The Big Blue!

Hello World!

Involving my last Blog post where I posted about things that make me happy, one of them involved having a bit of a pampering night and having a bath. On a particular recent Sunday Evening, I gave a new Bath Bomb a good tester. Here is what I thought about..

The Big Blue; perfect for letting your imagination take you to the seaside as you soak in a bath that smells of sea and with ingredients such as Arame Seaweed and sea salt.

I enjoy the smell of the sea and the sounds of the waves crashing to shore. When I picked this up at the Lush store, I was quite excited to be having a bath that smelled like the ocean and I could just drift away with my imagination of the current. 
I will let you in on a well known secret about me. I am not a big fan of actually going into the ocean. One day when I was young, I went for a swim in the ocean and on that particular day I saw a dead Jellyfish washed up on shore. Since then, I have been quite disturbed of the thought of what is actually out there in the sea and what is dead or alive. The slimy things, the crabs, the openness of it all. It all just freaked me out!!
So when I followed the instruction of this Bath Bomb; create a bath of your perfect temperature, sit in the bath and let the world around you dissolve as you release the bath bomb.
What I wasn't expecting is the arame seaweed coming out of the bomb. I sat in the bath tub, smelling the aroma of the seaweed and the sea salt, but I was also in the corner of the tub staring at the seaweed and trying so hard to not let it touch me!!!
Although the Arame Seaweed, did make my skin feel soft to touch. I just couldn't shake the disturbance of it being in my Bathtub, so I really did have to cut my bath short.

Also, there was a lot of the seaweed and it did take some time cleaning the bathtub afterwards. So if you are a big fan of the ocean and don't mind sitting in seaweed and then cleaning the tub afterwards. This is the perfect bath bomb for you!

Rose.

5 things filled with Happiness.

Hello World,

With thanks to a certain trilogy, my love for reading has made an appearance. I couldn't have been happier about it. Which brings me to today's post. Thinking of five things, that I like to do that makes me feel incredibly happy with myself, and today I am going to share with you those thoughts.

1: without even having to guess, it is Reading. I have found love in reading ever since I can remember. It must have been, when I first learnt how to read. I remember those Biff and Chip books you had, when you are learning to read in Primary School. I remember the achievements I felt reading a book and the bigger the book, the bigger the achievement. It wasn't until Harry Potter came into my life at the age of 11, I fell deeper into reading and since then, reading and books has always been a big part of my life. The best, are the ones I can escape into.

2: Drawing: Drawing came into my life during secondary school and it didn't take a big role until GCSE's. Studying and coursework during that time, was particularly stressful and if I didn't sign myself up for GCSE's art and design, I reckon I would have found depression and anxiety a lot sooner. I was the type who liked looking into different artist and drawing anything that comes into my little head. Today I draw my dreams and ideas. 

3: Pampering: A new thing, but the ultimate stress reliever. I normally indulge in a bath on a Sunday night, just before a weeks worth of work. I call it the ultimate preparation before the storm. Finding products I like the smell of and putting them in my bath and then finding a good book to enjoy makes it all the more better. After the bath, I normally feel 100 times better and fresher. A long with a face mask and ex foliating my body, my mind is more meditated and I feel happier.

4: Exercising: Exercising is still new to me. I know that when I do it, I come out feeling sweaty and so much better. This is to do with the endorphins hormones being released as you exercise and the harder you workout the better you may feel. I go to Zumba every Monday evening and it makes me feel just as happy as the pampering night.

5: Writing: Psychologist would suggest writing in a Journal about your thoughts and feelings. I have given myself a goal to try and write in my journal everyday about whatever happens during the day or what it is going on inside my head. Since starting this goal, I have missed a few days but I am still writing as much as I can into my Journal and it not always about my thoughts and feelings. It has given me a rekindled enjoyment in writing again and some days, I am writing about a little land of mine. After writing in my Journal, I feel more at peace with myself. 

If there anything you enjoy doing that makes you feel happy with yourself? Feel free to let me know!

Rose.

Days of Blood and Starlight Review.

Hello World, 

I am going to admit it. I am obsessed with this story. For my January favourites and I have recently done a positive book review on the first book The Daughter of Smoke and Bone. I had to buy the second instalment of the book and of course, I have finally read it. 

A recap, two people fall in love. One is an angel and the other is a demon, or a Seraph and a Chimera. Between the two population, they have always been at war with each other, and it continues to be at war when the two fall in love. But the two had a dream, a dream of a peaceful live and living harmony with each other. 
Without giving too much away, but basically at the end of the book the two lovers ended up going their own separate ways and thoughts of living in harmony was a dead end dream, until they realise the first step that was needed to be taken, had to be done by them. The first step was indeed taken by the end of this second book. A long with twist, surprises and a blood bath... Literally.

Obsessed, quite literally obsessed. So obsessed, that I stayed up late last night to finish this second book, which has left me feeling very sleep deprived. Researched the third book, only to find out it won't be out on Paperback until the end of March. And although I could buy the hardback copy, but I am so pedantic about these things that I have to wait until the paperback version comes out, as the first two book are in paperback. This of course leads me with an option of sitting any bookshop and reading the hardback copy until they kick me out?! I had to find the author of the book on twitter and do some research about her. 
I am so obsessed that all I can possibly think about is the two lovers, will they live happily ever after in this new life they have dreamed of? Or will one of them die? My assumption would be that one of them will die. One always dies! Or perhaps both will die? GAH! My imagination is going wild with guesses and problem solving. 
In so many it is like a grown up version of Twilight, but with a more in depth romance and more war and violence. You could associate this with real life, but with the chance of being able to escape. It does most certainly bring hope to anyone who wants to live a better life.

Rose.

Saturday Lately.

Hello World,

Waking up on a Saturday morning with a plan. It was also 5 am, with my dog coming in to jump on me and get me up to let him outside and take care of his business. So with a few hours in and out of bed and snuggling with my dog, I decided to get out bed and take on the day.

So here is a post of what I got up to on a Saturday. Saturday was a day, where I was going to head into town and get my eyebrows sorted. And after having a nice morning of washing my hair and applying make-up.
Today I supported the red lipstick and simple eye make-up. An advice I have recently heard from somewhere, is that when applying make-up and want to maintain the "I'm not wearing too much make-up", always balance it out. A dark or bright eye colour, go for a natural lip colour, or a simple pale and natural eye colour, wear bright lipstick. So yes, the black lined eye-liner and red lipstick happened and I was feeling my inner Dita Von Teese.
I also supported a blue jeans and emerald green woolly jumper, for my outfit today.

Once I was ready, I headed out. Putting my iPod on and wrapping up warm, I headed out into the cold and walked into town. I am forever driving to and from work, which takes so long nowadays, that I really look forward to having a break and walking into town is a lovely way of gaining vitamin D and fresh air. 

Once I had finished getting my eyebrow done, I hung around the high street. Just window shopping and reading my book in a coffee shop. Yes, I am one of those girls. It was as soon as I got home, I chilled out and did some more reading, drinking with my mother and watched a film. Even though I was meant to go out but couldn't due to funds. 

A good Saturday to still share with you all. 

Rose. 

A Bath time Review!

Hello World!

Friday night, I treated myself to a bath! Oh, the luxury of having a bath, no? It was a well preserved treatment as I was home alone that day, so I gave myself a long time soaking in the tub and testing out one of the new Lush product. It was a treat!

You may remember from my previous Blog post about Lush products, if not you can read it here. The product that I used that evening is called Green Bubbleroon.

This little thing, is so simple to use like all the other Lush products. All you have to do is crumble a bit of it into running water at your perfect temperature and watch the bubbles become alive. I really wanted to take a picture of what it looked like in the bath, but I never got round to it as I was just too excited to jump into the bath!

Now, the bubbles didn't last all that long. But it did turn the water a beautiful pale green colour and the aromas of grass and meadows filled the bathroom. It really did float me away to a land of fields and greenery, that I managed to escape the world of reality while I soaked in the tub. Letting my imagination get away with me, I could actually say, I came out that bath feeling refreshed and stressed free as carried on with my night routine. 

So, if you are the type of person who likes earthy smells and floral smells, this bubble bar is definitely worth a trying. 

Rose.

Pantomime Fun!

Hello World, 

Last night Christina and I went to see a pantomime. It was at a local theatre we have in town. The theatre has recently been through a tough time, what with the recession and everything and for a whole year it had to be closed down. The home town went into an uproar, it caused a whole load of complaints, sponsorship and motivation to get the theatre to reopen. Thankfully, the town people had won and it reopened to loads of new plays, ballets and comedians shows to the people of my home time. Most importantly it was the return of the Pantomime! 


Before the theatre had closed down, Christina and I would go to watch a Pantomime every January since 2008? It has always been a great start to the beginning of the year, something that makes the year feel cheerful and happy. When we heard that there was another Pantomime coming we knew we had to go and see it. A hopeful chance that this will bring back the feelings of cheerfulness. 

This year we watched a re adaptation of Beauty and The Beast. The play had a lot of reference to the Disney film version and yes, that does involve songs such as "Be our guest" and "Tale as old as Time." I'm not even going to knock it. I was just filled with such happiness seeing all the regular actors on the stage and having lots of fun! Shouting, booing and hissing at the characters, all the fun you find in a Pantomime, we had last night. It was a night, that brought back all the feelings of cheerfulness and happiness as a start of the year!

Rose.

That Gym Time.

Hello World, 

Today I wanted to share with you, what I normally do when I want to do some exercise. I am no way a personal trainer or have any training within doing exercise safely. I generally follow through, what I have learned from school and what I have been told by the trainers from the gym or the instructors from the classes I go to. 
When I first decided to get healthier, I started thinking of things I could do. The best answer was to go for a run, and I was always terrified about running, because people would be watching me, gawking and laughing at me. It put me off running for a few months, until it got to the point where I just wanted to start feeling healthier. So, I started looking into my area for the least public roads and I knew I had a long lane, right next to my house that would lead to farmer houses and fields. This started the running adventures for me and I found myself becoming more confident, I was finding new routes to run and some of them would be public or some of them would be a drive up to some hills and finding paths a run along. I don't do as much running now as I haven't had much time and plus it is always so dark!

Then a few years ago, I decided to take the next step and join the gym. Going through all the same old introduction and finding a routine that fitted me. Which should change after a so amount of time, so I am now working on a different routine. What used to be about ten minutes on all the machines and then go home, has now escalated to twenty minutes on the rowing, cross trainer, steps machine (I am sorry for not getting any of the names right!!!) and then weights to work on my legs and bum and then some sit ups and planking for the abs. 
After joining the gym, I found the love for classes! This actually turned out to be a huge step. From the beginning of wanting to live a healthier life and being terrified at being seen exercising, I am now socialising with people who all attend the same class and even have made some close acquaintances! 

I am now trying to aim to work out at least 2-3 times a week. Right now I will attend two classes and then do a gym session. The first class I go to is Zumba, if you haven't heard of Zumba you must have been living under a rock and I judge you. Just in case, it is a dance from all around the world that has been put together to upbeat and fast moving music. This class burns off a lot of calories and stretches out the main core muscles, arms, waist, abs and legs. I love this class and it has been a class I have been I going to for the longest. With the exception of the year, I didn't go the gym. The next class I attend is called Body Pump; a class for toning and strengthening your body using a variety of weights and movements. This involves a lot of squatting, lunging and arm press. Also press ups!! Which I still haven't quite mastered! 

Thanks for reading! Let me know of your favourite form of exercising and if you feel scared of others making fun of you for working out, don't. When I see people going out for a run now, I can't help but to smile at them. As I feel such pride in them for doing something to feel good about. 

Rose.

Morning and Evening routines.

Hello World!

This past week, I have been obsessing over YouTube. With the first full week back to work, I have been using YouTube as my winding down time, as I'm not really into any TV programmes right now and reading sometimes uses too much brain power. So throughout this week I have been watching a lot of "My Morning Routines." Or "My Evening Routines". I'm not quite sure what it is that has got me so obsessed but I'm guessing its because I am just so nosey. 
It also sounds as if I am being creepy, which is really not the case. For some unknown reason, there is a huge YouTube community that is filled with women who likes to share their Morning Routines, Get Ready with me and what they brought from stores. Fascinating and has somehow made me sound like I am into girls...

As I was watching this small community of people showing the internet how they get ready in the morning or for bed, I became to notice the similarity between them and I. It put my into a frenzy of over thinking. Am I just the same as everyone else? Then there would be something, I notice that everyone else was doing and I wasn't doing it? Am doing something wrong, if I'm not doing that? 

News Flash to my inner awkward teenager who still likes to make an appearance, it really doesn't fucking matter. I am still in the fully fledge training, that will probably continue until I have turned 30. Where I am training on the ultimate life lesson of what works for me and who I am. The greatest part to this academical lesson, is that it is always changing!!!! Why should it affect me on what the other girls are doing in their mornings and evenings? If their routine is working out so well for them, then good for them. My morning routine and my evening routine evening works well for me and if it works well for you, then you should keep up with it. You really shouldn't have to change something because you think you might be doing something wrong or you think you might come across as strange. So keep doing your own routines and if you still want to watch other people routines online, don't freak out because they are too similar or too different from yours. 
Although, I really want to add a rubber duck to my showers in the morning, just to spice up my morning's. You know an added little cheer to the weekdays blues?

Rose

Skincare?!

Hello World,

Today I wanted to share with you my current skin care routine. When it comes to treating my skin, I am just as clueless as everyone else. But when I see results to my blemish skin, it makes me want to keep using the products.

The first thing I use in the morning is the facial wash/scrub. Right now, I am using the Tea Tree and Witch Hazel with charcoal. When I wake up in the morning and before I go to bed at night, I will wash my face with this. At first I only brought it because it was on sale and it has tea tree on the label without noticing the charcoal part. Which must have been very blind sighted of me, because it is literally written on the package! Like any face wash, you just massage it into your skin and then wash off. When I first used this product, my skin felt fresher and after a week or so using it, my skin became clearer.
After I have washed my face and patted it dry, I'll then use The Body Shop Cleansing Toner with Tea tree again. My facial skin reacts really well to Tea Tree, it will give my skin a clearer glow when I use it and this toner freshens my skin whilst leaving it feeling toned. All I do is shake the bottle well and then apply it on to a face pad, using outer movements as I apply it on my face.
Finally I will moisturise before putting on my make up. Again this part of the tea tree range in Body Shop. This moisturiser helps my skin feel softer to touch and it will last throughout the day. Again, it is just applying a pea size amount on my hand using outer movements as I apply it around my face.



At the end of the day, I will repeat this, but in the evening I don't apply the toner as too much of it will just dry out my skin. Then in when I moisturise, I'll use the Body Shop night moisturiser and this helps to keep my skin from becoming too oily throughout the night. 

So there is my skin care routine. I am currently looking into eye cream, for the darker circles and now I am getting older, it's the next step to keeping a clearer and fresh face. 
Hope you enjoyed this! 

Rose.

Hate it, Change it.

Hello World!

Every person on this planet wants to be comfortable in their skin? They want to be able to just stick their hair up and slap on some simple foundation and be on their way? Be able to wear what they want without the fear of seeing something wrong? Right?
Sometimes it is not always the case. Sometimes it is the complete opposite and you'll find yourself either putting too much make-up on or too little. Sometimes, it all about covering up and wearing far to baggy clothes because we can't stand the nation seeing our fat belly, flabby arms or stocky legs. Stretch marks, cellulite, scarring?

I'm one of them, always has and always will be. I mean there was a time when I was happy within my body, but only recently the body insecurities have only crept upon me again, as I have spent a year away from some gym classes and away from controlling what I eat.
Now, I'm not here to promote being thin. I'm here writing this for my own personal motivation and also to give some of you readers something to feel good about and your own personal motivation. As there are some of you who could actually be happy with how you look and the only thing you do hate is some scarring. You'll always hear the same thing when you try to be open about the parts you hate. Sometimes these are positive things and sometimes they aren't. It really depends on how deep your insecurities are.
I'm hoping by now, that you are feeling like someone can relate to how insecure you may be, about anything to do with your body, and this also goes to the males as well as the females. There will always be something and believe it or not, there could be someone out there who is jealous of your own looks.
With my insecurities about the weight I have recently required, I have been doing some thinking. And one of the greatest advice I was ever given; "If you don't like it, then change it. If you can't change it, then change your attitude." If you are feeling really insecure about anything on your body, there are ways you can change it, lessen the way it look. It's always the first step to figure out what you hate and then doing the research on ways you can either change it, or adapt your mind negativity until you are more accepting of it. 
For me, I have become so insecure about my body that I have decided to make a change about it. The main thing I did change as from today, was the way I looked upon it. For the past few months I have been calling it "loosing weight," where I was taking things out of my diet, which was causing my mind-frame to crave more unhealthy foods. Today, I am attempting to change my thinking to something along the lines of "healthy lifestyle." It started with a gym class and it will continue with regular exercising and a more balanced diet. With this new healthy lifestyle mind-frame, I am feeling more confident and more motivated in making the change I want to change. 

I hope this was of much help and inspiring. 

Rose.

Oopsie Daisy at Lush..

Hello world!

Time, time I spent in Lush! It was out with the old and in with the new. All the Christmas related bath products have been saved for another year and it left room for some new products. Also, my bath products have officially ran out before Christmas and I knew I needed to restock. It's only natural that I slowly start restocking. This time however, I spent my time choosing different products, smelling them all and thinking outside my comfort zone!
Here I am showing you all what I got. 

 

 Tisty Tosty Bath Bomb.

 Green Bubbleroon

 Big Blue Bath Bomb

 Amandopondo Bubble Bar. Ok, I lied! I've already brought this one and loved it so much I had to have it again. 

Cosmetic Warrior face mask.

I'm going to try and do a review on some of these products once I have tried them out. In all honesty though, my bath time is about relaxing. 

Rose

My 2015..

Hello World,

Happy New Year to everyone! I hope you celebrated it with style and grace. I'm not the one who promotes "New Year, New Me". I generally do like to think to myself, "This Year is going to be MY year." I have been giving myself this chat on New Years for the past five years. I can safely say, that I am never able to reach my Yearly made goals and normally by December, I am mentally beating myself up with all the failed goals. 

So, throughout December I have given myself a mental brutality and thought over the things I have achieved and I haven't achieved. Although, I feel as if I landed back at rock bottom at the age of 25, almost with a 'giving up' attitude. I'm not finished yet. I am rebuilt in the world of new motivation and I am going to give myself a good go at it. 
What I am going to do in this post is give you my goals:

1. I have an idea, to write it down quickly. In brief and then return to it, depending on the situation. 
2. To draw more, in my head I want to do a draw something everyday for a whole year. Realistically, I want to draw when I get the inspiration.
3. Hit the gym. I remember my most happiest moment, is when I had regular gym attendance and I am also feeling REALLY sluggish. (This is my most realistic goal for New Years, believe it or not).
4. Show a more 'can do' attitude. Throughout 2014, I kept making up excuses to stop me from doing certain things and that made me less involved and not at all that. This year, I want to take more risks and more challenges. It's OK to fail and get back up to try again. 

Here are my goals for 2015. 

We'll make this year, our year right?

Rose.