Love from, Florence Grace

I haven't sat down to write a blog post since November. Truth be told, I've barely even given my blog a second thought. It's just been sat here in my little corner of the internet, waiting to be used whilst it sits gathering dust. It's kinda sad really, because once upon a time, blogging was my life. It was what I lived  for. Now, I can't remember the last time I sat down to read a blog post, comment on a blog post or even attend a blogging event. All of my time and energy is put into Twitter and Instagram instead. Instagram has long been my favourite platform to share content on, but after the 'bug' we all encountered the other day, hinting at what the future of Instagram could be, I realised what an error this was. I've heard some of my favourite bloggers, Vix and Lydia , talk about putting all your eggs in one basket and not neglecting your permanent blog for your potentially temporary Instagram profile but have never listened. Well, now I am...

This week we’re spilling the tea with blogger Francisca Rockey. So far, we’ve chatted about the  blogosphere ,  taking a last minute gap year ,  how we can work to save the world  and dating . Today, in the final  post of the series, we’re talking about being a young black woman in Britain - and guys, the tea is piping hot.  As a young black woman, what are your thoughts on racism in Britain? Is it getting better, worse? Racism is prevalent in the UK. A lot of people will say “Britain is the least racist nation” but it really isn’t. If you genuinely think racism in Britain isn’t a thing then you’re either living under a rock or you are racist. Racism isn’t just shouting slurs at someone, its crossing the road when you see a black boy with their hood up walking towards you. We’re seeing a rise in black and mixed race celebrities, such as grime artists and social influencers, with the likes of Stormzy, Oloni, Grace Victory and Kelechi Okafor al...

This week we’re spilling the tea with blogger Francisca Rockey. So far, we’ve chatted about the blogosphere , taking a last minute gap year and how we canwork to save the world . Today, in the penultimate post of the series, we’re talking about boys and the tricky world of dating… it’s time to spill alllll the tea! It’s 2018 and now it seems almost impossible to meet someone who isn’t just ‘dtf’ and actually wants a meaningful relationship. What do you think about the dating scene? The dating scene in 2018 is all about online dating sites. Tinder is the go-to dating site it seems and every other guy is after a quick beat and delete (loooool we love that saying!!!) but there are some gems amongst the f*ckboys. Do you think the bar is set too low for men to please women? We see so many tweets saying “omg my man held the door for me 10/10 king ilysm!!!” I saw a tweet the other day that said, “when your other half cleans and then cooks whilst you’re out at meetings” an...

This week we're spilling the tea with blogger Francisca Rockey. So far, we've chatted about the blogosphere and taking a gap year . Today, we're talking all about the environment and how we can all do our part to save the world. You describe yourself as an 'Environmentalist by day, blogger by night'. With that in mind, what do you think of the recent information shared that our planet may be totally unlivable in just 12 years time? It's so sad to think that we have been damaging our planet for years and now we're close to an unlivable state, the government and big companies are  finally  trying to do something about it. If said governments and companies weren't going to be affected by the 1.5 degree increase in temperature then I doubt they would be intervening, but they're gaining something out of it, hence them wanting to prevent potentially losing business and tourism. I hope that hearing how little time we have to save our planet encoura...

Yesterday, we got to find out all about one of the sassiest, most 'real' bloggers around - Francisca Rockey. Today, we're finding out all about her decision to take a gap year... You’re taking a gap year this year. What prompted that decision? When I started my UCAS application back into 2017, taking a gap year seemed like my best option, but seeing my friends apply for 2018 entry and being discouraged from deferring saw me  applying for 2018 entry. I’ve spent most of the year umming and ahhing about whether going to  university this year was for me and by the time results day rolled around, I had lost all  excitement. No part of me wanted to go this year anymore. I felt like a balloon full of air and on  that day, I was burst. A few days before heading off to Reading, I was sat with one of my close  friends and we were having a chat about university and her decision to take a gap year and it  was then that I realised, I wanted to take a ...

Photo by Jodie Mitchell @jodiedcmitchell / jodiedcmitchell.co.uk Who is Francisca Rockey? One of my favourite women in the world is Francisca Rockey. Open, honest and full of sass, Fran keeps it real on social media, particularly Twitter, often confronting issues face on and forcing people to address what's really  going on in a given situation. You might not have heard of her before, but you're about to get to know her now! We've got a big ol' interview with the lady herself, broken down into five segments and shared with you every day this week! Spilling the tea on boys, bloggers and being a young black woman in Britain, you'd better take a seat and get comfy... you could be here for a while. For those who might not have heard of you before, can you fill everyone in on who you are and what you do?  I'm Francisca (pronounced Fran-sis-ca) Rockey, an 18 year old lifestyle blogger on a gap year. I'm African, born in Barnet, North London. I cu...

I dunnoooo about youuuuuu but I'm feeling twennytwoooooooo Sorry guys - it's the last day I can sing that and mean  it, because as of 3:29pm tomorrow, I will be turning 23. 23!! I can't cope, that just sounds so old to me. Growing up I thought that by now I'd be married, own my own home and have at least one baby, probably with another on the way. L O L Can you imagine me with a baby right now? Jonny takes up enough of my time and energy as it is, let alone with a baby too... But seriously, here I am at 23 and nothing about the life I'm living now is as I planned or expected - or, in some cases, even dreamed. Being 22 has been amazing for me. I've achieved so much - things I would never even have considered being within reaching distance for me. I've cut off some of the most toxic, poisonous people you could imagine and surrounded myself with only the best people in life. I've worked longer and harder, I've found peace with body im...

The other day, I shared a post on Facebook that really hit home with me. It said: " ‪ My ex used to scold me for wanting affection & my current boyfriend just squatted down next to me to give me kisses JUST because he is getting in the shower. He goes out of his way every single day, SEVERAL times a day just to make sure I feel loved. I prayed about that & I got answers. ‬I always thought the problem was me, that I was just “needy”. No ladies that’s not the case, the person that God designed just for you is out there. Be patient. " I honestly related to this post so much - and I know I'm not the only girl, or even boy, who probably can. So I thought it was time to speak about this a little bit more.  Some days, I feel needy. I've spoken about how my previous relationship was an unhealthy, abusive one, but whilst I try to suppress memories of what it was like, the other day I discovered a diary from 2013, full of pages that provided intense detail ...

Since 2012, we have been marking the 11 th October as the International Day of the Girl . It makes sense, when we have an International Women’s Day, to have one for girls too, and the day aims to “focus on the needs and challenges girls face, while promoting girls’ empowerment and the fulfilment of human rights.”  Each International Day of the Girl comes with its own theme or focus, and this year it’s With Her: A Skilled GirlForce . There’s absolutely no denying that there is lack of equality in the workplace for women. Of course it varies from job to job, but generally speaking women are paid less, pitted against each other, have men selected over them time and time again and have frequently less opportunities to pursue their dream career or advance in their current career than men do. The United Nations said that “Of the 1 billion young people – including 600 million adolescent girls – that will enter the workforce in the next decade, more than 90% of those li...