On The Road

10.17.2017

Today I wanted to talk about driving, from starting my lessons to eventually passing my test in the hope that I can offer reassurance or advice for those who are worried about starting or doing the test! For those who follow me on twitter, you're probably thinking to yourself "Okay, you can shut up now! All you do is talk about driving" and while that may be true, it's because to me it feels like it's actually a pretty big deal. I feel like I fought with my anxiety and found the confidence to accomplish something. I thought it might be interesting to talk about my personal experiences being on the road and hopefully some of you can relate and might just feel a sense of comfort and reassurance that you're not alone.


I started my lessons just before my 17th Birthday. My Grandad took me in his car and I drove around the smallest car parks after hours when the roads were quiet. I can remember the first time I got behind the wheel and as terrifying as it was, I felt the greatest sense of freedom and independence. The whole point of going with my Grandad before my actual lessons was to help me with my confidence. I wanted to learn the basics and settle my nerves before driving with a complete stranger. Once I turned 17, I booked my first lot of lessons and I was terrified. There was no more driving in car parks, I'd actually be out on the road. I doubted myself so much and I was so tempted to just cancel. But I convinced myself that everything would be just fine and luckily it was. If anything, I loved my lessons and being out on the road more than I ever thought I would. Over time, I felt more and more in control being behind the wheel and my driving improved in no time at all. And then I did the stupid thing of cancelling my lessons and not sticking with it. My excuse at the time was that exam season was approaching and I had to prioritise my A Levels which was the right thing to do but it was also frustrating because by the time I went to book my second lot of lessons, I'd completely lost all confidence in my driving abilities and I felt as though I was back to square one.

I continued to stop and start my lessons which looking back just meant that I spent more money and wasted a lot more time. I was driving overall for a year and a half by the time I booked my first test which meant that I had more experience on the road. I'd been in so many different situations and dilemmas that nothing (apart from causing or being involved in a collision) really scared me. I felt ready and prepared to deal with whatever came my way which I feel so proud of myself for because I had a habit in my first few lessons of panicking and getting myself into horrible situations. Passing your theory test also gives you the biggest boost of confidence so I'm glad that you have to complete that test before booking your practical. I passed my theory first time in August 2017 and the following week I booked my test.

The Test

My first test was booked for September 22nd and I woke up and thought to myself "today is not the day." I had a horrible cold, I'd pulled a muscle in my neck and I just felt so awful and unprepared. I didn't expect to pass but I went to the test centre anyway and I just made stupid decisions on the road. It just really wasn't my day and my mental health hadn't been great for the week leading up to it. I failed by one serious event which in all fairness even the examiner stated that it was only partially my fault and it was just a case of making a wrong judgement. It wasn't nice but if anything it fuelled my determination to pass even more. I booked my second test for October 4th and I woke up feeling so confident and happy. I was so determined but I had to remind myself to stay completely calm. I tried to be chatty and friendly with the examiner before we set off because that way I felt more calm on the test as I felt as though we knew each other a little better. Luckily I passed with only 3 minors which I was absolutely gobsmacked at. He told me he was really impressed and I was later told that the examiner I had on my test is usually a very strict and critical marker so that made me feel even better. It felt like such a weight off my shoulders and I could just sigh with relief that it was over.

It's so much easier said than done but with driving you've just got to stick with it. I'm so impatient and that certainly didn't help me when I was learning because I'd get so frustrated with myself when I did something wrong. But making mistakes it okay. You're learning and it'll take time, believe me. It was only after a LOT of mistakes, a ridiculous number of lessons and an empty bank account that I managed to pass.

Helpful Tips


  • I know it's difficult when you're driving at 40mph and there are a million thoughts racing through your head but do everything you can to STAY CALM. Take a deeeeep breath and remind yourself that everything will be fine. Just take your time, be patient with yourself and don't rush anything.
  • Talk to your instructor. I was always very open and honest with my driving instructors about how I felt and creating a bond with them makes you feel so much more relaxed. By the end of my lessons, it felt as though I was going for a drive with a friend which was lovely. It's also important to find an instructor that you get on well with. Trust me, I had countless driving instructors before I found the best one for me. I loved the way she taught me and she was so reassuring which calmed me immensely. There are so many driving schools and instructors out there, find one that brings the best out of you and makes you feel comfortable.
  • If first you don't succeed, try and try again. Luckily I passed my theory test first time but passed my practical second time. The first and second time I did my test were completely different experiences and I'm actually so glad I didn't pass the first time because it wasn't the right time. You'll know when you're ready to book your test so just be as patient as you can because you'll get there eventually. Take constructive criticism and advice on board and work your ass off to improve. No lesson is ever wasted.
  • Clear your mind before driving. Whether it's just before a driving lesson, your test or just a trip to the supermarket. Having a clear mind is so important because the slightest distraction can cause an accident. Have a warm drink, listen to music, do whatever it is that calms you down and just take some deep breaths. You'll be fine, I promise. 
  • Be positive. It's difficult not to overthink mistakes made on the road. I'm absolutely awful for doing it but it's important not to let the little errors spoil the whole drive. Everyone makes mistakes but it's great to be optimistic and think to yourself "at least I can learn from my mistakes." And remember, the more practice you have, the more confident you'll feel.
I'm so relieved that I managed to pass my test but that doesn't mean that I don't still get nervous on the road, especially now that it's just me and there isn't anyone sitting in the passengers seat. I feel so proud of myself and it feels like such a big deal because I've been driving for sososo long now because I just kept putting it off. Trust me when I say that it will give you the biggest boost of confidence and the greatest sense of freedom and independence. And remember that whether you've been driving for 10 minutes or 10 years, everyone makes mistakes. 

I hope you enjoyed this post. I wanted to share my story with driving and remember that my DM's are always open if you've got any questions or you're looking for advice. I'm by no means an expert but I'm still here if you need anything. I hope you've had a great day wherever you are.

Lots of Love, 
Meg X

Skincare Picks

10.11.2017

I've been wanting to do a post on my current skincare favourites for so long! Some of these products I've been using for months and others I haven't long purchased. Nevertheless, I absolutely adore them and I've seen such amazing improvements. My skin feels so hydrated and smooth. Plus, I can rely on these products when my skin is being problematic and I've got loads of blemishes. So, here they are! 



The Body Shop: Tea Tree Products


I recently did a cheeky Body Shop purchase because I absolutely adore their products! I wanted to update my skincare routine and I'd heard some amazing things about their best selling Tea Tree range. I bought the skin cleansing facial wash, anti imperfection daily solution oil (pictured below) and the night lotion. I use the facial wash around 3-4 times a week and use the other two every night and my skin is thanking me immensely. My blemishes are already clearing up and my skin feels so soft and hydrated each morning when I wake up. I'm not too much of a fan of the scent of the Tea Tree range but it's not too overpowering and it's completely worth it because I'm so impressed with the results! 



Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream

I bought this a while back in the 30ml tube as an experiment to see if it was worth the hype and oh my goodness I'm obsessed. The flavour / scent takes a little getting used to as well as the texture (it's a bit like a gel formula) but I've never used anything that hydrates my lips as much as this does. It's not designed specifically as a lip balm and I have used it on burns and around my nose when I've had a cold, but my lips get so incredibly dry and dehydrated so this has been a miracle worker over recent months. I only ever use a tiny amount as a little goes a long way and I'm nowhere near close to finishing this. It's going to be my little life saver during the colder months and I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who suffers with dry and sore lips!




Simple Micellar Cleansing Water

From my own experience I can safely say that you can't go far wrong with the brand 'Simple.' It was probably the first brand I bought my skincare from when I was younger and I've been trying out their products ever since. I spotted this in Superdrug and thought I'd give it a go to use on the days when I'm feeling a little lazy. I'll put some onto a cotton pad and it removes my make up so effortlessly. It's not too harsh on my skin and it does the job perfectly in my opinion. This is often the first skincare product I'll use in my routine and it leaves my skin feeling soft and completely refreshed. 




Garnier Nourishing Botanical Cleansing Milk with Honey Flower

The thing that caught my attention with this one is the fact that it's made from 98% natural origin ingredients. Similarly to the Simple Cleansing Water, I'd put some of this onto a cotton pad and remove my make up. It honestly feels so nourishing on the skin, I just absolutely adore this. It's kinda like a moisturiser in the sense that it gets completely absorbed by the skin and you can really tell the difference after only a few days. Plus it smells amazing which is always a bonus.




Origins GinZing Refreshing Scrub Cleanser

This smells heavenly and I'm in love with it. Oh my goodness. I received this a while ago as a free gift with a Feel Unique order and I've been obsessed ever since. It's definitely something that I prefer using in the Spring / Summer months just because the smell is so refreshing. I'd often use this as a facial scrub in the mornings because the scent really wakes you up. The zesty orange is gorgeous and it leaves the skin feeling sososo smooth. I personally saw a change in my skin only a few days later and I really want to try more products by Origin because I'm always hearing such wonderful things!




St Ives Oatmeal Scrub and Mask

I personally love to use this as a mask as opposed to a scrub but it is truly amazing. You can really feel it working almost as soon as it's been applied and the smell is heavenly! I don't use this one too often but I can always rely on it when my skin starts being problematic. It clears the skin and leaves it feeling so smooth and hydrated which is so lovely, especially this time of year!




Shower Gels

I didn't think I'd feel the need to talk about my favourite shower gels in a blog post but here I am! I've got a couple I'd love to share with you, specifically the Imperial Leather collection and the Vanilla and Pumpkin edition from The Body Shop. Starting with the Imperial Leather shower gel, I mean it's ridiculously cheap, you can buy it from pretty much anywhere and there are loads of different scents to choose from! Some of them are really fun for example I absolutely love the Marshmallow and Banana scents. They won't be everyone's cup of tea because they are quite sweet but it forms into a lather and leaves the skin feeling SO soft its unreal! The second one just screams Autumn to me. I love Pumpkin scents and the Vanilla and Pumpkin shower gel from The Body Shop is perfect for this time of year. 




Shampoo & Conditioner

I know these don't technically count as skin care products but imma talk about them anyway because who'd have thought that Banana scented hair products would be so amazing?!?!?! The idea of having Banana scented hair care products terrified me at first but they smell heavenly and my hair feels so silky soft afterwards. There isn't much else I can say about these other than the fact that I'm obsessed and they do the job perfectly! 




Hand Cream

Oh, look! Here I am with yet another product from The Body Shop. I promise I'm not sponsored by them, I just really love their stuff. I've had the Mango hand cream for a long time now and the scent is so strong but so gorgeous. I'm obsessed with it. I only recently purchased the Vanilla and Pumpkin one but they both have an amazing formula. They are absorbed by the skin instantly and the smell lasts all day. My hands feel so hydrated after I've used these which is so important at this time of year! Plus, they're only 30ml so they're the perfect size to carry around in your bag with you! I just bloody love the stuff!




And there we have it, my current skincare favourites! I don't use all of these every single day. Some days I'm feeling too lazy to do a proper skincare routine and other days I'll just use a couple of things depending on whether or not my skin needs it. I've got so many different products that I could talk about but these are the ones that have really stood out to me over the last few months. I hope you enjoyed this post and I'll see you soon.

Lots of Love,
Meg X



It's Cold Outside

10.04.2017

I mentioned in my 'Hello, Autumn' blog post (see here) that Autumn fashion is my absolute favourite - from oversized knitted jumpers to chunky boots, I love it. It's barely October and already I'm impressed with some of the Autumnal pieces I've seen around. Zara, ASOS, TopShop, New Look and H&M are already killing it this year and are becoming some of my favourite places to shop! I thought I'd run through some of my current favourite items in a little photo diary now that we have transitioned from what was left of our Summer to my favourite time of the year. I'll also try my best to link everything at the end of the post! 




1. The Classic Red Jumper

I've never been too fond of the colour red but I do think that it's a staple colour to have in your wardrobe. Regardless of the season or occasion, it just adds a bit of colour to my outfit which is why I adore this jumper so much. It's warm, cosy and I can wear it with so much. I'm refusing to let go of my fave summer purchase a.k.a the stripy culottes from Zara but I love this combo so much and it's perfect for this time of year! 




The Chunky Cardigan 

I discovered this during the Summer and despite it being the wrong season to buy an oversized cardigan, I knew I'd thank myself for buying it when the colder months began. I don't usually buy cardigans but I'm already on the hunt for more because you can't really go wrong with them. They're so ideal, especially since the weather is SO unpredictable here in the UK, and this one is gorgeous. I love love love the pattern on it and it's the cosiest thing I've ever owned. It takes up half my wardrobe because it's so chunky but I love it and it's one of my best investments. 


The Outfit that SCREAMS Autumn

This one is definitely a little out there but I can't help but love it. It's slightly on the more dressy side and it's perfect for going to the theatre (a possible outfit for when I go to the theatre this month maybe??) I just love the rust/brown/burnt orange shade and it matches the colour of the floral pattern on the skirt beautifully. It's not the outfit I'd usually go for and like I said it's not an every day 'I'm running late so I threw anything on' kinda outfit but it works and it's so Autumnal so hey ho it's a winner in my eyes!


Denim Denim Denim

Everyone is guilty of having denim in their wardrobe and I swear I have lived in this jacket since I bought it a couple of months ago. It's definitely an all year round piece but it's perfect for the days when it's not cold enough for a winter coat but it's too chilly not to have a jacket. It goes with pretty much everything and I love it. That's all I have to say. There are so many different denim jackets out there at the moment and with a whole variety of styles and shades, there is one for everyone!



The Ultimate 'You Can't Go Wrong' Pinafore Dress

I can't remember when I started wearing pinafore dresses but I feel like I'm associated with them because of how often I wear them! I realise that they make me look like a 7 year old but who cares?!? They're so easy to throw on over jumpers and shirts / tops  and they make it look like you've put a bit of effort in. I always feel so put together when I wear a pinafore dress and I think they kinda suit me. Throw on a pair of tights and boots and you're good to go. I'm definitely going to get a lot of wear out of this one this Autumn. It just goes with SO much and it's actually really comfy to wear which is always a bonus!




It's All About Comfort

The only shoes you'll ever find me wearing are my gorgeous green Doc Martens or my black classic vans. They're both sososo comfy to wear and they go with everything. I adore my Doc Martens especially for this time of year and they add a bit of colour to my outfit which I love! 





That's it for this one! I hope you enjoyed my little photo diary and I'll see you very soon. I've tried my best to link everything mentioned at the bottom of this post just in case anyone was interested. And if you're feeling kind, I'd always appreciate a comment! 

Lots of Love,
Meg X

(NOTE: I couldn't find everything mentioned / pictured online so I've just listed everything that is still available)












End Of Year Goals

10.02.2017

Yesterday was the first day of October and I’m sitting here completely baffled as to how we’ve only got three months left of 2017. I say this every single year but the year has flown by and I honestly don’t know where the time has gone. As each year goes by, I get more and more terrified that I’m wasting my time and I’m going to look back at my youth and regret not spending enough time doing more of what I love and more of what needs to be done. Like most people I set my New Year’s resolutions and I do try my best to achieve them. However with three months of 2017 still remaining, I wanted to remind myself of some of the goals I set at the beginning of the year, specifically the ones that I am yet to fully accomplish. This post was inspired by Poppy (click here to see her post) and I thought I’d write this to motivate myself to keep on track. So, here are just a few of the goals I'd love to achieve before the end of the year.



Apply to University
This has been one of my big goals this year. I’ve finally decided after about a year of being frustrated and unsure that I’m going to study English Language and Linguistics and after doing all the research in the world, I’m now completely set on my dream Uni and my equally amazing backup options. Woooo, go me! Hopefully I’ll get my offers by Christmas but sometimes you don’t hear back until the New Year so as long as I can apply and feel content with my personal statement and references then I’ll be happy.

Spend more time on my skincare
I feel as though compared to previous years that I’ve managed to do this for the majority of 2017. Of course I’ll have my days or sometimes weeks where I’m just not in the mood and I’m feeling too lazy to take my makeup off properly and karma comes for me the next morning when I wake up covered in breakouts, how funnnn (NOT). Having said that, I’ve definitely spent more time researching which products will suit my skin type more so I just need to stick with it and take care of my skin, especially during the next few months because the cold weather doesn’t make it any easier! I’m also hoping to upload my current skincare favourites in a post very soon! 

Choose healthier options / drink more water
This is always one of my New Year’s resolutions and even though I do try, I’m almost never consistent when it comes to healthy eating and drinking. I’m determined to try new vegetarian recipes this Autumn / Winter and as for drinking more water, I just need to remind myself that my skin will thank me for it immensely in the long run. I’m always guilty of drinking plenty of warm drinks during the colder months which means I’ll often forget that drinking water is sososo important! I'm tempted to download an app or something so that I can keep track of how much water I should be drinking each day so that way I'll have no excuses!

Pass my driving test
Another one of my big goals to accomplish this year and trust me I will be SO happy and relieved when I can cross this one off my list. I've been driving for well over a year but things always got in the way and I ended up stopping and starting my lessons more times than I can recall. This summer however I decided that enough was enough and I was going to pass my test as soon as I could. I bought my first car and not long afterwards I passed my theory. With my driving test soon approaching I really hope I can finally get my licence and get on the road.

Read more
I'm frustrated with myself because I definitely haven't been reading as much as I should this year and I haven't got an excuse other than I couldn't really be bothered. I've been rereading the Harry Potter series but as for new reads I'm definitely slacking. I'd love to read more towards the end of the year and what better time to do that than when it's chilly outside and all you want to do is snuggle up by the fire with a mug of hot pumpkin spiced tea. I've made a list of all the books I'd love to read and I'm going to do my best to put time aside to read as often as I can.

Get my head down and FOCUS
As some of you may know I'm currently in my third year in college after deciding to stay an extra year and study what I actually enjoy. After not performing so well in my first year, I was determined that I was going to do better in my second year and that's exactly what I did. It felt so good to see that my hard work was paying off and if anything last years results have fuelled my determination to do well this year. I really want to put in the effort because I genuinely love my subjects and I know I'll thank myself in the long run when I'm doing what I love. No excuses this year, I'm going to nail it! 

And there we have it! My end of year goals to hopefully accomplish before the New Year. I genuinely hope I can stick to these because I know I'll feel so much better and productive if I can get them done. I hope you enjoyed this post and I'll see you all very soon!

Lots of Love
Meg X

Latest Instagrams

© Raindrops On Roses. Design by FCD.