Over The Hilda

Our night away began as soon as we stepped on the train at Dublin’s Heuston Station.  We were off to stay at the Killarney Royal Hotel. We left a stormy, wet and wild capital behind with relief. And sat back and enjoyed the journey. There are still no catering facilities on Irish Rail (since Covid)

‘Orange you glad it’s Halloween?’ Jacqui chose this month’s ‘Style Not Age’ prompt and thinking of pumpkins opted for orange. It is one of my favourite colours, though the deeper shades suit me better. In fact, I have written several posts about how much I love the colour and how wearing it makes me happy.

Today, I am talking about another taboo topic. INCONTINENCE Incontinence is a DIRTY word. We don’t really talk about it. We joke about ‘wetting our pants laughing’ but in truth it is no laughing matter. Usually associated with the elderly and old folks’ homes, it is also a common enough problem with younger women, new

Yes, we visited 7 different places in 7 days and we did not unpack! How? We went on a River Cruise. Our River Cruise with Travel Department on board M/S Amadeus Silver III was three months ago. But we love looking back on the photos and re-living our experiences. That is one of the reasons

In the last few days there has been a dip in temperature, particularly in the evenings. So, Gail’s prompt for September was perfect. ‘Layered Lux’ fitted in perfectly with last Saturday night, out with friends. We would be walking home, so I definitely would need a coat for the first time this Autumn. Below, you

SHOCKING FACTS According to CSO data: One in four women in Ireland die from heart disease and stroke In 2021, 4,145 women died from cardiovascular disease, accounting for 26% of all female deaths Women in Ireland are 6 times more likely to die from cardiovascular disease than breast cancer I was shocked when I read

Hello my friends. Can you believe we are nearly half way through September? We had a wonderful June and July in Ireland. Graham and I spent a few days in Cabu in Cavan with family and then a weekend in Center Parks with friends. Totally different experiences; both fabulous. I will write about them at

‘Style Not Age’ time again and this month the prompt is ‘Maxi Madness’. It was my turn to choose and I must admit I was keen to showcase a rather colourful mad maxi-skirt that I bought in a local boutique Studio 124. I wore it on our anniversary when we spent a night in The

Hi everyone. Can you believe it is August already? It is true that time goes faster the older I get. We are enjoying warm weather for the past month in Ireland, but we are not thankfully experiencing extremely high temperatures like other countries. Life is busy, but busy is good. Right? There is definitely no

  Thank goodness we were travelling with Travel Department on our Danube Cruise. As we approached D-Day (Departure Day), and flights were being cancelled left, right and centre, we sat back and waited. We knew that we would be informed if there was a problem and that the company would do everything possible to get

Well, the sun finally appeared and Anna chose Summer Sizzlers as her prompt for July’s ‘Style Not Age’. In Ireland, we have not seen the mad temperatures of the UK, but have had lovely warm days in the early 20s. I tend to cover up in the sun. And this sizzling orange linen shirt has

Hi everyone. It is Beauty Spotlight time again and my friends have lots of goodies to share. GG and I have returned from our Danube Cruise and I will be telling you all about it in my next post. Meanwhile Angie at Your True Self Blog loves to come up with outfit ideas to share

I decided to focus on orange, as you can see. Orange in all its hues is absolutely one of my favourite colours and I love its vibrancy. It makes me think of sunshine and sunflowers. Combining the energy of red and the vibrancy of yellow, it is a positive and uplifting colour associated with energy

MY WEEK Hello everyone. We have not really had anything more than a taste of summer in Ireland. But I remain hopeful that some consistent warm and sunny weather is on the way. Meanwhile, I take pleasure in playing some golf, meeting up with friends and doting on my grandchildren. It is important that we

I have been reading, but I realise that I have not shared my best reads with you since last year. Life has got in the way, my friends. And perhaps I have been lazy, preferring to read rather than write. But I have three books for the holidays to share with you. We travel the

My birthstone is turquoise, though I also have the rare and expensive tanzanite as a second option. I was doing a little research and here is what I found. ‘Reminiscent of the sky and sea, turquoise is a potent protective stone that can get rid of negativity and represent self-realisation, inner calmness, creativity, stability and

Porto is the perfect city for a short break. We travelled with Travel Department in mid-May and it proved to be the perfect time to visit. I was delighted to accept Travel Department’s offer of a press trip. And, of course, GG (Gorgeous Graham) had to come too. Travel Department Regular readers know that I

When ‘The Beauty Spotlight Team’ asked me to join them in contributing to their weekly group posts, I initially declined. But then I read some of their posts and was impressed. We are so far behind the U.S.A. in both beauty and aesthetics. It would be lovely to learn about products and treatments before they

‘What, this old thing? Oh, I have that for years’. I know that I, for one, have used that phrase on many an occasion. Sometimes it is used to hide a new purchase. Other times it just rolls off my tongue if I receive a compliment. Gail chose this month’s ‘Style Not Age’ theme and

Hello, my friends. I am feeling positive as we enjoy the holiday weekend. And I hope you are too. I have lots of happy news to share with you. We need to celebrate when we can, don’t we? And count our blessings. GRANDDAUGHTER As many of you know, we have three wonderful grandsons – Logan

The colourful Iris Apfel, who reached a milestone 100 years last August, is our inspiration for this month’s ‘Style Not Age’. It was my turn to choose and her collaboration with H&M launches today. So I thought it would be fun to take our inspiration from this style icon. WHO IS IRIS APFEL? Even if

I recently visited Nicola O’Byrne at The Skin Nurse Clinic for a Scarlet RF Treatment. Nicola is passionate about the work she does and has worked within Dermatology medical clinics since 2001, latterly at The Beacon. A founding member and former chairperson of DANAI ​ (Dermatology Aesthetics Nurses Association Ireland – www.danai.ie ) she acts as

The Brows are back in town.  Got my new PhiBrows at The Dublin Makeup Academy. And I am HAPPY OUT. My eyebrows were (until I had my Phibrows done) a total disaster. Years of overplucking (why, oh why, did I do it?), menopause, ageing, stress, you name it all played havoc with my brows. I

Choosing your favourite handbag is like saying you have a favourite child. So, there will be no ‘handbags at dawn’ here! I love them all! I love a crossbody if I am shopping. I like a clutch for a dressier event, though I do have a clutch with a strap which I also use for