Crazy few months - Graduation/Moving Out/PGCE/Holidays & Festivals

Wow.

Everything has been a little bit hectic since my last post.

First of all, and possibly saddest of all, my university experience came to an end. On the 21st of July, I graduated from the University of Huddersfield, which was a bit of a surreal day and left me with a whole load of emotions and feelings. Firstly, happy that I'd passed and was now the proud owner of a degree, sad that my three years at uni had come and gone in the blink of an eye, scared at the prospect of making a fool of myself whilst on stage during graduation, and also scared at the fact that I had absolutely no post-graduation plans whatsoever. Nevertheless, the day came and went and it wasn't nearly as scary as I had anticipated, I didn't fall off stage, I didn't look as stupid as I thought I would, and I actually had a great deal of fun.

Photograph courtesy of Shauni Hetherington via Facebook

The day after graduation was the day I'd been dreading for months on end - moving out day. The day I had to say goodbye to the friends I'd pretty much lived with on and off for the last three years. The friends that I shared every innermost thought and deepest secret with. The friends that knew every last thing about me, right down to how I was feeling at any given moment to what I was probably thinking at any given moment. The friends that I am very rarely seen without and very rarely cope without. It was one of the most emotional days of my life, as dramatic as that might sound. It took us all weekend to move our stuff out of the flat and the sheer amount of stuff we threw away was ridiculous (so much so that the binmen had a good rummage and took out some of it for themselves!) Eventually we left our beloved home and went our own separate ways, which was devastating, but hopefully we will not be seeing the last of each other because those girls mean the world to me and I hope the feeling is mutual!

Our humble abode looking empty and downright spotless!

So after moving out of the flat, came the big move back to Castleford - another event I'd been dreading for months. Cas is my home-town and I'm not the kind of person to forget my roots but at times it can be such a dull place, where everybody has their own little routine and many people lack ambition. Those who do have aspirations and ambitions rarely stay here, and instead venture off to nearby cities and towns with a little more to offer. That being said, the novelty of coming home to a place I grew up in, does often sound really appealling and sometimes fills me with excitement, but this novelty wears off very quickly, when I realise how mundane life round here really is. 

Now as I've probably documented before, when in Castleford, I stay with my grandma, because she is the only member of the family with a room spare for me! And because it's my escape place, and a place I feel comfortable and well looked after in. My grandma and grandad do and have done an awful lot for me, so I do like spending time at their house and in their company and I'd like to think they enjoy having me here too. While staying here, I've had some epic meals and learnt a lot about my family that I never knew before and I have genuinely really enjoyed having long chats with my grandma and looking at old photos trying to decide which baby is which grandchild whilst laughing at our shocking fashion choices. The last month has had me yo-yo-ing between Castleford and Huddersfield for work, but I have actually enjoyed spending time in both places and having the best of both worlds.

(See below for some of the aforementioned hilarious baby photos me and my grandma managed to unearth!)

However, my time dipping between Castleford and Huddersfield is about to come to an end, because I will be moving back to the Hudd next week for another year of studying, only this time for a PGCE (Post-graduate Certificate of Education.) During the last two months, I applied for a place on a Further Education PGCE, because I had no idea what I really wanted to do with my degree and the only real career I had ever toyed with was the prospect of being a teacher. Everyone who knows me, knows just how much I relish the opportunity to check over other people's pieces of work, offering better ways to word sentences and ideas to improve whatever the project might be. This combined with my knowledge of Media Studies, could potentially be my ideal job. With this in mind, I applied for a place on a PGCE course at my former university and with no experience and little confidence in myself, I honestly didn't think I would even be considered for a second, let alone given an interview. But, obviously, I was, and I can't even describe how nervous I was for the interview, in which I had to give a presentation (something I don't exactly excel at!) But I bit the bullet, and threw myself into the interview whole-heartedly, and am so proud of myself because it meant I was successful and will be starting the course within the next month. I am incredibly excited for this next chapter and can't wait to get stuck in.

As if all of the above wasn't chaotic enough, I have also been on a holiday with my family and even spent last weekend at Leeds Festival, which I am planning on writing a post about, very soon. July and August have been hectic to say the least, hence my distinct lack of posts. I won't make any promises about having lots of posts to come, because in a fortnight I start my course, which I have been warned, is pretty full on. But I will definitely be posting about my Leeds Fest experience before I go AWOL again.

Leaving university - What on Earth do I do now? (This could be incredibly boring)

As many of you may be aware, for the last three years I have been a student at the University of Huddersfield, where I have been studying Media and Popular Culture. It has been the most stressful, enjoyable and memorable three years of my life so far and less than a fortnight ago, I handed in my last ever piece of work.

As I imagined, this filled me with so many emotions. I was relieved that I no longer have any essays or projects looming, happy that I could finally have lots of naps and lie ins without feeling guilty and also in the back of my mind, scared that I have absolutely no plans for the future.

To be honest, I have just enjoyed my freedom for the last week or so, but now it's starting to hit home that I don't have a plan. The reason I chose to study Media and Popular Culture was because I enjoyed all things media-related (TV, film, music etc) and wanted to delve further into the history and workings of the industry. Initially I had no idea what I wanted to do, and felt that a broad course would help me in that department as it would allow me to explore many things rather than restricting myself with a specific, specialist course. 

Having said this, three years later, I still feel exactly the same. I have enjoyed aspects of my course and disliked others, but I am still no wiser as to what career I'd like to fulfill and the only thing I know is that I want to write. If only it were that simple. A degree in a media-related discipline + A love for writing = Journalist - Right? Wrong. That is something I have decided strictly against. I don't like the idea of snooping into peoples business and writing in a strict, boring style where adjectives are frowned upon. I like writing, but I like writing about things I'm passionate about, or failing that, writing things to which I can add character and life. I know that is considered an immature view because allegedly the only way you will get opportunities like that is to work your way up career ladders, but unlike many people on courses similar to mine, I just don't have any interest in that profession.

At times I think I may have studied the wrong course and would've benefited more from a degree in something such as Creative Writing or Script Writing. But that's extremely hypothetical and something I can't change. Plus a degree is a degree and therefore whatever the discipline, a degree will hold good stead in any profession. However, the question remains - What on Earth do I do next?

Well, in short I have no idea. I don't even  have a home sorted yet which is something that fills me with dread and fear on a daily basis. I honestly have no idea what my plan is, other than to get a transfer and carry on working at my part-time job to save up plenty of money so that when I do get an idea in my head, money won't necessarily be a problem. I wish I could carry on cross-stitching and blogging and not having a care in the world like I have for the last few days, but unfortunately, that won't pay the bills! Who would've thought that leaving university would be as stressful as being at university?! 

I'm aware how boring this post may be in comparison with my others but I needed a good old whinge!

Don't worry though, I've got a post up my sleeve for Friday/Saturday that will be epic and definitely picture heavy.

Feel free to share your own graduation/leaving university blues and we can all wallow in self pity together. Or, if you do have a kickass plan for after uni, share it with me and inspire me to do something with my life!

A few favourites and recent purchases

As promised, I'm back on the blogging wagon and I thought the best way to ease back into things would be to do a little (or not so little) review of my recent loan weekend purchases.

The main products I've been buying have been from Boots. Boots is quite possibly one of my biggest vices, it's honestly quite dangerous for me to go in there, and you're about to see why.

Firstly, let's talk about nail polishes, because I seem to have bought loads. The first one I purchased was this one from No7's Gel Look Shine Range. No7 is a brand I usually stay away from, mainly because I don't usually have any money, but if I did, I'd definitely splash out more. This brand is great, its like a rival to Barry M's Gelly Hi-Shine range, but both do the job equally in my opinion. It glides on nicely and doesn't lose its sheen and pearlescence once it's on. This is the shade, Galaxy and I think it's around £7, but there was a 3 for 2 offer on when I bought this one.

No7 Gel Look Shine in Galaxy

Keeping with No7, I also bought another of their polishes a few weeks ago, from the same Gel Look Shine range. This one is a top coat but is something I've been looking for, for a while. I wanted a top coat that left me with a high shine, no matter what colour was underneath. I was longing for Barry M to bring out a top coat in their Gelly Hi-Shine range, but then I came across No7's own version and was extremely pleased. It does exactly what I wanted and since using it, I've had lots of comments on the shininess of my nails. Again, I think this one was also around £7.

No7 Gel Look Shine top coat

Whilst in Boots, it occurred to me that although I have an abundance of nail polishes in all different shades and colours, I didn't actually possess an electric blue colour. Naturally, I rectified this, in the form of Barry M's Blue Grape, from their Gelly Hi-Shine range. I was dubious about trying the colour because I tend to stay within my comfort zone of dark colours such as blacks, reds, burgundys and purples, but I went for it regardless. The colour is beautiful and I'm glad I bought it, I also had compliments wearing this shade. I think these are the usual £3.99 to £4 in Boots.

Barry M Gelly Hi Shine Nail Paint in Blue Grape

Another brand I've been buying a lot of lately is Sally Hansen. The nail range is brilliant, for anyone who is obsessed with nail painting. I bought two nail polishes from her range, the first being the Hard as Nails polish, which is a strengthener that I generally use under polishes, but have also used it on top for extra strength too. The second Sally Hansen polish I bought was the Insta-Dri. I wasn't sure if this polish would work, or whether it would just leave my nails feeling tacky but I was pleasantly surprised. Both these polishes are ones that I highly recommend to keep nails as strong as possible and also just to save time for those that are impatient like me when it comes to waiting for nails to dry.

Moving out of the nail polish area, I also bought two lipsticks from Boots. The first of these was the Maybelline Colour Sensational lipstick in 547 Pleasure Me Red. I could've squealed with excitement when I found this because I've been looking for a deep, dark red shade for ages and this was exactly the shade I wanted. I love the colour of this lipstick and the texture, but the only thing I would say is that I found it didn't stay on as long as I'd like. Luckily I use Lipcote, so I can rectify this somewhat, but that would be my only flaw with it. I believe this was around £7.99 in Boots.

The second polish I bought was Revlon Super Lustrous in 663 Va Va Violet. This is beautiful dark purple shade, which I love. I'm a fan of purple lipsticks anyway, but this one is a deep, rich shade and is possibly my new favourite lipstick. Like the last lipstick mentioned, this one also didn't appear to stay on for a long time, but again, this is easily fixed by a coat of Lipcote. This was £7.49 in Boots.

The last two things I want to mention aren't beauty products but are two things I'm in love with. Firstly, a pair of flatform open toe wedges from Primark. I just can't walk in high-heeled shoes and for that reason try to stick to wedges for nights out so these are perfect for me. I already have a pair of flatfoms from Primark, but they're slightly different and have a closed toe as opposed to these ones. Of course it means I'll have to shun the tights and brave getting my pins out but I can live with that because I adore these shoes. They were £10 in Primark and look beautiful with freshly painted nails.

The final thing is a dress I recently purchased from Ebay. Its a River Island dress and the RRP was £35 but I bagged it, brand new with tags on Ebay for £16 (not including postage). I was over the moon when I won this because I'd seen it a while ago, only with tartan instead of leopard print. I love the fact that its a midi dress, meaning I don't feel too uncomfortable going tight-less and the black panels down the side are incredibly slimming. I strutted around the flat feeling fabulous when it arrived and I can't wait to wear it on a night out with the shoes as well!

If anyone else has been taking advantage of loan day, I'd love to read a haul/review of some of the things you've been buying, so feel free to leave me your links :)

As predicted, final year held me hostage!

Wow. I knew I hadn't blogged in a fair while, but I had no idea it was all the way back in December. I feel ashamed!

New Years Eve was when I posted my last entry, and that is just crazy, but as documented a few times over the last year, university has had me well and truly whipped. Final year has been chaos, the minute I think 'phew my work is handed in', I have to make a start on the next and for that reason I have been incredibly busy, all year.

However, this is my final deadline week, when the last two pieces of my uni work will be handed in. This is both scary and awesome at the same time. I do not want to go in to the big, wide world anytime soon, I love the student life! But, now the end is nigh, at least I can focus more on the things I enjoy - blogging, partying and cross-stitching. (Party on Wayne...)

So in short, expect a few more posts from today forth. I have been dying to get back into the blogging seat, because I am sick of writing boring essays! Plus, my student loan flourished into my decrepit bank account on Friday so I've been splurging at Boots and various other places and can't wait to report back with a few favourites and reviews.

Back with a vengeance - yay!

Slowly creeping into 2014...

As its New Years Eve and I'm home alone with no plans (sad), I'm going to take this opportunity to do a little blog reflecting on the past year and looking forward into 2014.

To be honest, 2013 hasn't been significantly good or bad. It started out alright and has had its ups and downs but generally it hasn't been anything to write home about. I have had some awesome times in Huddersfield this year, and some extremely stressful ones too. From epic nights out, to chilled nights in, gigs with friends and gigs with my boyfriend, I have made some really great memories this year. But towards the end of the year, I have also been incredibly stressed and at times, a nightmare to deal with, due to the demanding workload and stresses of final year.

This is probably the most cliche thing I've ever said but I guess in some ways, 2013 has been a year of change. Both my boyfriend and one of my closest friends moved out of Huddersfield this year which was initially quite daunting and really hard for me to get used to. The thought of having these two no longer within arms reach was really hard to comprehend at first and I for one, did not like it! However, they didn't just get fed up of me, they actually both left to pursue their placement years and I am very proud of both of them. My boyfriend moved to Leeds at the beginning of the year which upset me a bit but he managed to get himself a cracking placement within the university, meaning I still get to see him a hell of a lot as he is always in and out of Huddersfield. He seems to be enjoying the placement overall and it has given him some great experience and opportunities which is fantastic and I am really happy for him. My friend, Hannah, moved back home for her placement year and has had two placements up to now, both of which have been extremely beneficial and the opportunities she has been given from both have been phenomenal and I am super proud of her and even though it absolutely sucks that she no longer lives with us and I cried my eyes out when she left, I am so happy that her placement year is proving to be so valuable and worth while.

Everyone around me seemed to be so focused and driven this year, that I, personally had a minor breakdown. For ages I found myself thinking "What the hell am I actually doing with my life?", and "Why aren't I as successful and switched on as everyone else?" Obviously I am still in university and working towards a degree but to be completely honest, I still don't have the foggiest idea what I want to do with my life after uni. There are so many people that I see in uni everyday that seem so mature, ambitious and focused and know exactly where they want to be in five years time. Whereas I still feel like a teenager and am no wiser as to what I want to do, than I was when I first started uni, which is a little worrying. I still have a huge passion for writing but that does not necessarily mean I want to be a journalist, as I just don't have any interest in nitty gritty and edgy stories, I much prefer light-hearted things. I also have no ambition to pursue a career in PR, like many other people in my degree area, as I don't have the self-confidence, charisma or ballsiness required to be a success in that area. I find it hard to put myself out there and talk to people I don't know or people I might be intimidated by, which causes me great problems in uni, as I am often expected to interview or approach random people. I experience a lot of anxiety when it comes to this sort of thing and tend to put things off, which I have found to be a huge setback this year, as it stops me from reaching my full potential with assignments. This is the main reason behind the lower parts of this year and because of this, I have decided to give myself some resolutions for 2014. Now I know that resolutions are there to be broken and I will no doubt forget about them, but I am going to give them a try anyway.

2014 is the year I (hopefully) will graduate from uni and although that is a massive achievement, it also leaves me feeling quite sad as it means I have to join the real world and stop living the student dream. I honestly believe that I will be on a huge downer after graduating because I have loved just about every minute of uni life. I have met the best friends in the world and I can't even cope over the Christmas holidays without them all, so god knows what I will be like when we all leave for good. They better get the Prozac ready cause I will definitely need them come July 2014! There has been talk of me potentially getting a flat with Jade, one of my uni friends, after we graduate but that involves a lot of saving up, so we will have to see what this year brings and hopefully we can make it happen, but if not, I hope we will all definitely still keep in touch.

Until then though, I am going to try my best to get through the next few months without too many stresses. To do this, I aim to:

- Take control with my assignments and don't let myself get so easily distracted

- Try my best to grab opportunities by the balls instead of being scared and anxious in certain situations (easier said than done!)

- Spend less and give myself a weekly budget (also easier said than done!)

- Stay out of other people's business

- Enjoy my last few months as a student

This post had a lot more feels than I initially anticipated but hey ho, I'm going with it! I hope everyone has a much more eventful New Years Eve than me, and I hope your resolutions stay in tact longer than mine probably will!

Happy new year!

Crikey, third year is NOT a walk in the park...

Wow, the last few weeks have been a rollercoaster. Slowly but surely, I am starting to realise just how difficult final year is. With the sudden realisation of just how little time there is left in uni and an array of deadlines creeping up, my head has been quite a mess.

Earlier this month I noticed just how little time I had to do so much work and it really freaked me out. Having said this, I didn't exactly jump into work mode, but instead spent time doing fun things with my flatmates or failing that, lazing around not doing much at all. Its hard to find the right balance in third year for work and social activities, especially when you are dreading leaving university and therefore want to spend every last minute enjoying yourself. Because of this, I started to leave a lot of important things til the very last minute.

While we might be getting nearer to Christmas, we are also getting closer and closer to deadlines, meaning I am currently in panic mode. Over the last few weeks, it has dawned on me just how much time I've been wasting and because of that, my stress levels have been through the roof. Due to the stress of upcoming deadlines and the fact that I found myself doing a module that was completely and utterly out of my comfort zone, I was feeling very overwhelmed. For the first time in three years, everything got a little too much and I actually wanted to leave it behind and go home, which is something extremely out of the blue for me.

After a minor mental breakdown and a bit of crying in various tutors offices, I decided to drop the module that was causing me issues and change to something that I am actually interested in and have quite a passion for. I also decided it was time to knuckle down and try to get some work done on the essays that have deadlines lurking around the corner.

It never occurred to me that I would feel so down and to be honest, depressed, with uni, but I think once in a while, every student has a bit of a rough patch and becomes unexpectedly overwhelmed with what is expected of them. I'm happy to say that the rough patch has gone and I am now feeling much better.

My tutors and some of my coursemates were very reassuring and told me that they've been in the same boat, which made me feel a lot better and less pathetic for crying in the first place! It felt as though everything was getting on top of me, but since then I have took control, made a start on some things and generally been more positive.

I don't really know what I'm aiming for by writing this in my blog but I know I've been a bit absent in writing for a while and to some extent this is why. I'm sure there are many other student bloggers who have felt similar or many who have just started their studies and will at some point. So I guess this post could help them in some way.
The morals of the story in short are:

•  Don't let things get ahead of you, take control
•  If you need to cry at someone, then don't feel daft, just let it out, everyone gets stressed from time to time
• And more importantly if you do feel like this, don't let it hinder your university experience because its just a very small bump in the road of what is otherwise a fantastic journey and adventure.

So with all that in mind, I should get off my blog and do some more quote-hunting and research (Fun!)

Before I do though, I should probably mention my boyfriend in this.
He recently got the urge to jump on the blogging bandwagon and decided to start a blog and post something everyday. I initially teased him for stealing my turf but to be honest he has kept up with it pretty good so far and actually posted more recently than me! He doesn't have a specific topic or subject area, its just a diary entry style blog, but he's committed to it and it will definitely be interesting to read back over everything in a few months time. So why not check out his blog here and maybe give him a follow? Go easy though, he's new to this!

To anyone with upcoming uni deadlines, good luck!
And to the rest of you, you don't know how bloody lucky you are!

I Wish: Urban Outfitters

So lately I've been ridiculously skint, and even though student loans are due next week as well as payday....so is my rent, meaning I'm likely to stay penniless for quite some time. 

Therefore I can't go on my usual "FUCK YEAH ITS LOAN DAY, LETS SPEND IT ALL NOW!" shopping spree :( 

Bummer! 

So instead, to fulfil my need to online shop, whenever I get the urge to buy something, I'm just going to post a wishlist and not actually buy them. 

That way, you lot can buy them and I can live vicariously through you! 

Sorted!

All these items are from Urban Outfitters, which is one of my absolute favourite shops. I would kill to be able to go into the Leeds store and spend about £200 like I normally do on loan days! But nevermind.

These are just a few of my favourite things from there at the minute.

1. / 2. / 3.

I really like tartan print and own quite a few items adorned with it, but I like how relaxed and comfy both the shirt and the dress look. 

One of the reasons I love UO is because their prints are beautiful, and while I have dresses and leggings from there, I've yet to own a skirt - this could be the one!

4. / 5. / 6.

I absolutely love turtles, and I have another turquoise turtle pendant from UO so it'd be nice to own this one too! 

I've seen this watch loads of times and have been eyeing it up for ages, I love the map on the face.

7. / 8.

I've got a bit of a thing for fairy lights at the moment but my cheap Poundstretcher and Dunelm ones have just about seen their full potential so I need to upgrade to something a bit more girly like this. 

The hipflask is actually on my birthday list, so hopefully if I've been a good enough girl, I might just get it? Fingers crossed!