What to Wear to a Midsummer Night's Dream Themed Ball

The title seems improbable, right? And yet, that's exactly what my plans for February 20th are. St Andrews is a strange but lovely place.

While I'm a bit limited in what I'll be wearing (both by distance from stores and money), I wanted to put together a more whimsical outfit for a fairy themed party.

I started with a beautiful pale pink Topshop dress that made me think of a fairy wonderland as soon as I saw it. I paired this with a pair of silver strappy heels (also from Topshop). In my opinion, the most important thing about choosing a pair of shoes for a party of any sort is that they will stay on your feet, hence, straps are your friend!

For accessories, the obvious choice is a delicate flower crown (this one is from H&M). I chose to mix it up with a bright blue Topshop crossbody. I love being able to throw my bag over my shoulder and not worry about it and this one is definitely big enough to fit all of your party essentials.

Let me know what you think in the comments!

Letters to St Andrews Part II

Sorry I didn't make my usual Monday post this week...but that's because I have something special for you. That's right, the second Letters to St Andrews video!

Please let me know what you think of the video (and what you'd like to see more of) in the comments and don't forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel.

Friday Internet Finds

Happy Friday everyone! Who's excited for the weekend? (I know I need it.)

1. Most importantly, it's time to find out "Which British Actor Should Be Your Valentine?" My result, naturally, was Tom Hiddleston. I accept 100%.

2. Speaking of lovely British men, I'm obsessed with this 8tracks playlist of handsome British men reading classic poetry and prose. Be still my heart.

3. So obsessed with these short films featuring--guess what?-- British actors recreating classic movie scenes.

4. I love plaid shirts, especially oversized ones from the men's department at H&M. Thus, I think this article from the Haute Notes on how to wear them is brilliant.

5. I've been wearing a lot of red lipstick lately (thanks, Taylor Swift!) so these tips on how to wear it are so helpful!

How to Wear a Bowler Hat

I love hats. I'm also fairly afraid of wearing hats. Back home, very few people wear hats and those that do tend to look like fashion goddesses...so I'm always a little worried that I'll just look like a fool! However, I recently purchased a bowler hat from H&M and I'm absolutely in love with it and I feel so good when I wear it! Sometimes, fashion risks are totally worth it.

However, I've found that the hat goes better with some outfits than others. So I thought I would put together a couple of ideas to help you! I chose a bowler hat from Boohoo that costs just 10 pounds for this post.

Hat, Shirt, Jeans, Boots

One look that I think looks really lovely is skinny jeans, a patterned button-down shirt, booties, and your hat. It's put-together without looking like you're trying too hard.

Hat, Shirt, Skirt, Jacket, Boots

I also quite like how a graphic tee and patterned skirt pair with a hat. Tuck the tee into the skirt, slide on boots and a leather jacket, throw your hat on your head...and be sure to perfect that "I don't care what you think; I know I'm cool" attitude that has to go along with hat-wearing (if you need inspiration, watch videos of T-Swift performing Blank Space).

Do you like wearing hats? If so, what kind of hats are your favorite? What do you wear them with? Let me know in the comments below. xx

Monday Favourites

Since this post seemed to go over so well last week, I figured I'd write another one for today! And there are so many things I'm enamored of in my new "home," which makes it easy to do.

Student Union Cafe
I'm completely in love with Rector's Cafe, located inside the Student Union building. Maybe it's because I'm a tea drinker and I love that they bring your tea in assorted adorable teapots or maybe I just love their music selection (Sunday my favorite Ed Sheeran song came on and I almost squealed). But if you're ever in St Andrews, I would definitely recommend stopping in. The food and drinks are good, the prices are reasonable, and the atmosphere is perfect for chatting with friends or working on your own.

Fairy Lights
I'm not allowed to have fairy lights of any kind back at Elon, so I knew that I wanted some for my room here. Plus, having the huge pinboards across the walls made them incredibly easy to hang. At Primark on Friday, I found a set of 20 LED fairy lights for just 3 pounds so I snatched them up and brought them home to put up. It makes my room feel so much cozier, especially at night time.

Primark Bag
This bag has quickly become my best friend and constant companion. Okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but I absolutely adore this bag I bought at Primark on Friday. It was on sale for just 5 pounds, which is almost ridiculous considering how smart it looks. I also discovered that it's wide enough to fit my laptop or a notebook, which only furthered my infatuation.

Tyler Oakley Sweatshirt
It's fairly obvious that I love YouTubers and YouTube in general so this "I Can't Stop Watching YouTubers" sweatshirt is absolutely perfect for me. I got it for Christmas (thanks, Mom and Dad!) and it's probably the coziest, most comfortable item of clothing that I own. I'm also particularly fond of it right now because I wore it into the kitchen, which resulted in bonding with my kitchen-mates over our shared love of YouTube. #thankyoumagicalsweatshirt
Want one of your own? You can buy it here.

Primark Haul January 2015!

My friend, Alli, and I went to Primark today to do some much needed retail therapy. Oh, how I've missed Primark! I bought some lovely things so if you'd like to take a look, you can watch the video below. xx

Friday Internet Finds

My first Friday Internet Finds written from Scotland...how exciting!

1. Let's start out with the most important Buzzfeed quiz of all time: which Marauder are you?

2. I've been trying to turn myself into a morning person for years...and this Thought Catalog article has almost convinced me that it's worth giving up my 2am Cool Ranch Dorito binges in exchange for super productivity at 8am.

3. This roundup of fashion Instagram accounts to follow is simply genius. #nomorestyleruts

4. I didn't get the watch the SAG awards red carpet like I typically do, but this College Fashion article filled me in on the best dressed. My personal favorites were Emma Stone and Sarah Hyland; who were yours?

5. Louise's latest video about her Valentine's Day themed Lush haul was so nice to watch. It made me wish I had a bathtub here so I could have a nice yummy-smelling bubble bath!

Dorm Tour Video!

Hi everyone,

If you'd like to check out where I live at the University of St Andrews...here's a little video for you. Enjoy! xx

Monday Favourites

(You might notice that I used the British spelling of favourites. Since I'm in Scotland, it just seemed like the right thing to do.) 

Last night, I was watching some of Jim Chapman's "Favorites" videos which inspired me to write a post about some of the things I've been enjoying lately.

My H&M Hat
I went into the H&M in the middle of town the other day, in search of a way to waste an hour and a new hat. I'm very fussy about hats and it's hard to find one that I like, but I spotted the perfect one on sale for just 5 pounds! Back home, I always feel a bit strange wearing a hat around like people are going to judge me, but I wore my new hat into town yesterday and I never felt better.

"And I've got that red lip classic thing that you like..." 

Love, Tanya
The reason I was watching Jim's videos in the first place was that I was inspired by the book I bought yesterday. Tanya's book wasn't supposed to come out until the 29th, but it hit some stores early so I snatched up a copy. It's honestly the most lovely book I've ever owned; it even has a ribbon! The photography is incredible, it has a wonderful variety of topics, and Tanya's writing is superb. I think I'll be spending many a night curled up in bed with my new book.

My favorite part thus far was reading what Tanya wrote about how she and Jim got together. The cutest!

I tweeted this photo and Tanya favorited it...
I almost died from excitement!

Scrambled Eggs with Spinach and Pancetta 
I'm not much of a cook at all, but I tried making eggs on my own for the first time last night and they were actually very yummy! I fried up some spinach and pancetta in my new frying pan before adding in an egg...which made for a very lovely dinner, when paired with some toast. There's nothing like overcoming your fears, whether that's cooking eggs or wearing a hat out.

Those are some of the things I've been loving thus far this week. What about you? What are your Monday favourites? 

Carrie's Book Club January Box

You may know that I'm quite obsessed with Carrie Hope Fletcher, who is one of my favorite YouTubers and West End Actresses. I recently got her January Book Club box in the mail. It's an adorable Peter Pan-themed assortment of items and I wanted to share it with all of you!