Santa has arrived!

So, after posting my wish list online, desperately trying to reach out on Santa, yesterday I received two of my first gifts for this year. It looks like Santa hasn't really been checking my tweets and blog posts but I am quite happy with his choices anyway! These are items I would have certainly shortlisted for a wish list at some point!

Rob and I decided to exchange gifts last night. In case we didn't like our gifts or there were problems with the size, at least we would have had all day tomorrow to go and change them.
I organised a litte treasure hunt for Rob, whose face lit up when he came back from work and saw paper n0. 1 laying on the table. Treasure hunts are always fun!

I know you are curious: I got two gifts, one from Rob and one from Rob's parents who had commissioned him to get me something nice. How sweet! So, the lovely Paul Smith swirl silk scarf is from my future in-laws and the monogram luck-it bracelet is from my love.

So far, a pretty good Xmas!

Have you opened your gifts yet? Has Santa been good and generous with you?

Me these days...

Whether it's swine flu or *normal* flu, I have had enough! This flu is ruining all my plans, I still have some Xmas shopping to take care of, I want to enjoy the snow outside, I need to get organised for our trip to Italy and I just want to feel good again. Please please please, I have been in bed with high fever, nausea, vomit, bad cough, heavy head...for too long now! Enough is enough! Help!

There is something magical about...

... snow. There is definitely something magical about snow.

London was all white a couple of weeks ago and my hometown in Italy is all white today. At least, so I hear. Yesterday I received so many emails and texts from my friends who all wanted to share with me the news that it was snowing in Pescara! My cousin even changed her message on skype for the occasion *neve neve neve neve neve ...* (neve = snow in Italian!). In the evening my parents, who are well over fifty, called me in excitement to let me know that the garden was all white and the cats looked funny while walking on the snow.

Snow is one of those things that can really reveal your inner child, it doesn't matter how old you are, if you like snow, you always do! It's like opening a present, eating an ice-cream, going to a leisure park, planning a holiday, dressing up for a party and dancing in your own bathroom in front of a giant mirror when your favourite song is on the radio. We are all kids no matter how old we are! Sometimes, we just pretend to be all grown up...

Never Give Up

Just saw this on Design is Mine. Remember my recent post about me trying to figure out who I am? Well, I think I really needed to look at this notecard today. Thanks!

Story Deli London

If I didn't live in London, I don't know what I would write about on this blog...

London gives me new material to write, and dream about every day. I don't make a note of everything I am attracted to as otherwise this blog would become a London tour guide, but sometimes I really cannot avoid to write a couple of lines about my old and new favourite spots in this amazing city.

Today I have finally been able to try Story Deli. I had seen this little beauty before but only today I had the chance to wander around Brick Lane and stop by to try one of their delicious pizzas. Story Deli is much more than just a pizzeria, it's also a lovely bakery and a wonderful shop where you can buy both organic products, such as oils and candles, and jewelry as well as home decorations.

I am sure it comes as no surprise to you that I absolutely loved this place! A place where you can eat and shop at the same time?! Who wouldn't love it? I was tempted to buy all sorts of things but one silver flower surely got my attention: a dry hydrangea covered with silver glitter, just amazing! Every table was adorned with a glass, milk bottle with one of these flowers inside; if only we had a nicer and bigger place to decorate, I would have totally bought a few!

And now to the pizza: I am Italian and I like my pizza to be good! And I can say, I truly enjoyed this pizza. I opted for a roast vegetables pizza, which turned out to be a very good choice. The pizza here is very (VERY!) thin and the toppings are somehow *different*. When I saw the menu I was a bit sceptical but I absolutely loved it! I would definitely recommend a visit!

Until my next discovery...

Who am I?

Lately I have been asking myself this question every day, and every day more than once...

Paradoxically, when I was younger I used to know exactly who I was, what I wanted to do in life and how I would achieve my goals. With time, things have become less and less clear and sometimes I feel stuck. When people ask who I am and what I do I find myself quite confused. I used to answer easily to these questions by proudly saying: I am a Classicist or more specific, I am a Latinist. But am I, really? I have been studying Classics since I can remember: I attended a Liceo Classico and studied Classics at univ in Italy, I then moved to the UK and took a master in Classics and finished a PhD in Classics. But what do I do now? I work at the Centre for e-Research at King’s College London and none of my daily tasks have anything to do with Classics. I haven’t looked at a Latin text for years; in fact, I doubt I can even remember any Latin. And the funny thing is: I would have never thought I would miss Latin but somehow I do. When I was younger I thought I would be an academic at some point in my life, a Latin Professor indeed; I knew I wanted to teach and I knew that I wanted to take research for the rest of my life.

My PhD experience certainly made me change my mind. I didn’t love taking research as much as I thought I would and I didn’t enjoy the academic life that much. I often felt lonely in the library and in a city far away from my family and closest friends. During my third year as a PhD student I got terribly depressed. I fought my depression dedicating myself to several hobbies and that’s when I started my little stationery business, valeasc. So Valentina was my serious half and valeasc my artistic alter ego. With time I have discovered the more creative side of myself and now I feel the urge to create on a regular basis.

However, while I love having my tiny flat full of colourful papers and fabrics instead of just books and journals and photocopies, I am now more confused than ever. Who am I? What do I really want to do with my life? And, is it too late to change my path?

Dear Santa ... (#5)

Next on my wish list is this fabulous dress from Nadinoo. My only problem is: Red or navy?

Christmas Markets

Yesterday valeasc had its first appearance in the Christmas Markets world and it was absolutely fantastic!

I took the afternoon off to make sure I'd be ready for the fair. I tried the table set-up at home and made a couple of changes until I was 100% satisfied with it. And then I burned my advent candle and left everything on the table as I wasn't sure the fair was indeed going to happen. It had been snowing for hours and there was no sign it would cease anytime soon. Both Rob and I called the organisers and the school where it was going to be held many times and every time we got the same response: Yes, of course! So, I patiently packed all my goodies in my lovely, big, white basket and booked a taxi.

We arrived at St. John's School in Highbury around 5.00; the market would start at 6.30, so we were quite early. That was the only time we could find a taxi available, the snow really paralises this city! When we got there, there were already a couple of other stallers and we started getting organised. We picked our table next to the heater, which turned out to be a very wise choice! The tables were much much smaller than I thought but I used the basket as an extension, so it wasn't a big problem, really.

Rob and I didn't expect anybody to turn up, instead, despite the weather, people started gathering around the school as soon as the doors opened and people kept coming and going all night long. I sold several things and had a lot of fun! My best sellers of the night were the little white crocheted doilies, hardened and tied with red and white polka-dots ribbons and the felt decorations. Definitely a lovely night!

Now, I look forward to my next fair on Saturday the 11th at Christ Church, Highbury. See you there!

December 1st

Happy December First everyone!
It is now time to start burning the Christmas candle. Do you have advent candles? If so, How are they? Where do you put them? I bougth mine on a recent trip to Vienna, it is a very traditional red and white advent candle with outlined white angels on it.
Certain traditions are just beautiful and should never end...