Modern Calligraphy for beginners

Despite being the arty type in my day to day working life, I very rarely get to do anything creative these days just for myself. I'd really like that to change this year, and would love to get a few little projects on the go once I finish up on this BBC job in July. After some crafty bridesmaids duties for my besties wedding last year, I fell in love with that currently oh so popular calligraphy style font - and despite using variations of it lovingly on Photoshop and Illustrator, I'd been dying to learn how to execute this timeless craft by hand. So I bought myself and Heather a voucher for the Brahmin Lettering Co workshop and we went along to a class the day I stepped off the plane from NYC back in February.

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The Daily Face: Cruelty Free Edition

Happy Tuesday darlings! It's been a wee bit longer than I'd hoped since my last blog post, but island life up in Shetland is treating me well and we are halfway through the shoot now. Only 10 more days and I'll be reunited with my furbabies and Pete. The anxiety has been rearing its ugly head a tad more than usual, but I'm lucky to be surrounded by a great team on this job who have been looking out for me and we've been having a really nice time together. Exploring all over Shetland (it is insanely beautiful, with scenery and white beaches to take your breath away) along with eating/drinking our body weight in seafood and Shetland Reel Gin. We've got this weekend off, so I'm hoping to take a wildlife boat trip on Saturday to spy a closer look at Puffins, Seals and Otters, and then Sunday I've got another horse riding trek booked. You can follow my adventures over on Instagram (click here) and I'm thinking of doing a travel post about Shetland once I'm home. It really is an absolutely stunning place! Anyways, it recently dawned on me that although I mention cruelty free makeup all the time on here, I've never done a full 'daily face' type post. So, here's a rundown of my absolute favourite cruelty free brands which I use on my face every single day.

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There ain't no party like a doggy birthday party

I have been desperate to write this post ever since the weekend that (you heard it right) Sheri and I threw a joint first birthday party for Bronson and Olive! That's me just settled in to my new home in Shetland for the next month as we're filming a part of the show up here, so I've finally got time to sit down and share the pups fun filled day at Vet Creche. I'm missing my furry babies and Pete tonnes already, but the photos from the party put the BIGGEST smile on my face. You'll see exactly why...

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Come gather in my lungs, Scottish wind

I'm pretty sure by now that most of you are well aware of my love for Scotland and how easy it is to explore the great outdoors here, generally less than an hours drive outside of Glasgow. Well that's exactly what myself, Lynsay and Lori did a few weekends ago. We've all been super busy this year, with work, house renovations and general life goings on, so a little girly weekend away was just what we all needed. We hopped in the car to Gourock, got a ferry over to Dunoon, and after just an hour of leaving home we had arrived at our Argyll Holidays cabin in Hunters Quay.

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The Duchess Of Argyle

In the grand scheme of weekends, there's really nothing I enjoy more than a bit of Sunday brunchin'. Especially when it means a bit of quality time with my better half! Pete just launched his new business Black Pine Coffee in Perth a month ago (within Badlands Barber) and this week they've just opened a new Glasgow store on Great Western Road too. So we've both been pretty busy, and until recently I didn't tend to venture west of the city as much as I should. I'll definitely be exploring it more now Pete's shop is over there. The west end is such a hustling and bustling part of Glasgow, with food and drink establishments certainly being the areas forte, especially in Finnieston (already home to some stellar eateries such as Ox and Finch, Porter & Rye, The Finneston, and Crabshakk) It looks like there's a new gal in town too, and she goes by the name of The Duchess Of Argyle.

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Laser Hair Removal with Therapie

Hair removal isn't for everyone. Some people do, and some people don't - whatever floats your boat my darlings! Personally, body hair doesn't bother me in the slightest but I am a fan of de-fuzzing myself and I still remember the first time back in high school when I begged my Mum to let me shave my legs. Fast forward 15 years later and it's something which is part of my daily routine. I am far too scared of waxing to get it done on a regular basis, my eyebrows are pretty much the only area I can endure. Last summer I started dabbling in a little bit of home IPL, which gave great results initially but it slowed down after a few months and I felt like it was making no difference whatsoever. So, when I heard that Therapie had recently opened a brand new clinic in Glasgow city centre, I knew it was the perfect time to up the ante in time for my Ibiza holiday with the girls this summer.

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Toronto

After our 4 nights in New York, me and Pete jumped on a flight to Canada to visit my best friend Leah, who moved out there to live and work last year. I was so bloody excited to see her, and looking forward to the buzz of a new city and new places to explore. We thought NY was cold... well damn, Toronto was even colder. But completely outweighed by the warm fuzzy feeling inside being reunited with my bestie and getting to see where she has set up a new home. Here's my quick(ish) guide to how we spent 3 days in Toronto in Winter.

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Precious Metals

I knew it wouldn't be long before a change of hair colour was on the cards. I grew bored of having dark roots pretty quickly. Isn't it funny how the grass is always greener on the other side (or, blonder, in my case!) when it comes to hair. When it's short, I want it long, When I have a sweeping side fringe, I want my micro fringe cut back in. One thing I knew for sure since hearing that Guy Tang & Kenra's metallic colour collection was landing in Glasgow (in the one and only BLOW) is that I definitely wanted a piece of the action.

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New York City

Oh heeeey you guys. Sorry, it's been a while! I had the most amazing time in New York and Toronto with Pete, but now it's back to normality with an almighty thud. We arrived into Glasgow at 9am two weeks ago on Saturday, and I started my current telly job (what felt like a quick blink/literally 5 minutes later) at 8am on the Monday. A bit of jet lag along with adjusting to a new routine and being back at work left me feeling pretty zombified last week. So that's me just starting to feel kinda normal again, albeit still kinda tired. And cold! Man, the snow has hit Glasgow this week and it is so damn cold. Not as cold as our North American adventure mind you. I could quite easily write an essay on our travels, but I thought I'd keep it short and sweet with a hit list of some of the favourite places we visited in each city. First stop, New York!

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A Bronson update - 6 months on

It's hard to believe it's been over 6 whole months since I brought this little squishy baby home with me. I remember (at that exact moment above) being handed Bronson for the first time, and thinking shit... what have I done?! He was so tiny, and it was the first time I'd ever owned a dog before. Even growing up we only really had cats, fish and guinea pigs in the family, so this was a whole new territory for me. Pete was away on tour with his band that week, so my friend Ashley took the drive up to Dundee with me for moral support, and was able to capture some really lovely pictures of our first day together.

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#SmearForSmear with Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust

It was a usual frosty Monday morning in Glasgow when I was power walking along to the doctors surgery, amongst the 9am rush hour of kids piling in the gates of the local primary school and shop keepers on the high street lifting the shutters and setting their stands out for the day ahead. I was a little apprehensive as I approached the doctors, then sat nervously in the waiting room tapping my toes and refreshing facebook obsessively while I waited for my name to be called. Sweaty hands, dry mouth, and butterflies in my stomach as the nurse greeted me warmly and invited me to have a seat on the bed before what normally feels like the longest 5 minutes of your life, a cervical screening test. I've not shared this story on here before, but as the 22nd-28th of January marks Cervical Cancer Prevention week, it feels right for me to have a sit down, cuppa, and a wee chat about something which could ultimately save your life (and did, in fact, save mine)

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Sunday Best - 5 good things

Happy Sunday folks! Hope you're all having a nice weekend? I'm feeling pretty relaxed and well rested at the moment, so thought I'd share a wee sunday best round up of 5 things which have been making me smile recently.

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Saturday Nights in Glasgow

Sharing the love for my city will never be something I'm hesitant to do on this blog. Quite often I get emails for suggestions of things to do in Glasgow, most notably places to eat, drink, and be entertained. Luckily these are my three faaaaaavourite things to do in the city (along with shopping, because, y'know!) and although I have trusty haunts which I regularly frequent, I'm always on the hunt for somewhere new to try. Thankfully, Glasgow is host to an abundance of places to get your mouth watering and your toes tapping. I was long overdue a catch up with my friend Jacs, so we decided to get our glad rags on and have a little mate date on Saturday evening.

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Come what may

Well hello 2017, it sure is nice to see ya! It's taken me a few days longer than planned to get this blog post up, as I've been hit with that cold and flu bug which loads of folk seem to be suffering from at the moment. But to be honest it's set me up in a good mindset for entering the new year - taking life slow and steady. I have a few personal goals which I'd like to achieve this year, but all in all I want my pace of life to be a lot less frantic and a whole lot more purposeful. Sure, I always live my life with purpose but when you cram so much into so little time... the time you do spend in that moment is always gone in a flash. This year I really want to focus on 'the now' as much as possible. I'll make plans and have goals (girl boss for life, that's never gonna change!) but I won't worry if things don't go to plan or I venture off the path I've set. Being a control freak and a worrier when it comes to anything and everything really doesn't generate the best quality of life. No matter what each day brings, I want to listen to my body (physically, emotionally and mentally) as much as possible. Say yes more, say no more, break the routine, and not let anxiety and habits determine how this year, and years to come, will pan out.

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