Tie Dye in Edinburgh

I’m starting my masters in Edinburgh this September, and so I spent this weekend hunting for somewhere to live! I’m so excited to live in a city that I love, and looking at flats (and decorating them in my mind) is one of my favourite activities. Luckily the weather was pretty warm whilst we were there, so I got to break out my bare legs and a very summery crop top! This top actually belonged to me when I was around eleven. A lot of my clothes from year 6 and 7 still fit me, not because I’m small now but because I did all my growing at a very young age. I was a tall eleven year old! I cut the bottom half off this top, and ta-da, it became a new crop top! Who says hoarding clothes doesn’t have it’s benefits? I bought this kimono from Rokit in Brick Lane a while back. I think it used to be a bed coat, but it’s more fun as an outside coat. When wearing this at uni, one of my friends asked me with genuine puzzlement “why are you dressed up as a witch today?” because wearing a cape that billows in the wind is fun, that’s why!

Outfit Details: Kimono, Vintage (Rokit) / Crop Top, Upcycled / Skirt, DIY / Chelsea Boots, New Look / Sunglasses, Rock N Rose via Lavish Alice

I’m wearing one of the skirts that I made a couple of months ago. Although one of the easiest to make, it’s among my favourite things that I’ve made because it’s so easy to wear, but the pu leather is unusual at the same time. I can’t wait to go back up to Scotland, I’m hoping to be there for the Fringe festival. I went briefly in 2010 and it was a lot of fun!

The Peak District

On the top of Mam Tor

The beautiful streets of Castleton

Football by the barn

The camping barn

Amy and I

I made the most of the recent bank holiday weekend and spent all three days in the Peak District with seven of my friends! We stayed in a camping barn near Edale, which was great because the countryside was beautiful and rolling yet civilisation was not too far away. We slept on the floor and cooked on a fire, so it was pretty much like camping, except we avoided the hassle of having to put up and take down tents. Asides from the cold, I think this is the perfect level of camping for me! We spent a lot of time exploring the local town of Castelton. We visited the two most popular caves – “Devils Arse” which is huge, and Speedwell which is an old (and very narrow!) lead mine. We also climbed Mam Tor and did a lot of eating out! If you plan on visiting the area, I highly recommend the Old Nags Head in Edale, it was large and cosy and the food was delicious.

Barbecuing veggie sausages!

Pretty shops in Castleton

James enjoying the view at the top of Mam Tor

The view from Mam Tor

Frisbee by the barn

The first night that we stayed at the barn we had a long lazy barbecue with lots of Henry Westons cider (which I felt in the morning.) Since graduating from uni and moving back home I miss my friends most when it’s a sunny afternoon and we would normally head to the nearest pub garden or park with a picnic blanket. I thoroughly enjoyed lots of long overdue picnic blanket times with my friends at the barn. On the last day, we swam in the heated outdoor lido in Hathersage. The view wasn’t quite as stunning as the Ilkely lido, but whoever thought of heating outdoor pools is a genius! We had sunshine (well, a lack of rain at least) for the whole three days which is pretty unheard of for Derbyshire – thank you camping gods!

Thanks for letting me share with you 🙂 I can’t wait for next year’s annual staycation, I’m putting in a vote for the Isle of Skye!

Pastels by the Pool

Okay, so there may not be a pool in these photos as the title suggests, but there was a pool behind me, I promise! It just wasn’t filled with water, since 10 degrees is apparently not “swimming weather.” These photos were taken during my recent trip to Sorrento, on the terrace of our villa. This is what I wore to dinner on our last night in Italy, where everyone had a little too much to drink – we were some of the first to arrive, and the last to leave! I bought this vintage jumpsuit in London when I was visiting the lovely Laila. The bodice was a little long for me, so I took the sleeves in on the shoulder seam. I just love how colourful it is, and I love how wide the legs are!

Outfit details: Jumpsuit, Beyond Retro / Shoes, Topshop (Old) / Belt, ASOS

I’m not sure if you can tell in the photos, but I’m wearing gold lipstick, and I’ve slicked some of it over my eyelids as well, to match my golden shoes. It’s a fun way of having a golden complexion without actually being anymore tanned! I love these shoes and I’ve had them forever, but they’re impossible to walk in. I have a real problem with shoes – I only really like the look of high heels but I’m both too tall and too lazy to wear heels during the daytime, or to do any kind of walking in heels. Finding flat shoes that I like is hard!

Sorrento

Last week I went on a family holiday to Sorrento, Italy. We chose Sorrento because it’s close to the ancient sites of Pompeii and Herculaneum, and having been to see an exhibition about Pompeii in the summer we couldn’t wait to have a look around the real thing! Now, I have seen a lot of ruins in my life and I am not usually the biggest fan, unlike the rest of my family who love archeology. Pompeii and Herculaneum were different – they are so complete it’s like being in a Roman theme park! You can walk along the streets of the town, into people’s houses and up their stairs. Because Herculaneum is nearer to Mount Vesuvius, it was buried deeper than Pompeii was when the volcanoe errupted, so even second and even third stories are preserved. The paintings are still on the walls and the Roman pots are still sitting on their original wooden Roman shelves! (See above.) Pompeii is sprawling, and we didn’t manage to walk around it in a day.

It rained for a lot of the time we spent sightseeing. On our last day, the sun came out and I spent the morning wandering around the pretty streets of Sorrento and eating ice cream! We stayed in this gorgeous yellow villa looking out over the sea, and I would love to experience it again during a warmer part of the year! Sorrento really comes alive in the sunshine, and the steep cliffs are so striking. Have you ever seen Pompeii? Would you like to?

P.s. I’m also guest posting on Of North today, talking about what home means to me. Check it out here!

Dundee and Holy Island

Mine and James’ last Scottish adventure involved a day in Dundee! We spent the morning in the botanic gardens. We were almost the only people there – it was a chilly day for garden viewing so we spent a lot of time in the rainforest area! It’s a lovely space, but what caught my eye the most was the extremely grand castle-like houses that overlook the gardens. Apparently they were built as mansions for jute barons and are now used as flats and hotels. I wouldn’t mind one of those for myself 🙂 In the afternoon, we wandered around the McManus gallery. It’s a gorgeous building and it had history, old art, new art and natural history exhibitions all in one. I really enjoyed the miss-mash of topics, and I think all museums should be done this way!

On the way back to Durham, we spent the day in Holy Island. It’s separated from the mainland by the sea half of the time, so you have to make sure the tide is out before you drive across which is fun in a scary kind of way! It was honestly the windiest day I’ve ever experienced, apparently the monks chose this island for its harsh weather conditions. The best sites are the ruined Lindisfarne Abbey and Lindisfarne Castle. The Castle was turned into a holiday home in Edwardian times and it is presented as it was in 1910, so you can sit in the chairs and pretend to be an Edwardian on holiday. Oh, and we bought some mead of course! This is my last post about Scotland, I hope you enjoyed coming along for the ride 🙂

St Andrews and Pitlochry

The second place that James and I visited in Scotland was St Andrews. We went for a postgrad open day at the University, spent the afternoon with my friend Margaret and had dinner with family friends. I have been to St Andrews before, and I remembered the beautiful coastline and the ruined cathedral, but I didn’t remember just how many grand and quaint old buildings fill the town. The weather was glorious, and we spotted a lot of people writing essays on the beach – I’ve been told it’s not like that all the time!

Our next stop was Dundee, where we stayed with my Aunt. From Dundee, we drove to Pitlochry to spend the day walking and picnicking. We visited Queens view and wandered around the Allean forest. It was a really lovely trail, and we got to see an old forest “Clachan” (village) and a stone homestead from 1000AD which was pretty impressive. From the forest there were some lovely views of the Loch and some snowy topped mountains. A lot of trees had blown down in the windy weather, so the trail was a bit of an assault course!

Pitlochry is just at the beginning of the Highlands, and I would love to explore more! I’m hoping to have another staycation in Scotland this summer. I’ve been itching to visit Norway recently, but a lot of the Scottish landscape is similar and a lot closer!

Edinburgh

If you follow me on Instagram you’ll know that I’ve spent this past week in Scotland with James! Our first stop was Edinburgh, and we spent two days here. On the first day, I had a look around the University and walked around the city. In the evening we had dinner at David Bann followed by drinks and board games at BrewDog. We actually had plans to sample a couple of bars, but it was so cosy and relaxed in BrewDog we decided to stay – there’s such a nice vibe there and I can’t wait to return!

James doesn’t love having his photo taken, so I’ve noticed I have a lot of photos of the back of his head. I do know him, and I’m not stalking him, I promise!

We spent the second day in the National and Modern Scottish National Galleries. Although they’re a little walk from the town centre, both buildings are really beautiful and they have some nice exhibitions – my favourite was Louise Bourgeois. I think I prefer small art galleries like these because I can take most of it in without feeling overwhelmed. We ate a lot this day (at Hendersons and Hula) and I even tried a deep-fried mars bar, which was delicious! We definitely needed longer to explore the city properly, so hopefully either me or James will be living in Scotland doing a Masters next year. I loved Edinburgh – it’s full of history, beautiful buildings and cool places to eat, drink and shop whilst being a relatively small city!

Scarborough

On our last full day in York, James and I decided to take a road trip to Scarborough! I’ve never been before and I wasn’t expecting much – a friend described it as a “grim place” – but I had a really great time. It’s quite large for a seaside town and whilst the town center is a little crumbly, there’s lots to do and see along the shore! We had pizza for lunch and walked all around the town, the pier and the castle. We browsed the charity shops and the strange little stalls in the market vaults and ate lots of candyfloss! Similarly to Filey, Scarborough has a trapped-in-another-decade feel that I find beautiful, charming and sometimes a little eerie, in the best possible way!

Outfit details: Crop top, ASOS / Boots, Topshop (Old) / Skirt, Vintage / Necklaces, Waiste and Ebay

To wander around Scarborough I wore an ASOS crop top with a floral skirt that I found in the attic – I think it used to belong to my mum! I’ve found this crop top quite hard to wear. It’s quite high, and I have to wear it with a bra so that it keeps its shape, which is not something I wear very often! I was pleased then to find that these two items go together quite nicely 🙂

We had a gorgeous day, and I would definitely return again to visit more of the North Bay and this veggie cafe that was closed when we were there! Sorry for all the photos today, I had a lot to share. Today I embark on the beginning of my holiday in Scotland! I hope you’re having a good Monday 🙂

What I Wore: Paris Day 6

Tuesday was our last day in Paris. We went back to the Hotel Du Ville to visit the vintage shops that I had missed the first time around, including my favourite Parisian vintage shop, Hippy Market. I bought two pairs of crazy patterned trousers, which will make an appearance on the blog soon! We spent our afternoon visiting the Sacre Coeur, the Place du Tertre and wandering around the small hilly streets of Montmatre. In the evening, we packed up, grabbed a Ghandi pizza from our favourite pizza place and sadly got on the Eurostar back home.

I bought this dress because I felt like I needed an everyday strappy black dress in my wardrobe. It’s an easy way of feeling dressed up without actually putting in any effort! I’ve had this jacket for a while, and I’m surprised I haven’t featured it before. it has crochet, velvet AND tassels – three of my favourite things in one item of clothing!

Outfit details: Dress, ASOS / Jacket, Topshop / Shoes, Ebay / Sunglasses, H&M

This is my last Paris post. Sigh, Paris I miss you! Thank you for letting me share.

What I Wore: Paris Day 5

We spent our 5th day in Paris wandering around the Louvre. Well, a tiny proportion of The Louvre. That place is huge! By Day 5 we had learnt to pack a picnic instead of buying lunch near the tourist attractions (6 euros for a bottle of water? No thanks) so we had some cheese and baguette in-between art viewing. I’m glad we did – it’s too tiring to see even one exhibition at The Louvre in one go.

I found this jacket in a Parisian vintage shop. It’s so feathery I like to think it was once worn by a dancer at the cabaret. I’m not sure if it’s supposed to be lingerie or not, but it works great as a lightweight jacket. I just love items of clothing that are over the top like this. I tried to keep the rest of my outfit simple, so I wore my trusty black crop top, and this skirt of my mum’s that I found in the attic.

These furry little guys were everywhere! They were chilling outside The Louvre, and walking down the street next to the Eiffel Tower. When we were walking along The Seine in the evening, we would hear an occasional scream, and know that someone had just tripped over a rat. On Monday evening we went for cocktails at this bar called The Comptoir General. We had to pay an entrance fee which was weird but it’s because it’s part bar, part museum of found objects. There are so many cool and interesting items scattered around this jungley barn. We had “T Punch” without the mixer (they had run out) so it was strong stuff! That evening we took a boat ride along The Seine and then sat on the Ile St Louis with wine and cheesy crisps.

Outfit details: Jacket, Vintage / Skirt, Stolen from my mum / Top, Ebay / Sunglasses, H&M / Sandals, Tesco

I hope you’re having a fantastic Wednesday 🙂