What I've Been Reading...

At the beginning of the year I did a post all about the books I had read in 2014 and mentioned that my aim for 2015 was to read 52 books. We're just over half way through the year and I'm making good progress so thought I'd share with you my favourite books of the year so far!

I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai: This is an inspiring story of an incredibly brave girl who is not afraid to fight for what she believes in. It made me smile and cry and I was left completely in awe of Malala. I have even more respect for her after reading this book because there is so much of her story that you didn't see in the media and I would really love everyone to read this!

The Art of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson:  It's so rare to find books without cis/heterosexual protagonists so when a friend lent me this book I was so excited. It's a nice easy read but has such a lovely message about learning to accept people for who they are and standing up for your friends.

Rainbow in the Cloud by Maya Angelou: This was a birthday gift from a friend of mine who knows my love for Maya Angelou. It's a short but sweet book filled with quotes and extracts from Maya herself which inspire and provide wisdom and put such a smile on my face. I've also read the third book from her autobiographical series this year and plan on reading the remaining two soon.

The Day We Disappeared by Lucy Robinson: I bought this one a whim as the blurb didn't give much away in terms of the story but I'm so glad I read this! The story was full of twists and surprises which kept me turning the pages. I've since lent it to people I know and they've all agreed that it's a great read.

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins: This is a really well known one but I've only recently got round to reading it. Once I'd started though I read it in about 24 hours because it had me gripped. It's a great mystery novel and I really didn't guess the twist until very near the end. It's being made into a film soon so I'd recommend reading the book before this comes out!

How I Paid for College by Marc Acito: This was such a fun read! Very lighthearted and entertaining but as I'm off to uni this year it really struck a chord with me and had a message that really resonated with me- if you want something enough don't give up on it!

Changed for Good: A Feminist History of the Broadway Musical by Stacy Wolf: My most recent read is a bit of an eclectic one. I'm a massive musical theatre geek and an even bigger feminist so this read was so interesting to me. It revealed a lot to me about some of my favourite Broadway shows that I hadn't even realised was there and reminded me why I love theatre so much! Not one for everything but if you want an in-depth look at musical theatre it's worth a read.

I'm just over half-way to hitting my target so if you have any recommendations I'll definitely give them a go!

Olivia Ellen XXX

Happy 3rd Birthday Olivia Ellen!

As if I've been writing this blog for three years?! When I first started out this going to be the start of my career in fashion- I wanted to write for something like Vogue and thought that a blog would give me some good writing experience. Three years on and a lot has changed. My page views have gone up, my blog has had multiple redesigns but I think I'm finally happy with it. The biggest change though has been my future plans- I now no longer want to work in fashion but in theatre, which prompted me to start a theatre blog a little under a month ago (www.olivialovestheatre.blogspot.com) but I still really enjoy writing this blog. I don't do it to get loads of followers, be sent free stuff or to make this my job. I write it because I enjoy it. I love writing, I love fashion and beauty and I'm pretty sure that will never change and I'll be writing the blog for a long time to come. To celebrate my birthday I thought I'd put together some of my favourite posts from the last year or so. Here's to three more years!

Face of the Day #19 // Birthday Face

How I fell Back in Love with Myself

 



Am I Shallow?

USA Sephora Haul

Matte vs Gloss

Books of 2014

Edinburgh Photo Diary

Amethyst Crystal Necklace from Vintage Fashion Jewellery

Thanks for all your continued support!

Olivia Ellen XXX

For Mom

As today is Mother's Day I thought I'd do a little photo tribute to my mom. I'd like to thank her for making me the cocktail lover I am today- the top photo was on my birthday last year where we spent the weekend in London seeing Les Mis and it was a wonderful weekend with my family. The second picture comes from December 2013 when we visited the Harry Potter Studio Tour for the second time. it was so festive and lovely and I hope our shared love for Harry Potter never ends. The final picture was September 2013, which seems like so long ago despite it only being less than 2 years. Not only do I love my red lips in this photo, but I also love that I was genuinely really happy. I adore spending time with my family and a lot of that is spent with my mom and I feel so lucky to have her. She's always honest with me, puts up with my mess and my moods and is so supportive, I really couldn't ask for more. Happy Mother's Day Mom!

Olivia Ellen XXX

Red Nose Day at TK Maxx

Red Nose Day always comes around so fast- suddenly, everywhere I go I'm seeing things splattered with red. As someone who doesn't talk themselves too seriously, I'm all for looking a bit silly and having a laugh whilst raising money for a brilliant cause, but every year TK Maxx give you the opportunity to look fab while doing it.

This year, as ever, they've got some great designers to contribute to their range of t-shirts available to buy online and in store, including Karl Lagerfeld, Matthew Williamson and Diane von Furstenberg. I'm definitely a jeans and t-shirt girl most of the time so one of these with some black skinny jeans and a jacket would be an ideal look for me and I cannot wait to get my hands on one. As well as being really reasonably priced at around £15, at least £5 of this goes directly to the charity.

There's more too- Henry Holland and Anya Hindmarch have designed some tees that you can get for your kids and that man in your life, along with some snazzy items for your home. I would definitely recommend taking a look at what's on offer and picking up a bargain, as well as supporting a brilliant cause. Also pop in to your local store- there's some great fundraising events going on up and down the country (in my local store staff are putting on events every week until Easter to raise even more cash) so get supporting!

Olivia Ellen XXX

Books of 2014

At the beginning of 2014 I set myself the target of reading 30 books. I'm told I've always loved reading, especially as a child, but I went off it for a while and hardly read at all, so this challenge was my incentive to get back into books big time. I surpassed my target during the summer, so upped my game and I'm proud to say I read a total of 50 books in 2014. If you're a regular reader you've probably noticed that I include a book of the month in my monthly favourite posts so I wanted to round off the year with some of my favourites.

My favourite book of the year? Now that's an impossible question. It's so hard to choose because I've read such a variety, but one of the ones that has stuck with me is The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. It was incredibly moving and beautifully written.

Good comedies? Oh yes. Caitlin Moran's novel How to Build a Girl was brilliant. Living in the same town that Moran grew up in, it was weird knowing many of the places mentioned in this book and it was just so out-there and hilarious. A recent read is Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, Mindy Kaling's autobiography I suppose. It's not too long and had me laughing aloud from the first page with it's relatability.

Classic Novels? I've read a few this year and all of them have been old, well-read copies which really makes me feel like I'm diving into the past. 1984 by George Orwell, Brave New World by Aldous Huxley and The Great Gatsby by F. Fitzgerald all really impressed me. They were interesting and thought-provoking and it's easy to see why they're known as classics.

Best series? Again, very hard to choose. The Hunger Games is an obvious one but I was gripped to the books and now am enjoying the films (admittedly I was a little late on the bandwagon for that one!). Also the Divergent series by Veronica Roth was a real page-turner, although my favourite was probably the lesser known Delirium trio by Lauren Oliver. I was really dissapointed when I came to the end of the third book as they were such a good read.

Read any non-fiction? I've really broadened by reading horizons this year by reading many non-fiction books. For cat-lovers, I cannot recommend The Cat Whisperer enough. While (unfortunately) it doesn't actually teach you how to talk to cats, it is really interesting to find out why they behave in certain ways. Something that really opened my eyes was Living Dolls: The Return of Sexism by Natasha Walters. It really made me think about the society in which we live in and has lead me on to do much further research into sexism of my own.

Any others? One more I think I need to mention is I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou. This is the first book in her autobiographical series and I've now read 2 out of the 5 (I think) books. I read this before she passed away earlier in the year and loved it so it seems even more important for me to complete the series now. She was an amazing woman and her death was a great loss but I think her books really teach the lesson that no matter what you go through in life, you can still be an incredibly strong and confident person.

I record all the books I've read in this book journal I was given as a gift from Paperchase, along with a few thoughts for future reference. So for 2015? I plan on reading 52 books so if anyone has any recommendations, I'm very interested!

Olivia Ellen XXX

Liebster Award- I've been nominated!

I'd never actually heard about the 'Liebster Award' until I was nominated by Kathleen at Made in the 1990's but it really made me smile to read about it- other bloggers nominate their favourite blogs who have under 200 followers so it's a great way to show smaller blogs such as mine that they are actually read and appreciated, so thank you Kathleen! The rules of the awards are as follows:

1. You have to link back to the person that nominated you.
2. You must answer the 11 questions given to you by the person who nominated you.
3. You have to nominate another 11 blogs who have under 200 followers.
4. You have to come up with 11 new questions for your nominees.
5. You have to notify the 11 people that you nominated.

So the questions from Made in the 1990's:
What/who inspired you to start blogging? For me it was because I want to work in fashion journalism in the future so I thought a blog would be a good way to practise my writing skill whilst sharing my love of fashion.
Apple or Windows? Windows, I've never owned anything from Apple (hard to believe I know)!
Which city would you most like to live in? Milan has always been a dream for me.
Who's your ultimate icon? Dead or alive? Audrey Hepburn because she just oozes glamour.
Who's your style icon? I'm sure everyone says this but I adore Alexa Chung because she can pull off anything.
How much time generally do you spend on your blog/ interacting with other bloggers per week? Quite a while, more than 2 hours on some days. 
What platform do you find most effective when it comes to promoting your blog? Twitter, it's so easy to put something out there to the world, mainly by using '#fbloggers' or '#bbloggers'.
What goals are you hoping to achieve through your blog within the next year? Of course raise my follower count but also to post on different places (I've had an offer to write some posts for an online blog/magazine which should be fun).
What topics do you enjoy blogging about most? Outfit posts of course because I can really show off my style but I also love doing beauty reviews.
Do you find, or ever worry, that your non-blogger friends/peers judge you by your blog? I sometimes worry that people will look at hauls and think 'she is so materialistic' but I've just learnt not to worry about what people think of me/my blog and do whatever I enjoy. 
How heavily influenced are you by other bloggers? Quite a lot, I take inspiration from other people's posts and layouts all the time!

My 11 Nominees are:

The Geek in Disguise ♦ Ulrikke Eleonora ♦ Ellis Rose ♦ Celine Does Nails ♦ Glitterbomb Make-up ♦ Think Pink ♦ Styled by Alexandra ♦ Oh Ella Bella ♦ Novella Afterglow ♦ Let's Talk More Beauty ♦ Joesphine Jade 

11 Questions for my Nominees:

1. Your favourite blog to read?

2. Who would you say is your favourite high-end designer?

3. Do you read more beauty or fashion blogs?

4. What beauty item/clothing item do you wish you owned?

5. How often do you post on your blog?

6. What tips would you give to someone who has just started their blog?

7. How would you describe your personal style?

8. What career goals do you have?

9. If you could go back in time, where would you go?

10. Do any of your close friends keep blogs too?

11. What do you enjoy most about blogging?

Olivia Ellen XXX

Quick Update!

Just thought I'd let you know that I'll be out of action for two weeks, I won't have any internet access so I won't be able to reply to any comments or emails but I have scheduled posts so keep checking back on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays for new posts, or you can click follow via GFC on the right hand side to easily be kept updated with my posts.
Have a nice two weeks and see you soon!

Olivia Ellen XXX

Frequently Asked Questions- General Blog Things

So guys, today is not really a fashion or beauty related post but I thought I'd tackle a post which I've been wanting to write for a while now. I also get asked so many different questions and thought that I'd try and answer as many as I can today! If you have any questions that you would like me to answer (can be to do with anything!) leave them in a comment or drop me an email (find it here) and I'll try to answer them in a post at some point in the future.

Why did you start your blog?
So I started my blog about a year ago because I wanted to share my thoughts on fashion and beauty with someone other than myself in my own head! I've wanted a job in fashion for years now and recently settled on the idea of fashion journalism so I thought that a blog would be a good place to start.

Were you nervous about publishing your first post?
Yes, definitely! I'm pretty sure every blogger is. I was particularly nervous that people I know would read it and that people would laugh at it, but luckily I've had pretty much positive feedback the whole time. The earliest posts weren't so great, but I think I've improved since then and now I can't wait to publish my next posts.

How do you get inspiration for your posts?
I read a lot of different fashion and beauty blogs, and also I watch different Youtube videos and this gives me a lot of ideas on what kind of posts to write. Outfit posts are the easiest to write (I just say what's on my mind at the time!) but I also like to try and do something different.

What are your favourite blogs to read?
As I say, I read a lot of different blogs in lots of different categories. My favourite fashion blog is Rosie Glow, beauty is Lily Melrose Etc, I also love Thunder and Threads, which is written by Leanne Woodfull. Cakes for Dorothy is also a great food blog- mainly cakes and treats with a few other posts thrown in- and the author is great!

What are your tips for someone starting a blog?
Ok, I know this is so cliche but just remember to believe in yourself and what you are writing. Don't be afraid to try something new because it may be a huge hit! Also don't expect success overnight- I've had this for about a year and although I don't have a huge number of readers but it is steadily increasing and I'm satisfied, so don't give up!

What is the best way to get your blog noticed?
One of the main things I do is to comment on a lot of blogs, to get your blog out there to new readers. Share the link around a lot, get in touch with different people and just generally put a lot of effort into it. Eventually something is bound to pay off!

Happy New Year!

This post is going to be a bit of a long rambley one so be prepared!

Firstly, I want to say:

Thank you all so so so much for being there for me and this blog. I started this blog in May of 2012 and the support and praise I have had for all you guys in overwhelming! I really can't put into words how grateful I am for all of you for reading, and all I can say is now onwards and upwards, I'm going to keep posting just as long as you all keep reading, so thank you!

New Year's Resolutions- I so far have two:

This is my new notebook- I think I've mentioned on this blog before but I am an obsessive list maker! I make lists for everything (blog posts to write, things I need to buy, just a simple 'to do' list) and I like to keep all my lists in one place. For about a year I've been using a gorgeous notebook from Accessorize, but I decided that for the New Year, I'm going to start using a new notebook. This one is so cute, it's from John Lewis, and I'm so excited to be using it! So this resolution is to be even more organised.

The other is to do more fitness and exercise. I got this lovely gym bag for Christmas (it's from American Apparel) and it's really encouraged me to keep fit. I enjoy running, although often I'm just too lazy to go running, but from now on I'm going to go 3 times a week.

What to look forward to in 2013
2012 has been an amazing year for me, and I'm pretty sure 2013 will be the same. I have so much to look forward to, and in terms of this blog, I have a lot planned. When I hit 10,000 blog views (which hopefully will be very soon!) I'm doing a huge giveaway, which I'm starting to gather prizes for already. I've got loads of ideas for blog posts, and be sure to let me now if there is anything you want to see!

I hope you've all had a wonderful New Year and that 2013 is good to you. Once again, thanks for making my 2012 great!

Olivia Ellen XXX
@oliviaellen97