My ♥ stopped at Still Life.

Lunch times have become exploring times. I'm lucky enough to work in Kloof Street, which means I am so close to so many amazing stores. On a beautiful day, walking down Long Street and discovering new places to eat and shop is a must for myself and a few friends. We've formed a 'lunch club' and we make it our mission to taste everything Cape Town has to offer. Well Kloof Street has to offer for now. Yesterday we made our way down to Still Life on Long, to see owner Karen's new range. It doesn't disappoint! Faves include the multi-coloured babies and that GORG white cat (top right). She also boasts one of the biggest ranges of lampshades in CT, made with beautiful fabrics. 


I have to ration myself when venturing into Still Life and yesterday was punishment right before payday. There's something for every home in this store. You'll love it. I promise.

My ♥ stopped at Moth.

Just a taste of what you can find at the Lot in Canal Walk. I adore Moth clothing, and am a regular at Wardrobe on Kloof, where I bought myself the most amaze brown belt. The clothes are super feminine and always on trend. *please hurry payday*




(pics from here)

My ♥ stopped when I discovered Mary Oliver

Wild Geese 
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.

Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.

Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting —
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.


Mary Oliver - Dream Work


(pic from Google)

Jewellery He♥rtstopper: Collect Coins

Today I received a mail about Collect jewellery's latest range, the Vintage Coin Collection.

I think there's is something so romantic about coins, layered in memories and intricate in design. Some people collect them or have them passed down to them. Others have memories about what certain coins meant to them at some time in their lives. Me, I remember getting R2 from my mom in junior school, I remember that this R2 could go very far, and could buy me many things at the tuck shop. Now, it's almost too little to tip a car guard. But then it was my treasure.

Collect's new range is definitely something to consider when getting someone a special gift, something sentimental yet current. I also LOVE the pocket-watch-style silver chains. 

 ''... Consider the journey of  coin, the tales it could tell, the people it has seen, carrying with it a collection of precious memories over time....the French Franc that bought an entry to the MoulinRouge, an Indian Rupee that perhaps Ghandi purchased spices with, the Mexican Peseta that Frida Khalo bought roses with, or even the South African Cent that passed through the hands of our Grandparents? How precious to have and hold a piece of such exquisite history..."

The small tikkie starts at R600 and goes up to +- R1200 for the XL ones. Perfect as an extra-special gift for an extra-special someone. 

The best part is, you can bring in your own coin and have it set,  which makes it even more special and relevant.

Beautiful. 

Find Collect Jewellery here xxx 

My ♥ stopped at Etsy.

How CUTE is this bunting necklace from etsy!? I'd like to see it with a silver chain (maybe a long silver chain). 


"This necklace is made from celluloid. It has to be worked cool, and wet. I melts at a low temperature. All the chic french costume jewelry was made out of this starting in the mid 50's. It lasts forever."


LOVE!


(Thanks Kerry)

My ♥ stopped at Zara!

Want!

Off topic, don't her legs look Barbie-like?

LOVE!

Died and went to corporate heaven

Hello 90's nice to see you again

Every South African woman jumped for joy when she found out Zara was coming to SA. But when I found out it was opening in Sandton,  Johannesburg, my orginal YAY, turned into a yay. BUT! A little birdie on Twitter told me that Zara is coming to the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town - YAY! And if their new collection (above) is anything to go by, it's going to be my new favourite after work spot. I visited Zara in Bangkok recently and bought myself a gorgeous little leather jacket, which will remain in my cupboard unloved until winter. 


We love you Zara, and we're happy you're here.


(credits: Kim Gray, Shadders)

My ♥ stopped in the 90's

Kate, 90's Vogue

Via Sartorialist

Via revolveclothing

Christy, 90's Vogue

Via Google

In 1990 I was 6 years old. Class 1 as they used to call it. I remember so much about the way my mom dressed back then, probably because she was one of the only things in my scope of reference at that age. My mom had a shoulder length perm, and wore an oversized jersey and some tights on my first day of school. The jersey was knitted, with a pattern on it. And the tights still resembled the 80's. I used to sit on her bed and watch her do her make-up, one of the most therapeutic things, and something I still enjoy when I go home. I remember watching my mom and dad getting ready to go out to dinner parties, my mom with shoulder pads and a sequined bag. And I used to wish that I was big enough to go with them. On Saturdays, they played tennis with their friends at the Hilton club, and my mom used to wear 'skorts' or shorts mixed with a skirt. 


Mid 90's I remember my mom falling in love with hats. She wore them when we went to town. She and I would go and get a coffee (me a Fanta Grape) at a small coffee shop near where my dad worked. Back then going to town seemed like a big excursion for me. In the car on the way home, she used to play the Modern Talking cassette and I would sing along in the back. My friends and I used to make up dances to songs like 'No Limit' and then perform them for whoever would watch (I'd forgotten how embarrassing the 90's were).


These memories have come flooding back since I noticed the 90's fashion trend, creeping up on us one high-wasted skirt at a time. I actually think it's very feminine, and feels more ethereal than the 'in your face' 80's. 


What are some of your memories? I love a story from a time gone by...

Heartstopper Recipe: Gruyere potato bake

2012 is my "Nigella year". So far, there's been more of the eating Nigella than the cooking Nigella, but hey, the intentions are good. I love anything simple when it comes to cooking and I can't be bothered to cook some elaborate dish, that takes time away from, well, my life. Watching Masterchef recently, I came across a Gruyere potato bake, and let's face it, who doesn't love a potato bake? And a gruyere one? To die for. The contestant cooked it with fillet and asparagus, but really it goes with a host of other foods.

Prep Time: 10 mins

Serves 6-8

10 large potatoes (2kgs), peeled and sliced

4 cloves of garlic, finely sliced

100g gruyere cheese, coarsely grated

1- 1 1/2 cups of cream

2 tsp salt (more if you use flaky salt)

ground black pepper

preheat oven to 200C/400F.

Grease the base and sides of a 25cm x 30cm shallow baking dish. Place sliced potatoes with garlic, cheese, cream, salt and pepper in the baking dish.

Toss to combine, making sure that each potato slice is coated with cream. Spread mixture evenly in the dish. Bake until potatoes are tender and golden, about 1 - 1 1/4 hours.

YUM!

(Recipe found at food24.com)

My ♥ stopped in our office

We are in the process of doing up our study at home. We moved into our home a good while ago, and I had all good intentions of decorating each room within the first couple of months. It didn't go as planned. Our study is the only room in the house that is empty and unloved. I think it's because I've been waiting to find the 'perfect' pieces for it, and have now realised that I need to go on a hunt in CT to find these things. I've made it my project now. I've found some office inspiration...

All pics courtesy of Pinterest (but of course). 

There's one thing I'm looking for in particular, a brass lamp. Something in the same family as these...

I think I might do a before and after series. We're having a desk custom-made, and still need to create a photo wall, plus have to decide whether to do a book shelf or floating shelves. So many decisions, so little cash flow ha ha. I put the lamp out to the panel on Twitter this morning and got some good store recommendations, one of which was Vamp, so I'll be heading to check it out soon. 

Feel free to leave me some store suggestions for anything office-like. I would appreciate the help.

x

My ♥ stopped at Val de Vie

I have been dying to do a wedding post for a while now. I wrote about the planning so much last year and now I can finally show you pics from our special day. We tied the knot at Val de Vie Polo Estate, just outside Paarl, and we were lucky enough to get a scorcher of a day. We had rain on either side of the day, so naturally I was stressing, but in the end we had one of those days that reaches 30 degrees and not a drop of wind (in fact I was getting a bit of tan at the altar). 

Notice my father-in-law in the reflection!

My bridesmaids were so fantastic on the day, making sure every detail was perfect for me and just by being relaxed and enjoying the moment, they made me relax and enjoy the moment. The black bottle bubbly above may have helped ;) The dresses were made by Chica-Loca boutique, and I really think the girls looked stunning. I've told you before that I don't believe in making b-maids look ugly, I went all out to make sure they felt fab. They had buns in their hair, ranging from tight to messy (I let them choose) and I gave each girl a necklace and some pearl earrings to wear on the day. In the pic the dresses look slightly blue, they were actually gun-metal gray short numbers, very sexy.

The groomsmen looked so smart in their suits, wearing orchid boutonnieres. They had matching gun-metal gray ties. A really special group of guys who have walked a long road with Andrew.

Eric Uys was our photographer, brother to the esteemed Jean-Pierre Uys. He was fantastic and I was completely blown away by the pictures when I got them. The funny thing is, I didn't even notice him running around and capturing special moments, he seemed almost invisible. He really and truly does have a special style. Because he likes to shoot almost documentary style pics, you really get a lot of emotion from them, as opposed to the very 'posed' ones, which also have their place. He is remarkable, that's all I can say. 

The bunting used in the ballroom was hand-made, and yes a labour of love. But it added such a nice touch to the overall look and feel.

Our DJ was Warren Morse, better known as "Hey Mr DJ". He played a mix of old and new, because we had a mix of oldies and youngies at the wedding. 

My dress. The beautiful dress I only got to wear for one night. It had a sort of tutu-style going on and looked almost feathered. I decided not to be too precious about my dress, I decided to rather enjoy myself, too much! At one point, people stepped on pieces of it on the dance-floor and bits of tulle were scattered about. The sign of a night well enjoyed I like to think. It was made by Robyn Roberts, the queen of wedding dresses in my mind. I loved it, I love it still.

The food at Val de Vie is outstanding, made perfect by chef Dewald Hurter. When everyone arrived we served a Turkish Delight lemonade as a welcome drink (5pm) and then moved on to Pimms and lemonade. Canapes were served while we had photos taken, and included sashimi, satay chicken skewers and chilli poppers (my husband insisted on the chilli poppers). For mains we had Fillet Medallions with a Herb Crusted Potato Rösti, Asparagus and Red Wine Jus & Crumbed Chicken Breast with a Parma Ham and Emmenthaler Filling, Mushroom Risotto and Artichoke Sauce. Our vegetarian dish was butternut ravioli. We had salads and breads and the most divine Panna Cotta for dessert. After dessert we had macaroons, made specially for me in the wedding colours, accompanied by a simple 3-tier wedding cake with orchids cascading down the side. All in all a very yummy affair!

The flowers used on the day were roses and orchids. My mom got married with orchids and so I decided to as well. I alternated the decor on the tables, to mix it up a bit. But each table had a glass underplate, a lightbox, and silver and white striped linen. As party gifts, I gave the girls butterfly fridge magnets and the boys got lottery tickets (which tied in nicely with the venue). I used butterflies with names on them, perched on wine glasses, to show everyone where to sit. 

My hair was done by Liz Kaplan and my make-up by Algria Ferreira.  They really made my day special, and I thoroughly enjoyed having them around for a couple of hours before the ceremony. I went very plain and simple for the wedding because I am like that. I didn't want to go too over the top with hair and make-up, because it just isn't 'me'.

Andrew (my husband) was so composed the day of the wedding. I wondered if maybe he'd been popping some Rescue remedy because he was super calm. He wore a Hugo Boss suit, with a light gray tie and an orchid boutonniere. He was the best looking groom I've ever seen. 

It was truly magical, and I wish I could relive it again. We both enjoyed being surrounded by 130 of our favourite people, or as Andrew says our 'Golden Circle'. Magical.