2017 Wishlist

2017 has already started with a bang, as I'm pleased to announce... I'VE GOT A JOB! 

Oh yes! That's right, no more posts moaning about my lack of employment and how bored I am. 

I'm now proud to say that at the end of January I will be the new Marketing Officer with my local Theatre! I'm absolutely over the moon to have been offered the job, it's really cliche but it's genuinely my dream job. I get to be surrounded by creative lovely people everyday working on things that I'm genuinely really excited about! Needless to say, I am probably the happiest I've been for months!

So all this excitement about new year and new job, has left me with a pretty hefty Wishlist for 2017! 

• A driving licence! - Now that I've got a job, I'm really keen to get my driving license so that I don't have to suffer the torments of public transport for too long! 
• Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua Foundation - I ran out of this foundation ages ago and I have been pining for it for ages, but with a £30+ price tag it's not budget friendly when you are living from a rapidly diminishing savings pot!
• MacBook Pro case  - I recently bought a MacBook Pro, secondhand from my best friend who was buying one of the brand new super fancy ones. I am totally in love with it and I don't think I will ever be able to go back to using a Windows Laptop ever again if I'm being honest! She gave me a load of cases for it, but I would really like a nice sleek Marble effect one... I'm painfully basic like that, I don't even care.
• A holiday abroad! - Dan and I haven't been on holiday since 2015 and we are really longing for a nice hot beach holiday somewhere with plenty of fresh fruit & veg and beautiful scenic walks. 2016 was a bit of a bitch of a year if I'm being honest (I think it was for a lot of us!) so we would love to have a week somewhere sunny to just relax and enjoy ourselves.  
• To rescue a couple of Cats - Dan and I are planning on moving out this year and the most important thing on our list is to adopt a couple of Cats from my local Cat rescue. The woman that runs it does such an amazing job (both my Cats at home are from her and they are beautiful) so we would really love to rescue a couple more fluff balls and give them their forever homes. 
• To visit the theatre more often -  This should be pretty easy now that I'm working at one, but I absolutely love going to the theatre. I have a particular interest (read: obsession) with Shakespeare and I've only had the opportunity to see a handful of the plays, I aim to change that this year! 
• Cacti/ Succulent - This was on my A/W wishlist but I've still not managed to find one that I love enough to buy. I really love having plants on my desk so I'm hopeful that I will be able to find the perfect Succulent in the next few months to brighten up my desk at home (and maybe work if it's allowed!) 

So that's it really! I couldn't think of anything else to wish for from 2017. I've covered some other points in my New Years Goals post incase you are interested to read more about what I hope to come out of 2017! 

What's on your wishlist this year? 

A/W Reading Recommendations

Autumn/Winter is the perfect time of year for snuggling down with a blanket and a spicy candle and getting absorbed into a good read. The rain taps at your windows, a candle flickers and your radiators are on full heat, now let me suggest what to pick up on those days when the furthest you're prepared to walk is the kitchen. 

Hygge by Meik Wiking 

- When planning this post, Hygge felt like an obvious choice. Hygge explores how the Danish have upheld their reputation as being one of the happiest countries in the world. Hygge is all things cosy, blankets, hot chocolate and candles. It's such a calming and informative read that it will have you wanting to snuggle under a blanket with a warm drink in an instant. Ideal for those rainy dreary days when you need a pick-me-up. 

A Christmas Carol and Other Christmas Writings by Charles Dickens 

- Sometimes you can't beat a classic. Everyone knows the story of Scrooge and the ghosts but there is something magical about reading it around Christmas and experiencing the story be it for the first time or the 100th. Also, let's just take a moment to appreciate how beautiful the Penguin Clothbound edition is 😍

Stealing Snow by Danielle Paige 

-A new purchase and the only book on this list that I haven't read. But can you find a more Wintery book? I love the story of The Snow Queen and I've heard that this is a Snow Queen retelling with a twist. I'm realllly looking forward to indulging myself with this book and getting transported away. 

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas 
- Probably not an immediate choice when you think autumn/winter but I first read this book in the Autumn and was totally obsessed. For me this novel is a year round read but I'm going to be re-reading it (and ACOMAF) over Christmas as a little gift to myself because OMG these books. 😱 This is a perfect night time read to get cuddled under a duvet and read about dangerous Fae and a heroine that kicks ass.

A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin 

- I feel like autumn/winter is the ideal time to get your head stuck into a tome. So many people avoid reading the GOT series because of the sheer size of the books (I feel you, it takes me MONTHS to finish these!) but in A/W you have so much more time to laze around and just read. Ideal for tackling a book that intimidates you. 

30 "Reasons Why I'm a Dick" Facts About Me

1.  I love to make self-indulgent listicles talking about myself. 
2.  I just used the word Listicle. 
3. As with pretty much every list I write, there's always a little fan girl in the back of my head wanting it to go viral... cause you know... I'm alllllll about that dollar. #helpmeimpoor. 
4. I genuinely find myself funny. I will always laugh at my own jokes. 
5. I'm writing this purely for my own amusement apologies if you're bored rigid already. 
6.  I don't comment enough on other people's blogs. Like I read them... but I don't comment. I'm a bad person. 
7. I'm one of those people that will tip spare change in restaurants - "here's 25p made up from the coppers, I don't even think you deserve a tip but you're welcome! please don't spit in my food"  
8. I refuse to pay for bottled water unless that's the only drink I'm having, in which case I make a huge deal about the fact I'm drinking bottled water ... I've been known to take the glass bottle home with me. 
9. I get mind-numbingly envious over bloggers that started last week and already have 10,000 followers... *internal sobs into almond dream ice-cream*
10. I'm a dietary requirement nightmare. Pescetarian with dairy intolerance... restaurants are hell. 
11. I genuinely love my cats more than 90% of people. 
12. I speak for my cats. Tigger has a Russian accent. I don't know why.
13. Tigger is also actually a mooncub and is from the moon. He seeks to destroy human kind. 
14. You have no idea how funny I find the above two facts. 
15. I'm at that point where I'm starting to feel smug about being in the same relationship for almost 9 years. 13-year old me knew what she wanted in life. Screw you countless people that told me I was too young to settle down!
16. Even though I haven't found employment yet, I'm still not going to apply to work in my local co-op... I can't do it to myself. I left when I was 17 and I'm not going back! 
17. I own around 200 books and I have 60 or so to read, yet,  I'm still going on a book haul in a few days... YOLO.
18. I still use YOLO.
19. I hate being stereotyped as an Essex girl to the point where I've told people I was from Suffolk.
20. I can't share food. At all. 
21. I will eat cheese knowing that it will make me ill and I will still moan that other people allowed me to eat it. 
22. I own over 100 nail polishes but will consistently use the same 5-6. Ooops. 
23. I hate speaking on the phone. If it's for business or important reasons I'm fine, but if you pass me the phone for a friendly chat to a family member expect that phone to be thrown back at you. 
24. I frequently wonder if my life is actually a dream and I'm going to wake up as a toddler. 
25. I can become obsessed with something really quickly and then just as quickly forget about it. 
26. I will full on ugly cry if I'm hungry and there isn't anything around that I fancy eating. 
27. I have a love/hate relationship with Avocado. Why do you taste so shit on your own but you're so heavenly with chipotle & garlic granules?
28. I spent 3 years moaning about University and now I've left I have spent more time crying over missing it than I ever did when I was actually there. 
29. This is the second year in a row when I've committed myself to NaNoWriMo but haven't actually managed to write anything... sigh.
30. I never actually intended to write 30 facts.
31. This is my last fact and it's not even no.30... how anti-climactic. 

I hope you enjoyed this little random post. I just felt like writing something to make myself laugh. You gotta do, what you gotta do. 

Christmas Lush Wishlist

MY FIRST OFFICIAL CHRISTMAS THEMED POST!

I don't care that it's only November, I bloody love Christmas! But to make it less festive I've not gone full on festive with the photography. You're welcome. 

I personally adore the Christmas range at Lush and it is 100% my favourite collection as everything smells so good. So I thought this year I would share what Lush goodies I'm planning/hoping to get over the Christmas season and what I'm thinking of picking up in Oxford Street. I'm going to cut this to 3 products per category as honestly I could just list the entire collection. Instead, I wanted to highlight my absolute favourites from this year's collection. 

BATH BOMBS

So White | £3.75 | I will undoubtedly buy at least one of these every year without fail. I absolutely adore the crisp clean apple scent that this gives off. It's not the most exciting bath bomb but the smell is enough to win it over for me. They've been slightly redesigned this year to have a green leaf on the side of the 'apple' and the inside gives off a green hue this year instead of the usual pinkish red. 

Shoot for the Stars | £4.25 | This is a bath bomb that has been revamped this year and looks absolutely stunning! It has the same scent as Golden Egg (one of my easter favourites!) which is a sweet toffee/orangey smell. It's a bright blue bath bomb with three golden star melts that leaves your bath looking like a starry night sky. Really looking forward to grabbing this one. 

Golden Wonder | £4.25 | Because Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas without a Golden Wonder Bath Bomb. This is a firm favourite every year and is one that optimises Christmas at Lush for me. On the outside is a golden present and on the inside is a turquoise, blue and gold centre that fills your bathroom with the fresh zesty scent of citrus. Winner. 

BUBBLE BARS

Peeping Santa Bubbleroon | £3.95 | I bought this for the first time last year and was initially dubious as the thought of a bright red bath wasn't massively appealing. However, the smell of this. OMG. I absolutely adored it by the time I had used it up. The best way I can describe the scent is festive strawberry and if that isn't enough to make you want to buy it then I don't know what will be. 

The Magic of Christmas | £5.95 | One of the most expensive offerings from Lush this year but certainly worth the money. This is Christmas in one reusable stick. Cinnamon, Clove, Almond and Orange - can it be more festive? Not a particularly spectacular product but the smell packs a punch and can be used in Lush cocktails easily (my favourite thing to do with reusable bubble bars).

Santasaurus | £5.95 | Literally the cutest offering from lush this year. This little dino on a stick is adorable and smells amazing! I can't wait to try this out and I love the fact it's reusable as they last ages and as I said above, they work great in cocktails. This is another fresh citrus offering (can you see a theme emerging here) but the Orange is dominant so it still has that festive scent we're all longing for. 

OXFORD STREET EXCLUSIVES

Satsuma Bath Bomb | £3.75 | This is the only Christmas Oxford Exclusive I can find and I will definitely be picking it up later in the month. I love orange citrus scents and I'm certain this one will be no different. It's designed to look like a satsuma so as you would expect it produces a bright orange bath with a strong scent. 

Lime Pastille Bath Melt | £2 | Last time I went to Oxford street I picked up a couple of melts and I intend to do the same again this time round. Lime Pastille seems like a great option, crisp citrus scents are obviously my favourite and the colour is unusual but I imagine mixed in with some other options (maybe So White?) it could make a really stunning bath. 

Monsieur Gustave Bath Melt | £2 | The second melt I'm interested in has got to be Monsieur Gustave. This is for two reasons. 1. It reminds me of the film Ratatouille - Gustave...see the connection? Just me? 2. It's purple. Bright purple. I LOVE purple and blue baths. Anything that can make me feel like I'm bathing in the night sky will make me a happy bunny. This smells like lavender and warmth. It's the ideal night time product, and I'm really excited to use this in a cocktail of some sort. 

I'm actually really sad with some of the discontinued products this year for Christmas. For instance, WHERES CINDERS AT? Cinders was one of my all-time favourite Christmas bath bombs and it's been cruelly ripped away just when I needed it the most. Maybe a tad dramatic but you get the gist. 

What irritates me further is that they haven't replaced it. Meaning that now there is only 1 bath bomb under £3 which is the rather underwhelming Butterbear. Not cool Lush. 

This is as bad as when they took away Ponche (THE ONLY SHOWER GEL I'VE EVER LIKED FROM LUSH!). Apparently, they have made a batch of alcohol-free Ponche for the Oxford Street Store, but I have heard rumour that it lacks the kick of the old version and is by all accounts just a little bit weak. I wish they would bring back the Tequila soaked original Ponche for stores nationwide as honestly, it was the best shower gel Lush have ever made in my opinion and I would buy gallons of the stuff if they brought it back. 

Have you got any favourites from the seasonal range this year? Anything you think I need to pick up from Oxford Street? Let me know in the comments! 

Baby Steps To Self-Care

If you're looking for a post that tells you to run a lush bath and make a cup of tea then this is not your post. Instead, I want to talk about the real basics of self-care, the baby steps if you will. The things that are important to maintain a healthy mind. Not the flourishes and cutesy fun stuff that can come later. Whilst I'm a huge fan of baths and tea, this is not the time for it. Here's my self-care tips if you are having a terrible day, week, month, hell even year. 

1. Set an alarm, when you wake up open your curtains and make your bed. - By setting an alarm and waking up to it you are acknowledging the day's start. Don't put it off by staying in bed for hours, it can lead to negative thoughts. Instead, when your alarm goes off, get up and get out. Open your curtains/blinds let in the sun. Make your bed. It's a simple thing but it means that you've got a task ticked off your list only minutes after you've woken up. Look at you, you're being productive already! 

2. Have some form of breakfast - I'm not going to lecture you here and tell you to make a full breakfast because truth be known I don't eat breakfast myself 98% of the time. If eating in the morning isn't your thing, make yourself drink (I know I said no tea, but hear me out!). You need to get some fluids back into your system after being asleep. It's also a great motivator to get you out of bed. I normally get up, open my curtains, make my bed and then go downstairs to make myself a coffee before I do anything else. 

3. Shower/bath or clean your face - It's so easy for someone to say go have a shower and wash your hair. I know how draining that can feel if you're in a rut. I'm not going to guilt trip you or judge you if you don't shower for a day. If you can't bare the thought of showering or having a bath then just wash your face. It doesn't have to be with products you don't even need a flannel (although, I would advise a nice cleanser and flannel for optimal results). I feel groggy and useless when I've not washed my face, cleansing your skin is such a basic thing but it really can make you feel brighter on a shit day. 

4. Make a list - Organise yourself at the beginning of the day. Plan when you're going to have food and what you're going to have (more on that in a moment), plan to get some small tasks done, maybe put on a load of washing, tidy up your main living area or reorganise a drawer that is getting messy and annoying you. Getting small tasks ticked off early can help to lift your mood and helps to make you feel more in control of life. 

5. Plan for fun - Allow yourself some time in the day to do what you want to do. Read a book, Watch a TV show, do some mindfulness activities, draw, go for a walk. Do whatever you need to do to feel relaxed and happy. It doesn't matter if you spend 30 minutes or 5 hours doing this. Just do it. Make time for you. 

6. Eat well - Not necessarily healthily. Food is something to be enjoyed but it is also nourishment. I'm not going to recommend getting fast food or takeaways as it doesn't offer any nutritional goodies or the therapeutic effect of cooking for yourself. Instead, make an old favourite or try a new yummy recipe (highly recommend Pinterest for that) But try to include a couple of vegetables limit the dairy content. My favourite food when I'm feeling rubbish is Quorn 'chicken' burgers with homemade garlic wedges and salad. The wedges and Quorn burger offer the comfort side, but I don't feel guilty because of the salad. Having takeaway or fast food when you're feeling low is not a good idea, you can start to use it as an emotional crutch (trust me I've been there) and you will only feel negatively towards yourself after eating it because you know it's bad for you. 

7. Get some air - Whilst I would recommend going for a walk or sitting in your garden for half an hour, I'm aware this isn't always possible. If you can't leave the house and don't have a garden then open a window, get some fresh air in. The cool air helps to clear a foggy mind and can help to make you feel refreshed. 

8 Go to bed - Get an early night. Try to start winding down around 9-10pm and aim to be asleep before 12pm. Getting at least 8 hours sleep is really important but I've found that often I need around 9-10 hours to feel even vaguely human the next day. When you start to feel tired don't fight it. Allow yourself to rest, acknowledge that you deserve it and that anything that hasn't been completed in that day can be tackled the next. 

These things may seem really obvious and self-explanatory but I know I've had days where even the little things have felt like a monumental task. If you're having a rough time rememeber to be gentle on yourself. You are imporant and worthy of time and care. You deserve to be looked after and you deserve to nourish and look after your body. We are too often are own harshest critics and forget to be cheerleaders. 

Look after yourself. 

My A/W Wishlist

A/W always gets me feeling spendy, whether it's because of the change of season or just my mind preparing for Christmas (Yes, I know it's October, sorry not sorry) I always manage to accumulate a list of things that I didn't know I needed until the autumn season set in. 

So today I thought I would share that list for no other reason that I thought it would be a good blog post and I enjoy lists. Yeah, top quality content right here yo. 

1. A Calligraphy Pen - Story time: When I was a wee lass, i.e: 10 or so, I was brought a calligraphy set for my birthday, the booklet inside described how to write in old-fashioned medieval script and I absolutely loved it. However, I was useless. Utterly rubbish, and at that time if I wasn't great at something I tended to give it up pretty darn quick. Flash forward 5-6 years and I started using calligraphy/fountain pens in my art lessons for line-art and fell in love with the scratchy nibs and deep Black India ink. But once school finished I never continued with that technique, always preferring my trusty Faber-Castell PITT artist pens, that offered a more reliable line.  Flash forward a further 6 years (god I'm old) and now "Modern Calligraphy" and hand lettering is all the rage. I realllly want to get back into it so I'm hoping that I will be able to purchase a new pen & ink in the coming months. 

2. Desk Lamp - I'm working at the desk in my room more and more now, but as the evenings are drawing in it's getting harder to do. I've found the perfect lamp at Dunelm Mill though, it's copper and oh so aesthetically appealing. 

3. Autumnal Candles - I mean OBVIOUSLY. I've actually already gone out and brought more candles but I'm still including it on the list because you can NEVER have enough scented goodness in your life. 

4. Succulents/Cacti - I already have a Bamboo Plant that is heavily featured in 90% of my blog photos and I recently acquired another little succulent style plant with little pink flowers (Don't ask me the name because I've totally forgotten it), but I would really love some little Cacti to join them on my desk. Plants really help to keep me feeling fresh and happy when I'm  working and positively impact my mental health so enough is never enough. 

5. Topshop Joni Jeans - Do I even need to explain this? These are for real my favourite jeans ever. Super stretchy, super comfy, but so pricey. I will be saving up for a new pair of these as I just haven't found a pair of jeans that fits so comfortably and stops me looking like a potato. 

6. The Little Book of Hygge - Now no longer on my list as my lovely other half decided to surprise me with this as a little random gift to cheer me up after a particularly stressful week. If you love being cosy and want to know how the danish have earnt their reputation as one of the happiest nations then look no further.

7. Thyme & Mint Candle - This seems exceptionally random but hear me out, my local Fenwicks has some amazing candles. One of which is a "Thyme and Mint" Candle that no lie smells identical to a restaurant in Crete that I've been going to since I was 6. It's a really beautiful Mediterranean smell that holds so many memories for me and I would absolutely love to get my hands on this to save for when Dan & I move out in 2017. 

8. NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream - I've got a major love for these and I would really like to grab some darker, seasonal shades. I've currently got my eyes on Rome, Berlin and Vancouver. 

9. Wall Art - I've been working on getting my room looking more like an adult uses it rather than the 16-year-old that it represented when I moved back into my family home after leaving Uni. One major part of this is taking down the posters full of teenage angst and replacing them with some wall art. I've recently brought some Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy digital prints for my wall that I cannot wait to get printed and framed.  

10. Lush Halloween & Christmas - You guys know I'm a huge Lushie, and I have been stopping myself from buying any of the range for the past month because I will be visiting the Oxford Street store in November. I'm super excited to grab as much of the ranges as I can although I have a feeling that I will be too late for the Halloween collection!

11. Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua - My all-time, hands down favourite foundation. I have also tried the Les Beiges foundation but I just haven't gotten on with it as well. This is obviously a real luxury product at £33 for a bottle but it is so worth the money and leaves my skin looking flawless. 

12. Books - Nice a vague and for a good reason. When I visit London in November I will be visiting Picadilly Waterstones, Foyles and Forbidden Planet. I don't have a set amount of books I want to buy and I don't have a specific list as honestly I don't have the money nor space to store many more books... my shelves are quite literally overflowing. However, I am a realist and I know that I will end up buying books. So that's why this is on my wishlist. Also, you can never have enough books, right? 

13. Washi Tape - I'm getting really into Washi Tape for my bullet journal at the moment and I'm really enjoying using it to brighten up the pages and create some interest. I would love to get some more interesting colours and designs to keep mixing things up and making my journal aesthetically pleasing. 

14. Blog Props - Sometimes I feel like my photos can get a little bit stale over here and recently I've really been working on mixing things up. I'd love to be able to grab a few more blog props and things to create interest in my photos. But that is definitely easier said then done so if you have any recommendations then please leave them in the comments! 

15. Leuchtturm1917 Dotted Notebook - Yes, a new bullet journal! I'm getting through mine pretty quickly as I'm almost half way through it and I know I'm going to need a new one in 2017. I've spotted a metallic special edition one in my local Fenwicks which is REALLLLY tempting, so I may just have to make a cheeky purchase. 

16. Art Supplies - Truthfully, I don't really need any more art supplies. I've always been someone who draws and has collected a ridiculous pile of supplies over the years. However, I've only recently got back into drawing after ignoring it for a good 3-4 years and I feel like all my old art stuff no longer really belongs to me. It belongs to 16-year-old Emily who used to badly draw manga and thought she could earn money from it one day. Not 22-year-old Emily who is interested in realism and watercolours. I'm a totally different person since I last took art seriously and so I feel like I need new supplies that compliment this new mindset and the new me. I don't know if that really makes sense, but I'm sure there will be some of you out there that can understand where I'm coming from. 

What are you lusting over this autumn? 

15 Things I Strive For

I'm not going to bullshit you, I am not someone that really strongly believes in the power of positive thought. HOWEVER, I do think there is something to be said about if you want something to happen badly enough it will. 

So I thought I would make this post as a little list of things I want to happen in my life. 

You guys seemed to really like this style of listicle last time I wrote "22 Things That Make Me Smile", so I thought I would do something similar but with some of my aspirations big and small for the future.

1. Own a Chihuahua - it may sound ridiculous but I've desperately wanted a dog since the age of 11. Recently my best friend's mum rescued a little Chihuahua pup and I fell head over heels in love with him. I cannot wait to be in a situation to hopefully rescue one myself! 
2. Move out - sort of linked to the above point. I am desperate to move out having just left uni for good, the change in lifestyle from being at uni to being an unemployed graduate is horrific so I can't wait to get back on my feet again. 
3. Get a foot on the career ladder - my passion in life is children's literature and enabling more children to read, so I'm hoping that in 2017 I can secure my dream and become an editorial assistant so I can eventually work my way up to the children's department of a publishing house.  I was really close to it this year but was let down by a rather inconsiderate recruiter (but that's a story for another day!) 
4. Read all the books on my shelves - I have around 60+ unread books on my shelves and I would really really like to finish them by the end of next year! I'm trying to be on a book buying ban but that's not working out so great at the moment!
5. Learn Calligraphy - When I was younger I had a Calligraphy set and was fairly good at it, but as the years have gone on I've lost all skill and I'm back to teaching myself the basics! 
6. Travel - I've spoken about this a few times before but travelling is a huge goal of mine. I won't list all the places here because, to be honest, it would be an entire post worth itself (I may do that in the future!) 
7. Sell some Art - Something that I don't ever really talk about is my creative side, but I've actually been drawing since I can remember and whilst Books are my all consuming love, drawing was my first. I used to do commissioned pieces on DeviantArt but I only ever received DA points for them (back in the day!). I would really like to get back to my creative side one of these day's and maybe even start up an Etsy page. But this is all very speculative! 
8. Get driving! - I'm currently learning to drive and I absolutely love it! I cannot wait to pass my test and get driving! It will offer me so much more freedom than I'm currently experiencing. 
9. Publish a Novel - I've toyed with the idea of writing my own novel for years now and it's something that I plan on exploring further in the winter (hopefully I will be taking part in Nanowrimo again this year!) 
10. Clear up my Skin - My skin has been very on and off recently and sometimes will almost trick me into thinking it's cleared right up only to unleash a mountain of spots. I would really like to get my skin cleared up in the next year so I start feeling like an actual adult! 
11. Accomplish my blog goals - I set myself some pretty ambitious blog goals for 2016 and I'm really hoping to accomplish these soon! My goals are 1k for Insta and BlogLovin' 2.5k on Twitter and 250 on Pinterest! It's going to take some building but I'm hopeful that with some hard work I can get most of the way there if not get to it!
12. Complete a mindfulness colouring book - Sounds random but I have an insane love of completing things. I can't leave a game unfinished and any challenge has to be completed. I absolutely hate leaving things unfinished and for some reason completing a mindfulness colouring book seems like a really satisfying thing. 
13. Care less - A little vaguer than the rest of my list but I really need to learn to care less. I'm an overly sensitive person in some aspects in my life and I'm very critical of myself. I worry all the time that I'm not liked in the "blogging community" and I stress over the fact that I feel like my blog is failing. I also over analyse friendships and feel like I'm a burden on people. The logical side of my brain knows this is silly, but there's a vulnerable lesser seen side of me that I let rule my actions and I need to learn to banish those thoughts and not be controlled by them. 
14. Go to a blogging event - This links to the above. I've never put myself forward for events or accepted invites as I've always felt not good enough or not popular enough to go. I'm really hoping to make a concerted effort to go to one soon. Or maybe just casually meet up with a few fellow bloggers outside of an event. That would be lovely. 
15. Blog more! - Yes! I know! I say it all the time. I actually really love writing this blog and it genuinely makes me really happy for the most part. When I was daily blogging back in January I was over the moon. I really enjoyed it and I felt like my blog, style and writing all really improved in that short space. I would love to get back to that rhythm of daily blogging. For the time being, I'm trying to get a post up every other day and it seems to be a good balance at the moment. However, I may start adding a few more in as the months go by and try to gradually bring it back up to a daily blog.

I hope this has been an interesting post, I mainly wanted to remind myself of some of the goals I have set myself in life so that  when everything feels overwhelming I can come back here and gain some perspective or motivation. 

If you fancied doing something similar please feel free to and link to it below or send it to me on twitter @bambisblogs. I would love to know what your aspirations are! 

September TBR

I'm back on the reading hype again so I thought I would share what I'm planning on reading throughout September! I know a lot of you are avid readers as well so I thought it would be fun if we could have little chats in the comments about your TBR lists each month when I share mine! 

1. Queen of Shadows by Sarah J Maas 

   I've been binge reading this series in time for the new release Empire of Storms which, despite being somewhat controversial, looks amazing! Queen of Shadows is #4 in the Throne of Glass series and follows a girl called Celaena Sardothian as she gets wrapped up in a whole world of trouble. It's a really fun series to read and the books are very easy to get into. In fact, I actually managed to break my 5-month long reading slump thanks to Crown of Midnight - the second in the series - so that just goes to show how captivating the writing is! 

2. Savage Song by V.E. Schwab 

   Hang on whilst I fangirl for half a page yeah? If you've read my bookish posts before you will know I'm a HUGE fan of V.E. Schwab. She's one of my all time favourite authors and everything she writes is flawless. This is obviously going to be a must read for me and I've been dying to get to it! It was also on my list of most anticipated book releases of 2016. 

The next two books on my TBR were chosen at random. I have a mug in my room filled with little pieces of folded up paper each with a book name written on them. At the beginning of the month I will draw however many I feel like reading and stick to them! 

I find it really hard to choose a book to read as I have SOOOO many options, this way I end up reading things that I would perhaps put off otherwise! 

3. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

    This was the first piece of paper I drew, I've had Frankenstein for a couple of years now and still haven't got round to reading it so I was really happy to see this. My edition is one of the beautiful Penguin Clothbound Classics which are absolutely stunning. Really keen to read a classic this month. 

4. The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton 

    The second randomly selected book and another one that I just seem to forget about. The premise of this story sounds really intriguing though and the magic element is definitely what will keep me hooked. It looks like a fairly easy read as well so I will look forward to getting started with that. 

5. Empire of Storms by Sarah J Maas 

   Rather obvious but once this comes out on the 6th September I will be running to my local Waterstone's on the hunt for it. I've been binge reading the series so it would be rude to not include it on my TBR for September - although whether I get to it in the month remains to be seen! 

As you can see I've got a pretty busy month of reading ahead of me. I'm going to be doing a round-up at the end of the month with a bit more detail about each of the books I read, however, if you want to see a full in-depth review of any of the books mentioned then let me know and I will make a note of it! 

What are you reading this month? 

Tips For A Better Night Sleep

Ah, sleep. A precious commodity that is so quickly lost to the stress and strain of the world. 

Many people including myself have suffered from insomnia, in fact, it can be as many as 1 in 3 people that will suffer from insomnia at any point in their lives (citation).  

So with this shocking inevitability, it is always wise to develop coping strategies just in case that evening comes when you literally can't get to sleep. 

I've suffered from insomnia on and off for around 6 years of my life. So believe me when I say that it is painfully debilitating and can honestly ruin your life in a matter of days. 

I first experienced insomnia when I was in college. I had been suffering from depression and insomnia crept in like a monster waiting on the sidelines to pounce. Just when I yearned to sleep the most, it was taken away from me and I was left tired and unable to cope with day to day living. Desperate, I went to the doctor who recommended something called "sleep hygiene" - the idea being that you set yourself a strict routine before bedtime and don't allow yourself to do anything in bed except sleep. For me this was terrifying. For weeks I had managed to cope by gradually dozing off to the television and scraping around two- three hours of desperately needed rest. But to be told that I needed to turn the television off as it was detrimental felt like taking away my last lifeline. 

I tried sleep hygiene for around a week. It failed. 

I couldn't cope with not having a distraction and being left in a dark room with my already negative thoughts seemed to make everything worse. I was still only managing around two - three hours sleep due to sheer exhaustion and it felt pointless. 

But then as quickly as it came, it went. I was free. I could sleep. I thought I was magically cured. But that's not how insomnia works, like depression and anxiety, it's not really something that can be "cured" instead it's something that ebbs and flows like the tide. 

So needless to say a few years later it came back whilst I was at Uni. For me it seems to come whenever I'm experiencing a lot of stress, it's like a little extra punch in the gut every time I'm overworked and stressed and desperate for a good nights sleep, it doesn't come. 

So over the year's I've developed some coping strategies that I thought I would share with you, even if you've never personally had issues with insomnia, this post may help give you some handy little relaxation tips along the way for your own night-time routine. 

Step 1: Caffeine Free Tea

Something that I do to calm myself down and relax before trying to get to sleep is to drink a soothing tea. My personal favourite is this Calming Tea from M&S which contains chamomile, lime flower & lavender. This is a fairly mild tea and I find it really good at relaxing me for bed. It's naturally caffeine free and doesn't cost a fortune (I highly recommend M&S for their selection of tea!). 

Step 2: Candles

Once I get into bed with my tea, I like to light a candle. The one I'm using at the moment is a Strawberry Buttercream Yankee Sampler. I enjoy using the Yankee Candle Samplers as they tend to last a good amount of time and are considerably cheaper than buying one in a jar. My top tip is to head to ASDA for these as often you can find them for £1 or less! 

I find that lighting a candle and filling the room with a nice relaxing scent also puts me in a good mood to sleep, it really helps to have a relaxing environment. 

Step 3: Journaling

Bullet Journals have definitely hit the world by storm recently and they are certainly a love/hate phenomena. I personally love mine and I find it really helpful to jot down any thoughts or things that are bothering me before I go to sleep. These are usually in the form of tasks or events that I need to remember or complete. Therefore, by writing them into my journal, I'm able to remove them from my thoughts as I know that they are in the journal for me to tackle the following day. Not only does this help me relax but it actually really helps with my productivity and motivation in my daily life. 

Step 4: Reading

So I've got my tea, the candles been lit and is filling my room with its sweet aroma and I've cleared my mind from the daily stresses. The next thing on my list is to sit down and read. Now this is obviously my own personal preference as I'm a bookworm, but even if you are not one for reading fiction I do believe that picking up a coffee table book or even reading some blogs can really help you to switch off from the real world for half an hour or so and just let your daily stresses melt away. 

However, to be totally transparent with you, I've only just been able to get back into this routine as I've been suffering from world's worst book slump and hadn't managed to read properly for a solid 3 months. What I was doing instead was watching an episode of a random show (something I'm not too invested in) on Netflix, I watch through my kindle and have the sound and brightness at the lowest setting possible as to not overly stimulate my brain. This is not ideal but sometimes you need a little distraction to calm yourself down and be at a point where you are ready to sleep. 

That being said, if you are able to, I highly recommend picking up a book and reading a couple of chapters a night, I really find this helps to tire out my mind and my eyes and leaves me feeling really ready to sleep. 

Step 5: Tracking.

Once I'm ready to hit the hay, I like to track my sleep. Quite a few months back I was lucky enough to try out the S+ ResMed Sleep Tracker* which is the world's first non-contact sleep tracker - meaning that you don't need to wear a wristband or leave your phone under your pillow! Simply set this up and connect it to the free phone app and you are good to go. The tracker offers insightful details about your sleep, such as the amount of REM sleep you get a night, and how good your sleeping conditions are. This product is a little pricey as it retails at £129.95 at John Lewis but it does offer invaluable information about your sleeping patterns which can be a real help if you are struggling with insomnia or having issues maintaining a good quality of sleep. It also has a feature that will gradually wake you up in your lightest sleep meaning that it reduces the horrible groggy feeling we can get when we're rushed awake by that god awful iPhone alarm! 

However, if you are looking for some information on your sleep but don't have over a £100 to spend then I also recommend the app Sleep Cycle. Although it doesn't offer the same level of in-depth results and is not as advanced or accurate it does still track your sleep with relative accuracy and also has a feature to slowly wake you up when you are in your lightest sleep between two set times. 

I find sleep tracking really helps to regulate my sleep and I've found that I'm able to fall asleep earlier and wake up feeling fresher after using some form of sleep tracking for a sustained amount of time.

If you've not tried this yet then it's definitely something worth considering!  

So these are my tips for getting a better night sleep! 

I hope this has helped in some way if you are struggling with night time at the moment. It's a really shitty situation to be in and the only thing you can do is find coping mechanisms that help you deal with it. These are mine and they may not necessarily help, but on the off chance that they do I felt compelled to write this post. 

I hope you all have a wonderful night sleep! 

*This product was sent to me for consideration for review. For more information view my Disclaimer

Top 5 Summer Scents 2016

I feel like this blog post has been a reallllllly long time coming. My last post was almost a month ago (crazy!), my domain has now changed to bambisblogs.com,  and I don't know where the time has gone. So before I chat about some amazing summer scents I thought I would give you a lil' head's up on my situation at the moment and explain my random absence.

I've been in a bit of a life slump recently. 

Job hunting is a nightmare and practically impossible at the moment, I've not been able to read - which is a huge change for me as I used to average 3-4 books a month if not more -  and I've not been able to write. 

Reading and writing are basically my only real passions in life and to feel completely disconnected from them has been a living hell. 

I didn't want to force a blog post as I knew it would be pretty miserable and reflect my mood, whilst I'm totally happy to share any down moments on my blog, I didn't want this to become a really moody unhospitable place. I'm not about that. 

But the sun has come out again and I am starting to return to normal Emily. I've almost finished a book (Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Mass... OMG IT'S AMAZING) and now I'm sitting in my garden at the table - having just eaten a monster bowl of curry super noodles because that's what I do now - with my laptop typing away into this blog post that is starting to lose its original point! 

eh heh. 

So before I ramble on any further let us talk about the real reason you clicked this post... My Top 5 Summer Scents! 

Is it just me that has a selection of perfumes they will only ever wear in certain seasons? 

Like I have a ridiculous amount of perfumes that are purely for summer and then I have a few that are transitional and a few that are winter only...just me? 

ZARA- Floral Bouquet For  A Sunset In The Market £12.99 

Whilst I can't find this online, I'm sure that Zara is notorious for not having their entire perfume range available on their site. This perfume is a light floral scent that truly matches its creative description. If you're not a huge fan of floral perfumes or you find most floral perfumes to smell a little like an old lady then this could be what you are looking for. The scent is fresh and young whilst still giving you that feeling of being surrounded by beautifully smelling flowers. This is a 100ml bottle and it really lasts, I've used mine a lot and it's barely gone down at all! 

As far as potency goes you will need to reapply this half way through the day but it's fairly good on longevity. 

Best in the daytime. 

LUSH - Furze body spray - £18 approx (from memory) 

This is an Oxford Street exclusive (as far as I'm aware!) but is available as a perfume online and perhaps in some stores.  As we all know Lush is amazing for taking iconic smells and putting them in different formats and Furze is no different. Furze first came to my attention in the Oxford street store as a bath melt - if you've never been to the Oxford Street store then just know that they have an amazing display of bath melts that I could peruse over for hours! The Furze bath melt is a funny little green ball that looks like it's been rolled in the grass and has a vibrant pink flower on top. It certainly is one of the most eye-catching bath melts, but it's the smell that won me over. Furze is a grassy scent but is dominated by the smells of coconut, vanilla, and neroli. It's a strong scent and really packs a punch (no joke I often choke myself spraying this as it's very strong when you first spray it) but the smell is beautiful and if you're looking for a little touch of tropical whilst enjoying the English summer, I couldn't think of a better body spray. 

Best at the beach. 

Roger & Gallet - Fleur de Figuier - £32

If you've been reading my blog for a long time then you will already know about my love for this perfume - it is well documented. It all started when I received a sample in my first ever GlossyBox (back in 2013 I believe!) and I instantly fell in love with the gloriously fruity, fresh scent. I had never smelt anything like it and that still stands true today. Fleur de Figuier is everything it tells you, floral and fruity all at once. It has brought it's 'A' game. I honestly don't have the words to describe how much I love this perfume other than sweet figgy glory! If you're a fan of sweet fruity scents that aren't sickly this is for you! 

Best at any time because it's delicious. 

Escada - Turquoise Summer - £26

This is a perfume that I brought before my holiday last year to Crete. I don't know about you but I always have to buy an "airport perfume" before I go on holiday and after a ridiculous amount of iffing and arring I decided to go for Escada's Turquoise Summer. To me this is the ideal holiday perfume, it has got the same coconut, vanilla vibes as Furze has but it's got a sweet background that is almost reminiscent of suntan lotion. Whenever I smell this perfume it instantly takes me back to being on holiday and it's such a bargain at £26 for 100ml. It's not the most complex perfume in the world but it certainly doesn't smell cheap and it's ideal for those hot sticky days in summer. 

Best for sunny holidays. 

Giorgio Armani - Si - £49.50

Last but certainly not least is the queen of perfumes. My all-time couldn't live without perfume. Giorgio Armani's Si. This is totally different to the past 4 perfumes which have all been pretty light, fresh and young. Si is a whole other ball game. It's a sultry perfume with a slight hint of musk that makes you feel like a woman that has her shit together, whilst it still has a fruity subtilty that lifts it and makes it less intimidating. This is a tiny cheat for me as in the real world I would wear this perfume year-round. It's not solely a summer or winter perfume, it's just a really bloody lovely perfume! 

Best for date nights or when you want to feel a little more empowered. 

As you can tell, I'm a huge perfume/body spray/scent person and I am definitely becoming a hoarder. 

Also, can we just take a moment to appreciate how beautiful my new phone case is... 

It's the chunkiest thing on earth but UNICORNS, CATS, AND GLITTER?! You can't get much closer to perfection if you ask me - plus it was like £4-5 on amazon, so win! 

That's all from me today! I'm really hoping I can keep this motivation up and get back to my old ways of daily blogging! That would be amazing! Thank you so much for your continued support!