2016 Wasn’t All Bad, Was It?

What a truly hideous year 2016 has been. We’ve lost idols and icons (and one of my absolute favourite actresses/women/badasses Carrie Fisher – what a legend she was!) and a certain Orange One has been elected as the President of the United States…

But 2016 wasn’t all bad! Looking back, it’s been a pretty good year for me. Here’s 5 reasons why…

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  1. I bought a house! If you’ve been wondering where on earth I am and if I’ve given up on my blog entirely, fear not – I’ve been up to my elbows in paint and tiles and cutlery as I stagger about through adulthood. Me and my zoo (two bunnies, six rats) are happily installed chez Sally, with only one or two minor emergencies (such as the time when my house alarm went off at 1am, and I was physically unable to switch it off for a good half hour. Amazing).
  2. I got a job at the Disney Store! As someone who *gasp* actually enjoys working in retail (it’s the managers that usually scare me off), this has actually put the cherry on top of my year. I LOVE my job: dishing out stickers, stacking teddies and totally not singing along to “Be Our Guest” on the sound system.
  3. I adopted pets! This year have seen me add two bunnies to my family – Paul and Piper, who are super loved-up and make me laugh when they’re haring (pun intended) round the garden or engaging in a Battle Royale-type scenario if I give them a slice of carrot. This year I said sad goodbyes to my four ‘original’ rats (Generation 1, as I now affectionately call them), but welcomed more little squeaky creatures into my house. I started with 4 and now have 6, when I couldn’t resist some rescues in my local pet shop!
  4. I got some serious job satisfaction! I teach at a weekend performing arts school, and this year saw my amazing students get their best exam results EVER. If I can remember rightly, we got the best marks in the North of England! Get in.
  5. I got a first in my second year at uni! Education is extremely important to me: I never take it for granted even when I’m viciously procrastinating and playing the Sims 4 instead of working on my dissertation. Ya girl was super pleased with her results this year.

And of course, there’s my amazing readers, and the gorgeous blogger community on Twitter who’ve always got my back. Thanks for making my year!

Let me know something amazing that happened to you this year! Hit me up on Twitter and follow me on bloglovin so we can have a lil catch up. Speak soon!

5 October Favourites

Okay, so where did October go?! I’ve spent this month in a work-centred fog (you’re reading the innermost thoughts of a Disney Cast Member now, don’t’cha know?!) and have just now got two seconds to sit down and have a think about my favourites of October. Here they are!

Drag Queens. Yes gawd; RuPaul and his army of fabulous queens have cheered me up no end this month. Not only did I get to binge-watch my babe Katya in All Stars 2, but I booked tickets to meet Trixie Mattel in November. Come throuuuugh!

ALL the glitter. Probably something to do with a combination of the aforementioned drag queens and Halloween; I’ve been loving glitter this month. Glitter eyeshadow has become an everyday staple, and I’ve been experimenting with a suuuper shimmery highlight.

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Primark. My favourite haunt has really stepped up their game this month! My 22nd birthday found me forking out all of my birthday money on slouchy slogan jumpers (this “Do More Of What Makes You Happy” print is so cute!), long-sleeved dresses, boots and scarves. Just gorgeous – bring me ALL of the baby pink!

Online shopping. eBay and AliExpress are getting more of my custom than the local Tesco. I’ve been picking up unbranded palettes and makeup brushes like my life depends on it (and I might have picked up a couple of liquid lipsticks VERY similar to a certain Miss Jenner’s…).

Reading. A combination of depression and work have kept me from my book collection lately, but I’ve managed to find a little chunk of time before bed to relax and escape to another world. I’ve just finished Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell and was pleasantly surprised, but next on the list are definitely some zombie thrillers. Ya girl loves her zombies!

What have you loved this month? Hit me up on twitter @little_budget or do me a lil favour and follow me on bloglovin. Speak soon!

beauty, favourites, lifestyle, , October 9 Comments

#GGBlogChallenge – 15 Interesting Facts about Me

Hi, I’m Sally, and there’s no handy little portrait in my blog sidebar because I don’t know how to do that, so you’ve probably only seen my actual face about 3 times. One of those times is right now: hi.

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I love reading stuff like this; I’m dead nosy and find it dead interesting to see what other bloggers actually put into their posts.
“I don’t like ketchup.” “I have two eyes.” “At one point in my development I was a foetus.” Okay so they are slight exaggerations, but come on now! You’re a whole wonderful person with a life and experiences that nobody else has had and that’s what you choose to tell us?! Where’s the juicy stuff?!

Saying that, I have two eyes, don’t like ketchup and was once a lil’ foetus, so that’s 3 out of 15 done and dusted.

Joking.

Here we go!

  1. I wanted to be a musical theatre actress (think singing and dancing and jazz hands and teeth) for my entire life. Like, literally, since I was about 3, apart from a brief flirtation with the idea of being a landscape gardener. I went to uni to do a degree in Musical Theatre, was told it looked like I’d never danced before (guess those 16 years of dance lessons paid off, then), I was too short and not ‘conventionally attractive’ enough to end up in theatre. I left after 4 days. Success!
  2. I hardcore caught the acting bug when I was 8 and picked to be in the national touring cast of “Annie”! I played Molly, the littlest orphan who gets flung into a washing basket. Although I was petrified of dogs (including good ol’ Sandy), I was a pure professional and only came out of character once when I was elbowed heartily in the face during “You’re Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile”.
  3. I was predicted A*s in every subject up until Sixth Form. Did I ever get one? Nope. Did I care? Terribly. Do I care now? Nah.
  4. I work for my Dad! I know people always say that working with family ends in disaster, but they’re mean. I love working with my Dad at his performing arts school – not only can we come home at the end of the day and have a good laugh about all the weird goings-on that day, he always puts a Crunchie bar on my desk when  I’ve finished a class, and buys me a Subway at lunchtime. Top lad.
  5. Any other job, work experience or internship I’ve ever had has ended in total disaster. I’m not even exaggerating. My anxiety makes it impossible to hold down a retail job, and I was actually told by a manager that I’m “not shy, because you have a blog, you’re just rude.” Nor, don’t think so.
    I’ve interned with two separate start-up social media companies, both of which seemed legit, but when you’re being handed an envelope of cash in a pub at lunchtime where you’re meeting your ‘boss’ for only the second time in 3 months, it starts to feel a bit dodgy. Unsurprisingly, those companies have totally disappeared off the face of the earth now.
  6. I am TERRIFIED of people. They’re so scary and weird and I don’t know what they’re thinking. I’m that person dodging out of everyone’s way in Asda frantically piping “sorry!” as they barrel past me with their trollies.
  7. When I’m sad I spend money. This is not a healthy habit, but it means I have a whole lot more lipliners than I used to after I bought a pack of 18 on Amazon at 2:32am.
  8. I’m literally the same person as my mum. However, as I write this, she’s just come through the front door bringing me a surprise Snack Wrap from McDonald’s and doing a Miranda Sings impression, so that’s pretty cool.
  9. I’m a real life actual adult. I bought a hoover, I have my own pets, I own rubber gloves for washing up and I pay rent. I also sometimes stay up til 2am playing on my Xbox and eating pretzels so I think I’ve got the balance right.
  10. If it wasn’t for my blog (and the subsequent whole ‘social media’ thing that goes along with it), I wouldn’t really have anyone to talk to, besides my family of course. I’m not really one for going out and socialising (goes with the whole “terrified of people” thing I mentioned earlier) so it’s nice to socialise from my nest (read: bed) drinking Nesquik through a party straw and watching RuPaul’s Drag Race.
  11. I’ve taught children from age 2 up to 18. Once they hit about 11 they tend to be taller than me, but I don’t let their constant teasing get to me (she says, sobbing quietly in  the corner).
  12. I spent my entire childhood playing with Playmbobil. Our Playmobil figures had the most dramatic lives (probably to make up for the fact that we didn’t watch soaps). We had about 100 little children, all of whom had set names – I could still name them today. Special mention goes to No-Leg – who, you guessed it, had only one leg. Slightly offensive? Maybe. But I was about 9.
  13. I’m pretty sure my feet have shrunk since I turned 18. I used to wear a size 5, or a 5.5 if I was feeling cheeky. Now I’m lucky if a size 4 is small enough to contain my lil feet. Literally the weirdest thing ever.
  14. I put chickpeas in ALL my food. Except cereal.
  15. I managed to kill several cacti. Aren’t they supposed to be indestructible?

Also, I don’t like ketchup.

Tell me some interesting facts about you guys!Hit me up on bloglovin, or chat to me on Twitter@little_budget.

#GGBlogChallenge – 20 Things That Make Me Happy

This post couldn’t have come at a better time. I’ve spent approximately 20 of the past 24 hours in bed, looking glumly out of the window and wondering why exactly it is that I can’t drag myself out of bed, into a hot shower and out into the big wide world.

But let’s not dwell. I really thought about what makes me happy – think those weirdly specific things that you don’t realise you love until you REALLY think about it. Here we go.

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  1. Reading a new magazine. Bonus points if you’re either tucked up in bed with a cold beverage (Aldi’s own-brand diet coke is my current favourite) or soaking in a brightly coloured bubblebath.
  2. Animals. Animals are little pure balls of love. You can’t feel sad when you’re snuggling up with a bunny rabbit/cat/dog/chinchilla.
  3. Sales. It’s a well-known fact in my family that if I disappear in a clothes shop, you’ll find me under the giant “Sale” sign. I don’t even look at full-priced clothes. The feeling I got when I bought a replacement of my all-time favourite rose gold watch for 25% of what I’d originally paid in H&M was second to none.
  4. Documentaries. Forget about literally everything else, stick my babe Louis Theroux on the TV and get totally drawn in. If you’re not mad keen on classic British awkwardness, turn to YouTube. From trashy (“Murdered By My Sister’s Stalker!”) to truly awe-inspiring (“My Flesh and Blood”),  something always sticks with you.
  5. Buying new shampoo and conditioner. Not having to squish the life out of a shampoo bottle to get the last tiny little dregs at the bottom is one of life’s simple pleasures.
  6. Social Media. Feeling glum? Search #bunniesofinstagram. Fancy a chat? There are literally hundreds of lovely likeminded girls (and guys) in the blogging community just 140 characters away.
  7. Doing your hair perfectly first time. Ah, the perfect messy bun. Extra fun if you manage it without a mirror!
  8. Musicals. Whether you’re a Heathers kinda person or you prefer the old classics (Oklahoma, anyone?), nothing better than a bit of a sing-song along to something cheesy.
  9. Jenna Marbles. I’m actually obsessed with Jenna – not only has she produced some pretty hilarious videos (her Face Swap video with her boyfriend has me actually sobbing) but she’s so intelligent (just listen to her podcast) and original that she’s a real source of inspiration for anyone wanting to make a career online.
  10. Mars Milkshakes. You know those little cartons of Mars Bar milkshakes? Yep, those bad boys. AMAZING.
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  11. Matching underwear. You’ve got your life together if you’re not wearing 2013 Tesco sale knickers.
  12. Having a healthy-eating day. Those days when you eat your five-a-day and supplement everything with chickpeas are great. Of course, then you ruin it by having a Burger King, but it’s the thought that counts, right?
  13. Planning. Having a handy little diary (or 3) is lovely and makes you look 100% professional and put together.
  14. Clean sheet night. Ahh, clean sheet night! Absolute bliss. Combine this with a new magazine and a Mars milkshake and you’ve pretty much got my perfect night in.
  15. Burning a new candle. I’ve actually got a little drawer of candles waiting to burn. I can’t choose. It’s literally like Sophie’s Choice.
  16. Getting parcels delivered. Who cares if it’s a fake Kylie lip kit I bought on a whim from AliExpress? I’m flipping excited to wait those 25-50 shipping days and get my hands on my new stuff.
  17. Next day delivery. Praise the genius who came up with this idea. Shopping has never been crueller to my PayPal account.
  18. Loungewear. I live in joggers. I also live in pyjama leggings, matching sets and fluffy socks. It’s my happy place.
  19. RuPaul’s Drag Race. C’mon hunty.
  20. My blog! I’m growing to love my blog again and getting my long-disappeared mojo back. Yay!

Tell me something that makes you happy and let’s grin at each other til it gets a bit weird. Do me a lil favour and follow me on bloglovin, or chat to me on Twitter @little_budget.