Drawing and painting was a hobby of mine that I spent an awful lot of hours on when I was a child. I took GCSE and A-level Art, but since then, I have rarely allowed myself the time to just enjoy it again. You may already know that I have an Etsy shop where I sell my pyrographed items, which often is a form of drawing, but when I’m making something to sell, it’s never quite as fun! I have resolved to stop thinking of time spent drawing and painting as an indulgence, and started allowing myself some free time to enjoy myself and relax. So last year, whilst away in the Lake District, I treated myself to some new art supplies from the Derwent shop in Keswick, and following my discovery of the Derwent Inktense sticks, I put the Derwent Inktense pencils on my wishlist. Chris obliged with them as a gift on our wedding anniversary, and here’s what I think of them so far…
The jumper dress – perfect spring clothing for chilly dry days
Yes I know these photos were taken in snow, but to be honest, looking out my window at the grey windy day outside with the fan heater blowing on my feet, it doesn’t actually feel far off! It occurred to me that actually the jumper dress is the perfect fashion item for spring; particularly when you’ve had enough of wearing a coat…
Approaching forty – Is it time to take out my piercings?
It has been on my mind for a while that maybe it’s time to take out some of the piercings in my face, and as I’m turning forty in a couple of days, I thought now would be a good time to do so! Over the years two other piercings have fallen by the wayside – I took out my belly-button ring when I was pregnant with Jude as it was getting in the way, and (rightly so) I felt my days of showing off my tummy in a crop top were over. Then about four years ago the ball on the end of my tongue piercing came off, and as I didn’t know what size to replace it with, I just took it out. Now don’t get me wrong; I’m a firm believer in wearing whatever the f**k you want, regardless of age, but there are a couple of reasons that have led me to think that it’s time for a change….
Fourteen years of blogging – why do I do it?
Happy Birthday When I Grow Up blog! Yes, if you can be bothered, you can click on the ‘Archives’ button over there on the right and see my first feeble offerings beginning on the 7th April 2004. I don’t know anyone who’s been blogging that long! We didn’t even own a digital camera then, so none of the posts have photos to go with them for a while! Many people talk about needing a creative outlet as their reason why they started a blog. Well fourteen years ago I had recently done my A-level Art and was on my second year of a part-time degree in Creative Writing with a novel about to be published; so I can’t really site that as my reason. My kids were eight and five, but ‘Mummy blogging’ wasn’t yet a thing, let alone a thing that occurred to me to want to do, so talking about parenting wasn’t my impetus either. At the end of the day, I suppose it all boils down to the simple love of writing…..
A boho dress for a boho lifestyle
I am often at my happiest when Chris, (and in the past when they were smaller, the kids as well) and I go off on a road-trip in the camper. We’ve had a few vans over the years, changing the size of them to suit our family, and now that Rain and Jude have had enough of the cramped sleeping conditions and the dog snoring in their ears, we downsized to a Type 25 VW camper van a couple of years ago for just the two of us. When I’m gathering the clothes to take with me on these trips, I tend to choose the more bohemian items from my wardrobe. Apart from at Wilderness festival, can you think of a more fitting time to wear clothes like this dress? With its flowing fabric and button-up style, this maxi dress has a gorgeous print inspired by far-flung lands and evokes a feeling of summer travels….
How to get to sleep – a sure-fire cure for insomnia
I’m sure there are many good things I have inherited from my mother, but the two best ones I can think of are: 1. The ability to make a bloody good cake, and 2. A trick that works when you can’t get to sleep. I’ll be honest, you’re not going to much like it, but trust me, if you follow my rules (they aren’t complicated), then I bet this will work 90% of the time….
A review of ‘Things are what you make of them’ – Life advice for Creatives by Adam J. Kurtz
Rain kindly bought this book for me for Mothers’ Day, and I’ve since managed to fit in the odd five minutes here and there to read it. That’s one good thing about Things Are What You Make Of Them – it doesn’t take long to read! Oh that makes me sound like I don’t like it, which isn’t true. It’s a book for the current generation who take their entertainment and information in snippets; in bite-size chunks of Instagram stories. There are even perforated edges so you can choose your favourite little pages of words of wisdom to put up on your copper magnet board next to the foiled print that says Eat Sleep Create….
Could The Greatest Showman film spark a circus fashion trend?
(Alternative title: Clowning about in the woods!)
I became a little suspicious back in November when I had the chance to browse some well-known high-street shops in a city. I noticed that the stripe trend had turned vertical, and wider, like circus tents! And combined with ruffles, the effect of these details does point to the circus! It’s been known to happen before with a popular musical movie: Do you remember the 1920’s fashion trend of 2013 that well and truly kicked off after the success of The Great Gatsby? I for one am not complaining, I love everything about the circus, particularly the wonderful clothing!….
How I’d do things differently if I wasn’t a teenage Mum
I’ve never really considered being a Mummy blogger – I’m not sure why – it just wasn’t what I wanted to write about; however this topic of conversation came up in the car a while ago, and as it was Mothers’ Day on Sunday, I thought I might do something a bit different and write about the subject in a blog post!
Yes I am in a category. I am a statistic of the 90’s. I was a teenage Mum….
Cath Kidston gift ideas for Mothers’ Day
I was given this beautiful set of Cath Kidston hand creams and a lip balm for my birthday last year, and it occurred to me what a lovely gift anything by Cath Kidston would be for Mothering Sunday. Her products combine the two things that make the perfect present – something pretty and something practical….
