BLOGTEMBER | Autumn Wishlist

Hello my lovelies, I hope you're all well and welcome to Blogtember day 2! I hope you all enjoyed yesterdays post and it has gotten you in the mood for the season ahead. If you've not managed to catch that post yet then click here. 

Today I felt like I would share with you what is on my autumn wish list because so many things have been catching my eye lately and bits and bobs I'm on the hunt for as well. 

It's no secret, leopard print is every where right now and I am here for it! Jumpers, tshirts, boots, skirts, coats, bags, hats, you name it - it's got leopard print on it! 

Recently I actually bought a pair of black leggings with a red stripe down the side which I am in love with and you guys will get to see those soon as they're going to be in an upcoming autumnal haul, so stayed tuned for that. But ever since buying them I've just had this vision of how good they would look with a leopard print jumper or top. I don't know why but to me leopard print and red compliment one another so well. I think it's because red is one of the boldest block colours you can wear and leopard print is one of the boldest patterns you can wear and I just think they're a match made in heaven. Also to pair with the same outfit (but obviously I'll wear both these things more than just as one outfit) I really want to get some leopard print boots. I love boots, let's be honest what girl who loves autumn and winter doesn't love boots?

Sometimes though it can be hard for me to find a pair of heeled boots that aren't too high. I'm not insecure when it comes to wearing high heels as I love being tall but during the day I don't always want to be like the Eiffel Tower compared to my friends. I'm 5'11 so I really don't need heels super high in general. But now a days when I go for any heels, whether that's for everyday wear or a night out, they're probably not any taller than 3 or 4 inches. I'm a block heel kinda gal because they're so much comfier than any kind of kitten heel or stiletto you could throw my way. Also because I'm quite tall for a girl I don't personally feel the need to wear stilettos. 

Although the print is everywhere I've actually only seen a jumper and pair of boots that I like in New Look, which is the ones you see above. I've not seen this jumper in real life so I'm only judging it based on what I've seen on the website. But it looks like it would be pretty soft but I'm just not sure if it will be that hugging material. I don't mind if it hugs you a little bit but I can't stand when clothes are too clingy. So I really can't judge this until I try it on in real life. The boots I have seen in real life, if you follow my Instagram (@katiej0hnson) then you might've seen me do a little New Look edit showing you guys some of the new bits and pieces they've got in right now for autumn. And I saw these boots in store and they were definitely one of my favourite new releases in general. However I didn't end up trying them on whilst I was browsing around. So when I next pop into New Look I definitely need to try and find this jumper as well as try on these boots. 

Jumper - £24.99 

Boots - £27.99 

I've actually got so many autumnal pieces in my saved items on New Look's website so I might make that into it's own post for Blogtember. Let me know if you guys would wanna see that. 

This next item came out not too long ago and it is Urban Decay's Born to Run palette. I really do love Urban Decay's palettes. I've got 3 (3, Heat, and Smoky) and I love them all dearly and although I don't use them every time I put makeup on, I always go back to them because the quality of the eye shadows is definitely worth the price. I always go back to the Naked 3 in the spring time because I get really into my pinks. My love for the Naked Heat expresses itself in the summer and the transition to autumn because of all of the warm tones and golds. Then when were fully into winter the Naked Smoky creeps its way back in because of all the cool tone browns and greys and silver shades. 

This one to me feels like a mix of everything. You could definitely create a lot of interesting and fun looks all throughout the year with this palette I think. For anyone who predominantly wears more natural eye makeup I don't think this palette would be worth you purchasing because of all of the brighter shimmer shades such as purple, green, and blue. I really love the look of the shades Wanderlust, Smog, Ignite, Big Sky, Drift, and Accelerate - so the more deeper and cooler tones of the palette. 

I normally put Urban Decay palettes on my Christmas list as it feels more acceptable to splash the cash and treat yourself at Christmas. However I don't think I can wait that long to get my hands on this one. I actually really like the name of this palette and the overall design of it. It feels really different from the iconic Naked palettes which Urban Decay are most known for. I love all of the images on the front which do suggest this palette is more aimed at the summer months because of the pictures but I think you could make this work all year round. 

Born to Run - £39.50

May as well continue on the makeup theme, in particular eye shadow palettes (there's quite a few), this one has been out for a while now and it is the Soph X Makeup Revolution Extra Spice. If you don't know who Soph is she is known as 'sophdoesnails' on YouTube and social media and she is honestly one of my favourite makeup YouTuber's. I genuinely enjoy watching her videos. This is actually her second palette with Makeup Revolution and I still don't have my hands on the first one! When she released the first one I liked it but I didn't love it because a lot of the colours in it I already had within other palettes so I think that was why I didn't feel the need to buy it. But since she released this one I'm dying to get my hands on it because look at those shades!

I love the mix of colours from warm to cool because this again makes this palette an all rounder. You could use this in the summer or the winter. The one thing I love about this palette which I think it is something that draws me to it more than her first one is how vibrant and rich all the colours are, even the cooler toned ones. The colours I feel are quite luxurious as these wouldn't be shades you wear every day on your eyes. A lot of these I would wear on a special occasion or night out etc. Plus I love her selection of yellow/ orange shades because I feel like yellows and oranges are quite rare in palettes despite everyone being obsessed with those colours at the moment. I adore all the shades but my favourites are definitely Everyday, Running Late, Vitamin C, Sweet N Sour, Twenty One, Romance, and Aurora. So the majority of shades in the palette basically. 

This'll probably be the one I get my hands on first as I love Soph and the quality of eye shadow is insane for an even more insane price! 

Extra Spice - £10.00 

Another one from Revolution that I'm dying to get my hands on is this palette which is in collaboration with another YouTuber called Imogen. Hence the name Imogenation, I don't actually watch her as I didn't know she was a YouTuber until I found out about this release. One of the stand out points about this palette is the shades in the middle are all transition shades. She deliberately wanted them to be bigger as 9 times out of 10 transition shades are what hit pan first. Which I think is such a good idea, can't believe other brands haven't thought of this already if I'm honest. 

My favourite shades in this one are Butterfly, You Know, Okkkkkk, Baby Girl, Huns, and Trying It. I think I'm also right in saying that the majority of the names of the shadows in this palette are named after the phrases she says which I think is so different and cool. That definitely makes it more personal, especially for her subscribers who probably bought the palette. 

Imogenation - £10.00 

Makeup Revolution have been bringing out palettes with YouTubers left, right, and bloody centre this year. The worst part is I want them all but I don't need them all. Which is fitting for this palette as it's called 'The Wants'.

This one is in collaboration with another YouTuber called Emily, hence the title 'The Emily Edit'. Again she is a YouTuber I do not watch and didn't know existed until this release but as far as I'm aware she is an American YouTuber. She actually created two palettes, this one called 'The Wants' and another one called 'The Needs' which I think is an interesting idea. 'The Needs' are your shades that you are always gonna need for any type of look and 'The Wants' are the shades you wanna try out and play around with but you're not going to wear everyday. As far as I know that was the concept behind this collection, which again I think is really different to any other kind of release I've seen. 

My favourite shades are Hobby, Laugh Cry, Cheer, Grateful, Belle Violet, Capricorn, Corduroy, and Dark and Early. The names are just as unique as the colours in this palette; I love the colour of the packaging and this palette is a bit more expensive than your standard £10.00 one from Revolution but you are getting 24 shades in here. 

The Wants - £15.00 

Just when you thought eye shadow palettes were dominating this wish list you thought wrong because it's time for some fragrance. 

  

I am past the days of wanting to grab all my favourite celebrity perfumes because if I'm being honest, I mostly wanted them for the pretty looking bottles and not the actual fragrance inside. The only celebrity perfumes I have left are my Katy Perry Killer Queen and Killer Queen Royal Revolution because I actually like the fragrances inside and actually still wear them and not just because of the bottles (the bottles are pretty cool though). Kind of want to get the purple bottle which is called Killer Queen Oh So Sheer I think, just to complete the collection. 

But I've moved on to not necessarily designer perfumes but more simplistic perfumes with smells I actually like. I'm mainly into floral perfumes and these two from The Body Shop tick the boxes. 

Swietenia: 'A subtle floral fragrance of Mahogany flower combined with a sparkling breeze of orange flower and bigarade leaf absolutes for delicate freshness. Inspired by floral colognes, this fragrance is an overdose of brightness and effervescence – very outdoorsy, citric and fresh with a rich undertow of gentle flowers. It instantly transports you to the intense humidity of Bangalore, India.' 

Nigritella: 'A luxurious floral fusion of red vanilla orchid, this floral fragrance is enhanced with an opulent hint of tuberose and vanilla for fiery sensuality. This voluptuous oriental fragrance instantly transports you to the heights of the Alps where this living plant blooms.' 

I don't know if I would class these as predominantly female perfumes, yes they're floral but they're not over powering in my opinion so I think these could double up as unisex. There are other scents within the range that are a lot richer than this one but I prefered these two the most out of all the ones I smelt. One thing that does hint that this could be unisex is the bottle as they're simple glass bottles with only the name of the perfume on the front. Nothing too over the top or too fancy which means it'll look great on your mantle piece or shelf (wherever you keep your perfume) and these don't have a particular season attached to them. For example Katy Perry's original Killer Queen is quite a rich heavy scent so I normally don't wear it until winter time. I would normally wear something like that in the evening because of how rich the scent really is. Whereas in the day I prefer something light and airy.   

Swietenia - £24.00 

Nigritella - £24.00 

Continuing with The Body Shop I recently discovered these face mists and I've tried both the Coco Calming and Rose Dewy Glow out in the store and I really quite like them. The calming one is a very light and soft spritz which makes it really refreshing and cooling on your skin. The dewy glow one is a bit more of a fuller spritz but it smells incredible, plus my skin soaks up anything that is rose scented or rose infused. I haven't tested out the energising one but I love citrus scents because they wake me up and I imagine that's the whole point of the energising one as it's mandarin. 

They have other ones of these as well depending on what your skin is in need of but one of the best things about these is the kind lady working in my local Body Shop said that all of the face mists are designed to go over makeup as well. So you can put these on through the day if you need to and it wont make you look like you're a wet dog that got caught in a storm outside. They're a good size for travelling as they're not very big but I love my hydrating spray from Primark and that's got in 100ml or 200ml I think and I go through that so quickly because I spray that thing with and without makeup every day because my skin just loves it. So 60ml really isn't gonna get me very far so I think it would be better if they released these in a slightly bigger size. 

Face Mists - £6.00 each

And my final item is from the lovely Pandora. What twenty something doesn't at least own something or want something from Pandora these days? It is definitely the most popular jewellery store amongst young women and men because of all the interesting bracelet designs to the charms to you can customise them with. One thing that every teen girl or young woman has is definitely a Pandora ring. 

Although I adore Pandora jewellery I don't have a lot of it but I think that makes it all the more special when I find something in there I'd really like to treat myself to. Or when I am kindly gifted something on my birthday or Christmas etc. So I've got two rings, one silver bracelet with seven charms on including clips, and one set of earrings. I was recently given a £50.00 voucher for my birthday from my auntie, uncle, and my cousins which was so nice of them. I never spend vouchers like this straight away, I like to wait and find something I 100% want. I went in recently and saw this daisy band ring which I think is like one of their stacker rings but you can still wear it on its own which I like, and I am just in love with it. I love both the rings I've got now but one of them I don't always want to wear day to day because it's a bit more fancy. So I want to find another one that I can wear day to day as well as in the evening or if I'm going out if I want to and I think I've found that in this ring. 

I'm so in love with this and can't wait to get my hands on is as soon as I can. 

Daisy Band Ring - £70.00 

Let me know in the comments down below what is on your wish list for autumn my lovelies.

 Don't forget to follow me on all of my social media so you can keep up to date with everything I am doing! You can follow me on Twitter @katielouj0hnson, Instagram @katiej0hnson, Pinterest @katielouj0hnson, and Bloglovin' @ Katie Johnson. 

Thank you so much for reading and I will see you tomorrow.

Love,

Katie

 

BLOGTEMBER | Reasons to Fall in Love with Autumn

 Hello my lovelies and welcome to the first day of Blogtember! As if my favourite months and seasons are upon us. I feel like 2018 has gone quicker than any other year and we all know that as soon as September hits it is basically Christmas. Better start planning the Blogmas posts now (spoiler!) 

So if you guys have been following my blog for a while then you'll know that last year I did Blogust and Blogmas. If you have no idea what that means it basically stands for blogging everyday for a whole month. So each day of the month you will see a new blog post from me (hopefully). Last year Blogust went really well and you guys really enjoyed it and more importantly I really enjoyed it. So this year I decided I wanted to do another month of blogging but I didn't want to do a summer month again or a month too close to December as I love doing Blogmas too much. So I've opted for September. I feel like a lot of people don't like September, the same way they don't really like January as it's a month where "nothing exciting happens" compared to say Halloween in October, Bonfire night in November, and then obviously Christmas in December etc. 

The only exciting event in September for most young people and teenagers is going back to school and I know most of you probably don't class that as exciting. I know I certainly didn't when I was at school. But for the last three years I've been so excited for September to roll around because it has been the month of going back to uni, finally seeing my best friends again, going out every night, freshers week, going back to Drama Society, getting stuck back into my course, going out for coffees with my girls every day, curling up on the sofa each night together, and just living our independent lives together again. So as you can imagine I'm absolutely gutted that this year I wont get to relive all that again. If you're going back to uni honestly appreciate each moment you have there a lot more because it goes so fast and life after uni is already so hard. But anyway, that's a whole other kind of post for another day. So yeah, over the past few years September has become one of my favourite months as for me it's one of those months where I kind of rejuvenate. Does anyone else get what I mean? As were on the cusp of a new season, a whole new vibe comes out and like you feel a change. I feel like I refocus my mind at the start of each season, so like I get bursts of inspiration and refocus at the start of autumn and then at the start of spring. Anyone else experience that or just me? 

So I've known for a while I've wanted to do Blogtember but had no posts planned or had really even thought about it until like last week and now I've got so many awesome posts planned and ideas to share with you guys. You guys know how much I love autumn so I figured for the very first post of the month I would tell you the reasons why and for all of you who prefer the warmer weather, it might put you in the mood for the cooler season ahead. 

Speaking of the term cooler, one of my favourite things about autumn is cooler air. I don't do well with heat or humidity, I just can't stand it which is one of the reasons why summer is not my favourite. I don't hate it but I don't love it either. If you live in the UK then you'll know that we don't get that nice hot air like you would in Spain for example. We get that horrible thick muggy air 99.9% of the time which makes you sweat in places you didn't know you could. So the minute that cooler air of 15 degrees rolls around I really am living my best life. It's cool enough to wear a jumper without overheating and you get that cool crisp air early in the morning. 

We've been on this blog for five years this December (where has the time gone my lovelies?!) and if you don't know my love for jumpers, scarfs, boots, chunky kit cardigans etc then you've evidently not been paying attention for the past five years (it's fine, it only hurts a bit). 

It is genuinely something I get excited for every single year. The anticipation for autumn to arrive is like an adrenaline rush. I feel my happiest in a cosy jumper and boots. I've already started buying more despite putting my thickest ones away until it gets super cold. One thing autumn is great for; it's cold enough to wear a jumper but not always cold enough to wear a coat which I love because I love showing off my cosy wear as much as possible before it's arctic weather out there.  

All of the best warm tone and rich shades creep back through as we transition to the colder days and darker nights. Deep reds, maroon, burgundy, forest green, golds, black, dark purple, mustard yellow (absolute fave right now), copper, browns etc. These colours within clothes, homeware, makeup, accessories etc - I just love it all. Autumnal makeup is my favourite; rich browns, coppers, deep reds, golds all look the best on my eyes I feel. And don't even get me started on the lipstick and nail polish shades. Bring it all on! 

Obviously you can have a hot drink whenever you want but when the weather is cooler outside I'm more inclined to have a latte, cappuccino, mocha, or hot chocolate compared to my beloved iced latte. Nothing for me beats a hot chocolate with cream and chocolate dusted on the top when it's cold outside (anyone remember the days when I hated hot drinks, especially hot chocolate? Lol, who dis girl now?) 

Once again you can burn candles at any time of the year but there's something special about having a hot drink curled up in warm clothes with a throw on when it's cold outside and having a candle burn. Maybe it's because my favourite candles are warm scented. Things like cinnamon, pine, any kind of spiced scent, spiced apples, gingerbread etc. My favourite candle I've ever used is warm winter hug from Glade which is spiced apple scented. I can't wait to repurchase that, what's your favourite autumn/winter candle? 

It is magical to watch the world change; as it gets cooler the leaves begin to brown and deepen in colour and eventually fall off the trees to colour our paths and parks with colourful leaf piles. Acorns and pine cones begin to fall, that crisp cool air first thing in the morning with bright sunshine, misty skies, pumpkins begin to grow ready for Halloween, the ground begins to harden, we change from shorts and crop tops to jeans and jumpers and jackets. From September on wards everything just gets better. 

It has been way too hot to wear anything but shorts and a top in bed at the very least which is fine as I have loads of pairs that I love. But nothing beats wearing long length pyjamas/ lounge wear as it goes from hot to cold. Especially when you can actually get into bed and feel content with the warmth under the sheets. I honestly cannot wait. 

Well that's that guys, we made it through the first post of Blogtember (cheering, confetti canons, champagne flutes clink). This month is honestly so exciting, I've got so many different posts planned but they're all things I really love and want to share with you guys. So I hope you're as excited as I am for this month of blogging together .

 Follow me on all of my social media so you can keep up to date with everything I am doing! You can follow me on Twitter @katielouj0hnson, Instagram @katiej0hnson, Pinterest @katielouj0hnson, and Bloglovin' @ Katie Johnson. 

I will see you tomorrow.

Love,

Katie

ANNOUNCEMENT | MY NEW BLOGGING SERIES

Hello my lovelies I hope you are all doing well and have had a fab summer. It has been a long while since I last properly spoke to you guys and just posted on here. If you've been following my social medias, Instagram and Twitter in particular, then you'll have probably seen me post about and mention things here and there about this new series I'm creating on here. I have kept it pretty quiet but if you guys have been keeping up with my Instagram and Pinterest specifically then I've been dropping subtle hints on there to do with the subject areas that this series is going to be in relation to. I know you guys are itching to know what it is and probably screaming at your laptop going 'Girl just tell us!' but before I reveal to you what it is I'm gonna let you guys in on why this has taken me so long to get out in the blogging world for you to enjoy and take inspiration from etc. 

So I have been creating this series since May, four whole months, and that is crazy to me. It feels like it was only yesterday when I thought of the idea and created all the little segments for it etc. It's so strange because as I type this post this whole series, idea, concept, visual image of it all is my baby as only myself and a handful of people actually know about it. But when this post is officially up which you guys are reading now it's out in the world and I can't take that back. God this is getting too emosh. 

Right anyway, so I originally wanted to have this series up at the start of August and have it run as a series with different chapters/ segments each week throughout the summer and be done in time for September as obviously I've told you guys Blogtember is happening. So that was my original plan and it's pretty evident that this didn't happen hence no posts through August. I think I put too much pressure on myself to have it up in the summer months and I think you guys will see why when I explain it in a moment. But also because the subject area and the topic is so big on social media right now that it is extremely relevant and so many close blogging friends and bigger influencers have had their say on it as well. I know my series will still be relevant now because there's so much more to learn and grow from for each individual that is taking the journey or will take the journey at some point in their life. I hope it isn't just a summer "trend" because this topic is so important to every single human on this planet and I feel it's something we all need to work towards. 

Okay, I think I've kept you guys in the dark long enough. So after much deliberation in my head, my new series is called,

'BORN TO BE' 

So before I get into what BORN TO BE is and what it stands for etc, let's back track a little bit. 

So the whole concept for this series came from the whole vibe of this summer. This summer more than ever I have noticed in real life and on social media that people of all shapes and sizes are embracing the fashion industry and breaking the invisible boundaries of what people are "supposed" to wear depending on their size. Everyone is wearing whatever the hell they want which is how it should be! 

I'm not skinny or slim in any way, I'm a size 20, so as a bigger girl I know how shitty the industry can be for a body shape like mine because some fashion items aren't made for bigger people. E.g. bralettes, crop tops, body-con dresses etc.

My aim is to create a series on this blog, my platform, to inspire people to feel good in their own skin as I'm still learning to feel good in mine. Also to let people know, whatever your size, as long as you feel good you should wear whatever the hell you like. 

So to take this idea one step further I decided I wanted to do something physical instead of just researching. I decided to set myself a task to go into different high street fashion retailers and try on a range of different outfits, which I will then be sharing my honest opinions on. Not just the outfit and how it looks, but if it's true to size, if I feel good in the outfit, the quality, how I'd style it etc. 

Now at this stage in the planning process I was really happy and I thought this could be an awesome idea but something just felt like it was missing. So I carried on researching and looking into body positivity, mental health, social media, fashion and style, fashion and bodies, body positive movements, self-esteem and confidence etc. The whole premise of body positivity is so big and it feeds into so many other things and I began to realise I cannot only share my opinion and the information discovered from all my research because it wouldn't be a well rounded project. There are a bunch of people in the world who are probably the same clothing size as me but they are not the same body shape or type as me because were all uniquely made. But I decided I wanted to include the opinions of my closest friends and my closest blogging friends and get the opinions and outlook about all this from real people. I'm not saying that models and the body type that is idolised in society aren't real, they do exist and their body type is still important and valued because people are important and valued. But for most people if you're not the idolised body type in our society it seems you're not worthy or valued, especially when it comes to the fashion industry. Which is something I'm really trying to challenge through this series. From the research I conducted I created ten questions to ask friends and bloggers which I'm so excited to share with you guys as everyone who I've asked to be involved and had discussions with about it has been really on board and open and honest with how they feel which is so important for a series like this. 

And that in a nutshell is my new series. You might be wondering why did I call it BORN TO BE. The naming of this series was actually one of the hardest decisions for me because this is something I'm so passionate about and I want it to be the best it can be not only for you guys but for me. I'm on this journey of body positivity and self love too and so this series is also a way for me to grow and learn and love and change and view things differently just like how I get you guys to view things from different perspectives as well. I needed a name that related to the premise of the series but something that wasn't just specific to the fashion industry. The fashion industry is the driver of the series but it is not the subject area that defines the whole perspective of the series. So I brain stormed a whole load of name ideas and none of them were really sticking out to me as a series title. Some of them I'm going to use for chapter/ segment titles. Then I was beginning to play around with the idea of were all born to do something, were all here for some reason or purpose whether we know what that is or not. So I started playing around with the idea of born. So firstly we started with 'born to be different' but I wasn't really feeling that one. Then I thought 'born to be you' and even though this isn't used in a negative way but when I really thought about it there is this stigma around the word "you" as when you think of yourself you already have this perception of yourself which actually puts yourself into a box or a category which is something I really didn't want to make a connection with in this series.

In the end I decided on 'born to be' because it is open ended. It gets the reader to really think of what they are born to be. And in my opinion you're born to be whatever you want to be or whatever you want to do etc. And all through your life this will change and develop and transform and grow etc. Which is something I hope you guys will do through this series by reading it and really thinking about the concepts brought up. And I hope I do from researching and also thinking about the concepts and presenting ideas we both might not have taken into consideration or really delved into before etc. So that is the story behind the naming of this series.

I'm so excited to properly start this and share everything I've found out with you guys. I have created so many edited photos and quotes for this that I'm really proud of and can't wait to put together and just visually see how all of this is going to work and become a thing. I haven't decided on a day this series will be uploaded every week in Blogtember. Potentially Thursdays or Saturdays I am debating between at the moment.

 I hope you're all as pumped as I am and I really hope this inspires you guys to be open and think about concepts differently and our attitudes towards others differently. But mostly our attitudes towards ourselves differently. I'm not going to go into anymore detail otherwise there will be nothing left for all of the other segments to this series. But, I'm really excited. Let me know if you're excited in the comments. 

 Follow me on all of my social media so you can keep up to date with everything I am doing! You can follow me on Twitter @katielouj0hnson, Instagram @katiej0hnson, Pinterest @katielouj0hnson, and Bloglovin' @ Katie Johnson. 

Thank you all for reading and I will see you tomorrow.

Love,

Katie

COFFEE CHATS | Third Year is Over - What's Next? Exciting Blogger Things, and Love Island!

Hello my lovelies, I hope you're all well. I feel like it has been quite a while since I did a Coffee Chats post where we just sit down together with a coffee of course, or if you don't like coffee a beverage of your choice, and just have a chat and an update on our lives. So that's what were gonna do today. Make sure you've got your beverage and maybe a snack as I dunno how long this post is gonna be. 

Speaking of coffee I just wanna say a massive thank you for all of the views on my last post which was all about Visiting Bean & Cole Coffee House. It currently has over 1,000 views and honestly I'm gob smacked. It's my second most popular post behind my review of Primark's My Perfect Colour Foundation. Honestly you guys don't know how much this means to me and how grateful I am, just thank you so much. 

If you guys haven't seen that post and would like to then just click here. 

So let's start with general life. I have officially finished university and that is crazy to say. I don't know where the last three years have gone but honestly these have been the best three years of my life, no doubt about it. I'm not gonna get too into it now as I'm gonna do a post later on this year (November) all about my uni experience over the whole three years, if I think uni is worth it, and my favourite memories. So you'll have to hang tight for that one but it'll be here before you know it. I finished on May 12th which is when I did my last ever performance as a drama student at Chester University and honestly it hasn't actually hit me yet. I think it's because it just feels like my pals and I are all going home for summer like we always do and then we're just gonna come back again in September when in reality were not. But my life in Chester isn't fully over yet as I've got graduation to come back for, drama society's shows, and just friends to come and visit throughout next year. 

I am really going to miss living in this city, it has become a place that I truly call home. And I do hope I come back one day potentially to live here as I absolutely love it. But at this moment right now I'm just going to see where life takes me. But the reality of it all is I don't have the money to stay here right now as I don't have a job here and I don't have a place to live after July. So it's best for me to go home for a while and get myself on my feet. 

As for what I'm gonna do next I really don't know. I've been applying for a whole range of jobs. Some more drama based, for example teacher-esk but not a school teacher, whilst others aren't directly drama but they're jobs where my creative and people skills that I've developed on my degree can benefit me, for example working in retail but creating window displays and making sure the overall look of a shop is appealing to customers etc. I've been applying since June and haven't had much major luck yet apart from one job where I did get the offer. However it wasn't what I'd hoped for and the timings weren't right so I decided to decline it. Which is totally okay. My main advice to all of you when job hunting would be don't put pressure on yourself to take a job just because you need one. Especially if you're not confident about it but don't forget to push yourself to be the best you can be. I'm trying not to contradict myself but what I mean is don't apply for a job where you have no skills in that area to work. You've gotta use all your top qualities about yourself to your advantages. 

I'm currently still on the hunt and my main thing right now is to find a job at least for the summer because otherwise I'm gonna be so bored. And because my mum and dad are gonna be on my case everyday if I don't get one (the reality of not being a student anymore). I've never had a "proper job" and I bloody hate that phrase because what even makes a job a "proper job"?! (that's a rant for another day). But I'm confident that the experience I do have and my personality will shine through to employers. So my fingers are crossed. Are any of you in the same boat as me?

A job may not be a constant in my life right now but my blog very much is and will be for the future months and years to come (I hope). You guys know how I always get, whilst I'm at uni my blog has always taken a bit of a back seat because of all the workload and mainly all of the days out I've had with friends. And I always roll it back around in the summer months which I am definitely still doing. I've got a lot of interesting posts planned and quite a few of them I've been meaning to do since April but just haven't got round to it.

But I thought I'd let you guys in on some new blogging things I'm gonna be doing in the upcoming months. I've been sitting and planning things for the future of my blog for this year and I've been trying to think of things I haven't done before, whether that be styles of posts or a series of posts that all link etc. If you guys have been reading my blog since at least this time last year then you'll know that I did Blogust where I blogged every day of August. I thoroughly enjoyed that month and judging from the views so did you guys. I'm so glad I did that as it brought me so many more opportunities and just inspired me a lot more really. So I was debating on doing Blogust again but I wasn't really feeling doing a summer month of blogging again. So instead I've decided I'm going to be doing Blogtember! So I'm gonna blog every day in September. Now I know what you guys are thinking, surely there's not much difference as August and September are right next to each other in the monthly timeline. That is true but I've got some really interesting posts planned such as planning posts, how to utilise notebooks, some more fashion based posts, challenge posts, I'm also doing a week within Blogtember all about university as most universities go back in September which I'm so excited for, and just a lot more lifestyle based posts too. So I'm super excited for September, I hope you guys are as well, it's gonna be a lot of fun I think. 

But let's rewind for a min. So going back to now, I've got a lot of posts still to do from ages ago as we know. But I have officially decided to start a new series on my blog *screams and claps with excitement.* I can't reveal too much now because I'm still working on the ins and outs of the series itself, and doing some research, and I'm still working on a name for it. But the only clue I'm gonna give you guys is it is a topic all over social media at the minute especially Instagram. And it's a more positive outlook on something that many people, including myself, get anxious about or have been anxious about. And that is all I'm gonna say. If I can eventually find a name for the series it could potentially start next week but I can't be certain on that right now. The series itself will at least go all throughout summer and if it goes well and you guys like it and take something positive away from it I may continue it through to the cooler months after Blogtember. But yeah I'm really excited, let me know in the comments what you guys think the series might be about. 

Now that we've got all that out the way let's talk about the important stuff... 

If you guys follow me on Twitter (@katielouj0hnson) then you will know how opinionated I get about this show. I became obsessed last year and I have now become even more obsessed this year which I didn't think was possible. Now I know that some of the show is not all real and there are definitely moments that the islanders do obviously to create drama because if they didn't the show wouldn't be as popular and it wouldn't be as talked about. But am I still way too invested in these peoples lives on this reality show? 100% yes. Obviously a lot has happened over the last three weeks on the show and if you haven't been watching it well honestly I don't think there's a way I can actually catch you up. But if you have been watching let's discuss the latest events of the last week.

I'm gonna start with the whole Wes, Megan, and Laura situation. When Wes decided he was done with Laura after three weeks and after that one day connection with Megan he was like right bye Laura. Honestly this pissed me off so much, you guys don't even know, well you will know if you follow my Twitter. But I just cannot believe how disrespectful this was to Laura. Just the whole way he went about it and his reasons for wanting to leave Laura for Megan really were ridiculous. For example, both Wes and Megan admitted that they hadn't spoken until that day when Megan said she fancied him and Wes immediately wanted to break off everything he had developed with Laura. He might as well of just straight up said to her I don't think this is working and I'm not feeling it anymore. I would've had more respect for him because he would've actually been honest with Laura about how he felt. I would've been unbiased if Wes hadn't of said to Laura "I'm falling for you" because you can't go from that level of feelings for someone and then five minutes later after you've had a chat with the lads go actually nah. In the long run I think Wes and Laura would've broken up anyway because they are clearly at very different points in their lives, you know Laura wants to find a serious relationship with a future together whereas Wes clearly doesn't really know what he wants and I don't think he truly knows what he's gone in the villa to look for. But overall ever since that moment I lost all respect for Wes and I have a massive disliking for him now. 

The main thing I loved about this situation though is the boys went off to Casa Amor which is the second villa and the boys had six new girls come in whilst in the original villa the girls had six new boys come in. And it couldn't of come at a better time, especially for Laura. So whilst most of the boys were cracking on in Casa Amor (which I'll get to in a minute) Wes decided not to because of his "strong feelings for Megan" which I don't know how you can have that amount of strong feelings after just one day together. If that's actually possible let me know. But yeah so Wes didn't crack on but of course our Megan did. Why am I not surprised? So yeah she cracked on with another guy called Alex and Laura cracked on with another guy called Jack. And when it came to the recoupling they both recoupled up with the new guys they'd met whilst Wes was left single. I don't like Megan but I loved this situation because this is true karma for the way Wes treated Laura and I was living for this. Honestly one of the best things that could've happened. 

So speaking of Casa Amor, the boys went there for a few days and mostly they started cracking on which for the majority of them it was fine as a lot of them are more towards open to still getting to know people and connect with people as their couples haven't worked out up to this point. Except for Jack (not Laura's Jack) and Josh. Jack and Dani are officially in a relationship so obviously they stayed loyal to one another (thank god) and Josh has been coupled up with Georgia for two weeks or maybe a bit more. Now her and Josh were in a really good place, they were in the stage where they were kind of just having a laugh and getting to know each other whilst still being all about each other. I will admit when they first became a couple I wasn't 100% certain because Georgia was previously coupled up with Niall who she seemed really suited to but then he had to make an emergency exit from the show. Which meant Josh and Georgia were kind of the only two left that were fully single whereas everyone else in the villa was coupled up with someone. So at first it did feel kind of forced and like they were together just because of convenience. But as time went on, new islanders came in and neither of them seemed to turn their heads or really get to know anyone else which is when I was like oh okay, I can kinda see this working out. And then that all came crashing down didn't it. 

So the boys had to sneak off to Casa Amor early one morning and weren't allowed to let the girls in on anything. And as I've already said they got there and six new girls came in and they started cracking on apart from Jack. And I'd love to say apart from Josh but I can't because he decided to crack on with another girl. Whilst Georgia decided to stay loyal to Josh because she realised when he was gone that she actually did like him a lot more than she'd let herself believe. As you can imagine, myself and all of the other Love Island fans on Twitter were going insane on the hashtag. So to keep a long story short Josh was completely unfaithful to Georgia during those three days in Casa Amor; there was a recoupling at the end of the week and the girls and guys had to decided whether or not they were going to recouple with one of the new islanders or if they were going to stay loyal. Unfortunately for Georgia, Josh decided to recouple with another girl which as you can imagine absolutely broke her. 

Now on Twitter most people are team Georgia in this situation which I 100% am. That feeling of being second best to someone is never nice and I can totally relate to what she is going through right now. Some people have commented that they don't feel like Josh has done anything wrong because they weren't boyfriend and girlfriend and also it is Love Island, they're all there to find a connection with someone and you know win £50,000. Which I do get where those people are coming from but what he has done wrong is handled the whole situation wrong. For the weeks Josh and Georgia were seeing each other Josh never made it clear that he was open to seeing other girls. Whilst in Casa Amor, Josh had no way of speaking to Georgia until the night of the recoupling, but whilst he was in Casa Amor he had no respect for Georgia's feelings in the process of him cracking on with Kaz. He also claims that he felt a stronger connection to a girl he'd know for one day than a girl he'd been seeing for two weeks. I'm sorry what? Again if this is actually a thing that really happens then please enlighten me but I just don't get how you can throw something all away and be done with it for someone else you've know for five minutes. Are people honestly that heartless? 

The best thing to ever happen though on the night of recoupling was how Georgia handled the situation. She saw Josh came back in with another girl and was obviously upset, annoyed, heartbroken etc. She turned away when she was about to cry, took a breath, composed herself, and turned back and got on with it. HONESTLY ICONIC. The way she handled the whole situation is honestly inspiring for our society. She is honestly a true queen and I will always love her for how she dealt with this situation. I absolutely adore Georgia as a person and I truly believe she deserves the best. 

Obviously after the drama and high emotions of it all she's dealt with it the best she can and the only people who really seem to care about her in that villa are Dani and Laura. Which is an absolute piss take because Georgia cares about absolutely everyone in there and is always there for them when they need her and now they can't even be there for her. Another thing that has also fucked me off about this situation is how none of the boys at any stage said to Josh don't you think you should be thinking about Georgia. Fair enough it's not their situation to deal with but if any of the boys had any respect for Georgia or even cared about how she might've felt they would've pulled Josh aside and called him out on it. As if I was in there, I'd've done that because the way he was going about it weren't right. 

The main thing this year that is frustrating me in Love Island is the fact that all of the lads apart from Jack keep saying this phrase "Am I happy? Yes. But could I be happier? Absolutely" and honestly I have never felt more hostile towards a group of boys ever. This is how you definitely know they're boys and not men. Honestly what the hell?! I am actually sick of our generation's views on relationships. It's like I swear to god people just don't appreciate what they already have and also don't have respect for other peoples feelings let alone their own feelings. Why are so many people so selfish and spiteful; honestly I have never felt more pissed off about a conversation than this one. This is just a point for everyone, guy or girl, if this is how you view people you're seeing or just people in your life. Then you've gotta take a hard look in the mirror because with an attitude like this you don't deserve to be happy let alone be "happier."  

An episode or two ago Georgia was crying to Dani and Laura and she said two things that I think everyone can relate to in some way. The first was 'He's happy with her' and the second was 'What has she got that I haven't got?' this honestly made me feel so sad for Georgia. I can relate to these two questions a lot and I'm assuming most of you who are reading this can as well. There has got to be no worse feeling than feeling second best to someone. It's been a few days now since everything and Georgia has had some time to cool off and think and she had a chat with Kaz. She said it how it was on her end of things and how she feels as technically Kaz hasn't done anything fully wrong as it was Josh who was disloyal to Georgia. And Kaz was the same, explained to Georgia her way of seeing things and how it feels on her end etc. So essentially they were just finding common ground. Georgia said that she is happy that they've both found someone and she hopes they work out. Kaz had the audacity to go back to Josh and say that Georgia was patronising. And in that one second exchange I lost all respect for Kaz as well. Georgia wasn't being patronising at all, Georgia could've ignored her for the whole time they're both there which would obviously make things awkward in the long run. I say fair play to Georgia for clearing the air when she is evidently still such a mess and broken up about Josh. 

Someone did a tweet saying it's not about the fact that Josh recoupled with another girl. It's the fact that he sold Georgia a dream and told her all the things she wanted to hear when he didn't really mean any of it. And that resonated with me so much, honestly so much because being lead on is the worst thing ever. It goes to show that you should always always always be wary of peoples intentions with you. I really do hope Georgia gets what she deserves because she honestly deserves all the love in the world for being so kind, honest, genuine, positive. I love you queen G! 

  If you thought I was done talking about Love Island after all that, well you're wrong. I have one more person I wanna talk about and that is Megan. As I've said many times already if you guys follow my Twitter you will know how opinionated I get about this show and you will also know how much Megan drives me round the bend. This girl is honestly something else, she is a different breed to the human race I swear to god. I have never witnessed the amount of snaky behaviour from anyone that I have with this girl. She is literally the female equivalent of Adam and we're not gonna get into my opinions on Adam because we'll be here all night and this post is already so long. I can't even put into words how vile she is as a person. She's messed with peoples emotions in that villa, broken up a relationship for no reason, doesn't care for anyone else's feelings other than her own, can't ever say no and stay true to her own intentions, and each episode proves why I hate her more. For example, she's always had a vendetta against Georgia for no reason but some people on Twitter reckon it's because Georgia is everything Megan isn't as there's been a lot of opinions on Megan's plastic surgery. And if you guys wanna know more about that just check the Love Island hashtag. Which I personally wouldn't be surprised if that is the reason. But anyway, during the whole saga of Georgia, Josh, and Kaz, Megan had the audacity to say to Josh what he's done is right and she would've done the same in his situation and for me that is just the cherry on top of the cake of why she infuriates me. That girl doesn't know the meaning of empathy or respect for other people and I really do hope karma comes and bites her in the arse massively. But, I will never like the girl, however the game she is playing in that villa is very clever and I'm waiting for when the other islanders fully clock onto it. 

Honestly the more that goes on in Love Island the more opinionated I get and the more annoyed I get at certain people. Now obviously, the media and the filming of things can make people be portrayed in different ways in certain situations and I am fully aware of that. Also because with Love Island especially we only see one hour of a twenty four hour day, so we never one hundred percent get the full picture. I love sharing my opinions and tweeting about it all night on twitter as much as the next person but I do take it with a pinch of salt as I'm fully aware things aren't always what they seem especially on reality shows. But it's all for the fun, all for the fun isn't it. 

If you guys watch Love Island let me know down below and share your thoughts and opinions on the current goings on. 

And that is it for this post my lovelies. I think we're all caught up now. Let me know down below how all of you are and catch me up on what is going on in your life right now. 

 Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed. Follow me on all of my social media so you can keep up to date with everything I am doing! You can follow me on Twitter @katielouj0hnson, Instagram @katiej0hnson, Pinterest @katielouj0hnson, and Bloglovin' @ Katie Johnson. 

I will speak to you all very soon. 

Love,

Katie