Motivational Monday #11

Happy Monday Lovelies!

I hope your morning has been wonderful, and the rest of your day follows suit. 

I could go on and on and on in today's blog post, but I'm not going to.

Today I have only have one thing to say, and one thing only.... If there is anything you must do today it's SMILE!

Sometimes, life doesn't go our way.
Sometimes, you just want to curl up into a ball and sleep 

Sometimes, you just really don't feel like smiling at all

BUT

That doesn't mean we shouldn't love our life

It doesn't mean we should curl up into a ball and sleep

It also doesn't mean that we shouldn't smile even if we have no reason to!

So, if you're having a bad day or something hasn't gone as well as you wanted it to forget about it and remember that it takes more muscles to frown than what it does to smile!

Everybody deserves to be and feel happy, it's actually one of the most important emotions we have as a human being. No matter how hard life gets there is always something to smile about - even if you have to dig deep, down to find it. Make sure your Monday and the rest of your week, and especially, the rest of your life is as happy as you can make it! Surround yourself with people and plans that will bring that smile to the surface and keep it there for a very long time! That's exactly what I plan to do :)

The one way I'm going to do this is create a bucket list! I'm going to write down everything single thing I want to do in my lifetime and then one by one (hopefully) cross them off. Once I have written it I will post it on this blog so I can show the world all the things I want to achieve and what I've already achieved! Hopefully, then it will inspire you all to do the same. Life is too short to sit around moping about things that have happened and living in the past. Go out and do whatever it is you want to do, don't let anything or anyone stop you. And if for some reason there is something or someone who has got you down, turn that negative into the inspiration and motivation you need to live your life the way you want to. Stay true to yourself and smile, because you never know who is going to fall in love with it.

Keep Smiling

Hopeful

xxx

Outfit Post #10

Good Morning Lovelies :)

I'm sorry I haven't blogged in a while. I've been super busy with Uni work and getting some stuff sorted!

Exciting news actually, I have just applied to become an Au Pair in NEW YORK! My dreams are finally coming true and I'm doing it all on my own, and for myself and I couldn't be happier.

Anyway, this post is about one of my outfit choices of this week and it has become one of my favourites!

This peplum top is one of the best ones I have purchased in a while. Not only is it flattering, it's extremely comfortable and looks great on. It was also a complete bargain at £16.99 fro New Look. 

Another reason why I love this top is that it's perfect to dress up for a night out but it also would look great with a pair of skinny or boyfriend fit jeans!

I decided to team it with my standard black, Topshop pencil skirt, black wedges and my infamous red lipstick. I don't know about you but I love it! :)

Moving onto my face! Tbh, I don't really ever change my face from day to night, except I add extra of everything plus eyelashes and bigger eyebrows. My eyebrows look wicked, even if I do say so myself, I love it when everything goes smoothly!

I achieved my wavy hair by using my heated rollers - I swear by them and couldn't live without them.

I also followed this lovely girls tutorial on YouTube. In previous times I have used my heated rollers they haven't really curled my hair, only volumised it and often make it frizzy. This tutorial is really easy and simple to follow and helps achieve an awesome bouncy, curly wave! 

Hope you liked my outfit choice for this week! :)

Hopeful

xxx

Happy Valentines Day

Happy Valentines Day Lovelies!!!

Hope you have all had a lovely day, and have spread the love throughout the day :)

As a single lady I have spent the whole day with my lovely friend, and then going on a girly date tonight! I decided to make the whole day about me and some of my favourite people. 

I thought I would combine this valentines special into an oufit post too! I always find myself taking pictures of my outfits just as I've got ready so my room is always messy - I should really get out of this habit!

I decided to go for a romantic, floral inspired look today and I felt super girly and for the first time since starting my diet I actually felt slim - amazing!

 

I adore this top! It's perfect to wear with jeans, trousers and skirts and adds a lovely, spring feeling to any outfit. It's baggy but flattering, which is sometimes hard to find in certain items. Also, it has a cut out back (which I couldn't get a good picture of by myself) so depending on where you're going you sometimes need to wear a vest top underneath. The top was from River Island and was a must have as soon as I seen it, I think it was around £32 and my pencil skirt was from Topshop for £20 - pretty average priced outfit tbh!

And here's my face for the day! Simple, everyday make-up which consists of foundation, blusher and eyeliner flicks! I walked around with a huge smile on my face and confidence in my stride. I had a very good day today :)

Hope you all have a wonderful Valentines evening!

Hopeful

xxx

Motivational Monday #10

Good Evening Lovelies,
I  know this Motivational Monday post is a couple of days late but it's my TENTH one! How exciting! I hope someone, somewhere has read at least on of my blogs and somehow felt inspired and had a more positive, productive day because of it.

Ok, sometimes the topics for these posts just comes to me through the day but sometimes I seen images on Twitter on Pinterest that have made a difference to my day and hopefully by sharing them with you, you will feel the same way.

Yesterday I seen this image and automatically fell in love with it;

How good is this? It really puts life into perspective in the simplest way. This sort of image is good to keep around and remember you have it when you need it. Life should be about the small moments and concentrating on the minutes, hours, months and years you have left in order to make your life the best it can possibly be! Just like the late Abraham Lincoln once said;

"And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years."

And he couldn't be more correct! I actually had a extremely interesting lecture today, we had a guest lecturer in order to give us third years some insight into the working world and how to kick start your careers, and I learnt more in those two hours than what I have in a fair few months (horrible to admit). If I learnt anything today it was to dream big and not be afraid to dream big! Take the bad, negative moments that you have and take them on the chin - do not make them your life or who you are! I also learnt that its ok to not know what you want to do with your life right now but you must decided and say yes to any opportunities that you just can't pass up - no matter where it is or how much you're being paid. My dream in life is to have a job that doesn't feel like a job. I want to do something I enjoy and ultimately love, and don't mind waking up in the morning to get there. For the past few weeks I've been feeling rather lost about my future, and felt like I was on the verge of an emotional break down regarding my career, future and growing up but I feel so confident about where I'm going and where I want to be. It's ok for you not to know what you want to do right now, or even in the next year or 5 but as long as you make the most of every single second of your life and grasp any opportunities that are thrown at you and you are guaranteed to enjoy your life and ultimately be happy!

Another topical issue I wanted to discuss in this weeks Motivational Monday blog post is women and their image. I recently seen on Twitter, a young girl around 15 years old, retweeted another young with a similar age with a post such as;

"why do some girls look amazing with their hair tied up, baggy tee-shirt & leggings and I look like a scruff?"

I think it's really sad that in today's society women, especially young girls, feel like they need to compare themselves to others and when they don't meet similar expectations they ultimately feel down about the way they look and feel less attractive. Young girls, from their friends, parents, other family members and teachers, should be taught to focus on the positive aspects about themselves that they should learn to love. So if they're into fashion, they should be told what does look good on them so they can focus on what they can do, and not what they can't and then compare themselves to others.

We are all individuals and we all look different, if we all looked the same what would be the point? It would be boring! I have made a promise to myself and my unborn children that I will always make sure my children feel loved and adequate in society, especially when it comes to their opinions of themselves and others. I would be lying if I said I don't look at other women sometimes and wish I was as skinny as them, or as pretty as them or was more successful but that doesn't mean I don't love who I am. I am extremely proud of who I am and what I have achieved, and I know my strengths and weaknesses. I also know how to play them both to my advantage which is something that I think everybody should know. Children should be confident and have no worries about what they look like, they should only be concerned with what Barbie doll to choose to play with because they have too many not what is the best make-up to use because the girl sat next to her in class wears it! Children should be children, and it upsets me that these children who are concerned with growing up too quickly then mature into adults with low self-esteem and no confidence - everyone should be happy with who they are, a bit of competition is healthy, but not to obsess about it and make it become their life!

Hope you enjoyed my post for today Lovelies!

Hopeful

xxx

New York, New York!

Morning Lovelies,
I trust you have all had a wonderful week so far? But guess what? It's the freakin' weekend :)
My weekend started last night as I have Fridays off from Uni and I couldn't be happier! Sometimes, you just really need the weekend to re cooperate and get yourself back on track! Weekends should be full of 'me time' where you can relax and do the things you want with no worries. Unfortunately, my weekend will be a mix of this and Uni work, well simply because, it won't do it itself and I have a deadline for Monday - Damn!

Moving on...

As many of you will  know as I have mentioned it a few times in my other posts that I am coming to the end of my time at University and will be ready to move into the real world in the next few months. Scary thought I know! So, this being the main thing I am focusing on at the moment I just can't help but think about my future and all the things I want to achieve. I have to stop myself sometimes from getting too carried away with myself as there is no point trying to predict a future that you have no control over. But, a girl can dream right? Which brings me onto my next, and main point, of this post. There is one thing I desperately want to do. It is beyond indescribable how much I want this to happen in my life & I know it will if I set my heart to it. I would for it to happen tomorrow, but the likelihood is going to be hoping to get there in the next 5 years and that is...

New York City. The place where dreams come true! I don't even know where this obsession and passion for the big apple even started, I'm guessing it was when I actually got to visit the place itself on a college trip with friends, it was the best 5 days of my life and I haven't forgot a single thing! But it stemmed even before I went on that trip. You see it in movies and TV Programmes, and of course I know most of the storylines and set ups are fake, but there is just something so magical about it. Something about it really draws me in and it just seems like my kind of place, a place where I could fit in really well and really make something of myself! Maybe, its just me being silly but I won't know that until I get there!

I just feel like I will find my happiness here! I've been looking for the past few weeks at jobs and apartments - so yes, I am deadly serious about this! and it all seems so real, but the best bit, it seems achievable! The moment I get there I know will be the best day of my life! Does anybody watch Glee?! I know this makes me a tad sad but I don't care because I have grown to love it. Whenever I watch Rachel and Kurt in NY it just makes me want it even more. Not only are they pursuing a life and building a career they have always wanted, they're having fun doing it and an added bonus, they have or are finding love in the big city! Everything that I could possibly want out of life. Falling in love in New York must be the most magical feeling and thing to happen to a person. This city for me makes the small, simple things in life seem like the big things, and it makes me feel like if I ever had a bad day or were feeling down all I would have to do is remind myself that I am in New York and look outside my window.

Will it happen? I hope so! There is nothing stopping me other than myself and my own fears. But like I said, a girl can dream right? :)

Hopeful

xxx

Dissertation help!

Hey Lovelies! :)
Hope you're all well on this lovely day!

I wanted to ask a huge favour from you all, and anybody who happens to read this.
Could you please fill out my survey and pass it on for others to do as well? It's for my Dissertation and you would really be helping me.
The questions are really simple and I know will be easy for you bloggers to answer :)

CLICK HERE

Thanks Lovelies!

Hopeful

xxx

Motivational Monday #9

Good evening Lovelies!

It's Monday again so you know what that means... It's motivating time! 

I'm really sorry its a late post again, I've been super busy with trying to get my Dissertation done. I just don't know where the time goes!

Have you ever wanted something really, really bad? Like so bad, its all you can think about, its all you talk about and you would do anything to have? You have? Good because that is what I want to talk about in today's post.

I am one of those people who strives. Strives for bigger and better. I have always had hopes, dreams and ambitions and have made sure that I set my sights and standards high in order to achieve as many as I can in my lifetime. Over the years, they have come and go as I have achieved them already or I've simply changed my mind on what I wanted in the first place and have set my sights on something better. Some people may have said to you, like they have to me, that your standards are too high, or you'll never achieve something like that yourself and even you're not good enough to do that. I just want to say on behalf of myself and everyone out there who has been told the same... HA HA HA!

I learnt from a very young age to stop listening to people, and only listen to yourself and what your heart tells you to do (and sometimes your gut instinct) when it comes to your life and what you aim to achieve. 

I believe that, when people don't have dreams, ambitions or even drive to do something different, what is the point in life? Surely, life is about seizing every opportunity that is thrown at you, learning to say yes and most importantly, making yourself happy. Life is about taking risks and I believe everyone should do something that challenges them every single day. 

The challenges I am currently facing is, number one, my diet. I have been SUPER good on my first week and I am hoping to keep it up throughout the remainder of the diet. It has been difficult, and I still crave a lot of bad food but I know that I just need to get used to it and it'll be worth it in the end. That's another thing, sure having dreams and ambitions, seems like hard work, but what about the outcome? Surely, the outcome in itself is worth the effort, and sometimes hassle? I think so anyway.

The other challenge I have for myself is making sure I do my Uni work to the best and highest standard I possibly can. Seems like a pretty straight forward one I know, but the trickiest part of this is keeping motivated! I have days where I could lie in bed all day and not do any work but I don't. I get up and keep going, because everything I have ever done and worked hard for has got me to this point and I'm not about to give up now! I want my dream job, well, numerous dream jobs, and I won't stop at all until I have done at least several of them in my lifetime. Today, my marketing lecturer turned round to me and said "You're going to make a great teacher one day." I was ecstatic! I can't even remember what I said in order for her to say it but she did and it made my day. I haven't known this lecturer for long, only since I started third year, so to get feedback like that, I know I am on the right lines and I will become a teacher one day. First, I want to work in Social Media - my calling in life! I just hope someone will give me a job so I can shine and show the world what I'm made of, so watch out! :)

Basically, in a nut shell, everyone should strive to be the best, have hopes, dreams and ambitions, and if you fall off the track and lose patience or motivation, just remember you're working towards something spectacular, an outcome you really, really want and once you have it, it will feel incredible.

Don't Give Up. EVER!

Hopeful

xxx

Outfit post #9

Happy Saturday Lovelies!

Hope you're all enjoying your weekend.

I realised I haven't uploaded an outfit post in a while, so here's my treat to you :)

I had a rather casual day yesterday, which isn't like me at all, and opted for a 'sport luxe' inspired outfit with a few girly twists. 

I opted for a plain, grey maxi dress teamed with black converse, denim jacket, converse pendant necklace and a smile!

The maxi dress is from H&M and only cost something ridiculous like £12.99 but it has been stuck in my wardrobe for ages as we just haven't had the weather for me to be able to wear it. However, yesterday I decided to give it a whirl as I was only going shopping in The Trafford Centre so I would be inside. It was super comfy to wear all day and actually made me feel slimmer, which is an ultimate bonus! My trusty converse are always a winner when it comes to comfort but I think its about time I got myself a new pair as they are filthy! My cute pink, converse pendant was from River Island and was probably around £10-12 but I bought it a while back. I just thought it gave this plain outfit a cute twist as well as wearing my old faithful denim jacket from Primark.

I felt super comfy all day as well as slim - an all round winner in my eyes! 

What do you guys think?

Hopeful

xxx