Be yourself; Everyone else is already taken.
— Oscar Wilde.
This is the first post on my new blog. I’m just getting this new blog going, so stay tuned for more. Subscribe below to get notified when I post new updates.
Introduce Yourself (Example Post)
This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.
You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.
Why do this?
- Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
- Because it will help you focus you own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.
The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.
To help you get started, here are a few questions:
- Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
- What topics do you think you’ll write about?
- Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
- If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?
You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.
Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.
When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.
VIVA Ireland: Short-term Accomodation for Internationals In Ireland
Being a 21 year old, trying to make it out in Dublin can be such a struggle. It’s a lot harder if you’re coming from another country. The rent in Dublin city centre is ridculously expensive these days and I salute every foreigner who comes to Ireland to start a new life and manage make ends meet. If you’re a new comer in Irleand andyou’re looking for an affordable and central location to live in the city then Viva Ireland has your back.
Viva Ireland is a house-sharing agency that accomodates all internationals coming in to Ireland, looking for a short-term stay till they settle in, for a very affordable price. They offer house-sharing with other internationals who come to Ireland with different purposes. It may be for work, travel or for studying.
Before I tell you more about Viva Ireland, I want to share the reason for this post and its because I really enjoyed my stay with them and thought I should spread the word about this new and exciting housing angency for internationals in Ireland. Also, I just want to share a quick story time on how I found them. I was lukcy enough to come accross their ad on Rent.ie. I was searching for a one week accomodation in Dublin for the purpose of work and urgently but because most people who rent reuqire at least 3months or more for a duration of stay. I could’ve just booked an AirBnB or went to a hostel but ya girl here is on a budget and I didn’t think it was necessary to spend a lot if the purpose of my stay was just a place to stay the nights in Dublin after work, so thats why I chose Viva Ireland.
Their Location and Team
Viva Ireland has offers house-sharing for internationals in Dublin and Cork. They are also expanding and offering more properties available for house share in Galway soon. They actually have an office in the cities, where they’re located, therefore you can easily visit and ring their office if you have any questions.
You will be dealing directly with one of the customer service representative in Viva Ireland and not the tenants of the house. If you still haven’t arrived in Ireland, you can also ring them or email them. Their team is very friendly and helpful and note that if you’re enlgish is not as fluent, they also have a team of internationals that can speak spanish, portuguese and italian. Their website is also offered in english, french, italian, spanish, portuguese and german. They have a maintenance team for their houses and that includes a cleaner that comes to the house twice a week and a handyman to fix or replace anything thats is reported broken by the tenants in the house.
House Viewing and Booking
You can check out the property and rooms available in Dublin and Cork online, at their website Viva Dublin and Viva Cork. Each property gives a list of the facilties available in the house, pictures of the rooms and the location of the property. Viva Ireland offers a signgle bedroom, double bedroom, twin bedroom, triple bedroom and quadruple bedroom. All prices vary for each bedroom in each property. Rooms are priced according to a stay of one week but you must pay for the total amount of your stay in one entire payment at the start before you check-in and not in installments.
You can arrange a viewing of the propety with the team before your decide to book, just give them a ring or drop them and email. Also, If you’re interested in booking your stay with them, just give them an email and they usually respond in 1-2 working days. Just be sure you read their email thorugouhly because it gives you specific intrusctions how booking and paying in Viva Ireland works. Other charges they have for booking with Viva Ireland include a security deposit (which will be given back after you leave) and a cleaning fee. If you need something ASAP, they require you to book at least 48hours before your check-in date. Once you follow the email intructions on how to pay they also will send you an email on how to do your self-check in. Its really easy and it’s just like checking-in to an AirBnB! Once you’ve paid and you’re ready to check-in, all thats left is reading and signing the house contract with Viva Ireland and you’re good to go.
Viva Ireland is a great way for new people moving in to Ireland to get settled in because you wont feel alone or be seen as an outsider as you will also meet other people from different cultural backgrounds who are also experiencing the same thing as you!
If you want to know more about Viva Ireland you can check out their website or follow them in their social media! (Links below) Also I’ll be sharing my experience with them, in one of their Dublin apartments soon, in another blog!
A bientôt,
Facebook: @vivaireland
Instagram: @vivaireland
Twitter: @vivaireland_com
Disclaimer: I hold an Irish passport but I still am Filipino by blood and would still be seen as an international person. Despite Viva Ireland stating it accomodates international professionals, students and travelers, it didnt not state that it limited its accomodation to the only specidied niche.
Bershka SS18 Staff Favourites
“Who do we think we are, modeling for Bershka!?” Well… First of all, we’re awesome and second of all, we’re the people that sell their clothes and NO we were not bored. This “photo shoot” was actually kick started when BERSHKA announced that they were holding a competition for the best look of their new spring/summer 2018 collection for all the stores in Ireland. I thought it would be fun to share this new creative way of promoting staff recognition.
We had an option of doing it on our own, but our manager suggested to do a group shoot, which to my surprise, was really fun to do. One for the weekday staff and another for the weekend staff. It challenged our inner fashionista’s and brought us closer in the sense that we all helped each other with picking our outfits.
The theme of our shoot (if you can call it that) was street style wear, with the main colours being red, blue and white as that seems to be something quite big in Bershka’s new collection. Personally, I think our concept was really good due to the models mostly being the weekend staff, which consisted of college students and street wear fashion is big in our generation. Fingers crossed we win!
If you’re curious about our #BERSHKASTYLE, feel free to drop by the store and we’ll give you a hand. #customerservice 😉 Links for my outfit will be below.
Clothes:
Puffer Jacket – its on sale right now! – link
Red Jogging Trousers – link
Strappy White Top – link
Accesories:
Striped Neckerchief – my fave piece in this look! – link
I couldn’t find exact glasses but here’s something similar
Aviator Sunglasses – link
We had initially had planned to set a side an hour after work to do the shoot but due to the flow of tourist coming in to the shop due to it being Paddy’s day weekend, we weren’t able to do it except the day after when everyone was dying from the excessive drinking the night before and the snow made it impossible for them to leave their homes. Despite this being a last minute thing, we were able to work with what we had and it turned out pretty well. Its not everyday, Inditex’s second biggest retailer lets their employees show off their inner model.
A bientôt,
Disclosure: The items we wore were from the store and the price tags were just hidden. Security tags were removed from accessories with permission from our manager and returned after for the purpose of this shoot.
5 Reasons Why I love working in Fashion Retail
I’ve been missing in action lately.. not because I grew tired of blogging but more so because I’ve been busy balancing college and work. Yeah ya girl is working part-time these days in fashion retail and let me tell you, I love it! Setting aside the crazy mammies and daughters asking for sizes and ruining my pile during the Christmas and New Year sales, here are 5 reasons why I love it.
1. Giving Fashion Advice
I absolutely love it when my besties come to me for advice. Like yes girl, let me shine some light in to you about that boy! I love it even more when customers approach me and ask for my opinion or advice about fashion and style. It feels good because they put their trust on me to give some fashion advice without even knowing me or what my personal style is. It makes my day knowing a customer followed my advice and buys the clothes that I suggested.
2. Discounts
Being the broke college student that I am, discounts are my favourite reason why I love working in fashion retail. I’m always one for mixing and matching “old season” (vintage clothes we’ll call it for next time) clothes but since working under fashion, I’ve been able to buy new season clothes at ease. The brand I work for also has other “sister companies” which I also get discounts from therefore every binge shopping is a deal.
3. Being in trend
Girls, you can never go wrong with basic but we all get tired eventually of being that basic babe. Since I work in an environment that sells the latest fashion trends, It’s so easy to spot what colours and styles are going to be on trend for the season.It’s also easy to spot which styles will only last a month. As stressful as doing store deliveries sounds, I do enjoy un-boxing the clothes and see what new styles are in this week.
4. Compliments
Before, when I still didn’t have the official uniform for the store my uniform was basically me just trying to be trendy in black clothing. It makes my day when customers come to tell me they like what I’m wearing and ask where I got it. It feels nice to receive compliments from random people when you’ve been stressed out dealing with demanding customers. At some point, I was wearing black clothes all coming from the shop and when customers ask me where that item is located on the floor, you know I just had to make them buy it.
The last point really applies for most jobs especially if the job you’re doing is related to your course.
5. Experience
Being in my final year of college, working in retail has been my escape to get away from all the college stress. The pressure of meeting deadlines and reading research articles have been weighed out by the customers whom I have little chats in the fitting room and the bants me and my workmates have. Working in Retail has given me the chance to actually apply the things I’ve learned in college modules and use some the experiences I have at work in my projects. I feel more ready to deal with CA’s when I know I can just refer back to my own personal work experience. Its a win-win!
A bientôt,
PLT: January Wishlist
Anyone else being hit by the January dry spell?
Due to January exams I had been constantly sitting in front of my laptop trying to gather as much knowledge to help me pass the semester but now that is over I’m still here sitting in front of my laptop because it’s too cold to go out in Dublin these days and Christmas expenses took a hit on the bank account. So lately, I’ve been doing some window shopping and I’ve made this wishlist from every gal’s online go-to shop Pretty Little Thing. I thought it be nice to share some fashion inspo for when the sunnier yet chilly days are here.
ALSO if anyone wants to get me something for my birthday on February… have a look. 😉
*all photos are linked back to their own pages in PLT when clicked*
Also, anyone else think baby blue and honey yellow will be colours for spring coz I’m really loving them! 😍
A bientôt,
Co. Wicklow: Bray Head Photo Diary
Do people still say “Will you go out on a date with me?” It’s been a month since I came back from France and you’d think I’d be off prancing over the rainbow with my man since we haven’t seen each other for a while but that hasn’t been the case. Despite the conflicting priorities and schedules he asked me out on a date. Something we both haven’t done in a while since February (Crazy that its been that long, I know!) It wasn’t like your typical dinner dates it was more of a “Let’s hike up to Bray head coz I want to show you the amazing view up there” and he sure didn’t disappoint. So on Wednesday afternoon we took the DART from Connolly Station, Dublin and headed up to Bray in Co. Wicklow. (More helpful links at the end)
I’ve never been to Bray and all I knew at that time was that it was a posh area by the beach. When we got there the entire town was covered with fog. It was like being in an episode of Scooby-Doo or Nancy Drew where they end up in a creepy town with fog and brainwashed locals staring at them (Yeah..my imagination is weird like that). We couldn’t see the beach, the houses nor Bray head but it was quite beautifully haunting.
Wear your runners folks! The hike up was quite a struggle for me since I don’t usually do these types of things. This was a change of scene and he the view was worth the hike. The higher we got up the less fog there was and the more you can see how the small town of Bray was covered entirely with fog.
He only made me look back once and the next time I looked down at the town of Bray was when we finally reached the top. Doing this he said built up the excitement and appreciating the view better. We marveled at the view and enjoyed the silence of just us two in the skies (well for a short while). It was a different kind of view not just your typical hill overlooking the sea on a sunny day view and I think it was really nice he brought me on this little date.
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| When we got down the fog cleared, the sun came out and I enjoyed my ice cream while walking on the beach like all other cliché couples do. |
The view was beautiful despite it being unclear due to the fog and clouds but it did bring clear insights to our relationship. It was such a nice date and made me appreciate Ireland more. Definitely brought me back through the times we traveled in France. Until our next Irish adventure…
A Bientot,
Dawn
Helpful Links:
Bray Tourism Page
Visit Wicklow – Bray Head
Beginner Tips for Blogging Photo Shoots
I am no where near being a model nor a photographer but one odd day I was bored and feeling low so I called of my instagram wife Jess to meet up with me an have a walk around the beautiful pink city of Toulouse. There are times when you struggle with confidence and self-love and I honestly think doing a little “photo shoot” will make you feel better and make you realise you are a queen/king and I thought I should share my beginner tips on blogger photo shoots. May it be for make-up, a new product, fashion, travel or whatever your niche is.
Colourful Aesthetic Background.
I’ve lived in Toulouse for 8 months and there were still some places I wasn’t able to go to so I said why not now? So on that random afternoon, we walked around the unfamiliar streets like tourists. We walked around to look for place to shoot and let our inner bloggers flow through. If you see a nice Instagram worthy background then take out the cam and start the shoot! I always find street art to be eye catching or even just plain but vibrant walls. Walking around your area can help you find the background that suits your mood. Contrasting backgrounds to your outfit or product really help you/it stand out.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BTevAxPAja2
Think like a tourist.
When I’m travelling I always let my inner tourist go full out because I’ve no shame. I think you get better quality photos when you’re a tourist because you want to capture amazing scenes and moments to show off afterwards and this is a mindset I like to put in my head. When I’m not travelling, it’s awkward because there are people passing by and staring. Then I let it settle in my mind that I’m currently a “tourist” for a day in this city so I shouldn’t care if people are staring because most tourist don’t. Besides you’ll never see them again.
Be yourself.
It was hard at first because I’m not one for posing and I don’t think I fit the criteria of those popular bloggers but we worked through it and just let ourselves be ourselves. Trying to pose as if you’re trying to be someone doesn’t really turn out well for photos. It looks awkward and you feel fake. I personally think that your visuals should be able to radiate your personality.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BSbz_XfA_s_
Move around and try to have fun while doing it, if music helps then put those tunes on blast why not? If you’re taking photos just keep capturing the. Don’t pause and wait for them to do another pose because sometimes candid ones turn out to be better.
Play with Lighthing and Angles
Every blogger will tell you that sunlight is the best lighting so it’s best to do pictures in the morning but there’s also no harm in playing with shadows and angles! Just remember to incorporate what the purpose of the shoot is. What is it that you want to stand out in the picture.
I’m really bad when it comes to lighting but I’m working to improve on that and doing this “shoot” let me experiment on my photography skills. Experimenting with lighting also helps you find which angles work for you.You’ll have a lot of pics taken at then end but it gives you a look of which angles work and which lighting suits you.You may have to crouch down or stand on a stool but hey! These are the things we bloggers have to do for right picture.
As you are a beginner, your phone isn’t bad to use at the start and in these pictures I was just using mine too. The thing I like about the iPhone cam is that it has auto-lighting so if the lighting is bad, you can just tap that feature so it corrects it.
Enhance your beauty with photoshop apps
VscoCam and Snapseed, I think are the 2 apps almost every blogger starts out with. Both apps are free on the app store and they have a lot of nice features and filters that are good for retouching and enhancing. They’re straight forward and easy to use.Of course you are free to use other apps but personally these are the 2 apps that work best for me.
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| My fave Vsco filter is Hypebeast 2 and I use it nearly for all my picture! |
Find some Blogger Inspo
Look at other bloggers’ blogs or Instagram for inspiration. It gives you an idea how to pose or what your pictures to look like. It’s just like flicking through a magazine. When I started, I also read blogger help from other sources and it really helped me get a grasp of what to look for or what to do on the shoot or even how to edit photos. Doing a little research goes a long way hence why you’re here right?
Now here’s a lil gallery showing you the photos I got of my instgram wifey (@iamagnesJ) while taking in to mind the tips mentioned..
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| Photo credits to @iamagnesJ for taking the pictures of me above. |
Hope you find these tips useful and welcome to the blogging community fellow blogger! 😉
A bientôt, Dawn
DIY Mini Couple Canvas
It really is hard to think of something to get for someone when you’re a broke girl (like me) but not too long ago, I went in to a random art shop during the winter sales and while I was rummaging through the sales I found this mini canvas gift set. I thought as well that this would be a good idea for me to start a new hobby of painting. I was inspired by couple items so I thought it would be cute to make a “couple canvas” and give it as a small present for the bf (cringy.. i know). I wanted to post this since March but I had to wait till I actually gave the decor to the bf. Before we get cracking in to the DIY, I never took art classes so my “masterpiece” may not be like Da Vinci’s but I thought I should share this because it’s perfect for beginners and crafty people!
What you will need:
- 2 blank canvas
- paint
- paint brush
- paper
- pen
I got mine as a set from the art company Reeves. If you don’t want to use the set you can find everything individually in your local arts and crafts store.
1. First thing I did was search online for some drawings I was confident enough to paint. If you have something in mind already that’s perfectly fine. What i really had planned for this was to look for a couple kissing (or something cringy like that) and for that I used Pinterest. There were a lot to pick from and the one I chose was this one:
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| I didn’t go for something too complicated. I kept it simple and easy. |
2. Since it was my first time, I didn’t immediately paint. I first practiced on paper how I wanted the painting to look. I put the 2 blank canvas side by side on the paper and used their shape as an outline. I think it too me a while to get the proportions right since this was going to be a “couple item” so I had to draw the boy in one canvas and the girl on the other. Once you’re happy with that you can now start painting.
3. I started off with the background colour and just painted everything. Nothing to hard. Then after the paint dried, I took my pencil and drew the outline of the couple just to guide me when I’m painting.
4. After that, I just painted in the spaces bit by bit. I first started with the faces, I didn’t have a skin tone colour so I just mixed colours.
then I just slowly worked my way to the characters’ entire bodies.
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| I purposely made the hair look messy coz why not? |
5.As for the clothes because there are stripes I first just painted the male character’s shirt entirely black and then just added the white stripes after. Then I painted the stripes on the sleeves first. To make sleeve pop out more, after i added in the striped I took the black paint and outlined the sleeves. I did the same thing for the female character’s shirt.
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| When I was taking pictures for this, I was using both my phone and camera. For part 5 I was using my phone and unfortunately my phone broke recently so I had to look for it in my backed up drive and only found this. |
6. Next step now is to paint the daisy bouquet that is in between the couple. I started off just drawing the green stems and leaves. Take note I didn’t paint in her hand yet because I wasn’t sure if I still had to add in some stems. Then just add little golden yellow blobs around centre of the characters’ faces.
7. As for the petals I just stroked some white paint around the yellow blobs. It didn’t look nice as I expected it to be so to fix it up I added the little yellow dashes around the petals to make it more prominent. You can add more daisies around if you want to cover up more of their faces. Don’t forget also to paint in the girl’s arm when you’re happy.
And that’s all folks! Well I’m a messy type of girl so I’m quite satisfied with how it turned out given that this is my first time doing a canvas. It’s perfect for room decor or as a couple present if you’re in to that. You can even paint it on a bugger sized canvas. Another thing I did was turning it in to a fridge magnet. I just basically glued the magnet (you can get it too in your crafts store) at the back four corners of the canvas and it is now a magnet! Until the next DIY…
A bientôt, Dawn
If you’d like to see more art materials by Reeves, click here.
Why Having Friends With Different Cultural Backgrounds Make the Best Squad
Photo Credit: to B’s lil brother!
Moving to another country might mean you have to say goodbye to the babes and lads back home for a while, but it also means you’ll be meeting a lot of chicas and chicos abroad. It is in fact one of the things we, young and free spirited internationals, look forward to most about our study abroad adventures. When I moved to Ireland, the 13 year-old me found it difficult to make friends. The one thing that did work for me was finding a diverse group of friends from different cultural backgrounds. I don’t think our different backgrounds made us stick as a squad. It’s mainly because these meufs and mecs (French slang for girls and guys) are amazing and I have learned a lot from them. Without further delay, here are reasons why having different cultural backgrounds make the best squad!
You Learn their Slang
I’ve been residing in France for 5 months now and since moving, I’ve stepped out of the typical and tedious in class lessons of French and have learned some French slang and dialects. No more preppy formal talks and more “welcome to my hood” talk. I’ve also learned a few Spanish and German phrases and slang from other international students that I’ve met. Being surrounded by people who speak the language everyday is a faster way of learning it than just going to classes. It comes in handy because you can impress your peeps back home with your new vocab coming different languages. It’s also useful to use some of their phrases when it comes to flirting too!
Crash their Gaff
What do you do when the journey abroad ends and you’re broke from spending all your awesome memories with the squad… but your thirst for wanderlust prevails? Buy another ticket and visit THEIR country! Your expenses will be cheaper since your 5 hotel will be their gaff (Irish slang for house) and they offer you complimentary tour guides hosted by none other than, well, themselves. It also saves you time from doing research because your native buddy knows it all. Just be sure you ring them first about your plan. Let them know that a reunion with their fave international bestie is about to happen.
Home Cooked Exotic Cuisine
Who doesn’t like food right? I love my rice and I love my potatoes but every now and then my taste buds start to crave something different. One of the best perks about my international squad is that I get free exotic food. One day, I was stressed about exams. To de-stress, I went to my friend’s house and she whipped me out some comfort food, Pakistani style. My day became much better after stuffing my face with new, exciting food. Why spend a lot at restaurants when your roomie can just whip you up with some of her abuela’s (Spanish for grandma) special enchilada recipe? Good food and company and you’re day is already perfect.
Unlock your Third-eye Chakra
Travelling and encountering different cultures can be a way to see if certain generalisms are in fact real. Do the Irish really drink beer as if it was water for fishes? Would it be the same for the Russians with their vodka? Are the French really passionate lovers? Are Asian parents really that strict? Well there’s more to life than being generalised. The people you meet during your voyages are more than what they are “known for” in this world. Since learning their beliefs and cultures, I have discovered a newfound respect for their history and traditions. It mentally helps you stay open minded and grounded. You become more sensitive on how you treat and think of other races. Most importantly, you learn to not judge someone on how the world perceives them.
The knowledge and perception that you cultivate from different cultures help you see the bigger pictures and become more closer to them. I have no idea why the singer, Pitbull calls himself “Mr. Worldwide” but I have no doubt that if you’re the type who just gets along with everyone regardless of their race, ethnicity, culture or beliefs then go grab that title. The world is your oyster and you and your squad should go harness it!
This was originally first posted in Rakbo.com. Go check it out for more international student posts!
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