And so we return from our pre-Christmas jaunt around London, a little footsore, but still glowing with big-city-instilled happiness.

Sorry about the extended blogging break, but when I tell you that we did the London Eye, Tower of London, Tate Modern, the South Bank (including the lovely little designers’ market tucked away under the Royal Festival Hall), the Science Museum, and the Natural History Museum, over four days, you will understand why.

We also shopped our way along the Kings Road, Regent Street (including visits to Hamleys, Liberty and Anthropologie), Soho and Covent Garden. Plus, of course, Harrods.

And we ate lots of delicious food in very stylish Soho restaurants, including Pho and Mildred’s.

Perhaps not surprisingly, we all needed a bit of down-time once we got home, to recover.

But on Sunday morning, I was sufficiently rejuvenated to head into Nottingham city centre.

Because actually, the delights of London town set me all a-dither. And those delights were also expensive.

So I bought very little in the way of gifts whilst I was there.

My trip around Nottingham was much more successful. Although the results cannot be shared here.

Apart from the things that I bought for myself, of course. Things which I told myself I really shouldn’t have bought.

And then did anyway.

I couldn’t resist. Because they are vintage. And vintage waits for no-one.

And they were cheap. Unlike London.

But most of all, they are, I think, rather lovely.

Which is as good a reason as any to buy something.♥