49 things I realised when rewatching Gossip Girl

Now in my days of procrastination, I have been rewatching my fave show Gossip Girl from the beginning and here are some things I noticed this time around in season 1...

1. Why does Serena always look shady AF?
2. Why does Blair look nervy and insecure - that is soooo not B?!
3. Jenny doesn't offend me in the first episode??? Normally little J is the MOST annoying person on the planet ever, but at the beginning she actually looks normal
4. WHO THE HELL IS THAT PLAYING BLAIR'S MUM??? And why did I never notice before that they swapped the actress playing Eleanor?? Bad fan
5. Why is Chuck not attractive? Waaaa
6. And why is Dan seeming appealing? Omg weird feelings right here
7. Eugh god forgot Chuck was all rapey in season 1. Not cool
8. Rufus is bae and always will be omg
9. Eugh omg Bart Bass. Forgot how much I do not like that guy
10. Blair and Nate god nooooooo, B and Chuck forever
11. God Serena annoys me SO much
12. Poor Eric. He's sweet
13. Lily????? What is your issue omg help your child
14. The Captain is also shady AF
15. HOW does Serena get away with wearing her uniform like that????
16. Dan, lol
17. Who dresses B? Some of her outfits are offensively bad
18. Serena and Dan, lol what is that
19. Serena and Blair are actual goals when they steal Eleanor's dresses
20. Why do they look flawless all the time. Hurtful
21. I want Blair's house omg so nice
22. God why is Dan so nice????
23. Just reminding myself he turns ridic in later series
24. WHEN WILL CHUCK GET HOT????
25. Dan punching Chuck hahahahahaha
26. Oooooo at a dance they dance to the PLL theme tune
27. That reminds me I should do one of these for PLL - sooooo many issues with that storyline
28. Lily and Rufus omg yesssssssss
29. God WHO THE HELL DRESSES CHUCK CHRIST ALIVE
30. Bart Bass. Eugh. No other words. He annoys every part of me. Cringe
31. God the strip club scene. Blair omg
32. BLAIR AND CHUCK OMG I FORGOT HOW AMAZING THIS IS OMG OMG OMG
33. I will forever be team B and C. Bye Nate lol
34. Lol Serena and that pregnancy test. Shock on Dan's face hahaha
35. I love you..... Woops awks
36. WHY WHY WHY WHYYYYYYY would Serena say she cheated on Dan??
37. Tbf that team is mint. Chuck, Nate, B and S = actual dream team
38. Bye Humphrey, soz
39. Eugh Serena killed someone?? Same night she slept with Nate?? Bad night for S. Zero friend points
40. OMG S's yellow and black bridesmaid dress is gross who designed that??
41. Awks dance at the wedding when you've just been dumped. Not ideal...
42. God Georgina causes so many problems.
43. Chuck and Blair heading to France awwwww
44. Oh wait
45. Chuck is still a spaz
45. Don't ditch B
46. Oh too late
47. GOD THIS ANNOYS ME SO MUCH
48. BUT I CAN'T WAIT FOR SEASON 2. Netflix binge commence
49. Also I sooooooo wanna live on the Upper East Side

Catch Up!

I can't believe how long it's been since I last wrote!! Dissertation work truly is taking over my life.. As well as other Uni work, the stress of finding a grad job, maintaining a work/social life/gym/sleep balance, life is pretty hectic at the mo!! At least I can successfully (kind of) say I've FINALLY started my diss! Took me long enough haha, if I could be given an award in procrastination I would win it every single day of my life. Everything, and I mean literally EVERYTHING seems more appealing than doing uni work at the minute. Slight bit of dust? Clearly I must hoover everywhere and bleach everywhere and clean the kitchen for the 18th time. I didn't think it was possible to avoid something this much until now... Ignorance truly is bliss, until deadlines creep around! Waaaa... Good news is, I have lots more to write about as I've been away for SO long! Watch out for new posts soon..

Home Comforts

God, I forgot how good it feels to be at home. Back in your own bed, with the chance of a bath if you please, full cupboards, the kettle constantly on, and best of all, back under a roof with all your favourite people and obvs, the dog!! Don't get me wrong I love uni, but it does feel nice to be back in a place where people actually like the kitchen being clean and don't blare out music til God knows when. It's nice to have some peace and quiet and some downtime with the fam, even if that means just watching X Factor, (which I fully intend on doing tomorrow night, btw)!
It's especially nice to be home this time of year as the fire comes on, talks of Christmas are in the air and presents are being discussed! Exciting times ahead! And let's not forget the food!! The way to my heart is deffo through my stomach, so it's no surprise I absolutely looooove being at home and seeing all the food available to eat! Never a moment of simply having to have pasta again for the sixth evening in a row... And best of all the baths!! I crave baths so much at uni, I never really realised how much I loved them til I moved away and was deprived of a good soak! It really is so nice to be at home and I'm sure everyone can agree they took everything for granted before uni and learnt the hard way to appreciate things, just like I did!

Now, I'm off to stock up on snacks and a cuppa and run myself, a nice, long, hot bath...

PRODUCT REVIEW: Vichy Normaderm Skincare

   Recently I decided to try a new skincare brand – Vichy. I have tried soooo many different brands and nothing seems to wow me. After endlessly stalking and over-analysing all the reviews at least 85 times, I gathered that it was worth a shot. I have combination skin where my t-zone is prone to oiliness and occasional break outs, but my cheeks are pretty normal. I have the darkest under eye circles known to existence and pretty bad eye bags so my face always looks quite dim and dull. I think that was one of my main desires – to brighten up my skin! I went out and after yet another conversation with the woman in Boots, I decided on Vichy. I went for the Vichy Normaderm collection, which is mainly for oily skin. I was a little reluctant as like I said, my cheeks are pretty standard, and didn’t want to dry out my cheeks with a drying mattifying moisturiser. I went for it anyway, and after three weeks of using it, here is what I think…

Cleasning Gel – This is nice and it does make my skin feel clean and washed. However, it is a gel, which I find a little annoying. I like the feel of a creamy cleanser, whereas this is an actual gel that requires water on the face beforehand and then more water to wash it off. This works for some people, but I’m not a huuuuge fan of the concept. Saying that, if you have mega oily skin this will be good for you, as you are not just piling up more and more layers of lotions on your skin, as this washes straight off! So although I find it a little tedious and damp, it is good and washing away excess oils and making sure you don’t have unnecessary layers of lotion and cream on your skin.

Toner – This toner is supposed to tighten pores and make them less visible. It is a a very light toner which I like, I have used ones more like gel consistency before and hated them so I really do like this toner. Does it tighten pores? Not that I’ve noticed… Saying that, I have only been using it for around three weeks and I still have a lot of the bottle to get through, so I will persevere. However, it does leave your skin totally dry and gets rid of any excess cleansing gel – it leaves the perfect base for moisturiser to go on nicely.

Moisturiser – This moisturiser is for the day and I really really like it. It is light, it goes on nicely, the packaging is small and cute, it smells nice and fresh and just makes my skin feel nice. It really is the perfect base for a primer to go on. However, I do find that it does not combat oil as much as it claims to as I still find myself reaching for my powder throughout the day!

Night Detox – I use this in the evening (obvs) after cleansing and toning, and I can say it makes my skin feel great. It absorbs well, smells nice, has a matte finish with no obvious shine and is a great way for your skin to rejuvenate overnight so you wake up feeling refreshed, and with noticeably brighter skin. Full marks for this cream!

There's also a micellar water, which I got as a free sample when buying these products. I personally am not a massive fan of micellar so haven’t actually used it yet, but for any micellar fans, considering how nice the other products are, I would say it’ll probably be right up your street!!

I will definitely be repurchasing the Vichy products when they run out (which by the way probably won’t be for ages – a little really does go a long way with these products)! I love the feel of my skin and I must say, since using them my skin has been clearer than ever, Significantly less break outs, much much much brighter and healthy looking skin, and it also seems to have done a good job and removing marks from past blemishes!! Fabulous! Could not recommend Vichy enough in terms of skin treatment and repair, but in terms of mattifying the oil – I’d say don’t get rid of your powder just yet!!

Goodbye Summer, Hello Winter!

As Winter is fast approaching, I thought I’d take a moment to reflect and remember Summer 2015, and what a fabulous summer it was!

   Holiday-wise I was pretty spoilt in that I was able to jet off to both Cyprus and Dubai! Now Cyprus was pretty standard in terms of how different it is to England, I’d been before and knew what to expect culture and temperature wise – still it was ah-may-zing! But but but, Dubai on the other hand, was a MASSIVE culture shock!! To come from England, which is mega relaxed about literally everything, it was crazy to go to somewhere – where may I add, had an average temperature of 45 degrees – where it was essential to be totally covered up at all times! Absolutely boiling! Saying that, the Dubai mall was fabulous and getting to visit the Atlantis hotel and waterpark was a massive massive highlight for me! Absolutely the best day by far!! The weather was boiling, the sea was like one big hot bath, the pool was relaxing, the beach was beautiful, the skyline was hugely impressive and the mall was full of amazingly cool shops such as Cartier and Tiffany - sadly just out of my price range!

    I was quite surprised to see Dubai was very Americanised in the way of shops and restaurants – there was a lot of outlets you’d expect to see in America. However, I’m not complaining as I am a verrrry fussy eater, so it was great to see something I recognised and actually wanted to eat – result!! 

   I am also a massive shark lover, and so seeing so many sharks in both the mall and the Atlantis was a massive highpoint of that trip for me!! I shall definitely be returning...

   I also had a birthday this summer - my 20th!! No longer a teenager, so there was mixed emotions about that one! But, as always, my mum made my birthday so much fun and well and truly spoilt me, with fabulous presents, lots of nice food and of course drink, and to unwind after all the fun, a spa day in Nottingham with a full body massage - amazzzing!! I look forward to see what is in store next year for the big 21! Eeeek...

   Summer for me is one of my favourite times of the year, as I love the hot weather, I love holidays and of course, my birthday is in July! The only downside is having to work whilst the weather is sooo nice... This summer, I went back to my go-to job as a waitress. I have done it since I was 16 and it fills the time (and my bank account) nicely in the months I have off from university. Scarily, next summer I will be done with uni and so it will be time to get a real life, proper adult grown up job. Gulp. Adult life awaits... I have a few months until then though, so more time to enjoy life living in denial that I can remain this way forever. I wish!

   Now as much as I love Summer, I am also a lover of Winter and cannot wait for all the fun of Halloween, Bonfire Night and of course, Christmas - my absolute fave time of year!! So let's bring on the cold weather and give me an excuse to wear the million new coats I convinced myself I totally need...

Until next time,

PRODUCT REVIEW: Benefit's It's Potent Eye Cream

Okay, I'm a lover of new stuff, especially beauty stuff. I'm literally obsessed. But I do like to get other people's opinions on stuff before I buy it, so I'm gonna put my opinion out there in the hope it helps someone!

Today I'm just gonna say a short piece on Benefit's Eye Cream. First of all, the packaging is sooooo fab! I really love the quirky little glass pot with the wood-look lid. It looks like an old school, vintage type cream and I love stuff like that! So that deffo wins it an immediate point!

Now the object of the cream is to brighten eyes, remove dark circles and just improve your under eye area in general, making you look more awake and brightening the entire area. It is supposed to do this if you apply it both day and night. Personally, I found the cream to be really smooth, soft and lightweight so it doesn't feel too heavy or gross on my eyes. But, I'm yet to see a huge difference to my under eye circles and darkness! I'll carry on with it as I've only been using it around three weeks or so but sadly, for me, it doesn't seem to be working just yet! Saying that, my eyes do feel refreshed and because it feels quite cold, it's a nice cooling feeling just before bed! Hopefully I'll see a difference soon!

Thanks for reading,

Work Experience!

Following my quest to better my CV and not spend my entire summer working as a waitress, I decided to take up some work experience at my local newspaper. This job was a 9-5 job which I did on top of my waitressing job, meaning I was in theory working two full time jobs! Tired was an understatement... 

Even though I spent the time totally exhausted, I got a great bit of experience, a useful reference, and even got some articles printed in the paper! Result!

It wasn't what I expected but it really was great.. They threw me straight in at the deep end; sending me out on jobs, making calls and conducting interviews, and getting to write up my own stories! It also helped me realise what I do actually do want to do when I finish uni! All in all a fab week that helped in more ways than one!