Reading: the fault in our stars, John Green

There's something underwhelming about a bestseller. Oversold paperback holiday books with the front covers advertising their long anticipated film adaptations. There is often so much hype surrounding them that I get over excited and over expectant. Half the time leads to an early and utter disappointment.

It was a struggle not to read any reviews, eavesdrop on conversations or even pay close attention to the trailer for the film adaptation. I'd planned on reading this book for a while and I didn't want the characters to have actors faces, I wanted them to be romanticised blurs of imagination.

This book completely deserves all the attention it has been given. I picked it up in Tesco with my groceries, thought I'd read a little in the bath before bed and i ended up reading it straight through until three in the morning (work the next day was a struggle).

Do not get me wrong, I am no teenage swooner, I have read many a bad book in my time.

I am not easily forgiving and I went in with no mercy. When it comes to romance, I have no patience for cringey over the top drama.

Even I could not help but swoon, giggle and be charmed by Augustus and Hazel and their semi pretentious witty banter. It felt like such a solid, honest, real friendship.

It's easy to get lazy when writing about love tangled up with impending loss. your audience can fill in the gaps in your flawed writings with their own fears, tales of woe and failed relationships.

Not once was I given any gaps to fill, this book is solid genius brimming with characters you wish were real, or had a long enough life expectancy to warrant some sequels.

I was expecting a lustful teen tale of heartbreak and i was expecting to be disappointed.

What i ended up with was 'against all odds' optimism. A tale of love battling through with peeks at survival and then crushing all audience hopes with eventual emotional wipeout (sobbing my eyes out in the middle of the night).  I took a fault in our stars selfie, but it was way too embarrassing and unflattering to post...

Enjoy yourselves,

Eleanor

Wandering: Bentley Priory

On sunday I wandered off to Bentley Priory for a little exercise and adventure. I've been trying to get out of the house more and watch less Netflix. I thought it would be harder than it is, Apparently i forgot how much I love running around through the trees. Bentley Priory is a great place for me to go, its near my house and theres lots to see. They even have little maps that you can carry around with you (see below middle photo). Did I mention that there are COWS and DEER?!!

       

We used to come here reasonably often when we were kids but all we ever did was run in the woods and feed the deer. I literally had no idea that there was a lake. Considering what a bright day it was my photos aren't as good as they should have been.

If you were a lucky kid who grey up visiting this place you'll most likely recognise the log bench above, practically famous ;) There is also a lovely deer park where they all come up to the fence and you can feed them (deer friendly food obviously).

The priory is very kid friendly and theres endless places to hide and play, I brought my niece and nephew and they loved it!

Enjoy yourselves

Eleanor

ASOS Picks: Sport Casual

Heres a peek of my ASOS wishlist

I've been on a bit of a fitness binge recently, I bought a few pairs of nike trainers to try and encourage me to run around more (mainly from eBay because I'm poor). I have found that I'm scouring the internet looking for suitable clothes to wear with them that aren't too expensive.

But last time I scoured, I ended up with another pair of Nike trainers.

this might be becoming a problem... 

This is my first little outfit, I was too lazy to do any proper photoshopping so i just did screenshots of my saved items on ASOS. The whole colour theme is based around the trainers. Which i am in love with and cannot wait for them to go into the sale (fingers crossed).

I thought the shorts were cute, not sure how practical they would be but one can dream eh?

teamed with a plain cami and a classic American Apparel duffle bag you would be perfect for a day as the least practical woman at the gym :)

This second one is a lot more practical, and once again the entire colour scheme is based around the shoes, which I'm trying to hold off buying till payday. I've already bought the bargain shorts (£10 reduced from £30).

I don't know if they are any good as they wont arrive till tomorrow, but I'll add an update later.

this I've teamed with a grey jersey shirt and the best backpack I've seen in a while.

Enjoy yourselves,

Eleanor

Making: 'Learn to knit, Love to knit' Anna Wilkinson

His/Hers Bobble Hat

This is the first hat I have ever made, to be honest i was a little terrified. This is also the first time i have used the rib stitch (sucessfully) whilst knitting. usually when i try i end up with a mass of knot, that are not right and my needles. I got the pattern from 'Learn to knit, Love to knit' by Anna Wilkinson. I bought my copy from the book people  for the bargain price of £3.99.

All you have to do is have a flick through the preview pages on amazon to see how wonderfully laid out and easy to understand this book is. If there is something you don't understand, I guarantee theres an explanation somewhere else in the book, and the chunky yarn she uses makes everything incredibly easy to understand in the photograph accompanied instructions.

The book has two tiers of knitting, It has 'learn to knit' which are beginners projects, and 'Love to knit' which are for when you are more practiced, or if you can already knit well. there is a page near the beginning that explains the kind of knitting equipment and why you need it, what it does etc.

The pictures are vibrant and the colour scheme is a pleasure to look at, the patterns are all desirable. usually when i have a book like this theres a few I like but most of them are a bit too middle aged for me. Literally everything in this book is cool, probably because it was written by someone quite close to my age. *There are a few patterns I will add extra rows to, just because I am a giant and crop cardigans are not my friend.

The book is perfect for a beginner, there are enough projects to keep you going for a while, and enough variety that you can choose a quick or a long project. If you bought your needles project by project, you would have a great stash of equipment by the end.

As this was my first time following a knitting pattern (to completion, without giving up) i chose the his/hers bobble hat from the 'Learn to knit' group.

I was surprised by how easy this was! i had a first attempt where i was so excited to make the hat i tried with the wrong sized circular needle, it was an 8 and way too long (obviously it didn't work but that was my bad).

In the beginning i was worried because i think i have quite a large head, I'm not petite or small framed, and 5'10-11ish and a 12/14 and i was worried that i would spend all this time making a tiny hat and have to give it away. but the hat is a reasonable size, and as far as 'all this time' is concerned, you could make it in an evening whilst you watch telly.

the hat so far, after an episode of 'sherlock'

the finished article :)

I started off slow, because i was worried i was getting it wrong. But this is the perfect first project because the chunky yarn makes it so easy to see what you are doing and you start recognising what the stitches look like and you start automatically knowing when its a purl and when it's a knit and you can see your mistakes and fix them as you go along. It also means there are less stitches and its finished faster!

I was really pleased with how mine came out, i will be using this pattern again for next years christmas pressies!

Here is the facebook link for AnnaKnits
here is the twitter link for AnnaKnits where she is more than willing to help you if you have any difficulties and there are loads of great pictures other people have posted of what they've made.

New years resolutions!

This is the year I intend to finish up all my half done projects, and actually make some items from my many lovely craft books i have collected over the years! Look forward to book reviews, quick crafts and beginners tips ;)

I'm also going to blog about things i do, places i go etc.

maybe i will be less lazy if i have an audience?


my resolutions are:

Make at least one thing a week

Finish what i start

Get on the gym bandwagon (i am the weakest, most unfit person)

Eat better!

utilise having an illustration degree



Lets hope this blog isn't empty this time next year!