#libertyoflondon

Hello it’s our Weekend Meanderings time with Elizabeth and Juliet.  Our Juliet is ill this week, so please wish her well if you can.

The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee

I’m a big anglophile and I guess you could say I’m a royalist. I think this celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s 70th year on the throne is so special. I would love to have been there and be in the thick of it. I am watching all of it and really enjoyed reports of those on the ground there like the blogger/ HRH book author, Elizabeth Holmes. It’s been a blast to follow along on her Instagram as she found a spot along the route and met up with another famous English Instagrammer, All That’s Pretty. Both ladies are enjoyable to follow if you love England and the monarchy!

On that note…

I was a lucky girl this week as a gift box appeared on my porch from the fabulous Fortum & Mason in London. It was a surprise Jubilee box from my son’s girlfriend Kristin, who is English. It included a special tea crafted to commemorate Elizabeth’s 70 years on the throne, a darling cookie tin that plays God Save the Queen, and a pretty tote with a beautiful design incorporating the Queen’s corgis.

I was thrilled!! It was the kindest gift and made watching the Jubilee festivities even more fun with my cup of tea and biscuits. Next best thing to being there! I made a small video of the package on my Instagram.

If you aren’t familiar with it, Fortum’s has been providing tea and goods to the monarchy for over 300 years, so they are a wonderful spot to visit in London. If you are unable to visit this six story dream of a store, you can also find their treasures online and see their wonderful selection of commemorative Jubilee goods here.

You know what’s fun? The English have a wonderful tradition of street parties with their neighbors during these jubilees and royal weddings. It’s a very nice idea to gather your neighbors and have a street party. We grew up doing this for fourth of July in my neighborhood and we all could use more of it. I love seeing how the English do this! I hope to have at least one this summer. Have you done this? We all need more coming together with our neighbors after the last few years…

Back to Jubilee chat, Liberty of London is my other favorite spot in London and another quintessential English gem. They have a few special scarves that are pretty and mark this very special 70th year of the queen. So of course I am tempted by these beautiful designs like this jubilee scarf …

and this Queen’s Hat’s scarf with one hat she’s worn for each year she’s been on the throne! What a great idea! The scarves are more the neckerchief size and would be cute tied around a bag !

The Queen looked lovely and I liked both her outfits. I am glad she choose to rest the second day and skip the service. Can you imagine being 96 and still working? A few photos from the day from The Royal Family Official Instagram…

I love the Queen’ turquoise suit especially! This was my grandmother’s favorite color. She adored the queen and we watched her many times on television together and I gave her many HELLO magazines with photos of her events in years past. I wish she was here to see it all. When I look back at my grandmother’s long life I see how her style paralleled that of the queen, the suits, the hair and all that. They were of the same era, though grandma was born in 1917.

When we cleaned grandma’s place out, she had a coronation tin from 1953, that I am fortunate to have.

The Coronation of Elizabeth II took place on June 2, 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London, but Elizabeth actually acceded to the throne after the death of her father, George VI, on 6 February 1952, and that’s why we are celebrating this year. I have no idea how grandma came to have it. A little research shows it was a toffee tin made by Horner confectionery company in England. She didn’t travel, but she may have gotten it stateside where they were sold widely. I treasure this. I’ve cleaned it, but it’s nearly 70 years old and I have to be careful not to scrub the images off..

And one more Jubilee gem.. I thought this was a fascinating read on the history of Jubilees and who has had them! The queen has had several.

Enjoy the festivities. This may be our last Jubilee for many years. I hope the queen lives a long time like her mum did.

Father’s Day Gift Ideas

I’ve got some ideas for Father’s Day which is in just two weeks! These are a few things I would choose for my own husband or dad….Max is an outdoor guy (hopefully not reading), and I thought he’d love this cool Cuisinart Grill with a built in cutting board. I think it would be great for camping or beach trips. Love how you can have it monogrammed and has a little handle.

These Laptop Zipper Cases by Mark & Graham are so good looking. I like both the tan or pebbled leather. A monogram will make it even more special. It’s so nice to have one of these throw in a bag or for travel to protect your laptop.

My husband loves gadgets and this Hatch Restore Reading Light and Sound Machine and Sunrise Alarm is a reading light, sound machine and time-to-rise indicator all in one, this ingenious device helps you customize your sleep environment.

Everyone love Vuori sweats and they also have trunks! These Cruise Hybrid Board Shorts are highly rated and have pockets and four-way stretch so they are good for a day out as well as the beach. A nice choice if his trunks are looking a little tired.. ( According to Max, that never happens to his clothes… Insert eye roll emoji!)

Give that camper with some toasty love with this Kelty Galactic themed blanket stuffed with 550-fill-power down. Perfect for a cold beach day or just to have in the car for those bonfires..

Max loves these shirts and shorts. I don’t buy him a lot, but these Lululemon Linerless Shorts are look so good and made to last. They are designed so perfectly and lightweight, they feel great on he says. They come in 11 colors and two lengths. These are the 9 inch and there is also 7.

This is his favorite shirt from them that he wears a ton for working out, weekends, daily and layering. They wash well and travel great and are in 18 colors!

Last Christmas Jackson surprised Max with this Ooni pizza oven. We weren’t sure we even needed it as he always made pizzas on our Trager Grill, but this little guy was a game changer. You truly get pizza just like the wood fired places, black crusty bits and chewy delicious pizza. We love this thing and make pizzas at least once a week with it! It’s like being in Italy! This is one gift that exceeded expectations.

I kind of loved these Peanuts Joe Cool shirts By SEAESTA SURF at Nordys too..

These men’s Eberjay super soft modal pajamas are made for warmer months and nice to wear around the home and travel with.

I’ll keep adding more gift ideas to my Father’s Day Squares at the end of this post, as I see them.. Nordstrom actually has curated an adventure/outdoor gifts for him section, which is very cool.

My husband really loves a day out, or an adventure. The last thing I did was planning the Golden Gate Bridge walk and lunch ( on this post )which he always wanted to do. Sometimes it’s just a walk, or a special dinner, or a day out somewhere totally new that’s fun! Sometimes those are the best gifts. Please share any great ideas you have for Father’s Day too.

My Favorite New Outdoor Lantern & Candle

I am trying to create a prettier yard environment and have been adding some lanterns to the mix. I love when those little automatic flameless candles come on at night and make the yard look so nice.

Now I think I’ve found something even better, a solar version of the flameless candle that goes on and needs no battery replacing! World Market sells them. I was dubious, so just bought one, left it in a sunny spot, and there it was at night shining. I also got this cute lantern there that looks like a more expensive RH one I have seen. There were a lot of these candles at my World Market, but not online. Target sells a pack of two of them here, which look similar.

Lovely Summer Blouses

I’m in love right now with Emerson Fry’s India Collection pieces which are hand blocked cottons in the prettiest prints. They are all made of organic cotton in Rajasthan, India. I particularly love light blouses in the summer now. They hide my arms from the sun and are still cool and pretty and not tight. They are much more flattering than a t-shirt to me.

I paired their Mandarin collar blouse with my white Anthro Colette Pants and a J.Crew Beach Sweater which I tie on with higher waist pants, so I don’t look like I’m all legs, short top. ( My straw bag here.)

This pretty blouse which is one size, is wide and billowy, but works well with shorts and higher waisted pants and jeans. They have this easy style in rosy color left, or this blue stripe. Looks like my yellow is out currently. I’m considering this blue one also.. It’s such an easy shirt to throw on.

Other great options from Emerson Fry to wear all summer in place of t’s and come in multiple sizes -are this Basalie top in blue and white stripes, or yellow..

..and this Dahlia Top left, (same fabric as my top), or this Olympia Top with a longer sleeve you can roll..

The Frances Blouse is also lovely..

I also adore the dresses of the collection. The Isla Dress is on my wishlist in Cleo color and blue too.. Can’t decide, but I want to add at least one easy dress this year to my closet mix and this could double as a coverup/tunic too.

You may want to peruse the whole India Collection by Emerson Fry. I think the prices are good for things that are hand done in small batches with organic cotton, and eco conscious practices and dyes. They strive for zero waste. Items are made in Brooklyn or with a small group in India.

More Thoughts on Gun Violence

Thank you for the wonderful notes last week about our nation’s scourge of gun violence. It means so much to know so many of you are feeling the same, and are done with how we are living in this country. The big lie, that we need guns to stay safe, has really been cracked open for all of us to see when those children died with 19 police nearby, and not one saving them. Then this week, (just one of more shootings), two doctors, a hospital receptionist and a patient were blown away by an unhappy back surgery patient who bought his gun literally an hour before. And will they next say doctors and nurses need guns? Will we need more and more … When will the madness of it stop?

Then Republicans on Thursday rejected advancing ANY gun legislation for background checks. HOW do they sleep at night after knowing their loose laws and policies are enabling these massacres?

So in light of this, an article sent by a friend resonated with me. I think you may agree it’s time for a different approach and going off the rails right now seems like the right thing. Status quo isn’t working and I happen to like some of the ideas in this.. Warning there are some F bombs, but in my opinion, they are warranted. This is from a Humboldt newspaper, where my husband grew up. I love this author and I’m not sure they would have printed her opinion here locally, but I shared it and I wish you could too.

It Might Be Time... read her full article here.

We must at the very least ban assault rifles, expand federal background checks, and red flag laws. We need those who take the NRA money, who have put guns above children and lives, to be exposed for the heartless humans they are. Stay strong, get loud and let’s change this nation together.

Well that’s my meanderings for this week.

Juliet came down with a stomach bug, so she is sitting this week out. I’m keeping her in my thoughts. Please check her beautiful blog anyway, a treasure trove of good things. So is Elizabeth’s fantastic blog, which is published many times during the week! These ladies are busy blogging about everything cool and fun. I need more tea times to catch up with it all. They are my escape… Find them here:

PINECONES AND ACORNS

MAKE MINE A SPRITZER

Thank you for being here. Have a lovely weekend,

Kim

If you missed last week’s blog I shared picnic ideas, a garden spray, a some ways we can help end gun violence and more, find that post here.

p.s. A few more inquires into the straw bag I have above. it’s from Mango and comes with a tan strap or dark orange. I love this bag which has a interior pouch that zips for security and is also removable…

My wool tassel I attached made by Mexican artisans can be found here.…and also these colors.

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