Every girl in her twenties (including me) knows that these years are a mixed bag of emotions. This is the best time of our lives but it involves a ridiculous amount of soul searching.  The inspiration for this post follows my own attempts to be the adult that we think we're supposed to be. So here are 10 awkward dilemmas that every girl in her twenties will have experienced. You know the struggle girls. 

Trying to be down with the kids, but also wanting to just listen to your music from the nineties

Since entering my twenties I swear I have no clue who is even in the charts. I’m stuck in a period between the nineties and the noughties and I'm not ready to leave yet. I just want to listen to Destiny’s Child and TLC and anything else they play on Kisstory. I’m okay with this on the one hand. But on the other, not knowing that The Weeknd is one person, and not a band, does make you feel about 50 years old in front of your mates, and will entail many a joke at your expense.  

The dilemma of where to shop now that you’re meant to dress like an adult?

I swear you spend your entire teen years buying everything from Topshop and H&M – and now it’s got boring. Suddenly you’re over it. Also when you see a 16 year old girl wearing the same Topshop top as you, something needs to change, doesn’t it? Then you’re like where the hell do I go now? It’s deffo too soon to be shopping at Next. Well basically I had this dilemma a few weeks back and discovered that Mango is my new favourite shop. Despite previously thinking it was for 40 something women, it’s actually a good mix of cool and sophistication.

Wanting to party all night, but also just wanting to go for a civilised dinner

At this point in your life there have been a million drunken messy nights that you can’t remember. Therefore a civilised meal and glass of wine at restaurant with your pals is a sensible outing to look forward to, as is getting home at a reasonable hour (no one wants to waste the following day hungover). But then we STILL insist that we ‘need’ a night out, telling our friends we need to plan a BIG night. Then when you finally go out everyone in the club is 18 and horny, the music is far too loud and slowly you realise you don’t belong here. You don’t need a big club night out cause you’re just gonna hate it. But then abandoning big nights out is like saying farewell to being young forever!

  

Deciding whether you care about healthy eating or not

Now you’re in your 20s you’ve probably accepted and embraced your body by now which is great. So you can just enjoy life because eating is basically a hobby, and we’re always being told we need a hobby right? But even though you don’t care about being stick thin anymore there is an overwhelming paranoia as you plough through your second McDonalds of the week that you might get diabetes or a million other health problems. And that just *maybe* next time you should just have McDonalds once and maybe alternate with some kind of quinoa and edamame salad. (It’ll be rubbish though).

Wanting to see your friends but also just wanting to stay in bed

When you leave school or uni, it definitely takes more effort to meet up with your friends. But by the time the week is over and you’ve finished work, all you want to do is have a quiet bath, watch Gogglebox and crawl into bed, even if it is 9pm on a Friday night. Yes it’s bad and you shouldn’t ditch your friends but OMG 12 hours sleep without an alarm, um yes please!

Debating spending your pay cheque on nice clothes or on extravagant food

When I was young I spent all my money on clothes (like Playboy and Pineapple – what a waste of money FFS wish I could get that back).Anyway, I remember thinking it’s gonna be SO GOOD when I’m older and earning money and can afford loads of nice clothes. Except this hasn’t ever happened because I spend £££££££ a day on food, because a breakfast ham and cheese croissant and a lunchtime burrito can really get you through a tough day.

Flipping between caring and not caring about how others perceive you

Fortunately, by the time you reach your 20s you’re no where near as insecure as your teens. But obviously, everyone still cares a bit. I think it comes down what kind of validation you want. I don’t care if someone thinks I’m unattractive or weird, but I’d get upset if someone assumed I’m dumb because I’m from Essex, or that I was a bitch when actually I’m squinting because I need glasses.

Feeling like you’re a super successful go-getter, but also feeling like a pathetic loser

Sometimes you can feel so positive about where you are in life now. You can have the confidence of Beyonce. Then the next minute you’re crying in the foetal position wishing that Monday’s or taxes didn’t exist. My friends bought me a mug for my birthday which says “Britney survived 2007, you can handle today” and as well as being hilarious, it’s also all you need to hear when you have one of those days.

Wanting to please your family, but also wanting to do your own thing

You’ve heard this all before. Sadly we don’t all dream of being a lawyer which upsets our parents who just want you to earn loads of money and be stable. But I’d rather do what I love and be a bit financially unstable. Your twenties are of course about figuring this out on your own. So while there are a lot of awkward dilemmas in your twenties, it's pretty cool that we can determine for ourselves who we want to be as a person.

I was lucky enough to receive the NYX Wonder Stick for my birthday last month which is just seriously AMAZING. I came across the contour stick on Instagram and after a quick Google search I was reading the reviews online. There are many mixed messages in the reviews so I wasn’t sure what it would turn out like. Thankfully I can safely say it is pretty fab. They have different shade combinations including a universal one which seemed to have the worst reviews. I decided on the medium/tan shade as I have a slightly olive skin tone, and it’s perfect!

Kim Kardashian has always been my guilty pleasure and whatever anyone says about her, you can’t deny her contouring is killer! (I mean obviously the thousands she’s spent on her face also helps) I also received her book Selfish for my birthday (thanks James and Soph!) and it basically contains A LOT of pictures of her, and very little text (also omg those boobs). So then armed with my NYX Wonder Stick AND photos of Kim K’s contouring, this post seemed only natural! This is in no way an experts guide, it’s an easy 3 step guide to contouring that ANYONE can do in 5 minutes! This was my first ever time using the Wonder Stick, so hopefully I'll get better! 

P.S these pictures aren't AMAZING quality cause I took them quite late in the day and also my hair is bit frizz. Don't judge!!

So this is me (soz for the gross pic but can't not show the before pic LOL). This is after cleansing, moisturising and applying my eye makeup.

Step one: Apply foundation: I’ve used Rimmel Match Perfection foundation here for a full but light coverage. Next apply your concealer, here I've also used the Match Perfection concealer. It's best to apply it under the eye and bring it down to the corner of your nose and the outer corner of your eye which wakens up the eyes! It illuminates that part of your face, making it appear less concaved by covering up the shadows.

Step 2: This is where the NYX Wonder Stick works its magic (and you also look a bit like an alien?)

As you can see I’ve applied the darker shade to the top of my forehead and the edge of my jawline which will both appear more defined as a result. I’ve also applied the darker shade to the sides of my nose and underneath to give it a slimmer look. I apply the lighter shade to the bridge of my nose, centre of my forehead, above my cheekbones and on my chin to illuminate those areas. This adds a glow in all the right places. The Wonder Stick glides on with ease and is really easy to blend which  is so important when you're using a darker shade. It's not too heavy either which means you can build up the colour gradually, and you avoid applying too much in one go!

Step 3: Blend blend blend. This is so important, especially when you’re using the darker shade. If you don’t blend it properly you’ll just look like you’re melting or something! Once it’s all blended you can apply a powder - I used Rimmel Lasting Finish (I did not realise I used so much Rimmel until writing this post!) I’ve added bronzer (Hoola by Benefit) to my cheekbones to add a bit more colour. I wanted to achieve more of an every day look, but if want something more dramatic, you can forget about the bronzer, as the blended darker areas from the NYX Wonder Stick will have created a strong defined look. 

And that's it, then you’re done! If you want to try the NYX Wonder Stick, you can find it here.

This was the first ever time I'd used the contour stick - I’d love to know what contouring products or tips other people have, so let me know! x

Anyone that is a blogger will understand that running a blog can take up a lot of time – is it worth it? – of course. However if you’re not a full time blogger like myself, it can be difficult to fit a blog into the chaos which we call life. As with everything in life it’s so important to find a balance. The last few months have been crazy for me. I’m working at a PR agency which I LOVE but it’s longer hours and a longer commute which has meant less time blogging. But today I Nicole Louis, solemnly swear to post more frequently and find a balance! I turned 23 at the end of September and my October Favourites illustrate my sheer panic to prevent ageing, my attempts to buy beauty products on a budget, and the need to engage in sensible books. In other words, my October Favourites each help me to find a balance and embrace the chaos of life!

Maybeline – Baby Skin Primer

Primers are one of the beauty products which are quite pricey…think Benefit Porefessional, or Smashbox Photo Finish Primer, both around £20. They get us hooked and they drain our bank account and all because we long for that silky smooth feeling. However as the popularity of primers have grown in the last year or so, this Maybeline Baby Skin Pore Eraser has been a life saver (not exaggerating) at £7.99. It’s the ultimate cheap and cheerful alternative!

Dirty Works – The Ultimate Detox Mud Mask

As of late my skin has been suffering with a bad case of late nights, junk food and an absence of any deep cleansing ritual! I came across this Dirty Works face mask in Sainsbury’s of all places! It’s a pretty sweet bargain at £5 and you don’t need to use much of it for results. I only ever buy clay masks because I’ve tried a few and I think they’re the best. PLUS they go hard and you have to really try not to laugh and crack it – cause everyone knows that face masks are actually more hilarious than relaxing. ANYWAY this contains green clay and Kaolin (a white clay) with blueberry and willow bark which clears the skin and draws out impurities. TOP TIP – for best results don’t look at funny memes whilst wearing the face mask…

Dirty Works – Banish the Bags Eye Cream

I’ve been using an eye cream for a couple of years now and I believe it’s really important – mainly because I don’t sleep an awful lot. The skin around your eye is different to the rest of your face so you can’t just slap on your usual face cream there. When browsing the shops, eye creams can be £20 and upwards which isn’t an option on a budget, or if you’re young and just annoyed that you’re having to prevent ageing already…This Dirty Works eye cream was also £5 and does the trick. It contains tightening peptides which improve circulation and light reflectors to help brighten dark circles. It’s an absolute saviour after a sleepless night!

Nivea – Essential Care Lip Balm

I’m usually distracted by the jazzy lip balms in exotic flavours that smell great but that you end up just eating... This Nivea lip balm however is fairly basic, no scent, no fancy colours but it’s oh so dreamyyy. Jojoba oil and shea butter are what makes it so luxurious. I’m about to stop typing in a sec to go and fish it out from my bag cause it’s actually bliss! Sometimes all you really need are the basics!

Aliza Licht – Leave Your Mark

This book is just fab – I’ve been reading it on my commute and it’s very insightful for anyone working in Media/PR/Fashion, or anyone just starting out in their career.

Aliza Licht is the PR girl for DKNY and she’s written about her career while also giving lots of amazing advice for people just starting out. I don’t work in the fashion industry, but everything she discusses about her career is relevant, and will be to most people at the bottom of the career ladder. What’s brilliant is that she tells you how to conduct yourself in particular circumstances, and how to deal with office politics. There is a chapter on being savvy at social media which is applicable for a lot of people today working within the media sector. Let’s face it, even if you don’t work in that sector everyone pretty much wants to rock social media!

You can follow Aliza’s Twitter on @AlizaLicht and find out more about her!

Every once in a while a chilled weekend at home is absolutely necessary. When I say chilled I definitely do not mean 12 hours curled up in bed with your laptop on Netflix kind of weekend. Oh no. This is for an ultimate relaxing yet productive weekend which will leave you skipping contently to work on the Monday. One which will leave you so refreshed you don’t even need your morning coffee. We spend so much time constantly on our feet rushing around, so every few months you need a chilled weekend like this to really slow things down.

The past few weeks have been hectic to say the least. I said my goodbyes to Ogilvy, hopped on a plane to Ibiza and sadly my poor little blog has suffered in this time. I've been waiting to publish this post for a few weeks and on day 4 of my Ibiza recovery, now seems like a suitable time as I shall be following this ritual myself before I start the new job on Monday! So anyway take notes and enjoy!

Kick things off with a ‘weekend breakfast’. You know what I'm talking about. Instagram worthy breakfast accompanied by hashtags such as #instafood, #foodporn and simply #yum (we’ve all done it). I ABSOLUTELY love avocado on toast. What’s so wonderful about this is not only does it look and taste nice, but it’s super healthy and therapeutic to make. Also eggs are pretty great so the avocado and a fried/poached egg on toast combo is you know, kind of like heaven. I also recently had my breakfast outside on the balcony one Saturday and it literally got me in the weekend spirit.

Write lists and plan things. It can be for your week ahead,  clothes you’re dying to purchase, things to buy for your home, or goals you want to achieve in the next few weeks. It’s so much easier to do this on a weekend when you’re not rushing around or knackered after work. It will also prepare you for the week ahead – you’ll be organised and it’ll make ya feel good trust me. I got these beautiful Moleskin and Aspinal notepads as leaving gifts and I can’t wait to start jotting down in them! Plus they have my initials on so I'm gonna feel totally important using them lolz.

Reading – you guys are probably thinking jeez Nicole again with the reading? But there are some books that you just don’t want to read in public. I once bought How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie and I'm quite apprehensive of people thinking I'm a loser if I read it in public. Same goes for Lucy Watson’s The Dating Game. Unless you have a kindle then you escape this problem.

Plan what you’re going to wear on Monday. I can quite easily become the most angry person on a Monday morning when I have no clothes to wear. When I say no clothes I mean I just cant decide. And it basically results in me shouting at inanimate items of clothes telling them to stop ruining my life and that I hate them. So yeah be organised, plan ahead and prevent any psychotic tendencies on Monday morning.

Take a long hot bubble bath where you can use your massive bath bombs from Lush which are deffo not a mid-week treat (PLUS they take at least 20 minutes to even dissolve so you’ll HAVE to stay in long enough) But don’t stop there my friend, why not go all out. As you sink into those bubbles why not sip on some white wine, light some candles and listen to calming Bonobo tracks for ultimate dreaminess?

When the bath water begins to chill, your skin starts to wrinkle and the bath bomb is a distant memory, sadly the bath has come to an end. BUT what a perfect time for a pamper session. The weekend is pretty much the only time I ever paint my nails, because you essentially have to sit still and are useless for half an hour. If you put in the time on a Sunday you wont have to worry about chipped disgusting nails during the week at work! This is also a perfect time to do a face mask. I've bought a few sachets of the Montagne Jeunesse face masks which Primark sell for about 90p each that are fabulous. Personally I think the mud ones cleanse your skin more deeply so opt for those ones for ultimate indulgence! 

Enjoy your weekend! x