29.6.15

Dining Alfresco with Garden Trading



One aspect of summer that I always look forward to is barbecue season. Here in the UK, we have to make the most of our good weather as our summers can be a little bit hit and miss! Therefore, as soon as it begins to warm up we tend to just declare summer has arrived and get ready to venture outside, fire up our barbecues and bask in the glorious sunshine!



I have always thought there is something so refreshingly social about eating outside. It reminds me of holidaying in the summer and  camping out with family, amongst many other childhood memories which largely consisted of running wild in the open countryside.


 If you are looking to have a social gathering in your garden this summer, Garden Trading will certainly inspire your creativity. They can easily offer you everything to meet your summer garden party needs, providing everything from furniture to soft furnishings, lighting and decor.


One essential garden party item which has been particularly popular for Garden Trading is the Whitstable Barbecue Bucket. Inspired by stories of fishermen cooking their catch over buckets of coal on the beach, this attractive galvanised bbq bucket is such a great asset to even the more prestigious barbecue! It will happily cook to feed a large number and is brilliantly versatile for the all important marshmallow toasting that is simply a staple, non-negotiable activity when the children are about!


We had great fun using a barbecue bucket one mild evening last week. Being so portable, it’s also very easy to move around so you can take it off on your camping holidays or even your trips to the seaside. I am planning on taking ours to the beach very soon!





I have to say, I think the nicest part of using this galvanised bucket is its informal charm. The simple design only adds to the ease and practicality of using it. Whilst we have also fired up our American style barbecue over the past few days, it has been a really fun alternative just having this little bbq bucket on the go to quickly cook everything from sausages to chicken wings- and not to mention those all important marshmallows!




If you would like to see more of Garden Trading’s outdoor summer essentials you can have a peruse of their beautiful products here. I would certainly recommend the barbecue bucket as an excellent way to get summer started right in your back garden. Not only are these purse friendly, but they are especially handy if you don’t have a gas barbecue but still want to enjoy the experience of cooking and dining alfresco! You can purchase a Whitstable Barbecue Bucket here.




Dressing the table for an outdoor gathering is something I take particular pleasure in doing. I love to really ‘set the scene’ using pretty tablecloths, candles and decorations to add that extra 'touch'. Garden Trading helped me out by kindly giving me two of their Cornbury Votive Lanterns which are the cutest glass jars with wire handles. Whilst these would be so perfect for lighting tea light candles in, I actually gathered some fresh elderflower stems for mine as they are in season and our garden is full of them. The smell is so beautiful, I thought it would be nice to really bring that to my dining table. The Cornbury Votives come in an assortment of colours and sizes which you can view (here)





It was really fun to enjoy our first ‘proper’ summer barbecue with the help of Garden Trading and I have felt very inspired to get creative in our outdoor space during the next few months.






I hope this post has inspired you to get creative with your barbecuing!

Love Bunty
xXx

*Disclaimer*  This is a sponsored post. Whilst I was kindly gifted the products mentioned above, the opinions expressed are representative of BuntyLiving and are entirely authentic, resulting from personal experience of using them.

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27.6.15

Sisters, Zara & Orange



Good morning friends! I wanted to share something a bit special with you- this post is about my sister's style and great taste in fashion! To change up the usual posts about me, I thought I would show you the outfit she put together to wear to Jonah's Baptism. 




Rosie has a really chic sense of style. She is very much a jeans and converse kinda girl, but when it comes to getting dressed up for an event, she has a great eye for putting pieces together!
This outfit is undeniably all about the skirt. We had a look together at different tops/jackets we could pair with it to really bring out the beautiful colours and patterns in the skirt. As you can see, it really didn't need much!



It's a classic from Zara and what I love about it is how wearable it is throughout the seasons. I can totally envision her wearing this in autumn with browns and nude colours. Yet here in summer the bright orange and red tones of the poppies really contrast beautifully with the cream.



Rosie's orange vest top is actually mine from last summer. It was a supermarket find that I really enjoyed wearing to bring a pop of colour to my own outfits. The white jacket is from H&M and is one that I have fallen back on many times in the past. It goes with everything and its sharp cut always adds a touch of sophistication to most looks. I find it the perfect means to quickly smarten an outfit up!



We swapped the shoes for this shoot just to make them slightly less formal than the nude courts she wore to the Baptism. These are leather sandals from New Look which were a recent purchase. Again, I like how easy they are to pair with lots of outfits. I bought them for Jonah's Baptism knowing I would wear them throughout summer. 




It's lovely to be able to piece outfits together with your sisters. Whilst there are six years between our ages it really doesn't feel like anything at all when we are swapping the contents of our wardrobes every other day! We also happen to be the same size shoe so you can imagine that comes in handy a lot!



 For anyone who doesn't know Rosie, she is the sweetest girl with such a beautiful heart. I hope these photos reveal some of her easy going and charming nature. 



Happy weekend all!
Love Bunty (and Rosie!)

xXx













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26.6.15

Instagram inspiration


Whilst I know I am at risk of looking like some kind of crazy ‘collage lady’  who just likes sticking pictures together and standing back to view the effect, I am admittedly, endlessly inspired by images I see.
Over time I have gradually come to find a real passion in photography. I think this has coincided with starting my own blog and needing to be able to keep it running single handedly. In the beginning, I had very little knowledge of picture taking, save that you stand still and click the button, right?


Not that I am claiming to be any expert either, (far from it!) but the little tips and tricks I have picked up along the way have really helped me to understand how to put an image together. And from this I feel I have developed (no pun intended :p) my own style and creative output in photography.

Whilst all credit for any skill I have must go directly to my husband who has taught me so much about the technical side to all things camera related. I know I have also been greatly artistically inspired by Instagram, where I often find myself immersed by stunning examples of photography, compositions and creative flair.


I was organising files of my own photos earlier and thought I would share a few personal favourites with you. Most of these are from my own Instagram account which I use as a kind of visual diary. However, I realise not everybody uses Instagram so I thought it would be nice to show you some examples.

These are all just happy snippets from my day where I have felt inspired to capture the scene. From setting up a shoot for a blog post, or just arranging flowers in the home, these are all images that I have simply enjoyed using in various blog posts or uploading to Instagram.



Happy Friday!

Love Bunty
xXx



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Pretty ribbons, Peonies & Dippy Egg


I thought it would be fun to summarise my 'favourites' post again this month as I have been feeling quite inspired! With it being Peony season, I have to admit I have been repeatedly buying these whenever I happen to pass by a florist shop. I can't bear the thought that their season will come to an end, so i'm just trying to enjoy them as much as possible before it passes!  



Another 'favourite' are these pretty ribbons by East of India. I used to buy these all the time when I was in college. I would use them for art projects and wrapping gifts and always had a few reels on the go-I don't know how many of these three metre lengths I got through! They happened to be on sale in Daisy Park, so I picked up a few pretty pastel designs to put to use. Not that they wouldn't look out of place just sitting prettily in a glass vase for that matter! They are sweet to look at and would make a beautiful gift all by themselves.



Annie Sloan's chalk paint has been another firm favourite this month. I have been trying a few more shades for the first time and two that I really like are Henrietta and Louis Blue. Henrietta is a deeper version of Antoinette and is a really girly pink. I've already been putting it to good use so I have really enjoyed it. Louis blue is a classic baby blue colour and is just so beautiful and light. It's been really lovely to work with too and is yet another Annie Sloan favourite of mine. That said, I don't think there is a colour I haven't loved of hers yet!





The H&M necklace actually belongs to my sister and is a recent purchase of hers. It arrived the other day and we both thought it was just gorgeous. It has a really simple design and is easy to style with so many summer outfits. Bit of a staple accessory for the season methinks!




The simple paper notebook is just charming beyond words. The brand Dippy Egg is a hidden gem as I had not heard of it until recently. The products are just gorgeous though with lots of pretty cards, gift wraps and notebooks with ink designs on. These are a haven for mums like me who often have some list or other to quickly jot down. My notebook is beautifully made and is a real pleasure to use. 


I hope you enjoyed this post, what are the things you have been loving this month?
Love Bunty
xXx


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