Friday, December 03, 2010

Loving...






...and needing all of the above. I really need new bedside tables and these Danish designed babies are just perfect. Also love the pouffe and the little stool..need them. Then why not go the whole hog and have the jars too :) All from Plumo.

Friday, November 12, 2010

Being alone...

I came across this little video (by film maker Andrea Dorfman) on youtube and I love it...it is written and performed by poet/singer/songwriter Tanya Davis. I am good at being alone but I know lots of people are not and I think if you were one of those people you might learn to like it by watching this little video :) Also, if I have any readers left in the USofA, where is her accent from...it's really cute!



Happy Friday everyone!

Monday, November 08, 2010

Zurich..

A bit quite around here lately...wow, I really am finding it hard to find time for my blog...I don't know what it is...I seem to be busy, busy all the time (in a good way tho so I am not moaning!).

So, we had a wonderful time in Zurich for our long weekend (we went on 22nd and came back on 25th). It is a beautiful city with loads to see and do and the food...totally gorgeous! Every meal we had was delicious! We went to Hiltl for lunch on Saturday...it is a vegetarian restaurant and in fact, was the first vegetarian restaurant in Europe, opened in 1898! Well, we stuffed our faces and, as it was a late lunch, instead of going for a full-on meal on Saturday night we went to a local's favourite for Bratwurst - scrummy...comes with a hunk of sourdough bread and a little pot of mustard.

Of course, we had to sample the Luxemburgers (mini macaroons, famous in Zurich). We got these at Sprungli another famous coffeehouse/chocolate/bakery-type place! Luxemburgers are tiny..maybe under 2cm wide..very cute...



Not that I am obsessed with food or anything but there were lots of chocolates to choose from at Sprungli too! But the most amazing of all were the CHAMPAGNE TRUFFLES...I don't know what to say...we paid about €7 for 4 and they were worth it - absolutely divine!!



We stayed with a friend who has just moved into a new apartment in a great neighbourhood, just a few minutes from the city and right beside the lake. Zurich is very expensive, particularly eating out so it was great that we didn't have to pay for accommodation :) Couple of snaps from around where we stayed..such pretty homes :)





More food stuff...we went to Schober for breakfast on Sunday...it is a beautiful old building with a gorgeous cake and chocolate shop on the ground floor and upstairs a couple of levels of small eating areas. We went for the famous muesli...not like any muesli I have experienced..it was all grated fruits mixed up with berries and yummy yoghurt, served with delicious bread and coffee...myself and my husband went back for brekkie again on Monday..







Some pictures from around the city and from a village on the lake called Rapperswill which we visited on Sunday afternoon..







All in all a great weekend!

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Sweet...

Lisa Stickley for Debenhams...cute and lots more here.





Friday, October 15, 2010

Just...stuff...

Hello! Bit of a hiatus in posting as a result of a very busy weekend and most of this week in Brussels with work.

We went to see Supertramp at the O2...bit before my time but I still recognised some of the songs and I have to admit they really are great musicians...still! They must be in their 60s by now but if I have the energy they have when I am that age, I'll be happy!

I mentioned previously that we were looking at the possibility of getting a Vespa for going to and from work, trips into town, to concerts, matches etc...well a friend of ours is also looking at getting one so after the Leinster v Racing Metro Heineken Cup game that we went to last Saturday (we won yayyyy!), we headed out to Bikeworld. This is the one we have our eye on...it's so cute! B reckons that it won't attract so much attention (from thieving types!) as the cream coloured one! Just taking some time to think about it...very hard to make a decision on an outlay quite that big! We'll see and I'll keep you posted!




On a completely different note...I love this Orla Kiely dress...it's navy wool flannel with a silk collar...I love the simplicity of the shape, the way it falls at the back and the neckline...what do you think?






Looking forward to a nice quite weekend - no big plans which is just what we need in our house! Have a good one :)

Tuesday, October 05, 2010

Galway...eating..drinking!

Well, as I mentioned earlier, I don't have a lot of nice scenic shots of Galway as we spent most of our time there eating and drinking...hooray!! We had not been in Galway in about 7 years but we had a favourite restaurant which we found again (it had moved and gotten a lot bigger and even more gorgeous than it was previously) and ended up eating there for lunch and dinner on the Sunday - I love this cafe/restaurant..everything about it! It's in a gorgeous old building on the quay...edged right up to the water and right beside the Spanish Arch. It's run by a girl of about 35 who calls everyone, "pet", "darling" or "gorgeous"! She is a great supporter of the arts from what I can tell and there are always artistic "events" of some kind to be found in this little gem. The decor is perfection...it's divided up into little rooms and snugs with lovely old and battered tables and chairs, Cath Kidston oil cloths, napkins etc. It's not at all cheesy, just quirky, cosy and comfy..I would happily sit there all day from lunch through to dinner...really nice buzz too! Here are some photos I took on my iPhone..not the best quality but you get the drift :)






And the food...for lunch I had the homemade lemony houmous on homemade sourdough bread with a green leaves, quinoa, grated carrot and grated beetroot salad...I can't tell you how delicious this was...I am salivating just thinking about it now!!



This was the table we sat at for dinner...I had the most gorgeous mezze starter...olives, houmous, chickpeas, greens, beetroot houmous..yummy!




We also spent a fair bit of time in this pub...the Front Door...it's just my favourite type of pub...no nonsense...the real thing, a proper, old and traditional pub..





Our 2 nights in Galway were great...although we go to Connemara all the time (as you will know if you read this blog much at all!) we had not been to Galway city for such a long time...I loved it and highly recommend the Front Door and Ard Bia for your next visit!

Oh...and a little purchase to share! I bought this Orla Kiely iPhone cover whilst in Galway...the bag, well I purchased that about a month ago...love them both! Also, purchased some Onion Marmalade and some Chutney...both homemade at Ard Bia.



Back home now to reality but feeling rested and revived :) Have a lovely week!

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

The Abbey....

Still having a wonderful holiday...we are just back from our trip to Galway city where we had a great old time! Lots of pictures but must admit mostly from inside the pubs and cafes/restaurants we visited : ) I have some serious recommendations if you ever visit!

Below are some pictures taken at Kylemore Abbey which we visited before we headed off to Galway. We have visited many times...it's a beautiful place. Highly recommend the cafe...we just had tea and scones which were delicious but they do great lunches there too!








Hope you are having a great week :)

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Avoca Connemara...

Hello! On our little drive-about the other day we stopped into the Avoca shop near Letterfrack...I love the layout and displays of goodies at Avoca...spotted lots of crockery from PipStudio..I have to control the "flowery" side of me and not get carried away..it is sooo pretty tho! I may just buy a couple of teacups and saucers and some cake plates and possibly a little bowl or two :) Avoca do some lovely own-brand food products also - packaging is very sweet. I quite like their Anthology line of clothing but again need to reel myself in and stop going too "cutesy" in style...I like a little edge mixed in with pretty :)