#GreatCitySwap - A Trip To Glasgow

Hello!

I love Edinburgh, this my friends is quite an obvious fact. I grew up in West Lothian but spent many a weekend hanging out in the capital, mainly on Cockburn Street 'cause you know 'goth life'. I always felt a connection with the city and made the move when I was 18 and I've never looked back (well I did briefly move back home but it wasn't for long.) 

Edinburgh is a truly wonderful city and I couldn't imagine living anywhere else but sometimes seeing the same sights every day can get a little, dare I say, boring. 

As much as I would love to jet off on holiday by bank balance says "hahahahah no" but that doesn't mean I have to stay planted where I am especially when you can pop on a train and be transported to another equally fantastic Scottish city.

Getting In The Halloween Spirit With Fort Kinnaird

Hello!

I love shopping, eating and watching films. Bring them all together and you basically get the most perfect day ever. That is exactly what I did one very windy Sunday!

Especially with Halloween just around the corner, this was the perfect time to have a spooky themed day out with my wee mother (who is also a fan of this time of the year). 

An Evening With A Couple Of Photos

Hello!

If you check out my Instagram account you will see that I love a good selfie. It is very easy to shout about how vain my generation are due to our love of taking pictures of ourselves but is that a bad thing? We are told time and time again to "love ourselves" but as soon as you even show a hint of that you are ridiculed. 

The art of the selfie isn't even a new thing. Yes, sites like Instagram and most of us owning a smart phone with a camera means that it is easier than ever to take and share one but self portraits go as far back as 1839. 

Of course, this post isn't actually about my amazing (debatable) selfie skills but the wonderful work of A Couple Of Photos and my amazing portrait photoshoot with them. 

OOTD: Tattoos, Blue Jeans & Moving Forward

Hello!

In the words of the great Ronan Keating - "life is rollercoaster, just gotta ride it" and by god, my life has been quite an interesting ride recently.

Before I go into the heavy stuff, for old time's sake have let's kick this post off with a good old fashioned OOTD!

The Forth Bridge, Steampunks and World Heritage Day

Hello!

If you read my last blog post or follow me on social media, then you will know all about World Heritage Day and the historical and fun adventure I was going on to visit The Forth Bridge. 

The amazing team behind Dig It! 2017 planned an amazing array of events to celebrate this special day. These events as well as showing the amazing Heritage sites we have here in Scotland also provided a great chance to learn something new and just have some fun! 

As well as going to their Victorian Steampunk event, the Dig It! team sent me to South Queensferry ahead of the party to experience the famous Forth Bridge for myself. 

Celebrating World Heritage Day with Dig It! 2017

Hello!

On April 18th 2017 I will be celebrating World Heritage Day with the Dig It! 2017 team. What is World Heritage Day you ask? Since this is Scotland's Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology, we will be celebrating six iconic World Heritage Sites with an amazing array of events which have all been coordinated by Dig It 2017.

This lucky red headed blogger will be attending one of those events and it is a good one. 

What Does Depression Look Like?

Hello!

How many times have you read an article about depression and seen a photo of someone, normally a woman, with their head in their hands. Sometimes they are sitting in bed, sometimes the photo is moody black and white. 

It is like the go to "depressed" look but why? Don't get me wrong I have spent many a time sitting in my bed with mascara all down my face but there is much more to it than that. 

You see depression doesn't really have a "look". Yes, depression can have an impact on your physical appearance but it is different for every person.

If We Were Having Coffee...

Hello!

I've been seeing this type of post popping a lot recently and quite frankly I love it. It's a nice little twist on the whole about me kinda thing. Something which I am terrible at, as you can see by my own informative about me section. 

My wonderful friend and straight up amazing human being, Lucie, tagged me in her post - which you should read right now. It is a lot more interesting than mine is going to be. Trust me. 

So, get ready to hear some snippets of some of the rubbish I would tell you if we went for a cup of coffee. For the record, I will have flat white, even if my camera roll on my phone says I love cappuccinos (they are so damn pretty to be fair.) 

Am I Having a Mid-Twenties Crisis?

Hello

I've been doing a lot of thinking recently. Not that this is something new for me seeing as my mind is a constant buzz of thoughts, good and bad. Most recently I have found myself questioning everything around me and reflecting on my life so far. 

Now let me begin with saying that turning 26 is hardly 'old'. Let's be honest here, what is 'old' anyway? However, something about leaving my early twenties behind has had an odd effect on me. Am I having a mid-twenties crisis? Is that even a thing? 

Mental Health - Fighting Back

Hello old friend, it's been a while. 

Yes, my blog has been a little abandoned recently. For several reasons but the main big one was down to my mental health. I haven't been doing too well if I am going to be straight up honest. 

We all know how rubbish 2016 was. It seemed like so many of us struggled last year. All for different reasons and all incredibly valid. I've bitched and moaned about last year a lot, it kicked me down, chewed me up and spat me right back out. 

A Trip To Gullane & The Golf Inn

Hello!

It’s not often that I ever get away from central Edinburgh. I don’t drive, my passport has expired and what can I say, I just love the city life.

However, sometimes getting away for some peace and quiet is a good thing especially when it is not something you get to do often.

So, when I was offered the opportunity to visit The Golf Inn* to review their restaurant and stay over night, I jumped at the chance. A little night away is just wanted I needed!

Body Confidence & Boudoir Photography

Hello!

I've talked about body confidence before and my general struggles with it. As much as I am all about everyone loving themselves, it really can be easier said than done. 

Over the last few years I've found my attitude towards my own self yo-yoing all over the place. One minute I am putting out a blog post talking about loving my 'touching thighs', the next minute I am looking at myself in the mirror and hating everything I see. 

In a world where social media is king and everyone wants to show the best version of themselves, that mindset of comparing yourself can creep in. 

To try tackle my body confidence woes, I participated in a boudoir photo shoot with the incredibly talented Yemi King. Yes you read that right.... boudoir. 

OOTD: Life Update

Hello

So you may have noticed that I have't been the most active blogger recently. August basically turned into a write off. There are many reasons for this, some bad and some good. 

I still loving blogging, I really do but sometimes I have to take some time away from it all. Luckily my blog is just a hobby for me and I can easily do that. That doesn't stop me from feeling guilty or useless though...

Fighting My Fears At GoApe

Hello!

So first things first, I am terrified of heights. I can't even walk up Arthur's Seat without having a slight moment of complete panic. 

In a way I am more afraid of falling than of heights. I can pin point the moment that this fear kicked in for me. During a school camping trip, we got to do rock climbing and abseiling. I loved the rock climbing so much but when it came to the abseiling, well things went wrong.

I managed to slip slightly, swung back and smashed myself off the side of the big rock I was going down from. Fear and panic kicked in immediately and I needed to be pulled back up again. Since then I have just avoided doing anything that involves heights.

So when I was asked to visit GoApe*, I was in conflicted...

Frankly Vlogs: A Walk Along The Water Of Leith

Hello!

So I decided to give something new a try. This was something I always fancied doing but quite honestly didn't have the guts to do. In fact I am still not sure how confident I feel about it but I have finally entered the world of YouTube. 

After seeing so many of my lovely friends taking up vlogging, I thought it was about time that I joined them!

#DuvetDining with TK Maxx

Hello!

I love eating in bed. Like I love it way more than I actually should. Some days you just feel lazy and the thought of sitting at table seems like way too much effort. Even if you don't admit to enjoying it, you can't beat the feeling of sitting in bed with a bowl of food and Netflix playing in the background. 

When you go out dinner you alas have to sit at a table. How boring right? Imagine getting to eat an amazing unique seven course meal in a massive blanket fort? Sounds incredible right? 

Glasses Love With Specsavers

Hello!

I am a glasses wearer. You may not realise this since I actually very rarely wear them but trust me, I need them. 

Around 15 years old I found my eyes were starting to fail me. I couldn't see people's faces or read the chalk board at School. Though I did not feel dread about this but rather excitement. I wanted glasses so badly. 

Somehow in the last 10 years, my love for wearing specs started to wane. I just didn't feel my best in them. I looked at other glasses wearers with envy, how do they look so cool but yet I look like a massive dork? 

Seeing as I hadn't bought a new pair in almost 5 years, I needed a refresh and Specsavers* were on hand to help me out!

Flamingosaurus Rex Launch Night

Hello!

If you follow me on social media, you will probably be aware of Flamingosaurus Rex by now. As well as being the shop of one of best friends, I also recently did a phootshoot for one of their designers. 

On Friday 13th May, Flamingosaurus Rex had its launch party and what a night it was!

Frankly Ms Shankly's 100th Post

Hello!

Well, I can hardly believe this is my 100th blog post on Frankly Ms Shankly. It is kind of crazy to think that I've managed or at least attempted to write 100 posts. From someone who just stuck back and read other people's blogs this is an amazing feeling.

After starting my blog over 2 years ago I have been on quite a journey. In many ways my whole life has changed since my first ever post. Some of the changes haven't been great but overall, I have been able to experience amazing things and meet incredible people and a lot of that is down to starting this blog.

Mental Health Is Not A Fashion Statement

Hello

So this is going to be quite a rant of a post. Fighting the stigma of mental health is something that is very important to me and close to my heart. 

I have previously spoke about this subject in a post from 2014 and I really thought by now companies would stop using mental health illnesses as a fashion statement. Alas even though it is 2016, we are still seeing companies act like illnesses like anxiety or depression are something to poke fun at or make 'quirky'.

This post may come across a little ranty/scatter brain. Apologies in advance.