Valentines in London

Happy belated Valentines day one and all! I know Valentines has come and passed, but its such a special day and deserves due care and attention in my opinion!

Valentines day is never a sedate occasion in the Bradley household, every year we go to town and use the day to show each other how much in love we still are, 8 years on... cheesy but true! Cards are purchased or sometimes made, meals are planned, gifts are prepared and wrapped, and a day or evening out pencilled into our calendar.

This year, we decided to book tickets to the new west end production of Singin' in the rain. A classic film that we both love, we were extremely excited about the stage version. So, tickets were booked for 15th February, hubby booked the day off work, and I set about planning a fantastic day in London!

For those of you who read my blog regularly, you will know how organised I am, and how I like to plan occasions to the smallest detail. So, a few days before the show, I dug out our London map, propped the iPad on my knee and set about planning a special day for the two of us. I decided that we would have a little wander around Covent garden (little being the operative word, hubby is not such a fan of shopping as I!), a short walk into Soho to lunch at Banana Tree, an Indochinese restaurant that we previously visited in another area of London and loved, and then a short walk back to the National Gallery for an afternoon of culture. Lastly, a pitstop at a coffee shop for tea and cakes before making our way to the Palace theatre on Shaftsbury Avenue for the show.

Covent garden + giant creme egg = heaven! For our trip to London I wore my new Topshop chain print skirt, a grey Primark vest top, my new navy blue H & M cardi (tucked into the skirt) with a tan brown belt from Forever 21, my black Armani exchange coat and my Mullbery.

We saw the show on the 15th February which was the official opening and press night! Barbara Windsor, Christopher Biggins and Lenny Henry (amongst other famous sorts) attended too.

Hubby and I also had a wander around the National Gallery. 

Love my hubby : )

Although we didn't do very much shopping, I did of course visit Laduree in Covent garden, as well as H & M to pick up a grey cardigan. Hubby purchased my Valentines present in Pandora too : )

For anyone who has never tried Macaroons from Laduree I urge you to do so! I first tried them in Paris and have been hooked ever since! This time I purchased 8 (6 shown, 2 already eaten!) for £10.90. My favourite flavours include chocolate, vanilla and raspberry. Yum : )

Hubby purchased me the heart charm at the very front of the bracelet. Gorgeous, and very fitting for Valentines!

Grey H & M cardi £9.99. I love the navy cardi I bought the other day so thought a grey one would be useful to have!

Hope everyone else had a fab day, more soon elves XOXO

January pick-me-ups

Hello Strawberry swirls, hope everyone has had a relaxing weekend! I only returned to work for 2 days this week but was still pretty tired come Friday night. I had a nice lie in Saturday morning and then met up with friends for a curry and catch up which was lovely. Today hubby and I headed to one of my favourite places in the whole world. Bluewater, for some shopping and lunch. Hubby purchased a couple of new pairs of trousers and some boxers, and I treated myself to a few little bits too : )

I wore my new Mango skirt and Zara jumper with my Mulberry bag, silver tassel necklace which was a Christmas pressie from a friend, and my new chelsea boots from Red Herring at Debenhams.

I cannot express how much I love my new boots, and they are so comfy too! : )

I bought this cute Vero Moda dress for £32. Peter pan collars continue to be big this season, and I love the oversized one on this dress, as well as the cute tiny heart print. 

Floral sheer tunic dress from Vero Moda... £5! Someone had left this in the changing room and it was my size so I tried it on when I was trying the other dress on. I love the simple shape and classic styling, plus at £5 in the sale, I couldn't really turn it down! ; )

This is a terrible photo, this Mango skirt is more of a deep red colour than in the picture. This skirt only cost £10.50 in the sale and is the identical shape and structure to the floral one I am wearing in the first picture. I bought it because I love the floral skirt I bought the other day and have worn it to death since I bought it! I thought red would be a good classic choice, and would work well with black tights and boots and my black leather jacket.

Well that's about everything dolls, I have an incredibly busy week coming up including a parent's evening and  a full day of revision organised for my exam groups on Saturday (!) so I'm set for a relaxing evening now to get me geared up for the week ahead! More soon XOXO

2011 sign off

Happy last-day-of 2011 to all my lovely followers! Today I have been reminiscing a lot on the year, and I cannot believe how quickly it has gone! This time last year I was frenetically planning my Wedding ready for April 7th, now I am rapidly approaching my first anniversary! Nuts!

Thinking back over the year, and the many experiences and achievements of 2011, I decided to put together a photo story of some of my favourite moments, days out and adventures : )

March 2011: My hen weekend in Brighton. I had such an amazing time with some great friends, we shopped, rolled down massive hills in zorbing balls and danced the night away in Brighton's amazing clubs!

April 7th: My Wedding day aka the best day of my life so far! I spent the majority of 2010 planning my dream day,  with no stone left unturned. We married in a gorgeous old church near our home and held our reception at the 17th century Jacobean manor, Boy's Hall. We had exclusive use for three days and could not have been any happier. The sun shone, every little detail was taken care of and everything was just perfect : )

A shot of us in our Wedding finery and our gorgeous cupcake tower. My father sourced all of the Vintage china tea cups, plates, saucers and cake stands for my big day : )

April 2011: For our honeymoon, we took the trip of a lifetime to Thailand for 2 weeks. We stayed in a luxury 5 star resort and spent our time sight seeing, swimming, sun-bathing, trying out as many restaurants as possible and as the shot shows, meeting new friends! We were so excited about our elephant ride, and we were not disappointed.

Beautiful clear sea in Thailand

'Our' pool, right next to our room. One of the many we were able to use.

May 2011: Overnight trip to London to see Legally Blonde. An amazing show!

July 2011: Trip to Hever Castle. We took advantage of the good weather we had this Summer and went on lots of trips to National Trust and English Heritage properties.

Another sunny day enjoyed in July, picture taken at Littlestone beach.

Hubby's birthday weekend in August was spent in Herefordshire at the Big Chill festival. We had a fantastic day and enjoyed so many amazing acts.

Picture of Kanye West performing at the Big Chill festival, our ultimate favourite : )

September 2011: Night out in London with the girls, to say goodbye to Anna (left) and good luck for her work placement in Moscow. Girls nights have remained so important to me this year, for all their support, fun and laughter, I could not be without them XX

October 2011: Purchase of my first Mulberry bag, the East West Bayswater. Gorgeous, classic Mulberry.  A love affair has begun!

November 2011: Christmas begins! I went to the Country Living Christmas fair in London with my best friend and our mums. Perfect for festive spirit and pre-Christmas purchases!

December 2011: 4 day mini-break to Berlin with hubby. A perfect way to celebrate my birthday and finish off the year nicely. We saw so many sights, shopped and had an amazing time.

Just a selection of some of my highlights, 2011 has proved to be a very good year for me for so many reasons! Work has gone from strength to strength for me and hubby, I am officially 'outstanding', we have spent another year in our amazing house, and our baby rabbit Woody is healthy and happy! We have travelled, seen a great deal, married, made some big purchases and stayed blissfully happy and in love! I am so excited about 2012 and all that it may bring, so all I can say is, watch this space!

Here is to a happy and healthy New Year for all my lovely followers, may all your dreams come true in 2012! XOXO

Brilliant Berlin

Hello twinkly Christmas-tree lights!! Wow it seems I have been gone so long from the world of blogging!  The last couple of weeks have been manic, a whirlwind of social events, meals out, trips to London (we saw the Nutcracker - completely wow!) and the last few days which we spent sightseeing and generally having an amazing time in Berlin! Tied in with all this was my last week at work which was busy busy with me staying late to get all my marking done so I am free to enjoy my Christmas holiday! I still can't quite believe I made it to the end of term, I am so grateful and in need of a lovely long rest now before the madness starts again!

Anyway, back to Berlin, well, what can I say, such an amazing city! I have previously visited Paris and Milan, and enjoyed them immensely, but I have to say, I think Berlin may edge past them in my affections just a bit (I adore Paris, so it feels slight blasphemous to say this!) There was so much to see and do, the city felt so cosmopolitan and buzzing, but not in the same manic and stressful way that London can sometimes feel. Even though it was Christmas, and people had travelled from all over for the Christmas markets, I never felt pushed along, or hemmed in, and we always got a seat on the tube, whatever time of day we were travelling! Our hotel was amazing, we enjoyed our free mini-bar, flat screen TV and amazingly massive bathroom.

We spent 3 full days in Berlin and used our time wisely. Being as acutely organised as I am, I had already planned where we were going, our routes and directions were all printed and ordered according to district. I tried to prioritise the main attractions, fully anticipating that we will one day return and continue to see other sights and attractions. We did a little shopping, however for once I was too enthralled and caught up in everything Berlin had to offer, shopping fell a little by the wayside! We did make a few purchases at the Christmas markets though, some lovely wooden tree decorations, and a wooden nutcracker to stand on my bookshelf at Christmas time. I also took full advantage of the duty free at the airport, and indulged myself in some Benefit products, some perfume and some gorgeous grey suede gloves. At Berlin Schoenefeld airport coming home, I spotted a Pandora shop, and am happy to say that hubby took the opportunity to re-purchase me a bracelet and 3 charms (I sadly lost my first bracelet a few months back). So I am well on my way to re-building my beloved Pandora bracelet again!

Just a few pics from our trip...

At the top of the Fernsehturm, a panoramic view over Berlin

One of the many Christmas markets. I tried to pack and dress for the weather but I was so not prepared for how cold it was going to be (hubby explained that Germany does not benefit from the Gulf stream in the same way we do, I thought he was talking about an airline...) On day one I wore my Forever 21 navy blue skirt with a vest top and cream Zara jumper tucked in. I tried to be 'winter ready' by wearing my warmest Armani Exchange coat, my new suede gloves, my Red or Dead boots and a Marks and Spencer scarf... needless to say I failed and I was bloody freezing!

Ferris wheel that we went in, I love the cute little carriages : )

Outside the Berliner Dom. We went on an audio tour around the Cathedral (by the end of the trip we were rather addicted to audio tours!)

We walked up 276 steps to reach the top of the Berliner Dom, so worth it for the amazing view.

On our first night we went to a lovely Italian restaurant in our neighbourhood. I wore my Urban Outfitters polka dot dress with a brown River Island belt and my warm boots.

Hubby outside the Schloss Charlottenburg. It snowed lightly on this day which was so Christmassy!

Outside the Reichstag buildings. I was blown away by the architecture and design of this building.

The Brandenburger Tor

By day two I had succumbed to the cold weather and purchased a hat in Jack and Jones. I am so not a hat person and resisted for as long as possible, but hubby kept insisting so in the end I caved. Glad I did, it did make me feel a lot warmer. (And will now be relegated to the back of a drawer!) This picture shows the Ritter chocolate factory where we made our own chocolate bars, I kept it simple and picked Smarties to go into mine. : )

Day three, I wore my Zara jeans with tights underneath, thick socks and my warm boots. I had a warm H & M jumper underneath my coat, and a lovely dark green scarf that I purchased in Vero Moda on Friedrich Strasse. This picture was taken inside the Sony Centre at Potsdamer Platz.

Just a little selection dolls, I took loads of pictures in total! I fully recommend Berlin for a city break, and even though it was soooo cold, it was so Christmassy too, which really put me in the festive spirit (as if I needed any help!) It was a great chance for hubby and I to just relax too, we chatted and laughed, made plans and just chilled in a way that its sometimes hard to when you lead such busy lives. Couple trips are so important for re-connecting, it was the perfect end to a perfect year : ) XOXO

Fairytale December

Hello dolls, how are you all today?? I am just fabulous, had a fun day at work and a bit more laid back than my Monday to Wednesday routine as I finally had some free periods!! I left work about 4 which was very good for me, I was super productive today and got a lot done so no late stay! When I arrived home I did some cleaning for about an hour (I actually enjoy cleaning and sorting so this wasn't too much of a chore!), then I settled on the sofa with a cup of tea and biscuits waiting for hubby to come home.


When hubby arrived home we discussed my forthcoming birthday (OK its not until December but I do like to plan in advance!) and discussed some different options. Obviously we are going to Berlin (blogged about here) as part of my birthday celebration, but that is not until the 18th December. My birthday is the 12th so we wanted to do something around that date. We discussed a show in the West end, and having done some research, I stumbled across Matthew Bourne's Nutcracker at Sadler's Wells. I have wanted to see the Nutcracker for years, the combination of dance, costume and classical musical, with a score by Tchaikovsky is hugely appealing and something a bit different to the usual show in the West end. Hubby booked tickets for us in the stalls and I am so excited! December is shaping up to be a completely fabulous month, and it will all be topped off by Christmas!! : )

Unforgettable sets and costumes

I am completely in love with these pink costumes!

I am really loving the new season, I love the weather getting chillier, and the new term at school. Everything just feels new somehow, and I am one hundred per cent on the countdown to December now! So exciting!!! xoxo

Date Night

Hey dolls how are you all?? Today is Friday and that makes me sooo happy! This week was my first full week back at work and blimey did I hit the ground running!! I had a really enjoyable week and I really like all my new classes, but being back at work is very tiring!

Tonight I went for a drink after work with some work friends which was great fun, catching up on all the gossip (something we used to do a lot more but are always too busy for now!) When I got home, hubby told me that he was taking me out for a meal to celebrate our anniversary which is on Monday. It is not our wedding anniversary, but the anniversary of when we first became a couple. I guess we should only really mark the occasion of our wedding anniversary now we are married, however, we have been a couple for 8 years now and I think that is worth celebrating! We decided to go to our favourite Indian restaurant in Ashford, Zarin; we first discovered this amazing restaurant when we moved to Ashford and it is now our go-to for delicious Indian cuisine. The food is so tasty and flavoursome and the portions and service very good as well. Tonight I had a lovely chicken Dansak with pulao rice, muteer paneer and a naan. Yum : )

Strike a pose!

I wore my Zara sheer blouse, River Island high waist check shorts with a brown belt (also River Island), black tights and black patent pumps with a bow from Topshop (I was planning on wearing heels but I wore very high knee high boots to work today and my feet couldn't take any more!) To accesorise I wore a gold ring and my new gold necklace with a stag's head from Primark.

Hope you all have something fun planned for the weekend, I am looking forward to a nice lay in tomorrow morning!! xoxo

Dreaming of Berlin

Happy Friday everyone, it feels like I have done a full week at work when in fact I have only been back two days and haven't actually taught a lesson yet... still after all the rest I had over summer I guess i'm bound to feel tired!

My last few days have mostly consisted of research for our trip to Berlin. I am still unbelievably excited and now wishing the time away until December! I have started researching places to visit and things to do, logging the details in a folder on my desktop created especially for the trip. I know I definitely want to go to the Reichstag buildings, the Berlin wall, the Bundestag, Checkpoint Charlie, the Brandenburger Tor and the Schloss Charlottenburg. Naturally I will spend a good portion of time on The Kurfürstendamm, one of the main shopping streets in Berlin which, luckily is only 400m from our hotel (wonder how that happened...!)

I took on the job of researching hotels, mainly because I enjoying researching and weighing up all the options before booking. Hubby was happy to take on this job as it is my birthday present after all, however, I have a certain 'vision' of the type of hotel I like to stay in, long gone are the days when we were students and had to find the cheapest 3 star accommodation around! So I volunteered, knowing I could devote more time and energy to the task, and, get us as near the Kurfürstendamm as possible!

Cool Bedroom at Hotel Sir F.K. Savigny Berlin

The hotel I chose is called the Hotel Sir F.K Savigny in the Charlottenburg district (another fact that made me very happy!) The hotel is 4 star and is billed as a cool, boutique style hotel with Nespresso machines in every room, iPod docks and free soft drinks in the mini-bar. According to Trip-advisor, the hotel is ranked number 37 out of 655 in Berlin so should be pretty good! : )

I am really enjoying researching and planning, being organised makes me happy (my OCD ways are a constant source of happiness to me, although perhaps not others around me!) I love the fact we are going just before Christmas too, the Christmas markets should be really good, and it will be a great way to get into  the Christmas spirit!

Swarovski Christmas Tree Berlin 2006

So I am officially in Christmas countdown mode! Which is cool, as my older students always insist on doing a Christmas countdown each week from the first week back in September anyway! Hope you are all excited for the weekend, I am, no 6.30 rise tomorrow! 

: ) xoxo