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Ashleigh: I had a baby during lockdown! Charlotte: there’s been a lot of outdoor meetings with Ashleigh, we met in the park a lot. I was furloughed, so I sold my house and bought a new one! In lockdown I’ve been redecorating it. I like interior design and I discovered Pinterest and got lots of ideas from there.
I was still working, but two weeks in I had a break to self-isolate and then I got into painting. I did a few pictures for friends which I’ve never done before; a galactic style one and some Disney. Then I just explored, Googled different things and followed tutorials and painted beautiful things. I’ve always been into art and doing designs for my nails, but I was never really good at it at school. I drew a few pictures and posted them on Instagram and someone messaged me asking if I’d paint a picture, so I tried it and it just took off then. I was on Amazon buying everything. I’d love to see how far I could go with it.
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I’m retired, so lockdown didn’t make much difference to me, but I was busy looking after my grandson. I took a lot of time to look after him. I went walking more often as well and went shopping around the town.
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What did you get up to in lockdown?
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I home-schooled my two children in lockdown, but also did a degree in event management online with Oxbridge, which I’ve finally completed! I’m a professional singer so I did a lot of lives and recording music. I was planning on doing the degree before the pandemic, but I didn’t have the time with kids and working full time singing five nights a week, so I had more time and just went for it.
I turned into a bit of a gardener during lockdowns. I went a bit nuts and the garden is now a jungle. I’ve been growing flowers and vegetables, which I didn’t do before. I’ve grown cucumber, mint, lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, and a range of flowers from sunflowers to irises. it’s quite therapeutic. I worked from home so it helped me to go outdoors and get fresh air and sunlight. It’s nice to see something grow from scratch into the finished product.
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Who started a hobby? And who has continued with it? Who discovered they had a talent they never knew about? Did anyone start that business they’d always dreamed of? Or did they simply enjoy having time to themselves? WORDS BY KERRY SMITH AND SIDDIQA REININGHAUS
I was always working, but when I was off I did a lot of walking as a hobby, which I’ve always done but picked it up more during the pandemic. I like to walk along the canals and into the countryside, and around Crow Mills in South Wigston. It’s my main hobby and I do it all the while. I go further afield, too – towards Melton, Nottingham, and wherever has countryside.
NICHE | 61