American Hustle

I went to see American Hustle yesterday and have to say that I was rather impressed.

It follows the story of a 1970's conman, Irving Rosenfeld (played by Christian Bale) and his assistant/colleague/mistress Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams, who appears in some of the lowest v-necks I have ever seen, sans bra, throughout the film) as they are forced to work for FBI agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper) as they try to take down corrupt politicians and event the Mafia...

Also featured is Irving's depressed wife (Jennifer Lawrence) who adds some much needed humour to the film, as it could have all got a bit heavy without her.

I would seriously recommend this film, but I would warn you that it's not one you can just have on in the background. You need to pay attention otherwise you will get to the end and just think "What?"

If you used to watch Hustle on BBC (and if not, buy the boxset on Amazon NOW) you will love this film, it's like an extended, American version.

It's good, trust me.

Masquerade

One of my friends handed out the invitations for her birthday party today - a masquerade ball. It all sounds very fancy and sophisticated and even though it's not until the end of March I'm still really looking forward to it - especially finding my mask! 

I can't decide if I want to buy my mask to suit my dress or the other way around, it's not very often you get invited to a masquerade ball so I want to make the most of it and wear something a little bit unusual, which is why I like the opera mask above, (£15.99 from eBay) I like how it arcs over one eye and so isn't a typical mask shape, and the black with clear jewels means it would be easy enough to find a coordinating dress... now, how would I do my hair to avoid an ugly bump made by the elastic?

Resolutions

I realise you're supposed to make your resolutions on New Year's Day but what does it matter if I'm a couple of days late, right?

Resolution number one - stop being so shy
I am an incredibly shy person around people that I don't know, I just can't understand why they would want to talk to me because I know that I come across as quiet and boring and nerdy. I see other people that can talk to literally anyone and I just think why can't I do that? I'm hoping that going to university will really help me with this, but on the other side I'm also terrified of being completely on my own in nine months.

Resolution number two - stop biting my nails
If I could change one thing about my body it would definitely be my hands. They look like the hands of a child but they aren't at all cute. The problem with this, ofcourse, is that even with all the money in the world, I couldn't do anything about them, even Madonna can't make her hands look younger, so me asking for long, slim fingers is downright impossible. But one thing that would make them look better is if I stopped biting my nails. I've tried many times but I'm 18 now and I am sick of this childish habit and how crappy they always look.

Resolution number three - be more healthy
I am quite a lazy person, I'd much rather sit here and write a blog post than go for a run (especially today, it's far too chilly!) but a lack of motivation combined with a sweet tooth is a recipe for disaster (or atleast, no longer fitting in to my jeans) so I need to do something. I plan to eat more healthily, drink more green tea and do some exercise, even if it is just going for a short walk or something.

Resolution number four - write more
I've probably said this many times, but my dream job is to be a writer, and I won't improve without practise. The main reason that I took to blogging was that it was a way to make myself write regularly, and hopefully get some feedback and generally improve. I hope that my degree will help me with this even more, because it's the only job I've ever really wanted to do.

There are lots of other goals I'd like to set myself, but I think four is enough for one year. 

Let's see where I am in a year's time. 

January Sales

I'm currently rewarding myself for actually doing revision over the holidays (!) by showing you guys the purchases I made in the sales.

Shoes - £24 £12 - Next

Bra - £10 £4 - Next

Shirt - £30 £21 - Debenhams

Cardigan - £15 £10 - Debenhams

Me and my mum couldn't face going into town or to a big shopping centre, but there's a nice out-of-town retail park with a big Next and Debenhams which was more than enough for us two. We couldn't go on Boxing Day because we both work in retail and had to work those sales ourselves. 

As sale shopping goes I think this was pretty restrained, I only bought things that I had genuinely wanted before the sales, but a combination of payday and sales meant that it was certainly worth the wait. I love the cute car print on the shirt (because obviously I don't have enough printed shirts with collars) and the cardigan was for work which is a pretty boring purchase actually!

I've also ordered a sweatshirt from Jack Wills in their sale, it's been dispatched today so with any luck it will be here before I go back to school and makes me feel a bit better about the fact that I'm back at school on Monday. 

Beechway Crew £49.50 £34

The jumper is rather plain but I think it will look good over printed shirts with a skirt to make it look more girly, or worn casually with jeans on those days when I practically crawl out of bed and cannot create a more imaginative outfit. 

Have you guys found any bargains?

Outfits of 2013

I saw this post format on Paige Joanna and thought it was a lovely way to look back over the year. A lot of things have happened to me over the past twelve months: I passed my AS Levels, successfully applied to university, I broke up with my boyfriend, got a job, turned 18, got a new boyfriend, carried on with my Chemistry A Level (that was never part of the plan!) and went to see Bowling For Soup, which was awesome.

Looking through my Lookbook posts for photos from each month, I realised that I do the same poses in almost every photo! And I really should find more interesting backgrounds than my bedroom wall... maybe "take better outfit photos" should be one of my resolutions?

January - February - March

I have to admit that this probably wasn't the greatest time for me. I hated sixth form the point where I was seriously looking into going to college instead, but I'm much happier now so I'm glad I stuck it out. And look how short my hair is! It's grown so much this year. 

April - May - June

This was a pretty stressful time for me because of all my revisions and exams, and it's going to be even worse next year when my results will determine if I get into university or not. But it was also a very lovely time because we had all that gorgeous weather, and going to school is so much more bearable when you can show up in a floral playsuit. 

July - August - September

I was pretty happy over the summer, my results came through (AABC) which I was very happy with, I spent quite a lot of time with friends and family and everything just seems so much pleasanter when it's sunny. Ofcourse there was the dreaded back-to-school but as it was my last one ever I was almost excited to get it over with and run away to university. 

October - November - December

I was very happy this year because I went to two Halloween parties, giving me the opportunity to dress up twice - I do love fancy dress. I also got my UCAS application sent off and received offers from everywhere that I applied so I was able to make my firm and insurance choices. I turned 18, had my first "night out" and had a wonderful Christmas. I am also looking forward to New Year's Eve tomorrow because it's the first year that I will have done something to celebrate, rather than just watching TV.

2013 was downright messy in places, but it has most certainly had its perks. I'm really looking forward to 2014: freshers, leaving school, a long care-free summer, I'll hopefully pass my driving test and maybe save up enough money to go on holiday somewhere. 

See you in the new year!

The anatomy of a trumpet is hilarious

Vest - H&M

Cardigan - Red Herring at Debenhams

Necklace - Pandora

Skirt - H! by Henry Holland at Debenhams

Nails - Amethyst Glitter by Barry M 

(with Rimmel I Love Lasting Colour Black Cherry as a base coat)

I'm so sorry that I've barely posted all month, I've just been so busy with school and work and CHRISTMAS (I hope you all had a good one!) it's a wonder I found the time to take these photos, never mind write a post.

The skirt has previously featured in an outfit post (Crawling back to you) and has become one of my staple pieces over the past few months, because it is just so wearable and never looks too dressy or too casual wherever I go. The heavy fabric also means that there haven't been any Marilyn moments in the wontry winds. And because it's dry clean only I don't have to wait for my mum to wash it, bonus! 

I got some lovely Christmas presents, including a Kindle Paperwhite, some new Converse (which will feature in a rare shoes-included post soon) Marc Jacobs perfume, another Barnes and Noble leatherbound classic (The Bronte sisters) and a huge bag of Soap and Glory.

Have you all had a good Christmas?

University

Today as I logged on to my emails expecting to find nothing but junk from online shopping websites, I found an email from ucas to say that my final offer had come through, and all five of the universities I have applied to have accepted my offer!

I've applied to do English at Lincoln, Leicester, Sheffield Hallam, Leeds Trinity and Coventry - and all five of them wanted me, me! Can you believe it? I certainly can't. Applying for these courses was so daunting because I had nothing more than my AS grades, personal statement and a reference from my Head of Sixth Form, who has known me for little over a year, to get me through. No interviews, portfolios or auditions, purely an online form. I can't believe it worked. 

I've since accepted my firm (Lincoln) and insurance (Sheffield Hallam) choices, rejecting the other three. Rejection is a harsh word, but I'm so happy because now I can stop worrying about getting in and just work my butt off for those 300 ucas points. I need to organise my student finance and accommodation (it's scary to think that I'll be living away from home in less than a year) and then it all comes down to results day, 14th August, here I come! 

I'm so excited!

Are any of you applying to university this year? 

Eighteen

Gah, I'm sorry I haven't posted in almost two weeks, time seems to be slipping straight past me lately and I really don't know what I have been doing, apart from the fact that I turned 18 last week!

For anyone who might be reading this overseas, turning 18 is about the biggest milestone in the UK, there are few things you can't do once you're 18, and the world just seems to open up right in front of you.

Eighteen things I can do now I'm eighteen:

1. Buy alcohol
2. Buy cigarettes
3. Get a tattoo
4. Go to a casino
5. Vote
6. Get married
7. Be in adult movies
8. Be classed as an "adult"
9. Get a credit card
10. Watch "18" films in the cinema
11. Go to 18+ gigs
12. Be a stripper
13. Go to nightclubs
14. Travel unsupervised
15. Bet on the Grand National
16. Get paid more than £5 per hour
17. Get a loan
18. Join Match.com

I got some of the loveliest presents as well from friends and family, as well as some much appreciated money to keep me going until payday!

One of my favourite presents is the Barnes and Noble leather-bound edition of Hans Christian Anderson's Classic Fairy Tales. I realise it isn't exactly a stereotypical 18th-birthday present, but it really is beautiful, the illustrations are exquisite and I will keep it forever. 

 

Promise of a suicidal father

Dress - H! By Henry Holland at Debenhams

Jumper - Next

Bracelet - Pandora

This dress is an absolute favourite of mine because of the collar and cute floral print, but it hasn't featured in a look since April (link to the blog post here) because I find dresses are difficult to, well, dress differently, and I don't want to be reported on Lookbook for reposting.

I want to point out that the title for today's post isn't a personal reference, but a paraphrased quote from the book I'm currently reading "A Tale For the Time Being" by Ruth Ozeki (available from Amazon). It was short-listed for the Man Booker Prize 2013 and so far I am really enjoying it, and it's teaching me a lot about Japanese culture, which I find very interesting. We tend to think of the world as a very small place now, with aeroplanes and the internet, so it's a shock to realise that places are still so different, and not everywhere has the ideologies of the west. 

The book is split between the diary of Japanese teen Nao, and American-living-in-Canda author Ruth, who finds the diary when it's washed up on the beach in a Hello Kitty lunchbox. I can't say much more because I haven't finished it yet but I really am enjoying it so far. 

Are you reading anything good at the moment? 

Just tell me you love me and it will be okay

Glasses - FCUK

T Shirt - Next

Cardigan - Dorothy Perkins

Jeans - Red Herring at Debenhams

This week is going by so slowly, every day it gets more difficult to get out of my warm, cosy bed and walk up to that miserable bus stop. I realise that neither of us have written many personal posts lately and I hate to tell you that it's simply because there just isn't that much going on right now. If it weren't for my birthday I would hate November just as much as everyone else, but it's my birthday soon and I am so very excited.

The worst part is that I'm 18 before all of my friends, meaning that I have nobody to have a drink with, but when they all turn 18 I will be able to join in the celebrations, so there is a silver lining!

Are you guys doing anything in November?

Secret Santa

Shirt - Topshop

Cardigan - Red Herring at Debenhams

Shorts - Topshop

Watch - Fossil

Tights - Primark

Today was a day much like any other - I dragged myself out of bed at the horrific 6:15am, got ready for school and trudged up to the bus stop. I actually understood my Chemistry lesson (okay, maybe today wasn't so normal) my English teacher is on maternity leave and school still hasn't sorted out her replacement so we missed another lesson, and by fifth period Psychology I could not focus on getting any work done.

On the plus side of my education, I've now received three offers from universities: Lincoln, Sheffield Hallam and Coventry, which I'm really happy about because now I just need to focus on getting the necessary 300 UCAS points and this time next year I'll be at university! It's really exciting but it's become very real and a little bit daunting since I got my offers, I'm actually going to study for a degree (results day permitting) and I won't be living in this little town any more, everything in my life will be completely different in less than a year.

I bought this shirt yesterday and I love the vintage look, it's so soft and feels like it's been washed a hundred times already so it's really comfy and having the top button fastened doesn't feel restrictive at all, and I love the metal poppers down the front.

How was your day?

Christmas Wishlist 2013

Christmas is a time for spending time with friends and family, for wrapping and receiving gifts, and buying lovely new clothes to go to Christmas parties in! This month I get my last payday before Christmas so it needs to count, but I just get too distracted looking at nice clothes to buy for myself... oops.


Yellow Check Shirt - £30 - Topshop
I love checked shirts, worn with skinnies, shorts and tights or a skater skirt, they look cute and preppy with a top button fastening and I like the unusual colour scheme on this one from Topshop.


Little Birds Mini Messenger Bag - £35 - Cath Kidston
I do love Cath Kidston even though the prices seem to have increased rapidly over the past few years! This print called "Little Birds" is new and I love it on this messenger bag which is the perfect size to fit in all your essentials whilst out Christmas shopping.



Grimm's Complete Fairy Tales (Barnes & Noble Leatherbound Classic Collection) - £16.25 - Amazon
Barnes & Noble released a collection of leatherbound classic books and I am rather determined to collect them, I already have Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, The Scarlet Letter and The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allen Poe. But this Brothers Grimm book I thought was particularly grabbing, I still do love fairy stories, especially as I expect these to be the slightly more sinister original versions that the toned down modern ones.


Eyeko Skinny Liquid Eyeliner - £10 - Selfridges & Co
Now I don't usually go for expensive make up because a) you never know how good it is until it's too late b) I'm crap at putting it on anyway and c) nobody can really tell whether your eyeliner was £2 or £20, atleast I can't. But this Alexa-Chung-endorsed (I also never usually go for celebrity products) does look really good and I do want to invest in some decent make up, I think liquid eyeliner is a good place to start, as I've really grown to love the stuff lately.



Ponte Skater Skirt With Braces - ASOS - £20

I already have a normal skater skirt but these braces are just too cute to ignore, they cross at the back and just make everything look so preppy and adorable. I would obviously need some new shirts to wear with it... a girl can never have too many clothes.

Boring

boring

ˈbɔːrɪŋ/

adjective

1. not interesting; tedious

So one of my so-called "friends" has apparently said that I am "quiet and boring" which I have to say both offended and upset me. I know that I am shy and I don't really put myself out there when it comes to talking to new people, because I am just worried that they won't like me so don't like to say anything too forward. And I will admit that I take things like school work and university applications and even my weekend job quite seriously, because I want to do a good job and I take pride in the things that I do, especially when they are as important as getting in to university so that I hopefully don't have to fold kids' pyjamas for the next fifty years.

But boring? Boring? I resent that. 

Ten reasons why I am not boring:

1. I dressed up as a freaking sheet ghost for Halloween

2. At said Halloween party, I danced on the benches to Mardy Bum... the girl who said I was boring stayed at home.

3. I once ran through the fountains in Sheffield, and wore a bin liner on my aunty's boat whilst waiting for my clothes to dry.

4. I am the furthest thing from Bah Humbug at Christmas, if anything I'm like a small child.

5. I want to be a writer, show me a boring writer

6. I like to think my dress sense is on the right side of quirky

7. I have bloody ginger hair

8. If someone wants to make plans, whatever the plans are, I will always be up for it. 

9. I always choose Dare. 

10. Ha ha, I can't tell you that. 

Do you think I'm boring?

What is the worst thing you think somebody could possibly say about you?

Nineteen Eighty-Four

I just finished reading Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell (£5.75 from Amazon) and I have to say that I was a little reluctant at first, but the book grew on me and I was certainly hooked by the whole concept of how the world could be if a party ever got enough power.

For those of you not familiar with the story, we follow a man called Winston, living in a dystopian version of 1984, where your every move and sound is captured by telescreens and hidden microphones, and any if you ever commit thoughtcrime, where you do not absolutely believe in all that The Party and Big Brother are saying, you will be caught by the Thought Police, tortured in the Ministry of Love, and all record of your existence will be removed from history.

There were two ideas that were central to this novel that really got me thinking, and quite frankly scared me a little. The first is that the past is only what is written in the history books and what lives in human memory, we can never really know if what happened in the past is true or not. The second is the idea of language. In the book, a new language is being developed, newspeak, which basically simplifies and constricts all the words of the English language, so there is only ever one word for what you want to say, and when this new language comes in to full effect, thoughtcrime will not exist, because the words simply do not exist to speak ill of The Party.

I know how frustrating it is when you can't think of the word that you want to use, but imagine if the words you wanted to use simply didn't exist? 

It just got me thinking, and I wanted to recommend the book to you. It is a typical English Literature class book, but I didn't find it half as dry as I was expecting to, and it is well worth a read.

Have you read any good books lately?

Dead Alice, Black Widow, Cat & Ghost

The long-awaited sixth form Halloween party finally came around last night, and here we are all ready to go, after a lovely girly evening of food, chatter, hair and make up. 

The party was at the regular venue, a grotty run-down pub that will serve the most baby faced of Year 12's. But it is the people that make the party, and it was so much fun to see what everyone had arrived as. There were gangsters, zombies, LMFAO, Frenchmen, The Spice Girls/Boys, and the classic dead school kid, among many others in fancy dress and a few boring people that didn't bother to dress up.

Arriving as the sheet ghost certainly had the desired effect, everyone was all-out staring at me as I stumbled past them (I could barely see through the eye holes) and saying "who's that under the sheet?" a few people knew that I'd planned to come as a ghost and lifted up the sheet to confirm that it was in fact me. And one person said "When you said a sheet... I didn't think you literally meant just a sheet" What on Earth were they expecting?

I love Halloween, and cannot wait for next year when I will hopefully be a fresher, I bet Halloween at university is incredible. My UCAS application has officially been sent off and now all I can do is wait for offers, wish me luck!

This is Halloween

Halloween is here once again and I have to admit that it my third favourite day of the year (after Christmas and my birthday)

I've been in love with the event since I was about five, I was probably considered a strange kid as I was obsessed with witches and magic (it probably all kicked off with Harry Potter and spiralled from there) so I loved taking the opportunity to dress up and go trick-or-treating around the local houses. I've been known to make "Halloween food" the most memorable being a pudding that was supposed to be a brain (but was actually a pink chocolate brain-shaped shell filled with marshmallows and Rice Krispies)

These days I still love dressing up, and deciding what I'm going to be for Halloween is a yearly question that I take great joy in answering. This year as you may know (and if you don't, read here) I am going as a sheet ghost to a party tomorrow night, and last Saturday I attended a party dressed as a witch. Fancy dress is something of a minefield: I want people to know who/what I am, but I still want to be original, and I don't want to look slutty but I still sort of want to look nice. I usually end up fashioning my own costume because the packet ones are so expensive, and where is the fun in just ordering something from the internet?

Ride with the moon in the dead of night

Dress (with attached belt) - Primark

Shoes - Boohoo

I know Halloween isn't for another week, but I couldn't resist having a little game of dress-up today while everyone was at work, and it's always a good idea to try everything on and check it all looks okay before the big night.

I love Halloween, after Christmas and my birthday, it's my favourite day of the year, and it hurts me so much that in this country we don't feel obliged to celebrate it! Thankfully this year is the return of the sixth form Halloween party, and I am going as a sheet ghost. 

The idea came to me when me and my friends were discussing costume ideas, and we had the idea of going like a set of proper trick-or-treaters, like the ones you see on American cartoons, and what band of trick-or-treaters is complete without a sheet ghost? Although the idea is something of a "classic" Halloween costume, I am yet to see anyone over the age of ten show up at a party with a sheet over their head, so I'm pretty happy that no one will show up in the same costume as me.

I'm pretty sure that the sheet will only last about 30 seconds when I get into the party (how am I supposed to have a drink with a load of fabric over my head?) so I wanted to still look sort of Halloween-y underneath. I found this lace dress at work which had a sort of "dead-doll" look to it, and worn with my silly Boohoo heels (which I regret to say made my feet ache in the time it took me to take those photos, so I dread to think what state my feet will be in after the party!) and a bit of white face powder and red lipstick, I hope I'll look the part. 

This is also my entry for the annual Spookbook competition on Lookbook - so if anyone who has an account could log on and hype me (I won't win, but it's nice to join in) it would be very much appreciated! 

Autumn rituals

I really love the time of year in which you go out and see people's hair and scarves blowing across their faces, and their cheeks glowing a rosy red colour. In my head, I imagine these people are shopping for sticks and fur, to make their home warm and comfortable for the Winter! I know people don't hibernate (damn!) but, we all have certain hedgehog-like rituals, as much as us humans don't like to think of ourselves as animals, we are - and it shows!

My ritual is to go out and buy a festive dress, and here it is! A Primark bargain at £15, I love it! I feel like I want to sit my family down around our piano so we can sing carols (who is Carol anyway?) while I play it.

Thanks for reading! Happy Autumn!

Sad

Boys are stupid by hollyarrre featuring a tea mug

Accessorize blue shoes
£24 - accessorize.com

Happy Jackson tea mug
amara.com

Movie Night Popcorn Treats Goodies Gift Basket Tub
£19 - amazon.com

TOPSHOP Koala Novelty Onesie
£42 - topshop.com



Today I'm feeling pretty lousy because of some stupid boy who turned out to not be 
worth the effort I put into him, so I'm going to have one of my best friends over and 
we're going to watch films (any we can find that don't have a boy-meets-girl 
storyline, and they're more difficult to find than you think) and eat pizza and sweets 
and chocolate and drink loads of tea and bitch about how stupid men can be. 

If you have a man (or woman, I don't discriminate) in your life I hope that they are 
wonderful and make you as happy as you deserve to be.

Birthday

So it is less than six weeks until I turn 18, and for the past few months I haven't been that bothered about my birthday, in fact I've been sort of dreading it! But turning 18 means I get a pay rise at work (yay!) and even though I'm not that bothered about drinking, I can go out if I want to. Since my university stuff should be pretty much organised by then and turning 18 will feel like a big step towards actually going to university which I am very much looking forward to.

Last weekend me and my mum went into town to buy my 18th birthday present, a Pandora ring.

I'll admit that it is a little more formal than my usual style, but I think your present on your 18th should be something that lasts and I think this is a classic style that I'll be able to wear for years to come. Pandora rings are designed to be stacked so the ring itself is rather thin, but personally I think my fingers are far too short and stubby to have three rings stacked up - I wish I had beautiful hands.

Everyone else keeps asking me what I want for my birthday and the infuriating thing is that I have no idea! I think the pressure is on for each gift to be meaningful because it's a "milestone birthday" but what I really want is a mustard Jack Wills hoodie and lots of money.