Here's to being Twenty...

Happy birthday from Google?

So it was my birthday on the 19th of October. You may have noticed, it takes me a while to drag myself to the computer and have the urge to write. I lack motivation like that. I'm much more content lazing in bed or doing absolutely nothing on the computer, or maybe playing the Sims. I like that game far too much.

Anyway, here is a selection of the presents that I got for my birthday. I also got my tattoo, which I posted about here, a very tasty and adorable cupcake cake from my boyfriend's family (I have a thing for cupcake cakes. They're so cool and pretty and taste so gooood!), some money and homemade brownies from my friend Katie. Best. Brownies. EVER. I literally could have sat there eating them instead of going out for a meal. But I didn't. I saved them for dessert ;) and I got a mixture of Thornton's chocolates from my friend Emily in a super cute panda box, which I have subsequently kept. The chocolates, however, were doomed from the moment they were discovered... has anyone discovered how much of a big fatty I am yet?

Adding to that, if you still don't agree with me, my boyfriend also bought me chocolate. But he paired it with roses so it was n'awwh! He's lovely. I like roses. (Not the Roses chocolates by the way, before you say anything!)

So above, there's a pretty little bunny necklace that's so sparkly! I love the little pink ears, definitely fell in love when I took it out the box (Thanks Emily!!), a quirky Golden Snitch bouncy ball thing that sparkles when you bounce it - a friend from work found it out when going through some stuff and thought of me. I took that as a compliment. Plus it's funky and makes me laugh, so all good there! My boyfriend's mum got me Dior - Iconic mascara, which is fabulous! I use that word sparingly, so it means something here. It feels wonderful on my lashes, not hard or clumpy at all, but soft and, weirdly, reminds me of that moisturized feeling. My lashes are also huge and volumised, which is brilliant as I may have mentioned before, I tend to pull my eyelashes out because they irritate me. I couldn't help but use it everyday because I love it so much, but I'm determined to save it for as long as possible so I use my old one for work haha.

Finally, we have The Casual Vacancy, the new novel by J.K. Rowling. This was from Katie too, she was very happy that I hadn't bought it beforehand because I was literally dying to get my hands on it. I love J.K. Rowling, so naturally, I needed this book. I've finished it now and will be writing a review soon, but I'll let you know that I really enjoyed it. It is very different to Harry Potter. It's in a completely different league and should not be associated with it in any shape or form. Please do not give this to your children or younger siblings! Seriously guys, it's not a good idea. Although, like Harry Potter, I will be giving it a further few reads so I can digest all the secrets and interpretations and subtle meanings etc etc.

In conclusion, my twentieth was pretty good! I enjoyed it, even though some plans did not come to fruition, and managed to continue to enjoy it the following weekend. As of yet, I don't feel any change, except that I am planning to open a savings account and get a credit card. Here's to being an adult!

                                                       

October Glossy Box

 Hi! I haven't blogged in ages, mainly because I couldn't start a post without ranting. I've been really annoyed at a lot of things lately, but if I went on and explained them, someone would get offended. You should know, I'm not a forward person, I don't like confrontation, therefore offending people wasn't on my agenda.

So what better way to make a comeback than to wait for my highly anticipated October Glossy Box? My thoughts exactly. It's my birthday this week too so I really wanted something in this month's box that would help make me look extra special. After all, I'm turning 20 and I need to look awesome.

Needless to say, I really liked the products in this month's box. As pictured above, there were four, but one was a little 3 step kit with three decent sized products in, so I can't complain there.

From right to left, you have Dermologica 3 step day and night kit. Obviously it's a mini kit, but I don't use huge tubs of stuff anyway, especially for spots because I have tons of freckles so don't get too many breakouts. Still, this is supposed to "cleanse, tone and moisturise" which is never a bad thing! You apply them in a morning and evening (apart from the moisturiser which is for AM use only) so it's going to be integrated into my beauty routine starting tonight.

Next up, Skinetica Anti-Blemish solution. It says on the information card "A unique solution for clearing skin blemishes, showing results in 2-3 days. Kind to skin with no side effects." As mentioned before, my skin isn't bad with breakouts, I have to deal with freckles instead. So this is being given to my boyfriend, as he often has trouble finding a decent product to soothe his skin. I'll let you know what his verdict is! It's RRP is only £6.99 for 100ml, so it isn't too bad if it's as good as it says on the bottle.

Third, we have Anatomicals "Don't Just Cleanse it Woman, Scrub it" body scrub. It appealed to me straight away when I read the bottle because it made me laugh.

"Think of your body as the kitchen floor. Sometimes it needs more than a good clean. It needs a damn good scrubbing. Use this pink grapefruit exfoliator and go to work on your skin. Come on, more elbow grease is required here. Look, now you've missed a bit. Know what? You would be a terrible domestic help."

I just couldn't help but giggle. Anyway, I don't have the money to buy about fifty beauty products for pre and post showering, so it's nice to get little things like this. I know exfoliating is a big thing for skincare, so we'll see how this product goes.

Finally, we have a Yves Rocher moisturising cream lipstick in mauve. It was instantly my favourite. Recently, I've been into lipsticks big time and always pick up one or two when I have the money. Considering this is on the market for £14, I haven't done too bad. As seen above, the shade is a quite dark red/brown colour (otherwise known as mauve) and is super sophisticated. I tried it on straight away and loved it. I work in an office and like to make a good impression, I also can't afford to buy loads of different work clothes, so mostly I wear dark colours - a good match with this lipstick, yes? It also looks like it'd be welcome on a night out... anyone remembering the start of this post? My birthday!

So I have some cool sounding skin products and a new, shiny lipstick to be playing with. If I'm not glowing by Friday, I'll be singing Lesley Gore by bed time.



                                                         

Hello Again!

I haven't blogged in a while. I've been busy, tired and had nothing much to say. Nothing that didn't involve ranting about things that have really got on my nerves for the past few weeks. But I supposed you wouldn't want to read my rants so I bit my tongue! (Or held my fingers back from the keyboard...)

One thing I will reveal to you though, is spelling errors. Seriously. People say they're serious about their blog, and then don't even bother to proof read or spell check? I mean, the spell check is just a single button on the toolbar! How lazy can you get?! Personally, I'm a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to grammar and spelling. It has to be right. If you're planning on speaking to God knows how many people, you don't want to look like an idiot by spelling the simplest words wrong. It just looks like you've rushed your blog and not thought about it at all. Especially when you're reviewing products and you have quite a few followers, or want said followers, they want to know you've spent your time on what you're saying. If you rush it, it's like you don't care. Why would they trust someone who isn't even bothered?

I just think people should take more pride in their writing. What ticked me off the most is that one of these people moans about other people being 'too stupid' to understand the difference between 'you're' and 'your' (yes, that makes me want to throttle the perpetrator!) but then they do it too because they can't be arsed to click one button... don't want to live on this planet any more.

In other news, I watched Snow White and the Huntsman recently. I've been refraining from watching it because of the whole news storm that surrounded Kristen Stewart whilst she was filming it. I hate her enough already and find her, overall, a terrible actress, so while I'm fuming about what she's done, I didn't think I'd be able to give the movie a fair trial. It was very important that I did seeing as Chris Hemsworth is in it, and I really really really like him ;)

Personally, it wasn't as good as I thought it would be. There were a lot of things I felt should have been done differently, especially with the characters. I think too much was forced into it, making it harder to relate to the characters and form a bond with them, which is the aim of most directors. It was brilliantly shot, I'll admit, and the effects were stunning. I loved the landscapes and the forest, it was beautiful, but it wasn't given enough time. I felt it was far too fast paced, not giving the characters enough time to bond (especially from the romantic angle, I mean I know it's a fairytale and everyone gets married after a day, but jeez)

My favourite thing about the entire movie (apart from Chris Hemsworth, who made me laugh by putting on a Scottish accent) was the Dwarves. They had an awesome cast, including Nick Frost, Ray Winstone and Bob Hoskins. I think most people will recognise every single Dwarf which is a good thing, their acting was wonderful. Unfortunately, their part was relatively small and, like the rest of the film, quick to be over.

It was quite disappointing because I thought it had so much potential. It was a pretty good idea for an adaptation of the story, and fits well with this trend of female heroines being the lead role and males being secondary. I loved Charlize Theron, her acting was by far the best. She was an amazing Queen, very intimidating. She scared me, anyway. Hemsworth played on his strengths and worked with what he had, which wasn't enough. That character, like the movie, had potential to be so much more.

The two characters that were written up the best were Snow White and the Duke's son. I can't even begin to describe how bad Stewart was - it was exactly the same as Twilight. No facial movements and an emotionless voice. Her pep talk near the end of the movie was possibly the worst I've ever heard, although it was a badly written pep talk anyway. Sam Claflin, who played William, was okay, but not great. So basically the two characters who had the most time spent on them failed pretty miserably...

My advice? Recast Snow White, possibly the Duke's son, give the Huntsman a better storyline and more time to make it believable and slow the film down a bit! It's worth more than 2 hours, possibly 2 and a half, it just needs a better director (sorry Sanders, you just spent too much time frolicking around with the lead actress than doing your job) and definitely a better script. Oh, it was painful.

For people who aren't as picky as me, you'll probably enjoy it. It's easy to get into and easy to watch. A good film to pass the time with, but anticlimactic if you've been waiting to watch it for a long time.

Overall, four stars, and that's mainly for the Dwarves.

My September GlossyBox

 First impressions, I loved it! The design of the box is absolutely gorgeous, so cute! It's designed by Maggie Li, a London based designer, and I think she's done a fantastic job. As it's my first ever GlossyBox, I don't know if they always come like this inside, with the cool black paper, bow and everything, but I loved it at first sight. Honestly, I didn't know where to start when I opened the box!

You can see all the products above, I'll list them going from left to right:

01: Balance Me Wonder Eye Cream - "A triple-action cream designed to soothe tired eyes, smooth away dark shadows and reduce the appearance of fine lines."
I don't know about you, but work tires me out horribly. I don't get to bed until quite late and have to get up super early (6.30 am!!) which is an absolute killer. I don't often get really bad dark shadows, but my eyes are in definite need of some soothing.

02: Rodial: Glamoxy Snake Serum and 5 Minute Facial - "Snake Serum is a revolutionary product with instantly visible results, helping to reduce the appearances of frown lines and wrinkles. 5 Minute Facial is a triple action resurfacing gommage clay mask."
I suppose this product is best served when you're a little older and perhaps looking at facial products to brighten up your skin and revitalise it. I can't see me using it very much now, but I do feel super old, and to me, it shows on my face. When I look in the mirror after work, I can't help thinking "I look so old." So I might try this out and see if it brings back some of my youth!

03: Vichy: Idealia Day Care Cream - "A smoothing and illuminating day cream that smoothens skin's texture and improves complexion radiance."
As I said previously, I fear that I'm looking a bit too old for my actual age. I don't like my complexion at all, a lot of people with pale skin are often radiant and look beautiful and glowing. My skin is dull and is more likely to blind you in the sunlight than wow you. Looking forward to see what this products brings!

04: Lady Gaga 'Fame' Fragrance: "An opulent, crushed floral fragrance that's black like the soul of fame but transparent once airborne."
I've already tried this out, seeing as it's perfume, and I actually really like it. I don't often buy perfume (too poor to even consider treating myself like that!) so I don't have much experience in what's nice and what's too strong, but personally, I think this smells darn nice and I shall be using the sampler up in about two days, most likely.

05: Maghrabian Hair Oil - "Nutrition, hydration, conditioning, softness, shine and long-term vitality. Hair absorbs the oil quickly, instantly improving its appearance."
Now, I've never used hair oil before. Truth be told, I haven't used many hair products that aren't basic, like shampoo, conditioner and hair spray. Mainly because I can't afford it. I've recently gotten into volumising mousse and a must-have is heat protection spray, so I go out of my way to get some of that. As I've never experienced hair oil before, I don't quite know how to approach this. It looks interesting though, and Argan oil has been a big hit apparently, so I'll do a bit of researching and then try it out in the next day or so.

So overall, I'm quite pleased with my spend! I'll be very happy to make this a regular occurrence (or as regular as my wage allows) and I'm excited to try all these out and let you know how they go!

Until next time,

My Very First Tattoo

So I've been wanting a tattoo for nearly two years. When I was in college, everyone started getting them, it was the new trend. Which I thought was stupid, because fashions change, and that thing inked on your skin forever won't be cool in a month or so. Therefore, I didn't get one in college. I knew I wouldn't get a tattoo for the same reason everyone else was, and I definitely knew I wouldn't get a similar design (mainly because I thought all the 'fashionable' ones were exactly the same and a tattoo should set you apart) but I daren't risk it. I was only seventeen/eighteen and far too immature to make the right decision.

After I left college, not so long ago, I was far too broke to even consider having one. Instead, I lounged around doodling what I might want. I tried saving up for one once, but that went down the drain when I wasn't a hundred percent sure on what I wanted. This was the difficult part for me.

I know a lot of people just go and point their finger at a picture in the tattoo parlor's book, saying that's the one they want because it looks the best. Me, I opted for the more personal approach. I wanted something that means something to me. Something that I'll look at in twenty years' time and won't regret a single drop of ink. Something that has a message, one that I won't forget and will stay in my mind all those years.

So there I had it - a phoenix. My name is derived from Anastasia, which means 'she will rise again,' brings you onto the thought train of phoenixes, no? I think they're cool mythological beasts anyway, Fawkes from Harry Potter is pretty awesome, so that made a good mix. It's linked to my name, looks darn cool, and has a meaningful message: always rise again. No matter how many times you fall down or get pushed to the ground, always get back up and carry on fighting.

I don't know about you, but I'm one of those people who fall down quite a lot. Both literally and figuratively. I have a history of people pushing me back and keeping me in my little place on the ground. I fought hard to rise above them, yet it didn't stop. I doubt it ever will. Sometimes people find it hard to believe in me, and when it's those people I care about the most, it hurts and makes me want to give up. But then I think, this is what I want. Why should I do what they think is best when I know this is right? Still, I don't have a lot of confidence in myself so other people's confidence in me is a big help. I can't do very many things on my own, so it's hard for me to get back on my feet.

This on my stomach is a reminder that it isn't impossible. I've done it before and I can bloody well do it again. I will never regret this tattoo like a lot of people regret theirs, because in twenty years' time, there will be someone trying to push me down, and I'll look at my tattoo, and I'll remember that I can and will fight. This phoenix will rise from her ashes, even if she has to do it alone.

So if you get a tattoo, try and think beyond the image, just for kicks. You never know, it might help. It did for me, I was originally going to get a bumblebee!

Look Forward to the Little Things

I've never had the money for expensive make up or the latest trends, so it's nice when I can afford a taste of it.

To say I don't have a car to pay for, I only pay £80 board to my grandma and so don't have my own flat and bills to worry about, I do tend to have a bit left over when pay day comes around. I always moan about my low wage, but when I have a relaxing, not much to do month, it isn't so bad.

Alright, so I can't afford to go out every weekend or catch the train to see my friends at uni, but I can afford to splurge out on some nice clothes and make up that I've been missing out on, and maybe a new pair of shoes (okay, mostly those things have to be either/or, maybe compromised to less nice things). My wardrobe contains clothes I've owned for the past five years, and nothing looks like I've ripped it right out of a magazine. I'm not trendy, I don't follow fashion, I just like to look presentable. Actually, I tend to dislike fashion because clothes these days look a right state.

So yeah, I get so excited when I can afford a new dress, or a couple of new pairs of jeans because I've been wearing faded ones for the past two months, or new shoes because I've had to wear my work shoes whenever I've needed a black pair for my outfit. Coming from a relatively poor childhood, I'm used to not being the belle of the ball. My grandparents actually got us a lot of things we wanted to say they didn't have much money, they tried so hard, so I would never, ever complain. I actually prefer my upbringing. I'm don't have a spoilt attitude and I'm grateful for the smallest gesture or bit of extra cash. Lots of people scoff at winning an extra pound on the scratchcard, but I always say "well, I could do with an extra quid, every little helps" and it does. Put that in a money box, save for a bit, and see what you have when you open it.

Growing older, I have to admit I've been jealous of basically all my friends. I have unbelievable lifestyle envy and can't help noticing how much better other people look than me. So I get a bit upset when I can't get new clothes, because I feel like I look horrible. I make do, though, and buy what I can, when I can. I know that I can wear all my clothes to absolute death because I won't buy something unless I adore it. If I just think it looks nice, I won't get it. Like my new dress, I've worn that three times since I bought it, and that was only Saturday afternoon (it's now Monday evening). It's much better than buying something, wearing it once, then throwing it. What a waste of money! I would much rather people adopted Kate Middleton's ideology of wearing an outfit more than once than chucking it in the wardrobe to never see the light of day again (preferably not an outfit that costs over a grand, though)

But this month, as I said, I had a bit left over. So I ordered this month's Glossybox (glossybox.co.uk), for just £12.95 - including p&p - it's a bargain. I can't wait to see what's in it! And I also ordered a small bottle of Bumble & Bumble Surf Spray, that's meant to create lovely beach waves. I adore beach waves and have always wanted them, but being terrible at styling hair, I've been on the search for a product that does that for me. Let's see if Bumble & Bumble is worth the cash! But for free delivery from Lookfantastic.com, I can't complain there either.

My boyfriend's paying for my tattoo, I'm paying for my own Netflix bill (okay, it's only £6 a month, but that's a lot to me!), I have all these lovely clothes, new make up and beauty goodies on the way and it's my birthday in just over a month. Fair to say, I feel like such a princess! I feel really lucky when I experience moments like these in life. I've worked so hard for it, yet I'm still grateful because it's not just me who worked hard to get me here. I'll never be complacent. I'll never be smug.

Life's better when you can smile at the little things because they make you feel special too.

Here's to an Indian Summer!

I like having good weekends. It gives me something to look forward to when I go back to work.

When you work eight hours a day, every day, doing the same thing day in, day out, it's nice to break the routine at the weekend (unless you're doing overtime!). Seeing as it was payday, my first port of call was shopping.

When toiletries and basic makeup (e.g. concealer) become a boring old bill, it's nice to branch out a bit and try out different things. I don't tend to use concealer, when I use foundation and pressed powder, it just seems like spending a lot more money on something I can do without, but even so, it's nice to try. Last time I bought Maybelline, which didn't astound me, but it was okay.

 This time I've gone for the amazingly cheap but mostly impressive MUA gear. I'm trying out their lipsticks too because I've heard they're brilliant for £1 a pop, so I can't really complain there. I got a lovely sophisticated pink-coloured lipstick that suits both work and casual day time wear, it's shade 11 and has definitely kept up the good reputation MUA lipsticks have. I also bought the brush on concealer pen in Radiance, it looked like the lightest shade (out of the two that were there) although I took a bit of a risk because there were no testers. When I got home, I found that the shade is a tad too dark for my ghostly white skin, even though I have darkened a little over time. It blends in alright if you put a lot of effort in to it, but I still found a couple of dark patches that I had to scrub with my fingers to get it to blend in. It also didn't do much to cover up my troublesome freckles, so I'm not giving up the search just yet.

I tend to stick with Maybelline mascara because it never usually lets me down. I've gone for Colossal the past few times, but, in my attempt to branch out, I tried out Cat Eyes this time. When I apply new mascara, I don't tend to like it because, being brand new, it's quite watery. My eyelashes fall out all the time so watery mascara clumps them up or makes them look thin and sparse. I'm not going to give up on this one yet though because, as I said, Maybelline mascara tends to be my favourite. Since the two for £10 deal is still on, I bought Maybelline's Master Precise liquid eyeliner. I'm used to a brush, so I'm still getting used to the pen, it was quite difficult to begin with! It looks nice and dries quick though, so at first glance, I'm content.

I also like buying Tresemme products. The shampoo and conditioner make my hair feel lovely and thick, which is brilliant for me who has thin, flat hair. I originally went in for hairspray but, being a complete ditz, picked up volumising mousse instead. It isn't a complete loss though as I've wanted to try out their mousse for a while, so you'll get a review on here pretty soon!

After my usual stay in Superdrug, I went around clothes shops for what else I can blow my money on. I went to New Look to find some new black shoes that would also be suitable for work. I wore my old black brogues to death, they were basically the only pair that I'd wear in college. New Look is usually my first stop when shoe shopping, as they do some beautiful - yet also surprisingly cheap - shoes. A good three quarters of my heels are from there. So, I was browsing, and came across these! I adore brogues, as you might've guessed, and these are just too cute! Just £14.99 too. They're very comfy and easy to slip on and off, which is great for me as I hate spending about three hours tying up shoes. Let's see how long these ones last though, eh? 

That morning, I went to town with a mission to buy new denim shorts in my head, seeing as mine are about two sizes too small now I've put some weight on (I knew I wouldn't fit in a size six for very long with how I eat!) but, typically, I couldn't find any I liked. So instead, I bought two pairs of skinny jeans from H&M which I adore - only £10 each too!! The colours are lovely and their sizes are brilliant, my legs are quite short so it's hard to get some that aren't too loose, but H&M saved the day! Also they have a cool deal on, if you buy any pair of jeans, you get a free Divided tee, which is quite nice to say it's free. Unfortunately, I spilt tea on the white top, a stain that isn't coming out any time soon, so I'm going to run back and return one of the pairs of jeans as I bought one a size too big because I couldn't find a smaller one, then buy the right size and get another tee ;)

My boyfriend owes me a bit of money as I helped him out when he was in a bit of a fix, even though I hate spending his money, he is lovely and adamant that I take it. When I couldn't resist this adorable patterned Miso dress from Republic, he offered right away. It's one of those pieces that you can wear in the day time or throw on some tights and a blazer and wear to work, which I'm planning on doing! It has a sweet little bow detail at the neckline and is patterned with tiny hearts and dots. Comfortable and lovely to wear, it has a zip fastening at the back and a silky underskirt that pads out the thin top fabric. So far, it's my favourite thing in my wardrobe.

To top off an already awesome day (shopping for nice things always makes me happy) I went to a tattoo parlour to book my very first tattoo. My birthday's in about a month and I've wanted a tattoo for around two years, so I thought it was about time. I'm going to Pierce of Art in Chesterfield, which is the cleanest, shiniest place I've ever been too, so it was a darn good first impression. The person who talked to me about my tattoo was really nice (and not too bad looking ;D) so, despite the initial nerves, I feel alright about going back in a week. It's a weird feeling. I feel really excited and literally cannot wait to have my tattoo, but I'm also terrified of the pain haha. I'll let you know how it goes!