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Posted on: Tuesday 16 July 2013

Let's go to the beach, beach.

Hello all!
So now that the summer has well and truly started (and christ it's hot in England...well, for British people!) I've been busy going out and I've claimed back my love of taking pictures and I've made a pact in my head to take a lot more this summer! 

So I went on a little trip with my mum to the seaside town of Weymouth which is a seaside town that some may recognise as the 2012 Olympic Sailing area. What I would say about Weymouth is that it's super picturesque, if you take a little wonder away from the usually packed beach and into the town you will come to the really impressive harbours and adorable little squares to go eat and drink. 



Not only that, me and my 'Scared of heights' mother decided to go on the 'Sea life Tower' which gives you a 360' guide up high of the coast...or the Jurassic coast as my old GCSE Geography teacher would want me to say. It is a breathtaking sight and the guides are so upbeat and charming, I would recommend everyone to take a trip up there (I think it was about £9 for adults) even if you're scared of heights my mum really enjoyed it. 

So, if you are thinking of coming down to the South-West, Weymouth is a great place to go, I had so many memories from there as a kid (mostly wasting my pocket money and the arcade games) and its still a great place many years on. 

Keep checking back soon as I'll be putting up my GlossyBox June Box review up! 

Posted on: Thursday 4 July 2013

Bake.Bake.Bake.

So the summer has finally arrived, and college is done with until September so I have a lot of free time on my hands, and since I'm very content with being on my own and enjoying my own company I thought I'd go back to one of my favourite hobbies. Baking.

And since it was my best friend's birthday coming up I thought it would be a great idea to bake some cupcakes for her (since a couple of years back I made her some 1D cake pops which she obsessed over) and I decided to create 3 different ones. Cookie Monster, rainbow and Nutella cupcakes. 

And here they are!

I was actually so surprised at how well they turned out! So I thought I'd give you some little info on how to make these!
I don't put anything special inside the actual cupcakes, because the amount of icing and extras I put on decorations is filling enough and sometimes inside stuff tends to not work well.

For the rainbow style cupcakes (although they just look pink from the picture) I made up 3 butter cream icing  in separate bowls and got some food colouring (or gel, both work well) I decided on pink, purple and orange. These came out quite light so the colours aren't that stand out so I'd recommend getting brighter colours to use or adding extra colouring until the icing turns a darker colour.

For the Nutella I followed a usual chocolate icing recipe but added about 80g of Nutella (depends on how many you're making) to the mixture, and added some cute decorations to the top.

And finally the Cookie Monster ones, which were by far the most fun to make. When I first saw these on tumblr I thought they were going to be super hard to make, but they are really simple. All you need is to make up some blue icing, have some cookies (cut them in half the create the mouth) and some marshmallows. I guess I'd recommend to practice your icing technique first, and luckily I have a good icing nozzle that comes out in a star-like pattern, I elongated them out to make them look like hairs so you get the fluffy look affect of the cookie monster.

Once you've done one layer I placed the half cookie at an angle (some people cut the cupcakes but there is no need to, or just leave them flat) and placed some icing underneath to hold it and on the top to give it the look that it's in the mouth. Then place two marshmallows at the top and I used a black icing pen to create the eyes. 

And that's it! Easy! 
And to make it look more 'Present Like' I got some cellophane and some ribbons to jazz it up a little, and this is the final look!
My friend seemed to really enjoy it despite the fact that some were ruined on the way driving to her  house to give them to her, but other than that I'm really impressed how well they came out!

Has anyone else had an really creative baking moments recently? Let me know in the comments!
Don't forget to follow my tumblr! harrystop-stagram.tumblr.com
Bye!

Posted on: Sunday 9 June 2013

Mary Poppins, Practically Perfect in Every Way.

When someone has a party and chooses the theme 'Fancy Dress' I always want to crawl into a hole and stay there for the rest of my life because I am hopeless with coming up with good ideas to dress up as. But in my college course we have an 'End of year awards' where they give out serious and some hysterical awards out to all the media classes, and its a really fun night, but you have to come dressed up as someone from TV or Film. Crap.

I made myself make an effort because I didn't want to be the one with the crappiest costume or un-inspiring one so I made sure I planned ahead. And let me tell you it is difficult to think of someone to go as, but for some reason I glanced at my vintage Disney collection and noticed Mary Poppins...and so the light bulb moment triggered. 

So in the end I was pretty impressed with my costume (and it wasn't that expensive, thank god) so here it is!
Amazingly the weather was lush in the UK for once which sucked because this outfit was warm to say the least, I would just like to say that my parrot umbrella was a hit, and I'm tempted to keep him on the end of the umbrella, cute little fella.

 This is my best chum Jayley who went as Stephanie from 'Lazytown' how awesome did we look walking down the street to college dressed like that? Yeah, we got some looks.

A bit more of a close up of that awesome hat whilst with my friend who went for a 'Pocahontas/Indian' character.
And the rest of the gang....excuse my face.

So the whole night went really well and it was a huge laugh, its weird to think that in less than a week I'm done with college until September, but this week I have to finish a documentary, 2 assignments and a massive portfolio to go along with it.
Pray for me.
Anyone got some good costume stories? Let me know in the comments!
Sian 
x

Posted on: Tuesday 4 June 2013

Films you should really take the time to watch.

I'm a huge film freak (Bear in mind that I do media at college so its very normal for me to nerd out with films) and I thought that since I've been terrible at updating this blog I thought I would share some great films that you may not have watched that you really should.

1. Cherrybomb

This film, directed by Lisa Barros D'Sa and Glenn Leyburn is based around 2 boys in Ireland who start falling for a new girl who has moved from London to live with her Dad who runs the sport centre where one of the boys (Played by the awesome Rupert Grint) works. The two boys try to win her affection by doing numerous dares, such as drugs, vandalism, sex and fighting. Although the film seems quite comedic  it quickly takes darker route, showing off all characters insecurities and a very dramatic ending that really asks the question 'would you risk a friendship over a girl?' which, is a very common issue amongst young people. 

It's not an average 'mainstream' film but if you liked the show 'Skins' then you will definitely like this. And another plus is that the two main boys are just ace, of course 'Harry Potter' star Rupert Grint and 'Misfits' and newly upcoming 'The Mortal Instruments' star Robert Sheehan Who I may or may not have a huge crush on which is why I watched this film in the first place, what?   some people may also recognise the girl as Kimberly Nixon who is in British comedy 'Fresh Meat'
Just watch this film...its a great film to watch when you're young.


2. Never Let Me Go

Just a stunning film...I don't think I've been so emotional throughout a whole film until I watched this one. The film, based on the book by  Kazuo Ishiguro which shows the life of 3 children; Kathy, Tommy and Ruth (Played by the flawless Carey Mulligan, gorgeous Andrew Garfield and amazing Keira Knightley) in an alternate universe where they find out that they were created to be organ donors and would die (Or as they are told 'Complete') in their early adulthood. It shows the trials and tribulations of that announcement throughout the 3 characters lives, which a love triangle thrown in as well. This is possibly the most heart-wrenching films I've ever seen and me and my mum were in complete silence for ages once it finished, its one of those films that stick with you for a long time, and has a perfect cast and as I said in the beginning...it's a stunning film.

3. The Breakfast Club

Oh dear did I choose the most 'Hipster' or very mainstream film now? Yes, yes I did, because its fucking great and it deserves to be well known. A classic teen film that will seriously make you think about your life and your friendships. If you ever feel down, just go and watch this film because although it gets sad, you will have a smile on your face by the end (or you'll still be upset, whoops) It amuses me that the style that they have in this film (The film came out in 1985) is slowly creeping back into today's fashion. Oh and I had a huge crush on Brian...just look at his face! Um, anyway...moving on...


4. Memento

I had to watch this film as part of my media course and the 'Alternative Narrative Structure' or in other words, 'this film will confuse the shit out of you and make you question everything you've just watched'. Directed by Christopher Nolan (One of the greatest directors, he directed The Dark Knight and the ever-confusing Inception) and based on a short story by his brother, shows a man called Leonard, who you learn has a memory problem due to being attacked after finding his wife being murdered, he now cannot create new memories and the last memory he has is his wife dying (or so he thinks) the film shows him trying to hunt down the person who killed his wife, but to remember things he takes numerous Polaroid photos and tattoos. The film starts at the end and keeps going back in sections to the beginning, with some added black and white monologues throughout. 
If you want to watch this film, you NEED to concentrate, its not a film to just casually have in the background, and trust me if you watch it again and again you will see new things you didn't see in the beginning. Just a brilliant mind-paining film.

5. (500) Days of Summer

I'm gonna go ahead and say this probably is my favourite film out of the bunch, and of all time. You expect it to be a typical romance but it takes a very different turn which is so refreshing to watch, you can't help but fall in love with Tom (Played by the amazing Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and his hopeless romantic and yet very depressive personality and Summer is played by one of my all-time favourite actresses Zooey Deschanel (And if you didn't watch this and ship them SO HARD then you suck) 
If you have watched this (or will!) then all I can say is the best scene is no doubt the ikea scene...or maybe the plate smashing....has that got you interested? Then go watch it....RIGHT NOW.

So those are just a few of the films I adore, what are your favourite films? Let me know in the comments!
I may do another one of these in a couple of months as some sort of update if any other films become a favourite.
Sian x

Posted on: Thursday 30 May 2013

Documentaries are hard to make.

So I've been a little MIA recently and I'm sorry (Even though I don't know if anyone is actually reading this!) I'm nearing the end of my 1st year of college and I've got one more final project to do.

The course I'm doing is media production as I want to get into filming or directing when I'm older, and throughout the course (along with horrid assignments and portfolios) you get to do some practical projects such as interviews, music video (which is my favourite so far) magazine shows and the one I'm doing one right now. Documentary.

Now I love documentaries (David Attenborough is the greatest) but creating one is far more difficult than I ever expected. It's nice to have the freedom to choose your own topic, but at the same time its really difficult to think of a good idea. And we also for the first time got to choose our own groups, and of course everyone ran to their friends, as did I because even though my lecturers said it wasn't recommended my 2 friends tend to work really well, so I thought we'd be okay.

Oh, I was wrong.

Now I love them to bits, but trying to keep 2 boys on track to get things done is extremely difficult, especially when they're mocking the shit out of you. So you can tell I'm annoyed at how bad the whole thing is going. Luckily we've managed to get decent interviews, but we have a week to edit our 20 minute documentary and I'm very nervous that we won't finish it in time, and the prospect of it not being good enough to get a decent grade is making it worse.

So I guess a lesson to learn is don't go with your friends, because not matter how well you know them, that can be your weakness and they will more likely slack and you will find it harder to be mean to them. 

I am gonna be so relived after this documentary project is finished.
Anyone else been in my situation? Let me know in the comments!
Don't forget to visit my tumblr: harrystop-stagram.tumblr.com
See you soon!
Sian x

Posted on: Saturday 11 May 2013

Punk Satchel.

I'm a big lover of bags and I've had my eye on this one for a while just for the reason that it is so different to what I've seen. Satchels are such a useful bag because they are effortlessly stylish and fit everything a girl needs in them too! 

More recently the traditional brown and black satchels have been taken over by more extravagant colours and patterns, and the one I ordered was no exception. 

I introduce you to my new bag,



 I went for a punk/skull style because it was so different and I have so many floral bags recently that I needed a little change, and I think this is what I needed. The blue eyed skull is quite creepy but I still love it and I would recommend it to anyone that wants a more daring bag.


My satchel cost £26.00 from 'Lily's Bag Boutique'  and trust me, go take a look at the different bags, there are so many I love and want to get in the future! I'll keep you posted.
Sian x

Posted on: Monday 6 May 2013

Questioning Friendships.

Well hello there! It's so nice to blog in ACTUAL sunshine for once, but rather weirdly I'm still sat inside like a true internet freak. Anyway this week I've been a little down and my effort to do anything was low.

I don't know if its just me, but sometimes I get those moments in life when I get confused about life in general, like almost breakdown stage, and this time it was about friendships.

I really don't know what triggered it but one day I just was sat in my college lesson and thought 'Are any of my friends real friends?' Like, would they ever invite me somewhere if I wasn't awkwardly sat next to them and did it out of sympathy? It gets you really paranoid that everyone around is feeling sorry for you and is only there out of sympathy rather than generally being there as a good friend. 

I guess I would say I'm not the biggest social butterfly ever (why else would I be on the internet most of the time?) and I'm incredibly introverted which I hate because you don't know how badly I want to break out and be a more 'Off the walls' person like some of my friends, but something inside me stops that and it sucks.

I think that's why I love to blog, the community on here is great, you find people who are in same situation as you and almost care more than people you know in real life. Seriously, you don't know how happy it makes me to see one of my followers on here or tumblr message me and have a normal conversation like we've known each other for ages, its comforting. 

I know that my friends are actually always there for me and I know that there are 2 people that most definitely don't fit into this blog post. One has been my friend since I was about 8 and even though we go to different colleges we get on like a house on fire, even though we are chalk and cheese. She's the big extrovert while I'm the introverted one. So many people ask 'How are you friends with each other?!' and we really can't answer that, because it baffles both of us, but it works and I don't know what I'd do without her.

The other was the girl I talked to this about, we have been friends through secondary school and it wasn't until we had identical friendship problems that we got closer (And the fact that her class is next to mine) she felt just like me sometimes and after a very deep conversation I was really surprised at how similar we were, and I would say that she is my closest friend after it (And she's the only one that understands my 1D obsession but we won't go into that haha

So that's it! Have any of you been in my position? What makes you get out of this funk? Let me know! 
Don't be scared to talk to me, I'd love to hear from you guys! 
Comment below or talk to me on tumblr: thisfandomneedshelp.tumblr.com
Enjoy the sunshine!
x

Posted on: Saturday 27 April 2013

Glossybox April 2013 Review

So, a couple of days ago my April Glossybox arrived in the post and I got super excited! 
If you don't know what 'Glossybox' is then I'll explain. It's a monthly package filled with 5 beauty items for you to try out and keep, they come in the most gorgeous boxes ever and they are really nice keepsake things. I thought that I might show you what I got in mine this month and tell you all about the products and what my opinion on them is.





 Let's start off with talking about how cute this box is?! It has been designed by Pearl Lowe and the colour and patterns fit the spring month completely.
















Now onto the products!





Essie "Where's my chauffeur?" Nail polish

This colour, that Essie call a 'opulent turquoise' is beautiful, it makes my nails stand out but at the same 
time hold a calm style to it. 

I usually have a love/hate relationship with nail polish because of chipping, but I've had this colour on for almost a week and it hasn't chipped, so you can tell that I'm very happy!

The usual price for this nail polish is £7.99 from Boots or Superdrug. The price may be steep, but the quality is brilliant and it shows.

 Nip + Fab Coconut Latte Body Butter

It's as almost Glossybox knew I liked the smell of coffee/lattes,  I was extremely happy with this body butter because my skin felt more alive after applying it. I've tried body butter before (From Body shop) but I never liked them, but Nip + Fab have created a great cream that works and smells amazing...is it bad that I was tempted to taste some?

A full size body butter costs £9.95 from 'nipandfab.com



'So Exlixir Purple' Yves Rocher Eau de Parfum

I'm very picky with fragrances, so I was a little iffy when I saw this. But when I tried it I adored the smell, its the exact smell that I would usually go for. The bottle design is cute but its a shame that the sample was so small! I am very tempted to buy a full bottle!

A full size version costs £44 from 'Yves-rocher.co.uk
I was expecting a much more expensive price, so this is a big possibly for me to get in full.

Lipcote- Lipstick Sealer

Probably the most unusual and yet super handy products this month. The idea of it helping keep lipstick from smudging and fading away is making me want to wear brighter lipstick from now on, best embrace this for the summer!

Lipcote costs £3.99 at 'lipcote.com' a bargain for such a handy item!


Dermalogica- Daily Microfoliant
When I first saw this in the box, I was utterly baffled by it, but once I read the pot it started to make sense. It's a powder that when added with water creates a paste, which you then rub into your face. 
I can safely say that it made my face feel super soft after applying. It sucks that it is such an expensive product because I would love to use it more.

A full size pot costs £40.50 from 'buy.dermalogica.co.uk'

Overall I think that this month's box had something for everyone in it and I can safely say that I will be looking at majority of these products again. And as I said before, the box is beautiful.
Can't wait for next month's!
Sian 
x

Posted on: Wednesday 24 April 2013

Out with the old...and slightly battered

As many girls are, I'm obsessed...with shoes, and I'm a big lover of Converses due to the style that seems to match anything and are a great comfort addition to a wardrobe.

I've had the same pair for YEARS, like possibly 5 years. I remember getting so excited about getting limited edition styled Converses, and I safely say I worn them out.

Yeah, these were crystal white when I got them, and they are definitely not that colour now! I love these shoes, its the type that you never ever want to get rid of, but a couple of weeks ago I noticed that the fabric was beginning to tear, and I wasn't a big fan of having really wet feet when it rained (And living in England means everyday) So I had to make the difficult decision to buy a new pair!


I'd been eyeing up a pair on Schuh for a while and I finally caved and ordered them, you don't realise the excitement when I unwrapped this box (Big up to Schuh for sending me about 10000 emails letting me know my shoes were on their way or had been delivered) 

So now I present the new pair in my shoe collection!

I went for the worn look (Hahaha irony) version and this colour is so nice and seems to match majority of clothes you can wear. I'm super excited to go out and wear these and get a lot of history out of them, just like I did with the old pair.

Oh, and I'm not getting rid of the old ones, they will be firmly placed in their box in the closet (You'll see me on Hoarders in a couple of years about that)

Anyone else been through the same situation as me? Let me know!
Don't forget to check out my tumblr: thisfandomneedshelp.tumblr.com
Bye!
Sian

Posted on: Sunday 21 April 2013

My favourite songs at the moment.

I would like to say that I have a varied music taste, I could go from my rock roots of Biffy Clyro straight onto One Direction. So I thought I'd share my top 4 favourite tracks that I'm obsessing over at the moment!

AlunaGeorge 'Attracting Flies'
'Little grey fairy tales and, little white lies'
   

I am completely in love with 'AlunaGeorge' at the moment thanks to it being on the radio all the time. The lyrics are insanely catchy and strangely poetic too. I can see these guys being big this year and I'm excited to hear more from them.Take a look at the video for this song too, its like one big gangsta fairy tale! 
(Oh, and for those who don't know Aluna is singing and George produces)

Tom Odell 'Hold Me'
'And all the songs, and all the poets, suddenly they're right'

I first heard this while watching the live stream of the Burberry fashion show and adored it, I was so glad to hear that he won critics choice at the BRITS and when you listen to this, you will understand why.

Fall Out Boy 'The Phoenix'
'You know time crawls on when you're waiting for the song to start'

My life got a hell of a lot better when Fall Out Boy came off hiatus, and I am loving their new direction, but they still have elements of the old stuff. This song will literally not get out of my head, along with the whole new album. And another point, the video made me laugh a little too much considering what actually happens in it...whoops.

Foals 'My Number'
'And I don’t need that good advice, you don’t have my lover’s touch'

The whole beat of this song gets me in such a great mood, it feels like one of the songs that would be great on a road trip. All British indie bands are going all out this year and I love it.

So those are just a few of my favourites at the moment, what are yours? Let me know in the comments!
Feel free to check me out on tumblr: thisfandomneedshelp.tumblr.com
Goodbye!
Sian

Posted on: Friday 19 April 2013

What on EARTH to wear to a concert?

We've all been at that point where your whole wardrobe is thrown around your bedroom as you hopelessly figure out what to wear to a concert or gig, and its tough because there are so many factors that go round your head, because firstly you want to look good for the artist you are seeing if you believe that one will become your husband (I joke...kind of) so here are some of the factors I believe will help you get your perfect concert outfit.

~"~

There's no point in following the crowd and wearing something you don't want to wear that makes you uncomfortable, some may wear dresses and skirts, but if you don't like your legs then don't feel like you have to wear them, skinny jeans and other styles of jeans look just as good as someone with their legs out. 

Don't be embarrassed to wear a t-shirt supporting your artist, especially if all your friends do it too, it becomes a memory for all of you, but also shows that you are supporting them (And they are normally super easy to customise so you feel comfortable in them) 

Comfort is a big thing for me at concerts. It gets very hot in there (especially if you get as energetic as me at a concert) so there is no point in wearing painful heels if you are gonna jump about, team your outfit with flats or Converses to make your feet happy :)

And now I'll show you what I wore to the last 2 concerts I went to, which, don't hate me, was Olly Murs and One Direction.






As you can see I wore a gold and black peplum top with black disco pants. I chose it because it seemed like a cute outfit to wear for a party type outing, and if any of you have been to see 1D, its like one crazy party. 


I really love peplum tops because they work well with my body type, making everything look a little more slimmer, but still embracing the curves. Disco pants seemed to be the best option with this because I am not a skirt wearer...AT ALL. And I find disco pants super comfortable, this style would also work with some classic black leggings.


 For shoes, I went for some really cute flats which matched the 'Black and Gold' look I was going for as they had a little gold mustaches at the tops of the feet. (Sadly I couldn't take a picture because my friend has taken them since she loves them so much!) But you can go find them in 'Primark' for £7 I believe. (Don't hold me to that) 




For the top and leggings I got them both from 'Boohoo.com' which is my main clothes shopping heaven, not only are their clothes super comfortable and a great fit, they are also great prices. Both the top and leggings were £10 and are possibly my favourite buy recently. 

So there you have it, hopefully I helped at least one person think about what to wear to their next concert. 
Have you been to a concert recently? Let me know in the comments!

Don't forget to check out my tumblr: thisfandomneedshelp.tumblr.com
I'll see you soon!
Sian





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