The perfect help for hostess and housewife all the year round!

It is sad but true that now the Great British Bake Off has finished I feel a cake shaped whole in my life! However this little beauty, a purchase from ebay helps fill a void, I just couldn't resist. I love the old recipe and home making books, they make for interesting and funny reading! Someone pass me the butter cream!

Treasure hunting at the antiques fair

Another month, another antiques fair yay! Here are a few snaps I took of the lovely things on offer some mine some of the other delights, if you have never been to one - you must go, they are the best places to find unique treasures for your home, wardrobe or for gifts!

Sorry if they are a little blurry they were taken on my iphone!

Grand old duke is York

A delayed post but been busy at the antiques fairs! York is a beautiful city and we had a lovely time especially in Betty's Tea rooms. It was like stepping back in time all the ladies were dressed in black and white and the tea was served loose with a little tea strainer! Delightful! Betty's is famous because in the war airmen would sitting downstairs and drink tea and chat, a mirror with their names etched on to it is still there! It crazy to think how life has changed since then!

We were lucky to get a window seat and enjoyed fat rascals and proper English tea! We were shocked to see that later on the queue was around the block to get a table, it proves how amazing the place is!

Another one of my favourite places in York was the Imaginarium https://www.facebook.com/YscHome It was possible the most visually stunning shops I have ever been in, defo worth a look at their facebook page, as it a no photo shop but you can see why, it so lovely everyone would be snapping away and blinding the shop assistances! Its sister store next door The Yorkshire Soap Company is also brilliant, just like a patisserie but with soap!

a good weekend all round x

the fat rascal - I must find this recipe!!

The Golden Fleece is the oldest pub in York and apparently the most haunted (Most Haunted tv show have filmed there!)  I particularly like the cat popping out of the white window!!

The Shambles, a lovely cobbled street full of quirky shops...

Hehe just made me laugh, outside a florist

Dracula's seaside home

For my birthday my hubby treated me to a weekend away to Whitby and York, two places I have always wanted to go and had never been. What a weekend, full of scampi (obviously) in Whitby and fat rascals (a scone/rock cake) in York. Amazing! Both places are defo worth a visit, both have fab food, ace views and yummy food! I took soo many pictures I am splitting them, these are the ones from Whitby! York will follow ;-)

Whitby is known for Dracula, and its massive goth weekend as well as its amazing scampi!  I was really surprised at how lovely it is and how far the beautiful beach stretched, would be nice on a hot sunny day!

We had scampi and chips here, the Magpie Cafe is in this years Good Food Guide, and I can agree yum yum!

The Shepherds Purse, a wonderful shop, I was super excited as I follow them on facebook but had no idea they were in whitby! We brought some rose and lotus flower loose leaf tea to try!

I would love to have my palm read but they were shut boo!!

Finally The Abbey which was inspiration for Dracula, you can see why it was misty on our way down to Whitby, it look really eerie through the fog!

Fruits of the season

There is nothing lovelier than picking blackberries from the hedgerows in the autumn. My mum and I spend some time picking through the prickles to get to the wild berries, these in the picture are from pinterest, I forgot to photograph! Wild organic straight from the hedge blackberries in my experience are never this big but are so sweet and delicious they do make up for it! We got some cooking apples from a generous local farmer recently so I feel a blackberry and apple pie or crumble coming on! 

It is nice to do something that is a ritual of the past, it brings back happy childhood memories of stained hands and war wounds from tripping over brambles. Hope you all had a good weekend :-)