Five Highlights From The Month of February & THE DAILY EDIT

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Well hello there! Good morning! I’m actually writing this blog post on the 6:57am train to London, just like I used to back in the day when I’d write my blog posts every morning on the way to my PR job. IS IT 2013? I tell you what – the journey flies by when you’re tapping away, especially when you’re typing all about the best bits from the past month, which is exactly what I’m doing today. Isn’t that nice? It’s giving me all the warm, fuzzy feels despite the fact that my tired eyes feel like they are on fire.

BUT, back to the good stuff as this February was absolutely packed with it. I always look back through my diary to compile these posts and when I looked back at my calendar for February I realised that the beginning of the month was perhaps a little too ambitious and did leave me feeling just a tad exhausted (turns out that jet-lag and a hangover isn’t a match made in heaven – who knew?), but I had a good time despite feeling like a turd and isn’t that what it’s all about. The second half of the month has been more about getting my head down and preparing for ‘The Daily Edit’ that starts TONIGHT! Want to hear all about that and the five best bits from Feb? Read on, pal…

Toronto with Allana! I planned this trip to go and visit Allana months ago, but jeez did it come round quickly. It’s always nice to make proper genuine pals with people in the industry and this girl is a good egg let me tell you; kind, funny and oh-so-generous. We had a blast filming, doing spin classes (which weren’t 100% terrible), eating, shopping and eating some more. She very kindly hosted the Toronto book signing and did an incredible job of it and was just the sweetest host in general, making sure that I tried all the local delicacies and even making sure I had slippers by the bed she made me up in her spare room. ADORABLE. Watch the videos that we filmed together here. I can’t wait to return the favour next time she hits up the U.K.

Weekends with Friends. We haven’t had a free weekend in Brighton all month, but I ain’t complaining because we’ve had some lovely weekends with friends instead. The first weekend in February I was in Toronto. The second weekend we travelled to Bristol to hang out with our friends from Birmingham for one of their birthdays and I had the worst hangover that I’ve had in years and had to consume a whole tube of Jaffa Cakes to make it subside (always the sign of a good weekend, right?). The third weekend I did an event in London and afterwards we met Lily and Rich for dinner and had a long overdue catch-up. Then we spent the final weekend in February seeing our mates who live in Amsterdam (Amsterdam city guide here!). It’s quite honestly flown by.

Book Events. Honestly guys, they’ve been wonderful. I’m 12 dates down into a 17 date tour with ‘An Edited Life‘ and I’ve enjoyed every moment. Not only have I cracked my fear of public speaking (more on than coming in this month’s newsletter that drops on Monday), but it’s been truly lush to put faces to names and the support has been more than I could have ever imagined. Thank you to everyone who has come down! Thank you to everyone who has bought a book! Thank you to everyone who has tagged me in a snap on Instagram! Thank you to everyone who has requested a copy from their local library! It honestly means the world and I’ve loved doing these events across the U.K and even dropping in to Amsterdam and Toronto too. I’m hoping to tag more on to holidays I’ve got coming up and there are still tickets left for dates in Canterbury and Glasgow in March. Can’t bloody wait.

A Week at Home. The second week of February was my first week at home since the beginning of the year and let me tell you that as a person who skews high on the homebody scale, it felt glorious. I cooked dinner every evening! I spent a few too many days than I wish to disclose wearing exclusively loungewear! I saw my parents! I watched TV in the evening! I worked out! It was really rather lovely to spend a week recuperating after such a mad start to the year. I was pretty precious with my diary over that time and sometimes that’s a muscle that we need to flex. Knowing my limits and when it’s time to drop the meetings and events notches down a little so that I can ultimately spend time at home to increase my work and productivity dial is a handy tool that’s a work in progress, but when I feel that balance it feels bloomin’ fab.

Interior Tweaks. After years of living in our flat (flat tour here!), we’re finally getting round to making some updates and ironing out all the bits and bobs that we’ve been postponing ‘for next weekend‘ for FOUR YEARS. There are prints to hang on the walls, a few rooms that need a new lick of paint and some items that we bought cheap and cheerful just to fill a space, but could really do with replacing with items that we actually really love and don’t feel like you’re sitting on a rock. We’ve got a carpenter in at the moment to install some fitted wardrobes which will really help with storage in our bedroom and we’re planning on refreshing the office this weekend with a new paint colour and a switch-up of soft furnishings. Updates coming soon thanks to the daily edit…

THE DAILY EDIT

So – the daily edit? What’s this all about, eh? Last year I decided that I wanted to challenge myself to upload a video everyday for one whole month. It’s something that I’ve never done before and given that book stuff has calmed down a *tad*, March seemed like the perfect month to give it a go. So here we are! From 6pm this evening there will be a brand-new YouTube video up every evening on my channel for the rest of March. 31 videos in total; featuring a mix of vlogs (there’s one vlog week where I’m hoping to upload freshly squeezed vlogs!), capsule wardrobe videos, interior updates, makeup tutorials and a load more. While March is looking to be a lot busier than I expected I have to say that I’ve loved the challenge so far. Some of the videos are a little off-piste to what I usually upload and I’ve already enjoyed playing with colourful makeup and pushing myself out of my comfort-zone so keep your eyes peeled for those vids. Subscribe here so you don’t miss an upload and most of all sit back, get comfy and enjoy approximately 10 hours of yours truly coming your way.

Photos by Emma Croman

‘An Edited Life’ is now available to purchase worldwide HERE

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