Lincoln Zine Fest

My lovely friend Lou organised the first Zine Fest in Lincoln recently, so Lee and I went. It was held at the library which I think meant quite a lot of passing trade, and it was a really nice room. There were around 12 stalls, which wasn't huge but made it really nice. Lee and I were sitting between Emma, who's a friend of mine, and a person with a really AMAZING Ghostbusters tattoo!

Here's Lee behind our stall. We had some really good conversations with people and just had a generally good day! Here's to next year.

New glasses!

I last had some glasses over three years ago so I've needed some for a while, but the cost is so prohibitive that I've been waiting probably a year to replace them. Then I had the choice taken from me because I got up a couple of weeks ago, put my glasses on, and the right arm dropped off. Whoops.

I went to work with them sellotaped together like Jack Duckworth, That afternoon Lee and I went into Specsavers with me wearing my sunglasses inside. I bought my glasses from Specsavers originally, and have been a customer there for about ten years. The sales assistants told me that the spring had broken in the hinge of my glasses, and made me an appointment for more than two weeks hence.

And... that was it... I was like, so what do I do in the meantime??? And they just sort of shrugged. And then said "Don't you have any other glasses???" Well, no, not when they cost me almost £200 per pair I don't. (I have a very complex lens, due to extreme shortsightedness and non-spherical eyeballs). I felt they were rude for no reason and made me feel worthless.

So I had my eyes tested at Boots and ordered a new pair of glasses there. They would have been ready earlier than the Specsavers ones, but due to being on holiday I had to pick them up two weeks later.

I'm not used to them yet - they feel really huge on my face! My other ones were a lot smaller but it seems like the fashion now is for bigger frames. I love the colour. The prescription is stronger so everything looks a bit weird, but I know I will get used to them eventually!

Eating out in Dorset

On our last night in Dorset we went out to eat after cooking at home every other night. We drove down into Lyme Regis and parked, and ended up in the French Lieutenant's Bistro, named after the book which was set in the town. The staff were absolutely lovely, and we could see right into the kitchen which I always like. Everything was delicious and fresh.

I had wild garlic mushrooms on toast, tiger prawns stir fried in garlic and chilli, and an extremely delicious chocolate mousse. Lee had mushroom soup, chicken Diane, and homemade brownie with ice cream. I had two glasses of Sauvignon Blanc which I only like with food. The whole thing came to just under £70 which considering we had three courses each I don't think is bad!

Although the building could use a bit of upkeep, the restaurant inside is decorated beautifully. The tables weren't squashed in, either, which made for a really pleasant experience.

The moon was fully out I liked how it was reflecting on the water

And here's what I wore to go out in. This dress always feels so fancy and I like how it looks on me. My cardigan is from H&M, it's basic but perfect for this!

The next day we drove home, it took a little longer than getting there but wasn't too bad. We had such a lovely week and were so lucky with the weather. We had no rain and although it wasn't boiling hot, it was sunny and bright. I feel relaxed and re-energised!

What I Wore October 13th

On our last day in Dorset we went to Axminster and Chard, which were both nice little towns. We didn't want to be out for ages so we just had a little wander and had some lunch. I thought I'd show this outfit though, I've worn the skirt before, but this top was new in March and I hadn't worn it yet.

I know cold shoulder tops get a bad rap in plus size circles, because it often seems like EVERYTHING has them, but I like this top. I have an orange one too. It's soft and I like the cut outs because they show off my tattoos. I wore the top tucked into the skirt which is my favourite thing to do with these skirts. This skirt is linted and kind of flouncy, which I like.

I'm standing in the spare room in our cottage here because the light was best. I love this outfit and others like it because they're just easy to throw on but feel super chic.

Holiday in Dorset - Seaton, Sidmouth and Beer

On the Wednesday of our holiday we went to Seaton, Sidmouth and Beer. Seaton was a nice little town; we ate lunch on the seafront and played in the arcades. We managed to win an X Men keyring for Lee! We drove to Sidmouth but there wasn't much of anything to be seen, except for lots of old people and red sea where the cliff was being eroded into the sea! So we didn't stay there long but went instead to Beer, which is a cute little place with a lovely beach. We had an ice cream and sat for a while before going back to the cottage. Lee made pan haggerty, which is a time intensive dish which is why he only makes it on holiday!

We practically had the beach to ourselves. One of the good things about going on holiday in October is that it's always just us and retired people!

Other way

Another selfie!

Lee took this photo of me, I'm wearing this Lollidot dress that I wore here, it's very comfortable and was just warm enough for the day. 

I liked this modern sculpture on the sea

I will never get sick of taking photos of the beach and the sea, sorry!

This seagull was HUGE!

This was Sidmouth - can you see the stripe of red in the water? 

It was really odd - the water looked like blood!

And here's why - the water was eroding the cliff. This has happened in quite a few places on the Dorset coast and will, I'm sure, continue to cause landslides and such things. 

At Beer, which reminded me of Robin Hood's Bay, there were loads of boats pulled on to the beach, and paths to walk between them which was useful, because walking on the stones is really hard going!

I really liked Beer, it felt like a bit of a hidden gem. My favourite kind of place!

Holiday in Dorset - Honiton and Branscombe

On the Tuesday of our holiday we went to Honiton. It's just over into Devon and is famous for the lace they used to make there. I went in 2010 with my friend Sam, and enjoyed the little town and the lace museum. Lee and I set off quite late because I slept in horribly, but there was plenty of time for us to have a wander round the town and go into the museum. There was a lady making some lace so I had a nice discussion with her - I can also make lace, but more like the gridded, Torchon type rather than Honition, which is finer and "freer".

I didn't take any decent pictures in Honiton so you'll just have to imagine! I do recommend the town if you're ever down that way. I also bought some Agatha Christie books in a charity shop.

After Honiton we drove down to Branscombe which you might remember became famous in early 2007 when the MSC Napoli was beached close to the village and hundreds of people descended on it to loot cargo. I went in 2010 and was amused that the anchor from the ship is now in the village - I'm sure they were thrilled to receive it!

These are the books I bought - aren't those gorgeous covers? They were just £1.50 each.

I liked this boat sitting on the beach

Here's the famed anchor! 

I liked this photo so much that I made it my cover photo on Facebook!

We had an ice cream in this cafe. Branscombe is a really cute little place, it's worth a visit if you're down that way.

What I Wore at Portland Bill

I bought this dress and cardigan recently in the sale at Simply Be. They're both from the Sprinkle of Glitter collection and I liked them both. I love the pattern on the dress and the cardigan is like one of those ballet wrap-around cardigans, I LOVE it. I wore it in Ireland but didn't get a decent photo of it, so I wore it in Dorset with this dress. They look lovely together, don't they?

The dress has a navy blue background and this lovely pattern. It has a zip on the side and a tie on the waist, and thick straps. And it has POCKETS! Really lovely DEEP, useful pockets. The cardigan is also navy (I'm not sure whether the colour will show up properly on the screen) and has really nice long ties to tie behind my back.

I'm posing by the sea, and I don't care! The dress is a nice thick cotton with a slight stretch to it.

Showing off the pockets! 

The cardigan kept me nice and warm, it wasn't cold but the sea breeze was a bit chilly. 

Holiday in Dorset - Portland Bill

When I went to Dorset in 2010, I went with my mum, stepdad, stepsister, and my friend Sam. Lee was away so he'd never been, so I wanted to take him to Portland Bill because I really liked it when I went before. We went on Monday and it took a while to get there from Lyme Regis because the coast road was closed. It also took a while to get back as there were roadworks on the other road, but oh well, we had a nice day!

We had lunch in the cafe at Portland Bill, which was really yummy and had a gorgeous view over the sea. I had this extremely blue raspberry slush

Unfortunately the lighthouse was closed, or I'd have liked to go into the shop at the bottom of it.

Some more gorgeous sea and sky. The views are big at Portland Bill!

Selfie to prove we were there at the same time!

We sat right on the cliff top for a while

This photo was taken from the bit of Portland Bill which connects to the mainland, it looks down on to Chesil Beach and the Fleet. I took a very similar photo six years ago!

Holiday in Dorset - the weekend

In October Lee and I went away to Dorset for a week. We stayed here near Lyme Regis and I'd utterly recommend it - the cottage was well-equipped and cosy and the on site swimming pool was great. It was really quiet and relaxing.

My aunt and uncle came for the weekend, so we all arrived on the Friday afternoon, unpacked, and then decided to go swimming. We had the pool to ourselves!

On Saturday we had a delicious brunch and then went down into Lyme Regis. We parked on the harbour and walked along the Cobb which features in Persuasion by Jane Austen. We went into the amusement arcades and a very full and intriguing vintage shop. It was a beautiful day - sunny with just a few clouds. Here's some pictures I took.

I liked all these lobster pots piled up together

The Cobb

I like harbours too

On the beach

I liked the fact that this boat was called Spanish Eyes

And I liked all these kayaks lined up ready for hire

This sandy bit of beach is fake - all the beach on this coast is pebbly/rocky, as you'll see in my further photos, but this bit has been made probably to play on and walk on comfortably!

A lot of the houses in Dorset are painted some gorgeous colours, I liked this pink one

And I couldn't resist this picture of these pastel beach huts!

Lee and I cooked a very yummy fish pie on Saturday evening - it was really simple and I'll definitely do it again. On Sunday my aunt and uncle went for a walk and Lee and I went to play mini golf. Again it was beautiful sunshine and we were both in short sleeves, no need for a cardigan or hoodie!

Looking down over the mini golf

I took this while we were playing - look at all that sunshine!

My aunt and uncle left on Sunday afternoon which was a shame, but we'd had a really lovely weekend together.

Nails of the Week - Barry M

I've recently been painting my nails a lot more. They all broke over the summer and were all different lengths so looked pretty ropey when painted, so I didn't bother. But then they grew again, as I remind myself that they do do when I break one!, so I've been painting them again. You've already seen the green polish I wore in Ireland. A couple of weeks later I broke out this Barry M polish.

It's one of the Aquarium collection, which I really liked. I have three of them I think. This one is called Arabian Nights. It's green with a blue flash. I actually thought it was the blue with the green flash, but not to worry, it's still a gorgeous polish!

This is three coats with no topcoat, it's pretty opaque. There's a few brush streaks which might annoy some people but I don't really mind!