March Favourites.

March has been quite an exciting month, surprisingly. I’ve realised who my true friends are, what my true fashion style is, what cocktails are good and that Halloumi is much better in fry form. 

With these realisations all happening at once, let me break some of them down into more detail.

Tonight Josephine, Waterloo 

My best friend and I are always on the lookout for quirky places in London to get a drink or two, and so when my friend found out about Tonight Josephine, we knew we had to give it a try. A combination of tasty cocktails, girl power and sassy decor, this small bar in Waterloo really is the epitome of feminism. Also, it’s incredibly Instagrammable. I’d recommend any female girl gang with a strong persona check it out!

Halloumi Fries, £3.70 at Nandos

The newest addition to the Nandos menu is a take on the cheese favourite halloumi, but they have created a starter dish that is even better than regular halloumi. You can now get halloumi fries, which is six chunky sticks of halloumi teamed with a pot of sweet chilli jam which is equally delicious. If you love cheese and love Nandos, I suggest you start ordering this as your starter from now on!

Red stripe Trousers, £15.99 at New Look

As I was in need of a smarter wardrobe for my new job, I thought I would test the ‘sporty chic’ trend and buy myself some striped trousers from my faves New Look. For less than £20, these trousers are incredibly flattering and are already turned up at the bottom which for a short girl like me is a bonus. They also have an elasticated waist band so if you love your food like me, there’s definitely room for a food baby. I’ve received so many compliments on these already so I’m glad I took the risk and purchased them!

New job

I’ve started a new job this month, which I opened up about in a recent post. In case you missed it, I’ve got my first graduate job as a journalist, working in central London! Everyone is really nice there and it’s the first step on the career ladder - it’s made March a lot more exciting!

New hair 

I also decided it was time to cut my hair off and embrace the bob. I hadn’t had a hair change since before my last break up, so it was a ‘new me’ that was long overdue. I love having short hair and don’t think I’ll let it get as long as it was for a long time!

Review: Garnier SkinActive Charcoal and Algae Hydrating Sheet Mask

As my skin has had a tough time lately, I thought I’d try another hydrating sheet mask, but this time from Garnier, who have recently released a whole range of plant based ingredient sheet masks.

The one I’ve decided to try is the Garnier SkinActive Charcoal and Algae mask, as charcoal is great for detoxing the skin, and Algae is amazing for moisturising the skin. 

The main unique selling point this mask has from any other drugstore mask is that it is a black sheet mask. The mask is claimed to hydrate the skin and tighten pores, and also has hyaluronic acid, which is a key element in most skincare products to keep skin looking amazing.

The mask had a lot of excess product on it so it gave my face plenty of the serum to sink into for 15 minutes. It didn’t feel uncomfortable on my skin at all, although it just feels pretty cold and slimy due to so much product!

After taking the mask off, there was still a lot of the product left behind, so I’m not sure if 15 minutes was enough time for the skin to absorb a decent amount of product. I messaged the rest in as much as I could and left it to soak in. 

Overall, my skin feels really hydrated and smooth, and also a little plump, which is a good thing! Looking at the photo my skin certainly has a little glow to it and that was after all the product had soaked in, so it really does help the skin to look purified, detoxed and refreshed!

This has definitely encouraged me to try the other masks in Garnier’s sheet mask series - my skin is in for a treat!

Life update: I’m a journalist.

Hello everyone,

Again, it’s been a while. But I do have an excuse this time, and it might also mean this blog may take a step back.. 

Which is annoying because every year I start a blog and I never keep up with it or finish it! But I will do my best to stick to once a week posts and it’ll be a mix of beauty, lifestyle, fashion and opinion pieces. 

The reason I’m having to do this is because I’ve finally got a full time graduate job - and it’s a journalism job!

I’ll be working for the Express group in central London, as a video journalist. The opportunity came to me out of the blue and I just couldn’t say no! 

Basically all the videos you see on The Express, Daily Star and OK! Online that accompany articles could have been edited by me or the desk I’m on - and we edit a lot of videos so I’m sure you’ve seen some of my work already!

It’s a step into the industry and I couldn’t be more excited. I’ve just completed my first week there and I’m loving it - it’s the first level on my career ladder, so who knows what I’ll be doing this time next year!

Hopefully I keep up with this blog and this isn’t the last you hear of me.. I promise I’ll keep at it!

G x

Goals for 2018.

After a week of settling into the new year, I thought it would be a good idea to sit and think about what I actually want to achieve this year. From keeping fit to keeping note, here are some tasks I'm going to attempt to upkeep for more than a couple months.

Take better care of myself.

After coming home from university last summer, it really hit me how in awful condition my body was. I had gained a ton of weight, my skin wasn't in the best condition due to my psoriasis, my roots were growing out and my eating habits were enough to make you feel ill.

Now i'm home, those days of takeaway every day (yes, some weeks that really is what I did) are far behind - it would be amazing to go the whole year without a single McDonalds, KFC or Pizza Hut, but I don't know how well that will pan out! At least for January, that is the aim. So far, so good! I also want to up my fitness levels, so maybe joining a class is something I'll consider.

I also need to keep on top of moisturising, exfoliating, all that jazz. Having psoriasis, an incurable skin condition which makes my skin dry and patchy, I need to keep my skin hydrated and taken care of, otherwise I start to look like an unfinished puzzle.. And in doing so, I also need to drink more water! I'm terrible when it comes to drinking water, so maybe I'll invest in a snazzy water bottle that will make me want to drink it.

Make more memories with my friends.

Having an 'adult' lifestyle means I hardly see my friends as we're always working, but this year I hope to make more of an effort to get out and live my life on the occasion i'm not working. I won't bail on plans like I used to - as much as my bed is comfy, my friends are also just as important. There's no point staying in, otherwise that's all I'll remember when i'm grey and old.

Visit the theatre more.

I recently got to see the incredible Aladdin at the Prince Edward theatre on the west end, and it has sparked my old love for musicals and all things stagey. When I was younger, my mum would always try her hardest to make sure we went to the theatre every so often, and I'm so glad she did. It's such an underrated experience - yes it can be pricey, but you're never disappointed with the show, its part of London culture and you always leave in a great mood. As much as I'm a cinema buff and love going to watch movies, musicals on stage with live music and live singing, dancing and acting is just that much more immersive and heartfelt.

Work hard, apply hard!

I've recently got my degree in multimedia journalism, but I am yet to get my break in the industry. I'm keeping on top of my writing and editing skills with this blog in the meantime, but I would love to land my first journalism job by the end of the year. I currently work in retail, but it's not where my heart lies. Or what I studied for three years for!

And mostly, this year I need to be happy and have the confidence in myself I used to have. Losing someone you gave so much of yourself to is actually draining of your own worth and happiness. I need to build it up again and be myself. Love will come around when I've learnt to love myself.