Haeckels - Local Brands.

I've always liked some kind of scent producing object in my home, it might have been candles mostly at one point in my life but now however I find I am reaching more and more for Incense, and I've fallen in love with this brand! Haeckels, this brand is based not far away from me in the seaside town of margate, famous for its sandy beaches and Dreamland Themepark.

Anyway, the whole point of this fab brand is its all NATURAL! which is fab in a world where we use and consume so many processed and harmful products. They create everything from Skincare - Home Fragrance. Go check them out. 

One thing that I've made an effort to do this year as much as I possibly can is support Local creatives, and companies, it can be hard to be a small business so for me I wanted to do what I can to support local businesses (big or small).

Feeling Horse

Last week we went on a walk with a couple of our friends and their kiddos, we went to one of my fave places. The weather was quite wet and windy we had the tail end of a storm here - I say the tail end because it really wasn't very bad where we were in Kent) But when we were on the walk we hardly had any rain at all which is fab! The best kind of walk is one with a few puddles.

I've passed these horses in this field for a few years now and they're quiet shy creatures, they never really come over unless there is a chance for food. We had two little ones with us and they had some bread sticks to nibble on, and these horses wanted those bread sticks! So we got to pet these lovely horses and the kids loved it, well... lets be honest so did we. 

I hope you've been having a good week, heres a little peak into our weekend.

Autumn Walks (Betteshanger)

         

Sunday 8th October... Early afternoon.

Luke and I love a good walk, for as long as we've known each other walks have always been a vital part of life, weather walking for practical reasons (to get the train or into town). Or for fun... I know walking isn't for most people but for us it sorts everything out, If you're feeling a bit pants a good walk will sort you out. 

My favourite time of year is Autumn by far, Winter is definitely up there too. One of the things that makes this time of year so special are the many walks that our family do this time of year, Its a very nostalgic feeling for me going for a walk.

We went to the area of Northbourne which is near where I grew up and used to spend alot of time here, my Auntie and Uncle had their Wedding reception in the village hall here. I feel such a sense of peace when I'm in this area. The leaves were changing colour, conkers had fallen from the trees, acorns and pine cones were everywhere. It was perfect.

       

                          

We stopped of as we neared the car and had a cup of coffee, Luke brewed up on his little Coleman stove we both agree that this stove was one of the best things we've ever bought. As he brewed up I had a little explore and found the conker trees, and this view across the fields was beautiful. The different shades of yellow, green and orange always make me appreciate how beautiful the trees really are.

Hope you all had a fab weekend and Monday was good to you! Have a good rest of the week. See you soon.

Brew Up!

One thing that I must confess is that I am a coffee lover, until I met Luke I wasn't much of a fan. But his love for coffee rubbed of on me, and In all the years that we've been together I have however grown to love coffee, the way that I take it has changed but none the less my love for the stuff has only grown.

(Brewing up after a long day)

Luke and myself are avid campers also, and one thing we needed to have in place when we went on our first camping trip as a couple, our coffee needs had to be sorted! Forget about a kettle, we needed a 'proper' coffee making solution. Here comes the Stove top Espresso maker, this thing has been used so much since we bought it; whether it be after a long hike, to start the morning right or even after a long day of window cleaning.

To brew up on we use a Coleman dual fuel stove, both Luke and I love using this beast (that is what it is really - a beast) it is small (heavy but small) and fits in a standard rucksack. Its a proper boys toy (but I openly admit that I love this thing) It goes everywhere with us. 
One of the great things about this stove is the fact that its dual fuel. Which means it uses both petrol or Coleman fuel, we use petrol and have never had issue, bonus is its dirt cheap to run and petrol is everywhere so if you're ever in a tight spot you'll never run out of fuel to heat up your grub. 
Not only is this a life saver when you need a coffee fix, but when camping you can cook up for dinner on this bad boy, we've cooked an entire curry on here before and it's done a great job. 

Sometimes or in some circumstances this stove might not be suited for everyone. Hiking for instance, depending in how much you can carry this stove might be to heavy for you but if weight isn't a problem (the lucky few) then this stove is absolutely wonderful. We actually found ours second hand at a bargain price in a local marine (boat) shop they sell all sorts of parts be it bolts or pipe, fishing gear. Its Luke's ideas of heaven.  We are definitely taking this everywhere with us this year.

As for our little Espresso pot, thats coming too. We love that little thing and it brews up a good coffee, obviously depends on the type of coffee you use too but this little guy does very well. 

Autumnal Canterbury

So on Thursday I took a walk around my local 'City' Canterbury, this place is full of gorgeous old buildings, I fancied photographing it. I wondered in what seemed like an aimless fashion around the town, looking for photo opportunities. Sometimes I like to almost detach myself from a place I know well, so that I almost become a tourist, finding treasures dotted around that normally I may not pay attention too. 

These shots happen to be a couple of my favourites, what I love about these is how tranquil the river looks. Yet, just around the river bend is the high street, with the tourists and students going about their lives. I have this love/fascination with old bricks (I know I sound like some freak) but honestly isn't that partially what makes these old buildings so special. 

I love finding little cottages / streets full of terraced cottages, something about them this time of year in the drizzle looks so pretty. Thursday epitomised an Autumnal day, every five minutes you'd feel a spot of rain and try and seek some kind of shelter ready for the onslaught of rain that was to follow, only to realise it wasn't actually going to rain. I love that about this time of year, the un known, the change in the temperature, the way the leaves so subtly change, in fact all those subtle changes all around that make you feel all warm and cosy. In the Autumn I want to soak in all the changes, I want to soak in life...