What I achieved in 2014!

Hello! Hope you all had a lovely Christmas!

Apologies for neglecting my blog, but December has been absolutely hectic and I've had zero time or motivation to write. I've also just noticed that I'm only a few pageviews away from 3000!! THANK YOU!

Anyway, with 2015 being SO close and lots of you sharing your New Year's resolutions, I thought I would finally take some time out to write a quick little post...

Now, I'm not one for actually making New Year resolutions, I don't particularly like the idea of identifying any flaws in life and aiming to change them, (not that there's anything wrong with making resolutions!), so instead I thought I'd twist it up and share achievements this year...

For the first time ever, I've actually made myself proud with what I've done:

- I passed my first year of University with a First (might not seem a big deal to some, but for me, this was big)

- I STARTED THIS BLOG! It was something that I started at the spur of the moment and I never thought it would do so well and receive such an amazing response. It also lead to me discovering such an amazing online community... YOU GUYS ARE FAB!

-In the same month that I started blogging, I also started volunteering for the British Red Cross at a local charity shop. I originally did it to gain some experience and to keep me busy over the summer. I planned to stop in September, but I've carried on as I love it so much and couldn't ask for a better group of people to volunteer with. I've even managed the shop too, which was nerve racking as it involved a lot of responsibility, but I coped with no problems, which brought a massive sense of achievement!

- I'm a lot happier in myself than I was last year. My confidence has soared on so many different levels.

I could go on more, but these 4 things were the major ones that I really wanted to share.

My only goal in life is to be happy (cheesy, but true) and at the moment I am, so my only 'goal' is to maintain this :)

So, what have you lovely lot achieved this year?

All the best for 2015 and if you have made any New Year's resolutions, good luck! :)

Katie x

P.S I have a guest post that will be going up in the first week of January, so keep an eye out!

Too shy to go to the gym...

This week, I actually need YOUR advice...
Late this summer, I joined the gym. I was full of motivation to get fit, but so far, I've made very little progress. I will hold my hands up and admit that this is partly due to my motivation flying out of the window (being curled up in bed is always going to sound better). But the major reason is that I'm just too shy to go...

Should it be declared when Photoshop has been used in magazines and adverts?

If you've read my blog before, you will know I like to put my two pence in when it comes to current topics that relate to body image. And the recent images published of Keira Knightley and Kim Kardashian West have got me thinking... should it be declared when Photoshop (or any other image editing software) has been used to alter someone's appearance?

THE MAKEUP EXPERIMENT | BY TAYLORED BEAUTY

Today, I've got a great post by Taylor from taylored-beauty.blogspot.co.uk. Taylor challenged herself with the question 'Why do we bother to wear make up?' and has written her thoughts after doing her own experiment. It's one that makes you think and we would both love to hear yours thoughts and experiences too. Enjoy! 

Are we becoming too nitpicky on what is and isn't a good promotion of body image?

Most of you will have seen the picture of a girl stood next to the Topshop mannequin, which recently went viral and prompted lots of criticism towards Topshop for promoting a poor body image. For me personally though, it prompted a different (and possibly controversial) thought - are we getting too nitpicky when it comes to our views on what is and isn't a good promotion for body image?

Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water - Review

I know this isn't my usual type of post, but I've wanted to do a product review for a bit now and after lots of encouragement from some lovely fellow bloggers, I have decided to go for it!

As someone who struggles with dry, very sensitive skin, finding any sort of face product that doesn't give me a reaction can be a rarity. Face wipes are the worst, as even ones that are designed for sensitive skin, can leave me with an unsightly, red, burning skin. They often make my eczema worse too (read my Dealing with Eczema post here). This has led to me giving up of face wipes all together and I now use baby wipes to remove my makeup. Now obviously, this isn't the best way to care for my skin, and can dry my skin out a lot. I know that I should have a proper skin care routine (and my current one isn't doing me any favours) but, I'll hold my hands up and admit that I'm pretty lazy and view cleansing, toning and moisturizing as an absolute chore!

Do YOU want to get involved with my blog?

Hey! How are you all? This post is more of an update than anything and I want to put a few ideas out to you. Starting a new year at university and keeping up with volunteering means when I do get free time, I want to spend it with loved ones (or taking a nap), so unfortunately, my blog tends to take the back seat.

This blog, so far, has had a really great response, so I want to try as much as possible to keep up with regular posts as much as I can, but I know that I'm going to struggle to do that as the work load at uni increases, so I've come up with a couple of ideas to keep the blog going until I can find time to do posts that I'm happy with and that are good enough, rather than write a post for the sake of it...

I've been thinking for a little while about having a guest blogger do a post for the blog and think now would be the perfect time to have one. The whole aim of this blog is to try and increase body confidence by sharing experiences,  giving advice on how to overcome insecurities and to remind everyone that they are beautiful! I think it would be great to have others share their stories and advice too! Do you think you could be a guest blogger? If you have an experience that you'd like to share or any advice you would like to give or just want to write about anything that is linked to body confidence then email me @ katielewis780@gmail.com telling me your idea for a post and I will get back to you as soon as I can and we can sort it all out!  

Another idea was to post a question or topic and have people comment on the post with their advice based on the question or topic? (This idea may be a bit more hit and miss). I've already had some lovely ladies leave their own thoughts in a comment on some of my previous posts and I love reading them and finding out what others think. I know that there are some issues when trying to leave comments, but, if enough people do like the sound of this, I think it could be really successful!  If  the commenting is too much of an issue maybe a twitter chat could be arranged?

I'd love your help and to hear your thoughts on this. I really appreciate when people take the time out to read and comment and I take everything on board!

And finally on a quick note, you may have read my last post (read here) on my thoughts about Dan Wootton's 'No More Skinny' campaign in The Sun and how I didn't agree with his approach (since this post, I haven't seen anything more on this... hopefully he is rethinking his approach) but recently I have come across another campaign which is great, puts across the right message and is trying to "change attitudes to body image and build a body confident nation". Go and check out berealcampaign.co.uk from what I've seen so far, I think it's great!

Looking forward to (hopefully) hearing back from some of you! x

Why I don't agree with The Sun's 'No more skinny' campaign...

Be prepared, this post will be a bit of a rant. I do not read tabloid newspapers or read gossip magazines, so this 'campaign' only came to my attention after reading a small article about it on Facebook. If you have read my blog before, you may have read my 'Real Women' post, so will already know some of my thoughts on the way the media portrays beauty and will also understand why this campaign has infuriated me...

Spread the love - Compliment others!

Far to many people put others down. But negativity will only ever receive more negativity in return. I've noticed that people tend to put others down more when they're struggling with their own insecurities and are trying to make themselves feel a little better. In realising this, I've learnt to brush off bad comments and ignore them.

Instead ladies, I challenge you to compliment each other more often. Giving a simple, nice comment can brighten anyone's day, including your own! Compliment your friends, family or even a complete stranger! I have a habit (particularly on nights out) of asking another girl where their outfit is from or what makeup they're using, because I think it looks great! They always respond with huge smiles, tell me, and then walk off with their head held a little higher. It's lovely to see.

We need to learn to accept compliments too. We refuse to believe them and will put ourselves down. Hey! They wouldn't say it if they didn't think it was true! Say thank you and allow yourself to have a little confidence boost.

They say smiling is infectious... I think compliments and positivity is too.

:) x

Me time - Pamper Yourself!

In this hectic world, it almost seems impossible to get a minute to ourselves sometimes. Taking time out of your day to focus on just you is really important, I think. Whether it's half an hour, an hour, an afternoon, or an evening, it's never a bad thing to give yourself some TLC. A bit of time where you don't have to worry about anything or anyone, relax and do whatever you like!

Going to University? Tips and Advice...

This post is a bit different to my usual ones, but freshers week is fast approaching for some people and I thought I could give some good advice and tips! I've technically been a fresher twice (I did a foundation year before I started my degree), so I guess you could say I've got a lot of experience! When I first started at university, I was so nervous and scared, but when it came to me starting my degree, I was completely ready for it and full of confidence! So here's a bit of a heads ups with what to expect and some tips along the way...

Dealing with Eczema

Eczema is pretty common and most people will have suffered from it a little at some point and if you have, you'll understand just how annoying it is. I've suffered from eczema quite badly for as long as I can remember and has been the reason for feeling majorly self consciousness at times. I was told when I was younger that I would 'grow out of it' but at 20 years old, I'm still dealing with it...

Liebster award!

I'd like to thank the Charlie - Rhianne for nominating me for a Liebster award! Check her out at http://charlierhiannedean.blogspot.co.uk/ !

This is definitely the icing on the cake after a week of lovely responses to my blog and interacting with lots of other fab bloggers.

My Questions from Charlie- Rhianne:

1. What is your favourite type of food?

     Italian. I'm particularly obsessed with pizza.

2. Who is your role model?
    I absolutely adore Lucy Watson; her style, personality, ambition and the way she deals with situations,       shes very true to herself and loyal to friends. I like that.  

    

3. If you could be gifted with a creative talent, what would it be?

     Probably dancing.

4. Name one thing you can't live without?

     Probably my iPad. Sad, but true.

5. Morning person? Or night owl?

     Definitely a night person, hate hate hate mornings.

6. If you could have a free education, what would you study? Why?

      I'm studying Biology now, so it would still be that if it was free. I find it really interesting.

7. If you could tick one thing off your bucket list, what would you choose?

     To go on safari in Africa! 

8. Favourite film?
     Labyrinth

9. What is your dream job?
      I'm hoping to have a career in researching diseases.

10. Favourite hobby?
        Sleeping, haha!

11. You're standing in a fast food restaurant, what do you order?

     A Cheeseburger.

The Health Mission

Weighing myself is never a good idea, as I'm never satisfied with the number that I'm shown. After recently weighing myself, I realised that I'd put on nearly half a stone over the last 2 months, eugh. Truth is, I had actually noticed that I'd put on a bit of weight, but was relatively happy for once with my body... my boobs had even gotten bigger (win!) but it wasn't until I weighed myself that I started to feel crappy about myself again. After having a bit of a sulk about it (there was a lot of huffing and puffing whilst prodding and pinching belly fat), I came to the conclusion that weight is just a number and as long as I was happy with myself then what did it matter? But it did bring to my attention just how poorly I was eating; I was always going to put on weight if I was eating 4 pizzas in a week (I don't regret that one bit though btw...). This summer has been full on nights out and late night takeaways, snacks and lounging around in front of the tv and let's be honest, it's just not healthy and probably the cause of my weight gain. Eating crappy food hasn't only affected my weight though; my skin has become oiler and spottier and I feel tired and lazy all the time, with no motivation.

A health kick was in order!

Follow me on bloglovin'

Leave your bloglovin' links in a comment below and I'll follow you! 😊

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/12757907/?claim=c8p6jer25et">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

'Real Women'

The media has piped up once again since the rise of the #fatkini selfie and in some cases has dubbed the ladies posting the selfies as ‘real women’ and I have a bit of an issue with it (now, hear me out before you go off on one…). The fab women posting their #fatkini pictures are inspiring and I admire each of them for their self-confidence and let’s be honest, they all look great! Obviously my issue is not with them, but instead with the media and the term ‘real women’. This phrase depicts the ‘perfect’ woman as someone who is curvy and voluptuous.  As someone who has quite and athletic/ boyish (I don’t particularly like that term either for describing body figures) I can’t help but wonder if this means that I’m not a real woman? Does my lack of hips mean lack of femininity? Of course it probably seems that I’m over reacting, but I think the associations with the phrase should be changed! Because, of course, EVERY woman is a REAL WOMAN – tall, short, skinny, fat, athletic, curvy, hourglass figures, pear shaped, apple shaped, carrot shaped, WHATEVER!

 The media is so confusing with its portrayal of beauty. You aren’t beautiful if you’re not a 6ft tall, size 6 perfectly proportioned model, but you aren’t ‘real’ if you don’t have curves and a cracking rack – confusing much?! I could go on forever with my issue with the media and how shitty it can make us feel, with the number one culprits being crappy celebrity gossip magazines (“How dare ~insert celeb name~ allow herself to be papped wearing no make-up! Oh, the shame!” – YAWN!!)… I’ll save that rant for another rainy day…

Basically, I wish I had the body confidence of any woman who posts a bikini selfie. They all look fab, and anyone who says otherwise or criticises them need a quiet word with themselves. Keep up with your #fatkini and #bikini pictures ladies, and ignore stupid media and any tag they want to put on you.

What are your opinions? Am I overreacting? Should the media's or even society’s narrow minded views on beauty be tackled? 

Think before you speak - Weight

Weight was never really an issue for me until I left high school. I used to do a lot of sport, ate what I wanted and never weighed myself (mainly because the scales were broken). But after leaving high school, I started to lose weight and I didn't really notice either. My clothes were getting looser and baggier on me, but I put it down to them being old and the elastic being worn out, and that I was just way overdue a decent shopping spree. I hadn't changed any of my eating habits, if anything, I was lazier and ate more crap than before. I was perfectly happy with myself size wise I didn't think I'd changed much at all. It wasn't until poeple that were close to me started making comments... "You're too skinny", "Are you eating?", "You used to have boobs and an arse, you're flat now", "There's nothing to you!". And I won't lie, these comments hurt. A lot.

"If you think about it, boobs are just lumps of fat..."

I think the title of this post says it all really...

I've always wanted to have bigger boobs. I was a little bit of a late developer and my thoughts growing up were that having boobs meant you'd become a 'proper woman'. Sounds daft, I know, but I'm sure that I'm not the only girl in the world to have thought this. I've never really been 'flat' chested, but I've always been considerably smaller than all my friends and it used to make me feel quite self conscious, especially when some of them used to point out the fact that I had smaller breasts and make light jokes about it (these people are no longer my friends by the way - anyone who says something that makes you feel self conscious is NOT a real friend). At the age of around 17, I was adamant that I wanted to have a boob job, but now, having one is completely out of the question (and not just because my boyfriend has pretty much forbidden me to have one). After watching numerous episodes of Botched Up Bodies and other various programmes on plastic surgery, I've come to realise just how ludicrous it is... Youre paying £1000s to have your body basically cut open and have plastic stuffed inside of you, followed by weeks of pain! Not to mention the potential health risks that come with it. No thank you!

#instasham

This article in Look magazine (2nd June 2014) sparked my interest and although it's not about body hang ups, it highlights an insecurity amongst women nonetheless. It's never once crossed my mind that I have to prove to my followers on Instagram that my life is interesting. When I do post something, it's usually showing a scenic view, something I'm interested in, or I'm trying to avoid doing something else like uni work, so the statistic shocked me... "53% of us are willing to act differently on Instagram than in real life in order to impress our friends". It made me wonder if any of the pictures I see of people on Instagram (that I get jealous of) are there to just mask any insecurities of the person posting them? Just enjoy life, take pictures for memories, not just for Instagram or the likes...  

 

The first step...

I'm 20 years old, I'm 5"3, size 6/8 with a weight that hovers around the 8 stone mark.  I study biology, I have a long term boyfriend and have slight addictions to shopping and junk food. I'm just an average person, with life so far, working out quite well. I'm the sort of person who tends to be quiet and reserved when you first meet me and then after a while, I'll drive you nutty when I won't stop chattering away. I tend not to care for peoples opinion of me (after I stopped caring, I found I was much happier) and go for whatever makes me happy. However, I find myself on a regular basis, looking down at myself or at my reflection in the mirror and having a tidal wave of insecurities consume me. I often wish to have longer legs, or bigger boobs, a flatter stomach or to have tanned skin, for my eyes to be a different colour, think a bit of plastic surgery wouldn't go a miss, wish my skin was better... (You get the idea). I look in my wardrobe and wish it was a bit more up to date fashion wise or look at selfies on Instagram and wish I could make my own face look amazing through the power of make up. I certainly wouldn't leave the house with at least mascara and concealer on at the bare minimum (wouldn't want to scare people, would I?) I feel pressures from all possible angles to look a certain way. I compare myself to every other girl and wish I looked like them in some way. My boyfriend tells me on a regular basis that he thinks I'm beautiful (I don't even need to fish for the compliment) and I believe that he thinks that, but I, myself, couldn't disagree more, and it's dragging me down enormously.