Frills 'n' Spills

When I heard that Uniqlo were doing a collaboration with Celia Birtwell, I was very excited, I love Uniqlo's collaborations and I was pleased to add some of Celia's signature prints to my wardrobe. I originally planned to wear these shorts on holiday this summer but I thought that they would also work layered up with some chunky tights too. I'm never sure whether I pull off pattern mixing successfully but I figure you can't go wrong with a striped tee, right?! 

As it is still pretty cold, I pulled out my oversized grey blazer  and my thick grey tights, to add some warmth and also to tone down the patterns. I don't think Tewkesbury is ready for this just yet...

A close up of the shoes, I actually managed to elegantly glide totter along in these for a whole morning, result! 

I am a massive Orla Kiely fan and I fell in love with her A/W 2013 collection as soon as I saw the pictures from the show.  The weather has been freezing recently and even I, Maria "human radiator" Fallon, have needed to bundle up against the cold. This outfit was my attempt at being an Orla Kiely girl and I quite like how it turned out in the end. It's definitely not fancy but it felt slightly more pulled together than pyjamas!

I stole this jumper off Mark as the colour matched perfectly with the pattern on my skirt - dontcha just love it when that happens?! ;) I did feel slightly like a schoolgirl when I wore this but I think combining a jumper and checked mini-skirt will have that effect! Someone at work said that I looked like I belonged in the Mad Men office which made me feel a lot happier, I love the clothes in that show!

I don't tend to layer collared shirts or blouses very often but I love the results when I do, maybe I need to be more of a blogger cliché?! I am currently waiting for a hairdressers appointment and my hair is getting a little bit wild at the moment. Brushing it out into soft waves seems to be the only way to keep it under control!

This medieval knot garden and maze provided the backdrop for the photos. I just wish I had such a beautiful location for all of my outfit posts!

You know me, I love a good stately home and as Chatsworth was fairly close to Norbury Manor,  Bex, Lucy,  Sophie and I decided to pay a visit. I took over 500 photos but the house was quite dark inside so only a few hundred came out... It was ridiculously expensive to get in, but we spent a good four hours wandering around! 

♥ The side view of the house, the windows had just been re-gilted so they were very gold and shiny. I have to say, my flat now looks rather drab in comparison...

♥ Every surface was covered in some kind of decoration and this was the beautiful ceiling in the hallway.

♥ Only carved marble bannisters will do...

♥ I loved the colours in this carpet, they looked even brighter in the room! 

♥ The 'Green Satin Room' unsurprisingly had walls covered in green satin, much classier than wallpaper! 

♥ This was such a beautiful domed ceiling which had windows above it, as you can see there was a lot of art on the walls!

♥ BATH IN THE CUPBOARD KLAXON- is this the world's smallest en-suite?!

♥ This was a gorgeous collection of silver miniatures which included teeny tiny scissors, spoons and even a miniature candelabra, it looked like the supplies for a doll's palace!

♥ Just one of the (many) richly decorated bedrooms...

♥ The library was absolutely amazing, I literally steamed up my camera when I saw it due to my excitement. The fact that it had a hidden staircase just made it even more exciting, haha!

♥ I mean who wouldn't love shelves and shelves of beautiful old books?!

♥ I really love chandeliers and Chatsworth had so many beautiful ones, I just wish I had high enough ceilings to have one here at the flat. I love me a good light fitting...

♥ Playing around with the focus on my camera...

♥ Another beautiful light fitting...

♥ Another mini chandelier (told you I liked light fittings!)

♥ Chatsworth has an amazing art collection and there is currently an exhibition of William Turner's work in the house and gardens. I loved this painting, the colours were really vibrant. I also loved the Trompe L'Oeil violin too, it was so realistic! 

♥  Sculptures are one of my favourite forms of art and this sleeping lion was beautifully carved, I would have snuck him out in my pocket if only he didn't weigh about 6 tonnes!

♥ This 'veiled lady' was exquisitely carved but super creepy. Yes that is a heart she is holding in her hands...

♥  Super cool purple chairs at one of the restaurants

♥  I loved these massive canvases, each one showed slightly differently aspects of Chatsworth with brightly coloured backgrounds.

Cultivated clematis flowers in the expansive grounds

Typical fashion blogger poser- many thanks to my lungy photographer Bex!

Outtake of the day: me nearly falling into the water feature. My balance has always been atrocious!

Have you ever been to Chatsworth? Do you like visiting stately homes?

This weekend I went away to Norbury Manor with some of my blogger friends and spent a lovely couple of days eating far too much cake, playing board games and going on long walks around stately homes, what more could you ask for?! There is always a risk when going on holiday with 12 people in one place together but Alex organised a really wonderful holiday with some of the loveliest people I have ever had the pleasure of spending time with. Many thanks to Alex, Chloe (especially for her amazing food organisation skillz!) Sarah, Alice, Sophie, Sarah, Char, Bex, Lucy, Rosie and my roomie Gemma for a really fab time! I only wish I could go away with these girls every weekend! 

♥  The manor itself! Our little old holiday cottage (!) was absolutely divine and I would love to have spent much longer there, it was lovely just to disappear off the grid for a while, even if the lack of phone signal took some getting used to! (Image is taken from the National Trust website.)

♥ We were greeted by a gorgeous bunch of flowers when we arrived which smelt heavenly. 

♥ I can't even begin to describe just how much cake I ate over the weekend, you know it's bad when you wake up on your first day back at work craving a slice of Victoria sponge for breakfast...

♥ The door out to the garden/grounds...

♥ The medieval knot garden outside the back door...

♥ The rather imposing gates...

♥ The window seats (!) in mine and Gem's room

♥ A real wood fire kept us nice and snug

♥  Rosie's dog Bodhi was absolutely lovely and I think everyone lost their heart to this little cutie!

♥  I love a bit of Articulate!

♥ ROLL TOP BATH KLAXON. I was absolutely in love with this bathroom and one day I will have my own manor house to live in...

♥ The walls were decorated with old paintings and gilt framed mirrors...

♥ My bed was ridiculously comfy and I really loved our room. It was done up in a gorgeous teal blue shade with no chintz in sight...

♥ CHANDELIER KLAXON. One day I will have one of these too...

♥ Each of the windows had little stained glass panels on showing various scenes which I imagine the original owners would have actually been doing. I like this guy's hairdo!

♥ The beautiful wood panelling and one of the many cupboards in the building...

♥ Me and Alex hanging out of the bedroom window, I would like to point out that she was fully clothed in this picture! ;)

♥ Our first meal in the house- Alex was kind enough to get us all a present- pictures to come soon!

♥ Love these girls, go #TeamNorbury!

Have you ever been on a blogger's holiday? Where do you think we should go next?