My Favourite Boiler Room Sets: A Chronology.

Boiler Room streams live music sessions from across the world, primarily featuring variations of electronic music. Since its beginnings in 2010, Boiler Room has seen some of the biggest names in the scene grace its stages. In addition to this. Boiler Room also provides a platform for fresh talent. A chronology will be attempted, even though many of the early sets were uploaded a lot later than when they were performed; for example,this beauty from SBTRKT, which was actually filmed on a webcam in 2010 but not posted until 2012- glorious. 


2011: 
Jamie XX b2b Caribou  - Despite the MCs that interrupts throughout the set this still remains at the top of my list as one of the best. 'Big Up Thom Yorke' (actual quote) also, chillin at the back throughout the set, who too performed a set on the same night. Classic. 

2013:

Kaytranada, Montreal  - If there's one thing I love about Boiler Room, it's the stories that are masked behind the sets. As a live streaming service, it's no doubt that some unusual happenings can go on in the crowd, as with all concerts. This Kaytranada set proves this statement to be 100% true: seeing the people interacting with the music whilst being completely off their -ballix- is definitely one of the reasons why Boiler Room remains new and captivating. If I ever want someone to remix the soundtrack to my life, it would be Kaytranada. 

2014:

Motor City Drum Ensemble Boiler Room x Dekmantel- towel guy at 16:00 is me every time I listen to this set. 

Jamie xx Boiler Room London x Young Turks DJ Set - How's life in London? Well, as a student way too poor to even consider visiting never mind living there, I wouldn't know !!! (But, if this set is anything to go by, it's pretty decent.) Lowkey rooftop realness throughout. Also note: Do You Mind by Kyla played 2 years prior to the release of One Dance by Drake proves that Jamie's innovation is beyond. 

2015:

Bicep Boiler Room X AVA - Belfast talent will do anyone from the city proud after watching this set. Bicep are electrifying enough to bring the dismal scenes of the titanic quarter alive with the ever growing AVA festival.

2016:
Palms Trax @ Dekmantel, Amsterdam - groovy groovy disco tracks that just cannot be faulted. Probably the most underrated set on this list. 

Mall Grab Paris DJ Set - There's probably two things you can tell I love in a boiler room set after reading this. Maintenance of energy is one, and lofi 80's inspired disco is the other. Mall Grab brings not just both of these, but also a complete bold confidence that isn't often seen from such fresh talent. How many times have you seen a crowd get hyped by a Snoop Dogg drop at the end of a DJ set? I scoured the comments looking for every track ID after listening to this, and you 100% will too after listening: genuinely my favourite set ever, no lie. 

2017:
Denis Sulta, Belfast: Again, the energy and youthfulness of this set is something else. He plays right into the hand of this crowd at 2017's AVA festival in Belfast, and it pays off immensely.

the top tunez of 2k16

2016 was a bit of a shitshow, to be quite honest. However in the midst of this shitshow came some pretty good tunes. Here are some of my top picks that were released in 2016.

‘3’ - Flume: Although sophomore album ‘Skin’ was mildly disappointing to people that had been fans of Flume since his debut in 2012, it still contained some pretty good tracks. Whilst ‘3’ might seem like a strange choice of a favourite song from this album rather than a track with AlunaGeorge or Vince Staples, this song in my opinion channelled old school Flume the most. I know artist progression is important, but sometimes these signals from past originality can keep an avid fan of the artist interested (aka… me)

Am I Wrong?- Anderson.Paak- I came across this one whilst revising for my A-Levels. Accompanying my revision, I would listen to compilation playlists by Majestic Casual and Underground Charisma, and Anderson.Paak featured a lot on these types of playlists. Groovy, funky, soulful, 3 components that made a resurgence in music in 2016.

Choose Me- James Blake: Now to go in the opposite direction of artistic progression and change, some might argue that James Blake has played it very safe with ‘The Colour in Anything’ which was released in mid 2016. However, this safety is where the beauty stems from. Beautiful, raw, delicate tracks with soft emotive vocals, Blake’s album is one of my favourites of 2016. ‘Choose Me,’ ‘Two Men Down’ and obviously ‘I Need a Forest Fire’ were my top three tracks from Blake’s 3rd critically acclaimed album.

The Sound- The 1975: It’s genuinely difficult to believe that this track was only released in February 2016. It feels like the chorus of this song has been circling in my head for literal years.

All Night/Same Drugs- Chance the Rapper: Chance  and his homage to gospel deserves the most honourable mention in this list. I’d listened to Acid Rap in the 2013 tumblr days when ‘cocoa butter kisses’ was all over the internet. All Night was undoubtedly one of my favourite tracks this year. ‘Colouring Book’ couldn’t be an album more deserving of grammy nominations.

24k Magic- Bruno Mars: Top 40 track of the year. So, so funky. Hashtag Blessed.

10 D E A T H B R E A S T- Bon Iver: One of the best things about music is the memories associated with it. This Bon Iver song, strangely, takes me right back to Reading Festival earlier this year, as it was played at least 5 times during the wait for Biffy Clyro. Despite that random anecdote, this lead single of the album ‘22, A Million’ is new Bon Iver at its prime. Lyrically perfect and instrumentally beautiful, this song also welcomed the new Bon Iver stylistically, almost an ode of preparation for other songs which moved outside of Bon Iver’s acoustic making mould (See 715- CREEKS, and 21 Moon Water for reference)

The entirety of the new Childish Gambino Album, ‘Awaken, My Love!’- no words to describe this one. Cliche aside, the music do the talking. Special mention to ‘Riot,’ ‘Redbone’ and ‘Terrified.’

On Hold- The XX: With the resurgence of The XX once again, I began to feel slightly dismayed at the knowledge that Jamie XX wouldn’t be producing original music again for a while. However, my fears and withdrawals were put aside as soon as I heard this track. Jamie’s musical style comes through in ‘On Hold’ with the build up to the chorus, and break down with a remixed Hall and Oates sample. Yet, the group still maintains that haunting, melancholy vibe that The XX are known for.

SPECIAL ALBUM MENTIONS:

Kaytranada- 99.9%. For fans of: 2011 SBTRKT. Best songs: TRACK UNO, YOU’RE THE ONE (Feat Syd- look out for her solo album in 2017)

Childish Gambino: Awaken My Love! For fans of: anyone who likes music.

Is The Is Are- DIIV Album Review

*found this piece I wrote buried in a blog in which it remained unpublished for 3 months, leading me to post it here. Gotta get all my thoughts out, despite the lateness. Yes I know this album was released in February- Soz*

Life has not been an easy ride for DIIV over the past two years, especially for Zachary Cole Smith: the vocalist, lead guitarist and front-man of New York based indie rock shoegaze band. Since the release of critically acclaimed of debut album Oshin in 2012, things began to look rather rough for the former member of large alumni of bands such as Darwin Deez, Beach Fossils and Soft Black. After an arrest on drug charges in 2013 and a subsequent rehabilitation order in 2014, fans were left anxiously worrying for his health, but also with a of anticipation when songs such as 'Dust' were teased on tours, along with the dropping of lead single 'Dopamine' in late 2015. Drug problems weren't only just faced by Smith, but also by Colby Hewitt who eventually departed the band after his drug addiction mid-recording of Is The Is Are. Additionally, the band itself struggled with controversy as Bassist Devin Ruben Perez wrote sexist and racist remarks on 4chan, which Smith himself dubbed to be 'disgusted' by via twitter. Despite this variety of hiccups, DIIV made this 4 year period of near-silence worth it with this sophomore album, even if it took allegedly 150 songs to get there.

The album begins in a very familiar DIIV-style used throughout the entirety of the album Oshin on the song 'Out Of Mind.'  Hazed jangled guitars erupt unapologetically in the intro, leading to create a riff that will undoubtedly be stuck in your head for days. Zach Cole Smith regards the late Elliot Smith to be his biggest influence of this album.  Instrumentally, Elliot Smith's influence isn't exactly noticeable with heavy guitar jangling throughout, however Smith's vocals in songs such as 'Under The Sun' and 'Take Your Time' reminisce on Elliott Smith's soft, layered vocals.

Undoubtedly the most anticipated aspect of this album is DIIV's collaboration with indie pop singer and (Ex?!)girlfriend of Smith, Sky Ferreira. The track 'Blue Boredom' emulates their struggles as a couple after their arrest in drug possession. This isn't surprising this couple have been dubbed the Kurt and Courtney of the 21st Century especially through Ferreira's sighs and Kim Gordon emulation that haunt the song. Despite personally being excited by this track due to my love for Sky Ferreira's 'Night Time, My Time' album, this track seems like somewhat of a throwaway anthem to fill a hole for the Ferreira-Smith shippers (RIP.) 

Whilst it seems evident that DIIV have became stuck in a familiar style at times, the track 'Mire (Grant's Song)'  on the latter half of the album delves into a much more personal lyrical focus which Smith hoped to achieve in this album. On this emotional track, Smith reflects on the struggles of the band itself, remarking 'I was blind, now I see you made relieve agony.' This form is used throughout the album in other tracks, particularly the lyrically rough 'Dust:' 'I know I gotta kick but I can’t get sick.' In comparison to Oshin, the structural integrity of this album is much more sound, again adopting uses of chorus', bridges and introductions which were somewhat missing from the madness of the tracks on Oshin (see Air Conditioning as an example.) In particular, the song 'Incarnate Devil' reflects  a more easy-listening track in terms of DIIV's general discography with the still underlying melancholic guitar solos. The album is generally a mixed bag of emotions, evoking a movement of happy reflections which evolve into a pessimistic nature by the end of the album in tracks such as ‘Healthy Moon:’ ‘It there’s a fucked moon in my head, It claws the ground both lost and found.’ This nihilistic attitude continues until the 64th minute with the track 'Waste of Breath,' with repeated lyrics and slow drum beats almost making me question my entire personal existence: ‘It's no good it would be a waste of breath to tell a man who believes in me that he's got something better to do.’ This final statement ensures one fact: the DIIV  are not going anywhere, and despite the difficulties they have faced, they will motor on equip with both angst and pride known and loved by their fans.

Favourite Tracks: Dopamine, Healthy Moon, Under The Sun

Least Favourite Tracks: Take Your Time, Bent (Roi’s Song)

Rating: 7.5/10

Label: Captured Tracks 

Reason's I'm Excited For Reading 2016.

It's been a while since I've made my presence known on this blog, but this year I am finally doing something which I have dreamt about since I was about 14. I'M GOING TO READING FESTIVAL! Let's just forget about the amount of crap and camping based equipment I'll have to drag onto a plane and revel in the excitement. However, it was somewhat disheartening when I logged onto twitter, to see people angrily ranting about many things wrong with the line up: Fetty Wap included to my shock and horror. However, Reading isn't the same festival as it was when it first burst on the scene in the 90's, and in my opinion, its for the better.

One of the main line up announcement which angered many's a twitter user was the foals/disclosure joint headline announcement. At first glance, a band like Foals may not seem big enough for the spot, but I can tell you that is incorrect (sorry, not sorry.) If you were a fan of Skins circa Generation One, you might have some memories of the song Hummer which made an appearance. Foals began as a math-rock band, riddled with jangled guitars and lyrics, somewhat reminiscent of a Silent Alarm Bloc Party style. In more recent years, they have evolved into a much more mature and accessible style, something which has been noticeable since the release of the album Total Life Forever, in particular with the soothing and lyrically beautiful hit spanish sahara. Fast forward to 2015: What Went Down, their 4th album has been released and went straight to number 3 in the charts. Being a fan of this band since 2012, watching the progression of a band like Foals has been a journey. With a Wembley Arena show recently under their belt, I am excited to see what they have to offer to the Main Stage.

Disclosure, again seeing a garage-dance band headline a festival which originally had Nirvana headlining back in the day is somewhat a surprise. Yes, this band are everywhere, and may be 'mainstream' for all you cool cats, but I will be dancing my butt off to their set. Plus, any possibility of a Disclosure x Foals track is exciting enough for my liking.

Another noticeable mention to this line up is the amount of throwback acts that seem to be added. Crystal Castles are making a rare live appearance after the departure of singer Alice Glass. Having been a fan of this band once again from the emo skins Generation One days, I'm interested to see what will be delivered. Two Door Cinema Club are also returning to the UK festival scene, two years after a last minute Latitude festival pull-out sadly due to illness. Hopefully new material will be released before their return.

Other people which seem somewhat interesting include Boy Better Know (Getting my roadman gear ready and brushing off my Man Don't Care rap skills is a must,) RATBOY, Jack U and BLOODY RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS!

Although the festival might seem like a slight Radio One arse-lick at a glance, I can assure you it has more delivery than what it seems at the surface. Plus remember: there's still another headline to be announced! Below is a list of recommended songs to listen before the 26th of August, and I hope to see some of you there.

Sign On- RATBOY
Under The Bridge- Red Hot Chili Peppers
Suffocation- Crystal Castles
Doe Deer- Crystal Castles
Laneboy- Twenty One Pilots
What's In Your Head?- Disclosure
Moving Mountains- Disclosure
I Can Talk- Two Door Cinema Club
Costume Party- Two Door Cinema Club
Itch- Nothing But Thieves.

trying cruelty free: 6 months on.

Make up is a wonderful thing, for a variety of reasons. It creates confidence, it is a form of self expression, it is relaxing, it is a form of art... the list goes on. Make up and beauty has been something I've been interested in for the past two years now, but recently I've been doing a lot more research into the ethical side of things and I can tell you, it's not all as beautiful as it seems. 

I never really understood the idea of cruelty free until I watched some of the videos made by Rosianna, Sanne, Lex and Marion (also brief disclaimer I'm not trying to be all preachy preachy here, just telling you about my own personal decisions!!) They discussed their switch over to cruelty free, and why they think it's important. I felt captivated by their speaking and wanted to delve in and do a bit more research, and I'll tell you this: the industry is cruel. (And as I said, not being all preachy and I will leave the gory stuff out for this) I used to be a girl that loved indulging in MAC lipsticks, so to say I switched over to cruelty free proves how this has been a big step for me, but worth it none the less. I have some advice for those who are considering it to read below. 

1) check out http://www.gocrueltyfree.org/consumer to discover what is and what's not cruelty free. I can tell you, you will be surprised by how many of your favourite brands are, and owned by parent companies that are cruelty free. Some of my favourites include Barry M, Yes To, Liz Earle, Lush... Among more!!! Although, this list is updated and changed regularly as companies often get bought over etc, so I try to keep up to date at least once a month. 

2) You can also tell if a company isn't cruelty free if they sell to china, as by mandatory law, they must test on animals :( 

3) when clearing out your products, take it in small stages. Start off by seperating your cruelt free into non cruelty free. By default, I had a range of items that I invested in significantly and wasn't willing to let go of (MAC lipsticks...) so I held onto some products that I promised to never repurchase. Many of my other items went onto DEPOP, I gave to my mum and sister and friends. 

4) Parent companies is where it all gets vvvv confusing. L'Oreal for example as a parent company are not cruelty free, but Urban Decay are???  It's all v confusing but is better explained over here: http://www.crueltyfreekitty.com/cruelty-free-101/non-cruelty-free-parent-companies/  I am still learning myself!!! 

So yes, I am still learning and slowly but surely wittling down my collection to things which are kind to the world and I am doing pretty well. I've actually significantly stopped buying make up a lot recently which I can say has helped obviously, but I still continue to actively try and research a product before I maybe consider purchase.

Do you have any opinions on the ethical side behind cosmetics? Katie x

The 'Curl Up By The Fire' Autumn Playlist.

There's nothing I love more in Autumn than sticking on the kettle, wrapping up in a massive duvet and pressing play to my favourite acoustic album, accompanied by the sound of the pelting rain outside. This is a playlist compiling all my favourite songs to listen to before things start to get real christmassy. It usually ranges from acoustic to folk, and there's some incredibly powerful female singers thrown in for good measure. 


THE BANDS: 

Fleet Foxes could honestly just take up this whole playlist, but I refrained from doing that. The hauntingly beautiful harmonies from Robert Pecknold are enough to have you hooked. 


Bon Iver are pretty much synonymous for music on them rainy days. Or days when you want a bit of background music reading a good book. Or pretty much every day. Justin Vernon's lyrics and the sombre tone of the debut 'For Emma, Forever Ago' are basically the soundtrack of the colder months for me. 


THE ALBUM:

Lucy Rose- Like I Used To is a 'soft and sad debut' as described by NME, this is definitely an album for lazy Sunday Mornings. Check the songs 'Shiver' and 'First'. 









THE PLAYLIST: 



Daughter- Youth

Bon Iver- For Emma

Fleet Foxes- Ragged Wood

Lucy Rose- Shiver

Dan Croll- Home

Lykke Li- I Follow Rivers

BANKS- Waiting Game

Ben Howard- Black Flies

Laura Marling- Ghosts

Jose Gonzalez- Heartbeats


Do you have any other song suggestions? Katie x 

Fashion on Feminism?

*photos do not belong to me*

fashion tackling feminism? 

Interesting that as a fashion/beauty blogger who just made a post about feminism a couple of days back (link here), this feminist inspired chanel S/S 15 show happened. Whilst scrolling through twitter, I came across some photos of the latest Chanel show in Paris. Headed by Karl Lagerfeld, the models took to the catwalk with plaque cards 'protesting' for women's rights with an assortment of (ironic) phrases from 'feminism is the new black' and 'be your own stylist'At first view of these photos, I thought this was quite a smart idea, because any publicity of something you believe in is good publicity, right? I'm not so sure. 

*Don't get me wrong, I still love fashion, although I recognise many aspects of the industry are incredibly problematic. I love the aspects of personal style and self expression that can be reflected. As much as I love the clothes and weirdness of high fashion shows, I don't enjoy the overall representation of people who wear them.* 

As I observed these photos more, I noticed the lack of diversity in ethnicity, sizes, heights etc. realistically, the high fashion industry does not promote equality. We are still trying to tackle the problem of 'Size Zero Only' modelling. We are still tackling the problem of photoshopping and distorting women and male celebrities which unrealistic body images. We are still tackling the problem of having predominantly white women being the faces of fashion. We know it's a problem when Vogue asked Oprah to lose weight if she ever wants to be featured on the front cover of their magazine. Why promote one form of equality when you're going to ignore the others? 

The ironic plaques, as mentioned above, are also another cause of confusion. 'Be your own stylist' is a bit questionable to be stating during a fashion show which basically dictates what's on trend and what's out for every season. How can we be our own stylists when we're constantly surrounded by the unrealistically photoshopped models that chanel often endorse?

In my honest, cynical opinion, I honestly think it's nothing more than a simple marketing ploy. Realistically, it's becoming a trend to identify as a feminist. From beyonce's song 'flawless', 'all about that bass' hitting the number one charts and Emma Watson's speech (which in my opinion, is a MUCH better and effectivd way of promoting feminism via use of celebrities and media), it's undeniable that it's a popular topic, and an important one. 

I just don't think Chanel are the right people to do it. If Karl Lagerfeld really cared about women's rights, would he have criticised Heidi Klum's modelling for GQ magazine by saying 'she is simply too heavy and has too big a bust'? Or called Adele 'a little too fat'? 

And this is not the first social issue to take to the catwalk. During LFW and the height of the Scottish independence referendum, Vivienne Westwood's models walked the runway with 'yes' badges attached to their clothing. Fashion is good for many things, from creation to expressionism. Trying to tackle political issues suggests lack of understanding and can be quite patronising. 

Stick to the clothes Lagerfeld, and dump the stereotyped placards, please. 

the summer I went book crazy...

My love for reading has definitely increased a lot during summer and I'm not that sure why. I've always loved reading, but I think since watching the 'BookTube' communities videos on youtube and hearing hundreds of recommendations after a 'booktube binge' had an influence. Here are some books I have acquired this summer.

SOMETHING OLD: Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. 
This edition of Wuthering Heights I have shown above isn't exactly pristine or one you'd find in a book shop today. This book was my mum's which she won in school for 'best effort'... and she has still kept it! As she went to throw it out in the middle of a clear out of the house I jumped up, grabbed it and took it as my own. I am yet to read this, but I have heard a lot of love for this classic piece of Gothic Fiction. Stay tuned.

SOMETHING NEW: The Dynamite Room By Jason Hewitt
I hadn't heard of this book but when I did my research I found out this book was only published this year and is Jason Hewitt's debut novel. I picked it up on a whim when my local bookshop had a '3 for £5' offer and I was unsure of what book to purchase. Again, I am yet to read this, but hopefully I will update soon.

SOMETHING BORROWED: It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini
Okay, finally a book which I can actually tell you about as I HAVE ACTUALLY READ. This book is about a teenaged boy who due to the pressures of high school, friends and life falls into depression and this book embarks on his story to overcome it. Unlike many other tales of mental illness and depression, Vizzini uses a humour to portray a realistic view of what mental illness is like and crafts his words so carefully that anyone can relate to it. Thanks Sarah for recommending it to me!

SOMETHING BLUE: Although it's not pictured, I bought a beautiful edition of 'I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings' by  Maya Angelou.

OTHER BOOKS I HAVE BOUGHT/READ THIS SUMMER: Orange Is the New Black by Piper Kerman, My Madder Fatter Diary by Rae Earl, Mary Poppins by PL Travers, The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald, If You Find Me By Emily Murdoch, The Catcher In The Rye by JD Stalinger, Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, You're The One That I Want by Giovanna Fletcher, We Were Liars by E Lockhart, An Abundance Of Katherines by John Green, Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern.

AUGUST PLAYLIST

So, summer is finally over and I'm going to be honest, this month has been a pretty good one for music. Some examples include the return of Jamie T at Reading and Leeds Festival  (and Gerard Way's debut solo performance), Beyonce's astounding VMA performance and the dropping of the highly anticipated debut album by Royal Blood. By default, some pretty amazing songs have been released this year. These are some of my favourites below: 

ARTIST FOCUS: Royal Blood. 

The amount of people talking about how this band were the highlight of Reading Festival made me check out this band only a week ago and I am in shock at how good they are. Heavy riffs come created from this heavy duo from Brighton with only a drum kit, bass and a few pedals inbetween. Even if commercial rock has became quite popular due to the success of Arctic Monkey's AM last year, this is definitely one of the heaviest albums to head straight to number one in the charts in a good 3 years. Good on them! Check out 'Little Monster' and 'Out of the Black' to find out what they're all about. 

SONGS:

Royal Blood- Little Monster

The Neighbourhood- Sweater Weather

Grimes- Go Feat Blood Diamonds

Ariana Grande- Break Free Feat Zedd

Troye Sivan- Happy Little Pill

Lorde x Disclosure- Royals Remix Reworked from The Brits

Taylor Swift- Shake it Off

Alt J- Every Other Freckle

what really defines beauty?

Every single person on earth has a different definition of beauty. The Oxford Dictionary defines beauty as 'a combination of qualities, such as shape, colour, or form, that pleases the aesthetic senses, especially the sight.' This vague definition in itself proves how much a person's definition of beauty can vary depending on environmental backgrounds and what appeals to them. As a beauty blogger, fashion advocate and all round moody teenager I've seen and heard the lengths people go to for beauty. We pluck, tweeze, shave and squeeze all parts of our body and scrutinize every glossy magazine we see and wondering, 'why can't I be them?' But let's face it, even that girl in the magazine doesn't look like that. Society tricks us into believing a bit of touching up on photoshop, fancy clothes and 'miracle working teatox' can make us better people, but is that really the case? I don't think so. 

Beauty is a bit of an odd thing to me. I'm someone who loves trying and testing a range of products and doing my make up more than the average human, but this is for my own self enjoyment. I wear make up because it's a form of self expression and I find it amazing how I can transform myself in so many different ways depending how I do it that day. It's my personal preference, and it gives me a slight boost of confidence and the ability to walk slightly taller if I'm feeling crap (in the metaphorical sense of course, as I am 5'2.) The beauty community is also a wonderful thing to be a part of as everyone is so supportive, lovely and willing to make suggestions of products to recommend and how to improve our writing abilities. But, Even in the beauty/fashion community I feel there's a slight pressure. Pressure to try out that new £30 Tom Ford lipstick everyone bangs on about even though you can't afford it. Pressure to gain more followers. Pressure to wear that outfit better than the other person. It's very underlying, but it's definitely there especially when it's just something you do as a hobby. But, do these material things really define you as a person? 

We all wear make up and 'beautify' ourselves to oblivion for different reasons, but I know it can be partly due to society's expectations. We've all done it, picked up that magazine and became little green eyed monsters at the sight of Cara Delevingne and the likes looking flawless as always. This jealousy can spark people to create crazy aspirations and work ourselves as much just to look like them, even though we don't really know this person, as a person other than that model on all the front covers. Realistically, these expectations can't be lived up to and we as a society need to begin teaching that displaying beauty through kindness, confidence, love and intellect is much more important how we aesthetically look. I know a lot of people in the beauty/fashion community feel this way as well, and I've seen a lot of 'confident boosting' tips and ways to 'be proud of who you are' and really does make a difference to people's lives. I'll link some good posts and videos by a range of amazing people below. 

Crop Tops For Curves

Let's Talk Body Confidence

Happy and Healthy 

Walk Taller: Body Confidence (Legs)

Zoella: Body Confidence Tips

The Body Image Project

In my opinion, every single person in this planet is beautiful as we are all unique and are born individually with different qualities. Every person has something different to offer to the world and I find that completely fascinating that not everybody is the same. As long as you're happy with the decisions you make that's all that matters. We are humans, we are free to make our own choices and we don't need to be confined to the expectations by other people. You don't want to shave? That's fine. You do want to shave? Also fine. You enjoy mainstream music and following trends? Wonderful. As long as you're happy, healthy and making decisions that please you, you are beautiful. As cliche as it sounds, humans really are like flowers. Some of us are smaller, some of us are a bit taller, some have shorter petals. But every single one of us are different and beautiful for it. You wouldn't look at a flower and think 'wow, that's an ugly flower' so why do that to yourself? You shouldn't. You're worth so much more than that. Love yourself. Be happy. Embrace life, because you are beautiful. No matter what anyone else says. 

I will leave this discussion with my favourite quote by JK Rowling about using the word 'fat', which can be applied to all insults involving physical apperanance. It's insightful and made me think a hell of a lot. Tell me you're take on this whole discussion in the comments, I'd love to hear opinions. Katie x 

“Is 'fat' really the worst thing a human being can be? Is 'fat' worse than 'vindictive', 'jealous', 'shallow', 'vain', 'boring' or 'cruel'? Not to me.”- JK Rowling.