Christmas Card Crisis

Every year I enthusiastically purchase my Christmas cards for the season, take out my carefully compiled list of loved ones and settle in to convey my Yuletide love to them.  And each year I'm burnt out by card #15 (on a good year, sometimes I don't even make 10) and I am left deflated and ruing that I ever started in the first place.

BUT I cannot be taught old tricks and this year I will once again attempt to get them all done and in the post before I lay me down to sleep on Christmas Eve (yes that is the actual cut off date I give myself so really no excuse to never have get through my list!).  So I plan to get started tonight and to get myself in the mood I've found these old cards to inspire (or not).

From the timeless elegance of Jackie...

Image from here

...to the so-right-now absurdity of Mariah.

Image from here

From those klassy Kardashians,

 Image from here

year after year...

Image from here

...to some actual class with the Windsors in 1987.

Image from here

Joan Collins...

 Image from here

...and the other big O with his family.

  Image from here

And finally, my pile o'blanks, waiting to be filled with words of warmth and wonder.  

Wish. Me. Luck.

Nicolex

Kennedy Compound

Here in the land of Oz we are two weeks in to the somewhat controversial eight part mini-series The Kennedys.  So far, a great deal of the action has taken place on their six acre estate in Hyannis, Massachusetts, (most commonly referred to as The Kennedy Compound) where JFK's election campaign for president was run.  I thought it was a good excuse to take a look at the homes of the beautiful compound overlooking Nantucket Sound

Where it all began, Ambassador Joseph Kennedy's house (or the main house), probably the most photographed and easily recognisable home of the compound.

Image from here

A family portrait inside.

Image from here

All grown up now.

Image from here

Edward Kennedy with his parents, Rose and an ailing Joseph.

Image from here

During Jack's campaign.

Image from here

Later on, Eunice, Jackie, Kara (Ted's daughter), Ted & Ethel on the lawn of the main house.

Image from here

Ted and his second wife Vicki are the last of the Kennedy family to live in the main house.

Image from here

A postcard with photos of the homes on the compound.

Image from here

John and Jackie soak up the sun at Ted's original house in 1963.

Image from here

Robert Kennedy's home on a postcard...

...and here.

Image from here

Jack walks with his children in front of Bobby's house in 1963.

Image from here

The outside of John and Jackie's house as photographed for another postcard..

Image from here

...and the interior.

 Image from here

  Image from here

  Images from here

  Images from here

Jackie reads to Caroline in her bedroom...

Image from here

...and for a photo op on the lawn.

Image from here

President Kennedy drives some of the younger generation around the compound in September, 1962.

Image from here

The Kennedys screens here on Sunday nights at 8:30 on ABC1.

Preview here:

I'm a bit of a Kennedy nut so am really enjoying it.

Nicolex

International Woman's Day

My faithful friend Google tells me it's International Women's Day today so here are some women I admire in alphabetical order - just in case you think my mum's less important to me than Golda Meir :)

Anna Bligh

                                          Golda Meir                                    Jackie Kennedy

 Jane Austen

Mia Farrow

Mother Teresa

My mum

Oprah Winfrey

Images from here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

Pi-rang-ellow

Two days ago I was struck at how lovely this picture was (cannot for the life of me remember which blog posted the image so please yell out if it was yours as would love to link back) and thought, aside the from the obvious Jackie Kennedy style and sophistication, the colour combination was really rather pretty.

Of course it sent me on a whirl looking for images in similar hues.

Image from Decor Pad

Sarah Richardson nursery from here.

 Image from Decor Pad

 Image from Decor Pad

Candelabra from Urban Outfitters found via here.

Image from Under a Paper Moon.

So then this afternoon when I sat down to catch up on the last 24hrs of Bloggington I was delighted to find that one of my favourite bloggers (Louise from Table Tonic) had written about a similar combination she is trying out in her daughter's room.

Louise's "vibe tray" of inspiration (fantastic idea!) pop over here to read more about it.

Pink + orange + yellow = pirangellow, pronounced pee-ranj-el-o, pirangellow.