I dream of Mumbai

As I tuck into a bowl of hot Glorious! Foods Chickpea and Lentil soup I am whisked away to warmer shores. I can feel the heat of the sun on my skin as me and my husband walk along the bustling bazaars of Pakistan's Rawalpindi. I take in the colourful sights of the stalls of beautiful bangles and brightly coloured clothes. I inhale the smells of spices as we pass a Chaat waala and my mouth begins to water. We stop and order two plates of chana Chaat. The combination of tamarind, chaat Masala, yoghurt and green chutney form a tantalising mixture in my mouth. We head home before noon as the heat of the sun becomes too intense and the hustle and bustle of before is replaced by silence. It's amazing how those memories are lived over and over again every time I taste similar flavours. Over the years I have tried to recreate the taste. I layer my Chaat with red onions, samosas, yoghurt, green chutney and tamarind chutney an top it with crunchy Bombay mix. My samosa chaat is relished by the whole family.



I wonder as I eat my soup whether Mumbai is just the same. I expect it is more cosmopolitan than Rawalpindi. It is known as the city of dreams. I dream of going there one day and experiencing all the sights and sounds which are probably not dissimilar to those of a busy city in Pakistan. I would love to sit on a rickshaw and experience the tastes of the street food. The bhel puri, chana chaat, gol gappe.

This blog post is an entry into the Foodies100/GLORIOUS! soup #GloriousAdventuresbloggerchallenge.

Watch this space

I hope everyone had a great Eid, mine was hectic as usual. I have not posted much lately I know but things are all over the place for me right now. I clearly need to find my focus. I have not forgotten that I was supposed to do a giveaway. I will get round to it eventually, until then please watch this space.

A bedroom for dreaming

I have to say that I am a dreamer, and what better place to dream than in a bedroom of my dreams? To begin with I considered the bed I would choose if money was no object. I love white furniture in the bedroom and as the bed is the main focus it has to look beautiful.I chose this bed.

Provencal Sassy white bed (Kingsize) The French Bedroom Company.


Isabella white multi chest from Next.


I love the look of this Beatrice Cylamen Floral wallpaper from Laura Ashley.


Malmaison Duck egg traditional rug from Laura Ashley.


Lara Floral beaded amethyst pendant light from Laura Ashley.


Josette Amethyst pencil pleat ready made curtains from Laura Ashley.


Delaney velvet bedspread from Laura Ashley.


Cream frosted oval dressing table mirror from Laura Ashley.


Set of two round mirrored trinket boxes from Laura Ashley.







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EID MUBARAK!

A year of blogging

It has been a little over a year now since I wrote my first blog post. I started out not knowing what I was doing but with a passion for all things creative and life in general. My posts were a little erratic I know as I have not wrote regularly but this year has been a learning curve for me. I have learn how to take better photos for example, all thanks to my smartphone of course. I have really enjoyed entering creative competitions on my blog and learnt so much about myself in the process.
My blogiversary coincides with Eid and so my I was intending on doing a giveaway of a handmade gemstone bracelet. But the long days of Ramadan left me so exhausted that I did not even look at my beads. I will hopefully do a giveaway at some point before the next Eid.
And so wish me luck to another year of blogging!

Hillarys Craft Competition

I was excited to find out about the Hillarys Craft Competition for crafty bloggers to unleash their talents using one metre of one of their fabric. I was given a choice of four fabrics of which the Daisy Pistachio appealed to me the most. I already had the idea of what I wanted to do with it in my head so when the fabric came I was pleased to see that it was even more beautiful than it looked online. I had an idea of a beautiful clutch bag embellished with sequins and beads. I did not work by any pattern and allowed my creativity to flow freely. And I have to say I am pleased with the end result. This bag took me over two weeks to make as it is handmade which I have to admit was not down to choice. My sewing machine broke down on me at the vital stage. I was not going to allow that to get me down.
I measured and cut the fabric, adding extra for seam allowance.

I embellished the fabric with sequins and beads by sewing them onto the pattern of the fabric.


I cut interfacing and inner lining material for the purse and hand sewed these together with the Daisy Pistachio fabric.

with some sparkly green wool and a tapestry needle I sewed some Citrine on the sides of the bag.

I was pleased with the finished result.


Thank you to the good people at Hillarys blinds for giving me this opportunity to express my creativity. I have enjoyed it and found out things about myself that I did not know.
This is my entry for Hillarys Craft Competition for which I was sent a metre of fabric.

My beaded hair comb

I beaded this hair comb whilst the kids were asleep. I love this time of the night as the silence means I can get completely absorbed in the work I am doing. I have used amethyst nugget for this comb.