How to be Happy Being Single in the Summer

Hi everyone,

It's summer and lets face it there are couples everywhere but fear not, being single can actually be pretty awesome. I'm going to share with you some things to avoid to ensure you still have fun.

Before we get started a little disclaimer I am not expert and even after reading and following these rules you are still miserable and bitter - I'm sorry! 

1. Couples
I'm not saying avoid all couples, obviously. Some couples are hilarious and positive and bring best out of you. I'm talking about those couples that make you feel like shit, the ones that greet you with sad moon face or talk to you as if you less accomplished in life. No, no, no we don't need that. If they make you feel miserable every time you see them, stop seeing them - done!

2. Exes
It might seem like a good idea at the time, and you might try to convince yourself it wasn't that bad - *sigh* ...Back up! Its like starring in your own version of Groundhog Day, any attempt to continue it is futile. However we're only human, so just remember why it didn't work in the first place.

3. Depressing Single People
If you want to be a dynamic singleton you need to hang out with other sassy singles. Try not to give too much time to those depressing needy people, it could kill your vibe.

4. Internet Dating
The internet may be a fun and amazing way to meet new people, but lets face it - its a little sad too. The fabulous, single, intriguing version of you does not retire from the universe so easily. Don't become a home hermit!

5. Routine
Work, Home, Eat Repeat. Ok so we all fall victim to that pattern but where possible doing different and spend the day with different people. Having variety in your circle of peeps is never going to be a bad thing.

More importantly you should be happy in your own skin and remember to smile 

I hope you enjoyed list of tips for singles at summer, if you've had a different experience or have other tips/rules please share in the comments :)

Thanks,

Faye 

Cool Apps You Should Know

Hi everyone,

I wanted to share with you a few apps that I absolutely love. Like most people I'm slightly obsessed with my phone and tablet, I'm always checking for new apps to try and experiment with.

Being the bargain hunter that I am all these apps are completely free! So without further adieu, here are a few of my very favourite apps that you should have!

Money Tracker
Seriously, this quickly becoming my favourite app for keeping track of my money ins and outs. Using a simple layout it allows you to create folders and categories, so you see where it all goes and where you could make savings! Perfect, right!

Duolingo
Google Translate is great but the long term goal is to speak all those languages yourself. Duolingo is convenient education tool and cost absolutely nothing. And is great if your into travelling or simply just want to learn something new, plus is fun. 

Show Box
This is amazing! I don't always have time to watch latest of Empire or Games of Thrones but using this app its doesn't matter. All the episodes and movies are there in abundance, which of course makes me a very happy bunny. Definitely one of my favourite apps ever!!!

7 Minute
This app has just become part of my daily routine. I really like this app because its not too light and not too ridiculous that I want to give up. I feel this right amount of push for a beginner and you can work it in a way that works for you. 

8 Tracks
This app is basically a collation of different playlist created by other user or yourself. What I really like about it is that it doesn't have those annoying adverts that YouTube has and the more you listen to playlists, it will start to suggest playlist for you. And so far the suggestions have been spot on! A must have app on tablet or phone.

Hope you guys enjoy the apps! I'd love to hear about all of your favourites in the comments down below!

Take care x

Birthday Wishes

Hi everyone,

I should have post this a month ago but you know me; might take a  while but I get there.

Well there goes another year... dam it gets faster every year. As you know birthday's are a time of celebration and thankfulness (well most of the time it is).

Even though our faces are cut off I quite like this picture

Okay so I have a small confusion to make I did not have a party for my birthday... nobody loves me :-( lol only joking, thinking of one next year ;-)

 My birthday was pretty simple it terms of things to do, but it was still special for me. I spent the majority of it with my sister goofing around, eating yummy food and pampering ourselves at a beauty salon. Then meeting up with family in the evening. My sister was quite sweet, although she can a pain sometimes, she went out her way to make me smile :)

Here's a picture with our full faces. Big thanks to her for giving me should a lovey day.

We had a food a at really place called Havet, which is a smart Turkish-Cypriot venue with contemporary styling, serving hot/cold meze and chargrilled fare. For a local place I was pleasantly surprised the food was as good as it was, yet still be a reasonably price.

We went for the King Prawns with spicy rice and Monkfish shish with mixed leaf salad. King Prawns are one of my favourite things to eat, so I knew that was a safe bet. It was delicious, I easy could have eat them all day. But this was my first time trying Monkfish...wow so good. If I was going to go pescetarian this would be definitely be on my shopping list, its meaty, fulling and not too 'fishy'. Also if your easily embarrassed, do not tell them it's your birthday and you have cake, they will play Stevie Wonder, sing and light the candles for you in front of the whole restaurant. I however loved every second of it lol

My most attractive face lol :D

So I welcome my new year. A more grown up me, please please bring me happiness, joy and love, and maybe my future husband pretty please!

Hope you having a good day, take care x

Baby Shower Gift Idea - Onesie Bouquet

Hey everyone,

I think there comes a point in every women's life when you walk pass the aisle and this feeling of wonder, joy and love washes over you. Baby grow in hand it seems so easy to imagine the frantic kicking of an excitable child. The cute suits, adorable dresses and fluffy hats have suddenly become a black hole that you can't help but say 'Aww' at.

No guys! This is not an announcement post and I'm not just being broody... well I am bit. But I guess I was caught up in the excitement of new life and the tomorrow. Later this year I will be meeting a few new members of the family, so I thought it would be nice to share a few treasures and ideas. Whether your expecting or perhaps you have a Baby Shower to go to, I hope you find this helpful.

If you're in your 20-30's chances are you have friends that are starting to get married and have families. This is an expensive time in our lives because not only are we trying to start lives and families of our own, but we want to give a nice gift to our friends without breaking the bank.

We'd all like to give gifts that are most importantly useful, but also gifts that will not leave us broke (baby stuff is crazy expensive). But at the same time we don't want to be cheap either as these are good friends. So it time to get creative.

I've seen some very elaborate Nappy Cakes but that seems a but long winded, so I opted for a Baby Shower Onesie Bouquet - which is surprisingly simple to make. This video was nice and easy to follow.

All you need are:

• Flower pot
• Approximately 7 onesies and 9 wash cloths (Bibs, hats and socks can also be used)
• Large popsicle sticks 
• Artificial leaves
• Floral tape

Impress your friends and Mum to be with this cute centerpiece.

Good luck x

Saving Money, Saving Shame

Hi everyone,

As some of you may know I love a bargain and saving money anyway I can, so you can imagine my delight when I came across this competition.

It all about sharing money saving tips! Whether its re-gifting unwanted to gifts or watering down the milk, every little really does count. Its so great to see people who share the same scrimping values I do, not to mention some of them are actually quite funny. 

This is the type of thing I would do for fun so the fact that its a prize draw competition and I could potentially win £1000 - Hack yeah!

I like to encourage you all to join in or if not have a peak at the cool tips posted by someone else. The Rules are super simple just;

1. FOLLOW @covered_mag on Twitter. 
2. WRITE your confession on a piece of paper, with your Twitter handle and the hashtag ‘#savingshame’ 
3. TAKE A PICTURE of you holding your confession
4. TWEET it to @covered_mag before 15:00 BST on Friday, 27 June, 2014.

So come on people let save some cash and have fun!

 Good Luck!

Keep it to your Selfie

It wasn't that long ago that the word 'selfie' wouldn't much to many people, but these days it has been pushed, rammed and punched into our faces. But its not all smiles and high angles? Well actually it is, the whole point to say to the world 'Look at me!'

According to Wikipedia: A selfie is a type of self-portrait photograph, typically taken with a hand-held digital camera or camera phone. Selfies are often associated with social networking, like Instagram.

(Picture: Daily Mail)

From macaque, to celebrities and even the Politicians are at it essentially just showing off. The reason it really bugs me; apart from the monkey (I like that one hehe) is do we really need to know what you're wearing? who your with? or where you are?....uh NO!

We already know you're successful and have attractive looking friends, you don't have to be so smug about it.

This hyper band wagon has turn 'Average Joe' vain boredom pics, into needy attempts to attract friends (or rather 'Likes'). Making it as uncool as taking pictures of old flip-flops. 

Look at them... desperate to fit in (Picture: Telegraph)

But there is light at the end of the iPhone lens, the 'No Make Up Selfie' campaign has raised an amazing amount of money and awareness for Cancer Research. Which is a wonderful thing that will help many, but has criticized of some women missing the point. Point being to get yourself Checked!

Pictures are meant to be fun, not an attempt to cool and boosty.

Christmas Jumper Day

Hi everyone,

Its that time of year, were we all cosy up wearing hats, scarves and of course jumpers!

Today is Christmas Jumper Day (#xmasjumperday).

That's right, those brightly coloured winter beauties need to come out! Whether yours is homemade or shop brought, you can wear them with pride for a good cause. If your in the UK you may have already noticed the sudden array of knitwear.

I decided to change things up a bit and went for the blue, plus this was the only jumper I could find that fit my extra long arms lol. It wasn't from anywhere in particular just a random stall, but the price and quality was good.

All of this is in aid of Save the Children. Your money could pay for nine sachets of oral re-hydration treatment for children suffering from deadly diarrhoea. To find out more about Save the Children be sure to check out the website http://www.savethechildren.org.uk Text WOOLLY to 70050 to donate £1.

Hope your well.

Take care x

Jamaican-me Laugh

Hey everyone,

Ha-ha, though I'd  make a little pun for you :)

What makes a Sunday afternoon a better Sunday afternoon? Answer; go to the park. Even better answer was to go to Brixton Splash or Crystal Palace Jamaica Day last Sunday.

Officially it was Jamaica's 51st Independence day on Tuesday 6th August 2013, but celebrations have been in full swing since last week.

Sadly I couldn't get to both in one day, so I choose to go to Crystal Palace. Crystal Palace Park was an old favourite of mine as a child; its changed a little bit, but still a really cool place to chill and enjoy the day. There was a great sense of pride in the air, everyone made an effort dressed in Jamaican colours, it felt so welcoming.

So what was going on?

There was some amazing live dance performances. Some of the dancers looked young, but they were so talented. You could tell the performance meant something to them, they looked so happy. I enjoyed watching these two (can't remember their name), I rarely see young people doing dancing like this - so this was a treat.

I'm not going to lie though, there was some parts I found slightly uncomfortable. Number one being the under 13yrs dance competition, what bothered me about it was the dancing itself. I don't think its right for young innocent children to be doing this 'cock up batty', 'jook gal',  'bruk it down' dance moves to a crowd of adults and big ass men. No, no, no not feeling that at all, what kind of messed up impression are we giving here?

Anyway… There where loads of stalls offering delicious Caribbean food, merchandise and arts and crafts. I love Caribbean art, so colourful and calming - its like it takes you to another world. And to top it off Steel pans, I love Steel Pans! I love the way they sound, the atmosphere they create and when I was younger I really used to enjoy playing them too.


Everybody will be eating all the chicken tonight lol

Naturally there was a hell of a lot of chicken, not 100% sure what the obsession is with it, but it really nice. Not dry and chewy, it was tender and well seasoned. Though, I'm more into fish these days but hey-hoo.

It was a really nice day for the whole family, there was even a funfair to keep the children busy. Various DJs for those who fancy a dance or just sit down at your picnic and nod your head. Whenever was 'your thing', there was plenty of room for you to enjoy. It was a happy atmosphere, no trouble just simple fun.

I might not able to afford a ticket to the Caribbean right now but this is a good start.

Hope your well.

Flipping Fun

Hey everyone,

Its Shrove Tuesday aka Pancake day, the day we all start beating with a fork because we can't find the whisk, have flipping competitions and even the odd race in the street!

Shrove Tuesday marks the last day before Lent, traditionally a period of abstinence, associated with clearing your cupboards of goods such as sugar, fats and eggs. It's commonly known as Pancake Day because it represents a good opportunity to use such ingredients ahead of the fasting period. 

As fun and easy as pancakes are to make I don't really make them throughout the year which is silly because they are so quick, fun and can go with anything!

Behold! My very first attempt of American style pancakes, I'm quite happy at how they have turned out. I wanted to try making American style pancakes just for a change, though i did make English ones too. But I won't show you pictures of that because its a bit boring. The recipe was easy to follow too, here's the link >>> Fluffy Pancakes

Berries, honey and lemon are probably my favorite toppings what's yours?

Clacton on Sea

Hey everyone,

How your summer been so far? The Olympics are well underway now, which is really cool because its bringing everyone together. For example the other day just to get a glimpse on the Men’s 100m (Mr. Bolt, under 10 seconds!) my cousin and I had to run into some random barbers. Which was only open at that time of night for everyone to watch their television lol. (Totally missed the 200m last night though *sigh*)

But that’s not what this post about. Due to the Olympics its quite difficult to take holiday, which is a bummer because its summer and I want to have fun! Anyways I thought it would to nice to visit the coast with the family, the lucky location was Clacton-on-Sea. I haven’t been there since I was a kid and nothing, nothing has changed, exactly the same as I remembered it. We caught it on a good day it wasn’t really busy so we had plenty on space top make as much noise as we wanted.

As always we totally over packed on food which meant we had to lug some food back. The sun was shining and the light sea breeze was blowing, all was good. Stresses and foolishness washed away in one brown wave, just being in a different setting makes everything feel better. Catching jokes with friends and family and just letting go. We messed around going on the most ‘uncomfortable rides ever’ and getting body art tattoos.



Me making the most of it in fat-ass sunnies haha



Seriously why is the water so brown, complete opposite to water in Dorset (check out my previous post for a look). Didn’t stop me from getting involved though, you know had to dip a toe lol.

Overall it was good finished off amazing fish’n’chips, don’t know why but they always taste better at the seaside *hmmmm*.But yeah this place has nothing on Durdle Door. The town part of it was a bit too sleepy and quiet for my liking – but maybe that’s the Londoner in me freaking out lol 

Roller Sunday

Hi everyone,

How are you on this beautiful spring day?

Yesterday the weather was grim but I was feeling so perky and upbeat, so I decided to do something new, Roller Disco! I know not exactly ‘new’ but its new to me I never been before and in London most of them have closed down. But with the sudden boom in skates and that tend,  their picking up again. I have a slight confusion I’ve always envied those people who ‘street skate’ they look so cool, they make it look so easy and they effortlessly cruise from pavement to road  in a smooth graceful glade. *Gosh, I’m getting all starry eyed just thinking about it* lol.

Yes, I did drop a lot LOL :D

So anyway Roller Disco was so much fun, this particular had a section cut off for beginners called ‘Boot Camp’ which I went to straight away. I have skated before but its been ages ago (I was about 7 years old) and I borrowed them from a friend) so I thought it best now to take the chance. Naturally there were those freaky super talented kids there doing all this ‘Cris-Cross' legged business and dance moves. Yeah… I’m definitely not on that next but by the end of the day I was a confident basic skater *woo-hoo*.

Hmm.. maybe by summer i could be one of the cool skater  guys

Have you guys ever been? How good are you?

Take Care x

Pancake Face

Hey everyone,

How’s it going? So I took a little break from blogging I thought I’d take some time off work and not tell anyone so I could be alone with my thoughts, and do all the things I normally don’t have time to do.

Yeah that did not work out, I totally forgot it was half term so I had to do my Aunty duties and spend time with the nephews. I’m so tired, that’s the one good thing about being an Aunty – you can give the kids back! LOL! Nah it wasn’t that bad, I did have fun it just took a lot of energy. 

we went from this to quite mild so quickly

On top of that between the boys and unpredictable English weather I got sick! *Capital B-OOO!* I was so grumpy, I was getting on my own nerves (if that’s even possible :S). Saying that though something about the snow, just turns me into a kid again I love it , so I probably asking to get sick *serves me right* lol

Anyhoo back to what I enjoy blogging, yesterday was Pancake day *woo hoo!*. As simple as they are to make seriously I can’t do it, but sister can and she loves making them so guess I’m sorted. I’d really like to try those American style pancakes one day, they look yummy, their all thick and stuff, with the syrup ohhh *drools*.

lol this looks so bad :D

So did you guys make any pancakes? And what do you like on them?

Bald Panda

Hey everyone,

Hope your all well.

The other day I thought today is the day I’m going to clear out my wardrobe, as annoying as it is we all got to do it so why not now right? So in I go, digging and pulling out clothes that to be honest haven’t seen the light of day in ages. And before I know it my room is a mess I can’t see my floor or bed just these colourful mountains of clothes and I’m less then half way in the wardrobe.

…Hmm I’m bored now and hungry... and look the girls  have invited me to dinner I can’t let them down right? …yeah these excuses went on for days and I still haven’t finished, some things are hiding in suitcases *shh…* lol :D

But its got to done, I have learned one good tip though BE HARSH, ask yourself when am I going to wear this? And when was the last time I worn it?

So I eventually got things in a decent order and its already getting messy again! Sigh…What was the point?

Look how happy I am with Panda Paul

I found these cute panda mittens though I wore them straight away 

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(the end of the day)

Wtf its BALD! Hair today gone tomorrow LOL

Oh well in a way I guess it makes them even more cute :)

Do you guys have any tips any cleaning the wardrobe? And how do you stay focused?

Starry Sky

Hi Guys,

Are you well? Did you have a good bonfire night? I hope so mine was a bit lame, I didn’t go to any displays or anything which is a real shame as I really like fireworks. Something about the colours and the loud sounds just feels like magic to me. I didn’t go because I felt silly and childish asking me friends to come with me, thinking about it now I shouldn’t felt that way and my friends probably would have come. But I remember going every year when I was younger I guess I was just feeling old. Also I got it into my head fireworks were for couples, which I guess is kind of true it is kind of romantic. Oh well... I stayed at home nursing a really frightened Kyzer  - bless him, he gets so scared. 

I used to love these as a kid :)

In other news for the first time in a while the news put a small smile on my face – yes I am a fan and I always will be!!

Happy Halloween!

Lost

Hey Guys,

This week has been pretty grey week to be honestly and not a lot has happened. But yesterday I decided to treat Kyz to a nice long night time walk. Where we came as a poster for a missing cat – there was nothing on it expect a fussy black and white picture and a number. After reading it I thought to myself how would I feel if Kyz went missing, what would I put on the poster? Do people even pay any attention to these poster anymore?

Hmmm… at work I was talking to a college about and he said people would look at the poster if it was advertise properly. Then he referred me to this site [click the link]

>>>>> Missing Missy<<<< (you have to read the email to get it)

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Hilarious!

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Although I hope it will never happen it’s definitely food for thought lol :D 

smiley face Kyz :)

Take care x

Durdle Door

Hi everyone,

After Grandma’s party everyone was really tired and feeling a bit low, so to make the most of the ‘summer’ weather myself and a few family members decided to go to the beach. But not the usual Brighton, South End etc. Because we all seen it before and to be fair most of my memories the water was brown, there were hard pebbles and it was freaking cold. Although I’m sure they’ve probably given it a nice clean by now but still…so we went to Durdle Door.

Isn't it great, I like this picture because its looks fake :) - its not!

Believe it or not this is the UK O_O

It’s not like a resort or anything so it was quiet and peaceful, there wasn’t shops and attractions it’s just a stunning piece of coast to mediate and relax. The water was beautiful and it was surprisingly warm the younger children puddle and myself and a few of the elder lot decided to tackle the cliff. Once we got up to the top…wow! I know this sounds cheesy but you just feel at peace with the world and really appreciate your life.

I would definitely go back, its took us a while to get there but it is SO worth it. As summer is nearly over I’ll try to find a beach closer to London that is a bit closer so more people can come.

Any recommendations?

80th

Hey guys,

How have you all been? I’m sorry I haven’t posted in a while I have been so busy, but where I could take pictures and make mental notes of what was happening to post in here later. For the life of me I can’t remember the days these things happened so bear with me.

I can’t remember if I mentioned it before but over the last few months myself and the family have been organizing a surprise party for my grandma’s 80^th birthday and there was so much to do! And because of amount of people expected most of my ‘running up and down’ was for food. Seriously the amount of chicken we had to buy, clean and season it completely put off chicken *well for now anyway*. Don’t get me started on the amount of fish…anyway enough talk of food I’m making myself hungry.

My aunty had a really old picture of grandma when she was younger however the picture was so old it was literally falling apart, so I took it and had it restored and blown up so we could make it a feature picture over her cake table. I am so happy with how it came out (they edited the picture though, because original had her friend). This cake was made by a family friend isn’t it gorgeous – Thanks Leeann

This was only one cake, Grandma had three! yes!  (^_-) d

The party itself was massive success grandma was so happy and she really had a great time, even at 3am she was still there dancing away. She her so happy made all the effort totally worth it. I’m going to miss her so much when she goes back to Jamaica.

Me and Grandma <3

I took last week off to sort the party things out, but also as it’s the school holidays I spent time with my nephews. I was given a fish tank by one of my aunts so they helped me clean and sort it out. We also did some baking  - awww they’re so cute, they really like it and really got involved. And where I a spare moment with stopped for ice-cream.

Hmm… what else…oh yeah I did some apple picking with my sister and boyfriend in my aunts garden, I know it sounds lame but I was actually a lot of fun, we fun finding weird looking apples that look like buttholes ^_^

Oh yeah the London Riots was an unexpected source of entertainment, some people are brave man. Looting shops with their bear faces haha all grinning in the camera and all sorts  - what fools! I’m not condoning the violence/looting but I do believe it (or something to that scale) needed to happen. It was the golden opportunity to address the problems/issues Londoners have suffered with for so long. I don’t agree with how the government and the police have handle things, if anything I think their current methods are making the divide in London worst, which will then lead to more crime. So yeah…2012 and the Olympics will be interesting.

…that’s all I can  really remember… how is your summer going so far?