But that's life. One minute you're on top of the world, the next some secretary's running you over with a lawnmower.

I hope you've all been having a lovely, relaxing weekend, despite the snow. I've been really enjoying the cold weather, which I know sounds bizarre. Right now I'm curled up on the sofa with blankets and a hot water bottle. Nic is doing the washing up, there's a cake in the oven and we're going to have a big, warming stew for dinner. I feel warm and cosy and happy and loved.

Nic and I have had a quiet day. Unlike yesterday morning, we were able to sleep in. I love waking up on a weekend morning and being able to laze in bed and read while Nic sleeps, which is what I did this morning. I've been reading Mildred Pierce by James M. Cain, after having enjoyed the film so much a few weeks ago when we watched it with Nic's parents. The book is quite different to the film, but equally enjoyable and I've raced through it. I'm trying to decide now whether to read another Cain novel (I'm thinking of Double Indemnity, possibly) or move onto something else, perhaps another attempt to get into Wolf Hall. Anyway, after a delicious breakfast of porridge and banana Nic and I got dressed and headed into town. Most of yesterday's snow has melted away, and there's the odd bit of ice on the pavements but mostly it's clear and dry so I decided to forgo sturdy footwear and go for heels:

Fever Dordogne dress and Firetrap heels

I love this dress, and have done ever since I bought it a few years ago. It's definitely starting to show signs of wear now, it's a bit faded and there's some fraying at the cuffs, but it's warm and cosy and it has sleeves! I'm wearing it with some extremely cheap tights, I think I bought them in QS for £1 but they are miles better than the £7 opaque tights I bought in Boots last week, which went baggy almost immediately and the elastic bit in the gusset frayed and, well, that's not really somewhere that you want something chafe-y, is it? Another thing I like about this dress is the cute little buttons down the front:

Obviously I couldn't just dander about in a dress alone, so I put on a coat, a scarf and a hat:

Fever Paddington coat, my £5 trilby from M Butterfly and a really warm black cashmere scarf

Nic and I had a browse around the market on the parade before walking along the river to the tip shop. Our visit there was cut short by the fact that I needed to pee (the cold, and the large coffee I had in town) and also because they're renovating the tip shop so most of the stock was elsewhere. So neither of us bought anything, which is unusual for us. And that's really been it for my Sunday, and I have no further plans than to snuggle on the sofa and maybe watch a film. It's so nice to be lazy and indolent, especially as we seem to have a lot of socialising lined up between now and Christmas.

Yesterday I said I'd write a little bit about my week, and that's because I had a really good week. It's the first time for ages that I felt like I was actually getting stuff done properly at work. That might sound a bit silly, but over the past number of months it's been so hard feeling like there's no point to my job, and that I'm no good at it; it really knocked my confidence. This week I took part in two workshops and had the opportunity to work with some really wonderful people, some English subject experts and some mathematics subject experts. I'd never met the English folk before and they were a hoot, but I've worked with the mathematics people a fair few times before and it was a joy and a pleasure to see them again. So, in short, it's really good to be feeling more positive about work.

Things haven't really moved on regarding my huffy colleague. After more asshattery last week on her part, I got quite fed up and decided to talk to someone about it. A colleague I regard as a friend is one of the union reps, so I chatted to her and asked for her advice as a friend and as a union rep. Well, to be honest, it wasn't really advice that I was looking for, more just an understanding ear and she was wonderful. She told me that if I wanted to take it further, to HR or whatever, that the union would support me, and that I shouldn't have to endure it. She also said that there was no connection between Angry Colleague's attitude and the fact that I had been ill - Angry Colleague might see one, and the two things are related, but I didn't cause it by being ill. So that was nice to hear too. She suggested talking to Angry Colleague in a non-confrontational way and suggested some ways to approach this. It was really helpful. I still don't think I can approach AC in that way - there is something just too intimidating about her, and I don't need that, but I did rethink the way that I have been handling this so far. Because it has been affecting me, and I have been avoiding her, and keeping my head down, and generally letting her make me feel ashamed. And it can't go on, and I can't let it stop me from feeling good about work. I also reasoned that really, because AC hasn't said anything to me I don't know for definite that she's being funny with me because I have been off (although sometimes you just know, I think) and perhaps the fact that I have been avoiding her has made things worse. I've made more of an effort this week to be friendly and I've stopped avoiding her. It's hard, because each time I speak to her she looks at me like I've just taken a dump in her handbag but it's progress for me, anyway. I'm building myself up to asking her if I've done something to offend her, and if I can fix it, and then if it continues after that I'll think more seriously about getting someone higher up involved. I'll be honest, I don't have a good feeling about it. I don't really want to have to face this, but I know that I have to figure out some way to deal with it. And, as this man says:

In life you have to do a lot of things you don't fucking want to do. Many times, that's what the fuck life is... one vile fucking task after another. But don't get aggravated... then the enemy has you by the short hairs.

My instincts are telling me that she's a bully, but they're also telling me that I have to try to find a way to deal with it tactfully by myself first, you know? You guys all gave me such wonderful support and advice when I wrote about this before, and of course I'd love to hear anything you think about it again.

Still, despite Angry Colleague's crappy attitude, it's been a great week. I got to hang out with some of my favourite people as well, which was excellent. On Tuesday evening Nic and I met up with Lysy, The Scientist and Lauren to go to a tasting evening held by Riverford Farm in a local bakery. It was very nice, if a little bit busy, and after some free samples of various foods we all went for a drink. On Wednesday evening Lauren and I went to see Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, which I thoroughly enjoyed and which reignited my crush on Jason Isaacs (smouldering away since Nic and I watched The State Within). On Thursday I met my lovely Louise for a chatty, giggly lunch and that evening Denise and I had a hot chocolate and a long chat in Bar Angeli. I've been feeling very festive, as well. It's probably the crisp weather and the fact that the Christmas lights are up in Leamington, and that Nic and I have the excitement of this to look forward to:

Yes, it's a Dalek Advent Calendar (or, 'countdown calendar' as it's called on the box, presumably to secularise it) How cool is this? I'm dying to find out if the chocolates inside it are Dalek shaped! Next weekend Nic and I will put up our Christmas tree, and I'll start my countdown to going home for the holidays. It's all very exciting!

Okay, that's all from me for this evening. I hope you all have an excellent week.

(p.s. I'm pretty well decided I'm probably going to buy that dress. Y'all are surprised, isn't that right?)

What did he ever do? He knocked you up twice and took the garbage out on Thursdays. You wanna erect a statue?

So, it snowed last night. I love it when you go to bed and there's no snow, but you wake up to a snowy morning. Well, I normally love it. This morning the experience was somewhat marred by the fact that I was woken up by some bratty children on our street having a snowball fight at SEVEN IN THE MORNING. I am such a crank, but they were really noisy. It was almost worse than being woken up by my alarm.

But still, the snow was pretty fun and it contributed to my overall festive mood, which was nice. And being (rudely) awoken earlier than normal on a Saturday has its benefits too. Nic brought me a cup of tea and we lay in bed and read and lounged around, and when we got up it was still really early. So today actually feels really long because we've had a lovely day, and it's still only 6 o'clock.

After a bit of pottering around and a very tasty breakfast of coffee and toast with Mr Choc (Lidl's own brand alternative to a well-known hazelnut chocolate spread. It's just as tasty and comes in an enormous jar) Nic and I got ourselves dressed and headed into town to do a bit of grocery shopping and have a tramp in the snow. I decided to wear my new dress, which is wool:

Fever Robin dress and Irregular Choice Flick Flack shoes

I bought this dress online the other evening after a particularly tiring day. I'm clearly an emotional shopper. I like it a lot - the neckline is fun, it's pretty cosy and it's much slinkier than I thought it would be. I didn't wear these shoes to do the grocery shopping but I did wear them a little bit later. I wore another one of the treats I got from my Aspire goody bag - this necklace:

And I topped it all off with this adorable red cloche hat that Nic bought me in Oxfam one day last year:

Cloche indoors. It looks like I took this photo myself, but I didn't. I'm not that co-ordinated.

I like red and purple together. Nic bought me the red scarf in Stratford a few years ago, and I'm wearing my Ruby Belle Rosy coat

Nic and I went for a walk in town and dropped by the Handmade Gift Fair that was being held in the Town Hall. There were some good sellers and it was nice and busy but the tables were a bit too close together for us to be able to browse comfortably. I stopped to chat with Denise from Peeko, who was selling some of her handmade jewellery and accessories. She kindly agreed to pose for a little outfit shot:

Denise, in a rather fetching green dress from Phase Eight

I couldn't resist buying one of her gorgeous hats:

Look at the pink button in the middle of the flower, how cute is that?!

After a short browse around the farmer's market in the Pump Room Gardens (not very inspiring for vegetarians, but probably great if you eat meat) we took a turn through beautiful Jephson Gardens and I took the obligatory Look! It's Snowing! photos:

Nic was suitably attired in his wellies

After finishing our grocery shopping we had a quick cup of tea at home, and headed out to the cinema. Well, it's around the corner so 'headed out' seems a bit of an overstatement, there! Anyway, we went to see Megamind, which was our first foray into 3D. I really enjoyed the film, and although I found the idea of wearing another pair of glasses over the top of my own glasses a bit weird it wasn't too much of a problem. I have to admit that the appeal of 3D is a bit lost on me - I can't see that I would have enjoyed this film any less in 2D. Still, it was good to go to the cinema with my honey. It's actually the second time this week I've been to the cinema (almost unprecedented for me, despite my degree in film studies) as Lauren and I saw Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows together on Wednesday night. Again, I can't see that I would have enjoyed that any more in 3D but maybe I'm just a big old grumpybum about new technology! I'm certainly a grumpybum about films - the trailers before Megamind reminded me why I so rarely go to the cinema. Gulliver's Travels with Jack Black? Well, I like Jack Black, but damned if I'm going to pay £10 to see a film starring Billy Connolly and Catherine Tate (officially the Doctor's Most Annoying Companion. And I'm including Adric and even Turlough in that. And maybe even Bonnie Langford) Also, the weird film of Rapunzel, Tangled, also looks pretty sucky. But I liked the cutouts in the cinema foyer:

Anyway, the rest of Saturday is going to be pretty chilled - dinner, some wine, some records and some smooches. It sounds good, doesn't it?!

I do have some other stuff to tell you all about my week, and about work (and about my delightful angry colleague) but I'm going to do that tomorrow. In the meantime, can I ask your advice? Should I buy this?

The case against: Erm...well, I have a lot of dresses

The case for it: It's so pretty! And it's on sale!

The case against: I have already bought a dress this week, and it's nearly payday.

The case for: It's nearly payday?

And finally, the gorgeous Fi and Amber are taking part in Dressember, which is a challenge to wear a dress every day in December, and to blog it. Well, I'm not on Facebook and I wear a dress every day anyway but you should follow their progress, and head over and check out the Facebook group if it's something you fancy doing yourself.

Until tomorrow, my pretties!

I have no sense of decency. That way my other senses are enhanced.

The murky weather has made it difficult for me to get very excited about doing outfit shots. Also, it's been a funny week. I've tried to get more on top of it this weekend, so I hope you're all ready for a bumper 'Stuff I bought' post! Okay, so starting with Friday evening. Thursday and Friday I was a wee bit zombified at work - it's getting busy again, and I hadn't been sleeping very well so I can honestly say that my work outfits this week have been fairly unremarkable. Nic and I had planned to go to the Somerville with Tom and Paul on Friday night and, even though it was just a few drinks in our lovely local, I wanted to pull out the stops and wear the gorgeous Vintage Allure dress I bought at the Aspire launch a few weeks ago. I have to apologise for the slightly murky quality to the photographs, it's getting hard to get good light to take photos in! Still, these photos should give you some idea of how beautifully fitted the dress is:

Vintage Allure Ethel dress and Bertie Sardinia shoes

Pretty neckline

I love the button detail on this dress - I need to buy some more of these frocks. One in every colour, please!

Friday night was excellent. The pub was quiet, I was with some of my favourite people, and when I got home and into my warm bed it was with the happy glow of having spent a good evening in good company! We slept very late on Saturday morning and I must admit to having been a little worse for wear for most of the day. Nic and I spent the day very lazily. We did some grocery shopping, pottered around the town and made enchiladas. I took the opportunity to wear the dress I bought in Urban Village a few weeks ago. I'm not completely convinced that I like it; the dress is pretty eccentric. However, I do like the 70s shape to it. The colour is good, and I think it was hand-made, and Nic likes it. I'm sure I'll wear it again! I teamed it with a pretty little navy trilby I bought earlier in the week in a new shop in Leamington called M Butterfly. It wasn't labelled, and when I found it was only £5 I felt it too good to miss.

My bargain trilby and my Fever Paddington coat

Prairie dress and hat

I love the sleeves on this dress, and the shape of the neckline

It definitely needs a slip...

The other thing Nic and I did on Saturday evening was to watch the last few episodes of season one of Deadwood. I can't say anything about it that hasn't already been said, but I have been really enjoying it and I have to admit to having a bit of a lump in my throat by the end of the last episode. I'm very excited about watching season two!

Today we've been having a similarly quiet day, with the undoubted highlight of a wonderfully leisurely pub lunch with Lysy, The Scientist and Lauren. I was able to wear my latest creation, the Colette Chantilly dress. The pattern itself was a gift from Lysy and The Scientist. I bought some cotton lawn from Harlequin fabrics in Leamington, and lined it with a soft cotton sheet from Ikea. This is the fourth Colette pattern I've used and, like the others, the dress was a dream to sew up. I was a little bit apprehensive about making a fully lined dress, but as usual the instructions were so clear and precise that it was really easy. I love the way the soft gathers make the skirt fall, and the darts in the bodice back shape the back of the dress. I think I'll make it again with a sheer top layer, and maybe with slightly less fabric in the bodice - the gathering around the bust makes me look extremely blessed in the chest department. That's no great tragedy, I suppose. The nicest thing about these patterns is how they're put together - straightforward enough to make even a pretty inexperienced sewist feel like a genius.

Colette Chantilly dress

The back of the dress - the back comes down nice and low in a gentle scoop

This ring came in the lovely goody bag I received at the Aspire launch

Imagining it's not actually November. Don't worry, I wasn't frozen - we took these photos in the Arboretum in Jephson Gardens.

If I hadn't already been feeling pretty good about my outfit, I was paid the delightful compliment of a woman stopping me in the street to tell me how much she liked my dress. It's still very pleasing to be able to say "Oh thanks, I made it myself!" I love the pattern on this fabric and I'm considering buying some more - I think this would look gorgeous, and totally different, sewn up into a pencil dress.

This week is going to be pretty busy, but in a nice way. I've got a fair bit going on at work, but for the first time in ages I feel on top of things. I think this is probably because I've got so many other nice things to look forward to - a tasting evening on Tuesday with friends, and on Wednesday Lauren and I are off to see Harry Potter. I'm also planning to get moving on various crafty christmas gifts. And hopefully the weather will be mild enough for me to wear my latest addition to my (ever-expanding) shoe collection:

Shoes number 35: Irregular Choice Mermaids in blue

Yes, more Mermaids! In my defence, my black pair and my red pair get lots of wear so when I spotted the blue ones on ebay I pounced. They were also available in baby pink and I think also in orange, so I'm still on the lookout for those! (Well, the pink ones anyway. Probably not the orange ones) And look they're not the red soled shoes, but I do love the red soles on these ones:

Happy lucky cat

In fact, my other ebay purchase this month has been a duplicate of something I already own - the Fever Dita dress in black. I tell myself that a little black dress is a good thing to have...even if I already have a few.

Now, I'm off to have a snuggly Sunday night with my wonderful photographer, Nic. See you all in the week.

New Tricks blog over at Squeezegut Alley

I will write a proper blog soon, but in the meantime you can read my guest blog about the rather marvelous New Tricks over at Squeezegut Alley. Go on, go and read it!

That's the sort of thing the press will throw at you. I mean you step out of line they'll be all over you like a pigeon on a chip, you know?

When we left Leamington on Friday afternoon it was still unseasonably mild. Not so on our return tonight - the only word is BRRRR! Winter really is here. It's hard to feel too put out by that right now as I'm wrapped up in a dressing gown and blanket on the sofa, with a hot water bottle next to me. Also, I feel thoroughly rested and happy after a wonderful long weekend in Kent, visiting Nic's family.

After all of the excitement of the Aspire launch party on Thursday night, I worked from home on Friday. It meant I was able to have a bit of a lie in and sort my things out, as well as getting some work done in peace. We scooted off out of Leamington early and had an easy and uneventful journey down through London to Kent. It was livened up a little bit by the girl sitting behind me on the train from Reading, who was not only listening to James Blunt on her mobile phone but singing along. I know I shouldn't judge, really, but it made me laugh so much. She seemed completely oblivious to our mirth and while I normally find that kind of thing annoying, she just seemed so harmless and happy that I found it charming. The journey was also enlivened a little by meeting Mariella Frostrup on the circle line (she's really petite and very charming) and spotting Vic Reeves in St Pancras (although seeing Vic Reeves on these Kentish holidays is starting to get a little old hat now) We had a quiet first evening in Folkestone and got an early night ahead of an exciting day on Saturday.

Our good friends Dan and Victoria Deloria recently moved to the gorgeous village of Wye, and invited us to spend the day with them. We hopped on a train in the morning and were with them by lunchtime. Unfortunately we missed Wye Farmers' Market, but we did arrive in time to bag the last loaf of tea bread from Wye bakery. Wye is really gorgeous. Village life appeals to me anyway, and I could see myself living somewhere like this, nestled under the beautiful North Downs. Nic was intrigued by a sign advertising The Jazz Police, maybe we'll get the chance to see them the next time we're in Wye:

Nic and The Jazz Police.

Dan and Vic had lunch ready for us - a delicious butternut squash soup:

Vic spent the morning hollowing this gourd - apparently her mum bought it at auction!

With our tummies happily full of soup and bread and then tea and cake, we joined Dan's parents for a walk on the Downs - up to The Devil's Kneading Trough, which is a glacial valley. It was a beautiful, bracing walk and the scenery was incredible:

Seen from The Devil's Kneading Trough

Nic brooding on the hilltop

Vic meeting some of the local wildlife

A bridle path worn through the hills

...and me, enjoying the ramble

The Devil's Kneading Trough restaurant - a very strange place.

This wasn't to be our only walk on the hills that day. Wye Bonfire Society organises a bonfire and fireworks display every year on bonfire night. The people from the village (and the surrounding areas too, judging by the crowd assembled) gather outside the church once darkness has fallen and walk up through the hills to the Crown to watch the fireworks. We joined them, and it was wonderful. It was a mild, dry and clear night. The Crown was alight, which looked spectacular from the village. Once we were up on the hill we could see right across the Kent coast, and a little bit of Sussex as well - Hastings is just about visible from the hills above Wye. While we waited for the WBS fireworks to be let off we were able to see fireworks going up all over the county. It was magical. The sky was full of stars, and the bonfire was blazing - and it was ever so Wicker Man-style surreal.

The rest of our weekend was quiet. Sunday was cold and wet, and the most exercise we managed was a walk on Sandgate seafront in between showers:

Sandgate seafront

Me on the beach

Nic looks great when he's moodily lit

...and so do I!

That evening we watched the fabulous Mildred Pierce - my second James M.Cain film of the past few weeks, and the first time I'd watched a Joan Crawford film. She was amazing! When I finish the book I'm currently reading (David Kynaston's Austerity Britain. I cannot recommend it highly enough, by the way) I'll be picking up the novel of Mildred Pierce.

Over the next few days we pottered around Folkestone and Hythe, watched some Doctor Who with Nic's brother and generally just lazed around. It was so good to spend time with Nic's parents, and to be by the sea.

I know this has been a picture-heavy blog post, but I'm going to leave you here with a few more. It's time for me to have a hot bath, then go to bed to eat bread and butter pudding and watch The Apprentice. Good night, all!

My new slippers, a gift from Nic's parents. They know me well, clearly!

I met this wee man outside the Saga headquarters in Sandgate. He only had three legs, poor wee thing! He wasn't shy, but wasn't keen on having his photo taken.

A walk by the seafront at dusk

The sun came out again today for our last walk on the seafront. I loved this path of sunlight on the water.