30 September 2017

The whole picture: September 2017

Miss my August round-up? Catch up here.
There are NO good pictures of me from holiday, so you'll have to make do with this.

What I've done in September

The middle two weeks of this month were taken up by a beach holiday on the coast of Bulgaria - lots of chill time, a pile of books and regular dips in the sea. Absolute highlight was spotting some dolphins in the sea, but more on that in future blog posts.

The rest of the month has been dedicated to catching up with friends and catching up with work.

What I've eaten in September

A long overdue catch-up with a friend took me to The Green Room, a bar-restaurant by the National Theatre, situated just behind it on South Bank. We only intended to go for drinks, but the food smelt so good, we ended up indulging. Some of the best buffalo chicken wings I've found in London.



Twice, doughnuts turned up at the office (#lovemyjob), courtesy of Doughnut Time, an Aussie doughnut brand that's coming to London soon. Yes, that is a doughnut with a Ferrero Rocher on top.



We also received a delivery of Halloween cupcakes from FlavourTown, and I now have all the skills envy, because just looked how well decorated they are:



Sadly one of our interns left this month. Not-sadly, this involved a farewell lunch at Red's True BBQ in Shoreditch. I continued my odyssey into London's buffalo chicken (it's an obsession, OK guys?!?), but was disappointed with the dirty buffalo chicken burger - it lacked the kick that any self respecting buffalo chicken has. What wasn't disappointing was the choice of sauces to dip my fries in:



I rounded off the month with post work cocktails with some friends on Friday night. We try to meet for cocktails once a month, drinking our way round the bars of London, but it was four months between meet-ups this time. Must try harder.



Last, but by no means least, those absolute wizards at Bailey's have come up with a salted caramel version, and I'm pleased to confirm that it's every bit as wonderous as it sounds. Thank goodness for Duty Free, eh?

Things I've loved in September



I've been trying SO hard to stay out of shops, so my main purchases this month were my holiday souvenirs (photo above). The toucan clutch bag and embroidered top both came from a little boutique shop near our hotel, and the giraffe picture was from a street stall in Nessebar. It combines two of my favourite things - animals and words - so I couldn't resist. The bottle is rose liqeur, something I developed a penchant for while in Bulgaria, and the rucksack is the perfect size for work.

I did, however, manage to wangle a bargain on home turf, one which I'm extremely proud of; two pairs of boots in New Look for just £14. £14! All the boots and shoes on the sale were buy one, get one free, so I bought myself a knee high tan pair for £14, and got a £10 pair of black suede ankle boots for free.

What's coming up?


Plans for October currently involve afternoon tea, a couple of Halloween events and a trip to the Lake District. I'll no doubt be making a trip to Doughnut Time (above) when it opens in Shaftesbury Avenue, and I've discovered that FlavourTown (also above) do Lucky Charms cupcakes, so I'll be searching me out one of those like a bloodhound on a scent trail. The search is on for a new flat, which should also keep me busy.


Follow me on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook to keep up to date with next month's antics as they happen.

10 September 2017

The many beach huts of Walton on the Naze


I've always been an autumn girl; knitwear appearing in the shops, leaves turning their most beautiful shades, misty mornings. But this year, spring and summer have turned my head a little, with their blue skies and psychedelic blooms.

So here, in an attempt to revive the dying embers of the British summer, are some photos I took back in July. The beach promenade between Frinton-on-Sea and Walton on the Naze is lined with beach huts -- the whole 3.5km of it. We walked there and back, and must have passed 1000 beach huts in doing so, all different colours and styles. Lap up this photogenic slice of the British seaside...