Awards| I love Liebster Awards!

Evening!

I'm sure all my readers know how much I love Liebster awards, purely because I love answering questions from fellow bloggers, that actually read my blog *laughs*. This will follow the usual format of I'll answer the questions and recommend awesome blogs for all of you to check out! Now, getting on to the lovely bloggers that nominated me! I was nominated by Hulik of "The Life" and May from "La vie en May" who graciously added me to her "blogs I love" list which I'm pretty excited about! Check out their blogs, they're amazing!

Awesome bloggers to visit!

Lena from "yesterday is different from today" (she's such a sweetheart!)

Steph from "fun size beauty"

Charmaine from "charrmyn"

Grace from "an ace affair"

Questions from Hulik:

Could you describe yourself please? Hmm...I'd describe myself as someone who is all over the place. With tons of interests and fantasies running rampant in her mind! I'm sure from my blog you can see I'm all over the place since I never focus on one particular interest or trend.

What do you enjoy dong in life? This will honestly sound (read) ludicrous, but I love studying *laughs*. Since I'm studying something I love, I put all my effort and energy into studying Biochemistry and that's what I enjoy doing. The other hobby that gives me joy is nail art, but since I banged up my nails badly from acrylic nails, that's been put on the back burner! 

What are your thoughts on fashion? What clothing do you prefer wearing? To be honest I don't have any coherent thoughts about fashion, to me, it just exists to make people prettier. I prefer wearing leggings because finding pants that are the right length are a pain and I hate getting my pants shortened (takes too much time!).

If you had the opportunity, which country would you like to see and why? I'd like to travel to Japan or China. If I get accepted into honours for Biochemistry, I'd like to research for a while in those countries! I think it would be super exciting and fun!

Do you like the cooking? What is the best food that you think you're doing? I hate cooking, the only thing I love about cooking is putting the food in my mouth! *laughs* I think the best food that I've ever made is Thai Green Curry!

What is the last movie you are watching? Well right now I'm watching "Howl's moving castle" (Miyazaki FTW) so that's the last movie I've watched.

What is the meaning of life for you? For me, it's to have fun, learn as much as you can and just overall enjoy and explore to your hearts content!

Questions from May:

If you could be a color, what would it be and why? I would be the color purple because it's been my favourite color ever since I was little.
What are you looking forward to in 2014? Hopefully doing my honours in Biochemistry and travelling to Europe (Can't wait!).
If you were stuck on a deserted island, what are the three things you would bring with you? Water! (since you can't drink sea water, boohoo! Water is a thing right? Bottled water!), my tablet (I'd be bored to death without it) and my ipod (so if I die, I can listen to music in my last minutes, ahahaha!). 
What is one memory you will never forget in 2013? I met someone that I whole-heartedly fell in love with (but we broke up).
What do you love about blogging? I love the fact that you can connect with others across the globe and it's an outlet for me to express my hobby of taking pictures!
What is your current favorite TV show? The amazing adventures of Gumball, Regular Show and Adventure time!
Would you rather: Watch a movie at home or watch a movie in the theatre? In the theatre! There's no atmosphere at home watching a movie, but sitting in front of a huge screen with the sound blasting your eardrums, I love!
If you could have one thing in this whole world, what would it be? A tattoo! 
What is your ideal vacation? In some far away country where I can smell the sea in the air and the nights are cool and comfortable.
Would you rather: Bathe in the sun or go snowboarding? I'd rather go snowboarding since my skin and the sun aren't friends!
What is one tip you'd give to someone who is looking to start a blog? Don't expect to get a thousand followers in a few months (like I did). Don't expect anything, just post what you love and love doing and someone will appreciate what you're doing.

I hoped you enjoyed reading this and till we meet again!

Bye Bye!

Trials| Colgate Optic White Kit (One shade whiter in one week!)

Afternoon!

The weather is so dreary this afternoon! It's overcast and still humid! If the humidity could tone itself down a bit, I would love this weather! So, I haven't mentioned this to anyone before, but I have an obsession with getting my teeth whiter! I don't know what it is with shiny, pearly whites, but they make me happy *laughs*. I guess my obsession can be attributed to the fact that I drink a lot of coffee (especially during exam time) and coke! These two bad boys stain my canines to pieces and every time I take a glimpse of my canines in the mirror I can't help but cringe at the light yellow stain that stares back at me (ew!). So I decided to test out Colgate's "Optic White kit!" that claims to get your teeth one shade whiter in one week!

I only used the toothbrush as a cheek and tongue cleaner because I hate manual toothbrushes *laughs* I find that mechanical toothbrushes clean much more effective than manual toothbrushes! I'd like to describe the toothpaste as the usual minty flavour, but there's something off about the flavour that says to you (don't keep me in your mouth for long). I generally hate mouthwashes because they burn the crap out of my mouth and their flavours are so strong I struggle to gargle for the recommended 30 seconds as suggested. The mouthwash in the optic white kit was no excuse, I absolutely hated it! I'll never get accustomed to the strong minty, burn your mouth out taste of mouthwashes! Despite saying that, I loved the clean feeling it left in my mouth after I gargled with it! I hate the feeling of plague build up on my teeth! I can safely say that the optic white kit has been keeping that feeling at bay. I feel to some extent that it keeps my teeth cleaner for longer especially since I've incorporated a mouthwash into my routine. 

Review| Rimmel Stay Matte Powder

Afternoon!

I've been in search for a setting powder for my oily combination skin for a couple of weeks now and finally stumbled upon one that actually works! Since my graduation is coming up, I'm trying to find products that won't leave a white sheen on my tan skin. It's safe to say that Rimmels stay matte powder doesn't leave any white sheen since the shade I picked it up in, is perfect for my skin tone! There isn't a shortage of shades in the Rimmel stay matte powder range and that's what I love about it! I hope you enjoy's today's post!

There are 6 shades in the Rimmel stay matte powder range (Pink blossom, silky beige, peace glow, sandstorm, warm beige, transparent). I don't know if it's just me, but I hate using powders that are translucent. I always find that there is a tinge of a white sheen left on my face, but why buy a translucent powder when you can buy it in your own shade and look perfect!

I don't have any gripes about the packaging, because I hardly go travelling so I can't say whether it's too big to take along with on a trip. The one fault in the packaging might be the fact that it works on a twist mechanism. So you twist the cap onto the product, there aren't any grooves to secure it. There are ridges in place but they offer very little security for the product itself. Over time though the secure grip tends to wear off, which means that the cap will slip off more easily. Which sucks if you want to keep it in your handbag!

Review| Yardley Long Wear Lips in Plumberry

Afternoon!

I've been loving the matte lip trend lately and since I'm wishing for Winter down here, I had to try my "lips" at the matte trend! I picked up Yardley's Long Wear lip color in Plumberry. I'm sure everyone knows I love my plum shades because I feel it suits my warm skin tone perfectly! I bought the lipstick for 99zar::$9.14 which is much cheaper than the other lipstick brands out there. Before we get into the review, I'll give you a break down of the state of my lips *laughs*. I have very dry lips that get chapped amazingly fast in Summer!

More after the jump!

Travel Log| Charly's Bakery! (Cape Town)

Evening!

Our last stop for tonight is the awesome bakery "Charly's Bakery!" For anyone that has cable...or DSTV down here in the south, you would have heard or watched Charly's Bakery. It airs on the Food Network channel and I use to watch it every. single. night. Finally when I went down to my home-town, my mum and I decided enough watching on the screen, we need to see them in real life and off we went! To my disappointment the bakery was packed! (I hate waiting in lines for anything) and it was really, really hot that day I can't express enough how hot it was in the bakery! It came to a point where I was sweating like a pig and melting in the bakery waiting for my baked goods. That being said, the cake was amazing! I heard someone say that if you haven't tried one of Charly's cakes you haven't tasted cake before (something along those lines) and they were right! We ordered a chocolate cake, smothered in chocolate sauce and a plain chocolate cake with chocolate shavings on top. Amazing! I loved everything I ate! I hope you enjoy today's post!

Travel Log| Hout Bay (Cape Town)

Afternoon!

The family and I just about managed to take a trip to the beach, because our time in my home town was minimal we had to squeeze everything in. I took a trip to Hout bay (Wood bay) in a previous post! As I've mentioned before in my previous post, I have fond memories of Hout bay because my mum would always take me there when I was young to escape from everyone and everything. On the day that we went to the beach, the wind started picking up and there was sand in my mouth, hurting my rook piercing, in my eyes...it was awful! Especially since I have a phobia of sand *cringe* The one thing that I didn't know about Hout bay is that it is one of the sixteen big wave spots around the globe. So for anyone who loves surfing and catching some waves, visit Hout bay! I hope you enjoy today's post!

Sculptures along the bay of the beach.

Travel Log| Spier (Stellenbosch)

Evening!

Our next stop tonight, is a restaurant nestled in the heart of Stellenbosch called Spier (said like Spear). For anyone that hasn't been down here (Cape Town) I'd say the three things one must do is, taste the seafood (always fresh!), visit Kirstenbosch (beautiful botanical garden) and take a trip to Stellenbosch. Stellenbosch has rows upon rows of vineyards, greenery and a never ending view of hills. It looks absolutely magical! Spier was the restaurant my family and I lost along the way and decided to go strawberry picking *laughs*. We didn't get a chance to sit and eat because it was packed! Trying to rent a picnic basket was like pulling out teeth because service was slow that day. So I have mostly outfit pictures to share tonight! Spier use to work on a "all you can eat till you pop" system, where you pay R250::$23.44 and you can eat until 2am in the morning. But now, you don't pay R250 you pay for what you eat, so it's more restaurant like. Which bummed me out, because I love buffet type restaurants! I hope you enjoy tonight's post!

Travel Log| Picking Strawberries at Polkadraai Farm (Stellenbosch)

Afternoon!

While I was in home-town, the family decided that it would be a good idea to pick strawberries! We couldn't find the restaurant we were in search for and kept getting lost, so we picked strawberries along the way *laughs*. At first I wasn't too keen about picking strawberries, because for one, it was extremely hot that day and it was packed to the max with eager strawberry pickers! But it was all worth it! The taste and scent of freshly picked strawberries is priceless! I hate store bought strawberries now, because they're sour and hard. The strawberries on the farm were soft, smelled like a strawberry and tasted like strawberry juice they were so sweet, it was heaven on earth! The only drawback was, you had to pay R3::$0.28 which isn't expensive but it worked on a weighing system (I generally hate weighing systems). The family ended up paying R100::$9.29 for a good 3kg::6.6lbs of strawberries. It was well worth it! I hope you enjoy the pictures!

Reflections| New Year, New Resolutions!

Afternoon!

I'm back! and boy am I glad to be back! It's nice and all to spend loads of time with the family and extended family, but they get tiring after a while *laughs* I've come down with some kind of stress "cold". I don't really consider it a cold just my body being spiteful to me *laughs* Today's post is all about "in the year of 2013" and some of the New years resolutions I have for the upcoming year ahead! I hope you enjoy today's post!

In the year of 2013:

Although 2013 wasn't the most joyful year for me (a close friend passed away because of liver problems, family problems and my last year of uni was the worst year of my life!) it had some highlights!

I finally took control of my bleeding disorder! I have never eaten properly (I hate red meat) and I don't eat a lot of food. I finally succumbed to the multi-vitamin and iron supplements that my doctors prescribed to me. Due to my bad eating habits, I would go into "relapse" for lack of a better word, where I would bleed a lot and my body would take weeks to recover from it, because my body doesn't produce red blood cells as fast everyone else's does. I finally realised that instead of looking at my supplements as something that was evil, the only way I was going to cope with this problem was to take them. I've never liked taking medication because I hate the fact that your body eventually relies on the medication to get better. But there comes a time and a place, and this was the time for me to start realising supplements will make me feel better.

I've always had body image problems, because I'm 1.55m (5'1) short with a pear-shaped body. It use to be the worst type of body shape in my eyes, because I would think to myself that I'm short plus curves then it must mean I look stubby/even shorter. After years of trying to come to terms with the fact that I'm never going to get rid of my hips no matter how little I eat or if I go on a diet, I've started embracing them rather than hating them. Curves are curves it doesn't mean I'm fat or big-boned it's the anatomy of my body and it's here to stay!

2013 was also the year I decided to correct my vision, I've had eye-sight problems for a while now actually, it didn't start last year. It's been developing over the years I would tell my mum that I have trouble seeing far but she resigned it to the fact that during uni and school your eyes are strained and they get tired. Last year was the tipping point, I was writing down something in class and when I looked up again I couldn't read anything off the board, I ended up copying my friends notes because I couldn't see *laughs*. Although being told that my eye-sight is just going to worsen at least I know that is what lies ahead of me in the future.

I finally started doing things that make me happy. I know it might seem weird but piercings are what make me happy, in a way I find it therapeutic *laughs*. I mostly study when uni opens, I don't go to parties or anything like that, so I'm a home-body you could say. So when I get piercings it's like my adrenaline rush, I love it!

The most valuable piece of advice/words of wisdom I have learnt in 2013 was from one of my mum's very close friends. It was her husband that passed away from liver problems and she said to my mum, that she doesn't want to be sad and depressed because there are other people in this world that are suffering more than she is. It made me realise how strong she really is, that even through a sudden loss she thinks and cares about others. She taught me to never think that I'm having it tough when uni decides to throw curve balls at me and life in general gets me down, I need to think about others and what other people are going through.

Resolutions for 2014:

• Work harder at uni, prepare well in advance!
• Enjoy the little things in life
• Appreciate my family more
• Help mum more with chores around the house
• Be more independent
• Learn that mistakes are OK when it comes to life and love
• Start saving up money for Europe tour in June/July

And one more thing! Without the continued support of everyone that reads my blog, my blog would probably be one of the many failed attempts that I've had at blogging in the past! Although I don't host huge giveaways/I rarely hold giveaways and I don't have outstanding photo's I still get awesome lovelies following my blog and for that I am eternally grateful for!

Till we meet again!

Bye Bye!