Wednesday 21 August 2013

The Forest and The Sea

I love a vacation... but then don't we all ;P
A couple of weeks ago I spent a long weekend with my family and the doggies at a luxury cabin out in the forest wilderness.  To Blackwood Forest we headed!





It was a nice little place to head out to.  Within the UK and not too far; plus we wanted somewhere to take the doggies with us.  We were able to drive to all the little towns and villages nearby, including the seaside!  It's so strange to have days of barely any reception on your mobile.  How do people get in contact with each other??  I've turned into such a social media type.





You have to take a photo of the vintage beach huts!

Perfect footwear for the hard to walk on sandy beaches...



Day one was all about going to the beach, the doggies loved frolicking around in the sea.  But oh what a mess they were with all the sand!  Later we had some local grub at the pub which was super yummy.  The rest of the long weekend was full of flea markets and general looking around in the nice sunshine.


Giant fishes in the stream - you can just about make out the shapes here.

Came across this amazing wallpaper in a house that someone had opened up for the day as part of the days event to set up stall. Ingenious! 



Look how happy my Dottie looks :D 

The event even provided a vintage bus ride to and from the nearest car park.

My brother, sis and her husband with the doggies.
We were at the Cockleman stall for some yummy seafood. 


Loved those glasses but I have to hold off until I have my own place as I have no where to put anything.  It's all in storage at my sisters house.


My sis and the doggies hanging out by the hot-tub which I didn't per-use.


As I was trying really hard not to buy anything for the reason mentioned above I only came away with one item.  And it was a good choice as I will be using it so it's not stored away and out of sight!

A good sized basket weave box handbag perfect for the summer.



So that was my summer holiday.  A break for some sunny days and fresh air with the family.  No more Sweden or Spain's High Rockabilly for me this year but hopefully next summer I will be attending more events again!


This little cheeky monkey thought she was still on holiday after we got back!


Toodles for now,
Alison xxx

Tuesday 6 August 2013

Live by the Lake - Give Away

Hello everyone!

Hope you are all well.  I am rather excited about this post as it involves an amazing giveaway for you all.  Before I went on my vacation I was contacted by the people behind Live by the Lake who asked me whether I would like for my readers to win a pair of tickets to an outdoor showing of Singin' in the Rain?  Well of course I would!



Live by the Lake is a series of summer concerts set in sumptuous surroundings at Kenwood House.  The showing sounds pretty fabulous - the movie will be shown on an open-air big screen accompanied with the score performed live by The Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra!  That's amazing in itself.  You will be able to bring along your own picnic to enjoy or you can even pre-order one from them ready for the evening.




Here are the details for entering...
  • You have to be a follower of mine :)
  • Unfortunately I have to make this give-away a UK only entrant as the showing is based in London.  If you do not live in London, please make sure you are able to make your own way to and from the venue for the showing on the day.
  • You can enter by leaving me a comment below that you are entering.
  • You can enter a 2nd time by posting about this competition and linking me on either your Twitter or Instagram with @dressingparlour 
  • There will only be one winner chosen at random.
  • The prize - 1 pair of tickets to the show on 30th Aug 2013. No alternatives will be given.
  • Enter the competition by Monday 12th Aug 2013 23:59 GMT.
  • The winner will be announced later on in that week.

If you want to find out more about the various shows or even to pick up some tickets, these are the links to follow -  Facebook: facebook.com/LiveByTheLake | Twitter: @LiveByTheLake | Website: Live by the Lake


Good luck and I will pick the winner after the competition closes.  I look forward to picking a happy winner out of the hat :D 

Take care,
Alison xxx