hello FEBRUARY
Keeping it bright and breezy with a short update this time as this month has been taken over by a rather exciting new arrival! She will have her very own blog post and introduction coming soon though, stay tuned for some not so subtle hints throughout this post!
work time
sunshine portraits
I had the pleasure of working on some wonderful Sunshine commissions this month, but I can’t share many of them yet so here are a few Pet Portraits who have now been gifted to their humans!
Tina, looking cute.
Mr Johnnie Walker.
Appropriately named, Beau!
Lovely Labs!
craft & flea market
I also had my first fair of the year in February and spent a lot of time lining things up, glueing and making in preparation for the Craft & Flea in Cambridge. Pegs helped…
Turns out Pegs likes to line things up to…
It was really nice to get everything set up and on display again and I had a great day hanging out with my stall neighbour, Dario Fisher (check out his beautiful illustrations!) talking about food and people watching. It was a great fair and I hope to be able to do more of the Craft & Flea events as they pop up all over the UK.
A cheeky peek at my stall set up for Craft & Flea, Cambridge.
wedding fair prep
I have also been getting ready to return to the Most Curious Wedding Fair in Norwich next month, which means getting excited about setting Buddy up like this again…
I see Buddy parked up on our drive every day and yet I still can’t get my head around the fact he’s here and ours! I feel very lucky to have him to use for our adventures, work and the odd tea and book break…
not so subtle hint number 1…
play time
keep on moving
So, I didn’t get on the river with Quaver this month (how did that happen??) but I got back to my spin class and enjoyed more running across the muddy meadows, which kept my brain very happy!
Spin selfie.
Nora Batty leggins!
There have been some absolutely spanking sunny days too, which always makes running by the river a joy!
River running.
lanterns in london
After seeing the lanterns in Edinburgh last month and loving it, I was chuffed to discover there was another light festival happening a bit closer, in London. Thanks to Wowcher I nabbed some cheeky discounted tickets and planned a mini day out to the big smoke.
A rather satisfying but creepy AF, empty tube 🌝
As the lanterns weren’t until the evening I had some time to pop to Camden and sample some of the delights at The Cheese Bar - somewhere I’ve been dying to visit for some time now. It was amazing! The only trouble is that I want ONE OF EVERYTHING on their menu!
Sweet baby CHEESUS!
While we were in the area, I also popped into the Vagina Museum. I popped in as I was curious (and I’m immature) but I left having learned a helluvalot so make sure you go and educate yourself too if you’re in Camden!
If you’re ever in Camden Town, GO HERE and educate yourself 🙌🏻 @vagina_museum
We also had time to pop to Holland Park before heading over to Chiswick House and Gardens for the Lightopia Festival. I’ve never been before and it was so nice to walk around in the late afternoon sunshine.
Looking for peacocks, found a heron 👀
It’s such a beautiful space, I forgot I was in the middle of London! Especially when the local wildlife came to say hello (steal my snacks!)
Parakeet pal in the park!
Making more pals in the park 🐿
After playing in the park it was time to hop on a bus and head to Chiswick House & Gardens. Before long we we wondering around the lovely grounds taking in all the lanterns and light shows.
Lanterns of @lightopiafestival ✨ A few of my faves 😍
I’ll be honest, it wasn’t a patch on the Edinburgh Zoo lanterns but it was fun to wander around and see more marvellous lantern sculptures!
Lanterns of @lightopiafestival ✨ A few of my faves 😍
Lanterns of @lightopiafestival ✨ A few of my faves 😍
blood and ink
It’s been four months since my last blood donation so you know what that means…
Back again for snacks 🧀 The TUC cheese sandwich biscuits may have beat mini cheddars as my fave 🙊
IT was time for me to hop on a train to Derby again to see my favourite inky genius, Charlotte at Young Cardinals Tattoo studio. I was treated to a beaut of a sunrise as I waiting for my train too!
Sunrise at Cambridge station.
I had decided to continue adding to my sleeve and kind of carry on from my last tattoo by having something in my elbow crease. I decided on a mandala style sunflower (my fave flower) with a couple of forget-me-nots (for family) and Charlotte came up trumps with a beautiful design for me…
Charlotte working her magic, just before she gave me the finger 😂
It was quite ouchy but not as bad as I thought it might be considering I kept being told it was another super painful spot to get inked! I’m sure Charlotte has a magic touch though because before I knew it we were done and I was on my way home again… I’m pretty damn chuffed with the finished tattoo too. I’m already excited about my next one!
New ink!
snack time
Here we are again, at what is fast becoming my favourite part of these blog posts… the foodie treats I’ve enjoyed over the last few weeks!
Absolute filth for lunch down at @foodpark_cam today 🙊 Thanks for the insane veggie dirty fries @roaddogs17 👌🏻
You cannot beat these bhajis from Kura Kura
Beautifully presented (and delicious!) Bakewell pudding from our local pub, The Ancient Shepherds
Valentines treats, in the form of an M&S dine in meal deal!
Bun love and salty snacks with @claireabellemakes tonight 😋 Thanks to @guerrillakitch and @thirstycamb 🙌🏻
Tempura prawn maki roll, ox cheek bao and burnt cauliflower from @shackfuyu - AMAZING!
…and I know I’ve already mentioned it before but the Cheese Bar in London deserves a second shout it because that poutine was insanely good!
Dream toastie and Poutine from @thecheesebarldn 🧀 Not pictured, an incredible blue cheese raclette!
And that was February… well almost… there’s one MAJOR part of the month I’m missing out but you’ll have to wait for the next update to find out what. Here’s another not so subtle hint for you though (did you spot the other hint?)
☀️
