Joules

Joules is rapidly becoming one of my favourite shops in the UK, after having had a few very successful visits to their end of season sale.

I have been looking for a nice tweed jacket for a while, one that doesn't make me look like a middle aged woman, and I found one that was half price! It also has a very pretty lining.

This is a silk skirt that was just a fraction of the original price, with a print that could possibly be a London skyline. It's very pretty whatever it is!
And I saved the best till last. My heart jumped when I found this, and it makes me oh so happy just looking at it. Wearing it makes me feel like Annika from Pippi, or one of the children in Bullerbyn. A perfect summer blouse!

Hope you are having warm, sunny summer days!

Sunset

Some sunsets are so pretty that they barely seem real. This one is from the other night, it looked like the whole sky was on fire. Breathtakingly beautiful.

Hendrick's gin

I'm not big on gin, but Husband likes it, and particularly Hendrick's gin. Enjoyed with ice and a cucumber slice. And I have to admit that it's actually really tasty, hardly tastes like gin at all. This week there was a pretty little teacup in the box with the bottle, and I couldn't resist it. Hendrick's is wonderfully eccentric.

The bottle is really quite stylish, I think.

On the box there were pretty little drawings, and also some serving suggestions.

I can't wait to try these recipes out. Particularly the one that is to be made in a teapot!

Finally Friday.

It's Friday again, and although I'm losing track of the days because of the holidays it's still nice to celebrate Fridays. But this Friday will be different. It's one week since Norway was forever changed. I've spent the day up in the mountains (Cairngorms) with Husband, which was peaceful, sunny and beautiful.

I hope you take care of each other, give each other hugs and tell the people you love that you love them!

Happy weekend to you all.

I want this bike

Edinburgh, Scotland

House of Dun

The other day we went for a day out at House of Dun, a georgian mansion house.

We had afternoon tea in the lovely tea room, which was very nice!

And after that we played a few rounds of croquet in the garden in front of the house.

With a particularly pretty view.

Husband won every time, but I was still happy. It's all about the game, isn't it?

And finally we walked around the pretty rose garden.

Only in Scotland..

Only in Anstruther can you have the best fish and chips and the best view at the same time.

We still have love, hope and faith in humanity. Nobody can ever take that away from us.

Erbarme dich

Little Oslo

I feel so far away from home right now. Words can't even describe how I feel abut what happened in Oslo and Utøya. My thoughts go out to all those who were affected by what happened, and I feel so lucky that everyone I know are all okay. I really wish I was in Norway, that I could show my support to everyone there. All I can say is that I am really proud to be Norwegian, I am proud of how well this has been dealt with by the government, and proud of how much love there is in Norway at the moment. We can feel it all the way over here in Britain.

Keep loving, be strong. We will never forget, but this will not ruin us.

My London Alphabet: C

Apologies for the lack of photos in this post, I always forget to take my camera with me when I go to town. I promise to provide lots of photos for the next one!

Cabbages and Roses is an expensive but great shop. They sell mainly clothes, but also things like tea cups, cushions, table cloths etc. Their clothes are like taken out from a fairytale; long dresses with pretty collars, pastel colours and rose patterns. They remind me of long summer days in the garden, eating fresh strawberries, paddling in the fjord and sleeping in the hammock. Their main shop is in Avery Row close to New Bond Street, but they also sell their clothes in Jigsaw shops all over London. (www.cabbagesandroses.com)

Canal walk (Camden- Regent's Park). It's lovely to walk along the canal, and particularly if you are tired of all the tourists you find along the Thames. A good place to start is Camden, as you could have a lovely lunch in one of the restaurants by the canal before you head off. Then walk down towards Regent's Park. It's a really pretty walk, it's hard to believe that you're walking through the middle of London! Quiet and calm, and a nice break from the busy life in the big city.

Covent Garden is a nice area, in spite of all the tourists and particularly if you manage to go at a time when you'll avoid the crowds. Weekdays are usually good, and Saturdays a nightmare. It's a great area for shopping, many of my favourite shops are located here. Neal Street is great for shoes; you'll find shops like Office, Camper, The Natural Shoe Store, Dune and Birkenstock. Seven Dials and the surrounding streets are also great, and my favourite cheese shop Neal's Yard is situated in Shorts Gardens. One of my favourite restaurants, Belgo, is also in this area, and Le Garrick (another favourite) is nearby.

Cath Kidston is loved by many women and hated by many husbands. Thankfully, Husband doesn't mind it too much. This is the shop where absolutely everything is covered in either polkadots or flowers, the most 'girly-girl' place I have ever been to! They sell anything from clothes, shoes, towels, aprons and tablecloths to teacups, handbags, baby equipment and gardening accessories. They have shops all over London, and also a website: www.cathkidston.co.uk.

Don't forget

.. that I really want to know who you are! Click here and leave a comment about who you are and what makes you happy.

Blue and white

I love blue and white china. Particularly this pattern from Burleigh, which I started collecting just before our wedding last year. It's so British, and reminds me of cream teas, rose gardens, peonies and everything quintessentially English.

After rain comes shine

And if you look into the puddles you'll see a glimpse of blue sky.

Baskervilles Tea Rooms

This weekend Husband and I went to check out the new tea room that has opened at the corner of our street. It was exactly what I hoped it would be, with lovely homemade cakes, a huge selection of teas and reasonable prices. It's so funny, after I have complained for so long that good tea rooms are hard to come by in London, that one should open just a stone's throw away from our flat.

People are happy and friendly

They also sell flower pots, tea cups, aprons and other pretty things.

Pretty chandeliers.

I was wearing a flower in my hair and was very happy with my tea and scones!

It has a garden out at the back so that people can enjoy their tea in the sun!

This is just the sort of place where I will spend long mornings either with Husband or with a good book. There is a danger that I will bankrupt myself and get excessively over- weight with all those lovely cakes so close by...

My heart is, and always will be, yours.

A glass of white wine and Sense and Sensibility, a recipe for a lovely evening. Alan Rickman, I love you. (Although the above quote is by Edward and not Col. Brandon)

Clothes drying in the sun

I love the smell of clothes that have dried outside in the sun..

Who are you?

Whenever I look at my stats I see that there are people from all over the world that read my blog. Germany, Norway, Sweden, United States, UK, Taiwan, Russia... I get terribly curious about who all of you are! So please leave a comment, tell me who you are and what makes you happy? I will go first:

My name is Anne Lise, I am Norwegian, but I have been living in the UK for five years now. I'm a trained classical singer, and work part time as a freelance singer and a music teacher. I love art, literature and music, and I got married last summer to lovely Husband, how is Scottish. Things that make me happy are: afternoon tea, cakes, a great book, love, interesting conversations, friends, pretty dresses, breakfast in bed, shoes, bows, flowers, watching people, summer rain, hot chocolate, red lipstick and hot cinnamon buns, to name a few.

Your turn!

Lavender blue

Lavender has one of my favourite colours, and also one of my favourite smells. My garden is full of them.

The garden is full of flowers. The bees are happy, and so am I!

Paris dreams

Finally Friday!

Friday and holiday! I have been reading my book in the garden, drinking lots of tea and also doing a bit of gardening. A bit of glamour is added by newly coloured hair and a spray of Chanel Coco Mademoiselle. This evening we're going out for a curry and beer with some friends, which will be lovely!

Wishing you all a very happy weekend!

First day of summer holiday

Today was the first day of holidays for Husband and I. What a lovely feeling. A few weeks ahead filled with nothing but lovely weather, trips to the beach, barbeques and great people. (Fingers crossed for the weather...)

We started the holiday with a trip to Hughenden Manor, the Victorian prime minister Benjamin Disraeli's house. We had afternoon tea with some friends and the loveliest baby, walked around the pretty gardens and looked around the house.

The hills are alive..

I have spent the last wonderful week in Austria, in and around Salzburg. I forgot my camera, so these are from my phone. I hope you are all enjoying lovely summer days!