A New Obsession...

Being the hoarder that I am, I have had no shame in collecting things throughout my life. From cuddly toys to post cards, I just cannot stop making little collections of my interests at different points of my life. My obsession with collecting things came to a little halt as I came to university; everything was super overwhelming and it took a while to adjust to my new, beloved environment. However, I've settled in now and almost finished first year aaah and I've been scrapbooking my way through the months - sticking in photographs, receipts, coins and other memorabilia from my 2017 experiences. Additionally, I've found a new obsession that I think will continue for a very long time...PIN BADGES.

When I was about 6 years old and my family used to take me to little holiday breaks in the UK (raise ya hands if you ever went to Butlins as a kid!), I would always veer towards the pin badge stands whilst my brother ran to the toys. I loved collecting and trading these badges with other kids, usually ending in tears and arguments, but it was fun at the time! Nostalgic memories have clearly consumed me, as I've started to begin my own little collection again - this time with MEANING. I've been strict with myself and stated that I can only buy badges from a location I've travelled to, an experience I've had or just has a special meaning behind. Therefore, I thought I'd share and explain the beginning to my brand new pin badge collection.

'AVERAGE' AND 'THUNDER THIGHS' - These two badges were the first two that I picked up. They are actually from one of my favourite Youtuber's personally designed merchandise - Lucy Wood. Thus, the reasons I bought the 'Average' pin was to share my love for Lucy's infamous 'average' series on her Youtube, as well as Youtube culture taking up the vast majority of my spare time. I have a vlogging channel, if you didn't know, where I share my everyday university life in hope that I help future students or enable others to empathise with my adulting struggles. I also opted for the 'Thunder Thighs' badge to embrace my body and spread self confidence. I've overcome a lot of hurdles in terms of shunning my body image, especially over the past year, so I bought this badge to resemble my triumph. 

'HARD ROCK' - Recently, I visited Italy with my boyfriend for a gorgeous 10 days. We managed to explore 3 different cities, all radiating a variety of cultures and beauty. I'm so happy that I finally visited Rome, as well as Florence and Milan during our stay. We made so many incredible memories and thought we'd pick up these two Roma pin badges from the Hard Rock cafe we ate at there. The Colosseum was definitely one of our favourite landmarks, purely for the insane amount of history and knowledge our tour guide shared behind it, so we had to get one with the structure on the badge.

'HAPPY EVERYTHING' - Finally, I was lucky enough to receive this pretty little pin in a subscription box a few months ago. I love how simple, yet meaningful, this badge is to me and my life. If you weren't aware, I went through a very traumatic sixth form experience in terms of my home life, school life and mental health. Since I've moved to university, my life has been completely changed for the better and I've grown into a better, more confident and most importantly, happier person (something I thought was impossible after my time in sixth form). I love this badge so much and everything it represents in my heart.

I'm so excited to share my future pin badge collection with you. I've been eyeing up these beautifully designed pins from the Old English Company that I spotted a couple weeks ago. My four favourites are: the rose gold 'BFF' badge (as I'm feeling super lucky with my perfect trio friendship group right now, it feels amazing to have a solid group of girls who love and support me everyday), the 'NO SLEEP GANG' as I fail to receive a good night's sleep due to the insomnia university life has given me, the 'PINEAPPLE' because it is my favourite fruit as well as having this funny little memory with my boyfriend last summer in Mexico, and finally, the 'PIZZA LOVER' badge simply because it is gorgeous and I'm obsessed with pizza! The Old English Company are also hosting a competition where you can win a set of Enamel pins - CLICK HERE to find out how to enter before it closes on the 30th May!

Shop their Enamel Pin Collection HERE

Would you like me to share my pin collection as it grows in the future? Do you collect pin badges?

Lots of love