I Started A Youtube Channel!

Hey everyone!

Hope you're all have a festive December.

So I have some exciting news in this post. As you can already tell by the title: I created a youtube channel!

I've been considering doing it for so long since I spend about 50% of my day watching Youtubers, but I was always too scared due to my lack of confidence.

Due to studying journalism at Uni, it's given me a sudden boost and I've came to thinking 'What's the worst that can happen?' I mean sure I may not be the best but I can always improve. 
Even if people watch my videos just to judge me and have a laugh at me - I still get views for them watching? Yes this is the Miley Cyrus way of thinking "Haters are still supporters"

I'm planning on doing videos related to University life, beauty and random lifestyle things. I have a couple of ideas in mind for the new year as I'm jumping on the New Year New Me band wagon and hopefully it works out for me.

My banner is currently my blog name 'features and foundations' but I guess i'll do some changing to get everything linked together to how I want it.

My channel is 'AmieSlackx' - click on that and you'll be taken to it. 
I still need to change my URL but for some reason it's not letting me? Saying i've already changed it once but I clearly haven't as I wouldn't pick a load of numbers and letters as my personal URL! 

I'd love if you could leave some comments below on post ideas, things you'd like to see? What I can improve on or what you're liking!

I haven't picked an upload day yet as I'm going to see what my new Uni timetable is like and schedule it around my assignments and blogging. But I'm so excited!

Videoing on my Iphone 5S and editing on Windows Movie Maker means my videos won't be the best of quality but I have to start somewhere and if people enjoy my channel I might invest in a good camera and lights etc.. 

So go and check me out! Subscribe, like & leave some nice comments? I'll be forever grateful.

See you soon!

Love Amie
XX

The Holiday/Christmas Tag.

Hey everyone!
So we're finally into December and wow has this year flew.

To start off the month of Christmas I thought I'd do a Christmas tag. I've joined two tags together and chosen the questions I'd like to answer most. 

1) What's your favourite holiday movie?
Out of every Christmas movie I've always loved the ones everyone goes for like Elf, that's my favourite comedy one as I laugh all the way through.
But I've always loved The Gremlins. It's a one that's always on TV and has a bit of everything in it, definitely one that stands out to me.

2) What are you doing for the holidays this year?
Since i've had my operation i'm house bound for a few weeks so i'll be spending these holidays at home catching up on University work and perhaps starting a Youtube channel...

I'll be spending it with my family, friends and boyfriend.


3) Do you like to stay in your PJ's or dress up for Christmas?
Well it's a tradition that on Christmas Eve me and my sister get new pyjamas to sleep in to wake up for Christmas. 
We tend to wake up and open our presents downstairs in our pyjamas and then get changed into fancy clothes for when we go to visit all our other family members and for our delicious dinner.

4) Candy cane or ginger bread men?
Got to be ginger bread men! I'm more of a biscuit than a sweet person. Candy canes are nice until you get to the bend in the cane and its hard to eat. It also gets quite boring eating one after a while. Compared to ginger bread which is so yummy!

5) Favourite Christmas song?
I have a few...
Being a Belieber, Justin Bieber's Mistletoe Christmas album is always on at this time of year (i've actually been playing it since October...)
Then I love the 'Ittttts Chriiiiistttmassssssss' - Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day. The jingle gets me so excited!

6) What's the weirdest gift you've ever received?
Hmm... Well i've had a lot of strange ones. I think the weirdest one has got to be a pack of glow sticks off my grandparents. I think that was pretty strange, although they came in handy when I went to that rave... no i'm joking I don't know what I did with them.

7) What do you like to do on your Christmas break?
Well I do like to relax, chill with Youtube and hot chocolate...
But University happened so now I have a lot of work to catch up on after my op so amongst the festiveness I'll be writing essays.

8) Any Christmas wishes?
There's the big wishes like 'World peace', which would be brilliant but I don't think wishing it at 11:11 will help much.
So my wishes would be:
- A speedy recovery for myself.
- A fresh and great year of 2016 to me and my family.
- Passing my first year of University.

9) What's at the top of your Christmas list this year?
I think the thing I want the most is my hair doing. I plan on going fully blonde like Holly Willoughby.
I'd also love the Naked Eye Pallette as I'm going to up my make-up game in 2016

10) Favourite thing about your Christmas dinner?
This is really hard.
I love the meat, the gravy, the pigs in blankets!!
But I also love love sprouts - which a lot of people hate but I think they're amazing.
I enjoy the cranberry sauce with my turkey too.
Wow answering this made me very hungry.

So that's it guys, let me know what you've asked for this Christmas & what you're looking forward to the most. 

Share this if you like and follow me on my social medias!

Love Amie

XX

Life Update: November 15.

Hey guys, so a lot has gone on lately and instead of doing a ‘past Halloween but not quite Christmas’ post, I thought I’d give you all an update on what’s been going on with me. If that would bore you then don’t read any further. But if you’re nosy like me, carry on!

University life.

So as most of you will know, I started Sunderland Uni in September and I’m studying magazine journalism for three years. So far it’s been okay I guess. I’m not loving my course, but I guess they have to get through all the nitty gritty things like lectures on apostrophes before we get onto the actual journalism.

I was considering changing my course to something more academic that would be easier to just sit with text books and learn like at A-Levels. But unfortunately the only thing that would interest me would be sociology or geography. But with sociology I don’t really like any of the careers that come after it – I really can’t see myself as a police woman. I loved geography throughout school and took it at A-Level, but Sunderland don’t do it as a degree course unless it’s something to do with tourism and that isn’t me either. So I think I’ll stick journalism out – since writing is me.

I write for one of the Universities media platforms called Northern Lights. So far I’ve done reviews on things like Username Evie by Joe Sugg, Girl Online On Tour by Zoe Sugg, Purpose Album by Justin Bieber etc. 

http://www.northernlightsuk.co.uk/2015/11/17/girl-online-tour-review/

http://www.northernlightsuk.co.uk/2015/11/07/review-username-evie/

http://www.northernlightsuk.co.uk/2015/11/18/justin-bieber-purpose-review/

      

(http://i1.wp.com/www.maximumpop.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Screen-Shot-2015-10-07-at-00.07.58.png?resize=672%2C372)

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CLqF6ThXAAEL2Zb.jpg)

I’m loving living in halls. Moving away from home is such an experience. I miss home so bad. I miss my family, Luke and Zhiyin like crazy. But it’s really helped me realise who my real friends are, who is bothered and who isn’t.

My Uni friends are practically my family away from home. I get so excited to come back to my flat to see them. There’s seven of us in the flat - 3 boys 4 girls and everyone is very different from each other. There's Lauren, Sam, Jess, Katie, Ross and Steven! (Hey guys, I know you'll be reading!)

People are right when they say you’ll get your closest friends at Uni, as I already can tell who are going to be there for me for a long time, like I am with them.

A lot of people who I’ve met in this time have quickly went from being close friends to just people I wave at when I see them – which is sad, I know with a few if I needed them they’d be there, but I think with others I was just there as a friend before they found better ones, or worse – opinions vary.

I’m used to being independent now I guess, I mean I’m struggling with money and I’m living off beans and supernoodles – but that’s all part of being a student right?

I know I always have my family who help with a lot of my problems and are more than happy to help out if I need anything.

I love being able to go into the kitchen freely at 2am and get food, which I can’t do at home without my mam questioning me (Hi mam! I know you’re reading this too!)

I love how I can go out at random times at night for no reason what so ever – for example getting the metro train to McDonalds because, well, it’s McDonalds…

I’m getting better at cooking too! I’ve made a Sunday dinner (on a Thursday) with Ross for the rest of the flat mates which went down a treat. I also made 6 servings of meatball bolognaise and pasta, which everyone enjoyed and completely cleared their plates!

The social life is great too. Twisted Mondays, Play Wednesdays and 21^st Century Box Fridays are the main student nights. I rarely go out to be honest, mainly because on Tuesdays and Thursdays I start at 9am and that’s very risky sitting in lectures that early when you’re severely hungover.

There’s been a lot of cool theme nights though. I’ve been out at Halloween on the PLAY pub crawl (which was insane), and there’s also the Disney night coming up. Our flat went out as the Peter Pan crew – I was Wendy Darling, so there was Pan, Wendy, Hook, Sme and Tiger Lilly. It was so fun and we all looked great!

 

BIG NEWS!

So, the past couple of months I’ve been pleading back and forth with the NHS about getting a breast reduction. This finally got accepted and the date of my operation is the 30^th November – which is in two weeks!

This is such a big thing for me as I’ve been uncomfortable in my body for such a long time. I’m always in pain and they don’t suit me (I don’t think), and I just hate being so big. They completely limit me. I can’t do the exercise which I love, I can’t get fit so I completely hate my body. I especially hate the unwanted attention I get with them, even when people don’t think I realise – yes I see you looking! As much as people say ‘your body is fine’ and ‘you’re skinny!’, to me I’m not. If I’m not happy then that’s the problem.

After the operation and the weeks of recovery over the winter, I’m so excited for the new year of 2016 to be able to change the way I live.

I won’t be limited in my activities so I plan on getting fit, losing weight and toning up my body. I want to be happy in myself – I think if I get to look the way I want and be able to smile when I look in a mirror and wear nice, well-fitted clothes, I’ll be a lot more productive with the work I do and a lot happier when I go out with friends on nights out etc.

I’m so excited for little things like being able to sit straight. Or buy nice underwear sets instead of wearing ugly bras that are £15 a pop!

I MET JOE!

So as most of you will know - I love Joe Sugg. Luckily last month I met him! I waited 7 hours to see him for 20 seconds but it was the best 20 seconds of my life! 

He remembered who I was, knew my name and said he knew my twitter - which is so crazy that I still don't understand it.

Username Evie is an amazing book (read my review), but having a one that he gave and signed for me personally is unbelievable.

It still doesn't feel like it happened, he held my waist in photos (fan-girl), I held his too - although I don't remember doing so, it must have been my subconscious tell me we're meant to be... 

I'll just insert photos here.

I’ll keep everyone updated on my recovery, as being bed bound will be a benefit when it comes to doing Uni work and writing blogs.

Thank you all for reading – this may have bored you to be honest. But I always like to hear about how people’s lives are going so you might be interested in mine.

Let me know in the comments or message me on my social medias if you’d like to see a particular post on my blog over the Christmas period.

Love you all,

Amie XX

Amie & Lauren do Chocolate Brownies!

Hey guys, 

Sorry I haven't uploaded in a while - been so busy with Uni.

I decided to do a recipe post, but we only used the 'happy shopper' ready pack, so all we need to add was an egg, vegetable oil and water.

For this recipe we used 2 boxes, as we wanted double. So I'll use the recipe we used and obviously if you only buy one box, just half the measurements...

You will need:

Pack contents (x2) - 584g of Chocolate Brownie Mix (2 packets)

2 flat-pack baking trays which you need to build (isn't difficult)

2 Medium Eggs

Vegetable Oil

Cold Water

Oven

How to make:

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees/325 Fahrenheit/Gas Mark 3.

Assemble the cardboard baking tray provided.

Empty the contents of the brownie mix into a bowl.

Add the 2 eggs, 60ml (4 tablespoons) oil and 60ml (4 tablespoons) of cold water and mix well. 

We added more water as it got harder to mix and quite dry, we actually used a shot glass equivalent of water! Ha-Ha, student life.

Spread the mix evenly into the prepared baking trays.

Bake in the centre of the pre-heated oven for 25 minutes.
Check regularly, ensuring the centre is still gooey but not un-cooked.

Ta-Da!

Leave to cool for around 5-10 minutes, then dig in!

They taste best with ice-cream, I ate mine with toffee ice-cream.

Collective Haul!

Hey guys! 

I haven't uploaded in a while since Uni is now in full swings and deadlines are not nice.

I've been shopping quite a lot this last month so instead of doing separate posts of what I've bought, I've decided i'll do a collective haul!

These items are from the Student Lock In and various shopping trips.

Apologies in advance for the change of lighting in photos, they've all been taken at different times...

Clothes:

This beautiful dark green skirt is from New Look which I got in the sale for £10 I think?

 It's got silver buttons down the front and a belt can be worn as it has the loops for one.

 I loved this I thought it was different and would go well with perhaps a turtle neck in the cold months.

 I'm yet to wear this as I don't know what to match it with so any suggestions would be great!

This gorgeous shirt is a gold shimmery colour and reminds me of the dolly's grandparents put on coffee tables- haha!

This cost be £8 (I think) in the sale at New Look.

It's such a lovely fabric and is very comfortable! I dress this with some black jeans and black boots, it's great for the upcoming festive season!

I bought this long white tee from Select in the Student Lock In. 

I've forgotten how much this was but I know it was less than £10.

 It goes down to the back of my thighs and has a slit up the side.

 I love the design on the front reading: I'm only ever going to be me and I won't change for anyone or anything so accept it: FLAWLESS. 

It's such a meaningful quote placed on a casual shirt so it adds a little attitude to my outfits.

 I wear this with black leggings or black jeans and usually white converse.

I needed some new tights so I got these 50 denier tights from New Look for £4.99 but I got 10% off with student discount. 

These were so comfy but recently they got ladders in so I need to buy some more.

These were from New Look for £1 in the sale.

 I had to get them because they're so cute! 

Beauty:

On the Student Lock In I went into Lush as they were doing a deal that if you spent £10 you got a free goodie bag! 

So I bought the bath bomb Twilight as I seen it in the tester bowl and it looked amazing! I keep forgetting to bring it back home with me so I can use it - as I only have a shower in my student room. 

I also bought the Bubblegum Lip Scrub which I've heard many people rave about so thought i'd give it a go, especially as the cold weather makes my lips go horrible so i'll see if it helps.

I also bought myself the Dirty Springwash Shower gel for my shower. Although it smells really nice, I find it quite sickly as the smell is so strong. It's like a potent peppermint smell, like i'm washing myself in toothpaste... but it's okay and i'm sure i'll keep using it.

In the Goodie Bag I received: Fair Trade Foot Scrub - Which I haven't used yet.

Miranda Soap Bar - I haven't opened this yet as I have the new Zoella Soap Bar which I use at the minute.

Lastly I got the cute Against Animal Testing badge which is great! 

I got this Collection Nude Palette: Eyes Uncovered. 

The colours are beautiful and glittery, i'm looking forward to using this as I have a smoky eye palette but not a nude palette! 

This was less than £4 from Boots.

In the Student Lock In I went into Debenhams to the Benefit counter to have a look at this Hoola bronzer. I have seen so many people use this and rave about it so I thought i'd give it a go.

 It was around £20 which I thought i'd never spend on a make-up item but I thought i'd treat myself and this could be the one I use on special occasions. 

It's so lovely and is very pigmented. It's great for contouring the cheeks too it really defines the cheek bones.

I bought this Pro:Voke Touch of Silver colour care shampoo from Boots as I have recently had all my hair shopped off and got a full head of blonde highlights.

 I've heard that this shampoo is really good for enhancing the blonde which is brilliant as i'd love to go lighter eventually! 

This was less than £3!

Home:

I seen that Zoella brought out new products in her range and once I seen this product I was so excited! 

As i'm in student halls I can't light candles - which kills me because I love candles especially in the autumn/winter months.

 Although a reed diffuser I can use!

I haven't opened it yet as i've just had it delivered but I think it's going to smell like her first range of products - which is really nice.

 It's going to make my room smell so cosy!

I got this from Boots for £10 and it's definitely worth that, the packaging is so lovely and unique, it definitely suits Zoella.

In the Student Lock In I went slightly crazy in the Disney Store!

I've always wanted a Disney teddy so when I seen the selection I had to chose very carefully. 

I decided to get Dumbo as he was always my favourite when I was a little girl, to the point that I watched it that much the video cassette broke! That little fella cost me £20 but it was so worth it! He's gorgeous!

I have a mild obsession with mugs also so I felt like crying when I seen all the really lovely ones! I decided to get the Wall-e character Eva (If that's how you spell it) as she was so cute and the cup will fit a good hot chocolate in! 

She cost me £9-£10.

As it was the Student Lock In, they had an offer on that if you spent £30 and went to the till, the first 20 people to say Mickey Mouse got a free gift. So of course I said it and won a pack of Inside Out sticky notes. They're so cute! All in different shapes and sizes - and you know how I feel about stationary!

My boyfriend also bought me the Sulley teddy from Monster Inc and he's adorable! 

I am not ashamed of my Disney obsession - okay?

I hope you guys liked this post!
I've been spending so much money on new things at uni and i'm loving it.

Halloween is coming up soon so look forward to a themed blog post!!

Amie

XX

EXCLUSIVE: Interview with Josh Daniel

EXCUSIVE: Josh Daniel Interview!

Josh Daniel, 21, from Billingham, made his appearance on the X-Factor weeks ago and made it through to Boot Camp after stunning both the audience and the judges!

As Josh is from the North-East like myself, I thought it would be a great idea to ask him a few questions about the X-Factor and get some advice for you guys who may be interested in the music career. I messaged him some questions and amazingly he replied! So here is my exclusive interview with Josh Daniel!

(http://ru-listening.com/wp-content/uploads/Josh-Daniel-Low-Res-IMG_2650-Edit2015-500x500.jpg)

A: When did your passion for singing and performing begin?

J: My passion for singing and performing really came the first time I stood on a stage in secondary school! I hadn't previously realised I could sing and I think that feeling of a crowd appreciating what you do is infectious I loved it ever since! I was always musical from young playing violin, piano and guitar but I didn't sing a note till I was about 15!

A: When you auditioned on the X-Factor, did you ever expect the reaction you received?

J: Of course I never imagined that I would get the reaction I have had! I’ve always been lacking in self-belief and never really thought I could be good enough to go far in the show and I think the response has just been the biggest confidence boost in the world. It’s so heart-warming to have worldwide support for your dream and for so many people to relate to how I sang the song. The judges getting emotional I think was overwhelming on the day, because I got lost in the song and didn't really notice what was going on, as soon as I stopped and came back into the room I was like... oh!

A: How are you dealing with the spotlight you now have after the amazing performance? Being noticed by celebrities and people from all over the world must be insane!

J: Yeah I mean the spotlight is always something that you are kind of signing up for by entering one of these shows, and even though I thought I knew exactly what to expect you can multiply the pressure by 10 in reality. It’s brilliant though, getting recognised and being able to interact with fans face to face and online is the best feeling, they are always the most important because fans drive your career and without them you can’t succeed. Labrinth, Paloma, Chris Brown etc. are all massive role models to me in the industry and for them to be talking about me and promoting my music is an absolute dream come true I honestly couldn't ask for any more.

A: Being from a small North East town like myself, what advice would you give to people who would want to pursue singing as a career but believe there’s no opportunities? How did you put yourself out there?

J: Advice wise I would say never give up, and it’s a cliché thing to say... But it’s true. Never say no to any opportunities even if it appears that it may not directly benefit you because you never know who is going to be watching, or what other doors may open. If you want the dream bad enough, work for it. Because when you become a big household name in the industry it only gets harder, being a local performer is always a test of whether you can deal with the pressures on a much smaller scale. It’s equally as important to stand out, because the music industry is heavily overcrowded and if you do the same thing as 500 other people can do in the UK then you are much less likely to attract the attention of big companies. I put myself out there with talent competitions and open mic nights initially, and then started to play in the odd pub and word starts to travel fairly quickly to be fair! Once you have impressed a venue they always tend to have you back, and everywhere is dying for live music!

A: How do you prepare yourself before performing, do you have any little warm up routines?

J: Before I perform I always tend to go quiet, it’s the way I deal with my nerves, just slow deep breaths and get my head in the game. People always ask me if I’m alright because it appears as though I’m upset or in deep thought but I just like to compose myself!

A: Before you auditioned for the X-Factor, which judge did you have in mind which you would like as your mentor, and why?

J: I never really had an ideal judge in mind! I saw it as a blessing to be mentored by any one of them so I just went in with an open mind. Nick and Cheryl understood me from the get go, and of course I had a connection with Simon too. Rita wasn't actually there at my first audition but I was still feeling fairly happy that none of the judges disliked me moving forward. It would be a nightmare getting mentored by someone who didn't particularly enjoy your audition!

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We've seen Josh perform a few times now in front of the judges and he has been amazing every time!


Wishing Josh the best of luck, he is going to go so far in the competition, we can all see that...


Amie 
XX

Uni Room Tour!

Hey guys! 

So this past week i've been moving into my new university accommodation in Sunderland at the Forge and I love it!

I know that i'm one of those people who likes to be nosy and look at peoples rooms, so this is for those type of people...

Bed area:

My bed is a single with gorgeous floral bedding from Dunelm Mill, I also got a couple of matching cushions and some fluffy, pretty ones from home.

 I also added my favourite throw, from Primark as it can get pretty chilly especially with these upcoming months.

 On my bed is my favourite teddy Danny (the dog) which i've had since I was born so I had to bring him.

Excuse the laptop, i've been obsessed with re-watching all of the CSI episodes!

Wash area.

 Then behind my door is my sink/wash area. The toothbrush holder and storage pot are from Dunelm Mill also. In them obviously is my toothbrush - and Zoe's at the minute as she stays at mine quite a lot! I have my face flannels, hair brush, Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish.
I also have my tissues, because you never know when you might need them! 
My Grandma also got me the cute hand soap and moisturiser.
Then there's my hand towel which I bought from Primark.
Oh, then there's awkward me in the mirror, haha!

Wardrobe.

Beside my sink is my wardrobe, which have cute fairy lights on top from Dunelm Mill.
In the wardrobe obviously is my underwear, clothes, jackets & shoes - thank god for storage!
Then under my clothes are three gorgeous geisha girls which my best friend Zhiyin got me from China when she went away, I love them so much they really match with everything in my wardrobe.
Under them is a vintage storage basket from B&M which has my chocolate and sweet stash in. 
Beside that is my Fearne Cotton storage box which holds my nail varnishes.
Below them are my books, I only brought a selection with me: Username: Evie by Joe Sugg, Fangirl, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Love Tanya by Tanya Burr, Guardian Style and two university tips books. Then I have my magazines such as Vogue and Cosmopolitan, as well as my notebooks and folders.
Under that shelf is nothing important just my alcohol and carrier bags for shopping - haha!

 

Desk.

At the bottom of my bed is my desk and canvas board which is my favourite! 

On my board:
Some cute heart fairy lights from Dunelm Mill. 
A lot of poloroid images from the app LALALAB which I am obsessed with.
Some 'good luck' cards from various people.
Two cute motivational signs, the top one from Dunelm Mill and the bottom blue one is from Primark for only £1! 

On my desk: I have my cute pink lamp from Home Bargains.
My favourite glass with Pepsi Max in, the glass was only £1 from Primark I love them!
There's also a cute purple vintage tray what my Grandma got me, which matches 2 mugs and 2 coasters, 1 coaster is under my glass! On the tray is some mints, some small stationary bits like paper clips and pins.
On the left you will see the two stationary pots I put in my Stationary Haul Post.
There's also my sweety jar with them blue and pink bottle sweets in that are really fizzy!
My Acer tablet is also on my table which I received off my accommodation and am yet to set up and learn how to use - thanks U-Student!
There's my purse which is from New Look and my keys which have cute pictures on from Fresher's Week. 
I also have two beautiful desk planners from WHSmith, one is a To-Do List and the other is a weekly planner - they're so handy!
There's also a cute picture of me and my perfect mama being silly in Tesco, aha!

To the left of my desk is my window which looks out onto the square and other student flats. Here you can see my desk chair - which was quite an ugly green and black so I covered with a cosy purple throw which my Grandma gave me, and a cute cushion which is from ASDA.
There is also 2 pretty storage boxes from Dunelm Mill.
Also a wicca heart-shaped storage basket where I put my dirty laundry!

To the left of my wicca basket, is my drawers which I store my beauty bits and other random stuff. 
On top is my makeup bag, a handy double sided mirror and my make-up brushes which I store in Gab Lindley (Velvetgh0st) Primark range. The mug was £3 and it is so cute!
There's also my Zoella beauty products and my sunglasses - even though it's now autumn!

Shower.

As I got a premium room, I get a shower included.

Its a lovely shower, quite roomy even though it doesn't look it. Here I keep my Radox shower gel and my shampoo/conditioner. Pretty basic really.