2013 in music

If you're a regular visitor to Sunshine Days, you'll be fully aware that music plays a mahoosive part in my life. Looking back, I've been to some bloomin' brilliant gigs this year (above is a little snapshot with some rubbish quality photos... I'm far too busy actually enjoying the music at gigs to watch it through my phone screen!) from little gigs like The Family Rain who played the Brudenell Social Club to a mammoth expedition down to Suffolk for a weekend of fun and vodka at Latitude. Other highlights included HAIM, an Old Skool Cribs gig a few weeks back and stumbling upon a tiny Pigeon Detectives set in Leeds Trinity and ending up on the front row (even though we don't really like them all that much...). 

While I'm thinking about music of 2013, I thought I'd put together a list of my top tracks of the year. I did this back at the end of 2012 too and its a great way to look back and remember songs from a particular time in your life! Last year I narrowed the list down to five songs, this year I just couldn't whittle it down to any less than ten. Miss Indecisive 2013 right here.

Why'd you only call me when you're high? Arctic Monkeys

My Number Foals

 The Wire HAIM

Lovesick Peace

 Hearts Like Ours The Naked and Famous

Biblical Biffy Clyro

 Trust Me... I'm a Genius The Family Rain

Wasting My Young Years London Grammar

Best of Friends Palma Violets

Youth Daughter

What have been your favourite songs of the year? Hope you've enjoyed some of my top ten too!

Roll on 2014- its already shaping up to be a good one for me music-wise... so far I've got tickets for Foals, Bombay Bicycle Club and *ahem* McBusted (not ruining my indie street cred at all there...).

Also, for once I've not used song lyrics in my post title- yet more proof of how indecisive I am... I couldn't pick one of the 10 songs above as the most worthy of the title! I was discussing with my friends the other day that I really should get an app or something that will make all life decisions for me!

Every time I see you, I wanna sail away

You may have read in my last few posts that I moved into a new house a few weeks ago. I always love making new homes feel mine, and although progress was slower than usual with unpacking (I blame the vast amount of floor space around my room which meant that my bags and boxes weren't causing too much inconvenience as I could navigate my way around them pretty easily!) I really feel like my new room is home now. Its amazing what a bit of Cath Kidston, a lot of Sass and Belle owls and a few too many moustaches can do to a place! Plus the new house itself is a jolly little place- its worked out brilliantly with the two girls I'm living with and I love coming home from work and spending evenings laughing like a crazy person with them.

I'm off for a weekend in Manchester now, first of all to see my Mum for a day of shopping in the sunshine and then the Manchester Blogger Meet tomorrow afternoon which I'm very excited about as I've never been to any blogging events before. Looking forward to maybe meeting some of you lovely people there! 

Hope you have a lovely weekend!

Everytime- Foals

She may contain the urge to run away so hold her down with soggy clothes and breezeblocks

Hello lovely people! It feels like its been forever since I last posted. I've had a pretty hectic month with moving house and everything else that's been going on (big thank you for your kind comments on my last blog post too- it really meant a lot to read them), and all of that teamed with no internet in my new house didn't exactly mean prime conditions for giving my blog some attention.

My first post was going to be a little tour of my new room now that its finally all sorted out, but it might have to wait a little while as I got back from an incredible weekend at Latitude Festival yesterday so my bedroom is currently buried under a huge pile of dirty clothes, wellies and camping equipment. Instead, it seems very fitting to share a few photos from my weekend (I don't trust myself with even my decent compact camera at festivals so apologies for the rubbish quality of a lot of the pictures but at least you get the idea!).

              

I'd been to Leeds Festival a few times already so was really looking forward to going somewhere a bit different, and was definitely not disappointed. Latitude is such a pretty festival and they really put in an incredible amount of effort to make it a unique and exciting experience with a lovely atmosphere, unlike Leeds where there generally isn't a great deal to see other than the bands and the nightlife.

We spent hours wandering around the site catching glimpses of so many unexpected things from a hot air balloon moon floating above us to multicoloured sheep grazing down by the lake aswell as floating around on a gondola and a strange experience of witnessing a huge crowd waving reeds that they'd pulled from the lakeside at a 2am DJ set, meaning that there was never a dull moment in between watching loads of brilliant performances. Alt- J, Foals and Daughter were some of my absolute highlights, I can't believe I hadn't seen Alt-J live before- I'll definitely be jumping at the chance next time they're playing in Leeds. 

We also got to see so many hilarious things in the comedy tent (another thing that makes Latitude so unique as they had some really big names from the comedy world) largely due to the crazy heatwave that we experienced for most of the weekend. I don't tend to watch much stand up on telly as I find it easier to get into when its live, I found myself crying with laughter on a few occasions across the weekend because everything seemed so much funnier when I was surrounded by hundreds of other people all laughing hysterically!

Anyway, I'm off to get dressed now (and yes, it is now 2pm. A whole day of travelling yesterday in horrendous heat whilst feeling sorry for myself after a night of dancing, running around the festival site and drinking too much vodka meant that a lazy day today was very much deserved and highly essential for my survival).

Breezeblocks- Alt-J

(My festival buddy and I had this song in our heads for the rest of the weekend after seeing them on Saturday night). 

You don't have my number, we don't need each other now

With the exception of showing you all my black lace dress a few weeks ago, I haven't done any outfit posts in what seems like forever. Mostly because of the inconvenience of this 'spring' weather we've been having leading me to live in wooly jumpers and not a lot else, but also because I really am an awkward little so and so when it comes to taking photos of myself and all that jazz. 

Anyway, the real point of this post is mostly to show you my lovely new necklace from Kukee. I'd been hunting around for a bunting type necklace for absolutely ages but was really struggling to find one I liked anywhere (I was even starting to contemplate concocting a cunning plot to get my friend who had a similar necklace to think she should give hers to me). Luckily, a browse on the Kukee website one evening saved me from my necklace-less induced sadness and probably saved my friendship while I was at it! 

And we all lived happily ever after.

In other news, I met a new patient at work yesterday who said I looked about 15. Given my current age-related crisis at becoming an old person, after getting over my initial horror at being mistaken for somebody about to sit their GCSE's, I couldn't help but partially see this as a good thing as surely it must mean that I don't have to start acting my age yet?!

top: Urban Outfitters, skirt: Urban Outfitters, necklace: Kukee, shoes: Converse

My Number- Foals

Don't throw your fortune away

I arrived home after work today to the most lovely treat ever. I found out at the weekend that I'd won Linda from Hey! Homewrecker's Love Birds giveaway and today was the day that the little parcel dropped through my letterbox. Linda is the queen of all things crafty and this little Love Birds picture is just too gorgeous (as soon as I'd torn through the paper I was straight in there knocking a nail into the wall for it to hang on opposite my bed). Check out her blog, its full of incredible crafty bits and bobs and beautiful colours and fabrics. Plus, as if the parcel wasn't amazing enough enough already, she also included a note inside the cutest illustrated card too (made by her sister), how perfect are those foxes?! AMAZING! 

And onto another crafty lady, my buddy Charlie made me this pretty lining for a basket that I bought a few weeks ago. It originally came with a blue and white gingham lining which reminded me a little too much of my old primary school summer dress, so we marched down to the market to pick something a bit less uniform and a bit more Kaz friendly. That's where my input into the basket ended... I have absolutely no sewing skills whatsoever. I used to sneak my textiles work home for my Mum to add to every week and then sit there pretending to thread needles every week in lessons (actually... I probably didn't need to pretend, it takes me about an hour to thread one anyway!). Luckily, Charlie's a lot better with a sewing machine than I am so happily stepped in to make this for me. Now I have a pretty place to store my hairdryer, make up bags, and a frisbee (not quite sure how that ended up in there). 

Lucky for me, there was just enough fabric left over for me to pretend to be good at making things too. I'd bought a frame on mine and Michelle's unromantic Valentine's day in Ikea last week and decided I could turn it into something fun. And voila, one frame (made in much the same way as the noticeboard we made a few weeks ago), lots of buttons and a lot of superglue later, this creation was formed. I'm a bit too haphazard and DIY inept to keep up with Linda and Charlie's work, but I did myself proud here. Even if the heart is a bit wonky and uneven if you look at it too closely. 

Inhaler- Foals