A Silent Surprise

The temperature is dropping and Winter is closing in fast...it seems like only yesterday we were preparing for the Harvest Supper at the end of Summer...

where the villagers get together to donate and then auction off produce from their gardens and fields...

I had a lovely time, along with my friend Nikki, presenting and arranging the goods this year.

Autumn arrived in a lazy fashion, with the leaves and foliage hanging around in mild temperatures...

and only slowly changing colour...

I took these shots through the car window as we hurtled through Wales..

However, the snow on the Brecon Beacons was a bit of a hint that Winter was on its way.

Back home, our floral arrangements reflected the change of seasons...

Lots of oranges and deep reds...

with the cheerful faces of the pansy making an appearance inside...

and outside.

My mate was (and still is) a frequent visitor to the garden, foraging for the walnuts that I supply... I can now actually open my front door and roll them out to him..

This handsome boy also makes an appearance, looking for worms and the seed that I keep in the bird-feeder.

As the weather cooled, the cyclamens appeared in the shops, in a variety of colours...

Then, on Wednesday this week, I awoke to my silent surprise...

I didn't know that it had made an appearance throughout the night...you can't hear it arrive like rain...pattering on the roof..

and, although it was only an inch, it always 'pretties' up the village, and puts a smile on my face..

and guess who had visited...early in the morning...looking for more walnuts..

along with my feathered friend.

The Girls

One of the unforeseen bonuses of moving to the other side of the world has been the creation of my blog...and as a result meeting an amazing bunch of fellow bloggers.

A couple of days ago, in London, I met some bloggers at an afternoon tea organised by Laura, whom I first met last year.

She picked an amazing venue called Sketch...a visual feast for bloggers armed with cameras...

The food was beautifully presented, and together with French champagne and an extensive tea menu...we happily fed our faces..

...and got to know each other. There is nothing like a gaggle of geese group of women coming together and not drawing breath for three hours!!

We met in The Glade with it's decoupaged fairytale forest and later had the opportunity to look around this wonderful venue..

We found scrumptious cakes on display in The Parlour...

...resplendent in it's decor with this amazing light fixture. Everywhere we looked there was innovative and creative detail..

including the staff who appeared in various costumes..

An example of a controversial art installation, one of two Madonnas which had arrived the day we visited...

But...are you ready for the loos....

Talk about blow my mind..subdued lighting, mirrors, sparkling crystals...

spiderwebs, neon lights...and blimey...have a look at the toilet roll..

it has it's own trapeze!!

Now, from the sublime to the ridiculous...

these eggs are fair dinkum individual toilet cubicles...built in what was the original carriage house attached to this building...

What can I say...

except..it was fantastic to meet you all...Sarah & baby Sophie, Selena, Liz, Charlotte, Becky, Gesci, Louise, Belinda and Sarah-Jane...and thankyou Laura for organizing such a fun day. xx

Tea Time

Hello there...I want to tell you about my friend Laura from Happy Homemaker U.K.

She has organized a venue for local bloggers to meet and get to
 know each other in London at a restaurant called Sketch
 on Tuesday October 2nd between 12 and 2pm.

All details can be found via Laura's link, below.
 Of course I'm going and really looking forward to meeting
 some new people...so come along if you can...it will be lots of fun!

Hope to see you there!

 

The Harbour

Recently we had a quick trip to one of my favourite destinations...Aberaeron in Wales...

A lovely harbour village with friendly people, lovely accommodations and great food...

We stayed at the Harbourmaster, but not in the hotel...instead we had the run of the cottage, two doors down...

This pretty pink cottage is quirky and old...

beautifully restored and decked out with new fittings...

the bedrooms sport locally woven Welsh blankets from one of the few remaining mills...

these lovely fabrics pop against the mainly white decor....

the bathrooms are stunning and invite you to have a long soak...

We were blessed with sunny weather (most of the time).. and mild temperatures...

A drive along the coastline revealed more gorgeous scenery...

looking seaward and also inland...

but my favourite spot is just wandering around the harbour...

clicking shots of little boats..

and the pretty cottages lined up along the water's edge.