Birthday Nandos and Presents!

 Hello!

 Yesterday it was my 17th Birthday (I now have a laptop, phew) so I went shopping and out to Nandos with my friends. I didn't actually buy anything and was surprised by the lack of nice clothes in the shops at the moment!  In Nandos I thought the toilets were particularly cool so I took a picture as you can see!-They even had music playing in them. I got some really lovely presents from my friends including The Real Techniques make up brushes (which are amazing), some cute candle holders and coffee syrups. 

xx

3 reasons to love autumn

1. Nature!

I went for a jog the other day and couldn't help notice how pretty the sky looks on autumn evenings. As well as the sky looking particularly colourful, I love how the trees turn gorgeous shades of orange and red,; I love the smell of rain and even the darker evenings.

2. Candles!

I love candles , they create such a cosy atmosphere on a dark, cold evening. As well as this they look really pretty and smell amazing too. I got the candle pictured from Homebase for £4 and it has a 120 hour burning time. The scent its 'cinnamon spice' which smells amazing and is so autumny!

3. Fashion!

I love love love the fashion in Autumn, in fact it is my favourite season for fashion -  The big wool coats, the knitted jumpers, the woolly socks and ankle boots, the darker colours. Ahh I just love it! This picture was taken in Topshop, everything looks so lovely and cosy!

Leave a comment to let me know what your favourite thing about autumn is!

xx

Top 10 Tips for starting your GCSE's

Today I have done a slightly different post to normal. I have just finished my GCSEs, and have been requested do to a post on giving some advice on doing your GCSEs, so I thought It would be nice to do a top 10 tips that I would recommend based on my own experience!

I took Art, Textiles, Business and French, and I did a post on results day: here

1. Choose subjects that you are good at and that you enjoy

If you are starting you GCSE's this September, It is likely that you have already chosen the subjects that you are going to do, but if you haven't, or are not 100% confident with the subjects that you have chosen already; my advice would be to choose the subjects that you most enjoy, and the ones that you are best at. Definitely don't feel pressured to take the 4 most difficult subjects that you think will look the most impressive on your CV if you know that in reality you wont be able to keep up with the work, and ultimately will struggle to get the GCSE!

2. Stay organised

Admittedly, I am really bad at this one, although I think it is very important! Make sure you have all the equipment and books you need - this will make life SO much easier! I would say that if it is possible, do Homework the day you get it. I always left homework to the last minute, which causes 10x more stress when you quickly try get it done the night before or even morning before it was due in. Also, things like making sure you keep an organised planner and packing your bag the night before can really make a big difference to how organised you feel.

3. Get some folders

This is something I never did, but wish someone had told me to do (I will be doing this for sixth form!)

Have some folders at home for each subject, where you can store notes. You could write notes on A4 paper about what you have learnt that week, and put it in the folder. This way when you go back to revise, you already have all your notes done!

4. Stay motivated

If I'm being honest, I found a lot of lessons really boring, (Maths,Science,French!) which was quite demotivating, meaning I would just sit in the lesson and wait for it to be over rather than actually paying attention! Oops. This meant that these were the exams I had to cram for at the end as I had no idea what was going on. (That's why it is so important to choose subjects you enjoy) If you try your best stay motivated in lessons it will really help when it comes to exam time. Also, make sure you stay motivated when doing coursework as this does count towards your GCSE and there's nothing more annoying than rushed coursework bringing down your result at the end of the two years!

5. Work Hard Play Hard

Always remember to give yourself a brake. For me there was a time when I was finding it difficult to cope with the amount of homework I had, and I forgot to just take a break. I got really really tired which only made things worse. If you are becoming overwhelmed with the amount of work just stop for a minute, remember that GCSEs aren't the end of the world and do something not-work-related for a while!! For a lot of people, Year 10/11 are the best years of their school life so far.

6. Ask for help

Believe it or not most of the teachers are really willing to help if you are stuck with anything, so if you are, just ask! Especially towards the end when exams are getting closer.

7. Don't worry if you don't get the grades you really wanted

As long as you get onto the A level or collage course you want to get on, although important, remember that GCSE grades really aren't the end of the world! As long as you have tried your best, that's all that really matters. Even if you don't get on the course you wanted to, there is always other options.

8. Be sociable

You will probably have new classes with new people in, so try and be sociable and friendly to make as many friends as possible! Having great friends can really improve your GCSE years, but don't get distracted 24/7!

9. In year 11 use revision books

I didn't realise how helpful revision books are until I actually started using them. Make sure you get one with the right course that you are doing and it will have everything you need for the syllabus, so that you know the exam topics inside out.

10. Don't feel pressured to decide what career you want to do

I'm going into sixth form and I have still no idea what I want to do (ahh.) Of course, if you do know what you want to do it can help you pick the best subjects for that job. But, really don't let it be an extra thing to stress over - you still have loads of time and even if you do think you know, in two years you may completely change your mind. As long as you are doing things you enjoy you are on the right path!!

Bit of a different post to usual! - Let me know if you liked this post and found it helpful at all.

xx

A day out shopping and sixth form haul

 Hi,

Yesterday I went shopping to look for sixth form clothes! 

Firstly I went in H&M and ended up getting a really pretty dress which was £12.99 (bargain!) and a black spotty shirt which was £14.99. I think the dress was my favourite thing that I got, and looks really nice with my River Island jacket which you can see Here!

Next I went to look in Lush and also The Body Shop. Although I wanted everything from both shops I was very good and didn't buy anything, but I did see a body shop lipstick that I really liked... 

I also went to Costa (again!!) before going into John Lewis, trying out some of the perfumes (Marc Jacobs, Chanel) and deciding to buy a really cute necklace which was reduced from £15 to £4.50! I also got a ZARA skirt from the online stock clearance sale, which was reduced from £36.99 to £9.99! I think goes really well with my new h&m shirt.

I still need some boots, a few more tops and a bag :-)

xx

GCSE Results Day!

 Hi!

Today I picked up My GCSE Results, which were way better than I ever thought they would be, although I think I did work really hard for them. I'm not trying to brag in any way, but I feel as though I have been working for these for years and would like to share with you on my blog what I got as I find it really interesting seeing what other people got for their results. Overall I got 5 A's, 2 B's and 1 C.

I found GCSE's quite stressful towards the end as I did a lot of cramming before the exams.

I was actually really surprised at passing French with a C as I thought I had completely failed as I found French the most difficult subject. I was also really happy with my English as I didn't expect any more than a B. My favourite subjects were Art, Textiles and Business, so I think I did spend more time and effort on them. I was also realllllly pleased with a B in maths and science.

Overall , I  was really happy with all my results, so to celebrate, me and my friends went to Costa and bought cakes from M&S. I then had to go to an appointment with my school's sixth form centre to talk about my A Level options- and I have decided to study English, Business and Art!
Now I have 2 weeks to read 3 books, write chapter summaries, and create an art sketch book.
The work begins. Ahh.

I really hope everyone got the results they wanted and more!

Let me know if you have picked up your GCSE's today!

xx

Costa: My Favourite Drink

When I'm bored I often find myself in the local Costa with my friends... So I thought I would share with you what my favourite drink in Costa is! (It's AMAZING)

It is called a Sticky Toffee Creamy Cooler. 

' A rich dark toffee sauce blended with ice and milk with a cream topping and a futher drizzle of toffee sauce'

I have tried loads of the drinks in Costa but I always end up going back to this one! Don't even get me started on the mint mocha... (It was disgusting but at over £3 I drank it all anyway)

A small one of these with Semi Skimmed milk is just under 400 calories so I don't have them too often, although I want one right now!

What's your favourite drink at costa?

xx