My Current TBR Pile

Hi!
As you may have gathered by now, my blog contains a whole mish mash of post themes! My blog post archive gives a little insight into what I have going on in my head, which is a collection of lots of random things. My post today is going to be my TBR (To Be Read) book pile - I won't say much about the books because I might end up doing reviews on some of them, but I promise you that all the books that I have read before by these authors (aside from Tease as I have never read anything from that author before) have been great.

1. The Infinite Sea - Rick Yancey.
This is the highly anticipated sequel to The Fifth Wave. The Fifth Wave is a sci-fi/apocalyptic book, with so many plot twists that keep you on the edge of your seat. It was a thrilling read and I can't wait to start the sequel, as the first book was left on a pretty big cliffhanger.

2. Heir Of Fire - Sarah J.Maas
I won't even try to summarise this epic fantasy series that I have fallen in love with. The characters are amazing, the plot is intense, and there is something for everyone in these books. I was lucky enough to meet Sarah J.Maas in the Summer and she is so lovely - it's hard to believe sometimes that her mind created such gory scenes! Heir of Fire is the third book in the series, and I am beyond happy to have it in my TBR pile.

3. Crash into You - Katie McGarry
This is the third book in a contemporary companion series, which is slightly more to the adult side of the young adult genre, with reference to drugs, sex and alcohol. I do love this series though, and enjoy seeing the characters and their relationships develop. I have high hopes for this book!

4. Burn for Burn - Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian
It's safe to say that Jenny Han is a contemporary queen. I don't know much about this series other than that its slightly similar to Pretty Little Liars (which happens to be one of my favourite TV shows!) Jenny Han has never let me down before, and one of my closest friends has told me that I need to read this book...and SOON.

5. Tease - Amanda Maciel
I am unbelievably excited for this last one. My favourite type of books are the ones that make you think, and that cover difficult topics that people are often scared to write about. Tease is about a bully after her victim commits suicide, and the way she has to live her life after the incident. I imagine that it will be very emotional at times, but I feel like everyone should read these types of books, to open their eyes to sad situations that go on everywhere, in every school, every day.

What books are you hoping to read?
Emily xoxo

Instax Mini

In the summer I made a purchase that I have been thinking about for AGES...a Fujifilm Instax Mini! I got the one in a pastel blue colour, and I wanted to wait a couple of months before I blogged about it so I would have time to properly get used to it.

Okay so this is what it looks like! It's pretty chunky but I've decided that I like the size of it, as it's small enough to fit in my hand but big enough so you're able to see how pretty it is. The photos that print from it are quite small (see the next photo), but that just means that you can fit more of them wherever you decide to display them. It's really easy to use once you've got the basics down (adjusting the settings, inserting film etc) - even my parents can manage it! I bought the bundle that comes with 20 shots from Amazon, which is now £69.99 but was a bit cheaper when I bought it.

 



I've gotten into the habit of taking photos and storing them on my hard drive, never to be seen again, so to have actual photo prints is such a novelty to me now and I wouldn't go back ever again. Obviously I still use my other camera, but I take my instax to most events and take one or two photos that I can stick on my wardrobe doors. The display of photos has become a part of my room that I get the most comments on, and anyone that I have over immediately goes over to look at the photos.

I can't believe I waited so long to get one of these cameras, but I'm really glad that I did. The photos give lasting memories, and the excitement of waiting for the photo to appear is something that I never tire of. I would recommend getting one of these if you've been thinking about it for a while, because it's a unique kind of camera and I wish that polaroid had never gone out of style.

Emily xoxo

A Little Treat

Hi everybody, happy Saturday!
Today I have time to blog, which makes me so very, very excited!
I was in Waitrose today with my Mum and I picked up some really yummy treats, so I thought I'd share them with you (well, virtually share them.)

If you've ever watched Zoella's vlogs then you might have heard her talk about these pots before. Every time I see her talk about them I want to try them, so today I picked one up. It's a chilled chocolate orange dessert, contained in a coral ceramic pot that you can reuse (I think this would make a great earring-holder!)

 



The second item is the most exciting, and the one I seriously can't wait to eat. One of my favourite foods is macarons, but because hardly anywhere sells them, and when they do they're usually super expensive, when I see them I absolutely have to get them! These ones are strawberry, and I'm actually eating one as I write this. If you've never tried macarons, please do - the passionfruit ones are AMAZING.

This was a slightly strange post, but I really wanted to write it, so I did! See you soon!

Emily xoxo

Updates and Feeling Overwhelmed

Hola!

I realise that I haven't posted in over a week, and I was just sitting in bed worrying about it when I decided that the best thing to do would just be to tell you why. 

School has really overwhelmed me in the first week that I've been back. The copious amounts of homework, coupled with the major stresses of being back in a place where I always feel anxious has taken its toll on me, and I'm still trying to adjust to the feeling of always having work to do. Blogging and writing my book are two things that I love, and that have fallen by the wayside in the past couple of weeks. I told myself I wasn't going to let myself get stressed out by my blog, and so I'm simply not going to allow myself to. I have ideas for posts, and when I finally get time, I promise I will post them! I'm just stuck in a world of essays and assignments right now, and I hope that one day I might find my way out!

Anyway, I hope you are all having a fabulous week, and are taking time to relax every now and then. For me, this means writing this quick update post and then settling down with my new book and a mug of hot chocolate (autumn is coming, I can feel it!)

Emily xoxo 

Stila Lip Glazes Review

Hi!
After months and months of seeing Stila Lip Glazes all over the internet, last winter I purchased a few. I waited to order the winter shades, because I tend to wear more lip colour in the winter, whilst in the summer I usually just wear moisturising lip balm and chapstick.

I own Lip Glazes in the shades Jingle, Black Cherry, Sugar Plum, Splendour, Jack Frost, Holly, Jolly, and Joy. My favourite shades are Sugar Plum and Jolly.
The Lip Glazes are a weird product in my opinion, and I can't quite decide if I really like them. I do like how each colour comes through as it looks in the tube, instead of being completely colourless when put on the lips (like a lot of lip products). You twist the bottom of the plastic tube to push the lip gloss onto the brush, which you then use to apply the gloss onto your lips. I like this technique of dispersing the gloss, because you never accidentally get too much lipgloss out, which is a nightmare when it happens with other lip products.

The downside to these lip glosses is how sticky they are. This is the reason I choose not to wear them a lot of the time. Most lip glosses are relatively sticky I know, but this is extreme. You can't really wear your hair down when wearing the gloss, because your hair just sticks to your lips like crazy. For me, having overly sticky lips isn't something I enjoy, and so this aspect of the Lip Glazes is quite a problem.

Since these products are quite pricey, I wouldn't suggest buying lots at once (even though I did get these in a set) as they aren't something I feel everyone would enjoy. I love some of Stila's other products, like the Smudge Pots, but these lip glosses just aren't really for me.

Emily xoxo

First Day OOTD

 

Hey guys!

I thought I'd show you what I wore for the first day of college. I chose to wear a pair of dark blue high waisted skinny jeans from New Look, and a maroon (I know it looks more red on the photo, but I promise it looks different in real life!) polka dot top, which is also from New Look. It was pretty warm out, so I didn't need a jacket, but on my feet I wore black converse sneakers, and I wore my Accessorise school bagpack - there's a photo of my bag on my back to school outfit blogpost which you can view here. I just wore my hair in a half-up half-down style, and did my make up quite natural.

Thankfully, my first day back went quite well! If you went back to school recently, how did it go?

Emily xoxo