TRAVEL // My Travel Bucket List

Travelling has always been a passion of mine. I've been lucky enough to have visited loads of places around the world however there are a few places still left on my bucket list that I would love to go to! The people at Transun, bringing tailor made holidays around the Arctic including this rather fabulous looking Northern Lights holiday, challenged bloggers to come up with their top three travel destinations they have on their own bucket lists.

My choices might be a little more unusual and different to what you'd expect however I hope after reading this post you will see why I long to go to these places so badly!

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BEAUTY // LUSH Oxford Street Launch day

You must have been hiding under a rock if you weren't aware of the brand new Lush Cosmetics store that opened on Oxford Street on the 24th April. The launch day practically ruled social media as the store promised 200, yes that's right 200, brand new and exclusive products meaning Lush fans travelled far and wide to get a glimpse of some of the new products.

 I was really quite excited for the opening of the store so I headed down to London with a couple of my colleagues to check out the glorious Lush Oxford Street for myself! (Warning This is a picture heavy post)

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TRAVEL // #FloridaTix10th Party

Florida: The sunshine state that is home to the likes of Walt Disney World, Universal, Busch Gardens, Sea World, The Kennedy Space Centre... honestly the list is endless and you'd need some seriously clever Florida experts to help you plan your holiday there. Luckily for you, I have found just the experts to help you book an amazing holiday in Florida whilst also promising the best value for money. Who are these Florida gurus? Well it's no other than FloridaTix.

FloridaTix were lovely enough to invite me to their amazing Disney and Harry Potter themed blogger party celebrating ten years of the company and, not only did I realise my Disney knowledge is seriously lacking, I learnt a tonne about Florida! I met up with Charlee from CharmedCharlee and we headed to Island Bar, Birmingham to start the evening.

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FILM // The Avengers: Age of Ultron Premiere

The Avengers: Age of Ultron, sequel to Avengers Assemble film, had it's UK premiere on the 21st April and lucky old me managed to go along to one of the premiere screenings at Cineworld Telford. I actually won a competition for free tickets - tickets to a film that I love - and I couldn't believe my luck!

After getting over the shock of winning the said competition, which was held by Showfilmfirst, I took Nick along (he was much more excited than I was and it was like taking a small child to the cinemas haha) for the screening and I had high expectations of the film.

So, what was the film like?

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BOOKS // 'Why We Broke Up' by Daniel Handler & Maria Kalman*

Ever been through a rough break up? This book may be for you. Why We Broke Up, by author Daniel Handler and illustrated by Maria Kalman, is a book that I have wanted to read for years because of it's unusual format of being a short book full of illustration. It's a book of teenage heartbreak and tells the story of Min and Ed - two high school students who are in the middle of breaking up.

The book is narrated by Min who writes a long letter to Ed on all the reasons why they are breaking up along with a box of memories she had collated over their relationship.

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BEAUTY // #LushSkincare Event at Lush Cosmetics

Most people know a lot about Lush Cosmetics' bath bombs and bubbles but not many are aware of the fabulous skin care range they do! We wanted to to show off our beautiful skin care range at the Lush store I work at so we threw an exclusive blogger's evening to showcase our skincare range!

The evening consisted of product making, facial massage, and a run through of the PERFECT skin care routine!

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BLOGGING // 10 Things I've Learnt From Blogging

I've been blogging for quite a while now under various blog domains and social media platforms. It's a hobby that has become a huge part of my life but I started out as a complete novice knowing absolutely nothing about blogging. 

Here's ten things I have learnt from blogging...

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BOOKS // 'The Hunger Games' by Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games is a book I tried my hardest to avoid for the worst reason - everyone I knew loved it. I thought it cannot be possible that a book can be that good that everyone likes it, especially as I had never heard of the author (what a book snob I am haha!) so I went out of my way to avoid The Hunger Games series.

And then... I ended up watching the film. And became hooked. I always prefer a book over a film (well, most the time) so I thought it only right that I buy the trilogy and see what all the fuss was about! Was I impressed?

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LIFE // Top Tips to save for a House Deposit

Saving enough money for a house deposit seems like an almost impossible task for us first time buyers at the moment. Personally my current wage makes it quite difficult to save for the next stage in life AND enjoy life right now by spending some money on myself!

I'm naturally quite a thrifty person so I thought I'd put together some tips and advice on little changes you can make to your spending habits that will help you save that nice chunky deposit for your first house, new car, or even a fancy dress you've had your eye on! Once you learn easy ways to save, the possibilities are endless!

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TV // 5 Reasons you should watch Once Upon A Time

My latest obsession is ABC's Once Upon A Time. The whole four series were recently released on Netflix and having heard a lot about it from friends I was curious to watch it. If you follow me on Twitter, you will be well aware that I am now obsessed with the show for so many reasons!

Image credit: here

Once Upon a Time is follows the story of what happens when the fairy tale world gets trapped inside our modern, current day life. The fairy tale characters don't know they are trapped inside Storybrooke, but awful things happen when they try to leave and it is up to main character Emma to try and fix the mystery of why they are all trapped there! If that's not enough to convince you, I've lined up my top five reasons on why you should be watching Once Upon a Time right now...

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LIFE // My Life Lately

I have always been a big believer in that you can blog every day if you put your mind to it. On the other hand, I'm also a believer that you shouldn't post bad quality blog posts that you wouldn't read yourself. With that in mind, I've been a *little* off schedule. By little, I mean a mega-gone-off-track schedule but I've had so much going on that there is no way I could keep up with it all.

What on Earth have I been up to then?! Well, quite a bit of what I like to call 'life tidying'...

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BLOGGING // The Secret to Avoiding Blogger's Block

Need new blog post ideas? Can't think of any?! We've all been there. Blogger's block: The inability to write a single word that you can share on your blog. Your brain has run out of fuel and you're at your wits end trying to think of new content to pop on your blog. 

Well luckily for you, I've got some tips to help you think up some original blog posts and inspire you to get creative with new content! Use a combination of ideas to come up with your own 'secret' to avoid the dreaded blogger's block...

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BOOKS // "The Ocean at the End of the Lane" Neil Gaiman

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman tells the story of a young boy who comes across Lettie Hempstock, the girl who lives in a farm at the end of the lane. Lettie isn't your ordinary little girl though; she lives with her Gran who has been around since the Big Bang and she fights supernatural creatures who try to intrude on the rural English countryside. Oh, and she has her own ocean in the garden.

I went in to the book not knowing much about the story, I didn't even know it had a fantasy element to it, so I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading.

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LIFE // Stop Waiting

"If we wait until we're ready, we'll be waiting the rest of our lives."
Lemony Snicket

Waiting forever is a huge waste of time. I am one of those people who will wait around until it's the right moment but sometimes it's best just to take the plunge and go for it. You can't wait the rest of your life when you might as well get something over and done with right now, can you? And this something I find I am asking myself more often these days.

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