Films of the Month - April

I watched loads of films in April! Many of which I hadn't seen before, which is good.



1) The Matrix - I have of course seen this before, when I was a teenager I really liked it but we hadn't watched it in ages so decided to watch it again - I think it does stand the test of time
2) Lord of the Rings - I've never seen this so thought I would, but god it goes on al ong time. I had to watch it in chunks.
3) Star Wars: The Force Awakens - I loved this when we saw it at Christmas so we watched it again, it's still fantastic



4) Pleasantville - I love this film and have for years. It's so delicately done.
5) God Help the Girl - I'd been meaning to watch this for ages and I'm so glad I did. It's really lovely, the girls are both excellent (I loved Hannah Murray in Skins) and so is Olly Alexander
6) Josie and the Pussycats - Netflix recommended this to me and I liked it, it's so kitsch and fun. Alan Cumming is excellent in it!



7) Chocolat - I love this book and first read it years ago when I was in college, but I'd never seen the film. I liked it even though it was different to the book.
8) Obvious Child - I saw this in a list of feminist films on Netflix or something, and I loved it. It's about a woman who has a one night stand after breaking up with her boyfriend and becomes pregnant, and decides to have an abortion. It's really good, go and watch it now
9) Fast Times at Ridgemont High - I've never seen this and I enjoyed it, it's so 80s!



10) Miss Potter - this was on iPlayer so I put it on, not really knowing much about Beatrix Potter's life even though I love her stories. I liked it, Renee Zellweger was great and so was Ewan McGregor. Worth a watch
11) Wallace & Gromit and the Wrong Trousers - this was also on iPlayer and I hadn't seen it in years so I watched it, it's cute!
12) A is for Acid - this was on ITV.com and I never saw it when it was first made. It's pretty gruesome but Martin Clunes was excellent, I enjoyed it



13) The Wedding Planner - this was on TV so I idly watched it. It was pretty terrible!
14) Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey - this is my favourite of the Bill & Ted films because I love Death so much. "They Melvined me!"
15) Kingpin - we watched this after Sheffield Zine Fest, it's ridiculous! I liked Woody Harrelson though.

And that was April!

Sheffield Zine Fest 2016

30th April was the 4th annual Sheffield Zine Fest and it was a fantastic day as in previous years. Lee and I took our distro and had a great position next to Lou from Our Victory Line. We've got loads of lovely zines now, they looked fabulous all set out. I have two new ones - #8 of my perzine Opinionated Nobody and one that I've just finished which is about my life as a Manic Street Preachers fan. Contact me if you'd like either of these!

I ran a mail art workshop where we made envelopes from scrapbooking paper and also decorated blank postcards. My friends Kerrie and Sarah-Beth came, my penpal Rosie did too, and also fellow zinester Jacq! I hope they all enjoyed it.

After the fest had finished, eight of us went to Saigon 68 for food, which is one of my favourite places in Sheffield. The portions are huge and the prices are low, and it's really yummy food. I had a really lovely day and can't wait to do it all again next year!

My stall, plus Lou next to us!

Close up of those lovely lovely zines

And the other side

And finally these are all the goodies I brought home!

What I Wore 29th April

Lee was off work on the 29th of April and my friend Tukru was arriving into Sheffield ready for zine fest the next day, so we went to Sheffield for lunch and to do a bit of shopping. This is what I was wearing.

I bought this top when I went shopping in Manchester with Steph and Kelly. It's a gorgeous vibrant tomato red, almost verging on orange. I liked the cold shoulder because it shows off my new tattoo which isn't often seen.

What I Wore 24th April

My grandma was 90 in April, and on the 24th we had a bit of a party for her. It was really lovely and I think she had a nice time. I thought I'd share some photos from the lunch.

The cake! It was from M&S and we bought the primroses to add because my grandma loves them. I stuck them on the cake, we had a flat 90 too but unfortunately I dropped it and it smashed, so we had to improvise with candles!

My cousin Gary, my grandma, and Gary's partner Ali. They live in Oxfordshire so we don't get to see them often but it's always nice when we do!

All the cousins and my grandma. My cousin Rob, his fiancee Beth, Lee, me, my step-cousin N, Peter, and my other step-cousin N - protecting their names for privacy!

With my mum and stepdad and aunt and uncle added too.

My mum, her sister Caroline and my grandma. My mum had the tunic made when she was in India recently, isn't it gorgeous?

And here's what I wore. I bought the skirt from Interrobang Art after Lolly recommended them, I love the pattern. The white top is from Yours clothing. 

What I Wore 23rd April

Debz linked to this dress on Facebook, saying that she'd just bought it on everything5pounds. I've bought from there before but not for a while. Their plus size stuff tends to be a bit haphazard, it's not always actually plus size and the quality can sometimes be really ropey. But I've had a few nice things from there and this dress is definitely one of them!

It has a slight stretch to it and the chiffon sash is really nice too. I think the length is just perfect on me, and the stripes are really nice.

I was wearing a lacy shrug from New Look that you've seen before, leggings from George at Asda, and shoes from New Look 

My face didn't have a lot of make up, but I love this Rimmel lipstick. 

Photo an Hour - April

Saturday April the 23rd was Photo an Hour and although I had a boring day, I went out in the evening to my cousin's engagement meal, which was really lovely. Here's my photos.

10am, Lee was away and I went downstairs to feed the cat and play on the WiiU for a bit. I've been playing Yoshi's Woolly World!

11am, I made myself a frothy coffee

Noon, I was watching Masterchef on the computer

1pm, I was writing a bit

2pm watching Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries

3pm, I was really bored but it wasn't quite time to actually do anything

4pm, I packed my stuff ready to stay at my mum's

5pm, outside my mum's house 

6pm, made up ready for the meal!

7pm, Dave took this of Stacey, me and him

8pm, this is my cousin Peter (his brother is the one who got engaged) and my grandma, who recently turned 90 can you believe!

9pm, this is family chatting - my mum on the left

10pm I had a Baileys nightcap

11pm I was in the spare room at my mum's ready for sleep - this is a portrait of me from when I was about 11!

Visit to Duchniak's Wakefield - Review

It was my Grandma's 90th birthday on the 19th of April. That's quite an age, isn't it?! Can you imagine the things she's seen and lived through? Incredible. She still lives by herself and is as sharp as a tack. She decided she wanted to go to Duchniak's for a meal on her birthday, with my mum, stepdad, me and Lee. She's been before and enjoyed it, but the rest of us never had. I don't even think I've had Polish food before, so I was interested to try it!

I didn't take any photos during the meal because I felt it was rude at that particular table, To start with my mum and I shared the meat pierogi, which are soft dumplings and look a lot like steam Japanese gyoza. The meat was nicely seasoned and we both enjoyed them.

For main course I had the beef meatloaf and chips, and a leek salad. The beef came served like two burgers, which were very substantial and also nicely seasoned. The leek salad tasted a lot like coleslaw and was really yummy!

For dessert I had a baked cheesecake which was very cake like in texture - it was the worst part of the meal for me personally; I didn't like it much although Lee really did!

The restaurant is really nice decorated inside and the waitress was really lovely. I'd definitely go back - the cheese pancakes caught my attention so I'd like to try them!

Day out to Cannon Hall

Lee and I have been trying to get out every weekend as he's suffering from a fairly severe Vitamin D deficiency. We've been trying to get out and about into the outdoors for some sunshine and stuff. The 9th of April is also the anniversary of my dad's death, so I wanted to do something lowkey to get me out of the house a bit. I still miss him an awful lot, it's been eight years now.

Anyway Lee and I first went to Pot House Hamlet for lunch. It's really close to our house but he'd never been before. Lunch was delicious - Lee had fish and chips and I had a steak, mushroom, and Stilton sandwich and chips. We'll definitely go again.

Then we went to Cannon Hall farm to meet up with my mum and stepdad. We parked at the bottom and went for a walk by the river. There's some ducks and geese so we fed them, and had a nice little walk. It was a bit overcast but it didn't rain which is the main thing! We then walked across to the garden centre and had cake and drinks in the cafe. They've got a huge selection of cakes which all looked amazing!

Then we walked round the garden centre a bit. Our house doesn't have too much outdoor space, but I wanted a hanging basket for next to the back door, and I wanted a house plant because we don't have any! We got some at nice prices, so I was pleased.

I'll definitely go back to Cannon Hall because we didn't even go to the house or the farm, and I'd like to see the museum and see all the animals!

Here's some photos

I loved this little waterfall. If it had been a bit warmer I would have been paddling in it for sure!

Lee on the bridge.

The other side of the waterfall

I don't really like this photo of myself but I thought it was cute anyway

The geese are huge

This one took the bread right out of my mum's hand!

We think it was a grey lag goose.

The geese on the right were in a line of five and all very gracefully got into the water.

There was a clothing concession in the garden centre where I tried on this hat. I think it suits me - I might have to get one!