A sunny Sunday outfit post!

Tis' a lovely Sunday evening here and I am spending it in my pj's on the sofa with the window open (for the first time in about 6 months!) having been stuffed to the gills with food. Ahhhh, Sunday.

I thought I'd share with you my Sunday outfit (albeit, from last Sunday) which I wore for a jaunt to a local pub for a massive Sunday lunch with pals. It was one of those outfits which just sort of fell together, but that I really love.

I created the outfit based around the lovely rayon oriental lounging pyjama top, which I picked up from Judy's vintage fair in Spitalfields which I visited on Easter Bank Holiday Monday with some of my gorgeous vintage-loving chums. It came from the bargain box on a stall for an impressive £5, along with the belt I am wearing!

 

 Outfit details:

Cashmere 50's style coat: charity shop.

1940's beaded necklace: fleamarket.

Lounging pyjama blouse (30's/40's?): Judy's vintage fair.

Embroidered fabric cinch belt: Judy's vintage fair.

Wool pencil skirt: handmade by me.

Wooden bracelets: charity shops and carboots.

1930's embroidered handbag: Scarlet Rage Vintage.

1940's style platforms: Miss L Fire.

I also wore some handmade (RosieAliaDesigns) colourful purple orchids in my hair to top it off.

I adore this outfit, but was soon regretting the cinch belt when I had consumed a large roast dinner, a very dense chocolate pudding and some bubbly cider. I hobbled home after dinner and immediately changed into something more roomy to allow my food to digest whilst reclining on the sofa.

Pip pip! xx

Happy Egg Day!

I'm not even going to mention the time I've been absent from blogland....ahem.....nope, didn't mention it....

Anyway,

HAPPY EGG DAY!

I hope you all got to chomp on lots of chocolate and egg-based items!

I spent the day in my most glamorous dress surrounded by beautiful people (and adorable children), drinking G&T's and shooting photos for the wonderful Angel Adoree's next book.

Outfit details: 

Rosie Alia Designs hair flowers; made by me.

Victorian pearl necklace; gift from my brother.

1930's dress; fleamarket.

Silk sash; carboot.

It was all very exciting, and a wonderful time was had by all, as is always the case when us Vintage Patisserie ladies get together....

 This is a snap from Angel's 2nd book "The Vintage Tea Party Year", with the VP ladies celebrating a Victorian New Year. Can you spot me? Top left!

Today I had my talented friend Sophia (Belladonna Beauty Parlour) coax my hair into shape so thought I'd get a couple of extra snaps of it up close post-shoot.

 

You may notice from those photos (if you have eagle eyes), that there appears to be a piece of metal dangling from my schnoz. That's because earlier in the week I got my septum pierced! I am loving it now I am beginning to get used to seeing it in my face, and I can't wait to get a gold ring (they only has silver available at the piercers) in it as soon as it has healed.

Now, I'll leave you in peace while I pop off to scoff more chocolate, all in the name of Easter.

Pip pip xx

Sew What?: Butterick Retro '47 B5209

Happy Sunday dearest readers!

I do hope you are enjoying your day. I am at present snuggled on the sofa under a blanket, eating sweets and watching Annie. Now that is most certainly what Sundays are all about!

I recently purchased myself a few dressmaking patterns, in an attempt to satisfy my craving for more clothes without breaking the bank. One of those patterns being the Butterick B5209, a reproduction of an original 1947 pattern from their 'Retro' range.

Now, I chose this pattern because it was rated 'easy' according to the packet, and so I thought "what could be more perfect to satisfy my cravings?"...for, when sewing for myself, I am incredibly impatient! Terrible I know, but when I get an idea I want it finished as quickly as possible so I can wear it immediately! I suppose part of it is just that, because I sew for other people for a living (through I'll Be Darned!), sewing for myself often just feels like 'work'.

As it happens, this was the very first time that I've sewed from an actual commercial printed pattern....ever. I am fully aware that that seems ridiculous considering how long I've been sewing, but it is true! I did a degree in fashion, and have over the years made many items for myself and others, however at university we always drafted our own patterns from a 'block', and when making for myself I usually take a item I already have and strategically trace the pieces straight off of the fully constructed garment and then make the relevant changes and add seam allowances to become a pattern to work from. So I must say that at times I had to check and check again what certain markings and terms meant, as they were ones I had not come across before!

When the pattern arrived, I ran out in a snowy blizzard (that's how impatient I am) to my local cheap fabric shops to find something suitable to run it up in. Now, I wasn't too sure how this dress would fit straight from the pattern, so I certainly wanted something cheap so if it wasn't quite right I could treat it as a toile and adjust the pattern before the next time I made it up without feeling like I'd wasted a load of money. Having researched other people's attempts at this dress on the internet, I decided I wanted to try it in a nice slinky material . I've seen lots of lovely examples where people have run it up in a cotton which looks lovely as a sun dress but as the skirt isn't quite my usual shape, I thought I'd try it in a fabric with more hang so as the skirt didn't have the fullness that the cotton versions tend  to have. 

 

I found a lovely green floral fabric for the bargain price of £1.50 a metre, and I think it has quite a 1940's look to it, don't you?

With the fabric purchased I ran home to get started with cutting the pattern. This is where I began to regret my fabric choice; pinning and cutting my pieces took an absolute age....slinky fabrics slip and slide and warp like nobody's business!

Once I had finally cut my pattern pieces I was able to move on to the sewing! I must say now though that although the pattern professes to be 'easy', I found some stages of the pattern to be terribly badly explained and with diagrams that are hard to decipher. Now I could probably have gone freestyle at these parts using my own sewing knowledge, but I was determined to follow the instructions. So instead I found myself reading, re-reading, staring blankly at the instructions, scratching my head....and reading again! Such instances made the making of the dress much more lengthy that it should have been, but I plodded on and managed to finish it.

Lastly though was the hemming of the skirt. At this point I tried on the dress and discovered that the length of the hem was a little shorted than I would like it to be, pre-hemming. So I went freestyle on this part and decided to use bias binding, using only a narrow hem allowance of 0.6mm and then turned the bias up without folding, and stitched it up by hand, thus leaving as much length in the hem as was possible!

I should have used a green bias binding, but I was rushing to have this finished before I lost momentum, and had only black, navy or burgundy in my stash....so black it was.

I also at this point discovered that the bodice was rather too long and thus created an  unsightly wrinkly/baggy under-bust area, so I took the wasit up a little at the front of the bodice which solved this problem. I don't know whether anyone else has found the same problem or whether I am just a bizzare shape- although I must say it's not a problem I have had before with any garment!

I also found that the neckline was too low for my liking. It came low enough to expose my bra (I wear the Triumph Doreen bra, which comes rather higher than modern high street bras), so in future I will have to adapt the pattern to remedy this!

Do you want to see the finished dress?

Ta-da!

During the process of sewing this dress I was invited to attend Blitz Party, acquiring a ticket last minute. So although the dress was a later pattern than the strict WW2 era dress code the website insists upon, I thought that this would be the perfect event to air my new dress! (As it turns out, I needn't have been so nervous about the dress being from a later pattern as there were many a 50's-style polka dot circle skirt and pant-flashingly short floral mini-dresses!)

This is a photo on my way out to Blitz Party, showing how the dress fits on me:

 

I wore my lovely new Clarks shoes, bought in the sale for £40, which I think have quite a nice 1940's platform look to them. I accessorised them with some matching shoe clips I made from scraps of the dress fabric!

 

I wore one of my handmade hair flowers and a set of diamante jewellery. The diamante earrings were from a supermarket of all places! The necklace is one of a few I have been given over the years. And although you can't see it in these photos, I wore a beautiful diamante dress clip my Mumma gave me at the centre front of the bodice, which hid my bra and the revealing neckline (which I had temporarily safety pinned together, classy!).

 

I also wore my amazing black 1930's bag, which I picked up a few months ago from a charity shop for a mere £2!

So, how do I feel about this dress after it is all sewed up? Well, although there are a few little problems to iron out the next time I work from the pattern, these are all pretty minor and fixable! For a dress that cost a grand total of..........£5.......yes, five whole, teeny, tiny pounds, I can't very much complain! And I'm sure that made up in a light cotton it will be a much quicker project too.

I shall certainly be making this dress again. However, I just hope that next time I use this pattern I remember how I did those badly explained bits that had me stumped first time round.

Have any of you lovely ladies had any experience of this pattern? If so, did you find it easy to use or stumble across any problems?

Pip pip! x

When an outfit just comes together....and my very first Miss L Fire's!

I did it, I was naughty and treated myself to some Miss L Fire shoes from their sale. 

But boy oh boy were they worth it!

I just can't stop looking at them....

I opted for the Fern, which were £45 in the sale. I could have bought many others but my purse just wouldn't allow it (oh my, do they know how to make a beautiful shoe)! But these are a green-and-brown dream.

The moment they arrived my mind started reeling for outfits I could wear with them...and I came up with a rather perfect one. 

Don't you just love it when that happens?

 Rust coloured 1940's silk shirt: secondhand/antique emporium.

1940's style pinafore skirt: made by me (I forgot to get a close-up picture, but by total coincidence the straps button to the skirt with lovely rust coloured buttons too)

 Accessories

Autumnal hair flowers: made by me (Rosie Alia Designs)

Acorn brooch: a Christmas gift, from Luxulite

The beautiful shoes of joy: Miss L Fire

Green plastic beads: charity shop

Now I need to start racking my brains for some other perfectly coordinating outfits for these shoes.

I think I may have to get my sewing machine out for some projects based around these beauties!

Pip pip x

Christmas and New Year....festive time photos!

Happy New Year!

.....I'm not even going to mention the long blogging absence-shaped elephant in the room....ahem....

I hope all you lovely people enjoyed an amazing festive period, and are enjoying the beginning of this brand spanking new year!

I just thought I'd do a post rounding up how I spent my time over Christmas and New Years! As I'm cramming them all into one post, be warned, it is picture heavy indeed!

 

Just before Christmas I popped to my Mums local charity shops and picked up this amazing collection of vintage decorations!

 

A snap of a dressed down Christmas Eve (daytime) outfit...

A newly purchased 1940's silk blouse: £8, secondhand/collectors emporium.

Green and black silk headscarf: bought many moons ago from goodness knows where!

Green plastic beads: charity shop.

1940's repro trousers: Heyday.

 

A few Christmas snaps, including a photo of me and my chums at our traditional Christmas Eve gathering, and my little sister's adorable letter to Santa.

Christmas morning arrived and I awoke at the ungodly hour of 6am.....

Santa hadn't even delivered my stocking yet. I closed my eyes and TRIED to get back to sleep, but to absolutely no avail. So instead I (im)patiently awaited footsteps outside my door and a reasonable hour. But the moment I heard a rustle outside the door, I leaped up, harassed a very grumpy boyfriend to wake up, then plonked our stockings on our feet and commenced stocking opening in a frenzy of paper!

Then, we went downstairs and popped the tv on (a Christmas edition of Horrible Histories) and eagerly awaited the parents coming downstairs!

 

And then came PRESENTS! And boy did my nearest and dearest do well, as usual....

 

A flying V ukelele! This is my second ukelele, so I really should learn to play them.

 

A selection of my execellent presents....including a matching lurex bag and compact once belonging to my Step Mums grandmother, a black velvet dressmakers dummy, antique sewing scissors, a gold tea set, a book by Jon Ronson and taxidermy!

 After tearing through copious amount of wrapping paper to reveal many a fabulous present, we rushed off upstairs to get dressed before the arrival of family for more present opening and breakfast and booze.

 

This is my chosen Chirstmas outfit. Because if you can't wear red and green on Chrsitmas Day, when can you? 

Green plastic beads: charity shop.

Green cardigan: Primark.

Red 1940's dress: a birthday present from my Mum and Aunts, from Mishka Vintage.

Green belt: H&M

 

I wore my hair on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in a fine hairnet hand-beaded with gold beads, over a curl set, and lots of festive hair flowers.

Hair net and hair flowers: by me (Rosie Alia Designs)

 

This was my Dad's chosen outfit. The monkey mask was worn to answer the door to the rest of the family, obviously.

Later on, after an amazing dinner, me and Mr Mike drove over to my Mum's to spend the rest of Christmas Day with the rest of my family.

This included even more present opening, and even more food....along with a one AM game of Just Dance with my little sister and cousin.

 

More lovely presents, including matching handkerchief and glove boxes, a tiny set of amazing vintage nativity figurines, a stocking made by my 10 year old sister....

...and this beauty! A 1930's toaster, which my Mum got my Grandad to rewire so I can actually use it. *Swoon*

  

Me and Mike got to sleep in my Mum's lovely Shepherds Hut on Christmas Day which is always exciting.

We then did LOTS of travelling, heading up to Mr Mike's family in Lincolnshire for Christmas number 3, then back to our London flat for 2 days, then I hopped back on a train to Norwich to spend New Years back with my family.

 

My NYE outfit. I was particularly chuffed with my hair.

Cath Kidston tea dress: charity shop.

Plastic bead necklace: charity shop.

Red patent shoes: M&S sale, £9.

Festive hair flowers, again by me.

 

I went with my family to their friend's house for a party, where we ate copious amounts of wine-spiked cheese fondue, drank very odd shots of all types, and I played a 5 hour Monopoly game with the kids!

Congratulations dear readers, if you have in fact made it this far. 

I did warn you it would be picture heavy!

I hope you all had a fabulous time too!

Pip pip x

Happy Halloween!

In honour of Halloween, my black cat brooch has taken pride of place on my hat!

Happy Halloween! x

Sew What?: 1940's pinafore skirt in the last days of Summer!

Oh my, have I been away a long time! Doesn't time fly when you're...err.....working really hard!

Now I hadn't realised just how long it was since I last wrote a post, and I wouldn't blame you for thinking I had dropped off the face of the earth. Or taken a wonderful, lengthy summer holiday. However, I have not.

I have instead just been working really, really hard. In June I started my own alterations and repairs business (plus a sideline in vintage inspired hair accessories) and took the scary leap to self-employment which has left me feeling tired, busy and a little bit all over the place. That, and rather poor. So with not much time and very little money, you'll forgive me for not blogging for *GASP* almost two whole months. It's hard to know what to blog about when you aren't buying wonderful things/going anywhere exciting!

My lack of funds has left me pining after lots of pretty things but unable to afford them....so last night I got a little creative with my sewing machine and took a little bit of time to sew something for myself! I decided to make myself a 1940's style pinafore skirt because it is one of those items I have been pining after for goodness knows how long. Being thrifty, I dived into my stash and made use of some of the fabric I already had; I used a chunky black linen, and some vintage deep orange buttons.

Ever the impatient sewer, once I'd started it became something I simply had to finish immediately. I sewed into the night, and went to bed  one 40's style pinafore skirt richer!

So when I got up this morning, remembered my skirt-making success of the previous night and saw the sun shining (although there is a definite chill in the air) I of course threw on a bright and colourful enseble as I decided to celebrate the dying summer days.

Please excuse the terrible self-taken photographs, my chap wasn't around to take any for me!

 

 Yellow chiffon headscarf and hair flower, made by me (available here); Peasant top secondhand, originally Topshop); 1940's style pinafore skirt, made by me; Nude seamed stockings, What Katie Did; Coral sandals, a present from my chap and purchased from Clarks.

On the skirt, I made the straps attach to the waistband by way of buttons, as this means it can be worn in a multitude of ways: straight straps, crossed-over at the back, or even strapless as a simple skirt!

 

I covered up with a little blue wool bolero, part of a repro two-piece from Ebay.

1950's handbag, secondhand shop.

 

Outfit details:

Beautiful vintage brooch, gift from a friend.

A detail shot of the waist of my skirt, look at those lovely buttons!

Bamboo and green wooden bracelets....and dream shoes.

Hair accessories made by me, find them on my Rosie Alia Hair Accessories Facebook page.

I'll try not to stay away too long this time, promise!

Pip pip xx

Spending rainy days in my finest vintage find!

Yes....the *great* British weather strikes again.
Grey skies and lots of rain has been present for the most part since we had that burst of glorious sun a few weeks ago! And such weather can be a pain for a girl who likes vintage- I have an abundance of summer dresses and cardigans, but what do I wear when it's cold and soggy?

Well, I have recently been getting a lot of use out of my very finest vintage find. 

Wait, that's a big claim, I hear you cry! What's so special about it?
Well, price vs. age, vs. condition.
It is most certainly and undoubtedly my biggest vintage bargain....ever!

The item in question was happened upon when, 3 years ago, I decided to pop into a local synagogue's table-top sale to see if there were any bargains to be had. Now, as me and Mr Mike walked in we felt all eyes on us; there was literally no one there except the stall holders (all 4 of them) and their children. We got an overwhelming urge to run but, of course, that would have been rude! So we politely declined offers of kids toys and and baby clothes from eager stall holders as we made our way round the stalls.

...And then we arrived at one that looked promising. It had lots of clothes, neatly folded and priced at 30p each. I happily handed over a whole 60p for a couple of 60's-stye shift dresses; one Naf Naf and one Karen Millen. Result.

But as I turned to leave, something caught my eye. Just next to the table, laid out on a chair, was the most glorious coat I had ever seen! I tugged at Mike's hand and went back for a proper look.
As I picked it up the stall holder told me she had hoped I'd notice it as she wanted it to go to a good home, and that it was in fact a coat her mother had saved up for in the 1930's and treasured ever since!

I tried very hard to contain my excitement, as me and the woman discussed it's history. And then I tentatively asked how much it was....I was a rather penniless student who couldn't afford to spend a fortune on a coat, but I had fallen head over heels for it!
....the woman replied, rather apologetically, that unfortunately due to it's age it was a little bit more expensive. It was a whopping great £1!

Yes, you heard me right, ONE squiddly little pound!

I offered her more for it, but she wouldn't take it. In the end she let me donate her an additional pound but that was all, claiming that all she really wanted was for it to go to a good home.

The coat in question looks like this:

 

Look at the wonderful black velvet cuffs and collar, embroidered with rich yellow thread. 

It unfortunately doesn't do up over my *ahem* front....but I have plans for that!

The coat has the most phenomenal weight to it which gives the skirt a swing that is to die for.

 

Just out of sight are these boots, which are perfect for splashing around in.

Boots: Clarks via ebay, lined by me- you can see how here.

 And to keep my wrists from catching a chill (is that possible? I'm sure it is!), I wear these beautiful gauntlet gloves knitted for me by Iwona Jenner...psst, she takes orders, if anyone's interested!

What is your biggest ever vintage bargain?
And just what do you wear to keep you warm when the weather's this drab?

Pip pip xx

Sew What?: My 1940's repro dress for under £2!

Now in recent weeks I have managed to buy myself a new sewing machine after MONTHS without a fully working, fully functioning one...my last decided to give up on me during this project. I have since been squirrelling away with hand sewing for crafty projects and minor mends, but my pile of big vintage mends and makes had been growing and growing!

But on arrival of my new machine (thanks to Tesco who have been offering a voucher exchange on domestic electrical items, I managed to swap my £40 of clubcard points for £80 of vouchers off a sewing machine...hurrah!) I decided to undertake a project I've wanted to do for ages. I decided to remake a navy blue rayon 1940's dress I bought from ebay which was badly sun bleached and had damaged seams.

 

Here is a photo of the original dress. You can't actually see in this photo, but sadly the sun damage on the shoulders was beyond saving.

So, I set about remaking it in a fabric from my stash. The fabric I opted for is a beautiful navy blue moleskin type fabric with a bit of stretch, which I used for my graduate show menswear collection and had plenty of surplus. I managed to pick it up from a fabric stall on Dalston market for a ridiculously bargainous £1 per metre. And considering the price, it's very surprisingly NOT a horribly bad quality fabric at all.

The fabric itself was a dream to work with, and my new machine is just a glorious, beautiful beast of a machine.

I didnt want the buttons and zip to go to waste but luckily the fact that I used a navy blue fabric to remake it meant that I could reuse the original zip and decorative fabric-covered buttons on my remake.I like that my new dress has a couple of the original parts to it.This gives a coy little nod to it's direct descendant, the original dress,

Want to see the fruits of my labour?

No? Well, look away now because here I am, looking rather pleased with myself!

 

Ta-da!

 

The dress has a pleated shoulder detail, and small pockets on the skirt which feature 3 little decorative buttons on each.

So what do you think? I am enormously pleased to have finally gotten around to remaking this dress, and the fact that I have used a fabric with a degree of stretch to it means that it is enormously comfy and I can hop, skip and jump (or just move around) to my hearts desire without the overriding fear of splitting a seam.

And, as this dress cost me only the fabric I used (which totalled under £2 in all), I'd say that it has been a very cost efficient project.

I think I shall be getting an awful lot of wear out of this 1940's repro beauty!

Pip pip xx

The Great British Sunshine

Bonjour ladies!

What a lovely week it's been here in the uk! We have had glorious sunshine...something I had almost forgotten existed after the dull days we seemed to be having an awful lot of in recent months.

Yesterday, with the sun beating down and armed with a selection of picnic treats, me and my pal Amy made our way to Regents Park to bask in the wonderful weather!

 

My outfit today was a rather patriotic red, white and blue ensemble...

Red sun hat: antique and vintage shop.

1940's bolero: ebay.

Sun dress: secondhand emporium.

Basket bag: carboot.

 

I adore the print on this bolero.

 

Our picnic- crisps, dips, pitta bread, strawberries, gin and tonics, pimms and lemonades, bucks fizz...

 

Not to mention the red, white and blue fondant fancies which we were incredibly excited about!

What have you been doing to celebrate the wonderful weather this week dear readers? I do hope you've had a lovely time.

Pip pip xx

A trip to see The Artist: what I wore.

On wednesday, me and Mr Mike had a rare day off together, and used it to go and see The Artist in a posh cinema (think sofas, tables, service in your seat) and eat the most delicious cinema snacks (cocktails, honey roasted cashews, and hummus and freshly baked bread).

For those of you who have the opportunity to see this film, and have not: I URGE you to do it. It is absolutely phenomenal.
Honestly, I laughed, and cried...a lot.
I want to see it all over again!

What did I wear for such cinematic luxury? 

  

Faux fur stole: carboot.

Tweed blazer: charity shop, £4.

Felt poppies brooch: carboot, 10p.

  

Dress: Heyday.

I wore my new-to-me tweed blazer teamed with a faux fur stole for warmth....and of course I wore these wonders on my tootsies too. I've wanted a tweed blazer for an absolute age, but have always felt a bit like I'm dressing up in "grown-ups clothes" so I had resisted buying one. Until now. For £4, who could refuse? And I think I am beginning to warm to it! And IN it. (giggle).

I chose to wear my green matt Heyday 'Mary' dress, which I absolutely adore! I simply can't get enough of it. Anyone want to donate me the pennies for another? 

Nope, thought as much.

*looks at empty purse*

Le sigh!

Are any of you going to see The Artist?
You'll all be swooning over the lead, Mr George Valentin!

Pip pip xx

Christmas part one: London

Christmas for me came in two parts this year.

I spent Christmas eve/day/Boxing day at home with my fam in Norwich, Burnham Market and Wymondham.
So the day before Christmas eve, me and Mr Mike hosted our very own Christmas morning. This included stocking opening in bed, present opening around the tree, eating my homemade chutney with cheese and crackers, and a big Christmas dinner (on our laps in front of some aptly Christmassy tv).

All this before 2 pm when Mr Mike had to rush off for his homeward-bound train!

Here's a peek at some of my delightful presents...

 

I've had my yellow and green knitted stocking since I was a baby, and I use it every year.

Mike didn't have one, so I made him a tweed one 3 years ago....I made it huge, so every year I have to buy a lot to fill it! Whoops!

The third photo is the aftermath of our stocking opening. There was paper EVERYWHERE.

 

These are some of my wonderful presents from Mr Mike. 

 Top right is a glimpse of a Tara Starlet dress, and the high waisted Paloma Faith for La Senza knickers I had been pining after for ages. The boy is good!

 

This is me in my new dress on NYE.

I adore it.

In my previous post I mentioned that my mumma and little sister had come up to visit at the beginning of December for some Christmas adventures in London. Well, when they did, they bought me and Mike's presents from my mumma, so I could save them for my Christmas part one, and not have so much to lug back after my stay at home.

My main present was a vintage 1940's dress that her and my auntie paid for when they visited me in November. I am a very lucky girl indeed!

My other treasures from her all came encased in an old suitcase to add to my growing collection (don't ask me why, I just bloomin' love them.).

 

My mumma helped my little sister make me the candle in the teacup...it is glittery and smells of roses!

And my clever old mumma also made me the cigar-box dolls bed. I fell in love with this cigar box for its beautiful colours and the portrait featured on it of King Edward VII (who I have a fascination with for his influence on the development of menswear; I wrote my dissertation on this)!

 

She also made me this cake stand! Isn't she clever? 

She picked these plates up from a carboot. South Creake is a village in Norfolk that my auntie used to live in. Now some people might think it a little odd, what with not being at all religious, that we own things like this! I just own things I think are beautiful, and am thoroughly in awe of some of the wonderful imagery and iconography used in religion. I love the simplicity of these plates and there's something intriguing about knowing how much these little plates have probably seen over the years before they reached us!

This is how I spent Christmas part one (before shuffling off for a horrible pre-Christmas nightshift). 

Pip pip! xx