mother gives birth, the closest friends and relatives give her as gifts jewellery. So yes, lucky Greek mums!

So mum  brought lots of nice stuff but i here i decided to show you the best silver presents that come from my friend who is a very talented jewellery designer.

Silver flower earrings

Silver butterfly pendant

Her name is Katerina Efentaki and you can see some recent work at her Facebook page.

I can't wait to go back home and see her and her new stuff.

The title of this post is the opening line in a book by Jeanette Winterson i am reading at the moment. Have a look at the book here.

See you soon!

A day at Kirkstall Abbey!

Today was not the best day in the world but i had cabin fever and i really wanted to leave the house and go out and about! One of the best things to do whilst in Leeds is spend a day at Kirkstall Abbey!

We got there about lunch time so we started by having lunch at the cafe next to the museum. The cafe is part of the old building and it is very church-like and the food is really yummy!

Painting in the  cafe opposite Kirkstall Abbey

Kirkstall Abbey Cafe

After lunch it stopped raining as much so we went for a little walk around the Abbey only to discover a yummy deli fair! The best part of the fair was the Yummy Yank, an american lady that makes divine puddings and is responsible for the extra kilo i put on  last Saturday! 

Kirkstall Abbey

Then we went back to the museum. It is surprisingly big and very interesting!Abbey House Museum shows life in Victorian Leeds in 1880. Check out opening hours and more info on the Abbey House Museum here.

Abbey House Museum opposite Kirkstall Abbey

Pink Tree

There are so many blossoms in the UK at the moment it is absolutely the best time of the year!

Today we went walking and we saw this really wonderful tree with beautiful pink flowers! For me this tree is the best time in spring. Well it'd be nicer if it did not rain today, but you cannot have it all!
This beautiful tree is a weeping Japanese cherry tree whose main use is ornamental.

This is really good inspiration for my cherry tree stencil for my wardrobe!

Prunus Kiku shidare Zakura or Japanese Cherry

Japanese Cherry blossom

Roses from Greece

My mum came over and she brought some really nice roses from our garden in Greece. How i miss home sometimes! Enjoy the Greek roses.

Greek Roses

Bluebells

Late April, early May is the best part of the year in the North of England as this is the time the bluebells come out. A bluebell or Hyacinthoides non-scripta is particularly associated with ancient woodland where it may dominate the understorey to produce carpets of violet–blue flowers in "bluebell woods". We went for a walk the other day hoping to get a glimpse of this wonderful plant and here's some nice photos!

Bluebell woods

Amazing clusters of blue magic

Hyacinthoides non-scripta (Bluebells)

A close up of bluebells

I hope you enjoy them until next year!

Chinese umbrellas

One of the most beautiful things in the world are Chinese and Japanese umbrellas! Originally made with paper and coated in oil to repel water, they are so delicate and beautiful that can make any room prettier. Here is a few nice ones.

Japanese umbrella from theThe Japanese shop 

Japanese umbrellas

Chinese umbrellas

Chinese umbrellas with floral patterns

Redecorating our bedroom (Part 1)

I have recently started my maternity leave and being in the house all the time I have been thinking about redecorating it so I started looking around for inspiration. I found two amazing books by Sibella Court* that make a good read!

Nomad by Sibella Court

Etc. by Sibella Court

They are full of amazing ideas. Nomad focuses on the principle of carrying your trips imaginary or not with you in the space that you live. Anyone who has been to my house knows it is all about travelling, found items, gifts and things acquired in markets around the world.

Our bedroom

The main project was the baby room. We have a two bedroom house and we needed to create some space for our baby. The spare bedroom has ended up being an extension of our bedroom so after emptying it to create the nursery, we realised we needed more space in our bedroom. So the project wardrobe began!

Wardrobe

We researched for a long while a nice way of building a wardrobe. The plan was to extend the current wardrobe and extend it along the main wall facing the bed. The problem we had was that we did not actually like wardrobes! Then I came across the images below and then idea of using the wardrobe as a canvas was born.

From Nomad by Sibella Court

I am not sure vinyl stickers can work on the wardrobe so i decided to stencil it! My main ambition now is to create a stencil of a cherry tree. Watch this space for more updates! 

*You can read some more of S. Court ideas on her site www.thesocietyinc.com.au