{ inspired#16 . jane austen . reading & love }

. inspired#16 .

It isn't what we say or think that defines us

It's what we do

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This year marks the 200th anniversary of Jane Austen's death.  Whether you have read her novels or not, you can't help but be familiar with her work; Mr Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice { Her heart did whisper that he had done it for her }, the Dashwood sisters of Sense and Sensibility { I wish, as well as everybody else, to be perfectly happy; but, like everybody else, it must be in my own way }, Fanny Price of Mansfield Park { A fondness for reading, properly directed, must be an education in itself }, the matchmaking meddling Emma { If I love you less, I might be able to talk about it more }, Northanger Abbey, and her last novel, Persuasion { None of us want to be in calm waters all our lives }.

There was so much love for her on Instagram yesterday, the day that marked 200 years since Jane's last, and I'm going to borrow the caption from this picture, which sums up Jane in a way in which I think the author herself would approve.

photo credit // janice mier

' Ardently remembering a badass woman who has taught me so much. There were too many lessons but if there's one thing I'd like to share with your ladies, it is that we should love using our heart and our head. Do proper assessment of character. Know the difference between a man who has a plan and a boy who just wants to waste your time.

Thank you Jane for your books. For who you are. For everything you've done. I'm grateful you existed. '

You'll find lots more Austen inspiration on my pinterest board { inspired#16 } and to read more about the anniversary take a look over on Jane Austen 200.

{ have a happy day }

{ happy weekend }

{ 1 } ♥︎ pink roses.

{ 2 } ♥︎ paper hearts.

{ 3 } ♥︎ little bears.

{ 4 } ♥︎ colourful rooms.

{ 5 } ♥︎ perfect pins.

{ 6 } ♥︎ beautiful books.

{ 7 } ♥︎ cute bookmarks.

{ 8 } ♥︎ we came. we saw. we loved.

{ 9 } ♥︎ sweet cookies.

{ + } ♥︎ steamed puds. { especially on snowy days }

. have a l♥︎vely day .

{ my funny valentine }

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Valentine's Day will soon by upon us, and whether you love it, like it, tolerate it, or despise it, there seems to be a card and a gift for you out there.  This seems to be celebrated with a lot more fun and tongue in cheek humour than it used to be, although i'm afraid the whole ' Palentine's ' can quite happily pass me by.  I can't decide if it's an attempt at making us single girls feel less alone on the 14th, or if it's just a shameful ploy to squeeze even more pennies out of us all.

That aside here are a few of my favourite funny valentines for you to lose your heart over, just in case you haven't yet bought that special someone a special something.

{ have a lovely day }

. hAppy fridAy .

. 1 . denim + stripes + pigtails = cUte .

. 2 . stripes + smocking + curls = cUte .

. 3 . spOtted on pInterest . prEtty birds flying high . 

. 4 . spOtted on crEativeBoom . painting with { real } flowers .

. 5 . spOtted on mymOdernMet . gOrgeous gowns become art . 

. 6 . botanical drawings + white leather = NikeCourt x LibertyLondon .

. 7 . there will be no miracles here . installation by NathanColey .

. 8 . thought for today . & . lets hope . despite the uncertainty . that this is true .

but in the meantime

. 9 . lets dream of a pretty cupboard full of cake . baked by LoveCrumbs .

. & . finally . attempting to recreate their { gorgeous } vEgan chocolate cake . 

                     with this { equally gorgeous looking } recipe .

. have a hAppy weekEnd .

. the art of cOffee . & . cOffee as art . { twelve ways to make your morning lAtte a lOt lOt cuter } .

i am doing my very best this week to support National Coffee Week . although i managed to miss out on the lOndon cOffee fEstival i have managed to sUp my way around the cOffee shOps of Carnaby Street . and . today i seem to have managed to fit in a little work in between spending the day making { cOpious } amounts of coffee . 

my usual cOffee order is a fairly pedestrian Americano with hot milk . bUt . on the occasion that i order a latte there's something lovely about wondering what latte art will grace my cup of coffee . as lovely as the coffee shops i frequent are, so far i haven't yet been presented with anything quite as stylish as some of the examples i've stumbled on today . & . is it wrong that i'm completely fascinated by the 3d latte art . but . can't help wondering that in the time it takes to create something like that surely the coffee must be stone cold ?  i think that's possibly the coffee lover in me taking precedence over the designer in me ! 

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. cUteness in a cOffee cUp .

. have a hAppy dAy .

. lOts of lOve .

. hAppy vAlentine's dAy .

. hAppy vAlentines .

. 1 . spOtted on instagram . a simple be my valentine @tity.spain .

. 2 . lOving the idea of a Galentine's Day party . 

{ perfect for those of us without a Valentines . thankyOu oh happy day ! }

. 3 . a cAndy crUsh of cloud marshmallows & lOve hearts @kraftmint .

and 

. 4 . pastel prettiness with a sprinkling of glitter at Sprinkle Bakes .

{ with the cherry being inside this cherry vanilla layer cake } 

. 5 . sUper cUte XOXO milk carton Valentine's favour boxes from Babiekins .

and 

. 6 . lOve lEtters lOvingly stitched by hand & sent with lOve .

{ a super easy DIY tutorial from Lia Griffith } 

. 7 . a little more felt in this heart shaped mobile over on Sew Yeah .

. 8 . a little more lOve for yO . oh happy day .

{ just sO sO many great vAlentine's ideas ! }

. 9 . these made me smile . & . go a bits nUts !

. & . finally . whoever you'll be sharing it with . on sUnday . have a very hAppy vAlentine's dAy .

. have a lOvely dAy .

. be my valentine . { twelve lOvely ways to say i lOve yOu } .

lOve is well & truly in the air . & . i am spoiling you with a few lOvely ideas for things to make . bake . & . create for your valentine's this year . 

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{ chalkboard black . red . candy pink }

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{ garlands . candy . wrapping }

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{cupid's arrows . gold . candy stripes }

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{ sEnt with lOve }

so . 

how will you say * i lOve yOu * on sunday . with flowers ? chocolates ? candy or cake ?

{ or . maybe all of the above ? }

although i have no valentine's this year . { cue the violins ! } . i will be busy deciding which cake to make for my * shush * Clandestine Cake Club event next week . we have picked the theme of Love . Actually . { well . we had to acknowledge that february is the month of lOve didn't we . & . how better to celebrate our love of cake than with a love themed event } . but i have managed to pin far far too many ideas to my pinterest board . & . now can't decide on just one cake to make ! should it be a sumptuous red velvet cake topped with rich chocolate covered truffles . or . a sweetly pink velvet champagne & strawberry cake . or . a chocolate raspberry cake with heart shaped macarons ? 

or . well . i could go on . i will keep you posted and hope to pop up a post shortly after the event to share with you all the wonderful cake that is going to be enjoyed that evening . until then .

. have a lOvely dAy .

. hAppy fridAy .

. 1 . so today is dOodle dAy . so buy yourself a cute notebook . & . doodle away .

. 2 . lOve the doodle-esque wall decal in this cUte room . 

{ decal designed by hello little birdie . & . spotted at this little love } .

. 3 . gold grey & geo's are combined for this angelic outfit over at Milk Magazine .

. 4 . mOnday welcomes in the Chinese New Year . & . the year of the mOnkey .

{ and what's cuter than this little sOck mOnkey . spotted on pinterest } .

. 5 . & . looking a little further ahead . lOving these lOve tiles . for Valentines Day ?

. 6 . lOve this instagram pic of sisterly love .

{ captured beautifully by Dominika @domsli22 } .

. 7 . a super easy & super lovely DIY organiser . by A Bubbly Life .

. 8 . crUshing on this instagram account . a Flamingo a Day .

{ and . yes . yAy . it's friYAY } .

. 9 . the perfect cOokie to compliment my fEbruary calendar !

. & . finally . it's just possible i may break my sugar-free run with these blUeberry pAncakes . 

{ well . it is pAncake dAy on tuesdAy } .

. have a hAppy dAy .

. lOcal lOve . lOve by jAne .

i have known jane for a good few years . once upon a time . in what feels like many moons ago . we worked together . we went on shopping trips & work trips . there were smiles & laughs { not to mention a few tears } along the way . & . whilst we now don't see each other very often i lOve catching up with her to chat about crafting . sewing . a mutual love for all things liberty .

just over a year ago jane combined her lOve of liberty prints & sewing to open a lOvely Etsy shop . Love by Jane . mixing her own handmade pieces alongside repurposed vintage finds .  

so i couldn't resist the chance to pop over & have another catch up & photograph her gorgeous studio & feature her on the blOg .  

. a studio full of wonderful inspiration .

. buttons . fabric . ribbons . twine . trims . tape .

. a shelf full of vintage sewing patterns .

each wall is a visual moodboard of colour & pattern . 

{ a liberty print deckchair would be so perfect for the garden for the sUmmer }

. Love by Jane .

head on over to Love by Jane to order some lOvely things for Xmas . 

{ or just for you ! } .

or you can pop along to the Nottingham Independent Christmas Market which is on this Saturday 12th December in Nottingham's Trinity Fair . perfect opportunity for some Christmas gift shopping .

thankyOu to jane for her time & having such a beautiful studio { the lOveliest shed at the bottom of the garden . wandering past chickens & rose gardens to reach } to photograph { and swoon over . yes, it's true i have serious shed envy } .

. have a lOvely dAy .

. inspired . #5 .

for a while now my pinterest has been full of bats & black cats . creepy cupcakes & cobwebs . & . so very many pretty pumpkins . hAllOween is definitely on it's way .

as someone who's never carved a pumpkin i'm lOving the trend towards painted & pimped up pumpkins . particularly those with glitter & gold . & . those with pops of neon . & . it's from those i've taken my inspiration . underpinned with a super simple monochrome black & white colour palette .

. inspired#5 .

{ when Witches go riding & Black cats are seen . the Moon laughs & whispers 'tis near hallOween }

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. see much much more on my pinterest board .

. have a { spOOkily } sweet day .