Working in Retail

Hi guys!

Apologies that I haven't posted in a fair amount of time, life has been SO busy what with school, UCAS and what this very post is all about! If you follow me on twitter or instagram then you will know that I FINALLY got a job after trying for so long! It was the quickest process ever; I applied, got a phone call back 2 hours later, had an interview the next day, and then began working the day after that!

As you can see from the picture above, I'm now an employee at HMV! Not only is it a job, but one that involves products that I'm extremely interested in, predominantly music that I've been passionate about all my life. As work has completely taken over my weekends (9.00-5.30 on Saturday, 10.00-6.30 on Sunday!) it inspired today's blogpost just about working in retail in general.

So far personally I've been loving it! It is so satisfying when customers ask me questions about music and I genuinely know what to say to them, and the dosh is quite lovely. There are of course some things that come with it that aren't ideal, making mistakes on the till gets me so flustered and the hours take their toll sometimes on me mentally and physically. It can be brilliant though, like an elderly woman coming up to me and asking me for a Lil Wayne album that was apparently 'number 7 on uTunes'. uTunes. Adorable! 

So yeah I'm getting used to the ins and outs, like rude customers or erratic queues leading to coping under pressure. There are great things too though as previously mentioned, and getting to discover new music all day while you're working is pretty brilliant. Right now this is the biggest change in my life as of late, so it only seems right to base this blogpost around it. Christmas presents are officially sorted!

So, to those of you that work or have done so previously in retail, what were your own experiences?

Thanks for reading as always,

Jade xx

One Lovely Blog Award

Hi guys!

I've been meaning to do this for ages, ever since I got nominated back in October by the lovely millieerosee! So here it finally is, the 'One Lovely Blog' award.

The Rules:

1. You must display the award logo at the top of the post.

2. You must thank the person/people who nominated you and leave a link to their blog in your post.

3. You must add this set of rules so your nominees will know what to do.

4. You must add 7 facts about yourself in the post.

5. You must nominate 5 other blogs and leave links to their blogs in the post.

6. You must let the people know you've nominated them.

7. You must follow the person who nominated you on Bloglovin.

I nominate:

Samantha

Lauren

Leanne

Alex

Jordan

7 Facts About Me:

1. My favourite foods are kebabs, Chinese takeaway, chicken tikka masala and spaghetti bolognese. 

2. I started my first part-time job a mere four days ago, at HMV!

3. My essential make-up products are lipstick and eyeliner.

4. My favourite band of all time are The Beatles.

5. I've never dyed my hair before.

6. I share my birthday with Barack Obama and Dylan + Cole Sprouse.

7. The build up to Christmas/the day itself is my favourite time of year!

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I hope you all enjoyed! It's a great way to find out more about bloggers and discover more of them.

Jade xx

Winter Wishlist 2014

Hi guys!

So, I have never really done one of these before so it's something a bit different I guess! But yes if I had lots and lots of money (praying this job interview goes well tomorrow..!) this is the selection of items I came up with that would be just ideal for winter! Whether that be jumpers for chilly weather, a Christmas party dress or even a fluffy penguin, I've narrowed down some of my favourites that I'd be all over if money was no object!

1. Sky lilac ripped knee skinnies - Liquor n Poker (£40.00)

Ripped jeans are VERY in right now, and Liquor n Poker specialises in them! I'm not huge on the trend like a lot of girls, but I came across this lilac pair on their site and LOVED them! They were just right for me, with the rips being fairly subtle and lilac being one of my favourite colours, resulting in quite the combination! These would be my top wishlist skinny jeans for sure. I may as well capitalise on the trend before it goes!

2. Monty Medium Plush Toy, H26cm - John Lewis (£12.00)

Who says these wish lists should be restricted to just items you can wear? Unless you've been living under a rock (or boycott every channel minus the BBC), then I'm sure the current John Lewis advert has been extremely omnipresent on your TV right now. We all love a bit of saccharine once in a while, Christmas is always appropriate for that! So of course I fell for the cuteness of the penguins and yes, I want the plush. It's just TOO adorable, no wonder they're sold out!

3. Pink Fluffy Jumper by RedSoul - Tonic Clothing (£55.00)

Yes, so imagining the fact that I don't have £20 to my name right now and money trees were a thing, I LOVE this jumper! Admittedly pink hasn't always been my favourite colour to wear (I'm more of a dark palette kind of girl) but this is just too cute for the winter months! The colour, material and the minimalistic detail are a gorgeous combination, with the bow being a sweet finishing touch! This is where my girly side makes a rare occurrence. Want.

4. Light Beige short coat - H&M (£49.99)

This coat is lush! It took me 17 years but I seem to have finally fallen in love with pink/beige clothing! Not only is it extremely pretty but so smart and chic as well. So many coats out there are also so much more expensive too, so I'd happily buy this.

5. Checked skater dress - Primark (£8.00)

Primark always have such cheap and cheerful items, I adore that you can find great dresses in there for under a tenner! I have so many dresses, although some not quite that wintery, so I really like the check pattern, colouring and sleeve length and think this would be ideal for the upcoming months.

6. Black Chain Buckle Strap Ankle Boots - New Look (£22.99)

I am ALL OVER the black ankle boots in New Look right now; I found myself buying a pair with a buckle very recently. Because I have that pair, it'd be lovely to own a pair like this that have quite a fair amount more detail on them - with two buckles and a chain. Love them!

7. Jolie sequin top skater dress - Boohoo.com (£25.00)

It has become evident that I have a thing for skater dresses! I adore them so much though, they flow so nicely on the skirt part. Anyway, Christmas time is always an excuse for glitter and sequins, and with a few parties/meals coming up, this'd be so lovely to wear out! I love the pairing of black and gold (subliminal Sam Sparro reference) and the pattern is so sophisticated.

8. Woolly Vest Sweater by RedSoul - Tonic Clothing (£55.00)

I have gotten into sleeveless jumpers recently, ever since purchasing one in Select. This is GORGEOUS, I adore the grey colouring, subtle swirl pattern and the cute but effective addition of the furry bobble which spruces it up a bit, lovely!

9. Silver Star, Snowflake and Pearl Stud Gift Pack - Claire's Accessories (£6.00)

Claire's was my accessory paradise in my first couple of years of secondary school, but you're never too old for their items! This pack of three stud earrings are dead cute! I actually have a pair of Christmas earrings that are of the dangly variety from a few years ago, with bells attached and all (think Pat Butcher from Eastenders) but they're not the most discreet of earrings. These are SO lovely though, simply cute - the snowflakes in particular will be fab around Christmas time.

10. Rib and Purl Pom Beanie - Accessorize (£15.00)

When browsing winter hats, this was the one that caught my eye the most! I recently bought a jumper from Select that's practically the exact same colour and I just can't stop thinking how cute the combination of them would be! It looks so snug and like the Tonic Clothing sleeveless vest, I adore the addition of the bobble! 

11. White Chunky Lace Up Heeled Boots - New Look (£29.99)

Time to round this off with something a bit more outlandish! I keep seeing Betsy-Blue from Only the Young wearing boots like this on X Factor and I've wanted a similar pair so bad! They're a little scarily high and I doubt I'd have the confidence to wear these during the day, but for night-time they'd be a MUST for me! I love the combination of black and white with the laces for boots, SO lovely, I saved my favourite until last! New Look shoes are doing it for me so much now.

So that's it guys! I really hope you enjoyed this, it was something a bit different for me but was SO much fun to put together, who doesn't love browsing online stores?! But yes it's a really good way to plan ahead for outfits you want instead of aimlessly browsing in a store for four hours. Are there any items here that take your fancy? Also, feel free to comment your own wish lists, I love looking at them for inspiration!

Thanks,

Jade xx

Firework Frenzy

Hi guys!

Hope you're all well. Currently I have quite a few posts planned, and although I didn't feel I quite captured enough photos to warrant a post, I was absent for Halloween so I thought I might as well share what I got up to for Bonfire night this year anyway! This isn't really an occasion I'm normally too crazy about - I haven't celebrated it in years - but this year I ended up going to two celebrations! One was on the actual day of Bonfire Night - Saturday 5th, but I also ended up going to a display three days prior as well! So, here were the (unfortunately limited) moments I managed to capture...

Oops, apologies for the not-so-stellar photography there! But yes firstly on Wednesday 2nd November I went to the firework display at Midsummer Meadow with enough friends to warrant us having to take two cars. Pictured above is me with my friend Jess, and then below myself (with the illusion of short hair?!), Jess, Kyla and Sam. We left a bit too late so unfortunately missed the bonfire, but we luckily got there in time for the short but sweet firework display. The place was PACKED, it was honestly such a nightmare trying to get out of there when it was over. But anyway, Stuart and Natalie from Heart FM were there to provide a soundtrack whilst the fireworks were in full swing, and the euphoric tracks made for a really fantastic experience. I was worried I'd be underdressed, what with practically everyone else I'd arrived with in hats and scarves, but luckily it didn't matter all that much.

Slightly better photography here, yay! This was the display I attended on November the 5th itself, at the very local Foxfield country park. This time it was more of a small gathering, this time going with two of my best friends Emma (picture above with me) and Christian. It wasn't quite as packed as the last, but I found the display to be far more spectacular! They had added in the element of Catherine wheels and the finale felt like it packed more of a punch. Funnily enough, Stuart and Natalie from Heart FM were on hand to DJ again whilst the fireworks were going on. The tracks were laughably appropriate though, what with the inclusions of 'Firework' by Katy Perry, 'Relight My Fire' by Take That and 'Firestarter' by The Prodigy...! 

But yes these were two such fun days with friends, it's definitely convinced me to want to do something every year, I didn't realise quite how much I loved fireworks! I hope you guys enjoyed reading, did any of you celebrate bonfire night as well?

Thanks,

Jade xx

Stellar Spanish Escapism

Hi everyone!

Well, I had been planning to create this mammoth blogpost for you all earlier on in the week after a brief absence, but turns out I was weighed down in schoolwork this week and constantly shattered, so it has come a bit later in the week than expected, but nevertheless, it is finally here! As you may or probably may not know, I went on holiday to Spain from 24th October - 1st November and it served as my 2014 holiday after not having one in the Summer holidays. We stayed in my great grandma's flat which is located in the town of Vilagarcia de Arousa in Galicia. A week with limited wifi but plenty of alternatives turned out to be a week of fun and pure joy and escapism, so I will take you all throughout the week of our travels in pictures and words in chronological order...

This was the hotel room, the trusty Premier Inn located right next to Stansted airport complete with gorgeous decor. We stayed in the bar in the first picture for most of the night which was a lovely experience, although I decided to pull an all-nighter as we'd be getting up at 3am, however, this turned out to be a HUGE mistake! 

This is what me running on absolutely ZERO sleep looks like! But yes THAT turned out to be a huge mistake as I kept feeling faint and couldn't eat anything. I fell asleep on the plane though so here we were in Spain at the airport in no time, me and my brother here pictured in the pesky waiting for baggage stage!

One hour later after the taxi ride and we were here at my great grandma's flat! I think it was about 11am in Spanish time here and I was hanging on for dear life without sleep as I had to go and see great grandma! She looks so cute here bless her, and my hair is looking very long which I approve of! Two minutes later I would crash from sleep deprivation. 

So, about seven hours later and we had all woken up after going straight to bed following a serious lack of sleep. We decided to spend the first night at Italian restaurant O Sole Mio and it was absolutely divine. Seriously, the pizza I had there was the most indescribably wonderful pizza I've ever tasted in my life, and that feeling seemed to be mutual between my family members. My brother and grandma even had the idiosyncratic Spaghetti Pizza which combined those two things! The atmosphere was wonderful, with people sitting outside as well. One thing about Spanish culture that you can easily pick up is that they eat considerably later than us English do, so we were out for dinner most nights at usually 8 or 9pm. But yes wonderful place, the music there as well was actually English and so chilled out - like Milky Chance or Mr Probz.

Afterwards we hit the pub the Hibernia (with actual WIFI, hallelujah!) and this turned out to be where we'd go most nights. As you can see from the top picture, we were LOADED with tapas and realised we'd have to work hard to stay in shape, as with every drink you ordered, you'd get two bowls of junk with it to eat, whether that be crisps or sweets. Every night I'd feel so incredibly full it was unreal!

Day 2 and more unhealthy food was on the agenda as you can see with Spanish McDonalds! We then spent the day at a nearby beach and the weather was remarkable for October! There was a LOT of walking involved to get here which compensated once again for the ridiculous amount of Tapas you get wherever you go!

Quality time with great grandma tends to round off most nights!

This was another beautiful beach we went to named Las Sinas, which we ended up visiting most days when the weather was scorching. There was also a bar on this beach too so drinks and tapas-a plenty once again!

A lot of time spent in the flat at night with my brother and great grandma = a lot of selfies!

...and on the balcony too!

More adventures at 'Las Sinas' and a hairdressers.... called ME!

The street shops and the LUSH ice cream/frozen yoghurt place!

Getting ready for the last night out! We headed back to O Sole Mio again because it was just TOO good. More pasta-orientated dishes this time.

Aaaaaand... pulling stupid faces about an hour before we were to head home for our night flight.

Hope you enjoyed my week in pictures! Apologies for the sheer LENGTH of this post but I already cut it down believe it or not, and there were too many poignant moments to be concise about it! But yes it was just what I needed, a week of happiness to bring some goodness to October. So yeah, thank you for reading if you made it this far! Have you ever been to Spain before?

Thanks,

Jade xx