People who inspire me

I have been inspired, by the people who inspire me, to write a post about people who inspire.

Maybe it's just the time of year, new year, new resolutions etc, or the things that are happening in my world at the moment, but I am feeling very inspired, and very resolved; to live better, to do better, to be better.

I haven't made a proper new years resolution for years. I always used to make the same one 'stop biting my nails' but then when I was at university I did, hurrah! And now I can never quite find such a succinct wish for myself for the year.

So this year I am looking to the people who inspire me. I am not just going to keep looking at these people and thinking 'wow, that's brilliant, I wish I could . . .' I am going to do! Or at least give it my best try.

So here is a list of some of the people who inspire me and how.

Angela Clayton.

This woman amazes me, she has crazy sewing talent like no one I know and it fills me with envy. Angela makes a variety of sewn projects, from historically inspired pieces to just beautiful dresses inspired by characters or flora and fauna or just by fabric she finds. 

Every time she creates a new project I am stunned and want to sew something amazing too, so that's what I am going to do. I have written myself a list of projects, some medieval and some not, and I am going to do some sewing!

Follow Angela by her blog or on Youtube.


Sprinkle of Glitter.

Louise is a Youtuber, mum and business woman who I have watched achieve so many great things over the few years I have been subscribed to her channel. Yet rather than feeling alien to me she is still a completely relatable person. When she talks about her worries and crises of confidence I find myself feeling reassured that I am not the only person to think that way, and drawing strength from that.

I watch Louise's blogs and often find myself thinking 'she looks great' and I know she has struggled with her self confidence. That inspires me to make more of an effort to dress they way I actually want to, and not chicken out of wearing something  because I might feel overdressed or a bit silly. She also has fantastic taste and I have found myself taking lots of inspiration from her when dressing my new flat too.

Check out Louise's Youtube channels for her fab tastes, and lots of laughter too!

National Trust Challenge.

Now this is a blog I have been following for a while and they came up with a great idea of listing every built/manned property the National Trust owns and setting out to visit every one, all 257!

I thought I had visited quite a lot until they listed them, and now I know I've got my work cut out! I love visiting National Trust properties so this is a nice goal to set myself, but I don't expect to complete it any time soon! 48 down 209 to go!

Join the challenge here.

Thor Heyerdahl.

I talked about Thor quite a bit in my blog post about Oslo. Not only was Thor intelligent, brave and adventurous, he was sure of himself. So sure that when people told him his theory was going to get him killed he stuck to his beliefs and proved his doubters wrong. He also really cared about the world around him, and when he saw what damage was being done to the oceans he tried to change it.

There are a lot of lessons you could learn from Thor, and not just how to be so cool! I hope to be able to have the confidence in myself he had, especially facing the challenges of the new responsibilities I have in my job. I am also going to go on the adventures I want to, not just dream about them. I have already penciled in the big one for a couple of years time!

Read more about Thor here.

Charlotte.

I have been friends with Charlotte since I was eleven years old, and we have done so much growing up since then. Charlotte has always been a big influence in my life in terms of my religion. It was something that we had in common in high school that most of our other friends didn't understand, and it still bonds us today.

Charlotte has been through more than one person should have to in the last few years, but through it all she still puts others first. She has been amazingly strong, not wallowing in pity as I worry I would in her situation. Despite everything that has happened it has made her more determined to help others, so that's what I am going to do to.

I have started giving regular donations to charities I feel really deserve help, like Cancer Research UK, and I am planning on doing something big charitable events throughout the year, like the Pretty Muddy 5K at Clumber Park in July.

My mum.

My mother is amazing. Not just because she is right about everything (a trait I hope magically appears with motherhood because I'm looking forward to that). Not just because she put up with me as a teenager and we both survived. Not just because she has been through so much and is still the most positive person I know (annoyingly so sometimes). Not just because she always helps me out when I need it, and has the solution to situations that just freak me out completely. Not just because she has supported me and my brother through the most difficult points in our lives.

But because despite all the amazing people in my life, and despite me having moved out six years ago, she is still the first person I want to talk to when I have had a good day/bad day, or something wonderful/awful has happened or I need advice and comfort. She always makes things better when I need her too, and doesn't seem to know how amazing that is and how lost I would be without her.

So my mum has inspired me to try and be amazing for the people in my life, especially for her, because she really deserves it.

You can follow her blog here.