Toad and Ruth 2011 part deux

Toad and I are back for another week of fun and games.
You can listen to our antics here:

http://www.freshair.org.uk/

Here are the tracks we're playing, as we go along...

1. TuneYards - Bizness
2. Joni Mitchell - Little Green
3. The Honey Pies - Get It Right
4. Dr. Dog - The Breeze
5. The Leg - Twitching Stick
6. Zed Penguin - This Town
7. Dusty Springfield - I Think It's Gonna Rain
8. Leonard Cohen - Hey, that's no way to say goodbye
9. SeeFeel - Dead Guitars
10. Dirty Projectors & David Byrne - Knotty Pine
11. Wolf Eyes - Track 1
12. Active Child - Body Heat (So Far Away)

Sunday supplement

I can't believe the weekend is coming to a close. What a nice one it has been.
James and I shared the biggest plate of nachos yesterday then felt we had to do something to deserve it, so cleared the garden ready for planting and growing. We found so many little shoots from bulbs crying out for sunshine and spring time. What a symbol of positivity!

Today we got on our bikes and I picked up a sweet red cashmere cardigan and tweed skirt from a charity shop, had coffees and then made our way back to have an evening of music and booking flights for our holiday to Malta and Sicily!
I can't wait to see Mount Etna, it feels like a dream that there could be an active volcano so near.

 
In other news Matthew and I started back on our radio show on Thursday. It was so much fun to get back in the swing and hang out with the toad again! I played a song by Active Child which I've fallen in love with. Here it is for listening and sharing:

 Active Child-I'm In Your Church At Night


Happy Monday to you all x

Oh so Toast-y

Every time I get my Toast catalogue, I find myself obsessing over at least three items. This weekend I got the new catalogue, and today I have decided on which ones I will obsess over!
I am completely enamoured with this hairband. As someone who tries hard to wear headscarves but inevitably finds them falling off, this is the most perfect accessory I can imagine.

Then, we have footwear! Practical and pretty, memories of school playing fields and dressing up boxes, day and night, sand and boardwalks...these two pairs pair up perfectly.

Holiday dreaming has begun!

Birthday Presents

Another year older is what I became last week, hence the delay in posting!

I went away to the lake district for a lovely relaxing, musical, walking, eating, drinking medley of a time and had an ice cream cake (from my mum...what did I tell you about inheriting her importance of birthday cakes gene?). 

We stayed in the most relaxing, cosy house you could imagine. It belongs to this very talented photographer whose artistic eye goes beyond her photography. I was surrounded by my favourite things, pottery mugs, beautiful fabrics, interesting art, colour, a log fire and an aga (heaven).

If that wasn't enough, I also got some beautiful presents...

Lovely James gave me this incredible Hacker record player, isn't it brilliant? The knobs light up when it is turned on which gave me a proportionate level of joy!

Plus, I got two Kate and Anna McGarrigle LP's and a Francoise Hardy one to boot. My feet are danced out and my bed has been bounced on until it is ready for a sleep itself. phew!

What else did I get that will inspire my year? Well, my dear friends Megan and Kenny gave me THIS for some inspiration! I warn you all, you are going to be getting flowery knickers for birthdays and Christmases for years to come! I love the pink frill most of all!

I also love the present from my friend Michael, it is a bag with typography representing lyrics of a song! I still haven't guessed, so no homemade Spaghetti Vongole for me! (Please help!)

So, I am back! With puzzles, dancing and sewing! 

I'll leave you with the view from Val's window...

I do like: Jeff Josephine

Aren't these pieces BEAUTIFUL?

My good friend Sophie Elm graduated as an Illustrator from Edinburgh college of art in 2008. Since then, she has illustrated two childrens books, as well as undertaking a variety of commissions, from wedding table names and events posters, to designing and painting tea sets and fruit bowls.

She produces a variety of work from ceramics to print based items, and is very interested in decorative design, pattern making and hand drawn typography.

All work is highly patterned, colourful, and fun!

She is currently creating new work for her own exhibition next year which I will travel the length of the UK for!

All Sophie's work is hand drawn, and hand coloured using a variety of materials. She uses the computer very little in her designs, preferring traditional methods. Inspiration comes from a variety of sources, old ceramics, typographic posters, and fabrics.

She tells me that she is driven by the possibility of making the ordinary extraordinary and I think she does just that.

If you are getting into the romantic February mood then check out her shop here for some special treats like these...

(my personal favourite, I love the soft colours, sweet birds mixed with the intricate patterns. Also, isn't her lettering pretty?)