A-Z of Katherine

I saw this little meme over at Diana's blog and you know what it's like: you're bored, there's nothing to do except eat an entire packet of shortbread biscuits and this just might pause this process for a few minutes.

 

 

A. Age: 25

B. Bed size: King
C. Chore that you hate:Taking out the rubbish. I'm always afraid I'll find something nasty in the wheelie bin.
D. Dogs: None, but I want one. I have a name picked out already...Odin aka Mr Wednesday.
E. Essential start to your day: From last this week before I drink coffee or eat breakfast I go for a quick 30 minute run.
F. Favorite color: Blue. Every single shade.
G. Gold or Silver: I was always a silver girl, but gold is growing on me...slowly.
H. Height: 6 whole feet.
I. Instruments you play: Does a few lessons of the recorder count? If not, none.
J. Job title: Free spirit.
K. Kids: None that I know of.
L. Live:  Cardiff, Wales
M. Mother’s name: Jane
N. Nicknames: Beeksy...The Beeks. My friends and I have a last name thing going on, although we do tend to call each other by our full names quite often. Ok, everytime we see each other!
O. Overnight hospital stays: Zilch
P. Pet peeves: Plug sockets left switched on with nothing plugged into them. *shudder*
Q. Quote from a movie: "Smoke me a kipper, I'll be back for breakfast." Red Dwarf, not a movie but it was one awesome tv series!
R. Right or left handed: Right
S. Siblings: One older bro.
U. Underwear: Yes...I wear it. Thanks for asking.
V. Vegetable you hate: Beetroot.
W. What makes you run late: Me
X. X-Rays you’ve had: One of my back and several of my goofy teeth when I was a teenager.
Y. Yummy food that you make:  Chicken Pie!
Z. Zoo animal: Penguins. They look funny and they're not always asleep like some of the others.

Stormy seas

My Mister and I went away for a little holiday and ended up in the midst of a storm. It was quite incredible.We walked along the coast until we found a spot to sit a while and watch the waves crash.

Right by that stretch of coastline is our favourite campsite. No fancy, schmancy shower blocks with hairdryers, no shelter from the gusts. Just a field...on a cliff top. Safe to say I didn't sleep much that night! Honest to goodness I thought we'd wake up flipped on one side!

Congratulations, it's a pie!

Uh huh. I baked that pie all on my lonesome. Got a little snappy in the process, but hey, I was just trying to concentrate on the task at hand! And that pie is chicken. Chicken and mushroom and mustard, oh my! The recipe is from the 30 minute meals book by Jamie Oliver and although it certainly took a lot longer than half an hour, I tasted and it was goooood.

Now, Bloggeroo's, this is a little bit of a victory for me. Why, I hear you cry from behind your keyboard...well I've said it before and I'll say it again. I am a terrible cook. I know nothing about what goes well together and I have about as much patience as some one who has none. I burn stuff. ALL. THE. TIME. This is a sore point for my poor Mister who has had to shoulder a majority of the cooking as my efforts...aren't really all that edible...

But this time. This time it all came good. "A pie! A real pie!" I keep squealing to myself. And it was not just chicken pie. Oh no. There were French-style peas. Uh huh... and carroty mash. There was also pudding. Berries mixed with elderflower cordial and lemon juice, topped with creme fraiche all whipped together with a wee bit of icing sugar.  Creme Fraiche. I didn't even know what that was! I had to spend 20 minutes looking puzzled in the yoghurt aisle before someone told me it'd be with the cream. Who'd have known?!

 I'm thinking I should work my way through this recipe book and blog the results. This should be very interesting. Let's hope this wasn't a fluke!

Do you prefer to follow recipes or make it up as you go along?

Vintage culottes and a little surprise.

Today has been quite a fun one so far...it always is when you have an early morning run to get little happy's dancing round your bloodstream. I've acquired quite a bit of vintage over the last few month, and I'm so loving incorporating it into my everyday wardrobe. That's the test of a vintage item to me: Can I wear it everyday with my high-street basics?

I found these culottes in my fave vintage shop, but there happened to be a stunning 70s suede skirt and waistcoat set that I couldn't bear to separate... So these got left behind on that shopping trip. Then one morning I woke up to a tweet that announced the closure of the shop and I RACED into the city to snap them up. I'd actually been dreaming about them, but thought they'd probably been bought by some other stripe loving lady. But as you can see they were still there on the rail waiting for me to own them. Best part:  They were in the sale...£10. A tenner. Ten squids.

And that's what the smile's about!

 

Oh boy. I love them. 

The rest of my Monday is going to involve sorting out blog posts for the rest of the week and sorting through vintage dresses... that will eventually be listed in my new little venture!

Yup. I finally found something I love with enough passion to give an online shop a go. There's so much excitement inside me about this that I could just burst into a big glitter explosion.

*throws glitter*

Later, Bloggeroo's.

Trek Days: Bannau Sir Gaer, Wales

Welcome to a little ridge in the Black Mountains of Wales, Bannau Sir Gaer. I think this is as much introduction as it needs. Just look...

Told you. These three peaks are know as one of the wildest places in Wales and they are breathtakingly beautiful and full of mystery and wonder. The Mister and I went walking there a few weeks back and it was quite a day, but just as we approached the lake and began to ascend, a nasty little bee came and stung me right on the neck. I've never been stung before...and it hurt...and I sulked 'til I reached the top!

The view made it worth the sting though. :)

 

As we came back past the lake we took our boots off and waded in the water for a while. I'm sure you can tell from the look on my face how cold it was!

And a final glance back to the ridge. Heaven.

xo

Autumn. Fall. Moments.

Whenever the seasons turn I always announce that the new season is my favourite although the truth is that, more often than not, boredom leads me to think this. Sometimes we linger a little too long and sometimes not at all. In Britain we tend to dip in and out of good and bad weather and now it no longer represents the classical ideas of our seasons.

1.cloud cocoa 2. gracefully we've fallen

But on Sunday evening a gust of wind whistled down my street and I knew that Autumn had arrived. I spent quite a lot of time gazing out of my window, watching the rain that night. There were probably better and more important things for me to be doing, but I did enjoy the smell of the mountain air rushing through this city.

It was suddenly classic; being wrapped in an quilt, drinking hot cocoa, and finding a book I thought had been lost in the boxes I left in my Dad's garage. There's no other moment quite the same.

There's a secret link hidden in this post (not that secret really!) to help you get in the Autumn mindset.

p.s There's a little bit of blog construction going on still. Go drink cocoa and be warm.

The wedding reading

Now let me tell you how emotional this reading was! The registrar asked me to step forward to read during the ceremony, facing the bride and groom...and I very, very nearly lost it! Being nervous any way didn't help and the fact that I was teary because my Best was getting married just all came together in that moment. I had the shakes, but I managed to get through it. I hope all that feeling made the reading a little bit more special.

xo

The best friend's wedding

Last weekend was the most fun: one of my best friends got married and I got to be one of an awesome set of bridesmaids! Think black and white, vintage lace and peals and you'll get an idea of how gorgeous it was. It was one of those weddings that got the right mix of formal and informal and the result was a relaxed, fun day for friends and family.

It all went by in a flash which seems to happen when you look forward to something for so long. We got ready in the morning, ate a pasty for breakfast, drank champagne, ran a little behind, laced up the wedding dress and before we knew it we were walking down the aisle, bouquet's in hand, I read the poem I had written for the occasion, vows were exchanged and Steve and Hayley became husband and wife. 

 That's me and my two very closest friends with our heels sinking into the grass. Trying to balance on that slope wasn't easy and I took my shoes off when Hayley threw the bouquet...What can I say...I meant business...I didn't catch it though!

 And we finished the evening off with dancing and festivities. One corner of the marquee was designated for the "guestbook" which was a chalkboard speech bubble and a photographer! Such a sweet idea. Guests were popping over all evening to leave the bride and groom little messages of luck and comedy :D And as darkness fell we released lanterns into the nights sky. Just the prettiest sight.

I feel so lucky to have shared such a lovely day with my friends.

Pop by tomorrow to read the poem I wrote specially for the ceremony.

Peace and love my Bloggeroo's.

xoxo