OLIVE & SAGE – WONDROUS AND QUIRKY HOMES AND GARDENS

OLIVE & SAGE – WONDROUS AND QUIRKY HOMES AND GARDENS

 

Olive and Sage is a fabulous new discovery in the World of eclectic home furnishings and garden ornaments.  You may not be partial to garden gnomes, in fact my neighbour has just hidden her husband’s more ‘kitch’ garden decorations.  But you will find a variety of inventive designs and quirky pieces, to inspire you in your home and garden.

To add some colour to you garden, or to encourage your kids or grandchildren to grow plants and flowers outdoors, these vibrant planters are just what you need.  Only £25 each or £63 for three.

Pandora the Pig is a great way to celebrate this much loved animal without the toil that goes with keeping such a creature, and there are a variety of carefully crafted animals to choose from.  Pandora the Pig is just £38.

If you a lover of shabby chic, then this lantern is for you and has been skilfully designed and reasonably priced.  Large Shabby Chic Lantern – £59.

For those of you who value a little ‘you’ time, this fun wall frame is a great ‘tongue in cheek’ statement to relish those moments alone.  Now just £13.

Bring out the designer in you with their industrial range, these Pipe coat hooks are both stylish and reasonably priced at £53.

This Company actually offers something for everybody in their ‘Pandora’s Box’ of goodies.   So whether you want to perk up your garden or enhance your home, Olive and Sage have a treasure trove of items in store for you.

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EXPLORING THE NETHERLANDS – THE WIND POWER MASCOT OF THE DUTCH

EXPLORING THE NETHERLANDS – THE WIND POWER MASCOT OF THE DUTCH

 

The Netherlands really cares about green living, being eco-friendly, sustainability and conservation. Just think about how the windmill (and therefore wind power) is basically considered the unofficial mascot of the Dutch!

There are more zoos/wildlife parks here than I ever imagined, and all of them I visited are in superb condition. They all have some connection with wildlife conservation and education.

I was truly impressed with the habitats for the animals in each of the zoos we went to. My favorite was Burgers’ Zoo, south of the Hoge Veluwe National Park. I commented that it seemed like we were in the animal’s natural habitat with every site we visited.

It really feels as though you’re walking in different climate zones and just happened to come across the animals in the wild. They’ve done such a good job. The animals there are the happiest I’ve ever seen in captivity, and animals in “bad” zoos don’t have enough space to exercise (I hate seeing what I call “dead eyes” on animals in zoos), and Burgers solves both problems by giving them a lot of space to move in an environment that feels authentic, but without having to worry about survival. The combination makes for some very happy animals.

Another fantastic zoo, is the Apenhuel Primate Park, just to the east of the Hoge Veluwe. This was a wonderful experience, with capuchin monkeys greeting us upon arrival. And when I say greeting us, I mean crawling on my head, my husband’s arm and all over our pram Lemurs were also free roaming, and other primates had amazing enclosures/open air habitats.

It is set in a beautiful park that would be lovely to take a day and picnic, or ride a bike, have a romantic date and finish off at the restaurant. Speaking of food, if you want to eat while in the zoo, you need not worry about finding healthy fare. Most of the zoos in The Netherlands offered organic meals! In fact, Apenheul only offered organic ice cream! Quite a contrast to zoos in the United States, for instance, where you’re basically going to solely find the worst kind of fast foods, and inevitably leave feeling a little sick.

Exploring the National Park took us to Kootwijk, a small village that lies in the middle of the park, and is filled with farms that house gorgeous horses, ponies, sheep, goats, cows, llamas and even a few wallabies (which we spotted from our car as we zoomed by, then turned around to make sure we weren’t hallucinating). We hiked a bit, finding our way to the famous and beautiful sand dunes along the coast (who knew The Netherlands had sand dunes?!).

I can’t forget about our trip to Efteling, the oldest amusement park in Europe, which predates Disneyland by 3 years. You can see that Walt Disney got lots of inspiration from this park, which is far less commercialized than any Disney park… as well as less crowded, cheaper and way more magical. Despite not being able to do the big roller coasters (thanks to having our toddler with us), we still immensely enjoyed every moment of it – especially the Enchanted Forest and carousels.

Before our visit to the amusement park, we stayed in Tilburg, a small university city located just a stone’s throw from Efteling, as well as the Safari Park Beekse Bergen, which had African animals, as well as all sorts of ungulates, walking around. I recommend doing the drive-through section on a weekday, not at a peak time. We learned this the hard way, getting stuck in traffic, with no room to pull over at a whim to admire an animal for more than a few seconds. Our experience here was not ideal, but I imagine if you go when it’s not packed, it could be lovely. If you must go at peak time, opt for the walk-through or boat tour instead of the drive through safari.

We then traveled to Drachten and stayed onboard a yacht for a few nights. Odd as it sounds, this is Airbnb-able. It was great fun, and my daughter decided she wants to live on a boat after that experience. We even found fantastic food in the city center there, enjoying the best mustard soup (a Dutch favorite) of our entire trip.

Not too far away is the charming town of Giethoorn, which is inaccessible by car, so you need a boat and/or bicycle to get around. We rented a small boat and took a couple of hours sailing through the canals, admiring the beautiful thatched roof homes, perfectly manicured with fragrant flowers on the lawns and lily pads in the water. Giethoorn is a busy touristy town, but it’s easy to find your way into your own bubble, if you just exit the main area and venture off in your boat or bike or on foot for 20 minutes or so. Idyllic. In fact, I imagine that Giethoorn is where the word “quaint” originated. It should have been, anyway, because that’s what it feels like when you’re there. Quaint in the best way possible.

Driving west, we stopped to visit the Castle De Haar, a fantastical castle, complete with moat and drawbridge, perfectly manicured lawns, and the best kept castle I’ve ever seen. The Dutch do take pride in their country, maintaining their historic buildings and manicuring the landscape in ways that many countries don’t. Everything is taken care of and maintained so well. Even the neighborhoods we were told were lower income still looked beautiful, and were exceedingly well kept, including the roads, buildings and sidewalks. Visit this castle and be blown away by its grandeur.

Of course, we had to visit Gouda on our trip. We did, and we learned that Gouda is not only known for cheese, but also candles and ceramic pipes. I learned all about the Gouda cheese making process, and the different types, based on age. We had one of our best meals in the town, and left with a suitcase full of cheese, vacuum sealed and ready for our flight. You likely think I’m exaggerating. I am most certainly not.

Finally, we stayed in a farmhouse just twenty minutes drive from Schipol Airport, and our toddler enjoyed the chickens while we enjoyed the fresh eggs each morning.

We left The Netherlands after experiencing so much, yet feeling like we only skimmed the surface of what the country has to offer. We need to go back, especially during springtime to see the tulips, and also during winter to skate on the canals in Amsterdam when the water freezes over. It sounds like a dream – but in reality, it is already calling us back.

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THE POWER OF NOW – LIVING LIFE IN THE PRESENT – THE GREATEST GIFT OF ALL

THE POWER OF NOW – LIVING LIFE IN THE PRESENT – THE GREATEST GIFT OF ALL

 

So many of us are either regretting the past or worrying about the future, so futile in the grand scheme of things.
When we are told to live in the present, this is exactly what it is – a Present!

To those who are not familiar with the Law of Attraction, it may seem a bit ‘out there’ to philosophise about spiritual gain, but it is far more than just a random concept.  If we live in the moment, we are generating good fortune for our future.
It has been scientifically proven that if we worry about events in the future we will attract the things we fear the most to us.  It makes sense because we act upon our belief system which is why we make the same mistakes over and over again.

To change our belief system, we have to have self-belief, and that is easier said than done.  But living in the present is a good place to start, as it is giving a present to yourself, and therefore generating a feeling of self-worth.

A recent visitor to Glotime.tv, Jason Chan runs workshops with meditation and is a great advocate of living in the now, and adds to that concept with ‘love’ being the greatest healer of all.  As he says, Love cannot co-exist with fear, regret, anger or any of the lower life states which block our ability to live in the present.

Jason Chan

If you are able to meditate for even a few minutes a day, it could enable you to clear your head enough to give yourself the space to be worry free for even a short time.  Miracles will then start to happen, this is guaranteed.   They may appear in very small ways at first, but as you build your meditation regime, they will manifest more and more in your environment with relationships, family, work, kids or anything else your heart desires.

To learn more about the Law of Attraction or refresh your memory, consult The Secret, which has become our bible, or check out one of the many holistic centres throughout the UK and Europe.  Try @thehubatno3 which is Lynne Franks retreat in Somerset as a starting point, or if you need one closer to home, there are a number of brilliant spas and practitioners which will help give you the guidance you need.

Lynne Franks

 

Then if you are in the fortunate position to take yourself off to a retreat or holistic spa, this will enable you to practise this ancient philosophy and activate your inner desires and give yourself the greatest gift of all – THE PRESENT.

Links:
https://hubatno3.com/
http://lightfoundation.com/

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