Greetings beauties! As you can tell from the title, I will be taking a look at my favourite looks from this year’s Malta Fashion Week and Malta Fashion Awards. As usual, these are my honest opinions and doesn’t mean that anyone not mentioned didn’t have a great outfit because, to be honest with you, I loved them ALL. Many wore local designers and that alone really made it tough for me to pinpoint a few outfits.
Also, make sure you follow these amazing local bloggers/influencers because their influence on me is significant. They keep me going ❤
Hello everybody and welcome back to my blog! Happy September first off; for me September means going back to work and gearing up for Autumn and eventually my favourite season ever, WINTER! This is something I mentioned in my August Favorites post a few days ago, and it’s about seeing indie rock band Kaiser Chiefs live.
So without further ado, let’s get started on this short yet meaningful storytime!
You might think I’ve gone barking mad, but yes. I was in a music video! It may have been a few seconds, but I was. My name was written and everything! I was super excited since I was asked to be a part of it, and kept my mouth shut on my Page and Instagram to give you all a surprise! Read on for an account of this experience.
April has come to a close, which means we get to see what my month was like! Usually, I jot down three goals with hopes to achieve them, or highlight an event that took place, but this month was uneventful apart from two occasions, so instead of three goals I’ll be listing to.
I’ve lived on the island of Malta my whole life. That’s over two decades, which is a pretty long time if you ask me. Throughout this time, I’ve learnt a lot on my country: the language, the history, the mysteries, the good, the bad and the plain jaw-dropping amazing. This post is a quick overview and guide on my home country, and ultimately why it’s the most beautiful gem in Europe, if not the world.
I led a normal childhood, as far as I can remember. I was the imaginative, creative weirdo who loved her imaginary friends and playing soccer. I had really good friends of both genders, played well with everyone and the teachers mostly loved me. However, I always had the same problem: I thought too little about consequences of my actions, but was preoccupied with what people taught of me: always was and probably always will be.
I had a normal, happy childhood
There was nothing weird with my family. My parents are your average, strict hard-working parents who wanted the best for their children, and my older sister was… well… an older sister. She means well, I know, but sometimes she can be a bit harsh. But in a good sisterly way, I’m sure.
Fast forward to when I turned eleven: when the problems started. I was moved to all-girls secondary (high) school. I had no friends except for one a year above me (who’s still my best friend to this day… TEN YEARS LATER!), and I always sat with my sister during free periods. I had acne, low self-esteem and a reputation for being an outcast. I went from playing and talking to everyone to being left out, getting picked last for team work and talking to nobody but my sister and my best friend. During secondary school, I used to think I had depression, but brushed it off. The idea never stuck. Me, former class clown, depressed?! Nah!
I only ever liked three subjects at school: English, Italian and French. Having three languages was no walk in the park. I loved writing stories in English and present them to my teachers, who all told me the same thing: “You have talent”. I used to hate my French teacher for the two years that I had her, and never did my homework. She told me I’d fail, but I always got good marks in French. Italian was a different story. We were a tight-knit group, and I still sometimes talk to some of them when I see them around.
Also during this time I was bullied. The names were endless: weirdo, strange, Shrek, ugly. I was also called names for listening to rock music and always being gloomy. But that’s how I was. They’d never understand the consequences of their words.
In June 2011, I lost my uncle to cancer. It was one of the saddest days of my life. Despite not being too close with him, he always had nothing but wise words of wisdom to tell me and my sister. The day he died I was sick, in bed, studying his favourite subject: the French Revolution. I dedicated my History exam to him… didn’t go so well. I got an E. Sorry, Uncle. I still love you.
That year, in October, came the saddest day of my life: losing my grandfather. My hero, the greatest man to ever enter my life. He was smart, funny, a good man all in all: the person I aspired to become when I was older. I spent that day just staring without a focus on things. I was so sad that all I did when I went home was stare at the ceiling, remember the good old days with him. The laughter, sadness and wisdom we shared together. Losing him left me devastated and unable to cope.
Losing my hero left me devastated
That led me to a downward spiral. I’d call my mum, crying that I hated everyone and everything, that I was alone and no one would miss me. This left her a little worried, but she brushed it off as a phase, simple sadness or something of that sort. 2011-2012 were the worst years of my life. My grades were plummeting; I had just two friends and being single didn’t help at all. I thought nobody wanted to be with me, or even liked me. I hid it all: the pain, the sadness, being lonely and alone. I hid it like it was nothing. And I was good at it. I good at making people think I was okay.
Fast forward three years. I was still sad, constantly tired, didn’t enjoy the things I used to love—reading and watching series—and my self-esteem was ever so low.
I hid my sadness very well
During that time, however, something did change: I started seeing someone. As he plays a role in this, we’ll call him X. X was smart, charming, a fellow animal lover and mature. I was instantly in love. We were both Beatles fans, and having met for the first time on John Lennon’s birthday made the relationship extra special. I was working as a secretary, and was not happy with my job. X encouraged me to call someone for help. Something I wanted to do for ten years… and it happened. I called my psychologist, Dr G, and set up my first appointment for December 2015. Also during that time, I went to see a doctor, and told him about my health issues. He told me to take a blood test, because it might have been thyroid issues, and if they came out negative, chances are I have depression. And, lo and behold…
The tests came out negative.
I had depression. It all just got real now. After ten years, I was finally diagnosed.
Soon enough, things with X were going sour. He’d be encourage me to do thigs the hard way—go hard or go home, he’d tell me in his own way—like putting on make-up, changing my style, moving out, not listen to my parents and much more. X would tell me he means well and cares about my wellbeing, which for him meant cutting my family off. Unfortunately, being blinded by my love for him, I listened to him. I spent about three months not talking to my family.
Things started getting worse, and one day, he just told me that it was better to stay away from him. I spent the next three days in hospital, crying for him, crying for dear life, with my mother by side. Oh, mother, if it wasn’t for you then, I’d probably have killed myself. She came with me to every doctor’s appointment, kissed me goodnight and checked up on me constantly. I felt stupid for having cut her off of my life because of X. Stupid and foolish and sad at the same time.
And finally we come to the present:
I’m seeing a specialist every four weeks to overlook my progress
My Spotify probably says more about me than anything else, even this whole blog. I listen to music on Spotify every chance I get (poor old CDs, just sitting there, waiting to be played). So let’s begin our journey into the labyrinth that is my taste in music… and also myself.
Rock music
I’m a rock chick. Always have been, always will be. I have any type of rock music, from old school to modern, hard to soft. Zeppelin, Queen, Journey are my top three at the moment.
The Beatles
People who know me will know this is a no-brainer. I love The Beatles with all my heart. They have helped me with my self-esteem ages before the anxiety kicked in. I have all their songs in my playlist because, well, why not?
Guilty Pleasures
Starting from cheesy Eurovision tunes and ending with Ginuwine’s ‘Pony’ and Kelis’ ‘Milkshake’. Need I say more?
Today’s Top Hits
Ariana Grande, Jennifer Lopez, Nick Jonas and loads more. These are just to name a few favourites.
Childhood Throwbacks
S Club 7, Backstreet Boys and Spice Girls are amongst my favourite childhood acts of all time.
Demi Lovato
She deals with mental health like me, so listening to her is a must. Her music really speaks to me.
Love Songs
Whether I’m feeling the love or not, love songs is a definite in my playlist. Ranging from old to modern, I have it all. (Stay tuned for a future post regarding songs to play at your wedding!). most of them, if you must know, are by Phil Collins, god of all love songs.
So this was my sweet, short and simple post about what kind of music I listen to basically. So let me know in the comments; what type of music are you jamming to right now? And what type of music do you listen to in general? That’s it from me, see you on the flip side!
I’ve been slacking on posts, I know. I have no excuses apart from procrastination. Big time procrastination. So as my comeback, I decided to write about my bag essentials. As a disclaimer, I’d like to point out that these are things I have in my bag; this is not an essentials bible.
Nail Files
Broken or chipped nail? No problemo! These printed emery board by Dirty Works are the perfect fix for better looking nails!
Pen & Notepad
I’m a writer, and get inspired everywhere I go. So a notebook and pen are always carried around with me. The ones I’m using are by Gorjuss, and they actually are gorgeous!
Magazine
Whenever I’m stuck on the bus in traffic, a good read is always a good company. I’m currently reading Glamour Magazine with Reese Witherspoon on the cover.
Sunglasses
Where I live is sunny sunny sunny, so a pair is always in my bag. I’m currently obsessed with these cat-eye sunglasses from River Island!
Tweezers
I carry these with me because… well, you can never know when you need an eyebrow fix. The ones I use are these slanted ones by Dirty WOrk (can you tell I’m obsessed with this brand?)
Nail Clipper
Because my nails suck, and if one is chipped or broken, then off they all go! I use Ms Manicure’s nail clipper with the grip so it’s slippery-free.
Lip Balm
Since the weather here is humid and very dry, lips often get dry and chipped in a blink of an eye. Pearly Shine by Nivea is the perfect lip balm for those dry lips, so pucker up ladies!
Hand Cream
Yas, ma’am! Like I said, with this weather we’re having, your skin is bound to get dry, so I use this hand cream with shea butter, which I got from H&M, and I haven’t used anything since.
Compact Mirror
Obviously, you need to check yourself before you wreck yourself (sorry, got carried away there). I use this cute one from Katty Miyoko
It’s been a while since my last post, so I decided to treat you all with a mini Boohoo and New Look haul. Let’s start off with Boohoo!
First thing I got was this beautiful dress with bell sleeves. I actually thought the colour in the picture looked more grey than khaki, but when I received the dress and tried it on I thought it looked gorgeous in khaki
Another thing which I got from Boohoo is this drop-dead gorgeous short sleeved playsuit which I got in berry. it has pockets and came with a belt. Despite being a size too big, it was a little smug on the sides, but I absolutely love it.
Next up are the items I got from New Look.
First thing I got is this cute clutch bag which I will be wearing for a wedding very soon. It took me a while to find the perfect clutch bag… until I saw this one and fell completely in love with it.
I also got something I’d been looking for for AGES, which are these shorts that go down to the kneecaps.
My ~star buy~ were these cute butterfly fairy lights which looks stunning and magical when lit up. I wanted to change up my room and got these fairy lights to decorate a little.
So that was my mini haul for today. Stay tuned for more hauls similar to this, and hope to see you again very very soon. Bye!
Honestly Claire 