Happy weekend!

Have a lovely weekend where ever you are in the world. We shall be back blogging daily next week so check back in :)

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A good sale

In Good Company is having a sale! It is well worth visiting their online store for all sorts of things from party decor, to interior extras (I love the ceramic rabbits) to gift ideas and great things for kids. As if we need an excuse to shop...

A lovely coat

When you have one winter coat the sensible decision is to go with black: classic, cool and can basically be worn with anything. However, if you have many winter coats in your wardrobe, how much fun would it be to include this patterned, hooded beauty!

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Forgive us

Hello lovely readers

Excuse our absence over these last few days: we have been busy studying, working, wiving (which is the verb for being a wife), and a whole lot of other things that suddenly seem to make your day full! We will be back to normal soon so look out for ideas for a fabulous book club, new recipes, new stores, more travel and all sorts of other inspiration!

Love the inspired wives x

It's not Monday

It's not Monday but it is winter and thus soups can be eaten any day of the week. Monday's Soup is the blog of a friend of mine in New York, who, as the name implies, makes and then posts a different soup recipe every Monday. With 52 weeks in a year, and over a year old, this site has many an interesting soup that you may not ever have imagined (Syrian lentil and chard soup?, vegan Ethiopian magic meal?, cock-a-leekie soup?) but will tantalize your taste buds and warm you up from the inside out!

Try out this delicious chickpea and rosemary soup:

• Roughly chop about 4-5 cloves of garlic and saute in olive oil with some hot red pepper, adding a roughly chopped yellow onion when beginning to get translucent. Add about 4 stripped sprigs or fresh rosemary, leaves only.
• Increasing the heat a little, add 4 parsnips (also chopped) and then a zucchini. Cook another five minutes or so until everything is a little softer and you can stick a fork through them
• Add 4 drained and rinsed cans of chickpeas and two tomatoes, then cover with vegetable broth and bring to a simmer (not a full boil! it will make the rosemary bitter)
• Drain and season with lemon juice and black pepper!

Kids in stripes

The future-aunt in me is coming out and I am loving looking at baby clothes and what-not for the babe-to-be. We don't know if it is a boy or a girl but these gorgeous stripes from LuckyBoySunday work either way!

Shop 'til you Drop

My sister-in-law works for ASOS, the UK's largest online fashion and beauty retailer, and they have amazing clothes and brands available - some at great prices, especially with the strong rand right now. I have just discovered that they have flat shipping rates to Africa - only GBP10.50 for delivery within 9 - 11 days. (Don't forget you'll have to pay customs at the post office so add on an extra 20% when ordering.) Nows the time to order some spring/summer clothes as the ASOS range goes on sale as they move into winter.

Let their spring trends inspire you.

Above from left to right: Glamazon - global print and after-dark glamour, Elegant Ease - sharp tailoring with slouchy comfort in sorbet colours and translucent layers, Rodeo Starlet - glitzy and bold '80's American glamour.

Above from left to right: Breezy Boho - '70's prints, floaty layers and  bohemian luxury, Urban Army - military-inspired details and sports shapes for new urban casuals

Above from left to right: Powder Roc - ruffles and romance with structured silhouettes, Hyper Real - Glossy, sexy brights and prints 

Fabulous Free Fonts

We adore fonts - fun, interesting, unusual, beautiful. And it's great to use unusual fonts when creating invitations, notes, anything creative, rather than the usual ones that we all have pre-loaded on our computers. Kenzie's blog, Cute Links For You, often features Font Friday when she features her favourites from around the web - we love them too! Here are some of our recent faves (find them all via Cute Links For You).

Star signs

These birthday cards available from Tiny Prints are pretty, fun and unusual!

Weekday Dinner

I love the blog, Simply Recipes - a family's food blog filled with great, real-life recipes. I'll be trying this Basil Chicken in Coconut Curry Sauce this week and if it works out, it might be a good recipe for book club, which I host later this month. Have a look around the blog - there are so many recipes you'll want to try.

Basil Chicken in Coconut Curry Sauce Recipe

INGREDIENTS

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon turmeric

1 lb skinless, boneless chicken thighs (you can use breasts, but the thighs are more flavorful)

1 large red onion, chopped (about 1 cup)

5 cloves garlic, minced

2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and minced

2 Tbsp olive oil or grapeseed oil

1 14-oz can coconut milk

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

3 Tbsp fresh basil leaves, chopped

1 Tbsp finely chopped fresh ginger

Hot cooked rice

METHOD

1 In a small bowl, mix together the salt, ground coriander, cumin, ground cloves, cinnamon, ground cardamom, black pepper, chili powder, and turmeric. Set aside.

2 Rinse chicken, pat dry. Cut into 1-inch pieces. Put into a bowl and sprinkle the spice mix over all the pieces. Coat well and let sit for 30 minutes at room temperature or in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours.

3 In a large skillet heat 1 Tbsp oil on medium high heat. Add the onions and jalapeños and cook for 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Remove the onions, peppers and garlic from the pan and put into a medium sized bowl. Set aside. Use the same pan for the next step.

4 Add 1 Tbsp oil to the skillet and heat on medium high heat. Add one half of the chicken pieces, spreading them out on the pan so they are not crowded. Brown for a few minutes on each side. When the chicken pieces are cooked through, and no pink remains, remove from pan, add to the bowl with the onions. Cook the second batch of chicken pieces the same way. Remove from pan, add to bowl with onions.

5 Add the coconut milk, minus a couple tablespoons, to the skillet. In a small bowl, mix the remaining coconut with the corn starch to dissolve the corn starch. Add the corn startch mixture back to the skillet with the coconut milk. Cook on medium heat and stir till thick and bubbly. Mix in the worcestershire sauce. Add chicken mixture, basil, and ginger. Cook 2 minutes more to cook through.

Serve over rice. Serves 4.

Home Made

In a world where everything can be bought, be proud of your baking and give your cookies the "home made"stamp!

Available online from SUCK UK

An inspired wife is going to become an inspired mum!

Some very exciting news: one of the Inspired Wives is going to become a mom at the end of the year. Because we are burtsing with joy you will be seeing some mum-inspired posts pop up on our blog!

Although not quite looking as big as this yet, I love this Vogue cover of Claudia Schiffer looking as beautiful as ever.