Cool House

Well, things looking decidedly dodgy on the house buying front. Our buyer for the London flat cannot get a mortgage and so we are back on the market. This makes the 30's house we found down here look like it may slip away but we are trying to remain karmic - if it does not happen it wasn't meant to be and there will be another stunner around the corner..... in the meantime I am hunting for cool houses for inspiration. This Paris abode belonging to Marie Cerise Lichtle and her family is right up there. Its sophisticated and stylish yet practical - of course a minimalist, polished, glass filled home would be lovely but where would the duplo live and wouldn't the jammy hands mark everything?!

Pictures taken from The Socialite Family 

Snapshots

Last week was a toughy. Rupert was in London working and so I had the boys on my own - I know lots of mums (and dad's) have their kids on their own most of the time and all I can say is wow, you're amazing. I am afraid I am very spoilt as Ru is here most nights in time for bath and he is very hands on with the relentless broken nights so when he jumps ship for the Big Smoke I turn into a feral human. By the end of the week I was a greasy haired, grouchy monster. This explains why the pics from this week are a little thin on the ground - not enough hands to snap with. We then all headed up to London for Great Grannys 100th birthday. What a legend - Peggy saw 2 world wars, the 1st man on the moon, the introduction of television.... amazing. It was a lovely party followed by another party for me which was also lovely but less tea and scones, more champagne and hula skirts - my friend Sophie's big hen do. Now settling back into rountine home life and juggling various house buying and selling hiccups - goodness me what a nightmare that is........

Maurice magic

Congratulations Peggy

corn on the cob glare

he just grows so fast this one

from garden......

to plate in under 5 mins (smug much?!)

Andy's Dinosaur Adventures - enthralled.....

my new lunch obsession - tomato soup caprese.... yum.

Professionals - Julia Bowden, Make Up Artist

                        Julia Bowden is a professional 

                        Make Up Artist. She has worked

                        on music videos, fashion mags, 

                        runways and with numerous

                        celebrities both in TV and film.

                        She also performs magic with

                        brides (she even tamed my straw

                        like hair and made my sand paper

                        skin all dewy!)

Where do you live?

Battersea -  really near to the park and river - I Iove it.

Ideal breakfast?

Scrambled feta avocado and eggs on brown bread or banana and nutella pancakes would be the dream but only if I'm feeling bad! 

Perfect Sunday?

Some form of exercise if the night before doesn't sabotage me, followed by a nice walk and talk with friends either enjoying the city or a nip out to the countryside - a pub roast must be in the mix somewhere.  My new fave place in London for Sunday lunch is Parlour in Kensal Rise - the roasts there are amazing. 

Favourite holiday destination?

Skiing or I recently discovered the wonders of sailing.  However I'm more about the ski lunch or the lazy boat sunbathing.  I also love the good old English countryside for a holiday -  there's nothing I love more than a trip around a castle and a nice cream tea.

Cannot live without?

Eyelash curlers. They won't save your life but they'll make you look far more awake. My lashes resemble a camels i.e very straight. So they really help to open up my eyes and I think are a bit of an unsung hero of the make-up kit

How did you become a Make Up Artist?

I started out at Sothebys organising the auctions and from there I fell into event marketing in an agency creating and managing corporate events.  I worked my way up to account management level and found that any creativity I previously had in the job had gone. Before I knew it, I was number crunching and doing management reports so wondered how on earth I got there.  I was always more creative than I was corporate and I had lots of friends doing creative jobs and I simply asked myself - why not?  I was always passionate about make-up and naturally good at it. Plus I always had a genuine interest in film, so I did a bit of research and knowing that I was also a people person at heart, it just seemed like the perfect job for me.  I enrolled at Greaspaint in Ealing on a Film, TV, Theatre, Fashion, Airbrushing and special FX Hair and make-up course and I haven't looked back.

What are the best thing about your job? 

No two days are the same, it's brilliantly challenging and creative.

What is the worse think about your job?

Sometimes I have to wipe up a bit of sweat or the odd eye bogey but it really doesn't bother me...that or the long hours but you do get used to it. 

What was your most Bridezilla moment?

A make-up artist never tells! But I will say that there isn't much I haven't seen.  arguments and fall outs are the most common usually between mothers, daughters and sisters.  A recent story wasn't so much of a bridezill moment but more of a brides worst nightmare.  Her dress split and zip broke 10mins before she walked down the isle.  I felt so sorry for her as she cried and panicked. I managed to talk her through it and calm her down..then I had to single handedly sew her into her dress and re-do her make-up from the tears. I finally got her down the isle on time.  You always have to be prepared to do things outside your job description on a wedding morning and stay calm when everyone else is losing it.  In fact that goes for every make-up job - from films to music videos and editorial shoots.  Often things don't go to plan and you're the one that has to come up with a creative solution.  I guess that's the side of the job I actually enjoy the most - managing a small crisis by thinking on your feet and being a calming influence...it's very rewarding.

Who is the most surprising celeb you have met?

There's always a lot misconceptions surrounding celebrities and what they are like but this obviously just the media painting pictures. You never know what someone is like until you spend some time with them and I have been very lucky as the majority of people I come into contact with are super lovely.  I have met a few who have been having a bad day in the past...but again a make-up artist would never tell...plus we all have bad days..right?

If you could only carry take three items in your make up bag what would they be?

Mascara - can double as eyeliner if you have a spare brush, a good compact foundation - one with a powder finish so you don't need the extra powder and can double up as a concealer and a cream blushed can always double up as a lip tint.  If I had those three things I could just about look passable on a desert island.

I'm a knackered mum and cant find the time for a a full 1/2 hour beauty regime every morning.... help?!

Get a good tinted moisturiser or BB cream to wake up the skin and even the skin tone, if you're really rushed this can act as a quick concealer under the eyes.  All you need after that is a swish of bronzer on the cheekbones and a lick of mascara.  All this takes 5 mins max and makes all the difference.

Best winter beauty product?

Rodial dragons blood hylouronic night cream 

Best summer beauty product?

James Reed BB face tan pen 

Never fails nail colour?

Essie in wicked or any Deep, dark sinister red. Always decadent, classy and cool

Would being a Make Up artist suit a mummy trying to get back into work?

Most definitely. Make sure you get yourself on a good course first (Greasepaint, London College of Fashion, CBMA and délamar academy are good ones) then start to assist until you have enough confidence to go out on your own. Once you have a good base of contacts it can be flexible and you can really make it work around you and be your own boss. Weddings can be a great set up because theoretically most weddings are on a Saturday morning. So you can hand baby to hubby for only a few hours and go and earn your cash.

To find out more about Julia and book her for any work or weddings click HERE

Snapshots

A couple of weeks ago Rupert and I decided that we had, finally, found a place to settle and hence time to buy our own home (we have been renting for the last 4 years). We are lucky enough to have previously bought a flat in London which we had kept so put it on the market and began a hunt for our country pile (well, cottage with a veggie patch). Thinking these things take forever and bracing ourselves for a gruelling 6 month search we found our perfect house in the first few days but as always it had a lot of interest, lots of offers yadda yadda yadda... we had until Friday night to find a buyer for the London flat so we could secure it. This was insane and so we mentally waved goodbye to the pile. Well, that was until 4.48pm on Friday night when we had an offer on the flat and at 5.23pm we had secured a new home in Somerset. YAY! Needless to say, bubbles all round. I can hear all my family and friends telling me to remain cautious and not fall too hard as more often than not these things fall through and I will be heartbroken. Of course they are right but for now I'm as happy as a clam at high water. It is a complete renovation project of a 1930's house so be prepared for lots of posts of interior design ideas (Rupert, the keeper of the purse strings is very concerned indeed!) In other news this week we had muddy walks, lunch, dinosaur playtime and estuary frolics with friends, mother's day spoiling and a sunny beginning of Spring.... doesn't the sun immediately make you feel a whole heap cheerier?

beach combing

Topsham

baby's got blue eyes

row row row your....

clearly not a riveting read

Charlie looking after Lenny

dragon in my kitchen

love

Ru and Lenny

this is one pair of funky legs

Maurice's Gooseys

Magnolia lovely

mud mud glorious mud

nice Sunday treat

can balance for about 30 secs

Happy Mothers Day

Today is all about us mummy's. It's a tough job being a mum and today is about saying thank you and I love you. I know I do not say it enough -  so thank you Mum, I feel very lucky indeed to have you. It is also about giving yourself a well deserved pat on the back. Well done you. Forget that supermarket tantrum, huge pile of washing, crayon scribble on the wall and hug your babies close today - you are doing a great job, just look at them......

(pic sourced from Rose & Crown)

Mother's day Gem

Sssssssh. Dads, Grannys and Grandpas this one is for you - keep it a secret from those mums! Pick up some celery on the way home and make sure you have paper, red and green paint and string. This Mothering Sunday activity will make one mummy very happy. How many people forgot last year and ended up giving your loving, dedicated and yummy mummy a seriously below par card from the local Londis... uch um, Rupert! I tried this with Lenny today and well, put politely, it was a bit of a mess! He was just interested in hand painting on himself as well as the paper but oh well you can't win them all! So I'm afraid the finished result here was made by moi, for moi.

Snapshots

I'm stuffed. Still. Today saw Sunday roast lamb and all the trimmings and apple crumble and ice cream with friends.... in fact, it was quite a gluttonous week all round as we went to a 70's fondue party last night where we feasted on enormous amounts of cheese and drank too much red wine. Next week, cleanse. I always say that..... All the food and drink has blocked my memory and I cannot think of anything else we did (?!) but we did pop up to our local wood and stock up on wild garlic to make pots of pesto and soup for the freezer. Homemade garlic goods are great, the smell of garlic still lingering in my car, not so great.

bed head

flying angel

chatting with me Mo Bot

cuddle

foragers

there it is

us

destined for the pot

squishy kiss

mummy help me....

Lenny's loves his bud Indi

Maurice

smiler

please let me find the pot of gold