'I Was Here' and anger at suicide 'support' groups (TW)

Do you ever read a book that well and truly makes you sit back and think? Think about all the could haves and would haves and should haves, and maybe even more importantly, should not haves. I find books that do this very rare, but brilliant for me. However, I find that it's not just books that provoke this. My own mental health does too, especially when I'm feeling iffy. Wondering what could happen 'if' you did or didn't do something is a rabbit hole of anxiety. But what if somebody's there, telling you a skewed version of all the could haves? Would it be enough to tip you over the edge?

LUSH Valentines Range Picks

LUSH's ranges always seem to signal the start of a new season, or festive time. We all get super excited when the Halloween range comes out, because duh, that means Autumn is here, and I'm not even going to mention the Christmas range. But I actually think that the Valentines range is my favourite (wild, I know). It offers a bright little variety into the bleak dullness of Winter, reminds me that I probably ought to find a card for my OH right about now, and the pieces they bring out are just so cute. 

December and January Book Haul

It's official. I've fallen back in love with reading. A total head-over-heels, can't put things down kind of love. And it's the best. In November I posted my first ever book haul on Nourish ME, and I spoke all about how I want to start doing more bookish posts in 2017. So here we are with round two of the book hauls. In December I didn't pick up that many books, as Christmas was keeping my spirits up, and I wasn't popping into my local charity shop to peruse the shelves as often. But, the January blues hit me hard, so I've now got quite a collection from the past two months to share with you. 

Can I be a strong woman without being independent?

This post has been loitering around in my drafts (unwritten I might add, but with the idea there) for months, but it seems important now more than ever. The recent Women's Marches against Trump and his policy have seen a weird strike back, with a whole load of people asking 'why did their husbands let them out'. In a disturbing way it's a little reminiscent of the old classic, 'who let the dogs out?', so why are people asking that about women? Everyone who joined in on the marches is simply exercising their autonomous right to go out and do what they believe in, and yet it's caused such controversy.

A review of every Superdrug facemask

This post is something that I've been planning, and piecing together for months now. I don't know about you, but a Superdrug facemask was always a staple of a teenage sleepover. They're fun, cheap and cater for a whole range of skin types. Now that I'm in my twenties, it seems to be all about buying expensive face mask pots, filled with golden flakes and exotic ingredients. But sometimes all you want is to pop into Superdrug, pick up a little face mask and have a pamper evening. So I've spent the last couple of months trying out every single one they sell in their range to let you know what's hot and what's not.

1.) Orange and Black Lava Face Mask

For: all skin types.

Smell: fresh, zesty orange.

Texture: slightly lumpy clay mask. Contains bits of orange peel that you can feel.

Dries: hard and lighter in colour. Makes my sensitive skin sting a little.

Effect: Could feel it exfoliating my skin as I took it off. Skin feels tight and looks a little red.

2.) De-stressing mud mask

Smell: fresh, can smell the aloe vera.

Texture: smooth and cooling.

Dries: Stayed wet to the touch despite keeping it on for 20 minutes. It started to dry in places and had tiny cracks. Easy to remove; gently.

Effects: Skin feels soft and plump and looks clear.

3.) Tropical Cocktail Peel-Off Mask

For: all skin types

Smells: like fruit salad Chewits

Texture: sticky! It stays very wet, and even dripped off of my face. 

Dries: tight. Took 30 minutes to dry so that I could peel it off, rather than the 10-20 that the packet advised.

Effect: skin was shiny.

4.) Cucumber Cooling Face Mask

For: sensitive skin

Smell: fresh

Texture: smooth, clay

Dries: stung slightly as it dried, even though it's recommended for sensitive skin. 

Effects: skin left feeling a little dry.

5.) Chocolate Orange Self-Heating Mask

For: normal to dry skin

Smells: exactly like a dark chocolate Terry's chocolate orange

Texture: like melted chocolate. You use a different application to a normal face mask as you need your face to be wet before applying it. A very wet, smooth face mask.

Dries: self heats as soon as it touches your face. Stays wet and glossy. Dripped off me and onto my clothes.

Effects: easy to remove. it calmed down my spots and made my T-zone less greasy.

6.) Black Seaweed Peel-Off Mask

For: oily skin

Smells: like unpleasant, harsh minerals

Texture: very wet and smooth

Dries: tight and smooth to the touch. You can however see where it's sunk into my pores.

Effects: skin a bit dry, but was great for my T-zone. Sucked the oil/pus (grim, I know) out of some newbie spots I had forming. My pores looked a lot cleaner.

7.) Detoxifying Dead Sea Mineral Mask

Smells: fresh, like a spa. Very mineral-y

Texture: thick and mud like. Feels a little lumpy on your hands but smooths out over your face.

Dries: hard and lighter in colour. Tightens.

Effects: soothed my sensitive skin and made my spots less oily

8.) White Chocolate Mousse Mask

Smells: not very nice. A little like alcohol and not at all chocolatey.

Texture: smooth

Dries: unsure. Had allergic reaction to the mask as soon as I put it on and had to remove it instantly. The mask is no longer on Superdrug's website so perhaps other people reacted badly and they've discontinued it.

9.) Fruit Sorbet Antioxidant Peel-Off Mask

For: all skin types

Smells: like fresh apples and berries

Texture: smooth and sticky

Dries: smooth - peels off all in one. Takes about half an hour to dry enough to peel off.

Effect: my face was blemish-free the next morning. It dried all of my whiteheads out.

10.) Anti-Ageing Moisture Mask

Smells: fresh

Texture: creamy, almost like a moisturiser

Dries: doesn't really dry, it sinks into the skin a little instead.

Effect: skin is soft, plumped and hydrated

11.) Dead Sea Purifying Clay Mask

For: oily and blemish prone skin Smells: like tea tree. Fresh and clean scent. Texture: smooth and thick. Dries: tight and hard. You can see that it sinks into your pores. Effects: skin looks clean and clear, but feels very dry. 

12.) Superfruits Exfoliating Mask

For: all skin types Smells: like a sweet, fresh smoothie Texture: rough because of the strawberry seeds it contains for exfoliation. Thick and creamy. Dries: stings my sensitive skin a little whilst drying. It goes hard, tight, and a light purple colour. Effects: pores are clearer and skin is soft, but a little red.
Now that I've tried all of them, I would definitely repurchase the: anti-ageing moisture mask, detoxifying dead sea mineral mask, de-stressing mud mask and black lava peel-off mask. These four all suited my combination, sensitive skin. 
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3 Bloggers Whose Content I'm loving this month

This year I'm determined to share the love for/with my fellow bloggers a little more. Retweeting fab posts on Twitter, loving things on Bloglovin and actually taking the time out to comment on Instagram posts are all things I want to get more involved in. I've also decided to set up this little monthly round-up of blogs that I've been loving.  
It seems like I've read a tonne of blog posts recently, but hardly any have totally stuck in my mind. As soon as I considered writing this post however, there were three bloggers that instantly came to mind ...

January Sales Picks

It's the week of Blue Monday, so to try and perk me (and you all) up a little bit, I've decided to write a post on the best part of January: the sales. Amidst the dreary weather, dark afternoons and metaphorical belt-tightening, we're faced with a glimmer of hope. Every time I walk through the high street at the moment I'm bombarded with an array of bold, in-your-face signs, screaming 'FURTHER REDUCTIONS', '50% OFF', 'SALE CONTINUES' and the suchlike. 

10 Crucial Blogging Tips I learnt in 2016

The world of blogging has changed so much since I started my lil' blog two years ago. Microblogging has started to be a thing that people adopt over 'traditional' blogging; the photography most bloggers put out there is insane and there's a few more expectations placed on the average blogger.
This time last year was the start of six months out of work for me for my mental health. Fighting my anxiety, trying not to relapse with self harm and still continue a normal daily life just got a whole lot too much. Thankfully I had a strong support system to help me out mentally and financially; without them I don't know what I would have done. 
I used some of the time I had to work on doing a buttload of research into how to improve my blog. At that time I was churning out random spur of the moment posts that I usually had to force myself to think of. My blogging was irregular, my photography was pretty awful, despite having a nice camera, and I wasn't interacting with other bloggers at all. Pinterest, 'how to blog' style posts and inspirational flatlays became my new best friends, and eventually I learnt some things which now I just wish I had spent the time looking into a year earlier. 
1.) Don't force content. If you're not interested in a post you're writing, then why the hell would your audience be? If you're stuck for inspo then take a week off, or a month off, or however long you need. Wait for your mojo to come back to you.
2.) Spreadsheets are your best friend. I'm thinking of doing a whole post on this one because it absolutely revolutionized the way I organise my blog. I have each month laid out, I fill in blog post ideas when they come to me, I can colour code things according to theme. It makes me feel pretty darn professional.
3.) Get your butt onto Pinterest, and make your blog post images pinnable! Pinterest is something that I've only got into this past year, but it's been so helpful. I've got a whole board on blog post ideas posts people have written, one for general blog aids and a whole load of pretty ones for general photography inspo. I always try to pin posts I've enjoyed reading, and it's so frustrating when you want to share that post via Pinterest and the blogger hasn't made their blog pin friendly! It's an extra platform to drive traffic to your blog from, and if you're lucky it can be really easy for a post to go viral on there. Check out my beginner's guide to using Pinterest if you're stuck. 
4.) A media kit is always useful to have on the back burner. Earlier this year a brand asked me for my media kit ... I didn't have one. Cue hours of panicked searches on 'how to make a good media kit' and 'what is a media kit?'. Even if you don't want to have it made public on your blog, it's just handy to have in case anyone asks for it. I've actually written a post on how to make one here. 
5.) Make your social media platforms recognisably linked to your blog. This was a hard one to word, and I'm sorry. What I mean in essence is to have a coherent 'branding' across them all, though I hate using that word. Having a similar handle or username on the different platforms that resonates with the name of your blog makes it much easier for other bloggers to remember who you are and connect with you on various types of social media. You could even extend this to do things like sharing your Instagram posts on Twitter and Facebook. That way you direct traffic between your social media accounts and you may gain a larger following/more views.
6.) Twitter chats are fab. My personal favourites are the #fblchat and #thegirlgang chat. These are usually filled with lots of positivity and inspiration. You can get to know a whole load of other bloggers through this, and it makes the whole process of sitting behind your laptop and writing feel a lot less lonely. There are a whole tonne of these chats out there, and you could probably sit in them all evening every evening, so it's best to give them all a whirl and see which ones you want to stick to.
7.) Get your own domain name. In case you don't know how to do this one (I didn't), then I've got a step by step guide on how to do it in this post. You know all of those Moz updates that people tweet about every month or so? You basically need a domain name to get involved in that. The Moz update shows how good your domain authority is. A lot of brands will only use bloggers in collaborations once they have their own domain, and some even insist on using bloggers with a certain domain or higher. I'm not saying you should just do this for the collabs, as it can also be a chance for a rebrand. I was a bit sick of my old blog address (http://nourishmeclean.blogspot.co.uk) because it just didn't fit with my brand anymore. Originally Nourish ME was all about clean eating and having a healthy diet, but as I moved away from that, the 'clean' part just seemed a bit odd. So, when I got my own domain it became www.nourishmeblog.co.uk.
8.) Update your old posts. Posts from a year or two or even longer ago can be pretty cringe. Rubbish photos, a tendency not to proofread and an incoherent format are all things that can be solved fairly easily. A little photo re-edit, some new wording, and maybe even a new title can make old content feel brand new. This is especially useful if you've run out of inspiration and don't want to make new content. 
9.) Try new things with photography. There's a massive line between being inspired by someone and simply stealing their style. If I'm stuck for Instagram or blog photo ideas, I tend to have a look at a few of my favourite bloggers' accounts to see what kind of props people are using at the moment, the kind of backgrounds that are popular, and to investigate how people are using diffferent types of lighting. If you've never tried a flatlay before, then why not give that a go? Or go out and take some landscape style photos. At the moment I'm working on building up flatlays to make them bigger and more detailed.
10.) Blog for yourself, not other people. This is an odd one I'll admit, but oh-so true. Your readers are important, obvs, but it'll become noticeable if the content you're making is something you're not interested in. Be passionate, be bold, and remember that you're the content creator here.
What blogging tips did you learn over the last year?
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My NYX lipstick collection

2016 really was the year of the liquid lipsticks. It seemed like just about every single brand out there brought out a range of them, and the market was awash with masses of new colours, formulas and styles. Goodbye tube lipstick, hello liquid.
Despite the massive influx of new liquid lippies out there, NYX has remained my favourite brand for this particular type of makeup. At the beginning of 2016 I didn't own anything by NYX, but now I'm feeling pretty proud of my little collection. I find that their products are so long-lasting and well-pigmented that no other drugstore alternatives come near to my love for them. An added bonus is that they're also cruelty free. 
From bottom to top, the lipstick shades I have swatched are as follows: Lip Lingerie in Exotic, Liquid Suede in Stone Fox and Soft Matte Lip Creams in Buenos Aires, Morocco, Copenhagen and Moscow. As you can tell, I've gone for a broad range of colours in this little collection. Over the past year I've been experimenting with some fruit inspired makeup looks over on my YouTube, and so 'Moscow' and 'Buenos Aires' were purchased for those. 
Out of all of the types I've tried, the Lip Lingerie range has the greatest staying power on my lips. 'Exotic' is my go-to work liquid lipstick. It's a nude that appears only a little darker than my lips, and doesn't rub off after a cup of tea or two. The Soft Matte Lip Cream in Morocco, however, is my favourite pigment. It's such a bold, coral-y red that I can't get enough of. It makes me feel festive in Winter and bold in Summer. I am in love. 
Do you own any NYX lipsticks?
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10 Budget-Friendly Hobbies to Start in 2017

There's so much 'New Year New Me' stuff floating about the internet right now that I find pretty demoralising. For starters, I don't want a new me. I want to improve the old me. Trying to recreate myself in someone else's image, or start again from scratch isn't going to work. How am I meant to get rid of all of my past experiences and turn myself into a completely different person? I just can't. So, a lot of my resolutions involve challenges that I'm placing for myself, and include continuing or starting up a few hobbies that I want to pursue this year. Here's my list of 10 hobbies you could start in 2017 too that won't break the bank:
1.) Learn a new language. Yes, this sounds bloody expensive, but have you heard of a gorgeous little app called Duolingo? It basically lets you learn a language completely free of charge. You're not just stuck to translating text either. It involves listening to speech and typing it out both in your language and the one you're learning, mini vocab tests where you pair words up, and tests for your pronunciation, amongst other things. It also updates you each time you become one percent more fluent and you can add it to your LinkedIn profile. (This isn't a #spon by the way, I just love the app).
2.) Start puzzling. I know this sounds super lame, but I find doing puzzles so cathartic. The act of sorting all of the pieces out and building a fuller picture gradually helps me to completely chill out.
3.) Get involved with mindfulness colouring. This is basically my favourite trend, ever. I've got a little collection of colouring books now and filling them in makes me feel so creative. I'm not brilliant at anything arty, but I LOVE doing this, especially in my new Wuthering Heights colouring book.
4.) Help out the local wildlife. I've kick-started this with having a bird-feeder in my garden (that and the food cost me about £3 in total). Plant some things, help out with fundraising for wildlife charities, or even volunteer at a local rehab centre for injured wildlife. This is such a nice idea for a hobby and I really want to get more involved.
5.) Yoga. There's this weird perception that you need to be a white, thin, rich woman to do yoga, but it has benefits for everyone, and you don't need a huge budget to do it. Yoga with Adriene YouTube videos are where it's at for me, but if you don't enjoy her methods as a teacher then there's a whole world of yoga YouTube videos out there. I bought a £5 yoga mat to got started and I haven't paid a penny since then whilst doing yoga for the past two years.
6.) Start the 1001 books challenge. There's a list of 1001 books to read before you die. I reckon I've probably read ten. You can buy the book which has the list in or find it for free online and get cracking.
7.) Do some creative journalling. I've got the 'Start Where You Are' journal and it's fab for completing each night before sleep. It contains a whole range of creative ways to think about things. Alternatively, you could start your own bullet journal, or use something like a 'Wreck This Journal' for a bit of fun. 
8.) Pinterest DIYS. I have a whole Pinterest board of these waiting for me to try, but I just keep forgetting to find the time for them. Spruce up your home with some cheap DIYs, or even just get crafty.
9.) Blogging. You all knew this was coming, didn't you? Although blogging can be costly, you don't *have* to spend anything on it. Write about what you love, take pictures if you want, and share your thoughts with the world.
10.) Re-learn the art of letter writing. This one is something I want to keep up in 2017. Snail mail is so cute, and I love getting it through my post box. Pick up a writing set in the sales, or just use a pen and some blank paper and let the people you love know they're being thought of!
So there we have it, 10 hobbies for 2017 that won't bankrupt you. Are you starting any new hobbies this year?
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10 Things I learnt living in the countryside

I've always been a suburbs kind of gal. That is, until I had no choice about it and had tovlive in the countryside for a few months earlier this year. Here's what I learnt:
1.) It's not silent. Dammit TV shows, you had me duped (again). I lost count of the number of times I woke up to screeching owls, cat fights, or a cow having a little mooing session.
2.) I really hate bugs. Leaving your windows open at night is basically an invitation for the entire wilderness to come in. I have not missed moths or daddy long legs flying around me 24/7.
3.) Everyone wants to chat. I'm used to not knowing any of my neighbours' names, let alone their life histories. Here even the postman knew who I was. My stranger danger anxiety was on a full-time high.
4.) Everyone has pets. Okay, this part I loved. All the neighbours had dogs, cats or both, as well as a myriad of other little creatures. You were basically never more than two feet away from a friendly little stroke. My bunny wasn't quite as impressed as me with this though, hehe.
5.) I really, REALLY like fast internet. This was basically the bane of my life for those few months. It took forever to even upload a blog photo. And YouTube? A seven hour upload time for a ten minute video is simply not okay.
6.) Phone signal is actually pretty handy. Especially when you're job hunting. Unlike with the internet situation, I simply had no signal whatsoever. No signal, no mobile data, no access to the outside world.
7.) Nature controls our lives. Living in towns and cities has given me this false illusion that we control nature. Being in a raging storm in an outbuilding in the middle of the countryside however, really showed me how wrong I was.
8.) Nature can be truly beautiful. I've never really seen a sun setting without buildings being all up in my grill. I've got a little collection of gorgeous photos of colourful sunsets from this summer, which are completely unobstructed by architecture.
9.) I don't like being isolated. I'm such an introvert that I thought I would love to be out in the middle of nowhere, without having to see and talk to people all of the time. But I actually hated it. I felt so alone and missed the hustle and bustle of normal life.
10.) I really kind of like my boyfriend. Shoddy internet, no phone signal and living in one room in the middle of nowhere for four months taught me a whole lot. Mostly though, I realised that my relationship is strong, and I love being in it. We survived that without murdering each other, so we can survive anything, right?
I hope you enjoyed this post! Have you ever lived in the countryside?
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