June Favourites

Hello! June just hasn't been June this year, the weather has been so naff, summery clothes/activities are just not on the cards, plus I've been working more.

However despite the weather my favourite thing to wear has to be my blue mirrored aviators from Tiger, I'm going to be honest with you here, they are so cool it hurts for my mind to comprehend this. My outfits haven't been overly interesting of late, these sunglasses make it look like I care a little about what I am wearing.

Netflix

After PLL Season 5 finished I decided it was time for a Netflix break, well until Season 6. Which I'm really loving, will the mystery of who A is this time really be solved? Will there be a new A if it is solved will the Summer of Answers, really become a Summer of even more Questions? A side from PLL, I binged watched OITNB. That was awesome, the last episode left me so emotional, and I urgently need a season of it, by next week at the latest.

Taylor Swift

Remember that time I saw Taylor at Big Weekend, I do very clearly. So naturally I had to make some post-weekend purchases. 1989 and Red. I have predominately been listening to 1989, I love ALL the songs, especially This Love its just such a beautiful song. I have also be stalking her on instagram, tumblr and twitter. It's fair to say I'm fan girling pretty hard.

Shrek the Musical

I went to see Shrek open minded, as I really was not sure about this one. I was blown away, this show has a lot of heart, great songs, its funny, its everything you want from an evening at the Theatre. I talked more about my thoughts on it, here.

12 Books 12 Months

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green was one of my favourite books I have read this year, with Paper Towns coming to cinemas in August I decided to read the book first, whoa WHO AM I? I read this in about 4 days, they only 4 days nice enough to sit outside and read for a while. I really enjoyed reading this, I loved the element of problem solving in the book, I wish it hadn't ended like how it did, but that would be predictable. What we learn from this book is Margo Roth Spiegelman is far from predictable. Literally the story here is don't judge a book by its cover. I am really pumped for the film,  and I can easily imagine Cara Delevingne as Margo.

Thanks for popping by!

xxx

Growing Up/ Friendships etc | My Thoughts

Hello! I've watched two videos recently that got me thinking about 'Growing Up' and linked on to that Friendships, here we have a 'My Thoughts' post.

Right now sitting here writing this, I just think I'm Me, just who I've always been. Where I see evidence of growing up is the TimeHop App. It instantly transports you to statuses etc you wrote years ago, putting you into that head space, it makes you remember things you wouldn't have otherwise have remembered years ago. These last few months have been exams season, the Five years prior to this have been revision/exam period for me. Not this year though. Past me, don't complain about exams and revision, they'll all be a distant memory soon enough. Future me at Uni, you'll get through this!

One thing that has changed the most whilst growing up are my friendship groups. I don't like to put a 'best friend' label on people, I don't like favouritism. But I do feel there are some categories which are worth mentioning.

The Ones You've Known Forever - TOYKF

(You both know who you are) It doesn't matter how long you haven't seen them for whether its 1 year or 1 week , it will always be the same. Even if you randomly see each other in a queue at the car park for a super speedy catch up then part your ways.

You also have people who you are really similar to at a certain point in your life, but then you both change and move forwards. Don't get me wrong it would be lovely to see them, there isn't a need to see them.

Sorry people for categorising you, I love you all.

Then you have people who you instantly click with and it feels like you have known them for the whole of your life and you know you will grow old together.

I feel these are the best 'categories' related to growing up.

Slightly sensitive topic alert. I have hit the age of 20, in fact I'm 21 in less than 3 months. Its getting to that stage where relationships become serious and long term. Where does your friendship stand within this. Will friendships be like they were when we were younger? Does the friendship dynamic change? These are a few of the questions bouncing around ATM.

Thanks for popping by!

xxx

Festival Outfit Inspiration

Hello! Following on from Thursday's Festival Hair Style post, we are leading quite nicely onto Outfit Inspiration, this in fact what I wore to Radio 1's Big Weekend last month *memories* *cries*.

I am a festival noob, but I know how to dress appropriately for a English summer day. The dress is really comfy for all day, and has a folk vibe with the pattern and the little pom moms.

I wore a long sleeved crop top underneath, to A keep me warm and B if the sun were to come out being burnt wouldn't be a problem!

Obviously you can also wear wellies, because you can't be trusting the British weather!

Thanks for popping by!

xxx

Festival Hair Ideas

Hello! With Big Weekend now long behind us its the start of the festival season in the UK, if you don't want to go down the Kylie Jenner route and wear different wigs each day, or you are bored of flower crowns, there are still some options. Also these are just really nice to wear in the summer!

3 Plaits - this style can be done with either Dutch or French plaits and is an easy way to hide the grease which is prone to show up in festival hair.

Pretty Bun - this was done on freshly washed hair, this is good if you're just a day goer , you could have more of a boho vibe by not using freshly washed hair, and pulling out random bits.

The Hipster Bun - this is a lot cooler than a half pony tail but your hair is still out of the way, you can make this a messy as you like.

If these don't take your fancy, here are some other posts I have done in the past which are also lovely.
Milkmaid Plaits
French Plaits
Cara Delevingne

Thanks for popping by!

xxx

How Often Should I Wash My Hair?

Hello! Rosie has been known to call my hair 'Magic Hair' because I don't have to wash my hair very often.

There is a myth that goes around which says, if you leave your hair long enough it will begin to wash itself. I call bullsh*t, nonsense. However you can train your hair to need a lot less washing. Are you listening Rosie?

Shampoo obviously cleans your hair when it gets greasy, but as part of this it gets rid of the natural oils your hair produces, which keeps your hair nice and nourished. When your scalp is a void of natural oils it produces more to replace it - hence getting greasy hair. That is my understanding.

The trick to reducing how much you have to wash your hair, is simple, start to wash your hair less often, even if that is just going from everyday, to every other day. To start with you may have greasy hair, on your none wash day, I'm afraid you're going to have to deal with it. Don't worry I have 2 tips.

1. Dry shampoo is your friend, dry shampoo is bae. If you mind it gives you the unwanted dandruff look, spray it onto your hands first, wipe of the excess, then run your fingers through your hair where you require it.

2.When it gets to the "'iffy' should I wash my hair yet stage?", be creative with your hair. Benefits your hair looks cool, and older hair is 10x easier to style. If I have some plaited style, chances are my hair could be washed.

Between washes don't go crazy on using products, as tempting as it seems you get a build up of products. Then you can avoid using a clarifying shampoo when you wash it,  they really strip your hair, as well as removing your products. Finally don't condition all your hair, leave a good few inches from your scalp condition free, it will take care of itself.

Gradually by reducing, GRADUALLY being the key word, depending on your type of hair, you'll need to wash it less and less. This could be anything from every 4 days, to dare I say 2 weeks.

I hope this post was useful for people!

Thanks for popping by

xxx

My Morning Routine | Youtube

Hello! Just a quick little post today to say that I've shared my Morning Routine on the ole YouTube, if you are a little bit fed up with people being PERFECT on YouTube this should be a refreshing break for you, slightly dramatised, but so so true. Enjoy.

Thanks for popping by!

xxx

Cereal Killer Cafe | Fo Cereal

Hello! I'm not sure Harriet has ever raved about somewhere as much as the Cereal Killer Cafe, since she was obsessed with Jack Wills circa year 10/11. On a previous trip to London she had taken me to the one in Brick Lane. A couple of weeks back when we went to London on a flying visit, we headed to the new one which had opened up in the Stables Market, Camden. We were not disappointed.

Some people think that its a lot to pay for a bowl of cereal. But lets calm down and and think about this for 2 seconds. You can buy a pizza for about £2 from a supermarket, but yet when eating out people happily pay for a pizza that costs 10 times the amount. Thank you.

When you enter you are greeted by a wall of cereal, I'm not going to lie it's a bit over whelming. There are so many types, and no, not 3 million shades of Kelloggs. Lots of cereal which is hard to find in Sainsbury's and other supermarkets.

My combo was: Medium Bowl- Reese's Puffs and Hershey's Cookie's and cream, the some lil Reese's chocolate things and banana, with chocolate milk. OH and a cheeky cuppa. 

A side from the amazing selection of cereal, one of the draws is the throwback 90's interior which just reminds me of my child hood. Which is also fab.

 What other cafe has bed's instead of seats, it was a truly great lunch. YES. Lunch.

I might still be thinking about the fact I didn't have that Frozen cereal, there's always another time though.

Thanks for popping by!

xxx

June Wishlist | Parisian Inspiration

Hello! The last two month's wish lists have had themes and I have found them a lot more fun. In May I bought a new red lipstick, my brain was suddenly like I want to feel continental more specifically Parisian so this is what I've come up. Some of the items are PROPER PROPER wish list items, because they're a little bit pricey (a lottle bit).

1. The Striped Dress

2. The Coat

3. The Shoes

4. The Bag

5. The Sunglasses

I've never been to Paris, nor left the UK for that matter, so my idea of Parisian style definitely falls into a bit of cliche. Saying that a classic, sleek, chic outfit is never a bad idea. The key item in this outfit is the Striped dress and I wanted that to be vocal point, from there I built around it. I feel the coat is the perfect summer throw on coat as it looks super light weight. I went minimalist for the shoes with a simple black heeled sandal. Onto the pricey items, this bag by Karl Lagerfeld, incase you've been living under a rock he is the Head Designer and Creative Director of Chanel, his own line has similar items to Chanel at a minorly less expensive price, I could've easily have put the 2.55 quilted bag as part of this outfit, but you know. Finally in my opinion, a pair of sunglasses and I went for these from Chanel. All of this of course paired with my new red lipstick!

Thanks for popping by!

xxx

Sweet Potato Brownies | Recipe

Hello! Yes you did read that correctly, I didn't have a massive typo on the title, this is a recipe for Sweet Potato Brownies, I did mention this in my May Fitness Update. This recipe is from Deliciously Ella (with some alterations), if you haven't heard of her she is a food/health/fitness blogger extraordinaire.

I found the soft sweet potato to remind me a bit of the texture of pumpkin puree, so if you love things like Spiced Pumpkin cupcakes, you'll probably like these. The best thing, once you have found the ingredients, this recipe is super easy and the most 

Ingredients

2 Sweet Potatoes (Boiled until soft approx 12-15mins)

14 Dates

80g Ground Almonds

100g Whole Meal Self Raising Flour

4tbsp Raw Cacao Powder

3tbsp Pure Maple Syrup

Pinch of Salt

Recipe

Set the oven to 180C or 160C Fan

Mix together the dates and sweet potato in a food processor, until it looks like a puree.

In a separate bowl mix all the other ingredients.

Add in the sweet potato mix and combine.

Place in a lined tray (I used a small roasting tray) and bake for 20 mins, or until knife comes out clean.

Leave to cool for at least 10 minutes, cut up and serve.

It is literally that simple, if you want to read about the nutritional benefits and what not click here.

Word of warning these are never going to have the buttery and sweet goodness of the normal brownie, these are something else entirely, but still moreish. I had to hide them away from myself.

Another Healthy Bake - Sugar Free Banana Bread

Thanks for popping by!

xxx

May Favourites

Hello. May has not served us well weather wise, in fact it really has not been great, it was like it went on a total rewind putting two middle fingers up at us Brits! Hence why my Favourites this month is very much indoors based!

Lily Pebbles
I am having a massive Lily Pebbles moment right now. First off every week day at 6.30 pm I have been waiting patiently for her Every Day May videos, there is something about her vlogs which make me feel so content and happy. I am also really into reading her blog at the moment which a couple of months back had a makeover, of recent times my favourite blogpost was her one on Epilators, I like posts on 'unspoken' beauty at the moment. Finally a shoutout to Lily's snapchat, I love seeing her daily activities in the short 10 second clips I really feel like I've gotten to know Lily this month. ANDDD rave over. But seriously, loving everything she is doing ATM.

Deliciously Ella

Being the pro internet surfer I am, if I got paid for the amount of time I spent on the internet not doing much I would be earning a hefty amount. I now follow Ella on Instagram, which makes me feel guilty for that cheeky slice of chocolate cake from Waitrose. I love to browse through her recipes on her website, last week I made the Mediterranean Vegetable Spaghetti for my mummy and I, I didn't tell my mum it was a vegan recipe and she loved it. Also on Thursday you will see my slightly edited version of Sweet Potato Brownies.

12 MONTHS 12 BOOKS
Read about my (lack of) history with reading - here.

How to Fall in Love by Cecelia Ahern

My Dad rolled his eyes when I told him what I was going to read. This isn't a soppy tale though, no it is not, apart from the last two chapters. The bulk of this book is Christine trying to help Adam rediscover happiness in his life, after attempting to commit suicide. Christine is not a therapist, but runs a recruitment agency, she tries to follow advice from 'How to books'. They aim to try and get Maria back (Adam's gf who cheated on Adam with Adam's best friend). I think you can guess how the book ends. It is a bit fairy tale like I guess, but I feel that's how falling in love should be, something that happens naturally when you're not necessarily looking for it.

So I excelled myself this month and got onto book number 2 *applause*

The Racketeer by John Grisham
Good book, fast pace. I really enjoyed this book up until half way, when I began to really dislike Malcolm/Max the protagonist in this book. He was demeaning towards women, oh and the rest of society. He literally thinks he is so bloody smart. From page 200 I wanted whatever his plan was to fail. However it was good to read a different kind of book, broadening my horizons. UPDATE, I still dislike the character but towards the end of the book its more about the action, rather than what Malcolm/Max is thinking and scheming. However this not a book I would recommend.

To continue the reading theme, I find it easiest and most relaxing to read with some kind of background music. This month for my second book, I read with the Imitation Game soundtrack playing. Also Good Reads, if you haven't heard of it, its a social media sight for books. I've found it really helpful for picking books and avoiding books which are not that great.

Next month I am reading Paper Towns by John Green.



***FINALLY***
Radio 1 Big Weekend

I am pre writing this post the day directly after Big Weekend. I have never experienced anything like that. I will be honest I was there because Taylor Swift was coming to my home town (city). Wow she is a performer (I didn't watch the Foos), Taylor put every other performer on the day to shame. Literally I cannot explain how good she was, just wow. I died. RIP me. My Dad who was watching at home liked Shake It Off, he is a man of few words, it really says something, if he says something. Taylor was my highlight no doubt there at all. I also liked a lot James Bay, I now have his album on Spotify he was on the In New Music We Trust Stage.

I shall now go back to listening to 1989 on repeat, thank you.

Thanks for popping by!

xxx