lovely jubbly london

Going Underground {The Reigate Caves}

Reigate is one of my favourite Surrey towns.

Recently, I read about hidden caves under Reigate Castle and thought, what castle?! While we have been shopping in Reigate many times (and even considered moving there!), we never knew Reigate had a castle or caves.

I guess part of the reason we didn't know about it is because what you see above is all that is left of the castle.

The castle belonged to William de Warenne, the Earl of Surrey and after a bit of history including capture by the French, was demolished in 1648. 

The door on the triangle above actually leads down into what is now known as the Barons' Caves. Only open a handful of times each year, for £2 per person, you too can tour the caves with a guide.

Down we go!

The walls are littered with graffiti and our guide advised us that back then, visitors would have been encouraged to leave their mark.

The oldest date found on the walls is from the 1600's and you can quite clearly read the word "king" above. If I recall right, the actual reference is "King G" and the writing is quite beautiful.

Carvings of heads and animals also line the walls. It's amazing to think how long this has all survived!

After your tour, be sure to walk along the High Street and visit the tea room for a bit of warming up- it's cold underground!

The Vintage Tea House shouldn't be missed.

Yummy tea and cakes after a bit of history hits the spot!

The Wedding Invite

I knew my invite must have been lost in the post...

Okay, so it's not for the actual wedding but it's good enough!

Guildford, Surrey

The lovely spring weather we have been having is the perfect excuse for a daytrip.

Destination? Guildford.

I thought of Guildford as just being the town with the castle and cathedral but the shopping isn't to be missed. A traffic free high street and charming alleyways makes it a perfect spot for a quick jaunt.

There were even little boy buskers.

Don't fret- Dad was standing across the street.

Fashion Friday: Cath Kidston for Uniqlo

I'm counting down the days until 21 March!

*all pictures by Uniqlo UK

House of the Week

House at a glance:

* Isle of Skye in the Inner Hebrides

* Waternish Estate

* Over 1 mile of shoreline

* 255 acres

* Over 3600 sq ft of living space

* Separate gate house 

* 5 bedrooms

* 2.5 baths

* Ponds, various outbuildings and workshop

* Planning permission for another guest house plus possible main house

* Offers over £1.55 million

I'm Loving

This hair. Seriously.

Must learn to make messy hair look cute.

 

This vanilla souffle picture by David Lebovitz.

It has butter salted caramel sauce. *drool*

Must go to Paris for souffle.

 

The Dickens & Jones collection at House of Fraser.

It just looks so British.

I hope I'm not the only one who has been around long enough to remember the actual Dickens & Jones stores.

 

H for Heidi

 

Is this not better than the original?

 

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Every Lazy Girl's Dream

Last night for some reason we had The One Show on television. We never watch that show but I am so glad I caught last night's episode. There were two gems in the episode and if you are like me, I think you are going to love one and find the other hysterical.

1. You only need 12 minutes of exercise per week to improve fitness. Yes, you read that right- 12 little minutes! This Professor at a university in Scotland did a study where he had participants work out 3 times per week. One group had to run 20 minutes for their workout and the other group had to do 30 second sprints followed by 30 second rest periods for 4 minutes total. The group who did the 12 minutes per week turned out to increase their levels of fitness and lose more weight than the group that ran for 1 hour per week. 

On The One Show last night (click here for video- starts at 8.22) they tested the theory with two relatively fit adults. The man who was luckily enough to be given the 12 minutes of exercise managed to increase his fitness by 50%, lost 1 stone (14lbs) and decreased his body fat in only five weeks!

2. Since the guest was Davina McCall and she was promoting her new fitness dvd, they showed funny workout videos. These Japanese videos are now classics:

 

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World Book Night

5 March 2011 is World Book Night. What does that mean for you? 1 million books will be given away that night in the UK and Ireland for free!

You can apply to become a book giver and if selected, you will be sent 48 copies to give away. All you have to be is passionate about the book so if one of the above books is a favourite be sure to apply.

I will definitely be adding a few of the titles to my 'to be read' list.

Gift Guide {under £15 for the European Anthroholic}

1. Illume Boulangerie Jar. Candles scented like French desserts- my pick would probably be sweet vanilla and cinnamon. 

2. On-A-Whim Mug. A bit of whimsy for the dark days of winter. 

3. Penguin Clothbound Classics for Children. You know from past gift guides how much I adore clothbound Penguin classics. 

4. Primary Confection Measuring Spoons. Flat design allows for easy stacking without taking up much space.

5. Five-Point Ring Dash. Pretty way to display your favourite pieces of jewelry.