Date Night | Day 12

Ello loverrrr.

I'm a bit behind with posting my 100 days of happiness updates but each day I thought about what I wanted them to be so technically still did the challenge I just never got round to posting them...I'm gonna count that as acceptable. 

So this one is for a couple of days back which was when we had date night. Every week my other half and I go out for a meal. It's normally a carvery that costs £4 each as we are both broke and wading our way through student debts, but still we make the effort to go out and spend time together. I think it's important to do this and doesn't always require spending lots of money. It means you get out of the house away from distractions like the TV and Facebook and phones and internet and can actually just spend a few hours focussing on each other. You get a chance to really listen to each other and so I hope we will always find time for date nights. 

This week we splashed out a bit and went to prezzo instead of our usual carvery. We found a voucher online that meant we got one of the mains for £2.50 which was awesome! We had starters mains desserts and wine and didn't have to spend too much, which at prezzo was a success! The meal was amazing and we was sat in the cosiest little corner away from the hustle and bustle of the restaurant which was lovely. The dessert was defineilty the hightlight for me and was hazelnut filled proffoteroles which was basically profiteroles filled with Nutella. Nooooooom. It was lush. It was nice to have a bit more of a romantic setting as well compared to the pub and as nice as it is to have little traditions and routines it's also nice to try something new and mix things up. Obviously not every week as we don't have the money. 

We also spend time having game nights when we don't have money to go out anywhere which is so much better then just staring at a TV. Again it gives you the chance to actually focus on each other, have a bit of laugh and do something a tad more active then just monging out. Keeps things a bit interesting and means nights in don't have to be boring.

TTFN x 

John Lewis | Day 11

All my little plans and schemes, 

Lost like some forgotten dream, 

Seems like all I really was doing was waiting for you.

Ahh, soooo cute. 

Alright love. 

Got a bit distracted there. 

Anyway, this had to be added to my 100 days of happiness at some point as it makes me so happy every single time I see it. I am of course talking about the John Lewis Christmas advert. Every year I absolutely love them and they always the most adorable heart warming adverts ever. This year was no exception. The song is always also really sweet and heartwarming and I have not been able to get it out of my head for the last few days. It's just a big fuzzy warm ball of adorableness and anyone that doesn't love it clearly has no heart. 

That's all for now folks. 

TTFN x 

A day away | Day 10

Hello Love!

So yesterday I didn't post my 100 days of happiness post. This was for several reasons. Firstly, I was really busy the whole day which included a 3 hour drive, then college in the evening so never actually got a chance to post. Secondly I really really didn't want too. It has been a roller coaster month and honestly I didn't want to write about anything that was making me happy as not a lot was. Don't get me wrong, I was in a very good mood yesterday, I wasn't upset or lonely or unhappy but there wasn't one thing in particular that I felt I could post on here. So I gave myself the day off and that actually made me happy, having a day away from the internet and the computer and this little world of mine and actually fully participating in the real world for the entire day. In today's society we are often distracted by the internet, whether its checking our emails or having a quick scroll on Facebook. It can take us away from reality and stop us from really taking part in life and conversations and other people. So I had a day away and put my full attention into life and the people around me and that made me genuinely happy.

You should try it too, one day away from the distractions of modern life and just focus on living. Not updating your status on how awesome your life is or what a great day your having, or who your with or where you are. Just live it! Be there and enjoy it while you can and stop trying to prove to the world that your having a great time. It really does make a difference when you give life your full undivided attention.

I know I'm a hypocrite as a day later I'm straight back into internet world, but I'm definitely going to try and take a small step back from negative social media such as Facebook. Nobody is honest on Facebook and it just seems like a competition of who is the happiest or the most successful. I do however like writing this blog and will continue to do so, I don't think it counts as social media as no one is reading it so its not yet social!

TTFN x

Lush Bubblegum Lip Scrub

Hello Love. 

In my previous post you will have seen that I went to Lush the other day and became victim of the cash desk impulse purchase and bought one of their lip scrubs. I always do this and I don't know why. As I'm going to pay I usually pick up the crap that is sitting by the tills, and think oooh I need this! I never do. However my lips have been so dry and chapped lately that I saw these pretty little pots and decided to throw it in the bag and give it a go. 

When I was younger I used to use regular granulated sugar mixed with a little Vaseline and make my own lip scrub. I used to do it everyday and my lips were always smooth and they were never chapped. I stopped doing it for some reason and have always suffered with really dry lips. So when I saw this I thought it would be a better then turning my kitchen essentials into a beauty product. It is essentially the same thing though. Except its bright pink and smells incredible! The scent may not suit everyone's taste as it is very very sweet, but I personally love it. It had the exact same effect that my homemade lip scrub used to have, but I expected nothing less. I knew what I was buying, essentially a small pot of scented sugar, but knew that it was risk free and would do the job. 

I could have just used regular sugar and Vaseline like I used too and saved myself £5.50 but I liked the fact that this was in a handy little pot. It also left a really sweet scent on my lips a few hours after I used it which was a nice bonus. So all in all, I think for what it is, its a bit pricey but it does leave your lips super smooth  and smelling soooo good. Its also bright pink which I love and means your sugar can be left for your tea and you can keep your lip scrub in your make up bag and not your kitchen.

TTFN x

Retail Therapy | Day 9

Hello love!

What girl doesn't love retail therapy? It's such a good pick me up and it's always nice to have new things! Today I had a little retail therapy of my own, here is some of my purchases in case your nosey like me and like knowing what other people have bought on shopping trips. 

Firstly I went to good old primarni. Definitely one of my favourites because of the amazing prices! Didn't get any clothes but got a few accessories, including lots of nails. Primarni nails aren't the best quality but they are £1. ONE POUND. You can't complain about something that is a quid. They have some amazing designs witch is why I like them so much. They only normally last a day on me as I'm so clumsy but I bought a few to wear over the Christmas period for events.

I absolutely love the penguin ones and thought they were so cute! The next are blue with white snowflakes and a little snowman for the accent nail. Then you have the Christmas jumper style nails which are just a tad less childish then the other two and a bit more appropriate for more serious events. Then I got some to wear just I'm general which are a pretty dark purple. Lastly we have the super glittery silver ones which again is for Christmas time as they're a bit too glitzy to wear just normally I think. 

I've been meaning to get new candles for a while so also had a look in the home section and got this adorable little owl tea light holder for £1.50 and a pack of winter berry tealights to go with it, also £1.50. Perfect for winter time! 

Lastly from primark is a tiny purse. I lost my original one from river isalnd over the summer and was gutted. It was just big enough to fit a few cards and some notes. On nights out it was perfect as my regular purse is way too big to squeeze into an evening bag. So in the meantime I've been using a really old mini purse to carry my money in and thought it was about time I replaced it. This one is slightly bigger then my old ones but will still do the job. I also thought it was a cute shape and I've never had a circular bag or purse before but really liked this one. It was also on £2! I think the river island one was £12 which is quite a lot considering the tiny size of it! 

Next was top shop, again no clothes but I did have a little browse of their make up and picked up a lippy. This one is called infrared and it looks bright orange but when I tested on my hand it was a nice corally orangey red. Thought I'd give it  a go as I've been on the hunt for a really nice red and this one seemed to be a bit different. It was £8 which I think is quite a lot for lipstick but I'm glad I took a gamble on it as I really like the colour. It's also comfy, if that makes sense? It's not sticky or really heavy so that you always feel like you've got lipstick on which I find normally happens with darker lipstick for some reason. It's matte which is different for me as I usually go for glossier ones but again I was after something different, and I actually really like the effect of it. 

I do apologise as that is a terrible photo as the camera is rubbish and taken on a phone but there you go, that's what it sort of looks like on. 

Keeping on the topic of make up I went to boots and picked up the soap and glory archery brow tint and precision shaping pencil. I'd heard a lot of good things about it so thought I'd give it ago. I've only ever tried to fill in my brows once and it looked awful and they looked far too dark and big. But this one seemed quite easy to use and like it would be able to create a subtle effect. After trying it out I'd say it's defineilty super easy to use but I still don't know if I should be using it since my eyebrows are so dark anyway. I'll give it a few more gos though and see if I get used to them. I think it was £10, which isn't too bad actually and does do a good job. 

Next up was lush. I went in here to get birthday and Christmas presents but ended up picking up a lip scrub for myself too as it was sitting on the cash desk. I don't know if it's any good but my lips are soooo dry and cracked that I thought I'd give it a go and see if it can make them silky soft. I got it in the bubblegum scent as it smelled so sweet and was bright pink! Quite excited to try it out! It cost £5.50. 

Next is clothes and I went into H &M and picked up some leather, or pleather if you will, jeans. I've seen a lot of people wearing these lately but was always too scared to try them and didn't think they'd suit me. I saw them and thought I'd try them, why not? But ended up actually really liking them! They were £24.99 which I thought isn't too bad a price for a pair of jeans and makes a nice change to my boring plain black ones. I also got a nice long top to go with it and they go together quite well. It's a nice simple print but has a nice shape to it when it's on and is really comfy. Again, I do apologise these pictures are shite. 

I also bought some Xmas presents but I'm not gonna bother posting those. But all in all a successful trip and I'm happy with all my purchases today and feel much better, so horrah for retail therapy.

TTFN x

Nanowrimo | Day 8

'Ello Love! 

Last night I found about National Novel Writing Month. Its held every year in November and encourages absolutely  and everyone to write a 50,000 word novel in one month. Starting on the 1st you begin writing and if you finish it by the end of November you 'win', I say win in quotations as everyone that completes the task wins so its not really a competition. It seems like you win some pretty amazing prizes though including getting your book published! Its a great opportunity for anyone to turn their distant dream of being a writer into a reality. At first, I must admit I thought it was more of a teenager thing and that I might be too old for it. However looking at the majority of users there is actually a hell of a lot of adults entering as well which is fantastic. 

The fact that the time frame is so short encourages you to not over think and criticise your work but just to knuckle down and write the novel you always fantasised you could write. I think its an excellent idea and seems like a great community too. Unfortunately I only found about it last night, 2 weeks into the competition. However I am determined to finish a 50,000 word novel before the end of November  and am not gonna let the fact that I have missed out on two weeks writing slow me down! 

So my 'blog', again I use quotations as no one reads this and I barely post anything so its not really a blog yet, is gonna take a backseat for the next two weeks. I'm still determined to carry on with 100 days of happiness but I will be writing short and quick posts for now so I can get back to my novel. 

On the off chance anyone actually is reading this and wants to take part, you can find out more and enter the competition at nanowrimo.org. But remember you'll need to work quick as the deadline is only a couple of weeks away! 

TTFN x 

Family Life | Day 7

Alright Love.

Today's 100 days of happiness challenge was exactly that, a challenge. So only a little post today as I'm not putting every detail of my life on this website! But basically I've had to come home for a while due to not being very well which is extremely frustrating and is not how I pictured my life away from home. I am however very lucky and grateful to have so much support from my family and boyfriend. They are completely supportive and non judgemental of my decisions and are willing to do what's best for me, which I am extremely grateful for. My family are amazing and have really managed to cheer me up so they are my reason for being happy today.

TTFN x

Cosy Winter Reads | Day 6

Hello Love! 

Today's little happy post is about books. I love a good old read. In the summer its all about sunbathing with a good book and chilling by the pool, or in the garden if, like me, you don't have a pool. In the winter there's nothing better then curling up with a book wrapped in a cosy blanket by the fire with a hot chocolate. If its raining outside then even better! 

Last year I stumbled across one of Jenny Colgans books whilst having a little gander in Tescos. It was called 'Christmas at the cupcake cafe' and had such a pretty, christmassy cover that I was instantly drawn towards it. I decided within about a second of flicking through it that I was going to buy it as not only was it a cute Christmas novel which I love, it was also a recipe book! Its a story about a girl who owns a cupcake cafe, at Christmas time (I think that's fairly obvious, given the title) but the best bit is you are given the recipes for the cupcakes that are mentioned within the story so you can make them yourself! They're also not just shoved in at the back of the book, they are scattered throughout the novel, which I personally thought was a very unique twist and absolutely adored the idea. I love reading Christmas books around this time of year too so this was an instant favourite. 

Through out the year I picked up some more of Jenny Colgans books and even got my mum reading them too. She is an amazing author, so easy to read and thinks up some really lovely stories. Perfect for easy summer or winter reading. As its coming closer to the Christmas period I will be reading Christmas at the cupcake cafe again soon. However it is actually sequel to 'meet me at the cupcake cafe'. I think it will be extremely predictable given that I read the sequel before the original so know what is essentially going to happen but I love her writing so much that I know it will be worth a read anyway. So I'm about to snuggle up with meet me at the cupcake cafe, with my duvet and chocolate. Sounds larrrvely. I should finish reading this one just in time to read the Christmas sequel again too. 

Highly recommended if your looking for a feel good read and like baking! 

TTFN x 

Real techniques | Day 5

Hello love.

Firstly, I should point out the above picture is not mine and is taken from the real techniques website.

Secondly, I'm getting behind on my 100 days of happiness. Not cool, Nat, not cool. I didn't have time to write two posts yesterday so again, this post is a day late. I will catch up today and be back on track with the happiness task! 

Yesterday's shimmer of happiness was all to do with make up. Some may say that is rather sad, and they are probably right, but let me explain myself before you get all judgemental on my sad little life. A few weeks ago I started watching YouTube make up tutorial videos as I had some spare time, and YouTube is a great way to pass the time. I stumbled on a few popular channels and found myself really enjoying all their videos. I've always liked my beauty products and so quite liked seeing what products and make up techniques other girls are currently loving. After watching waaaay more then I'd like to admit I noticed that the majority of the girls were using brushes to apply their foundation. A few years ago I also tried this and absolutely HATED it. No matter how much I blended I'd always be left with streaky brush marks all over my face which I then had to blend with my fingers, the fluffy little hairs would shed and be stuck to my face, they were a hassle to clean and they used up way more foundation then using your fingers did. So I chucked them out and swore them off forever. Clearly the problem was I was using shite brushes. After watching the YouTube tutorials I noticed these girls had flawless skin after applying their foundation, something I just was not achieving. So I decided to dip back into brush world. Of course the brushes they were using were high end mac and zoeva brushes which are way out of my price range. I took myself down to super drug and had a little gander. I picked up a real techniques expert face brush for under £10 and prayed it wouldn't be useless. 

The results?

I love itttt. 

Bet you didn't see that coming, it's not like the title and whole lead up of this blog post gave it away or anything....

The hairs... That's not the right word... I've forgotten what the right word is but you know what I mean when I say hairs, hopefully. Anyway, the hairs are super soft and don't fall out leaving you with fluff all over your face. It blends the foundation in really well, leaving a lovely flawless finish. It's super easy to use and the brand even has it's own YouTube channel where they do tutorials on how to use each brush (yay). I've had it about a week and haven't cleaned it yet but I'm sure it will still be just awesome and won't fall apart after cleaning. I've also watched more videos and noticed the girls do actually use this brush and have loads from the brand! Which is pretty awesome, I feel like I made the right choice and got their expert seal of approval! They are also a really good price and you can buy them seperatly or in kits. I couldn't afford a whole kit, not that they were expensive for brushes, they're actually a bargain, but I didn't want to dive in with a whole kit in case I hated them. They will defineilty be on Xmas list though as they are fantastic. I'm now officially a brush girl and my fingers are foundation free. I'm quite disappointed I didn't try brushes again sooner but it just goes to show, when it comes to make up tools, don't be a cheapskate. 

Here is a cheesy selfie demonstrating the brush... Apologies for my soaking wet hair and the poor picture quality. Considering I had some nasty spots I think the brush did a good job to get those bad boys covered. 

TTFN x

A little late...| day 4

'Ello love.

I'm posting yesterday's 100 days of happiness today as I didn't have time yesterday to write it out. I thought what I wanted it to be and took a photo to go with the post but never got time to sit down and write about it....oops. Also do excuse the rubbish selfie, I was tight for time so couldn't do anything too creative! 

But anyway yesterday's little shimmer of happiness was all about psychology. The night before I had been to my counselling night course, learning basic skills that counsellors use and how to become an active listener. I'm really interested in providing emotional support to people and volunteer with two separate charities in order to do this. Every week I attend a class which will eventually give me a formal qualification but also provides a time in which I can practise and improve my skills for my volunteering. I would eventually one day love to be a professional counsellor but that's a few years away yet! But anyway the class this week went really well and everyone in the group is amazing and starting to really connect with each other. I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy the classes but so far every single one has been a fantastic experience and I look forward to going to them each week. This weeks class went so well and everyone's skills have improved so much. I went home happy and woke up the next day still happy because it was such a good lesson. I know, I sound like a nerd. 

I also bought psychologies magazine for the first time and I'm so disappointed I've been missing out on it all this time. It's so good! I picked up as I do miss learning about psychology, having just finished university and thought I'd give it a go. It's a really interesting magazine that picks a different theme each month and explores an area of mental health and positivity. It also has all the sections from a typical magazine like beauty, health, relationships etc but written from a completely different perspective. It was also a nice change to reading something a bit more in depth then who is dating who in the celebrity world. (Not that I still don't love reading about those in heat, but as I said, a nice change). 

I will definitely be picking up next months issue and advise any one else with an interest in psychology, life, happiness, positive thinking, beauty, health or anything really to pick it up too. It covers so many issues I'm sure there's something for everyone in there!

I thought after uni I would have been so fed up of all the hard work and dreaded all nighters that I would almost despise psychology but I'm pleased to find I'm still quite passionate about it and will most likely always be curious about it. Im really happy that I haven't been disheartened by awful essays and boring lecturers but actually am now more interested in the subject then ever. Good job, aru! 

TTFN x

1989 | Day 3

Hi loves, 

Today I am happy because of Taylor Swifts new album, 1989. I love it. At first, I'm not gonna lie, I was annoyed it wasn't on spotify so I could just listen it to and not actually buy it. But now I'm actually really glad I bought a copy. I love the packaging and think that in itself was worth paying for. Sad I know, but it's the small things in life eh. 

Firstly it comes in a box sleeve, thing. I've forgotten what their called, it might just be a sleeve? Or a box? Regardless, I'm calling it a box sleeve. I always like it when CDs have a little extra packaging and so loved the fact that it came with a box sleeve. So first impression was good. 

Then you pull the cd out of its box/sleeve/box sleeve expecting to only be pulling out a cd, but oh look, what is this that has also fallen out of the box/sleeve/box sleeve?! Why, it's a small yellow envelope with 'photos from Taylor' printed across it. 

Instant excitement. 

Now I'm not a huge taylor swift fan, this is the first album I've ever bought of hers and is actually the only album I've ever listened to of hers. I like her newer singles but used to hate her older music. So I wasn't overly excited about the fact that it was taylor swift photos. I was just excited cos it's was a tiny little envelope and it was unexpected. Like a free gift, gotta love a freebie! 

But anyway back to the envelope. I pulled out the contents and inside were 13 Polaroids with lyrics written on them. The photos are all pictures of Taylor (obvs) but I still loved looking through them all and reading their little captions. They also feel amazing! They're printed on a really soft shiny plastic that makes flicking through them really enjoyable in some odd way. I will often judge magazines based on the type of paper they have used meaning if it is that crap cheap papery stuff that doesn't feel pleasant to touch I will not be buying the magazine. However if it's glossy and luxurious it will make you want to turn the pages. This is the same. The photos have a really nice feel to them which is why I think I like them so much. They're also Polaroid prints and I love love love Polaroids so that again is another plus. 

I love the theme of the album, and the fact she's really thought about the whole design and packaging and little extras. The songs are also so catchy and put me in a good mood as they're really upbeat and easy to listen to. Great to have in the car when your driving to work. 

So all in all I was firstly really peeved that she decided to not let spotify have her music so I could listen for free but now I'm really glad that my only option was to buy the album. It's also nice to have the physical cd for a change as I rarely ever buy them anymore.

So that is what has made me happy today, a cd! 

And here are my own taylor swift inspired Polaroids taken with the adorable Fujifilm Instax Mini 8. 

TTFN x

Step (slightly) into Christmas! | Day 2

                                     

Hello love! 

Today is day 2 of 100 days of happiness. Not done a lot today other then work and have to go back to work in about an hour but I am happy that Christmas is slowly creeping up on us. There's decorations and lights slowly starting to be put up everywhere, hot chocolate and mince pies are being consumed, and the john Lewis advert is on TV! (Love, love, love their advert this year, as always). However, since it's November I don't like to get too Christmassy too early. But I couldn't help but indulge in a little bit of festivity and so have some subtle wintery, Christmassy, sparkly, glittery, festive nails. 

Or stubs should I say? I managed to grow my nails to a fairly decent length and then at the first sign of stress, boom. They had all been gnawed off. So frustrating, as I think these colours would have looked really pretty on slightly longer nails rather then my pathetic little stubs. But never mind. The point is I am loving my subtle nod towards the Christmas season with my new nails. And that is my happy point for today. 

On my nails are: 

No7 stay perfect - Temptress with Daisy Darling glitter top coat 

For the accent nails: 

Barry m silk collection in Pearl with No 7 stay perfect silver glitter top coat 

TTFN x 

100 days of happiness

Hello love! 

I'm going to be doing my own 100 days of happiness! I thought this would be a nice easy way to get into a habit of blogging and would give me some easy ideas for my first 100 blog posts! I'm now just realising that 100 is a hell of a lot of posts...It will be an achievement if I actually make it till day 100. 

So today is day 1 and today I am happy about family. I have come home to essex for the weekend and seeing all my family again has been amazing. As well as being back in my house and with my pets! It is so sad to not have pets around all the time!! I am also happy for my own bed all to myself! I'm finding having just moved with in my other half that I am exhausted because I'm a light sleeper and can't sleep with someone next to me. He also becomes about a million degrees when he sleeps meaning our bed becomes a mini sauna so not the greatest sleeping conditions. But last night was pure heaven. I haven't slept that soundly in what feels like forever and I cherished every peaceful moment. Bliss! 

So yes, mostly happy about being surrounded by my lovely family again but also happy for a beautiful nights sleep. 

I will start to include photos on my next post, I am aware this is actually a photo challenge but, hey ho, I'm going against the rules and kicking off without a photo. 

TTFN x

Hello Love!

Having just graduated from university I thought this would be the time when life would be easiest. Fresh out of uni with my shiny new degree I'd dive straight into my dream job and life would begin and be awesome. 

I have never been more wrong in my entire life. 

Life after uni is hard. 

Like, really hard. 

There is a huge river of debt of which I am slowly drowning in, I cant get crap jobs because i'm 'over qualified' and I cant get a decent graduate job because I don't have enough experience. 

So what is left in the middle?

NOTHING. 

I cant even aim towards my 'dream job' as I have no idea what my dream job is. So here am I having left my comfortable, fun, easy going student life and thrown into harsh, cruel reality. 

I'm not entirely sure who I am or what I want to be or where I want to go. So I thought I'd start a blog to find new interests, maybe learn new things, and to show my progress along the way to real adult life. 

I also want new hobbies and maybe this might actually be quite fun and de stressing. 

So there we go. That's my story for now. I'll now rack my brain for things to post about and hopefully remember to update this little space on the internet to which I have now claimed. 

TTFN 

<3