Dear Dave 10.07.2015

Dear Chummy! 

So.. you posted a reply to me MONTHS ago and I never replied. I am deeply sorry for this however we have been spending a lot of quality time together recently so, the void was being filled! 

Just a quick summary of my thoughts to your Top 10 Disney (by the way mine has completely changed as I predicted); Sword in the Stone as your #1? Extremely surprising! I think I've only seen this once as a child, am I missing out? The rest of the list is acceptable, I enjoy how you kept with the classics as let's be honest, as much as I love Tangled and Frozen and Big Hero 6, you just can't beat our generation of Disney, 

Top ten books I've ever read is a difficult one. I've read literally hundreds of books but I went through a stage of throwing them away or donating them after reading, so to be honest, I just can't remember most of them. Typically, the Harry Potter series is up there, but I think that's more of a nostalgia thing. I also love Alice in Wonderland, I read this at least once every year. The fact that it makes sense and doesn't all at the same time is amazing. I would love to own a classic Fairy Tale book, you know the big ones that look all rustic and cool? The are so bloody expensive though! 

I'd be interested in hearing yours, although I'm pretty sure I could guess your number one *cough cough* Wuthering Heights *cough cough*. 
We are getting our very first tattoos next week chummy, when did we become so rebellious? It's the first step in our 'let's do new things' year. What other three things would you like to do this year? If we write them down on our blogs, we pretty much have to do them. So here's mine: 

1. Go on a holiday with you (November we shall complete this)
2. Go to Brighton 
3. Go to a festival 

To conclude, i am currently reading The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting. It is 100% a teen fiction book, but i am really enjoying it. Although it is mainly about death and murder, it's an easy read after my Gillian Flynn stage. 

Much Love
xox

L'Oreal Paris Infallible 24H-Matte Foundation

Finding a drugstore foundation which gives high coverage without looking 'cakey' can be difficult. Thanks to a couple of my favourite bloggers, Hello October and I Covet Thee, i have discovered a foundation which does just the trick.

Loreal's Matte foundation is amazing. For someone who suffers with oily skin and acne, i have always been a fan of matte foundations as they smooth out your complexion and reduce the constant shine my face.. faces.

The consistency is quite liquidy which i actually prefer in foundations as i find them easier to blend. The formula feels extremely lightweight on the skin and it manages to smooth pores out and give a flawless skin look. I have actually been choosing this over my holy grail Estee Lauder Double wear; it doesn't give exactly the same amount of coverage but for a drugstore foundation, it's top notch.

With an affordable price of £7.99 in Boots stores, this foundation is great if your looking for a high end quality foundation, but don't yet have the budget. I wouldn't go as far as saying you could wear it for an occasion like a night out clubbing per say, as i think it would fade away eventually in a hot environment, but it lasted a good 8 hours for me whilst shopping in Manchester, paired with a good touch up powder of course ( I use Rimmel's Stay Matte Powder)

Overall, great foundation, nicely affordable and best of all, it did nothing to irratate my skin! 

'Normal Teenagers'

I have once again been classed as 'boring' and 'strange'. This being because I am not out partying every weekend like most teenagers out there apprently are. I started to tweet rant about the whole thing, but thought a blog post would be more satisfactory. 

To be fair, when I was 16 and underage, whilst sneakily taking sips of alcohol and attending high school house parties, the idea of being able to go out, dance  and get intoxicated every weekend was like a fairy tale. 

When I turned 18 I went a bit wild. Teamed up with a break up and a now valid ID, I was out on the town whenever I managed to scrape £20 together; which was practically every week. All I gained from these enlightening night outs were bruises on my legs, less money in my bank account, ruined heels, loss of respect for myself when it came to boys, and a few extra inches of fat to my waist. 

At the time, I thought I loved every second. Looking back now, I regret most of the nights out. I don't like what alcohol does to me, to people in general really. A more recent heartbreak has truly pushed me over the edge and converted me in to a non-drinker.

Society seems to glorify drinking but in reality, it makes people unresponsible, vulnerable and the negative side effects completely out weigh the positive. 

Nowadays, I prefer to spend my weekends at the cinema, at nice restaurants, having days out in cities. For some reason, this classifies me as 'boring', when in reality, I spend my hard earned money (less money may i add) on a genuily enjoyable day/night out, rather than throwing £50 down the toilet on shots; and then throwing up my guts down there too. 

I can wake up the next day with a story to tell about my night, conversation topics about the film I watched and a full belly from delicious food. These 'typical teenagers' that seem to have been branded usually don't remember most of their night and the bits they do, come along with a helping of shame. 

I'm not ruling out all alcoholic drinks forever. I do actually enjoy the taste of Strawberry daquiri's and the odd Baileys with milk, so i may have a couple of cocktails on a special occassion. I've just lost all interest in getting drunk. 

It is completely fine if you are between the ages of 13-25 and simply do not want to drink. Please do not feel the pressure to do so, just because everyone else thinks it is 'cool'. Who are they to tell you what is normal? As cheesy as it is, it's true that you should do what makes you happy. It's your life, don't live by other people's rules. 

I don't know about you but i would much rather have a night in with my best friend, talking about our week, eating ice cream and watching a TV series, over getting hammered and spending most the night queing to use a filthy bathroom. 

Bills Breakfast

   

Coffee, bacon and porridge. Can you go wrong with a Bills breakfast? I think not.

The Manchester restaurant is honestly amazing; great food, great service, great decor, I am never disappointed. Please give it a try if you are passing by. I may even indulge in a smoothie.. 

Nars Sheer Glow Foundation Review - Acne Prone Skin

I have been using Estee Lauders Double Wear as my staple, high end, foundation for about a year now and fancied a change; although I absolutely love the formula, the shade I have is just a tad too pale for me at the moment (surprisingly).

Nars Sheer Glow is a well loved foundation in the blogging community, and after many swatches to the palm in Selfriges, I thought id give it a whirl. Unfortunately, to my dismay, after only two wears, I will have to pass this baby on to a friend. 

My skin reacted TERRIBLY, the entire bottom half of my face broke out in painful, angry spots which I havent had in a long while. The last time I experienced this was when I used to wear MAC Studiofix foundation, which also has the same thick texture to it.

In fairness, it does have a decent amount of coverage with a dewy finish. However the oily formula made my face, personally, feel quite cakey. With the skin type I have, I prefer a more light weight base which still conceals my spots. When applying it around my chin and jaw, the foundation seemed to cling to my spots, highlighting them instead of concealing them. 

To conclude , if you are lucky to have normal, unsensitive skin, I'd definetily give this foundation a try. Anyone with acne/oily skin, I would stay away. 

Sorry Nars, I do still love you. 

Outfit Of The Day

So today i went for a coffee catch up with my best friend along with our traditional roam around Boots for new makeup. We typically came out with exactly the same shade of lip liner and lipstick; it's mental how much we think alike! I was then off to meet my boyfriend in Manchester for some food and a few more cheeky purchases from, of course, Topshop. 

I kept it quite casual with my outfit, a plain ribbed high neck from Topshop and a suede mini skirt from Urban Outfitters. Paired with a leather jacket and my new River Island knee highs, it made a simple outfit for a winter/spring crossover look.  

Dear Dave 10.03.2015

Dear Chumster, 

I haven't seen you in what feels like a century due to your busy schedule, so i thought it was just the right time to upload a new blog post for you.

In regards to the topic we raised regarding 'fantasising about being a fictional character', i think i see this as the more reasonable option because, if you're going to wish you were someone else, it might as well be something unusual and in some cases, unobtainable.

If you're going to use your imagination to be something else, it might as well be the best thing you can think of, someone magical and completely different to real life. Fantasising is a way of escaping your own life, even if it is just for the one hour you spend watching your favourite programme. I mean yes, i am envious of the life YouTube stars get to lead nowadays, but I'd much rather be Elena Gilbert (Google her chummy, you shall know who i mean) who has two amazingly attractive vampires fighting over her, rather than a normal person who happens to have a great job. Am i making sense? I may just be rambling. It's possible. 

Oh the hours of ranting we spent when several YouTubers were exposed for being rapists. I was so glad you had the same opinion as me. Let's face it, no matter how many times Zoella tells a girl to respect herself, when a 15 year old gets paid some attention by an older, 'cooler', boy, Zoella's words will evaporate into thin air. Everything she could of said will float away into the abyss when a boy merely caresses a girls face. It's what teenage girls are. It's how we are made at the end of day. 

Girls, especially teenage girls, are hopeless when it comes to affection. I'm sorry if that offends you all the feminists out there, but we are. I myself have been in a situation (you may remember this yourself chummy) where a guy is CLEARLY taking advantage of me; i knew it, he knew it, but at the end of the day, all he had to do to get around my defences were to mutter a few sweet words and profess his affection. I was weakened. To this day i still don't understand why i let someones use me that way but, hey, it's a mistake i think all girls in some way NEED to make, as almost a life lesson.

And no, I'm not saying 'girls should be raped, that's how they'll learn', I'm saying boys are going to make advances on girls, they are in fact controlled by their genital urges. That's never going to stop. Just like a girls craving for affection is never going to stop. I think it is up to teachers and parents and friends of a teenager to educate them on how to either respect someone, not a well known YouTuber. 

Maybe society should focus less on telling girls how to 'Say No' and more on teaching boys how to respect women. That's a little sexist of me. Let me rephrase:

'Maybe society should focus less on teaching people how to 'Say No' and more on teaching people how to respect each other. 

ANYWAYS, moving on from the depressing rape culture of YouTube at the moment, i was yet again watching Dear Tom/Dear Carrie and they were discussing their favourite top 10 Disney films. Oh yeah, i went there. Now the following films will probably change over the next few days but heigh-ho (see what i did there), for now, here are my top ten!

1.  Beauty and the Beast

1.  Tangled

1.  Enchanted

1.  Hercules

1.  Frozen

1.  Monsters Inc

1.  Tarzan

1.  Pocahontas 

1.  Up 

1.  Maleficent 

I am still on Sharp Object by Gillian Flynn, i have no time to read nowadays! The book is even more disturbing than Gone Girl. A lot of masturbation and killing and abuse. That's basically a summary. I'm still enjoying it though.. I'm not sure what that says about me to be honest.

I already feel like I've cheated on so many of my favourite films. Oh dear my heart. 

Enjoy this picture of us looking cute. 

See you next time Chummy! xox

Dear Dave 19.02.2015

HELLO CHUMMY!

I was watching a 'Dear Tom/Dear Carrie' video this morning (eating porridge in bed whilst watching YouTube, the norm), and the whole point of the series between Carrie and Tom Fletcher is so that they can keep in touch whilst travelling and doing all the amazing things they do.

Now we don't have world tours or West End shows or anything like that, but for some strange reason, i hardly ever see you and sometimes i just need a rant to my dear old chummy. It's not like we live across the road from each other any more and can pop round on a casual Thursday night and eat tubs of ice cream is it.

Just FYI other readers that may come across this blog post, in most cases i try my best to be grammatically correct; however on these specific 'Dear Dave' blog posts, please excuse the random punctuation and capitilisation,. IT'S MAINLY FOR DRAMATIC EFFECT.

So, the first topic i would like to discuss with virtual you is this..

WHY ARE VLOGGERS SO POPULAR. 

This is a topic we have discussed a variety of times. I mean, i myself am one of these people who look forward to their favourite YouTuber uploading a new vlog. But why? Why do i find these normal, everyday people so entertaining? I literally spend hours of my life watching the same people do the same things over and over again. How many times can i watch someone tell me what they had for tea before i get bored? Because that day has not yet come. 

At the age of 15 i was hooked on Twilight, as you may well remember, so i understand how young girls can obsess over their favourite characters. My obsession is relatable; a breathtakingly beautiful vampire falls in love with an abnormally average girl and whisks her away with all things romantic. I just wanted to be Bella Swan, who wouldn't? It was my fantasy. Fantasy being the operative word.

Vloggers are not a fantasy. They are people like me and you who go about there days exactly the same and yet i still tune in every night. Granted, the more popular ones probably have more exciting days than most, but it's nothing spectacularly amazing.

Do young girls need an escape form their life?
Is TV entertainment becoming outdated?
Is YouTube brainwashing us?

I just don't know chummy and I would like your opinion on the matter please.

Carrie and Tom end every video with 'my face looks like this' picture.

So i thought we could end each blog post with a book update!

I'm currently reading 'Sharp Objects' by Gillian Flynn. It's getting quite disturbing, even worse than Gone Girl i have to say, but i am enjoying it profusely.

xoxo

Emma Hardie's Moringa Cleansing Balm Review.

Now, being a fan of beauty bloggers, it's pretty hard to miss the craze about Emma Hardie's 'Moringa Cleansing Balm'; Every blogger I follow seems to swear by it.

I've struggled with a severe amount of spots for about four years now and am yet to find that one amazing product that just zaps away the nasty little buggers. I'm always researching new products to try out but I never have the courage to actually try them. However, after reading glowing reviews of this product, I decided to take a trip to Space NK and give it a whirl.

Unfortunately, unlike most, I was extremely disappointed. 

I'm not 100% sure what skin type I am as it varies at every stage of the month; being a girl and having hormone cycles, this is inevitable! I would say I have oily skin as, after washing my face free of makeup, my skin appears very shiny. 

I was hesitant at first about purchasing a cleansing balm as to me, putting more oil on top of oily skin didn't seem logical. But after some reading, several skin care blogs advised that using balms on oily skin gives it the moisture it needs so excess oils aren't produced. It theoretically made sense, however, it appears my skin plays by it's own rules.

To be fair, the first time I used the balm, it felt amazing. It's such a luxurious product, it really feels like a pamper every time you use it. It smells gorgeous and it makes your skin feel super super clean. 

I used the balm both in the morning and before bed. One week in and I had extremely sore, aggravated spot clusters all over my face. My face is pretty much covered in scarring but i only get single spots around my chin nowadays and the odd few near my cheek/forehead. It was extremely painful to touch and I started to lose confidence in having no makeup on, even in front of my boyfriend who has seen it a million times. 

I really tried to stick at it for at-least a month, as i'm under the impression you are suppose to give your skin a full hormone cycle to adapt, but I could last around three weeks. My face was unbearably sore and I almost considered wearing make up to the gym as I was that ashamed of my spots.

On the up side, I gave my friend, who has normal/combination skin, the jar to give a go (as not to waste the 40 or so English pounds!) and she loves it; she even went to buy the moisturiser to finish her skin routine off.

To conclude, despite the beauty blogger hype, Emma Hardie's Moringa Cleansing Balm is not the one for everyone. The saga continues to try and find my holy grail product.

Two Topshop Staples

Topshop has got to be one of my all time favourite shops; there hasn't been a time where i've gone into the shop and not come out with at least one new item. I literally have to tell my friends we can't go in to the shop if i'm ever short on cash because i will end up spending, no matter how pennyless i am! 

Unsurprisingly i went into Topshop with some Christmas vouchers the other day (guilt free, even better) and bought a new outfit. 

I'm absolutely in love with these leather look jeans, i've had my beady little eye on them for a while and it was time to bite the bullet! They are so comfy and, although they look like they would be restricting, you can move about so easy in them. They are the 'Moto' jeans from Topshop and i'm wearing a size 10. I'm normally a size 8 however i think, with topshop jeans, you're always better getting the next size up!

I promised myself i wouldn't buy anymore crop tops for a while; but when you see a long sleeved, 60's patterned, high neck crop? A girl can't resist. Such a pretty pattern and goes amazingly with the jeans.

I wanted a winter coat that you could pass off as part of your outit, rather than something that you feel obliged to take off round the dinner table. This coat does the trick!

The material of this coat is so thick and cosy but still feels quite lightweight and not like you have a million and one layers. The blazer type folds near the collar help if you're going for a more sophisticated outfits but you can still pair it with a casual outfit (like i'm doing here). The rolled up sleeves to give that extra bit of flare and goes brilliantly with long sleeved tops like the one im wearing above. 

Well done topshop.

Zara Coat tragic love story

For my birthday (by the way, it was last November, whoops late blog post) i needed a new winter coat as, living in England, it's almost more necessary to have a chunky coat than having edible food in your fridge. I was in a state of joy when my Dad said he would give me money to buy a coat as my birthday gift because, let's face it, coats are quite expensive!

I am a massive fan of Fleur de Force, i look forward to her videos every week. Around November time she made a haul video showing this amazing Kaki coloured Parka with the most incredible faux fur hood. Immediately i was on the hunt to get one for myself. 

I succeeded! 

This Zara coat is genuily gorgeous. I wanted a Parka this year for three reasons: 1. To keep myself toasty warm. 2. They normally have huge hoods to keep your hair dry. 3. Who doesn't need a Parka?

The fabric is just the right amount of thickness to keep you warm but not feel too heavy. The style of this coat is so different to any i had seen. Unlike most it is perfectly fitted; almost an 'A line' shape as it comes in tight towards the top and flares out a tiny bit towards your hips. Very flattering.

Another bonus to the coat is that it wasn't knee length. I find with most Parkas, they tend to be a bit too long on me, covering my entire outfit. Sometimes you just want a coat that stops before your lower regions to show off a little bit of your outfit - this coat does the the trick!

The hood is beautiful, it's so big and fluffy  and incredibly silky smooth. I instanty fell in love with this coat

Unfortunately my love story does not have a happy ending. I had to return the coat not once, but twice, as the button attaching the fur to the hood,popped off. To say i was devastated would be an understatement. I considered simply exchanging my ripped coat for a new one once again however, for a steep £159.00, i expected a little more durability. The coat has now in fact sold out online, so i assume others are enjoying theirs enough to keep it!

Still, i had to write about this beautiful coat, almost a shrine for a lost cause. 

Belated Happy New Year

Why hello there 2015, how mysterious you seem.  

Another year has sped by in a flash and I can’t help but sit back, a cup of tea in my hand, and think about how much I honestly believed we'd have hovercrafts by now. How disappointing. 

I’m not one to be drastically cheesy and think ‘new year, new me’ (It is honestly ridiculous how frequent this saying is on my Facebook timeline), but I thought I would reflect on myself a little, and maybe write a few things down I’d quite like to accomplish by the end of this year. I am turning 21 this year after all *internally cries*. Don’t get me wrong; I am extremely excited about turning 21 as, yesterday, we booked to go to New York City to celebrate the occasion! One of my life long dreams will finally be complete. Some girls tell their dads to save for their weddings. I however have been insisting since the age of four that my dad is taking me to New York when i turn 21. He has not let me down bless him. 

Now, on to my aims for the year (by the way, no one be expecting ‘win golden globe’, lets be realistic about this):

READ 50 BOOKS

Yes yes yes, I am attempting the ‘Read 50 books in a year challenge’. Cliché I know. But I really do love to read. I have been slacking recently which i don't appreciate, so i'd like to keep track of the books I end up managing in 2015. Side note: currently on ‘The Rosie Project’ by Greame Simsion.

BLOG POSTS

I love to blog, it’s a great hobby to have and as the blogging community thrives, I am eager to try and get involved. I plan on uploading a blog at least twice a week, maybe even trying to blog every day for a certain month. We'll see what happens.

NAILS

I envy girls with long elegant nails, I really do. I swear i have been biting my nails since they started to grow in the womb. I need to kick this filthy habit before I mature into a fully grown adult of 21 years old.

GUILT

I am a very guilty person. I feel guilty about almost anything. It could be the most harmless act of kindness such as my Dad offering me a £10 note for the weekend. Most people would react like 'thanks Dad!' snatch it out of his hand and run out of the door. I however, take it guiltily as if I've just shot his own mother for taking something he offered in the first place. Ridiculous. This is a scenario where no real stress is endured but unfortunately for me, this year there has been far too many nights wasted due to unnecessarily stressing. No more i say. 

A prime example of my ability to turn anything into guilt is this: Last week, a lovely lady at Starbucks unfortunately made me the wrong drink. I reluctantly told her what had happened and she happily made me another coffee. I was very grateful for her politeness. The plot thickens. She proceeded to make me the wrong drink again. I was mortified. There was no chance i was telling the poor girl she had made a second mistake. No chance on hell. So instead,  I drank the dairy infused latte rather than my regular soy. In retrospect, I paid for the coffee. I am in fact entitled to get what I ordered, i'm sure the lady would of understood. Why did I feel guilty? You tell me.

FOOD

I am a little obsessive when it comes to my food and health. I enjoy working out; I eat well for nearly all of my meals, avoiding white carbs like the plague. Due to the fact that I used to be a little larger in my early teens, I am generally quite self conscious about my figure. I’m happy with my body at the moment but I find it hard to treat myself without waking up and regretting it terribly. This year, i plan on working on that. This year, if I’ve had a bad day and need a bar of chocolate, then that’s what I shall buy. And the next day, I shall not feel the need to torture myself at the gym. This will probably be my biggest challenge. 

PASSION

My boyfriend is extremely passionate about music. Whilst it's amazing to listen to someone talk about something they love that much, it’s a little dis-heartening when you don’t have something in your life you are truly passionate about. My main hobbies are reading, exercising and YouTube/Blogs. Out of the three, reading blogs and keeping up with my subscription box on YouTube is honestly one of my favourite things to do in life. Now that i have started to write my own blog, I've found a new hobby i love to do. I will find a way to be involved in the Blogging world even more. I am determined. 

And that’s it for now folks! Maybe I’ll tack on a few more throughout the month but I think all of the above are almost 98% achievable.

To conclude, please enjoy a few pictures from New Years Eve where i attended the annual house party with all my friends. It was glorious. 

What i got for Christmas 2014

My ultimate Christmas song this year was Michael Buble's 'Baby Please Come Home'. The most festive moment of December was when i was belting the lyric 'Chirtmasssss the snow's coming dowwwwwn' whilst travelling up to the Christmas Markets. It gives me festive shivers even now.

But alas *sigh*, another Christmas has passed us; a day full of joy and laughter and presents and family and drinking and eating and chocolate and chatter and love and happiness and films. And not forgetting the one million pigs and blankets people consume. It has always baffled me why we only eat these wonderful creations once a year. I may have to enquire about making an addition to our weekly roast. 

Now, unlike some families who gather around on the couches in their pajamas all day, watching Christmas movies and eating their goodies; I have the unfortunate family situation where my parents are separated, along with my Grandparents. So in total, including my boyfriends family, i had a total of four houses to visit in the short timescale of one singular day. It was manic to say the least. I used 3/4 of a tank of petrol for Christs sake. 

Nonetheless, it was an excellent day; i saw family members i hadn't seen in a few months, i ate delicious food (no rules on Christmas day) and generally had a lovely lovely time. It's a soul crushing feeling to think we have to wait another year for it all to happen again. Saying that, i'm pretty sure my bank account will be grateful for it. 

It's all well and good having quality family time, but let's be honest, presents excite practically the entire human race. One of my favourite things post Christmas is reading everyone's blogs/watching Youtube videos on what people got for Christmas. In the spirit, i thought i'd select a few of my favourite gifts this year to show you. My main present from my dad was Michael McIntyre tour tickets which i am giddily hyped about. He is almost certainly my favourite comedian.

Top Left: It wouldn't be Christmas without a few toiletries. Part of Louis' present to me was an incredibly smelling Lush set which i've already half used. Then there's the Body Shop's body lotion and body wash in 'Vanilla Brulee' (the most perfect scent) and the Soap and Glory 'Orangeasm' body butter and body wash (such a cheeky name).

Top Right: A vanilla (told you i liked vanilla) Yankee candle which apparently crackles like a wood fire when lit. Very excited to dry that out; A beautiful ring from my Dad; a pretty Statement necklace and of course, the latest series of Vampire Diaries. 

Bottom Left: I mainly asked for some new high end makeup for Christmas as it's even better when you don't have to pay for it yourself. From the left: Charlotte Tilbury - Matte Revolution lipstick in Glastonbury; YSL's 'Beaute Paris' lipgloss in the shade 39; Bodyshop's 'Colour Crush' lipstick in shade 101 and a gorgeous MAC palette which has four warm toned gold and silver colours.

Bottom Right: Being a book nerd, my Christmas would not be complete without several books. As some of the titles are cropped out, the books are - The Body Finder (Kimberly Derting), The Spectacular Now (Tim Tharp), Sharp Objects (Gillian Flynn) and The Rosie Project (Graeme Simsion)

These are yet but a few of my favourite Christmas presents and i'd like to thank everyone who gave me something. I am an extremely lucky girl on Christmas day, i know i get far too many presents but hey, i'm not going to complain.

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and have a very Happy New Year. See you on the other side of the year. 

xo