Hold up, I’mma let you finish reading but…

I haven’t had the chance to do any photography this weekend, so let’s all enjoy a throw back to Summer, sunshine and being able to take blog photos whenever you want. Not just in the 30 minutes of lightness per day.

1. Counting Down to Christmas

This Sunday, me & Craig (who you can read about here) headed off to Blackburn to get some bits for mini-break this week. And I felt amazingly Christmassy. We picked up some gifts, listened to Christmas songs and had Black Forest Hot Chocolates from Costa as we drove past the snow capped hills. Ahhh roll on the big day!

2. New Hair

I made a snap decision this week and the blonde has gone. I repeat the blonde has gone. I’ve now got a shoulder length hair that’s brown blending into a warm copper. And I feel as sassy as a sassy thing. Plus you can read my hair care tips here, if you want to give yours a treat.

3. Things to Look Forward To

This year one of the things I wanted to work on was planning more things to look forward to. Although life at the moment is pretty darn dandy, having something on the horizon can make all those long work days seem that bit easier to endure. The next thing coming up is a trip to Amsterdam and I cannot wait.

4. Silly Ideas

I spent my Sunday afternoon watching the boyfriend attempt to fish cherries (and stalks) out of four cold hot chocolates. What about you babes? Looking back, buying a round from Costa before heading home down the motorway wasn’t the brightest idea. However sometimes you’ve just got to be a bit daft.

5. Old Traditions

Recently my mum attempted to show me how to make a 3d paper star from four strips of paper. I am still totally flummoxed on how to make them, but I really want to learn how to master them.  I’m told by a girl at work that in Poland (her home country) they teach children how to make them in Primary school. But to me they always remind me of my mum and Christmas.

6. Quick Pampering

I’d love to say I’m one of those women that have enough free time to go off for weekly pamper sessions. Though weirdly work, uni and blogging seems to get in the way some how *insert thinking face emoji here*  A few days ago however I did a Garnier Moisture Bomb Tissue Mask. Was it relaxing? Not really, but my skin does look a billion times better for it.

7. A Full Time Job

I think we all have days where work is just ‘Uhh.’ And when you’re going in day after day you can start taking having a job for granted, however its only when you know someone who is looking for work you realise how lucky you are to have safe, steady employment and a promise of money at the end of the month.

I’ve wanted to get in to the swing of having a weekly structured blog post for a while now, but could never find one that seemed to fit. I can’t promise a grand selection of new buys every week, and ‘Outfit of the Week’ just seems a little bit done. Or maybe it’s the dark evenings that are putting a dampener on it.

To be honest, it’s hard to blag people into a post work photo shoot when the temperatures are below zero and they’d have to bring their own torch.

When I saw Little Miss Katy’s Happy Mondays post, I liked the idea and thought I’d put my own twist on it. So every week I’ll be post seven things I’m thankful for. Hopefully it’ll make both you and me appreciate the little things a bit more.

So year, without any more waffling here we go:

1. Old Friends

On the Saturday just gone one of my oldest friends came home from London and we went out for good food and even better conversations. As much as I appreciate my newer friends; there is nothing quite like being with someone who knows all your embarrassing moments and is ready to share their own.

2. Gift Guides

*Sound the crappy girlfriend claxon* Me and Craig have been together since March, and although I know what his interests are I wouldn’t be able to tell you the ins and outs of them. So oh boy am I thankful for gift guides. To be fair, a lot are rubbish and samey-samey but when you find one dedicated to the niche you need they can be a goldmine of inspiration.

3. Cold Crisps Mornings

Even when your hungover and grumpy. Is there anything that can make you feel more awake, inspired and festive than getting wrapped up and getting out there?

4. Herbal Tea

How grown up and mature am I? But seriously, after the crisp cold morning a herbal tea is just heaven.

5. Solidarity

In life we have times when we feel wronged, or like things aren’t going our way. It’s a shame but its true. Thankfully nothing lightens the weight like knowing others feel the same and understand your stance.

6. Lazy Days

As it gets to closer to Christmas everyone is talking about Christmas shopping. And then there’s all the other things that have to be done. But sometimes you just need to stay in bed with your partner til 3pm or wander round a sleepy town doing nothing but drinking hot chocolate. It’s good for the soul.

It’s especially good for the soul if you go the whole hog and get whipped cream on top. Trust me babe.

Sometimes it can make me feel guilty to ‘waste’ a day but it shouldn’t. I did write about this here, if you get like that too.

7. Kind Words

Kindness can come from unexpected places, and that’s one of the things I’m thankful for. When I shared this post, on my Facebook I got some truly lovely comments from people that I wouldn’t have imagined reading my blog, let alone taking the time to comment. It seriously made my day.

I’ve been flirting with the idea of a little old blog re-design for what felt like years. I wanted pretty sliders, to show off my latest posts. I wanted more freedom to change things up and I wanted an overall more ‘glossy’ look. I guess I wanted to keep up with the cool kids.

I feel like as a person I’ve changed a lot this year – so surely my blog should reflect this in it aesthetics? Or at least that is the excuse I used to finally take the plunge. I’d have bursts of enthusiasm, and spend hours gazing at blog themes on Pipdig and Themeforest, imagining my content (all with better quality photos, of course) in the neat, modern boxes. Then it would creep into my consciousness – having  one of those themes would mean taking my blog self-hosted.

Fear always put me off… I’m not terrible at the tech stuff but I’m not exactly brilliant either. Plus I was in two minds about you know, actually investing in the blog…. as awful as it sounds. My blog is a hobby and though I’d eventually like to take it up a level I’ve not put the work in to get it there, nor is it at the top of my list. I love my blog, I do.  It’s my baby and my therapist all in one – but things like family, friends and paying the bills take priority so sometimes I don’t give it the attention it deserves.

After many months of on-and-off Googling, review reading and blog stalking, I’ve took the plunge.

The company I chose to host my blog is called TSOHOST. The reviews on forums and Twitter seemed on the whole positive and the ones that weren’t were usually commented on by a member of the TSOHOST team, offering a solution. I liked that they were based in the UK and had round the clock support – which is vital when you work 9-5 in the real world then blog in your free time. The prices were competitive too. I did initially want to migrate my blog from wordpress.com to TSOHOST myself but fell near enough at the first hurdle, so requested the free migration service.

I was emailed and told it could take three working days to move the site, and as I’s made the request on the Saturday of a Bank Holiday I figured it would take agggesss. Surely lots of other people would be doing this over the long weekend, purely because they didn’t have time during the week? I felt like I was on tenterhooks, waiting for something to go wrong. I visited my own site more than ever, on the lookout for down time. I had approximate 50 conversations with family members who just sat there with mildly annoyed, with blank faces. Then an email arrived. The little geniuses had managed it in a day. I wish I’d known earlier how smoothly going self-hosted could be. I know that sounds a bit like one of those cheesy pop up ads, but seriously. I thought it would be full of ‘something’s gone wrong’ emails but it went without any problems.

The new dashboard did take some time to get used to. I knew my blog was there *somewhere* but could not find it for the life of me. Once I found it, logging onto WordPress.org with the new log in details did also cause a minor break down and some emergency chocolate. However, now I’m in I’ve just bookmarked the page and voilá.

So would I recommend taking a blog self-hosted? Yes. It’s not nearly as faffy as it sounds, and all the little extras that can help with SEO and analytics make you feel like a girl boss. I feel that there are many good free themes on WordPress.com and if you’re only going to post once a month they are perfect but if you want something a level up, going self-hosted is a must. Plus having you blog look all shiny and new is nearly as good a feeling as finding one of those dresses that make you go “bloody hell I’m hot” quietly in the changing room.

When I wrote the draft for this  body image blog post, I was sat round the pool in a glittering bronze bikini, my hair had been quickly pulled up into a messy bun and the only makeup I was wearing was lipstick (of course) and my eyebrows.

And I started writing this post, because despite weeks of secret bikini-induced anxiety, I was feeling pretty darn good. Surprisingly good. One of my goals this year has been to feel good about how I look at least 80% of the time. I don’t want to say 100% because let’s face it, even if I were to look like Rosie Huntington-Whitely I’d probably have hormone fuelled days where I would just wondered why I had to look the way I do.

Ever a fan of basic quotes, one popped up in Pinterest recently that read “If you wouldn’t say it to your best friend – don’t say it to yourself” and for some reason it really hit home. Hard. I’d like to clarify that I have some amazing best friends, girls that I don’t hesitate to ring or to send cringe worthy texts too. However I am pretty sure, like me, you have carried yourself through more times than any best friend could. While you might call your best friend in tears, you’ve also been there for yourself during the darkest, most distraught moments where all you can do is hide under the duvet, hoping the world doesn’t find you. You’ve got yourself through those moments, you deserve nicer thoughts. Nicer treatment.

Would you tell your best friend that she has thighs bigger than the entire population of Instagram? Or the fact she had desert last night means she’s *probably* going to fail at life in general? No? Then why say it to yourself.

I’ve been trying to practise this advice, and yes some days are harder than others. It’s an on-going battle but trust me when I say it is worth it. Making a conscious, active effort to be nicer to myself in relation to body image, has led to other accidental changes. It’s changed the way I view myself. I no longer fear getting my legs out because they’ve got scares. They’re a bit speckled and that’s that.

Body image has always been a bit of a tricky issue for me, like most people. My teenage years were spent wondering boobs, where you at? Feeling smug about having a small waist, and then promptly mourning its loss. In fact, you can read my first ever body image post here. *Disclaimer – I am not responsible to any eye injuries caused by my previous terrible photography.

Learning to redefine my ‘flaws’ has also led me to take a new perspective with other people. When I find myself getting annoyed with people (and let’s be honest, some people for whatever reason can annoy you) the habit of being nicer kicks in. I may be annoyed but I can take a step back and try to find something positive about them, if not the situation.

I can’t sit here (post-holiday) and tell you that if you just try to be a bit nicer to yourself you will feel fine and sassy every single day. But I can promise you this: even if some days you can’t be nice to yourself about how you look – just try to catch the negatives, recognise that you’re being negative, and let it go. Don’t feel guilty about being mean, we all do it. Just realise one thought does not make it your truth.

If you can make even the tiniest effort to be nicer to yourself, or at least realise the moments you are being less than positive you might find that your world slowly starts to fall into place. Or at the very least you may actually enjoy getting your bikini out, because dammmnnn gurl, you look fine.

*Notebook in the featured image was bought from Sainsbury’s and similar can be found here.