Tag Archives: jewellery

Great fashion finds (for guys & girls) at Metropolis

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DSC04002I recently discovered new fashion boutique Metropolis in Kloof St (thanks to the boyfriend – I promised I’d give him credit for this one ;) ).

It’s the kind of place where your budget is not safe in any way…  Shopaholics beware!

They stock a great selection of imported things, which means you’ll find that special something that nobody else will have (love that).  And if you’re looking for something different, something with some serious edge or something that will be a definite talking piece, this is the place to go.

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I love that they’ve got both guys and girls covered under one roof.  Yes yes, the girls section is bigger (I mean come on, shopping is like our crack), but at least your man has something to look at as well while you shop away…

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Some things I spotted in the men’s section…

The ladies section like I said is more extensive.  Whether you’re in a bit of a rocker mood:

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Or feelin’ the feminine vibes:metropolis_ladies2

Or just really want to make a statement:metropolis_ladies3

There’s something here for everybody.  I for one just couldn’t leave this amazing leather jacket behind:

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How gorgeous is that jacket? (was R1125) I actually can’t wait for the colder weather to kick in now… gonna rock this baby like it’s nobody’s business.

Oh my goodness, and don’t even get me started on their accessories.  I really had to hold myself back from buying up the entire store.

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Seen something you like?  Then you should definitely pay them a visit.  Like now. :)  I heard a rumour about a sale.  So maybe you can still catch some extra special deals.

NB info:

  • Address:  Located next to City Varsity, Shop 5 Mooikloof Centre, 34 Kloof St
  • Opening Hours: Mon – Fri: 9:00 am – 6:00 pm, Sat: 9:00 am – 4:00 pm & Sun: 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
  • Contact them on: Phone 021 827 1580 or Metropolis@live.co.za

Happy shopping folks.  You can totally blame me if your bank manager asks what the hell happened to all your savings…

xxx

Dark Horse & Kingdom brings amazing things together under one roof

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The few weeks ago I told you about the new Woodstock Exchange in Albert Rd.  It’s the new home of Superette as well as lots of other great creative spaces and a definite must see if you’re looking for that something different for yourself or your home.

Anyways, I went back for another visit recently because there’s this shop called Dark Horse & Kingdom which I fell in love with the first time I saw it and I just had to go back to take some piccies to show you guys what amazing things they have…

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Now as the name would suggest, it’s actually two labels sharing one roof.  Dark Horse is a Cape Town based design studio which makes beautiful leather goods and some rather quirky furniture (oh and their actual studio has also found a new home at The Woodstock Exchange – you’ll find it on the first floor).  Whereas Kingdom searches the world (think India, Morocco, Europe, etc) for unique treasures and then brings them together in one store for you to explore without having to fork out any travel costs yourself.  How much do  you love that?

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Some of the Dark Horse leather goods. Absolutely love that leather laptop bag.

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Some great South African finds are also included in the Kingdom stock. This is such a great place to find that “talking piece” you’ve been searching for.

The store also stocks a small fashion selection for both ladies & gents:

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They source Dutch labels and such. So again, in keeping with the “something different” theme.

Guys will especially love their selection of panama hats, leather bow ties and poor boy caps to create that perfectly suave, vintage look:

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And girls will love their wide range of fun & striking accessories:

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I was lusting over quite a few things.  But the following were my absolute favourites:

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Beaded clutch – R800.  Paired with a sexy LBD, yes please.

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Art piece – R860.  I know, they look kinda sad… But that’s exactly why I had an undying want to take them home with me!

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Didn’t get the price of these art deco style cups & saucers. But how stunning are they? Almost too pretty to use, but I definitely would.

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Colourful sling bag – R660.  I’d be the most fashionable person at the next music festival for sure.

But sadly I’m currently trying to save up for something quite big I can’t talk about just yet… so I had to leave these beautiful babies behind. :(   ** my heart has a big hole in it now ** 
But maybe you guys can go shop there and then tell me what you got and that way I’ll just vicariously shop through you?
  
So to recap:
 
  • You’ll find them at:  66 – 68 Albert Rd, Woodstock Exchange Building, Ground Floor Retail – Unit AG09
And their opening hours are Mon – Fri 10am to 4pm and Sat 10am to 3pm.  Go spend, spend away! (I’m totally envious)

xxx

Indiemode online fashion store teaser

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There’s a new online fashion player on the horizon.  It’s called Indiemode, their home base is here in Cape Town, and they’re due to launch on 31 Aug.  My retail therapy addicted soul is smiling big time. :)  

It’s going to be focused on the ladies (sorry boys!), but hey, who knows what the future brings…  They will also be focusing on proudly South African designers only, so think all things with that unique SA flair, locally produced and original.  In this way, Indiemode will be providing a platform for our local brands & designers to get some much needed exposure.

If you are a local designer who wishes to showcase your things on Indiemode, you can contact their project manager, Dani Jibrail at dani@indiemode.co.za

They already have a whole host of local talent who will be featured with their launch.  They include:

Oh and looky looky, you’ll even be seeing me striking a pose or two. ;)

Duck Egg – not just something you can eat, also a colour you’ll be wearing this summer…

Check out their Facebook page or follow them on Twitter for more info.  Or pop on over to their website and subscribe so long, that way you’ll know immediately when the site is up.

xxx

City Bowl market update

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I popped into the City Bowl Market on Hope St market again recently – mainly to check out their Fashion Market, but I ended up leaving with a solid stash of foodie treats.  I’ve realised that you can’t clothing shop when you’re cold (and it was VERY cold that day), all your body really craves is fattening things to help you defrost dammit! ;)

The other problem was also that the fashion market had mostly vintage clothing and I’m sadly not a fan.  Don’t get me wrong, I love the idea of finding some awesome fashion gem, maybe even a fabulous designer item from way back when.  But the thought of wearing someone else’s clothes just totally freaks me out.  I certainly don’t want some lady haunting me because I took her Burberry coat or something.  Way too much stress…

One thing that did catch my eye though were these Cape Town suburb name tag necklaces from Two Birds with Some Stones:

You guys know I just love anything Cape Town themed…  I was very tempted to get the Bellville one.  That way I could wear it to work and get some street cred (I work in the Northern Burbs).

Other things of theirs I also loved (I’ve taken piccies from their website cause I didn’t get great shots on the day):

Wood & silver necklace

Mesh neck piece

Imported watch glass pendants

Etched silver rings

Beautiful right?  I love how intricate their pieces are…

Then my stomach started grumbling and I decided to hop on over to the food area where I first went crazy with cheese & bread:

I felt like I was having a major “Heidi” moment.  Anybody else watch that show as a kid?  She lived in the mountains with her grandpa and used to chow down on the most delicious looking cheese & bread every single day.  Even in cartoon form it looked soooo damn good. And she never got fat, lucky girl. :)

I figured I would balance out the massive carb attack with some good-for-ya dried fruits from By Nature:

Perfect to mix into your muesli or yoghurt, or even to sprinkle over salads.

And then I rewarded myself for being such a healthy girl with some of these babies by Swoon Treats:

OK OK, so the healthy thing didn’t exactly last long… but macarons = happiness.

I didn’t like the “whoopie pies” – but I did like the pistachio & red velvet macarons.  At R10 they are a bit pricey, but they’re also much bigger than your standard macaron.  My heart still belongs to Cassis Macarons, but these were nice to try for something different.

So even though I didn’t score big at the fashion market, I still scored big in the food department.   The City Bowl Market still remains a favourite of mine thanks to it’s relaxed feel and great variety of yummy things.  Do check it out if you’re in th area.  It’s open every Saturday from 9am to 2pm. 

xxx

Check out Lovisa for some cool accessories

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Australian jewellery & hair accessories brand Lovisa has opened a store in Canal Walk (lower lever, shop 144A).

A while back I was on a mission to find some bronze or dirty gold toned accessories.  I first stopped off at Accessorize, then Sass Diva – my two “go to” stores when it comes to accessorising. But I weirdly didn’t have any luck.  Slightly depressed with my unsuccessful shopping mission, I decided to quickly get a fast food fix at Steers to cheer me up (I loooooove their chips, it’s my shameful little secret – I usually end up scoffing them down in my car!).  Anyhoo, as I was heading towards the food court, I walked past this new Lovisa store and decided to give it a bash.

The store is very organised.  Everything is coordinated according to their specific colour scheme, which I love – makes things so much easier.  They also have everything from very casual to super smart accessories to suit your every need.  I would have loved to show you some piccies, but they have a rule against allowing pictures to be taken of the store.  So instead, I’ve stolen some images from their website to give you an idea of their goodies:

Cool right?  I ended up finding exactly what I was looking for.  I got a leaf design bracelet for only R130 and a spiral ring for only R100:

I’m very glad that I now have a 3rd option for fun, modern accessories.  I’m not really a long term investment piece kinda girl.  I like to constantly change things up and take some risks.  So it’s better for me to buy things I won’t mind tossing away in a few months time if the trend dies or if I just happen to lose interest.  So girls, if you’re like me, go check this spot out.  I’m sure you’ll love it too.

xxx

The Media 24 Shine/Skitter launch party

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Monday evenings are normally pretty dull in Cape Town.  I’m usually just happy that I’ve made it through the day without wanting to kill myself or someone else. (clearly I’m NOT a Monday person)

But not this week!  Leigh invited me along to the Grand Cafe & Beach in Granger Bay for an evening of fabulousness at Media 24′s launch of this year’s Shine/Skitter magazine – a magazine dedicated to “must have” jewellery and accessories that will have you going crazy like a little magpie on the hunt. ;)

Just FYI – you won’t be able to buy the magazine separately, but it will come bound with some of your favourite glossies:  Fairlady, Sarie & True Love.  Look out for it in December.

Now the Grand Cafe & Beach is a pretty impressive venue.  Opulent, over-the-top, quirky and fun are what these people live for:

From left to right: The indoors dining area; you can even shop for Grand inspired decor pieces; the eye catching bar area.

And then best of all, they have their own beach!  That’s just how they roll people…

How beautiful is that sunset?

Drinks wise, Jameson had you covered with their own little bar which came with hot ladies and all:

I actually used to be an alcohol promo chick myself back in my student days… hehe… it’s much harder than it looks you know & it paid better than being a waitress…

But being the high flying gals we are, Leigh & I opted to stick to the sparkly stuff.  We got to enjoy some premium Pongracz called Desiderius 2003:

At about R180 – R220 per bottle, it’s a bit pricier than a standard bottle of Pongracz, but it’s worth the extra bucks, trust me.

Media 24′s advertising sales manager, Yvonne Schaff welcomed the crowd and then kicked off the evening with a pretty amazing lucky draw.  Prizes included Lindt hampers, a weekend luxury stay, an Italian handbag and a necklace worth a pretty penny.

Next up Fairlady’s editor, Suzy Brokensha, talked about the intention behind publishing the Shine/Skitter magazine, even though our economy aint that great at the moment. She basically explained that she believed people needed something aspirational during tough times, something to remind us that there is still lots of beauty out there which we can celebrate and use as a means of escape.  I totally get it – I still won’t be forking out a couple of grand on a pair of earrings anytime soon – but I really do enjoy the “window shopping” for now.  And maybe once I can afford it, I will go back to that item I drooled over for hours on end in that magazine…

Next on the agenda was some of the designs from the PlatAfrica 2011 Design competition.  This year’s theme was “Platinum Romance” and the designers were asked to put together a romantic bridal collection.  The competition is open to professional and student designers alike, which means you get quite an interesting mix of entries.  From the classically beautiful to the edgy & fun.

Here are some of the models who were working the room, dripping in jewels (such a tough job hey ;) ):

Apologies up front – I could only match up some of the pieces to their designers:

  • Left:  Earrings & hair fascinator by Dorathea Annandale who came 3rd in the professional category.
  • Centre: Necklace (designed for the modern Chinese bride) by Catherine Slade from College of Cape Town who took 2nd place in the individual student category.
  • Right: Earrings by Kevin Palmer from Lazer Options – winner of the professional category.  And hair fascinator by Wilma Greyling of Stellenbosch University who took 1st place in the individual student category.  It’s a bit hard to see the detail of that piece on that shot, so here’s a close up:

I loooooove hair fascinators… so much better than those boring traditional veil things.

Ooogling all that beautiful jewellery worked up quite an appetite – but luckily the people running the show anticipated that and they whipped out a spread of delectable snacks:

Ta da!!!

On the way back to the bar for a re-fill of bubbly we started chatting to cricket boys Ryan Canning (who plays for the Cape Cobras) and Herschelle Gibbs (well we all know who he is right).

Actually funny story… I first met Herschelle about 6 or so years back on a flight to PE.  Now let me just explain that I’m not one of those chatty flyers – I really prefer to be left alone with my iPod and magazine – so I tend to get a bit cranky with people who insist on talking throughout the flight.  Anyhoo.  He sat in the seat behind me and kept trying to get my attention…  As I don’t follow cricket, I had no clue who he was at the time.   He asked me what I did for a living, I begrudgingly told him.  Then he told me that he plays cricket, to which I responded “Ag, that’s cute” – thinking to myself, its nice to have a hobby. haha.  On our way to collect our luggage, we was still on my case.  He asked for my number and said we should meet up for drinks while in PE.  I wasn’t having any of that…   All the while I didn’t notice the press photographers behind the glass and my mom waving frantically.   I said my goodbyes and headed off.  When I got to my mom she was like “Wat doen jy met Herschelle Gibbs!?!”  to which I replied “Wie de hell is Herschelle Gibbs!?!”  :)   My mom thought it was pretty funny. So ja…

Both boys were sporting some “war injuries”  – Ryan got a cricket ball to the face (ouch!) and Herschelle had a ball hit him so hard between two of his fingers, it split the webbing…ooooh, get goosebumps just thinking about it…

For all the other non-cricket followers: That’s Ryan on the left, me (not a cricket player) in the middle and Herschelle on the right.

It was then I noticed a MASSIVE bottle of Taittinger!  I rocked this stuff while living it up in France back in 2006.   It brought back so many great memories… The excitement lead to an impromptu photo shoot:

Taittinger, for when you’re feeling serious about your champers, or just feeling a little off beat…

Clearly we had a great time. :)   A huge thanks to Media 24 and all the sponsors for making my Monday one to remember.

And as if all of that wasn’t enough – we also got an insane goodie bag on our way out.  Check it:

There’s a small bottle of bubbly, a heart pendant necklace from American Swiss, a Mercedes-Benz magazine, the Shine/Skitter magazines,  Lindt Petits Desserts – Mousse au Chocolat Dark & 25ml Panache Liquid gold perfume.   Then to top it all off, a massive perfume extravaganza consisting of sample sizes of the following:

  • L’Eau D’Issey Florale, Miss Dior Cherie, Jimmy Choo Eau de Parfum, Guess Seductive, Lanvin’s Marry Me,  Elemis Eau de Parfum, La Prairie Life Threads Silver, Burberry Body, & Guerlain Shalimar
  • And even two men’s samples for Ted Lapidus Black Soul & Mont Blanc Starwalker.

I’m like totally sorted for months now!  High 5 to myself!  Will probably need to start doing a “Today I’m wearing…” post. hehe.  Leigh will vouch for the fact that I’m utterly boring when it comes to fragrances, so maybe this will be my turning point…

xxx

Exploring the Hope St market

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It’s official name is the City Bowl Market and it’s situated at nr 14 on Hope St in Gardens.  Actually, just a 2min walk away from my apartment!  Sweet… :)

As you enter the market, you’re greeted by fresh flowers, fruits & veggies:

Even fresher than Woolies!

The market is split into two areas:  Downstairs you’ll find plenty of yummy food stands and upstairs there’s a small bar and then clothing, decor & jewellery stands.

Bring on all the good stuff...

You’ll find anything from freshly baked breads, homemade jams & pestos to ready-to-eat quiches, gourmet sandwiches and build-you-own omelettes (also check out the omelette hottie):

Hmmm... So many yummy options... and the food options were pretty good too... ;)

But we totally lost our brains when we discovered Saszali Chocolates!

Hold me back people...

Carefully handcrafted, beatifully packaged, 15 delicious flavours… I was in heaven.  We decided to splurge out on a box of 4 for R50.  I went for the following flavours:

  • Citrus Blossom: natural orange flavour, encased in the rich dark 70%
  • Twilight: a fusion of white chocolate, Malibu and pineapple
  • Noisette: filled with a hazelnut praline
  • Golden Thyme: a centre infused with fresh thyme and drizzled with plenty of honey

Just check out how absolutely beautiful their packaging is!  This is the little box your choccies come in:

They also have wooden boxes for larger selections as well. And also a super cute singlet box and gift bags.

And then once you open it up, you find your amazing little treats, individually wrapped each with it’s own little flavour story included:

To pretty to eat! OK, that's a lie... they didn't last very long...

And trust me, they taste just as good as they look!  It’s the perfect gift idea for any sugar lover out there.   I’m certainly going to be getting myself a couple of “gifts from me, to me”. ;)

The one thing I really liked about this market was that it’s not as crowded as the Neighbourgoods Market at the Old Biscuit Mill.  But then again, I guess it’s just a matter of time before it becomes just as “hip” and popular.

Lots of seating place to sit enjoy your goodies

I was totally in awe of the cheese & cured meats on offer…  I love cheese & parma ham!   Mmmmm…. Just look at these amazing blocks of “boere kaas”:

If I got them all, would that be too much? Nah...

Oooh, and look at these lovely looking salads – which you could have “on a plate” for R45 or “in a pita” for R35:

Yum, yum, yum!

But as fresh, healthy and tasty as that looked… I was on a serious mission to indulge in all the “evil stuffs”…  One option was these delicious looking cupcakes:

Come to mama...

But then… the ultimate treat… pancakes! Mr Pancake Perfect himself, Siegfried Kitching, was there serving up fluffy & sweet perfection:

Took me back to my childhood... I used to loooove those "kerk bazaar" pancakes the church ladies used to serve up...

Next we headed upstairs. Now I’m not a vintage clothing person (it just slightly creeps me out that someone else has worn the clothes), but if that is your thing, then you’ll find lots of treasures here.

Just make sure you have enough time to 'hunt' for that perfect item

I was excited to see the Jam stand – they sell “beautiful things with love”. I’ve seen some of their things in little decor shops and I especially love their heart shaped wooden cutting boards.

I'm a total sucker for anything with a ♥ on it

As for the jewellery options – I was fascinated by Zoe Designs.  Designer Helen du Toit makes beautiful, unique rings with antique teaspoons and cake forks:

Such a cool idea!

These next ones have been hand cut with pretty designs.  The bowl of the teaspoon forms the accent part of the ring:

Absolutely gorgeous...

Some other fun things were the oh-so-pretty brooches from Bow Peep:

Loved the mix of fabrics. They do hair accessories & buttons as well.

But after all those creative vibes, our brains needed a break, so we checked out the little bar area:

Take some time out to do a wine tasting, or sample on of the beers from several interesting microbreweries.

Here you get a nice view of the ground floor, you can see at this point it was really buzzing:

I'm watching you market goers... mwhahahahaha...

For me, it was a bit too early for wine or beer.  So I rather opted for a flavour packed cappuccino:

Coffee that packs a punch! It was brilliant.

I have to say though, they do need more than just one coffee stand.  That queue was loooooong and there’s nothing worse than cranky caffeine freaks. haha

But that’s it people.  Go check it out.  It really is quite charming, and seeing as it’s pretty much right on my doorstep, I will be visiting it frequently I’m sure.

xxx

Check out my Sass Diva loot!

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I just have to show you guys all the cool stuff I snatched up at Sass Diva!!!

Now I’m not one of those girls who would spend an absolute fortune on a “statement piece” of jewellery.  I prefer to have lots of fun, relatively inexpensive pieces – items that I could easily toss away once I get bored of them.  I think I have some major “long term committment” issues… ;)

So that’s why Sass Diva is so perfect.  They specialise in well priced, trendy fashion accessories and I love that the shop is divided into colour coded areas (it soothes my OCD soul).  I usually shop at the one in Canal Walk shopping centre (upper level, close to Matrix sunglasses).  But there’s also a shop in Cavendish Square & and another one in Tygervalley Shopping centre.

OK, on to what I got!  My favourite piece is this snake bracelet:

Channeling Cleopatra maybe? Hmmm...

Then I have a weird obsession with owl jewellery at the moment.  I already have a long, silver owl necklace which I wear ALL THE TIME.  So when I saw this golden baby, I just couldn’t resist!

Hello there cutie pie!

The next set of earrings is a bit “Black Swan” inspired.  If you haven’t watched that movie yet – why the hell not!?!  It’s freakin’ awesome.  And really hectic.  Plus there’s a hot lesbian scene for the boys!  Anyhoo, I digress… check out the earrings:

I also a got a new really sharp metal nail file... mwhahahahaha... watch out people!

I also felt like getting in touch with nature, so I got this pretty leaf necklace:

Leaf my necklace alone... haha... couldn't resist that total nerd joke.

And lastly, a pop of colour for summer:

Just love this colour... so fresh.

All 5 items together came to only R540! How awesome is that!?  Just love it… that leaves more money for shoes and bags and dresses and did I already mention shoes? ;)

Chat soon bitches. xxx

The Pause Room gets me again!

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WARNING – guys will probably find this post pretty boring… haha.  But if you want to be better gift givers (and I know most of you are pretty crappy when it comes to that department – sorry, but it’s true), then you better read on!

OK, so I have a serious problem… there is this shop in Gardens Shopping centre called “The Pause Room”… and I want to own EVERYTHING they sell there!  I am drawn to that shop like a moth to a flame… my brain just turns into mush and I can just stand there for hours, staring at all the pretty, shiny things while drool is dripping out of the side of my mouth. :)

They stock lots of beautiful decor items, handmade ceramics, bath goodies, jewellery, hand bags and… well pretty much anything a girl could ever desire (except shoes).

Just look at how damn pretty this shop is:

You see what I'm dealing with here?

Here you have a closer view of some of the ceramics & jewellery – oh and they also have the coolest gift tags & cards!

I want that, and that, and that and...

This is what you see as you enter the shop:

You will not leave here without a purchase... they will suck you in!

And here is the awesome bath & body goodies wall:

If only my bathroom was big enough to hold all this loot...

This also happens to be a favourite shop of mine to pick up birthday gifts for friends & family.  Although, every time I buy something as a gift here – I do end up going through a bit of an internal battle… “Should I just keep it for myself?  It’s soooo pretty. They will never know… I can just give them soap on a rope instead…”  haha. Mostly I am able to go through with it and let these special items go to another home.  But I do clench onto that package pretty damn hard before finally handing it over.

Here’s some of their ceramic items that I already have at home – I totally love this red heart range of theirs with these beautiful sayings on them:

"Love with your whole heart and soul..."

Some smaller bowls:

"Home is where the heart is" and "May your home be filled with love & laughter"

And finally, the new addition to my collection, which I snatched up this evening!  Six of these stunning green heart mugs:

I heart my new mugs!!!

They weren’t cheap… but you have to remember that they’re hand made and crafted with love.  Say it with me… Aaahhhhhh. :)    I had my first cup of tea in one and it tasted better than ever!

SALE ALERT:  The Pause Room sale kicked off today and is running until Saturday!  So what are you waiting for!?!  Get your asses over there!  Sadly my lovely mugs weren’t part of the sale… but I didn’t really care!  I still really really love them…

Anyhoo, let me know if you wanna come over for a spot of tea! (or even a coffee – I could even spike it with something if you’d prefer) My fancy pants mugs are dying to be shown off…

xxx

PS: Forgot to mention – they do FREE gift wrapping. Yay!  Perfect for lazy folks like myself or for the men out there who think a plastic packet will do the job…