From The Fuchsia Files...

The always glamorous, always gorgeous, always funny Faux Fuchsia has posted the most wonderful list on her blog this week. She's dubbed it Stuff That Makes Us Happy, and invited readers to contribute to it. Some of the suggestions are pure gold. Here are a few of the loveliest. Go to her blog –fauxfuchsiastyle.blogspot.com – for the full list.

Old people who hold hands.
A good night's sleep.
A garden.
The cool of an early morning before a hot day.
The beach in the rain.
Big roses.
Good cheese.
Fresh bed linen.
The sound of rain on a tin roof as you go to sleep.
A brand new notebook, ready to write notes in.
Being driven around New York in a town car.
Finding great books in the library.
Meeting old people who still love a good joke and a stiff drink.
Hydrangeas.
Gardenias.
Pedicures and shoes.
The sound of a swimming pool you have all to yourself.
Reading airfreight American Vogue.


These were some of mine:

The smell of summer gardens after the rain.
Discovering a wonderful garden, particularly a walled garden.
Packing a bag to go overseas (and the lovely sense of anticipation that goes with it - before you remember you need to travel through 26 airports...)
New York at Christmas.
Paris in September.
The sight of mauve wisteria on a grand old mansion.
Holding hands with my partner.
Home-made food of any kind.
Receiving a funny, kind or touching email, text or Facebook note from a friend.
The sheer pleasure of sitting down for half an hour to read a good magazine, such as Vogue Living.
Meeting a lovely shop owner, who remembers your name the next time you go in.
Happy people.
Interviewing a celebrity and discovering they're actually very nice. (NB Most celebs I've interviewed have been nice. I've only met one truly awful one; a former Australian prime minister.)
Chatting with teenage girls about boys, and shoes, and life.
Finding a lovely note that my partner has left for me to read, even though I've been grumpy all morning.
Making a chicken pie for my partner and seeing him eat it, and smile with delight, even though I know that it tastes like old flip flops.
Flicking through old photo albums, including other people's old albums. (There's something beautiful about old black and white photographs, isn't there?)
Holidays on the beach.
People who are gracious and kind.
People with lovely manners.
People who come for afternoon tea and bring French Champagne with them. (Love those people!)
Husbands and boyfriends who never remember to bring you flowers and then produce a sad, wilted bouquet from Safeway out of the blue with the line: "I thought you'd like these". (Like my man did yesterday.) So sweet.
Airlines that upgrade you. With you having to ask.
Drivers who let you into their lane, right in front of them, and then wave and smile at you.
Pomegranates, raspberries and blueberries - especially with really good quality vanilla ice cream.
Snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef. (Nothing but the sea and the tropical fish - bliss.)
Eating pomegranates or blueberries after you've been snorkelling on the reef, preferably on a beautiful yacht. Then having a sea plane come to pick you up and take you to lunch on a nearby island.
The lovely pink light at twilight, especially in the countryside.
Orchards.
Old-fashioned bikes. With old-fashioned wicker baskets.
White cottages.
Finding a favourite Chanel lipstick on sale that you thought was discontinued.
The scent of a new book.
Swimming in the sea when the water is calm and warm.

What are some of yours? Feel free to leave a note here, or add to Faux Fuchsia's extensive list.