Jessie Ware @The Mandela Hall, Belfast - 20th January 2015

So back in December on my parent’s Anniversary, my brother surprised me with tickets to go and see Jessie Ware. If i’m honest, i knew he was just as excited to go and see her as i was. 

The day crept up on us, as it always does but we were super excited! Neither of us had been to a concert at the Mandela Hall in Belfast but we knew it was a small enough venue that the gig would be intimate. We arrived super early near the venue but we went off and got some amazing food (Review coming soon) at Scalini’s, followed by a tradition of coffee at Starbucks. We got back just in time for the doors opening, and fortunately there wasn't a crazy queue! So it ended up that we got a sacred spot at the rail. 

We were stood right in front of a speaker, so the sound was pretty intense, but i couldn't care less! 

The guest performance was a band called ‘Dornik’ and what i loved about it was he used to be Jessie Ware’s drummer! Keeping it in the Family!

He gave a really good performance and I've checked out some of their music since. If you'd like to see a video my brother made of their performance then check it out here

Then came on Jessie! The crowd were going mental for her, but it felt lovely to be in a room of people that really appreciated her music. I can definitely say, Jessie gave an amazing performance, her performance was actually better than any recorded music.  

What i loved most, was how real she was throughout the concert. She chatted away to people between the songs and let us in on a little background story to some of the songs. I really enjoyed myself and i came away from the evening feeling like i’d had an amazing time. I would definitely go to a concert at the Mandela Hall again, and i would definitely see Jessie Ware in concert again.

Hope you enjoyed my review, check out some more photos below.

Much Love, Beth

Check out my brothers Instagram for photos he took of Jessie Ware at the concert!

Singing in Starbucks ~ Challenge Yourself!

Last week i did an equally petrifying and exciting thing - We performed at Starbucks again!

It’s funny, i still get nervous. In particular with the songs we've never performed before. But its a good type of nervousness, one that reminds me that not everyone has the courage to do what i did. One that makes me very proud of myself when the evening ends…knowing i didn't let the nerves stop me from doing something i love. Now, could i just carry that feeling over to singing opera already?! The idea of it makes my knees start shaking!!!

Since Jay (my brother) and i started performing at Starbucks, we've added in a lot more modern music to our repertoire. Which i love! We always perform it acoustically, but it feels great to have people singing along with you because they know the song.

As always, the staff in our local Starbucks were amazing. I love seeing them having a good time whilst we are performing. They’ve been so welcoming & complimentary to my brother & i. We can’t wait to perform there again soon. 

What i’m taking from this is if i can sing in starbucks for an evening, i can sing opera for 5 minutes in front of people. So at some point soon, i will. I hope you remember to challenge yourself and keep rising to new heights.

As always, Take care & Much Love, Beth xxx

My Instagram: https://instagram.com/bethanyrogersart

My brother's instagram: https://instagram.com/jathanrogersmedia

Our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/JBR-Music

Matcha madness in January!!

Hello everyone, guess what? We made it through January! 

For me January is usually filled with illness and trying to keep positive. So to combat this from within, I took on the Matcha Challenge from the fine folks over at teapigs. 

In typical form, my January started off with Laryngitis! Woop... woop...

But I was determined to make the most of the challenge. I viewed my daily matcha as a little super power to help me get better! 

So, I tried teapigs matcha green tea powder everyday and in as many different ways as I could. As a tea, a shot, with juice, in a smoothie, as a Matcha latte, and in some gorgeous muffins!!

As a total tea fanatic, I love the way Matcha tastes. However if you don't like the taste I would recommend putting it in a smoothie or in your baking. 

So how's it different to normal green tea? Well, apart from it being a powder, here's a few fun facts about Matcha: 

- The levels of antioxidants in matcha green tea are higher than that of spinach and blueberries.

- 85% of people said it helped with their health routine & diet.

- One glass of matcha is the equivalent of 10 glasses of green tea in terms of its nutritional value and antioxidant content.

- Drinking Matcha Green Tea has also been shown to increase metabolism  and help the body burn fat about four times faster than average.

- Matcha green tea leaves contain a high level of easily-absorbable dietary fibre.

There's plenty of evidence to back up it being called a superfood! And I happen to agree! 

I did feel sick during this challenge simply due to the awful sore throat I had. But I found myself looking forward to my Matcha pick me up. Also, it really encouraged me to stay on track with my diet when everyone was eating chocolate around me! 

Would i recommend it? Yes! And I know it's on the expensive side but with products like this, when they become a part of your daily routine, I feel like you're investing in your health. 

Here's where you can find the teapigs matcha powder I tried: http://www.teapigs.co.uk/m/tea/shop_by_category/matcha_shop/matcha.htm

Still curious about teapigs or matcha? teapigs have an awesome newsletter where you can get loads 
of good information & latest discounts, just visit their website to sign up: http://www.teapigs.co.uk

Thank you so much for reading my review! Hope you're all have a great week. 

Much love, Beth 

*teapigs set me this challenge and very kindly sent me my own sample of matcha. All views are my honest opinions.

Art Focus: The realities of being an artist...

For those of you that don't know, I'm an artist! I have been for over 2 1/2 years now and I love it! However there are definitely some things I wish someone had told me when I decided to become an artist for a living! Some of these are funny and some are serious, but I thought I would let you into the world of being an artist!

Here goes, the realities of being an artist...

One of your hands are always cold. 
Is this just me?? I have bad circulation so every time I spend any long amount of time painting or drawing I end up with one cold hand and one warm hand... Really annoying!!! 

The commissions & orders come all at once! 

I have no idea why this is, but I can pretty much guarentee when I get an order, I'll have atleast another 2 come in within 24hours. I'm not complaining, but I think it's hilarious how this happens!

You have to get used to suggestions...

This was completely the hardest part about becoming an artist for a living. People are constantly suggesting you try things or you should check out another artist. Honestly, i found it really hard to deal with. I wanted to do my own thing, when I wanted to and how I wanted to. But actually all those suggestions are REALLY helpful!! Listen to them! It lets you know what people want and ultimately, what they are willing to buy! 

You get a serious case of 'brain fog' a lot of the time... 

When the orders are flowing it and you're getting messages here, there and everywhere it's seriously hard to keep track. Keeping organised and a to do list really helps, but even so, it's normal to be constantly think about your next pieces of art! 

If you want to see more of my art, here's where you can find me: 

Instagram: Instagram.com/bethanyrogersart 

Facebook: facebook.com/inspirebybethanyrogers

Twitter: twitter.com/bethirishart

Etsy: sillymooart.etsy.com

Thank you so much for your support! I'll do another art themed post soon. 

Have a great day, much love, Beth xxx