Freedom Festival 2014

Every year in my hometown, Hull, there is a huge free festival put on in the town centre. I've been going to Freedom Festival for as long as I can remember, and it has come a long way since the likes of Peter Andre and JLS were the headliners - it now focuses more on individual talent, both locally, nationally and internationally, and seems to be more of a celebration of original art and creativity than anything else. 

I didn't take many photos at the festival, as I was focused on enjoying it rather than documenting it. However I did manage to get a few pictures of the colour parade that they had on the Sunday. In my opinion, it was the best part of the weekend; everything was made out of unused objects, for example old trolleys and bicycle wheels, and it was so lively and vibrant that I don't think there was anybody not enjoying themselves.

At the end of the parade, they threw powder paint all over each other, which was a great way to end it - although I am thankful I wasn't stood close enough to get any paint on me!

I really love this festival, as the town I'm from has acquired itself quite a negative reputation over the last decade or so, but when I see things like this happening free of charge, doing so well and attracting so many people from all over, it makes me really proud to be where I'm from.

August favourites!

I am actually having trouble comprehending that it's September already - this summer has gone so fast I feel as if I've barely had time to take note of all the things I've done! I've been that oblivious to the changing months that I only realised yesterday I needed to do my August favourites post (so much for my organisational skills), so here are the few things I kept coming back to last month.

I bought this backpack from Boohoo at the beginning of the month and I haven't gone anywhere without it since. It has replaced my satchel as my everyday bag, but what I love about it is that the straps are detachable - so I'm also able to wear it as a regular handbag slung over my arm for when I'm wearing a slightly more sophisticated outfit and the backpack doesn't really match, or if I'm going out for a meal or to a more 'dressy' event. 

I've been loving making notes of things during August - it's really allowed me to keep my head clear and means I can tick tasks off when I've completed them (the ultimate satisfaction). I picked this notepad up in Tesco for £1.50 a few weeks ago, not because I needed it (I have WAY too many unused notepads) but because I thought the front of it was adorable. I use this for whenever I need to jot things down, or if I wake up in the middle of the night with a random thought or idea.

The book I loved most during August was Caitlin Moran's 'Moranthology'. I absolutely adored Caitlin's Moran's writing, and I recently tweeted saying that I wished I could be as silly but still get taken as seriously as her - and this book has confirmed this as still being one of my life goals. It's a collection of all the articles she has written over the years, which makes it great to dip in and out of whenever you want, and also means if you leave it for a while you don't need to go back to the beginning to remember what's happened (something I constantly find myself guilty of).

I featured this shirt from Primark in a OOTD post around a week ago, along with the aforementioned backpack, but it would be totally wrong not to feature it again in this post, as I honestly think I haven't gone two or three days without wearing this shirt. It's so versatile, perfect for the kind of weather we're experiencing here now in England, and, probably most importantly, it makes me feel really cool when I wear it. That might sound lame, but it gives me that really confident feeling of knowing that I've done right with my fashion choice for that day.

The Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water has been everywhere recently - and I'm not ashamed to say I have also jumped on the bandwagon. It's soft and gentle on my skin whilst still removing all of my makeup, it doesn't smell of anything which is great as I often worry about using perfumed things on my face, and feels really fresh when I use it. It claims to have around 200 uses in every bottle, and whilst I don't think it will last me as long as that; the amount you get for only £4.99 (£3.99 at Boots if it's still on offer) makes it an absolute bargain and probably the best beauty decision I made during August.