What's In My Shower? // The University Edition

Hello beautiful people,

So, I'm super nosey when it comes to discovering what products people like using. If someone is doing their makeup next to me, you can guarantee that I'll be asking questions on what their favourite brands and products are.

I was thinking of some blog post ideas, and as I had just "spring cleaned" all of my products, I thought someone out there may want to see what I have in my shower at uni,  if no-one is interested- fair enough, but I know i'll look back on this post in the future and it'll be cool to see what I was into. I have gone on a massive tangent so lets just get into it...

First of all, a University student bathroom, is more often than not, not the best bathroom in the world. Last year when I lived with all girls, the bathroom was usually mostly tidy, and even when it was messy, it was never really that bad. This year however, I cannot say the same. 

I'm not really close with any of my housemates this year, so I highly doubt they will be reading this, but usually our bathroom is a grim place, no matter how many times I attempt to clean it, within 24 hours it'll be disgusting again. I love uni. It's great. And although I do technically have a bath, I wouldn't dream of using it in this house... 

So, that being said, I like to keep my shower supplies separate so they don't get mixed up with anyone else's, and I know where they all are.  It helps keep things tidy, but also I know people are less likely to steal my things... I realise I'm sounding very paranoid but ya know, you never can tell... plus it's just handy to have them all in one place!

I keep all my products in this cute little tin that I think my sister gave to me when I went to Uni, so I'm not sure where it's from, but I've used it all throughout Uni and it's been very helpful- also looks cute!

1. A Razor

Pretty self explanatory, but I always have a razor on hand for the shower, and I'm not really fussy when it comes to the brand of razor. Although last year my housemate had signed up for a really cool subscription service where they would send you a fresh razor every month so I may do that soon!

2. Dove Nourishing Care Shower Oil

This is a recent purchase, but I have used it a few times and really enjoyed it! It's a really moisturising oil when it hits the water it turns into a milky consistency- great for when I shave my legs!

3. Mini Body Shop Strawberry Shower Gel

I'm using up all my Christmas toiletries and I had this cute mini shower gel, so I just have it in my shower in case I feel like using it. I really love the body shop shower gels, and the strawberry one smells so summery! 

4. L'Oreal Elvive Dream Lengths Shampoo & Conditioner

Not going to lie, I only got this shampoo and conditioner because the colour of the bottle reminded me of my old bedroom which was bright pink and orange- good times. 

Photographic Evidence, an original selfie from 7 years ago....

I actually have repurchased this shampoo and conditioner since! (Hence three bottles in the photo) because I really like the smell, and it makes my hair really shiny! I actually really like L'Oreal shampoos, and I'm not allergic to them- win win. 

5. Bioré Baking Soda Cleanser Scrub 

I've spoken about this before on my blog, but I keep my face wash in the shower because I tend to shower in the mornings so it's just quicker to wash my face in the shower! I really like the Bioré face washes, and have also used the charcoal one in the past. 

6. Dove Silk Glow Body Wash

I love the Dove Body Washes, they smell great and are really moisturising! They are usually are always on sale too, so that's nice on my student budget!

Obviously sometimes I'll use different shower gels or shampoos, but for the most part this is what I usually have in the shower! Let me know if you've tried any of these products, or if you have any student bathroom horror stories! 

Thanks for reading,

Lauren xx

I Produced A Show! // University

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So, I produced a successful musical.... whaaaaat? (First year Lauren would be very confused at that)

I can't believe I'm finally writing this post! I was putting it off because it's going to be a mammoth of a post, and I really don't want to forget anything! However, it's been over for a week now, and I really want to start posting more so feel I need to address this first!  Also I was waiting on some more photos, but I got too impatient and figured can use the photos I get for like a yearly round up or something!  I wanted to make this post so I can look back on it on the future, and it would be weird to not acknowledge it on my blog as it was such a huge part of my life!

This post will be  l o n g  and also have lots of pics!

So, around August, Adam asked if I'd like to produce a musical, and I kind of just laughed him off at that ridiculous suggestion. To be honest, I didn't even know what a Producer of a musical had to do, but it sounded fancy, and I didn't know anything about Musical Theatre, so just forgot about it, thinking I was not qualified enough. Also, I wasn't confident enough to waltz into a group of musical theatre lovers and attempt to try and organise them!

After some  a lot of persuasion from Adam, and looking into what the actual role was, I decided to really step out of my comfort zone and say yes- I'm so glad I did that looking back now! But I agreed to step in and help, and here we are today! The Musical in question was Jekyll and Hyde!

I remember my first meeting I had as Producer, and it was with some of the other members of the production team, the presidents of SMuTS (Sussex Musical Theatre Society) and the Treasurer. The meeting was to buy the rights to the musical- and I honestly felt so out of my depth. I didn't know anyone, I didn't really know what I had to do and I had no idea what anyone was talking about and I felt really stupid for thinking I could do it. As Producer, it was my responsibility to sort the buying of the rights to the musical- something I hadn't even thought about before!

But, I persisted, and after meeting the other members of the production team, who made me feel so welcome and convinced me that it would be fine, I felt at ease, and kind of like I knew what I had to do.  We had some meetings to arrange what we would ask people to do at the auditions, and then the audition process began!

Me, Adam (Musical Director), Shannon (Director), Charlie (Director ), Megan (Vocal Coach) and Poppy (Choreographer)

I actually loved the audition process, and honestly I thought everyone who came and auditioned was so brave for standing in front of 6 strangers and singing and acting in front of them! I know I could never put myself out there like that! I feel like after auditions was when I really started to ease into my role, and I felt much more comfortable, as i'd met everyone now, and knew what was expected.

We cast the show which was really exciting, and then we got all the cast together to do a read through of the script, and get to know each other a bit.

Everyone at the first rehearsal/read through!

The rehearsal process was long! But all the other production team members who were in charge of running the rehearsals were all so talented, it was actually quite fun to watch them work, and teach the cast how to sing the songs correctly, or getting the cast all into character.

My role was basically organisation, and making sure everyone was doing their jobs to ensure we'd be able to put on the show in time! I also was tasked with making the programmes for the show, which at the time I hated, and cried over a stupid amount of times because I just felt I couldn't do it! I didn't mind organising the casts bios, and headshot days, but the actual construction of the programmes I found quite hard, but with a lot of help from Adam, and George (President) I got them done in the end!

After a slight hiccup on printing quality, when we got the programmes delivered I was so relieved, and pleased with how they turned out. Our production manager Malcolm, filmed me opening the delivery they came in because he thought I might cry with relief!

It took SO LONG to get a headshot for me, because I kept awkwardly laughing and moving all the time...*

I feel like I'm waffling a bit so I'll speed this up!  I was doing stuff for Jekyll more than my degree/work at some points! Especially towards the end of the process, with three rehearsals a week, and Production Team meetings left, right and centre it was definitely a big commitment! I did thoroughly enjoy it though, despite the stress!

Our promo material!

The cast must have thought I was so miserable when I looked like this in rehearsals, but to be fair this was in the midst of my programme creating breakdown phase... Promise I was nice to them! *

The rehearsal where we put the show together with the band for the first time!*

I have way more rehearsal photos, but they all involved close ups of the cast so I don't want to plaster them all over the internet without their permission, but the cast were phenomenal and worked so incredibly hard. If any of them are reading, thank you so much, I know I said it during teary eyes on our last show but honestly, you were all so great to work with!

We actually all went to an I heart Consent workshop run by Uni, and most of the cast came as well, and it was so great to talk about a topic that is so important, and it was actually quite refreshing to hear peoples opinions! This isn't show related, but I just wanted to include it as it was a different, but needed cast bonding activity and actually everyone who came to it said they found it interesting.

I Heart Consent Workshop

Our last rehearsal before Show week was our dress run, and it had actually snowed on that day, so we dragged the cast out in the snow for a photo shoot (sorry guys, but it looked cool) It was so exciting to see everyone in costumes and it made it feel so much more real! Back before Christmas I had gone to a costume place to help find the costumes and it was nice to see the ones we picked on everyone!

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So, show week rolled around before we knew it, and it was by far the most stressful, but definitely the most fun part of the entire process! We had access to the theatre all week, so Monday and Tuesday was spent helping set the stage up, and getting all the costumes to the theatre.

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday were show days, so every night me and one of the directors, Shannon, would sit in the audience and watch the show- every night I cried because the cast smashed every performance, and after seeing them work so hard I just felt so proud. Especially when thinking back to everyone at their auditions, to seeing them on the stage.

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The show also got two reviews! I had reached out to some of the student papers and asked them to watch the opening night and review it! We had some technical difficulties, but it was our opening night, and it only got better from there!

For future me, read the reviews of the show here, and here! 

Saturday was very emotional! We got the cast in early to say our thank yous and honestly if you ask anyone, they'll tell you I was a crying mess all day! I just felt so overwhelmed and proud that the show had gone well, and I was also proud of myself too, for stepping out of my comfort zone and it going well!

Saying cast thank yous! (Emotionally)

All the cast and crew were so lovely to us all, and they had got me a huge bunch of flowers and some Prosecco and they'd all signed me a card saying thank you for all my hard work, and I cry even now reading the card because they were all so nice! WHY ARE PEOPLE SO LOVELY. Also the card had a cat on it, which made me laugh because I actually do come off as a crazy cat lady to people... woops.

We all got up onto stage after our last show to say thanks to everyone, and my Dad actually took the photos of me on stage! I also was proud because both my Mum and Dad said they enjoyed it, and I really didn't think they would.

I couldn't say this to anyone on the last day, because every time I tried to thank people, I started crying, but to anyone involved who may be reading this, thank you so much! This experience has honestly been the best thing I've ever done, and it's helped me gained so much confidence in myself. I have made some incredible friends, who are all insanely talented, and this whole show is something I'm most proud of in my life so far. It was a huge challenge and definitely tested me at times, but overall the show was a success, and I'm so happy to have been a part of it. Also, sorry for crying a lot...

I'm sure I will have missed something out, but this post is so long I really should stop now!

If you've made it this far, bravo, thanks for staying with me!

Loads of love,

Lauren xx

* Photo Credit to Malcolm Tam.

28 Thoughts I Had On My All-Nighter // UNI

This post is not going to be worth reading, (New blog content off to a brilliant start) alas here we are anyway. Currently 00:28 am, I have three deadlines for 4pm, and naturally, me being me, left everything to the last minute. I hate myself and will never learn. I literally do this every term, and tell myself I work best under pressure, and to be fair to myself, I do always seem to get better results if I've left something to last minute, but I would not recommend. It's not worth the stress.

This year, I have seriously underestimated how much work third year entails, so I have ended up having to pull my first all-nighter. (Am I officially a student now? Nope. Just an idiot.) 

Having never actually pulled an all-nighter before I actually Googled how best to prepare for one. (I am so lame, but also it was another way to productively procrastinate.) After work I went home to make some pasta, and took the suggested 90 minute nap. I showered quickly and now here we are...

As I'm procrastinating anyway, may as well make it semi productive. (Can you tell I'm a fan of procrastinating productively?)  Here are some of my thoughts whilst on my all night library adventure. I am writing these as I go, so who knows where we'll end up. We can go on this journey together. Lucky you. 

THOUGHT ONE // 00:34 am

 I should not have dressed so comfortably. The library is way busier than I thought. I feel gross and also of course today is the one time i've bumped into people I know in the library. If any of you happen to be reading this, all i can do is apologise for looking like a human toe nail.  On a positive note, the colour of my Vans matches the colour of my hoodie, so at least people may think I kind of tried?

OOTN? Featuring a lovely background of the Library toilets.

THOUGHT TWO // 00:56 am

Redbull tastes disgusting, and makes me shake a lot. On the plus side though, I don't feel tired yet, but equally I am sat here writing this, as opposed to doing work, so i should probably get back to that...

THOUGHT THREE  // 00:58 am

I feel like someone has managed to sneak a Dominos into the library. I can smell pizza and its quite distracting. Also a genius idea, and I'm quite jealous.

THOUGHT FOUR // 1:04 am

There is a cleaner hoovering right behind me. Hoping they're not reading over my shoulder.  I know the library needs to be cleaned, but does it really need to be hoovered, right now, at 1am in the silent area? To be fair, I imagine this is usually a quiet time for the library. I'm sure they don't want to be doing it either to be honest, but its quite annoying.

Why you lie?

THOUGHT FIVE // 1:10 am

The girl in the pod next to me has some weird methods of studying and a verrrrrry annoying habit of tapping her pen on the table constantly. She keeps getting up and down, peering into my booth, wandering around a lot, sighing. I mean, I get its a struggle to be in the library at this time, but 

jeeeeez. 

All these thoughts are very close together, I need to buckle down for a bit...

My home for the night

THOUGHT SIX // 1:25 am

(Wow, buckled down for a solid 15 mins!) 

I have finished my 473ml can of Redbull. Scared for the rest of the night. Going off on a tangent but imagine if Redbull actually did give you wings. I could just fly around the library. Wonder if people would think thats weird, or report me to security. Now i'm laughing at the thought of me flying around the library and someone reporting me. "Get out the library, you can't fly in here." I'm sat here sniggering to myself now.

S e n d H e l p.

THOUGHT SEVEN // 2:07 am

People on snapchat are also pulling all nighters, it seems I am not alone. Also I keep shaking but I don't really know how to stop it... Waiting for my wings to grow any minute now.

THOUGHT EIGHT // 2:17 am

I hate myself.

THOUGHT NINE // 2:22 am

I have nearly finished 1 out of 2 essays I had to do tonight. Truly do not recommend leaving work this late.  I needed a break though and also can't stop shaking so going for a wander round the library. 

Library adventures

THOUGHT TEN // 2:30 am

My New Years resolution of drinking 2 litres is going very well. Admittedly it is half two in the morning and i've only just finished my second litre of the day, but i'm still counting it. Am still yet to set foot in the gym. Thats a task for next week. 

THOUGHT ELEVEN // 2:47 am

I'm annoyed because somehow a whole tube of Pringles has spilled in my bag. It's very difficult to try and manoeuvre them back into the tube in the silent area of the library. Sometimes I even feel my typing is too loud. 

In actual essay updates, only 100 words to go on the first essay. 

THOUGHT TWELVE // 3 am

Why on earth is someone on FaceTime in the silent section of library?! Can they not feel the death stares of everyone on them? I do not understand this. Please be quiet. 

THOUGHT THIRTEEN // 3:06 am 

FIRST ESSAY IS DONE WOO. I won't submit it yet, I need to fully read it again, but cant face that right now. 

Now have 13 hours for my next one... urghhhhhh

THOUGHT FOURTEEN // 3:19am

I'm not strong enough for this next essay. Feeling tired now. I do have another energy drink with me, but i feel it could come in more useful later. urgh. 

THOUGHT FIFTEEN // 3:35 am

Went to the loo to discover it had been deep cleaned. That was nice. This is what my life has become now. Also closing tabs on google is one of the best parts of finishing an essay.

THOUGHT SIXTEEN // 3:38 am

Strongly debating taking a 20 minute nap somewhere.

THOUGHT SEVENTEEN // 3:44 am

Wandered round the library again, bumped into my friend who was also wandering round the library. Agreed if we're both still here we will go for breakfast at 9am. Meanwhile, i've moved over to the comfy chairs for a bit of a break. Also can hear some birds tweeting now. That's when you truly know you've messed up.

Abandoned my desk for the comfy chairs, this could be a mistake. 

THOUGHT I'VE STOPPED COUNTING NOW // 3:56 am

Starting to panic a bit. 12 hour until my deadline. Haven't done anything the past hour. How has that gone by so fast?! Might crack open the next energy drink.

THOUGHT 19 // 4:25 am

Guy opposite me is snoring. I'm actually a bit jealous of him.

THOUGHT 20 // 4:53 am

Suddenly got really cold so had to put coat on. These thoughts are getting more and more exciting.

THOUGHT 21 // 5:24 am

I was feeling absolutely crap so decided to go get a coffee and some fresh air. The coffee was absolutely rancid, could only manage half of it, but did enjoy the fresh air. Walked up and down the library steps a few times to burn off some energy. Took a pretty cool photo. I'm going to really get my head down now and get this done.  I just want to go to bed. Cry.

THOUGHT 22 // 6:03 am

Do they make the lights brighter in the library in the morning? I feel the lights have just gotten a lot brighter.

THOUGHT 23 // 6:48 am

The girl sat next to me (the one from thought number 5... who's really keeping count though) Anyway we both kind of just decided to take a power nap. She has stolen the comfy seats though. I rested my eyes for about twenty minutes using my coat folded up as a pillow, but it wasn't comfy. Just went to the loo again to wake myself up. Determined to get this done by 12pm.
A lot of people are napping right now. Also, Im so hungry.

THOUGHT 24 // 7:30 am

My alarm just went off. Was very awkward. In the process of trying to switch it off in a hurry, i knocked my phone on the floor, meaning it kept going for a bit longer. Ah. What a lovely morning.

THOUGHT 25 // 9:36 am

Normal people are coming into the library now, which is making me feel even more vile. I really have no motivation for this essay whatsoever at this point. 10/10 do not reccomend all nighters.

THOUGHT 26 // 11:36 am

THOUGHT 27 // 11:52 am

Thought this diagram depicting what sousveillance is was pretty cute.

THOUGHT 28 // 15:45 pm

It's been a while. In that time though, I managed to get everything done and submit my essay with 15 minutes to spare. Currently my back really hurts, i dont really remember much of my night, and I'm hungry and tired.

FINAL THOUGHTS

I would highly suggest you are never as stupid as I am, and put yourself through this. It sucked. I dont even feel relief that i've finished, I just feel a bit empty! heck. The library has broken me.

Anyway, I am sure by this point you all think I'm an idiot, which you would be correct in assuming.  I haven't even read over these yet so who knows what they're like.  If you did stick around until the end, bravo to you.

If you want more q u a l i t y  content like this in your life you can follow my blog by E-Mail to be notified whenever I post. Or bloglovin' I don't know anything anymore, what is life.

I'm going to go crawl into bed and listen to Troye Sivans new song on the drive home. Good luck to anyone else who may be pulling an all nighter or going through exams- I dont envy you one bit, but you can do it!

Thanks for reading,

Lauren xxx

Goals for 2018 + Reflections on 2017...

Some people who have made my year so fab!

It's currently the 1st January 2018, I am procrastinating doing the disgusting amount of all of my Uni work which I have yet again, left far too late, so instead I thought I would do a little blog post about my New Years Resolutions, and reflect a bit on how my 2017 went.

2017 was actually not too bad for me to be honest. I met some incredible people who I think I'll be friends with for a long time, I started a relationship which I am genuinely so happy in, made some hilarious memories with old friends and new, and also I took on a huge challenge which terrified me at the time, but now I'm honestly so glad I did. It was also the year I think i decided on a career path, which is exciting!

I took on the role of Producer for my Uni's musical theatre societies main show, which seemed stupid at the time, as I have no experience with musical theatre whatsoever, but my boyfriend said he thought i'd be good at it as I'm organised, and now we're in January and I am actually really enjoying myself, and am so thankful that I took on this opportunity! I have met so many incredible, talented people from it! The show I'm producing (Jekyll & Hyde)  is in March so it's creeping up slowly on me, so there is lots to do! But its all fun and exciting and I'm excited to see how it all goes. 

As a result,  I'm kind of thinking that I would like to go into the Human Resources industry. I'm currently debating whether or not to do a Masters next year in Human Resources Management, or to try go straight into work, I'm really torn! On the one hand, I think if i did a masters, it could make my CV stand out, I can still apply for more Grad schemes, and also it would be nice to study something different for a year. Also it would allow me to potentially go straight into quite a high level position which can always be a good thing! Only downside is the money side of things would really stress me out, but if i do well in my undergrad, I can get some money off. Decisions decisions...

I've decided when I graduate I'd like to stay in Brighton, as it just feels like my home now, and I know I would really miss it if I left.  As it stands currently looking at 4 bedroom houses with my boyfriends and friends, (I basically live at their house anyway) which I think will be really fun to actually live with them.

Also Abby comes back from her year abroad next year, and even if we don't live together again, I'm sure she'll always be at mine, or we'll end up at hers smashed at the end of a night out stuffing our faces with some disgusting takeaway... can't wait for that to be honest. Also another reason I'm leaning towards a masters is because most of my friends will still be studying as well, and I know that's a silly thing but I think i would feel better that way, gaaah idk, the only thing stopping me is the money, and i'd have to work at least 20 hours a week on top of studying in order to afford it. I'm aware i've just been rambling... I feel like I needed to get thoughts out of my brain and into writing though.

Anyway, looking forward to 2018, I'm feeling positive about it! I graduate this year (heck) but also I've made some resolutions which I really want to stick to. 

1.  Drink at least 2 Litres of water a day. I got a cool new water bottle which has like time limits on the side so I'm going to aim to drink two bottles a day. So far so good! (I started yesterday) Although it is making me have to pee so so much, which is kind of annoying. 
2. Go the Gym 2 times a week.  This one I'm actually SO determined to try and do! When I tell people this is one of my resolutions they just laugh and think I won't do it, so I just want to prove people wrong. Also if i use my Uni gym I can also park my car there all day for much cheaper which might motivate me to go. I know i can do it, and it would be nice to feel slightly better about myself, so I really want this to happen.
3. Be better with my Money. This year i was actually so bad, but it stressed me out, and i hate being stressed about money, it seems so stupid, so this year I'm going to try and be much better.
4. Make more of an effort with friends- I'm so bad with just not meeting up with people, but I have so much more fun when i'm with friends so really want to try meet up with them more often! 
5. Graduate with a 2:1-  Pretty straightforward!

Hopefully this time next year I can look back and pat myself on the back for sticking with them all year. Fingers crossed anyway.

I hope anyone reading this had a fab new year, and are excited for the fresh start! Thanks for reading my rambles xx

Lauren x x

My Second Year of Uni Experience!

Woops, its almost been an entire year since I posted anything on here... my apologies!

I was scrolling through my blog and I came across my blog post about my first year of uni experience, and given that I've just gone into my third year of uni (actually already in reading week!), I thought it may be nice to reflect on second year and tell you my experience.

Everyone says second year is a lot more difficult than first year, and for me this was most definitely the case! The workload definitely got harder, but now i'm hoping i'll be more prepared for my third year.

So I guess a major change in second year is living in an actual house, as opposed to student halls. I actually think I preferred living in a house, it made me feel more like an adult, and we just had a lot more room over all.

We definitely did have some issues with our house over the year, but we did make some great memories  and I even got a new tattoo based on a design from a stained glass window in my bedroom. Below are some pictures!

I posted some photos of my room in an old blog post so if you want to see that then feel free :)

I feel like we treated second year as freshers part 2, because we went out so so much more I feel! hahaha. There was one week I think we ended up going out pretty much every single night- it was fun, but I don't really know how we managed it.

Enjoy some photos from those escapades...

Also though, this year my friend Lillie, who has grown up in Brighton showed me the beauty of this cute little pet shop, where there are loads of cats just roaming around and you can pet them! It's amazing. The first two photos are from when she first took me there, and then we have been back several times since....

In terms of Jobs, I did a christmas temp job at Marks and Spencer, which was okay, but I just hated being a christmas temp to be honest. But since April I have worked at the surf shop Animal, and its really chilled, and the people are all really nice so that's been fun.

There are loads more photos on my instagram, curiousginger if you want to see what I get up to at Uni.

In terms of actual Uni, I definitely struggled with motivation and workload this year, but luckily with a few late night sessions at the library managed to get a decent 2:1 to go into third year with. Also discovered I am much more productive in the library. Overall though it was a fun year with many memories made!

Im now nearly halfway through first term of third year, and honestly finding it difficult but hopefully it will all go to plan! I'm also the producer for our main musical theatre production, as I thought it would be good experience to have!

Anyway,

I'm going to go and be productive now....