My friend Kelsey and I sat in a coffee shop surrounded by a wall of fake plants and aesthetically pleasing magazines carefully placed on the table beside our oat milk lattes. We sipped away the impressive latte art and endlessly laughed, as Kelsey used a napkin to write a list of all the... wanky things I said.

The list included sentence such as:

•  "I've just come from Hypnotherapy" 
• "the thing is I'm just trying to live my best life with the good vibes" 
• "that's an attractive magazine" 

... you get it, I'm a bit of a knob. A cliché millennial, the kind which is obsessed with mindful living and motivational quotes, so much so, sometimes I find myself cringing at the words that leave my mouth, and stopping myself hitting publish on blog posts because they are too much.

I like words and I've always been a fan of a good quote, usually the cheesier, the better. However, this is something I've often felt embarrassed by. Very few people can pull off cool girl vibes while writing poetry about the boys they fancy, and banging on about the law of attraction.

But I've realised it doesn't matter if I'm cool.
This is both obvious, and life-changing. It's somehow, it's taken me nearly 28 years to figure this out. 

It's important to me, that I'm authentic, true to myself. But something you don't get told about being your truest self is, that it takes balls. Especially if you've spent your life watering-down who you are, and diluting what you like through fear of judgement.

I used to get embarrassed when people found my old Tumblr account because I'd reblog poetry, quote and beautiful words, which make it clear, I have... feelings. Because people mainly don't talk about there feelings, or when they do, we're not living them so we don't understand the intensity of the thoughts which cross another person's mind. Sharing words which are crafted to make a person feel opens up some vulnerability. It also can feel like a way of inviting others to simply take the piss.

Now having said this, I've seen a lot of people create similar content to that which I used to reblog on Tumblr, and content similar to what I want to create, based around intentional living, or share emotional poetry as still come across cool af.

But they are not me, and I am not them.

I'm not effortlessly cool, instead, I'm a little cringe. So rather than deny it, it's time to lean into it.

I tried to post Instagram stories apologising for my cringy-ness, yet Instagram was not on my side, instead of posting I received a notification to say it has not worked, as if the universe simply was not allowing me to say sorry for being me. It felt like a sign.

I realised, coming off of my recent post about where my blog is going if I am going to take it where I want to take it, I need fully be me, I need to lean into my 'cringy-ness' because that's what feels authentic to me.


The same day that Kelsey and I wrote the list, I pulled out my portable phone charger. It's millennial pink and says good vibes on it (similar here), Kelsey laughed and said to me "you're such a wanker and I love it"

I think it's time I started to love it too.

 At the start of the year, I said I wanted to work with more brands on the blog... this blogpost is in partnership with Femme Luxe who kindly gifted my jeans and tee, how cute are they?! They're the perfect ripped high waisted jeans, and the tee is so easy to wear, both perfect for when I'm going for a casual look. All links will be at the bottom of the post!

Life has been full and fulfilling lately. I've been completing an internship with the sustainable fashion brand Lady K Loves, in hope that it will both teach me, and open doors. In all honesty, it's exceeded my expectations - I've learnt skills which I hope will help me improve this little website of my and be valuable in my career.

On finishing my internship, I've found myself with a new job, working for a Cruise company. I'll be doing social media, working from home, with flexible hours, which is exactly what I had been in search of. I'm really excited to throw myself into it (if you're into Cruises, I'll be sharing some pretty good deals on this facebook group)

Earlier in the year, I wrote this post about how I wanted to be more open to love, which leads me to my other big piece of news - I've found myself in a relationship. It's early days, but I am very happy. It's been a long time since I've had a romantic relationship, I almost forgot the magic they hold. Recently I've been living in a bubble with my boyfriend, soaking in the details of each other. It's been wonderful. I definitely don't think the romantic relationship is a requirement for happiness, I don't think I'd be in this one if weren't happy beforehand. But still, I feel like I'm floating now, floating and falling that is, and everything about it is enhancing my life. Unlike my usual approach, but I put blogging on hold for a couple of weeks because I realised creating memories mattered more. Because I knew, that the start of a relationship, this one especially matters, and I wanted to be present in that, rather than at my laptop.

I'm trying to figure out a balance. I definitely want to get back to weekly blogpost - and from now, you can expect them each Monday at 9.30am, but I also want to be present in my own life, and sometimes that requires not documenting and just living. I haven't come to a conclusion on this really, it's just going with what feels right at the moment, and making sure I'm organised enough to make sure that's possible.


So, there are my happy little updates, as my tee says

  Life's a peach.

Outfit Details

Tee: Femme Luxe (*gifted) | Jeans: Femme Luxe (*gifted) | Shoes: H&M (*affiliate link) | Lipstick: Sleek Matte Me in Shabby Chic (*affiliate link)




If there's any blogpost you'd like to see from me, please comment with your suggestions!


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Someday by David Levithan: 

I read the first two books in this series a few years back - you can read my review here - I didn't realise there was a 3rd book until recently when I stumbled upon it in Waterstones, and immediately needed to read it. The first book in the series tells the story of a character named A who does not have a body of his own, instead possess a different body each day, taking over the life of someone else for 24 hours. The third book, I found to expand that universe more. It becomes clear that A is not the only being to hop from body to body each day. It plays with the idea that you can choose to use this for either good or evil. It explores the loneliness of the character and offers the perspective of serval different characters from A and X who switch body daily, to more the ordinary people like Rihannon and Nathan who are in on their secret and others who are not. There are also snippets from an online forum, which again extends the universe beyond the main characters of the story. There's a poetic rhythm to David Levithan's writing throughout the novel. I loved it a lot, although, I did find the ending to be slightly underwhelming, however, I'm not sure if that was simply because I did not want to finish the book.

Our Stop by Laura Jane Williams: 

The rom-com tells the story of the characters Nadia and Daniel. Daniel noticed Nadia on a train and leaves a note for her on the missed connections newspaper page. From then the couple keeps missing each other, through this book it plays with the idea of nearly missing the love of your life and the idea of fate. Despite finding it a tad underwhelming and very predictable - it was very feel good and made me believe in romance again. It's very modern-day, funny. lighthearted and relatable.

What a Time To Be Alone by Chidera Eggerue: 

This book from the Slumflower, with it's illustrated pages and Nigerian proverbs throughout make for a great coffee table book. This book sits in the self-help genre, offering advice on confidence and relationships, both with yourself and others,  and discusses knowing your worth. There's a lot on white privilege which I found particularly interesting as it is something I've been trying to educate myself further on. I found this insightful and interesting, however in places, it did feel slightly repetitive and I definitely did not agree with everything the author said. Also, a lot of the content I'd heard Chidera talk about before on social media and in interviews - I was hoping it might delve deeper into soon of the points, having said that, the style of writing does make it very easy to digest. If you're struggling with your self-esteem this is definitely worth picking up.

The After Series by Anna Todd:

Open Road Summer by Emery Lord:

Open Road Summer is the Young Adult story of a girl called Reagan, who after breaking up with her bad-boy boyfriend decided to spend the Summer touring with her best friend Lilah, who happens to be a famous musician. Matt Finch another musician later joins the tour, and there's a little romance,  The story revolves around the theme of friendships, fame, toxic relationships, trust and more. All of the characters in this book have a lot of growth throughout. Despite covering some pretty serious topics, this story feels like a pretty lighthearted read. The style of writing makes it an easy read, and it has a poetic feel to it.

Essays in Love by Alain de Botton:

This book is unlike anything I’ve ever read before. It balances somewhere between the genre of romantic fiction and philosophical essays. It’s full of essays written based on the narrative between the two characters who fall in love. It follows them through the entirety of the relationship offering insights on love, heartbreak and relationship. It made me think about love in-depth. It’s intelligent and wonderful and the first time I’ve known theory carry so much emotion. When I gave it the attention it so rightly deserves, I was completely charmed by it.



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Here are some tips to help you fully relax on holiday:

- Only wear swimwear which fits you properly, and that you feel good in.

- Meditate:

- Be Organised Before You Go :

- Keep a Travel Journal: 

- Be Mindful with your Book Choice: 

- Turn Off Notifications: 

- Let People Know You're Going Away:

- Pack a Few Little Luxuries:

Holiday Shopping Ideas:

I hope you found this helpful and enjoyed seeing my holiday snaps
Love,
C x

When putting together #chloeharrietsbookclub, I found it most challenging choosing the perfect books for those months I was on holiday. (I returned home this week and can truly say, I made some great choices - reviews coming soon on my Instagram). What to read while I'm away, can really enhance how I feel about the holiday, that books and those characters will forever remind me of that trip, so it's important to get it right. I want to read something will add more chill to the holiday, not something which is going to leave me stressed, or crying on the beach. I remember choosing The Fault In Our Stars for my holiday reading a while ago before it was so well known, we lead to some pretty depressing beach reading. You want something lighthearted and empowering to reading during the Summer - so I've raided my bookshelves to find all the books which I think would be a great fit and put together a list of my recommended holiday reads, along with where you can read my more in-depth thoughts on the books.

So here are the books I'd recommend for planes and by the pool:

Young Adult Fiction:

• Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Leviathan - You can read my review here.
• To All The Boys I Loved Before by Jenny Hann - You can read my review here.
• The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky - Not so lighthearted, but the style of writing makes it a pretty easy read, and it's sort of lovely.
• Under Rose-Tainted Skies by Louise Gornall - You can read my review here.
• If Was Your Girl by Meridith Russo -  I posted my initial thoughts here
• Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon - You can read my review here.
• Every Day by David Levithan - You can read my review here.
• When We Collided by Emery Lord - You can read my review here.
• The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon
• A Quiet Kind of Thunder by Sara Barnard  -You can read my review here.
• Paper Towns by John Green - You can read my review here.
• Open Summer Road by Emery Lord - this is the one I read on holiday this year, and it made the perfect holiday read. I'll be talking about it more on my Instagram soon.

Memoirs:

• The Wrong Knickers by Bryony Gordon - You can read my review here.
• Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton - I posted some of my initial thoughts here.
• Ice Cream for Breakfast by Laura Jane Williams - I posted some thoughts here.
• Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert - You can read my review here.
• CTRL ALT Delete by Emma Gannon - You can read my review here.

Adult Fictions:

• Essays in Love by Alain De Botton - the other book I read on holiday this year, review coming to my Instagram soon.
• Call Me By Your Name by Andre Aicman - okay, this one might make you cry, but it's so wonderful I had to include it - You can read my review here.
• My Not So Perfect Life by Sophie Kinsella.

Self Help

• Playing Big by Tara Mohr - I talk about this a little here.
• You Are A Badass by Jen Sincero - I talk about it in this blogpost

I hope this is helpful! What books are your favourite summer books?
If you enjoy book content, you may also enjoy this playlist on my Youtube channel!

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So, here's a list of the little life-changer - because little things can make a big difference.

• The Wet Brush: Honest, this hairbrush makes such a difference. I didn't realise how knotty my hair was, how painful running a brush through it felt until I started using a wet brush. I didn't get on with the tangle teaser if anything I found it more painful to use, but the wet brush takes all of the pain out of hair brushing.
• Using a Mooncup: I started using a Mooncup last year, and I wouldn't go back to using pads and tampons. It takes the hassle and spending out of having to buy sanitary products each month, it's easy to use and personally I find it feels more hygienic. 
• Tracking periods - it's good to know where you can blame your mood on your hormones. I personally use the Clue app, but I know there are plenty of others around.
• Keeping longer socks and ankle socks in different drawers. It's probably a weird flex on my part, but it saves the frustration of looking for socks for some trainer socks and pulling out full-length fluffy bed socks.
• Changing the sound of your alarm something you actually enjoy listening to. Mine is a Harry Styles song, obviously.
• Meditation: I've spoken a million times about how great meditation is so I won't keep going on. If you're sceptical, just give it a try, I have this blog post on my favourite meditation apps!
• Not sleeping with your phone under your pillow, not checking Instagram the moment you wake up: You want to wake up with your focus being on you, not trigger comparison by spending too much time scrolling. I now have my phone set to lock the majority of my apps until 9am. On a good day when I get up at 6, that gives me a few phone-free hours, which allows me to have a more mindful morning.
• Having a Monzo account, using the pots to save money: I have saved more than ever since I got a Monzo account. I feel more aware of my finances, and I manage to save money without even realising by setting up pots. If you do want to sign up, follow this link and we'll both receive £5, win-win.
• Give your belonging homes. It's nice not to have to search for a pen every time you need one.
• Make your bed every morning
• Get your bag ready the night before
•  Don't go to things you don't want to go to. No is a word, use it, often and kindly.
• Keep your keys in the side pocket of your bag. It's just not necessary to have to empty you're belonging, after rummaging in your bag for 10minutes to simply get in the house.
•  Get a notebook with dotted paper  (or a bullet journal - which you can find blog posts on here and here, and some youtube videos here) I didn't realise what a difference this made, but honestly, those dots are life-changing.
• Start getting ready 10 minutes before you think you need to.
• Don't go shopping hungry: You just buy so much unnecessary food, which won't get eaten, and you'll spend more money.
• Just get up when your alarm goes off: Hitting that snooze button won't enhance your day.
• Do the purse/phone/keys check before you leave the house.
• Have a savings account. Actually, use it to save.
•  Know how much money is in your bank account, don't spend more than that amount.
• Portable phone chargers.
• Put sanitary products, lip balm, hair bands, grips and plasters into each of your handbags: They always come in handy.
• Step away from Instagram when you're feeling down: There's no need to see photos of beautiful, rich, successful girls when you feel crap
• Do that laptop update you've been pressing remind me tomorrow on the past year
• Clear a decent amount of space on your phone, get rid of the storage full notification
• You know those things you keep having to go to the next room to get? like phone chargers, and scissors? Buy more, have them in every room.

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If you read this post you'll know I recently started #chloeharrietsbookclub, now although this will usually mainly exists on my Instagram, I thought for my first two reads, I'd review them on here, as they were also bloody good ones.

Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

Why I choose this book:

A few months back I watched the film version of this story, unaware that it was based on a book and enjoyed it for an easy watch. During some charity shop browsing, I noticed it on the shelf and realised one of the authors is David Levithan who also wrote one of my favourite young adult books Everyday (review here) - that was the confirmation that I needed to read it.

Initial Thoughts:

I loved this book so much more than I expected to. I'm not much of a music person (I'm pretty much the only person in the world who isn't, I know) so with music being a central theme of the book, I wasn't sure if it would be for me - however, I was wrong. Although music is heavily discussed through the books, it's a relatable way, and music is used to emphasise the connection between the characters, the heartbreak they've both faced and the struggles with moving forward.

The Narrative:

It's a young adult read, which follows the story of how Nick and Norah meet and have a pretty significant night together. It begins with Nick seeing his ex-girlfriend in the crowd as his band plays, which leads to him asking a stranger to be his girlfriend for five minutes. His friends then set them up on a date with the girl, Norah. Nick and Norah spend an eventful night together, while they both deal with the repercussions of their previous relationships, their struggles with self-worth, and confusion about how they feel about each other v how they think they should feel about each other. Whilst seeing bands and exploring New York at night time.

Characters:

The book flicks between the first-person perspective of both Nick and Norah. I personally preferred the Nick chapters, as I found them easier to follow, and his character more relatable. Norah's tone of voice felt a little more chaotic, which really worked for her character, but sometimes was a tad more difficult to keep up with, although very clearly reflected some of the inner confliction Norah's character was facing.

Themes: 

Coming of age, unrequited love, music, sex

Favourite Quotes:

"When somebody breaks up with you, their beauty - which you took such satisfaction in - suddenly becomes unfair"

"I slipped into a surreal but true universe where we were over but I wasn't yet over it"

"Our world - don’t you just feel we’re becoming more fragmented? I used to think that when I got older, the world would make so much more sense. But you know what? The older I get, the more confusing it is to me. The more complicated it is. Harder. You’d think we’d be getting better at it. But there’s just more and more chaos. The pieces - they’re everywhere. And nobody knows what to do about it. I find myself grasping, Nick. You know that feeling? That feeling when you just want the right thing to fall into the right place, not only because it’s right, but because it would mean that such a thing is still possible? I want to believe that.” 

“There’s no such thing as ready,” she says. “There’s only willing.” 

"The world is broken. Maybe it isn’t that we’re supposed to find the pieces and put them back together. Maybe we’re the pieces. Maybe, what we’re supposed to do is come together. That’s how we stop the breaking."

"When is the night over? Is it the start of sunrise or the end of it? Is it when you finally go to sleep or simply when you realize that you have to?"

Rating: 

 8 out of 10

Overall:

 Although this book wasn't exactly your traditional epic love story, I completely fell in love with it. I enjoyed both authors writing styles and found it to be both easy to read and completely enchanting.

 As midnight came rolling around on New Year's Eve, I found myself crying while the rest of the world was celebrating. It was not glamorous. On what normally is my favourite day of the year, I felt defeated and sad. Although not my usual for New Years, it was not unusual for me to feel this way, as though life was too much.

In the morning, I wiped away my tears and made a decision. The decision that I was going to like my life. I wanted to like my life when my dreams were coming true, and more importantly, I wanted to like my life when they weren't. I wanted to like my life when I felt lost, and I wanted to like my life while I figured things out.

On the most part - I like my life now. A lot of days I love it. My circumstances haven't changed, at all really but my mindset has.

Now, I'm not talking about moods, because moods are supposed to be changing, and we can't all be 100% happy all of the time. I'm prone to a bad mood every now and then - which I'm sure is relatable. I'm talking about living life to the full, not in the sense going on some great adventure, but to a standard of full for me. A life where the things I do, big or small speak to my soul. A life where the little things matter. Where ever I am at with my goals my life is serving me. Where no matter how big my problems are, I can still enjoy a cup of tea and appreciate the sunset.

Everything about it is cheesy and cliché,  but I'm happy, and if it's cheesy clichés which makes me happy, heck I'll go with it.

So here are my tips to shift your mindset:

Meditation 

I try to meditate daily, it doesn't always happen but that's what I aim for. I find using a meditation app the easiest way to do this. The meditation app Headspace first taught me how to be mindful. It was practising meditation when I hardly understood it, that made me realise I have control over my mindset. That my thinking, and breathing each moment is affecting how I'm feeling and acting. I wrote a full blog post on the meditation apps I love which you can find here if you're interested to find a meditation app which will work for you. At the moment my go-to is Happy, Not Perfect.

Create a to a routine:

A mindful routine that is. A routine which you like. Mornings should be more than rolling out of bed to the sound of your alarm which you hate, skipping breakfast and rushing out the door. If you want to have a great day the chaos of snoozed alarms and no time to shower is not a way to begin it. You want your day to begin it a way which makes you feel good and sets you up for whatever the next 24 hours might bring. If all hell breaks loose that day, you want to know, you at least had a nice morning. The same goes for the evenings. You should actually take some time to wind down - you owe yourself that. (If you're interested in hearing more about my evening/morning routines I'll have full videos on them on my Youtube channel in the next few weeks).

Use time wisely:

 If we don't pay attention, time gets away from us and before we know it, our day has been unproductive, and we feel like crap about it. I want a life where I value and make the most of every moment. Again cringe and cliché but true. I wrote this blog post a while ago on how to make the most of your time. I've found calendar blocking has been a great way for me to see where the hours in my day are going, there's a full video on how I do it here. Anything you enjoy, whether that's binging Netflix or going to the gym, it not a waste of time, as long as you're prioritising your time well.

Make friends and have friends who inspire you:

 I don't make friends with anyone. Go to events and clubs of the things you love, and you'll find people you have things in common with. Your friends should be picked carefully because you shouldn't be giving your time to people who don't make you feel good. You want your friends to enhance your life, lift you up and leave you feeling positive. Friends should feel like platonic soulmates, not someone you find spending time with exhausting. There's so much joy to find in new friendships. I will talk about how to make friends as an adult more in an upcoming Youtube video, so keep your eyes peeled.

Be creative 

 This year I've begun being creative, simply for myself. I started painting again, and began going to life drawing classes - and I've just enjoyed doing it for me. On the days which have been harder, sketching has been a great escape, and on the best days, it's just as therapeutic.

Exercise outside 

Somewhere along the lines, going running has become one of my favourites parts of my day - I eased myself into it by doing couch to 5k (which I'll finish next week!). I run outside, I use exercise as an excuse to be in nature and it feels good. It gives you a chance to take in the world, or listen to podcasts while getting a sweat on.

Embrace failure: 

When you fail, it's usually because you've been working towards something. It's not a loss, It's evidence of the work. For me, this year has been full of unsuccessful interviews and failed driving tests, which at times has been hard, but I've been trying to look at these failures as stepping stones to get where I need to be, rather than dwelling on the loss of something which I never actually had.

Second a day: 

I used the one-second everyday app, where you film a second of your day, and it collates the seconds into a video. I began it, not as an act of mindfulness, but after seeing this video and thinking 'that's cool'. But as I began to use the app, I noticed myself paying more attention to the lovely parts of even the most boring days in search of a second to film. I noticed sunsets more and appreciated the time I had to read. Filming just a second a day, made me pay attention to making the seconds worthy.

Savour moments:

 This year I've learned the small moments often matter more than we give them credit for. Life is better when you taste your food and read without wondering how close you are to finishing your book. I've been practising savouring moments with a cup of tea recently. Taking time out of the to-lists to sit with a hot drink and enjoy it. I was kindly gifted with plenty of loose leaf tea sampler boxes from Adagio Teas (and this amazing tea infuser mug which is bringing me so much joy!) I've been enjoying taking a break from my day to try the different flavours. I've particularly been loving the earl grey-green in the morning and the lavender lemon before bed.

Tea Giveaway!

I will also be giving away several sample packs of Adagio Tea's because they're adding an extra pocket of joy to my day, and I want to share that with one of my readers! I have begun trying and sharing teas with friends, so a lot of the boxes have been opened, as I've dipped into a few of the sample sachets. I have the boxes:  Orchard Herbals, and Teas of India and Sri Lanka which are completely untouched so you can win these, along sample sachets of many of their different black teas (including earl grey moonlight, blueberry, cream, mango iced tea and more), white teas (including white peach, white blueberry and more) and herbal teas (including lemongrass, chamomile and more) and oolong teas (including grapefruit oolong, almond oolong, and vanilla oolong)  you can choose which flavours appeal to your taste, and I'll box them up for you. From most of the boxes, you'll get around 40 cups of tea! I will, of course, send a full list of the teas I have to offer to the winner, so they'll get a full choice over flavours they receive! Make sure you leave a twitter/Instagram handle, or email address in the comments so that I can contact you if you're the lucky winner!

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