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Monday 29 June 2015

Hotel Regno, Rome


Hotel Regno
Rome


Are you planning a trip to Rome? Then this blog post may be of some help to you. I went to Rome the second weekend in June. However, we booked our flights and hotel way in advance to this. When we was looking for somewhere to stay we had five top things that we wanted out of our hotel:

  1. For it to be clean and tidy
  2. Central location, we didn't want to have to be getting a taxi or a bus to places
  3. Reasonably priced
  4. Good reviews on trip advisor
  5. For the room to have a safe 
You have no idea how hard it seems to be to find a hotel with all those things ticked off! In the end we was deciding between two hotels because quite a few of them were all around by the Colosseum  which was fine, but we was told the Colosseum is further out than the rest of the tourist attractions and we wanted to be in the centre.

Hotel Regno could have not been in a more perfect location. It was a three minute walk to the Trevi Foundation, about five minutes to the Spanish Steps, five minutes to the Tomb of the Unknown Solider and ten minutes to the Colosseum (but because there is so much to see along the way it doesn't feel like that long at all!). The hotel had amazing restaurants around the corner as well as shopping right on the doorstep!

The place was spotless, the breakfast was great, and we could not of really asked for a better hotel to spend our weekend in Rome. 


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Thursday 25 June 2015

A little reflection.. What have i learnt?

So we are half way through 2015. Am i the only one who thinks of crazy that is?! How fast has the time gone?! I thought i would share some of the little things i have already learnt from half the year of 2015.

Be yourself. I have stopped (well, part-stopped. Sometimes its really hard!!) caring what other people think. If you want to go and do something, if you want to wear that dress, if you want to eat that food, then you do it! The only person you are letting down for not doing it is yourself.

True friends will always be there. So i have had a bit of a rough run at the start of 2015, with finishing my third year and the stresses of the dreaded dissertation. Which meant my friends kind of took a bit of a back seat compared to my work (rock and roll ay?!), yet they were still there for me whenever i needed them!

Happiness is found in yourself. You can't be happy through someone else, it just doesn't work. I learnt a long time ago that you have to be happy with yourself and love yourself before you can be truly happy with someone else (bit of a cliche but true).

You are your only obstacle. There have been many times over these past six months that i have thought 'i can't do this' and made an excuse up why i couldn't do it. When actually i could do it, i was just to scared to so i made up an excuse as to why i couldn't so i didnt have to. 

I am feeling more like me. It sounds strange, i know, how can i not feel like me?! But this is the first time in my life where i have been genuinely happy, constantly laughing and smiling and a better person. That consists of all the things above, as well as my family, friends and incredible boyfriend. I am grateful to them all.


What have you learnt so far in 2015?

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Monday 22 June 2015

10 Tips for visiting Rome..


Ten tips for visiting Rome..


I visited R0me last weekend, and can i just point out, it was one of the most beautifulest places ever. I love the fact a city can tell a story, and you can definitely feel and experience Rome's story through the naked eye. I wanted to share with you all ten tips in which i learnt while i was visiting Rome, in hope that if you are reading this then they will help you with your travels to Rome too!

  1. Be weather prepared!! We went during June, and it was HOT. One of the days was quite unbearable due to the heat. So if you are travelling during the warmer season, then take a hat and lots and lots of suncream as there isn't much shade in Rome!
  2. Don't take all your money in cash. As with any city, it is very busy so there is a higher chance of pick pocketers  The last thing you would want to happen is to have your money stolen before your holiday has even began. I took 100 euros in cash and then i put the rest of my money on a Cash Passport from Thomas Cook. These work like regular debit cards, you take it to a hole in the wall, type in your pin and then out comes your money! Its a lot safer way to transport cash.
  3. Book attraction tickets online! This will save time when arriving at the attraction, as the queue to buy tickets in some places were horrendous and would easily take two hours!
  4. Arrive early, if there is an attraction you definitely want to go and explore, then the key is to get there before everyone else! We visited the Colosseum at half 9 in the morning and it was busy, but we managed to walk straight in. By the time we left at half 11, the queue was unbelievably long.
  5.  Don't pay for water!! Sounds ridiculous right?! But as long as you have a bottle then water is free. There is drinking water taps all over Rome, so you are able to fill your water bottle up free of charge!
  6. "I made it myself" or "my wife has just given birth, yesterday morning". These are two phrases i have heard countless amount of times throughout my stay in Rome! They may be true, but they may also be trying to make you feel guilty to get your money and after i had heard the phrase used a lot, i opted for the second choice.
  7. Be cautious! There are a lot of people selling items along the streets. Fake handbags, sunglasses and selfie sticks. They are everywhere! I made the mistake of looking at one of the handbags, and an even bigger mistake, i stopped to have a look. Once i decided it wasn't what i was looking for i carried on down the street, and then every person also selling items tried to stop me too! Argh!
  8. Take appropriate walking shoes. You will be on your feet all day, and every day you are there. Comfy shoes are a must!!
  9. If you are travelling to Rome in the Summer then make sure you pack clothes that are cooling. Rome can get very warm!
  10. Enjoy yourself, you are in Rome after all! 

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Thursday 21 May 2015

Starting project life..


Starting project life!



Once i have got all my assignments and the dreaded exam out of the way, i will be starting project life. Some of you may be questioning what project life is, and it is a scrapbook, but more of a modern day scrapbook! I love taking photographs but i find because everything is so technical now, that i don't print out photos anymore and i want some way to store and reflect back on the good times i have had. I also adore the fact you can add quirky quotes and make it look super pretty without the hassle of a glue stick!

If you want to know more about project life, click here. Lily Pebbles does an amazing review of it, and even takes you on a little look through her own personal project life album. 

I have gathered all the bits and bobs that i need to get started, so look out for some blog posts in the future of me trying to put it all together and be 'creative'!

If you are from the UK and what to get started with project life, then Hobby Craft is the website you want to be headed to. You can also find some bits and pieces on Amazon.


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Thursday 14 May 2015

The Beauty Show 2015

First off, i would like to apologise for my lack, ok, none existent blog posts over the last few months. Things have been pretty stressful and crazy with my dissertation and coming to the end of my third year. I now only have ONE more assignment and a exam to do and then i am finished!!!! So starting in June, my blog posts will go back to normal schedule, which will be twice a week, Monday and Thursdays! (But there may be a few cheeky uploads between now and June!)


The Beauty Show 2015


The beauty show is held at the NEC in Birmingham, every year in May. I had not heard of the event before, until someone on my Instagram posted a photo with lots of shopping bags with makeup and instantly i was intrigued! I found out where it was and all the details and made a date in my diary to attend in 2015, and i did! 

I have to say, I was a little disappointed, and heres why...

The beauty show consisted of a lot of makeup brands, but none that i had actually heard of. Which is always a little disappointing, but i did know this before i went as i thought it might be a good chance to learn about and find some new and exciting products. Unfortunately this wasn't the case. I actually brought no makeup items, whatsoever!

Another thing that disappointed me was that Benefit claimed they had a stall at the event. On the leaflet it stated 'Benefit Cosmetics' stand M40, so i was definitely excited. My friend and I rushed to that stall first to make sure we could get the best deals they had and do make sure the things we wanted hadn't already been sold out. It was much to our disappointment when we realised it was only for recruiting!! 

Although, i can't moan too much because the tickets were free! 
If I had paid on the door price of £20, i would have been majorly pissed off.

I probably wont attend next year, but never say never. It all depends on what makeup brands will be there. As if they have had a change around and included brands that i have heard of then you have bet your bottom dollar i will be there!

Here are a few of the photographs that were took during the day...









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Thursday 12 March 2015

How to be dissertation organised!




(Image from Google)


In my last post i mentioned how much of a failure i had been in regards to my blog over recent weeks. If you haven't read it, then its mainly down to the simple fact, i am coming towards the end of my third and final year at University!

I have very recently began to organise my self, especially my dissertation and even though they may seem simple, i thought i would share them with you anyway.

So, lets try and be Dissertation and assignment organised in 10 easy steps..


    1. Produce a list (oh, i do love lists!) of all the things you need to do, the deadlines they need to be in by. Put them in date order, and you can then tick them off as you go along.

    2. Produce a separate list for your Dissertation. It is easy to think you have ages, but when you realise how much work you have to do, you will be stressing out! Break it up into sections. This is what mine looks like:
  • Chapter one 22nd Jan
  • Chapter two 20th Feb
  • Chapter three 13th March
  • Methodolgy 27th March
  • Introduction and Conclusion 10th April
My Dissertation however, is not due in to the 7th of May, but remember to leave time to get it bound up, and enough time to tweak anything thats not right!

    3. Write your reference list as you go along! This will save you so much time towards the end.

    4. Do your research before you start. I never do this with assignments, and it helped so much when              it came towards my dissertation. It didn't feel like i was writing so much and it didn't feel like it was taking so much time because i had already done the research and gathered my quotes.

   5. Do your Introduction last, this will then make sure it is specific to what you are taking about.

   6. Find the place, how long they will take and the price it will cost to bind up your Dissertation.

   7. Highlight anything that is important, so it is easy to find again if you need it.

   8. Find out what works for you. Everybody works differently and at differently paces.

   9. Dont stress out, for me, thats the worst thing i can do! As then i wont get any work done because i am so emotional and stressed out. If you have everything written done and set yourself little deadlines, you can keep on track and see how much time you've got to do things.

  10. PLAN AHEAD! I can not stress how much this will help!


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Monday 9 March 2015

Failing as a blogger

I am hanging my head in shame. I have neglected my little blog over the past few weeks, and there has been tumble weed which represented my blog posts. Oh the shame. My blog is a place where i find comfort, and a secure base. Somewhere that i can write anything that is on my mind, and i wont feel judge or guilty for. It is sad to think i haven't had a space recently. I finished my degree at the very end of May, so you can imagine, things are heating up (and not in a good way!).

I am trying to keep on track of my Dissertation, as well as keeping up to date on assignments due in and then theres the dreaded exam thats lurking in the back of my mind. I would rather do an assignment any day, rather than an exam. I don't work well under pressure!

I have recently found a few things that have kept me organised, up to date and less stressed over my dissertation and i will be sharing them with you on my next blog post!

Apologises again for my lack of posts. I would love to say this wont happen again. But, lets be honest, it probably will. However, once June hits, my little blog will have my full dedication, once again!

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Thursday 19 February 2015

Getting Started: Gym Haul



Getting Started: Gym Haul

If you saw my post a couple of weeks ago, you will know that i joined a gym! Having not previously brought any gym gear, i headed to the shops to take the leap. I knew gym wear was expensive, so i tried to keep the cost down as much as possible. 



I brought two black pairs of gym tights (?!) 
The one of the left was from Sports Direct - £18
The one on the right was from Matalan - £14


I found it hard to find sports bra's that had padding in them. I want padding for a number of reasons, one being i don't particularly want my nipples on show through the material and the second, if i didn't have any padding, then i would look like a washboard. 


As you can see they also have breathable backs too!


These were both from Sports Direct
The black one was on sale (yay!) for £4

The white was £6


However, the tops is what i had the most trouble with! Why on earth are all gym tops lycra and show all your lumps and bumps?! That is definitely not what i am looking for!
I ended up going into New Look and purchasing two tops that were light weight and slightly longer to hide any potential camel toe from the gym tights!
These were both £6.99


I have already got a swimsuit. But i thought it was practical to pick up another. This ones from Matalan and cost £12


I picked up these sports socks from Asda for £3.50


I also needed a water bottle that i could keep in my gym bag. I got this from Matalan for £4, i especially like the fact you can freeze the middle bit in the summer to keep your water nice and cold.

I have also ordered a Polar Ft4 heart rate monitor watch.
This hasn't come yet but i am so super excited to use it and to see how many calories i burn from each workout. I will be doing a review on this once i have used it for a few months.
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Monday 16 February 2015

My 100th Post: Benefit Roller Lash Review

I cannot believe this is my 100th post on this blog! The time has gone super quickly and i am more surprised that i have kept at it, and kept uploading different posts. It is definitely something i love doing, even if no one is reading it! If you are reading it, then thank you very much, it means a lot.


Benefit Roller Lash Review


Within the March edition of Elle magazine, they collaborated with Benefit Cosmetics to include a sample/travel size of their new mascara which is set to launch on the 12th February. This gave Elle readers, and anyone, to try the mascara before it hit the shops. I am not generally a reader of Elle magazine, but once i saw they were including a benefit mascara, i was all set to buy it the day it came out! The magazine cost £4 which then included the mascara, which i think is a pretty amazing price!

Benefit states that Roller Lash " Is a roller for lashes! The eye-opening Hook ‘n’ Roll™ brush grabs, separates, lifts and curls…while the instant curve-setting formula holds for 12 hours."



This is what the wand looks like, as you can see, it curves slightly and the outer curved part has bigger bristles than the inner part which is smaller, which is supposed to hook, lift and curl the lashes.

I wanted to put the mascara to the test, with its claim for a 12 hour hold. Apologises for the lighting of the next few photographs as they were took in the evening after wearing the mascara all day. I wanted to show how well the mascara would last, and if the curl and lift would actually last the whole 12 hours.

(This was took early in the morning - also apologises for the lighting, natural light doesn't seem to come through until late morning! The photo below is the same photograph, just more zoomed in on the lashes)


These photographs were took after 12 hours and just before i was ready to remove my makeup for the day. I didn't touch the mascara up at all, and you can see that the length and volume is still on the lashes. I had a little fall out throughout the day, but i nearly get that with every mascara, apart from Benefits There Real.  



As you can see from the photograph below, the mascara still has a curl and lift and it hasn't dropped throughout the day.



I think it is safe to say that Benefit has done it again! I am really impressed with this mascara and the lasting power. If you are interested giving it a go, then definitely keep your eyes pealed for this months edition of Elle magazine.

Have you tried Benefit's Roller Lash?
What were your thoughts?
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Thursday 12 February 2015

A Valentine's Day Equivalent of Scrooge

(Image from Google)


I have a few strong feelings in regards to Valentines Day, i believe it is complete overrated, money driven and extremely shallow. It has become so commercialised, that the true meaning has been completely lost. Let's ask ourselves, what does Valentines Day mean to you? To me, it means being with someone that i care about, this could be from sitting in front of the TV all day or maybe taking a nice stroll somewhere. I can tell you what it doesn't mean to me, it doesn't mean an excuse for presents (presents can't buy love and affection), an excuse to be completely spoilt or an excuse to be the worlds biggest cow if your loved one has forgotten to buy you something. 

Presents doesn't equal love.

I truly believe that social media plays a big part in the commercialisation, jealousness and expectation of the whole, day of "love". When Valentines Day arrives, i would advise you all to check the Valentines Day hashtag on Instagram, it will be filled with thousands, millions of girls bragging about what they received on Valentines Day. I am not saying that its not nice for someone to receive a gift, everyone loves being spoilt, but you don't have to spread it around for the whole world to see, to me, that is ungrateful, materialistic and attention-seeking. 

(Image from Google)


53% of woman, that is a big statistic and makes absolutely no sense to me whatsoever. The relationship clearly meant nothing if someone would end the relationship over something so ridiculous as a Valentines Day present!!

Like i have said previously, i, like everyone else, love receiving gifts, flowers, chocolates but the way that it is now commercialised and broadcasted over social media is wrong. It is a day to celebrate love with the person you care about most, not who got the best present. 

A lot of people thought my perception of Valentines Day would change once i had a boyfriend over the Valentines period, however, this is not the case. My morals aren't that fickle. Luckily for me, my boyfriend also doesn't believe in investing money into such a commercial day, so we will celebrate the day how with what we associate Valentines Day with.


I would be interested to know your thoughts of Valentines Day?
I also hope that you have a lovely day, whatever you do or don't do.

Remember: its a day to celebrate your love for someone and having that someone in your life.

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Monday 9 February 2015

Making a change: I joined the gym!

I am probably the most laziest person ever when it comes to exercise. It's not that i don't enjoy it when I'm there, its actually getting there that i find the problem! I have been rather ill as of late (seventh week in fact!) and after the umpteenth doctors appointment, she made a comment about my lifestyle. How if i was doing something, like exercise, i will be able to fight away bugs better. After, i was absolutely appalled that the doctor had the right to judge my lifestyle, the way i eat and how little exercise i do, i started to think that i wanted to be a bit more healthy. Not for her, but for me (i sent a very long email to my doctors about the comment she made and how it made me feel too! As if she had said that to someone who was really insecure about their weight then it could of had a completely different outcome).

So, i am a bit of a gym newbie. I have joined gyms before, and lasted about a month before i quit and got bored. I never brought any gym gear for that very reason too! However, this time, i have joined the gym with my boyfriend, so we can motivate each other to get off our lazy bums. I made sure i picked a gym which had everything that i wanted, a gym, classes, swimming pool and some cheeky extras such as a Jacuzzi, steam room, sauna. My last gym never did classes, or had a jacuzzi or any of the steam or sauna rooms, so this time i was determined to go all out!

As i have said, i am a gym newbie. So finding what to wear at the gym was a bit challenging! I spent five hours wondering around shops trying to find stuff that i wanted to wear. I already had trainers as i purchased them when i went running in the summer, but i just needed everything else. I may do a blog post showing you what i brought, in hope that it may help some of you!

But one thing i must mention...
Why do gym tops have to be made of lycra?! 
It clings to every imperfection on your body, and if like me, you don't have the perfect stomach, its definitely not something I'm gonna rush out and buy. So thats definitely something i found the hardest to purchase.

I may do a few blog posts in the future, of how i am getting on, mainly in hope you guys can keep me motivated!! As its a 12 month contract, so no getting out of this one. So keep your eyes pealed for what i ended up buying on my gym spending spree, i definitely tried to keep the cost down as much as possible.




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Thursday 5 February 2015

Girl Online book review

So it has taken me a while, but i have finally finished Girl Online! Don't be mislead by the fact it took me so long, only due to the fact my life has been so hectic with assignment deadlines that i haven't had a chance to read at lot lately. So i thought i would put together a kind of review for you all, if you haven't read it and would like to, or you have and want to hear someone else's opinion.

So here we go...

I definitely feel the book is suited for teenagers, it has that young adult vibe to it, and something i would of definitely been able to relate to back in the day! Zoe touches on anxiety really well within the book, as you will all know, she suffers hugely wrong anxiety and she puts it onto paper so well. i also suffer from anxiety, and i could relate to her every word. So she definitely got brownie points for that. The book kind of did something funny to me, something that has never really happened while i have read a book before, i actually felt exactly how the character was feeling. When she felt worried, scared, upset and anxious, i could feel my stomach feeling all those emotions too. I think it must be because i can relate to dealing with some not very nice people back in my school days and it must have brought the emotions back to me of how i felt, i don't want too go into too much detail, just incase there is someone who hasn't read it yet.

I have been speaking to one of my best friends, Laura (who's blog you can find, here) about the ending of the book. She seems to have the same thought pattern as me, the whole book was a really good read (even despite it being aimed at a younger age group than ourselves) however, the end kind of let it down. The end was very quick, blunt and too the point. Kind of like Zoe ran out of words and had to squeeze the ending into such a small space.

Despite the ending, i would still recommend the book. Especially if you suffer from anxiety, or you are in your teenage years, as i think it would definitely be something every teenager would be able to relate too. Congratulations Zoe, this is such a massive achievement, you have come so far and all your hard work has paid off.

Apologies for the lack of photography within this review, i downloaded the book onto my kindle and thats not very pretty to photograph when its all black and white!




Have you read Girl Online?
What was your thoughts?

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Monday 2 February 2015

Ice bar London


I went to the Ice bar in London last a few weekends ago and i just thought i would share with you my thoughts of the experiences. The idea has always been something that intrigued me, a bar full of complete ice?! So when my boyfriend suggested that we go to one in London, i jumped at the chance - quite literally!

The Icebar is within easy reach, just off Recents Street and its situated in a cute little square with lots of different restaurants and bars, it is definitely how i imagine London in the evenings with pretty flowers and fairy lights.

Once we got into the Icebar entrance, we was asked to join a long queue, however, this didn't last long and we was all seen to very quickly. All the staff were so lovely and helpful, and definitely had a knack when it came to throwing the cloak over your head! You are provided with a cloak which has a hood and mittens attached, as it is -5 inside - brrrrrr.

The first drink was free, and the whole cup was made out of ice! Which was pretty cool. We paid for another two drinks (one for each of us) and it came to a whopping £13!! It wasn't like the cups were big either, however, we could tell that they put a lot more alcohol in the second lot, obviously because this one wasn't free!




The whole place was so much smaller than i thought it would be! Like, literally tiny! Once all those people are in there, its hard to see everything and move around because its so small, which was a bit of a disappointment. 
















It was a lovely experience and i am glad that iv finally experienced it. However, i don't think i will be paying another visit.

Whats included in the price:
The price is £16 each
You get 40 minutes within the Ice Bar (which believe me, is more than enough, as there isn't much to do and you will be freezing!)
A choice of one drink


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