A look back on 2014

I really can't put into words how crazy this year has been but I'm going to attempt for the purpose of this blog post. To put it bluntly, 2014 has been the best year of my life so far! 

After having such a horrible year in 2013 I told myself that this year was going to be different. Instead of the usual New Years resolutions (eg, lose weight, eat better blah blah blah) I set myself a new goal and it was simply to just be happy. Well, I can safely say that resolution was achieved! I have gone out of my comfort zone so many times this year and achieved so many things that I didn't even think were possible for me. I look back at how I used to be and can't even recognise myself, I have changed so much in the space of a year. There have been months where I have been none stop but I don't regret all the lack of sleep from late nights and early starts because every minute has been worth it! 

⭐️ A summary of 2014:

- a weekend away with a lot of the family for dads 50th

- dance presentation awards evening

- my cousins wedding

- meeting up with long distance friends

- passing my first year of uni with a 2:1

- travelling to Croatia for the fourth time

- going to my friends house party

- STARTING MY DRIVING LESSONS!!!!!

- spending the Summer with my amazing best friends

- getting one hell of a great tan

- lot of dance displays and show rehearsals

- starting my second year of uni

- having my bedroom redecorated

- getting a temporary paid dance job at Screamfest for Halloween

- DANCE SHOW AT THE BREWHOUSE

- helping out with little kids dance lessons

- becoming a dance leader at my friends dance school

- leading all the children at my friends Christmas dance show

- getting through 2 speaking presentations at uni

- handing in all my assignments on time and finishing the first semester of the second year

- having an amazing and relaxing Christmas with all my family!

As you can see it has been a crazy and busy year but I am so proud of myself for what I have achieved! I'm not to sure how 2015 can top this year but I am going to enter it with positive thoughts and determination!

⭐️ Goals for 2015:

- pass my theory

- pass my driving test 

- buy a car/insurance

- become more flexible (eg, get my splits finally)

- dance at Screamfest again if asked

- get at least a 2:1 overall for my second year at uni

- continue to be happy

I hope everyone that reads this has enjoyed 2014 as much as I have and if you have then I hope 2015 is better for you! I went from 2013 being the worst year of my life to 2014 to being the best so anything is possible if you try hard enough! 

Happy New Year!!! 🎉

                      

                      

                             

                          

                          

                          

                          

                                 

                         

                         

                         

                         

                         

                         

                   

                          

                          

                          

EXTRA STUDENT DISCOUNT ON ASOS, TOPSHOP, NEWLOOK AND MORE

Hi Guys!

If you are a student and haven't already then I would highly recommend you make an account on UNiDAYS. It's completely free, quick and easy.
Once you have your account you'll get access to loads of discounts from places such as

• ASOS
• Topshop/Topman, 
• NewLook
• Cafe Nero
• Boohoo
• Urban Outfitters
• McDonalds
• Misguided
• PC World

and so much more...!
I have saved so much with UNiDAYS and most of the time you get more than just the usual 10% student discount. For example, various times I have had 20-25% off places like Topshop ASOS and NewLook!

All you have to do is click on the link below and then click Join Now
https://www.myunidays.com/r/AZi1wMrxo_M 

HAPPY SHOPPING! :D

Dance Dance and More Dance

Why hello there!

I am so super excited for the next 2 weeks! I am going to be so busy but it will definitely be worth it.
Last week a message was sent round saying if any dancers were interested in some paid work over several nights to dance at the local event near me called Screamfest. It happens every year at this place called Adventure Farm in Tatenhill. There's basically 4 scare attractions (Soul Seekers, The Field of Screams, Slasher and the one I'll be dancing at is Nocturnal). I'll leave the behind scenes video of Nocturnal below so you can see what it's all about:

To cut a rather long story short my friend from dance asked if I was interested in doing it with her. At first I didn't want to but in the end I decided to say yes because one of my new years resolutions was to push out of my comfort zone a bit more and I knew that if I had said no I would have regretted it. Also I will get paid £40 a night, so £120 for 3 nights of dancing sounds pretty good to me!
I will be dancing from 7pm-11pm but depending on how busy it is on the night is it might run shorter or later.

I also have another big dance event at the end of October which is my dance show! I am sooooo excited and they are my favourite thing to do. My dance school does them every 2 years and it will definitely be the highlight of my year! I am doing so many routines this year including 2 duets to Billy Jean - Michael Jackson and Step In Time - Mary Poppins. Other songs I will be dancing to include, Vogue - Madonna, The Pink Panther theme tune, Car Wash - Rosa Royce, Please Don't Stop the Music - Rhianna, and many more. It's going to be a jam packed show lasting 2 nights (1 show on Fri 31st, and 2 shows on Sat 1st Nov) with a lot of quick changes.
The best thing about dance shows is you basically get to spend so much time with all your amazing friends having a huge laugh, wearing loads of different costumes and getting the adrenaline rush from performing. It is amazing!

So as well as having long days at uni and shifts at work I also have lots of dance rehearsals, a paid dance job at Screamfest and my dance show. I don't know how I am going to fit this all in and still get sleep but dancing is my favourite thing to do so where there's a will, there's a way.

THE SHOW MUST GO ON!

Be yourself

One of the most important things in life is to be yourself. It is your life and no one else's.
Something that often irritates me is when you try to be yourself but someone thinks it is okay to copy every single thing you do.
There's a saying "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery" and to some extent that is true. It's okay if someone buys something that you have because they like it, or does a few things the same as you because they look up to you but there's a fine line between being inspired and blatant obsessive copying. Not only does it take away there individuality but it takes away yours too.

It is so frustrating when you work so hard on things or feel proud at what you have achieved and somebody else thinks it is okay to just completely copy you without your permission and take all the credit and then act like they have done nothing wrong,
It seems these days I can't do anything without someone else doing the exact same and it is so suffocating. In the past year I have changed so much in a person and I am finally standing up for myself and not letting people walk all over me and getting away with murder.

Be confident and be yourself. Don't live your life trying to be like somebody else.

"Be yourself, everyone else is already taken" - Oscar Wilde

The Beauty Tag

SKINCARE

-How many times do you wash your face daily?

Twice a day  (in the morning and at night)

-What skin type do you have? (dry,oily,combo)

Dry

-What moisturizer do you use?

I have to use a prescribed one due to my eczema. But its either an oilatum cream or hydrocortisone

-Do you have freckles?

I have the odd few but no not really

-Do you use eye cream?

Again its a prescribed cream. Oilatum or hydrocortisone

-Do you or did you have acne prone skin?

No, thankfully I very rarely get spots, but eczema is a pain in the bum!

-Did you ever have to use Pro-activ?

Nope

MAKE-UP
-What foundation do you use?

Rimmel match perfection

-How about concealer?

collection lasting perfection

-Do you know your undertone color?

I think I have a cool undertone but I could be wrong

-What do you think of fake eyelashes?

I think they look good if theyre not too big and in your face. But I personally don't wear them

-Did you know that you are suppose to change your mascara every 3 months?

I do now!

-What brand of mascara do you use?

Collection killer curves

-Sephora or MAC?

MAC

-Do you have a MAC Pro-card?

No

-What makeup tools do you use in make up application?

Real Techniques brushes

-Do you use make-up base/primer for the eyes?

No

-For the face?

Yes (Maybelline Baby Skin)

-What is your favorite eyeshadow (color or shade)?

I don't tend to wear much eyeshadow but I do have a No7 palette

-Do you use pencil or liquid eyeliner?

Liquid!

-How often do you poke your eyes with an eyeliner pencil?

Not very often

-What is your favorite lipstick?

My No7 red lipstick: Raisin Shimmer. I really want a Charlotte Tilbury Lipstick but theyre so expensive!

-How about lipgloss?

I'm not a fan of lip gloss anymore so I tend to avoid

-What is your favorite blush to use?

The one in my sleek palette

-Do you buy your makeup on ebay?

No

-Do you like drugstore makeup?

Yes

-Do you go to CCO's? (cosmetic company outlets)

No

-Did you ever consider taking make-up classes?

No

-Name a makeup crime that you hate?

When people have patchy foundation!

-Do you like colorful shades of makeup (lipstick,eyeshadow) or neutral ones?

I personally stick to neutral but I do like colourful shades

-Which celebrity always has great make up?

Zoe Sugg and Jenna Coleman

-If you could leave the house using just ONE make up item,what would you use?

Concealer

-Could you ever leave the house without any makeup on?

Probable not. But I could leave with just a dab of concealer and my eyebrow pencil

-Do you think you look good even without any makeup on?

Haha no

-In your opinion, what is the BEST makeup line?

Hmm that's a toughy as I only usually stick to high street make up, but probably Rimmel

-What do you think of Makeup? 

I love it :)

L'oreal Paris Elnett Heat Defence Spray (New) Review

"Heat protect styling spray, straight hair 3 days"

For years I have had trouble keeping my hair straight so I always used to tie it up. If on the odd occasion I did decide to straighten my hair, as soon as I stepped outside it would go bushy and the ends would flick up making me feel really self conscious because it looked horrible. Recently however I have been trying to grow my hair and take better care of it as in the past I have been very lazy when it comes to heat defence. When I went into Wilko's to buy some more heat defence the other week (I was previously using Tresemme), I saw this brand on offer for £5 and noticed that it said it was for straight hair, so I decided to give it a go. I didn't have high hopes to be honest because I've tried so much over the years and it's gotten to the point where I have given up. HOWEVER I can honestly say this stuff is amazing. For the first time in probably forever I have gone out with straight hair and come home with... Wait for it... Straight hair!! To cut what seems to be a very long story short, I am very happy with this product and I will definitely be buying this again! 

I spray this on all over on wet hair before blow drying and then again on dry hair just on the ends before straightening (the ends are my problem areas that just don't want to stay straight).

• heat defence up to 230 degrees

• keeps hair straight

• locks out frizz and flyaways

• affordable

• smells nice

It's so nice to finally be able to go out and have my hair down in different styles and not have to worry about it becoming bushy or frizzy. My natural hair is sort of straight on top but the ends are thick, bushy and wavy so I am not sure how well this would work with other hair types but I would love to know! I would definitely recommend this to anyone who struggles to keep their hair straight.

Hope this has helped if youare looking to buy a new heat defence spray. Let me know in the comments if you love it as much as I do.

Thanks for reading, Joanna ♥

Billy Jean Dance Show Costume Idea

Billy Jean Dance Show Costume Idea by joanna-walker-x featuring a black pantyhose

T By Alexander Wang crop top
farfetch.com

Pretty Polly black pantyhose
$8.15 - bankfashion.co.uk

Costumes
$7.87 - heavencostumes.com.au

River Island Girls white frilly socks
$4.08 - riverisland.com

Girls - American Ballet Theatre for Spotlights - Jazz Shoe - Payless...
payless.com

Sequin Black Suspenders – Spirit Halloween
spirithalloween.com

TOPSHOP BRAND NEW BLACK SEQUINED HOT PANTS KNICKER SHORTS UK SIZE 4 6...
ebay.co.uk

Fedora Glitter Hat Women Hen Party Sequin Fashion Cap Trilby Costume...
ebay.co.uk

Back to University

Today was my first day back at university after having a 4 and a half month Summer holiday. It may sound like a long time to have off but I definitely needed it. I now feel very rested and ready to start the new year! I started at 9am which meant getting up stupidly early at 5.30am so that I would have time to get ready and travel in via three different busses. I am so excited for the day that I can drive because it will save so much time in the mornings! I finished at 1pm and was home for 3pm. Although it was only 4 hours it was very intense and overwhelming as every lecturer drilled in the fact that the second year is so much harder and the work load gets so much heavier... not something you like to hear on your first day back to say the least.

Above is what I wore. I bought the trousers (or should I say treggings) the other day from Topshop after seeing Zoella wear them in one of her vlogs. I really like them but I was very nervous to wear them because they are not everyone's cup of tea. But every now and again I kept telling myself that if I like them then I shouldn't worry what other people think. I am back in again tomorrow at the dreaded 9am so here's hoping that it will all go smoothly.

Are you back at school, college or university? How is it going so far? Let me know in the comments. Thanks for reading.

Joanna x



Back to University by joanna-walker-x featuring long sleeve tops

ASOS blouse
£18 asos.com

Long sleeve top
£20 - matalan.co.uk

Topshop side zip pants
£28 topshop.com

Kohl boots
£25 - newlook.com

Autumn Look: Pastel & Monochrome

Autumn Look: Pastel & Monochrome by joanna-walker-x featuring black boots

ASOS collar top
asos.com

Crew neck sweater
$33 - matalan.co.uk

Topshop white pants
topshop.com

Black boots
$41 - newlook.com

How to make giant chocolate chunky cookies

Check out the video I made :)

Ingredients:
300g caster sugar
200g softened butter
325g self raising flour
400g milk chocolate
1 egg

2 baking trays will either need to be greased or you can use tracing paper (so the cookies don't stick to the tray).

Oven must be preheated to 200 degrees Celsius

Please go ahead and subscribe to my YouTube channel. Thanks for reading/watching!

Joanna x

Summer Lovin'

Instead of doing a monthly favourites I've decided to do a post about the top five things I have been loving this Summer. The things I have included are not just beauty or fashion related, its just a general variety of things that I wanted to share with you all :) enjoy!

1. NewLook Striped Daisy Tee

I bought this top from NewLook and it straight away became my new favourite item of clothing. It's so simple yet so pretty and perfect for both Summer and Winter. It's loose fitting so it keeps you cool in hot weather or you could slip a white vest underneath for colder weather in the Winter. It is also a combination of my favourite patterns... stripes and daisies, what's not to love eh? This is currently in the sale for just £6 however there are very limited sizes left. I will leave the links at the end of the post if you're interested.

2. ASOS Spot and Crochet Swing Dress

This dress is so gorgeous and is currently in the sale for £28.50 (originally £38) and there are still a variety of sizes available so I will leave a link at the end if you were interested in buying this too. It is also available in the man collection as well is the petite section. I've only worn this once so far because its quite a formal dress but I absolutely love it and I need to find more occasions to wear it to! At first I did think it was navy blue but it is actually black (which is fine because you can add black tights if you wanted to without worrying whether the colours would match). Again, this is something that you can wear for both Summer and Winter and is perfect for occasions such as parties or even meals out with friends or family.

3. Orange Is The New Black

Every Summer Holidays I find myself getting completely addicted to a TV series and spend a lot of my free time getting totally hooked. This year it was Orange Is The New Black. I'd heard a lot of good reviews about it and was constantly seeing my friends tweet about it so I decided to give it ago. I didn't expect to like some prison drama but after watching the first episode I was pleasantly surprised and by the end of the second I was totally addicted! So if you're like me and like to get rid of boredom by becoming obsessed with a TV series then I'd definitely recommend OITNB! It's funny, sad and romantic all at the same time.



4. Fazana, Croatia

Now I realise this is a bit of an odd one but me, my mum and my dad have gone to a different part of Croatia every year for the past 4 years, and this year we stayed in a small village called Fazana and to me, it was my favourite place so far! We went at the end of May which is out of season so it was much quieter than usual and not as hot, but the weather was still amazing (around 25 degrees compared to the 35 degrees in mid August). The cooler temperatures meant that we could actually go and explore places without getting too hot and tired but it was still hot enough to get a great tan! We stayed in a self catering apartment with a lovely view and it was a 3 minute walk from the beach which was great. In the past its been a good 15/20 minute walk from all the main places (supermarkets, restaurants and beaches) and it always involved trekking up what seems like a million steps or like a hill the size of Mount Everest (and when you do that in the mid day heat feeling all icky after spending the morning on the beach, it is horrible!). But this year was nothing like that and it made such an improvement to the holiday because we weren't always dreading the long walk home. Anyway enough of me rambling, to cut a long story short, if you fancy a lovely hot, sunny, peaceful holiday away with amazing food and lovely scenery then definitely think about Croatia, especially Fazana!

5. Summer Song!

Everyone has a song that is like the anthem of their Summer! I have quite a few songs that I love at the moment but these are two of my favourites that I keep finding myself replaying. The first is Chandelier by Sia. This song is incredible and the music video to it is just amazing. I only discovered this song because one of my favourite dancers Maddie Ziegler is the main star in the video. Her dancing is so amazing for her age, honestly, if you haven't seen it already, click on the video above and go and watch! 

The second song is Give Me Everything by Pitbull. This is an old song now but I've recently been listening to it a lot and it is just one of those feel good songs that everyone knows and it just sort of makes you feel happy. I'm not usually a fan of Pitbull but this song is definitely the song of my 2014 Summer!

So they are my top five Summer favourites! What are your Summer favourites so far? I would love to read your comments and let me know if you love any of the things I love too. Thanks for reading!!

♥

Links for clothes:

NewLook Tee:

http://www.newlook.com/shop/womens/tops/white-stripe-daisy-print-t-shirt_309382719

ASOS Swing Dress:

http://www.asos.com/asos-petite/asos-petite-swing-dress-in-spot-and-crochet/prod/pgeproduct.aspx?iid=3932172&clr=Print&SearchQuery=crochet+swing+dress