London Baby!

So at the beginning of the week I took a trip down to London with the guys from uni for GFW, and omg was it amazing. Graduate Fashion Week was so great I learned a lot, and my work being on the catwalk was so amazing, but I thought id share some of the things we did outside of going to see shows and networking with brands and also some of the cute little places I found around Shoreditch, btw its mostly to do with food hahaha.

We visited Spitalfields market a lot while we were there, it was just next to the Truman Brewery so any spare time we had we dotted over to see what was about. One of the places I saw well actually smelled was a little cart doughnut called Crosstown Doughnuts which had a such cute array of flavours like matcha or peanut and blackcurrant jam, however I chose a vegan chocolate one which was divine, I'm personally not vegan but this was sooooo good and I couldn't tell the difference, it was smothered and filled with a chocolate ganache on top of a sourdough doughnut.

On the Tuesday my brother had come to visit to look at my work so we decided to go to the Diner for food and I've never been here before but my god am I going back, and mainly for the garlic butter fries alone! It was so cute and the cocktails were amazing too!

Another place we found was Dark Sugars, now this place is a little past the Truman Brewery and it smells incredible! The chocolate is so rich its ridiculous, and I just had to pick some up. I chose from a large selection and picked chocolates like, gin and lime...obviously, then a orange and vodka, as well as mandarin etc. Also they had the cutest little truffles which had pipettes stuck in them filled with fruity purees and these were omg so amazing. 

On the final night we took a trip all the way to the top of Selfridges (after shopping around Oxford street obv) to have the best little Italian meal ever. The restaurant was called Alto, and you take a certain lift up to the roof, which made me feel waaaaay too posh btw. It was a sort of tapas and we all ordered around two portions each, and eating in this most beautiful open space was such a treat to end the trip. 

I honestly can't stress how cute this place was, from the orange arch as you walk in to them handing out blankets later on in the evening when people became a little chilly, it was honestly perfect. 

I will want to take a trip back here every time I head down to London and make sure if you can you check it out!

Top: Missguided

Trousers: H and M

Trainers: Adidas 

x

Summer Is Here...Kinda

So living in England sun is scarce, and when its out, I'm out. I love being in the sun and not being away on holiday for four years hurts my soul! (Thanks student loan) 

So yes I am that girl who will be in the garden in my bikini for every hour that sun is shining down, and since this bank holiday it was about 26 degrees, I was out, however being at uni we don't really have much of a garden so we decided to venture into town in something quite breathable and light, in order to get the best tan I could. 

I had spotted a few nice dresses in Topshop but since Uni life takes over I nosied into Primark and found this sweet dusky pink dress and picked it up for £10, I love the cute buttons down the front and thought it was perfect for the weather.

They also had the dress in a bright yellow colour, which came to a tough decision at the changing rooms but I'm glad I went with the pink and would 100% recommend. 

(Some Of) My Favourite Lush Products

So if your like me then Lush is 100% one of your favourite stores, so heres a little insight into some of my favourite products from lush which will hopefully let know know a little about products you may have never tried before. 

Intergalactic

1st is Intergalactic, its my favourite bath bomb, I know thats a big shout, but it really is. It sweet but also has a pepperminty smell which is perfect for me, I love sweet minty smells I find them so refreshing, along with the amazing blue and pink patterns and gold glitter, it makes for a good bath. 

Cupcake and Mask of Magnaminty

Now for face masks, as I have such greasy and oily skin, Cupcake and Mask of Magnaminty, now even though they are both great for oily skin, they are both very different. 

-Cupcake, so cupcake is a fresh face mask and needs to be kept in the fridge and goes off quicker than the preserved masks. It smells so chocolatey but with a slight minty hint. It leaves my face so fresh and cleansed its amazing! 

-Mask of Magnaminty, so this mask is self-preserving and lasts longer than the fresh ones, and can also be used for the body as well as the face. When I first used this mask I was surprised by how tingly it made my face feel while on because I'm so used to the cupcake, and I got a bit nervous ha, but don't worry its just the mint doing its thing, and trust me its amazing. 

Charity Pot

Charity Pot is something I love from Lush, and not just because its an amazing product. Charity Pot is such a nourishing and soothing body lotion, the Shea butter in it makes it ever so luxurious and it feels great on the skin, plus has a great smell. But the other plus side of it is that, 100% of the proceeds go to charities and you can see which charity and what its for on the pot you purchase, its a great way lush give back to the community to help with the work they do. 

Another thing to mention while on the good lush do for the community is their pot recycling, Lush will take back 5 washed pots in exchange for a free fresh face mask, as well as taking back their bottle caps to be recycled, its a way to get a treat but also help your environment, so I would highly recommend it. 

Rub Rub Rub 

Rub Rub Rub is a new find for me and its a good one, and as a lover of body scrubs I wasn't disappointed, the deep blue product looks like the sea and the salt inside scrubs away any dead skin, and gives a really good exfoliation. With hints of lemon it makes the skin feel amazing after a shower  and can be used while the waters running over your body for a less harsh effect or on dry skin before a shower to deeply exfoliate, and I definitely do the latter. 

The Big Sleep

The Big Sleep is a jelly bomb, and before I tried it I was a bit confused, what I expected wasn't the result, when I thought of the words 'JELLY BOMB' my mind went back to those sachets of slime bath your mam gave you which turned your whole bath into slime, and I dunno the appeal just wasn't there for me, but I thought I'm not wasting it just do it, but I was pleasantly surprised, it creates a thin soft layer on top of the water which is slightly bouncy and it is soooo nourishing. The blue water and patterns are so amazing and it smells so fresh and calming.

Alsooooo when mixed with a Sunnyside bubble bar the water creates this amazing green mermaidy, dragony glittery water which will fulfil all your sparkle needs! 

Back to Newcastle

So Im finally home, I can't believe its been so long, (I mean 4 months is long for me, shhh) and my god do I miss this place. Its not only just being back around the people I love, its just the comfort of being at home that I love and that I've missed so dearly!

Being at uni people do think is such a carefree life, and don't get me wrong, I love it and I love my independence but this small break is going to do wonders for me! I crave time where I am in my own company and as selfish as it seems I know I'm at that stage in my life where I feel I need to live on my own but right now coming home is my serenity.

Im so grateful for all the talented girls that I have around me at uni and I love them so much, but I also miss my oldest and dearest when being away from home, and coming back with no money to go out or be able to spend on birthdays, cause I spend £50 on fabric on the daily is hard, I feel like I let them down when I come home, or I'm boring, I'm ready for this next stage in my life and even though I'm loving this stage of uni and I'm so proud and dedicated the work I create, I'm ready to take that leap.

I hope I'm not the only one who has this struggle! 

x

My Favourite Hand Cream

So I was never a big fan of hand cream, I always hated having like greasy, oily hands and I have always gotten bottles for Christmas and birthdays so I had like a full selection of hand creams that I never threw away or touched! 

Then about a month ago i got hooked, my hands became quite dry from doing uni work constantly and handling a lot of material so I pulled out one of my many bottles and OH MY GOD...SOLD

These Body Shop hand creams are the best thing ever, the smell is unbelievable and they do them in every scent. My first one was the rose scent and I don't usually love floral smells I'm more of a sweet scent person but I really really loved this one, they're all so hydrating and some I know have more hydrating properties than the others, but if your like me and you just go for smell, you'll be in heaven!

These bottles are usually £5 each and £12 for the large bottles however I picked up three for £10 this weekend for mothers day, and I know I'm not a mother but...I can have a treat too.

x

Am I An Introvert?

Ok, so I've always been quite a chatty person, even when I was a kid I would here my mam and dad would say 'oh Mollys such a confident little girl' and 'oh yeah you can always here Molly before you see her' but hitting my teens I definitely fell back into my shell.

I mean don't get me wrong I'm still out there and weird, and I embrace this, however Ive noticed (especially more recently) I like my own company.

I don't think theres anything wrong with wanting to chill on a Saturday on my own watch Netflix. I look at peoples lives right now and I do wish I could be out there doing the things they do, but being a student its just not possible right now.

Over the past year or so going out and downing £1 vodkas every night makes me feel sick, and unless my nights going amazing I want to be in bed around 1, but going out every now and again with the girls to a bar for cocktails is my kind of night and you will catch me there, dancing like no one is watching!

Theres a lot of things I do want to do, I want to go travelling and see the sights of the world, and people say lifes what you make it but its hard to make that life if your on a budget being a student. Theres that word 'student', I feel like when people say your a 'student' your that person who eats pot noodles and spends all their money on drinking and takeaways but when your a fashion student your spending at least £50 on fabrics most weeks so your personal life takes a step back but your setting up your business life doing something you LOVE and its worth it.

I can't really decide if Im an introvert or not, I fit some of the criteria and I do know I like to have my own company, and I don't think theres anything wrong with that but I'm always up for going out if its a night that appeals to me and I'm with my close friends who are just so crazy theres never a dull moment.

Maybe I'm just a boring extrovert, who knows ha!

Barbie Realness

Who doesn't love a bit of pink? Well clearly I doooooo, and this outfit is totally me, I love a statement tee with a good pop of colour somewhere, and my god does this outfit POP colour and I mean come on, it even matches my phone case!

Top: Missguided £18
Trousers: H and M £39.99

Lessons From A Fashion Student

So about three and a half years ago I rocked up to a new university, with so many worries, expectations and hopes for the next four years of my life. I didn't know anyone who had done a course similar to this before and I really didn't know what was expected. So after I've been doing this a while now, I wanted to put something into the universe  that could possibly help future students. 

1. Be Prepared To Work Your Ass Off

    This is number 1 for a reason, quite a lot of people go to uni to get drunk, sleep and have a break before the 'real world' begins, no no no, doing a fashion design course you will be doing any amounts of all nighters, you will find the cheapest and nearest food joints to your building and then spend every second working. Dedication is the key, and it will pay off. You may want to ball your eyes out (and trust, I don't know one girl on my floor who hasn't had a melt down) but it will all work out just keep going.

2. Save, Save, Save

   This course is going to cost money, you will need fabrics, equipment, threads, components, and you will even need to buy things that you will just stick in a sketch book and never use. If you can search around, look for bargains and never throw away, I collected fabrics from first year that I have only just used in my fourth year, you may think its rubbish but using spare fabric or anything for samples is a help. 

3. Research and Keep Up To Date

   Researching will help you massively when developing ideas for your collections, and help to develop your creativity. So basically if you don't already, look at catwalks, ads, anything you can, even if you have 5 minutes on a train or something, use your time. We were advised to make files on your computer of collections you like, manufacturing details you like, colours, and label them with who the designer is and the date of the collection. Its so good for referencing and you may be able to use them later as inspo in your sketch book. 

4. Listen, Write and Respond

   TAKE NOTES, right, you may think 'oh I don't need to write that down I will remember that'...you won't. You will take in so much information that you WILL forget. The amount of times I have thought that and then had to actually ask one of the girls who did write it down is ridiculous. Also ask questions, no question is silly, you can really get ahead by asking the right questions and if your too nervous while in a seminar or a large group, wait till the end, or message someone from a higher year, I love it when people from a lower year ask me things, I feel so helpful, ha! 

5. Be Your Own Support System

   In the fashion industry you will get people who want to knock you down, and friends may even turn on you, its a very cut throat world, and so many people will try to bring you down, so you don't need to bring yourself down too. Have confidence in yourself, and it will pay off, arrogance and confidence are different, be confident in your work, I have seen girls who are confident and it shows in their work, they have a reason for their designs and they see their goal. This tip also ties in with being independent, you need to know how to work on your own, you won't be able to rely on others in the fashion world, and even your classmates have so much work that you need to know how to work and can't keep asking for help with every little thing. 

6. (The Most Important) HAVE FUN

   This is gonna be your life, if this is what you really want to do, enjoying it will make it sooooo much easier. You will meet the best girls in the world, and have such a brilliant support system. You will need to work your butt off but you do need time to unwind and I'm telling you, fashion girls know how to party, and when we let our hair down, who knows what can happen!

And finally, just do it, you'll love it ;) 

New Glasses

So after like 100 million years I finally invested in some new glasses. I knew it was time for a change my prescription had gone up and I was starting to hate my thick black and green framed porno secretary glasses. I wanted a total new look and something fashionable that I would actually wear out of the house rather than just on a Saturday morning when I was too lazy too put my contact lenses in. 

I had looked about in a few places for some glasses that weren't ridiculous prices and I wasn't bothered about anything designer, I mean they're glasses. I came across two pairs in Specsavers and because they were on 'two for one on glasses over £69' I was so happy because this included lenses and frame which is such a good deal! 

I picked two pairs that were totally different cause I knew I could pair them with any outfits, and would be worth the money. I'm so happy with them and I would 100000% recommend looking for glasses there!

Elegant Touch Nail Review

I've always been a nail girl, I was the girl in school that got really into nail art, I mean deeply into nail art. I tried all the tricks from newspaper printing to water marbling, I even had angry birds nails, yes  your heard right, angry birds but I was never one to have fake nails. Being in school and dance I would always have to remove them but also being a contact lens wearer, touching my eyes is a daily activity which can become painful if something sharp and pointy is in your eye.

But not too long ago my best friend gave me a half used pack of elegant touch stiletto nails as she had used all the ones she needed and I wanted to give them ago. They were so beautiful and I was hooked on them instantly. The nails come in so many different shapes and designs, plus they have most beautiful Henry Holland collection!(Like serious, they're amazing)

They usually stay on for about 5 days but can be more/less depending how hands on you are at everyday life, and also come with two pairs of each size, and therefore can be used twice (but i blates use them more than that, just re-glue them its sound).

For everyday use I do love the bare nails, they're great as you can just swap out colours when you need them rather than being stuck with the same colour all week. They don't chip and I have recieved so many compliments from people thinking I have gone to the salon for like £20 acrylics when they're really just £4.50 glue ons.

Also if your a bit nervous to use the nails as they can sometimes damage your real nails underneath, elegant touch also have nail guards which are just clear adhesive strips that you stick on underneath your fake nails and they will help protect but also help with the removal of your nails and are well worth picking up.