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Grammymania

We’ve had our fair share of amazing performances, envy-inducing outfits, and celeb shocking moments (need I remind you of the Kanye West- Taylor Swift incident a few years back), during the reign of The Grammy’s, but last night’s was, for me, one of the best…

However much I do love watching The Grammy’s, the fact that I live in the UK means I would have to stay up all night to watch it live, which is something I am just not prepared to do (for the sake of myself and for the others who encounter me the next day). So, therefore, I woke up extra early this morning and took to the internet to read up on everything that went down whilst I was fast asleep….

And what can I say? This year definitely did not disappoint. We had a Beyoncé and Jay Z collaboration, we brought Paul McCartney back (again) as he performed with fellow Beatle, Ringo Star, and we had the awkward moment when Taylor Swift thought she’d won an award but it turns out she hadn’t…and it was all caught on camera for our viewing pleasure.

But, as ‘The Sound of Music’ taught us, we should always start at the very beginning (as it’s a very good place to start), and so we will…

 

Red Carpet Outfit Envies-

 
 

Miss Swift, what a delightful dress you wear. I actually love this dress. Its metallic silver, its shimmery and its very slimming-oh the power of three. It’s beyond elegant with the sheer silver panel at the top and the body-skimming style- suiting her ‘innocent’ celeb personality perfectly.

 

I mean, seriously B?! As if we didn’t already have enough reasons to envy you! Queen B looked stunning in this cream lace embroidered Michael Costello gown. It was elegant and not too risqué (unlike her performance one may say), but at the same time she stayed true to herself and showed off her bootylicious figure with the help of those nude panels. And, can I just add, I absolutely love her hair! At first I wasn’t keen on the bob, but now I’m a changed woman- the power of the Queen, eh?

 

 

Now, even though I wouldn’t choose it myself, I do still love this dress. Katy Perry never ceases to amaze me with her fashion confidence (remember that time she wore a tiger-print dress and grills?!). This gown is a ‘straight-off the runway’ Valentino with a full flowing skirt of musical notes- ‘a musical dress for music’s biggest night’ as she very rightly described it. But it seemed she wasn’t happy with just one outfit, or two outfits, or even three…as she donned a total of FOUR outfits throughout the evening- indecisive, I think so!

 

But aside from the red carpet glamour, this year’s Grammy’s was also filled with many a memorable performance.

• Firstly we had that Beyoncé and Jay Z performance of ‘Drunk in Love’ which allowed them to maintain their status as celebville’s most powerful couple (sorry Kim, sorry Kanye).

• We then had Katy Perry’s dark and theatrical ‘Dark Horse’ performance where she wore yet another outfit and was at one point stood in the middle of a ring of fire- how dramatic.

• Then, we had Swify’s piano performance of ‘All too well’ (possibly her next single) in which she even managed to get her signature ‘hair-swoosh’, ‘head-bang’ move in. I don’t think I’ve ever witnessed a head bang during a ballad but hey, it was a night of firsts as Kanye even managed to stay off the stage whilst Swift had her moment…

• Then it was the turn of Sir Paul McCartney who took to the stage to remind us that he was still alive (harsh but true) for a duet with Ringo Star- mini Beatle’s reunion, YAY.

• Robin Thicke then blurred those lines once again and THANKFULLY a twerkin’, half-dressed Miley Cyrus was nowhere in sight.

• And lastly we had the return of The Madge, complete with weird suit attire and a cane as she performed ‘Open your heart’ with duo Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. Typical Madonna one may say.

 

But, alas, I cannot end the post without reliving some of the cringe-worthy moments of the night. Such moments remind us that even celebrities, 'the cream of the crop', do stupid and embarrassing things. For example, Taylor Swift’s celebration when she thought she’d won Album of the Year, and the awkward moment when she attempted to recover from it by donning her ‘gracious loser’s face’…bless.  And I can’t lie, I also felt embarrassed for Pharrell Williams and his hat. If you haven’t seen it you should Google it NOW, it’s both cringy and humorous. It’s even got its own twitter account…

 

So, there’s my roundup of this year’s Grammy’s, anything I missed? If so, comment below and let me know!

 

Welcome to my lazy life...

So after my week long hiatus from blogging I have decided to get back to the keyboard and write some words for you loverly people because I’m feeling bad and guilty and like an awful blogger…

I wish I could spend this entire post filling you in on the many adventures I have had this past week; the people I’ve seen and the fun and exciting stuff that I have done HOWEVER, (and that’s a big however) I cannot. Because this week has been rather…how shall we say…uneventful. Yes, this week has been uneventful. Welcome to my crlazy life...

I don’t think I was up before 9am any day this week, and I don’t think I was in bed before 2 am any night (/morning) this week. These late nights, I must add, were not due to wild partaying and drinking until the early hours, but instead sat in bed with my trusty blanket and biscuit barrel watching a wide selection of filmy goodness from ‘Side Effects’, to ‘Pitch Perfect’, ‘Magic Mike’ and beyond.

So, what exactly have I spent 102 hours doing? Well, to put it bluntly, naff all. And I’ve quite enjoyed it! You see, this week marked the beginning of my second semester at university and whilst everyone else was ‘refreshing’ (i.e. enjoying a slightly played down version of the almighty ‘Fresher’s week’) I was attempting to get back into uni life- doing the washing I had left over Christmas, finding homes within this tiny room for all my presents, reminding myself how to cook, and readjusting to my hellishly uncomfortable bed. As well as this, I had two delightfully long essays due, of which I did not complete-like I said I was going to do- over the Christmas break.

After what can only be described as the laziest (but also quite enjoyable) week I can recall for many a year, I have decided to make this next week the most action-packed. When I say action-packed I mean doing stuff for at least 5-6 hours of the day…I am a uni student after all and our main skill is in the art of procrastinating (see previous post) and doing ‘naff all’.

The biggest misconception about uni, I feel, is that you are going to be busy alllll the time- always going out, getting drunk, or in the library reading, revising or doing essays, or sat in 2 hour long lectures furiously taking notes on your little Apple Mac notebook with a coffee and some paracetamol beside you to cure your hangover head. Instead, I’ve found it to be pretty chilled. I’m not going out and getting drunk every night (you say boring, I say practical). I am DEFINITELY not always in the library reading, revising or writing essays, and in the two 2 hour lectures I have per week I am reading blogs on Bloglovin’ or the Daily Mail and most of the time I have a coffee by my side to stop me from falling asleep. Oh, and I have an acer laptop, not an Apple Mac…

So whether you’ve just started uni like me, or are going next year or the year after or the year after that, just remember that it’s ok to spend your weeks laying on your bed, stuffing your face with Tesco’s own chocolate chip biscuits, whilst watching your favourite films. It’s good. It’s enjoyable. It’s right.

Procrastination for the nation

I’m not a self-proclaimed expert at many things, just average at a few. However, if there is one area in which I excel beyond all others it is procrastinating. I am a master procraster (copyright-moi) and naver a day goes by where I don’t stray from the task in hand, to something a little more interesting. Take uni essays for example. I am meant to be finishing one off right now but, instead, I’m writing this post in the comfort of my pj’s, surrounded by by a variety of different foodilicious goodies.

Over the years of building up my status to a ‘master procraster’ I have collected a number of different websites I like to occupy my time with, and have decided to share the love right here, right now…

1)      www.foodporndaily.com-

Possibly one of my biggest weaknesses, food is never far from my mind. Food Porn Daily is a must for everyone who shares this love! Their slogan is ‘click, drool, repeat’ and I guarantee the pictures it posts leave you doing just that! I try and recreate some of my favourites (as another way of procrastinating), but without recipes this almost always ends in disaster! Check it out…I urge you!

 

2)      http://www.whowhatwear.com-

This website is one of my absolute favourites! Hands down. You know those days when you just run out of wardrobe inspiration? Well, never fear! With whowhatwear you will no longer face this problem! (I sound like a shopping channel presenter...sorry) There’s hundreds of shamazing outfits on here and ways you can recreate the looks. I almost always proceed to ASOS or Topshop etc. after visiting this site! It hurts the bank balance, but it does soothe the soul!

 

3)      www.dailymail.co.uk-

Please don’t hate me for this! Much like marmite, you either love or hate the Daily Mail…and I love it. I go on it at least once a day (my record was 10 times a day- but I had 2 essays to write so was at my procrastinating max). It’s the ‘it’ place for all celeb news and gossip (however true or untrue it may be!), as well as being a genuinely great place to find out what is going on in the world! The comments people leave are always a great source of comedy as well!

 

4)      www.youtube.co.uk

I’ve really gotten in to all the youtuber videos recently! Whether they be vlogs, makeup tutorials, haul vidoes, games, collabs…whatever! I always find them really funny and engaging and ALWAYS end up watching about 5! Some of my favourite youtubers include: Zoella, Sprinkle of Glitter, Tanya Burr, ThatcherJoe, Jim Chapman, Pointless Blog and Tyler Oakley! I really recommend you watch some of their videos- a great way to spend a lazy afternoon if there’s nothing on TV, a Saturday night in, a day off, a sick day….I could go on!

So, as well as Twitter, Facebook and, of course, Bloglovin’, these are my top websites to check out if procrastinating!

 

Do you have any websites that you love to check out when you’re just not in the mood to do work? If so, please comment below, Master Procraster is looking for some new recruits!

Happy Procrasin’

New Year Wishes

My last post was dedicated to the story behind my blog name, and why I chose it so I decided to continue the tale and talk about how I plan to ‘carpe that diem’ in 2014!

2013 has been a whirlwind year for me:

• I stressed about my A Levels and about my uni choices

• I passed my A Levels and got into uni

• I started- and, unfortunately, ended- friendships and relationships

• I started as a presenter on hospital radio, which I fell in love with

• I took up yoga, which is something I love to do

• I was chosen to become a volunteer at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow- too excited for this!

• I started uni and moved from my small village abode to the bustling streets of London

• I had panics and worries about whether my course was right for me- these are ongoing- and about what I want to do in the future
• I set up my blog about two months ago and have LOVED getting it going and trying to increase my readership

As well as a tonne of other adventures! It’s had it definite ups, and its definite downs, and I can safely say that I’m more than ready for 2014!

I’m hoping- and rather determined- that 2014 will be my best year yet. There’s quite a few wishes that I have and will be making when the clock strikes midnight tomorrow evening...(soz, can’t tell or else they won’t come true!) But I will however keep you updated on here!

I can honestly say that I am more than eager for 2014 to begin, and to see what it hopefully brings! At the moment I find myself quite confused about my future and definitely plan for this next year to confirm what it is that I am aiming for! Above all, I really want to live up to my blog name and start to seize every day, and every opportunity, that I get!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

NEW YEAR, NEW ADVENTURES, NEW EXPERIENCES!

What are your hopes for the New Year? Let me know below!

Carpe That Diem?

So, many of you might be wondering what the title of my blog actually means and, well, you’re in luck because this post is dedicated to explaining why I chose this Latin phrase…and why I shoved a ‘that’ in the middle…

I took me quite a while to pin down an appropriate name for my blog. I wanted to write about everything so a general name was needed. At that point (and still now) I haven’t revealed my identity- mysterious, I know- because, to be honest, I’m quite scared about doing so! I wanted- and still do- to know how people would respond to my ramblings before I revealed who I actually am! Therefore, any title including my name was out!

I was watching TV when I actually heard the phrase being used- I think it was the o2 advert actually- and, in a bid to understand what I meant, I looked it up online. Turns out this Latin phrase means, roughly, ‘seize the day’…an appropriate name, no?

I liked the way it sounded and how it was quite ambiguous, and therefore allowed me to write about life in general and possibly tales about how I’d ‘seized the day’! So, I chose it for my blog name. However, problems arose when I found that the simple ‘Carpe Diem’ name had already been claimed, so I had to come up with some way of adjusting it. This is how carpe-that-diem was born, in other words, roughly- ‘seize that day’! A demand that is not meant harshly, however!

So there you lovely people have it- the evolution of my blog name! A short history of carpe-that-diem!

How did you come up with your blog names? Share below so I can check out your blogs- it’s my new obsession!

Christmas Decorations

One of my favourite parts of the Christmas season is- undoubtedly- decorating my house! Every year we pull out the ladders and make the (quite dangerous) climb up to the attic to retrieve the boxes upon boxes of decorations that really bring the house into the Christmas mood.

This is the one time of the year that I'm not too frightened to venture up to the lofty heights of the attic, where behind every box there could be a mouse, and above every light there could be a spider...Nope, as soon as my mum puts on 'The Best of Christmas' CD my fears disappear and I'm ready to brave any form of animal that I may encounter up there...

We spend the entire day getting our house ready for Christmas. In the morning it's choosing our Christmas tree (we have always had a real one-mainly because of the amazing smell they have). Being expert shoppers, one would've thought that tree shopping would be rather easy but, unfortunately, one would be wrong. Me and my mum spend approximately 2-3 hours scouring the local area for the perfect tree. We start at one tree farm, find our favourite, take a picture of it, then we drive to another farm and another farm, and another farm- repeating the process each time. Then, after careful consideration, we choose our favourite from the bunch of pictures I have collected on my phone, and head back to purchase it (in the hope that no one has beat us to it!)

So, after the Christmas tree has been chosen, then comes the task of decorating it. This is usually my job, whilst my mum and dad put up all the other hundreds of decorations we have collected over the years.

Then, after a full day of Christmassy goodness we slump on the sofa and watch TV in amongst our Christmassy home.

After so much effort has gone into preparing my house for Christmas I thought it only right to let you lovely people in, and show you some of my favourite decorations of this year...

The three stockings-one for each of us, me, and my two sisters- the star lights and the heart at the bottom, are my favourite decorations on the garland we wrap around the staircase...as well as the little angel that a friend of my mum's made for us this year!

The bubals are also some of my favourite decorations. We got them as a present years ago, there are three-one for each of us (you can see a pattern emerging here)! Mine is the gold one and I love it's oriental pattern! (Sorry about the quality of the photo-it was dark and the lights on the tree wouldn't work with me!)

This windowsill is perhaps my favourite decorated part of the house. The wreath looks so nice when it's dark, and the little angel that my mum has not only matches the colours in the kitchen but just looks so cuuuute!

And last but not least, the fibrotic Christmas tree! It sits in the window next to our front door and at night it looks beaut! I remember being really young when we bought this, and I used to sit and watch the colours change (yes, before you ask, I was such a wild child!)

So these are some of my favourite decorations in my house, which-every time I look at them- make me feel all Christmassy inside!

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS! <3