Valentines Day and Disney's Up Cake!

After a really lovely couple of days, I thought it’d be nice to collate the best bits in a little blog post :) Now, I realise that Valentines day has become a pretty controversial day, which is a bit sad really as it’s not totally necessary to engage in all the gimmicks… it’s just a good excuse to do something extra special for someone, whether it be on the 14^th of February or any other day :) Anyway, some of you might have already seen if we’re friends on Facebook, but this year I decided to do something a little bit different for Matthew! I wanted to do something memorable just to say a very important little message… so I made him a special cake : ) We’ve always been pretty big Disney fans, and we always have little adventures… so there wasn’t much doubt in my mind as to what cake I was going to make. It took me a good few days, but I was really proud of the end result and Matthew could not believe it! So, in this post I’ll share a few “in the making” pictures along with some of the highlights of our Valentines Day :) 

I'd been drawing up and planning this cake for a couple of weeks, gathering all the little supplies that I'd need etc. And, because I'm at uni full time I had to cram it all in on Wednesday day time, and Thursday evening... in between both of which I had to dart back and forth to Nottingham... not ideal but nonetheless it didn't stop me haha. For the sponge, I did cheat and use boxes of chocolate cake mix... but still, it tasted good! Also, I'm by no means whatsoever a talented baker, my icing technique is terrible but I just enjoy making funky cakes, especially one like this that actually meant so much :)

Essential part... about to lick the spoon haha!

Quick lunch break to eat my gran's home made shepards pie... yummy!

The roof is made from card board and icing over the top :) (it was leaking! haha but it dried well over night)

This is how I left the cake on Thursday evening... ready to quickly finish off on Friday morning :)

When I went up to bed that night, I found these beautiful little treats from my Mumsy :) 

Ta-daaa! All finished :) This is my Disney's Up inspired cake, to thank Matthew for all our perfect adventures, big or small... 

For the balloons, I just used 5" ones and only blew them up a small amount (well, mum did... despite trying with all my mite I could not even slightly blow up a balloon! ridiculous haha) and I bought latex glue from ebay to stick them together :) They were just air filled so they wouldn't last particularly long, or float, but I was really pleased with how they looked :)

When Matthew arrived, I put the theme tune from the film on (Married Life) as I guided him into the kitchen with my hands over his eyes haha... and he was so amazed when he saw the cake!! It was so worth it to see his face haha... although he was not looking forward to cutting it!

With all my hard work done... it was a beautiful surprise when the doorbell rang and these gorgeous flowers were delivered! I've never had flowers sent to me before, but it was sooo nice... when I opened the door, the postman said "somebody loves you!" haha! :D

Now can anybody guess what Matthew's present from me was??? The clue is in the message!

It's a telescope! He'd been going on about wanting one for a while, so I was planning on getting one for him just as a gift, not specifically for Valentines Day... but going by my student loan installments, it meant that I could buy it towards the end of January, so I thought why not wait and give it to him as a Valentine :) He was super-happy and can't wait to get it set up and go star gazing! Not that we'll be any good budding astronomers, but nevertheless it'll be cool to see the moon up close! :)

So... with all the spoiling each other out of the way... what did we do? More spoiling! haha... we took a drive into Nottingham and had a shop around so I'll share what I came back with... 

I actually bought some trainers?! I tried these on in Footasylum and thought they'd be good for long walks around the uni campus... they were also reduced to £40 :)

Then, in Urban Outfitters I seen this and it has a turtle on the front!!! So me and Matthew took one look at each other and thought it was a must!

Whilst in there, I also chose the top that I'm wearing in the picture above (taken the next day... today) which is just nice and comefy, and dare I say it, very "me"! And, a little necklace which is a kind of rose gold/brassy colour :)

The last thing, was a bath bomb from Lush which Matthew chose as it smells delicious!! I think it's called Avobath?

With a happy morning and lots of shopping done, both of us felt a bit tired out, so we decided not to go out for dinner as planned... but to stay in instead. Matthew cooked my favourite dinner and did it just how I like it (spaghetti bolognaise with broccoli in it) ... it was sooo yummy! We also watched a commedy called 'into the jungle' which was really good :)

That night, we just had a cosy night in with lots of love heart chocolates, cuddled up watching some of our favourite YouTubers (Jesse and Jeana! haha) It was so nice just spending time together and having a good laugh as always! :D

The next day, I found a "sorry you missed it" card at the door saying I'd missed an important parcel, so we drove down to the post office to collect it... and inside were these from Matthew!!! They were supposed to arrive on Valentines Day but unfortunately arrived the day after, but that didn't bother me... I was just so happy and excited haha... Whipsnade zoo had been on our little 'to do' list for a while so I am soooo excited to go there! Also, my favourite part of the present... is what Matthew had written inside. It said "our adventure continues... <3" which I thought was so uncanny (seeing as what I wrote on the cake!) but it honestly made me smile from the inside out. I think gifts that really mean something, are just a cut above the rest! 

With a heart full of smiles, that was our Valentines day :) We didn't do anything particularly fancy, but I had such a lovely weekend! I also decided, among all the romance... I am going to try and do some more little romantic things, just at random! So, watch out Matthew... I'm going to try my hand at cooking a bit more often haha... Anyway, I hope everyone had a lovely Valentines Day and doesn't feel too gushy with all the love in the air haha! 

:)

Being Happy!

Two blog posts in two days... having a little blog-athon right now I think haha. Anyway, today I picked up my first set of exam results from uni (eek) and I have to say I find this sort of thing really quite nerve wracking because you spend time working and revising through out a whole semester and it boils down to these results... so I was a bit shaky but I picked up my brown envelope this morning and I have to say I am pretty pleased :)

Across 4 essay assignments and 2 exams, I came out with three 1sts, two 2:1s and a 2:2... so I am excited that there were no fails haha. The 1sts came from my essays, the 2:1s came in both exams and the 2:2 came from my least favourite module... which I'm hoping to improve on after reading some of the feedback!

So... semester one? It's been really tiring! And that's coming from somebody who doesn't really do the whole party hard, freshers business haha... so credit to the people who balance both! Overall I'd say this semester (I still want to say term) has been all about adjusting to uni life, being a bit more independent... so that definitely comes with a few hit and misses! I wouldn't say I've worked as hard as I could, but I definitely tried to keep up and do well. So far, uni work has actually been easier for me than A level work, which is actually a relief as I did find A levels to be probably one of the most exhausting points of education! So to anyone who's feeling a bit worn out with them... don't let them put you off going on to University or other training. I wouldn't say I have any tips really, other than to stay happy! There'd be nothing worse than going through all these stressful exams feeling down. During exams I often find it hard to sleep or concentrate on anything else... so I thought I'd add a few little 'words of wisdom' (if you could call it that haha) at the end here :)

Now, this might sound a little "away with the fairies" as my gran might say haha... but sometimes, being so busy all the time with a million things to think about, it's difficult to totally switch off and rest. So, I think it's important to literally, think happy thoughts. When I lie in bed at night and I'm struggling to let go of the day before and thinking of all the things I have to do in the day ahead, I actually do lie there and think of all the reasons why I feel lucky. Going from the major things, like feeling lucky for the people in my life... my family, my friends, for having Matthew by my side... to some of the simpler things. Like, feeling lucky for my cosy, warm and comefy bed! It's just thoughts like those that feel so comforting and I've found it really helpful as one of those "remember what's really important" kind of things. It just helps eliminate all of those unnecessary worries I find myself pondering over and stupid hours of the night!

I guess tied in with the above, is a little happiness tip too. Sometimes it's easy to forget what really matters, especially if you're a worrier like me! I find myself time and time again saying "nope, no more stressing, no more worrying" and despite my best efforts to write lists or be super-organised, nothing seems to work as well as to just have a little straight-thinking time. I'd say this is kind of like when your own brain straight-talks to you haha. I think it's actually really helpful to just take a step back and think of the things you have to look forward to, the nice memories you'll always keep with you and the people that really do make your life special. I guess this is pretty good timing with Valentines day being tomorrow! As, for me, this isn't a day of "proving" how much you love somebody, it's a day where you show them. All the little everyday things help do this too, but I think it's nice to devote one day of the year to get a little bit creative and do something special for the people who make your life special. It honestly makes me happy from the inside out when I look for the best bits in my life (past, present and future) so I think this is something I need to do more of when I'm scurrying around thinking "hmm. what if... oh no" and getting myself in a tizz haha!

Was that advice? Or was that just me pouring my thoughts onto a blog post? Maybe both... who knows! haha. That post got pretty deep, and pretty philosophical but there's something nice about putting your thoughts into writing... it might even ensure that I take my own advice and think happier! :)

So, with my first semester out the way, I am definitely ready for a restful weekend and some TLC tomorrow! Hope everyone has a lovely Valentines! :)

Some little treats

So, I've only posted once since, but I realised that I'd forgotten to share some good news with my readers! A couple of weeks ago... I passed my driving test! It was my second attempt and I was super-excited because I just couldn't wait to hold the license in my hand... another thing "in the bag" (me and my mum have this little saying for any new life achievments going 'in the bag' haha) I got three minors which I was pretty pleased with as I'm not the most confident of drivers... I even stalled on the way out of the test centre... oops! Anyway, with all my uni exams done and dusted, I went shopping last week with my friend Hannah from joliepetitecherie.blogspot.co.uk and we had such a lovely day! So, I thought I'd share some of the bits that I picked up as well as the good news! :)

We first of all went into Boots, and stumbled across the YSL counter! I'd bought my first lipstick (and first product I think?) from them a few weeks before, which was Lingerie Pink, number 7 from their Rouge Volupte range (the lightest one in the picture) and I really have loved using it, so I decided to pick up another colour, number 17 :)

As far as a review goes, I'd say that it doesn't take too long to work out the important parts of a lipstick (I was going to insert a little giggle there but us beauty/make-up readers know this is serious business, haha) My first impressions of the product actually weren't great. I've been suffering from pretty dry lips this Winter, and when I applied it for the first time it seemed to highlight this more than anything. BUT, once I'd applied some lipblam beforehand, took that off, and applied this after, I patted it in with my finger and it just felt 100% better! It sounds strange with only a slight difference but it's quite a thick consistancy, so to hide any imperfections I found it best to blot it in a bit, and once that was done, it looked perfect! The colour was completely true to how it looks on the packaging (and in my photo so that's helpful!), it wasn't too sheer and it was super moisturising once I'd had it on for a while. It wasn't any more 'long lasting' than any other lipsticks I have, but it wasn't bad either. Also, it smells like watermelon!

Number 7, Lingerie Pink and on the right, number 17 :)

YSL had a rather attractive deal going on last week in Boots... if you buy one mascara and another product, you get a free sample of their new babydoll mascara and £7.50 worth of Boots points put back onto your advantage card! Well, I didn't really need a new mascara, so I was just going to pass and go with the lipstick... until a really lovely sales assistant said that if I took one of their highlighting concealers (the oh so famous touche eclat) she'd throw in the free mascara anyway :) So, being a sucker for this kind of thing I decided to go for it. The photo shows what the mascara wand looks like, which to be honest I wasn't overly excited by, but when I tried it, I have to say it honestly is fantastic! Personally, I probably wouldn't purchase it in full size as I've always loved Maxfactor's False Lash Effect which is less than half the price, but... for a treat this was amazing!

TOUCHE ECLAT IN THE ORIGINAL SHADE 01

Now for my favourite of the bunch... this probably deserves a blog post of its own really! This is the touche eclat highlighting concealer, which I've been eyeing up (get it? haha oh god, somebody stop me from writing when I'm tired) for ages and when I was at the YSL counter, the lady asked if I'd like her to apply some for me. You apply the product on top of foundation so I guess my little order goes concealer, foundation then this around the eyes and lips (to accentuate these areas). I straight away noticed a difference, maybe not so much so that others would notice but it's definitely something that makes you look twice at yourself in the mirror, in a good way! It's great for looking much more fresh and awake which is great for 9am lectures haha!

The last product I picked up from Boots (dangerous place haha) was this little eye shadow quad from Revlon. It was around £6 and I'd been looking to try some cooler-toned grey eye shadows as I have blue-grey eyes, and most of my palettes have warm toned browns in them... so I fancied a change! I was really pleased with the quality of these eye shadows as they blend really well and stay in place all day! However, they were a lot more metallic-looking on the eye, so I'd like to try more matte shades.

I think I've already mentioned that my lips have been really dry recently, so it doesn't take too many guesses as to why I picked this up haha! This is in the flavour honey :)

These were the last thing I bought, and they were kind of on the off chance. There is a down side to living between two places (uni and home) as it leaves me trying to buy duplicates of my essentials to try and save me from carting them to and from each place. So, I needed some cotton pads to leave at uni and I seen these, which are huge! They're so much bigger than standard size ones, so it'll come in handy with only having to use one when applying toner or removing eye make up :)

So, that's it for my little beauty haul! This Winter my skin has been feeling so dry and tired, maybe because I've been a lot more exposed to the whether by doing a lot more walking... so it has been nice to try out some new things as a little pick-me-up. Just in time for Valentines day...

 ❤ 

Too Much Info? (haha)

 

Late night blog post on a Monday? hmm... I can only apologise in advance if some sentences don't quite make sense because my poor brain should be tired by now haha. Anyway, I'd seen this tag floating around blogs and on YouTube and I thought it'd be a nice way of giving readers a little insight into 'me'. I personally find this a really good way of getting to know different bloggers and Youtubers which helps me see whether I can relate to them. I think being able to relate to someone is important when reading their blog posts as it helps you to be able to make judgements about their recommendations and any products they seem to like :) Anyway, I've got lots of questions to answer so I hope by the end of it you'll know me a little better and enjoy reading :)  

1. What are you wearing?

My purple eeyore pyjamas!

 

2. Ever been in love? (this got deep quickly haha)

Just the once :)

 

3. Ever had a terrible break up?

Thankfully no

 

4. How tall are you?

Pretty tall, I haven't actually measured myself in a long time but probably around 5"9

 

5. How much do you weigh?

......... (hopefully less soon, as I have recently been making much healthier choices - yep, really! haha... not as a "diet" in particular... just as a "feel healthy" mission in hope that I'll have a tone more energy and maybe drop a few pounds along the way)

 

6. Any tattoos?

Not yet... I have a few in mind but I'm kind of waiting for a right place/right time moment :)

 

7. Any piercings?

I have 6 ear piercings (4 on one ear, 2 on the other - one of which was done by myself... ouch) and I used to have my nose pierced

 

8. OTP?

I actually had to google this to find out what it meant haha! So for anyone who's confused like me... it means one true pairing - which two fictional characters would be your favourite couple? Mine would have to be Maggie and Glenn from the Walking Dead or Katniss and Gale from the Hunger Games!

 

9. Favourite TV show?

Oh my goodness, I have a good few! All time favourite: The Walking Dead...

followed by others such as Downton Abbey, Mrs Browns Boys, Miranda, My Wife and Kids, The Inbetweeners of course, the Great British Bake Off and I sometimes enjoy watching the Real Housewifes (all of them) which is a bit of a guilty pleasure... do you think I want a bit too much tele? haha

 

10. Favourite bands?

Hmm... I actually don't know very many. I like Pendulum and the Script who were both brilliant live!

 

11. Something you miss?

I miss living in South Africa. When I was younger I moved there for a couple of years with my family and it honestly holds the most happy, beautiful memories and it will always have a special place in my heart!

 

12. Favourite song?

Again, quite a few... Gabrielle Aplin's Please Don't Say You Love Me

Clean Banditt ft. Jess Glynne - Rather Be

Randy Newman - You've Got A Friend In Me

and this yearmix thing by Liquicity that Matthew has on in the car all the time!

 

13. How old are you?

I'm 18 years old

 

14. Zodiac sign?

Leo... Laura the Leo haha

 

15. Quality you look for in a partner?

They must be "different" if that makes sense, not someone who follows the crowd etc. Someone who makes me laugh and most importantly... someone who makes me happy as can be! Being a good cook would be great too! Thanks for ticking all the boxes there Matthew Cheng ;) ...

 

16. Favourite quote?

I'm not sure if they count as "quotes" but my mum sends me lovely texts with little sentences such as "go and get life, don't wait for it to come to you" or just simply "do what makes YOU happy". Small words like these go a long way for me as I have a real tendency to just go with the flow and not make decisions that are right for me... so I try to think of these as much as possible!

 

17. Favourite actor?

Liam Hemsworth and who doesn't love a bit of Hugh Grant?

 

18. Favourite colour?

Simplest question... and up until recently I've always gone with the safe girly one... pink. But, I think I'm undecided as I like so many! haha

 

19. Loud/soft music?

Mostly soft, occasionally loud

 

20. Where do you go when you're sad?

My bedroom, to make a phone call to Matthew and my Gran to whinge my worries away haha. Or to my mum's room to do the same thing in person!

 

21. How long does it take you to shower?

About 15 minutes

 

22. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?

Washing hair - An hour and a half

Not washing hair - An hour

 

23. Ever been in a physical fight?

No, not a serious one I'm about as strong as a sock haha *I think I should win some kind of award for thinking of the most random object there*

 

24. Turn on?

Nice teeth (smile)

 

25. Turn off?

I want to say like a "pretty boy"... it's not even about being over-conscious of their appearance, it's about being over-conscious to fit in/be popular with the girls haha

 

26. Reason I started a blog?

I've always enjoyed being creative. I love taking photos, editing them and documenting thoughts/feelings/memories with pictures and words is something I feel is so lovely. I also enjoy trying new things and reviewing/talking about them = my blog was born with some iffy grammer and probably way too lengthy... but I enjoy writing blog posts a lot :)

 

27. Fears?

I get a bit scared of ghosts at night, the usual things and I guess to get a little bit deeper... I sometimes get scared of forgetting things, which might sound a bit silly... but even some of the small things that have made me happy... I'd hate to forget them!

 

28. Last thing that made you cry?

I've currently got The Last Song on my tv so I've shed a good few tears through out that :( such a lovely film... and it's got little turtles and my favourite actor, can't get much better?

 

29. Last time you said you loved someone?

I told my mum I love her on the phone earlier :)

 

30. Reason behind your blog name?

Well, I wish I had an interesting story behind it... but unfortunately not. I guess in the future I'll probably change it to something more meaningful or relevant

 

31. Last book you read?

The Hunger Games trilogy (all three so the last one was mockingjay) ... absolutely fantastic, best books I've ever read!

 

32. Book you're currently reading?

Dipping in and out of lots of uni work books... so I haven't got round to starting a new book to read for fun yet... might have to have a look around for a good one soon!

 

33. The last show you watched?

This Morning... this morning haha

 

34. Last person you talked to?

In person - my friend Tamsin

 

35. The relationship between you and the last person you text?

My boyfriend Matthew :)

 

36. Favourite food?

Mashed potato or coco pops... very close tie there that have been my favourites for years upon years!

 

37. Place you want to visit?

A WHOLE LOAD OF THEM! Travelling seems to be becoming more and more important to me as years go by, I think it's definitely something I'd regret not doing by the time I get older. I don't mean the kind of hotel holiday travelling either, or back packing... so I guess I'd love to do something somewhere in between to visit a fair few countries. This is something me and Matthew have been thinking about to do when I finish my degree... some of our must-see places are: Australia, Thailand and to see the Northern Lights.

 

38. Last place you were?

Sitting here answering these questions as I have too much time on my hands, and fancied making a blog post that didn't require photos as my camera is at home haha

 

39. Do you have a crush?

If it's right to have a crush on a fictional character? If so, Gale from the Hunger Games (Liam Hemsworth)... and you Matthew of course ;)

 

40. Last time you kissed someone?

I kissed Matthew goodbye yesterday when he left with freezing cold wind blowing my hair all over our faces... how romantic... not! haha

 

41. Last time you were insulted?

I can't remember...

 

42. Favourite sweet?

I like gummy bears and other pic'n'mix type ones! I'm much more of a chocolate girl really :)

 

43. What instrument do you play?

None :( I used to play the violin? but I'd love to learn piano it sounds so nice

 

44. Favourite piece of jewellery?

Either my Michael Kors watch, Thomas Sabo charm bracelet or a silver bracelet Matthew bought me for my 18th birthday

 

45. Last sport you played?

Well, urm, I think it must have been PE at school haha. I'm not a sporty girl unfortunately

 

46. Last song you sang?

Sam Cooke - Twistin' the night away with Matthew as it aaaalways reminds me of our holiday in Disneyland Paris as we played it in our hotel getting ready each night... such a happy song and I love it!

 

47. Favourite chat up line?

Oh gosh they're so creepy I think I'd laugh if I tried to say one!

 

48. Last time you hung out with anyone?

I was at uni all day today with my friends :)

 

49. Who should answer these questions next?
Any bloggers who feel like giving their readers a bit more information about themselves! :)