Number 13: See ten “so-called” classic films - Holiday Inn

Christmas movies are my favourite.  Spending the whole of the festive season at home this year means my family have been subjected to a fair few classics (much to their disgust!).  So far we've had White Christmas, The Bishop's Wife, It's a Wonderful Life and Holiday Inn (as well as some more recent faves: Arthur Christmas, Love Actually, The Holiday and The Polar Express).  

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Holiday Inn is an underrated gem in my personal opinion, with cracking song and dance numbers (I'll Capture Your Heart is my personal highlight).  Featuring Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire and White Christmas, you can't really go wrong.

Number 21: Make 10 recipes off of Pinterest - Candy cane marshmallows

Cooking is not my most successful venture.  However long the recipe says cooking time should be, I have to double it.  I also seem to use every utensil in the entire kitchen, which is why this particular challenge has gone so long without being started.

However, I was determined to make some of Martha Stewart's candy cane marshmallows to include in my Secret Santa gift.  I waited until I had the house to myself, gave myself plenty of time and had collected all the ingredients together (like they used to on Blue Peter).

And I was pleasantly surprised by the results - they looked almost the same as the picture (and they tasted fine, unlike my misadventure with sea-salt fudge...)!

Number 8: Send someone flowers out of the blue

Recently I've been lucky enough to have two lovely weekends away - one in Manchester and one in Plymouth.  To say thank you for putting me up (and for putting up with me!) I thought I'd try out Bloom and Wild's flower delivery service.

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I was little bit dubious about sending flowers through the post, especially as I haven't had the best of luck with the postal service recently, but I've been very pleasantly surprised.  Earlier this week, I sent two bouquets and they've both been really well received (and completely beautiful).  I would definitely recommend!
  

Number 19: Discover 10 new restaurants - TNQ

Another new restaurant discovery from my weekend away in Manchester in the middle of November...

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The Northern Quarter restaurant is tucked away down the High Street and although I lived 10 minutes away for a year, I'd never been.

It was the perfect place for a delicious Sunday lunch (with all of the seafood), before heading back home.  Another one that I would highly recommend.

Number 19: Discover 10 new restaurants - Croma

This post should definitely have the disclaimer of "new-to-me" restaurants...

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Croma is by no means new, in fact it's a bit of a Manchester institution; with the first restaurant opening in 2000.  But, despite living in the city for seven years, I had never been...  So, spending a rainy Saturday evening catching up with old friends over delicious pizza and a few glasses of wine seemed like the perfect way to rectify this oversight.

The food was delicious, I can't recommend the Garstang blue and goat's cheese pizza highly enough.  And I will definitely be back to sample more of the menu next time I'm "up North".

Number 17: Watch 10 Audrey Hepburn films - Paris when it Sizzles

This is one of those films that gets funnier every time I watch it.  I love the film-within-a-film aspect and all the geeky references to other Hepburn films.  And let's face it, its worth watching for Tony Curtis alone...

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Number 19: Discover 10 new restaurants - Wahaca

Last weekend, I headed back up to Manchester for some much needed catching up with friends.  As always, there were tonnes of new restaurants that had opened up in my absence so we took the opportunity to try out a few of them (more to follow...).

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First on the list was Wahaca, which I'd never been to before despite it being quite a large chain.  And I was really impressed - we had delicious food and good service, I'd definitely recommend!  And as they regularly change the menu, I'll be heading back too to see what's on offer.

Number 17: Watch 10 Audrey Hepburn films - Charade

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I do love a whodunnit, so a whodunnit featuring Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant was always going to be a winner.  This is the sort of film you can watch over again and see more each time.  I love every twist and turn in this cracking film.

An exhibition of Audrey portraits has just opened at The Wilson in Cheltenham and I'm very excited to see it (once I've watched a few more of her films).

Number 47: Exercise 3 times a week for 3 months

Having conquered the first hurdle of actually attending a Barre Concept class, I challenged myself to exercise three times a week for three months.  I did a combination of cycling and classes and I think having the challenge as an impetus really spurred me on.  I'm never going to be super fit or mega into exercise, but hopefully I'll keep my body in better nick for a little bit.

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I completed this challenge early in July and managed to keep up attending Barre Concept until I moved home.  Since getting back I've basically done nothing, but last week I started doing a few of Yoga with Adriene's videos, which I'm really enjoying so far.

Number 37: Visit every county in the UK - Yorkshire

This year, I was invited to my first ever hen party and followed by my first wedding as an actual grown up (not just tagging along with the rest of my family).  This meant that both my May bank holidays were spent in the largest county in the England; Yorkshire (Leeds to be specific).  And it was pretty glorious...

Number 35: Take a cooking lesson

For my birthday this year, my parents bought me a bread baking lesson at the Cambridge Cookery School.  Having never made bread before, I was a little nervous about nearly a full day of baking!  But the day was really good fun - baking four different types of bread (Scandinavian soda bread, cinnamon rolls, bread rolls and white tin loaf), each using a different technique and then eating lunch as a big group and sampling some variations on the recipes we'd tried.

Spoils of the day...

Since the lesson, I've tried making the cinnamon rolls again and, although they weren't quite as perfect, they were edible #nailedit.

Number 90: Meet a celebrity

Having already scoured the shelves of Waterstones in Piccadilly for a signed copy of Mary Portas' memoir Shop Girl following her signing, which I sadly couldn't make, you can imagine my excitement when I spotted that she would be speaking at the Cambridge Literary Festival.

After listening to a lively discussion, I queued up with the rest of the hoards to meet the lady herself.  She was so lovely, exactly like she is on the telly, even though I was completely tongue-tied at meeting her in the flesh!  

Number 44: Buy personalised stationery

I've always loved writing (and receiving!) letters via good old fashioned snail mail.  But it wasn't until I starting reading Carly's blog that starting lusting after my very own personalised stationery. It seems that this sort of thing is much easier to get hold of in the US, but after a bit of searching I came across Honey Tree Publishing.  After a large amount of deliberation, I finally decided on a pretty bicycle design and placed my order, which arrived super quickly (now I just need to get organised to actually write my letters!).

Number 79: Go to an art gallery that I haven’t been to

A few weekends ago, whilst on a short trip up to Manchester, I got chance to take a look around the newly-refurbished Whitworth Art Gallery.

I know.  I've been to this gallery before.  In fact, I lived next to it in my first year of University and used it, and the surrounding park, as my space to relax away from the flat.  But, with the extensive work they've done it feels like a completely different space.

We enjoyed lunch in the new cafe in the trees, which had disappointing service but excellent food (hopefully the service will be better next time we visit!).  Then we headed out into the galleries to look around the new exhibits, which were beautiful.  If you're in the area, it's definitely worth a visit.

Photos shamelessly stolen from my friend Alexa.

Number 13: See ten “so-called” classic films - The Lady Vanishes

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After watching the latest BBC version of The Lady Vanishes at the end of 2013, having never heard of it before, I was completely taken with the story.  I've long been a fan of whodunnits (how do you become Miss Marple?!) and I love 1930s fashion, so naturally this was right up my street.

I recently re-watched this version and then managed to track down the book the film was inspired by at the library. So, to top of the set, I thought I'd watch the Hitchcock version.  Each version of the story is slightly different, which (unusually) I really liked - it's good to have a new twist in the story to keep you on your toes!  All in all, I think the book was my favourite version of the story (original and best?).  Maybe don't use it as your commuting book though... 

Number 37: Visit every county in the UK - Suffolk

Last month, I met up with my parents for lunch whilst they were en-route to Norwich for a few days.  After lunch we ventured over to Thetford, the home of Dad's Army, to take a look around.  

  

Mum and me hanging out with Captain Mainwaring

Whilst the museum was shut, as was pretty much the entirety of Thetford, we still had a lovely afternoon pottering around.

Number 11: Try one “out of my comfort zone” exercise class

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This challenge is a bit of a misleading one - any exercise class at all is very out of my comfort zone.  Bearing this in mind, I thought I should "stick to what I know" and having done ballet until I was 17 I thought Barre Concept would be a good fit.

The nearest class to me is held in the yoga centre in the centre of town and after the initial challenge of finding the way in (through the mysterious purple door), I've been set.  

Don't get me wrong, the class is pretty tough (especially with my level of fitness) but it's also really good fun, with an excellent soundtrack!  And it's nice to know that I've remembered a few of the steps, even after an eight year hiatus!   

Number 15: Give blood as frequently as possible for 6 months

At the start of January, full of New Year vigour, I decided it was high time to start giving blood regularly.

I found a donation session happening the next day, just round the corner from home and went along.  It was really easy to do, didn't take very long and involved a large amount of biscuits (always excellent!).

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Number 37: Visit every county in the UK - Norfolk

A few months ago, a group of us set out on a little adventure to do some seal-spotting in Norfolk.  Horsey has a huge seal colony and when we went, it was full of super cute little pups.  I could have stayed watching for hours (if it'd been a little warmer!), they're so comical!

Number 17: Watch 10 Audrey Hepburn films - Roman Holiday

Whenever I'm feeling a little low, I reach for my Audrey Hepburn box set - instant happiness restorer.  Last weekend I put on Roman Holiday - the perfect fairytale story (with the most amazing costumes).  And if anyone could let me know where to get a lighter that's actually a camera that would be excellent...

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Number 37: Visit every county in the UK - Oxfordshire

The weekend after my birthday I headed back home to spend some time with 'the fam' (as I'd ditched them on my actual birthday in favour of Budapest...).  On Saturday we had a day trip to Oxford, as I've never been before.

Mum and Dad are Oxford veterans, so had a good idea of the 'must sees' and along with a smattering of suggestions from one of my best friends, who studied there, we had a pretty jam-packed day!

 

Number 77: Take a tram somewhere

Last weekend was spent in Budapest - sightseeing, over-eating and lounging around in thermal baths.  Budapest is full of vintage-looking transport but a particular favourite were the bright yellow trams.

This one took us alongside the Danube towards Buda Palace, which we spent a rather chilly morning exploring.