Hello

Hello everyone! It has been so long again! I have been so desperate to blog over the past few weeks, but life has a habit of getting in the way sometimes. I have been so busy this past month. The wedding planning is suddenly getting very serious as we have only 5 months to go now, and I've had the end of year exams at work, and Lily is getting more and more active, and technology hasn't been my friend- but I've finally had a fairly quiet Sunday, and time to pay some attention to my blog!

Sorry for such a picture heavy post, but I'm trying to catch up then (hopefully) resume regular blogging as normal again. Life lately between working, housework, and wedding planning, has involved family trips to parks and rivers with Lily and our nieces and nephews, trips to London, silliness with Lily (her new game is putting her toy balls up her sleeves!), little Laura Ashley shopping trips, reading in Lily's book corner, enjoying my parents new garden, buying cute lamps, having gel nails done by my sister now she is a qualified beauty therapist, Lily being all grown up and getting her first toy baby and buggy, and eating lots of yummy food in the garden in this gorgeous weather we've been having!

As you can see, I have also redesigned and renamed the blog! I have never had a blog name I've been happy with. It started as Rosie Posie Rosie which I never liked, but was playing around on blogger not really knowing what I was doing when I started and never expected my blog to come this far and be so important to me! Then I changed it to just Rosie but really wanted to come up with a proper name for it. Peppermint Rosie has been a name I've been considering for very long time now but was worried I would change my mind and be unhappy again. But as I've liked it for so long, I've decided to take the plunge and finally do it! I am also looking into getting a custom domain, so I will let you know if and when that happens. I'd love to know what you all think! I was a little nervous about making the change.

The name peppermint Rosie comes from my addiction to peppermint tea, my love of peppermint creams and mint being my favourite colour. I do hope you all like it!

♥ x

LAURA ASHLEY AW13 PRESS EVENT

Hello lovelies! Last week I had a little trip to London, as I was lucky enough to be invited to the Laura Ashley Autumn Winter 2013 press event. There I got to see their beautiful new collection, learn about the history of the brand, and catch up with the lovely Charlotte while sipping on strawberry and banana smoothies (mine) and beetroot and celery juice (Charlotte. She thought it was berries! But luckily the juice wasn't as bad as she thought it may be, and was surprisingly refreshing!).

As we browsed the rails of navy blue and burgundy, nudes and khakis, soft pinks and greys, beautiful prints and subtle sparkle, I began dreaming of my winter wardrobe for later this year. Sadly, as summer doesn't seem to be arriving here in England anytime soon, the pieces would even be suitable for now! I definitely will be having a trip to my local Laura Ashley this Autumn, and look out for some of their fairisle knitwear, silky blouses, bold print trousers, statement necklaces and brown leather satchels. I also have my heart set on the cream angora jumper, with the embellished peter pan collar and diamante detailing for Christmas parties!

The homeware section was so beautiful. I would love to have a cosy, country house and fill the whole place with Laura Ashley! Unfortunately, the size of my Victorian terrace and the size of my budget wont allow me to do this, but I definitely have my eye on a few key pieces and accessories to give our little home a bit of a makeover this Autumn. I loved the light fixtures and lamps with beautiful glass elements to reflect the light. They would add a touch of glamour to any room and go with practically any colour scheme and style! Having a soft spot for pastel greens, blues and mint colours, the duck egg range was right up my street! I loved the duck egg hydrangea print wallpaper and bedding combined with the white, wooden furniture. I think it would make such a pretty, cosy, calming bedroom. I completely fell in love with their rose gold furniture and accessories too! They had rose gold dressing tables, lamps, trinket boxes, clocks- it looked so elegant and feminine with their coral range. Something I will definitely be purchasing is their collection of mugs and candles in prints from the Laura Ashley archive. They are bringing back some classic Laura Ashley prints in lots of different colourways for many different items for their Autumn Winter 2013 collection, and these prints used on the mugs and candle holders are just so pretty. I would love to have them dotted around my home! I particularly love the 'Emma' print.

As Laura Ashley are celebrating their 60th anniversary this year, we were lucky enough to also see their lovely archive exhibition. It was fascinating to learn the history of the company, and how Laura Ashley and her husband started out by printing floral silk scarves from their kitchen! There were so many vintage treasures to see from the archive, from the 1960's to now, including clothes, furniture, cushions, books and even a china doll! It was so interesting to see how the brand has evolved over the years but always stayed true to its roots. I think this is the reason it is so loved by different generations. I know my Grandmother and my mother are both loyal fans, and have lots of fond memories of shopping there and some favourite items they have bought over the years. I don't think there is any other brand that all three generations of us share a love of like we do Laura Ashley. Next time I am at my parents house, I am going to hunt for some pictures of family wearing their Laura Ashley favourites from the past and share it on the Laura Ashley memories page. The page is a place fans can share their Laura Ashley photos and memories, with a chance of winning a £1000 voucher! You can also enter on twitter using the #lauraashley60 hashtag. I enjoyed just looking through the entries, there are some really lovely ones!

There was also a wonderful Christmas section at the event, but I didn't want to talk about the C-word too much incase you all got upset with me. I know it's only June and the weather has been pretty miserable, but I  had to share these beautiful beaded, sparkley placemats! Aren't they beautiful?? I am considering getting them for our winter wedding, I think they would look stunning with our pastel blue, white and sparkle theme.

I loved going to the press event and the collection was really beautiful. I am so thankful to the wonderful team at Laura Ashley for hosting & inviting me to such a lovely event!

x ♥