AN AMAZING BLOG!

http://www.marcandangel.com/2011/01/03/40-extraordinary-things-happening-right-now/

I have just found this site with lots of different lists and anyone who is feeling down should definitely have a look at it. This is a link to just one of their lists but there are plenty! Have a quick read and you'll soon see that you want to keep reading because it makes up feel slightly better about the world we live in.

New Hair and Nails

So yes, yesterday I was at work in my own little world when I needed a change, NOT a huge change, just a little something to boost the morale and all. So, after I finished work I took a leisurely stroll to Boots and had a browse when I came across a red, unfortunately it is not as bright as I would have liked but I had to go for a subtle colour as I work we get a slap across the fingers and get told we have to dye it back to a more natural colour?! Anywho, this is the result, I chose this picture as this is the one that captures the colour of the hair the best, I know my face is slightly (ok, extremely) over exposed but hey, nobody wants to see the face! It's all about the hair...

Whilst I was in Boots I may have wondered into the make up section, but as I had recently been treated to quite a lot I decided to just buy some nail varnish. But HOLD THE LINE, not just ANY nail varnish. This is Barry M nail varnish with the cracking effect! Its freaking awesome! Check it out.

The purple underneath is also a Barry M nail varnish, they are great for bright colours which are what the nails are being treated to this summer. I will be investing in some more colours now that I have finally got out of the disgusting habit of biting my nails!

Whilst on the subject of beauty products, one brand I have fallen in love with is SOAP & GLORY, it smells so fresh, clean and girly and has a very 50's look to it, they have so many different things to try.

This is the Body Butter which I use at every possible opportunity, it makes your skin feel ULTRA soft and again, smells SCRUMPTIOUS!

SOAP & GLORY is a little on the pricey side but as you can see you get what you pay for, the bottles are huge and they have so many different things to try. I have already tried the shower gel, and the Extreme Plump lip gloss which has collagen in it so when you put it on, BAM! you get shiny lips that just look a little more juicy! However, this is not for the faint hearted as it does make your lips tingle A LOT, it feels like you have pins and needles in your lips but after a while you actually get used to it and even enjoy it?!

One more thing, today I felt like making a bit of an effort with my eye make up so I went to the trusty tutorial on Youtube that I found a few years ago, I absolutely love it because it's not over the top and suits brown eyed girls ;)
I do want to clarify that when I found this tutorial I was not looking for a tutorial on how to do make up like J Lo!

So any of you brown eyed girls, give it a try! It's so easy to do and makes you feel great about what you can do with a few different shades of brown eye shadow =p

“The best thing is to look natural, but it takes makeup to look natural.” -Calvin Klein

Weekend BBQ's and Go Karting!!

We had a few BBQ's whilst the weather was absolutely gorgeous! The first was on the Sunday evening which was lovely as we got to spend time outside and have a nice glass of wine whilst soaking up the evening sunshine...

My brother does look miserable but this was only for the picture =p

Of course, I can finally start to enjoy these kind of things again,

As exams have finished and no more of this!!

It also means I can now go out and have a bit of fun so when my brother mentioned him, his girlfriend, my cousin and her partner were going karting, I couldn't help but join them, here are a few pictures of us in our extremely fashionable boiler suits...I reckon it could catch on?

Sorry about the blurry pictures, I only had my phone camera on me and I don't always manage to keep the camera still for long enough...

It was brilliant fun! For the first few laps everyone was a little nervous but we all soon got the hang of it, it was a right laugh! And here are the results....

Gold - QUENTIN

Silver - SAM

Bronze - BILLY

4th - ME!!!!

5th - MARIANNE

6th - AMY

We were obviously hoping to be first but it was quite clear who came first considering Quentin's fastest lap was 25 seconds when the average lap time was 33 seconds. My fastest lap was 28 seconds so I was quite pleased with myself! And I was the fastest girl!! Yay!!!!

After we'd finished our very tiresome race (it was very thirsty work) it was only natural that Quentin, myself, my brother and his girlfriend all went for a celebratory drink! ;)

Of course, I got the camera out and snapped up a few pictures...however, after a few pints my brother decided to take the camera and go crazy with it...in a 10 minute journey in the car he managed to take 23 pictures!! But it was certainly a nice break from being the photgrapher...

Here are some of my favourites =) It's nice to see the world through someone else's eyes...

I hope your car journey's are just as much fun as ours!! =D

Ladies at lunch

My gorgeous friends and I finally set a date for a bit of lunch together in The Lounge, a cafe/restaurant/bar in the center of the little town of Stone. It's somewhere where we used to go after school and have hot chocolates...they were simply the best!!

Here they are looking as beautiful as ever!

It was a lovely afternoon consisting of lots of gossip, catching up and giggling! It was certainly a nice break from the extremely wearisome and prosaic English revision!!

Lydia and I were laughing at Beth as she decided to have a daring pot of green tea whilst we stuck to a more tempting glass of rose! 

Beth with her tea...

I think she may have felt a little like the odd one out at this point! =p

However long it takes to actually organise, everyone should take some time out to have lunch or even just a drink with old friends! It reminds you of all the good times you've had and adds to the list! 

(here are a few of mine....)

We must have been around 16 here, the vest tops were extremely relevant at the time...we spent every second together =)

Again, this was when we were 16, at Beth's parents wedding

At a friends fancy dress party

Having a glass of Martini, our favourite drink at the time!

I'd just come back from being in France for a year...

A Long Story...

"A friend is one who believes in you when you have ceased to believe in yourself." 

THANK GOD FOR BEST FRIENDS =)

Bryan Adams, The Floyd and Koonunga Hill

Last night we had a nice little evening, the four of us, plus my mother who decided to join us for the apero organised to have a little gathering with good drinks, nice food and excellent music.

Billy, my brother and his girlfriend

My gin and tonic, Wills Guinness and Amy's Barcardi

Home made Burgers with stilton cheese and its salads, with beer battered chips

The Bryan Adams concert had a few problems so we upgraded to Pink Floyd's Pulse. Greatest show ever.

Lots of singing and waving of arms was going on and I'm quite surprised that the neighbours didn't come over to complain =p

By the way, Happy Fathers Day Dad for Sunday =) Here are a few pictures I just have on my computer.

Love You Lots Dad xxxxx

Bus Journeys, Buffets and Ruined Castles

Yesterday was a day filled with spending time revising and treating myself to a nice break from it!

Due to the fact that the car was at the garage we had to take the bus to Stafford, which the partner absolutely LOVED! He gets excited when he has to take the bus as he thinks its relaxing and he doesn't have to do any driving. I, on the other hand get frustrated with public transport and would much rather be in a car then a smelly bus full of wierdos!

After I'd been to my revision session, got the car back and spent a few hours revising french grammar (I know, I lead a life full of fun!) it was time to eat, so we decided to treat ourselves and go out. We got ourselves all dolled up and made our way to Penkridge to a buffet restaurant that had not long opened. It had Indian, Italian, Thai and Chinese food which was nice due to the fact that you can have a bit of whatever you fancy, and if you're feeling frisky you can even mix the different types of cuisine =0!!!

After we'd had way too much to eat we went for a quick wander our Penkridge and came across the church which was a lovely little secret hidden away in the corner.

Once we made our way back home we were in Stafford and came across some signs to Stafford Castle, I mentioned to the partner that I'd like to go one day and see it again so that's exactly what we did. The only downside of going to visit a castle after you've been for a meal is that you're not exactly dressed for the occasion, this was definitely my dilemma....I was in the highest pair of heels that I own and we ended up having to walk up a lovely steep hill, by the time we got to the top I was knackered!!! However I had my phone with me and managed to distract my mind from my blistering feet by experimenting with the lighting as it was around 9.30pm and the sun was setting, here are the results ( the quality isn't great due to not actually using a real camera!) Sorry!

That's why I'm Easy....Easy like a Sunday morning

Good afternoon all!

Last Sunday as a last minute plan I decided to join Beth and another friend to go and watch a friend take part in a "Pole Fitness Show", the name pretty much speaks for itself. It a group of girls (and two guys) at different levels all showing off their talents who all take part in Pole Fitness Lessons and I have to say some of these girls were extremely talented...yes the first thing that people think of when you say Pole Dancing is a sleezy gentlemans club with half clothed women dancing for money but it isn't at all like that.

The quality of the pictures are not that great as the lighting wasn't the best to work with, there was a lot of movement going on and it was on a camera phone!!

As you can see these girls have a lot of talent and must have taken hours of training to get it just right, also, I'm sure it took a lot of guts to go up there and show the audience what they had.

This is Sarah, who is the friend we went to see, she's extremely talented but unfortunately I was only able to get this picture of her climbing the pole as I was not quick enough to catch her posing!

Other than this I haven't been doing much recently, just preparing for the EXAMS!! and working! However, as today is Sunday I thought I'd treat myself to some lovely American Pancakes so I thought I'd share the recipe I use each time and has never failed to taste just as good as you expect....Thank you Mr Jamie Oliver




Ingredients

• 3 Large Eggs
• 115g Plain Flour
• 1 Heaped Teaspoon of Baking Powder
• 140ml Milk
• A Pinch Of Salt

Method

First separate the eggs, putting the whites into one bowl and the yolks into another. Add the flour, baking powder and  milk to the yolks and mix to a smooth thick batter. Whisk the whites with the salt until they form stiff peaks. Fold into the batter – it is now ready to use.

Heat a good non-stick pan on a medium heat. Pour some of your batter into the pan and fry for a couple of minutes until it starts to look golden and firm.

As you can see it is extremely simple and a lovely treat for anyone on a lazy sunday morning. Just a few little tips, I find that you can do at least two pancakes at the same time in a large frying pan without them sticking together, I also find that using butter in the pan not only stops the pancakes sticking but also gives it an extra little taste. Also you can tell when to flip the pancakes when bubbles begin to appear on the top, and finally, my personal favourite way to serve these is with some bacon straight from the grill and generously covered in Maple Syrup, not forgetting a side serving of a glass of orange juice and freshly brewed coffee...the american way!!

ENJOY!!

Finally here is a little song to complete your Sunday....yes I know its no longer morning but I find that Sundays feel like it's the morning all day, and that's the way it should be...

HAPPY SUNDAY MORNING TO EVERYONE!

B.E.A.U.TIFUL

Sooo, lets think about what happened last month. Not much to be honest! There's been a few nights out that have been lots of fun!

I've been working hard at college as its getting closer and closer to the BIG final exams to finish off the whole ordeal that is college...its only taken me, what, four years to finish a two year course?! Well the main thing is I've finally got there and to be quite honest, it feels like such an achievement. I started so many courses and never finished them and finally I've done it. I've coped with crappy lecturers, shrieking girls, annoying teenage boys and  last minute rushing to hand in coursework

We also can't forget, it was the BIG 4 for my little baby sister! The beautiful little thing seemed to have an amazing day, especially for a 4 year old girl. I mean come on, I'd of loved it!!! Check it out
http://creatrish.blogspot.com/2011/05/happy-birthday-alexiane.html

I recently watched a few films and thought I'd do a little review for you so you can the agree/disagree with what I say OR even tempt you!

500 Days Of Summer



This film stars the beautiful Zooey Deschanel as Summer and the not-so-bad-looking Joseph Gordon-Lewitt as Tom, we follow them through their rollercoaster relationship that happens to conveniently last for 500 days!

The film is not in chronological order and begins at the end giving a false idea of how their relationship will finish. It IS a Boy Meets Girl story but not the slightly predictable ones you seem to find on the shelves these days. They both work for a greeting card company where they first meet and become friends, their friendship soon turns to something else but definitely not a relationship according to Summer who does not want to be tied down or even believe in love. Tom on the other hand is completely smitten by Summer and does whatever he can to be the man she falls in love with.

I personally loved the film, it is my type of "love story" even if the ending is slightly sad. There are some great moments in the movie which I shall put links to at the bottom. The comedy is easy to follow, not to dark yet doesn't get the childish humour you sometimes find the script-writers fall back on. Zooey Deschanel looks as beautiful as ever and has so much charm that it just makes you want to be her friend. Joseph Gordon-Lewitt plays a very convincing role when it comes to the broken hearted man and also carries off the charm without coming across as cocky. There are some great visual effects used that give us a real sense of how the characters are feeling and the non-diegetic music works well with each scene it features in.

The soundtrack to this film is AMAZING, I got it as soon as I finished watching the film and is definitely one to look out for, it features the likes of Hall and Oates, The Smiths and Zooeys band She and Him.

Overall I'd give this film a 4.5/5 the only reason it misses out on the 0.5 is because I felt some bits were not necessary, but obviously this is just my point of view!

This part of the film made me feel so happy and the song is just simply the best for cheering you up!

Summer, Tom and a friend all go to a kareoke bar which ends up one of the funny scenes that makes up this movie. Absolutely brilliant!

Tangled

So, this is Disney's latest release and I've got to say it was pretty good actually! It's not their best but it is definitely not their worst either....

This is the story of Rapunzel who eventually decides to venture out into world after being locked up in a tower her entire life by a woman who uses Rapunzel's magical hair to stay young. She meets a young man who is wanted Dead or Alive, basically it's an entertaining adventure that we go on with them that is great for young and old especially if you fancy vegging out. In the end Rapunzel realises that she is actually the little princess who was taken away from the king and queen and has a very happy ending =)

3/5 Not disney's greatest but easy to watch!

The Orphan

 

Now this film is really something!! Ester is a Russian orphan who is adopted by a family of four. One of these four is Max the cutest little girl I've ever seen who is deaf and is befriended by the latest addition to the family. Ester starts off at the seemingly perfect child, who is polite and kind even if she is a little strange. Things soon take a turn for the worse when the mother seems to be losing her mind and putting her family in danger, when in fact it is Ester playing mind games with everyone.
There is a HUGE twist at the end which I won't give away but it is definitely worth watching for it.
I really enjoyed this film, its a psychological horror I guess and its one of the best I've seen in a while.
This film gets a perfect 5/5, it keeps you on the edge on your seat right till the end. I guess it's not exactly for everyone but it was definitely for me =)

And that's all folks for this round! Enjoy the sunshine and keep smiling!

As it seems to be the "in" thing to do right now here is a quote I thought was pretty cool =)

Do not accustom yourself to use big words for little matters.

Adam Ant

For a while we had an on going theme of Adam Ant being mentioned in my English Literature/Language class due to a piece of work that we did. So on the last day we all decided to dress up and so a friend and I decided to dress up as the 80's pop highwayman at the last minute and here is the result...

And here is a the video =)

SHINE ON YOU CRAZY DIAMOND

Well...tonight has been pretty uneventful but brilliant at the same time...

Missing my family in France a lot this evening, done a few things that have reminded me of them.

1. I cooked for my family...which  I only ever did for them (even though it wasnt very often...used to make a beautiful quiche....and the best fried onions for hot dogs!!!)

2. It was sauteed potatoes...My DAD is the BEST at cooking them =D normally with a lovely magree de canard.

3. Had a sneaky look at my beautiful step mums blog and saw all the great things they were doing.

AND FINALLY....

I found an MP3 CD that my dad made for me with all of Pink Floyds albums, so thats now blaring out of my surround sound!!