A Happy Christmas and Health and Happiness in the New Year to you all

Well another Christmas is almost upon us and this year is a very special one for me, my darling Granddaughter Jessica and her Mummy and Daddy will be spending Christmas day with us, and some exciting news too, Jessica will have a little baby sister by June!! What more precious gift could you wish for? I hope that you all have a wonderful time and most importantly wishing you health and happiness in the coming year.

I haven't quite finished my decorations yet but here is a little peek

A little pink tree just ffor Jessica

What will you be wearing at Christmas?

Like most women I love to buy a new outfit to wear at Christmas but don't want to spend a fortune what with all the other things you have to buy at this time of year so when I was browsing around the internet for gifts I came across three pieces which I could mix and match, don't think I would wear them all together, would be a bit much I think, but the jacket would look great with jeans as well.  I also found a pair of Red Herring ballet pumps in the same beautiful blush colour a bargain at half price £12!! The blush sequin three pieces are from Florence and Fred and such a bargain I had to share. The Jacket was £30, skirt £20 and the sleeveless tank £8. I love designer labels but having worked in fashion and knowing the mark up I just don't want to pay the prices, although of course I do get tempted once in a while! Hope your weekend is a great one xxx

What's in your makeup bag?

I have always adored makeup, it is a part of me and gives me confidence although I seriously only put it on for myself makes me feel more 'me'. Even when I am not going out it's part of my routine and I very rarely go without it, if I don't put the slap on then you know i'm feeling poorly lol! When I was younger I bought tons of makeup, cannot believe how much money I have wasted on impulse buys, now I stick to what works for me although some things I have stuck with since my teens never finding a better one.

Here's what I use..

Foundation, the best I have ever used is M.Asam, Magic Finish  one colour for all skins, it melts into the skin, truly a magical product and leaves a wonderful dewy finish
Laura Mercia cover up just for those areas that need a little more coverage
Corn Silk Transluscent Powder, the best I have ever used and I have been using it since I was a teenager
XenTan bronzer, wonderful natural bronzer powder for those days when you need a little sunshine in your life, I also used their fake tan, best on the market and a wonderful smell of almonds
Laura Gella Blusher, I buy everything without shimmer, for older women it is not flattering and shows up every wrinkle!
A matte generic dark brown smokey eye shadow, without any shimmer, Rimmel Liquid eyeliner in Black oh and before any eye makeup I put on Garnier rollerball concealer for eyes, a fab product which not only covers and dark circles but wakes up your eyes not forgetting Optrex eye drops.
The best mascara on the market is Max Factor 2000 calories, have used it since it was introduced yonks ago
Face creams are my one extravagance Creme de la Mer, it really works in my opinion, Elizabeth Arden Visible Difference a fantastic every day cream and Clarins Beauty Flash (under makeup) Oh and sometimes I use Jason's 100% Vitamin E oil, a little goes a long way.Best put on at night so it can sink in and do it's best.
I love lipstick and mainly wear a pinky brown colour, I tend to mix them on my lips, and a browny pick lip liner and gloss, one tip for making your lipstick last is to line your lips and fill in the whole lips with the pencil and then put on your lipstick and gloss, lasts longer.
I wash my face in the morning with a wash with exfoiliater then tonic, at night I use a face cream to take makeup off then tone with tonic. Would love to hear what is in your makeup bag and your favourite products

Image of Autumn

I was in Tenterden, Kent yesterday and walking down the high street I saw this lovely vista in front of me, misty golden light, low sun in the late afternoon,  it's my favourite time of year, so here it is!

Christmas is coming! Wrapping ideas

I have been looking for some really pretty wrapping paper for Christmas, either there is not enough on a roll and hideously expensive or it's bog standard gift wrap. I love to wrap gifts in a lovely way, I think it adds to the excitement of receiving a gift. So when I went out today I came across an animal print wallpaper, loads on a roll, nice and thick which won't tear and cheap at £6.99 a roll, I really wanted French Toile but it's very expensive, anyway I wrapped a gift to show you how it looks, also I added a very inexpensive corsage/hair clip which not only looks pretty but is a little added gift. Of course the variations are endless, I sometimes put three Christmas tree baubles strung together as decoration on a gift or a vintage brooch. The light was almost going at 3.30pm on a vile rainy day so the photos are not great but I hope it gives you an idea. I am being sent some of my dear friend Paulette's exquisite wrapping paper,which she prints herself, can't wait to get it and I will wrap something in it and show you!  Pease take a look at here amazing work at Papernosh
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Ralph Vaughan Williams

I was browsing YouTube this morning and came across this video, Vaughan Williams is one of my most favourite composers and perfect listening for a relaxed Sunday morning, it has some stunning images of England, hope you enjoy! Don't forget to pause the music on the right hand side.

A breath of Sea Air-Whitstable, Kent

Over the past few weeks I haven't felt too great, won't bore you with the details but it has stopped me doing very much and I do hate being cooped up inside so today Sophie and I drove to Whitstable, a gorgeous little town on the Kent Coast, famed the world over for it's Whitstable Oysters. It was a glorious day, cold but blue sky, just about my favourite type of weather. I actually don't like Oysters but Sophie loves them so she downed a few for her breakfast as soon as we got to the harbour. We walked along the harbour front browsing in the little huts which housed all sorts of crafts and goodies, pass wonderful fish stalls selling the fresh produce straight from the sea, the smell was wonderful and I felt so much better being out in the beautiful sunshine and of course I am at my happiest by the sea. I snapped a few photos on the way to the high street and the shops.

There are tons of super little shops in the town, no chains, so we browsed for Christmas gifts and came away with quite a few, lots of vintage shops and we found Sophie three vintage dresses, a blouse and a hand knitted jumper and quite a few other goodies I can't tell you about in case their future owners happen to read this lol! Wayne Hemmingway has a great little shop there where I found something nice for Bryn! We were getting hungry so we walked back to the harbour for some lunch and passed a sign on the harbour wall saying Cushings View, I wondered what it meant so googled it when I came back and the found out that the actor Peter Cushing lived in Whitstable for many years and he loved it so much that when he passed the people of the town put the plaque up to commemorate his favourite view. Below is a charming video I found about him and the town. Please pause the music on the right to watch it.

We had lunch at a restaurant on the harbour with only outside seating but it did provide blankets lol! Fish and chips and mushy peas for Sophie and Crab Cakes for me yummy!

Before we left of course I had to buy some Oysters to take home and some of the best doughnuts in Kent according to Antony Worrall Thompson! They cooked them in front of us and some didn't make it home! Delicious. Took a few more pics on the way back to the car. Whitstable is a must if you are ever in the area, it has a castle as well of course, well you are in Kent!  Our little trip lifted my spirits and made me feel so much better after feeling so poorly. I hope your weekend is a great one, love to you all xxx

Beautiful Kent

I am passionate about my county of Kent, The Garden of England, of course others would disagree but I think it is one of the most beautiful and certainly historic of all England's counties. Situated only 30 odd miles from London and half an hour from the sea it is wonderfully placed and has the best of both worlds. Crammed full of Castles and historic buildings and places it fulfils my love of history and even in everyday life I walk past stunning architecture and ancient places. Here are a few photos of these places I have past in the last week.

The Chalybeate Springs, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Royalty would come to take the waters here for their health

Tubbridge Wells, The Pantilles

Tunbridge Wells

Lovely Mews, Tunbridge Wells

The Ancient House, Biddenden

Biddenden

Biddenden

Tenterden

A huge Anchor in Tenterden High Street, doubt if anyone would attempt to nick this!!

Tenterden

Love the Fox knocker!

My favourite Chocolate shop all hand made

Tenterden's quaint high street

This is a lovely video of some of the amazing Castles in Kent, don't forget to pause the music on the right hand side to watch the video, xxx