My Month in 5 Photos: June 2019

Those of you who have been around since my depsoc days may remember that 'my month in 5 photos' was a regular section I used to do. As I spent a large part of June working I wanted to look back and have some fun memories too, so I decided to restart this segment on my new blog.

So I began the month with a trip to Hay-On-Wye with my mum for the Hay Festival. We had tickets to see Sindhu Vee (I can highly recommend going to see her, she was hysterical), and we also had a wander around the festival bookshop. As well as really enjoying the festival, it was lovely getting to spend some time with my mother.

My friends and I went on an awesome night out on the local town. There was much pink gin and many giggles involved.

My boyfriend and I spent the weekend in Swansea and Rhossili Bay. It was so nice to get away and I just love the beach. We ate loads of ice cream, stayed in a great hotel and enjoyed paddling in the surprisingly warm sea. The only way it could have been better is if it lasted at least a week longer!

Of course, since I am living at home for the summer, I spent plenty of time with my dog while I can.

I also popped into the church my primary school used to use for carol services and leavers assemblies. Great Witley Church is absolutely beautiful, and the tearooms next door are wonderful. Highly recommend a visit if you're ever in Worcestershire. To see more photos of this, check out my new travel blog on instagram or Tumblr @klaraonhertravels.

A Feel Good Playlist

It's coming up to deadline/exam season, and that can have a huge impact on your mood. If you're in need of a pick me up, my mum has created the perfect playlist for you! I've linked it here, and I hope you love it as much as I do.

My Bullet Journal

I have wanted to make a bullet journal for a while, and last week I finally got around to it. I thought I'd share what I did for anyone who wants to start their own (or if you're just curious!). I bought a blank scrapbook for £5 from Paperchase and went from there.

I started by decorating the cover. I wanted something simple, yet personal, so I simply painted my name on to it using acrylic colours. If you want to do this, I'd advise pencilling them on first as it can be really difficult to judge the size of the letters so being able to erase and change them is probably a good idea.

I then did my main header and my month headers. I used water based brush markers to do the writing and then decorated each one differently, with drawings or collages or watercolours or stickers and stamps. This means that every month I can do something a bit different and a bit more creative than just the same thing every time.

After the month header comes the birthday page. I draw a cake and write that month's birthdays in it! I also added some 'happy birthday' stickers from Paperchase. It helps me remember them and adds a bit of colour to the journal.

Next up is my 'deadlines' page. This is where I write important dates that I need to remember so that they don't get mixed up with the less urgent things like what I'll be having for dinner on my daily overviews.

I also have a log of books I have read so that I can motivate myself to do more reading and less Netflix binging each month.

Next comes my daily overview. I have six days to a page, and I write about activities for each day as well as what my meal plans are. Not as creative as my other pages but very useful for organising my time and planning when to fit things in, like my supermarket shopping and laundry. The dates are always the same colour as the month header.

Finally I have a section where I reflect on the month and write about what went well, or what I should work on next month. Then it's the same again for the next month!

Day at the Safari Park

Last week my friend Amber and I decided to visit the West Midland's Safari Park. It was a lovely day out and we both had a great time!

The first part of the safari park is the drive through area. This is where you can view animals only from your car, but often from up closer than you would in a zoo! Some species such as this very friendly giraffe can even be fed with food purchased at the entrance. There are also areas where you must keep your car shut for your safety, like the tiger enclosure, but you can still get a close look at the animals.

The camels were very nosey! But we didn't feed them because we were warned they might bite.

Next we wandered through the on foot area. We decided not to go on any rides so we had plenty or time to look at things like penguins, meerkats and the aquarium. We also had a lovely picnic in the sun.

One of my favourite parts of the day was the lemur enclosure! You can walk straight through the middle and they're very friendly. They like to say hello and take selfies like this one.

Finally, we went to see the sea lion show. This was fascinating. So much fun and very informative too. I really enjoyed the whole day, it was exciting and reasonably priced and I can return in my car for free any time this summer! Really lovely day.

My Date Night Jar

I love going on dates, and I love being creative so when I saw this idea on twitter I thought I would give it a go! To make your own, simply write date ideas on lollipop sticks, colour code the ends and pop them in a jar with a key on the side! I started with 50 but I plan to add more soon. I used pink for no money, purple for some money, green for more money, and blue for special occasions. Here are some of the ideas I came up with:

• Go for tapas.
• Go for a picnic.
• Go ice skating.
• Visit a castle or a museum.
• Bake something.
• Go to the zoo or safari park.
• Go out for cocktails.
• Go to a fancy restaurant for dinner.
• Go on a day trip to London.
• Book a weekend away at the beach.
• Do a jigsaw.
• Go on a road trip to somewhere pretty.
• Play crazy golf.
• Go to the cinema.
• Spend a weekend in Paris.
• Go on a bike ride.
• Go for a walk.
• Make cocktails at home.
• Get a drink at the pub.
• Go for afternoon tea.
• Go for a spa day.
• Go to a water park.
• Go to water gardens.
• Horse riding at my mum's house.
• Have a barbecue or a roast.
• Go Ape.
• Do a craft course.
• Go glamping.
• Go chocolate tasting at Hotel Chocolat.
• Go for a Nando's.
• Go out for coffee and cake.
• Try a new restaurant.
• Play a board game.
• Do a home spa day.
• Do a cooking class together.
• Get a takeaway and watch Netflix.
• See a show in the West End.
• Go on the London Eye.
• Make pizzas.
• Decorate biscuits.
• Make a gingerbread house.
• Go to Wagamamas.
• Set a budget and shop for each other.
• Go out for dessert.
• Go to an outdoor pool.
• Go out for milkshakes.
• Go out for ice cream.
• Go for a pub lunch.
• Have a candlelit dinner at home.
• Swim at the local spa.

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 :)

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!

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!

Quick and easy smoothies and milkshakes

I am a massive fan of smoothies and milkshakes, especially in the summer. I thought I'd share some of those with you (starting with the smoothies). These recipes are easy, so all you have to do is chuck all of the ingredients into a blender and blend them up. If you want to change them once you've made them to make them thicker, simply add a banana and to make them thinner add milk. (I also find frozen fruit works better than fresh if you have it!)

Simple Strawberry

• 1 cup milk
• 1 banana
• 1 or 2 handfuls of strawberries
• 1 tsp stevia (or sugar if you don't have it)

The Purple One

• 1 cup milk
• 1 handful raspberries
• 1 handful blueberries
• 1 tsp stevia

Cheerful Cherry

• 1 cup milk
• 1 handful cherries
• 2 bananas
• 1 tsp stevia

Salted Caramel

• 1 cup milk
• 1 tbsp caramel sauce (preferably salted)
• 1 scoop salted caramel ice cream

Strawberry Vanilla

• 1 cup milk
• 1 handful strawberries
• 1 scoop vanilla ice cream

Chocolate

• 1 cup milk
• 1 tsp coco powder
• 1 scoop chocolate ice cream

Like I said, these are really easy but so yummy! I hope you enjoy them!

My Top 5 Feel Good Movies

Sometimes you just want to watch a good movie to make you feel better after a long day/week. For me that's usually a rom com or a movie that I loved when I was young. Here are five of my favourites! I'm sure most of you will have seen these but if not take a look because they bring me so much joy. (Disclaimer: This is not an ad, I have not been paid to mention any of the movies/brands mentioned and none of the images of movie covers included are my own).

Mamma Mia

This is my family's feel good movie! We all love it (well all the women and my youngest brother do anyway). It has all of the important components of a feel good movie, music (ABBA none the lest), romance, sunshine, dancing, family and the beach. The only thing missing is puppies! The story follows a young woman just before her wedding and her single mother struggling to figure out which of three men is her father. We as a family think the story is sweet, but our favourite part is singing along like mad people to dancing queen and occasionally even getting up to do a little dance. My Oma has actually watched this movie over 30 times and I myself must be getting close to 20 by now. So much fun.

Angus Thongs and Perfect Snogging

I have watched this movie more times than I can count and it still makes me laugh every single time. It's hilarious, and again the sound track is so good! The movie revolves around a teenage girl (Georgia) and her 3 best friends as they learn about boobs, boys, parties, friendships and other things involved in growing up. There's also a cat which always makes me happy. There's nothing funnier to me than the scene with the fake tan (which I won't spoil for those of you that haven't seen it) and I rewatch this at least three times a year. It taught me a lot about self acceptance and not being embarrassed by my family when I was young and I totally recommend this to all young girls. The books are also great if you want something light to read!


Letters to Juliet

I think this movie is so so so romantic. The film is set in Italy, where a young woman and her fiancé are taking a 'pre-honeymoon'. However, when they arrive their interests take them in different directions, and she ends up on an adventure with a woman looking for her long lost love and her pessimistic and over protective grandson. I really want to visit Verona after watching this movie because it just looks so so beautiful! *Spoiler alert*, this movie just has such a happy ending that whenever I feel down I will watch it and after having a good little happy cry I will feel infinitely better. I also just love Amanda Seyfried, as you may have noticed since she was also in Mamma Mia.

Pitch Perfect

This movie is such a good girl power film. There's again a good soundtrack, and an original one too which I love. The story is a girl who goes away to college and is pressured by her dad to join a society, so she becomes part of the Bellas (an a cappella group). She starts to find that she enjoys it and also meets a boy along the way. It's very funny and makes important points about female friendships too. I haven't seen the third one yet (although I've actually heard bad things which is sad), but I really enjoyed the second one as well as the first so I will still be watching the final movie at some point. Fat Amy is also my absolute hero, she speaks up about body positivity in a funny and relatable (if slightly weird) way.


Shrek


I love movies from my childhood as they're funny and sentimental, and Shrek is one of my top favourites. It has so many hidden adult jokes and is has a lovely message about being beautiful on the inside. Also, shoutout to Netflix for having the whole set of 4 (or is it 5?). James and I watched them all one weekend because life is hard on a student budget haha. Some of my other favourites to rewatch from when I was a kid are Finding Nemo, Gnomeo and Juliet and The Incredibles but they're not on Netflix so it's much more difficult for me to watch them as my new laptop doesn't have a DVD player.

If you do decide to watch any of these, I hope you enjoy them! Feel free to leave me some of your recommendations too :)

A Summer Makeup Look

This is a post I love doing, and one of my close friends requested this the other day (hi Ellie-Mae!) so I thought I would do a summer makeup look using my new eyeshadow palette. You can read about how to do it here, or go and watch a tutorial on my brand new youtube channel!! Link here.

I began with concealer. As I don't like a heavy all over coverage in the summer, I don't use foundation or anything like that so this is the only method I have for covering blemishes. Luckily I have quite good skin so this tends to be enough for me but by all means use foundation or whatever you're most comfortable with! I am really pale so cool ivory is the shade for me, but in Boots they will help you find the best shade for you. I blended some under my eyes and covered my spots before moving on to my eyebrows. I find eyebrows such a personal thing, but the pencil pictured on the left is the one I use if you're interested!



After I had done my concealer and brows I moved on to my eyeshadow. I began with the shade 'Nectar' and brushed it over my eyelid up to my brow. This gave a goos base for my eyeshadow and also highlights the underside of the brow. If you don't have this palette, any pale nude will do for this stage of the look.

Next I used 'Just Peachy' to define the crease of my eye, blending it upwards with a very soft eye shadow brush. Any light pink shade will do for this, if you are attempting this look with a different eyeshadow. Please ignore my eyebrow in this photo it really needs plucking haha.



Next I brushed 'Candied Peach' over the inner half of my eye. This is a very peachy colour (salmon pink maybe?) for those of you attempting to find replacements. Then I added 'Summer Yum' to the outer half, a darker but similar colour. I then blended them together in the middle of the lid.

Finally, I blended 'Delectable' into the outer crease and lower lash line. This is a deep purple colour if you are trying to find it somewhere else! Then I added the L'Oreal False Lash Superstar X Fiber mascara, using only side one on my bottom lashes and both sides on my top lashes. I decided against eyeliner though.

I then used a powder brush to lightly bronze over my cheek bones and contour areas. (No.7 match perfect if you want this one! I like it because it's not too dark). As it is a summer look I just wanted to look a little more tanned! I then added highlight, choosing to use elf shimmer in shade gold. I just brushed that over my cheekbones to add to the bronzer.

 I finished the look with a lipstick from smashbox. In case you can't see the image of it, the shade I used is called 'Be Legendary' and it's a lovely quite dark nudey pink. It's a matte lipstick but it's not liquid which I like because it dries my lips out way less! I still recommend putting lip balm on before hand though!




So here is the finished look! This is a close up of the eye makeup (left) and below is a selfie of the full look! I hope that this has been useful to at least some of you, and Ellie-Mae I hope you enjoyed it! Go have a look at the video of this on YouTube too if you want to see more of how I did it :)