Lovely Friday Spring Chickens

Tomorrow is the first day of Spring. And that in itself is a deliciously lovely thought. Spring. New things. Flowers. Bare, white, legs. Early sunshine. Fresh. Dresses. Sandals with newly painted toes peeking out. Yes, I do like Spring.

{via here}

I believe that Spring cleaning is not only about the home, it is also about the mind. This is what successful people get up to in the first hour of their work day.

Gelato on a stick = the perfect Spring snack

Home-made, fruit flavoured water = the perfect Spring refreshment

Spring-inspired under-things

Spring-inspired carry-things

And Spring-inspired outer-things

I have these pants and I can't wait to rock them this Spring

I wear stripes year-round (at least once a week). So Spring just means more stripes!

Go to a florist, buy a whole bunch of different flowers and make up your own arrangement

Dior does flowers

A perfect get-away for good-weather weekends

And in case you missed them, here are some past Spring-inspired posts

- fantastic florals

- inspiration for your wardrobe

- Spring is in the air

 

eat your heart out

A few weekends ago, on a freezing Sunday in Jo'burg, when wind was wipping through the streets of down town Maboneng Precinct, we found oursleves curled up in Eat Your Heart Out. If pastrami on rye makes your mouth water, and you crave bagels on any given day, then this new little kosher deli is for you. With designs by Black Coffee (hello practical chairs with magazine racks on the back) and a huge window to watch the world go by, it's the percefct little Fox Street local.

286 Fox Street

Tuesdays to Sundays from 7:30 - 16:00

Guest Post: These kids' style, I die!

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Choices versus ability

"It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities." - Albus Dumbledore

 {from here via here}

a binky bob smile for monday

This little sweetheart makes me smile everyday so I thought I would share some of the joy :)

Honor Elizabeth obliges her snap-happy aunt and obediently poses for pictures. Against a wall is her preferred background.

Aunt: "Honor, can I have a smile?"

Baby: "No way."

Aunt: "Please Honor..."

Baby: "OK!"

Hello Friday!

Hello L's and G's. And happy Friday to you. I started this morning bright and early with a talk on Robert Mnookin's book Bargaining with the Devil, When to Negotiate and When to Fight. Inspirational stuff  to start a weekend and I now have thoughts swimming around my head that I should rather be a peace negotiator than a business consultant (I am a diplomatic Libran after all...).

What are you getting up to this weekend. Summer has dropped in for an early visit visit in Johannesburg (I am not putting my boots + tights away just yet though) and I feel like the city's population is taking advantage. Sleeves are shorter, smiles are wider, faces are glossier and I can almost smell the braais that will surely begin before the sun goes down.

{via here}

Right now I am listening to this

For some weekend inspiration, here are the top 20 most listened to TED talks

I think a staring contest party would be hilarious

A classic powerhouse combo to kick some ass in the work world

Why everything should have a look. Hear hear.

The queen in rainbow colours (and now we know why it's called Royal Blue)

Love the colour saturation in this living room

And these pics of Lisbon in colours makes me want to book a holiday in Portugal!

Next time I am in Cape Town I am going here for pizza and here for chicken pie

xoxo

Weddingness

For some reason weddings are on my mind. Well, actually there are many reasons for this:

1. My third year wedding anniversary is coming up (whew, makes me sound like an old married woman ;) )
2. An old friend of mine, Jenny, is getting married next month (we met in standard 1, back in the day when it was still called standard one and not grade three)
3. And Cheska's wedding is in 2 months and 18 days - which means we are in the midst of bridesmaid dress decisions, kitchen tea brain storming and invitation-admiring.

 So in light of all this weddingness, here are some lovely wedding things:

This would make cool first dance song. But I would suggest rocking an awesome head piece to go with it. I love this song actually, and can listen to it over and over again. It makes me want to grab my man mid-conversation and do a little quick step around our apartment.

Flower dogs at a wedding. Love it! We had neither flower dogs not flower girls at our wedding (we didn't know any little people!). Honor will be Ceska's flower girl (cute!) but I think I should try and persuade her to have a little creature too. Perhaps a goat? Or a baby elephant?

 Oh my. That setting (a chateau in the Loire valley!), that dress (hello fairytale)... Take a look at this wedding - fireworks on the balcony and a dress designed by a famous costume designer makes it seem unreal but still pretty beautiful.

Jackie and JFK's wedding must have been quite a spectacular event too. They had 600 hundred guests and 10 bridesmaids (proportionately I had more bridesmaids - out of 95 people at our wedding, 7% were bridesmaids). PS. They ate pineapple salad at their reception.

Guest Post: Good thoughts

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This sounds delicious

{via here}

grapefruit + mint refresher

fresh pink grapefruit juice

few sprigs of mint

handful of ice

blend

done

(mix via here)

Cycle Mondays

The streets of India of are a mad compendium of all sorts of transport - buses, cards, tuk tuks, camels, horses, motorbikes, trains, scooters, rickshaws and of course bicycles. We saw bicycles used as ice-trucks, milk vans, and multi-person modes of transport. Here are some pics below...

 Ice truck in Colaba, Mumbai

 Outside Crawford Market, Mumbai

 Afternoon stroll around Jodhpur

 The old town in Jodhpur

 Outside our Haveli in Pushkar

Three-on-a-bike in Pushkar

 From above, Pushkar

 Milk van, Pushkar

 Cycle club, Mumbai

 Rickshaws in Jaipur

Street in Jaipur

Happy Weekend

Hello Friday. How are you? In Johannesburg it is an almost-summer's winter day, with sweaters being shed, drinks being pured and the sun being welcomed on hibernating skin. I hope Mother Nature cooperates and keeps it up for the next two days.

{via here}

 

If you are still stuck in the office, here are some links from around the web that may spark your interest...

 

I am extremely low maintenance when it comes to hair and seldom blow dry. This guide to styling wet hair is just what I need.

 

An interesting story about hacking, and some lessons to learn.

How will you find greatness today?

These paper necklaces are beautiful (but I would be a bit nervous wearing one).

 

A bizarre, but cute, flickrstream.

I grew up with Lego. Our playroom floor was a permanent villages of crumbling Lego house and half-way built helicopters. So I always love to see new, inventive Lego designs. Take a look at these tropical birds and some more pieces here.

What is the collective noun for posts on collective nouns? If you want to know the collective noun for deer read this (and here my two previous posts here and here).

This coat freaks me out but here's a hug for all of you. 

Best email I have received in a while

This morning I opened my inbox and found this...

"Oooh that's cold!"

You smell nice.

Tonight Cheska and I are going to experience a sensory exploration of Tom Ford's new fragrances. Yum (that yum is more for Tom Ford than the fragrances). The theme: Uber (what to wear!?). I am rather excited.

And did I mention that I heart Tom Ford? (Yes, yes, I know he won't be there, but still...).

 {Hello Mr Ford}

Melt Bottles

Polish designer Agnieszka Bar has created a range of glass bottles with collapsed bases. Aren't they beautiful. It would look perfect on my new counter tops in my new kitchen (yip, we are still renovating... 3 months on).

{via here}

Guest Post: hahaha

Although this project by Dina Goldstein, titled 'Fallen Princesses' is rather disturbing and cynical, I do find it rather funny.

(Ps. Click on the images to enlarge - it is worth seeing these close up!)