A Birthday Treat - Bowes Museum - Vivienne Westwood - Rebel - Storyteller - Visionary

It was my birthday a couple of weeks ago, and I think I've officially reached the point where I don't actually want anything anymore. My mam pressed and pressed for weeks but all I could think was a lego set, so she got me that and she's going to treat me to a new piercing and a shopping trip which I'm going to try and do this week or next.

My friends were in a similar position I guess, one sent me a surprise parcel of cute and fun stuff that I was super happy with, and the other asked me if I would like something a little bit different, a visit to one of my favourite museums, the Bowes Museum in Barnard Castle, Co Durham to see their latest fashion exhibition 'Vivienne Westwood - Rebel Storyteller - Visionary', of course I jumped at the chance, it's a little awkward to get there with public transport and spending time with one of my bestest friends is a gift in itself.

I've been to quite a few of their fashion exhibits over the years including their YSL showcase, an exhibition from milliner Stephen Jones, and an exhibition of Vivienne Westwood's shoe designs (I'm not sure why the pics aren't showing in this post just give them a click to see them), and I always love how they display often such contemporary items alongside art and antiques from their own extensive collections.

From plaid, to punk, to mini crinolines and pirate boots, this exhibition really did cover her entire fashion career and influences, showing some of her most famous pieces in the museums Fashion And Textile Gallery and in the grand setting of their specialist Exhibition Gallery.

I was going to carefully edit some of these pics but to be honest they really do speak for themselves so I'm posting them unedited and there is a lot of them so enjoy and if you’re interested you can also watch a little video I made on both TikTok and Instagram Reels x 

Some of the bits are a bit out there as you would expect from the godmother of punk, figleaf leggings anyone? and what's with the weird faux fur hat, and toy dog / fox accessory? but some of the tailoring is absolutely exquisite such clean lines and cuts especially on some of the tartan pieces.

Again the Bowes Museum have outdone themselves from the set up, to the pieces chosen and the staging, everything was perfect even the benches in the Fashion and Textile Gallery had been specially dressed for the occasion.

Throw in all of the treasures that the museum has including furniture, ceramics, sculpture, and paintings there really is so much to see especially this summer. We ended our trip with a performance of the iconic Bowes Museum Silver Swan and coffee and a scone in Cafe Bowes before heading home through the Co Durham countryside.

The Bowes Museum is a really good day out with lots to see and do, there are plenty of interactives including some children's dress up and drawing and art stations, and even a piece of interactive embroidery, they also hold regular themed workshops and even baby sessions! The museum is also set in lovely parkland and gardens great for a nature walk or a picnic, and if you're lucky you might even spot some squirrels.

The Vivienne Westwood Rebel - Storyteller - Visionary exhibit runs from the 28th March to 6th September 2026

Is There Anybody There? - Life Lately And Moving Forward

I've tried several times over the last few months to take some time out for myself, to sit down somewhere quiet and write this post but something has always stopped me, so much so that I actually felt like hitting the delete button and bringing this little chapter of my life to an end but something stopped me from doing that as well.

So where have I been? Well if you follow me elsewhere on the old socials then you'll know that yet again life kicked me right where it hurts, and over the last few months life in LouLouLand has been to put it mildly poop!

After losing my Godmother in September I really thought that 2025 couldn't get any worse, but then it did - my mam was taken into hospital in late November with yet another infection, cue lots of confusion, and delirium, a fall from her bed that left her very bruised and battered, and a 2 and half week stay in hospital. Thankfully the infection was treated, the confusion passed, the bruises started to fade, and two weeks before Christmas she was thankfully allowed home.

With her instructing my every move I decorated, cooked and cleaned, and although it was always going to be strange without my Godmother we had a nice but quiet Christmas and New Year. The gifts were meaningful, the food was plentiful, and sharing it with my mam was the only gift that I ever needed or wanted.

Unlike her previous hospital stays though, this time she didn't bounce back to normal, she's really struggling with her mobility, using frames around the house, and she's been unable to get out and about or get back in the car. It's been frustrating and a learning curve for both of us, and at times there's almost being a role reversal with me taking on the parental role doing the adult things that she hasn't been able to do, which has taken a bit of adjustment on both sides.

Thankfully as time has progressed she's been able to do more around the house (she's currently tidying her room!), and more physically and last week after a conversation with her GP she eventually had a therapist come out to the house to assess her, see what she can do, what they can help her with and what they provide for her. It may be 4 months too late but we're both feeling a bit more positive now, they are sending a physio out to work with her to improve her mobility and they may be able to provide her with some walking aids or maybe a chair so she can get out safely again especially with the weather hopefully improving.

It's been a lot to deal with, the stress of her being admitted, visiting her and not quite knowing at times what I was going to find, dealing with everything once she came home and all that entailed, all whilst trying to navigate grief, and chronic illness. I'm not ashamed to say that my mental health really took a nosedive,  I've cried myself into a panic attack on more than one occasion, I've had more sleepless nights than you can imagine and I've completely neglected myself and my surroundings. You know those depression room Tik Tok's, yeah I get that, I've been so concerned about keeping the rest of the house tidy, my room looks like a messy storage unit. I've worn make up twice in 5 months, and I haven't had my hair cut since September / October time. I've probably only left the house 5 or 6 times since my mam was released from hospital, and we've probably met every Tesco delivery driver in the North East.

I've had the odd day where I've craved normality, I went to the Metro Centre for a couple of hours last month to buy Mothers Day goodies, and I had a lovely coffee date, and Home Bargains, and Farm Foods trip with one of my besties, which did me the world of good but other than that I've been trying to dig my way out of a large dark hole, some days are good, I'm productive, I can cross things off my to do list, and other days, I just want to pull a blanket over my head and shut everything else out just to try and protect myself.

I know it's been hard for her too and I know she feels some guilt, but my mam really has been my biggest supporter and reason for being - she keeps telling me I'm stronger than what I think, and whilst at times I still struggle to believe that, I know she's right - you learn from every knock and it really does make you stronger but having even a small support system is everything and I'm forever grateful for the people I have in my life that are there when I need to vent.

I know it will pass and eventually I'll start to have more good days, I just don't deal with change very well anymore, and over the last few months I've had to deal with a lot of it. There are some positive things on the horizon but again they are going to involve periods of change, acceptance and lots of adulting so I'm trying to put on my big girl shoes and make the best of it. 

I guess that's really why I'm sitting in my cluttered, hoarder esq bedroom typing words onto a screen. As I say I wasn't sure how or even whether to come back here, times have moved on short form media is king, and any place I had in this world now seems long gone (especially when I look at all the spam comments!), but with the rise of substack and some people I know returning to the blogging sphere maybe there is hope for us who like to use our words. Blogging always used to be an outlet for me and whilst it used to be about numbers, blog awards and PR, maybe now I can go back to what it always was my place, my place to talk about things I love, things that troubled me, good things in my life and the bad, and maybe that's something that I need in my life again, a focus, an outlet.

So where do I go from here? Well I open up my Macbook and I tap those keys and see what comes out at the other end - Obviously I have to get up to date on those empties posts, I have some nail posts in draft, and some half edited ones that I will post in due course, I've also got a few Tik Tok bits to share but other than that I have no real plans on what to post. I'm not the same person I was when I started this blog and whilst I still love fashion, beauty, nails, and food, maybe my content needs to grow with me - in what direction? who knows but I hope beyond hope, that there are a least some of you out there who will stick with me, and whilst I'm no longer about stats and follower counts, I'm eternally grateful for any of you that are still out there, so Happy New Year, Happy Christmas, Happy Easter, and every other holiday that I've missed, thanks for being here and I'll see you soon with another post x