A Breath of Fresh Air

I love a holiday as much as the next person. Nothing is better than switching on your out of office, leaving the work worries at work and just having some time to relax. This Summer I went on two holiday; Cornwall and the Lake District. So I thought I would tell you why sometime, there is nothing better than a UK holiday.

LESS STRESS
I find UK holidays so much less stressful, I think there is something about flying, having a limit on liquids and just making it to the airport on time that makes me a little anxious. For both our UK holidays this Summer we drove, giving us the flexibility to pack however we wanted to pack and leave when we were ready. Flying is exciting as it usually means getting away to somewhere hot, but a road trip with a great playlist and good car snacks can be just as fun!

NO LUGGAGE LIMIT
Travelling by train is a bit of a different story as it then comes down to how much you are able to carry. But if you are travelling by car and you have enough space, you can almost pack as much as you want. This is particularly useful for a UK holiday as unpredictable weather means you'll need a bikini one second and a coat and fleece the next.

THE WEATHER CAN BE A BLESSING IN DISGUISE
I know guaranteed sun is usually the reason most people go abroad, but let me try and put a positive spin on this! In Cornwall, we had a real mixed bag of weather. We had a few boiling days on the beach where we all ended up going a little pink. And a few rainy days going on long walks and wondering around harbour towns. Both were lovely and some of the best memories. UK weather can be frustrating, in The Lakes in rained most of the time, but it didn't stop us from having a great holiday.

HIDDEN GEMS
The UK is beautiful. And if you haven't been to Cornwall or The Lakes I can't recommend it enough. There are some of the most incredible landscapes. In Cornwall I posted a picture of a beach we went to on one of the hottest days, and had all to ourselves; it looked like somewhere in Spain or a Greek Island. But where in Spain or a Greek Island are you going to find a huge beach all to yourselves.

So I hope this inspired you to maybe think about booking your next holiday somewhere in the UK. Next on my bucket list is Edinburgh. In fact, I've never actually been to Scotland! So watch this space...

My Top 5 Holiday Essentials

I got back from my two week holiday to Greek islands Naxos and Paros a few days ago and am still trying to adjust to the fact that it is no longer appropriate to wear a bikini instead of underwear. But just in case anyone else is lucky enough to still have some Summer holidays planned I thought I would share my top 5 holiday essentials.

The Linen Shirt 
I remember reading somewhere that instead of a beach coverup Lucy Williams (ultimate style icon) wears a linen shirt. I am obsessed with how effortless yet chic this looks over a bikini or swimsuit. But I also found that a linen shirt looks great with a pair or shorts or more practically as an extra layer when it gets a bit colder in the evenings. I think I am going to have to say that this is the most essential of all my holiday essentials!

The Large Beach Bag 
I like to pack for the beach like I pack for everything, I overpack. I'll take my camera, phone, hat, sunglasses, an array of different suncreams, a book, an extra bikini, a leat one change of clothes...you get the idea. In my opinion a beach bag should be large enough to fit a beach towel in and still allow plenty of room for all the other beach side essentials listed above.

Eyelash Curlers 
I packed a ridiculous amount of makeup for my holiday only to find that 95% of the time I wasn't wearing any makeup. It was so hot that I would have just sweat it off, but really I just like swimming too much to be faffing with all that. Plus as soon as you get a bit of colour on your cheeks and cute freckles start to appear on your nose, who needs makeup anyway? The one think I did reach for though was my eyelash curlers just to open up my eyes and make it look as though I didn't drink two glasses of wine the night before!

Podcasts 
This holiday I absolutely fell in love with podcasts, and in particular The Food Medic podcast by Dr Hazel Wallace. Don't get me wrong, I do still love books on holiday too, but trying to read in the sunshine is not always easy. Plus it's nice to be able to put some headphones in and shut your eyes. I'm really into health and wellness podcasts at the moment so send me your recommendations!

Insect Repellent 
I learnt my lesson the hard way with this one, as every time that we went out and I forgot to apply my insect repellent I would get eaten alive. It doesn't look great when you have build up a nice even tan, only to then be covered in red lumps and bumps. That's not to mention how itchy and painful some of my bites were, which sometimes lead to awful nights sleep. Yes, applying insect repellent is a pain and stinks, but seriously just do it, and thank me later.

So there you have it, my top 5 holiday essentials and a real mix of style, beauty and life things. I've still got loads of pictures from holidays that I can't wait to share with you, but I'm just unsure of the content that I want to go with them. But if you want to see holiday pictures now then head over to my Instagram at kpenney17 as I have been uploading while I've been away.

Speak soon, xx

Swimsuit of Dreams

I honestly can't remember the last time that I wore a swimsuit previous to this one. I think it was probably about 7 years ago for a PE lesson, so it would have been one of those horrible black ones with the unflattering neckline that go see-through in the wrong places all to quickly! So naturally, with all those awful memories of one piece costumes, the swimsuit to get me to fall back in love with swimsuits needed to be a bit special. And with the florals, the frills and the beautiful back detail, I think I have found the one.

There is a hint of Dolce and Gabbana about the print and something slightly "grannyish" about the costume. Almost so bold, floral and frilly that it really shouldn't work; but it totally does! My brother's exact words were "that is the most hideous thing you have ever worn!". My mum on the other hand loves it so much that she bought a dress in the same print! And I am just obsessed with this swimsuit!

For a girl that lives in neutrals and breton stripes yellow florals are not something I would usually consider. But swimsuits are huge this year and I really wanted to buy into the trend this Summer. I initially started searching online, filtering by the colour black thinking that this would be the most flattering. But they either reminded me way too much of my school days, or they were so revealing and seemed to have even less fabric than a bikini! And then the one time that I forgot to filter my search I came across this little H&M number and knew it was the one.

I'm very fussy when it comes to shopping for swimwear. I find that with such little fabric and so much skin on show there is a fine line between classy and well, not so classy. And when most of my holidays tend to consist of family, I like my swimwear to be family appropriate! And I completely forgot how practical swimsuits are. There are no issues when you are jumping the waves or going down a water slide! Plus, this costume looks amazing with a little pair of denim shorts, something I'd feel comfortable wearing in a cafe after the beach.

Personally I think this beautiful costume is better suited to my previous holiday in Bali! For now though, I am in Cornwall wearing a swimsuit that I will definietly not be swimming in, as I can't even begin to describe how cold the sea is here! But at least it's pretty!

Speak soon xx

 

 

The Summer To Do List

I am a huge fan of making lists. I honestly have a list for everything! At one point I had a list for lists, and that really is when you know you are going crazy! But as lists are such an important part of my life (and keeping it all on track) I thought why not share them on my blog. Starting with a fun one - the Summer to do list!

• Blog More


• Visit Brighton


• Have a Summer cocktail evening


• Bike ride around London


• Have a picnic in the park


• Visit my grandparents


• Arrange to meet an old friend


• Have a huge wardrobe clear out and reorganise


• Swim in the sea


• Have fish and chips on the beach


• Organise a girls night out


• Go surfing


• Start running outside again


• Read more books (and less Daily Mail!)


• Watch Gifted


• Start drawing again


• Take loads of polaroids


• Visit a town/city in the UK I have never been to


• See the new Spiderman film

That's all I can think of at the moment! Although I am going to keep updating this list as and when I think of things, so please feel free to add anymore ideas in the comments below.

Speak soon xx

Bali Photo Diary

It's been almost three weeks since I went to Bali, and I am still dreaming of the sunshine, the exotic fruits and the elephants. So I thought I would do a quick post sharing some of the unseen photos of the most incredible holiday. Hope you enjoy!

Being a tourist exploring the Rice Fields of Bali. Also, that's my camera cover in my back pocket!

The incredible Tegenungan Waterfall.

Sunsets and sunhats.

Can you think of anything better than bumping into a elephant in the street!

My favourite (plus Jack)!

Monkey business.

Being shown around the coffee plantation of the worlds most coffee, the one that's eaten and excreted by a palm civet and then sold in Harrods for about £250!!

And honestly, it really wasn't that special! Definitely not worth the price that Harrods are charging!

Some more beautiful views...

I think my next post will be the two items of clothing that I picked up in Bali, so keep an eye out for that!

Speak soon xx

A Dream Come True

For anyone who knows anything about me they will know that my favourite animal (apart from my dog!) is elephants. I’m obsessed!

I have little elephant statues all over my bedroom, I have a whole folder of funny/cute elephant photos on my phone, I have an elephant ring which I wear everyday and I am constantly being tagged by my closest friends on elephant videos on Facebook. And the strangest thing is that I had never seen an elephant up close, not even at a zoo. It was simply a love from afar, and a dream that one day I would get to see one.

And as you can probably guess from the photos, dreams came true in Bali! I tried to source the most ethical place to visit the elephants and ended up choosing the Elephant Sanctuary in Ubud. We arrived nice and early in the morning so that we missed all the crowds, but also got to see the elephants being washed in the morning. They were everything that I hoped they would be; cute, majestic and playful. In particular the little guy in the photo below who was spraying water as if he was trying to wash himself!

Personally I don’t agree with elephant riding, but I did get to get up close to the elephants during feeding time. We fed them and incredible array of fruits and vegetables (they are definietly well looked after!) and got to stroke them.

But the most magical moment was when two of the elephants, one of them just a little baby gave me a cuddle with their trunks! It was just so incredible, you can probably tell from the pure joy on my face! Bali as a holiday has been incredible, yet I think that has been my favourite moment of the whole trip was getting a surprise cuddle from those two elephants. Which has got me thinking that I can’t bare to see such beautiful creatures be harmed or even think about them ever going extinct. I’d really love to get involved in some kind of charity or if there is something that you can buy where the proceeds go to helping save elephants. So if anyone knows anything or has any ideas please let me know in the comments below.

But for now I will leave you with one last adorable pictures, which was pretty hard to choose from the 100+ on my phone!

Speak soon
xx

Bali Bound

I have arrived in Bali, and I can confirm that it is everything that I thought it would be and more. It's beautiful, and hot, and there is so much to do here that I already think I am going to have to come back at some point! But for now, I thought that I would share some quick pictures of the incredible villa that we are staying in.

 

The villa is so open and light and just lovely. We've basically spent the last few days trying to work on a bit of a tan and switching between sunbathing with a good book and cooling off in the pool. I am honestly living the dream!

And the most incredible part is that we have an outdoor bathroom. So you can stand in the shower amongst the palms and look up at the moon and the stars in the evening. It's one of the most magical experiences ever.

The only think I would say is that while I am sitting here writing this in the evening, despite being absolutely coated in bug spray I feel a little as though I am being eaten alive! A small price to pay for an incredible holiday.

At the moment I am having way too much fun to have taken any pictures! Not great, but I will try and make more of an effort for the rest of the holiday so that I can let you know what I am up to!

Speak soon xx

Bring on Bali

Thought that I would just touch base to let you know about the incredibly exciting holiday that I am going on...tomorrow! I know! I am literally so excited that I might burst. And the reason I haven't mentioned anything until now is because it is actually a surprise for Jack (my boyfriend)'s dad 50th birthday. And up until now I have been so worried that me and my big mouth/forgetful brain would completely give the game away!

I can't wait to explore the island, swim in the ocean, feel the sun on my skin and chill with a good book. And hopefully see some elephants, my favourite animal ever (minus our dog Kiara!). I'm really against riding them as I think it's cruel, but I can't wait to be able to watch them play, especially if there are some little baby elephants!! So I'm going to spend the rest of this bank holiday evening planning some places that I would love to visit while we are out there. And maybe downloading a new series on Netflix to get me through the 18 hour flight!

 So expect to see me looking like one of the bohemian, tanned goddesses above sometime in the not so distant future! Well...a girl can dream!

Speak soon xx

Some Holiday Pictures

On Friday we finally packed away all of the Christmas decorations and put them back in the loft for the next 11 months or so. I have to say the house looks nowhere near as pretty or cosy! And when since the beginning of January the temperature has really dropped I need to be cosy more than ever! I'm also back at work and while I love work I do miss the holidays, lying in and watching films all afternoon! So while I continue to morn the end of Christmas and the beautiful decorations that come with it I thought that I would look back at a few of the pictures from my holidays.

Christmas in London is always so magical. And I loved the beautiful mistletoe decorations inside Covent Gardens.

On Christmas Eve Eve (is that a thing?!). I wen to the ballet with my mum and sister, which has actually become a bit of a tradition. Matthew Bourne is an incredible choreographer and does modern takes on classic tales and stories. This one as you may have guessed from the photo was Red Shoes. We had such a lovely evening with a meal at Bills before and I can't wait to see what he is doing next.

So sad to have packed away this little guy! Just before Christmas I took a trip up to Manchester to visit all of my uni friends. And of course we went to the famous Manchester Christmas Markets where I spotted this adorable snowman and I couldn't leave him behind!

For most families Christmas Breakfast is just not a thing! However in our house it definitely is! We don't usually have Christmas Lunch/Dinner until about 4ish so I need something to keep me going. We have lots of pastries and yummy thing, including a pork pie (a strange family tradition!). I also love the way we decorated the dining area this year with all white and silver, of course influenced by me.

And we go so all out with decorating the my mum even swaps around the paintings for Wintery Scenes! This one was done by my grandpa which is pretty cool!

Some more little Christmassy touches around the house.

On Boxing Day we went to The Hunt at Chiddingstone House. And before anyone ask they were not hunting real foxes, just following an artificial scent. But it was lovely to get a hot chocolate and see everyone all dressed up. I have also never seen so many post people dressed in tweed in my life, which made for brilliant people watching!

It was the perfect crisp, frosty morning which was followed by a lovely lunch in a pretty local cafe.

Hope that you all also have lovely holidays. I am currently working on a What I Got For Christmas post at the moment which should be going live sometime soon. So keep an eye out for that one! xx

 

What I bought in Cyprus

What I bought in Cyprus

Finally getting around to sharing some of the beautiful things that I bought when I went on holiday in Cyprus. And thought that I would start with my favourite of all!

Cyprus, like a lot of typical holiday destinations has a lot of fake handbags. It's a tricky topic, but not really something I believe in. There were shops and shops of fake Mulberry's and Celine's and just about every iconic designer handbag that you could ever imagine! I didn't want something fake but I did want a beautiful leather handbag. And this was the one that I fell in love with.

It was the colour that I initially fell in love with, that beautiful emerald green on a mottled leather. But the shape of the bag is lovely, lots of room inside with so many different pockets and compartments. It is actually a copy of a Michael Kors handbag, although I will probably wear it with this side showing just as much! I just love this. It's perfect for everyday, yet smart enough to be something a bit special.

Something that I have been so desperate to add to my wardrobe for Autumn is a printed silk scarf. Something really versatile that I can drape over my shoulders, use as a belt, tie around my neck, or even attach to my handbag like I've seen lots of people doing at the moment. Again this is a fake designer good, Versace apparently! But again I didn't buy this as a designer rip off. I bought this because I loved the colours an the print and knew that this would be a great addition to my wardrobe. Also the branding isn't obvious which I love.

I am completely obsessed with velvet at the moment, and it really is everywhere right now. And no matter what price point you are shopping at, be it £20, £200 or more, velvet is always luxurious. I wasn't really expecting to find any clothing in Cyprus (not sure why), but they had some really nice shops. My sister and I found this amazing shop at the airport, which reminded me so much of Zara. And just like Zara I wanted everything! But this skirt is just a dream. Midi, pleated, velvet and silver, can you get more Christmassy?! It's so beautiful and for the equivalent of about £40 a total bargain. Think about wearing this little number to the ASOS Christmas Party!

And to go with the silver skirt I got this little black lace cami, something I know will be a great addition to my wardrobe. I loved the lace insert on this top, a little detail that really adds something extra. I also love these two as an outfit together.

Another clothing favourite, this gorgeous leopard print blouse. This was from a little shop in the town that reminded me of New Look. For about £12 I can't believe how lovely this is. It's so flattering with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of black skinny jeans and heeled boots. Also something so easy to thrown on for work in the morning!

On the morning of our very last day in Cyprus I fell in love with another handbag. This is a beautiful leather shopper style bag, and apparently a Chloe copy. What really drew me to this bag was the fact the there is no big obvious branding on the front of the bag. In fact the only branding is a little logo on the side of the bag. I love the colours and the simple design of this bag and again it is nice and roomy. It is also really leather which is lovely. Also I have worn this a few times and because of the straps it is one that I mostly wear on the nook of my arm. But already the colour of my jeans has started to rub off on the back of the bag, which is really annoying.

And finally a little pair of earrings from a really lovely, but quite expensive shop in the town. I have seen quite a lot of these tassel earring and I love them, especially as they would be great for dressing up a simple outfit for Christmas drinks. These are a simple and fairly delicate pair and I think these would look lovely with the silver skirt and black cami as a more dressy outfit. Or just with a white blouse and black jeans for something a little more casual.

So I hope that you enjoyed this post and seeing everything that I bought from Cyprus. Hope you are all well.

Speak soon xx

 

 

Cyprus Snaps

Cyprus Snaps

It been a week now since I got back from Cyprus and the weather back home couldn't be more different! It's cold and dark, sometimes even a little frosty in the morning. And we are at that stage in the year when it's dark when I wake up and dark again by the time I get home - I can actually go days without seeing any sunshine! So while I am snuggled up in a big jumper with a cup of tea and heading out to watch some fireworks in a couple of hours I thought I would share some of my favourite holiday snaps.

Dipping my toes into the freezing cold swimming pool at our villa! I ended up using this more as a pluge pool as it was too cold to do more than a length in!

Channeling some bohemian vibes. This top actually used to belong to my mum, but it has the beautiful lace up details and lovely floaty sleeves so I've sort of stolen it!

Sandy feet and salty hair.

There is something about a palm tree against a blue sky that is just so aesthetically pleasing.

On one of my favourite days we took a road trip along the coastline of Northern Cyprus. The views were amazing, rocky mountains on one side and turquoise seas the other. We spent the day stopping off at beaches and cafe and roman ruins.

Exploring the previously mentioned Roman Ruins.

I think it's amazing how well these have lasted considering people are just able to walk through and all over then.

And a cute little donkey that was standing in the middle of the road and blocking our way on the road trip!

Really missing the sunshine after looking at all of these pictures again!

Speak soon xx

Cyprus

Cyprus

Yesterday I arrived in Cyprus with my family after a tiring two part night flight. It’s only a couple of weeks since I was in the South of France (feeling like a bit of a jet-setter at the moment!). But I really feel like I need this holiday to spend some time with my family and hopefully get a bit of sun!

The villa we are staying in is beautiful. Up near the mountains of Northern Cyprus, but looking out on to the bright blue sea and a short drive from the beach. There is a large pool at the front looking on to the panoramic view and a couple of sun beds and some floats for getting that all important glow! However…there is no wifi! A blogger/social media obsessives worst nightmare!

I’m torn. In a way I’m grateful, I know it will do me the world of good to have a break from my phone an laptop. To give my eyes a rest from staring at a screen and my thumb a rest from scrolling! Yet part of me is totally dying! I can’t text, call or message anyone with out it costing me the earth! I can’t make people jealous on Instagram and Snapchat with beautiful holiday pictures. I won’t even be able to watch MiC on Monday!

But I am still trying to blog. One thing that I really wanted to use this time for on holiday was to catch up with my blog and get back into posting more frequently. It’s something I have spoken a lot about recently. About how I’m not really happy with my blog and how I am struggling to find the time to put as much work into it as I would like. A lot of the bloggers that I look up to are people that blog for a living. So it’s hard to manage the expectations of what I can do alongside a full-time job and a three hour commute each day!

Either way, I’m still working on it. It’s not that I have writers block, there is actually so much stuff that I would like to share. I probably have nearly 20 lots of post photos ready but still not found the time to write them all.

So this holiday, while I can’t promise that I will be posting a whole lot due to my little issue that is lack of internet. I can say that I am ready to get back into writing, to spilling my thoughts and feelings and inspiration out onto a page.

So I hope that you are all well and I look forward to writing for you again!

Speak soon xx