Delish

Sometimes breakfast is my favourite meal of the day. Today we went here to celebrate my brother’s amazing LC results. Have I told you before that he’s the best?!


PS: Thanks to my lovely boyfriend who left for work the other morning after whispering that he left me this pain au chocolat hidden in the kitchen for me! 

day dates are for oldies (but we don’t care)

 Before Richard left for scout camp (he’s home now! and still alive! yay!) we had, hands down, the best date we’ve gone on in ages. We drove towards the sea and headed up Killiney hill before wandering down to White Rock where we saw hundreds of jellyfish (the non-stinging kind) washed ashore and in the sea. It was crazy! Then as we walked back up over the hill the clouds started to creep in closer. They had gotten dark and looked fit to burst. We were minutes from the car when the heavens opened and set about drowning everyone out and about without a coat (or tights!). We ran through the mud and made it before we were drenched. We got to Richard’s house a few minutes later driving on dry roads; the shower, it turned out, had been very, very local. After hanging out for a little while watching the dog try and eat the hose we went down to Dun Laoghaire Market for falafel wraps, an impromptu classic car show and sweet crepes with a side of frozen yogurt for dessert. We were full and warm and happy. The best way to be if you ask me.

the end

My three week stint as a domestic goddess (haha!) is coming to a close and I could not be happier. I am, quite literally, exhausted. Trying to juggle looking after a tiny baby in the morning, cook clean and do the washing in someone else’s house in the afternoon and then come home and make dinner for my boys in the evening (not to mention keeping the washing under control) seriously takes it’s toll after a while. Thank god for that dude up there, he is, hands down, the best cleaner in the world. If it wasn’t for him my mother would be returning to a bomb shell tomorrow morning instead of a somewhat clean and tidy (but utterly lived in) home. He hasn’t complained once about it either. So, thank you Richard, for cleaning up after us every night (And thank you Eoin for not picking up after yourself one little bit!).

All of that said it was really lovely to be independent for a while. It was cool to leave my bowl there knowing that no one was going to give out to me if I didn’t wash it until the next day, or spend hours making dinner just how I wanted it. It was also nice having a little job for a bit…although it made working on any freelance jobs virtually impossible which sucked. It was cool to run to the shops to get that thing I forgot for the dinner or just eat chickpeas out of the tin for lunch if I didn’t feel like running.

It was really really nice to live with Richard, to go to sleep to the sound of him breathing and eat breakfast together in the morning before heading to our respective jobs. We got on really well, but, if anything, spent less time together than normal because we were both so busy. A lot of the days I minded Emily in the morning, did my mum’s job in the evening and then babysat that night…it was great, and I’ve saved a plenty, but I certainly couldn’t do three jobs like that all summer long!

It gave me great hope for a day when we do live together, hopefully. (I can’t wait!)



PS I should really go easier on my mum, she does so much!

logic

My first day of summer consisted of pyjamas and lots of television. I was hungover and exhausted.

The second day was better (but cold). I sat less and moved a little more. Had a driving lesson, met a friend for coffee, did the shopping with my mum…nothing special but sometimes mundane is nice. Especially when there’s no project or assignment hanging over your head.

The third was even better, it involved: a drive, a hike, more driving, more driving, cooking and then the most delicious roast dinner. Driving is still a novelty (when it’s not frustrating/stressful/difficult/scary anyway).

Today, however, was ace. The sun shone. Bright and high and, brace yourselves, warm. I spend two and a half hours weeding the garden…which sounds awful, but was totally lovely (despite the nettle stings and scratches). This week I am going to plant vegetables…lots and lots of vegetables and I can’t wait! Then I went to work which wasn’t so fun but I got to spend a lot of it outside so I won’t complain. Nice weather does something magical doesn’t it? It was as if there was a good mood in the air. Rumour has it it’s going to last all week!

By this logic, tomorrow will be even better won’t it?



photo of the Dublin/Wicklow coastline by Richard

today! today!

Happy Birthday to my most favourite boy in the whole wide world. You are the BEST!
I hope 21 is a great year. I love you, xoxo

It’s raining. A lot. Eoin, Lily and I are cooped up inside playing a ridiculously addictive game and listening to music. Lily is dream barking in her sleep, much to our amusement.
I have mixed feelings for the rain. Sometimes it’s lovely to be cosied up inside when the weather is bad but other times it’s more of a chore, the house feels too small and too full…usually in this case a desperation for fresh air pushes me out with the dog and my raincoat. I don’t know where I stand yet today. How do you feel about rainy days?

photos of R & L from sunnier times. x

puppy

Richard's family got a new puppy.

She has no name yet (and she'll probably grow up to be an evil half jack russell) but she's pretty cute.

PS. Lily's worried that Richard's going to start cheating on her.

yesterday

Richard “I don't really like Valentine's day. Can we just have Clío and Richard day?”

Me “OK” 

We didn't do anything special, I made Richard a disaster-pie (as in it was kind of a disaster) and he got me flowers, a city guide to Berlin AND a t-shirt with Elmo on it. Then we all got Thai food and watched the proposal special of Don't Tell the Bride  followed by Suits.

(It’s not every day where one gets flowers like that though!)

I'm not a big fan of Valentine's day. 

I'm a BIG fan of love. Obviously.

I don't go out for all that chocolate and teddy bears and ridiculously priced restaurants etc. 

But I believe in saying 'I love you'. 

A Lot.

On the 14th and on any other day for that matter.

{What better way to say I love you than in a lovely card?}

Do you send Valentine's cards? 

Or any other cards for that matter?

I'd love to know :)

P.S Valentines cards available here AND here AND here AND also here! Or direct from me xx

National Craft Fair

I survived...

with the help of my wonderful mum, my lovely boyfriend and friends Fiona and Hannah.

I love you guys!

It was a really challenging, interesting, worthy, exciting, exhausting and fun experience. 

I met lots of lovely people* who loved my cards and even got some commissions which is more than I was expecting and SO flattering!

*and one strange lady who thought my 'we wish you a beary christmas card' said 'beery' and was encouraging people to drink beer... even though there's bears on it, but she bought them anyway!

I finally got around to using that rolleiflex a couple of weeks ago. It's beyond uneconomical with film and processing being pretty pricey but I couldn't get over the results. I have NEVER had a first roll turn out so well. It's way more manual than the AE-1 (ie totally manual basically) but I actually found it easier to just aperture/exposure settings without the light metre. I think I rely to heavily on that with the AE-1. It also probably helped that we had some really bright clear days to shoot on (unlike yesterday!)

 

(that's Lauri... he sits beside me in college!)

happiness is

elmo.



Oh and when your boyfriend cuts out twenty four eight by eight centimetre squares when you ask without even batting an eyelid! 

That's pretty nice too :)

fwb

I went on a date to see Friends with Benefits last night. Despite my preconceptions (Justin Timberlake can't act) it was actually hilarious. So hilarious. And real-apart from the fact that the main characters are total FOXES and live in incredible apartments that is- well as real as Hollywood can get.

ALSO it's set in New York City and if I didn't have a panging desire to go there before (haha I totally did) I certainly do now. I've only been there really in the cold, icy, winter so it would really be amazing to visit when it's hot. I was hoping to, you know, casually, win the lotto and fly out to visit my sister before she left... but she's in Canada now, so maybe next year?

I reaaaaally have to go do some work now. ttfn x

orange roses

birthday flowers from my orange loving boyfriend. they're beauts.

Update: just got my photos printed, check out the real things below

 Today we went for a hike.

(and now my feet hurt! A lot!)

Click the pictures to see them bigger.

SF

 {image via Channeling Jackie-O}

Lately I've been dreaming of San Francisco. 

There's a possibility my boyfriend might be working there next year. It's not even enough of a possibility that I should be dreaming. But I can't help it. I want to go. So. Damn. Bad.

best buds

                           This is Lily.                                                                    This is Richard

They are the best of friends.

Sometimes it makes me jealous. She is my dog afterall.

But mostly it makes me smile.

part deux

I bought four rolls of film from The Four Corner Store online before leaving for Spain. Honestly, the main thing that attracted me was the amazingly cheap price tag. Too good to be true? Well... the film was hard to load, it didn't like to stay in the winder very much and it took a few goes to get it to stay in properly, buuuut once it was in and I began shooting I forgot all about that part.

It was strange to shoot in black and white because normally I don't... so I'd go and take a photo and then realise, shit, you won't be able to see that colour, or no point shooting that sky, what a waste etc etc. I'm on my third roll and yesterday I did it again...foool.

Although once I had the rolls developed (two down, one still to go! I gave one roll to Richard) I realised that the photos weren't lacking in anything (except the colour...) at all. Even the photos of the skies turned out well. Composition is so much more important and the image can end up so much more striking than if it had been in colour because shapes are much more pronounced. There is no colour to distract from the picture, it all seems clearer somehow. I'm now a fan for sure.

Anyway... ramble over... here's the second third of the holiday photos:

 

 

 When I developed the photos I realised that there were lots 'twins'.

Click the photos to see them up close. 

As always see more on my flickr.

Round One

 

More

somebody please buy me this.

Amazing owl stamp by Tara Hogan on Etsy. I have the want. Baaaad.

In better news, my boyfriend bought me these bad boys yesterday as a parting gift. Yes! They ARE little tiny owl earrings in a tiny little bottle! He's camping in a tent in Kerry this week :( He's a scout leader, not Bear Grylls.