Beautifully decorated for Christmas with twinkling fairy lights, homemade decorations and cosy corners for curling up in, this barn is exactly where I’d like to be right now. Take a peek inside this warm & welcoming renovation to inspire your festive decor…
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With Latitude festival on the horizon, I’ve been following the festival’s social accounts to get the scoop on the latest performers to be added to the already-amazing line-up. Here are my pick of the newest artist additions and my tips for what not to miss at this year’s festival…
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If you’re planning to have a real Christmas tree in your home this year, why not choose the eco-friendly and sustainable option of buying local? I took a tour of a Suffolk tree plantation on Friday so here’s why you should consider getting your festive tree from a local producer…
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First impressions of the HighTide festival, poetry review and my suggestions of what-not-to-miss if you’re in Aldeburgh this week…
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Well, I’m back home from Latitude festival and have taken a day off to rest after a weekend of non-stop performances and fun in the sun. Today I’m sharing my photos and a review of the best bits of this year’s festival so read on to find out what went well…
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Now that summer is here, Suffolk is the perfect place to be for family fun and entertainment. It’s not just a sunny county with a gorgeous coastline, it’s also a hub of exciting events and days out for all the family. Today I’m sharing four fantastic festivals (to suit all budgets) that you really shouldn’t miss…
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I’m so excited to share my latest feature with you today – I’ve been interviewed for The Suffolk Resident magazine’s ‘Final Word’ column and I’m really chuffed! Here’s the feature in full…
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Today I wanted to bring you some impressive photos of little-known East Anglian gardens. As a novice gardener (an someone who has no idea what to do with their empty plot) I’ve been flicking through lots of gardening books recently. I was thoroughly inspired by the newly released ‘Secret Gardens of East Anglia’ book so […]
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Hi guys, I’m back in my home office today after a thrilling weekend at Latitude Festival here in Suffolk and, now that I’ve finally got back into the swing of everyday life, I figured that now would be a good time to share my photos of the event with you. It was a jam-packed weekend […]
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After a whole year of waiting, over 4 months since the line-up was announced, and two months since my last blog post about the acts I’m hoping to see, Latitude festival is now only 8 days away. As soon as July arrives, the countdown starts and I become more and more excited as the days […]
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Latitude Festival. What can I say about it really? If you’ve not already been to this festival on the Suffolk coast, you don’t know what you’re missing. It’s got to be the most chilled out festival in the country. It’s great for kids, teens and adults. It actually looks magical, and is especially atmospheric at dusk. With music, theatre, […]
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Oooh I have some exciting news – over the Easter holidays my interview with WhatHouse? was published and I’m so pleased to be able to share it with you today. Here’s the link to the article if you fancy having a read: it’s a design Q&A all about thrifty interiors so I thought you might like to […]
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I’m SO excited to tell you the wonderful news that my thrifty little lifestyle blog has just been announced as the winner of the Best Homes and Interiors Blogger Award 2017!! I still can’t really believe it and I’m grinning like the cheshire cat right now!The news has just been shared by the award sponsor […]
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Have you ever taken a photo and thought to yourself, ”I wish I could print this out lifesize”? That’s exactly what I thought when my husband took an amazing shot of the sea last week. Well, I suppose my thought does have something to do with the fact that I’m currently decorating my bedroom and […]
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When was the last time that you went offline? For me, it’s probably been years. Ever since I got my first smart phone I’ve not had a day away from the internet. Well, when you’re carrying a computer in your pocket at all times, and your job is based online, and your friends contact you via […]
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This time last week I was preparing to attend the launch of Christmas at Blackthorpe Barn in Suffolk. It was my first Suffolk-based event as a blogger (not much seems to go on around here!) so you can imagine how chuffed I was to be invited to a blogger event that didn’t require travelling to London! […]
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Blazing red sunsets, rainbow skies, dark silhouettes and pastel hues. All of these beautiful elements combine to make one of the most stunning features of the evening sky – the sunset. If you’ve never watched the sun setting over rolling countryside, perhaps this summer is the time to do it. It’s a really special moment when you […]
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Just wanted to share a quick blog post today with some of the photos I took at this year’s Latitude Festival. Some of my personal highlights included watching a breath-taking performance by festival novice Jane Horrocks in the Film & Music arena, and sitting in on the Standard Issue Magazine discussion in the Literature tent, […]
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If you’re keen to get out and enjoy the sunshine this summer, I’ve come up with a list of days out and fabulous events that you can enjoy in Suffolk. It’s a great county to visit (with plenty of gorgeous places to stay!) and it doesn’t get too busy on the roads during the summer […]
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It’s half-term this week and we’ve been enjoying a few days off, sorting out all the things that you never usually get round to during a normal working week. But it’s not all been hard work; My husband and I decided to have a relaxing day out earlier this week and visit a local attraction […]
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I can’t believe it, we’re nearly at the school half-term holidays again! Where did the last 7 weeks go? If you’ve got children of school age you probably base your life around the academic calendar too and are looking forward to, or dreading (!), the impending half-term break. I thought I’d share with you a […]
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Latitude. What a festival. What a wonderful weekend. It was magical, hilarious, nostalgic and happy. And that’s just my experience of the event. I’d love to tell you all about it today and share some of my photos so that you can get an idea of the fun weekend we enjoyed at Suffolk’s biggest arts […]
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This week I took a trip to the Suffolk coast to enjoy a day of traditional seaside fun and, more importantly, to hunt out Southwold Pier. This hidden gem is a classic seaside attraction and I really can’t think of anywhere better to spend the day when the weather is as glorious as it has […]
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This week I have been out and about in the Suffolk countryside getting inspiration for my own garden and veggie patch, and where better to start than at Jimmy’s Farm just outside Ipswich. Hubby and I took a stroll around the farm on a sunny day and I took a few snaps as a visual […]
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I recently visited a sculpture that I’ve never see before. That’s not to say that I’ve never been to the location before – I have been to Snape Maltings many times (only last month : see my blog post on the Henry Moore sculpture here) – and that’s not to say that it’s a new addition […]
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Over last weekend I went to the celebration event for the The Never Ending Mural project in Ipswich. This was a community-led project inspired by the Ipswich Art School Fundraising Appeal and brought to life by artist and curator John D Edwards (pictured below). The project began on Ipswich Waterfront in June 2011 with the help […]
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Check out this cute apron that I recently spotted in the gift shop on Southwold pier. It’s a sexy, hour-glass shaped ladies apron, and it’s pretty much the sort of dress I’d love to buy – in fact, if I had two of them I think I’d wear it as a dress! It’d be great […]
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This weekend I went to the Ipswich Maritime festival and spent a scorchingly hot day wandering around the docks doing a spot of shopping, eating lovely treats and enjoying fantastic entertainment. There were morris dancers, soul singers and sea-faring fiddlers, alongside characters in traditional Victorian dress: a little like ghosts wandering through the crowds, slightly scary but very […]
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A stunning photograph taken this summer by Alex Clarke with a Cannon EOS 550D – great composition and amazing colours – enjoy!
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This past weekend I took a trip to Southwold and luckily enough I stumbled upon a lovely vintage fair that was being held along the seafront, near the pier. It was so quaint to see beach huts opened up as vintage stalls, alongside traditional retro market stalls and even a fire engine! I […]
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Yesterday the Olympic torch passed through Suffolk so I went to our local town to see it go by. Although I’m always keen to join in local events (such as the Diamond Jubilee, see my pics here) I wasn’t quite prepared for just how exciting it would be to see the Olympic torch pass by! […]
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Its less than two weeks to go until this year’s Latitude Festival, which is technically my ‘local’ festival, being held just up-the-road at Henham Park, near Southwold in Suffolk. I’ve been a Latitude festival fan since I first went in 2008 and it’s grown considerably over the years – probably due to its family-friendly-ness and its always being […]
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Last weekend we attended the Alive & V-Dubbin festival hosted by VW enthusiast group Suffolk Bugrs at Jimmy’s Farm in Suffolk. We visited the festival on the final day, with the specific intention to view the main focus of the event; the show ‘n’ shine competition. We love seeing the best (and the worst if you’re […]
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This photo of the House in the Clouds in Thorpeness sums up this week’s WordPress photo challenge theme of “wonder”. The house was designed for Mrs Malcolm Mason, a close friend of the village owner’s. He later called her his “lady of the stairs and starlight”. She was a writer of children’s books, which probably explains the […]
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On Tuesday 30th August I was fortunate enough to see comedy rock star Tim Minchin‘s performance at Snape Maltings Concert Hall as part of their August prom celebrations. I say ‘fortunate’ for two reasons; firstly because the performance was amazing and will go down in history at Snape; and secondly because, as is the case with the […]
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Today I visited Alive and V-Dubbin Volkswagen festival at the Mid-Suffolk Showground and after browsing the gorgeous shops, munching on some yummy fish & chips and watching a few awesome unsigned bands, I visited the Show & Shine event and could not believe my luck when I spotted a true fairymobile – a VW campervan […]
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As the summer festival season approaches I’d like to share an article with you that I read last year. Kate Sampson of She magazine writes about her experience of festivals in the June 2010 issue, in particular Latitude festival in Suffolk, which I have attended a number of times; “Around us were children […]
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