Events – The Joy of Blogs

I’d agonised for days over what day to go to Longitude. Friday with Hozier or Sunday with Tove Lo? In the end I decided to go on Sunday and it was a great choice, the weather gods were on my side for once! It was a beautiful day in Marlay Park, surrounded by the woods and decorative flags dotting the edges of the grounds.

We arrived early and it was really laid-back and chilled out. Amnesty International were offering free face-painting whilst encouraging festival-goers to sign their petitions. I got silver glitter and face jewels also.

I wore my trusty cowboy boots, John Lennon t-shirt, denim dungarees and a suede jacket. Sunglasses and feather earrings also made an appearance. I attempted to make French braid pigtails but they were a disaster… Let’s face it, I just can’t do girly things!

The first act we saw was Swedish/Argetinian crooner Jose Gonzalez. Many of you may remember his Heartbeats single from a few years ago. It was lovely to hear him again after all these years. His music really suited the relaxed mellow vibe early in the day. He played his two hit songs “Crosses” and “Heartbeats” as well as an acoustic cover of “Teardrop”.

We took a wander around to the other stages, walking through the woods. Close to the Heineken stage was a fun area with a DJ, ping-pong tables and karaoke.

The day passed by really quickly and before I knew it, it was almost time for the act I was dying to see, the incredible Tove Lo. There was just enough time to enjoy a dinner of delicious home fries before we headed to the Heineken tent.

The tent was packed to capacity with eager Tove Lo fans. Many people were sitting on shoulders and one guy even managed to climb up part of the stage rigging (so safe!)

In my opinion Tove Lo would’ve been a better act for the main stage as it was really crowded in the tent and hard to see her until I squeezed further up. This was her first Irish show and it was high-octane from the beginning.

She opened the show with “That’s My Gun”.

She followed with a string of hits “Not on Drugs” “Talking Body” and of course “Habits”. Recent hit “Talking Body” got the best response from the crowd but all of her songs were well received. I was thrilled to see her first Irish show and loved every minute! I had thought there weren’t that many Tove Lo fans but I was proved wrong! I’d been asking people prior to the gig “Do ya know Tove Lo?” and they nearly all said “Who?!” However the gig proved I’m not the only Tove Lo fangirl in Ireland. 😛 She has a great fan base here and I hope she will be back.

After Tove Lo, we headed to the main stage to see James Blake. I have to confess, I really wasn’t familiar with his music but enjoyed nevertheless! However his act didn’t really command the main stage.

After James Blake, headliners The Chemical Brothers came on. It’s been a long time since I’d heard any Chemical Brothers songs but judging from the atmosphere when “Superstar DJs” came on, they are still very popular! Also people were still singing it on my bus home, thanks for that Chemical Bros. 😛

It was an amazing gig, everyone was dancing and jumping around enjoying the energy. At one point I persuaded a guy to put me on his shoulders and seeing the crowd from the air at night was unreal. The atmosphere had completely changed from chill and subdued earlier to party central. Lights, laser beams and visuals accompanied the beats to make an incredible sensory experience.

I’d ran out of storage towards the end of the gig hence the lack of James Blake/Chemical Bros. pictures! However The Last Mixed Tape have great pictures of all the acts from all three days.

With a combination of the sunny weather, great acts and atmosphere, I’d say Longitude’s the best festival I’ve been to yet. Here’s to 2016 ! 😉

If you were at Longitude on Sunday, I’d love to hear your opinions. Leave me a comment below. Thanks for reading as always.

Last weekend I attended the Irish blogger conference in the Radisson in Dublin. It was something I’d been really looking forward to going to, even missing Slane for it! Sorry Hozier, next time…;)

I decided to get dressed up for the occasion and wore my trusty Asos black crochet hem jeans, a floral print top and my black fringed Mango jacket. I accessorised with a tiny gold star chain, black leather rucksack and my new iridescent green/blue Penneys sandals.

This floral top was such a great bargain, it’s River Island but I picked it up for €5 in a charity shop. It’s a really great shape and fit.

My jacket is from the new Mango on Henry Street. It’s practically my second home at this stage!

I was quite nervous but also really keen to see what was in store! The first thing I noticed (besides all the gorgeous glam people everywhere!) was the amazing goodie bag which was under my seat. Ermagerd! It was full of lovely things, make-up, vouchers, skincare and even some edible goodies such as popcorn and a tin of Bewleys coffee.

The organisers had set up a projector and projected live tweets from the event. They also had organised lots of exciting competitions throughout the day. Among the competitions was a Best Dressed competition and they picked both a male and female audience member who both looked amazing! They also had a charity partner in the form of Teenline (a helpline dedicated to young people in distress) and encouraged us throughout the day to make a donation to Teenline.

Initially I thought that the only speakers would be bloggers but I was delighted to see there was a wide range of speakers from different backgrounds. From fitness experts, social media strategists, designers and even RTE’s vet Pete Wedderburn, it was a great line-up.

My favourite speakers of the day were Alison Canavan and Barbara Scully. Alison who is a prolific Irish fashion models spoke about the importance of taking care of mind and body. She was very candid in speaking about her own difficulties with depression and anxiety and I really admired that.She started her talk by getting us all to do a simple meditation. I was absolutely riveted listening to her as her words really struck a chord with me and the tips she gave us for taking care of ourselves were invaluable. She told us “Depression is a result of lack of expression” which I thought was really profound. Alison imparted a lot of wisdom and you can visit her site here.

Journalist Barbara Scully was another excellent speaker. She was very witty and had the audience in stitches with her funny anecdotes. She reminded us that “the internet is ruled by women and cats” which was met with a great cheer from the largely female audience. She also spoke about the need for more women in journalism and broadcasting and I couldn’t agree more. You can visit Barbara’s site here for more inspiration (and cats!)

I also really enjoyed Darragh Doyle and Timi Ogunyemi ( Picture This) talks and slideshows. Both guys were really witty and interesting.

At the end of the day the host comedian Marcus O’ Laoire talked to a panel of six of Ireland’s well-known bloggers, Nuala Gorham, Joanne Larby, Holly White, Anita White, David Cashman and James Butler. It was really interesting to hear about their different backgrounds and how they’d established themselves. After that there was a Q & A session where members of the audience could ask the panel questions. I thought the best advice came from Joanne Larby (The Makeup Fairy) when she advised the audience never to respond to negative or troll comments online. She reminded us that “brands are watching” online interactions and not to get drawn into arguments.

It was a brilliant event and I’m very glad the organisers Cool Events and the Irish Blogger Association came up with idea. I really enjoyed the whole experience and really commend the organisers on creating such a great event! Here’s to the next one!

PS here’s a sneak peak of what’s featured in my next post…some online shopping goodies and I’ll be giving my opinion on the best online retailers and finding original clothing online.

Thanks for visiting my blog as always. You can like it on Facebook here for more updates. 🙂

Edel

Category: Events

Longitude 2015

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