Sky Blue...

There's been a distinct lack of blue sky lately.  Here is a collection of beautiful things to brighten up any dreary day -

Firecrest Wall Birds by Anna Wiscombe

Solar Quartz Necklace by Daria

Vintage Samsonite Travel Bag from Ani & Rose

Golden Sky Pillow Cover by Elle Moss

New York

I've had a difficult few weeks and my blogging mojo has been on an extended holiday.  Meanwhile, I've been on holiday too in the form of a four-day visit to New York earlier this month.  I fell in love with New York the first time I visited in 2008 and this was my third trip back. We had a bit less time there than we'd had on the previous two occasions so I wanted to try and cram in all the things I hadn't seen before.  

The first night there we headed straight for the Top of the Rock so I could take in my favourite view.  Looking at the Empire State Building all lit up never loses it's magic for me.  People naturally want to go up the Empire State Building when they visit New York and we did that too the first time. Your view is somewhat obscured, it's very crowded and there seemed to be lots of pigeons when we went up which I found scary, quite frankly. Top of the Rock gives an uninterrupted view all the way round, it's never been that crowded any time we've visited and of course, you can see the beautiful Empire State Building. 

We visited MoMA for the first time.  Neither of us are art fanatics but it was interesting to see. The photography section was amazing and I was also delighted to see my first ever Frida Kahlo painting in the flesh (so to speak).  Munch's The Scream was being exhibited so we naturally went along to stare at it and pretend to be very arty. In reality, I thought it looked like a five-year old's crayon drawing but that's just my opinion.  The highlight of MoMA for me was the epic Mexican hot chocolate I had in the cafe. Oh yes, I'm cultured alright. 

Fulang-Chang and I by Frida Kahlo

I've always been interested in Native American history and culture so I was really excited to visit The National Museum of the American Indian in Battery Park. I was absolutely fascinated to see so many original artifacts on display including clothing, jewellery, art and traditional headdresses. I was pleasantly surprised to see Jimi Hendrix' coat of many colours on display too, to celebrate his Cherokee ancestry. 

On our second last day, we walked through The High Line park. The High Line is a public park built on an old freight line. It's elevated above street level so it lets you view part of the city from a different perspective. The park runs from Gansevoort Street in the Meatpacking District and finishes on West 34th Street.  We made an all too brief stop at Chelsea Market along the way too. It's a haven for foodies but unfortunately we had no time to eat there. 

There was time to visit the Lower East Side and make a stop at McSorley's Old Ale House. They only serve light ale and dark ale so best avoid if you're looking for a Cosmopolitan. Just along the road is Toy Tokyo which has an amazing floor-to-ceiling selection of designer and vintage toys. Unfortunately (or perhaps, fortunately for my bank balance) they had no Blythe dolls in stock at the time of my visit. They do stock them from time-to-time though. We spent a good 45 minutes browsing round the amazing selection and the staff were really helpful and friendly.  Top travel tip - visit Toy Tokyo before any ale houses. Alcohol makes you lose your inhibitions and your financial common sense. 

McSorley's

Next door to Toy Tokyo

Nice graffiti but I wouldn't use the ATM

Search & Destroy - Lower East Side

On our last day, the sun shone and we walked around Greenwich Village before popping into A Salt & Battery for chips.  Their seasonal special was deep fried Cadbury's Creme Egg but I resisted. 

The Lowdown - 

Sleeping - We stayed at The Strand on West 37th Street. Central location, friendly staff, very clean and an amazing rooftop bar open 7 nights from 5pm-1am. What more could you ask for?

Eating - Spoiled for choice really but my favourites were The Shake Shack (best burger I've ever tasted and peanut butter milkshake to die for) and Lombardi's (amazing pizza and inexpensive).  

Drinking - McSorley's (as mentioned above), The Beauty Bar (a former beauty salon turned retro-beauty parlour bar with original hair dryers on the wall and hairdressing themed martinis. Awesome!) and Top of The Strand (amazing Empire State Building view, nice cocktails and great music).  

Until next time, New York...

Woodland

Woodlands and forests have always been a place of fascination for me.  There's nothing more peaceful than a stroll through the woods on a lovely day. Here are a few items that remind me of a woodland stroll. 

Golden Hare Illustration by Chasing The Crayon

Fantastic Mrs Fox brooch by Gabrielle Reith

Vintage Botanical Mushrooms picture - Et's Place

Vintage Woodland Flowers book - This Fun Thing

I hope you like my selection. 

Northern Lights

I absolutely love the colour combinations in this selection. Hope you like them too.

Iceberg print by Tabitha Brown

Turqoise Ombre bracelet by Trincar Uvas

Hand Dyed wool by Haute Knit Yarn

Bag - all mine and a January sale bargain from TK Maxx

Vintage German Oil Painting

A few weeks back, I took a strange notion for a vintage lake/tree scene oil painting. I don't know why really, it just sort of came over me. Anyway, I promptly started looking for one never thinking I'd find exactly what I wanted. A couple of weeks later after meeting up with friends for lunch, I decided to take a drive into South Queensferry to have a look round the little shops there. South Queensferry is lovely place but it's not a somewhere I visit that often.
My first stop was The Sea Kist antique shop which sells mainly nautical themed items. I had never been in there before but was drawn in by the lovely collection of sea shells they had in the window. Once inside, I couldn't believe it when I saw a painting that was pretty much exactly what I had been looking for.  The lady in the shop told me that the painting was German and she believed that it was painted sometime in the 1960's. Unfortunately, the price was a little bit higher than I wanted to pay and as I didn't have a great deal of spare money for frivolity I decided that I couldn't really justify buying it at that time. I was disappointed but thought it just wasn't meant to be.  However, about two weeks later, my mum unexpectedly had a very small windfall (not a lottery triple rollover or anything) and gave me some money as a gift. I really wanted to buy something special with it rather than just fritter it away on rubbish and the first thing I thought of was that painting. Luckily it was still there and by asking politely I managed to get it for a price I could easily afford. I think that painting and I were meant to be together.

It now has pride of place above the bed.

Colourful Geometric

I've been really, really into geometric prints and shapes lately, inspired mainly by lovely cushions I bought for my living room a few months back (I will show you these in another blog post sometime).  I love the mix of colours and blunt shapes in the Star Diamond print by David Bush and the Stag Brooch. They remind me of the lego and colourful wooden cubes I had as a child. The Geometrical Illusion Printed Leather Pouch and Turqoise Hexagon earrings are my idea of understated glamour, both lovely enough to be worn in the evening or during the day.

Star Diamond by David Bush

Geometric Stag Head Brooch by SketchInc

Geometrical Illusion Printed Leather Pouch by CORIUMI

Turqoise Hexagon Earrings by Vivid by Esther

Hope you liked my selection and I hope your week ahead is filled with colourful joy...

Arrows

I've been really into arrows lately for some unknown reason. Perhaps my inner warrior is trying to burst it's way out.  Here's a small selection of lovely things I've found recently around the internet. Hope you like them.

Arrows (print) by Kate Miss

Arrows clutch bag by Red Ruby Rose

Arrow necklace by Heather Kent

Personalised custom tree slice by JumpOffThePage

Weekly Awesome

Here's this week's selection of awesomeness. I hope you like it.

1.  Periodic Sweetshop print by Stephen Wildish. Available to buy here (also available as a card or poster).

2. Shower Towel from H&M - A steal at only £3.99. Ok, it is supposed to be for kids but who cares. It reminds me a bit of Nikki Cat. WANT!

3.  Flower Press Kit from Topshop - I know, I know - you can just use a heavy book to press flowers in but I think this would make a really nice gift for someone who has everything and likes flowers. 

4.  Mari Tote from Accessorize - This looks like a really nice bag for £38. Loved it as soon as I saw it on the Accessorize website. It is part of their new range but I wouldn't waste time getting your paws on one. I bet these will fly out the door. It comes in black, camel and a metallic grey as well. Lovely!

Pretend Internet shopping is very therapeutic. Have a good week x