For me, Autumn and Winter is the time of year where I focus on my home decor more and concentrate on making my rooms cosy and homely ready to spend night in the colder seasons.
I've had a good response on social media at the moment about my home decor and style, so I thought I'd do a mini house tour of my kitchen and living room.
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| Scroll down to see my Top 3 Tips to 'Cosy' your home for Winter. |
I have a rustic/eclectic interiors style which I'm quite adventurous with but it's not to every ones taste.
I designed my kitchen in December last year (which you can read more about here) where I chose modern kitchen units in a green/beige colour, made to look more rustic with the addition of pewter cup handles and a rustic solid oak top for a more rustic look.
I love the unique style of my kitchen as it's not the style you see every day.
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| I designed my kitchen with a rustic theme in mind in keeping with my Victorian cottage. |
Continuing the rustic/eclectic style through to my living room, sticking to the age of our 1890's Victorian cottage with original doors and flooring. I love leather, antiques and all things vintage which is why my living room is full of, including my collection of decanters and bar area which can't be seen in this photo.
My furniture is all vintage or antique with my bureau which I picked up for £35 from British Heart Foundation and my vintage oak coffee table I got from Newark Antiques Fair for £40.
We have a log store and log basket to store the wood for our log burner we use daily in the winter, completes the perfect cosy home.
My favourite piece in my living room is my vintage red leather chesterfield arm chair I bought when I was 19 from Newark Antiques Fair for £150.
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| My living room might not be every ones style but I love how cosy and homely it feels. |
Winter is the season I like to make my home homely and cosy addition new items and changing decor. Here are my Top 3 Tips for How to 'cosy' your home for Winter:
1. Rugs
Rug change the look and style of a place so quickly and are an inexpensive way to update a room.
In our house, Tom and I change our rug probably 2 to 3 times a year, it just completely changes the look of the room. We bought our current rug (LOHALS Rug from IKEA £65.00) is a lovely lightweight and comfortable neutral textile perfect for summer and giving our living room some light.
For Winter we're looking for another Persian Rug which we adore or a Turkish Kilim Rug which we also have in our home.
2. Pictures and Photographs
We recently put all our photographs, pictures and shelving up on the walls. As the nights are getting darker and the winter closing in I was feeling that our house looked a little dark and bare without accessories on the walls. I was okay with this in the summer as it was light and airy.
Winter for me is the perfect time to fill your walls with sentimental photographs and unique art.
3. Blankets and Cushions
Essentials for Winter and keeping cosy, blanket and cushions are ideal for transforming your room into a seasonal haven of warmth. Try a combination of soft and textures fabrics to add dimension to your room with different colour combination in layers on your sofas and chairs with either matching or contrasting blanket you can cosy up in in the evening, draped over the sofa arm.
They're my Top 3 Tips to 'cosy' your home for Winter!
Thanks for reading,
Charlie xo
Find Me:
Snapchat: CharliePallett
Email: styledbycharlie@yahoo.com
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I love autumn because it means we're closer to my favourite season, winter.
Christmas and Halloween are definitely my favourite holidays of the year and I've always dreamt of going to a pumpkin farm after seeing loads of pictures of them in America, I didn't realise I had one right on my doorstep, Hill Farm in Chesterton near Peterborough.
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| Check out Hill Farm here. |
This weekend Tom, Chloe, James and I headed to the farm to pick our own pumpkins from the most amazing sight that was a field full of pumpkins. I was quite worried there wouldn't be any left after watching Zoella's pumpkin picking vlog which was a bit of a disaster. However I couldn't believe my eyes to find a field of colour with hundreds and hundred of pumpkins!
I turned into an excitable 7 year old again, running about getting extremely enthusiastic about pumpkins, and before you paint a picture of me being a crazy Halloween fanatic, it's completely acceptable to enjoy walking around a field of pumpkins.. Ok?
Pumpkins of all shapes and sizes, all different varieties and you can choose your own.
We all got instantly quite attached to our pumpkins and Tom and I ended up taking 5 home.
It was such an amazing experience that I will definitely do every year from now on as I enjoyed it so much.
Hill Farm runs all year round selling every kind of produce you could need from berries to fruit and veg, and pumpkins at Halloween obviously. It's a great place for all the family with refreshments available and even a play area for the kiddy-winks too.
I'd highly recommend it as a family location, or for a crazy Halloween fan like me!
The experience was so fun I couldn't stop taking pictures, so I thought I'd share them with you.
Enjoy :-)
Thanks for reading,
Charlie xo
Find Me:
Snapchat: CharliePallett
Email: styledbycharlie@yahoo.com
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WE'RE GOING TO NEW YORK!
12.10.16
When I was 18 I was lucky enough to go to New York on a business trip with my college. It was an amazing opportunity and a trip of a lifetime, but.. I'm going back!
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| Returning to my favourited city - Eek! | Photo Taken by myself in March 2013 |
Next month, Tom and I are heading to NYC for 5 days with friends Chloe and James. However, this time around we're not staying in a hostel, but in a gorgeous hotel. Eek!
From 24th to 28th November we'll be in New York City living the dream, so I thought I'd share some of my plans with you guys and hopefully those of you that have visited New York can give me some tips in the comments on where to go, and what to see!
WHAT IT COST?
We're flying with United Airlines from Heathrow Airport to Newark near NYC.
We chose to fly economy as the price difference even to go premium was quite ridiculous.
With flights and hotel it's costing us £700 per person, which I think is an amazing price for 4 nights in New York City at Christmas time, staying in a gorgeous hotel.
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| Photo Taken by myself in March 2013 |
WHERE ARE WE STAYING?
Last time I stayed in the YMCA Vanderbilt Hostel on East 47th Street which was extremely affordable and in a great location, however it wasn't the nicest place to sleep or wash, to be honest.
This time, we're staying in the Hudson on West 58th Street near Central Park - my favourite place!
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| Photo Taken by myself in March 2013 |
WHAT WE WANT TO DO?
Last time in NYC we did a lot. A lot in 4 days. So, this time, we want to do more unique things, and less of the site-seeing. Apart from re-doing 'Top of the Rock' because Tom missed out last time, and it really, really was the most amazing sight I've ever witnessed!
We've all got different things we want to see, but for me I'm desperate to walk the 'High Line' which I didn't know even existed until I watched Tanya Burr's Vlog. Chloe's dream is to watch The Lion King on Broadway so we're really hoping we can get tickets for that, as what an experience that would be?
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| Photo Taken by myself in March 2013 |
WHAT ARE THINGS TO DO IN NYC FOR FREE?
I've been doing some research into free things to do in New York, as sometimes the free and accessible attractions or locations are forgotten about, like the High Line because they're less promoted. For example, I've found places like;
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| Photo Taken by myself in March 2013 |
I love New York for so many reason, it really did capture my heart when I visited the first time and it's a city where I feel incredibly safe and accepted which I think is important when travelling.
I love the food, I love the people and I love the architecture and history.
If you love cities or places with so much to do, then you'll love New York because there is something there for everyone whether you like shopping, art, history, food, anything! New York really is a really incredibly place I'm so glad I get to visit again.
I'll be sharing my New York plans on my Vlog, and I'll always be Vlogging the week on my YouTube Channel too! So, Subscribe if you want to see what we get up to.
I can't wait!
Please share your NYC tips and recommendations with my in the comments as I want to know what your favourite thing to do in New York are.
Thanks for reading,
Charlie xo
Find Me:
Snapchat: CharliePallett
Email: styledbycharlie@yahoo.com
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MY BIPOLAR AND ME
9.10.16
Being diagnosed with Bipolar aged 14 or something (it was all a huge, horrible blur) I had a pretty different teenage life than the average. With big decisions like, deciding whether or not to keep trying and trying with counselling or whether to try medication, or both!
It was a challenge that I never really thought I'd have to accept and live with for the rest of my life. After years of thinking everyone else dealt with life so easily and thinking I was obviously bad at 'life', I finally realised that actually I wasn't just a stroppy, hormonal teen, and somehow putting a name to it helped.
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| Growing up with a mental health disorder I didn't know I had wasn't easy. |
My biggest challenge was accepting that therapy and recovery aren't easy.
Therapy is not a quick fix or an immediate help, in fact I struggled a lot with not just talking about my mental health but taking advice for it. I felt that no one understood how it really was inside my head, and felt I was being patronised to do things 'normally', when she was only doing her job, and trying to help me.
It's hard being diagnosed with any condition, but I think it's very hard being diagnosed with a mental health condition. You can talk to someone else who has had broken their leg before and you'll have similar experiences of recovery. However talking to someone else with a mental health condition, isn't so similar. In fact, everyone, and every condition is different, and every ones journey through it towards acceptance is very different too.
As I mentioned before in a post I wrote last year (see here), my diagnosis wasn't simple either. My referral was actually lost and I felt that I had been lost too. But the reason for my referral wasn't very straightforward either, I was 14 and it involved a bottle of gin.
I had never looked at alcohol as an answer or a punishment. Growing up in a household where alcohol wasn't just something that's only drank on special occasions, it wasn't a big deal to me.
So what made me nearly overdose on alcohol? I have absolutely no idea.
All I remember is washing a glass out to remove the smell of the gin it had it in, and then putting it on the side. The next thing I know I'm waking up somewhere I'm not familiar with, surrounded my family in a bright room. It smells like a hospital... Oh, and I'm wearing a gown. Where has my bra gone? Why does my nose kill! - What's happened?
I was then told I was a 'very silly girl' by a doctor who said I was 'stupid' and very 'lucky', and nearly had a heart attack. What had I done?
My parents filled my in and it was the gin, I'd drank nearly a bottle of gin and I didn't remember a second of it. If it wasn't for my friend Paul who I was on the phone to at the time, it all could be a very different story.
While on the phone, Paul heard a bang and I wasn't responding. He called my cousin to see if she could get my parents to check on me because he was worried something had happened.
My parents came home to check on me and I was covered in my own vomit and unconscious.
After putting all the pieces together or a few days afterwards, I realised that after I washed that glass out, that I'd gone back to the bottle itself. Then I'd fallen and knocked myself out, falling on my nose (explains why it was so incredibly painful) onto my dolls house roof and knocks myself unconscious.
You could say I had a 'horrible hangover' for a fair few days to come, however it wasn't a hangover it was torture, and all my own fault. If this event hadn't happened, I wouldn't have been referred to a therapist and I wouldn't have been diagnosed, possibly until something else tragic happened.
Therapy wasn't for me, I gave it ago but it really wasn't the right thing for me at the time.
I still had therapy once a week alongside the medication that I decided to try to see if it could help me find the happy head space I craved.
But it isn't as easy as just taking medication. It's a long process of finding the right one, trying different combinations and finding the pairing for you, personally.
It actually took about 5 years of different medication combinations and a process of elimination to find a combination I'm happy with. After having side effects on Fluoxetine and Citalopram with anxiety, panic attacks and anger, I've finally found a good combo with Quetiapine and Sertraline.
I do have to see my doctor a couple of times a year to amend them if I have to depending on how I am mentally, and recently had to increase my anti-depressant medication to help with my down days and paranoia.
Therapy wise, I don't have any anymore. After several bad experiences, I self care.
That might sound stupid to a lot of you, but it works for me. I'm the only expert that knows me, and my head. I've had this for many, many years now and I know me.
I feel like once I had fully accepted my disorder and diagnosis, and could actually finally deal with the fast I had bipolar disorder and could say those words out loud, it became a lot easier.
That's not to say I don't support having therapy, but I personally feel like I've done my bit and learnt what I needed to know. But I'm not alone I have my family, Tom and my dog.
Blogging helps, a lot.
Spending time with and talking to people that I have so much in common with helps because it inspires me, and if I'm inspired I seem to be happy! I love writing, I love coming up with new plans, projects and ideas, I thrive of being inspired.
Sleep helps! I love to sleep.
But that's mainly because my medication does make me very, very drowsy - so I'm pretty good at sleep to be honest.
But what helps mostly is my relationship with my boyfriend, Tom. We've been together 5 years and we know each other so well I'm happy and content. Getting Arla, our pug last year and buying our first house together was a good decision too.
Now I have my own home, how I like it and a dog to look after and love helps me stay challenged but happy. I feel a lot more stable now I have things for myself, it seemed become an adult and dealing with adult things has helped me accept and move on to complete things without having to take my mental health situation into consideration and I can just live life, quite normally which is all I ever wanted.
I don't wear a big jumper that says 'I'm Bipolar', or bring it up in every conversation and make it a big deal and boulder in my life. I obviously struggle some days more than others, and I can deal with certain things easier than other things - but isn't that life?
All I ever wanted growing up was to be happy and normal - two things I didn't think I was, because of my huge mental health condition that I didn't even know I had.
Life isn't normal, and life isn't easy. You have a lot of obstacles to challenge and a lot of crazy big decisions to make along the way. But there is no reason that just because my brain is a little bit more crazy and different to the average human that I can't chase my dreams and succeed.
I thought that having Bipolar would set me back as an adult and I wouldn't be taken seriously.
But it's not like I have a huge arrow advertising it above my head. No one knows. They only know if I tell them, but do I have to do that with everyone I meet? No.
I don't let it become a factor unless it has to be.
My anxiety is the biggest issue for me and I'm still very much working on that one, because that does hold me back, but I try to challenge myself every now and again and test myself and my anxiety, because I feel it really helps with understanding triggers and situations better.
Sometimes, I surprise myself.
I just wanted to say one day, that I was happy.
Yes, I have a mental health disorder and take medication every single day for that, but I am happy.
I finally found my happy medium I'd been searching through my teens for, and it's mainly down to the fact I've found myself a lovely Victorian cottage to live in, a crazy amazing dog I dreamt of owning for years, and a pretty amazing ginger companion to grow old with.
Life is a challenge but it's only what you make it.
Don't hold yourself back, surprise yourself.
Thanks for reading,
If you want to ask me any questions or to contact me if you're going through a mental health diagnosis or maybe you just want to say 'HI!', drop me an email at styledbycharlie@yahoo.com - I'd love to chat!
Charlie xo
Find Me:
Snapchat: CharliePallett
Email: styledbycharlie@yahoo.com
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A DAY IN LONDON | 2ND OCT 2016
5.10.16
As you may or may not know, my blog was nominated for Best Designed Blog at the Beauty Blogger Awards at London Olympia this year, so on Sunday 2nd October my mother and I jumped on the train at Peterborough and headed down the awards to see if I'd won.
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| Leicester Square, London on a sunny Sunday afternoon |
We headed down the Piccadilly line to Earl's Court to grab the district tube to Olympia - which if you didn't know is a confusing waiting game where you stand out in the cold for a while waiting and waiting...
Luckily it was a huge wait this year but maybe that's because we know what we were doing this time!
The short train journey to Olympia is minutes long and we headed to the Pillar Hall to sign in to the Beauty Blogger Awards 2016!
Where my mother got extremely excited by the fact she got a badge and goody bag, which took minutes for her dissect and rummage through.
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| Waiting, waiting, waiting... |
The awards itself didn't start until around 1.30pm, and next door being held in Olympia is the Olympia Beauty show which is full of all things beauty with fashion and accessories thrown in there too. There is some amazing brands and companies with established products and new products to the market also. It's a great place to wonder around, and it's also a place which is hugely tempting to the wallet also.
*No charlie.. No!*
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| The huge Olympia Beauty Show |
Before the awards there are a number of talks and workshops for Bloggers and we sat and listened to a chat about Upping your Blog Photography game from Franny Mac which was very interested, followed by a chat from the hilarious Emma G - who is now one of my most favourite people ever when she elegantly fell of the stage and threw out joke and joke - legend.
I also sat next to Blogosphere Magazine's founder Alice Audley who is super lovely and even recognised me from one of my Instagram posts featuring their Lily Pebbles edition, which made my day a little!
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| Blogosphere Magazine featuring Victoria from In The Frow |
Sadly, I didn't come away with a Beauty Blogger Award this year, but as I lost out last year too in the Outstanding Achievement Award category, I think I'm going to go for 3rd time lucky in 2017 - because I might as well!
After the awards we popped back onto the Piccadilly line and headed for one of my favourite places ever, Covent Garden to grab some food and do some Birthday shopping for Tom's 22nd Birthday next week!
I'd never been to a Jamie Olive restaurant before and as the weather was super lush on Sunday we decided to head to Jamie's restaurant 'Union Jacks' in the centre of Covent Garden for some wine and nibbles which turned into wine a pizza because I totally couldn't resist.
I had the 'Woodman' Pizza with mozzarella instead of cheddar and it was amazing! I love mushroom on pizza, and with glass of sauvignon, it went down a treat!
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| Yummy, scrummy Union Jacks |
So although I didn't jump on the train home carry an award this time round, I had such a lovely day out with my mum and we laughed - nearly cried when I didn't win (lol) - so much and came home wishing we could stay in the city longer.
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CHRISTMAS FOR DOGS
3.10.16
As I don't have any children and last year was lucky enough to buy my first house and get my little puppy bundle, Arla the Pug, Christmas is exciting for me but in a different way to many...
Tom and I class Arla as our child (ridiculous? I know - give us a break) so yes, we do celebrate her birthday, and yes she will receive Christmas presents. But I'm not alone in my obsessed with my dog as crazy as it might sound. We're a country of animal lovers and many households have at least 1 dog in their lives, so why not celebrate Christmas with them?
I popped into Sainsbury's last week excited to see their Pet Christmas stock hitting the shelves from the 'Good Boy' brand, so... I bought it all!
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