FASHION: A Weekend In Birmingham

At the weekend, myself and Scott went to a ball for his work and it's quite possibly the biggest thing I've been too. I found the entire process leading up to the event really stressful and it definitely tested my anxiety. Firstly, it's a ball and I was told that it wasn't the kind of occasion where you wear a long dress so opted for something in between where it was longer on one leg than the other. Whilst many did wear long dresses other wore shorter ones too. I initially felt a little out of place but in reality I felt really comfortable and confident in what I was wearing that I didn't actually care in the end.

Dress - River Island (similar) / Shoes - New Look (similar) / Bag - Whistles 

Before we left to go to Birmingham (about an hours drive for us) I was so anxious and there was a moment when I wasn't sure on whether or not to go. But I decided that I didn't want to miss out on this opportunity and ruin the day for myself and the event for Scott. So I swallowed the nerves down and got in the car and got myself ready.

The event was really lovely. The people were nice, and the entertainment was brilliant. I also felt myself relax a lot throughout the evening and the nerves and anxiety quickly went and I was soon back to my normal self.

We stayed at The Hyatt in Birmingham and it's the nicest hotel I've ever stayed at. I asked Scott several times if we were in the right place. It was also lovely because it was connected to the ICC where the event was so we only had to cross a closed bridge when everyone else got wet through walking over from different hotels. The breakfast was amazing and there was a wide selection to choose from and the staff were really friendly. I was gutted when we had to leave Sunday morning. However, we did go shopping and I may have treated myself to a 21st birthday present, you'll see it on Friday.

Anyway, whilst you can see what I wore, I also wanted to write this post just to remind you that anxiety is a daily battle and it's not something that you can ever be cured with. But you just need to keep pushing yourself. Whilst this was a big deal for me in terms of anxiety (because I had to travel, stayed in a hotel without my parents, met lots of people I didn't know, stayed in a place I didn't know) I managed to get through the day without it ruining my plans. Even the little victories are still victories.

♥

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LIFE: Christmas Markets and Our Anniversary

On Friday 18th of December it was myself and Scott's one year anniversary and to celebrate we took a trip to Birmingham to go to the Christmas market. It was a little touch and go for a few days on whether we would go due to the fact I pulled a muscle in my side and it meant sitting still for over an hour in the car would make me feel uncomfortable. However, in the end, I decided to go. I'd been excited for a while about the possibility of going and I didn't want us to spend the day inside being miserable.

We met at two o'clock, Scott arrived with a bunch of flowers, some chocolates and a card, making me the worse girlfriend ever for not doing the same (but it's so close to Christmas). We were soon on our way to Birmingham, wanting to get there a little later so that it was dark for the Christmas market and getting us in the spirit a little more. The Christmas market was the Frankfurt Christmas Market in the city centre and it's the best Christmas market I've ever been to. With plenty of stands and stores for you to purchase alcohol (we didn't, but the opportunity is there) and lots of options for food as well as gift shops it was quite a magical evening. I hadn't been in a very festive mood, but being there that evening definitely gave me the Christmas spirit. The food tasted amazing and everyone was incredibly friendly. Also, there were plenty of places that sold Nutcrackers and the temptation was strong.

The two of us decided to get a Starbucks hot chocolate when it started to drop really cold as we wandered the rest of the market. We soon ended up at the Bull Ring shopping centre, where I could've spent an absolute fortune. My first stop was the Charlotte Tilbury counter in Selfridges. I've always wanted to go to one but I had never had the opportunity and it's not as fun (or easy) shopping makeup online. With a list of things I could've bough as long as my arm we wandered the rest of the shop which blew my mind. I haven't been in a Selfridges since I was very little so it was very overwhelming. It was at the moment I saw Jimmy Choos that Scott had to drag me away from the store. As shopping centres go, it's definitely up there as being my favourite. There were brands that I had only ever scrolled their websites before that had shops there such as Whistles and Cos. The choices for food is endless. I know that the two of us could've gone absolutely crazy with what we bought but in the end I picked up a few goodies from Charlotte Tilbury and Scott picked up a Vans hat and couple of other bits.

If you're looking for a good shopping centre or thinking about going to a Christmas market I would definitely recommend Birmingham as a good location if you can get. It was a lovely evening spent together and we had a lot of giggles.

♥

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