Zoella

So today I'm back to talk to you about one of my all time favourite Youtubers- the gorgeous Zoe Sugg, or Zoella. Youtubers have taken over the internet over the last couple of years, especially British Youtubers- and Zoella is in the midst of it all. For those of you that don't know her, she has a blog and a Youtube channel with over 4.5 million subscribers, in which she uploads beauty, haul and lifestyle videos every week. Her ever-growing audience spread their obsessions through Tumblr, Twitter and go crazy over her vlogs that she posts on her

side channel, MoreZoella.

I discovered the lovely Zoe at around September 2012- by watching one of her Primark hauls, and noting how incredibly pretty she is. She was then just an ordinary Youtuber, with nearly 1 million subscribers- however now, she gets the opportunity to be on the cover of Company magazine, travel to Dubai, Italy and the US, recieve amazing free stuff (everything from clothes to expensive makeup, not to mention all the presents her viewers send her), she is living the dream of an Internet superstar- something that none of us thought possible.

Let's be real- one of everyone's favourite things about Zoella is undoubedly her gorgeous, ombre, thick, long locks. Zoe is tiny in size, so her extraordinary long hair makes her even more flawless. 

Even though we love watching her show us what she's recently bought, or listen to her ramble about makeup whilst looking fragile and pretty in front of an expensive Canon and studio lights, when we get a sneek peek at her life through vlogs, blog posts or rumours, that's when it gets even more interesting. The British Youtubers tend to stick together, which boosts their popularity and keeps their videos and collabs hilarious and more personal. After months of er fans 'shipping' Zalfie- herself and fellow Youtuber Alfie Deyes- Zoe published a blog post verifying that they were together. 

Zoe does live a luxurious lifestyle, attending red carpet events and movie premieres every now and again. She has won a series of awards, including a Teen Choice Award. 

  

Working with DailyMix, the channel on Youtube that brings all Youtubers together, she has met One Direction (several times!), flew to Dubai and met Fearne Cotton, Alexandra Burke and many other celebrities.

Personally, I love Zoe to bits- she's charasmatic, bubbly and absolutely lovely. Her videos are always gorgeously made, filmed and edited, and I definitely hope she won't chop her hair off any soon! She's been a huge inspiration for me to start this blog, because it all began for her when she started a blog.

Thank you for reading!
My Twitter- @gabysayshey


Gaby x 

'Average' - Body Image Pt 3

This is definitely something I've wanted to write about for a while- and it really, really has to be said, coming from a teenage girl, going through the time of life where appearance matters more than anything else. Ever since this came into the media, people have either loved or hated it, and just like always, this is my own opinion, and I'm not trying to force it on anybody. Fetch a cup of tea and a cookie- cos I won't shut up for ages, haha.


This is a Barbie doll. One way or another, us girls would have had a good few of these when we were young girls- to brush their waist-length natural blond hair, to stuff their little tiny hands into new pretty tight outfits, to guide them around our bedrooms that became their hottest shopping spots, to admire their undoubtedly beautiful faces, perfect makeup. I'm not going to lie, when I was in playschool, me and my friends would pretend we were Barbie dolls- we had Barbie diaries, Barbie watches, Barbie stationary, we would read Barbie magazine and wear pink clothes to death. Admittedly, we did want to be Barbies- but for crying out loud, we were 6 years old. I even had a 'Barbie' outfit- this consisted entirely of pink, and whenever I wore it I felt confident and pretty. Even today, wearing dresses and high heels gives me that very same feeling, but Barbie means not much to me now. I was a child, and I grew out of this phase, just like everyone else does at some stage.



This is a Lammily doll. This is rumoured to be the 'new' Barbie, and took the media by storm when the idea was first introduced. She is supposed to be the 'good' influence on young girls that play with this doll- she is based on the average height, weight, hair length+colour, and average shoe size of an American woman. She has a supposedly 'healthy' lifestyle, where she goes to work dressed professionally, keeps fit and loves animals. She wears minimal makeup and looks natural, dresses casually.





The Lammily doll was created using 'standard human body proportions', to avoid the increase of eating disorders and other body image related problems in tween to teenage girls. The Lammily slogan is 'Average is Beautiful', all in aid of making normal sized girls feel normal, they way they should. The Lammily doll is supposed to be their icon, the doll that revolutionizes the way girls think about their bodies.

Above are images of the ordinary Barbie and the Lammily doll, side by side. The Barbie doll is much more prettier than Lammily, undoubtedly- thin, fragile, tall body shape, long thick blond hair, beautifully made up face. Barbie has a sense of fashion and style, right from her minature shoes to the tailoring on her clothes, even to the colour of her tiny nails. Lammily, however, is much more curvier than Barbie, her clothes are simple, basic- her curves are much more clear, she has large feet, makeupless face and shoulder length brown hair.

Firstly, I 100% understand where the concept of the Lammily doll has come from. It makes perfect sence to me why it would be put in production, but I think the marketing scheme has been handled terribly. The Lammily doll is not the 'new' Barbie- it is simply a new doll put on the market, with a new idea and lots of talk about it. It has nothing whatsoever to do with Barbie. Why not have a go at Bratz dolls then too? Their heads are larger, they are shorter, wear more makeup and are more into fashion than Barbie is- surely they're the partying, hardcore versions of Barbie, the ones we should be having a go at for being unrealistic. 

When the Lammily doll does come into production, no one is going to buy this doll. Regardless of the kind-hearted concept behind this doll, no 5 year old girl is going to stroll into Smyths, drool through shelves of pristine, perfect, pretty Barbies and Bratz dolls and whatever else and choose the Lammily doll. 'Simplicity is Beauty' - that may be the case, if you're Cara Delevingne. The Lammily doll isn't attractive- she isn't pretty, her clothes are not in fashion, she is chubby and short and does not compare to the gorgeousness of Barbie. Regardless of the marketing plots behing Lammily, a child would never be happy with this doll. When I was 6, I was superficial- just like everybody else my age. It wasn't substance for me, it was purely style. If it looked good, had some pink, it did the job- and Lammily is the opposite of that. In comparison to Barbie, she looses in every category.

However, the slogan annoys me so much. 'Average is Beautiful' - fair enough, but is that to say that if I'm over or under a certain 'average' height, shape or size, that Ii'm not normal? What even is average in today's society? There is no normal, and there never was and never will be! Thanks to body modifications, plastic surgery, and even clothes, people wear whatever they wear. And to excuse my language, I don't really give two craps whether my body or what I look like is average or not. Average is not beautiful- believing in yourself, achieving goals, having confidence and expressing yourself through clothing or by other means is beautiful.

Barbie is a doll, a fantasy, a figment of someone else's imagination. She was created to be admired, to be called pretty, to look delicate as she sat poised on your shelf, not be striven to be. She is the perfect unrealistic version of a girl, created to be admired and looked at, not held as an icon, not idolised. If girls wanted to look like a Barbie doll, peroxide would never last for more than 2 minutes on a shop shelf. The Lammily doll sets the law for what is average and normal- and if we stick to what is average and normal, then creativity, self expression and other means of art will never thrive.

Remember this is only my own opinion :)

Thanks for reading!
My Twitter- @gabysayshey



Gaby x

Body Image - Feeling 'Fat'

A good few months ago I wrote a blog post about Body Image, which was actually one of my first blog posts. I always felt that body image, body weight and looking 'good' is a touchy topic, especially when it comes to weight- especially when it comes to being thin.

I started this blog because I felt I had a lot of knowledge in regards to all things beauty and fashion- especially makeup, which products to use and which to not, my small hauls and the things I wear, because they're topics I'm passionate about. Obviously, I'm only 15 years old so I haven't been educated on any of these things, but I am interested in them and I do follow fashion trends.

There is things people can and can't wear, if they want to look good in it, stat. It applies to everyone- not everyone will look amazing in a bodycon dress and not everyone will look amazing in a skater dress, but that's just the way it is. It is life, for crying out loud- not everyone is A+ in a particular subject, and not everyone can run the fastest- it's the exact same with clothes.

Unfortunately, the minute something doesn't look good on someone, they burst out with the only conclusion that seems reasonable to them- 'I'm fat.' This is madness, oh my goodness- short shorts can't suit everyone, it doesn't matter what the scales say- your weight is irrelevant. People are different, their body shapes are different- and just because a leather skirt looks good on you, doesn't mean it will look good on me. Just because wedges look good on Mary down the street, doesn't mean they will look good on her friend who is the exact same weight.

There are body shapes, and magazines refer them to things like 'Apple, Carrot, Pear' and if you want to categorize yourself under those categories, it is completely fine. Reality is, that 'Pears' will not look as good with some clothes on as 'Carrots' do, and that's completely fine too. Some items of clothing don't suit some body types- for example, being tall and thin, with a dress that doesn't have a cinched-in waist, the dress will look like it's hanging off a hanger when I put it on. 

Being a girl that complaints about her weight, every now and again- because it is too low, keep it in mind- I'm addressing this too all girls that consider themselves 'fat'. If you feel you are overweight, then do something about it- eat a balanced, healthy diet, go to the gym more often- but hearing you complain bitterly about your weight and how 'fat' you look when wearing a tight dress is exhausting. Some shops make mistakes of catering clothes that will suit thin girls only, and that's a mistake too. Shop around and look for clothes that you love and feel confident and beautiful in- embrace your body type, and show as much flesh as you want to, as long as you're not giving out about your weight. Be realistic about things that suit you and things that don't - even though a lot of people tell me I have a so-called 'perfect' body type, there is still types of clothes I would never wear.

Remember, confidence shines through- and just because you feel you look overweight in a certain top, doesn't mean you actually are- and most of the girls that say they're 'fat', most of the time aren't. Your confidence is the most important thing, so wear whatever makes you happy- looks aren't everything- and that's coming from a fashion and beauty blogger :)


Thanks for reading!
My Twitter- @gabysayshey

Gaby x