Last week, my camera lens broke because I dropped it (!) so while it's getting fixed, I thought I'd share a few of my favourite photos I have collected over the years. Enjoy!

Images via lucette

The Lost Art of Letter Writing Part I

I orginally wrote this as a guest poster on Holly's blog but for some reason a whole paragraph was cut out and I couldn't fix it.

I was going to post part II this week, but I've lost it (!!!!), so here's part I while I re-write part II.
Enjoy!


After arriving home from a holiday last week, I picked up the pile of mail that lay on the kitchen table and shuffled through it. There, among the colourless business letters and gaudy Big W catalogues, lay an envelope with my name on it, the address written in beautiful swirling handwriting. Turning it over, I noticed an exquisite seal of red wax, with a pretty 'A' imprinted on it.

After dinner and a hot bath, I made myself a cup of tea, lit my bedside candle and - feeling like a heroine in one of Jane Austen's novels - broke the seal of my precious epistle. It was a letter from my friend Alice; two delightful pages of amusing stories, news and questions.

In this era of emails, texts and social networking, the experience ofreceiving a handwritten letter is rare. People no longer take the care and time to sit down and write a proper letter, or even a thank you note. There is nothing more delightful than getting an unexpected letter from a friend, it makes one feel so special and loved knowing that someone has taken the time and effort to create something just for you!

I love writing letters. the ritual of sitting down at my desk, carefully selecting the pen and paper, and contemplating the words to be written, makes me yearn for the "old days" in which text-talk and Facebook were as unheard-of as walking on the moon. I keep all my papers and stamps in a beautiful box with a sachet of lavender, so every time I lift the lid, I am greeted with that distinct fragrance that brings so many precious memories racing to mind.

I keep my letters in a drawer of my desk, all tied in red velvet ribbon. Among them are letters from my older sister Kate, who wrote to me while she was studying at university in Sydney. I loved racing up to the mailbox to see if the long awaited-for letter had arrived. Her letters, written on thick cream paper and with a proper quill pen and ink, often made me laugh out loud, and I treasure them lovingly to this very day. I also have letters from my darling great-grandmother, who is now 100 years old (and the best letter writer I know!). Her letters hold a special place in my heart, and though she is now unable to write, I still keep in touch by sending her long newsy letters about the latest escapades of our family.

One of the most exciting letters I have received was a letter from Queen Elizabeth's Lady-in-Waiting. I wrote to the Queen for her birthday in 2009 and a few weeks later received a reply on thick white paper with the Royal Coat of Arms embossed on it.

Dear Elizabeth (it said)

The Queen wishes me to write and thank you for the letter and kind message which you have sent for her Official Birthday.

Her Majesty was very pleased to hear from you, and I am to thank you most sincerely for remembering the Queen at this time.

Yours sincerely,

Susan Hussey.

Lady-in-Waiting

I was so excited that I had got a letter from somebody so famous!

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
Part II coming soon....

Party!

A few weeks ago, my friend Holly threw a party for her 13th birthday. The theme was that you had to come dressed in a costume from any period before the 20th century.

As you can imagine, it was HEAPS of fun! Everyone looked amazing and we all had a fantastic time.

Here a few photos of the dress I wore. To read all about the party, go to Holly's blog.

Guest posting over here today...

Tagged!

Both Lauren and Alice have tagged me with the Lovely Blog Award. Thanks girls!

In this tag, you have to list seven things about yourself that people may not know, then tag 15 other bloggers. Not sure whether I can come up with 15 different people to tag but I'll give it a go!

Seven Random Things About Me That You May Not Know

1. Kevin Rudd is my fourth cousin twice removed
2.I wrote to the Queen for her birthday in 2009 and got a reply from her lady-in-waiting

3. I have extremely weird dreams all the time. The other night I had one about mum making me swim 5 kilometres while carrying my handbag and water bottle.

4. I absolutely ADORE mint and chocolate biscuits

5. I have really long toes

6. I started playing soccer but after one game I quit

7. Everyone who knows me calls me 'Eebee'


Okay! So now I'm going to tag just a few girls - Bri, Kenzie, Briony, Alexandra, Jessica, Bria, and India.

Have fun!

Happy Spring!

Goodbye Winter!

Well, today is the very last day of Winter. I am so looking forward to Spring, but there have been some things that I love about the cold season. Things like:

♥ Curling up by the fire with a good read

♥ Long, brisk walks with the dog

♥ Bokeh

♥ Cute flannel pj's

♥ Snowdrops

♥Beef Bourguignon

♥ Endless games of Scrabble and Take Two

♥ Beautiful white mornings

♥ Nursing a cold with an enormous pile of Donna Hay magazines and steaming Peppermint Tea

♥ Crisp, clear nights with an amazing view of the stars

♥ Hot chocolates

What are some things you like about Winter?

I love this!

Image courtesy of That Kind of Woman

I love roses...

Couldn't resist capturing this beautiful rose this morning.
I'm really sorry for the delay with the Kusodamu Ball tutorial. It's coming!

Kusodama Ball Tutorial, Part 1

And finally, the long-awaited Kusodama Ball tutorial! I'm planning to do this tutorial in three parts over the next few weeks. Have fun!

Kusodama Ball Tutorial, Part 1

In this post, I'm showing you how to make the individual petals for the flowers. All you'll need is 60 pieces of paper cut into 8x8cm squares.

Step 1. You start with a square of paper.
Step 2. Fold it in half to form a triangle.
Step 3. Fold the left corner up to the middle corner.
Step 4. Do the same with the right corner.

Step 5. Fold the left point in half again so the edge of it is exactly in line with the outside edge of the square.
Step 6. Do the same with the right side.
Step 7. This is where things get a bit tricky! What you have to do now is open up the left flap you've just folded, and flatten it out.
Step 8. Do the same with the other side.

Step 9. Fold the top of the left triangle down so it's level with the edge of the paper.
Step 10. Do the same with the other side.
Step 11. Fold the left triangle back together again along the crease you've already made.
Step 12. And the same with the other side!

Repeat with the other 59 squares.

I'm still trying to work out how to make my photos bigger, but in the meantime, if you click on each photo they'll come up in their full size and you'll be able to see the individual steps more clearly.