about me & my work

I’m Shonette, and I live in Bristol in the UK. I spend most of my time going to gigs, persuading friends to go to restaurants with me, and drinking my way through the best beers or rum cocktails any licensed establishment has to offer. Come say hello to me on Twitter or Instagram some time.

You can keep up to date with the latest food guides on here by subscribing or like A Life Less Organised on Facebook. Ta da!

Shonette Laffy profile

Freelance writing

I also write for a few other websites about the various things I like about food, drink and Bristol, so you can read some of those on the Reviews page.

I can write on a range of subjects, from food and drink to travel, tourism and marketing.

I’ve been a judge for the Bristol Good Food Awards in 2016 & 2017, the Crumbs Awards in 2018 and the Best of Organic Market (BOOM) Awards in 2021 and 2023. I’ve also been an ambassador for Social Media Week Bristol.

Marketing support

I’m currently the part-time Digital Marketing Manager at Visit Bristol and spend the rest of my time as a freelancer, mainly providing social media support and advice to local food & drink businesses and festivals.

My clients have included BBC Food, Bristol Beacon, The Pitch, Bristol Food Union, Valley Fest, Bristol Food Connections, British Dal Festival, Chance & Counters, Bristol Markets, Duchess Media and The Bristol Food Tour. I currently provide ad hoc support to various other local businesses and events.

My packages include offering a basic social media audit and advice on how to structure your social media or content, starting from £200, or I can also write copy for your website and newsletters, plan your social media and provide advice on how to do the best possible posts for your community. If you need someone to write you a social media plan or content strategy, I’m your gal!

You can see more of my skills and experience on my LinkedIn profile.

Training and consultation

I do social media and content training for a range of local organisations, past clients have included Sift Media, Visit Bristol, Festival of Nature, Bristol Drugs Project and Bristol City Centre BID. I am also available for online one-to-one consultation chats, group workshops or longer talks and training sessions to get you up to speed with the basics, and also guide you through what would be best for your business. Training packages start from £250 and I’ll supply some handy docs for you to keep afterwards.

If you want me to write something for you, need some social media training or support, or just want to ask what my ultimate pizza topping would be, you can email me.

Nice.

Speaking at a Scottish Tourism Alliance Conference in 2020 about Visit Bristol’s promotion of the food scene

72 thoughts on “about me & my work”

  1. Hi – another Bristolian! Good to meet you – and thanks for following my blog – I hope you’ll like my images!

    Well, I am The FATman, and I can certainly identify with best ales, ciders and craft beers, and good food. I’m something of a beer enthusiast, loving Belgian as well as British beers – Duvel, from Belgium, is my favourite. And ciders from Thatchers and Westons are great – cider was my first tipple decades ago – I’m a Somerset Lad! Of course I like booze, but cider and beer are the thing – and and very occasional bottles of malt whisky – Higland Park, from Orkney, is a firm favourite. Otherwise, stronger things like wine, spirits etc are not really my thing.

    And quite contrary to what is healthy for an Aging Fatso, I enjoy English Breakfasts. The Cottage Cafe in Burnham is great (see posts on my blog), and one at the Park Street Wetherspoons the other day was not bad. There’s also a good place almost next to The Nails in Corn Street which does a very tasty breakfast – but I forget its name.

    Anyway >>> drink and eat on – and thanks again! Adrian

    Reply

    1. I’m very much enjoying your photos so far, and I’m glad you like my reviews! I’ve got another couple in draft at the moment awaiting some further additions but should have something up later this week. I’m from Central London originally but think Bristol is the best place I’ve been for diverse and cheap food as well as some amazing bars – Colston Hall and Beerd are my favourite for Belgian Beer scoffing 🙂
      Netty

      Reply

  2. Great header illustration by the way, I’m guessing it’s the monstrosity in Stokes Croft which for long had the legend Choking on your fumes very visible to all rush-hour traffic. The skull is a more visible reminder.

    Our daughter once (in contravention of all H&S and our wishes, if she had only told us beforehand) roamed its inner ruin nearly two decades ago in search of material for an art/photography project. It’s a scandal that the building is still there, mocking Bristolians with its arrogance and brutalism.

    Reply

    1. It’s a weird one, isn’t it. I find it a shame that areas such as Stokes Croft and Old Market were left to crumble – although it has inspired some great cooperative businesses and other exciting projects such as Arts Westside, Coexist, Canteen, Cafe Kino and The Runcible Spoon. I’d like to see something done with some of the derelict buildings and the tramworks, but I find the huge graffiti and exposed concrete on the building in my header oddly beautiful.

      Reply

      1. It’s excellent that small-scale enterprises and cooperative ventures have helped to revitalise what faceless property business tried to turn into wastelands, though sometimes it can seem as if they are like brief flowers pushing up through concrete.

        These things can take a long time: when we first bought a house in Montpelier in the 70s the estate agents, keen for a quick sale, informed us it was an ‘up-and-coming area’. Forty years on and the periodic return visit reveal mixed shabby chic, boho and anarch-ish tinkering in amongst the gentrification and deliberate abandonment. And it still feels an up-and-coming area!

  3. HI! Thanks for following my blog! Yours looks entertaining, and the 7-cheese Mac looks delicious – and right up my alley as I’m in Switzerland. 🙂

    Reply

  4. Your blog looks and sounds great! I love your most recent post on modern communication- it’s so true. Thanks for checking out Life Is Like A Dumpling 🙂

    Reply

  6. Hi, Thanks for stopping by my blog. It is nice to meet you! I love to try restaurants as well. I had never heard of taking photos of urban decay, but that sounds interesting. Do you take the photos or just collect them? Best wishes to you in your writing.

    Reply

    1. I try to take the odd photo but mostly it’s checking out others online – Bristol is a great place for it, as is East London.Also love sites like this: http://bit.ly/ky6307 – thanks for the comments and best of luck with your blog too!

      Reply

  7. Hello! I am about to move to the UK, and that is actually the main reason I decided to create a Blog! I is exciting to know you’re from the UK and you actually write about it also, thank you for giving me the chance to learn a bit more about your country though your Blog! And by the way, your recipes, they look delicious!!

    Reply

  9. Hello! Thank you for visiting my blog and liking stuff – I’m now getting the hang of checking out fellow WordPressers and was delighted to find that you’re from Bristol. I have a good friend there and have visited (briefly) twice. I’ll have fun reading your archives. Best, Marley

    Reply

  10. Hi, I really like your blog. I have only had chance to have a brief look so, but living in Bristol myself, the links to local things and your pictures make me feel lucky to live here! I will explore more and look forward to your future posts!

    Reply

  11. Hi, thank you for stopping by and following my blog. Glad to know someone from Bristol as well through blogging (I have yet to know any, and not many from the UK either). I love everything in your blog, especially all the posts about Bristol, there are many places that I have yet to try. Thanks for all the reviews and recommendations 🙂

    Reply

    1. Thank you, I’m glad you’re enjoying the posts! I have another one ready to go at the end of this week and plenty of ideas for more 🙂
      I’m thinking of organising a Bristol blogger meet up – would that interest you? – Shonette

      Reply

      1. That sounds like a really great idea! Bristol’s really pretty this time of year (though a little too hot for me to bear). I’ll be looking forward to more posts from you 🙂

  12. Thanks for following me! I love the banner photograph – I recognised it instantly as I’ve also taken photos of the same building! Great minds 🙂

    Reply

    1. You’re very welcome! And I love that building for some reason, there’s something oddly beautiful about it…
      Cheers for visiting my blog! – Shonette

      Reply

  14. Thanks for following me!! I am wishing I had found your blog a couple of months ago, it is definitely my essential reading before we go back 🙂

    Reply

  15. Hehe, hello, fellow Bristolian, and thanks for the follow. I have to admit I was not paying attention to what I was reading in my inbox, and came in to see all the bears. I was excited, but not toooooo disappointed, I do like beer, and have often wondered about some of the pubs you have so eloquently described. Cheers!

    Reply

  18. thank you for visiting and following LondonUnveiled.com – I like your “About” description… I would gladly have the same mantra… its a shame that work gets in the way of these fun leisurely pursuits. All the best, Ian

    Reply

  21. Heya! Thank you so much for stopping by my blog and following it. Especially when it seems you have such a fun and busy social life! I’ve only been to Bristol once but I really loved it so I will be looking forward to your posts and will most definitely take your advice when I visit again!

    Reply

  26. Hey there! You liked a post on my blog so I wanted to check out your blog and say, “Hi!” Sounds like you have a fab life girlfriend!! I am curious, however; if any blogger has sent you a gift – hehe! Lovely to e-meet you! Celeste 🙂

    Reply

  28. Hola! I’m only an occasional visitor to Bristol but I can see why people like it so much. Thanks for the like. Nettastrophe – what a great name for a website.

    Reply

  29. Hi! thanks for visiting my blog – you have really nice blog & you live in such a great place 🙂 looking forward to read more about you!
    cheers
    Laurianne

    Reply

  30. Hi there, I’m eatingcoventgarden.com I’ve recently changed my blog to self-hosting and unfortunately with the changeover all my followers disappeared. As you followed before I thought I’d get in touch and say please do follow again so you don’t miss anything. I’d really appreciate it. Thank you. Love your blog!

    Reply
  31. Pingback: Independent Spirit of Bath Sticky toffee pudding with Pear Cognac » Independent Spirit of Bath

  33. Thanks for following my blog! And it’s so nice that you’re a fellow Bristolian writing about food and culture – I’m going to press follow right now …!

    Reply

  36. Appreciate your follow earlier. If you know anyone else who would like to hear about Death and the Ploughman, which I saw in Bristol, please share. I hope the company do more soon. Did you know them already?

    Followed you back. Keen to find more fun stuff to do along the Avon.

    Reply

  38. Hi there,

    Thanks for passing by at our blog.
    Nice blog! Your blog looks amazing! If you are interested in tips of any other city or would just like to share any tips from Bath and Bristol, please leave a tip at our blog:

    Leave a Tip

    thanks,
    Do That! TripTipz team

    Reply

  43. Hi There

    Thank you for following my photo blog this is eclectic photography.

    Love your site as its about Food & drink another passion of mine, not a Bristolian, but just over the bridge in Newport.

    Am also a twitterer under a few guises.

    Paul

    Reply

  44. Hello, thanks for following our blog, Smorgasbord Bristol, I hope you find it interesting.
    I’m certainly gong to be taking plenty of advice from yours on where to go and eat in Bristol, it’s already filling up my to do list!
    In fact come to think of it, I’ll have to put some thoughts together for an article on nordic eating and drinking and whether anythings available in town.

    Take care!

    Reply

    1. If you find any Nordic eateries I’d love to know about them, it’s a cuisine I love but can never find anywhere! I think there was a Nordic supper club recently but that’s about it…

      Reply
  46. Pingback: Bristol Food & Drink – May | A Life Less Organised

      1. I live in Cheltenham but go to Bristol regularly to take pix of street art and I nearly alwaysgo to Marks Bakery and ‘doorstep’ toast. No ‘proper’ bakeries in Cheltenham of Gloucester that I know of. Bristol has really good bread and veggie / vegan eateries too, as does Bath

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