Tag: days out

Redondo Beach and travelling to Anaheim…

On By louiseIn Fashion, Lifestyle, TravelLeave a comment

Dress: Hush Sunglasses: Vans (I’ve repurchased these 3 times in the past seven years, love them!)

After four gorgeous days based in Redondo Beach we packed our bags and moved into Anaheim, but not before a morning spent on the beach.

Redondo Beach is a really lovely place to chill out and embrace that LA Lifestyle. I love the outdoors way of life that comes hand in hand with the gorgeous climate Southern California delivers. From surfing, volleyball, bike riding, skating and running, it’s so easy to be active. 

We had a wonderful stroll where the sea meets the sand, allowing the waves to crash against our bare legs. I’m always at my happiest on the beach.

Sadly a Dead Sea lion washed up whilst we were there and the excellent coast guards came straight away and took it off of the shore. The lifeguards are phenomenal in California, I would say that they are arguably the best in the world. Always so alert and well equipped. They don’t just look out for folks drowning, but keep the entire Beach clean and safe.

Anyway, after our morning on the beach, we headed over to Anaheim in preparation for our Disney days. It was a super hot day, so we headed straight to the pool and hot tub (which felt extra hot!).

Later on we headed to the mall for a spot of shopping where I picked up some Bath & Body Works treats (I’m obsessed with that place) and a little black Kate Spade bag.

I then chilled out at the hotel whilst the boys went to the shooting range. I find the shooting range absolutely terrifying, so I prefer to stay at the hotel and relax. They had a ball though!

Have you visited Redondo Beach?

L x

USS Iowa and a tour of LA…

On By louiseIn Fashion, Lifestyle, TravelLeave a comment

We kicked off our Sunday in Redondo Beach before heading south to San Pedro to visit the USS Iowa. Phil’s Dad (Steve), had always wanted to see a warship in the flesh and that’s pretty much why he chose the West Coast for our holiday.

The USS Iowa is a huge ship oozing with history and character. It’s really fascinating to walk around and Steve loved it.

Once we had finished having a nose around, we headed over to Hollywood to visit the Griffith Observatory and that iconic sign.

It was mega busy over at Griffith Park, but we managed to get parked right outside the Observatory- result! 

I think that the observatory is fantastic for views of the city and the sign. The observatory itself is also great. Both times that we have been we watched a show in the planetarium. It’s so interesting and relaxing. I love how visiting the observatory reminds me of just how small I am – we are. It’s so easy to get swept up in modern day life and forget that in the grand scheme of things Earth is rather insignificant. 

My view on life is to enjoy what we have now. Think about the future, but don’t stress it. Don’t take anything for granted. Anyway, visiting the planetarium helps to keep me grounded!

Cap: Borrowed from Phil, made by Billabong Sunglasses: Kate Spade about 8 months ago, T Shirt: I picked up from Ocean Park when we were in Hong Kong, Shorts: I picked up in Target last year.

After our trip to the planetarium, we took a trip to Rodeo Drive. We wanted to make sure that Steve sees all of the iconic places whilst we were in Los Angeles, so Rodeo Drive was a must see.

We also took Steve to the Chinese Theatre which is honestly one of the most disappointing places I’ve ever been to. It’s not glamorous at all and it’s always rammed. It’s such a seedy area and a complete contrast to the glamorous, exciting image I had conjured up before my first visit. 

Anyway, although Phil and I despise that area, we felt that Steve needed to see it and took him along. We parked right nearby ($2.50 per 12 minutes!!!) and had a nose at the handprints, footprints and stars.

Another place that Steve had mentioned he would like to visit was the La Brea tar pits. Which are basically naturally occurring tar pits where asphalt has seeped through the ground. 

It was completely new to Phil and I and fascinating to see. They have been excavating fossils there for years and have found so many animals including a mammoth.

The animals would come close to the pits for drinking water without realising that they were filled with asphalt and get stuck in the tar. It’s really sad, but awesome that we can gather fossils. I would really recommend a visit. 

Have you visited any of these tourist hot spots?

L x

Long Beach loving and a Taking Back Sunday Saturday…

On By louiseIn Fashion, Lifestyle, TravelLeave a comment

I’ve decided to create a little diary series of our trip to the West Coast of America because I think it will be super lovely to look back on one day and I can share our experience with you all. It’s going to be quite raw in terms of photography because as I’ve said before, I like my blog/Instagram/life to be unedited, so don’t expect any mad photography skills! 

What you can expect though, is an insight into our trip, some tips and inspiration if you are planning your own trip to the West Coast.

We started our trip in Redondo Beach, but headed over to Long Beach on our second day. Phil and I spent a week in Long Beach whilst on our honeymoon exactly two years ago and we loved it. There’s so much character in Long Beach with its beautiful Marina and pastel coloured boardwalk. 

Top: last year from Hush, Shorts: last year from Sainsbury’s, Sandals: years ago from Roxy, Sunglasses: Michael Kors (again from last year!).
The three of us had a mooch around the Marina until Phil left us to go to the LCS studios to watch League of Legends. He gets terribly seasick, so his Dad and I seized the opportunity to head off on a whale watching cruise.

Harbor Breeze Cruises are great for whale watching tours. I went on one in February with my friend Kate and we were lucky enough to see Gray Whales and sea lions!

The migration path along the west coast is great for spotting all sorts of sea life and on this trip we were lucky enough to spot two humpback whales! Unfortunately, one had become entangled in fishing paraphernalia and so a rescue team was on its way. The second whale was loving life wild and free.

My recommendation is to make sure you take a jumper and wear lots of sunscreen. It gets a bit chilly out in the open and quite windy when you are travelling 30 odd knots. I did cover up but I still got wind burn on my face (I’ll wear a balaclava next time 😂), but thankfully I didn’t fry. 

I then took Phil’s Dad for his first ever trip to Hooters. I really like Hooters because I love their chicken wings although on this occasion I accidentally ordered them a tad too spicy!

We then took an Uber back to Redondo Beach. Uber is really cheap in the States, presumably because the cost of driving is much cheaper. We filled up our car for under £20! It costs me over £50 back home.

It was in this Uber that I realised Phil’s Dad had not put suncream on one of his hands and was now sporting one really tanned hand. I laughed a lot in the back of that car.

I had booked Phil and I tickets to see Taking Back Sunday in the evening at The Wiltern in Los Angeles. Although we were jet lagged, it was an incredible gig with a great, well balanced set. I loved it!

Have you been to Long Beach?

L x

A day spent exploring West Wycombe…

On By louiseIn Lifestyle, UncategorizedLeave a comment


There’s something about National Trust sites that simply grip me. I’m not sure if it’s the opulent stately homes or the lush grounds, but either way I am always somewhat entranced by a trip exploring a National Trust site. I love how simple, yet complex each visit is from a casual stroll around woodland to a tour of the grandest of homes. I love using our time exploring to switch off from everyday life and escape the harshness of modern times. It’s like taking a step back into a simpler way of life. We always have a jolly good walk around and I love breathing in the fresh air, my toes skimming the grass. We always learn something new and find something different. On this occasion we visited West Wycombe, which has a house as well as grounds to explore. We learnt lots about the Dashwoods and found a giant fungus in a tree, which whilst I am quite aware this doesn’t sound exciting (and perhaps even repulsive), it’s just so lovely to take note of our surroundings, nature and none of us had seen anything like this fungi before. It was as though it had emerged from Wonderland.

I find that each visit to a National Trust site bares similar constitutions to that of a fairytale. Charming, enchanting and full of escapism. That’s why I was so excited to see what West Wycombe had to offer us as new place to explore.

Although the sky was coloured grey, it was still rather pleasant and we had a wonderful walk around the grounds.

The grounds are simply overflowing in natural beauty with the clearest waters. I’ve genuinely only seen waters as clear as these in Iceland and could barely believe that this kind of purity can be found lurking in Buckinghamshire.

The house that sits on the hill at West Wycombe is open to visitors and I would say it is very distinct. It has a lot of Italian influences and has been used for filming on many occasions (including the latest Bridget Jones instalment!) It’s brilliant that you can walk around and absorb the history of past inhabitants and there are loads of information sheets to hand too. 

Overall we had a great day and will definitely be returning!

Have you visited any National Trust sites?

L x 

Exploring Hughenden Manor…

On By louiseIn Lifestyle, Uncategorized2 Comments


A sunny day in England is rather divine. Colourful, sumptuous and resembling the constitutions of heaven, when the sun shines over Britain, it’s impossible to be dreary. I love the positivity and motivitaton that oozes from a perfect sunny day. I love being outdoors and am in my element on a beautiful day. We became National Trust members before Christmas and I am super glad that we did as their sites make for a brilliant spontaneous day out. 

Last Sunday we chose to explore Hughenden Manor in High Wycombe. We all bundled into Phil’s Dad’s car and rode off in to the sunshine to explore this new to us National Trust site. Situated amongst rolling hills, the scenery devours you and it’s impossible to ignore such natural beauty.


We drove up the steep car park and began our trip downhill, already dreading climbing the hill back up again. The staff are super friendly and wonderfully knowledgable. We stumbled upon a tour of Hughenden Manor and learnt so much. It was brilliant. Considering we knew nothing about the place beforehand (I wasn’t even sure there was a house!), we came away feeling rather familiar with the place.


The manor is grand and voluptuous, and I loved imagining what it would be like to live there. Where would I put the couch? Would I move the library? 


Once we had finished having a jolly good nosey, we found a cafe and decided it was cake o’clock. 

The cakes were gorgeous and I had serious food envy after trying Steve’s apple and berry flapjack. It tasted how I imagine winning the lottery feels. 


We then had a stroll around the beautiful gardens and visited the bee hives.


Seeing the bee hives was great. It’s so good that Hughenden are supporting the tiny little creatures that help the world go round. It’s so sad to hear of how much the bees are struggling and hopefully these hives at Hughenden will help the little guys out.


There’s also a lovely walled garden which is home to some gorgeous crops. It’s a pretty little place to walk around and a great place to pick up a couple of plants. I chose a Holly Hock and Geranium. Our back garden is quite bare and I can’t wait for the little bursts of colour to brighten it up.


Soon it was time for us to make our way home, but not before a quick climb and some cow spotting.

Have you visited any National Trust sites?

L x