15 things to expect when your friend is getting married

There’s nothing that says “grown up” quite like your friends getting married and next year I’m lucky enough to have 3 of my friends weddings to look forward to!

As the “I do” dates gets closer for each bride, the excitement builds and before you know it, you’re spending your days on pinterest searching  for hen party ideas and spending your nights discussing wedding themes and bridesmaids dress colours on the group facebook page.

Obviously, it’s a very exciting time, but also very stressful, crazy, exhausting and hilarious for all involved! Here’s a few things you can expect from the ring to the alter:

1) Once she gets engaged it’s the best thing EVER!!

Like seriously, no one can stop talking about it. The story gets re-told over weekly girly cocktail nights and it’s so romantic and you don’t think you’ll ever experience that, and it slightly depresses you a little, but it’s okay coz you’re super happy for your friend!

You’ll tag each other in bridal related facebook posts and clips from Bridesmaids at least once a day. 

2) You learn to calm down.

Right okay, the initial hype is over- especially when you learn the date is gonna be 3 years away and you have plenty of time to help her plan and attend wedding fairs etc. Now is when I suggest you start saving, (especially for the hen!)

3) Never assume you know her as well as you think you do.

Aka, don’t assume you’ll be a Bridesmaid. Regardless if you’ve known each other since the cradle, or made wedding scrapbooks in school or survived uni or a work place together- she may have sisters or her fiance’s sisters, cousins or close work colleagues she may plan on asking. If you are asked- obv that’s amazing, but if not, be gracious in her decision. It must truly be one of a gal’s toughest decisions in life!

Also, she may have completely changed her mind in the years since school when she wanted purple bridesmaids dresses and now she likes the idea of peach. People change. Deal with it. 

4) Bridesmaids duties.

IF you do have the honour of being a bridesmaid, please ensure when attending dress shopping you support her as much as humanly possible when trying dresses on. Finding a white dress that suits her figure, her budget, meets the bridal party approval as well as tying in with her own bridal vision must be a nightmare! Make sure you have a bank of wise words, some positive encouragement and even a cheeky pair of sucky-in pants to assist with the vision part!

Also when it comes to bridesmaids dresses- mastering the art of the quick change will be a god-send! The Bride’s allowed to change her mind, so keep your hair tied back, wear minimal make-up and a smile. The quicker you change, the quicker she can make a decision, and then you can hit Frasers for a prosecco afternoon tea to celebrate!

5) Her engagement party will be a mini wedding.

With so much attention to detail, from the cake to the decorations, it’s essentially a preview to the big event. Plus it gives the single gals (like myself) a chance to suss out which fit, single guys will be attending, and avoid the weird ones.

6) You can’t say no to the Bride.

Don’t do this. Ever! For your own safety at least!

Planning a wedding is a stressful time and to make things run as smoothly as possible, if the Bride asks for help with anything, just say yes. Even if it goes against your morals, like wearing green or taking her awkward Canadian cousin out for a beer. You’re doing it for the greater good!

7) HEN DO PLANNING!

Now this is my favourite part, (and currently the stage I’m at with one of my friends).

Bridesmaid or not, you are one of her gals, and she welcomes your ideas (no matter how crazy or wild) to share with the rest of the group to plan the best hen night/weekend she could ever ask for!

Be prepped for the many important decisions you will all have to make and agree on including where? (Weekend in Benidorm or Spa weekend in the City?), strippers or naked butlers? Fiancé masks or inflatable penises? SO much CHOICE!!

8) The Bride’s mum will end up becoming “one of the gals”.

Basically, Susan has now become an extension of your friendship group, which in fact turns out to be pretty awesome. She’s at all the fittings, the fairs and she’s always got snacks in her bag and never turns down another glass of prosecco! Welcome to the squad, Susie!

9) Trying to be responsible.

I say “try”, coz at some point on the hen do or even attending a wedding fair, you want to come across as somewhat responsible, either by making a plan, doing a group head-count or even mediating disagreements between a few of the other girls, (all while slightly tipsy). Points for trying at least! 

10) Letting your hair down.

On the hen do, between spells of trying to be responsible, you will have the chance to completely let your hair down and get wild. For example, winching a footballer, downing sambuca like it’s water, dancing on tables, spilling chip-shop gravy over the bride’s shirt and passing out in your full Hawaiian theme costume and contact lenses, much to the worry of one of the other Bridesmaids.

Yes... this happened to me. Exactly.  

But it makes for some hilarious story re-telling in years to come.

Classy as ever

11) Before the wedding, you’ll take a few days off work to prepare.

This is a wedding and not your standard night out after all.

Tans must be sprayed, nails must be manicured, accessories for outfits must be purchased last minute and hair appointments must be made for the big day.

12) The big day has arrived and the amount of prep doesn’t seem to have been enough.

Bridesmaid or not, you will probably spend at least 2-3 hours or more in hair and make-up, sipping prosecco before noon and panicking about whether or not you’re organised. Whatsapping the group to double check things are in place and everything is as it should be, you’ll probs still be fixing your hair or hurriedly applying your lippy half way out the door and into the car.

13) Feeling emotional.

Your friend is getting MARRIED! Right now, before your very eyes and it’s so overwhelming, you’re crying, (or are you just tired?). Everything’s so pretty and she looks beautiful and she’s marrying the man of her dreams and you start to wonder again if this will ever happen to you.

Think of your eye make-up, Stace! Do not ruin your smokey skillz!

14) Not wanting the reception to end.

The food, the tunes, the photos and the company! This is the chance for everyone to relax and have fun. Your friend is officially married! And everyone celebrates by taking way too many tequila shots, clumsily dancing the Macarena and posing with big sunglasses and wigs in the photo booth. I always hope they have a wind machine so I can unleash my inner Beyonce, coz lets face it- the DJ won't playSingle Ladies, even though you'll request it about 3 times before he relunctantly agrees, (by which time you'll no doubt be in the bathroom helping the bride pee!) T Y P I C A L !

15) It begins to cause a ripple affect amongst the friendship group.

Marriage is like the flu. Once one person has it, it’s not long before it starts spreading to the others. Maybe that was a bad euphemism, but you catch my drift. Since a few of my pals have said “I do” already, others weren’t far behind in putting a ring on it.

Even though the stress of planning is exhausting, I am super happy for each and every one of them. Plus it means I won’t have to miss out on the planning, the girly politics and the pro-arguments for strippers for too long!  

Stace x

Adulting is hard...

When I was younger, I could not wait to grow up and have the power to make my own decisions and take responsibility for my life. 

(Yes, I wanted to be a Zebra for Halloween)

Fast forward and I’m now 25 years old.

An official adult.

And I have to say, being a "grown-up", isn't exactly what I expected.

In my case, it's mostly googling things, asking my mum for advice or just pretending I know what I'm doing and going with the flow. 

Adults are supposed to be superior, wise and confident (basically how I wouldn't describe myself) and I also find the following 'adulty' things quite difficult...

1) Phoning things
This could be anything from ordering food to calling the tax man. I don’t wanna talk to another person! We live in a World run by social media- why is there not an app for this yet?!

2) Cooking things
I can't make ice. In fact, I'm no good in the kitchen AT ALL! If I ever did have my own place, I would do a full on Carrie Bradshaw and use my oven for clothing space! And for all those who have the pleasure of having me on snapchat and seen my story of how NOT to make pancakes on pancake day, please take note.

There's even that one time I called my mum on a night out once to ask if we owned a pre-heated oven, as opposed to it being an actual feature on all ovens...

3) Building things

Another Staceface1611 snapchat story gem of how to build a simple £8 clothing rail from Argos that a monkey could make. 

It took me 3 hours, 2 broken nails and a bottle of wine. 

4) Washing things

So wait, I can't mix colours and whites?

5) Car things

I think I would die if I had to look after my car on my own. I can't change a tyre, I have no idea what any of the dashboard lights mean and I have no clue how to put engine oil in, or even air in my tyres... Sometimes I even struggle with petrol.

But if you're lucky like me – you have a 'guy' for things. My "car guy"- Gary (love you) is always on hand when I call and say something daft like;

"Gaaaaary, there's a light on in my car that looks like a Genie lamp from Aladdin. What do I do?"

And even though he rips me to shreds for it, he's always on hand to help a bro out. 

Also, even the car wash freaks me out! (But have you seen final destination 3?)

6) Mail things

When the Postie or Salesman comes to the door and I'm either in my PJs, sweats or look awful in general, I WILL cower in the bathroom with the curtain down so you can’t see me. There are windows everywhere in my house so sometimes to even get to the bathroom, I will crawl. If it is a package, please leave with my neighbour. Kthanksbye.

Oh and speaking of mail, if it’s not from Asos or Missguided, do I really have to open it?

7) Hoarding things

Yes, lets keep my Higher French past papers and clothes from the Kylie range at McKays I bought when I was 13. They might come in handy for when I’m skinnier and I decide to move to France. They’re not taking up valuable space in my wardrobe AT ALL. 

8) Money and saving things

Adult words such as Mortgage, isa, homeowners thingy… Wait, what? Why don’t they teach this in school? Sure I can tell you all about the photosynthesis of a leaf and what cos sin and tan are (second thought, maybe not actually), but I have no clue what a mortgage is or how to go about getting one!

Even when I try to analyse my payslip breakdown, I have a 'Rachel from Friends' moment- who is NI and why is he taking all my money?!

9) Timing of things

I have such an weird issue with time. 

Not as in, “Is it possible to go to the gym in the morning and still meet the girls by 12:00 for lunch?”, more like realising time goes faster than you think. E.g., something comes up on facebook memories: "Laurens hen was 3 years ago today". Wait, HAWD THE BUS, Lauren only got married like 6 months ago right? RIGHT? And wait, Gemma’s pregnant again? Didn’t she just have her baby a few weeks ago?

This is my issue. Thinking I have loads of time to achieve things and suddenly it's 2 years later and you still haven't gotten round to cleaning out your car... (Gary- do you do Valet's?)

10) Scary things

Realising your friends are all married with those mortgage things and babies on the way is scary enough, but I'm talking more about realising you've left your phone charger downstairs and all the lights are out! 

I will turn every light back on until I find it, turn them back out again and SPRINT up the stairs. You never know, Freddie whats-his-face or that mad ghost from Paranormal Activity could just come outta nowhere and drag you straight back down. 

Most likely to remind you the dishes are still in the sink from last nights takeaway. 

“Uurgh, I’ll get them tomorroooooooow, Freddie, GOD!”

Basically, I have no idea what I'm doing most all of the time and yeah, it is scary sometimes, but hopefully when I'm an 'adult-ier' adult, things will all start to make sense and fall into place. But for now, I'm just going to go watch Peter Pan in my old-school, 'My Little Pony' PJs and think back to a far less complicated time to when I was younger with no responsibilities...

Stace x

The Wonderful Uses Of Coconut Oil

WHY have I only JUST been introduced to the magical product that is Coconut Oil ?!

Nah seriously, if you've read about it's magical powers from consumption to beauty to rubbing it all over your cheating boyfriend*, then now is the time to jump on that bandwagon, folks. 

Head down to your local Holland & Barrett and invest in this big, beautiful-smelling jar of joy! 

(*Disclaimer - no guarantees it works on the cheating boyfriend, but here's a few that I've tried and tested over the past few weeks...)

#1 HAIR MASK / SERUM

A friend recently told me that pure coconut oil works wonders as a hair mask, so without any real instructions, I grabbed a very small handful, melted it into my hands and began to work the product through my hair (leaving out the roots, as I know from experience, oily products can leave my roots quite greasy-looking: bleugh!) My friend only left it on for an hour, but I decided to see how it would be overnight. The next morning I washed and conditioned my hair as normal and OMG my hair has never felt so soft and smooth and healthy! It definitely has a shine to it that it once lacked before. 

You can also use this in the shower as a leave-in conditioner. Just rinse off to restore the moisture. 

I also have used the oil as a serum to tame the fly-aways, as my hair is naturally wild n' wavy. 

#2 MAKE-UP REMOVER 

As a make-up wipe kinda gal, I was a little wary about trying this out, but the texture of the oil literally melts away your make-up with a few sweeps of a cotton pad. Fair enough, the eye area is a little difficult to work around, but it does the job.

Even on nights were I'd carry out my normal routine with the wipes, I'd go back over my face with the coconut oil and was shocked to see the cotton pads still stained with excess foundation or eyeshadow :s Eeeek! 

#3 MOISTURISER

Wow. 

After only a few weeks applying this daily to my face, neck and arms, my skin looks FAB! (If I do say so myself!)

My skin just drinks it in and feels super smooth, hydrated and smells AMAZING!

#4 LIP BALM

Anyone who knows me will understand my obsession with lip balm. From Vaseline to Carmex I will always have a lip balm collection in my bag any hoarder would be proud of. But I have only recently popped a lil bit of coconut oil into an empty tin and I'm so surprised to say that it's got me from topping up the chapsticks every so often. Even mixed in with a Vaseline has worked wonders! 

#5 CUTICLE CARE

This is an on-going experiment in a desperate attempt to save my nails! 

They are currently so weak and brittle, I thought I'd rub a little of my fav magical ointment on them to see if it could aid the growing process and even after a few days I have noticed my cuticles getting softer and my nails a teeny bit stronger. 

So there you have it! 

I would totally recommend buying yourself this exotic pot of white, oily gold and see what miracles it can do for you. 

Stace x

Exploring Cardiff

Cardiff is such a beautiful City. 

I've only been here a week and have fallen in love already. After a long first week at my new job and settling into my house and getting to know my housemates, I took the time on Saturday to stroll around the City myself in the warm Autumn sunshine and snapped a few pics. 

As the Rugby World Cup is ongoing, the City is electric with an exciting buzz... (which continues straight on into the night!) I walked from my house in the arty Canton area and into town and along the embankment to see the MASSIVE Millenium Stadium in all it's architectural glory!

I wandered up St Mary Street which is aligned with a variety of retail stores, bars and restaurants. You can also enter Saint David's Shopping centre and Queen's Arcade from here. The area really is a shoppers paradise! (One which I cannot wait to return to on payday...)

I continued straight on until I reached Cardiff Castle, which has adapted it's walls ever so slightly to accommodate the massive rugby ball crashing into the side of it, to advertise the Rugby World Cup. 

I walked along Queen Street with more shops and things and decided to move swiftly on before spending my rent on more clothes I probably don't need, but will tell myself I do. But not before purchasing a frappuccino from Starbucks and pretending to be more of a hipster with my Camera in the other hand and mirrored aviators on.

Maybe it was the sun shining, maybe it was the noise of the street crowds or maybe it was the fact I was alone in this vibrant City with my camera, my frap and a head full of ideas, but I cannot wait to see all this City has to offer. 

Hence, that same evening marked my first official Cardiff night out for the Wales v England Rugby match. My housemates, Angharad and Sophie took me to the Old Arcade pub to watch the game along with a few of their friends. The atmosphere was AMAZING! 

I can't even put it into words. I think I was just shocked at the fact I was watching a rugby game and actually enjoying it! And of course I was swept up in the theatrics of painting a Welsh dragon on my face with red lipstick (worth it) and waving the Welsh flag about on a stick about like there was no tomorrow! I was also taught a Welsh song to join in with the whole pub, although the lyrics started to fade from memory with the more wine I consumed, but still. I have adopted this Country as my own for the next few months and I am absolutely loving it so far!

When's the next night out? 

Stace x

 My gorgeous flatmates, Sophie and Angharad x

Wardrobe Clear Out

 Let the de-cluttering begin...

As a self-confessed hoarder with hunners of clothes, shoes, books and accessories, having a wardrobe clear out is without a doubt, the most stressful thing ever for a girl like me! Over the Bank Holiday Weekend, I decided enough was enough. It had been a long-time coming and I thought I could get it all over with in one afternoon...

Oh, how wrong I was!

I do have the luxury of having a few classic white ikea drawers and a built-in double wardrobe in my cosy little double bedroom in Greenock. Living at home with mum and dad does have it's pro's and con's:

 Pro- less rent to pay

Con- Only one room is technically entitled to you to hold all your stuff. (Con- my room doesn't seem to do this).

I think Karen would get annoyed if I done a Carrie Bradshaw and used her oven for storage. Although, if I had my own place this is exactly what I'd do. I'm not one for cooking, but that's another story.

Here are some shocking "before" pictures...

Jewellery boxes, bags, art supplies, books and random photo frames. 

Time to sort this out.

At first, I wasn't sure where to even begin. So I eventually decided to pull everything out and sort everything into piles.

FYI-- If you have as much junk as I do, this is NOT a good idea!

You will eventually run out of floor and bed space and find yourself backed into the corner furthest away from the escape route. 

The following is my detailed experience over the whole weekend:

SATURDAY 29th AUGUST

1300        Okay, lets do this. Going out at 5, so that'll be plenty of time, right?

1340       It's taken me this long to empty just the top shelf. Why do I own so much crap?                 DEAR GOD, WHAT HAVE I DONE?!?! No going back now.

1400       Oh HEY THERE, stray kirby grips! Welcome home!

1430       Why do I own 3 cowboy hats? I live in Scotland...

1500       Trying so hard to justify giving away so many clothes with the labels still on.

1545       Found my "Skinny Bag" hiding at the back full of clothes I wanted to keep to try and fit into again, but now looking through them, all my thoughts are just "what were you thinking, Stace? Floral chinos. Really?"

Although, on the plus side- the dress I bought for my 21st is now super big for me!

And that beaut daisy style skirt from topshop I've been keeping for years is now alas, also too big :(

1610      I'm meant to be meeting the girls at half 5 for dinner and I've not even showered              yet. This will have to wait. 

*Skillfully shoves neat piles of clothes to the sides of my room to create a path for me to swiftly exit and begin getting-ready process*

Stage 1 Complete.

Cheeky wee #ootd via Instagram

SUNDAY 30th AUGUST

1030      Okay, I'm up. And no, I'm not hungover, but my room is a mess, WHY IS MY ROOM A MESS?! Oh yes, I remember now. Ok, shower and sweats on. Let's get back to it.

1120     Oooft, gone are the days of babydoll dresses, RIP Youth.

1200     How are there sequins all over my floor?! Where are they even coming from?

1310     I can't believe I'm still doing this. I need a break. Yaassssss, bopit!

*Goes to visit grandparents for food and sympathy, as parents are away out*

(Told you I can't cook)

1600     Delayed hangover hitting. Maybe I'll go for netlfix and chill... OH WAIT, I can't. Unfortunately the clean up Fairies don't actually exist :(

1610     OMG, just found my past papers from high school in a random shoebox! From 2005. Seriously?

1650     Oh wait, it goes further back than that, a letter from my primary 5 teacher.

1800     WHY DO I KEEP UTTER JUNK?! Keyrings and trinkets from exes, beer bottle caps, confetti, birthday cards from each year from every single family member, a bouncy ball?! Give me strength... 

1915    Okay, successfully condensed 6 shoeboxes filled with ticket stubs, cards etc down to 2. Not bad. I'm hungry again.

*Orders chinese and watches Keeping up with the Kardashians. The rest of the clothes clear out can start tomorrow*

Stage 2 Complete

MONDAY 31st AUGUST

1115     I MUST FINISH THIS TODAY!!

1130     Shoes. Is it still acceptable to wear brogues? I want to try channeling my inner Kate Moss again.

1140     Why do I have 4 colours of Flossy's? I have to narrow these down to at least 2, right?

1210     Oh hiya, clothes I forgot about!

Unicorns!! 

It's so fluffy, I'm gonna die!

 "Mary is my Homegirl"... Oooookaaay...

1245     I can actually move hangers in my wardrobe now with ease. The end is nigh!

1320     I'M DONE!!!

Stage 3 Complete

After

So it's basically taken me almost 3 days, 4 big bags of clothes, books, DVDs and CDs for the charity shop, 2 bags of old clothes and shoes for my wee Granny's "rag bag" at her local Church and 1 bag of clothes to try sell on ebay. 

I am absolutely exhausted but feeling cleansed! 

Stace x