How Will It Be?

As you all very know by now, Rob and I are looking for a new place to call home. We have seen quite a few properties and we feel that we are getting close (we hope!). Every new flat we see, I picture how our new nest will look and imagine all the nice furniture that we will finally be able to buy. This morning, while browsing the Zara Home website, I have found these lovely side tables that would be lovely in the master bedroom.

Forever 21

If I could choose, I think I would be forever 23. I was twenty-three years old when I moved to Durham, a little town in the north of England. If I think back to that year, I see myself being incredibly happy and free of any concern. That was my first time living abroad and mingling with people from all over the world. That was the year I met Rob. 

But I am not here to talk about age. Forever 21 is actually an American shop and the latest addition to London shopping Mecca, Oxford street. The store is just a few minutes away from Primark on the west side and Topshop on the east side. We see a competition here!

Browsing the site, here are my picks:

1. Floral stretchy bracelet (£10.65)

2. Draped silk top (£19.75)

3. Linen-Blend paper bag skirt (£16.75)

And much more...fancy a shopping trip to Oxford street? I'll meet you there.

Where is the Catch?

Sorry folks, another post about our desperate house hunting. 

Last week I spotted this beautiful three bedroom, two bathroom cottage in Chiswick on the Foxtons website. I immediately fell in love with it. First of all, it's a house and not a flat; it has two bathrooms (very rare!) and a lovely back garden, and oh that kitchen! Now, the thing that surprised me the most was that for once, something I like was within budget. And in Chiswick, a glorious area. Too good to be true. So last Saturday Rob and I headed to the Chiswick to find out where the catch was.

While driving there with our estate agent I was picturing the neighborhood and thought it would be ugly. Yes, that was the answer, the neighborhood must be bad. Quite on the contraty, it could not be more beautiful. The little street where the cottage is is dreamy, with so many nice houses and very leafy. But there is more: the street is parallel to the river and you know my need to stay close to the water (I am a beach town girl, don't forget!). Now, honestly, what's up with this place? And then we realised...

The house is even more lovely in person and that kitchen that attracted my attention is even bigger than I thought. The whole place is superb and very sleek. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the house itself. Except, it's at the very end of the street, next to the busiest highroad ever. This means: noises 24/7 and zero relaxation and use of the garden. Sigh!

Now, how do we go back from this to tiny two bedroom flats?

Not For Sale

While looking for a flat to rent, I stumbled across this lovely cottage. Isn't it dreamy?

I can perfectly see myself living there, making strawberry jam and knitting all day!

Happy Birthday To Me

It was my birthday on Sunday and for the first time in 32 years I had not organised a party of any sort. 

I have celebrated every single year with members of family and friends since I turned one. This year, however, after the big wedding, I didn't feel to plan anything else. So Rob took over and organised a wonderful weekend celebration for the two of us.

Friday after work we viewed a couple of flats in Chelsea and as you'd expect we got frustrated. So instead of going home straight away we headed to Nandos, to cheer ourselves up! We had our chicken and sides and went home happy. The celebration then began. Rob had bought these lovely little treats that we enjoyed as our dessert

I chose the pink one and Rob had the blue with the glittery winged heart. We watched a movie and then at midnight Rob gave me his first gift: tickets to Mamma Mia! We had been talking about going for quite a while but we never had the chance to do it. We are not too big on musicals, to be honest, but we really liked the movie and love Abba songs. So I really thought it was a lovely gift and a nice way to celebrate. 

On Saturday morning we viewed another flat, this time in Shad Thames, an area we absolutely adore and for a change the flat was actually beautiful. It ticks all the boxes, it's just a little bit too far from the tube station and that's why we are still not completely sure. The thing that really makes the flat amazing is its private pontoon overlooking the property's Japanese water gardens. Dreamy. 

We then headed to Covent Garden, had a lovely meal and right after lunch when I was enjoying my daily dose of espresso, Rob gave me his second gift: a black 3G ipad! I was so thrilled!  How cool of a gift is that?? 

It was then time to hit the theatre. Mamma Mia is shown in the very heart of Leicester Square, an area I am not too fond of. There are way too many tourists and it's just so cheesy there. To make things  worse, it started raining while we were walking to the theatre. Oh well, in perfect British summer style, I guess. 

The musical was ok but Rob and I agreed that the movie is actually better. I know, it's strange, usually it's the opposite, isn't it? It's inevitable to compare the famous and super charismatic actors (e.g. Meril Streep) and their performance with the theatre crew. They were good, don't get me wrong, but not amazing, in my opinion. Plus, the movie was filmed in Greece, how do you top that in a small theatre in the heart of London? 

The celebration continued. Saturday evening Rob cooked for me. He made smoky bbq fajitas and they were absolutely delicious. I had four!

And finally Sunday, my real birthday. Rob booked a table for lunch at the ever so cool Nobu. We tried different things and they were all very good, especially the lobster and prawn salad. Oh my! I am still thinking about it.

Back home I received some other gifts: a huge bunch of flowers and this cute Orla Kiely dress from my in-laws and another sweet card and lovely Paul Smith socks from my husband. 

No birthday is a real birthday without a cake and Rob took care of it. He chose a super indulgent and rich Belgian chocolate cake which we devoured. And yes, I did blow the candle!

Thanks so much my love for taking the time to organise all these sweet things for me! It truly was a wonderful birthday.

The White Fairy Tale Love Ball

Paris Haute Couture Week ended with The White Fairy Tale Love Ball hosted by Valentino, which I would have loved to attend, if anything, to wear my wedding gown, again.

Speaking of which, a couple of dresses among the ones chosen by the beautiful people who were lucky enough to attend, I think would make gorgeous wedding gowns.

Such as this beautiful Valentino dress that Anne Hathaway was wearing:

And this sweet dress chosen by model Astrid Munoz:

If only one could get married every year...

I wanna go home

Weather forecast for Pescara, Italy. I want to go home!

La Porchetta

A Pizzeria in London I would definitely recommend. La Porchetta is a quite cool restaurant with five locations in London (we tried the Upper Street one) and is authentic Italian, but in a modern way, and not like a trattoria that you'd find in Little Italy. I love the chairs, the wallpaper and the artwork but more than anything else I loved the pizza! It was so very good, perhaps the best pizza I have had so far in London!

I'll go back!

Relief and Hope

This morning Rob and I took a pleasant trip to Highgate to view a flat to rent. We don't go to Highgate that often but we know the area and it is just lovely. However, we had zero expectations for the flat itself; we have been looking at flats for quite a bit now and we have got to understand the *London standards*. This flat, however, was simply beautiful. The location, a lovely house in a leafy street, wood floors throughout, amazing interiors, period features, a fireplace and a cute garden. Seriously, this flat had it all. For the first time we entered a flat in London and loved it. The owner, a nice lady named Sophie, keeps it very nicely and had candles burning for our pleasure. Not to mention the fact that the candles burning were my favourite scent ever: fig leaf, the same ones I use for our own flat! 

A couple of pictures of the flat for you:

The only problem with this flat, and the reason why we are NOT renting it, is that there is zero storage space. Seriously, apart from a small built-in wardrobe in the master bedroom and a tiny cupboard in the living area there is absolutely no storage unit and no space to add any extra furniture. Ok, perhaps Rob and I have way too much stuff but I don't think anybody would be able to live in this flat without having storage-space-issues! And perhaps this is why a cute flat like this is still available.

When we left I felt incredibly frustrated. For the first time in months we had finally seen something we liked but yet again we couldn't do anything with it. There is always something with these London flats and I am starting to think we will never find a decent place in this otherwise amazing city. 

Rob, however, was able to cheer me up. He had his theory: the place we saw this morning was a) a relief, it means that there are cool places in London we can afford and b) it gives us hope and strength to keep looking!

The hunt continues...

One Word: Stunning

I absolutely adore the Oscar De La Renta dress chosen by Emma Watson for the *Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, part II*, world premiere in London last night.

I don't find strapless dresses  particularly comfortable so this round-neck, nude, lace option and the optical illusion it creates is just genius to me. Forget about how much it costs for one second, don't you want it badly? I love it!

Small Details

While looking for a bigger flat to rent in London, I am imagining how it will look, or at least how I would like it to look. 

One of the first things I will buy to feel at home in the new place will be this beautiful magazine holder.

Sextantio

On the fourth day of our wedding extravaganza we visited a little Medieval village in the Appennine Mountains, just an hour away from Pescara, where we were all based.

Santo Stefano di Sessanio is a lovely little burgh full of history and art and we really enjoyed an enogastronomic tour around the village. Unfortunately the town was badly affetced by the L'Aquila earthquake last year and some of its features, such as the 13th century tower, were destroyed. There is scaffolding everywhere around the village, which of course took some of the charm away. Nonetheless, the village looked lovely and incredibly picturesque.

We left Pescara late in the morning and arrived at S.Stefano around noon. We were meeted and greeted by Luisa, a lovely receptionist of the Sextantio Hotel and taken to Il Cantinone for our aperitivo.

As soon as we entered the room we were all captivated by the beauty of it. The cosy wine cellar was the perfect way to kick off our visit of Sextantio. Sextantio is a brand new boutique concept where bits of the hotel are spread around the micro-village.The philosophy behind the restoration project is to revive old traditions mantaining the rustic simplicity of the Medieval charm but with modern luxury incorporated.

After a delicious aperitivo we were taken to La Locanda Sotto Gli Archi, the hotel restaurant, for an amazing meal, carefully prepared for us by the chef Niko Romito.

I loved everything about lunch, the food, the atmospheare, even the ceramic water glasses and jugs, not to mention the fact that our beloved George Clooney had lunch here while filming The American.

After lunch our tour-guide Vanessa showed us around and told us all the secrets and stories about the village. It was fascinating to listen to her. 

We finished the tour yet again eating and drinking in the Tisaneria, or Tea Room, where we tasted herbal infusions and local cakes.

Before leaving we asked if we could see any of the hotel rooms. Thankfully one room was free and we were invited to see it; that's when I decided that Rob and I will have to go back for a romantic weekend.

The simplicity, yet the elegance, of these rooms are just what I look for in an hotel and I would love to have the opportunity to spend a night, or perhaps two, in this amazing and unique hotel. See you soon Sextantio, see you soon!

Right Now

Right now I fancy a trip to Sicily and for the occasion I would be wearing this gorgeous Stella dress.