Lorna Cole

So, it’s safe to say that it’s been a while since I’ve posted on here! The last time I posted I hadn’t even started university and now I’m sitting here, a few weeks into my Second Year.  I moved to Brighton last September and I love it. It was a place I was drawn to for years, so there wasn’t much deliberation once I knew there was a course I liked and so began my journey as a Media Studies student.  I’ve met so many new people in the past year and a bit and it’s probably been the busiest I’ve ever been. There are always things on in Brighton and I’ve definitely made the most of what it offers! Brighton has a crazy amount of pubs and whilst I can’t say I’ve visited them all I’ve definitely found some favourites and look forward to trying our new ones over this next academic year. Just recently my housemates and I went to a pub quiz at one of our local pubs which were great fun! Some of the other things I’ve got up to in the last year include karaoke, mini golf, an escape room,...

For this post, I was kindly gifted a Pick N Mix box from Panda Sweets to review but as with any gifted post, all opinions are my own. I'm also very pleased to say that you can use the code ' LORNA' for 15% off of anything on the Panda Sweets website until 31/7/2021!  I was really impressed by the amount of sweets you get in the box, it's pretty hefty at 1kg and is super affordable at only £7.49! Imagining getting anywhere near that amount for the same price at the cinema!! You get a great selection - including jelly/chewy/fizzy sweets, as well as some chocolate and marshmallows so there should be something for everyone. The fizzy sweets are my personal favourites so I definitely didn't share any of them though! As there is such a huge range there are probably sweets you haven't tried before, I remember some sweets that intrigued me when getting pick n mix but I always ended up sticking to my favourites! The contents of this box is a surprise so you get the cha...

Well, my 22nd birthday wasn't quite the Taylor Swift style celebration I had in mind but I still did a few things to celebrate!   My sister's birthday is a little over a week before mine so on the weekend between we set up an afternoon tea style lunch. I've seen a lot of people sharing their Afternoon Tea/Bridgerton inspired spreads recently and thought it would be a nice way to celebrate. I'm very glad we decided to do before the weather turned as it rained all day on my actual birthday! We also played cards and a few board games which is always a great way to spend the evening in my opinion! If anyone is planning to set up their own afternoon tea then I know you can order hampers online which would make a great gift. Or like us, you can buy whatever you fancy! Here's a list of the things we had: scones jam clotted cream mini sausage rolls mini cheese & onion rolls strawberries raspberries chocolate cake coffee & walnut cake  biscuits pot of tea I was hopin...

I love any sort of tag post but a festive one is even better. A big thank you to Anna-Alina for tagging me, you can check out her post here ! Christmas tree. Real or fake? Is a Christmas tree a must-have for winter holidays and creating the Christmas atmosphere or is it not necessary for you? I love going to pick out our Christmas tree each year, we usually get it around the start of December so it marks the official start of the Christmas season for me. I think fake trees can look great but I'd miss the smell of a real one! Holiday drinks. Coca Cola, eggnog or hot chocolate? Or maybe something different? What you drink on Christmas? Definitely hot chocolate, I tried Costa's Chocolate Orange one recently which was great! We always make hot chocolate on Christmas Eve whilst watching a Christmas film so it always makes me feel super festive. What are your own Christmas traditions? One tradition I enjoy is getting new pyjamas on Christmas eve and I also love playing board games du...

As I don’t want to force a favourites post every month, I thought I’d just do a roundup of things I’ve been liking when I feel like it! As I’ve not posted as regularly I feel like I’ve got a good selection to share today! Travel   As I mentioned in my previous  post , I spent a week away in Northumberland at the end of summer. We were pretty lucky with the weather so managed to spend a couple of days at the beach and did a lot of walking just to spend time outside. We also visited a cove in Dunbar, Scotland that I’d spent a lot of time at whilst on holiday 10 years ago, it brought back a lot of memories! We also went swimming, played mini-golf a couple of times and just explored the surrounding areas. I was able to take a lot of photos because the views were so nice and it was definitely good to get away and visit somewhere new!  Netflix   I’m always watching things on Netflix, a lot of the time its things I love and re-watch but it’s also great t...

As of today, I've officially been blogging for 2 years which seems so strange to say! I feel like I've shared a fair amount but thought I would do a get to know me better post as it's a bit of fun!  Favourite film?  I can never seem to choose just one favourite but I'm pretty into mystery thriller type films - especially ones with a twist! For instance, I love things like Shutter Island and Inception, anything that keeps you guessing or has an ambiguous ending. I also enjoy a good comedy, one that springs to mind is Hot Fuzz as it also has that twist element.  What is my Zodiac sign and do I agree with it? Well, I was born on March 10th, making me a Pisces. I wouldn’t say I’m overly clued up about horoscopes and astrology, I do find it interesting though! In terms of me relating to the general description of a Pisces, there are some aspects that describe me well for sure. In particular, the creative, charismatic, intuitive and adaptable traits desc...

Well, once again January has lasted twice as long as every other month does (seriously though, why does it always feel like that?) Anyway, I thought I'd share the things I've enjoyed during the start of 2019.  Creativity  After receiving a new camera for Christmas, I've enjoyed taking photos whenever I can. I definitely need to get out and about to test it properly but it's been great just experimenting! I'm really hoping that we get some good snow because I'd love to get some great photos of that, I always think it looks so pretty! However, if all else fails, you can always count on a good sunset for a perfect photo opportunity.  Food I feel like I have to mention all leftover snacks from Christmas firstly as it's always a good day when you remember you've got a whole chocolate orange to eat still. I also am a big fan of fudge in general and hadn't had any for ages so was pleased when my mum picked up some of the Rydale Farm G...

I'm not one to make resolutions particularly but I do think it's quite useful to make some goals, though it doesn't necessarily have to be January!  →   Start a Creative Arts degree - This year I plan to begin studying with the OCA, this is part of the University for the Creative Arts but you can do it from home which will allow me to continue working as well! →  Work with more companies - I've had a couple companies reach out to me already this year so I'm really looking forward to working with more brands to create content. → Create a list of book ideas - Writing a book is on my bucket list and although it's not something I plan to do yet, I would like to think of some potential ideas and themes. → Guest posts - I've done a few guest posts previously and would like to do more to build up my portfolio. I'd also like to contribute to places like Buzzfeed since it's a platform I use frequently. → 4000 followers on Twitter - I'm al...

December is always a busy month and the one I look forward to most! So, I thought I should share some of the things I enjoyed over the month, which seemed to fly by! Experience  Now, of course, I had to mention Christmas as a whole since it is the thing that makes December my favourite time of the year! I enjoy the whole lead up to Christmas and spend most of my time watching Christmas films, listening to Christmas music and eating a lot of food! It’s also really lovely to see family and Christmas Day itself was amazing too. I was lucky to receive some brilliant gifts which you can check out here ! Film We finally went to see Mary Poppins Returns which completely lived up to my expectations, I'm a big Dinsey fan and new I had to watch this when they announced it. I loved the new story and thought Emily Blunt was absolutely perfect for the role, Lin-Manuel Miranda was also incredible! I also think that the nods to the original were really well done and it’s definitely a ...

 I was recently tagged in The Christmas A-Z Tag by the lovely Gemma, you can check out her post  here  or head over to her blog:  Hidden Little Gem . The purpose of this tag is to essentially share the things you love and associate with Christmas - using each letter of the alphabet of course! Finally, make sure you tag more bloggers to complete it as well. A -   Absolutely everything. I thought I'd start there because that encompasses it all and instantly covers how much I do love Christmas! B -  Buying the tree is something I always like to do because we usually get it at the start of December which really kicks off the festivities!  C -  Chocolate is definitely one of the best things about this time of the year, it's great always but you just have an excuse to eat so much more! My favourite has to be a Terry's Chocolate Orange! D -  Decorating the tree is another thing I enjoy because it instantly makes me feel so Christmass...

I was recently tagged in the A-Z Alphabetical Advice Tag by Erin who blogs over at The Life of Erin , definitely go check her out and you can read her post here ! Since I'm no pro at giving advice, I thought I'd tailor it more towards self-care tips and advice, it was pretty difficult to think of something starting with each letter (mainly X) but I've given it a go! A Acknowledge that you need to take some time to focus on yourself and to make self-care a priority. B Balance is key. You can't give up all responsibilities but it's important that you give yourself time to enjoy yourself, to spend time with people and relax, as well as the normal routine things. C Create. Whether it's art, a new post, some food or just simply creating an environment you can relax in. D Don't put pressure on yourself to always be on top form, everyone has days that aren't as productive. E Eat whatever makes you feel good. If...

I was planning to combine my October and November monthly favourites together but there has actually been quite a bit I wanted to share over the last month. However, before I get into that, I just can't believe we're in November already! As soon as over, that means that Christmas is well on its way for me, I'm so ready to listen to all the festive songs! I am still enjoying Autumn still though, all the colours are so pretty aren't they? Anyway, here are my favourites for this month. Fashion Checked shirts and scarves definitely scream Autumn vibes to me! One of my favourites to wear is this burgundy checked shirt from New Look, it's perfect to throw on and I love layering it too. I can find the exact one but  this one  from H&M is similar. A scarf can really make an outfit and keeps you warm too so it's really a win-win! I love wearing this chunky knit one, I've had it for a few years now but I always look forward to wearing it when it'...