The psychology of... colouring

Colouring is an activity many of us will associate with children. As a child I LOVED colouring and considered myself somewhat of an expert - never deviating outside of those lines. I was so good that I won first place in an esteemed colouring competition - for a local travel agency. I'll gloss over the fact that my mother permitted me to enter in to an age category I was too old for...

Colouring for adults is a bit of a craze at the moment. Just take a look at the number of colouring books available on the market, and at the time of writing there are two in Waterstone's top 20. Even my parents have bought into the craze. Somewhat. My Dad had given it a good go but commented that "it's quite a slow process" and "it takes ages to complete"; clearly not a person bought into the benefits.

Slowly but surely

As a Psychologist I instantly wanted to know more about the merits of colouring and whether the claims of soothing anxiety and eliminating stress were in fact based on sketchy (sorry!) evidence, at best.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that it is a useful relaxation technique and it allows people to remove themselves from the chaos of daily life. It focuses the mind and provides an outlet for creativity. Some Art therapists have even claimed it is a form of mindfulness, which focuses people on a specific activity rather than on any sources of anxiety.

Cathy Malchiodi, an Art Therapist and Psychotherpist, argues that colouring is not mindfulness, and goes on to suggest that for some it may actually lean toward obsession, "reinforcing the need to complete all those designs in all those books you purchased." 
I do find it difficult to accept such bold claims of eliminating stress - a colouring book will not eliminate stress; identifying and removing the root cause of stress will eliminate stress. The same goes for anxiety. At best, colouring is a sticking plaster solution.

Despite the mixed evidence, I have found colouring to be relaxing, fun, and a good distraction from all the thoughts I have running around my head. I've enjoyed reminiscing about my childhood colouring experiences and will probably continue colouring to the point of obsession. Yep, I'm one of those people.

I've bought two different colouring books and a set of new pencil crayons to set me on my way...

 

I'd love to hear others' experience of colouring and any perceived benefits. Can it really provide a form of mindfulness or is it just a short-lived relaxation craze?

S

xoxo 

A day out in Chelsea...

It's been a while since I last posted, mainly due to extremely busy periods at work which don't allow much time for thinking let alone writing. But I'm making a conscious effort to blog more regularly from now on...

Hubby and I recently had a day out exploring Chelsea, London. It's been on the to-do list particularly since the new series of Made in Chelsea started {yes, it's a guilty pleasure}.

We started with a spot of lunch at The Phene, which is tucked away down a side street off King's Road. This is definitely our kind of {posh} pub - lovely interior, awesome beer garden and a delightfully varied menu - food, wine and beer. 

I opted for the Macaroni Cheese with spinach and truffle oil and Fraser went for  the Croque Madame {he loves a good toastie with an egg on top!}

After our lunch lunch we headed for an ogle at the houses on Cheyne Walk. A millionaire's paradise. Apparently the likes of Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Laurence Olivier have lived there. The houses are HUGE, but it's free to look though!

We then headed to the Chelsea Physic Garden. It's a beautiful oasis of green right in the heart of Chelsea - quite the hidden treasure too. I definitely recommend a visit and apparently the cafe is pretty good too {we were too full after lunch}. As I'm quite green fingered I took a lot of photos...

Always the clown...

I bought a few postcards of vintage seed packets for framing at home from the lovely gift shop at the Gardens.

After we left it started chucking it down so we hopped into the nearest pub, The Surprise, for respite from the rain. Absolutely nothing to do with the bunting on the outside of the pub...

We had a good wander down King's Road, window shopping and for our final stop, we popped into Gail's for coffee and cake: A Chelsea bun in fact. Delicious!

All in all it was a lovely day out exploring the more affluent part of London. Jealous much!?

 Shones
xoxo

S & F wedding - Engagement shoot

Choosing a wedding photographer was one of the most important tasks for us. Knowing that your wedding photographs are going to be one of few physical memories of your big day, you can see why it's important to choose the right photographer. For you. 

I know a few couples that haven't been happy with their photographer's final product, which makes me sad. As someone who loves photography (looking more so than taking), I wasn't going to take any chances. I started with the usual Googling and searching supplier lists such as those on RMW. Nothing really captured my attention though. 

After thinking I would never find the perfect photographer for us, we stumbled across VLA Photography at our venue's supplier open day. As soon as we met Jon and talked through our requirements, we were instantly excited. Seeing some of his photos helped as well, but we were just so taken with Jon's relaxed and friendly approach that we decided to book a consultation with him. Obviously, that went well and we booked with VLA.

Yippeee!

Our wedding package included an engagement shoot, which we nearly missed out on. Time passed by so quickly whilst planning the wedding that we forgot about the engagement shoot until about six weeks before the big day. I think we ended up having theses photos taken only a few weeks before the wedding.

Jon likes to hold the engagement shoot at your venue, so off to Gate Street Barn we went. It was late October/early November so we had to take a chance with the weather. Second time round we got lucky.

Having the engagement shoot was the perfect opportunity to work with Jon and get to know his working style, and also get used to having our photograph taken. It's safe to say that neither Fraser nor I are shy, retiring types, but having your photograph taken by a professional feels different. I didn't want to be the 'un-photogenic one'. In all honesty, we found the whole experience really easy and Jon had some brilliant tricks to make us laugh, smile and look like we're completely head over heels for one another (which we are).

 

Jon has captured our spirit perfectly and the images completely reflect our entire relationship: FUN! No one makes me laugh as much as Fraser does, and we had some good giggles during our engagement shoot. We certainly didn't want sappy, romantic style photos; that's just not us.

Hilarious huh?

Gate Street Barn was the perfect location - just look at that backdrop. So many autumnal colours and  natural beauty.

We love these photos so much that we put together a wall display of our favourites in our bedroom. After all, there's not many photos that capture our relationship so well and that are so natural.

We can be romantic...

I've only just realised that the engagement ring does not feature in any of the photographs.  Am I sad about that? Absolutely not! The ring is just the material element of our commitment to one another. What's important is that we're together and we're ALWAYS happy - a ring won't do that for me but Fraser will!

 

I hope you've enjoyed looking through the photos. Massive credit to Jon Fraser of VLA Photography. We cannot recommend him enough. Really.

The end...

Shones
xoxo

Travel - Lulworth, Dorset

The Cove House B&B

We've decided to make more of the beautiful country we live in and certainly see more of the South, seeing as we've both lived down here for over eight years now. Anyway, we decided on West Lulworth, Dorset, as our base for exploring surrounding areas such as Durdle Door Door and the Jurassic Coast. We stayed at the Cove House B&B, based purely on the rave reviews on Trip Advisor and it did not disappoint. 

The Lulworth room

The Cove House is run by Justin and Mandy who are just delightful. From the wonderfully warm welcome and the belly stuffing breakfasts, there's really nothing to fault with our stay. We stayed in the Lulworth room, which seemed to have been recently renovated. Very modern,  lovely decor, and nice little touches such as magazines, a wee game, and even a torch for night time trips to the pub (there was no street lighting in the area). It truly was a great base to explore the surrounding areas. 

Our first day was pretty jam packed. We started with a long coastal walk to the Man of War Cove and Durdle Door. It was another hazy day (this is a recurring theme of our day trips of late) which was a little disappointing but the views were still amazing. 

Our walk then took us via Lulworth Cove, where we saw two very brave swimmers; without wetsuits! Brrrrr

Spot the swimmer...

Just down the road from the cove there are some beautiful cottages, especially Cove Cottage. Perfectly British!

We stopped for an ice cream too, well I did. It was a bit nippy but you can't visit the coast without having a proper, creamy, Devonshire ice cream. 

In the afternoon we visited Corfe Castle, Swanage and Worth Matraver. Our highlights included: 

• Afternoon tea at the lovely and somewhat chintzy Worth Matravers Tea and Supper Rooms. Such a lovely, quaint and VERY British tea establishment. It was the perfect afternoon pick-me-up...

• There's also a fantastic pub in Worth Matravers called the Square and Compass. Renowned for its pies and pasties, there's also a dinosaur museum inside. Keep an eye out for the buggered bat (I won't post here as it'll give you nightmares). 
• Corfe Castle and all the lovely sheep protecting the grounds! There's actually a lovely walk around the castle if you don't want to pay to go into the castle grounds

Corfe Castle

• Chococo in Swanage. Recommended by Mandy at the B&B this was a little slice of chocolate heaven. Tucked away down a little side street, this shop has the most amazing chocolate. I had to buy something; yes, chocolate fish n' chips...

We also had the chance to visit Monkey World, which I was irrationally excited for. I seriously cannot recommend it enough. Young or old, this place will appeal to all. Such fascinating creatures even when they're just munching on a stick of celery. Keep an eye out for playful Mikado the golden-cheeked gibbon and the little 'Elvis' monkeys (you'll know which they are based on their hair). Here's some photos for your enjoyment...

Good times!

Thanks for reading...

Shones
xoxox