Holiday Wish List

MaxiDress | CutOutDress | TeaDress | MeshDress

Bralette | Sundress | CrochetDress | BeachKaftan

Less than three months until holidaaaay!!! - that's if I save up enough for a late deal. The problem with needing to save money is I am bad at it. I love browsing online and it's so hard to stop myself. I need to leave it a bit longer until I can really buy anything but a holiday wishlist can't help can it?

Although a summer holiday calls for colourful clothes, I am a bit of a goth at heart so half of the bits I was clicking on ended up a bit dark - but still summery in my oppinion - I am especially inlove with the Maxi dress on the first row (drool).

Asos is my first stop when I'm window sopping online, so to stop it getting a bit confusing I decided to stick to their website. All of the clothes are linked in the captions although I will link them below also!

Where do you guys like to online window shop? The budgets a bit tight and I'm always looking for new websites I can drool over, let me know where you like to look!

(Below lists goes left to right of the photos)

Glamorous Floral Print Maxi Dress - £39
Missguided Cut Out Waist Button Front Ditsy Dress - £25
Reclaimed Vintage Button Front Mini Tea Dress With Ruffle Detail In Floral Print - £45
ASOS Mesh Dress With Bright Embroidery - £38
New Look Long Tassel Crochet Bralet - £17.99
ASOS Shirred Dropped Waist Sundress in Ditsy Print - £25
ASOS Hand Crochet Skater Dress - £35
ASOS Pastel Palm Wrap Front Chiffon Beach Kaftan - £22

Now TV: What's Worth Binge Watching

That's right, not only am I an avid binge watcher of Netflix but also now TV. I love Now TV because all of the mix of Sky TV shows, I don't have sky so it's great for shows like Game of Thrones which otherwise I would have to find online or wait for it to come out on DVD. There are a lot of show I watch week by week as they come out but like netflix there are so many shows you can sink your teeth into with already a couple of seasons out.

Girls

I have a weird relationship with this show. I had watched a couple of the episodes of the first season when it came out because of a blog I had read. I do not find any of the characters likeable. All of the girls are very different, They have different personalities and different lifestyles, and they all have these negative personality traits. For example Hannah makes no sense to me, she is kind of a bitch, she's selfish and she's self-centred. As much as I find these girls unlikable I am so aware of how real their personalities are, we can all be selfish and we can all be bitches, nobody is perfect all of the time and this shows the really gritty side. I think this is what kept me coming back for more and although I stand by finding them unlikable, I want them to succeed. Boyfriend wasn’t too interested in this so I watched it on my own in a weekend or two. Definitely worth a watch.

Modern Family

I had heard so many people reference this show, it was always something I wanted to watch, so all of the seasons being on Now TV was a dream come true. It's been a couple of months since I watched this. In my old flat I had to wake up at 5.30am for work every day due to living so far. Nothing is really on TV at that time so I used to turn this on for a little laugh while I got ready and sipped my morning coffee. It's such a laid back easy show to watch. I'm always looking for shows like this that will help cheer me up on those down days when I don't want to think to hard about the show I am watching, this is the perfect example of that.

Devious Maids

This is a very recent addition to my watch list. I'm all up to date on any of the shows I like to binge by myself, so I thought I would give this a try. The concept is so similar to Desperate Housewives, and considering they are both created by Mark Cherry I suppose they would be similar. (one being about rich people and their families and the other being about maids and the rich families they work for) I loved Desperate Housewives so I know I will continue to love this. I wouldn't say this is one of my go to shows when I don’t want to concentrate much because so much happens and you need to see it to stay up to date. I am about half way through the first series and I am really enjoying what has to offer so far.

The Affair

When I started watching this I wasn't sure if I would carry on (lets be honest it's not exactly a nice subject) but I quickly became obsessed. Without leaving any spoilers I love the layout of this show. The same events are shown twice but from different characters point of views. I loved how neither of the characters involved in the affair admitted it was them that started the whole thing. Most shows have at least one main character you can like, but not this one, you're so mad at them for what they are doing but you are drawn in and although you wont admit it you can feel the excitement they feel. The show isn’t just about the affair – the whole time you are leading up to a murder and you don't know who did it – I have attempted to write a bit more in depth but you need to watch it for yourself. There are two seasons on Now TV and I'm really hoping the third is out soon (Just checked for you and it's in November so you have plenty of time to catch up!)

Zoella Sweet Inspirations

As I mentioned in my May round up post, I was very late to the Zoella party. I knew of her and had seen a few videos but beauty guru Youtubers just wasn't what I was into. Until December 2015 I decided to watch her Vlogmas (I love a vlogger – the more every day mundane thing you are doing the more interested I am in the Vlog). Since then I have tuned into most of her videos and when I heard that her new beauty range was being released online on the 27^th May I decided to treat myself.

I chose the three products I though I would use most. Two products for the bath and her fragrance mist.

Bath Latte - £6

“Indulge in this deliciously scented, creamy bath and shower milk. Enriched with nourishing sweet almond, cacao and honey, the Zoella Beauty Bath Latte will leave your skin feeling beautifully soft, silky and smelling totally irresistible. Your skin will love you a latte!” - Description from feelunique.com

I am a huge fan of a nice hot bath after a hard day at work, and bubbles are always a must so this was the product I had decided on from the minute I saw it. This smells amazing – not too sweet, The boyfriend described it as a smell you always smell when you are in a beauty shop...not quite sure if I agree but you get the gist that it is a sweet, clean, beautiful smell. The product makes amazing fluffy bubbles, I didn’t use too much and I was left with plenty of bubble to make sure I didn’t have to see my nakedness under the water. I wouldn’t normally spend £6 on bubble bath but to be honest the bubble baths I normally buy aren’t the best and don’t have a lot of scent. When I saw the £6 price tag I was pleasantly surprised, the whole range is reasonably priced and a good quality.

Le Fizz Fragrance Bath Fizzer - £5

“This irresistible macaron scented Zoella Beauty Le Fizz Fragranced Bath Fizzer will transform your bath into an indulgent experience.
Lie back, relax and enjoy. Ooh la la!” - Description from feelunique.com

The more products I can throw in the bath, the better! I love the concept that it is styled like a bar of chocolate. Once again the smell is amazing, although when both products were mixed into the bath I can't really say which one made it smell so nice (probably both!) The pack recommends you drop 4 squares in so there is plenty for a few uses and at £5 you cant go wrong really.

Body Mist - £8

“Zoella Beauty Sweet Inspirations Body Mist is inspired by the scrummy scent of sweet macarons, this deliciously chic fragrance will leave you smelling totally irresistible!” - Description from feelunique.com

I had never used a body mist before this, always just perfumes. I suppose I wasn’t sure about spending money on a fragrance that I wasn’t sure would last, but at only £8 you can't really go wrong, plus I’ve worked my way down to only one perfume at the moment and don't really have the budget to buy another. It has the same gorgeous scent as the rest of the products and spraying all over myself just made the smell better. To my surprise I kept getting whiffs of the scent all day at work, it stayed marvellously. Out of the three product I bought this is by far my favourite – mostly because I can't really stay in the bath all day. This is the product that gets my 10/10 and I will 100% buy again.

Forgive me if my reviewing skills aren’t exactly up to scratch, it's been a very long time and rather than a detailed and perfectly structured approach I prefer to get more personal. I love the range, I will buy again, and I recommend all of the products I tried!

May Round Up

Did May even Happen? I cannot believe it is already June. We are already half way through the year! (stating the obvious) Nothing much happened in May and to be honest it felt pretty non existent to me. I write the date numerous times a day in my job and I constantly found myself either writing April or June!

I didn’t buy many products this month so haven’t gathered many favourites, but trying to look at the good things in life leaves me with nice little memories to cheer me up.

Slim and Save

Boyfriend and I have been doing this diet for almost a month now, although we did have a 4 day break recently so we could drink alcohol. This is a very low calorie diet that puts you into ketosis. I won’t say to much as I plan to do a post on this when it has been a full month. But this diet has played a huge part in my mood. At the start of the month I was the heaviest I have ever been and was feeling pretty blue about it but at the end of this month I am starting to see the old me and am full with motivation and love for this diet. (I will be posting about my full month on this diet on 10^th June so keep a look out)

Zoella Sweet Inspirations

I was quite late to the Zoella obsession but since watching her Vlogmas series I am decidedly inlove. Seeing as I am trying to save up some money I haven’t really bought myself any treats. When I saw her new products were available online last Friday (and at very reasonable prices might I add) I was excited to spend a bit of money. I haven’t used any apart from the mist, but it smells amazing and I was really surprised that at the end of a full day wearing it I can still smell it on my skin!

Kasabian

Now this isn’t a fully happy memory for me! On the 29^th May I went to see Kasabian. I was excited to finally have a night out and let my hair down. Sadly I let my hair down a bit too much and got ridiculously drunk! I haven’t been an emotional drunk in a very long time but at the end of the night I was sobbing. I also have no memory of why or most of the night I just know I cried and made a bit of a fool of myself. Oh well, I’m sure I will stop feeling embarrassed about this eventually!

So it turns out I didn’t have too much to write about this month. There a quite a few things that I plan on being blog posts so I can’t write too much. With all the happy feeling I felt in the past month have also come some sad feelings. Most of these are unexplained girl emotions where I have honestly just felt a bit blergh! I am really in need of a holiday and I think the uncertainty of having enough by August hasn’t been helping. Oh Well! Onwards to happier month and a more well rounded and emotionally stable Chloe!

Things I wish I had done while I was at University

These points are more about the lifestyle. When I look back I can come at this subject from two different angles – Things I SHOULD have done to get a degree I will use, and a light-hearted list of things I wish I had done, mostly to have more fun.

1. Stayed Single!! - I got into a relationship while I was at Uni, and eventually we were together because it was comfortable. If I was single I would have paid more attention to my work and spend more time with my friends!

2. Focused on work more – I have always been pretty academically average, but I know I could have done better than I did do.

3. Joined a society – Some kind of creative outlet would have been nice, maybe I would have met some people that live closer to where I am now?

4. Found a part time job – This did happen for a while, but bar work meant less going out with friends. 2 years after uni I am still battling the student overdraft. Extra pennies could have helped. Also, finding a job after university was very hard with no experience.

5. Been better with money – I mentioned the overdraft above, I don't regret anything about uni but saving up is 100 times harder with debt.

6. Gone on a girls holiday – I would have loved to go on holiday with my uni friends, however I had no money and now it seems impossible.

7. Utilized the equipment – Studying journalism meant I had access to resources that may have helped me get into a writing career...3 years later and I'm only just trying this blogging thing seriously.

8. Dyed my hair an outrageous colour!!! - I want to do this so bad now, but it wouldn't look too professional in an office environment.

9. Dated – I have always jumped from serious relationship to serious relationship – I don’t regret not dating and I'm happier than I ever have been now – It's just something I never did.

10 – Lived in the moment – It was an amazing time in my life and I could have had so much more fun if I wasn't worrying!

I am aware some of these contradict each other...especially money and living in the moment….but the lifestyle I had in uni is vastly different to being an adult. This was a time I made mistakes and it didn't matter any where near as much as I thought it did. Taking chances and having fun is what the lifestyle is about.

P.S of course if I looked back from an academic point of view my list may be different

P.P.S I tried to find ridiculous pictures of me from my time at uni, but still not the worst there is out there!

Budgeting for Dummies

Yet another year has gone by and once again I have done no saving! Every month I have scraped by and I don’t even know where all the money went. I’m 24 now and I rent a house with my boyfriend. If I ever want to be able to buy a house or go on more than a cheap late deal holiday I am going to have to get my act together.

This year things have changed. Our rent went up, neither of us will have any over time, Luke had to repair his car a couple of weeks ago and I started driving lessons. We are just coming to the realisation that we need to make an effort to save money and all at once reasons that we can't have sprung up.

I entered this year expecting that we would go on holiday. Boyfriend usually gets a lot of over time in the summer and for the past few years that and the small bit I have saved goes towards a Late deal. We have time booked off for the end of August so it was time to get serious and a few simple steps have really helped us see that we could save so much more money a month.

SPREADSHEET BUDGET -
I have the next few months mapped out. How much my wage will be and all of the monthly bills that must be paid every month. I am then left with a figure to spend on Food and anything else important…I’m actually surprised at how much is this (I always expected it was more). I am awful at spending on meaningless things and having nothing to show for it. With it all mapped out I can see what I have and where it is all going. I have managed to save more in the last 2 months than I ever have just because I am aware of exactly of what is going out of my bank and where it is going.

MONEY POT -
I really need one that doesn’t open as I have dipped into it a few times, but there is always spare change laying about the house and now this is where it goes. Its slow saving but without that money in my purse I'm not tempted to but a fatty lunch while I'm at work (so it's both healthy and sensible!)

DO NOTHING - (unless it is already planned)
Like I said. The aim is to afford a holiday at the end of August. We have a few things planned this summer so there is no getting out of spending some money. But its been put in the budget. The rest of the time we are strict hermits. Nothing but nights on the sofa watching TV! Of course this isn’t good for long term saving because you want a social life but the next 3 months (other than the few things that are planned) I am locking the front door and staying in (NO TAKEAWAYS EITHER)

Obviously I am no expert. But from someone who has never been able to save up in her life I’m quite impressed with myself. So if you're as bad as me try writing it all down, so simple but it has helped me so much!

10 Disadvantages of Living with your Boyfriend

A couple of Days Ago I posted 10 advantages of living with your boyfriend. Although the good does outweigh the bad, living with a boy can be hard sometimes!(no pun intended) So just for fun I thought I would share some of the disadvantages I have found.

1 – Your periods sync up – Yep...They become raging bitches as well sometimes.
2 – They have bad days too – sometimes they cant handle your emotional ass.
3 – The smell that comes out of their ass.
4 – Sometimes they can be a bit too attached to old fashioned gender roles.
5 – They can spend weeks wanting to do nothing but play an Xbox game (I do the same but THAT'S NOT THE POINT)
6 – Bad moods are great for stupid arguments.
7 – If you have an argument, it sucks a million times more than when you didn’t live together.
8 – Too much comfort means the romance is harder to keep alive.
9 – They leave toenails everywhere and block the bathroom sink with their beard hair!
10 – You become reliant on them! - one night away is enough.


Please note: This was just for fun, living with your other half is the best!