Minimalism Monday - Social Detox

 

  

3 quick tips to turn social media from fiend to friend.

If you caught last Monday's post then you would have gotten the first taste of 'Minimalism' from this blog so far. It's a new concept I'm working on and bringing into my everyday life and the launch article was all about culling my makeup collection since it so closely ties into the main beauty theme that runs through this blog.

In this second minimalism post we are going to be talking about something very different and not so tangible - detoxing and being minimal on social media.

I have 3 quick tips on how to turn social media from an obsession and enemy into something friendly that makes you happy. Read on for these easily applicable methods to bringing minimalism into your social media habits..

Lana Del Rey 'Lust For Life' Album Review

So Lana dropped her new album and I obviously lost my damn mind because every Lana album is a piece of art. But this one well and truly exceeded expectations, releasing her best album yet. 

Lana's work consistently conveys elements of nostalgia, mixing the old with the new and relying on her vocal range for a unique sound rather than pushing loud and powerful notes which separates her from other artists such as Adele. This alternative sound has adapted through the years as she tried different styles but you can undoubtedly spot a Lana song despite the genre she is playing with because she always makes it her own. Lyrical themes follow; sex, drugs, rock and roll, patriotism, love (often going wrong) and an internal struggle to find happiness.

The Latest in Treatments - 4 Experience Posts

I've tried some different things and had some new beauty treatments lately so I thought I would go through them and recap these experiences.

We're going to be talking about giving up alcohol for a month, my first acupuncture experience, my customized Kerastase treatment and Skistitut facial experience.

Minimalism Monday - Culling My Makeup Collection

Welcome to a new series on the blog all about 'minimalism' but this is going to be a different take on it since I'm putting my own spin on being a minimalist.

Have you ever looked around and realized how much crap you really have? Especially as a beauty blogger when you're sent so much stuff and have so many products / props / camera equipment for blog posts and videos.

So after reading a book on the topic and researching a lot online about minimalism, I've decided to take the concept on board and apply it in small but practical ways to my lifestyle. I'll be posting every Monday or second Monday as I have things to discuss about the topic and my progression.

 

3 Superfood Smoothie Recipes

  

I have been smoothie obsessed for years because it a fantastic way of incorporating vitamins and minerals into your diet in a delicious way.

 

I mean you're not going to be crunching down on handful of flaxseeds or downing shots of spirulina because that is the worst tasting stuff in existence - scientifically proven (no I just made that up but it's pretty gross). So a great way of getting those ingredients as part of your diet is blending them up in a fruit concoction where you can't taste them anyway.

 

Here are my three tired and tested favourites over the years that are fantastic for your health but also taste delicious!

 

Behind Social Media - The Insecurity Era

 

It can be so easy to compare your life to someone's highlight reel. When you're sitting at work with a headache, it's hard to not be jealous of that LA model on a romantic getaway in Paris with her hot boyfriend.

You know everyone has their own path and deals with their own struggles but it can be hard to not let it get to you at times.

When I realised this it became apparent to me that I might have some of my followers looking at my Instagram feed and thinking my life is so perfect. Well, I'm happy to report that it's really not perfect I just show the good parts on social media (because who wants to be a Debbie Downer anyway).

But for the purpose of this exercise, I thought I would give you a couple of pictures with a story behind it of what the reality was. I mean, it's nothing major - it's just life stuff that happens to everyone but could be easily overlooked because of a cute instagram filter.

Don't get me wrong, this isn't whinging and complaining about my life but rather trying to show that it's not all sunshine and rainbows all the time. Here are 6 examples...

Get The Look - Football Gala Dinner



This Saturday just gone I swapped my usual weekend attire of living in my active wear for a black tie dress code.

Really, who doesn't like an excuse to dress up? Even if the night ends with eating cheeseburgers in the back of a cab, at least you look like you have your life together while doing so because your hair is in place. Although not the same case with my lipstick, but that's another story..

Anyway what I'm here to talk about are all the details of my outfit, hair and makeup from the night. Spoiler alert: my dress only cost me $80.

BEHIND THE DESK #14 - Surviving Finals, Horse-Riding, Acupuncture and New Blog Direction



 

It has been WAY too long since I sat down and updated you guys on what's been happening.

 

Semester 1 of my Masters = Over and Done With.

 

Since the last time I've well and truly made it through finals week, in fact Uni starts back up soon.

“How bad was it?” you ask? Well, on the last day when everything was due I had to write 6, 500 words in the space of 24 hours. Yeah - the struggle was real. Now we sit and wait for the results to come in. 
 

After getting through it all I feel pretty accomplished and am allowing myself to kick back for a bit - do some blogging and I even finished Season 5 of House of Cards.

I’m thinking I’ll drop down to 3 subjects instead of 4 next semester just to give myself a bit of breathing space.

 
 

Random Things I've Been Up To

I went horse riding for the first time. My horses name was Aussie and he was super sweet. By that I mean he didn’t throw me off at any point, it’s all the small victories. But really, he was super cute and learning to ride a horse was pretty fun. 
 

I’m headed to Byron Bay a couple of weekends ago to celebrate my sisters 18th. You can read all about what we got up to in my Byron Bay Travel Guide here.
 

I have been right into the acupuncture and massage life lately, loving the way it is making my body feel. I wasn’t expecting to have such great results with acupuncture but there is a noticeable difference for me when I get it done. You can read all about my first acupuncture experience in the blog post here, talking all about the main benefits I get from doing it.


New Blog Direction
 

I have been really inspired to write recently, piecing together articles here and there about lifestyle topics and throwing ideas around.
 

I’d really like to share them at some point and I've started slowly releasing them to get a feel if they are something you might be interested in. It’s great quarter-life-crisis material, I give you permission to laugh at me but the response has been great so far.

The first post of its kind has been 'The Struggle of Being in Your Early 20s'. Look out for more content like this.

The Ultimate Guide to All Benefit Brow Products

It's no shocker that Benefit have incredible brow products. I mean - Gimme Brow, Brow Zings, High Brow... these are all cult classic products that have been on the market for years and years.

But what happens when Benefit make a point of focussing on their brow products and release a branded collection to celebrate all they have to offer to make womens brows everywhere look flawless? A gorgeous chrome packaged collection that will make you want to go out and re-purchase all of your go-to faves just for the adorable packaging.

Guilty as charged. Well, I'm going to talk you through the tried and tested faves that I have used for years as well as some new products where its my first time trying them.

The Daily Struggle of Being in Your Early 20s

This is a little different to what I normally share but I feel compelled to write this anyway so here we go...

Being in your 20s is one of the best and worst times of your lives...at least that is the general consensus amongst those wiser and more learned than myself.

But you know what, I have to agree (from my experience so far).

I know a lot of you reading are in your early 20s and probably going through the exact same thing. So I thought I would reach out and share my thoughts so that it might help some of you out there also...

A Weekend in Byron Bay - A Guide On Where To Go

 

Last weekend, my sister and I headed down to Byron Bay to celebrate her 18th birthday by the beach. Winter was definitely not going to stop us enjoying this beautiful beach side town and exploring the sites.

 

Both my sister and I have been there before on separate occasions but have never hit the town together so we got to cross a road trip together to Byron off our bucket list. We went with no plans, other than to definitely stop into Crystal Castle on the way home (featured at the end of this post), have some fun and relax a little. That's exactly what we did so I thought I would put together a little guide on where to go based on our trip and the favourite places we found along the way.  

 

 

So, You've Lost Weight... Now What?!

No matter what the figures on the scales say, losing any amount of weight is a massive achievement. If you've battled with your waistline for many years, seeing the pounds drop off can be even more profound, and one great motivation is knowing just how great you're going to look once you hit your target weight. However, we often have such huge expectations of how we will look and how we will feel once we reach that weight, that the reality can sometimes be a bit of a letdown. Of course, there's no doubt at all that you will be thinner and lighter as a result of all your hard work. But you may encounter further body-image struggle once the weight has fallen off, as naturally, your body has been through such a massive change. Read on to find out some of the most common struggles women (and men!) face after losing weight, and how you can tackle these issues to show off your new-found confidence.