fun – est. wander

Day Trip | Visiting Kew Gardens

Hello Wanderers!

For my birthday this year I wanted to spend some time exploring the outdoors and what better way than to go to Kew Gardens outside of London? In April and until the end of October, the Kew Gardens is showcasing Dale Chihuly’s work called, Chihuly: Reflections on Nature. Here are all stops we made while at the garden and some fun photos my husband and I took on our adventure day.

Getting There

When arriving, Victoria Gate is the most popular and easiest entrance to get to from the overground station. It is better if you purchase your tickets online before you go and there are some things that you need to pay for extra tickets such as walking up the Great Pagoda. Also, when you get into the gardens and you want to stop for a cup of coffee there a cafe right next to the entrance.

First Stop: The Great Pagoda

We bought tickets to climb the pagoda. It was only 4.50 per person. Going to the top floor and looking out to see the gardens from above was pretty cool!

Second Stop: Japanese Gateway

I was blown away by this zen garden. The blown glass balls were amazing and added more color to the nature around them. The cherry blossoms outlining the garden were beautiful! Also, there was a peacock roaming around! I would love to spend the day here reading a book.

Third Stop: Temperate House

The Temperate House was under construction for a few years and luckily it had just opened a few days before we arrived. It was amazing and the Chihuly art in the glasshouse were just as amazing. You can also go up the stairs and walk along the full circled balcony.

Forth Stop: Palm House

This was my favorite part of the gardens! The palm house was gigantic. As it was a chillier day and the inside the palm house was warm and pretty muggy as it is for palm trees, which was nice. It was so nice because the sun came out just as we were walking up to it and it stayed out for the rest of the day.

Fifth Stop: Waterlily House

I can’t picture this without the Chihuly art! The glass waterlilies in the pond was a stunning sight. I couldn’t take enough pictures.

Sixth Stop: Treetop Walkway

This was the number one spot I wanted to go to. There were quite a few stairs to go up to get to the top, but if you are not a stair kinda person luckily there is an elevator. It was windy and i’m not going to lie, you could feel the structure moving. It was so cool!

Seventh Stop: Princesses of Wales Conservatory

The architecture of this building was pretty incredible and so was the inside. It was made up of different temperatures and so different plants were in each zone. The main area was so green. I loved it.

Eighth Stop: The Hive

The hive was pretty cool. They recreated how a beehive is constructed, but when you walk on the inside they are playing classical music. It is so calming. It was a nice to end the day on that note.

Of course before we left we had to go to the gift shop and I bought a cute pot with a face on it. Here are more photos of our trip!

So that is my last post and now the week is over! .. or I guess it just started! Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the posts this week. Let me know if you have been to Kew Gardens and what your favorite part was?

Ciao! xx

October 7, 2019October 25, 2019 by nikkidiez13 Categories: TravelTags: advice, blog, blogger, favorites, fun, guide, kew gardens, lifestyle, london, photography, photos, tips, travel 9 Comments

Summer Beachside Playlist – Spotify

Hi Wanderers!

Hope you all are enjoying your summer and have collected some great memories already. Luckily, we still have a month and a half of summer left! I alway make a summer playlist on my Spotify and thought I would share with my readers. I have complied some classic summer songs and some amazing new releases.

Here are my Top 10 favorite songs in the playlist. Since its a long one, I suggest kicking back and just pressing shuffle. Enjoy!

Top 10:

Cabeza by Rawayana – #13
Honeybee by Unknown Mortal Orchestra – #16
Coming Out of the Darkness by Dr.Dog – #29
Brooklyn In The Summer by Aloe Blacc – #30
Petals by Bibio – #38
Move by Milo Greene – #55
Boomin’ In Your Jeep – #59
Simplify by Young the Giant – #74
DANCE by DNCE – #85 (saw Cole, the guitarist, on the street in London last week!)
Wide Awake by Grizfolk – #95

What is your favorite summer song? it is resent or a classic? Maybe I can add it to my playlist. Let me know 🙂

xx,

July 21, 2018October 1, 2019 by nikkidiez13 Categories: Daily LifeTags: beach, blog, blogger, fun, inspiration, life, lifestyle, love, music, new releases, playlist, spotify, summer, sun, top10 5 Comments

Visit to Mojacar, Spain

Hi Wanderers!

Hope you are enjoying your summer whether it is being filled with learning, lounging, or traveling! I just recently went to Spain with my mom and sister to finalized some wedding details along with doing some sea side house hunting.

Just thought I would share some information, favorite places, and pictures of the visit.

MADRID, SPAIN:

The amount of times I have been to Spain I am so surprised I have never been in May. Now that I have been, I think it is the best time to visit. In the beginning of May it is not too hot, it rains, and the flowers are in full bloom! There are so many wild flowers everywhere and it is beautiful. Other than taking in the beauty of the city my family and I went to the reception meal tasting, which was so delicious and filling, and to get alterations done to my wedding dress along with many other meetings with the photographer, DJ, and baker.

MOJACAR, SPAIN

What an amazing city! This is where we went to go summer house hunting. This mountain/ beach city is on the southeastern part of Spain. It took about 5 hours to drive here from Madrid. We stayed at a Hotel Best Mojacar, which was right off the beach close to the Golf Marina. It was so nice to finally be at the beach again and soaking up the sun after being in gloomy London for so long.

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Other than soaking up the sun, we had meetings with realtors to see houses in both the marina and old town Mojacar in the mountains. I would have to say the old town is my favorite. It has such an authentic vibe even with tourists walking around. The houses are all white and look out to the sea.

Here are some resaurants and spots I recommend in the area:

Ilario Imperial Pizzeria – great pizza!
Hola Ola – we watched the final Champions league Real Madrid game here and it was so fun and the food was amazing.
Dolce Vita – Best place for breakfast.
El Cid – If you want more of a fun / loud crowd this place, and around here, are the clubs and bars to hang later in the evening and into the morning if you are feeling up to it.
Plaza Nueva – This is such a beautiful spot. You have to go up the elevator to get the city center and to the look out point. It has the cutest shops and restaurants and don’t forget to just enjoy and wander the small streets.

That is all the places and things that stood out to me the most. Hope you enjoyed this post. Do you have a favorite Spanish city to visit?

xox,

July 8, 2018July 8, 2018 by nikkidiez13 Categories: TravelTags: beach, blog, blogger, family, fun, househunting, life, lifestyle, madrid, mojacar, photography, pictures, planning, spain, summer, travel, wedding 2 Comments

Review: Victoria Secret Fashion Show 2017

Hello Wanderers!

It is good to be back and I’m very happy to share this new post with you. As you know Victoria Secret puts on an annual show and is was one of the most seen fashion shows in the world. This post may be a bit late, but as I was surprised about the show this year so I just had to post. I have been watching each Victoria Secret Fashion Show religiously since 2008. It is the reason I wanted to get into the work I do now. Anyway, in my review I have put a few pros and cons as well as an overall rating. Enjoy!

REVIEW:

Rating 9/10

Sections: The different segments this year were on point. They were so different from past years. I know it can be difficult to think of something new and exciting after doing a show for so long, but it was great to finally see the freshness this year had. I especially loves the collaboration with BALMAIN opening the show.

Looks: The wings were better and bigger and heavier and I loved them! I felt they had been missing some grand wings in past years and I think they really out did themselves this year. Also the boots, shoes, and jewelry are always amazing and I love how they add to each look.

Musical Guests: All I have to say is FINALLY! The past few years they have lost the excitement of new and interesting musicians and not just having singers who are all in the top 5 of that year. I was so happy not knowing each musical artist on the list. Again, is was refreshing. Although I do miss the track music mixes and dancers it was a good step forward.

Production: Now I am no film producer, but I think there are two things that were missed from past shows. In the 2008 show, which is my favorite year, they had slow motion poses at the end of the runway. This was such a great way to really take in the look and the models end pose. Also, I don’t know if it was because they had to much film that it was hard to cut things out, but there were so many cuts and to much moving around that was taking away from the full effect of the show and seeing each look. Maybe I just wanted it to last longer. Other than that it was perfect and I love how they moved the show to Shanghai!

Overall: In my opinion this was the best show since 2008. I’m not sure if 2008 is my favorite because it was the first time I saw it or because I loved the music and runway set up so much. Probably both! Anyways I did really enjoy this years show. The models are always perfect and the backstage shots are always such a great add on to the fun happening on stage.

Please let me know if you are as obsessed as I am and if you saw it. What are your thoughts? Did you like this years show more or less than others? Also, comment your favorite look. Here’s mine!

I hope to blog more when I get home for Christmas next week and have a bit more time on my hands.

Thanks for reading.

xox,

-N

Note: These pictures are not owned by me. Found on British Vogue online.

December 10, 2017December 10, 2017 by nikkidiez13 Categories: Daily LifeTags: 2017, blog, blogger, china, fashion show, fun, gifs, international, life, lifestyle, pictures, reviews, shanghai, thoughts, tv, Victoria's Secret, vs, worldwide 6 Comments

Fall / Winter Playlist – Spotify

Hi Wanderers,

I don’t know what gets me more in the season changing mood… food or music. The thing I do know is that music has a lot to do with it. I recently went to the Hippo Campus concert in London and it was phenomenal. I was waiting 2 years to see them and I’m so happy I did! This has inspired me to post my playlist and top 15 songs of the playlist, one being a song by Hippo Campus, which is my favorite song at the moment. Enjoy!

Top 15 favorite songs:

Swingin’ With My Eyes Closed by Shania Twain – #4
Planets by Joseph – #22
Strange Attraction by Freemdom Fly – #25
Girls On Boys – Galantis, ROZES #39
Places We Won’t Walk – Bruno Major – #41
Best Part (feat. H.E.R.) by Daniel Caesar – #60
Neighbors by Grizzly Bears – #73
Younger Now – Miley Cyrus – #75
Fire by VHS Collection – #86
I Didn’t Know What Time it Was by Cécile McLorin Salvant – #92
Tomorrow Tomorrow – Babygirl – #98
Paint by SOL – #101
Marmalade by Macklemore, Lil Yachty – #115
Face Like Thunder by The Japanese House #123
Poems by Hippo Campus – #126

Let me know what your favorite song is at the moment!

Thanks for listening and most of all, reading.

xox,

– N

November 5, 2017 by nikkidiez13 Categories: Daily LifeTags: blog, blogger, concert, fall, fun, hippo campus, life, lifestyle, list, love, music, playlist, spotify, thoughts, top list, top15, wanderers 3 Comments

Urban Decay: Optical Illusion Review

Hi Wanderers!

Hope you are all ready for the cold weather and the holidays that come with it.

Since my last post I thought I would be posting more, but work has been super crazy so lately all my free time consists of sleeping and relaxing. In any case, I have done some shopping so I though I would share with you a new product I came upon.

Review:

Name – Urban Decay Optical Illusion Primer

Price – 23 pounds @ Debenhams

Rating – 9/10

Packaging – The packaging is in a gorgeous purple and is very eye catching. Even the container the primer comes in is lovely. The pump makes the product come out smooth and accurate to the amount you want. Compared to the Porefessional Primer by Benefit this primer has been a significantly easier to use and get out.

Texture – I love this texture! It’s puffy and smooth similar to a cloud. It applies and blends really well into the skin and it comes out in this sort of light pinky color. Again, compared to Porefessional I like it a bit more because of the less oily feeling when it is applied.

How it works? – This primer works wonders. When I put my makeup on over the primer you can really tell it smoothes out your skin and break outs. I read a few reviews before I bought the product and people said it can be dry on the skin, and it might be, but I am more on the oily side so I think it works perfect.

Does it last? – My first instinct is to say yes because it does last a long time, which is fabulous, but as I said my skin is a bit on the oily side so at the end of the day it has gone through regular wear and tear of the day. I don’t believe makeup can really last a whole 8 hours a day unless I freshen up later on.

Overall – I differently prefer this one to my previous primer. It looks excellent when I apply it and it last longer than what I hoped for.

I would love to hear from you guys. Have you tried this primer before? How do you like it or not like it?

Also, I am thinking abut purchasing the Naked Skin Weightless Ultra Definition Liquid Makeup. Have any of you used it before? I would love to hear your review.

Last thing. Have you guys seen Urban Decay Naked Heat Eyeshadow Palette? So amazing right! It’s definitely on my Christmas List.

Well, that’s it Wanderers. Hope you enjoyed the read.

Speak soon,

– N

October 24, 2017October 24, 2017 by nikkidiez13 Categories: FashionTags: beauty, blogger, debenhams, decay, fashion, fun, life, lifestyle, makeup, pretty, primer, review, reviews, thoughts, update, urban, urbandecay 2 Comments

Music – New Releases

Hola Wanderers

SO, some of my favorite days are when I have time to immerse myself in music and I’ll go into Spotify’s New Releases and find my favorite band’s new released singles, albums, or EPs. This always makes me so happy and also keeps all my playlists at max capacity. This is also great therapy from radio music. Everyone knows that stuff gets old real fast! Here are some of the songs that caught my attention.

Enjoy 🙂

Top 10 New Single Releases:

1. George Ezra – Don’t Matter Now

2. Coldplay – Hypnotised

3. Shania Twain – Life’s About to get Good

4. Imagine Dragons – Thunder (new album release)

5. The Killers – The Man

6. Arcade Fire – Electric Blue

7. ODESZA – Late Night

8. Washed Out – Hard to Say Goodbye (new album release)

9. Icona Pop – GIRLS GIRLS

10. X Ambassadors – The Devil You Know

11. BONUS TRACK: Portugal. The Man – Feel It Still (new album release)

I though I could do these more than my per-season playlist. Let me know what ya think?

Thanks for reading! Peace + Love ❤

xox,

July 19, 2017July 19, 2017 by nikkidiez13 Categories: Daily LifeTags: album, blog, blogger, ep, fun, happy, life, lifestyle, love, music, new, post, release, singles, youtube Leave a comment

2 Outfits UNDER 60 Pounds

Hi Wanderers,

I had a day to myself a few weeks ago, so I decided to go to the mall. I went to Westfield – Shepard’s Bush. Most people think I mean the Westfield in Stratford, but I normally go to the one in Shepard’s Bush. I like it a lot better because if you go on a week day, you will have a seriously good shopping day with light crowds and spacious areas to walk.

My main reason for going was because American Eagle was having a sale on all of their jeans. Who doesn’t need more jeans right? I already have a ton but when the sale is that good how can you pass that up? All jeans were 25 Pounds. Plus they had cheaper ones in the actual sale section.

Going with the current spring/summer trend and wanting these jeans to be staples in my wardrobe I went with some nice high-waisted vintage crops. I bought a dark wash and and a medium wash. I am in love with both of these. The dark wash is just a zipper fastening but the lighter wash is all buttons. Love that! I now live in these jeans. They go with everything and at a perfect high waist.

Total at AE = 40 pounds

Then i went to The Gap and this place is the ‘King of Basics’. I went to find a good fitted white t-shirt and then also found a cute red and white stripe t-shirt as well. There was a promotion on these for 8 pounds. Both are perfect and go with anything as well.

Total at Gap = 16 pounds

In total I spend 56 pounds on two outfits. I felt pretty good about these purchases and I will get and already have gotten so much use out of them. Can’t wait for more summer sales.

Where do you buy your basic jeans and tees? Let me know in the comments! Thanks for reading.

Peace + Love ❤

xox,

June 18, 2017July 8, 2017 by nikkidiez13 Categories: FashionTags: american, americaneagle, blog, blogger, eagle, fashion, fun, gap, jeans, life, lifestyle, love, outfits, pounds, shopping, summer 6 Comments

Ultimate Summer Playlist – Spotify

Hi Wanderers,

It’s June! Where did the time go, right? It’s officially summer time, so I thought I would share my large, but quality filled, summer playlist. This playlist has everything a sunny day at the beach or night at the park is in need of. It’s full of many different types of music like: rock, country, alternative, indie, international, pop, and yes, even a bit a rap/R&B. What are you waiting for? Press shuffle and have a great time! (Trust me this playlist will last you the whole day)

Top 20 Songs:

Thunder by Imagine Dragons (#2)
Saw You in a Dream House by The Japanese House (#6)
Me Enamoré by Shakira (#23)
Mildenhall by The Shins (#41)
The Glow by Sylvan Esso (#44)
Second One to Know by Chris Stapleton (#48)
Can’t Get You More Pregnant by Blink-182 (#62)
Heatstroke by Calvin Harris, Young Thug, Pharrell Williams, & Ariana Grande (#68)
Lost Boys by Ocean Park Standoff (#79)
Fun by Blondie (#86)
Malibu by Miley Cyrus (#95)
More Than You Know by Axwell /\ Ingrosso (#115)
Laid Back by Mitchell Tenpenny (#124)
I Miss Those Days by Bleachers (#126)
Anchor by Novo Amor (#130)
Wonder by Hillsong United (#141)
Morning Sound by Grizzly Bears (#146)
My Life by Mali Music (#151)
Drummer Boy by Misterwives (#153)
From the Dining Table by Harry Styles (#162)

Note: The # to right of song refers to the order of the playlist 🙂

I always like doing these for each season. Hope you all enjoy it. Let me know what your go-to summer song is?! I always love discovering new music.

If you have a Spotify, you can follow me @nikkidiez13 if you’d want.

You can also check out my past Spotify playlist posts:

Peace + Love ❤

xox,

June 10, 2017June 10, 2017 by nikkidiez13 Categories: Daily LifeTags: blogger, blpg, favorite, fun, life, lifestyle, love, music, playlist, reviews, season, songs, spotify, summer, ultimate 4 Comments

Park Day in London

Olá Readers,

The first thing that comes to most Londoner’s mind when a sunny day comes around, in a normally gloomy and rainy city, is spend the day at the park. There have actually been some nice days here lately in London and the best way to spend them is outside taking in the sun and vitamin d.

Getting out of usual crappy weather makes me really happy so when this happens I put on some tennis, comfortable clothes, and grab a book, frisbee, or a soccer ball, and head to my nearest or preferred park. I try to take in as much sun as I can! I have been spending most days like these at St.James Park but some other great parks are Hyde Park, Regent’s Park, and Green Park. Bringing a group of friends or a significant other along will add for some great company too.

Recently, some friends and I did just that! We bought a frisbee from Lillywhites and headed to St. James park. We got the frisbee stuck in a tree twice, which I think we enjoyed more then passing it around. We found a large space to run, take off our shoes, and feel the grass between the toes. We are definitely doing it again very soon. Crossing my fingers it’s sunny and nice again next week!

Check out some pictures I took on our little excursion: