What I got for Christmas and my Birthday!

Hello all, welcome back! I'm finally back with a working laptop and here to bring you a blog post about what gifts I was given for my birthday and also for Christmas.

I recently turned 19 and with this and Christmas so close together I have been well and truly spoiled. I'm not at all posting this to brag or show off about what I got, as I've been at university I wasn't around before Christmas so all of my presents were a complete surprise and are things I've had on my wishlist for a while now. 

Where I can I am going to post the shop where the gift is from however as they're gifts I obviously don't know the prices.

I hope your holidays have been really great and that you've had a relaxing time with the special people in your life.

Left: Fleece PJ set - Sainsbury's - Christmas gift from my Grandparents

Top: Heart shaped necklace - unknown - Christmas gift from my boyfriend

Bottom: Red handbag - unknown - Birthday gift from my grandparents

Top Left: Silver quote bangle - Equilibrium - Birthday gift from my mam

"Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to dance in the rain"

Bottom Left: Nivea minis bauble - Limited edition for christmas, gift from my brother

Top Right: Handbag - Matalan//Scarf - Edinburgh Woolen Mill

Bottom Right: Nivea giftset

L-R:

Poppy jug - Christmas gift from grandparents

Microwavable dog (called Pam) - TKMaxx - gift from my mam

Alice in Wonderland notecards - Waterstones - Gift from my mam

Top: Sainsbury's recipe book - gift from my mam

Bottom: Wreck this Journal - Waterstones - Gift from my boyfriend

I hope you enjoyed this post! I am so happy to be back to blogging after a month or so off! I'm working on scheduling posts as I type so I'll be a lot more reliable from now on, thank you for reading! Have a good week and stay golden! 

Gracie xo

Disclaimer: all the images are my own and taken and edited myself. I use either my Fujifilm Finepix S2980 camera or my iPad therefore the image quality varies.

New Year's Resolutions + 2015 Reading Challenge!

Hello all, and welcome back!

Today I am bringing you my New Year's resolutions, a bit late I know, but I wanted to wait until I was back at university before getting kick started with these. I have tried to keep my resolutions short and realistic, these are things I think I can achieve by 2016 and I've tried to take one from each category - you'll see what I mean!.

My first resolution is a physical one, meaning that I will be able to see a change in myself as the year progresses. I am aiming to maintain going to the gym for 1 hour, 3 times a week. This is what I currently do in terms of fitness and it fits in with my schedule at uni as well as being a realistic amount for me to be at the gym without getting bored or lazy.

Number two is an education based resolution. I aim to work towards getting a C in all of my assessments at university. So far I have been pleased with my results in essays, however there have been times when I've gotten a D and felt envious of my friends getting B's. A pass is 40% and I am aiming to keep above 50%.

Number three is a mental resolution, this may sound a bit weird but I am aiming to think more positively and banish negativity from my mind. I am very self conscious and tend to be a panickier and pessimistic so I am aiming to work on getting more positive. This includes spending little to no time around people who can be negative and judgemental and all round trying to think see the best parts of bad moments.

Number four - the last one - is a fun goal and that is to read as many books as possible! Since the beginning of my final year of school my reading has really decreased, I've always thought the best people are well-read and therefore I want to try and read as much as possible in 2015.

This is where the title fits in, I was on Pinterest around Christmas (I am addicted to Pinterest) and found a post which was attached to this link 

(http://www.popsugar.com/love/Reading-Challenge-2015-36071458?crlt.pid=camp.RTlcdYOWNcmE)

This is the 2015 Reading Challenge as posted by Popsugar. I have made a list of all the challenges and plan to read a book, then note it down next to whichever challenge it fits! 

So far I have read two books, Love Rosie by Ceceila Ahern and The disreputable history of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart. Both of these books have been added to my list and I will do a blog post update when I have three books I've read!

Have you guys got any resolutions and how well are you sticking to them 18 days in? Let me know! 

Good luck with 2015 and stay golden!
Gracie xo

Morning routine!

Today I'm bringing you my morning routine, this is what I do from washing my face through to makeup on an ordinary day!

Skin care (L-R):

Neutrogena Visibly Clear Blackhead Eliminating Cleansing Lotion

Clearasil Ultra Rapid Action Gel Wash 150ml

Young Skin Matt finish moisturiser - ASDA, £1

NIVEA® Daily Essentials Express Hydration Primer Dry & Sensitive Skin 50ml

Makeup (L-R):

Estee Lauder pure colour palette

Dainty Doll eye-shadow base - Frankie's Girl - see Dainty Doll website for stockists

Happy Booster™ Glow & Mood Boosting Illuminating Bronzing Veil - £8.95 - Physicians Formula online

Collection Colour Lash Mascara - £1.99 - boots.com

Rimmel Clear Complexion Transparent powder - £3.99 - boots.com

W7 In The Buff palettes - £9.99 - w7 cosmetics online

Seventeen Doll'd up mascara - £6.29 - boots.com

Collection extreme 24hr felt tip liner - £2.99 - boots.com

w7 brow twister - £4.95 - w7 cosmetics online

Estee Lauder palette

Rimmel 25 hour lasting finish foundation - £7.99 - boots.com

Seventeen stay time concealer - £4.49 - boots.com

Elegant touch eye-shadow brush

Lash and Brow groomer - unsure of brand 

Eco Tools travel size eye shading brush

Eco Tools travel size concealer bush 

(both part of the 5 piece brush set available from boots.com)

Beauty Sponge - TKMaxx - £4.99

Eyelash curlers - TKMaxx - £2.99

Angled contour brush - TKMaxx

Powder brush - TKMaxx

Hope you liked seeing what I use in my morning routine, most of these products are available from Boots (where I buy most of my makeup) however when they're not I've tried to say where they're from so you guys can try them out for yourselves! Stay Golden, Gracie xo

Edinburgh at Christmas...

My favourite thing about living in Edinburgh is Christmas! It's my favourite time of the year and is especially amazing when you're surrounded by the festive delights that Edinburgh has on offer.

In Edinburgh there is loads going on at Christmas the European market and Scottish market are my two particular favourites, so many amazing Christmas gifts and of course the food! From Bratwurst sausages at the European market through to seafood chowder at the Scottish market there's everything you need to keep warm on a chilly December day!

I've been to both the markets quite a few times (I'm totally addicted to them) and thought i'd take the opportunity to show you guys what my Christmas so far has been made up of.

 Hope everyone has been having a great month, stay golden!
Gracie xo

 PS: all images in this blog post are my own and taken and edited by me

My recipe's: breakfast favourite!

Hello all, welcome back!

This Sunday has been pretty hectic for me as I've got a psychology essay due in tomorrow - yikes! Following that I have a 2 hour lecture and *fingers crossed* I'll make it to the gym for an hour after that, because it's all systems go I wanted to make sure I had breakfast ready to eat - quite possibly in a lecture if I'm late. 

It's times like this when I look to overnight oats (sometimes called summer porridge). This simple breakfast is something which has recently become insanely popular, and quite possibly because it's quick, easy and can be super good for you. 

The recipe that I make is a mix of a few different recipes that I found online using ingredients that I always have in, the beauty of this is that you can completely cater it to suit your diet and your life. So, here's my version:

ingredients available at any supermarket // measuring cups/spoons £1 for both, Poundland

Ingredients:

> 1/2 cup Quick Cook Porridge oats- I like ready brek as it gives a super smooth texture

> 1/2 cup milk- I like using semi-skimmed

> 1/4 cup Greek yogurt- I use non fat, but just choose your favourite Greek yogurt

> 2 tsp honey

> Cup measures and spoon measures

> A pot with a lid- any you want, I use a small circular tub so I can eat on the go if need be, but you can transfer your oats to a bowl if you have more time in the morning

> PLUS any fruit/nuts/seeds you wish to add for extra flavour

Method:

Literally all you do is add everything into your tub, stir together, put the lid on and refrigerate overnight. So so simple!

I used chocolate ready brek for this to add more flavour(I plan to add orange segments when I eat it) but you can add a whole range of things, pretty much whatever you want! Fruit works especially well, you can add this fresh/frozen/dried/pureed,nuts and seeds also work great, as does peanut butter. On my Pinterest account (Grace Collinson, @collinson0579) I've created a board called Blogstuff where I pin things related to blogs posts, you'll also find a few overnight oat variations, I find that experimenting is the best way to find out what you like.

Not the best looking but it is the best tasting!

I'm hoping to make this into a 3/4 part mini series so you can get a glance of some of my favourite things to eat, now I'm at uni I find making your own can often be the cheapest way to shop, especially if you're smart with your ingredients and have the time to make food. It's also a great way to make food and freeze it for when you're short on time- or money!

I hope you enjoyed this post, let me know some of your favourite breakfast dishes! See you on Sunday!

Stay golden, Gracie xo

TKMaxx & Homesense mini haul!

Hello all, welcome back!

Recently a huge TKaMaxx and Homesense store opened at the retail park closest to me and I am so excited about it. TKMaxx (or TJMaxx I think in other countries) is one of my favourite shops, no matter what you're looking for you can always get really great unique items at TKMaxx, usually with great discounts. I love going especially for the beauty section, this time especially the make-up was stunning, they had Chanel, Burberry and tonnes of Shiseido make up with huge discounts, if you're looking for high end makeup with money off it's the place to look first. I ended up picking up a couple of bits and thought I'd share them with you. First up: beauty blender.

TKMaxx - £4.99

 Those of you who read my last blog will know that I have been wanting a beauty blender for some time now. This one is super soft and has a domed base (great for applying makeup to larger areas) as well as a pointed tip (great for round the nose and under eyes). I soak this in water, squeeze out the excess and then take foundation from my hand and blend it all over using the sponge, I find this makes the foundation blend really evenly into the skin and gives a great finish.

TKMaxx - £2.99

I was long over due a new pair of eyelash curlers, mine were getting grubby beyond cleaning and since I'd had them for years a new pair was needed! These have really nice silicone handles which gives good grip and also have a rubber pad on the the curved section which gives a more gradual curl on your eyelashes.

TKMaxx - £4.99

This pug jewelry case was the final thing I bought from TKMaxx and is by far the cutest! Before moving to uni I had my jewelry on a set of pretty hooks on my wall, unfortunately I can't have those at uni so until I get some stick on hooks I needed another option. Inside there is a large and a small compartment with space for three rings. However, I keep all my earrings in here, I find that earrings are a difficult thing to store (suggestions?) and this keeps them all safe!

That's all I got from TKMaxx, it's my favourite shop to go in and having it so close is amazing! I hope you enjoyed this super mini haul, I'll be back on Sunday!!

Stay golden! Gracie xo

Edinburgh shopping Haul!

Hello all, welcome back!

Yesterday I had a very busy day shopping in Edinburgh and thought I would share with you what I picked up! This haul will be very mixed and span across a couple of different shops, so here we go!

Minnie Mouse slipper socks, various designs, Primark, £4

One of the shops I went into while on Princes Street was Primark. Usually on a Saturday I would avoid Primark as best as possible as it gets really super busy, however I was in desperate need of new slippers and I'm so glad I went in. I used to have these 'slipper socks' in plain red with Minnie Mouse on the toe and these tartan ones are such an adorable purchase to highlight my recent move to Musselburgh. 

Plastic cup with straw, Primark, £2,50

 This next buy has been on my wishlist for ages. These cups recently became a new must have item and are a plastic version of the oh-so-famous fast food cups.

Burgundy finger-less gloves, Tiger, £1

The next shop I went into was Tiger, before moving to uni I'd never been into one as there aren't any near me and I'm so excited I've now found it. For those of you who also haven't got a nearby Tiger it sells a whole range of items - toys, food, stationery - for really great prices. I couldn't resist these gloves as they're such a great autumn colour and mean that I can still operate my phone etc. without having to take off my gloves.

Large black basket,Tiger £3; cotton wool pads,Primark, £1

The final item I got from Tiger is this large black woven basket. This basket is something I've been after for ages as I hate the look of bottles and tubes just stood on shelves or counters, my room looks so much more neat and tidy now with everything tucked away. Using baskets and boxes is also a great way to create more space.

(From Tiger I also bought 20 kitchen sponges in various colours for £1 and 5 orange wire coat hangers for £1)

Seventeen Doll'd Up mascara, £6.29; Seventeen concealer £4.49; Vaseline rosy lips £2.07. All from Boots

The final shop I went into was Boots (surprise, surprise), firstly I headed to the Seventeen booth as they are currently running a 3 for 2 offer on all of their products. Here I bought the Seventeen Doll'd Up mascara in black along with the Seventeen up to 18 hour stay time concealer in Extra Fair (as well as a gel nail polish for my flatmate). In return for letting her have my 3rd item in the 3 for 2, my flatmate bought me the Vaseline lip therapy + SPF 15 in rosy lips. This provides great protection against SPF as well as making them soft and providing a rosy tint. This lip balm isn't as tinted as the Nivea rosy lips however it's great for a healthy everyday hint of pink. 

That is all for my Edinburgh haul! I love going shopping in Edinburgh as there are so many places to go and everywhere is smothered in history and beautiful buildings. I'll be back on Wednesday with a review of the book We Were Liars by E Lockhart. 

Hope you enjoyed seeing my recent purchases, as always you can find me at twitter (@iprefergracie) & Instagram (forevergracie).

See you next time, stay golden!
Gracie xo

My Current Haircare Routine

Hello all, welcome back!

Today I'm here to let you know about what I do to my hair, and what products I use. 

A bit of background before we begin: my hair is currently just below my shoulders and is dark brown, in the summer it naturally lightens to a more ginger colour but I don't frequently have it dyed and therefore I don't use any specific colour protect products. Both fortunately and unfortunately my hair is naturally very curly, this means that it is also very frizzy, if anyone has any tips for frizzy hair, please send them this way. Controlling curly frizz is like fighting a losing battle!! As well as being curly, as if this wasn't enough, it is also super thick and that means lots and lots of volume! Now that you know more about my hair, let's get going!

My hair care routine consists of 4 products (depending on whether I'm going curly or straight) starting with shampoo and conditioner.

Boots, £3.99 each

When looking for shampoo/conditioner I always look for one which promises to give me moisture as like to have shiny hair, and these clearly naked products have the added bonus of being paraben and colourant free! The less chemicals the better in my book. I have only used these a couple of times and so far so good, my hair is shiny, soft and still as strong as ever.

Next up is Miracle Oil with argan oil. Nut oils (almond, macadamia, coconut) have been beauty must-haves recently and I've seen them in hair products, skin products and now even mascara, so you're bound to have tried one of them! My favourite to use is argan oil, usually I use this after washing my hair, simply towel drying it first then adding this to the ends. I also use an argan/coconut oil hair mask roughly once a month to boost the moisture and give my hair a deep condition. 

Argan oil, available at most beauty shops

My third and final products are those I use for styling. Which I use obviously depends on whether I want to go curly or straight and are both relatively new to the market. First up is the John Frieda Frizz Ease Go Curlier 48 hour heat activated spray. This spray helps to create soft and controlled curls for people with naturally wavy/curly hair and is applied to wet/damp hair and then blown dry with a diffuser attachment. I really love this to minimise frizz and make my curls more controlled, allowing me to have curly hair that lasts for 2/3 days.

The second product I use for styling is the John Frieda Frizz Ease 3 day straight semi permanent styling spray. This spray is again applied to wet/damp hair and then activates with heat when you blow dry and then straighten your hair. Because of the natural kink in my hair, products like this help to really control and straighten my hair, taming the frizz at the same time! I would recommend both of these to people like me who has hair which is stubborn to style.

Boots, £6.99 each

I hope you've enjoyed this post, let me know what hair products you're loving.

Stay golden! Gracie xo

mini haul

Hello all, welcome back!

Today I am going to share with you a few bits I've picked up recently when I've been out and about. I will admit it, it's mostly shoes, however there are one or two other pieces you might be interested in.

HOME

Spiderman tissues, Tesco, £1.20

I always like having a box of tissues in my bedroom and when I saw these I knew I had to have them. Usually I just buy the second cheapest tissues (sometimes the cheap ones can be just too thin for me) and these happened to be them! They had all sorts of designs but as a Spiderman lover myself they were too cool not to have.

Houndstooth cushion, Tesco, £2.50 (on clearance)

This cushion is something which caught my attention immediately, I just adore it. My ultimate home decor style is monochrome with one key colour, therefore this cushion ticked all the boxes - though you can't see it, the edging on this is a bright yellow.

Make-up

Maybelline Great Lash mascara - waterproof, Tesco, £5

When I have a long day ahead of me I like to have a waterproof mascara so that I can be sure that by lunch I'm not looking like a panda. Hence why I bought this, if you read one of my first blogs you would see the Blackest Black Great Lash featuring as one of my favourite everyday mascaras. It's not dramatic but adds enough length and volume to make me look more awake. This waterproof version however didn't live up to expectations, I had this on yesterday for a freshers week pub march and after 5 hours of wear I had black circles under my eyes and looked like I'd fallen asleep in my makeup, not good!

SHOES

Black leather riding boots, La Redoute, £52 (in sale)

I bought these boots in August ready for going to university, I knew that once I started living off my student loan I wouldn't be able to treat myself and got a bargain in the sales! La Redoute is an online shop which sells French style clothing for a range of prices, sometimes you get a bargain and other times it's more of a splurge, but no matter what you get it's always amazing quality and something no-one else has. I think that an item such as black leather boots is one worth spending money on, they're such a classic and a total Autumn/Winter staple for me.

Green ankle boots, £8 and black slip ons £4, both Primark

I know that some people can be snobby about the quality of Primark but for someone like me who always changes their mind, being able to pick up shoes for less than £10 is a godsend. I needed a new pair of casual shoes to replace my high-top trainers which have sadly come to the end of their life and these slip on shoes are perfect. They go with anything and are comfy enough to go long distances in, plus for only £4 (reduced) they were a steal! Next up my ankle boots, these are faux suede lace up boots which were available in a range of colours. I have a tendency to wear lots of grey and black in the winter and therefore got them in green to add a burst of jewel toned colour - right on trend for Autumn winter.

That's it for my recent purchases, I hope you enjoyed this mini haul! To keep up to date with all things me follow me on instagram (forevergracie) and Twitter (@iprefergracie). I'll be back with more on Wednesday, until then, stay golden!

Gracie xo

University!

Hello all, welcome back!

As you may have noticed, there was unfortunately no Sunday blog, this was because on Saturday I moved out of my house and into university! This was a huge step for me and made me incredibly nervous and scared, however everything has gone great so far and I'm having a great time. 

For those of you who don't know, I am studying psychology at Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh. A uni with approx 5000 students which is set in Musselburgh, roughly 10mins from the city of Edinburgh in Scotland.

I am living in halls, the flats owned by the university, this means that I pay rent set by the university which covers all of my bills (heating, electricity etc) and leaves me to buy food and makeup *i wish*. At my university the flats can sleep from 3-6 people and you have your choice of being girls, boys or mixed; I am in a mixed flat of 6 students, 3 boys/3 girls and thankfully they're all really lovely people! 

My boyfriend is in the same flat as me which makes it easier for me to deal with missing my family. I haven't ever suffered from homesickness, however when the time came for us to say goodbye to our parents I was the first one to start blubbering, great first impression.

This blog post is *fingers crossed* gonna stay short however I once I get typing I can't always stop! Without further ado, welcome to my dorm room!

bedding, ASDA £10 / purse, Primark £5 / bag, New Look £19.99

I went for a black, white and red theme to my room (making it easier to wash bedding & towels) and therefore opted for this poppy design bedding, my mum nicknames me poppy/pop so it's also a personal touch. I also brought with me my blue blanket from home, which doesn't fit in but makes the room seem more familiar. The book on the bed is what I'm currently reading and is We Were Liars by E Lockhart (review to follow).

Next, the bathroom. I have an en suite however it's appropriately named, 'the pod'. As you can see by the sink, it's pretty tiny and has a shower, sink and toilet. It's so small that the hand towel rail is actually a gap out of the sink. However despite it's minimalist style, I would take this over sharing a shower with 5 other people everyday! On my sink I keep my carex antibacterial handwash, tea tree face wash, and toothbrush. In a One Direction mug,of course.

The most exciting part of my room, at least for me, is my bookshelf. When I was packing I tried to limit how many books I brought with me, choosing classics, favourites and some I had yet to read. The titles are as follows, including some the photo doesn't show:

The Complete Illustrative Works of Lewis Carroll
Divergent, Insurgent and Allegiant - Veronica Roth 
P.S. I Love You - Cecelia Ahern
One Day - David Nicholls
The Ladies Paradise - Emile Zola
The Luminaries - Eleanor Catton
The Book Thief - Markus Zusak
Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
The Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky
The Summer I Turned Pretty & It's Not Summer Without You - Jenny Han
The Fault In Our Stars - John Green
The Girl Who Saved The King Of Sweden - Jonas Jonasson
Grace's Adventures In Wonderland - Lewis Carroll (a personalised copy of AIW)

Olaf poster, £1.99 HMV

Finally, my desk. I've always wanted a desk space however never had the opportunity. Here you can see my stationery from my last blog post along with some personal additions to my notice board.

That is it for my very specific, mini room tour! I hope you liked it, for me moving to uni has brought with it the challenge of personalising my little pod room to make it seem more homely and less bland. Stay golden!

Gracie xo

Stationery haul

Hi again all! 

In preparation for going to university me and mum have been doing rather a lot of shopping, buying cheese graters, baking trays and everything in between. Stationery, especially notebooks, are one of my favourite things to buy so I thought I would share with you what stationery I've bought. Because we have had to spend lots of money on bedding and kitchenware my stationery isn't super exciting this year, however there are a few cute things which I'm in love with!

Reminder post-its: Wilkinsons - £1.00

Forget me not academic diary: Wilkinsons - £2.00

Push pins: Wilkinsons - 50p

Hole punch and stapler set: Boyes - unknown price

8 piece pen set: Home Bargains - 99p (on offer)

Bic Medium pens: ASDA - 2 for £3

Stabilo green line pens: Wilkinsons - £2.50

Highlighters: Home Bargains - 99p (on offer)

List notebook: ASDA - £3

I also bought:

Nu:Craze project book: ASDA - £2.50

Nu:Craze lever arch file: ASDA - 2 for £3

File dividers: Wilkinsons - 50p

Sometimes, stationery - especially the pretty stuff - can be quite expensive and convincing parents to spend £12 on a diary just because it's floral is quite a task. However if you shop about and create a list of what you need then you can find some nice stuff to make you more excited about returning to school or work. My favourite shops to buy stationery from are supermarkets - the Nu:Craze range from ASDA is super good quality for a low price - and Wilkinsons, they both have a range of things for a low price, leaving room in your purse to buy other things. 

I hope this was helpful to you all and if you're starting back at school/college this week then good luck! I'm sure you'll do great, stay golden! Gracie xo

(P.S. sorry for the bad quality photos, the lighting was terrible when I went to take them!)