This week I am ...

... looking after my neighbour's cat.  Now anyone who knows me well will know that cats and I do not always get on {I still have the scars to prove it} but this little cutie is no trouble at all and seems to like me.  I turn up twice a day to let her in and feed her, what's not to like?  She's a very old lady though and everyday that I go round I am greatly relieved when I see her running towards the door.

... working on the last photo for Rinda's Scavenger Hunt.  A piece of artwork.  So I got out my trusty artist's pad and started creating a mandala.  I'd forgotten how relaxing these drawings are.  Well, relaxing until you get 3/4 of the way through it and then smudge a line of wet ink that is.

... enjoying wearing my new make up.  I don't wear a lot of makeup and don't normally spend much on what I do use, but this year I've had two 'splurges'.  I've been eyeing up the Bare Minerals make up range as a friend of mine uses it and her skin always looks well made up but still natural.  But as it's a bit different to normal foundation/blusher/highlighter I thought I really needed to go and speak to a shop consultant rather than just go in and buy something.  So when I was in Cambridge a few months ago I walked through the beauty department of John Lewis and there were no customers at the Bare Minerals section.  Yes! This was my chance.  So I had a trial make up done and was so impressed with how it looked and felt.  Until she totted up how much it would cost me if I bought everything she'd used and every brush she recommended.  Gulp.  I asked her to make a note of it so that I could think it over.  I did a bit of research on line and saw that they did a starter kit that had everything she had recommended with one multi-purpose brush and then bought it when I was in Duty Free at the airport for £32.  I know it's only sample pots but reviews said they found that it lasted for months on end as you only use a tiny bit of powder for each use.  Then I can replace it as I need to rather than buy full size bits of every thing. Does anyone else out there use this brand?  I love it.  The texture on your skin is lovely, and it really does last all day.  I'd really recommend it but honestly don't think you need three different brushes, this starter kit is perfect. 

Well one thing missing from the kit was a lipstick, and the only piece of make up I spend a lot of money on, and one which I do wear every day, no matter what, is my lipstick.  And my favourite one is YSL Rouge Volupte Shine.  I've been wearing the same colour for a couple of years so I went into the store and asked the sales assistant to suggest a new one.  She chose a paler, more coral colour than my normal one and I love it!  And as I bought it with a batch of vouchers that I'd accumulated through the John Lewis loyalty card, it was even better because it was practically free!

... wearing trousers again.  Where has the sun gone?  I'd got used to wearing sun dresses every day.  This cloudy weather has got me reaching for something to cover my legs again.  I bought these lightweight cotton trousers last year from Accessorize and I didn't wear them and left the tags on them for ages as I wasn't sure how much use I would get out of them and might not actually keep them.  But I'm so pleased I didn't return them, they are so comfortable to wear and are just perfect for days like this.

... Looking forward to wearing my new dance shoes when Fitsteps returns tomorrow.  I had started the classes wearing trainers but they really weren't flexible enough for a dance class.  So I found an old pair of Rachel's dance shoes that she used to wear for 'character dancing' and folk dancing.  They were brilliantly flexible but had no cushioning at all in the sole.  I started to get pains in one ankle which went up my shin and I'm sure it was because there was no 'bounce'.  So I decided to order some proper split soled shoes.  Flexible?  Tick.  Cushioned?  Tick.  Let's see if they put more spring in my step!

... weaving in ends to the blanket I've been knitting.  Oh boy, this blanket has taken a while to do.  It was fine at first, but the mid section took so long, I used to make myself do at least 2 rows a day to keep it going, then suddenly the end was in sight and I stepped up the pace.  So now the blanket is finished but now there are dozens of ends to weave in at the beginning and end of each stripe.

So that's how my week is shaping up, and I can't believe that I'm now two weeks into the holiday - why does holiday time go so much faster than work time?!