CLAUDIA LOVES CATS



To kick off my Christmassy crafts me and my friend Louise went to a Christmas handwriting workshop at the North Star Coffee Shop in Leeds. The class was taught by Phylecia Sutherland (check out her website here) and we learnt faux calligraphy and brush lettering (which I was dying to learn) and had lovely baked treats from Noisette Bakehouse. We decorated baubles and gift tags (see below) which was great as they are things we can actually use! 
I found the faux calligraphy hard to keep consistent, so it ended up looking a bit like a 5 year old had done it, but I found the brush lettering much easier, so I will definitely be doing this more in future! 
The coffee shop was gorgeous and the table settings for the event were gorgeous and such lifestyle goals! 

I would really recommend anyone that wants to try a new craft to do a class like this - it's great as no one is a professional so you don't need to worry about it looking amateurish. It's also a lovely cosy night out (and very Christmassy around this time of year!). 






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As this year me and Jonny have bought a house, buying our first Christmas tree for the living room was mega important to me. We wanted to source one locally, preferably from a local family business. We stumbled across a lovely little garden centre not that far away from home, and I had been driving past it every day on my way to work! The wreaths were amazing, I got the one above and my mum got the big one further down this post, I could have decked out my entire house with them! 

We ended up getting a 6 foot tree for a really reasonable price. The garden centre was lovely and can be found just outside Leek on the Ashbourne road. I will be posting pics of my Christmassy house now I have finally decorated (both finishing painting the living room and decorating for the festive season!).. stay tuned! 





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Sooooo it's blogmas time of the year again!! For my first post of the festive season (and for a while) I have decided to talk about the amazingness that is Glossier!!

Incase you have been living under a rock, Glossier is not just the best friend of beauty bloggers in the US but is available to order in the UK. 

For my Glossier purchases I wanted to focus on their stand-out pieces, the ones that are most highly recommended and are really the cult products. Spoiler alert - I loved them all so much that I have made a Glossier gift guide, so that you can see what I thought of all of them and why they make such lovely gifts! 

So from left to right I bought the Milky Jelly Cleanser, the Haloscope highlighter, the Generation G lipstick, the Boy Brow and the stretch concealer. Not only is the packaging amazing, and certainly gift-worthy but the products are all amazing. The milky jelly cleanser is great for morning use and the haloscope brings a really dewy effect to your skin. I had my reservations about the Generation G lipstick but it ended up lasting for ages on my lips and the colour really suited me (Colour Zip). I got the boy brow in blond which is great for my ashy toned eyebrows and lasts all day giving a really polished but natural brow look. The stretch concealer is also fabby, lasting most of the day and blending with my make up really well.

All in all I am super impressed with all the Glossier products I have bought and I would really recommend them to anyone looking to buy someone a gorgeous beauty present for Christmas!!  
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Hey everyone, I have been wanting to do this post for a long time, as anyone who reads my blog regularly knows I have super oily skin/prone to acne and I wanted to show some of the products that have really helped my skin. Some of these products are quite expensive and some aren't, but I have found that sometimes spending a little more money to really get what you want is best. 


1. Body Shop Tea Tree 3-in-1 Wash, Scrub, Mask (£8.50)
I originally got this as an alternative to the Garnier 3in1 mask, as I found out that that one had micro beads in it - a big no go! I tried this one as I wanted a replacement that would be good for skin with acne on it - I didn't want it to completely shred my skin. I've found that this one is great, I use it in the shower in the mornings and sometimes I put it on my face and then massage it off with a flannel or sometimes I use it as a scrub on the bits of my skin with lots of blackheads, like my t-zone (my chin!!). It's also a really good price. 

2. Body Shop Seaweed Mattifying Day Cream (£13)
I use this as my go-to daily moisturiser, and I find it fantastic! Instead of being a cream, it's more like a watery gel, which absorbs into my oily skin instead of sitting on the top of it, which I've had other products do and with those I find my makeup slowly slides off during the day. This cream is great for winter or summer, really easy to build up and recently my skin has been a lot better, so I've been mixing it with my Kat Von D makeup in order to make a daily tinted moisturiser, which I have found works really well. 

3. Kat Von D Liquid Lock It Foundation (£27)
This is without a doubt my favourite makeup product EVER. It is absolutely fantastic for oily skin and I honestly cannot recommend it enough. It's pricey, yes, but as I only use one or two pumps of the product a day (it's that good at staying on and coverage!!!!) I can make one 30ml bottle last about 6 MONTHS!!! I would highly recommend using it with a beauty blender so it doesn't get cakey - very high coverage - or if you are finding it a little heavy it is really easy to mix with primer or moisturiser for a little lighter coverage. This foundation is amazing!

4. Ultrasun Face Factor 30 (£18.99)
I had heard great things about this sun cream but I was still dubious about it before I used it as I automatically assume that sun creams have to be greasy to work. This Ultrasun face suncream is honestly more like a primer in its consistency and application! It could be used underneath makeup or on its own. I think it is the one product I won't be going on holiday without. Its gel-type texture means it mattifies my face and sits under my makeup really well, and it is the furthest away from greasy I think a suncream could get!

5. Sunday Riley UFO Face Oil (£68)
Lastly, the Sunday Riley UFO face oil, that I use every night before bed. This product is honestly fantastic. I've never been one for moisturising before bed, as I've always been worried that it would over-moisturise my skin and I would rather my spot treatment could get to my skin. This does both - I have actually noticed a massive difference on my skin since I started using it, my skin seems dewier in the mornings as it hasn't been completely stripped by a spot treatment and I know the salicylic acid will take care of my blemishes. So here are my 5 oily/acne prone skin lifesavers! Let me know if you have any other tips, Claudia x 
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Hi everyone, this month instead of doing a June favourites I decided I would talk about some of my favourite things we did in Berlin while we were staying there in mid-June. 

Where we stayed: The Circus Hotel
The Circus Hotel was amazing! Such a great location for all the museums we went to and was super close to loads of different types of food and drink. I would highly recommend it! The decor was also really cool, so unusual and the bathroom was super clean. There was also the Commonground cafe underneath it which was really good for brunch!
Find it here: Rosenthaler Str. 1, 10119 Berlin, Germany




Where we visited: DDR Museum 
This has to be one of my favourite museums EVER. I first went when I was interrailing in 2011, and I couldn't wait to go back!! There is loads of information on the GDR, which I am now writing (or meant to be writing) my dissertation about so it was really amazing to see some extra information about it! It is a super hands-on type of museum where you can drive an East German car (see below) and go into bedrooms and offices of leading GDR functionaries, Stasi operatives and even into an allotment! I would highly recommend this if you are going to Berlin, as it is a great museum even for people who aren't that into history because there is loads of really interesting info up for grabs & something for everyone! It was also seventies-tastic so anyone that is into clothes or music would find something to look at! 
You can find the DDR museum here: Karl-Liebknecht-Str. 1 10178 Berlin






Where we ate: Fam Dang 
Fam Dang was an amazing Vietnamese restaurant just across the road from our hotel and it was recommended to us by the hotel themselves as a good place for Vietnamese food (we found out that Berlin has a large Vietnamese culture!). We tried some summer rolls and a kind of Vietnamese pizza to start, and I had the duck for my main and a gorgeous gin cocktail! (I have been trying to get into gin for this summer) I would highly recommend it, especially on a hot summer's day. 
You can find Fam Dang here: Torstraße 125 10119 Berlin






Thanks for reading everyone, I have also done a post about my fave brunches in Berlin which you can find here! Claudia x
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Hey everyone, I've just come back from 3 days in Berlin, where my sister and I celebrated her 21st birthday and also history geeked out on loads of museums that Berlin has to offer. We spent 3 full days in Berlin, which means 3 BRUNCHES! Here are the three brunches we had, all of which I would highly recommend. 

Brunch 1: The Barn Roastery


I'd had this place recommended by a friend for the amazing coffee - which as it was so hot we ended up not having! We had a nitro tea instead, something I've never had before but was quite refreshing. One thing to note though is that they don't have a kitchen. They do have some pre-prepared bites though, and I ended up having a turkey, beetroot and cream cheese sandwich, which was really nice. You can also buy coffee to take home there as well! 
You can find The Barn Roastery online here, and the address is: Schönhauser Allee 8, 10119 Berlin




Brunch 2: Roamers


I think this is potentially my favourite café/brunch spot EVER. Everything about it was really really nice. We only had to wait about 20 mins for a table, as it is super small but the cafe was so nice we didn't mind. The music was great, the food was absolutely superb and the decor was just amazing!!! Honestly cannot recommend this place enough!! I had a raspberry smoothie to drink and for my food, I had the "summer special" which I can't remember the exact details of but definitely involved feta cheese, crusty bread, sunny side up eggs and avocados... it was so tasty. The location is a little further out though, so we got an Uber there and then walked to the East Side Gallery which isn't too far from there. 

You can find Roamers online here and the cafe here: Pannierstrasse 64, 12043 Berlin






 Brunch 3: Commonground 


Brunch 3 was on our last day in Berlin and we knew we were going to have to get a taxi to the airport soon after we had eaten so we wanted somewhere close to the hotel. We had originally planned to go somewhere else, which had been recommended to us but when I googled it the night before it didn't open until 11 am which was far too late for us getting our flight! Luckily the hotel stepped in and a short google later I realised there was a café below our hotel called Commonground. This turned out to be amazing and I can't believe we didn't discover it until the last day! Guests of the Circus Hotel (where we stayed) got a breakfast package for 12 Euros, which included the meal and 2 drinks. I had apple juice, fresh mint tea (which was amazing!) and the avocado on toast with beetroot chutney and hummus. It was really tasty and I even got another mint tea on the house. There is also an outdoor bit (it was raining for us though) and at night it is a cocktail bar. 

You can find Commonground online here and the café here: Rosenthaler Straße 1 10119 Berlin



 Overall, Berlin has to be one of my favourite places ever for brunch! Let me know if you have any brunch recommendations in the UK or if you have visited any of these places in Berlin before! Claudia x
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Hey everyone, this summer I have some mammoth tasks on my plate. I've got to do my dissertation in order to finish my masters, get a job and I've set myself the task of losing weight as well.

How on Earth will I do this? I hear you ask. Well, I am trying to balance lots of things at once without losing my mind, so I decided to share some of my top tips with you and hopefully then you can share some of yours! 


Tip 1: PRIORITISE

I have started something recently where I make a massive to-do list, and realise how unachievable it is and so I have to prioritise! My tip is on your list pick out your top THREE things you want to acheive that day. Just three. If the list seems a lot more manageable you are more likely to tackle it. Mine for today is to vote, watch an East German Film and to begin secondary source analysis. As long as I have done those things I can be pleased with myself! I understand some days you might have more stuff to do, but the key thing with this method is to make sure the amount of things you have to do isn't weighing you down.

Tip 2: BLANK CANVAS

Below is a photo of my desktop - it has ONE THING on it. It's taken me a while, and lots of practice but I finally have everything on my computer organised in folders. I find that this really helps me to work, because then I don't get stressed about where things are going and where to find them. I would really recommend getting a system sorted as soon as you can and then when you are really pushed for time you know it's done! I have folders for my blog, for my masters, for jobs (and then my CV on my desktop just in case I am in dire need of it!). 


Tip 3: CATEGORISE

I am a big fan of bullet journal style lists, where you write everything you need to do in the same place, but I find that it works best for me when I categorise things on the list, so for example at the moment, I will have headings like "Career" and "Dissertation" which help me to know what I am working towards when I am completing the lists. It also helps when I block out my time, as I might want spend mornings doing things for my dissertation, but not know where to start - having your to do lists in categories can help you break down tasks. 

Tip 4: ACTION

This is definitely the most important tip. I learnt about this one at a training course about project management at my last full-time job, and it's had a really lasting effect on how I write my to-do lists. Always write your to do lists as an action. If you put "sort out room", what do you mean? Do you mean "pick up all socks on the floor"? Don't put "sort out dissertation sources" put "organise key sources" and "create a list of sources". Make sure you write everything as an action so you can get stuck into the doing (rather than the planning) straight away. By breaking large tasks down into actions, you can ensure that it doesn't seem overwhelming (one of the biggest causes of procrastination) and you can get it done as soon as possible. 

Hope this was helpful! Let me know in the comments if you have any more tips.. Claudia 

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Monday, the 22nd of May, is the last day you can register to vote in the General Election 2017. If you haven't registered yet.. WHAT ARE YOU DOING?

As young people it is really easy to feel like your vote won't make a difference, but at the last General Election the turnout was 66.1%, which means that 33.9% of people did not vote. This means that the number of people who did not vote outnumbered the votes tallied by any one individual party. This shows how important voting is. You literally have the power to change the government simply by voting. 

I have found some really interesting articles online about this, if you would like to read more. This article from the BBC, discusses that if there was a turnout of 78% of 18-24-year-olds, it would lead to an extra two million votes. This article, from the Telegraph, says that if the turnout of young people reached 60%, young people would have the power to swing 37 consituencies. And this article from the Metro talks about how young people need to vote as their opinion differs so much to that of old people. 

If you are voting on the 8th of June (which you should be), please register TODAY!!!! and then Tweet/instagram/Facebook with the hashtag #NotThe33, to show that you are ready to vote and have your opinion be counted. I really think that we can all make a difference.

If you need help with choosing who to vote for then you can go to I Side With, which is a fantastic online resource (a kind of serious quiz) for helping you decide who to vote for based on their policies and your main priorities. You can also check out who you align with closest in other countries' elections as an added bonus. 

I personally would also recommend checking out the Progressive Alliance website to help you vote tactically, if there is a political party you would like to prevent from taking your consituency seat. They also have a fantastic Twitter where you can ask for more information.

Leave a comment if any of this has helped you to make a final choice or you know who you are voting for! And most importantly......

PLEASE PLEASE REGISTER TO VOTE AND THEN ACTUALLY VOTE ON THE 8TH OF JUNE 

p.s as seen in the above photo, even Coco votes and she can't even read.
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Hey everyone, so a couple of months ago Sunday Riley sent me these two products, the Martian Mattifying toner (£48) and the UFO face oil (68). I was really excited to get these as I had read loads about them being good for acne and oily skin and they are mega expensive. I have been using them for about a month now and I have found that my acne has changed. I would say I get a lot more whiteheads rather than massive red angry acne spots, which means it's probably more hormonal now and just on the surface rather then the really painful ones underneath. I've also been really stressed about my essays recently so that can't have helped. 

I have found that the toner is best used in the morning under my make up and the oil is best used in the evening after I have cleansed (sometimes after a sheet mask) so that it has all night to work. Things always take time to work but so far I am really impressed with the Sunday Riley collection and I will be buying the oil especially myself after this one runs out. Have you ever tried either of these?
Claudia 



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Hey everyone, so in a couple of weeks I will be attending my first blog conference, the BlogOn conference in Manchester and I CAN'T WAIT! Here is my ice breaker so that everyone there can get to know me better, and so I can also answer some interesting questions for my normal readers!

1) Share a recent picture of you:
Me at Paul McCartney's childhood home on the 6th of May '17.

2) Describe yourself in three words
Capable, sociable, easily-motivated 

also I talk a lot as you will see below

3) How long have you been blogging and what made you start?
I have been blogging for less than a year but when I was younger I tried my hand at blogging but I didn't have the skills to make it look good so I ended up giving up and closing the blog. Now I'm a lot older I decided I wanted a real creative outlet to put my photos and ideas on so this blog was born! 

4) What was the inspiration behind your blog name?
I actually have no idea! When I was younger I wasn't a big fan of putting my surname in my usernames for things, so I started off with the username claudialovescats for skype and it ended up being my go-to username. When I made my instagram that was what I decided to call it so when I made my blog it seemed only natural to call it the same thing as my instagram. 

5) What is the best thing to come from your blog so far?
Things like being able to attend BlogOn conference? I also really like looking through my blog when I'm having a down day as I love looking back on all the adventures I have had! 

6) Your most remembered thing from your childhood
Always my pets, my dog Bunty, my hamster, my rabbit, our cats, my gerbils, the way their fur felt, the things they did and how much I loved them. I actually have a really good memory not to blow my own trumpet toot toot.

7) Something interesting you might not know about me is...
As well as living in Paris I also used to live in Russia. I lived there between the ages of 12 and 15 and went to international school where I made some of the best friends I've ever had. I had Russian lessons (people always ask me about that) so I have a very basic grasp of Russian. To be honest, it was such a life-changing experience in the most positive way. It has made me who I am I feel from the people I met and the things I got to do while I was there. I got interested in politics and history and look at me now - a Politics with French grad and a History MA student! It was hard being away from familiarity but it's made me really appreciate things I have and me, my mum and my sister formed a really strong bond there. I am actually tempted to do a post about living in Russia, would anyone be interested?

8) What social media platform best describes your personality and why?
I would love to say instagram, because it is so nice and there is something for everyone on there, but I think it's more likely to be Twitter - there's lots of stuff going on and you can jump from one thing to the next really quickly! 

9) What is your happy song?
I have lots and lots, I actually tend to stray away from sad songs as I prefer songs to be uplifting. I love Back Down South by Kings of Leon though, I think that is my favourite song. I love folk music and anything about summer. And Christmas songs but I can't mention those at this time of year. 

10) What is your favourite alcoholic drink?
Definitely cider, I love it! 

11) What is your favourite cake?
Anything with raspberries in that my mum has made! I loveeee raspberry flavour things.

12) What is your favourite takeaway dish?
Definitely something from the Chinese - chicken satay skewers? I think I would have them for my last meal on death row. I don't plan on being on death row though. 

13) Where is your dream holiday destination and why?
I would love to go to Mumbai again, but my dream holiday destination is definitely the Canadian Rocky mountains. And to see the northern lights.

14) What would your superhero name be?
I am really not into superheros at all! I think I would be some sort of cat rescuer?

15) If you had a magical power, what would you want to have and why?
I would love to be able to teleport. Like, so much, for amazing reasons like I could go to a hot beach or on a city break whenever I wanted, but also for more adulty reasons like I could have a lie in and still get everywhere on time.  

16) What one weapon would help you survive a zombie apocalypse?
Lots and lots of food. When I've had food I can take on anything! Also my French Bulldog Coco because she would bark if any zombies sneaked up on me.

17) If you could send something into space, what would it be?
I wouldn't send anything into space! I have read some awful stuff about the amount of junk that humans have sent up there. I would just admire it from a far and let it be.

18) What would you have on your gravestone?
A death date of a long while away I hope!

19) You make headline news around the world in 2 years time... but for what reason?
Claudia has become Prime Minister? Secret ambitions there. Honestly I don't know but I would hope it was something positive, eek.  

20) If an EMP wiped out all mechanical forms of transport, how would you get to BlogOn?
I think I would walk. There is a lot of lovely countryside between me and BlogOn and it would definitely be a real conversation starter when I finally got there!
Let me know if you are going to the BlogOn conference as well! 

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Hey everyone, sorry it has been ages since my last post - this is because I have been struggling through my final masters essays - except from the very daunting (15,000 words) final dissertation which is due in September! This weekend me and my friend Louise did our first couples double date to Liverpool to see Speke Hall, the Beatles' childhood homes and finish up at a restaurant no-one had been to before. It was amazing! 

First up we headed to Speke Hall which is super easy to get to in the car. We didn't know what it would be like at all but it actually ended up being really interesting as well as quite cosy. The bathroom and kitchen were definitely Pinterest life goals! Speke was also really handy for heading to see the next part of our trip - the Beatle's childhood homes. We had pre-booked the minibus from Speke Hall. 






Next we went to the Beatles's childhood homes, Paul McCartney's childhood house and Mendips, which is John Lennon's childhood home. I honestly cannot recommend this enough. It was a truly amazing experience and I'm not a gushy person AT ALL. It was interesting, insightful and actually really touching. The houses look perfect, and you can sit on the couches and look in everything - including the bathrooms and bedrooms. The only downside is no photos (as a photo addict) but we decided as the day went on that not being able to take photos was actually a blessing because it meant that everyone else wasn't taking photos and best of all the whole experience felt really special. It actually really encouraged me to live in the moment. There are loads of really lovely stories from in there that I could tell you but I think it would spoil it if you decided to go there. It was so so amazing it was an experience that has really stayed with me. Here are some photos of the outside below: the top is PC's childhood home and the bottom is JL's. 



For dinner, we went to the Maray restaurant which Louise had read about in the Guardian. It was a Middle-Eastern restaurant with a twist (I hate the phrase "with a twist" but that is the only way to describe it) I tried to take as many pictures as possible of our Mezze/tapas but it was so tasty we dug in! We had the falafel starter, whitebait, cod, the mozzarella and I had the buck apple mocktail and for pudding I had the chocolate tart. To find out the "twist" you can read about the dishes on the menu here. I would highly recommend this restaurant and it's not far away from both Speke Hall and the Beatles's houses if you are looking for somewhere convenient. This is the website and we went to the Allerton restaurant.
Let me know if you have been to any of those places before! Claudia 









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I'M CLAUDIA AND I LOVE CATS

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Claudia Loves Cats
I am a 26 year old former Masters student, blogger, campaigner, history geek and full-time cat owner. I love Christmas, farms and vintage clothes. Peggy the cat is 2 years old and likes washing herself in the sink, watching the birds out of the window and sleeping in the sun. Pip the cat is 1 year old and likes pom poms, chasing toes and crunching his food loudly.
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