a week in the life on unRemarkable girl

hi, thanks for joining me on this lovely sunny saturday. here are a few things about my week.

lovin this post: shakespeare on blogging

knocked 3 minutes of my 5 km run (no i'm not revealing my time - it's still pants!)

started new yoga class at manchester buddhism centre. i haven't practiced yoga in more than 5 years so it was both exciting and scary to pick it back up. is it bad that i need to find my old yoga mat because i don't fancy the ones at the class? i'm a total germ-o-phobe!

my latest amazon purchase arrived. parisian chic by ines de la fressange. i'm learning about how to get myself some parisian style! did you know that the secret to great style is to feel good in what you wear? well feeling good the parisian way is easy with this book, which gives some great style tips as well as what to do and where to shop next time you decide to drop by paris.

oh and i hear a couple of brit's got married this week. i may have got a little engrossed. what can i say? it should have been me!

{em}

fill in the blanks friday

1. i am looking forward to summer. warm days, sunny evenings & reading in the garden. i'll be treading that careful line between getting a lovely tan and getting horribly burnt!

2. something kind of embarrassing that i still love anyway is my ted. i've had him all my life and he still sits by my bed. i wouldn't be at all suprise if he came alive in a "toy story" way.

3. my favourite car is my car of course! she's a lovely blue peugeot 206 cc. the few times a year i can have the roof down and the wind in my hair make it extra special.

4. if i could pick one type of weather to live with for the rest of my life it would be warm and sunny. very rarely do i complain about being too hot. sunshine makes my soul happy.

5. my favourite thing to do after a stressful day is curl up on the sofa in my comfy clothes and have a cup of tea (or two).

6. this weekend is going to be gloriously long! days off on friday and monday make work seem miles away.

7. if i were a colour i'd be brown because of all the chocolate i eat!

prompts from http://thelittlethingswedo.blogspot.com/

{em}

my day in photos

see more days here: http://www.shimelle.com/paper/1005/myday-in-photos/

{em}

easter bunny-ting

get it? easter bunny bunting. i know, i should stay away from puns!

yes it's at least a day too late to share this with you, but better late than never! here is my attempt to bring a little easteriness into my apartment. i picked up these little bunny shapes in paperchase a few weeks ago and deliberated over what to do with them until it was almost too late. eventually i decided some bunting along the frame of my mirror, would be lovely. here's what i did.

et voila! you have a cute bunting to hang in your home. i'm wondering how long i can keep this on display all year round.. i mean bunnies are for life, not just for easter, right?

 {em}

by my bedside

i've been enjoying some fabulous books recently. a small selection of paperbacks by my bedside...

- Pride and Prejudice and Zombies Jane Austen & Seth Grahame-Smith. i mean really?? how could i not buy this! i wish i had thought to write this book myself.

- The Thousand Autumns of Jacob De Zoet David Mitchell. picked up at the last minute at the cash desk. i was seduced by the cover. ever since memoirs of a geisha, i've been intrigued by anything with an eastern influence!

- The Crimson Rooms Katherine McMahon. a combination of my obsession with the past and admiration of female pioneers meant i couldn't put this book, inspired by the first british female lawyers, down. if you like period dramas, you should read this book!

- The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake Aimee Bender. would you believe i just loved the sturdy feel of the pages of this book? sad but true. i'm halfway through this and enjoying it. the short chapters mean i can squeeze a few in on my train journey to work. the fantstic kooki-ness sets in about halfway in and you won't be able to put it down.

What are you reading right now? I'd love some recommendations!

{em} x

fill in the blanks friday (oops - saturday)

1. fridays are sometimes the only thing that get me through the week. fridays hold promise and excitement. anything is possible on a friday because the weekend is so close you can feel it, and monday is to distant to be a worry.

2. people in love, weedy flowers, inside jokes, sunny days, and peach iced tea sound like brilliant song lyrics. my next line would go "they drive you crazy, make you lazy, but whatever you say, it just ain't me".

3. something that inspires me is the laura ashley catalogue. i want every one of those rooms in my imaginary future house!

4. if i had the day off today i would have pancakes for breakfast before heading to the gym. Then i would pack up a picnic and sunbathe on the grass outside a country house. i would alternate reading a book and having a doze in the shade. Sadly i do have the day off today, but nothing as lovely as that planned!

5. if i had to put a label on my home decor style i'd say my style is eclectic. i gravitate towards kooky wallpaper, statement furniture and pretty patterns. think laura ashley meets burlesque.

6. concerning politics i would say i'm constantly frustrated. surely even i could do a better job than most of the people running the country.

7. i'd like to go to 16th century england, so i could meet henry viii, give some words of warning to anne boleyn, and see hampton court palace in it's prime.

{em} x

(prompts taken from http://thelittlethingswedo.blogspot.com/)

on-line class over dose

i don't know what it is about spring but it makes me want to try all kinds of new stuff.

recently i've been admiring the great range of on-line classes out there. i must admit i'm guilty of signing up for things and then just filing away the prompts, never to be seen again. but i vow to be better!

last week i downloaded the materials for Design 101 at alexandra rae designs. At $10 it's a bargain, especially if you are able to use the office printer to print off the PDF(!)

this week i signed up to Shimelle's beyond blogging. it's all about making the most of your blog, so this is one i will definitely stick with.

now i'm trying to decide if i can find the time to dabble with ink blots too. this looks so much fun and i love to doodle. this class could have been written just for me!

{em} x

unRemarkable girl : remarkable commenters

today i have spent more time than i should probably reveal, commenting in the worlds of fellow bloggers. i'm thrilled to be part of this blogging community. i read posts that make me laugh and cry, posts that inspire me and occasionally make me mad! but i must admit i don't always take the time to leave a comment and share what i think.

today i have been the comment queen because i want to let people know that i'm listening! 

already in unRemarkable girl's 2 months of existence, i can see in my reader stats that i have 25 subscribers. i'd like to say a special hello to you lovelies! and if you're a subscriber already, or here for the first time, i'd love it if you said a special hello by leaving a comment to say where you are reading from and if you have a blog where i can pop over and say hello back. "speak" to you soon!

{em} x

my style icon & me

this week i was super thrilled to see Elsie wearing the same dress that i bought last month in topshop. sadly mine hasn't been worn yet, due to the April chilliness in lancashire. it's hanging on my wardrobe door as a reminder of my upcoming holiday in greece, which i'm counting on being lovely-and-warm. i wonder if i can squeeze in a wear before i go? maybe it'll be warm enough with some leggins, and boots, and a cardigan, and a coat, and maybe a scarf... or maybe not.

{em} x

this week for unremarkable girl

this week i...

- had a great day out at Lyme Park, which was used for the BBC's "pemberly". this is the lake where, to everyone's joy, mr. darcy emerged from his swim.

- took a trip to the cinema to see Source Code (and admired Jake Gyllenhaal)

- finished squaring up my quilt blocks - although i am at least a year behind in that quilt-a-long

- swooned over the new "penguin threads" book covers based on hand embroidered designs by Jillian Tamaki

{em} x

fill in the blanks friday

1. my favourite daily responsibility is making the bed. i love to see the covers straight and the cushions arranged just so. i could never get into a bed that's not been properly made and have a good night sleep.

2. my least favourite daily responsibility is cleaning out the bunnies' cage. they love to come along 5 minutes later and mess it up again.

3. my favourite cuisine to eat when going out is, pizza! pizza is my favourite food full stop. i could honestly eat it every day and not get bored. it's also a go to meal for a veggie - no meat = happy em.

4. my favourite cuisine to prepare at home is soup. i love chopping the veg and blending it up. even when i throw in a load of cheese and cream, i can con myself i'm eating healthily!

5. Andy Warhol said that everyone is famous for 15 minutes. my claim to fame is that i performed with my school band on the childrens' TV program, Blue Peter. we played at the beginning and end of the show, and afterwards we hung out at BBC television centre.

6. if i could have 3 wishes, i would wish for a happy family, a healthy family and lots and lots of chocolate.

7. my biggest pet peeve is rudeness. rude drivers, rude shop assistance, rude people on the street. when did it become so hard to smile and say please and thankyou?

happy friday everyone!

{em} x

(prompts taken from http://thelittlethingswedo.blogspot.com/)

lessons in modelling

my fella and i had a day out at lyme park at the weekend.

determined to find out why i look terrible in 99% of photographs, i took 10 mins to pose by a tree to see if i could work out what i was doing wrong. what i learnt is...

rule 1 - look at the camera

rule 2. don't be shy

rule 3. open eyes

finally, 27 photos later, there's one that i actually like! looking at the camera, eyes open, face on view! (next i need to work on holding in my tummy!)

{em} x

quote lovely - jane austen

another holiday over

this last week i've been away on a fan-tas-tic holiday. there was plenty of sun and plenty of these.

this is the horse i was riding all week. he's called Pelito and is lovely and affectionate and very fast! we had wanders through the forest, long canters down fire breaks and gallops through the sea at the beach.

i wish i could have stayed longer. now i'm back i'm looking forward to some home cooked food, nights with a good book and enjoying this spring weather!

more lists

i thought i'd share a few pages from my 30 days of lists project.

list 8 - in my handbag
- purse (plus insane amount of store cards)
- burts bees lip balm
- antibacterial hand gel
- lip gloss (my favourite - sexy mother pucker)
- umbrella
- phone
- ipod
- tissues

list 9 - favourite blogs and websites
- facebook (aka facey-b!)
- wild olive - for cute embroidery, complete with smiley faces
- bustle & sew - for free patterns and lots of pretty photos
- the hairpin - witty writing for women
- pugly pixel - puggy pictures and awesome blogger tutorials
- a beautiful mess - for vintage living inspiration
- shimelle.com - pretty scrapbooking classes (including blogging for scrapbookers)