The London Candle

     Right after Christmas there are always the best deals everywhere, and where I scored big was at Bath and Body Works. My favorite thing to have around my room are candles because they give off that calming feeling and smell. My favorite type of candle to get is the three wick candles, but those are always crazy expensive so when I see a deal for them I go crazy. When I went into Bath and Body works, they had the candle, London. London is the one place I want to travel to, I have always been obsessed with it, so when I saw the London candle I was over the moon.

     Now the scent of the candle is lemon and tea, I was not surprised with the tea part because everyone knows that English people love their tea just like Americans love their coffee. The scent that did surprise me though was the lemon, because I didn't know how well that would mesh together. I love the scent lemon by itself but when added to the tea smell, it smells even more amazing. 

     Right away when I smelled the candle, it smelled like the drink Arnold Palmer. Arnold Palmer is the drink created by Arnold Palmer himself, and it is just tea and lemonade mixed together. Thankfully I love the drink, so it is like a win- win, amazing candle smell and amazing drink to think of. I think Bath and Body Works did a great job with this candle. 

**images provided by Google

Book Review: Luckiest Girl Alive

     One of my favorite types of YouTube videos to watch are book hauls and favorite books of the month. That is where I get my ideas on books I should read and it is always nice to hear what other people thought about a book. Anyways, I was watching Scarlett Turners book favorites video and she mentioned Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll. Scarlett's description of the book mentioned that it is similar to the book and film, Gone Girl. I only saw the movie version of Gone Girl, it was very interesting/ twisted movie, so when it was mentioned in the favorites video that the two are similar, I automatically knew I wanted to read it.

     When reading this book, it did have some strong language and kind of graphic moments, so I would suggest that this book only be read by a more mature and older audience. Reading this book, it was kind of confusing at the beginning because the author would write in present day and then the next chapter would be a flash back to her child/teen years. It takes a couple of chapters to get used to because you'll go from her life in NYC working at for a magazine and then it will flash back to her life in high school, but it all makes sense and wraps everything together at the end of the book.

Jessica Knoll 

     Luckiest Girl Alive, was kind of like a mystery, because the main character, Ani (TifAni), that we follow throughout the story keeps shadowing on a very important part of her life but we never know what that important thing is until near the end of the book. So the whole time you are reading you are trying to put the little bits of insight together to figure out what happened to this girl, but when you reach the end I would not have guessed in a million years what had happened to that girl.

     A lot of people did reference the book to Gone Girl, and yes at some parts you could see the similarities because of the gory kind of details, but for a lot of the book it did not really connect. Gone Girl, was very dramatic and kind of cynical with the woman planning her murder to play it off that her husband did it and also pretending she was dead while she was actually off in a new state with a new identity. That was very extreme to say the least. In Luckiest Girl Alive, it was intense in its own because the worst of it happens in the end when you find everything out, but there are some bad scenes through out the book as well.

quote from the book

     To be honest, after reading this book I felt a bit depressed for Ani (main character). Through out the entire book, Ani, would size herself up to other woman and compare her looks, and then when she was done comparing she would make the decision if she was better or the other woman was. How exhausting would that be to think about that all of the time. **SPOILER ALERT** It was also an eye opener to what happens to women that are raped and how negatively they are treated by other people saying it's there fault they were not being careful. How is that right? **SPOILER ALERT DONE**

     Overall I think this book was well written and how the author did those flashbacks every other chapter, so you could really understand the story line better. I recommend this book for a more mature audience, like maybe 17 (at the least) and up, just because of the language and some scenes are bit graphic. Other than that, I think this book could be a good lesson for people, and a huge eye opener to what actually does happen in the real world and what sadly still happens in the world.

**all pictures are provided by Google
   

Current Favorite YouTuber: SacconeJolys

     At the beginning when I first started my blog, I wrote about YouTube and what it is. Now I want to write to you about who I am really liking at the moment. This way if you are un sure of who to watch on YouTube or if you really even want to bring YouTube into your life, this post might help you. Now on YouTube there are many different categories, like beauty, lifestyle, DIY, music covers, and vlogging. You may think I have a typo and it should be blogging, but actually vlogging is where you document what you did in one day, or over a week, on camera. Instead of writing everything down, you film it. I love vlogs because it shows me what other people are doing on a day to day basis and it is kind of cool to watch someone's else's life and watch them grow. Sounds creepy but really it is pretty interesting.

     The vloggers that I love right now are the SacconeJolys which you already knew from the title, but they are a family of four. The members of the family are, Jonathan Joly (dad), Anna Saccone (mom), Emilia (age 3), and Eduardo (age 2). They are an Irish family that now currently live in London, England, and they have been vlogging every single day of their lives for five years now. You might be thinking, oh how could you vlog every single day for the past five years, what about holidays, etc. The family has always found time to edit the vlog and upload, I don't know how they manage with two toddlers, but what they do and it is amazing.

     What I really like about them is that, through out the day, Jonathan will vlog the kids morning routines before Emilia goes to school or ballet, and then he will vlog what he generally likes to do while the kids are asleep or with Anna. Then we have Anna's perspective, she will vlog what she does on a typical day, it could be working out, playing with the kids or going on errands. Typically on the weekdays Emelia has school and Eduardo goes to swim lessons, or day care, but on the weekends the family either goes on family trips to a friends house, or does walks in the parks. Also, the family tends to travel a lot, especially for YouTube events and meetings. For example, every year, the SacconeJolys go to this event called VidCon and that is in California, and the family travels all the way from London.

     Something that really stands out in the family is that Anna has a little obsession with dogs, and so they own six dogs. The dogs are all the same breed and they all look exactly the same, so to tell them apart, they all wear different colored bows and different color sweaters. What makes having six dogs even more funny is that they have their own personalities, Bianca (red bow) she can be very jealous so if she sees Anna is giving one of the dogs more attention, Bianca has no problem with voicing her thoughts (lots of growling and whining). I just think it is interesting and funny to watch how all these dogs act and how the little toddlers don't mind getting bumped around and slobbered to death.

     Over the five years we have seen Anna and Jonathan get married, and then the nine month process of Emilia being born, then 18 months later came Eduardo. I find it very interesting how you can go back five years and watch how Anna and Jonathan lived their lives with no children and then go to present day and see how they live now with two children. It is just nice to go onto YouTube everyday and see what they have got up to the previous day before, and see what cute and daring things Eduardo and Emilia did.

SacconeJoly's Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/LeFloofTV
**all images were provided by Google

Writers Block

     There comes a time life where you can't think of anything. It may come during school, during work or just anytime you are forced to do something all of the time. For example, I am have this blog page because it is required for a class and in this class we have to upload three times a week. When I look at other blog post written by professionals who may do it for their job, they maybe upload once or twice every couple of weeks. Since I am forced to write three posts a week, it becomes tough to think of what to write. I am actually only writing this because I have writer's block and am very annoyed at my teacher. I guess though I can give you tips for when you may have writers block and they are what I usually use when I get writers block. I am not using them now because I am tired of writing and being creative.

     The first thing I usually go to is looking at other people's blog, that may include peoples blogs from my class or professional blogs. Usually when I do this, I'll look at their posts and try to create my own version of it or get an idea from it. It works most of the time but if you are like me right now and don't feel the creativity flowing then I suggest you skip this tip.

     For the less creative side, just go to google and type in ideas for ... and just look through the results. I usually type in idea for blog posts on lifestyle, and I can usually find multiple different things to write about.

     Another thing could be to look around your area or room and find an object, once you find an object, try to branch off different things with it. For example, I am looking at clock and clock has to do with time, oh I can write about how to use time efficiently, or what you can do to past the time. This one you do have to be pretty creative with, but if you find the right thing, you can make many ideas.

     Writers block happens to me very often, and I am pretty sure that is the same way for many other people. I've seen different types of block, like on Project Runway, you see the designers have no creativity left when it comes to making their own line for New York Fashion Week, so they try to go out and find inspiration or they just take some time away from designing and come back with a fresh mind. I think don't think writers block is necessarily a bad thing, it just means you are doing too much of something and you need to take a breather. Hopefully these tips helped or you have your own, but this did help me with my writers block by writing about it, so theres another tip I guess.

**images provided by Google

Product Review: Burts Bee's Chapstick

     Every year when winter rolls around, everything starts to become more dry and chapped when it comes to the face area. I typically have oily skin but in the winter time that all changes to dry, especially my lips so one of the easiest and nice smelling way's to ease up the dryness is with chap stick. I love chap stick all year round but when it comes to winter time, it changes from a want to a need, I think that is how it is for everyone else. You can get all sorts of chap sticks, but if you really want the dryness and chapped lips to go away, you are going to need a good long lasting chap stick. I have always stuck to one brand, and that is the brand Chapstick, it has proven to work in the past, but I was getting tired of it and I wanted to try something new and with new scents.

     The other day I was ordering a watch, and to get free shipping I needed five more dollars so I was just scrolling through Target's website and came across a four pack of Burt's Bees lip balm. In the four pack are mango, coconut & pear, pomegranate, and pink grapefruit. Those flavors caught my eye instantly and the packaging looked really nice because it had the color of each flavor on the cap. For example, the pink grapefruit has a pink cap, it is the little details that really sells a person. The packaging and flavors were a definite thumbs up.

     Something else that you want to look for in a good chap stick is if it contains a good amount of moisture. All chap stick have moisture, but the better ones have more. It helps the dryness and takes away the chap from your lips. On the packaging of the lip balm, it says moisturizing lip balm and let me tell you, it has the right amount of moisture. Right after you apply the balm to your lips, you can instantly feel the difference and you can feel it helping your lips out. It did not let me down with the moisture.

     A weird or maybe common thing that I look for is not only if it smells good but also if it tastes good. Hopefully I am not the only one who loves to try the lip balm. With Burt's Bees, the smell is point on, the coconut & pear, and pink grapefruit have the most spot on perfect smell. When it comes to taste though, they are pretty bland, so if you are one of those people who like to lick the lip balm, this one is not good. Other than that I think the smell covers for the bland taste.

     Overall I was very impressed with Burt's Bees chap stick. The winter season is almost over but that does not mean stop using lip balms. Don't leave your lips behind when it comes to care, they are very important and the worst feeling is defiantly cracked lips. You can typically find Burt's Bees chap stick in local stores or drug stores, but for the more unique chap stick flavors look online. So, if you are need of new chap stick or just want to spice things up, defiantly give Burt's Bees a try.

**images provided by Google

Website Review: Etsy

     A month or two ago I was scrolling through my Instagram feed and sadly advertisements have now made it to social media. For once though I actually liked what was being advertised because they were phone cases and I was in need of a new one. After clicking on the ad, I discovered that the website didn't just specialize in phone cases. Etsy has many things on it's website, it has clothes, jewelry, wedding stuff, vintage, and home décor. There are so many things and after I had bought my new phone case from them, I decided to have a look through the clothes they have.

the phone case I bought

     I soon discovered that they have items from countries all over the world. I could scroll through clothes from Romania, Spain, Chile, London, Hong Kong, etc. Since I love things all British, I looked through the items from London and they have one specific design that was Harry Potter inspired. It was a crew neck/ jumper and it has the classic Harry Potter glasses and the famous lightning bolt scar. To make it even better, they had multiple colors you could get it in and it had my favorite, maroon. Very pleased with that bonus.

     Something else that made me very happy with the website was that it told you the exact location of were your item would be made and how many they have in stock. For example, when I was looking for phone cases, they would have the number of each case that was ready to be shipped so for my sunflower design case, it had like a little over thirty ready to go. I thought that was kind of cool because you got to see which one is more popular compared to others. Also when I bought the jumper, it said that it was being made in Liverpool, England.

     With Etsy, they make and carry things that you have always wanted but it was the kind of thing that everyone had so you wanted to make it kind of unique. I can tell you, the things I find on Etsy are things that I have not seen anyone with, and it is a good thing. Everything they make is very unique and very modern looking. I am not going to lie, one Sunday afternoon I spent two hours just looking through their website because they are so many categories and different things.

      I can honestly say that this website works for everyone's style. If you are more of a vintage person and like to wear old school clothes, they have a place for that. If you are a more modern sleek style, they have the perfect accessories and clothes for that. You may be more into the relaxed look of sweaters and sweatshirts, they have the most unique sweatshirts ever. They make wearing sweatshirts comfortable and fun. I recommend this website to everyone, it doesn't matter if you want home décor or music instruments, they have everything. Definitely give this website a go, but I recommend giving yourself a good or hour or two to do so because there is a ton of stuff to look at.  

**pictures provided by Etsy

The Dreaded or Non Dreaded Valentines Day

     Okay Valentines day is coming up and for some people that could be the worst day of the year or the best. For me personally I am neutral because it gives me an excuse to lots and lots of chocolate without being judged. For other people it could be the day that brings back sad memories or it creates the best memories. Some memories Valentines day has brought me are from movies, television shows, songs.

     The most stand out Valentines day memory is from the movie Valentines Day. That movie showed you the up's and down's on that day. You had a woman throwing a 'I Hate Valentines Day' party and you had young couples celebrating their first. It showed me the different ways people celebrate it and the different ways people dread it in a very comedic way.
  

    Recently I watched a video on YouTube by "How to Cake It" and Yolanda (the person who makes the cakes), she made a real look a like heart out of cake and it was amazing. While Yolanda made the heart cake, she would put in little comments about her thoughts on how much Valentines day sucks. It is definitely the video to watch if you hate this particular day, very comedic.



Yolanda's cake

     Valentines day may not be the happiest day for some people, but you just have to find the positives. As I mentioned above, I found the positive in all of the chocolate I get to eat and then the day after Valentines day, it is half priced chocolate ! Whatever you are doing on Valentines day, hopefully you are making the lightest of it and not moping around.

    

Pixi Beauty Review

       Recently I ordered three different Pixi beauty products, because I have been looking for a new face cleanser routine. I actually found Pixi beauty from one of my youtubers that I watch and her review of it made me do more research on it to see it actually worked. Most review that I read were positive and they said the products work for all skin types, so I thought let's give it a go.

     In the mornings I never have the energy to clean my face so it is on a rare occasion that I do, and I have noticed that I really need to change that. When I was looking at Pixi's website I found these makeup remover/ cleansing clothes. It acts as a cleanser for morning and night, so at night after you have been putting whatever makeup on your face, this cloth will take it off. In the morning when you use one it cleans the oil that has built up and is a nice base to put on your face. When I received these and used one, I noticed that they are not like other moisturizing cloths because usually when you pull one out the pack there is a bit of wetness on the cloths but with these clothes you can't feel that amount of moisture. I thought this was a bad thing and that I received a dud, but actually it works just as well when removing my makeup and leaves my skin feeling soft and clean. I recommend this product for people who don't like going through the wetting your skin process and then rubbing in a cream every morning, this is very simple and just a swipe of a cloth.

     The next product I ordered was the glow tonic. This product kind of goes hand in hand with the cleansing cloths because after you have just wiped all the oils and dirt off, you take a couple drops of this onto a little cotton round and wipe it over your face to brighten your skin and treat it. I have heard high reviews from this product so when I looked it up, I was not surprised to find a lot of good reviews for it and a common positive from the reviews is that it contains no alcohol in it, which is a very good thing. Since this was my first time using this brand, I ordered the small, kind of travel size bottle (100 ml) and I kind of wish now that I ordered the 250 ml one because I have noticed a difference in my skin. I have the kind of skin where I get acne in the places I touch my skin the most, which is my chin and the sides of my face so after using this product it has reduced the redness and craziness of my acne. I definitely recommend this product for anyone who is having troubles controlling their acne.

   
     Lastly I ordered the glow mud mask as kind of a fun purchase, I love trying new masks so I thought a mud mask would be cool to try. This mask is to help breakouts and to just make your skin look more clear. It is on the pricey side but I thought it would be worth it and if I liked it that would be a bonus. When I received this in the mail I was quite shocked with the size of it, I knew it would be small but the bottle size is the length of palm and let me tell you, I have the smallest hands. I tried to over look the detail but when I tried to squeeze some of the mud mask out, I noticed that half of the bottle was completely air, so not only did I get a small bottle for a pricey amount of money, half of the bottle was just air! When I put the mask on my face it worked average, it was not the best mask I have ever tried and it certainly was not worth the amount of money I paid for it. I do not recommend this product, there are better face masks out there for a cheaper price.

     Overall I am pretty happy with everything I ordered, I don't know yet if I will re stock on the items when I run out, but we will see. The cleansing cloths and tonic that I talked about above were a pretty decent price, so if you're on a budget I am pretty sure you could get these. Again if you are one of those people who has no energy in the morning and at night to clean your face, I recommend the products above because they take me only two  minutes to do everyday and face is loving me for it.

**all images provided by Pixi Beauty 

My Favorite Blog Pages

     When I am not writing blog posts for school, I like to look at other blog pages and the one's I look at are at a more professional level than mine. I found these blogs through who I watch on Youtube, and they are who I go to, to get ideas on blogs and just an overall idea on how to write a proper blog post. The three blogs that I will be talking about are Zoe Sugg aka Zoella, Tanya Burr, and Poppy Deyes. All three are in the lifestyle/how to category, and that is what I based my blog off of.

Zoe Sugg

     Zoe Sugg has had her blog for about nine years I believe and she has had a Youtube channel for four years. I first discovered Zoe, through Youtube, and when she announced she had been writing a book because someone saw how well her blog was laid out and how well she could write, I thought I should give her blog a look. The reason I like Zoe's blog so much, is because she gives amazing DIY's of what to do in your house or for gifts, and she shows recipes that she has made or come up with that are so interesting. Personally since I found her through Youtube, it was kind of cool to see how she worked through writing, and to see how her personality would show in her blog posts. Zoe also tends to blog about her dog, Nala, and I like how she gives that bit of insight into her home life. I recommend Zoe's blog to anyone who likes to learn new things to do around the house or just to read about someone else's life and what they like to do or what they are loving at the moment.



Gift Wrapping idea blog post

      The next blog I look at is Tanya Burr's blog. I also discovered her through Youtube first and she

Tanya Burr

would often mention her blog in her videos. Tanya's blog is more about fashion and makeup because she often will film a makeup tutorial or get ready with me for her Youtube channel and then she will put in her blog what products or clothes she uses/wears and why she likes them. Kind of like Zoe's, Tanya will let you inside to her home life and write about a recent trip she went on or about her dog, Martha. Actually, Tanya recently went to South Africa for her honeymoon with Jim Chapman, and she wrote about her whole trip and included pictures. Those posts are definitely my favorites from her so far. I recommend Tanya's blog, for people who are more into makeup and fashion and would like to know about the latest trends.

From Tanya's recent blog post

     Poppy Deyes recently started her blog back in early 2015, and I found her blog through her

Poppy Deyes

brother Alfie Deyes, who is a Youtuber that I follow. Poppy and Alfie both have similar likes, they both love photography, but I think Poppy is more into the photos and writing part, Alfie has a better way of communicating through video. The reason I love Poppy's blog is because she has three different categories and they are, lifestyle, food, and travel. When Poppy does a blog post, she puts so much effort and quality into each post, especially if it is a food post. I really recommend Poppy's blog to anyone because her blog shows amazing places to visit, where the best place to eat is, and amazing food recipes that she is enjoying.

Breakfast in January post

Zoe's Blog: https://www.zoella.co.uk/
Tanya's Blog: http://www.tanyaburr.co.uk/
Poppy's Blog: http://www.poppydeyes.com/

    

That Certain Coffee Shop

     I am pretty sure every person has read a book or watched a movie that included the main character always going back to the same coffee shop, maybe even going so often that the baristas know your name. In real life I am also pretty sure that happens, especially if you live in like a small town where there aren't Starbucks, and Dunkin Donuts, or maybe in an urban city.

     These coffee shops could be your life saver, or your one happy place to just chill out at and drink some good coffee with pretty designs. A good way to figure out your coffee shop is to make sure the environment feels safe, and you can fully relax there. Another thing that makes a coffee shop the best is their drinks. Something that Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts do that are wrong is that they are being told what to make by people who go to school for business, a good coffee shop comes up with their own unique recipes by the people who make the drinks and use good quality ingredients. If it takes going out of your comfort zone to find this place, do it because I know you won't regret it.

**picture provided by Google

    

Happy Thoughts

     As you grow up, you are starting to learn new things about yourself, other people, the world, and just everything in general. As you learn these new facts or things, it may start to change your mind a bit, and not for the best sometimes. The most important thing is to stay positive, no matter what you see in the media or what you hear around the community. Always find the positive things in life, and sometimes it seems hard because you may be going through a tough time but I believe that if you try hard enough, you can find the positive things in life. If you can't find the positive side, I will show you some ways how.

current background photo

     As technology has grown, it has become easier and cheaper to get our hands on smart phones and if you have a smart phone, this tip will be very easy and very effective. On your phone you either
have one background or two, depends on the type, but either way you have a background. I usually put something up on my background that will make me smile, so right now I have a pit-bull with flowers drawn on the dogs' head. If you feel like you are stuck in a situation that makes you uncomfortable or nervous, you can easily pull your phone out and look at the image, and for me personally, that always helps.

     Another way to find a happy thought is to come up with a saying that you want to try to live by or just to always have in troubling times to think about. My saying that I go to often is, "Do what makes you happy." That saying helps me when I am at my part time job, and it gives me motivation to try hard in school so I can get a job that I actually enjoy, and so I am not stuck at the job I am currently at. I also think about this thought when I am feeling upset with life, because it shows me that if I just stick with the saying, I could live a happy life someday if I just follow those words and my life won't always be depressing.

     The next way to create happy thoughts or positivity is one that I have been struggling with. It is so simple, but the reason it is so hard for me is because I have always thought negative thoughts toward myself so easily. Whenever you start to think bad thoughts about your body weight or if you aren't getting the grades you want, immediately start to think about your achievements you have accomplished in the past with what is making you feel bad at the moment. For example, if you are not getting the best grades in school, and you start to think "oh I am too dumb", or "I can't do this", you need to change those thoughts to "look at what I did last year with my amazing grades, I can definitely do it again." Change your thoughts to motivating thoughts and encouraging, rather than I can't do this.

     Those were only a couple of ways to make sure you keep happy and positive thoughts in your head, but there are so many more. I believe that if you try to think of something positive everyday, and start to eliminate the negatives, you could make your life more enjoyable and more successful. It is already hard enough with other people telling you, you can't achieve this, why make yourself against you as well?
    

My Favorites for the Month of January

     I watch a lot of youtube, and a lot of the youtuber's that I watch like to talk about what they were loving for the previous month, so I thought I would try that in blog form. January was a very cold month so a lot of my favorites are going to be clothes, and I also have been trying new breakfast ideas over the course of the month as well. I am also going to include the music I have been listening to throughout January and some books that I read.

     In the month of January I often found myself throwing on a crewneck (jumper) and some jeans and paired it with my converse look a like shoes. Some days when I didn't want to look too depressed about going to school, I would put on my big chunky, cream colored scarf. I have other scarfs but I often found myself reaching for the cream scarf because it is very warm and it goes with everything. The shoes I wore the most in January were my black and white, I would say knock off converse because when it is snowy out, I don't want to wear my nice boots and get those dirty, maybe in February I might change shoe choice up.

     Now for school I wake up at the horrible hour of six a.m. and I give myself around twenty minutes to eat breakfast. I used to skip breakfast but I noticed how tired I would be thorough out the day, so breakfast is now a big priority every morning. I have two quick breakfast choices that I go to every morning and the first one is a bowl honey bunches of oats with almonds and I use almond milk and cut up a banana to throw in.  The next breakfast I go to is, I toast a plain bagel and then I spread blueberry cream cheese and throw on some blueberries and then drizzle some honey on top. Those two are very quick to do in the mornings and they are very filling.

Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain 

     In January I wanted to find a new artist to listen too, and one of friends got me really hooked on this new artist named, Shawn Mendes. He recently came out with his new album called, Handwritten Revisited, and that album is the one I have been listening to on repeat all month. The next music I have been loving is a Pandora station called, Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain. The music is not orchestra music, the station plays a lot of throwback songs, for example, Hey There Delilah, Stand By Me, and just songs that were hits from my childhood (late 90's to early 2000's). I definitely recommend that station to just have playing in the background whilst you're doing homework or cleaning, or anything because it is very relaxing.

     After Christmas break, I ordered a bunch of books online and since I had finals, I have read one of those books, but that book was such a good read! I read the book, Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen, and if you want to hear more about it, I wrote a blog post on what I thought about it. That book was just different to what I usually read and it was definitely one of those books I could not put down.

     To be honest I didn't know what to blog about so hopefully this wasn't too bad to read. My wardrobe as you know now is not that interesting but hopefully who ever is reading this, you found maybe some inspiration for your food choice or music choice.