Post Notes from Wells

Last week, it seemed as though the grey and gloom would never let up and so to lift our spirits, my dear friend Jess and I took an exceedingly long bus journey from Bath bus station to the teeny-tiny city of Wells in Somerset. The bus snaked through winding villages and twisting lanes while the rain dribbled down the window panes. We bumped over pot holes and were flung about as the bus turned sharp corners. After spending a long winter confined to the one city, I had forgotten what it felt like to travel to other places and take public transport. 

I've been to Wells quite a few times before! My Dad used to live in Somerset a very long time ago and so he brought me here for an explore when I first moved to Bath and we absolutely loved the hidden Vicars close behind the school. George and I come here sometimes when we fancy a change and want to feel a little closer to Cornwall, the small town and it's quaintness reminds us of home and it feels the empty hole in our hearts when we yearn for a quieter place.

I would also rather proudly like to introduce my brand new camera bag. I don't often do any personal style posts here as a) most of my clothes are old/second hand/handmade and b) I don't feel like I'm an authority on style, but I thought it would be a fun change if I did a photography style post. Is that even a thing?

So after having a bright green, Krumpler backpack for my camera for the last two years, it occurred to me that although it was great when I was hiking around Cornwall and needed something sturdy and padded, it was a little out of place in the city or at weddings. I had been seeing the 'vintage satchel' style bags floating around for a while and had always fancied one for myself, but I'm just not the kind of girl who buys bags. I have functional bags and beyond a rucksack, a book bag, a shoulder satchel and a little purse bag... I feel it's hard to justify owning more bags. No matter now pretty they are. 

At £69, the Fox Talbot vintage satchel camera bag was a bit of a splurge, but a lot of camera bags are pricey and I can rarely find ones I like. My justifications for buying this were: 

• It's disguised as a regular bag so it blends in with my outfit and doesn't look too bulky and obvious
• It hangs at my side so it's so easy to keep popping my camera out for a shot 
• It's cute and vintage 
• It's smart for professional work like weddings 
• There's room for my wallet, keys and phone! 

With all that in mind, I talked myself into buying it. George was investing in a new 35mm F/2 lens for his Fuji XT1 at the same time so I think my inner impulse buyer was spurred on. I've been dying to buy more camera accessories for ages. Next on my list is a new, swish faux leather camera strap for my Nikon, a flowery strap for my Pentax film camera and a telephoto lens. Is it nearly my birthday yet? Oh no wait... just five more months to go!

The bag holds my rather large, full-frame Nikon D610 with the 50mm lens attached, my speed light, battery charger and my 18-70mm lens which is nastily heavy and bulky. It's all padded and spongey inside and has a zip pocket on the outside for your bits and bobs. I can finally stop stuffing my camera carelessly into my regular backpack when I go on day trips (one of my worse photographer habits) hooray! 

This cat is king of the porch. I wonder if Wizards live in these cottages? I bet they get tired of all the tourists peeping at their windows. I did feel rather guilty taking photos here, but with such attractive front doors and quirky features, it proved just too hard for me to hold back. 

Umbrella: Cath Kidston   |   Dolly Shoes: Fatface  | Flannelette Dress: Old 

Camera Satchel: Fox Talbot  |  Cardigan: H&M Sale |  Socks: H&M

I'm sure I'm not the only one who despairs when it comes to outfit decisions in the winter. I've always been and probably always will be a 'bare arms and feet' sort of person and I love loose skirts, shorts and dresses. I love feeling floaty and springlike but when it comes to winter, I just want to be as warm as possible so I end up resorting to jeans with pyjama bottoms underneath, thick pullovers and wooly jumpers. Any thought of being fay and stylish goes utterly out the window and my number one priority becomes 'not freezing'. Cornwall has mild winters and so it's easier to get away with my preferred winter combination of dungarees and long sleeve teeshirts but in Bath, I feel like I'm constantly frumpy in thick cardigans and multiple layers of tights layered over one another with hob nail boots. I think I get colder than the average human rather easily these days, my circulation has never been particularly good since moving to the city (I'm not getting nearly enough exercise anymore) and so I've been living in hobnail boots all winter. 

I just don't have the money to go out and buy new clothes all the time, especially being in the third year since I've dropped a job and only working one day at my waitressing job. I also tend to not advocate the buying of new clothes all the time and attempt to keep my wardrobe stocked sensibly; things that can be reworked and worn regularly. If it's not being worn enough, it gets swapped or goes into the charity bag. Winter is just not a time of year that I put much thought into my style choices. I admire bloggers like Amy Flying a Kite and Klara from A Robot Heart who seem to throw together ridiculously great outfits without always buying new things, in the heart of winter time.  Maybe next year I'll try harder? (I always say this). 

Wells has a lot to offer beyond Vicars close and the cathedral. There's an abundance of old-world cafe and delis littered about the quaint streets, lots of structures left behind from a time much older than yesterday like the one above; little tunnels to walk through with barely even noticing, medieval gates and bartizans. There is such detail in the features on the buildings and it makes me long for a gothic-revival-revival! Why oh Why don't we make buildings as pretty as they once were? 

I do apologise for the lack of 'Sea' content on the Salty Sea Blog recently, I really did intend for this blog to be a celebration of my beloved ocean. As my time in Bath dwindles to an end, I am scrambling to document and celebrate everything about this area that I can before returning home for a good, long time. Then, this blog will be saturated once again with the damp, ocean mist and covered with mussels and barnacles as it was intended. For now, let's make the most of this quaint, fairytale county further up the island with it's canals, aqueducts and medieval villages.