Sunday Favourites #325

Here are some of my favourites from the last seven days...

These masterpieces were created by an 87-year-old grandmother using Microsoft Paint!

I love this colourful closet organiser from Sarah Hearts.

Aww Sam's cactus sno balls look amazing!

This DIY tattoo printed planter from A Kailo Chic Life is so pretty.

This card!

 This rainbow cheesecake from Eating Richly looks too good to eat.

I love these colourful art prints from The Crafted Life's new book Hello Color.

I want to have a go at this fresh felt succulent wreath from Think Make Share once I've finished making my own floral ones.

An adorable cactus pom pom sweater DIY from A Beautiful Mess.

This paper wedding bouquet from The House That Lars Built is absolutely stunning.

These mini rainbow party cakes from Coco Cake Land are so darn pretty.

I want to make my own cactus fairy garden, like this awesome one from The Pretty Life Girls.

I'm in love with this whale tattoo by Sasha Unisex.

These paper flowers from paper cutting artist Pippa Dyrlaga are so beautiful.

Lovely Links

♥  As an Oxfordshire girl born and raised I enjoyed Hand Luggage Only's post about 12 of the best things to do in Oxford. Seriously, take their advice, and visit them all.

♥  I completely related to From Roses post about being a wallflower blogger.

♥  The Bookish Baker shared some great tips for how to make your Instagram Stories stand out.

♥  If you're looking for blog photo prop inspiration, Hay Sparkle listed 10 cheap and cheerful blog props she swears by which is well worth checking out.

♥  10 (wrong) things people somehow still believe about disabled parking. This is so important.

♥  'Yes, I'm fat and disabled.' This. I'm forever anxious that people think I'm disabled because I'm fat, or that I'm just lazy and not actually ill when I need to take the lift instead of the stairs or sit and rest. 

♥  'To the Target employee who can't see my invisible illness.' This is so lovely.

♥  A woman's review of eyeliner that stayed intact through a harrowing car accident goes viral. I think I'm gonna need this eyeliner!

♥  A man sexually assaulted a woman on the streets of Dublin, and got exactly what he deserved. *Applauds woman.*

♥  After a cat was abandoned by his family, he walked 12 miles back home only to be rejected again. This broke my heart.

♥  A woman was caught red-handed dumping her four dogs, but still drove off and left them. There's a special place in hell for people like her.

♥  These 22 ads for American slaves from the 19th century will infuriate you. Infuriate, disgust, shock, break your heart... The one that really got me was the one selling a 22 year old woman, and saying her 9 month old child was at the purchaser's option. How could anyone ever think slavery was okay?? Eurgh. I hate humans.

♥ The Golden State Killer has been found forty years on from a spree of murders, rapes, and burglaries. This is amazing! And he thought he had got away with it...

If you'd like to see more stuff like this, check out my Pinterest and Tumblr. You can also find all previous Sunday Favourites posts here.

Which parts did you enjoy most this week?

Wild & Wolf Folklore Bear and Deer Necklaces

For Christmas last year, one of my sisters gave me two adorable enamel Folklore necklaces designed by Nina Jarema for Wild & Wolf, and while I featured them in my 'what I got for Christmas haul' a few months ago, I thought it was about time I gave you guys a closer peek at them. 

I was given two different but equally lovely long pendant necklaces from the Folklore collection- a charming grey bear and a handsome navy blue stag, each with gorgeous folky detail decorating the enamel.



The deer is a navy blue stag with the cutest little tail and antlers, and pretty gold, white, and amber detailing. I think he'll be particularly perfect for wearing at Christmas time as he looks like a fairisle reindeer, but he'll make a lovely finishing touch to outfits in all seasons. A deer is for life, and not just for Christmas.



The bear, which I think might just be my favourite of the two critters, is medium-grey in colour with similar textured gold, white, and amber detail to the deer embellishing its body. He has one foot raised in travel, probably on a quest to hunt some salmon. Or maybe maul an unsuspecting human.



Both necklaces are made from high-quality enamel and backed with chunky gold metal, that should hold up well against wear and tear, and hopefully last for many years to come. They both fasten with a lobster clasp, and have long gold-coloured chains that can extend from 72cm to 80cm, which is fantastic as  they sit around waist length on me and I prefer my necklaces long. The longer length makes them plus size friendly, too, so these necklaces will fit you no matter your size.

These necklaces come framed in modern card packaging, so they'd make great gifts for your jewellery loving friends and family, or a lovely treat for yourself. Trust me, I loved waking up to these on Christmas morning. The interesting thing about the packaging is that it tells you three qualities of the animal featured in the necklace, which could help you choose the perfect design for yourself or your loved one based on your / their personality. The bear is brave, reflective, and confident, while the deer is graceful, compassionate, and intuitive. I'm definitely not brave, confident, or graceful, but I like to think I share their other qualities. I'm pretty sure my sister will have chosen them for me based on the designs and not the qualities, but she chose well because I love them both. They're both so lovely. Well, you know me; I can never resist a quirky piece of jewellery; especially when it's animal themed!

I'm not sure where my sister purchased them from, but we did come across the range together in a Frosts garden centre a year or two ago. I remember seeing lots of other products in the range, including brooches and key rings, and falling in love with the fox designs.

I've had a good search for stockists online, which took some effort, and found the bear available from Atom Retro, and an Australian site called Birds Nest, and the deer is available from Anna Davies, Bibelot , and Birds Nest.

Which one do you like best; the bear or the deer? Do you own anything from the Folklore collection?

Wednesday Wish List

Here are a few things I've been coveting this week...

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I love these hand-cut acrylic necklaces from I Am Acrylic. Aren't they amazing?! They'd be perfect for accessorising summer outfits, especially those worn on the beach.

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These pastel-coloured handcrafted leather sugarcube bags from Zatchels are so lovely, and the best part is they're all currently half price on sale for just £37.50 each!

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I'm obsessed with these pastel rainbow striped pieces from Collectif. Seriously, look how pretty they are!

Accessorize Exotic Island Weekender Bag

This tropical weekend bag from Accessorize is so beautiful. It looks like it would be the perfect replacement for my old Accessorize weekend bag that my sister accidentally broke the strap of when she borrowed it. I used to use it to death for concert adventures, visiting friends, and as a carry on on flights, and I keep meaning to replace it with a new one. It may need to be this one...

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I really like these embroidered chilli pepper print bags from Skinny Dip. They look like great summer day bags.

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Sunflowers have always been one of my favourite flowers, so I'm completely smitten with Lindy Bop's gorgeous sunflower print Charlene swing dress, and Adalene swing skirt.

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And I'm crazy about these amazing rainbow coloured dresses and skirts from Modcloth. My favourite has to be the Beautifully Upbeat Pleated Midi Skirt (#3), but they're all spectactular.

If you'd like to see more of the fashion pieces on my wish list this week, check out my style wish list boards on Pinterest. You can also find all previous Wednesday Wish Lists here.

Have any of this week's pieces caught your eye?

Currently | April 2018

It's been ages since I last wrote a 'Currently' post (like more than six months ago), so I thought it was about time I put a new one together and updated you on some of the things I've been doing and enjoying lately. Today, I'll fill you in on what I've been reading, watching, buying, making, loving and much more.

Shall we start with the books?

Reading

Since the last time I did one of these 'currently' posts, I've worked my way through the Me Before You series by Jojo Moyes, Me Before You, After You, and Still Me, which I absolutely adored (although, After You wasn't the best). I reread a little of Little Women, A Christmas Carol, and Carrie, and most recently finished How To Stop Time by Matt Haig, and Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon, both of which I really enjoyed. I've now moved on to A Skinful of Shadows by Frances Hardinge, the author of The Lie Tree, but I've only read a few chapters so far, so I couldn't tell you much about it yet, except that I'm hooked already. I'm really enjoying reading again at the moment, so if anyone's got any book recommendations, let me know in the comments! I read a bit of everything. 

Watching

I haven't watched many new films or TV shows lately as I just haven't been in the mood to concentrate on anything new- plus I've misplaced my Amazon Fire Stick remote so I haven't been watching Netflix in bed as much. I've mostly been enjoying The Big Bang Theory, Young Sheldon, Timeless, and Home and Away, and I've got in to watching The Waltons and Little House on the Prairie in the middle of the night because I haven't been sleeping well. I used to love both shows when I was a kid. (FYI, I watched reruns in the nineties; I wasn't alive when they were first out! I'm not that old!) I've also enjoyed watching Little Women (the BBC series), The Miniaturist, Suffragette, The Cloverfield Paradox, Belle, and re-watching The Theory of Everything and Beauty and the Beast (live action).

Listening
I'm currently obsessed with Fall Out Boy's new album, 'Mania', and have basically been playing it on repeat since it came out a couple of months ago. It's such a catchy album, and it's full of great tunes; I'm hooked on every single one. I particularly love 'Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)', and 'Bishops Knife Trick' and haven't been able to stop playing them this week. I also love Panic! at the Disco's new song 'Say Amen (Saturday Night)', (the music video for it is pretty epic, too) and I can't wait for their new album. It's like 2005 all over again!

Wreath-making

Lately, I've been getting handy with a glue gun, and have made a garden of felt flowers and leaves to add to the Spring wreaths I'm currently making. I've taught myself how to make felt roses, daffodils, tulips, pansies, and their leaves so far, and they've turned out surprisingly well, so I'm pretty darn proud of myself for it. Once I've embroidered faces on to the pansies, I should be ready to start putting the wreaths together... unless I decide I want to make yet another type of flower. in the meantime. I'm finding it really addictive. I've also been breaking out the pom pom makers, and have made a shed load of pastel-coloured pom poms for the Spring wreaths,



Making
In addition to making felt flowers and pom poms, I've also made some polka dot fabric hoop art using the loveliest pastel polka dot fat quarters, and wooden embroidery hoops from Hobbycraft. All I did was frame the fabrics tightly in the hoops, and blanket stitch some felt on to the backs to finish them. They're so quick and easy to make! I then turned the left over fabric in to bandannas for my dog, Rosie, and made her a few others as well. You can see her modelling the mint green one on Instagram here.

Stitching

I'm currently almost half way through a rainbow-coloured spectrum mandala cross stitch from The World In Stitches, and I'm really enjoying stitching with all of those colourful threads. Well, you know me and anything colourful! Moth to a flame. It's the same design as the spectral mandala I made last Summer (which you can see here), except the colours are reversed, with this one edged with red and the rainbow bleeding inwards to purple. The colours are so beautiful and cheerful, and I think it's going to look so pretty when it's finished. If you fancy giving the spectrum mandala cross stitch a go yourself, you can find it on The World in Stitches' Etsy shop here.

Painting

I haven't done a lot of painting lately as I've been too busy crafting, but I have bought a couple more Johanna Basford canvases to paint this Spring. I really need to get back in to it soon because I miss it.

Wanting

To own all the Lindy Bop dresses, Erstwilder brooches, Sophie Conran for Port Meirion Colour Pop crockery, and Too Faced's Life's a Festival make up collection.

Needing

Some new ballet pumps, sandals, ankle boots, clothes I can wear in the heat without melting, and to dye my hair. My roots are getting ridiculous, and the greys coming through are depressing me big time. There's no way I'm getting old already. No way at all. *Cries.*

Wishing

I could have a holiday, and go on some more concert adventures. I also wish my tachycardic heart would go back to normal already and let me sleep, and the back and joint pain would give me a break for a little while, but that's probably too much to ask.

Having
Blood tests, blood tests, blood tests, kidney scans, DEXA scans (bone density scans), yet another new anti-inflammatory drug that weakens the immune system... Don't worry, though, I'm fine! I'll try to do a proper health update to fill you in soon.

Buying

I've treated myself to a few new bits and bobs lately, including some Lindy Bop tea dresses, four Erstwilder Christmas brooches in the sale, some books, craft supplies, the Urban Decay Heavy Metals palette (oh, it's so pretty!), and a Cath Kidston Park Wildlife fox ring dish and fox and rabbit crockery.

Loving

The sunshine that has finally put in an appearance after a long dreary grey winter and given us the hottest April in something like seventy years. I've not been able to go out and enjoy it, sadly, but I'm appreciating the sunshine flooding through the windows, having some decent light for blog photos for a change, and the obligatory ice creams. (By the way, Haagen Daz's Vanilla Caramel Brownie ice cream is amazing)! It's helped to lift my mood, even if I have been melting in the heat. I'm not crazy about the heat, so I'm glad it's cooled down again this week

Missing
Rosie, who is away in the kennels this week while my parents are on holiday, as I haven't got the pain tolerance to look after her single-handedly for so long. I feel so guilty leaving her there when I'm home, but needs must. The house is far too quiet without her, though, and I don't like it. I can't wait to get her back this weekend.

Seeing
Fall Out Boy live at the O2 in London a few weeks ago. It was the third time I've seen them live, and they were phenomenal! I'd go as far as saying it was one of the best gigs I've ever seen! I wish I could go back and experience it all over again; it was over waaay too soon. If you'd like to read about it, I blogged about the experience here.

And that is basically what I've been up to lately in a nut shell.

What about you? What have you been enjoying lately?

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Sunday Favourites #324

It's Sunday, and that can only mean one thing around these parts... it's time for another colourful Sunday Favourites! Enjoy.

I don't know what I love more; Studio DIY's ice cream cone clutch or that pretty manicure.

These fun DIY tissue paper covered plant pots from Tell Love and Party.

These lemon cream cheese rainbow sweet rolls from Club Crafted look amazing.

How cute is this Mindful Badger art print from Lily In Space?!

Just a friendly reminder...

I want to have a go at this embroidered clutch DIY from Oh Joy.

This awesome rainbow jumper made by Kumico.

I love this DIY paint poured marble clock from A Kailo Chic Life.

Sweetapolita's homemade hot chocolate with pastel whipped cream looks soooo delicious.

A Beautiful Mess has the most beautiful bookshelves I've ever seen. Bookshelf goals.

Hobbycraft show you how to make this adorable die cut toucan wall hanging.

Speaking of toucans, these DIY toucan shaped soaps from A Kailo Chic Life are the cutest.

This beautiful colourful art print from Jemma's Etsy shop, Dorkface Shop. She has so many gorgeous prints, cards, stickers, and other stationery items for sale right now, so go on over and have a look.

This colourful tablescape is absolutely stunning.

And this no bake golden birthday cake Oreo cheesecake from Life, Love and Sugar looks so darn tasty.

Lovely Links

♥ This video of cows jumping for joy after being let outside after a 8 long months in their cowshed is so lovely. 

♥ A heartbroken dog abandoned because of his deformed face gets adopted, and the difference it makes is wonderful. The little goofball reminds me of the dog from Up!

♥ This stork has been flying 13,000km each year to see his injured soulmate. Aww.

♥ This guy set six ground rules before taking his girlfriend to the movies. Sounds fair to me.

♥ I related to Amie's post 10 Thoughts All Bloggers Have When It Comes To Instagram.

♥ Sarah asked 'Is This The Demise Of The Blogging Community?'

♥ Brighton Girl Problems wrote a fascinating post about her personal experience with intrusive thoughts.

♥ Keiko Lynn have created some fantastic Instagram story templates for you to download.

♥ I really enjoyed Hand Luggage Only's travel posts about their visits to Durdle Door and an 8000 year old English Village, and searching for fossils on the Jurassic cost of England. They brought back good memories of visiting Durdle Door, and searching for fossils on Charmouth Beach on a school holiday in Dorset when I was ten or eleven.

♥ A guy saw a hidden place on a map in the middle of nowhere, and couldn't resist the urge to investigate. But what did he find??

♥ A therapist's unusual but effective method of helping one girl speak less negatively about herself. Well, that's one way to break the tension...

If you'd like to see more stuff like this, come say "hello" on Pinterest and Tumblr. You can also find all previous Sunday Favourites posts here.

What were your favourite parts this week?