It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

Thanks to working two jobs, I haven't had the time this year to make my usual evergreen wreath, nor to go and forage for holly, ivy and other greenery with which to decorate the house. So I was thrilled when Blossoming Gifts got in touch to offer me something from their Christmas range to review. Finally, some festive foliage for my home!

I'd never really thought of using flowers as Christmas decoration; evergreens, yes, but not flowers. But having seen how lovely the Festive Rose & Freesia bouquet looks, I'm a convert. The bouquet is a stunning mix of red roses, scented white freesia, berries and greenery, and it's brought a fantastically festive feel to my kitchen, where it complements my handmade blackboard sign. In fact, I liked this bouquet so much that I've already ordered two more as gifts.

Even better, Blossoming Gifts are offering 33% off any bouquet from the Christmas or main ranges* using the code BGIFT33, and they will deliver before Christmas for all orders placed on or before the 23rd December

* Discount not available on the Flowers by Post range.

Disclosure: I was sent a bouquet from Blossoming Gifts in exchange for an honest review but all opinions are my own.

A Festive Miscellany

Lacking the time to put together any new Christmas-themed posts, I thought that instead I'd round-up a few from past years.

I adore the festive season with a love that endures despite the commercialisation, the endless sound of Noddy Holder screaming, "It's Christmas", the crowded and frantic supermarket aisles, and that creepy Elf On A Shelf popping up on my Instagram feed. To combat all of that, over the past few years I've tried to concentrate my energies into homemade decorations and gifts, a few of which feature here, as well as low-key traditions that are meaningful to me and my loved ones.

Last November I wrote about how to have a conscious Christmas: "When I talk about a 'conscious Christmas', I mean one which is conscious of social justice and the environment, conscious of the things that matter in our lives - family, friends, simple living - rather than getting into debt," and there's also a how-to about making your own evergreen wreath.

In December of 2014, I shared some simple festive home updates: from embroidery to utilising Christmas carol sheet music. As I said in the post, "If there's a flat surface, I will cover it with fairy lights and greenery. Stand still for too long in December and I might just hang a bauble on you."

Looking for some quick Christmas makes? Teacup candles are a doddle to make and look fantastic. Or for an edible treat, spiced gingerbread cookies are just the thing (and they're vegan, too).

Finally, it might be a bit late in the season (honestly, how is it already a week into December?), but in 2012 I shared my tips for getting organised at Christmas.

Life Lately

Life lately has been busy. I'm almost at the end of the longest school term of the year, during which I've also been working 15 hours a week in my new job at The Willoughby Book Club on top of my usual teaching, planning and marking. And, of course, it's a hectic time of year anyway. So yeah, busy...

I'm feeling pretty festive, especially as we bedecked the house and put our tree up this weekend. But as well as festive, I'm also feeling exhausted and worn out and not a little grumpy. Poor Thomas, who bears the brunt of my irritability and mood swings, has found me crying from tiredness on more than one occasion.

I keep telling myself it's not for much longer, but that in itself is terrifying. It feels completely bizarre that two weeks from now, I won't be a teacher anymore. Over a decade of my life has been spent at this school and leaving is going to be extremely emotional. I finally told my classes this morning and it was awful: they were devastated and although in one sense it's nice to feel needed, I also felt so guilty about abandoning them.

And then there's the money issue... I've been starting to panic about the financial implications of my decision and am spending a lot of time faffing with spreadsheets and redoing our budget, trying to figure out just how skint we're going to be come the new year. So yeah, I guess you could say I'm stressed at the moment!

But before this becomes one long whinge, let me tell you about the good stuff.

Thomas and I have been making a real effort to have a date at least once a week: from Christmas markets, to mulled cider in our favorite pub, to chilling out together with pizza and Home Alone, it's something that's been keeping me sane.

And one really exciting element of my new job is that I'm now managing the Social Media for Willoughby. Yep, I literally get paid to look at books and mess about on Instagram: how perfect?! I'm thoroughly enjoying the challenge of developing that side of the business and it makes for some nice variation in my day. I can't wait to be working there almost-full time, instead of fitting in the hours where I can.

And, as befits the darker nights and my utter inability to get up off my sofa, I've been spending a lot of time hunkered under blankets reading. I devoured the new Rainbow Rowell book last week (highly recommended, even for those - me included - who hated the Simon Snow sections of Fangirl) and have just started Yuki Chan In Bronte Country, which has one of the most beautiful cover designs I've ever seen.

So that's my life lately. What have you been up to recently?

The Buyer's Archive: October & November

Earlier this year, Elise started a series called The Buyer's Archive as a way to track her purchases from year to year and figure out which items had been worth it, and which had already found their way to the charity bag (Donna and Steff are also now taking part in the series). As reducing my spending is always a goal, I decided to give it a go too.

This time around I've combined two months because amazingly, apart from the necklace (which would have made a paltry Buyer's Archive post), I didn't buy anything clothes-wise in October. We won't mention all the other stuff - gig tickets, CDs, meals out, Christmas presents and train tickets - that I spent my money on.

November was less successful, spending wise. I sold a pile of clothes on eBay at the start of the month, making almost £200. My plan had been to save that and cut my spending to the bone in preparation for the drastic reduction in salary coming up in the new year.

But it didn't really work out like that.

I found myself, instead, spending quite a bit on both things I needed and things I didn't, with the justification that I'd better spend money while I still have it! I never have got the hang of saving...

First, the items that have been on my shopping list:

Black cocoon coat, ASOS £46.40 (thanks to a 20% off code)
I've been in dire need of a smart-ish winter coat for almost two years now. I have a navy duffle coat which is warm and cosy but also has a broken zip  and holes in. But could I find a coat I liked? Could I hell. I've spent the past two winters trying on coat after coat, without finding anything I really wanted. Even this one, I'm unsure about. Bulky winter coats don't flatter the huge-boobed, and this one is designed to be quite loose-fitting (the fact it's a size 12 and still has room to spare shows you just how loose-fitting it is). So I'm not totally sure it's the most flattering coat ever but hey, I'm trying to embrace the 'fuck flattering' mantra.

Black lace dress, H&M £18.74 (with 25% off)
I've wanted a black lace dress for a couple of years and H&M do one pretty much every winter but I invariably can't squeeze my chest into their size 16s. Luckily, they go up to size 18 online and I just happened to have a 25% off code burning a hole in my pocket when this came back into stock briefly, so I pounced on it. Although it's still really tight around the waist, it fits perfectly everywhere else so I'm hanging onto it in the hope it'll stretch out a bit.

Statement necklace, John Lewis £16
Did I really need this? Possibly not. But I've been looking for a gold-coloured, simple, non-blingy statement necklace since at least this time last year, and without any luck whatsoever. So it was very much on my list of things to buy and I was thrilled to find one I liked so much.

Dark green cardigan, H&M £19.99
Ok, so my cardigan collection is ridiculous - up to about 30 at last count - but what I was lacking was both a green cardigan and a longer-line cardigan, so this super-soft H&M number was perfect.

Topshop Leigh jeans, £34.20 (with 10% student discount)

The other essential was a new pair of black skinny jeans: my current pair being now baggy of arse and holey of thigh. I was holding out for a Topshop discount code, but they're pretty rare, and in the end I gave in and ordered a new pair using Thomas's still-working student discount.

Black Peter Pan collar dress, Modcloth $41.24/£27 (with 20% discount code)
I'm more excited about this dress than one should reasonably be about an item of clothing. I've been eyeing it up on Modcloth for months - I mean let's face it, with that collar it's pretty much the perfect Janet dress - but I wasn't sure which size to go for and was wary about the prospect of hefty customs charges. But when an alert landed in my inbox about a 20% discount code, and when I opened the app to be told that it was back in stock that day, I figured it might be fate. And when it appeared on my doormat, with no customs charge, and turned out to fit perfectly, well... it's definitely fate. Me and this dress, together forever.

Peter Pan collar jumper, charity shop £3
I always need jumpers as I find it pretty difficult to find ones that don't give me a boob shelf of doom. so to pick up this M&S jumper in perfect condition, for only £3, was a stroke of luck. It'll be perfect for work now it's colder.

Navy & cream striped top, charity shop £4
I do find that buying variations on my favourite styles is never a bad thing: it means that whatever I buy ends up getting worn, rather than languishing at the back of my wardrobe. So that's my excuse for buying yet another striped top (well, that and I ruined my new-ish H&M top on Friday by spilling a tomato-based stew down the front, leading to a stain not even Vanish could, err, banish).

Which brings my total to... £169.33. I know I say this every month, but I honestly don't think that's too bad for two wardrobe staples plus the other bits, all of which genuinely fill a hole in my wardrobe (shhh, I definitely had a collared dress-shaped hole, I promise).

Finally, sorry for the rubbish quality photographs; it's that time of year when there's never enough natural light, and even when there is, I'm not at home to take advantage of it in photographs!

November Reads

1. The Rest Of Us Just Live Here is based on one of the most interesting concepts I've come across, certainly in YA literature. High school senior Mikey lives in small town America with his ambitious politician mother, alcoholic father, a sister in recovery from an eating disorder, and a best friend who just happens to be part-God. He's only interested in making it to prom and graduation, getting the girl he loves to notice him before she leaves for the summer, and hanging out with best friend Jared. Unfortunately, an invasion by Immortals is messing with these plans. The conceit of the book, which is brilliantly done, is that the Immortals are only bothering indie kids - the same group affected by the battle with the vampires a few years ago (cue some very funny digs at the Twilight franchise), the soul-eating ghosts a decade ago, etc etc - and so remain as a sub-plot dwelt on only briefly at the start of each chapter. As Mikey says, the indie kids "have always got some story going on that they're the heroes of. The rest of us just have to live here, hovering around the edges, left out of it all for the most part. Having said that, the indie kids do die a lot, which must suck." This is easily one of my books of the year: extremely witty, it deals with big issues - the mental health struggles of Mikey and his sister are a huge part of the plot - very well whilst remaining pacy and thrilling. If you read one book from this round-up, it needs to be this one.

2. 21 Proms was one of those YA books that I think are best left to, well, young adults themselves. A collection of short stories about prom, they were (perhaps inevitably, given the subject matter and restricted length) fairly shallow tales, almost none of which gripped my attention. The highlight for me was John Green's story, The Great American Morp, which had something of a great teen movie about it.

3. I'm afraid my love for David Levithan is quickly becoming sullied by one mediocre book after another. Another Day is the sequel to Every Day, which was the story of A, a teenage boy who wakes up every morning in a different body and who falls in love with the girlfriend of the boy in whose body he inhabits for one day. This is the girl - Rhiannon's - side of the story, but because it limits the narrative to exactly the period that was covered in the first book, we don't really learn anything new.

4. A woman is snatched from a Paris street, and Commandant Camille Verhoeven, haunted by the murder of his wife five years ago, is assigned the case. But solving it is going to be more complex than just discovering who her abductor was, and Alex is no ordinary victim. Alex is gory and gripping, packed with satisfying plot twists and very well written. I can well see why it won awards and accolades by the bucketload: very much recommended.

5. When Mr Shaitana, famous for his flamboyant parties, invites a group of detectives - a writer of crime thrillers, the head of Scotland Yard, an MI6 man, and Poirot himself -  to dinner, together with four more guests, he ends up dead. And so the detectives begin to look into the backgrounds of the other guests, about whom Shaitana had dropped hints regarding 'getting away with murder'. Cards On The Table was perfect for a dark autumn night, and marked the debut of one of my favourite Poirot characters, the crime writer Ariadne Oliver, based on Christie herself.

6. The Silent Wife has been compared to Gone Girl but it's nowhere near the quality of that book. Jodie & Todd have been a couple for 20 years when he betrays her with yet another affair. And so she decides to kill him. Written from both points of view in alternating third person present tense chapters, I just couldn't find it in me to care about either character, nor about their eventual fates.

7. I picked up Mystery In White from a secondhand bookshop recently, thinking it would be an appropriate inclusion for a Christmas gift swap parcel, and decided to give it a cheeky read first. A classic Golden Age crime novel with a ghost story element, it made for a nicely seasonal, undemanding read.

8. I've really enjoyed Sloane Crosley's non-fiction essays, so I jumped at the chance to read her first novel, The Clasp*. Three college friends now in their late 20s - Kezia, Nathaniel and Victor - are reunited at the wedding of a classmate, and Victor's encounter with the mother of the groom leads him to become obsessed with a legendary necklace. When, after losing his job, he disappears to search for the necklace, Kezia and Nathaniel team up to look for him. I have to say, The Clasp wasn't really for me; it's written in a self-consciously literary style and the plot took a long time to get going.

9. I read A Place Of Execution years ago and had luckily forgotten quite a bit about the plot. One of Val McDermid's only stand-alone crime novels, it tells the story of young and ambitious detective George Bennett, who one cold night in December 1963 is called to the isolated Derbyshire village of Scarsdale to investigate the disappearance of a young girl. The scenes in the dale are atmospheric and creepy, and it contains one of the very best 'reveals' in modern crime fiction.

10. I actually read Signs For Lost Children on holiday in October, but then forgot about it in my monthly round-up. Sarah Moss writes beautifully, imbuing her characters with real life, and I have adored every single one of her previous books. This, the sequel Bodies Of Light, finds Victorian-era doctor Ally beginning her married life to lighthouse designer Tom with a long period of separation, as she continues her challenging work in a Cornish asylum, where she is disrespected and distrusted by staff thanks to her sex, and her husband goes to Japan for more than a year to complete a commission. The descriptions of both Ally's descent into depression and of Tom's experiences in Japan - where the country is vividly rendered by Moss' use of language - are wonderful but I found it a less engaging read than any of her previous novels.

Photo An Hour: 21st November 2015

You know those days when you wonder why you ever got out of bed? Yeah, yesterday was one of those days. Instead of doing the sensible thing after working four 60+ hour weeks on the trot, and staying at home, I'd taken it upon myself to instead drive to Sheffield for a Plus Size Clothes Swap and to see Rebecca, then head on up to my mum's in Leeds for dinner.

Unfortunately, the day had other plans for me. And as a result, I did a pretty shit job of Photo An Hour, missing a grand total of five hours - oops! I'll have to be better next time. Thanks as always to Jane and Louisa for organising.

9.30am
I woke up late (I'm so tired at the moment: working two jobs will do that, I guess) and it was freezing cold in the house so we lit the wood-burner.

10.30am
A read of the paper (very depressing, do not recommend) and toast for breakfast.

11.30am
Trying on a new dress, which I mostly love but which has a very tight and weirdly fitting waistband. Instagram and Twitter both say keep, but I'm still a bit undecided.

12.30pm
Deciding on a book to take with me to my mum's.

1.30pm
In the car, so no photograph.

2.30pm
Still in the car, no photograph. Around this time I was snarled up near Meadowhall, where it took me an hour to travel less than 3 miles.

3.30pm
Still in the car, having missed the clothes swap which was the entire point of my journey north. Feeling pretty annoyed with myself, I pressed on up the M1 and a few miles out of Sheffield my bloody hubcap flew off (luckily while I was pulling onto the hard shoulder, having been alerted that something was wrong by another driver).

4.30pm
Finally at my mum's! By this time I was in an extremely bad mood so a cup of tea was sorely needed.
I'd made an error choosing this book, though, I don't think Pratchett's for me.

5.30pm
Poking round in the fridge for something to eat. My mum and step-mum use their Scrabble fridge magnets to spell out key events each month (no idea who Clive and Jean are though).

6.30pm
Fitting in a little bit of blogging before dinner.

7.30pm
No photo as we were engrossed in Strictly.

8.30pm
No photo as I was busy scoffing cheese and biscuits and laughing uproariously with my mum and step-mum. My grump was over by now, and I really enjoyed my evening with them.

9.30pm
Heading to bed soon, but first time to read. I'm so glad I thought to pack my Kindle as well as a book, as I've already given up on The Hogfather.

When Outfit Photos Go Wrong II: Revenge Of The Camera

Outfit photography lesson 1: Beware the wind

Last year I wrote about how bad outfit photos had conquered my fear of cameras and I had cause to think about this again recently. My brother got married and, during the rehearsal on Friday evening, Thomas was roaming round with a camera snapping off shots.

Inevitably, I looked absolutely awful in every one: slouching shoulders, greasy hair, scrunched up face, boobs looking - as always - ridiculously disproportionate to the rest of my body. A couple of years ago I'd have had a breakdown after seeing them. I'd certainly have cried and demanded they were deleted, proceeding to spend the whole weekend in a deep funk, convinced I constantly looked that terrible. I'd most likely have refused to be photographed at the wedding.

But instead, I shrugged it off. So there were some bad photos of me? So what? I'd been driving for three hours, was wearing jeans and a t-shirt, and the photographer was snapping candid shots. No wonder I looked a mess.

And at the wedding, I happily posed for photos: I had a handsome man on my arm and an outfit both classy and comfortable. Why would I refuse?

It's entirely thanks to photographing my outfits for this blog that my attitude has taken such a 180 (well, that and the aforementioned handsome man, it being hard to really hate your appearance when someone you love and admire tells you you look beautiful).

I've learnt that it's entirely possible to look completely unlike yourself in a photo: a shutter clicked at the wrong moment and I look utterly ridiculous; a moment later, radiant. The more photographs of me that are taken, the more forgiving I can be of the terrible ones.

So now seemed like a good time to release into the world the next batch of outfit photo outtakes, of which I have many. Particularly because, in the absence of a dry weekend in which to take photographs, I haven't managed to do an actual outfit post in months.

1. When I'm nervous, I move my hands a lot: as a result, every batch of outfit photos includes numerous ones of me with blurry limbs. This also features the dreaded double chin.

2. Thomas had probably just told me a terrible joke.

 1. Don't know what to do when you're posing? Me either, but I can tell you that awkwardly messing with your belt whilst talking constantly is never a good idea. 2. If I remember rightly, I was looking at a cat when this was taken: how that's made me look like a zombie, I don't know.

 And what do you do with your hands? Maybe pretending to slam-dunk a basketball wasn't the best idea. I know, I'll cup my boobs instead, that'll work.

And the ever-present eye problem. I always close my eyes in photos, but perhaps that's the better option if my only other one is to stare maniacally.

Gift Ideas For The Book Lover In Your Life

What do you mean, it's too early to start thinking about Christmas shopping? I've been picking up bits since January, keeping my gift spreadsheet updated all the while. But I'll accept that not everyone is as organised/weird/anal as me and you might only just be starting to think about gift buying.

Now, I'm not one for beauty gift sets, luxurious make-up palettes or sparkly jewellery. What I really want at Christmas is things that remind me of my greatest passion in life: reading. And if you, too, have a book lover for whom you need to buy a present, how about one of these ideas?

Clockwise from top left:

1. It breaks my heart that a similarly minimalist poster isn't available for Austen's far superior novel, Persuasion, but this Pride & Prejudice print from Etsy will still look lovely gracing the wall.

2. The Literary Gift Company is the obvious starting point when buying for a book lover and this cushion with a quote from Borges, on the topic of libraries, would be perfect to adorn any literary home.

3. Happen to know an opinionated, height-challenged lover of Shakespeare (*cough* me! *cough*)? Then this book page print from Etsy will be just the ticket.

4. I know I'm not the only book lover with a borderline fetish for list-making. Featuring beautifully illutstrated pages inviting the owner to list everything from their favourite dystopias to their favourite childhood reads, this Literary Listography would be the perfect gift for anyone with a librarian-like desire for order in their reading life.

5. Obviously I'm slightly biased here (I do work for them, after all), but I think the Willoughby Book Company provide the perfect solution for the readers in your life. We offer a range of bespoke subscriptions, starting at £29.99 for a 3 month package, and your giftee will then receive a carefully chosen (by me!), beautifully wrapped book at the start of every month. We're also offering 15% off everything in the run up to Christmas - just enter the code WBC15 at checkout.

6. I'm a little obsessed with badges and brooches at the moment, and Etsy is a treasure trove of book-related pins to choose from. My very favourite might be this Drink Tea & Read Books wooden brooch, with the literary owl a close second.

Autumn In Norfolk

A trip to Norfolk seems to be becoming an autumn tradition for us. Last October we spent a long weekend in Wells-next-the-Sea and a couple of weeks ago we again headed down the A47 for five days in Little Walshingham. Having just a few days off during half term before starting my new job, and with Thomas having gone straight from his PhD to a new role at the university, high on the list of our priorities was to relax.

Our cottage in Little Walsingham was perfect for the job: with no WiFi or 3G signal, we had to abandon our phones and social media addictions and just... chill. We went for long walks, explored ancient ruins, picked blackberries, met friends, played board games. Most of all, we ate a lot of food, drank a lot of tea, had many pints of local cider, read quietly in front of the fire, and slept a great deal.

Sheringham was a nice place for an afternoon's wander, a classic seaside town where it was practically obligatory to eat chips on the seafront, despite the chilly wind.

Walsingham itself is a fascinating place to visit. The village is tiny, a maze of cramped lanes lined with half-timbered Tudor buildings and traditional brick and flint cottages. A site of pilgrimage since 1061, Walsingham Abbey was destroyed in the Reformation but pilgrimages were resumed in the early 20th century and it's now a major site of pilgrimage for both Anglicans and Catholics. It was quite an experience to sit in the pub one evening (the amazing Black Lion - do visit if you're ever in the area) and listen to a table full of robe-clad, beer-drinking priests debating who their favourite pope was. It was rather like an episode of Father Ted writ large, all the more so when the 'mean girl' priest started taking the piss out of a colleague for the speed of his Mass. Thomas and I decided that a trip to Little Walsingham is the priest equivalent of Ibiza; at least, there certainly seemed to be a lot of late-night drinking going on.

The Abbey grounds are now open to the public as a large park. The ruins, although there's not much left of them, are quite spectacular and we met the sweetest cat in the adjoining woodland, with whom we of course had to make friends. The glorious sunshine on our final day there brought the early autumn colours to life, the perfect weather for a long country walk.

Our few days in Norfolk were the perfect tonic and I've returned refreshed and ready for the challenges of this half term. Little Walsingham was just right for us, too. Quiet, peaceful, and away from the bustle of North Norfolk's seaside resorts, I'd heartily recommend it if you ever decide to visit the area.