Peachy Keen

There's no reason for this picture, other than I like it...

(image from here)

The world on the internet is vast and exciting.  Sadly, most of my internet use has been searching for articles to spice up my history of youth work essay... and facebook for general procrastination.  However, along the way I've found some gems as well.  Check it.

Culture. Etiquette. Style. With a tagline like that, how can you resist MIEN magazine?

When I get sad, I like to look at otters.  Otters are amazing!  The Daily Otter does exactly what it says on the tin... a new picture of an otter everyday.  (If otters aren't your thing, they have The Daily Bunny too!)

Vintage Movie Magazines is well worth a visit if you just like looking at pretty things.  My favourite cover? James Dean and Natalie Wood, no contest.

There are many reasons why you should read The Grumpy Owl.  It features robots and owls on a regular basis; Ryan (the grumpy owl) writes in a way whereby even things that don't interest you in the slightest (baseball?) seem worthy topics; there is pink suit appreciation; the use of the word flaneur; it's nice to read something that offers a little intellectual stimulation while still being utterly dapper and slightly frivolous. Yeah. Just go read.

Megan shows us exactly how to throw a clothes swapping party.  I've always wondered how you make this more than a couple of girlfriends turning up with carrier bags.  Let the planning commence!

Hope you're all having a lovely Tuesday
Jen xxxx

Summing up, and some nice things too...

Well. The past few weeks have been entirely eventful. Bag stolen. Mild nervous breakdowns thanks to the huuuuge amount of work I've been doing/avoiding. Cameron becoming prime minister. All just thoroughly too depressing.

Then! I found some beautiful dresses, started reading some lovely books and listened to Mahler's 5th Symphony on repeat. And I gave up smoking. Everything is okay again. Maybe. If I can just get some uni work done...  So let me forget about those 4,000 words that are due in next Friday and think about something else instead.

I picked up an awesome book in a charity shop in Cambridge - '1939: The Last Season' by Anne de Courcy.  It mixes stories of the final party season of the thirties with the political issues as we headed right into the middle of World War 2 (parties and politics are two of my favouritest things).  I'm not even halfway through it yet, but it's got some fantastic quotes (matched up here with some pictures, just because, well, I like pictures!)

"...for a young woman of the upper classes, adult life began with a curtsey."

(image from here)

"Two good subjects if you are stuck for conversation are ghosts and the royal family."

(image from here)

Apparently, the advertising for a car called the Lancaster really was 'At 50 m.p.h. you can knit comfortably'.  That is so my type of car! (I gave up trying to find a picture of the actual car - my car distinction extends to "it's red"...)

(image from here)

Finally, apparently my sister not only has been reading this blog but also enjoying it (thanks panda!).  So for her, here's some outfit pictures from when I felt particularly lovely over the last few weeks.

Me feeling a little Miss Marple-y. Actually, this happens quite a lot.

My hair makes me happy here :)

Yep, I liked this outfit a lot...

No outfit in this picture. Actually, no clothes except a towel. But Lilycat's just about the cutest thing ever.

Other exciting things have included some amazing acquisitions from various shopping trips to Cambridge, which will hopefully be posted as soon as I can access some passable photographic equipment, and some true visual treats.  But that's another story for another day!

Jen xxxx

Miss Marple: Style Inspiration!

Until a few weeks ago, I'd never watched or indeed read a single Agatha Christie novel.  Then, thanks to a combination of circumstances (The Moving Finger being first read in the Vintage Book Club, and discovering that Richard Armitage was in one of the adaptation...) I decided to finally sit down and watch this knitting super-detective!

And oh my. What style inspiration! Beautiful dresses, immaculate make-up and some seriously swoon-worthy chaps. Don't take my word for it, have a peek :)

Photos from the PBS website

See what I mean? I've almost worked my way through every episode, and have no idea what I'll do when they're done! Someone's recommended I try Foyle's War for some 1940s drama... any thoughts?

One final Miss Marple thought: Megan Hunter... the unlikely, scruffy, clumsy heroine of The Moving Finger.  She falls off her bike, can't darn her stockings and is generally a little bit quirky.  Love. Her.

(I can't remember where these photos are from, they were just hanging out on my laptop... if you know, pass that info to me and I'll credit them!)

And now... I have a big cup of Earl Grey, some champagne truffles and absolutely must get on with my uni work!

Jen xxxx