The L Word.

I'm going to say it, I know it doesn't really change anything, but I'm gay. Well, technically speaking I'm a lesbian but the word gay just sounds less like a skin disease or something you know? I understand it is pointless for me to come out on a blog that has only a few followers, but I think it's important to be open in all areas of my life. I have known I am gay for about 2 years now, and been out for over a year in real life, but now I feel like I should write a blog post about my wonderful girlfriend and just generally about how much I am loving life at the minute. This is probably not a very entertaining post, but it's more for me than any entertainment purposes.

It's not a very clear photo, but this is a photo of me and my girlfriend, Red, in Barcelona last month. I'm on the right and she's on the left. She really does make me very happy, and I don't know what I would do without her. What amazes me that we are so lucky to be living in the time period we are, things are moving forward leaps and bounds for the LGBT community and I could not be more proud to have her on my arm.

I don't hesitate to hold her hand as we walk down the street, or be slightly affectionate in public. This is because I am fully aware of the struggles that many LGBT couples go through in less accepting countries so I make the most of it here in the UK. We have had a few creepy remarks (from men) but it is usually followed by a witty comment from either of us, and we just sass away. Hopefully one day I won't have to feel in danger when around large groups of men when I am with her, but I guess that is the same struggle for any woman.

Now, let me tell you a little bit about this wonderful woman pictured here with me...

Her real name is not Red, but Jennifer and the nickname Red comes from a story I have heard too many times and do not wish to tell again ;)
She is 21
She studies at the same University as me
We met through my flat mate and best mate Megan (who is also gay)
We both enjoy travelling, being spontaneous and anything to do with water
She is much less feminine than me, and very sporty
She was my best friend before we got together
I knew she was gay before she did...

I'm not really sure what else to say about this, I guess I can leave more things for other posts, but it was important for me to just get it out beofer I carry on writing posts again.

Well that's another little update, I think that now I am being totally honest on my blog, then I can include more of my life in it, since Red and my sexuality are a huge part of my life now. If you're still reading, thank you for reading this lengthy and pointless little thought process! Hopefully more interesting stuff to come, both in my life with Red, and on my blog!


That's it really!

- Keeley

I saved this photo as 'Voldemort' in my computer. Three guesses why...

Baby Sister Things...

I have a baby sister! I know this is a little bit late really, since she was born on 16th October 2013, but she is here and she is PERFECT. Her name is Penny and I am now going to post some photos to show you what a beauty she is. I am twenty years old and she is my only sister, it's quite an age gap but so lovely at the same time! I will do a post soon about the baby shower I threw for my Mum because it was really lovely, and I think there are some nice ideas in there (if I say so myself).

Here are various photos of my baby sister Penny, she really is the cutest little thing.

I love this photo, she's just too cute and luckily she loves her big sister, I make her laugh.

This was taken before a family dinner over Christmas, that dress is adorable. She's more stylish than me!

I just love holding her little hands, so cute!

That's it really!

I really hope it snows soon... Here's me aged 16

A positive attitude can change your life!

I am a MAHOOSIVE (let's pretend that's a word) fan of 'The Secret' by Rhonda Byrne and it's teachings about positivity and the power that it has. I understand that as I am sharing personal beliefs here I may offend, that's not my intention- I just want to open up a nice little safe space here on what we like to call the internet so people can talk about their views on life, whatever they may be. I'll go first. Many of my friends will tell you one of my favourite things to do is talk about life so that is what I will do today. Okay, little disclaimer done and dusted, let's get crackalackin' - boy I really am quite creative with my choice of words today.

Throughout my teenage years I have struggled on and off with depression (nice easy sentence there to lead you in hahahaha). This is not a 'woe is me' post, quite the opposite actually. Sometimes I can't get out of bed because I don't feel like I can, I get days where I don't think I can go outside, and I get periods of time where sleeping doesn't really happen. When I was much younger than I am today I used to let it get me down and kind of stop me from living my life in the way that I wanted.

I got to a point where I realised that despite whatever the stuff going on in my brain was, I didn't want it to define me as a person. I knew I shouldn't be depressed, I have a life many people would love, so I turned the situation on it's head and found positivity. The main principle of what I believe is:

Whatever you project out will come back to you.

Meaning, if I let the depression get to me and sit in bed all the time moping, then obviously I am going to feel more depressed. BUT if I try and fight against it, project a positive attitude no matter how much it pains me, then bit by bit I will start to eventually naturally become a positive person. Now it has come to a point that I get compliments on my positive attitude and ability to spin a negative into a positive which makes me so happy- happier than a girl would feel to get a compliment on her shoes or a shade of lipstick.

A word of advice to anyone who is feeling down- YOU CAN CHANGE IT! In the past two months I have changed University and course, I have lost over a stone in weight (healthily), got a new job to pay for life experiences rather than material items (maybe a few bits of glitter here and there) and I have never felt more positive about my life. The depression combined with general distaste for my situation left me drinking a lot during the week, getting into risky situations, buying too many material items and living for the next night out. I am not saying this is wrong, but it's not me. Try and be who you are as much as possible and if you notice behaviour that isn't normal of yourself, please know that you can change it. I know depression is a chemical balance and I can't change the days I feel crappy- but I can change how I percieve them.

Sorry if this was a bit lengthy, but I feel that important issues need to be addressed just as much as the hottest cheek colour of the moment (I'm a lover of both types of post, sorry if this isn't to your taste, more fun and pretty things to come in the future!)

That's it really!

Smiles. That's all I'm after! (Here's 15 year old Keeley)

Achievement: Weight Loss

In the past year I put on quite a lot of weight between drinking at Uni, having my own money to spend on food and going to the land of carbs, USA.

Weight loss selfie today...

I found myself getting really down and self conscious about my weight, which ironically was making me eat more crap and put on more weight. I was complaining to my Mum one day when she told me that my aunty was attending a local Weight Watchers class and suggested I went along.

I was so scared to have my weight on record, but I liked the class leader so I signed up for it. I have been going for 8 weeks now, and I've lost a stone. I'm so pleased to have been consistently chipping away at my weight and I'm finding it easier as the weeks go by. 

Some people want to lose too much weight too quickly so they end up giving up and putting the weight back on plus more! I hope to get to my goal weight by April 2014 because I'm attending a wedding then! I'm really proud of myself for losing weight and it's great because when I'm having a day I don't feel so good I remind myself I'm doing something about it.

This isn't a rave about Weight Watchers and I know there's loads of brilliant healthy ways to lose weight. I'm mainly writing about this to record my feelings on weight loss and how I feel in myself. If you're lucky enough to be slim, congratulations, but if you're like me and a little bit on the cuddlier side don't let it get you down and just do what you can to make you feel happy. This might not mean losing weight, but finding clothes that you feel amazing in, or changing your mindset on your body.

If you are overweight and are currently losing, let me know any recipes or exercises you've been doing that you think help because I'm really interested! We can do this!

That's it really!

One of the photos that made me want to lose weight. You're welcome. Just made you feel better I'm sure haha! 

Shopping on the interweb

Although I rarely have the money for it because my car eats money, I on occasion enjoy having a little moocharoo 'on the line' as many an old person would say. There are many magical places that this can take place, but I often would go on the websites of the stores I can get to in my local big town or city. HOWEVER, I have more recently realised that I can use the internet to my advantage in finding my dream outfit! Kind of like having a personal shopper that doesn't care that you're in your onesie with no make up on and a homemade face mask. Or eating chocolate spread out the jar.

This ladies is now all taken care of via the internet, something which for many (me included) is needed as much as Oxygen and H2O. This sounds like I have only just discovered internet shopping, which would make me a complete idiot and you might be questioning my age about now. THIS IS NOT THE CASE.

A few months ago I discovered a little website called 'shopstyle' which has CHANGED MY LIFE. No joke. Sometimes I want to look for something really obscure (like a dress covered in lemons for example- this is actually true) or specific but I can't be bothered to flick through every shop, because when it comes to online shopping do you ever find that you forget certain shops exist? Okay here is a few screen shots of me searching for something on it so you get the idea...

I might have told a bit of a porky here, well not exactly, this is how I found the dress but House of Fraser don't sell it anymore to my knowledge...

This dress was £28 and it is by Izabel London at House of Fraser

When life gives you lemons... WEAR THEM.

My face when I found the dress!

 Just wanted to share my knowledge with the world to make buying things even easier than it already is!

That's it really!

Some chick doing it better than me... This was my inspiration for the dress, seen on www.laurenconrad.com, skirt is from Alice + Olivia.
http://laurenconrad.com/blog/post/style-guide-how-to-wear-spring-s-trendiest-colors

My Dog Buddy

This is going to be a short post of mainly photos of my dog. Now, if you love dogs and in particular Bichon Frises then today is your lucky day- if not then I'm sorry for this little view into my crazy obsession with dogs. I'm sure I'd feel a bit gutted if someone posted about their cats *shudder*. Okay, now I've successfully offended the cat loving nation, let's crack on.

 

I guess this blog post doesn't really have a particular point other than to share with the world how cute my dog is!

That's it really!

Something for all you cat lovers out there...

Summer Wishlist 2013!

Although many days (like today) may not look like it; summer is finally here in the UK! Like the start of any season, I find myself searching the internet for things I would love to have for the upcoming season. Hopefully before the season is out I will have purchased a few of these lovely items I am going to share with you. I have sectioned them into categories, kind of like when people do 'favourites' posts, the only difference is I actually don't own the items. *cry* LET'S DO THIS.

Número uno... (1)
BEAUTY!

Going from left to right, here are my beauty picks for summer:

Top- Bourjois So Laque Glossy Nail Enamel in shade 04 Amande Defile, Stila Eyeshadow in Compact Cloud, MAC Lipstick in Candy Yum Yum
Bottom- Rimmel Exaggerate Eye Definer, Benefit Fine One One Cheek Colour, Marc Jacobs Daisy Eau so Fresh

All of these products look so lovely! I really like the idea of Benefit Fine One One, it looks so easy to use and the colours are really good too I think. Also, although I love using liquid eyeliner, I feel like the Rimmel exaggerate eyeliner will give a softer and smokier eyeline as  it is cream based, which will make it easy to blend (IN THEORY). I adore all of the Marc Jacobs scents, and I recently smelled the new Daisy in Debenhams and I truly believe I need it in my life as soon as possible! I LOVE stila eyeshadows, and I own two Stila palletes which I really enjoy using, some people find them awkward to use because they're really powdery, but once you get past that I think the eyeshadows give an incredible pigment with the right amount of shimmer. I just really like the colour of the Bourjois nail polish, I understand that a lot of companies do that kind of mint green shade, but I could only pick one so that is what I chose.


Nummer zwei... (2)

FASHION!

I'm going to do three high end and three high street, this is a wishlist after all...

Top- Valley Girl T-Shirt from Wildfox, Madameoiselle Tara cute bow dress, The Cambridge Satchel Company Chelsea Bag in Honeysuckle
Bottom- River Island Cream Floral Cut out Playsuit, New Look Limited Gladiator Sandals in White, Stone Flower Rope Bracelet from Topshop.

It seems like I have a bit of an obsession with white, maybe I do, it's just there's nothing more pretty in summer than clean white clothes on a tan (I don't ever tan but I still love white in the summer, keeps me cool). I love that Valley Girl top from Wildfox, I know it's meant for the American Belair Princesses, but being someone who lives in a valley in North Wales, I personally find it quite funny! It's pink too which is an added bonus! I kind of think most of these items go together too which is nice, although I doubt I will get all of them as combined it is about £500 of stuff! I got stuff to pay for man...

Rhif tri... (3)

RANDOM!

Top- Tumblers with a straw (This one is from The Disney Store), Sunflowers EVERYWHERE, This is 40 on DVD
Bottom- Macaroons, The New Beetle Cabriolet in light blue, The smells of lemons!

All of these things make me very happy! Well I think, I haven't seen This is 40 yet but I have heard it is very funny so I can't wait to see it!

That's it really!

This is my pet unicorn (the green one). He's called bollock. 

50 Facts about Me!

When Alex (justmylittlelifeandme.blogspot.co.uk) and I were talking about doing this after seeing Louise from A Sprinkle of Glitter do a YouTube video about it, it seemed a lot easier than it actually is! I will be lucky if I finish this because at the moment I can't think of anything interesting about me, well here it goes, wish me luck...

1. My favourite colour is yellow

2. I went to an all girls school

3. I'm really weird about the feels of things, I either love it or I hate it! I used to love the feel of silk when I was a child (in particular silk dressing gowns); so much so that when I went on holiday when I was about three, my Mum had to get a pair of silk knickers and cut them up so I could take them on the plane.

4. I love to travel, and in the past 12 months I have been on a plane ten times.

5. I did Camp America last summer and lived in Pennsylvania for 3 months.

6. I've recently joined the 'tidy bedroom crew' (basically people who keep their room tidy, if I would have been writing this six months ago, it would be quite the opposite).

7. I absolutely love Instagram, because it's quite hard for people to moan on it, and I love photos.

8. I am an only child (for now, my Mum is expecting another baby girl!!) 

9. I'm an avid reader, and could read before I went to school which helped me enormously!

10. I pretty much always wear odd socks, life's too short! However, I'm picky about the types of socks I pair up, I would NEVER wear an ankle sock with a trainer sock... I have standards you know.

11. I think I might be dyspraxic, if you ask anyone who has been around me for longer than about an hour they will tell you I am the most clumsy, disorientated and unaware person ever. No joke.

12. I am a natural blonde, but have had my hair many colours (most of which I regret greatly).

13. I'm a teeny bit obsessed with Harry Potter and reference it most days.

14. I can speak some Welsh, because I am from Wales.

15. Most of my friends are girls, partially because I went to an all girls school, and partially because I just like hanging out with girls and talking about like make up and stuff...

16. I have a tendency to bring the most average of conversations to some deep and meaningful conversation that reflects on life. I'm so cool.

17. I wouldn't say I have a particular style when it comes to clothes, I just wear whatever I like the look of and it changes daily.

18. I have a Bichon Frise called Buddy and he is the one thing that can cheer me up instantly by just being there.

19. I did a year at uni and have decided to change course starting September, which I'm really excited about.

20. I really want to go to Rio de Janeiro, Sydney and New Delhi!

21. I went to Boston for a week on my own and lived in a house there.

22. I love canoeing after doing my silver Duke of Edinburgh award expedition by canoe.

23. Volunteering is something I'm really passionate about, and I have volunteered for the NSPCC for almost two years.

24. I'm afraid of commitment.

25. I did ballet lessons for 10 years and have my own pointe shoes!

26. I have incredibly clever friends, and we all used to get a bit competitive going through school... Geeks are cool guys, represent!

27. One of my favourite books is 'The Secret' because it stresses the importance of positive thinking, which is something I really like the idea of and try to incorporate in my life!

28. I love having a TV series to watch, some of my favourites include 'The Big Bang Theory', 'Gossip Girl', '2 Broke Girls', 'Ugly Betty' and 'Glee'.

29. I have a tattoo of a heart on my hip which was completely spontaneous with a friend of mine at a tattoo convention! She got hers on her ass! 

30. I love the 'fresh linen' scent and have a plug in in my bedroom that smells like it, and a Yankee candle that smells like it too!

31. Music makes me happy and I listen to music every single day.

32. I've lived in 8 houses in 19 years.

33. My Birthday is on 06/10 and my Mum's is on the 10/06.

34. My favourite non alcoholic drink is fanta, and my favourite alcoholic drink is sex on the beach.

35. I'm allergic to penicillin and I'm intolerant to ginger!

36. I hate iPhone games like candy crush and angry birds, and I hate it even more when people see me requests to play them!

37. I took the Myers Briggs personality type test and I am an ENFP, which I think fits me really well!

38. I'm really interested in people and their lives, and probably ask too many questions!

39. I talk a lot and always have, my school reports all the way through have always been glowing, but then they would say 'Keeley is a really good student and is good at both talking and doing her work, but she seems to forget other students can not do this.'

40. One of my biggest fears is getting stuck in a rut.

41. I love to write, and have always dreamed of writing my own books, which is why blogging is perfect for me as I get to write a lot!

42. I'm really grateful for my life, I'm not rich or the best looking or talented in a particular field, but I'm really happy and I wouldn't change anything, if I do want to change something then I will go ahead and do it!

43. I will have a pilot's licence one day.

44. I love giraffes, they're my favourite animal.

45. I've seen all the episodes of friends at least twice!

46. I often get the feeling that I will end up being exactly like Bridget Jones, although maybe without the sexy guys fighting over me.

47. I like dogs more than people.

48. I despise cats, and will tell my friends if I don't like their cat because it really annoys me when people are like "I hate cats" and then go round pretending to like their friends' cats... This is how serious my hatred of them is.

49. I'm scared of jellyfish, spiders, wasps, flies,p and most other bugs.

50. I'm a sucker for keeping things for the memories, I have a load of train tickets and similar things that needn't be kept 'just because'.

That's it really!

This is me, Anna and Sasha in Central Park, New York wearing Statue of Liberty hats!

Why I love Northern Ireland...

Over the weekend I flew over to Ireland to celebrate a Anna's 21st Birthday in true nineties style! 

The day began with a treasure hunt in teams around Belfast castle. Everyone got really into it despite the rain, and we all had such a laugh! 

 

We all had taking part medals which everyone wore all night! Here's Anna and I sporting ours... This was followed by a BBQ and over the next ten hours of partying, the following things happened:

I found a mop and instigated limbo to Peter Andre,

Said mop became my broomstick,

I debated everything from the state of Israel to euthanasia,

We danced to 90s tunes,

The gazebo became the VIP tent and everyone started dancing to club music. The music went off and everyone simultaneously carried on singing the tune to avici,

We did shots out of trophies,

And we didn't get to sleep until it started getting light again...

And plenty more!! 

 

This looks like some kind of Saved by the Bell picture!

That's it really.

Hogwarts will regret not sending me a letter on my eleventh Birthday.

Preparing for a 90s Day of Fun!

I am flying to Belfast tomorrow to celebrate a friend's 21st Birthday... 90s style! The party is a treasure hunt, barbecue and disco to celebrate all while wearing 90s clothes and listening to the tunes of our childhood!

I have bought some pretty cool items off ebay to wear which may not be the most fashion forward, but they definitely scream 90s. I'm so excited to wear this outfit and I'm not even bothered that I'll look a t**t. Word on the street is that you only live once...

These dungarees I got on ebay for £6 and I just think dungarees are the best thing to wear at a 90s party!

Black scrunchies. Thinking of wearing half my hair up on top of my head in a scrunchie. Ahhhh yeah!

If the scruncies fail, I might wear this on my head like a pirate. Too cool for school.

                            

Now these are the crowning jewel because they are so damn awful! The actual jelly shoes I  wore in the 90s weren' t quite like these, but they're quite expensive now as a brand has started making them! These were £1.99 and they'll do the job nicely! Although, I think that I will wear vans for most of the day and put these on later because they're not the comfiest things ever!

That's it really!

Here's Ricky Martin's Face. 

What am I doing with my life?!?!?!?!

Who the f**k knows?

As we go through the education system, we are coached to believe that we will only have one career in our lifetime, and we must have this figured out by the time we are about sixteen. What?! I don't know about you, but when I was sixteen I thought that it was a good idea to go and see the Jonas Brothers in concert (don't judge me, I'm way cooler now, honest)... and this is the age they expect us to make life choices? Not gonna happen.

Me and my friends waiting patiently at the MEN arena for the Jonas Brothers.  Coolest kids in town.

 I understand many people do have a very clear plan about what they want from a very young age and I totally respect that, a number of my friends are very driven individuals and I kind of think 'go for it'. However, for those of us do not have a specific plan I am going to say DO NOT PANIC. I have spent too long trying to force myself into a direction or down a specific path and I will say from experience that it does. not. work. Okay it may be manageable, but what's the point in it all if you're not happy? I have learned the hard way that happiness is key.

Here's a theory I've been working on in the old grey matter:

If you do exactly what you love in the moment and what makes you happy, then you will live life happily and have no regrets.

My friend Hannah and I at a Bastille gig in March this year- aged 19.  If I had a photo of me aged 14 it would probably be at a My Chemical Romance gig, this is how life goes, people are constantly evolving into who they are.

As simple as it is, I think a lot of people are missing the point of life these days and schools; although well intentioned, do not help portray this effectively. It also seems like an obvious thing to say, but believe me I know far too many people who get caught up in the bulls**t that is careers guidance and knowing where to go. My careers advisor told me i should be a lexicographer (the person who writes the dictionary)... are they taking the p**s? Just because I liked English.

At the end of the day there's no jobs anyway, whether you want to be a solicitor or a nude bull tamer, so f**k it, do whatever the hell you want and if that takes you to a small one-bedroomed flat in the middle of London working in a cafe and taking night classes to live the dream, then so be it. Just do what makes you happy, nobody is getting out of this thing alive anyway.

That's it really.

Lemons on a dress isn't what one would call mainstream, but I am clearly having too much fun in this photo to care.  This is my point. Also, sorry for the amount of curse words in this post, I will try and be more inventive when angry I swear (no pun intended).

Five Beauty Products that have Made my Life a little bit more Beautiful... ahem.

Although I wish I didn't, I absolutely adore make up. It's a fun and creative way of making everyday different (however, I have to admit, I usually go for the same things each day, although if I am feeling bold I will go for a slightly different shade of gold eyeshadow). Here are some lovely products I am currently using that I feel need sharing with the world. Having said this, these products may make your face look more like mine... use with caution.


1. Revlon Precision Lash Adhesive (Transparent)

Okay, I have taken these pictures myself of my own products, sorry if the make up packaging doesn't look perfect, I am not exactly what you would call 'careful'

 This lash glue is awesome because it is easy to use even by idiots like myself. It makes the whole sticking eyelashes to one's face experience a lot less painful! Also, it shows up a blue colour first and when it is ready to apply it is clear which is great! I have tried a whole load of eyelash glues because I really struggle with it and I feel this product has helped me on my way to having beautiful fluttering eyelashes.

2. Maybelline 'The Falsies' Volume Express Flared Mascara

I personally like a mascara that has an old school brush made from bristles and not plastic... Just me? Oh well.

I had heard all the raving about 'The Falsies' mascara all over blogs and from various youtubers too so I was really eager to try it, but I made myself use up the mascara I had first because I am good like that (yeah, right). There is a whole variety of options with these mascaras, I went for one that kind of matched the look I wanted to achieve. I personally have winged out eyeliner most days and prefer my eyelashes flared over other looks, but everyone is different I guess. I haven't personally tried any of the others from the range, partially because I like this one so much, and also because I'm trying to stop myself spending so much money on make up (it really is a problem).

3. Max Factor 'Colour Elixir' in 715- Ruby Tuesday

I personally believe there is no bad mood a bit of red lipstick and a pair of 6 inch heels can't sass it's way out of.

Red lipstick. One of the many loves in my life (not like that!!) and this particular lipstick is incredible. I am an owner of many a red lipstick (arguably too many), but I really do think that there's something about it which changes how you are around people and the way you hold yourself. I have blonde hair currently which it looks lovely with in my opinion (both me and my mum use it), but I did have darker, ombre hair for a while and it looked nice with that too. It is really soft on the lips which is amazing because many dark lipsticks can feel really harsh and dry on my lips, I don't know if anybody else gets that? Anyway, it lasts a long time and it has been known to be a lucky lipstick... If you catch my drift. 'Nuff said.

4. Rimmel London Glam Eyes Professional Liquid Liner (Black)

As you can see from this photo of me with my dog Buddy, I am a MASSIVE fan of the 'winged out' or 'cat flick' eyeliner...

Imagine this product as a little like Angelina Jolie's eyes in a bottle... That good.

 This product is really inexpensive for the quality, both me and a friend of mine use it to do flicks of eyeliner on a daily basis and I have been using it for years and repurchasing it. I have finally managed to master how to do it without stretching my eyelid (I finally feel like a woman) which I believe is down to this eyeliner being so straightforward, rather than my own skills to my dismay.

5. MAC Studio Sculpt Foundation Spf 15

Yes, I'm an NW 15, it's cool to be pale, right?
  

 Okay, so I didn't want to be that girl that writes a beauty blog and just raves about everything MAC does. I do like MAC; they have good quality products, but as a poor student I feel that I should be representing the majority of people who just can't afford it, because I certainly can't. However, this is a really good foundation and I want to be honest about my favourites so here it is. It is a dewy, medium coverage foundation that can be built up if needed. I only use a tiny bit of this and it looks nice, not too matte, and I have dry skin so it makes my face look fresh and not dry and gross (in my opinion anyway). It is in the region of £24, but it lasts a long time which is its redeeming feature. When I can I will buy this foundation because it is rather good.

That's it really.