January Favourites!

Hello, everyone! As the first month of 2016 draws to a close, it's now time for me to talk about my favourites from the month - and boy, do I have a list for you! Last year, I blogged so sporadically I never bothered with this one, but I plan to try and do this more often this year. Let's have a look!

Secret Paris: I got this colouring in book for Christmas, and I honestly adore it. The pictures are beautiful, and it takes me back to the ten days I spent there a few years ago. Zoe De Las Cases has such a whimsical, quirky drawing style, I was completely absorbed into it. 10/10 for me!

My New Boots: Finally, after promising you in the last post that I would show you these, I have the picture! I am in total love with these things - they were $8 when they were $138 online, they're super comfy and they look amazing. 

The Vest: Once again, I am in total love with this thing. It goes with absolutely everything I own and looks really, really nice. I have another black lace vest that my cousin gave me, so I tend to alternate between the two, my favourite being the one in the photo.

My Headscarf: Completing off my retro look, I really, REALLY love this. I can't decide which I like better - the boots or the headscarf! With the little white dots and the fuchsia background, it has a really nice design. I'm saving it mainly for Winter, as it's too hot now in summer, but I can't stop staring at this!

Amelie (The DVD): My mum bought this for my dad when I was firstborn, mainly because I was named after it (squee!) and I've only just gotten old enough to watch it. Me and my mum stayed up super late on NYE watching her favourite movies, and I LOVED this one!!! It's quirky, cute and I love Amelie! The character, just to sum up any confusion. Anyways.

So there are my favourites for the month! I hope you guys like it, and I'll see you again next month :-)

El xx

Op Shops and Beaches...

Holidays. When everything else fails, it's something quick and easy my mum does; announce that we're going away, and pack the car so that we can't argue with her. To be honest, I enjoy it; after all, what's to complain about a weekend down the coast, swimming, reading, and eating freddo frogs with your grandpa? It's honestly too cold to swim this weekend, but hey, you can't have everything in life.

And you know what else is awesome about the coast? The op shops! In the past few days my love for them has been intensified, as I've discovered some real little gems. The doc martens and boots that I told you about in a previous post are a little small now, and with the certainty that my feet will grow even more before winter I hit up the op shop for a new pair of boots. I really like my new ones - they're a really retro style, and they look super cool. I got a denim vest and a headscarf to go with them, so at the mo I'm rocking the vintage retro look, which is cool. Once I get some more pocket money I plan to try and look for some dresses to go with my look. Since my parents don't really want to fund my clothes spree, op shops are also useful for that reason - they're within my budget!

Right now I'm at my pop's house, typing this post. I plan to try and include some pictures below but you're probably going to have to wait for a bit - I don't have a camera and my mum's photo album is full. However, I am hoping to upload them at some point, so stay tuned for that.

Well, I guess it's time to go raid the freddo frog bag!

Elxx

P.S: I won't be able to reply to your comments either, so you can comment but you'll have to wait for my reply. Sorry!

Gorgeous Vintage Photos.

Hey everyone! Today I'm going to do a bit of a in between post; just a small something before my bigger post next week. I've just gotten my computer for high school - very exciting, I do admit! - and have been surfing the net for background photos. In my quest, I have found some gorgeous vintage photos, and I really wanted to know what you guys think. Tell me in the comments below, and I hope you enjoy!

What pictures do you like best? I honestly can't pick a favourite - They're all absolutely beautiful! If I had to pick, I would probably pick the boots, but I love the vintage cameras as well. I hope you enjoyed!!!

El xx

Don't Judge A Book By It's Genre | Collab with Rosie

Hey everyone! Today I'm doing a collab with Rosie (check her out here at Rosie: Books, Writing, Art and Craft.) She is one of the closest friends that I've made out of blogging, so I hope you enjoy this post. Please do check out some of the books - They are all pretty amazing! Hope you enjoy!

1. A favourite book from your childhood

Rosie: Little Women or Peter Pan

Amelie: Mao's Last Dancer by Li Cuxin-I first read this when I was seven, and it is still one of my firm favourites!

2. A book with a strong female lead

Rosie: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins- Katniss is awesome!

Amelie: The Flywheel by Erin Gough. Delilah is so, so cool-and I think she’s better than Katniss ;-)

3. A really cute romance book

Rosie: Green Valentine by Lili Wilkinson

Amelie: Apple and Rain by Sarah Crossan

4. The saddest book

Rosie: Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones

Amelie: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. My heart was SHATTERED.

5. A book set in the future

Rosie: Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick

Amelie: Divergent series

6. A memoir or biography you enjoyed

Rosie: Love You by Kimberley Crossman- Kimberley is so passionate and talented, and I actually have a signed copy of the book!!!

Amelie: Long Walk To Freedom by Nelson Mandela. Took me so long to get into this, but I love it!

7. A controversial book

Rosie: Into The River by Ted Dawe, it just got unbanned in NZ so I’m reading it right away!

Amelie: The Help by Kathryn Stockett. Not really sure if I like it, but it’s the only controversial book I’ve read!

8. A fantasy

Rosie: The Narnia books. I will love them for all eternity.

Amelie: The Diviners by Libba Bray. Funny thing is, I never really got into the Narnia books-I read the first two and couldn’t be bothered to read the rest!

9. The last book you read

Rosie: Facing the Music and Living To Talk About It, by Nick Carter

Amelie: Pirouette by Robyn Bavati. After hearing Rosie waxing lyrical about this, I gave it a try-and loved it!

10. A classic

Rosie: A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Amelie: To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

11. A book with LGBTQ main characters

Rosie: Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult

Amelie: The Flywheel by Erin Gough. Even though I’ve already put it down, I couldn’t not. I honestly love this book.

12. Historical fiction- when was it set?

Rosie: Little House On The Prairie, set in Pioneer America

Amelie: The Wrong Boy by Suzi Zail, set during World War II. Is it possible that this is better than the book thief? I can never decide!

13. A book with awesome secondary characters

Rosie: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, because Rudy, yes please <3

Amelie: Pennies for Hitler by Jackie French-When’s Mud going to appear on my back fence?

14. A book with interesting structure

Rosie: Dandelion Clocks by Rebecca Westcott

Amelie: The Girl From Snowy River by Jackie French-challenges all sorts of steryotypes, and has the sweetest romance.

15. A book which was meant for younger kids but you enjoyed anyway

Rosie: Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak

Amelie: The Butterfly Club by Jacqueline Wilson

16. A book set in our home countries (New Zealand and Australia)

Rosie: Pirouette by Robyn Bavati, love this so much :)

Amelie: Dancing in the Dark by Robyn Bavati. And not only that, but I live in the suburb it’s set in!

17. A great mystery

Rosie:  Pretty Girl 13 by Liz Coley (I loved this so much that I spent an entire science   lesson reading it under my desk!)

Amelie: Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle

18. A book set in Paris

Rosie: Nobody’s Girl by Sarra Manning

Amelie: Anna and the French Kiss-where’s my Etienne?

19. A coming-of-age book

Rosie: Anne of Green Gables by LM Montgomery

Amelie: Hate Is Such A Strong Word by Sarah Ayoub

20. A book set in an interesting country

Rosie: The Silver Sword by Ian Serraillier, set in Poland

Amelie: I am Juliet by Jackie French, set in Italy. I will always love Romeo and Juliet, and this is possibly better than the original.

Hope you enjoyed that! Comment if you want, and I'll see you again sometime soon with another post. Rosie's choices where brilliant - I have recently read some of the books she put down, and it was super enjoyable. My TBR list is way too big for my liking! Have a great day everyone!

El xx

High School And Why I'm So Nervous.

Soooo... Here's my life in numbers at the mo.

10 weeks of holidays over,
9 friends left behind.
8 blogs that I used to have;
7 have been deleted.
6 words that sum up this post
5 tubs of ice cream that I've bought to calm my nerves. (Not joking!)
4 leaf clovers to bring me luck
3 movies that I've liked.
2 books that I'm madly trying to read
1 more week till high school.

I thought that'd be an insane way to start the post, but it'd also calm me down before I jump in the deep end. You see, I've been not so subtle about the fact that I'm starting high school after these school holidays, and I'm not going to lie to you-I'm insanely nervous. What will high school bring? I've been pondering, as I look at school maps and try on my too big, too smart, too new blazer. The thing is, it's too new. The lot of it.

I wish I was at this time a year ahead, when I know whether I love it or dislike it, and my blazer's been worn in. The reality is though, that I'll have no choice. I have to get through this year before I can even start thinking about the next!

What I'm really happy about though is the school. I have 100 other girls in my year level, and I've already found two girls that I'm getting to know better. They're both lovely, and I'm relieved about that. Even though I know, like, 10% of the girls going there, it's mainly either from mother's group (so I haven't seen them in a quadrillion years) or ballet, and then they were the studious girls that I never bothered with.

So I am excited about high school, really. I'm doing debating, drama, diving (the three d's!), yoga and public speaking. It's scary, but then again, who isn't scared?

Have a great week, you lot. I might take a break from blogging for a bit-I've done nearly as many posts in one month than I did in the whole of 2015! So I might just try and wean myself off the computer. Don't be surprised, however, if a torrent of posts fills your bloglovin' account because I couldn't leave my blog. Sooooo... Yeah. Have a great day, and tell me what you think in the comments below!

El xx

What Is My Happy Place? (Random Thoughts)

My happy place... Well, me and happy places go back quite a bit. I have always had one, even as a child. When things where tough or sad or just all round gloomy, it was a place that I could always go back to. I'd keep a notebook and elaborate on the place, but it was always somewhere that I could physically go to, and connect with. Today, I have my happy place, and I tend not to elaborate on it anymore. It's just a place that I feel happy in, a place that only belongs to me. Here is my description.

It's quiet and soft; no one can hear me here. The breeze wafts back and forth from the window and a Yankee candle is burning on my desk, filling this room with a haunting but sweet smell. Light plays peekaboo on my wall and swings around to me, where I'm lying on my bed with a notebook. I can feel soft wisps of poetry flashing in my mind, and giggle as I capture them and place them on the page. Maybe it's dark, in which case I light multiple candles, so I have enough to see by. If I turned on the lights, it wouldn't feel as soft and gentle-instead, my eyesight would have to comply with the hard light, and I wouldn't be able to feel that sunset as realistically. I might be sitting in a soft, cosy bedroom, but my mind is elsewhere, with the characters of my story. They don't sit in a bedroom-They play around, stretching with my imagination and becoming all too real for me. I can feel their struggles, their hardships, their everything. Until someone calls me back to earth, I lie in my happy place, perfectly content with the world.

What is your happy place? Tell me in the comments below.

El xx

Dear Future Me..

Hello! Hi! Hey! I cannot believe that you are here, reading this letter that twelve year old you wrote. Remember that time? When you loved blogging, books and writing? I bet that writing will never have changed; are song lyrics still popping into your head at the most random and irritating moments?

What is high school like? Is it anything of what I thought it was going to be? I hope it was; I'm so excited for it at the mo, I don't want it to let me down.

I hope I'm doing what I always dreamed to do, even if I don't know what it is at the moment. But if I look inside of myself deep enough, and try to imagine what I want to do, then surely I will find the perfect career for myself. Just remember about the journalist/author dream, 'kay?

Try as I might, I can't imagine of what advice to give you to keep on going. That's because I haven't even met you yet, and I don't know when I will! Just keep on being.. You. Unique. Just like I said in that other blog post you're cringing at. I never really did have a knack for words, did I?

If I can tell you anything, though, then be who you truly believe you are.. And keep on buying op shop combat boots.

Love from your former self,

El xx

What Makes You Unique?

Everyone has something about them that makes them unique. Wether it be the fact that they write brilliant poetry or have astounding taste in clothes, no one is the same. I realised last year that whilst I have things that make me different from everyone else, they're mostly on the inside. But on the outside, I look pretty similar to everyone else. Slowly, I began to change up my style so that I look a little different from everyone else, and I wanted to share these tips with you so that you also can stand out from the crowd!

• Try wearing your hair in different hairstyles every day-and go elaborate on the weekends!
• Make your clothes look quirky. Wether it's a vintage hat or your brothers old T-shirt, find something that makes you look super cool!
• What about a nice headband? Try and find one that looks a little different from everyone else.
• Or maybe head down to your local charity store. Believe me, it's not all must and tat-I found a pair of Doc Martens for $10 once and a gorgeous pair of vintage boots for $15! You'll find some amazing bargains once you look past all the bric a brac.

Sorry that today's post is so short, but I do hope that you enjoyed it! Please let me know in the comments below what YOUR style looks like! I do all of the above-elaborate hairstyles, quirky clothes, a hippie flowered heandband and my Doc Martens/vintage boots! Have a lovely day, everyone!

Discussion: Why I Prefer Blogger To YouTube.

Hello, everyone! Today I will be doing a discussion-y type post-The first one on here! I hope you enjoy, and please let me know what you think in the comments below.

Now, I know that lots of my readers (well, ALL of my readers!) are bloggers, but I've also seen you say on your blogs that you like youtube as well. I am guilty of watching so many-too many youtube videos, but I have never had the desire to get a youtube channel. When I first started my blog, I also had a choice of getting a youtube channel - one or the other. I chose the blog, and I'm so glad I did, because I have made some wonderful friends over the past six months and I've grown pretty fond of it. But here are the main reasons why I didn't choose a youtube channel:

• The trolls. Sure, I could've gotten trolls on my blog too but there are so fewer trolls in the blogging world-I've never seen any. But the amount of people who think it's okay to hide behind a screen and attack someone because they didn't like their videos is gigantic on youtube, and I've seen first hand just how nasty some people can get.
• I would never have connected with my viewers as much. When I was tossing up the two, I asked my friend who has a youtube channel if she had made any friends out of it, because she has 50 subscribers. But she said that people mainly just wanted followers and really good viewing stats; many don't want friends. Comparing this to the blogging world, where it is such a close community, I can't imagine life without some of the friendships I've made.
• Neither would I have been able to be anonymous either. On youtube, I would've been vlogging; no one wants to see a brick wall because the person making the video doesn't want to be seen! However, on blogger I can just type up my post, and I don't have to show myself to anyone or get completely gun shy like I normally do on camera.

This is just my personal experience, and I don't know about you guys. So whilst I like watching youtube videos, I have no interest in making one myself-and I think things are gonna stay that way. But what are your opinions on this topic? Please tell me in the comments below, and we can discuss it together.

El xx

Fleur East - Sax (Official Video)

Hey guys! Since I've done another post today, this one is going to be incredibly short. I just wanted you to have a listen of this song, as I've just found it and I think it's amazing! Give it a listen and tell me what you think in the comments below.

El xx.

Sandy Point!

Hello, bloggers! Yes, I'm back! I was away for a week at Sandy Point, a beautiful inlet in Victoria, near Wilson's Prom. It was an amazing trip, but I'm maybe just a little glad to be home-sleeping on a sofa bed with your snoring brother for a week is not recommended. I have the biggest bags under my eyes, honestly *rolls eyes*. I'll be wearing concealer for a week, ugh.

On that note, thank you for all your tips and tricks with make up. I now have a brand new bottle of primer from Sandy Point and it's brilliant! I really like it, so thank you to everyone who recommended it :-).

Now let's get to the fun part! Whilst I was away, we spent 90% of the time at the beach, 5% at Wilson's Prom and 5% indoors because it was raining. :-( At Wilson's Prom, we climbed a mountain! I know that that's a pretty weird statement to say but I was proud of myself for two reasons:

1. I forgot my ventolin, so on the way up I was pretty much having one major athsma attack. Ugh, it was horrible. However, we finally got to the top and I found it in the bottom of my dad's backpack! Hallelujah!
2. It was nearly 7 kilometres that I walked-and that was only up the mountain, not counting the way back.

We also went to some amazing beachs, which I loved. Nothing can beat good beachs - I'll take that over a swimming pool any day, thank you! And, with my new Secret Paris book, I spent the day that it was raining colouring in. Rosie, isn't that thing amazing? I can't say which I like better - colouring in or just flipping through the pages and marvelling at the beauty! I have honestly fallen in love!

Anyways, enough of the chit chat. I'll sign off now, but I'll leave you with the marvellous (and rather bad!) pictures I have.

Sorry that there are only two photos, but these where the best. The first one is of the sunset on the last night-it was amazing, that photo really doesn't do it justice. The second one is the view that was at the top of the mountain, and again, the photo doesn't really show how amazing it was. It was incredible, the view was honestly breathtaking!

See y'all soon, and check out my other post!

El xx

#Help101: I've Started Wearing Makeup!

Hello, my awesome and lovely readers! Thank you so much for the support in the last few days- You guys are the epitome of amazing, and I can't stop reading through all the lovely comments you've left! I swear I've been smiling non stop :-).

However, today I'm asking for a little bit of help. I have just started wearing make up, and I can't figure out how to use it properly! Like, this morning I poked myself in the eye with my mascara wand, so now my eye is quite sore and bloodshot. Bottom line-I've never worn make up before, mainly because I was never the kind of girl to. If the old me and the new me were completely different people, I wouldn't even recognise who I am now!

I've tried watching a few videos, and whilst some have helped, others haven't. Most of them haven't, in fact.

So if you could leave some comments below about how to actually use the stuff, I'll be really grateful. Mainly I wear eyeshadow, tinted lipgloss and mascara (when I'm not poking myself with it in the eye!) but if you have any advice, I'll be eternally grateful.

Also, I'll be going AWOL next week, as I'm going down to the beach, in a place called Sandy Point. It sounds amazing and I'm really excited! However, I'm completely unplugging for the week-no phone, laptop, Ipad or anything! I've been on the computer overtime at the mo, and I feel that this is really important because I do need to downgrade the time I spend on the computer. This will mean that the daily posts stop, however.

So, see you all next week, and remember to post those tips below!!

El xx

Am I Perfect?

It's the word
That rustles
Through
My ears.
Perfection.
Girls
Are supposed
To be
Someone
They're not.
The
Bar is
Set too
High.
Our standards
Are brutal.
Girls
Aren't good
With it.
Every time
I
Pretend
To be
Someone
I'm not
The real me
Slips
Away.
Soon
I'll have
Lost it
Altogether.
I'm not perfect.
No one is.
Yet
I still see
A
'Fat'
Girl in
The mirror.
I still see
Girl's
Who I'd love
To be,
Yet
They're
Struggling
With the
Same problem.
They think that
Everyone else
Is fine.
But the truth is
None of us
Are fine.
So as the words
Form
On my lips
I realise
That we
Will
Never
Have
An
Answer.

What's on my TBR list?

Hey everyone! Today I will be doing a post about what I am about to read. I have already read quite a few books in 2016- six or seven!- and am aiming towards reading 150 books this year. So what's on my TBR list for the mo? At least five books, that's for sure! Anyway, here are my soon to be read books!

1. Mind Games by Teri Terry.
I have absolutely no idea what this is about, and cannot wait to read it! It sounds brilliant, creepy and all round awesome from the blurb. Can't wait to try this one!

2. You Don't Know Me by Sophia Bennett.

This sounds so good, I am literally going to start reading this after this blog post. It's about a band who goes on a national talent comp, and are told they must drop a member of their band. But after making their decision, they receive enormous backlash from the public. Can't wait!!!!

3. Dumplin' by Julie Murphy.

This is the book that I'm looking forward to the most, it sounds amazing! It's about this girl called Willowdean, who is fat and doesn't care one jot about it, until a jock expresses his interest in dating her. She suddenly realises how many insecurities she has about herself, and decides to go in a beauty pageant to make things right. This sounds downright hilarious and I can't wait to read it! Unfortunately I don't have a picture for this one, as I've got it in reserve in the library, but do look it up-the cover looks gorgeous!

And there you have it! Have you guys read any of these books? If you have, please notify me below, I'd love to know what you think of it! See you guys soon and bye!!!

A Day In The Life Of Moi...

Hello, everyone! Today I'm going to be doing a post about my regular day, and what I do and stuff. It's interesting, I think, to hear about what bloggers normally do. I hope you enjoy!

Anyways, in the morning, the first thing I have to do is get up. I normally go to bed fairly early at about 8.30-9.00, so I normally get up between 6.00 to 6.30. The first thing I do is go downstairs and check my computer for emails, blog comments, new blog posts and the Herald Sun for the daily
news.

After that, I'll go and get dressed for school. It doesn't take me all that long, because my school has a uniform, but even if I don't have school it'll normally take me five minutes to get dressed. I never care about what I wear, which is why I often end up in fashion disasters! If it's the holidays I tend to muddle around in my dressing gown for ages-half the time I don't even bother to get dressed!

Finally, after all that, I'll go get myself breakfast. My mother is lovely enough to make me omelettes for breakfast, sometimes, so I'll eat that and then start generally preparing for school-making my lunch and packing my bag. I'll head off to school at about 8.30-I walk, and school starts at 9.00.

After school, I might have an activity on, whether it be basketball, soccer training or art therapy. I do both basketball and soccer as a social activity, and I began art therapy after my grandma died, which I chose over counselling. I prefer it-I don't really like telling complete strangers my life story, and it involves art, which I love.

Then I'll head on home. In the time before dinner, I normally read and go on the computer for a bit. My family has a strict rule of no computers after 7.00, so I squeeze my computer time in then. After that, I'll have dinner-I have it pretty early, in the 5.30-6.00 range. I'll eat and then normally read in front of the telly. Unless there is something good on (like Gruen, The Weekly with Charlie Pickering or The Australian Spelling Bee)

After that, I'll finally go to bed, and sleep for about ten hours. Then I'll get up the next morning and repeat the whole process!

What about you guys? What's your daily routine? Tell me in the comments below!

My everyday jewellery!

Hi, fellow earthlings! Today I'm going to be posting about my everyday jewellery. Because it's the final school holidays before I'm not allowed to wear jewellery at all at school, I've been wearing a bit more than often, which isn't a lot for me! However I'm only doing my everyday jewellery, not all my jewellery, otherwise we'd be here for hours! Anyway, as I love to say, let's get this show on the road!

That picture at the top is of both my pieces, however I'm a pretty crummy photographer so it isn't all that great a photo. The picture below is my watch; I adore this. I've had it for about six months now, and all I can say is that my love hasn't decreased one bit! I need a watch for school and stuff, because our school doesn't have clocks for some strange reason. It's pretty, though, and it isn't chunky like most watches. I got it from Swatch, if you want to look it up.

The next bit I have is my necklace. I only got this two days ago but I love it and it has already become a wardrobe staple! I tend to gravitate towards more simple necklaces than big, flashy ones, and this is right up my alley. It cost me $3, it's beautiful and everyone is asking me where I got it from. And if you want to join that ever growing crowd, I got it from Lovisa; possibly the best store ever!

Also, I just painted my nails today. Normally they don't look all that great when I do it myself but I'm really happy with the result that I got today. Tell me what you think in the comments; I'd love to hear your opinions!

To wrap things up, I'd like to make a shoutout to Hannah at h-r-j.blogspot.com. Not only has she been a very awesome person in the last few days towards me, but she has finally given me the address to the Melbournian Lush! After hearing you lot raving on for months, I decided that I would finally go today, and I can honestly say that I've fallen in love! The produce is beautiful and I loved the store; It was amazing! Unfortunately I didn't have enough cash on me to buy anything, as my friend and I had just ransacked the sweet store, but I will definitely be going in with a pocket filled with cash! I loved the look of the comforter; it smelt amazing, and I could remember the rave reviews Beth gave it!

Anyway, it's late, and I shouldn't really be on the computer, so I'm going to log off. Bye!

Free Style Poetry.

Hi, everyone! I am going to be doing a blog post today on free style poetry. As some of you may know, I love to write, and poetry is one of my favourites. I tend to do more of the traditional poetry, but I've recently fallen in love with free style. This is a bit of an in between post between now and the weekend, so yeah. I'm going to type up an example.

The Art Of Being Normal.

People
Tell me
That I'm not
Normal.
That I'm
Weird
Strange
Disgusting.
They say that
But
What they
Mean
Is that
I need to
Change.
But
Last time I
Checked
I looked
Just like them.
I don't have
Three eyes
Or
Flippers
For feet.
So
What
Do they want
Me
To change?
Because I'm
Not becoming
Someone else
Just
For my friends.
They can
Change themselves
To like
Who I am.
But
I'm not
Changing
For them.
I am me
And that
Makes me
Unique.

Movie Review: Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Hey, everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful new years eve and enjoying 2016-whoop! I will soon (hopefully!) be putting up a post with a complete recap of 2015-blog or no blog, it was an awesome year! By the end of it, it had had it's highs and lows, but it was still massively awesome. Of course, 2015 would have been completely different if I hadn't had my blog, because that's where 2015 became such an awesome year. I can honestly say that this blog has changed my life-so many pathways have been opened for me, and I've met so many wonderful people because of it.

Gushing fangirl aside, I thought I'd do a movie review, on a very awesome movie I just went to see. Star Wars: The Force Awakens has been given so much hype, there was little knowledge of if it was going to live up to the hype. Well, I can honestly say it did; I thought it was brilliant, maybe even the best one yet.

Basically, it's set maybe about forty years after the last one, and Luke Skywalker is missing. The first order has ridden up, with Kylo Ren as their leader. Yet there is a rumour going around that there is a map that leads to Luke, and Kylo is desperate to get it. From there on, it is a crazy adventure filled with badass characters, plane flying, and so much more.

First up, can we please give a round of applause for Rey. Rey was awesome. Nothing like the weak damsels in distress that are normally displayed in Disney movies; nope, Rey didn't need any help whatsoever. I feel that she's a great feminist icon for younger children-at that age, they don't really want to listen to Malala or Emma Watson, even though they are amazing people. No, they just want to go to the cinema, get enthralled by amazing characters, tug on their parents sleeve and say 'Mummy, when I'm older I want to be just like Rey.' Daisy Ridley is an amazing actress, one that I will definitely be watching in the future. Hands down, Rey is the best character in the film. She can fend for herself, she can fly planes, she is strong with the Jedi-is there anything she can't do?

I loved some of the other secondary characters as well. Poe and Finn were awesome, and even though you don't see a lot of her I really liked Maz too. I was also very impressed with Kylo Ren. Even though he was the main villain, Disney got just the perfect balance of emotion and hatred.

Now, here is were my biggest problem lies: the plot line. I feel it's just too close to the original plot line, really. Even though we have new villains, new characters, and new problems, it was just too close to home for me. And I didn't really like some of the new characters, Captain Phasma and General Snorke being the main ones. And what was with calling General Snorke General Snorke? It should've been General Gollum. Captain Phasma was cool, but not in there enough for you to actually get to know her.

Overall, I loved Star Wars, even if I wasn't very happy with some bits. I rate it 8/10.