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Christmas Shoebox Appeal~

So it's now the middle of September and we've already bitten off a huge chunk of 2013 without even realizing it. Scary, isn't it? It's particularly distressing when, like me, you've just spent the best part of a year doing nothing of any real value whatsoever. Luckily, we haven't quite reached the end yet - we've still got three and a half months to redeem ourselves, to make real positive changes to our lives. Unfortunately, I'm finding it very difficult to do this right now as it's chucking it down outside and I'm actually quite cosy tucked up in bed with a mug of hot chocolate. Hmm. Maybe I'll start tomorrow.

Something I have been having some success with is my promise to do more for charity. And what I'm going to talk about today is a very important one, which I jumped at the chance to get involved in. In fact, absolutely anyone can give something to this charity. This is the shoebox appeal. 

You'll probably have heard of it - people are asked to fill a shoebox with little gifts for disadvantaged children living in poverty in some of the poorest countries in the world. These children may never have received a gift before, so this appeal means a whole lot to them and their families. I've been doing it for the past five or six years now, and it's a very fulfilling thing to do. Just knowing that you are putting a smile on a poor child's face on Christmas day is a truly wonderful feeling. Most organisations that do this usually want the boxes in by the end of November, so if you're interested, there's plenty of time to make up a box of your own! I'm going to show you what I've put in this year's box, and you can use it as inspiration if you like.

My finished box

 Generally accepted items include things like hygiene products, school supplies, sweets, toys and clothes. Check with the organisation you're doing it with first though - acceptable items vary between different charities. Usually, there is a list of what you can and cannot put in your shoebox on the organisation's website.

1. Hygiene products

 Kids living in poor countries won't always have access to soap etc, so toiletries like these are a great idea for your shoebox. I have included a two bars of soap (one is Dove Beauty Cream Bar, another is just a pretty one I bought from a market stall), one Colgate toothbrush, a tube of Oral-B Complete toothpaste, a packet of Boots tissues and a pink loufa thingy from the Body Shop. Just a few basic essentials that we take for granted, but could be a luxury for a child living in extreme poverty. You could also add in some shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, deodrant etc, but as my box is aimed at a younger child I didn't really think these were as necessary.

2. Toys and treats

Toys - what every child really wants for Christmas. I'm sure everyone remembers that Christmas morning feeling you got as a child; nothing was ever more exciting than all those new toys and gifts. That's why I think that this is an important thing to include - you could fill up your box with essentials to keep a child clean for months, but without toys it just doesn't seem like a Christmas gift. I bought a Mr Men soft toy, some sparkly hair clasps, three pairs of warm Hello Kitty socks, a packet of cute Hello Kitty plastic rings, some foam stickers and a lavender scented candle. Make sure all the toys you buy are brand new - preferably with the tags still on them. You wouldn't like to receive second-hand presents - and neither would the child! You could also buy some sweets to put in, but some organisations don't allow chocolate in the box - again, check with whoever you're doing this with.

3. School supplies

This is definitely an important one. Many poor children in places like Romania and Nigeria have to spend a lot of time working in the fields to help their parents make a living, from a very young age. Having an education means they can one day escape this life of hard labour and carve out a career for themselves. Most of the time the parents can't afford to spend money on things like pens and calculators, so these could really make a positive difference to a child. I've included a lined notebook, a pocket calculator, some coloured pencils, normal pencils and a multi coloured ballpoint pen. Crayons, erasers, sharpeners etc would also be great things to add to your box.

So, please do consider having a look into this, it's a really worthwhile thing to do and it really doesn't take that much time, effort or money, but can mean the world to a child. Watch the video below to see how much joy this simple gesture can really bring to a child who has nothing. 

Here are some links to a couple of different organisations who participate in the shoebox appeal. Do a bit of research and find one that suits you.

http://www.21stcenturychild.org/shoebox_appeal.html/

http://www.linkromania.co.uk/shoebox-appeal/

http://www.operationchristmaschild.org.uk/

Thanks for reading! 

Rosie xxx

Health Food Obsession~

Hey everyone!

Sorry it's been so long since my last post. I've been pretty busy with school starting, and other exciting things - including my first day at college! I only go twice a week to do psychology, and I'm still at school every day - so maybe not that exciting. But I'm loving the course; actually, I'm loving my last ever school year in general. Perhaps too much - is it okay to be scouring Etsy for vintage prom dresses ten months in advance?!

Anyway, the thing I really wanted to talk about was a new discovery of mine. For the past couple of months I've been trying to live a healthier lifestyle. I'm now going for a jog on my local cycle track three or four days a week, drinking my weight in water, getting at least 8 hours sleep a night - but all this seemed to be in vain. I've never been one for eating my vegetables - the idea of "healthy" food repulsed me. It didn't really help that the healthiest thing my mum buys in is a jumbo carton of Tropicana Orange. I wasn't eating right. I don't blame it all on my mum, obviously. I just had terrible, terrible eating habits.

But here's the good news! I've found a solution. When I was younger (and stupider)  I used to trawl through diet website after diet website trying to find some miracle cure for my extra flab. No luck, obviously - fad diets are a BAD idea, ladies - but I did gain something useful from it. I remember bookmarking this health food website, with no real intention to use it at the time, so when I tried to plan my "new lifestyle" it came into my head and I decided to have another look.

Healthy Supplies sells nutritious, low-calorie foods, drinks, snacks, baking ingredients and more for competitive prices, with excellent customer service. It's great if you want real, proper healthy food that you can trust. I love it!

I've been snacking on freeze-dried strawberries, pumpkin seeds and cashew nuts for months now instead of my previous chocolate fix, and already I feel so much better!

My delivery usually arrives within 3 days, but try to order earlier in the day to get a fast response.

Thanks for reading lovelies, be healthy and happy!

Rosie xxx

My Everyday Makeup~

Hello lovelies!

I've tried out lots and lots of different makeup brands since I bought my first tube of Collection 2000 mascara all those (four) years ago, and up until recently I was still searching for the perfect makeup collection. I've had lots of lovely products before but I was always missing something; whether it be a good concealer to match my foundation, a lip colour that matches my skintone or an eyeshadow palette where I'd like and use every single colour (VERY rare for me). But now, I think I've found it - a horde of twelve or so everyday products I keep coming back to. Good qualitiy, affordable high street products I'm happy to recommend to you all! Click on the name of the product to open a new window which links you directly to the product information and where to buy! Enjoy, and please tell me in the comments if you agree with my choices, or have another amazing product you'd like to share. xxx

My current makeup collection August 2013

You'll probably recognize a few of the products in the picture. I read many many beauty blogs myself and if enough people really rave about one product, I'm likely to go straight to Superdrug's website and order one for myself! If I'm unsure, I'll try and find a sample size - but a couple of recommendations have proved to be very successful, and I've re-purchased continuously ever since.

PRIMER

The first product I'll reach for in the morning when doing my makeup is Benefit's Pore-Fessional pore minimizing primer; a relatively-pricey-but-so-so-worth-it product that gives the best possible base for your foundation. I particularly love the smell and consistency - it gives a smooth, matte finish when applied to your skin and helps foundation glide on smoothly. A lot of people like it for its pore-minimizing qualities, hence the name, but large pores has never been an issue of mine, so it wasn't a big feature for me. Overall it's a great primer, easily the best I've ever used, and definitely a recommendation. Like I said, it's a little on the expensive side: roughly £25. The one shown in the photographs is a sample size I got in the "How To Look The Best At Eveything" makeup kit, which was a mistake for me as the lightest shades in the set are about three shades too dark for me, so it was kind of a waste on money as only the primer was usable.  I'll just be buying the primer itself from now on.

PROS: great smell, lovely texture on the skin, helps keep foundation on for longer

CONS: very expensive, and you get relatively small amount

FOUNDATION

Next I'll apply my foundation, Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation in shade 100 - Ivory. If you read a lot of beauty blogs you'll know all about this latest craze - everybody seems to love it, and it's no wonder. It's got a lovely, shimmery finish and really does give you a radiant, rejuvenated glow - perfect for covering up a late night! It's a high street foundation therefore it's highly affordable and can be found in most drugstores - price ranges from £8-10. The only downside to this is that, like most high street foundations, their lightest shade is too dark for my pale skintone. Luckily, I decided to persevere with this one and I can get away with it provided I spend about ten minutes meticulously blending around my jawline and neck. Additionally, the colour looks a bit scary-dark when applied but adapts somewhat to your skin during the day, so it's not really a big problem. One of my favourite foundations of all time, this one is 100% recommended!

PROS: shimmery finish, good coverage

CONS: could be too dark for paler skinned girls

CONCEALER

This next one I'm particularly excited about. Collection (formerly Collection 2000) Lasting Perfection Concealer in shade 1 - Fair. This a liquid concealer that comes with its own applicator, and it's been a staple in my makeup bag for months now. Previously, I would always go for a Rimmel concealer stick, which I literally only bought because it was cheap and did its job - not because I actually liked it. Which I really didn't. Liquid concealer works much better for me, because it's easier to blend and lasts longer, as well as giving improved coverage. The bags under my eyes are one of my biggest insecurities but this little lovely manages to keep them at bay for hours on end. The applicator is particularly appealing to me as I don't love too much finger on face contact, as this can spread bacteria and give you spots. To conclude, this is easily the best concealer I've ever purchased - and the cherry on top is the price. £4.99 from Superdrug, and it's miles better than any Benefit concealer I've tried, which can go right up in to the £20 range. While I maintain that you often do get what you pay for, sometimes you just find a little drugstore gem you'll repurchase again and again!

PROS: long-lasting coverage, useful applicator

CONS: none! go buy it now!

POWDER

After my concealer I'll usually move on to powder. I don't use powder everyday - sometimes I like to go for a more fresh, dewy look which I think powder can take away from - but it does help set your base and make your foundation last that bit longer. I'm not too fussy when it comes to powder, but my favourite at the moment has to be Rimmel's Stay Matte Pressed Powder in shade 001 - Transparent. It's light, yet gives good, even coverage without looking too obvious. Costing around the £4 mark it's definitely affordable. Remember, a good brush is essential when applying powder - it will help stop powder collecting in dry areas. 

PROS: light, natural finish, prevents shine on skin

CONS: essential that you apply it sparingly, not great if you need very strong coverage

BLUSHER

I then apply my blusher - my favourite is the super cute Bourjois Paris blush pot in 37 - Rose Pompon.  The powder is rose scented, which I love - it's very sweet, very classic. The packaging is also lovely - although it's very small, there's quite a lot of product packed in there. Included are a little compact mirror and a curved mini brush, which I wouldn't use as I'm in love with the blusher brush I'm currently using, but it would be nice for someone who doesn't really care about the type of brush they use. The colour of the blusher is very natural, and gives a youthful, rosy glow to the apples of your cheeks. One of my favourite items in my makeup bag, you should definitely give it a go!

PROS:  beautiful scent, natural glowing colour, cute packaging, affordable

CONS: very small pot, won't last as long as some other blushers

EYESHADOW

Until last year, I never wore eyeshadow - I was strictly eyeliner-only on my eyelids. I recently started getting into wearing it as I enjoy blending different colours and seeing what I can come up with. That's only when I'm feeling creative, though - this H&M Nude Eyeshadow Palette is all I really need on an everyday basis. A lot of people tend to assume that H&M makeup is poor quality just because it's cheap - this couldn't be further from the truth. I personally think that a lot of H&M cosmetics are fantastic value for money, especially the eyeshadows - lovely colours, good staying power. I bought this palette on a whim one day because I happened to like the colours, and I've never looked back! The colours in the palette are creamy white, nude, muted pink, light and dark grey. I tend to use the nude as a base up to my browbone, and then the pink on my eyelids. I think blend the lighter grey into the outer corners to create a toned down, slightly smokey eye that's suitable to daily wear. If I'm going out somewhere nice, I'll replace the pink with the light grey and blend the dark grey into the corners instead. Very versatile product, no complaints about this one at all!

PROS: lovely colours, very affordable

CONS: none

EYEBROW PENCIL

                             

Doing my eyebrows always used to be a challenge for me - I could never get them right. For a while, in my early teens, I went around with those horrid slug eyebrows you see on some girls today - only because I didn't know any better! Thankfully I've managed to tone it down a little now and I keep them much more groomed too. The pencil I use is 2True Expert Eyebrow Pencil in shade 02. It comes with a very handy eyebrow brush, which is perfect for achieving that polished look. It's also not too dark and very easy to blend. This shade is a little too light for me, though - I'll definitely still be repurchasing however, just with a darker shade. That's what I get for impulsive internet buys!

PROS: blends smoothly, helpful eyebrow brush

CONS: be careful choosing your shade!

MASCARA

To finish off my eyes, I use my most loved makeup product of all time - mascara. And surprise surprise, it's everybody's favourite - Benefit's They're Real! No wonder it's the UK's no.1. Seriously, this stuff gives length and volume like no other mascara I've ever used. It's very thick in consistency and really black in colour - which means it can result in clumps if you're not careful. Being a Benefit cosmetic, it's quite pricey - £19.50 for one tube - but you won't get results like this from any high street mascara. This is the queen of all mascaras - I'll honestly never go back. Unless I'm really poor and really desperate one day. 

PROS: incredible length, curl and volume

CONS: tendency to clump, must use extreme care

LIPS

Last but by no means least, lip products! I tend to go between two different shades of the Revlon Lip Butter collection - Juicy Papaya and Sweet Tart. There are loads of gorgeous shades available, but I keep coming back to these two. The texture is really lovely - it feels really smooth on your lips, and is very buttery - but it will still last a couple of hours. You do need to reapply fairly regularly, especially after eating or drinking, but that's the case with most lip products. The colour can be built up on your lips, so you can either go for a sheer look or make the colour really bold. One problem I've encountered is that if you don't exfoliate and moisturise away all the dry skin on your lips before application, it can end up looking quite flaky. Even so, I'm in love with these products and they're my go-to lipsticks for everyday wear. I absolutely recommend you give these a go. 

PROS: lovely colours, soft and buttery texture, relatively long-lasting

CONS: can highlight chapped lips and look flaky

So that's it my lovelies! My favourite cosmetics for a casual, everyday look this summer. I'll do another one of these when the cold weather comes and some products may change a little, so stay tuned for that! Please remember to leave me a comment and tell me all of your favourite beauty products and I'll definitely try and give them a whirl. I hope you have a lovely day!

Rosie xxx

West Highland Way~

A short summary of my WHW experience!

Hello lovelies! Before the start of this summer, I'd never really done anything for charity. Unless you count carting off a bag of unwanted cardigans and old jackets to the local hospice shop a couple of times a month, and maybe giving in a pound for Jeans for Genes day at school. I wanted to do something that would actually make some kind of a difference (even though I didn't really earn that much money at the end of it). I had the idea to do the West Highland Way after my friend mentioned she was doing it with her school. In case you don't know what the West Highland Way is, it's a 97 mile walk through the beautiful hills of the west of Scotland - really lovely if you're into views and scenery, like I am. Less lovely if you're not into strenuous exercise. A category into which I also fall. So, as you can imagine, this walk was certainly an adventure - after surviving solely on lucozade and aspirin for almost a whole week, I'm keen to share my story. I thoroughly enjoyed this walk for the most part, but it was certainly an interesting experience!

My dad, my sister and I looking fetching at the starting point 

I have to apologize for the extremely poor picture quality - because of the constant rain and frequent storms we didn't want to get the proper cameras out, so what you're seeing right now is the product of an eight year old Nokia flip phone courtesy of my dad. Sorry about that.

I recruited my dad and my sister to join me for moral support, and we set off on Monday the 22nd of July. As you can see from the picture, I was feeling optimistic about the weather. Or maybe I just didn't want to be recognized...

My outfit: 

T shirt - Tribes shirt, I bought at the NME Awards Tour 2012 for £10.00
Hoodie - Criminal Damage, from Pulp in St Ennoch's Centre, Glasgow for £35.00
Leggings - Primark, £4.00
Sunglasses - Vintage, thrift shop in Cornwall, £6.00
Boots - Walking boots, North Face, £55.00
Hat - TK Maxx, £5.00


We decided to break the walk down into six days; going from twelve miles in one day to almost thirty in another. If the weather had held up okay, it might have been pleasant enough. And on the first day, it was lovely: a nice, easy walk with minimal uphill ground and plently of sunshine. When we got to where we were staying that night; which was a B&B set up in an old converted church called "Kip in the Kirk" (highly recommended if you're ever thinking about staying in Drymen!), we had no idea of what lay ahead. But that's what made it exciting!

Unfortunately, we had just wandered up Conic Hill on day two, right when a major lightening storm was scheduled to hit. "Just keep going!" my dad said optimistically. "If we get over it quickly enough, we might miss the storm!"
We did not miss the storm. Within about five minutes my first poncho was soaked through, as were the contents of my rucksack. Traipsing over that thing in the cold and wet Scottish weather, while watching the faint withers of smoke drift from trees in the distance was not my idea of an ideal Monday afternoon.

Coming down Conic Hill after the storm

After a certain point it became apparent that it was too dangerous to continue over the hill in the midst of the storm. Not only were we a little shaken by all of the lightening strikes on the trees around us, but an ominous mist had settled around the reasonably narrow walkway right at the top of the mountain - meaning we couldn't see where we were going! One wrong step and we could've been in trouble. So, we edged our way to a little wooded area and found a clearing, where we discovered the rest of the walkers had had the same idea. After sitting in there for about 25 minutes waiting for the storm to subside we had befriended a nice French couple who offered to take our picture (above) and had sorted out ponchos, rainjackets and everything else we needed to continue for the next couple of miles. Even so, I was pretty much losing the will to live. 

 Looking my very best in my bright blue poncho

Because of the harsh weather conditions, we didn't really get to appreciate the wonderful scenery until we were a good way down the hill - but it was lovely when we did. I wanted to get my camera out but knew it wasn't really sensible. 

The third day was a tough walk, with lots of hills and uneven ground. But what was really memorable about day three was the accomodation - wigwams at the lovely Beinglas Farm, near Loch Lomond. Very basic accomodation, but still better than camping, which would also mean lugging a heavy tent around with me on top of everything in my rucksack. Yeah. Not camping was an alright idea.
Again, Beinglas Farm is definitely recommended - it's a beautiful campsite with areas to pitch your tent as well as the wigwams which you can hire for roughly £25 per night for one person. Surrounded by mountains and with a lovely stream and free roaming sheep, it was an ideal place to relax after a hard day. But, we knew we had to prepare ourselves for tomorrow's feat; day four, our longest walk yet.

Little sheep making their way across a pretty stream at Beinglas Farm

We walked from Beinglas to Tyndrum and went to the famous Real Food Cafe in the evening to see its claims of having the "best fish and chips in the UK" were true. I wasn't overly impressed, but I'm not a big fish lover anyway.
At the end of day four's walk, which was very long and very tiring, we stopped at a hotel and had our first bath and rest for days. My sister and I also had a television in our rooms, so we took the opportunity to check the weather forecast for the next day. And it was bad news.

"Scotland will be facing even more storms tomorrow at about one o'clock, particularly in the Western areas."

There was no way we could've avoided that - if we went after the storm had finished, which could have been hours, we may have still been walking into the wee hours of the morning. Similarly, if we'd tried to make it before one o'clock, there was the high chance of us getting caught in it whilst on the top of the Devil's Staircase - 547 metres high, completely exposed to the lightning. It was too risky. We had to call it a day.

Arrangements have already been made to complete the last two days and we were all gutted, me especially, that we couldn't finish it all in one. However, everyone who sponsored me still seems perfectly willing to give me their money, so it's all worked out okay! I've raised roughly £250, which isn't much really - but I'm still proud of the achievement I made. All I can say now is, to be continued!

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The charity I was raising money for is called Alliance for Youth Development UK, and is an organisation based in Ghana that aims to give a voice to women and children who often don't have one as a result of Ghanaian traditions. A girl named Shadee is in the process of building an orphanage in Ghana and the work she's been doing is so inspirational! Please, if you can it'd be great if you could donate!

You can find the page on facebook by searching the name of the charity, or click here to go directly to their website, where you'll find a "donate" button if you want to help this wonderful organisation make a real difference to disadvantaged children. Thank you!

I hope to do lots more to help raise funds for this organisation and others this year, so if you have any comments or suggestions I'd absolutely love to hear them! Remember, you can comment here or contact me directly using the e-mail address you'll find on the Contact page.

I hope you're all doing well!

Love Rosie xxx

The Juice Curb~

Evening, lovelies!

Since the beginning of summer I've been on a mission to trim my waistline and make myself a little healthier for the new school term. So far no noticeable results. I'm not ginormously fat, but I do think my figure could be improved. So how am I going to go about achieving that?

My biggest downfall when it comes to weight loss is my love of sugary drinks. Surprisingly enough, I'm not talking about fizzy drinks -  I could live easily without Coke or Fanta in my life. It's fruit juice that I love; when there's juice in my house, I almost never drink water. And there's almost always juice in my house.

I know what you're thinking.
"Did she say fruit juice? Surely that's healthy enough?"
Unfortunately, this is a common misconception - for the most part, fresh juice in cartons like Tropicana IS healthy - a good source of vitamin C among other things. However, you'd be much better off having an actual orange than a glass of orange juice because a lot of the fibre from the fruit comes from the skin. In addition, it's absolutely packed with sugar. Just 12 ounces of grape juice can contain up to 15 teaspoons of sugar; and there was me gulping down five or six glasses per day. Oh, and that was just the natural, 100% juice stuff. Don't even get me STARTED on the juice drinks which actually have added sugar and sweeteners. You do the maths. I've been taking in WAAAAY too much sugar.

My excessive consumption of fruit juices/juice drinks is, I think, the reason I don't yet have the figure I want. I don't eat much - in fact I can get by on very little food each day (this is NOT recommended - V V V UNHEALTHY) but my lack of exercise due to having to stay in and study, and drinking sugar-filled, artificial rubbish every day is not helping me obtain a nice slim waist. Weirdly enough.

GAME PLAN: I'm cutting back on juice and juice drinks. Not just cutting back, in fact. I'm completely withdrawing it from my diet altogether. Training myself to drink water and ONLY water will be difficult, but if I let my guard down just once and allow myself a glass of apple juice, I just know I'll be hooked again.

Now, the last thing I want to do is put you all off drinking fresh juice. As previously mentioned, it's full of lovely vitamins and minerals to keep your body healthy, and even counts towards one of your five-a-day. The only reason I am avoiding it is because I drink too much of it. As long as you drink plenty of water and make that your main source of hydration, you can include juice into your diet, in relatively small amounts. I'm no nutritionist, but believe me, I've done my research! And I have to tell you that so far, I'm feeling much better. I have more energy, and it's only been three days! Result.

So, my lovelies, I'll let you know a little later how the Juice Curb is getting on and whether or not I've stuck to my game plan. Hopefully I'll manage it, and I'd love to hear your comments and suggestions! Click the Contact Me tab on the home page and drop me an e-mail. Hope you're all having a wonderful day.

Love, Rosie xxx

An Introduction~

Hola, lovelies!

For a while now, I've had a profound urge to start a proper blog. None of this Tumblr, let's-repost-pictures-of-Sherlock-and-claim-we're-blogging business (though I'd be lying if I said I haven't spent many an evening scrolling through the Doctor Who fandom pages). The dilemma at hand was finding a "theme" - be it beauty, fashion, art, music - but nothing seemed to jump out at me. Eventually I concluded that the best approach would be to create a blog, make it pretty, and then just start writing and see what I can come up with. So - here goes!

I think an appropriate way to kick-start my fabulous new blog would be to introduce myself properly. 

My name is Rosie, but you can definitely call me Ro. I love being called Ro. 

I'm seventeen years old and in my sixth and final year of high school. When I leave, I'd like to study psychology. After that I am 100% lost and confused and terrified about the future. Fun.  I'm very much in love with fairy lights, books, scented candles, flowers, perfume, Blondie, the 60s, vintage clothes, beauty products, Doctor Who, beaches, pomegranate tea, glitter, cats and Christmas. The Secret Garden is the best film ever made and I could watch it every day for the rest of my life. Included in my most prized and precious possessions are my Blondie ticket from their Blast Off gig on the 1st of July 2013 (Debbie's 68th, might I add - how many of you can say you sang happy birthday to Ms Harry herself?) and a lovely Charlie Bear named Betty my mum bought me during a trip to Cornwall, one of my very favourite places. I can be sarcastic and dry but that's really just my way of showing my love. 

So, my lovelies, I'm pretty chuffed to have finished my first blog post, however small it may be, and I hope you've enjoyed getting to know me better. Do come back soon to find out what kind I've rubbish I'll write next, and drop me a comment to let me know your thoughts! xxx