Right, a little short and sweet post from me as I just wanted to tell you that I've bagged my 2018 buffet dress. I popped in to M&S in search of a skirt. I found the skirt and found this dress next to it. The skirt was awful but the dress was good. 

Good Points :

Bad Points :

• It's from the M&S Collection section. Which is usually the preserve of the much older  shopping demographic. I'm ignoring this fact. 

• It's not for everyone. I'm only 5ft nearly 2" at a push. This just comes below my knee but hits me at a good point on the legs. You need to factor your own height with this to see if it works for you. 

• It is roomy so remember to size down - it has mixed reviews based on the fact that people who have bought their regular size have found it too big. I took one look at it on the hanger and thought "size down". You can't tell that from a picture online.

I like big buckles and I cannot lie. Well I like the big buckles on the new Birkenstock Madrids. I've just spotted them and think they look a little cool. I like. I like a lot.

All the glamour. All the glamour for you guys. Cushion pads and table cloths. I haven't been in to an actual Dunelm for a few years but in the last month or so, I've been a few times - they do the exact size of feather cushion inner that I like. You should always get them a fraction bigger than the actual size of the cushion cover. So for a 40x40cm cushion, you need a 42x42cm cushion inner so you get extra plumpage. And I like feather as you can bouff them back in to shape a lot better than the foam filled ones which go really uneven and bumpy ... and flat. And the oilcloths from Dunelm? Well, they're a little Emma Bridgewater and Orla Kiely inspired don't you think? 

Friday Five (3 of 5) Hush Skirt

Well the Hush skirts came that I blogged about last week. The jolly green was a little jolly for me but I rather liked the paprika which felt very much like one of my colours. Infact the more I swished in it, the more I liked it and the pockets helped no end along with one of my favourite Pinterest pics. So I'm holding on to it for the time being.

Friday Five (4 of 5) Tassel Garlands.

Whilst in Poundland, I spotted some packs of gold and silver tassel garlands and pompoms which I thought looked okay for any events or parties you might have coming up. I thought you could buy few packs of the garlands to group/weave together for quite a full on fancy effect or you could add your own colour ribbons and tags and tie those on to the main garland. Or if you just fancy being an early bird, I'd get along pronto and bag a few packs for your hallways and fireplaces and put them to one side as Christmas is only eight and a half months away. 

Friday Five (5 of 5) Chicken Dinner

I sometimes do a roast chicken dinner on a Friday evening so I have left overs to go in a soup or anything else I want for the weekend. The only thing I hate ... working out the cooking times. If you get a chicken from one of the big supermarkets, they usually calculate the times for you and have it on the label. If you pop in to the butchers like I occasionally do, there's no helpful label but I have found a useful online cooking time calculator which helps enormously!  :)

So we've hit April. And the sun doth shineth .... for about two days so far but what there has been has been just lovely. Enough to get me out in to the garden wasteland at least and to do a little tidy up. And who'd have thought there would be so many people interested in what to do with half dead lavender. I basically put out a distress call on Instagram Stories saying "help" and so many people replied. Thank you all. And for those who wanted to know what to do with their own half dead lavender - basically prune back hard. Cut off the dead stalks and trim down as far as you dare and pray for a miracle. I've done this. BUT .... if it dies, I'm off to Aldi when they get their new ones in! You've got to know when to cut your losses .... and your lavender which is basically in autumn after flowering. 🤗

Lavender aside - what do I do with rosemary? This is what I did with rosemary.

Pretty eh? I had some old rosemary that I transplanted in to a different part of the garden. It hadn't given up the ghost but it was looking a little pale and feeble. Well one year later it's about two feet high and waving it's branches at me in that "wave your branches in the air like you just don't care" kind of way. So I lopped it and arranged it around my new Vionic espadrilles because I thought "why not?" and they deserve something pretty to show off how lovely they are. Soft pewter leather and little ribbon ties with finished ends - you know how I'm a sucker for little deets. I could give you lots of spiel too about how good they are for your feet especially as they are designed for people with foot problems as you wouldn't know that just to look at them would you but you can read about that here if you like. The only giveaway with these is they have a little raised arch on the inside just to support you that little bit more. #discoverthesecret

Those are about as far away from nanna shoes as you can get which is what people expect when faced with having to wear "sensible" shoes. You know me, comfort first - style shouldn't hurt or else you'll have a miserable face and it will show #truedat! 

* Espadrilles  c/o Vionic Shoes UK

--------------------------

Last Note :

• If you're lucky enough to have big rosemary plants which have strong stems - I was thinking it might be possible to use them as skewers for meat and veg for a barbecue? I got this idea from this  Jamie Oliver recipe (one of my favourites from yesteryear). 

I've gone a bit mad on the old sunglasses front just recently. I bought four pairs in the last month or so but fear not, I've only spent a grand total of £10. I've bought three pairs from Primark, all the same shape but different colours and only £2 a pop each. If I lose any, I won't cry. Well I might if I lose the pink pair as they are my favourite. And whilst ambling down the Aldi Aisles of Joy, I spotted they had some Polaroid sunglasses. I never really knew what was so special about Polaroid lenses but last summer when playing in the duty free and messing about with the designer glasses, I saw the difference for myself when I bought my hubs some polaroid Rayban ones after trying them on. They really are so much clearer in bright light. So I had to buy the Aldi ones didn't I? At £3.99.

Spring seems to have finally arrived and we reached a whopping 14 degrees today or so the car thermometer told me. It was nice and to mark the joyous occasion, I broke out my peachy funnel neck sweatshirt top which I bought a while back. Another one of my cheap and cheerful buys which I've never wanted to wear it till now as the weather has been so miserable (grey weather makes me wear grey for the record). And it goes with my trainers which I've had since Christmas. Like I've always said, it takes me a while to wear things.

Saw a bandwagon and jumped on it. Jumped on two actually. The Curated Closet book I should have bought some time ago but I think I'm finally in the mood to embrace it. And the other one 'Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine' - I've seen it so many times on my IG feed that I felt this should be the next book I should get in to. So if I disappear from blog land again, you'll find me with my nose in this book. For the record, anybody read any of these and are they any good?

I can't buy a dress for toffee. I'm just the wrong size and shape for the styles I like and so I find myself more drawn to skirts. So far, I have tried on the Jigsaw one which I love but it's somewhat ouch despite my recent Ebay sesh (mental note - must do that again) but I've also ordered the two Hush skirts to compare to see if I like and which colour I prefer. All three would look fab against navy. The one thing in common which all these skirts have is pockets and pockets go far in my skirt world.

How hard can it be? I've wanted off white/ecru denim culottes since last year and I can't find a pair which fits me how I want them to on me and I have tried many. So so many. And on the off chance, I ordered these fitted over dyed ecru jeans from Arket. They are the ones. And no they are not culottes but sometimes you have to move the goal posts. I ordered a 28 waist which equates with a size UK 10. A touch long but that's nothing new and I have scissors and I'm not afraid to use them.

---------------------------

Hope you've all had a nice Easter!