Can you be lazy AND hard working?

If there are two words that have been used to describe me a lot during my 19 years of life, they would be "hardworking" and "lazy". They have been used in many different scenarios and by very different people. Sometimes even the same people use these two opposite words in the same sentence to me. So am I a lazy people who can work hard, or a hard worker who sometimes can be lazy?

I am usually called a hard worker when I am doing a particular task such as completing a series of tasks at work which needed to be done quickly, or for revising and completing an essay to a good standard. It is these sort of tasks which I do put everything into and knuckle down to get them done. The quicker they are done, the quicker I can get on with something I would rather do and answers the following question which is, why am I lazy?

I love to do nothing. Nothing gives me better joy than sitting in my bedroom, with a book, or my iPad, a cup of tea, and basically not doing anything to a great amount of productivity. I've never been an active person, I hate participating in sports and would rather curl up in my bed and sleep. I also love to sleep, I am that person who will sleep until 1pm if they could every day. I love being confined in my room alone and just being me. I feel most comfortable doing that, nothing is out of my comfort zone or ability in there. I am myself in that room, which to my parents when my room is not tidy or I haven't come out of it for days is what being lazy is all about.

It's like I have a split personality, teachers at school and people I work with would never call me lazy and find it hard to believe that I have that trait within me to just do nothing. In their eyes I am golden, I get things done quickly and to a good standard. I am a different person to what I act like in my spare time when I am working, but isn't everyone?

Most people do act differently in different parts of their lives, many do lie about who they are at work so that they don't know who they really are in their own time. We all have a mask, but some people really are just one or the other. We've all come across people who are lazy in every aspect of their life and then the latter who just don't stop and work too hard. Neither are a good trait to have in my opinion all the time.

The more aspects of you personality you use in your life, the more interesting you are and the less stress or lack of accomplishment you feel.

If you feel like you are working yourself too hard, take a break! Go travelling, see the world, and find ways to use your hard working trait in a more fun and relaxing way.

If you feel that you are too lazy and haven't accomplished anything, find one thing to do and complete it. Then do something else, and another thing after that etc. The small steps you take will then allow you to feel more accomplished and less lazy. You can still be lazy in the evenings or weekends, but allow some time to work, meet people, write, read, explore, its so liberating after your first success.

To answer my initial question, yes you can be lazy and hard working and its okay to be both! Its great to be able to work hard and play hard or do nothing hard! Enjoy who you are, and if you feel like you are slipping more onto one side of the seesaw, then do something about it. But always be yourself and no one else.

How do you "Adult" Correctly?

Many people my age are struggling with this question, we never were taught at school how to do taxes, find places to live, progress in our chosen careers, so how do we do it?

Is it guess work? Luck or a case of faking it till you make it? People on social media seem to look like they've got the "adult life" sorted, you see pictures and posts of people on FaceBook and Instagram purchasing their first flat, being promoted, doing their taxes and having enough money to be comfortable in life by their mid twenties to early thirties.

So how do they get to that point? Where are the pictures of the hardships of not making rent, being unemployed and dealing with stress of relationships. You don't see that on social media as much as the fun side of life people always portray.

I do not own this picture.

I believe social media is causing many people to have false pretences about how life works once you "flee the nest and make it on your own"
. You see programmes like "Keeping Up With The Kardashians" where Kylie Jenner who is born in the same year as me (1997) buying a mansion before she is 18 and moving out on the day of her 18th birthday. That to me is something thats a mere twinkle in the eye of realistic outcomes for me. I can barely afford to move out of my family home and so have to wait another year to do so comfortably. Is it right that the rich show off their early independence to the not so rich kids who still have curfews? Is it right that we only show our successes on social media and not the flaws and downsides to independence. 

Unlike some of my friends I didn't go to university (see why here) and so I will be learning how to sort out taxes and bills in different ways, no student grants or housing deals for me. 

I was discussing this with my brother, who did go to University and has just got his own flat in London. He expressed the point that he is just learning as he goes along and through friends who are ahead of the game, but he did say that he didn't realise how much money goes towards having a place of your own. Bills, fees, taxes take over your life and before you know it, you're back to asking your parents for extra cash which just adds to the stress of dealing with a student loan at the same time. 

But what if we did get taught how to "adult" at school? Would we be any the wiser at putting our classroom tricks to the test in real life? Can it be examined? How can one persons view on how to "adult correctly" be correct for a whole population of young people, it simply can't work. So are we all doomed to learn the hard way on how to do taxes and pay bills and "adult correctly" etc. 

I am hoping my travelling will help to prepare me for the world I wish to be part of next year, I've learnt how to save and budget effectively through this experience and so hope I know what I am doing. However, even if I do not know what I am doing and make a fool of ones self, then I still have my family to look after me. So I guess there isn't much to be afraid about going in the real world. I just hope I am as ready as I believe I am. 

The EU Referendum in the UK: My thoughts and Opinions.

I would firstly like to point out before I start this rant that I personally believe that we should stay within the EU, as in my opinion it will benefit the majority in the long run. Although, this is just my view and if my rant, about how the government has gone around addressing this issue becomes bias in any way, then this is why. I believe we should stay and not allow a few peoples concerns about an organisation in terms on money and immigration shadow out the positives the EU gives every country involved. 

The UK Government had no choice in deciding whether or not we had to have this referendum. It needed to happen. The EU was a big factor in the 2015 UK General Election and continues to plague the minds of our society due to politicians fears being used to gain votes. Yes the EU is not perfect, is any Government perfect? Is any large body of people trying to gain a conclusion going to be simple and easy to organise?

Immigration is always going to be an issue, its either there isn't enough immigration or there is too much. People always fear the unknown and the possibility that our country could be over-run with people from all over Europe is something which for people can be scary. Its natural to fear the unknown. This is why the leave campaign is so real and convincing, it appeals to peoples fears of being an over-crowded nation. But the way the "In" and "Leave" campaign have gone about showing the general public there views on this is not impressive in the slightest...

Both sides are using fear to their benefits. That is not a healthy way of convincing people to do what you want them to do. That is what dictators do, that is what bullies do, that is what both campaigns are doing. The "In" campaign are saying how our economy will crash and cause chaos if we leave and the "leave" campaign are using the fears of "too much immigration" as their tool in this election. That is not right.

My mother came to England in the 1960s from India and people had the same fears then about immigration. Nothing has changed. We have got through each rush of immigration whether its from Asia, Africa or Eastern Europe. There is nothing to be afraid of, these fears cause so much sadness and anger for everyone involved. Immigration comes and goes in its rushes, we can adapt. These people want a better life, so we need to give them a chance in our society and not be hostile and ignorant about why they are coming here. They don't want to "steal our jobs", they want a better life.

The economy also is a difficult subject to approach because of how different it is every day. I'm not an expert, but from what I've heard form experts and from the news is that yes there is a chance that the economy will crash and that is not good for anyone wanting a job, British or not.

However, nothing is definite in our world. The extra cash could go into better uses, such as the struggling NHS and other public services which desperately need money. But is it better to go back to where we were in 2008 but have better services, or get out of this debt and slowly pump money back into all of our services and deal with the slow services? That's the ethical question which is causing many people confusion in deciding what side to take.

Whatever you decide, don't let the playground politicians debates where they just tell each other that they are wrong to decide your vote. Make your own research, not what the government are telling us to read. Look into every detail you are unsure of, make sure you know what you are dealing with. Make the right decision for you. I've made my decision now. I want to stay in as I can see all the positives the EU gives us. Easy trade, job security, easy access across the whole continent, the ability to have a say in what happens to our neighbours.

However, I would like to see more reforms and an absolution to any corruption so that all our money is going to do some good, and not just go to the politicians in Brussels.

Planning Ahead.

At the beginning of April I booked my Interrail Trip around Europe and I have never done anything like this before, so the bundle of excitement/nerves has got be planning every detail already.

I am due to leave for my trip on the 30th August and I can honestly say that I've pretty much planned out every detail already! I've done the budget for each day, timetable for each city (there are 7 cities I'm visiting altogether) and I have also found the best train times for each day I am travelling. Now I know that's very excessive and quick, but I would prefer to plan now than too close to the time.n

This got me thinking, in life generally people like myself like to "plan ahead" too. When we are at school we are told to start planning for our futures at such young ages so that we don't make any mistakes and stay on track to success. I remember being told at 13 that my GCSE choices would determine if my life will be successful or a failure. This state of mind has clearly stayed with me which is why I tend to plan ahead way earlier than needed. 

However, sometimes we have dreams which we plan to achieve and this gets us excited and therefore leads to planning years of days ahead of the dream we have. Nevertheless, many of these dreams don't leave the drawing table and all our plans fall off the mountain. 

I definitely have had plans which have never met reality, being a journalist was one which I so desperately wanted to come true. However my exam results didn't meet the requirements needed to make the dream a reality and so I let my plans drift away. Should I have let go of my dreams that quickly? I don't know. What I do know is that plans change and that's ok. Because of that one dream to become a journalist, I decided to create a blog to do what I love without the stress of exams getting in my way. Writing is somethings love and I may not be the best or have any success in this blog, but one thing is for sure and that is that I love it. 

Luckily my Interrail is set in stone and I'm so excited to write about my experiences on here and to test myself at looking after myself abroad and take risks. And see what new dreams form from this once in a lifetime opportunity I planned myself. 

My April 2016

Each month is different in its own right. We see different people, have different opportunities and sometimes are different people each month of the year. Some months are more significant than others for many reasons. This month has been significant to me due to the fact that I turned 19 on April 22 this year. So I thought I would write about what I have done this month so that I have a permanent reminder on what an amazing month this has been for me personally.

Right at the start of the month, me and my boyfriend, James booked our Interrail tickets which will take us around Europe for 3 weeks starting on the 30th August 2016. Now if this isn't something significant in my life I have no idea what is. I am so excited to start planning this trip as its something new and very out of my comfort zone, in a good way that is. I've wanted to do this Interrail trip since I was 13 and my parents told me about the time they did it in the late 80s. I love european culture and its history fascinates me, so to be able to see monuments and castles which I had only previously read about in textbooks and see on documentaries would be a dream come true. I am very much a history "nerd" if you would use that terminology. Europe was the centre of power for many centuries and has influenced so much in good and bad ways that it seemed silly for me not to explore its current culture and see its remains of a super power gone by.

 This month I also had the opportunity to go to London to see the amazingly talented Mathew Perry star in his own play called "The End of Longing". This play expressed so many issues and emotions which made you look at ourselves in other ways. Would we change our faults to save a relationship? Or put aside anxieties to give something/someone a chance. The play in my opinion was a 7.8/10 due to its comedy element and realism but I would say needed a bit more information on the characters in some points. 

I also in London visited some sights and museums which was lovely and enjoyed just walking around London markets and the streets just admiring the bustling city on a nice weekend right before the Queen's 90th Birthday Celebrations began across the city and beyond.

This month was also my 19th Birthday which I celebrated over the course of 3 days. I first went to Clarks Village with my lovely Mum near Bridgewater, Somerset on the 21st April (day before). I had a nice late morning shop around buying a few things here and there. Then later on I met up with some friends for some drinks and stayed out very late as you do when you are young...(drink responsibly.)

Then on my actual birthday (22nd April) I had a lazy morning spent with my boyfriend and family opening presents etc. Then went out for an amazing meal in Bristol at a restaurant called the "Glass Boat" which faced out onto the Bristol Docks and had a 3 course meal there right before I went to see Mamma Mia at the Bristol Hippodrome with my boyfriend.


The following day my brother Amrik came home from London to see me and our family went out for another meal at Nonna's restaurant in Bath which is a lovely little Italian place very near the famous Royal Crescent in Bath.

Now... I do want to mention that while at this restaurant this very annoying couple sat next to our table kept making unneeded remarks and looks at my sister who is autistic and I would like to mention how rude and obnoxious that makes you. I also would like to say that you ruined my birthday meal for me and my family and made it uncomfortable for everyone around you. I would like you to know that not everyone is the same and thats okay. My sister has special needs and doesn't deal very well with situations like going to a new restaurant all that well. I was proud of her making the effort to go to my birthday meal and people like you make her feel anxious and scared to try new things which may seem simple to you but to her is very scary. So take a lesson and learn that not everyone is like you. Most people are nice and do not stare and make comments.

So that was my April 2016. A very adventurous month and also the start of an amazing Spring/Summer for me to enjoy documenting for the next coming months leading up to my amazing expedition around Europe.

Applications, Online tests, CVs, the adult things in life.

Recently I have been applying for a couple of apprenticeships in the UK and looking into some professions as back up plans in case my first choice of apprenticeships requires different qualifications to what one has achieved. This to me is very grown up and adult like (excuse the bad english) and it has all of a sudden hit me that I am now an adult who has to make adult decisions like career choices and where I am going to live etc. This is very scary.

Many people say to me, 'oh you are so mature for your age, you should find the transition into becoming a full blown adult very normal and smooth due to your maturity'. That is all bull shit may I add. I am very mature when it comes to certain aspects of my life such as my job and my social life,(which currently doesn't exist as a book and cup of tea/glass of wine is my vision of a good night.) But I am also only 18 and my 19th birthday is in 3 weeks or so and that is terrifying to me. I don't want to grow older, I don't want these responsibilities and to make changes to my life. To me, getting older is just another sign of how quickly life can change.

I took this gap year to find myself and do all I can to have fun before I make these changes to my life, somehow I think by delaying the choices I have to make, I have made it much more difficult to make the changes I need to make.  However, I am glad I took this gap year so that I can travel and 'act my age' in terms of going out with friends and seeing sights such as Liverpool, London, Rome, Paris, Amsterdam etc. This is all great what I am doing, but nevertheless I will have to make my decision soon. Being an adult isn't always as fun as being a young and carefree teenager.

Those are just some thoughts that have been rattling in my brain the past couple of weeks.

Rejection: should we avoid it?

This is a difficult question to answer. Should we avoid rejection? If we avoid it surely that means we are achieving success and can aim higher instead of going back to square one. Also rejection can be quite painful to say the least, whether its from a job interview or a friendship/relationship the pain is all so real and impressionable. This is why many people do all they can to avoid this rejection and failure so that they don't feel the hurt and devastation caused from this simple action.

There are so many storylines in films and books about peoples fear of rejection and loneliness and how that affects their lives and the people around them. An example of this is the film, 'Friends with Benefits'. In this example two friends are so sick of the disappointment that their past relationships have brought to them and so they become 'friends with benefits' to avoid the heartache and rejection of relationships, but feel fulfilled through each others intimate company. However, as expected they fall for each other in their attempts to avoid the rejection of failed relationships.

These cliché storylines emphasise the need to stop this avoidance and face rejection with all its faults in order to unleash its beauty. Despite the predictable outcomes it is something many people struggle with. Its a big knock when you are told that you are not the right person for a job or as someones life partner. It's heart-wrenching and humiliating, then again,  its human nature to want to avoid what we deem as bad for us. Its how evolution created us as beings, by avoiding characteristics that are weaknesses and led to that species going extinct.

This is someone I'm guilty of. I avoid conversations that are difficult or bring up something that I am not proud of or simple cannot talk about without getting upset. I put up a front and bottle up in order to avoid the feeling of rejection or failure which leads me to the phrase I've used a lot in my life. Fake it till you make it. If you fake not being phased by something and just think about the time you succeeded once and make it your mission to succeed next time, you quite often do end up succeeding. The memory of the hurt forces me many times to put in my absolute best which pushes me to get the result I intend on getting. Most of the time...

Other times its not good to bottle up and can cause more panic than perseverance. An example is my A-Level results which I refused to even look at and just tried to focus on my next set of exams and that in the end panicked me so much I did even worse.

In Britain, we often have a 'stiff upper lip' culture where we don't talk about the difficult things and this idea needs to vanish and changed to an open mouth culture where we talk and express our feelings instead of bottling things up which can lead to serious mental illnesses including depression. So if like myself, you are guilty of having a 'stiff upper lip' then open your mouth and speak out. It leads to a better outcome once out in the open.

Visiting Liverpool, UK

Over Valentines weekend, I visited Liverpool with my boyfriend for a weekend away and I absolutely fell in love with this city within minuets of entering it on the train. The city is full of culture and breath taking architecture from previous centuries that give us little hints of a previous time. 

I've wanted to visit this city for a while as I've always been interested in the culture and history which surrounds Liverpool due to its famous links, i.e. The Beatles and its links to the devastating Slave Trade around the 1600 and 1700s. This curiosity may come from my roots of being a history enthusiast and of course growing up with many references to "Beatlemania" in our current musical culture such as the One Direction fad. 

It was in fact the architecture which first strung a cord within me when I entered the city centre from the train station. I saw white buildings with very classical elements to them which reminded me of the Georgian architecture in my home town of Bath. They were magnificent, enchanting and no doubt take a lot of capital to keep in check. Liverpool only became a big influence in the UK around the time of the Slave Trade in England where it became a big port town of which boats would leave with cargo to go on long journeys to Africa and then onto American plantations. Before this it was a small port town in the north west of England. It was also more famous for its link to the Titanic which was a Liverpool registered ship but was built in Northern Ireland. 

On the first day I arrived with my boyfriend, we walked through the centre of Liverpool's shopping facility which I again fell in love with immediately! Liverpool One is the biggest shopping centre I've seen outside of London in the UK and has some amazing shops to spend you pounds in. Once we go to our Hotel we rested up and got a taxi to the Dockyard which is beautiful in the evening being surrounded my boats, lights and water which beautifully reflects the deep night sky (very romantic too which was a bonus!). We ate dinner at a restaurant which sat directly on the Dockyard and then walked around the scenery then went back to our Hotel. 

The following day (which was Valentines Day) we made the most of as it was our only full day in the City and therefore got up early to head out. We had Breakfast at 'Bills Breakfasts' by Liverpool One which was a lovely way to start off the day and then went onto the Museums, which I know isn't everyones cup of tea on Valentines Day but I nevertheless, stay fascinated by history and culture no matter what day it is in the year. 

The Museums I visited were the Liverpool Maritime Museum and the Liverpool Museum. The Maritime Museum was about the cities maritime history which included its history with its ports, such as the Titanic and the Slave Trade being key to the cities port history and its links to World War II naval accomplishments.  The Liverpool Museum on the other hand, were about the city as a whole, i.e. how it got its name, how it gained its capital and it also included Beatles memorabilia.

During our time in Liverpool we also went on the SightSeeing bus which gives you a tour of the whole city and key information about individual sites which included Churches, monuments, memorial sites and many more. The tour I would give 4 stars as its a short tour (40 minuets) and gives you lots of good information about the City and isn't biased to one aspect like many tours could have been which might be more suited to visitors going to Liverpool just to see where the Beatles lived etc. 

In terms of food, I didn't get to try out any independent places within Liverpool unfortunately. However, the food I did have was amazing within the restaurants I went too. For Valentines Day we booked a table at 'il Forno' due to its good reviews on 'TripAdvisor' and the food was exquisite. The staff were kind too and everything went smoothly while me and my boyfriend were there. So even though this restaurant is an Italian chain, I do give it 4 stars out of 5 for having a pleasant experience.   

I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Liverpool and can't wait to go back again as it is just a beautiful city and I really enjoyed myself during my 3 day trip there. It was my first time going away on my own without my family and everyone there is so friendly and I felt calm there so I do recommend people to go there if they ever have an opportunity to do so. 

Living next to Autism: Siblings perspective

Living next to Autism: Siblings perspective;

When you hear the word “Autism” what do you think? Some people say they think of Dustin Hoffman from the film Rain Man which is famously about a sibling (Tom Cruise) finding out about his autistic brother. However, not many people actually know what autism exactly is, which unless it directly involves you is understandable. 

The definition of Autism is according to the NAS (National Autistic Society) is a lifelong, developmental disability that affects how a person communicates with and relates to other people, and how they experience the world around them.

My older sister Nina, is on the Autistic spectrum. I don't remember my parents exactly telling me that my older sister was Autistic, but I now that I always knew that she was different to most people. I learnt that the hard way unfortunately by watching her get bullied countless of times during my school life growing up (she attended a state Primary and Secondary school as my parents wanted her to live life as normally as possible).

I do believe that children with autistic siblings have a valid part of the story, compare to the people and carers living with Autism because they see a different side of the story at schools and having a closer age connection to the sibling.

When I was younger I use to look up to my sister, because she would go to school before me and do lots of activities which I wanted to do. However, I did not receive the same enthusiasm in return for many years. This broke my parents hearts watching that. I never really understood the effect it actually had on me as a person until recently. 

One aspect of my personality it definitely affected is my fear of upsetting people, as well as always wanting to be a people pleaser. I believe due to the rejection I got when I was very young, I now have the need to always help people in order for them to like me and to avoid the rejection issue altogether. 

Nevertheless, I don't believe this to be negative, as it's not a bad quality to have to want to make people happy instead of annoyed or angry. My sister despite her Autism is a wonderful human being and I have many fond memories growing up with her which may have been different if she weren't Autistic. For example, we use to have a PlayStation 1 in our house and I would always want to beat my sisters score on the “Dancing Stage” game we owned and would always play it together. To the outside world we were normal sisters playing our games together.

I have an older brother too, who naturally is impacted by this too as well as the rest of my family. He has said in the past, that he feels protective over my sister because he sadly, also witnessed the bullying whilst at primary school with Nina. Since he is the older sibling, he obviously has a different relationship with my sister as she looks up to my brother more so than me, since he is naturally the next in charge to my parents. It is easier for him to communicate commands to her when he is looking after her for my parents which is a harder job for me on my own being the youngest. 

One thing I have learnt from having an Autistic sister, is that not many people are aware of what autism is. This leads to ignorance. Ignorance is the main reason for the bullying my sister received, one particular part the bullies at our secondary school focused on was the idea that if they said “happy birthday” to her when it wasn't her birthday, it was antagonise her and cause her great distress. Simple things which may seem funny can be really harmful. These events were nearly 5 years ago and she still talks about her “bullies” and how it made her feel at the time. The ignorance to how harmful and simple teases like that can be is what makes people living with autism lives a lot harder than it already is. I remember witnessing people laugh at my sister and just think if they knew what it did for her mentality. It caused her confidence to drop and she is still low in confidence due to the bullying. It was heart-wrenching. 

Even if one person reads this post and now knows about Autism in a different light, I will walk away from writing this a happy person. It's the spread of issues like the bullying and the people it affects that can help stop these issues and help the people with autism live happier lives without worrying about people laughing at them just because they do things differently. Think before you act when you see someone acting what may seem as “strange” to you, they may be going through a lot more than you see.

What to do on Valentine's Day

Whether you're in a long term relationship or going on a first date, the question about what you're doing on Valentine's Day is always a difficult one to answer. 

Last year I was lucky in the sense that my boyfriend organised everything and it was a very nice and romantic evening for me and him. This year it's my turn to organise it and that has worried me. 

Nevertheless I came up with a couple of good ideas and if you're too struggling with ideas then here are a few ideas:

1. Take Away with hot chocolate, popcorn and a movie you both like to sit down with blankets to enjoy; you cannot go wrong with this as its cute, enjoyable and requires little effort in your behalf. It is also a good idea if you are stuck for money and only want to spend a small amount on this day. 

2. Bowling and Dinner out; this idea is very teenage American I personally think but, you cannot go wrong with this adventurous yet simple and somehow romantic night out. You don't have to do bowling either, you can do mini golfing, cinema, laser quest, or paint balling! It's a fun, silly and exciting night which can end with a romantic meal to complete this picturesque night which you won't ever forget. 

3. A romantic weekend away; if where you live is a bit boring and you are in a long term relationship or a whirl-wind romance then this is quite a nice idea to get away for the weekend to make the most of the romantic weekend. You can go anywhere and have a nice time wherever you are. (hotel rooms can be just as romantic as a meal at a restaurant too…) 

4. Home-cooked dinner for two; again this is an idea for those who don't have a lot to spend on this day but still want to have a romantic evening. A little bit of music, candles lit, some wine and this can be the most enchanting night of your life. This is what my boyfriend did for me last year and it was so charming and romantic. Very good if you're looking to impress someone as well. 

Those were just a few ideas of what you can do with a special someone on Valentine's Day. However, you don't have to spend it with someone special. You can go out with your friends or family, one year me and my friends had a big sleepover watching chick flicks with lots of junk food. It was such a good night and I spent it with people I love, my amazing friends. 

This year I did choose the weekend away option with my boyfriend as it is a fun way to extend the one day into a three day fairy tale. I hope you guys have a great Valentine's Day on the 14th February, and let me know what you are up too. 

Pinafore Dresses, yes or no?

When I first saw on Instagram and magazines that pinafore dresses were in fashion I immediately had a flash back to my childhood years of being at school and wearing them under my cotton white shirt on a perfect summers day in the playground. I have a feeling many other people had this feeling when seeing this fashion item in stores. 

For me personally I think they look really good over a turtle neck jumper as an extra layer and with a nice jacket over the top, with some cute lace up heeled boots to complete the outfit. 

I've bought two of these and am in love with them. One I have recently bought from TopShop which I saw a YouTuber called Lily Melrose buy, on one of her TopShop hauls she does every now and then. I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it. It's a navy checked pinafore dress with a cute little pocket on the front which just adds to this cute piece of clothing. It's also so soft to touch and comfy to wear. You can look amazing in this with minimal effort in the morning. However, I would add that they are quite baggy around the chest area and I wish I had got a smaller size simply for the chest area but apart from that, I love this. 

The other pinafore dress I have I got from BooHoo.com which is an online store that's really good value for money. I got myself a little black one from there which tucks me in at the waiste which is very slimming and flows out like a skater dress unlike the TopShop one which is more bodycon. Again it was baggy around the chest area but I still love it nevertheless. 

Whether this fashion item will stay in fashion for long is another discussion as fashions change all the time. This is definitely I believe linked to the 60s/90s fashion trend I see coming in and out of fashion every so often. It isn't something for everyone as different trends suit different people. For me I believe this is a trend I will give a yes. 

I am in no means a fashion expert these are simply my opinions which I thought some people would be interested in reading about. 

What to do on those bed ridden days? - Guide on what to do when feelingill.

What to do when ill for the day?

By Misha Sandham-Bains

Everyone has those days where the common cold catches them out and forces them into motionless days where mountains of tissues form and bad movies/TV shows become our livelihoods. So what do you do on those days apart from mope around the house still in your pjs with greasy hair? I will tell you what I do and hopefully if you feel the same way then it will give you something to do while your body tries to heal you through the blocked noses or whatever illness has possessed you currently: 

1. Binge watch TV in your PJs/Netflix and chill on your own;

This is the time for you to watch all those shows you've been putting off due to having work and a social life to get to grips with. This is your time to relax with a film on Netflix or a new TV show (personally I binge watched the whole of the Netflix series called "Making a Murderer" and I highly recommend it if you are the person who likes documentaries on crime and the 'American justice system'!) and if you do not own Netflix then watch a film you have on DVD or a programme on TV which interests you. This is your day to be lazy and just watch TV. Its your birth right to do this while ill. 

2. Drink lots of Tea and Honey;

For me personally, I believe a nice cup of tea with a dash of honey can solve any problem I have. Particularly when I am feeling under the weather. It is also heavenly to drink if I say so myself. A cup of tea to me just spells out relaxation and warms/comforts me into feeling a whole lot better just from drinking it. Green Tea and Lemon Tea are also god sends when ill if you would like to try another different to a normal brew. However, for me Yorkshire tea is as they say a "proper brew".

3. Warm Soup accompanied by brown, seeded, buttered bread;

Again this spells out heaven to me as its a home comfort my mum always gives me whenever she is looking after me while being at home. If you don't like brown bread then i'm sure white bread will give the same vibe as brown bread does for me. Warm soup again is just a lovely warming thing to endure while being ill and personally, my favourite soups are; winter vegetable, cream of mushroom, chicken soup and carrot with butternut squash soup. What's your favourite soup?

4. A Social Media Examination;

When i am ill my phone is always at my side as it informs me of the world while I am bed ridden for the day or so I feel under the weather. I tend to always end up stalking old school friends or people I have a mutual friend with on Instagram or Facebook. I'm not saying this will help you get over your illness, but it is quite fun to stalk people on social media whether it is an old friend or a celebrity who has a rumour going round the magazines. 

5. Reading;

Now finally the last thing I enjoy doing while bed ridden is to read a book I have lying around my room which I need to finish. Reading has always been a passion of mine since I was little and I enjoy reading so much, but you do have some of those books which you just find yourself being unable to finish because of many reasons. So I use this time usually to finish then when I am not binge watching Netflix, drinking tea or eating or on my phone. Its a simple relaxation tip to complete my relaxing day which hopefully has helped my body get over my illness. 

I hope none of you are ill but if you are I hope this has been helpful to you in any way or just a good read if you're nosy. Just remember it is okay to relax and take care of yourself while ill so don't push yourself too hard and get well soon.  

My Fashion Fopa's

Fashion Fopas and Phenomenons! 

By Misha Sandham-Bains

Naturally my style has changed numerous of times ranging from items such as my fingerless gloves stage at the tender age of 13, to the more "fashionable" age of checked tops and stripes which is my current love in terms of fashion I tend to wear.

One thing growing up that I have and many other people have learnt is that most people want to stick to the seasons trends whether that be big statement necklaces or man buns. It was what I thought successful people wear and look like. Although that does change every season so the concept that something such as stripes is currently in fashion but next season might not be. I guess to quote Disney it is the circle of life, things come and go quickly in the life cycle of a style.

Nevertheless, as a child I wasn't the girl who had too many clothes in her wardrobe but quite the opposite. My parents only took my clothes shopping when absolutely necessary and being the youngest child I quite often got given my older sisters clothes to save money. (May I add that this went completely out the window as I am now the girl with too many clothes yet always finding a reason to buy more outfits!) So going to school discos and having mufty days at school was never my "finest hour" if you could call it that.

This picture here is an example where I thought it was "trendy" to only have one of my eyes showing in the picture with badly done eyeliner all around my eyes... the days of sweepy side fringes I like to call those. At the time I thought this was the best hair style I had ever had because loads of my friends had these hair styles. Which I now see was probably one of the worst hair styles I ever had... (sad thing is I had this hair style till I was 16...now I have a simple and normal side fringe which shows both of my eyes!)

It wasn't till I was 16 that I started to drift away from the long fringes and bad eyeliner phase and try out different styles which aren't the worst but also aren't the best...denim on denim phase wasn't a good one either with American jersey jackets.

 This was also the start of the days where I started to grow my hair out... to the stage where it was so long I couldn't look after it very well and also the stage I started to use hair curlers and damage my hair! I'm not sad these stages of my development happened as I learnt what made me feel good about myself and what didn't. At this stage my body also started to change so my hips got bigger and so did my boobs so i adapted my fashion to fit the changes which leads me to my current fashion style at the bright old age of 18. 

The whole point to this blog post is to look back at my teenage years in terms of fashion and see how i've changed in terms of how I dress and view myself. When I had the sweepy fringe and thick eyeliner I was an unconfident teenage girl who used the trend to hide behind her hair and then I became the 16 year old who tried and tested lots of fashion trends till I found my style. Which as seen by the picture is cute little dresses, hats, pinafore dresses and denim jackets.

If anyone reads this post I do recommend having a little laugh at yourself and try looking back at your fashion do's and don'ts as they are quite funny to look back at. Have a lovely day!