My Product Empties - June 2013

You will not believe how happy I am to be writing this post. Why your probably thinking....?

That my friends (yes, I consider anyone who reads my blog a friend) is because I find it incredibly difficult getting to the end of products. Mainly, I get bored with using the same product and like to switch it up, that or when it's finished I bin it and forget to put it to one side for these such posts.

Here they are all together, my product empties for June 2013!

MAC Studio Fix Fluid (SPF15) in nc15 - Now this foundation I used a lot throughout high school and loved it. I always felt like my skin was rubbish and I needed the full coverage, boy was I wrong! I seem to have a love/hate relationship with this foundation, as of late I found that even with a foundation primer it would still wear off throughout the day, particularly around the nose and chin. I also began to find it a very thick foundation which I only noticed when I switched to the foundation I mention below. I do however find this good when going out to a party/event due to the coverage, but I would use it sparingly!

Rimmel Match Perfection foundation in Light Porcelain - This foundation I have come to love. I bought it with my points on my Superdrug Beautycard (similar to a Sephora Beauty Insider card, I think) when I had left mine at home and it did take some getting used to as the foundation is slightly more runnier than the foundations I usually use. I found with a primer or even a good moisturiser that it would stay on all day, ALL over my face! It's a medium coverage foundation but I will say you can build up up, e.g. over problem areas like under-eye bags and spots or blemishes! It is also in a tie with another drugstore foundation for being the most perfect match for my insanely pale skin. It also came with a pump built in which meant I didn't have to buy one (MAC) or pour it onto my hand and waste product. I have already repurchased and definitely will be in the future!

GOSH Velvet Touch Foundation Primer - I got this product a year or so ago as a gift but I never really used it, then I started watching YouTube videos and decided to finally try it. I did repurchase it, however it is a slightly more expensive primer at around £13 for a small bottle but it does seem to last for ages. It feels like a velvet silicone but I did notice that I had to clean my hands straight away otherwise my hands felt weird afterwards because the product stayed partly on my hands. I did notice that with my last bottle (shown above) that the primer's texture was a lot more liquidy, so I don't know if they've changed it or it was just a dodgey bottle!

E.L.F Makeup Mist and Set - I got this as a cheaper alternative to the Urban Decay makeup setting sprays, mainly due to the fact that I didn't wanna spend all that money for it to not work for me! This seemed to help with stopping the makeup coming off my face around the nose and chin. I also used it as a makeup/face refresher for days when I looked or felt a bit dull and it really helped, being a student (with the late nights studying and writing essays and assignments, I've had many of these dull days) it really helped to have on hand. It's also the perfect purse size at 60ml and its only £3.75 so it won't break the bank to try! I'm currently debating repurchasing it or maybe spurging and buying the Urban Decay version to try. 

Rimmel Stay Matte Powder - I've used this powder for at least a year and this is probably my 4th container. Before this I used the MAC Mineralised Skinfinish, I did find it ran out fairly quick (anyone else find that with MAC powders?), whilst this lasts the same if not longer for a fraction of the price. I like that this mattes my skin without making me look like 1D and I find its also great for touching up, however once it reaches the stage where the point it hits pan gets fairly large, I tend to leave at home otherwise I find it shatters when it gets knocked!

Aussie Dual Personality HI-Hold and HI-Shine Hairspray - I will hold my head up and admit until I tried this I had never tried Aussie products, I would hear everyone rave about them and for some reason I got round to picking them up. This is only of the very few hairsprays that I can use that will actually hold my style and not be crunchy, which I despise might I add. My hair has a history of being notoriously bad when it comes to curling, it would fall out within 2 hours bad and this holds it all day while I'm able to run my fingers through and play with my hair. I also love the shine it gives to my hair. Aussie do have a few products in this Dual Personality range and I love them, they have a great smell while it reduces on the amount of product you've got to put in your hair!

LUSH Breath of Fresh Air toner - This was a suggestion from the lovely ladies in LUSH Liverpool and I loved it and the smell but I think I'm gonna repurchase it and use it as a skin refresher! I love that its all natural which makes me feel better about putting it on my face a lot and it definitely helps in the hot weather. 

Elle

xoxo

Where have I been?

So all I can really start this post of with is an apology! I have been gone for forever and a day and I am really sorry. 

The only reason I can honestly give is College, these last couple of months the work, assignments and exams have been coming thick and fast and as much as I love you guys and writing and my blog. I did have to unfortunately put it on the back burner as I have to ace these exams and assignments to get my university place in September which I can thankfully say now that I have my last exam result, I have got all my grades needed for September!

I hope you guys understand and I will now be back every Thursday (from next thursday onwards) with new blog posts!

1. Is your hair naturally curly or straight?

My hair used to be naturally pin straight but I've noticed over the last year it seems to have gotten a slight wave to it. 

2. What is your natural hair colour?

My natural hair colour is blonde, it used to be like a baby blonde when I was younger and then it turned more to dirty blonde as I got older and partly because I use to swim a lot!

3. Do you dye it yourself or go to a salon?

I definitely get it done at the salon, I don't think I could trust myself to do it myself. 

4. How often do you wash your hair?

I use to wash my hair every third day but I wash it every other day now, which is mainly down to the fact that I go to the gym every other day.

5. Do you wear the same style everyday or do you change it?

I pretty much brush my hair through and wear it like that, I occasionally change up the style if I have some spare time or I particularly feel like it. 

6. Do you do your own mani/pedi or do you go to a salon?

I don't really go any get mani/pedis but I do try and paint my nails as often as I can, but I quite like wearing them natural with just a clear coat on top. I do go and get my nails done though if I have a special occasion!

7. How often do you change your nail polish?

When I wear it I probably change it when it starts to chip, which is generally after a couple of days. But I like to give my nails a couple of days rest between polish colours. 

8. Do you polish your toes in the winter too or just in the summer?

I generally just so my toes in the summer as my feet are in and out of boots, uggs, fluffy socks and slippers in the winter. I have a feeling this year I'll probably be painting my toes more as I won't be able to wear polish on my nails!

9. How long does it take to put on your makeup?

I've probably gotten it down to about 10 minutes for just basic makeup and about 20 when I do my eyes properly. 

10. What do you do first? Face or eyes?

Ever since I started putting makeup on, I've always done my face first and then my eyes if I fancied it!

11. Do you 'collect' makeup or just buy what you need when you need it?

When I first started I used to spend ALL my money on new makeup items but clique as it sounds, as I've grown I've just got used to buying what I need and using up my makeup that I don't use as often. Which I have to tell you is a very hard job, it feels like it lasts forever!

12. How often do you wear false eyelashes?

Very very rarely, I think the second time I wore them was at my work Christmas night out in December.

13. Do you do a full face of makeup every day?

Full face of makeup to me is made up of moisturiser, primer, concealer, foundation, blush, eyebrows and mascara. I won't say I wear this everyday and you'll see why in the next question.

14. Do you wear makeup when you are home alone (or with family)?

I don't wear makeup when I'm in the house, as the majority of time at home is either relaxing or doing assignments, essays or exam prep (revision) so I don't see the point in getting dolled up and it also lets my skin breathe! It's also good as these days I often the gym and only ever wear mascara for the gym! 

15. Will you leave the house without makeup?

If you'd asked me about a year ago I probably would have told you 'No!' without a doubt, but I feel more comfortable with myself to go out without any makeup on. My motto if you can go workout and sweat like a maniac in front of people, you can go outside without makeup on!

16. How many high end products do you have?

Not that many anymore, I've used most of them up and replaced them with drugstore alternatives. 

17. How often do you wash your makeup brushes?

My most used brushes I wash once a week and the rest every two weeks. I have got a daily brush cleaner that I need to start remembering to use!

18. Do you plan your OOTD every night or decide when you are getting dressed?

I think if I've got a special occasion or its the first day back at school after a holiday is probably the only days I plan my outfit out!

19. How often do you change your handbag?

Quite often, I carry my school bag during the week for college and then my handbag during the weekend/when off school for work. 

20. What time do you get up & go to sleep?

This varies constantly. My getting up if I'm in college is 6am and then when I'm not it's 8-9am, but going to bed is a different story! Anywhere between 9pm-3am depending. 

21. How often & when do you workout?

Like I mentioned before I go every other day, so it's easy to remember and I've just recently tried doing an exercise class (my current fav is bokwa) and then doing an hour in the gym. 

22. Left-handed or Right-handed?

Right handed mainly but I can do a bit with my left. 

23. How tall are you?

I am 5ft 3inches. Great things come in small packages guys :)

24. Do you speak a foreign language?

I speak a bit of French from school and I can do a bit of sign language.

25. How many pets do you have?

I have 2. A cat and a dog 

26. How often are you on blogger?

I try and get on at least twice a week in school time, but if I'm busy with college I just can't. In the holidays I try and get on it at least 4 times a week including using the blogger app on my iPhone.

27. Do you read the comments posted on your blog?

Yes, I love hearing from everyone and I love learning that what I'm writing is reaching people as far away as Australia! 

28. Do you keep a list of products to try as you see other posts?

I do have a little notepad that I write down any ideas for blog posts and I keep a running wishlist at the back of it!

29. How did you come up with your blog name?

My blog was originally named after my YouTube channel as I created it to run alongside it but when I started college I found it easier to blog because I could do it on the train to and from college and on breaks on my phone and was easier than trying to edit videos. I have currently taken a break from YouTube and whether I will carry on with filming I'm not entirely sure yet!

30. What kind of camera do you use for photographs?

I've just started using a Nikon CoolPix L810 which I am still getting used to!

31. How often do you clean your house? (Daily, weekly, other)

I still live at home, so my mum does the main cleaning and I do the cooking everyday and the dishwasher and then I wash clothes every other day. 

32. What is your favourite colour?

It changes depending on when you ask me, at the moment it's coral and turquoise and seafoam.

33. What is your favourite beauty/fashion magazine?

Look magazine and Cosmopolitan are definitely my favourite at the moment. 

34. Do you swear?

I do occasionally but I often find myself saying feck a lot more than any other swear word but I am trying to stop myself!

35. What are you doing with the rest of your day?

I am currently taking a break from cleaning and re-arranging my room then it is off to work for me.

Elle

xoxo

Climbing Watkins Path + Update

Now this blog post is a bit out of the ordinary and well frankly it's not on my normal day! I'm basically just gonna do a little bit of an update as there are going to be some things that effect my blog.

1. I got a new camera (well I got it as a late birthday present from my friend), it's the Nikon Coolpix L810 camera in black. So that means better quality pictures and I can take more pictures outside as well!

2. I will be doing some lifestyle/health/fitness related posts as this coming summer (we are thinking July, no exact date has been set yet!) I am climbing up Watkins Path up Snowdon, one of the tallest mountains in the UK. It is an 8 mile round trip with an 1,015 metre ascent. I am raising money for a charity I am involved in The Olivia Rae Foundation, they aim to support young people in Merseyside to achieve their aspirations through education and the arts. We give grants away to young people in the Wirral area to achieve their goals through education and arts. We awarded our first grant just before christmas read about it here.

You can find all the information about it here www.justgiving.com/climbingwatkinspath

Elle

xoxo

February Favourites

I am going to try and start doing monthly favourites, although if two months have practically the same items I won't bore you guys with two of the same blog posts and I'll just fit them in somewhere or tweet about them! I also might be trying out Birchbox when the March box comes out, so keep your eyes peeled!

They're not just beauty favourites, it's a bit of everything! But I'll start with beauty because that's probably what you guys are looking forward to the most.

Now I used to have a really big obsession with MAC. I have now come to realise (which my bank balance is thankful for!) that yes there are some bits that are really good and worth the money, but there are some bits that you can actually find dupes for with similar quality for a much cheaper price.

This blush is from the style warriors collection and I actually got it at a CCO (Yes you can find them here in the UK, they are generally at outlet villages. I found mine at Cheshire Oaks), it's in shade 'On a mission' and is a beauty powder blush, I will be completely honest and say I have no idea what the difference is between a beauty powder blush and a regular blush but I will say this is a really nice mauve-y pink colour with very slight hint of shimmer which I never actually see when I've got it on! Now don't be put off by the colour thinking it's too dark for you, I am the palest of the pale (e.g. barely NC15!) and I think this blush looks beautiful on paler skintones and I will definitely be purchasing more this colour, that being said you can build it up or mute it down till your hearts content!

Next up is the lovely Soap and Glory Thick and Fast mascara, I've got the shade Super Jet Black. This mascara actually comes in two different forms which I just recently learnt, Super Volume False Lash Effect (in the tube above) and Lengthing and Volumising mascara with collagen for doll-like lashes (in the gold tube). I have been using this mascara for about a month after I'd used and abused by Bourjois one till it was old and flaky, this has a similar brush although it does take some getting used to. You can buy it from Boots for £10, I'm not entirely sure on where you could get it outside the UK but you can always get in touch with the lovely ladies and gents at Soap and Glory and they can point you in the best direction. 

I've noticed that this mascara really helps to keep the curl in my lashes all day, before that they had a habit of dropping down whenever they felt like it and I find it comes off pretty easily with my Body Shop eye makeup remover. No more scrubbing at your eyes to get that great mascara off! It also doesn't stain my eyelashes, if you have blonde eyelashes like me you know what I'm taking about. If you don't, well sometimes the colouring in the mascaras can stain your eyelashes so when you actually take it off at night it looks like there's still some left on your eyelashes. It does generally come off with a couple of tries with a good eye makeup remover. In the whole month I've had this and been wearing it, I've not had any mascara flaking off and falling underneath my eyes at all, definitely worth a try!

If you have been living under a beauty rock you will not have heard of these, but I am officially on the beauty bandwagon and fully understand why! These 'Lip Lacquers' have the pigmentation and lasting power of a lipstick, but in the ease and glossiness of a lipgloss. I did buy two shades, but this month I have become obsessed with one in particular.....Celestial. I find its the perfect everyday shade, that is just a glossier version of my current lip colour and it literally goes with EVERY single eye look you could put together. Although the flash in the picture below is making it look very bright!

I love that it doesn't have that offensive lipgloss scent that you find with some, it just has a fruity scent! It costs £5.99 for 5.5ml and let me tell you this little baby goes a very long way. I have worn it at least 5 times a week with one top-up after lunch (to replace the glossiness, the colour stays there) every single week and I feel like I've barely touched the sides with this product, it feels like it will go on and on and on! Also one last but probably most important point, I do not find this sticky at all, when it's on your lips it just feel really moisterising and I haven't found my hair sticking to my lipgloss once!

Now this baby I actually picked up as part of the 3 for 2 at boots with the 'Oh you can never have too many lip balms' train of thought. However this one packs a punch, the shade is in Juicy Peach and it actually smells like peaches and is a gorgeous corally pink. This will be a major staple come summer. Now the scent is quite strong, although once you apply it onto your lips it's not overwhelming at all and after a little while you don't even notice the scent. 

This product actually has mango and apricot butter, lingonberry oil and pomegranate extract to help protect, moisterise and renew your lips. To me I find this more like a great lip gloss in tin form as appose to in a tube with a doe foot applicator.

Let's get onto the less makeup related beauty products now! I've just recently got into Essie products and I must say I can see the hype, at the moment I only have the Nourish Me base coat and the No Chips Ahead top coat. I find the combination of both makes my nail polish stay on longer, especially seen as I work as a till person and refunder in work and have to tap touchscreen tills for hours each shift.

These both retail for £8.99 in Superdrug who have only just started stocking Essie, before Christmas I think it was!

My top perfume of the month is the new Juicy Couture 'Couture La La', I actually got this as a birthday present for my 20th birthday off my mother and I was actually debating between this and the Viva La Juicy scent. This comes in at £46.50 for 50ml which is the version I have, so it is one of the more expensive perfumes so you have to make sure you like it before you buy it or get it as a gift (Debenhams now do a Try Me Guarantee where if you buy certain perfumes you also get a little sample of the perfume and if you don't like it you just return the unopened full size product back!).

The bottle itself actually has a pink tint to it, which is new for this Spring not to mention the bright pink bow and the 'necklace' for the bottle because whats nicer than looking at a nice display of pretty perfume bottles when your trying to pick out your scent for the day! I think this perfume is great for spring and summer as it's not really heavy or has particularly musky scents, but nice floral scents with notes of lillies (which I love!) and green apple. I would say that the scent overall is a great flirty and feminine fragrance.

I will admit it, I do have a history of staying up late watching youtube videos and reading blogs. However that my friends has changed. Yes I still do read blogs and youtube videos before bed to wind down (beauty addict or what?!), but before I do that as part of my night time routine I spray this onto my pillows and it really helps me drift off to sleep and particularly helps when I feel like I can't sleep.

Now I HATE with quite a passion those lavender pillow sprays because personally they smell very old lady, perfume-y smell to me. No offence if you like them, but they're just not me! This spray is a combination of jojoba and rosehip oil, which helps drift you off to sleep without that horrid smell. I unfortunately don't know the exact price of this as I got it in a gift set for christmas off my mum's boyfriend, but I will find out and add it in as an edit. The brand I believe is exclusively to Asda, but I couldn't find it on their online shopping thing!

Now onto the less beauty favourites! I got this candle from Primark for £1, yes you saw that right! £1 in the sale, so I bought two. One for my bedside table and one as a back-up. Primark call it the White Tea scented candle and it normally retails for £3.50, so really affordable which is great if you have a bit of a candle addiction like me!

For this 'fat' candle you are supposed to get 30 burning hours out of it, I haven't burnt mine that much yet so I couldn't tell you if that's true or not. It is a great display piece even when it isn't being burnt, my only quiff is it's got one of those funny lids. The ones that make a funny scraping noise against your nails when you got to put it back on and give you the nails down a blackboard feeling, so be warned put it back on by picking it up from the sides! All in all it has a really nice sweet scent, nothing florally or anything and it's one of those scents that you don't particularly notice when you burning it, it just builds gradually and then if you blow it out leave the room and come back or walk into a room where it's been burning it leaves that nice subtle sweet scent behind!

And the last one is a book favourite, now I only recently got this book but I have read a fairly large chunk considering I only got it about the start of the week and have been reading it on the way to work. I had seen people saying how good this movie was and I quite like reading the books before seeing the movie as they don't have everything word for word in the movie that's in the book, so it gives you a great background on it and you know why a certain characters feeling that way, even when the movie hasn't exactly said it!

That being said Nicholas Sparks is a great writer and I can see why some many people love his books as they have that easy read appeal, in respect that you don't have to force yourself to finish the book. When you read it you get into the book and you kinda feel like your looking in on the scene. Now I won't say too much about the book, in case there are some of your that are currently reading it. I will say though it is definitely worth a read!

Elle

xoxo

Liebster Award

So I've been nominated for the Liebster Award by three very lovely girls! Isobel, Becky & Honeybeige. I really appreciate the nomination girls :) After I'd written this I actually noticed another lovely girly had nominated me as well! This lovely is Marzi!

Now I will be brutally honest...I have no idea what the Liebster Award was. Google to the rescue! 

I learnt the Liebster Award is a blogger award for up and coming bloggers who have less than 200 followers. While I was researching googling it I found two different meanings, favourite or the more common meaning - dearest.

Now onto the rules!

1. You must link back to the person who nominated you
2. Write 11 random facts about yourself
3. Answer the 11 questions given by the person who nominated you
4. Nominate 11 people
5. And come up with 11 questions for them to answer.

My facts

1. I spent all my years at high school including GCSE and the first year of A-level studying the arts (Music, Dance, Drama & Art).
2. I then actually changed my mind in the spring/summer of my first year of A-level and decided I wanted to be a nurse in dedication to my late grandmother.
3. I have been given an offer to study Adult Nursing at the University of Liverpool this coming September (Okay enough about education, I get it!)
4. I have never broken any bones in my whole life, my most serious injury is tearing ligaments in my knee while skiing.
5. I am an extremely fussy eater when it comes to me, however I will cook anyone anything they desire.
6. I am hoping to do a placement in my 2nd year in a hospital in Australia, as I have family in Queensland.
7. I lost my longest and very best friend Olivia 2 years ago, I am now a patron of her charity and actually sang at her fun-eral (She didn't want it to be sad and morbid, so she had everyone dressed in bright colours, the charity's website)
8. I was born on a really awkward date when it comes to star signs, I can be either a Capricorn or an Aquarius.
9.  I have two brothers, one older and one younger. My siblings and I are all born with roughly 3 and 1/4 years between each of us.
10. I work in Monsoon Accessorize and although I help people choose outfits and put outfits together for people, I love nothing more than sitting in my pj's and not worrying about fashion!
11. Last but not least - I cannot stand people being rude, especially to older generations. I think there's no excuse for it and it takes more of an effort to be rude than it does to smile and brighten someone's day.

Now because I was nominated by three different people, I am actually gonna answer all their questions and I will give the names different colours to make it easier!

Isobel = Red

Becky = Pink

HoneyBeige = Orange

Let's get started!

Who is your favourite Youtuber?

My favourite youtuber is actually not a beauty guru, I have currently got into a the 'follow me round' type of vlogs. My favourites are Jofus, Anna & Amelia (Leflooftv) and Nikki and Dan (The Phillippi's).

Who is your favourite blogger?

My favourite blogger at this minute would have to be a spilt between Anna Saccone and Rose, although I do loving finding the 'not well known blogs' (e.g. not the ones that everyone and their mother knows about) as different people are different opinions, I also love being able to 'follow' people's journey through blogging, in a non-creepy way! 

What is your blog named after?

My blog was actually named after my youtube channel, kind of a same name-easier to find deal!

What inspired you to start your blog and when did you start blogging?

I actually was inspired by FleurDeForce and Anna Saccone (TheStyleDiet) and with me currently studying medicine, I don't really have much of a creative output. Throughout high school I had various extra-curriculum performance activities, as well as choir to keep that entertained! I also wanted to branch out and make friends with people all around the world.

I started blogging in February last year but I've actually made it a new years resolution this year, starting with my LUSH grand opening post and I'm gonna try and put up a new post every Thursday!

How long have you been blogging?

As above I've been doing it on and off since February last year but made it one of my resolutions to get back into and have been doing a new post every Thursday since the end of January.

What's your favourite beauty product?

My favourite beauty product at the moment is my Bourjois 123 Perfect foundation, it's actually got a shade that is the perfect colour for me and to give you an idea of just how pale I am......NC15 is about the right colour. This however is a much more purse friendly option and I'm actually on my third bottle, I generally change to a different foundation when I've finished with my current one.

What is/was your favourite subject at school and why?

Music, mainly because I had the greatest music teacher who I was lucky enough to keep from year 7 right through to year 13. She's actually a friend of mine now that I've left that school. Music has always been the one thing that cheers me up no matter what.

If you had £100 to spend on beauty, clothing or food which would you choose and why?

This is a tough one! I would probably spend it on food, not take-away meals but really good food. I'm a bit of an amateur cook and love creating meals from scratch without a recipe. 

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?

I would love to have the chance to live in either London or Australia. London because I ALWAYS love it when I visit and Australia because I have family there and love it when they send me pictures!

What do you want to achieve by blogging?

All I want is to be able to talk to people all over the world and meet new people.

What is your most embarrassing moment?

My most embarrassing moment would have to be......I don't think I have one! I'll check back in six months and let you guys know!

What is your favourite quote?

All you need is courage and strength, with that you can take on anything!

What is your best beauty buy for under a £5?

Superdrug Hot Cloth cleanser, I use it like a face wash after I take off my make-up. That being said I've only used it twice but both times it has left my skin super smooth, it's currently on offer for £2.99 (it's normally priced £5.99)

Who is your favourite musician?

At the moment I'm quite liking Katy Perry and her songs like Part of Me and Thinking of You.

What's the worst film you've seen? And the best one?

The best film I like at the moment is Undercover, I just really like the story line.

What's your favourite meal?

Chicken roast dinner or homemade chicken soap

What do you want to do/achieve before you die?

This mainly just involves the charity, I want to be able to help more people through the charity. Get more awareness raised about the charity and what we're doing.

If you were stuck on a desert island and could only have 1 item, what would it be?

If I could only take one item that would have to be my dog (I don't know if that's cheating, but oh well!). He is just the biggest bundle of joy and always greets me with a tail wagging or will come and snuggle up to me anytime, I couldn't live without him!

Do you know/have any makeup dupes?

Erm not off the top of my head, but I may do a later post if I find some. If I do, I shall link it here!

Girl name and boy name for your future children?

Rae or Amelia for a girl and Elias for a boy.

What's your favourite movie?

I love the Notebook, it's a film I never really thought to watch and then after watching the Vow, I watched it and saw how everyone loved it!

What book are you currently reading or what was the last book you read?

I am not currently reading a fiction book (I won't list off my academic books I'm reading for my course), but I'm hoping to get Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks.

Is your blog a secret to your friends and family?

No my close family know about it, extended family have never really asked so I've never really said anything. Some of my close friends know about my blog, I just don't really shout about it as in high school I got some 'bullying/tormenting' about my youtube channel.

What's your dream job?

My dream job is to be an A&E nurse, but I would also love to be able to do some sort of medical work with charities in third world countries when I'm a bit older.

What is an essential clothing item that everyone should have in their wardrobe?

My essential clothing item is two things, a black pair of skinny jeans (not thick jean types) and a black cami or vest top. Over that you can make ANY outfit.

What is a must have beauty item every girl (and guy) should have?

A great moisturizer, the right one can do wonders for anyone's skin with or without makeup. 

What is a film that you have seen loads of times and still love it?

I love watching The Holiday especially around christmas. It's one of those films that has feel-good comedy but also that little splash of romance but it's also got British actors which I love.

Through your blog, what would you like to achieve in the future?

To meet new people and make friends all over the world.

The blogs I'm nominating

1. http://makeadreamlast.blogspot.co.uk/
2. http://eyelashwishes-x.blogspot.co.uk/
3. http://dotofdaisy.blogspot.co.uk/
4. http://lovelyladybugbeauty.blogspot.com.au/
5. http://theprettybeautiful.blogspot.co.nz/
6. And anyone that would like to try this out, make sure to leave me a comment linking your post if you do!

Honourable mentions of course go to Isobel, Becky and HoneyBeige and Marzi.

My Questions

1. What's the best book you've read recently?
2. What are your top 5 beauty products?
3. What is your favourite fashion trend at the moment?
4. Through your blog, what would you like to achieve in the future?
5. If you could live in any other decade besides this one, what would it be?
6. Are you a morning person or a night owl?
7. If you had £150 to spend on ANY brand, what would it be and why?
8. What's your top TV programme that you could spend all day watching without getting bored?
9. What is your ideal day off?
10. Where would your ideal holiday be and why?
11. What's your best memory?

Last thing I want to say before I let you go is.........Thank you! Thank you to everyone one of you guys who have took the time to read or comment or follow my blog, it means so much to me!

Elle

xoxo

School Series ~ Organize Me! Filofax Edition

I have tried soo many different organisation techniques and diaries and I've finally succumb to Filofax. This brand seems to be known worldwide, you only have to Google Filofax and hundreds and hundreds of videos and blog posts come up!

So let me introduce you to Bella!

She is a Classic Italian Leather in personal size. The personal size is your typically diary size that you can find in any Whsmith's, Ryman's, Tesco's, anywhere really! I got mine as a birthday present for my 20th Birthday from my Auntie and she purchased it for Whsmith's for around £35 but it is originally £80. I couldn't find the link on Whsmith's for the one I got but I did find the new season colours from Filofax here but you can find them often on sale at Whsmith here. 

When you first open it there are card slots where you can store cards or post-it's and then a big pocket at the back, which I actually just use to hold to post-it note markers. On the plastic flyleaf I actually keep two different post-it notes, the top one I keep for lists for anything I want to buy/try out and the heart post it I use to note down people's address or phone numbers or generally everything else that's not a list!

As you can see on this picture you can see the beginnings of a picture, this is actually the credit card holder that comes with the Filofax. I am in the process of filling it with pictures to make the opening on my diary cheerful, especially as I move out in a couple of months and I may get home sick!

Next is my month at a glance, in here I put any appointments (medical, interview or otherwise), paydays and assignment checks for college. As you can see these are all colour coded, 

college=Orange, 

appointments=Pink, 

work=Blue. 

I also circle the days I'm off college on term-time holiday (or school holidays), then I can flick to the month and see okay I've got this many days holiday this month, this helps when it comes to picking up extra shifts in my part-time job! I also circle the days I have exams.

Now for my day-to-day planning I just use the week on two pages diary that came with the Filofax. The layout works for me personally, it feels just like my previous diary though I like this one better as the previous had check boxes but only had 5/6 per day making not always useful. My old planner was covered in post-its with to-do lists on cause I ran out of space, however I can fit everything I need to write in the little boxes of this diary.

As you can see I use the colour coding system throughout my diary, I originally used highlighter in my old one but I have switched over to colour pens that I brought from Tesco, any coloured pen will do! I then shorten the word down to allow more space, e.g. Health Studies becomes HS, Biology becomes Bio, Study Skills becomes SS then I write the actual task in black pen and scribble it out in this fuschia coloured pen from Z-Grip so I know what items I have completed that day but I can still see what the actual thing was!

Behind the Filofax ruler you can see the little task list I put in each week (these are not Filofax to-do list), I printed these off the internet here and I just put them in the middle of the two pages and keep a note of any little things I need to do and then just carry the list on to the next list till the full page is filled and then I replace it (I've put in an example one, as my own one had some personal info on it)

In the note section I just keep extra task sheets paper-clipped together with the cutest heart paperclips that I got from Accessorize in September but they don't sell them anymore! Behind that I keep graph paper that I cut to size to use as to-do lists, I did that before I downloaded the task sheets, they now stay in as back-up to-do lists. I then have the actual Filofax to-do lists paper-clipped (again!) but I use these for any group projects for college, so I can keep track on who has done what and when and then I just have the Filofax lavender note paper at the very back as a J-I-C (Just In Case)

The first page in my project tab is my goal list for 2013, these are all the things I want to achieve by the 31st December 2013. Then it's the fun section, you all love! The Blog section. I have a page for blog post ideas/if you guys want to request any specific blog posts, they go here and behind that I keep 'Daily Action Plan's' which are really for when I write blog posts, I fill one of those out. It has a schedule section, projects for the day, support tasks, unplanned tasks (I don't use this section), and notes. These come in really handy as I can plan ahead of time which I love and I can make sure I've done everything!

Next is my health and fitness section, one of my goals for 2013. I am going to try planning my meals ahead of time, I'm hoping it will encourage me to try out some new recipes! Behind that I just have my workout routine (I may do another post on this!), in this paper-clipped section I also have a weekly tracker for my measurements as I am not going my weight I'm going by inches. Behind that is just the information section which holds my registration number and usual information that comes with diaries!

I am attempting to keep track of all my spending, in a hope I can build up my savings more over the course of this year. I've keep in the financial log pages in the section after health and fitness and I've also put notepaper behind for numbers etc for banks and direct debits. I also put my savings log in, I've put an example in of one (personal reasons/safety why I'm not putting my actual savings log page and showing you the page with all the numbers on, hope you understand!)

The last section I haven't filled out as of yet and that is the address section, I also have the web address pages here to keep track on any cool blogs I have read (I'm always forgetting them, then spend ages tryna find them again!). I've left the address pages in because I need to keep track of my numbers as I just keep them on my sim and several times I've had to have my phone rebooted resulting in me having to go round asking EVERYONE for their number again.

And that is my Filofax guys!

Elle

xoxo