ABOUT ME

Welcome to my little corner of Blogland, I'm Chel and I live in a small village in Lincolnshire, England.  Originally from London and make my way back as much as I possibly can.  I truly love and miss the place along with the many friends I have there, especially the London Docklands and Greenwich.

My life at the moment revolves around my two teenagers, one an art student the other now at work (where does the time go).

So why is my blog called Sweetbriar Dreams?

For many years I lived in an old 16th century thatched cottage in North Essex called Sweetbriar.  There is nothing more satisfying than restoring and putting the love into a beautiful old home along with recreating an old fashioned cottage garden.  This was a typical chocolate box cottage in a tiny lane surrounded by Essex countryside.  My heart and soul are still with that lovely little place with its warm Aga, thatched roof, eyebrow windows and magnificent garden.  After seven years and two children it was time to move into a bigger modern house, now fifteen years later, it's time to move again.  For me, to a property that oozes character and I dream of one day writing from an old desk in a book lined room with a window overlooking a Loch in the Scottish Isles, full at weekends with loved and cherished friends.

What is my blog about?

It has amazed me just how much I have changed from my first posts.  Starting with crafts, gardening and general day to day, but then onto trips out and about, enjoying my photography and writing about the places I have seen, especially when it comes to London trips.  Now that my children have grown into older teenagers, it's now about rediscovery, about my identity, where do I go from here.  The trips continue, the photography continues and now the journey of my life as I go through my next phase.  I'm really looking forward to rediscovering who I am.

Photography

How I would love to sell my photography, really get into it, but I'm not a professional, I just capture the moment, enjoy it and share it.  My first posts were taken with a Minolta Dimage Z1, a Fujifilm Finepix, a shiny red Nikon Coolpix and now I'm back with a Fujifilm Finepix HS50 EXR which I absolutely adore.