top

1 2 3 4 1 3 2 4 5

Friday 29 July 2016

Secret Garden Party 2016

Secret Garden Party 2016

Shall I let you into the worst kept secret of Cambridgeshire? Every July on the outskirts of Huntingdon, there's a four day party like no other... That party is of course The Secret Garden Party.

Secret Garden Party 2016

Secret Garden Party 2016

If you're a long time reader you'll know this isn't my first year in the garden, in fact this year marked my 8th consecutive year of attending which just goes to show how marvellous this place is. You can never get bored of this festival with its ever changing themes and frolicking.

Secret Garden Party 2016

Secret Garden Party 2016

The theme for 2016 was The Gardeners Guide to the Galaxy, bringing Sci Fi art and expression to the festival which a lot of gardeners embraced wholeheartedly with silver costumes, psychedelic head dresses and much much more. The festival is a spectacle of gloriously adorned human beings who have come to the garden to escape the realities of the rat race and everyday life.

The Secret Garden Part 2016

If you're new to the garden or haven't had time to get some glad rags, fear not as the festival has many a garment you can purchase to bring out you inner gardener. A particular favourite of mine is Rosa Bloom. The sequins entice my inner magpie.



You can also have festival face paint and make-up done whilst you're here by the talented artists like It's In Your Dreams and the like or you adorn your own face with glitter. The choice is yours.


Box of Light performing at The Secret Garden Party 2016

The music at SGP is an eclectic mix ranging from Drum n Bass, Soul, Dance, Indie, Acoustic, Cheese and much much more. Acts such as Air, Temper Trap, Maribou State, Stanton Warriors and Caribou were just some of the artists to grace the various stages of the garden. I was particularly stoked to see Box of Light performing at the Where the Wild Things Are stage on the Friday with Helen looking dreamy as ever and belting out some awesome tunes with the band.

The Secret Garden Party 2016

The Secret Garden Party 2016

There's not just bands at this festival, oh no. There's beautiful dancers, mobile discos and sing a longs for everyone to get involved with and remember - you're not here as a spectator, you're here to get involved no matter how weird and wonderful it may be... As well as music there are craft areas, mazes, races, paint fights, yoga, spa sanctuaries, talks.... I could go on but every year it changes. There's lots of hidden places around the festival so keep your eyes peeled for the mysteries and enchanted areas.

The Secret Garden Party 2016

The Secret Garden Party 2016

Where else will you find a field of people on space hoppers jumping around to House of Pain? Expect the unexpected in the garden and be prepared to unleash your inner child. This is one of the main reasons I love the garden. It takes you away for the rig-moral of normal life and reminds you not to stress so much. It's a place to unwind and let off some well earnt steam.

The Secret Garden Party 2016

The Secret Garden Party 2016

The Secret Garden Party 2016

The Secret Garden Party 2016

Everyone is super friendly and ready to party. Having bumped into fellow gardeners from previous years, it's like greeting and old friend that you'll inevitably have a dance and a warm beer with. You'll easily make friends with your dancing neighbour or next to the couple in the crowd at the front. Don't be afraid to say hello to strangers. We don't bite!



Another aspect of the festival I love is the food. I think about food at the best of times but when you're surrounded by tents, campers and stalls selling such delicious grub, you can't help but be mesmerised - there is just SO MUCH CHOICE! From afternoon tea to Mac n Cheese, burgers to desserts there are so many taste sensations. This year I indulged with ostrich burger, pulled pork and of course pie and mash. All the carbs! The cocktails are pretty sweet too, as well as highly alcoholic. A couple of them blew my socks off and that's saying a lot coming from a seasoned drinker.





The atmosphere in the garden is something really special. Having attended a variety of festivals in my time from Glastonbury to V Festival, there's none quite like the Secret Garden Party. The vibe is a friendly and welcoming one with plenty of silliness to make you laugh. Sitting in amongst the crowd watching acts on the main stage, you can easily get lost in watching other gardeners with their bizarre attire, amusing props and daft dancing.



I love this festival and I've not even touched the tip of the iceberg with what you can do here. I for one have partaken in naked knitting, mud wrestling, sonic yoga and much more over the years but that is another story... To experience SGP you need to go for yourself and even then your experience won't be the same as anyone else's which I think is pretty special. What I can guarantee you though is a sense of euphoria over the four days and the feeling of freedom - something that nowadays as adults I don't think we get to experience as much as we should. You will come away from this magical place feeling revived and mentally cleansed. Exhausted? Yes - but worth it? F*ck yeah!



Have you been to the garden?


Tuesday 26 July 2016

Turn and Face The Strange | OOTD

Secret Garden Party 2016

I have major festival blues this week. Sunday marked another year of The Secret Garden Party and every year I feel a little lost once it's over. What do I do now? Do I really have to return to adulting?

Secret Garden Party 2016

Whilst I wonder what the bloody f*ck I'm doing with my life, I do love that SGP is a place you can fully express your style and individuality. You can be a glam festival gal or wear the most garish thing you own - it doesn't matter and I can guarantee you that you look cool as f*ck regardless of your style and taste. Normal clothes are just boring in the garden.

What to wear at a festival

I love these sunglasses. They're like marmite and most people I've asked think I either look like a martian or John Lennon wearing them. Either way I like them and that's the main thing. They're a quirky style and fun - what is not to love?

Festival outfit inspiration

As for my dress, this is a DIY ensemble by yours truly. Fashioned from a maxi, this dress has been re-invented into a bardot and how could I not add some pom pom tasselling? That ruffle was screaming out for some pom pom-ness.

Secret Garden Party 2016

And of course no festival get up is complete without some sequin make-up am I right? I actually did this myself and I'm tempted to do a tutorial for you savvy festival goers. It's shockingly easy and a lot cheaper than having it done by somebody else.

Secret Garden Party 2016

What to wear to a festival
Dress - Handmade
Flip flops - Vivienne Westwood
Bag - Accessoize (old)
Sunglasses - eBay
Sass - model's own

So, my point with this post is to turn and face the strange. Look it in the eye and embrace it. Whats the worst that could happen? Your style is fabulous so don't follow the crowd and be happy in what you wear.

Peace out.


Friday 22 July 2016

DIY Festival Feet | Embellishing Espadrilles



It has been too long since I've put together a crafty post but in all honesty I haven't felt inspired or been making anything worth doing a DIY post on. Today however I have a super simple DIY for festival feet. May I present to you embellished espadrilles!

Pom poms and embellishment on shoesies has been a big trend this year, one I have loved to embrace but sometimes it's fun to pimp your shoe yourself and can save you some dollar too!


I've had these espadrilles for a few years just tucked in a cupboard waiting to be worn but the green colour on its own was underwhelming and did nothing for me so I took to my sewing box to find some bits to jazz them up.


From beads to buttons, there's so many ways you can decorate your espadrilles to make them a one off unique pair as well as showcasing your personal style. I opted for some purple pom pom trim and some large disc sequins in complimenting colours to give my footwear some pizzazz.


So to affix your embellishment, you will need no more than a needle and thread. I opted to hand sew as it felt easier for me and went for a similar matching colour cotton.

To attach the pom pom trim to the edge of the front seam of the espadrille I followed it right round to each edge and over stitched it into place. Next up were the sequins which I dotted in between each pom pom and again secured with thread, leaving the stitch loose so there's some movement to the sequins when the espadrilles are worn.


And voila! That is literally all I did!


I'm so chuffed with how these turned out as not only are my espadrilles super comfy, they're now fun to wear and the perfect festival/holiday footwear too!

To see me actually doing a spot of sewing, you can watch the video I've made on these embellished espadrilles too. I had quite a lot of fun with this video and was trying to be creative so let me know your thoughts.



Anyway I hope you like this DIY post. Have you been inspired to embellish your espadrilles?


Tuesday 19 July 2016

Finding our Feline Friends | Tabcat Safe & Found

Tabcat Safe & Found

Any of my close friends will tell you that my cat Zara has a habit of disappearing (and at the worst possible times too!) so when Tabcat contacted me to review their cat tracker*, how could I say no?

Tabcat Safe & Found

The user guide was really easy to follow and setting up the tracking device was a breeze. The device came with two trackers but you can have up to four trackers in use at the same time which is perfect for people having more than one moggy. The box also contained two splash proof covers for the trackers to protect them from the elements.

Tabcat Safe & Found

I decided to use try both covers on Zara's tracker ye know, depending on her style that day... (ha!) and as you can see she didn't give two hoots about wearing it. The tracker is really light weight so your cat will barely notice it's there.

Tabcat Safe & Found

Soon Zara was off exploring and I could try out the locator device. Unlike other cat trackers, the Tabcat isn't a GPS tracker and instead uses RF technology which has the advantage of being extremely accurate with locating your kitty, up to 2 centimetres away to be precise! It's range is 122 metres which is great for Zara as she's rather territorial and doesn't wander far. The lights on the locating device light up from red to green, green indicating you're on the money and red meaning you're cold. It also makes a noise to determine how near of far you are from finding your feline friend but I personally found that function a little annoying so have opted to mute the noise altogether.

Tabcat Safe & Found

Another great function to this device is it can train you cat to come home! When hitting the locate button on the device, it makes the cat tag beep. The best way to train your cat to know this sound means home time, is to play the beep before you give your cat food, thus associating the noise with food so they should come running. This is something I am still working on with Zara, as initially the beeping freaked her out but she is slowly getting used to the sound and associating it with dinner time!

Tabcat Safe & Found

I'm so pleased we have Tabcat in our household now. We don't have a cat flap in our current home so we have to rely on hearing the cat meow at the door or leaving it open for her which isn't really an option in the depths of winter! Knowing we can easily find her with Tabcat really puts me at ease and thankfully since she has been wearing it we've only had one disappearing act!





Tabcat Safe & Found

At the end of the day, I love to curl up with Zara to give her a bit of fuss knowing that she's safe and found.

Have you tried Tabcat for your kitty?


Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...