3 of my favourite blogs

Spreading the bloggin' love, here are some of the blogs I read often which I'd like to share with you:

Take Courage

The pictures on this blog are gorgeous and some real clothing envy always takes hold whenever I read this. There are often DIY tutorials which aren't really my bag but I love the vintage lovin' and the author's personal style. Although links to clothes are provided, it definitely doesn't feel like advertising or that there is a pressure to BUY BUY BUY.

A Girl Called Jack

I cannot overstate how much I admire Jack Monroe. This blog is often filled with recipes (anyone who knows me well will know that I am not a natural cook), but what I really love are Jack's more political posts or stories from her past. I find what she has achieved remarkable, and blimin' inspirational. She writes so concisely and intelligently and I often finish the post fist-pumping the air shouting "YES!". She puts into words what I'd like to say, only better.

Frassy

This girl can write. Although I get the impression that majority of her posts are sponsored (a girl has got to eat!) it is the in depth, personal and beautiful writing that draws me back to this blog. There have also been book recommendations which I've taken up and not regretted. The fact that the author lives in both Barcelona and Paris means that the photos are seriously gorgeous and make me want to pack everything in and copy her. Even though I know I couldn't do it nearly as well. She makes full time professional blogging look easy although I'm sure it's not.

Needless to say blogs masquerading as adverts do not interest me but the above all go a bit deepe.

And now, as this has been a bit word heavy, here are some pictures from my weekend

checking out the Chalkie Davies exhibition at Cardiff Museum

Reading Vogue and eat Joe's ice cream at Roath Rec

Waiting for my bagel and enjoying a Snapple at New York Deli

Making the most of life

I am someone with a tendency to over think things.  Recent gin and tonic fueled chatting about life with some of the closest people in my life in a hot tub in the Forest of Dean last week, along with sucky things happening to people close to us, has put me in a reflective mood.  I am determined to  to..., to what? Live life I suppose and not stress the small things. So...eat that bit of cake, go to that gig, do nothing, do something, phone your friend, don't phone that friend who always makes you feel bad about yourself, walk, laugh about it, say yes, say no, completely ignore me and make your own list, don't inspect badly taken work lanyard photos to closely (this one might just be me), and realise that there ain't nothing wrong with turning 30 (or any age) this year.

Here are some awesome things I have been doing over the last week

Extremely sweet and delicious cake from Jolly's tea room in Bath

Seeing Caitlin Moran speak in Cardiff last week

Beautiful Tintern Abbey

Cardiff Bay on a Spring evening (we had fish and chips from Top Gun)

Not quite the back row at the Radio 2 Folk Awards

Springtime in Cardiff

Woah it's been ages since my last post. I have been taking my own advice and have taken a pause because, to be truthful, the whole blogging thing wasn't really inspiring me lately. Stupidly, I have allowed myself to be intimidated by the thousands of adverts blogs telling me which foundation to wear and what Spring must-haves to buy. Not my thing it turns out. "Shake off the negativity, Laura", I hear you cry. Alright then... here are some awesome things that have happened in my life since my last blog:

PARIS

I spent a week with Hywel in one of my favourite places. We ate, walked, saw, slept, talked and generally had a wonderful time. If someone could tell me a place in Cardiff that sells religieuses I would be eternally grateful.

Preparing for festivals

Ok, so it's only April but we have been buying CDs ready for Green Man and End of The Road. Favourite new discoveries so far include Public Broadcasting Service, Courtney Barnet and Emmy the Great (also looking forward to War on Drugs, Django Django and Super Furries, obvs).

Springtime in Cardiff

Even the less than salubrious Splott looks lovely now that Winter is safely behind us. Also putting washing on the line makes me happier than it perhaps should do.

Enjoy the springtime everyone.

 

Taking a pause

It is rare for us to have a weekend with no plans what with weddings to attend, hen dos to arrange family and friends across the country to see, Christmas, birthdays etc etc. I love doing these things but every now and then it is nice to take a pause to appreciate Cardiff and relax at home. 

Books to read ready for our Paris holiday

The last three weekends Hywel and I have been able to chill out, wander around Cardiff, eat, read, devour Netflix, go to the market, go to yoga, spend time with each other and get little house jobs done and it has been wonderful.

Beautiful tulips

I also sometime feel like a little pause in life is a good idea. I am currently in a job which has its busier periods in summer over the exam session so it is a little quiet at the moment giving me time to focus on other things such as improving my Spanish and French skills (come April- June I wont have time to think so don't feel too jealous!). This is different to my previous job where I was traveling a lot and not necessarily able to spend as much time with friends and family as much as I would have liked. Maybe one day I will take a job that involves me flying off to various exotic places but for now I am happy taking a pause. 

Namaste y'all

Cheers

5 things

Reading other blogs I have learnt that a common blogging feature seems to be "5 things" so, while never one for trying to fit in with the "cool girls",  in the spirit of playing along here are some 5 things of my own.

5 things I liked about the past week:

• Walking along the Cardiff Bay barrage to Penarth and having a lovely lunch at Washington tea rooms with Hywel.   
• Going to Bath for the day with my mum and discovering Mac makeup
• Babysitting my super beautiful 18 month old godson and us both surviving
• Meeting old friends (Ellen I'm looking at you here) and picking up where we left off
• Learning that Hywel will be joining me at End of the Road festival (have you seen the line up? It is fantastic.) Along with Green Man, it is shaping up to be a good festival year.

Green Man seems a long way away

5 things I am looking forward to in the coming week:

• Going to Chapter for drinks and food tomorrow night. Sweet potato fries! 
• Going to see the Wave Pictures at the moon club on Thursday. Saw them there a while back and they are just so so good
• Watching the most recent Walking Dead and Broadchurch episodes.
• Gettin' my yoga on
• Reading and re- reading my Paris books if they ever arrive, ahead of our trip in less the 4 weeks, parfait. I have been practicing my French on Duolingo by the way. It's jolly good

How I imagine myself looking in Paris

That's some good reflecting right there.

Women I want to be when I grow up

Jessica Hynes (always Daisy Steiner to me)

Victoria Coren- poker champion and all round clever woman

Lauren Laverne- Stylish, witty, music laydee DJ

Tamsin Greig- superbly funny

They come across as witty, intelligent, funny, confident, unique, stylish, perfectly imperfect, all the things I long to be.

I am sick of....

I am sick of:

• Reading blog posts on what a twenty something English student from wherever bought from Primark/ Lush
• Feeling low when someone is better than me at yoga
• Feeling happy when I am better than someone at yoga
• Thinking I should be more accomplished/ further along in my career/ doing something more interesting when I am quite happy thank you very much
• Worrying my hobbies aren't cool enough when all I want to do is read, swim, go to yoga, go running (at my own pace), go to gigs and festivals, watch box sets, sew sometimes, go to new places, spend time in Dorset and hang out with Hywel
• Beating myself up for not practicing my French more often
• Telling myself I'm fat
• Comparing myself to others

I think you'll agree that there's a of of negativity for one brain there so I'm going to stop in 2015 and chill the Hell out.

Happy New Year all

November wrap up- Eating, drinking and gigging

Once again I have neglected my blogger duties because I was just having too much fun.

So November, where do I start. It's been a busy one exploring and enjoying the best that Cardiff has to offer.

Eating and drinking

If you didn't already know, the amazing Wahaca opening in Cardiff earlier this month. This warranted a day off work to head on down there. I first tried their Mexican street food style food in Covent Garden and absolutely loved it. The Cardiff restaurant is amazing, very cool decor and exceptionally yummy food. To make things even better, we got free tequila cocktails (slightly lethal).  As Wahaca say, if you need lemon and salt with your tequila, you're drinking the wrong tequila. Go. Try. Eat. Drink. You'll love it. Seriously, our friends who have not yet been are sick of us going on about how good it is.

Free cocktails

Last week, late to the party as usual, a few of us went down to the Depot's Street Food Cardiff event. Wow. The atmosphere they created in an urban warehouse was pretty incredible. And the food, oh the food. There was so much choice but eventually I decided to have a hot dog from Haut dogs (with popping candy on it because I'm such a darn hipster). 

hipster hotdog

Then, being surrounded by so much choice, I wanted more food.  I very rarely get to go to Bangkok Cafe so I went for the Thai Green Curry. Amaze. By this point my stomacch was too full for anything else but I tried a bite of Hywel's crème brulée and can attest to it's deliciousness. All this while drinking Prosecco. Oh yes. One piece of advice, be prepared to queue.

Me being a hotdog

Gigs

Wave Pictures at the Moon Club, Boy and Bear at Clwb Ifor Bach and the Welsh Music Prize nominees also at Clwb. I saw both the Wave Pictures and Boy and Bear at festivals over the summer but it is always nice to see a band in a smaller venue (and you can't get much smaller than the Moon Club). These bands are fantastic and I loved them. I wish that Cate le Bon had played the Welsh Music Prize gig, and Gruff, and the Manics, and future of the Left, but getting to see The Gentle Good is always lovely.

I also went to my best friend's wedding this month and pratted around in the dressing up box.

That's How for Now folks.

I am not going to buy any new make up in November. No I'm not. I'm not

Boots and I have a ongoing love affair. I go in only needing ibuprofen and come out £50 lighter justifying it with all the Advantage card points I am amassing even though I lost my card a year ago. Hywel and I are currently trying to sell our house so last night I had a little sort out. Just look at all the make-up I have. I only have one face! And this is after I chucked loads away.

So, no more make-up. For a month. I'm hoping the money I save will allow me to buy those books on my wishlist which I think are just a little too expensive (but still less than that lipstick I impulse bought in Boots last week).

Seriously, who needs 15 eye-liners?

Bunking off work (kind of)

On Friday Hywel and I took a cheeky half-day off work to go to town, shop, eat and go to the cinema. There is something about walking around town on a weekday that always makes me feel like I'm bunking off (mitching, skiving, whatever you want to call it). I used to love it when I had a doctor or dentist appointment or something and mum would take me around the shops for a bit before driving me back to school. 

Sophie's on High Street Arcade

First stop on our bunk was Sophie's Crêperie in the high Street Arcade for what turned out to be the perfect lunch. We have tried other crêperies in Cardiff before (naming no names) which have been disappointing but Sophie's was amazing. Hywel has cheese and ham while I went for the complete which is basically cheese and ham with an egg. They were really filling and très délicieuses.  Go there!

Crepes!

After shopping some serious bargains we went to see Gone Girl at the cinema. I loved this book and was a bit worried the film would be a let down but I really enjoyed it. I think Rosamund Pike in particular was extremely well cast as Amy. Even though I knew what was coming, the suspense was just right.

Today I am massively aching as I power marched the Cardiff half yesterday with my mum. We smashed our predicted time with the help of sheer determination and free doughnuts (serious thanks to all supporters, especially ones with free baked goods). With my aching comes an insatiable hunger. Send food please.
 

My well deserved medal

September

So just like that September is over....and what a busy month I have had. Despite some low points (being ill and cancelling our trip to Brighton), I have had a pretty good time. One of the highlights being going to see First Aid Kit at Colston Hall in Bristol. What a great band! What a great venue! I has only previously been to the O2 Academy in Bristol so the Colston Hall seemed very civilised in comparison. The First Aid girls put on a great show, very different and more intimate than seeing them at Green Man fest.

Before the gig we found a hipster heaven bar where we indulged in a couple of drinks and delicious burgers. If you're ever Bristol way you could do far worse than going to Start the Bus. 

Hipster drinks at Start the Bus

From a purely materialistic point of view, my gorgeous birthday present from Hywel arrived. I had been looking for a leather satchel for ages and Zatchels delivered! I love, love it.

My gorgeous Zatchel satchel

From there we headed down to Dorset for a good old fashioned barn dance at my grandparent's farm. Plenty of dosey-doeing, cider and checked shirts.

Last weekend I went to my wonderful friend Meg's hen do. Ever done a yoga/ stretch glass after downing 2 glasses of Prosecco? I highly recommend it. The instructor was Lou from Stretchii in Swansea and was a wonderful way to start the day's activities.

Mats ready for hungover/ tipsy Stretchii class

This week I am super excited to go see the "Gone Girl" film adaptation. I read the book about a year ago and loved it. It really is not the normal genre I go for (I'm more an historical fiction kinda girl than dark thrillers) but would highly recommend it. Oh yeah and I'll be walking the Cardiff half marathon on Sunday with my mum. I'm hoping for good weather as I walk around this wonderful city.

Festivals and summer fun

Sorry it's been a while since my last post. August always seems to be a really busy time for me with festivals to go to and birthdays to enjoy. This year I also had the added bonus of attending one of my best friend's weddings.

Green Man Festival

I love Green Man so much. There is such a chilled and relaxed vibe there along with great music and beautiful scenery. I always discover a great new band or artist. This year we spent the majority of the time at the mountain stage as the line up was just fantastic. This was also the first year our gorgeous 11 month old Godson joined us. He seriously knows how to rock a pair of ear defenders. To mix things up a bit, my friends and I, for the first time, ventured into the Nature Nurture area for a spa experience on the Sunday morning (when we seriously needed a wash). We had prosecco on arrival, and then constant top up, clean towels, warm showers, hot tub and the only sauna/tent I have ever seen. It was just perfect.

Highlights:

First Aid Kit (obvs)
Beirut
Nick Mulvey
Boy and Bear
Georgia Ruth
Outside Spa (and prosecco!)
Burning of the Green Man

We have already bought our tickets for next year's festival where I will be celebrating a rather scary birthday!

My Birthday

I love my birthday and always make sure I take the day off work. This year, despite the grey skies, Hywel and I went for a swim in the sea in Dunraven Bay. It was such a nice beach and, due to the weather, not very busy. The sea was choppy but fairly warm considering. We then discovered a secret garden where we drank our hot chocolates. In the evening we went to the delightful Shot in the Dark for drinks then curled up at home to watch Amelie. Wonderful.

End Of The Road

My mum and I always try to go to a festival together. In the past we have been to Glastonbury numerous times and Camp Bestival. This was the first year I went to End Of the Road but I already can't wait to go next year. The festival site is such a good size (you can walk between all the stages in 5 minutes meaning fewer band clash dilemmas) but you still get some of the quirky areas such as the forest disco where my mum, aunt and cousins and I danced the night away.

Highlights:

Sweet Baboo
The Wave Pictures
Gruff Rhys
Johnny Flynn and the Sussex Wit
Cate Le Bon
9 Bach


And seeing as Hywel and I can't quite get our selves back into normal life, we had dinner last night at the excellent Got Beef.

Learning Cymraeg

This September will mark 10 years of me living in Wales. Way back in 2002 when filling out my dreaded UCAS form I must admit I had very little knowledge of the Welsh language, Dorset girl that I am, and how important it is. But it is important; language and culture make up so much of a person's identity and expression.  Last year I married a Welshman who uses the Welsh language a lot both professionally and socially. Consequently our group of friends includes many a proud native Welsh speaker. Sometimes, in fact, I am the only non Welsh speaker in the room, not that anyone has ever made me feel excluded. However, I have felt for a while that I should make an attempt to learn. I once tried to learn when in my final year. A patronising teacher, slow class and the fact that I was in my final year made me give up after only a few lessons (I also seem to remember some guys from Rhyl trying to teach us Welsh at Glastonbury festival 2003 but needless to stay it didn't stick).

Tafwyl at Cardiff Castle

Recently, a few friends and I went to see American Interior, the film that accompanies The Gruff Rhys album of the same name. In the film, Gruff follows the trail of one of his ancestors on the quest for a mythical Welsh speaking tribe in America. Check it out btw, it's great. The Welsh language is prominent throughout and at one point Gruff states that there are only 1 millions speakers.

At the weekend, Hywel and I went to Tafwyl festival at Cardiff Castle. It was so interesting to see, and hear, Welsh being spoken by so many people and to listen to musicians singing in Welsh. It made me jealous. I want to speak Welsh! One person shown in Gruff's film mention the website "Say Something in Welsh" so I decided to check it out. It is a series of online Welsh lessons which can be downloaded and listened to as and when you want. Each lesson is only about 35 minutes long so it is easy to fit one in. I honestly cannot praise it enough. I have only done 5 lessons so far and already I can say loads! It teaches you to construct sentences rather than learning by rote. The only slight downside is that it requires a lot of speaking on the learner's part so I cannot really do it at work but then speaking is the only real way to learn! I can even do my crochet at the same time. Win.

Sorry quite a wordy one

My First Blog

How exciting. Welcome to my little world. I have been meaning to start a blog for a while mainly to document what I get up to be it gigs, craft, day trips or new purchases. Let's begin. This weekend was one of those lovely sunny Cardiff weekends where we float from place to place in a happy cloud. On Saturday my husband Hywel and I went for a walk at Forest Farm and firmly cemented our desire to move from Splott to Whitchurch. We could have spent longer there as it was so peaceful and full of nature. We even saw a heron.

The beautiful river at Forest Farm

 Being in the outdoorsy mood put me in the frame of mind to sort the garden out. We took 2 car loads of ivy to the dump and planted some lavender, roses and herbs. Hopefully they will flourish.

New plants in my garden

 Later that evening a friend and I went to local favourite Chapter to watch Casse-Tete Chinois (Chinese puzzles), the 3rd film in the Auberge Espagnole triology. I highly recommend this to anyone with an interest in French cinema. It was funny and witty and the French is easy to follow (it does have subtitles for non French speakers). It made me want to move to Paris. But that happens on a weekly basis.

G&Ts with basil, lemon and strawberry

Sunday saw the first Pop Up Boutique on Womanby Street. Although I was hoping for more stalls, the amazing food and drink made up for it. Hywel and I have been Hang Fire Smoke house enthusiasts since our fist bite of pulled pork back in the Canadian so we were sure to be first in the queue for their street food style menu on Sunday. Man, it was good! I had the pulled pork bap and Hywel had the ribs. Their homemade sauces are truly mouthwatering. I can't wait to find out where their next venue will be.

The just perfect Hang Fire smokehouse pulled pork baps

 The day and weekend was rounded off by an ice cream from Pettigrew Tea room (we couldn't get a table for cake- curse their popularity!) and a wander through Bute Park. Perfect