Blogmas #10 / Guys Gift Gide

1. Bobble Hat (£7) - When its cold and approaching Christmas, what is the perfect way to keep warm? With a reindeer bobble hat of course. SORTED.

2. How To Swear Around The World (£8.99) - After living with my brother and Dad for 20 years there is something that I have learnt about guys. That is that they LOVE pointless facts and information. It creates good conversation starters or tactical conversation changers. Hence why I think Something like this 'How To Swear Around The World' book would be a perfect present. In fact any pointless books will do. To name a few: '52 Things To Do While You Poo', '99 Ways To Open A Beer Bottle', 'Sir Alex Ferguson Quote Book'. 

3. Beard Kit (£25) - 2014 was the year of the beard, everyone seemed to have one. I mean, there is even an exhibition that has just opened at Somerset House about them. So ladies, this Christmas lets join together and help groom those unruly hobo beards into something that could be potentially pretty hot - on the right fella. All it would take its this cute little beard kit that comes with wax, oil, scissors and even a little comb. After all - a beard is for life, not just for Christmas. 

4. Phone Projector (£15.95) - If this isn't the best present I have found all Christmas, then I don't know what is. A. PHONE. PROJECTOR. Slot your phone into the little gap and watch your videos on a wall. Amazing. Why has no-one thought of this before.... Bloody genius that is.

5. Ed Sheehan's X (around £10) - If the men in your life haven't already got this whopper of an album, then I highly suggest it. It is definitely a grower, but within a week you will be singing along and will know every single word. Of course other albums are available : George Ezra, Smashing Pumpkins, or even McBusted if they want a bit of cheese. 

6. Nivea Gift Set (£6.67) - Lets be honest, not many men know how to pamper themselves. So this Nivea gift set will give their skin a break and let it feeling like a baby's bottom until the products have run out - or until next Christmas. 

7. The Inbetweeners 2 (£10) - Lads. Lads. Lads. Lads. #Banter #NoOtherWordsNeeded

8. Black Grandad Shirt (£28) - Clothes are always a safe option I think. I find that guys respect the opinion of women who buy them clothes, or don't bother to comment in case they get moaned at. Probably the latter but I think they secretly appreciate the free clothes. I love the style of these Grandad collars and as my brother has let me know, apparently they are 'in' fashion. 

If, like me, you find it impossible to buy Christmas presents for the men in your life, then hopefully this may help! These are always the last presents I cross off my list. Why are men so difficult??

Grace xx

Blogmas #9 / Clash of the Christmas Cups

Everyone has their favourite festive drinks and this year there seem to be more and more Christmas cups. Starbucks, Costa, Cafè Nero and even McDonalds have jumped on the Christmas cup bandwagon!

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Starbucks
Everyone knows the iconic red cup. Starbucks also have some of the most delicious flavoured drinks at Christmas time that get you in the festive mood. These include: Eggnog Latte, Gingerbread Latte, Honey and Almond Hot Chocolate, Toffee Nut Latte, and someone told me that there was a Christmas Cookie latte, but after extensive research, it turns out it is only available in Australia and Philippines. How could you keep this from me Starbucks? Sort it out.

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Costa
The cutest cup design has to go to Costa. I was so excited to see some extra characters this year, as I believe there were only two designs last Christmas. Their Christmas range includes: Black Forest Hot Chocolate, Brownie Hot Chocolate, Gingerbread and Cream Latte, Orange Hot Chocolate, Praline Cappuccino, Sticky Toffee Latte, Hot Spiced Apple and White Hot Chocolate. While I haven't tried most of these delightful sounding drinks, I did have a White Hot Chocolate that just didn't sit right with me. It was too sweet and just didn't taste as nice as traditional hot chocolate. I am dying to try the Hot Spiced Apple though, so Costa... I'm coming for ya!

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Cafè Nero
To try and compete with the big guns, Cafe Nero have created the Festive Latte Collection. The cups and flavours don't seem inspired. Nero I am SO disappointed.

McDonalds
With their large selection of festive food, you would have thought that McDonalds would have bought out more festive drinks flavours this years. From what I can tell, the only festive drink they have is the Toffee Latte. I am yet to try out the Toffee Latte, but I can tell you that the festive banoffee pie is genius (but not as good as my beloved apple pie).

Do you have a favourite festive drink? This year mine is most definitely the genius that is the Honey and Almond Hot Chocolate... thank you Starbucks!!

Grace xx

Blogmas #8 - Photo Diary

1st December/ Bright lights at an MTV event / Red sky at night, shepherd's delight

 Working the red carpet/ Work's Christmas meal

After what has been one of the busiest weeks at work since I started in July, it was nice to have a relaxing weekend doing next to nothing. We had two major events in one week, meaning that all hand were needed on deck. I love working events, but man do they take it out of you. I am getting tired just thinking about how much work we did on those two evenings.

The week ended with a bang as we wrapped everything up with our Christmas party. The meal was absolutely delicious and I only have a picture of the starter because I finished the turkey roast and warm brownie far too quickly. A lot of alcohol was consumed and secret santa gifts were exchanged. It was an amazing evening spent with some wonderful people.

I hope you have all had a good week!

Grace xx

Blogmas #7 / Gift Wishlist

I am not going to lie, there isn't much on my Christmas wish list. I feel like I don't really want anything, and the things that I need are things that I buy myself. I am a much better giver than receiver. Buying people presents at Christmas is one of my favourite things to do. I plan in advance and really think about what I want to buy people. I am all about sentimentality, so if I can think of something that I know they will love because it is so 'them' then I will buy it!

On the other hand, when people ask me what presents I would like, I have no idea. Which, I know is really annoying, but I really can never thing of anything that I really want and will get a lot of use out of. So that's why the four main thing that I have asked for this year are things that I know I will use/listen to/ watch often!

1. Si Perfume (£64.50) - I smelt this on a whim one day and it was love at first smell. I have found some small samples of this in magazines that have kept me going, but I now feel ready for the commitment of a whole bottle.

2. Taylor Swift's 1989 (around £11) - I have been a massive fan of Taylor Swift since around 2006/2007. Seeing her get bigger and bigger with each album has been so exciting. She is defiantly one of my role models. While I don't think I like all the songs on this album, I know it will be a good one to dance around/ sing along/ drive to. 

3. Bobble Hat (£14) - I have been on the search for THE perfect winter hat for so long. Last year I think I found 'the one' but didn't pick it up at the time as I thought I could come back and buy it later. But, as we all know when you want something and leave it, you will never find it again. This lovely green number from Topshop is the closet look-a-like I have seen!

4. The Fault In Our Stars (£10) - I read the book, I cried. I watched the film at the cinema, I cried. Now I want the DVD so I can cry in the comfort of my own home. It is such a lovely story and one of the only films I have actually seen this year. Well done John Green, my hat is off to you sir.

What are on your Christmas wish lists this year?

Grace xx

Blogmas #6 / Cosy winter night

After a very late night/morning after the works' Christmas do, drinking far too much wine and getting not nearly enough sleep, a night in is exactly what the doctor ordered. My room is pretty darn chilly due to the draft that always seems to come through my window so I am cosy underneath the covers with a mug of hot chocolate. Love Actually is my film of choice for the evening and, if I do say so myself, it is the perfect choice for a cold winter evening.

I am also going to start reading my next book tonight, 'We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves'. I can't wait. I haven't read for about three weeks, so I am excited to get back into reading.

Love is all around us, come on and let it show.

Grace xx

Blogmas #4 / Christmas Decorations

I can't believe it, but I haven't put any Christmas decorations yet! How very disappointing. 

Instead browsing online for decoration ideas and festive baubles has made me extremely excited for when I go home and can help the family decorate the house whilst blasting Christmas music. (Bring on the Bublè). When the Christmas decorations come out of the loft and bring that 'Christmassy' smell with them, I know it won't be long until the whole family is together on Christmas Eve ready for the big day. Eee. I can't wait!

What are your favourite type of Christmas decorations? 

Grace xx

Blogmas #2 / Girls Gift Guide

1. Socks (£5) - Let's be honest, it wouldn't be Christmas without receiving socks or underwear. Am I right? And who could resist them when they are presented in a very festive bauble? It would be a small, cute gift to give to a friend, co-worker, or along side another gift. 

2. The Fault In Our Stars (£10)- There are many DVDs out at this time of year that you can change up to suit the girl you are buying for: 22 Jump Street, X-Men: Days of Future Past, Frozen and there is always an offer on the Disney films which is a bonus! (Don't forget those essential Christmas films either)

3. Clutch (£12) - When I saw this scallop clutch, I think I fell in love, and for £12 its a steal. I would possibly buy this for one of my girlies and put a few smaller surprises in the clutch too. 

4. Clarins Lip Collection Gift Set (£19.50) - As soon as October you can find Christmas gift sets hitting the shelves, and it is the most exiting thing to see when you walk Boots and you can have a peruse around decking which ones to get. This set from Clarins is one of my favourites this year. It includes miniatures of a lipstick, two of their lip perfecters and a lipgloss. As a lip product fan, I would be thrilled to receive this. It is something that would be suitable for a range of ages too. Other gift sets I have seen that deserve a worthy mention are: The Fearne Collection from Boots, This Works from TK Maxx, Prada Candy from Selfridges and Liz Earle Christmas Skincare from John Lewis.   

5. Bathroom Guest Book (£12) - Everyone needs a jokey present, something that they didn't know they needed or wanted. This Bathroom guest book is just that perfect type of present. What would you do with it? I'm not sure, other than proudly display it in your bathroom for people to enjoy while they are on the toilet. 

6. Ryan Gosling Calendar (£9) - I couldn't go a post without mentioning Ryan Gosling, sorry. If your friend, like the rest of the world, is in love with Ryan and are terribly upset that he is someone else baby daddy then this is the perfect present. Your friend can just stare at his beautiful face all year round. She will love you, I promise (of course other men are available).

7. Ciate gifts (£15-30) - When I was Christmas shopping last week I stumbled into TK Maxx and found a wall full of Ciate sets. They were selling previous years advent calendars and Ciate nail polish baubles that were all super cute! Even though they are last years products, they are half the price that they would usually be. SCORE.

8. Taylor Swift's 1989 (around £11) - If they haven't already got this incredible album from Taylor Swift then you can bring a bit of fun and pop into their life. It is the perfect album to dance around your room to or sing as loud as you can in your car. If they want something a bit different you can always go for a bit of Sam Smith, AC/DC or if maybe even Take That if they are into it?!

I hope you are ready to put your helmet on and raid the shops! Its every man for himself out there at this time of year. Haha. I hope this helped you out with some gift ideas for the wonderful women in your lives. Of course I forgot to add in books and gadgets gifts, but hey, head down to the shops and check out whats around. And if me, you love to give a sentimental gift, do it. It is much more memorable and a lot more thoughtful. 

23 DAYS TO GO! 

Grace xx

Blogmas #1 / December 1st

I was so excited for December that I ate my first advent calendar chocolate a day early. It is one of my favourite months of the year, December. It is a time that brings people together and makes people happy. I really do believe it is a magical time of year. AND the time off work is a bonus too!

It feel as if it was only a short time ago when the horribly cold weather of December was here and now it is back again. The cold in the big city isn't as fresh as it is back at home and there is always a haze in the air. Made better of course by the new Christmas decorations that are up all around London, making it one of the most beautiful places to walk round. I could literally stare at the lights on Oxford Street for days on end.

Talking of Oxford Street, it is literally every man for himself on that street at the moment. I have never seen so many people in one place. I am SO glad that I have already done the majority of my shopping and the rest I can easily do online. Has anyone else braved the crowds to go shopping yet? I would recommend taking a helmet. No, seriously, its mad out there.

I love Christmas time. I love December.

#24DAYSTOGO

Grace xx 

Life in London

Moving to London is a pretty big deal, right?

...Well, I am glad you agree. because for the past week I have been trying to let it sink in that I am actually here for a whole year. A whole year! For a student, that it a long time.

This first week has been a whirlwind of crammed full of working, sleeping, walking, sightseeing, eating, working, tubing, dodging slow walking people, working, learning, laughing, living, loving and having a whole lot of fun! Oh, also working.

My mornings now consist of standing on a tube for 20 minutes while I inhale the coffee infused air and surf the rattly capsule on which no-body makes a sound. It can be creepily silent at times. Everyone just stares blankly into their phones or bury themselves into a book. Lets just say it isn't my favourite part of the day. It does however lend itself to some great people watching opportunities... and by 'people watching' I mean staring at beautiful men in suits until either they, or myself get off the tube. All men look better in suits don't you think?

I now know my tube route off by heart! Hearing "This line terminates at...Stratford" is strangely comforting when I step on the tube in the morning and I honestly don't know why. Once I step off the tube I rush towards my favourite part of my journey; Parliament Square. Another great place for people watching, don't you know. It is surrounded with magnificently crafted buildings that are perfect examples of the beauty that humans can create. I have The houses of Parliament in front of me and Westminster Abbey to my right and I sit at the feet of George Canning (don't worry, I had to Google him to) and watch the world go by. By this point Big Ben is making some sort of racket to let me know that I am half an hour early for work, but its oaky because I have my pal George standing over me for company.

When I get to work in the mornings I am always greeted with a cheery holler of 'Morning' from whoever is in the office, which is a great start to anyones day. I settle myself in and start my jobs. Time flies in the office, there never seems like there is enough time to do everything. They are definitely keep me busy though. They are a lovely bunch, my work colleagues, they are genuine and positive people which is an atmosphere that I am loving working in. Music is always playing, people are always talking and it is a creative space to be in. There are many perks to my internship; obviously I get to meet some pretty high profile people, I get to go to events and every friday is 'Bar Friday' in the office from 5pm-6pm, but the thing I am most excited about? Sports day. It is next week and I am looking forward to it! I am on the blue team (obviously the winning team) and I am excited because their video from last year was hilarious.

Apart from socialising at work, I have really socialised back at my flat. I have seen my new flatmates a few times whilst I have been making food, but other than that we all seem to keep ourselves to ourselves. Which is fine, but it would have been nice if one of them quickly showed me round the building or something. I went for drinks with one of my flat mates and her friend from next door during the week. It was in a cute and quirky little bar in the area where we live. They are lovely people, but seem to be a little snobby. They told me about the guy who's room I have vacated and said how he didn't come out with them very often and that he used 'not having any money' as an excuse... sorry but that would be my excuse most of the time too, whilst living in London. This shit is expensive. Anyway, yes, I am going to work on building a better relationship with my flat mates in the coming weeks, I don't want it to become awkward later on down the line.

I had some visitors this week. First my Mom came down to stay with me for a night whist she was in London for work. We celebrated me starting my internship with a bottle of Prosecco and Tapas in town. It was a cute evening that carried onto the next morning where she rode with me on my journey to work and bought me breakfast. what a babe, thanks Momma K. I secretly didn't want her to leave, but I am a big girl now and shouldn't miss home as much as I do.

My second visitor was my sister. We had a wild weekend basically being tourists. We went to the Tower of London and gazed at the Crown Jewels and learnt a hell of a lot about the towers and the ages in which it was built. From there we went to Tower Bridge as I have never been on it before. I took far too many pictures of Tower Bridge, and later didn't Instagram any of them. Dinner was consumed at the beautiful Katherine Docks, I recommend you all take a walk around that area, it was like a secret little area that was mostly quiet, but had some cute looking places. We were shattered after our day of being tourists and we both literally passed out ready for our next jam packed day. Only a lot went wrong, damn you tube mechanical works, meaning that we walked almost 3 miles to get into Central London to do something with our day, causing myself injuries from new shoes that literally dug into my ankle and made me bleed really badly. Our aim for the day was to go to an Art fair that my sister had booked us tickets to go to and to eat at the Breakfast Club. Neither of these things happened, which was a disappointment, but we had an adventure down the back streets of London which was pretty darn cool.

I have loved my first week in London and hope that my next 50-odd are just as fun! If you have any recommendations for things for me to do, or food to eat, then let me know either with a comment or on TWITTER.

 Grace. xx

GracieLou Moves to the Big City

So, its official, I move down to London in two weeks time!

I have finished my second year of university and am now going into a year-long placement in the capital. I am both extremely nervous and equally excited, but either way I am taking you guys with me.

I thought I would blog my adventures round London, places to eat, things to do, events to enjoy and shops to casually stroll into and spend a stupid amount of money. I like reading travel/review/food/basically everything blogs so thought i'd throw in my two cents and just blog it all. If any of you live in London or have any recommendations of places to go/ things to do, then please hit me up and possibly show me round this new, strange city. I want to do as much in London as I can whilst I am there for the year.

Leave your suggestions below and I will hit 'em up when I can (especially food, my tummy will personally thank you). London I'm coming for ya!

Grace xx

'Blog What You Love'

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The many times I try and approach this blog again, and each time I fail to continue my motivation for more than 3 posts. Maybe this is because of the amount of work I have had at university for the past few months? Or it has something to do about the pressure to make a blog perfect. To have the perfect graphics, to take perfect pictures on a DLSR camera that are far too expensive for a student like me to own, to write content on a regular basis and to write something that people are actually interested in. I know that I don't do any of these things, but I am willing to improve, even if it takes me 20 years. 

I read a post by Kemples explaining the feeling of 'Falling out of Love with Blogging' . I agreed with everything in her post. I have felt unmotivated, have compared myself to other amazing bloggers and have felt less creative than usual about posts to produce. Sadly that has been reflected in my neglected blog. Her tips are simple: Be yourself, make mood boards to become more creative, and set realistic goals for your blog. 

I from here on, will be blogging content I want to create. This could be anything from an adventure post, make-up post, travel post, rambling post, book post.. you know the rest. I feel like I can't be put into a category because my mind wanders too much. I like all of these things, so having the choice to write about them all is the new path I am going to head down. That means I will be taking part in all blogger chats on Twitter, not just #lbloggers. (but first I must find out when they all are)

I love life, I love people, I love photography, I love going on adventures and travelling, I love learning new cultural things and most importantly I love writing and sharing knowledge and experience with people. I think sharing and listening to other peoples stories and opinions gives you a greater understanding of the world. A little bit of everything on this blog will make me a happy person and allow me not to feel caged to one category of blogging. I hope you all enjoy the change as much as I think I am going to. Here is to a new content beginning *raises imaginary champagne flute*

Thank you Kemples for your post and for inspiring me to get back to the blogging keyboard.

See you all soon.

Grace xx

10 Albums To Help You Through Revision/Assignments

It is that time of the year when thousands of University students, like myself, are revising for their exams or stressing out because of their assignment deadlines. This diagram below describes exactly how I feel at the moment.

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This month I have had three deadlines far too close together for my liking and the only thing that is getting me through the last week of writing assignment is the abundance of food and music. So, while I nibble on a coconut slice and a bag of Cool Doritos, here are a few albums getting me through until my deadline:

Beyonce: 4.
It's Beyonce, what more can I say. She brings out my inner diva and puts me in a much better mood. You will find me re-creating Beyonce dances instead of writing my assignments. Being Beyonce is a lot more fun.

Favourite track: Love on top.

Justin Timberlake: Justified
This was a hard one to choose. Not because I didn't want JT in my list but because I wanted to put all of his albums in. However, I have whittled it down to his Justified album, due to the fact that I know all the words to it and love a good sing-a-long.

Favourite track: Señorita.

Disney:
Listening to my Disney album takes me back to times where life was simple, easy and care free. I can sing the whole of 'A Whole New World' to you... or how about 'When You Wish upon A Star'. This album has all the classics in once place and no, I am not ashamed to listen to this in the library.

Favourite track: Part Of Your World

Calvin Harris: 18 Months
As Will Ferrell would say, this album 'Gets the people going'.

Favourite track: Feel So Close/ I Need Your Love

Bombay Bicycle Club: Flaws
When I need a more chilled out album, this is the one I reach for every time. The songs on here are beautiful and the backing vocals from Lucy Rose are yummy! My sister and I have got tickets to see these guys, FINALLY, after about 4 years of waiting to see them.

Favourite track: Jewel.

Arctic Monkeys: AM
I didn't think that I would like this album when it first came out. I wasn't the biggest fan of Humbug, but I've grown to love it. Alex Turner is a bit of a babe as well isn't he.

 Favourite track: Arabella/ Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High

The Great Gatsby Soundtrack:
Ever since seeing this film at the cinema I wanted the soundtrack. It is full of upbeat and powerful songs that just stimulate my brain and make me write as fast as a mother fudger. It is also fun to pretend that you are in the 20s when you are listening to it. In the 20s, with a laptop of course.

Favourite track: Love is Blindness- Jack White

Mumford and Sons: Babel
Working on an assignment jus wouldn't be the same without a bit of Mumford and Sons to carry you through. Marcus Mumford's voice is a comfort in these hard time, and everyone needs a bit of banjo to perk them up! I like to let loose to this song. Jump around a bit and get rid of some of my tension. This is not advisory for in the library however!

Favourite track: I Will Wait

Kodaline: In A Perfect World
Another wonderful, calming album that can make any stressed person feel slightly better about life. Listening to these songs is like butter, its so smooth and its easy listening for those moments where you actually need to concentrate.

Favourite track: High Hopes

Destiny's Child: #1's
If you ever want to bring a bit of sass to your work, I know where to direct you. Head on over to Destiny's Child. They have sass pouring out of their bones and every single song on this album is a killer. I feel so much more motivated once I have listened to this album. They remind me that "I'm a survivor, I'm gonna make it.." (hahaha sorry, it was killing me not to put that in).

Favourite track: Survivor/ Bills, Bills, Bills

What songs get you guys through revision? I'm always looking for new music to listen to, hit me up!

It's Not Been A Great Week

Apart from the fact that I actually uploaded my first in the series of 'Midweek Reads', this week has been pretty dire, and here is why:

1. Deadlines.
I have 3 deadlines in the space of 3 weeks and my stress levels are about to go over-board. Two of them are group work (which is a whole other issue in itself) and one is an individual piece. On Wednesday we submitted one of the group work assignments, 20 minutes before the deadline. Cutting it close was not ideal. We would have been finished the day before if our tutor didn't keep changing his mind about what he wanted us to put in our assignments. Yes, that is right folks, 2 days before the deadline at 00:10am, he adds another part to our assignment that was once optional and he suddenly changed it to mandatory. What a poop-head.

2. The Weather.
Rain, Rain go away, come again ..... NEVER. Who would have thought that it would be raining everyday in January? I at least wanted some snow or something. Anyway the excessive rain has made far too many puddles that cover the roads, in order for cars to drive through them and soak you whilst you casually walk to university. Boo you lorries.

3. Builders.
The rain also completely wrecked our house, creating water damage. We called the estate agents, who called a contractor, who called his 'mates' to come and sort it out. So this week, every morning at 9am we have had builders drilling at our walls, hammering dry wall back onto the brickwork, making a hell of a lot of mess and scaring me when I open my curtains in the morning by standing on some scaffolding right outside my window. I hope they finish their job soon!

4. RIP iPhone.
Yesterday was an extremely dark day. I spent 5 hours in the library, doing more group work for an assignment thats due on Monday. Then I came home and was rather peckish. I decided to make pasta, and can I just say it was delish! However I then decided I wanted sweetcorn in my pasta and rummaged to find a can in my cupboard. In the way was a jam jar, a Roses Lemon and Lime Marmalade jar to be exact. So I took it out to see behind it, there was no sweetcorn, so I put the jar back. This is when the jar slipped, fell and smashed my iPhone screen. It is not only smashed but the screen has bled too. My phone still works though, Hallelujah. I just need to find someone who will fix the screen for a student budget.

After this rather drab week, I have compiled the things that have made me smile when I didn't want to smile...

1. Someone on Facebook posted this and I am glad they did. These guys from Ireland killed this song!

2. My housemate 'S' showed me this and we sat in tears, laughing at this for a good 10 minutes. I have showed other people and they don't get it. Maybe we were just delirious from work, but it made me smile none-the-less.

 

3. This week 'S' and I started Pole Dancing as a form of exercise. It is a lot harder than it looks but is so much fun at the same time. I do however have achey arms and bruises now. I can't wait for next weeks lesson!

What's made you happy this week?

Midweek Read: Forty Days of Dating

One of my goals for this year was to read more. That includes books, novels, poems, newspapers, magazines, blogs... you name it, ill read it.

So while I was putting off uni work reading I discovered this wonderful project, '40 Days of Dating'. I found this project through another blogger and I can't for the life of me remember who it was, so I am sorry for the lack of mention.

I enjoy reading things that make me think, things that question my beliefs and values. I enjoy reading about other peoples lives and experiences because people intrigue me. Either that, or I am just a nosey so-and-so who feels the need to read into other peoples lives for entertainment. I love a bit of romance, don't we all? But Forty Days of Dating isn't your stereotypical love story.

Forty Days of Dating was an experimental project created by New York designers Jessica Walsh and Timothy Goodman.  They posed the question: 'What do you do when you are tired of the prospect of dating?'. What do you do? Do you stick with it in hope that you will find something or give up completely?

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I spent a good couple of days reading through their 40 days of ups and downs, of their adventures and everyday lives. I did however, find that, while it was stimulating for the eyes, their story lacked something. Half way through the project I felt like hitting them both round the head with an extremely heavy book, especially Jessica. She started to over-analyse their relationship, which go rather frustrating. But damn it is interesting!

People have said how fake they think this project was. "They are artists, they were probably doing it as another art project." But is that not the point of art? To make you think, to help you see the things in your own life that you might not have seen before. To be creative and to understand the world a little better? To be completely confused, but to understand at the same time? If it was an art project then I liked it. It hooked me in, mainly with pictures and colourful illustrations that coincide with what had been written by Jessica and Tim. Anyway, they must have done something right, as Warner Bros. have won the rights to create their story into a film. Because nothing cannot, not be turned into a film these days.

"Do they get together in the end?" I hear you cry. Well... find out for yourself HERE. Also, if you know of any more projects like this, let me know, I have had a craving for more things like this ever since I stopped reading.

Arty Days, With No Essays

Today has consisted of many arty projects, and for students who do not do an art degree this was a challenging task! My housemate (lets call her 'S') and I were set the challenge by our group to take pictures for an editorial piece that we have to create for an Assignment. 

Our first task was to melt some crayons onto a canvas in order to get paint splashes that we could then take pictures of. Can I just say how hard it is to find canvases and crayons... Do the youth of today not colour in with crayons anymore? huh? Anyway, a tube of superglue later, my fingers were stuck together and we were ready to melt our crayons. I have to say it is one of the most fun things I have ever done. 

Next I had the task of carving an image of the world onto an apple. My group did not have faith in me that I would be able to do this. ALAS, I carved an image of the world onto an apple and if I don't say myself, it looked terrific. I traced it onto the apple using an image of the world and poking holes around the outlines of each country with a pin in order to have a guideline of where to take away the apple skin. I then hacked at it with a knife and TADAAAAH. This miracle happened.

I would like to thank our uni for letting us be so creative and have a fun afternoon, before we get back to writing essays and reports tomorrow. Oh the joys.

// As a side note, I think I am going to get my hair cut shorter. And with a centre parting... thoughts?