How about tat?

Yesterday was my 28th birthday. I've never been one for big parties or making too much of a fuss on the day itself, but this year there was something I really wanted to do.

Happy birthday to me!

If you know me in real life or follow me on any social media channels, you'll know that I love (and I'm not using that term loosely - I really do love) all things Poirot. I'm a big fan of most murder mysteries and whodunnit-based stories, but Agatha Christie's Poirot has always been my favourite. I love the books, I love the TV series and, most of all, I bloody love that brilliant little Belgian.

As the proud owner of the books, DVD collection and even a Poirot monkey (I'm not kidding), I decided to take the next step into the weird and wonderful world of fandom: a tattoo. My beautiful and amazing Nana kindly offered to cover it as my birthday present so that I will always be able to see it and think of her, making the whole thing doubly special. I found the perfect design to reflect his signature style and character, and decided to get it on my wrist facing me so I can look at it whenever I want without breaking my neck to see it.

When the big day  took myself off to Tattooland in Woking to get inked. Here are the results:

I absolutely love it and could not be happier. I got some amazing presents for my birthday this year and I love them all, but my new tattoo will forever go down as one of the most incredible gifts I've ever received. Thank you, Nana! I think Poirot himself would be proud.

Have you got any tattoos? Is it wrong that I'm already itching for my next one?

Much love,

Frankie
Swell Vintage

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Things I've Learned About Myself

Two days ago, I celebrated my 27th birthday. I can't say it was a shock - my birthday normally happens around that sort of time - but what has surprised me is how much has changed, and how much I've learned, in the space of a year. They say you can't teach an old dog new tricks, and I never thought I'd still be learning about myself this close to my 30's. 

A photo of me with my new Alice Menter necklace, taken earlier this month

However, despite how this post may sound so far, I consider this to be a positive thing, and I want to share this with you. Here are a few things I've truly learned about myself over the last year:

• I'm starting to grey...and that's okay. This exact scenario has happened, and continues to happen, on numerous occasions: I'm doing something in front of a mirror (brushing my teeth, doing my make-up, staring at my wonky face), and suddenly I'll see something shimmering in the reflection...something in my hair. Slowly, I comb my way through each section until I find the offending strand. I then pull it out and stare at it for a really long time, and if my boyfriend's home, I'll make him do it too (I know - what a lucky man...). But what I've come to realise is that it really doesn't matter. It's something most people go through, and it really doesn't look that bad. Plus, if Rogue from X-Men can pull it off, there's still hope for the likes of me.
• I'm never going to be skinny, and that's okay too.
  From the first day I started to wear grown up lady clothes to present day, I've always been a size 10 - 12. My weight has fluctuated over the years, but weirdly my dress size hasn't. For years, I dreamed of being skinny, and I'd get sad because I wasn't. But this year, I came to a realisation: I love food. I love cooking it, I love eating it and, more importantly, it makes me happy. I know that I will never be a size 6 or 8, and that's just fine. I'm still not 100% happy with my appearance (far from it), but the aim now is for me to stay happy and healthy, not be sad that I'm not smaller.
• I like to be challenged.
  This one was a real shocker for me, as I'm a pretty laid-back person on the whole. On my days off, I like to relax and do near to nothing but when I'm at work, it's a whole different story. I want to be challenged and I like to work hard for my money. Professionally, it's been a very interesting year for me, and I'm so grateful for all of the choices/mistakes I've made because I know exactly what I want to be doing and who I want to do it with. Better late than never, eh?
• I love my nephew. 
  That probably sounds like a strange and obvious thing to say, but it's true - I love my nephew. Since he came into my life just over two years ago, it's been amazing. I've never been around a growing child before, and watching him develop over the last couple of years has been a real eye-opener. As a result of this love, however, I've found that I worry about him constantly. All the time. Even when I'm not around him. My sister laughs at me when I play in the garden with him because I shout, "Be careful!", "Get down!" and "Don't run!" the whole time. I've had a real insight into the raising of a child. and as a result, I'm in awe of all parents. Serious kudos to you.
• I'm a big weirdo that writes self-indulgent blog posts about her boring life. 
  I think that one explains itself.

Can you relate to my recent learnings? What have you learned about yourself over the last year? Please tell me in the comments so I feel less like a crazy person...

Much love,

Frankie
Swell Vintage

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Swell family

I'm back!

Apologies for the impromptu break, but I had a very good reason...

Over the last few months, my family and I have been planning a HUGE surprise for my Nana's 80th birthday. My Nana is a brilliantly wonderful and sweet woman, but she is also incredibly modest. When asked what she'd like to do for her birthday, she replied without hesitation, "Nothing. And if you plan anything, I'll kill you."

Undeterred by the (hopefully) light-hearted death threat, we continued with our sneaky birthday planning. My Nana, Aunty, Uncle and three of my little cousins all live in the south of Spain. While we visit when we can, it doesn't happen often, so we knew she'd never expect the British contingent of our family to be there for her big day!

It's always hard to know what to give someone for such a milestone of a birthday. I knew that other family members were planning photo albums and other personal gifts, so I was thrown for a while. "Why don't you make her a necklace?" my Mum suggested.

It took a lot of planning on my part, because I wanted to make my Nana something as beautiful and unique as she is, but she doesn't really like the vintage style. This is the first piece of jewellery I've ever made that contains no vintage or antique parts, but I'm still pretty pleased with how it turned out:


The 'Mirella' necklace is made from freshwater pearls, individually linked with sterling silver and adorned with a nice big swarovski crystal. I wanted to do something a bit different from just pearls, as they can look quite aging and samey.

Luckily, my Nana loved it and she looked absolutely stunning:

She doesn't look 80, does she?! Fingers crossed I've inherited these good genes!

So what do you think of the necklace? Do you prefer a more vintage style, or should I expand Swell to include new styles? I'd love to know what you think.

Much love,

Frankie
Swell Vintage

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