Photo Diary : Two Days in Central London

 

Breakfast at Pret A Manger with my cousin after failing to show her our great British Costa Coffee. We shared a little bit of savoury and sweet together before heading to Green Park to show her Buckingham Palace.

I'm much more scared of large moving animals than most people; I might smile but it's only a disguise to cover up my true feelings....

The very busy, very crowded London Eye.

I've said it before - I really don't mind getting lost in the middle of London alone, it would be an adventure, right?

The strange thing is that I have never been to Covent Gardens before. I've been meaning to visit for a long time so when I finally had a chance I dived right for it. The area is much different to places such as Oxford Street or Trafalgar Square even though they are not far apart. We ate brunch in a cute little café outdoors called Le Pain Quotidien which had lovely coffee and a healthy menu - I loved very much! It was hard to keep away from the deserts but I managed (with some difficulty).

Leicester Square and Trafalgar Square.

By this time of the day we were all very tired from walking around in between thousands of tourists and my cousin was still jet lagged from her 25 hour flight from Sydney, so we decided it was almost time to head home.

I learnt many things from our day out, one of which is that to really explore London, or any other city, you need to look around properly to find gems of  places which tourists will visit. These are usually are much more beautiful than the mainstream London streets. Small and quieter cafes might surprisingly have better food and a different (but lovely) feel to them than the usual Starbucks would have.

 

I love discovering new things!

 

Which places in London or your city do you love? Did you find them out of trial and error?

 

Priyanka xx

Why It's Important to Spend Quality Time With Yourself

Over these past few weeks my life has been incredibly exciting, action packed and exhausting but I'm not complaining one single bit! I love physically going out, visiting my friends and well doing things instead  of sitting at home staring at my phone just to kill time.

Every day matters. We are all given the power to change someone's life and every time we wake up we can make a difference to our own lives if we choose to do so.

Personally, I always feel that I have to constantly be doing something or I begin feel guilty about not doing something practical with my life (this process is not sudden but seems to progress during an aimless day) - does any one else feel like this?

One thing that I have discovered is of course I can change my life and channel all my energy towards my grand goals, so that I live with the minimal amount of regrets, but I can't and should not sacrifice my happiness in doing so.

All that this really means sometimes I just need to CHILL and let loose.

So what I did was sit out in my garden, give my self a mini pedicure, paint my nails (which chipped within a day), read my magazine, feel my legs going red and then realise that sunscreen would be a good item to grab from upstairs - oh, sometimes I'm a total genius -but I really did enjoy my self doing it.

Why Is It Important to Enjoy Spending Time With Yourself?

You can do what you want to do!
You don't have to invite a friend around all the time since being by yourself  means that you don't have to ask someone what they would like to eat or drink nor do you don't have to share an earphone when watching a film. Selfish? No, its just good to do things by your self sometimes.

You learn more about yourself
Well, you heard my little life story above so you can see that it is true. Being alone means that you can think about your beliefs, your values and assess your life - although overthinking things is never good for anyone.

You feel more grateful when doing fun things alone
I feel this one is very true for me! If I watch a hilarious film by myself I'm more likely to laugh much, much more that if someone was there listening to my ridiculous laugh. Also, if I buy and eat something really tasty by myself I'm more likely taste the food better, eat slower to savour the food and enjoy it much more than if I kept saying, 'this is so tasty!' to express it to others.

You don't have to be exhausted by the end of the day
You can sit in bed or outside and simply fall asleep instead of going out and staying there for a good 6 hours.

You feel more energized when you get back to a normal working day
At the end of the day when you have committed time to yourself, you are the person which should have benefitted and enjoyed yourself the most, right?  By allowing your self pleasures, I believe that you will feel rewarded for your hard work and therefore become more motivated to do other things.

These are the things that I feel in my life and I am certain that not everyone feels guilty for sleeping most of the day then watching  hours of TV, followed by hours of scrolling on their phones and then repeat the same process until the end of summer, but I would feel guilty.

I really hope that you find things that are common to your own life here, do you spend enough time with your self? How do you like to relax?

Priyanka xx

Vapiano Great Portland Street

A couple of days ago my friend and I went out to eat at Vapiano, which is a 5 minute walk from Oxford Circus Station, after it was (very) heavily recommended to us by her cousin. The way she described the pasta there to us completely sold it so we decided a trip to the restaurant ourselves was needed to really understand.

 

Fine.

 

We used navigation from my iPhone to actually get there.

 

But that's only because I'm a little bit oblivious when it comes to directions. If we didn't, I don't know how long we would have been walking around in circles asking strangers where it was. That's no good now is it?!

 

When we first walked in, the man at the front counter asked if we had been to Vapiano before, and as we hadn't, he gave us a card (like a credit card) and explained that we can go to any of the stations to get food and the bill is put onto the card, which you pay for at the end.

 

There were stations for pasta, pizza, salad, sides and a bar for drinks and desert. I choice to have the  Carbonara pasta which was bacon, onions and egg in cream sauce. I usually don't like pasta very much but believe me this was really tasty (and very filling)!

 

The chefs make the pasta in front of you, asking what shape of homemade pasta you would like and if you would like any additional spices.

 

The unique part about this was that all of the staff were Italian or at least looked as if they were!

I really enjoyed my dinner there and would recommend it to everyone to go and enjoy, especially because it's such a reasonable price, and simply as an alternative to the usual Nandos.

 

Which food places in London would you recommend?

 

Priyanka xx

Things About Fitness and Food That I Have Learnt Along The Way

When it comes to fitness I think we all know that it's never really easy.

Yes, I have great days where I just don't give up on my workout, drip with sweat doing millions of burpees with my music blasting on high and feel absolutely epic afterwards. However, I also seem to have really bad days where I am either way too tired to try hard enough or my mind is on something completely different... and why be ashamed? Sometimes I have only cake and ice cream on my mind so you can guess why my workout doesn't quite go to plan!

Most people, like myself,  have looked online for short term fixes to 'loosing weight'- if you keep to it as a 'diet' it might actually work but the problem is that as soon as the '6 week bikini challenge' is over people turn back to their usual routine which isn't actually doing any good.

Since I started exercising at home around 3 years ago and my body (and lifestyle) has changed entirely but I still don't have the 'perfect' body in my eyes (every body type is equally as beautiful!) nor has exercising become any easier simply because my limitations and strengths have changed and I always need to challenge myself.

Here are some useful things that I learnt from my own habits that might help you:

-You have to workout your entire body to improve your overall fitness : Both cardio and strength

I have previously workout nothing but my abs, doing rep after rep of sit ups and crunches. It doesn't help! Cardio is there is burn fat and strength training is there to make you stronger, strengthening different parts of your body is also required to seem fitter overall. Simple.

-You should exercise not because it's a chore, but because you want to exercise

 

Lets face it, if there is no motivation for you to exercise the chances are that you wont. I love to exercise because it has been a way to release all my stress and to even relax.

-You have to watch your diet as well as exercise routine

Healthy eating is a must if you really want that body! Load up most of your plate with veggies and start making different combinations of salads for lunch - that's a great way to start.

-Read food labels

Have you ever picked up one of the 'Eat Natural' bars and found that it is filled will honey, glucose syrup and sugar? Well they are and now I tend to avoid store brought products such as these because they don't seem as healthy as I first thought they were. Some bars, such as the Nakd bars, are pretty unprocessed and I love them for when I know I'm going to be out and about.

-All peanut butter is not the same!

Again reading the food label is really useful, I found that Skippy's Peanut butter has added sugar as well as other ingredients. Peanut butter is a good source of protein (as tastes amazing) but choosing clean options such as Whole Earth is the best choice.

-Portion control - but enjoy your food :)

Unfortunately too many calories is still too many calories but I don't ever think that the healthy food I eat is ever a diet because it is simply a lifestyle choice. As most of you may realise you can't go on a short fix 'diet' for the rest of your life and therefore I know that if I do want a burger, ice cream, cake or even Churros (YES PLEASE) then I am free to enjoy those foods in moderation. I try once a week if I must or I will 'save' them up if I know I'm going on holiday or its nearly my birthday or I'm planning to eat out at a buffet.....we all know what happens then I am really hungry.....

 

Hope that you found some of these things useful!

 

Do you have any healthy snacks you love and would recommend?

 

Priyanka xx

Easy and Natural Contouring

 

I have introduced my makeup (and myself) to a little more contouring. I know. It is really down to the basics here.

 

To honest, applying layers of foundation then concealer then bronzer then blush then highlighter is not the most ideal habit to go about every single morning at 7 am for me. However, since the summer has arrived and I have been ditching my foundation on daily runs,I have decided that a little dimension to my face is definitely required.

 

I sometimes can watch hours and hours of YouTube videos and still not really know how to contour properly simply because I haven't tried. Well, that definitely was the scenario when I surprised my mum by cooking stir fry noodles for her birthday....only that the noodles ended up over cooked and way to sticky for a stir fry and the whole thing didn't taste like...noodles. It's because I have seen her cook millions of times and always thought it was easy. Apparently not.

 

Concealer: I first cover up any dark spots with Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer. On my face, these are mostly all on my forehead and a few on my chin which means that these are the slightly lighter areas of my face, useful for contouring at the same time (how cheeky).

 

I then conceal my under eye area with Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer. I have figured that a highlighting concealer is better to use under the eyes because it is more natural and does not become cakey as it doesn't have such a thick consistency. I have been trying to apply this under my eyes by dotting the product in a wide triangular shape, this way I can highlight above my cheek bones at once.

 

Bronzer: I have always been a fan of Bourjois Delice de Poudre Bronzing Powder (as well known as the 'chocolate bronzer') forever. The product has lasted me for such a long time which is great! This applies very naturally on my skin and I can build it up depending on how strong I would like the shadows under my cheekbones to be. I also apply a little near my hair lines and blend it down to my neck.

 

Blush: I have very much come to a conclusion. I need blush and mascara to then actually look alive. No, it really isn't the same without them! I apply blush with a 'fish face' first then add a little more to the apples of my cheeks as I smile.

 

At least this will be a handy lesson learnt for the future.

 

Is there any little tricks that you have learnt along the way? If so, I would love to know!

 

Priyanka xx

Prom Photos 2015

Everyone was talking about prom, dresses, shoes, hair, makeup and of course suits since last year and it has already passed by.

 

Not only was the venue very beautiful, but everyone looked gorgeous... even effortless; but I know that the boys took at least a few hours to look as smart as they did!

 

The day was hot and sunny but I must admit that the night didn't last as long as I hoped it would have lasted as the DJ called out the last song at 11 pm. Now that is a little early don't you think?  There were food bites, drinks and the all special 'Prom King and Queen' who also shared a dance together.

 

It was lovely to see that people I have seen almost every day, for the past 5 years of my life, all came together to dance and share this last night before people move away and our year group is lost to a new herd of students.

 

If I had one last wish for everyone it would be: never forget these years.

 

Priyanka xx

Malin + Goetz : Grapefruit Face Cleanser, Vitamin e Face Moisturizer and Lip Moisturizer Review

 

With my £5 WHSmith voucher I knew exactly what I was going to buy.

 

I needed a magazine.

 

Yes.

 

One of those glossy, white, fashion and beauty filled magazines that I hadn't even dared to touch because of those exams that I have now completely erased for my memory- and for a very good cause.

 

Nobody really likes being locked in studying.

 

And lucky me, a travel size Malin +Goetz set was what I got with my July edition of Elle.

 

Grapefruit Face Cleanser

 

This is a really hydrating and gentle face cleanser which actually smells really lovely! I feel like that this would be better to use in the morning when you know you haven't been sweating and don't need to properly remove any makeup or dirt from your face as you would do in the evening.

 

It doesn't foam up very much and has a similar gel like texture as the Simple Refreshing Facial Wash Gel which I also brought a year ago in a travel size version when I was out camping.

 

This would be great for people with especially sensitive skin but cleans skin just as well.

 

Vitamin e Face Moisturiser

 

On the back of the product it does recommend using a small amount of product because it is very concentrated. However, a usually moisturize my face a little more (even if that means I might have to put on a little more powder on my face, to prevent any oiliness) as my skin is on the slightly more dry side.

 

That being said, using more product on my face worked better for me, but I would not recommend this as a night cream as it doesn't have enough creaminess to lock in moisture during the night.  

 

Lip Moisturizer

 

If all lip balms and all Vaseline tins were this good, I would be smothering the gels all over my lips all day, so much that people around me would be heavily concerned!

 

The product is a clear gel like substance and is so immensely hydrating that you only actually need the tiniest amount on your lips to feel like they are fully moisturized. I also found that the hydration lasts a very long time, doesn't easily wash off under a little water or whilst eating food. The best thing is that it makes your lips look much smoother.

 

It is really a pleasant surprise and I think everyone would love it as basic lip product.

 

I really need to find a lip moisturiser, as perfect as this one, but one that is more readily available. If anyone has any recommendations I would love to know!

 

Priyanka xx

Taylor Swift Concert Hyde Park

 

 

 Yes. It happened. It really did. And it was beautiful.

It was an incredible night and I'm so glad that I could be there with my best friend so we could share our love for Taylor together.

I hope my memories will remain as vivid as the excitement, rush and build up of the whole day.

The venue was perfect (I could smell gorgeous food everywhere) and the day was sunny and hot so we all had to accept that everyone was sweating by the end of the day from jumping around screaming the lyrics of her songs at the top of our voices.

The funny thing is even grown men (in their 30s) knew all the lyrics, of all her songs, off by heart as well as I did. I will happily praise that aspect of their personalities!

We were standing up for more than 4 hours, at a skin tight distance to everyone in the crowd since she also had Vance Joy, John Newman and Ellie Golding singing before her. The loveliest thing is that Taylor not only sang the new songs from her album 1989 but also really old classics as the much adored 'Enchanted' and 'Love Story' (they never get old).

And so the day all ended with hungrily scoffing down a Chicken Legend Burger with chips from McDonalds, at 12 am on the hot and sticky tube home.

Priyanka xx