Hiya guys! How are you doing?! Today I'm taking things right back to the good old days of blogging with a classic 'What's in my bag post! Back in the early 2010's (the prime days of blogging) everyone who was anyone was pushing out these kind posts like their lives depended on it! And I should know, I published a fair few myself!

But let's be honest, while blogging has changed and evolved a hell of a lot over the last decade, we're still as nosy as ever and we still want to know what everyone is carrying around in their bags! So I'm going to tell you! I can't promise I have anything particularly interesting in my little leather Zatchels bag BUT I can promise you nothing but honesty.

Grace is holding a black leather messenger bag up to the camera

So what is in my bag?

Lip Balm

Okay I'm going to be honest, I am a Lip Balm hoarder! It's actually starting to become a bit of an addiction, but I'm telling you now I wouldn't be caught dead without my favourite Nivea Peach Lip Balm.

Hand Sanitiser

Shocker - I've got a bottle of Hand Sanitizer in my bag. Before the pandemic Sanitizer was something I would occasionally take out with me on day trips or holidays, you know any time I'd be going on planes or trains, but now I can't see myself leaving the house without it. I've tried out a fair few bottles over the last 12 months but I can safely say the one liked the most was a Strawberry Laces Hand Sanitizer from Carex.

Grace is holding two lip balms in her hand. One is an original Nivea lip balm, the other is a Nivea Peach Flavoured Lip Balm.

Hand Cream

As a someone who suffers with eczema this pandemic has been an extra nightmare. all the excessive hand washing has dried my hands out more than ever before so I'd be crazy not to have a cream on hand (ha) at all times! I've been through my fair share of creams over the years, but right now I'm loving the Body Shop Grapefruit Hand Cream. It's pocket sized, smells unreal, and does a pretty decent job on my dry skin.

A facemask (or 7)

I couldn't write about my pandemic survival guide kit without mentioning facemasks! They're the accessory of the season for all the wrong reasons but they're kind of a must have right now. I seem to have an ever growing collection of masks, most of which I picked up from Savers for just a couple pounds each.

A black leather handbag is lying open on a bed. Multiple items are spilling out from within.

Beat up old Asos purse

One day I will be the proud owner of a beautiful Vivienne Westwood purse, but until then I am the slightly less proud owner of this beat up Asos purse which I've had for far too long. I've been wanting to replace it for quite some time now but I just haven't found anything that is the right size with the ideal amount of card spaces and room for coins too!

Perfume

Not sure who I'm trying to impress right now with my sweet scents but I always carry a perfume with me. Even if I'm just nipping to the supermarket, and let's be real that's all we can do right now, I'll still pack my all time favourite Avon perfume - Rare Pearls!

Grace is holding a small clear bottle of hand sanitozer.

So that's it! All the goodies I lug around with my in my bag while the pandemic rages on around me. While this 'what's in my bag' post is quite a bit different to the others, it was nice to get back to blogging basics again, and who knows maybe I'll write another in a few years (minus the rona protection of course!).

What are your pandemic handbag essentials?

Thanks for reading!

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WHAT'S IN MY BAG - PANDEMIC SURVIVAL KIT

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Trigger warning

Ever since I can remember, prepping for a holiday has been one of my favourite things to do. Rushing around the shops grabbing some last minute toiletries and adding a few too many new outfits to the trolly has always been a fond past time for me. And so when I arrived at Merry Hill shopping centre in March 2008 to do just that I was excited, little did I know what I would actually be taking home with me.

Grace sits in front of a mural. she is looking off to the side.

Myself and my family spent the day in and out of shops picking out new clothes for our trip to Dorset the following week, and while the shopping spree was hell on earth for my Dad, I was having the time of my life trying on all my new outfits. After what would have been hours of browsing, were came across a fashion show on the bottom floor of the shopping center, and me being me I had to watch it. Luckily we were on a higher floor and so our view of the catwalk beneath us was perfect. I could see every beautiful model, every pretty little dress, and better yet my parents weren't finished shopping yet so I could enjoy the whole thing in peace.

With my little sister sat happily on a bench a few feet away I leaned over the glass barrier to watch the show below. Within minutes I was consumed by the catwalk and completely oblivious to the world around me, that was until I heard a group of boys walk up behind.

I could hear them talking but as the show still had my attention I paid it no mind and continued enjoying the presentation. Then I realised how close they had gotten to me. As a shy teenager I would avoid confrontation like the plague but these boys were getting a little too close for comfort, and just as I was about to turn around I felt it. Like an electric shock hitting my spine I felt a hand touch my back and slowly move downwards. I could hear them giggling as their friend touched me, gradually moving down further and further. "You're going all the way down her back!" one of the bunch exclaimed, but it wouldn't be long before his hand had reached the top of my bum.

They say when faced with danger your fight or flight reaction kicks in, but they rarely mention that actually sometimes you freeze. Sometimes you are so overwhelmed by the situation that your body tenses, you can't escape, and so you just stay, frozen by fear but unable to even scream. That's exactly what I did.

The lads, who seemed maybe a few years older than myself, soon left but I didn't dare turn around. Why on earth didn't I turn around? Why didn't I stop them, or at the very least push them away? I'm not sure I'll ever truly know why I didn't fight back in that moment.

And so I watched the show until the end, unsure if I'd imagined everything that had just happened. I couldn't bare to ask my sister if she had witnessed anything because what even was there to see? A couple of boys touched my lower back and bum for a few seconds? And I never spoke about the ordeal with anyone because it just seemed so trivial when I compared it to what others had been through. I never spoke about it until now that is because actually, I've come to realise it was assault. I was sexually assaulted at 13 and even if I can sometimes brush it off as 'boys being boys' it's stayed with me, always.

I've replayed the situation in my head a thousand times and to this day I can't make sense of it, but I guess that's the thing with situations like that, they don't need to make sense. I was a child, I didn't do anything wrong, I didn't encourage attention, it was just something that happened to me.

There have been other instances since then of course, unwanted touching by male acquaintances, inappropriate kissing by much older family members and friends, or just straight up grabbing by strangers in bars, but thankfully all have been quite mild compared to other's experiences. Growing up these things were just a fact of life for a girl but no more.

I am done with listening to horrible statistics of women being assaulted and raped and murdered by men. This shouldn't be the way things are. And so I'll add my story to the mix, as minor as it may be, and I'll stand up whenever I see injustice against women because I cannot take history repeating itself with girl after girl after girl.

Every woman has a story like mine or worse, and that's not okay.

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What can we do to change this for future generations of women?

While I agree not all men are like this, it's a fact that almost all women have been inappropriately touched by men, or catcalled as they walk the streets. So while women can (and always have) done things to try keep themselves safe this is a male issue.

Men, we are going to need you to take a good look at yourselves and the way you have been brought up to treat girls and women. We need you to call out your friends when they make unwanted comments or advances. You are going to have to stop honking your horns at children as they walk home from school. The list could go on, there is a lot of work to do.

We need to end this violence against women.

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There is currently a petition to make street harassment a crime in the UK. If you feel strongly about protecting women, please click the link below to sign it.

Make public sexual harassment a criminal offence in the UK

Thank you for reading!

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Birmingham, UK

THE FIRST TIME I WAS SEXUALLY ASSAULTED I WAS 13

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This year Mother's Day falls on the 27th of March, so if you haven't got that special lady a gift just yet, you'd better act fast! But what do you get the most influential woman in your life? Well if you're from Birmingham, I already know one thing you're definitely going to be hunting down this March - a "Mom" card. We don't do "Mum", "Mam" or "Mother" here!

I'll also assume (because you're reading this gift guide) that you're a good Brummie who is looking to support some great Birmingham businesses this Mother's Day, so I'll try to help you out the best I can!

I've popped together a list of fantastic Birmingham independent's supplying all of the things your Mom could possibly want. From flowers arranged by born and bred Brummies to bevs brewed right here in the second city, I'd like to think I've got it all covered!

Oh and I've even tracked down a couple of Mom cards too! You're welcome!

So here it is, my ultimate Brummie Mothers Day Gift Guide...

Plants and flowers

Jungle Houseplants

Birmingham based houseplant shop with delivery across the UK. Gifts, greetings cards, and gift cards are also available.

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So what is in my bag?

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WHAT'S IN MY BAG - PANDEMIC SURVIVAL KIT

*Trigger warning*

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THE FIRST TIME I WAS SEXUALLY ASSAULTED I WAS 13

So here it is, my ultimate Brummie Mothers Day Gift Guide...

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THE ULTIMATE BRUMMIE MOTHER'S DAY GIFT GUIDE

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