My collection of golden gems is enough to accessorize an army, but there will always be more pieces that I'll have my eye on and just can't help but gravitate towards.

Back in May, I got to head down for a lovely lunch with Calvin Klein, where I got to check out some of their latest jewellery pieces (as well as enjoy some yummy food, of course). I clearly remember there being a collection of new styles lay out beautifully on display and my body instantly floating over to them, as if I was being magnitized by the sight of more. gold. jewellery. (seriously, I'm obsessed).

These were the 'Clink' and 'Bubbly' collections. There was something about them just so 'me', I just couldn't resist adding them to my 'must one day purchase' list.

The PR's over at Swatch UK kindly loaned me some pieces from these collections to get creative with, so I thought why not talk them through with you guys!






First up we have the 'Clink' collection. These are pieces featuring a ring motif, in a champagne gold stainless steel. I love the design of these - there's something so minimal yet quirky about them - and they're such easy to wear pieces.

The 'Clink' necklace is great. It features an adjustable chain, allowing you to wear the piece longer or shorter, depending on your preference. It's a wonderful costume piece, but also great for day-to-day if you want to add a bit of a statement to your look.

Same goes for the bracelet. This is such a lovely little accessory - something that would work great for a night out with the girls, but also something just to spruce up your work outfit a bit. I'm not usually one for chunky bangles, but this one is one that I could definitely get on board with, especially since it doesn't feel remotely heavy at all. It's not the kind of thing that would be weighing down your wrist all day!

I have to say though, the earrings are my favourite. You all know I'm a sucker for a good earring, and these definitely don't disappoint. Again, they're so great for every day wear - they're one of the pieces in this collection that I can see myself wearing constantly. I love the way they hang on the ear so delicately, yet are super unique and eye catching too. The colour of them is gorgeous and they work wonderfully with my new 'do. What's not to love?








Then we have the 'Bubbly' collection, to which here I am referring to the rings I'm wearing. These feature white pearl bubbles with stainless steel bands. I have a HUGE thing for pearls - I find them so classic and timeless - so these rings are a dream to me!

The 'Bubbly' Ring Set comes with 2 rings, one with a pearl bubble and the other with a gold bubble. I love the fact the you're getting 2 rings here - so often I find rings that I love but can't afford to just splurge on 1 - this gives us a reason to tell our poor bank accounts that we're allowed to splurge on 2, right?!

The design of them is simple and chic - very Calvin Klein - and they're the kind of thing that I would be grabbing for each day to complete my looks.

I'm also wearing the CK 'Bubbly' Ring, which features a pearl bubble and a kind of 'cuff link' style aspect. I like this ring simply for it's more modern twist. It's got the classic pearl yet this open gap between that and the other side of the design - it's definitely got more of an androgynous feel to it and can create a more 'bold' look than the ring set, if you're more inclined to statement pieces.



So, that's it! Those are the pieces - I'm still completely in awe of how gorgeous they all are!

Did anything catch your eye? What do you think of the collections? Let me know down in comments below!

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Sat, phone in hand, fixating over the number of likes my latest Instagram post had received, and the last hour of my day spent comparing myself to someone else's Explore Page bikini pic, I had a sudden realisation that this whole thing was taking over my life. There wasn't a moment anymore where I didn't feel deflated by the low number of engagement staring back at me from my phone screen, and it dawned on me that I had began reducing myself to a number.

For me, Instagram had always been my creative outlet - never something I dreamed of making money from or having an audience on - it was simply my place to share the things I had created and loved. I was in the early stages of recovering from my eating disorders when I started blogging, and I had found solace in this little app where I could indulge myself in all things fashion and beauty, and even find people, like me, who were in recovery.

Days were made easier by the prospect of being able to wake up and have something to look forward to sharing and as years passed by Instagram became my little online space (along with my blog, of course). It became my daily life - curating, creating and sharing - there was nothing that made me feel more excited than hitting that 'post' button and seeing people's reactions to the things I'd worked hard on. I loved that time of my life - everything about Instagram felt light hearted and in favour of creativity, but at some point in 2018 things began to change, the numbers game began, and I was left feeling completely irrelevant.




That's the thing about social media, you grow to expect certain things out of it, especially as an 'influencer'. You build a following, receive a certain kind of number on your posts and anticipate that that's your regular gig, you know? Except, it's not like that anymore, nothing adds up, the numbers are all jumbled, and yet they're all that seem to have began to matter to us.

After 5 years of blogging, I think it only makes sense for me (and anyone else in the same boat, for that matter) to expect a steady growth in audience, yet the algorithm has brought a holt to that for so many people, beginning to dampen our creativity and breed comparison.

I reached a point where the amount of likes my post would get would impact my mood for the rest of the day (sad right? I know) and I was left scrolling down my feed and pining "Why can't I be her?!", "Why isn't my post being seen?!". That's no way to spend your days, is it? Do I really want something that once brought me so much joy to become the one thing that diminishes all of my confidence?

The answer is, no.

I don't want that to be the way things are.

I miss the days of posting a photo, leaving it behind and then coming back to see lovely comments from fellow creatives or simple supportive messages from my Mum - numbers playing no part in how I felt my work was being received.

I know we can't rewind time, (back to when the Instagram logo was brown or when we purely just posted photos with the 'Ludwig' filter on), but I feel like I can at least try and rewind my mindset.




So, I decided to clear my mind of numbers, resting assured that my love for creativity still remained, and remembered why I started this whole malarkey in the first place... and that was for my undeniable urge to share what I enjoyed making.

I think that we've all forgotten, in the abyss or Instagram followers, views and likes, that there's a real world out there - a world which is filled with beautiful moments, bright ideas and millions of opportunities (none of which have a like button or a viewer count). And, So what if your most recent post just got 100 likes less than usual? Don't let that stop you going out there, curating new projects, writing new stories and experiencing things. Post things because you love that you made them, not because you're miserably awaiting what the algorithm is going to throw your way that day.

We need to stop changing the way we create in order to please a following or increase our popularity. We're all trying to adjust, alter and warp ourselves into something that the 'gram' wants; what happened to making things from passion or for fun? At some point, we're all going to end up with the same ol' Instagrams filled with the same ol' things. Trying to adapt ourselves is only going to move us further away from what we really want. Stay unique, embrace what is yours, and don't let the algorithm get to your head.

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There have been a few thoughts hanging over me for a while now - the kind of thoughts that leave you unsure and questioning which path to take. I've had this knot in my stomach that just wouldn't go away and an uneasy sense of losing who I am as a person as the overthinking and worry took over me.

After months and months of anxiety and feeling completely perturbed, yesterday I decided to make some changes in my life. The first one being, leaving my modelling agency.




I sat there, my hands anxiously twitching over my keyboard, trying to grow myself a pair of lady balls and asking myself "do I definitely want to do this?". It was clear to me that the answer was 'yes', because as soon as that email swooshed out of my drafts, everything felt lighter.

If you didn't know, I've been modelling since the end of 2015, so it's been a good 3 or so years for me. Leaving my agency doesn't necessarily mean I'm going completely cold turkey from the whole thing, it just means I need a break, or to at least take control of the steering wheel for a bit.

I mean, you guys know that I love being creative, styling up editorial shoots and working with other amazing talented people, but I felt my agency no longer served a purpose for me at this current time in my life. I wasn't a 'new face' or being seen as the 'one to watch' - I'd grown older (and a lot more tired... urgh) and I'd reached a point where I no longer felt like I could rely on the hopes of booking 'huge' jobs with 'huge' payouts. In all honesty, it just wasn't happening anymore - I was floating along, no work in sight, and completely panicking over my bank balance and yearning for the 90 day pay-day waiting period to be up. I didn't feel stable living like that - nothing was regular enough for it to be worth my while anymore.

I've loved the past few years I had with that agency; I got to experience some really amazing things, work with brands and companies I could never have imagined, and really push myself out of my comfort zone; but I feel like it almost took all my focus away from my blog... and the blogging is where my heart truly lies. I had this image in my head that I was going to model forever and ever, and my career would just 'blow up' and I'd never have to worry again, but I think with every model, there comes a point where the 'fun' just starts to fade and we're left with a sudden realization that it might not be the 'forever' path, and wondering what else is out there.




I didn't make this decision on impulse, I'd been thinking about it for over a year. I had been feeling it in my gut for so long, slowly figuring out the cause, and wondering whether to trust my instincts. I realised my blog had been put on the back burner, whilst I was chasing some almost impossible dream. I had committed myself to modelling for so long, and put all of my energy into it, but at some point the universe just stopped giving back, and I had to face the fact that it was maybe time to move on. The thing is, my blog was my original dream, and I had kind of forgotten that. I'd forgotten where this whole process had started - before modelling, was my blog, and my blog is mine and mine only to be in control of.

I had a sudden urge to take charge of myself and my life again.




I've always had this image of everything I want to create and achieve, and with one less thing hanging over me, I finally feel clear minded about where I'm really trying to head in this industry. Of course, nothing is going to come easy - there's a whole wide world full of bloggers out there who are doing and curating amazing things - it's going to take a lot of listing making, emails, meetings, content planning and trying new things to *maybe* get myself to where I'd like to be.

Regardless, it's still nice to feel like I have a sense of direction now. It's good not to feel lost in wonderland and struggling to string together coherent thoughts. Everything had been so jumbled for so long and now I feel like a weights been lifted and I can center in on myself and what I want.



That's the thing with modelling, you're always trying to convey someone other than yourself. For me, that became a trap of not really focusing on my own issues, or wants, or emotions. Everything became blocked and I didn't feel like I could set it free until I completely let go.

With that being said, the next thing I did yesterday (literally 5 minutes after emailing my agency to say 'au revoir') was ring up my local hair dressers and book an appointment for that same day.

Now this decision was *kind of* impulsive, although still something I had been wanting to do for a while. You see, for modelling I've always had to have longer hair - it was an 'image' thing (as if i wasn't still going to look bangin on camera with short hair, am I right ladies?) - but short hair was always what I longed after. I've habitually felt more myself with shorter hair. I like chic, 'edgy' styles, and with long hair I simply felt too... 'generic', so to speak.




So, with nothing holding me back, my appointment booked, and the adrenaline rushing through me, I let the scissors meet the hair (I was trying to convey this in Paddy McGuinness's voice... I hope that worked) and chopped off a good 7 inches of my ginger locks.

I was sat in that salon chair feeling more excited than I had in months. I instantly had this new lease of life and clarity - the clarity in which I had been searching after for so long (it's amazing what a good haircut can do, I know). I felt like a 'new me', which might sound cliche, but it's true.

I sat, my new chic bob staring back at me in mirror, and felt like I could breathe again. There was a sense of self I hadn't felt in so long and a part of me deep down inside which had been liberated.

I think that's the funny thing about this year - I've felt it's been difficult, it's been bumpy, it's been confusing, but all in all, I think I've simply been on my way to figuring out who I am again; I've been rediscovering the person I should be. I guess it might seem strange to say that, because at 21 I feel like we're expected to be actualized people with goals set and our lives figured out, but despite doing this gig for the last 5 years, I feel like this is only the beginning for me. I feel like I'm barely getting going and I have a lot more to share and prove.



Having said that, I've found myself in the next chapter of my life. The focusing on 'me and my hopes and dreams' chapter. I'm excited to see where both I and this blogging malarkey go. I'm excited to express myself fully, as myself, and not a dulled down version of that.

As much as I've loved the past few years, entering into my 20's feels like the right time to gain some real self-worth and understanding. I want to be rid of comparison and more enticed by my own life and what I can do.

At the end of the day, the old 'me' had a good run, but I think it's time to let someone else take over.

As I sit here on a sunny Monday morning, I'm in a state of overthinking that I am often finding myself in lately. It's as if something in my life is missing, or something in my life just isn't sitting right, and I'm slowly trying to figure out what it is. These past few years have been spent discovering myself over and over again, and yet I still seem to be finding myself at a cross roads when it comes to completely feeling 'whole'.

I'm in a different stage of my life than I've ever been before - considering my future way more thoroughly, trying to find that financial balance, and wondering what I really want to do with my life and who I want to be. I think that's the thing however, I'm not sure who I want to be anymore. I'm in that panicky stage of a quarter life crisis where everything just isn't slotting into place correctly and it's had me considering all my different options for a while now.



I guess right now, it's a process of deciding whether there's a gap in my life that needs filling, or there's simply too many plates spinning and there's something I need to let go of. This whole thing has had me losing my sense of identity - my sense of purpose - and it's taking it's toll.

I've already made so many big changes this year, and it's felt good to almost find a new side of myself and uncover a person that I think I've been trying to suppress, but I feel scared to let go of the old sides of myself too. I want to continue to be this person that I've built over the past 5 years, but I think I'm also ready to head into my next chapter of my life and discover someone/something new.

Why can't I be both? You might ask. Why can't I keep the old me and just build someone new on top of that? I mean, yes, I probably could, but it keeps giving me this sense of carrying dead weight around with me. I'd be carrying the hopes, dreams and ideas of a younger version of myself rather than putting all my focus onto what I currently want right now. So, what do I prioritise?



I've always dreamed big. I've always had an imagination that ran wild with ideas and hopefulness. Maybe letting go of my old dreams - my old self - let's me make room for new ones? Maybe the new me will have ideas just as bright as the old me did (but with just a little more common sense and life experience behind my back)? 

Honestly, whether there is something missing in my life or not, I do feel like I'm spinning too many plates and worrying over too many things. I feel like I'm holding onto things that don't need to be in my grasp anymore. I can proudly say that I'm excited that I've implemented new factors into my life this year and I love that I've began to understand more about my future and my position in the world. I think that's maybe a 'sign' (if you will) that something else is no longer needed - something else is holding me back.

I mean, I know this post is just a stream of consciousness - this is literally just my thoughts pasted out onto paper - but it's what I think I've needed to write to attempt to figure out what I truly want/need to do.

Regardless, I still feel a little lost with everything. No matter how much I seem to mull things over, I'm always left feeling confused by the countless possibilities there are. Maybe I need to just bite the bullet? Or maybe I just need to wait it out? Whatever I consider doing, it all just feels daunting - it all just feels like a huge leap from what I once was.

I'm one step away from feeling at peace with things. I just don't want to cut the wrong cord.

If you didn't know that I recently went to Milan for my 21st, then you've been living under a rock, because it's literally all I've spoken about for the past 2 weeks. My lovely boyfriend, Josh, and I set our sights on the lovely Italian city a few months back, and had been super excited to jump on the plane, and get there, ever since. It was our first holiday together, and one of my first trips to another country, that didn't involve work, in a while. It was exactly the little break away from reality that we both needed, and I've been completely consumed by the 'holiday-blues' now that we're home.

I wanted to write a little post all about our trip, share what we got up to, where we were recommended to go, etc etc - it'll hopefully be somewhat of a helpful post if you're planning to go to Italy, but also just a nice little memory for me to keep on here too!





We began our journey at Manchester Airport, where we said a big goodbye to the miserable rain and clouds of the North, and jetted off to the beautiful foreign sunshine. We'd been checking the weather forecast like crazy before going, and knew it was meant to be pretty damn hot when we arrived, but little did we know we were landing down in a sweltering sunny heatwave with highs of 40°C - it's safe to say that we were both melting on our travel into the city from the airport.

We'd booked an Airbnb, which we were super excited to stay in and were definitely ready to check into after 3 hours of travelling. And, luckily, it definitely did not disappoint: our host was amazing, providing us with bottles of water stocked up in the fridge (which we had completely finished by the time we'd left, because well, 40°C heat + lots of walking = major dehydration), as well as breakfast and snacks. Everything was more than we could have asked for! 

The apartment was the perfect little holiday home for us during the duration of our stay. It felt like our own home by the time we left, and I really did not want to wave goodbye to our lovely little balcony. But, less talk about leaving, more about what we got up to!




On the first evening, despite being absolutely shattered after getting to the airport for 5:30am in the morning, we headed into Milan Central and stumbled across this small little Italian cafe/bar where we enjoyed our first drinks in our new home away from home. I wish I could remember the name of it, unfortunately I can't, but I had an amazing glass of red wine there, whilst Josh enjoyed an Italian beer - not much to complain about really.

We then spent a while stressing over food - the sudden realization that most restaurants there don't open until at least 7:00pm in the evening, and we were absolutely ravenous. 

Google Maps was our port of call, and we were scouring the internet looking for somewhere that would feed us literally anything!

We eventually stumbled across Miscusi, which was a place a bunch of you recommended actually, but I hadn't realised how close we were to one (doh!), and it was perfect for getting us settled in. We had been struggling to find somewhere where the food was described in English (it made us realise that we're a totally ignorant country, but neither of us speak a word of Italian so needed some help) and Miscusi came to the rescue. I had some amazing Pesto Tagliatelle and Josh had Ragu Bolognese - it definitely got us excited to try more Italian food!









On our second day we headed into Duomo for the first time for breakfast and were breath-taken by the beautiful sight of the Cathedral as we exited the Metro. We must have both filmed that metro exit about 20 times - it is just absolutely stunning!

We grabbed some breakfast at a cute cafe (there's lots of nice cafes in Duomo if you want a quick cappuccino before you start your day) - it's crazy that every morning involves either a croissant or pancakes, but I wasn't complaining! Then headed off to do a bit of outfit photo shooting (Josh is a saint and let me drag him to every beautiful corner I could find).

We wanted to go to the Cathedral this day, but hadn't realised we needed to pre-book tickets (ooops), so put that aside for the next day and popped into Milan Central for an amazing lunch at Hostaria La Baita. We both had pizza because, well, "when in Italy!", and they were so so good! Definitely one for the recommendation list - especially if you're going as a couple.

That evening - after pestering everyone for recommendations on Instagram - we headed into Isola for the first time. We decided after a day of running round from place to place, that we deserved a few drinks, so took to Isola for the bars and nightlife of Milan.

We began at a bar called BOB, which I adored the interior of - I took a million photos of it! It was super nice, but definitely one of the more 'pricey' bars there. Two drinks cost us 17€, which made us a little it skeptical (it made us crap our pants and cry about our bank balances) that everywhere else would be the same, but that wasn't the case. 

Our favourite bar of the night was a place called Type - they had a really lovely chilled vibe in there, as well as a sheltered seating area outside which was great (somewhere I'd definitely take cover in the shade during the day). It was well priced, with nice staff - we had a really nice evening there.






Thursday was Cathedral day and we were so excited to head up to the roof terrace and see the beautiful view. However, to start the day we decided to take a visit to the famous Starbucks Reserve Roastery, which is basically the fanciest, most incredible Starbucks/Coffee Shop you could ever stumble upon. 

You may have seen videos of it over on my Instagram, but if not, head over to my highlights and take a look - it's insane! We enjoyed some iced coffees and a couple of croissants, before heading over to the Cathedral to begin our tour. 

This was the hottest day we were there, for sure, so choosing to pay less and take the stairs to the Cathedral rooftop rather than the lift was not my wisest choice however, it was amazing to walk through the walls and peak through the small thin windows every so often and see how high up we'd gotten. 

Once we eventually made it to the top, we were blown away - the view was incredible and sound of music playing in the background, combined with the brilliant sunshine was just absolutely dreamy.

We turned full on tourist-mode taking snaps of the amazing sites and having those 'I can't believe we're here' moments. It was honestly just SO worth every penny, and I'd totally recommend doing it!

Once we'd retreated down to the inside of the Cathedral, we were able to see the amazing stained glass windows with all the murals, as well as heading into the crypt to see the ruins, some which dated back to 2BC.

After that we decided it was time for Gelato, and couldn't have picked a better place to treat ourselves. We went to Cioccolati Italiani and both chose a "Waffle Cone Ask Me If I'm Happy", which consisted of a huge cone, vanilla and chocolate ice cream, as well as a mini cone filled with hot melted chocolate and 3 thin caramel peanut bars - it. was. HEAVEN.






The next day we decided we needed something to cool us down and were eyeing up swimming pools nearby when Josh stumbled across a water-park... so, to the water-park we went!

It was Acquatica Park and it was a really great place to go if you're looking for something a little adventurous to do whilst you're in Milan (it's a good 40 minutes on the metro). However, the downside was that it was overflowing with kids who would just group together and cut in-front of you in the queue for EVERYTHING... which left us pretty frustrated, but we did get to go on one or two things which was super fun (besides me nearly losing my bikini top on the way down haha). 

We decided to just take to the swimming pools instead, rather than battling small Italian children who didn't like the concept of queuing. It was a really nice change to all the city-walking and definitely kept us cool in the heat for a few hours or so! 

*heads up, if your from the UK and need to pee whilst your there, the main toilets are squat latrines (something we're obviously not used to), so if you head into one of the cafes there's another toilet or two in there!*




On our last evening in Milan we decided to treat ourselves to nice meal somewhere, but weren't particularly in the mood for more pasta or pizza, so looked up some other cuisines and discovered a lovely Chinese restaurant called Giardino di Giada (Jade Garden).

It's located a small 5 minute walk from the Metro and was absolutely divine! They serve Cantonese dishes and the interior is so bright and elegant. We picked out some dishes to share and they were all so fresh and delicious, we were over the moon that we chose to eat there. The best dish in my opinion was definitely the 'Fried Noodle In Cantonese Style' - it was so so good!



Our trip there was lovely - I couldn't have asked for a better Birthday getaway. Milan is a beautiful city filled with so much culture and so much amazing food - I highly recommend if you like city breaks and exploring new places!

Hopefully you enjoyed this post and it was somewhat useful. I've loved writing it up and reminiscing about what we got up to. Here's to our next adventure!