diggory and agatha say hello

at work today we were talking about the 'what happens if zombies attack and it's every man for himself' scenario that actually gets discussed more often than i like to admit. i was saying i would get myself and my bunnies (and maybe my fella) out to sea in a nice little yacht where we would of course be entirely safe, coz zombies can't swim ya know! i ended up by explaining all about my bunnies to some very confused people, so i thought i'd share a little of their story with you too.

diggory and agatha are very well trained house-rabbits. they live in my spare bedroom and when i'm at home they have the run of the house. most of the time they are very good at not chewing the carpets or the furniture.

both my bunnies were adopted as adults from rescue centres. diggory came first about 4 years ago. i was happy with just one bunny to keep me company as back then i was working from home a lot. when i saw him at the shelter looking through the bars of his little cage i couldn't resist his sweet face and floppy ears. it was about 18 months later when i came across agatha (so named because we knew nothing about her past - she was a mystery) i couldn't resist her. she was described as a little bit moody which is putting it lightly. agatha isn't a people rabbit, but that's ok with me.

diggory wasn't known to get along with other bunnies, but he instantly fell in love with agatha like we did and now they are best of friends. he doesn't love me so much anymore, but since i now go out to work, i'm glad he has a friend to keep him company. 

so that's how i ended up living with two fluffy babies. they are lovely to have around and not nearly as much maintenance as a dog or cat would be. i can't recommend living with bunnies enough, though i can't guarantee they will be as lovely as mine!

listen to me waffling on! i certainly can talk on the subject of bunnies better than the subject of zombies. so now, please tell me about your own furry friends. i'd love to hear. 

{em}

what a week...

well i think i just had one of the worst weeks of the year so far. my fella has been away for 2 weeks now and he's not due back until friday so it's been just me and ted hanging out here. i started monday by arriving at work and realising i'd left my laptop at home. considering the commute takes 60 minutes each way and i can't work without my laptop, i was not pleased. all week i was dead on my feet with tiredness. on friday morning i over slept and missed my train altogether. thank goodness the weekend picked up. in better news, this week was one where...

~ i started hearing christmas music and seeing christmas trees in the shops. it's only october, but my christmas excitement is setting in already. 8 weeks and counting...

~ i upgraded to iOS 5 seemingly without a hitch. i could get used to this apple life i'm now living. 

~ i watched 'mary poppins'. i'll never be too old for that film. i just love 'step in time' with the chimney sweeps on the rooftops. 

~ most of all, i just loved this parade of dressed up dogs.

hope your week was a better one than mine!

{em} x

lets get ready to rhumble!!!

i've been listening to some of my favourite music from my youth recently. just for fun i've put together my top ten 1990's songs. some of these you might only know of it you were aged 10 in 1994 UK, but others i think everyone will love, if only secretly. 

10} Backstreet Boys: As Long As You Love Me.

9} Sly & Robbie: Compliments on your Kiss

8} Ocean Colour Scheme: Riverboat Song

7} Ace of Base: The Sign

6} PJ & Duncan: Let's Get Ready for Rhumble!

5} KCi & Jojo: All My Life

4} Hanson: Mmm Bop

3} All 4 One: I Swear

2} Desree: Kissing You

1} Michael Jackson: Man In The Mirror

Were you dancing to any of these in colour change t-shirts and leggings (the last time they were fashionable!) like i was? 

{em} x

fill in the blanks friday {childhood edition}

hello and happy friday! this week's blanks are on a childhood theme so i thought it would be fun to play along.

1} when i was a kid i wanted to be a journalist when i grew up.

2} as an adult my dream job would be managing a national trust country house.

3} when i was younger i wanted to be just like clarissa from "clarissa explains it all". do you remember that show? a young melissa joan hart wearing whacky outfits.

4} the childhood halloween costume that i remember the most was when i was a witch, aged about 5. actually that's the only halloween costume i remember. i'm not big on halloween :-(

5} my favourite childhood toy was a 'my little pony' hair salon. it had a working shower thing which i loved!

6} the time i got into the buggest amount of trouble when i was a kid was when i came home after a party, aged 14, a little tipsy. as i was throwing up that night, i realised i'd learn my lesson.

7} i get daily inspiration from my favourite blogs. see a selection of them here.

what are you upto this weekend? i hope it's a fun one!

{em} x

prompts provided at http://thelittlethingswedo.blogspot.com/ head over there to play along.

deadly decor

where i come from, we don't make a big thing of halloween. if i'm honest, i don't really like the idea of it. the undead stalking the earth and witches curses. doesn't sound like much of a reason to celebrate to me. 

however i'm not one to say no to a reason to breakout my glue and scissors and make a little seasonal decoration. what do you think of this ghostie garland? i used this template from ginger & george, played around in photoshop accessorising the little fellows until i had one page with 9 ghosts to print out. i sat and did some snipping while enjoying 'dancing with the stars', threaded them on a piece of string, and voila! halloween decor suitable for even the softest of people. 

do you go all martha stewart over halloween? or would you rather hide from the trick or treaters and eat your own sweets? 

{em} x

pretty in progress

without even realising it, i've started my first crotchet project in my blog colour scheme. these colours are a fair bit darker in real life, but i love how they contrast. i'm planning a long stripy scarf in some very basic stitches that i'm learning using the great videos at craftyminx.  it's currently going slowly and i'm worried that christmas is only 9 weeks away. this project may end up being a present for myself, sometime around april!

this year i'm determined to get ahead on my christmas shopping and making. i'm on the look out for cute tutorials that would make nice little presents. if you love giving handmade gifts, check out my pinterest board for some ideas. 

hope you are having a lovely weekend. 

{em} x

pugly graffiti

did i mention i have a pug obsession? every time i see a pug out and about, i'm begging my fella to let me have one. realistically i know it would be a bad idea with having no garden, and my 2 bunny babies being such tempting dinner to a dog. but i can dream. 

today i had to stop and take a photo when i came across this graffiti at a bus station in manchester city centre. i felt kinda silly taking photos but seriously... how cute!

what do you think of graffiti? is it an eyesore or does it bring a smile to your face?

{em} x

wedding junkie: pretty & peach

now i'm getting into the swing of this wedding planning malarky, pinterest is my best-est friend! anything that makes me smile is being pinned to my wedding inspiration board and without even realising it, a colour scheme is emerging. can you see a trend here?

                               Source: stylemepretty.com via Emma on Pinterest

                            Source: stylemepretty.com via Emma on Pinterest

 Source: thebridesguide.marthastewartweddings.com via Emma on Pinterest

since we started thinking of april for our wedding i have just been drawn to the spring-like combo of pinks and peaches. i love the effect that's so subtle and romantic. don't you just love that bouquet? and ever since my last trip to laduree i've been macaroon obsessed, what a cute idea for place cards.  

are you tired of the wedding talk yet? i hope you're having a peachy week!

{em} x

not too cool for {crochet} school

why am i still awake and online after midnight you ask? you might also ask why i have a little metal hook in bed with me. the answer to both questions is here.

my name is em and i'm addicted to craftyminx's incredibly cute crotchet tutorials. the videos are super easy to follow and her blog is so sweet i just want to click around it for hours. 

photo courtesy of craftyminx.com

now i have got a grip on the basics i want to just keep going. i may end up with a very long scarf all in the most simple of stitches. this makes me feel good because i'm learning something new and i'm tackling a potential handmade christmas present. well for anyone who needs a very basic, very long, green scarf!

if crotchet is something you've thought about but never got round to trying, here is your chance. but make sure that you get some sleep at some point too. goodnight!

{em} x

quote lovely - j.r.r. tolkien

so very beret

in all the excitement around my paris trip, i forgot to show you my newest addition to my hat collection. i spotted this cute beret in the cath kidston shop while hunting for suitable outfits for a parisian weekend, but didn't buy it because, well, i have more hats that i can count. but then after 24 hours of regretting leaving it behind, i ran back to snatch it up quick. 

now i know what you're thinking. a beret to wear in paris, that's a little cliched, but have you seen it from the back?

that bunny broach just about sealed the deal for me. i just can't say to a bunny / hat combo. in the end i was thankful for my cute beret. it sheltered my poor hair from the rain shower we dodged around on our splendid walk along the south bank. i think i may need a new hat for every weekend break from now on. 

{em} x 

10 things... to blog about

joining in with shimelle's '10 things on the tenth game' is one of my favourite blog features. knowing that playing along brings lots of new readers to my little unremarkable space makes it even more fun. so in honour of all those bloggers stopping by for the first time today, i thought i'd share some blogging inspiration. today's list is 10 great blogging prompts.

1} write a letter to your past or future self. share what you have learnt and what mistakes were important to make.

2} give your opinions on some recent news. be brave and put your thoughts out there!

3} write a guide on how to...

4} write a guide on how not to...

5} share your notes on the best blog posts. big up some of your favourite bloggers and think about why they inspire you. 

6} finish the following sentence. this may surprise you but...

7} say it with photos. leave out the words for a change and show your day in photos (like mine back in april)

8} talk about your hometown. it may be boring to you, but to somewhere else it could be an exotic place. i've been meaning to share some of my favourite places in manchester for a while now.

9} make a list (hula seventy has some brilliant lists).

10} tell the story behind one of your favourite photos.

do let me know if you use any of these ideas, i'd love to hear your take on one of these prompts. check out 10 things written by other bloggers at shimelle's blog, and some of my previous 10 things here.

{em} x

swoon!

images of these iphone charger docks are all over the blogosphere right now and i just had to share one. but that's no surprise, pretty and practical are 2 of my favourite things. 

check out the etsy shop for lots of pretty book combos, many featuring my favourite cloth bound penguin classics. although it would pain me to damage one of my own collection, i'm tempted to pick up some hardbacks from the second hand shop and make one for myself. 

and while i'm being crafty with books, i'm thinking of trying my hand at some black out poetry... i find this stuff amazing.

wishing you a happy crafty weekend.

{em} x

what am i'm reading ~ end of the summer

looking at my reading pile right now, i've noticed a theme of novel to film stories. i'm sure that isn't deliberate, but that's summer isn't it? if it's a easy summer read, it'll be great on screen. there's plenty of time for the more meaty stuff over the winter months. 

a room with a view ~ e.m. forster. an oldie but a goodie. if i didn't already have a great catch, this book would make me want to go to italy and fall in love again and again.

the bell jar ~ sylvia plath. i love to go back to the bell jar every few years to remind me why i read and moreover, why i write.

the help ~ kathryn stockett. so i figured i should read this before the film hit the cinemas. i picked it up and just couldn't put it down. now i don't really want to see the film anymore. i'm sure that no-one could do justice to how i picture the characters myself. if you only read one book this year, this is it.

one day ~ david nicholls. i know i'm late to the party here, but how good is this book! i wish i was friends with dex and em at university. i was gripped to their story, clever depicted on the same day every year for 20 years.

what are you reading right now? any recommendations?

{em} x

wedding junkie: engagement pictures

the fella and i had an engagement photo shoot this week.  we spent 2 hours in the park at sunset, often feeling silly with a crowd of spectators, but it was worth it. this is the only shot i've seen so far, and i must say i love it! i'm sooo excited to see how the rest turn out. 

{em} x