Durdle Door

In my opinion, March is the worst month of the year. I apologise if your birthday is in March but for me it is so dreary and full of nothing. Luckily my housemates agreed with me that we need to venture out of the Bournemouth bubble and make something happen in March. We packed up the car with some Haribo and sunglasses (necessities) and ventured to Durdle Door in West Lulworth, Dorset for some fun that involves taking a lot of Instagram-worthy pictures. 

Despite the parking being rather pricey (£3 for 2 hours!), we managed to park at the top of the cliff at a holiday park quite quickly. The drive there was beautiful with lots of windy roads and cottages that seemed so quaint and peaceful that I wanted to escape there for the rest of the weekend. To think this has been right on my doorstop for the last couple of years is baffling. If it has taught me anything, it's that I need to get out of Bournemouth a lot more, even if that involves paying pounds rather than pennies to park the car in a field. 

The Durdle Door experience isn't one for the indoorsy kind of people. It didn't really register to us at the beginning that we need to walk down the cliff and even worse so, walk back up. It couldn't have been a better day with the weather resembling a British summer rather than a mere, dreary Spring. It was so picturesque. I probably took about 50+ photos of the sea at about 3 different angles but hey ho, I was loving this amazing view and fresh air. Maybe I was just high off the country air and seaside breeze...

After being so overwhelmed with the breathtaking scenery, we decided to go right down to the bottom, onto the gravelly beach and frolick in the sunshine (one of our favourite pastimes). 

The peace and tranquility of it all had to end at some point though so we began our walk up the cliff and back to the car. Bearing in mind it took us 20 minutes to take pictures, walk down to the beach, and sit down- it took us 20 minutes to walk back up. It felt like I had been for a run but it was so worth it! After reminding ourselves that we aren't as fit as we think we are and whilst feeling very proud of our hiking skills, we thought we would head to a country pub on the way home for some well-deserved food. 

We kept our eyes out for the best pub on the way there so we settled for the most English looking one that served food. The Weld Arms is in East Lulworth is a 10 minute drive away from West Lulworth. It was quiet for a Saturday so we were rather intrigued whether it was open or not. Luckily it was open and sat at a table in a quiet area where the ceilings were low and the interior was all vintage and country. We kept on saying how cute it all was and that we wanted to take so many pictures to pop on Pinterest. Have a look at the pictures and understand what we meant!

We all had a passionfruit Redkorderlig (the best thing on a sunny day!) and I chose a beetroot risotto with vegetable crisps on top. It was so good. In fact, we were all so impressed with it all we are already planning to go back with our other housemates, but maybe next time we can sit in the garden without being too cold!

Ticked Durdle Door off the list, now where's next?

10 Steps of Organisation...

We all want to be more organised in life. It is sometimes the simplest things that make us feel ten times better, whether that's new stationary or writing a to-do list. I am a fan of the latter, making endless lists containing even the tiniest tasks that weigh a ton on my shoulders. Organisation makes life so much easier, but for some can be daunting and time-consuming. Truth is, it isn't. If it is, you are doing it wrong. Organising your life, your social life and work life, makes your week a whole lot better, finding you will have more time to have fun and relax which I'm sure we all need. Oh life, why are you so tough?! 

Most people say I'm a pretty organised person so I'm here to share with you the tricks of the trade that work well for me. It may not work well for you but hey, it's worth a try...

1. Make to-do lists

I make many. I put them on my whiteboard which I bought for a mere £2 from Asda. I draw bullet points as hearts and fill them in once I've completed the task and trust me, the colouring in of that little heart is an amazing feeling. 

2. Buy storage

Now storage comes in many shapes and forms and for pretty much everything. I even have a storage tray for my lipsticks as girls, we all know that lipsticks grow legs and escape from our bags. Storage allows things to not go missing, meaning you can save a lot of valuable time instead of frantically rushing to find things. It also allows you to categorise your belongings, from uni work to your toiletries. You will find you will become a much tidier and less stressed person.

3. Setting your clocks/watch 5 minutes early

Time is valuable so do everything 5 minutes before you were meant to. This is a hard one as you have to tell yourself that your watch is on time, but if you are an organisation pro you will just assume that your watch is correct. Imagine never being late for things, seems ideal doesn't it?

4. Begin a project as soon as you can

Even just laying out the foundations or an idea will gain your project some momentum. Obviously some projects can't start too soon, but start it as soon as you can. This will mean that you don't panic about what your doing and you will have more confidence in what you are doing, which will ultimately reflect in the outcome. 

5. End your mailing list woes

We all get emails from companies and shops that we no longer are loyal to. Simply scroll to the bottom of the email and click on the button that tells you to unsubscribe. Waking up to no annoying emails is a wonderful thing.

6. Make plans

Your social life tends to take the backseat in your list of the priorities so scheduling that time to go out and see your friends makes you become more organised to get things done as you'll have something to look forward to. Some would say this takes the fun out of it, but it only does if you make it. I always find this makes my week a lot more exciting. 

7. Get a family planner

I live in a house of 4 girls. We are not technically a family but sometimes it feels as if we are. So what else to make our family more like a real family than getting a family planner to document our whereabouts over the month. We were so excited about getting this that we began to question ourselves. Not only does this assist point number 6, it makes our life easier by knowing where each other is rather than sending out multiple texts if they haven't been home in a few days.

8. Bulk buy/Use the deals

Not that this is an excuse to shop more (it kind of is), buy the things you need whilst they are on offer. If your deodorant is reduced then stock up; you will never have to go through that annoying process of going deodorant-free whilst popping to your nearest supermarket/drugstore to grab one. It does save money in the long-term.

9. Take a trip to Paperchase

Sometimes the fancy stationary is the answer to making us more organised. I mean.. it's just so pretty...

10. Use folders

I use folders for pretty much every bit of paper I own. For my uni work, I have a different colour folder for each unit and for important documents, I have another. If I ever lose something, I look here first and 99% of the time it will be in one of these folders. As you can imagine, this saves time and stress as having to find the information elsewhere is a pain. Don't you ever just wish you could receive an email back-up for every bit of paperwork you get?!

I hope this helps you in some way.

I am most definitely open to more organisational tips... 

Mad Cucumber: Bournemouth's Vegan Lounge

As I have previously mentioned, I am a newly-complicated eater, meaning I don't eat any dairy, egg, or gluten. Eating out can be an ordeal so when I discover eateries where I don't have to worry about what's on the menu or ask someone what is in the dish, I become a bit like a kid in a sweet shop. So overwhelmingly excitable and happy. There are no words. 

I stumbled upon Bournemouth's 'Mad Cucumber': a self-described vegan lounge. Even though I am still very much a carnivore, the prospect of eating out is just easier if I call myself a vegan. I know I'm not and I'm sorry to all those loyal vegans but my word, it makes life easier. People just understand your diet difficulties a lot better. Besides, I love healthy food, vegetables and all that so vegan food suits me pretty well. 'Mad Cucumber' has a delightful food and drinks menu that almost makes you question how on earth it is all vegan. Quiche, cakes, brownies (which I did take some home and they were amazing)- it is baffling how this all vegan. I even saw someone have a rather extravagant hot drink with whipped cream on top. I now live in my regret for not asking what the cream was made from- cashews? Suppose that's another reason for me to return...

I love eating out and the interior is just as cool as the food. The lounge had a very hippie and casual feel about it- lots of reused furniture and mismatching accessories. The walls were covered in lots of interesting... erm... nick nacks (?!) which made us look around the cafe like a couple of tourists. 

I get the idea that the menu changes quite a bit. We decided to opt for the 'Greek Style Beans' with rice and a Quiche with salad and neither disappointed. The price was reasonable, with my bean lunch being only £3.95. There was also a long list of juices which I aim to try them all out. We had banana, apple, ginger and cinnamon, which to be honest, would have been better without the cinnamon. It would best suit a cold winters day. Maybe that's because I associate cinnamon with Christmas. 

Before I left I grabbed a couple of takeaway desserts. For someone who has such a sweet tooth, the world of puddings, desserts, and chocolates is a world I can no longer enter *sobs* so having a large array of loveliness to chose from made my week! I decided on the chocolate brownie and the raw lime cheesecake to takeaway to enjoy over the weekend as I simply didn't want my vegan experience to end. 

Now, whenever I pop into Bournemouth's town centre I will have to go and stock up on vegan cakes and puddings. It is an ideal lunch spot, or even a drinks break when you fancy somewhere else other than Starbucks. With no queues, overpriced goods, and unnecessarily unhealthy foods, 'Mad Cucumber' is my number one choice. Even though my non-vegan friend loved it, I now have to persuade the rest of them!

Where else is good to eat out as a vegan/gluten-free? 

Liz Earle: My New Skincare Regime

So, if you are like me, you hit your 20s and realise you have been doing the same skincare regime since you first discovered make up at like, 13. That trusty face wipe that occasionally made a team with the odd moisturiser that you nicked from your mum is no longer satisfying your ageing skin (harsh but true). There's this saying floating around that the way you treat your skin now will become more visible the older you get. I never really believed this, finding that any skincare product never really matched my oily skin. Most products made my skin more oily and acne-prone. 

When I was 14, my mum took me into a Clinique store in Florida and we left with a facial cleanser, a toner, and a moisturiser but being the commitment-phobe I was back then, I couldn't fully commit to a skincare regime. I think I stuck with it for a week and found it a lot of effort. What I would tell myself back then is that my skin hadn't really developed itself fully. I was still yet to go through a series of spot-induced times in my life that would not have been helped really by some fancy, expensive products. 

Now, verging on 21, I have bought the most revolutionary products known to man. Extreme I know, but I really believe that after years of heading to the doctors to cure my acne, Liz Earle's skincare really does keep the spots at bay. Full of natural ingredients for problem-prone skin (hiya!), it feels absolutely incredible on the skin and isn't too pricey. I would literally recommend Liz Earle's products to anyone who has been through some really tough times with their skin and is in need of gaining an easy beauty routine. After reading reviews online, which were all pretty amazing, I put the kit on my Christmas list and the rest was history. 

I use the Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Facial Cleanser religiously both morning and night, followed by a spritz of the Instant Boost Skin Tonic Spritzer and at night time only, the Skin Repair Light Moisturiser for Combination/Oily Skin. I know some experts will say to apply moisturiser before applying your make-up but I find my oily skin plus the moisturiser will make the make up slide off a lot more. I find my skin doesn't need double the amount of moisturiser in the day, so I just apply it generously at night. 

Every other morning I apply the Gentle Facial Exfoliator and every other evening I apply the Deep Cleansing Mask- finding that they don't need to be applied everyday. I wouldn't have the time everyday! These really give the skin a boost by brightening the skin, smoothing the skin and eliminating any problem areas in terms of redness and spots. 

As you can gather, I have been so pleased with the results Liz Earle products have had on my skin. Coming from someone who has tried a lot of beauty products and has been so unsatisfied until now, these products are shockingly amazing. I understand they can be quite pricey but I find the products do last a long time, especially the Hot Cloth Cleanser which I use twice a day and has lasted me 2 months. And if that isn't enough, when you purchase a 100ml bottle of the Hot Cloth Cleanser, you get a 30ml bottle of cleanser free. 

You can buy Liz Earle products from the online store, the stores in London, Isle of Wight, Leeds and Guildford, or in selected Boots stores. Now I'm on my last legs of it, I need to order some more... 

Have you used Liz Earle products?

Sun, Sea, Sand (and a Small Budget)

When you're a student and your purse seems to have holes in it, a holiday becomes less of a plan and more of a fantasy. Desperate to make a holiday happen, I worked solidly throughout summer- motivated that at the end of it all, I WILL get that holiday. 

My friend, Ruby and I decided we will have a small budget and make wherever we go a relaxing and blissful break away from all that hard work. So, two weeks before we planned to go, we booked a holiday for a mere £160- including our accommodation, flights, luggage and transfers through Olympic holidays to (judge if you may), Kavos. Notoriously famous for being a wasteland of drunken Brits falling out of Irish pubs (in Greece may I add), our desire for a holiday was clearly off the scale of desperation. So determined to avoid the endless armies of 'lads on tour', we boarded a plane to Corfu for a wishful week of sun, sea, sand, and lots of Greek food. 

I suppose the point of this post is to say that a cheap last minute holiday to a party resort is possible to do nicely. Our accommodation was very basic but huge (plenty of room for dancing), it had a balcony, and a nice pool area with a cheap bar. Not that we drank a lot like the rest of the resort (we had as much as wine at dinner), but the soft drinks were reasonably priced too. We stayed at the Oula Maisonettes- just on the outskirts of Kavos but within walking distance to amenities like restaurants, the beach, and a supermarket.

After a day round the pool on the first day, we ventured to the beach on day two in a bid to find a nice area of beach that didn't look grimy. By luck, we found a bar which had an area of beach and a pool that looked more Marbella than Kavos from it's white and seemingly upmarket design. To be honest, I think we went there most days just because it didn't fit in with its surroundings, tricking us into thinking we paid more for this holiday than we actually did. 

Next door to this pool/beach area, was undeniably our favourite restaurant. Called the Falconera, it was a beautifully traditional Greek restaurant run by a girl we described as a cross between Leah Jenner and Whitney Port. The Greek salad was the best, and in our time there we got free bread and houmous (the best I've ever had) and free coconut and orange cake on our last night. It is one of the oldest restaurants in resort, but the interior and menu has a contemporary twist that distinguished itself highly in comparison to others. It was like a little bit of luxury on our cheap trip! Plus, the food was incredible. 

Despite being on a budget, we managed to scrape back a few euros for something other than food. In the middle of our holiday, we went on a boat trip to the Blue Lagoon- described as turquoise, crystal clear waters that has been featured in many films. On our way, the weather wasn't particularly promising as it resembled more England than Greece. With our towels round our heads sheltering us from the shower of choppy waves and rain, we hopped on the boat on the way to Sivota on mainland Greece. If you ignored the weather, Sivota was a lovely little village with cute outdoor restaurants, cafes, and gelato shops. We decided to do an ice cream stop and take lots of photos of the picturesque landscape which displays a more calm version of the sea we previously experienced. 

With the sunshine peaking through the clouds, we headed to the Blue Lagoon for a swim with the fishes. As soon as we arrived the sun came out and it was absolutely amazing. I don't think we ever got out the water apart from jumping off the boat! There was so many fish! Due to the crystal clear water, it was a perfect moment to try out my new GoPro and here are the results…

Another one of our adventures on our budget holiday was renting out a quad bike for the day to explore the rest of Corfu's beaches. Not one for the faint-hearted, it was quite scary at times and it is pretty dangerous, but hey, we survived! We found a quiet beach on the other side of the island which had a beautiful sandy shore and lots of elderly people (haha). Even though we were the youngest there, it was a nice break from being round a pool bar listening to music so the silence was actually super relaxing.

I made a video for this holiday from all the footage we took on my GoPro which was so fun! I'll make another post for it soon. I think we proved to ourselves and everyone we know how easy and cheap it is to do a decent, relaxing beach holiday on a very cheap budget. There was obviously some things that you would expect on a holiday this price such as, rubbish flight times and very British resorts, but you can definitely ignore this if you try (and indeed we did). 

I'm definitely going to do a last minute holiday more often!

x