A pretty special birthday

 I baked a chocolate cake which didn't really rise

 But it was really rich and chocolatey

 Got given this beauty who has ben christened as Crumpet

 My husband made pizza from scratch

 Fresh flowers on the table

 Fresh pizza on the table

 Ready to celebrate!

Gingham for work?

Amid the Christmas shopping, I haven't been able to resist this...

Black gingham dress from People Tree. Now I just have to decide whether it's office-friendly enough (it looks a bit like I'm going to the prairie).

Home baking

Before the oven died...

Baguettes

Quiche

Pie

Festive season

Feeling festive...

Autumn stuff

1. Kate Moss matte lipsticks for Rimmel - the first one on the right looks very tempting.

2. Sheep jumper from Madewell - I so want one of these. Chloé made them and I keep seeing them in magazines and the internet, but will they ever be within my reach? Is there a Madewell shop in London (pleaseeee)?

3. Green 1969 Gap cords - could not find them at Gap so had to resort to good old H&M.

4. The best dancing shoes ever by Kate Spade.

5. Swedish Hasbeens Jodhpur boots - Perfect autumn shoes. Comfy, sturdy, weatherproof.

6. Topshop 'Innocent' lipstick - want to try it as an everyday lipstick.

7. Essie 'Chinchilly' - been wanting to try this for ages and I think autumn is the best season.

8. Zara bag - seen this everywhere in the past year, but don't want to cheat to my beloved Cambridge satchel.

9. I carved my first pumpkin! How exciting is that? (very exciting in my world is the answer).

10. HBO's Girls - been watching a lot of this (the whole series!) while recovering from nasty dental treatment.

11. Dorothy Perkins wedge courts - they remind me of the lady in The Food Hospital, am I the only one who thinks it's a fascinating TV show and secretly wishes they would design my own personalised diet?

12. JK Rowling's The Casual Vacancy - just finished it and it was really good (but I would say that).

Hello world

Here I am, trying to start another blog. Again.