10 80s films I want to watch

I recently finished the Netflix series Stranger Things (it's all anyone ever seems to talk about nowadays) and OH MY GOD, it was so worth the hype. You know when people go on about something and you think, "Oh no, it can't be that good." Well, take my word for it, because it so is that good. Trust me.

One thing that I loved about the series is how it is set in the 80s. The clothes that they wear (I will definitely be stealing some of Nancy's outfit choices) and the soundtrack is something I fell deeply in love with. I now can't go a day without listening to 80s playlists on Spotify and have even purchased myself some glasses which very much speak "Barb."

After completing the series, I felt like watching something a bit more authentic and you know, actually filmed in the 80s. I decided to watch The Breakfast Club and my oh my was it good. I unlocked a huge crush on Brian, otherwise known as "The Brain", I don't even know why, and now my lust for watching 80s films has grown.  I don't watch films very often, but I've compiled a list of films that I've been told I must watch. And I will watch them all.

My 80s films to watch list:

• Sixteen Candles

• Beverly Hills Cop

• Beetlejuice

• Ghostbusters

• E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

• Ferris Bueller's Day Off

•  Pretty in Pink

• Dirty Dancing

• Can't Buy Me Love

• Gremlins

I'm so excited to make my way through this list! Watching crappy TV is okay, but I have a feeling that this will be way more entertaining. 

Have you see any of these films? If so which is your favourite? Also if you have any other 80s films you want to recommend please do share!

Much love,

Lauren xx

PHOTO DIARY: September 2016

September has been a somewhat eventful month, mostly because I started sixth form, which is actually turning out to be not as bad as I imagined it would be.Like, it's not total hell. I thought I'd pick my favourite photos from the month, in date order, so you can kind of get a glimpse into my past month. Also this would be nice to look back at in the future.

September 2nd 2016 

Myself and 3 of my close friends took a train into the city together the week before we started sixth form. Our main aim of the day (well mine anyway) was to buy stationary. We did get a bit carried away in Paperchase when we spotted these glasses, I mean they were too good not to take a picture. Personally, I feel we really pulled them off... especially those bike glasses, they were definitely a winner. 

September 2nd 2016

That same day I got surprise visit from Bertie. Bertie is my friends ex-neighbour's dog. It's hard to explain, but the dog is not hers, however she dog sits on a pretty regular basis and I always go to visit when possible. I'm a big dog fan me. Anyway, Bertie is the most adorable little pup and I was so pretty to see him and his beautiful face. This picture makes me sooooo happy. 

September 8th 2016

You know those really cringe feet photos you would do in year 7 with your friends? Yeah well we did that on our 2nd day of year 12. But I thought it was super cute, and embodies the start of a two year journey between all of us. I can't even explain how much each of these feet owners mean to me (yes feet owners). They will be my rock throughout A-Levels.

September 18th 2016

This was a very special day. My dad bought me a Macbook Pro for doing well in my GCSE's and so I could do all my sixth form on it. But not only is it great for sixth form works, it beats my old laptop by miles, so writing blog posts and editing videos is so much easier and I'm super grateful.  

September 19th 2016

September the 19th signifies the start of an addiction. That addiction being the TV show "Victoria" on ITV. Admitted I was just a bit late to the bandwagon, but I binged watched all 5 episodes that were out so I could start watching it weekly every Sunday evening. Each week waiting for the next episode of Victoria is most definitely going to drag out, but I love it so I can forgive. 

 

September 22nd 2016

I went to visit Abbi and Bertie again and oh it was a good time. Bertie and I took plenty of selfies. I always tell him that I'm going to marry him one day but I don't think he's convinced. Mostly because he's a dog and only understands the terms "sit", "food" and "walk". No but I actually think I'm in love with him. I ship us if I'm honest. Hashtag #Lertie is a thing.

September 24th 2016

On this day we went bowling; I bought myself a pinafore and parted my hair differently for the ocasion and I felt very spiffy. I started the night thinking that I like bowling but then overtime I got get impatient and stroppy; I'm so competitive, its kind of funny really. I swear this happens every time I go bowling aha, I'm a mess. 

Overall I've had a good month. But I'm SO EXCITED FOR THE NEXT 3 MONTHS IT'S GOING TO BE BLISS. Autumn, Halloween, bonfire night, CHRISTMAS! I'm hoping that as soon as the leaves start turning orange I start to creep out of my lonely stage and feel more alive (even though all the leaves are dying and stuff). Maybe in the next 3 months I could meet someone who changes my life, do something to be proud of, or make memories I will never make. I've still got 3 months to make 2016 great. I can't wait.

What's been your favourite part of this month?

Lots of love,

Lauren xx

My Autumn Night Routine

Guy guys guys!! I made a Youtube channel! I've wanted to for the longest time and a couple of weeks ago I finally decided, sod it, I'm going to do it. I used to have a channel when I was 13, but I soon deleted all my videos after getting a made fun of for it. I was embarrassed and didn't want to face anymore humiliation. But I'm older now, and the people around me are a lot more mature. Yeah I don't really want the people around me finding out about this channel, but the people who do know have been nothing but supportive, and that really spurs me on to create videos and do something I enjoy. At the end of the day, I'm only having a bit of fun aren't I?

So this is just a little post featuring my latest video, I think for each video I upload I'm going to share it on here so any new readers can go over and have a peek. It would mean the world to me if you subscribed, but obviously you don't have to, I'm not going to beg aha!

My newest video is my autumn evening routine. Now, most evening/night routines include walk through clips and voice overs, but I didn't want to do mine like that because like, you can obviously see what I'm doing and I'm sure you're all smart enough to figure out whats going on. I wanted to do something a bit more artsy? I'm not sure if you can even call the video artsy, but it's not the stereotypical routine videos, that's what I'm trying to get across. I'm excited to film more videos for the future, see how this youtube journey will play out and shizzle.

Anyways, here's my video you lovely lot! If you want you can subscribe here.

Sixth Form Stationary Haul

Hey guys! I started Sixth Form last week, so beforehand I went for a good old stationary shop! Buying new stationary is so therapeutic for me, buying things like pens and folders and pencil cases is just really satisfying. Like they're only basic things really aren't they? But I very much enjoy buying them. I feel like I can justify buying stationary more than I can other things. So should I talk through what I got?

For the last three years of High Schoo,l I didn't have a pencil case, and that was because we had to wear blazers, which in total, had eight pockets. Yes, EIGHT. So I carried around most of my belongings in my blazer; my phone, keys, pens, pencils, calculators, lunch, THE LOT. But I don't have a blazer with eight pockets now I'm in Sixth Form. In fact, the blazer I bought has no pockets at all. So when looking for a pencil case I wanted it to be smart and sophisticated, but it was hard to find one I liked. But when I was buying my clothes for Sixth Form in H&M, I spotted the gem above while I was queueing. I don't know whether it's a make-up bag, or purse, or a pencil case (I couldn't find it on the website) but it does the job and makes me feel tres profesh. I also bought a pack of Staedtler biro's because I swear they are the only things I can write decently with.

I also bought a pack of 8 colourful Staedtler biro's (6 in the picture but I bought 8, trust me) because I like writing out my notes in pretty colours as well as to fill in my bullet journal. I've been using these to death every single day. Pretty colours make my heart flutter. *swoon*

Now, I've been considering starting a bullet journal for the longest time, and I've spoken briefly about it in some of my previous posts. Before I went in head first, I did a lot of research, I read blogs, watched youtube videos, scrolled Tumblr and scoured Pinterest.It seemed that the majority of people were using a Leuchtturm 1917. So I bought one too! I'm super happy about it and am loving decorating it and being on top of things more. I'm fully happy and satisfied with this purchase. Would recommend.

And lastly, I bought myself paper (exciting!!) and folders. Carrying folders make me feel like such a business woman. Something about holding them around the school makes me feel great; I don't even know why but I'm not even going to complain. I bought the pink and green one from WHSmith and the gold spotted folder from paperchase. It was only £3.something! Bargain I say.

Anyway, that's all. If you know of any places to buy cheap stationary please tell me in the comments because I'm craving more! What's one bit of stationary which you can't live without?
Much love,
Lauren xx

Musings: Feeling alone

I'm feeling really alone guys.

You probably don't know this, but in July I went through a breakup. I wasn't happy in the relationship I was in, he didn't do anything wrong so to speak, but I just had a feeling things weren't right. I felt like I had to escape, I had to end it. We were together for a year and 8 months. But now without him, I know that I made the best decision for my sake as well as for his.

But the thing is, I feel empty. I feel the need to be loved again; I miss the feeling of someone desiring me and caring for me. It's only now that I realise how much I crave attention. And that's not something which can be a good thing. It upsets me that I can't feel happy alone, single and free. See there are times where I do feel those things, when I feel like a strong independent woman, but then there I times where I just want to hear that I'm loved.

And then I find myself looking at cute pictures of couples together, gifs and videos. It makes me feel so jealous and sick. I think knowing that I knew how it feels only emphasises the pain, because once upon a time that was me.

I don't miss my ex. I feel guilty typing out those words. I think what hurts more is the blow that I don't love him anymore. When you love someone you expect yourself to love them for a lifetime, you imagine a life spent with them and nothing else. You think you will love them forever. In life, I've learnt that that's not always the case. For a lucky few it is. But the reality for me is, I got over it. But I haven't gotten over the feeling of being in love. I want that feeling again. I feel so low, late at night, seeing all these good looking guys with amazing personalities and wondering why I can't find someone like that in my life.  Of course, they're not at all perfect, but I keep falling. I keep falling for people who will never be mine and that drives me even more insane. Crushes are supposed to be healthy, but in the end, they just make me sad. I keep falling for people so easily, and I'm idolising people I don't even know. 

Times are weird for me now because I'm feeling the highest highs and lowest lows. Because I'm loving life and all it has to offer, the nature, the music, the food, the company... but I feel there's someone missing. A specific someone. But I don't know who that is yet. I'm annoyed that I've let this feeling of "loneliness" take over me.

This a big thing, opening myself up to you like this. It makes me feel quite vulnerable and small. Normally I'm the strong, happy type, so writing this is definitely strange, showing my weaker side to you. I'm normally the advice giver to all my friends, a lot of people come to me for help and I'm always happy to do so. But because of that I find it hard to seek help and advice myself. Will people listen? Will people care? A lot of my friends just don't get it. That's why I have you.

I'm going off on such a ramble but I just needed to get some words off my chest. I feel like my blog is where I can do that. I always have you guys to listen to my problems and that makes me happy.  I want to know if any of you have felt the same way. Do you have any advice you could share with me to deal with this?

Lotta love for you guys,
Lauren xx

How to balance blogging and school/work #Teenageteam

I'm back with Jade for another addition to our "The Truth About Teenage Bloggers" project. Today we're going to talk about balancing school and blogging, but this can also relate to those of you who don't go to school anymore and are either working or doing other time-consuming things. But this post is very much aimed towards teenage bloggers. One thing that I want to stress is that although blogging is amazing, ultimately school and education should always come first. Let's just get straight to the main points, shall we?

Find one night a week that you can dedicate to writing. Pick a day where you know you don't have much on or any other commitments, and use that time to write. You could just write one post, or even multiple if the creative juices are really flowing. But know that even writing one post a week is great and that it's about quality, not quantity. If you don't feel like writing, then don't push yourself because your writing won't be to your best ability! I've started writing blog posts in bed on my iPhone notes before I sleep, because that's when I get the most ideas and when I feel like writing the most. Okay, it may not be the most conventional way, but it works for me! Find something that suits you and your schedule.

Schedule ahead you posts in advance. This means that you can get work and school done without stressing about having a post up if you can't find the time or energy to write. You could be someone who can storm out 3 blog posts in a week, but if you then find yourself struggling, maybe you could spread out your posts more to give you some leeway. As much as seeing a blogger post regular content is great and exciting, I for one don't get upset if posts only come out once a week or every two weeks. We understand that the people behind these blogs have a life, and you shouldn't stress about letting your readers down. You should come first always.

Only write posts if you know you haven't got other things to do. I myself won't write a blog post until I know that all my homework and revision for the day is done. You need to make sure to prioritise what is important to you, and for me, making sure school work is out of the way is very important.

Plan out your day. Recently I've been bullet journaling, and it's really helped me with organising my time. You can plan when work needs to be done, what you want to achieve in that day, and track your daily goals. You can even buy a daily planner from places like Paperchase, which gives you each hour of the day. You can then allocate slots in your day for when you want to do certain tasks, for example blogging and revision.

These are just a few ways you can balance blogging and school /work, make sure to go to Jade's Blog for her post too!
Lauren xx

Sixth form: A new chapter

A new chapter in my life is starting. Now with high school and GCSE's out the way, I'm turning over to a fresh page. I remember when I started year 9, Sixth Form looked like the place to be. The sixth formers seemed to have some sort of authority that none of the high schoolers seemed to have. They were older looking, dressed in their own smart clothes, and kind of patronising. Soon that will be me. Sixth Form has come round so quick, and although I'm looking forward to it , I'm also crapping myself.

There are some obvious positives about Sixth Form, for example, you only take a certain amount of subjects that you get to choose. For me, this means no more maths lessons where I'm trying not to fall asleep and no more dreading sitting in an hour of German. Quids in! For anyone curious, the subjects I'm taking are Business Studies, Sociology and Geography. Good choices? I guess I'll have to find out. I also feel that sixth formers are a lot more respected by teachers; they're treated like adults and with a lot more respect. More responsibility is also a big thing that I've had stressed on to me, but although it can be seen as a positive, it's also quite daunting. Like we're expected over these two years to be turning into an adult, it's almost like our transitioning stage. Our two years to get our shit together. People around me will be starting to learn how to drive and will have jobs, will become legal to drink and like, whoa. I'm not ready for that reality yet. Also, A Levels scare the hell out of me because they are the key way of getting into University and they seem so difficult. I've done the stupid thing of making myself paranoid by looking at twitter accounts and hashtags to do with Sixth Form and I'm telling you now, it has made me expect the worst. There's no way to prepare myself, I know it won't be an easy ride.

Tis' a daunting time in my life folks. A time of change and blank pages that need to be filled. These next two years are going to be stressful as hell, but I also have hope that I'll meet some great people as well make strong friendships. This blog will be my means of updating you on the stress, the good times and the bad. I'm planning on writing a stationary haul because what blogger do you know that doesn't profess their love for stationary? I've even started a bullet journal, in hopes to sort my life out! I'm one of them people now! Who knows if I can make it last, but I'm really planning on it, and maybe I could do monthly posts on how it's going? Would you guys be into that?

Here's how the rest of this year is looking for me in terms of what I'm doing with this blog:

• The usual blog posts I write obviously.
• I've definitely took the idea of Blogmas into consideration, scary, but maybe if I plan ahead?
• I've come up with some blog series but who knows if that will happen.
• Guest posts!!
• Could a you tube channel be on the horizon?

I hope you have a beautiful week my lovelies, sorry for this rambly post!
Much love,
Lauren

10 things every Brit will know and experience during "summer"

It's summertime! Or so we thought,.I'm pretty sure I haven't seen any sun since that super hot weekend in May. Sad times. However, this Summer it looks like it's going to be a pretty fun one, with a holiday to Spain to look forward to, summer camp, and many different parties to attend! Shame about the weather though really isn't it. While I was dwelling on the fact that its all grey skies and rain at the moment, I was thinking about how us Brits all have a lot in common throughout these so-called summer months; the sort of things we can all laugh about because they're all so relatable. Of course, my first thought was to write a post about it! So here are 10 things every Brit will know and experience during summer.

1.As soon as the sun is finally shining, everyone decides to have a barbeque. The shops stock up with coal and there are fights in the supermarkets about whose going to get the last of the beef burgers. Facebook fills up with pictures with their hot dogs, burgers, and glasses of beer. Oh and if you have twitter all you'll see is news on how many barbeques everyone managed to go to. Within a few days, the rain will come and everyone will stay indoors again.

2.As soon as it hits past 20 degrees mark, you'll see people posting the temperature on Snapchat and be greeted by people walking the street half naked. It's just too hot for us brits. We're most definitely not used to it.

3. Apparently, a lot of us believe that it's impossible to get a sunburn in this country, so often pass when in comes to protecting ourselves from the sun's rays. But that's always regretted once we manage to get sunburn within half an hour of being outside, and we get the most dreadful burn lines. Looking like a cooked lobster is not cool. Wear suncream people!

4.We complain about how the weather is rubbish every day, but as soon as the weather is actually pretty nice out, we complain even more about how it's too hot, even when it's not even that hot at all! We're a fussy lot but that's just the way we are.

5.Hot drinks are for winter and cold drinks are for summer right? Wrong, we'll go through endless amounts of tea and coffee all the way through summer without even thinking twice. No one can stop us.

6. Although deep down we all know how unpredictable British weather is, we'll always give it the benefit of the doubt and hope it doesn't change on us. So that normally means we end up getting caught up in the torrential rain without an umbrella, or we end up with sweat dripping down us because we dressed in dark, thick clothes. I always find myself in black jeans when it's hot, and I'm telling you now it's not good.

7. We're much more approachable and friendlier when the sun's out. Like we'll actually smile and talk to people rather than be our shy unsociable selves. Why? Because the weather has a strange effect on our personality apparently. 

8.Going to sleep becomes excessively difficult in the heat. The battle between being under or out of the duvet is definitely hard to win. Achieving the perfect temperature to sleep in takes a lot of patience, but we normally just end by giving. Even a room fan barely helps, and sleeping naked can often end up as a last resort. 

9. We set our expectations way too high when summer arrives. With dreams of barbeques every weekend, sunbathing in the garden, and a list of fun and amazing things to do. The outcome is very unlikely though and we're often felt a bit disappointed by the end of August and realise we've done nothing but lazed around during our free time.

10.As much as we all love summer and will miss it so when September arrives, we can't help but get excited for leaves to start turning orange and Autumn to be at our doorstep, and thrive in the weather we know best. 

Have a fabulous summer everyone,

Lauren xx

My top 10 favourite films

I'm not an avid film watcher myself. I'm not the sort of person that watches multiple films a week, and in all fairness, it's very rare for me to sit down and watch a film! My attention span doesn't normally last that long you see. However, that doesn't stop me  from having my favourites, the sort I can watch over again and still love to pieces. I think one of the great things about "favourite" movies is that you can go ages without watching it, but once you do watch it again it's like a rekindled friendship. You know what I mean right? These films may be right up your ally, or they might be the complete opposite, but I've narrowed them down to my top 10! So let me share with you the films that make my heart swell with happiness, and those that leave me in awe.

1.Romeo and Juliet (the 1996 version)
There was no doubt in my mind that I was going to include this film. Ugh, I don't even know where to begin! The soundtrack to this film is one of the reasons that I can't help but adore it! "Young hearts run free" during the party scene, "Everybody's free" during the wedding, and "Kissing you" during all the romance between Romeo and Juliet. *Swoon* It's my life goal to walk down the aisle of my wedding to either "Everybody's free" (the slowed down version) or "Kissing you." Imagining it makes me feel butterflies and leaves me all heart-eyed emoji. I've probably watched it over 5 times which is pretty impressive for me. I love the music, the actors *cough* Leo *cough* and since I've studied the play too many times for English, I can recite half of it while I'm watching. I LOVE IT!

2. Monsters Inc
Monsters Inc for me is a childhood classic. It was always put on for me because everyone knew I loved it, although some of the scenes did scare me quite a bit as a lil' child. I haven't met anyone who doesn't love Mosnters Inc; I believe that's because it can be appreciated by people of all ages. It's such a beautiful way of teaching small children not to fear the "monsters under their bed" and also share the important moral of not to judge a book by its cover. Not to mention the cuteness that is Boo!

3. Bridget Jones Diary
Oh my, oh my. Bridget Jones diary is such a hilarious film, and I feel like every single woman can relate to Bridget and her fight of trying to become a sophisticated woman and finding a man to make her finally happy.  *all by my myseeeeeeelffff* This is the sort of film you put on with your girls or when you're feeling down in the dumps, because you do get a good old giggle out of it. Also, Colin Firth is top notch in this film.

4.Mama Mia
My Nan and I were the biggest Abba fans. (I freaked out when I found out they performed together recently) We used to blast their songs out together in the car and her dining room, singing at the top of our lungs. Therefore, Mama Mia is just perfect and I'm hoping to go see it performed live. The location for the movie is just so picturesque and magical, and they couldn't have picked any better actors. I love how they managed to create a story that circulated around the different songs in such a clever way that if you didn't know that Abba existed, you'd think the songs were created for the movie! Colin Firth is once again top notch, but then again, when isn't he?

5.Guardians of the Galaxy
This is the first film that  my boyfriend and I saw together. I must admit, it wasn't exactly romantic as we were with a group of friends, and we were only "seeing each other" at the time, no official label or anything. But I think what made the movie even more memorable was the fact that he was sat there next to me, and we were watching a film I would never think of choosing to watch, yet I loved every second of it. I found myself laughing out loud at so many points. Also THE SOUNDTRACK! Once again a film with amazing songs played throughout, the first thing I did when I got home was listen to the soundtrack playlist on Youtube. Oh and I've got a bit of a crush on Chris Pratt who plays Peter Quill, but don't tell Josh that!

6. Scooby Doo
It's just a great movie okay? I really liked  it as a kid, and I really like it now. I used to watch the cartoons but the movie was just on a whole new level! Judge me all you want, but I blooming love that film, I can't help it! My favourite bits are when Shaggy tries to find the spirits of his friends in the weird cauldron, the scene where Shaggy and Scooby are eating loads of food in the caravan, and the "gang" have an identity crisis when everyone swaps spirits. Oh, and when Daphne kicked ass against an evil wrestler.

7.White Chicks
White Chicks is a film everyone can love and enjoy, and it just never gets old! Never! I honestly find myself laughing out loud in stitches every time I watch this, it's just so funny and so relatable at times too! (The girl playing with her "fat" in the changing rooms crying? Totally me.) And who can forget the dance battle, let alone the scene where "A Thousand Miles" plays in the car! They're such memorable scenes that everyone can recall.

8.Shrek
Somebody once told me the world was gonna roll me- wait you're still reading? Look you're probably judging me for this choice but I can't help it, I must have a rubbish taste but I love it! The music is great for starters, and I love the theme of fairy tales and all the noticeable characters from books recognised from childhood, like Pinocchio, the gingerbread man, the three little pig etc.  To be honest, I think you're lying if you say that you don't like any of the Shrek movies, let's be honest.

9.How the Grinch stole Christmas
How could I not include a Christmas movie? I think Whoville is the cutest little village and the "Whos" are even more adorable with their button noses, funky hair, and exaggerated features. Also, any film which includes Dr Seuss, Jim Carrey or Christmas is already great, so a mixture of the three just make the definition of perfection. Also, the Grinch's sass gives me so much joy. Like yes, sleigh. (Get it, sleigh? As in slay? Because Santa rides a sleigh? No? Okay that's cool too.)

10.Les Miserables
I normally can't stand a film that's over 2 hours long, I'm too impatient, fidgety, and I get bored easily. But this is my only exception. It's so beautiful! I don't really know how to explain it because I don't think I could ever do it justice. I've never seen a live performance of it, however, my mum wants to take me to see it in London, which I imagine to be amazing. Although I've only watched the film a handful of times, I still love it so much because it's so captivating and moving. It also fascinated me the first time I watched it how the majority of dialogue was sung, I didn't know what to expect from the movie at all, so I was completely surprised. If you haven't seen it yet I couldn't recommend it enough.

So that's it, my top ten films! I couldn't be more cliche if I tried. Oh well!! Are there any films that I mentioned which you love too? Also, what are some films that you love and think I should watch during my summer holiday?
lots of love,
Lauren xx

My summer bucket list

On the 17th of June, I'll be free from exams and free for the summer! That's a whopping 89 days! Okay maybe minus the days I'll be working, but apart from that, I'll be freeeee! And there are a tonne of things that I want to do to fill up those days with fun activities!! Every year I make myself a summer bucket list of fun things that I want to get up to, and I would  write them in the notes section of my phone or at the back of my planner. But this year I'm going to share it all with you!! I love reading other people's bucket lists as I can get so many ideas, so if you're going to be on summer holiday soon I hope you can take something away from this!

I found a quote on Pinterest that really inspired me to write this post which I want you guys to see:

The yearly bucket list oath:
I solemnly swear to create memories that last a lifetime.
I vow to make an impression on the world, not the couch.
I promise to dream about unrealistic goals.
And make them my reality.

1. Have a bonfire and roast marshmallows on it
2. Have a water balloon fight
3. Have at least 3 picnics, one with friends, one with family, and one with my boyfriend.
4. Go on a dolphin spotting trip while in Spain
5. Swim in the sea
6. Try a new type of food
7. Make homemade lemonade
8. Go to a waterpark
9. Get up early to see the sunrise
10. Go camping
11. Go swimming at night
12. Go on the new ride at Alton Towers
13. Read 5 books (because I need to get back into reading again)
14. Go to more yoga lessons
15. Write in my travel journal
16. Write letters to all my #teenageteam girls
17. Practice latte art
18. Go on a huge bike ride
19. Binge watch a tv series
20. Go or a run once a week
21. Try my hand at gardening 
22. Visit a farm
23. Do some sort of water sport
24. Make elderflower ice lollies
25. Buy fruit from the farmers market and make super fresh smoothies
26. Build a blanket fort
27. Try cook a fancy meal for the family
28. Make DIY colour powder and have a colour fight
29. Host a pizza party
30. Do yoga on the beach
31. Burn all my revision notes and old school books
32. Finish my old wreck this journal
33. Get a train to somewhere I've never been before
34. Write a short story
35. Celebrate my blog birthday
36. Do something to raise money for charity
37. Step outside my comfort zone and go to parties
38. Meet a blogger friend
39. Make some non-alcoholic cocktails
40. Make more art and explore my creativity

I really want this summer to be great and something to remember. I've always regretted not going out and doing more during the summer, but this time, I want to do my best to change that. Will I complete everything on this list? Most likely not, but at least I have something to aim towards right?
What're you going to get up up this summer?
Lauren xx

My first ever job!

So I started my first ever job on Saturday! As in I get money paid into my bank account kind of job. As in I work for someone and therefore have to be responsible kind of job. As in I  have a boss and co-workers and customers kind of job. I was very nervous, to say the least. I shouldn't have been, though. I'm working at one of my favourite cafes, which is only a short walk away from my home and I've already done 5 days of work experience for my school. I found it really fun, and not to blow my own trumpet, but I think I did a rather splendid job. However, it's a bit different now, because unlike work experience I will now actually get paid. Like I'm actually working for someone because they see my work as useful to them. I'll also get taught how to use the cash register which seems easy enough (even though at work experience I wouldn't have dared touch it) and I'll also have to learn how to use the daunting, scary coffee machine.

I don't know why but there's something about it that's just so intimidating! I feel like I'll have to spend the next few days practicing latte art so I can try to impress everyone. Either that or I'll have to try and learn how to sprinkle chocolate in the most aesthetically pleasing way by the time I'm back this Saturday.

 I'm pretty sure everyone gets nervous for the first day of a new job, let alone the first day of their first job! Picturing myself in that cafe that morning gave me terrible butterflies! And although I knew everything was probably going to be fine and go swimmingly, my mind still buzzed with all the numerous ways I could embarrass myself! I haven't even told you about how during my work experience there, I tripped up the steps in front of the whole cafe! My recovery was smooth though; I flicked my hair dramatically as if I was fine, laughed and carried on as if nothing happened, but inside I felt myself wanting to cry in a puddle of embarrassment. But now I know to watch the steps right? Right. Learning from my mistakes, one trip at a time.

 Although I'm not too excited about finding myself in that steamy and sweaty washroom again, I'm very much excited for my next shift this Saturday. It's such a beautiful cafe with great drinks, food, and such a lovely atmosphere. All the people I meet are so friendly especially my coworkers! I feel so lucky to find myself in such a great place for my first ever job. I really would love to know what your first job was, so tell me about it in the comments! However if you haven't had a job yet, what're you most excited and nervous about when it comes to working?

 Also, I hope you've liked my little illustrations! I wanted to have a go at something different that I haven't really seen any other bloggers do! And I know they're not masterpieces, but I kinda like the quirkiness of them and how they're not perfect at all, but quite cute and childish. I might do them again in some future posts, who knows! Anyways, have a beautiful week!
Lots of love,
Lauren x

The troubles of being a teenage blogger

I was recently discussing with a fellow blogger named Jade Millard (you can find her blog here and her twitter here) about what it was like to be a teenage blogger. All the good points, all the bad points, and the other things that fit in between. We had a lot to touch on and we both had many stories to share with each other. Since we both had so much to say, we decided to work together on a collaboration post, sharing all our thoughts and feelings with you! So make sure you go on over to Jade's blog to see her post too!

Now before I start, there's something we want to share with you guys! After talks about our first collaboration, we started coming up with even more ideas of posts we could do that would benefit the teenage blogging community. We had ideas bouncing off each other left right and centre! We are both so passionate about making a difference for us teenage bloggers and helping others out, that we felt like it was our calling to do something bigger and better to help those like us. To build a community for people like us!
We're thinking of doing a series of blog posts monthly, directed at teenage bloggers! Now, we hope that the more posts we make the further we go with this series, and we've already made some plans for the future if people are willing to join us! So stay tuned because we've got some great things coming!

Anyways, here's to the main point of the blog. I'm going to share with you 3 things that I struggle with as a teenage blogger.

Being 16, I don't think that people take me that seriously. The majority of bloggers I follow are quite older than me, and I also feel intimidated by that. I'm quite scared to voice my opinion because to a lot of people I'm still seen as only a kid and feel like I might be deemed to be uneducated about certain topics.

Furthermore, I feel like people may not want to read my blog purely due to my age. That may be completely false but I just cannot budge that feeling. People like readigng things that they can relate to but can someone over 5 years older than me do that? I feel that a lot of teenagers could enjoy my blog and benefit from some of my posts, but the thing is, not many teenagers actually even read blogs. None of my friends do, that's for sure. I'm even scared of making blogger friends because a twenty-something-year-old probably doesn't want to talk to a 16-year-old and there aren't many teenage bloggers out there.

One thing that I really dislike is all the opportunities that I miss. I've been invited to a couple of meetups before, but because I don't really shout my age from the top of the rooftops, people forget I'm sixteen; I would be totally out of place and mostly, totally unwanted. I mean I wish I could go but I'd look like an absolute plonker. Being younger does limit the things I can do,  can't just go on a train by myself for few hours to go to an event.  I don't think I've ever seen a blogging event or meet up directed towards teen bloggers, which I wish was something I could change. Like us teen bloggers do exist, and although we may be young, I know that we'd still like to meet likeminded people just like any aged blogger would!

Lastly with my age comes a fear. A fear of being ridiculed, of being told I'm "too young". I'm scared of people on twitter and twitter chats finding out my age because I can't nudge the fear of people not wanting to talk to me. The weirdest thing is that I'm self-conscious about my age when blogging. I mean it's just an age, just an amount of years I've been alive! But because so many older bloggers follow me there's always the voice in my head thinking "do they know?" or "what if they find out". It may sound stupid but that's just the way I feel. But I believe that us teen bloggers are great and fabulous and all derserve to shine!

Thank you so much for reading this post! If you're a teenager blogger yourself, can you relate to this post? On the other hand, if you're not what're your opinions on this post? Make sure to leave all your thoughts and social media below so Jade and I can find you, and also be sure to use the hashtag #TeenageTeam if you want to get involved!

If you want to talk to any of us you can find us here:
Our email: ttab@gmail.com

My contact details:
Twitter: @tstainedlauren
Instagram: tea.stained
Bloglovin': https://www.bloglovin.com/blogs/tea-stained-lauren-14400811
Email: laurenjadeostler@gmail.com

Jade's contact details:
Twitter: @jademillardx
Instagram: jademillard_
Bloglovin': https://www.bloglovin.com/blogs/jade-millard-13929405?referrer_context=blog_search_autocomplete
Email: beautyobsessedgirl@gmail.com

Have a great day!
Lauren xx

4 ways to stay motivated to revise

I'm on exam leave right now which is very exciting but very weird. It's odd to think that I don't have to go Sixth Form until September, and that feels ages away! But for the next month, I will have to dedicate my time to revision before I can spend the rest of that time carefree. Sometimes the motivation to revise is so difficult to find, we've all been there, and you may be experiencing  that lack of motivation at this very moment! But with exams coming up it's so important for us to revise and get ourselves in gear because we do not want to look back months from now wanting to hit ourselves for not working hard enough. That's my biggest fear. But I have found many ways to keep myself motivated to revise that I would love to share with the lovely lot of you who are either taking or are about to take your exams.

1. Follow "Studyblr" accounts on Instagram and Tumblr. A "studyblr" account is someone on social media who shares pictures of their pretty study notes, their revision hacks, share pictures of their daily progress through "100 days of productivity" and so much more. My favourite Studyblr account is called "Elkstudies" by an 18-year-old girl named Ella from Ireland. I really suggest that if you have Tumblr you follow her account, or at least stalk her feed when you need the motivation to revise. I find studyblr's so helpful because not only do they give you some great advice, but all the pretty notes and stationary really make you want to make revision a habit that you're proud of. Take a look for yourself, as I've included some pictures as an example of what you can find on a studyblr and I've included all their accounts too so you can go over and give them a follow!

Photo by: http://fuckstudy.tumblr.com/

Photo by: http://arcane-sonder.tumblr.com/

Photo by: http://studyparadise.tumblr.com/

Those are only a few of many amazing photos that can be found for inspiration, just search the #studyblr hashtag and you'll be greeted by greatness! But as a starting point, here are some other people to follow on Instagram:

@lycheestudy

@peachystudy

@studeying

@tbhstudying

@studybreakdwn

@elkstudies

2. Write a revision plan before you go to bed and tell people about it. For example, say I wanted to do 5 hours of revision tomorrow. I'd write down a plan like this:

• Complete a past business paper
• Revise urban and coats case studies
• Do half of a maths paper
• Do a character analysis on Candy & Curley's wife
• Write up notes on the poem "The Manhunt"

Having a plan gives you something to work towards, and if you share it with someone you'll feel even more motivated as you've set yourself the expectation to finish it all! Furthermore, if they asked you "how did your revision go today?" and you didn't do it all, knowing well that you told them you were going to do however much revision, you may feel kind of embarrassed. I know I would anyway, so for me this trick really works wonders. Also ticking each thing off is super satisfying, trust me.

3. Set yourself something to look forward to! That could be a shopping trip at the weekend, a meal out at that restaurant you've been wanting to go to, or even just a night in with your friends! Rewarding yourself for all that hard work is super important because we all know how stressful revising can be sometimes. We need that bit of stress relief to keep us sane, so the idea of having something to do later can be very motivational. I especially recommend setting something to do straight after you've finished revising, so you can think to yourself "only two more hours" until you do that exciting thing!  

4. Remember why you started, and why you're doing this. Whenever you feel a lack of motivation to do some revision, just take a moment to picture the day you get your results back. You want to be happy and proud of yourself right? You don't want to turn up to results day knowing deep down that could have, and should have, done a lot more revision to prepare yourself. At the end of the day, it's your future lying in your hands, but it's not the be all end all.

I really hope that if you're in exam season that you're not too stressed! I wish you all the best of luck and believe in you all! I know everyone says it, but all you can do is try your best! Remember to have regular breaks, to drink loads of water, and find time to relaaaaxxx. You'll be great.

Lauren xx

A letter to my younger self

Dear Lauren,

I'm finishing high school next week! That might be crazy for you to hear, as I know we always felt like school seems to have no end. But on Friday the 13th of May, it will be over. It's scary you know, but you'll be fine. You may feel as if that day is ages away, but trust me it will come so quick, that by the time you're my age you'll wonder how everything managed to go by so quickly. You have a boyfriend too you know, and you have for a while. Make sure you look after him and treat him right. Make sure also that you thank your parents daily as well, that skiing trip to Bulgaria was expensive, but they'll always make sure that you're happy.

I know how much you love Nan. She spoils you rotten and treats you like a little princess. Cherish those nights at her house, those chippies on a Saturday night, the trips to the garden centre, days at the nail salon and everything that she does for you. Tell her you love her every time you see her. One day you'll be too big to sit on her lap, so sit on her lap while you can and hug her oh so tight. When's she's in the hospital, please be brave. I know how scary it will be for you, but she will need you because she hates it there. Talk to her, hold her hand, tell her about your day, and never ever complain about having to go to the hospital. Spend as much time with her as you can, because when she's gone, you're going to miss her so incredibly much.

As I told you earlier, I'm finishing school next week. That means my GCSEs are coming up. Don't panic! As long as you stick to revising then everything will be fine! However, you'll probably want to start revising a bit earlier than I did, and avoid just revising science because there are other subjects too. Just keep that in mind. Your coursework will go without a hitch so don't stress about it too much. I wish you the best of luck and please try your hardest.

Look, you're going to go through some crap and that's going to be expected. It's just the cold hard truth. You're going to get through a lot of tears but that's okay! Please don't hold back! Middle school is absolute garbage, the majority of people there won't matter in high school so don't even give them your time! Don't trust anyone in middle school. Anyone. BUT. Do enjoy being young and playing with dolls and playing pretend and all those sorts of things. Don't rush yourself to grow up, go outside more, play out with your friends, care less about what people think of you! Your hopes and dreams for the future will always be changing, don't let that confuse you, and don't let anyone hold you back.

When I'm writing this, on Sunday the 8th of May 2016, I'd say you're a pretty cool gal. Okay maybe not the coolest, but you've done some great things and have even greater things to come. We've both got things to look forward to; prom (you're on prom committee by the way), Centre Parcs, Canada, blogging projects and many more exciting things! Who knows what the future has in store for us? I'm willing to put the hard work in if you will! Of course you will.

All my love,
Lauren

Feeling all the feels

Deary me. How do I feel in this moment in time? To be honest, today I don't feel too bad. I've given myself this day to rest. But I can tell you I haven't been able to say that for the past few weeks and I won't be saying that the following weeks to come. GCSE's my friend. But the thing is, I know I shouldn't feel as stressed as I do. I mean heck, I ain't doing no A Levels or dissertations in University. However, I still feel the immense pressure that is put upon me by my teachers, my peers, and most of all, myself. Of course, these exams are important, but so is my mental health.

Just thinking about the next few weeks has started giving me a headache.

I'm stuck between collapsing under the workload and trying to be as positive as I can. Being positive is something I'm known for within my friendship group; I try to find the bright side of things and be everyone's cheerleader. But even though I still manage it, oh it is so difficult. Sometimes I feel like snapping and ripping people's head off with my teeth (pleasant), but I still put a smile on my face (or at least settle with my resting bitch face).

Every second of revision I hate, but every second I don't revise is even worse. It's like voices are floating inside my head, eerily whispering "hey Lauren, why aren't you revising? You're going to fail your exams! You don't want that do you?". I want to just grab that voice and dispose of it so I can actually relax, but it doesn't go away. Even now I feel guilty for putting revision to the side. I'm stressed about revising as much as I'm stressed about not revising. *Internal screaming*

But do you know what's funny? I'm pretty sure I'm going to do well. I'm projecting my target grade in every subject, and all of my mock exams are piling up in grade A results. So even though I shouldn't have much too fear, I panic none the less. (a lot more than I should!) It's weird how the brain works.

I feel such a deep guilt inside of me for complaining, because at least I have an education, at least I have a chance for a bright future. There are much worse things going on in this world right and I feel so selfish that I'm constantly thinking about me me me. I should be grateful. I just can't believe it's going to get worse in the years to come.

Let us on a positive note; next week I will have finished high school, knowing that I value my right to an education. I value the fact that females in this country are allowed to learn. Even though I've not exactly enjoyed school, I have made a lot of memories, and have learnt a lot of lessons (pun not intended) and in fact, I am grateful. On May 13th ,I will be free from high school and on June 17th, I will be free from GCSEs.

Now I'm getting emotional.

I've never felt so ready.

How are you feeling recently? I'd love to know!
Lauren xx

My Birthday Wishlist!

It's my birthday this month and I'm so excited! Not because I'm turning a year older, and not because of presents, but because I'm hosting a big party! Okay well not that big, but as someone who is working towards becoming an events manager, I absolutely love the whole aspect of planning a party and making it epic! The theme is going to be "Coachella" and you can imagine how wild I can go with the decorations, food, music and clothes! But I'll save that for a completely different blog post.

Even though I'm not exactly fussed about getting any presents, it is my birthday and I can't help but secretly wish for a few things can I?  I mean I might as well share them with you.

1. The first thing on my list is the tartelette in bloom clay palette! I'm not going to lie, the first thing that caught my eye was the packaging, I mean just look how beautiful it is! I'm also in love with all of the shades as they're all colours I would actually use whereas in most palettes there are always one or two colours I would just never touch. All of Tarte's makeup is cruelty-free too, and that straight away is something I look for in a makeup product. 

2. Everyone is in love with the Kylie Jenner lip kits at the moment, and even though I think that's great, I personally don't want to go through the stress of actually trying to get my hands on one. However, Too Faced have recently brought out their own range of liquid lipsticks called the Melted Matte Liquified Matte Lipstick, which look just as great. The shade I'm lusting over is "Cool Girl" shown above. Who needs a Kylie Jenner lip kit aye?

3. Fujifilm Instax Mini 8 Camera! I have been asking for a bloody polaroid camera for the longest time! I remember asking for one when they first started becoming cool again, but I was told there was no point. But I did not care and still do not care to this date! Yes, I know that now you can get your photos printed in a polaroid style but that's not the same! I need one in my life, okay?

4. Aren't these Zara Martin Rose Gold Kitty Headphones dreamy? I can just imagine myself pulling them out my bag, putting them on, and everyone thinking I'm the coolest person around because my headphones have cat ears. If I saw them on someone else I'd think that at least. I actually don't even own headphones, only a crappy pair of Apple earphones that only play out of one speaker. Therefore, these headphones are a necessity rather than a want. I'm totally joking I just really want them. Pretty please.

5. I left the most expensive till last. Look me in the eye and tell me that these Zoeva brushes are ugly. Well, 1. You can't because you're reading this through a screen and 2. You'd be lying to yourself and we both know it. I'd also like to point out that all the cool beauty bloggers have a set, and beauty bloggers know what they're on about. I do actually need some makeup brushes through and I'd be more than happy to receive them as a birthday gift! 

So that's my top 5 on my birthday wish list! Some of you may be thinking "But Lauren, a lot of these things aren't that expensive and you can buy them yourself!". Well although that is true, I really struggle to spend money on things I don't need, and treating myself is something I have real trouble with doing. However, I am saving up so I'll work on it!

Have a great week lovelies, and tell me which one on the list is your favourite!

Lauren xx

How I Revise: Science

Since I've got my GCSE's coming up in the next month, (which may be a shock to some of you as a lot of people think I'm a lot older than I actually am and a lot of my readers are older than me) I've decided to do a revision series. I'm also going to aim more of my posts at teenagers around my age. I realised I haven't been doing that and it would make a lot of sense for me to do so! However, I'll still be writing posts for all of you who don't fit in that category too, so don't give up on me just yet! I  feel like switching things up this way will make blogging a bit easier! Anyways, here is the first post in my revision series!

How I revise: Science

Science is one of my least favourite subjects, and the fact that it's split into three different subjects, with nine lessons across my two-week timetable, makes it that much worse. However, it's the subject that I find myself revising for the most due to the fact that it includes the most material to remember. When revising science I like to do an hour at a time and have breaks in between, however sometimes when I'm on a roll I can revise for two hours straight. That only happens on really good days, though.

I always make sure I've got the following things with me when I revise for science:

• A cup of decaf coffee
• A snack (today I chose smarties, I hope it helps)
• A lit candle (right now I'm burning one from Primark that smells of oriental spice and ginger)
• Some highlighters
• My notebook, revision guide, and a pen
• Optional: sometimes I'll play my revision playlist, it's completely instrumental so I'm not distracted.

I recently bought a notebook with plastic dividers to separate each subject (biology, chemistry and physics) from each other. What I like to do is go through all the different sub-topics in my revision guide, and write up each page as a shortened down version. This way I save myself the pain of writing down every single word so that I'm focused on the key points! Right now I'm writing up all of B4 (which might make sense if you take OCR science). After that, I'll write up C4 and P4!

Once everything is written up I will go back through my notes and highlight all the important key points that I must remember, such as equations, keywords, definitions and so on. This means that I return back to my work and recap all the information.

Once again I will go over my notes, but this time, I will summarise it all on an A3 mind map! I like revisiting my notes in a hope that somehow the information will find itself stored in my brain, to be remembered when I sit down for my actual test. Hopefully, it will all work out for me.

I also make myself a contents page at the front of my notebook, so that I can find the information I need quickly.

 With subjects full of so much information, my main technique is repetition. Everyone revises differently, and this is my preferred way of revising science!

If you're taking your GCSE's soon, I hope this has been interesting for you! Maybe you'll try this way yourself, or maybe you think your way of revising is better! But if you're reading this and have already done your GCSE's, how did you revise science? I'd love to know!

Have a good week lovelies,
Lauren xx