Reflecting on 2018 ~ The Highlights ~
Sunday 30 December 2018
Hello everyone! I'm not going to lie, it feels really strange but also really lovely to be back writing on my blog. It's a place where I've spent a number of years posting about personal journeys, beauty products and whatever the hell I feel like talking about. I don't know whether it's because the New Year is approaching that I have the urge to suddenly jump on here and resume where I left off but we'll give it a go and see where it takes us.
I thought that to catch you up on what I've been doing it would be nice to do a little reflection on 2018 and pick out some highlights. Overall, it's been a really great year for me and I'm definitely excited to see what 2019 holds... Let's start in February (it seems that nothing substantial happened in January)
For my (then, newly) boyfriend Robert's birthday we took a trip down to London for the day. I booked us tickets to go to the London Dungeons, which, I was surprisingly impressed with, I was the tiniest bit worried I would be petrified, but aside from a random guy making me jump out of my skin at the beginning, it wasn't quite as bad as I had first imagined. We then hopped on the London Eye, something which neither of us had done before. It was a cool experience but I think the weather let us down a tiny bit (as you can see from my frizzy hair in the photos) so we couldn't see quite as much as we'd hoped from up there. All in all though, it was a lovely day.
Moving onto March, and, another trip to London! This time for my birthday, Robert booked tickets for us to go and see Wicked at the West End. I can't tell you how long I have wanted to see this show and it certainly didn't disappoint! The vocals were incredible and I may have cried a couple of times... Now we'll jump to the Summer because several months before this were stressy, dissertation days that nobody needs to relive!
To celebrate the end of writing my dissertation, Robert and I took a short break to our local Centre Parcs for a few days. I can't tell you how lovely and relaxing this was, the weather was really good (a bit too good at times - so hot!), having our own space together was great. I already really want to go back! It just goes to show that you don't have to go far to have a wonderful time.
This next one is still very surreal, even though it was all the way back in July. As you can guess from the photos, I graduated from university! It was a super lovely day where I felt proud of everything I had achieved and getting to celebrate that with my favourite people was the best. This isn't only a highlight of 2018 but of my life, I never thought I would be where I am today!
Just one month after graduation, I actually got offered a Digital Marketing internship at the University I studied at. This was initially for a three month period, but it then got extended to six months and, at the moment, I'm going to be there until at least the beginning of February.
Now onto September, another exciting one. It was one of my best friends Rachel's hen do weekend in Norwich and boy was it good! It was so great to have a girly weekend doing things we wouldn't normally do. We did a haunted escape room and a life drawing class, which, as you can imagine, were both very interesting and also hilarious. We stayed in such a beautiful house for the weekend which gave me major house envy... definite instagram goals!
Next, rather fittingly, is the wedding! I can't tell you how amazing it was to watch one of my best friends get married, so so magical and special. It was an incredible day full of lots of emotion (mainly happiness!) I was actually one of the amateur photographers on the day, alongside my other friend, and capturing those special, once in a lifetime moments made everything even more special. It also helped that they were such a beautiful couple! Although I was photographing most of the day, as you can see, I did get in on some shots...
And that takes us up to Christmas. If you know me well, you know that I love Christmas. I mean, who doesn't, right? I feel as if that magical feeling you got as a child at this time of year is starting to creep back a tiny bit since my nephew is nearly two years old now. I can't wait until he gets properly excited for Father Christmas to bring his presents!
I thought that to catch you up on what I've been doing it would be nice to do a little reflection on 2018 and pick out some highlights. Overall, it's been a really great year for me and I'm definitely excited to see what 2019 holds... Let's start in February (it seems that nothing substantial happened in January)
For my (then, newly) boyfriend Robert's birthday we took a trip down to London for the day. I booked us tickets to go to the London Dungeons, which, I was surprisingly impressed with, I was the tiniest bit worried I would be petrified, but aside from a random guy making me jump out of my skin at the beginning, it wasn't quite as bad as I had first imagined. We then hopped on the London Eye, something which neither of us had done before. It was a cool experience but I think the weather let us down a tiny bit (as you can see from my frizzy hair in the photos) so we couldn't see quite as much as we'd hoped from up there. All in all though, it was a lovely day.
Moving onto March, and, another trip to London! This time for my birthday, Robert booked tickets for us to go and see Wicked at the West End. I can't tell you how long I have wanted to see this show and it certainly didn't disappoint! The vocals were incredible and I may have cried a couple of times... Now we'll jump to the Summer because several months before this were stressy, dissertation days that nobody needs to relive!
To celebrate the end of writing my dissertation, Robert and I took a short break to our local Centre Parcs for a few days. I can't tell you how lovely and relaxing this was, the weather was really good (a bit too good at times - so hot!), having our own space together was great. I already really want to go back! It just goes to show that you don't have to go far to have a wonderful time.
Just one month after graduation, I actually got offered a Digital Marketing internship at the University I studied at. This was initially for a three month period, but it then got extended to six months and, at the moment, I'm going to be there until at least the beginning of February.
Now onto September, another exciting one. It was one of my best friends Rachel's hen do weekend in Norwich and boy was it good! It was so great to have a girly weekend doing things we wouldn't normally do. We did a haunted escape room and a life drawing class, which, as you can imagine, were both very interesting and also hilarious. We stayed in such a beautiful house for the weekend which gave me major house envy... definite instagram goals!
Next, rather fittingly, is the wedding! I can't tell you how amazing it was to watch one of my best friends get married, so so magical and special. It was an incredible day full of lots of emotion (mainly happiness!) I was actually one of the amateur photographers on the day, alongside my other friend, and capturing those special, once in a lifetime moments made everything even more special. It also helped that they were such a beautiful couple! Although I was photographing most of the day, as you can see, I did get in on some shots...
And that takes us up to Christmas. If you know me well, you know that I love Christmas. I mean, who doesn't, right? I feel as if that magical feeling you got as a child at this time of year is starting to creep back a tiny bit since my nephew is nearly two years old now. I can't wait until he gets properly excited for Father Christmas to bring his presents!
So in a nutshell, those are my top highlights of 2018. I feel incredibly grateful to have had such a great year, let's just hope that 2019 follows suit. I would really like to try and keep creating content on here but I won't make any promises just yet, working 9-5 has taken some getting used to and sometimes it feels like there's just not enough time, so let's see how it goes...
Happy New Year!
Into the Urban Jungle ~ Norwich ~
Friday 25 August 2017 • lifestyle
Recently, I finally made a visit to Urban Jungle after hearing many good things about it and seeing their vast array of indoor plants. I'm still obsessing over cacti and succulents, so it's safe to say I was not disappointed when we found the cafe. For anyone that doesn't know, Urban Jungle is a really funky garden centre, with pretty much every outdoor plant you could ever need outside as well as my favourites, the indoor plants, in the cafe area.
I really wasn't sure what to expect by the cafe at all but when we walked in it looked amazing. I've never seen anywhere quite like it, it's a poly tunnel absolutely full of really cool plants, from really tall ones to smaller hanging ones, its pretty much green wherever you look. The tables are placed in little corners within the endless displays of plants and the best bit is that you can buy the ones with price tags on. I bought the cutest little plants for my bedroom, one being a heart shaped succulent (love!) and a dangling 'string of hearts'.
For someone who's not the most outdoors kind of girl this probably sounds like the least 'me' kind of place. Although you're technically outside, it really doesn't feel like it and I should add that the food and drink is lovely. There's a variety of drinks from hot to cold (they even sell iced lattes if that's your thing) and the cakes are delicious, the only problem is choosing what one to eat! The staff are also super lovely and friendly.
It's safe to say I absolutely loved my first visit and I'm sure it will be the first of many, it's such a different experience. If you love plants which everyone seems to at the moment, then you will love Urban Jungle. Right now seems to be the perfect time for this place, since plants are the new 'in' thing and it also helps that it's quite simply an Instagrammer's heaven. All together a wonderful place that I'll definitely be recommending to other people, can't wait to visit again.
Urban Jungle's Social Media:
Jelly & Gelato | Zoella Beauty
Thursday 27 July 2017 • Beauty
It's safe to say that I've loved every single one of Zoe's releases with Zoella Beauty and when I saw the preview for the new Jelly and Gelato range I was not disappointed! Let's start with the packaging, it is always so, so aesthetically pleasing but I think this range could be my favourite yet, I absolutely love the retro style and geometric details, as well as the colour scheme.
Once the range was released online I headed over to Superdrug and ordered a few things (it was bound to happen). I had to be quite sparing as I'm a little bit strapped for cash at the moment due to driving lessons costing me a small fortune, however Superdrug had a 25% off introductory offer. I chose three items, even though I could have easily bought the whole range. After adding products to my basket, then removing them, then replacing them with something else I finally decided on the body mist, bath frosting and make-up bag.
Let's start by talking about the much loved body mist. I just had to buy this, even though I had no idea what it smelt like! But let's be fair, Zoe always smashes the scent and I was confident that I would love it - I was right. The fragrance of the range is elderflower and double cream, super summery and fresh! The bottle is opaque white with retro geometric shapes and colours, different to the previous ranges where the packaging has been transparent. These body mists are definitely more like perfumes and for the price you really cannot go wrong, this one has already taken residence in my handbag.
Next up is a totally new product in the range 'Bath Frosting' which I was very intrigued to try out. It's a bath milk powder (a completely new concept to me) which you pour under running water to create a really silky soft bath with a few bubbles. I know it sounds silly to describe bath water as 'soft' but honestly the water does feel so delicate after swirling this around. Plus it smells incredibly good! Can we also talk about how the cute packaging looks like a tub of hot chocolate powder? Love.
And finally, the make-up bag. I managed to convince myself that I needed a new one and this really is perfect. I like the fold over aspect of it, meaning that you can fill it right up if you need to. I currently keep my everyday make-up and brushes in here and it's going to be perfect for nights away to fit toiletries and skincare in as well. The pastel orange and green are really nice and fit the theme perfectly and the shapes on the zip are a great little detail. It's also very soft and squishy feeling which I really like.
So far, I'm loving the products that I picked up and I really feel like I need to try everything else at some point - especially the body washes. So, so cute and the products are of such a good quality too. I had high hopes and they were definitely met, not that I had any doubts! Have you tried anything from the Jelly and Gelato range yet?
Thank you for reading guys,
Heidi x
The Gingham Dress of Dreams
Monday 17 July 2017 • fashion
Undoubtedly, gingham has been a huge trend this spring/summer and I've been on the look out for the perfect dress in this pattern. Well I need look no further because I think I have found it! This gorgeous shift style cami dress is so perfect for the lovely weather we've had recently and it's such an easy outfit to put together. The dress is from the lovely Eimi Boutique who specialise in women's clothing, each piece on their website feels very unique and different to what is on the high street. Definitely worth checking out!
Can we just try to ignore my awkwardness? These were my first 'proper' outfit pictures and well, I'm getting there... This piece can definitely be dressed up or down depending on what you pair it with. For this particular day I was going for a more casual vibe and so teamed it with my vans for a more relaxed style. However, switch up the shoes to cute little flats or some heels and you can easily turn this dress into a smart casual or evening outfit.
Cue another awkward pose. Anyway, another great part of this dress is the tie-up straps. This allows you tighten the dress as well as letting you places the bows where you want them to be! I chose to tie them at the front because I think they really are the statement of this piece that make it stand out from other dresses of similar style out there. Because of the flexibility with the tie straps you can also choose to wear the dress as a pinafore with a t-shirt underneath which I really like - versatile is always a good quality in clothing! It's a 2-in-1 that for just £22.50 is such a bargain key-piece for your wardrobe, just add tights when the colder weather arrives!
I'm happy to have finally found a gingham piece of clothing that works for me, despite it being a 'shift' type dress it doesn't feel restrictive in the slightest and I feel good when I wear it which is the main thing. I must also say a big thank you to my sister for taking these pictures for me, we trekked around our village looking for cute little spots to photograph! Thank you for reading :)
Shop the look
Cara dress - Eimi Boutique
Trainers - Vans
The Cactus Obsession Continues...
Monday 10 July 2017 • fashion, lifestyle
If you know me then you probably know that I really love cactus' and succulents, don't ask me why I've just found a great love for them in the last couple of years. If you hadn't already noticed, there's a huge trend for pins at the moment - you can use them to personalise anything from jackets, to bags, to pencil cases. You name it you can probably put a pin on it! Whether you want to make a statement or simply add something different to your outfit they're perfect for doing just that.
When the lovely people at Punky Pins agreed to a collaboration with me I was super excited and had my eye on the cactus related pins and other accessories. I decided to pick out the cactus and succulent twin pack of pins which I think you'll agree look super cute on the collar of a denim jacket, as well as a cactus patch and stickers!
This denim jacket is from Primark, so very affordable, yet the pins add a little twist to the piece, making it both personalised and different. They also aren't too 'in your face', they're subtle yet do the job of adding a touch of what you like without necessarily shouting out about it.
The patch. I absolutely adore the patch! It's a cactus with the slogan 'don't be a prick' on it, which I think is just genius. Not only is it funny but it adds a bit of sass too and for only £4.50 this can make such a huge difference to one piece of clothing. Jackets with patches already on them can cost quite a lot more than a plain one, so get your iron out and just stick one or a couple of these onto your favourite denim jacket like I have here. I also think these patches would look great covering the back of a jacket as well!
I have to say I am totally obsessed with these pieces from Punky Pins, great prices, fab quality and just very fun accessories to add to your outfit. I can't wait to plaster my laptop with the stickers next!
Shop this post:
*These items were kindly sent to me for review purposes
Tropical Vibes
Wednesday 5 July 2017 • fashion
Hey guys! Apologies for this post not being what was promised, the exciting brand post is still going ahead just not this week - hope you enjoy nonetheless. I'm not sure what it is but I am totally obsessed with the whole tropical, palm print trend right now. Not only is it super summery but it also throws off so many holiday vibes, I love it! I've been searching for some pieces of clothing in this kind of print and when I spotted this beauty on the Forever 21 website I just couldn't resist.
The shirt was just £15 and I really love how it looks. I usually steer clear of shorter, more cropped tops as I don't particularly like my stomach area. However, somehow this one works for me and sits just at the top of my jeans which is absolutely perfect.
The shirt is slightly boxy, so not tight fitting at all, with almost a pyjama top style which I actually really like and is also bang on trend at the moment. The neckline is super flattering as it's slightly low and doesn't have a collar so isn't like your typical, more traditional shirt. I really love this casual yet stylish outfit, paired with the light-wash ripped jeans and white converse the shirt looks so effortless and dare I say it, 'cool'. I am planning on doing 'proper' outfit pictures as soon as possible, so fingers crossed the next fashion post looks great with better images!
Shoes: Converse
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