Favourite Decade

Ah, it has to be the nineties! Strutting around the mean streets of Darlo with a Chelsea skinhead, being in a band, going to my first festival (Reading '97), leaving school, discovering new music all the time, hanging with skater boys, riding a yellow BMX to college and getting tattoos of questionable quality. Good lord. I'm pretty glad there aren't too many photos around of me with that haircut, actually. My main crushes were Wil Wheaton, Eddie Vedder and Tank Girl.

Love you forever, Eddie. Saw some pretty hilarious fan art when searching for this pic.

Blog Chat

I started Blog Every Day in May to try and think more about the direction I want my blog to go in and to connect more with people, make an effort to read blogs and to comment on the posts I enjoy. I've never been to any blog meet-ups, maybe I'll give one a go this year?

Does anyone have any recommendations for me?? Thanks in advance!

I've just signed up for Juneathon again, I really enjoyed it last year and I'll be training for the New Forest 10 mile run, so that should give me a kick up the award-winning backside. I'm mostly in it for the horse brass medal. Gimme the bling!

Here's one of my latest prints. Eggy delight.

Home Sweet Home

I bought my house in December, with a HUGE amount of help from my family. My boyfriend and I split up last Summer and it was a pretty horrible time, having house hunting to focus on helped me to get through it with minimal freakout. I saw a few gross houses, the most comedy one appeared to have a corpse in the front room and the owner was sitting smoking cigs in the back doing his VAT return. Erm, do you actually *want* to sell your house?? I was worried at first about living solo, but I really love having my own space. Eventually I intend on getting a lodger, but I'm enjoying my bachelorette lifestyle too much at the moment! I even know how to turn off the stopcock. If you do happen to know any solvent hunks/hunkesses through, send them my way. Anyway, here's some pics of my sweet abode:

 The day I got my keys. Thumbs up! I love the dark green tiles in the hallway, they remind me of a pub, my natural habitat.

 Dining room, the blue is one of my favourite colours.

 Living room

 Enough room for friends to hula hoop.

 At maximum capacity for my birthday.

 I must con-fez I love my home.

Beautiful painting by David K Goodwin above my fireplace.

Walk to Work Week

Today I had a micro-adventure as I walked from Chorlton to my studio at Hot Bed Press in Salford. It took freaking ages and wasn't very scenic as I didn't want to have yet another strange canal-side experience. I did enjoy it though, I saw some new sights and popped into Ordsall Hall on my way past, I'd never been there before, pretty amazing building.

I drew for a few hours in my studio then walked to the Craft Centre. It was a gloriously sunny day by then, typical eh? I'm an now exhausted. I don't know how many miles I walked but it was enough! I escaped town via tram to avoid the City parade. Silly football.

This is a very picture-heavy blog post. Also hyphen-heavy, I'm not really sure why. I think I need to brush up on my grammar skills. Now I'm off to be warm and dry, I'm still ill and I have a 10k race on Sunday. Wah! Vicks Vaporub, don't fail me now!

I thought I'd walk down my old street to stir up some fond memories and then through Longford Park for scenic fun.

It started hailing about 10 minutes after I leave the house.

 A patch of blue sky!

 The gloomy glory of Longford Park.

 Criss cross patterns caused by a tree growing into a fence

 Old Trafford cricket ground

 Kellogg's factory. Nice, isn't it?

 Polis.

 Throstle's Nest Bridge

 Ordsall Hall, Tudor manor house

Ordsall Hall

 Slightly spooky exhibition in the roof space. I was a tiny bit afraid.

 Quack quack.

New sketchbook joy.

100 Happy Days!

Ok, so I've been doing this project for, surprisingly, the last 100 days. There's a site you can sign up to here: 100 Happy Days for more information. Basically, you choose something each day that has made you happy, take a photo and pop it online. People have asked me whether it's felt contrived, but do you know what? I've flipping loved it. Here are some hits:

My friends in London town. Miss you Luke Marsh.

 Got my braces off, it was a beautiful warm, sunny day and my mate The Bird drove me to an amazing garden centre, complete with tiny train track! Bought a bbq and it pissed it down every day since. Soz about that.

 Gorgeous day in the Lake District, met a new pal, Arne.

 Best Easter ever with family, my awesome sister Catherine and her lovely husband Simon. Love you guys.

Ella's birthday curry, laughing so hard I thought my belly would burst. Mega amounts of love for these berks.

It's been so nice, man! I've thought about things that will make me happy, made an effort to get out and about, make plans and be a generally joyous bastardo. Some days I've been spoilt for choice about what will make the cut, others have been slim pickings, but it's really made me think about what makes me happy, so thank you for: friends, family, being with people, drawing, dancing, music, living joyfully, celebrating, loving, laughing, running, being ridiculous, choices, gratitude. Pow. Do it. I've had a really nice reaction to this project, despite my fears that I'd do everyones nuts in with smugness. Ta dudes.

This is one of my favourite songs, ever. I can't get enough love.

Here is my genuinely happy face! Fanks Birdy! (just out of shot is my 'Happy' necklace that Cath sent me, because she's a babe) xxx

Gadgets

This blogging prompt doesn't really fill me with passion. Although I have to admit to loving my phone, it's a bit of a double-edged sword. I spend too much time mindlessly checking various social networks, which distracts me from the job in hand of how to be brilliant success and lead a fulfilling life. Having too much 'stuff' makes me feel panicked. I like to feel free. My mind is already filled with loads of clutter, I don't need to add to that by buying up loads of crap. I'd rather have experiences than possessions.

That said, you're not keeping the fucking Gaggia.

Star Wars Day!

In which we talk about Sci-Fi.

When I was at school my friend Simon was completely obsessed with Star Wars. His whole room was filled with action figures, some still in their boxes. He lent me all the films, which I loved and I developed a huge crush on Han Solo, naturally. One day he (Simon, not Han) gave me an Ewok figurine. It was clearly worthless as it had lost it's cowl. I still treasure it! Proof:

Just look at his cold, dead eyes!

My pal Jenni just bought Blue Snaggletooth for her husband's 40th. That shit was like 200 quid! She really loves her guy. How much would I get for Wicket? Actually, forget it, I'll never sell.

Weekend Morning Routine

Saturday depends on whether I'm working in the shop at Manchester Craft and Design Centre. If I am, then it's up and out on my bike to the studio. If I'm not in the studio I may well be running a workshop somewhere, like Fred Aldous for the Ministry of Craft. I often run in the morning too, distance dependent on whether I'm training for something. Porridge or eggs and green smoothies will be on the menu.

Actually I'm not a huge fan of routines, but I also think they're good for me. I've got a strange brain sometimes, it's full of conflicting ideas. I try to meditate everyday, weekend or not. I use the Headspace app as I'm not very good at staying focused without guidance. I very rarely have a long lie in, it's no fun on your own! I also feel too guilt-ridden and as though I'm missing out on some fun times if I lounge about too much. I usually try to make plans to see friends and do something interesting like attend Sunday Assembly, go to a life drawing class, or a nice long bike ride in the country. In the evening I like to go to gigs, parties and suchlike. Fun times please. Last Saturday I went to an amazing event called Drawn to the Beat at Victoria Baths.

Basically, I believe that life isn't happening at home.

5 Favourite Posts

Here are my 5 favourite blog posts of days gone by! It's weird to think I've been blogging, fruitlessly, endlessly blogging, for 6 years on and off…It's been really nice looking back through my posts, seeing how far my work has come and the projects I've lucky enough to be involved with. Actually some of my favourites are of my old drawings, but they'll keep. I will for sure post up some more sketchbook excerpts in the future.

Zookeeper for a day. A classic from the Nell archives. Look at my chuffed little lemur-clutching face!

Desiderata I don't actually remember posting this, but it's really beautiful and seems timely to come across it at a time of confusion, heartache and anxiety. Thanks, past me.

New York Let me go back.

Childhood Dreams This is a nice, upbeat one!

Celebrity Endorsement of the past Remember that time I met the Patron Saint of the Craft Centre?

Cheating slightly by putting these drawings up too.

What is your blog all about?

Hello! This is my first blog post of the Blog Every Day in May challenge! I though I'd sign up as my blog has been woefully neglected for ages.

I first started blogging as a way to promote my business, so I guess it's supposed to be about that. Along the way other things have crept in, especially during Juneathon last year, when I was blogging all about jogging and suchlike. I really enjoy writing and it seems a shame that I leave such big gaps in between each post. I think the pressure of having something interesting to say gets to me. It doesn't really matter if anyone reads this or not though. I am going to use this challenge more as a writing exercise rather than for promotion I think, although naturally I will be writing about my work, it's what I do and who I am! Here's a picture of me in my old studio, printing away. My hair is much better these days.