Friday Faves: Fame, Feminism, and Fingernails

This week has flown by and I’m in shock that it’s Friday. I’m still not used to being back in the UK: where is my afternoon pichet of wine? Where is all the cheese? Where is the golden retriever to fall asleep on my feet? How can I be expected to live in these wine-cheese-and-dogless conditions? Let’s crack on with my Friday Faves to cheer me up…

As well as showing you some Friday Faves, today I’m going to adopt something I heard on a podcast recently: Good Week, Bad Week. I don’t have work colleagues and I think so many things fly by without me properly ‘experiencing’ them (urgh I sound so wanky). Also, I don’t ever want to portray a false happy-clappy life on here: I am a normal person who has bad days and it’s important to acknowledge those too!

I’ll start with my Bad Week: I had my first period in four months and it has ruined me. I spent the whole day in bed on Tuesday and Wednesday feeling really sorry for myself. I would be fine for about 20 minutes and almost forget and then I would get a pain so sharp I would yelp and jump. It’s bloody (HA) exhausting. I have Endometriosis and Adenomyosis and had surgery last year which definitely helped, but my bad days are getting worse and more frequent so I’m going to head back to my GP.

Okay, Good Week! I am so bloody proud and happy to be working with Boots on my recent skincare post (which you can read HERE). For some reason some bloggers seem embarrassed to be creating sponsored content, or feel like they should apologise for making money from their blog. There’s a strange idea floating around that you are only an ‘honest blogger’ if you’re a hobby blogger, that as soon as you start earning money from your site you are no longer giving your real opinion. Some bloggers *do* value money over integrity but that’s a minority. I am flipping giddy and proud to be working with Boots. I’ve shopped there for years and their skincare range is unbelievable, especially if you have sensitive skin like me. So I’m going to shout about it: Boots know who I am, they like what I do, and they want to collaborate with me. Excuse me while I run around my flat screaming.

Let’s get into my Friday Faves, shall we?

We have been ploughing our way through OJ: Made In America, the Oscar-winning documentary film. It’s filmed in three parts and is about eight hours long in total so it’s a bit of a commitment but so, so worth it. We split it up into four evenings but it never felt like it was dragging or contained excess information. Instead of only focusing on OJ, it gives so much political and cultural background detail that is interwoven with the story. I knew the bare basics of the OJ story but this gives a great insight: talking to friends, family, and colleagues to give a riveting and in-depth analysis of his life and build up to the crime. It’s such an interesting comment on racism, celebrity, power, and corruption. It’s on iPlayer now but will disappear in FOUR DAYS so go watch it immediately.

I have owned ‘Shrill’ by Lindy West for months but only got round to starting it when I was on the plane home from France. And I spent the majority of the flight snort-laughing and reading whole sections to my husband (quietly, of course. I’m not THAT person). It is such a wonderful, powerful and empowering book that I want to give to every woman in my life – Lindy has such a positive and refreshing take on size, society and femininity. It is brilliant.

And the last item in my Friday Faves is something that’s been around for a while but I’ve never properly tried: the Nails Inc Express Remover Pot*. It’s a simple concept – the pot contains a sponge soaked in acetone-free nail varnish remover (which means it’s suitable for falsies as well). You dip your finger into the pot, swish it around and voila, clean nails! So quick, so much easier than searching for cotton pads, and easy to take away with you. The only slight downside is the smell which is pretty intense, so use in a well-ventilated area if you’re sensitive to scents.

As always, let me know your Friday Faves and feel free to let me know your Good Week, Bad Week’s in the comments below as well.

Lex

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