February Outfits

Hello! I feel like a broken record going on once again but... I'm sorry with how lacking the blog posts have been recently. But in actual fact, I shouldn't really be apologizing, should I? I made this blog for me, not for anyone else, so I'm just going to post whenever I feel like it. I sort of want to take a different approach to my blog, paying more attention to lifestyle and issues that are affecting/influencing me. I want to be more candid and just write what I'm feeling at that present moment in time, almost like a diary or journal-type thingy.

And.. now I'm rambling. Basically the reason I'm making this post is because I had the intention of making a youtube video showing all these outfits that I wore during February, but half of the footage got deleted (stupid mistake I made which I will be sure not to do again) so I had to try and make it work with the two outfits I had left. I turned it into a sort of day-night girly-edgy type lookbook - I had to improvise! So if you wanna check that out feel free: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7Qeb734SeQ

Here are all the outfits, along with what I got up to during February (probably the most I've been out of the house to actually wear nice clothes)

Look One: Sight-seeing

I wore this outfit when I travelled to Bristol for a university interview (which I got an offer for!!) We arrived the day before so had the full day to explore the city. I wanted to go for something comfortable, so this outfit was perfect!

  Top - New Look

Trousers - New Look

Necklace - H&M

Earrings - from markets

Look Two: Cinema Date

I don't really go to the cinema too often but I really wanted to see Split, and it was a really good film.

Jumper - Primarl

Jeans - Levis

Shoes - Converse

Earrings - Depop

Look Three: Birthday Breakfast

So I recently just turned 18, which honestly terrifies me because I am now classified as an adult which I am 110% not ready for, but I had an amazing celebration for it so that makes it slightly better. Over the weekend we done loads of different things but on Sunday we went for breakfast at my favourite place along the quay so it had really pretty views.

 Blouse - Topshop

Trousers - Topshop

Shoes - Adidas

Bag - vintage

Earrings - ASOS

Look Four: Night Out

The week after my birthday it was actually one of my friends birthdays too so we went out to celebrate. I hadn't been out in about 10 years so it was fun to get out again! I had this outfit bought a good while before so I was excited to get the chance to wear it.

Top - Topshop

Skirt - Oasis

Heels - New Look

Bag - New Look

Jewellery - Pandora

So that's basically what I got up to last month and what I wore! I'd really appreciate it if you subscribed to my youtube channel as that's where I now put most of my creative content!

xo, Orlagh

New Year's Resolutions

I've already made a youtube video about this idea https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LrKLcKfVFI but I just thought I'd write a blog post as well because sometimes it's easier to get your thoughts down in writing.

2016 was an amazing year - probably the best year of my life. I done so many fun things and finally started doing things that made me happy rather than trying to please other people. I started worrying less about silly things and started living more in the present rather than focusing on things that had happened in the past, or worrying about the future (a major part of anxiety).

I mentioned in the video that it was the first year I just stopped waiting around for 'tomorrow' or 'next week' and just started as soon as I could. I saved for a camera by doing endless amounts of online surveys, sold clothes and kept any money I was given - and it paid off! I had wanted a camera for so long and to finally have one made me so happy. I took loads of pictures in 2016 and I'm so glad I now have the memories to look back on. All i'm trying to say is that if you really want something, you can make it happen. I can't remember where I heard this but ever since I did it has really stuck with me - 'you create your own reality'.

Although 2016 was an amazing year, it also had its downfalls. I've talked a little about having anxiety as last year was when it really got bad, and controlled me 24/7. I never realized just how bad it was until I came out the other end of it. Every single second of every day was spent worrying about the most minuscule of details. When I came to the realization that something needed to be done, I started going to the school councillor which helped an unbelievable amount. She taught me techniques to get rid of a panic attack before it takes over, but most importantly it gave me a time to vent out everything I was feeling, and really helped put things into perspective. I still have my bad days, but overall, I am really proud of how well I've managed it.

Rather than setting myself resolutions that I feel I have to stick to, I'd rather set goals of things I would like to achieve, as I think it's a bit more realistic. Here are my 2017 goals:

• Go on more walks and spend more time outdoors in general
• Explore more of Ireland
• Do more yoga and learn about spirituality and mindfulness
• Read more
• Stop using my phone as a security blanket at social events and live more in the present
• Take even more pictures

What are your goals for 2017? Let me know! And also, I'd really appreciate if you subscribed to my youtube channel as I would love for it to grow more in 2017! I have a lot of fun video ideas!

xo, Orlagh

Formal 2016

Hey everyone! I had my school formal this weekend and had a really good time so I thought I'd post some of the pictures so I have this to look back on. I had a formal last year too so I was really looking forward to it to get made up, wear a fancy dress and have loads of fun with my friends again. Unfortunately I didn't bring my camera with me so I don't really have any of my own pictures from when we got to our venue, but I've added some pictures that my friends took as well.

Hair and Makeup: Hair @ Karens

Dress: Tokyo Boutique, Letterkenny

Clutch bag: New Look

xo, Orlagh

A/W 16 Trends

Since Autumn is officially in full bloom, I thought it was the perfect time to do this blog post. I've been doing these trend posts since I started this blog and I still enjoy doing it so much because each time I get more and more obsessed with certain designers, and take inspiration from the catwalk and incorperate it into my wardrobe. Whilst there have been some new trends introduced for this years A/W designs, a lot of brands stuck to what we know and love for this time of year. Here are a few of my favourites:

1) Velvet
Velvet is proving to be one of the most classic trends in recent years, coming back each year with a new, slightly different twist. This year, a lot of dark hues of velvet such as wine and dark purples were common on the runway.

2) Animal Print

I have to admit - I've actually hated anything leopard print for as long as I can remember, but the latest takes on it have really swayed me - topshop have some beautiful animal print pieces.

3) Puffy coats

Although the catwalk version of this trend was very extreme, it's without a doubt the most practical. It means now we can wear the fattest, puffiest jackets possible to keep warm and be on trend at the same time!

With the rise of the blogging community, I've also taken a lot of inspiration from street style that's all over instagram - particularly accessory-wise.

1) Clear Heel

La Moda and Public Desire have some great ones!

2) Diamond choker

River island have great range of chokers similar to this

3) Silk scarves

H&M and Topshop are your best bet for scarves similar to these ones

Hope you enjoyed reading this! If you want to see more fashion/beauty/lifestyle related things you should definitely check out my youtube channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFesE659f-myofgIHs2Ta_A?view_as=public

xo, Orlagh

Vegan Lunch Ideas + Why You Should Go Vegan

Hey everyone! 

It's been a while since I posted on here but today I just thought I'd share with you my most recent video which includes some easy vegan recipes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZqNqZp6zAU

Whilst I have had pretty much a vegan diet for the last 2/3 months, I have only been completely vegan (with my diet) for about 2 weeks without any mistakes, so I don't feel like I should be referring to myself as a complete vegan. My diet is the first step, and then I want to move onto wearing only vegan clothing, and using vegan beauty/body products (one step at a time!)

Even if I don't progress with veganism, I am still very proud of what I have achieved as anything is a beneficial difference, whether you don't eat meat or you are completely vegan - you are still helping out in some way.

I had been interested in veganism for a very long time, but wasn't too sure what it all meant, so that's when I took my curiosity over to youtube and watched a couple videos on it. After watching a few more documentaries, I couldn't believe how veganism is so beneficial for ethical, health and environmental reasons. Here are a few of the documentaries/videos I watched:

• 101 reasons to go vegan - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4HJcq8qHAY
• How to go vegan - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0QIu_m5eIs
• Earthlings (this is the video that swore me off meat for good) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPj4aPU-kuw
• Cowspiracy (on Netflix)

If you're even slightly interested in vegetarianism/veganism, I would definitely at least try it out because you don't know what it could lead to! I would recommend taking it step by step eg. eat only vegan breakfast for a week, then add on vegan lunch for a week, then dinner and so on, so by the end of the month you're eating a fully plant-based diet.

Here are some of my other videos if you need to catch up!
Channel Trailer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6p3jEBr54nw
Ways to style mom jeans - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NuAA7TPiE88
Clothing haul - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NztE9v0uobQ
Holiday lookbook - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFXGR2mXFh4
Back to school advice - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nJxKAz_o8g