My journey to pink hair!

For ages I wanted to do something different with my hair, everyone seemed to be doing stuff, highlights,fringes, but I wasn't daring enough to cut it. 

I decided to get pink bits put in the end of my hair, but pale pink. I bought this;

It was rubbish, it literally did nothing to my hair. It does recommend use for bleached hair, but seeing as you are meant to leave it on for 5 minutes I thought that it would work if I left it on for longer. 

I left it on in foils for over an hour and there was about 2 tiny pale parts of pink that were barely visible. 

I would not recommend this for people with dark blonde hair. Remember it's a toner not a dye so it's meant to be used all over the head instead of conditioner weekly.

I then went and bought a second dye, which looked very bright and I was scared of:L

As soon as I took the fouls off to wash it out, it was incredibly bright!

I LOVE IT

I've now had it in for nearly a month and it has faded quite a bit but to a cute pale pink, I wanted it gone for school in September but I'll be sad to see it gone I really love it!

As soon as it was done

About 3 weeks later.

I definitely recommend this dye for someone who wants coloured hair semi-permanently.

Lots of love,

Gracicle XOX 

Review: Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs (Medium)

Recently, the weathers been really nice, around 22 degrees everyday, so most people have begun to get their legs out. Me included.

I decided to give my legs a bit of a tan, and be brave and use the Airbrush Legs, as I found the product to be quite intimidating.

My brother bought it for me of my birthday last year, however I took one look at the colour and thought 'woah this is way too dark and orange for me' However, it was the only thing I could use last night as I lost my tanning mitt.

First of all the packaging is really nice and sleek, claiming to give 'perfect legs in an instant'.

The instructions are to 'spray directly onto hand and apply evenly all over legs', which freaked me out as I thought 'I'm gonna have an orange hand and streaky legs' 

THIS WAS NOT THE CASE

You have to shake the product really well before use, yet it's still really really brown when you spray it onto your hand, this was probably only because I had the shade Medium Glow. Once you actually rub it onto your legs it gives a really nice colour, rubs in easy, and a little goes a fairly long way:)

I was worried about having streaky legs, but once you get the product all over your legs, it's easy to rub in and see where you've missed, when you've finished just spend a couple of minutes rubbing your hands up and down your legs just to cover them.

It dried really quickly too, you have to wait a minute before dressing, and it doesn't have a fake tan smell, it smells a bit weird when you're applying the tan, but once it's on your skin the smell goes:)

I will definitely be using this a lot more often, as I have a really even tan now, that is brown but not orange, I would recommend this product a lot!

Just one final thing- Don't forget to wash your hands after this using plenty of soap to get all the tan off them!!

Happy tanning!

Lots of love,

Gracicle xox

**btw does anyone know why the writings suddenly gone red?

Guide to GCSE's

Recently I finished my GCSE's, I still can't believe it.

Since year 7 you're told, 'you'll soon be a year 11 doing your exams!' and suddenly I've finished them.

They went okay, you always think 'I'm gonna revise so much for maths and I'll know everything' but honestly, it's mainly day before revision, as you only have a day or two between exams, so sacrificing one subject for another is inevitable really.

I managed to stay stress free during my exams which shocked me as you dread them and think you'll be so stressed, but there's really no need to be, here's how I stayed stress free, and I'll be sure to do a post on results day to see whether my techniques worked:L

Here's my Guide to GCSE's!

1) Revision guides.

These are SO USEFUL! I didn't use my excersize books at all, these have everything you need to know! Get one for every subject, most have questions in them, and you can get maths workbook ones which are helpful:) these really are a godsend, you can take them anywhere with you, just make sure you get the right exam board! THEY ARE A MUST HAVE! 

2) Mindmaps 

I made loads of these, making colourful ones helps so much really, I had 3 steps, read the revision guides, condense each page or topic into a Mindmap then make a flash card from the mindmap. Make A4 ones for topics, and A3 ones with important facts or dates you need to remember.

3) Flashcards.

Leading on from my last point, Flashcards are amazing they helped me so much I can't explain they are the most useful things and make revising easy. I made thousands for all different subjects with condensed points in shorthand. And made some question and answer ones so I could test my friends, which is beneficial to you too because if you asked a friend to explain mitosis for example and they couldn't, you can then explain it to them using the card, and teaching others is the most effective way to remember information.

4) Highlighters

I must have used 30 highlighters during study leave, they really are useful. I used them for revision guides to highlight important information, which you can then use to make Flashcards etc. then highlight the Flashcards with stuff you are struggling to learn. You can use then for almost anything, definitely stock up on these in the weeks leading up to your exams:)

5) Find a place

I'm sure you've heard this before, but you should find a place to revise. Mine was the dining table, it wasn't the best place but I could lay out all my work, do an hour then come back and pick it up again. I also liked to revise in the dining room because people would walk in and out, and I can't concentrate when I shut myself away, as stupid as that sounds, I have to have noise and people around me. My best friend would sit at the coffee table in her living room with the tv on in the background, same as me she can't revise in silence. It does help because after a while once you sit in your place you get into the work mindset and it makes working and revising easier to do.

6) Friends

Our school allowed us to come into school whenever we want and sit and revise with friends, this was helpful as lots of people felt they could revise better at school. I find revising with friends easier because you can get help on things you are struggling on and you can also sit and chat, it helps ease stress because you know that you aren't the only one going through the exam and the workload, and it also means you can take  regular breaks and don't get too weighed down under your revision. Also take weekend days off! I would sometimes work on a Saturday, go to Ella's Saturday night then on Sunday we would do something fun and test each other a bit with Flashcards I had made on the Saturday, or questions from a revision guide.

7) Exam Timetable

MAKE ONE

Loads of people made revision schedules. They don't help. Nobody sticks to them and you just feel guilty and awful when you don't stick to them and it adds to your stress, make an exam one instead, or download an exam timetable app, then you can cross out your exams once you've done them and see how many days you have left and it makes exams much more manageable. Plus it's a great feeling crossing off an exam!:)

8) Past Papers.

These are very useful, especially for maths, you can see the format of questions and the timing and it's like doing a pretend exam! Science ones are also useful, although admittedly I didn't do many science ones I prefer using the revision guide. They're handy because teachers can see what has come up in past exams and guess what topics are going to come up in your exam. DON'T REVISE BY THEIR GUESSES THOUGH! 

Sometimes topics come up 2 or 3 years in a row, so don't risk it and do selective revision! Revise everything:)

9) Doodle/Make notes

It seems rude to do it in class, but studies have shown doodling actually improves concentration. Still, maybe instead of doodling in class, make notes. Not thousands! You should just write down one or two key points, maybe of a topic you don't understand, then you can look over them when revising. I did this especially in physics.

10) Teach

Be a teacher! Teaching others about a topic helps you understand it better as you can find your own way to explain things:) its proven that teaching others is the most effective way to revise.

Teach family, or even a pet! You can also teach friends on topics they don't understand, which helps both of you.

11) Revision Sessions

If your school is anything like mine, there will be loads of revision sessions.

Personally, I said I would go to all of them, then went to hardly any. To be honest, they're not that helpful. Mine were ones where the teacher asks for topics you want to go over, and for the most of them, there wasn't anything I didn't especially understand, I just went along and it was a waste of time.

I suggest maybe going to one, seeing what it's like then doing your own revision. I find it more helpful revising on your own than going through topics you already understand, to benefit others. Then if you find there's anything you don't understand, go to another revision session before you exam.

Honestly, don't feel guilty if you don't go to many.

12) Look, Cover, Recite

You'll probably not have used this method since primary school spelling, however this is the only way I found to see whether you actually have learnt anything. Use it for revision cards. I made Flashcards on apps on my iPad, then used this method to check I knew everything the day before the exam.

13) Relax

It's not the end of the world seriously, you've still got A-levels, college, apprenticeship, these exams won't determine the rest of your life.

If you get all upset and stressed then you're going to do worse and find the exams harder, so you need to balance work and play, to make sure you don't freak out. Just don't panic:)

Hope this was helpful, coming from someone who finished their exams less than 2 weeks ago!:)

Lots of love,

Gracicle XOX 

Barcelonaaaa

In half term of this year, me and my family went to Barcelona. Admittedly I didn't want to go, as I had my exams in a few weeks and all the teachers had said 'don't go in holiday you need to revise!!' So of course my family booked a holiday.

It was really good, it's a beautiful place and the weather was amazing! I couldn't fully enjoy myself though as I always felt guilty that I wasn't revising:( here are some pictures, I highly recommend Barcelona, definitely visit there if you get a chance!!

La Sagrada Familia, should be finished by 2026/2028, it's beautiful:)

Lots of love,

Gracicle xox

Braces:D

I had braces put on on the 19th January 2012, I had horrendous teeth, I had tiny baby teeth which had to be removed, and 'fangs' which were attatched to my bond so wouldn't move on their own.

For years I had a rubbish dentist who wouldn't refer me to an orthodontist, until I persisted as I was so self conscious about my teeth, I used to cry because I hated them so much.

He eventually referred me to an orthodontist, who was appalled as I should have had braces put on when I was about 10/11, not 14. She told me I had an overbite, and a whole list of things wrong with me, so after having 7 teeth removed, I had braces put on.

People with braces try to describe the feeling, my mum said its like 'someone pulling on your teeth', but as a child I would pull on my teeth going 'but it doesn't hurt!'

Unless you have braces, you can't really explain how it feels, and everyone seems to have different braces, and different ways of treatment.

I could have coloured bands, some people had a coloured bang wrapped around the actual wire not the bracket. Mainly I had multicoloured braces, they were so cheerful:)

Having them tightened is so painful, until gaps close up, then it's not so bad, but you do get bad headaches and can't eat properly for a while:(

They're definitely worth it! I'm so glad I had mine, even though I have to wear a horrid retainer which aches and isn't the most hygienic of things..

Get ready for some posey pictures!

 Me with braces, ignore the fact that me and Ella are posing with my dads watch...

PROM

Everyone gets exited about prom, it's practically a 2 year build up to this one special occasion which will be spectacular.

To be honest it's a bit of a let down.

Well, ours was anyway. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it, but it was just a school disco. I couldn't manage with my shoes on for long, someone stood on and ripped my dress and someone else stood on my bare foot with stilettos. It was great cos the whole year was there and everyone looked fantastic, almost too grand for the local hotel ours was held at, the food was horrible, leftovers, and none of the teachers really made a speech. It would have been so much better with a meal and a PowerPoint about our year. Another thing that would have made it so much better was if my friend Fallon had gone, she was so looking forward to it but she was really poorly and everyone missed her:(

I did enjoy the dancing though, particularly karaoke classics such as Grease and Abba.

Another thing that let me down was my dress, I liked my dress, but everyone else had theirs months before prom, well I was having mine made, a dress I totally fell in love with, it was my dream dress which I was promised by the end of March (my prom was in April) and it should have looked like this,

The company making it were legitimate. We found them at a wedding fair with dresses they'd already made, and the daughter of the owner showed me pictures of the dress they made her, so I had no reason not to doubt them.

I emailed this picture twice and specified what colours etc so it looked the most like the picture, they promised to ring me and email me pictures of the progress, however they never did.

The week leading up to prom I hadn't heard from them and I was panicking so much I genuinely made myself ill, I rang them everyday, 'where's my dress?' 'It should have been shipped but we haven't got a tracking number yet' until the Wednesday before prom, which was on a Friday, I rang them and they said they had my dress.

I was so exited! During the dress dilemma I was dreading prom, the worry totally ruined the build up everyone else was feeling. Anyway, they turned up and they had made the wrong dress. I was devastated. It was nothing like the picture, badly made and just awful.

I looked dreadful, it was too big, the jewels were falling off and I was so upset. They claimed they had no picture to copy from, but I emailed them twice and they could have just googled 'Sherri Hill 21053'. 

It was terrible, after they had gone I just cried for ages, it seems silly to cry that much over a dress, but imagine having found your dream dress 5/6 months before prom and fell in love with it, then ended up with no dress practically the day before prom. I had my shoes, but then knowing I needed to get a dress quickly, I didn't know whether they would match, or if I would even find a dress I liked.

The only thing I knew was, I wanted a high neck dress.

Debenhams to the rescue! The day after, me and mum went to meadowhall, a shopping centre in Sheffield, we had to find a dress, I was close to saying I wasn't going.

Debenhams was the first shop we went in and I found this gorgeous, elegant, purple dress, tried it on and loved it, it wasn't too different from the one I had originally chosen, however I decided to look around, see what else I could find.

This was the first dress I tried on. I also found these dresses.

But I didn't like the others as much as I liked the first one. Eventually we went back to that one and I just loved it, it was a god-send.

We bought it, and a giant silver clutch from Henry Holland, and I was over the moon.

When we got home I tried the dress on again, and looked at the Facebook page my year had made, containing everyone's dresses, I realised mine was quite old fashioned and maybe a little old-ladyish, so mum to the rescue! We stayed up late customising the dress, then she went to town the day of school and added some glitter to it while I was at school, I went back to my best friends house after school, so I was basically seeing it for the first time. It was perfect. 

 Mums customising

Anyway, it all worked out for the best:D I went back to Ella's house after school, we had our hair done and did our makeup, then our friend Christy joined us, and she had organised a vintage Rolls Royce to take us. They both looked gorgeous, I will insert some pictures of us before we left:)

 My bestie Ella

Christy didn't like her dress, but she definitely looked amazing!

 Cheesy sister pic

 Mummy pic, aw my mums so little

Sibling picture! (Christy and her little brother, Ella's older brother and his lovely girlfriend, and me and my little sister also called Ella)

I love this picture:D

Finally here's some pictures of the actual night:D 

 Head teacher in a kilt lovely

 WE COULDN'T COPE WITH HEELS

 Me and Claire are so elegant as you can see;)

I've mainly moaned about the bad parts:L it was a really good evening with all my friends, and it was great to see everyone all dressed up and we had lots of photos, it was a fun way to spend time with my year group as we've now left school, which I can't believe!:(

 

After prom we were shattered:L enjoy a few final poses 

Lots of love, Gracicle xox