Five reasons moving house is good for you

Moving house is often reported as one of life’s most stressful experiences (apparently it can age you by 2 years!) And a recent study by YouGov has shown there are a number of obstacles and frustrations that prevent people from doing so.

I moved house this weekend, my 8th move in my adult life. I live with my boyfriend who is lucky enough not to be tided down by location in his work, so (rather selfishly I often feel) the moves are down to my current circumstances. However we now rent a house (rather than flat) with lots of space inside and out and are close to my new job, saving me both time and train fare.

Don’t get me wrong, this weekend has been tiring, we seem to have massive furniture that won’t fit in or out of most regular sized doors, family (with vans) have had their weekends stolen in order to help out, my back is aching, I have no Internet, TV signal, fridge or washing machine, we have been robbed in the form of estate agent ‘admin’ fees, all of my clothes are creased, we’re nowhere near finished unpacking and then there’s the previous flat to clean so we can try and cling onto our previous bond!

However…

1. Although there is always compromise involved in moving – it does gives you the chance to gain things previously missed or wanted. In our case – a second bedroom, an off road parking space, a garden, the ability to walk to work… etc.

2. It’s a great opportunity to have a clear out. Recycle, sell or give to charity – all these things are beneficial. And going through all your belongings and knowing where you’ve put them away again adds some order to everyday life.

3. It’s a good chance to re-assess. What better opportunity for a fresh start? Your routine is probably going to change so get in there early, ditch the bad habits and add something new to it – a run after work or getting up half an hour earlier, get involved an local events, for example.

4. Make it your own. I love to make things, so for me this means sewing some new curtains or cushion covers but it could be trying a new colour on the walls or investing in some new furniture. Spending time on the appearance and layout of rooms can really affect on your mood while in them.

5. Embrace the new! Moving to a new area gives you new places to explore and things to try. Even if you’ve stayed in the same area you’ll probably have new neighbours to meet and new surroundings so make the most of it!

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Have you moved recently – how did you find the experience?

Do you have a tips for a successful move and a happy new home?

Taking time out in #London & the Art of Planning

I realise I can sometimes spend too much time planning, once I get sucked into researching something I often end up with little planned but 10 times more ideas of things to plan!

I recently had a friend to stay – my favourite excuse to go into London, see a show, visit the markets, Harrods food hall and have some afternoon tea! This time we saw The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe at the Kensington ThreeSixty theatre – an amazing and quite magical experience. This in itself requires planning through, to make sure lots is done and seen in the short space of a weekend.

My #SEgirlsMeetup adventures continue, bringing together a really nice mix of people and a great way to try new cafes or lunch spots. We have some new summer events planned across SE London and Kent.

I’m also planning a move to Kent, due to my job. I find myself justifying this move, firstly to myself and then to other who don’t seem to understand a young couple wanting to move out of London into the suburbs. However I just can’t face London prices, I want some more space and feel I’m at a point in my life where I really should start saving (for a house, a wedding, a car, a holiday… traveling the world… anything and everything really). Plus I grew up in the countryside so as long as I’m a train journey from the big city I’m happy 🙂 Yet more planning to come here I feel…

Talking of growing up – I went home recently and think the farm shop/garden centre I visited is worth a mention – Lanchester Garden Centre. A nice peaceful place to have a coffee of bite of lunch and the owls outside where definitely a hit with me!

I do believe planning is essential to be efficient in a busy life, there’s so much I want to do but find it too easy to be lazy with out a plan. Yet I think I need to be more focused when doing so, less distracted and then I’ll have more time for the actual doing!

My achievements recently are some hand-made fathers day cards and mastering a lemon drizzle cake, the recipe I followed is >;here it went down well at work. Top Tip: add more sugar then stated to the drizzle.

How to Keep Calm and Carry on! #Jubilee aftermath and #backtowork

I hope all you Brits out there have had a chance to celebrate the Queen’s Jubliee and some extra time off work!

I have the distinct Sunday night blues – even though it Tuesday. So what better way to cheer up a bit than write a blog, reviewing what I’ve been up to with a cup of tea and cake. Being in and around London this weekend and watching on TV has made me feel proud to be British! However, I think I’ve managed to mix the best of British with the best of Europe…. I had a trip down to Royal Tunbridge Wells – a lovely English cobbley street and tea room type town – lovely even in the rain. We went to a nice Italian deli for lunch, good coffee and tastey authentic food. Also made some bunting to get into the spirit and enjoyed some nice French wine and a few drinks in the local Irish pub.

I held my second Meetup this weekend too – Afternoon Tea in a gorgeous cafe in East Dulwich – Le Chandelier. This is a beautiful little Parisian style cafe with amazing cakes and what looked like some nice salads and lunches. The Meetup was a great success, a small number but lots to chat about and a great excuse to have afternoon tea! I’m so pleased with how they’re going – I’m meeting really interesting people who otherwise I never would have come across.

One thing that was surely British this weekend was the weather, unfortunately! A contrast to last the previous weekend’s glorious sunshine. My sister was here and for me this is the best time to explore London, we love the same things and had a packed weekend, of seeing our favourite band, visiting borough market, exploring Shoreditch and Bricklane, hunting out coffee shops and meeting friends for lunch. Oh and cooking a jamies 30 minute meals – amazing satay style chicken.

Anyway – I feel a bit better, but also sad that that’s it until next weekend (but we’re nearly there!)

What did you all do this weekend?

How do you beat the Sunday night blues?

Making New Friends (and a change of direction)

Being fairly new to London, it’s sometimes hard to meet new people or at least make lasting friendships. I set out to do something about this and now a month later I’ve had some great success, and wanted to share my experience so far…

I’ve been in SE London for almost a year and have made a few friends through jobs but with a partner who works away and family at the other end of the country I often find myself wishing I had a few girl friends I could meet after work for drinks, call up for a coffee and a and a gossip at the weekends etc (without having to pay £50 and sit on a train for 3 hours – as much as I will always do this to see my lovely northern friends once in a while, I can’t do it every weekend).

I remember as a teenager, as my poor mum will confirm, I always complained of not having enough friends – even when I did as school, college etc. And I was of the generation of the boom of Faceparty (if anyone remembers this!) and then Myspace hitting the scene – where ‘friendships’ where often online whether you’d met the person or not.

So… first stop – Google. Now after skipping past a number of slightly dodgy looking sites with lonely hearts style personal ad (you know you’re not going to attract the kind if friends I’m taking about) – I found a site called Meetup. Now this is pretty cool – it’s a global site with all sorts of meetup groups from sports to book clubs… to the slightly more bizarre – but there is something for everyone… almost…

I found plenty of girly friendship groups in central London but decided to take a shot at organising my own in my local area. All I had to do was write a little blurb and plan a place and date to meet – the site then sends out an emails to anyone registered as looking for that kind of group in that kind of area. Four weeks later I have over 60 members and 15 confirmed to come to my first Meetup!

Now I wouldn’t say I was an overly outgoing person – I’d never organised anything like this before and as much as I love to chat and meet people, am never usually the centre of what’s going on. I thought no one might turn up, I thought maybe they will but they’ll be completely weird. But… they weren’t and it was a success! 13 came – a great mix of ladies, different ages and professions which made for so much to talk about and great opportunities for more meetups to come.

So… I think this really goes to show that if you want to do something about a problem, a complaint, something you always whinged about – it is possible, often in the most unlikely ways. I went online to make a real live event and meet some real, friendly women, who are all in the same situation – looking for people to have a laugh, some wine and a piece of cake with.

“Things alter for the worse spontaneously, if they be not altered for the better designedly.” – Francis Bacon

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• Is there something bothering you that you’d like to change?

• Have you made friends in any unusual circumstances?

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#Achievements of the week and keeping it less #spendy

Pilates, running,cupcakes, new friends, The Help and Giving Blood.

I’ve been going slowly but surely this week. I’m finding that a lack of funds and often a lack of companion make it hard to get active and try new things. After being made redundant and starting a new job a few weeks ago I find myself desperately waiting for my first pay day! However, ever a fan of a bargain and a deal I’m up for the challenge….

I’ve eaten well and fresh this week – the key is definitely to plan, I shop on a weekend and make my meals for the week. I find that I’m really enjoying what I eat as I spend time making sauces and dressings to make things tasty and allow myself enough treats. I find I’m more resourceful with what I have in the cupboards too, being proud of what I manage to create. Above is my homemade pasta sauce and homemade garlic bread (faaaar to strong – good job my seat faces me away from everyone else in the office) and below one of my better looking cupcakes – I’m a latecomer to the every popular cupcake making so I’m still very much an amateur.

I gave blood for the first time ever today. I was quite nervous but it was completely fine – my arm aches but it’s been a good excuse to take it easy for the rest of the day. I feel I’ve done something worthwhile which is nice.

I’ve RSVPed to a Meetup group – to meet some new Londoners and make friends as well as created my own group. I have no idea how this will turn out – I will keep you updated.

I’ve been on two very short pathetic runs this week but I’m building up my strength in pilates 🙂 I like to monitor results (in everything – this is a main part of my job so maybe that’s why) but I think that’s what pushes me to keep going.

Finally, I’ve just finished, dare I say – one of the best books I’ve ever read – The Help. I didn’t want it to end. I love books about people and their relationships. My boyfiend’s back on Friday – I think we’ll watch the film and have a takeaway and some wine – looking forward to the end of the week already!

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• What should I read next – any recommendations?

• Also – I was lucky enough to get a shiny new sewing machine recently – I want to make a dress – any advice, tips, patterns?

• How to be less spendy in London?

Future thoughts and looking back to #primaryschoolmemories

I’ve noticed #primaryschoolmemories is trending on Twitter. It’s been entertaining reading through . It’s actually amazing how little of my primary school days I can actually remember :S

I think another great reason for putting this blog together is to help me to remember things, but also to be proud of what I’ve done. I could be a bit of a trouble teenager and think this is one of the reasons I’m always working to improve myself, to show I’m not really so bad (!) (my Grandpa proudly told me recently, that I was becoming quite a home-maker. I took this as a great compliment).

Today I went for a run! Yeahhh!! It’s was only round the block, and only lasted a couple of songs on my playlist, but I’m pretty sure I live on one of the longest streets in London (as anyone who has taken the train to come visit me will know!) The plan is to build up on this. One day I will be fit!

Shopping at the weekend I filled my fridge with some nice fresh healthy treats – I had some lovely oily mackerel for tea (I imagine this will make some people hurl – but I’m the one with the Omega3s)! This is my lunch for tomorrow. Couscous with spring onions, mint, cucumber, olive oil, lemon juice and crayfish tails. 

I’m hoping these things, longterm, will give me more energy day to day. I bought this energy spray while on the hunt for some herbal remedies, this weekend – tastes nice – I will update on whether it works.

I’m just sipping on some Lapsang Souchong tea – very smokey flavour. My favourite is Jasmine – green teas are a fab way to feel good from the inside and to fill you up when you want a little snack!

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• Favourite tea flavours anyone?
• Any advice on vitamin/herbal remedies for energy and a busy lifestyle?

Mondays guilty pleasure = Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares USA (pretty embarrassing actually, but somehow I’m there every Monday!)

Lets start at the blogginning…

I’ve been wanting to blog for a while now, so here I am ready to begin!

My name is Steph, I’m 25 and I’m a northerner living in South London. I live with my boyfriend who often works away and being fairly new to London often have time to myself. I’m not one for extravagances but I could pour my money on life’s little luxuries; Costa, fresh flowers, a glass of wine after work, meeting friends for lunch, getting my nails done…. etc. However, I love a bargain. Markets and charity shops are my favourite place! I also love to be make, design and be creative.

There are a few reasons I want to start a blog. To begin with, I want to make sure I’m making the most of my life, I want to be more efficient, try more things, see more places and be more motivated. I think if I record what I’m doing, or what I want to do, I’m more likely to see it through and push myself a little further. I think planning and monitoring are key to any goals and I hope this will be a good way for me to do both.  If it’s written down for anyone to see – I really ought to stay true to my word!

Secondly, I work in marketing so copy-writing is a skill I’d really like to develop, as well learning more about the world of blogging and social media along the way. I’ve always fancied myself as a bit of a writer, in fact I fancy myself as quite a lot of things. It’s the staying power I need to actually develop myself into one of these roles.

I think today is a good time to start. Here on Sunday evening, looking out, my house is clean, I have a fridge full of healthy food and I’m a couple of weeks into a new job (which is going well so far). I feel positive.

At the risk of sounding like Bridget Jones (inspiring diary writer as she is) my first goal is to get fit and to drink less red wine! Well any wine. (Luckily I have a lovely boyfriend so non of the Bridget Jones love life dramas – I hope!)

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