The Ivy Garden, Chelsea

 It was as if I were Alice, climbing through the rabbit hole. 

After wandering through the the feathered greens and breaking through petals of pink, you are greeted by the little white rabbit, who in which you follow to your seat. I invite you to a tea party, at The Ivy Chelsea Garden.

As an early Mother's Day treat, my mum came to stay with me in London for a few days, to do everything that us ladies do well, consistently treat ourselves with clothes and calories. Ever since I moved to London in 2015, The Ivy Chelsea Garden has been on my list, and the wait for it was very much worth it.

Even during the afternoon you are welcomed by a dim romantic light. Besides from the floral essence, the candlelit ambience truly makes the restaurant impressionable.

Before arrival, we intended to order the Afternoon Tea menu, however we were still satisfied from our brunch at the restaurant Ting, The Shard, so we settled for a light tea accompanied with cream scones. We were both left pleasantly surprised that our £9 cream tea did not just provide us with two scones, but six between us! My mum felt defeated before the scones made it onto our table, however I am always up for a challenge.  

The scones were perfectly warm, and the ratio to fluffiness and crumbles were also to perfection.The cream was light, and the strawberry jam was like it was made from the forbidden fruits of Eden. The sliced strawberries were a lovely touch to the spread.

Our afternoon banquet was absolutely scrumptious. We then ventured out into the garden to observe natures finest, as it sure is special when sighted in the capital.

There was a slight chill that afternoon which is why our table was reserved for inside. I do however have plans to return during the Summer months, as enjoying the blooming bundles, underneath the sunshine, in the borough of Chelsea sounds the perfect way to relish that cream tea once more.

If you do attend this restaurant on a slightly colder day, and wish to sit outside, burning flames and cosy blankets are provided for your comfort. 

Thank you The Ivy Chelsea Garden, it truly was a delightful event. 

PINK DATES - LONDON EDITION

Yes, Valentines day is a few hours away, who is excited? That's right, not me.

I know many of you are wondering what you and your significant other could do around the city to celebrate the holiday, and the other half of you are thinking about the discounted chocolates that follow on the 15th. 

Unfortunately the holiday is directed towards couples, when truly it should be for anyone who holds any love for someone else and wishes to appreciate them, whether that be a family member or your friends. So ditch the roses, the champagne and the expensive hotel room and treat your family and friends to a cute afternoon around the city during this week. 

So, where should you go? Try somewhere pink, I mean it doesn't hurt to follow some of the tradition...

Sketch Afternoon Tea

Why not wander down to Mayfair and take a seat in The Gallery at Sketch. 

The walls, the seats, and the food comes in all shades of pink. Afternoon tea is served 12:30-4:30 Monday to Sunday, offering various sandwiches, scones pastries and sweets. If you're prepared to sip on tea and nibble like a Princess then why not book a table for you and your friends at Sketch. There's a champagne option too...

Palm Vaults

My first time in Hackney, and my friend takes me to this little discovery. Palm Vaults, one of the most Instagrammable cafes I've ever come across. Palm tree's, ceiling plants and marble tables, what else could you expect from this picture perfect social sitting. As soon as you walk through the duck egg doors you're greeted with smiles and the sounds of Madonna's best hits. If you're a lover of latte and have great passion for croissants head down to Palm Vaults, where you'll try the sweetest cinnamon pastries and discover the pastel rainbow of unique floral lattes. 

Peggy Porschen

Peggy, sweet Peggy, thank you for blessing me with one of the best cupcakes I've ever had, I am forever grateful.

Peggy Porschen parlour is a bloggers dream, being welcomed by the rose pink walls. As you step inside it's a cake lovers paradise, you're greeted by chocolate rose, salted caramel, and strawberry champagne. The cakes are sweet, the icing is sweet and the interior is also sweet. There's very little seating inside, so make sure you make a reservation before. 

Do you know any other pink places in London I should visit? Let me know in the comments below...

Thanks for coming

LET'S TALK TRENDS - THE SLEEVE

Fashion trends, lets discuss...

For as long as I can remember I have always been obsessed with frills, lace and anything you could possibly need to make a feminine fashion statement (well, ever since I've been dressing myself anyways). I don't tend to follow fashion trends, I try to follow my own personal style without the influence of others, as I feel individuality is important. Now, I'm not saying I do not own a choker or the ever so common bomber jacket, but I do try to purchase stand out from the crowd pieces every now and then.

For the past few months now it's apparent that sleeves are the new trend on the streets, whether thats trumpet sleeves, bell sleeves, flute sleeves, and whatever other sleeves you can get a hold of nowadays days, and I absolutely love them.

A trumpet, bell or flute sleeve is an exaggerated sleeve that steals the show over any other feature on your dress, shirt or jumper. Many years ago, seeing a sleeve like this was a rarity, but all of a sudden you cannot enter a shop without seeing one. I know many will think the idea is daft and unnecessary for the excess material hanging around your arms, but I personally love them and cannot steer away. The reason why, well, I love anything that could be considered a little bit OTT. The OTT sleeve is perfect if you're looking for a little something extra than just your basic black jumper or white fitted shirt. It's also great as a middle outfit. If you aren't looking to dress too fancy or too casual, throw on a simple piece with a statement sleeve.

So, maybe you're now warming to the idea of the statement piece and thinking about how you would style it. That's where I come in and reveal the tips I've have up my sleeve...

The Office

Bored of the same black shift dress that you pair with your close to retirement heels? Why not attempt a different look to grab the attention of your colleagues. Try incorporating a pair of black skinny peg trousers, a bold colour heel and of course... a white statement sleeve shirt, I mean how could you possibly go wrong with that? 

The Brunch Date

Brunch is everyones favourite meal of the day right? And everyones favourite event to Instagram, so you may as well look good whilst you're doing it. I always imagine turning up to brunch looking like I've made no effort at all but it's still relatively chic. Gather your ripped jeans and your favourite mid heels, and pair those with a statement sleeve jumper, if you do, you've definitely accomplished the brunch date look. 

The Cocktail Party

To me, cocktail party dresses can get a little boring, everyones turning up in either sparkles or red. If you're someone who doesn't want to brave the bold glitter ball, a statement sleeve could just save you. A simple mid length bodycon fit with a floating trumpet sleeve will allow you to gift the event with elegance, but not too much attention. 

Now you know how you're going to style your new statement sleeve, you're probably wondering whereabouts your can purchase an item just like it. I have absolutely fallen in love with SheIn, purely for the fact that the website is fully loaded with trumpet, flute, frilled, anything sleeves! So if you're on the hunt, head over to SheIn where you can find my personal favourite items...

1. Grey Turtle Neck Bow Embellished Bell Sleeve Sweater

2. White Bell Sleeve Shirt

3. Black Mock Neck Bell Sleeve Lace Blouse

4. Pink Layered Ruffle Sleeve Pullover Sweater

How do you love to wear your statement sleeves? Are you still obsessing over knitwear or have you transported over to spring already and stocked up on your statement sleeve blouses? Share your favourite products and lets talk more sleeves below! 

JANUARY FAVOURITES 2017

And that's a wrap, January 2017 is complete, which of course calls for a monthly favourites discussion.

It's no secret that more than a handful of us have many favourites for January, as we were lucky enough to be showered with gifts over the festive period. So, without further ado, I present to you some of my favourite products of the month.

Manuka Doctor Purifying Toner

Manuka Doctor Purifying Face Mask

Diptyque Mimosa Candle

Chanel No.5 L'eau

Manuka Doctor

I thought I'd start it off with a new favourite brand discovery, Manuka Doctor. The products include Manuka Honey and naturally enhanced formulations to provide what I like to think as the ultimate skin care regime. Skin care products have never been my favourite, I usually react to most of the chemicals, which lead to breakouts and dry skin. For over a month I have been using two products: the purifying face mask, and the purifying facial toner. Using both products together has enabled my skin to appear more radiant and moisturised throughout the cold months, as promised by Manuka Doctor, and I have also noticed a difference in my overall complexion. As a child I experienced allergic reactions to my face and also suffered with eczema, which left some scaring and discolouring on my face. Since using these products I have already noticed a dramatic difference, to the extent of feeling confident enough to go without any base makeup. I would honestly recommend these products to everybody, and I cannot wait to try some other products! P.S Kourtney Kardashian also uses Manuka Doctor skin products, need I say more... 

Diptyque

Only recently have I found my love for candles. Years ago I would laugh at anyone that spent more than £10 on a lump of scented wax, and unfortunately I am now one of those people. Jo Malone, Neom and Diptyque, you know, all the generic blogger candles, but I now get the obsession. For Christmas I bought my Mum Diptyques Mimosa Candle, and I kind of wish I kept that gift for myself... I wasn't drawn to many of the other scents, yet this one stood out. The Mimosa scent brings the warmth and sweetness of honey into your home, alongside the freshness of the seaside, could you even think of a better combination? 

Chanel L'eau 

Anything Chanel is a luxury for a girl like myself, just seeing that logo instantly screams Blair Waldorf, so as you can imagine, seeing that little gift bag under my tree left me feeling like the Queen of the Upper East Side. If you were never a fan of Chanel No. 5 then I suggest you give Chanel L'eau a go. The fragrance has taken a completely new approach, and it's been suggested that the brand is now trying to appeal to a younger market which explains the development of No.5. The L'eau brings a lighter and fresher take on the original combining the scents of rose, lemon, orange, jasmine and sandalwood. I feel that Chanel has achieved their mission, as social media truly is going crazy for the L'eau. I mean, give it a try, I'm sure you will too! 

So there we have it, a few of my favourite products from this month! What have been your favourite products, or are some of your favourites listed above? Lets discuss below...

Thanks for coming...

HOW I STAY ORGANISED AND STRESS FREE

As we've entered the new year I imagine many of you, like myself, have set yourself many goals for 2017. I have to admit, organisation and time management never was one of my strongest points, considering I always had my mum nagging and reminding me of all the things I hadn't done that day. As a student, shuffling my studies, employment, finances and of course socialising isn't always a success, but since moving away and living on my own i've found what works for me to keep me organised. 

Even though I am only in class for about 9 hours out of the whole week, I still have a lot to do with the remaining hours. I invest a lot of my time cooking meals and going to the gym, I also prioritise my well-being, so I make sure I allow myself 'me time' too. So, I hope this can help you all and you can take some of these tips away with you to help you become more organised. 

Buy a diary

Buying a diary to stay organised is an obvious one, but since I've been at University my diary has been my best friend! You'd be surprised at how many people do not own a diary. As easy as it is to organise your days on your smart phones, a physical diary really makes a difference to me, especially if its a cute little number. So even if you think owning a diary that sits in your handbag is really old fashioned give it a go. Make that diary headline your stationary selection and let it be star of the show! I promise you now, if you buy smart stationary you will be more inclined to use it. 

Plan a day ahead

This is something I get really excited about doing. Every night before I go to sleep I plan out the following day. By simply writing down all the things I wish to accomplish on that day, I can see how busy I will be, make changes, and then follow that scheduled plan. This may not suit some people, especially if you have a spontaneous personality, but for someone like me who adores structure, this really seems to help!

Calendar

It goes without saying that a calendar is great for maintaining organisation, especially if you shuffle between so many agendas. As much as I find my phone calendar helpful I highly recommend buying a physical hang on your wall one too. I believe it to be so much easier to visually see what is around the corner throughout the month, it's also great when you live with multiple people as you can all contribute to the calendar with your own events, because someone is bound to forget...

Stay focused on the priority

Nowadays I never experience a day where I only have one thing to worry about, I'm constantly thinking about my next gym session, what deadlines are coming up, and my priority, when and what will I be eating next. I've learnt that worrying and thinking about all the things that do not currently matter is not going to help me at present time, otherwise I cannot truly focus. If I know I am going to be essay writing tomorrow, that is not something I need to be thinking about today.

Make a meal plan

So many people decline the idea of a meal plan, because seeing what they're going to eat over the next few days can apparently be miserable, whereas I absolutely love it! This doesn't need to be done if you are hopping on the health and fitness bandwagon, any diet and lifestyle will benefit from creating a weekly meal plan. By writing down all my meals, I can see when I'll be eating and manage my time around that, and I can also manage my finances a little better by not buying food I do not need (which happens a lot). 

Me time 

Most importantly, it is vital that you allow your self to unwind and simply chill out. If you're a person on the go, and constantly doing something, taking that little bit of time out can really help maintain focus. I'm not saying that laying in bed for hours on end watching Netflix is beneficial, but getting out of the house and doing something that you truly enjoy will make your week a whole lot better when your agenda is fully packed! A few hours out at the cinema or a lunch date with your friend could completely change that mind set.

So there we have it, a little breakdown of what I like to do to keep me organised and stress free. Please let me know what you thought about this post and comment freely, and also let me know what you do to stay organised ad stress free because I am open to experimenting! You'll be hearing from me again next week, thanks again for reading...

GOALS FOR 2017

Welcome back everyone and welcome back to me! Unfortunately me being my true forgetful self has forgotten the password to my other blog, which I loved ever so much and worked on throughout my first year of University. So you will probably notice a jump in blog posts and a jump within myself as we have now entered 2017! 

So, first of all I would love to wish you all a Happy New Year and I hope it has started off relatively well. I can honestly say I am super excited for the new year, considering I never really grasp onto the changes I hope to make. Since starting University I have noticed how quickly we are going through the years, and how much I am maturing, and the things I want in life are a little more practical than make up and an expensive handbag. 

With this being said, this post will not necessarily be a list of new years resolutions, because for some reason I have no luck with those, so lets think of these as 'achievement goals' for 2017. So here it goes... 

Savings.

I have always been an average saver, not great but i'm always trying. As I will be finishing University next summer, I really hope that I will be able to get a job in the city, but along with that, afford to live there. So as much as I love travelling and do have some plans, all the travels I want to do will have to go on pause for the moment. Realistically I hope to save around £1,500 - £2000 to add to my current ones, now that may not seem a lot within a year but on a student budget will be pretty impressive. 

Go to America.

My brother and I have always wanted to take a trip to America and we literally just booked our tickets about 3 hours ago! Due to unfortunate events on my dad's side of the family, we suggested we take a trip to California. The plan is to see family in Sacramento for a few days and then stay in LA for the remaining time, strolling down Hollywood, going to Universal Studios, and course seeing a Lakers game! I honestly cannot wait!

Internship.

I have been saying this for so long now so I hope that this year I actually go through with it. Since last October I have been an Intern for a music record label. I am enjoying myself so much there that I really want to get in as much work experience as possible during my final term of second year. I had an interview with a radio station in London and it sounds promising. I can't wait to update you all on this when the time comes!

Maintain my fitness journey.

To those who do not know me very well, my boyfriend is a fitness and health enthusiast and ever since he began, he has tried to take me along for the ride with him. I'll give myself some credit, yes I go to the gym and yes I have completely changed my eating habits however, I tend to do them in stages. I'll be great at it for two months and then give up for the next month. 2017 is the year I will make that change and I am more motivated than ever to do just so. 

University Studies.

I am not going to sugar coat this, second year has been hard. Living on my own away from my family and friends isn't the problem, unfortunately it's the studying part i'm struggling with. I've had some amazing grades but some not so great. This year I am really going to push myself so that I can secure at least, the very least, a 2:1 overall. 

Be super busy all the time.

And lastly, this will be the hardest goal to achieve. Me being a pro at procrastinating, absolutely loves laying and doing nothing with my time. This year I need to make the most of my time to be able to accomplish all my other goals. I want to be super super busy so that I am running from one thing to the next. I aspire to be one of those people that if you don't see them in class, they're either working, at the gym, studying or being productive in other ways rather than binge watching Netflix (which I am very guilty for). So wish me luck with this one.  

I hope you all enjoyed this post, I really enjoyed writing it, as it's been a while! I really hope I can write content more regularly (Be super busy all the time) and maintain this blog (I may re-post some content from my other blog for you to see here at Marnie Eden). Let me know what you think of my 2017 achievement goals and let me know what yours are too! Thanks for reading...

SURVIVING FIRST WEEK OF UNIVERSITY

Good evening everybody! I am alive and managed to get through my first week of university successfully. I moved to Greenwich to study Media and Communications on the 19th of September so I am now onto my 9th day of living in London. I have ALWAYS wanted to live in London and I am so so so happy to finally be here!

Moving day I must admit was terrible, saying goodbye to my parents and Bruno was one of the most emotional experiences I've had because I was so excited to start my course and get to know all of my flatmates but at the same time I wouldn't see the most important people to me for a whole month which at the start was terrifying! (However me and Bruno are pathetic and couldn't stick to our one month deal so he came down a week later, ridiculous I know). 

Before moving to Greenwich I found some of my flatmates on Facebook and we were speaking and decided to buy tickets for events which I could not wait for, because you know, Freshers week is supposed to be absolutely mental. However, within the whole week I have been here I have only been out for drinks once. I truly believe it's a myth that everyone goes out and meets their best friends within the first week. During freshers you're filled with so many different emotions because you just want to meet people and be social but on the other hand you're really missing home (well I was anyways). 

So instead of getting crazy drunk every night (I did once and it was horrific and too embarrassing to discuss) myself and my flat mate Maddie booked a trip to go along the Thames which was beautiful, it was freezing cold but the sunset was one to see!

Another thing I've been up to all week is visiting the food market almost every single day. It is the most incredible thing I have ever seen being such a food lover. The market is full of so many stalls of different cultures, you've got; Brazilian, Thai, Portuguese, Jamaican and tonnes of stalls which caught my eye such as mini pancakes, home made truffles and of course CHURROS! So i'll probably go back tomorrow.

I have my first lecture tomorrow which I am strangle excited about and have so many events to come too so i'll keep you updated as much as I can! Have any of you guys just started uni or got any advice/stories for me?

LULU GUINNESS

Good afternoon girls! What a miserable few days we have had weather wise this bank holiday, I hope it hasn't ruined your plans too much!

Yesterday I visited some family that live in Slough and my Uncle insisted on taking me to Bicester Village, I've heard of it but never really knew how much of a "thing" it was and oh my goodness I went into my little happy place of excitement! It was beautiful. It is a designer outlet selling items from last season and at a great price, sometimes you're lucky to find in season items too! At first glance I saw hundreds of people getting off coaches and approaching this adorable village like shopping complex it was packed because of the deals you can find there! If you have never been save your pennies and get yourself down to Bicester Village! 

So I was browsing around and was so eager to go into every shop possible (before boring my dad and uncles). I was able to look at beautiful Prada bags, Vivienne Westwood purses and the most gorgeous Fendi sunglasses! I want to go back purely for the sunglasses! I made sure that I checked out every shop I was interested in before purchasing anything because I didn't want to miss anything! And here they are..

Firstly I bought the Chloe clutch bag. Original retail price £245.

It's a simple little box clutch which is perfect size for an evening out. The clasp is super safe and it has a strong handle too. I absolutely love the design as it includes Lulu's signature lips on the front! So.. This bag was originally being sold for £245 and was down to £61 in the Bicester store and with an extra 20% off they had on that particular day I managed to get this clutch for £48.80 saving £196.20, I was ecstatic with the deal I found!! 

The second item I bought was something I have been looking at for a while now. I have always wanted a cute little card holder to pop my debit cards into and also my oyster card when I move to London in just a couple of weeks and behold, I found this adorable little Lulu card holder!

The original price for this Lulu card holder is currently £45 however I managed to buy this little number for £28, how incredible is that price! I wasn't planning on spending that much on a card holder however it was just too pretty to pass by and knowing it's great quality it will last me a long time!

Altogether I got myself two items worth £290 for £76.80! You girls NEED to get yourself to Bicester Village and pick up some bargains for yourself because I will be heading back there for sure!

If you have already been let me know what items you were able to buy and how much of a saving you made!

WELCOME SUMMER

Afternoon girls! Or for me I should be saying good morning as I have only just recently woken up from a night out. We have had such a lovely week with the weather its definitely put a summer smile on my face and I've woken up to grey skies so I want to bring that summer back! I was reading a summer tag blog post and I feel that I haven't done a tag in a while so why not?

Whats your favourite thing about summer?

It has to be the sun. The sun is a natural healer for me, whenever i'm out the sun always manages to instantly cheer me up and everyone just seems so happy when the sun arrives! I also love that everyone gets together! Instead of all my friends and family socialising online we actually make time and plans to see each other.

Do you have a favourite summer drink?

Yes! That would be Starbucks cool lime refresher with a hint of strawberry. Because it's only available over the summer period I always feel the need to take full advantage of that precious time! 

Is there a special place you like the visit each summer?

My family have this "Annual Senior outing" to Thorpe park each year and it really is our favourite and funniest day of the year for us! Abroad is always a good option too of course.

Whats your favourite make up look for summer?

It has to be completely bronze! I absolutely love neutral shadows alongside golds and bronzes paired with my all time favourite Chanel bronzer and my favourite highlighters, mac global glow and thebalms mary lou. You just can't not have those two in your collection girls! Also in the summer I like to use less eyeliner and more lashes, just to reduce the amount of products I have around my eyes because it does tend to smudge in the heat :(

Festivals of Vacations?

I always look forward to my vacations and I love an abroad trip and visiting places around the world! However I love festivals too, I have only been to wireless purely because camping is not for me and I have seen many of my favourites at Wireless (Trey Songz, Kendrick Lamar, Drake and Partynextdoor). 

Signature summer hairstyle?

I'm not sure if I have a signature one as such but I hardly ever wear my hair up but I do tend to wear it up in a bun more in the summer, or I do like to wear a fish tail plait to work throughout the summer. I'm also a fan of hair accessories during summer such as my big bows!

Signature summer scent?

I have fallen in love with Estee Lauder's bronze goddess and I don't think I could return to any other summer scent because its absolutely gorgeous! If you have never smelt it, it really does just smell of summer! Coconut, sun cream, everything you would imagine to remind you of the beach! 

Right then girls I want to know about your summer favourite especially the scents because as much as I love Estee Lauders Bronze Goddess I would love to discover a cheaper alternative as I can't always raid duty free! 

My Bucket List - Current 2015

Hiya girls! This post was very last minute for me as I'm currently sitting in bed writing this. But, I was thinking all about my recent trip to Mexico and all the amazing things I done which I never thought I would and it made me think of creating my own bucket list! Many people have a slight idea of what they would love to accomplish in their lives but I want to officially share all my desires! 

1. PASS MY DRIVING TEST
Its time to announce that the test is finally booked! I have put so much money and time into driving that to not pass would be absolutely devastating to me so I really want to be driving by September the latest (purely because if I fail my re-take will have to be in September, annoying right).

2. HAVE AN AMAZING FIRST YEAR AT UNI
As you may or may not of known I do start University in September and to be honest I an petrified. I don't know how I am going to move away from my family and leaving bruno here will be heartbreaking! I know I have all their full support but I just hope I do well so it will all be worth it in the end! 

3. BLOGGING PARTNER?
So, when I start in September I will be studying media & communications and I am hoping that I will meet someone that I get along with super well and has an interest in blogging too because I would love to start a Youtube channel with a partner as I feel the Youtube crowd is missing some good duos! 

4. TRAVEL 
Now almost everyone has "travel" on their bucket list however I realise it is going to be so difficult whilst at Uni due to lack of money and time. However my ideal way of travelling wouldn't be to jet off for an entire year but to gradually see different parts of the world, for example I'd love to do about 2 weeks in Italy visiting; Rome, Florence, Milan and Venice.

5. SAVING
I'm all for the "you only live once" and "make the most of life" however you can't do that without money and that is true no matter how hard you try to argue you can! My aim is to save as much as I can whilst at Uni which will not be easy but I don't want to leave having to move back home again, I don't think I will be able to go from living i the heart of London to moving back to Norfolk, I literally cannot wait for when me and Bruno to get a place together!

So of course I have a lot more I would love to achieve, do and BUY! However these are my most important and current things I would love to tick off first! What do you girls have on yours? 

MEXICO; VISITING PUERTO VALLARTA

Good afternoon my readers! Hopefully you've had a lovely weekend and are now relaxing as you should be on your Sunday! Today I will be sharing all of my experiences and photos of mine and Brunos first holiday together, visiting Mexico, Puerto Vallarta. Mexico was never our first choice of destination as we really wanted to go to Greece, however, over the Christmas holidays it was mentioned to us that we should look in the Christmas sales and that's when we fell upon an incredible deal to the Riu Vallarta, Mexico! you may have a seen a slight Instagram spam but I just wanted to share a few more pictures from our week away and tell you all about the crazy things we got up to!

The Riu Vallarta, the most gorgeous hotel I have stayed in. The outside may look like a palace, but as soon as you step outside the lobby the scenery is just beautiful, it really is palm tree paradise.

Our first full day/night consisted of going crazy in the gigantic waves (bruno), and me watching on the sand. Viewing palm tress and sipping on the cocktail of the day (Tropical pick me up), and eating endless amounts of food at the buffet. 

Me and Bruno both love trips out as well as lounging on the beach and by the pool so we had an agreement that we would each choose a trip we would love to do, and Bruno being the adrenaline kinda guy he is chose for us to go on a jungle exhibition.. yes, swinging over mountains, river rafting and everything you would not expect me to do, but it was honestly the best day and so fun!  The views were just incredible considering we were on zip wires that were 400ft high and up to lengths of 2km! We done a number of activities starting with the zip lines that I surprising found relaxing, then our next activity was  abseiling down the face of a cliff (that view wasn't as relaxing). We then got into the river in rubber rings and finished our adventure riding a mule back to the top of the mountains. After those exhausting few hours we took the time to sit and eat some authentic fajitas with a fantastic view of the mountains!

Bikini Top - ASOS
Bikini Bottoms - Victoria's Secret

Our third day consisted of an early morning walk down to the beach and exploring all the hotels along the bay. Bruno loved having all the waves to himself whilst I chilled taking endless amounts of pictures. We then found this strip full of palm trees, and being a blogger all you're going to think of is "What a cool background for pictures!" After our lonely little photo shoot we found this tiny shack which sold what we were desperate to find.. SOMBREROS! And yes we bought the largest we could find, unfortunately they were not the easiest to wear on the plane back home. 

Here come the hilarious posey pictures..

Bikini Top - Ocean Gem
Bikini Bottoms - River Island 

So my chosen trip was to visit the Marietas Eco Discovery secret beach thinking it would be such a lovely chilled out day... I was wrong. Firstly we took an hour long boat trip where I discovered I do get sea sick, thats always fantastic and then we were told to get to the beach its over a 200m swim IN FULL OPEN OCEAN UNDER A CAVE. Once we got over the struggle of the swim the beach truly was beautiful and a gorgeous scene, something I doubt I will see again. And of course the photographers love couples so yes they done a shoot for us. To get back to the boat you had to swim against the current which was even worse after being stung by a jellyfish, yep, my first jellyfish sting was not a fun experience. When we got back onto the boat we had a lovely sandwich/salad lunch and got the opportunity to go paddle boarding, snorkelling and canoeing in the sea which was pretty fun, and to end we got to see dolphins in their natural habitat! 

Thank you so much Mexico! But now comes the hard part, where to next? If you guys have any suggestions on destinations, hotels etc we would love to know! 

MY HAPPNIESS

Hi girls! I hope you're feeling super great today as I definitely am because I have just returned from Mexico and had such a fantastic time! However I am sad to be back to ordinary life and having to get up and make my own breakfast. I will be doing a post very soon on my trip to Mexico which will probably go up sometime this week. Anyways I was reading through loads and loads of posts which I had to catch up on and then I fell upon a happiness post and me being so happy today I thought I should probably do a post on happiness too! Now there are many things that bring joy to my life currently so here are a few I want to share with you;

Seeing your food coming towards you in a restaurant 

Waking up super early and seeing the whole day 

Monday nights for Dance Moms and Made in Chelsea

New makeup is always a happiness

Discovering that a restaurant has calamari on their starter menu 

Your hair still being intact when you get home

Finding money on a night out - thats basically free drinks right?

Being paid more that you thought you were going to get 

When your favourite song comes on in the club and you and your friends just know its time to get down

Nails being on point

Finally seeing your friends who have come home from Uni 

Getting your work out complete 

Long road trips which include headphones and number one jams

When the family gets together after weeks of being apart 

New underwear sets

"Marnie you can finish your shift early if you like"

Completing a book 

Falling asleep in the ultimate snuggle position 

Doing things which I never imagined I would ever do
Sunshine, no matter what I'm doing the sun makes me happy
Realising how much fun being with my annoying boyfriend actually is after spending our first holiday together

HOLIDAY WISH LIST

Good morning girls! It's exactly a week until me and Bruno set off on our first holiday together to Mexico and I am super super SUPER excited! I basically have all my holiday bits together but its always infuriating finding new things that may not come in time or you have already bought a similar item. Below are some things I wish I saw earlier so that they would be coming to Mexico with me, but who says they can't be for after my holiday!

1. Kurt Geiger peach tote

2. Lace up gladiator sandals

3. Triangl bikini

4. Brown tortoise shell cat eye sunglasses

5. Felt floppy hat

1. I absolutely love this bag! The size, the colour, everything is perfect and just screams summer to me! I think it would be perfect to use as either a travel bag on the plane, a beach bag or even both. Considering its a designer bag I think the price is reasonable at £180, so who says it wont be an upcoming buy for me!

2. The sandals are just gorgeous. I was never a fan of the gladiator look until being inspired by Kourtney Kardashian. She really knows how to pull off the high leg sandals, however I think i'll stick to the low ones for now.

3. I mean who doesn't love Triangl bikinis! I love bright colours however this one has to be my favourite as its just more simple compared to the others which consist of around 4 different colours! 

4. Again, I never warmed to cat eye sunglasses until spotting them on the oldest Kardashian sister Kourtney! They really suit her face shape and I discovered that they also suit mine, thanks Kourt!

5. Hats are everywhere nowadays. I always need to wear a hat because I get migraines if I'm in direct sunlight for too long, so why not look fancy whilst soaking up the heat in a floppy hat instead of a beach hat. 

Whats on your holiday wish lists girls? And what's your favourite from my list?