My Month In Photos // June

This month has been pretty hectic, but I've loved it! So many things have happened this month, such as going on holiday and celebrating Jordan's 20th birthday. I love reading other people's monthly round up posts, so I thought I'd try one myself. It'll be nice to look back at it in a few months and remember all the fun things I did.

By far the highlight of June was going on holiday. Jordan and I went to Tenerife for a week at the start of the month, and we had the best time. Everything went to plan, and we were able to fit so many fun things into our time away. I'll always have special memories of this holiday since it was the first proper holiday Jordan and I had taken together. I did a whole blog post about our holiday, which you can check out here.

The highlight of our holiday was definitely the day we spent at Siam Park. I've been to plenty of waterparks on family holidays before, but this one was amazing. All of the slides were great fun, and we managed to get on all of them before we had to leave. My favourite slide was Singha, which is the park's newest slide. I also loved the wave pool (I know, I'm such a child) and made Jordan stay in it for ages with me. 

The first few weeks of June treated us to some very nice weather, so my best friends and I decided to go for a picnic. We drove to Linlithgow and found a really nice spot next to the palace. We even did a bit of baking. As you can probably tell, Jordan and I aren't the best when it comes to baking, but our brownies tasted so much better than they looked. I love spending hot summer days with my friends, so I had a really nice time that day.

I also attended my first blogger event this month. I'd never been to one before, so I was fairly nervous. The event was organised by Ruth Whyte, and was held at the White Stuff store on George Street in Edinburgh, where we were treated to some Prosecco and cake. Lots and lots of cake. I met some really lovely bloggers at the event, including Emma from Emma Langlands, and Xandra from Heroine Training. You should definitely check out their blogs if you haven't already. 

This month I finished reading 'Me Before You' and I really enjoyed it. It was a total tear jerker with such a shocking ending. After finishing the book I couldn't wait to see the film, so Jordan and I went to see it on Saturday night. I thought the film was an okay adaption from the book, but I was a little disappointed with some of the parts they'd left out. I hadn't told Jordan anything about the story or the book, so he couldn't stop crying when it came to the ending. I'd recommend going to see it if you have the chance.

June was a really good month for me, and I can't wait to see what July has in store. 

Did you get up to much in June? Or do you have anything special planned for July?

Review // Sleek I-Divine Palettes

I would say that I own a fair amount of eyeshadow palettes, from high end ones to drugstore alternatives. But a couple of weeks ago, whilst browsing the sales in Boots, I thought I'd give some of the Sleek eyeshadow palettes a try. I've heard lots of good things about them, and I owned one a few years ago that I remember really liking. They also had a wide variety of palettes and colours to choose from. I ended up leaving the store with four of them, some of which I love and some I regret buying.

All four of the palettes that I bought are part of Sleek's 'I-Divine' range, all of which contain a mixture of matte and shimmer shadows. I was pleasantly surprised at how pigmented they are for a drugstore palette. The brighter colours definitely have a better colour pay off though, as I find with some of the paler shades, especially the matte ones, that they take a lot of building up to get them to show up true to colour on the eyelid. The packaging is also pretty good for the money. It's fairly compact and comes with a big mirror which is great for travelling.

Vintage Romance Palette

Overall, I'd say that this one is probably my favourite palette. It has a variety of warm and cool toned shades, making it a great palette to transition your look from day to night. I don't usually wear much colour on my eyes, but this palette is so pretty to look at that I just had to give it a try. The shadows are really easy to blend, and when used with a primer, they usually last around eight hours on the eyes. My favourite shades in this palette are 'Meet in Madrid', a subdued gold colour with yellow undertones and a really pretty shimmer throughout it, and 'Honeymoon in Hollywood', a cool toned, berry colour with small specks of silver shimmer.

(Colours from L-R; Pretty in Paris, Meet in Madrid, Court in Cannes, Lust in LA, Romance in Rome, Propose in Prague, A Vow in Venice, Marry in Monte Carlo, Honeymoon in Hollywood, Bliss in Barcelona, Forever in Florence, Love in London)

Au Naturel Palette

If I'm being completely honest, I'd have to say that I regret buying this one. The colours are pretty generic and aren't really anything special, especially when I own so many other 'natural' style palettes. The matte shades in this palette were really chalky and not very pigmented at all. They took a lot of build up to even get them to show up on the lid, and I found them really tough to blend. A primer is definitely necessary with this palette, as the colours all tend to blend into one after a couple of hours wear.

(Colours from L-R; Nougat, Nubuck, Cappuccino, Honeycomb, Toast, Taupe, Conker, Moss, Bark, Mineral Earth, Regal, Noir)


Sunset Palette

I'm not quite sure what I was thinking when I bought this palette. I never wear bright eyeshadows and tend to stick with neutral eye looks. But I absolutely love this palette! When it first arrived I had no idea what to do with it, but after watching various YouTube tutorials and looking on Pinterest for ideas, I was really excited to use it. A lot of the colours have more golden and orange undertones, making them slightly easier to incorporate into your everyday look if you want to change it up a little. However, the blue colour reminds me of that awkward phase we all went through where we thought wearing blue eyeshadow was 'cool', so I haven't gotten much use out of that one. My favourite shades are Solstice, which is a warm coppery colour, and Horizon, which is an orange-toned red. All the shades in this palette have excellent pigmentation, and I didn't find any of them tough to use like I have with some of the other palettes.

(Colours from L-R; Nightfall, Horizon, Solstice, Afterglow, Sunrise, Skyline, Dusk, Eve, Dawn, Golden Hour, Starry, Serene)

All Night Long Palette

This is a fairly neutral palette with two matte shades and 10 shimmers. This palette was released alongside the much more natural, daytime version; "A New Day". Although it is intended for evening wear, what with slightly darker and metallic looking shades, I would say that it's definitely easy to wear both during the day and at night. All 12 shades have really good colour pay off and are easy to blend on the lid. They also last a really long time when used with a primer. I think my favourite thing about this palette, though, is that all the shades are named after cocktails and drinks. This goes really well with theme of the palette. My favourite shades are Cosmopolitan, which has a rose gold tint to it with silver shimmer, and Manhattan, a metallic copper colour which looks stunning on the lid.

(Colours from L-R; Bellini, Negroni, Martini, Prosecco, Kir Royale, Mimosa, Champagne, Spritz, Mai Tai, Cosmopolitan, Daiquiri, Manhattan)

Have you tried any Sleek eyeshadow palettes before? What are some of your favourites?

Living In The Moment

I saw this quote on twitter the other day and absolutely loved it. It sums up my life at the moment pretty perfectly. 

Since finishing university for the Summer, I've done nothing but stress about money and work. Last Summer I had two jobs and was doing about 35 to 40 hours per week. However, right now I'm only doing half of that, and I've been worrying about money constantly. I've been applying for a second job, thinking of things that I can sell to earn more money, and I've been worrying about my savings account as I've been taking more out of it than I've been putting back in. This month in particular has been harder than usual, what with my Mum and Jordan's birthday, Father's Day and even Jordan and I's anniversary. I love buying people gifts, especially for those that I love.

But when I look at the bigger picture, I really shouldn't be worrying so much. The reason I'm short for cash is because I have trips booked and plans for later in the Summer. Travelling is my passion, and I love having trips booked as it gives me something to look forward too. So as long as I'm working and saving as much as I can, then there's not much more I can be doing. I need to save as much as possible in order to pay for my flat in September, but other than that, I need to stop worrying so much and start living in the moment. It's so easy to focus on the material things in life, when we should really be focusing on making new memories and having exciting experiences. Once I finish university in three years time, I'll no longer have a 3 month long Summer. I'll probably be working full time and will only get a handful of weeks off throughout the year. So I should start enjoying my Summer whilst I'm young, and whilst I still can. As long as I have enough money to get by and enjoy my life, I'll be okay.

Twenty Five Things I Want To Do Before Turning 25

I've been thinking a lot recently about some of the things I want to accomplish in my lifetime. Those that know me well, know that I have absolutely no idea what career I see myself pursuing after I graduate from university. The thought of not knowing where my life is headed scares me quite a lot. But I do have a few goals I hope to accomplish over the next few years, so for this post I thought that I would write them down and tick them off as I achieve them.

1. Have a full time job

2. Be working in a career that I'm passionate about

3. Do as much travelling as possible, especially in the year after I graduate

4. Be body confident

5. Own a puppy

6. Graduate from university with a good degree, hopefully a 2:1 or higher

7. Be physically fit

8. Attend a masquerade ball

9. Do something big or challenging to raise money for charity

10. Own a designer handbag

11.  Visit New York City, hopefully around Christmas time
12. Be financially stable and no longer struggling for money
13. Go parasailing
14. Own my own car
15. Own a pair of Louboutin heels
16. Get a tattoo
17. Go to a festival
18. Road trip around America
19. Work or study in a different country
20. Rid my life of people that make me unhappy
21. Completely furnish my own flat
22. Develop my own sense of style
23. Volunteer for a charity
24. Own my own home
25. Hopefully be engaged

Thankfully I still have over 6 years to achieve some of these things. What are some of your goals that you hope to accomplish over the next few years?

A Week In Tenerife

Last week, Jordan and I set off on our first summer holiday together as a couple. We'd been looking forward to this holiday since January, so it's crazy to think that it's already over. But we both had the best week and I'm already looking forward to our upcoming trips over the next couple of months. We spent an amazing week in Los Cristianos in Tenerife, from the 31st May to the 7th June. We left from Glasgow International Airport and arrived in Tenerife later that day. We stayed at the Paradise Park Fun Lifestyle Hotel, and it was everything we could've asked for. We even upgraded our room so that we had a view of the pool and the sea. We were All Inclusive too, which made our holiday so much easier as we could spend our money on activities instead of on food.

We spent our first morning exploring the hotel. We discovered that the hotel had five pools, but the rooftop pool had the most amazing views. This is where we spent our next few mornings as it was the best place to catch the sun early in the morning. It was also an adults only pool, so it had a really relaxing atmosphere around it.

Jordan really wanted to try the Hard Rock Cafe as he's never been to one before and he really likes that style of music, so that's where we spent his birthday evening. It was a lovely meal and we both really enjoyed it. I've been to quite a few Hard Rock Cafe's before, and although I loved the meal at the one in Tenerife, I definitely think there are ones with a better atmosphere in other places.

Our hotel had a beautiful spa on the first floor that we were really eager to try. It was only 10€ to use the spa circuit, which consisted of a sauna, jacuzzi, plunge pool, Roman bath and various showers. We were able to use it for as long as we wanted, and I was majorly proud of myself for getting in the plunge pool. I didn't take my phone to the spa with me, so I unfortunately didn't manage to get any pictures of it.

The following evening we took a trip into Las Americas. It's known as the more lively part of Tenerife, with plenty of bars and restaurants, and is home to Tenerife's famous 'Veronica's Strip'. Jordan really wanted to visit the strip to see what it was like, as neither of us have been on your typical party holiday before. It wasn't a particularly big strip, but it was a good experience none the less. It made me realise that I definitely wouldn't enjoy a holiday like Magaluf or Zante though. The PR's started to get really annoying after a while, and I'm really not a big drinker anyway, so I didn't feel very comfortable. The only good thing was how cheap the drinks were.

On the Sunday we went back into Las Americas to explore the different beaches and have a wander around some of the shops. We found a really beautiful beach surrounded by some rocks, so we stopped to take some pictures. It was really hot that day, so afterwards we decided to go and play mini golf. I used to do this all the time as a kid when I went on holiday with my parents, so it brought back good memories. We had so much fun acting like big kids, and it was surrounded by some really pretty flowers and a water fall. But to top off the day, I also won the game!

By far, my favourite day of the entire holiday was when we went to Siam Park. I'd never been before, but it was the definitely the best water park I've ever been too. Our hotel offered a free shuttle bus service to the park, so it was really easy getting there and back and saved us a bit of money. The park itself had a sort of Thai theme going on and was actually really beautiful. We had the best day going on all of the slides, and I was really proud of myself for going on them all. The only one I wouldn't do was the Tower of Power as it had a vertical drop which scared me to even look at. I think my favourite slide was Singha, the new one for this year, as it was ridiculously fast and was unlike any slide I've ever been on. This was Jordan's favourite too. As we were leaving, there was some sort of Sea Lion show going on. We didn't stop to watch it, but I did take a few pictures. Thankfully the park wasn't busy at all, so we were able to do all the rides at least once, and we went on our favourites twice. I 100% recommend going to Siam Park if you're going to Tenerife anytime soon. It's been voted the best water park in Europe, and the second best water park in the world.

I thoroughly enjoyed our holiday to Tenerife and I'm so gutted to be home already. Spending an entire week alone with Jordan was perfect, and I really enjoyed just being able to do our own thing. We made sure we were kept busy, so none of our days were boring at all. I'm so eager to go on holiday again next year that I've already started thinking about where we could go. I absolutely loved it in Tenerife, and I think it was definitely the best place to go for our first holiday together. I'll certainly never forget it.