Inntravel: The quiet side of the mountain

We love winter breaks, but with hectic Christmas schedules, visiting family and high street madness it can all become just a tiny bit stressful.

When we think of winter holidays, what springs to mind are crowded slopes and busy bars – hardly the most relaxing way to get away from it all! When we heard about Inntravel’s snow holidays, we began to think we had missed a trick when it came to travelling in the colder months.

Winter holidays don’t have to be about joining the masses on a packed ski slope. Inntravel’s winter breaks invite you to explore the quiet side of the mountain.

That means pottering around traditional Christmas markets, relaxing in friendly, family-run hotels, snowshoeing through icy landscapes or (if you’re feeling a bit more adventurous!) racing huskies and chasing the Northern Lights. Or if skiing is your thing, we love the idea of going cross country and exploring the areas that no-one else sees.

Pop over to the Inntravel website to find out more!

Wordless Wednesdays ... happy Halloween!

By Bridget at The Deer Circus.

Hand warmer DIY

Brrr... there's a definite chill in the air these days! Craft your own home-made heat pack to keep you cosy.

Fellow Fellow has come up with the perfect solution to stop our fingers getting chilly in the nippy autumn air. This super simple heat pack DIY will tuck into your coat pocket to warm you up in no time.

Great idea, right? We'll be honest, though - we were sold from the minute we spotted blogger Claire's beautiful choice of Liberty style fabric.

Pop over to the Fellow Fellow blog to find out how it's done (we for one were mega-surprised to find out what goes inside these little pouches!) plus oodles more crafty gorgeousness.

Issue 2 : reader photos

It seems that Issue 2 has inspired loads of you to enjoy some simple things this month! We've rounded up the best of your pics to share.

As we get ready for The Simple Things issue 3 to hit the shops (THIS THURSDAY! Put it in your diaries!), we thought we'd gather together all the photos you've been sharing on our Facebook and Twitter accounts to show you.

Our baked eggs breakfast recipe was a big hit, as were our beautiful terrariums! We love seeing what you've been up to, so keep sharing your pics with us.

To all whose snaps have been included (that's you Emma Mitchell, Craig Freeman, Claire Thatcher, Laura Lindholm, Natalie, Kelly Mead, Threads Cornwall, Salt Home and Gifts and Clairey Custard) a great biiiiiiig thank you!

Download your FREE Simple Things soundtrack

We're giving away our Simple Things video soundtrack free to download!

As a special treat for your weekend, we're offering our The Simple Things soundtrack free to download.

Click the link below to have a listen, or right click and 'Save link as...' to save the mp3. It's perfect relaxation music, so pop the kettle on, put your feet up and escape for five minutes!

Right click to download The Simple Things soundtrack.

Alternative pumpkin decorating

BOO! Halloween is fast approaching. Time to get planning! Whether you're past your dressing-up years or not, it'd be wrong not to mark the occasion with a carved pumpkin or two. We've shunned traditional approaches and rounded up the coolest alternative pumpkin decorating DIYs on the web.

Kicking off our round-up is the very dedicated (and artistically blessed) Alisa Burke. We've never seen such a spectacle as Alisa's painted pumpkins. Not so much a DIY as a gaze-in-awe-and-don't-even-think-about-attempting-it, we'd be distraught when it was time to throw these away.

For a much more achievable take on the metallic on white design, click over to Paper'n'stitch. A little white paint and a Sharpie or two is all that's needed for these simple and chic metallic spotted pumpkins.

Ramping up the glam factor a notch is A Field Journal. This sparkly pumpkin DIY combines a pale base with a liberal sprinkling of glitter for an eerie shimmer.

Not dramatic enough for you? If you really want to make a statement, check out Monograms and Manicures. This chevron pumpkin comes in neon pink with a heap of gold glitter to boot. Pair with a green spotted design to really start your Halloween with a bang!

Wordless Wednesdays ... ribbons

By Sophia Jansson at Mokkasin.

See more wordless Wednesdays.

Shop love : BEG Bicycles

BEG Bicycles has the prettiest cycling accessories we've ever seen. Fact.

You might have noticed that The Simple Things issue 2 has a bit of a cycling theme. We know looks aren't everything, but we can't help but wonder if an afternoon whizzing through crispy autumn leaves couldn't be improved by one of the gorge bikes or cycling accessories from BEG Bicycles.

This Cambridge-based business has a whole sweetshop's worth of confectionery-coloured bikes, plus classic brown leather saddles, wicker bike baskets and (perhaps our favourite) woollen picnic rugs which can be strapped to your saddle.  Aaaaand...breathe.

We know it's a little early, but we think that this would be the perfect place to pick up some Christmas pressies for our bike loving friends.

Wordless Wednesdays ... baking

By O The Brave Music.

Try unplugging

Unplug for one day each month. Sounds a little scary, doesn't it? Blogger Emily from Peck Life says it's worth it.

How often do you check your phone each day? How long do you spend Tweeting, or surfing the net? When we stumbled upon Sarah's project to 'unplug' herself for 24 hours once each month, it got us thinking. How difficult would it be to go a day with no phone, email, social media, no TV?

And would we see any benefits?

Sarah says that unplugging helped her to feel more present and really connect with what she was doing, not to mention giving her a whole chunk of time back! Pop over to Peck Life to read all about her experiment.

Has anyone else tried going 'unplugged'? Share your experiences with us below!

Book launch: Wonder Walls

Wonder Walls by Sarah Bagner is a scrapbook of interior design ideas with a difference.

If you've ever browsed the virtual walls of Sarah's online store, Supermarket Sarah, you'll know she has something of an eye for displaying things beautifully.

Wonder Walls: a Guide to Displaying your Stuff takes its lead from the Supermarket Sarah site, and is filled with ideas for using your possessions to adorn the walls of your home. You know all those trinkets and fabulous vintage pieces of clothing you're hoarding in wardrobe and under your bed? Here's your chance to get them out and show them off.

Sarah has travelled all over the world to meet the people who have found ways to turn their treasures into wonderfully off-kilter design features, then picked the most inspiring, interesting and quirky walls to share.

Wonder Walls by Sarah Bagner is published by CICO and is available to purchase online here.