Mr B's Delightful Reading Spa

The purpose for our day trip to Bath was to use a birthday gift. Some dear friends had clubbed together to buy me a Reading Spa. So after a lovely lunch we wound our way to Mr B's Delightful Reading Emporium. When I'd booked it I was asked what books I liked reading so that they could choose the right person to talk with me.
So snuggled up in a armchair in a cosy corner with a delicious brownie we began to talk. I was asked what type of books, authors I liked reading and why, any that I didn't like, interests outside of reading. She was really perceptive and clarified some thoughts for me on some of the types of stories that I specifically enjoy. Most importantly she really listened as the huge selection of books did fit, yet also expand my reading, some books were ones I'd already read and liked. She scurried away a couple of times returning with piles of books to talk through and choose from, you could tell from the discussions we had about these books that as a book shop they talked about books a lot. It felt at first that I said say "yes" to every single one suggested but that couldn't be done and so then it was easier to make decisions. I did have to remind myself that this was to expand my reading if they were all books on a list that I'd like to read then what was the point. It felt so decadent to be able to buy a small tower of books as I had the money to spend and not toss up between which ones to leave and which to take with me.

So, the books that I did buy.
Daphne du Maurier The Parasites
Alexandra Fuller Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness
Sybille Bedford A Compass Error (the only one that I already knew and wanted to read having already read A favourite of the Gods)
Jonathon Coe The Rain Before It Falls
Tahmima Anam a golden age

A gift to mother for accompanying me Helen Castor She Wolves and for Warmth, as he was at work, Pietro Grossi Fists.

I a short list of some of the other books suggested that I'd like to remember:
Restoration by Rose Tremain (which I'll borrow from mother)
Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
The Village by Nikita Lalwani
All the stars electric bright by Ian Brecken

It really was a delightful experience and I strongly recommend it either to give, or to receive, or even if you are in Bath to pop into the bookshop and explore.

The month of December

Started with a visit to the where I used to live in London, in fact walking past the end of my old road, to visit a friend who is involved in an open studio there. It was a lovely chance to eat mince pies and more importantly catch up with her.
A wonderful crisp walk across Blackheath and Greenwich park and knowing that now it's December we can really feel Christmassy.
Eating too many delicious Ecchelfechan
Up and out early to try and finish our Christmas shopping, a successful trip we were back home having bought what was needed by midday.
Wrapping up and sending my Olive Dragonfly Secret Santa gift.
A mismatched week whilst the front room was being decorated - but my it was worth it. Sitting here all decorated and with our Christmas tree is December bliss.
Off to great friends' wedding. Delicious lunch in a local pub, a wonderful service, with the occasional bauble rolling off the Christmas tree, then the reception. Catching up with old friends, some whom I haven't seen for a few years. A lovely way to truly feel festive.
Finally the last week of term. End of term concerts, Reception class nativity complete with arguing Wise Men, class Christmas parties and finally the staff pantomime, Cinderella.
Discovering that what I thought was a book shop very near our home is the most delightful one with it's own reading room and complimentary tea. Ink and Folly I look forward to being a frequent customer.
Meeting dear friends for an annual Christmas meal at Loch Fyne and more importantly catch up.
Most thankful for the above book shop. We managed to find the book we needed for a Blessing in there so no need to go anywhere else.
A quiet day due to end of term exhaustion, sad to miss a dear friends Champagne and Shepherd's Pie party.
A lazy Sunday wrapping presents, Granny Warmth coming up and going out for a local lunch. Then Mama and Papa Warmth coming round for mince pies.
Christmas Eve spent listening to Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King's whilst baking sweets for Christmas day. Peppermint Bark a huge success, discovered from Papermash originally from here. Orange and Cranberry biscotti and Chocolate Kisses.
Christmas Eve supper of M&S turkey, bread sauce, red cabbage, roast potatoes, parsnips as an early Christmas gift to Warmth, we were having beef on Christmas day.
A wet drive down to Twin and the Blessings. Mother was already there. Opening of presents, a short walk in the few moments of dry weather, a delicious lunch, Skype call to Pops who was in Jerusalem, having been in Bethlehem for Christmas Eve and the service there. We sang to Pops and apparently the whole of the hotel lobby heard us. Boxing Day walk followed by delicious leftover lunch and then time for us to pack up and say our festive goodbyes.
Getting ready for hosting Warmth's family for our Christmas celebrations. We ate well and I continued my tradition of making a Chocolate Yule Log.
Having so much food left over that when dear friends came for supper the next day we ate leftovers and still have some leftover. As we hadn't had to cook supper breakfast was baked croque monsieur.
Loving reading Christmas at Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons, the perfect December read, even though most of the stories aren't about Christmas. Alys, always by Harriet Lane. Instead of a book by Diana Athill - a present for Christmas last year. Devouring Jerusalem by Ottolonghi, a happily received Christmas gift. Now to plan what to cook.

And for today we're going to see A Christmas Carol, then on for cocktails and home to snuggle up and welcome in 2013.

two boxes of fancy notepaper

We started some of our Christmas shopping this weekend and had our traditional Christmas shopping lunch of a Pret turkey sandwich.

'Either side of the crowded dirty street the lights were coming out in the shop windows. Snow fingered their faces like cold feathers. They went gay. They bought red, green, yellow, and solferino candles in a box for a shilling at an ironmongers, they bought red and gold cake frill for sixpence at a cash drug stores, and two boxes of fancy notepaper and two pairs of gloves at a drapers. They bought oranges, and chocolate mice, and soap babies, and penny whistles for the stockings...' Elizabeth Cambridge Hostages to Fortune

gifts

Are you an organised buy gifts in advance person or do you like to save it for nearer the time?

The Month of June

The month started with the last day of half term and a fish and chip supper with Mother and Pops before a very early start the next day for our family holiday in Mallorca.
Celebrating our birthday there with lovely gifts, two cakes, being twins there has to be two cakes, being transported out there and easy to pack gifts. Swimming in the pool and then Twin and I took everyone out for supper at Stay restaurant.
The rest of the week was glorious. Swimming, reading, sunbathing, a daily cafe con leche, a mooch in a town, a return to the villa for more swimming and sunbathing. Ending the day with beers, rose wine, communal meals, Scrabble and days filled with happy memories.
Returning to work but made more pleasurable by meeting a friend for Monday evening cocktails at Lounge Lover and then supper at Boundary.
Catching up with dear printmaking friends at Waterstones and deciding that our IRL bookclub has come to an end but long live meeting up for friendship.
Meeting a dear friend who is about to leave for Singapore for Friday night drinks at Dalla Terra  and then supper at Dishoom.
A much needed weekend around the house - somehow being in the garden doesn't feel like a chore. Is this how some people view house work
Party weekend... Pink lanterns hanging in the tree, fizz chilling, amazing cakes, home made lasagne, dear friends, including one friend coming over from New York for it. How wonderful friends are. Re wearing my wedding dress - red nails, barefoot. 
Wandering to Tudor Barn Art weekend on the Sunday, eating cake, left over lasagne, toast and crisps.
Cakes baked started off with ones to take into work for my birthday. Nigella's Lemon Drizzle, Bill Granger's Chocolate Brownie, though I forgot to add the chocolate but it was still delicious, Eat Me! Farmhouse biscuits and Hummingbird Orange and Almond cake.
Books read finally finished Jane Eyre, I'm back in love it on this third read. The Paris Wife a perfect holiday book, Florence Finds Book Club book this month. Cheerful weather for a Wedding in the most uncheerful weather. Starting to try and read some of Warmth's books - Evelyn Waugh Vile Bodies.
Book giftings Persephone Cheerful weather for a wedding by Julia Strachey, a gift voucher to be spent on Daunt Books Ilyrian Spring and a delightful book of photographs of me from birth to now from Mother and Pops. A delightful book London A History in Verse, a bibliotherapy session at Mr B's Emporium.

Tomorrow we're off to a wedding at The Horniman Museum. June has been a truly wonderful month.

This time in December

Today it's Carol Ann Duffy's birthday and so any excuse for some Duffy. This piece comes from her 'Another Night before Christmas'.

Then she watched as the room filled with magic and light
As the spirit of Christmas made everything bright
And suddenly presents were heaped by the tree -
But she didn't wonder, which ones are for me?

For the best gift of all is to truly believe
In the wonderful night that we call Christmas Eve,
When adults remember, of all childhood's laws,
This time in December will bring Santa Claus.
presents

How will you be spending today?

Persephone Secret Santa

Last week a parcel arrived. On the back was written 'Persephone Secret Santa!' And inside.....

A lovely card, holly Christmas tree decoration and Elizabeth Cambridge Hostages to fortune from Simon at Stuck in a Book. What is so lovely is that I gave to Simon last year for Persephone Secret Santa, and he mentioned this in his card.

Thank you Simon for the gifts - I look forward to finding time to read this inbetween Christmas and New Year.

And thank you Claire and Verity for organising it again this year.

What did you receive/give for Persephone Secret Santa?

The pleasantest week

"...and the second week in December, when she chose her Christmas presents for all her nieces and nephews, was the pleasantest week in the year to her." F.M. Mayor The Third Miss Symons

Some how I don't think Miss Symon's would buy this many, wrapped in pink and piled high on a car - but maybe she'll suprise us.

How is your Christmas shopping going?

Wishing you all a most pleasant week.

Delight in human relationships

'But her heart was so generous, her range of acquaintance so wide and her delight in human relationships so unstaled, that she could have spent a national income without difficulty. As it was, she was put to desperate straits to accommodate her lavish tastes to her narrow fortune.' Winifred Holtby South Riding

If you want to be stirred up for Christmas do go and read the whole of this passage. it's Book v11 Chapter 1 Mrs. Beddows Receives a Christmas Present.

A few instagram images from Liberty's and Fortnum & Mason's Christmas windows. I should think Mrs Beddows would have loved to do her Christmas shopping at these two shops.

The Month of June

Started beautifully, well I was on half term....
Meeting Ma and Pops in town. A sunny lunch in Embankment Gradens, off to a matinee of Flarepath, with Sienna Miller no less. Amazed as Ma tried to order tea for the interval and then preceded to say "When one used to order tea at matinees intervals it was brought to you on a tray at your seat." Followed by Early Supper at Gilbert and Scott. The restautarant at St. Pancras hotel. My it's an amazing place. All in all it felt as if I should be wearing a neat hat with a small veil, a clip close handbag, and perfect red lipstick.
A sunny supper on The Southbank... So sunny that I merrily walked to London bridge rather than tubing it.

Birthday Days....
Warmth had the day off. We bought my iphone yippeee!!
A very small birthday gathering this year. Drinks at The Gherkin and then supper at Rocket City.
Continuing with Twin, Blessings and parents on the Saturday at The Red House. A glorious picnic in glorious gardens. The sun shone.
Such lovely gifts. My first Barbara Pym (Excellent Women) in the Orla Kiely edition, a much needed gardening book for when we finally have a garden, a Macaron cookbook and a box of delicious Yauatcha macarons. Cath Kidston disposable picnic set - I'd admired from afar. Twin knows me well.Some Katherine Mansfield short stories and Deborah Mitford Wait for me! Very fitting as I'm reading Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire at the moment.

Supper and drinks in town with friends - a repeat visit to The Wine Wharf.
Enjoying going to The Summer Exhibition on a very soggy Sunday with Warmth. More tempted by a cup of tea than a glass of Pimms.
Rain, rain and more rain...
Meeting a dear friend for supper we hurried to the nearest restaurant and thankfully it was good.
Exploring Marylebone Summer Fair - on a dry day....
Discovering a Mulberry bag I'd been idly coveting in the sale and now affordable. Reader, I bought it.
A walk along The Southbank with Warmth.
Exploring more of St. Pancras this time the Bookings Bar. Delicious rose, bar snacks, talking and laughing with a dear friend.
Attending the retirement party for a former head teacher, of a school I taught at. So lovely to see parents of children I taught there, former colleagues, relive memories and hear more of her memories since teaching there since 1972. In true British style it was planned to be outside and we continued for much of it under gazebos and umbrellas before finally taking refuge in the school hall.
Attending Mortlake Summer Fair with friends. Then sitting in a pub garden with view of the Thames, drinking Pimms, eating, wearing sunglasses and generally enjoying a lovely British Saturday in summer.
A beautiful sunday mooching along Lorship Lane and delicious tea and cake at Le Chandelier.
A summer supper in Angel. Sitting sipping a peach Bellini in Browns with the wide windows flung open. Then meandering along for a delicious turkish supper with lots to catch up on.

Baking Hummingbird Peanut Butter biscuits for our Birthday picnic. Baking cakes for work - Early Grey Tea Loaf, Hummingbird Bakery Banana Loaf and Nigella's Quadruple Chocolate Loaf. A repeat baking of the Peanut Butter (with added currants) Biscuits on a wet Sunday afternoon. After all that cake it was time for healthy eating.

Books read. Excellent Women by Barbara Pym. One Day by David Nicholls, read in one day. Reading it straight after Excellent Women I think Barbara Pym would have said Emma Morley was an Excellent Woman. Georgiana Duchess of Devonshire by Amanda Foreman.
On a technical note getting very frustrated with blogger. I can't do any editing in compose mode, only in Edit Html. This means no centering of words and makes it look a little unsightly and is also a bit if a faff. Do any of you lovely bloggers have the same experience or can offer any help on how to resolve it.
How was your June?

Books, Birthdays and Balloons

I was undecided upon whether to mention my first blogging birthday and then when Hannah celebrated hers by giving a gift I had the way, and the gift, to celebrate.

So, if you fancy a read of Nancy Mitford's Wigs on the Green then....

Please leave a message below and I'll pull the name out of a 'saucer tilted with flowers' type hat. Open worldwide.

x

Thank you so much for travelling with me on this journey x

On the fifth day of Christmas

My true love sent to me

Five Gold Rings

Which one would you choose?

Monica Vinader,Agrigento, Carla Amarim, Anne Sportun, Boodles

Book Gifting

A small post about the books given and received this Christmas.

Gifted
For Warmth Carol Ann Duffy Another night before Christmas

and her 12 Selected Poems, Tim Burton The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy, Wisden Cricketers Almanack 1986 and 1999
For Twin Mrs Dalloway's Party Virginia Woolf
For Brother in law The Flavour Thesauraus
For Pops John Le Carre Our Kind of Traitor
For a dear friend Hatfields Herbal
For Godchild Ted Hughes The Iron Man
For another Godchild ABC in Animals


Received
From Warmth Carol Ann Duffy Mrs Scrooge and 12 her Selected poems, a beautiful diary, A World History of Art (having mentioned once that in hindsight sometimes I think I'dd quite like to have read History of Art at university.)
From Parents Vogue covers

From a dear friend Sarah Broom Tigers at Awhitu.
Persephone Secret Santa Miss Buncle DE Stevenson

What books did you give or receve this Christmas?

Giving

Our final quote from the fabulous Truman Capote's A Christmas Memory

"It's bad enough in life to do without something you want; but confound it, what gets my goat is not being able to give somebody something you want them to have." Truman Capote A Christmas Memory

biscuits

The gift of baking

Persephone Secret Santa

How lovely on a bleak November day a parcel arrived for me....

Persephone Secret Santa.

On a bleak December day I opened it...

Miss Buncle's Book by De Stevenson

And a lovely notebook. It's perfect - blank inside which is the way I like my notebooks. I shall store it away for when my currnet quotes/ blogging thoughts notebook has finished.

And a lovely notecard.

"Hope you enjoy this one and you have a Merry Christmas."

Park Benches and Bookends.

Thank you and Merry Christmas to you.

Thank you Claire for organising Secret Santa.

December

Sometimes I think this blog could be renamed 'The Carol Ann Duffy Appreciation Blog' . Her poems always fit in so perfectly with my thoughts and the seasons.

December

The year dwindles and glows
to December's red jewel,
my birth month.

The sky blushes,
and lays its cheek
on the sparkling fields.

Then dusk swaddles the cattle,
their silhouettes
simple as faith.

These nights are gifts,
our hands unwrapping the darkness
to see what we have.

The train rushes, ecstatic,
to where you are,
my bright star.

Carol Ann Duffy

red jewel

Know me, look at me

Warmth wanted to read a new book. He wanted suggestions. I suggested Suite Francaise. He loved it. It's brought back my memories. He cried on the tube at the end. That's one of the many reasons I love him.

'Not a word of their true feelings was spoken; they didn't kiss. There was simply silence. Silence followed by feverish passionate conversations about their own countries, their families, music, books... They felt a strange happiness, an urgent need to reveal their hearts to each other - the urgency of lovers, which is already a gift, the very first one, the gift of the soul before the body surrenders. Know me, look at me. This is who I am. This is how I have lived, this is what I have loved. And you? What about you my darling?' Irene Nemirovsky Suite Francaise

lovers

Papermashtastic

I'm going to friends for supper tonight. I'm really looking forward to chatting and catching up but one thing I'm especially excited about is my gift. I love to be excited about giving gifts and here's mine, well it's what's being tied on the bottle of wine. I'm a sucker for stationery and so often look wistfully at American internet sites with all their letterpress this and here is a company in the UK. I think it is a great idea - especially as the friend I'm visiting loves dogs - so it all just seems perfect.
I've ordered quite a few lovely things from Papermash. Sign up for the newsletter you'll receive discount codes. When my order arrived there was a hand written note saying 'Thank you for supporting small businesses' What will you order from Papermash?

Merci Liberty

I think have a new favourite shop in London. Liberty.
I shopped in there tonight to buy my Mother's Day card and gift and bought. Today I'm going to share Merci Liberty. A pop up room - oh I wish it would pop up in my home. I was tempted by much, feel restrained in what I bought and hope to return again soon..
I've always loved bracelets, I think due to being a teenager during Aha worship and also that whole 'I went to France this summer and so have brought back with me lots of friendship bracelets' type fashion. As I've grown up the string has been replaced but I still like that look. So this was perfect for me. At the moment I'm wearing it around my neck but tomorrow who knows... The one I've chosen is white with pink roses - perfect for when summer arrives.










What else tempted me but I didn't buy - well this time?






How could one resist this? The perfect brown envelope.











No matter how small your flat there's always space for one more cushion...
To explain more about Merci here's a sections of what's written on the flyer. Merci - it's an idea in answer to those questions: How can we give? How can we help? Merci's founders, Marie-France and Bernand Cohen, who after selling Bonpoint, imagined this unique place. The founders won't take any wages out of this business and will transfer all its profits to a foundation in they established to help the poorest children, especially in Madagascar.
If you're in London in the next few weeks do pop in or else pop online.
Merci x

Temporary Secretary

I love the way these two words work together, I love the shop and I love the necklace. I enjoyed wearing it to a Valentine's Party and, had I not forgotten it, I'd have worn it to travel to and from a recent wedding. Warmth however does not like it. He mocks it. I wear it proudly. I now have another one to add to my collection. 'cupcake'. A dear friend bought it as a 'saw this and thought of you gift'. (Oh how I love those gifts, to know we are kept in mind.) I also love my cupcake necklace as it was partly given to annoy Warmth.
I love that inexplicable relationship between something that one person loves and another person loathes. I think it's especially true when we're in a relationship - sometimes men just don't get it. SJP - case in point. Ruffles, bows and corsages - case in point. I'm in the strange place of having never really been a jeans and jumpers girl but Warmth likes me best in those clothes. We meet in the middle, and I am learning to wear jeans and jumpers. However sometimes I just need to dress up - a ruffle, a corsage, a random necklace, a frill on a skirt and heaven forfend the 'pussy bow' blouse.

What do you have that you love to wear but is disliked by others? And do you continue to wear it anyway?