I love being able to interview brilliant, talented and interesting people here in my funny little corner of the internet! I'm hoping that someday, when lockdown lifts, I can do more of this kind of thing in a slightly different format - but more on that later. Now, let me introduce the divine Lauren Marina! She and I met a while ago, through work. Now she's freelancing, creating 'illustration for inspired interiors' (ooft, that alliteration game is top notch, no?) and currently raising funds to make a full on brand, and eventually bring about a collaborative community studio space and shop! You can support the crowdfunder HERE.

I fired a few questions over to her via email, and her replies were so lovely. Read on, friends!

Photo by @seansvisuals at TOSH

Would you like to tell us about your wonderful artwork and Marina Studio brand?

Hey Grace! I am an illustrator, pattern, and surface designer. I’ve been making art my whole life but took the plunge into freelancing full-time last year after leaving my previous job. I work on a mix of private commissions for clients, and also creating my own items to sell. 

I draw all of my work with pencil, inks, paint, and also using my iPad and Procreate. I tend to lean towards using a limited colour palette of deep charcoal and beige or white, but sometimes I add in some earthy tones too. 

I’m inspired by blooming houseplants, changing seasons, natural forms, expressive fauna, and wild creatures. I’ve recently gotten into drawing more animals, and I’m loving creating a series of expressive galloping horses!   

Marina Studio is my brand where I sell a variety of lifestyle and interior items. I currently sell a range of art prints, greetings cards, and wrapping paper. I’m really conscious of my environmental impact so print only on 100% recycled high-quality cards, using vegetable inks, and my products either come packaging-free or wrapped in compostable sleeves. 

Creatively, it’s actually been quite groundbreaking for me. 

I began drawing again as a way to pass the time and to self-soothe my anxiety. It became an everyday hobby again and it felt really good to have the time to do it! Like slipping back into a pair of really comfy, familiar slippers, if you know what I mean? 

I began to post some of my drawings on Instagram and had a really encouraging response from my community. Then I started selling some prints online, and a few commissions started coming in. Things have just snowballed from there really!

I started to think that maybe I could actually give my illustration a shot as a career. It was a bit of a ‘now or never’ moment for me. For a lot of last year, drawing felt like survival, for my mental health but also as a way to feed myself and keep a roof over my head. With each commission and each sale from my shop I’m proving to myself that I can do it, and that I can absolutely smash it!

So as an artist, this last year has exceptionally transformative for my own confidence and self-belief.

So I started a Crowdfunder at the start of February! I’ve never used a platform like this before so I was initially a little worried about how it would be received. I am looking to raise £500 so that I can expand my range of Marina Studio products. I’ve been experimenting with wallpaper designs over the last few months and I am absolutely loving it as a potential end-point for my art! But, starting a wallpaper range comes with its costs, so I asked my community to help fund this expansion. 

I have been utterly bowled over by the kind and generous response. I really thought that the Crowndfunder could fall totally flat, with no one caring or donating. But it’s been the total opposite. The £500 goal has been made, and I’m now aiming for my stretch target of £1000. The financial generosity has been amazing to receive, but moreover, the belief that people have in me as an artist is absolutely magic. 

If I can make a living from my art, have a secure roof over my head, food in my tummy, and a good work/life balance I’ll be so happy. I hope to move into a proper artist studio soon, but I don’t want to jinx it so I won’t say too much on that!

Photo by @seansvisuals at TOSH

That’s a tricky one. I find that my most recent piece of art is my favourite! So currently, that’s the Galloping Horse print. I just love how the sun's beating down, they look pretty chill and their tail flicks gleefully amongst the foliage!

Photo by @seansvisuals at TOSH

Thanks for chatting with me, Lauren. I can't wait to someday have a cuppa together on the beach in Dorset!

My darls, if you want to support this queen and help her achieve her dream of making Marina Studio, contribute here OR check out her shop, OR buy her a virtual coffee!

Remember when everyone regularly did the 'things that made me happy this week' posts? I miss those days; when blogging was so simple and gentle and a passion, rather than a job, for so many. I also miss people taking the time to post on social platforms and their various corners of the internet about their wins and joys - these days it's all 'the world is sh*t', '2020 can get in the sea' and 'can't wait for my life to start again'... I get it. I really, really do. No, seriously. I shielded in the first lockdown, I've had to isolate a few times since then, I've been furloughed, I've not hugged my family for months now and all my favourite places to go are closed for the foreseeable future - I GET IT. 

The world is a sh*tty place right now. It is. Our government suck. Businesses everywhere are struggling, money is tight, we all need a good cuddle. That said, life isn't all bad for me these days. I recently had a revelation - life's alright. It'll do. Okay, the lovely shop I work in is currently closed and I miss it dearly, but I've been able to work from home with one of the company's head office teams; 40 hours a week I am answering emails from distressed customers who need help - or just to be listened to - which actually brings me some real joy. Okay, some of my favourite local cafes are closed and I can't meet friends for a sit-down-cuppa-chat, but I can meet one friend at a time for a socially distanced walk along the seafront, or in the park, or around my funny old neighbourhood - and we can get coffee to take away, from the indie cafes that are staying open as kiosks! Okay, I can't get my fluffy, fast-growing hair sorted out and tidied up, but I'm basically getting a free pass to grow it and not worry too much about what it looks like - because I'm not going anywhere! 

I have a TV. I have my laptop. I have wifi and 4G. I have books - so many books. I have my plant babies. I have friends, just a video call or a tweet away. I can do virtual yoga classes in my living room. I can boogie, live on Instagram, in my pants - a very weird and wonderful occupation that's got me through the hardest times. I have my health - just about. I have food, I have an income, and of course, I have a fabulous, hard-working, resilient body that is carrying me through it all. Now, I'm not very good at meditating, but I've started taking moments each day to think about the things I do have, and the things that make me happy, despite everything. They can be the smallest, silliest things. The other day I giggled through my face covering at the local bakery when I saw a small bowl next to the till, full of gingerbread men, with a little sign that said 'Lil Ginger Chaps'. Things like that. Take them in. I'm very aware I've written something like this recently, about finding the light in the dark, but it's so important! Switch off the news for one evening, you can afford that. Pop your favourite movie on instead. Grab some snacks. Maybe hook up your phone/laptop to Zoom and watch it with your loved ones. 

I've put some photos in this post of little things that have made me happy, recently; including an online LUSH makeup class, a day of dog sitting, and my plants. Okay, the Zoom call with Newton Faulkner is quite a big thing, and very unexpected, but hey... 

The world will be okay again, someday. You need to make yourself okay, for now. 

Please comment with any tips you have for staying sane and staying happy, while the world is very sad. 

10 days ago, I was instructed to self-isolate because I'd been in contact with someone who had tested positive for Covid. I was aware of who it was, which was good - I would have gone mad wondering, otherwise - but that didn't make the pill any easier to swallow. I was suddenly overcome with flashbacks to my shielding days, and could almost feel the freedom I'd been reveling in being pulled out from under my feet. All the seafront walks, takeaway coffees, waving at friends as I passed them in town, my safe boyfriend bubble - gone, in an instant. Because I'd spent 20 minutes one Tuesday morning in the same room as someone (both of us socially distanced, wearing face coverings) who had tested positive the next day. 

I am so happy and relieved to share that in these past 10 days I have not noticed any symptoms, and am currently waiting on the results of a second test (the first was negative). I plan on going for a walk with my partner (who has also been isolating, as he was in contact with me the day after I was in contact with The Positive Person) along the seafront tonight at 00:01, to celebrate our freedom. Romantic and adorable, no? Like some kind of dystopian indie movie. 

Photo by the wonderful Sophie Mayanne, for Getty Images.

I'm almost sorry I haven't written anything on here since this latest isolation was invoked. When I had to isolate/shield early last year, I documented it pretty well, I think. That was partly because I had nothing else to do, and the creative block hadn't quite kicked in yet (that happened in lockdown part deux). I wrote about all the reading I'd been able to get done, I answered some sex questions, I did some more reading reviews, I took on a new social media job at Eggtooth and started working with them as a creative writing mentor for referred young people. 

I wrote a few sponsored posts during that first lockdown, too! The brilliant Helena Traill let me write a piece about the wonderful launch event for her 100 Stories book, which was so fun to do. I wrote on the blog about distance learning, a lovely Dorset staycation, the different definitions of ability, even a lighting company! I remember being a little apprehensive when I volunteered to write these posts because the specs were a little out of the ordinary for me and my little corner of the internet. But I took on the challenges, and my confidence in copy/content writing really grew from there. 

I joined some creative writing workshops on Zoom, and published one of the pieces I wrote, which I was especially proud of. And in this latest lockdown I'm going even bigger, and actually trying to write up that book I have stuck in my head. Wish me luck. 

And when I came out of lockdown (part one) I wrote a hefty post detailing almost everything I'd done. 

I'm definitely less hyper-emotional this time. I've actually felt super happy! How wild is that? I suspect the alone time is what's doing it; I needed to take myself away from the hectic outside world and make some time for me. I reckon my new evening routines have also given me a boost, and a gentle shake. Most evenings I will usually spend lazing in front of the TV, eating everything within reach (nothing wrong with that, folks, but it does make me feel a bit blehhhh after a while) and endlessly scrolling on my phone. This changed a few nights ago when I decided to skip my morning shower and leave it till the evening after I'd stripped and re-made my bed; I washed my hair and body, covered myself in Sleepy body lotion, put on some fresh pyjamas and tucked myself in with a hot water bottle and a book, at 9:30pm. It was an absolute dream. I slept well, I felt fresh in the morning, and my super clean hair wasn't fuzzy and tufty as it usually is right after a wash, because I'd slept on it and made it softer. It sounds so simple, but this little switch up changed the game for me. I don't know if I can keep it up, but I'll try. It was also really helpful in the mornings not to have to shower and put my face on, because that can actually take me a while and mess up my timings. This would be especially inconvenient these days, as I have started a new job. 

Photo by the wonderful Sophie Mayanne, for Getty Images.

Oh, what's that? A new job? Yep. For the time being, while I'm not with the team in my lovely shop, the wonderful company I work for offered me the opportunity to work with the Customer Care team for a few weeks. So, until potentially the end of this lockdown, I will be working 10-6 (very civilised) Mon-Fri answering customers' emails and queries, checking up on their orders, sending them goodies, and also doing shifts on the brand's social media account. I do miss chatting and bonding with people face-to-face in the shop - and hanging out with my team of queens in the staff room, all of us munching on bourbons and drinking only the best looseleaf tea (okay fine, it's instant coffee for me), but this is the best situation to be in right now, to be honest. I am so grateful to not be furloughed because my rent isn't getting any cheaper, plus this work is definitely keeping me busy, and it's so good for me to actually have a routine for once in my life. I'm so lucky. I appreciate how fortunate I am. I hate that so many people have lost work since the lockdown(s), and I am raging at the government for letting the first round of furlough run out before they revealed there would be more, because so many people I know had to be laid off once the scheme 'ran out'. 

I do wonder what will happen, after all this madness ends. Obviously I know there will be no 'going back to normal', because really, normal isn't possible now. I know we'll probably never go bowling again. Or be allowed to test out mattresses in the store. Or try on clothes in fitting rooms - or return them, after they've been in our households. And I know it will be a good year at least before we can go out-out again. I wonder if hand-shaking will finally be scrapped. I won't miss it much. I will miss the theatre, and the cinema. They weren't just shows and films, they were experiences, the most romantic dates and exciting gatherings. Sigh... what do you think will happen? 

Hi, I'm Grace. But you know that by now, don't you?

I'm starting to write blog posts *in* the Blogger box again instead of copying and pasting from Google docs, and it's taking me right back to my days at college, when I'd write frantically between lessons then hit 'publish' without proofing anything. 

I always do these Facts posts, and they get mad attention. Maybe because they're short and sweet? Maybe because you lot are nosy, and want to know every weird thing about me? I do sometimes worry my attention span is really poor, these days. I used to be able to sit and colour in a picture, or read a book, for hours on end. These days I get antsy when I'm doing the same thing for an extended period of time, and find myself grabbing my phone every few minutes - then I scroll, scroll, scroll, like, like, like, and don't really achieve anything but it's the quick-paced engagement my brain seems to prefer these days. Ugh. Wow, this turned into Something, didn't it? Apologies, gang. Let's get back to the quick and quippy facts... 

I am really obsessed with making things like soup and porridge. My friend told me recently that's because it's essentially a brewing spell. 

Photo: Rachel Manns
Piece is a kind gift from Stay Wild.

I got a 2021 planner, and don't feel foolish about it at all. 

I hate English breakfast tea. Unless it's being served to me in a hospital bed. 

I can't wait to go sea swimming again in the warmer months; it was so healing and magical for me last summer. 

I'm getting eczema on my hands from washing them so much, again. 

It's a tough call, but I think Pilea Peperomioides are my favourite houseplant. Don't tell my aspidistra. 

I met Greg James once. He told me he liked my voice, and I should start a podcast.

I've unintentionally started a booze-free January... and I am now considering it a challenge, especially with all these awful news stories emerging every evening. Wish me luck. 

One of my simple but serious life mottos is: 'Never be without a pen' - Richard Gilmore, 2003. 

I've finally started watching The Office (US version). I'm three series in, and only just starting to warm up to it. Stay tuned for more developments. 

I've never written a Facts post with complete sentences like this... I quite like it. Do you? Let me know. 

I received a negative Covid test result this morning, and it was honestly the nicest thing to wake up to. (the drive through self-test pop ups are SO weird, but an amazing feat of engineering)

I recently had a wild moment and ordered myself two dresses online, and when they arrived I remembered why I never order clothes online. 

I start a new (temporary) job next week. 

I'm really bad at keeping gratitude journals, or sticking to Miracle Morning-style routines. 

I am really missing shoots, in lockdown. Not just the big snazzy magazine kinda ones in obscure locations in London, but the wacky ones with my creative friends that would often include trekking through muddy woods, dipping toes into the freezing sea, hanging spooky things from trees and doing a very quick and un-glam costume change in the shopping centre car park. 

I don't miss sitting in cafes as much as I thought I would. Shocking, I know. I am actually really loving the fact that if I want to see someone safely right now, one-on-one, we have to go for a walk together. I realise, yet again, I am very fortunate to live right by the sea. 

I've been in my little flat for a year now, and I am still so grateful I was able to move out and start my journey living alone in what turned out to be a most unfortunate year for everyone. I have to move in the summer, and I'm choosing to see it as an exciting opportunity to find a new happy space for me and my plants. 

But enough about me. How are YOU? 

When I was in Year 5, I got bored during Story Time (here meaning: our terrible teacher telling us every detail of what happened in Eastenders the night before) and spotted a lump of thick solid glue on the floor. It had obviously been a drop from a glue gun, when we were doing crafts earlier in the day. It was like a perfect teeny marble, about the size of a 5p coin. I started fiddling with it, and eventually (don't ask me how), it ended up in my right ear. Then, somehow, it stayed comfortably lodged in my ear for 3 years. I had it removed when I was in Year 8, via syringe in my GP's surgery. It was the stupidest thing I've ever done, but oh my goodness it was totally worth it for the feeling of relief in that moment. I could hear again! My ear felt so free! I remember thinking 'I must take better care of my ears, from now on.' 

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels

Cut to nearly 15 years later (ouch) and I haven't given my ears any proper care since. I do that awful thing of sticking a bud in after a shower now and again, while I still have some water in there, but that's about it. A friend of mine told me they went to an ear clinic (pre-pandemic) and it was a life-changing experience, having their ears well and truly doted upon. It seems like such a luxury, but it doesn't have to be! Seriously. Put down the towel, the olive oil and the spoon, and let's go through some super fun facts about your amazing ears... 

Y'know your outer ear? Well, it never. stops. growing. How wild is that? And we laugh at babies that have huge ears - I think we should be super kind to them, the poor things. 

Here's one you probably already knew, but if you didn't, be prepared - it may ruin a bit of childhood magic for you. Okay, ready? The 'sound of the sea' that you hear, when you press a shell to your ear? That's actually the sound of blood rushing through your veins. I mean, that may be the science of it, but I personally prefer to cling on to the magical mermaid stories... 

This one is a bit gross, but I think it will help some people... wearing a pair of headphones for just an hour can give you 700 times more bacteria in your ears. Yep. Sit with that for a bit. 

Last one is kinda cool; your ears never stop hearing, even when you sleep. I feel like I heard this years ago on come CBBC show - or actually maybe I didn't hear it, I probably had glue in my ear at the time. So, your brain makes a conscious decision to ignore sound when it goes into sleep mode, to make sure you aren't disturbed (any more than usual, anyway). 

How do we feel about these facts? They're pretty amazing, if you ask me. And there are so many more, but I'll leave you to listen out for them... I think we can all agree our ears are incredible, and definitely worthy of the highest standard of care. I'll be making it a resolution, when we come out of lockdown #26 or whatever, to treat myself and book in an appointment with Auris Ear Care, the ear wax removal clinic in Harley Street. My ears deserve the very best treatment, after the absolute nonsense they've had to hear in the past year! Check out Auris now if you feel the same, or maybe want to treat a loved one who struggles with their hearing. 

How did Beets Pulse and Thyme come to be? 

Photo by Daniela @ Beets Pulse & Thyme.

What brings you joy? 

Now, more than ever, we have to take note of the happy moments. We have to submerge ourselves in them and take a long, decadent swim, until we surface somewhere remote, unfamiliar and so wonderfully peaceful. And then we'll hopefully turn and squint at the dark horizon we came from, and not remember what it was made of. 

Photo by Tim Dunk.

How about YOU? Are you finding the light in the darkness? Sometimes you have to consciously turn it on. And sometimes it takes a while; the bulb flickers halfheartedly, lacking the juice it needs to brighten a room. But you must persist. Press the switch harder, wait out the flickering, and call for help if you need it.