Bedlinen

I have spent the past few days helping a friend with the re-launch of a formerly well-known bedlinen brand. It has been great fun and a fantastic learning experience. All of my wedding planning and implementing experience came in most useful, proof that if you want a career in such things it does not have to be limited to weddings in particular. I 'worked' with the PR team and the stylist covering all areas from the administration side of the event to the implementation of the show. Sadly no creative input (ha, of course not, when one is only helping out) but I gained lots of ideas and inspiration. Oh yes, and I compiled 100 beautiful goody-bags to hand out to the press.

And, as promised, some hints on making your bed look like a show bed. Aside from the obvious which is that packet new, freshly steamed bedlinen makes an enormous amount of difference to appearance, you could try the following (although I can't guarantee it will be as pleasant to sleep in as your usual set up):

. place a thin duvet under the undersheet to make the bed look doubly inviting.
. inside the duvet cover place at least 3, possibly up to 5 duvets, depending on thickness. This will make the duvet easier to arrange and look extra plump.
. you will need 8 fresh pillows and a plethora of cushions. Slightly flat slept on ones are no good, they must be thick and fat and inviting. Place in a variety of matching but contrasting pillow cases from the same range and pile up 4 at the back with 4 on their long sides in 2 rows of 2 in front.
. take a sheet and fold it so that it is poking out of the top of the duvet and tucked under the last row of pillows.
. arrange eiderdown, extra blankets and cushions on top of the artfully arranged duvet.
. hand steam away any wrinkles.
. place scented candles, light, flowers and other accessories on nearby cabinets.

Your bed will look fabulous and your room will smell divine. I am not poking fun here, this really will make your bed look fantastic... you just might need to tone it so that it actually works as a functioning bed too. 5 duvets may be too much for some people. Personally, I came home inspired to declutter and make our flat look a little less, umm, full.

I also took some photos of the show, so I will check whether I can post them for your inspiration as well.

Other people's weddings

Another week, another manic week. Am still here with plenty of stories to tell, including:

. how to dress a bed and bathroom to look like it should be in a magazine
. why going to watch a TV show being recorded is not as much fun as it should be (and why a certain blonde large radio and talk show host is nowhere near as funny in person)

In the meantime I leave you with a series of photos taken by Elegant & Wild at a friend's wedding a few weekends ago. More to come of us dancing later in the week when I've edited them to remove the other guests.

{all photos by Elegant & Wild}

Things I did this weekend (inc. Friday)

. had a terrible migraine, so bad I thought it was a tummy bug. lay on the floor and vomited for several hours. slept all afternoon. woke to Husband returning with restorative teacakes and lucozade.
. cried over the death of a dog I do not know whilst watching Marley & me. even Husband admits it wasn't as bad as he thought it was going to be. {He claims it is only because he "is a sucker for dogs".}
. had an early night and woke up without the aide of an alarm at 9.30am. lay in bed listening to the rain and snuggling with Husband until late morning when the sun came out.
. made apple sauce with apples picked from Husband's parents' garden last weekend whilst Husband turned mushrooms, shallots, courgettes, steak and bread into a tasty lunch.
. did two loads of washing and hung it out in the surprising warm sunshine.
. went to the local tennis courts and played a game of tennis.
. finally tackled the ironing pile but had to put the heating on for the evening to deal with the remainder of the damp and wet washing that was threatening to take over the flat.
. ate hot buttered teacakes and drank tea.
. watched Strictly Come Dancing live for the first time all series.
. ate the most beautiful slow roasted pork neck served shredded with apple sauce, beetroot, ginger and honey and roast potatoes drenched in pork fat. One of the most delicious meals I have eaten in a long time, so good I would have chosen it again had I been served it in a restaurant.
. curled up with Husband on the sofa reading whilst he watched snooker and football.

and then tomorrow I will:

. have coffee with a friend.
. work in the vintage shop.
. attend a pub quiz with some old friends.

I hope you all have had peaceful and happy weekends.

{Image by Smash My Dream of Love via flickr.
She (well, I suppose it to be a her) is my new favourite
and I urge you to have a look at the rest of her work.}

On depression

Much as I hate to admit to have been reading the Daily Mail, I'm glad I came across this article. As some of you may know and others worked out from my postings, I occasionally suffer from bouts of depression. The first and worst was during my first term of university when even getting out of bed was a daily struggle. It is still one of my proudest achievements that I kept going, didn't allow myself to give up or give in and indeed, one day, about six months later, things did start to feel better and life became enjoyable again. I still look back on my time at university incredibly fondly (which I am sure you know) and the second and third years were amongst the best of my life. I developed various methods of coping with 'feeling down' and knowing when I was actually depressed and should seek help; each time I have felt this way since I have known that the sun does shine again. And that's why I was so glad to read that Stephen Fry (who is well documented to have struggled with depression) had written this letter to a viewer who wrote to him for help:

"Dear Crystal,

I’m so sorry to hear that life is getting you down at the moment. Goodness knows, it can be so tough when nothing seems to fit and little seems to be fulfilling. I’m not sure there’s any specific advice I can give that will help bring life back its savour. Although they mean well, it’s sometimes quite galling to be reminded how much people love you when you don’t love yourself that much.

I’ve found that it’s of some help to think of one’s moods and feelings about the world as being similar to weather:

Here are some obvious things about the weather:

It’s real.

You can’t change it by wishing it away.

If it’s dark and rainy it really is dark and rainy and you can’t alter it.

It might be dark and rainy for two weeks in a row.

BUT

It will be sunny one day.

It isn’t under one’s control as to when the sun comes out, but come out it will.

One day.

It really is the same with one’s moods, I think. The wrong approach is to believe that they are illusions. They are real. Depression, anxiety, listlessness - these are as real as the weather - AND EQUALLY NOT UNDER ONE’s CONTROL. Not one’s fault.

BUT

They will pass: they really will.

In the same way that one has to accept the weather, so one has to accept how one feels about life sometimes.

‘Today’s a crap day,’ is a perfectly realistic approach. It’s all about finding a kind of mental umbrella.

‘Hey-ho, it’s raining inside: it isn’t my fault and there’s nothing I can do about it, but sit it out. But the sun may well come out tomorrow and when it does, I shall take full advantage.’

I don’t know if any of that is of any use: it may not seem it, and if so, I’m sorry. I just thought I’d drop you a line to wish you well in your search to find a little more pleasure and purpose in life.

Very best wishes

(Signed)

Stephen Fry"

He is right, it does pass, eventually, sometimes quickly, sometimes after a longer period of time. Eventually, I find that I do "look back on that time in which I was so unhappy, and remember it fondly" just as the poem says. It is just remembering to remember that at the time which is so difficult.

Pixies

I am around, things are just mental. I will be posting about all the things I said I would but, as I said to my friend yesterday, things have been so busy that I had to go and buy clean pants. So that's pretty busy!

But tonight we go to watch the Pixies. I cannot wait. Seriously, I love the Pixies. And guess what, Art Brut are supporting. Art Brut are friends of some good friends of ours from university (the chap who introduced Husband and I, actually). I love it when the support band turns out to be someone you actually want to go and see. Art Brut are actually worth a gig in themselves. And they are only the support.

Many years ago, we went to the Fortress in Old Street for Husband's brother's birthday. It was already a great night but then we went downstairs to the basement and discovered that Queen Adreena, another of my favourite bands, and the first gig I ever did go and see aged 17 (I came to my music late...) was just coming onto the stage. It was awesome.

The Pixies are playing at Brixton Academy: I have been there to see Tool, Machine Head and Bob Dylan, amongst others. It is a fantastic venue and I am listening to Spotify in anticipation of tonight's gig. I am actually excited!

Sparks Fashion Show with Miele

Sparks Fashion Show with Miele, originally uploaded by foreverbetter.

Post coming soon...

The mind boggles

I know I've been promising some proper posts since last week, but that was before my Grandmother had an emergency operation and we all dashed up to the North to visit her. And before another family member died unexpectedly.

In the meantime I leave you with 2 snippets that made me laugh over the weekend:

* In the local newspaper published in my Grandparents village, which had been brought to the hospital for my Grandmother to read, there was a report about the local W.I group. They had held a competition for their members to bring in an object that they would save if they had to abandon their home, and the winner had brought in (and I quote): "a very personal item, which caused much hilarity". The mind boggles, it really does.

* An e-mail I received from my local freecycle (now known as freegle) group which proclaimed "Offered: Woman's Domination Kit!" and went on to say "It's a black PVC 'domination kit' which has never been used. It comprises of pants, bra, eye mask and whip." I love that she felt the need to point out that it had never been used. Also on offer from the same lady was a small hand held electrolysis machine, a DVD remote control and a hippo water saver for a loo cistern. It's good to know just what stuff people try and keep from landfill. I wonder if she will have any takers.

{I should point out that I am a member of both the W.I and my local freegle/freeycle group. I think they are both fantastic, for different reasons, I just find some of their goings-on amusing}.