not your usual netflix binge list

22 May 2020

Obviously with us all being stuck inside at the minute, we're increasingly turning to everyone's quarantine best friend, Netflix. I love seeing what others are watching on Netflix but usually, I find a lot of the shows and movies that people are recommending come up time and time again and obviously it's because these shows are good but there's also a lot of hidden gems on Netflix that are PERFECT to binge when you've got nothing else to do! I'm kind of known in my friendship circle for my niche Netflix taste so hopefully, you discover something new here to add to your watch list! (PSA: a lot of these are foreign because that's just who I am as a person)


High Seas

OKAYYYY so I can't speak highly enough about this show and I think everyone needs to watch it! Think Titanic meets the Grand Budapest Hotel. Basically, it's about a whole load of fancy people on a fancy cruise ship just after the war and people on board just keep dying! It's full of mystery and intrigue and the cinematography is DIVINE. I discovered it by accident and it soon became one of my absolute favourite shows I've ever watched! I actually rewatched it as soon as I finished it I loved it that much! It's Spanish so I recommend watching it subbed but the English dub isn't excruciating. Also, the cast is beautiful so it really has no flaws in my totally unbiased opinion.

Dance Academy

Okay, hear me out. I know this is a kids show but it's honestly one of the best teen dramas out there and I say this as someone who's not even a fan of dance movies. It basically follows the lives of a group of teenagers at a prestigious dance school in Sydney. It starts out a little cheesy but once you can get passed that you begin to fall in love with the characters and you will become so so invested. It touches so many important subjects from sexuality, eating disorders, religion, and grief. Oh, and you will definitely cry so don't underestimate the power of this little Australian gem.

after writing this it appears that they have removed dance academy from Netflix which is honestly an OUTRAGE but the entire series is. actually on the official youtube channel so all is not lost!

Money Heist

This one may not be super obscure but every time I recommend it to people it seems that they've never heard of it and I don't know how because it's a phenomenon. It follows the story of a group of robbers breaking into the royal mint of Spain. It shows these robbers not as criminals but as flawed people trying to make a difference in the world and unlike your stereotypical crime drama you're on their side. Season 4 has just been released last month so now is the prime time to get binging!

Quicksand

This is a super intense Swedish courtroom drama that follows a high schooler who has been imprisoned and accused of murder. You follow her story of how she ended up in that situation as well as the aftermath. One of the lead actors, Felix Sandman also makes incredible music so that's worth checking out too!

Ragnarok

Before I begin, this has nothing to do with Marvel's Thor: Ragnarok. This Norwegian drama brings the Norse Gods to a modern setting so if you're at all interested in mythology this is a great shout! It follows the Jutul family who are a very wealthy family and the other families that live in their small town and focuses very heavily on environmental issues. It shares a lot of actors from the original SKAM series as well so if you've seen that you'll definitely recognise a few faces.

James Acaster's Repertoire

This is a bit of a rogue choice but there are load of stand up specials on Netflix and few are better than James Acaster's. I can't tell you how many times I quote this 4 part series and I think it is the crux of my entire sense of humour. So if you're after something a little different this is such a fun one!

Control Z

This one literally just came out today so I'm not quite finished it yet but I'm already obsessed. There's a hacker in a Mexican school setting out to expose everybody's secrets through blackmailing them! It reminds me a lot of Elite and The Shut up and Dance episode of Black Mirror crossed over if that makes any sense but trust me it's so, so good!

So that's a few of my Netflix suggestions: Obviously I also love shows like Sex Education, Brooklyn Nine Nine, and Queer Eye but this is supposed to be a niche Netflix list. Let me know your nichest Netflix pick because they are my FAVOURITES.

How I'm Keeping Busy Post Uni

20 May 2020

*THIS POST CONTAINS GIFTED ITEMS*

I've finally finished up university for the year (and forever which is scary so we're not going to mention it anymore). Most of my time these past few months have been spent consumed by uni deadlines as I rushed to get my dissertation completed before the deadline and struggled through my online exams that I really haven't had a chance to relax and just enjoy this time so here are a few things that are keeping me busy now that I don't have any assignments to worry about!

Reading

I finally managed to pick up a book again! I started reading The Flat Share ages ago but uni kind of took over and because all my time was spent reading scientific literature reading kind of took a back seat and I kind of forgot what a novel even was! But we're back and I'm loving it so far. I can't wait to actually make a dent in my reading pile with all this free time I now have.



Watching

I set strict rules for myself that I wasn't going to get Disney+ until after my exams and I managed to succeed! So naturally, I'm catching up on all the fun that I missed out on during the early stages of lockdown when everyone was having their Marvel marathons. I've already watched the broadway production of Newsies and Tangled (which is my favourite Disney film). Disney movies are so happy and chill as well that they make the perfect background noise for any little tasks you're carrying out such as...

Tidying

My exam season room was a MESS like an absolute MESS. I had a clothes pile the size of Mount Everest and I just kept putting off tidying it up so now Uni is done I really have no excuse any more so my number one priority was getting that room cleared. I made a big dent in it but there's still a good bit to go so that will most definitely keep me occupied for another few days at least!

Crafting

I'm really not much of a crafter if any of my childhood crafting attempts are anything to go by but I decided that now is the time to get stuck back in! My mum has been sewing for as long as I can remember and my Grannie was a stitcher so sewing kind of runs in our family which means that when LoveCrafts reached out to me and wanted to help me get started on my crafting journey I jumped at the chance to join the family sewing train.



I chose this adorable succulents embroidery hoop which is perfect for a beginner like me. It comes with everything you need: the material (with the pattern pre-printed for ease), the thread, the needle and the hoop as well as a guide to show you how to stitch. It is the perfect activity for anyone wanting to find a new way to get crafty in this season. It's therapeutic and you end up with a really cute piece of art at the end! And even I, who once stitched a Christmas stocking in school that looked like a chicken drumstick, can do it!




If you want to get yourself started on your crafting journey with an embroidery kit you can check out the full selection that LoveCrafts have here and trust me there are so many adorable ones that I really struggled to pick!



How have you been keeping yourself busy during lockdown?

Anthems I'm Currently Proclaiming (During Lockdown)

13 May 2020

You know those songs that speak directly into your situation and just WRECK you (like these ones I shared a few months ago). Now that we'ew facing these very strange and uncertain days these are just some songs that I'm choosing to sing over these circumstances when we don't know what to expect but we do know that God is good.


48 Hours in Portugal

8 May 2020

In May 2018 I made a very fleeting visit to Portugal. This was my first time ever visiting the Iberian peninsula (I'm still yet to make it to Spain). The reasoning for this trip was that my cousin and I were attending a semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest and we literally had a few days to spare between work and university exams so we settled on two days and I'm honestly quite impressed with how much we managed to cram into such a short time.



We got a 6.45am flight from Belfast City Airport to Faro. We were heading to Lisbon for the evening but we chose to fly into Faro purely because the flight timings were better for us. It was a little inconvenient but it actually worked out well because instead of just getting to see Lisbon we also got to explore some of Faro which was absolutely beautiful. I'd love to hopefully go back to the Algarve someday when I have more time to explore it.




It was around lunchtime when we arrived so we found a lovely little cafe right on Faro Marina which overlooked the sea and was just really lovely. We then had a bit of time just to wander and explore Faro and I wasn't expecting to love it as much as I did, Iberia has never really appealed to me because I'm not a huge fan of the sun so a trip to the beach isn't necessarily my idea of fun! But Faro old town was just so pretty and there were so many cute architectural details everywhere I wish we actually had more time to explore. It also wasn't super hot since it was May so I'd love to go back around this time of year as I think this temperature suits me best!


We then boarded our train to Lisbon. The train to Lisbon was 4 hours and luckily I had exams to revise for so I was kept very occupied. 10/10 recommend revising on a Portuguese train, it definitely beats sitting in the library all day anyway! I actually loved the train journey because we got to see a lot of Portugal just through the window but it was great to see all the different landscapes and again increased my interest in exploring Portugal further in the future.


We got off the train at Parques das Nações which was the region we were staying in so our first port of call was finding our hotel so we could leave our bags down. Since we were only there for an overnight we only had hand luggage with us so I managed to fit everything in my trusty Madlug backpack. If you're not familiar with Madlug they're a social enterprise which operates on a buy one give one principle and help to provide bags to children in care who don't have a bag of their own. (Check them out here). The first thing we saw when we arrived was the Eurovision sign followed by the Altice Arena which, being the whole reason for the trip, was MOST exciting.


We walked a couple of blocks to get to our hotel, we were staying in an Ibis Hotel, it was my first and only stay in an Ibis hotel but it did the job for what we needed and it was so close to the arena which we hadn't even realised when we booked it. We got dressed and then headed out for dinner, we were the worst and just ended up getting McDonald's from the local shopping centre but we were a) in a rush, and b) too excited to eat anything else! Then it was Eurovision time, but that's a whole other story!



The following morning we got to explore Lisbon a little bit. Now, we really did not get to take in as much of Lisbon as we could (I didn't even get a Pastel de Natas) we checked out of the hotel and went in pursuit of some breakfast where I had some fresh fruit and my cousin had a pastry. We then did a little bit of shopping because I just HAD to buy something from Bershka because I have a problem where every time I go to Europe I need to buy things from Bershka to make up for us not having one in Belfast. 



We then decided to do a gondola tour which was super fun. It took us along the coast and although we didn't get to see a lot of Lisbon it was still a cool experience even though as you can see Lisbon day two was pretty overcast and not as warm as I had anticipated!


After we disembarked the gondola it was time for us to head back to Faro to catch our plane home and we also had a typical tourist lunch of a Subway in the train station. Seriously I am NOT the person to ask for Portuguese food recommendations! We again hopped aboard our 4-hour train and I got some more studying done. Once we arrived back in Faro we didn't get any more time to explore and instead headed straight to the airport where we had (you guessed it) Burger King for dinner! Our flight ended up being massively delayed and I managed to read the entire in-flight magazine before the flight took off but we eventually made it back to Belfast safely at 1am right on time to watch semi-final 2 from the comfort of our own home that night as if we hadn't even been there just 48 hours previous!


So that was my fleeting visit to Portugal! What is the most random trip that you've ever been on? and have you ever been to Portugal and if I was to go again, what should I check out?

staying sane whilst staying in

6 May 2020

*THIS POST CONTAINS GIFTED ITEMS*

Being stuck inside all day can really take a toll on your mental health. Even as an introvert it can be a struggle not to see your friends and be able to hang out the way we normally would. That's why it's important to really look after yourself during this time, a time when we have nothing but time how we use it is important. So here are some of my top tips for staying sane while staying in!


Zoom zoom zoom

(or whatever other video messaging app you use) I used zoom all the time when I was doing my internship last year and honestly I forgot that it existed until everyone started using it during lockdown. We love having family zoom quizzes with our whole extended family which stretches all the way fro Chile to Thailand! I've also loved having virtual bible studies with friends and just having a good catch up I'm an introvert so I get my energy from being alone so naturally, you'd assume that I'm enjoying not needing to hang out with people but it's still so important to maintain your relationships during this time.

Stick to a Schedule

It doesn't have to be a very strict schedule but setting aside a certain time to do things and maintaining some semblance of normalcy is as important if you have nothing to do than when you have lots to do. I've been mainly doing my uni work but I always make sure that I've set time aside to relax so that my whole life doesn't become consumed by my dissertation.

Passion Projects

Use this time to really get stuck into your passion projects. A passion project can be anything from painting, to crochet to photography to even looking after your house plants. Find what sparks joy in your life and pursue it during this time!

Leave the House

I know the whole point of lockdown is to stay inside the house but it's also super important that you get some fresh air so whether that's going to the supermarket, going for a walk around the neighbourhood or just heading out to the garden make sure you're not keeping yourself locked inside all week (this is something that I'm personally not very good at!).

Get Comfy

I have spent a large portion of lockdown wearing jeans which is apparently not something that most people have been doing! I'm comfortable in jeans and I always find that getting dressed for the day helps me to have structure and actually be productive but I was recently introduced to loungewear and my life has never been the same. Femme Luxe got in touch and sent me over some of their cosy loungewear. I picked up two sets, the Black Ribbed Crop Top Straight Leg Loungewear Set and the Charcoal Marl Frill Waist Loungewear Set.


Black Ribbed Crop Top Straight Leg Loungewear Set

This is hands down the comfiest thing that I own. The material is so soft and stretchy that it gives you great freedom of movement and the fabric is breathable. I ordered it in a size 8/10 and it's super roomy due to the bottoms being straight leg rather than skinny leg and black is such a classic colour that you really can't go wrong! You can shop the Femme Luxe black loungewear sets here.


Charcoal Marl Frill Waist Loungewear Set

This one is a different material than the first set it's more of a sweater material. I immediately fell in love with this set on the website. Size-wise this one runs a little on the small side. I ordeered it ina size 8/10 and I ordinarily wear a size 8 but sometimes need to size up to a 10 in bottoms as I have quite wide hips so the bottoms of this set were a little tight so if you're like me I'd recommend sizing up! However the top did fit well and I definitely see myself getting more wear out of it even if I paired it with jeans! You can see the full frill collection here.


This is just scratching the surface of all the loungewear sets that Femme Luxe has to offer and you can view the full collection with so many different styles here!

What are your top tips for staying sane while staying in? Let me know below!

some goals for after uni finishes

1 May 2020

This lockdown season has been weird for me because on top of everything that's going on, I was supposed to be finishing up my final semester of my degree. Looking back on the past four years this was definitely not how envisaged spending my final few weeks of uni but I'm so so grateful for my uni experience and for all the friends I made and things I learnt along the way. Since the last few weeks have been spent solidly cooped up doing uni work, this is not your usual list of goals. Nope this is just things I've been dying to do but have been putting off due to fear of getting too distracted and not getting my uni work done. Basically, this is just a list of things I want to do in my free time.


1. Binge the HECK outta Disney+

My self-control has been massively tested since Disney+ was released and I'm miraculously yet to sign up but the first thing I'm going to do the second that I finish my final exam. I already have a list of everything I need to watch starting with High School Musical The Musical: The Series because the first time I heard Wondering I SOBBED and then my new found love of Tom Holland means I think I finally have to actually watch his Spiderman movies. If you've got Disney+ let me know what else I should watch because I need ALL the recommendations.

2. Learn DaVinci

I've been doing a lot of video filming and editing recently for my Dad for his church and I feel like I've exhausted all of the features of iMovie and I just want to learn how to use a new software to edit and see if I can improve my editing game and DaVinci seems to be a great alternative that I've seen so many people talk about. On a similar note I also want to try and post more on youtube!

3. Get Through my TBR

I love reading and getting stuck into a really good book and it's something that I definitely haven't done enough of lately so I'm determined to make a big dent in my to-read pile this summer.

4. Catch up on Netflix Series

I'm probably best known in all of my friendship groups as the go-to person for Netflix recommendations but since Money Heist 4 came out I literally haven't watched a thing (I haven't even seen Tiger King yet) and there are so many things I need to catch up on so that's definitely a priority.

5. Bake some bread

I know everyone is baking bread right now but I've literally been planning on making bread since last summer and I still haven't done it so this summer it is DEFINITELY going to happen!

6. Blog more

It's no secret that my blog kind of took a back seat this year while I was focussing so much on uni but it's kind of making a revival and I'm determined to keep it up as we go forward so stay tuned for better and more frequent posts in the future!

Eventually, I'll actually get round to setting proper goals for after uni but right now the only thing on my mind is RELAXATION so that is my main priority. What things have you been enjoying doing in lockdown or what are you looking forward to picking up?