University Update

These past few months have been pretty hectic. Moving to university is a big step and I have definitely learnt a thing or two including how to keep my room relatively tidy which is a bit of a problem back home!! 

University is hard work, well my course definitely is. I have a lot of contact hours but it means that I enjoy my free time even more. Nights out, meeting new people, generally living a student's life is great.

I can't guarantee I'll have the answer but if any one has any questions I will try my hardest to answer them, just leave a comment below.

Look out for more uni posts in the future!

Love

Superdrug haul

I told myself this month that I was only going to buy the essentials, that was until I saw Superdrug doing free delivery on orders over £10 so I thought, £10 should cover the essentials and spending around £10 turned into me seeing everything on the website and wanting it and spending a bit more!! Woops

So here are the items I bought from Superdrug.com...

MUA Eye shadow palette in Undressed, the Sleek eyeliner ink pot (black), and the Collection 2000 Extreme 24 hour felt tip liner

Superdrug 3-in-1 Base coat, ridge filler and growth enhancer (right) and Superdrug 2-in-1 Top coat and nail hardener (left)

Neutrogena pink grapefruit daily scrub (left) and facial wash (right)

Pantene Pro-V Shampoo (left), Spilt end serum (centre) and Conditioner (right)

Imperial Leather Japanese Spa shower cream.

The MUA palette is a very good dupe for the Urban Decay Naked Palette. I own the Naked 2 and would love the original Naked palette but I thought I would settle for this one for now. Look out in the future for a full review! Usually I use felt tip liners and my Eyeko Skinny Liquid Liner has just ran out so the Collection Felt Tip Liner looked great online. It is only £2.99 and it comes in 3 other colours too! The Sleek eyeliner ink pot was a bit of an impulse buy, I wanted to try something new. I haven't tried it out yet but I'll tell you how I get on.

The Superdrug base and top coats were a cheaper alternative to some of the brands I normally use, again, I just wanted to try something new!

The Neutrogena facial wash was a repurchase as I like the smell and the texture but I bought the daily scrub as an accompaniment to the facial wash. 

The Pantene Pro-V Shampoo and Conditioner are great for my hair, I love the smell too. I haven't had the split-end serum before and so far, so good.

Imperial Leather products always smell good, I haven't had the Japanese Spa scent in a while as I am always changing my shower gel (and I can never say no to a 95p shower gel!)

Love

John Lewis Christmas Advert

There are 2 signs that Christmas is coming... the Coca Cola advert and a more modern addition, the John Lewis advert. I have now seen the John Lewis advert and thought I'd share it with all of you, just in case you haven't had a chance to catch it! It's called The Bear And The Hare.

Love

Liebster Award

I've finally had enough time to start writing this post, I have been nominated three times now so I will answer all three sets of questions then ask 10 of my own. For those of you who haven't heard of the Liebster award, if you are nominated you are answer 10 questions that were asked by your nominator then you nominate 10 blogs to answer 10 questions that you make up, however sometimes the rules change, I guess it's a bit like Chinese whispers, and one of my nominations asks me to state 11 facts about myself. The blogs you nominate must have less than 200 followers! And you must mention the blog that nominated you.

So let's get started...

Thank you to:

• Summer's Calling (Emma)
• Nicola
• Clever Spices (Alicia)

Emma's questions:

What's your favourite Christmas film?

It would have to be Home Alone, I remember the first time I ever saw it and it was when I was a little kid, sitting in the living room with my family. I think the film is quite funny as well!

If you could change your name to anything what would you change it to?
I love my name, apart from the fact that everyone spells it wrong unless I tell them how to spell it, Catherine, Cathryn, Kathryn, Katharine etc. So I guess I would pick a name like Grace which is actually one of my middle names.

What was your favourite song as a child?

Don't judge me but when I was younger we had a cassette of Cher's Believe and I remember singing to it and playing it on repeat. I also used to like the Spice Girls and I used to have their film.

Favourite scent at the moment?

It would have to be CK One Shock, I got a sample of it in a magazine I think, and I have now purchased a bottle purely because I like it so much.

Who is your idol?
I really admire my parents. I know that I am very like my Dad, in some ways we are too similar but I can also see certain traits in my Mum that I know have been passed down to me. My Dad studied 3 out of 4 of the same A-Levels as me and said he would've chosen the same 4th one if they offered it at his school.

Who is your Girl crush?
Selena Gomez, her hair is absolutely stunning, to be honest I think I'm just jealous of it.

If you could be anywhere in the world right now where would you be?

Back in Corfu for definite! Well as long as they don't have any rain.

What's is your favourite beauty product you continually use?

Natural Collection Pressed Powder, I have repurchased this product time and time again and I absolutely love it! 

Where do you see your self in 7 years?
In 7 years I will be 26 so hopefully I will have settled down in a nice little house, possibly be married with kids, but if not then it wouldn't bother me. I would rather wait for the right man to come along than settle for someone half decent!

What's your favourite pair of shoes and why?

My black wedges, they were from Primark but they are easily the comfiest pairs of heels I have ever owned. And they go with pretty much everything.

Nicola's questions:

What was your last purchase?

My last purchase was in Superdrug and I bought the Barry M Gelly nail paint in Orange and the Barry M Nail Art Pen in black. In my freshers they had a themed night (Pangea - Cirlce of Life) so I painted my nails like this:

What's your favourite item of clothing?
It's only a recent purchase but I am in love with my pink fluffy knitted jumper from F&F at Tesco. [link] I usually wear it with either black or dark wash jeans and a long chained necklace.

What's your favourite type of chocolate?
Kinder Bueno - I could eat them all day.

Why did you start blogging?
I had read a lot of other blogs and I wanted to see if I would enjoy writing one too (which I do!) I have started a couple before but had never really researched what other people write about, I was a bit lost in the blogging world. Now I try to blog as often as I can because I know I enjoy it so much.

One thing you can't live without?
My iPod touch and wifi. At the halls I am living in, there is no wifi so I have turned my laptop into a hotspot to effectively create wifi! I listen to my iPod wherever I am so I just would not be able to live without it.

How many pillows do you sleep with?
At home I sleep with 2 and an V shaped pillow but I accidentally left it at home when I moved so I am currently sleeping with 2.

Do you have any phobias?
Being trapped, not that anyone likes it, I just have the biggest fear of waking up in a coffin and being buried underground, or being stuck in a lift for hours.

Favourite designer/brand?
Ted Baker because I love the designs of his bags.

What perfume are you currently using?
I am switching between two at the moment, CK One Shock (as mentioned before) and Vera Wang Princess

If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?

As this is similar to one of Emma's questions I will answer it again but I would choose America this time, probably LA!

Alicia's Questions

What's your favorite song at the moment?

Ellie Goulding - Burn

If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be?

If not Corfu or America, then I think I would like to go to Spain.

Celebrity crush?

Channing Tatum, I would happily watch Step Up and Magic Mike all day long.

Would you rather live in the country or in the city?

Is it cheating if I say in the suburbs? It's where I live at the moment and it's great, it's not so remote in the country that everyone knows everyone else's business but you get to know your neighbours, and there's enough to do without it getting too busy. Central London is only about a 30 minute train journey away so it's easy enough to pop in!

What's the first thing you notice about people?

Their hair, I think it's because I'm particularly fussy with my hair so I look at other people's.

What is your favourite dessert?

This is tough because I prefer savoury to sweet but I guess my favourite dessert is crème brulee. 

What is your favourite place in the world?

I think it would have to be my bed, I love lie ins (who doesn't!) and I love how cosy and warm it is in the winter!

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

In 5 years time I will be 24, I will probably still be in training to be an actuary so I will be living in a flat with some friends maybe.

If you could switch places with anyone for a day, who would it be?

My sister, I've always wondered what it would be like to be her and see me through her eyes!

If you could pick 3 words to describe yourself, what would they be?

Happy, disorganised and friendly!

What is your favourite season?

Autumn, I don't like the rain though. I just like the fact you can be cosy and I also like the shades of make up more in Autumn.

10 facts about me

1. I have 2 rabbits, 2 guinea pigs and 3 hamsters, I love animals!
2. I have an obsession with owls
3. I'm living in Manchester but I'm from London, I'm studying Actuarial Science and Maths at UoM (two facts in one!!)
4. I can't sing, but I do anyway
5. I have a sister who is nearly 2 years younger than me
6. My birthday is the 14th of September
7. I am a Manchester United fan
8. I love baking
9. I have a scar on my right knee from where I was on two scooters at the same time and fell off onto a twig
10. I sucked my thumb until I was 14

There are my answers and facts, now it's time to nominate and ask questions:

I nominate...

Saida - Saida Can Photography

Chloe - Chloe Louise Spencer

Inky - Lily-gee
Je Lyn - WithLoveLynnn
Charlotte -  CharlotteChristmas
Hannah - HannahBelle
Misbah - Sealed With A Kiss 
Édaein - The Sartorial Drama-Queen
Melissa - Melfortune
Sarah - This Is Blog Standard
Jenny - Some Like It Styled

And these are the questions I'd like to ask you...

1. When and why did you start blogging?

2. What is your most precious possession?

3. What is your favourite Disney film?

4. Blogging or Vlogging? and Why?

5. How did you think of your blog name?

6. What's your favourite season?

7. Favourite drugstore/budget beauty brand?

8. Take a picture of your favourite view.

9. What/who would you dress up as for a fancy dress party.

10. Who is your biggest inspiration?

Hope you've enjoyed reading this post, I am going to post more in the future!

Love

Apologies

Wow, these past 2 weeks have gone incredibly quickly! I am now living in Manchester, studying at the University of Manchester and having an amazing time. 

Moving in and getting settled was stressful and time consuming and that is one of the reason I have not been able to update my blog for a few weeks and I hate it! I love blogging and was really enjoying doing the 30 day blog challenge but I found that I had very little time :( especially with Freshers week!!

I hope to resume the challenge next month, and I would also like to thank the people who nominated me for Liebster award and to reassure you that the post will be up very soon so look out for it!

I would like to show you my room as soon as it's tidy enough to take pictures so look out for that post as well.

Love

30 Day Blog Challenge - Day 13

Day 13 - Somewhere you'd like to move to or visit

I would absolutely love to visit USA! I think it would be incredible to do a complete road trip, visit every state and see famous landmarks. If anyone has ever done this I would love to hear from you about how much it cost and how old you were when you did it and who you went with! 

As you may have read before in my previous posts, I have only ever been abroad once and that was just over 2 months ago to Corfu and I absolutely loved it. I will definitely be going abroad more often and America is at the top of the list.

In the future I may even be interested in a house swap, maybe something like the film The Holiday but under happier circumstances!

I don't think I'd be able to move too far away from my parents though, I would find it too hard being away from them for so long, even with skype and texting it's hard enough to think of being away for a month.

Love

30 Day Blog Challenge - Day 12

Day 12 - Bullet you whole day

Well this is going to be interesting... I've started writing this at 00:26 on September 12th 2013. So this is where I will start!

• Set alarm for 7:30!!
• Finish watching Big Bang Theory on E4 (The Luminous Fish Effect and The Hamburger Postulate)
• Fall asleep ZzZzZ
• Wake up at 8:30 (woops!)
• Have breakfast, cornflakes and a glass of orange juice
• Have a shower, get changed and do make up
• Get a bus to the car hire place to pick up a car, our little car broke down after coming back from booking the car we were going to hire!
• Come back home and pack more stuff
• Have lunch, croissant
• Pack even more!!
• Have dinner, cheese pasta with tomato and mascarpone sauce and chorizo
• At 7:00 my uncle came over to give me my birthday card :) 
• Dad got home from a governors' meeting at school so we loaded the car ready for tomorrow
• Watched Educating Yorkshire
• Washed hair
• Got into bed and finished writing this blog and starting the next!! 
• Saw that I have been nominated for a Liebster award for the second time so look out for those posts!! Thank you so much, I'm really looking forward to writing them
• Started watching Step Up 4 but I will probably fall asleep half way through and end up watching the rest tomorrow morning

Love

30 Day Blog Challenge - Day 11

Day 11 - Put your iPod on shuffle and write the first 10 songs that pop up

1. Mr Brightside - The Killers

2. 22 - Taylor Swift

3. Drive By - Train

4. The Mighty Fall - Fall Out Boy (feat. Big Sean)

5. Believe It - Cimorelli

6. LaserLight - Jessie J feat. David Guetta

7. Get Lucky - Daft Punk Feat. Pharrell Williams

8. Death Valley - Fall Out Boy

9. Treasure - Bruno Mars

10. Burn - Ellie Goulding

Love 

30 Day Blog Challenge - Day 10

Day 10 - Your guilty pleasure (or pleasures)


I blame my friend Jess for my first guilty pleasure... One Direction! I am not a Directioner and I don't love them but I do listen to their songs when I'm in my room with the door closed. I also quite often dance to "Best Song Ever" when I'm with Jess.

Bed socks are usually associated with old Grandmas but I love the fluffy bed socks from Primark. I have about 7 pairs and I have one friend who loves them too. We usually give each other a pair for our birthdays.

My last guilty pleasure is Easy A starring Emma Stone, a film I have been known to watch 3 times, 3 nights in a row! I love how stereotypical it is of American high schools and how it's so cheesy but actually has morals and a storyline.

Love 

30 Day Blog Challenge - Day 9

Day 9 - If you could have any job in the world, what would it be?

I'm pretty sure that in the future, I will be an Actuary. Is it my dream job? No. But I definitely think it suits my personality and my mindset. 

My dream job would be somehting that allows me to work with flexible hours because I hate mornings! I would love to be a manager of some sort, in charge of a group of people, organising events would be great! 

What is your dream job? And do you see yourself doing that in the future?

Love 

30 Day Blog Challenge - Day 8

Day 8 - A moment you felt the most satisfied with your life

As I am only 18 (very nearly 19!!) I haven't had the chance to have a lot of moments that I have been satisfied with myself, however the moment I felt most satisfied with my life was August 15th 2013, less than a month ago. As you know if you have read my other posts, you will know I am going to university and just before I found out my A Level results and whether or not I got into university was very exciting, scary and very important. So the day finally came and the UCAS website said that Track would be updated at 8:00am... so obviously I was logged in from 7:00! Eventually, after pressing F5 about 500 times, at 7:30 I could log in to Track and I found out that I got into my 2nd choice. Honestly I was a little bit upset, but then I thought, for about a month or so before I had only been able to imagine myself at my insurance so I  thought that I must be going to university most suited to me.

After finding out that I was going to uni, WOOOOHH!!! I was so much calmer. I knew that when I went into school to get my actual results, my grades didn't matter too much although, obviously, I still wanted to have good grades.

I opened the letter and I have never so proud of myself. I achieved and A* in maths, As in Further maths and computing and a B in Physics. It meant that all my hard work, studying, revising, late nights, colour coding and stressing out about exams actually meant something. 

Love

30 Day Blog Challenge - Day 7

Day 7 - Your favourite childhood toys

First of all I'm so sorry this didn't go up yesterday!! I actually fell asleep very early and didn't get a chance to finish it off so I will be posting days 7 and 8 at pretty much the same time. 

When I was a little girl I used to love playing with my bumble ball. (The picture below is taken from Google but mine looked exactly the same)

For those of you who don't know what a bumble ball is... it's a ball that jumps around while vibrating. I remember putting it under my chin and trying to talk!

As I got older, my friends and I started taking Bratz to school to play with during our morning and lunch breaks.

I think these were probably my 2 favourite toys but I definitely played with a lot more, one of my close family friends gave me a toybox so I could store everything away.

30 Day Blog Challenge - Day 6

Day 6 - Your zodiac sign and if you think it fits your personality

I am a Virgo (August 23rd - September 22nd) and I found a website with Virgo traits listed (positive and negative) and I am going to comment on each of them below:

Positive Traits

Meticulous 

I am very picky when it comes to detail, everything has to be perfect. I often pick up type errors in other people's work however I always seem to be less picky with my own work!

Intelligent

I don't like to talk about intelligence because if you say you are intelligent, people complain that you are boasting but if you say you aren't, people complain that you are trying to get attention, but I do feel I am intelligent, mainly because I tend achieve high grades in exams, obviously there are tests where I don't do as well as others, and I am quite good when I play along with quiz shows on TV (my favourite is The Chase).

Practical

I do like to to get stuck in to tasks and try to get good results but I am not always practical.

Analytical

I am incredibly analytical! I am always analysing situations and I often see things in black and white (not literally).

Reliable

Hmmm, it says on the website that "You can trust a Virgo for following the instructions..." well, not this one! I tend not to read instructions and just go ahead and set things up. However, I am quite reliable in the respect that if someone asks me to do something, I will usually do it but it may take me a while.

Modest

Again, a bit like intelligence, being modest is not something you admit to. Mainly because if you are modest you wouldn't say you were. I don't like to boast about achievements but if someone asks me I will tell them.

Negative Traits

Overcritical

When planning anything, whether it's what colour my nails will be that day or what I want to do with my life, I over think every aspect. I always have a clear picture in my mind of how I would like things to turn out and if it doesn't turn out perfect, which it often doesn't, I can get quite stressed out!

Fussy

I am definitely fussy, especially with food! And I know a lot of people are fussy but there are some things I just can't be near, let alone eat. Tuna is probably the worst!

Fastidious

I guess pleasing or impressing me is quite hard. I need to see that a lot of effort has been put into to something for me to think it is worthwhile.

Harsh

This is something I am definitely not! Some of my friends text me what they want to say and I have to sugar coat it because I think it is too harsh, this is something I think I have learnt from my mum who is very calm and not harsh at all.

Conservative

There are some traditional values that I strongly believe in, mainly revolving around family, for example I like Christmas dinner (as I mentioned in Day 5) but I like to modern ideas such as new technology.

Judgemental

Another hmmm, it's not something I like to admit to being but I am pretty judgemental. Not of people, but of objects usually and occasionally places.

Do you think your zodiac sign fits you personality? Post a link to your blog post below and I will read it (and follow if I don't already!!)

Love

30 Day Blog Challenge - Day 5

Day 5 - My favourite comfort foods and why

My first comfort food is Kedgeree. Not a lot of people eat the version my Mum makes but more people should!

The dish contains boiled rice, flaked smoked haddock, hard-boiled eggs and cream. It is my all time favourite meal because I usually like rice dishes and the taste of this meal is just amazing. 

I believe kedgeree traditionally has curry powder (according to Wikipedia) but it is just so nice without it.

Another comfort food, and I think this is probably true for a lot of people, Christmas Dinner. It brings back a lot of memories for me as it reminds me of family, winter and Christmas in general which I love. We always have roast turkey, gammon, roast potatoes, parsnips (there never seem to be enough so my Dad and I usually fight over the last one), cranberry sauce and occasionally we have yorkshire puddings. I am particularly fussy over vegetables so I usually have some cucumber on the side!

What are your comfort foods?

Love

30 Day Blog Challenge - Day 4

Read Day 1 here
Read Day 2 here
Read Day 3 here

Day 4 - Your views on religion

This is such a big topic, it's hard to know where to start! On the 23rd of April, 1995 I was christened in my local Anglican church. However, I had only attended church once at a Christmas Eve ceremony until recently. I am not a religious person, I believe in science but my sister has recently joined a youth group which are closely related to a Baptist church. I attended one morning to watch her and 4 of her friends be baptised. My sister was also christened when she was younger so this was more of a renewal but it was really nice to see a different type of church.

I would like to think that I respect all religions, I just don't believe in extremism.

Another branch of religion is what happens after death, I'm still not really sure what I believe but I think there is something after death. I am interested in programs like Colin Fry's Sixth Sense. If you ever get a chance to watch it, it's really dated, but I love watching it!

Love

30 Day Blog Challenge - Day 3

Read Day 1 here
Read Day 2 here

Day 3 - Your Top 5 Pet Peeves

This post took me a little longer to think of as I have so many pet peeves, trying to get it down to just 5 was a nightmare!! Just kidding, it really is hard for me to think of things that irritate me until they actually irritate me.

1. People who don't indicate.

I am currently a learner so I have been in the driver's seat but when other drivers see learners around, they tend to be more careful. But when I'm with my Dad in the car, it's a completely different story. When turning left, you indicate left. It's simple! Don't just assume that everyone around you can read your mind.

2. Using your mobile phone in the car.

Another driving one, if it's really that important, park the car in a sensible place and phone the person, don't phone while driving or, worse still, text! I have seen someone texting with both hands while steering with his knees. 

3. Not saying please or thank you.

Surely it's just common courtesy and what you should be taught when you are younger, 

4. English grammar and spelling.

There, their and they're. Where and wear. Can't nor carnt!!
Where were these people in English class from reception to year 11?

5. Pet names

Using pet names for a partner, fine but when it comes to people you have just met, please don't use "hun", "babe", "darling" or anything similar.

Tomorrows post should be a slightly more cheerful one!

Love

30 Day Blog Challenge - Day 2

Read Day 1 here!!

Day 2 - Where you'd like to be in 10 years

Being realistic, I will have to split this into 3 parts:

Work
As I mentioned in my first ever blog post [link] I will be studying Actuarial Science and Maths at University with the view to becoming an Actuary. A lot of people ask me what an Actuary is so this is a quote from the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries...

"Actuaries are experts in risk management. They use their mathematical skills to help measure the probability and risk of future events. This information is useful to many industries, including healthcare, pensions, insurance, banking and investments, where a single decision can have a major financial impact."

It all sounds very boring but, actually there is no but. It is a typical, quite boring office job, usually within an insurance company. And it may not sound very interesting or appealing to a lot of people but it does appeal to me, I have a logical, mathematical mind and it sounds challenging.

Now back to where I would like to be in 10 years... I am hoping to be a fully qualified Actuary. 

Family

In 10 years time I will be 28 and by this time I like to imagine myself with a family; a husband, 2 or more children, a dog, a rabbit (or two!!) and guinea pigs. I'm hoping that we live in a big house in the London suburbs, close enough to the city but far away enough that we nearly live in the country, if not in the London suburbs, definitely the south east.

Friends

As I have just left Sixth Form, I think it would be lovely that if in 10 years time we all got back together again for a reunion, I am hoping to keep in touch with my closest friends but in 10 years a lot can happen and unfortunately there will be people that I only keep in touch with through Facebook so it would be great to see how much everyone has changed in 10 years!

Love

30 Day Blog Challenge - Day 1

I haven't been tagged in this as such but I found it a few days ago and thought that I would start today as September has 30 days so it fits in perfectly :)

So Day 1 - Your current relationship. If single, discuss being single.

I am currently not in a relationship and I look at that as a good thing!! I have quite a few friends who have relationships that I do not envy at all but on the other hand I also have friends that are in stable, loving relationships. For some reason, and I have no idea why as I have never had a very serious relationship, people come to me for relationship advice so that means I hear all the ins and outs of their relationships. Now don't get me wrong, I am happy to help in any way that I can but it also means that I can't give any real advice as I have usually never had the experience. 

Getting advice from someone usually means that you have a problem of some sort, which is something I seem to hear a lot about, peoples problems in relationships. I think this is what makes me so happy that I am single at the moment and since I'm going to university this month, it's an added bonus that I'm single. That doesn't mean to say that I am going to be a slut but i know that I don't have to worry as much as I know a lot of my friends do.

It seems to be that a lot of people think that if you aren't in a relationship, you can't be happy but I like to think that I am living proof that you can be! 

Love

Review: Eyeko Liquid Eyeliner

The first thing I would like to say is thank you to my new followers! It means such a lot to me that people are interested in what I write about and if there is anything you would like me to blog about in the future please request it in the comments below.

If I'm honest, I don't often buy magazines but I do if the front cover looks interesting or I like the look of the free gift. I find glamour often do great sample sized products, especially as they sometimes offer Benefit goodies, but August's edition of Marie Claire had the Eyeko London Skinny Mini Liquid Eyeliner.

I have tried to use liquid eyeliners in the past and have never been able to apply them properly so I was hoping to have more luck with this one. Also I had an 18th party with a rock n roll theme and I was dressing up as Amy Winehouse so thought I better get this!

Even the packaging of this product is appealing. I like the blue box (even though it was a little bashed up at the bottom when I bought the magazine) and the product itself had a simple design.

The tip of the eyeliner is stiff enough to be able to line your eyes accurately but also soft enough that you don't hurt your lids in the process (which I have found with other liners). I found that I could create thin lines for simple look and thicker, fuller lines for more dramatic looks with this tip.

When this product has run out (even though it is a sample size I feel it still has a lot of use out of it) I will probably repurchase this.

If there are any other liquid liners that you think I should try please comment below or tag me on instagram @throughkatherineseyes

Love