A week since I moved...

It's been a little over a week since I first moved into my new dorm room, I've not got everything in it's place yet, and some parts still need rearranging, but this is the little overview and before and after of the chaos! The after is pretty blurry, I didn't realise until afterwards- sorry about that!

I still have some parts that I can't decide where they should go, for example the room has no drawers whatsoever, my old bedroom was full of drawers- so I'm finding it hard to get used to not having a designated pyjama drawer and such!

You can't tell from this angle but there is a door leading the bathroom right behind, the bathroom is very tiny and when you have a shower the water gets over everything which can be pretty annoying to wait to dry.
I did purchase some really cute Flash 'vintage edition bottle' style bathroom cleaner which I think is really fun, oh the small perks of responsibilities! It cost like £1 from Tesco which was the real reason why I bought it.
So there you have it- a little peek into the goings on in this new place

Fat face!

I will be the first to admit that I do not have the most slender of faces, so one of the first things I learnt to love about makeup is how it can create the illusion of a thinner face and a nicer nose, because that's all that makeup is, one whole illusion!

So contouring my face, espcially my cheekbones (I always wanted a pair of lovely cheekbones) is a technique I've been perfecting and adding to since the day I discovered what bronzing powder is!

Here I share it all with you, as well as the quickest, most painless nose job ever!


　

My next top tip that if you pair this video with my 'how to highlight' video coming next then you will have skin that has been contoured and highlighted to perfection!

Cooking up a storm

Want something super quick and easy to eat that tastes good and is good?

Well look no further than Chef Alexia to help you out on a Thursday night.
You will need:

5 or 6 of those little mushrooms

Half a mug of peas

A small onion

Any type of pasta, spaghetti or gnocci

A can of tuna (optional)

Pesto sauce (optional)

-Boil a pan of water and cook your pasta or gnocci, while that's cooking chop up your onion and mushrooms into little pieces.

-Drop the onion into a hot pan for a little bit (use rape seed oil, it's even better than olive oil for you!) then add mushrooms and peas or any other veg you want to throw in.

-Once it's all cooked in the pan, drain the pasta from the pot, then throw everything back into the pot and mix it around, add your tuna and pesto sauce at this point too and mix mix mix

Done!

Voila!

Bon Apetit!

Back to bed

I wonder if I counted up every ill or sickness related blog post I'd ever written how many days it would add up to, I can't stand being ill or flu-like but I seem to get sick a hell of a lot, I don't eat bad food, I like my fruits and veggies, I get plenty of sleep- sometimes too much and I oversleep but some people might say it's bad for you, but your body heals and burns calories when you sleep so really it must be good for you?

The best thing to do when you're feeling ill or with a sore throat is to avoid milky foods because they can make that 'bunged up' feeling even worse, so I prescribe myself (and you if you're reading this feeling rubbish too)
-Lots of orange juice
-Even more water
-A dark room with a comfy bed and open window
-Yummy fruits
-Hours of sleep
Back to bed for me because I need lots of magical healing sleep!

 

PJ PARTAY

I don't think there's a comfier way to party than in your PJs, so here I am ready for a night out in a onesie tied at the waist, (otherwise a onesie can be totally restricting on your dance moves!)

I wore my vans too, which were a howle lot more fun than wearing heels, so I may not look like the most glamorous party goer ever but it was the comfiest night ever, and comfy usually means being able to stay out longer- so think of it like that!

I just want to make a side note that it was in fact a pj themed party, not me trying to start some 'pj outwear' trend, I would never ever normally wear my PJs in public, though it would be fun if we all could!

Green with envy at my outift?

I'm out on a themed night, can I get a woop woop?

The theme?
Green! Great... I first thought it might be mint green but no it was just the greenest green-green

So I got to wear a delightful green jersey tshirt (thank you Primark, £3) talk about creativity with my clothing there... and paired it with some black trousers from TK Maxx and Boot-Heels from Ebay

At least I felt comfy, even if not really all that dressy!

I ended up putting a jacket with it too that had some over the top shoulder structure which jazzed the ensemble up a little, then finished it off with a green smokey eye because there's no way I wear enough green based makeup

 

FALL into AUTUMN

Whatever you call it
Fall.. Autumn..When-the-leaves-go-brown
today is the start of that change in season, I don't really like the term 'fall' I don't think it sounds nearly as nice and as magical as Autumn, it's my favourite season where it's kind of magically chilly rather than 'frostbite all day every day' which it sometimes is in the depths of Winter here. Maybe it's called Fall because the leaves start to fall from the trees? I'm not sure... Anyway the official sciency reason why today is the beginning of Autumn is as follows...

"On the 23rd of September, the sun shines directly on the equator and the length of day and night are nearly equal in all parts of the world"

 

See.. and you probably thought there was nothing that special at all about this day today didn't you??

Well you can count on me to show you why each day is so super important!

 

When you think of Autumn or Fall what do you think of??

I think of the cosy clothes.. I love a wooly knit! And of that delicious 'crisp and clean' smell first thing in the morning where I can wear boots with my chunky ugly grey knit socks, also known as and referred to as my 'porridge socks' as the colour and texture reminds me of the porridge you would get in Oliver Twist times or something, I will share a lovely photo once I've pulled out my Autumn clothes, for now here is a much chic-er sock/legwarmer going into a much chic-er boot than my own, but it reminds me of Autumn nonetheless!

 

 



22nd of Spetember treating me kindly!

On the 22nd of September last year (before I'd even begun my blog) I passed my driving test, I've been fully licensed for a year woo!

This time last year I didn't know...

Where I was studying

Who I'd be studying with

What I'd be studying

Where I'd be living

and now today, on this very same day the following year is my official 'moving in' day

Nothing could describe the anticipation and excitement bubbling in my belly but the feeling of being a 'child' having to be left in my old bedroom as I move onto the first stage of being an 'adult'. At that point I still didn't feel like a 'proper' adult as I'm moving into what feels like boarding school for grown ups, a land between childhood and adulthood, where the university still watches over you, and you live in a kind of gated community but you have the first taste of no parental rules, full responsibilty for every last chore and no one giving you consequences or punishments for not handing in work on time

This is the view from my room out my window! I'm several stories high, and the UFO shaped thing in the clouds is only a reflection on the window of my ceiling light!

Goodbye Room!

Here's a last little glimpse at my room! I'm sure it's a picture I'll refer to if I'm feeling home sick

Clothes packed: check

Makeup packed: check

Oodles of fancy dress costumes for the first week of parties: Check

All my squishy soft toy friends packed: ...pending

They can be waiting as my arrival when I come home...

I shall miss my room and all it's lovely little nooks and crannys, storage space, wardrobes and my precious geisha picture on the wall

The place that looks the most deserted is my desk! It usually has my mirror, layers of makeup, moisturisers, notebooks, perfume and all my makeup brushes and now...

It's empty! Except for my Hello Kitty protect mat, for when I do makeup or crafts on my desk, and a backup bottle of BareMineras 'Skin rev-er upper' as I already have two bottles packed up which will last me for months!

I still have no idea what waits for me in my new room, I have arough jist of the size and I know I have my own bathroom, but that's about it for now! Well at least I know I'll be able to wash and sleep under shelter haha... hoepfully there's a window, flooring and doors too!

What do you mean REwind?

I was babysitting tonight when I noticed under their television was a whole stack of childrens videos or VHS and it dawned on me that I hadn't seen a physical video in a long long time even though all my favourite flms from my childhood were on video, I distinctly remember liking Matilda and The Wizard of Oz the most, but particularly Matilda- I still know what the credits screen looks like, and as soon as I'd see that pop up I'd rewind the video and watch it from the start all over again!

I did not even mean for this picture to go all old fashioend and grainy looking, I think it's the low light in the room giving it that effect, although it is wonderfully fitting given the topic!
That's when I remembered that you had to physically press a rewind function on video players and the annoyance it would be to want to watch a video only to see that it hadn't been rewound, that dilemma-o is a thing of the past now, just clickity click and the DVD will play from any point you want, so in the future (maybe another ten years) say someone has just dropped into a convesation and missed the first part of the story and says "wait..! Rewind that.." (meaning hold on... go back to the start of that story) maybe children and teenagers will have no idea why on earth we say 'rewind' or when we ever used a 'winding' function in every day life!

It's realisations like this which make me feel like a little old lady!

Who left the rubbish in the hallway?

You would be forgiven for thinking that 5 black sacks, 1 box of fragiles, 1 hot pink suitcase and one giant blue laundrette bag are all set to go out the rubbish but no... this is infact my most essential items from the past 18 years packed up into bags, cases and boxes and if any of that went out the rubbish I sure would notice!

　

My room here at my family home still looks just like my room, it's only until you open the wardrobe and cupboards that you see that the cupboards are a little bare

I can't believe that the next time that I see my things it will be in my new room, in a new flat with new roomates!

Stripping down

As I'm shedding my 'summer skin' I've noticed a whole lot of horrible blocked pores on my nose, I am 'prone' to large pores you could say and I have very oily skin, I invested in a pack of pore strips once but found that despite the theraputic stripped-out-empty 'feeling' that my pores did not look any less full of gunk to the naked eye (or my eye).

The other day while applying my moisturiser I noticed lots more full up pores emerging, blocked pores and spots are the sort of thing where once you notice one, you notice them all and your whole face just feels unclean so once this feeling overcame me, I did a little more research into 'tougher, stronger & stickier pore strips and this is what I came up with- the important part is the 'ultra strength' on the packet as opposed to regular strength and ultra strength these were. Currently they're on sale in Boots- usually £7.99 but now £5.99 (These are not worth £8... just to let you know)

I followed all the instructions and as I peeled it off (slowly, the instructions specified slow) with each pull I could feel my eyes getting tears where the strip had such a tight grip on my skin and now, maybe four hours after I first applied that strip my nose still feels a little raw! Who knows if that did my skin any good, I'm just waiting for a whole new surge of broken capillaries around my nose to erupt, anywho enough of the badness and down to the nitty gritty... don't look on if you're squeamish or feel nauseous at the sight of pore gunk, but if you're weirdly fascinated by it- like me then scroll on down to see just how super sticky these bad guys are!!

Just hope that no one knocks on the door when you are wearing one of these I don't think you could even convince the post man that they are a new fashion!

Bye-see-bye healthy habits!

This week has been full of a lot of goodbyes and goodbye dinners, but next week it will be full of lots of 'hellos' to new people, it's funny how life balances out like that.

Today I went out for a goodbye lunch at Pizza Express- usually I have those greasy-buttery dough balls for a starter, but I thought as it was lunchtime I'd skip on multiple courses and went straight for a four seasons pizza (pepperomi, mushrooms, anchovies and olives) I switched out the anchovies for extra mushrooms and it was pretty delicious for someone who doens't 'looove' pizza

after we'd finished that and all agreed we were full the dessert menu came...

　

and then the chocolate fudge cake came...

and then the final goodbyes had to follow which were bitter but made a little sweeter by the thought of that delicious slice of cake... It's not totally unhealthy... it has a strawberry on it which is fruit after all! haha...

Starter pack for university

Today I've started packing for my departure on the weekend, it's very daunting even though I moved house just a year ago to pack up all the things that I need but still leaving behind the things that I don't 'need' since my dorm room will be a little matchbox size!

Today I was presented with great kindness by my mum my 'university starter pack' she had to go for things that were not perishable, so think tin cans, dry packets and long life foods, here's what I got:

2 packets of corn thins (rice cakes but made of corn)
2 cartons of soya milk
1 bar of lindtt extra creamy milk chocoalte
2 jars of Lloyds grossman pasta sauce in my favourite flavour (chargilled veg)
1 tin of sweetcorn
1 tin of chopped tomatos
1 packet of antibacterial wipes
2 kelloggs variety cereal packs
4 toilet rolls
1 bag of pasta
1 bag of gnocci
1 carton of cranberry juice
2 750ml bottles of water
1 bottle of rapeseed oil
1 hello kitty selction box
1 box of Weetabix
1 jar of smooth peanut butter
2 original source shower gels (1 mint, 1 choc mint)
2 tubes of toothpaste
4 baked beans snap pots
1 box of brunch bars
3 tins of tuna
1 bottle of shampoo
2 jars of green pesto
1 bottle of 'sleep relaxtion' spray from Avon
1 Hello Kitty shopping tote to carry my food shopping back!
1 'Student Nosh' cookbook

I can squeeze it alll just about in my suitcase!
You can rely on mums to set you up above and beyond what you need to make sure you can look after yourself!

Bow-Tiful!

Making a bow dress is the easiest craft project imaginable!

 

 

This is how it goes down:

Take a plain dress (this works with vest tops, jumpers and tshirts too) in a pretty colour

And an assortment of bows, I have seven in lots of nice colours- I love pastel colours, you can make them yourself with leftover ribbon or buy them from ebay or craft shops

Lay the bows out on the dress and put them where you think works, make sure you don’t have two colours together that are too ‘samey’

You can pin the bows down where you like them, or just go straight into sewing them on

Take a length of white thread about 15-20cm and knot one end, then thread the other end through the eye of a sewing needle

Each bow takes out 4 simple hand stitches to secure them, then knot them at the back, and go onto the next bow

Then there you have it, a simple bow dress that takes all of twenty minutes but makes you look as pretty as a wrapped birthday present!

Savouring the sunset

This is what I can see out of my window tonight

I love looking out my window as the evening comes because of the beautiful colours the sky turns, I'm not pretending to be some kind of classified Sky photographer, there are a lot of them about! Especially on my Facebook newsfeed... but I love the view out of my window especially because I know that it is mine and near me, not a randomly stunning sunset in a part of the world so far away.

I'm treasuring the view here because next week the view will be different, in a few days time I am leaving my family home to go to university and live there. It's very exciting, but daunting at times like this- when I have no idea of the simplest things such as what will the sunset look like from the new window in the new place that I will be living? I don't know, but I'm sure I'll see be able to see the cascading ice cream coloured sunsets that I get here at home and know that the sky at home is the same. The UK is so little the sun sets pretty much at the same point everywhere!

When I start packing up, expect lots of packing-related/ student-y related blog posts to follow!

The HOTTEST new watch off the block!

Sick of your dull, ticking wrist watch that lasts for years at a time?
Does it weight down your wrist with all it's mechanisms and cogs?
Are you looking for a new, disposable friend for your wrist that matched couture gowns and sweatpants all in one?

Then look no further!
I give you the Post-It Note watch!

Ok, so it may not tell the time, or last very long in the rain but I think this is the coolest idea ever! No more ink poisoning when jotting down dentist appointment times or a quick to do list.
I also think these are a great present for the 'one who has everything!'
Hopefully they will come out in different colours like their sister-stickies!
So far I've only found a listing for them for sale on Amazon, but at the moment they are 'out of stock' hoepfully they will be back in time for Christmas!

Chocolate Pie Eye Makeup Tutorial

This is my first pictoral tutorial using the Naked Palette! Hopefully it'll come across as easy as it really is to do as I go step by step with pictures to illustrate every little part for you!

I couldn't think of a fun name so I just thought of something fun and yummy, initially I thought of Mud Pie but then I realised that no one want's their makeup to be likened to mud!
Enjoy, and let me know what you think!

It's of course browny based because thats the undertone of pretty much all of the colours in the palette!

 I've got a blank eye but have just applied Urban Decay's Primer Potion, first time using the product and genuinely underwhelmed- much prefer MAC Paint pot in shade Painterly for longwear, colour vibrancy, texture, pretty much everything!

 Taking a medium sized shading brush, this brush is by Bare Minerals, apply the colour 'Buck' generously to both eyelids to give a warm base, if you want to make the look appear more 'evening' then build up the brown to be more opaque, but for the daytime you can apply about the same amount as I have here

Then, using a smaller brush with a finer tip, take Smog, or any darker brown with a shimmer to it and 'carve' out the socket of the eye with the colour. By 'carve' I mean to follow the shape of the eyeball and outline it along the crease with Smog, it might look a little sharp but it's nothing a little blending can't sort out!

 

Blend blend blend! I'm using the MAC 224 brush here, and sweeping it backwards and fowards in the crease.

Then, press a clean finger into 'Toasted' and wait until the finger has warmed the product, and press it on the centre of your eyelid for an additional dimension to the look and to make your eyes go 'pop'!

Using 'Darkhorse' and a small 'stubby' type brush (the one I have here is a double ended brush that came with the Bare Minerals 'Rocker Eye' kit) line the lower lash line 2/3 of the way along, for a more 'night time' look take this colour right along the top lashline with the brush aswell

Afterwards, apply 'Virgin' or another pale-pearly-pink eyeshadow to your brow bone to add a highlight to the eye, here I'm using a small brush but you could use your fingers too

 As an inner corner highlight colour, I used 'Sin' right around where my tear duct is, you could use any champagney-shimmery colour and again you don't have to use a brush, just a dab on the end of your little finger would work fine

Using a brown pencil liner, line your waterline, if you want to amp up the drama do this to your top waterline too!

 Using a brow brush and a matte brown colour, this is 'Folie' by MAC start at the inside of your eyebrow and work your way out the fill in your brows

Apply a few coats of black mascara, the one I use here is Bare Minerals, but you could even wear false lashes

Apply a pretty lipstick, my current favourite is 'Pervette' by MAC, it has a shimmer to it and the colour is kind of iridescent, over the top I layer a lipgloss to give my lips a little more 'oomph!' press your lips together so that the lipstick and gloss are evenly distibuted across your lips!

 

Voila! Done and dusted and out the door!

Best Foot Foward

So I'd been in need of some 'slouchy' trainer type shoesies for a while, for times when pumps are not appropriate and you need something a little more sturdy, but for times when also your jogging shoes would look completely ridiculous!

Well, I give myself a clothing problem, so I give myself the cutest solution... so may I present to you...

My NEW Hello Kitty Vans!
I got them from the store Schuh, they sell them in white too, but in white the Hello Kitties were not coloured in all fun and bright.

Also, I'm glad I didn't get white because I have only worn these bad boys once and they already look a little grubby!
I wish I'd taken a picture of them fresh from the box!

Which reminds me... aside from having new shoes, isn't the 'new shoe smell' the best part of having them!! Or is that just me??

Window shop (not shopping for windows)

If you havent got a money tree growing in your back garden but love to dream about what you would get if you did then you are probably a window shopper! I sometimes can't help but look and dream and make wish lists, kind of like a mental escape, the creation of Pinterest has also helped fuel my love to 'look' at things that I have no way of actually owning myself!
At the moment I've been window shopping holidays, countries and amazing hotels, maybe I'm in the mourning process of summer coming to an end!

For now that's what my current 'go to' section is on Pinterest, but there are so many things that you can window shop for!

Cars

Perfumes

Art

Shoes

Pets

Skincare products

Houses

Diamonds!

Tattoos

Handbags

Cooking supplies

Hair products

Dresses

Craft supplies

Desserts

 

I wonder if in the future people will be confused as to why on earth it is called 'window shopping' if in the future all shopping is done online, maybe instead it will be called screen shopping or something!

What have you been known to window shop for?!

Come with me to the movies: Lawless

First thing is first:
Lawless is rated 18, I didn't even realise this until I was sat down in the cinema and then after the trailers but before the movie the litttle age rating popped up and it was a glaring red circle with '18' in it, i turned to me friend and said 'but whyy??' feeling frantic as though I'm about to watch a horrendous horror film but was informed that it was because there was 'some violence'

Some violence is an understatement... probably the most violent film that I've ever seen but then I usually avoid those kind of films but there was no avoiding this!

I sound like I'm about to launch into some sort of film related rant but that's not the case at all, the film was really interesting and about the prohibition of alcohol in America. Throughout I felt like I was wathcing a western film but it was essentially pretty heavily gangsta themed. I loved the romantic themes throughout, there were funny moments too which were a relief to the much more tense moments. The movie time whizzed by in a heartbeat and I shed a little tear when ... I don't want to spoil it but when someone sweet is killed.

The blossoming love stories made me want to live in 1930s america with the fancy cars and flowy dresses!

 

I give Lawless two thumbs up! Because it reminds me of a classic and the story itself is pretty easy to follow, but go in with the knowledge that it's pretty gory but ultimately a lovely story!