Tag Archives: pretty

My cousin’s Henna party

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With my cousin’s wedding fast approaching there have been lots of celebrations, especially the traditional kind. My sisters, mum and I were invited over for a henna party, which gives all the ladies and girls in the family and among friends a chance to have fun and enjoy good food and each others’ company.

The house and garden had been decorated to look pretty and flowery.

A marquee had been erected in the garden for us all, which included a colourful seating area for the bride as well as other lovely touches.

The bride was dressed in a beautiful green and gold outfit with some lovely accessories. The guests were also wearing some pretty outfits. I love these colorful bangles my sister was wearing.

The evening began with women giving the bride advice on what they thought was useful to know going into married life, which was interesting but also somewhat embarrassing! Then it was time for food and some folksong singing, with some putting henna on their hands too. As the guests made their way to leave at the end of the evening they were handed boxes of Pakistani sweets to enjoy.

We all were invited over for a second evening too. This one was much like the first but with some more colourful and pretty outfits. I especially liked the bride’s lovely traditional Pakistani outfit of yellow and green with accessories to complete the look.

There was some more folksong singing, but with a dolki (drum) this time to help keep everyone in the same beat, which the young girls played singing twinkle little star to.

Everyone had a lovely time and we are all looking forward to the wedding in a couple of days time.

Winter Lights 2019

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Canary Wharf is hosting it’s Winter Lights event again this year and last night was the first night it was on, so I, along with my sister and niece, went to see what colourful, creative displays would be on show.

Stepping out of the station we were greeted with one of the most popular displays. This consisted of coloured light balls hanging on wires in neat rows, changing colour in time with the rhythm of the music that was being played. It was quite surreal standing in the middle surrounding by these lights and really fun one. I did, however, find it really tricky trying to get a good photo.
I also thought the recycled plastic insects were interesting which didn’t have any light but the fluorescent paint made them glow. And the lit up hopscotch game made me think of when I used to play when I was younger (and yes I did have ago!).

Some of the installations had music or sounds to go along with them, like the lines making up the shape of a whale, which emitted whale noises and moved like one too. The fountains had playful music along with varying shapes and colours the shooting water made which I quite enjoyed.

One thing I noticed was that there was a lot of colourful pieces this year. The lit up, colour changing maze was one, and was quite fun, but the other piece I really liked were the beautifully colourful prisms, that you could spin to create a reflective effect. These were also tricky to photograph as people kept spinning them really fast but I finally got a decent shot. Next we walked up to the square filled with glowing, colourful trees making them seem almost dreamlike. This one was nice just to sit and look at, giving us a chance to have a little rest.

I think one of the most clever and interactive installations was the colourful bench that when you put your hand on the sensor showed your heartbeat in lines and patterns along where you were sitting. I also liked the animal silhouettes that walked along the water edge with corresponding animal sounds playing around you, something simple but effective.

It took us a few hours to find all the installations, by which point we were pretty cold and tired, but we did all really enjoy the event. The Winter Lights event is on for 2 weeks and I would definitely recommend if you happen to be around. Just remember to wrap up.

Hello there

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Some of you may have noticed that I disappeared for a while. I managed to annoyingly, break my laptop and have just had it fixed and returned. I’ve been up to lots of things these last couple of months, which I will post about soon, but for now, I’d like to say hello and share this photo of this beautiful purple rose, which is not only an unusual colour but smelled amazing.

Eid-al-Fitr 2018/1439: Eid Mubarak

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Eid Mubarak to Muslims around the world celebrating Eid-al-Fitr after a month of fasting. I hope you all have a day full of happiness, love and blessings 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.

Winter Lights 2018

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The Winter season in London can sometimes feel long and cold, but to help brighten it up there have been a couple of light events to make the most of it getting dark early. There was Lumiere London which had art installations scattered around central London, and there was also a similar event held in Canary Wharf, which was just as great. This event was also held last year which was very good, so I was looking forward to this year’s.

One windy evening my sister and I headed down to see what was on show. There were installations indoors ad well as out but we decided to do the ones outside first. There were some really interesting ones that I really liked, such as Halo which was a ring of lights and to make it even better it was suspended above a pool of water giving it a nice reflection. My favourite was the wonderful Dodecahedron which you could also climb into to take in the stunning colours. The huge inflated, lit up rabbit was also cute I thought. There were also pieces that interacted with music or with movement by people that was interesting.

Once we’d seen all the installations outside, we headed indoors to see the ones displayed there as well as warm up, as we were freezing. I thought these ones were even lovelier than the ones outside. There was wearable fashion such as a dress with LEDs and a clutch that you could have words appear on.

One that was really intriguing, simple and so effective were the giant, colourful, bubble-like balloons hanging from rods. They were made from plastic strips and as they retracted and expanded they changed shape as they spun. My absolute favourite though, were the colourful mosaic lanterns that cast beautiful light patterns on the walls and ceiling. I did suggest it could be my next birthday present but I don’t think my sister will be taking it as they were quite pricey.

There were a few we couldn’t find but having wandered around Canary Wharf for long enough we decided it was time to go home. I thought this light event was really good, and I feel lucky to be able to see such great art installations close to home, which certainly helped brighten up the winter nights.

Enchanting Doorways

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I recently went around London to visit some locations that are very popular as they’re pretty and eye catching. Here’s some that I thought were great.

I started in Kensington at this cake shop. The outside was very charming with it’s pastel pink and quaint tables and chairs. The arch of flowers and pumpkins was very seasonal and made for a grand entrance to the inside where there were some delicious looking treats.

Nearby was a bakery which was also looking very Autumnal with an archway that represented the harvest at this time of year.

Next I went to see a very picturesque house that was painted immaculately in white with the shutters and door painted in a popping pink.

Walking to the station I came across a lovely restaurant with a flora and fauna decorating the front with a well placed bicycle to add to the look. There were also other well kept doorways and walkways and of course the huge beautiful building that is Harrods. The best thing I saw all day though, was a huge suspended rhino above a jewellery shop. It looked surreal and it really made me smile.

I can see why some of these locations are sought after and busy, and it’s always nice to come across something unexpected too. I have more photos of other locations that I visited, that I will post soon.

WPC: Vibrant mosaics

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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.

Pretty Fuchsia

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flower drop
These pretty pendant flowers are called Fushia but have also been known to be called Ladies eardrops. They remind me of my childhood, of when I would squeeze the pod open between my fingers before nature could, and loving the little ‘pop’ sound they made (I don’t do it anymore though!). We still have some in our garden today and I love the bright colour and memories they bring throughout the year.
I’d love to hear what flowers make you smile or have a special place in your memory