harry potter Archives - Journeys Are My Diary

Harry Potter turns 20!

May 23, 2017 by Bel Leave a Comment

Can you believe that on June 26th 2017, JK Rowling’s “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” has been publish for 20 years?! It seems no time at all, since I discovered my love for Harry Potter and his Wizarding World but despite being 38 years old this weekend and having gotten both my daughters to love Harry Potter too, I find it hard to believe that it really has been twenty years since the start of my favourite book series.

That said, I wasn’t one of the first people to jump aboard the Harry Potter band wagon. In fact, when both my mum and dad were raving about the books, I was actually wondering what the hell was going on with all these adults loving a “kids book”. It wasn’t until 1999 (Philosopher’s Stone was 1997), not long after Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was published, that I finally caved to peer pressure and borrowed my parent’s copy of the first book. In typical “child” fashion, I hated to admit when my parents were right, but oh my god I loved the first book. So much so that it was read within a few days, despite working full time. Book two was then devoured within days, followed by book three. It was official, I was hooked. I was desperate for the fourth book… and I suppose that was when I truly became a Harry Potter fan.

Book Four – Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, was pre-ordered. When it arrived, I couldn’t wait to get reading and I literally didn’t put it down until I was done. This became the same for all the other books, Order of the Phoenix, Half-Blood Prince and finally The Deathly Hallows. I have never before, or since, been so hooked on a book series. And it didn’t end with just the books either. I went to see every movie that was released, if not on the very first day, within very few days of released. The Deathly Hallows Part 1 was released not long after my ex and I split up and having no one who was immediately free to go to the cinema with, I ventured for the first time by myself to see a movie – rather than wait too long and go with someone else. When the final movie was released, myself and fifteen other friends, all gathered for a party of sorts. We all went to the first midnight showing of the movie and some of us even got Deathly Hallows tattoos to remember the occasion – this was my first ever tattoo.

This week I have been to London and of course a visit to the Platform 9 3/4 shop is an essential part of that trip. Not only that, but as I mentioned earlier – I turn 38 at the end of this week and guess what I’m doing for my birthday? A trip to Watford and the Harry Potter Studios (it will be my third time!). I’m really a huge Harry Potter geek and I don’t care if I should be too old for it or whatever. I have loved Harry Potter for (almost) twenty years and I will continue to do so for at least twenty more. I have loved sharing the stories with my children and hope they will continue to share the books with their own children too. This weekend we are also attending MCM London Comic Con and they have pre-releases of the 20th Anniversary “house” editions of the Philosopher’s Stone and I’m so tempted to get one (or all of them…)! Harry Potter books are the one and only set of books I would never be parted with, over all the books I own.

As a final thought and conclusion to my post, I wanted to share this infograph, put together by Cartridge Save. It has loads of fun facts about most used words and phrases, along with how many copies have been sold and how many words are in each book etc. If you’re yet to read Harry Potter, no matter what the reason, I honestly recommend you give it a try! You have nothing to lose and a whole lot of love to gain!

Life Lately – an update (Dec)

December 8, 2016 by Bel Leave a Comment

So I was going to do my November monthly round up but the truth is I don’t really remember much of it as it went past in a blur! I genuinely don’t remember the last time I felt like I had some spare time to sit down and just blog about life and how things were going. Anyway, today I do and so here I am to give you a little update! November was hectic and the look on Tink’s face (see mug) was pretty much my face for the whole month (and still now really). Since September and October were crazy busy with Halloween, I didn’t start my Christmas Market prep till November and this proved to be pretty stressful. That said, I managed okay and Christmas Market has now been and gone and I can breath a sigh of relief. Orders and CG are still busy but somehow by comparison, life feels quite calm right now.

Aside from the above mentioned preparation, not a whole lot happened in November but there are a couple of things worth noting. First and foremost, things started to get a little Christmasy! We attended Gainsborough’s Christmas Light Switch on, got Christmas coffee from both Starbucks and Costa, plus I had a little Christmas Lush (I hope to have more!). Second, we were lucky enough to see two fantastic movies this month – one being Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find them, the other being Moana. Both were really amazing in completely different ways but it really was great to have another Harry Potter movie to look forward to and of course a dose of Disney (especially one I hadn’t known much about and was surprised by how much I enjoyed it).

Other than that, there hasn’t been a whole lot of new going on. We did all have a family get together on November 20th as that would have been my mum and dad’s 40th Wedding Anniversary, had he still been around, so that was nice but a little sad too. As I mentioned, life has been pretty hectic but it finally seems to be settling down now. The girls have a fair bit going on at school so I’m coming and going a lot right now but hopefully I will be finding time to blog again now, in between making orders, opening advent calendars and picking the girls up from school discos. This month has Megan’s birthday and Christmas in it, so I’m definitely hoping to make the most of December.

Wedding Wanderlust – Fall

October 20, 2016 by Bel Leave a Comment

I love traveling so much but I have to admit that recently my desire to save money for things closer to home, have stopped me even considering a holiday. I’d love to move house, treat myself to a new car and of course I would really like to get divorced from my ex, since we’ve been separated for 6 years. With my two best friends finding themselves in new relationships and another friendship couple getting engaged, I have to admit my mind wanders to weddings, despite not being especially fussed about getting re-married (for a third time) myself. That said, I thought it would be fun to make a post every season, with a few ideas for rings, dresses and even venues/places that I would like.

A while back I shared a post about some Disney rings that I would absolutely love, some of which would make nice engagement rings, especially with a Halloween theme. In all seriousness though, I would want a proper wedding band, definitely made from white gold or platinum as I’m not really a fan of the gold colour rings. Orla James makes some beautiful Platinum Wedding Rings which would definitely be a consideration and I would probably therefore have to have a more sensible engagement ring too.

My partner is a huge fan of things like skulls and zombies, so with an Autumn wedding, a Halloween theme would work well for both of us. I’ve also been married twice before so doing the whole white dress thing would be a bit weird and I would love to do something more crazy or costume. There are loads of really great choices for a wedding dress and while I wouldn’t want to go full on corpse’s bride, I would love something black (and of course slimming).

I throw murder mystery parties all of the time and I’ve often considered how fun being an events organiser would be. I think having a Halloween themed wedding would be incredible and there would be so much choice for decorating. You could go all black, orange and green, using many of the Halloween decorations found in stores, or you could go more classy with blacks and creams, with big candelabras, dripping wax and cauldrons with steam. I personally would sway more towards a Harry Potter theme I think, aiming for a wedding in the Great Hall feel.

Of course with an Autumn wedding, you could go for a Fall theme colours with greens and oranges, burnt red, all the colours of the leaves too. I used to love wearing all those colours as a teenager as I felt they went with my hair/eyes/skin etc and so although I would prefer the extremeness of a Halloween themed wedding, I could definitely go for a general Autumn theme too. It would be quite beautiful having it somewhere outside with all the natural colours for your palette.

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Harry Potter Ball – take two

August 30, 2016 by Bel Leave a Comment

As you may remember, I posted a little while ago about a Harry Potter convention and Ball that I went to with my best friend and two daughters. It was a little disappointing to be honest and left me feeling like I could have done better myself. Having talked it over with Nat (or maybe ranted in the car on the way home) we decided that maybe we should plan our own – perhaps for her 30th next year.

This got me to thinking about what I would wear – the changes to what I wore this time and what I could improve. The largest change of all, would be to lose some weight. We’re hoping in fact that this may motivate us! She got so many lovely compliments in the dress she was wearing, that I really want people to look at me and say the same. For that reason I would definitely pick the same dress. I have worn it twice now and I love it. However I definitely think I could do with some accessories so I’ve been doing some research.

Gryffindor Ball

I love the idea of a heavy piece for a necklace – something like this beautiful Victorian necklace from Berganza. I also love this cuff bracelet from House of Fraser and these ruby earrings from India Times to really give the Gryffindor vibe (I’m sorry, but I love red far too much to not be a Gryffindor). The ring probably isn’t that necessary to the outfit but I love to pull a bit more of the ruby in and this would be a nice subtle touch.

Since the girls are Ravenclaw and Slytherin (Lily is like me, torn between Gryffindor and Slytherin), I decided to look for some ideas for them too. They won’t be going to Nat’s 30th but just in case we find another decent Harry Potter ball to get invited too, I thought it would be nice for them to have accessories.

Ravenclaw accessories

Megan is quite delicate so all the pieces I picked are delicate too. They all feature sapphires as I figured this suited Ravenclaw colours. Of course no ball outfit would be complete without Rowena Ravenclaw’s Diadem too.

Slytherin accessories

Lily likes to be fierce in everything she does so I know she’d rock the brightness of the emerald pieces. The snake earrings (despite the fact her ears aren’t pierced yet) and the snake bracelet are by far my favourite choices. She also has a huge amount of hair so this beautiful comb would look great. Finally the necklace is nice and solid so it would hang nicely around her neck.

Sorry Hufflepuff but you lucked out. No one in our house is interested in being from Hufflepuff so I decided not to do one for you! Besides, really not a fan of Amber or yellow coloured stones either.

What would you pick if you were supporting your favourite Hogwarts House to a Yule Ball?

Happy Birthday Closet Geek

August 22, 2016 by Bel Leave a Comment

Can you believe it’s been a year? I can’t!

Yes, that’s right, one year ago today, I opened my Closet Geek store. Something that started as just sewing for my own children, for Amy and I to cosplay and for Liv to wear to WDW, turned into this tiny little business selling hair bows, pencil cases and girls dresses.

Now a year on, I honestly can’t believe how much support and love I’ve had. I hit 1000 followers on Instagram a few months ago and I’ve had over 1500 sales on Etsy. In addition to the dresses, pencil cases and hair bows I started with, I now sell Disney ears on a fairly regular basis, bunting and cushion covers. I take inquiries for custom skirts and cosplay, along with anything else people are interested in.

Though I’m yet to crack it yet, I bought a laser cutter a while back and I also experimented with screen printing. In the next few weeks I hope to dedicate more to time to them. I’ve also signed up for 4 days of Christmas Market in Lincoln during December, so prep for that will begin soon. I made a post called “Almost a year on…” on the Closet Geek blog, discussing some of my popular items and some of my favourite.

I’d love to explore the possibility of Subscription boxes throughout the next year, plus more fandoms that just Disney and Harry Potter. I can’t wait to be writing a post that’s “two years on” and I hope that you’re all still following me to see it! Thanks again for all the support.

Our Harry Potter Convention and Ball experience

August 16, 2016 by Bel Leave a Comment

Not this weekend just gone but the one before, myself and my best friend Nat took Megan and Lily with us to Nottingham, to a Harry Potter convention and then followed by a Yule Ball. We’d had it booked since about February and we were all looking forward to it. We had a hotel booked for the night, but also so we could get changed in between the convention and the ball. Although we had a weekend ticket for the convention, we had pretty much decided we would only attend on the Saturday (unless it was really good and then we might go again on the Sunday morning). However in the end we actually decided to only go Saturday after, checking into the hotel (Premier Inn) first and then walking around.

In the morning I still needed to work but while doing that I made us all bows. Megan was Ravenclaw, Lily Gryffindor and since I sway between Gryffindor and Slytherin, I picked Slytherin. Nat is Gryffindor too so she decided on a Deathly Hallows inspired Gryffindor bow. We all wore Harry Potter t-shirts too. We set off for Nottingham around 2pm and were there for about 3pm. We checked into the Premier Inn and then walked the 10 minutes to the convention.

When we got to where the convention was (Nottingham Conference Centre), there was a blue ford Anglia car outside and a replica of Hagrid’s bike. Sadly I don’t think either were genuine. We headed inside and there definitely wasn’t much of a wow. Outside were some owls, inside were some stalls (both upstairs and downstairs). Apparently there were some workshops and special effects stuff but there was no timetable or map to carry around so we just looked at stalls. Megan bought a watch and Lily bought a pokemon (yeah not HP related). We spotted a reptile area on the way out but otherwise we spent about an hour looking at stalls and nothing else.

We headed back to the Premier Inn, grabbed a cup of tea and sat for a while before deciding we should get ready for the Ball. Nat curled Megan’s hair, while I did Lily’s. We had attempted to do Lily’s hair beforehand with the help of some Curlformers I’d bought but sadly they had mostly fallen out. It took about an hour to get them both ready and then about the same again for Nat and I. We put on our dresses and makeup, heading out of the hotel around 7.30pm (the ball was due to start 6.30pm but we didn’t want to be too early).

When we got to the conference centre, it wasn’t really that clear where to go so we asked. There was a bar and the ball upstairs and a hog roast outside. We headed for the bar first and got drinks, then into the ball which was like a wedding no one wanted to be at. There was a band playing but everyone was sat down looking miserable. After about five minutes we decided to head out to the hog roast instead. Luckily, this was amazing and sitting outside was nice too. After not being there long, a string quartet started up and it was quite enjoyable to sit there and listen.

Though to be honest, Nat and I could quite easily have left at this point, Megan was all for it too, Lily asked if we could go back into the Ball. As we headed inside there was a photobooth (pretty rubbish at that) so we had a picture taken and then went back up. Lucky that we did really as a few people were dancing and we bit the bullet and joined in. Within 15 minutes everyone was up, the live band were back and the lights were dimmed. This last hour was the best of all and thanks to Lily we ended on a high note. Though we didn’t stay quite till 10, we made the most of the evening and enjoyed it despite its lameness. I’m glad we went but it wasn’t worth £25 each.

We headed back to the hotel, got changed and climbed into bed. It had been a pretty nice evening but really we had made it enjoyable between the four of us, rather than the event itself being good.

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Summer Bucket (and Spade) List

July 15, 2016 by Bel Leave a Comment

With summer holidays fast approaching I have to admit I’ve started to wonder what I can do to occupy the kids. For the most part they’re fairly happy kicking around the house or even going out to the local park, but its always nice to get out and about – especially as we live so close to the beach and other beautiful countryside. I’ve flicked through Molly’s Guide and the Primary Times to see if there are any good vouchers for local attractions, or even free activities days. I’ve even been scouring the net for things to do that won’t cost the earth. I came across an article on Haven’s blog about alternative beach activities and since Mablethorpe and Skegness are so close to us, I figured I could put some of the ideas to use.

Anyway, with the help of the kids, I put together some bucket list items that we’d like to tick off this summer. Here’s what we came up with.

Visit the beach (preferably on a day sunny enough to paddle/swim and build sandcastles – easier said than done in the UK)
Travel on a double-decker (preferably open top) bus.
Go to London on the train and catch a theatre show. We’d love to see Matilda, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory or Aladdin. Maybe even Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
Swim at the local pool, preferably once a week.
Catch a movie at the cinema, especially on the cheap kids show either Saturday and Sunday mornings.
Walk to the local park, play and have a picnic lunch.
Get out the tent and go camping. Megan spent a few nights in her sleeping bag last week and now they’re both obsessed with the idea of going camping.
Go to a theme park. I recently saw that Drayton Manor had a discount on their tickets, or places like Alton Towers and Legoland often have 2 for 1.
Attend a Yule Ball and Harry Potter convention. We actually have tickets and dresses for this already. We’re pretty excited to be attending a ball.
See the poppies at Lincoln Castle. These are here till September and I would love to see them before they leave.

As I was finishing off the list of things we’d like to do, Lily added “buy a new house”. While it’s not really part of my Summer Bucket List, I do wish that it was! I think selling the house that fast at this stage would be a bit of a dream, but I guess we can hope!

What do you have planned for the summer?

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28/52

July 10, 2016 by Bel Leave a Comment

This week’s pictures are all about the dresses! We’re going to a Harry Potter ball in August, so this week has been about finding the perfect dress and of course trying it on!

A birthday to plan!

May 9, 2016 by Bel Leave a Comment

As you may or may not know, May is the month of my birthday. For whatever reason I have always loved May, even though there’s never much happening. As a sort of birthday trip, we’re all heading to Paris for the weekend of 20th-23rd, but I’m yet to plan anything for my birthday itself. Previously I’ve visited the Harry Potter Studios, had a Murder Mystery, visited the cinema (Maleficent, Tomorrowland, Pitch Perfect 2) or even gone out for dinner. This year, I’ve started to weigh up my options!

A Quiet Night In

It’s quite likely that my two best friends are available to come over in the evening, so one plan is definitely a quiet night in. Though we’ve previously had large parties, played either board games or held a murder mystery, the only people I really need to spend my birthday with are my immediate family and my two best friends. Since the girls will be in bed during the evening, a takeaway pizza from Dominos, drinking some sparkling wine (a bottle or two) and perhaps even Cards Against Humanity, sounds like a pretty amazing way to spend a birthday evening. I’m not even too bothered if there is cake or not!

A Stay at The Wizard Chambers

Photo Credit: Georgian Hotel

As a family and even as a couple, we often stay away for a night or two in a hotel. For the most part we’re talking Travelodge or Premier Inn, but sometimes somewhere a little nicer. My dream stay would be in the Harry Potter style rooms, at The Georgian Hotel – in either the Wizarding Chambers or the Enchanting Chambers. To be honest I would be happy to visit the Harry Potter Studios again too and make a full wizarding weekend of it – especially since they have a Platform 9 3/4 now and they’re opening up Privet Drive for my birthday weekend. In fact, if the new theatre show (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child) was out by then, I would do that too.

A Trip to the Theatre or Cinema

As you might have seen from the last option, I love going to the theatre. Last year, the weekend before my birthday, we went to see Phantom of the Opera. This year I would have loved to see Harry Potter, or even Aladdin (which opens just after my birthday). Sadly the theatre is a little out of my price range right now, so the cinema is more likely. With Captain America: Civil War just out and X-Men: Apocalypse coming out soon, I’m sure there is something we could find to watch. Alice Through the Looking Glass is also out which would be great for taking the kids.

There are lots of other things I would like to do but to be honest, heading to Paris and also Disneyland just before my birthday, is really the best treat I could ask for. I’m sure I’ll be spending the day with everyone that matters and that’s the main thing!

Wednesday Wishlist – Artist Spotlight

April 13, 2016 by Bel 1 Comment

For this wishlist I wanted to do something a little different and actually showcase some artists that I really admire. All of these people are artists I’ve found either through going to a convention or on Instagram. All their shops are on Etsy. As I couldn’t find a way to add text to the Polyvore sets, I screen-grabbed and added the words myself. However if you are interested in any of the specific art I pictured, you can find the Polyvore image below and this has the direct links included.

I first found SoCuteCompany at a convention in Lincoln last year. I bought a Beauty and the Beast print but sorely regretted not buying The Little Mermaid one too. Majority of Ellen’s art (at least in her store) isn’t Disney related but it’s all incredibly cute. I’m hoping she’ll be heading to “Geeks” Lincoln this year so I can maybe grab some more of her art.

Artist Abe is someone I discovered through Instagram and though I haven’t actually purchased anything as yet, I do have several of his items favourited. Abraham’s style is quite different from what I would usually go for but I think it works well, especially with the Harley Quinn pieces I have my eyes on. I love the cross-over pieces too and the slight silliness to his drawings.

Meagan from Dashes of Color is one of the most lovely sellers I have met on Etsy. I originally discovered her when her Instagram page liked a picture on my Closet Geek Instagram and I was nosy enough to go looking at her page. The first art I bought from her was a Peter Pan and Wendy custom piece for Amy‘s Christmas present, which she was kindly sent along with a Rapunzel pic. I later asked her to paint a custom Briar Rose and Belle painting which I now have on my dining room wall. She is happy to do any custom pieces, her prices are so reasonable and she’s lovely to boot. What more could you ask for?

Silvia from SillyLunastorta is again a lovely person to deal with. Originally I discovered her art at MCM Birmingham Comic Con, when I bought a Luna (Harry Potter) bookmark for my daughter Megan. I don’t know if I ever would have remembered to look up her Etsy if it wasn’t for the sad fact that Megan’s bookmark actually got torn at school. Luckily Silvia had signed the bookmark art clearly and I was able to google her. Though the original bookmark was no longer for sale, there was another Luna that I purchased in replacement. However Silvia did actually offer to specially print the old style for me, in order to replace it. Majority of her work that I like is bookmarks but she has lots of other stuff too. I wish she did more prints and postcards as I’d definitely add a few to my collection.

Elisa owns a store called aasilee and her work is truly beautiful. She is another person who I discovered through Instagram and everytime she posts a picture I go and check out her store again. I really would love one of her custom pieces but sadly I can’t really afford it at the moment. However her prints are really reasonable and I have my eye on a few. (I actually made my first purchase after writing this post, so I’m pretty excited about that!). Majority of the store is Disney themed and this is just perfect as far as I’m concerned.

Last but not least is Amanda who owns Hungry Designs. I discovered her store through Instagram and have been dying to order for a while. Amanda has been preparing for Supernova for a few weeks and her Instagram has been such a tease for all the new items she would be stocking. However I patiently waited till this week for them all to be listed (after the convention) and made my first ever order on Monday. Again a lot of the Hungry Designs art is Disney themed but there is Harry Potter, Labyrinth, Harley Quinn and other great fandoms. The thing I love the most about Amanda’s work is that its not just prints and postcards you can get, but also badges and earrings. She has a 35% discount code (SUPANOVAAPRIL) on at the moment so it would be a great time to give her a visit!

There are a few other artists that I own pieces from, but they either didn’t have anything in their store that I currently wanted, or their store was closed. I would recommend also checking out KavonIllustration, Siodoodles, rowansm and LoveAshleyDesigns.

Artist Spotlight by diaryjourneys