With having such love for The Fault in Our Stars, I was skeptical about reading this book as I heard it is basically the same story.
Well it’s not. It might have similarities but it is different.
Once again, it was another book that had me so glued, I read it within two days. And you’ve guessed it, I cried throughout the book. (WHY DO I READ BOOKS THAT MAKE ME CRY??)
The story expresses mental health problems perfectly. I could easily relate to Violet at times. It is such a beautifully written book, but I did struggle to read it at times as it felt all too familiar.
Plot: Two students, Violet Markey and Theodore Finch meet for the first time on top of the bell tower in their school, both contemplating suicide. Both characters couldn’t be further apart by social standards, Finch has long been labeled a freak by his classmates and Violet is the opposite as she is quite popular in school. While Finch is a regular at the bell tower, this is a first for Violet. She is struggling to cope with the sudden death of her sister in a car accident. After a while, Finch manages to talk Violet off of a ledge and Violet becomes Finch’s new reason to live, as does Finch for Violet. From there on, the story becomes about their growing romance as well as both characters finding the many other reasons to live. They begin to learn about themselves and each other while exploring the hidden wonders of Indiana for a school project. But, as always, there is a twist.
I will say no more as I will spoil it.
All I will say is make sure you are in a good frame of mind while reading this book. It’s deep.
It’s been a while since I have reviewed a book on here but that’s because I haven’t found the right one to express my thoughts on. That was until I read Jojo Moyes’ Me Before You.
Before this book, there has only been 5 books that made me really cry. Those are: My Sister’s Keeper, The Fault in Our Stars, Looking for Alaska, All The Bright Places and The Gift. To give you an idea, when it reached the climax of Looking for Alaska, I threw the book across the sitting room floor and sobbed for about 20 minutes before picking up the book and finishing it. BUT not one of them compared to this. Me Before You, oh my god. I could barely see the writing on the pages for the last 100 pages or so because I was crying so hard.
Firstly, Jojo Moyes done a great job on writing this book. When you start reading this story, you have an idea how it is going to end, and you prepare for a not so happy ending. But throughout the novel, this changes and you begin to believe that Lou can change Will’s mind. That is what is the most heartbreaking thing about the story.
Okay, the plot!
26 year old Louisa aka Lou works in a cafe in a small town for over 6 years and is comfortable with her life. That is until the cafe closes suddenly. With no skills, she is lost as to what to do. Then the opportunity to be a career for a young man, Will Traynor, who had become a quadriplegic and with her family circumstances and her wages being the main source of income, it was an offer she couldn’t refuse.
At the beginning, you feel annoyed yet sympathetic towards Will. He is rude and angry. I would be angry too, he went from a man who had it all, good job, wealth, travelled the world, beautiful girlfriend – everything – to a man who needed 24 hour care because he had no use of his body below his chest. But being rude towards everyone, including his mother, pissed me right off.
But as Will begins to warm towards Lou, you see a different side to him, a side that makes you like him. A LOT! I began crying when he first was nice to Lou. (I am such a sap, I know!)
I don’t want to spoil the book so I won’t say much more about it! I highly recommend it, I have been saying it to EVERYBODY!
Sooo… July and August have been pretty busy months for me! Where do I begin? Firstly, in case you didn’t know, I have been working for Celia Holman Lee since April or May but I worked a lot more for her in July and August. I even worked with her at the Rose of Tralee Fashion Show. Working with her has been a ultimate dream, I still can’t believe Richard got me that opportunity. I am sad it has come to an end for now. She was a dream to work with, we laughed a lot and I have learnt a lot about Fashion and the industry and I loved every minute of it.
With Celia after the Rose of Tralee Fashion Show.
Back in July, I got to meet Youtuber Alfie Deyes, better known as Pointless Blog, and he liked and commented on my vlog, making my channel views go crazy!! I have suffered a lot of migraines and anxiety attacks the last two months which also due to hectic lifestyle and personal reasons (which states why I haven’t been blogging a lot lately!) I have been redecorating my room and it is finally finished! In early August, I met another Youtuber, Marcus Butler! I also met Jake Quickenden. My acne has almost cleared, one more month and I am finished! I went to the Dome in Tralee for the Rose of Tralee 2015 and it was great craic altogether! I got to hang out and party with the beautiful ladies from the Laois Rose Centre, whom have got a special place in my heart. I adore those ladies, they are such incredible women to look up to.
With Mam and Night 1 of Rose of Tralee 2015.
With Anne Marie and Bernadette from Laois Rose Centre.
Other than all that, I have been packing for Spain ( I move in one week, ONE WEEK! I am not prepared, in my head, I feel like I am just going on holiday!) So I have decided to combine my July and August favourites! I’ll stop rambling now!
Books
In July, I read To Kill A Mockingbird for the first time (I know such a crime!) If you have not read it, GO READ IT NOW! It is a very good book, quite different to my typical book. In short, the book is about Scout Finch, her older brother, Jem , and their friend Dill. All three spend their summers spying on their reclusive and mysterious neighbour, Boo Radley. Scout and Jem’s dad, Atticus is a respected lawyer, but when he defends a black man, Tom Robinson against made up rape charges, the trial exposes the children to evils of racism and stereotyping.
Then in August, in like one week, I read The Maze Runner series. My goodness gracious, I couldn’t put the books down! Ashamedly, I did see The Maze Runner before I read the book. But the book is 100% much better than the movie, and I loved the movie! The books had my heart racing and I couldn’t sleep as I wanted to know what happened next! They say on the back that they are adrenaline filled and they certainly are. So here is what the Maze Runner is about: Thomas arrives in a glade at the center of a giant labyrinth. Like the other youths dumped there before him, he has no memory of his previous life, only his name. But something is different after Teresa arrives (who is the only girl sent to the glade). They soon realise they need to get out of the Glade and the maze. Thomas quickly becomes part of the group, but he knows he is different from the rest and certain members of the Glade recognize this too, once they’ve been bitten by the grievers in the maze. Thomas shows the gladers a unique perspective that allows him a promotion to Runner very quickly. Thomas tries to convince his fellow gladers that he knows a way out. It is gripping and intense. If you loved The Hunger Games, this is a must read.
Outfit
Working with Celia means you get to dress up some days for work.
My first favourite outfit is this blue and gold dress from Born Boutique. I think it was around €69. I got so many compliments when I wore it. It is so flattering. These dresses are great, they cut at the middle of your waist and can give the illusion of being slimmer. They also hide your stomach!
This dress is from Born Boutique
This outfit is from swamp. Top is €29 and the Skirt is €49
This other outfit I love is a blue lace crop top and a fabulous black Tulle skirt from Swamp. If you know me, I LOVE TULLE SKIRTS and more than likely buy one every time I see one in a shop. Tulle skirts are in for this A/W so I’d advise you to go by one! They are great.
Music
Fifth Harmony, if you don’t know these girls by now, where in the name of god have you been living? The girl band released their debut album earlier in 2015 and there is a few gems on it including this song, Brave Honest Beautiful, which happens to be one of my favourite songs right now. I can’t stop playing it. It’s on repeat, all the time. No joke! I am pretty sure it will be the same for you!
So 5 Seconds of Summer have been working hard on their second album (SECOND ALBUM, THEY HAVE COME SO FAR!) and their leading single from the album ‘Feels Good, Sounds Good’ is ‘She’s Kinda Hot’. I see the trend in leading singles, first ‘She Looks So Perfect’ now ‘She’s Kinda Hot’! Maybe it’s just a biased opinion but I feel this song is step up for 5SOS, as in they could fully be classed as punk rock rather that pop punk! I feel like this is the game changer for them. It’s sounds like old school My Chemical Romance and I FREAKING LOVE IT!
And what would my favourites be without added these boys, One Direction. Drag Me Down, which is their first single without Zayn (it still hurts!) and it is pretty damn good. Just like 5SOS, One Direction’s sound has matured, which makes me a happy girl! Of course, the video is great! Also, I’ve always appreciated Harry’s vocals but jeeeez the feels on his vocal in Drag Me Down kill me everytime!!
Food
So I think I might have a problem with Blueberries. I have become addicted and when I see something that says ‘Contains Blueberries’ or ‘Blueberry whatever’, I most likely will buy it just because it has blueberries!! My latest love is Blueberry bars.
Make Up
So I wrote a blog about Acne and my story with it recently and included most of the products I use. Recently, I have been using two other products also, and I love them! Coconut Oil is all you have been hearing in terms of beauty throughout 2015 and I can see why. I use it as a makeup remover and within one minute, all my make up is off and my face feels great. You take a little bit of the coconut and rub it between your hands until it turns to oil and you message it all over your face until you think all your makeup is removed. I usually do this in sections, so I would repeat this step 4 or 5 times. Then you get a wet Muslin cloth and wipe away the makeup/oil and now you have a fresh, clean face! Also, as I mentioned in my acne blog, I have some scars on my face. I was told to use Bio-Oil to try reduce the scars and I have to say, it is working. It is a slow process and I do have to put it on twice daily. If I miss one day, you can see the difference.
Youtuber
If you didn’t know, I have been Vlogging and making YouTube videos! I am loving making videos and I am super excited to make loads more. Check out my latest video. If you want, like the video and subscribe to me, PRETTY PLEASE!
Home Decor
You might know, I am redecorating my room, well I am actually finished now! So when I saw this Love Sign, I had to have it. It is so pretty and girly. It is from Pennys (Primark) and I think it was €5 or €7. I also got my hands on these lipstick holders (FINALLY). I got them on Esty.com and they were €5 I think! These are great, I can see what lipsticks I have and they look so organised!
That’s it for my July/August Favourites, I’ll see you in a month for September faves!
Writing my favourites for the last month is the hardest it’s been because I love so many things at the moment! But I have struggled through to compile my faves! In June, so much has happened! I finished my Co-Op placement with ilovelimerick (check out the website here and like the Facebook here!), I’ve been to London and seen 5SOS x2 (yes, I saw Michael’s face/hair go on fire!), seen The Script in Croker and was filmed and featured in a video on their Facebook, seen Taylor Swift live, oh so much has happened in June, I’d be here all day!
So here are my June Favourites!
Book
I spent a good bit of June travelling which gave me plenty of time to read and I read The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks as I wanted to read it before I saw the movie. Nicholas Sparks is one of my favourite romance writers and I was incredibly excited to read this book. It’s about two couples, one elderly (Ira and Ruth) and one young (Luke and Sophia). Ira, who is 90 years old, is in a car crash, but it is snowing so bad that no one can see the car. He is already sick, and is barely surviving the car crash. It is all because of his late wife Ruth, who appears to him as an image in the car, and is reminding him of their life together, including how they met, the dark days of WW2 and how they began to collect all the paintings the collected. Sophia, who is a Wake Forest college student, falls in love with cowboy Luke at a barn dance one night. Luke is not like anyone else Sophia knows. Together they experience the joys of love as well as the difficulties that come with Luke’s dangerous career. Although both couples in the story have nothing in common, the story line brings them together! The elderly couple’s love story is a beautiful one. I loved this book!
Image from nicholassparks.com
Make Up
Topshop Lip Gloss/ Lipsticks are something I have only bought recently! After hearing several raving reviews about the products, I had to try them out and god why haven’t I bought them before! So at the moment, I am loving these two lip glosses. Because of the Roaccutane tablet I am on, I find it very hard to wear lipstick as my lips are so dry. So these lip glosses are perfect! They keep my lips moist and look good too! The purple is a colour I normally wouldn’t go for but I loved it more than the pink to be honest! I think I paid around £8 pound for the purple one and €3 for the pink one!
Fashion
A girl can never have too many shoes and I couldn’t say no to both these pair of shoes when I saw them in Primark/Pennys! I bought the blue pair to go with the black skirt from River Island that I mention below! I wore it with a white crop top from Topshop! I unfortunately didn’t take a photo but that is okay, it makes it easier to wear again! 😛 They were £13. The Flowery pair were just so gorgeous, I couldn’t leave them behind! They were €18. By the way, sorry about the mess in the background of the photos, I am redecorating my room!
After my love for tulle skirts, this River Island Skirt I got in London is my favourite! It is very Kim Kardashian style and very flattering on! Although the slit is very high up my leg, it is fabulous! It was £25, which was very reasonable for something from River Island! I wonder could I get away with wearing it to Portlaoise to the the grocery shopping? Maybe not…
Stationery
I am a bit of a stationery freak. If it is not new cute notebooks, it’s pens and pencases! I got this cute London pencil case in Monsoon when I was in London and I adore it. I think it was about time I put my One Direction one in the merch box and became a proper lady! This pencil case was €10. Monsoon have a great range of notebooks, pencil case and any other stationery you may need. It may be pricey but it is fabulous!
Movie
My favourite movie this month had to be Jurassic World!!! Oh my god it was so good. I know what your are thinking, why the hell did Sarah Jane go see that movie, that’s not her typical movie! I watched all the previous Jurassic movies with my dad when I was younger and had to see this as everyone was raving about it! Also, Chris Pratt, come on, there was no way I was missing that! He is one beautiful man! If you haven’t seen this movie yet, GO SEE IT NOW!!
Food
I love pancakes, who doesn’t? I usually only ate plain pancakes whenever I had them because I don’t like Nutella or Lemon Juice or any of those other things people typically put on their pancakes! BUT I have been LOVING Blueberry pancakes recently!! I saw a post on either Tumblr or Pinterest about them and was like oh my god I want them now! So I have been eating these a lot in June! A little tip when making them, burst the blueberries when in the pan before the are made, it tastes so much better!
Music
Firstly, I know I went to Sunday Sessions last night (9th July) but I had to tell you to check out these guys! Little Hours performed and they were incredible. I had heard about them a few months ago but it took me seeing them live to appreciate how good they are. They done a cover of Beyonce’s Crazy In Love a month ago on Sunday Sessions and it is INCREDIBLE! Check them out, you won’t regret it. And Ladies, Ryan is unbelievably hot, just a word of warning!
Selena Gomez has really grown up hasn’t she? I’m liking her new sound, and Good For You is a catchy song. Wonder who she wrote the song about? Bieber? Mmm..
I think the song of the summer 2015 has definitely been Lean On by Major Lazer. The minute it comes on the radio, I just turn it up and feel good and want to dance!
YOUTUBER
Gabby, who is better known as velvetgh0st, is my favourite Youtuber this month! She is a 20 year-old blogger and YouTuber. Her videos are predominantly beauty-based but with a few fashion and lifestyle inspired videos as well. From hauls, favourites, beauty tutorials and sometimes, vlogs. She isn’t on the list of well known Youtubers just yet, but is making her way there! She has been recently appearing in videos alongside Zoella, which is helping her become the Youtube star she deserves to be! Check out one of her videos below.
Okay, shameless self promotion time! If you didn’t already know, I started vlogging! I am NOWHERE near as good as my favourites but I’ll get there! So when I was in London, I vlogged majority of the time. If you want, check out the video. If you can Like & Subscribe also, I’d be very happy! Check out some of my other videos on my channel also!
That’s it for my June Favourites, I’ll see you in a month for July Faves!
I know I haven’t blogged much in May, life has just been crazy! But summer is soon, and I have loads of time to blog then! I am currently preparing to leave to catch a flight to London for the weekend and decided to post this blog before I leave!!
So here is what I enjoyed for the month of May!
Fashion
So my favourite outfit of the month had to be a crop top and high waisted skirt outfit I got from New Look here for £38. I wore it to the first night of the Rose of Tralee Regionals in Portlaoise last weekend. I wore it blue shoes from Pennys/Primark which were €18 and a handbag from New Look here for €30. I kept my hair slicked back and simple as the outfit was very vibrant!
Movie
I went to see the highly anticipated Pitch Perfect 2 with Sarah, Joe and Lisa and OMG it was amazing. Almost better than the first movie. So it was basically about the Bellas trying to recover after being humiliated in front of the President of the United States of America and as a result, the Bellas are taken out of the Aca-Circuit. In order to clear their negative image and recover their status, the Bellas must win an International competition which no American team has ever won. But to achieve this, they need to go back to basics and work on their connection as friends and sisterhood. It is hilarious and the music is great. The ending of the movie is so good and unexpected! Is there going to be a Pitch Perfect 3? I do hope so!
Food
I’ve been having a guilty treat a lot in May and that is the Chocolate Muffin and Ice Cream from Supermacs. Now, I don’t like Chocolate that much and only eat M&M’s but that muffin and ice cream is heavenly! I even want one now.
That is mouth watering…
But on a healthier note, it is now summer time meaning that Fresh Strawberries are everywhere and I love it! Strawberries are delicious this time of the year and are a healthy snack instead of grabbing that bar of chocolate or that muffin and ice cream!!
Music
LITTLE MIX ARE BACK!! So obviously my favourite song at the moment is Black Magic and you will hear me singing along to it as if I was Perrie Edwards (A GIRL CAN DREAM, RIGHT?) I love this tune. It’s so catchy and is a feeling good song!
Home Decor
Home Decor again! So I am loving candles at the moment, if you haven’t noticed. I bought this Red Raspberry Yankee Candle recently for €9.99 and oh dear god, it smells divine!!! It makes my room smell beautiful, even when it isn’t lighting!
Book
I have been reading Cecelia Ahern’s How To Fall In Love. I haven’t finished reading it yet, I didn’t have much time to read this month! Anyway, the book is about how Christine and Adam are thrown together on the night she stops his suicide attempt on Dublin’s Halfpenny Bridge. Christine is determined to help Adam. He gives her a deadline of his birthday to convince him life is worth living, which she discovers is in just two weeks time. At first, it is Christine who is meant to be saving Adam, but it soon becomes clear that Adam might just be saving Christine too. It is a really good book, I love a good Cecelia book!
Youtuber
Queen Tyler Oakley is my favourite for May, mainly because I saw him live in May. Tyler is a 26 year old American Youtuber, television and podcast personality. He began making videos in 2007. He has over 350 videos on his main channel and has over 400,000,000 views and over 7 million subscribers. Tyler is probably the most well known and most loved Youtuber currently. And he slays (insert hair flick emoji here!)
This is his most recent main channel video
And this is his most recent vlog ( I know it’s 9 months ago!)
Make Up
So Su Nail Varnish is one of my favourite at the moment. The shades are all so beautiful!! My fave is Icing On The Cake! I goes on so easy and doesn’t chip too quickly. It also doesn’t have a strong smell like most nail varnishes. It’s a great bargain for €7.99!
I have been seeing raving reviews about Rimmel’s newest Mascara, Wake Me Up. I have had the same mascara for 3 years now so I decided I needed to try a new mascara and OH MY GOD I am so glad I picked this up! Firstly, it smells GORGEOUS! It smells like cucumber and is really refreshing! Secondly, it really opens my eyes and makes my eyelashes look even longer! I adore it, this will be my mascara for a long time!
That’s it for my May Favourites, I’ll see you in a month for June Faves!
It is very hard to believe it is May already. I honestly can’t keep up with how fast the year is flying by. In less than a month, I will no longer be on Co-Op with ILOVELIMERICK and I won’t be a Second Year student! 😮
I currently should be sleeping but I can’t sleep at the moment, I don’t want to say too much at the moment but my family received some bad/shocking news yesterday and I can’t get my head around it and now I can’t sleep. So instead of lying in bed looking at the ceiling, I said I’d be productive!
So even with April being a very busy month, (I know I promised to blog more but I just couldn’t find the time and when I did, I was just too exhausted!) I still had time to take note of what I was enjoying for the month, so here they are.
Music
So the first song I have been loving this month (and maybe a bit too much, I am singing it ALL the time!) is Sweater Weather by The Neighbourhood BUT it is not the original I love. It is a cover by Max Schneider and Alyson Stoner that I adore so much. Their vocals blended together are incredibly beautiful and I could listen to it on repeat all day (which I have!).
Another song I have been loving is my 8 Boys, Stereo Kicks and their Debut single Love Me So. Written by one of the lads, Tom Mann, it is not the usual upbeat pop music a boy band would release as their first single. But this song is a beautiful ballad, if you could call it that. Their vocals are shown off in this song and I think the boys are trying to prove a point, that they should be given a chance because they can sing and can sing very well. And they can write songs very well! Tom’s vocals at 2:32 kill me everytime! I am super proud of my 8 boys! (Especially Tom ❤ )
Fashion
So with Laois Rose, I got to dress up quite a lot. So on the night Laois Rose Briefing, I wore a dress from Born Boutique (€69) and silver sandals from Korkys (I think they were €50, they are about 3 years old). I adore this dress. It’s such a girly dress, I felt like a princess in it and since I have lost weight, it was very flattering on. One of my favourite things about this dress is that it has pockets.
So I had to get photos taken with my sponsor for Laois Rose so we had a little photoshoot in the pub. I wore a new wine coloured Tulle skirt I got on Etsy, which was €34.71 and you can get it here with a black tank top from Pennys/Primark, black blazer from New Look, black heels from River Island and hat from Topshop. I am in love with Tulle skirts at the moment.
My last outfit is a casual one I wore to The Vamps’ Concert in April. The top and jeans were both from New Look. My black converse are from Schuh.
Book
My favourite book for April is Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell. Having loved Fangirl, I was expecting great things from this book and it didn’t disappoint. Eleanor and Park is all about a high school romance, but not the typical type. Eleanor is the new girl in town, who has crazy red hair and the weird clothes, so she stands out, even though she never wanted to. Park is the smart but quiet Asian boy who hates the attention on himself. Eleanor and Park awkwardly sit together on the bus but never speak to each other, until Park notices Eleanor looking over his shoulder while he reads his comics. I don’t want to give too much away but this love story is extremely cute and I couldn’t put the book down once I started. The ending killed me though, I hated it! Summer Aurora from The Guardian agrees by saying: ‘The ending left me craving so much more of it. The last page left me confused and a complete wreck. Honestly, it hurt, and I was left hoping that there was an epilogue that had gotten secretly ripped out of my copy.’ If you love soppy, cute books, read this book.
Youtuber
So recently, I have been watching a lot more of Marcus Butler’s Vlogs and Main Channel videos. Marcus is from England and just like Alfie, vlogs every day and has a new main channel video every Friday. His fame has steadily rose since 2012 and currently, he has over 3 million subscribers on his main channel alone!!! (I have 2.. Even 100 subs would be the dream!) He is very attractive but sorry ladies, he has a girlfriend. He is dating Naomi Smart who is also a Youtuber/Blogger. Below are his recent Main Channel video and Vlog.
Beauty
I am crazy about any beauty products that contains coconut. I love the smell and the consistency. It just always makes me feel and smell good. The Treacle Moon range is one of my favourite ranges. The body scrub and body butter are simply divine. Make Up
Contouring is a big thing at the moment. Instead of spending a ridiculous amount of money on those expensive contour kits, I bought Boujour Paris’s Bronzer and Highlighter. Not only does it work like the expensive ones but it also smells so good. I wear this every day and it lasts a long time.
Home Decor
(When did I get this fancy that I now blog about Home Decor? 😛 )
Anyway, there is nothing more relaxing that reading a book or even doing some work with a beautiful candle beside you. Lately, I have been loving a candle my Auntie Margaret gave me one day. The smell is Mulberry and Vanilla and it is gorgeous. Food
So even though I have been super healthy since February, near the end of April, I relaxed a bit with the diet. My Mum came to visit me in college one evening and brought me out to Finnegan’s Restaurant, Limerick. I was so hungry, I even ordered dessert (I never order dessert!) I had these DELICIOUS pancakes. I don’t think I have ever eaten pancakes as nice (apart from my mum’s!) (Oh and Sarah’s!). The food in Finnegan’s is beautiful. I recommend everyone to go there if they are near or in Limerick.
Lastly, I was reunited with some of my favourites in April. Union J were supporting The Vamps on their tour and I got to meet them again, after two years. They haven’t changed a bit, they are just as sweet and nice as they were back then, if not more.
See you in a month for my May Faves!
You Know You Love Me, XOXO,
SJ
Oh yeah, I am going to see Tyler Oakley tomorrow in Dublin! Super excited to see him. Also, I am going to attempt to film my first ever vlog. Wish me luck.
God 2015 is flying by! It’s already April, and it’s been almost 4 months since I hit 1000 views and now I am almost at 4000!!! I do promise to blog more and April is a very busy but exciting month so lots to blog about! So lets get started!
Book
So this month, I decided to pick a book from the huge number of books my parents got me for Christmas. I decided to read Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. I chose to read this base the fact I am a Fangirl and recently (if you read my previously blog post) I had be feeling ashamed of being a fangirl! It took a while for me to get into this book, I will be honest. But once I did, I couldn’t put it down. I haven’t finished it yet (there is over 400 pages!!) but I am over halfway through it and I love it! It is basically a coming of age story and I probably should’ve read it before I went to college. Cath is a fangirl and writes fanfiction. Cath is a freshman in college who suffers from social anxiety and her outgoing identical twin sister Wren chose to live in another dorm. Cath rarely leaves her dorm room and eats endless amounts of protein bars. Cath has to put up with her roommate Reagan’s very friendly boyfriend, Levi, who begins to bring her out of her shell, and charm his way into her heart. It is a great read.
Like every other person in the world right now probably, I am LOVING OMI’s Cheerleader. Oh my god, it instantly makes me want to dance and I feel summery and just happy! One day in work, I searched the song on Youtube and found an One Hour Remix and I listed to it for the whole hour and didn’t get sick of it!!! Can OMI release more tunes like this asap please?!!!
Another tune that has me dancing around my room is All Time Low’s Kids In The Dark. I adore this song. I am also proud for All Time Low as I am actually hearing this song on the radio because I have never heard All Time Low on the radio!
Movies
I went to see Cinderella with my Auntie and my two cousins two weeks ago and I think I enjoyed it more than my two cousins! I loved it so much, that I went to see it a second time four days later with my friend Darina! It kept very close to the original version, which made it even better. It was just wonderful. You can learn a lot from the Cinderella movie, both the originally and new version. I am planning on writing a blog on that soon so look out for that!
I watched What If with Sarah and Laura recently. What If is basically a movie questioning if a guy and a girl can really just be friends without one of them catching feelings. It’s a bit like When Harry Met Sally to be honest. I loved it. It stars Daniel Radcliffe and Zoe Kazan, who are so painfully cute throughout the movie. The moive is about Wallace, who’s still hung up about his ex girlfriend cheating on him, and his love life and his view on relationships. So while everyone around him, including his roommate Allan seems to be finding the perfect partner, Wallace decides to put his love life on hold. But then he meets Chantry who lives with her longtime boyfriend Ben. Wallace and Chantry connect immediatley and the start of their friendship began. Throughout the whole movie, the chemistry between them is clear, leading them both to wonder, what if the love of your life is actually your best friend?!
Fashion
There is only one thing in relation to fashion I am going to talk about and that is my Moschino dress. It’s the first piece of Moschino I have ever bought and I absolutely adore it. I have always admired Moschino clothes but never had the opportunity to buy anything. Until I was very stuck for a dress for a ball and I just fell in love with this dress. I know the picture below isn’t the best picture but I will be wearing it again soon and I will update the picture! 😉 The dress made me feel like such a princess and I felt very slim in it also. It is so comfy and I can not wait to get into it again! If I could, I would wear it everyday!
Make Up
This eyeshadow trio has been a favourite of mine for over 4 or 5 years now. I recently fell in love with it all over again. It is a simple way to get the smokey eye look. I use this nearly all the time when I do my eye make up. And it’s also under €10!
Eyeshadow Primer is one of my secrets to keeping my eyeshadow lasting all day and all night! This little gem from Rimmel is one of the best I have ever used!
Recently, I was put on Roccautane for my acne and it is working wonders. I am only on it four weeks but the improvement already has been incredible. Hope it continues to improve! Unfortunately, one of the side effects is that my face is very, very dry and it gets very irritating at times. My other moisturizers did work but it wouldn’t last long till I would have to reapply it. So I was told to us La Roche Posay Multi Compensating Soothing Moisturizer and oh my god, this is great stuff altogether.
As well as my face being dry, my lips are even drier. No other lip balm was helping and in fact vaseline was making it worse. La Roche Posay Lip Balm is the only lip balm that soothes the dryness. I do have to reapply it a few times but at least it stops the irritation.
Youtuber
Pointless Blog aka Alfie Deyes is my favourite Youtuber for this month. I think Alfie was the first ever Youtuber I started watched back in the day! Recently, I fell in love with him all over again. Because with life and work being crazy, I hadn’t much time to watch Youtube videos but I started catching up on Alfie’s videos and vlogs throughout March. I do prefer his vlogs over his videos sometimes but that’s just me! Below is his latest video and latest vlog.
Food
So since my Dad had a heart attack and has been on a strict diet, I also have to be on that diet also. So instead of the usual big fry ups at the weekend that would be full of fat, we have substituted them for Turkey Sausages and Turkey Rashers. Oh my goodness, why haven’t we been eating these all our lives?! THEY ARE DIVINE! And have so much less fat than normal sausages and rashers! I talk about these so much that I am pretty sure everyone is eating them now! I even made them for the gals and they loved them!!! I am making myself hungry now thinking about how good they are!
Daffodils
Since I have now discovered I am not allergic to all flowers (Lilies are the main problem!!) I am beginning to love flowers again. Which is good because our garden is always full of flowers! Every year since I was very young, we have had endless amounts of Daffodils around our house and this year was no different! Daffodils instantly make the place look brighter and more spring/summery and I love it! They are dying off now though. But my Dad has just finished his gardening tunnel and I have no doubt the place will be covered in every flower possible soon!!!
I know, I know, this blog is 16 days late! Please forgive me as UL had it’s RAG week last week and this week, I am paying for RAG week antics as I am suffering with a verrrrrry bad flu! But I am on the mend! So here are my February favourites 🙂
Pink Hair
The first week of February, I got pink dip dye in my hair and I absolutely loved it. To be honest, I think the pink has been my favourite dip dye (I’ve had blue and purple previously). I think the pink suited me more, it went really well with the blonde and my complexion. The only annoying thing with dip dye is that it doesn’t stay in very long. I got 5 weeks out of it. I now face the decision of whether or not to get it back in? If I do, I might have to keep it for a good 4 or 5 months because of something that I am currently involved in. What do you reckon? Get the pink back in or go fully blonde again? Thoughts PLEASE!!
Book
My favorite book for the month was If I Stay. Stupidly, I watch the movie before reading the book so I knew the storyline. The book is based on a girl named Mia Hall and how she deals with the aftermath of a horrible car accident which all her family, including her, were involved in. She has an out of body experience where at first, she is beside her parents and brother’s bodies mangled and dead, being tended by paramedics. She then releases that she is infact not alive but fighting for her life. She is rushed to hospital and her ‘spirit’ goes too. She sees her grandparents, her parent’s friends, her best friend and her boyfriend all gather at the hospital to be by her side to remind her she still has a family when she wakes. Mia watches as her memories flash before her eyes as she comes to realize that she must decide if she should stay and lead a life far more difficult than she would of ever thought without her parents and little brother, or go, and leave everyone else behind, including her dreams. It is quite emotional. But DO NOT decide to read this book while you are in a car with your parents when it is snowing, it is a stupid idea!
Clothes/Outfit
First outfit!
Second outfit!
I have two outfits of the month and I wore them both in one day! Life of a fashionista eh?! First outfit is what I wore on my way to the GAA Congress in Cavan! I wore a oversized black t-shirt from Littlewoods, (€10, Click here), Houndstooth leggings also from Littlewoods (€24, Click here) and a coat from Born (with I think is out of stock at the moment!). I think is one of my favourite outfits at the moment as it is comfy but also stylish! I feel like a Black Little Red Riding Hood as my coat as the same hood as her cloak!
The second outfit I wore to dinner with my Mum on the first night of the GAA Congress. I wore a simple long sleeved black top from Pennys/Primark (which is €4 or €5 I think), black and white mid length skirt from Littlewoods (€29, Click here) and blue wedges from Pennys/Primark (€15).
Music
I think I will always find this a hard choice! But currently, I am loving Luke Friend’s debut single ‘Hole In My Heart’.
I am also LOVING Lawson’s new single ‘Roads’! I have missed these boys making music and can not wait to hear more!
Movie
Okay so 50 Shades of Grey has to be one of the favourites for the month. I had been craving for this movie since 2012! Once the movie was released, it got mixed reviews! For someone who loves the books, yes I do agree it’s different than books. The chemistry wasn’t as strong as I would of liked between Christian and Anna. I think Jamie Dornan done a good job. My problem was with Dakota Johnson. I cringed watching her at some parts of the movie. She did an okay job in some scenes such as the whipping scene and when he first brought her to the Red Room. Was it as good as I expected? No. Nowhere near as good as I thought it would be. Would I see it again/get it on DVD? Heck yeah!
I also finally got to watch Love, Rosie and I loved it. I read Where Rainbows End back in November and adored it. It is about two best friends, Rosie and Alex, and how Rosie was stupidly blind to the fact that Alex is mad about her and then when she releases, the timing is wrong. Along the way, life throws a lot of stuff at the both of them. That is it sums up in a few words basically. I laughed, cried, laughed and cried at the same time. It is cringe at times but in a cute way. I loved it. I also loved Sam Claflin ❤
For Christmas, I asked my parents to get me some of the Disney Classic Movies and my Mum has continued to buy me them! It’s on my Bucket List to have all the Disney Classics on DVD (I know its very childish but I love Disney!) I currently have 13 Classics and my Mum has made it her goal to have them all collect for me by the end of the year!
Food
Since my Dad had his heart attack, he has been on this strict healthy diet – which I also have to be on as the heart attack thing is in our genes! So one day, my Mum was telling me she found this healthy chicken and she was putting it on for my dinner. When she handed me the plate, I didn’t pay any attention to the food. It looked exactly like chicken. Smelt gorgeous and tasted devine! So then when we went shopping the next day, I asked Mam can we get more of that chicken and Dad brought me to where it was in the shop. You could just imagine my surprise/shock when I saw it was Quorn! I had no idea. It is so healthy for you and it tastes almost better than chicken in my opinion. My Dad isn’t a big fan of it but he is picky like that! I have been loving a lot of healthier foods that are now in my diet! I will included them in my March Favourites! This diet is great, and although I do miss some of my favourite foods, I have lost almost a stone in 6 weeks!!
Youtuber
I have been loving Joe Sugg a lot more recently on Youtube. He is Zoe Sugg’s younger (and beautiful!!) brother. He has three Youtube channels : ThatcherJoe, ThatcherJoeVlogs and ThatcherJoeGames. I only watch ThatcherJoe and ThatcherJoeVlogs as I am not really into gaming videos. Joe is a British YouTube Celebrity, blogger, and comedian with over three million subscribers. He is known for being ridiculously crazy and he is also very good at impressions. He lives with fellow Youtuber, Caspar Lee and their videos together are some of my favourite. I cry with laughter sometimes they are that good.
I had planned to post this blog a week ago, but if you read my previous blog post, you will understand that I wasn’t in the mood to blog but now I’m back and ready to blog. So here is some of the things I have been loving in the month of January.
Make-Up
So I have two favourite make-up pieces. I am in LOVE with Topshop Lipsticks, almost as much as I love Mac Lipsticks. I am obsessed with plum/wine toned lipsticks and had to get this shade from Topshop. It is called ‘Twin’ and is around €10. It’s not matt like Mac lipsticks, but has durability, has a lovely shine and it’s easy to take off when removing make-up!
Topshop Lipstick in shade Twin
Image from Topshop’s Website.
What Twin looks like on.
My second make-up favourite is Benefit’s Roller Lash Mascara. This is one of the best mascaras I have ever used. It does everything you want a mascara to do. I have naturally really long lashes and find it hard to a mascara that doesn’t clump my lashes together. This mascara also curls your lashes when you are applying it. It doesn’t clump and goes on so smoothly. This mascara thickens and volumizes your lashes. It is just perfect! It is €26 but it’s worth it! I got my tiny bottle in January’s copy of Elle so if you aren’t ready to commit, buy that magazine if it is still in shops!
Benefit’s Roller Lash Mascara.
What the mascara looks like on! (BTW I HAVE PINK HAIR!)
Clothes
My favourite piece of clothing this month has to be my Black Ripped Skinny Jeans. I love ripped jeans and have done for a few years now. I don’t think they will ever go out of fashion. They are casual but can be dressed up at the same time! I never had a pair of black ripped jeans and have been looking for a while but I never had the money to buy Topshop’s pair. Luckily, my mum bought me these pair last week and I LOVE THEM! They are high waisted and extremely comfy. They have a super-skinny style so they’ll lengthen and give a slimming look. They are from Littlewoods and are €37.
Although this isn’t the most flattering image, these jeans are my favourite jeans ever! Plus those socks are so stylish!
Book
January has been a busy month so I haven’t got to read many books but I did read Zoella’s Girl Online. This is Zoe Sugg’s first book and with her being one of my favourite Youtubers, I had to read it. The main character, Penny, is a Year 11 student ( which is equivalent to TY/5th Year here in Ireland, I think!) and the story is about every teenage girl’s problems – boys, beauty, the so called friend who are actually mean to you, but it also covers some modern issues that some girls go through like anxiety and panic attacks and the pressures social media can cause. Penny begins blogging about all her problems, anonymously as Girl Online. After an embarrassing situation in front of her whole school that ended up on Facebook & Youtube, her Mum gets a job in New York over Christmas. Penny meets a boy called Noah. And well, it’s a love story! I am not going to ruin it for you but it is a good book. It’s easy to read and I had it read in 3 days. It’s innocent, sweet and very realistic of what teenagers go through nowadays! It was kind of predictable at times for me but I still liked it! 8/10 from me!
Music
My favourite song for January is Ellie Goulding’s Love Me Like You Do. Firstly, it’s Ellie Goulding and I love her. Secondly, this song is from the highly anticipated 50 Shades of Grey. It suits the movie down to the ground, with lyrics like “You’re the pain..”, ”You’re the fear/I don’t care/’Cause I’ve never been so high” and the famous ‘Touch me like you do..’. Even though the movie is not one bit innocent, Ellie’s sweet, romantic tone is nothing but innocent. I’ve listened to this song so much this month and I don’t think I will ever get sick of it. It will have you dancing around your bedroom, while imaging Mr. Grey is there dancing with you. (A girl can dream okay?!)
Shoes
I have these Doc. Marten’s since my birthday but I fallen even more in love with them recently! My gal pals Susan and Laura bought them for my 21st Birthday! They are lighter than my black ones, but just as durable! They are also extremely comfortable while being very stylish at the same time.
Wine Doc. Marten’s ❤
TV Show/Series
So I have became obsessed with Gossip Girl in January and although Sarah and I had planned to have all 6 Seasons finished by now, we are on season 3. From wishing I was Serena to wanting a boyfriend like Chuck Bass ( you have to say his whole name, it sounds better!) to nearly every episode having some sort of Houndstooth fashion, I LOVE GOSSIP GIRL. Although, for a while, I was extremely annoyed with the amount of incest in it at one point!! But I have gotten over that and I am even more addicted than before!!
Movie
I didn’t watch that many movies in January and I didn’t get to the cinema to see any new ones that are out! I did watch Two Night Stand a few weeks ago. It is about how a snowstorm forces two people who made an online connection via a dating website to unwillingly extend their one-night stand as the blizzard goes through the night. It has Miles Teller (who is kinda cute!) and Analeigh Tipton in it. It is funny and kind of romantic! Don’t watch it with a couple though. Being a third wheel is awkward and makes you feel even more alone!
Youtuber/s
I am obsessed with Youtubers and this month I have found myself watching more of the Sacconejoly’s. The Sacconejoly’s are Irish Youtubers who now live in London and daily vlog their everyday lives! The have two children, Emilia and Eduardo, who are SUPER CUTE! They are currently in Florida for Playlist Live but went to Disney World and the video below is when Emilia met the Disney Princesses!
Most importantly, I still have My Dad!
Like I mentioned at the beginning, if you have read my previous blog, you would know my Dad had a heart attack a week ago. He is now home from hospital and is doing good. Doctors have said he has made a great recovery but it is still a long road ahead. Yesterday (Saturday 7th February) we got to watch the Ireland V Italy rugby match together at home and it was great! Memories I will tresure forever.
I HAVE BEEN NOMINATED FOR MY FIRST BLOGGER AWARD! YEY!
Okay so it’s not the biggest or most renowned award for bloggers, but it’s something and that’s what is important! It is so good to be recognised for my blog. I would send a massive thank you to Melody, who nominated me for this award. She has an awesome blog too, which you can check out here!
So there a few rules you have to adhere to once you have been nominated/awarded! They are:
Music – I am music obsessed, if you didn’t already know that! I could mention who I love but I would be here for days! But to give you an idea, some of my favourite artists are One Direction, 5 Seconds of Summer, Demi Lovato, Beyonce, The 1975, Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith, Jessie J, John Mayer, oh the list is endless!
Books – I love reading books! I just wish I had more time to read all the books I want to read. When I have my own house, I plan on having my own private library filled with all the books I have read. My favourite book for the past few years has to be The Fault In Our Stars.
Gossip Girl – I just recently became obsessed with Gossip Girl. Yeah I know I am about 8 years late. It is so good! So good infact that the day I started watching it, my best friend Sarah and I watched 11 episodes consecutively! I am furious at myself for being so late on the Gossip Girl hype because I am in love with Chuck Bass/Ed Westwick ❤ Although we think we have watched a bit too much of it because we now can’t think of anything other than it and think we live in Upper East Side.
Travel – I love travelling! I am lucky enough to have parents that bring me to places I love. I’ve been to Florida, London (endless amounts of time, I should buy an apartment over there!), Paris, Lyon, Barcelona, Finland and Glasgow to name a few of the places I’ve been. I hope to travel loads more soon, with Rio de Janeiro and Australia some of the places on my list for 2016!
Disney – I am and will forever be a child at heart and nothing excites me more than anything Disney! Disney movies are my ultimate favourites and just like the rest of the world, Frozen is my favourite at the moment. But you can’t beat the classics like Cinderella and Beauty and The Beast!!
Houndstooth – To say I am obsessed with the print Houndstooth is a massive understatement. If I am out shopping and see something in Houndstooth pattern, there is a 99% chance I will buy it. Also, I have noticed that Houndstooth is very popular in the fashion choices in Gossip Girl, another reason to love the show!
Penguins – Apart from dogs, cats and rabbits, Penguins are my favourite animal! So as you can imagine, Christmas 2014 was heaven for me as it was the year of Penguin! When John Lewis released their annual christmas ad in November 2014, it was like Christmas came early for me! While I was in London in November last year, my Mum bought me my own Mabel the Penguin!! Yes I am 21 but come on, Penguins are just so adorably cute!
Sarah Jane Allen 