Look After Yourself During the Holidays

Taking inspiration from Buzzfeed's Mental Health Week a couple of weeks ago (that yours truly was featured in, check out number 21), I have decided to share some of the ways that I cope with stress, depression, anxiety and possibly now, bipolar, however, I think these tips could help anyone just going through a rough patch, because I know we've all been there at some point.

The holidays can be especially stressful with all the gift buying and food preparation, so I feel it is really important to take a step back and to look after your own health during this stressful time of year. I know all too well that if you're not feeling great over the festive period, you will end up burning out and unable to enjoy yourself at all, whilst all your friends and family are celebrating. After a mishap like this last year, I am ensuring this year that I look after myself, and I think you should do too.

If you haven't got, you haven't got

This is my major rule for any gift or food-buying period, whether that's birthdays, parties or Christmas. I find myself stressing out over the smallest of things. I fear I haven't bought enough presents, I haven't catered for everyone or I haven't shown the people around me that I love them. The one thing I've learnt over the years is that the people who matter will love you no matter what, even if you forgot them off your Christmas card list, or couldn't afford the gift they have been hinting at for months.

If you have the perfect presents and haven't missed a single person out, that's great too, but it's important to keep calm about the situation, and remember that there is always a plan B. If you're on a tight budget, why not consider making your own sweet treats or skincare goodies for your loved ones, or if you're stretched for time, only buy presents for those you are going to see until you can head out to the shop again.

Take time for you

For most people, Christmas and other winter holidays are a time for love and making others happy, meaning you'll eventually end up spending more time worrying about other people's happiness levels before your own. Making sure you make small pockets of time to look after yourself are essential.

If you're a huge music fan, take time to listen to your favourite album, or create a happiness playlist that you can stick on to boost your morale and eradicate stress. Crafting is a great hobby to have around the holidays, and small projects can keep you busy during your breaks from festivities, and will even help you with those pesky last minute presents!

Whether meditating or moshing is your thing, make time for it during the season. You want to start the new year feeling as positive as possible, instead of feeling frazzled and burnt out from all the stress of the holiday period.

Learn to relax

This one is a biggie for me when my anxiety takes hold, but it a really simple way to make sure you have an enjoyable holiday. Using apps like Pacifica or Pause will provide new ways to relax that have been proven to help anxiety and stress. Trying different forms of meditation and calming breathing techniques will help you focus and dispel the woes of the holidays.

If apps and guided meditation aren't your thing, try some methods that have relaxed you in different situations in the past. Taking a bubble bath, colouring in and reading a favourite book are all great ways to combat stress and bring some relaxation to your routine at any time of year. With so many resources online, it would be impossible to say you cannot find a relaxation method that suits your needs and routine.

Have a great holiday

The most important tip I can provide is to have a great holiday. Whatever you celebrate and whoever you spend it with, make sure you're having a great time. Try to let loose and enjoy the hard work you have been putting in for weeks.

Spend time with those you love and take care of yourself. After all, it's not just your physical health that matters.

*All pictures are either created by myself or are labelled for reuse on Google Images*

Onwards and Upwards

Well, here we are again.

Another post that is way overdue, but there are reasons and there are solutions.

Firstly, I have a new job. After weeks and weeks of the doctors telling me I was far too stressed to work in the environment I was, I packed up and left, Well, more like I handed in my notice and I'm currently having every scrap of paper off my desk posted to me. I've found a wonderful new job, still in social media, working for a TEFL company that sends English teachers all around the world to teach English and learn about other cultures and teach English to a wide variety of people. I can't wait to get started and become a member of such a teeny tiny team (it's just me and my two bosses in the whole company).

This new jobs is a lot closer to home meaning I'll be able to blog more and spend more time sorting my life out, going to the gym and generally having more time to myself to focus on being healthy and destressing after work.

I've also got a huge project/competition coming up on Offbeat with a company called Silver Mushroom. They have created a competition for lifestyle and food bloggers in conjunction with the Great British Bake Off, so expect a tried and tested recipe from my personal collection each week. Silver Mushroom provide all the bake ware for the Bake Off, so hopefully I can impress the judges. Thankfully I won't be threatened by Paul's scold stare or ashamed when Mary tells me I',m doing something wrong!

I am so thankful for everyone who has helped me along this journey, including my dear readers and even other bloggers whom I am yet to meet. When I was at my worst, I couldn't face blogging, writing seemed like such a chore. But writing this post today has made me realise how much of a great outlet Offbeat Emily is for me, and why I fell in love with blogging back in November. There is A LOT of me to catch up on, but from here on out I will continue to be a part of the blogging community and carry on writing, even if you all stop reading, I'll carry on. Nothing's going to stop me now!

The Age Of Quirk

Quirky accessories have always been a favourite of mine because I think they allow anyone to liven up what could be a very plain and boring outfit. I do channel Gaga and Perry a lot with my clothes and tend to stay far away from fully black outfits, but when the time comes, I can always rely on my trusty accessories to make me feel like a megastar.

1. I have just bought these sunglasses! Okay, so not these exact ones but a very close eBay dupe because I don't have a whopping £155 just for a pair of sunglasses. These House of Holland glasses are perfect for the sunny weather we can expect soon (just don;t count on it because, you know, British weather) and I wouldn't be surprised if we see Lady Gaga wearing a similar pair this year. My dupes cost just £4 in a recent eBay auction, keep your eye out for another auction soon.

2. Cat ears on rings are everywhere right now, and I'm not complaining! I think rings like this are perfect for beginners and people who are unsure how to use quirky accessories. Being so subtle can work in a lot of people's favour and comes with a very low risk of getting quirky wrong, This beauty can be found on Amazon at the very low price of £1.18 (don't tell me I never bring you bargains).

3. Lips and eyes have always played a huge part in quirky clothing (can I remind you all of this dress Katy Perry wore a few years ago that I still adore?) and this bag epitomises all that is retro and peculiar. Granted, it is a piece for those who are more adventurous, but this bag could go brilliantly with a number of colours and styles. Just image rocking an LBD with red shoes and this beautiful bag at your next dressy event, perfection! This bag is £195 from Zappos Couture, but look out for similar designs in shops like Primark and H&M.

4. Using food in accessory design has recently experienced a major spike in interest, and designs like this are popping up not only on the catwalks (Moschino's A/W 14 collection was heavily food related) but also at reasonable prices in your favourite high street shops, This bag is lovely, but will only hold a few items (because it's teeny tiny) and will have to be imported from America. It is £30/$45 from Akira.

5. Foxes are too cute not to use as accessories. Obviously wearing fur isn't great, so why not wear something like these cute earrings instead? Earrings are another way for the less adventurous to explore the world of quirk as they can be tiny and your hair will cover them a lot of the time. The adorable little foxes are an old design, however, replicas like these metallic foxes from Not On The High Street look a lot more grown up and will compliment a number of outfits. 

Don't be afraid to liven up that all black outfit or spice up a tired look with a few accessories, even if they aren't as quirky as these, they still have the potential to look fabulous and make you shine like the star you are. 

Typical Hair, No Damage

I've had my fair share of hair colours over the past few years, from natural to downright Disney character. It's also safe to say that my hair has been subject to a fair deal of damage due to bleach, dyes, backcombing and heat, so I've decided that, for a time, I'm going to create some awesome hair but keep my hair safe, I need to to stop snapping!

Straight

Creating what is a trademark look for a lot of girls can come with a lot of damage, but there are ways around avoiding the heat that causes stress to hair. One way I like to tame my hair is by deeply conditioning. I have quite straight hair naturally, but by slathering a straightening conditioner on your hair for a while before washing it all out and blow-drying on a low heat, you should get the results you want.

If you want a quick fix and are a lover of heated products, try investing in a good heat protecting spray. Just spritz and straighten and you're ready to go.

Volume

I've always been a lover of big hair. Since I was around 13 and discovered backcombing, I have been aiming for the biggest hair I can handle. However, with backcombing comes breakages and with breakages comes shorter hair (which I don't suit at all). I've now resorted to gaining volume in my hair in other ways.

One way I have recently discovered is by using volumising dry shampoo. It lifts your roots to create a bigger look whilst making your hair look freshly cleaned (great for lazy days). I recommend COLAB volumising dry shampoo. It has a lovely oriental scent and makes my hair look great without any damage whatsoever! And it have been proven that dry shampoo can make you hair look GREAT!

Curls

Curls can be the easiest look to achieve without heat, for me anyway. Letting my hair dry naturally in a tight bun usually gives me loose waves and if my hair was in better condition, thinner, or with more layers, I think this could a achieve a curlier look.

Any other way to achieve curls is to wrap wet or damp hair in curlers. Buying over night curlers and a hair net may look a bit too granny-chic, however, they will keep the rollers gripped overnight comfortably whilst giving you gorgeous curls in the morning with very little effort.

*Thank you to the lovely people at COLAB who supplied me with a can of their Extreme Volume Tokyo dry shampoo to try out.*

The Myths Of Britain Banished

Okay, so I've noticed, now that my blog is a whole month old, that I get my fair share of readers from across the globe, hello to all of you! From talking to people from around the world on platforms like Twitter, I have noticed there are a lot of misconceptions about my wonderful homeland. I'm going to bust some of these myths and let you know what the real Britain is like.

Firstly, I hear a lot of girls say they want a British boyfriend. Here is what I suspect they are thinking of:

And here is what rather a few of the guys in Britain are actually like:

So to all you girls out there dreaming of your perfect British man, yes there are a lot of beautiful charming gentlemen (I am fortunate to have met  quite a few myself), but just remember what us British girls also have to put up with whilst trying to find our own. Myth number one: busted.

Another common misconception is that we all talk like the queen, when in fact, all the little towns and cities have their own accents and regional words. For example, living in Cheshire, I would call a round piece of bread a bun or a roll, but move elsewhere in the country, you may find the same round piece of bread being called a cob, a bap, or a barm cake. Yes, this is a little bit weird for such a small country, but we do all speak a little bit differently, it's not just Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish accents, there's a whole variety of sounds that come out from our mouths. This map should help you understand more:

Myth 2: banished.

Probably the worst misconception is that we all drink tea all the time and it's all we ever drink as we all love it so much that we bathe in it. As a matter of fact: I hate tea, and I also know a lot of other people who agree with me, and are British. It's brown and earthy and disgusting. I'd much rather have a lovely cup of coffee than a tiny sip of tea, thank you. Yes, I suppose we do consume a lot of tea as a country, but then again, so do a lot of other countries around the world. Another issue with tea: no we do not have afternoon tea all the time; when we do have afternoon tea it is a special occasion and we dress up and go to fancy hotels or restaurants and have posh little sandwiches and cakes. No, I have never been to afternoon tea, because surprise surprise, I don't drink it. Although we do have champagne afternoon tea now, I may have to try that instead.

Myth 3: bamboozled.

Here's a few more I have come across that I will quickly go through:

• We don't all have bad teeth- we actually get free braces on the NHS
• The Queen doesn't have more power over us than the Government
• Not all of our health care is free
• It doesn't always rain in Britain
• Our breakfasts aren't always huge- some people don't eat breakfast at all
• Great Britain, United Kingdom and England are not all the same
• We DO NOT like to queue, I, in fact, hate to queue (unless it's for a concert)

Now please, go forth and spread your newly found knowledge about British culture, and no more stereotyping us, thanks.

Picture Sources:

//i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01208/10th-tennant_1208537i.jpg

http://www.imjoe.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/chav-scum.jpg

http://front.dadaviz.com/media/viz_images/english-dialects-on-the-british-isles-3256618.png

Why Procrastination Can Be Useful

I'll be the first to admit, I can procrastinate for Britain. But it's never the major things. My apprenticeship work is completed as soon as I can, work at work gets done as it comes in, but when it comes to personal motivation and drive, there's nothing. I always think: I need to blog, but it can wait another five minutes. That's why my other blogs failed. But here's the thing: I've learnt. I learn things everyday at work, and I learn things at my training provider, but I also learn things about myself when I'm faced with a new task, and this time I learnt procrastination can be a brilliant thing.

Firstly, rushing work is never good, and a little hesitation can help. Procrastination could help you come up with ore ideas before starting a project or simply give you more energy to do it later on, as long as it does actually get done. It also gives you a bit more time to look over your work if you're procrastinating over sending work off or publishing a blog post, one more chance to notice a huge mistake or to add a new point. 

Procrastination also gives us time to think, which I suppose is very similar to my last point, however, it gives us time to think about the little things: why am I doing what I am doing? What makes me happy about what I am doing? Who else can help me? Where is this going to take me? When will this help me? How am I going to make this successful? If we don't take a moment to sit back and think about these things, we may as well be robots. If you realise something doesn't make you happy, or your task isn't going to benefit anyone,stop doing it! This could also work for people about to commit a crime, but lets not go there.

So when you're next putting off that task you know has to be done, whether that's cleaning the dishes (I'm looking at you students) or handing in that report for work; ask yourself the questions then get on with it, because a little bit of procrastination is okay, a lot is not.