Today's post in a bit different from my other ones. I've never talked about personal matters on this blog, but I've got a big thing going on now, which is slowly taking over my time and, to be honest, my motivation too.
As you'll probably tell from the title, I'm going to England ! I'll be living there for a year of university, until June next year. I'm so excited, England is my dream country so this opportunity means a lot to me. I'll stay there just for about nine months, but I'm willing to make the most of it and enjoy every second.
St Pancras station, from where I'll set foot in London, yay !
Although I'm sure I will have a lot of free time, I'm still unsure of how things will be going, and it'll take me some time to take a new rhythm. As a consequence, I think I will publish less posts on this blog, probably until the end of 2014. With so many exciting things to look forward to, I've already started to leave my blog aside these past few months, and it makes me sad to do so. But I'm sure I'll get back to it eventually, with more new posts and more inspiration.
Of course I'll still try and post from time to time when I've got things that might interest you, but I'm not sure there will be plenty of posts in the upcoming months. I guess taking this break will be a nice thing for me, I'll be coming with with a lot of new ideas and motivated like never before :)
I think I've got a kind of love-hate relationship with Wuthering Heights. I find the story and the characters completely twisted and dark, but at the same time it is so well written and the feelings expressed are so overwhelming that I still find it incredible.
I remember when I read the book, I was feeling so depressed at times haha, because the story is so sad. And I felt the same when I saw the 2011 film adaptation, by Andrea Arnold. By the way, I wouldn't recommend this version, I really disliked it - way too slow, too many shots of nature and dead animals (I'm not kidding, they show a lot of animal cruelty and it does make you feel bad), too dark but the kind of dark that makes you feel weird. I felt weird when I watched it, anyway.
So I'm here to talk to you about the 2009 adaptation, which I watched recently and really enjoyed !
It is a TV film in two parts, directed by Coky Giedroyc(who directed several other mini-series, such as The Virgin Queen (2006) or Spies of Warsaw (2013, and on my to-watch list !)).
I stars Tom Hardy as Heathcliff, Charlotte Riley as Catherine Earnshaw/Linton, Andrew Lincoln as Edgar Linton (I must say the period costume suits him well !), Burn Gorman (despicable as Hindley), Sarah Lancashire as Nelly, the pretty Rebecca Night as young Catherine, etc.
Catherine and Heathcliff. Did you know that Hardy and Riley started dating after that ? Cute !
First, the images are stunning. By images, I mean the setting, the costumes, the landscapes, the way the film is shot... It is a real pleasure to watch, compared to the 2011 version I mentioned earlier, in terms of shots and setting.
The characters are well depicted, the actors did a great job for them all, without falling into a caricature or into too much sentimentality. The film stays close to the novel, which is an important point to me in literature adaptations.
And of course, the feelings and emotions are expressed beautifully : love, passion, sadness, despair, hate... The film, as the novel, moves you and makes you think about what is good, what is bad, what are the limits to love... Tom Hardy, especially, does a great work and in the end, you don't know if you should appreciate Heathcliff or totally despise him. He's such a mysterious character, and it's probably because of him and my judgment towards him that I'm not sure if I like the story or not. It is so disturbing, we can understand why some people were shocked when the novel was published, back in 1847 !
Anyway, if you're looking for a good adaptation of the novel, I highly suggest this one, you shouldn't be disappointed at all !
I've never been a huge fan of sports and working out in general. In fact, I'm more of a lazy/"I can't run five minutes without being on the verge of dying" type of person. But last year I discovered Blogilates and the amazing Cassie Ho, and I'm slowly changing my mind about all this !
Blogilates is a YouTube channel run by the lovely Cassie, who is a pilates instructor and makes videos to help people like me to work out. She uploads new videos regularly, for every kind of people, every body part, every working out level. She also makes healthy recipes videos, which I've never watched because I can't be bothered with cooking haha but they must be cool too ;)
What I love most about her channel is that you can find videos with different targets. For example, I try to concentrate on my abs/my belly and my legs/thighs/butt when I work out, and I love that I can choose from many different videos concerning those areas : short "express" videos, longer ones, with different exercises so that I can pick my favourites...
During the summer holiday last year I used to do some of her videos every single day in the morning, and I definitely saw a change in my body, and in my strength. Unfortunately with uni and my job I had to slow down the rythm and stick to two or three videos two times a week, which isn't enough to make a permanent change again.
So now that I've finished university I'll have much more time, and I want to get back to it more seriously.
That's why I thought I would make a blog post about it, it will keep me motivated and make you discover the channel, if you don't know it yet !
Last but not least, here are some of my favourite videos :
This one is a really short video to the song "what makes you beautiful" by One Direction. It literally is a butt killer, I tell you ! Short but veeery effective.
This one is another "song video" focused on inner thighs. This one is quite easier than the butt one, but it does help your thighs to get a better shape and be more defined.
This one is part of the Victoria Secret Model series. I like it because it's longer than the song videos so you can make more moves and exercises. It is not the most difficult I've done, but to do it on a daily basis I really like it !
And this is one of the more difficult ones I've ever done. It makes your thighs so sore when it's finished ! And, in all honesty, I always have to take small breaks in the middle of the video because I literally can't lift my legs anymore. My goal : to finish it one day without taking any break at all !
If you'd like to know more about Cassie and her working out programmes, check out her blog ! Very useful to find anything about her videos and advice about workouts, food and lifestyle in general !
I love love looove period dramas. I love the setting, the costumes, the types of characters, the atmosphere... And I'm always discovering new ones to watch. One of the last ones that I saw is Wives and Daugthers, a BBC mini-series from 1999.
It is the adaptation of the novel Wives and Daughters : An Everyday Story by Elizabeth Gaskell (1864-66).
The story takes place in the 1830s. Molly Gibson is a young woman living with her dear father as her mother died years ago. But everything changes when Mr Gibson decides to marry again : Molly has to deal with a stepmother she doesn't really like, and meets Cynthia, her new stepsister. Although they are very different in character and behaviour, their friendship grows and they soon become fond of each other. Molly also befriends Mrs Hamley, the wife of the Squire. She is accepted in the house of the family as if she were one of them, and becomes friends with the two sons, Osbourne and Roger. But because of her ties with Cynthia and her stepmother, Molly will be confronted to several intrigues and secrets...
This is a very typical 19th century type of plot, with love affairs, family crises, etc. The character of Molly is very lovable, she represents everything that a young girl ought to be at the time : quiet, nice, polite, pretty, learned...
I also really love the Hamley family : Mrs Hamley, who loves Molly as a daughter (played by the wonderful Penelope Wilson), Mr Hamley, whose age starts to drive him crazy (played by Michael Gambon, a period dramas afficionado !), and Osborne (Tom Hollander, forever Mr Collins to me !) and Roger, the one true gentleman (Anthony Howell).
The miniseries is divided into four episodes, so it is not a long show - it doesn't get boring at all, and you directly fall in the spirit of the story and want to know what's happening next to the characters. The ending, obviously, is happy (period drama tradition !), but the story isn't a fairytale all along...
If you're into this kind of films, I really recommend you watch it, also it's a bit dated (1999 seems ages ago now !), the images are great, the setting is neat and timeless, and the characters really interesting. Another BBC wonder !
First of all, I want to wish you a happy new year ! May 2014 bring you joy, health and happiness :)
And I know it's a bit late, but I thought it would be nice to show you the things I got for Christmas. And at the end of this post, I'll feature some pictures of the Christmas cupcakes I made for my family gathering on Christmas Eve - everybody liked them and I'm quite proud so I wanted to share that too.
Let's start with the presents ! I really love them all, as I chose them myself - yep there was no surprise of any kind with those, but I was asked to choose and so I did. I'm so excited about all this, I always feel like a
child when I open my Christmas presents !
The first one I want to talk about is the one I coveted the most and for the longest time. My own Deathly Hallows necklace ! All Harry Potter fans will know what this is, and understand why I am so excited about it. This symbol represents the three objects that, when you possess them all, make you the Master of Death : the Cloak of Invisibility (the triangle), the Resurrection Stone (the circle), and the Elder Wand (the line in the middle).
I won't go in details about the whole story, but to me this symbol is one of the strongest signs we have in the Harry Potter fandom and universe, and I'm so so happy I now have this amazing necklace.
I'm a little afraid to wear it honestly, I don't want to damage it - but I'll definitely do it anyway, it looks so cool !
Next is a perfume. I'm almost running out of the Flower by Kenzo I've been using for months (this is my signature scent I guess, one of my favourite perfumes ever), and my mother kindly suggested to buy me a new one for Christmas. I wanted to change and not buy the Kenzo again, and I went for the Dalhia Noir by Givenchy.
I remember smelling it when it first came on stores, and I immediately loved it. It is very different from the scents I go for usually. I couldn't describe it, but I feel like it is a more "mature" feminine scent, a bit stronger too than what I'm used to. So I decided to go for it ! It came in a little set with a nice box to keep it in.
To stay in the beauty theme, I got the Sugarlicious kit by Benefit. I've always wanted to try Benefit products, since everybody likes them and says the quality is really good. This kit is composed of the Sugarbomb blush, the High Beam highlighter, the Benetint for lips and cheeks and the Ultra Plush Sugarbomb gloss, all in sample size. I'm not going to talk too much about this since I want to do a complete review, but I can safely say that this kit is amazing and that I love every product in it !
That's all for the actual presents ! I mainly got money from my family, which is greatly appreciated because sales are starting tomorrow in France :P
And now, my Christmas cupcakes !
I really wanted to cook something for my family this year, because I always eat a lot but I don't really help to cook at all, which is a bit unfair to my nice aunties who spend their afternoon in the kitchen.
I found this wonderful cupcakes decoration kit in New Look, it is sooo cute !
It is composed of 24 little cases with cute Christmas patterns on it (I looove the reindeer !), and 24 toppers of four different styles : Santas, glittery stars, penguins and reindeer.
So I made vanilla-coconut cupcakes and used these items to make them look Christmassy.
And here is what they looked like in the end :
And here is a close-up look :
I'm really glad with how they turned out, especially on the top. I wanted the topping to look like snow, and I just added the little gold sugar because it was nice haha. I don't think I need to write the recipe here, I basically just took one from the Internet and changed it a bit eventually.
This part of my post doesn't have any relevance at all haha, but I just wanted to show this to you :)
And as this post is long enough already, I'm just gonna wish you a happy new year again, and I'll see you next time !
I really really wanted to make the Christmas tag, because I love this time of year so much I thought it would be fun to answer those questions.
So without further rambling, here it is !
1/ What is your favourite Christmas film ?
My favourite Christmas film has to be Love Actually ! not very original I know, but I absolutely love it. A bunch of great actors, funny characters, cool music... I always end up watching it ten times during this time of year, and I almost know the words by heart !
*I feel it in my fingers, I feel it in my toes* - *feel it in my toeeees*...
2/ What is your favourite festive colour ?
I really love gold and silver shades at Christmas, especially when it features loads of glitter. It just gives everything a festive look, and this is exactly what we need at Christmas - a happy atmosphere, lights, glitter !
3/ Do you open your gifts on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning ?
Well, I do both ! We have this tradition in the family, as we all spend Christmas Eve at my grandma's, we open some presents at midnight on the 24th - or 25th, depending on how you see it haha. Then after a good night of sleep when we're back home, we open the last bits in the morning !
4/ What is your favourite Christmas fragrance ?
I don't have a particular fragrance for winter - to speak the truth, I've been wearing Flower by Kenzo during all autumn-winter time, which is slightly inappropriate as this perfume basically smells like sweet spring flowers haha !
But this week and probably for the rest of winter, I'll be using the J'adore by Dior, it has a very nice scent and looks perfect for fancy end-of-year evenings to me !
5/ What is your favourite Christmas scent ?
I love spicy Christmas scents, like cinnamon and berries together - this is a quite popular scent for winter candles.
Also, I'm using a very nice candle at the moment, it's called "Frosted Snow" - it is quite fresh and smells of Christmas tree... Perfect !
6/ What is your favourite holiday drink ?
Well, as many people I guess, my favourite Christmas drink is... hot chocolate ! I could have some at any time : in the morning, in the afternoon while procrastinating on the Internet, in the evening while watching a Christmas film... To be honest, hot chocolate is the ultimate drink for me all year round haha !
7/ Candy canes or gingerbread men ?
I'm not fond of either... But I'll go with candy canes, because they are really pretty and practical at the same time : when you no longer need them for decoration, you can just eat them and lose no space in storing them somewhere !
But I must say gingerbread men are also really cute... tough question !
8/ What is your favourite Christmas song ?
It's so difficult to choose just one ! But I would say "all I want for Christmas is you", by Mariah Carey. The Love Actually version is also quite good though. And I love "baby it's cold outside", "White Christmas"... sooo many good Christmas songs !
But here is "all I want for Christmas is you", yay !
9/ Have you ever made a snowman ?
I have of course ! but I'm so bad at this, and I've only made small ones because I can't gather snow to make huge balls - I don't even know how people do that !
But a tiny snowman is a cute snowman anyway isn't it ?
10/ What is the most important thing to you about Christmas ?
The most important thing for me is to be happy. So not particularly being with your family - I know for most people Christmas means family time, and that's what it is for me, but not everybody feels the same -, but the main thing is to enjoy yourself, eat what you like (don't think about gaining weight, who cares !), laugh and have a great time, that's all !
And of course put lights everywhere : candles, garland lights, anything. To me Christmas is also a celebration of light - it's winter, it's dark, we want to light this up a bit and make it more festive and warm ! :)
***
I wish you all a merry Christmas - and if you don't celebrate Christmas, I wish you a good day anyway, cheers ! ;)
As I live not far from Paris and go there very often, I thought it would be interesting to blog sometimes about the things I do and see there. Today I'm going show you the Rodin Museum, where I went a few weeks ago.
In this museum, opened in 1916, are exposed Auguste Rodin's sculptures. The museum is the former Biron Hotel and its garden. The place has an amazing atmosphere, it looks antique and grand but cosy at the same time, because it is a quite small house (I mean, smaller than a castle or something like that).
I really liked the garden, because it was very calm and silent, and it was cut in different areas with different atmospheres - English garden with roses (where the famous "Le Penseur" is located), fountain area, forest-like area with trees everywhere, a more chill area with benches and sand for children to play with - and all around they added some of the sculptures.
(Sorry for the luminosity, the weather wasn't very good !)
Here is a view of the hotel from the back part of the garden :
(Yep there's a butt in this picture, but I couldn't manage it any other way and it's part of a statue so it's okay)
Then you could go on and visit the hotel. Unfortunately, some rooms were closed because of renovation, but you still had access to numerous rooms and could see loads of sculptures and, sometimes, paintings.
This one is so beautiful. It is called "buste de jeune fille". Sorry for the reflection of the light but the sculpture was in a glass protection box.
I really like this one. You may have recognised the famous writer Victor Hugo !
Another one that really caught my eye : "le baiser de l'ange" (the angel's kiss).
I could go on forever and show you every sculpture I fell in love with, but this article would never end. Instead I'll just show you a view of the gardens from a window of the house :
Isn't this so pretty and peaceful ?
If you come to Paris one day, I would definitely recommend you to do a big museums tour, because a lot of them are worth visiting. And this one is part of the list !
