In April I...

... became older and wiser
Ok, the second part's a lie. But I AM older. Partly because of science (I'm older now than when I started writing this sentence. And older still... And even OLDER... *dashes to the mirror in search of wrinkles*) and also because I've had one of those birthday things. Like I'm the Queen or something.

Birthday card extraordinaire, courtesy of the beautiful and talented Skye

I managed to stretch this year's celebrations over three whole days: a Work Birthday, a Birthday Party Day, and my Actual Birthday. My Work Birthday included a DIY-d "birthday" balloon (from a recent awards ceremony) and a "2 and 8" badge duo, where the "2" badge was sans safety pin. Because two year olds aren't allowed safety pins... Bahaha

The rest of the celebrations involved surprise homemade cupcakes(!) smuggled into the pub, midnight tuaca shots, a drunken speech, and seriously epic presents; some made my eyes go all watery like they were made of happy puddles, others made me squeal like a piglet who'd just won a trip to Disneyland. 

What do you get the girl who has everything? A ghost, of course!

I was hastily told while unwrapping this that it was "a comedy gift"
and wasn't a hint about my wrinkly face...

... Listened to Celine Dion. Repeatedly
To the point where my phone has now started sending me prompts:

My addiction to Think Twice is getting seeeeerrrriiiioooooussss. 

... Ate a salad.
Yes. SALAD. 

Mostly to shut my phone up, after it started making pointed comments about my cake consumption to exercise ratio (all : nothing)...

... demolished 18 cheeseboards
Well, I had to do SOMETHING to counteract that salad. I've made a shiny new group of friendlings recently, and cheeseboards have become Our Thing. This has resulted in two supermarket trips organised specifically for cheese shopping, and earlier this week a few of us actually went on a cheeseboard CRAWL. It's safe to say my life has never been so brilliantly cheesy.

Just a standard TuesCheeseday...

So, what have I missed? Tell me EVERYTHING!

Katie xxx

Six Things Saturday

Hello lovelies!

How've you been? 

Please excuse the under-eye bags, which I'm pretty sure are visible from space; I've had a rather full-on few weeks. Working 10+ hour days (including weekends) and waking up with the lark for no good reason has really taken its toll. In fact, I think I've actually been waking up earlier than the lark; giving him the chance to appreciate my own version of the dawn chorus: off-key, shower-based pop music mash-ups. Needless to say, I'm BEYOND excited to have a whole nine days off work stretching ahead of me like a sun-drenched summer meadow. With a several picnic blankets covered in cream tea scattered in strategic places, of course...

It's the first proper break I've had since starting my new job last September(!), so today I'm sharing six of the things I'm looking forward to doing during my time off.

1. Reading
Despite being busier than Queen Bey of late, I've still managed to find some time for reading good books. Uprooted, a recommendation from a girlfriend, is a fantastic tale of an enchanted forest (the trees eat children...), weirdly sexy wizards, and a fair bit of magic. 

I devoured it like a child-eating tree, but still not as quickly as I wolfed down The Book of a Thousand Days; a spontaneous library selection which lasted me all of 8 hours over a single afternoon. I read it in rotation between the local park, the comfy sofa in Cafe Nero (complete with a giant hot chocolate, naturally) and the sunny pub garden of my favourite (soon to be no longer) local. 

I have to admit, as I'm tending to read in public at the moment, I've been more discerning (read: snobby) about my literary choices. I'm currently reading "The Edible Woman" by Margaret Atwood (the first of her novels that I've read), and I'm planning to work my way through some of her others this week too. That said, I was sorely tempted to take out this one from the library...

I was thinking I could pair it with more chick-lit entitled something along the lines of "Cindy Lu Gets Married", the approach lone gentlemen brandishing them both and crying... What do you think? 

2. Relaxing
After finding an amazing last minute deal last week, my holiday has kicked off in the most blissful way I could imagine; I jumped straight in the car after work yesterday, picked up a girlfriend, and headed to a spa. We've swum, sauna-d, slept tangled in whiter-than-white bedding, and consumed far too much food for dinner AND breakfast - all for the bargain price of £55. We also decided to get Stress Busting Massages this afternoon; it looks like I'm going to have to pour myself into the car to get home....

How many calories does 20 minutes of sauna-ing burn off? At least this many, right? 

3. Snuggling
I don't have to dress super smart in my job (or at least, no-one's ever said anything about my Lego jewellery...) but I'm still going to make the most of being able to throw on huge, cosy jumpers and get down to the serious business of drinking tea and watching the world go by. 

Apparently, these are called "selfies", and they are all the rage with today's yoof.

4. Adventuring
I'm off on all kinds of adventures next week, including a trip to the seaside, charity shopping, brunching, a visit to the Big Smoke (and my first time at London Zoo!) and a Hen Do. Ooh - and I'm getting a (long overdue) hair cut, where I'm hoping the trainee hairdresser will be able to give me the hair AND face of Hilary Duff for the princely sum of £15.

Hell, I might see if they can give me a matching body for an extra fiver...

Haircuts can work miracles, right?

5. Recharging
Being forced to grab food on the go has resulted in some less-than-healthy meal decisions of late. I'm feeling the need for some proper home cooking, and making sure I get my 5 a day (along with plenty of rest). Although, in my defence, there's no way I could've left this little guy behind. I mean, he was marked down to 15p literally broken hearted:

Turns out broken hearts are surprisingly delicious. And taste like strawberries. 

6. Planning
Things seem to be (thankfully!) progressing well with my whole finally-having-somewhere-to-live thing, but aren't quite there yet. I'm planning to spend any free time I have left camped out in my solicitor's office, alternating between adding pretty pictures to my New House Pinterest Board and asking "Are we nearly there yet?" more often than children on their way to Disneyland. 

What have you been up to recently?

Love Katie xxx

Fish Facts and Italian Figs

Hello lovelies! 

Oops. It's been a while again, hasn't it? If it helps, I've learned a helluva lot in these past few weeks, and I'm going to share some of it with you now; so settle yo' pretty self down to learn some wisdoms... 

Discovery number 1 was that, apparently, my non-competitive approach to most boardgames (I'm one of those annoying people who genuinely thinks it's the "just taking part" that counts) does NOT apply to Jungle Speed. Essentially, Jungle Speed is a more hardcore, multi-player version of Snap. There might have been an accidental hand-gouging incident and/or a moment when I nearly wrestled a fellow Jungle Speed-er onto the pub floor whilst grappling over the Jungle Speed stick (which looks rather disconcertingly like something you'd find in Anne Summers). It was possibly not my classiest hour, but I like to think the fact that the game is French (the root of all class) gave me a marginal touch of sophistication. Ahem.

[image source]

Secondly, I discovered that (apparently!) some fish like PARSNIPS; something I heard on a recent behind-the-scenes tour of Brighton Sealife Centre, along with a myriad of other aquatic facts. Other gems included the fact that octopuseseses can squeeze their entire body through a hole the size of their beak. Yes - beak. Admittedly, I already knew the beak part, but the idea of a motorbike-sized octopod wriggling through a hole the diameter of a Smarties tube seems rather creepily surreal. 

Say whaaaat?!

I have no idea why I chose those two metaphors, by the way; clearly I have subliminal, repressed urges to join a biker gang with it's own tuck shop. Ok, they're not that repressed. 

Thirdly, thanks to this summer's genius Lego/Sealife Centre collaboration, I can confirm I (somewhat shamefully) adore Girl Lego. I want to stress very strongly here that I am NOT OK with "made for girls" Lego; the idea of girls only being able to Lego Up when it comes in a Barbie-approved colour pallet is equal parts offensive, outdated and ridiculous. But I have to admit, the pink and purple bricks did make constructing a Lego jellyfish much easier; an opinion endorsed by my male Lego playmates. Ha.

I didn't photograph my jellyfish, so here's another fun fact

Number four is a different kind of discovery, and I would be very grateful if you could please all cross, double-cross and triple-cross your fingers (like Heston's triple-cooked chips, but less crispy) for me, because I think I've finally found somewhere to live that is not my parents' futon. I am incredibly grateful to them for the on-going use of said futon, but that hasn't stopped me planning my return to mattress-based solo living (which sounds much filthier than I intended). I intend to stay in bed for AT LEAST two weeks solid. You might need to post me snacks. 

The hot chocolate I bought to celebrate finding a flat.

And the ADORABLE cream tea I had for breakfast the next day. WHAT? I was still celebrating!!

Finally, given the current state of my futon-dwelling back, my general love for all things nice-smelling, and the fact that The Body Shop's coconut perfume is my "Signature Scent", I was excited x 3,000 when I received an invite to The Body Shop's summer range launch at Brighton Marina(!) Although, come to think of it, aside from anosmics, I guess everyone loves nice-smelling things?! Please do let me know if you're the kind of person who would reject a Hot Cross Bun scented candle in favour of Eau Du Unwashed Rugby Socks. 

Baskets of chips = the perfect seaside snack

Apologies; I digress. Post RSVP'ing (accompanying by girlish shrieking), I took Skye on a mini road trip along the seafront (complete with Taylor Swift car-eoke, of course!) to meet the team and hear all about turning my bathroom into a SPATHROOM. GENIUS. The Body Shop girls gave us a whistle-stop tour of the scrummy new products and some of the classics (the Body Shop's equivalent of a little black dress and a Breton top) in their newly branded Beauty Gems range (basically the in-store equivalent of a hot tip from your best friend).

I swear to God, this moisturiser is the best thing I have ever smelled. I wanted to spread it on toast.

We were then treated to a skin consultation session, during which Skye was told that her self-selected skincare products are perfect for her skin, and I apologised profusely for my skincare "routine" of scrubbing my face in the shower and the fact that my chin was covered in flaky pastry after I'd inelegantly devouring this whilst the consultant was talking to Skye: 

After physically forcing myself to put the Kukui moisturiser down, I spritzed on a squirt of their new Indian Jasmine perfume, which was delicious. I then subsequently discovered that I preferred the even more delicious Italian Summer Fig one, and found myself suffering from Spritzer's Remorse (aka a Serious First World Problem). Thankfully, the Body Shop saved the day like a perfectly-exfoliated, animal-cruelty free superhero by putting bottles of the Fig perfume in the goody bags! 

In summary- puns, chips, bubbles and smelly things?! What is NOT to love? OOH - and tiny pots of Eton Mess (I can't believe I almost forgot those!) 

Have you discovered any fun fish facts recently? 

Wishing you all a magical weekend full of adventures; like a grown-up version of an Enid Blyton novel- sponsored by red wine and brunch.

Katie xxx

Six Things Sunday

Hey m'dears!

Happy Sunday! Hope you're having a brilliant day and spoiling all the fathers in your life. Unfortunately, my Dad refuses to acknowledge Fathers' Day; so I'm considering sending my card to the North Pole instead to try and sweeten up Santa before next Christmas. Genius, no?

Aside from penning potential missives to the Arctic, here are six other things I've been up to this week:

1. Channelling The Proclaimers
I didn't quite get to 10,000 miles, but I did manage to chalk up over TEN miles this morning across the South Downs. Which would probably have sounded more impressive if I hadn't mentioned 10,000 miles first, huh?

I left at the crack of dawn (well, 9.15; which is the crack of dawn on a Sunday) and spent three hours wandering up hill, down dale, and err... through fields of cows.

The scenery wasn't bad either...

Even washing is more picturesque in the countryside

2. Glamorous Lunch Dates
Sometimes you just can't beat a solo lunch date with a magazine and excessive amounts of carbohydrates.

My lunch date with Kate Hudson

3. Discovering my Soul Sista
I spontaneously picked up Hadley Freedman's book "Be Awesome: Modern Life for Modern Ladies" at the library last weekend and hungrily devoured it in less than two days. I had an "OMG! What if we're BRAIN TWINS?!" moment the minute I saw she'd referenced The Princess Bride in the opening paragraph. Later references to Bill and Ted and her identical hatred of Andie MacDowell (see: Four Weddings and a Funeral) confirmed my suspicions. 

I've now accepted the fact there's no point in me ever trying to write a book, because it would essentially be this one; just not as well written. Bravo, Hadley. 

4. Staring at steers
I spotted this guy early on this morning's jaunt and was very impressed by his trompe l'oile-ness:

Then I almost (literally) bumped into this guy who, you'll have to admit, is even more impressive:

Please excuse AWFUL photo quality. Just pretend it's a watercolour painting.

5. Feeling all feminist
Yesterday morning I was feeling rather blue, but this was solved the minute I found a bargain box set of Gilmore Girls Season 2 (the very reason I went into that shop, no less!) and marathoned the first 4 episodes. You can't beat a bit of linguistically-gymnastic sass.

6. Petitioning
For the management at Poundland to take their hard-working staff to Longleat (and not just because it's awesome):

What have you been up to this week?

I'm linking up to gorgeous Hannah's The Week That Was Captured #TWTWC

Katie xxx

Three Things Thursday

Hello lovelies!

Happy Friday Eve!

In traditional Thursday style (on those Thursdays when I have anything interesting to tell you, anyway) here's a list of three things currently floating my pedalo:

1. Endorphins
Don't panic, people; this blog isn't about to become a health and fitness focused stream of kale-based smoothies and fitbit reviews (those Thinspiration Pinterest quotes can continue to bite me). I have, however, exercised twice this week in a bid to escape my cartoon storm cloud. I think my thighs have gone into shock.

On Saturday I went for a full-pelt run, spurred on by a combination of power ballads and the fact that my leggings kept falling down- I basically had to keep running to spare poor unwitting pedestrians a flash of unnecessary flesh. Today I was overcome with an urge to go swimming. God knows why, as it's basically bathing with a bunch of strangers, but I persevered (despite feeling cold and wanting to get out after 5 minutes) and swam until I turned pruney. A fact I'm using to justify a dinner involving cheese, triple carbs, mayonnaise, and another one of these cheesecakes... Oops.

At least I got to wear my tropical bikini,
which almost made swimming enjoyable.

2. Libraries
Can we all please take a moment to appreciate how lucky we are that libraries (still) exist? I know I already said this in January, but access to unlimited free books is a truly magical thing, and something that I hope we can all continue to cherish for a long time to come. God knows, if I'd had to actually buy every book that I've ever read I'd've been forced to sell all of my organs on the black market by the time I was seven.

3. Aubergines A-go-go
I've actually saved the best 'til last today (or I certainly think so). I've always loved aubergines, but re-he-hearly can't be bothered with the whole slice-salt-bake palava to prep them. Then I made an AMAZING discovery, which has genuinely improved the rest of my life. And yours, unless you're one of those weirdos who doesn't like aubergine (/eggplant, to you non-Brits). Are you ready? Here we go:

AUBERGINES CAN BE COOKED IN THE MICROWAVE LIKE JACKET POTATOES!!!

I told you it was life-changing. 

I baked the one above (model's own- just seen) in only seven minutes by stabbing it all over then microwaving it on the "jacket potato" setting. Then I filled it with leftover pasta sauce, some of these arancini, a handful of rocket and a dollop of coleslaw. Aside from the last one (a wild card addition, because it needed using up) it basically tasted like a slaved-over veggie moussaka. In seven minutes. 

What have you discovered recently that's as good as Seven Minute Moussaka*?

Katie xxx

*Trick question; nothing is. 

Freebie Friday

Happy Friday!

Have you got nice plans for the weekend?

Mine's started pretty darn well with another session of free shopping, this time thanks to L'Oreal Paris who sent me £15 of vouchers to apologise for my recent hair dye disaster. Lady Luck was clearly on my side because Superdrug is currently running a multitude of discount offers on L'Oreal products :) 

Now, as most of you will know, aside from a good face scrub I don't give two hoots about skincare so, to ensure I only chose products I'd actually use, I opted for all the orange ones...

Ok, the orange part was just a coincidence; but I do like that they're all matchy-matchy. I chose the face scrubs because they were two-for-£5 (with an RRP of £4.49) and they smell like marmalade. I'm hoping the Age Perfect Serum (which was half price) will make me 22 again. Or at least stop my skin drying out this winter. I had to buy the shampoo because the voucher wouldn't work until I spent £15 (instead of £14.99- grrr!), and it was the cheapest product I could find. I reckon the rest is a pretty good haul seeing as it was free!

I had another stroke of luck a few weeks ago with my new yellow trunks. They were delivered while I was at work, so I was rather surprised when another box arrived later that evening containing two more! I left it unopened while I considered the moral dilemma of whether to return them. It was only after I discovered that the first set were actually both dented that I decided to open the second box, and found out one of those was dented too. So I've decided to count the second set as the replacements I would've requested for the dented ones anyway. 

This means I've got two in the dining room, and two in the bedroom (where I originally intended them to go) storing my summer clothes to make more room in the wardrobe.  

Our bedroom isn't actually a watercolour painting, by the way- it was just really dark in there due to The Storm*, so I decided to play with the filters on my phone camera and mess it up properly. 

Katie xxx

* I'm assuming it's a storm, but it might be God's wrath because I decided to keep the second set of trunks... 

P.S. Sorry to anyone who assumed from the title that this going to be free things for you! Although I have got a giveaway on the go at the moment...

Shire Hotel and Spa Review

Hello lovelies!

How are you? 

Today I'm going to tell you guys more about the spa break I mentioned on Sunday. Before I start gushing about how gosh darn relaxing it was, I want to say this isn't a paid/requested review- I just had an awesome time and wanted to share it with y'all! 

Last weekend my two oldest girlfriends and I went on a road-trip to the Solent Hotel and Spa in Hampshire, for a well-deserved hen do/mini break with their Girls' Night Out package. Before we arrived, my inner cynic was expecting the offer to turn out to be a scam. It seemed far too good to be true, so I prepared myself for being told something like "Yes, the offer included use of the facilities, but only between 2 and 4am". How wrong I was!

The break surpassed our wildest dreams, and we spent the whole time feeling like PRINCESSES. In my case, a very, very drunk Princess. Unfortunately, due to leaving my phone in our room all weekend to escape technology, I didn't take any photos; so I've pinched the ones below from the bride-to-be (thanks, Lu!) 

We were treated to free drinks while our suite (fancy, eh?) was set up, and settled ourselves very happily in the plush lounge area which vaguely resembled an Italian castle, with an added all-glass wine storage room lit with pink neon, like the world's booziest disco. In our suite we found goodies bags filled with treats including face masks, nail polish, and bags of Malteasers, along with pairs of slippers and freshly-laundered dressing gowns that were so fluffy they felt like being hugged by a bunny. 

We spent the afternoon turning ourselves into smiley, clean-pored prunes thanks to the pool, jacuzzi, sauna, and steam room, before settling down on the seriously comfortable loungers in the Treatment Centre with big mugs of delicious (and complimentary!) fruit tea. 

When booking the hotel, we'd opted to pay another £30 between us for one hour's use of a private outdoor hot tub, which we all agreed afterwards was an excellent decision. The hot tub overlooks a miniature meadow of wild flowers, and we made the most of the privacy by giggling to our hearts' content; fuelled by free flutes of orange juice, which transformed into several cheeky glasses of Bucks Fizz after we discovered my co-bridesmaid had sneakily ordered a bottle of Prosecco!

After getting dressed up for dinner, we headed down to the reception desk to choose which DVDs to borrow for later that night (also included in the deal). The incredibly sweet receptionist helped us to narrow down our choices, and even told us the top-secret information that they'd recently procured a copy of Frozen, which was yet to be added to the list. She also gave us the cocktail list so we could choose our pre-dinner cocktails. Naturally, we'd assumed that the inclusive pre-dinner cocktail would be one glass each. Fair to say our jaws dropped when we saw the waiter approaching our table with these:

If you look very closely at my eyes, you can see the fear

Given that I was already rather merry totally smashed from the prosecco in the hot tub, being presented with a whole jug of spiced apple cocktail to myself was terrifying! I only managed one glass but it was utterly incredible, due to the awesome combination of apple juice, elderflower cordial, and spiced rum. And then, when I was already expecting my liver to pack its bags and run at any moment, we were approached by the sommelier to take our orders for the half bottle of wine we were owed. EACH. 

Thankfully, we also had £35 each to spend on anything we wanted from the menu. With mains coming in at around £15, and starters/desserts at £5-8, we had more than enough credit for sufficient carbs to counteract all the booze. And my fellow hens had main courses of HALF-LOBSTERS(!), so it's not exactly MacDonald's. I opted for some handmade veggie tortellini, followed by a mushroom and goats' cheese burger which turned out to be the size of my face:

Once we'd eaten so much we thought we might burst, the restaurant staff took our dessert order to be brought up to our room later on. This meant that, by 9.30pm, we were in our pyjamas and working our way through 1/3 of each of these while watching 27 Dresses:

Sticky Toffee Pudding, Raspberry and White Chocolate Crème brûlée, and Salted Chocolate Caramel Tart with Chocolate Sorbet. It was all as disgusting as it sounds...

After an amazing night's sleep, possibly thanks to all the wine, we spent a lazy morning sprawled on our beds and chatting before heading down for a huge, hangover-fighting, two-course breakfast, and setting off home. 

Sorry for waffling on so much, but I honestly can't recommend this deal enough. At £117 each it's not exactly cheap, but for the amount of goodies and food/drink you get, it's an absolute BARGAIN. Oh, and you also get a £20 voucher to spend on ESPA products online, with no "minimal spend" nonsense :)

Have you ever been on a spa break? Would you recommend it? 

Katie xxx

My TLC: All The Scrubs

I'm sure I don't need to tell you why this will never become a beauty blog, but here's a reminder (just in case): 
1. I don't wear make-up. 
2. My "skincare routine" involves drinking lots of water, getting plenty of sleep, and slapping a bit of Nivea moisturiser on my face if I begin resembling a Marvel Supervillain (Snakeskin Girl). 

That said, I still like to feel comfortable with my appearance, and clear skin certainly helps me feel assured that people are talking directly to me, rather than addressing the Mega Spot on my chin. 

After testing out every low-to-mid-range "spot-fighting" product available during my teens, I found the answer to my skin's requirements is a good face scrub. So when Lush contacted me in May about their vegan skincare range, I jumped at the chance to try a something a little different on my skin. 

I opted for the Herbalism cleanser*, for the following reasons:

1. It's designed for sensitive skin, and my skin often decides to become more sensitive than a soufflé.

2. My main bugbear about other scrubs I've used is the inclusion of artificial "beads" to cause abrasion. They often hide themselves in my eyebrows and don't emerge until mid-morning; when I'll suddenly find several bits of plastic decorating my face. The 11 ingredients in this are all natural, no plastic. 

3. The ingredients include rosemary - one of my favourite scents. I'm not going to lie; I was really hoping this product would make me smell like a Sunday Roast (i.e. amazing). Sadly, this turned out not to be the case.

Due to my uncertainty as to how the cleanser would act when exposed to water, and whether it would foam up/crumble/wash away in the shower before I could apply it, for my initial test I used a blueberry-sized lump. I was pleasantly surprised to run out of face before I ran out of product, and reduced the amount I scooped out for future uses; because it seemed easier than increasing the size of my face.

The smell isn't nearly as delectable as some of Lush's other products, but the texture is good and feels mildly abrasive - even without the addition of weird plastic beads. To be honest, it's still not quite scrubby enough for me; but perhaps that's just as well- given that I basically want a tub full of coconut-scented gravel.

I've been using my 100g tub (worth £6.40) every day for around six weeks and I've still got half of it left; which is pretty impressive given that most other scrubs I've used (which cost me c£4 each) tend to last about a month. 

I've also been really pleased with the results because, although my skin hasn't drastically improved overall, (prepare yourselves for too much information here, people) my usual PMT-accompanying breakout has been notably absent, twice. 

I'm certainly going to be investing in another tub when this one runs out. 

What products have you found work best for your skin? I'd love to hear. 

Katie xxx

*I was sent this product to review, but all opinions and (continuing) wishes for roast potato-scented face scrub are very much my own. 

Recently I've been...

Wearing
Pyjamas, 24/7. Due to being all poorly and sofa-bound, I haven't been bothering to get dressed (don't worry- I've still been showering). When I left the house yesterday to go to the supermarket it actually felt weird to be wearing shoes. 

Reading
Angeli - The Pirate, the Angel & the Irishman by Amy Vansant. Amy kindly sent me a copy to review, and it was exactly the sort of story I needed to distract me from my aches and pains. Fast-paced, funny and engaging, with a totally kick-ass heroine and a few sexy scenes. Ooh, and to make it especially awesome - I helped design part of the cover. 

Image pinched from Amy

Eating
Too many carbs. Feeling constantly nauseous meant I spent almost a week eating nothing but plain jacket potatoes, pasta, and porridge because they were the blandest food I could find. By day 5 I was able to stomach small quantities of some fruits and vegetables, but the combination of carb overload and lying down all day has definitely caught up with me. So much for making my bum vanish!

Appreciating
Excellent puns in the Mod Cloth sale, and the name of this perfume brand from Anthropologie:

Apparently it smells like rose gardens, high teas, and happy accidents

Feeling
Unbelievably grateful and so, so lucky to have Tom in my life. He's been amazing at looking after me, like a bearded Florence Nightingale, alongside keeping the house in order, picking up my prescriptions and cooking me the world's blandest food (on purpose!). 

Baking
Peanut butter cookies. Once my appetite returned I was far too excited about being able to eat sweet things again. I haven't made these before and they ended up looking slightly different to how they should look...

They taste ruddy delicious though; like caramel-covered Crunchy Nut Cornflakes. 

Watching
Everything on Netflix. I raced through Season 2 of Orange is the New Black, and have now started watching Damages; a legal drama starring Glenn Close and Ted Danson, where everyone is basically a liar. I also watched two really funny movies; Killers, in which Catherine O'Hara totally steals the show as the alcoholic mother, and Running Scared, which confirmed my suspicions that Billy Crystal is the king of comic timing. I would heartily recommend all of the above.

Commenting
On a helluva lot of blog posts. Yet my unread Bloglovin feed is still at almost 300! 

Crafting
A few things for the kitchen, including jazzing up our resident whiteboard (which we use to record the contents of the freezer) by covering the edges in washi tape:

Close-up of the gorgeous woodland washi tape

I'm going to share the second project later this week.

Pinning
Pretty kitchen inspiration. Even though I'm hoping to one day replace our galley kitchen with a gorgeous country-style extension, I've decided to give our current kitchen a facelift. I'm pathetically excited about choosing a colour scheme and shopping for replacement door handles!

Disbelieving
How expensive it is to use a payphone nowadays. When I was in the Scouts we had to carry 10p in a handkerchief for an emergency phone call. 

Sixty freaking pence?!

I can only assume that BT eventually opted for a 60p charge because of the costs associated with enlarging coin slots until they can fit a human kidney. 

Cleaning
The house from top to bottom, in anticipation of playing catch- up at work this week. I know the last thing I'll want to do when I get home is vacuum, unless it's vacuuming up at glass of wine. 

I'm linking up to Hannah's weekly round-up, The Week That Was: Captured.

What have you been up to recently? 

Katie xxx