I must begin with an apology, I know this blog post is late - a bout of Bronchitis has knocked me a bit over the last few weeks - in some ways it made the challenge easier, in other ways, much harder. I'll explain more later on in this post. For me, the whole point … Continue reading No spend February – did I succeed and what did I learn?
Every month I say "I need to have an easy month money wise." and every month, without fail, something crops up. Something we "need", something the kids "need", something we need to do, something breaks.... you get the idea. So I decided that I would try a "no spend" month, having seen a few people … Continue reading Thrifty Biscuits – my no spend February challenge
Anyone who has followed me on Instagram for a while knows I'm a little bit fanatical about supporting small and local businesses where I can.For me, shopping with small businesses is about putting some real thought into gifts and supporting the economy while helping small businesses - usually run by just one person - grow. … Continue reading Keep it local this Christmas
As a Mum and a teacher, planning is never far from my mind. Not that I'm a control freak.... I hope. I just like to be organised and not be panicking about ridiculous things like what to wear in the morning, so since having the kids I've always just set it out the night before. … Continue reading Toeing the (clothes) line… With Kite and Cosmic for M&Co
The above has been part of my tagline on Instagram for some time now because it very much sums up my consumer philosophy. Part of the draw to move back to Deal was the ability to do all my shopping on the local High Street, especially with its independent shops selling local goods (see blog … Continue reading “Champion of handmade and local.”
About a month ago I excitedly received my first bloggers event invitation courtesy of Kate at Happy and Glorious in Ashford. I hadn't heard of the shop before as it's been a couple of years since I visited Ashford last but was excited to hear about their event #blogashford which they were running for the second time. … Continue reading #blogAshford – building a community through independent retailers
In 2013, Deal High Street won The Telegraph's "High Street of the Year" award due to its independent shops and community feel. “Deal is,” the judges said, “a very good example to other struggling high streets of how an engaged local community, with support from local and national government, can match enthusiasm for their high … Continue reading Deal High Street: my pick of the best
Much like Folkestone which I posted about here, Margate is undergoing a bit of a revival at the moment. It's been slowly building for a while with the arrival of the Turner Contemporary and more recently the regeneration and reopening of Dreamland. I've been to Margate twice recently, keen to see what's changed for myself. I remember visiting as a child … Continue reading Breathing life back into Margate
When I was younger and visited Deal market I don't remember it being anything to write home (or write a blog) about. In fact all I remember is a meat wagon and a guy yelling about 400 sausages for a fiver... However, in recent years Deal market has slowly but surely become my favourite destination … Continue reading Deal market: shop local!
