Our recent post on ‘Family life in Stockbridge‘ is still proving popular so in an attempt to be helpful to people considering a move to – or within – Edinburgh, I thought I would introduce you to another amazing family-friendly area of Edinburgh – Portobello. Although I love to visit there (it’s home to one of my favourite bookshops – Portobello books), I thought it best to speak to an expert – someone who has settled there with her family and established the post amazing business. So with that, read on.
Can you introduce yourself and your family?
I’m Jo, a photographer and Founder of 20 Photos and I live in Porty with my family – partner, Neil, and two kids – Cosima (9) and Saul (6). We have a young Staffy and a wayward cat.
What’s the concept behind 20 photos?
We all have thousands of photos on our phones – right? When was the last time you did something with them? Photos sit there, overwhelming in number (growing by the day!) and gather digital dust. But in there is your story – your family memories.
When you sign up to 20 Photos, you send us your hundreds of photos and tell us what you want to remember… I sort through them and find the ones which best tell that story. Each is then edited to bring out it’s best and print them beautifully so they are a joy to hold, share and display.
Where did the idea come from?
It was lockdown. As a professional photographer, I couldn’t work. And I was now full-time in charge of my two young kids. I knew if I didn’t do something for myself daily, my mental health would suffer.
And photography has been my way of processing the world – I love finding the stories in images.
So each day, I would give my kids 30 minutes screen time and I would allow myself that time to play. I started making experimental prints of our family memories – just on our home printer – each day choosing a group from my phone. Latterly I could go to my studio and make ‘proper’ fine art prints.
At the same time I realised this lockdown was a momentous time… but being played out privately in each persons own home. Each of our realities was different – but that there was a story to tell there. And we were capturing that on our phones. So how could I help people to tell their stories? From here the two ideas joined and I tested out what became 20 Photos.
(And it’s 20 Photos because more than that, your brain shuts down and feels overwhelmed. But 20 can tell a really lovely visual story, with just enough detail.)
What’s been your greatest challenge so far?
Great question – I mostly love the challenges of creating a company and that there is always something new around the corner or to learn. But it can be particularly lonely as a founder – especially when I need to do everything myself. I find the tough decision making hardest and turn to fellow female founders for advice though we work in very different spaces.
What do you love about your job?
I love that no two days are the same and that in creating this company, I am always learning. The lessons are always changing as this little company grows.
I love the monthly client cycles where I work on photos and the subsequent feedback. I love that no two clients photos and ‘what they want to remember’ are ever the same.
I love the high number of repeat clients who ‘get’ 20 Photos and value what I do.
I love that people are really enjoying my ‘teaching’ videos about how to make better photos of their memories. I’d never thought of teaching but it’s satisfying sharing and having fun in this 20 Photos community that we are building.
Why did you choose to settle in Portobello?
We were living on the other side of town but found ourselves in Porty several times a week- to see friends, come to baby groups and do our open water swimming practice. It’s been 8 years since we moved and I still feel the ‘Porty golden handcuffs’ are strong – it’s such a good place to live and raise children, that it’s hard to imagine finding anywhere else as good.
What’s your perfect weekend in Portobello?
Actually, the best thing about Porty is that it’s *even* better during the week when we (the residents) largely have it to ourselves. Being able to blow off steam after school on the beach or go for a dip with friends after drop off and before a meeting. There is such a strong community here and it is largely on foot so you’re always bumping into friends.
If the weather is glorious on the weekend, we tend to clear out and head up a hill rather than to ‘our’ beach.
However, usually –
Our weekend starts when school is out on a Friday lunchtime. Most of the Towerbank pupils end up on the beach after Friday morning school – I bring a picnic because my daughter is coeliac so the usual offerings (Civerinos pizza/Shrimp Wreck) aren’t available to us. After a couple of hours, we head home to watch a movie and make our own pizza and chill out.
Saturdays are chilled and spent taming the chaos of the week just passed, or gardening or going for a cycle (bikes and baked buns with two friends is a Saturday ritual) and later on having friends over with their kids for drinks and food (Twelve Triangles for bread and Root Down for veg, and to The Portobello Bookshop for Rukmini Iyer’s Roasting Tin cookbooks).
On Sunday we might head down to Glentress for some mountain biking or out to one of the big East Lothian forests or beaches for a dog walk. Because Porty is just off the bypass, it feels like everything is on our doorstep and easy to get to. The ideal reset button is a sea swim and in the evening into Soul Water Sauna to warm up and catch up with friends.
It’s not a wild life out here and that’s how I like it these days – my business and family keep me wild enough! I love that there is a thriving plant swapping group, our annual ‘Art Walk’, Beach Busk and community takeovers of buildings. It’s a place you get what you put into it so come if you want to muck in.
Where is your favourite place to eat with your family?
My daughter is coeliac so I’m afraid to say we don’t eat out in Porty that much any more (HINT: huge potential here for someone to swoop in with a genuine family cafe offering- We are still mourning the loss of the Skylark (a brilliant French cafe/bar which shut in lockdown)) and no where has quite taken its place.
We love the Little Green Van on the Prom for a cake and coffee on the weekends.
However for a grown-up glass of wine there is Smith and Gertrude or a really good pint, there is the Porty Tap. I love both.
How easy was it to find a property in the area?
We moved here 8 years ago which was before Porty-mania took hold. Since Lockdown Portobello has been ‘discovered’. Our home was (and still is!) a project and we love it. Now, even with inflation, property moves fast and is super competitive so you have to be committed to wanting to live here – it’s definitely no longer an inexpensive neighbourhood.
Are there many groups/activities for kids? What are the schools like?
Towerbank School is, in my experience, excellent. It is over subscribed so if you’re out of catchment, it will be pretty tricky to get in. It does offer the dream school commute in the morning for the kids to scoot / walk / cycle to school with no roads to cross. Bike racks are full. Kids pile out of school at the end of the day onto the beach and there’s often no need to make a plan for a formal playdate because you’re always bumping into friends.
The pre-school provision in Porty is really good – lots of playgroups – but, I think like everywhere in Edinburgh, nurseries are pretty full. They do get excellent inspection results largely. My kids went to Brighton and Towerbank School Nursery. Toddler Hut, Highland Fling and Cherry Trees also come highly recommended.
If you could live in any other area of Edinburgh – where would it be?
What makes Porty magic is its community and setting – having an ever changing ocean horizon and being so connected to the seasons/weather – you can see the weather fronts rolling through. So I’d be looking for somewhere with a similar community spirit – I hear that’s pretty strong up Balerno way so I’d definitely look at that and hope to have the Pentlands rather than the sea on my doorstep. I love my garden and miss having chickens… and have a hankering for a goat or two… so a little bit of land would be ace. Isn’t that everyone’s Good Life dream?
