Away for the weekend!

This weekend my family and I went away for my aunt's 50th birthday. On the Friday we went down to the Lake District, went out for tea in a lovely restaurant (even though we did get a little bit lost). Saturday we went on a boat ride and had lunch in a little pub in one of the nearby towns, before going back to where we were staying to get ready to have tea in the on-site bar.

Then on the Sunday, instead of getting straight off and heading back home, we stopped off in a quaint town called Kirkby Lonsdale. It was such a picturesque place that I couldn't stop myself taking photos, especially of all the unique street names. We had lunch in a bakery, but unfortunately I was so besotted with all the wonderful cakes and buns that I forgot to take a photo for you all to see. We also went for a walk to Ruskin's View, which is named one of the nicest views in England, and I thankfully managed to get a picture of that just as the sun came out from behind a cloud. 

This weekend has been lovely to spend with my family and not worry about having to get up for work or do any sort of revision/homework for college. I think it's nice to get away from where you live, even just for the weekend, and take the time to relax and then come back to everyday life with a clear head. Especially if the place you're staying has a Tom Jones tribute playing on the night, which, fortunately, ours did.

My brother didn't manage
to get out of the frame in time

I'm very envious of the cool street names
Kirkby Lonsdale has!

A bold statement from one of
the cafe owners.

A shot of Ruskin's view just as the sun came out (aaaah)

Not my photography, but every English town needs a
traditional fish & chips shop.
Source

Still not my photography, but this is such a cute old
fashioned sweet shop, I couldn't resist including
a photo of it!
Source

Joining the gym!

Around November last year I joined a gym, and although I've been going a few times a week and have been doing pretty well for someone who usually just sits around thinking she's healthy because she didn't have a second breakfast this morning, it's only been in the past month or so that I've decided to really take my fitness seriously. 

So with my new found vigour for working out, I took myself shopping for some proper gym gear (any excuse, really). I bought a training bra from Primark and two large baggy tops to wear over the top so that I don't get all hot and flustered in more tight-fitted tops, a pair of jogging pants from Adidas, and two pairs of shorts for when I get to summer. I already had a few vest tops to wear, and my blue Converse ankle trainers, but felt like if I was going to start taking it seriously then I needed to look the part a bit more.

I've been loving going to the gym, especially if I've been having a stressful day as it just helps me to work it all out and feel calmer, as well as getting fitter and more toned for when it gets to summer. I can already feel my fitness improving (I ran for the bus the other day and didn't even get that out of breath), and I really enjoy knowing that I've done something productive with my evening, rather than sitting around watching tea-time quiz shows on TV like I normally do.

If you're looking for something to do to help you feel less like a couch potato and more like enthusiastic about exercise, I would highly recommend joining a gym!

OOTD | 07.03.14

This is the outfit I wore yesterday whilst at college. I teamed a white/light cream blouse with a pair of dark, bottle green skinny jeans turned up at the corners. The wind has been quite chilly today, so I layered it with my vintage denim jacket and tartan scarf, and due to the fact it was raining the morning I wore my black leather shoes with a thick heel (my mum calls them my 'Mr Noisy' shoes, cause I clack around in them on the wooden flooring in our house).

To accessorize I wore a golden thumb right on one hand, and another thick gold ring on the other, with my gold hooped earrings and black double-strap leather watch. I also used my absolutely massive black/grey/dark green leather bag to lug around all my folders and files with me all day. 

I don't wear this outfit often, but when I do I feel  totally comfortable as well as stylish (I'm never one to pick style over comfort), and I think the accessories really help to pull it all together and look like a properly planned, cool outfit.

Liebster Award!

So I am delighted to announce that my blog has been nominated for the Liebster Award! 

Thank you to Rachel Burman from imaginationistheweponagainstreality.blogspot.co.uk for nominating me!

The rules:

1. You must link back to the blogger who nominated you.

2. You have to state 11 facts about yourself.

3. You have to answer the 11 questions given to you by the blogger who nominated you.

4. You have to nominate 11 other blogs (with under 300 followers) and set 11 questions for them to answer.

5. You can't nominate the person who nominated you.

6. You have to tell the nominee that they have been nominated by you.

Eleven facts about me:

1. I love theme parks/roller coasters.

2. I'm shy when meeting people for the first time

3. I love the summer and all summer-related activities (especially going to the beach)

4. I want to go on a safari at some point in my life

5. I really fancy Peter Capaldi even though he's kinda old

6. My favourite superhero is Captain America

7. Caitlin Moran is my favourite writer

8. I'm a terribly embarrassing drunk

9. My style changes constantly

10. I love having things to do all the time, I can't stand doing nothing

11. Sometimes when I'm walking down the street listening to music, I like to pretend I'm in a music video

Questions from Rachel:

1. What is your favourite social media site?

Twitter, definitely. I'm addicted to it!

2. What is your favourite movie character?

Ferris Bueller. He looks like so much fun to have as a friend.

3. If you were a sims character what would your personality traits be?

Heavy sleeper, bookworm, absent-minded, vegetarian and loves the outdoors.

4. What is your favourite computer game?

The Hobbit or any of the Harry Potters.

5. Dragons or Dinosaurs?

Dragons! I'd have one like Toothless in How To Train Your Dragon!

6. Who are your favourite bands/singers?

I adore The Cure, and have recently fallen in love with Drenge, however my favourite band of all time is probably Biffy Clyro.

7. What is your favourite board game?

Cluedo!

8. What instrument do you play or want to play?

I can sort of play the guitar and also the ukulele, but I think it would be awesome to play the drums!

9. What would Amortentia (love potion in Harry Potter) smell like to you (smells like you love)? 

Either the smell of the seaside or coconuts. Or both.

10. What was/is your favourite subject at school?

I really love sociology at the moment, we're studying religion and I'm finding it really interesting!

11. What do you like to do in your free time?

I love to shop, but I think that the thing I enjoy most is just hanging around with my friends. I don't think there's a better distraction from rubbish thoughts than being with people who you can have fun with!

Blogs I'm nominating:

Jessica - prettychitchat.blogspot.co.uk

(other) Jessica - theduffy101.blogspot.com

Caitlin - flying--memories.blogspot.com

Emily - theoxfordshopper.blogspot.com

Bethany - beebopallula.blogspot.co.uk

Deanna - deannaelliottxx.blogspot.co.uk

Becca - oneineverycolour.co.uk

Tina - beautyfromageek.blogspot.co.uk

Bryony - thebeautymagpie.blogspot.com

Laura - laurapiekarski.blogspot.com

Questions to answer:

1. What is one thing you are looking forward to this year?

2. If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?

3. What made you start blogging?

4. What is your dream job?

5. What did you/are you studying?

6. Which fictional world would you love to live in and why?

7. Romantic comedies, yay or nay?

8. Go onto your iPod, put it on Shuffle, what is the first song that comes up?

9. Are you good at saving money?

10. Which Disney prince would you marry?

11. Sweet or salted popcorn?

And finally a big thank you to everyone who reads my blog, I'm so glad I've been nominated for this award!

February favourites!

I know I'm a little late with my list of favourites this month, considering I usually managed to post within two/three days of the new month starting, but I've been really rather busy recently so haven't had much time. However, I have managed to find the time today to take a few pictures and create a post about what I loved through February (better late than never). 

Unfortunately due to a very busy schedule I've not had that much time in the morning to plan out and really decide what to wear before picking an outfit for the day, so I've generally been returning to the same or similar styles again and again. I've been absolutely loving and wearing-to-death these three thin, loose-knit jumpers through February, and by tucking them into high-waisted skirts or over a pair of leggings I managed to create an easy to wear go-to style for last month.

Despite how rainy and horrible it is today, the weather has definitely been getting warmer here in England and, despite being happy to see (hopefully) the end of winter, it has unfortunately brought about the return of oily skin for me. So to get a head start, at the beginning of February I invested in this shine-reducing moisturiser from Garnier and I think it's been absolutely fabulous. It doesn't dry out my skin like other moisturisers, and I don't find that my skin hasn't got used to it and started to produce even more oil than usual like it does with other products of this kind; it leaves my skin feeling fresh and oil-free, and doesn't make me feel like I've put too much product on my face at all.

The nail polish I've been sporting throughout probably the whole of this past month has been Black Cherries from Rimmel. I definitely do heart lasting finish nail polishes, and this doesn't disappoint. It last for around 3-5 days without chipping, which is longer than the other nail polishes I own, and I absolutely love the deep red/burgundy colour. 

Something I re-discovered in the last week of February was this album by The Milk. I saw these guys live when they played Freedom Festival in my hometown of Hull a couple of years ago, and immediately bought this album afterwards. I think it's the perfect mixture of garage rock and upbeat reggae, and is something I will never not love to listen to. The most famous band I can think to compare them to is The Black Keys (but these guys are slightly better).

My absolute favourite favourite of this month has to be season 2 of My Mad Fat Diary. I can't describe how much I fell in love with it last series, or how excited I've been for it to start up again this year. I completely adore all the characters, and feel like it's one of the most valid depictions of teenage life I've ever seen (this probably has something to do with the fact it's based on a true story), and I love the way it's filmed and Rae's inner monologue throughout the episodes makes it hilarious as well as incredibly poignant at times. I'm aware that I'm gushing completely over this show, but I don't think I've ever been this emotionally invested in something since Gilmore Girls.

And finally, something that I really started taking an interest in over February was beauty and fashion magazines like Cosmopolitan and Elle. I've been using them as my main source of inspiration fashion-wise and have been taking their predictions for Spring/Summer trends on board as a way to get myself ready for the upcoming months.