Things to wake up and WIN (closed)

We're giving away 8 fantastic prizes from this month's wake up and want wishlist inside Issue 7. Read more about the prizes below or enter here now!

Leaf impression plate | £13 | Yaela Studio

Impressed by hand with a grape leaf before another speckled texture was added, this plate is beautiful to look at.

Cake tins | £25 | Cotswold Trading

How could you say no to a piece of cake delivered by one of these three charming characters? Design by artist Tom Frost.

Pipe lamp | £69 | Bodie and Fou

House Doctor DK's pipe lamp mixes luxe with industrial to create an eye-catching statement piece.

Ceramic mug | £23 | Dawn Dishaw Ceramics

The pattern on this mug is hand-drawn and inspired by the rich patterns of Persian paintings

Harvest mugs | £16 each | Darling Clementine

Make the first drink of the day even more appealing supped from these bone china mugs

Dancers tea tray | £24 | Depeapa

Veronica de Arriba's illustration reminds us to banish the morning blues and get up and dance.

Pure Nature stool | £105 | Idyll Home

Bring a touch of rustic charm to the breakfast table with this wooden stool.

Kuppila tray and greeting cards | £36 | Polkka Jam

Serve up a reviving brew on this tea-themed tray.

CLICK HERE for a chance to win this amazing collection of prizes!

*Our wake up and want wishlist was complied by WILL TAYLOR

Inside The Simple Things Issue 7: the Collector

On Facebook and Twitter you've all been telling us how much you enjoy the collector feature inside The Simple Things. We do too. In seven Issues we've looked at all sorts of weird and wonderful collections from radios to valentines cards, and each one has been unique with a special story to tell. This month we take a look inside Michael Tyler's Cuban political poster collection, a series of stunning and powerful images in which artistic freedom meets the struggle for freedom.

1: 'Day of the Heroic Guerrilla', Helena Serrano, 1968 2: 'Day of World Solidarity with Laos', Andres Hernandez, 1972 3: 'Radiant Che', Alfredo Rostgaard, 1969

4: 'America Latina: Week of Solidarity with Latin America', Antonio Perez (Niko), 1968, 5: 'Day of Solidarity with the People of Venezuela', Faustino Perez, 1969 6: 'International Campaign of Solidarity with the People of Korea', Gladys Acosta, 1969.

To read more about Michael Tyler's Cuban poster collection download Issue 7 now or order a copy online.

Issue 7 (March 2013) is currently available in UK shops, subscribe here.

Celebrate Fairtrade Fortnight with our giveaway!

To mark the start of Fair Trade Fortnight we've got a set of Baylis & Harding's new Fair trade range to giveaway to one lucky reader.

Over the next two weeks the Fairtrade foundation is urging us to take an extra step to look after the food we love and the people who grow it. There are plenty of ways to get involved and show your support for this fantastic campaign, whether it's buying products which carry the FAIRTRADE mark, getting involved with a local event, or signing the online petition for fairer food.

To celebrate, we've got a set of Baylis & Harding's new Fair Trade range to giveaway to one lucky person. Enter online now, and don't forget to let us know the ways you're supporting Fair Trade in the comments below.

Visit www.fairtrade.org.uk/gofurther for more on Fairtrade Fortnight.

Capturing Childhood with Kat Goldin

Blogger extraordinaire, whiz with the hook and needles, and camera pro Kat Goldin (of Slugs on the Refrigerator fame) has stopped by to tell us a little about her new book 'Crochet At Play' and share some insider tips on how to take great outdoor photos this spring.

Tell us about your new book…

Crochet at Play is a collection of 30 hats, scarves, clothes and toys for kids to enjoy. I was inspired by my children and the amount of fun they get out of my crochet. In the spirit of using blankets to build dens, I wanted to bring a collection of playful designs together in one book. From wolf cardigans to baby ballet slippers there are projects for children from newborn to age six. Whether you want to add to the dressing up box or create beautiful garments with a fun twist, Crochet at Play is packed full of inspirational projects. Its published by Kyle Books and out in April.

What inspires you to pick up a camera?

When my eldest child Ellis was born I wanted to share pictures of him with my family in America. I learned as I went along and my love of photography grew. These days I’m inspired by not only my children but nature, art and craft in my photography. Photographing someone or something you love inspires you to make those photographs the best they can be. I love how looking down the lens at my children helps me really see them and notice the small details that make up our lives together.

How did the Capturing Childhood project come about?

My business partner, also named Kat, sent me a message one afternoon with the idea for the courses in a nutshell. I didn’t hesitate before saying yes; amazing photography, using your camera to its full potential and recording the intimacy of family life are all topics I’m passionate about. We very quickly developed our ideas and opened the virtual doors to a warm welcome from the online community. In the ten months we’ve been running our business we have been continually impressed by the work and improvement show by our students – they really do take our lessons to heart and shine.

What are your main tips for someone picking up a camera for the first time?

Notice where the light is coming from and move to capture your subject in the best light available. Imagine the photo you want to capture before you bring the camera to your eyes; this will help you to compose the picture as you intend rather than point and shoot. Stay conscious of what it is you love about photos be it subject, light or composition. Remember that every photo you take develops your personal style skills so keep taking photos. They say the first 10,000 photos you take are your worst...so keep shooting!!

Give us your top 3 tips for shooting outdoors...

1. Try shooting in the “Golden Hour” – this is the hour before sunset or the hour after sunrise.  The sun is low on the horizon and should cast everything in a nice even glow.  This is a great time of year for shooting in the Golden Hour, as the sun’s low position means that it lasts longer and it at a more reasonable time of day than summer. If this isn’t possible, try avoiding the midday sun, when shadows are at their harshest.

2. In bright sun, try to photograph in the shade.  This will minimise harsh shadows and squinting. Under a tree, in a forest, in the shadow of a building, next to a natural landscape feature, under the slide, all will help alleviate problems. If you can, position your subject at the edge of the shade with you shooting from the sun so that all of that lovely light can still be part of the photograph.

3.Put the sun behind you (or as we often say to students put your "bum to the sun"). Angling your subject towards the sun will help light them and create the lovely light sparkles in their eyes known as catchlights.

Tell us your simple things…

That first cup of coffee of the day, brought to me every morning by my 2 year old daughter and her daddy. She sings me "Happy Birthday to You" every single day of the year.

Crochet at Play will be out on 18th of April in the UK, and later in the year in the US, Finland and Holland. Expect some fantastic makes, and more stunning photography!

Click here to sign up to an online course or find out more about Capturing Childhood.

Things to wake up and want: the Valentines edition

This 14th February treat your Valentine to something extra special whether it be homemade chocolates or a simply stunning scent...

Light bulb vase by London Garden Trading (available on Not on the Highstreet)

Mini heart-shaped bowls by Golemdesigns

Rose 31 by Liberty London

Follow your heart coin www.kutuu.co.uk

Big Love Valentine timbergram Anthropologie

Hazelnut macarons and chocolate truffles: both recipes are found in The Simple Things issue 3 available here.

A love letter to London

My dearest London,

You look so handsome today. The sun is making you all shiny; warming you up after you shivered for a while under the snow. I like seeing you like this. It reminds me of all the reasons we’ve stayed together over the years. The golden cityscape you treat me to every morning from the top of the hill; your ability to pleasantly surprise me, like when I first heard classical music being played at Clapham North tube station or learned you were home to a family of flamingos; and the way you rally everyone together when times are hard.

I might not always show it, but I want to make things work between us. There’s a lot going on underneath your often tough exterior that I love. There’s your markets; your mews; your green spaces and Victorian trees. There’s your guerrilla gardens, like the Edible Bus Stop in Stockwell, and your inconspicuous jazz bars, like the Hideaway in Streatham.

Then there are your many characters. The lovely Sara who taught me how to keep hens in the city; Steve the London Honey Man, who makes your urban bees very happy indeed, and the elderly gent I see regularly on Portobello Road carrying a Jack Russell on his shoulder like a parrot.

The past eight years have not been easy; we’ve gone through our fair share of testing times. I blamed you when things were going badly – the redundancy, and those early days when your rents left me broke, when I questioned why I was still with you and felt I could find a better life back up north. But you didn’t abandon me. You taught me the tenacity I still see in you everyday - in your unwavering desire to grow skywards, and in your leafless apple tree at my local station that refuses to let go of its fruit.

Living in each other’s pockets was always going to be volatile. You really do have a tendency to overcrowd me at times. When distance is called for it’s always me putting those 200 miles between us, as I escape to a quieter place. Those early days were especially feisty, remember? I’d go from feeling excitement and awe to having my bags packed ready to leave in a matter of days.

Then often against my will I begin to miss you. I think about your beauty at night, and about finding your organic coffee shop in Notting Hill that’s been serving me flat whites well before the world put a name to them. And I think about all the other little things I haven’t even discovered about you yet.

It’s fair to say it wasn’t love at first sight, but we’ve grown together and mellowed over the years. It’s on days like today when the sun is shining and you’re beckoning me in that I feel we’ve got something special – let’s hold onto that.

Yours, Rachel

Friday night dinner for two (behind the scenes)

As it's a Friday and only 7 more days until Valentines,  we thought we'd share a few more captured moments from our dinner for two special (p104 - p111) in this month's The Simple Things.

Duck with spinach and pomegranate recipe found in this month's magazine.

MENU

Aubergine with pistachio

& sesame seed crumbs

*

Duck with spinach

& pomegrante

*

Poached pear with

gingerbread biscuits

Have you tried any of these delicious recipes? Leave a comment below or hop on Facebook and share your perfect romantic meal menu with us.

Happy Friday all!

Get the look: mimic the style of the Fat Radish in your home

In this month's issue of The Simple Things Alice Gao visits the Fat Radish in New York for lunch and picks up some of her favourite recipes to share with us (found in the mag on pages 34-39). Just as Alice did on her first visit we instantly fell in love with the restaurant's charming farmhouse vibe, and wanted to show you a few simple ways to recreate the style in your home.

Hang a vintage map

Food and travel go hand-in-hand, so hanging a map is a great way to inspire you in the kitchen. You can find antique and modern maps all over the web, but we're particularly fond of these two we found on Etsy.

North Pole antique map: artic sea exploring expeditions 1914 available from Carambas Vintage

Antique map of the World 1777 (high quality digital image) available from Patterns n Prints

Create a modern chalkboard

At the Fat Radish you'll find chalkboards painted directly onto the exposed brick walls, such an easy and quick way to transform a bare wall into something useful and beautiful. We found the perfect DIY over on A Beautiful Mess to save you spending a fortune on chalkboard paint, with this tutorial and a little imagination you could transform pretty much any surface into your own chalkboard, cupboards, table tops even your own coffee cup! (See pg 114 of this month's mag for details)

Here are some of the chalkboard ideas that caught our attention, we particularly like the wedding chalkboards from Her Majesty's Pug - a great way to upcycle scratched or unused silverware!

Wedding chalkboards from Her Majesty's Pug, antique framed chalkboard: Nixey and Godfrey, Barkboards available from Olive Manna

Build your own floating shelves

The restaurant also uses floating shelves to display an impressive wine collection, simple, stunning, and perfect for adding a more modern feel to a kitchen. Vintage revivals has a fantastic tutorial on how to make your own.

We've shown you how to get the look of the Fat Radish in your home, now make sure you have a go at mimicking the taste on your plate with the exclusive recipes found in this month's issue.

The Selby meets Annie Novak the urban farmer

Three stories up in the air, the power of an idea & fresh food are growing…

You have probably heard of Todd Selby, the brains and photographer behind the revolutionary project The Selby, which offers an insider’s view of creative individuals in their personal spaces. Perhaps less familiar however, is Eagle Street rooftop farm, a 6,000 square foot green roof organic vegetable farm located atop a warehouse in Brooklyn.

At Eagle Street, Annie Novak and Ben Flanner supply locals with an onsite market during New York City’s growing season, as well as running a range of farm-based educational and volunteer programs. Head farmer Annie grows everything from rare types of kale to radishes, and also keeps hens and bees on the rooftop.

Eagle Street farm is America’s first commercial rooftop farm, the project is a figurehead of the potential for refitting green spaces back into our cities, and The Selby really captures the beauty and spirit of the place, a simple and Eden-like getaway high above the concrete jungle that is New York – look at these pictures and try not to smile!

To see more of the views of Eagle street taken by Todd, don’t forget to visit The Selby, and if you would like more information about the farm visit Eagle Street’s website.