Sunday

I spent the morning wandering around outside a really gorgeous house, surrounded by beautiful flowers and plants. I had a cup of coffee under the shelter of an enormous barn, and then got a little lost in some other gardens and barns. It was lovely even when the hay fever hit!

I came home and dosed up on cups of tea before ending up here! All I have are a few little musings about what I've been up to in the last couple of weeks.

They have been a mish mash of all sorts. As per usual for our British weather we've seen blazing sun, as well as dull, grey skies that looked like they needed the pixar cloud treatment. In a similar fashion I've been making fun, colourful summery designs at the same time as creating for Christmas. On my desk there have been penguins and robins alongside ice creams and cupcakes! I'm not complaining - I like both seasons and enjoy making for both too!

Unbelievably, I don't think it will be too long before I will be sharing some of my Christmas designs for this year. Expect Penguins in hats, mistletoe and sparkly Christmas cupcakes! For now, I am enjoying summer and I'm hoping we're in for a few more sunny days. I've got plans and the cold and rain might put a dampener on them! :)

Happy Sunday. Have a good week!

Katie

A Weekend in Sussex

Last Bank Holiday I went down to Sussex for a weekend away. It is somewhere I haven't spent a lot of time but now I would  like to go back! The area where we stayed was beautiful cottage after beautiful cottage. The village had a green in the middle of it and more than one pub. We had do-it-yourself quesadillas one night. The chicken came sizzling on a skillet.   

Petworth 

On the first day of our weekend we went to Petworth House. For a weekend that saw us hiding from the rain for a chunk of it we got lucky with blue skies and fluffy white clouds. A cup of tea, a look around the house (renowned for its art particularly the Turners) and a visit to an exhibition of Sky's Landscape Artist of the Year was topped off with a wander into the grounds. 

Little Hampton

The second best thing to a beach in the sun is a beach on a grey, windy day. It all looks a little moody and you can wrap up like Michelin Man! Trust me I did. It was so blustery that as I rearranged my scarf I was overwhelmed and got lost in it.  

Not exactly a vibrant day at the beach but I'll always enjoy a wander down to the water or a walk along a very British promenade.

This 'bench' seemed to run the length of the beach with coloured panels all along it and a couple of these installations too. 

Weald and Downland Living Museum

It is always interesting to see a snatch of history in this way - with buildings from all different eras. I don't think I've been to a museum like this since I was a child so it was nice to go back now I'm older. However the child in me couldn't resist making a wish and blowing away the clock of a dandelion. There was a meadow filled with them and a small lake with adorable little ducklings.

This day was a mess of crazy British weather. I started the day in layers and was down to a t-shirt at one point. That was for a second before the sun slipped behind the clouds and I needed to put a jumper back on. Still with moody clouds and blue skies everything was very vivid.

Getting a breath of fresh air is one of my favourite things to do. I try to do it on the day to day but it is always nice to escape for a few days. 

I hope you had a lovely long weekend. I got a good dose of laughter, friends, family and food. 

Katie 

Sunday

A little slice of my Sunday. 

1. Yesterday I planted a strawberry pot! I am hoping that I can grow at least a handful of strawberries from the plants we have. There'll be something satisfying about growing my favourite fruit! Kneeling in the sun with mud on my hands yesterday afternoon was nice enough even if my attempts are not very fruitful! (These strawberries are from my fruit greetings card)

2. The other day I found this recipe for an orange and rhubarb cake. I don't bake very often but this was a different choice for me. There was no chocolate in sight! Now my cake didn't look as aesthetically pleasing as the pictures on The Kitchen Paper (my Instagram picture proves this) but it was still a very tasty cake to eat.

3. I stumbled across a painting not long ago which led me to this blog. I wish I could remember which painting I first saw because it perfectly captured a thought of mine. I spent a little while browsing a few of these personal messages yesterday. They convey big ideas and make you think.

4. Yesterday I baked and I cooked. Good Food is a great go to for recipes and this Fruity pork steak was a hit in my house. With red onions, apples and a five spice dusting to the pork it had a great flavour!

I hope you had a good weekend!

Katie

David Hockney

At the weekend I visited the David Hockney retrospective at the Tate Britain. The exhibition showed his most well known works from across six decades. There were paintings, drawings, prints as well as the art he has done on an iPad.

What I enjoyed seeing was the development in Hockney's style, techniques and subject matter. It was good to see his iconic Los Angeles swimming pools alongside his bright Yorkshire landscapes. The latter were probably my favourites  and his charcoal sketches of a wood in Spring too. It was scenery I am familiar with and colours that I love.

It is nice to visit an art gallery or museum and find something you weren't expecting or didn't know much about. At the top of the stairs and through a doorway we found Forms in Space... by Light (in Time) It is an installation by Cerith Wyn Evans which you can't help but walk under and observe from different places around the room. You're not just looking at it because with every angle it changes. It is too detailed and complex to take in all at once.

I hope you have a good weekend exploring or taking it easy -  whatever you have planned!

Katie

Weekend Snapshots: The Peak District

The Peak District is almost like a home from home. Every now and then we return and each time it welcomes us with open arms. Each peak and each village becomes more familiar, and yet every walk and every climb feels different whether I’ve done it before or not.

On Friday we walked up Mam Tor and along The Great Ridge in glorious sunshine. We ate lunch across from Kinder Scout, overlooking the Edale Valley. The next morning we ate breakfast as a couple of sheep and their lambs explored the garden. They’d escaped from their field!

Storm Katie brought wind and rain, and although we did get wet we were still able to walk some more, wander through fields of lambs and have some cider at the local pub!

I hope you had a happy Easter,

Katie 

A Christmas Visit to Waddesdon Manor

 

On Sunday evening I went to Waddesdon Manor; a National Trust property between Aylesbury and Bicester. For the past couple of years I have gone with my family to soak up the atmosphere and this time was no different!

Wrapped up against the cold, we braved the wind and made our way to the little Christmas Fair behind the manor. We tucked into roasted chestnuts and clutched cups of mulled cider while we took in all there was to see - the manor was bathed in blue light at the back and the trees were adorned with warm yellow lights. With Christmas music in the background, there was nothing the rain could do to dampen my spirit!

One of the draws of Waddesdon is the light installations of Bruce Munro who has had a three year residency there. In each of his pieces he incorporates light, sound and colour to various effects.  For his final year, Bruce used pulsing illuminated tents, radio snippets, sections of songs and morse code to create a fun yet intriguing installation. An immersive experience my sister and I danced our way around parts of the path and I definitely sang along to some of the songs!

Later on I was very happy to sit, sipping hot coffee and eating mince pies in the gorgeous outside seating area which was all dressed up for Christmas with rugs and fairy lights.

I’ll take any excuse to immerse myself in Christmas. I’ve managed to do this a lot at the Christmas fairs where I have had a table but it’s also been nice to enjoy the festivities as a spectator too. On Wednesday I went to a late night shopping event in a local village. Windows were adorned with snowy scenes for a competition, and shops were brimming with people seeking the perfect decorations. There were even donkeys wearing Santa hats! So much Christmas and advent has only just begun!

I hope you’re enjoying the lead up to Christmas!

Katie