A New Year of Blogging...

This time last year, I made a few New Years Resolutions for the first time ever. One of which was to post weekly on my blog; a goal that I managed to stick to for most of the year. However, after 6 months or so, my ideas became rushed and generic as A Levels became more intense and my creativity was nulled by the stress and exhaustion. The Creative Writing side of my University course has helped somewhat to revive my creative flow. I knew that this year my main goal for my blog was to firstly pull more passion into my writing and, secondly, to expand my audience. For my New Year post, I want to share with you how I plan to achieve that. 

 Firstly, one thing I have missed since leaving college is the free periods I would have stuck in Stratford that led me to a coffee shop or cafe to just sit. I would read, write or study. Whatever needed doing. The thing about living at University is that when I am provided with hours like that, it's all too tempting to just go back to my flat and waste the rest of my day. I don't know what it is about home but, for me, it just isn't the place for productivity. So, in the New Year, I have made it my goal to take myself out every week for a coffee and a walk and to just sit and write blog posts and read. It wont ever be a time for doing my University work, it will be my creative time and it will be a priority. 

 I have purchased a few things to help with this plan and to maintain a level of creativity in my every day life. 

 Journaling is always something I have wanted to do. I love the look of journals and I love documenting my life; however, journaling in itself seems quite overwhelming to me. I find it hard to know where to start and I always seem to just get bored writing down everything that happened each and every day. 

 I recently was browsing in PaperChase with a friend when we stumbled upon their journal collections. My student budget at the time urged me not to buy any but two had caught my eye that I haven't been able to stop thinking about since. 

 The first is a black Dream Journal with a gold snake feature on the front. I have had a lot of vivid and strange dreams lately which would make good creative pieces given time to think about them. I love this Journal because it has two sections; one is very structured with themes and titles, the other is more flexible. I love the idea of documenting dreams so that you can remember them later. Your brain is at it's most active when you're sleeping which, as a writer, makes it so important that you can somehow gain something from that lost time.

 The second is called an AM/PM Journal. It's a sort of bullet journal that sets you tasks each morning and evening. It invites you to reflect on your day and your mindset and I thought that filling this in on days when I have Creative Writing modules would really help enhance my thought processes ready for the sessions. 

 Both of these journals are beautiful and will come in so handy over the next year in taking my blog somewhere new.

 I want to share a lot more creative pieces here as well as making my blog more focussed on books. I am thinking of rebranding my layout also. It has been three years since I started this blog and it's remained at the same level. I'm ready for it to grow a little now and really do something with it. 

For any of you who have been here since the beginning, thank you. I hope you will still enjoy where I take things. 

 Chloe. 

What I Got For Christmas 2017

As always, I am not trying to show off with this post. I always find these so interesting; a lot of YouTubers do videos this time of year as a sort of Christmas haul and I'm quite a nosey person, I like seeing what people like. I'm only going to share a few things, many of them are by brands/people that I love and want to give my support to and it might inspire your January sales shopping!

 One of my main Christmas presents was a piece of equipment I need to record my EP in the new year; that process will be documented largely on my Instagram; ChloeHanks23 so make sure you go over and follow me to see that. I am so excited about it. 

 I have followed the family SacconeJolys on YouTube for a couple of years now and I have also been a huge supporter of Anna's Jewellery line. Slightly on the pricier side than your usual high budget but low quality YouTuber merch, this line is a gorgeous collection of statement pieces that last a long time and have a personal touch that make them perfect for gift giving. Two christmases ago I received a necklace in Rose Gold featuring my star sign. Anna's recent collection, Written In The Stars, really caught my eye because the new pieces sat so wonderfully alongside the original collection. Although these necklaces are slightly expensive, I totally believe they are worth the money. For example, I could spend £20 on a necklace from Accessorize and have it tarnish in 6 months or I could get a £70 necklace for Christmas that still looks brand new after two years. It's a much better investment. 

 The piece I chose for my present this year was cheaper than the core range that was released a few years ago, simply because the pendant is much smaller. It is this gorgeous Rose Gold Star choker that has my birthstone featured in the middle. I love this because it looks beautiful just on its own if I'm wearing a high neck top/sweater; but also it sits wonderfully with my Star Sign necklace too. These are such lovely, personal gifts to really make someone feel special at Christmas time or for their birthday. 

 As always, I had a few books on my Christmas list. I've been finding reading fairly difficult since starting university; my completely new schedule has killed my motivation for it slightly and so I wanted to get a few new books to get me excited to read again. 

 I've been inspired by Neil Gaiman's writing since studying Creative Writing; I got two books of his this Christmas: The Norse Mythology collection and The Ocean at the End of The lane. I'm super excited to read these and I really hope they help me feel passionate about books again.




 I also received The Book of Dust which I have been so excited about for months. I have already started reading it; it's the loveliest, cosiest book for winter. The His Dark Materials Trilogy was such a huge part of my childhood and I can't wait to do a full review of this once I have finished.

 I've been really into witches since starting University. I used to be really interested in the fictional witch character when I was a child but the history student in me is now so intrigued by the Witch Trials. It's featured in a couple of my Creative Writing pieces and I just want to know more. I saw this cover on Instagram a little while ago and jotted down the title, The Witches of New York. I don't know much about this book other than it caught my eye. I'll probably review this in the New Year as well. 


 Two writers I've really loved over the last few years are Angela Carter and Agatha Christie; both very different genres of writing but equally interesting and inspiring, I was thrilled to receive more of their work this Christmas too. Black Coffee drew me in simply because I love coffee, this is a novel adaptation of one of Christie's plays so I'm excited to get into that! 

 I was lucky enough to receive lots of beauty products. Now that I'm a student, I don't have the budget that I used to to try out new products. I received the Kylie Jenner Burgundy Pallet which I have used every day since Christmas and am loving! I also received my favourite fragrance Olympea by Paco Robanne; I ran out a little while ago and couldn't afford to replace it. 

 I'm hoping to give my blog a little refresh in the New Year which I will write more about soon! Thanks for reading, don't forget to follow my Instagram to keep up with all things blog related and otherwise. 

 Chloe. 

My First Impression of Reputation

This has arguably been the most anticipated album of 2017 and that cannot even begin to describe what waiting for this record has been like for Taylor Swift fans. 3 years after the release of 1989 and over a year since Taylor disappeared for a well deserved break, it is safe to say that we needed this album more than any she has released previously.  

  I am aware of the controversy surrounding this album. The stories she tells have been well speculated in the media, hence the newspaper-themed cover. My personal opinions of the scenarios will not be discussed simply to avoid drama in the comments. I stand with Taylor and that is all I have to say on the subject of media drama. 


 However, I wanted to write about my initial response to this record. I think it'll be fun for me to look back when I know the album better at what my favourite songs and lyrics were when I first heard it. I am not going to comment of every single track, just the ones that made the biggest impact on my experience and the ones I wanted most to listen to again.

 I had planned to listen to Reputation for the first time on Friday evening because I had a full day of lectures on the release day. I wanted to sit down and really take the album in; however, when I woke up Friday morning I just didn't have the self control to wait all day before I heard it. So, I listened to album from start to finish while I got ready for the day and it was honestly such an exciting morning!

 Ready For It was my favourite of the tracks made available before the release of the whole album. This is one of the many tracks which really conveys how ambitious she has been with the production and writing of Reputation. It's perfect for an opening track, it's as if she is introducing us to this new style and asking us, 'are you ready for it?' 

 I don't think we were but it works. It really works. 

 End Game isn't my favourite track of off the album but I was excited for it due to the collaboration with Ed Sheeran. I love how Taylor has experimented with Genre despite the limitation that have been put on her by her country roots. The rap line, "Bad Reputation,' pops up coherently through the track and features 2 other artists writing about the idea of reputation. I think this is Taylor's way of sticking up for herself and discussing first of all how everyone has a reputation and her's shouldn't be such a big deal. 

 One of my favourite tracks off of the album is Don't Blame Me. Both the lyrics and the melody of this song just caught me off guard. It's such a beautiful song and a wonderfully original way to express such a feeling of being so in love you cannot think straight. I am planning to cover this one soon so please check that out! 

 So It Goes & Dress both share a very specific theme. Sex. I am so proud of how Taylor manages to convey her maturity and growth as a musician by writing about sex as something natural and passionate and normal. People can sometimes be a little uncomfortable about women writing and talking about sex. Normalising female sexuality is a very important issue to me and Taylor does this beautifully. In Dress especially she manages to capture the excitement of falling in love. Her writing style has matured so much since 1989 and these tracks capture that iconically.

 Despite having left country music, Taylor still uses the story-telling element in her songwriting and Getaway Car is one of my favourite examples of that. Again, this track shows her growth in maturity as she admits herself to have done wrong. The melody is so original and captivating. It's fast becoming one of my favourite tracks off of the record. I think this is one of her most honest songs yet in terms of being honest with both herself and the person this song addresses.

 This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things was a song that I didn't think I would like when the track list was revealed. It's actually favourite song off of the record. While I think it's great that Taylor admits that, in the last few years, she has gotten things wrong, I love that here she sticks up for herself in such a mature way. The progression in the production of Taylor's music shines on this track as well as the quality of her writing. This song has some of my favourite lyrics. The child-like slogan as the title has been revealed to allude to how the people this song addresses were acting so childishly which I think is such a clever angle to take. People will have a lot to say about this song if it is ever released as a radio single (which I hope it is.) I hope people can focus on how lyrically and sonically genius it is as well though! 

 Call It What You Want is such an innocently beautiful love song. It's been a few albums since Taylor has given us a ballad like this. I loved it when it was released before the album came out but I think I love it even more now I have heard how it fits among the whole album. It shows the growth in both how Taylor perceives relationships and how she views herself. Lyrically, it's a masterpiece and the production heightens that. Sometimes I feel that the track production of Taylor's songs can distract people from the quality of her lyrics; this song has been allowed to remain lyrically strong. 

 New Years Day as a closing track is perfect. The upbeat, quirky piano track brings together the main message of Reputation which is that Taylor doesn't care what's being said about her now that she knows the people who stick by her. She took the idea of the New Years tradition of kissing someone at midnight and used that to convey that it doesn't really matter what you should be doing or what people expect of you. What matters is who is there to clean up the mess with you afterwards. Despite sonically being a juxtaposition to the rest of the album, it fits beautifully. I think this is going to be one of my favourite songs of the whole album and one of my favourites to come out of Taylor's media backlash. 

 I am so proud of Taylor for producing this album and I am going to leave this post here so I can go back to enjoying listening to the album! Let me know what your favourite Reputation track is in the comments.

A Lush Bath in Autumn

The thing I have missed most being away at University is my Sunday bath-time. I had a lovely pamper routine every week after work, those few hours were the only ones I had to myself and so I went all out. I always had a face mask and bath bomb. I would repaint my nails and get myself ready for the week. 

 I have tried my best to work with what I have here but the tiny shower cubicle proves tricky for relaxing. There's not much solitude to be found in folding yourself on the floor, lifting your legs up to try and shave them without getting a cramp. 

 The main thing I wanted to do when I snuck back home during Reading Week was attempt to recreate my precious me time! 

 I went into Lush planning to repurchase some of my favourites. I have been planning on doing a post about all of my holy grail Lush products; however, I ended up buying something new this time so I thought I'd share my initial thoughts with you and save my Lush Favourites for another time! 




I did repurchase my favourite face mask though. I absolutely love the Mask Of Magnaminty. I used to use this weekly and, since I ran out, I don't think my skin has looked the same without it. It is quite pricey for a face mask, the bigger size being just over £12, hence why I haven't repurchased it sooner. But trust me, I would not spend that kind of money or recommend it so enthusiastically if it wasn't worth every penny. It has a gorgeous peppermint scent that makes me feel so cosy and Christmasy, although it isn't a Christmas product. You can really feel it cleansing your skin and it leaves it glowing. I know for a fact I have written about this product before during the early stages of my blog which I think goes to show just how much I love it! 


 It's always fun to have a bath bomb to help pass the time whilst your face mask works it's magic. I usually have my favourites that I go through but something else caught my eye when I went into Lush the other day. Cheer Up Buttercup is a gorgeous bright yellow with purple flowers packed in. It smells like Sherbet Lemons. When I dug into the bag to use it my whole room was filled with the fresh scent of Lemonade. It turned the water bright yellow with a gorgeous shimmer of glitter running through it. It left my skin feeling super soft and shiny and also smelling lovely too. 

 I find a good pamper session with Lush products will always leave you feeling relaxed and brand new! This, of course, is not a paid endorsement so you can take my words at face value. I can't wait to share more of my favourite Cruelty Free Lush products with you! 

 Goodbye. 

The Other Side of Moving into University

I knew that I wanted to document this process, more than anything else so that I could always look back on it and remember every thought and feeling that I had about the experience. The fact that I am already referring to certain parts and processes in the past tense is strange. It's odd to think that I have already experienced some parts of university that I will never experience again and I am not even 24 hours in to the process. 

 I embarked on this journey feeling extremely over prepared. Even at almost 19 years old I am as naive as a child on their first day at school. 

 I made lists and budgeted for things I would need; I filled notebooks and folders doing so. I changed my mind about so many things that I felt invisible! I had decided to live at home then decided to move away. I considered every possible outcome and made the decision I thought was best and I am confident I made the right choice but nothing can prepare you for what this feels like. 

 I was no stranger to the apprehension and, in this instance, I knew the anxiety I was feeling was no condition that my brain had tricked me into, it was completely natural. I knew this. 

 It began the on Saturday night. I had picked up my keys and partially moved in, the rest to be completed the next day. It hit me that evening that in a few hours time, I'd have to say goodbye to my dog and that we would no longer be living in the same house. I would no longer be woken every morning by her scratching at my door for a cuddle. It's funny the things that get you.

 I didn't ever consider in all of my planning that moving to university might be slightly unpleasant. I had accepted that I was a bit of an introvert and would take a little while to integrate, but I could expect the feelings I felt when I was finally moved in and settled. 

 It's exciting, moving somewhere new, to a completely different environment and atmosphere. But it's also extremely overwhelming. I can't describe the feeling of when your mum and dad get back into the car and drive away and you're left in this new place, completely alone for the first time. 

 I didn't expect to feel so unsettled. I had prepared everything, surely? 

The slightest thing just made me cry. I couldn't explain why I was crying, not to my boyfriend or anyone. I'd calm down and then suddenly be in tears again. I wasn't even sad, or homesick. I didn't want to go back home and I didn't dislike my room or house mates, I was just utterly overwhelmed. 

 Nobody really talks about how it actually feels to move into halls. 

 Every YouTube video I have watched or blog post I have read kind of brushes over it. 

 I didn't even indicate to anyone except my boyfriend that this was happening, that I was sat alone in my bedroom completely without control of my emotions. But I received a message from my old manager and work friend explaining that while the first night is always hard, it gets much better! 

 It helped me so much to know that this is normal, and having talked openly about it to my housemates I know that every single one of us went through this on our first night. 

 When you think about it, it's to be expected. 

 When you move into university halls, everything shifts. Everything changes. 

 You live somewhere new, often miles away from home, you're studying something new and you know virtually nobody. No one can go through that kind of change in one second and not be phased by it. 

 I still have moments now where I feel a little emotional and ache to give my dog a cuddle, but home will still be there if you need to get back for a weekend. 

 I wanted to write this to document the feeling and also so that anyone who might read this and think they're alone can know that everyone gets upset and unsettled. It's to be expected. 

I Changed My Hair... Again

I have been growing my hair then cutting and it and growing it again for about 3 years now. I love the idea of having long, gorgeous hair that everyone would be jealous off but the reality is, it just doesn't look good on me. 

 I've recently just grown to hate it and I found myself wearing my hair in a ponytail most of the time simply because it kept it all out of my face.

 It's been 2 and a half years since I had my first dramatic hair cut since childhood. Recently I've been thinking about it and how both times I've cut my hair short, I've loved it. And also how every time I have it long, I end up hating it. 

 I have been at my most confident when I've felt good about my hair. 
 I have felt the best about my hair when it is short and blonde. 

 Short hair is easy to style, there's a lot you can do with it and it takes very little maintaining. So I made up my mind, I was going to chop it all off again. 

 Having recently moved to Worcester for University, I looked for a new, local place to try out. My first stop was Tony & Guys but I couldn't get an appointment there within the next month for love nor money. I couldn't seem to get in contact with other hair salons without phoning, (I have a weird phobia of talking on the phone. Don't judge me, I'm working on it just not right now,) so I was kind of despairing on what to do. 

 Last Sunday I had a moment that affected my week dramatically and to deal with it, I knew I needed to cut my hair. It was all I could think about, every time I got upset I was just like, 'I need someone to cut my hair!' 

 I said to one of my flatmates at one point, "If someone doesn't cut my hair soon, I'm going to do it myself." 

 Scared I'd ruin what little good hair I had, I decided the only think left to do would be to get in touch with where I used to work which I could get to by train. 

 So, one last minute appointment and a 50 minute train ride later, I found myself back where I used to call home ready to leave a whole new woman. 

 The whole round trip took me about 6 hours but it was so worth it. 

I now have short blonde hair again and I'm SO happy about it! I want to try and style it either curly or wavy each day and just play around with it while it's short. I also am planning to maintain the length and have it cut more regularly which is where I have failed every time I've done this before. 

 I didn't go too blonde, I wanted the change to be gradual and I can add more blonde at a later date if I fancy it. More than anything I just wanted to look and feel different. It's always such a weight lifted when you change your style. 

after

 I hope to share more posts about what I do with my new style very soon, see you next week! 

before

Alice by Christina Henry | Book Review

I read both Alice and The Red Queen during my last weeks of the Summer and, at first, I wasn't sure whether I liked it at all. 

 Alice in Wonderland has become one of my favourite stories and ideas. I would say I'm quite attached to the idea of a wonderful, magical land where nothing makes sense. This book duo takes the familiar story to a very dark place. If you're easily put off by horrific tales and especially attached to Alice in Wonderland, I'd maybe advise you to give this retelling a miss.

 I've recently found my love for retellings of traditional stories after exploring Angela Carter's work. I loved the idea of an Alice in Wonderland with a twist. While I wasn't sure about it at first, I've realised with time just how clever this book is. 

 The characters are familiar, the world is not. The traditional rabbit hole seems to have been replaced by a dirty, diseased river Alice and her companion, Hatcher, must swim through and the quest to kill the Jabberwocky has been complicated by what appears to be Henry's allusion to sex trafficking. 

 Here is where I must pull in a trigger warning because this is not a pleasant book to read. I myself found it quite difficult to read some parts. There is fairly graphic reference to rape and women being bought and sold for sexual exploitation. At first, I didn't like this at all; my favourite childhood story being twisted into a very adult, very unpleasant reality. However, the more I think about it, the more praise I have for Henry's message. 

 The reality of Alice in Wonderland is that even the original was based on some awful thing; drugs and alcohol for one. 

 It can only be celebrated that a writer would use such a story to put out a powerful message about a social issue and while it is uncomfortable to read at times, it is done as tastefully as it possibly could be considering the nature of what some women go through. 

 Henry uses the familiar characters of the Caterpillar and the Cheshire Cat renamed simply as Cheshire. These are characters we didn't fully trust in the original novel and neither should we trust them here. 

 The reality of Alice in Wonderland is that the world they are in seems like a wonderful dream but it has an eerie feel to it that suggests Alice isn't safe. Henry uses that in a way that hasn't been explored before but it works. If you are attached to the nature of Alice in Wonderland, try to see this separately from the original. 

 I did read the sequel, The Red Queen, but I didn't enjoy that as much as I enjoyed Alice. The message in Alice is very clear and has a lot of impact. 

 I would recommend giving it a try but it is not for the faint hearted. 

Cosying Up Your University Room.

Hello Friends, after a hectic couple of weeks I am back with a Sunday post and a few prepared and up my sleeve to see us through! 

 I have completed my first week of lectures at University which feels crazy to say when I wrote so many posts so recently about it being in the future. It's now real and it's very overwhelming. 

 I have written a post about how overwhelming it really is moving into university, but now that I am happy and settled, I didn't want that to be my first University Life post! It will go public when the time is right, but not just yet. Today I wanted to share my top tips about how to make halls feel more like home!

 There are still some little bits I want to get for my room, but I'm just going to share a couple of things that you might find helpful if you're struggling to settle into your new little space. 

 A must for me was bringing some of my favourite stuffed toys.

 Regretfully, I couldn't bring the whole gang and so some of my furry friends had to stay home... but I narrowed it down to two and I'm going to introduce you to them now!

 This is Pink Teddy and Archibald (3 guesses who is who.) Pink Teddy and I met when I was very small, hence the unimaginative name, but she has been my closest friend for all of these years and she just had to come with me. Archibald I actually built myself at the infamous Build-a-Bear workshop, (not sponsered although I'd be more than happy to work with those guys if they ever got in touch!) He's so cool and just makes me laugh because the only clothing I could afford for him on my 14th birthday was a pare of pink heart print pants because, of course, he couldn't go naked all the way home! 

 Having some cuddly toys close is such a comfort and will always warm your heart, no matter how 'grown up' you think you are.

Another thing that came in handy for me was this reed diffuser. When you first move your stuff into halls the smell is very unfamiliar. Every home has it's own smell and so a foreign smell can be very unsettling, even if it's not remarkably unpleasant! This is a christmasy scent from Primark Homeware. I love Christmas and so, I figured, if my room started to smell Christmasy it might be some comfort to me. 

 It's important to have little items dotted around that will remind you of home. I brought books and mugs with me so that when I cosy up in bed with a nice cup of coffee, it feels cosy and not painfully Uni-Like with the same mug over and over again! 

 And, for when everything gets terribly exhausting, it's nice to have a small supply of your favourite alcoholic beverage to have a wind down with your flat mates (drink in moderation!) 

Putting up photographs is always a good idea. I have covered the provided cork board with pictures of old friends and my family as a little comfort blanket when I miss home. But I also dedicated a corner of this display to 8 powerful women who have inspired me over the years. To name a few, we have Judy Gardland who starred in my favourite childhood film, The Wizard of Oz. We also have Miss Taylor Swift who has been my favourite musician since I was 8. And some of my favourite songwriters Alanis Morissette, Gabrielle Aplin and Sara Bareilles. This is such a comfort for when I have down days and feel a lack of motivation. I can look up at those women who worked hard for their careers and it gives me the push to keep going. 

 There are many other ways you can make a uni room feel more like home so if these ideas don't work for you, keep reading other blogs, (that's where I got most of my inspiration from,) and I recommend Lucy Moon on YouTube for more ideas, she's fab! 


 Thank you so much for reading, I'll see you next week and Good Luck for your own University endeavours. 

University Stationary Haul

I always go overboard with stationary this time of year. I didn't have the budget for that this year and so I have limited myself to the bare basics of what I will need based on the advice off of experience YouTubers etc. I am sure that over the first semester I will invest in many more folders etc. but this is the bare minimum I will be carrying around during my first week of lectures. 

 I am studying joint honours and so I invested in two separate subject divided notebooks; one for English Literature and one for Creative Writing. I also picked up one A5 notebook to write notes in during lectures. I felt this would be easier than carrying around big folders like I was doing all throughout my A Levels. My plan is to then write/type up my notes in neat later to revise from. 

 I also picked up one folder to keep any handouts or documents I may be given neat which I plan to keep at home to revise from. 

 All of this was purchased from WHSmiths along with this set of highlighters which I have found crucial during my years of doing GCSEs and A Levels. WHSmiths tends to always have deals and offers on their stationary. This was the case with the set of Pukka Pads I purchased as well as their 3 for 2 offers on much of their stationary. 

 I picked up this lovely water bottle. I have always tended to refill plastic bottles which can get pretty messy if they leak in a bag and so I thought this screw top bottle would limit the chances of that happening (hopefully.) 

 I also picked up a pot of pushpins due to an offer. In my room at university I will have a cork board on the wall which I plan on decorating with fairy lights and photographs. I thought these would come in handy for putting that together as a way of cosying up my bedroom. 

 In ASDA, I picked up this set for £6. I wasn't a huge fan of the colour of it but it seemed like a cheap way of getting desk organisers. It contains a magazine rack, pen pot, letter rack, A4 paper tray and memo block holder. While I don't much like the look of it, I figured I can use it temporarily and then replace the pieces I use with nicer ones when I have a little more money. The paper tray and memo block holder, I doubt I will use for instance, so I can use much of it temporarily and replace as and when I can. 


A few weeks ago I purchased this pencil case from New Look for under £5. It seems to dupe a Ted Baker design of a bow on the front. I grabbed this because it matches a bag I have had my eye on for a little while that could be a potential birthday present but theres never any harm in having a pretty pencil case. 

 That is pretty much it for my university haul because I have several refill pads left over from A Levels. There are still a few things I need to get but I think at this stage, it is best to keep things simple because your money can be used for more important things such as food! 

 I hope you have found this useful or interesting. Please feel free to comment if you think there is anything I have forgotten or may find useful! 

 I will be doing a Vital University Supplies Haul in the next week which I hope you will find useful! 

University Homeware Haul

It is now a little over a week before I, and many students my age, leave home for the first time to move into University accommodation or other similar arrangements. I have found it a little overwhelming to know what to buy. Having spent a lot of time watching YouTube videos and reading blogposts and articles to attempt to navigate what I need, I decided to put together my own post to widen the resources and advice out there for Students like myself. 

 I will be doing a separate University Necessities haul to filter it down to what you absolutely must have to move into accommodation; however, this post is for inspiration regarding making your small room in halls feel a little more like home. This post comes with a little naivety, I haven't yet moved in or know whether all of these items where practical etc. but I wanted to write this anyway to give ideas to anyone still doing some last minute university shopping.

 There are still many ideas I have for my room and little pieces I want to get hold of, but I hope this gives you some ideas as to making your new home feel homely. 

 I used this as the perfect opportunity to explore Primark's new homeware range. They have some lovely pieces at the wonderful, budget friendly Primark price range we all know and love. 

 My first purchase was some bedding. By bed at home is a double whereas my bed in my uni room will be a single. I wanted to leave all of the bedding and cosies I had bought for my room at home behind so that when I am staying at home, it will all still be ready for me. So I purchased this simplistic set from the new Primark range which I hope to cosy up with a lovely throw and scatter cushion combo. The single duvet cover and pillow set was £15 and I picked up a sheet and spare pillow covers for under £10. I wanted to keep my bedsheets minimalistic so that I can have accessories in my bedroom without everything looking too overwhelming. 



 I also picked up these two storage containers in a lovely rose gold finish for £5 each. I thought these would sit nicely underneath a desk; one containing notebooks and desk stationary and the other holding by bath and shower products. They are fairly small and so will tuck away easily without the need to clog up the little desk space I will have. 

 I also picked up this necklace display, again with a rose gold theme. Jewellery can be one of the hardest things to store at home, I have a necklace hanger that screws into the wall. Obviously when renting university accommodation, you cannot drill into the walls and so this was a vital find for me which can just sit on my desk and hold all of my necklaces. 

 When standing in line to pay I grabbed a set of pink/rose gold hangers for £4 because you can never have too many! This in itself may not be enough but I didn't want to over buy before I know exactly how much wardrobe space I will have. 

 The Primark shop only crossed a few things off my list and so I kept my eye out in ASDA when doing my kitchen necessities shop. I grabbed this lovely set of butterfly coasters because I love my coffee in the morning... and evening... and anywhere in between! I also don't want to be staining my desk or doing anything else to harm the return of my deposit at the end of the year. 

 I am also a self confessed mug hoarder and despite already having a couple that I couldn't possibly leave behind, I couldn't resist these two. The first is a lovely baby pink with a gold feature at the bottom, the second is an actual unicorn shaped around a mug. Nothing starts off the day better than a fun cup of coffee! 






















This next buy is probably going to be a life saver for everyone! I knew I needed something to store my shoes and none of the provided storage seemed like it would fit the bill. In Asda, this laundry hamper caught my eye, not for dirty washing, but due to its deepness yet dainty size, it would be perfect to store my many pairs of shoes without taking up too much floor space. Sat at the end of the bed or next to the desk, you can get away with having one of these and not being too cluttered! I bought this for £8 so if you're stuck with what to use for shoes, grab yourself one of these.

And that rounds up my homeware collection for university so far. I still have a few things in mind for finishing touches, but these will probably come later on once my room is mostly put together! I hope this has helped inspire you with how to store certain things or just how to cosy up your space. I will be back later on in the week with my University Stationary Haul!

I'm Off to Uni

Hi Friends. 

 I took the majority of August off blogging to gain some perspective. I have loved blogging every week and I plan to continue; however, over the summer, as my routine shifted, I found myself scrabbling for something to write about. My content became forced and unauthentic. If I am uploading weekly, I want the quality to remain consistent; I took a break to do some key planning and also to gain some inspiration. I have some awesome posts planned for you guys including another Look Book which is a massive project for me; hence why I haven't done one in about 18 months. I also have a whole bunch of Uni posts lined up for you so I thought I'd get started on that today. 

 I wanted to chat to you today about how I picked my University and my course in order to help anyone who is in the same position as I was last year. 

 My first piece of advice is something I followed right when I was picking my GCSE subjects when I was 14. I believe that unless you are following a specific career path such as Law or Medicine, it really doesn't matter what subjects you take. My advice is to pick what you enjoy. When choosing my university course especially this was crucial to me. I knew I'd need the motivation to read huge amounts on this subject, I'd have to stay up late some nights writing essays, I'd need to research in my own time. To be quite frank, I probably could have done well doing Law or Politics, but I know for a fact that I wouldn't have been interested enough to put my heart and soul into it. 

 When it came to picking my A Levels, it was fairly easy for me. The subjects I had done best in were the ones I loved because that's how my motivation correlates. 

 It was the same for picking my degree. I knew I loved History. But I also knew I was struggling a lot. I just couldn't get my head around how I was meant to write and my grades didn't match my love for the subject. It was quite hard to kiss history goodbye. It had always been one of my best subjects but I knew at that point that I was an English student. 

 My passion had always been in books. 

 So I researched Literature degrees and decided to include Creative Writing in there to give me a career prospect aside from teaching. 

 I didn't have a career in mind when I chose my degree but I don't think that matters too much these days. The reality of the world at the minute is that jobs for post graduates are few and far between... my priority was having the best three years possible in order to end up with the best mark in my degree. 

 I have since thought more about the jobs I would be qualified for and realised I would love to work in publishing. This, I think, proves that if you follow the path you enjoy most, you'll be qualified for a job you'll enjoy whether or not you know what that job is at the beginning of the process. 

 When I began looking at universities I was sure I'd stay at home to save money. It was always incredibly important to me to go to university, primarily because I grew up believing we were too poor to go to uni. I kept this misconception with me when visiting university websites because I misunderstood the financial aid and processes in place. I believed I couldn't afford to live away from home. 

 So I picked a local uni that I loved at planned to stay home for the next three years.

 My only regret in this whole process is that I didn't shop around the country more for a uni. Since the atmosphere at my home has shifted, I have decided to live at uni and I couldn't be more excited. But because I went through most of this process alone, I didn't feel like I had the option to change my mind and look into a university across the country. There are so many areas of the UK that interest me: Bath, Brighton etc. I wish I had had the knowledge and understanding this time last year to know that it was possible for me to be financially able to go to any uni I wanted to. 

 Despite this I am so excited to go to Uni in a few weeks time. I have picked a University that suits me. I'm not a massive nights out person. I picked a university that is relatively small but expanding quickly which I truly believe will suit me more and allow me to focus my attention in the right places. 

 When choosing a university research is so crucial. If, like me, you don't have a family that really know much about uni and you're left to your own devices, make sure you research everything. Try not to limit yourself. Anything and everything is possible when it comes to university no matter your financial background or what degree you choose. 

 Good luck to any of you off to uni in the next few weeks or to those of you completing your A Levels. I hope this helps you plan your research process a little more efficiently. 

 I am aiming to get back into my regular Sunday blogging schedule over the next few weeks!

July Book Haul

It feels like years since I wrote one of these. It's been so lovely to finally be able to submerge myself in books again. I have started a new job, so I haven't been able to read as much as I'd like... but I think I've completed a pretty interesting collection this past month. 

 My blog posts have been all over the place, I apologise for that. Leaving college and starting a new job has completely messed up my sense of routine and so Sundays tend to creep up on me a little bit. Nonetheless, I will aim to continue to post weekly, as close to Sunday as possible, until I fall back into a 'normal' weekly routine. 

 This first book, The Sense of an Ending, I began at the end of June but completed on the 1st of July. It's a very quirky story. It reminded me a lot of Alan Bennett's The History Boys but as a sort of 40 years later type sequel. The story line is remotely quite sad. A lonely, retired man explores his thoughts and letters to discover what led to his best friend's death. It's a quick read, an easy read and one that will stay with you once you've finished the last page. I was drawn to the cover which has an elderly dandelion scattering through the air which, one completed, you realise reflects the book rather well. It's definitely worth picking up if you need something to read over a weekend or on holiday. 

 I moved on to one of the novels I had decided to save for this Summer, Agatha Christie's Crooked House. Determined to read more Christie after finishing Murder on the Orient Express before last Christmas, I have found myself jotting down random titles of hers to add to my trying collection. This was one that I put on my Christmas list without really knowing much about it. The story line was gripping. I did guess the culprit at an early stage and was correct, but it still left me even more curious about her writing. Proclaimed to be one of Agatha's favourites, Crooked House reflects an immense level of planning and thought. It is evident when you read this book that these characters were with her for a long while before pen touched paper. A true work of art. 

 I wrote an in depth review of Into the Water a few weeks ago, so I will keep this paragraph short. In my opinion, this is the best of Hawkins' work so far. I loved it. The story line was everything I want in a modern thriller. It was exciting, emotional and heartbreaking and I can see it becoming a very successful TV series in the future. 

 I'm Travelling Alone had been on my To-Be-Read list for a very long time. It came up in a Creative Writing lesson and as I always did, I jotted down the title to look into at a later date. I didn't rush to buy it. I happened upon it in a supermarket for £3 and decided to just pick it up rather than order it online for a higher price months later. I have told myself I have to read all of my unread books before I can buy anymore on my list so I found myself picking this up to read simply to get through my shelf. It's a very gripping story and the writing is just wonderful. The conclusion doesn't tie up all of the loose ends; however, what's left can be left much to the imagination. As much as I loved the story line, it left me feeling kind of empty. Often with thrillers, you find the impossible happening to give it a happy ending, but stories about serial killers aren't happy. The featured detective manages to save his granddaughter from the killer despite every other victim being killed. I guess once you've fallen in love with Game of Thrones, those kind of happy endings don't satisfy you anymore. 

 Murakami is another writer who's works I want to explore much more in depth. I was drawn to After the Quake after a little synopsis at the end of Norwegian Wood which I read last year. It's a swift, sweet collection of short stories that explore people's reactions to an earthquake. It ends up being quite an abstract piece, the kind of story you would read to a child to convey a life lesson or moral message. It wasn't what I was expecting. I'm not sure what I was expecting but it was fun and, as always, extremely well written. 

 I then moved on to my current read, The Essex Serpant. People have obviously raved about this and I can see why. There is something so poetic about the writing. Again, I was drawn to the beautiful cover and the quality of words does not let that down. However, I have been kind of stuck on it. I just can't seem to get through it. I love the concept and I love how beautiful each sentence is but the craftsmanship of words seems to distract me from what is actually going on it the story. I've been reading this for about 10 days now and I'm only halfway through which is so unlike me. It's a shame because I really wanted to love this book! Perhaps once I have managed to finish I will see it in a different light. 

 I'd love to know what you've been reading! Let me know in the comments what your favourite read of the Summer has been so far.