My Current Random Favourites

Hi guys, seeing as it is now the end of April (I cannot believe how quick it's gone,) I thought I would show you a few of my favourite things that I have been using lately.  

1. Rimmel 60 Seconds Nail Varnish in 819 Green With Envy
I have been loving this Rimmel nail varnish this month. Firstly, I love Rimmel's 60 Seconds range as I am so impatient when it comes to waiting for my nails to dry, and this polish does dry relatively quickly. Secondly, the bluey-green colour is beautiful and bold, especially when you apply two coats like I do. Also, the varnish is pretty chip resistant, as I have been wearing it for the past week almost and it still looks pretty much freshly applied. Lastly, you cannot deny that this nail varnish is a great price - I picked mine up from Boots for £3.69!

2. Marc Jacobs 'Daisy' Perfume (50ml)

I love this perfume as it is not too over-powering or sweet. The light scent is perfect for me as a daytime perfume, as it is floral and fresh. As you can see, I have used well over two thirds of the bottle as I use it most days. My parents bought me this perfume when they were abroad in Italy as it was much cheaper out there, but you can pick up this size bottle in the UK for about £45.00 or so, depending on where you buy it from.

3. Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Crush
This lip crayon has been my favourite for a few months now, I bought it a little while back for £7.99 in Boots. It is a gorgeous berry colour and it is so moisturising too. I love how the balm smells like peppermint and how it makes your lips tingle upon application. I always use this shade on a night out because it is so pigmented and long-lasting - I barely need to re-apply (even when I am out until 3am!) A problem I often come across using regular lipstick on a night out is that it easily smudges and can also transfer on to my teeth if I am not careful. However, this stain does not budge and so I do not have to worry at all. The balm also comes in many different colours - I want to try the shade 'Lovesick' next, which is a stunning bright pink colour. 

4. Sims 3 University Life Expansion Pack
I know that this is a very random thing to include in my favourites, seeing as every other item has been beauty related, but I just couldn't resist. I recently bought this expansion pack as I am a bit of a Sims geek and this expansion pack is so fun. There is so much that you can do with your Sim at univeristy. There are six different majors that they can study, and you can also make your Sim become a jock, nerd or rebel. There a plenty of college parties to attend where your Sim can play beer pong, do a keg stand or streak! I definitely recommend this expansion pack to any of you who are fellow Sims nerds! For those of you who want to try it out yourself, the cheapest copy I found from a trusted and well-known company was Argos which cost £24.99.

I hope that you all enjoyed reading about my current favourite products. If any of you have used any of the things above, I would love to know your opinions on them so please leave a comment below :) 

Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World

I just finished watching ‘Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World’ and I can honestly say that I loved it. I found the film to be really thought-provoking and moving. It made me think about what we would do if the world was coming to an end three weeks from now… What would we do? Where would we go? Who would we spend our final hours with? I wonder if we would all lose all of our inhibitions and do things that we would usually be afraid or wary of doing. Some people may want to travel, some may want to break laws, and others may want to party non-stop.

The answer that everybody normally comes up with is that they would spend time with family and friends, enjoying each others company and trying to have fun. I also think that a lot of us would want to tell people how we feel about them, laying all of our cards out on the table that we may have kept close to our chest beforehand. Knowing that it’s nearing the end of the world would probably give us a lot of courage to say things without worrying about the repercussions. The clock would be ticking and every moment would be deemed as ‘precious,’ so we would embrace it.  

Overall, the film taught me that we should spend more time with the people we love, because we never know what’s around the corner. We will never know when our last day is actually our last, so we should live for the moment and never hold back.

My Month Via Instagram - April 2013

Hi guys! Seeing as it is pretty much the end of the month now, I thought I would do a little post showing what I have been up to all throughout April.

1. This month, I have decided to go on a major health kick. I made a super healthy Caesar salad and it was amazing! I have a really terrible immune system and am constantly ill, so I feel like changing my diet may help me a great deal. Plus, now we are approaching the summer months, it cannot hurt to tone up a little bit too. I have started doing aerobics and Pilates a few days a week too. Sometimes I fall off of the wagon and eat junk or get a little lazy, but overall I am quite happy with my progress.

2. This month, I finally had to say goodbye to my first car (who I named Clive the Clio.) There was no way that it would have passed it's MOT at the end of the month, so sadly I had to say au revoir! I part-exchanged this car with my new car (see below.) It was really strange because on my last drive in Clive, I felt incredibly sad. Sure it had a lot of problems, but it was my first car so I will always love it!

3. Even with what I said above, I absolutely love my new car! Of course, I have carried on  the tradition by naming my new car Clifford. I decided upon this name purely because of it's colour, and yes, I am referencing Clifford The Big Red Dog. Some people think that naming your car is silly, and I guess in a way it is, but it's a tradition that I will probably continue throughout my life!

4. As mentioned in a previous post, I finally purchased John Green's book 'Looking For Alaska.' after hearing many rave reviews from friends and seeing a lot of quotations from it on Tumblr, I thought I must read it. I can happily say that it lived up to my expectations and I read the entire book in under 48 hours. I think it's safe to say that I was hooked!

5. In a nutshell, my Mum has been very stressed out lately and has been working a lot over the past couple of weeks. So, on my way home from visiting a friend one day, I decided to pop in to the florist and buy her some flowers to cheer her up a little :) I picked up this particular bouquet because the colours were extremely vibrant and I thought that they would brighten up our living room.

6. These past few days have felt a lot more like spring/summer. Whenever the sun rears its head in rainy England, everybody makes the most of it. As I haven't had a lot on over the past few days, I took the opportunity to do a bit of sunbathing. With just two afternoons in my garden, I actually have a nice little tan developing. As you can see in the photo above, I was wearing these cute little shorts from Primark. They only cost £4 and are part of their beachwear range. I absolutely love the floral and butterfly print, plus they were an absolute bargain!

I hope you have enjoyed this post and please let me know if you think I should make this a monthly thing, explaining what I have been up to and so on :) 

My Nasty Gal Wish List - Part One

Hi guys! Today I thought I would share with you a few items from the clothing website 'Nasty Gal' that I really like. I first heard about this clothing brand via Twitter, when I girl I follow mentioned her love for the website and how she wishes that she could buy the entire store (which is ironically the same way I feel about Topshop!) In particular, I think that the website has an absolutely beautiful selection of dresses that are very on-trend and modern. Furthermore, below is a list of the three items that I am longing to buy. Please bear in mind that the brand is American, however I am from England, so I have converted the prices below from dollars to pounds! 

1. Daisy Laced Dress - £31.52
I absolutely adore this dress! I am a big lover of dresses that feature lace in their design, as it makes me feel really girly and feminine. I also really like the cut-out feature of the dress, as I like to accentuate my waist as it is quite small and I think that this would suit my figure well. I often steer away from white dresses as I am not very tanned and I am a novice at fake tan application, however, I like the black on the waist that gives the dress a real contrast. 

2. Chroma Fade Knit - £24.95 
I really love this jumper. I am definitely one to just throw on a random jumper and a pair of leggings/shorts and tights as a casual daytime look, and I think that this magenta pink colour is very eye-catching. Also, the fact that the jumper has an ombre/dip-dye effect again makes this piece bang on trend. 

3. Electric Bloom Skirt - £31.32
I love this skirt because of it's extremely bright and busy print. I am a huge fan of high-waisted skirts because I tend to wear a lot of crop tops when I go out clubbing, and so teaming those with a nice high-waisted skirt is a great way to make sure I am not showing too much flesh. I think that the colours featured on this skirt are great and will instantly brighten up any ensemble you wear. 

I hope you all enjoyed reading about the pieces that I have selected and I do urge you to check out the website as there are so many beautiful pieces on there! Please feel free to let me know what you think of my choices by leaving me a comment below, I love reading what you guys think! Thank you :)

The Wonders Of Reading

I love getting completely and utterly lost in a book. Reading allows us to simply escape for a little while. We become so engrossed in the story line and characters in the book, that we allow ourselves to forget about our own worries and troubles. More often than not, we can connect with a book on a personal level. Every single person that reads it can interpret the story in a totally different way to one another, and I think that is amazing. I love being inspired and having my thoughts provoked by a particular quote in a novel. It is pretty incredible how an author can make a complete stranger emote so much just by reading their material and diving into their imagination. In this day in age, many people do not read books anymore - everything is electronic. However, sometimes the simplicity of reading a book and retreating into a different universe for a while is all we need.

One particular book that I have really enjoyed reading lately is 'Looking For Alaska' by John Green. I managed to read the entire book in the space of just under 48 hours, I literally could not put it down! I went through a stage at school where I completely went off of reading. I'm not really sure why - I think that I just did not have the concentration to switch off from all things social media related, sit in my room and simply read. Never the less, I have gotten back into reading mainly because I have a lot more spare time on my hands nowadays. After reading 'The Fault In Our Stars,' I quickly decided that I loved Green's style of writing and how well teenagers and young adults can relate to the content in his books. I think it's safe to say I am now a big fan.

If any of you are debating discovering a new book or if you want to get back into reading, I urge you to give 'Looking For Alaska' a go. It was a very enjoyable read with many twists, turns and revelations which always kept me on my toes. I think that the story is very unpredictable  which is why I could not put the book down for long. If you read the book after seeing this post or even if you have already read the book, I would love to know your thoughts and opinions - so please do not hesitate to leave a comment below!

'Paramore' Album Review

I have always been a big Paramore fan and since their line-up changed, I was a bit dubious as to what the new album would sound like. I think that in my honest opinion, no Paramore album will ever compare to 'Riot!' However, saying this, after listening to their new self-titled album online, 'Paramore,' I am pleasantly surprised! This is now Paramore's fourth studio album and I have been listening to a few of the tracks on repeat in my car all weekend long! 

'Last Hope' is my favourite song as I can really relate to the lyrics, and I love how the song slowly builds. Also, I think that the song really showcases the softer side to Hayley's vocals. Another one of my favourites on the album is 'Hate To See Your Heart Break,' which is another rather mellow track. Whenever I listen to this song, it really relaxes me. The two tracks that I have pointed out on the album so far are quite slow, so on the contrary, another one of my favourites is 'Be Alone.' This song is considerably more up-beat and and shows off Hayley's power and range in her voice. Last but not least, my final favourite off of the album is of course 'Still Into You,' their current single. When I first heard this song for the first time, I wasn't really keen but now I absolutely love it - which makes the song a 'grower.' It is incredibly catchy and never fails to put me in a good mood! 

Here is the entire track list for the album:

1. Fast In My Car
2. Now 
3. Grow Up
4. Daydreaming
5. Interlude: Moving On
6. Ain't It Fun
7. Part II
8. Last Hope
9. Still Into You
10. Anklebiters
11. Interlude: Holiday
12. Proof
13. Hate To See Your Hear Break
14. (One Of Those) Crazy Girls
15. Interlude: I'm Not Angry Anymore
16. Be Alone
17. Future

Overall, I would really recommend you to give the album a listen. The songs are all different to one another, which makes the album incredibly diverse in my opinion. If any of you give it a listen or have done already, I would love to know your thoughts on it and what your personal favourites are. So, please don't hesitate to leave a comment below :)

Anxiety

I hate it when people think that anxiety is not an illness. Anxiety isn't just when you get nervous before a test. It isn't when you feel a little shaky before an interview. It isn't when you get a few butterflies whilst talking to somebody you like. Anxiety prevents you from doing simple everyday tasks that others do not even bat an eyelash at. Fear takes over your entire body without any warning, and even though you know that your thoughts are irrational - you cannot shake the feeling that something terrible is going to happen.

New places, large crowds and situations where I cannot escape can all trigger absolute panic inside my mind. People often think that I use my anxiety as an excuse to get out of doing things, but this is not the case at all. I cannot pick and choose what triggers my anxiety, it is beyond my control and it upsets me when people do not believe me. Panic attacks are terrifying and they leave me feeling dizzy, weak and extremely nauseous. So why would I choose to have one on purpose?

These past few months have been horrible for me and my anxiety is worse than it has ever been. I am taking small steps but it’s not easy and it is extremely upsetting. I try to go out and slowly build up to doing things, yet I feel as if I am going nowhere. I am not improving. I feel like I am often a coward because I do not push myself, because I am just too afraid of failing and letting people down. I am so open about my anxiety and write about it a lot. This is because I feel like I should not be ashamed of it, and if one person on here reads my posts and realises that they are not alone - that will make me extremely happy.

Anxiety and depression are both serious mental illnesses and I believe that opening up is the first step of helping yourself. To read more information about anxiety and other mental health issues, I recommend that you check out the website 'Mind,' as it has a lot of great information!

My April Beauty Wishlist

Hi guys! I thought I would do an additional post, following my other one earlier today, listing a few items that are on my beauty wishlist. Enjoy!

1. Urban Decay All Nighter Long Lasting Make-Up Setting Spray - £19.50
I have heard great things about this product, as the spray supposedly holds your make-up in place all day. I find that on a night out, my make-up slides off of my face throughout the night - especially my foundation (even when I set it with pressed powder!) I do not spend a great deal on beauty products normally, so this would be an investment that I would use sparingly on special occasions rather than for every day usage!

2. Rimmel Apocalips in Apocaliptic - £5.99
It seems that everybody had tried out this new Rimmel product apart from me, and it has had raving reviews! I love a lip colour that is pigmented, I usually go for lipstick as opposed to lipgloss but I really want to give Apocalips a go. I think that this bright pink shade is a great colour for spring time!

3. Essie Nail Varnish in Pinkadelic - £7.99
I often change my nail varnish to match my clothes, but on an everyday basis this can be rather tedious! I would love to purchase this nudey pink shade in the near future, as I feel that it will compliment my skin tone well and it is a neutral colour to match all outfits.

4. Benefit Coralista Blusher - £23.50
I love coral coloured blushers as opposed to pink blushers as I think the tone is more flattering on my skin and is less harsh. I know so many people who rave about Benefit's blushers and I wish I had the money to purchase one. This product is definitely on my wish list!

If any of you have tried these products before, please do not hesitate to give me your feedback as I would love you know what you think of them! :)

Writing Inspiration

I have read quite a few books lately, seeing as I have a lot of spare time on my hands nowadays. Each of these books have made me feel like I can relate to them in some way - the emotions that they portray of young adults, and the way their minds work, is really quite amazing. Seeing as this is swiftly becoming a very popular book, I though that I would mention 'The Fault In Our Stars' by John Green. I really liked the way in which the author did not make the story into a typical cancer story, it had a lot more depth and underlying messages than that. I am really looking forward to reading some more of John Green's work soon, I think that I am going to read 'Looking For Alaska' next! 

I have been considering writing something of my own for a long time but I think I need to put in a lot of ground work before I can achieve this. I did very well at English at school, but as I dropped out of college after a mere two months, I feel like I may need to do some writing courses and broaden my horizons before I can consider writing my own material (to a good enough standard.) I need to read more classic books to widen my vocabulary and so on. Also, I am lacking inspiration. I have no idea as of yet of what I would want to write about, but I am hoping this will come in time. All I know for now is that maybe I would like to pursue creative writing a little further...