Bonjour, Avril.

Today was an incredibly uneventful way to see in a new month. Scarily seeing in a new month really, what am I going to do? I sure hope I don't see in another month jobless, this is all getting very uncool. I still don't think I've caught up on all my lost sleep from this week as I still feel exhausted, but I'm beginning to think it's probably more down to the general stress rather than just not sleeping enough.

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I did this on Friday morning, but I figured that now was as good a time as any to share them with you. Because it was so cold yesterday I still haven't got around to finishing off upcycling my chest, but expect to see things in the next few days.

I used Gem Fatale's fool-proof tutorial and I'm super-happy with the result. I picked these jeans up for £13 from Primark, and they'll do as a good stand-in for the Republic daisy-print trousers I've had a hankering for. Although polka-dots do add something different to these jeans already, I think they needed a little extra. They were too long for me anyway so needed taking up, but having kitties on the pockets is the best bonus. I don't think I did a too bad job considering I was lacking hair straighteners which look as though they would definitely make the job a thousand times easier. Now I know it's this easy, I definitely think I'll give it go again in future.

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While I remember I also thought I would share these neat tropical-print shoes I picked up from ASOS for just £11. I'm currently not that happy with them as after a first serious wear they've left me with some very sore blisters. I'm willing to push on forward though because overall they're pretty solid and feel like they might last quite long, plus the pattern is pretty...


Have you bought anything fun lately to fully embrace the brilliant weather, may as well enjoy it while it lasts.

Today's the day I start FatMumSlim's April Photo A Day Challenge, which, due to how this post has turned out, I'll slip into a new post. There's still a lot of the 1st of April left, so it's not to late to join in.

Happy April Fools Day!

'Young Colossus' - Young Colossus.

Young Colossus is a six track side-track EP, put together by Orlando Weeks, compiled in a book with illustrations by Robert Hunter with additional vocals from Alessi Laurent-Marks from Alessi's Ark.

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I was really willing this to be good, because I rarely make the leap and and buy physical copies of music, firstly because I don't have the space and secondly because nothing much happens to it once I've put it on to my computer anyway. However, Young Colossus' book-form had great appeal and there are some really neat pictures on the inside that complement the theme of the EP basically perfectly.


I'll be honest and say I was unsure about it once I was two tracks in, but I'm currently on my third listen and I'm getting around that. This EP is much more about story-telling and linking back to the visuals than any previous track from The Maccabees that I've heard. In fact, it's almost nothing like The Maccabees, with Orlando weeks' recognisable vocal only really being heard on a few occasions throughout. Effects have been added though so although he's hiding, he's still very much present, not only in the vocals but particularly in the form of the lyrics and composition.

I'm really enjoying this little EP, and it's a genuine treat for both my eyes and ears, which is what I hoped it would be. Despite it being quite 'un-Maccabees' I don't think it's one to turn your nose up at as a Maccabees fan and with a limited edition of just 1,500 copies, it's something to be snapped up fast. It also smells amazing, there's some serious paper going on, if you're into that sort of thing. I think my favourite track is 'Monsters Dance' because it's a bit odd, closely followed by 'Sound of Young Lost and Found' because it's so dainty and eerie.

I thought this was a neat touch. On the back of the envelope the EP came in was a 'Young Colossus' stamp. It must be Orlando's new thing because during The Maccabees' January and February tour, stamps dedicated to each tour date appeared, sometimes directly relating to the destination, sometimes relating to something/someone from there.

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What I think of NME is neither here nor there, but they've put together a nice little piece with slightly more information which you can have a look at here.
The Young Colossus website
Follow Young Colossus on Twitter

Zzz.

So zapped from this week, I feel like my feet haven't touched the ground. Even when I've not actually been doing anything I've really stuck at keeping myself occupied. Today was a terrible day and I'm pretty sure I spent about a quarter of it in traffic jams, sure I wasn't driving but I had places to be.

Take-three of this week's house hunt in Newbury today and we were incredibly unsuccessful yet again. The first was incredibly overpriced and not that great anyway and the second had a great downstairs but awkward upstairs, not to mention a weird garden (although at least it had one) and was right next to a main road and so noisy inside. We're looking at a couple more on Monday, but Moon will be starting his job and it makes things very up in the air as to when we can view, especially seeing as his job will mainly involve driving so commuting to and from Dorking adds to this and I can't really afford to take the train down there to view houses all the time, especially three times a week.

The job hunt isn't looking much better either, I had a promising email letting me know I was the right candidate for the role but that I lived a bit far away, despite applying for it because it was closer to Newbury. It actually was about halfway between here and there but I never got a response when I explained that travelling wasn't an issue, and I've tried ringing but the contact never seems to be there. I haven't had a lot of time to look for jobs this week but I've been trying, having received two rejection letters by post and one rejection email this week, there's only so much bad luck I think I can continue to get... but onwards and upwards, something's bound to come up soon, etc.

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In slightly more positive news, the lovely NUJDM posse have used a couple of my photos in a report about the Leveson investigations. You can take a look at the articles here, and my photos were used here and here. It's quite hard to believe that NUJDM was nearly a year ago.

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At least the weather has been fun this week, I've nearly finished my chest, and I'm pretty proud of it really, I just hope it doesn't suddenly rain. Here's a photo of Moon looking like a babestation.

This outfit is from Monday, which I know is basically forever ago, but I had to share this dress with you, I'm so pleased with it. I don't know why I ever stopped rummaging in charity shops and online, I blame Portsmouth's shoddy charity offerings. These were taken on a quick walk by the canal whilst we were down in Newbury. We were actually looking at a flat that was practically on the canal, but sadly it was pokey, expensive, and generally not what we're looking for. Location-wise you couldn't fault it though, I'm definitely looking forward to being down there and taking Sunday strolls and feeding swans.


Dress: Charleen's Closet, Etsy
Necklaces: Primark, H&M
Belt: eBay
Tights: Primark
Socks: Primark
Boots: River Island




These guys were failing epically, but what a good effort

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It's time for me to catch up with more of The Tube and have another cup of tea.

Thanks for listening, hopefully I'll stop moaning soon. Have a good weekend.

Straight up.

Just about to get back to painting my chest (it's a wooden chest, not my actual chest), but I thought to save having clutter later and share this critter with you.


I did a terrible, 'typical me' thing and just roughly followed the instructions, so was super worried that he would turn out looking like nothing, but I'm glad he at least looks a bit like a foxy fox. Perhaps not as foxy as Elsie's family of foxes, which is where I got the tutorial from. I don't even know why I didn't follow it exactly, would have saved me a bit of anxiety (not that I haven't got enough to go around) and it's very simple and easy to follow.

This was the part where I started to get worried that things might not turn out how I wanted them to...



May or may not had to perform a bit of a bodge-job on his poor old nose as the nose I'd bought had a weird back that was too long to just sew on, there's probably a way around that though, tips would be greatly appreciated.


This is from a patchwork set that I got for just £1, mega props to Fabric Land for that one. ♥


I had so many perfectly posed moments that I could have captured but she got very quickly distracted by the reflection of my watch and started going crazy. I think she approves though, as she hasn't yet tried to maul him yet.

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Maybe he is a bit rough around the edges, and a bit fat, but I kind of like him. He was a great excuse to use up extra fabric (and buy some more), so I'm really pleased with him.
Now it's back to painting, but more on that later.

What do you think of my take on A Beautiful Mess' foxy fox? Have you been up to anything crafy recently?

Tuesday Tabs. #11

I know it's late and we're all tired, but I have some de-cluttering today. I'm pretty sure that I've placed a comfortable fifth in the Motel Rocks Nail Art Competition, but it was nice to feel appreciated, particularly as there were so many other great entries.

I realise that this is a bit futile as I've been relatively absent for the last few days but I swear it's because I've been so busy, I've barely even touched my computer. Today was a bit of a dead-loss, we went all the way back down to Newbury for just one house thinking it would be a total dream, when it was actually a bit of a dump, nothing worth settling for either and pretty 'studenty'. I think we've found 'the one' though, here's hoping that it's not gone, and if it is, we'll have to keep looking, we were being a bit optimistic in thinking that we'd find something in just the three weeks leading up to when Moon starts his new job, which is Monday!
As well as racing down to Newbury, I also did the first few bits of my upcycled chest/bench. Wilkinson paint is currently my best friend, £1 for a decent-sized sample pot that was more than enough for the first part, except for the yellow, I don't recommend yellow - but more on that later.

I only got home a bit ago and all I've done is made a cup of tea and feed the cat, you're pretty high on my list of priorities. The job front is looking up a bit, I received the expected rejection letter from Sky, but I kind of knew it was going to happen, and I have an interview for an internship with theprintspace tomorrow, which I'm super-excited about. I need to get my skates on really because I haven't had time to really prepare or even plan what I'm wearing, today and yesterday have been such a mad-rush, no thanks to the impenetrable fortress that is my current doctor's surgery...

So this week, despite it only being Tuesday, when it feels like it should be Friday, is going really well and I feel like I'm getting a lot done. I'm going to start sewing a few more things, which I'll share with you soon, there seriously needs to be 30+ hours in a day with a week like this. Between personal projects, admin and applying for jobs, I've still got to fit in driving lessons and my test is scarily so soon.

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Coral Demask Prom Dress, £39.50, Dorothy Perkins
I can't really resist a good prom dress and I think this one is so cute. Coral is the best colour for getting you in the mood for things feeling a bit more springy - although the weather is doing a fair amount to remind us of that at the moment anyway. Sadly I can't justify the nearly £40 price-tag at the moment, but the shape and colour make it a real beaut.


Laundry Double-brooch, Hairy Sock
I was really sad to see that this is now out of stock, I'll definitely be keeping a beady-eye on Hair Sock from now on, or a having a thorough browse on Etsy. I've never really seen anything like this before, and it goes really well with my current love of collars.


Smitten With Kittens Tee, £30, Brat & Suzie
I don't know how I forget that designers like Brat & Suzie exist, Moon and I always stop in at Boy Parker in Brighton and Brat & Suzie is definitely one of the more memorable brands there, although there is a lot of great designers to choose from. I love this t-shirt, what could be more apt for me right now, but I think it would teeter me over the edge of the cat-lady scale, it is in my favourite colour though...


Young Colossus, Orlando Weeks.
Being the fan-girl that I am, I've already placed an order and I'm so excited to get it. Orlando Weeks, lead singer of The Maccabees, not only designs their album artwork, but has also worked with Florence the Machine and Jack Penate. This will be a lovely treat for my eyes and ears, a book with a six-song soundtrack, having heard a few of Orlando's other side-projects, I'm hoping this will live up to expectation. There's a limited number of 1,500 copies but you kind find more information on the Young Colossus website.


No advert has made me want to commit to a phone more. So much lolz, and such a pretty phone/tablet/awesome device.

(via The Dainty Squid, Tumblr)

Car-print skirt, £12, S/S 12 Primark
Sadly I couldn't find this lovely skirt anywhere when I popped into the local Primark yesterday, I have settled on a cute car-print shirt in lovely pastel colours but it just isn't the same. Maybe it's gone forever... #sadface


This song is so nice, I'm kind of annoyed that seeing Brian Wilson live put me off The Beach Boys for so long, because they have some pretty cracking songs.

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Link Love ♥:

Plus Fox Doll DIY — I've already cut and pinned the material for my first attempt. I went a bit crazy in Newbury Fabric Land when I saw they even had nose-buttons so I'm thoroughly on this one. I've made a few alterations, but I hope to make a few, particularly as the bag of 'toy stuffing' I got, is enough for around five...

Quilted Diamond Tote Bag — (via How About Orange) — Download a neat .pdf pattern to make your very own quilted totebag, another project that will put to use the metres of extra fabric I have left over from my cat cushions.

Sprayed Cans and Tins — (bit DIY-orientated this week isn't it?) This quirky tutorial from Craft & Creativity shows a fun way to decorate storage containers. It reminded me of the awesome tutorial for this animal coat rack that I saw ages ago.

DIY Starfish Hair Clips — Clearly I've been in a bit craft-centric this week without realising, but this is another DIY tutorial, this time for cute coral hair clips. You often see shells and starfish when by the sea sold as souvenirs, and I think this is a much better way to keep them than as ornaments, if that's even what you're meant to buy them for...

Cath Kidston Summer-Farm Dress — Beautiful.

Cath Kidston Summer-Farm Shirt

Crafty Creatives — Plugging these ladies again, if you've paid attention thus far and think you might be interested in the above, you should definitely get yourself signed up to Crafty Creatives. They'll provide you with a pretty monthly delivery of neat craft projects, kind of like Glossybox but a bit more hands-on.

Joseph of Hoxton — A moving, and funny documentary photography series about an 81 year-old man from East-London called Joe by Photographer, Martin Usbourne, definitely worth a view, the text is great. Along with Martin Usbourne's animal portraits, this is one of my favourite projects of his.

Glasto Facepalm — Possibly one of the best Twitters since Chino Wanker.

Pie & Vinyl, Southsea — Taking Rough Trade East's coffee/record shop a step further, I think a visit to Portsmouth is required it sounds like so much fun. Such a shame that some nice/creative things are finally happening in Portsmouth now that I'm not longer there.

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Happy Tuesday! ♥