Janay Brazier

I was so excited when I heard that Zoella was starting a book club for the summer and I was even more excited when I saw the video she put up on her channel, showing the eight books in the 2016 book club. You can see the video she posted below where she tells you the eight titles in the club and a little bit of the back story, as well as a quite note on why she chose to share these books.


So, here are the eight books in the book club! I was happy to see Fangirl and Billy and Me, because I've been wanting to read these two for a while now and this is now the perfect opportunity for me to read them.

I've also heard amazing things about All The Bright Places and Everything Everything, so I was glad to purchase them and add them to my bookcase. I've actually just finished reading the first book in the club, which was All The Bright Places, and I thoroughly enjoyed it but I won't give anything away as the club has only just begun and I don't want to ruin it for anyone.



I'd never heard of Beautiful Broken Things, We Were Liars, The Potion Diaries or The Sky is Everywhere, but they also all sound like great stories from what Zoe mentioned in her video.

I'm so glad that I can spend the summer reading some brilliant books and sharing my views and thoughts with others on the same reading journey. I've spent the last eight months only reading books that were on my set list from university, some of which were not interesting to me, so it's nice to finally have the chance to read something I want to read rather than something I have to read.


Are you part of the Zoella Book Club? Keep in touch on Twitter, Instagram and find me on Good Reads.

Here it is, my final Makeup Monday post! It has been a fun, fifteen week journey and I have really enjoyed choosing my top five products for each of the makeup items. If you want to go back through any of the past Makeup Monday posts I will leave a list of all of the links at the bottom of this post.

So, let's get to the post for my top five red and berry shade lip products:

5. Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in 'Sugar Plum', £7.99:
This is a very wearable take on the berry shade as it's so sheer and just a hint of that lovely purpley, plum colour. It's ultra moisturising and feels just like a lip balm. It's a great choice if you're going into wearing berry shades for the first time and it suits everyone. Buy it here.

I didn't know anything about this film coming out, so it was a huge surprise for me when I saw the trailer a few months back. I remember watching the original Independence Day film when I was younger. I was only four years old when it came out so obviously I didn't see it when it first came out, but I remember my Dad showing me this film as a kid.

I was excited so see so many members of the original cast back in this film too, twenty years on. So on opening night yesterday I went down to my usual spot in my local Cineworld - with my Unlimited Card - to see if it was as amazing as I hoped it would be.

On my birthday I went to see Kenneth Branagh's production of Romeo and Juliet, starring Lily James, Richard Madden and Derek Jacobi. Unfortunately, when the play started and the actors walked out, I noticed that the girl in the role of Juliet was not Lily James. She wasn't there. I don't know why, whether it was that she was ill, she doesn't do matinees or another reason, but I was devastated that I wasn't getting to see her. She was the main reason I wanted the tickets in the first place as I'd already seen another version of Romeo and Juliet a couple of summers ago when it was performed in an outdoor theatre. Still, I tried to see past it and enjoy the performance.

We're nearing the end of this 'Makeup Monday' series, with next week being the last installment. This week it's all about my favourite pink or coral lipsticks.

I wanted to tell you my favourite pink lip product was Maybelline's Color Elixir in 'Blush Essence' and 'Hibiscus Haven', but when I went to link them to buy blog to purchase it I saw that they are no longer on the Superdrug or Boots website. I did a bit of searching online and found out that they have been discontinued. I am devastated that you can no longer buy them, and I'll be very sad when my current ones run out!

So, without those, here are my top five...


5. Maybelline Vivid Matte Liquid Lipstick in 'Electric Pink', £6.99:
I've been loving matte lips recently, which is handy because they seem to be everywhere! These are new and this is the only colour I've tried, but I look forward to testing out some more. Buy it here.

First of all, I just want to start off by saying thank you to everyone for the birthday wishes, cards and gifts. I had such a lovely day. I woke up to find pink and white balloons and banners all over the house.



After opening my presents in the morning with a cup of tea, Clay and I got ready and went to London for the day. We started off at the Science Museum, looking at the 'Exploring Space' exhibit before getting pizza for lunch. Then we went and watched a short 3D film in the IMAX screen in the museum called 'A Beautiful Planet', narrated by Jennifer Lawrence. It was shot from the International Space Station, and seeing Earth from space was incredible. If you love space or are interested in seeing some of the effects of global warming on our planet, as the film also mentions, I highly recommend it. This might not sound like a fun birthday activity to many, but to me it was incredible because I have always loved space.

Straight after the film we rushed over to the Garrick Theatre to see Romeo and Juliet. I was so excited for this because I love Shakespeare and some of the cast of Cinderella are starring in it. Unfortunately, Lily James - who is playing Juliet - wasn't there for that matinee performance, but we still got to see Richard Madden and Derek Jacobi. I'll have a full theatre review going up soon.



I also got this amazing birthday cake, made by my Mum. It has six layers inside of alternating white and pink sponge with vanilla buttercream. It's kind of inspired by those in Primrose Bakery, which I adore! My Dad made the birthday cake topper out of acrylic. I have very clever, skillful parents!



Anyway, let's move on to the presents...

I'm not going to show you every single present I got because that's boring and long for you, but thank you to everyone for every single card and gift that I received. I feel extremely lucky and blessed to have such lovely family and friends.

First up, here is a selection of books that I got. I have all six of Lauren Conrad's novels, which are among my favourites of all time, and I also have her Style and Beauty books, so the Celebrate one was a welcome addition to my collection. It shows how she holds different celebrations, from bachelorette parties to New Year's Eve parties, and gives you recipes and themes to help you out. The picture are stunning and it's a lovely read for those interested in hosting parties. This version of The Secret Garden has gold-edged pages and is filled with lovely old illustrations. Jenny Oliver's The Sunshine and Biscotti Club is a book that I only came across a week before my birthday but I was with my Mum when I spotted it, so she took note and bought it for me. I can't wait to read them all!



I can sometimes be described as 'hangry', so Clay bought me this cute lunch bag with a quote that I often use once I've eaten! I love it and have already used it for work.



I screamed when I opened this one! I adore Kate Spade and when I saw this gorgeous laptop case I instantly fell in love. It's just so pretty. Well done, Clay!



This pretty little Katie Loxton pouch was just one of the presents from my parents. I love the embossed 'Beautiful Dreamer' phrase on the front. There's a bit of a colour theme running through the presents from my parents, they're all pastel pink and blue with gold detailing!



I love my stationery! How cute is this little watercolour clipboard with 'Things to do' notepad? See, pastel colours with gold detailing!



I even got matching pencils. I love that each one is inscribed with the word 'Daydreamer' and the box has 'Scribbles' on the lid. They'll come in handy when writing on the notepad above and in the following notebook. 



This notebook is beautiful. Again, it's pastel pink with gold writing, but I love it. I can't wait to start writing my story ideas in this. After completing Creative Writing and Advanced Creative Writing at University I want to carry on with my writing, and this is the perfect book to write down all of my ideas.



This has to be one of my favourite presents! This is The Happiness Planner. I looked at these months ago but I'd completely forgotten about it until I opened that lovely pink box. Mine is a yearly planner, starting July 1st. I can't wait for that day to get here so that I can start writing in it daily! The idea is that writing in this each day about the things you're excited about, your meals and exercise and your main focus for the day. There's also space for a schedule, a to do list, your hopes for the following day and then, at the end of the month, you rate how you feel about it overall. It's a brilliant idea and I really can't wait to use it.



I love Victoria's Secret so much, so it was lovely to receive this cute set from my parents, with one of my favourite scents by them, Pure Seduction. The sprays from this VS Fantasies range are just incredible. I also got a full-size spray from a lovely work colleague and two more from Clay's older sister. Everyone knows I love Victoria's Secret.



I've never had a Marc Jacobs perfume of my own, but I have often stolen the odd spritz of the ones my Mum has owned, such as the original Daisy and the Daydream version. This Eau So Fresh version is so nice, you only need a couple of sprays and you can smell it on yourself all day. when I first tested it out I sprayed it on my dressing gown sleeve and it still smells of it two days later.



I've got to that age now where I've received eye cream. Thankfully, I'd actually already looked at this one and thought about buying it for myself, so I wasn't annoyed! I've used it twice already and it feels lovely on the skin. Hopefully I'll see results.



The final one I want to share with you is something I have to look forward to. Clay got us tickets to go and see Marvel Universe LIVE! at the o2 in September. It's a stunt show with people dressed as Marvel's most famous characters. It looks brilliant and, again, everyone knows I love Marvel.

As we near the end of my 'Makeup Monday' series, here is the first of three posts on lipsticks. I love lipsticks. A few years ago I only ever wore lip balms or a clear/pink-tinted lipgloss. Now I'm a bit more adventurous, but it's always good to have a natural-looking nude lip colour to hand, especially on those days when I decide to experiment with eye makeup and need a neutral/goes-with-everything lipstick.

I'm a bit late on the bad wagon with seeing this one, but I finally go around to seeing Money Monster at the end of last week, and then because it was my birthday this weekend I haven't had the chance to sit down and write up a review until now.

Mascara is my favourite product to wear, it's amazing how much of a difference it makes to your eyes, opening them up. I think the really black mascaras make my eyes look even bluer too! So, here are my top five mascaras...

5. Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara, £13.50:
This mascara is perfect for exactly what it says - bottom lashes. It comes in black and brown and allows you to avoid making a mess of your undereye area that you might make with a fuller mascara wand. This isn't a necessity, especially if you use a thinner wand for your top lashes anyway, but this is a good buy if you're into trying different mascara products. Buy it here.

My 20th film of the year at Cineworld Braintree, and we're not even halfway through the year yet! Me Before You is a movie based on the incredible novel by Jojo Moyes, and I was so happy to see that she also did the screenplay for the film. So many times I've seen book-to-movie transformations that just don't quite stick to the story in the way I wanted it to, so to have the author on the journey gave me faith in this film.

Obviously I've read the book but if you haven't, don't worry, I'm not giving away any of the plot or the events that take place. I will only discuss what you could pick up from the trailer.

So, we know that Will - played by Sam Claflin - is in a wheelchair after a serious accident that has left him unable to move the majority of his body, so Louisa - played by Emilia Clarke - is hired to be his companion/carer.

Here are my monthly favourites for May...


I have a new favourite mascara and it is this Maybelline Lash Sensational one that everyone has been raving about for months. I was really hesitant to try it because I have always prefered large mascara wands and this is the complete opposite of what I like, but I gave in and I'm so glad I did. I can't get over how much it separates and elongates my lashes. You can shop the Lash Sensational range here (I have the original mascara in 'Intense Black').