Edinburgh 2015

My final summer adventure consisted of a rather complicated train journey up to Edinburgh to check out the Fringe Festival and simply explore. I was accompanied by my friend Maddie which was awesome as she lives in Oxford and we don't get to see each other very often.
We pre-booked 2 festival events and decided we would spend the rest walking around, eating and soaking up the atmosphere.

Another lifestyle post, far too long with far too many photos however I wanted to include our itinery simply for my future recollection.
1) We walked around Edinburgh in the rain looking for a cafe, ending up in the New Town, far too hungry.
2) Ate cake and drank 'boutique' tea at Eteaket where the tea was unusual but delicious, the interior cool and minimal and the cakes, expensive, a little too sweet and tasting slightly of the plastic dome-sorry I am a cake critic.
3) Walked through the New Town to George Street to see a photography exhibition-good but the photos were a little too small
4) Wandered round, popped into Zara (heavenly) and explored
5) Walked to George Square-fantastic food stalls, an amazing vibe and very photogenic.
6) Watched Best of The Fest which was amusing, horrifying (due to audience participation), and good  fun then ate the lunch we bought before from a Thai stall.
7) Went in the wackiest photobooth in an old caravan with mad props
8) Got expensive (it is a Capital city, what did I expect?) drinks from Peters Yard, a very suave Swedish cafe, minimalistic and all. I drank my 3rd coffee of the day-I don't normally drink coffee.
9) Went to the Fruitmarket Art Gallery by the station, the exhibition was awesome, kind of derelict and cumbersome but in a very beautiful, calming way-if that is possible. They also have a very good book shop.
10) Went to H&M because it is my new obsession then realised we were late and sprinted to the Assembly hall
11) Watched Traces which was AMAZING-kind of an amalgamation of acrobatics, dance, circus all in a modern, dark, edgy show-it was brilliant and well worth the slightly pricier ticket.
12) Bought food from Sainsbury then ran up the mound to watch the sun set and jumped on a bloody busy train back home.

Tips for first time Fringe Festival go-ers (like me)
- pack an umbrella/coat-its so unpredictable
- don't get overwhelmed by the fringe website-its manic, just pick a small selection of things you want to see
- don't over book-2-3 shows is more than enough for one day, otherwise it becomes hectic and exhausting
- Royal Mile is awesome during festival time, in a sort of tacky, touristy way-be sure to walk up it

Once again I have written too much but it feels wondrous to be back at my key board typing, after failing my 'summer blogging goals'.
Have you been to Edinburgh festival?
Katie x
Currently: Listening: Still in love with Tom Odell//Reading: Dorian Gray//Loving: Nectarines//Lusting: a tan and some jewelry.

Finding peace

Expectations create disappointment.
This is a phrase that I begrudgingly felt sort of defined my summer, through lack of planning, time, people, motivation, I reached August 7th feeling little content at the fulfillment of my 12 week holiday that was deemed to be the "best 12 weeks of my life".

It, along with a fear of Winter, Exam Results, growing up and expectations, had been getting me down for a while, feeling as though I had wasted my last chance at complete freedom and just hadn't made the most out of it.
I then found myself on the top of a hill in the wilderness of Northumberland with my closest friends as the sun melted away behind the expanse of rolling fields and my mind silenced.
It was after a weekend spent camping, eight 16 year-olds left to our own devices, doing things we all loved, getting 'back to basics'; collecting, firewood, walking, listening to music, chatting, laughing, eating barely-cooked food, taking photos. The boys had gone home and just the 4 girls remained.
We sat as the sun disappeared knowing that our two other friends were making a fire and cooking us supper because they knew how much we wanted to see the sun set.
"I feel so at peace" Hannah said to me.
And I realised that, in that moment, despite the irrationality that gnaws away at me daily, there was no where else in the world I would rather be.
I learned the importance of friendship; people who know you inside out, cook for you because they want you to see a sunset, lie in a cold tent until too late discussing our futility and don't care if you haven't showered in 4 days.
I also learned the importance of getting away, escaping the city, slowing the pace of life, living outdoors because I truly believe that is where we belong.
And finally, I learned the necessity of finding peace, with yourself and your surroundings. That the uncompromising hatred and pressure one places on themselves is destroying; that to live in the moment is the greatest place to be.
I, less than 2 days after returning, no longer adopt this golden peace but at least I know where to find it.
Where do you find peace?
Katie x

Currently: Listening: Glass Animals--Noah and the Whale--having a bit of a Hozier throwback (to last year haha)//Reading: The Picture of Dorian Gray--The Storied Life Of A.J Fikry//Loving: Going to the park in the evening//Lusting: Some new clothes// Wishing: The summer would never end

New Design

I have been meaning to change my blog design for a substantial amount of time but I got caught up with school then lost in the excitement of summer. I found myself a few spare days this week and decided to trial out some designs, came up with one I liked and decided to go for it.
For any of those who may be wondering, I purchased the basic layout on Etsy from this shop (its the Eze 2) as they are very good value compared to many others I have seen and offer a wide range of designs. I found it easy to install after some initial major panics and it didn't take long to get it how I wanted after a little assistance.

I then created my header myself and altered the colours, fonts etc of the layout to get it just how I wanted it, introducing some additional features such as the Instagram Follow me.
Blog headers are surprisingly easy to create and I would definitely recommend purchasing a cheaper more simple layout if you are confident with designing a header as buying a premade or custom made template can be jolly pricey.
There are also plenty of bloggers who are wiling to create headers for free (for example: Alice), I would say its just a case of looking around to see what can be found.
What do you think of my new layout?
Katie x