"your head runs too much upon bath"

I'd assume the Bath Abbey is one of the must-see things for most people visiting the city, and it was so for me. It is beautiful. And I do love visiting and exploring churches, abbeys and other religious sites anyway. They've usually had so much money put into the building of them that it's hard for them not to be stunning. I've no pictures from inside, but the fan vaulting of the ceiling really is lovely. My favourite is the angels climbing up the ladders outside, though. I don't mean to dwell on not getting one job almost two years ago, because it's only something I've thought about now when looking at all the Bath photos and am actually happy I didn't get it as I wouldn't be where I am now if I had - funny how things usually work out. But my interview back then was for the Abbey and it's so strange to think that this could have been my workplace. But again, as much as the idea of working and living in Bath sounds like fun, I'm pretty happy to be doing what I'm doing with my life now as it is. Even at the time, I was happy to have had a good little weekend away and mostly only bummed about the amount of money I'd blown on train tickets!

If you haven't yet, you can catch my first Bath post here.

"for six weeks, i allow bath is pleasant enough"

I've had these (and more!) Bath photos sitting around for almost two years now, and finally decided I should post them before it's been a decade. I don't even know how I never posted them at the time because I still quite like them and I really liked Bath. The only way to know these are a bit dated is by checking my hair length and the way I've done my make-up. The dress also is still part of my wardrobe, although when these were taken it was new and meant to be my "interview attire".

That's the main reason for my past Bath visit; I had a job interview (shocking turn of events: I obviously didn't get it and never moved to Bath) and, of course, did some sightseeing and exploring while in the city. Although, I was not in Bath for six weeks, I can thoroughly join in saying that it was 'pleasant enough'. It is such a lovely city and I'd love to go back. For such a relatively small city there's also so much to see, especially history and literature wise, that a second trip would be more than welcomed. The architecture, the Roman influence, and all the other prettiness is just my favourite. The quote from Northanger Abbey continues: "but beyond that, it is the most tiresome place in the world." To me this doesn't ring true. I could easily see myself living in Bath - at least for some time.

pastel dreams

Coat&Shirt - 2nd hand

Scarf - Grandma's old

Jeans - H&M

Shoes - New look

Rucksack - Amazon

On my most recent trip to London with my friend Emma (who took all the photos of me in this post - tah!), we visited Notting Hill and Portobello. I'd never actually been (and neither had she); there's so much of London that I still need to explore! That is definitely one of my favourite things about the city - no matter how many times you visit, no matter how long you live there, there's always something new to see and experience. We weren't actually looking to buy anything but had a nice wander around the Portbello Road Market, and ate lots of crepes and other goodies. Even though this was back in January, it was such a pretty, sunny day that we did end up buying sunglasses (that I have now already managed to break and am on the hunt for a small screw to repair them even though they, of course, weren't expensive). Even if you only go to see them, the colourful and pastel houses are just so lovely. I like how blogger-like it is to take pictures in this area, but because our day and walk here wasn't too planned, neither were the photos. If I had planned to take photos in the pastel streets I'd most likely put together a different outfit. But now I like the contrast between pastels and my bolder colours. My original text for this post was merely:

"Pastels and Orwell. Such blogger. Very London. Wow."

And I feel like that is basically all I've really said and want to say. Hope you're all having a great week!

first impressions of lisboa and portugal

I've been in Portugal for well over a month already, and Lisbon was my first stop on arrival. Coming here from the coldness of Finland meant that I'd surely like the warmer weather. Now with the highs of good days being +20-25°C, it is more or less starting to feel like summer and that makes me very happy. But it has also been so rainy at times. For example, I've no pictures from my main day in Belém as I had to keep my camera safely tucked away from the rain, and was completely soaked after my wee adventures. Lisbon was lovely, though, and the fact that the rain prevented me from exploring as much as I'd wished only means that I have more the reason to go back! On this first trip I fully enjoyed wandering through the little cobbled streets (I don't think they're actually called cobbled streets, but calçada portuguesa, anyway) and colourful houses, the tram rides, some of the sights, meeting with a friend, and - most importantly - the pastéis de nata.

If you have any Lisbon or Portugal suggestions I'd love to hear them! So much to explore, so little time!

through the years: february

Another month, another one of these! Hope you're ready for some older photos and outfits from Februaries past:

 2011: This is most probably the one that has made me cringe the most so far. Not the outfit really, because it's only jeans and a top (And I used to wear both of them a lot!). But why did I ever think this was a good photo to post? That's one awkward pose and face.

 2012: On the other hand, this one with all the grandma clothes is still a favourite. I still wear the blazer all the time. The headscarf doesn't get out as much, but it should! Even though the dress isn't as old as my grandma's clothes, it's gotten a fair share of use already as well - and still does, but mostly just around the house these days. I don't have these exact slippers anymore, but a very similar pair since I am a literal grandma and go through slippers like it's nobody's business. Also, why was wearing leggings under your heel like this a thing and why did I participate in such a thing?

 2013: I'd still probably wear this Valentine-y outfit again. I love the pink sweater and am glad to say I still have it. And although I'm definitely more into less figure-hugging skirts these days, this one doesn't look too bad. Other things to note; my hair's long (in all these earlier photos) and a lovely uni halls door.

 2014: This is cute, yes? I wish I still had the skirt, but at some point I thought it'd be a good idea to sell it. A shame. The top's the same as in 2011: I said I wore it a lot. This outfit definitely makes me a) miss this skirt, b) want to wear more colours, and c) want to find some of my older jewellery like the necklace I'm wearing!

 2015: Not the best photo, but I liked this outfit and this whole look at the time. I'm still into the make-up, jewellery and hair, but don't have the shirt or the leggings (that you can't even see in this photo) anymore. Patterned leggings might not have been my thing in the first place. I do love a good oversized shirt though, and they go well with a pair of leggings. What a conundrum.

 2016: This can't have been over a year ago. I feel like it was just about yesterday that I looked like this. This also means that it's been over a year since I last got a hair cut (but if everything goes to plan and I continue trying to grow my hair, I won't have a proper cut for at least another year, haha.). Anyway, I would and could wear this again. I still have the skirt, and the t-shirt - although it's been demoted to being sleepwear - and I've given the cardi to my mum but could still borrow it off her. I look pretty okay here, if you don't mind me saying so. (And if you do mind, who are you?)

2017: Technically this Moomin outfit is from January, but I posted it in February so surely it counts. 10/10, would wear again - especially the jumper. I had to throw these shoes away since they developed a hole and it was a mildly sad occasion. They served me well over the years, but now I can go and look for more summery ones! Quite exciting.

 Hope you're having a good last day of Feb and also looking forward to spring (it's spring tomorrow, right?)! And as always let me know if you have a favourite or least favourite Laura February outfit!

You can find previous through the years posts here: April | May | June | July & August | January |