Steampunk kaleidoscopes

On my recent wander around London I came across Piccadilly Market. I don’t normally go to this part of London, so I decided to have a look around. There were lots of unique things to look at and buy, from hand crafted pop up cards and precious gems to pocket watches and stamps. What really captured my attention though were the steampunk kaleidoscopes. I’ve always loved kaleidoscopes, the lovely colours and the endless patterns that emerge from so simple an idea using mirrors, reflections and beads.

Steampunk kaleidoscopes

Steampunk kaleidoscopes

As I loved them so much I couldn’t walk away without buying one. I decided on a keyring version as I felt it was a more sensible size, plus I could have a peek whenever I felt like.

Steampunk kaleidoscopes keyring

And just to give you an idea here’s some (blurry, sorry) shots of what I can see through the tiny eye hole.

Kaleidoscope pattern

Kaleidoscope pattern

The kaleidoscopes keyring is a nice addition to my set of keys and I’m glad I came across it so unexpectedly.

The BFG dream jars

One of my favourite authors as a child, like many others’, was Roald Dahl. He was a great story teller with a wild imagination and told of gory and funny tales which really won him over with young people. One of his best known stories The BFG was released as a film in cinemas recently, and to coincide with this and his 100th birthday, London celebrated by placing 50 dream jars containing various celebrity dreams on trails to be discovered and enjoyed. The jars will then be auctioned off and the money raised given to charity. In the past London has scattered bears, elephants, eggs, buses and more in a similar fashion.

As this was something that was close to heart and home my sister and I decided to go looking for some. We started at Marble Arch and ended up at Embankment, we walked for about 6 hours and discovered so many other parts of London that we just don’t get round to seeing.

My favourite was the one by Steven Spielberg, because who doesn’t love a tall tower of endless ice cream, cakes and sweets! Other ones that I really liked was Sophie Dahl’s dream by the sea and Dame Helen Mirren’s giant oak tree.

Steven Spielberg

Here are the rest that we found (click on image to see full picture).

I would have loved to have been able to find more (such as Quentin Blake’s or Steven Hawking’s) but we ran out of time and energy. We really enjoyed the day out and the creative dream jars, taking us along paths that we would never usually follow. I hope they raise lots of money for charity and I can’t wait to see what the next objects scattered across London will be.

Trolls

Trolls

As a child I loved trolls, they were these weird looking miniature things with long, soft, brightly coloured hair. This year it seems that all things from the nineties have come back in fashion, from crop tops and spirograph to yes, these trolls. These slightly updated versions were spotted in central London and brought back fond memories. I think I need to get some now.

WPC: Vibrant mosaics

Colourful mosaic

I love the vibrant, fun colours of these mosaic tiles, each with unique patterns and details. Some might find these gaudy but I think they look really interesting with lots going on and they really capture my attention.

Delicious Eid party

At the end of Ramadan we celebrate with a festival called Eid-al-Fitr with family, friends, good food and gifts. Evey year my sister, as an extension of this celebration, throws a Eid party for her friends. This year guests were asked to bring a dish with them for the party; whether it was a starter, main or dessert, my contribution being chocolate dipped strawberries.

Guests brought with them an array of foods from different cultures and tastes that we all shared and enjoyed. With the addition of pretty outfits and accessories I can say that we all had a great time.

Eid-al-Fitr 2016/1437: Eid Mubarak

Attar perfume bottle

Happy Eid to Muslims around the world celebrating a well earned Eid-al-Fitr after a month of fasting. I hope you all have a day full of happiness, love and blessing as well as lots of delicious food. Lets also be sure to remember all those who continue to suffer around the world, may they find peace and ease soon and may we all be grateful for everything we have.

Roaring good cake

My recent trip to the farm was fun and interesting and once my family and I had seen all the animals we headed over to my sister’s house to get some rest and some delicious food. Once we were all fed and relaxed it was time to cut the birthday cake my sister had made for her daughter. Weeks of preparation had gone into making the cake and the end result was brilliant. It was colourful, fun and neatly fitted into the theme of the day; animals.

Animal birthday cake

My sister made all the animal cake figures from scratch as well as the cake and the matching cupcakes. I love all the details of the animals and how the rest of the table was tied in with animal toys scattered around the table and animal characters on the cups, plates and napkins.

Once the candle was lit and blown out by the birthday girl we all tucked in, and enjoyed a cake that tasted as good as it looked.

I wish the birthday girl good health, happiness and love for all the years ahead of her.

Neal’s Yard

Neal’s Yard is a bit of a hidden spot in the center of London, it’s colourful buildings lead you to a quiet square where you can have a nice meal and a refreshing drink. On the day my sister and I visited it was lovely and sunny, making the colours really pop and the Yard inviting and relaxing.

Neal's Yard

Horizons

I’ve been thinking about broadening my horizons recently and to get more feedback on my photos, hoping to improve on my skills. In light of this and after much thought, I have joined Instagram, seeing as it’s a platform specifically for photos. You can find me under the ‘everyphototunity‘ tag or you can continue finding my photos here. Any feedback or comments on my photos are welcome as well as any tips that you think would be useful.

In the theme of ‘broadening horizons’ here’s a photo of a beautiful rainbow that I was lucky to see on a wet and very windy Easter break.

Rainbow