.

http://pixabay.com/?ref=pexels Today is Wednesday, the 268th of April. Or at least it feels like it... We are coming into the fifth week of lockdown now, and thus far I haven't attempted to cut my own or anyone else's hair, I haven't baked banana or sourdough bread. I have been baking though, mainly brownies, chocolate chip cookies, cheese cake and rice crispy buns in an effort to get rid of all the Easter chocolate!  I binged The Tiger King series on Netflix in a matter of hours, I mean if you haven't watched it are you even quarantining?! There is honestly nothing more compelling than watching a polygamous gay hillbilly zoo owner in an all out war with a woman, who may or may not have fed her husband to a tiger...  This whole experience really has been an emotional roller coaster. Most days it's grand, I keep myself busy by planning out blogs, baking, getting out for a walk in the evenings or sitting out in the garden with a book when the we...

https://instagram.com/cottonbro/ I have spent the majority of this lockdown rewarding myself for being an upstanding citizen and not leaving the house, by buying the entire contents of Depop... " I didn't leave the house today, I deserve that dress... " " I washed my hands and that blouse is only €6... " " I got out of bed today. * clicks add to cart* You get my point. Founded in 2011, Depop is an app where you can buy and sell your pre-loved clothes and much more! Depop helps creates a circular economy in the fashion industry by regenerating the clothes we wear by passing them on to someone else. On average our clothes get between seven to ten wears before we consider them old and throw them out. Remember that floral summer dress you just had to have, you wore it out to a couple of barbecues and a boozy brunch with the girls, now it's in a creased mess at the back of your wardrobe, destined to be thrown out in your next wardrobe clea...

Artem Beliaikin -  https://www.shutterstock.com Thrift /second hand/charity shopping - whatever you call it! I come from a long line of thrifters, my mam, nanny, and great aunt showed me the ropes at a young age. In this blog, I want to show you those very same ropes. So you too can say, " thanks hun, Oxfam!" Every saturday morning, I went shopping with my nanny Lolie and great aunt May. We used to comb through every charity shop in Bray. We'd start at the top of the town and work our way down, May and Lolie would scan the rails with military percision, rummage through the bargin bins like a pair of hungry racoons in your trash. I could be found either at the books or the toy boxes searching for toy horses to add to my collection... you know the girl in your class that was obsessed with horses... yeah that was me! After successfully aquiring a new horse, we would do the food shop and pick up my grandads weekly pidgeon magazine, yep that's actually a...

Finally something that isn't about Covid - 19. I thought I'd break up the doom and gloom of the current state of the world with an update on the sustainable wedding of the year ( it definitely isn't!) Plans were full steam ahead this time last month, but unfortunately they have come to a grinding halt... Well the fun stuff has anyway. Every Sunday for a solid month, myself and my mam went to various different wedding fairs, hotel wedding events, anywhere we could get some free prosecco really! We went to the bride of the year show in the RDS at the beginning of the year, we browsed the different venues on offer, ate free cake samples, and watched a bridal cat walk show where we seen some gorgeous dresses! Other Sundays were spent wandering around hotel ballrooms showcasing all the different table settings they can do for our big day, banqueting staff float around with different finger foods and prosecco all of which we accepted without hesitation! On Sunday 2nd Fe...

Okay, this blog is going to be a little serious! This week I want to talk to you about the importance of shopping local, shopping small and shopping online. Now more than ever small businesses need us, they need us to support them any way we can. The big dog businesses are going to come out of this relatively okay, but small local businesses might not, it could take months maybe even years to come back from this! That's why it's so important for us to shop as locally as we can. When I shop, I keep it as local as possible. Whether its clothes shopping, or just grabbing a coffee, I stay in my local town. When clothes shopping, I shop in my local charity shops or my favorite vintage shop  Finders Keepers  . Ruth, the vintage mastermind behind Bray's first vintage shop, is so knowledgeable about vintage clothes and is just an overall gem of a person! I go into her shop for some vintage goods, and stay for chats with Ruth about anything from what we're binging ...

Day 14 I haven't gone mad yet, so that's good! I've been managing pretty well with self isolation thus far, I'm not one for just sitting around and there's only so much Netflix you can watch, so I thought I'd really struggle. But I've kept busy by reading, walking and eating... so much eating. I've also been keeping a routine as best I can, getting up when I normally would, getting dressed and doing my make up. I find it helps a lot but I also embrace the days when I just want to stay in my Pjs. Walking is a big one for me, I love being out in the fresh air, pottering along with my dog or hiking up the Sugar Loaf mountains, which are both on my doorstep. However, I have avoided the mountains, the national parks and beaches lately as so many are just not taking the social distancing guide lines seriously. Glendalough, Devil's Glen, the Wicklow Gap and other popular tourist areas were crammed with people all weekend, food truck queues were packed...

This is not a Covid - 19 blog.. Well, it kind of is. This blog is about what you can do to keep yourself busy while also keeping yourself (and others) safe at home. Unless you've been living under a rock for the past few months or have been in the big brother house in Germany you'll know all about the rapid spread of the Corona virus throughout the world. We have been asked to self isolate and only go out if truly necessary, avoid crowded areas, we've been asked to work from home and some businesses have closed up until further notice. But like I said this blog isn't about all that, it's about how you can keep busy and stay somewhat sane while at home.  If like me, you find yourself feeling extra anxious the past few days, meditation is a great tool to calm your mind and make you feel more at ease! You can find loads of guided meditation videos on Youtube or download a meditation app on your phone, Headspace is one I use quite a bit. Yoga is also great f...