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So, three days in work this week and three weeks till I jet off to the sunshine for my Birthday. I can’t blooming wait to feel the sun on my skin and sit and read books while enjoying a cocktail – bliss!!
Today I’m wearing cherry skirt from River Island, black vest H&M and black cardigan from M&S. I incorporated a few of Mum’s accessories into my outfit today, check them out below….

Mum had this necklace for as long as I can remember and I always loved it, it reminds me of an eye.
I also remember her wearing this brilliant wonder woman badge, how fitting it was for her

On Saturday Isla and I went to Olive&Em’s first tea party and had a lovely time, check out my blog on our afternoon here

For the tea party I wore River Island trousers, Mum’s kimono blouse from M&S and cardigan from Hobbs. Talking of Mum here’s some more of her diary entries….

April 20th….. Another warm, sunny day! Went into Manchester to meet Sue G. Had lunch at Harvey Nicks – brill! Wore black linen trousers, black and white gingham top, black patent ‘ballet’ shoes and pink ‘Macy’s’ bag. Made first purchase on my M&S card – pink and black showerproof jacket with hood. Quite jolly and useful, I hope as it packs away. A sort of up-dated version of the trusty ‘Pacamac’.

April 21st….. Maundy Thursday. Went up to Dobcross Garden Centre with Liz. Warm and sunny so wore black and white gingham trousers and black top edged with gingham. Took black cardi but didn’t need it. Amazing weather!

April 27th….. After a chilly and windy day yesterday, with a hint of rain, it was back to sunshine today. Christine Oates and I went over to Turf Lane Garden Centre for tea and cake (me), coffee and a scone (Christine). I wore jeans (blue), converse trainers, pale pink cotton blouse. Took my pink padded coat but didn’t need it. Saw Eileen and Helen at garden centre café. Collected Doug from his art class later. A very nice afternoon out, after a difficult few days over Easter.

1st May….. Weather still dry and sunny, but spoiled by a sharp north east wind. Liz called for me about 11am and we went up to the Delph Farm Shop and Café. It was quite nice and the shop bears further inspection. I wore blue jeans, pink Artigiano t-shirt, Converse trainers and pink jacket from pink suit. After our snack and look round shop we went down to B&Q. I bought new Yankee Candle for bathroom and three birthday cards.

2nd May….. Bank Holiday. Vicky, Isla and I went to Dunham Massey. Nasty east wind still around but otherwise sunny and dry. Wore navy linen trousers, navy and white stripe three quarter sleeved t-shirt, and blue ‘swing’ jacket. Red bag and boat shoes. Hair a mess because of wind!

4th May….. Lunch at Dobcross Garden Centre with Chris P. Had walk round Uppermill first. No cold wind – lovely hot day with wall to wall sunshine. Wore navy linen trousers and striped top again. Took red fleece jacket just in case but didn’t really need it. Red bag and shoes.

Here I am at Woodchip Boutique’s new home…A Little Birdie Told Me Sew. I’ve been a big fan of Donna and Kim’s creativity and talent since seeing them at Vintage Village and was lucky enough to have them at our craft fair and my end of challenge celebration. I was very pleased when I heard they were opening their own shop as I just knew it would be my kind of place. So Princess White and I headed over to Preston on Saturday to check it out and we weren’t disappointed!

The shop is a treasure trove of all things vintage, handmade and general prettiness, throw into the mix tea and cake and you have the perfect place to while away an afternoon with friends or your kids. My advice would be to spend a good amount of time browsing as it takes a while to take in all the fabulous displays and range of stock that’s there. Allow me to share some photos with you….

Not only do Donna and Kim handmake a lot of their stock they also encourage others to get the sewing bug, check out these gorgeous buttons and vintage fabric, there are also packs made up with a selection of cute things which could be used to create something unique to you.

When Rachael and I arrived Kim was hard at work on the sewing machine, it’s great to see the products actually being made in front of you.

This is a selection of the gorgeous handmade leather bags that are on offer, I have a lovely one with multi coloured flowers on it and I added a clutch bag to my collection on this trip, I’ll share it with you soon. The brilliant thing is that you can also have things made to your exact specifications, while I was there I put an order in for a cover for my i pad.

I also picked up a cute skirt and lace blouse which will look great over a vest top, at £10 and £15 respectively you just can’t beat it

The attention to detail in the way the shop is decorated also adds to the experience….there’s even a space for the kids to play.

It wont surprise you to hear that Rachael and I indulged in tea and cake as well.

With plans to start sewing classes soon I know A Little Birdie Told Me Sew is just going to go from strength to strength. Why not like their Facebook page so you can keep up to date on products and events?

Every day brings us another day closer to having dealt with the practical side of Mum and Dad’s death. Al and I met in Manchester today to complete probate, so that’s a big part of the administration over. It’s a relief to get things over and done with but at the same time it all makes a surreal situation seem very real. Dealing with the emotional impact of what’s happened is not as easy as filling in forms and jumping through bureaucratic hoops, it’s more like one step forward and three back….but as long as one of the four steps is forward I guess that’s the main thing.

As you’d expect I wore an outfit to cheer me up, my dress is from TKMaxx and shoes from Poetic Licence.

PS Four weeks smoke free!!!

April 17th Palm Sunday Went to church. It was another beautiful day. I wore my grey and pink stripe trousers, pink jacket, grey suède ankle boots, pink gloves and pink and silver scarf.

Today I spent the day at Martin Mere with Lyndon and Isla, I’ve not been there since I was young when I went with Mum and Dad. We had a good walk and were shown round by a tour guide who was very knowledgeable. I also finally got an answer on whether it was fact or myth that a swan can break your arm with one flap of its wing, apparently it’s a myth!

Today I wore a denim jacket from River Island and also my new Grumbi badge made by Pauline. You might just be able to spot Mr and Mrs Grumbi on the bed behind me. Isla and I are getting a bit addicted to Grumbi Dolls, why not check out their home here?

Here’s a few posts from Mum’s diary:
April 3rd Mothers’ Day Went to Vicky’s for Sunday lunch – roast beef etc. A beautiful bunch of tulips arrived from Al first thing – well 8.40 am. A difficult day as Nick is very weak and ill from his treatment. However we managed to have a pleasant time at Vicky and Lyndon’s. Isla was inside her tent when we arrived. It’s really good, even indoors. I wore my bright pink dress with pink and grey leopard print cardi, black patent shoes and pink tweed coat

April 6th Oldham with Olga. Nick too ill to take us in so we got a taxi. A very warm spring-like day, so I wore jeans and my burgundy bouclé jacket. I was too warm even in that, but didn’t want to risk anything lighter in case there was a chill wind. It was breezy but not cold.

April 10th Daisy Nook with Liz. A beautiful, warm and sunny day so we sat outside. I wore black linen trousers, black and white gingham top and black patent ‘ballet’ shoes. Also took black cardi, but didn’t need it in fact I caught the sun on my arms and chest.

So last week I made the journey up to Scotland to take Dad back to his final resting place, not a bad spot is it? This is the river Clyde, opposite Dad’s childhood home and also where my Aunt Isla is scattered. Although it was a poignant trip I had plenty of laughs and fun with Lorna, Brian and Noah including meals out, a trip to Edinburgh and a particularly fruitful trip to Mandors

Here's a few photos of my trip....not many outfit shots but now Andy's sorted out my website there'll be plenty of those to come!!

This was taken at The Willow Tea Rooms, designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh one of my favourite designers.

Here’s Lorna and I at Assams, a very nice curry house where the Nan breads are like blankets and we all left so full we were groaning with greed!

This is our walk by viewing of Edinburgh Castle as I would neither queue up nor pay over £30 to look round, what can I say? It’s the Scot in me

And lastly a particular favourite of mine….

PS If you fancy taking a look at the Daily Mail article about my challenge just click here

This is my new Story Bracelet by Kranz and Ziegler, just like other charm bracelets you can buy a variety of different charms but I love the fact that it is on this lovely leather plait. You can get all different types and colours of bracelet and layer them up too, as with any good concept the possibilities are endless but all result in spending too much money. So this is where I’ve had my idea, as I mentioned yesterday I’ve made the decision to give up smoking, mainly for health it has to be said, but the price increase via the budget didn’t do anything to discourage me from my goal. I worked out that if I smoked ten a day it would cost me £100 a month….ridiculous hey? So instead of wasting my money on something that’s so bad for me I’m going to use the money I save to buy new charms for my bracelet. I think it will be quite motivating to have a visual image of my abstinence and especially useful on nights out when I find it particularly difficult to keep my resolve. I also thought I’d share my progress on my blog….via the bracelet….I figure it’s a bit like the old public weigh in, the will to succeed is greater when people are watching

I’ll leave you with a few of Mum’s posts….

March 15th…..Lunch at White Hart with Nick. So glad he’s feeling well enough to go. Wore grey trousers with pink stripe, grey jumper, pink quilted coat and scarf, pink gloves. Pink pearls and ear-rings. It was a lovely spring – like day, and the food was delicious as usual.