Anknel and Burblets

dreams come out my ears and go round my head and i read them.

  • Christmas at home

    It was Christmas. The girls got their Sylvanians and they are happy. I got a big surprise present – the Herve Chapelier bag! Who’d have thought? Rufus guarded the dinner table and the bottle of Bolly. The Daylesford turkey was a huge success – we’ve been eating the most delicious turkey stock soup for days…

  • Getting ready for Christmas

    Today begins the getting-readiness for Christmas. Everyone’s home now, off school, and work has finished for the year. The turkey has arrived from Daylesford. The presents have all arrived from Myriad. My Alsace Muscat has arrived from Berry Bros. Abel and Cole delivers the vegetables today. Cut flowers have been bought and arranged. I’ve found…

  • Victoria Sponge

    In typical Lovely Food style I use my usual white spelt flour and a bit of almond meal instead of white flour. It makes for a slightly heavier sponge, but it feels a bit more healthy and rustic. Recipe at Lovely Food.

  • A rolling stone…

    I’ve been thinking a lot these past few, er, years. But a lot in the past month about the state of my life and where I am and what I want to be doing. And when we last left New Zealand I had an amazing creative job in advertising but I wanted to be with…

  • A Japanese book clearout

    Roll up! Roll up! Amazing clear-out of Japanese sewing and craft books! I could take these to The Cotswolds, but they are now ready for new homes. The girls and I have enjoyed many lovely items sewn from these but as they now reach being big girls it’s time to move on and let others…

  • Sister Mag Daylesford White Christmas feature

    A Daylesford White Christmas feature and recipes by moi – from page 132 to 163 in the December issue of Sister Magazine. You’ll see the photos from my rainy market garden trip (where I had my eureka moment) and the recipes I spent the October mid-term week creating up at Honeysuckle Cottage with the girls.…

  • Laura Ashley and visiting Manchester

    Isn’t it funny when you find some photos in your Lightroom that totally slipped your mind. And what a lovely surprise it was to find the Laura Ashley Press show photos here over the weekend. In amongst all the busy moving plans everything else really has fallen by the wayside. Apart from the book I’m…

  • A mother’s Christmas

    1) My Father’s Glory 2) My Mother’s Castle – both by Marcel Pagnol 3) Navy Haflinger clogs 4) Herve Chapelier nylon shopper 5) Silk flowers by Atelier Abigail Ahern 6) Burleigh hooped tankard jug (I always check to see if they have what I want as a second) 7) Cuisinart ice cream maker 8) Spanish…

  • Our new life

    It’s all signed now. We are moving right after New Year. I’m getting final removals quotes and I am going to start packing next week.The house is a lot smaller than the one we’re currently in so in order to be totally scientific about the move we went up and measured the house over the…

  • The girls’ Christmas

    1) Ostheimer big oak tree 2) Ostheimer Rabbit 3) Ostheimer brown horse 4) Ostheimer yellow hurdle 5) Ostheimer white horse 6) Child’s wooden trug 7) Small Work Gloves 8) Caldene Riding hat 9) Child’s Jodphur boots Now we’re leaving the Steiner School and moving to the country, I was thinking, oh great, I’m going to…

  • Paris highlights

    Hello to Remodelista readers coming here from Justine’s Ten Belles article! We had a wonderful trip to Canal St Martin, Paris in September – here are the links to my Paris posts. Around Rue des Vinaigriers Ten Belles Le Citizen Hotel du Canal Paris

  • Remember that last trip to the Cotswolds… ?

    And remember how I said how sad it was driving up past the place we didn’t rent? And I was really upset that we hadn’t moved there? And while we were up there I decided I really did want to move and this time it really was going to work out. I know I said…