Secrets of a Butterfly

Forget me nots

Hi dear friends...because of health and healing reasons I won't be able to post for awhile. so thought I best let you know that's why I am needing to take some time away from my blog. Till we 'meet' again I hope you can keep me in your thoughts now and then -you will be in mine, I will miss our moments together here but it's just too much for me to post for now. thankyou so much to those who support & understand and who like my little place here online it means such a great deal and I won't be gone forever. "forget me nots" and love kathryn x

Summer's grace

Saturday's showcase: I, along with so many of you adore the photostream of Kristybee on flickr. If you havent seen her yet, then don't worry you can find her, at her blog  on redbubble for cards&art and at Etsy for photos too. Her work has its own unique identity,(if i come across one on flickr i most often immediately know if its hers)many look as if they have been washed in a pastel hue, roses are a favourite focus, there is an eloquence and grace to every picture.

And in her own words " I've been into photography for many years. I love the everyday ordinary beauty in life. I have an incredible love of light and I try to show that in my work. My photos have a dreamy quality to them so they may have some grain or blur, which lends to the dreamy feeling I try to achieve.

I'm a jeans, white t-shirt, flip-flops kind of girl. Slightly obsessed with everything French, Bookstores and books, Photography, My Garden, Coffee, Vintage cameras, Sundresses, The beach, The sun, natural light...and the color white.  I love life and my two beautiful daughters :D"
and we love your photos Kristy, Kat x

Live by the sun, Love by the moon

1. Live by the sun by Chrissie White via Daydreamlily (a fabulous blog)
2. mood board found on Loveology (another fabulous blog) here
3. Esmee dress new season at Plumo
4. Venetian heart bracelet also Plumo

This is no.1 in a new series of posts i'd like to keep called Four Finds, feedback always appreciated kx

Jewels on the beach

Congratulations Moa  who won the florabella print today, she chose Spring Pastles above. and how cute is Shana's little girl  Sasha Lilli looking at the beach! check her out here

you may have noticed my quietness as i havent been up to posting on here for a while, it actually feels like alot longer than the 10 days since i set up the giveaway below( that closed today). its been tough and i'm missing you and our chats, so hoping that i'll be up, writing again and keeping you company here more often, we shall see how it goes. take care and don't become strangers will you, love kat x

Win a Florabella print

 

 I have a fantastic giveaway today from Shana-Rae! A gorgeous fine art photographic print of your choice(mounted to matboard & sprayed with protective lustre coating in 11x14 or 12x12 size) any floral image can be yours from her stunning Florabella Collection . I have made up these mosaics to showcase just a handful of the stunning photographs that you could choose from.You can also see more from Shana at her beautiful blog. If you would like to enter the giveaway its as simple as can be! Just leave a comment on this post with the name of the print you like best,(names are to be found in the gallery on the florabella site) very best of luck, i will announce the winner in 10 days time!so get your enteries in before 12pm BST on 21st august, kat x

 

Loving Alexa's style

 image credits please click here

Oh i wish our MTV was the same as the States version, then we'd get the lovely Alexa Chung's new show "Get it on " She has had some great guests, here she is with Sienna above, and it'd be worth watching just to check out her wardrobe! But thanks to flickr i can at least browse some of her looks from over the years and here's a collection i made up of "blues" for you to swoon at too, if its also your sorta thing! who's your style crush do share?? kat

 images credited here

Into the garden

 

 Saturday's flickr showcase is the beautiful work of Shanon,known as MyFine Garden. Color texture and flowers in natural settings, spring to mind when i think of Shanon's stream of photos. So many of her pieces go into my favourites.I think her love for the garden as a special magical place to be or visit, shines through in her images. They capture something of the beauty of the whole setting even if they are a close up of a certain flower. 

Shanon also just happens to be as nice as her photos and as pretty as you can see from the self portrait left. i decided to start adding the picture of the photographer as i think it adds that extra personal touch, when we can see the face behind the lens.

I am so enjoying compiling my mosaics of the photographers that i am drawn to.I hope you find the work of those featured as inspiring as i do.

Shanon lives in Minneapolis in the States.(not in the house shown above,incase that was the impression given, though i bet she wishes that she did!) you can visit her on flickr and her blog My Fine Garden and purchase prints from her little etsy shop

Shanon says ..."I was born on my Great-Grandma Emma's birthday. She had an amazing garden in her little backyard in rural Minnesota. I grew up, lived on the coast of California, and down south in Georgia. Flowers are universal. They speak the same language wherever you go. My art attempts to captures the personality of the flowers I've seen and photographed. Of course I've snuck in many other subjects as well... as beautiful and wonderful as flowers are, we must investigate everything!
I'm drawn to cotton candy colors. I love light and a good diptych. I can talk about flowers all day and I'm sad when I can't garden. I believe life is what you make it, you can write your own story. And I know there is magic in my little cottage between the lake and the falls. "

love n wishes to you Shanon and everyone reading today,thankyou for the comments on the post below, a personal one, so they are appreciated all the more, kat x

A special note

Have you ever come across a letter or a note from a loved one thats passed away, and found the words so fitting for that present moment that its as if they've just been written to you for that day. This happened to me recently with the note above from my Grandma who many of you know we lost in March. I have been missing her and my Granda a great deal. Especially when i see things i want to share with her, like the sweetpeas above in the collage or the fact the butterflies are returning to the back garden here. seeing her words about the garden and getting stronger in time gave me comfort.

I have been spending as much time there as possible because its so helpful for my recovery. I feel most at home when i'm in surroundings such as a garden, it soothes me and must make a difference to whats healing. I tend to rest there as much as possible as at the moment i can't get out and about. Its been this way for the past 3 months or so, and this is the longest spell of added exhaustion and other things, that i've had since my upturn in health in summer 06. It has been hard coping at certain times and also not doing as much as i could last summer. Sometimes i'm wondering how long until i can do those things again,the nice things i got to do,but also the mundane everyday-ness that i miss. But the way i choose to look at it is, as a spell of restoring, rebuilding,on so many levels and i'm certain it won't be for long. But its just what needs to be right now. So that i can go onto better things once its healed that much,maybe even to regain capabilities that i previously hadnt been able to. Like Grandma said, who knows.

Before mid 2006,and through the 90's i spent many years in bed and missed many summers in our little back garden. So i still really appreciate it when i can get there. Plus i am in touch with many people who are more ill than i am and who a garden day would be their long held dream come true too.

So i thought i'd post up a few pics of just little corners of my special place, its all thanks to my dad that we have so many flowers. Lots of bees and butterflies(i was thrilled that this peacock butterfly stayed still long enough for me to take a photo,before this it had landed on my lounger) and birds like to visit with me and the rabbits are good companions too. They enjoy each others company more than the human touch. Its quite hard to catch them for a cuddle as they riggle if you hold them or run for cover to avoid getting picked up.Most often you'll find them nose to nose, or lying very close, despite the size of their run they'll nestle together as if there's only a few feet of space! funny things ( :

 oh by the way, before i go, i got this See by chloe skirt, a real treat in the sale at just £39 and the last one! Urbanoutiftters online again,how cool are they. it is actually a larger size than i'd have chosen but it just means i'm wearing it down on my hips instead of at my waist and i like it like that, as it gives it a bit more length on me. i just love the print almost as much as i love this lilacy blue flower ( : till next time take care xx

Its just Sew Cath Kidston

 

A brand new Cath Kidston Book is on the horizon,(jane did you hear?) i pre ordered at Amazon, i think its due Oct/Nov. there's also some new season stock in on the web shop, i picked out these little luxuries to share here. I am addicted to the little zip purses. I have about 3 but am always tempted by the new designs arent you? There's also a nice vintage floral duvet set, a less bright design than there has been in the past. exciting kxx

Treasures on etsy

I found these treasures while browsing on Etsy the other week and just thought i'd share them with you.kx

Peace dish   Wolf print   Deer bag   Butterfly&jug canvas