Hannah Yvonne Writes

When I returned to university in September, I was naive to the number of decisions I would need to make and how much change was to come. Making the decision to go to university was one that had worried me since my early secondary school years. Despite this, making that decision was definitely one of the best I have ever made.  So, now that I am nearing the end of this term and coursework deadlines are slowly approaching, I have realised that I have a lot of questions that I need to answer, which will inevitably affect my future. Changes in circumstances will mean a lot is going to change. What do I want to do after university? Is doing a placement after my second year the right decision for me? If I don't do a placement will this negatively set me up for the "real world"? These questions, among others, may seem easily answerable to most, but particularly over the past week, I have found them tasking my mind much more than they had before.  I am guilty of wanting ...

Autumn is here and I have been (very) slowly getting back into my routine at university. When travelling to London for the weekend I thought I should spend my time wisely and plan a new post. So, as similarly shown in my  June edition , here are a few things that I have been loving throughout September.  Cinnamon Buns Probably not what you first expected to read, but for the past couple of weeks these have been my go-to sweet treat. With the convenience of living so close to somewhere that sells them, it has proven quite difficult for my housemate and I to resist. They have been just what I need with a cup of tea for a bit of motivation or when I have needed a little pick me up. I definitely need to have a go at baking them myself! Hunted My sister particularly raved about the first series of this Channel 4 show. Currently, two episodes of the second series have been aired and now I wish I had the time to binge watch the first! The show follows pairs of ordin...

Over the past few weeks, I have been pretty slack with my blog that I barely even began. Since then I have worked a lot, spent time with a lot of lovely people, whilst missing others and had a birthday. This isn't me making excuses to myself as I should remind myself that this blog is a space where I can document my own experiences etc in my own time. It's a hobby, so it should be enjoyable and not forced! With just over a week before I move back to university and the almost changing of the seasons, there are a few little things I want to change in my own world. These are just areas I would like to "alter", let's say.  Wear the clothes I like  I occasionally (= quite a bit of the time) stop myself from buying or wearing certain clothes because I care too much about what other people think. I worry that I'll be too overdressed, not blend in with what the people I'm with are wearing or even look a bit dressed down cause I haven't dressed up as...

Similarly to my last "Favourite Bakes" post, my favourite brownie recipe is from the darling Mary Berry. I'm a huge fan of anything chocolatey, and it's rare anything is too sweet or rich for me!  For this recipe, you will need: A traybake tin/roasting tin Greaseproof paper 275g (10oz) of softened margarine 375g (13oz) of caster sugar 4 eggs 75g (3oz) of cocoa powder 100g (4oz) of self-raising flour 100g (4oz) of plain chocolate chips My personal method for the brownies is: Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees(c) Grease the tin with butter and line with the greaseproof paper Add all the of the ingredients into a large mixing bowl, ensuring the cocoa powder and self-raising flour have been sieved  Mix with either a wooden spoon, electric mixer or a hand-held electric mixer until it is evenly blended Using a silicone spatula, evenly spread the mixture into the tin Bake for 40-45 minutes until the brownie has a crusty top and a skewer comes out ...

Baking has been a hobby of mine for many years now and has particularly been inspired by the TV show, "The Great British Bake Off" (which I cannot wait to start again later this summer!). One of the nation's favourite bakers, Mary Berry, has written many delicious recipes in her cookbooks, some of which are also available on line. My first favourite bake is her lemon drizzle cake. Yesterday, I spent the afternoon baking with one of my best friends, Clarice, a baker in her own right, and this was our first task! If you any level of a sweet tooth you'll love this bake.  This recipe is actually for a traybake style cake,  which features in Mary's book  Simple Cakes . The full set of ingredients for the bake are butter/cooking margarine, self raising flour, caster sugar, baking power, eggs, granulated sugar and the zest and juices of two lemons.  All of the ingredients apart from the lemon juice and granulated sugar are mixed together, be sure to siev...

Now that I'm on my summer break from university, I decided to take some time to read again when I have some more spare time. For quite a few months now I have been following the Fletcher family thanks to the means of social media. I know that I am a little late to the game, but the first book I have read this summer is Giovanna's "Billy and Me" , which was first published in May 2013. I was initially going to review the books that I read here, but I think, at this current time I'd rather just share those that I have enjoyed and will enjoy in the future. This way, not only is it more of a recommendation, but I will be able to look back and have the opportunity to revisit these books.  The blurb of this romantic novel is as follows:  "Sophie May has a secret. One that she's successfully kept for years.It's meant that she's had to give up her dreams of going to university and travelling the world to stay in her little village, livi...

As July approaches, I thought that I would acknowledge some of my favourite things from this month. Here's a range of things that I've been loving from a variety of areas.  No7 Essential Moisture Day Cream I have recently changed my daily moisturiser to this No7 Day Cream. It's available to buy from a number of places, but it is retailed at Boots for £9.50, which can also get you some points on your Boots card if you have one (which I would recommend having!). My skin doesn't tend to be the same all of the time but can have times where it becomes slightly dry, which I imagine is pretty normal. This moisturiser has a slightly thicker consistency to the Simple one that I used to use and also absorbs very quickly. I mostly use it once my face is washed and clean and before applying makeup, but if my skin is feeling dry of an evening I occasionally put it on again then.  Garnier Summer Body Lotion Light Sun-Kissed As someone with a rather pale complexion,...

This post is a follow-up from "Our Trip to London - Part One" which can be found here:  Our Trip to London - Part One .  Tuesday We started off our third day in Camden, with breakfast at the Cereal Killer Cafe, a creative must visit for cereal lovers. Kayleigh and I had one of the "cereal cocktails" each.  Above is what I had, the "chocopottomus", which consists of Coco Pops, Krave and a Happy Hippo with chocolate milk. This "cocktail" is currently priced at £4.00, which in my opinion is a reasonable price for the size and novelty factor. We even sat on beds to eat our breakfast! To view the full menu and for bookings visit:  Cereal Killer Cafe .  After breakfast, Kayleigh's friend Grace joined us to explore Camden's markets. We then headed off to Olympic Park and Westfield in Stratford. When visiting the park, we went up the ArcelorMittal Orbit  and saw views of all over London. To go up "The Orbit", ...

At the end of May, my sister Kayleigh and I visited London to celebrate her finishing university and me finishing my first year. We spent four nights in Earl's Court whilst visiting the capital. As it was my first proper time visiting Central London, Kayleigh and I tried to do as much of the touristy things as we could. When planning these posts I noticed that they were probably a little too long to put into one post, so I'm going to split this one to just our first day. Sunday We arrived at Victoria Coach station in the early afternoon and dedicated our time to seeing some sights. We saw the London Eye, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben. As well as this, we managed to see Westminster Abbey, Downing Street, Horse Guards Parade and my personal favourite, Buckingham Palace. Here are a couple of my favourite photos we took that afternoon: That evening we continued our sightseeing and saw Trafalgar Square and Leicester Square. For dinner, we went to the ...