The ones that got away

As summer fades into Autumn and the nights draw in I've been looking through photos from my travels this summer. There are many more pictures of beautiful old cottages than I have posted here so I thought I would share a few more with you.

These houses in the seaside town of Hastings and the nearby village of Robertsbridge were hundreds of years old - isn't the old timber wonderful?

And the roof on this cottage is amazing!

Visiting Dunster in Somerset was the highlight of my summer.  With all it pretty cottages it was chocolate box heaven. Enjoy!

And just along the coast in Porlock Weir I couldn't resist this cute little cottage right on the beach...

A beautiful summer, gone too quickly.

The cup that cheers

I've spent so much time on developing the garden of late that I've hardly given a thought to the cottage interior,  but as the weather turns and nights draw in it's time to focus inside once more. Every now and then I like to move objects around...it's lovely to 'rediscover' their beauty. I'm trying hard to save for a new kitchen but until such time as I can have the kitchen of my dreams I thought a few new purchases would cheer it up.
From my favourite shop, Anthropologie, I bought this pretty china cup for my morning tea. It might entice me out of bed on grey winter mornings!

Laura Ashley had everything on sale so I splurged on these...

I love the stem of this glass...

I have more fabric than I have time to make things but I couldn't resist buying a metre of this beautiful new fabric from Cath Kidston. I love all the UK landmarks don't you? I think it will will make a fabulous cushion. 

... and what could be nicer after all that shopping than to sit down with a frothy cappuccino and enjoy all your beautiful blogs out there :-)

Making an entrance

Do you remember when you were little and you drew a house with crayons? Square and symmetrical,  my houses were always finished off with a gate and a path that led to the front door. I'm still drawn to a house that makes a feature of the front path, bordered with a flower bed or scented lavender to welcome visitors. Here's some I've snapped on my travels around England.

Box gives a touch of formality to this house in Southwell in Nottinghamshire (a beautiful small Georgian town) ...

The lavender borders, that beautiful porch. How gorgeous is this Georgian house in Norwich?

A beautiful weathered brick path...

This cute little cottage in Ledbury just begs you to swing open the gate...

A grand, sweeping entrance in Southwell and such perfect symmetry...

This beauty could only be in Suffolk...

Back in Norwich...

An down in deepest Somerset...

This beautiful B&B is in Dunster...

The perfect cottage gate...

Weathered beauty

There's something quite beautiful in disintegration. Like these weathered fishing huts in Walberswick...

Or an abandoned hut...

...or boat on Dungeoness beach

A faded sign in Bradford-on-Avon...

A bench left to the elements...

...and a rescued fisherman's hut on Walberswick beach, still inhabited as a holiday home.

Afternoon tea at the Grove Hotel

My mother was a remarkable 90 years old last week so to mark the occasion I treated her and my son to tea at the Grove, the swankiest hotel outside London. The hotel has the most amazing gardens...

The England national football team were guests at the hotel - their rooms are somewhere behind the hedge (below)!

And here is the grand lady herself. My tiny Mum and very tall son...and yes, that is a giraffe behind them!

Odds and Suds

I've just booked to go on a soap making workshop next month http://www.oddsandsuds.com/ down in Tavistock in beautiful Devon. I'm soooo excited! It's something I've wanted to try for simply ages. It's all part of my future business plan when I can finally leave my day job and use my creative skills to start a small business. In the meantime they will make wonderful Xmas gifts. Here's some lovely soapy pictures from their website.....

So pretty...

Shame it's not scratch and sniff...

Sedums - autumn beauties

I love sedums and have them scattered through the garden. Lime green in spring turns to brilliant red in late autumn. Come September when everything else in the garden starts to wane sedums come into their own as they turn pink adding a beautiful glow in the soft autumn sun.

My new summerhouse

Autumn is upon us and I finally finish painting my lovely new summerhouse. Oh well - there's always next summer! It's painted in a creamy white - Farrow & Ball Joahs White. One day great novels will be written in here ... once I find a little table that is. I saw a lovely old French metal table in an antique store in Southwold last week. I had my debit card but the shop only took cash or cheques and the bank cash point was out of order! Unfortunately I went home empty handed - boo hoo!

A nice cup of tea and a sit down ... the view from inside the summerhouse back up the garden.