Thursday, May 31, 2018

iPhone 8: Reviewed


I recently upgraded my 16GB Rose Gold iPhone 6S for a 64GB Space Grey iPhone 8. Before I made this decision I read a lot of reviews, so I thought I would add my own for anyone else in the same position!

I'd like to start by mentioning that the increase in storage has been great, as I can take as many photos as I want without having to worry about having enough room and I have plenty of space for apps and music too. However, I think it would have been good to have smaller options for a lower price as has been the case in previous models of the iPhone. 32GB would have been plenty for me, and I would have appreciated the lower payments.

The speed that this phone works at is phenomenal. It processes what I want it to do almost before I ask it to do it. The camera quality is excellent, a noticeable improvement from the 6S despite the fact that I was disappointed to discover that 'portrait mode' was only available on the 8 Plus and not the regular 8. I also love the new home screen button which you can chose the click for and the battery life is a massive improvement from the 6S.

However, there are some huge minus points to this phone. Firstly, the lack of headphone slot is a pain and I feel that for the huge price of the phone you should get AirPods included. I like that the phone is waterproof, but only to a depth of one meter so I can't take it swimming for example. Also, Wireless charging is great, but again you have to buy the charger separately which is annoying considering how expensive the phone is.

Overall, while I am happy with my new phone I do not think the massive price difference can be justified since it is very very similar to my 6S, so the upgrade is only worth it if you are experiencing problems with your old phone (like I was).




Monday, May 28, 2018

Cheesecake Brownie Recipe


I made these the other day, and they were delicious so I thought I would share the recipe with all of you! They were nice and easy and not too expensive to get ingredients for so they were a perfect activity for me and my boyfriend.

Ingredients:
  • 200g dark chocolate (70%)
  • 150g butter
  • 4 eggs
  • 275g caster sugar
  • 100g plain flour
  • 150g cream cheese
  • 2-4 colours of food colouring
Method:
  1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees centigrade, and grease and line a 20cm square baking tin.
  2. Melt the chocolate and butter. Do this in a heatproof bowl over boiling water. Once melted, move the mixture to the side to cool.
  3. Beat three of the eggs and 225g of caster sugar together, and then mix them into the cooled chocolate for 1 minute.
  4. Fold the flour into the mixture.
  5. In a separate bowl, beat the cream cheese and remaining sugar and egg together until smooth.
  6. Put the cream cheese mixtures into as many bowls as you have food colourings, and add a teaspoon of colour to each bowl.
  7. Pour the brownie mixture into the tin and smooth it out. Spoon the cheesecake mixture on top and create a pattern with the spoon.
  8. Bake for 25-30 minutes, then leave to cool completely before cutting into squares. 



Thursday, May 24, 2018

The Mascara's I Own Ranked


I currently own only nine mascaras, so I'm afraid this post isn't going to be the world's best review but it covers a range of prices so hopefully it will still be useful to any of you looking to buy a mascara. I've ranked them from best to worst, and have tried to give you prices and places to buy them where I can!
  • Too Faced - Better Than Sex. This is my all time favourite mascara. It gives great volume, great length and has pretty pink packaging. It's also easy to layer but that's not even necessary as one coat is enough. I love it so so much. 10/10, available on ASOS for £19 (student discount also applicable).

  • L'Oréal Paris - False Lash Superstar X Fiber. I've raved about this so often on depsoc and on my YouTube channel. It gives amazing length! The only reason this is second and not first is it has two steps and I'm lazy. 9.5/10, available at Superdrug for £10.99 (again, student discount can be added).

  • Essence - Maximum Definition Volume Mascara. This mascara is brilliant. It's so so so cheap, and I use it as a top coat which gives amazing length! The only downfall of this mascara is that it's really difficult to get a hold of in the UK so I usually buy it in Germany. However, google tells me that you can get it for £2.80 from Wilko. 9/10.

  • Benefit - They're Real! This mascara is decent for volume, but it's very expensive and a little clumpy for my taste. I also don't think it's lengthening enough for the price. 7.5/10, £20.50 from Benefit.

  • Essence - Lash Princess. This mascara gives great length but it's super clumpy. Use with care. 7/10, £3.30 from Wilko.

  • No. 7 - Exceptional Definition Mascara. This mascara is very good as a bottom lash mascara, as it's rubber head gives almost no clumps and just a subtle colour, but the volume and length aren't enough for top lashes. 6/10, available from Boots for £12.

  • Kiko - False Lashes Concentrate Lengthening Top Coat. This was very cheap as I got it half price, and it did add a little bit of length to my base coat so I can't really complain but I wouldn't buy it again. 5.5/10, available from Kiko Cosmetics for £7.20.

  • No. 7 - Lash Impact. This is branded to give intense volume but it just doesn't. It's really difficult to apply because of the shape of the brush, however in it's travel size it is good for touching up your makeup while you are out. 5/10, available in full size from boots for £13.50.

  • Sephora - Cinescope. This is the worst mascara I have ever owned. It's awful! Clumpy, chalky, flakes down your face, and only gives mediocre volume. 3/10, available no where in the UK as far as I can tell.



Tuesday, May 22, 2018

My Partnership with Arvessa Watches


Those of you who follow me on instagram (@foffieblogs) will already know that I am now in partnership with Arvessa Watches. They have a range of beautiful watches available online, all of which have free world wide delivery and come with a spare battery which is always handy. Use my my code KLARA30 for a discount now! Click here to visit their website.



Friday, May 18, 2018

A Short Road Trip Playlist


I love road trips. Whether I am the driver, or the passenger I just love the anticipation of the journey. And part of a good road trip is a good playlist. Next week I have a two hour drive ahead of me, so I have created a playlist of cheerful throwbacks that I love to sing along to, and I thought I would share them with you! Enjoy :)


Wednesday, May 16, 2018

My Bucket List


Everyone has goals in life. Many of mine are pretty common, I'd like to get a job where I'm financially stable, be happily married and eventually have children. But those aren't on my bucket list, because they're the sort of things that I think will happen if they're meant to and if not I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. The things on my bucket list are more things that I'm saving up for, or currently working for. If you have a bucket list, I'd love to hear about some of your aims so leave a comment for me! Who knows, maybe I'll add them onto my list too. I have also done a YouTube video about this, which you can watch here.
  1. Visit New York. I have never been to America but I'd love to, and of all of the places in the USA I would want to see, New York is top of the list. I'm not even sure why, I've just always wanted to go. My boyfriend went before we got together and he likes to rub it in my face every time I mention visiting. Hopefully I'll be able to go in the next couple of years!
  2. Go up the Eiffel Tower. I would love to visit Paris, and if I do I will of course go up the Eiffel Tower. I'm terrified of heights, so it will be a challenge but hopefully it'll be worth it! My boyfriend and I have discussed possibly going next year so we'll see soon enough.
  3. Graduate university. This may seem obvious since I'm a student, but it's what I spend most of my time working on at the moment so I had to include it. Preferably I'd like to get at least a 2:1 but only time will tell whether I can do that.
  4. Learn how to bake macaroons. Mostly just because I love them, but also because they look so so cute and I'm all about food that will get me those instagram likes! Haha.
  5. Learn how to parallel park. This may seem like something I should know since I have had my driving licence for nearly 2 years now, but oh my god why is it so hard!? I just can't seem to get the hang of it. Anyone who has ever seen me attempt it will know how truly terrible I am at it. But I feel like it's something I need to learn so that is why it is on this list.
  6. Visit Japan. My grandparents always speak highly of their visits there, and my aunt lived there for a few years because she loved it so much. The culture fascinates me, and photos of it look so beautiful so one day I hope to visit.
  7. Learn to speak another language. Possibly Italian? I grew up bilingual and it's honestly so useful, especially when I go on holiday so I'd love to learn a third language. Italian is my first choice because I just think it sounds beautiful.
  8. Visit Australia or New Zealand. My boyfriend's brother is thinking of doing a year of farming out there after he finishes college this year so we may be able to go over and visit him at Christmas. I'm selfishly hoping that we can!
  9. Get my own cat. As soon as this is realistically an option I am going to do it.
  10. Keep up my blog. This is so fun for me, but it also takes up a lot of time. I hope I can continue to post regularly as I get more and more responsibilities in years to come!


Tuesday, May 15, 2018

My Top 10 Places in Bath


As I am a student at Bath Spa University, I have had the privilege of living in Bath for almost a year now, and it is a beautiful city. I have enjoyed many locations in the city, but these are some of my favourites.
  • The Roman Baths. Of course. This is an obvious one, but they are just so beautiful. Also, as a Bath student I get free entry! The museum is really great and you get a free audioguide as well which as a history student I love. Definitely my favourite place in the city, especially in the sun.
  • Mr B's Book Emporium. This independent bookshop is so so cute. They have many services to help you find new things to read, and there's a wide range of genres to look at too. Also, how cute is this display!?
  • Southgate. Not only are there lots of great shops, but often there are gorgeous hanging displays, such as umbrellas, flowers or Christmas lights. This is the latest one!
  • Pulteney Bridge. I'm told this was one of the locations where Les Mis was filmed, but regardless I think it's beautiful here. So peaceful and close to town too!
  • The Christmas Market. I know this isn't technically a place in Bath, but it's definitely worth visiting. Such a range of stalls selling delicious food, handmade crafts and other beautiful items. Definitely a hit.
  • The Fudge Kitchen. Delicious handmade fudge which you can sample for free, a display of the fudge making process and a loyalty card which earns you more free fudge! What's not to like?
  • The Real Italian Pizza Co. An adorable secluded restaurant in central Bath, with amazing pizzas (handmade of course), a range of flavours and a hidden area of outdoor seating. My family's favourite. *Please note: This is not my image! All of the other photos on this post are though*.

Image result for real italian pizza company bath
  • Guildhall Market. An adorable covered market with a mixture of different stalls, definitely worth visiting if you're ever in Bath!
  • Green Park Station. Another covered market, with a mixture of permanent shops such as a cafe which does the best vegan hot chocolate ever, and a pizza bar which offers pizza and a pint for £10, and temporary market stalls on weekends. I don't have a photo of it, so here's another photo from Mr's B's (a collage wall of TinTin) instead.
  • Newton St. Loe Farmshop and Café. Fresh produce from the attached farm, and huge hot chocolates and cakes that are to die for. All in a picturesque village just outside of Bath. Perfection.

















Monday, May 14, 2018

What I Learned from my Long Distance Relationship.


I feel like I should begin this post by defining what I mean by 'long distance'. I went off to university last year, and now live about 2 hours away from my boyfriend. This means that I am able to see him most weekends, but not during the week. Some may not consider this to be long distance, as I know people who live in different countries from their partners but since at home I live less than five minutes from him it was a huge shock. It was hard, but I have learned some important things about my relationship.


  • You WILL argue more. At least at first. Distance of any kind is bound to put strain on any relationship, as you don't get to see each other as often as you'd like. They potentially will have new friends and hobbies which may cause problems between you too. This may get better, as it did for me and James, or it may not. Many of my friends have ended their relationships since being at uni because of the distance, I guess it just depends on the couple.
  • You'll appreciate your time together more. If you're lucky enough to not be poor like us, you may plan more dates or if not you'll probably just feel happier about having a movie night in. But whatever the case, it seems that distance really does make the heart grow fonder.
  • Everyone will ask you how you're coping being apart, but very few will want an honest answer. Those close to you will want to help, so opening up to them can be a great coping mechanism. But others will expect you to just smile and say 'fine, thanks' and that's okay too.
  • Your relationship WILL change - but that's not necessarily a bad thing. In my case, I think our relationship got a lot more serious. It went from 'we've been together for a year and we're having fun' to 'we're making huge commitments and sacrifices to make this relationship work'. I am by no means saying that we don't still have fun because we do, it's just more difficult to make time for that and you need to decide whether it's worth it.
  • Lots of people will expect you to break up. Lots of people do when they go to uni! It's hard to be in a long distance relationship and like I said, you will get to a point where you need to decide if it's worth the effort. You just need to block out those voices and make those decisions for yourself.
  • You'll learn to prioritise better. Whether that's getting work done during the week to keep weekends free, or prioritising time with your boyfriend over joining an extra society, or saving your money for dates instead of shopping trips, you will have to prioritise some things.
  • You'll learn what you like best about them. It turns out, that although I love lots of things about James, my favourite part of his personality is how caring he is. When I go to his he always makes a huge effort to look after me by cleaning before I arrive, cooking me delicious food, taking me on dates and always making sure I am comfortable and okay. It's lovely.
  • On the other hand, their flaws will also be emphasised. You will have to decide if you can live with them (such as James' snoring) or if you'd rather go your separate ways. James' aren't that bad, but to be honest I'm surprised he's stuck with me haha.
  • You will learn about the importance of going on dates. When you don't see each other enough, you may begin to feel really down. Planning an exciting date gives you something to look forward to to help with this, but also gives you something to do when you have a long period of time together.
  • Finally, you will learn whether or not you're meant to be together. Like I've mentioned before, you will need to decide whether your relationship is worth the effort of long distance, and many people will realise that for them it's not. But for me it is, and James still makes me smile every single day :).



















Wednesday, May 9, 2018

Why I Didn't Go on a Gap Year


I often get asked if I took a year out before I started university, and when I say no I get a lot of questions about why not. It seems to be getting more and more common for people to leave school and take some time to work or travel before continuing on to higher education. I love to travel, and have plenty of savings so that was an attractive option, and extra cash is always an attractive option for a poor student but nonetheless I decided against it for several reasons.
I would love to travel, and I am still considering it as an option for after graduation. However, I am a fan of luxuries. By that I don't mean that I need a 5 star hotel or anything, but I want a room not shared with strangers and a working bathroom. This means that taking a few holidays (as I have done this year) suits me far better than doing all of my travelling in one go. I love cultural trips, my most recent ones being Venice, Berlin and Barcelona which is great for a gap year but I also love beach holidays. A few weeks tanning in Greece is lovely, but they won't tick the 'growing and experiencing' box that would be important to me on a gap year. These short trips allow me to do a mixture of both.
Another reason why I decided to go straight to uni was money. While my savings would have covered travel, I wanted to save them for emergencies. This was also why I didn't do a year of work first, as I could dip into that account if I needed to. Fortunately, I have had a generous donation from my grandparents, and I have managed to get a small part time job to alongside studying so I haven't needed to do that yet. If all goes well hopefully I'll be able to keep up these savings and eventually use this money to put down a deposit on a house. Either way I wanted to keep my money for a later date so a gap year wasn't the best way to do that.
One more reason why I didn't go on a gap year was my boyfriend. I love travelling with him and I didn't want to go without him. Being able to go on trips with him (and my friends) instead of going alone is the biggest reason why short holidays are more appealing than a year out to me. I also did not want to spend a year apart. Finally and most importantly, I was worried that if I took a year out from education that I'd never go back. I love history and studying it is great but I need the momentum to keep going.

I am in no way saying that my way is the right way. There are plenty of advantages to gap years, and if you want to take one I would encourage that 100%! But it's not for me and now you know why :)




Tuesday, May 8, 2018

5 Things to Love About Yoga


I have recently started doing yoga with my mum and I have really been enjoying it. It's great for so many reasons, so I thought I'd share some of those with you.
  • It keeps you fit. Just 10 minutes of yoga a day can massively improve your fitness, and you work on a range of muscles or one specific problem area if you'd prefer as different positions work different areas. You will look toned in no time!
  • It helps reduce stress. The meditation aspect in particular clears your mind but even the exercises themselves reduce tension in the body and require a lot of focus so you can forget about stressful events. This makes it especially good to do during exam season or when you have a big project due at work or uni.
  • It can help you sleep. Not only does the reduced stress have a positive effect on your sleep schedule, but regular exercise is also proven to do the same. There are specific sequences available for free online that are supposed to be extra good for sleep so if this is something you're interested in that may be worth checking out! I guess exercise before bed can be a good way to wear yourself out too haha.
  • It will improve flexibility, balance and other useful talents. For people like me who can't even touch their toes, this is a really good thing and for everyone else it can be a great improvement for other reasons.
  • It will help you lose weight. Not only will you burn calories, but it also speeds up your metabolism so that you can eat more cake and stay skinnier! That's what I like to do (although cake isn't great for you anyway, sadly).
On top of all this it can be a great social activity if you join a club, or a free one if like me you prefer to just do yoga at home!


Monday, May 7, 2018

10 Summer Party Ideas


Summer is my absolute favourite time of year. I just love all aspects of it, hot weather, barbecues, beer gardens and road trips. But most of all I love spending time with my friends and family, and I've come up with a few fun things I want to do this year and I thought I'd share some of them with you.


  • Decorate biscuits! This is ideal for a small group, and you can either buy the biscuits yourself or make them if you're feeling fancy. My boyfriend and I recently did this together and it was so much fun, the results may have been a bit wonky but they still looked cute.

  • Make cocktails. If everyone brings the ingredients for a different cocktail then it isn't too expensive and you still have a lot of fun new drinks to try! The more you have the more challenging they are to make too ;).

  • Have a Mexican themed do. There's no better weather for enjoying a buffet of fajitas and nachos while rocking a sombrero and maybe even a fake moustache. Also, how much fun are piñatas and tequila??

  • Have a pool party. No pool? No problem. Just fill a paddling pool with warm water and it'll be almost as much fun as a real one! Just be sure the dog doesn't get it's teeth stuck into it...

  • Have a fancy tea party. I know not everyone will enjoy this, but I love dressing up and sipping coffee while I scoff my face with tiny cakes and sandwiches. It's so lovely, especially if it's sunny and you can sit outside and soak it up!

  • Have Tapas! Get everyone to bring a different dish, and everyone can pick and choose which ones they want. Kind of like a buffet but more fun. (I highly recommend tomato bread or cheese croquettes).

  • D.I.Y. Pizzas. Lay out the ingredients, hire a pizza oven and let your guests feed themselves! This is especially good if you have fussy eaters or people with allergies in attendance. Just make sure you have plenty of toppings!

  • Have a henna session. If your guests are brave enough that is! Lay out templates and some drinks and make sure you only draw on areas that can be covered easily at work. Have fun but be practical!

  • Have a book club. This may not be great for a wild summer party but it can still be fun, especially if you're a book worm like me. 

Whatever your style, I hope that some of these ideas have inspired you for this summer! Whatever you do, I hope you have a wonderful time :)