The Best In New Music

New music is becoming better and better every day. The talent is growing, backing tracks are becoming more deep and exciting and is all over a lot better to listen to. I decided to share the best of the best in new music right now, from the hits to the ones you missed.

Alessia Cara- Know It All

This album is a mixture of funky pop, retro, and somewhat chilling vibes that you will be able to dance to, sing to and relate to. Alessia Cara became popular from her two songs ‘Here’ and ‘Wild Things’, and her entire album is a little piece of treasure everyone can and will enjoy.

Best Song On The Album: Seventeen

COIN- Coin

This band deserves a lot more attention than it gets and their album is upbeat and a great pick me up. I love the how clean and sharp the music is. Their new single, Talk Too Much, is amazing as well.

Best Song On The Album: Atlas

Daya- Daya EP

Daya has become HUGE recently with ‘Hide Away’ and ‘Don’t Let Me Down’, but her entire EP is magic and exciting. I never get sick of the songs and she’s just all around a great singer and artist. I really hope Daya writes a new album soon, it would be something to make my little heart sing!

Best Song On The Album: Thirsty

Foxes- All I Need

I am currently obsessed with Foxes- and I mean OBSESSED obsessed, like ‘my new favourite singer’ obsessed. I think her new album is so amazingly crafted and it never gets boring. I really hope more people notice her talent soon- she is so worthy.

Best Song On The Album: Amazing

Halsey- BADLANDS

I couldn’t write this post without mentioning Halsey. Her voice is incredibly different in a kind of magical way, and her backing tracks are still what I call the best in the world. Even if you’re not big on her music as a whole, her backing tracks are so perfectly crafted with so many layers and deep meaning.

Best Song On The Album: Control

Kita Alexander- Like You Want To EP

This Australian artist writes songs so wonderfully put together they actually make me quiver a bit. Okay, that might be exaggerating a teensy bit but you have to try Kita Alexander. The backing tracks are kind of metallic (if that makes sense) and her voice is brilliant. If you want to fall in love with a new song get this EP. You won’t regret it.

Best Song On The Album: High Tops

Melanie Martinez- Crybaby

Shhh don’t question it. Just get this album NOW.

Best Song On The Album: Dollhouse

Pentatonix- Pentatonix

These guys are more talented that I can even imagine. They, if you don’t know already, are an a capella group and you won’t believe that they do it all without instruments when you hear it first. Their music is bright and fun and did I mention how talented they are?

Best Song On The Album: Ref

Troye Sivan- Blue Neighbourhood

This guy exceeded all of my expectations. When I first listened to it, I was expecting it to be okay, but not amazing. Holy wow was I wrong. This album was so deep and well made that I actually cried during some of the songs. It’s a music coma you will fall into for days. You will love it.

Best Song On The Album: SUBURBIA

Walk The Moon- TALKING IS HARD

There’s actually a big difference with this one. All the reviews I read said the entire album was awful and that Shut Up And Dance was the only good song on there. However, I bought it anyway and I beg to differ on what everyone else is saying about it. Some songs could be better, but I think it’s such a funky album (and I’m not just referring to the hit on the album here) that is great to shut up and dance to. Too soon? Okay.

Best Song On The Album: Portugal

What are your favourite songs of the moment? Do you like or dislike the albums I’ve listed here?

My Blogging Essentials

Every blogging needs some things other than their laptop to create a great and functional blog that you love reading.It varies for everyone because everyone works differently, but these things are the main things I love and cannot function without to make a blog that I am proud of. I figured that maybe you could take a bit of inspiration from my list and apply it to your blog if you haven’t gotten these things already, so these are my top four things I need each blogging day.

MY CAMERA

I don’t think I would be able to function without my camera. It’s my baby and best friend and I take it around with me everywhere I can. I use a Nikon D7100 which I absolutely adore because it takes really clean shots in good lighting. Without my camera, I wouldn’t be half as proud of my blog as I am today.

MY BLOGGING IDEAS NOTEBOOK

This is basically where all the magic happens. Each and every idea I have is written down in this notebook pretty much the second I think of it. Obviously for such a special thing, I use my favourite notebook from Kikki K and guard it with my life. It’s the most amazing thing ever, just saying.

MY PLANNER

Trust me when I say a planner has saved my life. By having something to refer to that I look at pretty much every second of the day, it can remind me of things I have to post, homework I have due before I can write and everything in between. It’s not just important or an essential, it’s my life. Once I literally broke down and cried for hours because I thought I had lost it and that everything was gone.

MY INSPIRATION

This tends to be books, magazines, and other blogs. Without these things, I can’t think of any ideas and my blog crashes and burns.

What are some of your blogging essentials that you need every single day?

Great Online Fonts For Signatures

Whether it’s for the blog, your emails or even a hand-written letter (that’s still a thing?), having a fancy signature at the end of something is a good idea. I personally love my fancy little signatures at the ends of my posts- and often, people ask me what fonts I use for my signatures. I figured I may as well share my favourite free fonts for signatures off DaFont.com, one of my favourite sites to waste my life on that provides loads of free fonts.

1. Chasing Embers (get it here)

My first ever font for my online signature and a gorgeous decorative font for every beauty blogger (and other style blogs also!), Chasing Embers is one of my favourites and a great font for your blog signature or personal use.

FREE: Yes

COMMERCIAL USE FOR FREE: No

2. Roomfer (get it here)

My current font for signatures and a playful yet dainty style, Roomfer is a great font for anyone who wants a great blog sign-off.

FREE: Yes

COMMERCIAL USE FOR FREE: NO

3. Cookies and Milk (get it here)

This is a more playful and fun font for absolutely everyone from beauty and fashion bloggers to diary blogs. It is such a unique style and I am using it for pretty much everything at the moment!

FREE: Yes

COMMERCIAL USE FOR FREE: Yes

4. Master Of Break (get it here)

A curly and enchanting font, this is a great pick for a beauty or fashion bloggers who want to come off as someone easy to chat to, but love a bit of fancy and sparkles every now and again.

FREE: Yes

COMMERCIAL USE FOR FREE: No

5. Pale Blue Eyes (get it here)

This pastel-like font looks dreamy and enchanting. If you’re not a fan of fonts that join together like cursive, this font is for you as all the letters are individuals and don’t connect to each other.

FREE: Yes

COMMERCIAL USE FOR FREE: No

6. Bromello (get it here)

Just an all-around pretty and versatile font, you blog will definitely look immaculate and fancy as ever. This can be used on pretty much any style blog (unlike some of the fonts here that would only make sense on certain blog types) and is full of bubbly yet dainty font.

FREE: Yes

COMMERCIAL USE FOR FREE: Yes

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Do you have a favourite online font? What is it?

Ten Things You Need On Your Bucket List

Everyone has a bucket list of some sort. Even if you haven’t written it down, you probably have a mental list, like, “Oh, I have always wanted to do _____________________.” Well, now is the time to make your bucket list ten million times more fun and exciting. These are ten things that are non-cliché, but still fun and moderately easy to do, if you try. Get out your notebook or virtual bucket list in your mind and start dreaming!

1. GO TO A MUSIC FESTIVAL- Because they are full of super fun things to do, gives you the chance to discover amazing new artists and all your friends can do it with you. The best time to do this is during the summer because it’s nice weather and everyone’s got nothing to do because it’s holidays.
2. LISTEN TO THE NEW FOXES ALBUM- Because your life will be so much better with it.
3. GO SNORKELING IN THE GREAT BARRIER REEF- Because soon it will be too late and the Reef will be dead due to global warming. Like, soon soon.
4. DYE YOUR HAIR A CRAZY COLOUR- Because life’s too short to not become a unicorn.
5. HIT A THOUSAND BLOG FOLLOWERS- It’s a lot, but you can definitely get there with a bit of determination and hard work. Good luck!
6. GROW AND MAINTAIN YOUR OWN LITTLE GARDEN, EVEN IF IT’S JUST A LITTLE STRIP- Because succulents are great, but an entire garden is a lot more rewarding and gives a lot more back to your little Earth home (note: the Earth is not little. Oh well).
7. MAKE FRIENDS WITH AT LEAST ONE PERSON FOR EVERY LETTER OF THE ALPHABET- extra points if you can make friends with someone who starts with X. Try and add at least one person for each letter into your contacts so you can keep track of the letters.
8. GET A FULL 100% ON A TEST- Because smarty pants.
9. RUN A MARATHON- Because you’ll feel so healthy after it. You can get a free app like Couch To 5 K to help you, and some of them are really fun like a colour run and normally for a great cause.
10. HAVE AN ECCENTRIC AND COOL PET, LIKE A LLAMA OR SNAKE (IF YOU HAVE THE ROOM)- Because LLAMAS.

What kind of stuff is on your bucket list?

The Basics Of A Killer Blog Design

Blog designs are a HUGE part of your overall blog quality, so you always need to make sure it’s at its best. There are so many designs out there that it can kind of seem overwhelming to find the perfect one, so I narrowed it down to five basics that make a blog design the best thing ever.

1. Colour of background ALWAYS go with a seamless, white background. Text can be so hard to read on a black or coloured background, even white text. Black text on a white background though is easy to read and will also make things like photos pop. Black backgrounds can often suck all the light and colour out of your blog (I just realised how racist this sounds out of context. I SWEAR THAT’S NOT WHAT I MEAN!).
2. Space for widgets Wherever your widgets go, like a sidebar or footer, you need a space for widgets on your blog, like a follow button, a copyright message and archives. Sidebars are best, but any kind of widget area is fine.
3. Consistent Don’t change your blog design every second day. It just gets annoying, and will drive people away from your blog very quickly.
4. Built-in or manually added read more buttons Read more buttons are incredibly important in a blog. If posts are full length and appear on the blog at full length, the blog can be hard to scroll through and your readers are more likely to lose interest.
5. Displays featured images and makes them all look streamilned, whether you change the size of the picture yourself or the blog does it for you No question about this, doing that makes your blog one BILLION times more professional and easy to look at.

What do you look for when choosing a blog design?

A Letter To My Future Blogging Self

Dear Hatsy of 2017,

Sorry…

I know that right now the way I write my blog seems to make total sense to me and shiz, but I know that in the future I’m going to feel like ‘you were SUCH an idiot. So immature. What was WRONG with you?!’

The person I am writing this to is myself, exactly one year from now, so on the 4th of May 2017.

You’re nearly 14. How did maturity work for you? I’m predicting it went pretty badly for you so far considering that if I could I would dedicate the rest of my life to avoiding responsibilities, so….

Okay. Back to blogging.

I really just hope that

• My photography has improved
• I’m still writing regularly and with purpose
• That the album went well
• I feel happy when writing- still
• You’ve managed to achieve some of your blogging goals, whether that’s a target follower count or a brand you’ve really wanted to collaborate with. I’m sure you can do it!

Maybe you stuck with blogging. Maybe you didn’t. Maybe you’ve gotten hate comments or maybe it’s continued to be the wonderful place it is right now- full of support and care and hope. I hope it’s the second option- I’m sure hate comments suck.

Whatever the blogging world held for you in the past year, I just really hope you’ve learned lots. Gained lots. Laughed and smiled lots. And maybe have found the perfect lip colour along the way.

I hope blogging still gives you the same feeling it gives me now. That little rush of excitement when you come up with the perfect idea for a blog post. That heart-warming moment when someone leaves a sweet comment or gives you a shoutout and makes you feel special. That bittersweet moment when you say goodbye to a part of your blog that you loved. Oh, not because you’re sad about it- it’s because you didn’t properly stir your tea and the sugar/tea ratio is way out of proportion. I must always have a tea when blogging- maybe you still do?

It’s weird to look into the future and not know anything, but hope for a lot. I just want to make all of these things a reality someday. The album, the photography, the blog in general- there’s so much I want to do, and blogging has opened me up to it all.

Good luck out there.

From Hatsy of 2016

Soo I tried the whole ‘letter to myself’ thing again, and this time I actually sent a letter to my future self via email, meant to arrive in my inbox exactly one year from now. Maybe when I get it I’ll write a little response to myself on the blog again. We’ll all just have to wait and see. I urge you all to give this a go and we can be ambitious together! Xx

If You Get One Thing This Month: April 2016

A lot happened in April. My brother’s birthday, school holidays (yay!), lots of assessments (not yay…) and it was quite an exciting month for the blog too. I had some really fun interviews with some amazing people and got to make quite a few new blogger friends. However, it is now time to say goodbye to an awesome month (and hello to my birthday month!) and round up all my favourite things from April that I feel like everyone should try. Let’s do this…

Makeup: After hearing a lot about it, I decided to go ahead and buy the Rimmel London Provocalips Lip Gloss in Little Minx. This double-ended wonder manages to last almost all day with a few retouches and has a lovely yet bold colour. The shine side with the clear, glossy finish also works a treat, and I’m currently working on completing my collection with all the amazing colours in the range!

Skincare: I decided to make exfoliation a part of my regular skin care routine, and found this amazing wash with microbeads and a hydrating factor which I am loving- the Garnier Daily Pore Scrub Wash. So. Much. Glow.

Album: April has been a big month of music for me. I have probably listened to and fallen in love with around 10 new albums- I’m not even exaggerating. However, the overall favourite for this month (and you have to understand how hard this was for me to choose) would be  One More War by Robot Child.  I like the different styles they have in there, and my favourite song would probably be either Inside or Ignition (The Man Who Was Never Made is amazing too!).

Clothing Item: I have a very picky taste when it comes to choosing jeans. They must be at least a little bit washed out, so no solid colours, a comfortable fit and something that I fall in love with straight away. I had grown out of all my favourites so I reluctantly parted with them, and went to the shopping centre to buy some new ones. The Dotti Girlfriend Jeans exceeded all my expectations and were perfect for me- definitely part of my favourites!

Book: This is easy, although I have read a lot of books this month as well. I love Sophie’s World, a philosophy book in the form of an exciting Alice-In-Wonderland-ish fiction novel. I found it so interesting and a thrilling read right through to the end that I just could not put down! The ending was a bit crud but other than that, an amazing read.

App: I have been obsessed with the Camera+ app (an app for editing your photos on your phone or iDevice) for aaaggggeess now, so I figured it deserved an honourable mention above all the other apps I have used this month. The editing tools are out of this world, and it can do literally anything you want it to do when editing. It even has a feature where you can put different filters on top of each other, which I haven’t seen any other editing app do well before. Five stars!

Here’s a list of all the posts with their links that I have made this month, so you can go back and catch up any that you’ve missed!

Maybelline Fit Me! Matte + Poreless Foundation Review | What Quality Is To Me | 3 Ways To Style A Denim Jacket | How TV Makeup Works ft. A Makeup Professional | A Letter To My Past Blogging Self | Product Empties | 7 Things You Didn’t Realise Are Making Your Blog Go Downhill | The Blogging Surge | 5 Things To Add To Your Morning Routine | Album Name, Cover + Release Date Reveal | Interior Design Like A Boss

I hope you all had a wonderful April, and that May is an epic month for you. Only 6 days to go until I’m suddenly a 13-year-old with responsibilities and expectations… uh oh.

 

Interior Design Like A Boss ft. An Interior Design Queen

The saying ‘is your grandma missing her curtains’ is a good thing for me because believe me when I say my Grandma Jan is an interior design QUEEN. She lives near the beach, about two hours out of Melbourne, and her house is the living room of my DREAMS. The thing is, I am  only a fan of modern, interesting and… well, modern decor style. So I’m not just saying my grandma is a boss at decor because I love her and want her to like me etc. etc. etc. I actually think her house is amazing- so after a while I interviewed her about her amazing style, in the hopes that we could all get some inspiration. Ready for a crud ton of photos? Let’s do this.

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Tell us a bit about yourself.
I’m a sixty-three-year-old woman who was born in New Zealand and lives in Australia. I have two children, two stepchildren, and many grandchildren, thirteen in total (one of them being Hatsy!)
What was your main mental image you had when setting up the house?
Well, I really wanted to have a black and white theme, so I was keen to have the contrast in colour which I’ve tried really hard to achieve. Then I wanted to have a pop of colour, which was red.
What about colour accents? Did you have any mental images there?
The red pop was really important, and you’ll see around my house that I have some orange and brown tones. So I’ve really got the Autumn colours, that was my intention.
Did you have a source of inspiration at all?
In a way, I think I did, because if you have a look at [my print on the wall from New Zealand] of the Maori man and woman, you’ll see that there’s black and red, and it’s on a brown background. [That was my main source of inspiration] for me, and it also reflects my New Zealand background.

Where did you get most of your items?
One of the great things about shifting back to Australia meant I could start afresh with furniture, and that’s one of the tricky things, you know, when you’re in a home for a while you get bits and pieces [from different places, so when I moved] I was able to have a plan… So I was able to buy most of my furniture all at the one time and I got it from a number of high-end furniture shops.
Did you have much to work with when you moved in- like fixed furniture?
No, it was an open plan so there were no floor coverings apart from wood [planks] which ran through the house except for the bedrooms so it meant that I could lift colour up through rugs and also some of the little accessories in the house [that I put around].
You have a lot of really cool and interesting art sculptures. What were/are your main focuses for them?
Well, I really like unusual [art] and I love an unusual look with all my artwork. I like different forms of art, so I love asymmetrical designs and if anything looks off-centre, I notice that it really appeals to me.
How did you work with spacing and placement?
Well, I [would] put things down and then look at it for some time and then I shift them around [if I didn’t like the way it was placed originally]. It’s just what appeals to me and my eye, I do have some greens that you’ll note over on my black sideboard and I like that green colour because it’s a lot about New Zealand, and that’s the [iconic colour]… Of New Zealand.
Any new items or changes you’re planning to put in at the moment?
Usually, it’s paintings and prints that I will change, and I [own] more paintings than I can fit on my walls! [That’s] okay [though], because what I can do then is… Change them around, so it’s a constant art gallery in my house.
How did you turn this house into a home?
I think it’s the little bits and pieces that you put in, I think flowers can give you a sense of home and photos. [I also like to put in] things that people know ME for which is a lot about New Zealand. Just as I’m answering these questions in the interview, I’m realising how much of New Zealand is a part of me, and that really shows through in my interior design. I think [all these things] provide a sense of home.
Do you have any interior design tips for the readers?
I think, if you see something that really appeals to you and you want it as your base for your design, just buy it. Don’t be put off. The stone centrepiece on my table… I remember when I saw it, [my husband] thought it was crazy to buy because it was really expensive. But I was determined to bring the theme of New Zealand- the stones that look like the river in New Zealand [so I bought it anyway].

5 Things To Add To Your Morning Routine

(Yes, I’m re-using a photo from my latest fashion post, but it’s not because I’m lazy, it’s just that… well… I… okay, fine, I’m lazy.) Good morning… time to have ten coffees, cry at the sound of crickets disturbing your otherwise okay mood and try not to die of fatigue. However, mornings don’t have to suck if you add a few things to make it easier. There are a few things I find to make mornings that bit easier to get out the door- take it from someone who is actually a morning person and finds it easy to wake up.

• Having breakfast or a tea/coffee outside on a porch or in your backyard (if you wake up around when the sun rises). Seeing sunlight first thing in the morning  can make you wake up a bit more- after all, your body is made to be awake during the day, so seeing the sun and the sky reminds your brain to start working again. Don’t do this when it’s raining, though- that will just get you cold.
• Open up your planner and write in due dates and your to-do list for the day. It helps you keep focussed on your main tasks for the day and gets you thinking about tackling the day ahead.
• Make your bed. It takes about half a minute and will make your bedroom feel fresh again. Getting into a habit of making your bed is a great habit to have.
• Listen to music or a podcast. This is more for when you’re walking out the door to get to wherever you need to be- the train, work, school  the car, anything. When you have music or a podcast to focus on, things just feel right.
• Have some water with a squeeze of lemon juice in it. The lemon tang will wake you up in a much more refreshing and light way than coffee or tea (but coffee is still amazing. Both, I guess?). Studies have also shown that having an apple in the morning has the same awakening effects as a cup of coffee, too, so have an apple with it as well! It’s probably healthier, anyway.

Are there any morning rituals that you do to help you survive the morning?

The Blogging Surge

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Okay, so maybe we don’t have to get that worried but I think there’s some ways we need to tweak our blogs now days. Blogging is HUGE now, and saying you write a blog isn’t as interesting as it once used to be. With so many blogs out there all doing their own little thing, us bloggers that have been here for a year or two (maybe even MORE!) aren’t getting as much attention as we used to, because of the new surge of bloggers of all ages and forms. So how do we get around that?

First of all, the fact is that if your blog has been around for a while and has already gained a big following (I’m talking about 500 followers+), you have a bit of an advantage. Even with the huge blogging wave hitting us at the moment, there’s still the same amount of people who read them. No matter how many new bloggers there are, it’s still just as hard/easy to get people to follow or comment on a new blog. That means that you already successful bloggers out there don’t have to worry as much. But we ‘still-making-our-way-through’ bloggers need a little more support.

Now that they’re gone, it’s time to create a game plan to ensure you are memorable and one in a million- quite literally.

THE TOP TEN THINGS YOU SHOULD DO, STARTING NOW

1. Respond to comments. Sometimes I don’t comment on posts just because I know they won’t respond- so make sure you try and respond to each and every comment.
2. Blog about topics that you feel like you can easily write about, that will flow out of your fingers. There’s no point blogging about something you think is boring. It will show that you aren’t enjoying it and makes you less engaging.
3. Read ALL the blogs. Just because there are lots of us now doesn’t mean we can’t support each other- in fact it’s the support we give each other that helps ourselves (and others) thrive as bloggers. You will probably definitely learn something, too.
4. Be you. There’s no one better for the role.
5. Be useful. People want to be able to take something away from a post. If they can’t, there won’t be any point for your followers to read it.
6. Make your blog design nice- there’s nothing more off-putting than trying to navigate around a confusing, clustered or badly maintained blog. If you created your own design with HTML, this is twice as important for you- links can break and designs can have bugs more easily without proper maintenance and checks if it is not hosted by another website.
7. Be consistent. Post a lot (if you’re struggling to find a schedule that works for you, check out this post. Remember- less is always more if you don’t have much time on your hands).
8. Allow yourself room to grow. Something that’s so amazing about blogging is that it can show how we’ve grown and changed over the course of our lives. Find ways you can improve daily and watch your blog grow into something amazing.
9. Quit the whole ‘follow for follow’ thing, if you want to get genuine followers. 50 dedicated and engaged readers is better than 500 ghosts- trust me. Follow for follow is something that attracts ghosts as followers, because they didn’t follow you for you.
10. Remember that talent will always come out on top. You may be thinking ‘ugh, but those people who do literally NOTHING seem to get all the followers!’ and it may seem that way, but at the end of the day they’re not going to get as much reward in the long run as someone who has talent, dedication and real eagerness in their work. The people who get popular by doing nothing will eventually reach a mark and never go over that- it’s just facts. Do your best and find that your readership will rise.

Any tips you have for the bloggers in the ‘blogging surge’?