Granite City Girl Goes Glam | Training with Glam Candy

Perhaps it won't be very much of a surprise to those of you who have been stalking my instagram of late, between the packages in the post, the obsessive 'liner on fleek' posts and the hashtags, my goodness the hashtags, but I have somewhat of a little life update / announcement to make that has the potential to change the path of my future forever. Not that I'm melodramatic or anything!

It's no secret that I am a make up obsessive. In our house you can't open a drawer without coming across something that either belongs on a face, has fallen off of a face (sorry Nick for all the false lash / spider / bug scares you suffer though!) or even has a face of it's own (face charts guys, face charts) and having been interested in make up and the intricacies of make up artistry for a long time, it feels natural for me to enroll in a starter make up artistry course, and so I did just that, with the one and only Glam Candy. 

Now by the time this post is live I'll have finished (and fingers crossed passed) my course, but wait there's more! I've enrolled in another which is due to begin in June, so the saga continues. Today I'm not going to go into the intricacies behind the course, or too much on why I've decided to go down this route etc etc, but if you'd like a post detailing the course and my experience let me know in the comments below. Instead I've decided to keep it short and sweet, just in case you wondered why you're seeing more and more beauty posts, tutorials, how to's and make up blunders (trust me I've had plenty!)

Of course if you're an Aberdeen based gal I'd love to hear from you if you'd be so kind as to let me borrow your face for learning purposes, practice and just some general carrying on with make up drop me an email, Tweet, Facebook message...just get me okay? I've already have a few lovely ladies sit  in my chair, Sarah from Blogs Vlogs Etc, Julia from Just Julia and Ani from A Fusion of Brunette to name a few, and I have so enjoyed working with them (thank you ladies!). Likewise if you're a photographer in the area and you're looking to build your portfolio I can be your go to gal!

If you'd like to see a bit more of what I've learned, how I'm building my kit or which products I have been using lately as well as whose faces, then head over to my instagram, come visit me on Twitter, or if you just want even more content follow Granite City Girl on Bloglovin.

Until next time folks, getting my Granite City glam on!

H.Elizabeth x

Do you even lift? | Things to expect as a newbie weight lifter

Who would have thought that weight lifting could come with such drama? I mean come on really it's just like lifting and putting down, reset and repeat right? Wrong! Ever since I ventured into THAT part of the gym many dare not go I have noticed a number of things that happen when you start lifting weights, from unfortunate gym misogyny which you can read in a bit more detail about here, to the dramas you actually take home with you. So if you are considering venturing as I have maybe take note of some of the following things you'll be sure to notice.

1. Drying your hair becomes the struggle of all struggles. Whether you have long hair, short hair, thick or thin you'll struggle to keep your arms up long enough to become bone dry, in fact any holding your arms above your head becomes a daily struggle. Want to put that tin of soup in the top shelf of the cupboard? Nope! Want to reach for the stars and your dreams. NO!

2. Flexing your new, albeit teeny tiny muscles becomes your new obsession. You're sitting at your desk, flex. In for a coffee, flex. Everyday you'll see how much more you can flex and hey you'll still be working a muscle of some description.

3. You develop all new and anger inducing pet peeves. Think the most annoying thing about the gym are machine hogs? Oh honey it's about to get so much worse. I give you the weight hoarders, the hiders and my personal favourite the dumbbell ditchers who don't seem to know how a weight rack works!

4. Sweat isn't just a disgusting bodily function any more. Instead think of it as a glistening medal of your achievements from that hard hour of weights! 

5. ALL OF THE PROTEIN. Got to repair those growing muscles yall, where before you thought protein bars smelled and tasted like hamster food you'll suck it up and it's all for the gains. (Trek bars are my best friends just FYI!)

Well guys as I'm sure you can tell this post contained a few satirical undertones, but not about the hamster food, that shizz is real! But I hope you have found it entertaining, informative or maybe even true to your own experiences. If you're a newbie weight lifter a bit like me I'd love to hear what you have found to be true? Have you struggled to reach and stretch to your tall cupboards after a workout? Maybe getting dressed is your real struggle, whatever you have found be sure to leave your experiences in the comments below, come have a laugh and a natter about them on Twitter with me or if you'd just like to keep check of my expanding muscles and major gains (ha!) be sure to keep track of Granite City Girl on Bloglovin.

Until next time folks, girl do you even lift?

H.Elizabeth x