The Power of 'No' | Why I'll be saying 'No' more in 2017

'No'

Two little letters with potential of mass proportions, and despite having seemingly negative connotations, 'no' can actually bring you more joy, help you attain richer life experiences and feel more relaxed than you ever have in your life. 'No' takes much more courage to say than yes, particularly when you belong to the generation where saying no even once can bring you down with a serious case of the FOMOs (fear of missing out..s) Fear that convinces you that saying no could mean skipping out on the adventure of a lifetime, missing out on the best night of your life, or simply waving goodbye to the boat of success entirely...

Which of course is ridiculous.

This is something that has dawned on me only recently, at the ripe old age of 23 having gone through a series of life changes over the last year and a half and learning just where real happiness comes from. And where is that? Has Granite City Girl unlocked the secret to lifelong happiness? Well it's different for everyone, so I guess the simple answer would be that happiness comes from within yourself and can be discovered by asking yourself a few simple questions. What matters to you most? What do you love? Who do you love? And finally what brings you most joy in life?

Well what does this mean for Granite City Girl?

It simply means that this year I won't be grabbing every opportunity flung my way. I won't be reviewing more restaurants just because I've been invited along, I won't saying yes to obscure brand deals that have nothing to do with my blog and do little to peak my interests, and I won't be wasting any more time living behind a screen when I could in fact be out there living life and writing about richer and more interesting experiences than what I ate for lunch that day.

Perhaps most importantly I won't find myself stretched for time, driven to madness by blank pages on a screen feeling mocked by a blinking cursor waiting on tender hooks for the latest and greatest blog post only for 10 other posts written about the same event or subject to pop up with the same inevitable conclusion.

This of course doesn't mean to say the end of Granite City Girl, I still very much love writing, sharing where I've been and what I've been up to, but as I'm about to enter a new and very exciting phase of life it just means something a little different and more of what I fancy and less of what I feel pressure from others to write about.

Thank you for having the patience to stick with me during my many and numerous breaks and of course to reading and sharing in my love of writing over these last few years, I look forward to continuing to share my life and passion as I move forward in life.

Until next time,

H.Elizabeth x

This is Halloween | Halloween Make Up Haul

As a kid Halloween was not my thing. After a traumatic experience where I had a panic attack at a party in my plastic bag costume, in addition to my mum (falsely) telling me I was allergic to Halloween make up, I hung up my cat ears and whiskers and declared the seasons activities were not for me. Things of course changed as I got older and now I grab pretty much any opportunity to dress up and be my witchy little self.

And this year given I have gotten even more into make up artistry than ever, I decided why not give some of those Halloween make up tutorials a bash? And with that I headed into my local Halloween HQ store and of course Boots, and stocked up on the essentials.

Snazaroo Face Paint black and whiteI'm planning on using these two pans for detail work, the paint is quite thin so not really up for an expasive area.

Snazaroo Clown Make Up in whiteThis is a thick, heavy duty cream make up, designed for large, full coverage areas you know like my chubby cheeks!

Nyx Eye Primer in blackThis is going to be great for blackening my eyes for sallow, creepy looks. Or detail work should the paint fail me!

Nyx Eye Liner in black and whiteInstead of simply using these for Halloween looks, I'll use these for a variety of looks throughout the year.

Barry M Lipstick in blackThe HARDEST thing to find in the beauty world ever!

I'm looking forward to seeing just what looks I can create with these few bits and pieces, I'm also debating picking up some spirit gum, liquid latex and fake blood but for now I think I'll see just how I get on with paint - and see if what my mum told me as a child really was true! Be sure to keep an eye on my Twitter and Instagram pages as well as my make up artistry Facebook page to see what I'm up to looks wise and just what I am able to achieve (as a virgin SFX'er) Have you been experimenting with SFX and Halloween make up recently? Be sure to leave links to your looks in the comments below and share the spooks!

Until next time folks, stay creepy!

H.Elizabeth x

Granite City Girls Ink | 'My Way' Tattoo

In my opinion body art is the highest form of self expression. In life there are so few things you get to say are forever, that you get to take with you when all is said and done and in many ways tattoos are life's most poetic form of personal expression and dare I say it art in general. So really it's no surprise that with almost every milestone, memory or little life moment I generally want to keep for the rest of my life my first instinct is to etch it permanently on my body, which is what brings me nicely to the subject of this post, my most recent tattoo in memory of my granda who passed away earlier this year. At first glance the tattoo just makes you think I'm quite a brash person, stomping through life getting my own way, and while yes there may be a little truth to that (ahem) it also means so much more.

When I think of my granda I think of a trailblazer of a man who did things the way he wanted to do them, in his time and though he was quite a quiet man he spoke his mind when it counted and didn't shy away from potentially awkward moments, conversations or dull down his opinions and that's a quality I really admire and hope I portray throughout my own life a because there really isn't anything more important than being yourself and doing things your way no matter what other people think of you.

So really in addition to the kick ass Frank Sinatra song which reminds me of him this new tattoo which reads 'My Way' is really an etched and permanent memory and piece of advice from my granda that I will now physically and mentally carry with me for the rest of my life, and despite the upturned noses I can see behind some of those screens out there and shouts of 'but why don't you just remember him in your memories and photographs,' let me just say that I'm doing it my way!

If you have any questions about tattoos, the pain, process or where I go in Aberdeen to have mine let me know in the comments below, come Tweet your questions on Twitter or if you'd like to keep up with Granite City Girl and any upcoming inklings come find me on Bloglovin.

Until next time folks, I'm going to continue doing it 'my way'

H.Elizabeth