Primark Room Decor

Last week, my mum and I took a well overdue trip to Primark. Whilst browsing the home section, I completely fell in love with some of their new bedding sets and decided that I desperately needed to update my bedroom. Primark has so many lovely pieces in store at the moment, and it took a lot of restraint to stop me going overboard and buying a whole array of rainbow coloured candles. As a student, I don't really have a lot of money to play with, but I managed to get quite a lot for my money. I'd definitely recommend having a look if you're on a budget. I'm really happy with the pieces that I bought, so I thought I'd upload some pictures and prices. 

Fairy Lights - £6

Stag Ring Holder - £6

Pink Jar Candle - £3.50

Small Candle - £2.50

Duvet cover - £11

Matching Cushion - £6

Flower Pillows - £3 each

Pink Throw - £7.80 (on offer)

Reed Diffuser - £1

50 Things That Make Me Happy

In today's society, it seems common for people to focus on the negatives in life. Although I am guilty of doing this myself, I feel like we should be focusing more on what makes us happy and what we enjoy about life. As the cliché saying goes, "You Only Live Once", so we need to start living life to the fullest and appreciating all that we have. Whilst reading Thirteen Thoughts' blog, I stumbled across the "50 Things that make me happy" tag and wanted to give it a go. I hope you enjoy reading my 50 things, and that it maybe inspires you to also take a step back every now and then, and just take a moment to appreciate all the good things in life.

1. My family. Especially my mum as she is also my best friend.

2. My boyfriend. He has helped me become the person that I am today, and I am so grateful that he is a huge part of my life. He has the biggest heart of anyone that I've ever met. Every time that he looks at me, I wonder how I ever got so lucky. I love him with all of my heart.

3. Puppies. I don't have one (yet), but every time I see one, I get the overwhelming urge to want to play with it.

4. Travelling

5. Crisps (I think I might be addicted...)

6. Going to the cinema

7. Having a tidy bedroom

8. Sunny weather 

9. New makeup

10. Having an early night

11. Sunbathing on holiday

12. Driving 

13. Summer

14. Spending some time alone

15. The feeling of satisfaction when an assignment is finished

16. Seeing the squirrels running around campus

17. My laptop

18. Green tea (especially with honey)

19. Pay day

20. My Grandma and Grandad. Remembering the things we used to do together when I was younger always brings a smile to my face. I miss my Grandma more and more everyday.

21. Christmas

22. Ben and Jerry's "Phish Food" ice cream

23. Nachos at the cinema 

24. Long summer evenings spent with family and friends

25. Laughing uncontrollably

26. Walking along the beach as the sunsets

27. Hot chocolate with marshmallows

28. Jewellery - I blame this on working in a jewellers

29. Lush bath bombs

30. Looking back at old photos

31. Knowing that I've done something to make other people happy

32. Cosy nights in just cuddling and watching films with my boyfriend

33. Rom-coms

34. Catching up with friends

35. Getting my nails done

36. The smell of my mum's fresh laundry

37. My phone

38. Nights at home with my family

39. Visiting new places

40. Airports 

41. Reading a really good book on holiday

42. Going out for dinner

43. My pandora bracelet that my boyfriend bought me for my 18th birthday

44. Berkley (a stuffed dog toy also bought for me by my boyfriend).

45. City breaks

46. Buying new perfume

47. Finding the perfect gift for someone's birthday

48. Skinny vanilla latté's from Starbucks (Costa's aren't as good unfortunately)

49. Getting hooked on a really good TV series

50. My blog

My New Favourite Skirt

I wasn't in the greatest of moods yesterday, so I thought what better way to cheer myself than to do some retail therapy. As I wandered aimlessly around New Look trying to find something to wear for my next night out, I stumbled across the most beautiful leather skirt that had been put back in the wrong place. Thankfully, the skirt was in my size, so I took it as a sign that it was meant to be mine.

The skirt is a gorgeous dusky pink colour, with two large pockets 

on either side and a large zip along the back! And the best part, is that it was only £14.99, a total bargain! After trying it on, I fell in love with it! It fits really nicely as it is quite a thick leather, so I knew that it would stay in place if I wore it on a night out. Also, because it is such a lovely pink colour, it's also perfect for Spring and Summer. I can't wait to wear it on holiday with an array of different crop tops and bralets.

Booking my First Summer Holiday

I wasn't too sure what to write about for my next post, but I thought I'd make it a little personal and write about something quite exciting that is happening for me.

Back in January, my boyfriend and I booked our first 'proper' holiday together, and on Thursday, we finally paid it all off! We're going to Tenerife for a week at the start of June and I honestly cannot wait. It'll be a great way to celebrate the end of my first year at university and finally have some time to ourselves to completely relax. We've never had a whole week alone together, so it'll be nice to spend some quality time with each other after being apart during semester time. I can't wait to just lie around the pool, chill at the beach, and have cocktails whenever I like! We also celebrate my boyfriend's 20th birthday whilst we're away, so that makes it even more special.

I feel like booking your first summer holiday away without your parents is quite a big deal. Or it is to me anyway. Whilst paying off the final instalment for our holiday, it hit me just how big a deal this is! Not only the fact that I'd just paid £500 for a holiday, but also because I'd saved up for it and paid for it all myself. To me, that is quite a big achievement and I'm pretty proud of myself. I feel like booking a holiday is quite an adult thing to do. But I guess that's what I am now; an 'Adult'!

I know that this post was a little different, but I like to document certain aspects of my life on here, and I guess this was just one of those times.

My Holiday Want List

Although I am not going on holiday until the start of June, now that the shops have started getting their holiday clothes in I couldn't help but have a look. Here are some of the pieces that I've got my eye on:

New Look: Shell Pink Wrap Front Buckle Strap Crop Top - £14.99

New Look: White Stripe Balloon Midi Skirt - £19.99

New Look: Cream Zig Zag Print Lace Swimsuit - £24.99

New Look: Coral Leather Beaded Twist Strap Sandals - £19.99

New Look: White Lace Panel Playsuit - £17.99

Boohoo: Mia Paisley Tile Print Flute Sleeve Playsuit - £25.00

New Look: Blue Tie Dye Fringed Swimsuit - £19.99

River Island: Gold Tone Black Round Sunglasses - £14.00

River Island: Light Pink Embellished Sheer Kimono - £35.00

If you see something you like, click the picture and it will take you straight to the website.

Confidence

As an 18 year old teenage girl, confidence is something I have battled with for many years now. In today's society, we are pressured in to looking a certain way, being a certain weight and liking certain things. For example, being a size 8 is considered acceptable, however, being a size 20 is somehow not. To me, this is ludicrous. But it is only recently that I have realised how much pressure we are put under by the media and our peers. This post is very personal for me, however I feel that by writing it, it will show me just how far I have come over the years.

In 2011, I turned 14 and entered the dreaded age of puberty. I piled on the weight and, as a result, became a completely different person. During my childhood I was extremely bubbly and loved socialising and trying new things. I still do enjoy those things, however, I went through a period of being completely anti-social and was stuck in denial. During the summer of 2012, I went on holiday with my extended family. At this point, I was still my old self. However, when we returned and I saw our many holiday pictures, I realised that I had put on around a stone and a half in weight. This shattered my confidence, and I immediately untagged myself from every single one of them on FaceBook. From then on, I became obsessed with my weight. I started noticing the way other girls looked, comparing myself to all of my friends. This made me feel terrible, and I started taking it out on my family. I stopped going out with friends and became a complete introvert. My low self esteem got so bad, that I was scared to even look at someone of the opposite sex for fear that they would judge me. I wouldn't even go into a shop or a coffee shop if it involved speaking to someone at the till.

Over the next two years, this continued. I was extremely shy and only had three friends. I was obsessed with counting calories and dieting. I tried countless diets, each and every one of them complete rubbish. You name it, I probably did it. I even went though a phase where I only ate fruit. Breakfast, lunch and dinner was fruit after fruit after fruit. It all sounds very stupid now, but at the time I would do anything if I thought it would help me lose weight.

During the summer of 2014, I realised I'd had enough. I knew that I had a problem and I needed help for it. I wouldn't say that I had an eating disorder, however, my relationship with food was definitely an issue that needed sorted. I booked an appointment with my GP and off I went to get help. However, during my appointment, I completely broke down in front of my doctor, and it wasn't until then that I realised I had a genuine problem. My doctor referred me to a specialist, and two months later we had set up a meeting. I only had two meetings with this specialist as I didn't really feel like they helped me. I was then referred to a dietician who then referred me to a psychologist. I was finally getting the help that I needed. Over the following 12 weeks I had a weekly meeting every Friday at 3pm. Not only did she help with my relationship regarding food, but she also made me realise that my main problem was my confidence. Every week she worked with me on improving my confidence and teaching me how to love myself. At the end of my sessions, I felt so much better.

Almost a year later I am completely different to the person that I was. I no longer count calories and I'm back to my old bubbly, outgoing self. I'm not going to lie, I still get nervous sometimes that people will judge me, but I no longer care as much as I did. I now have a boyfriend, I moved out and am now living in a completely new city all by myself at university. Something that I thought would never happen. I've come so far, and I love how much I've improved. Whenever I feel low nowadays, which I still do sometimes, I just take some time to think. My boyfriend loves me exactly as I am, and so do my friends and family. So why care what strangers on the street think? Live is too short to care what other people think about you. Just do what you love and wear what you want. My main point here is that in order to truly enjoy life and be the best version of yourself, you need to love yourself. You need to look at yourself in the mirror and realise how amazing you are. You are so unique, and instead of hating that, you should love it! So ignore what the tabloids and social media tell us is "perfect", and instead, realise that you are perfect as you are. Because if we were all the same, life would be extremely boring. It took me a long time to realise all of this, but I can assure you that it's true. I'm so much happier now than I was 5 years ago, and it's all because I started to love myself. Confidence is definitely the key to your happiness.

My Travel Bucket List

It's no secret that I absolutely adore travelling. Visiting different cities and exploring new places is without a doubt one of my favourite things to do. Being a student can make travelling quite difficult, mainly because I lack the money, but also because I just don't have the time. Growing up, my parents would always take me abroad for our summer holiday. I was very lucky to be able to spend a week or two in different countries soaking up the sun all day. However, we never really did much exploring. We were very much the type of family who would lounge around the pool or go to the beach for the day. This was purely because my parents both work full time, and would therefore use their two weeks holiday as a time to chill out and completely relax. However, now that I have grown up and have entered the daunting stage of adulthood, I have discovered my passion for travelling.

In this post, I want to share with you all the places that I want to see before I die. Some of them are easier than others, however, my goal in life is to make sure that I see each and every one of one. So here goes:

1. New York

I'm sure it's of no surprise that one of the most famous cities in the world is at the top of my bucket list. New York City has always been somewhere that I long to visit. I want to walk through Times Square and have my photo taken at the top of the Empire State Building. From the exceptional skylines to the world famous Statue of Liberty, my ultimate goal is to visit this iconic city. 

2. Venice

To me, Venice is full of romance. Definitely somewhere I'd like to visit with my boyfriend one day. I'd love to walk along the canals hand in hand, or take a gondola ride through the beautiful streets. This one might have to wait a while, however, as it's no secret that Venice is particularly pricey.

3. Santorini

Santorini is known for it's clear sea, beautiful beaches and the architecture of it's buildings. But the thing I most want to see, is that famous sunset.

4. Budapest

Hungary's capital is full of culture and history. Of course, it isn't called the 'City of Baths' for nothing, so a trip to one of the cities famous pools is definitely on my to-do list.

5. Blue Lagoon, Iceland 

I think the picture speaks for itself. The geothermal pool is known as one of the wonders of the world, and is visited by thousands of tourists every year. One day, I aim to be one of them. A chance to bathe in such a beautiful spa would be an unforgettable experience.

6. Northern Lights

A bucket list wouldn't be complete without the Northern Lights. The chance to see the extraordinary colours light up the sky would be the experience of a lifetime. But I'd most like to view them from inside an igloo, as that would make the experience even more special.

7. Rome

Italy's capital is bursting with architecture and ancient ruins visited by millions every year. The Vatican City encompasses so much culture and art, and is also the home of the Roman Catholic Church. But the thing I would most like to visit, would have to be the Colosseum.

8. Prague

Prague's is famous for its baroque buildings and its Old Town Square. To me, Prague looks like a beautifully romantic city, and is also somewhere I'd love to go with my boyfriend. However, Prague is also known for being extremely cheap, which is probably why so many tourists flood the city every year.

9. Thailand

The tropical beaches and ornate temples are what draw me to this beautiful country. If I am ever lucky enough to visit Thailand, I most definitely want to visit an elephant sanctuary. What an experience that would that be.

10. Interrail around Europe

The final thing on my bucket list is to Interrail around Europe. Of course, this isn't really somewhere I'd like to 'visit', but it is definitely something I want to do. Once I finish my fourth year of university, my goal is to spend a month or two travelling around Europe. Interrail is the perfect way to do this, as the train enables you to travel from one country to another with ease, giving you the chance to see so many amazing countries, such as Switzerland, Germany, Denmark and Hungary.

*I do not own any of the pictures featured in this blog post.