New Hair Alert!

I am one of those people who doesn’t make much effort with their hair. I wake up, brush it (sometimes), and either leave it down or tie it up – that’s it. What I do like to do with my hair is experiment. I have quite a round face which means I can’t experiment with the actual cut because it makes me look like a munchkin, but I can dye it and I have done quite a few times. I have been black, brunette, ginger and every shade in between. The newest colour I decided to head towards was – drum roll please……. BLONDE!! Yes you heard me right. Blonde. Considering I have always been a dark haired girl I wasn’t too sure what this was going to look like.

I would like to introduce you all to the new me:

 This was straight after I hade dyed it, it was still very white.

So, what do you think? It's very blonde, right? What I thought I would do is give all you dark haired girls out there a ‘how to’ on becoming blonde. I had lovely help from my very beautiful pink haired friend Aimee. She has her own colourful blog here. Take a look, I am 100% sure she will teach a new baking tip. I definitely learned a thing or two.

So what you will need is:

This is how you become a blonde bombshell:

1.       You first have to bleach the hair or the blonde hair dye will not take. This is a tricky process as you don’t want it touching anything but your hair. Make sure you have an old top on just in case. This took quite a long time, but you don’t want to miss a section otherwise it will really stand out.

It was already turning blonde.

2.       After leaving it in for 20 minutes - once your whole head is covered - wash all the bleach out. Again be careful not to get it everywhere. Once you have washed it out you will be able to see how white it has made your hair. My roots were WHITE - so white that you could see my scalp.

What a strange colour.

Look how white my roots are!

3.       The next step is to put the blonde colour on. I bought L'Oreal hair dye. This is just a preference as I have used them a lot over the years and I feel they give a good overall tonal colour. Follow the instructions that come with the dye as they are all different.

4.       After leaving the dye in for as long as the instructions state, wash all the dye out. At this point we conditioned my hair to make it a little softer after all the bleaching. Once washed, blow dry your hair. Then look in the mirror and see the new you smiling back (hopefully smiling, if you like it).

At the very beginning it was still very white blonde but after a couple of days this calmed down and now I love it!! Here is a before and after photo:

The one downfall of becoming blonde is the roots. Who knew hair grew so fast?! It has only been a couple of weeks and my roots are already showing quite visibly. I think that I will let them grow to about 2cm before bleaching the roots again, so I will let you know how that goes.
Currently I love being blonde and it has taken a while to get used to it. I still look at photos and in the mirror and shock myself, but in time I will start to remember.

I would love to know if any of you dark haired girls have gone blonde recently and how you did it, or how you already blonde girls keep it blonde and stop it from going dark.

Abbi's Top Tips - Nail Art

The trend for this summer was nail art and I am glad that it is carrying on for the autumn season. I thought that this month’s top tip could be how to do an easy nail art, for those who are desperate to try it for themselves.

The first thing we did was search the World Wide Web for inspiration. There are so many different designs out there that it is hard to pick a favourite, so we decided to incorporate a few ideas that we saw and make up our own design.
So lets get artistic….

Equipment needed:
 

We chose the white as it will be a nice base for the nail art. You can choose which ever colours you feel suit you best. Don’t feel limited, let your imagination run wild.

Instructions:

1. Paint 3 finger nails with your first chosen colour. You can choose which fingers you wish to paint. We chose not to paint the thumb and ring finger as they were far enough apart for it not to look silly.

2. Repeat step 1 until you feel the coat is the right colour. We did 2 covers.
 

3. Once those nails have dried completely, paint the remaining nails (in this case our thumb and ring fingers) with the other colour. Again paint those until you feel the coat is the right colour. The white we used took 3 coats.

4. You have to let these nails dry completely because we will draw the nail art on top and if you do not let it dry it will not work.
 

5 We decided to go with an Aztec design for our nail art as it is simple straight lines and you can be as creative as you want with the design. Being very soft with the pen draw your first line to see how much comes out. Doing this will stop you from making a massive dollop on your nail, which means you would have to start again.

6. Being soft and careful, slowly draw your pattern on the nail.

7. Once you have finished let the nails dry completely. Once they have dried, put a clear top coat on every nail. This will protect the nails for that little bit longer.

8. Once your first hand has completely dried it is time to tackle the other hand. For most people this is more difficult as you have to use the "wrong" hand to paint your nails - the only tip I can give you is take it slowly.
 

Then TA-DA it is done and you have attempted your first nail art paint job. Once you have done it once then go crazy with it, try news designs. We would love to see how your imagination works.

Throwback Thursday

Last month was my parents 20th wedding anniversary, so I thought I would dedicate todays Throwback Thursday to them. This is a photo from their wedding day and it is by far my favourite. My mum hates getting her photo taken so all posed photos of the two of them my mum hates and there are quite a few when either one of them or both have their eyes shut. 

I was 2 years old when they got married, I dont really remember the day very much except I had to have special shoes....? 

I am who I am today because of these two special people in my life. I look just like mum and share her over emotive emotions and everything else is my dad (and I mean everything, sometimes its a little scary how alike we are). 

Me and Simon have been together for quarter of the time my parents have been married and I hope that when we hit our 20th anniversary that we are half as happy as they are.

Happy Anniversary Mum & Dad and Thank you.

  

Clio Update

We have had Clio now for 3 months and that time has gone really quickly. Thankfully she has not got any bigger otherwise she would be a small horse.

I am still not too sure how I feel about her. At the beginning I loved her because she was quiet, she didn't jump and she did what we said. Now it's a different story. She's found her voice, or shall I say her bark. As she grew more comfortable around us she seemed to turn into what I can only describe as a toddler - she gets told off, has to have timeout and has the biggest sad face.

Along with the barking she has started to jump up. I know that she only wants to play and it is not vicious, but I dont think she realises how big she is. I have got numerous scrathes on my arms, legs and stomach from where she jumps up at me – which I am not impressed about. When she jumps up I can honestly say it scares me. She is so big I have nearly fallen over quite a few times.

Clio has also taken a fancy to shoes (hear the girls scream)! We have a shoe rack by the front door that she takes shoes from and runs into the garden to chew them to pieces. What Clio does, which she thinks is clever, is that she chews nothing indoors - she takes them into the garden to chew. What Clio doesn't understand is that we can see her run from inside the house with the shoe into the garden. I have already lost 2 pairs of shoes; 1 beautiful pair of gold havaianas and a pair of sandals. Thankfully summer shoes which are no longer needed.

What I have managed to do is teach her 3 tricks, which I am so proud of. The first one was sit, which was quite easy as she did that when ever she thought we were giving her food, so all she had to learn was doing it on command. The next one was paw, or as I prefer high 5. This was a little trickier but we got there and now she doesn't stop doing it. The last trick was lay/down. I am so impressed with myself for stepping out of my comfort zone and teaching her these tricks. Now I just need to teach her to roll over and to leave my shoes alone!

Goodbye Summer

It has come to that time of year when everyone starts to get sad, as we all know the sun is not here for much longer and we have to start wrapping up. I love the summer time. I am one of those people whose mood can easily be affected by the weathers. Sunny outside = happy Danni. Dark and gloomy outside = unhappy Danni.  

This summer has been great weather-wise. We had a glorious heat wave with only a few dull days. I am sad to see it go. This was my last ever “6 week” summer holiday - as I said in my previous blog I am starting a full-time job in September, so no more 6 week summer hols for me (sad face).

One of my favourite summer events is, of course, my birthday!! This year I turned 22, but I had a party more like that of a 2 year old (I had Disney balloons, princess wrapping paper and a Finding Nemo cake). This year was the first in a long time that I had practically all my loved ones around me, with only a few missing – I will let her off, she was in Peru and sent me a lovely picture message. It was a great, sunny, happy day and I loved every bit of it.

Simon and I also took a trip up to Yorkshie for a wedding. It was a lovely few days with a lot of charity shopping (blog post to come soon). I love escaping London for a few days, seeing some grass, cows and the sea – which still amazes me every time. You can tell I am a city girl.

This summer has been filled with food, friends, family, sun and laughter and I am sad that it is all over. I hope all of your summers were filled with happy memories. Here are a few photos from my summer.

 A nice selfie at Southbank whilst lounging on a deck chair.

 Fun with Friends.

 Blowing out the candles on my Finding Nemo birthday cake.

 Hanging out in the sun.

Taking the baby to the park.

1 Year On

This time last year I was heading into the world of adulthood, and I was petrified!

In June of 2012 I finished a hard 3 years at university. Who would have thought back then that they would turn out to be the easy years. The first question people tend to ask when they hear you have just finished university is ‘So, what do you want to do?’ I can say most definitely that this is the hardest question that have ever been asked! (in the whole entire history of questions.) You hear that question and your tongue starts to dry out and you get the hot sweats, your palms get clammy and you seem to forget how to talk except from saying 'ummmmmm' for what seems like forever. If you have the answer to that question then congrats, I applaud you, because I most certainly did not.

I ended university thinking that I wanted to teach at a secondary school because I knew that I loved Graphics and that was the subject I wanted to teach.  I got straight into getting some experience; my mother-in-law works in a primary school and she said that I could come and help for the last week of term before the summer. At the time I thought this was a great idea - I quickly realised it wasn't. After a week of loud, sticky primary school children I knew that I am not built to be a teacher. I worked this out quite quickly, which was good as I didn't waste a year doing a PGCE that in fact was just not right for me.

By the start of September I was back at square one with no clue of what I wanted to do and I now was getting the question ‘So, you don’t want to be a teacher... what now?’ I felt a lot of pressure from the people around me to decide what I wanted to do and get moving.

It's funny how all students who finish university feel exactly the same; lost, confused. But we all take different routes in life to try and solve this problem. A few of my friends also finished university last year and we have all taken different routes to try to find ourselves and solve that question that hangs over all of us. One friend knew she wanted to travel the world so her whole year was planned around this. She worked her socks off to get the money so she could travel and she did and had a glorious time with memories that will last forever. Another friend has known what she has wanted to do since I have met her and this year has been all about reaching that goal. She has had some set backs but that has not stopped her passion for reaching that end goal. I am so proud of all my friends who have battled this year head on.

In October I was lucky enough to be offered an internship for a PA job within a design school. This was great as I could still be involved within the world that I love. I quickly got given design jobs to do (leaflets, plaques, website design), which I really enjoyed. By the time Christmas came I knew I wanted to design and share my passion with the world.

In March ElephantBum was created and I knew I had found my creative outlet. Since March I have started to make ElephantBum a brand. It's a slow process but I know that one day it will be massive - watch this space!!

It is now the end of August and so much has changed in a year. I am no longer interning. I am so grateful for that opportunity, I learnt a lot and it made me realise what I love doing. I am starting a full time job in September which I am really excited about as it is in the industry I wish to be a part of. ElephantBum is in its early stages and most of all I am happy!

My advice to all of those finishing University this year is to find something that you love to do and that makes you happy and make sure you never forget it. It may not come as quickly as you want but you will get there. I can probably say that if you asked any of us now a year later ‘So, what do you want to do now?’ we could all give you an answer regarding the next year, maybe the year after that, but with regards to the long-term, who knows? We are young, everything changes so quickly.

20 Facts About Me

I thought it might be time that I shared with you all a little bit more about me. So here are 20 facts that will hopefully teach you a few more things all about me.

1. I hate odd numbers! 

I know a lot of people have funny feelings against certain numbers but I hate odds. I have to have the television volume on an even number, I eat skittles in even numbers. I don't know how or when I started to hate odd numbers but they just make me a little anxious. The only odd number that I love is the number 5 and you will find out why at number 13. 

2. 3 houses, 1 street

I have lived at 3 different houses on the same street, enough said!

3. Harry Potter

I love Harry Potter, some may say slightly addicted I say a lot of love. I am sure I will let you all into my world of Harry Potter soon. I will let you know that I have the whole collection of books 3 times. 

4. Margarita Pizza

I only eat Margarita Pizza. I love pizza but I hate when the whole base tastes like the ingredients on top of the pizza, for instance pepperoni. For this reason I only eat Margarita this makes me the know all of Margarita Pizza, if you want to know where to get the best Margarita pizza just ask and I will let you know.

5. Doris

Doris is my childhood bear. She now sits in a box on my top shelf. She only has one eye, no arms and no ears. I think she started as a white bear but she now looks like a pink pig. I loved her so much growing up I took her everywhere. She got so many holes mum had to sew her up with bits of old clothes.

6. Graphics

I have a degree in Graphic Design, I got this degree by attending Kingston University.

7. I Love London

I am so grateful that I live in London, it has so much to explore. If you have yet to visit London I would say definitely put it on the top of your holiday list.  

8. Disney

I love Walt Disney, Simon and I collect all the movies on blu-ray and they have started to put the number on the spine of the box. This makes me greatly happy as I will one day have them all mwahahahahaa. I can also sing you most of the songs and quote all the movies. 

9. Suncream

Suncream is my favourite smell in the whole world. It makes me happy firstly because I know the sun has to be out to put it on and secondly because it makes me think of all the fun in the sun.

10. I hate being scared

I hate the feeling of being scared, so I avoid it at all costs.

11. Creativity

I love being creative, if I have gone a week without making, designing, sewing something I start to go a little crazy.

12. Size 7

I have size 7 feet, they may look small but actually they are quite big.

13. Family

So I said earlier in point 1 why you would find out why I only like the odd number 5 and this is because of the Ingram Family 5. There is my Mum & Dad then me the oldest, then Abbi who you have all met she is in the middle, then the littlest the 'boy' Joe. I love my family more than I could ever describe, I would not be who I am or where I am without them.

 14. Cherryade

I can not drink Cherryade without getting super hyper like a 3 year old. Simon has restricted me to only ever drinking once glass at a time otherwise I will go a little crazy.

15. USA Series

I am slightly addicted to USA TV Series'. Currently I am on The OC but I own One Tree Hill, CSI and Sex in the City. I am not sure what I will move onto next so if any of you have suggestions please let me know.

16. Funfairs

I am not a big fan of funfairs, I love the smell and food but I refuse to go on any rides. I don't like that you have to trust someone tightening a bolt up for the ride to stay stable. I like rides don't get me wrong but if they are built to be packed up and taken on the road and then built on site, that freaks me out a little bit.

17. Friends

I have had the same group of friends since I was 11 with a few new ones along the way. One of my best friends I have known since I was 4 years old and I am sure we will know each other when we are 94.

18. Watches

I get a new watch every 2 years. I know this sounds a little strange but when I was little and my great-nan died my grandads (so her sons) watch stopped on the same day. This freaked me out a little, so since that day I am terrified that my watch will stop on my wrist. So to stop this from happening I get a new watch every 2 years. 

19. Doodling

I can not have a piece of paper and pen in my hand without doodling. Back in school all my work books had doodles in the corners. I think this is when I realised that i enjoyed being creative more than academic.

20. George

Linked to point 19, when I was 15 I invented a character his name is George. I used to and still do doodle him on random pieces of paper. He is me and the situations that you can find George in are relevant in my life. I am sure someday you guys can meet George.

I hope these 20 facts have given you a bit more of an insight into my life. I love reading bloggers facts about me posts and finding one that makes you go "I do that" or "I am so glad it isn't just me" so I would love to know if any of my facts have made you feel like that.