the i miss... list

Here I am, alone in my flat with a big bowl of pasta and a tall glass of white wine. Gavin has disappeared off to football. And so, I sit with poised digits waiting on some sort of wedding related matter to push its way to the front of the gathering of thoughts in my head.


But I cannot think of anything... nothing to do with dresses, cakes, guest lists or favours. Strange, as all of the above have plagued my mind continually since the day I became a wedding research fiend.


Because, I am homesick.


As some of you may or may not know, I live in Scotland. I am from Ireland. I know this will seem like a pathetic distance compared to some of you (Fliss) but I cannot help but crave my home comforts and mourn the pop-round-for-tea relationship with my family and friends.


So, allow me to indulge myself in a little list of things I miss about home (in no particular order) :


- The smell of my Mum making apple pies at Halloween


- My Dad calling me to the computer to watch the latest U2 tour video


- My mental cousin (now cheif bridesmaid) coming round for wine and nostalgic stories of our childhood


- Wheaten Bread


- Getting head massages and cuddles from my Nanny


- Seeing my beautiful friend (now bridesmaid) everyday in college


- Belfast Black Taxis


- My wee sister crawling into my bed on a saturday morning for a cuddle


- Having breakfast and a heart to heart alone with my Dad at the weekend whilst the rest of my family sleeps in


- Making my Mum laugh with the latest Youtube video, she shares my stupid sense of humour


- My brother and I having a laugh and listening to music in the dining room after dinner, when Mum and Dad head to the living room to watch the news


- The smell of Irish rain (it's different, I swear)


- Beer mats... no where to be seen here


- Tayto cheese and onion crisps


- Being able to ask for a curry chip and people know what your talking about


The list could go on and on and on, but I won't because quite frankly I am becoming an emotional emma just typing this and Gavin will come home to a sad sight of me crying into my Pinot Grigio.


 Are any of you living away from home? No matter how far, what is your i miss... list?

StayGoldMaryRose

You know what? I didn't even have to come up with a title this time. Because the name of this melt-your-heart designer's brand is just so feckin cool! Stay...Gold...Mary...Rose. I love it.

Anyway, back at the ranch, I was trawling the punterweb looking for something gorgeous for my bridesmaids. That's when I came across these! Are you ready for it? Vintage Bone China Teacup Bracelets. Correct. Teacups that have been beautifully crafted into jewellery!

These are honestly the most beautiful pieces of hand crafted gorgeousness that I have ever seen. I must own one.

To top it all off, I contacted Abigail, the one woman team behind StayGoldMaryRose, to ask her permission for featuring her work (as that's what us lovely bride bloggers do) and she even agreed to answer some questions. The questions is a new thing I'm trying out here, 'borrowed' from my real life job, so let me know if you like it. Here it is, the insight into the mind of a craft genius extraordinaire...

I love it when people... leave things in books and then donate them to charity shops. I have found a few gems before. Photos, letters and drawings. It's like your own mini 'found' magazine.

I don't know what I'd do without my... (workshop) typewriter, records, books and coffee machine!

My inspiration comes from... (at the moment) Jules Verne's books and Ernst Haeckel's 'art forms in nature' I'm getting a bit obsessed with old explorers and collectors who had to voyage on ships and document their finds by pen and ink.

I like to rock out to... anything really. A few sailor jerrys and I'm away! I saw Beirut perform two nights ago at their sold out show. I am still glowing from that. They were amazing.

So sweet and breezy. She signs the email off with 'Stay Gold'. Abigail officially rocks.

are you a weirdo?

Blogging... it's a funny thing isn't it? It's pretty much like a virtual diary of things that you love, loath, experiences and rants. It also puts you in contact with people who are like minded. People who share your interests which, in my case is wedding planning and a little bit of design. It also creates a kind of hype, a weird little industry of getting excited over looking at things on screens. Nosiness really.
As a very visually stimulated person, I love sharing and stealing ideas form people. Not in the horrible copyright breaking way, but in the oooo I want that too kind of way. I love talking to people online who can really understand what it takes to get a wedding pulled together.

So why then do some people see it as weird?

There seems to be a bit of a taboo around using the internet as a social tool when it doesn't involve Facebook or Twitter. People are cagey about forums and blogs. Are they more geekish than the major social networking sites? I have never understood this, but I do know that I usually have to test the water with someone before I tell them that I blog. Not because I don't want them to read it, but because I am slightly embarrased about this internet life that I lead.

The world of blogging is somewhat addictive and I have been spending most evenings trawling through various websites for ideas on my own wedding, but also talking to these brides and wedding industry folk via Twitter.

This morning Gavin and I had a bit of an argument over this very thing. Over me spending time on the computer. My arguement was this... he goes out to football 2/3 nights a week. I am more than happy for him to do this as it's what makes him happy. And I know that if i was out participating in some sort of activity, it wouldn't bother him. But for some reason blogging does. It has since been resolved but I thought I should ask this... do any of you get the same reaction from people? And why do you think it is?

you, me & the tipi part 2

The second part of loveliness brought to us by Daffodil Waves Photography, who had this to say about the shoot...

I was very fortunate to spend the day photographing an Engagement shoot with the beautiful Jade and Anthony at a very unique location. The Tipi Adventure in Hereford was gorgeous and even though the weather wasn't that great we still had a lovely day. We just shot inside the tipi when it rained! I hope you like the photos and thank you Jade and Anthony for a perfect day. You were both so much fun x

They just look like they ooze cool in some of these shots. Very model-esque. 

Apologies for the late arrival of part 2, hope I didn't keep you waiting too long! For any of you that have loved Nicola's shots, you can find more eye candy here.

Happy Sunday!

n