DeelyBopper

I feel like I need to write this down. It's not a post for anyone in particular and I really couldn't care less if nobody reads it, It won’t flow properly & is likely to be all over the place but I think I will feel better if I get my thoughts and feelings out. I'll start with the facts.

On November 5th, 2016, one of the flats in my apartment block caught fire (I know, great timing). We live on the 3rd floor of a block that has around 45 flats over 6 floors. The block is part of a larger ‘estate’ of 5 or so blocks. The flat that caught fire was on the floor below ours, and two to the right as you look at them from outside.

It was around midday, we had just finished our lunch and I heard a racket outside. It sounded like someone was chucking stuff off of their balcony. I had a look out of the balcony window but couldn’t see anything. About 5 minutes later I heard a lot of yelling outside. Again, I looked, and this time opened the balcony doors to get a better look. I could see a lot of smoke and people in the opposite flats yelling ‘get out get out’ at some people in a different flat in my block (I presume they were on their balcony also investigating the noise).

All I remember from the next few moments is calmly turning to El and saying ‘I think we need to leave.’ I grabbed my handbag, shoved the nearest things I could see in it (my laptop with 10% charge, how useful), put my coat/shoes on and started closing all the doors in the flat. As soon as we left out flat and got in to the corridor it was clear this was a really serious fire. Our corridor was smoky and the smell was awful. I think looking back if we were more perceptive we probably could have smelled it from our flat if we had been aware before.

We started making our way through the corridor and down the stairs. As soon as we hit the stairs it was so smoky you could hardly see or breathe. We encountered a man from a neighbouring block who was running and knocking on all the doors trying to get people out. The fire brigade were already in the building and working on putting out the fire on the 2nd floor. We were then found and escorted out by a member of the fire service.

As soon as we were outside it became apparent to us that there were no alarms going off anywhere. It didn’t even register with me before then but it was awful to think that some people could still be in there because there was no way of knowing about the fire if you hadn’t been told about it.

Most of the residents were out of the block safely but one couple on the top floor were stranded on their balcony. Another woman on the ground floor was hoovering and didn’t hear the banging on her window for several minutes. We all stood and watched as debris came flying from the building. It turns out that the crashing noise I heard earlier that afternoon was the bedroom window of the flat where the fire started, exploding from the heat. A resident in a nearby block managed to take a picture exactly as it happened. it's scary to think that we were in the building at the time that it was taken. You can even see our balcony in the picture.

Me, El and some other residents took shelter in a nearby block as we watched the fire brigade start the long process of putting out the fire. It took around 9 hours. The fire ended up ravaging the entire 2nd floor and half of the third and fourth floors. The fifth and sixth floors were badly affected by smoke and water damage from the fire service putting out the fire. Thankfully our flat looked to be undamaged.

After the fire was out, we were told that we were going to have to spend a couple of nights in a hotel while they sorted it out. We were allowed back in to the flat for fifteen minutes to collect a few belongings and then found the nearest travelodge. And so began our two weeks of living in various budget hotels in Leeds city centre (what a hoot...not)

We were called to a meeting later that week held by the management company and were informed that the recovery process would take a lot longer than originally anticipated. The building was declared uninhabitable and all leasehold agreements were to be suspended and all tenancy agreements were terminated. It was estimated that the recovery process would take between 6 and 12 months (the original estimate was 2 weeks). We were told that (effective immediately) we would not be compensated any further for hotel stays, none of the expenses for food over the past two weeks would be compensated at all(????) and to find suitable alternative accommodation (i.e. A short term lease on a flat) immediately. We managed to find a place, it's actually across the river from our actual flat. It's small, a lot less nice than our flat but at least it was something more permanent than a hotel room.

And this is where we have been for the past 8 months. It's been hard, there's been times where I've cried myself to sleep because of near on panic attacks over what ifs. It's been a huge financial anxiety also. I am so grateful to our families who helped us in the first few weeks when we were spending money out of our ears on hotels and food and bastard estate agents fees. On top of it all I had an exam a couple of weeks after the incident that my job more or less depended on. I was a total wreck in the first few weeks. I'm fine now as the end is in sight, we have been told that we will be able to move back in at the beginning of August (9 months later).

The horrible thing is this should never had happened. The building was constructed with a compartmentation system and thus the fire procedure operates under the 'stay put' policy. It relies on the use of fire doors to compartmentalise a fire so that if one was to break out in a flat, it would take an hour before it hit a corridor, and then another hour until it hit the next corridor along etc etc. It essentially means that under a normal course of events, it would not be necessary for the entire block of flats to evacuate if a fire broke out in a flat as it would be contained enough that the fire brigade would reach it and put it out way before it reached any other flats/corridors. This also (by their standard) negates the need for audible alarms.

However, this system clearly failed, as the fire broke out and within 40 minutes managed to cause a massive amount of damage. And due to this failure but without a backup system (e.g. audible alarms), this meant that we were still in the building when the fire was one corridor away. The firemen said that another 20 minutes and we would have been trapped in our flat and could have been seriously injured if only by smoke. This is a picture that one of the firemen took of the corridor next to ours.

Now obviously we got out fine and we are grateful for that. However, think if this happened at night time, when people were not around to see and warn all of the residents? The only reason we got out when we did was down to other residents in other blocks noticing the fire. If they had been asleep, we could have been seriously injured from smoke inhalation at the very least.

During the recovery process , the management company have been completely unrelenting in their blame throwing. They blame the residents for not complying with fire procedures which allowed them to fail. This is not the fault of the residents as a whole. It was not my fault that someone else didn’t comply with the fire procedure and yet I am still paying for the mistake 8 months later. It is not acceptable to ask everyone to trust 44(or more) other people who they may never have met with their own personal safety. I should feel safe knowing that if I comply with procedures, that i will be safe.

Also, since purchasing the property in 2015, I have never (until now) seen a notice of the fire procedure. This is also unacceptable. The residents did not have any idea of the correct procedure to follow. The fact that the building did not have audible alarms was very scary, as the alarms were visible but not making any noise, leading to many residents believing that they were not working. This lead to people risking their lives to knock on doors to try and get everyone out. When the residents enquired about installing audible alarms during the reconstruction process, we were told that we ‘would be paying for it!” (through an increase to our already expensive annual service charge).

The entire process has been very stressful and has made a real impact on my mental health. I can’t wait to move back in because that is my home. But I can’t wait to move out of it eventually either.

LouiseLIVE 2016: My Experience & Review!

August 21, 2016

On Friday (19th August), I went to see Louise Pentland (Sprinkle of Glitter) perform her live show LouiseLIVE in Leeds!

If you've read my blog post on the lace dress from her clothing line with SimplyBe (link), you'll know I'm a huge fan of Louise! I've been lucky enough to meet her a total of six (!!) times now, and every time she's been absolutely lovely!

I managed to get a VIP ticket for her show, which cost around £40. For that price, you get the opportunity to meet Louise before the show, where you can have a chat, take pictures and she will also sign things if you bring them. VIPs also get a gift, at last year's show it was a signed poster, this year we also got one of those and a super cute tote bag! You also get seats at the front of the theatre.

Meeting Louise was lovely as usual, we had a little chat (about cats, duh), she signed my copy of her brand new 2017 diary, and of course we took some selfies! After meeting her, I was given an envelope, and in it was a hand written note (on very nice stationery may I add... paper had a good weight) inviting me on stage during the show!

Now on to the show itself. It was clear as soon as you saw the stage that so much time had gone in to making the show. I loved the set up, very professional looking and clearly improved on from last year. (not that there was anything wrong with last year's set up) The back drop was like the background of one of Louise's videos - her bed, complete with cushions, fairy lights and even Zula the cat! Before Louise came on a video was played which was a compilation of lots of Louise's videos which I really enjoyed.

I won't give too much away on the details of the show as the show is being recorded to be released on DVD this October, so I don't want to ruin the surprise. But I can say it was hilarious! If you've ever watched Louise's videos (her vlog channel especially), you'll know she's a very funny woman. There's something about the way she tells stories that has the audience in stitches. Last year's show had a lot of different elements, which were all great, but it was clear that this time round the show was primarily a 'comedy show', which I think worked really well and went down wonderfully with the audience. I especially liked the impromptu banter with certain members of the audience, especially the 'drunk' mum on the front row!

The second half of the show allowed for a degree of audience participation, it turns out there were three of us that were handed envelopes inviting us on stage at some point prior to the show. We had to go on stage and tell our most embarrassing story, and Louise would 'roast' us while we told it! It was so nerve-wracking going on stage in front of hundreds of people. I think I did okay but my leg wouldn't stop shaking the entire time! I told my story about the time I told Tyler Oakley 'I shit myself too' (don't ask), the girl next to me told a story of how she once got in to the wrong car in a supermarket car park, and the boy on the end told about how he once accidentally murdered a guinea pig(!!!) #richardtherodentkiller.

credit: @rebeccah2003 on twitter

Also in the second half, Louise did her talk on body confidence. I'd seen her do this segment twice before, once in her first Northampton show and also last year in Manchester, but it still got me a bit teary eyed. I think its a really important part of the show and I'm so glad she kept it in this year. I'm looking forward for the DVD particularly for this segment as I feel its such a great message she puts across and I think the message reaching more people would be great.

Towards the end of the show, Louise did a segment on her tales from Suburbia. Honestly this was my favourite part of the show, it had me nearly weeing with laughter! I can't wait to watch it again on DVD. The show ended with two giant glitter cannons going off, which was fab. I want glitter cannons to announce my presence every time I enter a room haha.

Overall I thought the show was brilliant, as I said at the start of this (very long) post, it was clear that a lot of work was done to make the show as slick and professional as possible. They even had a snapchat filter! I also appreciated that she had made the show slightly more adult in nature, so I definitely didn't feel like I was too old to be there (at the ripe old age of 22!!!). I really really hope this becomes an annual project for Louise, I definitely think she could tour it further or with bigger venues next year.

If you have the opportunity to do so, I would recommend going to see her show. You can still get tickets to Birmingham and London on Ticketmaster I believe. Either that or get the DVD! You won't regret it. You can pre-order the dvd here.

Finally I'd just like to thank Louise, if you happen to read this, for being so lovely yet again when meeting me and inviting me on stage. It really made my day and I will remember it forever. I hope the rest of the tour goes well & hope to see you again soon!

Lucy

Lush Life

May 01, 2016

Cute Cacti: Sighh Designs Phone Case Review

April 20, 2016

Hello again!

Today I'm going to be talking about the newest love in my life; my new phone case. I've had my iPhone 5S for going on 2 and a half years now, and in all that time I've had the same phone case on it. It's done an excellent job of keeping my phone from being covered in scratches, but after so long it was looking a little worse for wear, so I decided that a new phone case was in order.

I've been a fan of Polly and her shop Sighh Designs for quite a while now; when I was first looking for a case for my iPhone when I first got it, I nearly picked one of her cases at the time. The only thing that stopped me was that I was given my actual case as a gift before I had a chance to order one! So, I knew that now I'd finally decided to get a new case, Sighh would be my first stop in my search.

When I came across the Lil' Cacti Case on the website, I knew I had to have it. I mean, look how cute it is!! I love cacti (mostly because they are just about the only plant I can keep alive!) and I thought this was such an original design - I love the cartoon-y style of it. I also love the fact that it's white, due to the fact that I have a white iPhone. I like the way you can't really tell the camera hole is there as it blends nicely with my phone.

I ordered the slimline version, which was £14. I think this is a very reasonable price for what it is. The case is quite a bit thinner than what I'm used to, but thats actually quite nice. It offers less protection than my last phone case, so I'm going to have to be a bit more careful with my phone. They do sell a premium, more sturdy version for £18 which, in hindsight, I probably should have picked, seeing as I'm a serial phone dropper. But eh, I can always order another one! I think now I've finally bought a new phone case after 2 and a half years, I'm going to start buying more and swapping between them regularly. I like how I feel like I'm using a new phone and all I've done is change the phone case!

I'm in love with quite a few of the designs - I also had my eye on the Veggies Case, so I may order that in premium in a couple of weeks, along with a few other bits and bobs from the site (I love the tote bags and macbook skins!).

Overall, I'm very pleased with my purchase and will definitely order from Sighh again! The ordering process was quick and easy (all through paypal) and the delivery took around 5 days. I've been getting comments all week from people saying how much they like my new case so it's a definite hit!

If you're interested in Sighh then you can find the website here, I'd also recommend you follow Sighh on twitter, as they sometimes announce flash sales on there for money off your order (I bought mine on a 20% off flash sale) and run competitions!

Lucy xx

For The Love Of Lace: Sprinkle of Glitter for Simply Be

April 17, 2016

Anyone who knows me, knows I love Sprinkle of Glitter. I've been a fan of Louise's since she first announced she was pregnant with her daughter, Darcy (who's now five!!), so quite a while now! I've also been lucky enough to have met her a fair few times, and every time I've seen her she's been absolutely lovely (just like in her videos!).

Sprinkle of Glitter Simply Be Lace Dress DeelyBopper

When Louise announced her clothing collection with Simply Be last year, I couldn't have been more excited. I love her style, I think her dress sense is so wonderfully girly but yet mature at the same time. When her first collection launched, I bought a fair few pieces from it, and love them all. When she announced her second collection this spring, again, there were a few pieces that caught my eye, but one stood out to me - the lace dress. Unfortunately, I couldn't afford to be spending £75 on a dress, no matter how nice, so told myself I would save up for it.

Luckily for me though, Simply Be ran a competition last week on their twitter account where five people would win whatever item they wanted from Louise's collection. And would you believe it, I was one of the winners! I was over the moon to have won, because now I have that beautiful lace dress in my possession free of charge!

I absolutely love this dress. I love how weighty it is - you can tell that it's a pricey dress as soon as you pick it up. It's a lovely thick material, and looks to be very well made. The thickness helps the dress skim over all my problem areas and hold it's flared shape on the skirt. The pleats are a lovely addition too, for the same reasons. I found that it ends just at my knee, and I am 5'8". I'd definitely feel okay to go leggings/tights free in this dress, although I wore leggings in the photos as Leeds was really chilly this weekend! I love the sleeve length, I find it really flattering on my arms. Another feature that shouldn't be overlooked is that it has pockets!! I think this was the feature that excited me the most, haha.

In terms of fit, I sized up from my usual size as I am conscious that my boobs and buttons usually don't mix well! It fits well across the bust, with minimal boob-gapeage, and I found it comfortable on my arms and waist, not tight at all. To be honest I think I would have been ok with my usual size if not for the boob issue!

Sprinkle of Glitter Simply Be Lace Dress

I just really love how I look in this dress, and to be honest I don't really say that often. I never normally feel 'good' in clothing, and can always find something I don't like when I look in the mirror. But I can honestly say with this dress that I love everything about how I look in it! I can't wait for a nice spring evening when I can wear this out and about to it's full potential with full confidence.

If you're interested, you can buy the lace dress here, and see the rest of the collection here.

Lucy xx

Introductions

April 16, 2016

Hiya!

Thank you for stumbling across my first post on my brand new blog! As you can probably tell from my sidebar, my name's Lucy, I'm 21 years old and a (not so) recent psychology graduate.

When I started university, I knew next to nothing about blogs. I used to read a few here and there but I wasn't as obsessed with bloggers as I am now! Over the past three years, I spent a lot of time (probably too much if we're being honest) reading blogs and I thought that now all my 'studying' (read: partying) has stopped, this is a good a time as any to start my own!

My favourite blogs to read are those about plus size fashion and beauty - so I can probably tell you now that they are what I will write about most! Although I'm sure you can expect a fair few 'lifestyle' posts as well. I also love reading interior design blogs, and I moved in to a little flat in Leeds with my boyfriend last summer and we are in the process of making it our own. I'm rather enjoying the challenge, so I'm also looking forward to sharing with you some of the little corners of our flat.

As this is my first post, I thought I'd let you know a few things about me.

Firstly, I'm a massive music lover. I love everything from hip hop to hard rock, I have no real preference in that regard. I also love going to see live music - one of the main attractions of Leeds to me was that the gig scene is so good here!

Secondly, I love singing. It's one of my absolute favourite things to do, I find sitting down at my keyboard and just singing along to whatever chords I'm playing the most relaxing thing ever. I have a few covers of songs uploaded to SoundCloud, though they're currently private. Maybe if I get brave enough I'll post them here for you! At university I was a member of a few choirs, and I would love to join one in Leeds, so I'll keep you posted on that!

One of my other interests is photography (hence the photo up at the top), though that's been on the back burner recently. I'm hoping that blogging will inspire me to go out with my camera and take some nice shots! If you want, you can check out my Flickr, where I've posted some of my favourite photos that I've taken.

I think like any person in their twenties, I'm a self confessed netflix addict! At the minute, I'm watching Prison Break, The Walking Dead and House. Anyone else watch loads of TV shows at once? Haha.

Finally, I have to talk about my love for Harry Potter. Honestly, I'm a bit nuts on it, to the extent that I once got a whole article written about me in a national newspaper because of a poem I wrote about Harry Potter when I was 8 (maybe if there's interest I'll post the poem, it’s a CORKER). It was for a competition to meet JK Rowling at midnight on the day that Order of the Phoenix went on sale. I didn’t win, but I was one of the runner’s up so I got a box set of the first 4 books and 50 pound’s worth of WH Smith vouchers! I've got tickets to see The Cursed Child in August, and you'd better believe I'm counting down the days!

I hope you enjoyed getting to know me a bit better and I hope you'll stick around for future blog posts. If you fancy a chat, I'm on Twitter every day, and you can also follow me on Instagram if you want! I'm also on Bloglovin', if you want to follow my blog on there.

See you soon,

Lucy xx

A Crafty Christmas

The Fire

LouiseLIVE 2016: My Experience & Review!

Lush Life

Cute Cacti: Sighh Designs Phone Case Review

For The Love Of Lace: Sprinkle of Glitter for Simply Be

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