Paper Wishlist.

It's no secret that I'm a big stationery fan, in fact starting a new notebook is one of those satisfying little things that just brings me joy. That said, with growing older, in the same way I've (tried to) work my wardrobe, I've found that a few key pieces that I'll actually use are far more important than picking up every pretty-looking thing I can get my hands on.

I was renowned for starting notebooks and moving onto another one before getting halfway through. Now, I try to make the most of what I've got before starting again, we're still talking about stationery here.

With all that said, Christmas is coming and that marks a point where it's time to start new diaries and re-write dates to remember in calendars, and with that said, here are four paper-related things on my Christmas wishlist this year.


1 // 2015 Frankie Diary – I picked up a Frankie Diary last year and have used it throughout 2014, still loving its cutesy page designs and having a space to physically write out my weekly plans - Google calendar just isn't the same but I do put everything everywhere. The likelihood is that I'll be bagging the 2015 diary as a gift to myself before Christmas rolls around but it's so beautiful that I thought it was the decent thing to share it with you all the same.

2 // Cat Daddy by Jackson Galaxy – I came across My Cat from Hell a little while ago and as someone whose cat isn't from hell but is a lot more standoffish than I would like, I do enjoy learning about acceptable cat behaviour and why Doll is the way she is. This book might be a bit of a throwaway and I do have plenty of books on my 'to-read' list at the moment but it also seems like an easy read to pass the time over the Christmas holidays.

3 // One Line a Day: A Five Year Memory Book – This looks like the first diary of its kind that might work out pretty well for me. Much easier to do that write a whole entry, it would be really nice to have something like this to look back on.

4 // Rifle Paper Co. 2015 Appointment Calendar – Isn't this beautiful? I've admired the Rifle Paper Company from afar for what feels like ages now but this is the first practical piece of their's that I've genuinely wanted to get my hands on. Like I said, I write everything everywhere and a paper calendar is a must for our kitchen.

Do you have any stationery on your Christmas wishlist this year?

My Summer Reads

This summer was when I came out of my reading slump. At the beginning of the year I finally started reading books for pleasure again rather than because I had to, looking at Photography books is wonderful and researching subjects that interested me for my dissertation was fun too but since then, my main reading material has really been online.

Every time I used to read something would wind up distracting me, I'd end up watching TV or back on my computer, it's not something I'm proud of and I'm not saying reading books is better or worse than either of those things but given that it's actually something I like, it was a bit stupid that I'd denied myself something like that for so long.

A few of the blogs I regularly read, like Becky Bedbug and Vivatramp post book reviews quite often, and this kind of daunted me when it came to sharing this post with you. I wouldn't say I'm a slow reader but sometimes these girls are reading a whole book a week, A WHOLE BOOK, at a normal pace it takes me at least a month.

Maybe I've not quite found 'the one' since jumping back on the horse but here are the 4 reads I've managed to squeeze in since the end of June.


Ready Player One by Ernest Cline –

I put off finishing this book for such a long time but once it gets to the middle of part two, it gets really good and really intense. Ready Player One is set in a future where almost nothing takes place in the real world any more, people work, play and are even educated using a MMORPG called, Oasis. The creator of Oasis passes away and sets up challenges within the online world for users to complete in order to win his multimillion dollar fortune.

The comparison of how good someone's life can be online compared to how terrible everything can go in the real world was an aspect that I quite liked. There's lots of commentary on how far technology could go and how damaging it could be to have your life online but on top of that it was just a good teen novel with plenty of thrills.

Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk –

This was my holiday-read and the first book I've managed to read in under a week in the longest time. If you've heard of or read it, you'll know why I got a few raised eyebrows when my friends read it over my shoulder. It's kind of messed up, I'm not sure what I was expecting as it was the first Palahniuk book but I wanted something gritty and it definitely delivered.

Exploring so many grotesque themes, it was a little more adult that I was expecting too and it does escalate very quickly but it's also full of dark humour and social commentary (which apparently, I like). Set along a main narrative with short stories in between, I did actually quite enjoy it but felt the ending let it down because it just seemed like such a shrug after all the intense situations that the characters had been through together and shared with each other.

The Psychopath Test by Jon Ronson –

This actually got Moon into reading more again and he banged on and on about it for the longest time before I finally caved. I can definitely see why he liked it and I actually found it really funny. It does get a bit preachy when it comes to the media showcasing 'the right kind of madness' and exploiting people on television but it's quite fun once you're around halfway through and going about trying to spot psychopaths in your day-to-day life.

I don't usually read non-fiction books for pleasure but this was really easy to get through - I even passed it on to a few people at work. I guess I really learnt that 'psychopath' is used so much in the wrong context in the everyday and you don't have to be a criminal to be one, which is the creepiest thing.

The 100 Year Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson –

I read quite a few reviews of this before picking it up and the cover intrigued me for ages. As a Swedish translation, it's a little dry in places but the story of adventure flows well.
I found there were a few historical references that I (shamefully) had to look up later but I really liked this fun story even if took me a little longer than I'd like to fully commit to it.

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I felt it was right that I share my little accomplishment with you and figured it would be a good way to motivate myself to get back to reading more again, there are some great books coming out in the next couple of months too.

:: Have you entered my giveaway to win tickets to the Royal Berkshire County Show on the 20th September? ::

You Don't Know Where You're Going...

Currently... ♥

Watching... Obscure documentaries and indie films - It's A Disaster is a recent favourite.

Listening To... The 1975, Stornoway, alt-J and Justin Timberlake – all of these are making me very happy recently, with a bit of Motown thrown in you've got my perfect daily playlist. ♥

Reading... Pet Semetary by Stephen King - I figured it was about time to get reading and start reading something I actually wanted to read (jog on, 50 Shades). I wanted to see what all the fuss was about and I blitzed through 10 chapters in an evening, even without anything happening yet, there's a great atmosphere and it has kind of given me the heebie jeebies already.

Eating... Far too many peanuts.

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Weekend plans? Heading out somewhere for a change of scenery (despite the snow?!), we've only just realised that in between entertaining guests and going to and from work we've spent a lot of downtime just in Newbury so it's time to head out elsewhere for a bit, and I'm driving, eep! ♥

Making it stretch.

Pay-day can't come soon enough this month, less than a week to go! There's a lot to pay for, once my rent's out that doesn't leave much left, I also have to pay my gas and electric and I'm trying to save for a new camera. However, I'm going to need to make this stretch with August being a big birthday month and I'm hoping to start up driving next week (*eep!).
I hate to bore you with another wish-list post but I've been so busy with work and needing sleep that I just haven't really had time to do anything particularly interesting to share with you.

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Dermalogica Clean Start Kit, £20.99 (via Beauty Flash)
This is one of the big things I'll be investing in this month. I've since cancelled my Glossybox subscription due to their lack of actually meeting my 'beauty profile' and because I've seen better boxes for the same or less money. However, this kit is one of the best things I've used to come out of subscribing to Glossybox. I'm yet to sign up to another beauty box and I'm not sure if I will for a while. Anyway, I'm in love with this kit, it's so refreshing and I've found it leaving my skin very clear with no residue. The mattifying moisturiser with SPF is an added bonus and definitely my favourite face moisturiser I've ever used. At the price being offered by Beauty Flash, I'd definitely recommend it to anyone.


Death at Seaworld: Shamu and the Dark Side of Killer Whales in Captivity, £15.55, Amazon
I'm a massive fan of Seaworld and I'm really looking forward to going there in December, so I'm not sure how good an idea it would be to read this but I'm really intrigued by the case and the ethics surrounding the treatment of such intelligent mammals as killer whales and dolphins. The Cove is one of my all-time favourite documentaries and it really hit a nerve. I'm not ready to become an activist and start preaching to you just yet but it's a subject I like to keep informed about.


A Visit to Charleston House for Rob Ryan's Exhibition ♥
(Possibly coinciding with a daytrip to Brighton if the weather stays nice.)


Mumford & Sons' Babel (Deluxe Version) w/ Screenprint [x]
I'm really excited for this so this is my other big spend for the month, I really hope the poster is worth the extra £20, although I may suggest going halves with Mr. Moon as he's much bigger on CDs.


ASOS MILAN Leather Laser Cut Lace Up Shoes, £15, ASOS
I know I mentioned these in yesterday's Tuesday Tabs but I'm really after a pair as my sister is visiting and flaunting her pair in my face. I seriously need to re-assess my shoe situation though, as well as my nail polish situation - sadly they've been left seriously neglected since I've been working all the time, I'm making a promise to myself to paint my nails tonight.


Fujifilm Instax Wide Film, this seller on eBay
Definitely need to get my hands on some instant film to give my new Fujifilm Instax camera it's first trial run, as well as keep up with my first Instax camera, they're the most awesome cameras, I hope the newest one works.

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My rota has just come through and I've found out I get the whole of Sunday off, I'm so excited, I hope to have as nice a Sunday as I did last week, definitely calls for more precisely planned carbooting.

Hardly recent.

I've not really had the get-up and go to take photographs what with the terrible weather and generally being a bit pre-occupied recently. It feels like two or three weeks since I shot the #DitchingDieting march, which is crazy because it was only at the beginning of the week.

I've been cat-sitting for my Gran in Dorking this week, not very exciting but it's nice to have the company of Suzie because she actually cares if you pet her or pay her attention. Dolly needs to get her shit together and learn how to be a real cat.

It's not been a stimulating week really, one of those weeks where you apply for job after job and get almost nothing. I've had a rejection from one of the jobs I interviewed for last week, so that's a bit of a bummer, but I'll be interning for a couple of weeks from the 1st February at a magazine called Shortlist, I would do it for longer but I simply can't sustain that lifestyle anymore. Someone just needs to recognise my talent, like now so I can be an adult.
I have a few pretty exciting jobs to apply for today and then I'm hoping Moon can come over for steak, I've got to time it well because he's working nights at weekends at the moment, so I don't want to wake him up too soon.

Here are some photos that I took at the beginning of the week. How many of you have figured out how to get your free Facebook business cards from Moo.com, it's a pretty sweet deal. I already have some really nice ones from Moo, so I had a bit of fun with these ones, but they're a really good idea, especially on a promotional level both for Facebook integration and Moo.com itself. I thought the quote on the back looked really good, I'll be so impressed if you can tell me where it's from, even my most-knowledgeable friend on the subject didn't manage it.



Last weekend my Gran brought round this book, it's kind of like a baby book for cats. My Gran said she's had it for ages, since we got Felix but she just kept it. It's quite a nice idea but quite tough to fill in for Dolly because there's so much we don't know about her, I'm still going to give it a go though.

Obviously, a 'random' blog post wouldn't be complete without some photos of Dolly Cat herself. She's actually getting much easier to photograph as she's becoming less and less skittish, no where near on Suzie level yet, but we'll give her a little more time.

Christmas Wishlist 001

With only 21 sleeps left until Christmas and the usual barrage of 'what do you wants', I've decided this would be a good place for reference for when I do get asked or if people want to have a look. Despite being quite a selfish person, I also love giving so I'm having my own fun sorting out other people's presents. I don't want to risk buying things for myself with Christmas coming up and I don't want to spend money on myself when I want to buy for other people.

Here are some things I spotted today that I would like, not sure if I will carry it on but now I am unemployed again it's likely I'll be spending more than enough time on my computer looking for jobs/window shopping. I think it might also help out my boyfriend a bit as for some reason he's had a lapse in his own judgement and doesn't trust himself to know me, despite us having 5 successful Christmases under our belts.


All New Look.
I'd basically like some things to keep me warm because I'm a lot colder than normal with the seasonal change, even with cardigans, sweater vests and coats. Brrrr!
Chunky Striped Jumper
Block Stripe Jumper
Spot Ankle Leggings
Annie Floral Hooded Jacket

(via 27 Kodak Moments)

Geek Girls Unite — I saw this book in Rough Trade last weekend and it looks like a really good read, maybe I'll try and make it the last book I buy before I get my own place/at least a book shelf, I should get around to reading everything properly too.
52 Photographic Projects — This book looks like a lot of fun and I'm really on the search for some new technical ideas and fun things to do with my camera.


Models Own Beetlejuice Collection


Panda egg cup
1990's Colouring Book


2012 Animal Calendar

675.

I might get a chance to flex my photography muscles at Ink on Monday. Hopefully anyway, we're going to a restaurant to get some nice shots of these cookery books for one of the magazines.

I had to do a (terrible) test shoot yesterday to display them but it was a bit flat in terms of lighting, if I am photographing I hope there will be a bit more depth and control. But the test was just to get an idea of how to lay them out, it was all quite exciting, I got to move from my desk and use a sexy Canon, secretly nerdgasmed, but it only took about 10 minutes.





Currently waiting for Moon to get here, my driving lesson today went really well, I think I definitely need to open my ears a bit more though, to avoid getting unnecessarily flustered at roundabouts.

While I'm here, it would appear that the JobCentre need further complaints made to them as within the last few days I have received both my P45 and a letter letting me know that my claim had been closed and what I can do in terms of additional funding, which is great and all, if I didn't only have three days left with Ink. Morons, it's as though they've done it on purpose and know there is no point in me doing anything about it... funny that..

Free Street Photography books

Apparently Flickr is down right now, so I'm unable to share the photos from yesterday with you. It's no biggie though, a morning on Twitter has allowed me to discover the awesome new Photography website, The Development Tank.
As they're on Tumblr and therefore readily accessible to view, I would imagine they will fast become a favourite, just remember that you might have probably seen it here first.

Anyway, they recently put up a post about free digital street photography books available from Thomas Leuthard. I thought this was pretty neat, I know it would have been useful for the numerous street photography projects I was assigned at University. The books are both visual and educational in terms of putting the techniques on show into practice. I would recommend you check them out, because not only are they pretty good, but they're also free.

(via The Development Tank)

http://www.85mm.ch/Book/Books.html