#tamperine

The weather has been glorious in Birmingham this week and this has meant the full use of the lunch hour (running away at 13:01 and returning at exactly 14:00). I was visiting my friends jewellery on display at one of the current exhibitions for Birmingham Made Me and stumbled upon another exhibition taking place in the Mailbox.

The room was full of tambourine's dangling from the ceiling as well as ones used within pieces of art on the walls - it looked incredible. There is a list of all the contributors and the names range from Ricky Gervais to Lawrence Roper to Kylie Minogue. So whats it all about?

The idea was born here in Birmingham from the locally based music charity Sound It Out. It involves more than 45 stars spanning the entertainment, sport and arts industries coming out to support the Tamperine Project.

Celebrities were asked to 'doodle' (or tamper) on the tambourines which will continue to be displayed in The Mailbox until 26th May, are now available on eBay to bid on.

Sound It Out, established in 1992, uses music as a medium to make a difference to people facing challenging circumstances in some of the most deprived communities across the West Midlands. The charity aims to deliver positive activities to people who are most in need in settings such as schools, hospitals and community centres. Find out more about their work by visiting their site or searching for #tamperine on Twitter.

Celebrities involved in this project include;

Dame Judi Dench
Sir Tom Jones
Kylie Minogue
Manic Street Preachers
Kasabian
Amanda Holden
Kirstie Allsopp
Stephen Fry
Kate Moss
Amir Khan
Ricky Gervais
And many many more...

Here are a few of my faves;

My fabulous friend Michelle Turton from Inkygoodness with the tamperine by Ricky Gervais

I really recommend you get down to the Mailbox and check it out - its escaping the sunshine for a 20 minutes to see these. Also have a look on eBay and have a bid on any you love (I have my eye on one...but I am currently top bidder so I'm not telling....)

Thanks much xoxo

Talented Friend.

Beautiful photographs by my friend Matthew Plunkett.

They are gorgeous.

Follow him - he tweets some fabulous things.

May Favourites.

So we've got to the middle of May and the television and press is full of adverts looking towards the summer; the holidays, the sun and the excitement. Here are a few of my faves that I've seen around this week...

Halfords TV AD - 'The Trip'

This advert reminds me of exactly what it was like waking up during the school summer holidays..thinking now what shall we do today? Halfords wanted to remind families how great trips and holidays can be when taken together and the 70's track 'Into the Valley' helps to bring those nostalgic, happy memories from every generations childhood. I love how the children wake up and are straight away off and away doing whatever they want to do! No tv, no Facebook, no PS3. 

I want to go on an adventure!!!

Press Ad's This Week

Expedia have run this ad in national press this week with ads featuring big headlines to advertise deals to Edinburgh. I love the use of the tartan lettering and the translation with an asterisk at the bottom.

Clothing brand Uniqlo had a couple of adverts in this weeks ShortList magazine which feature the bright colours with a block of white with type underneath. This matches the simple clean lines of the websites home page. If there are two things I love its summer and fashion - put them together... #winning

ThinkBox - Harvey Part 2

I am still obsessed with this little one...

Sept 2010

May 2012

Brilliant from ThinkBox. I truly do love Harvey.

Thanks much xoxo

The Spot Morocco.

It's been three months and I still miss Morocco. This blog should of been done a long time ago but it is been done now as I miss it lots!

In the first week of February Michelle, Ray Charles and I headed to Morocco to visit our old work collegue and totes amaze friend Nic.

Nic left the world of The Matrix and moved over to Morocco last summer to open a surf school with Zac. The surf school offers surf lessons and is complete with bed and breakfast style accommodation and luxury apartments. The website looked amazing and the stories we had heard only added to our excitement.

From the second we landed, Morocco was beautiful. The colours of the landscape and the interior of the buildings were amazing. We met Nic and headed off for our Spot Morocco adventure.

The Spot Morocco offer two types of accommodation; breakfast, dinner and bed at Villa Solaria or luxury apartments at Killer Point. We were staying at Villa Solaria which offered a friendly welcome, perfect views and, the highlight, gorgeous Moroccan food. The meals every morning and evening offered a real taste of Morocco with dish after dish of delicious food. The rooms were decorated beautifully and with a reading room, two balconies and free wi-fi I struggle to think what more you could want!!

Our surf coaching with The Spot Morocco was exactly what we needed. Zac has incredible patience which for anyone who knows me and Michelle will know it is a requirement! He was helpful, good at explaining and put up with our screams of fear, joy and general excitement. The beaches were beautiful and Zac knew exactly where to go to get the perfect waves away, from busy crowds.

The surrounding area is full of so many sights and sounds (and smells) with little markets and stalls with beautiful things to sell as well as restaurants and cafes perfect for grabbing some Moroccan tea (I am hooked!!).

If you have surfed before or have ever thought about surfing then head to The Spot Morocco who will make sure that every second of your holiday is how you want to spend it. With visits to beaches and areas of Morocco that you might not usually see - they offer a perfect view from the villa, the surf and the experience. 

Paradise Valley.

Thanks much xoxo

Definitely one to watch.

Firstly, a welcome back for my blog. I've been extremely rubbish with lack of posts and I have no excuse, I'm sorry.

Secondly, welcome back sunshine! This weekend we said goodbye to the rain, for a while, and it was sunny. I spent most of my weekend outside with shopping (went to Topshop and got these in black - yay) and sport watching but as Sunday evening arrived I looked forward to visiting my second favourite gig venue in Birmingham, the O2 academy. (FYI...My favourite is the HMV Institute).

I love gig's - no matter who is playing (although if I love the band it's even better), but the atmosphere and diverse crowd, mixed with excitement and anticipation always makes for a good night. I was more excited than usual this time as I was off to watch a friends band play.

There has been lots of activity surrounding this local band who have quickly risen to 1,114 followers on Twitter, nearly 500 likes on Facebook and recently had their track played on Kerrang! Radio.

Lightfire were playing in one of the smaller rooms at O2 Academy and the atmosphere was good. I headed to the bar to buy the compulsory cider and after saying hello's to fellow Lightfire fans the gig began.

Lightfire were brilliant. I don't know what I expected or imagined but standing in front of me was a guy I'd known for so long and I had no idea he could sing, let alone produce some amazing music. As the set went on my love for them grew and by the fourth track I was hooked!

The songs were different but consistently amazing with the same Lightfire sound. The lads themselves had good band/crowd action, no one likes a band who don't chat and have a laugh with the crowd - Oasis once said nothing all gig other than "This is *insert song*" with a few random things in between, super boring. Lightfire looked and, most importantly, sounded brilliant.

Johnny Doom from Kerrang! Radio is also a fan and has said the following about Lightfire;

"Lightfire bring the big riffs, the heavy grooves and the huge anthemic choruses, giving the big American players like Shinedown or Disturbed a run for their money. Definitely one to watch"

I didn't do any filming as was so focused on the band that before I knew it it was the end of their set. But my advice to you is this - check them out. Visit their YouTube site to hear some of their tracks and watch this video of them making their first single; the video is brilliant. There is an endless list of gigs and a few festivals on their Facebook page and I will definitely be attending more.

Thanks much xoxo