1 March 2013

Five Things Friday

Hello lovelies :)

We made it! The weekend is upon us, thank Baby Jesus. I'm very much in need of some crafty time and giggling over cups of tea (not on my own; I'm not quite that mad). My weekend is off to a flying start already, as I returned home to find lots of beautiful, inspiring things awaiting me. 

1. What Katie Ate

After spotting Katie's recipe book months ago on A Cup Of Jo I immediately added it to my Amazon Wishlist of Lovely Things. Sadly, I couldn't find a cheap copy with UK postage for love nor money. Then last week I received an email from the The Book Depository about their flash sale- and what did I spy but Katie's book


What Katie Ate: Recipes and Other Bits and Bobs

It arrived today and is every inch as beautiful as I had hoped. The photographs are simply exquisite, and capture everything I love the throw-it-together-all-rustic-like-Jamie-Oliver style of modern cooking. A style I one day hope to emulate; once I've collected enough battered, vintage kitchenalia and learnt how to strew thyme in an artistically haphazard way. 


Beautiful and drool-enducing. Just like Joe Manganiello.
WHAT?! I haven't mentioned him on here for AT LEAST a week!!

2. Ideal Home

I've waxed lyrical about my love of IH before, but I still get a little rush when I find a copy in our porch upon arriving home. I love the routine of settling myself onto the sofa with an armload of blankets, a big cup of tea and a chocolate bar to stuff in my face whilst poring over each page like it's a treasure map I have to memorise and then burn. I love folding over the corners of the pages with items, decor schemes, or shops that inspire me; to be looked up later on the internet and more often than not added to a Pinterest Board or my Amazon Wishlist. 



I also received a free silicone spatula with this month's issue; which was particularly handy as I managed to break my last one whilst baking rainbow cupcakes. Silicone spatulas are brilliant for scraping the very last dregs of cake batter from mixing bowls because they're soooo flexible. Although that's a bit of a negative point for me too, as my favourite thing about baking is scoffing the leftover mix from the bowl whilst waiting for the cake to cook....



3. Stylish Storage Inspiration

I've been trying to hunt down the perfect storage unit for our dining room for months. Our dining room moonlights as my craft room, and is therefore full to bursting with bits of wool and fabric, fancy art equipment, frames and aida and random tat that can't seem to find a home elsewhere in the house. Earlier this week I realised the solution had been sitting literally a few feet above my head the whole time. Doh.

We bought a second-hand Expedit bookcase from our friends about 18 months ago to house our books in the living room. Having been through several furniture changes since then, the bookcase was renegated to the loft; where it's been gathering dust and covered in paint pots ever since. I was loath to put it in the dining room in it's current boring state, because it just doesn't fit with my sickly-sweet colour scheme. Then I remembered that furniture doesn't have to stay the colour it was made in! Watch this space, people... 


EXPEDIT Shelving unit IKEA Finished on all sides; can be used as a room divider.
Black-brown colour; your days are numbered.

4. Feeling the burn

Of money in my pocket. I'm not normally that excited about pay day because I'm one of those horribly sensible people who ekes out their money in even chunks throughout the month- always being reasonably thrifty and not blowing everything three days after pay day. However, I am currently feeling a desperate need to shop, and seeing as I've just been paid AND saved myself the cost of a dining room cabinet by upcycling the bargainous bookcase we already had, I figure I can treat myself to a lot of H&M dresses this weekend.... I'm meeting a girlfriend tomorrow for some extreme retail therapy. Brighton won't know what's hit it...


This will be me. Except without the pedal pushers; because it's no longer 1994.
That being said, apparently the hair scrunchie is back in fashion. What. The. Frick.

5. Chocolate

Tesco sent me a voucher for money off a giant Fairtrade bar of Cadburys so, like the sucker I am, I bought one. Needless to say, it's pretty much all gone in the space of 4 days. I don't want to think about how many grams a day I've eaten. Thankfully, it is Fairtrade and therefore calorie free. Right?!!? RIGHT?!




I hope you all have fantastic weekends full of wild adventures, delicious snacks, and belly laughs. 

Katie xxx

5 comments:

  1. I also heard and chortled about the return of the scrunchie. I'm not east London hipster enough to carry that shit off! (and I no longer have a perm)

    Going to get some stuck into some serious Ideal Home action as soon as our contracts are exchanged. I do have a virgin copy of Homes and Antiques awaiting me though.

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    1. I hope you exchange soon- it's so much fun putting your own stamp on somewhere properly. You can paint everything Barbie Pink if you want to (unless your other half puts his foot down... *sob* haha) x

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  2. Let me get a couple things straight:

    Silicone spatulas were invented so we can get the last of the cake batter out of the bowl and into our mouths.

    Scrunchies have never gone out of fashion! I work with a lady who truly believes this and wears them every day!

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    1. Of course!!! How did I not see it before?! Silicone spatulas are back on my list of totally awesome.

      She sounds very dedicated to the scrunchie cause :) xx

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  3. I still have some of my 90's scrunchies (SOME, maybe 2- I used to have loads as my Mum used to make one to match each of the coloured headbands we had to wear for the different grades at dancing!) but I wouldn't wear them as a fashion statement- urgh, the mind boggles!
    You always make me laugh with your posts! I think you should paint the inside of those bookcase shelves in different rainbow colours, they would look cool!x

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