Little Things #17

I think it's about time I finally admit my Valentines flowers have come to an end. They had a pretty long life really, but this does give me an excuse to buy some more! There's been a bit of a dry spell on my blog recently due to a whole week of hosting, but I'm back on track with a whole load of exciting posts, get your popcorn out. This past week hasn't been the most interesting, most of my evenings have been spent cooking bulk meals to make my life easier for the next fortnight, followed shortly by climbing into bed, what a fun twenty-one year old I am. But I am an easily pleased twenty-one year old so lets delve into what's made me happy recently:

1. I bought the most beautiful dress for my 'little' sister's first birthday and it just makes me want to have a baby now so I can dress them up in tiny clothes. 

2. I happened to buy the exact same boots as my mum, at the exact same time, on the same day, 140 miles away. How freaky. 

3. My favourite celeb family was extended with the arrival of Buddy Boy Fletcher, I cannot wait till we get to see his little face. 

4. We got doughnuts delivered to the office and it was a dream. I even managed to have some self control and only have one- one of the team had five!

5. Last weekend we ventured into the coffee shop that we can see from our window and what a decision that was. The cakes and fairy lights make it so Instagram worthy.

6. Adele took part in an Ellen prank and it is hilarious!

7. This week was payday. It's been 5 months since I last had a payday. Safe to say I'm feeling pretty rich

8. Tim Peake presented one of Adele's Brit awards and she cried. It was great. 

9. We may have finally come up with a new agency name for the beginnings of our rebrand and it's all super exciting. 

This week we enter March and I can't wait for lighter evenings and warmer days, I'm done with these freezing temperatures. 

Monthly Round Up: February 2016

It's getting to that time of the month where I generically come out with something along the lines of 'oh my gosh, where did this month go?' We all do it, lets not pretend it's just me. As you're probably more than aware, February marked the start of a journey into work life and the good news is I'm still loving it. It also marked me booking my first sunny escape for this year, I tried my hand fins at swimming and baked my first successful round of office cakes. 

The Good
Being a bus anchor-with-a-double-u I have noticed the beginnings of spring creeping. There are lambs in the tummies of the ewe's opposite the office, daffodils line my walk into work, and lighter mornings and evenings make the standing around at a bus stop hoping that the bus turns up a little more bearable. 

The Bad
Day 4 at work. I made a poor footwear decision, got off the bus a stop early and my salad leaked in my bag. I turned up to work feeling very sorry for myself with very sore feet and a bag that smelt of mango dressing.  

The Ugly
I faced a painful battle against the office bug. (I won the battle with a bit of help from some tomato soup, my scarf/blanket and numerous cups of tea) 

The Weird
We still haven't quite beat the cold weather yet. This week I have seen snow, sunshine and rain in the space of two hours, mental.  

The Wonderful
Today = payday. I know work isn't meant to be about the money, but it is, it's nice to finally have some dollar in my bank account that I've earnt, and bring it back up to a healthy number again. I also have a holiday to Barcelona to pay off, but we won't think about that. 

February has shaped up to be a pretty damn good month with very little mishaps. We do still have a few days left including an extra-special day, so here's to hoping that I haven't just jinxed myself and the last few days will be just as good. 

York Residents Festival // Part 2

If you haven't read part one of my adventures then head on over there before hand, gotta set the scene and give you some background information and all that jazz. The second installment came with a visit to Castle Howard, or Howard's Castle as Jay likes to call it. Admittedly the weather was a bit poop and we probably should have come here on the Saturday, but hindsight is a wonderful thing. 

Once again I made a poor footwear decision in not changing into my wellingtons but #yolo. Unfortunately the house isn't open during the winter period but we had full roam of the grounds which were flipping humongous- It would be the best place in the summer to spend a day with a picnic and a frisbee. The thousands of acres leads to woodland walks, a rather large lake or two, monuments, a rose garden, a zodiac fountain and a pretty awesome adventure playground- if it wasn't wet and I wasn't wearing my best coat I would have been down with the kids. 

After wandering round for a few hours our noses had gone as red as Rudolph's and our teeth were chattering which gave us the perfect excuse to warm up with a bite to eat. We tried to grab a seat half way round, in the restaurant by the lake but everyone had the same idea so we headed back for a slightly more upmarket lunch. I opted for a honey roast ham bruschetta, which was beautiful, accompanied by a hot chocolate of course. Full tummies and warm bodies later we went for an amble round the courtyard shops, nearly bought £35 worth of bacon then wandered back to the car. 

We did consider heading to a second destination of Holgate Windmill, but our tired legs told us otherwise and I had a whole lot of preparation to do for what was my first day of work- plus the weather was miserable. I'm excited to go back to Castle Howard in the summer to take a look round the house and forget that I'm twenty-one years old as a run round the adventure playground like an excited five-year-old.  

York Residents Festival // Part 1

So you may remember me mentioning a few weeks ago that my weekend was spent celebrating the fact that I am in-fact a York Resident. This meant that with a small, rectangular piece of blue plastic, I was granted free entry into a whole host of tourist attractions, and as you can probably imagine I lapped it up. It's so much fun being a tourist in your own city and I though what better way to look back over all the exciting things I got up to then share it with you guys. To make it even more thrilling I've split my weekend up so I don't ramble on too much, and don't worry I won't tell you every detail just incase you want to visit these places yourself- I highly recommend it. 

The first of our adventures started at approximately 11am at Clifford's Tower. After having a little lie in and waking up to sun we were keen to bunch together as many activities as possible, and this one had been on our to-do list for a while. Clifford's Tower is the ruins of part of the castle that once stood and is an English Heritage owned building, so there is usually a charge of around £4 for an adult. However, on a sunny day I think that this monument is totally worth the price as there is so much to read about and the views go on for miles! (We played the game of who can spot our flat first)

After a good forty minute amble we headed over to the neighboring Castle Museum and managed to bypass the queue with our blue, plastic card, you can probably imagine the smug-ness. The last time I went to this museum I was about ten so it was nice to revisit and relive the distant memories. This is a great destination to spend a few hours learning about different historical aspects, but my favourite part has to be the Victorian street they've set up. You literally transformed back in time as you wander in and out of houses and shops, listening to talks and experiencing their way of life, if you liked Diagon Alley at the Harry Potter Studio Tour then you'll love this. {Insiders secret: they have three different scents that are pumped out into this section making the experience even more lifelike!}

A quick spot of lunch later and we've trekked to the other side of the city to the Yorkshire Museum, how intellectual are we? This attraction gives you an idea what happened in York after the Ice Age, through the viking period and onto the Romans. For me it wasn't quite up there with the Castle Museum but we did get our hands dirty in attempting to make a Roman pot, it's safe to say clay modelling isn't my calling in life. Once we'd finished up inside our day ended with a stroll around the museum gardens. These are always open to the public free of charge and are beautiful to walk round, even if you've got some spare time on your hands before catching a train. 

As you can probably imagine our feet were pretty much begging for us to sit down so we called it a day and headed home,via some shops of course. If you're planning a trip to York soon I'd definitely put these destinations on your itinerary! 

A whole new wardrobe

H&M- Dancer Blouse | New Look- White Boots | H&M- Black Trousers | H&M- Knitted Cardigan | H&M- Navy Trousers | New Look- Grey Turtleneck | Zara- Leather Skirt |  New Look- Stripe Shirt

Having no money for the past few months has had me dreaming of the day I could head out and purchase my clothes wishlist, and it has finally come. A new job means buying a whole new wardrobe to suit the said job, something that makes my inner shopaholic jump for joy. And with this new job comes a salary that makes me feel a little less guilty for splashing the cash. 

My usual daytime attire consists of either jeans and a hoody or pj's and a dressing gown so I needed to step up my game a little- not sure what my employees would say if I turned up in my Winnie the Pooh number. Luckily, I have found some great additions for my new working wardrobe, H&M and New Look have been pretty helpful, with some bargains mixed in there too- I haven't included my in-store Zara finds. 

If there is anything else out there you think my wardrobe needs then let me know! 

Little Things #16

Happy Valentine's Day to all you lovers, and singletons, out there. My day so far has consisted of food, movies and food and we're off for an Italian tonight- did I say I was meant to be on a diet? #whatdiet. This upcoming week is going to be a busy one with my folks arriving tomorrow for a couple of days then Jay's brothers & partners heading up on Friday, talk about hostess with the mostess. It also explains why there hasn't been one of these posts for a few weeks as my weekends have been a money-spending free, chillout to the max type of weekend. However, there has been the odd exciting moment in life, it hasn't all been grey and dreary!

1. Jay got me some beautiful flowers for V-Day and my daffodils have been topped up. 

2. My second day of work consisted of attending a conference which I was driven to in a self-driving car. It was very strange/terrifying/exciting at the same time.

3. Shit got real in Dickensian this week. I'm not going to give away any spoilers but what does Frances think she is doing? And Mrs Cratchit- I didn't see that one coming. 

4. I will be returning to work tomorrow to a new desk and this makes me crazily happy.

5. I have ended up with more of a social life now I'm working, compared to when I had all the time in the world, I'm sure it's meant to be the other way round! (It did mean a double date to Byron Burger and a spontaneous night out filled with cocktails so I'm not really complaining)

6.  I got round to booking flights and a hotel for Barcelona in May to then realise I wasn't set up on the company's software to book time off, living on the wild side of life #YOLO {FYI: I have now managed to book the time off} 

7. It was announced that the script for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child will be made into a book! I may being seeing the show, but this is just as exciting!

8. I met a four-month old puppy and I don't think I've ever come across something with so much energy- she was adorable!

9. I've swapped my feet for fins and I'm currently digging this whole swimming thing. 

10. We've bagged Sky Movies for a month and it is spectacular. 

There we have a pretty accurate run down of my past two weeks. I have managed to survive work without making a fool of myself, and got away lightly with question time at my welcome lunch. Pretty Little Liars has also got me questioning why I still watch it with this new Spaleb nonsense, I wish for the return of Spoby and Haleb. Hope you guys have a superb week!

Valentine's Gifts: Her vs. Him

Now we've consumed our body weight in Nutella/Lemon/Sugar/Golden Syrup covered pancakes it's time to move onto February's next event: Valentine's Day. There is the forever ongoing debate about how you don't need a dedicated day to appreciate your loved ones, blah blah blah, but us human beings are so busy now days that it is super easy to slip into a routine and take for grated what;s around you. I mean there is also that added bonus of presents and food, it's like Christmas all over again. So in honour of this lovey dovey occasion I've put together a few of my favourite pieces that I think would make a great V day present.
{Eds note: Gifts for her are in pink and gifts for him are in red. However, I'm all for equality so there is no definitive label on each gift}

1. Snuggle Time Pillow Case |2. Personalised Hammer | 3. Fujifilm Instax | 4. Macchinetta | 5. Fitbit Flex | 6. Heart Sunglasses | 7. His Mug | 8. Personalised Bracelet | 9. Picnic Blanket | 10. A Pug's Guide to Dating | 11. LOVE Wall Art

Don't worry, for all you single pringle's who are reading this and rolling your eyes, Sir Valentine once said there's no better day to treat yourself. Disclaimer: he didn't, however if you're not spending the money on someone else then why not spend it on yourself, I'm sure you can think of a million reasons as to why you deserve it. And for all you lovers out there who are still yet to book that restaurant, what are you doing with your life? Valentine's means good food, well that's how we celebrate it anyway, so pull your finger out and get a wriggle on!

Relaxation Run Down

Happy Pancake Day! If you're reading this it means we did it, we got through January and we're a good way into the second month of the year. It was a tough one, doing everything to avoid eating the cupboards full of chocolates and pulling yourself away from the now-empty Christmas tree spot. Hopefully, stress levels have finally resumed to their normal level however, fear not if that isn't the case. February for me brings a new job which of course will bring new stresses so I've put together a how to guide on what best relaxes me, which may work for you too!

1. Have a bath
This is always the top of my list for everything. Cold? Have a bath. Feeling icky? Have a bath. Stressed? Have a bath. It's the perfect excuse to get using those bath bombs you received for Christmas so then you can go and buy some more. I tend to light a few candles and either take in my book or catch up on some TV, something that lets my mind switch off. (If I'm really lucky I'll occasionally get a hot chocolate made for me which makes it 100 times better!)

2. Read a book
There's nothing better than switching off from the real world and entering someone else's world. Put your phone on silent, get comfy with a blanket and start from the beginning. If you struggle with getting into reading then re-read a book you loved, there's no right or wrong book. I always find this great to do just before bed as it really helps me to unwind and prepare me for a good nights sleep.

3. Colouring
If you haven't noticed already then 'adult' colouring has taken the world by storm. There's no shame in sitting there, concentrating on keeping in the lines. You'd be surprised as to how stress-relieving this activity is and with a whole range of colouring books now available there's one for everyone. (Next on my list is Alice in Wonderland, surprise, and Benedict Cumberbatch)

4. Watch a movie
Put on your favourite movie and settle down on the sofa. You may have seen it 6789854 million times before but that will just make it an easier watch and a good way to unwind. You're not having to concentrate on who's who and what story line is what, and for me those films that relax me are obviously Disney ones. 

5. Paint your nails
I'm an awful nail painter. It'll end up half my arm and I have no idea how, but I love having freshly painted nails. It can be a perfect activity to do whilst you have your number one movie on the TV and a cup of tea by your side. 

6. Have a clear out
A cluttered space = a cluttered mind. Go through your wardrobe and get rid of those tops you haven't worn for two years but are saving for that just in case day. It will make you feel better, and give you more space to fill it with new clothes.  

So there are my ways I like to de-stress, if anyone else has anything else they swear by I'd love to know!

Pantone Colour of the Year: Homeware Lusting

So it was announced at the start of this year that Pantone's colour of the year wouldn't be just one, but two colours, how exciting! It's not just the year of the fire monkey but also of Rose Quartz (PANTONE 13-1520) and Serenity (PANTONE 15-3919). A very important person at the company has described the colours to reflect "connection and wellness as well as a soothing sense of order and peace", the kind of feeling you get when you are colouring in one of those adult colouring books- we all you know you have one. Personally, I think it's a wonderful combination, my wardrobe is loving it and it has #futurehousecolourscheme all over it so I've put together a bit of a home ware wishlist of all the Rose Quartz and Serenity coloured pieces I've bought, I'm dreaming of. P.S. Homesense is a great place to get some inspiration! 

1. ASDA- Wall Clock | 2. M&S- Magnolia Jug |  3. Next- Reed Diffuser | 4. John Lewis- Rug | 5. H&M- Wooden Box | 6. Matalan- Knitted Pouffe | 7. John Lewis- Armchair | 8. Tesco- Vases | 9. H&M- Cushion Cover 

Just putting together these Homewars bits has got me dreaming. Pair them with some copper accessories and you've hit the mark for me! What are your favourite pieces?

February Goals {2016}

February brings us the wonders of Chinese New Year, Valentines Day and the most important, Shrove Tuesday, Mardi Gras, Pancake Day, whatever name you like to give it- my cupboards are fully stocked up with Nutella and I'm not sitting here right now with a spoon and a jar. I think my main goal for me this month is probably not to make a fool out of myself at work, first impressions and all that jazz. However, there are a few other things I've got my mind on. 

1. Start planning for a sunny getaway

2. Plan an uber fun weekend for Jason's brothers and partners

3. Always have freshly painted nails

4. Settle in in my new working environment

5. Light my Victoria Sponge candle (Now I have the salary to be able to replace it)

6. Keep my new green friends alive

So here's to hoping that I don't fall on my arse over the next few days and then I will have survived week one, so good so far.