Twenty I's

One. I really need to follow my own instructions I give out. I do follow all of my advice on here, but sometimes I just get a little bit lazy. Whoops. 

Two. I drink an awful lot of fizzy drinks. I've cut back now I'm on my January health plan and I will continue to cut back now forever, I hope. They just get a little addictive, the cold temperature and the fizziness when it slips down your throat. Yum. 

Three. I want two children and two pugs. Nice even numbers. 

Four. I don't cry when it's appropriate, I cry I don't need too.

Five. I love lists. I write down everything. Mainly because I do suffer from OCD. I have got a list, somewhere in a notebook where, for a period of time, I wrote down everything I brought, and I mean everything.

Six. I was such a tomboy growing up. I didn't wear dresses, have long hair, paint my nails with my friends at sleepovers. I made mud pies, worm farms, I ran around in dungarees and refused to bathe. What a proper little lady I was. Whoops. 

Seven. I have never smoked a cigarette, roll up, straight, (whatever you want to call them) in my life. :)

Eight. I have my family on Facebook.

Nine. I listen to a lot of old music. By old I mean my iTunes library has bands and artists such as Salt-N-Pepa, John Lennon and B*Witched. Cringe.

Ten. I like the way my body looks. At last. I'm not as skinny as a stick, I'm just comfortable. For a long time I battled with my weight. I was chubby in middle school and I hated it, I didn't understand that this was just 'puppy fat' as my mum called it. My body has finally settled on it's own, natural shape and I love it. 

Eleven. I don't own a mac, and nor do I want too. I have a hp laptop and it is serving me well, I am not a complete apple reject, I do have a iPhone and iPod.

Twelve. I love living in the countryside, in the quiet and rural area. I still live at my parents house, and we're about eight miles away from our seaside town of Minehead, but where we live is surrounded by fields and a small village. It's lovely.

Thirteen. I'm from a mixed background, my muma's side is a mixture of English and Irish, and my dad's is Italian and Cockney's (true Londoners). 

Fourteen. I LOVE instagram. 

Fifteen. There are a couple things I want to learn - rollerblading and massage. 

Sixteen. I must have watched every single episode of, 'Cops with Cameras', 'Motorway Cops', 'Traffic Cops' and 'Police Interceptors' ever made. 

Seventeen. I just want to join the police. 

Eighteen. My favourite meals are either Shepards Pie, Hummus and things to dip in it, such as carrots and celery or a big helping of Crunchy Nut Cornflakes. 

Nineteen. I don't like bacon, spicy food, raisins, dried bananas or pomegranate. 

Twenty. I really like pugs.  

Some More About Me

   Hello! I’m struggling to have inspiration today on what to blog about. Bloggers block. I’ve decided that I might write a longer, more in depth ‘about me’ post. I wrote one back when I started this blog but I was inexperienced at blogging and it’s not the best read. Before I start writing, I’d like to thank you for taking the time to read my blog, whether you’re a new addition or have been following it for some time. I never thought I’d get as far as I am today with blogging. I’m not excelling in it just yet, I don’t have my own domain or millions of readers, but having just under 2000 is pretty good going. I’m still relatively new to it and there are many much better bloggers around. But I’m flattered that you, now, are reading this post.

My name is Devon. I used to have such a love-hate relationship, people used to mistake me for always being a male. It’s more a common male name in the UK, so that was always going to happen. But thankfully now, I love it. It’s different and unique. People always comment about what a nice name it is and how unusual it is.

I’m eighteen years old and I was born on the thirty-first of May. (This makes me a Gemini, two personalities?) I don’t look my age at all. I’m forever getting asked for my ID, even for movies that have the age rating of fifteen!.

I live in a small village in Somerset, in the South West of the UK. It’s quite a green and countrified area of England. There are major tourist spots right on my doorstep, which is a bonus and a drag. I love living here, but a lot of people can’t wait to escape to the cities. Everybody my age went to university in Plymouth, Bournemouth, Glasgow… just to get away, but I stuck around here. I know what I want to do with my life, it’s just a struggle getting there. I’m so lost between two careers currently. I want to fulfill my lifelong career dream but now I’ve met blogging I’d love to follow that path too. Who knows, maybe I can do both?

I’m a brunette, as you can tell. I've been all different variations of the shade, trying to find what suits me, but low and behold, it’s my natural colour that looks best. I've got nothing exciting on my body, I’m not tattooed, I’m not pierced anywhere except for my ears. That’s just the normal ear piercing too. I really love to pick my own style. I follow different style icons, but at the end of the day, if I don’t like it, I won’t wear it.

I’m coming to the end of this post now. I can’t really think of anything else to tell you which you don’t already know. I’m sure to be back soon though with some other blog posts about me and my life. So make sure you check in in the next few days!

xx

Online Shopping

I’m back again, and this time I’m going to talk about some of my favourite online shopping destinations. This post could become quiet long, so you’ve been warned! Everyone knows that shopping in the streets can be an experience. I enjoy driving myself the sixteen miles, (about half an hour) to the nearest shopping area with all the bigger branded shops. What’s better than wondering around by yourself, headphones in browsing for however long you choose too? My local shopping town doesn’t have it all though unfortunately. If I want to walk around a MAC store, the apple store or Zara I have to travel another 34 miles and an extra forty-five minutes, ridiculous right? So, I turn to online shopping. I have sixteen websites to talk to you about – eight fashion, eight beauty.

   ASOS is one of the biggest online-only fashion and beauty websites around. I have ordered various items from ASOS. The website is set out really well, easy to find everything you want and need, as well as generally browsing. The items are delivered promptly and even returns are brilliantly done. Checkout their big sales and free monthly ‘i’ fashion magazine.

   AX Paris is a brand, usually found in New Look and Debenhams that have branched out online. Free UK delivery on orders over £65 (easy to spend, trust me) and gorgeous sale maxi dresses, check it out.

   Boohoo is an online retail shop that is global, launching thousands of styles for men and women, helping you stay in touch with what’s in this season. They launch up to one hundred new styles daily. Have a look if you’re a student – you have ten percent discount and also find the five ways to wear quilting this season, a big new trend. Why not visit it here at: 

http://www.boohoo.com/

   Boots is a big pharmacy chain in the UK, it sells make up, beauty tools, hair dyes, fragrances, accessories, toiletries, everything. It’s reasonably priced and you can find both high street and high end products here. They currently have sales on healthy eating plans to help kick start the New Year, and discounted fragrance sets from Christmas. Brilliant!

   

   Beauty Bay is a site where you can buy the latest beauty products online. There’s over 8000 products including skin care, hair care, and makeup and nail colours from your favourite beauty brands. Currently they have thirty percent off of Urban Decay products (awesome) and tangle teezers – my best friend.

   

   Benefit Cosmetics. Now, I don’t think I need to describe to you what Benefit is. Benefit is a cosmetic company with some humour. Check out their UK best sellers and sale products where you can really pick up some bargains.

   

   Feel Unique is the destination for beauty! Stockists of over 18000 health and beauty products from over 550 major brands it’s really a massive site packed with high end products. Need some bare minerals make up with twenty-five percent off? Or Maybelliene make up? Look here!

   Lush is a very well-known bath and soap company. It uses natural ingredients within all of its products. Sign up and get a free Lush Times (newspaper FULL of products and their descriptions) and their fresh fruit face masks… lush!

   MAC is maybe THE most famous cosmetic company in the world. It was originally built for professional makeup artists but has now become known to girls (and guys) all over the world as a quality make up company. Look out for their new master class brush collection and if you have an account, don’t forget to bookmark your favourites.

   New Look is a fashion outlet that brings you the hottest looks for an affordable price. All deliveries over forty-five pound is free, which again, is easy to spend – especially with their pastel baseball tee’s (very in) and the check skirts.

   Nastygal is more of a high end fashion website, you can shop new and vintage clothing from hundreds of designers. Have a look at all of their accessories, from socks to bags, and their sale’s – muubaa leather jackets and gorgeous sheer crop tops, yes please.

   River Island is another well-known high street brand that has featuring celeb designers such as Rihanna in their collection. Check out their girl’s collection for little sisters, daughters and all other little girls in your life. Start them on their fashion forward journey. Also, if you live near a River Island shop, then you can click and collect for free.

   Superdrug is another well-known pharmacy brand on the streets of the UK dealing with high street priced products, you can grab your fragrances here for half price right now, (who doesn’t want that?) and you can get free gifts with selected purchases. What a bargain.

   Sephora. Need that amazing ciate nail polish set for a reasonable price? Or that acid peel celebrities use at home? Pick it up on Sephora, and American beauty site for high end and designer make up brands. Perfect for when you want to treat yourself with a little splurge.

   Topshop is one brand I could never live without. It has new trends with a reasonable price tag on all items, and online, you can buy topshop exclusives, which are a lot higher priced but limited. No one else is going to be wearing that new PVC skirt at the next party! You won’t mind popping to the shops in their pyjama range either. Gorgeous.

   Zara is my final online website. They do gorgeous women and TRF wear (teen) for something a little different. A little luxury. Check out their mens collection too… and get that man in your life dressing to match your level of style!

Healthy Eating Plan 2014

Just the word ‘diet’ makes me break out in a sweat, which sadly, doesn’t count as exercise. I’m not the only one, statistics show that most dieters quit within a month. (Appetite for Health Blog)

So here’s a little week plan I have concocted from various other diet plans to suit my lifestyle and what I like to eat. There’s seven days’ worth of meals and snacks but I’m not posting these for anyone to follow, just showing you how I eat to try and get my fitness and health back to normal.

It’s very protein based. A lot of people look at protein diets and think body builders and bulging muscles, but it doesn’t have to be. It can actually give you a slender and elegant body. Experts say if you up your protein intake, it’ll help you build muscle, which in turn helps burn more fat.

To drink along with my meal plan I have water, sugarless tes/coffee with skimmed milk, sometimes even green tea as it helps boost your metabolism and helps you burn off calories quicker.

Breakfasts

Fruity Eggs. I slice a grapefruit and scramble two eggs. It’s a nice mixture of the creamy eggs and the sharp grapefruit. Grapefruit helps speed up your metabolism, plus, it’s digested slowly so this keeps your blood sugar leverls high and keeps you fuller for longer.

Top Toast. I spread some peanut butter onto wholemeal toast and slice some banana to top it all off.

Berry Crunch. I mix a big handful of blueberries with some granola and some fat-free Greek yogurt.

Melon Bowl. I slice some melon (watermelon, cantaloupe or honeydew) and pour some fat-free Greek yogurt on top. Over that, I drizzle some honey and top with some chopped almonds.

Loaded Egg Whites. I whisk three egg whites with a handful of spinach leaves. Then I fry some chopped onions, peppers, broccoli in some oil and then add the egg mixture and cook like an omelette.

Ham and Eggs. I poach a couple of eggs and steam some spinach. I serve the eggs on top of some ham with cherry tomatoes and the spinach on the side.

Banana and Oat Smoothie. I blend a banana with some oats and skimmed milk until its smooth. 

Lunches

Chicken Salad. I mix a handful of salad leaves with some sliced peppers, carrots, cucumber and strawberries. (I know!) I then top with some grilled chicken breast. For a dressing, I mix white wine vinegar, olive oil and some mustard.

Trim Tuna. I mix a can of tuna with some chopped spring onion and light soy sauce. That tops some salad leaves, peppers and chopped coriander.

Spicy Salmon. I pop some salmon with some red onion, chilli and salad leaves. Great with grapefruit too.

Leafy Taco. I fill a large iceberg lettuce leaf with my home made salsa, (olive oil, garlic, tomato, coriander, onion and chilli) peppers, brown rice and some chicken breast.

Buff Bean Cuisine. I get a can of mixed beans, add diced cucumber, peppers, olive oil, parsley and oregano. I eat this with salad leaves and tomatoes.

Eastern Salad. For this, I make a salad of spring onion, tomatoes, cucumber, and tuna and eat it with a wholemeal pita bread.

Wrap Up. This one’s simple. Chicken breast, hummous inside a warm wholemeal wrap.

Dinners

Mediterranean Medley. I chop a red and yellow pepper, red onion, tomatoes and courgette and then bake them. I pop in some garlic and rosemary. I griddle some chicken and mix at the end.

Delish Fish. I marinate the tuna or salmon with crushed garlic, pepper, olive oil and coriander. I grill with soy sauce. This always tastes good with brown rice and broccoli.

Greek Lamb Chops. I marinate the lamb chops with crushed garlic, oregano and grill it. I then mix Greek yogurt with mint, a squeeze of lemon and olive oil. I have it with asparagus.

Super Stir-Fry. I chop two asparagus with some onion, broccoli, garlic and water. Oyster sauce too! I coat some prawns in oil and griddle them.

Saucy Salmon. I mix some chilli powder with olive oil and chopped dill and rub into the salmon. I wrap it in foil and cook it with broccoli.

Kickin’ Chicken. I blend some garlic with pepper, turmeric, oyster sauce, coriander and olive oil. I cut chicken into strips and grill. Quinoa tastes good with it.

Sweet Steak. I take the skin off of a sweet potato and mash it with cayenne pepper. I rub some lean steak with oil and fry rare.

Snacks

Handful of almonds – 2 x 25g packs or rasians or other dried fruit – hummous with carrot, cucumber, celery – pumpkin or sunflower seeds – edamame beans – olives. 

December Favourites

December Favourites time! Let's get straight into it.. 

Maybelliene Dream Smooth Primer. First of all, I want to tell you about my favourite primer. It's from Maybelline and it's the Maybelline Dream Smooth Primer. I needed a new primer and I did a lot of research online to find the next best one. I didn't really want to spend a lot on so I went for a middle prize range. It really makes my skin smoother which is always a good thing. My foundation doesn't stay on my T zone very well as I have oily skin but this primer really keeps it all in check. 

Garnier BB Eye Roll On. I honestly brought this as I saw a YouTube guru use this, and it looked amazing on her. The colour works brilliantly for me as I have tanned skin, it lightens and moisturizes under my eyes. 

St Tropez Instant Tan Lotion. This is a brilliant products. If you are looking for a very natural complexion with a glow this is definitely one I recommend.  

L'Oreal Colour Riche Eye Shadow Palette, Incredible Grey. This palette is perfect for a smokey grey eye for a night out. The colour stays well without primer, but I never take the chance. It's really well pigmented and I'd definitely recommend playing around with it.

Barry M Eyeshadow Brush.  I love the neon green handle on the brush, the bristles stay after being washed multiple times. The bristles are extremely soft and I use it to apply loose eyeshadow which it works perfectly for.

Collection Pump Up The Volume Mascara, Waterproof. The wand on this mascara is big and curved. It gets to all the individual lashes and coats them in a clump free mixture. It's cheaper, one I purchased just to stick into my locker at work for re-coats and not too expensive in case it gets lost. 

Carmex SPF15 Cherry Moisturising Lip Balm. This is my go to lip balm. Days that I don't wear lipstick I always put on my Carmex instead. It's lightweight and works wonders. I will stick to this until something else on the market steps up and outshines it. 

Rimmel Kate Lipstick, 16. I got onto the Rimmel Kate Moss Lipstick bangwangon very late in but I am so glad I did! This lipstick is a gorgeous shade of pink and nice and girly. It's not a fall/winter colour but oh well.. 

Mini MAC Haul

I was very naughty in the days running up to Christmas, and I purchased a couple MAC products. I brought a bottle of MAC brush cleanser, (first used to clean my real techniques face brush whch was, and I'm sorry to admit it, FULL of make up!) and some new concealer. 

I'm limiting myself to a couple items a payday because, let's be honest, MAC is not by far the cheapest make up brand around. I use a mixture of cheaper make up from brands such as Natural Collection, Collection and Rimmel, and then some other brands such as Soap and Glory and Benefit. So it's nice to throw some high end make up into the mixture. 

After a long deliberation I went for the Studio Finish Concealer in NC15. I chose this product as I had seen a lot of different bloggers and youtube gurus rave about how good this concealer was. What finally swayed me was watching a video from 'ALLthingsgirlybyISSY' and she was saying about how she could never find a concealer that actually covered her dark under eye circles and recently I've had the same issue. Working late nights and early starts do nothing for your skin. My usual Collection concealer just wasn't making the cut anymore for camouflaging how tired I really looked. 

The packaging is small and simple. I love the simple black boxes all MAC products come in. I kept it in the box to start, but then took it out and I am keeping the box for long haul travelling. The actual container is a small black circular container with a flip lid. The concealer is brilliant. It doesn't irritate my sensitive skin and that's jut a dream for me. This coverage is brilliant, I think with the right application it could cover a small tattoo. The only thing I don't like about it is that it can slide on your skin as it is a cream, without any setting spray or powder. 

I'm currently eyeing up a lipstick in the shade 'Cockney' which is a true red lipstick with some blue undertones. I've read up a lot about it and it really appeals to me. Have fun MAC shopping!