Cafe le Chat & All That Jazz

I hope you've had a good weekend. I've been running around like a crazy woman, 'shooting' and recording barcodes for my wedding gift registries.

I wanted to tell you about the cutest cafe I discovered the other day in...Campbelltown! Cafe Le Chat & All that Jazz, just off the main street, is a friendly little hideaway. Friendly service, comfy mismatched seating, music and vintage knick knacks for sale. I stumbled across this gorgeous cafe completely by chance on my way to a meeting last week. I couldn't believe my luck!
And I definitely couldn't resist picking up these pretty girls. They were calling out to me! With the promise of live jazz and clairovoyant readings, I'll definitely be back. I'm so excited to find a gem on my home turf. I definitely recommend popping in if you're in the area. I've photographed them hanging out with a picture of my nonno and late nonna, taken in Italy when they were courting. One of my favourite photos.

Love,
Cat x

Home inspiration (main bedroom)

I'm exhausted! I thought weekends were meant to be relaxing?? A housewarming party on Friday night (where I picked up some decorating tips off my tres chic friend); my first ever trip to Bunning's on Saturday (my goodness, I could get lost in there) followed by a night out on the town with my beautiful cousins; then today, along with a convoy of the MOB (Mother of the Bride), two aunties and three cousins, went to see my gorgeous bridesmaid dresses, have a yummy (and big!) lunch, then take them to see my new house...Phew! Luckily I managed to throw in a couple of naps to maintain my energy levels.

I'm going to leave you with some pictures of some beautiful and inspirational bedrooms. I was toying with the idea of a black and white main bedroom although I think it might be too harsh and overpowering for the size of the room. I think I'll stick to my original plan to have a fairly neutral pallet. I absolutely love the chandelier in the first picture and would also like to use a headboard to give some definition to the bed and add interest to the neutral wall.

Image 1 from Boat Shed Chic
I can't seem to work out where I found the other two images from. If you know, please let me
know so I can credit them properly...note to self: be more careful next time!

Let me know what you think. Have you got pictures of neutral colour schemes you think would inspire me? If so, please email me (catarina18@hotmail.com) - I could use all the help I can get!

Love,
Cat x

Introducing Marshall John

While most of us were out enjoying our weekend, a very strong woman was enduring a lengthy labour. Spanning around 48 hours and resulting in an emergency Caesarian, I doubt that she'll forget the experience in a hurry. I have a feeling she'll say it was worth the effort though...

Welcome to the world, baby Marshall John Bennett, just in time for Mother's Day! Hopefully I can follow up with some pictures soon.

Cat x

Produce Day

Ever since I can remember I've been surrounded by food. Growing, picking, killing, cooking, buying and playing with have all been adjectives I'm pretty comfortable around.

From my maternal grandparents growing rows of tomatoes and herbs and a large chestnut tree in their backyard to my dads parents growing strawberries and selling them at markets. From seeing Nonno's yard turned into a production line making scores of bread in the wood fired oven and tomato sauce to remembering the wine vats bursting, spreading a river of red wine all over the drive way and into the gutter. From helping Nonna make cotolette and sneaking bits of raw meat to being given bread dough to play with and then bake and eat. From seeing dead chickens hanging from the verandah to realising that some of the cute cows ended up on my plate...and so on and so forth. I could go on for ever about the enormous impact food and everything related to it has had on me. In fact, I chose to study Nutrition at university and it was no coincidence that my first boyfriend was a chef!

My love affair with food began before I can even remember and there are foods that my enjoyment of them isn't just about the taste but also about the memories associated with them. When I'm sick, all I want is pastina. When I'm upset, I turn to a glass of milk with my favourite 'cafe latte' biscuits.

This is my first post about food but it will not be my last. Food is inextricably linked to me, my family and my life. Having an Italian background probably helps :-)

I wanted to share some pictures of beautiful fresh produce that I've been fortunate enough to eat lately. Tomatoes from Mum's garden and fresh fish that my brother, Tony, caught. There's something incredibly satisfying about knowing where your food has come from and how fresh it is.

Enjoy :-)