The perfect night in // Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day. The marmite event of the year. Some people love it, some people hate it. The one thing I really dislike about Valentine's Day is the amount of pressure this day places on you. The pressure to spend, spend, spend or risk looking like a bad boyfriend / girlfriend if you don't. The pressure of having the best possible night (much like New Years Eve). And lastly the pressure of looking your absolute best. Notably for women. There are magazines, newspapers and advertising left, right and centre saying that you should be wearing a body con dress you can't breathe in, you should be risking your neck in skyscraper heels, and you should be wearing swanky underwear. I don't like being told what to do, what to wear and how to act. If you love someone you should show them the same level of love and respect all year long - not just on the 14th because the card companies told you so.

But it doesn't have to be like this. Why not stay at home and recreate a meal out or a night at a hotel? Lounge around in white fluffy bath robes, light some candles, wine and dine one another, and just be yourselves. Lots of the supermarkets have 2-for-1 inspired meal deals making it far better value for money than dining out. Also there are lots of lovely pieces of homeware out there that won't cost an arm and a leg and can be used time and time again for other special occasions. Consider it an investment. And it'll work out tons cheaper than that hotel, trust me.

Here are my Valentine's Day essentials for the perfect night in:

Yankee Candle //  The White Company unisex bath robe //  Hotel Chocolat sparkling pink rosé // framed print

 Swoon sensual massage gift set  // Glass bowls & oak board set // Goblets // Faux flowers in vase // heart jars  

 Embellished bedding // Heart cushion // Hotel Chocolat pink champagne truffles // Topshop lingerie

My ideal night in would include; dim lighting with candles everywhere possible, new / clean bedding, cooking our own three course meal just the two of us, a bottle of wine (in an ideal world, Malbec), nice lingerie, massages, sharing a bath together, bath robes, and afterwards lounge around watching movies in bed. With chocolate of course. 

I'm really into interiors at the moment - particularly glassware it seems. The heart jars would be ideal for homemade desserts like cheesecake or an ice cream sundae with brownie pieces and lots of cream on top. Very Pinterest. The same goes with the glass bowls on that beautiful oak board. And I'm pretty sure those wine glasses aren't called goblets on the Next website... but they looked regal enough to be called goblets. And that bedding though. SWOON.

What have you got planned for Valentine's Day?

Want to read more? Feel free to have a nose through some of my other Valentine's Day posts....

1. The funniest and most inappropriate Valentine's Day cards guaranteed to make you chuckle 
2. How you know if he's a keeper
3. Alternative Valentine's Day gifts which AREN'T red roses
4. Love in pictures

A few days in the South of France

With France just over a hour away by plane and lots of low cost airlines out there, a few days in France won't eat up your budget or your holiday allowance. I tend to visit Paris and the South of France the most. Paris... because it's so convenient by Eurostar. And the South because I have my own place there. It's a sharp contrast to the bustle of the city, but there is something about the country air that is therapeutic and puts everything into perspective. Earlier in 2014 I went ahead and booked those plane tickets. Fast forward a few months to earlier this week... Martin, Mols and I set off to London Stansted airport to begin our French adventure.

We couldn't have asked for better weather. Everyday sunshine and temperatures in the late 20s or early 30s. In-between visits to the supermarché to stock up on essentials, we lounged in the garden, played pétanque, went on long walks, ate a LOT of cakes, had BBQs on a daily basis, and adopted our neighbours' cats. Here's a little photo diary of our time there:

We discovered the most beautiful sparkling cider from Normandy:

And were mesmerised by dragonflies down by the river:

Me looking very hot and bothered after a 3 mile walk...

Flowers we collected for our table that night:

Much cake was eaten:

I was way too excited about finding massive macaroons in the supermarket (who knew those existed?!!)...

... and finding my favourite flavour of sorbet

I love French houses. The brickwork is always so rustique and dreamy

Even the paving beneath your feet is awesome:

Homely touches in our little maison. Including a picture I brought back from Paris, towels from Matalan, and a milk jug gifted to us by a craftman in Limoges who also kindly gifted us plenty of crockery too

Our gold fish consume anything and everything that hits the water. Including pesky hornets:

Purchases included a French magazine, Oreo hot chocolate for back home, and a new pair of heels

I will never tire of France. Next on my bucket list: Avignon and Dijon.

Jar Jar Binks // the Laura Ashley lamp of dreams

This year was the year that I first discovered the versatility of The Jar. It was the year I first went to Meat Liquor and loved the novelty of drinking from a jam jar. It was also the year I went to DonnoWhat2Cook's first supper club where we drank from - you guessed it - glass jars. Feeling inspired, I picked up some jars of my own from Hobby Craft. Fast forward to Christmas where I received two of these amazing Laura Ashley Marina jar lamps:

Image source: Laura Ashley website here

The jars are in fact usable so you can unclasp and voilà... another - very neat - storage option. When the lamps arrived, I was stunned to discover that the jars were a lot bigger than what I expected. I'd planned to display a few sweets or a flower or something but with pumpkin-like capacity, I am left wondering what on earth I can store. Because with jars this big, I could probably store a small dog (not that I would). Pinterest to the rescue. After browsing Pinterest for the last year or so, I decided I should probably sign up with my own account already. You can find me here. My boards are still very much a work in progress, but I have found some lovely ideas of what to fill my jars with:

There are also some wonderful ideas on the Laura Ashley blog which I have also pinned:

Any other ideas of what I could pop in my jars?