Victoriana

The Victorian era is one of my favourite periods in history, being a fascinating mix of cultural repression, refinement, and subtle decadence. I can trace my love for it right back to my childhood, when I went on the school trip to St Fagans. St Fagans is a history-come-to-life sort of place, and is a fantastic place to go for the day. It was one of those school trips where you dress up. I wore a white pinny and a ruffled hat. We spent a whole day in costume, having Victorian lessons, playing Victorian games, having a very serious picture taken, etc. (I seemed to confuse being serious with being an aggressive owl). Wonderful stuff. I heartily recommend going, whatever your interest in history.

These pieces have been chosen in part for their authenticity, and in part for their innovation. You might have noticed that the theme is not "Victorian" but "Victoriana", which I think leaves a certain amount of leeway in terms of design and function. Victorian-inspired, then, instead of Victorian replicas. Victorian Victorian Victorian. Ooh, that word looks odd now.

 ~♥~ VICTORIANA ~♥~ 

         

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Cars

This blog post is in celebration of my luvverly talented partner passing his test to become a driving instructor. I don't pretend to understand anything about cars, or have much of an involvement with them very much beyond "ooh shiny" or "oh, what a stupid colour", but there is something very appealing to me about the idea of the car, of freedom and travelling. I don't know how to drive partly because driving scares me and I spook too easily, like a tripped-out horse, and partly because I spent the money I would have spent on driving lessons on going to Viet Nam and being a teacher for a year.

These car gifts are nice for someone who has just passed their test, or for someone who just likes them! Some of these gifts are great for children, and some are great for adults.

~♥~ CARS ~♥~

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