My first year at university

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New York, New York!

My last day in New York was like an attempt to fit everything else we wanted to do in one day, of course this meant we was rushing around everywhere and getting lost. We started off the day at a design studio in Soho, where we where told tips about the industry and of course we was showed the work of the graphic designers who work there, it was all wonderful and a great experience to see and actual studio in New York that would be amazing. Then we headed to the High Line, which was a really lovely walk. We then headed to Chelsea Market, which again was amazing, from little cupcake shops to delis, it was such a lovely place to see. 

Somewhere In Brooklyn

Thursday we spent the day in Williamsburg and Brooklyn, it was really lovely to see a different side of New York and I loved all of the graffiti and stickers. It was really nice to take a look around some vintage shops as these are the sorts of places you can't go to in another country as they are all so different. 

These Streets Will Make You Feel Brand New

A second day in New York, I woke feeling extremely tired from how much I did the previously day, we started the day at breakfast at a fast food place called Wendys, it was typically american food and not really that nice, I was already getting fed up of the fast food after just one day. So we headed to the subway, my first trip down there, it was rather scary as we had no idea which one to get on and where it went, we eventually figured them out though.

We visited the Meatpacking district, Chelsea and Soho, looking around at designer shops. 

We then headed down to get the ferry to Staten Island, and we saw the Statue Of Liberty, it was really wonderful.

We then went back to Times Square and did a bit more shopping, even though it doesn't seem like we did as much as the first day, there was a lot more time spent just walking around and looking at different things and different places. It was a really nice day. See you soon, Sarah, x

Concrete Jungle Where Dreams Are Made

There are so many things to say about New York and I think I am just going to take it a day at a time really. So I arrived Monday and was so tired so we only had a quick walk around, it was so cold I can't actually believe it! The next day we woke up early and ready for the day ahead! We had a bit of time before going out on a group activity and so we headed up to Macy's and had a look round. It was a beautiful store and you can imagine how much money could be spent here. It was nice to see and I bought a Macy's oven glove.

Then as our group activity we went to the Fashion Institute Of Technology, here we went to a 'sort of lecture' with a women from the Perfume course there, she taught us about different scents and basic information, it was very interesting to see the laboratory and to see their style of teaching, compared to ours. We also went to the museum there and saw the 'Trendology' exhibition, which was beautiful.

Heading down to Fifth Avenue, this is full of designer shops, it's great to view all the visual merchandising and to have a little shop, Tiffany's was such a stunning shop, and of course there is the apple store completely made out of glass heading underground for the store.

Next up was Empire State Building, Oh wow! This was a truly beautiful experience, and probably my favourite of the whole trip, if you ever visit New York, this should be at the top of your list. The view is incredible and it's basically just a wonderful thing to see! 

With Times Square being down the road from our hotel, it was only right we had to go here (every night). This is a wonderful place to go to shop and sightsee, I really don't think that any pictures give it justice, because you really need to be there, the coca cola sign was my favourite, and of course a trip to M&M world was on the map as well as Hard Rock Cafe and many more!

 Then we see the famous red steps, it was very cool walking to the top and having a look round to take some photos, it was such a perfect experience.

We had dinner at Mcdonalds with the extra large portions and the day was a great success, I can't believe how much we got done in each day whilst we were there, it has to be the most tiring trip I have ever been on, but of course one of the best. I will be posting an outfit post in-between each New York post to keep things even, but of course that only means more posts than usual. Hope you enjoy these posts and your week, see you soon, Sarah x

Gifts On A Special Day

I thought that I would show you what I got for Christmas, although it is not a lot of things to show you I am so happy with my presents this year. First off let's start with the wonderful PS4 right there, it's oh so beautiful and I've had so much fun playing on it the past couple of days. I got Call Of Duty as well which is a great game, and today just bought Marvel Heroes Lego to have a play on. Can't wait to have lots of games to play on, its also great for films and music. I am a very happy bunny! 

So, onto little bits and bobs, I got the Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation, which is my favourite and I had ran out so that was just perfect. I got a pack of Simple wipes which are the best things to receive ever. Then some packs of razors, another essential!  I got a lovely hot water bottle, ready to keep me warm in the winter. An Alien Crop Top, which I just find to be so cool and groovy with his peace sign. A couple of fashion magazines and of course CHOCOLATES, CHOCOLATES, CHOCOLATES!!

They are all wonderful presents and I now get to have fun spending some of the money I got as well (already spent some, so cheeky)  I now have my birthday to look forward to in a couple of weeks. I hope you all loved your presents on Christmas, speak to you soon, Sarah, x

Tenth | The Christmas Tag!

So I have had a little bit of bad news today, my SD card actually broke on me, so I can't take any pictures on my camera, hopefully tomorrow I am going to buy one in the morning so I can get the last two posts of my countdown done! I shall have my fingers crossed as I want them to be a good last two posts! So instead of an outfit post today then I decided to do the Christmas Tag (found from Lucy Cole's blog, credit to her)!

What time of the year do you start your Christmas shopping?
Normally November time, I like to do my shopping online to start with as you always find the things that you have in mind exactly and can normally get some pretty good deals. Then closer to Christmas I will brave the shops to find little bits and bobs for everyone.

Do you have any festive recipes for food or drink you limit solely to the Christmas season to share?
I honestly don't normally like all the foods at Christmas like mince pies and Christmas pudding, but on Christmas day night I have heard my family mention we are having some snowball drinks, which is a mixture of advocaat and lemonade, so who knows if it will be good?

Tell me how Christmas goes in your home
Well we wake up at a reasonable time, then all go downstairs to find the pressies under the tree, I then hand them out so we all have one each and we get opening them until they are all gone. We then eat some chocolate and watch some music on tv whilst having a chat. Then we get preparing for a Christmas dinner. Then at night we normally have some family over! Exciting!

Do you have any Christmas traditions?
No not really, just the normal ones I guess with presents and a big dinner! mmm!

Do you have a favourite festive coffee?
I don't like coffee, but I am always after a hot chocolate!

Do you have a favourite Christmas song?
I have to say its got to be either Wham - Last Christmas, or Mariah Carey - All I Want For Christmas (typical)

What do you do on Christmas eve?
Something different every year, last year we sat and played some card games and this year we are going round to see family, have a meal and play some games.

What's your Christmas wrapping strategy? Do you have one?
My Christmas wrapping always ends up really messy! I try really hard and it never seems to look any good!

What's your dream gift this year?
A PS4 which I already know that I have, cheeky!

Describe your Christmas tree. How tall? Real or artifical? How is it decorated?
Fake, Small, White Snowflake lights and lots of little random baubles collected over the years, it's so cute.

Do you decorate just the Christmas tree or other areas of your house e.g. windows, banisters?
Yes the tree, the windows, the door outside, picture frames and around the tv, all over the place really.

What do you wear to Christmas parties and what do you wear on Christmas day?
On Christmas morning I stay in my pjs for a long long time, until I manage to go upstairs and I normally just wear a very casual outfit, I might put a bit more of something fancy one. For a Christmas party, I would defiantly go for a sparkly dress of some sort! You can't go wrong with that!

Thank you for reading and I will see you tomorrow for another post, Sarah, x

Ninth | Warm This Winter

Rabbit Onsie - Next - £35

Nothing better than being all warm on Christmas day ready to open your presents! For me I will be wrapped up in this onesie looking like a little bunny rabbit and as excited as a child. I love Christmas day and all of the presents, I am always the one to hand them all out to everyone and then we each open one at a time together! It's so fun that way, whilst my mum runs round with a camera pointing it at everyone and snapping away.

Today I am off out to a party, we had a lot of these throughout school in which everyone in my year was invited, so we are having another one now we are all back for Christmas. Then we are off for a night on the town! I'm very excited, I will be showing you a picture of my outfit I wore soon. See you for another post tomorrow, Sarah, x

Third | Music To My Ears

1. Justin Timberlake f/ J. Cole, A$AP Rocky, & Pusha T - "TKO" 

2. Childish Gambino - Sweatpants

3. Solange f/ Kendrick Lamar - Looks Good With Trouble

4. J. Cole - She Knows

5. Jhene Aiko f/ Childish Gambino - Bed Peace

6. Eminem f/ Kendrick Lamar - Love Game

7. Mack Wilds f/ Ludacris - Own It

8. Partynextdoor f/ Nipsey - Candy

9. Solange - Cash In

10. Jordin Sparks - 11.11 (Wish)

I wanted to put together a music post, cause let's be honest most of us are always looking for new music. Recently I have been really into laid back R'N'B, but of course also rap cause that's always my favourite. With Childish Gambino's new album out we can't go wrong, 'Sweatpants' is so far my favourite one on the album, definitely give it a listen. On Black Friday a "TKO" Justin Timberlake remix came out, with J. Cole, A$AP Rocky and Pusha T, I actually can't get enough of this, it's always the one I go to play first when I put music on!

I have also become quite a fan of Solange (Beyonce's sister) she seems to have changed her style and is now very chilled out, take a listen to the two tracks I have on here, you will see how beautiful her voice is (try Losing You). Jhene Aiko - EP "Sail Out", her voice is so amazing, you need to listen, the EP is very relaxing, and very enjoyable (try The Vapors, Stay Ready)! Jordin Sparks seems to be coming back with some music, I found a song by her called 11.11 (wish), her voice is so soothing and stunning!

Eminem also brought out his new album recently, I have to say I'm impressed with it, it seems to have a lot more 'Shady' in it! Mack Mills Remix with Ludacris, is a great listen. Partynextdoor - it was just obvious I would like him seeing as he was discovered by Drake and signed to OVO, he has a beautiful voice and the music is amazing (try Wus Good, Make A Mill, Over Here).

So, there you have it; my favourite go-to songs of the now, I hope you enjoy them, if you have any suggestions for me I would be more than happy to give them a listen! See you for the post tomorrow! Sarah, x

p.s/ Tyga has recently just brought out Well Done 4 - Giving it a listen now - Check it out? 

12 days of christmas

So for the second year running I have decided to do the 12 days of Christmas again leading up till Christmas day. This will start the 13th December and end 24th December. I hope to make all the posts interesting for you to read and look at and couldn't be more excited about working on them (waking up tomorrow ready to prepare them). I don't quite know what they will involve yet but I will make sure that they are as good as I can make them. I always get to excited about counting down the days till Christmas and this build the excitement even more. I hope you are looking forwards to the big day and have a wonderful December alongside it. Happy Holidays! Sarah, x

On the first day of Christmas / On the second day of Christmas / On the third day of Christmas / On the fourth day of Christmas / On the fifth day of Christmas / On the sixth day of Christmas / On the seventh day of Christmas / On the eighth day of Christmas / On the ninth day of Christmas / On the tenth day of Christmas / On the eleventh day of Christmas / On the twelfth day of Christmas.

Let's Get Visual

Before I went to university, I took a trip round some shops to take pictures of their visual merchandising as part of a pre-arrival task. I presented this is a scrapbook along with digital and printed fashion inspiring things. This was seen as more of an ice breaker task, for us to get to know each other and get a feel for the course.

I found a little shop called 'Bird's Yard' down Chapel Walk in Sheffield, which sold Sheffield designers under one roof. This meant that locals who had created there own little companies and made clothes, jewellery, homeware, cards and many other things where having a place to sell their little collections and to be promoted. I found this to be a wonderful idea, it was such a lovely place as you can see.

I have always been a fan of Cow Vintage and therefore I went to take photos here, they have so much stock in now they need more space in their shop! From the multicoloured ceiling and the wooden floor the place just has a very retro and quirky feel to it, that and the fact that you can find some real bargains!

Anyway, I felt the need to share these pictures with you, as well as it being a little bit of a different post. I have some great things planned for my christmas countdown, only a week now till I start working on it! Hope you are having a nice day, Sarah, x

brothers graduation

Today has been a wonderful day seeing my brother graduate from University. He had graduated with a 2.1 masters in planning and has also achieved getting a graduate job. Therefore he is set for his future. It was a very hot day and so we all wore summer dresses, though I'm sure the graduates were boiling in their gowns. We then stopped off at a little pub and had a nice meal together. All in all I am so proud of him and can't wait to go to University myself. Congratulations to those of you who have graduated this summer and also good luck to those who are starting University in September! Have fun, Sarah x

Birthday girl

Vivienne Westwood Watch

 Dr. Marten Classics Boots

 Samsung Galaxy S3 Phone

 Chocolates and little gifts

 Mac MSF - Soft and Gentle

I am finally 18 years of age, on the 9th January 2013! It is a large step in my life, partly because I feel like I am getting more mature, but also because it is the time in your life you move onto the next stage, which for me I have chosen university as you may already know, I can also now go out with my friends and have a good time, and not feel as restricted as I used to. Here are the presents I got, I feel like such a lucky lady, the phone is on contract and I pay for it myself from working, and I also partly bought the beautiful Dr. Martens with my wages. The watch was from my mum, it is everything and more than I ever wanted, they gave me a free both of 'Hotel Chocolat' in the shop as well which was lovely. I couldn't have had a nicer day! Friday is my birthday party and Sunday I am off to London for a few days, so you are likely to see a lot of posts from my trips! Hope you are all having an amazing year so far! Thank you for reading, Sarah x