We're Shortlisted for the Littlewoods Ireland Blog Awards Health & Well-Being Category

YAY! What can I say? I'm absolutely thrilled to be shortlisted for the Health & Well-Being Category in the Littlewoods Ireland Blog Awards.

Some of you may have seen my previous post announcing that I had been longlisted for both the Lifestyle and Health & Well-Being categories along with some really amazing blogs. The competition is very high which is why I'm so happy to have been considered again for the shortlist stage even if it is just for one of the categories.

Life Travels | London Adventure: V&A, Southbank and Wahaca

I'm back with a new blog post that I've been very excited to share with you. Over the bank holiday weekend my boyfriend and I headed off to London to celebrate his birthday early. He had never been before and I'm always up for a Fundon adventure, so with 3 days to see the city we jumped straight into sightseeing after hopping off the plane Saturday morning.

We've Made It On The Littlewoods Ireland Blog Awards 2016 Longlist

Major Announcement: The Uninteresting Life? has made it on the Littlewoods Ireland Blog Awards 2016 Longlist for two categories! We are on the Lifestyle Blog Longlist and Health & Well-being Longlist.

I'm so happy to have been considered and to have made it through the first round of judging especially for two great categories. I've had a look through the other blogs that were nominated and they're all wonderful so I'm happy to be among them. 

Perhaps I should make another Vision Board focusing all my energy on getting onto the shortlist.....

Fingers crossed,

Huawei Snapys 2016 Launch Event!

Earlier this month I attended the Huawei Snapys 2016 launch night and had a great time. For anyone who doesn't know about The Snapys, they are Ireland's very own independent Instagram awards. They launched in early July and will be running until late October.

On the night we were treated to complementary drinks from Jameson and Galway Hooker and there were even a few nibbles too!

IgersDublin, the Instagram community, were also putting on their Dublin: Reflective City finalist exhibition and I must say some of the entries were amazing!

I didn't manage to get a proper photo taken so a quick iPhone snap will have to suffice!

Today they released their launch night video so I thought I'd share it with you because I may or may not make a little cameo ;)

        

If you want to enter into The Huawei Snapys all you have to do is use the hashtag #huaweisnapys and the category hashtag in the description of your photo when you upload on Instagram! Next you can tell all your friends to go and vote over here. I know I'll be entering a few snaps ;)

Thanks for stopping by,

Ciara xx

A Weekend of Food & Fun in Cork

So late weekend my boyfriend and I decided to head off to Cork for the weekend to give ourselves a mini getaway. I recently got my driving licence (yay) so we took advantage of the family car to do the 3 hour drive in style. 

As it turns out it's very hard to do any exploring when it's wet and windy so to be honest we spent the weekend going from one eatery to another....

On our last night we decided to visit Scoozi, an Italian that showed with with great reviews on TripAdvisor. Inside, your surrounded with a cosy, warm atmosphere and decor consisting of old china plates hung on the wall, cottage floral wallpaper and regal chandeliers. 

I went for an easy vegan no cheese pizza with a delicious crispy base and spicy sauce and the boyfriend went for an interesting hazelnut and pesto burger.

For dessert I opted for some vegan chocolate buttons I had in my bag but the boy went all out on some Mars Bar cheesecake. 

I have to admit I may have tasted a bit and it was really delicious. I'm usually not a big fan of cheesecake but this one had a fluffy, light textured filling as opposed to the traditional, more solid filling. A solid 5/5!

We decided to finish the night off with a walk up the hill in the rainy mist to get a bird's eye view of the city.

(make it quick before you get run over!)

I think this weekend was really needed by both of us and I can't wait for our trip to London in a few weeks time!

Thanks for stopping by.

Ciara xx

A Poem For the Forest

Hello everyone,


Exams are finally finished so no more stressful nights and studying boredom. However all the built up exhaustion and tiredness did hit me over the weekend so a good rest was much needed.

A few of my friends and I decided to go on a nice relaxing stroll through a nearby forest to catch up on everything we've missed during the exam period. Walks are always such a great way to destress and get the body moving without tiring you out too much. A casual stroll was just what my body needed.

Considering it had rained all through the day before we were actually quite lucky and didn't get a single drop of rain while we walked. It was quite eery and quiet as we walked through the trees with no one around through the damp, still air. But nevertheless it was great to have the place practically to ourselves for a little while.

I snapped a photo on my phone a decided I'd try write a little poem about it. Emphasis on the word 'try', I'm by no means a writer or a poet but I was in the mood to do something new.

I took a walk in time 
To clear my mind

Leaves, branches, trees thick with moss and ivy laden trunks
Winding paths through green archways pierced by sunlight 
Water and life released 
       a clarity, serenity and presence 
From their roots

Nutrients, ancient wisdom, strength and balance
Food from the base of Earth

Feed it to your soul
Watch it grow

So yeah there's my little poem about our walk in the forest as you can see its no Plath or Yeats but it was fun to think up. Maybe I'll try jot a few more down as they come to me and see how much improvement I can make with some practice...

Thanks for stopping by,

Ciara xx

Vision Board | May

Hey everyone,

It's about time I think I updated my vision board right? Yes I may have missed out on the whole of April but here I am making up for it with a fresh new May board to inject some motivation and inspiration into my life.

I haven't had much time recently what with finishing up college assignments and prepping for exams but throughout the month I've been collecting images from the interwebs and yesterday I decided to take the day off studying to set aside a little bit of time to put together my new vision board.

Some of you may remember my previous March vision board and how I used each section to represent a focus or aim I wanted to remind myself of everyday when I woke up. This month some of my goals have changed and I'll take you through a few of them.

Study Study Study

Yes unfortunately exams are visible in the near horizon (just over 1 week away!) and it's high time I get down to properly studying and combat my expert procrastination skills. These next few weeks will be filled with coffee, tea, snacks and notes.

Summer Plans....

To me a summer with nothing to do seems like a massive waste of free time which is why I'm currently on the look out for internships and making plans to use my time productively. Whether that's planning posts and going to cool workshops and classes or visiting friends and creating new experiences. I'm actually keeping my fingers crossed for a certain really really exciting social media marketing internship...

The Self-confidence Mission 

If you haven't read my post on building self-confidence by feeling good in your own skin I wrote about how I'm wandering into the realm of beauty and fashion to boost my self-confidence levels. My vision board will remind me everyday to embrace my personal style and be proud of my appearance.

Of course all of this beauty-ing and fashion-ing is just a support mechanism to help me on my road to self-acceptance, self-love and body positivity. These are the only tools in life you really need to feel sassy as hell!

Of Course Some Blog Inspo

It's super helpful and motivational to expose yourself to experts which is why I'm always looking out for great blogs and social media influencers.

Right now I think Tara of TarMarz.com is just killing it in terms of aesthetics, photography and fashion editorials. She has recently moved to New York and since then I think she has stepped it up in all of her platforms be it her blog, YouTube or Instagram. Seriously her look books are on point!

I'm so into Lenny Letter and love the content they are churning out on the daily. Their interviews and guest writers cover hardcore issues concerning feminism, health, politics and style in an entertaining and engaging way. 

Niomi Smart as I'm sure many will know is a health, fitness and lifestyle Youtuber and blogger who I really like. She approaches health and lifestyle from a whole foods and natural perspective and her videos are super sweet and classy. 

I hope you enjoyed seeing what I'm trying to achieve and focus on this month. As I've said before putting together your own vision board is so much fun and can help you inject some positive intentions into your everyday life. Why not have a go and try it out?

Self-confidence: Feeling Good In Your Own Skin

Hello everyone :)


As you may know, just like any other normal person, I struggle on a day-to-day basis with body positivity and self-confidence. Sometimes I wake up in the morning and the world is my oyster and I'm feeling great. But then other days, sometimes more often than I'd like, I wake up and suddenly I feel like my clothes don't fit as well, my skin is too red and puffy and I'm in desperate need of a duvet day.

Now we'd all love to be able to stay in bed and watch Netflix and drink tea all day when we're feeling rough but with life, college and work we all don't have that luxury. I've struggled a lot with these kinds of days, especially after nights when I've binged or overeaten but I'm slowly starting to come up with a few strategies to make me feel good on the outside so I can shine on the inside.

Obviously we all know self-love and body acceptance are the best ways to have good body image days all the time and that when we truly love our bodies we can reach levels of self-confidence we've never had before. However even for people without body image problems or disordered eating habits self-love and body acceptance is a hell of a lot to ask.

That's why I'm here to give you some tips on how to make yourself feel a bit better on the outside whilst you're doing the work to love yourself on the inside too.

A little bit of make-up can do a lot of good

I used to think wearing make-up was a bit like lying to yourself or covering up your insecurities. I felt that if I wore make-up I was somehow self-obsessed and superficial. But now I couldn't feel any more different. Now I'm by no means a 'beauty' professional, you won't find me sporting a perfect cat eye fleek or a smouldering smokey eye any time soon. I started off just wearing a tinted SPF with some mascara just to balance out my redness but now I've moved into dabbing on some concealer and highlighter to give my skin a glowy complexion. I know it may seem like a trivial but these little changes have helped a lot whenever I catch myself in a mirror. 

I went to get my make-up done for the Trinity Ball a week ago and picked up the Estée Lauder Double-wear concealer and their lip liner in which happens to match my lip colour perfectly so it's great for a causal look. 

Fab hair don't care

There's something about a freshly blown out mane that can give you a bit of sass in your step. Again, not really my strong area but I'm working on it. So far fishtail plaits are my forté and my blow drying technique is slowly but surely improving. Next on my to-buy list is a good curling iron so I can add to my naturally waving hair. 

Spritz it up

While I love a waft of perfume throughout the day I always, I mean always, forget to put on perfume before I leave the house. However in special circumstances like these kinds of days I make an extra effort to spray my favourite scent. A few of my personal favs are Taylor Swift's Wonderstruck and La Prairie Midnight. 

Energise your inside

Rather than trying to cheer myself up with food I like to give myself a boost with a nice refreshing drink. Iced water with lots of lemon works wonders for me and gives my skin, energy levels and digestive system a well needed reboot. Cute glass jar is optional ;)

Wear clothes you both look and FEEL good in

All of us girls know how uncomfortable ultra skinny jeans can feel especially while we're PMSing or feeling bloated. Whenever I've had a bad night and my stomach is uncomfortable I don't particularly love the idea of a tight waistband digging into my stomach so I like to have a back up outfit on hand that I know I'll look and feel good in, even when I'm having a bad body image day. A usual go-to for me are some boyfriend fit jeans, a soft cosy jumper and a pair of comfy trainers. Nothing too fancy, an outfit that will boost my self-confidence and won't leave me pulling at my clothes all day.

So yeah those are a few things I've been doing to help me with my confidence levels and I'm sure I'll be able to add to the list as time goes on. Let me know if they are of some help and I'd love to know what some of your go-to feel happy tips are. Let me know in the comments!

Stressed Out? Go on a Stress Walk

Hey guys!

I've been noticing that I'm getting stressed out or sort of feeling compressed recently what with college work, the daily commute and trying to stay balanced.

One thing that I've been doing to get out of the house, out of my room and away from zoning out to Netflix or YouTube is going out for a walk, or as I've been saying, a stress walk.

The weather now is not majorly cold or rainy so getting out in the fresh air really is great therapy. I prefer going out during the night after my day is over and the evening joggers, dog walkers and playing kids have retired into their homes for the night. There's something so calming about being the only one walking down a street-lamped path breathing in the cold night's air.

Sometimes I listen to music and sometimes I'll take out my earphones and listen to what's happening around me. But more often than not I'll have a podcast on the go to keep me company for an hour or so while I have some me time. As I've said before I'm obsessed with Katie Dalebout and the Wellness Wonderland podcast and I dip into You Made It Weird with Pete Holmes or Food Psych with Christy Harrison. All of these podcasts are so interesting, insightful and entertaining so it's like you're having a nice long conversation with someone while you walk. Or if you want sometimes calling up a friend to go with you can be an awesome way to catch up and put the phones away for a bit.

So yeah going on nice long walks has been my go-to tool for dealing with stress and anxiety at the moment, let me know how some of your own go-to tips and tricks for when you start feeling overwhelmed or like the world is going to come down on you full force!

Becoming A Yoga Warrior

Hey guys,

So as part of my Vision Board goals for March and efforts to make exercise less about punishing my body and more about connecting with my body I've decided to try take up yoga.

I've heard only brilliant things about the benefits of yoga for both body and mind and it seems to help a lot of people I know personally.

I did a quick Google search for a yoga studio in Dublin near enough to where I study at university and came across YogaHub right near Grafton Street. What really drew me to this place was the fact that they described themselves as friendly and welcoming and when I went there today they really were. 

I tried out the beginners 'Flow' class with Katie as the instructor and it was great. Because I come from a history of dancing I really liked the fluidity of the movements however weight training has really tightened up my hips! 

A big thing for me was that I felt comfortable and the class was really non-judgemental and Katie even took note of the newbies and asked us our names. 

They also have a cute cafe called HappyFood which is vegan and filled with delicious meals and treats. I'm definitely going to have to head back and drag my boyfriend to get some yummy brunch.

Over all I had a great experience and I think I'll be trying to get yoga into my week more often. 

Vision Board | March

Hey guys,

As part of my efforts to stay inspired, focused and keep pushing myself to try new things and learn more about myself and what I love I'm trying out vision boards. The basic idea is to create a visual space where you can centre and see your all goals, motivations, inspirations and reminders in the one place.

Personally I feel like there are so many things I need to do and learn to help me along my wellness journey path and by making a board its easier for me to just take a few topics or activities on board month by month.

This month, March, I'm going to try get into learning how to journal and get into yoga. I've heard a lot about journaling and hopefully by trying to do it everyday it will help me express myself and bring everything thats going on in my head to paper in an effort to sort through it all and keep on track with how my soul is feeling. And of course yoga is major in the holistic wellness world and something I've been thinking about doing recently as a form of exercise that will link my body and soul together.

Another big project for me is carrying on my New Years resolution to experience more and push myself to get out of the safety and consistency of my daily routines.

Of course this is all new and a case of trial and error but having something visual like a vision board that I wake up to every morning really helps to reinstall all my good intentions and keep them to the front of my mind.

Yes I have YouTuber and blogger Estée Lalonde on my board because her style is the bomb and she's kick-ass.

Who spots the wonderful and fabulous Katie Dalebout from Wellness Wonderland? 

I found even just putting together the board was so much fun and got all my creative juices flowing. And I'm excited to create different themed boards and new designs as the months go on. The local crafts shop has a new customer!

A Cup of Joe with Bob and Ted

Hey guys :)


I'm coming to you today because I'm still trying to stay on the New Years resolution bandwagon. The main promise I made to myself was to try and experience more this year and push myself not to get complacent in my safe daily routines. So when I came across Eventbrite and their GOMO blog post all about getting people away from Netflix and Chill, and into the habit of GOMO (Going Out More Often) it sounded like a perfect excuse to go do something new. 

Off I took to Google something to do in Dublin that I could pop into and visit on my way back from college and I saw that the Gallery of Photography Ireland were putting on an exhibit of photos taken of Bob Dylan by Ted Russell. I've always loved photography and taking photos myself so I'm really glad I got to see the exhibit and thanks to Eventbrite for giving me the push I needed to get out more often #GOMO 

I wasn't sure if you could take photos so I had to cheekily snap a few quick ones with my phone but check them out below.

For anyone who is into photography and film you should make you way to Meeting House Square in Temple Bar to check out the exhibits going on. The Gallery of Photography has a few classes on during the year that you can go to too. Such a cool area of town that I've actually never been to before. 

Also if you want to check out Eventbrite's blog post on GOMO its over here and if you ever want to start up your own event and need to sell tickets online they have you sorted over here too. I actually used Eventbrite to buy my college ball ticket, it was really easy to use and I was able to download the ticket onto my phone which made everything nice and simple. If you have the app you can even see what events are going on in your local area which is super cool if you're looking to go out more often. 

Let me know what's going to be your first #GOMO moment! 

*This is not a sponsored post, all opinions expressed in this post are my own :)