Once Flown...Can You Call It Home?

It has been over a year since I flown the nest, and having taken a couple of months to get over the home sickness, I embraced my independence. There is a complete freedom in living by yourself, which is what I love about it.  You can come and go whenever you want it, have it as tidy or a messy as you like, have your friends round whenever... However there are a few things I completely miss about home. Seeing my mum everyday, central heating (gas and electric bills are an absolute bitch), home cooked food (as no matter how many times you cook chilli con carne it will never be as good as your mum's), my bunny rabbit Pebbles, my school/college friends, and that security of always feeling safe.
I have a beautiful house where I go to Uni, however the area can be a little rough sometimes. It has made me a lot more street wise though, now nothing really phases me. The tramp that lives at the end of my road who always asks me to "Come cook him dinner tonight" is just another man I pass everyday on the way home. I guess at least one time in your life you have to live somewhere rough to really appreciate where you feel secure.
I also have a beautiful house in my home town, even though my bedroom has been needed to be decorated for years, there is a sense of empathy there. You know those awful choices you make as a teenager that when you're a little older you just think "what the fuck teenage self"... yeah that's my room now. But I still love it, as that's where I became who I am today.
But do I call either of them my actual home? The truth is I love both of these places. Both have people I have come to know and love over my lifetime, and when I'm in one place there will always be a part of me that misses the other. So really I am writing this blog to let everyone know, who makes my life so amazing in both "homes" that I am truly thankful, and appreciative to have them in my life. I know it's a big slab of cheese, but hey, its Christmas :).

"You will never be completely at home again, because part of your heart will always be elsewhere. That is the price you pay for the richness of loving and knowing people in more than one place."
xxx

November/December Favourites

Due to it being a little too late for November favourites and a little too early for December Favourites I've decided to pack them all together in a BIG TWO MONTH FAVOURITES :). **everyone cheers**
I have been using all these products for quite a while, they have all worked wonders and I would recommend each of them to anyone.

^^^Everything included in my monthly favourites this month can be seen above^^^

1) My Number One Favourite is: 

Models Own Glitter Nail Varnish in the shade Southern Lights. This makes your nails look so beautiful as it shimmers and glitters so much. I find myself just looking down at my nails watching them sparkle. Its also incredibly Christmassy. I always think you can't go wrong with some glitter nail varnish at Christmas. And its very hard wearing. Being a student and chucking myself about everywhere means I know how hard wearing a nail varnish is, and this does not chip easy!  Beautiful and Brilliant :). 

2) Champneys, Spa Indulgence, Distant Shores Body Butter

Everyone loves when Boots has a 3 for 2 day or double points, and I always take complete advantage of them - meaning I'm meant to be buying Christmas presents but really I buy loads of treats for myself I don't really need. It was one of these bank account busting days that I found myself in the luxury pamper isle and came across this this body butter. And, oh my god, it smells amazing. Think I may have stood in the shop for at least ten minutes just smelling it, before I decided I couldn't walk out without having purchased it...and the foaming shower gel too. Whoops. They are a little more pricey than the products I usually buy, but they are so worth it. If you want your skin to be smooth and smell gorgeous, buy this product. (And if you're like me the bubble bath and shower gel too.)

3) Elnett Satin, 3 Days Straight, Heat Protect Styling Spray

Many people will know that I have been faithful to Aussie products for years, and use bottle after bottle of their heat protector. However, when both Boots and Superdrug were out of stock of Aussie, I picked up Elnett's. It is fairly new on the market and I was a little bit worried about using it...but now I am forever changed. This heat protector is incredible. It leaves your hair feeling so soft, silky and healthy. It deals with all frizz and fly aways, and smells really really good. 

4) Santa's Lip Scrub by Lush 

Winter is really harsh on the lips and there is not one thing I can't stand more than dry lips. First sign of chapped lips and I am out buying lip products. This year was no different, and since it was time for lush to bring out all their Christmas stock I headed straight there and found this. Now not only does it leave your lips really smooth.. I could actually just sit there and eat it, that's how good it tastes! Its like drinking a bottle of Cherry Cola. It is a little bit pricey at £5.50 (if I remember rightly) but I would say this product is definitely worth it. It's limited edition, as it is a Christmas product but it has me tempted to buy a second just so I don't run out. 

5) Boots Essentials Moisturising Lotion 

I use this every day and night on my face and it has literally left my skin incredibly soft. It smells of cucumber and gives you a really fresh faced feeling after taking off your make up at night, or after your shower in the morning. Its for all skin types and it has UV protection which is incredibly handy for summer. Its also incredibly affordable at £1.99 - a real student product. 

6) Simple, Kind to Eyes, Revitalising Roll On 

The life of a theatre can be an incredibly tiring one at times, with rehearsals for my last show running 9am to 11pm. Early mornings and late nights are horrible on the under eyes. This stuff can turn even my most tired eyes into bright awake sparkly ones :). Its really refreshing, also smells of cucumber, and states its even for the most sensitive of skin. 

7) Kerastase, Cristalliste (For dry lengths or ends)

I bought this product quite a long time ago from my hairdressers, since I straighten my hair a lot I'm always looking at products to improve and maintain the health of my hair. I used this for a few months and was disappointed not to see any improvement, but continued to use it as I prefer not to waste money on expensive hair products. Now, however, the improvements are amazing. One of those products that takes a long time to work but when it does it has the wow factor. My hair is left amazingly silky smooth after using this product, and it helps to keep my hair straight. It smells good too. Love it. 

And there you have it, all my favourites for the months of November and December :).

Thankyou for reading! 

xxx

Aspiration

Wow, it has been so long since I blogged, and I really began to miss it. The past couple have months have gone by in a flash, and I thought it was definitely time for a little catch up...

So I have now started my second year of university and it is coming to the end of a pretty amazing term. I am so excited for Christmas as I haven't been home at all this term, and it will be amazing to spend some time with my friends and family back home. It will also be good news to everyone to learn I finally got over a broken heart which had been with me since the middle of my first year. I learnt a lot of hard lessons and they will stay with me for all future relationships and I finally learnt how to be single. I learnt a lot about myself and am now looking forward to a future which I am very confident I will absolutely love.

Theatre is still my absolute number one love, and the reason why over the past couple of months I seemed to dropped off the face of the earth. The show my beloved second years and I just put on was a massive success and our lecturer/director is very proud. I am still continuing to learn so much in my chosen craft, and am so grateful for knowing I'm exactly where I want to be in life.

I have also decided in my future to become a journalist. The theatre industry is one I will always hold close to my heart and I will still pursue my dreams of becoming a successful actor.. however theatre jobs and opportunities are becoming scarce and it will be very hard to get by and survive in low points of my career (Low points should be expected by any realistic aspiring actor. I do have complete faith in myself but faith and realism need to come hand in hand). So I have turned to a second love which really began to show itself in my first year at university - writing. This is an aspiration that I'm not sure how to begin or where it will go, but I am going to love finding out.

This brings me to the point of my blog. The topics I will now be including in this blog are ones that interest me and I hope to bring a new level of professionalism to it. I'm not sure what I will talk about yet, it may be a case of sitting in front of the computer and writing whatever comes to me, but that'll still work for me. I will still be posting beauty blogs and experiences :) just with a few new topics and debates appearing.

Hope you'll still enjoy it, and I am so glad to be back after a long absence. Hopefully this all goes to plan...

Wish me luck ;)

xxx

They Say Money Can't Buy You Happiness... They Lie.

OK so here I am admitting it.

I, Lisa-Nicole Stevens, have a major spending problem.

*Warning, this blog contains my thought process...and yes I do swear in my thoughts. Whoopsie* 

 

So it's that time of year where we all go up a year in whatever education we are in, or go out alone into a permanent job. And real life just comes along and kicks you up the arse. Hard.

For me, its realising if I have any - and I mean any - money in my account I will go around chucking it about like it's monopoly money, not giving a shit until my card is declined, and then think fuuuuuuccckkk. What do I do now? That daunting feeling just hits you, and you go home lay on your bed with all your new pretty clothes and beauty products around you, kidding yourself thinking its ok I have new, "arse looks good" jeans and glittery eye liner. Until the next time you walk through the high street and think "oh my gosh I just have to have the flowery hair band, I'm like, never going to wear". And no matter how many new clothes you buy you will always have those "I have nothing to wear days" even though clothes are bursting out of every piece of storage you bloody well own*. *(My life hash tag moment right there).

Of course I'm not the only female that goes through this. Thank you God. I have no idea when I developed this habit. Hmmm.. Actually I do... when I was younger I had a "build a bear" cat called Muffy that just had to have the new ice skater outfit and the new teddy bear converses. Sad.. I know. (**Just a disclaimer, I paid with my own money from birthdays and things and used to get told off as i had so much teddy bear stuff. I was not spoilt :P.**) And this "have to have" attitude has pretty much carried on through my teens and into becoming a young woman who thinks eat and pay rent... or have those amazing red high heels. No awards for guessing which choice I'll pick. And yes I have a million clothes I don't wear on a regular basis, nail varnishes I barely use, and shoes that are just too bloody pretty to wear to either Kasbah or Hush. (Both night clubs in Coventry). But you know what, when I was having a bad day, buying those ridiculously high sparkly heels made everything better. And it meant I didn't have to work my butt off in the gym for a lot longer than I usually do because I'd stuffed a whole bar of Cadbury's Creations down my throat.

BUT..

The time has come for me to finally reign in my spendings *cue retailer screams*. 

I have over £3000 pound rent to pay and I need to actually keep myself alive. You know like, eat and stuff. Heard that's pretty important...

Why don't you get a job I hear you say.. Well I would already have one if they weren't such a nightmare to get hold of. I've been applying all summer and once I finish this blog I shall be applying for even more. 

Until I finally get one though, there's no more splurging for me :(. 

I am now going to go cry into my pillow whilst begging for someone to hire me. I can hear you all wish for my life right now :P.

And when I have a bad day... Well I guess it's the gym for me. Least I'll thighs of steel I suppose. 

Oh, and for anyone in my position as you read this, this saying always helps me - 

Some people are so poor, all they have, is money.

xxx

People never understand "Leave Me Alone"

**For those of you who don't like ranting blogs I would turn away now as this one could get a little ugly.**

It's not really like me to blast my anger all over the internet (or maybe it is) but there seems to be a phrase that no one in the world who speaks english seems to understand. "Leave Me Alone".
Everyone has their bad days. And I swear most people/girls when they are having one want to curl up with their favourite comfort food and be left the hell alone. So why, when you are the one who wants the space, can they not give you the same respect?
You may say it's because "they didn't realise", but all the warning signs are there. The irritated high volumed voice, short responses, the face that clearly means "don't fuck with me today or I'll punch you in the face".
So when you see that face, don't go up to the person with that stupid happy smile and say "who died" because you know what dumbass...someone may have died in their family. And you will get punched in your face. And you'll only have yourself to blame.
Another thing to not do is try to explain to the person why they are feeling the way they are. Why the hell would they need you to say that to them? I think that possibly...they may already know. And you're just going to piss them off even more, and higher your chances of getting kicked in the throat.

So why? Why do people do this. It literally baffles me.

Obviously I'm not saying this applies to everyone, but if I'm having a bad day I don't want jokes, hugs, explanations, sympathy - none of that. I want to cry into my pillow with a big bar of chocolate, pray and be left the hell alone. And maybe punch my wall, which I instantly regret afterwards and can't move my hand for the rest of the day. Then a couple of days later when I've gotten over everything (and my hand has recovered), THEN you can approach me to provoke a bitching sesh that will probably make us laugh till our sides hurt. But until then, leave me alone.

Hmm.. Maybe I need an "approach at own risk t-shirt"..
Or just to write fuck off on my forehead.
Sure that will go down a treat. 


P.S I make myself laugh :)

August Favourites

Bonjour tout le monde!

Just a little apology before I start this blog because I have not been posting as recently as I would like to. Birmingham, London, Poland and Paris have been my main locations of the summer and I just haven't had the time to blog. However, in approximately two weeks I will be moving into my first house back in Coventry with the girls **majorly exciting times** and will be posting more regularly. Think I will set a couple of days each week where I will be sure to blog :).

So, without further ramblings, here are my Monthly Favourites for August. Since I've been traveling a lot over summer, quite a few of these products are travel based. Enjoy :).

1) Escada Taj Sunset - 

I purchased this fragrance way back in Easter at the airport coming back from Magaluf, and I have to say it has been the best summer fragrance. It has a really sweet, gorgeous smell and just gets you ready to enjoy a day of sun. Unfortunately, I think this fragrance is a "travel exclusive" so you can only pick it up at airports, but I do recommend making a purchase of it if you are going away any time soon, as it just smells amazing. 

2) Vitamin C, Energising Face Spritz 

If you travel a lot in Summer whether its exploring different countries or making long journeys on public transport, this is a very handy product to keep in your hand bag. Smelling sweetly of oranges, its an instant, refreshing pick me up for when your just getting that little bit too hot. The vitamin C advantage comes from Amazonian Camu-Camu and Community Trade Aloe Vera, and leaves your skin feeling really soft. The spritz also helps to set make-up which is a great added plus for any girl on the go. This product can be purchased from The Body Shop. 

3) Absinthe Purifying Hand Cream 

Another purchase from the Body Shop and another great product for on the go. The thing that made me fall in love with this product was the smell. I just love it. It is so fresh and clean. It leaves your hand smelling and feeling great. The product is for all skin types and just makes your hands feel so so fresh, which is just great for traveling, especially when you've been on the underground or metro. 

4) Soap and Glory's "Clean, Girls Skin Softening Creamy Body Wash"

I bought this in travel size for my recent trip to Paris (a blog will be going up very soon) and I just have to find out if there is a big size because this body wash is incredible. It leaves your skin so soft and it leaves you smelling great for the whole day. The bottle claims the body wash to have a built-in moisturizing matrix, and the amazing smell is a mixture of natural vanilla fruit and orchid extracts. This product quickly became one of my all time favourite body washes. 

 

5) Rimmel London's Lasting Finish Lip Pencils "1000 kisses" 

I was given one of these in the colour 004 Indian Pink  by my gorgeous best friend Kathy for my Birthday, and it is amazing. the colour comes out a lot more red than the name suggests and is incredibly pigmented, with very easy application. I wore it out the other night underneath my "Apocalips" in the colour Big Bang (major love for this product too) and it lasted all night. Very very impressed with this product. Its also a pencil rather than a twist up product so you get a lot more for the price you pay. 

6) Natural Collection Eye Lines in White

With traveling you can get extremely tired, so recently I have been applying white eyeliner to the inside corner of my eyes to create that big eyes, wide awake look - a trick I learnt off my YouTube beauty gurus - and it really does work. I have had several compliments and would really recommend this to anyone suffering long nights and early mornings. 

7) Revlon, Colour Burst, Lip Butters 


I just love these beauty products. They come in great colours and great for keeping your lips smooth. They are really pigmented and are an exact cross between a lip stick and a lip balm. 
 Lip stick can sometimes leave lips really dry so these are a great substitute. I have them in the colours - 015 Tutti Frutti, 025 Peach Parfait and 075 Lollipop (which my sister has seem to have stolen) and I love them all. 015 and 075 are great for nights out, and 025 is a nice natural pink for daily wear.

8) Maybelline Baby Lips 

Another lip balm product quite similar to the last. These are also great. They come in colours or just a normal lip balm. Smell good, taste good and are great for on the go. I used one in the colour "Pink Punch" (on the left) all the time I was in Paris and I loved the product.






 9) Olive Oil Leave In Conditioner

I have been using this for a couple of months now and am really starting to notice a difference in my hair. In summer there is a whole lot of extra heat added to your hair, and if you also straighten your hair you really have to take extra precautions to ensure your hair stays healthy. Now during summer I actually stopped straightening my hair as much, left it to my natural curls, and used this product every time I washed it. "This conditioner helps to preserve moisture balance and protect against daily styling. Perfect for daily use to promote healthy, silky hair". I would completely agree with this statement, my hair feels silky smooth and has a natural shine (even though I coloured my hair recently). It has also grown which I am so happy about. A great product to help return health to damaged hair and it smells good too.

10) L'Oreal Paris Recital Preference Hair Dye (with high shine elixir)

Being a student, you don't always have the money to go and get your hair dyed in a salon, so for a do it at home job, this is a great product. I was in major need of a re-dye when I came back from Paris and this did the job so well. It covered the whole of my hair without making the roots go a complete different colour - (a major problem with other at-home dyes). The high shine elixir that you add to the dye helps keep your hair smooth and shiny rather than having that dry feeling you usually get after a dye on the cheap. The colour is really rich and not patchy. A great, cheap product at around £7.

And last but not least...

11) My Kindle :)

I received a Kindle from my mum for my birthday and it has barely left my sight since. With all the traveling it has just been awesome. Journeys go so much quicker when you're into a really good book, and for a theatre student its a really quick way of purchasing and reading plays. Also with recently re-decorating my room I realized how much room all my books take up and even though I will always love my paperbacks, kindles are a lot more convenient. I also get through books a lot quicker, which will help when I am actually meant to be reading my academic books for research and essays. 

Books I would recommend reading if you liked "The Hunger Games" as much as me: 
- Divergent 
- Matched
And 
- Shattered Promises 

So that's all my favourites for this month, hope you liked it and I will be blogging again soon. 

xxx

West End Musical "The Bodyguard" Review

 I won't be the first person to have bagged some discount tickets for a west end show. The expense of theatre nowadays is something closely looked at by critics and the public, and in my opinion is one of the main reasons why theatre is constantly decreasing in popularity. Nowadays, 60% of a theatre audience is filled with theatre practitioners themselves. However, the audience of the Adelphi Theatre did not reflect these facts. It was packed full with the biggest range of ages in a west end theatre I have seen in a long time.
When purchasing the tickets and being told that our view would be a little obstructed, I was surprised to have a very clear view of the stage. Starting with a bang - literally - the show began with an immediate silence  from the audience, not caused by the usual turning down of the house lights but by a gunshot. Even if there was still an urge to speak, the quality of what happened next would have rendered the whole audience speechless anyway.
The technical quality of this show was breath-taking, making the star of the show, for me, the technician. With the story-line being somewhat a simple - typical celebrity love story - and the incredible talent on stage being no less than what you would expect of the West End, the sheer control and relaxed persona of the technician at work kept catching my attention. Clearly seeing him from my seat in the audience, it almost looked like he choreographed all his own movements to the music coming from the stage. Throughout the show I could see no fault, in my eyes a major achievement, as what was going on on-stage was a jungle of technical brilliance. A clear influence of cinematography made it's mark all the way through the production with panels that reflected the movement and focus of a filming camera. Alongside rainbow lights, blaring mics and a number of haze machines - even though it is all done in sequences from his desk - I would still say the technician had his work cut out for him.

The whole cast of this show were equally incredible and by far one of the most talented of all West End shows currently standing. - See more at: http://the-void.co.uk/theatre/review-bodyguard-musical-433/#sthash.WKNiURZm.dpuf

The whole cast of this show were equally incredible and by far one of the most talented of all West End shows currently standing - See more at: http://the-void.co.uk/theatre/review-bodyguard-musical-433/#sthash.WKNiURZm.dpuf

 "The whole cast of this show were equally incredible, and by far one of the most talented West End shows currently standing." Louise Ault, The Void Online Magazine

The whole cast of this show were equally incredible and by far one of the most talented of all West End shows currently standing. - See more at: http://the-void.co.uk/theatre/review-bodyguard-musical-433/#sthash.WKNiURZm.dpuf

 Also with the well known musical tracks actually having been taken care of  to fit into the plot of the story, rather than having been forced in like some other musicals, it is very easy to see why this production is upcoming in Broadway in 2014.All theatre lovers, Whitney Houston lovers, or anyone who just needs a pick me up, I would encourage to go and see this brilliant production.

And - even though Theatre Students are encouraged to see plays that give us a message to take away rather than the fast food Theatre of the West End, I would say don't give this production a miss. Theatre is constantly struggling to find sustainability against the forever developing technology and media of our society, and this show for me provoked the question, is the technology in this show the answer? Having that degree of the cinema marking it. Obviously I don't have an answer for this yet, but I'm sure the Theatre Practitioners of the world and I will work until we find one. Theatre will never be dying in our eyes... only improving.**

**The cheesiest of endings but what can you do.