Music of the month - June 2014

Hello there readers, I hope you're all well!!

This post in the beginning of a new installation on this blog, which as you can see by the title, it is called 'music of the month'. I think it's fairly explanatory what this series will consist of but just in case you want a breakdown I'll just explain what I intend to do.

On my old blog I used to do a segment called 'music Monday' and I would do this on any random Monday whenever I felt like I hadn't posted anything in a while or if I had some new music that I wanted to talk about, it was one of my favourite types of post to do so I thought it would be something fun to bring onto this blog. It is essentially a non-beauty favourites type of post that is entirely focused on music, if you don't know I am quite pretentious when it comes to my taste in music. I was raised by parents who are pretentious when it comes to music so it was quite inevitable, this means that music is a massive part of my life (including the fact that I'm a musician but that's irrelevant) and I sometimes feel a little blue that I don't have many friends who share my taste in music, up until the last year or two I had no friends who shared my taste in music but over the past year I have met some cooler people. Anyway before this turns into the most rambly post ever, I am going to share with you my favourite songs of the month of June (in no particular order):

1. Honey - Swim Deep

I'm quite late on the bandwagon, I have a couple of friends who quite like them but it was this song that got me into them. Someone reblogged this on tumblr so I listened to it, then I proceeded to listen to everything they've ever done. This song is so catchy and the overall message of the song is quite positive, I love listening to Swim Deep when I'm doing work because they're quite chilled and relaxed and I am able to concentrate on what I'm doing whilst having fun which is pretty cool

2. King City - Swim Deep

I listened to this song for the first time about half a year ago, I remember liking it but not thinking much of it but after listening to Honey and loving it, I listened to practically everything Swim Deep has ever done and this made it up into the rankings this month. It's catchy and fun, it's still fairly relaxed (in comparison to some of things I listen to) but you could also get up and dance to it (if I danced, which I don't, imagine Hugh Grant dancing in Love Actually and there you have an accurate representation of how I dance), but this is a really good song - I promise this is the last of Swim Deep in this month's post!!

3. Charmless Man - Blur

I am ridiculously late on listening to Blur, I had obviously heard Song 2 and it was one of my favourites from when I was younger although I didn't know it was by them (it is also known as the 'woohoo' song..) but other than that I never really tried Blur, since the dawn of the 90s it has been Oasis versus Blur so seeming as I liked Oasis so much I felt like I wasn't allowed to like Blur hence I never listened to them. However my Dad really likes Blur, and my brother is getting to that age where his music taste is becoming quite mature - he's 14 this year and his favourite bands at the moment are Blur, the Style Council, the Jam, and he also likes a few Morrissey songs which myself, my Dad and my Mum are quite chuffed about. Anyway, whilst having a Britpop argument with my brother (he does actually like Oasis though) he made me listen to this song, and it's just so catchy. My first thoughts were 'is this a direct reference to The Smiths?' which caught my eye, but the actual song is really good, and honestly I've listened to Blur a lot more since discovering this song - I'm part of the small population that likes Oasis and Blur, if you are as well please comment down below so I know I'm not alone!!

4. Whatever - Oasis

Is putting an Oasis song straight after a Blur song a little insensitive to the die hard Blur or Oasis fans who refuse to have anything to do with the other band? Maybe, but that's called living life on the edge. I've loved Oasis for a long time, obviously I wasn't really around when their songs were released for the first time and they're a band I had to research into and all that jazz, but I hadn't heard this song before and I think it's so relaxed and I think the message is quite reassuring at the moment because I'm in my first year of sixth form, picking universities, choosing courses and deciding what to do for the rest of my life - it can all be very stressful, if you've been there then well done for coming out the other side, if you're about to come to this stage I wish you luck, live long and prosper my young friends. Anyway, this song chills me out whenever I feel anxious about all of this future-deciding-existential-crisis-invoking-decisions is brought up, I think it can also be applied to when you're feeling generally sad - 'I'll sing the blues if I want', if you are sad then you shouldn't have to put on a happy face (I watched a video by Carrie Fletcher recently who discussed this if you want to go and watch her videos). Anyway, that's enough rambling for one song.

5. Cancer - My Chemical Romance

Blast from the past anyone? A part of my life which I tend not to tell people is that I was once a massive wannabe scene kid, I dressed in all black, listening to My Chemical Romance and Paramore all the time and wore heavy black eyeshadow (at home that is, my Mum used to make me take it all off before leaving the house - thanks for that one Mum even though it annoyed me at the time). Anyway, I've rediscovered these bands and I've really been enjoying them, especially this one because this wasn't one of my most listened songs when I was younger so I never overplayed it to the point where I disliked it.

Thanks for reading!

What songs have you been loving this month?

July wishlist

July wishlist 2014 by bess-oates featuring flower pots

Boohoo dress
boohoo.com

American apparel skirt
$82 - yoox.com

Jelly sandals
$26 - newlook.com

TMOD tote bag
$28 - thegrandsocial.com.au

Lip gloss
$12 - superdrug.com

Clarins lip treatment
$31 - harrods.com

Beauty product
$6.81 - superdrug.com

Flower pot
ikea.com

Hello there readers, as the end of a 'sunny' June in the UK a new month approaches. To match this 'summery' weather, I have compiled a wishlist of the types of things I'd like to buy over the next month or over the summer. 

The 'summery' UK weather should explain why there are jelly sandals, dresses and skirts but you'll notice they are also wintery colours so I could wear them all year round! You may notice the pastel pink dungarees as well which for some reason haven't gone down into the boxes below with prices, but this is from Primark and I'm unsure as to whether I'll definitely get this. I think it's adorable but I'm still not very confident with my legs although they are improving, plus I think denim ones may be more versatile :)

The tote bag I think is adorable with the moon phases, but essentially all I want is a tote bag that's under a £5 so hopefully I can find one like this! 

You can also see the Tanya Burr lip gloss and the Clarins lip balm crayon which are fairly basic, I really want the Clarins 'my pink' stick that's been on my blogger radar at the moment - I really want to see what my shade is!! I want to try Tanya Burr's lip gloss purely because I've loved her videos for ages and she knows a lot about make up so I'm hoping this good, I've heard very mixed reviews though so who knows? 

Next on the list you can see the Urban Decay dupe by Make up Revolution, I believe it's the Iconic 2 palette because there are very neutral colours so even for someone who doesn't wear much eye shadow I'm sure I'll get a lot of use out of this plus it's only £4 in the UK! 

Lastly, you can see cute little fake cactuses from Ikea - I want a cactus so badly!! I think a fake one would be better though so I won't need to take care of it, I think Ikea is one of the best places in the world (sorry to get a bit '500 days of summer on you').

Thanks for reading!

Is there anything you're really hoping to buy over the next month or summer?

Empties #1

Hello there readers, today I have an Empties post which is part video part blog post - I have a video on my youtube account but if you keep on reading, you'll find that I have also typed up mini reviews on these products (which will you can read in your own comfort without hearing the sound of my voice and in a more eloquent way)

1. Miss Sporty Liquid Concealer in Dark

Pros:

- Cheap

- Smooth consistency that is easy to blend

Cons:

- Was too pink toned for my skin tone (damn you makeup companies that don't cater for the mixed race makeup enthusiast!!)

- Didn't really help with dark circles and sometimes made spots stand out more

- Was sparkly which sometimes was good but for the most part wasn't too nice

Repurchase?

I'm afraid not Miss Sporty, for I have found another who satisfies my needs better and that is Collection. However, if you're lighter skinned this may work for you, it just seems that makeup companies don't understand that mixed race/dark does not equate to dark pink!

2. Soap & Glory Peaches and Clean 3-in-1 Wash-Off Deep Purifying Cleanser

Pros:

- Made my skin very smooth

- Smelled lovely

- Worked well as a face mask

Cons:

- I sometimes go a bit red if I leave it on too long, or you'll at least get redness on the first go but that is because it's so strong!
- Not cheap for a cleanser

- The pump isn't efficient to get out those remains at the bottom

Repurchase?

I think I will be repurchasing this, it is about £8 usually which isn't cheap at all but I use it as a face mask so it has lasted me a very long time so I think I got my money's worth (I also got this in the Yule Monty so it was cheaper anyway)

3. Nivea Powder Touch Anti-Perspirant

Pros:

- No white marks on clothes

- Long lasting

- Smelled satisfactory
- Convenient size

Cons:

- I prefer roll-ons.. (not really a con but that goes to show what a good product it is)

Repurchase?

I may repurchase this, although as I explained in the video I got this as a free sample whilst in Superdrug a long time ago so I have no idea how much it is usually, but I wouldn't imagine it's too expensive. Whilst I prefer roll-ons, I think this is probably more hygienic and long lasting - you can't go wrong, right?

4. Soap & Glory The Scrub of your Life

Pros:

- Worked lovely on my legs and arms

- Lathered up very well with bubble bath

- Big sugar granules so I felt like it really exfoliated my skin

- Lovely scent

Cons:

- Not cheap

- Didn't help much with my dry elbows

Repurchase?

I'm unsure as to repurchase this, yes I did like it  and I love soap and glory but one of the main reasons I started using it (besides the fact it was in the Yule Monty that I received for Christmas) was to help with my elbows and it did very little for that. I may try one of their other body scrubs though, who knows? I liked this product so it's likely I'll return to it despite the fact it didn't help with my elderly man elbows.

5. Simple Kind to Skin Soothing Facial Toner

Pros:

- Made my skin feel very fresh and clean

- Cheap

- Good for sensitive skin

Cons:

- Not much of a scent

Repurchase?

I would definitely repurchase this, and I'm fairly certain I've repurchased it in the past. It is your basic staple toner, so when I feel like I don't want to spend too much or I'm not going to be adventurous and try something new I will return to this. As it says on the packing, it is 'simple'.

6. Superdrug Dry Shampoo (Head in the Clouds)

Pros:

- Not too powdery

- Cheap

Cons:

- Not much of a scent

- The spray can make it harder for me to breath (that could just be me, but I'm not asthmatic or anything so I don't know..)

Repurchase?

I am unsure as to whether I'll repurchase this. It's a very very basic dry shampoo, and I know the pound store does brands like Batiste in there sometimes for dry shampoo so I think I'm going to check the pound store before returning back to this!

Thanks for reading/watching, I hope you enjoyed this post and if you'd like more things like this in the future please do comment  down below!!

What products have you used up recently?

Book review - Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger

Hello there readers, by the title of this post you will have guessed that I am reviewing yet another book. I'm sorry for all of the book reviews and not much else at the moment, but I have a video filmed (and a blog post to go along with it), and two other posts planned which are not book related. Furthermore, I've been reading a lot more since exams finished and all that jazz. Anyway, today I am going to review a book that is considered a classic and by the title of this post you know that the book I am talking about is 'Catcher in the Rye' by J.D Salinger. I've wanted to read this book for a very long time because, if you didn't know I'm a massive beatlemanic, the person who killed John Lennon (Mark Chapman) claims that it was this book that made him kill John Lennon or it was a contributing factor, so I've always wanted to read this book to see whether his claim has any justification whatsoever and let me just say now it doesn't, nothing could justify the murder of John but even if something could - I don't think this could.

Does anyone else love the look of battered old books? This copy is so old it doesn't even have a barcode on it! Courtesy of my Dad (I think), just so you know my parents are massive book hoarders so lots of the books in my household are old and battered and very nice looking (to me)

Synopsis:

Holden Caulfield is a seventeen- year-old dropout who has just been kicked out of his fourth school. Navigating his way through the challenges of growing up, Holden dissects the 'phony' aspects of society, and the 'phonies' themselves: the headmaster whose affability depends on the wealth of the parents, his roommate who scores with girls using sickly-sweet affection.

My thoughts:

I didn't really have any expectations going into this book, except I knew my Mum didn't like it and my Dad did, and I know Mark Chapman used this book to justify murdering John Lennon. My thoughts on this are clear and simple. I love the writing style, it's so easy to read. I would compare it to the likes of the Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, the only difference between the two books is that I didn't like the main character in this whereas in the Bell Jar I felt some sort of affinity to Esther. 

Okay so I said I don't like the main character. Holden doesn't really say anything nice about anybody, he doesn't really seem to care about anyone except a couple of relatives and a girl he knew from when he was younger. This put me off.. at first. Then I watched a video of John Green talking about the book, and he rightly pointed out that when we read a book we want to read about characters who we like or who we want to be which after watching I discovered that I think this is true for the most part. 

The actual story itself doesn't have any serious plot twists or drama in it, it simply follows the tale of Holden over a short period of time because he doesn't want his parents to know that he's been kicked out of yet another school, so he meets up with a few people from his past and essentially procrastinates going home. Nothing super dramatic happens to be honest, but the thing that makes this book interesting for me is the symbolism and basically getting inside the head of someone who has some issues to sort through (which is basically every character in a book ever)

The chapters are short (I found myself reading several in the space of one bus journey) and there aren't any words that I found hard to understand, so I would say pretty much anyone can read it however there are some sexual references (quite subtle in some parts but I looked up what some of his slang meant and I recommend you do the same if you don't understand what Holden means by 'chewing the fat' and so on..)

Overall rating:

Overall, I am going to give this book a 4/5. Yes, I didn't like Holden as a character. Yes, nothing very dramatic happens. What drew me into it and kept me reading it was the style of the book, it was like reading someone's personal journal, I found it so easy to visualise every scenario to the point that I could hear the voices of the characters in my head whilst reading it. What I am basically saying is, I would recommend it. If you look on goodreads you will see that the reviews are very mixed, some people say it's 1 star whilst others say it's 5. I think for a 5 star book, I need to be so gripped that I stop breathing and nearly die from oxygen starvation, but this isn't a terrible book so I think to rate it only 1 star is quite harsh. Seeming as the reviews are so mixed, I would say you have to read it to see - it's often compared to perks of being a wallflower (haven't read yet) and the bell jar for its writing style so if you like those books purely for the style go for it and I wish you well, if you refuse to read anything where the main character is anything other than what you want to see in a person then this may not be the book for you.

Have you read the Catcher in the Rye?

Book review - the Fault in our Stars by John Green

Hello there readers, I'm back with another book review. This is a book that is so famous on the webiverse, I can guarantee that you've seen pictures of this book repeatedly on tumblr and instagram - have you guessed it  yet? If you've not then I guess you've not read the title of the post, but yes it's the Fault in our Stars by John Green. I'm so late on the bandwagon, 2 years too late, but I knew I had to read it before the film. I want to watch the film either in the cinema or on DVD because Nat Wolff is in it and I've had a crush/obsession on Nat Wolff since the age of 9 when I watched him in the Naked Brothers Band film, tv shows and film sequels.. (I also bought his album 'Black Sheep' but that's irrelevant). Anyway, I'll stop rambling and get on with the review (you can also add me on goodreads here if you want to see what I'm reading as I'm doing a reading challenge)

Synopsis:

Despite the tumour-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.

My thoughts:

I have to say what I loved the most about this book was the writing style, John Green has a really unique way of writing so it doesn't feel like a bunch of long words that people don't use in conversation has been thrown at you, it's simplistic enough that it sounds like you're actually being spoken to by Hazel. Don't get me wrong, I love books with long words it makes me feel much smarter but I think this was a nice easy read which is always good.

The storyline itself was quite cheesy, but I found myself attached to the characters. Something I like to call the Mean Girls Complex, where the story is pretty cheesy and could so easily be cringey if the characters and the comic relief weren't so good. I found Augustus to be quite cringey in the beginning but he was such a deep character and he did introduce some philosophical points in the book which I found interesting. Hazel was a bit dull personality wise but I think that was intentional as she's a cancer patient so she thinks cancer defines her, but she is obsessed with this author and his book - I won't mention any more on that though. I loved Isaac so much (was it the image of Nat Wolff in my head? Who knows..),  he provided some comic relief but he also had an interesting story and he plays a role in getting Augustus and Hazel to meet. 

The book is divided into short chapters (the odd one or two are longer though, and the odd few are very short) but it's very readable and easy to get into, I found myself doing quite a lot of binge reading with this book.

Overall rating:

I would give this a 4/5, I do think it is overrated but I did really enjoy it and I can definitely see myself reading it again. I didn't cry, but I think that's because I knew what was going to happen at the end (trying so hard not to spoil it although I really wonder who doesn't know what happens..). I would definitely recommend this, keep in mind that isn't directly about cancer - that's more of the side stories that comes into the main story if you get what I mean. It's a coming-of-age story but it's like a grown up love story because the characters are all cancerous and know they won't live very long so they take their first loves quite seriously.

Have you read the Fault in our Stars?

Have you read any other of John Green's books?

Collective haul - Primark, Superdrug, Boots and more

Hello readers, hope you're all well.

I recently went shopping with my friend Isabella (she has been inactive on blogger for a while but she said she is planning on making a comeback and possible showing what she bought so please do go over and follow her) and picked up a lot of things from Primark, I also went shopping a couple of other times and bought a few bits and bobs so I put it together in a youtube video which you'll find below.

As promised, I have pictures of a couple of the outfits, two of the nail polishes, a sneak peak of what Isabella bought and close ups of some of the other item, also there are some things I've bought since filming the haul so I thought I'd throw those in here too.

These are the nail polishes I bought. From left to right: Seaside, Rose Hip, Pearl 

This picture includes the nail polish Isabella bought as well, it's one of the chameleon nail paints but I'm not sure of the colour

From left to right: Baby lips SPF20 and Collection Mardi Gras strawberry lipbalm

These were both bought by Isabella: an MUA lip liner and a Kate lipstick (both were under £5 I believe)

This is mine, it is the Collection lasting perfection concealer in warm medium

This is also mine, this is a P.S love primark brow pencil in the colour medium

These are mine and Isabella's sunglasses, I bought the pair at the top and she bought the other ones, they were all £2

These were Isabella's: a Watermelon scented candle and a Vanilla one, they both had a strong scent and were under £2

These were Isabella's, they're a collection of gold hoop earrings ranging in size, and this was £1

This was Isabella's, I've used Argan Oil before and it made my hair very soft, I'm not sure whether she's gotten round to using it yet though

This is the Rimmel 25 hour foundation, as you can see it's not very thick and it's not very thin and I think that's good as it's buildable - I got this in the colour True Nude which has pinky undertones but seems to suit my skin tone, and it stays on all day and gives my skin a natural look

This is what the Pearl nail polish looks like on, it's matte but shimmery which is nice - plus it dried so much quicker than the gelly one!

I apologize for the mirror selfie, taking a nice photo on an iPhone is almost impossible without either another person or doing a mirror selfie

Kimono - Primark

Shirt - Primark

Skirt - Forever 21

Tights - Primark

Ponyo necklace - Etsy

Sigh, another mirror selfie..

Shirt - Primark

Skirt - Forever 21

Tights - Primark

Ponyo necklace - Etsy

The packing of the things I ordered on etsy was too cute not to include...

Here you have the necklaces, both of them were £5

The Ponyo one can be ordered here

The Harry Potter Marauder's Map one can be ordered here

They're both from the same seller so the postage was cheaper, they're both of good quality and arrived quickly too!!

This is what the Rose Hip nail polish looked like on, honestly I'm a bit annoyed with it. It stayed tacky for ages because it took so long to try.. although it did come out quite shiny but I didn't keep it on for very long as the tackiness upset me too much

Another mirror selfie...

Shirt - Primark

Skirt - Forever 21

Tights - Primark

I bought this a while ago at the Who shop in Upton park, it was only a pound and there's a mini museum in the shop too which is a must-see for any whovian (although it took a long time to get there and there's not much else to do in the area unless you go over to the Stratford Westfield, but I still enjoyed it)

Thanks for reading/watching - see you soon!!

Book review - Autobiography by Morrissey

Hello there readers, although I'm sure there aren't many of you as this is my first post on my new blog. As you can see by the title of this post I am starting off with a book review of a book that caused quite a hoo-ha a while back because it was made a penguin classic, but enough on that. I am a massive Morrisey/The Smiths fan so when Morrissey came out with his autobiography I knew I had to read it (after my Dad read it of course being the ultimate fangirl). Anyway, keep reading if you want to hear my thoughts on this book and if you're interested in what I read and my 2014 book challenge then please feel free to add me as a friend on goodreads :)

Look at Morrissey's little face aw - the book is a bit battered whoops

Synopsis: 

Steven Patrick Morrissey was born in Manchester on May 22nd 1959. Singer-songwriter and co-founder of the Smiths (1982 - 1987). Morrissey has been a solo artist for twenty-six years, during which time he had three number 1 albums in England in three different decades.

Achieving eleven Top 10 albums (plus nine with the Smiths), his songs have been recorded by David Bowie, Nancy Sinatra, Marianne Faithfull, Chrissie Hynde, Thelma Houston, My Chemical Romance and Christy Moore, amongst others.

An animal protectionist, in 2006 Morrissey was voted the second greatest living British icon by viewers of the BBC, losing out to Sir David Attenborough. In 2007 Morrissey was voted the greatest norhtern male, past or present, in a nationwide newspaper poll. In 2012, Morrissey was awarded the Keys to the City of Tel-Aviv.

It has been said 'Most pop stars have to be dead before they reach the iconic status that Morrissey has reached in his lifetime.'

My thoughts:

I think this book is beautifully written in some parts, the description Morrissey gives is astounding, it literally sounds like song lyrics. I do recommend this book for a super fan of Morrissey or the Smiths but I would say that unless you are a fan and a big fan at that, you will find this book to be rather tedious. I'll be honest, I was let down by this book. Parts of it were very interesting for me, like how he met Johnny Marr and how he felt about growing up in Manchester, his musical influences and I enjoyed the mentions of David Bowie too. However, I found parts quite dull to read and truthfully when I finished it, I was relieved that I could move onto something else because I found the last section to be a bit difficult to get through. Again, if you're a super fan do give it a go because then you can say you've read it and it gives you an insight into Morrissey's life.

The thing that annoyed me the most about this book was the total lack of structure. Firstly, there are no chapters whatsoever so it makes it difficult to know when to stop reading and put the book down. Secondly, sentences and sometimes even words are divided over pages making it even harder to know when to put the book down. On the other hand, most of the events in the book do flow into each other so I suppose it would be difficult to divide it into sections but it still really frustrated me.

Overall rating:

I would give this a 3/5, I feel terrible about that rating because I love Morrissey so much but this book was just frustrating for me to read because of the lack of structure and the detail in events that I wouldn't have thought to be necessary to mention, but if you are a fanatic do give it a go.

Have any of you read Morrissey's autobiography or planning to read it?
Do you like Morrissey or The Smiths?