I have long been an avid follower of the blog Things That Sparkle (what can I say, it had me at ‘Sparkle’), so when I saw that the home of its author, Alex Berlin, was being featured on Glitter Guide, I was over there before you could say pink Moet. Wow, the girl has style and a half. Her home achieves the perfect balance of cosy and elegant, as well as having my obsession-du-jour in abundance… grey walls with pink and gold accents. Suffice to say I’m going to be pinning the heck out of this:

{images via Glitter Guide}

As featured in Glamour UK, June 2012

{words & images via Glamour}
On looking after her twins: “It takes a village – you do really learn what that means once you have kids. It’s a juggling act, just like any single mom. They just started school, three times a week, I have to travel without them here and there, so it’s really important they’re surrounded by family when I’m not there. They come first, though. I like to wake up with them. I like to put them to bed. That’s how we do it so they feel loved, happy and like what they are – the most important thing in my life.”
On her posse of female friends: “Oh my God, my girlfriends are everything to me. They celebrate with you, cry with you, hold you when you need to be held, laugh with you. They’re always there, a priceless thing to have.”
On keeping a new relationship private: “It matters. Especially at the beginning of a relationship. To give something a chance, to really get to know somebody, you want to do it out of the public eye. The media, they want to rush everything. Give their seedy opinions without knowing all the facts.”
On cosmetic surgery: “I’d like to think I’ll age gracefully, but then I think, ‘Well, what if I do want a little bit of something?’”
On what she’s carried through from previous relationships: “I think I’ve finally learned the biggest lesson of all. You’ve got to love yourself first. You’ve got to be ok on your own before you can be ok with somebody else. You’ve got to value yourself and know that you’re worth everything.”

Hope you’ve all enjoyed the lovely extra day off for the Bank Holiday! Mine has thankfully been spent catching up on some much-needed downtime. For today’s post I wanted to highlight how absolutely uh-may-zing Aldo is at the moment. If you haven’t visited in a while… or ever… then I urge you to go. Seriously, people. It’s full of the perfect accessories to round off your outfit, and the cheerful hues of yellow, coral and aqua are delicious. Now all we need is some sunshine (any, day, now) and we’ll be ready for the Summer season:

{all products available at Aldo}

Just when I think I’ve found the perfect decor, I see another home that’s been decorated as if I’d written the brief. Such is the case with the former townhouse of the former wife of Billy Joel. Cookbook author, Katie Lee, sold these Manhattan digs last year (whhhyyyy??) after having it redesigned by guru of understated elegance, Nate Berkus. It’s so beautiful that I just can’t fault a single element of it. The pale walls, the chandeliers, that bathroom. For the time being at least, this house is my new favourite:

{images via}

Not only do we have the Olympics coming to our fair city this Summer, but we also have the Royal Wedding 2.0 (to read my unashamed gushing this time last year, see here) to look forward to… our fabulous Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. And one thing I love about this country is that we love a good bandwagon to jump on. The High Street has gone into overdrive, some of it tasteful and some of it downright tacky. But I love it all. Here’s a selection of the memorabilia that celebrates Lizzie’s special day, of the non-tacky variety:

{1. Jan Constantine street party cushion – £94 / 2. Rigby & Mac giant crown hook – £10.95 / 3. 2D Scrumptious Jubilee print – £10 / 4. John Lewis Jubilee tot glass – £7.50 / 5. Hobbs Jubilee scarf – £59 / 6. Biscuiteers Jubilee tin – £40 / 7. Fortnum & Mason Jubilee Marc de Champagne truffles – £20 / 8. Dartington Crystal Jubilee vase – £100 / 9. Caroline McGrath Jubilee tea towel – £16 / 10. Radley Jubilee passport cover – £22.40}