The Simple Things

The Simple Things is a beautiful, useful, quirky and fun magazine about taking time to live well. We cover mindfulness and microadventures, eating and growing, forgotten wisdom, home life and slow moments. It's for people who love their lives but want to take the pressure off and remember what’s really important. We like tea & cake, learning stuff, being outside and the satisfaction of a job well done. Do you?

A could-do list February

Editorial

Tales from a veg patch • MAKING THE MOST OF THE HARVEST AT HOME, KATHY SLACK COOKS SEASONAL DISHES AND SHARES THE STORIES FROM HER BACK GARDEN THROUGH THE YEAR

Go gently • IN THESE LONG WEEKS OF WINTER, FINDING WAYS TO SELF-SOOTHE WILL HELP TO LIFT YOUR SPIRITS

Banish seasonal gloom with some scented blooms • BRING A SMILE TO YOURS OR A LOVED ONE’S FACE WITH A SCILLY FLOWERS FRAGRANT DELIVERY EACH MONTH

Magical creatures • AN APPRECIATION OF SEA URCHINS

CAKE IN THE HOUSE • Traditionally baked in Campania, Italy, for Shrove Tuesday, its name is from the miglio (millet) once used to make it, now replaced by semolina.

My day in cups of tea • We catch a ferry to the Isle of Wight to see how Jane Frame of Friendinabox spends her day in cuppas – and how tea can always bring some comfort

Why Buy Roses In February? • ASKING THIS QUESTION, A COLLECTIVE OF FLORISTS ARE HOPING TO SPREAD AN ALTERNATIVE MESSAGE OF LOVE ON VALENTINE’S DAY

February Almanac • SEASONAL THOUGHTS TO HELP YOU ENJOY THE MONTH

KITCHEN TABLE PROJECT

A simple thing…

BARCELONA • CLEAR SKIES, CLEAN BEACHES AND A HAPPY SPIRIT KEEPS CLAUDIA BONAZZI SMITTEN WITH THIS MEDITERRANEAN CITY IN WINTER

COULD-DO BARCELONA • Claudia’s favourite places in the city

PAUSE • Take a moment with some well-chosen words

Frame THE SEASONS • Gathered seed heads, frothy grasses and cut blooms alongside a wealth of curios and boot fair finds: Jeska Hearne’s ever-evolving botanical tableaux are full of inspiration

Cheese, please! • LOOK TO THE MOUNTAINS FOR INSPIRATION AND GATHER FRIENDS TO SHARE THE FUN OF FONDUE. NO ALPINE CABIN REQUIRED

Wine for a fondue

"People expect me to say, 'worry more', but there's a big part of me that's just, live, love, laugh" • Global emergency planner and an authority on disaster recovery, Lucy Easthope’s work has given her a unique perspective on loss and survival – helping people find hope, even on their darkest days

KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON

ON NATURE'S RINK • WHEN CONDITIONS ALIGN, FEN SKATERS GLIDE OVER THE FROZEN LANDSCAPES. PHOTOGRAPHER HARRY GEORGE HALL CAPTURES THE FLEETING BEAUTY OF THIS RARE SPORT

Homemade & healing • NATURAL BALMS AND LOTIONS FEEL GOOD FOR THE BODY; MAKING THEM YOURSELF IS GOOD FOR THE SOUL

DIY beauty basics

15-minute kitchen masks

WEARING WELL • Stories of the jewellery we love LOCKETS

WISH YOU WERE HERE • GREY VISTAS AND THE COLD GETTING YOU DOWN? THANKS TO MICROCLIMATES, YOU DON’T NEED TO LEAVE BRITAIN TO ENJOY BLUE SKIES AND MILDER TEMPERATURES RIGHT NOW

A simple thing…

Good things • POSITIVE NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

Know a thing or two… DRAGONS • Fearsome monsters or markers of success and good fortune, these giant mythological reptiles have left their footprints in cultures across the world

NATURAL 'EVIDENCE' • Are dragon myths ‘memories’ of the time when gigantic reptiles really did walk the Earth?

LAND OF THE DRAGON • British places that evoke dragon mythology

How hard can it be… TO INTERRAIL AS A FAMILY? • THE IDEA OF BACKPACKING AROUND EUROPE BY TRAIN MAY SEEM ROMANTIC, BUT HARRY ROBBINS DECIDED TO SEE HOW FREE-SPIRITED IT CAN BE...