In my head it’s still March but apparently 2019 is nearly over and I feel more cliche than ever as I repeatedly say how fast this bloody year is going… BUT IT’S WHIZZING BY!

The main thing I love about these little monthly round ups is that I can look back over all the things I’ve done, places I’ve been and people I’ve seen and it always makes me feel better about time passing so quickly.

So… what did November bring? Other than festive madness, food, some germs, more food and lots of fun times in between?

work times

wedding fair

Last month I hinted at the prep and work that went into my second wedding fair. I also promised I’d write a more detailed post about it all, which I have started (honest!) but have yet to finish. It was an AMAZING DAY all round, we met some lovely people (customers and traders alike and the uncontrollable joy I felt seeing Buddy set up for Hello Sunshine turned me into a jabbering, over-excited mess!

When the Christmas madness has died down I will finish it off and share it with you all (pinky promise!) but until then I’m just going to leave you with this photo of our set up with Buddy at the Most Unusual Wedding Fair in Norfolk…

Sew Lovely!

Earlier this year I had the pleasure of working with the very lovely Hayley, (Sew Hayley Jane) on a bespoke illustration for her amazing subscription box. I had to keep it secret for a few months but I had SEW much fun working on this cute sewing themed sleepover print that went into her November boxes…

Sew Hayley Jane Slumber Party Sunshine.jpg

If you’re into all things sewing, beautiful and cute then may I suggest you head straight over to Hayley’s wonderful website and get yourself signed up - the boxes all look incredible!

If you nabbed a November box, I hope you loved the print and enjoyed the cheeky little interview I did with Hayley too. If you missed out you can take a peek at the interview over on Hayley’s blog HERE.

naughty and nice…

…but mainly NAUGHTY! You guys kept me and the wonderful elves at Bespoke Laser UK cry-laughing with all of your personalised jumper requests this year. Honestly - they’ve been brilliant and I kinda wish I’d made two of everything so I could fill a whole tree with some of the bangers that came through!

Hello Sunshine Christmas Jumpers 2019.jpg

I ran a cheeky little giveaway towards the end of the month too and that was probably the BEST thread of comments I think I’ve ever read. If you ever need a pick me up or you’re stuck for an insult one day, make sure you head to THIS POST and have a read - I promise you won’t be disappointed!

I found it so hard to pick a winner in the end, I ended up with THREE! Who should all be receiving their jumpers next week…

market madness

I only did two Christmas events this year but with the wedding fair, it actually meant all three of my events were in the same month! So whilst I felt like I was being sensible at the time with my planning, time and work management, November felt quite overwhelming in the end. Good one, Jo!

BUT it was AMAZING! The wedding fair was great, and the two Christmas markets were incredible even if I did get horribly ill throughout the two weeks they were running - so many people, so many germs! haha!

home-home (Nottingham)

My first one was back home-home in Nottingham and at one of my favourite venues, The Nottingham Contemporary. I haven’t done this event for a few years as it’s previously clashed with the Cambridge Made Etsy fair but this year it fell the week before so I jumped at the chance to apply and was delighted to be accepted.

The whole three days were fantastic! The market is so well organised, always well attended and busy and the quality of the stall holders there is exceptional, which always makes it a real honour to be able to take part.

I had a fab three days with my stall neighbour and great friend, Amy Blackwell. If you don’t know Amy and her beautiful work GO FOLLOW HER, she’s amazing! We shared lots of snacks, wine and tales from our uni and housemate days and caught up with so many friends and family over the weekend too - it really was brilliant in every way.

now-home (Cambridge)

I think all of the excitement and peopling in Nottingham broke me because during the few days between that market and the next I caught Will’s man flu and was pretty wiped out. BUT IT DIDN’T STOP ME!

Jo Want Hello Sunshine Cambridge Made Christmas Fair.jpg

The Cambridge Made Esty Fair ran from Thurs-Sat at the beautiful St Andrew’s Street Baptist Church in Cambridge and it was INCREDIBLE! Again, another really well organised, highly attended event and always packed with top-notch sellers. The venue is beautiful and the handmade decorations the Cambridge Made team decked the place out in were STUNNING! I mean look at them…

Cambridge Made Christmas Fair Decorations.jpg

There were over 7000 people through the doors over the three days it ran and on the Saturday I had my best ever day at an event, which is complete testament to the fab team who organise it.

Hello Sunshine x Cambridge Made Christmas Fair.jpg

Even though I was sick as a dog throughout it all, the painkillers, cold and flu meds, friendly stall neighbours and smiling customers kept me going! I had the BIGGEST sleep afterwards.

play times

It feels like there weren’t as many play times this month but I guess when three out of four weekends were work related, it kind of explains it. However, I love my job and feel like despite it being a work-heavy month, I still had a lot of fun and managed a few cheeky paddles, lots of lovely food and some excellent day trips with friends.

buddy the sunshine van

It was really nice to spend a bit more time in Buddy this month (for work and play!) Our trip to Nottingham for a friend’s wedding, followed by the early morning trip to Norfolk for the fair provided excellent sunrise and sunset views.

I also got down and dirty to practice some of my newly learned Way Out Westie skills and gave Buddy an oil change! OK, so I had supervision the whole time but it was great and I love learning new things about how to look after him.

It also made me think a lot about my Grandad and how much he would have tinkered with their old VW Bay too - I hope I did him and Nanna proud as I scrubbed around under there!

We also took Buddy and the paddle boards out a few times, which was the perfect opportunity to layer up in my new Yay Makers t-shirt. Another amazing subscription box that launched recently - go and check out Kate’s amazing mission to inspire colour confidence!

SUP fun times

Despite it getting noticeably chillier this month, we still lucked out with the weather and enjoyed some beautiful sunny paddles. It was definitely time to crack out the booties thermal undies!

We tried out a new route down at Houghton Mill, which felt tough against the fast flowing River but was a delight to ride the flow back down again!

On another weekend, Grantchester Meadows provided some stunning Autumn colours and nice brew spots along the way. My phone also went for a quick swim, thankfully The Beard fished it out (after he dropped it!) and it’s still going strong! PHEW!

food with friends

It seems that most of my social catch ups revolve around food and drink, which I’m 100% OK with. It may come as no surprise that I tend to document them with food photos, which if I’m honest, I’m pretty pleased about because at times like this it reminds me of who I’ve had chance to catch up with as well as the treats we shared.

It also means I can share them here and hopefully introduce people to new foodie places and businesses that they may not have come across before… so with that in mind please enjoy the following food spam!