A Time for Indulgence...

Despite spending Christmas in a more tropical climate this year, I still can’t resist splashing out on Christmas traditions. There’s nothing Pashminas and Pearls loves more than feeling festive (albeit only in December – I know I sound Scrouge like, but it’s a little unnecessary Christmas departments opening in August!!), and think it’s so important to put up ‘tasteful’ decorations at home. There are such gorgeous wreaths available now there’s no excuse not to put one up – and also join in on the competitive nature that many people seem to feel when it comes to Christmas decorations! I don’t think my little flat would cope with a full size Christmas tree but I’ll definitely be getting a mini one to cram the presents around!

One thing I can’t resist is a ham on the bone. Having grown up with a ‘Christmas’ ham in the fridge and vivid memories of my father carving it throughout my childhood, I couldn’t bear the thought of the fridge being without it this year. I got straight onto the internet and went to the Dukeshill website. A foodie’s dream to be honest, and the Queen’s too as she’s given them her Royal Warrant! Only the best for Pashminas and Pearls.

The selection is mouth watering, with a wide range of choice, from Wiltshire ham to Yorkshire ham and even Shropshire! Then more decisions as to whether you want it on or off the bone. Fabulous photography makes the process even more mouth-watering and tempting. There is also a vast range of present ideas for foodie relatives and great to take as thank you presents for weekends away – from cheese to smoked salmon and even cakes and puddings.

I’ve put in my ham order and the odd other treat – all I’ll say is that Christmas is for indulgence!

Heading for winter sun...

Autumn has really arrived and I’ve waved good bye to all those yummy summer clothes I bought that sadly never saw the light of day. Luckily for Pashminas and Pearls, the banishment of the summer wardrobe is only temporary – no, I’m not moving to Australia, but I’m spoilt enough to be going on not one but two winter sun holidays!

The first is to The Oberoi in Egypt which I’ve already spoken about in a previous post (just Green Fingers and me). It hopes to be a thoroughly relaxing and romantic week away, with the odd bit of tennis and diving thrown in so as to keep GF occupied! Nothing worse than a whiney voice saying ‘I’m bored…’ while you’re just getting into a trashy novel.

The second (I’m trying very hard not to sound too smug) is to Antigua for Christmas and New Year. I’m lucky enough that GF’s family enjoy going abroad for Christmas and even more so that I’ve been invited too this year!

Two different holidays but both needing the same essentials. Top on my list were new bikinis. Seeing as out of the remaining ten weeks of the year, I’ll be spending three of them wearing bikinis (I’ll stop bragging soon…!), I felt it was justified spending money on a couple of great ones.

In the past it’s always been notoriously difficult to find a good choice of bikinis out of season, which either aren’t the unwanted sale items or that only have one or two in the collection. Luckily for me, I went to my bible that is http://www.sheerluxe.com/ and searched for bikinis – and there I stumbled across http://www.swimhut.com/. Fabulous is all I can say. Not only did they have a huge selection of brands, styles, colours, but they also have them at a range of prices and even have special offers on styles which aren’t left over from last season! There’s also the added bonus of free delivery and return which is always a huge plus point with on-line shopping, as well as express overnight delivery for those last minute panic buys! Also offering accessories such as cover ups, flip flops and towels, they also have a great range for the man in your life, so you can even guarantee he’ll make the right statement in beachwear too! Even better, Sheerluxe.com are currently running a promotion offering at 15% discount, so no excuse not to look good on the beach in the winter months.

A thoroughly satisfying shopping experience and I’m all set to go!

Domestic Goddess...?

Now that we’re properly settled into domestic bliss, I thought it was high time Green Fingers and I threw our first dinner party. With pictures finally up and our flat dust free, guest lists were drawn up and menus set. Wanting to show how Pashminas and Pearls could also be a domestic goddess, a successful dinner party was key ingredient. While seemingly effort and stress-free to your guests, the smoothest running and successful evenings are weeks in the planning, and are a finely tuned event!

Once you’ve got your ‘team’, so to speak, the next thing is move onto menus. There are obvious things to steer clear of I find, such as offal (and mushrooms when cooking for GF!!), there are always popular dishes which are sure to impress your guests. I made to die for mini sticky toffee puddings last weekend – simple, quick and easy, yet wickedly tasty and look fabulous! I love Delia's website - fountain of knowledge!!!!

Ocado is the saving grace when it comes to shopping for ingredients. I don’t know about you, but I always find I forget something crucial, even when I go prepared with a shopping list the length of my arm! Waitrose’s on-line store, Ocado, is fabulous, and takes the stress out of grocery shopping. You can take your time, avoid screaming children having temper tantrums in the middle of the aisle, and browse at your leisure! Each section is shown clearly, and you can do your shopping in categories as if you were actually cruising up and down each aisle. Booking times are so convenient too, with 1 hour slots, ranging from delivery costs of £0 to £3 – bargain I say!

Once the food, drink and guests are decided, it’s down to the final hours of preparation – the right level of lights, music, a beautifully laid table - fresh flowers or scented candles always make a lovely final touch too! Ipods are perfect for these evenings – when you’ve got a spare moment, rare I know if you’re anything like P and P, a dinner party ‘play list’ is essential, and means that you have never-ending music all evening, without having to change the CD!

The only thing not to look forward to now is the clearing up…which is usually left to the non-cooking half of the household I find, and when a dishwasher is an essential part of the kitchen!

Belle Maison...

I almost pulled out every hair on my head in desperation to find the plumber’s phone number. Typically just as the temperature drops, so does the pressure on my boiler, and I was in dire need of a man in the know when it came to my boiler. Green Fingers is a wizz with anything to do with the garden and DIY, but when dealing with gas I thought a professional was a little more reliable and have less chance of blowing the flat up!!

It was as I was rummaging through the third kitchen drawer and cursing how I always put important numbers in a ‘safe place’ and never being able to find them again, that I decided to sort out my ‘useful numbers and contacts’ and get things in order. Once the plumber’s card was eventually found and heat was restored again, I pulled out my trusty lap top and went straight to the fountain of all knowledge, www.sheerluxe.com. I thought that if I could get any ideas for somewhere stylish, yet useful, to store useful bits and bobs, that would be the first place to look.

Sheerluxe.com did not fail me. I came across a wonderful website www.bellemaison.com and found exactly what I’d been searching for…a stylish and pretty pinboard, which would not make my kitchen look like a student’s! The very thought made Pashminas and Pearls shudder. With a range of colours in gingham check with ribbon and button detailing, it was in my shopping cart as quick as my mouse would allow it, and I was already deciding where to hang it on my kitchen wall.

Once I’d gotten over the excitement of finding my purchase as quickly and easily as I did, I starting browsing through their online shop…the furniture is beautiful and the photography certainly helps you to imagine how fabulous it would look in your home – I’m already thinking of my next house and where I can fit their gorgeous Provencal dining room furniture!!

If, like me, you haven’t got the space for new furniture (be it on the credit card or in the house), the accessories are divine, reasonably priced and would make a fabulous treat for yourself!

D-Day...

The day had finally come when my sweet little flat was finally rid of builders and dust, and ready for Green Fingers and I to start enjoying domestic bliss together. However, I didn’t quite anticipate the stress ‘moving in’ would involve!

Pashminas and Pearls always takes great care with appearance - but this went out the window on the second trip up three flights of stairs, and too many broken nails to think about. (I was already wondering if the Nail Gallery on the Fulham Road could fit me in later today for damage control…!).

A birthday party the previous evening meant GF was feeling distinctly ‘average’ so rather than getting under my feet (and to stop him arranging too much boys ‘clutter’ around the flat) I dispatched him to Wandsworth Tip and Homebase to keep him busy for a couple of hours or so! I decided he was better off out of the way for the sake of both our sanity and our relationship!!

The hours passed quickly and by the time a tired, but excited, GF returned, you could almost have called the flat home. Thinking I had a more than ample supply of clothes, I was amazed by the competitive quantity that GF seemed to have, particularly when they started invading my side of the wardrobe! The bonus of being the ‘unpacking fairy’ is that the odd thing slips unnoticed into the charity shop pile – P and P is always one to donate to good causes!

I should’ve realised then that things were too good to be true…while emptying yet another bin bag (training has yet to begun…definite man job), the mobile and door bell went at once, just as the bottom of the bag split open – sawdust, wood shavings and rubbish everywhere. I think everyone within a three mile radius heard my expletives (which rarely happens I assure you!). GF went distinctly pale, while my mother was subjected to a torrent of abuse down the other end of the phone and was blamed for everything and anything that had gone wrong. It was a while before I realised the line had gone dead.

Deep breaths and a large vodka and slim line tonic later, the kitchen floor was clean (again!!) and D-Day was finally over. I’d planned to be the ultimate domestic goddess and effortlessly whip up a romantic dinner for two…but I’m ashamed to say that my trusted local Chinese friend, the fabulous Mandarin Star on Munster Road for you fellow Fulhamites, got an emergency call and we enjoyed our first evening together with a delicious Chinese take away and a bottle of fizz…Perfect!

Feeling broody...

When the new Autumn/Winter Boden catalogue dropped through my letter box the other day, I had to have all the restraint in the world not to put in a huge order and totally bankrupt myself (decorating the little flat ready for Green Fingers to move in to has cost me an arm and a leg)!

With their fabulous signature wrap around dresses and gorgeous knits, it’s easy to see how Johnny Boden (a name well known to every Pashminas & Pearls girl) has become so successful.
Rather than flicking aimlessly through the catalogue, I headed straight onto their online shop; you can get straight to where you want to look rather than sifting through pages.

Whilst window shopping - so to speak - I stumbled across the new baby Boden range. It’s quite simply to die for, and if I had a little person I’d have been unable to resist the gorgeous selection they’ve conjured up.

Luckily for Green Fingers, I’ve got two adorable nieces that I can spoil....for now! And with a birthday and Christmas coming up I went to town on the Baby Boden range.

I feel in love with this A line pinafore and secretly wish they did a more adult version, and the Teddy Button Through was just too cute not to buy too.
A well dressed baby is an absolute must when walking in the park or lunching with the girls , and Baby Boden is certainly the place.

A one stop shop from romper suits to snow suits (yes, they even provide for the March holiday to Meribel or Verbier!) – if you’re anything like me you’ll be unable to leave the site without feeling just a bit broody!

Be Inspired...

Despite the stress of having the little flat redecorated, the excitement of choosing new furniture has taken over!

Not being able to face spending hours of precious weekend time trawling furniture shops with the masses, Pashminas and Pearls decided to spend a mere fraction of that time looking at furniture websites from the comfort of my sofa.

I say furniture websites plural but being a huge fan of Oka online I headed straight there – and there I looked no further. ‘Green Fingers’ (significant other) has just splashed out on some Oka furniture for his pad – sofa, coffee table, lights to name but a few(!) so I’d seen some of their newer products in the flesh.

Oka’s website is fabulous – with products ranging from sofas and beds to accessories and fabrics - the quality of the photography gives you a clear and enticing idea of how stylish your own home can look.

I could have furnished a whole house, let alone my two bedroom flat! And for those lacking in imagination, there’s a section on the site called Be Inspired that shows great examples of their pieces working together – fab for some helpful hints.


I must admit I did get a little carried away – despite the best intentions of only getting a couple of new bedside tables (pictured) and a chest of drawers , my final check out also included two gorgeous lattice lamps and a veda rug that will match my curtains perfectly!
Money well spent I say!

Searching for Sun...

Fed up with the lack of summer so far, Green Fingers and I decided to go looking for the sun instead. Despite a week in Jersey ‘en famille’, the diary is looking almost as bleak as the Fulham sky.

Deciding enough was enough, after Pashminas and Pearls experienced another bad hair day in the torrential rain, I resorted to trawling through the websites, searching for some winter sun possibilities. It’s also going to be Green Fingers any my first holiday together so even more pressure to get it just right. Being seen in the wrong sort of hotel or resort would have done nothing for our reputation!!

After my initial suggestions of the Banyan Tree, Sandy Lane and any one of the One and Onlys being shot down with exclamations of ‘I wouldn’t pay that for a week let alone night!’, we decided on Egypt. Far enough for winter sun, but wouldn’t blow the annual electricity budget! I admit Pashminas and Pearls can be a little picky and fussy sometimes, but there really is no point in slumming it don’t you agree?

It was at this point frustration kicked in and the emails went flying to the luxury travel agents – the package holidays wasn’t quite what Pashminas and Pearls had in mind…Why this didn’t come to me sooner I don’t know. Within a day we had the perfect holiday all booked through Exsus Travel without the ‘stress and strain’ of having to do it ourselves. Take a peek at what we booked...The Oberoi.

Some may say Pashminas and Pearls is a touch on the spoilt side – I say it’s more a case of searching for perfection…that’s my excuse anyway!!

Party Preparations...

Boys definitely have it easy when it comes to going to black ties parties and weddings by simply putting on the dinner jacket or morning suit and then making the ‘tough’ decision of which shirt and tie to wear.

If only it was that easy for us girls!!

Not only do we have to find the perfect dress, shoes and bag to match, we’ve then got the pre-party preparations to deal with.

I had a lengthy and time consuming to do list to get through before a wedding I went to last week. Having found the outfit (see blog Dilemma), it was then down to the prep.

Being more of an ‘English Rose’ than a ‘California Tan’, it was straight to the beauty salon for a head to toe self tan. Having had previous disasters with spray tans (drips down legs…) and trying to apply them myself at home (I had to borrow tights from the host at a 21st once) it was straight to Gina Conway on the Fulham Road.

I opted for the all over sun kissed look. With the choice of either St Tropez or Aveda (a more natural tan – apparently) I went for the latter – the I’ve been tangoed look is smacks of Footballer’s Wives and isnt a look that Pashminas and Pearls goes for!

The added bonus of Aveda is that it’s clear, so popping down to Amuse Bouch for a couple of glasses of bubbles afterwards wasn’t a problem!

Next came the nails – I popped in to my favourite nail spot The Nail Gallery on the Fulham Road for a quick mani, and then just the day before, came the eyebrows.

With the day of the wedding on us, all that was left to do was the wash, blow dry and straightening of the hair. With my hair having a natural wave to it, hair straighteners are an essential in every weekend bag!

The final touches were then made – a pashmina and a set of pearls…what else?!

Online Temptation...

Pashminas and Pearls has just started writing a fortnightly blog on SheerLuxe.com. It’s a fabulous website full of goodies and ideas about shopping online whether you're shopping for fashion, for your home, for your children or even your pets! There's a great daily email with all that's hot too. Keep reading for Pashminas and Pearls’ first post!

LK Bennett was made for Pashminas and Pearls. A shoe or boot for every occasion, be it a wedge espadrille for a summer’s afternoon at the beach or killer heels for a drinks party, you need look no further than LK Bennett’s website.

The perfect outfit can be ruined by teaming it with the wrong shoes. However lazy or poor I’m feeling, Pashminas and Pearls will go to all lengths to find the ‘right pair of shoes’ to complete a look. Now, I can be lazy, save my newly pedicured tootsies and view an endless supply of shoes from the comfort of my sofa or, heaven forbid, my desk at work - LK Bennett has now gone online! Gone are the days when you’ve got to sit and wait your turn in a hectic shoe shop on a Saturday morning. The site is slick, simple and easy to use with great images of their shoes and boots, giving you the ultimate temptation.

I’ve got a wedding in a couple of weeks – found the perfect dress (was really rather spenny) and needed some fabulous to go with that weren’t going to break the bank and were going to still be on my feet by the end of the evening.

These are what I chose:

And these are what I’m getting next!:

The downside? Making it even easier to succumb to yet another pair of shoes!

Chinese Heaven...

After a long day of packing (redecorating my little flat isn’t quite as simple as I’d first envisaged…) a visit to the newly reopened Mao Tai on the New Kings Road was in order. Over exerting oneself at the weekend deserves a reward in my opinion, and given that Green Fingers is going to be landlord for the next three weeks (yes this could be make or break!) I thought he deserved a thank you too.

Fulhamites are blessed with a fantastic array of delicious eateries, so there’s really no need to leave the Borough – a relief after a stressful day! (When I started planning a face lift for the flat I’d had visions of me browsing Oka Catalogues over glasses of wine in the evenings…hadn’t reckoned on having to completely pack up, lug boxes and move out.)

Anyway back to supper… No Chinese restaurant compares to Mao Tai, although Green Fingers argues that a particular take away gives it serious competition. In my view, I tell him (and you too reader), that there’s nothing more fun than getting dressed up and going to a yummy restaurant with good company – Green Fingers goes silent at this point, realising he’s about to dig a very deep hole if continues this debate.

Anyway, after popping in on some fellow Fulhamites for pre-dinner bubbles (a great way to curb the carb cravings), we arrive at Mao Tai. Feeling a little envious that they were off to Tom’s Kitchen, (another Pashminas and Pearls fave – there she’s often to be found lunching with a girl friend and partaking in a bit of celeb watching), I was quickly picked up by a delicious cocktail and the mouth watering aromas wafting from the kitchen.

And feeling very much at home surrounded by many a girl in her pashminas and pearls, we promptly devoured unbeatable Chinese (the lettuce wrapped duck is quite simply to die for).

A great evening had by all. Didn’t know dining out with one’s landlord could be so fun!

Dilemma...

The age old dilemma of ‘what to wear' never seems to go away, though the wardrobe and credit card bill still seems to grow. The trauma of what to wear to this week’s wedding, Ascot or a summer drinks party is enough to drive you to drink!

Shopping’s always been a huge weakness of mine; I blame my mother for passing on her excessive shopping gene. I can walk into LK Bennett with the best intensions (one pair only) and then leave half an hour later with three! (Though Pashminas and Pearls couldn't possibly be seen in only one new pair all season – what would people think?)

The week’s shopping dilemma was a new wedding outfit. After perusing the old favourites and deciding they were so last year, I came to the conclusion something new and fabulous was needed; the credit card was going to be stretched once more.

Harvey Nics, where else I hear you say, didn’t know what’d hit it. Arm in arm with fellow Fulhamite/old school chum/personal shopper, we ploughed through concession after concession. (Girls in pearls aren’t known for their adventurous fashion sense, twin sets being more the norm!)

After four hours, thirty odd dresses (I could have bought the whole of DvF) and only a couple of foot stamping episodes, ‘the dress’ was finally found. The fact it was one of the first I tried wasn’t at all frustrating for anyone…!! Teamed with, you guessed it, pearls and a pashmina, we completed the look and our achievement for the weekend. (New pumps from French Sole were perhaps a little unnecessary but very useful and go perfectly with my new pash!).

The day was finished in true Pashminas and Pearls style with cocktails and pomme frites in Sophie’s Steakhouse. The steak is to die for, but who needs chateaubriand when you’ve got strawberry daiquiris and mojitos! Within spitting distance of ‘the Borough’ what more could you want?

Any dream will do...

Being an avid fan of ‘Any Dream Will Do’, I could barely contain my excitement when my Joseph tickets dropped through my letterbox. Daddy’s contacts certainly come in helpful in desperate times like these! It’s booked out until next March don’t you know…well the decent tickets are anyway.

Accompanied by ‘Green Fingers’ (if his friends ask 'I was dragged kicking and screaming'), we left the comfort of ‘the borough’ - Fulham, just to recap, on our latest cultural trip to the West End. It’s times like these when I remember why I rarely leave ‘the borough’. The stress of hordes of people – mostly tourists snapping their cameras and generally getting in the way, almost sent me over the edge. Until I found the safety of a cheap and cheerful Italian restaurant for a much needed sharpener.

Revived after a drink or two, we ventured into the theatre.

Despite the rustling of sweet wrappers and crisp packets (you’d have thought we were in the local cinema not a West End theatre) and the wolf whistling at Lee Mead in a loin cloth and not much else – which I must admit put a smile on my face, Joseph was brilliant and well worth the hype and effort to get the gold dust tickets.

…until the beginning of the second half when the stage broke. Our fellow theatre goers erupted into booing and moaning. I felt the same, but girls in pearls don’t heckle or jeer! Luckily for us (and the cast who I think would've been lynched by a disgruntled audience at the stage doors, particularly the chap in front of me who’s blood pressure seemed to have risen dangerously by the puce colour his face had gone…), the show did go on, albeit in concert style at the front of the stage.

And there finished our West End outing - a black taxi was quickly hailed - public transport twice in one day was far too much to deal with! I’d highly recommend Joseph – if only to oogle at Lee Mead’s freshly waxed and delightfully toned chest!!

Welcome

As this is my first blog I thought I'd give you a bit of background about me. Then you can see what kind of person I am and decide whether my life seems vaguely amusing / interesting / entertaining and whether it's worth the odd few minutes every now and when in need of a distraction from everything on the to do list.

Would love to hear all your comments...

Like any true pashmina and pearls protogee my younger years were spent at a typically sloaney prep school in Sloane Square, followed by boarding school in the Home Counties (the same one that a certain Princess has since attended) then University at Newcastle (should have been Bristol but I chose my social life over my A Levels - according to my father!!).

Fulham has been the borough of choice practically from birth. Membership of Hurlingham is as good as the country pad but without the tailbacks on the M3 or M4 on Sunday evenings. My sweet little two bedroom flat off the Fulham Road has been home since leaving university, (apart from a brief interlude ‘South of the River’ - Clapham you guessed it - that's too distressing to dwell on). My flatmate's a great friend from school (isn’t everyone’s?!) though half my time's spent at ‘Green Fingers’ – but more on him later!!

After University I starting working in the offices of a rather well known estate agent, where girls in pearls fit in best. Despite the social excitement of working with like minded people (there werent enought at Uni - even in the Toon) and five years of fun, I decided to seek my fortune, expand my horizons and use the brain cells which my friends say I have, and moved into the world of finance – where I'm still waiting to make my fortune and broaden my horizons. The office is only two moments walk from Harvey Nics though so that's a bonus in itself!

My ‘significant other’ or ‘Green Fingers’ as I like to call him, has been on the scene for six months now – based in Fulham as well, naturally, and setting up his own business as garden designer. Life in the 'borough' (Fulham) consists of dinner parties, drinks parties (the odd trip out to Ascot, Henley and the like) and eating out at our favourite SW haunts as well as trying out the newest eateries. Culture has a habit of slipping in now and then, usually involving bribery on my part! The phrase ‘I’m telling people you’re dragging me there’ is often used…!

So that's me in a nutshell. Hope you'll tune in for the next installment with Pashminas & Pearls.