Grateful.

As a 26 year old woman (yes, apparently I am classed as one of those now... even though I still spend my spare time singing to Disney soundtracks and googling things like 'how to cut a pineapple') - I spend ALOT, and I mean alot, of my time moaning, critiquing myself, stressing over minor mishaps and generally wishing for other or better things.

Earlier this week as I was getting ready for work it kind of hit me that doing this was kind of... well, ridiculous. 

I am SO lucky to have the life I do. 

Why am I moaning about gaining 1lb and not looking like Jessica Alba or being stressed because I'm a bit strapped for cash for the last week of the month? 

Living in a world full of social media, gorgeous celebrities with enviable lives and general glitz and glam it is really hard not to get caught up in the longing for more - that green eyed monster.

I have all 4 limbs, am on the whole - healthy, I can see, I can hear, I can smell - I have an amazing family, boyfriend and best friends that have been with me since I was a child, I live on a beautiful island.... there is no reason I should be moaning - I should be bloomin' well grateful.

I wake up in the morning, in my own flat surrounded by hundreds of things that I don't really need but have anyway - head to my kitchen where there is food, running water and head off to a job that I love! (What is there to moan about really? That I ran out of £2 raspberries...?) 

I don't know why looking in the mirror that morning bought all this on but it's something that's made me think constantly this week and started to change how I look at things.

Before the photo above I would think ... oh god look at those hips, my arms look chubby, I wish my bum was better (and I'm not going to lie and say that I still don't think those things on some level) but I've got to look at the positives of the photo - I'm in Mallorca on a gorgeous beach, so lucky, my bikini was a bloody bargain from ASOS (£10!) and compared to 5 years ago I look great! 

Be proud of who are you, embrace the flaws you think you may have and smile! 

It's alot nicer seeing, talking and interacting with positive people - negativity is draining, so unbelievably draining, it's time we cleansed ourselves of it! 

It's time to start looking at everything as a glass half full, not half empty. Out-way the negatives with the positives and LIVE life. 

I should be totally and utterly grateful and at peace with what I have - as there are so many people in the world with nothing. No family, bad health, nowhere to sleep - most of us take what we have for granted and it is about time we stopped. 

I'm not sure whether this is a sign of maybe finally growing up a bit but it's a start. I mean it's all pretty obvious but we need to appreciate what we have a little more than we do.

Focus on what you DO have, not on what you do not.

What do you have to be grateful for? 

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Kirstie's Travel Diaries #10 - Venice Beach, Santa Monica & YouTubers

Catch up with #9 here.

DAY 10 (09/03/12)

Friday morning , the sun was shining and today we had decided to finally head down to the BEACH! Venice Beach to be precise and not forgetting Santa Monica!
We thought we'd ask at our hotel desk for the best way in getting to the beach, with traffic in LA being crazy busy we decided taxi probably wasn't the best idea as if we got stuck in traffic we could be paying hundreds of dollars! After speaking to them we headed off to the bus stop on Hollywood and Highland where we were to get on a bus and head to a bus station to change.

This bus came and we got on, a little nervous as to be fair we had no idea where we were going and knew no-one.
After what seemed a lifetime of stopping at a million stops on the same never-ending road we ended up at a bus depot type thing (aka we had no idea where we were). We actually got off at the wrong stop and had to walk  little bit to get there - we weren't having much luck at this moment.

Luckily a friendly bus driver advised us on where to go, so onto another bus it was and on the home straight to Venice Beach. Again, this wasn't a short journey but finally after over an hour and a half we were there - Venice Beach!

Obviously I'd seen Venice Beach so many times before, TV, Films, YouTube so this made it all the more exciting - recognising so many views and "sets"! 90210 sprung to mind!

One thing me and my friend had been dying to do was put our feet in the Pacific Ocean. I think it comes from us watching the movie Crossroads so many times and Mimi in it saying "I wanna travel all the way to California and dip my feet in the Pacific Ocean..." - have you guys seen that movie? I hope so - it's a childhood favourite of mine, got to love a bit of Britney!
So we did it, headed straight onto the beach and straight to the sea - now there was noway I was going in for a swim because.... erm... Sharks! So feet was enough! 

We walked alotng the beach for a little while and then decided to head back onto the walkway to check out everything there!
Venice Beach is a busy place and there is so much going on, stools, musicans, shops, cafes - the place is buzzing and we loved it!
There was so much to look at and even though I've heard people I know say before that it is a bit "dodgey" I didn't feel uncomfortable or on edge at all, I was loving it!
Walking along we suddenly noticed something we had definitely seen on TV - one of the model's homes from American's Next Top Model!!! (I can't remember what cycle it was - but I loved the season where they lived here - it is the most beautiful home with the most insane view!)

We could see the Santa Monica pier so thought we would walk along to there, taking in the beautiful views as we went!
We'd been walking for a while so we stopped and got a drink, it was probably the hottest day for us since arriving in the US... it wasn't even that hot and my poor pale skin wasn't coping well.
We set off again, getting closer to the pier - we could see the Ferris wheel and couldn't wait to hop on!
Whilst walking towards it all I suddenly noticed a camera crew - cameras, mics etc and then I suddenly saw who they were all pointed towards.... CarlieStylez and HeyKayli from YouTube!
If you haven't heard of them... where have you been? I have been watching the Shaytards probably for around 3 or 4 years now and with them being sister and sister-in-law to the family I have been subscribed to their channels ever since they started and of course to The Moms View.

I knew exactly what they were doing down in Santa Monica - filming Moms On The Loose!
I begged my friend to wait with me until they had stopped filming so I could go and speak to them and get a picture  call me sad/crazy but I knew there was noway this opportunity would ever come again!
I think we probably looked like weirdos sat down on the beach wall about 10m away waiting for them to finish interviewing  group of guys and at one point I thought we should probably just leave but after little while they finished up and the guys left.
So, like a crazy fan girl I went over and asked if I could have a photo with them - yes I'm that girl. #awkward
Thankfully they were so so lovely and happily had a couple of photos with us, not only this but they asked us to be on The Moms View.

 This terrified me but of course we said yes! We were filmed answering a few questions - which I totally ballsed up and sounded like a complete fool and I still cringe to this very day about it but.... oh well! 
It was so amazing meeting them both (although they did think I was about 16... god damn my young baby face!) as their family to me are such amazing role models and I can honestly say they were so lovely and I even still get to speak to Carlie on twitter now and again which, to me, is just crazy -she is such a sweetheart. 

After that seriously exciting moment we carried on up to the pier, passing the famous rings (that I always see in the Shaytards videos) and more!
Finally we were there - Santa Monica pier.

 A few years ago I would have never imagined I would have been this far from home, having the time of my life and seeing sights I never even dreamed I'd be able to see.

 We got some lunch (chips) and chilled for a bit - we had walked a fairly long way in the heat! Then it was time for the Ferris wheel! All we kept thinking was.... this is where Spencer propsed to Heidi in The Hills haha!
I swear to god that wheel went round about 500 times but definitely gave us enough time to get lots of lovely photos of the view! Why don't I live here?

Time was getting on and we knew that, with traffic, we were a good hour way from our hotel we thought that going back to the bus was the best plan.
Now.... where the bus stop was - we had no idea! There was noway we were walking back along to Venice Beach where we had come from so we went to the little help/police desk thing at the pier!
The officer kindly looked into all the bus times for us - which was like writing down chinese to us - we had no idea where we were going, or even which way!
 We actually stood on the wrong side of the road for about 30 minutes until we realised the bus we needed was across the other side - blonde moment.
We then had to run for our bus when we saw it - highly embarrassing  We were finally on a bus (and luckily had a seat) and it was packed.
It took us over 2 hours and 2 buses to get back to Hollywood and by this time I never wanted to see a bus again!
We had a quick dinner and took some photos up on Hollywood Boulevard and went bck to the hotel for an early night - what a day!

NEXT POST - LA Ink, Pinkberry & watching David Beckham!!

30 Day Snap #8 - My Favourite Place

Today I headed down to my favourite place in the world! The beach near my house is by far one of my favourite places to be and with the weather being amazing I couldn't not go! I have the best memories from growing up here and it is beautiful- especially on a day like today! Only a ten minute walk away from my house whenever we can me and my friends love to come down here! Today I caught up with a few friends who have come home for the weekend and watched some beach football ( yup that is a legit sport!)  Think I've got some questionable tan lines developing though - opps! The sandals I'm wearing are from Topshop and my nail polish is Action by Essie! 
What are you upto this weekend?

Catch up here, Days - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.

30 Day Snap #1 - The Yacht Race

So here it is, numero uno of the 30 day snap! I saw this on Louise, Sprinkle Of Glitter,  blog (huge fan of her by the way - one of my favourite youtubers)..... and I thought I would join in on the action as it looks really fun and is a nice diary type way for me to remember what I have been upto this month!

With it being such a lovely day here in the south and my friend and I having a few hours spare we thought we would get our shades on and go on a bike ride along the seafront where we live! 
It was so nice to get out in the sunshine and at the same time burn some calories AND have a good old girly catch-up!
 I took this photo when we stopped to turn around, it is of the yacht race which is being held where I live today! (if you are from the UK you can probably guess where that is!) 

All these posts are going to be really short and sweet and could go up at anytime of day everyday, so check back tomorrow for the next photo!

Shades For Summer - Nail Polish Favourites

Seeing as June is literally just around the corner which technically does make it "summer" (although I don't actually know if the skies of the UK understand what summer means) I thought I would put together a post for you all showing you my favourite nail polishes for this season.

Summer is a time to put away your blacks and depressing winter colours and make your nails center of attention! 
Weather it be a bright in your face colour or a super cute pastel I love the fact that in this season anything goes - fingers or toes! 
I've gone through all my polishes and picked out my favourite and most used colours for the summer months. I made sure there was a good variety of colours and shades because this time of year I am always switching up my colours and I'm normally using more than one at a time! (Rainbow nails are so cool!)
I love matching my nails to oufits and it's always such a good feeling when you find something that is exactly the same colour as a polish you are wearing/own. (or is that just me?)

1. Barry M - 318 Peach Melba

2. Essie - 67 Meet Me At Sunset (mentioned in my colours of the rainbow tag post)

3. Barry M - 301 Block Orange

4. Rimmel Lasting Finish - 030 Drama Queen

5. Nicole by OPI Kardashian Kolor - Wear Something Spar-Kylie

6. W7 - 14 Fluorescent Pink

7. Barry M - 279 Bright Pink

8. Barry M - 309 Strawberry Ice Cream

9. Barry M - 308 Berry Ice Cream

10. Barry M - 306 Blueberry Ice Cream

11.  Barry M - 294 Cyan Blue

12. Miss Sporty Clubbing Colours - 320 Pop Fiction

13. Rimmel 60 Seconds - 825 Sky High

14. Barry M - 290 Spring Green

15. Rimmel Lasting Finish - 236 Green Grass

16. Barry M - 304 Mint Green

17. Collection 2000 Hot Looks - 14 Boho

18. Nicole for OPI Kardashian Kolor - Rainbow In The S-Kylie

Not sure why a few of the blue shades have decided to look the same in the photos but you can tell by the bottles that they are different! 

My favourite thing to do at the moment is to use Rainbow In The S-Kylie (18.) over the top of other colours which makes an amazing confetti effect! At the moment I am wearing strawberry ice cream (8.) with it over the top!

What are your favourite nail polishes for Summer and what brands do you love the most? Mine has to be Barry M (did you guess?)

What's that on your face?

Today my best friend and I decided to grab a hot drink and go for a walk along the seaside. Where we live we are really lucky and the beach is literally less than a 5 minute drive so it's always nice to go for a stroll and a chat. 

Before all of that though I thought I'd give you a quick look into a product I swear by and use daily and the make-up I wear on a day-to-day basis. 

After I've had a shower and washed my face I always use Liz Earle's Instant Boost Skin Tonic, with the ingredients including aloe vera, cucumber and natural vitamin E this stuff really wakes my face up and gives me the perfect clean base to start my make-up on.






I tend not to use a moisturiser after this as it tends to make my skin a little greasy/oily. I actually only use my moisturiser ( which is the Liz Earle Skin Repair Light Moisturiser ) a couple of times a week and always in the evening after I've taken my make-up off.

Now onto the make-up (and how I prevent myself from looking like a 12 year old.)

Even though I am a massive beauty love and a huge make-up hoarder I tend to use the same make-up daily, switching up my mascaras and lip colours now and again. This is what is in my make-up bag right now and for me are all definitely must-haves. (Minus my brushes which I keep in a storage holder) Below I've written out all the products in the order in which I use them, if you have any questions please ask! Most things you can get from any Superdrug or Boots stores but if not everything can be found online!

Benefit - The POREfessional Primer

Maybelline - Super Stay 24H Concealer (Light/Beige 2)

e.l.f. - Complexion Perfection Powder

L'oreal - True Match Foundation (N4)

e.l.f. - Warm Bronzer 

Fake Bake - Beyond Bronze Shimmer

Rimmel - Eyebrow Pencil (002 Hazel)

HD Brows - Powder Palette (Nude, Carbon, Warm Brown, Ash Brown)

Eyelash Curlers ( Cheap Boots pair that I've had for years)

Liz Earle - Intensifying Mascara Base

Benefit - they're Real! mascara (Black)

Seventeen - doll'd up mascara (Black)

Rimmel - Accelerator Endless mascara (Black)

Maybelline - Master drama khol liner (Ultra Black)

Not pictured -

 e.l.f.mineral complexion brush

Rimmel - Kate Lipstick (20)

Barry M - Bubblegum Lipgloss

I wore a leopard print swing dress from ASOS which I styled with black tights and flat pumps. For jewellery I wore my new look beaded collar necklace, a mix of silver rings and my silver Tiffany studs and seeing as the weather is still a bit chilly (whats all that about?) I also wore my trusty old new look leather jacket.

Here's a few photos from my afternoon out at the seaside.

Please let me know what you think of this post and what you want to see more of!