Skins

I'm sorry it's been so long BlogSpot. Truth is...I've just been busy doing nothing. But my laptop is broken so that's kind of my excuse. I've also been heavily absorbed in the old series of Skins. Skins is a show about Bristolian youths drinking, having sex and doing drugs. It doesn't sound so great from that synopsis but it can teach teenagers a lot.

There have been 3 generations, with no more to follow as the last ever British episode aired last night (snivels) and each have stand out characters and interlinking plot lines. Each series follows a year at Roundview college.

 

 Each main character has their own episode where you learn more about them, their home life and their troubles. Generation one was great and featured Cassie who's story was continued in the last series.

 

Generation two was my favourite. They seemed to have the most troubles and I thought JJ Jones was adorable.

 

Generation 3 was so-so but I enjoyed it. My favourite character was Rich the metalhead who learns that you can love someone who is extremely different from yourself.

 

And finally, series 7. The end of the road for all the characters. I was extremely dissapointed with this series. In Effy's from generation 2, we see 2 other characters from the series, without a mention of her murdered boyfriend. In Cassie's, there's no mention of anyone and the whole thing seems pointless. In Cook's there's one reveal but little else. I wanted to know how JJ was but nevermind.

I'd recommend Skins to anyone, but make sure you have free time.

Film Review: Never Let Me Go

What on Earth was going on in this film? I don't think I've ever seen a dystopian science fiction drama film and I have to say, it was a weird experience. It was an emotive film but at times I felt it was tedious and hard to follow and often found myself on its Wikipedia page to follow somethings I found unclear.

It has a great cast, including Andrew Garfield, Keira Knightly and led by Carey Mulligan (who was good in this but I thought she was average in The Great Gatsby). The tainted love triangle keeps the viewers yearning, although it's nothing new.

In the film, it's revealed that the main characters are clones, being reared to donate organs. It's a novice idea to me so it was slightly more interesting. It also raised an important question of why are some people more important, which I thought was cool.

Would I recommend it? Possibly if sci-fi romances are your thing. It was a nice film with pretty good acting and I wouldn't call it a waste of time.

Quaint Card Shops in Hertford

I live in Hertfordshire and the town of Hertford is adorable. My parents took me for lunch at Pizza Express and while we were there, I popped into a few little card shops quickly. A lot of the shop fronts in Hertford are classic and look a bit like they belong in Diagon Alley. It's really quite cute.

Another was called The Decorated Room;

 

Basically I wish I could just spend my money in little adorable shops.

Cosmopolitan Girl

As I sit on a train, donned in my leather jacket, pale blue peplum lace blouse, black jeans and flip flops, I think about how I love London and how the show I just saw was fantastic. I just went to see Spamelot and it was honestly so ridiculously funny. At points I was hysteric. While in town I also went shopping, I couldn't resist;

It so perfectly sums me up: a little globe trotter. I also bought some frilly socks and sports bra but nothing exciting except Models Own Scented Apple Pie

Perfect pastel ey? After a long day at school(9:15-12.50) a little shop was just what I needed ;) I love my cosmopolitan life!! Where are your favourite places to shop?

It's your choice

As a teen, it's very hard to accept myself and my body so I don't. I weigh too much and am too fat. I try work out and I play a lot of netball. I also eat very healthily but snack a fair amount. It seems impossible that I'll ever slim down and I so desperately would like to. I understand a lot of women feel like this and that isn't right. If anyone should be masters of their bodies it should be women. Society has made us feel fat and ugly and it's a real shame. Sometimes when I look in a mirror I am actually disgusted at myself. Here's me next to my slim petite friend;

But that changes when I'm in the gym. I feel prettiest when I sweat. To others I suppose I look sweaty and gross but I'm happy. It's a confidence boost for a little while. I really adore this 

It's great to be healthy. People (including myself) need to stop focusing on being skinny and focusing on being healthy.

OPI Nail Varnish

I have found myself head over heels with OPI. The colours are really quite outstanding and are presented so well on the website. You can adjust the nail length and skin tone when "trying on" a nail varnish which is super helpful. There's a huge range and amazing limited edition bottles. My friend introduced me to them when she was wearing one from the James Bond collection and I just had to buy myself Skyfall.

This was the first colour I fell in love with. The quality is rich and deep and only requires one coat to get a good result. After OPI, I'm resentful to trying to other brands because I feel like no others can make the cut. I do however still use other brands because I'm not that high maintenance and these things are expensive. 

My most prized one is from the Euro Centrale range, a range filled with stunners but my favourite is Hands Off My Kielbasa. It's rusty pink with a gold shine and it reminds me of Molly Ringwald's nails in The Breakfast Club, one of my all time favourite films. This was a present so is even more valuable to me.

I find OPI to be well worth the money but I struggle to find high street stockist which is a bit of a problem. I also thought because of the high price, they'd be high quality. And they are but whenever I wear any nail varnish, it chips like mad. Even these. It's especially bad after a shower or bath and I don't know what I can do to prevent it. If you do, please let me know (I'm desperate!).

Do I Wanna Know? Of Course.

Arctic Monkeys have done it again. They've produced a track that is so outstanding it leaves people wanting more. I can't wait for the next album now. Do I wanna know? has the catchy guitar riff and killer lyrics, not new aspects to Arctic Monkeys' music. It has a familiarity with R U Mine, which Alex Turner long ago said would be a recurrent theme as such throughout the new album because of its response. All I can say is thank my lucky stars for this track. It's smoothness makes me swoon and every time I hear it I close my eyes and imagine I'm at a concert, being serenaded by Alex. Real tune. Best tune this year I think.

My Hair Is Now Healthy!

I wish I'd found it sooner but Argan Moroccan Hair Oil is my saviour. I'm prone to really dry hair (I mean like at its worst it feels like hay) and crazy amounts of split ends but this god given stuff has fully helped that. It makes my hair smooth and soft and my split ends are slowly going away.

There are  many different variations on the market at the moment and they're mostly quite expensive but a little bit does go a long way. I've had mine for a short while but haven't even noticed a loss from mine.

This is the variation I use. It was £6.99 for 100ml, so is one of the cheaper options. I got it from a small pharmacy in the charming town of Hertford so I can't recommend a place to buy this one online but Amazon have a wide range you can choose from.You can also buy shampoo and conditioner which sounds like a good idea and this brand did heat protection and other versions which was good so I'll definitely be purchasing more. And a bonus, some brands can be used for skin if you find your skin is too dry. I think that this product is worth every penny. Big thumbs up!

YouTube Takeoff

I've recently decided to make YouTube videos. I think it's stupid juggling this blog,  YouTube and exams but it's just so enjoyable. Just a quick note to say thanks to all views past, present and future. If you leave channel links in the comments I'll check your channel out.

Small Haul

I went on a quick shop so here are some of my purchases;

These ballet pumps with an ankle strap were £8 from Primark. They're really comfortable and I thought they'd be great with a tea dress. They're peach with studs on the t-bar. They also had a navy pair if you'd be worried about getting this colour dirty. Verdict: Good buy. They were a bargain and perfect pastels.

I bought this from Boots as my nails are a travesty. They chip and break an awful lot and I really wanted to fix it because I like nails and I'd really like healthy nails for prom. It was £4.75, so I wasn't splashing out but it felt like a bit much at the time but I'm happy because now I'm on the road to recovery. Verdict: needed.

This biker jacket is an absolute stunner and is really flattering. It's not really needed seeing as we're approaching summer but I couldn't help myself, it was just so perfect when I tried it on and I thought it would be perfect for mild weather and riding on my dad's motorbike. It was a steal at £34.99 from TKMaxx as it's real leather. It'll go perfect with my biker boots! Verdict: So happy I bought it.

This pink and white stripy Levis shirt was a real bargain at £4.99 from a thrift shop called YMCA. It sells the most amazing clothes and brands there. I've purchased numerous Hawaiian shirts. It needs a wash and an iron then it's perfect for 6th form next year. Verdict: Might as well.

My last purchase of the day was also from YMCA and is a salmony-peach cardiagan that matches my new shoes. The lighting in this rented cottage doesn't do it justice. It wasn't quite the fit I was expecting but I'll make it work. It was £3.99 so still a good price and even better since because it was marked as £5.99. Verdict: I could live without.

Here's the link to the YouTube video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmiwHOaD_xE

Film Review: The Hobbit

I thought it was purely fantastic, magical and amazing. The cast was star studded, the special effects were dapper and the plot was perfect. What's not to love about this cute guy Martin Freeman?

It was the first instalment of J R Tolkien's The Hobbit, with another two to come. It's a prequel to The Lord of the Rings Trilogy and follows Bilbo Baggins of Bag-End as he partake a in "an unexpected journey."

I thought that the acting was first class although Gollum scared me slightly but I found his lines humorous; "Give us a chance!" I was, however, disappointed to find that Benedict Cumberbatch only appears as a shadow as the Necromancer when I was expecting all of the cheekbones when I saw he was in it. I'll just have to hope he has a bigger part (oo-er) in the next ones.

When I get the time I'm definitely going to read the book. Does anyone have a review on it? If so I'd love to hear it.

Book Review: All Quiet On The Western Front

When I went to read this when I was younger, I never got round to getting past the first chapter because I didn't particularly enjoy it. However, I revisited it with more interest in the Great War and I really loved it.


I do think it's rightly acclaimed as a great war novel, but I wouldn't say greatest of all time. It's a great anti-war novel due to the liberation of the Weimar Republic period in Germany.  

This gut-wrenching story concerns a group of friends who join the Army during World War I and are assigned to the Western Front, where their fiery patriotism is quickly turned to horror and misery by the harsh realities of combat. Bring the tissues.

It's well worth a read if you're interested in the harsh truth of war and to indulge the mind further and read. I learnt a lot from this and for that I thank Erich Maria Remarque. If you'd like to leave a review or opinion, please feel free to drop a note in the comments.

Harry Potter Studios Tour Take 3

I know it may seem slightly excessive but if you've seen my previous posts you'll know that I love love love the Warner Bros Harry Potter Studios Tour Watford. It's a second home to me and I've been again, for the THIRD time. It's obsessive but I really love it there. This time, I did not qualify as a child and I didn't get the stamp passport but no matter. I already have two. However, one can never have too many butterbeer glasses. I now also have two of those. I really really wanted the one with the handle but I couldn't justify spending £7 on a drink.

This time I went with my bestie since birth, Callum. When our mums picked us up, his was jealous and would like to go so fingers crossed for take 4. He enjoyed it and he is hard to please. Everything is average to him but he really loved it. He's tight with money but even he splashed out at the gift shop.

Here are a few pictures:
The Mirror of Erised
 The Fat Lady

The door of The Chamber of Secrets

 Callum actually having a photo taken!

 

J K Rowling is one of my literary heroes and I'm so thankful to her.

In the gift shop I got an Elderwand pen, a Gryffindor pillow,2 chocolate frogs and a chocolate frog key-ring. Pricey but worth it. I would really love to spend some dollars in Universal Studios Harry Potter World. I'll Just have to wait and live it through YouTube like PointlessBlogTv, Zoella and SprinkleofGlitter. I watch their vlogs of Florida and some other YouTubers such as Jim Chapman and Tanya Burr whose vlogs of Harry Potter Studios I really loved and I felt as if I were there with them. I'd really recommend Louise's 20 minute vlog.

If you want to share any experiences I'd be happy to read them :)