ten things that have made me happy!

I've decided to start a new little section on my blog, as I've seen quite a few blogs do this type of post on a regular basis and it's such a cute idea. It's 'ten things that have made me happy'. I think it'll be nice to be able to look back on these posts and see everything that made me happy. So, here are my first ten things!

1. Craig and I went to Loch Lomond on a little mini getaway for three nights, which was amazing. The cottage we stayed in was so cute and I pretty much didn't want to leave. It was raining pretty much the whole time we were there though so it meant we spent most of the time cuddled up in bed or on the couch listening to the rain and talking. So peaceful.

2. Downloading Spotify to my computer for the first time, despite having a premium account since December. Now there is music playing all the time, it's awesome!

3. Appreciating how close the shops are to our flat. Nothing is worse than craving chocolate at 9pm and knowing there is nowhere around you to get some.

4. Watching The Great British Bake Off and pretty much drooling at all the tasty things the contestants are baking! I honestly wish I was that good.

5. Getting Winry back after my mum was baby sitting her while we were away. The flat is just too quiet without a little cat running around and meowing at everything.

6. Craig tickling my tummy when I had a bit of cramp was the cutest. He treats me well, that boy!

7. I started writing down my Christmas list and gift ideas, which made me so excited that Christmas will be here soon again. Although I can't believe it's already mid August. Where has the time gone?!

8. Call it a guilty pleasure, or self inflicted cringe, but I recently re-watched the Twilight movies and both loved and hated it. I loved the books when they were first released and the movies kind of annoyed me. Mainly because of Kristen Stewart and her inability to show any expression other than concerned.

9. I recently starting reading and following this blog - http://www.ariestrash.com/ and I absolutely love it. Especially the design, it's so nice!

10. I've finally decided on something I've been thinking about doing for a while, and it feels really good to finally have some guts and take the plunge to do it. All will be revealed in good time ;)

2

what's in my bag

I've never done one of these 'what's in my bag' style posts, so while I'm still off work and my bag isn't cluttered with loads of useless items, I thought I'd finally get around to doing it! Starting off with the bag, I'm currently using an Osprey shoulder bag in their ladybug style (no idea where the name came from) in smooth tan leather. I think this bag has been discontinued but they have similar designs on their site, just without the smooth leather! click here - I've been using this bag for a few months now as it's just the perfect size that can easily be carried on both your shoulder or on your arm, and I absolutely love the twin zips, they open almost to the bottom so you can stretch the bag right out if you need to find something that's buried. Plus, it fits loads of stuff inside, which is super handy when you like to carry everything but the kitchen sink!

I don't usually carry too much in my bag, but recently I've been carrying a bit more, as I like to do more things on the go now. I always carry around a few of the obvious items that every girl / person carries: my phone, purse - which is a Rowallan purse made in Scotland, my keys to the flat, a few girl 'essentials' discreetly hidden away in a little pink pencil case along with some pain killers and some bobby pins, and a body spray of some sort, the one I'm currently using is Impulse. Wherever I'm going, I always carry these items with me.

As of February, I like to carry my ipad mini for blogging and replying to emails on the go. I used to do this on my phone, but I was getting a little bit frustrated staring at the tiny screen and having to zoom in and out to see blogs or comments etc. That's the reason I actually bought the ipad, so it makes sense to actually carry it with me. I keep it in this colourful case from Tesco, which was only £12.50! I also like to carry around a planner and pen, and since getting my lilac Kikki.K it's been with me everywhere. It helps keep me right with appointments and such, so again it makes sense to carry it around. The little silver mirror looking thing in the photos is actually a little business card holder that I got free with my business card order. I don't actually use them all that much, in fact I rarely use them at all, but I like to have them with me just in case. I actually only purchased them because I was getting a 50% discount through a friend, so I thought why not. Like most girls I also carry some kind of perfume along with the body spray, this one is Armani Diamonds and it smells delicious! It's my favourite perfume, one which my mum buys me every birthday and Christmas like it's a tradition, haha.

Again, like most girls, I carry around a little make up bag with a few of the essentials inside. Right now I'm carrying three of my Real Techniques brushes - the powder brush, blush brush and the contour brush. I use them with a Rimmel compact powder, a topshop blush and the collection 2000 concealer. I carry around the Naked Basics pallete too, mainly for the mirror, but sometimes I use my fingers to dab a bit of colour onto my eyelids if I'm doing my make up on the go. The lipstick pictured is the Revlon Super Lustrous lipstick in shade 415 Pink In The Afternoon, which is my absolute favourite right now! I also tend to have a contact lens case with fresh fluid inside, just in case I get something on my contacts and they need a little clean. It's been a lifesaver since I started doing that!

So there we have it, everything that's currently in my handbag. Minus the odd receipt and bus ticket. And all the lip balms. And bits of paper. And sweetie wrappers... Maybe I should have put them in the picture too!

P.S - I left my laptop for two minutes to get a bowl of cereal and I came back to Craig trying to blog and carry on from where I had stopped. I thought it was funny so I've left what he said below. Maybe guys just don't understand this kind of stuff!

"I have something in my pocket for you! This week the all mighty what's in my bag segment. Here we discover the horrifying truth of what woman need to keep around them on a permanent basis. First up we have a brush. No not for your teeth silly, but for your face. This face brush allows me to wear a powdered version of my face. I call it the doughnut topper. Next there is my lipstick. What do you want from me its just lipstick!"

4

inspired to get a bit more crafty!

♥ what cool way to decorate a plain white teacup - here

♥ some very tasty looking breaking bad inspired cupcakes! - here

♥ a quirky way to give a cupcake to someone - here

♥ how cute are these little planters? - here

♥ lovely little stamps for writing letters etc - here

♥ an amazing origami bowtie! - here

Recently I've been in the mood to get a bit more creative. I have a few birthdays coming up soon and with Christmas creeping around the corner I'm looking to go home made this year. I used to make gifts all the time but I fell out of it when I realised it was just easier to buy things. But I think that a home made gift has that little extra something, and all these cute little diy's have given me a lot of inspiration. Especially the teacups and planers! So cute!

2

my favourite pinterest board!

I've recently started using Pinterest properly and I have to say that my favourite things to pin are beautiful pictures of people's home decor, like every other person on Pinterest! I love to look through all the photos and wish that someday that my home will look half as good as some of the photos shown below. It really does give inspiration as well as quite a bit of envy. It's not as bad considering I don't own my own home yet, but when I do, this board will definitely be helping me out with decoration ideas.

Home Inspriration - HelloZelda
If you use Pinterest, let me know so I can follow you! I'm only following 6 people so I really need more, haha.
Pinterest - HelloZelda

1

my beautiful little cat!

This cute little ball of fluff stretched out on my bed, without a care in the world, is my cat, Winry. I don't think I've ever properly talked about my cat on here, so I thought I would make a little start, considering she's like my furry child and I constantly go on about her everywhere else! 

Winry is three and half years old, has a fear of plastic bags, like to eat plastic wrapping (weird, I know) and loves a play session with a laser pen. She is a Maine Coon, a beautiful breed of fluffy cats originating from America. They are one of the largest breed of domestic cat and are generally always big and fluffy! Maine Coon cats are described as being "gentle giants", as they have a very laid back nature, which makes them great around dogs, kids and sometimes other cats. Like all cats though, they are very protective of their owners and don't like it when other cats come into their homes. They are described as having a nature of a grown up kitten, meaning that they are incredibly playful most of their lives, which is super fun. People say that they're not really a lap cat, which I think depends on the cat, as Winry is very cuddly and loves to come for a cuddle under the covers while I'm still in bed.

Here are a few little facts about her:

1. She only eats dried food.

- We've tried her on the fancy stuff, with actual bits of meat and gravy, but she just licks up the gravy and leaves the actual meat. She's super cheap to feed this way, which is a bonus! She does love a bit of tuna though.

2. She only drinks water if it's running from the tap.

- I refresh her water bowl maybe once or twice a day, so that it's a bit fresher, but she refuses to drink from it. Instead she'll jump up to the sink and meow and paw at it until I go over and let a small stream of water flow. I think it's something do with the water moving, so to her it looks fresh. If she ever does drink from her bowl, she'll paw at the water first and splash it around to make it move and ripple, I think to make it look like running water I'm guessing? I'm not sure.

3. She loves to spoon under the covers.

- This sounds weird, but she genuinely likes to spoon. If I'm ever lying in bed, she'll come up my face and meow, paw the covers around me until I lift them up. Then she'll crawl under, do a little turnabout so her head is at the top again and flop down so her back is completely against my body. Like spooning. She always lies like this, with her body against mine. I know it's probably just for the heat, but I think it's for affection too!

4. Her fur mats and tangles really easily.
As she is a long haired breed of cat, her fur tangles and clumps really easily. It's sometimes difficult to get the knots out, but you just have to persevere with her meowing and trying to get away. I don't like to cut the knots too close to her skin, just in case I ever knick it, which I've thankfully never done. She eventually gets the last of the knot out herself when she's grooming.

5. She likes to sit on my back and shoulders like a parrot.
She's done this pretty much since we got her. If she's sitting around or bored and you're walking about, she'll come up to you and jump on your back. You can tell when she wants to jump up as she does a meerkat stance and looks at you until you bend over a little, giving her a little landing spot on your back. It's super cute. She comes up as close to your face as possible and does that little lion bump head thing for affection and then sits there quietly. She sometimes directs you where she wants to go by leaning in that direction or crawling around your back in the way she wants to go, usually in the direction of the treats or to the top cupboard where she likes to sleep!

I thought I'd share these cute little photos I took of her as well while she was sleeping at the end of our bed! Ain't she the cutest, fluffiest thing ever?! ^.^

3

a few favourite blogs to share!

I decided to make a post and share some blog love for some of the lovely ladies around the blogging world. I follow quite a lot of blogs on bloglovin and on twitter, but I always find myself checking a few more than others. Either because I love the writing, the photos or just the blog as a whole. Another thing I look for in a favourite blog is whether or not it's aesthetically pleasing, which all these lovelies are. It's a weird thing to base a blog on, but it's just what I do!

So here we are, a few of my favourite blogs, for you to have a gander at and hopefully follow!

They're all very lovely ladies and have amazing blogs!

(I said blog, or a variation of blog, 9 times... hurray for repetition)

www.daisybutter.com

www.behindtheseclosedeyes.com

www.chalkwhitearrow.com

www.maiedae.com

www.milkbubbletea.blogspot.co.uk

www.fromgemwithlove.com

www.fromroses.co.uk

www.arosieoutlook.com

Make sure to check these lovely ladies out!

2

a girl can dream

Another wishlist post, another set of items that I'm lusting after. The Converse I actually have now, but for the sake of the post, let's just say that I'd like to own a few more pairs. I've noticed that most of my wishlists tend to feature a watch of some kind, and this beautiful Olivia Burton watch is no exception. I love the plain face and strap, it's just gorgeous. I'll be hinting at that shortly, Christmas isn't too far away now! I've recently ran out of the Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish, so will definitely be heading back to purchase that again. I've also been dying to try out the new Marc Jacobs Daisy Dream scent, everyone says that it smells amazing and I've always been a fan of the Marc Jacobs range of perfumes.

The three little milk glasses are so cute and I'd love little glasses like that for my milkshakes and smoothies, along with the little stripy straws! The diary is another one of the Kikki.K products, the 365 page diary, which is a pretty nice idea. I've also been eyeing up more phone cases, and this cat phone case is super cute too! I've also been lusting after pretty flowers, especially peonies and other pretties like it. I've been browsing online and looking at a lot of the Pandora rings and pretty much wanting all of them. I have a thing for pretty stone rings, and the off pink colour of the one above is just so pretty.

Hopefully one day I won't be making wishlists and I'll be happy and content with what I have. Maybe on that day the sky will turn green and girls won't want everything shiny.  Maybe...

1

five habits - girlfriends vs boyfriends

Craig and I have been together for almost three and half years, on the 25th of August. In that time, I've gotten to know him pretty well. We think alike, speak alike and some people say that we're kind of the same person now. That being said, we both have annoying habits that only each other tend to notice in the other person. I thought I'd list a few below. Obviously these aren't too serious, nothing stereotypical like leaving the toilet seat up, or anything!

five habits of the boyfriend  -

1. Leaves coke cans and energy drink cans lying around in groups of half drank danger.

2. Doesn't share my enthusiasm for colourful bunting, fairy lights or cats.

3. Has an iphone, but always has data switched off, rendering imessage useless.

4. Likes to use biting as a form of self defence when play fighting.

5. Always buys too much bread, then buys more before the first loaf is finished.

five habits of the girlfriend -

1. Gets scared and jumpy for any reason, even when nothing is there to be scared of.

2. Has an unusual addiction to stationery and filofax.

3. Is pretty much a crazy cat lady, without all the cats. (we only have one!)

4. Is scared of playing FPS games. (first person shooter)

5. Likes to fluff and shake the duvet before getting into bed. Every single time.

Every couple is different. Do you have any habits that you only notice around your significant other? I'm curious to know if they're like ours or weirder!

0

How I stay organised - featuring Kikki.K

That title should actually be more along the lines of 'How I try to stay organised - featuring Kikki.K', but anyway...

As I've mentioned before, I've recently rekindled my love of stationery and all the cutesy goodness that it brings. I loved art and craft as a kid and naturally with that came a love of stationery as well. My favourite place to visit as a kid for present ideas or if my mum and dad were feeling a bit generous, for a random little gift, was Stationery Box. Anyone remember them? I'm pretty sure they were bought over and became Ryman, but either way, the shop is still sort of there. With finding my love of paper and craft again, I recently got drawn into the world of Filofax. I had always been sort of organised, but never before like this. I also never realised the extent of the Filofax community, and it really is a community. If you don't have an interest in stationery or Filofax, then this post might make you think that I'm completely crazy, but trust me it's very satisfying seeing all your organising in one cute little folder.

I started off with a few Filofax's and then gradually I started seeing more and more people talking about Kikki.K, a lovely Swedish brand, similar to Filofax. I first seen them around instagram, when everyone was going on and on about their now discontinued mint planner with gold got accents. I knew at this point that I had to get my hands on one! I had been using the Filofax Finsbury in raspberry and the Filofax Classic in pink up until then, but I wanted something a bit more colourful and girly. I eventually found a lovely girl from Australia, where Kikki.K is mainly based, who was selling one for auction on ebay, which I managed to nab for £120. It seems pretty steep, but honestly, I absolutely love it. Since then, I've also purchased their newest planner release, the lilac time planner with gold accents and gold rings. It's beautiful. I don't know if it's possible to love and treat a planner like a child, but I kind of do. Oh well. Now, onto the planners themselves.

Like I said above, I have the mint and lilac time planners. The mint planner is the large size, which is the equivalent to Filofax A5 and the lilac is the medium size, equivalent to Filofax personal. I absolutely adore the colours, especially the lilac with the cute little gold diamonds. I'm not so keen on the gold rings, I wish they weren't quite as gold and maybe a little less yellow, but you can't please everyone. The leather on the planners is really good quality and is quite supple and bendy, meaning that you can fit loads inside. All of the Kikki.K time planners come with monthly, weekly, address, birthdays, restaurants, expenses and to do tabs, but I only use some of them. I don't use the address, birthday or restaurants tabs, so I just whip them out and replace them with note paper or list paper. The lilac planner comes with really cute pale pink dividers and the mint planner comes with dark royal blue dividers, which I wasn't keen on at all.

I use the monthly pages to plan out birthdays, appointments and shifts at work and I used the weekly pages to write out things in more detail. I use the expense pages to work out where my money is coming in from and where and when it going, which has helped me save a bit of money recently, and even helped me get back on track with my credit card! I have a habit of just spending money on my card without realising how much I'm actually spending; but now when I buy something, I write down what I bought, where I bought it, how much it was and how I paid for it. It makes it really easy to see where most of my money is going and shows me where to cut back. It's super handy!

I like to decorate the weekly pages with washi tapes, stickers and generally just things that make the pages look a little more fun. I tend to do things more if the pages I'm looking at are a little more appealing. It's kind of childish that I need a bit of colour to draw my attention to it, but what ya gonna do. Plus, look how cute the little stickers are! I've been using the Kikki.K planners for for around ten weeks now and I have to say that I've been a lot more organised as a result. I'm going to be incorporating my blogging schedule into my planners very soon, as I think it will help me be able to post a bit more frequently, if I'm being reminded to do it on a daily basis!

After reading this back to myself I realise that I come across as a little bit weird, but you love what you love! If you do like Filofax or stationery and the like, then please comment letting me know I'm not the only stationery nerd out there, or follow me on my planner instagram - hellozeldaloves. I'm looking for penpals as well, as I have a thing for writing letters, too. If any of you'd like to be penpals, please let me know!

I hope this didn't make me sound too crazy! ;)

- I'd just like to point out that this post was in no way sponsored, I just love Kikki.K! -

15

instagram - an update

I haven't done one of these updates in months! The past month has been so much fun. Craig and I have went hill climbing, walked around the festival stuff including trying out the big wheel, went out to dinner, visited family and generally just enjoyed ourselves. This is obviously spaced around us both working full time, but you get the idea. Other than that, not a lot has been going on lately. hence the lack of updates like this. I did finally get my new Kikki.K lilac planner through the mail to match my mint one, which I'm absolutely loving and will be posting about properly soon.

I do tend to post a lot more on instagram - hellozelda, including my new filofax instagram - hellozeldaloves, which will be explained in a future post, in case you think I'm an absolute weirdo! So make sure to follow me there!

0

a simple day out, in photos

I've been pretty in active around here the last few weeks, haven't I? Sorry guys! I recently went down to visit my dad, who lives outside London, with my little brother, so I've been away from my laptop. We hadn't seen him since Christmas, and although it was good spending time with my dad and brother, it really was a challenge; Family relationships are hard. So after a pretty disastrous holiday there and with it being so busy at work, I kind of forgot all about my blog. However, now with 16 glorious days off work for a holiday, I can firmly say I have a few posts coming and will be blogging a bit more!

After coming back from my dad's, I was in an almost permanent bad mood for the next few days, thanks to all the arguing that had happened. So to cheer myself up, I decided to take a little pamper day all to myself. I don't usually spend a day out alone, but seeing as I was being quite moody towards Craig as a result of the holiday, I thought it best if I come out of my mood on my own. I took a bus into the city centre and went straight for Lush. I knew that a pamper session wouldn't be good without a few Lush bits and bobs. I bought a few of the Sex Bomb bath bombs, a few bubble bars, and a face mask. I spent about half an hour in there talking to the girls about different products and then decided that hovering around smelling everything was probably weird looking, so I decided to head out. I walked along Princes St and into Waterstones for a few new books. I spent a good hour browsing around, but settled on buying copies of books I previously had, but had given to charity a few years back. I bought 1984 - George Orwell, Dracula - Bram Stoker and The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald. The guy that served me thought I was studying literature or something when I brought them to him to scan, his face was quite funny when I told him I was just reading them again, as they're some of my favourites!

After the little chat, I left Waterstones and went down into Princes St gardens for a sit down on the grass and to enjoy a walk around all the flowers. It was pretty busy just because it was so nice and sunny outside, but I didn't mind. I had my camera out too, so I got a few funny looks here and there, but I suppose I'll have to get used to that eventually. I stayed there for about an hour reading and then grabbed a bus back to the flat. I went for a lovely hot bath, accompanied by the Lush stuff and obvz had time for a few posed photos in the mirror. #selfie #sorrynotsorry

After I came out of my bath, probably two hours later.. I lazed on the couch with a smoothie and watched Ferris Bueller's Day Off, one of my absolute favourite films. It never fails to cheer me up! I thoroughly enjoyed spending a day out by myself that I think I might make a monthly thing. It's nice to appreciate your own company sometimes and it really did bring me out of my silly bad mood!

0