The Best Of Dreams and Colour Schemes 2016
Something that I really love doing each December is rounding up the 'best of' my blog from the year just gone by. Weather it be posts I really enjoyed writing, posts that proved popular or just content I'm particularly proud of, it's always nice to look back and re-share content from the year gone by that some of you may have missed, or new readers may never have seen. Hopefully it may even give some of you some inspiration for your own blogs in the new year. So, here's what I've been up to in 2016...
My 2017 Goals
So I won't lie, I've been slacking heavily with my blogging recently. I won't go into excuses, but one post I always really enjoy putting on my blog each December/January time is my goals for the year ahead. I find making a conscious effort to write down my specific hopes for the new year makes me feel a whole lot more accountable to making them happen. I've published my resolutions for the past couple of years and I've been so much better at keeping them for doing so. This is what's on my to do list for 2017...
Why Fall Is The Best Time To Visit NYC
I've been living in New York for over 3 months now, and I've been lucky enough to see the seasons changing from beautiful scorching hot summer days, to crisp cold winter mornings. The wonderful thing about New York is that there's always something going on, no matter the time of year. But the season I've really fallen in love with out here is fall, so here are all the reasons why you should make your next tip to the big apple an autumnal one...
5 Things To Do Alone In NYC
There's no doubt about it, New York is an amazing place to explore with friends and family. I mean, doesn't everybody dream of having their Carry Bradshaw moment, swanning around the streets on Manhattan, hand in hand with their girlfriends? But New York is just as great when explored solo. Having moved to London and then New York City, I've gained some experience (and a soft spot) for getting to know a city companionless! And though of course I've met some wonderful people along the way who I have shared some amazing experiences with, I still enjoy taking the time to enjoy my own company in the city. So here are my favourite things to do alone in NYC...
10 Things I Learnt In My First Year At University
So I found this post while browsing through my drafts. I had almost finished it but clearly forgot all about it and it never got published. Though it's been about four months since I finished my first year at university, I thought it might be nice to put this post out anyway since there's a lot of people just beginning their time at university around about now. So, here's the post that got lost...
Typography Of New York
If you didn't know already, I'm a bit of a geek for typography. 'Helvetica' is potentially my favourite film ever, I believe there's nothing more elegant than a well designed ampersand and I laugh a bit to much at comic sans jokes. I just love type, and New York has it in abundance. There's nothing I love more than seeing type out in the environment, so today I thought I'd share some of the lovely examples that I've photographed while exploring the Big Apple (p.s. don't you just think the above picture sums up life in Britain perfectly?!).
Upstate New York: The Catskills & Woodstock
As much as I love living in Manhattan, it can get a bit overwhelming at times. With over 8 million people rushing around the big city, it can feel impossible to get a bit of peace and quiet. Luckily, there's so much more to New York than just NYC. North of the city you can find vast areas of beautiful rural land, towering mountain peaks and incredible waterfalls. This week, my boyfriend and I ventured out of the Big Apple and into the historic small town of Woodstock in the beautiful Catskill mountains.
7 Things I Learnt In My First 7 Days In NYC
Just less than a year ago, I was sat at my laptop writing this very same post about London. I'm no stranger to moving to a new city, and unlike my best friend Hannaah, whom I am on this great New York City adventure with, I'm no stranger to the USA either. But each city I visit, move to or live in has a very unique dynamic and with that comes an adjustment period. Sure, most big cities have some things in common - noise, lack of personal space and an abundance of McDonalds, but there's always new customs, etiquette and lessons to learn along the way. One year ago I began my post by saying "So here they are, the musings of a northerner stuck down south, week one", so without further ado - here they are, the musings of an english girl stuck in the Big Apple, week one.
33 Things I Want To Do While Living In New York
It feels strange to think that exactly this time last year, I was writing this very same post about moving to London. I wanted to make a sort of 'bucket list' before moving to the Big Smoke, so that I always had something to do and so that I remembered all the great things I had been looking forward to. The list served me very well in my first year living in London, so I thought I'd write a new one for my four months living in the Big Apple! You might notice that a few of the 'big ones' such as the Empire State aren't on my list - that's because I did many of them on my first visit to New York City last summer. That's not to say that I won't be doing them again this time, but I thought I'd save my list mostly for new adventures! So with less than a week to go before I fly away from England, here's what's going to keep me busy until Christmas...
My BIG News: New York, New York
I have some pretty big news to finally spill in this post. It's been in the making for a while now but it hasn't felt like the right time to blog about it since I wanted it to be 100% official before announcing it here (I feel a bit self obsessed using the word "announcing" by the way). But now my flights are booked, I have accommodation and my visa has been approved, I have come to realise that this is actually happening. So, here goes... I'm going to live in New York City!
Burano Island: A Sanctuary Away From Venice
Who doesn't love Venice, right? Perfectly Pinterest-able canals, gondoliers and venetian masks see the floating city pull in 27 million tourists annually - not bad for a city with only 60,000 local residents! Venice has been described as an outdoor museum, since almost everything you see around has some kind of historical, artistic or cultural value. It's no wonder so many people flock to beautiful Venice. But what if you want to get away from the crowds of cruise ship visitors? If you prefer something a little more secluded and untouched, I may have just the thing.
How I Spent My One Day In Milan
I have just returned from my holiday in Italy with my boyfriend, and I had such an amazing trip! If you follow me on Instagram, you will have seen that we stayed mainly at the southern end of Lake Garda, while making day trips to the surrounding areas - and one of these was a whistle stop tour of Milan! I was so looking forward to going to Milan for the first time, as I always fall head over heels in love with Italian cities. Here's what I got up to in the fashion capital...
London Pop-Up: The Magnum Pleasure Store
So, it's been a while hasn't it? I can't really think of just one reason why I haven't been blogging recently, it's more of a combination of things. I'm still working away trying to wrap up my first year of uni while enjoying my last few weeks in London for a little while. I just seem to have been super busy, along with the fact that no ideas I had for my blog felt good enough. I haven't even been reading too many blogs recently either which is so unlike me!
Anyway, today I've decided to just jump right back into it again and what better way to do that than with a food related post, amirite? This is one for any Londoners, visitors of London or ice cream lovers! Magnum are back with their 'Pleasure Store' pop-up this summer, this time located on South Molton Street, close to Bond Street. I moved to London last September, just as Magnum were shutting the doors on their 2015 pop-up in Covent Garden, so I was more than a little bit excited to hear they were opening up again this summer.
My #The100DayProject Picks
For those brave enough to take on #The100DayProject, a third of the challenge is now complete! We're quickly closing in on day 40 and so today I thought I would share the projects that I'm really enjoying following. If you don't know what the 100 day project is, it's basically a creative challenge where an action is repeated every day for 100 days, with the results being shared on Instagram. I really admire everybody I'm about to mention, along with anyone that's keeping up with this demanding challenge!
Dirkon: The Fully Functioning Paper Camera
It's always nice to have a little side project on the go, something creative that you don't have to do for work or study, but something that you want to do. In many ways, I find that this sort of work can often be the most beneficial in aiding creative growth. Today I'm sharing my side project of the moment! And it's this - the seriously adorable Dirkon paper camera.
April As Told By Instagram
Do you ever get those times where you're just feeling your own Instagram? Like you have a good run of photos and you think to yourself "damn girl, I would follow me!". No? Is that just me? Maybe it's because I'm gradually edging closer to the 1000 follower mark, but I've been putting quite a bit of effort into my Instagram lately so I thought I'd tie that in with a little life update for April! Here's what I got up to last month...
10 Things To Do In Your Blogs First Year
I've been blogging for well over a year now, and while that hardly makes me a veteran, I've learnt a lot about what it takes to get your blog off the ground through my own trial and error. Starting with zero views and zero followers is still relatively fresh in my memory so I know how daunting it can feel. There seems to be so many tips and advice posts going around saying what you should and shouldn't do and it can all get a bit overwhelming, so today I've compiled a list of 10 simple and easy to achieve things that I think will get to off to a great start in the blogging world.
Alan Kitching: A Life In Letterpress @ Somerset House
It's been a long time since I wrote up an exhibition visit for my blog, which is odd because I've been going to galleries at an insane rate over the last 6 months! On Monday I visited the 'Pick Me Up: Graphic Arts Festival' at Somerset House, which was wonderful for me as a design student. Running for it's 7th year, Pick Me Up showcases the very best movers and shakers rising up in graphic design and illustration. They have some very inspiring work on show so I'd really recommend spending some time exploring it. This year however, Pick Me Up is also hosting a retrospective exhibition of work by one of my personal design heroes, Alan Kitching. 'Alan Kitching: A Life in Letterpress' features over 100 prints, following Kitching's career from apprentice right the way through to the world-renowned designer he is today.
10 Destinations On My Travel Wish List
I have been very lucky over the past few years travel wise and have managed to tick off quite a few of the destinations on my wish list. I'm still able to tag along with my parents on some of their holidays which my bank account very much welcomes! For me, travel is one of the best things you can spend money on, far better than anything material. Memories will last much longer than anything you can hold in your hand and at the end of the day. I am planning to do a post soon about my favourite past holidays, but for now I wanted to write down the destinations that I'm dreaming about for the future!
My 10 Favourite Instagram Accounts
Instagram is by far my favourite social media platform. It's the one I use the most, the one I put most time into and honestly it's the one that I take way too seriously! I'm very guilty of considering how 'Instagramable' my day/meal/holiday is going to be and I drive my boyfriend nuts with trying to get that perfect little square to share. Today I'm going to share my favourite accounts that I follow, and the ones that I'm sure will be popping straight to the top of my feed when these changes everyone is freaking out about come into effect!
3 Tips On Learning A New Adobe Program From Scratch
For some it's the best thing since sliced bread and for others it's a necessary evil, either way there's no getting around the fact that the Adobe Suite isn't going anywhere in the creative industry. For those of us just starting out as students, it can seem an impossible task to get to grips with programs as complex as Photoshop and with the vast capabilities of After Effects.
To give you a bit of background about my own personal experience, before I started my degree last September, I only had experience with two Adobe programs, Photoshop and Lightroom. My mum is into photography so we have the photographic package at home. I had a decent knowledge of Photoshop but I'd never even laid eyes on programs such as Illustrator, InDesign and After Effects. So far, first year has been a crash course on all of the above and more. There's still programs in the Suite which I have never opened, but with each project that goes by, I learn a little more. Today I'm going to talk about a few things which have helped me when faced with the daunting task of learning a whole new program from scratch.
Nipple Piercing Experience & 1 Week Update
First off, I'm just going to go ahead and apologise for the image on this blog post! Nothing really seemed appropriate so I thought I'd just go with something from my Instagram so yeah, soz about that one. Anyway, onto the point of this post! It's been a long time in the making, but after several months of researching, dithering, mind changing and more researching, I finally had my nipple pierced. It's been over a week now so I thought I'd talk a little bit about my experience and how the early stages of healing are coming along, in case anyone is thinking of getting it done too. Please remember that I am not qualified as a piercer so always follow your piercers advice as they are the experts, not me!
How To Deal With The Death Of A Pet
Last October, our family dog passed away. Losing a pet is always hard, particularly when you've grown up with that animal (I was 7 when we got Tara and almost 20 when she died). It was incredibly upsetting and every pet owner will understand how tough it can be. Since it's been about 6 months now, today I thought I'd write a little post about 'pet grief' and how to deal with it.
Spring 2016 Essential Exhibition Visits
Last year I wrote a post giving the run down of the top UK
exhibitions that were on at the time, and it went down really well (it's
actually still my post popular post I've ever written). Today I'm going to be
doing the same thing for spring 2016! Time to get your diary out again, there's
a brand new wave of exciting exhibitions on their way...
25 Blogs To Read On Your Extra Day
Happy extra leap year day! The 29th of February is pretty cool don't you think? The last time this date came around I was 16 and still in high school, 'planking' was an online phenomenon and according to some the world had mere months to live. It's a pretty nice feeling to think that we have an 'extra day' on our hands. So if you're looking for a great way to spend your bonus 24 hours, I thought I'd share the blogger love as we wave goodbye to the most romantic month of the year. I hope you find something new to read, here are 25 of my favourite blogs right now...
Current Library Loans #1
As I have mentioned before on this blog, I am pretty much a library fanatic. I think libraries are such an undervalued resource today and something we should all make more use of if we can. I'm very lucky to have access to no less than 6 libraries, and I'm constantly checking books in and out and discovering something new. Looking through my library borrowing history is like looking through an archive of my past thoughts and interests, what I was working on at the time and the things that were important to me at some stage. That's why I thought it'd be nice to set up a little series where I share what I currently have loaned out! Maybe you might see something that catches your interest to check out next time you visit your library/Amazon basket! Here's what has a temporary home on my bookshelf right now...
2 Lessons In 2 Decades
So today, I turn 20 years old! A month ago I probably would have begun this post by telling you that I don't feel ready not to be a teenager anymore, that 20 seems old and I need one more guilt free reckless year. But something my tutor said changed my perspective. He reminded me of the fact that I've only NOT been a child for about 4 years of my life. I look like an adult but I don't have the full experience, he on the other hand has spent the majority of his life in an adult mind and body. This got me thinking, I may have lived on this earth for 2 decades now (phrasing it like that is pretty scary don't you think?), but I'm only just beginning as an 'adult'. I'm now thinking of myself as a 4 year old adult rather than a 20 year old person, so instead of listing 20 things my short stint of life has taught me, I thought I'd narrow it down to just 2!
My First Experience With InDesign
One of my blogging goals for this year is to share more of my own work. Originally I created this blog as a space to document my creative journey, and while the content that I write has evolved and broadened, my confidence in publishing what I do as a design student has declined. I think it comes with the territory of being a creative that we only want to share something if we feel as though it is our best. In reality though, it's not always about 'the thing', sometimes it's about getting to the thing, or the mistakes we made on our journey to the thing.
PCOS and Me
So this is a bit different, and easily the most personal post I have ever written. If you follow Nicole's blog Thrifty Vintage Fashion you may have seen last month that she launched a new project called Speak Up (if not, you can read what it's all about here). This week I am guest posting on her blog about my experience being diagnosed with PCOS (or polycystic ovary syndrome), which happened to me late last year.
2016 So Far As Told By Instagram
So January is over for another year - we survived! As we are now into February (and my birthday month!), I thought I'd do a little run down of how my year is going so far as told by the photos I've been sharing on Instagram.
The Good And Bad Of Moving To London
As you may know, last September I moved to London, so I've been living in the Big Smoke for about five months now - where on Earth has that time gone?! Moving away from everything and everyone I know has been the biggest change of my life and there's been a lot of settling in to do! I know there's a lot of people out there considering making the same move, be it for university, a job or just a change. Today I thought I'd discuss how I've found the move with a few pros and cons of upping sticks to England's big city.
No-Photography-Required Blog Post Ideas
Being a blogger in the winter can be a rough old job. The
late sunrises and early sunsets make photography a nightmare. With so many of
us leaving the house when it's dark and coming home in the dark, those light
and airy images of spring and summer feel like a distant memory. But fear not!
Today I have compiled a list of blog post ideas which require no photography
whatsoever, so you don't have to neglect your blog when the light conditions
just aren't going your way.
12 Health Goals For The 12 Months Of 2016
As I mentioned in my 2016 new years resolution post, one of my aims for this year is to look after myself more. I received some difficult heath news towards the end of last year (which I will be talking about in a guest post soon) and so I really want to do all I can to make positive changes for my body. Instead of loading it on myself all at once, I've set out 12 goals for me to work through in the 12 months of 2016. As we all know, as humans it takes us time to form a habit, so I'm hoping that introducing these things gradually throughout the course of 2016 will make me more likely to achieve them and maybe even sustain them for longer.
How To Survive Blue Monday
So tomorrow is 'Blue Monday', supposedly the most miserable day of the entire year. How uplifting! With the holidays out of the way and the consequent lack of cash, short daylight hours, cold weather and failed resolutions, it's not hard to see why the third Monday in January has built itself such a bad reputation. Here are a few ways to make the whole ordeal a bit more bearable...
My 2016 Blogging Goals
2015 was my first full year of blogging, and I feel like this space has come such a long way from what it was just twelve months ago. Aside from making me cringe a little, looking back on my old posts makes me proud when I see how much my content has improved. I'm feeling optimistic about 2016 too, and so I've set myself some blogging goals to help me push it even further...
My 2016 Resolutions
Happy New Year lovely people! I found myself in two minds about whether to write this post or not. Maybe it's because every man and their
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Welcome to Dreams and Colour Schemes! I'm Sophie, a 21 year old design student and paper cut survivor. I am a Mancunian, currently calling London home.
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