LUXURIA: July 2015

Jul 30, 2015

It seems that most of this year has been about

waiting!!!!!

Not easy when you are a control freak.

As I watch all my friends and family go off on their

summer jaunts.....I am still waiting;

*waiting for the grief of losing my Dad earlier

this year to subside.

It still hasn't! Will it ever I ask myself daily?

* waiting to finalise my Dad's

estate, something that has been so painful

for me

*waiting to see what my estranged Sister's next

move will be now that she "smells" inheritance!!

*waiting for karma (as you can tell this is related

to the previous point)

*waiting to move into my gorgeous new cottage in

the Cotswold that I have just bought

*waiting.....with dread at leaving the home that has been

in my family for more than 40 years.

*waiting to see whether I will cry when I leave,

or whether I will just close the door whilst biting

down hard on my lip and trying to be strong

*waiting to see whether all the memories from the

past 40 years will come crashing down and overwhelm

me, or whether it will be a complete anti-climax

* waiting to make new experiences and memories

*waiting to belly laugh again without feeling guilty

*waiting for business objectives to start to

come to fruition. Sometimes you keep plugging

away and you can't see the immediate effect of all the small

things you are doing on a daily basis.

I just have to remember all the

small actions do have a compound effect.

*waiting for my business to be featured in Vogue

and Elle China. I am so excited about this as this

is a market I really wanted to explore. So I am just waiting

to hear about the editorial dates etc

*waiting for some decent weather here in the UK.

I don't need it to be as hot as it is when I am in Spain.

But it would be nice to not have to put my duvet back

on my bed in the middle of July. Or to remember to

take an umbrella rather than remember to carry

my sunglasses ;-)

*waiting for days when my mind can slow down

*waiting for days when I spend less time speaking

to lawyers and more time speaking to loved ones

*waiting for my creativity to come back

*waiting to design my new office space :-)

*waiting for the sun to slowly filter through my

grief and show me that there will be sunnier days

I'm just waiting

xxxx

Riviera-Chic? How Do I Get It?

Jul 22, 2015

Having lived in the Med for nearly 15 years and holidayed

in the places associated with Riviera-chic, I though I would

write about what I think constitutes Riviera-chic.

I am by no means a "fashionista", this is merely

my view of a style and an era I absolutely love;

it's also where the idea for my boutique originated i.e

"bringing a little Riviera-chic to a woman's day".

Of course the famous Club 55 that epitomises everything that is Riviera-chic

and where my parents first took me when I was about 5 years old :-)

Apart from the Riviera being another playground for the rich and famous

(please note my family didn't fall into either category ;-)

the Riviera also has an "unwritten uniform" that dates back to the 1930's and

comprises a mix of nautical and Parisian chic.

Here are some of my must-haves even today!!!

i) The Little White Dress

Main pic: Lily Pullitzer Resort Collection

Top Right: Jackie O

Bottom Right: Natalie Wood deciding which spot she is going to take ;-)

The perfect white dress adornment. All available here

ii) Stripes

Where out love of Breton stripes for the Summer all began!!!

Main Image: Riviera 1930's

Bottom Right: Bridgit Bardot

iii) The Straw Hat

Ladies on the Riviera always have the traditional straw hat

iv) Straw Holdall/Basket

Oh yes!!! Don't we all love carrying one of this in the summer

pretending we are channeling our Bridget Bardot?

It never looks quite as chic when I carry one ;-)

Basket Bottom Right: Aspiga

v) Big Shades

vi) Cigarette Pants/cropped pants

Left Image: Grace Kelly (1950's)

vii) Naughty in Nautical

Left Image: Sophia Loren

One of my favourite images from that era.

So is this your style?

Are you more boho-chic than Riviera-chic?

Which elements of Riviera-chic do you adopt

for your summer look?

As always I love to read your views

xxxxx

p.s

Just click here https://luxuria-jewellery.leadpages.co/50optin-gift-card-feb2016/ to claim your gift card

(All black and white images-Getty)

Jul 16, 2015

OK, so Summer seems to be the time when we

lose ourselves in our books.

For some it's the only time they

really get to indulge in reading.

For others like me, I constantly have my head in a new

book; my Husband is often saying there's not enough room

for both him and my books (but he knows better than to make me choose;-)

Actually the new cottage I have just bought in the English

countryside has a gorgeous summer house in the garden,

and that is going to be my reading nook.

It was either "man-cave" or reading nook.

Guess which one won? ;-)

But here's the thing. I tend to only read non-fiction.

Here's what I am reading at the moment-both

of which I highly recommend

This book it truly terrifying to read especially as it is written by one
of the most prominent Neurologists who watched both his parents
suffer with Alzhiemers. As degenerative brain diseases are one of
my biggest fears (perhaps more than the big C) this book shook
me to my core. Am I following the recommendations? You bet!!!

Has anyone else read this?
What were your thoughts?

I can sit for hours flicking through cookbooks.
I LOVE cooking and so this is a great way for me to relax.
This is a new book I am loving as I explore Middle Eastern
cookery/food.

OK, but here's the thing. In the Summer I do like to indulge

in some fiction and take my foot of the gas a little with the "heavy

stuff" ;-) But I'm a little stuck at what to read.