Day 11: I give up... GIVING UP *Get that tattoo*

So, it's almost a year that I have been thinking about whether or not I should get tattooed up... and finally the day came that I braved myself and just went ahead with it!

Last week, me and Bella went into to book my session, and managed to get a great deal out of it! hahah talk about blaggin' it.

Sometimes over-thinking can be helpful when it pushes you to take action and solve a problem. But if you are preoccupied with the “what ifs” and worst-case scenarios, your worry becomes a problem of its own. Doubts and fears are paralysing where by you get nowhere in life and end up going around in circles.

I tend to over-think a lot, and I can really and truly say that some of the things in my life which I haven't accomplished/done is due to my over thinking. It's really not about ''what ifs''.... More about JUST DO IT / DEAL WITH IT!

So here goes.... I give up... giving up just doing it... Get that tattoo lol (if that makes any sense at all)

xoxo

Day 10: I give up...GIVING UP! *Embrace the future*

Yesterday I got the timetable for my final year exams and it occurred to me this is finally it! Once I finish my exams, I will be entering the big, wide world! Even though I am as scared as hell, I'm also excited about what the future holds for me! God only knows where I will end up and what I will do, but all I know is that I'm free to do what I want, when I want and the opportunities are endless! We forget sometimes that anything is possible and we as humans are capable of a lot. We feel like we are powerless when it comes to our situations but circumstances can change like that *clicks fingers*. So next time when you feel like nothing ever happens, just remember that good things are coming your way! Embrace your future!

Diva xoxo

Day 9: I give up... GIVING UP *Be grateful*

I woke up this morning. I woke up in my house in my own bed, to sunshine and blue skies. Then I took a moment.

So many people woke up today in shanty towns or pallets next to people they've never met, with nothing more than the clothes on their backs and the breathe in their body and then there are those who didn't wake up today. I send a prayer out for them.

Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to KEEP; if I die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.

The trivial things that usually plague my mind have been pushed back to accommodate for all the drama and tragedy in the world and as much as I am sad that the world has lost Nate dogg and today Elizabeth Taylor, a moment for those whose names and face we may never know. And as selfish as it may seem this is my time to be grateful for the small things and take advantage of my opportunities.

Peace,grease and blessings guys Xoxo Boo!

Day 8. I give up... GIVING UP! *Time OUT*

How much time do you spend with yourself doing nothing? sleeping doesn't count! I'm guessing not a lot and for a workaholic like me, 'not a lot' is an understatement. There's tons of reasons why I work like I do but this year I said to myself moaning was sooooooooooo last year! 2011 I do something about it so first step was to schedule a day off.. some time out just for me myself and I. These are what I found to be the perfect components of a time out session: LIE IN: Sleep is vital for a healthy body and mind. I recently learnt that as our sleep cycles are 90minutes long, if we sleep for at least 5 full cycles we will wake up feeling even more fabulous! So scrap your 8 hour sleep regime and try 7.5! I decided to have 9 hours .. pure bliss.. PAMPER: I don't think pampering should be considered a luxury. Make it regular and your body will thank you for it. I needed an all over tlc session. Took a trip to my local cosmetics store and picked up my favourite body scrub (soap and glory), face mask (garnier), hair conditioner (doo-gro) and spent a good hour or four in the bathroom doing what a girl does best. O and for all you animal print lovers .. this nail pain is a must! I think its the novelty of watching the paint crack before your eyes that does it for me. You paint a base colour of your choice apply the 'magic' nail paint on top and Barry M does the rest.. this is the end result. love it!
LET YOUR HAIR DOWN: who needs an energy drink, when you have fabulous friends! I am an only child and the majority of cousins, uncles etc I do have are all abroad so my girls are my family. Laughter & dancing heals all wounds in my book. So my head wasnt 100% the next day (blame it on the alcohol) but my soul was still laughing :D
ps. these nights are usually strictly girls only but as my cousin and her man were on holiday in London, he was the exception !
CHOCOLATE: I consumed a lot of food during my time out which was perhaps not the best idea given I am preparing to get back into my skinny jeans but the one ingredient I don't regret is chocolate. With all this pressure to be skinny and eat salads.. (really?!) its important to treat yourself and chocolate is good for you! I'm not talking the whole 500g thang but a few squares. GUILTY PLEASURES are a must ;)

DO NOTHING: ...not a thing, nada, just find a quiet place and relax. the sun was suprisingly out that day so I took a walk to nowhere and back. stepped out of my box and thought about me, my life, my goals, my fears, my blessings. I realised that as hard as I have been working to get ahead, who I am has been falling behind. The energetic, confident, fun, passionate, wild, kind, hilarious, sexy, intelligent, go getting, skillful young woman that I want to be will never fully form unless I invest time into her.

So I hereby give up giving up, time out for moi! Kisses..........

Day 7: I give up...GIVING UP *Helping out more around the house*

I know I am not the best child in the world when it comes with helping out around in the house. So it's no surprise to me that my mum is always having a go at me.

Since starting the 9 to 5 routine, I've become even lazier when it comes to helping out at home; i.e. when I get home I'm too tired to rustle up anything in the kitchen for my younger siblings to eat (secretly waiting on mum to come home to do that) which ain't fair at all. If anything, she's probably be a little more tired than me.

So I've decided to chuck away my lazy side (& quick and easy food) and start helping out more in the house by cooking some more.... from scratch! :D

Today... I made some Curry Goat with Rice and Peas - Yum!

Sorry no photo of the end product...

I was so hungry I ate all the food before I realised I forgotten to take a pic, However it looked a little something like this...

Happy Monday!

xoxox

Day 6. Reflection *Love thy neighbour*

Sometimes it can feel we are alone in this world. We become so preoccupied with our everyday lives: our jobs, family, friends etc until something drastic happens that makes us realise that it's not just all about us! For example, the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan literally shook us awake! And it's at times like this, we forget about ourselves and come together as one big community to help those in need. We "love thy neighbour as thyself" (Romans 13: 8-10). Sometimes as much as we think we are capable of doing things ourselves, we do need the help of others. I know I couldn't have gone through the most difficult times in my life without the love and support of my family and friends and people who were just willing to help, who didn't have to but wanted to. However it shouldn't just be in difficult times. We should be there for each other no matter what!

Diva xoxo

Day 5. I give up giving up * Appreciate my skills*

I am in essence a Jackie of all trades.... need you hair did? Your nails did? (Everything did lol) or do you need your wedding planned? Or a brand new one of a kind outfit? Or do you at just want a favour? To often I dish these skills out for free and I don't mind but too often the favour is not returned. Being a firm believer in giving for the sake of giving but on my lenten journey, I've been reading the Zahir by Paulo Coelho and have come across the idea of the favour bank. The idea is that you selectively give out favours safe in the knowledge that one day your favour will be returned. Although this may seem selfish to some I believe that its fair and by placing value on my skills I give my self permission to feel appreciated and gain a sense of value. So I hereby give up giving up appreciating my skills

HAPPY SHROVE TUESDAY!!!

It's Shrove tuesday also know as Pancake day! The day before Ash Wednesday and before we start our lenten promises.

I also recently found out it's called "Fat Tuesday" which I think is such an appropiate name as I know it's going to be a fatboy day lol. I have already made myself my first batch this morning and I will be cooking more this evening for my family! Yum!

Hope everyone has a happy tuesday! Diva xoxo

INSPIRATION #1 Olivia Palermo

I've always loved Olivia Palermo's style, but have always found her style a bit too clean cut for me personally. I'm usually a "good from far, but far from good type of girl".

However, recently I had to polish up my look due to my job, and have been overly inspired by Miss Palermo.

(I still maintain my "good from far, but far from good" habits after work by throwing on my comfy flat scruffy boots to walk home in)

MONDAY MORNING MEETINGS:

RAINY TUESDAYS:

MID-WEEK WEDNESDAYS {UPDATE MEETINGS}

THURSDAY (The weekend is almost here)

CASUAL FRIDAYS

XUNA

XOXO

Work for you part 2

Inspired by superwoman wonderful post i wanted to add my two cents. Portfolio careers or a multifaceted career seems to be calling me, Fresh out of Uni and i don't really want to chain myself to the MAN ( fist in the air) lol. But seriously i never saw myself doing one thing for the rest of my life and looking back i have never had one singular source of income, I've been a bootleg hairdresser, makeup artist, stylist, art director, therapist, consultant, photographer, mentor, co-coordinator and that's just in the last year. Currently i have a J.O.B (Just Over Broke) to keep me going and i have my eggs in plenty of baskets, like I'm not a bidness (wo)man, I'm a BIDNESS (wo)MAN. Personally I think this is the best way to regenerate the economy, young (smart) people are the way forward. It's no longer about having one skill set be Multifaceted and most importantly do what makes you happy. On another note we heart all your comments and views, so if your not following us ( WE HEART YOU TOO XOXO and we always check out your blogs too) drop us a comment.

Work for you

Well after the crazy Wireless weekend it was back to work. Five hours sleep and a cup of tea later and I still felt sleepy and itchy from the bug bites grrrrr! I'm not sure if I was dreaming or just in deep thought at my desk but I got into this discussion with myself about my career... I am so happy to have got this new job that relates to my degree but what path am I following now.. how am I going to get the most out of this, so there are fewer steps to my dream career- which is what again?? Ahhhrhg! Trey Songz says it best- I just wanna be successful!

I can never keep too much in my head so the next day out came the verbal diarrhoea to Xuna and we were discussing our interests in Public Sector careers, where it takes time to get to the big bucks and also this magazine article I read about these women who have Portfolio Careers where they can have flexible work patterns and earn lots of extra cash! Whether they came across it by accident or pursued the change themselves these women had about 3 or 4 career paths that reflected both their skills and personality. Lyande, age 25 who earns a total of £2300 a month from her 3 jobs described it as "a fantastic way to work towards my dream without throwing financial security out of the window. I never want to think: what if I had tried this?' Now I can explore everything" We said to each other this is the answer! Lets do ittt! Then we realised we are halfway there!!! This is more of a life style blog than a fashion blog but we take pride in our appearance and like to express ourselves by putting our individual style twist to what we wear. In other words we like to look hott! In between the jobless behaviour we look around for items (some vintage) that we sell on to fellow fashion victims so they can put their own unique stamp on it.

CHECK OUT OUR SHOP... (its still under construction so feel free to ask any questions) http://www.senseofashion.com/88backwards

How to get your own portfolio career for those who are not doing this already: - Ask yourself if you can live with a flexible cash flow. Are you motivated? do you have lots of energy? List your top achievements and pick out the recurring skills. -Ask your boss if you can do a 3 or 4 day week and use the rest of your time to start something new. If not start doing additional work in the evenings/ weekends to try a variety of jobs. -Start building networks- list people who can support you. You'll need help materially, financially and emotionally. -Think like a freelancer. You are the CEO, MD, secretary, finance director and tea lady in one. Always look for opportunities. and remember your life is a reflection of your thoughts.. -Get online with your own website and document your interests -Keep an eye on your health and always make time for relaxing, not only will it keep you sane but it will mean you have enough energy to stay professional.

google portfolio career for more info GET OUT THERE AND SHOW THE WORLD YOU'RE AMAZING !

Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device ....my 2 hours and 27minutes until home time face!

Congrats Wifey!

I don't know if I'm feeling real emotional right now but... I'm just soooo happy my wifey Stace has landed her first grad Job! I feel like my baby is taking her first steps! baahaha

lol

Well Done AND Congrats for the 100th time!!!

We had a little celebratory walk down the canal in Kings Cross (Aggie has being dying to take us for ages lol) but It was pweetiful.

:D

Theres something about Travis Maccoy that makes me want to do 'naughty things' things to him!!! Grrrrrrrrrrrowl! lol

This is for you Stace...

Love you...

Lets de-clutter :)

Today I spent the morning, tidying my wardrobe (to make room for more clothes) and de-cluttering my desk- packing up all that university junk!! In the afternoon I heard some sad news and it got me thinking if I were to disappear tomorrow how would I be remembered?? Its not really about what you've done but how you did it that determines who you are. What's that saying... 'no one wishes they spent more time in the office,' so in the evening I began to de-clutter my mind too... forget all my little worries and re-focus on my dreams and the steps I'm taking to get there. After all that I needed a break so I switched on the tv to be entertained but noooo all I got was 'breaking political news' (I wont bore you with all the details). Politics is important but not when it gets in the way of Eastenders! Lol. So i flicked through the channels for something else to make me laugh and came across Drop Dead Diva... ...took me a while to like the series but I am now a fan! Maybe I'm a bit emotional today but this episode touched my heart lol. It just summed things up.... at the end of the day - what ever it is.. work or relationships- just go for it and believe you can achieve it!