Today sees the first of a new series on the blog, a ‘This Month, I Have Been…’ post which will basically be a little monthly round up of all the things I’ve been doing, loving, checking out in a month. I know a lot of blog do round up’s and especially blogs like mine that cover a lot of genres but I thought it would be a good way to look back and look forward and chat about some things I may not have had chance to over the month. I should have really started this in January but I only had the idea to do these this month after folders of photos and things to blog about stocked up, so this month and first post has a little bit of January in it too. I’ll be posting these on the last Sunday of every month and I hope you enjoy these posts.
Listening to: Tracey Browne and Raevennan Husbandes’ brilliant single Coming Home, rediscovering my love [which never really went away] for Friendly Fires and one of my favourite tracks of their’s ‘Kiss Of Life’, checking out some new music in the form of Lux Lisbon which will be featured on here next month. As well as my current favourite albums – Lorde, You Me At Six, Canterbury & Haim.
So here is this month’s playlist full of songs I’ve been listening to this month and some of the artists from the Brits whether winners or losers on the night they are some of the ones I love and was routing for.
Watching: Avengers Assemble, Game of Thrones – Season 2, House of Fools, Charlie Brooker’s Weekly Wipe.
Reading: Parade’s End by Ford Madox Ford, NME’s 1994 special, Company Magazine – Feb and March issues, really brilliant interview with photographer Jesse Frohman who photographed Kurt Cobain back in 1993 creating some of the most iconic images of him.
Baking/Cooking: remaking some favourites and trying some new recipes, I also found a ton of vegan recipes this month that I’m going to be trying out soon so expect plenty more photos and writing on that, if it turns out well of course.
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Quorn Chicken and Mushroom Pie plus the first chance to use the pie dish and pastry cutters my friend bought me for Christmas.
My first attempt at Ginger Biscuits which went much better than expected.
Chocolate and Victoria Cupcakes for Mum’s Birthday. I also got the first chance to use my new cake stand that my mum bought me for Christmas.
I think it’s safe to assume that my friends and family know that I’m massively into baking and cooking at as many opportunities as possible.
Booking: A week away to Paris! I’m going there with my mum for my birthday in April. After a tough few months we both decided we needed a break and my birthday seemed like the perfect time to go away. We’ve both been to Paris before but not together and neither of us have really seen more than the usual Eiffel Tower, Sacre Coeur etc. So this time though we’ll be revisiting them, I’m planning on visiting different parts of the city, visiting museums, finding some little boutiques and vintage stores, sourcing out different places to eat and experiencing French culture as much as possible. It’s nice to see the touristy stuff but it’s better to discover a city for yourself and really get a feel for it away from the tourists that congregate around iconic structures [something I’m insanely guilty of]. Company’s Paris issue in February has no doubt given me plenty of inspiration of where to visit but if you have any other recommendations – food, culture, shopping – then definitely let me know.
Buying: H&M – Jumper & Cardigan, 2 Boots Hauls, Primark sale pieces – £3 Dress & £5 Disco Pants, lots of books – American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult, The Shock of the Fall by Nathan Filer & Long Way Down by Nick Hornby, Game of Thrones Season 1 and 2 boxset.
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Loving:
Soap and Glory Scrubs – they are absolutely brilliant, smell divine and leave me skin so clean and soft.
Avon Super Extend Mascara – I’ve never tried an Avon mascara before and was pleasantly surprised by how good this is, it does extend my eyelashes, they don’t give you clumpy lashes and it’s very affordable.
Simple Illuminating Radiance Cream – an absolute lifesaver for my dull skin especially in the winter as it really does brighten my skin up and make it look a hell of a lot better especially on no make up days.
Great links: ‘Some thoughts and musings about making things for the web’ cartoon via Oatmeal
21 Things That Happen When You Don’t Eat Meat aka my life on an internet page via Buzzfeed
29 Problems Only Writers Will Understand via Buzzfeed – again a lot of this is my life particularly checking Tumblr which is my main reason why I’m not half as productive as I could be.
Finally, me and the blog have been featured in the latest issue of Love Music Magazine which is pretty amazing! Check out the feature below and definitely go and read the magazine online. It’s a brilliant issue full of some amazing new acts that you all need to know about and check out the other music bloggers on the list too.
Mixtape Couture 