new in: black and gold bees

It's definitely a re-occuring theme of mine, rediscovering gold-hues. For years I opted for silver above all else - before I realised it was just shiny things that I enjoyed, and the colour was really irrelevant (although, I'm not fully convinced by rose gold, if I'm honest).

I saw this beautiful little note-pad in Marks in Spencers recently as I'm weirdly obsessed with anything bee-related (my mother and I are currently designed a bee-themed quilt), and into the trolley it went. Whilst we're on the subject, I really love Marks and Spencers. No, this isn't sponsored, but I know they're trying desperately hard to shake off the mumsy vibe, and I think they're succeeding. They do amazing coats, their beauty selection is pretty great too, and they're probably the only place that I can get jeans or trousers to fit my five-foot-ten legs and not leave me with a foot of ankle hanging out, or my bum crack on show to the world.

Anyway, I'd say I'm digressing but I don't really have much else to say, except I found this notepad absolutely adorable. I particularly like the little gold foil hexagons adorning the pages, and it's gold clip. I guess technically it's a shopping list type deal, but I'm using it for to-do lists and reminders at the moment, and it's the perfect matching hue as my watch and ring. When I searched for this to show you guys, I also found this lovely little 2016 diary...

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New in: gold jewellery from Accessorize

Maybe it has something to do with growing up in the early nineties, when gold hoop earrings were the height of 'chav' - but I've never really been one for gold jewellery. With the exception of a few special 'hand-me-down' pieces (which you can read about here in my everyday jewellery post) I generally always opt for silver - until recently, that is..

Recently, I've realised that it's obviously so fashionable for a reason - all these pieces I've been wearing were picked up at different times from Accessorize - who are really knocking it out the park with their new Z by Acessorize range, in particular. I love the shiny gold chains, semi-precious stones, and dainty charms - I want it all. Before you ask - this post isn't sponsored - I just really love their new jewellery!

For work, I wear a lot of plain shirts, blouses and tops - and I really wanted a few pieces to brighten up the outfits - and add a little bit of individuality to my work 'uniform'. I particularly love the plain gold chain, it goes with anything.

Also, please excuse my beautiful, but scratched coffee table, it's a well loved piece of furniture that my grandfather made - but it has seen better days unfortunately.

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new in: whale measuring cups by anthropologie

I like whales so much that I knitted one, once. He sits on the end of my bed with my pile of cushions, and was affectionately named Hector, which has stuck, despite me generally just using him to wedge against my stomach when I was ill.

I have a whole board on Pinterest for my love of all things whale-related, so when I was in the Anthropologie during the sale, I had to pick up these little guys.

They were reduced in the sale, down from £28, to a bearable £16, and come in four sizes, each with a cute face, and the measurement marked in the base. I don't know if they'll get used for this intention, as I would worry about washing them too much, but they're certainly adorable.

These innocent creatures were also an odd catalyst - I was stood in the queue, these ceramic whales clutched in my hands, so proud of my Sale find, and realised that this is what I wanted. A little place of my own, that smells of the grapefruit candles they sell in there, with cushions and soft furnishings galore, colourful mugs and plates to serve things on. I've been putting away chunks of my earnings for quite some time now, sacrificing pay-day treats and my bonus for several years, and recently I've started a new job that pays well, and has more prospects.

So it can all be a reality, soon. A place of my own. Now I just need to get the bank statements out, and work out how much I can afford... then I get to start looking? Wish me luck...

Follow clare's board animals | cetacean on Pinterest.

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in progress: to be read this summer

I had all these intentions of using my sick-time to provide you with loads of great content... It's still all sitting there, in dribs and drafts and unedited photographs - and it will be with you sooner or later. I didn't realise how tired recovering makes you, though! Thank-you, by the way, to everyone that left lovely comments on my sick-bed post, you're all sweethearts. :) Anyway, what I have been doing, is reading. Reading a bit, snoozing a bit, waking up and reading some more....

Here is the pile that I'm slowly working my way through. I talked a bit about Clariel previously, and it was a nice, fantasy read that took me back to my youth, and was easy to flick through and occupy me for a short while. Stardust by Neil Gaiman was such a sweet little book that I finished it in one sitting over a few hours, I'd like to write a proper review of this, so hopefully I'll get around to that.

Hyperion was recommend to me by my good friend Tam, and has since been pinched by my mother, who has told me it's quite interesting, and Satantango I bought years ago, whilst at uni. I started reading it and was interested, but as is the way with university courses, you have to put leisure reading on hold and read things for your course, particularly whilst writing a dissertation or some such essay. I think recently it has come out in paperback or had a resurgence, as I've seen it around in bookshops quite a bit - I remembered I left it unfinished, so will try again.

I'm currently in the middle of Vermilion Sands, which is a series of short stories by Ballard (annoyingly, I didn't realise I had all these already in an anthology of his short stories, but it's a nice edition to have, and a bit more easy to read than the giant tome of his short stories). The stories within it are all centred on a fictional desert resort, with the usual dreamy decay that he writes so well, and although I've read a couple of the stories in the collection already, it's nice to have them collected like this. 

The Drought (also known as The Burning World) has been on my list for quite some time, and I'm quite excited to read this - it comes as part of an unofficial collection with The Drowned World (which I am yet to finish) and The Crystal World, which is one of my favourite books of all time, so I have high hopes for liking this one, as well. 

What are you reading at the moment? Have you got any recommend summer reads?

And also, whilst we're on the subject, I know there is a whole world of 'book-tube' out there, however this is distinctly driven by the young adult audience (which unfortunately, I no longer am); so if you have any recommendations for more adult book bloggers, vloggers or youtubers, please leave below!

- book reviews -

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new in: espresso cups and black coffee

This was sparked out of a conversation I had with the lovely Gemma recently on Twitter (whose blog, Hello Gemma, has had a rebrand, and looks amazing!) about coffee. She was talking of her fear of a milky coffee, whereas I have a fear of people drinking jet black, iced coffee. I don't know how you do it, it filled me with fear until about two months ago, when I suddenly decided that wow, hey, black coffee is actually quite nice?

I think it very much depends on the type of coffee you buy, also. I discovered this amazing coffee in Waitrose when I worked there, the Guatemala Antigua by the brand 360 / Three Sixty. It's an amazing, well balanced blend that tastes excellent when it's freshly brewed, hot and senza milk.  

I tried it once or twice, and decided it really wasn't that bad! And sometimes, you haven't got time to sit and mull over a frothy latte, sometimes you're in a rush in the morning, and you've just got to put your coffee on to brew whilst making your lunch for the day, and then knock it back before running out the door, haha.

This new revelation warranted a new purchase, obviously, so I picked up these adorable little cups in Sainsbury's back in February (I've seen them a lot on blogs and stuff, though, so they probably still do them). I think they're actually supposed to be like Chinese tea cups, because they seemed to be with a lot of stuff around Chinese New Year - however, they make the most perfect espresso cups, I'm obsessed with them. 

I've not disowned my one true love - a sweet, milky latte - though, don't you worry, but I've just realised there are other coffee options out there. It took me about ten years to realised that black coffee was pretty nice, and that I'm perfectly capable of drinking coffee with no sweetener. So it'll probably take me about another ten years to go off milk! haha.

New In: Olivia Burton Wonderland Watch

I've never really been one for wearing watches - and I'm not really sure why. I went through a phase of wearing a lime green Ice watch, which I still sort of love, but I had grown out of. After breaking my trusty all-black Swatch watch, I received this beautiful little Olivia Burton number for Christmas.

Olivia Burton Wonderland watch

I found it really hard to find a watch to suit me - I've got irritatingly large wrists, so women's watches usually look ridiculously small on me, and then men's or unisex ones are too big... I also definitively did not want one that looked gigantic on my wrist, or like a kids watch, also. I was also torn between leather and metal, however I knew empathetically that I didn't want one with a lot of bling, no sparkles or glitter, as this is just not me!

Anyway, I managed to narrow it down to a few Olivia Burton watches and then made my friends wait whilst I uhmed and aahed over which one I actually wanted before going for this one. I'm so glad I went for it - it's smart enough that I can wear it with nice outfits, and casual enough that I can wear it day to day. I just thought I'd share with you some photos, because sometimes the photos you see on websites are a bit dodgy or badly photographed. 

new in: fossil preston handbag review + what's in my bag!

I recently splashed out on a new handbag - and it makes me very happy. I find nothing better than finding 'the perfect black bag' and I think I've found it in this lovely little number from Fossil. 

Fossil are one of those brands that I never really think to look at, for handbags, or anything like that, but I was in John Lewis in Southampton a few weeks ago, and I saw this little number and fell in love with it. It's got a long strap (a must, for me), a thousand little pockets for my bits and bobs (not a must-have, but very useful for all my accoutrements), comes in a beautiful soft black leather, and just generally looks pretty great. It was pricey, as bags go, but then not at expensive, at the same time, and seems quite reasonable for a good quality handbag.
I love all the gold hardware detailing, it's not normally something that I would opt for, normally I'd pick a silver tone over gold, but I really like this. I'm not one for handbags you can't throw over your body, or can only hold in the crook of your arm, because I get annoyed with bags like that! For every day, I need the ease of one I can wear cross-body when I've got my hands full. 

For whats in my bag, keep reading..

couch to 5k - week 1 in review

(Run 2 vs Run 3!)

One of my new year resolutions was to take up running. I had a friend at uni who was really into running, and I always sort of envied her. I love walking and being outside, and I really just wanted to be able to go for a run somedays, if I felt like it. I've lost six stone, and improved my fitness in the gym, so I wanted to try my hand outdoors...

I wasn't expecting it to be as hard as it was - it seems to use completely different muscles to running inside, and it's harder to breathe, and I feel like I'm 6 stone heavier again..! I'm documenting this here, because hopefully one day I'll be able to run 5k, and I'll have this as a record. Some other people may be on the fence about starting running, like I was, or overweight and wondering if they can do it.. well maybe this will give you some inspiration!

RUN 1: 11/5/2015, 1pm on a Sunday afternoon, windy and overcast. 

I think I only ran for about 4.5 minutes in total, and I found that pretty tough. Slightly hungover today. Fast-paced walked where I couldn't run. That afternoon my shoulders ached and the back of my thighs/bum. Next day, my thighs still ache and my hips and knees a bit.

RUN 2: 16/01/2015, 12.30pm on Friday lunchtime, cool, but bright and sunny.
I managed better this time around, running for 6.5 minutes in total, out of 8. I fast-paced walked where I couldn't walk, but with the sun I felt warmer so I don't know if I was as fast as on Sunday (when it was freezing and trying to keep warm!). I'd been to the gym early in the morning and my legs were a bit achey, made sure to do lots of stretches when I got back because  after the last run I seized up! Aiming to do my next run on Sunday or Monday, weather depending. Later that day, I am much less stiff.

RUN 3: 18/01/2015, 10am on Sunday, cold, drizzle, windy, miserable.
I bought myself some new gear this weekend, and it makes me feel so fly. Running tights and a jacket, it seemed to help as I was faffing less with my clothes. A lot of dogs out, some not being controlled by the owner, which pissed me off so I managed a good 7 minutes of running on that anger (maybe a bit longer, I tried a new app and couldn't hear it very well, I only walked 1 interval, though). I looked up lots of hamstring stretches and did those post-run and I feel much better, only my left hamstring is tight now, but I have some muscular pain in my hip. 

Thoughts at the end of the week:
I think I'm going to repeat maybe another couple of Week 1 runs, to make sure I can run the 8 minutes, before moving on to the Week 2, as I don't want to, excuse the pun, run before I can walk! My homework for the week is to look up some more stretches and try and improve my flexibility. Going to look at investing in some better shoes as I had soaked feet by the time I got home on Sunday.

Weight loss?
Just under 2lbs! 

I'm not sure how long I'll keep up the couch to 5k plan, I'll be honest, but I am going to give it my best shot! I feel like my body wasn't meant to run, but maybe that will improve. It was one of my goals for this year, to at least give it a go, and I've started! I reckon I won't be able to do all the runs in one week, so I'm a bit iffy about that, but I'm gonna try and stick to it as closely as possible.

If anyone else is trying this plan, please let me know, I'd love someone to talk about this crap with - particularly if you're a complete beginner like me! I also want to post a picture every time I run on Instagram, so follow me there, too!

hibernation season

To me, Autumn-fashion is synonymous with big sweaters, long socks, wooly scarves and hats. But when I'm at home and lounging about, and find myself chilly I resort to lugging around my hand-made quilt, dragging it about the house and wrapping myself up in it. This is partly because I'm cold, yes, but also because it's made from flannel (like a fleece!) and is oh-so-soft and cosy.. Unfortunately, this isn't always practical.

A few weeks ago I was having a cheeky evening hot chocolate in Next with my friend Gemma and stumbled across this oh-so-soft and cosy sweater which I really just wanted straight away. I resisted for about a week, but then just caved, and went back and bought it. I do not regret that decision in the slightest. It's incredible soft, if I haven't said that enough already, but it really is. Like baby sheep fleeces or some crap, I don't even know. It's got a really lovely roll neck that you can pull up and keep your neck all warm, or let flop over. I particularly love the little thumb-holes in the sleeves that you can keep hooked down.

Generally, it's just a really great winter-investment, and I can see me getting such a lot of wear out of it in the coming months. I'm really loving getting all comfy in bed or on the sofa and settling down with my laptop for some quiet-time, such a nice thing to do. I'm really pleased with the quality and price actually, for Next, normally I find their quality doesn't match up to their price - like they price their clothes at a higher point than they're really worth - but this I felt was spot on. £20 for something I can even wear out of the house (and have popped to the shops in!) is actually pretty reasonable. I got a bigger size than a needed (XL) because I want to be able to cuddle up in it. 

This isn't a sponsored post or anything, by the way, I just really wanted to share this all with you because I love it show much, and have barely taken it off since I bought it. And it's still in the shops if you want to pick one up!

new in: books

I managed to pick these books up at the Oxfam charity shop, all three of them for £6, which is why I really love charity shops. I went in with the intention of looking for the Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, because I've wanted to read it for such a long time now. I downloaded a copy for my kindle, but I only really like reading things on my kindle when I'm travelling or not at home. I also saw the Snow Child, which I keep seeing good things about. I also found a John Wyndham novel that I've never seen before and thought I'd give it a go. It's short and about spiders on an island... 

Have you read any of these, and if so, do you recommend any?

perfecting the face

My beauty-themed posts are few and far between these days, but I've recently been perfecting my go-to-makeup look. I've been really into make-up since I was like fifteen, now, so I know what products I will go back too time and time again, as well as a few new things, I thought I would share with you.

FACE
Origins Make a Difference Plus + Treatment
Yves Saint Laurent Le Teint Touche Eclat (Shade BR10)
Maybelline The Eraser Eye Concealer  (Light)
Yves Saint Laurent Souffle D'Eclat (Shade 02)
Benefit Sun Beam Highlighter
Bobbi Brown Bronzer (Natural)

EYES
MAC Eyebrow Pencil (Spiked)
Rimmel Exaggerate Waterproof Eyeliner (261 Noir)
L'Oreal Voluminous x5 Mascara (Extra Black)
Bourjois Liner Clubbing (Ultra Black)
Benefit High Brow

LIPS
Malin + Goetz Lip Moisturiser
Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Volupte Shine (Shade 04)

In the summer, I really love this Origins treatment, I use it like a moisturiser in the morning because it's super light-weight and helps my foundation blend well. The YSL foundation is truly my holy-grail foundation. It's sheer and dewy, but buildable and smells like watermelon. Literally perfect. In the summer I go for a combination of the Bobbi Brown bronzer which is the perfect terracotta shade for my skin, making me look all sunkissed as well as being a great contour. I also dab a very small amount of the Benefit Sun Beam across the top of my cheek and brow bones, just to add a little highlight.
A new eye product I got recently, was the MAC eyebrow pencil, but I'm obsessed with it already - it's got the perfect tiny point, which is great for drawing in brow hairs. Irritatingly,  it looks like a bad match in this photo, like it's too red or something, but it does match my hair here, which doesn't look nearly as red as it currently is... so annoying! Trust me, they match. Another recent discovery is the Bourjois Liner - it also has a really fine point for a drugstore liner, making it super easy and quick to do a neat little cat-eye in the morning.
And as always, my face would not be complete without a pop of bright lipstick - the instant I bought this YSL one I knew it was the absolute perfect lipstick. It's sheer enough that you don't have to spend forever prepping your lips like some lipsticks, and you can layer it, too. It's not the most long-lasting of lipsticks, but I love it just the same.

Have you made any recent discoveries that you know will be with you for a long time? I always love the challenge of finding the perfect product that will be repurchased time after time... Maybe a bit weird, though.

lazy weekend, lazy sunday

Being that I still have my part-time job (anyone fancy employing me? No? Okay then..), having free weekends is something of a rarity for me. On Saturday I was doing a late night shift, and Sunday I had somehow wrangled the day off through booking my holiday incorrectly. Yesterday I had a very hot wander around Alton and the farmers-market and ate far too much good food, then today I did well.. practically nothing. I woke up late, made an amazing cup of coffee, popped to the shops, then chilled with some magazines, books, and a new knitting project in the afternoon. 

I've been having some problems with my wrist so knitting has to be with long breaks in-between, and the thing I had been knitting (a very large entirely stockinette t-shirt) was driving me crazy. I wanted to cast on something really fun so I'm doing a vanilla toe-up sock which will have an after thought heel, but its in this super amazing Regia wool that is just so bright.

I'm also currently reading A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf and I'm so obsessed with it - I can't believe I've never read it before, it's making me want to read other things by Woolf, which I've never really entertained the idea of before. If you have any other recommendations, let me know?

I also picked up the new copy of Elle (with the Malin & Goetz samples) and I'm pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed flicking through Elle - not something that I ever normally go for, but it was a good read. And how cute are my little cornflowers that I picked at the allotment? They perfectly match the candle I got at Ikea, that is annoyingly washed out by my bad photography..

What have you been up to this weekend? 

loop london visit

A week ago I went to London to visit Laura, a fellow knitter with a lovely blog, and we took a jaunt to Loop, in Islington. She had been before, but I had only seen their stand at the Knitting and Stitching show at Ally Pally, but never visited their store before, despite being in that bit of London so often. It was such a cute shop, with a really great selection of yarn - lots of American/foreign yarns that are actually quite hard to find over here.
I indulged in a little bit of Madeline Tosh sock-yarn - mostly because it was such a bright, fluorescent highlighter yellow that caught my eye. Basically, screw tasteful yarns in subtle colours haha. The staff there were super lovely, very helpful and just very nice, and it was such a welcoming little shop. I sometimes feel a little bit out of place in hipster-y places, but not there in the slightest. I loved their little bags with the bunny (hare?) on and have been carrying around my current project in it at the moment, along with a set of pom-pom makers I also picked up at Loop, which were so cheap! All I need now is a reason to make pom-poms..
Let me know if you have been to Loop, or your favourite LYS! 

tweedy

Sublime Yarns - Luxurious Aran Tweed

I bought these skeins a while back on sale from Hobbycraft, they're such amazing colours but I haven't thought of anything to make with them, yet. They're super bright in real life, both of them have colour from the other running through it, which I think is really cool. I'm not sure what to make from it - I'm thinking perhaps a cowl, as I've had Cupido sitting in my favourites for a few days and I keep going back to it, I really love the stitch pattern. (I have a Honey Cowl queued too - but I'm saving that for a another yarn..)  I'm not sure how I'd incorporate the two colours, though, perhaps with a purple border? I don't want to make a hat, though, I have a hundred of them and I don't need any more at the moment... Let me know if you have any suggestions for patterns, I'd love to hear them!

best animal books ever

I've had a slew of good, accidental, finds in charity shops recently - particularly in unexpected shops. I came across these beautiful French animal books. They're a mixture between a children's story and animal facts, but they have the most beautiful images - they're reproduced from lithographs (a method of printing), which makes for really lovely textures and use of line, they look like they're been freshly coloured in. They're the kind of books I would want to give to my child (if I didn't despise kids!), and they remind me of a books by Pat Hutchins that I adored as a kid (Silver Christmas Tree, Rosie's Walk), and my childhood in general. Unfortunately they're a bit ruined in places by some stupid kids scribbles - which makes me a bit sad, and they're a bit ruined down the spines which I hope to repair.. All in all though, they're gorgeous little books and looking through them alone makes me ridiculously happy. There are a few more pictures below so take a look!

review; people who eat darkness

People Who Eat Darkness: Love, Grief and a Journey Into Japan's Shadows, Richard Lloyd Parry

The other day I was in town with my mum scouring charity shops and came across a really good find - a book I've had my eye on since I popped in my Wishlist on my Amazon back in May 2013. It cost me a single hard-earned pound, saving me a good amount, too. Just to preface the review; I am well aware these kind of books aren't everyones cup of tea, but I have a strange interest in true crime fiction, that started when I read In Cold Blood back in sixth-form. I have a few books on criminal psychology and 'interview with serial-killer' style books, and whilst I understand how they can be problematic in glorifying the killer, not the victim, I found that this book did the opposite; honouring the victim, in a way.

People Who Eat Darkness: Love, Grief, and a Journey Into Japan's Shadows is so intriguing to me because Japan is a culture that is completely alien to me. It is very intensely researched, written by a journalist who investigated the case when it occurred when he lived in Tokyo, drawing from a huge archive of interviews with the family and friends and police that were involved with the case. It is the story of a British girl called Lucie Blackman who disappeared in 2000 from Tokyo, whose body was later found in a cave at the seaside. The case is something that I remember vaguely from my childhood, one of those things that was always hastily turned off by my mother, like that of Milly Dowler, whose body was discovered in my local woods: seen but never spoken about.

The book is well written, unfolding throughout a series of interview transcripts, with Lucie's father, sister, other friends, but told in such a way that it feels like fiction. The most interesting aspect was the view of the Japanese police force, which is alarming at best, and the way that they dealt with the case. I urge you to read it to find out the facts behind the case, because I have devoured the book in a matter of days, it's that engaging.

The most compelling reason for encouraging you to read this book, though, is the overwhelming humanity and sadness of it. I know I have the ability to completely separate my emotions from cases like these, but the  amount of depth and insight into her life and family at the beginning of the book made finding out what happened to her really intense and I actually got very sad and emotional reading it. 

I'll say again; I really do recommend this book with caution: it is quite graphic and sexual and definitely not for anyone unprepared or under eighteen, probably. That said, I think its a very interesting read, if a little hard at times.

black rose bargains

If you follow me on Instagram, you may have already seen a snap of these - but I wanted to introduce you to my beautiful new coffee set..! A complete bargain at £30 for six coffee cups and saucers, the beautiful coffee-pot and a little milk jug and a sugar bowl to go with it.

At work on Sunday, I was stuck in traffic outside a particular charity shop (not telling where, it's a secret!) and I glanced up and saw this in the window - coming back past it later in the shift I took a second look and realised that I wanted it - so I went back the day after and bought it. They're in perfect condition, ie, never been used before. The pattern is Royal Albert Masquerade - my mum has a Royal Albert tea set (that Country Roses one that was very popular) and I like knowing we both have a set.. I don't know, they're going to be put away in a cabinet for a bit until I have somewhere to display them. 

I'm super excited to use them, I want to have people over for tea or coffee now to use them! Have you picked up any bargains like mine of late? I also got myself a beautiful new camel trench coat but I'll save that for another time.. 

a life aquatic & friends

Some of you may remember that when I moved to uni back in September 2011, I got a fish to be my companion, and his name was Ned. At the time, he was teeny tiny and he stayed that way for a while, but he gradually got bigger and bigger, outgrowing two smaller tanks, and had to be given away to terrorise other fish in a pond. When he was still small, he ate two guppies, and I got him a larger friend, this lovely orange one you see below, Angelica. However, when I gave Ned away she seemed very lonely and wasn't as active as she had been.

I waited to see if she would get better but she didn't seem to. So I got her a little friend...well, two. The tank is quite small for them all, because I didn't realise quite how big Angelica had got, but I have ordered a big new fish tank for them all, I'm not sure how many litres it is, but it's giant, and it's on its way as we speak..

Angelica started off as small as the two you see the background, and was sold to me as a "common goldfish"... however, from looking at a few pictures online, she looks more like an Oranda.. The lumpy bit on top of her head (which googling tells me is a 'wen') has recently started to grow, which made me wonder. Then the other night I came across this photo on tumblr which made me wonder if this is what she'll grow into..? Intriguing, at least. She's fairly camera shy but she will 'kiss' my fingers if I dip them in the tank and she's my favourite, without a doubt. 

But, let me introduce you to my new friends..

This is Jeff. I'm not sure what kind of fish he is, really. They were in a tank marked oranda/ryukin, but I don't think he looks like one (yet). I don't know what he'll end up looking like when he's grown a bit, but I really loved how beautifully silver he is, with a purplish-pink undertone. I feed them orange food though, so I wonder if that will change. He looks a lot like Ned did when he was a baby, so I wonder if he'll turn out like that (sort of shubunkin-y). He's the most active I would say, and keeps zipping about the tank, very excitable. I fed them some cucumber earlier, and he was obsessed with it, which made me very happy.

And finally the most beautiful from the lot, Klaus. I'm not sure if they're boys or girls, because even though I've tried to work it out, it's so hard.. so I just call them whatever I like. My last four fish have been named after The Life Aquatic characters or actors (Ned Zissou, Angelica Houston, Jeff Goldblum and Klaus Daimler).. losery, I know. 

He's such a beautiful orange and black, much lighter in colour than angelica ever was, so I'm hoping he stays this sort of golden-orange. Klaus is a bit quiter than Jeff, but not as slow as Angelica, he likes to swim in the bubbles and flow near the filter and swim in the plant, which I think is good. He's also the only one that I've managed to hand-feed which makes me very happy because I only just found out you could do that with goldfish.. he also likes to swim between my fingers which again, pleases me a lot..

Like I said, I have a new tank for them on the way, so when it's all set up and running I'll share some photos with you, the new tank has a light and everything, so hopefully I'll get better photos of them.

hunter or stalker

I found these photographs hidden in the depths of my computer, and thought I would show you. It's one of my favourite things I've ever unearthed in charity shops - better than my fire king tea set and not quite as good as some of my favourite jewellery... but it has a place in my heart. I think I got it for about £1.95, if I remember rightly, and I use it to keep my jewellery in. Well, at the moment, my jewels are currently overflowing, and I think I'll have to move on to something bigger soon.. It's a really beautiful turned box with this amazing woodcut on the top. As a print-maker, I think I really admire the work gone in!

burning up

 

Quince, M&S, £9.50

Passionflower and Mango, Sainsbury's, £8-9

Bahama Breeze, Yankee Candle, £8.39

Now I've had a bit of a sort out in my room (more on that one shortly) I can get to my candles better, so I've been lighting them at every available chance. Some of my pretty unscented ones are at uni, so I have a couple here to keep me going, and I really love these.

The Quince one I picked up on a whim from my local Marks and Spencers when looking for duvet covers.. It smells absolutely amazing, very fruity and fresh without being too sickly, and I really love the jar it comes in, because when it's done I'm definitely going to use it to store something in. I don't know what, though. I don't know what the burning time of this is, but it seems to be burning very slowly, so that's good!

The pink one, is very pretty but I can't smell enough of the mango? I straddle a thin line between floral and fruity and this one leans slightly too far into the former for my liking. It's pretty, but it cost the same as the others and its burning much quicker, and I don't like it as much. However, I do think Sainsbury's have a good line in candles. I can't find them online (their website is shocking), but both my local ones have a good stock selection!

And finally we come to Yankee Candle. Whilst I haven't ventured as far a Diptyque candle yet (although my housemate has a beautiful one), this is about as much as I can stand to pay for something that literally burns your money. A slightly smaller jar than the other two for a similar price, Bahama Breeze has an amazingly summery, fruity scent. It borders on being too fruity, but for the summer, it's amazing. 

Basically, though, this boils down (burns down? ohh, the puns I could do) to whatever scent you like. I wouldn't disregard the 'cheaper' ones, but they don't seem that much cheaper? And I think sometimes the more you pay, you do get a slightly better quality candle, and therefore burns for longer. Just my two scents, really, and I thought I'd show you what my room currently smells like!