Little thoughts, big plans

Starting university this week has really made me think about my future and what is in store for me. I have never set goals or New Year's resolutions but the last couple of days have really motivated me to grasp every opportunity that is given to me. Here are my main goals that I would love to achieve in the near future!

1. Find a part time job

My first goal to be achieved soon is to get a part time job - some people may be thinking "why is that the top of her list?" Well basically a lot of things can not happen without having money so if I get a job I will be able to fulfil more of my aims. I have literally applied to about 20 jobs and only a handful have actually replied to say that I wasn't successful and the others have just left me hanging. I would love a job in retail but it is easier said than done. My grades and skills etc are up to scratch so I think it is the fact that I have no experience which puts people off - it is actually so irritating!

 

 

 

Look out for some of my posts about fashion on a student fund *COMING SOON*

2. Successful blog

I have dipped my hand into blogging previously but nothing ever seemed to be very successful but The Fashionlopedia is actually bringing in a lot of traffic which I couldn't be more thankful about, like you don't understand how chuffed I am when I read someone's comment or when I have gained a lot of pageviews. I know it sounds silly but it is actually so encouraging, you forget how a little comment could actually be so valuable to someone's confidence.

 

 

3. Learn how to drive

I am nearly 18 and a half and I still have not achieved the milestone of being able to drive, I use the excuse of "oh my boyfriend can drive" or "why should I drive when I have friends who offer to drive me about?" But now that I'm in university I want more independence and I feel that learning to drive will be beneficial for everything!

 

 

4. Learn another language

At university there is a Degree Plus programme in which you can do a ten week course on basically any language that you want to, I really want to get involved and learn either Mandarin or Russian which may sound weird but in today's society it is the Chinese and Russian that control a large majority of the business and enterprising world therefore I feel that it would be really beneficial to learn either of these languages. It also enhances your CV and makes your degree more worthwhile at university!

 

 

5. Travel

Next year I want my summer to be jam packed full of travelling and going to all different places, I know I am already definitely going to Spain but I really want to go to France again and also Portugal. I also want to go on a weekend trip to London. Travelling is so much fun for me as I love to experience different cultures and it is a great opportunity to get some good photos! I would really enjoy like a trip around Europe in a VW van. Please comment any places that you would love to visit in Summer 2014. I also want to visit my best friend in Edinburgh too!

 

 

6. Bake

So I baked a cake with my boyfriend last Sunday which was great craic but now I really want to continue baking! Then my sister brought home an unbelievable lemon flan which was delviiosu and so easy to make. The satisfaction of creating something tasty out of bare ingredients is great. Check out my Instagram to see my cake and my sister's flan! Plus The Great British Bake Off has in a way inspired me too.

 

 

7. Take more photos & write a diary

Smetimes I feel that life passes so quickly for example this Summer has flown by so taking photos and writing a diray each day would really help me to be able to remember everything that happens even the smallest simple memory. I believe photos are so powerful too and they don't have an expiry date so when I'm old and grey I will be able to look back at my youth with delight as I have captured perfect memories.

 

 

8. Plan my career

I chose to do a degree in English as I felt that when I have completed it I would have a large variety of career choices which is great. At the moment I am leaning mostly towards either radio presenting or publishing - quite different things! So over the next while I need to start getting experience in both fields of these work to be able to decide which will be the best for me!

 

 

9. Get fit

I am not a sporty person at all, I love supporting my sisters but getting actually involved for me is not my thaaaang but I notice myself slight weight being put on especially over the summer and even I'm out of breath after ballet. Although I do ballet every week I want to start a new sport and go running, any suggestions of good sports? I was thinking maybe badminton? Who knows!

 

 

10. Enjoy life!

How cliché but really it is true. We need to enjoy life and live it to the full. We hear about deaths of young teenagers or people my own age and it really shakes me up and reminds me how little time we have and we never know when our life could end. How sombre. I need to learn to be a YES girl and say "yes" to all opportunies (obviously not irresponsible things though) and we need to make things happen for ourselves. FULFIL YOUR POTENTIAL.

 

 

 

RR xx

Party Season

Party season is rapidly coming upon us so I thought that I would pick out some of my favourites for AW13! I will probably do these posts regularly to keep you updated on what I am lusting after!

 

 

Sequin Prom Dress - TFNC, ASOS, House of Fraser

 

I love this navy glitter dress and it is an essential for any party wardrobe in my opinion. I love the bust shape as it reminds me of Taylor Swift's Herve Leger dress at the VMAs. This is a fun and perfect for many occasions!

 

 

Cutout bodycon dress - Topshop

 

I love the boldness of this dress and the vibrant red is perfect for Autumn. The shape of the cut outs make the dress original and totally different - I love it and it is a bargain too and has had great reviews.

 

 

 

Baroque Mesh Panel Velvet Skater Dress - Missguided

 

I adore this Missguided dress, the heavy velvet top half really compliments the floaty material of the chiffon skirt. It kind of reminds me of an ice-skating dress for some reason.. I just really like it! The long sleeves are also handy for those winter nights walking home. The gold zip detail at the back matches the baroque gold detail on the top half which is incredible too and again is such a bargain!

 

 

 

Curve Shoulder Bodycon Dress - Miss Selfridge

 

I love this monochrome dress for the approaching winter season and due to the style and the lines of black, it makes your figure look really curvy. It definitely looks to be a figure hugging dress and with a chunky necklace it could really change the look of it. By reading the reviews it seems like it is very good value for your money plus don't forget to use your student discount (if you are a student that is!)

 

 

Draped Sparkly Halterneck dress - Lipsy

 

 

I love this Lipsy dress and the halterneck detail of the dress is really different. The glitter throughout the dress makes it really girly and the colour is quite wintry therefore making it the perfect winter dress! The metallic effect finish makes the dress look flawless and so eyecatching!

 

So there is my top 5 AW13 party dresses so far! Keep your eyes peeled for anymore posts and please comment about any dresses that you have seen which you think would be perfect for the winter party season!

RR xx

Post-Weekend Blues

I have had a fab weekend and now I'm depressed that it is over so here is a post summing it all up along with what my sister wore out.

So my sister was going out to a 16th birthday party last night and she had left out her outfit that she was going to wear and it was unbelievable! So I thought, being the nice sister I am, that I would include it in my blog as it was pretty funkaaay. While she was getting ready I was up in Belfast and realised that I wouldn't be able to take photos of her before she left but I thought to myself "she has an incredible camera surely she will take it to the party and there will be photos of her in her outfit" but nooooo she did not take one photo of herself when she was out therefore I didn't even get to see her outfit on her. So I apologise for only being able to post the photos of the clothes that I took when she was planning the outfit during the afternoon!

 

 

These peep toe wedges are from New Look and were literally like £5 and I have only ever worn them once but I love the blue heel as it brightens up the outfit especially if it is an all black outfit which mine had been.

 

I took this photo in the afternoon when her toe nails were bright pink (Barry M Gelly) but she then changed them to cobalt blue (Barry M Gelly).

 

 

 

I am obsessed with Barry M nail varnishes, she used the blue as the main colour of her nails then decorated one nail on each hand with glitter. I find it pretty tricky to remove the glitter to be honest, does anyone have any tips to get it off easily without using half a bottle of nail varnish remover?

 

She wore pretty simple jewellery as the dress pattern is pretty fussy and so bright. She wore her silver star necklace that she had gotten from her boyfriend and her birthstone Pandora ring which was perfect with her dress as it is Peridot which was similar to the green.

 

 

 

Her skater dress is from Topshop and was initially bought for her 16th birthday a couple of weeks ago. It is a wild print but she is pretty hip so suited her perfectly! It was also the perfect dress for this birthday as they went out for dinner to Papa Joe's then back to her friend's house.

 

Ellen's dress can be found here!

 

 

Her purple leather jacket is from Miss Selfridge and matched the dress down to a tee.

 

I also had a fabulous weekend. I watched Skyfall at my boyfriend's house for the first time ever on Friday night - it is incredible! I have been seriously missing out. I then supported my sisters play hockey and my youngest sister became captain of her team so it was a proud day to say the least. I'm not even joking I almost was crying on the side lines when I saw her wear the captain's band around her leg. I then went up to Belfast and went to Maggie May's which had phenomenal shakes, you could get any flavour under the sun there like bubblegum millions, Crunchie, apple pie... the list goes on! I highly recommend it as it was so cheap too and I can tell I will be living there during student life. We then went to the Ulster Museum to see an exhibition called "Reflections" which basically reflected on the changing fashion from 1730-2013 and it included pieces from Alexander McQueen, Amanda Wakeley, Victoria Beckham and Moschino.

 

 

Oreo and Mars Bar shake!

 

 My playsuit and gladiator sandals are from River Island!

 

We then headed into Botanic Gardens for a walk and it turned out to be the Autumn Fair so we got to look around at all the food and activities  there was even a walking tree and a talking gnome which my mother thought was the most comical thing she had ever seen in her life. And then I went to a casual gathering at my friend's house so all in all it was a good weekend, only one more weekend til uni begins ahh!

 

RR xx

Prize Night 2013

One of the highlights during my school life in Glenlola was the Prize Night every September where the girls would be recognised for their great sporting and academic achievements. I have been going for three years due to my results and getting top for three years in Religious Studies. But this was a special night as it was my last ever prize night. Previous years I just had to go in my school uniform but as I am a "school leaver" I had to choose something to wear; something dressy but not inappropriate basically! I had already bought my outfit before receiving an official invitation but I was glad I bought the dress when I had seen it!

 

Printed Dress - Zara

Mayleen Dolly Shoes - Topshop

 

 

My dress was from Zara, I have been really impressed with the Zara range at the moment and this dress was fantastic! The material is quite thick which is perfect for autumn as although the pattern is pink and red floral there is some black through it allowing the dress to be worn with black tights in the autumn! I got the Mary Jane shoes from Topshop, I wore them for the first time at Prize Night and I got really bad blisters and cuts so I would advise to break them in and soften them first for example wearing socks and walking about the house. But I enjoy the fact that they will be perfect for most occasions!

 

 

I absolutely adore my Tiffany & Co bracelet that I got from my auntie for my 18th and I equally love my Pandora birthstone ring also from auntie for my results! For my nails I used the bright pink Gelly Barry M nail varnish and it worked like a treat as per use!

 

My sister was receiving athletics honours for coming 2nd in Ireland in 4x100m relay back in June and she got the top mark in Year 11 Physical Education. 

 

 

 

 

 

I think my outfit was perfect, some people wore heels but I was terrified of falling flat on my face onstage. It was such a lovely evening especially seeing all my past teachers but as they wished me well in the future it really hit me that it was probably the last time I would be in Glenlola but now I am ready for what university has in store for me and I am excited for what will happen in the future! Are any of you at university and have any helpful hints or tips? Let me know!

 

RR xx

 

 

Jeffrey Campbell

I actually adore Jeffrey Campbell shoes and if you read many blogs then you have most likely came across these shoes or knock-off versions but they really are incredible! I would do anything to be able to own a pair of Litas. I have put together my favourite shoes and some of the bloggers that wear them to show how you could match a pair with the perfect outfit. They are timeless shoes and really are worth the money - I NEED TO GET A PAIR!

 

 

 

I really do obsess over these Litas!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 You can buy Jeffrey Campbell shoes in Office, NastyGal and Doll Boutique.

 

Do you own any Jeffrey Campbell shoes? Let me know! And feel free to donate any unwanted pairs to me of course!

 

RR xx