Wearing the hijab…

So it has almost been 9 months since i’ve chosen to wear the hijab and I’ve experienced mixed feeling which honestly is fine, as I know many do.

I never chose to wear it for fashion because when things come into fashion, they stay for a season or two and then become out of fashion, whereas this hijab, is full time. Purely religious reasons.

For the first few months, I was on youtube watching lots of tutorials but failing to actually copy them, I couldn’t find a perfect style but I was 100% happy that I was wearing one, as it was a new thing for me…

I’ve been putting it off for quite a few years as I never felt ready, I have always wanted to wear it when I know I am fully ready I always thought it would be easier than styling your hair on a daily base.

So far, my experience has gone well… I’m not saying that I haven’t struggled, because surely everyone has, I personally feel that finding the comfort and reading into wearing the hijab, looking into modesty wear helps you decide whether you want to wear it or not.

But I know that in today’s day it can be a struggle, even finding the right style or your own comfort can be a struggle, so here is my advice… Look into it, try out a few styles, find the right material, once these hijab styles feel right, all that is left it to wear it and after a few times, it begins to feel normal.

(photo creds: Iqra) X

HAPPY NEW YEAR (welcoming 2018) …

2017 has very quickly come to an end… After each year has ended, a lot look back on the memories and fun times and the lessons learnt, aside from that, we all look forward to welcoming the new year with goals!

Firstly, you need to reflect. The only way to make positive changes is to reflect back on 2017. Is there anything you disliked? Did it teach you something? I personally think that is the right way to think about it rather than dwelling on the negatives. Secondly, make some goals BUT do not pressure yourself to reach the goal right away, break the goal down and take it step by step. It may take weeks or months but if you don’t give up, you can achieve it. Lastly make 2018 amazing, try to get out of your comfort zone and be spontaneous so you have something to look back on, a new good memory🥀

happy new year #2018 💗

society VS balance

From a young age, I thought “being healthy” meant being skinny and eating foods that are low in calorie. I thought listening to your body and allowing yourself to eat what you crave meant you’re gaining weight and are unhealthy. Like many people, I listened to the media, a media which is solely unbalanced and biased. I strongly believed that the gym was only a place for people to lose weight. I didn’t grow up knowing much about mental health. I didn’t know it was important to look after yourself mentally as well as physically. I lacked understanding of what ‘being healthy’ actually meant. Was that just me? No, There are lot’s of people out there still thinking this way and it’s time for a change.

Lacking understanding of mental health only reduces awareness and leads to illnesses that can lead to death. Another thing society may not be aware of is that, a person can have more than one mental illness and mental illnesses are not visible illnesses.

So yeah, back to “what is healthy?”

Being healthy is about ‘balance’ physically and mentally. To be healthy is NOT and never will be a certain size.

B A L A N C E.

3 comfy outfits…

choosing an outfit can be exciting and stressful, especially when you’re trying to figure out what goes with what? and it isn’t easy to rely on the weather. These outfits that I have picked out, I feel though will go perfectly when it’s cold, rainy even with a bit of sunshine.

( @arij_a_ on instagram for more outfit ideas)

Let’s make use of those notebooks…

Stationery, notebooks = HAPPINESS. I love walking into paperchase, waterstones and shops that have pretty note books and stationery 😂 … So as being someone who loves to buy them, I thought I’d share ways on how to make good use of them!

1) life journal-
Make it personal, make it interesting! Write down goals, achievements, what you love to do! If you want to travel, write down places you want to visit. You can literally write down what you want in this journal and it can only be for your eyes if you wish.

2) Diary-
It can be your own personal space to vent! No-one needs to know what you’re writing, so write down about your days, it’s a way of letting out all of your worries and can be theraputic!

3) Daily planner-
I don’t know about you but I love everything organised, I just can’t seem to think straight when I know I have a bunch of things to do and everything then seems to pile on top, so this is when a planner can come in to good use! Write down what needs to be completed by when, if you need a reminder, jot it down so you won’t forget and you can plan ahead!

4) Quotes and Inspiration-
This has GOT to be my favourite one because quotes and notebooks= two of my faves😂 Everytime you see a quote that you love, or a saying that means something to you, write it down in a notebook, so if you ever need motivation or inspiration, you know where to go! 

Benefits of writing on the internet…

So, it has been (how long) that I have not posted due to other things going on, so I’ve sat down with a book, jotting down ideas to write about and it made me realise how glad I am that I have the opportunity to write about whatever I wish, so here goes the benefits…

1. Express your own views and opinions
   – The internet gives you a lot of opportunities to express your views and opinions, you can write your own  blog, write through Instagram, tweet about it etc… but we don’t agree with everything we see on the internet. So starting to write yourself gives you that chance to be heard.
2. create awareness
   – There are so many issues that are being buried deep down, so many people not knowing how to understand one another and one reason being because of the lack of awareness. Writing on the internet, which everyone goes on now, will only help people understand each other better, understand what people keep quiet. It gives people the chance to be heard and taken seriously.
3. increase motivation
   – Sometimes we have a hidden talent (lol) writing may be yours, some people (i’ve actually witnessed myself) have started to write about topics that have sparked a lot of people’s interest, this one person in particular (@loversjournalx on instagram) from writing has found her career route and has such amazing opportunities laid out infront of her. Writing about things you love and spreading awareness might help you find that one special route in life that will open a lot of doors. 
4. meeting new people-
   As well as having the chance to express your views and opinions, you might find someone who agrees with you. You might be helping someone by speaking up about issues that should be openly discussed and that could lead to building new relationships.

My favourite autumnal outfits…

As I have previously mentioned how it is my favourite season and one of the reasons being is the autumnal fashion, I thought I’d share some of the things I am wearing this autumn!

First thing is first, SHOES. I love these boots, they’re super comfy and go with a lot of my outfits! You can wear them under dresses and comfy jumpers.

This first outfit above is a comfy oversized plum purple jumper which isn’t an informal wear, it has a underneath shirt attached which shows from the bottom, so comfy and classy. I wore this with ankle grazer jeans and black boots.

This next outfit is a grey oversized turtle neck sweater, perfect to throw on a nice big scarf around your neck or a nice oversized jacket/coat. You can pair this with trainers or boots. Comfy and smart.

Lastly these outfits above are different but have a comfortable touch to them. The first one is a sweater a friend of mine made (@dinaranddime on instagram) which would go with nice coloured trousers. The second one, is a warm mustard sweater with bell arms (loveeeee mustard colour clothes) gifted from my friends (thanks sistaz❤) I put it together with some mom jeans and silver shiny shoes which I am so in love right now!😍 Last but not least, I have paired together a burnt orange turtle neck jumper with ankle grazer jeans and I would add some boots to the outfit! 🍁🎃🍂

(photography creds: Ruby and Iqra) 

my future goals…

One of the ways to reach your goals is to have it somewhere visible as a reminder so why not share it on here!

1. Travel
   – Those who know me will know how much I want to travel. There are so many beautiful countries and cities that I need to see. Travel to live through new experiences, travel to explore and to widen your understanding and it can change your perspective. Travelling will give you a chance to try new things, nothing wrong with that ey.
   My top 5 countries that I want to go to are:
   – Saudi arabia
   – America
   – Austria
   – China
   – Greece
                               *picture no.1 – Denmark 2016*
   
2. Work in mental health
   – From a very young age I’ve wanted to have lots of different careers, you know when you’re confused and go through the phase of wanting to become everything lol, so it went from wanting to be a teacher, to a pharmacist then to a lawyer haha! It has literally been 3/4 years since I have decided that I want to work in mental health and that’s the longest I’ve been so sure lol. There are lots of routes in mental health such as, mental health nurse, psychologist, counsellor etc. I find mental health really interesting and it is something that unfortunately has a stigma so the more people talk about it, lets hope the less the stigma gets then eh….
                                     Home of the heart – Iqra Sajid
3. Start YouTube
   – I have been watching YouTube for literally YEARS. I find it relaxing and fun, something to do to pass time, I have YouTubers that I watch regularly (I have the notifications on lols). So another goal is yes to hopefully start making my own YouTube videos. I feel like (obvs not speaking from personal experience, well not yet lol) having a YouTube channel and creating your own videos, using your own initiative can increase your inner creativity and it’s a way of speaking to the public, sharing your opinions, it’s your own little space 🙂

   

The joys of autumn…

And so it is that time of year again,
there is nothing more comforting than a lovely crisp autumn day, beautiful colourful leaves AND OFCOURSE WARM OVERSIZED SWEATERS!

You’ve probably figured by now that I love this season LOL and I thought I’d share it with you guys…

 (photo creds: Iqra)

Reasons why I love autumn:

Waking up in the early hours, when it is all misty and the ground is covered with beautiful golden leaves and capturing that perfect photo of the sunset is a great start to the day LOLSS
I love autumn fashion, it’s a season of layers. As you can see in this post I am wearing a turtle neck grey oversized sweater which is so comfortable and I have added a long burnt brown jacket which obviously goes well with the season, right?
There are so many ways to layer your clothes to stay warm and still dress super cool. I’d add a nice wool scarf around my neck and some cosy boots!~

I don’t know about you BUT I do like books but I find them easier to read when the weather is gloomy… basically this time of year. I am currently reading this quote book which is pictured above, it is called “Home of the heart- authored by Iqra Sajid” My best friend published this book and OMG it is definitely worth reading, the quotes are more on life lessons and covers every topic! Go order yourself a copy from amazon.
As well as it is a cosy season for clothing, it also is a perfect time of year to binge watch your favourite series, such as “Gilmore girls” or “The big bang theory” it just fits well with the atmosphere, don’t you think?
I cannot wait for vlogtober, that is another thing to look forward to on youtube. It is always so exciting when your favourite youtuber is doing vlogtober or vlogmas, eek 🙂
There are ofcourse other reasons why WE all love this season lols, some people enjoy the seasonal hot drinks and the atmosphere etc. I’ve got a huge passion for travelling and exploring and I would love to visit Bath in autumn or the winter, you can enjoy the “gloomy”, “dull” weather as well as the sunny bright days you know 😉

outfit defails:

sweater: primark  jacket: mango

Quotes I live by…

HIIIIII…

So if you know me, you’d understand my love for quotes. I love the deep meaning behind a quote and how much a person can actually relate to a quote one way or another. So I thought I’d share my 3 favourite quotes.

1. This first quote is by “@loversjournalx” on Instagram. She happens to be one of my best friends and her quotes are so inspirational!
   “Whatever happened in the past, leave it in the past. There is a reason why certain things have ended up this way. There is a reason why it doesn’t play a part right now. You must learn to look forward to the future and let the past, be the past”
   – loversjournalx
   I love this quote. This quote says how we shouldn’t dwell on the things that we don’t understand because regardless of not understanding it straight away, there is a reason behind it, you may figure that reason out later in to the future. Dwelling on things only stops you from moving forwards.
2. This second quote is by Najwa Zebian from her book “Mind Platter”
   Stay true to yourself- “Don’t worry about what people think of you or about the way they try to make you feel.  If people want to see you as a good person, they will. If people want to see you as a bad person absolutely nothing you do will stop them. Ironically, the more you try to show them your good intentions, the more reason you give them to knock you down. Keep your head up high and be confident in what you do. Be confident in your intentions and keep your eyes ahead instead of wasting your time on those who want to drag you back. Because you can’t change people’s views, you have to believe that true change for yourself comes within you, not from anyone else” pg. 10
   Imagine how the world would be like if we didn’t live up to people’s expectation. Sometimes we hesitate to express our opinions because of what others may say or what they’ll think of us but we should NEVER give anyone the power to push down our confidence. You have a voice, make sure that you are heard.
3. Lastly, another favourite of mine is,
   “Greatness was never achieved by those who took the easy road” – RKG
   It gives that bit of hope to people who are in difficult situations and see no way out. People who are walking through the toughest roads can create great futures, they can learn life lessons and that is the beauty of everything they have been through.