The end of an era - chloescorner

Sorry for missing yesterday's post guys - I know I promised one per day for 7 days but hey, sometimes life happens and thats okay! I wanted to enjoy my day yesterday and not have to come home and write a half hearted and rushed post that I wouldn't be fully happy with. To make up for it I've written you two today!

I started HOF on the 20th of August 2014, aged 17. A young, in-experienced girl who had no clue about the behind the scenes of retail. 2 years and a lil bit later, the 10th of September 2016 and I've left to take on my new chapter in life in Leeds!

To say I'm not going to be walking into work first thing on Monday morning as per usual is daunting and surreal - Its been a routine for me for the past two years and now its all done and dusted! It wasn't always easy, there were days where it would stress me out to the high heavens but I wouldn't swap my experience for the world. I've made so many lovely friends and some amazing memories along the way too that I will cherish forever. HOF girls, you gotta piece of my heart for life!

I totally wasn't expecting any gifts but they truly truly spoilt me rotten with this lot! I am a very lucky girl.

What do you buy the biscuit monster? A giant cookie!

My b-e-a-utiful little lucky penny charm to add to my Pandora bracelet!

Onwards and upwards now to new beginnings and bigger adventures - Leeds, I'm more than ready for ya!

All my love,

Chloe xo

University 2016 - chloescorner

Well hello guys! Here I am as promised with my first 'proper' post since my return and its a biggie. Grab a cuppa, grab some biscuits and bare with the waffle!

So this time last year I'd pretty much decided that University just wasn't for me at all. I'd had a shit time in the last year of college, not because of the people I got to spend time with - you guy da bestest, but because I'd just lost all motivation with my courses. My Fine Art teacher was an arse and absolutely despised me, and I can say that as the end of the year got closer the feeling was highly mutual. I LOVED to draw (and still do tbh) but she honestly made me want to snap my pencils in half and rip my work to shreds. Photography was just stressful. The constant deadlines and the impossibility of impressing the tutors demotivated me incredibly. And with English Lit I just didn't put in the effort... I never read the books fully and my essays were always rushed. I think in my head that because I was quite academic anyway I could just sail through the course without trying. How I managed decent grades is beyond me! The pressure put on us to apply to uni's every-single-day was stupidly overwhelming for someone who didn't know what she wanted to do in the future so in the end I just wrote off the idea completely.

A year later - a whole year of pretty much full time work and having time to gather up my ideas of what I wanted for my future. A whole year of watching my best friends begin to make something of themselves and have a bloody ball in the meantime - now I'm here. 2 weeks from flying my home comforts in Manchester to take on a new adventure in nowhere other than LEEDS!

Come the 17th/18th of September I will be moving the contents of my life to my brand new little flat at Leeds Trinity University. Come the 19th of September I will be attending my first ever Psychology 'lecture' - okay maybe it'll be more of a talk but still!

Why did I choose Psych? Let me enlighten you. I did Psychology at As level at college and absolutely loved the subject and not to toot my own horn but I was actually really good at it but yet another bad teacher/student relationship lead to me dropping the course - in hind sight I now realise how much of a stupid idea that was but never mind, we live and learn! Working within retail for the past two years has made me realise how little passion I had for my job and how important it is for me to love what I do - with psychology I know that this will be the complete opposite.

Soooo yeah! this is actually happening... my stubborn mind has finally changed (thank the lord) and I'm now enjoying my last few weeks with my colleagues, friends and family. As sad and nervous this may be making me feel right now I'm really looking forward to a fresh start.

I hope you stuck with me and this ramble didn't bore you to tears and most importantly I hope you're looking forward to me documenting my journey to and through uni life - I'll be sure to keep you posted☺️ I'll see you lovely lot for another blog post tomorrow! I'll give you a bit of a clue - Sun, Sea, Sand and a cheeky alcoholic beverage... or 10.

All my love,

Chloe xo

Making a Comeback - chloescorner

*hides behind hands in shame*

Um... Hi guys...

Long time no, see? talk? well yes whichever you chose its been a bloody long time. A year to be exact *cringes even more so*

I've been working full time for the past year and in all honesty, I've just not prioritised this corner of the internet. More over, whilst working full time I genuinely felt as though I had nothing of interest to share with you all - now I look back, theres quite a bit I could fill you in on. I've been reading other blogger posts for the past month or so and felt the love for blogging creeping back ever so slowly. So HELLO! this week will be my comeback! I'm going to aim to do 7 posts, starting Monday, to fill you in on a few lil things that've happened starting with UNIVERSITY!!! I got accepted into Leeds Trinity University and am flying my Mancunian nest on the 17th/18th of September. Not too much on that though, I'll explain that more so on Monday.

A pretty scarce, non flashy and beautiful post but one I felt the need to make to inform you all I'm still alive, breathing and willing to share (within reason) my life, however entertaining or boring that may be.

See you all on Monday hopefully!

All my love,

Chloe xo

The on-going journey of a braceface - chloescorner

I've been a metal mouth since the age of 14. I have a really small mouth and at the time had really overcrowded teeth so was referred to an orthodontist at the age of 12 (the waiting lists for orthodontic treatment are unbelievably long!). I was initially referred to an Ortho in Salford where the orthodontist had suggested that I would have a retainer for the first year on my top teeth and then traintracks on the bottom. After the first year the top would be changed to traintracks also. At this point I still had baby teeth so had to have them taken out at my local dentist which wasn't a problem. I had all my x-rays, moulds (the most uncomfortable experience ever!) and regular check ups and was pretty much ready to have my brace put on.

Before putting the brace on the orthodontist wanted 4 of my adult teeth taken out at the back of my mouth so that there was more room for the procedure so I went to my local dentist to have this done. My dentist refused to take these teeth out as they were 'healthy adult teeth' and he felt that the procedure could occur without the removal of these teeth - he claimed to have 'orthodontic experience' and suggested that he took over the procedure which at the time seemed like the better idea as it was closer to home and meant that I didn't have to have teeth removed - Bonus!

A few weeks later my dentist put on traintracks on the first 6 top teeth to align them. This meant that the metal was free on the ends and often scratched against my top lip causing uncomfort and a lot of bleeding - the wax given to help this was no help and often fell off within the first few minutes of application. The pain was honestly unbearable half of the time and I struggled to eat properly the majority of the time. This was evident in the amount of weight I lost during the process.. I think I've lost about 2 stone since having braces. I had this brace for almost a year and a half and it did eventually straighten my teeth (only the front ones baring in mind). In the summer of 2013 (aged 16) my dentist all of a sudden decided that he couldn't carry on my procedure, took off my brace without giving me a retainer, and referred me back to another orthodontist. You can imagine how annoying and disheartening this was at the time and despite my teeth appearing straight it didn't take long for them to move back to their previous state which made me even more self-conscious.

Aged 17 (very nearly 18) I was eventually referred to my current Ortho in Gorton who, alike the first orthodontist, told me to have the same 4 teeth removed. 4 teeth down, moulds and x-rays re-taken I finally got my top brace put on (the whole way round this time!). Over half a year later I then had my bottom brace put on which didn't take much time at all to straighten. I currently have one tooth slightly out of line to the others and a spring inbetween the two surrounding teeth to allow it the space to move into line with the rest. This time the pain was hardly noticeable, more uncomfortable after having them tightened but apart from that I don't really feel any kind of pain. No rubbing either.

I still have quite a while left with braces - I have that one tooth that needs to be aligned and then my terrible overbite will eventually need elastics to help fix. I'll then have retainers which I'll have to wear afterwards to keep them in their new state. My brace journey has been quite eventful to say the least and would have been over and done with if I hadn't been messed around in the first place but even so I'm thankful to have them as it enables me to smile confidently which I couldn't do in my younger years. Anyone who has the opportunity to have them should honestly go for it - A good smile is a major confidence booster!

Have you had braces? what're your experiences? I'd love to hear your stories in the comments! I'll try and do a follow up post as my treatment progresses so any questions or tips you want answering just leave in the comments below!

All my love,
Chloe xo

Beginners guide to nights out - chloescorner

Although I've only been 18 for 8 months I feel that I've had enough experience to be able to share some top tips for those first nights out on the town and with Freshers week fast approaching what better time to share them.

Tip #1 - I cannot stress this enough honestly.. wear COMFY shoes. If heels are compulsory then make sure they're something that you can comfortably dance the night away in. I've made the mistake of wearing heels out only to have completely mangled feet the next day - please learn from my mistake!

Tip #2 - Make-up setting sprays are your bestfriend - Urban Decay Setting Spray has been my absolute saviour during sweaty club nights.

Tip #3 - Wearing a lipstick? Try a matte liquid lipstick (my choice of weapon would be the Bourjois Rouge Edition Lipsticks) for a longer lasting finish that will outlast the many drinks that your lips will be meeting because that worn off lipstick look is not the one, lets be honest... Using a lipliner before applying your lipstick will also work a dream.

Tip #4 - PLEASE don't go out drinking on an empty stomach.. I mean I know you don't want that pot belly look in your bodycon dress, I completely understand and feel your pain girl, but you'll regret it later that night or early morning when your head is down the toilet - I'm talking from experience here ladies (or Gents...).

Tip #5 - Now I don't mean to sound like your Mother but honestly do stick together with your friends! It's not hard to get yourself lost in a busy club so always make sure you have your phone on you (again, be careful with personal belongings) just to be on the safe side. The last thing you want is to leave the club with no idea where your friends have gotten to or in an even worse scenario, wandering off with a complete and utter stranger.

Tip #6 - Be wary of your drinks people! There are such characters who like to spike innocent peoples drinks.. Not cool I know, but if you keep your beady eyes on your drink then you'll be good to go.

Tip #7 - Do know your limits. Fair enough it is nice to have a good night out and let your hair down but try and drink in moderation because you don't want to be that paralytic girl/boy who has completely no recollection of the embarrassing events of the night before. Plus if it's during freshers do you really want to leave that impression of yourself with new friends? Think about it.

Tip #8 - Take pictures - lots of them! Before, during, even afterwards if you want a good laugh when you're in a slightly more sober state. You'll look back at these pictures in years to come and smile at the memories you've made with your friends.

So there we have it, 8 of my top tips to enjoy a night out - safely and without making a complete embarrassment of yourself! Have you got any tips that I have missed? feel free to leave them in the comments!

All my love,
Chloe xo

Monday's girly day out OOTD/N - chloescorner

My Mum and Dad both have two weeks off work and with me only being part time I had some time off too and could think of no better way to spend it than a girly catch-up, food filled, shopping day with my Moma Bear in Manchester. We also headed out later that night, me my Mum and Dad, with family friends for a little pub lunch (well technically it was teatime but 'lunch' sounded a lot better lets be honest here). I was treated to a new pair of jeans and a shirt off my Mum for my exam results - She's a star! So I decided to wear them for the meal and if you don't take pictures of it, did you like, even wear it? hahaha. I thought I'd share my OOTD/N and FOTD/N - including some arty farty shots of some of the products worn, oooh la la! Enjoy lovely readers.

I'm a complete Pizza fiend! Mozzarella topped Garlic Bread and a Meat Feast Pizza with a BBQ Base - My mouth is honestly watering whilst staring at these photographs.

- NYX eyeshadow palette. This was a christmas gift last year so I'm sorry but I have no clue where its from!

- Loreal Paris Infallable 24 Hours Matte Foundation in Porcelain 10

- Benefit the Porefessional Primer

- Bourjois Velvet Rouge Edition in Personne ne Rouge! 

- Topshop Glow Highlighter in Polish

- Urban Decay All Nighter Setting Spray

- River Island Daisy Jeans

- New Look Blue Stripe Pocket Front Long Sleeve Shirt

- Soap and Glory Solar Powder

- Mac Prolongwear Concealer - NC15

Super posey and in need of my eyebrows being waxed - ah the struggles of being female! I just went for a simple brown smokey eye, my signature feline flick also known as eyeliner, a bright red lip and super highlighted cheekbones.

 I hope you enjoyed the post! It was nice to play around with my camera which I don't do often enough for a post photography student, tut tut! I'm still learning as I go along. Be sure to leave your thoughts and opinions in the comment as always!

All my love,
Chloe xo

Day of nutty drama - chloescorner

After having what I considered to be a generally good month I rushed to hospital this afternoon with a swelling throat and unbelievable and extremely itchy rashes from head to toe. The culprit? Cashew nuts.

I've only ever had this reaction once previously and yet again it was due to a cashew nut I had eaten on a whim having never tried them before. Although at the time I was travelling with friends in London and being susceptible to quite bad Panic Attacks and anxiety I thought that this reaction was just due to travelling anxiety in a place that was completely foreign to me. That and the claustrophobic feeling of travelling via Tube at rush hour, one word - NIGHTMARE. It started with a tingling feeling in my mouth, then the back feeling quite rough and swollen leading to a struggle swallowing and breathing. I instantly alerted my bestfriend Paige and she gave me an antihistamine to take just to be on the safe side. The reaction slowly wore off and I began to feel faint and nauseous and when I eventually sat down to eat in the train station I threw up. Not the classiest of things I've ever done.. picture a girl vomiting into a Subway bag and having to be rush to the toilet by two of my friends whilst passers by looked on disgustedly. I wanted the ground to swallow me up whole. But once that happened I sat down and happily tucked into my Beef and Cheese Melt - ha!

Today's reaction was a completely different kettle of fish. As you will have gathered from previous posts I'm attempting to eat a cleaner and healthier diet and after eating a berry 'Nakd' bar I experienced the same tingling and swelling as I had in my previous reaction maybe just slightly faster and more severe this time. I assumed it would pass so went home and took an antihistamine although at this point my lips were beginning to swell pretty rapidly and I had to sit in the bathroom with the fear of throwing up which I did eventually do. I took another antihistamine and tried to rest but the swelling wasn't calming and I was started to get pretty bad rashes and extremely panicky so my Mum decided that it was best for me to go to A&E. 5 and a half hours I was there - the first just spent waiting after the triage decided I wasn't that severe a case as I could swallow. The second hour just being a general check up, then having to take 8 steroids and have my bloods taken to assess the situation. I was then put on a drip and assessed for 3 hours incase I had a second bout of an allergic reaction which could be even worse than the one I'd just had although luckily enough this wasn't the case. I've been prescribed to take 8 steroids a day for 3 days and 4 antihistamines for 5 days to be on the safe side - I'm also going to take myself to the GP tomorrow morning to enquire about an Epi-pen so I'm prepared for any possible reactions in the future.  

As a natural born worrier I don't think this helped me one bit but I'm truly thankful for the tentative staff at North Manchester General - You never truly appreciate the patience and knowledge that their job takes and often whinge that staff are rude, unreliable and often waste precious time but today couldn't have proved this to be any more different!

I'm sorry for the huge ramble, I don't expect anybody to have the patience to read this ramble but I wanted to share it so that the symptoms for allergies were more known of - it could truly save someone's life if worse come to worse so do please take this into awareness.

Keep safe my lovelies.

All my love,
Chloe xo

A-level Results Day - chloescorner

I've seemingly lost my blogging mojo. I'm struggling to find topics to talk about recently and I'm getting caught up in comparing my content to others which completely isn't the whole point of this... Although with it being Results Day for thousands of students, including me, I couldn't hold back my thoughts and opinions so what better way to share it than my little space on the internet.

Your grades do not define you - if you didn't get the grades that you necessarily wanted or needed to get onto your course for higher education/Uni this does not make you a bad person or a 'failure' there is always the option of going through clearing or possibly even redoing your year if the grades are something that mean so much to you. Following that, don't be scared of disappointing others - you've tried your best and you know that, that's all that matters. People should congratulate you regardless. 

In my opinion art based subjects aren't marked fairly. Tutors mark the work created by student based on what they deem to be good enough yet art is something that evokes opinion, what one person observes as an amazing piece of work another may see as complete rubbish which would differ the marks awarded. Academic subjects seemingly test your memory more than the amount you can learn which isn't fair considering that not everyone has an amazing memory and I know that tutors will argue that if you revise you should be able to memorise everything but sometimes the workload we're expected to remember is ridiculous. Writing based subjects are equally as frustrating because the majority of the time it depends on how fast you can write in a specific time frame. If you didn't get to finish your essay because you ran out've time that can drop your grades significantly which isn't fair - this persons work may have been remarkable but because they couldn't physically write quick enough they've lost out on several marks. Grading systems in general aren't always fair I don't think. Over the years the bars have been set unbelievably high making it almost impossible to get the grades that you want - i.e. most boards are increasing grade boundaries and therefore Uni's are raising their expected standards. 

Coming out've University with a degree up your sleeve doesn't always guarantee you a job anymore. I know a tonne of people who have come out've Uni with amazing degrees but because the competition for occupations has become increasingly harder, people have to just settle with whatever they can find at the time. I'm not saying this is always the case because I know it's probably not and people have found their dream job post Uni but I'm sure at least half of those with degree's do have to wait around for a while before being anywhere near starting their desired jobs.

With everyone receiving results today I've been swayed with what I think I want to do. Seeing so many people getting onto their ideal courses at their chosen Universities I'd be lying if I said I wasn't completely jealous - because I genuinely am. Although I do still stick with my choice to defer a year and try again next year. I can't afford to start a course that I think I might enjoy and then end up wanting to drop it and start another the year after, it's just not feasible and I know that this will be the most likely outcome if I force myself into it now. 

I realise I've just completely rambled on but it honestly feels so much better to get my thoughts down on a page and despite this being my negative outlook on the education system as a whole I hope you understand that these are just my opinions and I know that people are bound to think differently. I hope that those of you that have received results today have gotten the grades that they truly deserve! Feel free to leave your thoughts and opinions in the comments, I'd love to read them.

All my love,

Chloe xo 

Interior Pin-spiration #2 - chloescorner

Shabby Chic interior is completely up my street and the day I have my own place the better. My whole house will be Pinterest worthy, I'll make sure of it! But for now a girl can dream (or drool over images on Pinterest). I thought I'd share a few images with you lovely readers and let you have an insight to my dream home.

(All photo's taken from Pinterest)

I could've easily added more but I had to limit myself at some point, feel free to have look at my Interior Inspiration board on Pinterest! Do you have Pinterest? Leave your links in the comments and I'll most definitely have a nosey! 

All my love,

Chloe xo

18 things in 18 years - chloescorner

I wanted to write this post for something to look back on in years to come, and also to reflect on things I've learnt in my 18 years of life. Its a tad deep but hey, I think that the deep posts are usually some of the best.

18 things I've learnt in 18 years:

1) Not everyone is going to like you - as hard as it is to accept that, you just can't possibly be everyone's cup of tea but that's completely okay. This quote is pretty apt.

2) You can't possibly please everyone. In doing something to please one person you will more than likely annoy someone else or completely disregard your own feelings.

3) Following that last point; your happiness matters! its a simple as that.

4) You can put your absolute everything into something because you have that much faith in it yet this still may not be enough in someone else's eyes - realise that this isn't your fault, some things just aren't meant to be. 

5) There is no such thing as mistakes, just lessons. 

6) My Mum is honestly my bestfriend - and I shouldn't take that for granted.

7) Don't just expect people to understand if you're not willing to explain. And more so don't get annoyed at them for not understanding because chances are that'll push them away. 

8) Being shy gets you nowhere in life. Stop being so bloody scared of everything and everyone.

9) Perfection is a myth so stop pursuing it. 

10) How do you expect to get something if you're not trying to get it in the first place? 

11) Karma truly is a bitch. What goes around, comes around so treat others how you wish to be treated. Always. 

12) Surrounding yourself with negative people will inevitably increase your negative mindset - don't be afraid to cut negative people out've your life.

13) Sometimes you need to be a little selfish and put yourself first.

14) Comparisons are pointless because you'll never be a carbon copy of someone else. Instead work on bettering yourself as an individual. 

15) Reading, exercise, long hot showers and spending time with friends and family are the ultimate stress relievers so don't ever forget to make time for these things.

16) People only show what they want to show on social media. Don't go thinking and idolising certain people's online lives, making your own seem insignificant. There's good and bad in every aspect of life.

17) Never stop doing what you love.

18) Make the most of everything - life is too short to live with regrets so take every opportunity that gets thrown at you. 

What things have you learnt? feel free to add to mine or share your own thoughts in the comments!

All my love,

Chloe xo

*Sources taken from Pinterest.