Snapshots of late: winter sunshine

I love the light in winter: sharper than before; cleaner. I love trudging around in my sturdy old Doc Martens, headphones cushioning my ears from the cold and eyes alert, scanning for moments to freeze. I love the bite in the air when we tilt away from the suns beams, and the caress of its light on my cheeks as we're drawn in closer along the path we cut around it. Just as much, I love escaping into cafés and warming my hands and heart on something fruity, tucking into a hearty lunch and discovering trinkets in the transient pop-up boutiques that pepper Bristol but don't always stick around for long!

 1. Winter sunshine at St. Nick's market. 2. Clean reflections on St. Augustine's Parade.

3 & 4. Filling up on sandwiches and "Granny's Garden" tea at Cox & Baloney's tearoom (adjacent to their delightful vintage boutique). 5. Their tea blends are available to buy to take home. Granny's Garden is a glorious, warming hug in delicate bone china.

6, 7 & 8. The Birdcage on Corn Street.

9 & 10. I picked up these hummingbird earrings from the Artizans Emporium at the Looking Glass arts space (the Emporium has sadly passed on by now). The darling deer is a little something I nabbed from my parents' house when they were moving earlier this year.

Snapshots of late: easing into winter

Having moved to Bristol in the cool, dark blink of an eye on a scorching day late in July, I held onto that summery feeling for a lot longer than usual. All of a sudden we were well into autumn and I still felt the holiday buzz that comes with exploring a new place - and still do. For that reason, the seasons are flying by and soon we'll be racing down the hill towards Christmas, wrapped up in woollen embraces with old friends and those we once knew. Looking back at a few photographs from the last month or two charts the steady slip into winter proper. There's finally a bite in the air and it's exciting!

1. Cute critters in St. Werburgh's. 2. St. Andrew's Park. 3. Guerilla knitting in the park.

4. Late pumpkin carving - a glowing heart for bonfire night, 5. Fancy dress: my skeleton get-up for hallowe'en this year.

6. The best thing about the biting wind is escaping it in the cosiest of cafés. City Farm café at St Werburgh's. It reminds me of a hobbit hole and is one of my current favourite places!

7&8. The German Christmas market has colonised Broadmead. I've convinced myself (after a mulled wine or two) that I'm a whizz on iceskates.