Costume's galore

I have always been a fan of dressing up for themed parties, from masquerades to dressing up as Harley Quinn, I have been through a lot. So for this post I thought I would give you some costume ideas if you are stuck for ideas of what to do. I already explained a little bit about one costume in my second blog but I will go into a little bit more detail here.

First costume - Fawn

Fawn Makeup

Back in January, my friend held his 22nd birthday party at his uni. The theme was animals and I chose to go as a fawn. I got the costume idea from reading Flattery's blog, please click her name and follow the link to check out her post on how to make the costume!
I changed a few things about the costume though, such as not making any horns. And I also used a Jumpsuit from BooHoo instead of a leotard. It still worked just as well, I found the jumpsuit made it just that little bit easier to use the lavatory, as I didn't have the long sleeves and it wasn't too tight.
This was a very easy costume to make as there is minimal sewing involved, especially as I pinned my fluffy belly on instead of sewing it on. It was also pretty cheap as well! Perfect for students wanting to go on a night out. The great thing about this costume is that you can mix it up to make it more your style but still have the same effect.

Second Costume - Suffragette

Suffragette

This is the costume I talked about in my second blog. The theme of the party was Horrible histories, although they weren't horrible themselves, the time period around the suffragettes wasn't great. 
As I had a limited amount of time to make this costume I had to think fast. I wore a high white collared dark blue dress with matching white cuffs. I then wore a flowered patterned floor length skirt on top of the dress with a chunky belt. To top it off, I put my hair in a simple bun and wore a black hat. I wore a minimal amount of make up as back then they didn't have the resources we do now, and I wanted to be periodically correct as possible. 
This is such a simple costume that looks great as well as being educational. I made it purely by finding items of clothing that I had lying around the house, so I'm sure you will have something even if you have to ask one of your relatives or house mates! 
Check out my other post 'We could be heroes' to learn a bit more about the suffragettes. 

Third Costume - Paige WWE

Paige WWE

This has to be my all time favourite costume to have made. 
First I used a pair of black denim shorts matched with a silver studded belt, for more of an effect you can chose to wear shorts that have leather effect (also known as disco shorts). 
For the top I bought the bralet on line and made sure that it had a zip down the front. I got the studs from a shop in the UK called Hobbycraft, they are brilliant if you need any craft bits at a reasonable price.They were easy to apply as you simply push them through the fabric and press down on the metal flaps on the other side. 
Now for my shoes I wore ankle boots that had a double layer effect at the top and paired them with knee high socks. To take it one step further add some fish net tights to get more of a wrestler look.
All I did to my hair was add blue extensions and back comb the top a little bit to give it more volume and messy look.
To really get into the Paige character, you want to make your eye make up is as dramatic as possible. I used a silver eye shadow with black eye liner. To finish I added fake stretchers in my ears and a fake lip ring. As long as you can collect all the items this is a great costume for any wrestling fans.

Harley Quinn

Fourth Costume - Harley Quinn 

Now for all you batman fans, this is a fabulous costume. You can buy the costume online, the hardest part is just choosing which version of Harley Quinn to go as! Some of the choices are Batman Arkham Asylum, Batman Arkham Knight, Suicide Squad or even the animated series version! There are many more these are just a few. I chose to go as the version from Arkham City. 
All I had to add to my costume, was make up, a few accessories and to do my hair.
The accessories I added was a a studded chocker and black boots, simple enough. 
I put my hair in high pigtails and then sprayed the ends red and blue. It was meant to be red and black, however, because the new suicide squad movie is coming out soon, I thought I'd add a taste of the Harley Quinn portrayed by Margot Robbie just to get everyone that little bit more excited.
For your make up you want to pale your skin. Basically make it white as possible and then go crazy with your eyes. Black eye liner and mascara is a must! Make it dramatic and dark.
Then you are ready to go wild!

I've added a few more photos of costumes below for you to check out!

80's Rock chick

Daenerys Targaryen

Sailor Girl

I hope this blog has given you some ideas for your next costume party! I would love to see what you guys have come up with if you try any of these out! This weekend I will be attending another costume party where the theme is Tales of tomorrow... So basically anything future related! If you have any ideas of what I could go as let me know in the comments!

Just remember, stay positive.

Dreams vs. Nightmares

Dreams are a series of thoughts, images, and sensations occurring in a person's mind during sleep. Other types of dreams are aspirations or goals in a person's life. I however, will be talking about the former. There are many different theories to what affects the dreams we have while we sleep, for instance, some say that if you think about someone all day you might have a dream about them. If you watch a horror movie before bed, it is likely that you will have a nightmare. This may be true for some, but for others, nightmares and certain dreams can be triggered by other causes or may not even need a trigger at all. There are many different types of dreams, I want to share a couple of dreams that I've had with you, because maybe you've experienced something similar. If you get scared easily I would advise to not read the first one as it was a nightmare I had recently. 

Dream 1.

I was exhausted from travelling around London, so when I got home I could feel my eyelids get pretty heavy, almost as soon as my head hit the pillow I was in a deep sleep. I fell asleep at about 10:30 pm Sunday night. 

The dream started off with me being in the studio where I work. It was pitch black and I was yelling at my colleague to turn the lights on as we couldn't see anything. When he refused I got in a panic, this was followed by waking up in my bed (in my dream) wearing the same pyjamas I went to bed in. Next to me was my friend sitting cross legged but her face looked like she was being possessed and  she kept touching me. She was refusing to stop so I had to bite her hand which made her angrier. I then woke up again but I was lying face down with my arms by my sides. I couldn't move, speak or do anything. A black shadow/hand then grabbed my ankle and dragged me from my bed all the way to my door which is when I actually woke up. The time was 10:50 pm, I had been asleep for twenty minutes.

I wasn't entirely sure why I had this nightmare, but this is the only time I have ever experienced something like this. I woke up sweating and scared out my life because of how real it all felt, my nightmares have never been that frightening. Nothing had happened that weekend to make me have a nightmare, it was out of the blue that it occurred. 

Another dream I've had is a recurring dream that I haven't had for a while. Recurring dreams are pretty self explanatory, they are a repetitive dream that you keep having. Freud believed that recurrent traumatic dreams showed expressions of neurotic repetitive compulsions. There are many other theories to recurring dreams suggesting that we have them to rehearse a threatening event to practice threat avoidance behaviours. However, there are many theories to argue against this explanation. I don't know if my dream relates to any of these explanations, but if someone has a theory please share.

Dream 2.

I'm at my house, but where my house is, it usually  has two levels with an attic, in the dream it has five levels and looks more like an apartment block. It then skips to the part where I am on the highest level with a group of either family members or friends. I volunteer myself to go downstairs and see what's happening. As I go down I walk through my living room and surrounding me are these half man half lion creatures sleeping on the floor. I make my way through to the bathroom without disturbing them. Almost suddenly I make a noise and they wake up. As one leaps to get me I wake up. Every time I have this dream I always wake up before they get me.

Have you ever had a dream, where you don't want to share it with anyone but when you do, you find they've been having the exact same dream? This happened to my mother when she was younger. She used to have this dream, where there was a glowing white surgical glove, in her closet, in her house where she lived. She never told anyone about this dream until they moved house, which is when she told her mother who replied by saying she had been having the exact same dream herself. I'm always curious about this one as neither of them had mentioned at the time of the dream they had been having and there is no explanation as to how they had both been having the same dream.

That's all from me this week, again I'm sorry it took longer than expected to write, I will try and make these a more regular thing in the future!

Please comment below any dreams or nightmares that you've experienced, I would love to read them and make a video where I read some of them out loud! I will also be including some more of my own dreams, maybe you can guess which ones are mine. 

But for now stay positive and sweet dreams.

A little party never hurt no one, we were born to be free

Party - a social gathering of invited guests, typically involving eating, drinking, and entertainment.

It's fair to say majority of people love to have a good time. Most go out partying/clubbing, some like gatherings a the local pub and those who throw the occasional house party. When I was growing up my family would throw a party for all celebrations, birthday's, house warming, anniversaries etc. So you could say that I'm used to having drunk and merry people around me. However, as I grew older the idea of going out to clubs and pubs daunted me. I hated the idea of going to a crowded place with lots of drunk people surrounding me, not knowing where I was, having no idea how to act. 

My first clubbing experience was with a friend from college. She took me to Casino in Guildford after our final exams to celebrate especially as I had just turned 18. It was a great first experience as there was a whole group of us that went, I have found that clubbing is always better in groups, and even though we didn't stay out until closing (3am) we still had a lot of fun. If someone suggests a Jagerbomb, approach with caution. 

It was the first shot I've ever had and boy do I remember it. For those of you that don't know 

what I Jagerbomb is, it is a shot of Jagermeister that is a glass of red bull or another form of 

energy drink which you then have to down all in one. It felt like a right of passage when 

you first go clubbing  that you have to have one of those shots or a second favourite was Sambuca. 

Soon after this I started working full time at Thorpe Park so going to clubs and socials were common, however I was still quite a shy and timid girl and the idea of going out with people still scared me, I never really drank much or speak much either. It wasn't until I became single that my life started to change. 

My friends took me out more to clubs and the regular pub visit. One night that stands out for me was the night when I met some of the most important people in my life. I started out being extremely nervous, as I didn't know the girl who's birthday it was or any of the people that were going for that matter, even though my friend comforted me as much as she could. We got to the girl's house and at first I was standing round feeling pretty awkward not knowing anyone as the night when on I got chatting and dancing with a few people and I started to feel more relaxed, could have been due to the alcohol... After that night, I enjoy going out and dancing, having a drink with my friends. I found that the trick is as long you act confident, even if you're not, others around you won't know the difference.
After that night I have made some of the greatest friends I could have ever asked for. We go on regular outings and pub visits together and no matter what everyone has each others backs.

Granted I have been known to get a little bit too drunk and my friends have had to look after me but did get my punishment by waking up with a horrendous hangover, the most recent event being my friend's 22nd birthday party, tequila was not my friend. In light of this I have learnt a few tricks to get over a hangover. 

Steps to get over a hangover:

1. Get up, there's no use in staying in bed, even though the world feels like it's collapsing around you, you will feel 100 times better if you do something productive.
2. How to be productive? Exercise. You may get the scent of alcohol sweating out of you but that just means it's getting out of your system.
3. Have a bath or shower, it refreshes you and makes you feel better in yourself. 
4. Have a flat lemonade or Lucozade, these especially help if you've been throwing up as they re hydrate you and don't upset your stomach.
5. Hair of the dog - in other words just keep drinking!

However, being a group of mostly students there are certain drinking rules and games that you learn. One infamous game is Ring of Fire. Click the link to find out the rules of this game. Other rules that I've learnt are that you aren't allowed to say the word drink instead use the term beverage, don't not point with your finger instead use your elbow or maybe nose? And drink with your left hand only. There are others but too many to list, I'm not sure if this is just my friends that do this but I'm sure there are others who know these rules. In our group we also have a couple of well known rhymes that we like to sing to "encourage" others to drink quicker...

We like to drink with (insert name) 'Cause (insert name) is our mate and when we drink with (insert name) they down it all in 8, 7, 6, 5, 4... Until they finish their drink.

Another one is...

Here's to (insert name)

He's/she's true blue

He's/she's a piss pot through and through

He's/she's bastard so they say

Tried to go to heaven but he's/she's went the other way

He's/She's went down, down, down.... Until they finish their drink.

Parties are great, especially if you're young, but just make sure that you stay safe. Do this by staying with you're friends, keep an eye on your drinks (not just how much you're drinking but in case you are spiked - scary idea but unfortunately it happens) and also by making sure you know your surroundings and how you are getting home. Another useful tip is when deciding what to drink it is always better to not mix, either stick with spirits, cider, beer or wine. You will feel worse in the morning if you have been mixing drinks.

Feel free to share stories of your parties or your favourite games to play, I would love to read them and maybe make a YouTube video where I read some of them out loud! 

That's all from me this week, sorry it took a little longer than expected to get out hopefully the next one will be on time! 

Just remember, stay positive and go wild!

We could be heroes

I hope you have all had an amazing weekend! I know I have. This weekend was not how I expected it to go. I was meant to be going to Birmingham originally, however plans changed. So instead my weekend started of with a night out Friday, your typical pub trip with friends, that ended up with me running after the taxi because I had left my bag in there (Luckily I caught up to him). It was a good night, I've always found that hanging out with people that are positive are able to bring your spirits up even if initially you don't feel like going out and being sociable.

My version of a sign

Saturday night, was planned to be a quiet night in with a movie and wine but ended up going out to my friend's fancy dress party. The theme was horrible histories, I went as a suffragette. Not because they were horrible but that period of time for women unpleasant. For those of you that don't know, Suffragettes were members of an organisation in the late 19th and early 20th century who wanted to get the right for women to vote in general elections. They had many tactics such as hunger strikes, chaining themselves to the railings at 10 Downing Street and even sending letter bombs. 

One woman, Emily Davison, made an attempt to draw attention to the cause by stepping in front of the King's horse the day of the Epsom Derby. 

Moi

She died, however no one knows whether or not Emily wanted to commit a martyrdom on purpose as she had purchased a return ticket and also planned to visit family after the Derby. For my costume, I wore a high collared dark blue dress with a white collar and cuffs. I then wore a flowered patterned floor length skirt as it was not appropriate to show skin. To top it off I wore a similar hat to what they would have worn in that period of time and made sure that my hair was tied up. I wore no make up as I wanted to be periodically correct as I possibly could be. This costume took me about half an hour to create as it was a last minute plan. We will never know the reason for Emily to step on the track that day but women won the vote because of all these brave women and the actions they took. On Sunday I spent time with my family and then played Top Golf with a few of my friends.

This morning (Monday 11th January 2016) I found out that we lost a Legend from the music industry. David Bowie will always be loved and never forgotten, he was an inspiration to many, Rest in Peace. 

"I don't know where I am going from here, but I promise it won't be boring" - David Bowie 1947-2016

That's all from me today, I will be back next week for another update!
Just remember, Stay positive.

Thinking. A process by which I use my brain to make a rational decision.

Hey guys, Lucy here! It's a new year and I guess this is a new me. I love to write so I thought writing a blog would work. I am also currently working on my own novel, inspired by events that have happened in my life. I may even post extracts for you to have a sneak peek!

Going on an adventures is my all time favourite thing to do, I love seeing other parts of the world and exploring new things with my friends, they give me a thrill and excitement that I can't even explain. However, I will be sharing them with you as I live them. Hopefully, I will help inspire you guys to try something that you may have been too scared to try, or you're unsure of the consequences. Let me tell you, screw consequences. Life is not to be taken for granted.

I'm going to leave you with a quote that has inspired me to write this blog!

I will be brave, I will not let anything take away what’s standing in front of me, every breath, every hour has come to this. - Christina Perri, A thousand Years

I hope you enjoy my blog!