Body Conscious

Ok so recently there has been a lot of controversy in the news about Topshop mannequins being extremely small and giving out bad body image. Yes this is bad but imagine if shops did only use "bigger" mannequins then the slimmer people of the world would also feel like they are being judged etc. Body image is such a strong thing and everyone needs to realise that we are not all the same size. I feel as though I'm being a little patronising with that sentence and I promise I'm not trying to be.

I do work within a fashion retailer and there are many times I have heard people complain about items of clothing being pinned to fit the mannequins and there are perfectly good reasons for this. Most mannequins are designed to fit a size 8 or 10 in women's clothing. Now due to popular demand in stores the best product is not always available so it is not possible to dress the mannequins in the sizes that fit them so of course we opt to keep the best product on show by using bigger sizes but pinning them to fit so that customers will see how the item looks on. Fashion and its retailers will always be under scrutiny about body image and the messages people believe they are trying to convey.

We all have parts of our bodies that we aren't happy with. If you know your friends body hang ups why don't you compliment them on it and hopefully they would return the favour. Perhaps this way we can all start to feel better about ourselves and be accepting of who we are.

I know this has been a an extremely ranty post and I apologise but I strongly believe we should all be conscious of people's feelings in this area. Complaining about things being made for only "skinny" people or only "bigger" people will just cause upset. We should love ourselves and each other for who we are no matter what size or shape. We are all beautiful.

I also want to apologise for my lack of posting. I have been a little out of touch with my blogging self as I didn't feel like I was contributing much. However, I hope that this post helps at least one of you to accept and love yourself and others. Its taken myself a while to do but I promise you it is so worth it and you feel more carefree (at least I do).

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Any questions or if you want to speak about issues I raised in my post then feel free to email me on auburnmegzie@gmail.com

Books, Books and More Books...

So at the beginning of my blogging journey I told you all that I had studied English at University. There were many reasons why I chose to study that subject, these are just some of them: 1. it was one of my strongest subjects. 2. I enjoyed reading (so why not try studying Literature and discovering new texts to read). 

Of course this means that I love to read, although I took a long break from reading after University as the three years took it out of me. I thought I could do a post about my love of books and let you know some of the ones that I have come to love over the years (who knows it might end up that you are interested to read them). The list I will write is not in any particular order, just the ones that come to my head as I write.

Harry Potter Series
Who doesn't love these books?! I will always return to them as they are my happy place :)

The Infernal Devices Series
It took me a while to get in to this series (yes I know it's for teenagers) but it is something light to read after some of the texts from Uni and I definitely enjoyed it. (Read this series before The Mortal Instruments, handy tip).

The Mortal Instruments Series
Another teenage book series but its definitely a good read and again light compared to some from Uni. The whole series had me hooked.

The Hobbit
Ever since watching The Lord of the Rings films I have been interested to read them all. And The Hobbit is a really good read, no where near as descriptive as The Lord of the Rings.

The Lord of the Rings
I read this out of intrigue from watching the films, and I will admit that it is extremely long winded (Tolkien loves his description), however, they are worth a read as there are so many interesting parts that aren't in the films.

Girl, Interrupted
This is a more unusual book for me as it was one from my course, I really enjoyed it though. It was a text that I found difficult to read for personal reasons but once past that I realised just how good it was. The film is also worth a watch.

These will be all of them for now as I could ramble for ages about different books that I love.

What books have you been reading lately? Or what are your favourite books? 

Let me know in the comments or even via twitter!

Love xx

Twitter: crazyandcurly
Instagram: crazyandcurly

Things that...

This is a different post for me. It's going to let you know a bit more about myself. I really want this blog to be more than just reviews, fashion and beauty.

Things that make me happy: Harry Potter (books or films), spending time with loved ones, morning cuddles, a nice smelling candle, date nights, music, curling up with a good film (or a series on Netflix), Lord of the Rings (and yes I am including The Hobbit in that too) seeing cute Meerkats and my little Lupin :)

Things that I love: my R, reading (as it is so relaxing to me), my L, going on little trips with my R, the colour purple and the remaining family I have (for the most part, I mean we all have those few relatives that we wish weren't).

Things that I hate: snide comments, back-stabbing, being two faced, people who are rude for no reason, liars, spiders and being too cold.

There are many many more things I could write that I hate but I didn't want to seem too cynical. 

These are just some things I wanted to share. Is there anything else you want to know?  

Why not take a peek at some of the things that make me happy and the things I love in some pictures :)

Love x

Find me on:
twitter: crazyandcurly
instagram: crazyandcurly

My little Lupin

My R (yes he enjoys pulling faces)

My Dad and I (from a wedding years ago which is why I look so young)

All pictures are my own and would appreciate permission before any are used.

Personal.

Ok so I have been a little outnof touch this month for many reasons including work and personal life.

The reason that this post is called personal as I thought I should give you guys some insight as to why I haven't been blogging (yes I know it seems to happen more often than not and I can only apologise about my lack of interesting life).

This month has seen a family loss. Of course it is not the first I have suffered through, yet the first ones were when I was at an age that I never really understood. That is until December 2011. A major loss happened within my family and it has never been right since. The "layout" of my family was changed forever. It has taken me a long time to come to terms with some of the things that have happened over the last couple of years.

So last month another member of the family was lost (it sounds as though we just misplaced them when that phrase is used, but what else is there without sounding extremely morose?). Now it wasn't someone I was very close to, however, I did spend a lot of time with them throughout my childhood. So I was of course saddened by the loss, it was the first funeral I had attended since 2011 and it was a lot harder than I thought it would be. I suppose it is never easy to attend funerals without thinking about those previously lost to us.

I'm sorry that this is such a morose post this evening. I did feel the need to explain my absence, and of course you needed to kmow the truth, maybe not the full truth (family dramas are unnecessary).

I hope to start posting more again soon (even if it is just boring stuff)

Love x

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London's Calling

So last week was my first trip to London :) For years I have been saying that I want to live there when I grew up, well after my trip I am definitely considering the move even more now!!

Of course I mainly did the touristy things whilst I was there for a couple of days as I had never really done any of them before. So of course I went to Madame Tussauds (I wasn't overly amazed by the place, however I can now say I have been!)

Yes I had to show this picture of me being a little like Wolverine ;) 

I also went on the London Eye (for the first and last time), it was lovely to do something I had never done before, but it was sooo busy, thus, I didn't take many photos whilst on it.

Weirdly enough my favourite part of doing the touristy things of London was the Sea Life Aquarium! I made a friend with a Shark ;)

Other things I did whilst visiting London was look round Harrods in which R and I purchased some chocolates :) And of course looking round the shops in Oxford Circus and having a browse round Covent Garden which ended in a Shake Shack (first ever experience and its definitely a good burger!) and trying my first ever Snog (yummy!!)

I will most definitely be returning to London and will be moving closer when I can! The Midlands just cannot compare to the sights of London! 

So I also had a trip to Baker Street (but I didn't have time to go see Sherlock) and I almost made it to Hogwarts!

Love M x

All pictures used in this post were taken by me.

Film Review

Ok so this is a slightly different post to normal as it is very rare I do a review of anything let alone a film...

However, I have decided that the only way to try and start doing daily posts or at least 3-4 a week will be if I review the things that I do of a weekend when I finally get some time with my partner.

So this weekend we decided to have a date night on Saturday which involved a meal and then going to the cinema. So we decided on Pizza Express as where I live is extremely small and does not have much choice for restaurants. I have to admit I tried one of the new pizzas that are under 500 calories and thought it was such a good idea as I did fancy some salad and these new ones have a hole in the middle of the pizza to fill with salad (super yummy!)

Now for the film of course I had to have my Channing Tatum fix so we went to see 22 Jump Street. Now both R and I had heard bad reviews about the film (thus the reason for doing a review). However, I have no complaints whatsoever, I haven't laughed so much during a film for a long while so I sincerely recommend a watch! If you liked 21 Jump Street then you will like the sequel even more (or at least I believe you will). It is of course a film for guys with action and the plot, but why shouldn't girls find the plot and action just as interesting?

I love Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum working together, they just seem to work so well together and both 21 and 22 Jump Street have worked well in my opinion. Although I do have a soft spot for Jonah Hill and any film he is in recently.

So girls have you been to see 22 Jump Street? And did you find it funny and "laugh out loud"? I certainly did :)

What were your thoughts? Let me know in the comments, twitter, instagram or email :)

Love M x

Twitter: crazyandcurly
Instagram: crazyandcurly
Email: auburnmegzie@gmail.com

Cat Acquisition!

So I have had the new man in my life Lupin now for 10 days (yes Lupin is my kitten and he's so cute!!) When I first got him he was extremely shy and ran away as soon as he heard you I was calling him my little scaredy cat as he was running away from all his toys!

It all started with a pink shoe lace and that was it he has gone mad for all his toys, his favorite being Mr Duck who is now a casualty and missing both a leg and a wing! But he is obsessed with a pink plastic bag (yes I know a running theme here).

I believe that Lupin likes to sleep all day and party all night as he wakes up at about 9pm and has a mad fit of running all over the place and playing with his toys (and getting tangled up in them! :) so cute!).

My instagram has definitely started to fill up with pictures of Lupin but that's because he makes me laugh and he has definitely improved my mood since he came in to my life :) That's all I am going to say about him for now but if you want to know anymore then comment on here or ask me on twitter or instagram! But here are some more pictures of Lupin being cute...

Hello, this is your 5am wake up call!

I like to sit in the most weird positions...

I just want to go and chase the birds though...

I look so cute when I sleep

I like to sleep all day and party all night...

Who said this wasn't comfy?

I want to jump on this #selfie bandwagon!

Twitter: crazyandcurly

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Email: auburnmegzie@gmail.com

Any questions about Lupin find me on these!

Shoe Obsession!

So I seem to be buying a lot of new shoes lately and I keep looking at more! It's getting quite out of hand however I think my feet appreciate them!

First up I bought a nude pair of flats from Topshop with a cutout pattern, I fell in love with them because they stray from my usual black. However, they do also come in black and blue :)

You can find them here. They cost £28 and are super comfy! 

My second pair of shoes recently are my new jelly shoes (definitely had to jump on this trend, I absolutely loved mine as a child and I remember wearing out my pair).

They are like a purpley colour to me so of course I fell in love! This exact pair are in New Look for £9.99!

What shoe trends are you loving at the moment?

Love M x

Twitter: crazyandcurly

Instagram: crazyandcurly

Travel Wishlist Part 3 | Las Vegas

Hi again, I apologise for my lack of posts this month, I have been extremely busy helping friends find their wedding dresses (such an exciting thing to do and I cannot wait until I can start looking for mine!) I have also been working a lot and I have been too tired to write anything, however I have decided that from now on I shall write a few posts in advance ready to post for you guys :) That way I am not always running behind!

Back to what I have come here to write!

My next installment to my travel wishlist is another part to the wishes for my honeymoon! VEGAS BABY!! Now I know that Vegas can sometimes seem a little cliche, however, I have always thought it would be interesting and after my friend went for her 21st I have been dying to go! Her pictures just made it seem so amazing and she said it was one of the best places she has ever visited!

Now I realise I don't know much about Las Vegas but that doesn't matter to me and yes I know it's not exactly the same as in the films, but that doesn't mean it wouldn't be so much fun while you were there!

Ok so now you know the places I'm planning for my honeymoon I can give you some ideas of the ways I would love for it to happen! My plan is to start out in Orlando, Florida enjoying the parks and generally having an awesome time (I mean who wouldn't in Orlando?!) I would like us to be able to stay for maybe 10 days and then to travel from there to Vegas and spent 2-3 nights there :) and then finishing off with maybe 4-5 days in New York!

So these are my plans for honeymoon (however there are so many more places in America that I would like to travel! so stay tuned...) x

All images were found via the google search for Vegas.

Pastel Dreaming

So this is my first beauty related post in a while :)

Its's been a while since I last used nail varnish (it feels pointless doing my nails when I know they will just get chipped in work)

I decided to treat myself this week and bought two new varnishes :) One from Rita Ora's collection and another from Superdrugs range MUA Cosmetics.

I decided to do one accent nail in the MUA Cosmetics colour Pistachio Ice Cream, I immediately fell in love with this colour when I saw it on the stand, as I have been having a slight love affair with mint green recently. The rest of my nails are in Rimmel by Rita Ora Pillow Talk. Again I love the colour and I have been buying quite a lot in the pastel blue (refer to previous post of my impulse buys last month).

Tell me the colour trends you are loving this season...

Find me on these platforms :)

Instagram: crazyandcurly

Twitter: crazyandcurly

Job Searching...

I promised to post more about my life in general...so this is the beginning.

Job searching is a massive part of my life right now as I search for a career for myself, it is still a lot harder than I ever thought it would be even though I have a degree. I suppose I haven't helped myself by choosing hard career paths within publishing, marketing, advertising and PR.

I know this seems like such a rubbish post today however, it is what is happening in my life.

If anyone has any handy tips on how to begin a career in any of my chosen fields I would love to hear about it!

Love x

P.s why not check out my instagram: crazyandcurly

Backkkkk :) | Here's a new intro

Hello there lovelies!

I just wanted to let you all know that I am now back up and running after finding myself a new laptop :) (what makes it even better is I managed to get a purple laptop, it was obviously meant to be!)

I am hoping to start writing more about my journey through life and not just the usual of fashion, beauty and travel. 

So starting from now I am going to tell you a little bit more about myself.

So this is me, and I am Megan. As you can see I have a mass of curly hair, thus, the blog name of crazy and curly :) I finished my final year of University this time last year (boo :( this makes me very sad). I enjoyed every second of the experience and the friends and now family I gained from my time at Chester :) Although I am currently living in the Midlands I am hoping to begin the rest of my life in the North :) (York is definitely somewhere I could see my partner and I living)! However, I have big dreams of living in America at some point in my life.

Speaking of dreams, I do have big and sometimes I think impossible dreams, including the wish of living in America. Another dream I have is to have a career in Marketing, Advertising or PR. I would of course love to work in these divisions within fashion (so as I say these dreams do seem impossible).

So there is a little bit about me, if there is anything else you guys want to know I would love to find out!

Another announcement I would like to make is that my little blog reached 50 followers yesterday and although it is a small achievement it is one I am extremely proud of!

Love xx

Quiet Time

Hi all,

I am going to have to apologise however, my laptop has broken so my posts are going to become infrequent again as I dislike using the app on my phone as my pictures akways end up different sizes and it just looks horrid! I am hoping to get my laptop fixed soon!

Hoping to be back again soon!

Love M x

Meanwhile why not take a look at my instagram, you can find me via: crazyandcurly

Impulse Buys | Haul

It is very rare for me to do outfit posts as I do not feel that my photographs ever do the clothes any justice. So I have decided a better way for me to show you the clothes I love and that I buy for myself would be a little different to others :) Of course fashion is an important part of my life, not only because I work in retail but because I would love to end up in a marketing firm dedicated for fashion lines!

This top is my most recent purchase and it is also a little daring for me! It is extremely rare for me to buy such bright colours but I felt I needed to get out of my comfort zone for summer, and I am definitely glad I did :) This top is from Dorothy Perkins at £22. It can be found here.

I fell in love with this bag immediately! I just knew I had to have it, I have been looking for a satchel for quite some time and hadn't found the right one for me, but this pastel blue from Topshop was exactly what I was looking for! A similar one can be found here at £28.

Another purchase from Dorothy Perkins was this blue lace top, once again I fell in love with the pastel colours (definitely a trend I am loving this season). It can be found here for £14.

I bought these boots from Miss Selfridge as a replacement for my old Topshop boots (which I had worn out completely, however I did not like the feel of the newer chelsea boot that topshop had brought out as it felt tighter and not as comfy). I like the style on these boots as they are different to any other pair I own (I'm a sucker for boots, I'm definitely an autumn/winter shoe girl). Unfortunately these boots are no longer on the website, however I have seen them in some stores still and I paid £39.

Yet another Miss Selfridge purchase (I am an Arcadia girl through and through). Check/Tartan is definitely another trend I am fond of, these leggings were so comfy I couldn't resist! They can be found here at £25.

And last but not least three items I definitely love! The shoes are a nod at the tartan trend again. They can be found here at £20. And the pastel shade nail varnishes from MUA are lovely, although need at least 2 coats.

Hope you like them all!
Love M x

Travel Wishlist! | Part 2

So here is the next installment to travel wishlist. I thought I would continue my wish of travelling around America, therefore, today's post is all about my dream of visiting New York City! (For years I have said that I will find a job and move there someday)

There are so many reasons why I have wanted to visit New York (some of them being TV shows of course, examples being Sex and the City and Gossip Girl, I mean who doesn't love the way the shows make it look). Other reasons include friends of mine going there for holidays and telling me just how amazing it is, so of course I want to know this for myself :)

Not only is there amazing shopping to be done whilst in New York, there are just so many things I'd like to do! Seeing a show on Broadway would be absolutely amazing! Of course going to the top of the Empire State Building and going to the Statue of Liberty. These are just a few things that I would want to do :)

If any of you have any stories about visiting New York I would love to hear them!! I could definitely use recommendations from people :)

Love M x

Pictures used in today's post were found via Google Images.

Travel Wishlist! Part 1

Hi there lovelies :)

This is the first post in a series that I will be doing on places that I would love to travel to and wish I could afford to do now!

My first travel wish is to explore America, however, it is a little too big of an adventure, thus, I will be doing a few posts on the different places I would like to visit in the States :)

The first stop for me would have to be Orlando, Florida! Mainly because this is going to be my dream honeymoon when we can finally afford to get married and have one :) (although to be quite honest this is due to my obsession with Disney and Harry Potter so I need to go to the theme parks, and what better time to do it!!)

Disneyland will be my first stop for theme parks in Florida, it just sounds so amazing when people describe it to me! And just look at that picture it is beautiful! 

And of course Universal Studios would be the next on my list and that is due to my never ending obsession with Harry Potter, in 2012 I went to Harry Potter Studios in Watford and ever since I have wanted to re visit and I of course have never stopped dreaming of the one in Florida!! Harry Potter was a huge part of my childhood and it gives me peace to re live the calm the books gave me as a child when I needed to escape the real world :) If only I could actually have my wedding at the theme park in America! Alas, that would be too expensive!

Not only is it the theme parks of Orlando that make me dream of a honeymoon there, but the beautiful weather and relaxing atmosphere (although I will be planning my trip for the cooler times of the year). I just know that this is the best place for our honeymoon as we love having things to see and do :)

If anybody has any recommendations I would love to hear them!! (although my wedding hasn't even been planned the honeymoon is chosen ;) just need ideas of how to go about it!)

Love M x

Pictures used in today's post were found on google images via the search orlando florida.

Amazing trip to York! :)

Cliffords Tower

Hello there! I am so sorry it has taken me so long to update this month! However, I do have a valid excuse as a lot has happened this month :) 

My partner and I went on a trip to York last week which was amazing! We fell in love with the city almost instantly, it reminded us so much of our time in Chester but with more history to be seen around the city. Our hotel was situated near to Cliffords Tower so it was one of the first things we saw on our walk from the Station (aside from the walls of course). Thankfully we visted York whilst the country had the bout of lovely spring time weather, so lots of beautiful blue skies in photos :) 

I love visiting places that have lots of history to be seen and explored, therefore, York seemed like one of the best places for me to go on a budget. I love the Tudor history and I know that a lot happened in York during Henry VIII's reign, the disillusionment of Catholic Abbey's and Churches for one, so it was lovely to be able to view the remains of St Mary's Abbey.

I won't bore you all with the lots of details about our trip! I will however say that it is worth going to the York Museum as there are so many interesting things to see and I would definitely recommend the Chocolate Fondue in York's Chocolate Story!

Now as for the second reason of my lack of blogging since the beginning of the month was the preparation for our trip to York and then having to see family and friends to give some good news! 

But to make up for it here are some beautiful pictures from York!

Cliffords Tower with Daffodils 

Part of the Walls

 Pretty house in Museum Gardens

 York Minster

 View of York

View of York Minster from Cliffords Tower