Monday 30 November 2015

Winter Warmers

Hi there! This blog post is going to be about something I'm very passionate about... being warm and cosy! Seriously, I am my happiest when I'm cuddled up in a blanket and I'm warm and cosy and it's cold and stormy outside and I've got a cup of tea and a candle burning. It's the reason I love winter so much.. and also the winter fashion!




Anyway, I'm going to talk about my favourite ways to get warm in the cold english winter. My house gets especially cold because I live in the countryside and my parents are quite sparing with the central heating.

The first thing on my list is an electric blanket. I was first introduced to these because my boyfriend has one and every time I go round his house in the winter the first thing I do is switch on the electric blanket. I loved it so much that he bought me my own one! These blankets go under your bed sheets, you plug them in and they heat up your bed. The best thing is turning them on before you go for a bath or shower, and coming back and getting into a toasty bed!



The second thing I would recommend is a heated throw. This is a furry blanket which goes over you, plug it in and it heats up. You don't have to use it in bed, you can snuggle up on the sofa with it. This one is great because it has a little remote control where you can set the timer and temperature. I was looking out for one last year and came across this one for £20 in Aldi which was a bargain as it was half price!



The next one is a classic, but they are amazing! They are hot water bottles! I've recently come to realise how good they are and don't know why I haven't used them sooner. I used to be so cold all the time at my university house, and I wish I had used a hot water bottle. All you have to do is heat up the kettle and pour the hot water in and it stays hot for hours. I usually cuddle mine, but you can pop it in your bed to heat it up in advance. I've had this hot water bottle for years and it has pink sheep on it. Primark do some really pretty fluffy hot water bottles that I have my eye on.



I also love fluffy slippers, soft fleecey PJs and dressing gowns. These are all from New Look and Primark. I have to say Primark are amazing for warm PJs, dressing gowns and slippers so definitely check it out if you are looking for some.



All of these things would make amazing Christmas presents for someone who loves to be cosy and warm like me. Or maybe just for yourself? :)

Sunday 15 November 2015

Life Update November 2015

Wow I haven't done a blog post in about a year! But I'm back now and hopefully I'm back for good. So I thought I would do a bit of an update about what's been going on in my life.

I have now finished university, which I still cannot believe! I graduated with a First Class Honours degree in Biomedical Science from Southampton University, which I'm so happy about. Third year was quite tough and stressful, which is probably the main reason why I stopped blogging. With all of my lectures and my laboratory research and exams and writing my dissertation I was very busy and stressed out all of the time, and the thought of blogging felt like a bit of a chore. I didn't feel motivated to do it because when I wasn't working I just wanted to do nothing.

But things have certainly changed since then! I now have a career! I am working in central London and I am involved in clinical trials. I've been there for about 6 weeks now and I am liking it so far. The people in the office are lovely and my work is very varied so no two days are the same, and being involved in cancer research makes me feel like I'm part of something important.

So since I've started my new job it feels like my life has changed quite a lot. Suddenly my free time really is MY free time. At university, my free time wasn't free. My mind was always occupied with work and revision that I needed to do. However, now, my work stays at work. And even though I like my job and I like time to relax and watch TV, I wanted something else in my life. Science and research are big interests of mine, but so are beauty and fashion and travel so I have decided to start up blogging again. Hopefully I can stick to doing it more regularly, I'm going to try!



        Graduation Day



     Graduation Ball


  Afternoon Tea on my 22nd Birthday



Wednesday 11 June 2014

Harry Potter Studios




So I know it's been absolutely months since I did a blog post,  I just always had a reason why I was too busy! However,  I am now on my summer holidays and it's the perfect opportunity to get back into blogging - especially as I have lots of exciting things coming up!

This blog post is EXTREMELY overdue, as I visited Harry Potter Studios in December (showing how much I procrastinate!). But it was  such a magical place I just had to write about it at some point, even if it is 6 months late (oops!).

I surprised my boyfriend Liam with tickets for his birthday as we had been planning to go for ages (even more procrastinating).


We are both fans of the movies and Christmas is my absolute favourite time of the year, so it was the perfect time to go as the place was covered in Christmas decorations! They really went all out with the Christmas decorations especially in the Grand Hall, which just made it feel so more impressive and special.



Still going with the festive theme, they even had a snow machine outside! It was such a bizarre but great experience standing outside Number 4 Privet Drive with a cup of butter beer (which is actually very delicious) in the snow!

We ended up spending around 4-5 hours there as we literally read EVERYTHING! It was all so interesting and I love finding out about all of the extra facts and details of how things were done, especially the animatronics and the miniature scale model of Hogwarts. It really does make you appreciate just how much effort was put into the films.




There are sooo many of the sets, costumes, props and technology from the films, so there is so much to see!  We also really enjoyed getting to dress up in Hogwarts gowns and virtually fly broomsticks. Be prepared for very expensive photos and souvenirs though! I would really recommend everyone to go as it was such a lovely day out!




Friday 7 February 2014

Product Review: No7 Stay Perfect Nail Colour in Milan

I have owned this nail polish for quite a long time but had totally forgotten about it. The other day when I had some time and decided to paint my nails I rediscovered this gem! As soon as I begun to paint my nails I was reminded of how much I love it!


This nail polish is in the shade Milan and is an opaque shimmery pink. It does not have a grainy glitter texture that a lot of glitter nail polishes do, but is quite smooth. One of the reasons I love it so much is that it is so easy to apply! I have so little patience for applying nail polish and then waiting for it to dry. I always get so bored of waiting and go and do something else, which of course leads to my nail polish which I so carefully (not) applied being completely smudged and crinkled.

This nail polish dries so quickly and is a lovely opaque colour after just one coat. They colour is gorgeous! But I am a very girly girl who loves pink and glitter, so how could I not love this!


The pink is slightly darker than the picture. It is slightly duochrome, as it can look slightly silver in certain lights.

This nail polish is great for people who have little time/ patience for painting nails or for those who love pink glitter like me!

http://www.boots.com/en/No7-Stay-Perfect-Nail-Colour_1273349/

Voyage à France

Last weekend, me and my housemates decided to very spontaneously go on a weekend trip to France! It is quite unlike me to do something so random with not much planning, but I kind of had the attitude "why not?!". It is good to do something spontaneous once in a while. So the evening before we booked the eurotunnel and hotel (both of which were very cheap) and off we went on saturday morning!


When we arrived in Calais, we spend the rest of the day shopping! We went to a giant shopping centre called Cité Europe and a giant supermarket called Carrefour. I picked up a lovely grey jumper and a cute makeup bag. I also picked up lots of french goodies from the supermarket. It is quite an experience going to a french supermarket! I couldn't get my head around how massive it was! They also give out lots of free samples including Nutella crepes, lemon pastries and apple slices, why can't we have that in England!


Once we arrived at our hotel in Calais we decided to have a wander round the area and find somewhere to have dinner. The surrounding area was lovely! There were ornate grand buildings, a fun fair,  a lovely square full of bars and restaurants with light up fountains!


 We opted for a lovely french pizzeria, where the stone baked pizzas were delicious and the waitress helped us practice our french. We weren't actually as bad as we thought at ordering food in french ;) .


The following day we bought fresh french pastries for breakfast, and went on a lovely drive through the french countryside along the coast to Boulogne. We explored the city and visited the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Boulogne which was lovely!


 On our return jouney to Calais, we stopped off at a little french town where we had a stroll along a (very windy) beach and stopped at a little cafe for hot chocolate.



It was a lovely weekend and I would definitely do it again! I think it will inspire me to be more spontaneous, YOLO after all ;)