Girl In The Pretty Dress

Quarry Bank Mill has fascinated me for a while. It's the most beautiful setting, but sadly it has a very dark past. It's story was recently told across two series of a Channel 4 drama called 'The Mill' - and it didn't always make for pleasant viewing. Filming of the drama took place at the mill itself - making it all the more realistic. On a Summer's day it's hard to imagine how tough life must have been for the occupants. The grounds have been transformed by the National Trust into stunning gardens which were a riot of colour during our visit. The nearby woodland and village of Styal are equally charming. Cali and I spent many happy hours exploring it all...

Yesterday, Cali and I ventured to Harewood House to sample the delights of their food festival. Cali had such a great time and we've both decided we'd like to move in - she has expensive taste! (Having Cali is somewhat like I imagine having a child would be - she's into everything and very sociable. I've started walking her on a harness so I don't lose her!) I'm not going to waffle on with this post because Cali and I are heading out for our next big adventure today and we can't wait to make the most of the bank holiday sunshine! Details of the food festival here . It runs today and tomorrow. Entry is £10 (seems a little steep but you do get access to the gardens and grounds included in that.) Dress: Tallgirls.co.uk (bought from their pop-up shop and seemingly not available online) Shoes: Primark Sunglasses: F&F Don't knock it until you've tried it!

The by-line for this blog has always been 'Country Chick, City Chic' - I came up with this because half of the time I can never decide what I like best. Recently it's a dilemma that's affected more than just my wardrobe - but more on that later. This post is most definitely for the the country bumpkins out there. I've rounded up 10 of my favourite checked pieces. It's a trend that I adore. It's cute without being too young and has a fresh, clean summery feel to it. I always associate this style of fabric with summer picnics. Sadly the weather in the UK is nowhere near warm enough for any of these items - but a girl can daydream right? 1st Row Dress: Whistles / Dress: ASOS / Top: Warehouse 2nd Row Dress: ChicWish / Crop Top & Skirt Set: ChicWish / Shirt Dress: Oasis 3rd Row Dress: ASOS Tall / Shirt: Lee / Shorts: Mango / Dress: ASOS

Truth be told, I'm not the richest of girls, and those of us who know what it's like to count the pennies know that sometimes the real deal isn't necessary - imitation will do just fine. For that reason I own very little in the way of precious metals or stones. Almost all of my jewellery is costume jewellery. There are 3 brands I absolutely adore for their unique items and I thought I'd share them with you today. The first is Orelia - a brand I discovered in Topshop stores, but which is also stocked by ASOS . (I'm a bit obesessed with it as you can probably tell from the many photos below.) Their pieces tend to be dainty and delicate, there's something very lady-like about them. The second is Handmade by Emma . I met Emma at the Castlefield Market last Summer and she made me the silver diamond-shaped necklace below in the space of about 5 minutes. What I love about her designs is that they are all designed to work as single pieces or can be combined in ...

It's finally here. The weekend chocaholics dream off all year... Well, since Christmas anyway! I'm talking of course about Easter. Ever since I was little I've made Easter nests. They're one of the first things you learn how to make in school, and a super fun activity for kids (my favourite bit was licking the bowl!) For those who haven't made them before, simply melt chocolate, stir in cornflakes, put into paper cases and leave to set in the fridge. Yum. But now that I'm a "grown up" I've started experimenting a bit... and today I'm sharing some twists on an Easter classic. Change up your Chocolate Easter nests are traditionally a milk chocolate affair, but as we all know Dark Chocolate is healthier so why not change it up a bit? Or melt two batches and go half and half - the best of both worlds! Get Fruity I love Chocolate Raisins - they're my snack of choice on road trips. Try mizing them in with your cornflakes, the mixture ...

I am a self confessed bargain-hunter. I like nothing better than shopping the sales - so when Long Tall Sally took an extra 20% off their sale stock a couple of weeks ago, I was helpless to resist! It may well have been the first day of Spring recently, but Winter hasn't shaken it's grip on my part of the world just yet. I have a feeling I'll be getting a lot of wear out of these pieces over the next few weeks. The wool wrap jacket is exceptionally cosy with the perfect sleeve length. The fairisle print jumper may look a little out of season elsewhere in the world but with this lovely English weather behaving the way it is, it didn't feel it. The black jeggings are an old faithful pair (if a little faded now) also from Long Tall Sally - in fact I think they were my first ever purchase from the original LTS Manchester store (you can read my review of the new store here ). The boots are another sale bargain - from F&F . Sadly these exact ones are no longer in...