Sick for Christmas...Again!

It's starting to feel a bit like ground hog day for me. This time last year I was diagnosed with tonsillitis and glandular fever and had to spend a week in hospital  hooked up to a drip.

Then low and behold, last week I started to feel ill again and finally went to visit the doctor today. I have got like the worst cough in history of coughs so the doctor gave me a new inhaler and some steroids which, fingers crossed, will make me feel better (and stop coughing!) soon.

I'm just hoping that I will be healthy next year!

Yankee Candle

Recently there has been nothing I have enjoyed more than burning a candle. My favourite brand by far is Yankee Candle, yes they are a bit pricey but the scents are AMAZING!

My top four scents are: Salted Caramel, Christmas Cookie, Merry Marshmallow and Snowflake Cookie and Vanilla Cupcake.. You may have guessed it by now, but all the candles I pick out are either vanilla based or baking related, much to my sisters annoyance!

Holiday Season

It's that time of year again when all of the holiday decorations come out. I have really been enjoying burning festive candles whilst decorating my house for Christmas.

Green Tea

I have really been loving tea recently, (and I don't mean typical English tea with milk and sugar because that is gross!), especially green tea, peppermint tea and orange tea. Tea has such great health benefits that it seems silly not to drink it!

Particularly good benefits:

- Increased metabolism

- Preventing diabetes

- Protection against heart disease

- Protection against certain  cancers

- Cholesterol regulation

- Delayed brain cell deterioration

- Prevention against tooth decay

- Regulation of blood pressure

- Aid relaxation

- Anti-viral properties

- Anti-ageing properties

Who could say no to all that?!

How To: Home Made Rocky Road

Ingredients:

500g Rich Tea Biscuits

300g Dark Chocolate

300g Milk Chocolate

200g Butter

300g Golden Syrup

200g Dried Fruit (I used cherries and dates)

120g Nuts (I used Hazel nuts and Pistachios)

100g Mini Marshmallows

1. Line a square/rectangle cake tin with cling film, leave some sticking over the sides of the tin.

2. Break the biscuits into small pieces.

3. Chop the dried fruit, nuts and marshmallows into small pieces.

4. Melt the chocolate, butter and syrup in a bowl over a pan of simmering water.

5. Remove the bowl from the heat and add the biscuits, nuts, fruit and marshmallows. Mix well.

6. Pour the mix into the tin and refrigerate for 6 hours.

Serves 16 approx.

Pollards

 

Map Shirt - Topshop

Turtle Necklace - Gift

 

Last night the majority of my work went to the Pollards for a meal as it was one of our duty managers leaving do's. I must admit the food wasn't the best, but the company was great and we all had a lovely evening, even though it ran on until gonr midnight and i had to be up early for uni this morning!

 

Too Much Work

I am currently trying to juggle three assignments at uni, one of which is due in just over a week! I don't usually stress out too much over work but with this year counting towards my final degree classification, yeah I'm stressing out!

The assignments are fairly interesting tbh, one is a lab report about body composition, another is a literature review comparing barefoot and shod running and the final one is about examining the relationship between sport and health...which surprisingly is pretty negative! 

I really cannot wait until the end of January when the bulk of my assignments will be submitted.

Nail Painting Top Tip

I don't know about you but every time I paint my nails I get the nail varnish all over the skin surrounding the nail, which means it all looks super messy.

My top tip for fixing this is to dip the end of a cotton swab/bud into some nail varnish remover and carefully wipe it over the messy skin. Make sure you don't go too close to the nail and mess that up too!

This easy trick will leave your freshly painted nails looking neat and maybe even salon style!

YouTube

http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqIG4_5dg7tqS378SKmKh6g

Please check out my YouTube channel, more videos will be coming soon! Feel free to comment on improvements and video suggestions.

October Favourites

Maynestone Sweat Pants - £37 at Jack Wills

Sudocrem - Available at Drug Stores

Toni & Guy Sea Salt Texturising Spray - Available at Drug Stores

They Just Don't Get It

Most people who don't have anxiety or depression don't get it. They don't understand what you mean when you say you cry for no reason. They think you're just emotional. They don't know how it feels to have your heart pumping out of your chest and to be short of breath and can't control it, or to feel like the whole world is tumbling down on top of you and you can't fix it. They don't get that anxiety & depression are both illnesses, not a birth defect. It's not your personality either, it's just taken over it. They think we like the attention, but they have no idea how badly we want to feel happy. To have a real smile, not a fake one. To not have to go through the day feeling worthless. To not cry for a week straight. To just be happy, like the average human should.

- Tumblr

Everyday Fall Makeup

- Rimmel London Match Perfection Foundation in Ivory

- Rimmel London Hide The blemish Concealer in Natural

- Rimmel London Scandal Eyes Mascara 

- Maybelline Baby Lips in Peach

- Rimmel, NYC or Soap&Glory Nude or Berry Eyeshadow Palette

- Rimmel London Eyebrow Pencil in Light Brown

- Rimmel London Stay Matte Powder in Translucent 

Miracle Spot Treatment

Recently my skin has been breaking out, and as usual I have been applying tea tree oil to the problem areas, however it doesn't seem to have been doing the trick this time around. I searched through my cupboards and came across sudocrem and decided to give it a go. I simply applied a thickish layer to the problem areas before bed and when I woke up they had dramatically reduced in size and redness, and about two days later they had completely cleared up.

Sudocrem is definitely a miracle spot treatment!

Make-up Revival

Make up doesn't have to be thrown out or ignored if it is the wrong shade or you have simply gotten bored with it. These quick and easy tips will leave you with a refreshed make up collection and less waste!

1. It is a quite common mistake to pick out foundation and powders which are too dark for your skin tone, however it doesn't have to be wasted. Simply use as a bronzer to add subtle colour and contours to your cheeks in the 3E motion.

2. Shimmer bricks, bronzers and certain coloured blushes can double up as eye-shadow, both matte and shimmery finishes work great for creating neutral eye looks.

3. Subtle pink, coral and orange/red lipsticks and lip balms can be used as blush. Simply apply a small amount to the apples of your cheeks and blend it out for a natural glowing look.

4. DIY - Crush an old eye shadow into a powder texture and carefully add to a bottle of clear nail varnish, stir well. This will create cheap nail varnishes in any colour that you chose.

5. DIY - Crush an old eye shadow (preferably reds, pinks, oranges, nudes) and carefully add to a pot of clear lip balm and mix well. This will create lip balms with added colour.

Heatless Hair #2

1. Gather all of your hair into a high pony tail.

2. Place a bun donut over the pony tail and ensure all of the donut is covered before securing with bobby pins or a hair tie.

3. Separate the ends of your hair into two sections and plait each one. To plait separate each section into three and cross the outside pieces over the middle piece.

4. Wrap the two plaits around the base of the bun and secure with bobby pins.

DIY:  Make your own bun donut by using an old, clean sock. Simply fasten the sock into a loop and place over the pony tail. Then continue as you would with the donut.

Heatless Hair #1

In attempt to make my hair more healthy I have been seriously cutting down the amount of heat that I use to style it, which has lead me to find new and interesting hair style to try out this fall.

This first style simply involves dutch braiding your hair into a bun.

1. Part your hair into a deep side parting.

2. Dutch braid (or french braid if you prefer) the front two sections following the line of your head and ending at the ear. Finish each braid off by plaiting the hair to the tips. To dutch braid simply separate the hair into three sections and do a normal plait but taking a little bit more hair to the outer two sections each time you cross it under the middle section

3. Gather the rest of your hair into a bun and secure with bobby pins or a hair tie.

TIP: For an easier and neater looking bun try using a bun donut. Simply place the donut around your pony tail and ensure all of the donut is covered with hair before securing with a hair tie and wraping around the lose ends.

DIY: A bun donut can be made yourself by using an old, clean sock. Simply fasten your sock into a loop and place over the pony tail, then continue as you would with the donut.

OOTD

Green Lace Peplum Jumper - Miss Selfridge

Black Leigh Jeans - Topshop

Chunky Knit Scarf - (Similar) Tesco

Chocolate Brown Mini Ugg Boots - Ugg Australia

http://www.polyvore.com/ootd/set?id=100854603

Fandom

There's going to come a day when we've all grown up, had a career, maybe got married and had kids, when were all going about our daily routine. Maybe you're driving to work with the car radio on, or you're making dinner with the tv on in the lounge. Life as usual, and then we hear a name. It's the name of the person you had a blog dedicated to when you were 16. The person you had posters of up on your bedroom wall, or as your desktop background. The person off that show you used to watch every week, as soon as it came out, or that band you used to love. The person from the cast of a movie that changed your life, or the character who you scrolled through page after page of fanfiction of. You haven't heard that name in a long time, and it brings everything back. And then the name is followed by three words you thought you'd never hear. Has Passed Away. And then you put down the potato peeler and lean back against your kitchen bench, or you pull over to the side of the road, and tears are streaming down your face. And all over the world, there are people who used to be just like you, with tears marking their cheeks and sobs forcing their way out of their throat, because they remember. Because fandoms never really die out. We never really move on. We never really forget.

-Taken from tumblr

Animal Jumpers

Dani Owl Intarsia Jumper - £45 at Fatface

Dani bird Intarsia Jumper - £45 at Fatface

Partridge Marsha Intarsia Jumper - £70 at Joules

Cream Reindeer Fluffy Christmas Jumper - £25 at Newlook

Brave Soul Burgundy Owl Applique Jumper - £20 at Newlook

Bambi Knit Taupe Sweater - £235 at Jades24.com

Limited Edition Racoon Jumper - £18 at Tesco

Oh Dear Sweater - £55 at Madewell.com

Grey Owl Motif Jumper - £27 at wallisfashion.com

A/W 2013 seems to be showing a lot of cute animal jumpers, and honestly I can't wait to dig out my reindeer and bird jumpers out of the back of my wardrobe and feel warm, snuggly and cute all winter.

Lab Report Stress

For my physiology module I have been assigned to write a lab report, which being me I have decided to start 3 months before the deadline for submission.

This has resulted in me sitting at my desk with 9 webpage tabs open, 3 PDF files and several research journals scattered across the floor just to write a 600 word introduction. 

...Stressed isn't even the word!

September Favourites

 

Philip Kingsley Hair Elastisizer Extreme

Blue Denny Stripe Fairilse Jumper - £38 at Fatface

Green ace Peplum Jumper - £42 at Miss Selfridge

 

Fall is finally here which means I can dig out my old, and in this case new, jumpers. All summer long I have waitied for the weather to be cold enough to justify wearing jumpers again, and now that it has arrived I can safely say that I will be living in Knitwear for the next few months.

As I have probably mentioned before I suffer from dry and damaged hair, and as an attempt to combat this I have been sampling out all of the hair products I can find which suit dry/damaged hair. When browsing in John Lewis' I stumbled across Philip Kingsley, which is apparently renowned for fixing various hair problems. I purchased the elastisiser, shampoo and conditioner for dry/frizzy hair and have loved it ever since I first used it. The elastisiser is a pre-shampoo treatment which you leave on for 10-20 minutes and let me tell you, it is an actual miracle worker! My hair has been far less dry and I have actually noticed less split ends. I have to admit it is a little pricey being a high end product, but it is definitely worth it if you want quick and lasting results.

 

Gym Slog

Since I am doing a sport science degree, I think it is fairly important to stay in shape and be healthy, I have therefore decided to join the university gym. I am already a member at my works gym but thought it would be more convenient to work out at uni between my lectures.

I had my induction yesterday and it was surprisingly fun (as gym inductions go!). There was a small group of us and we were just showed how to use all of the different machines and free weights. As part of our 'contract' we had to show that we could correctly and safely do a dead lift. I have done many dead lifts before so I completed it with ease, with some of the other members of the group saying I was obviously a 'gym pro'!

I am looking forward to spending a lot of time over the next two years in the gym and swimming pool at my university and will keep you all updated with my progress and any funny happenings which may occur!

16 Small Steps To Happiness

“1. push yourself to get up before the rest of the world - start with 7am, then 6am, then 5:30am. go to the nearest hill with a big coat and a scarf and watch the sun rise.

2. push yourself to fall asleep earlier - start with 11pm, then 10pm, then 9pm. wake up in the morning feeling re-energized and comfortable. 

3. erase processed food from your diet. start with no lollies, chips, biscuits, then erase pasta, rice, cereal, then bread. use the rule that if a child couldn’t identify what was in it, you don’t eat it.

4. get into the habit of cooking yourself a beautiful breakfast. fry tomatoes and mushrooms in real butter and garlic, fry an egg, slice up a fresh avocado and squirt way too much lemon on it. sit and eat it and do nothing else. 

5. stretch. start by reaching for the sky as hard as you can, then trying to touch your toes. roll your head. stretch your fingers. stretch everything.

6. buy a 1L water bottle. start with pushing yourself to drink the whole thing in a day, then try drinking it twice.

7. buy a beautiful diary and a beautiful black pen. write down everything you do, including dinner dates, appointments, assignments, coffees, what you need to do that day. no detail is too small.

8. strip your bed of your sheets and empty your underwear draw into the washing machine. put a massive scoop of scented fabric softener in there and wash. make your bed in full.

9. organise your room. fold all your clothes (and bag what you don’t want), clean your mirror, your laptop, vacuum the floor. light a beautiful candle.

10. have a luxurious shower with your favourite music playing. wash your hair, scrub your body, brush your teeth. lather your whole body in moisturiser, get familiar with the part between your toes, your inner thighs, the back of your neck.

11. push yourself to go for a walk. take your headphones, go to the beach and walk. smile at strangers walking the other way and be surprised how many smile back. bring your dog and observe the dog’s behaviour. realise you can learn from your dog.

12. message old friends with personal jokes. reminisce. suggest a catch up soon, even if you don’t follow through. push yourself to follow through.

14. think long and hard about what interests you. crime? sex? boarding school? long-forgotten romance etiquette? find a book about it and read it. there is a book about literally everything. 

15. become the person you would ideally fall in love with. let cars merge into your lane when driving. pay double for parking tickets and leave a second one in the machine. stick your tongue out at babies. compliment people on their cute clothes. challenge yourself to not ridicule anyone for a whole day. then two. then a week. walk with a straight posture. look people in the eye. ask people about their story. talk to acquaintances so they become friends.

16. lie in the sunshine. daydream about the life you would lead if failure wasn’t a thing. open your eyes. take small steps to make it happen for you.”

- via petite-ben on Tumblr

Brandy Melville

http://www.brandymelvilleusa.com/

Can we all just take a second to appreciate how cute Brandy Melville clothes are...

First Day Back At University

Cable-Knit Jumper - £15 at H&M

Leigh Jeans by Topshop - £47

Tan Oxford Brogues - £55 at Clarks

Today was my first day back at university as a second year, as if that wasn't stressful enough I started at a different uni to last year as a transfer student. So as well as not knowing my way around the campus, I don't know anybody on my course! Luckily I seem to have become BFFs with my course leader/ personal tutor so at least I have one friend!

Because I'm knew to the uni I had to take part in some introductory lectures with the new freshers (who were all looking a bit worse-for-ware after a few heavy nights!), this made me feel a lot more at home because at least I knew some of the lecturers already and knew the ins and outs of a sports science degree. In one of the lectures we had to discuss what we knew about Biomechanics, and because I had already studied this module in first year I was singled out to tell everyone what I knew, kind of embarrassing there to start off as a know it all!

The most exciting part of the day was probably receiving my new student card (as my old one is for the wrong university now) which comes in a little wallet with a cute smiley face on the front. It was a mammoth task getting it though as everybody I went to see sent me off to see somebody else.

I'm definitely looking forward to the rest of this week and my next two years spent at this university.

A Genius In The Family

Just a quick post to congratulate my sister for graduating university with a first class honours degree, I've never been more proud of anyone in my life! 

Smokey Eye Tutorial

 

 

Check out my latest tutorial video on how to achieve a wearable smokey eye!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9Yppb6U4J0&feature=c4-overview&list=UUqIG4_5dg7tqS378SKmKh6g

Maybelline Baby Lips

 

After watching countless youtube videos with the beauty gurus (in particular 'makeupkatie95' and 'macbarbie07') raving over Maybelline's baby lips, they have finally brought them over to the UK!

As soon as I saw them appear in boots I just had to buy them, I got 'cherry me' and 'peach kiss'. They are honestly the best lip products out there, they are offer long lasting moisterisation and a subtle hint of colour..I can definitely see why beauty gurus have been raving over them for so long.

Next time i'm in boots i'm certainly going to purchase some of the other flavours/colours.

Birthday Celebrations

The other day I celebrated my 20th birthday (I know I may not look 20 but its true!). To put an immediate downer in the day I had to be up at 5:30am to be in work for staff training at 6! It wasn't too bad though as everyone sang Happy Birthday to me.

Later on when I got back from work I opened my presents, I received a white iphone 5 and case, as well as some bedding, bath/hair products and a gorgeous tortoise necklace off my sister.

My sister and I then spent the rest of the day shopping where I treated myself to a new pair of jack wills sweatpants as my primark ones should never be seen outside the house!

In the evening we went for a lovely family meal at a local Chinese restaurant where the food is to die for, literally the best Chinese food I have ever eaten in my life!

All in all I had an amazing birthday and I'm very thankful to have spent it with my nearest and dearest.

 

 

 

 

Neutral Everyday Eye Look

Check out my latest YouTube tutorial on how to achieve a neutral everyday eye look suitable for school, college etc. Hope you enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqIG4_5dg7tqS378SKmKh6g

Jersey

 

 

Last week I went on a family holiday to Jersey. It is such a gorgeous island with loads of beaches and plenty of sunshine.

On our first day we explored the capital, St Helier, which has all the main high street shops as well as some little independent stores. Over the next couple of days we ventured out into many of the other little towns on the island via the local bus services. Because Jersey is an island most of the towns are on the coast and therefore have great beaches with lovely views, made better by the sun.

On our third day we did an island boat tour which took two and a half hours and sailed around the coast showing us the historic features and scenery.

The last day we decided to visit the zoo as it is apparently world famous, and it definitely didn't disappoint. They don't have all the animals typically found at a zoo, but they specialise in gorillas, orang-utans and tortoises (all of my favourite animals!)

It was a great week spent with my family and I think we all enjoyed the stress free time spent away from work!

 

 



August Favourites

Australian Body Care Pure Tea Tree Oil - £8.99 thehut.com

O.P.I Matte Nail Envy - £19 debenhams.com

Map Print Shirt - £45 topshop.com

 

Due to August being overly sunny and hot I have been applying a lot of facial sun cream, which has resulted in a lot of break outs. To combat this I have been applying 1-2 drops of pure tea tree oil onto a cotton pad and applied to the affected areas. After a couple of days I noticed the breakouts were starting to clear up and the skin was drying out preventing more from appearing. I definitely think that tea tree oil is an essential for acne prone skin.

Because I work at a swimming pool I come into contact with a lot of chlorine and other harsh chemicals which causes my nails to break and peel. O.P.I's nail envy has been my knight in shining armour this month and my nails are looking a lot healthier. For maximum results apply 2 coats of nail envy to bare, clean nails on day 1, then every other day apply 1 more coat, after a week remove all nail envy and other nail polish and repeat. Nail envy can also be worn as a base coat and as a top coat. I have the matte edition nail envy and I find it works great as a top coat over other nail polishes giving them a matte finish.



Total Treat Argan Oil

A couple of months ago I received the Phil Smith total treat argan oil cream from Cosmopolitan magazine. I had initial high hopes for this hair product as I have read great things about argan oil, and let me tell you, this product did not disappoint!

The cream has such an amazing scent which leaves your hair smelling really nice for hours after using. I take a generous pea sized amount of the cream and apply it throughout damp hair concentrating on the mid-tips, then carry out the rest of my hair care routine. By the next morning my hair is super soft and nourished as well as smelling fantastic!

I would definitely recommend this hair product for anyone who has coloured, dry or damaged hair.

 

http://www.philsmithhair.com/products.html

Retailing at £10.99

What's up CARA

www.whatsupcara.tumblr.com

New blog dedicated to Cara Delevinge, be sure to check it out!

Level 2 Swim Teaching

Over the past two weeks I have been attending an intensive course to become a level 2 swimming teacher, this is the course up from level 1 and will allow me to teach classes on my own and potentially start up my own swim school.
Every morning on the course I have been teaching children aged between 3 and 12 how to swim and improving their general swimming technique. It has been such a great experience and I have learnt so much and not to mention my confidence levels have gone through the roof. There have been the cutest little kids in the classes and I have just wanted to take them all home with me!
After making a fool of myself singing nursery rhymes and dancing along the poolside with the kids copying me in the water I'm definitely glad to have passed. Some of the kids become very attached after 2 weeks and this morning I had one little girl saying the she loved me!
The course also goes into detail about the technical aspects of strokes which has been really interesting to learn and understand how to gain maximum propulsion out of each stroke, I think learning the theory has improved my swimming as well as the children's!
I can't wait to start teaching properly, which probably wont be until September now, but still its something to look forward to.

Abersoch

last week my two best friends and I went on a little camping holiday to Abersoch for a couple of nights. We were so chuffed that the weather was forecast to be sunny and very hot whilst we were away, so we packed a hell of a lot of sun cream!
We stayed in a quiet little campsite in Llanbedrog which was full of lovely old couples who always smiled and chatted when they saw you. After spending the whole of the first day swimming and sun bathing on Llanbedrog beach was adventured into pwllheli for literally the best chips I have ever had in my life!
On the second day we went down to Hell's mouth beach for a surfing lesson, it turned out that there was barely any waves due to a lack of current and wind! but Nick, our instructor, still gave us a great lesson and I still managed to stand up on the board. I don't know about anyone else that has ever worn a wet suit but I had the worst time trying to get it in, the arm holes were literally so tiny that my hands wouldn't fit in, not to mention it was like 30 odd degrees out so we were all hot and sweaty, after what seemed like years of tugging and four cut and bleeding fingers we were finally in our wetsuits! I definitely think that surfing is my calling in life! Seriously when I'm older I am going to buy a classic VW campervan, paint it up and then travel the world surfing!
After surfing we went into Abersoch to look around the shops and go to the beach, Abersoch is one of the cutest little beach towns I've been to and its definitely worth a visit.
Finally on the last day we ventured down onto Whistling Sands beach, I would definitely recommend going here if you're ever in the area. Due to some weirdly shaped sand, if you scoot your feet whilst walking along the beach the sand actually squeaks!

 Abersoch

 Llanbedrog

 llanbedrog

 llanbedrog

Whistling Sands

 Campsite - Llanbedrog

Us after surfing!

 



Aquarium

Last week it was my sisters 22nd birthday so I took her (along with her boyfriend) to the Blue Planet Aquarium. I haven't visited the aquarium for literally 15 years and I was surprised at how little it had changed in that time...the memories of fishy whales with pea eyes still haunt me to this day!
We spent a lovely morning viewing a load of cool fish and watched some sharks and a family of otters being fed. Outside one of the fish tanks was a photographer, who claimed that for his training he had to take so many photos and involving different poses...so we agreed to let him take our photos in a load of silly and very embarrassing poses, with, I might add, the rest of the public watching!
That evening we went to Miller and Carter for a meal and enjoyed a free bottle of champagne because it was my sisters birthday, the food was great and we all had a lovely time.

June Favourites

Soap & Glory's Hand Food

Soap & Glory's Smooth Body Butter

Soap & Glory's Pulp Friction Body Scrub

 

This month all Soap & Glory product were on a 3 for 2 offer in boots AND I had a voucher for their products, so I couldn't resist stocking up on some of my favourite body products.

If you've never tried any Soap & Glory products you definitely should, they smell divine! Kind of like sweet and vanillary but very feminine at the same time.

Definite repurchase for all of these items.

Swim Teaching #3

After three weekends on the level one swim teaching course I have finally completed and passed it! So I can now call myself an ASA accredited level one swimming teacher, you wouldn't believe how chuffed I am!
I had three classes this weekend which was quite stressful and tiring but fun all the same. I had a stage 4/5 and a 5/6 class today so all the children could swim fairly well so I just had to refine their techniques, which I must say is a lot easier than teaching them to swim from scratch.
Hopefully I'll get a job soon as a teacher and be able to use my new skills in practise and actually help children in swimming and earn more money!

Mango

 

£39.99 at Mango

 

I have wanted a denim shirt for ages now but had never really found one that I loved, they all seemed either too plain or too generic. But whilst I was shopping today I came across this shirt in Mango, I don't usually go into Mango but I'm really glad that I decided to today.

I think the light to dark gradient of the shirt makes it stand out and this is what first drew my eye to the item when browsing the store. The fabric of this shirt is so soft making it far 'superior' from the denim at places such as new look and H&M.

It was quite pricey but I feel it's worth it for the quality and I am sure that I will get a lot of wear out of it too.

Swim Teaching #2

I have just completed my second weekend on the level 1 swimming teaching course, and like last week I had a whale of a time.
I had a lovely stage 2 class on Saturday morning and tried to help them I improve their leg technique but they seemed to be having more fun playing with the sinkers, so I decided to adapt my lesson plan to just playing...however, they did have to swim to reach the sinkers so I'd call it 'playing with a purpose!'
On Sunday morning I had a stage 6/7 class with only two boys in it and luckily they were both very well behaved and confident swimmers. I had them practise front crawl and back stroke then since they had improved so much and had put a lot of effort in we spent the last part of the lesson diving in.
Today (Sunday) was our practical assessment day, so we had an internal verifier come and observe our lessons as well as our tutor observing too...puts a lot of pressure on us to do well! Luckily we all passed as competent.
I can't wait for next weekend as we are finally learning how to teach the correct techniques for the different strokes which is what I find most interesting.

Glamour's May Beauty Giveaway

Ultrasun's Ultralip SPF 15 Lip Balm - £6 at Debenhams

Lipcote Lipstick Sealer - £3.99 at lipcote.com

 

I was reading the May edition of Glamour a while back and noticed they were giving away tonnes of beauty products every day of May, I read through the t&c's and realised it was free to enter...

So every day during May I religiously logged onto glamour.com and entered the competition. There was so many things that I wanted, especially some Benefit items and some hair oil.

I thought nothing of it until I came down stairs one morning to find a bubble wrap envelope parcel addressed to me! I hurriedly opened it to find the lipstick sealer, I don't really wear lipstick all that often so I thought I'd never really use this product, but maybe one day it will come in use.

Then to my surprise a few weeks later I came down stairs again to find another parcel waiting for me! It was the Ultrasun lip balm. My mum is literally the world's biggest fan of ultrasun and was over the moon that I had won this. I have actually had this product before and it came in good use on the DofE, so I was very chuffed to win this!

Swim Teaching #1

I decided a while back that I wanted to become a swimming teacher so I booked onto an ASA accredited level 1 course.The course is spread over 3 consecutive weekends and will allow me to assist large classes and teach small classes.
I have just completed my first weekend, and excusing the pun, we were thrown in at the deep end! We arrived at 8am on the Saturday morning and were told that we'd be teaching a class of real children at 8:30am! I was so nervous considering I'd never taught before, but once I'd had time to plan my lesson and met the kids I was fine.
My first class was stage 4, so luckily they could already swim a bit... we had a really fun lesson learning back stroke and one kid actually said that it was the most fun lesson she'd ever had!
On the Sunday I had a stage 1 class, they could barely swim at all but luckily none of them cried! They seemed to have a lot of fun playing a traffic light and collecting game which I had organised, so I think the lesson was generally a success.
The theory of the course is good too, seems to be a lot of recapping of the lifeguard course that I did over 3 years ago, as well as incorporating stroke techniques and the skills required of the national plan stages. I have also met some really nice people on the course which I am sure I will stay in contact with when we finish.
I really cannot wait for the next two weekends to come so I can teach some more kids!

May Favourites

 

Sports Bra - £9.99 at H&M

Liz Earle Botanical Shine Nourishing Hair Oil - £15 at John Lewis

Bare Minerals original SPF15  foundation - £30 special edition large size at QVC

 

I know it seems a bit weird to have a sports bra as a monthly favourite, but I have taken up running this month and this has literally been the best purchase I have ever made!

My hair does my head in sometimes (well, most of the time tbh!) but hair oil seems to tame the frizz and leaves me with super soft and less voluminous hair..definite thumbs up from me!

Now that spring/summer has arrived I've been on the look out for a powder foundation with some SPF in it, my mum recommended me the bare minerals one (as a convert herself!) so I ordered it from QVC and fell in love as soon as the product arrived. It has a kind of metallic pink lid which was nice, and gives a fairly full coverage finish and matches my skin tone nicely (in the shade fairly light). It was a bit pricey but I'm sure it will last a long time as it is HUGE!

First Year...Check

Today I had my last exam (which went okay..I think!) so I have now finally completed my first year of university. This day now marks the start of my 3-4 month summer break which I will hopefully spend at work and catching up with my friends before starting a new chapter at chester university.
I have a whole list of things I want to get done this summer, sad I know but I did actually make a list! I doubt all of them will happen, but heres hoping...
- Climb Snowdon
- Learn to surf
- Nandos!
- Go to the beach
I also have a list of books that I want to read this summer, I don't usually read but I have decided that I would like to become a book worm, so I've created a list in the hope that it will happen!

Exploring

 

Today, my mum decided she wanted a day out, so we headed off for the Hollies farm shop near Winsford, which seems to be my mums favourite destination at the moment. To be fair it's a really nice and interesting place, there's this really cool barn which is full of gifts and a farm shop.

After visiting the farm shop we went to visit a posh hotel, it turns out there was a Jewish wedding going on so we got trapped in the car park along with a load of very smartly dressed wedding guests...a little annoying but we got to see a bit of a different culture, and the music was pretty good too.

On the way back we decided to go for a walk along part of the sandstone trail, it's literally my favourite walk to go on! You go down and then up a big hill through the woods, it's so peaceful being surrounded by trees and greenery, especially today as the weather was so nice. Part the way up the hill we passed a field with a load of cows in it, these cows are so friendly they let me pet their heads whilst the licked my hands and slobbered all over my jacket.

I really can't wait for the summer so I can spend more time exploring out in the sun.

The Doors

I recently found out that Ray Manzarek has passed away, this was such sad news as the Doors have recently become my favourite and most listened to band. It was my dad that first introduced me to the band, listening the LA woman album on the numerous car journeys to/from Bangor. We listened to the same few songs on repeat for weeks and now sing along to them all! It'll be sad listening from now on but we will always remember Ray for his great musical talent.

Tumblr Talk

I seem to have abandoned tumblr since like Christmas due to exams and what not, but today I decided to log on and wow I am back being obsessed with it. I first got tumblr like 4 years ago and used it purely to show my own photos/quotes, but then after getting at my friend Joanna for constantly reblogging other peoples posts I started doing it to. On my dashboard I'd always see really cute photos (mainly of giraffes and harry potter!) and feel obliged to reblog them all until I would reach the limit for that day! Hours seem fly by when you're just sitting there scrolling and reblogging and you find that you have wasted a whole day!
I remember when I discovered when you could press ALT and reblog to instantly reblog a post without having to go to the default reblogging page...seriously changed my life!
I'm not ususally one to blow my own trumpet but when I go onto my own tumblr page I think how can someone not love this! I have such cute pictures and a nice song in the background...so on this occasion I will quite proudly blow my own trumpet!

www.heartforsalee.tumblr.com

Exam #2

I've got my second (and penultimate!) exam tomorrow and tbh it's pretty pointless. Firstly the module is about the lecturer's research, which is all very interesting to read about in my free time, but to actually have to answer mcq questions on seems a bit daft. Secondly, the exam is only an hour long, which means my dad has to drive me over an hour in the car, just for an hour of pointlessness. And thirdly, we have been marked 39% worth of the module already for attendance and an assignment, therefore we only have to get 1% in the exam to pass!

Rant aside, I have actually found out some pretty interesting things from the research, for example, you can prevent a decease in immunity during heavy training by taking dietary supplements and ensuring sufficient fluid intake...pretty interesting huh?
Since I was ill at Christmas I have been really interested in immune function so this has actually been fun to research and will hopefully provide a basis for my third year research project.

Sony Vegas Pro

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3ZSz5oexww

 

You may be interested to hear that I now have a new video editing software, Sony Vegas Pro. I only have the free trial so that I can test different ones out, but so far so good. I inserted my video into the software and was able to watch it frame by frame and add a recorded audio if desired. The only thing I couldn't work out how to do was add a song to the background, which was a bit annoying.

The software enabled me to upload my video direct to youtube in about a third of the time it takes to upload via youtube which was a bonus. And the biggest bonus was that my whole video was uploaded and it wasn't cut!

I'm not sure about the video quality as of yet, doesn't seem very HD to me! but so far big thumbs up to Song Vegas Pro.

New Look Youtube

http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqIG4_5dg7tqS378SKmKh6g

 

I have decided to take the plunge into updating my Youtube to the 'new look', I've noticed some of my subscriptions have changed theirs so I thought I would follow suit. I guess it looks better than it did before, maybe a bit more modern and easier to navigate around. I just need to find myself some nice cover art to make it look even better!

Youtube Dilema

I'm so annoyed, I just tried uploading another video to youtube and yet again it has been cut really short. The original video was about 7 minutes long and only 1 minute uploading..what is with that?! This has happened now to both my videos that I have uploaded.
Another thing has annoyed me too..my laptop only has windows live movie maker, not the best but with a decent camera the quality turns out pretty good, however once I have completed my video and come to save it it decides that the format is wrong and there is an exclamation point instead of my video. Becuase of this all my work gets lost and my video won't play.
I don't know whether the problem is witht the camera I've used, with windows live movie maker or with youtube itself..all I know is that it's properly doing my head in.

Kings of Leon

 

(from the top down/ left to right)

Talihina Sky - The story of Kings of Leon

Come Around Sundown

Only By The Night

Because Of The Times

Youth and Young Manhood

Aha Shake Heartbreak

 

A very good friend from work, John, so kindly lent me his whole collection of the Kings of Leon albums and a dvd. Since listening to them all and watching the dvd I have become completely obsessed and haven't stopped singing the songs...just like he told me would happen!

The dvd is mind blowing following the story of the band, it has literally THE best soundtrack..it's definitely worth a watch if you don't mind strong religious views and drug use that is!

The Raspberry Kiss

I've been on the hunt for a good body scrub for a while now but no shops around my area seem to sell any. I recently went to tesco and came across the raspberry kiss body scrub..and omg it smells absolutely delicious and to make it better it's bright pink/purple!

The formulation of the product is nice and not overly course so it doesn't rub half of your skin off like some scrubs seem to. I think the nicest part of the whole product is that there is a little, I guess you'd call it poem..(or maybe quote) on the bottle..'I think this must be love..she smiled at her secret, put the letter in an envelope and enclosed a daisy chain from the meadow where she sat'

I would definitely recommend this product to anyone and it was only £2.99 so definitely affordable.

 

 

Anatomy

I've got my first exam tomorrow and I have been trying to revise for it for weeks but nothing is really sinking in, it's becoming really annoying. But anyway, I think i'm definitely making progress as I can now label most of the diagrams which we may need.
I decided I was ready to try the practise mcq on the vle..big mistake! Seriously none of the questions had anything to do with the content we've learnt in lectures and to make it worse my text book doesn't even cover some of it..I'm not shit scared for tomorrow and just want it to be over!
I think i'll just keep reading through my notes and keep my fingers crossed...

Backpack Retirement

 

I got this backpack from a little store in Spain 6/7 years ago..I saw it when I was on holiday with my family and fell in love instantly and had to purchase it. A few Christmas' later I got a little metal whale bottle opener in a cracker, which I named 'Walter'..I thought he'd look perfect dangling from my bag and so he has lived there ever since.

I remember one day when I was walking to school with my friend Joanna, I went to check if Walter was still there, but I couldn't feel him..in a panic i ripped my bag off to check and found he was tucked inside the front pocket! Jo thought it was hilarious but I nearly cried with worry!

This backpack has seen me through high school, sixth form and my first year of university, as well as numerous holidays and 3 years of work. All that work has taken its toll on my bag though..It's filthy and has many holes throughout the lining and bottom.

It's very sad to say but I think this backpack must finally go into retirement to only be used when absolutely necessary.

fright of my life

 

I woke up this morning and glanced out of my window to see Jimmy sat in the middle of the garden in the exact same position as he was in last night..you might think this is normal but Jimmy has a routine and always goes to sleep in the corner of the garden, never in the middle. I looked more closely and saw his little head was lolling onto the grass..I thought shit the little feller has died.

Heart pounding I ran down into the garden and poked his little leg..luckily he moved and woke up!

Words can't even describe how scared I was and how relieved I am that he's okay!

Last Lecture

So today I had my last ever lecture at Bangor University, I'd like to say I enjoyed my time there but tbh I didn't! I really don't think that I'm one of those people that's cut out for living miles away from home with a bunch of strangers..like seriously who would be when you can live at home and sleep in your own bed every night!
My goals for now are to get my three exams boxed off then to enjoy a relaxing summer (with plenty of work) before starting at Chester University. I really cannot wait to spend four months doing nothing..I've got so many youtube videos to catch up on and I really want to start running again. Here's hoping for a better future!

Mally Face Defender Review

 

Mally home and away face defender - £45 on QVC

 

 I decided to order this product after watching its release on QVC and reading some fabulous reviews about it. Firstly I was a bit put off by the price, but since it is a high end product and has 5 star reviews I decided to splash out and get it.

When my parcel finally arrived I was so excited to see that all the products came in pink/purple packaging and included a snake print make-up bag...presentation was definitely a strong point.

When I first used the product I was blown away, it left my face so soft and oil/shine free all day. It was so good my mum even asked me what I was using on my face and wanted to try it out herself!

I would say the only down side is the amount of product you actually get for the money, I've only had this for about 2 months and I'm already starting to hit pan, saying that I will definitely repurchase.

 

http://www.qvcuk.com/Mally-2-Piece-Evercolour-Face-Defender-Home-%26-Away.product.201729.html?sc=201729-SRCH&cm_sp=VIEWPOSITION-_-1-_-201729

Youtube Debut.

Very excited and sceptical about posting my very first Youtube video with me in it..so many things going through my head, what if everyone hates me or even worse what if nobody even views it!

I've been wanting to start a proper youtube channel for so long though..so here goes!

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqIG4_5dg7tqS378SKmKh6g

Introducing Jimmy

 

 

Introducing the love of my life..little Jimmy. Jimmy was originally my Granddad's tortoise but now lives at my house, he is definitely the best pet/friend anyone could ask for and spends his days strolling round the garden eating lettuce!

Marvelips Review

 Soap and Glory's Marvelips double-ended colour and plump lip crayon - £8 at Boots

 

Firstly the packaging this product came in was gorgeous, pink and gold, definitely stood out on the shelf. On the back on the package are instructions of how to make the most out of the product, as a first timer of lip crayons I found this really useful and was really simple too!

I've tried so many different lip products recently, none of which seem to suit me or be worth the money but from the first time I tried Marvelips I fell in love. The colour was subtle and nude (exactly like it says on the packaging!) and the texture was smooth and surprisingly moisturising.

The white/highlight end of the product is really effective in adding volume to the lips and subtle depth.

Overall I love this product and will definitely repurchase and recommend to anyone!