Bubbles and Clusters

So pleased to introduce a new collection to our boutique by Dutch designer Coretta Van Wyk

Her Bubbles and Cluster pieces are so fun and sassy.

Bubbles Bracelet: http://bit.ly/wCue2d

Multi-Bubble Ring: http://bit.ly/xeDxVv

(Different variations of the Bubble ring are shown in our boutique)

2 Ball Bubble Ring http://bit.ly/wNGstj

My Fav http://bit.ly/wPkQHl

Stunning Cluster ring (comes in different variations; all

very organically created) http://bit.ly/yVKNTF

We are offering 15% discount and FREE shipping

on all our Bubbles/ Cluster pieces.

Offer ends Valentines day!

Let me know what you think, and which are your favorites (more

styles are shown on our site.This is just a small selection)

Have a wonderfully glamorous week my Lovelies xx

Getting to Know You

As we have some new friends who recently joined our blog, or popped over for a chat, I thought it would be nice to share some facts about each other (a fun meme).

Here goes:

i) What's your quickest legal route to joy?

Eating Ben & Jerry's, watching a good film and snuggled in a cashmere throw

ii) What do you ask yourself most often?

"Does my bum look big in this?" (well what do you expect after question 1 ;-)

iii) What was left on your To Do list last week?

Nothing-I micro-manage with military precision (sad really!)

iv) What's your biggest pet-peeve?

Arrogance

v) What is the last book you read?

I've just finished 're-reading 'Embracing Uncertainty' by Susan Jeffers and 'Water' by Dr Batmanghelidj (one of the best books I've ever read. Should be compulsory reading)

vi) Favorite iPad app?

Epicurian, and any apps related to recipes and cooking

vii) What words do you try to live by?

"If you have the choice of being right or kind......always choose kind" and,

"If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all".

viii) What's the most daring thing you've ever done?

Living in Hong-Kong, then moved to the island Mallorca and then to the Spanish mainland.

ix) Favorite Indulgence?

Luxury travel and best ingredients I can buy when on a "cooking mission".

My fav earrings at the moment http://bit.ly/zaYku5

x)What is the most interesting thing in your handbag right now?

A ring-sizer (someone always wants to know their ring size!)

Please join in the fun (you don't have to answer all the questions if you don't want too). I would LOVE to get to know you each a bit better xx

We're Not Friends Anymore.

Last week I was "chatting" to one of my lovely blogging friends Leigh, and we were talking about how different our wardrobes are now, to when we were both in the corporate world.

After our conversation, I started thinking about the obscene amounts of money I used to spend on my wardrobe and bags. Just thinking about it was making my toes curl. Let me explain my frivolity :

*it was the late 80's early 90's and I had just started working

*I was young, free and single

* my love-affair (encouraged by my late mum) started with the gorgeous Louis Vuitton boutique in London (so much so that the then shop manager is still a good friend of mine!)

*my Mum used to encourage me by saying my purchases were "investments", so it was OK ;-)

*I had a boyfriend (now my husband) who indulged my passion.

*It was the decade when everyone had "cash to flash!"

my very first bag; my favorite style which is now 20+

years old

I bought 2 pieces a year! Looking back, it was obscene. I spent enough to pay off the debt of a small African state (and I'm not proud of that) :-(

my last purchase about 6+ years ago

Every time I had extra money, it wasn't put aside for a rainy day, for my first property or for my next holiday. No, it went on my next baby-a LV piece. Each new piece became my next BFF:-)

I bought big and small items; from wheelie luggage to the smallest change purse.

My wallet, Filofax and pouch (which clips into the bag above).

However, over the last 6+ years, I've fallen out with my BFF's. Apart from my smaller items I never use these bags anymore. Why?

* maybe I've become more socially conscious as I've got older, but I feel very conspicuous wearing heavily monogrammed pieces; it just feels very vulgar and ostentatious for me now

* I currently live in a country where there are 4 million unemployed; it feels really distasteful to be flaunting such frivolous items in this current climate

*One medium-size bag costs more than the average monthly salary in Spain.

*My daily wardrobe has changed since living in the "wilderness". I can be found in smart casual rather than Armani suits. Add a heavily monogrammed LV bag, and I end up looking like a gangsters moll

Don't get me wrong. I LOVE designer bags and still ask Hubs to buy me one for a special occasion. But I prefer the more discreet designs; Loewe, Mulberry, Carolina Herrera etc. Maybe I will feel differently and use them again when I move back to London. Or maybe these will just contribute to my future pension fund. However, at the moment I have fallen out of love with monogrammed bags.

What do you think? Do you love wearing monogrammed designs in particular?

Are these types of purchases really superficial?

Is it just a way of flaunting to the world that you have "cash to flash"?

I would love to hear your thoughts.

What!!! Another Pair of Shoes?

Today as I was passing Tous boutique here in Spain, I saw the most beautiful shoes.

You see these are shoes with a difference. They are gorgeous charms designed by the legendary Manolo Blahnik.

The charms are based on his 1994 Campari Mary Jane design . This shoe became something of an iconic shoe after it was featured in numerous films and TV shows (lets not even mention Carrie Bradshaw ;-).
Manolo Blahnik said about his collaboration with Tous,

"I really like Touse because I believe that we have many things in common. We are two family run businesses, we have Spanish roots and both like to surprise and innovate".

What do you think?

Do you like charm jewelry?

Do you like, or own a pair of Manolo's?

Would love to hear what you think.

What I DON'T Wish For You

This 2012, I DON'T wish for you...........................

....the cake or soufflé that emerges golden and domed, and deflates as you watch

.....the long awaited phone call that turns out to be the wrong number


.....the face that lights up at the sight of you, but passes by to someone just behind ;-)

......the perfect sale shoes half a size too small

.....the TV show you sit up until midnight to watch only to find you've seen it before

......(for all expats) the TV show you sit up until midnight to watch only to find they are not showing the original version, but dubbed in foreign tongues

.....the mutual love that turns out not to be

.....the wrongly delivered parcel

......the daffodils that never open but rot in the bud

Here's a few of mine:

I do NOT wish :

*more fat cells to move onto my hips and thighs and continue living rent-free. You will be evicted this year you little buggers.

* more toxic friends; friends that only contact you when they need something;

that leave me gasping for air and emotionally drained when I've been with them.

* to hear any more about the Kardashian sisters/family. Talentless fame just irritates me.

* to become obsessed about what I eat ; protein vs carbs, trans fats, E numbers........the list gets longer every year. I just want to make small, healthy changes every day.

* that fear stops me from moving forward

* that Mother Nature doesn't bestow us with more natural disasters as in 2011. I think last year she was laughing at us, saying "I told you so. Abuse the earth and this is what happens". OK, we get the message. Enough Mother Nature!!! ;-)

Apart from the obvious such as bad health, divorce etc. What do you not wish for yourselves in 2012?

My Wishes For You In 2012

This New Year I wish you all the joy of...........

* always having someone to share things with

*that sometimes, just sometimes, you can afford the thing you long for, rather than the thing that will do

*enough good memories to see you through the hard times

* seeing your luggage arriving first on the baggage carousel

* receiving a letter from a friend whose address you've lost

* eating Ben & Jerry's in your pj's

* opening a well-remembered book....the soothing first page...the first familiar words

* being the first to leave footprints in freshly fallen snow

* seeing someone's face light up at the sight of you

* sun-dried laundry

*letters that begin with the words "We are pleased to tell you that....."

* small sticky kisses

*a smile from a stranger

But most of all I wish that in 2012 there will always be something you want to learn, something you want to do, somewhere you want to go, someone you want to meet, and that whatever happens this year you continue to grow and find your bliss.

What's your one wish for yourself this year?