Our Origin story

Hi!

I'm Hannah and together with Greg and our pup Pumpkin we are on a mission to explore and adventure our way through life.

Greg and I met May 2017 on a tinder date. I kicked him in the groin within 2 minutes of meeting (it was totally an accident) then nervous talked at him for a good while but we clicked pretty much straight away and spent a lot of time together. After a month he announced he was swanning off to Zambia for 3 months. When he came back we moved in together a month later! 5 and a half years on we haven't gotten sick of each other yet but we are working on it!

I used to be a registered nurse, it was a very demanding job particularly mentally. I found that on my days off I struggled to have any capacity to do anything other than curl up on the sofa. I took a mig welding course and LOVED it. The issue was though where we lived I couldn't weld in the garden without blinding my neighbours. I realised how much I loved working with metal and fire though so decided to focus on something smaller with less chance of burning down fences. I took some classes in silver jewellery making and loved it. So I followed my passion and continued learning - eventually closing the chapter of my nursing career and setting up my business Hammered and Twisted (www.hammeredandtwisted.com).

Greg is a landscape gardener, he owns The BFG (The Big Friendly Gardener or The Big Friendly Ginger as I like to think of him) www.facebook.com/TheBigFriendlyGardener.co.uk

He works really hard making people's gardens beautiful and happy spaces to enjoy. When I was struggling with work and the impact it was having on my mental health he was an absolute pillar of support and strength. It was him who made me believe in myself and made me feel brave enough to go full time with Hammered and Twisted.

Once I left nursing and felt more myself again we made a conscious effort to get out and explore more. It felt great and was something we really enjoyed doing together so we did it more and more. We started our instagram account to document our adventures (@thewildiscalling_ ). We bought a truck (an Isuzu rodeo) and fitted a roof tent so we could do adventures on the move and travel more cheaply and for longer!

In November 2021 Pumpkin came into our lives, we had suffered the heartbreak of losing Bamboo our gorgeous dog earlier that year. I didn't want another dog, I couldn't imagine having another dog but a family member we visited had a litter of puppies and this little roly poly ball of fur had other ideas. I think he knew we needed him and just didn't take no for an answer. He brought smiles and laughter to the house again...he also trashed the place on a daily basis but we will gloss over that. Pumpkin loves an adventure, he is a cocker spaniel so has endless energy, he enjoys our adventures every bit as much as we do. He is also getting very fond of swimming which I am excited about, I want him to be confident enough to come wild swimming with me next summer.

I hope you enjoy our blog and our stories. We have some big plans for the future and would love to take you along for the ride!

Us in 2017 a month after we first met.