Book Review: An Abundance of Katherines

Hello!

Last week decided to read another book by John Green, An Abundance of Katherines! I had heard mixed thoughts from friends about the book and thought that it was best to just give it a go myself! I read it within a day as it was a fairly small book and was very unique. The book features Colin Singleton, who has a love for all Katherines and would seem to only be interested in Katherines. He had relationships with all 19 of them, where all but one, Colin was dumped. Colin decides to go on a road trip to Kentucky with his Lebanese friend and frankly his only friend, Hassan. Together they embark the many wild adventures and the many shocking firsts. And that's basically the book!

My review:

I would like to mention first that I rated it 4/5 stars on Goodreads as I did very much enjoy the book. I thought it was well written for a young adult book, and the characters were very unique compared to some of the other books that I have read. I thought that Colin was slightly too fixated on his past and needed to get over all 19 Katherines much sooner. Hassan on the other hand, was so funny! I loved how honest and genuine he was to Colin. John Green's idea of incorporating many languages specifically Arabic into the dialogue was great! It made the story even funnier for me. However, if you don't understand Arabic, French or German, you tend to miss out on a few jokes and some topics might be unclear... Overall, it was a great read. I recommend it to anyone who wants a quick and funny read!

Have you read this book? Tell me what you thought of it in the comments below!

All The Bright Places Book Review!

Hello again,

I have spent the first couple of days of my term-break reading All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven and I thought that it would be about time to get back into blogging again. The recent published book is often said to be a mix between Eleanor and Park and the infamous, The Fault In Our Stars. The story is about a suicidal boy named Theodore Finch who happens to save Violet Markey from jumping off a building. They eventually fall in love but, it's not as straight-forward as it may seem.  You see, both characters fall into situations that shape the story as well as the characters. The unfortunate events, are what make the story so intriguing.

The Review
After seeing this book multiple times on Instagram, (readersdelite if you want to follow me) I had high expectations since everyone seemed to love the book so much. It was a very quick and easy read and was full of surprises that made you want to read on. There wasn't a chapter that felt boring or made you want to put the book down (which is always a good sign). I loved the way Niven made the story different from other books written on the same context. The dialogue between the two main characters was very well-written and you could sense all the emotions both of them would feel throughout the book. When I finished the book just last night, I was left amazed at what I had just read. I believe Jennifer Niven did a fantastic job in writing the book and I cannot wait to read more from her.

If you've read this book, tell me what you think in the comments down below!

20 Questions Tag!

So, it's been a while since I last posted... Schools been really busy as well as other things but, I thought it would be fun to do a tag! As you can probably tell from the title, it's the 20 questions tag. Enjoy!

1.Thing you cannot leave the house without?

Water
2.Favorite brand of makeup?

Benefit

3.Favorite Flowers?

Roses.
4.Fav clothing stores?

H&M for sure!
5.Fav perfume?

Someday By Justin Bieber
6.Heels or flats?

Both, but I usually go for flats.
7.Do you get good grades?

I try my hardest. Sometimes I succeed, sometimes I don't :/
8.Fav colors?

Purple and blue
9.Do you drink energy drinks?

No way!
10.Do you drink juice?

Yes, I love it. Especially mango and guava juice.
11.Do you like swimming?

Only when I'm not forced to do laps. Otherwise, I dread it!
12.Do you eat fries with a fork?

Nope.
13.Whats your fav moisturizer?

Anything that keeps my skin moisturised, I'm currently using Nivea's Rich Nourishing Body Moisturiser and Vaseline.
14.Do you want to get married later on in life?

I think so.
15.Do you get mad easily?

Yes, I'm very stubborn so that causes me to get angry and frustrated really fast.
16.Are you into ghost hunting?

No.
17.Any phobias?

Insects and sometimes being away from home.
18.Do you bite your nails?

No, never have.
19.Have you ever had a near death experience?

Yes, it was along time ago.
20.Do you drink coffee? 
I can't stand the smell of it!

I hope you enjoyed the tag! Sorry for the lack of posts but please leave suggestions in the comments on what posts to do next!

* I got this tag from another website, I haven't come up with the questions*

How To Stick To Your New Years Resolutions!

How to Stick to New Years Resolutions

Every year, I set myself with New Years resolutions to complete/obtain throughout the year. However, things are easier said than done especially when we have no control over it. Last year I set myself a goal of winning a medal in a sports competition in school (keep in mind, I have gotten one before, but it was plastic). Of course, being the shy-ish person I am, I didn't participate in any sport events in and out of school. In fact, I stayed home when there were sport carnivals going on for the whole day because I thought it was a waste of the day. Now, someone please tell me how on earth was I supposed to obtain and win that gold medal if I ran away from every opportunity possible. This is what I'm going to talk about today. How to achieve your New Years goals!

This year, my New Years resolution was to do more exercise outside of school. Well, in all fairness it wasn't more exercise, it was to start  doing it on my own rather than in my school's Physical Education class. At first, I didn't really know what to do. I planned to run every weekend at 6am in the morning and at 6am on holidays too, but that only lasted about a day. A few weeks later, my mother mentioned a Teens Fitness class in my local recreation centre. My first reaction was 'Nope, not doing that with a bunch of strangers.' But then I realised, not many people would be interested in a fitness class and would actually join a sport team/group. I then thought about asking one of my friends to join, and sure enough she said yes! We started two Tuesdays ago and boy, it was tiring! There only ended up being about 6 other people excluding my friend and I. We didn't really talk to anyone because we were all busy with the machinery but it was really fun. By joining a club, you are forced to go (especially if you have to pay for it) and accomplish your goals! So next time you have the opportunity to join a club, just do it!

 

To my future self!

Today was my first day back at school. I thought it would be a nice idea to set myself a 'questionnaire' to answer at the end of the school year. Let us begin...

How was the fitness class?

Are you still doing the same job you were last year?

How long is your hair now?

Did you cut it again?

What is your fashion style now?

How much makeup do you wear?

Do you look any different?

Did you get a new phone?

New job?

Made any new friends?

How was your first day at school?

Did you pass your math exam?

By pass I mean did you get above 65%

What's your favourite food?

How's life?

Still on Tumblr?

What time do you go to bed now?

Do you study every couple of days?

Are you happy?

Do you know who -A is?

Do you still talk to your best friend of 6 years?

Have you done any activities outside of school with friends?

Have you met new people?

Are you still your worried self?

Are you any taller?

Do you still have hyper-pigmentation?

How many books did you read this year?

Any new shows you started?

Did you end up moving house?

How's school?

How's your blog? Did you get any companies reaching out to you?

Are you still in the same school?

Morning or Night showers?

Summer or Winter?

What do you like to eat for lunch at school?

Did you get your learners license on the first try?

What was your average grade for the end of the year?

Did you find a new hobby?

Did you play a sport?

Did you participate in the sport carnivals for school?

Did you see Pitch Perfect 2 in the cinema?

Are you shy?

Is your favourite colour still blue?

Did you get new converse?

How many bottles of water do I drink on average each day?

Did you improve in piano?

Are your teachers any good this year?

Did you get new furniture for your room?

Are you confident?

Do you still watch YouTube videos?

So that's it! These were the 50 random questions I am going to answer half way through the year and at the end of the year (2015). Feel free to do your own questions on your blog too!

What's For Breakfast?

Breakfast has always been my favourite meal of the day. Partially because I get to eat cereal and also because it makes me feel awake and ready for the day. If I'm in a rush, I'd usually eat some flavoured yogurt (I typically go for mango or strawberry flavoured yogurt!). However, when I'm on school break, I love to eat cereal and granola! This filling breakfast is energy packed and very substantial! 

1 - My Favourite bowl to eat cereal in. Purchased from Target.

2 - Weetbix is a very popular choice for breakfast here in Australia! I buy the high-bran box so I can pack as much nutrients into my body as possible. I usually go for 2 'blocks' a day. Keep in mind that Weetbix is very bland on its own and also very filling!

3 - Since Weetbix is bland, I love topping it with granola. The granola I've been using is the Jordan's granola with dried Blueberries and Cranberries. This adds a crunch and a pop of flavour to your cereal.

4 - I personally prefer cereal with milk rather than without it. I usually just use low fat milk and it's perfect with this combo.

I hope you enjoyed reading about what I typically eat for breakfast. Let me know what you eat in the comments below, I'd love to here from you! 

Seeing Tanya Burr On Live Television!

After a huge surprise announced by Tanya Burr herself on Twitter, I was so excited to see Tanya this morning on Live Television. 

Tanya was invited to speak on the daily show featured on channel 7, Sunrise, to talk about her success on YouTube and her book titled 'Love, Tanya' coming out on January 29th in bookstores. I was especially excited for her appearance because it's not something we see everyday on television. The whole famous YouTuber on live TV situation, and she was flown out from England to Australia!  Tanya has had quite a successful career from blogging to YouTube to launching her own lip glosses, nail polish and false eyelashes. With a book coming out just next week, there is nothing she hasn't yet conquered. Despite me being so excited about her guest appearance, I found that the apperance was rather short. It didn't focus on all her success and didn't talk about the book at all! Nonetheless, I still enjoyed seeing her on live TV in Australia. 

The show hosts, Sam and Nat, asked her a series of questions about future fashion trends, makeup favourites and tips, as well as her tips on how to be successful. Tanya was very calm whilst speaking and handled the exciting situation very proffessionally. 

Congratulations once again to Tanya Burr on her success in the Beauty Industry and preorder her book, 'Love, Tanya' online!

Herbal Essences None Of Your Frizzness Conditioner Review.

If you've got super frizzy hair you'd understand the struggle I face daily with my hair. It's always knotty and dry and just a big fluff ball! I purchased this product in the hopes that it would put an end to my frizzy, unmanageable hair. Let's look into what it claims to do and whether it actually worked.

Price: $6.28 (AUD) 

Size: 300mL

For: Dry/Frizzy/Damaged Hair

Packaging: Bright orange and green bottle. Traditional Herbal Essences packaging and product comes out easily.

Claims: All day frizz control, sumptuously soft conditioner and protection against humidity.

My thoughts: I love it! It has significantly reduced my frizz and leaves my hair much softer and smells amazing. The scent is alittle overpowering when you smell the product from the bottle but it's much more subtle when you actually use it in your hair. The scent is a lovely Mandarin scent with Pearl Extract which lingers all day. I've had the product for about 2 months and I've just finished it. Hmm, not bad! I must say though, this product hasn't totally eliminated frizz from my hair, but it's much better than before. I am definitely repurchasing it! 

Let me know in the comments what you thought of the product if you've tried it before. 

Pretty Little Liars: Mona's Funeral - Best Dressed.

My all-time favourite show, Pretty Little Liars, has just returned after its long yearly break. Every year, it's a struggle to wait months without a new episode, and this year was no different. With the show returning for its second half of season 5 (aka 5B), I'm sure everyone including myself, was expecting a lot to happen this winter premiere. Of course, the cast and producers/writers killed it, literally. Sorry if your not caught up to date but, our beloved Mona is dead. This picture I have inserted shows the four liars just outside the church, where the tragic funeral of Mona Vanderwaal was taken place. All four dresses were chosen to fit and reflect each character's personality and style. Hana's (far left) style is very edgy so, the leather acid wash dress is perfect for her. Emily (middle left) is the sporty one out of the liars. The sleeveless dress reminds me of a basketball shirt as they are both sleeveless and form-fitted. Aria (middle right) in my opinion has a bizarre style. She opts for prints and mixes patterns and different textures to form an outfit. Even though I think her style is bizarre, it actually looks great! The ruffles on her dress that cross over her chest really demonstrate her love of mixing different textures together. Finally, Spencer (far right) is the more vintage, 'take me back to 1801' type of girl. She is naturally very smart and always dresses more casual than the others. Although, this is not the first time we have seen her sporting a plaid outfit, it still looks great on her! So. who is best dressed out of the four? It's a very tough decision, but I'll have to go with Emily. The fact that her dress is so simple, with just a hint of detailing at the bottom, is definitely what made it more appropriate for a funeral. The soon to be college students all looked wonderful though, nonetheless.
So, I've shared my opinion, I want to hear yours down below in the comments. What dress out of the four looked best?

P.S Picture belongs to show, not me.

Get The Look: Taylor Swift

Do you ever randomly search up celebrities to get fashion inspiration? I do that a lot! Today, I have decided to use one of my fashion icons, Taylor Swift, for my first ever "Get The Look". If I had to descibe her style in three words, it would be preppy, smart and simple. She always looks polished and fresh which is why she is one of my fashion icons. So, enough with the introduction. Let's begin...

Taylor is sporting a short, long-sleeved dress with a Peter Pan collar. The dress has white stripes as accents along the collar and sleeves. She is also wearing black, suede-looking ballet flats with her simple leather black bag that has gold clasps on the top of the bag. I have found very similar items from various stores to help "Get The Look".

Dress:

http://www.boohoo.com/day-dresses/robin-contrast-collar-dress/invt/azz34667

Robin Contrast Collar Dress- Boohoo. Retails at $30 (AUD)

Handbag:

http://www.zara.com/us/en/sale/woman/handbags/hand-bags/mini-city-bag-c541583p2151061.html

Mini City Handbag - Zara. Retails at $98.23 (AUD)

Ballet Flats: 

http://www.therapyshoes.com.au/all-flats/aruba-suede-black.html

Aruba Faux Suede- Black - Therapy. Retails at $29.95 (AUD)

I hope you have enjoyed this "Get The Look." If you have any celebrities you want me to cover on this segment, please comment down below or tweet me @englishr_ose  the celebrity and I will try my best to find their look.

*disclaimer, all these pictures are not mine. You can find them on the websites listed above. I didn't take the picture of Taylor Swift however, I did assemble this collage myself.*

This or That Tag!

Hey everyone! Today, I thought it would be fun to do tag on here. This is mainly a beauty and fashion tag, but regardless of the topic, I hope you enjoy learning a bit more about me! My answers are the words in bold and I just want to put a disclaimer out there. I didn't write the tag, I got it from the website I have mentioned below! All that I have done was just answering the questions. enjoy!

http://tagsforeverybody.blogspot.com.au

Questions:

Makeup:
blush or bronzer blush
lip gloss or lipstick lipstick
eye liner or mascara mascara
foundation or concealer foundation
neutral or color eye shadow neutral
pressed or loose eye shadows pressed
brushes or sponges brushes

Nails:
OPI or china glaze OPI
Long or short In between
Acrylic or natural Natural
Brights or darks Darks
Flower or no flower No flower

Body:
perfume or body splash Perfume
lotion or body butter Lotion
body wash or soap Body Wash
lush or other bath company Lush

Fashion:
jeans or sweat pants Jeans
long sleeve or short Long Sleeves
dresses or skirts Dresses
stripes or plaid Stripes
flip flops or sandals Sandals
scarves or hats Scarves
studs or dangly earrings Studs
necklaces or bracelets Necklaces
heels or flats Flats
cowboy boots or riding boots Riding Boots
jacket or hoodie Hoodie
forever 21 or charlotte russe Forever 21
abercombie or Hollister Hollister
saks 5th or nordstrom Nordstrom

Hair:
curly or straight Wavy
bun or ponytail Ponytail
bobby pins or butterfly clips Bobby Pins
hair spray or gel Hair Spray
long or short Long
light or dark Dark
side sweep bangs or full bangs Side swept
up or down Down 

Random:
Rain or shine Rain
Summer or winter Winter
Fall or spring Fall
Chocolate or vanilla Vanilla

So that's it! I hope you enjoyed reading this tag and getting to knowa bit about me. Don't forget to comment down below telling me what other tags I should do next and thanks so much for reading!

Dove Invisible Dry Aerosol Deodorant

Today, I'm going to review Dove's Invisible Dry Spray Deodorant. I've been using it for about 4 months so I've got an idea of it's capabilities and whether it actually works or not. Let's look at what it claims to do; On the back it says, "Protect your clothes from annoying white marks and help prevent yellow stains on white clothes. Our unique dry formula was tested on 100 colors, from black to white and everything in between. With Dove's 1/4 moisturizing cream, it leaves your underarms even more beautiful."  It also says on the front that it protects you for 48h, it has 0% Alcohol and is an anti-perspirant deodorant. It's size is 100g/169mL which is pretty decent. It doesn't really have a fragrance, it just smells like powder. It comes in a spray can with easy light-weight packaging.

Here's what I think:

After using this product for a couple months, it's still not finished. There is about half the can left which is excellent because that means less money to spend! I used this after P.E class, in and out of school, before I went in the shower and before other various activities. I think the Deodorant does an excellent job with the 'invisible' component. The Deodorant has never transferred onto any of my clothes including black and doesn't leave white marks either. It prevents yellow staining like it claims on the back, but I don't think it keeps me dry for '48h' like it says to. For example, if I'm outside on a hot day walking around, it fails to keep me dry for more than an hour which really sucks. It also doesn't smell that pleasant, so it doesn't leave with a fresh smell and when you sweat through it, you smell kind of gross too! My underarms aren't any softer than they were before so, their moisturising didn't work.

Would I buy it again:

I would buy it, if that was one of the few things left at the store from deodorants. However, I think I will keep looking for a better one for now.

Have you tried this Deodorant? Tell me what you think down below!