Sharpie Shoes DIY

Hello lovelies!

Happy Friday! Have you got nice plans for the weekend? 

It feels like a really long time since I posted a DIY tutorial. Probably because all my recent crafting has involved making clothes from duvet covers, and those tutorials would go something like:
1. Cut up duvet. 
2. Sew bits of it together until it covers you enough that you don't get arrested.

This one is much simpler to explain, with the added bonus of nostalgia. Until this week I'd completely forgotten that I used to draw on my shoes as a teen; my favourites were some canvas high-tops Biro-d with Batman and Spiderman (this was before official comic book Converse. Yes, kids, I'm that old). It's safe to say my Mum's LEAST favourite pair were the new school shoes I swirled with black glitter paint; which earned me detention and had to be immediately replaced (that was pretty much the only time I got into trouble at school. Naturally, it was glitter-related). Oops.

I had to go Work Shoe Shopping earlier this week, which I tend to find rather depressing because my clown-sized feet only fit into Boring Shoes from the men's section. And I'm just not a boring shoe kind of person. Luck was on my side this time, when I found a pair of black Chelsea-style boots in the Topman sale- I even managed to wrangle an extra discount because one of them had a silver pen mark on the toe... *Cue Contemplative Evil Genius face and a detour into WH Smiths*

Shoes before. YAAAAAWN.

I'm sure a lot of you are thinking "Oh, those are lovely as they are; why would you scribble on them?". The answer, my friends, is SHINY. Yes, that is a legitimate answer. And here's the maths to go with it:

Boots + silver Sharpie + an hour or so of spare time =

Hurrah! It's like WALKING ON SPACE. Which I'm pretty sure basically makes me a qualified astronaut. 

Let's just all keep our fingers crossed my boss doesn't give me detention...

Katie xxx

Three Things Tuesday

Ola my loves! How are you all?  

Want to hear what I've been up to lately*? OK. Hold on to your halter-tops - here we go:

1. Improving Tuesdays. Forever.
We all agree that Tuesday is the worst day of the week, amiright? And we also know that cheese makes everything better. Combine the two, and what do you get? Cheeseday, of course. Three cheers for Cheeseday!

I have the perfect illustration for the joy that is Cheeseday, thanks to a recent lunchtime visit to my grandparents'. My Nan asked me with genuine concern if I thought she'd bought enough cheese:

There were three of us. And that's a dinner plate.

2. Just don't ask for a fork...
I wouldn't usually expect to see "Tip not included. Oh, and you have to shag the chef" scrawled at the bottom of my bill; but it's good to have that cleared up once and for all...

3. Getting Crunk(le)
May heralds the start of the springtime Artists Open Houses festival; the perfect combination of pretty (arts and crafts) and nosy (snooping around strangers' houses). This spring my favourite house from the Christmas trail is running a weekly competition to win a crunkle; one that's been handfired in their very own flat! What is a crunkle, I hear you ask? Blooming ADORABLE, that's what. They look a bit like ceramic sea sponges, and can be popped over the top of a tealight for some instant pretty. 

I took to the crunkle selfie challenge like a fish to water, and decided to channel my (not so inner) mermaid. And I only went and bloody won! That's the power of boobs, that is. 

Rugby Road is open every weekend until the end of May- along with most of the other houses - and I cannot recommend a visit strongly enough! Who knows, you might win a crunkle too!

What have you been up to lately? 

Katie xxx

* Because, if not, I should warn you that's a bit of a theme here - so you might want to check out the rest of the internet instead! 

Face Off

Hello lovelies!

How's it going? You'll be relieved to hear I'm finally breaking the suspense of my last post and sharing some of the excellent faces I've seen (and pulled) in the last six weeks or so. 

The first (and by far the cutest!) is my friend's gorgeous baby enraptured by the excellent wisdom I penned in her belated actual day-of-birthday/Christmas card: 

Said advice went along the lines of "Read lots, kick arse and, above all, NEVER, EVER BE ANNE." - referring to Anne of Famous Five fame. As you may recall, Anne basically never went on adventures because she was too busy doing the washing up and recovering from the exhausting chore of making potted meat sandwiches for everyone else. COME ON, ANNE. Seriously.

This is the face of a girl who's just been given the best sweatshirt ever created by humanity. Double-sided astro-goodness, in a fabric so shiny it looks like she plays for some kind of Space Hockey team.

This one's not a human face (just in case you hadn't noticed!) but this bag's been making my face smile ever since she arrived on Thursday. She also makes me feel 27 going on 4. Who cares if the actual bag bit's so small it can only fit my keys in it?!

And y'all get a bonus face thanks to my DIY Panda Cushion

My face again, but almost recognisable thanks to my lovely trainee hairdresser house mate. I've been her model for blow-dry practice twice so far, and it's fun to see what I'd look like as a Real Girl who brushed her hair and stuff. But I've got to be honest- I really don't like my hair when it's this flat. It's impossible to hide snacks in.

Another non-human face, after treating myself to one of the fantastically talented Bex's custom wall art hoops over at The Pigeon's Nest (whose own face is prettier than a Disney Princess, btw). 

SERIOUSLY RUDDY BRILLIANT, eh?!

Last, but definitely not least- I want to introduce you to the best thing that's ever happened to me, or indeed to the universe. It's also my excuse for tenuously naming this post after a Nic Cage movie (for which I'm not even going to pretend I'm sorry). Are you ready? 




[I've left a gap here on purpose so you can prepare yourselves. Emma Kate - you might want to grab a paper bag in case you hyperventilate.]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!

Isn't it AMAZING?! I can't decide which part I love the most - the fact that it's "signed" (this thing is about as official as me declaring myself the official face of Frosties due to my tiger facepaint), or the fact that they've Photoshopped his chest hair OVER HIS OWN BICEP. 

You may've noticed this is actually a pillowcase, but I've refused to use it as one because it'd mean that, like a small child's favourite toy, at some point it'd have to be washed - and I just couldn't bear to be be parted with it for the length of a washing machine cycle. So, instead, I've pinned it on my bedroom wall. Like the flag of an official fan club.

Have you seen any particularly brilliant faces recently? Or been given any official celebrity merchandise involving Photoshopped chest hair? Do share!

Katie xxx

Meetups and marvellous museums

Hello lovelies!

How are you?

Today I'm writing to you from a cosy corner of one of my favourite public houses (thanks for the speedy WiFi, guys!), accompanied by a large lime and soda and an unwavering smile. The smile is thanks to my new favourite website which, strangely, has absolutely nothing to do with cake or curious homewares. I know.

I've described it to my friends as a cross between Facebook and a dating site, but without the dating part. Which they were rather relieved about, after being exposed to some of my more colourful dating stories (The Guy Who Bit My Face remains top of the Worst Date leader board. He's had some very stiff competition).

Anyway, face-biting aside (now there's a sentence I never thought I'd have to write!) I'm feeling all warm and fuzzy from a weekend spent making friends with several groups of total strangers, and it's all thanks to Meetup. Meetup suggests local groups you can join (all free) based on your hobbies and interests. Naturally, my profile lists "Extreme Sports", "Healthy Living", and "Political Debates", because that's the kind of person I am. Ahem. 

Two weeks ago, I dipped my toe into the socialising-with-strangers thing by going for breakfast with a few people who had declared themselves to be fans of tea. I figured anyone who loves breakfast has to be a pretty good egg, and meeting before midday reduced the chance of any murder-by-internet-weirdo scenarios. I mean, whoever heard of someone getting stabbed over a stack of pancakes*?!

After the success of the breakfast meet-up, I decided to (literally) up my game and spend the entirety of last weekend meeting new people. On Saturday, I went on a tour of several Brighton museums, followed by a spontaneous pub crawl, and I spent Sunday afternoon learning some new games (and pretending to be a giant. The mermaid option was already taken) thanks to some fellow exercise-shirking boardgame enthusiasts.  

Saturday's museum tour began at the Old Police Cells Museum, where we learned about gruesome murderesses and were allowed to try on police helmets. Our tour group reached unanimous agreement to refrain from becoming 19th Century policemen, despite the fact you could keep snacks under your hat.

I raised some questions about whether they'd considered using metal-based security systems for their cells...

And we discovered some nice fonts, a half-fancy doll's house, and PC Otter. Obviously. 

Our next stop was Preston Manor, where we discovered that there's no such thing as too many Chinese Buddist Lions...

... that the people at Doulton's really upped their game after their original footwarmer...

... and that Edwardian fire extinguishers were a damn sight fancier than ours...

... even if they did only cater to people whose hands decided to self-combust. 

Our third stop was Brighton Museum, which I wasn't that fussed about as I'd been several times before. Wasn't that fussed about, I should say, until I discovered they had AN ACTUAL REAL LIFE BATSUIT ON DISPLAY!!!!

Holy fan-girling, Batman!

Brighton Museum's also currently playing host to the Natural History Museum's Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2014 exhibition, which I was sad to have missed during a recent trip to London. I'm so, so pleased I finally got to see them, as it was, without doubt, the most astounding group of photographs I've ever seen. They practically rendered me speechless. ME. I wasn't allowed to take photos, but you can view (and buy) some of the prints on the NHM's website.

In lieu of a cheeky screenshot of my favourite photo from the exhibition, here's a picture of a super fancy dress:

I honestly cannot recommend Meetup enough; it's already given my social life a complete overhaul, and my diary is practically overflowing with fun days out. And, if you can't find a group covering your favourite hobby, you can even start your own. Anyone fancy joining my Brownie Eating and Nicolas Cage Movie Watching Club?

Katie xxx

* Except, of course, if someone should try to steal someone else's pancakes. In that case, I say stab away.

P.S. This isn't a sponsored post or anything like that- I just bloody love that website.

A rather magical weekend

Hey m'dears!

How have you been?

I felt so relaxed after my week off I was practically floating on a cartoon cloud. I did everything I'd hoped to do and so much more. I also ate an excessive number of carbohydrates, which I'm pretty sure is what people are referring to when they use the phrase "living the dream".

Me, enthusiastically slicing carbs. Hurrah!

My outing to London Zoo on Friday far exceeded my expectations (admittedly, I was mainly expecting to fall asleep in front of the monkeys). I don't know if it was the company (charming), the caffeine (delicious), or the animals (awesome) but I was still partying 23 hours after my 2am wake-up call. And by "partying" I mean "drinking pre-made mojitos in the park", because I'm all class.

Thankfully, being up that early gave me plenty of time to research hipster coffee haunts, and The Coffee Jar more than delivered in the form of totally kick-arse white chocolate and hazelnut cookies:

I spotted all kinds of weird and wonderful critters on our way round, topped off by being INCREDIBLY brave during the Spider Walk (i.e. being put in a room with a whole bunch of BLOODY MASSIVE SPIDERS who were completely free to move around and/or jump in your face, and managing not to cry). I definitely earned the ice-cream I scoffed afterwards, and I'm pretty sure shaking from fear burns calories too.

HUUUUUGE moth. These things were so vast we all thought they were fake. Nope.

The Lesser Striped Upside-Down Bird*

Couldn't spot this guy, so I assumed that he was hiding from fish school name-taunting bullies

Although, my favourite sight of the entire day had to be this:

As for last weekend, it was literally magical, because I got to attend a Harry Potter themed Hen Do. Most of the magic was organised (fantastically!) by the Hen's sister; including HP themed goody bags, surprise boxes of (gluten free) baked goods, and amazing activities- a delicious dinner, pottery painting, and drinking so many cocktails that some girls' stomachs decided to expelliarmus their contents. Does that make throwing up sound more or less gross!?

My contribution to the weekend's agenda was a Potter-themed Scavenger Hunt, taking the Hens on a tour of Worthing and creating a legitimate excuse for some Hen Do-themed hashtags. Double win.  

Each team had an illustrated list of things to find and photograph:

The pottery painting may well have been my favourite part of the weekend, and I think it's fair to say the owner of Art-Ful is my (much cooler) kindred spirit:

Batman, Lichtenstein, incredible fonts...

... AND FAKE DEER HEADS.

This was my super-sophisticated contribution; I can't wait to get this bad boy home and full of amaretto sours.

Finally, despite seeing ocarpis, glow-in-the-dark beetles, and a man who looked like Dumbledore over the weekend, the weirdest thing I spotted has to be just how freakily disproportionate my thumb is to, well, everything else in the world. How could I never have noticed that before?!?



Seriously- have you ever seen a bigger thumb (excluding foam ones at baseball games)?!

Katie xxx

* OK, OK I made that name up. I never said I was David Attenborough**.

** I wish I was David Attenborough.

Five Things Friday

Hello lovelies!

How's your week been? My holiday's been absolute bliss so far - the perfect balance of socialising, lie-ins, creativity, reading, and Nutella - and I've still got three whole days of adventure to go!

Since waking up at TWO AYE EM this morning, I've decided to make the most of being conscious at Stupid O'clock and share a few things that've made my week extra special before heading off to The Big Smoke. I've also done a lot of eBay trawling for "pretty power tools"... Seriously- why hasn't anyone designed a polkadot hammer drill yet?! HUGE market gap there....

1. Glowasaurus 
Like the majority of people who grew up in the early nineties, my childhood bedroom ceiling was enhanced with an entirely fictitious constellation of glow in the dark stars. I'd already decided that I'll be painting the inside of my new wardrobe dark blue, and adding some kind of celestial decorations. Then I found these:

My expectations have been officially surpassed. Bravo, whoever invented these. Bravo. Also - they were also only 75p for 24! Which I'm sure you'll all agree, is totally amazeballs. 

2. Dress Code: Astro-tastic 
The space-tacular background in the photo above is the pillowcase from a duvet set my (now most favourite) friend spotted in a charity shop last weekend and practically ran to show me (her loveliness really does know no bounds). In a matter of milliseconds I went from devastated (it was only a single duvet; far too small for my bed) to ecstatic, when I realised duvet covers are basically just huge pieces of fabric - and this one was in the most epic print I've ever seen. For THREE ENGLISH POUNDS. 

Cue my first ever attempt at sewing a dress from scratch, sans-pattern. I'm pretty bloody pleased with it, even if I do say so myself. And I've even worn it outside already without it falling apart and exposing my wobbly bits too - hurrah! 

I even added pockets which, as every girl knows, are the ultimate silver lining of all good dresses. Ironically, I didn't add a lining.

Apologies - I've just realised it looks a bit like I'm flashing you my dress's lady-parts. Or perhaps my mind just gets extra filthy when it's tired. Anyway... There's still enough fabric left over to make at least 3 cushions too; which means I'll be camouflaged on my future sofa, like the World's Comfiest Ninja.

2. On Point Homewares
Earlier this week I actually WOOPED when I discovered that Primark's latest homeware collection is essentially "Hipster Chic". I've been lusting after a light-up arrow for years, but every one I've found until now has cost £60+. This one was a tenner. And I got to use it to show off my New Hair.

Despite evidence to the contrary, I swear my right eye has an iris too. It's quite similar to the other one.

The best part of this photo was that a random woman saw me taking it, despite the fact I'd basically buried myself in a hedge. I felt no shame*. 

3. Assault coursing
I spent Wednesday afternoon at a Kids' Fun Day in Brighton. With a friend and her 5 year old, I hasten to add. Not on my own like some kind of Duplo-loving weirdo... Said small child absolutely thrashed me at the assault course (that kid is a beanbag throwing CHAMPION) but I was still given a bracelet thingy as a consolation prize. 

I actually snort-laughed when I put this on. I'm surprised my wrist didn't go into shock for being touched by something sports-related. 

4. Finding interiors inspiration
In two brilliant books I browsed through in Waterstones. 

And an even more fantastic throw-back I found in a charity shop, entitled "Kevin McCloud's Decorating Book". Just check out the intro page!! *swoon*

5. Getting crafty
I've had multiple opportunities to get creative this week, which has felt like food for my soul (only marginally less pretentious, as it was all done in crayons). I've also eaten a lot of awesome food; but that's for my thighs, not my soul. 

One project has to stay super-secret for now, because it's related to this weekend's plans, but I can share this Lego card I made for a friend's little brother. Because making Lego cards is what all the cool kids are doing with their Friday nights nowadays, don'tchaknow...

Right - I'm off to the Zoo. I have a sneaking suspicion I may fall asleep in front of the monkey enclosure... 

Katie xxx

*OK, I felt medium shame.