Dealing with T.O.M

So girls I think we can all agree that when TOM arrives we are not too pleased! I am of course talking about Time Of Month, otherwise known as period. We all have to deal with it at some point in our lives and there is no doubt that is absolutely sucks! Over my last 7 years of dealing with my period every month I have found the things that make that time a bit more comfortable and less hell like. This post is also inspired by two of my favourite youtube/blogger girls +essiebutton and Amelia Liana, who a few months ago created The Period Tag:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtgTUo2ZJi4 

So here are my top tips for surviving your period and my answers to the questions from Essie and Amelia's video:

I should start by staying that my periods are very mixed, some months I will be in a lot of pain and be extremely hormonal, but others I can easily get on with my everyday life and be fine. The pains that I mainly get are achy stomach cramps and headaches, but I like I said I'm lucky that this isn't an every month situation.

What annoys you?

What annoys me on my period is everything, I become very irritable, and little things like unclean dishes frustrate me. My hatred for slow internet also increases to a ridiculous level during that time! Especially when I am trying to catch up on Greys Anatomy, which is a favourite thing to do, and has been for the last 5 years I have been obsessed with that show. 

Period outfit?

Pyjamas, of course! It is obvious to say anything comfortable, and for me that is to stay in pyjamas for as long that is acceptable, and then a little longer than that too...Seriously though, loose and soft clothes are your best friend, big jumpers and trackies are the way forward.

Favourite food?

You that it is that time of the month when you find yourself with a spoon in the Nutella jar, or at least that is what happens to me! I have a sweet tooth anyway, so when I'm on my period I like to cater to that even more than normal, so everything is peanut butter or chocolate covered. Tea is also an absolute must! Recently I have also been really into hot lemon and honey for a break or change from tea, which is super tasty and also really calming for the stomach.

Mood swings?

I would say that I do get mood swings during my period, but I'm sure my family would say that it occasionally occurs more than just at that time of month. I am an emotional bottler, so often during my period the lid is let off and I do get rather hormonal and rant and sometimes cry. What is important to remember, and I have to remind myself when I am having one of those moments, is that it is perfectly natural and okay to feel exhausted and frustrated during your period. 

Some other random tips would be to not allow TOM to take over your everyday life, as much as is possible try and ignore it and push through the pain. It sounds so pretentious to say, and I can hear lots of you scoffing at this, but some light exercise can often really help with period pains. I am not talking taking on a marathon or anything like that, but a walk or some stretching can help. Finally and most importantly is that as rubbish as you feel at the time, know that all girls can sympathise, and it is only a temporary pain, well at least until next month...

Hope that you enjoyed this post, and until next time,

B xx

What I'm Loving: November

I cannot believe we are basically half way through November, it will be Christmas before we know it! November is the time of deadlines, so I have spent the vast majority of the last few weeks in the library, however in those spare moments I have been loving listening, watching, eating and wearing the following favourites.

What I have been loving listening too is very simple - 1989! This whole month I have had the album on repeat, but some individual favourites on top of Shake It Off, would be Style and Out of the Woods. Clearly I am bias, but I do truly believe that this album would appeal to almost everyone, so even if you have always been a Swift hater, I encourage you to give 1989 a go! To add some variety though, London Grammar has also been an obsession this month, and after the launch of the infamous new John Lewis Christmas advert, I have also, of course been loving Tom Odell.

What I am loving watching at the moment is everything, I feel that TV is so on point at the moment. From my beloved Downton Abbey, whose finale last Sunday left me smiling and crying all at the same time to Vampire Diaries which continues to impress me every week with how much my love for Damon Salvatore grows! A more random favourite would be The Apprentice, which reminds me every week just how unattractive a man with a big ego is - well unless that man is Damon Salvatore...

One of the best things about this time of year for a coffee lover like myself is the festive drinks that the coffee shops bring out. For the last few years I have attempted to try all that Costa and Starbucks have to offer in the seasonal drinks department, and I think the 2014 selection has some of the best. The Eggnog Latte is my Starbucks recommendation, and as I am writing this post I have a Praline Cappuccino by my side, which ranks very highly in the Costa choices.  

It is absolutely freezing in the UK at the moment, so my dressing gown and slippers have been the favourite of the moment. Both from BHS, my motto when it comes to sleepwear in the winter, the fluffier the better! Not the most glamorous, but definitely the most comfortable. So for days when I want to insert some 'glam' into my usually very casual attire, I have been loving the Tanya Burr lip gloss in Heart Skips A Beat, which is a lovely red/pink with subtle sparkle, very easy to wear and goes with most looks, plus helps me to inch closer to the festive red lip look! 

Overall favourite thing of the month would probably be celebrating a good friend of mines' 21st birthday. We had a lovely girls night in, drinking champagne, dancing to 90s tunes and gossiping way too much and then the following night a big house party. It was so nice to see everyone coming together to celebrate Em's landmark birthday and made me realise how lucky I am to have such amazing, supportive friends.

Top - Zara
Jeans - Urban Outfitters

That is a summary of what I have been loving this month so far, and on the lead up to the holiday month. It is crazy to me that 2015 is so close, and that I have already been in second year for 2 months! I hope that you all enjoyed this post, and I would love to know what you have all been loving this November.

Thank you so much for reading, until next time,

B xx

Happy Halloween

I have never been a Halloween fan in the past, mainly because I am super boring when it comes to fancy dress. I can honestly say that it has been about 9 years since I have done anything on the 31st October but this year it was a firm date on my calendar. A group of good friends of mine were hosting a mega house party which I knew I could not miss, even if that did mean me putting in the effort of finding a costume!

I had no idea how difficult it was going to be to find a costume but after multiple trips to the fancy dress store and my new favourite place, Wilkos, I managed to put something together. Getting ready for a night out is often my favourite part, I love putting on my favourite playlist and curling my hair, but getting ready for Halloween was on a whole new level. With two of my best girlfriends we got the fangs and fake blood out with a combination of probably a few too many champagnes and this was the final result.

Despite my reservations, I had so much fun, it was one of my favourite nights in the last few weeks. Everyone had made such amazing effort, and the guys had done the house up incredibly, it really felt like a haunted mansion! So thank you to the Church Street boys for hosting an amazing night and for converting me to the fun that can be Halloween.

I know that I have been slacking on the blogging front but I have had such a hectic couple of months with my uni work load, but I really want to get back into the swing of things!

Thanks for reading, B xx

My New Bedroom

My minor hiatus can be easily explained, I have just moved house! In the last week I have moved into my new home for the year, my first ever student house! This week has been a complete whirlwind and there are so many things to do when running your own house, luckily I have four lovely housemates to help me and keep me sane. 

If you have ever lived in a student house then you will know that we are not talking luxury accommodation so I have tried so hard in my bedroom to make it as homely and personal as possible. Please ignore the less than ideal red flowered curtains in the background which were definitely not my choice!

This is an idea that I stole from Pinterest, which is such an inspiration when it comes to home décor, and well most other things! I had some of my favourite photos printed and followed the very easy steps to create this heart photo montage on my wall along side my bed. It not only lets me display loads of my favourite memories and people, but also adds an amazing pop of colour to a room that was otherwise quite bare.

Bedding is an amazing way to transform a room, as it adds colour, pattern and individuality. My set is a super old one from Tesco that combines all of the colours I wanted for my room scheme: pink, white and minty blue. My throw is a huge fluffy pale pink one from BHS and my two cushions are the softest things I have ever felt and are both from Primark, which I would highly recommend checking out for cheap but really cute home items. 

My bedside table was probably my biggest bargain when shopping for new things for my room, of course Ikea was involved.  I saw this table and fell in love, it is so simple but chic and I am obsessed and the best part it was £15!!! If any of you are interested it is the Lindved in white,  My bedside table essentials include #daclip of course, The Death Cure by James Dashner which I am loving at the moment and a cup of green tea in a super cute owl mug. The vase which I do intend at some point to fill with flowers is from Zara Home and the lamp is also from Ikea, the Knubbig. 

These two posters epitomise me completely, my two favourite things: tea and Friends. The Friends poster, is titled 'Everything I know in life I learned from Friends' and that is definitely me, I am that person who in almost every conversation makes some kind of Friends reference! And I certainly agree I know wherever I have tea I have love! 

I hope this post gives you a little insight into my room and how I have tried to transform a room that looked slightly like a hospital ward before I moved in, into a place that is my own. If you have any decoration tips or tricks do let me know and thank you very much for reading, and until next time,

B xx

What I'm Loving: September

Rather than your usual monthly favourites type post I thought I would try something slightly different. This is a breakdown of what I have loved listening to, watching, eating and wearing over this month so far. Plus my favourite thing I did this month, which features some very good looking men!

To begin with what I have been listening to, and this would not be a post by me if Taylor Swift wasn't mentioned, but wow Shake It Off has truly been my anthem of the last few weeks. Any excuse to play it at full volume and dance like no one is watching! On a more mellow level though I am still obsessed with the whole of The Fault In Our Stars soundtrack, particularly All of the Stars by Ed Sheeran and both of the Birdy tracks. Finally, Sam Smith, he is everywhere at the moment and rightly so, his voice is angelic and his new single I'm Not The Only One is by far my favourite song he has ever released. 

What I am watching at the moment has quite an eclectic mix, if you follow me on twitter @cloudbelle25 you will know that I have been loving X Factor so far. I am very happy that Cheryl and Simon are back and of course there is always love for Louis Walsh! Another reality type show that I have been a fan of for many years is the Great British Bake Off which at the moment is all me and mum can talk about! Something Mum is not a fan of, but it is a highlight of my weekend is Made In Chelsea NYC which is just further fuelling my love for New York and of course for Lucy Watson! For people outside the UK though something that I have recently become hooked on is The Office, the US version, and I can honestly say that I laugh hysterically out loud at every episode I watch. 

Houmous, that covers all that I have been loving eating this month. I love just the plain regular one, but also all the amazing different flavours, some of my favourites being lemon and coriander or caramelised onion. The ultimate though I have found this month is the Marks and Spencer Piri Piri Houmous, which was life-changingly good! 

I have been very boring with what I have been loving wearing, but what I lack in style I have made up for in comfort. If you have never tried the fluffy Primark pyjama trousers you have not felt true comfort. I have pretty much lived in my various different pairs over the last few weeks. They are amazing pyjamas but I also wear them as the perfect item of lounge wear too for those days when 'real' clothes are just not what you want! 

My favourite thing of the month is very easy for me to choose, as early this week I was lucky enough to attend a press launch of the opening night of Dan Osborne joining the Dreamboys! One of my best friends was working for Cosmopolitan and managed to bag us some tickets for honestly one of the most crazy and surreal nights of my life. It was basically like having a real life Magic Mike experience.... 

That concludes what I have been loving in September, thank you for reading and let me know if you would like a similar post for October which I am sure will include Downton Abbey and Pumpkin Spice Lattes!

B xx

My Hangover Routine

So it happens to the best of us, and yet we never learn the torture that is The Hangover! Now luckily I have never experienced anything on the level of these guys in Vegas, finding a tiger strolling around or a random baby, but there have been some mornings when you wake up feeling like you may just never recover from the night before. For these very occasions I have constructed a certain routine I like to follow in order to best survive this near hell!

You wake up in the morning, sadly not feeling like P.Diddy, but rather like you got punched a thousand times over in the head and in the stomach. Your best friend right now, water, and lots of it. Coming in from a night out I always try to make sure I have a cup of water by my bed because when you wake up you will feel like the Sahara Dessert!

The next step is to manage to actually make it out of bed because if you are anything like me you will still have your makeup on from the night before! The feeling of getting all that mascara off and having a clean, fresh face will literally be life changing in the midst of a hangover. My favourite product to use is the Clinque Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm as you can rub it into dry skin all over, including eyes and it takes makeup off incredibly plus removes any oil or dirt that will have been sitting most likely on your face all night. 

When I come in from a night out I usually grab the closest comfiest item of clothing I have, which invariably is my beloved purple fluffy dressing gown from Primark. So in the morning once my face and teeth are clean I like to add to the comfort levels and grab my go to hangover outfit, some form of tracksuit bottoms, I personally love my Hollister ones, and then a sweater of some kind. Walking around campus whenever you spot this outfit you can pretty much guarantee they have been out the night before!

Now that you are sufficiently comfortable it is time to sort out the fact that your stomach is churning, and for me there is only two remedies to this situation and that is a strong cup of a tea and some buttered toast. Plain and simple but works every single time! 

Providing that you don't have to go into work or school, or there isn't an essay due in the next day, how I like to spend my hangover day is in bed or on the sofa watching endless hours of trashy TV. Reality TV is my guilty pleasure of choice, episode after episode of the Kardashians, in fact when I was feeling slightly fragile after a night out only a couple of weeks ago I watched all the Kardashian wedding specials from Khloe and Lamar to the most recent Kimye one!

Sadly when I have been away at university this last year I haven't had access to a bath, but when I am at home this is another crucial step. A Lush bath bomb or some Body Shop bubble bath combined with your most relaxing playlist will help you forget all the embarrassing things you may have done the night before and how your head is still pounding!

This pretty much rounds up all my top steps to the hangover routine I perform after a night out with my friends. Whilst I do not recommend this on a regular basis, it is good to know that when you do decide to let loose and maybe drink a few too many tequilas that the next morning you won't be totally marooned in bed with no idea how to stop the world from spinning!

I hope you guys have enjoyed this post, and until next time, lots of love, B xx

The calm before the storm!

Summertime Sadness

First day of September means the end of summer, and whilst here in Britain the weather gave up about 5 weeks ago we could still say it was at least meant to be summer. I thought I would take this time to look back over the last few months at what I have loved this summer and then also why I cannot wait for Autumn.

Coming back from university at the end of June marked the end of one amazing year and whilst I was super sad to leave I was also so excited to back home with my family and friends. It is amazing how quickly you settle back into life at home after a year away, and it also makes you realise all the things you missed about home.

For the whole of July I was interning at at PR firm in London and whilst at times it was stressful, and even boring it was an amazing experience. What I particularly enjoyed was living the 'London lifestyle' and though that does include the hell of commuting it also means the lunches in the park, the regular coffee breaks, the office attire and feeling like Rachel Zane - well I wish! 

I would occasionally lunch on the steps of St. Pauls and do my best to emulate the Gossip Girl steps of The Met!

From the cosmopolitan city girl life during July, to in August when for a while I'm pretty sure all I did was sit in my bed watching TV series after series! I have always been a massive TV fan and over this summer I have added to my already rather long list of series that I watch. As mentioned in numerous posts I became very quickly obsessed with The Mindy Project, but also in a slightly different genre I finally got around to watching Revenge which I have been recommended for years. 

These shows are both addictive in totally different ways, but I would highly recommend them both. Two amazing female leads who both kick butt, one more literally than the other!








Speaking of incredible women, I had the biggest fan girl moment ever of the summer when a certain +essiebutton replied to my tweet! I have loved both Essie's blog and Youtube channel for years and her recent Nordic Vlogs have been the highlight of my subscription box for the last couple of weeks. And I have #daclip to thank for it all ;)

This was a seriously cool moment for me and I literally haven't stopped talking to my sister about it since! Sorry Lu!

Quick plug whilst we are at it - my twitter is @cloudbelle25 if you want to follow my probably not so interesting daily insights!










If you do follow me on twitter than you will have seen that last weekend I met John Torode at the BBC Good Food Festival at Hampton Court Palace. I have watched Masterchef with my mum for years so when he wandered past it seemed criminal not to ask him for a picture. And wow he was so nice, he insisted that we 'take a selfie' which I was more than happy to oblige to. In general our day at Hampton Court was honestly one of the best family days out we have ever had, it was a beautiful day and the palace is stunning, plus we ate about our body weight in free cheese, what more can you want out of a day!?

And if we are talking summer highlights how could I not mention the fact that this summer I finally started my blog which is something I have thought about and wanted to do for such a long time. It is all still so new to me but I am honestly loving it, both writing my own and becoming more involved in reading other peoples. I cannot wait to see where it will take me.

That concludes a round up of the things I have loved this summer, clearly there are so many others I could have chosen, but really to summarise what I have enjoyed most is taking the time to be with the people and the places that I have missed whilst being away at uni this year. Saying this I cannot wait to be going back to university in a couple of weeks and starting my second year which sounds so crazy to me, but I just know it is going to be just as incredible as this last year has been!

Thank you as always for reading, and until next time, B xx

The Movies Tag

Sometimes all you want to do is curl up in bed with a cup of tea, some form of tasty snack and watch a movie. There is often no better way to spend a couple of hours! I remember seeing Sammi from +beautycrush do this tag absolutely ages ago, and I thought I would give it a go. 

So here are the questions:

1. Favourite movie of all time?
Pocahontas, anyone who remotely knows me will know that this is not only my favourite Disney film, but my favourite film EVER! 

2. Favourite scene from that movie?
There are so many to choose from, but if I had to choose it would be the end scene when John Smith has to go back to England and she knows she has to stay behind. Every time that ship sails and she runs to that cliff I cry like it is the first time!

3. Favourite actors/actresses?
Favourite actors would be, Ryan Gosling, James Marsden, Tom Hanks, Johnny Depp and Favourite actresses would be, Rachel McAdams, Sandra Bullock, Emma Stone and Maggie Smith. 

4. Most annoying actors/actresses?
Two that come to mind almost instantly would be Kristen Stewart and Anne Hathaway. 

5. Favourite director(s)?
Baz Luhrmann, if you look through my film collection you will see that there are quite a few - Romeo and Juliet, The Great Gatsby, Moulin Rouge, I could go on a while.

6. Guilty pleasures?
My guilty pleasures would be full on teen romantic comedies, in the likes of A Cinderella Story, She's The Man and Angus Thongs and Perfect Snogging.

7. Favourite tearjerker?
Some form of Nicholas Sparks film would probably fit this questions quite well, The Notebook or A Walk To Remember are my personal two favourites for when I want a good cry.

8. A character from a movie that scared you the most?
Going old school for this answer and choosing the child catcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, as a chid I was terrified and to this day that scene in the toy shop still scares me. 

9. Movie you love but everyone hates?
Pride and Prejudice, the version with Keira Knightly in, is a movie I have always loved, but every film critic under the sun, including my mum and old English teacher slated! Don't get me wrong the movie is definitely missing a certain Colin Firth, yet nonetheless I still think it captures the romance and the style of what a Jane Austen movie should be.

10. Movie that hate but everyone loves?
Although I do understand why people love it, I just cannot, and that is Lord of the Rings. I realise that most people will disagree with me, but I find it very difficult to enjoy movies which are 3 hours of elves and dwarfs trailing along a mountain looking for a ring. 

11. Favourite movie duo?
I absolutely loved Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law in the Sherlock Holmes films, and in more recent times I have loved the combination of Cameron Diaz and Jason Segel in both Bad Teacher and I now really want to see their new film Sex Tape.

12. Favourite animated films?
Well if we aren't mentioning Pocahontas again, it would of course be other Disney films, such as Hercules, The Aristocats and Tangled.

13. Actor/Actress you have a crush on?
There was an entire post dedicated to this, so I would revert you there for all things celebrity crush related! 

14. Favourite movie villain?
Classic answer here appealing to the massive Harry Potter fan that I am, Voldemort. The ultimate villain, seriously scary and yet awesome at the same time, plus Ralph Fiennes is incredible.

15. A movie that surprised you?
A movie that I was surprised I enjoyed was The Impossible, as it could not be further from my usual type of film. The film is the true story of a family involved in the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami with Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor, and oh wow this movie is incredible, I have watched a film that is such a genuine emotional rollercoaster. 

Some other honourable mentions - Amazing Spiderman, Legally Blonde, Gnomeo and Juliet, Pirates of the Caribbean 

Miscellaneous Haul

Over the last couple of weeks I have done some shopping here and there so I thought I would share my collection of new purchases.

First up the books. I have been in a reading rut recently and the best way I have found to cure this is by hitting up Amazon, which is exactly what I did. All three books are ones that I have either been recommended and/or have been wanting to read for ages. And the Mountains Echoed, is the most recent release by Khaled Hosseini, who is one of my favourite authors of all time, if you haven't read A Thousand Splendid Suns or The Kite Runner they seriously need to be added to your reading list. Gone Girl seems to be all anyone can talk about recently, and with the film coming out soon I thought I had better jump on the hype sooner rather than later. Finally, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, I have seen this in both Tanya Burr's monthly favourites and in +Elle Fowler videos, both of whom I take numerous book recommendations from. 

Secondly I made a pit stop into Superdrug when I was waiting for my mum in town, and naturally I did not leave empty handed! I picked up the new Rimmel mascara Wonder'full which is infused with argan oil, I had seen all the adverts on TV and thought it was an interesting concept so decided to give it a try. I then made my obligatory stop at the Revlon stand, as Revlon is definitely my favourite drugstore brand particularly when it comes to lip products, hence I left with a Colorstay Moisture Stain in the shade LA Exclusive. And what Superdrug haul would be complete without a couple of new nail varnishes, so of course Barry M supplied some new goodies. I thought I would try two of the different formulas, so I picked up the Gelly Shine in Rose Hip and the Matte Effect in Vanilla. 

I'm not sure how I feel about this next one, but at the end of the day it's just underwear! So yes these are my new bras. For me Marks and Spencer is THE place for bras as they have absolutely everything. Plus when I was there last week it was 50% off all underwear which is insanely amazing, so naturally I found myself coming away with some totally unnecessary purchases. Having worked in a lingerie department for several years I know what types of bras work best for what people, so I have my style and size imprinted in my mind so then its just what colour/pattern to choose from. I love yellow and white as a colour combination and at £11.50 for the pair it was a bargain that I could not refuse.

Lastly I recently reached the end of my phone contract so it was time to bid farewell to my trustee iPhone 4 and finally upgrade to the 5c. This meant I also required a new case and after trailing through eBay for far too long I came across a design that the 9 year old inside of me could not resist. It is a stain-glass window with tonnes of different Disney images and personally I think it's beautiful. 

This concludes this slightly random haul, but I love seeing what other people have been buying recently so I thought it might be interesting. 

Thank you so much for reading, until next time, B xx

Liebster Awards

So something pretty exciting happened today, me and my blog were nominated for a Liebster Award by Simona Moona at http://www.bloglovin.com/simona39 so thank you very much for that!

So I shall answer the 11 questions that she has asked and then tag another 11 bloggers to answer my 11 questions.

Simona's questions:

1) Why did you start your blog?
I have always loved reading blogs and have admired the community there is within the blogging world, and given that I also love to write thought there was no harm in giving it a go!

2) What is your favourite quote?
'Never run for a bus or a man. When one leaves, another arrives.' This is something my Grandma told me a long time ago and it has always proved to be excellent logic!

3) If you had to choose from not eating sweets for a month or not going shopping for a week, which would you choose?

I am not a massive sweet fan as such, but if that means all things sweet ie. desserts, I would definitely not be able to go a week without cake so I would have to choose not going shopping for a week.

4) What 3 beauty products could you not live without?

My real techniques buffing brush, which I use for absolutely everything every day! Benefit Hoola Bronzer and Maybelline Colossal Mascara 

5) What is your age?     

I am 19 years old, 20 in February

6) Three favorite online shopping websites.

Honestly I am not a massive online shopper, so I would have to be boring and say Amazon, because you can just about buy anything on it.

7) What is the story behind your blog name?

No story as such, as a brainstorm of words and phrases that I liked combined with part of my name.

8) Top three favorite blogs/bloggers.

Difficult question as I love so many, but I would probably have to choose - HelloGiggles, EssieButton and at the moment World of Wanderlust

9) If you could travel anywhere in the world and money was no object, where would you go? Why?

I have always wanted to go travelling around the States because there is just endless things to see and experience. However recently I have become obsessed with the idea of going to Greece, no where in particular, just somewhere beautiful with lots of tasty food!

10) Favorite singers?

My foolproof answer is always Taylor Swift. But for a but more variety I would say - Passenger, Maroon 5 and Hunter Hayes

11) Do you have any pets?

Boring answer, but no I do not 

Here are the bloggers that I nominate:

Rebecca Armstrong

Kate Kavuet

Stephanie Huynh

Always Abby

Candice Needham

My questions:

1) What is your current favourite song?

2) What do you have on your phone case?

3) Favourite book and why?

4) What is the cutest nail varnish name that you own and why you bought it?

5) Who is your number one celebrity crush?

6) Which is the first blog/blogger you remember reading, and do you still follow them now?

7) Where would you love to live in the world if money was no question and why?

8) How did you discover the blogging world?

9) If you could pick a fictional character to be your best friend who would you choose?

10) Tea or Coffee?

11) Best mascara you have ever tried?

The rules:
Link back to the person who tagged you in your post
Answer every question
Tag 5-11 other bloggers
Create 11 questions for them to answer.

My Perfume Collection

Hello and welcome back to Cloud Belle :) Thank you to all the new readers, I have all my gratitude to point towards Essie for that! I had a major fan girl moment the other night when Estee from +essiebutton replied to my tweet, as she is without a doubt my favourite youtuber and blogger.

Onto the matter at hand though - my perfume collection. I realise I do not have the most extensive collection but I think it is more important to have a smaller assortment of scents that you really love and would be happy to wear day in day out to all kinds of occasions. Plus perfume after being opened for a while begins to lose its original scent and go bad so having hundreds at the same time seems to make no sense to me. 

In terms of how I store my perfume, I like to keep them on a small tray which I have in my bathroom just below the window ledge. Top tip of the week - keeping perfume out of direct sunlight helps to maintain the scent for longer. So whilst I am always tempted to have them out on my dresser to have as items of décor, I would rather have them in a more discreet place and preserve their smell.

So in no particular order here is my perfume collection - small disclaimer before hand as I'm sure any blogger has said in the past, I suck at describing scents, but I will try my best!

1) DKNY Be Delicious - this is my oldest perfume and probably my favourite, I would classify this as my 'signature scent' if we want to become all pretentious up in here! Clearly the overriding scent in this perfume is apple, and so it is very fresh. What is so great about this one is that I believe it could be worn by all ages, I have used this perfume since being about 14/15 but my mum also loves to wear this perfume. 

2) Wonderstruck by Taylor Swift - if you know anything about me is that I am a huge Swiftie! So I clearly have a biased opinion towards this perfume, however saying that I do also genuinely think this is a lovely scent. To me this is a very 'warm' scent, but definitely it is also very sweet, as the overall smell is vanilla. The bottle is quite simple and the price tag is also not outrageous, at around the £20 mark this is a good starter perfume for young girls.

3) Miss Dior Cherie - a classically, sophisticated, girly scent that I want to have in my life forever! The perfect scent for when you want to feel extra special, I wear this for formal occasions and almost always get complemented on it. A floral perfume but not at all granny ish, this is as far from old and boring as it gets. And can we take a moment to talk about the bottle, the simple yet classy design looks and feels so luxurious to look at and wear.

4) See by Chloe - a very unique perfume and to be the perfect example of how smell can connect to memories. I first smelled this perfume when I was in New York last year and every time we went past a department store I would cover myself in this stuff and now whenever I wear this perfume it reminds me of my time in New York. Given how unusual the scent is I cheated as conferred with some higher sources and so I can tell you that the notes are apple blossom, jasmine and sandalwood. 

5) Daisy Marc Jacobs Eau So Fresh - this is the kind of perfume that I feel in every friendship group you will find at least 3 girls who wear Daisy Marc Jacobs. There is a reason for this, and that is because it smells good on everyone! I love the original but personally prefer the eau so fresh version better. Obviously a very floral scent which I think works perfectly for both day to day wear but also for nights out and more formal occasions. 

6) Ted Baker Ted's Sweet Treat in Cate - out of all my perfumes this is the most different scent that I have, whilst I usually stick to the floral, sweet scents this is rich and woody. Due to this I prefer this more in the winter as it maybe a bit heavy for sunny summer days, though saying that it doesn't present much of an issue when I live in England! Without wanting to put people off, I would say this has almost a manly scent to it, in a similar way to something like Abercrombie and Fitch's perfume in Fierce. So actually for that reason it is quite a sexy scent and definitely one that people will notice, in a good way I promise!

That concludes my run down of my perfume collection as it stands in summer 2014. Perfume is the type of thing I rarely buy myself but absolutely love to receive as a gift, so I doubt this collection will see any additions until at least Christmas time.

I hope you have enjoyed this post, and will maybe go give one of these perfumes a sniff next time you are wandering past a beauty hall, which if you are anything like me won't be that far in the future! B xxx

Celebrity Crush

I disbelieve anyone who says there isn't a celebrity they haven't had as their phone background, covered their name across all notebooks or planned a future wedding with. 

I love hearing who other peoples celebrity crushes are, so I thought I would share mine:

Miles Teller - The funny, cute, nerdy type

Anyone who has had any type of conversation with me in the last few months will know of my obsession with Miles Teller. This celebrity crush was sparked when I saw him in Divergent, and that says a lot when on a screen up against Theo James! Since then I have made a conscious effort to watch any movie, interview he has appeared in. Some worthy mentions are The Spectacular Now and That Awkward Moment - which also has the distinct bonus of Zac Efron! Whilst Miles isn't the most obvious choice has he doesn't have the stereotypical celebrity crush look, he is the prime of example of how an amazing personality can make someone instantly more attractive.








Ryan Gosling and Justin Timberlake - the classically good looking type

These would be my examples of the 'perfect' man. Firstly, Ryan, after The Notebook is there a single female on the planet not completely in love with this man?! And then there is Justin the true definition of the quadruple threat - singer, dancer, actor, beautiful human!




Chad Michael Murray - 'Prince Charming' type

Forever will Chad Michael Murray be my childhood sweetheart. Officially the biggest One Tree Hill fan over here, and Lucas Scott has everything going for him. Throughout all 6 seasons we were graced with his face I grew to love him even more. The icing on the cake would be his appearance in, to this day one of my favourite films, A Cinderella Story. Austin Ames, his perfection never ceases to amaze me. The 10 year old Belle had found her one true love and 9 years on the crush still lasts on. Chad has that Abercrombie look about him, which I know isn't everyone's cup of tea, but it works just fine for me!










Liam and Chris Hemsworth - The Surfer Turned Movie Star type 

If we are talking good genes we need not look any further than the Hemsworth brothers. It almost seems unfair that so much jawline could grace one family line! Liam, Chris, Chris, Liam, I mean who could possibly choose! On the celebrity crush ranking I can think of no other brothers who would score higher.








Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively - The Power Couple type

Individually both of these would feature highly on my top celebrity crushes, but together they sky rocket to the ultimate pair of perfection. Ryan Reynolds is THE lead male for any romcom. And Blake Lively is the person every man wants to be with and every woman wants to be. She is also my style icon, and has been since the creation of Serena Van Der Woodsen. Her clothes, make up and oh my her hair are constantly flawless both off and on screen. Who needs JayZ and Beyonce when you have these two?!







Emma Watson and Lucy Watson - The English Rose type 

Despite having the same name, these two British beauties do not share any DNA - as far as I'm aware! Whilst I'm sure on most peoples girl crush lists it would feature the Milas, Angelinas etc. for me it is the classic, sophisticated look that makes me hit like on instagram every time!