INTRODUCING: Chase The Deer

So, last week I was contacted by the pretty lovely people over at Feutral Records and asked if I'd be up for interviewing some of their recently signed artists. I, of course, jumped at the chance.

I didn't want to feature musicians on my blog that I didn't listen to and I didn't want to write a post just for the sake of the opportunity, so I checked out the label and the artists that are signed to them and lo-and-behold, I came across the wonderful Chase The Deer.

Don't you just love coming across new music to listen to, especially when a band are so fresh and just trying to pave their way into the industry?

Ah, usually I'm selfish and want to keep the great new music I find all to myself, but I decided not to be greedy and give these guys some of the exposure they deserve.

Scroll down to read the interview and have a listen!

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Photo Credit: Feutral Records

Briony Watkins - Lead vocals

Owen Taylor - Guitar

George Frangoudes - Guitar

Angus Evans - Bass

Michael Evans - Drums

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Q: For those people out there who have never heard of Chase the Deer, tell readers who you guys are and how it all began?

We're a group of friends from Worcester who got together to play covers for fun. We played a few open mic nights and got a really great it went down really well. We quickly started to write our own songs for fun! 

Q: How did you end up getting signed Feutral Records?

Briony: I saw on Twitter that Feutral were looking for bands and I spoke to the rest of the band but they seemed reluctant. I was persistent and eventually we sent them an email. Within minutes we got the most enthusiastic response and things just snowballed from there...

Q: What advice would you give to other young musicians looking to get into the music industry?

George: Find what music you are passionate about and then start playing it. Keep on playing and you will get better and people will respect you for doing something you love.

Q: On average, how much time do you spend with the rest of the band, writing and playing together?

Owen: we get together every Wednesday night to write new songs and share ideas. Fridays we tend to rehearse at Tower Studios in Pershore and get ourselves ready for playing live.

Q: How about when it’s time to relax, what’s the best way to do so?

Angus: We always take a break half way through rehearsals and eat a meal together cooked by Mama Evans (Michael and Angus are brothers). Our favourite meal is Mexican, it is great for fuelling our creativity.

Owen and I grab any chance to get in a game of FIFA but it is just great hanging around with the band because we are such good friends.

Q: You guys played the O2 Academy in Birmingham recently, what’s been your favourite venue and is there a particular place you’d love to play in the future?

We have played at the Lounge in Birmingham, the Marrs Bar in Worcester and Snodfest. 

They were all fantastic but the O2 Academy was definitely the best venue so far. The atmosphere was amazing. As soon as we stepped onto the stage it felt unreal. The crowd were great, dancing, singing along and really getting involved which is always great when you’re performing. It was so cool to have our own backstage room as well!

 I think our dream is to play a festival such as Glastonbury or Reading and Leeds, watching sets from those festivals are just incredible. We know it’s a long way off but you’ve got to dream ey! 

Q: Now, I came across a cover you did of Latch and covering songs by other bands is considered a huge stepping stone when getting into the industry and starting to play live. What one song do you wish you had written?

George: My Heart - Paramore
Briony: One Day Like This - Elbow
Owen: Cha-Ching – Imagine Dragons
Angus: Around the World – Red Hot Chilli Peppers – the bassline is insane!
Mikey: Walk – Foo Fighters

Q: Back to the band’s progress for a minute, where do you see yourselves next year, or in 5 years’ time? What’s the dream?

We have got to keep writing new material and working on our sound. If this year goes well, we will be playing regularly and building up our following, Perhaps in a year we will be ready to record our first album.

It's hard to plan where things will go from there. When you think that we have only been playing since May and we have already recorded a single, been sponsored by MAS records, signed by Feutral records and played at the O2. It has been pretty crazy!

 We want to work hard and keep promoting our music but you need to have a lot of luck.

Q: And finally, for anyone reading, tell us where we can find out more about you guys and find out about gigs and new material?

We are on Facebook and twitter but next month we are launching our brand new website designed for us by Matthew Luke at Brightbyte! Matt is fantastic and we are incredibly excited by what he has created.

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So, what's my verdict?

For anyone who knows me, you'll know that I'm nothing, if not honest and when it comes to music you can guarantee my recommendations come on good authority.

Have a listen below to a snippet of Chase The Deer's new single 'Think'...

So would I recommend Chase The Deer? Absolutely!

Each member of the band is talented and their skill as young songwriters is evident from the get-go.

Upon first listen, it's obvious lead singer Briony has a strong yet delicate voice, that reminds me a little of a mix between Nina Nesbitt and Lucy Rose - which for vocalists, is right up my street!

The blend of the boys' instruments is just right and doesn't take away from the overall sound, which can sometimes be a danger when it comes to alternative indie bands fronted by female singers.

For me, to be a good band there are many contributing factors, but it's obvious these guys, despite having only been together a short time are working hard and thinking of what's next.

Definitely listen to these guys if you're into Bombay Bicycle Club, The Maccabees or The Wind + The Wave.

I can't wait to follow their inevitable rise and look forward to their new material now they've been signed to Feutral!

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Find the band...

Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | SoundCloud

Email: chasethedeer@outlook.com

As mentioned above, make sure you keep on eye on chasethedeer.com going live!

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Thanks for reading everyone! Also thanks to Feutral Records for contacting me with this opportunity and of course the lovely Chase The Deer!

Hope you all enjoy them as much as I do...

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♥

The 18 People You Meet on Twitter

We're all part of the digital age.

Where we used to have to earn pocket money to buy a £10 Pay-As-You-Go phone, we're now part of a generation of young people who receive iPhone's for their 8th birthday and learn vocabulary via social media.

Twitter is a breeding ground for people from all walks of life. But I can guarantee that you'll find at least one or two of the following people on your timeline...

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1. The Fandom-ettes

Regardless of whether you follow a large amount of Directioners or Whovians, there's always at least someone on your timeline endlessly tweeting about their idol for attention or a follow.

Some like to keep it under wraps by directly tweeting the object of their desire, but if you follow them both, you're in for a lot of 'please follow me back' spam on your timeline.

Look out for talk of 'mutuals'.

2. The Indirect Tweeters

Two people, who either obviously love or hate each other, constantly tweeting about one another but never directly mentioning them by name, is  another common one to come across.

Sometimes you might even just want to jump in and tell them to stop what they're doing or move it somewhere else. Sometimes it can provide for an evening of entertainment.

3. The Parody Accounts

These guys.

Consistently made up of one or a few guys who had that tweet that one time that got 56k RT's and 38k Favourites but never quite managed to grasp on to those heights of Twitter fame and post anything else nearly as worthy.

4. The 'I'm just here to meet new people' Guy

Once in a while, some middle-aged guy will follow you with the most honest of intentions.

Some people like to use Twitter as a means to meet new people on the internet.

Look out for something along the lines of 'just your average 33y/o male, looking for some fun. tweet me, i follow back' in their bio.

5. The 'I'm different from all the other girls on Twitter' Girl

...may also be know as 'basic white girl'.

Far-off look, with an air of disregard, complete with pout, (sometimes two of the same picture alongside eachother) in icon: Check.

90's Tattoo Choker: Check.

Automated Horoscope Tweets: Check.

Most likely to: tweet AM lyrics. Probably, Do I Wanna Know.

6. The Part-Time 'I care about things' Tweeter

Go gender equality and all that.

I'm a full believer in equality between the sexes but I wouldn't call myself a feminist.

I am also an advocate for animal rights - I don't give half-arsed opinions about it on Twitter though.

Fair enough if you believe in a cause and want to make a change. Total props to you.

Unfortunately through social media, I am sometimes subject to people giving their what-for with a lack of knowledge and understanding on a certain subject.

Hard to ignore and not jump in with your opinion, but not worth the hassle.

7. The Selfie Queen

Every single fucking minute of every single fucking day. Have these people not heard of Instagram?

Even worse when said selfies are perhaps arranged in an arty horizontal flip. OMG two of you???

I despair.

8. The Twitter Famous Kids

With well over a couple of thousand followers, you sometimes wonder how this seemingly normal teenager has gained such popularity over the social networking site.

Were those followers paid for?

Did this particular individual do something really big so that loads of people wanted to interact with them?

No matter what the reason may be, every time one of them chooses to follow you (and it's not solely to then un-follow you as soon as you follow them back) it does ignite a little excitement.

Imagine that, worthy enough of a follow...

9. The Girl Who Posts Nudes

I don't want to be scrolling through my timeline and then suddenly attacked by someone's nipples and/or arse.

I'm not really sure what possesses girls to put images of themselves online, barely covered up.

Perhaps aspiring models, it's their choice afterall, but I'll be swiftly unfollowing so I can stomach my breakfast.

10. The #I #Hashtag #Everything #Guy

#Hashtags #are #now #irrelevant #on #the #site #that #made #them #a #thing.

In the last few years, Twitter have changed their search model, meaning that you don't really need hashtags unless you're providing a click-able search.

Other than ways to enter competitions or to catch-up on some event live-tweeting, some people have found this hard to let go of.

11. The 'I Lift' Guy

One of my friends once went out with this guy.

This guy probably rarely tweets, but when he does, it probably includes a selfie at the gym and a mention of eating around 100 McDonald's cheeseburgers.

Most likely to tweet: "on a bulk" (probably alongside numerous muscley arm emoji's) and also quite fond of the humble brag.

12. The 'I'll Help You Gain Followers' Girl

How irritating. You get onto your timeline and all you can see are people you follow tweeting or retweeting about gaining more followers.

Usually done through 'following everyone who rt's', this is such an annoyance to wade through and grants a lot of unfollows from me.

Who are you to grant me access to new followers? Is this your job? No.

I'm sorry, I'm just not on Twitter to be popular. I'm on Twitter to rant and complain. Most likely about people like this.

13. The #TeamFollowBack.. Team

Similar to that of above, this just involves things like follow trains and hashtags and retweeting someone's last 5 tweets and vice versa.

We're at number 13 now, why are people on Twitter so annoying?

...and what the hell is a follow train???

14. The Cheeky Nando's Chino Wanker

It's feasible to assume that he has a quiff and wears Lynx Africa.

Most likely to: audition for The X Factor next year and tweet every Sunday about how last night was 'messy'.

Probably going out with the 'I'm different from all the other girls on Twitter' girl.

15. The Girl Who Literally Can't Even

Often linked with the fandomettes - these girls simply can't control their feelings on Twitter.

Everything hurts. Fans of abbreviating most words, look out for: omg, idk, rn, fu, fgs, smh.

Most likely to: not be able to string a coherent sentence together.

16. The Unoriginal One

A fan of copying other people's tweets for the sole purpose of gaining popularity through retweets and favourites.

The worst kind of Twitter user.

17. The Average Joe's

The greatest people you will ever meet.

The in-betweeners (not Jay & co.), the 140 character snippets of a normal person's life. 

Mostly your best friends and school-mates.

18. The Egg

The quintessential Twitter user, known by the masses.

Hasn't tweeted. Hasn't personalised their profile.

But they're still there, lurking, watching, judging.

Will maybe retweet you once then disappear until the following year.

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This post is in no way meant to offend anyone, it's just an idea that came to me whilst I was scrolling through my timeline.

I'm even betting that one or two of them apply to myself!

Leave a comment below on any type of Twitter account I may have missed or that annoys you.

Thanks for reading!

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REVIEW: Jamie T @ Barrowlands, Glasgow

There was no new post last Friday, I know. I was unfortunately otherwise occupied. With a lot to be getting on with at work and actually managing to go out and socialise, I just didn't find the time to write anything.

I did post a little bonus post yesterday, something short and sweet concerning the rules of going to gigs. You can find it here and comment your own!

I also felt a little bit of pressure, considering how well my post about mental health, being a carer and the negative perceptions on social media did. It was remarkable how it felt to be called inspirational for just writing about this one thing that happened in my life and I was a little overwhelmed by the support I was given.

Don't get me wrong, I actually couldn't be any more grateful if I tried, but I was a bit lost on inspiration and needed a bit of a sit back.

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I thought I'd just talk about what I've been up to this past week which really has only consisted of one, huge, life-altering, emotional roller-coaster of an event - going to see Jamie T live for the second time.

I saw him this one time in Edinburgh, 5 and a half bloody years ago and met him afterwards. At 15 years of age, it was the best thing to have ever happened in my life. You can read more about that within my 'Carry on the Grudge' review.

WARNING: All my photos are crap...
I mean who has time for selfies when there's dancing to be had?

As if I couldn't already be more excited about finally seeing him play new material, the gig was being held at the Barrowlands, Glasgow. Everyone in Scotland knows the Barras, as it's so affectionately named, as the best venue in Scotland and maybe even the world.

It's not in the prettiest part of town but you just can't top a night in the Gallowgate.

My friend Emma and I went to the Maths building of Glasgow Uni to hand in her projects, where I learnt all about Dyck numbers and Cauchy... (I have no idea either.) and then headed to the uni for a few rounds of pool (I won) and cheap drinks. We missed the support band 'Slaves' but I was really only wanting to see the man himself.

Emma and I had one of those drunken 'I love to tell you everything about me' chats and then had a jolly old walk to the venue.

The only bad thing I have to say about the Barras is that the vodka and lemonade tastes shit. Like bleach. It probably was bleach, but that didn't dampen the mood.

You could just tell everyone was literally abuzz with anticipation, excitement and joy.

The most impressive thing for me, was that though Jamie T had been away for a pretty lengthy time - I became an adult! - he hadn't changed at all.

Yes, his music has progressed and has a darker undertone, and he has experimented with different genres and styles (Don't You Find anyone?) but his songs are never void of his alt-pop beats and chat-rap.

When it came to the set-list I couldn't have been more pleased. It was almost as if someone had put together a playlist of my favourite songs from all three of his albums.

My highlights included a very eerie Limits Lie and the crowd sing-along favourite If You Got The Money.

Emma and I didn't think he would play songs like Pacemaker or Spider's Web but he did and then some. 

Shy of 11pm, following a stripped back Calm Down Dearest, the crowd were then presented with the most perfectly packaged encore consisting of his most famous hits, Sheila which when the opening lines were sung, sent the place into pure meltdown, stand-out second single from the new album Zombie and finishing on an absolutely mental Sticks 'N' Stones.

I always think that it's a sign of a great gig if you rush to the last train home a bit battered and bruised, smelling like a brewery and (disgustingly) covered in someone's piss. Yes, that just happens sometimes.

Jamie sounded fantastic live and through chatting to a few other people on the train (and singing a few rounds of If You Got The Money) they seemed to agree.

So, for a great night, thank you Barras and thank you Jamie T.

As for right now...

This shit is real.

(Yeah, I made a thing.)

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The 5 Rules of Going to a Gig

So, I went to see Jamie T last week (blog post about that here!) but it led me to think about going to a gig in general, the complaints, what's bound to happen etc...

I thought I'd share five rules of going to a gig. This mostly relates to Scotland because we're pretty mental up here.

PS: This isn't going to apply to everyone, it's just a bit of fun, but I'm sure a few people can relate...

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1. DON'T COMPLAIN ABOUT BEING PUSHED

People want to get to the front.

The number one thing you need to expect if you're standing at a gig. This is the nature of a large crowd of people who are starting to get irritable. Expect this to get worse for more famous, aggressive bands like Arctic Monkeys.

If you're going to a festival, times the above by ten.

Unless you're going to see Cliff Richard... (I am not judging.)

2. COUPLE-CUDDLING IS A BIG NO

No one cares if the song is romantic. No one is jealous of you.

People just don't like to be stuck next to the couple at a gig who will stand and cuddle each other and possibly suck face during a high note.

3. YOU SHALL NOT BE BOTHERED ABOUT GETTING LIQUID POURED OVER YOU

I think I've had every liquidated substance under the sun thrown at or over me during a gig. Water, beer, blood, sweat, vomit and pee! 

Nobody is looking at you thinking you're worse for wear or could do with touching up your make-up, as it's likely everyone in the vicinity has suffered the same fate.

4. IF PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO MOVE IN FRONT OF YOU...

...it's because you're a lifeless eejit.

Maybe you're just not into dancing... that's ok!

Some people are convinced they are die-hard fans and deserve to be at the front more than everyone else and some are simply choosing to bypass you because you're not joining in with that mosh-pit going a few rows ahead.

5. POST-GIG DEPRESSION IS REAL AND IT'S COMING FOR YOU

No matter what gig it is, once it's over, life sucks. Everything sucks.

I swear that this is a real thing and if you love going to gigs, you've definitely experienced that empty, sucky feeling.

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So, I said it might not be to everyone's tastes, but thanks for reading!

A couple more things to look out for include: the fact that chanting 'Here We Fucking Go' is law and losing your shoes is inevitable!

Leave a comment with one of your rules if I've missed anything out (I definitely have missed loads!)

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AW14 Lush Haul

Going back to basics this week with a super exciting Lush haul, full of Hallowe'en and Christmas themed treats.

I definitely spend too much of my sort-of-hard-earned cash on bath products. I went into Lush this week with the intention of 'having a look' and ended up leaving with well over 10 items.

Have a look for yourself at what I picked up!

L-R

Dashing Santa

Make a dash for this moving Santa bath bomb with a cheerful and uplifting scent of satsumas at Christmas. Watch Santa fly about your bath as his golden boots fizz away, releasing toning mandarin oil, bergamot oil and orange flower absolute that help put a spring in your step, too.

Luxury Lush Pud

Unwind (or calm down excited children) with this soothing bath bomb. Perfect before bedtime, drop this in the bath and watch it create pastel-coloured islands in the pink water as it fizzes and froths. Sharing its fragrance with Twilight bath bomb, the comforting tonka absolute, ylang ylang, and relaxing lavender oils will help banish tension.

Candy Mountain

Make bathtime an even sweeter time with this pink peak of a bubble bar. Crumble this under running water for mountains of glistening bubbles topped with a magical pink mist. The candy scent wafting through the steam includes Fair Trade vanilla absolute, wrapping you in a comforting embrace. If you like the fragrance of our Rock Star soap and Creamy Candy bubble bar, you're in for a treat. 

The Christmas Hedgehog

If you're feeling prickly this festive season, indulge in a soak with this softening bubble bar made with organic shea and cocoa butters as well as soothing essential oils. Crumble under running water and unfurl in the silky waters as the rose absolute and ylang ylang essential oil get to work on frosty moods.

Sparkler

A crackling and fizzing Rose Jam-scented bath bomb that makes bath night fireworks night. The soothingly-fragranced bomb fizzes and crackles in an explosion of colour, spinning around the bath turning it into a fiery, shimmering display.

L-R

Holly Golightly

Come on in out of the cold and wrap yourself up in this comforting Christmas blanket of a bubble bar. Break the generously-sized pudding into two and crumble under running water. Its festive spice fragrance is like bathing in a hot toddy, perfect for getting you in the Christmas spirit. 

Golden Wonder

If you're wondering what's inside this golden bath bomb, give it a shake and drop it in the bath to reveal its glittering contents. Soak in its soft citrus fragrance as the vibrant gifts inside unveil themselves and make you feel as if you're bathing in luxury. The uplifting blend of sweet orange, lime and cognac oils will leave you feeling cheerful.  

Northern Lights

Escape into relaxation with this bath bomb that gives an impressive display no matter where you are in the world. As the ends fizz away, the middle slowly dissolves to reveal blue and neon green, turning your water into a calming jasmine and ylang ylang-scented swirling night sky scattered with stars. 

The Christmas Penguin

Pop in The Christmas Penguin for a mood-boosting bubble bath that will set you up for the festivities. The beautiful blend of orange flower absolute, Sicilian mandarin and lemon oils will revive and refresh your mind and skin. Crumble under running water to create bubbly glaciers and snow drifts.

Wizard

Cast a Jingle Spell over weariness with this shimmering bubble bar that makes bath time magic. With energising tangerine oil and purifying juniperberry and fennel essential oils, the Wizard banishes stress and helps you recover. Perfect for those occasions when you've over-indulged, the Wizard will disappear after Halloween, so grab enough to see you through the party season.

Sparkly Pumpkin

Have a ball in the bath with this warming and cheerful bubble bar that adds a bit of sparkle to a cold night. The energising blend of juniperberry, lime and grapefruit oils packs a punch. Perfect for a long, lingering soak, just make sure you get out of your bath by midnight...

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I've tried most of my purchases before and Candy Mountain is my all-time favourite Lush bubble bar. I'm a sucker for that signature sweet scent!

I also tried Northern Lights in the bath on Wednesday night and was surprised at how good it actually was. The purple and blue fizz made bath-time that little more special.

I'd recommend a trip to your local Lush ASAP as it seems like most people in there are fighting each other for what's left on the shelf. The new additions this year also bring much more excitement rather than going into the shop knowing what you want.

I'm also a huge fan of their Christmas sets or making up my own by being a bit DIY friendly, so this assortment of treats would be the perfect stocking filler without emptying your pockets!

If you're not a fan of baths, then this probably wasn't as much use to you but as it's the 31st, I'm definitely going to try out that Sparkly Pumpkin tonight... 

Thanks for reading and Happy Hallowe'en!

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Goodbye Acne, Hello Confidence

Ever since I can remember, I was kicking about school in questionable outfits, trying to detract attention from my acne prone skin.

I think as soon as I hit puberty, spots were out to get me. Not just your average whiteheads or zits, but those of the raw, painful variety. I definitely wore the wrong kind of coloured foundation to cover it up and looking back at photos of me at around 14 years old, I cringe at how much it actually bothered me.

I probably shouldn't have been plastering my face with make-up from such a young age in the first place, but now I realise that it was only a small factor in how bad my skin got.

Skin is a very personal thing to each individual and affects both genders physically and mentally. I know as a teenage girl, that the way I looked to others was very important, which I think is something I now realise I've let go of since becoming an adult.

These tips and my skincare story may not apply to everyone, or even anyone and shouldn't be taken for absolute fact, but I thought I'd just share a few things I find helpful and give some background info on dealing with acne.

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There are sort of three parts to this blog post. The first, is how I used to deal with having really bad acne. 

It used to be the end of the world as I knew it should I get a small spot on my chin or near my nose. Little did I know, that it was only the beginning and my skin would become much worse over the years.

No amount of make-up would cover my skin up, no amount of face-masks and so-called wonder products would work the miracles I had been promised.

You always get that one really awful spot when you're going out or doing something special eh? Well I had about ten of them and what was worse, was that I would totally go straight to the mirror and pop them. (Disgusting, I know!)

If there's one piece of advice I could give my younger self or any fellow acne sufferer, it would be to leave them be. Sport that whitehead proudly, with the knowledge that you won't end up with reddish-purple scars for life.

Today, though I've learned to accept the odd spot here and there, the scars are the things I find most difficult to cover up.

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After years of feeling rubbish about my face and losing a lot of the self-confidence I'd always had, I was put on the controversial drug 'Roaccutane' for some time during 2013/14, both for my acne and another skin condition.

I would advise against it.

Before going on the drug, which I believe is banned in the US, I watched tonnes of YouTuber stories and read a billion blog posts of people's experiences on the drug. All of them seemed pretty positive, so I had no worries about going on it.

In Scotland, GP's aren't allowed to prescribe the drug. You would have to be assessed by a dermatologist first and then pick your prescription up from the hospital each month, also attending regular check-ups and if you are female, taking monthly pregnancy tests.

I was made extremely aware of the possible side effects (you have to sign an agreement that you have understood the risks) - which I thought wouldn't apply to me.

The drug is partly so controversial because of the side-effects, which include deformity in infants, should you get pregnant whilst taking it, and it has often been linked to depression.

The documentary below is definitely worth a watch if you want to learn more or have ever thought about taking Roaccutane.

I found myself starting to become depressed fairly quickly after starting my course of Roaccutane. 

I, of course, neglected to tell the dermatologist this, because I was striving to clear my skin. (I can't stress enough how idiotic of me this was!) 

Because I was feeling worse about myself, I began isolating myself, becoming angry about the smallest things for no reason and having bouts of laziness where I would want to stay in my bed and do nothing all day.

My joints got very sore and my back would ache so much that after sitting or lying down at the end of the day, that was me. I wouldn't be able to get back up and sometimes needed help to stand up to go to the bathroom.

Dry skin was another thing. I constantly found myself wondering about how my skin was supposed to clear up when my skin was crusty as all hell. My lips were so chapped, they split often and the fact that it was mid-winter was not helping! I would constantly carry around an emergency moisturiser and lip balm.

Lastly, a continuing issue I had, was the weakness of my skin. Any small cut or graze would bruise and then scar. Even now I have tonnes of marks on my arms and legs from the tiniest of things - even paper cuts (not even kidding.)

So, was it worth it?

Absolutely not. Yes, my skin got 10% better (mostly reduced redness) after 8 months of treatment, but I felt crap, I have continuing side effects and I still get spots anyway, so what was the point really?

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My skin is in no way perfect to this day, but I've literally tried every tip or trick in the book and found loads of helpful products, treatments and every day things that can help control the scarring from previous spots and prevent new ones from appearing.

Having done the medication thing, I can honestly say, my skin looks better now with the proper care I've given it, instead of when it was being medicated. Below, you'll find my holy trinity of products. Moisturiser, Cleanser and a base - hopefully you'll find one of them just as useful to you!

#1 La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo [+]

Literally my favourite product in the entire world. I'm not sponsored by La Roche-Posay but I feel I should be just for the amount of recommendations I've given to people and the million tubes of this thing I've bought for myself and as presents for others.

I use it as a substitute for moisturiser as my skin is mostly oily and using both tends to give me a shiny hue. It's about £15 but Boots always have it on some offer and for Christmas I know I'm getting a new one in a set with the moisturiser and toner because let's not break the bank.

Give it a go for yourself, but this is my ultimate skincare product.  No break-outs, no oily residue, soft skin. Perfect.  Plus, I own a lot of La Roche-Posay stuff and I haven't yet found a product my skin doesn't agree with.

#2 REN Rosa Centifolia Cleansing Gel 

Unfortunately, most cleansers break me out and I just wanted to find one that didn't agitate my skin and left it looking somewhat less rosy. It's ironic that I should find REN's Rosa Centifolia range the best then.

I previously mentioned this cleanser in my Autumn Monthly Favourites and it really is my favourite every day 'need to get my face looking nice' product.

#3 Liz Earle Sheer Skin Tint

Never in my life would I have imagined using any kind of foundation-like product with the word 'tint' in it, but there you go. I use the lightest shade 'bare', because let's face it, I'm from Scotland.

This is something I got in a Liz Earle set as a freebie and then repurchased three times since.

A lot of YouTubers and bloggers will go on about great foundations like Rimmel Wake Me Up and NARS Sheer Glow - which are both good - but this is a seriously underrated product. It gives a lot more coverage than the name suggests, especially if you use a bit of concealer under the eyes (that internet famous Collection Lasting Perfection one works a treat) and a bit of powder to set it - Rimmel Stay Matte works perfectly.

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Yes, I still complain about the odd spot, but that's life. Everyone has different experiences and unfortunately a large number of us do have gripes about our skin.

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed the post!

(I have got to stop rambling on with these!)

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