Curious Yellow 2018

I'm kind of late sharing these photos and review of Curious Yellow this year - for a number of reasons. Firstly, I have been beavering away developing my own business! I'll share more over the next few months as I work to promote it and start taking on clients but you can check out the website and a lot of free info by clicking here and visiting Strange Marketing.

But, anyway I am here to talk about Curious and the fun and weirdness that we had in the beautiful Gibberd Garden. I've made a promise to myself that I'm not going to gush about the gardens this year, I'm pretty sure the majority of my blogs about this event are just me raving about the location so I'm going to try to avoid that as much today.

Every year I go to Curious Yellow, it is life-changing in some way, redefining how I see myself or my relationships. This year was no different and everything changed for me in the few days that we spent hidden in gardens.

The excitement in the lead up this year was SO REAL I almost couldn't stand it. I actually gave myself several anxiety attacks in the preparation because I couldn't believe it was finally here, after counting down for exactly 365 days.

When we finally arrived, the spot our friends who got there first had picked was perfect, and this year we came down the lane instead of dragging our camping supplies through the gardens which meant we had no idea what installations, tents or stages were in the main arenas until we were fully settled. 

We heard some amazing music from Bare Jams and The Turner Brothers but my favourite set of all was Sweetcornbread in the Once In A Blue Moon cafe. Despite three days of pretty heavy drinking and misbehaviour (especially on the part of my bass-playing boyfriend below on the left) they absolutely smashed the fence out of their Sunday afternoon set and had the whole audience dancing to their fun music. It was about twenty thousand degrees in Once In A Blue Moon tent (check out this post for more about their beautiful festival set-up) so I didn't get too many good photo, which makes me sad because they looks so freaking awesome and I'm not even just saying that because I date one of them. 

In a weekend full of wonderfulness, there were a couple of other things that stood out that I really have to mention. The incredible LCD screens in the smaller dance arena were controlled by a fabulous device call the Naztek which anyone could stick their hands in to create crazy digital patterns surrounding the DJ booth. I absolutely LOVE things like this, being able to interact with the set-up is really fun and brings a whole new dimension to the dance arena, especially at a smaller festival where everyone gets to have a turn - check out a video by clicking here.

I also had a great time at the little open mic event held by some people local to us here in Hemel. Set in the folly, a little stone tower that I've always felt was a bit under-used, a variety of performers got up to sing. There was good, amazing  and one or two who perhaps could do with a tiny bit more practise but where nonetheless, awe-inspiring for getting up and braving the small but raucous crowd. My friend Rachael singing Ballroom Blitz and our friends Dave and Ian deserved their applause for sure!

Song discovery of the weekend for me was this track by Asif Avidan which I heard covered in a pretty jaunty and joyful way by Bare Jams and then looked up afterwards and found the original for, it's a real corker, this guys voice is insane.

The rest of the weekend passed in a blur of whiskey, music and happiness, hiding in the undergrowth with some new found friends (thank you Grace and Georgia for concealing me when I needed some quiet time as well as the disposable camera photos!!) and wishing that time would pass as slowly as possible so we didn't have to go home!

In comparison to other years I would say the set up was better, more professional, the stage looked great and so did the bars. There were none of last years issues with the generator and there was something going on all the time. The main attraction for me is always getting to roam and explore the Gibberd Gardens on my own and with people new to the location and it didn't disappoint - if I ever have a reason to have a big outdoor party there isn't anywhere else I would consider, I really love this place so much.

I look forward to next year, as usual, but I'm not able to share a ticket link currently. I know that there have been some issues with getting things booked for next years party and the team behind Curious are currently trying to raise funds to be able to continue putting on the event - here is a link to their Just Giving page.

Thank you to Greg, Daniel, Charlotte, Liz and everyone involved ♥

Five MORE reasons to grab a last minute ticket to Curious Yellow - UPDATED DISCOUNT CODES!!

It's two sleeps until Curious Yellow and I'm beyond excited. My bags are packed, the chat group is buzzing and the weather is looking amazing.

There's still a few tickets left for sale, here are my (updated for 2018 but you can read the original post here) top five reasons for snapping one up...

1. The music is going to be AMAZING

Every year the team manage to put together a completely eclectic and original line-up with bands, artists and workshops that will blow your mind. One of my favourite things to come out of this event is collaborations between artists that met in the gardens. This year, (I hope I'm not breaking any of the secret line-up rules by saying this I probably am!) I know that The Turner Brothers (woop!), Sweetcornbread and Bare Jams, three of my Curious favourites are all set to play. I'm hoping that the Turner Brothers are going to be joined by our favourite rapping, beat boxing flute player, Archie XN Trick, whose been bashing out some fab content recently and will fit in perfectly to the Turner's party sound. In previously years we've enjoyed fab harmonies in the Once In A Blue Moon tipi with The Midnights, amazing singing bowls from the Consciousness Collective and serious late night dance beats from the Curious Yellow DJ's - I can't wait to see what is in store this year.

(Photos from the Curious Yellow Facebook Page - click here for more)

2. The Gardens

I feel like I have said it before (just a few times?) but the Gibberd Garden is one of my all time favourite places in the UK. Last year I know a couple got married there so I'm kind of jealous that they stole my idea, because the setting is so romantic and wild that I can't honestly think of a better venue to say your vows. This will be our forth year returning to the valley, each year I've taken photos of the foliage and it gets better each year. The best part is the undergrowth along the freshwater stream, giant leaves, dragonflies and tropical-looking flowers leading to a magical stone tower with a perfect lily pool at the top. Note to self - stay away from the poisonous Giant Hogweed!

3. Friends

We had an amazing group at Hogsozzle a few weeks ago and most of the same people seem to have snapped up tickets already so I'm thrilled to be spending the weekend with my besties and a bunch of people who haven't ever experienced Curious. The actual festival is in it's 6th year, with this being the 4th at the Gibberd Gardens. There's a quite substantial bunch of 'regulars' and it will be seriously joyous to see their faces round every corner again this year but the best thing to be is a newbie that gets to experience everything for the first time - if you haven't been before, grab a few of your most spontaneous and fun friends and snap up a ticket using the links below, I promise you won't regret it!

4. The Theme

Not going to lie, when I first heard the theme I didn't get it, but after a lot of thought, and some helpful posts from the Curious crew I think I've got an idea. 'Fruit' is a pretty strange theme for a festival but it reflects everything crazy and fun about the weekend and there are loads of ways to interpret it - I can't wait to see how people have taken the theme and run with it! I'm making an updated, fruity, curious and yellow version of my light-up crown and taking a few fun, fruity themed outfits which I'll be sharing over on my Instagram - http://www.instagram.com/katyclouds.

5. The Weirdness

UK festivals get more commercial every year. Tickets are expensive to most of the big weekends. Everyone seems to be wearing the same thing. The same bands do the festival circuit and if you go to a few the chances are you will see something the same. Curious Yellow breaks the mould completely with a weekend of love, warmth and partying like there is no tomorrow. Everything is done in the CY way from magicians in the undergrowth to getting your water from a freshwater spring right in the middle of the garden. Spending your Saturday following the sculpture trail and discovering new corners of the garden, your Sunday rolling around in cocktails and listening to music you will be hard-pressed to find again in such a great setting - Curious is different. escapist and hedonistic and definitely worth the £90 ticket price for the weekend.

So, if you want a ticket, there's still (just) time.

• Go here: https://curiousyellow.co.uk/event/curious-yellow-2018/

• Enter your details and use the code 10TURNER2018 for an extra £10 off the ticket price.

• Receive your ticket and get packing!

(thanks Darren Kern Photography for this fab photo of 2018's set up)

I can't wait to see you in the sunshine this weekend - feel free to drop me a note if you are coming along, we are organising a convoy from Hertfordshire and the more the merrier!

Katy x

New Years Eve at the Ceridwen Centre with Sweetcornbread

I was dreading NYE this time round. The last few years had been underwhelming, my bank account was empty after Christmas and to be brutally honest, our plan to spend the weekend halfway up a mountain in Wales did not fill me with excitement. How stupid I was!

The idea was for Sweetcornbread to play a five hour set at the Ceridwen Centre's Alternative New Year's party, which was being held on their farm in Carmarthenshire. They had played there before as the band have friends that live and work at the venue. For once, I didn't have the usual pre-gig strops from my bassist boyfriend, this should have been my first clear indicator that it was going to be a little special.

The five hour drive was killer, I'm not going to lie. Most of it was in the dark and being squashed up in the back with the instruments and our supplies for the weekend didn't do much for comfort. At one point we stopped at a Welsh service station and I feel like I could be forgiven for thinking we had landed on Mars - who knew Mcdonalds chips could get any thinner? Why do they have a completely different version of the cheese bites? We arrived at the Pen-Y-Blanc farm in the pitch darkness - all I knew was there was a lot of steep hills to traverse and we were going to be staying in The Old Dairy.

We were welcomed warmly and shown to our space. I've shared with the whole band and their girlfriends before and it was tight and noisy with a very intimate feel to the toilet so I was expecting the worst. I needn't have worried! The Old Dairy had lots of room for us, the farm owners bought double mattresses and there was water, snacks, tea and coffee on tap as well as under floor heating and some beautifully equipped, far-away-from-the-living-area washing and toilet facilities. I wish I had taken a picture of the ENORMOUS stack of giant floor cushions in the room because they were literally the cosiest thing ever!

I started to notice other little things. The signs in the toilet, the biodegradable toiletries, the recycling bag - the farm operates on an extremely green basis and they have a green septic tank - I fell a little in love. I had a brief chat with the owners son-in-law and he said  the farm has solar panels and various recycling and green facilities and continue to work to improve their sustainability.

We spent the first evening in a local pub, the John Y Gwas. I have to say our hosts were a dream and the pub itself was exactly as you may expect from a village that seemed to cling on to the side of a mountain. The toilets were something out of Stephen King's It and the locks were on the outside of the doors - only in Wales! We made plans to visit the beach the following day and retired to our cosy Dairy.

I took quite a few photos at Poppit but my favourite part of the beach trip was the 20 minute drive through tight, winding Welsh villages. At the time we went my phone was out of action but I must make a note to try harder to get candid snaps of things I want to blog about - a goal for 2018!

Back at the farm and we got ourselves ready for the night, with the band resting and some of them downing double Lemsips to counteract the bastard flu everyone seems to have now we are back (I've avoided it so far, but I tend to be the last to the party anyway) At the Dairy, wafts of the most fragrant lamb tagine were starting to drift over from the kitchens and I set upon a large bottle of gin - it's a blur from then onwards...

Dodgy panorama of the band trying to sort out their set list, mostly I've included this because Jim's head looks hilarious.

One of these individuals was determined not to have a nice picture with the band *eyeroll*

The party went down beautifully and the band were a smash - despite a slightly awkward countdown for midnight itself which started way too early! The band played a set of covers and original tracks and got the tipi rocking!

We loved the photobooth - I got pretty attached to this red wig at one point.

 I've popped some photos of some of the farm and accomodations below but their website is definitely worth a look  if you are looking for a green (or just beautiful) venue for your wedding - click here. They have all the facilities you could possibly want for your big day - including a stunningly private mountainside wooden hot tub, fired by logs and with incredible views over the valley. I really wanted to give it a go but we didn't start the fire off early enough and we had to leave - I would have been more than happy to spend another few days soaking in the cooked breakfasts, fresh air and genuine warmth of Simone and Roger and everyone at Ceridwen. Thank you so much for showing me that New Years Eve doesn't have to be rubbish when you step out of your comfort zone.

 The hot tub of dreams

Gypsy caravan under winter storage - I believe this is used for the bridal suite for weddings - so romantic.

My favourite - a lovingly restored bus with all mod cons, position overlooking the beautiful valley.

Thank you all at the Ceridwen Centre for an amazing weekend!

Katy x

The Curious Yellow 2016

I realised as I wrote the title that this year, the guys took the 'The' off the stage signing. So maybe it's just 'Curious Yellow' now? Answers in the comments please, I can't be going around getting that wrong.

Exactly one week ago we packed up Hayley's poor car with enough camping equipment to survive for a month, and headed off to Harlow. My heart was pretty much jumping the whole way, as we got stuck in traffic, realised we had no water, smoked too many cigarettes and tried to avoid starting every sentence with 'Last year...'

And then, considerable further down the lane than I recalled, we arrived at the little gazebo manned with yellow-wristband brandishing fluro-wearers. We were in! The inimitable Greg appeared from beyond the wall and ushered our crew inside, and the moment I'd been waiting for a year was upon me, walking down the gentle slope into the Gibberd Gardens, past the swing and into the riverside undergrowth towards the camping area. I felt about 10st lighter walking into that wild pathway, memories rushing back, excitement building. The layout was perfect, the bedoin tent (sadly under used this year, I felt) set up along the brook, giant Tipi's erected by the Red Hand Tipi Clan, who over the weekend gained angelic status for their ability to always have a fresh hot tea or freezing Tango, any time of the day or night - like them on Facebook to follow their events, I think they do some pretty cool stuff!

We pitched our tents and went off on an explore. I kind of gushed already about how beautiful these gardens are, but I guess I was worried that in my mind I had somehow made it better than it actually was. I was thrilled that I hadn't.

This year, every single music act we saw across the two stages was awesome. The guys seem to have the magic touch when it comes to picking spot-on acts - although in the spirit of complete honesty I think the line-up times needed a tweek - Our friends The Consciousness Collective, with the most incredible resonant instruments and perfectly timed set should definitely have been a late afternoon chill out, many missed their late night performance. The Turner Brothers and Sweetcornbread, the two bands we'd come along with, smashed their sets and picked up some new fans for life - I wish I had better photos of their set but I love the atmosphere of these shots - thanks to Grace Fox for taking some photos with a disposable camera!

If you are reading this in early 2017 trying to decide on a ticket or not - do it. We took a larger than usual crew this year because of all the raving we've done about this festival and every single person had a fantastic time - as well as an experience personal to them. The gardeners in our group found some incredible rare flowers deep in the garden, the music lovers enjoyed Bare Jams so much they saw them again. The free spirits took to exploring the surroundings with abandon and the musicians and singers jammed long into the night and early morning under a wonderful clear sky. One highlight for me was hearing the Game Of Thrones theme tune drifting over from our neighbours encampment on an accordion and other unexpected instruments. I took my steel tongue drum to try and play with the gong guys but I got immediate stage fright when all eyes where on me and I bottled it - maybe next year!

It was pretty hard to pack up and leave. We had planned to leave on the Sunday as had commitments at home but a last minute rush around finding plug sockets and an only slightly imaginary emergency meant the majority of us stayed on for the last night and were super glad we did, getting to hear the organisers Dan and Greg play some wild sets of their own. We stayed up 'til dawn again that night on sheer exhilaration and increasingly strong (curious) Yellow Punch.

Dragging our stuff up the wooded lane to the car park felt like I was climbing Everest with all my possessions on my back - it was bittersweet to leave - I was looking forward to a deep bath and change of clothes, but knew I'd be counting down the days until we could come back. Currently at 356.

Big thanks to the designers, organisers, volunteers and foodie places, we had an incredible time and can't wait for next year...(I'll add links in here shortly)

Katy x