Wednesday 9 December 2015

Hoping For Snow

Oh I do hope we have a White Christmas, but unfortunately I fear we won't. So for now Pinterest will have to quench my thirst for Snow. 

Tuesday 8 December 2015

45 Blogmas Post Ideas


  1. Gift Guides for Her
  2. Gift Guide for Him
  3. Christmas Traditions
  4. DIY Christmas Gifts
  5. Top 5 Christmas films
  6. Top 5 Christmas Songs
  7. Favourite Christmas Books
  8. Make a Gingerbread House
  9. Write a letter to Santa as an Adult or Find the ones you wrote as a Kid
  10. How you like to relax at Christmas
  11. Favourite Christmas Memory
  12. Share a Festive Recipe
  13. Your Christmas Wish list
  14. A Look at your Christmas Decorations
  15. Christmas Events in your Town  
  16. Christmas Decor Inspiration
  17. Local Christmas Market
  18. Stocking Fillers for under £10
  19. Festive Make-up
  20. Christmas Jumpers
  21. Christmas Tree Reveal
  22. Where to Shop online this Christmas
  23. A Reflection on the Year
  24. DIY Christmas Cards
  25. Christmas Decoration Wish list
  26. Host a Christmas Giveaway
  27. Christmas Memories
  28. Christmas Tag
  29. Give you’re room a Festive makeover on a Budget
  30. You’re Christmas Essentials
  31. Candle Collection
  32. Christmas Goals
  33. Photo Diary
  34. Favourite Blogmas Posts by Other Bloggers
  35. DIY Decorations
  36. Go on a Winter Walk and Photograph all the Christmas Lights
  37. Favourite Things to do at Christmas
  38. Gift Wrap Ideas
  39. Winter Skincare Routine
  40. Favourite Festive Drinks
  41. Christmas Party Games
  42. Last Minute Gift Ideas
  43. How you found out about Santa
  44. Secret Santa Gift Guide
  45. Blogmas Post Ideas 

Monday 7 December 2015

My Top 10 Christmas Songs


What would Christmas be like without Christmas music? How could you do anything even remotely festive without boppin' along to a festive tune and I am not ashamed to admit I have been boppin' along to festive tunes since the beginning of November. So here are my top 10 Christmas Songs. 

  1. Judy Garland – Have Yourself  a Merry Little Christmas
  2. The Pouges - Fairytale of New York
  3. Chris DeBurgh - A Spaceman Came Travelling 
  4. Bing Crosby - White Christmas
  5. Shakin' Stevens - Merry Christmas Everyone 
  6. Jona Lewie - Stop the Calvary 
  7. Greg Lake - I believe in Father Christmas 
  8. Wizzard - I Wish it Could Be Christmas Everyday 
  9. Slade - Merry Christmas 
  10. Bing Crosby - Winter Wonderland


Sunday 6 December 2015

Simple Cinnamon Christmas Cookies

INGREDIENTS: 300g of Plain Flour, 300g of Self Raising Flour, 200g of Sugar, 4 Teaspoons of Cinnamon, 250g of Butter, Optional Orange Zest, 2 Large Free Range Eggs.

Saturday 5 December 2015

Christmas Gift Wrapping Inspiration


Wrapping presents is one of my favourite things about Christmas,  mostly due to the fact I can spend hours upon hours scrolling through pinterest for inspiration and still feel like I am doing something productive. Here are few of my favourites. 

Friday 4 December 2015

Childhood Christmas Memories


Could this photograph be anymore 90s?


Thursday 3 December 2015

25 Christmas Goals

  1. Christmas Quiz Night with the Family 
  2. Drink Lots of Festive Drinks 
  3. Cosy Movie Nights In 
  4. Visit Christmas Markets 
  5. Watch Every Single Christmas Movie I Own 
  6. Spend Nights by the Fire Reading 
  7. Read A Christmas Carol
  8. Attend a Carol Service 
  9. Decorate a Ginger Bread House 
  10. Cover my Bedroom in Fairy Lights 
  11. Make Mulled Wine 
  12. Watch a Pantomime 
  13. Homemade Gifts 
  14. Have a Games Night with Friends 
  15. Watch The Nutcracker Ballet Live Broadcast at my Local Cinema 
  16. Roast Chestnuts on a Open Fire 
  17. Drink Eggnog 
  18. Make Paperchains 
  19. Layered Winter Walks
  20. Spend the Day in my Pyjamas 
  21. Read The Night Before Christmas on Christmas Eve 
  22. Drive/Walk to see all the Christmas Lights 
  23. Take Christmas Photographs on Disposable Cameras 
  24. Build a Blanket Fort 
  25. Sing Christmas Songs (and not care who hears me)




Wednesday 2 December 2015

DIY: Air Dry Clay Gift Tags

Air dry clay is simple, easy to use, and cheap material, which is always a winning combination. You use it once and you will be forever scrolling through Pinterest for more innovative DIYs to try your hands at. Today I thought I would share with you a very easy peasy gift tag DIY to give your wrapping a truly magical Pinterest feel. As much as I adore air dry clay it can be a bit irritating waiting for your handmade goodies to dry so a great alternative would be to use polymer clay. 

Tuesday 1 December 2015

My Top 10 Christmas Movies


To kick off my first Blogmas post I thought I would share with you my Top 10 Christmas Movies because a good Christmas movie is guaranteed to put even the unhappiest of Scrooges into the festive spirit. First up...


Monday 30 November 2015

I'm Doing Blogmas!


I thought I would challenge myself and this little blog of mine and do Blogmas! Which means I will be posting Christmas related posts everyday from December the 1st up until Christmas Eve. I haven't done something like this before so I hope you enjoy it and fingers crossed I manage to complete it. There will be DIY posts, recipes, embarrassing childhood photographs and perhaps a sneaky giveaway. Be prepared to have your minds blown (I hope). 

P.S what do you think of my blog's festive makeover? 

Saturday 28 November 2015

Scotland Snapshots: Part One


This past week I have been enjoying the bonnie scenery of Scotland hence the radio silence over here on Northern Lass. Bar the odd checking of my University emails I also decided whilst away I would also take a break from all things internet and social media. I am by no means a social media addict but its always nice just to have a break from the wide world inter web. I didn't take a lot of photographs whilst I was away. I didn't want to have a holiday where I was constantly looking through a lens rather than what was in front of me.  

Thursday 19 November 2015

Little Thoughts: Why I use to Hate my Hands


I suppose disliking your hands is a very unusual part of your body to dislike, but non the less I never use to like them. I liked my nails which makes this whole hand hating thing even stranger. As I have been told on many occasion I have been blessed with long nail beds, my nails in the above photograph are the shortest they can be (did I just brag about my nails?). Anyway back to the whole hand hating thing...I suppose I've always thought I have chubby fingers and that my hands are quite manly. No idea where this came from, no one has ever insulted my hands before but never the less that thought has always been cemented firmly in my head. 

But recently I have been thinking about my hands and realised that I may hate the way my hands look however I don't dislike all the artwork I create with them. I suppose what I am trying to say is even the things you dislike about yourself all add up to make you you and without them it would be difficult to say if you would be your true self. Because without my hands a big part of my personality and who I am as a person would be missing. 

I no longer hate my hands. 

Monday 16 November 2015

One of those 'stuff I really didn't need to buy, but bought anyway' kind of Hauls


A few things I have picked up over the past couple of weeks, all things which I didn't need but found them too charming too resist. 

Set of  Three Large Pinecones, Wilkinsons, 1.00
I picked these up as I thought they would be useful for blog photography props and also I thought they would look quite sweet to have in my room hanging above my bed. 

Wednesday 11 November 2015

Zara Wish List + Illustration Outfit Inspiration

Waistcoat 39.99, Skirt 39.99, Jumper 39.99 


I'm going on holiday to Scotland with the rest of the clan in a couple of weeks time so naturally I've been doing a bit of  online window shopping and by that I mean drolling all over my laptop and thinking I really need to put the lottery on. Embroidered clothing is something that keeps popping up in my mind and something I am continuously pinning on Pinterest. When I found these lovely items on Zara it wasn't enough just to look, I felt the need to blog about them and threw a couple of virtual outfits together whilst I was at it.

Monday 9 November 2015

Turning 22


I can't quite believe I'm 22! in my mind I'm still 18. Although I feel like I'm not quite ready to grow up I don't really have a choice in the matter its kinda inevitable. My Birthday always makes me realise how lucky I am to be surround by Friends and Family who all love me dearly. Sometimes I think Birthdays can fall into the trap of being a bit of a pity party, realising that your not where you thought you would be at a certain point in your life. Younger me most likely thought I'd have moved out by now, have a permanent job and married if not at the very least engaged. But when I look at my life I'm truly happy and I'd much rather be able to say that then any of the above things, because those things will fall into place at some point (maybe). 

Saturday 7 November 2015

My Feel Good Autumnal Playlist


This is the playlist I turn to when I'm on the bus on my way to or from Uni, or when I feel like shutting the world out on a solitary walk. Every time I listen to this playlist it puts me in such a good mood. Apparently I am correct by calling it an Autumn playlist even in November because according to google Autumn doesn't officially end until December 21st. You learn something new everyday.

Friday 6 November 2015

An Early Morning Sunday Stroll



As the title of this post suggests, I decided to take an early morning stroll on Sunday. I decided to take my camera along for the ride which is a bit out of the ordinary for me as I usually just like to enjoy the morning and not see it through a lens. I must admit I did feel a little self conscious at first taking photographs, not that I've never taken photographs in public before I've just usually had someone with me. The more photographs I took the more comfortable I began to feel and by the end I didn't mind the glances I was getting from the dog walkers.  It did feel like the prefect start to the end of my weekend just wandering and taking photographs. It allowed me time to think, mostly about random little things which will no doubt manifest themselves into blog posts, but until then I hope you like the photographs I took. I should probably edit them and adjust the brightness but I do like the washed out quality they have. 

Tuesday 3 November 2015

A Very Simple Thank You



In the grand scheme of blogging I suppose 50 followers on Bloglovin is quite small, but non the less I couldn't help but smile when it popped up in my emails. This is a very quick and simple thank you to all of you who clicked that follow button... so thank you. 

Sunday 25 October 2015

Pale Skin, Roll-neck Jumper + Sunday Chinwag

I like my pale skin. A Geordie girl who doesn't use fake tan, no I am not a mythical creature its like I said I just like my pale skin. I recently bought this jumper from eBay for the extortionate price of £1.00 and in truth I feel quite the fashionable lady in it, even if the roll neck does cover half my face up. But I don't care because I just feel too darn cosy in it. I couldn't be happier about the cold weather and the dark nights I am most definitely in my element...my winter element. I'm not usually one for selfies, but I thought what the heck I'm not ashamed to say I like these pics of me, nothing wrong with a bit of self love. I think we could all do with a lot more of it.


Friday 23 October 2015

I WILL NEVER BE A WHITE WALLED MINIMALIST GIRL (RAMBLE)


Sitting in my room scrolling through Pinterest, pining all those Pinterest-y pins of White wall minimalist interiors. I looked up and looked around my tiny room and thought to myself 'I wish I had painted my walls White' or  'I wish my room looked like the rooms on Pinterest'. It then dawned on me that if I had White walls my bedroom wouldn't be mine, instead it would be a copy of someone else it wouldn't stand out from the crowd of White walled rooms it would just be adding to the pile. Then I thought why do I want White walls? have I truly been that heavily influenced by Pinterest and Tumblr? because it has came apparent that I have. 

Tuesday 20 October 2015

diy: illustrated clutch


I've been looking for a White zipped plain Clutch for what feels like years. I never thought looking for a White zipped Clutch would be difficult but it proved to be a flipping quest on the scale of Indian Jones. Finally whilst scrolling through the ASOS sale I found this real Leather Clutch for £10.00 so naturally I bought two.

Saturday 17 October 2015

Simple Shortbread Biscuits


If you read my cupcake post here, then you will know I don't have a lot of skill in the baking department and by that I mean its non existing but I am determined on improving. Which is slightly ironic as I was the only one in my family who didn't watch the bake off. However despite my non existing baking skills,  I am always very lucky with my biscuits. Which usually results in a batch be devoured very quickly indeed. In my opinion the best way to enjoy them is with a hot chocolate and a good book/film. 

Wednesday 14 October 2015

little thoughts on being kind


Something that has been rattling around my mind recently is the relationship between kindness and happiness. It's a simple fact that being kind to others makes you feel that little bit happier and your smile that little bit wider. Kind acts don't have to be grand gestures, I often think small acts of kindness are often the sweetest.

Tuesday 6 October 2015

October Goals


Give more hugs to the people I love - This is something that has been spinning around my mind recently, that I don't hug people anymore, there seems to be no reason behind it, it's just something I just don't do but I plan to rectify that. 

Go on more walks in the evenings with Friends - I much prefer to go on walks in the evening during the autumn, being able to wrap up in thick woolly jumpers and long tartan scarfs to me is just perfection, and when long walks are accompanied with friends that perfection reaches its limit. 

Get stuck into University - I've been back at uni for  a couple of weeks now and I have started the final year of my degree, After a summer spent working, I'm more than happy to get stuck into drawing and creating again. 

Read at least one Book this Month - there was a time when I would always have a book firmly in grasp and wouldn't leave a seat without at least one hand holding onto a book. I would demolish four to five books in a month but more recently I can't remember the last time I read a book that wasn't an Art one. I picked up Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel to read this month and hopefully in my monthly favorites I will be reviewing it for you.  


Sell a piece of Artwork - as an aspiring artist/illustrator I can count on one hand how many times I have sold a piece of work and truthfully that number needs to be increased. So watch this space. 

Stay organised - I would like to say I am a relevantly organised person (sometimes) but over these past few months I have to say my organisation skills have been on point and hopefully they will stay that way. 

Saturday 3 October 2015

Vanilla Cupcakes with Butter Icing




I like to think I'm a skilled baker and could whip you up any sort of tasty treat in a flurry of flour, but in reality my culinary skills leave a lot to be desired and by that I mean they are non existing. However I can cleverly deceive you into thinking I am a culinary genies with decorations, glitter and stars. It was my Mum's Birthday today and along with a pair of fluffy Sponge Bob PJ's I thought I would also make her some Birthday cupcakes. Thankfully on a blog you can look at the pretty photographs of the cupcakes and not know what they taste like. 

Tuesday 29 September 2015

Vanilla and Blackcurrent Tea + Haul


Like most British people I do enjoy a good cuppa, drinking tea is what we do.  Over the past couple of years I have been turning away from the more traditional tea and enjoying more herbal/fruity tea. Most likely because they are easier to take into uni to drink instead of faffing on with milk and sugar. 

Sunday 27 September 2015

Strangers Upon a Beach



Its strange how much I like these photographs despite not having spoken a single word to the people captured in them. My friends and I decided to do a bit of exploring down on the beach yesterday afternoon, so naturally I took my camera . Looking back through

Sunday 6 September 2015

August



To say the month August has been up and down more times than a yo-yo would be an understatement . August has been a tough month, truthfully a month filled with moments I would be all too happy to forget, however it has also been filled with moments I'd like to remember for a long time to come.

Thursday 30 July 2015

Life Lately


Life lately has been pretty busy, productive but non the less very busy. I finished my second year of Uni which means I am scarily close to completing my degree which is both exciting and absolutely terrifying. I have a mountain of photographs of my final exhibition to get through and share with you all.  Working 9 to 5 is no longer just another catchy song for me as I have a full time summer job as a receptionist at a solicitors firm, which is a far cry away from my chosen creative career but non the less I am enjoying it. I have also received quite a few commissions lately so therefore my weekends have been spent feverishly drawing away in my studio with plenty of cups of tea and perhaps the odd custard cream. When I have the odd day off I have been soaking up the sunshine with good friends and good music. But I have missed my little corner of the internet. I forget how much I enjoy blogging and sharing my little adventures with you all, and as a result I have a rather long list of blog post ideas I am determined to get done before the summer ends. Which will hopefully make up for me being MIA over the last couple of months.
 
I hope your all enjoying your summer.
 

Friday 29 May 2015

Currently Working On

 
 

 
Firstly suppose I better say sorry about the lack of posts here recently, but Uni has me spread pretty thin. My last deadline is coming up on the 2nd of June and then there is the exhibition to plan for and after that I have a gloriously long summer ahead of me. All the same I thought I would share my most recent work with you in the hope it will make up for the shockingly low amount of posts over the past couple of weeks. But rest assure I have lots planned for the summer for my little space on the interweb. Watch this space.

 

Sunday 17 May 2015

SEVEN THINGS SUNDAY: Black and White Movies

I find there is  nothing better then making yourself a large bowl of popcorn and settling down to watch a good old black and white movie. Here are a few my favourites that I recommend you see.
  1. Some Like it Hot
  2. An appointment in London
  3. Millions Like Us
  4. An Inspector Calls
  5. Arsenic and Old Lace
  6. The List of Adrian messenger
  7. 39 Steps
 

Saturday 16 May 2015

Life Lately

 
You may have noticed I've been somewhat M.I.A over the past couple of weeks. That being due to a very important Uni presentation I had on Wednesday morning at my local art gallery, in front of the curator and my lectures. Nerve racking isn't the word. Thankfully everything went to plan and now I have an uncomfortable wait for the feedback. As you can imagine I haven't been up to much just preparing for my presentation. But I do have a couple of snaps to share with you from the past couple of weeks.
 
1. The Moon: A photograph I  took one evening whilst sitting in the garden. The crescent moon shape always reminds me of the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland. I always expect to see a pair of mischievous eyes and a stripy tail appear.
 
2. Studio: As you can imagine with Uni deadlines looming I have been spending a lot of time in my studio. Which many of you most likely don't know I have. At the end of last summer my Dad and I built a studio for me at the bottom of our garden. There are still a few things that need finishing off before I do a studio tour, the plan is to get it finished during the summer. I feel incredibly lucky to have a space completely dedicated to my artwork and it also made me realise that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life. I feel as if I'm that one step closer to reaching my goal.
 
3. Plants: Mostly likely the result of too many sunny weekends spent helping my Dad in the garden coupled with too many evenings spent scrolling through Pinterest, which has gotten me doodling all things gardening non-stop. In particular succulents and watering cans. (Wait a cotton picking minute, what about succulents... in watering cans? Genius)

4. Dried Flowers: I did some seriously creative procrastination. Drying out flowers in the microwave. Which unfortunately turned out to be a bit of an epic fail I burned most of them and the kitchen didn't smell too great afterwards. I suppose that's what I get why I try to be all Pinteresty.  
 
What have you been up to lately?

 

Sunday 3 May 2015

Seven Things Sunday: why i hate being ill



Over the last couple of days a head cold has sneaked up on me and hit me at full force leaving me in bed surrounded by mugs of milk and honey and hugging a hot water bottle. As you can probably guess I feel very attractive right now. So here are seven things I hate about being ill.
 
1. Generally feeling awful.
2. Knowing about that massive amount of Uni work I have to get done.
3. Having to cancel plans with friends.  
4. No matter how many showers I have, I still feel groggy.
5. Not being able to sleep.
6. Not being able to get comfortable.
7. Reminiscing on times I wasn't ill.
 
But thank goodness for Netflix.
 
 

Wednesday 29 April 2015

DOODLING AWAY

 
I did some doodling with a brush pen, some gouache and fine liners.

Saturday 25 April 2015

and smile studio haul


























 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
I am not entirely sure I can call this a haul as I only have two things to show you. But on the other hand I don't know how many items you need in order for a collection of items to classify as a haul.
 
I first discovered Viktorija from 'and smile studio'  on Tumblr  and immediately began to follow her and by that I mean stalk her on all available social media sites. How could anyone resist her illustrations they are just so sweet and charming. The other day whilst ogling at her illustrations I decided to order a couple of things from her shop ( I'm a little surprised it has taken me so long to order something from her.).
 
Can we all just take a moment to appreciate the perfection of the packaging. I firstly decided on this sweet postcard for £1.50 it has everything I could ever ask from an illustration; teacup, teapots, flowers and of course a spotty dress. I doubt I will use it as a postcard I will most likely end up searching high and low for the perfect frame, let the mission begin. The second thing I ordered was this succulent necklace for £12.00.  I don't have any jewellery remotely similar to this and I am definitely looking forward to wearing it.
 
Every time I see Viktorija's work I feel the need to rush to my studio, shove my unruly hair up in a bun and get drawing.
 

Wednesday 22 April 2015

Mad about Marble



Recently I can't seem to get enough of marble. It's the first thing I will search for on Pinterest and Tumblr and I will spend a little too long scrolling through the pages ogling at all the different types. I have even dedicated a whole Pinterest board to it, so it's fair to say the situation is getting out of hand. I'm currently on the look out for a marbled clutch but everyone I spot is always out of financial reach. I thought I had hit the jackpot when I found this one on ASOS but wasn't impressed with the quality when it arrived. I am beginning to think it may be something I need to DIY, which I don't mind at all as I already have a few marble DIYs in the pipe line. All I can say is watch this space.

 
 

Images found on Pinterest.




Sunday 19 April 2015

seven things sunday: Seven Beauitful Words


1. Psithurism - the sound of the wind through the trees
 
2. Querencia - a place from which one's strength is drawn, where one feels at home; the place where you are your most authentic self.
 
3. Sensucht - "the inconsolable longing in the human heart for we know not what"; a yearning for a far familiar, non earthly land one can identify as one's home.
 
4. Kintsukoroi - "to repair with gold"; the act of repairing pottery with gold or silver lacquer and understanding that piece is more beautiful for having been broken.
 
5. Kalon - beauty that is more than skin deep.
 
6. Tarantism - overcoming melancholy by dancing; the uncontrollable urge to dance.
 
7. Tsundoku - buying books and not reading them; letting books pile up unread on shelves, floors or nightstands.

 

Thursday 16 April 2015

Vintage jewellery haul

 
 

 
I may have done a little damage when I had a wander around my local vintage shop, 'It's Vintage Darling'.  I picked up these two short necklaces for £6.00 each and each pair of earrings was £4.00. I understand the above earrings are not to everyone's taste and may be appear to be slightly Pat Butcher but I don't care because I can't quite get enough of them, especially paired with a plain black t.
 
As many of you may not know I don't have my ears pierced in fact I don't have any piercings what so ever or tattoos, hence why the earrings are clip on. But they do also double up as 'collar accessories' and add a little something extra when clipped onto a denim shirt.
 
I don't have much to say about these pieces as I think the pictures speak for themselves, however I am thinking of doing a post about the vintage shop as it is this hidden gem and especially since it is an independent shop run by the most helpful and loveliest girl I have ever had the pleasure to meet. Might even see if she's free to answer a couple of question about opening her vintage shop. Anyway that's enough pondering, unfortunately I have essays calling my name. Oh the joy...
 
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