May Loves

Starting this month, I’ve decided to introduce a new monthly feature of the little things that I’m adoring, buying, doing and dreaming about each month. I’d love to know what you think!

Just a few of my favourite things this month:

1. Play: Riding my Pashley through tiny cobbled laneways at sunset (and thinking about trading in my classic black Princess for this adorably fun blue Poppy).
2. Buying: Retiring all my old ballet pumps and buying the perfect new versions in the form of these blush pink Kurt Geigers and these black Miu Mius (always with a bow on the toes, of course).
3. Wearing: My perennial hunt for the perfect Breton stripes continues for Spring, most recently leading me to impeccable versions by Chinti and Parker and Boden.
4. Beauty note: Three of my favourite things in one bottle; Chanel. Pink. Sparkly. Needless to say, I had to have the new polish shade of Frisson the instant I saw it.
5. Small luxuries: Orange blossom macarons from Laduree are my gourmand weakness, and make me smile out loud (side note: I also have the matching candle, also from Laduree, on my bedside table at the moment. The smell is bliss to fall asleep to).
6. Sparkling: This adorable little white gold and diamond heart necklace from Anjolee is the latest addition to my jewellery drawer and adds a darling little touch to every outfit.
7. On my wish list: These glittery Miu Miu sunglasses have been on my wish list for months and months (I can’t decide between the silver, pink or red versions) now, so it’s probably about time I relent and make them mine.
8. Listening to: Brigitte Bardot’s Moi Je Joue is the most infectious song for sunny spring bike rides, and makes me feel as thought I’m in a 60s French film.
9. Watching: Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire in Funny Face (Paris in the late 50s, need I say more) = guaranteed smiles.
10. For my home: Buying armfuls of English bluebells at the farmer’s market to dot about my house in jam jar vases.

Which pleasures are currently making you smile this month?

Love, Miss B xx

Riding on Pashleys with Flowers

Whichever way I look at it, this has been a hectic few weeks (sincere apologies for the slowdown on this blog as a result). Even though I had zero wiggle room in my (already exploding) schedule, I decided there was a definite need for a little detour. So on Friday night, I called up my best friend for a mini-girl date (an hour was all we could both manage), hopped on my Pashley and cycled over to her side of town*. I had slipped on my new Mulberry heels and bag (it’s almost impossible to frown when you have bows on your toes and a blush pink handbag), put on a new favourite dress that Wheels & Dollbaby so kindly sent me (I always love sartorial displays of affection for Australia and this dress, in that shape I love to much, is simply perfect for twirls and bicycle rides and picnics under trees), and added this Moschino heart print silk scarf (that’s usually a watch) that my trans-atlantic soul sister sent me for extra smile points.

Such an outfit seemed to call for flower-buying and making silly jokes over coffee and cycle rides with my Brigette Bardot in my ears. And just like that, I was immeasurably less stressed and my spirits had lifted.

Proof that we can’t avoid hectic moments, but that there is always time for evening bicycle rides with friends and flowers and shoes that make us smile and dresses that make us want to twirl. Wearing: Wheels & Dollbaby dress, Mulberry Lily bag, Mulberry bow heels, Asos metallic belt, Michael Kors watch, Moschino scarf (worn on wrist), Mimco necklace.

So tell me, what do you do when you need emergency smiles in a hectic week?

Love, Miss B x

* I love that everywhere in Cambridge is accessible via a five minute bike ride.

Thank you Sarah for the smiles and photos!

April in Pictures

Oriental adventures in Japan. Sakura-flavoured sweets. Being dressed up like a doll in traditional kimonos. Visiting traditional ryokans in the countryside. Mt Fuji and babbling streams. An explosion of blush sakura blossoms. A trip to Tokyo Disneyland to induce child-like squeals and day-long smiles as I revisited all my favourite childhood rides and pretended I was running away with Peter Pan. Returning to England’s April Showers. An Easter weekend filled with speckled eggs, rabbits and chocolate for breakfast. A spring wedding, croquet and sleepovers at sprawling country mansions. A house filled with the smell of white narcissi. Sunday walks around Cambridge colleges. Pastel flowers and manicures. Hunter wellingtons and daffodils. Shiny new editions of favourite old books. Rare breaks from April showers spent barefoot in my favourite secret garden beneath blue skies. Pink pattisserie. Whimsical new treasures to add to my jewellery drawer. Pashley rides and straw boater hats. Rainy afternoons spent tucked inside teeny tiny cafes or bookshops. Adventures around areas of London previously undiscovered by me. Plum jam donuts and vintage china at Lily Vanilli. Sundays at Columbia Road Flower Market. Coming home with vintage treasures, old fashion sweets and great armfulls of lipstick pink roses, blush hydrangeas and delightful English bluebells.

I hope you all had a glorious April?

Love, Miss B xx