It’s the first day of May so we’re having a LARK. The new issue is on sale in supermarkets and newsagents, you can order direct from us, or try an immediate start subscription and you’ll get this one straight away (links in our bio). Here are just a few larks we can help with this month: where to go for your first impromptu picnic of the year, how to have a sensory walk and summerfy your garden. Shuffle like a pro. Hang out with hot Victorians, cool Mods and rad librarians. Make a cake from croissants. Churn some butter. Fun with flowerpots. These are some of the spontaneous delights in our pages. Go on, discover the joy of larking about.#thesimplethings #larks
We’re off on a Breakfast Picnic in our May issue and we’ll definitely be taking along these Fruit & Nut Breakfast Bars. Find the recipe on our blog today. The rest of the ideas, including Turmeric Coffee, Granola, Breakfast Burritos and French Toast with Fruit & Maple Syrup are in the May issue, which is in shops now.
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Click in the bio link for the recipe or to buy the May issue
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Photography and recipe by Catherine Frawley @catherine_frawley
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#breakfastpicnic #breakfastbars #healthybreakfasts #tastybreakfasts #breakfastideas #breakfastsonthego #blueberries #may #simplethingsmag
🧶 Calling all emerging wool & natural fibre creatives! 🧶 The Yarndale Start Up Bursary, @yarndale , in memory of Amanda Bloom & Jenny Machin, funds a stand at a major yarn show, giving you the chance to share your work with an international audience and join a legacy of talent. Apply by 31 May by emailing [email protected]. Find more info at yarndale.co.uk.
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#yarndale #bursary #skipton
In our May issue, we’re celebrating the librarians who have changed history in our feature ‘Shelf Appeal’. We also gathered a few authors on our blog to tell us about what librarians have meant to them. Pick up your books, lower your voices to a whisper and join us on the blog today.
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Photography by Getty
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#librarians #libraries #reading #librariesofinstagram📚 #books #whywelovelibrarians #shelfappeal #may #simplethingsmag
Frances (@francesambler_ ) our deputy editor, was shortlisted for best deputy editor last night at #bsmetalentawards2026 and we are very proud of her. For those of you who don’t know much about how magazines work, deputy editors are the glue that holds everything together - they have a finger in every pie, solve problems, smooth things out and step in for the Editor when needed. They are also super creative, and full of ideas. Most of this is done without plaudits or credit so we were v pleased to applaud our very own Frances, who excels at all of the above. 🎉
In other awards news - The Simple Things has also been shortlisted for Media Brand of the Year 2026 at the #ppaawards2026 coming up in June. Wish us luck!
We could all do with a relaxing retreat from time to time, or just spending a couple of days immersed in nature. Don’t miss our COMPETITION this month to win a break worth £780 to The Tree Relaxation Retreat @thetreerelaxationretreat . All the details and entry are on our blog today. Just tap the bio link and scroll down to our competitions section to enter.
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#thetreerelaxationretreat #win #wellbeing #competition #thesimplethingsmag
How cute is this stick insect? Our Small Ways to Live Well podcast co-host @slowjotinsley keeps them with her daughter and she reveals the surprising personalities among their clutch. Anyone know a collective noun for stick insects? This and more. on bees, exploring your neighbourhood and caring for your patch are topics in our TEND episode, out today to download on your podcast app. This season is supported by @Titanicbelfast .
#smallwaystolivewell #thesimplethings
Salad days are here again and we have a delicious weekend recipe for you try. This Hot Smoked Salmon and Quail Egg Nicoise is a tasty twist on a classic. Find the recipe on our blog (click in the bio link) along with instructions on how to keep quail for anyone particularly keen! The recipe is from our new series, ‘A Good Life’, in which we follow Michelle Tansley as she grows food and flowers in her cottage garden in Derbyshire. Find more ideas from Michelle in our May issue, in shops now.
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Photography by Emma Croman @emmacroman
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#quaileggs #nicoise #salad #saladdays #troutrecipes #mayrecipes #may #springsalads #simplethingsmag
We learned how to improve our online wellbeing in our May issue, by switching ‘doom scrolling’ for ‘bloomscrolling’. Start as you mean to go on by making a brew and popping over to our blog to read all about how you can build happier, healthier scrolling habits. Just click in the bio link. There’s more in the May issue, which is in shops now.
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Image by Iryna Auhustsinovich/Stocksy
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#bloomscrolling #happy #wellbeing #onlinewellbeing #happyscrolling #may #simplethingsmag
It feels like nature is bursting out everywhere and if you enjoy foraging for wild food you’ll want to enter our COMPETITION this month to win a place on a Cooking With Wild Foraged Ingredients course for you and a friend. It’s run by Esse Stoves @esse1854 and you’ll learn with a Michelin-starred chef! All the details and entry are on our blog today. Just click in the bio link to find the competition and enter.
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#competition #win #foragedfood #wildcooking #essestoves
From Beltane to Bringing in the May, Morris Dancing to Maypoles, make the most of the long weekend by celebrating May in traditional ways. We have lots of ideas on our blog today…
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Illustration by Christina Carpenter @plantpaperscissors
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#beltane #mayday #maypole #bankholiday #haveamayday #may #simplethingsmag #daysout
Small Ways to Live Well is back! - our new podcast season starts today. We’re appreciating May days & summer afternoons and each week we’ll be seeking out good ways to ‘waste’ time as per the excellent motto above. (Chalkboard by @emmaharris_art ). Episode 1, hosted by @lisasthinks and @becsfrank , has a FOLK theme for this May Day weekend. Join us to explore some of the traditions, dancing and to sample the dawn chorus. This season is supported by @Titanicbelfast . Available now to download via your podcast app.
