The 'Me-Time' Tag

What do you watch or read during me-time?
'Me-time' is definitely my time to catch up on YouTube videos and blog posts. I'm not one to sit and watch TV or movies on my own as I just don't seem to have the ability to solely watch TV without being on my laptop at the same time or I will get bored and fidgety, whereas when I'm with Lee, we can sit for hours watching Netflix (currently watching Prison Break if you're wondering).  

What do you wear during me-time? 
Pyjamas, always. At this time of year, often paired with fluffy socks and my dressing gown, comfort is key. 

What are your me-time beauty products?
Definitely a face mask, I love the Una Brennan Rose Hydrate mask as it's so comfortable to wear and leaves my skin feeling nice and nourished. I also love giving my body a treat with Soap and Glory's breakfast scrub which smells heavenly. 

Current favourite nail polish? 
I've rediscovered an oldie but goodie recently, Rimmel's Grey Matter. I remember always wearing this with a matte top coat back in the day but nowadays I much prefer the glossy finish of this autumnal shade. 

What do you eat/drink during me-time?
Right now, It has to be a hot chocolate in the biggest mug I can find. In terms of food I'll often be eating whatever chocolate I come across or crisps and dip is another common one, Dairy Milk Oreo and Cool Original Doritos with Sour Cream and Chive Dip are my faves, mmm. 

Current favourite candle?
Although my most currently burned candle is Yankee Candle's Cinnamon Stick due to it's Christmassy feel, I'm not too sure about the scent yet. Lee describes it as 'bad breath which smells good' - take from that what you will. My favourite however, is Lilly Flame's Fairy Dust, different to the usual sweet scents that I'm attracted too but I love the powdery girliness of it. 

Do you ever have outdoor me-time?
I don't and I have no idea why, I think it's just my laziness opting for my bed and laptop instead but I would love to take more solo walks. I love shopping alone if that counts, I'd definitely consider that me-time. 

Would you ever go see a movie alone?
I don't think I would, as I've said I'm not too good at watching movies alone and I can't see myself finding it fun. I do enjoy my own company but I see going to the cinema as a nice thing to do with others and me and Lee go often anyway so I wouldn't see a need to go alone. Also, you wouldn't be able to have that deep post-movie discussion on opinions. 

Favourite online shop?
I don't buy much online but I'm always browsing, my favourite is definitely ASOS and you can't beat a bit of Topshop, Miss Guided and Feel Unique. I often find myself browsing the homeware departments on stores such as Next or H&M too.

Anything to add? What else do you do during me-time? 
That's pretty much my me-time summed up. If I have a day off I'll take some time in the morning to watch some YouTube and read some blog posts but me-time definitely most often happens in the evening when I have no plans, always beginning with a long bath.

I'd love to read your answers to this tag!
Rachael x

November 2014

♦ FIREWORKS - I love bonfire night, organised displays that is, and this year I got to see not one but two. One near home which was fab,       with music accompanying the fireworks and another smaller one took place at my friend's uni halls which was nice too. 
♦ Visiting friends living at uni - First was a night consisting of pizza express and hot chocolates whilst watching movies...
♦ ...and second, in a different city; fireworks and a night out.
♦ Reading week; a week off, with no reading. 
♦ Prison Break getting intense.
♦  Bowling fun with work. 
♦ An evening of good food with our two best friends at our usual country pub restaurant.
♦ Costa brownie hot chocolate.
♦ Cinema night; went to see Interstellar, not the easiest to follow but it was a very good, well produced movie.
♦ Seeing the cute little reindeers come in to work for the day.
♦ A fab local night out with work.
♦ Newcastle Christmas markets, Fenwicks window and Christmas lights switch on. The atmosphere was SO Christmassy and I got to indulge in some churros with chocolate and cinnamon, mmm.
♦ Watched my first Christmas movie of the season; The Holiday, my fave.
♦ Meeting Lee's family's new little puppy, Holly, a Labrador x American Akita . I am completely in love, she's SO adorable.

If you'd like to see what else I get up to you can follow me on Instagram. I've had a quite a nice month and am fully enjoying all of the festivities, I hope you've had a nice November and here's to the last month of 2014, madness!

Rachael x 

October 2014

♦ Getting back to the gym, finally.
♦ Getting more involved with the charity I volunteer as a peer mentor for. 
♦ Dog sitting Lee's dad's cute little staffy, Tia, even if I am allergic.
♦ Lee's bacon sandwhiches, yummm.
♦ Carrot and coriander soup, new fave.
♦ The night out we had for one of my best friend's birthdays, a great night.
♦ A cinema trip with to see Love, Rosie. It was cliché but I loved it. 
♦ Nabbing a seat next to the open fire in our favourite country pub restaurant. 
♦ Cupcake baking on Halloween, even if they didn't turn out too great, that's what a lack of scales does. 
♦ A night of ice skating with a bunch of great people from work. 
♦ Saying goodbye to the dip dye for Winter. 

I suppose we can call this the 'Highlight's since the last weekly highlight's' post. I feel like I've been a bit non stop recently with uni throwing assignments at us and with my severe lack of motivation it hasn't been easy getting back in to the swing of it, all whilst trying to get a routine going. Another moan of the month, all of the pumpkins were sold out! I've never carved a pumpkin before so I was sure this year was the year but nope, apparently it's been a bad season for them, maybe next year. However, on reflection, it has certainly been a nice month spent with lovely people. How was your October?

Rachael x

My A/W Lip Shade - MAC Plumful

When it comes to autumn/winter, plum and berry lip shades are what it's all about. I've owned MAC Plumful for a while now and it always makes it's way to the front of my stash at this time of year, a movement which I very much look forward too. As a lustre finish, it's so comfortable to wear on the lips and not at all drying or heavy, giving a lovely sheen. However, this does mean the wear time isn't too great but it's nothing to complain about, and it does leave a slight non patchy stain of colour behind. Now, with every photo this shade tends to look different, sometimes more of a plummy pink, sometimes more mauve or rosy so I guess it's going to be one of those which is a slightly different shade on each individual, on me it's translates on to the lips as a deep pink with some plummy tones. Although it is more sheer compared to the more pigmented offerings from MAC, I think it deposits the perfect amount of colour for everyday wear but I have been known to sport this shade on more than one night out too. I do feel as though I may need Rebel in my life now to act as my more bold, night-time alternative to Plumful. P.S. please ignore the huge difference in photos, the latter has come from my phone, taken on a different day, as it's the most true to colour photo I've managed (I know, it's annoying me too).

Have you tried this lipstick? 

Rachael x

This Week's Highlights

♦ Treating myself to a hot chocolate and rocky road whilst waiting for the bus after a long day at uni and having a nice feeling of contentment whilst drinking said hot chocolate on the bus, with my headphones in. 
♦ Having a super hyper half hour before bed one night, I can be really weird. 
♦ Calling in at our usual takeaway for a chicken kebab wrap whilst on a evening drive...
♦ ...and calling in once again on a different day before a night of dog sitting and X factor.
♦ Wearing my new super cosy Primark winter PJ's.
♦ Spending money on nice things.
♦ Possible holiday plans for next year. 
♦ The decision to finally ditch the dip dye and grow my hair long again, short hair, you've been nice while you've lasted.
♦ The amazing 3 course meal we had at one of our favourite country pubs, peanut butter cheesecake is my weakness. 

So I have decided to substitute my lengthy monthly round ups for smaller, more concise posts like this one. Although it's good to reflect on the month as a whole, I feel as if I'm just listing events in those posts (had a night at the pub, had a takeaway night etc) and that makes them loose their significance, especially when they happened earlier on in the month. I know weekly round up type posts are here, there and everywhere but I consider this blog to be an online diary to me, and I think this format is going to work better and will probably make me appreciate the smaller moments of happiness. 

Rachael x

September 2014

I usually try to stay away from the whole 'OMG how is it October already' but seriously, I can't believe we're in to the last three months of the year, I'm definitely feeling very autumnal now and with Halloween, Bonfire night and CHRISTMAS all around the corner we all have something to look forward too. P.S. sorry if that nacho cheese makes you feel queasy.

That was a rather happy intro to a post which probably isn't going to be all that happy. Nothing major, I just haven't felt myself throughout September. I want to blame the reason I haven't blogged throughout the month on this whole feeling of having very little motivation, in all honesty I've just felt quite down recently. I hated writing that because 'down' isn't really me, don't get me wrong I'm never the very upbeat crazy woman either but I'm usually pretty content and positive about things. The main event in September was of course the end of summer and going back to uni, however, for me, I wasn't going back to the same uni I had studied at in first year, with the same surroundings and the same people, I was starting elsewhere and this may have been a trigger to my low mood as I was pretty nervous. It took a hell of a lot of self encouragement for me to walk in to that first lecture, I was panicking and was so close to walking away. It's been a bit like being a first year all over again with the added pressure of everyone else knowing each other and being familiar with their surroundings. There is definitely pros and cons to me moving universities, I do feel a lot more comfortable being in my home city, which is strange considering I was only in the neighbouring city for my previous year and still living at home but being there felt like so far away, and the way shorter commute that I have now is so much better. My current campus is SO much bigger than last years though which has been quite overwhelming but I now know the whereabouts of the main venues so no more getting lost, I feel like it's going to be a tricky year but I'm slowly getting back in to routine and I'm sure I'll be settled soon. 

I can't pinpoint exactly what this mood is right now, and I'm not saying I feel it 24/7, I just don't feel as positive and settled as I have done in the past. I have such an urge to just pack my bags and go somewhere, any where that's nice and relaxing but then part of me wants to get out and DO things. I'm not making any sense am I?

I also spent a good few weeks of September feeling ill with some horrible, persistent virus that only now finally seems to have pretty much cleared. However, on a more positive note I celebrated my mam's birthday with a pub lunch and have spent some time with friends, more so towards the start of the month with a cinema trip (went to see Sex Tape, funny but strange sums it up), a takeaway night with friends we don't see too often, another pub meal and a final night in before one of my best friends headed back to uni. I made two nights of freshers before falling ill, it was strange but nice to be back in my friends flat with her flatmates. Also this month, me and Lee had an amazing Chinese buffet, it was well over due as we hadn't visited that restaurant, somewhere we used to go often, all year! We had a night at the pub and I had a quiet night out with my work friends. Oh, and this was the month that my cousin jetted off to live in San Diego where he will be marrying his boyfriend in December, it's all very exciting and I'm super happy for him!

I know you probably think it's silly of me to mention all the little things such as a night at the pub, but I like to be reminded of those things. Also, quick music favourite - James Bay, Amazing! Any way, I hope you had a good September and here's to hopefully feeling more like myself again! 

Rachael x

August 2014

Wow, it's been a while. August seems like forever ago now, nonetheless here I am documenting my month. The main events of this month involved two lovely days in York with a friend which you can read about here and a trip to Flamingo Land with Lee which was SO fun, we witnessed gorgeous tiger cubs fighting over their food and rode some great rides, I've even managed to find a ride which actually scares Lee. Also, we've spent the month becoming completely addicted to Prison Break and eating way too much bad, but amazing, food; McDonalds, pizza, Chinese, kebab wraps, fish and chips and pub meals. Since returning from Tenerife I just cannot get myself back in the swing of eating well and exercising and it's starting to show, working in a cafe with all of it's tempting foodie delights definitely doesn't help either. In other news, I had a lovely girly night in and a rare night out in my home town and I finally got my tragus pierced, I've wanted it done for a while and I'm SO pleased I went for it, it really didn't hurt.

As for bank holiday, mine went something like this; waking up in the afternoon after drinks to a local band the night before, (side story; we returned home with two friends, absolutely starving, no where was open and we were too intoxicated to drive. The solution? We booked a taxi to McDonalds and back, expensive but so worth it). Monday involved sitting outside in the bank holiday busyness people watching by the sea with a chippy before venturing in to the sweet shop for some fudge and then relaxing all night long.

I suppose it's about time I reflect on those summer goals I made way back at the end of May. Give blood - unfortunately I found out I am unable to give blood until after my 21st due to a combination of my weight and height which was slightly disappointing but at least I can fulfil that goal at some point in the future. Run the Race For Life in decent time - Hmm, my time of 45 minutes was quite a bit longer than my goal of 30 mins but it really was super hard to run when the terrain was so muddy and slippy and there was so many people around, I could've definitely trained harder too. Update iTunes - Done, twice! Read books - Nope, I did try. I just can't seem to get in to books at the minute which is sad considering how much I used to love reading. Learn to cook healthy meals - Another nope, unfortunately fast food and junk have been very prominent in my life this Summer, I have enjoyed it but I do not feel good for it. Update/organise/clean bedroom - I feel like this one will always be a work in progress but I did have a few good sort outs and a proper deep clean of my wardrobe and all of my drawers. Also, I finally bought some new pretty storage boxes, curtains and a curtain pole which have made such a difference to my room so yes, I think this was a success. eBay lots - Yep! You can find my eBay here. Find a new car - Sadly not yet, it's all too confusing for my little brain, why can't finance and insurance etc be nice and simple! Have some ME time - Yeah, I guess so.

Overall I've had a good Summer and that was the main aim, as for September I'll be heading back to uni. I'm currently a bag of mixed feelings about it all, I'm looking forward to getting back in to a routine but since I'm moving universities I'm dreading the whole not knowing any one and not knowing my way around as this campus is huge compared to my last! I hope you've all had a great summer.

Rachael x

York

Recently, me and a good friend escaped for a few days to the wonderful little city of York. The cobbled streets and buildings full of character really make York a lovely place to visit, the minster by far is the most impressive of these buildings and that was our first port of call whilst strolling around. We then, of course, hit the shops. A night out was on the cards that night and the next morning began with a trip to York dungeons, I can confirm that the experience was terrifying, more so than I expected. I sound like a wimp but seriously, although it was so fun and the live actors were amazing, me and my friend clung on to each other the whole way, the dark is definitely not our favourite thing. We recovered with a pub lunch and strolled along the river, deciding to take a boat ride. Boat rides are my favourite thing so it was nice to relax before heading to a Pimms afternoon tea at a riverside bar, my first experience of afternoon tea and my first experience of Pimms wasn't too bad at all. After sitting chatting for a good while it was time to say goodbye to York and catch the train, which could've done without the major storm and delays. Overall, a fun filled two days indeed.

Rachael x

July 2014

July is always my favourite month and this year was no different. The first two weeks were spent in Tenerife with Lee which you can read about here and here, my 19th birthday shortly followed which consisted of a family Sunday roast in a local restaurant and a night at the bowling alley followed by multiple games of air hockey in the arcade (my favourite) and our favourite takeaway. July was also the month that the race for life took place, despite the track being extremely muddy there was a great atmosphere and I managed to raise over £400 for Cancer Research. I finished in 45 minutes which is a similar time to when I previously ran the 5K, it was just too muddy to run for at least half of the track, I even witnessed a few shoes getting stuck in the mud. 

Other than that I have spent July enjoying the lovely weather with some trips out and BBQs, there were two cinema trips (Begin again - a great, feel good movie and Hercules - I tagged a long with Lee not expecting much but I actually rather enjoyed watching the old Greek based movie!), nights in with the girls, way too much chocolate cake, way too many takeaways and more housework than I am used too when I had to look after my house for two weeks. Now I have two days in York to look forward too, please let me know if you know of some good places to visit in York! How was your July?

Rachael x

Tenerife Part Two: A Trip To The Zoo

As mentioned in my previous post, a trip to the zoo was on the cards for our first day trip of our recent holiday to Tenerife, we visited Loro Parque and although it was at the other end of the island, it was worth the long drive. We drove through some crazy low cloud on the way as we were so high in the mountains, which did enable us to see some lovely views when the cloud lifted. It was definitely one of our favourite days consisting of being awed by the intelligence of the animals whilst watching the dolphin show, the sea lion show, the parrot show and the orca show, with four beautiful orcas splashing the audience and jumping out of their water. We ate doughnuts, I indulged in a chocolate waffle and we wondered around gazing at all of the cuteness in front of us, I SO wanted to bring that little marmoset home. The jelly fish were really cool too, all such different shapes lit up in various colours floating around to some quite fitting music. 

So now we're home and wishing we were back there, have you visited any where nice recently? 

Rachael x

Tenerife Part One

So, we've been home for over a week now, still wishing we were abroad and already talking about another holiday, I thought it was about time to document our holiday to Tenerife. It started as any holiday of mine should, a Burger King at the airport followed by a Duty Free browse leading me to pick up Benefit Gimme Brow for just over £14, something many bloggers had made me want. I didn't realise it was so small! I really do wish Newcastle airport housed a MAC counter. Once in Tenerife, Los Christianos to be precise, it was late so we made our way out to eat, both opting for a lovely four cheese calzone and ended the night with one drink in the hotel bar before crashing. Why is it that travelling makes you so sleepy? 

Unfortunately we weren't greeted with the weather we had been craving, instead, the whole week was overcast with sunny spells on just a few afternoons which was a little disappointing but there was still that Canarian warmth in the air. Since it wasn't exactly sun bathing weather, on the second day we explored the area and ate at the hotel before going on a SUPER long walk, finding some amazing sand castles along the way and seeing the wonderful Hard Rock cafe in all it's glory. This sadly resulted in my poor feet being in agony and covered in blisters, Lee thankfully saved the day with a piggy back. We found a rather nice beach bar and I slurped on a wonderful sex on the beach cocktail, my fave,whilst we watched a gorgeous sunset. We then discovered a local bar and decided to stay there for the night, drinking a tad too much I think. 

A very late night meant a very late morning, meaning missing breakfast and strolling back down to the local for some good English food to sort us out, Sunday dinner was the perfect option and Lee devoured a huge English breakfast. The rest of the day was pretty chilled. Our first excursion took place the day after, a trip to the zoo. That day ended with some good food; the steak, lasagne and cheesecake. The following day consisted of go karting; it was fun but I was terrified and hardly touched the accelerator the whole time as, of course, Lee opted for the fastest ones. That night, on the balcony, we ended up playing good old hang man for a good while before heading out. 

My favourite excursion was a catamaran boat trip where we experienced dolphins and whales in their natural environment, the ocean. It was incredible to see them so peaceful and it was magical when they jumped out of the water without the commands of any human trainers like we're used to seeing. Unlimited drinks and a buffet was included which was fab, although that pesky jelly fish pictured above did decide to sting a few of the fellow tourists whilst swimming in the sea. We took a short visit to the water park, Siam Park, (another late morning after another 'the night before') but could already tell from what we saw that it's a great water park and I would've loved to have gone back to ride on the slide with the flashing lights, if only we had more days. A meal at an Indian restaurant ended the holiday and we flew back the next day after a walk and indulging in our last holiday lunch; a toastie and an amazing chocolate covered crepe. 

Rachael x

Pre Holiday Shopping

So, prior to my holiday to Tenerife a shopping trip took place and these are the wonderful goodies I returned with. I love how this kimono doesn't drown me like a lot of the others seem too, it was a bargain from good old Primarni (£13) and adds such a girly, summery touch to a simple outfit. The two playsuits (here and here) were buys from one of ASOS's heavenly sales and were perfect for those night time holiday strolls. The white tee was just a Mango sale purchase, there's something about their tees which attract me and I aint sure what it is. I thought the blue oversized top from H&M would be great to throw on over a bikini on the beach or by the pool and I kept it more holiday appropriate with the blue. Finally, the trousers which I can't find on line, aren't coming up too brilliantly here, I'd love for you to be able to see the purple in there but any way they're from H&M and were so comfortable for travelling in! 

My bag has already had an introduction in my previous post but it deserves another, it was another Mango sale buy and something just attracted me to it, I think it may have been how the little logo reminds me of a certain Mr Michael Kors, one day... The satchel and necklace (out of stock - similar) are from ASOS, the satchel is acting as a replacement for my much loved Primark one which has sadly had it's day and I thought the necklace was exactly what I needed, something nice and understated, it has been worn plenty times already. I loved the colours on the sandals (£6 at Primark) and after seeing them on Em, I was determined to find them, they are lovely but either I should've sized down or they're very poorly fitted, think walking up the hills of Tenerife and your feet almost slipping out the back of the shoes. 

One thing I struggle most with each year is finding a hat to protect my scalp from the sun as it seems to attract the sun like no tomorrow, burning every time. They're all either too big, too small, too wide, too tall. After many hat try ons I came across this one in Peacocks on my last attempt. Of course, a holiday isn't complete without a little bit of holiday reading,  I went for Paper Towns by the genius author of TFIOS and after wanting to read more psychology related books I decided on The Psychopath Test by Jon Ronson and Nathan Filer's The Shock of the Fall. Unfortunately all three of these books remain unread as we actually didn't do much sun bathing! 

Have you found any gems in stores recently? 

Rachael x

The Flight Bag

Now, we may only be embarking on a 4-5 hour flight tomorrow afternoon (to Tenerife, I can't wait!) so even though it's not a long haul, I'm a stress head when it comes to packing so still need all of my essentials on hand. Because our flight times are a little awkward, resulting in us not getting an evening meal until late, if at all, and because all I'm concerned about is when I'm going to next eat I have to have snacks ready and waiting. I'm trying to keep it healthy with this weeks Graze box offerings which I was very pleased with; chocolate pudding, cookies and cream, apple and cinnamon flapjack and sweet chilli with soy bites, they all sound delish! I have some dried fruit too and the compulsory sucky sweets, I'm not going to lie and say that some chocolate won't sneak it's way in to my bag at the airport. I'm planning on adding more magazines with the likes of Company etc but for now, Now magazine was on offer in Asda. I'm so looking forward to having some time to read my book and I have a notebook and pen handy for when hangman/noughts and crosses/list making is the only option. 

My Victoria's Secret make up bag comes everywhere with me and acts as my mini survival kit, it houses some cute tissues, Hand Food hand cream, Vaseline rosy lips, a mini brush, Primark hand sanitiser, plasters, paracetamol, a compact mirror, a bobble, some bobby pins and a nail file. In terms of other necessities I will be taking a mini deodorant, inhalers, eye drops, headphones, my phone and my purse which I've decided to swap for an older, smaller one to save space. Finally, my camera will be added to my bag, which is a new buy from the Mango sale in House of Fraser if you're wondering! 

Now bring on duty free, what are your in flight essentials?

Rachael x