A few questions about nice things...

Who do you most admire?

People who find joy in everyday moments and find the perfect balance between hard work and good fun.  I admire people who can write about simple things in an inspiring way, like Gladys Taber and Roger Deakin.

What are your favourite possessions?

My shiny blue bicycle: a perfect simple piece of design that can take me anywhere (given enough time!)  And the notebooks where I’ve saved all those travels and more.  I have a box full of childhood doodlings, angsty teenage poetry, and faraway adventures.  I rarely read them, but I love their variety, and the fact that I have such inconsequential meanderings so painstakingly preserved.  That inclination never ends and I still buy and fill many a notebook every year.

Tell us about your perfect day or weekend...

Sunshine through bedroom curtains, strong coffee and a book in bed.  Then out on the bike to ride country lanes, complete with dappled shade and not a car in sight.  A brunch of blueberry pancakes & crispy bacon at a beachside cafe, lingering over the weekend papers. Back home in time for a large pot of tea and some homemade cake.  A snooze in the afternoon, then out late for dinner and dancing with friends.

What makes you happiest?

Being outside with my man, whatever the weather, running around and generally exploring.  Then coming home with tired legs and a big appetite.

What would you like to do in the future?

Find more time to do all the little things I love.  Preferably doing all these things in an old house in the country, complete with chickens and a well-tended veg patch.