Just a short note to apologise for the lack of posts in the last week or so. With the summer holidays upon us, my days have been full of adventure with my two little monkeys (and more mundane mummy stuff), leaving me with little time for writing. I have been busy behind the scenes though and will hopefully have something exciting to share with you regarding my blog in the next couple of weeks.

In the meantime, I am taking a little ‘blogiday’ – a chance to unwind, spend some time together as a family and enjoy ourselves. No computer, no Twitter, no blog-reading – I will not know what to do with myself!

When I return, my big grown-up boy will start school. Even though it’s only nursery class and therefore just a few hours each day, it’s really going to pull at my heart-strings – he’s only 3 bless him! Still, I’m sure we’ll get into the swing of things quickly and I’m quite looking forward to getting back into the term-time routine.

Hope you all enjoy the rest of the summer and see you in a few weeks. Au Revoir!

Helen x

Well, what a difference a month makes! As you can tell from my previous post, my new blogging and tweeting addiction hobby has certainly been taking up a lot of free time, but all in all I think I’ve done quite well in the challenges I set myself. As you know I’m planning to start my own business and preparations will start in earnest once my eldest little monkey starts school in September. So I’ve been busy this month getting everything else in my life (and home!) a little better organised.

I’ve done quite a lot of reading (don’t you just love a good self-help book!) and have pulled together a map of my goals and objectives for the year. It’s a bit personal so I won’t share it here, but it has really helped me take a new look on life and I’m quite pleased with where I’m heading! It’s been useful to share with my husband too – despite being so opposite, it seems we do actually share quite a few ambitions! I’m not saying that looking after the children isn’t rewarding – it goes so quickly that I would hate to miss out on these precious few years at home with them, but I have felt a little ‘directionless’ for a while, so it’s great to put things into perspective.

So what about my house management skills? Well, I’m pretty pleased with my progress here! I’ve compiled a ‘home file’ with all my housework duties and I’ve been sticking to it fairly well. I’ve also got into a much-needed routine with the washing and ironing, which my mum will be really pleased about! We also seem to be arriving on time more often these days, although I have to admit that I still struggle with getting all our things prepared the night before, rather than running around like a headless chicken first thing in the morning!

All in all, life seems to be running a little more smoothly so I think I can call July’s challenge a success. Hopefully come September I’ll be ready to start focusing on becoming ‘Mumpreneur Extrodinaire’ but for August, I think I might set myself a slightly more fun-orientated challenge. Will post more details soon!

There are boxes upon boxes of toys in our house. Friends comment that we could probably open a toy shop once we’re done with them all! Typically though, the boys are quite happy tipping all the toys on the floor and then pretending that the plastic box they are stored in is actually a boat, castle, spaceship – or whatever else takes hold of their imagination.

My little men always seem to go for the brightly coloured, noisy plastic toys first, but they quickly discard these to play with their wooden train set, construct ‘Marble Run’ or dress up as Bob the Builder and hammer a few walls.

Sadly, imagination seems to be a forgotten concept in adulthood. I think this possibly explains why I found it hard at first to know how to play with my boys, especially when they were babies. So much time is taken just physically meeting their needs, it’s easy to forget to make time for play and reading stories. As the boys have got older, my fondness for playtime has grown and these days I have a great time getting down to their level and taking part in the fun!

For lots of fun ideas and activities for children, my favourite blogs are Nurturestore (who actually made the suggestion for The Gallery this week), Redtedart and The Crafty Crow - all of which are bursting full with inspiration!

I mostly write and read blog posts in the evening. It sure beats watching endless re-runs of Top Gear on the television, which my husband normally does to unwind after a busy day at work. I have found though, that I’ve been switching the computer on earlier in the day – catching up over a quick cup of tea in the morning, or while the boys are eating their tea. This, I think, is a bit of a slippery slope so I’m trying to nip it in the bud!

Once I joined Twitter, my concerns that all this online activity would have an impact on ‘real life’ really started to take hold. The lure of taking part in an interesting (or amusing) conversation is very strong. Who doesn’t love a good chat? Everyone I’ve met so far through blogging has been really friendly and welcoming, which has encouraged me to get involved, make comments, join in conversations and generally behave a lot more confidently in making friends online, than I perhaps would do in real life.

In actual fact, I think blogging has enhanced ‘real life’ in some ways. I follow a number of ‘crafty’ blogs, which have reignited my passion for making things by hand and gathering ideas for craft activities to do with the boys. I’m also getting lots of ‘mumpreneur’ inspiration from blogs I’ve come across. I’ve been baking, practicing photography, learning new skills and generally feeling reassured that I’m in the same boat as many other mums out there, writing about similar experiences with their children.

I’m aware blogging is now very popular, but within my social circle it’s still fairly unfamiliar. Once I reached 200 hits on my blog, I felt it was time to tell my friends and family what I’d been up to. Everyone’s been very intrigued and supportive, but I also think they’ve been a little confused as to why someone with a ‘normal’, busy life, would feel the need to open up to complete strangers online? There are a number of reasons - connecting to those with similar interests, practicing my writing and ‘meeting’ lots of interesting people. I love exploring this whole new world, but just need to be careful I keep my real life / online life balance in check!

How about you? I’d love to hear your reasons for blogging and how much of an impact it has on your ‘real life’. What do your friends and family think of your blog (have you told them?) and how do you manage your ‘online time’?

We went in Spring and stayed in a beautiful cottage. The trees were full of blossom, birds were singing, newborn lambs were in the fields and we were in the company of good friends. This photo was taken on a walk around Chatsworth House.

On the way home, a pheasant took a nose dive through the front grille of our brand new car, resulting in a broken radiator. It’s probably fair to say that my husband was not quite so appreciative of ‘nature’ on that day as the rest of us, but we still had a great time!

My grandma was lovely. She was a seamstress by profession and I remember her making clothes for my dollies and tackling the ‘mending pile’ with great efficiency every time she came to stay with us. Funny how we seem to dispose of things much more easily these days – I sew the odd button back on or stitch up a fallen-down hem, but I think we’re generally a lot less thrifty than previous generations.

I’ve probably inherited a lot of my ‘craftiness’ from my grandma – she taught me to sew, knit and bake when I was a little girl. I’ve mentioned her fruitcake recipe on here before. I remember her pantry; full of baking ingredients, rhubarb from the garden, sacks of potatoes, apples, biscuit and cake tins, it was just like something you would see in a wartime museum.

My grandma died in 1995 and I still miss her – she would have been totally bewildered by the whole internet thing, but hopefully quite proud to have been featured on my blog! Here’s the recipe for her coffee buns – these odd little things are neither biscuit nor cake and they don’t even have any coffee in them! They are so-called, I believe, because they are very tasty as a snack with a mid-morning cup of coffee. I’m entering these into English Mum’s Big Bakeoff, hope you enjoy x

Coffee Buns (makes about 15)

8oz self-raising flour, 4oz butter, 1 egg, beaten, 4 oz brown sugar, 1 tbsp baking powder, 6oz currants/sultanas/raisins, splash of milk.

Rub fat into flour. Add dry ingredients. Mix in egg and milk slowly to form a sticky dough. Spoon dollops of mixture onto a greased baking tray. Bake in oven for 25mins at 180′c.

True, with all their wonderful, glittery decorations, cupcakes are certainly a pleasure on the eye. I would even go as far to say that the first few mouthfuls are indeed a delight to the taste buds. Unfortunately though, that’s where cupcakes and I part company. The problem is, they are just too much. A muffin-sized cake with a mountain of icing on top is just too many calories for one girl to take. It’s not even as if I’m a tiny waif - I’m well known for being able to put away my food! I just find cupcakes a bit too sickly and filling to eat a whole one.

I think my lack of enthusiasm for cupcakes stems from a far greater appreciation of the humble fairy cake. A smaller version of the cupcake, fairy cakes provide ample opportunity for the same mouth-watering varieties and beautiful decorations, whilst still remaining small enough to eat in 3 or 4 mouthfuls. More importantly though, the unassuming fairy cake is a nostalgic reminder of the cakes mum used to make for the school fete and birthday parties, usually with white glace icing and a cherry on top. Butterfly cakes with their creamy, buttery icing, sponge wings and dusted-sugar tops, were another of my childhood favourites.

Having said all this, I genuinely would not want to offend the very talented cupcake makers I’ve met in real life and through blogging. Some of the creations I’ve come across are just truly the most beautiful edible things ever made. I’d never have the patience (or bravery) to attempt cake-making professionally, but can point you in the direction of my friends Mary and Rosie at MooRoo Cakes in Lincolnshire and also a lovely lady called Julie I met through Twitter, whose company IceMaidenCakes is based in Somerset.

For further cupcake/fairy cake inspiration, check out English Mum’s lovely foodie blog, where you will find lots of photos from the cupcake competition she ran back in February and details of her current baking challenge for July. You still have time to join in (I’ll be posting my entry tomorrow!) Finally, any cupcake makers out there who want to change my mind, please do send me a sample and I’m sure I can be persuaded!

Above: Birthday cakes I made for my Nana’s 95th birthday party last week, Happy Birthday Nana!

Below: Choc fudge heart cakes, valentine cakes, fairy cake selection

Fundamentally, I think I’m a bit of a nosy parker. I jump at the chance to have a look around my friends’ homes and I’m a complete magazine-aholic, trawling through every one I can get my hands on each month for inspiration. Even though we aren’t planning to move for a few years (and have only just started decorating this house!), I regularly check out what’s on the market, dreaming up plans for our ‘Forever Home’. I’m even known to have a sneaky peek through neighbours’ windows in the winter before they close their curtains for the evening! I just love looking at how people put their rooms together – the colours, textures, wallpaper, furniture & accessories. I’m really happy to have found so many pretty and inspirational blogs on here too recently.

A person’s home can tell you a lot about their style and their personality. My friend lives in an identical house to me but our homes ‘feel’ completely different – she has great taste for a start! One of my other friends has bought a ‘doer-upper’ and although they’ve only just got started with the basics (including completely rewiring) you can just tell the house has great potential and will be beautiful once finished.

Those in the ‘real world’ who read my blog have all been laughing about the fact that I come across on here like some sort of Bree Van de Kamp character from Desperate Housewives. The reality I’m afraid to say, is quite a bit different to that – domestic goddess I am not, even though I do strive to be better! My husband on the other hand, is rather like Monica from ‘Friends’ – he can’t bear things being untidy, whereas I’m quite comfortable with a bit of a mess. We’re pretty much opposites in everything really, but somehow we get along!

My theory is though, that if you have guests round to your house, you tidy up before they arrive, right? As my ‘online guests’ I’m therefore a bit selective about what photos to show you, after all, who wants to look at a picture of my messy kitchen?! So I’d love you to take a little look around, get to know me better. I’ve put together a few snapshots of our home (there’s even a pile of laundry in one, so there you go!) I’ve so many ideas and not enough time (or rooms) to bring them to reality just yet – but I’m looking forward to sharing my plans with you on this blog as I go along.

Handmade nautical cushions, curtains & bunting using ‘All At Sea’ fabric by Harlequin, throw from Melin Tregwynt, furniture & decoration from Mamas and Papas, mobile from Orange Tree Toys

Living room crying out ‘I’m in need of cushions & a feature wall!’. Sofas and dining room furniture by Halo, cabinet by Marks & Spencer, handmade picture inspired by Laura Ashley fabrics, ‘Kimono’ wallpaper in eau de nil by Laura Ashley.

As students in Venice, we soaked up all that Renaissance Italy had to offer. My days were spent in galleries and churches, walking through ancient towns and seeing the sites. We visited Padua, Verona, Milan and in particular, we spent a couple of weeks on a study tour travelling around Florence and Siena. We stayed in youth hostels and eccentric hotels in the student quarters, ate delicious and authentic Italian food in restaurants well off the beaten track and walked our socks off. It was wonderful and I remember it like yesterday. 

On this trip, I read two beautiful (and very geographically appropriate!) books – ‘A Room with a View’ by EM Forster, and ‘Under the Tuscan Sun’ by Frances Mayes. They are my favourites and so I’ve decided to use them for this week’s Gallery challenge over at Sticky Fingers, where the subject is to choose a photograph which represents a book.

‘A Room with a View’ was written in 1908 and is a romantic novel, set in the Edwardian era. Here’s a description from Amazon: “A brilliant social comedy about the English middle classes abroad and at home, A Room with A View is one of E.M. Forster’s most popular novels. The medieval beauty of Florence is the setting for the emotional awakening of Lucy Honeychurch, a young woman travelling abroad for the first time with her cousin Charlotte. On her return to England, in her relationships with her cousin, the unconventional Emersons and her supercilious fiance Cecil, Lucy is torn between lingering Victorian proprieties and the spontaneous promptings of her heart”.

The photo I’ve chosen is a view over the city, taken from the Forte di Belvedere.

The second photo was taken in Siena and looks out over the rooftops and beyond to the Tuscan hillside. It reminds me of the evocative writing in ‘Under the Tuscan Sun’. A description (again from Amazon) follows: “Frances Mayes – widely published poet, gourmet cook and travel writer – opens the door on a wondrous new world when she buys and restores an abandoned villa in the spectacular Tuscan countryside. She finds faded frescoes beneath the whitewash in the dining room, a vineyard under wildly overgrown brambles – and even a wayward scorpion under her pillow. And from her traditional kitchen and simple garden, she creates dozens of delicious seasonal recipes, all included in this book. In the vibrant local markets and neighbouring hill towns, the author explores the nuances of the Italian landscape, history and cuisine. Each adventure yields delightful surprises – the perfect panettone, an unforgettable wine, or painted Etruscan tombs. Doing for Tuscany what Peter Mayle did for Provence, Mayes writes about the tastes and pleasures of a foreign country with gusto and passion. A celebration of the extraordinary quality of life in Tuscany, “Under The Tuscan Sun” is a feast for all the senses”.

Writing this post, I’m also delighted to discover that Frances Mayes has her own blog, which you can visit here: www.francesmayesbooks.com

Sadly these photos were taken well before digital photography and I’ve had to scan them in, so neither really do justice to the beautiful scenery. I would absolutely love to go back there one day (husband please take note if you’re reading this!)

The actual kitchen units were put in when the house was built ten years ago, so it is a bit dated and I’d love to get a whole new kitchen. As it stands though, it’s perfectly useable and I think I might save that project until we eventually move into our ‘forever home’, which certainly won’t be for the next couple of years! The units are a honey coloured wood and the tiles are shades of terracotta.

As a little project, I’ve put together some kitchen accessories to match the decor. So far I’ve done a decorative blind, window valances, teatowels, oven glove and a kitchen organiser. I’ve still to do a table runner and ironing board cover in the matching fabric, but if you have any other ideas for creative kitchen accessories that I can make, please let me know! I’ve included some photos here and a quick ‘how to’ for the kitchen organiser, just in case you want to have a go at something similar.

I wanted to pick a fabric that would match the terracotta colour scheme and managed to pick up two complementary fabrics on special offer at last year’s Ideal Home Exhibition. The first is ‘Sophia’ and the second is ‘Cervino‘ both from Voyage Decoration. I absolutely love Voyage fabrics, they’re good quality and have some lovely design collections. These two work well together as I’ve used the bolder fabric on prominent items such as the window treatments and the more detailed fabric on smaller accessories such as the teatowels. What do you think?

I know I’m not the only person who does this (really, my friends have admitted it too!), but several accessories in my kitchen are DPO, that is, Display Purposes Only! I found my father-in-law (very kindly) doing the washing up with one of my new tea towels last weekend and had to explain to him calmly that they were not ACTUALLY to be used for drying things! Yes, I think he thought I was bonkers too…

Kitchen Organiser 

You will need: Ready made picture frame with glass removed, magnetic memo board (removed from its frame & cut to size if necessary), a sheet of cork (cut to size), fabric, ribbon, drawing pins or decorative brads, glue, wadding. You can pick up all these things from somewhere like Hobbycraft without spending too many pennies.

1. Using the cardboard backing from the picture frame as a base, glue the magnetic memo board in the top right corner and the cork across the bottom.

2. Glue wadding in the top left corner and then place the fabric over the top, glueing the edges underneath the cork and memo board to seal into position.

3. To hide the rough edges, glue ribbon along each component of the noticeboard. For a pretty touch, add bows of ribbon and secure with drawing pins/decorative brads or simply glue on.

4. On top of the fabric, place strips of ribbon at diagonal opposites to form a grid. Then, using decorative brads or plain gold drawing pins, push through each intersection and around the edge, in order to secure to the cardboard base.

5. Finally, snap the frame onto the cardboard backing, securing the different elements of the noticeboard into position. I also added some cute butterfly magnets, made by Parlane.