Grand central, alternative shopping Liverpool

I took the middle son to Liverpool the other day to have his passport interview, apparently everyone who applies for their first passport has to go, they asked him some simple questions and everyone who worked there was really nice. He was relived when it was over though, a bit nerve wracking for a quiet 18 year old. 

We went to eat in a veggie/vegan cafe called Egg, it has a boho vibe and a good menu with a big selection of hot dinners, snacks and cake. 

I opted for dragon pie and salad, there was loads and I couldn't finish it all. It was pretty nice, but I have tasted better to be honest. 

Round the corner was a really gorgeous building, plants grew from the rooftops and it had all sorts of art nouveau features. It is called Grand central and is an alternative shopping centre. 

The ceilings are amazing, everywhere you look are gorgeous features, amazing clothes, quirky shops and loads of colour. 

I was in boho heaven!

There are vintage, punk, goth, hippy shops and other shops in the basement ( I didn't go down to see as we had to stick to a time schedule. It's somewhere I will definitely go back to, to have a proper look round. 

Love Dotty xx

Thinking outside the box

It's all about the boxes

So this week I have mainly been making boxes, I love painting boxes, the possibilities of what to store in them are endless and it makes a nice change from painting on canvas.

All different sizes and shapes keep my 'job' interesting, I often imagine what people keep in there boxes and sometimes they tell me, this one below is for keeping crystals in next to a bed, how wonderful!

This one is for keeping meditation cards in, its about the size of a fiction book and opens up just like a book, it has a magnetic fastening too.

 

Think too much?

I am working on this one myself, I am constantly thinking, thinking of what is next, thinking of new ideas, how to make money, how to travel, how to have more sex, more sleep, lose weight, sort out my skin, help other people, be more chilled out, be more accepting, judge less, enjoy more things, get involved in more art based stuff, how to become self sufficient totally, what to grow, what to plant, how to build a polytunnel with zero pence, how to stop the chickens squarking at the seagulls at 6am blah blah, the list goes on and on. I want to switch my brain off to quiet mode for a bit, practise meditation everyday (I easily get distracted and forget), learn being in the moment more and accepting what is. Allowing myself to feel and be happy on a constant level, giving myself permission to just be. How do you 'switch' off?

 Did you like the way I joined the boxes and thinking into a witty title? haha I try my best ;)

Love Dotty xx

5 ways to tell if you were brought up by hippies

I wasn’t brought up by hippies, I was brought up by a strict christian mum but she gave me a love for art, for places faraway, for dreaming and to be a butterfly and we didn’t have a tv because she couldn’t afford one so even though she wasn’t a hippy I can still tick some of the boxes that would make her one!

Check this out by Hippy Bloggers to see if you were brought up by hippies:
Were you raised by hippies? If so you might recognize some of these signs from your childhood. You probably have your own special stories related to your childhood, some of these tell your entire life story, and some of these don’t even touch the surface. Either way, take a look and reminisce about your childhood, which was probably a simpler time filled with flowers and kale.

1. You didn’t have a TV growing up

The other kids usually talked about the latest episode of the hit sit-com that they would watch with their family from the night before, and you would be talking about the books that you’ve been reading. Although part of you probably craved to have that TV at the time, odds are now you understand why your parents did it, and you thank them for it.

2. You meditate when you need to figure out your life

Since you were a little kid, you knew how to meditate in a way that worked for you. Not only did your parents encourage you to meditate frequently, they probably nagged you to do it whenever you were stressed or irritable. You probably still do it today, more than you admit to your parents, at least. You know that meditating is one of the best ways to clear your mind, and generally helps you solve the problems in your life.

3. You could live without meat and it wouldn’t impact your life much

When you were growing up, you had a very loose relationship with meat. Either you never ate it, you only ate it at school, or you only had it on special occasions. Regardless, you have lived more of your life dedicated to spinach, tofu and other protein replacements, and you could easily phase meat out of your life.

4. You have old tie dye shirts that you made yourself from back in the day

In the back of your closet, with your boxes of old mementos, sits your old homemade tie dye clothing from that day that your mom came home and said “We’re going to express ourselves today!” and dropped a pile of dyes and white clothing at you and your sibling’s feet.

5. You know that hemp has no limits to its uses

Regardless of what anyone believes about marijuana’s uses, you know that besides that the plant itself has many uses. From clothing material, to soaps and shampoos, to even paper or building materials, and that’s why you don’t understand that it is illegal.