The Girlfriend Make Up Tag

Hello , 

Recently I was over on my wonderful friend Kims blog " The Thirty Something Life " and she did a hilarious tag where she asked her husband to tell her what different make up items were used for and oh my gosh I couldn't stop laughing while reading her post ( You can find it here if you need something to brighten your day ). So as my girlfriend doesn't and as never worn make up , I thought Id surprise her last Saturday night with a little make up quiz ( I'm pretty sure she only answered so I'd stop harassing her and let her carry on watching Orange Is The New Black ) and here are her answers :

Warning : she literally knew NOTHING about make up, some of her answers are wildly inappropriate and nearly all answers are offensive to beauty bloggers !

What Are These Make Up Products For ? 

Bronzer : That's the brown stuff .. that goes on your cheekbones ... that doesn't actually do anything ! ( Me : "You're going to upset a looooot of beauty bloggers" )

Blusher : That's the pink stuff you wear too much of !

Mascara : That's for your eyelashes, to make them black . That gets on your nose and stains my tops when you cry on me !

Eye Liner : The Wings ! To make you fly ?

Strobing : IS THAT SOMETHING YOU STICK UP YOUR BUM ? LIKE SOMETHING YOU'D GET DONE AT THE DOCTORS ? THAT'S A HORRIBLE WORD, IT MAKES MY BUM CLENCH !

Eye Shadow : For colourful eyelids ?

Powder: Is that the stuff that makes people go orange ?

Foundation : That goes on peoples faces to give them gravy lines .

Concealer : For your spots . It's supposed to make them go away but it doesn't.

Highlighting : Isn't it to put different colours into your face ?

Setting Spray : Do you put it on before you apply everything to make your face soft ?

Contouring : I know this one ! This is where they put all different colours on their face and blend it all in but it doesn't do anything . Oh, and some girls do it to their boobs ! I watched a video on that !

Primer : That's what you use ! You put it on before your make up . It comes in a tiny bottle and costs loads .

Lip Liner : It goes around the edge of your lip and makes girls think they're cool ?

Brow Pencil : To draw on ridiculous eye brows

Serum : * Gives me a funny look * ... that sounds like seamen ... like ... a female version ..

Cleanser : Something to do with pores , on your face ?

Micellar Water : Is it just a type of water ? To get rid of all the thick bits of make up on your face ?

Toner : The liquid stuff.

Was This Test Hard ?

 It was ridiculous !

Why ? 

I don't believe anybody uses that much make up and if they do they should have better things to spend their money on ... like me ?

Soooo .... I'll leave that there haha :) I really had a lot of fun doing this tag with my girlfriend and I hope it gave you a few laughs to brighten up your day :) I'd love to read more of these so If any of you do this tag then be sure to leave a link in the comments !

Stay Strong <3 Stay Smiley :) 

lots of love, Marianne xxx

Cats Are The Best Cure | The Positivity Diaries

Hello ! 

How are you ? I really hope you're doing well :) This week has been a little tricky but I found it very helpful every night to add to my positivity diary to restore my focus on the good things in life. So this week has served as a reminder that there is always good, just sometimes you have to look a little harder for it ! In the comments I'd love to hear three good things from your week in the comments ! I'm also adding a new section to The Positivity Diary series that focus's on what I'm looking forward to in the coming week to create a sense of optimism for the future !

Monday : I discovered the boots meal deal ! They do the best pasta, I'm obsessed !

Tuesday : I went to an interview to volunteer at a local hospice, I think it went well :)

Wednesday : My girlfriend and her cat cheered me up after a rough afternoon .

Thursday : I spent some time in the garden with my cat trying to get used to my camera and improve my photography skills ! I was pretty proud of the pictures I took but if any of you guys have some tips for blogging photography then I'd love to hear them in the comments :)

Friday : I bought a new shirt and had this super yummy` lemon cooler !

Saturday : Me and my girlfriend did the make up tag ( I saw Kim's husband do this tag on her blog and it was hilarious so I decided to do it with my girlfriend to see how much attention she pays ) and oh my gosh her answers were ... well you can see them for yourself in Thursdays post ... just be prepared for the worst ;)

Sunday : I choose to walk to the shops instead of getting driven , I feel like my activity tracker is really encouraging me to make positive health choices

What I'm looking forward to next week : I'm going to be starting work experience shadowing an educational psychologist !

So let me know in the comments, 3 good things from this past week and one thing you're looking forward to next week !

Stay Strong <3 Stay Smiley :) 

lots of love, Marianne xxx

Simple Pleasures

Hello !!

The other week I was reading through one of my favourite blogs "Adorkable Darling " ( She's absolutely amazing, you should definitely go check this little ray of sunshine out ) and she'd taken part in " The Simple Pleasures Tag ".  Now, most of you will know that I don't tend to do tags but I think this is a really great way to focus on all the good things in life that you so easily forget !

The rules are simple, make a list of the simple things in life that bring you happiness and then tag somebody else to do the same.

So here we go :

• Fresh Sheets 
• Good Skincare Products 

• Hot Chocolate 
• Belly Laughs 
• Pancakes Made Just Right 
• Swimming In The Sea 
• Sunday Morning Cuddles 
• Christmas Songs 
• Cats 

• Yoga Class
• Exploring New Cities 
• Being with my Girlfriend 

• New Notebooks 
• Macaroni Cheese
• My Guitar 
• Reading A Good Book 
• The Smell Of Fresh Cut Grass 
• Fresh Flowers 

It's been a really refreshing experience just making this list and it's actually caused me to take an interest in mindfulness and have been reading lots of articles on how I can practice it in my day to day life. Plus this post was a great oportunity to work on my photography skills with my new camera and I'm actually really proud of my photos recently especially the one of my cat Charlie ( or lion... most people think he's a lion ). 

I'd love to see Rainbow-Rose Blossoms and Crystallised Daises list of simple pleasures so guys I'm tagging you !!

Meanwhile, let me know some of your simple pleasures in the comments and I'd love to hear what you guys think of mindfulness and how it can help in day to day life. 

Stay Strong <3 Stay Smiley :) 

Lots of love, Marianne xxx

For The Steps | The Positivity Diaries

Hello honey ! 

How's your week been ? I hope it's been great but if not, I'm certain you can find something good in there somewhere because there is always something no matter how hard it is to find ! During exams I struggled to keep up with my positivity diary but now I' ve started focusing on it again I've noticed an immediate difference in how I feel ! It's amazing what focusing on the good can do :) So in the comments I'd love to hear 3 good things from your week , lets get this communal positivity diary running again . I'll go first  !

Monday : My sister bought me an "UP Move" activity tracker and oh my gosh I love it so much ! I'm genuinely walking up and down the street whilst waiting for my bus just for the steps to increase my. activity ! If you'd like to see a whole post on this just let me know in the comments.

Tuesday : Me and my girlfriend went to see Me Before You and ahhh it was so goood ! I laughed ( a lot ) , I cried ( a lot, a lot ) and I would happily recommend it to anybody :)

Wednesday : Cuddled up on the sofa me and my girlfriend spent the night watching " Pride" , if you're interested I wrote a review that you can read here.

Thursday : I had a brilliant singing lesson. We started doing " I Dreamed A Dream" from Les Mis and have started working towards my grade 6 in musical theatre !

Friday : Season 4 of Orange Is The New Black came out !!! Need I say anything else ?

Saturday : I had some REALLY nice chocolate ice cream , yummmyyyyyy !

Sunday : We had a Car Boot Sale this morning and I had a really great time because I lovely chatting to people and a really sweet woman was saying how lovely my optimism was and how I should never let anybody ruin it and that just really made me smile :)

So I've had a pretty great week when I look back on all the little things ! Let me know in the comments what's been good in your week !

Stay Strong <3 Stay Smiley :) 

Lots of love, Marianne xxx

Pride | Film Review

Hey Guys !

Exciting news !!!!! I have new favourite film ever !!!!!

... Okay maybe that's not that important as far as your life s concerned .. but I'm excited ( I don't know if you could tell ) . Last night, me and my girlfriend had a night in together cuddled up on the sofa and whilst I lay there thinking " I live for nights like this."  she suggested we found a film to watch. Ten minutes of flicking through an endless list of movies we came across "Pride" .

So ... I'm pretty late to this party ( It came out in 2014 ) but oh my gosh it's just so so good ! Pride tells the story of a group of gay men and women coming together to support the miners during the mining strike in 1984. They create a group ( Lesbians and Gays Support Miners ) to raise money for the miners and this leads to them being invited to the miners village where they struggle for acceptance but with the help of some of the more supportive people in the village, a beautiful bond is formed.

There are so many reasons I am in love with this feel good film ! Firstly I don't know how many films based on the LGBT+  community you've seen, but I've seen a fair few but never one without an extremely graphic sex scene. The sexualisation of the LGBT+ community has always distressed me but Pride makes it clear, It's just a group of humans helping out some other humans and there's something beautiful about that.

Secondly, it's absolutely hilarious. I barely stopped laughing throughout the whole film .Thirdly , the coming together of the miners and the LGBT+ community is heart warming. The acting was impeccable, beautiful and moving. For me, Pride emphasizes how all bullying is painful and when it comes down to it, bullying is bullying. We have to support each other and most importantly, love and kindness is essential to survival. A message that I personally think is definitely worth spreading !

Have you seen Pride ? What did you think ? If not then I'd love to hear your recommendations for feel good movies in the comments.

Stay Strong <3 Stay Smiley :) 

Lots of love, Marianne xxx

Catch Up Time !

Hello there !

So ... what have you missed ?

Over the last month, I've done a lot of missing you guys and your awesome blogs ( I have some serious catching up to do ;) ) , I've done a tonne of revision, sat a lot of exams and more recently, had some lovely days out with my girlfriend who bought me this gorgeous promise ring !!!!

I've also spent a lot of time looking up possible university courses and visiting open day. As boring as all that sounds it's actually giving me a real sense of excitement and optimism for the future. I've also taken a real interest in how fitness and nutrition can affect your mental health, I'd love to talk more about this topic on my blog so let me know if that's something you guys would be interested in. Also I'd love any recommendations of health and well being ( mental or physical ) blogs that I could read so if you know of any please leave them in the comments !

So essentially; exams are over, I'm happier and I'm feeling fresh with motivation to improve my happiness and well being and hopefully help you guys improve yours ! I'm feeling extremely optimistic about the summer and have lots of exciting posts planned for "Don'tBurstMyBubble" including a "Day Self Love Challenge" and posts focusing on health and lifestyle changes you can make to improve your mental state. If there are any posts that you guys would like to see in the near future then I'd love to hear from you !

I hope you're all having a lovely week and if not, I really hope it gets better.

Stay Strong <3 Stay Smiley :) 

Lots of love, Marianne xxx