My week in music

Aloha friends!- (we are friends, aren't we?!)

I love music, (who doesnt!) and my favourite artists are mostly old bands like The Beatles and The Smiths but I also like music from new bands that people don't necessarily know. (The bands I like, I usually discover from TV advertisements!) I decided to share with you a few songs I just can not get out of my mind! One song for each of the days of the week so far. So here goes!

Monday
My monday song is Never by a band called All the luck in the world. Its a great song sung by a 3 piece Irish band. You may know it from the recent trivago advert!

Tuesday

On tuesday I couldnt get a Les Mis song out of my head. The song was Master of the house!

Wednesday

I went to see Maleficent on wed and Lana del reys Once upon a dream is THE BOMDIGGITY 

Thursday

I love The working title so much but nobody knows them!! This song is my FAVE of theirs and I'd deffo recommend you check them out.

 

Friday

YAY FRIDAYYY!!! On friday I couldnt stop listening to The Senators 

Saturday (Today!)

A little voice in my head (no, i am not crazy) has been incessantly singing all day. The song stuck in my head is The Smiths- Stretch out and wait

Well, that was a nice little blogpost to past my time until BGT results! 

Until next time, 

Amani xx

Maleficent Review!

Hello there,

So the very anticipated film; Maleficent, starring Angelina Jolie and Elle Fanning, came out on wednesday and me and a few friends went to watch it. Maleficent is a film showing Maleficent's side of the well known story- Sleeping Beauty.

Overall it was a very good film however quite predictable. I don't want to spoil it for you however there are some bits which are kind of predictable but different form the original story of sleeping beauty. It wasn't a long film which was good because it didn't drag on like some films I've seen recently! Angelina Jolie was really good and played the role excellently. She played the evillness and vulnerability of the character very well. Elle Fanning was also brilliant. I thought she fitted the princess role really well and was very believable in her loving ignorance. I was kind of surprised that  Prince Philip  didn't have a major part in the film but then again that was kind of expected as the film is not a remake of Sleeping Beauty but another side to the story.
In the film there were moments of excitement, sadness and love. I went to watch it in 3D but the 3D aspect was hardly there and want THAT good, you aren't missing anything if you don't watch it in 3d. All in all it was a great film and I'd definitely recommend you to watch it!

FUN FACT: Angelina Jolies daughter played a younger Aurora because they couldn't find a child who wasn't scared of Maleficent.

Amani xx

Im So Down With The Kids

Hello,

Its been a while since I've written a blogpost and I need to get back into this blogging malarkey! I'm sorry I'm not very good at this!So today I wanted to blog about some new "hip" words I've learnt recently. If you know me,you would know that I am not very down with the kids and aged 13 I find it quite difficult engaging in a conversation without saying "Sorry, what does _______ mean?". Whenever I am surfing the interwebs I always find it handy to have Urban Dictionary open in another tab to look up these new fandangled words! A couple of weeks ago I asked a couple of people in my class to teach me some slang words so i can understand people, at first they nearly wet themselves with laughter but then agreed. I have decided to share a few of the words with you today!


Gassed- You use this word when someone compliments you and you get happy. "Im so gassed, she said she liked my shoes"

Pagan- This doesn't mean the old religion,because that would just be RIDICULOUS and no one in the right mind would even suggest that! *looks shiftily side to side * Instead it means PIGEON

Allie-   Im not sure if i spelt this correctly, but this word is used if you agree with something. Its sort of like the urban 'amen'

Peak- This means that somethings bad.

Egit-   I learnt this word yesterday as my friend called me it on twitter. Very confused, I tweeted asking what it means and my good friends at urban dictionary tweeted my back saying it means "idiot"

Wag1- This is a sort of greeting which originates from "whats going on" I at first didnt know this so I began to change the numbers saying wag5! (I dont recommend you saying this to "da kidz" as you will get laughed at profusely)



SO there are 6 words that i wanted to share with you! I learnt more but can't recall some of them, have to wait until after the holidays to be reacquainted with "ma sistaz"! Have a great half term and I will be blogging soon about Maleficent as Im going to see it on wednesday

                                                          Byeeeeeee,
                                                             Amani xx
Ps: Follow me on twitter @snazzy_amani 

There is no friend as loyal as a book~ Ernest Hemmingway

Greetings!

So this posts is going to based around one of my  favourite things: BOOKS!.
 Yesterday, I went to the library and I couldnt help but feel a sense of nostalgia. I found it quite overwhelming thinking of how many visits I have made to this place and how much it has changed- how I've changed. One thing that has stayed with me since I was a little child is my love of books, I have always been fascinated by the power of words and the way you can live different lives,experience different worlds just from reading. I have always loved everything about the library from the variety of people; different ages,races,interests etc to the smell of old and new books. Yesterday when I was looking for a new book,I noticed how I towered over the book cases this made me smile to myself (I must have looked like a total freak!!) because I remembered that long ago when my favourite book was Dogger by Shirley Hughes (which I definitely recommend)
I dreamed of the day when I could see above the ever so big shelves! I think theres something sort of mystical about library books and sometimes I just marvel about their stories, Not the ones they hold in words but the ones they hold in soul. The rough and tumble in somebody's rucksack on their way to school, the strange looks it got when the reader read it on a train, the porthole it had become when the reader needed a safe haven to escape the world around them. I think its quite amazing how library books have been in loads of peoples homes and these people have laughed and cried and felt along with you, in this single book.

To me a book has always been a way to escape and travel the world in the comfort of my own home. I have been to france with Hugo, victorian london with Dickens, a farm with Orwell and the yorkshire moors with Bronte. Rowling took me to Hogsmede as I became a member of the ace gang with Louise Rennison. Shakespeare took me to enchanted forests and to the stormy seas.

Whenever I read a book I particularly enjoy I always like to read more from the author to fully appreciate and delve deeper into their style of writing. At the moment it is Ernest Hemmingway and I am reading "A farewell to arms" and "For whom bells toll". Ive started A farewll to arms and already its amazing!!



Amani xx

I dont believe in being unique.

Helloo there,

So, yesterday I was reading a blog and the blogger wrote a post about being unique. This got me thinking of all the assemblies I have sat through about being unique. It seems that some of the people who give these assemblies are the same people who snigger at someones loud outfit on non uniform day. I know this topic is so overdone but I just wanted to get my points about it across. As I've mentioned before in my "I liked them first" post- everyone wants to be unique. However I dont think anyone actually IS unique. To me this isn't a bad thing. I think that everybody is a collection of qualities they see in others and adopt themselves.I always think that being different is not the same as being unique. Being different is more about standing out from the social environment you are in although there is probably someone just like you some place else. I think that you can have different interests and wear different things but at the end of the day you are not wholly unique. Not being "unique" ,to me, doesnt mean you are not you're own person. Its means you ARE yourself but just reflect attributes that you see in others. I think you can have unique thoughts and characteristics but about more outwardly things like fashion and things likes, that you can never really be unique in this society. And even if you think you are- you're probably not. And thats okay. I think people need to embrace the fact that sometimes they are not unique and sometimes they're just common but thats alright. Its the common things that brings people together. I think that people need to live their lives as they want and stop being so fake in order to be "unique" when that defies the whole purpose of "uniqueness".

Well, that was very deep!
Amani x

Audrey Hepburn's 85th birthday

Aloha

So today is Audrey Hepburns 85th birthday. Audrey Hepburn is one of my all time favourite actresses. I love everything about her from her beauty to effortless sophisticated style. She was born in 1929 and acted through Hollywoods golden age. She tragically died in 1993 from appendiceal cancer. She did many inspiring acts throughout her life, of which I find the setting up of the "Audrey Hepburn Childrens Fund" truly amazing.

I even made this clock at school!! 

To celebrate her iconic life on film- I put together my top  4 Audrey Hepburn films. So here goes.


Roman Holiday
In this film Audrey Hepburn plays a European princess who's life is restricted. This all changes on her European tour when she escapes her guards in Rome and falls in love with an American man. Roman holiday is a classic rom-com and a great film. Set in the 50s the style is chic and sophisticated.








Sabrina      

 In this film Audrey Hepburn plays the daughter of a household chauffeur. The family that uses the chauffeur are 2 brothers. These two brothers both have a interest in Sabrina. This is an all time favourite and I would definitely recommend this to any fan of romantic films.







Breakfast At Tiffanys                

   I think this is probably Audrey Hepburns most iconic and famous film. In this film she plays a NYC socialite Holly Golightly. A writer moves in to her apartment block and so begins the adventure of Paul and Holly. Based on the book by Truman Capote which is on my to-read list!







Funny Face                   
                                      This is probably my favourite Audrey Hepburn film. It tells the story of book shop
 clerk that gets brought into the fashion industry by a impromptu fashion shoot. This  is a great musical starring another one of my all time favourites Fred Astaire! If you are going to watch any of the films I've mentioned make it Funny Face.

Amani xx

Summer Style Essential: Bag

Everyone needs a nice bag for the summer season. A bag that captures the summer spirit and updates your spring/summer style. Even though the British summer can be quite unpredictable there is something quite assuring knowing whatever the weather; be it pouring with rain or super hot, your accessories are on trend this season.

As fellow fashion fanatics will know, pastel colours are a huge trend , so adhering to that-My summer bag is a mint mini bowler bag from Dorothy Perkins.This bag is available in different pastel colours and is £18.

Love the gold detail around the handles.

This bag can be used as a shoulder bag or a sassy bag to hand hold

Mixing up your pastels creates a great look. Pair mint with soft blues and pink or even white. 

All you need to do now is pack up your stuff and your ready to go- looking fabulous!! White goes well with pastels and mono chrome so I have my circle sunglasses from primark for only £3!!! I always make sure I carry a book EVERY WHERE I go! En ce moment its 12 years a slave by Solomon Northup which the film was based on. 

I'm sure you'd all look super snazzy with your summery bags and accessories.

Amani xx

"I LIKED THEM FIRST"

Bonjour mes amis!

So today I would like to talk about the phrase "I liked them first". This is a sentence I have used many times myself in the context of bands or artists that I had discovered before they made it into pop culture. I found that in todays day and age there is an almost struggle and burning desire to be unique; have your own interests. So you're constantly on the lookout for something that can become "your" thing. Once you've found that thing there is a feeling of immense pride in yourself which is diminished when you hear your favourite band on kiss fm. (This happened to me recently with the band American Authors.) 

Then,once your special thing is shared with everyone at school or in your community it just isn't special anymore. You're just another screaming fan with  a 5SOS tee shirt.
At these times the most natural thing to say to these new so-called "fans" is I LIKED THEM FIRST. Sometimes when I say this, the reaction is just a laugh and an "alright, calm down-we believe you".I normally get really annoyed at these things and I feel like I have to stop liking the band/artist/book but recently I've realised that just because other people begin to like something that I do,it doesnt mean I have to stop being a fan. It just means that they discovered something later than you. 

However this attitude is still not leaving me, I still have a tendency to scream I LIKED THEM BEFORE YOU. YOU ARE NOT A TRUE FAN. I AM. So from now on I am going to try to keep calm and just share my interests with other people. I'll let you know how it goes! Comment if you've ever felt like this

Amani xx

Hey Everyone

Hi!
My name is Amani and im 13 years old from London! This blog is going to be about various things from Knitting to Books to Fashion! And just life really! The name Castle On a Cloud came about as I am a massive fan of the musical Les Miserables. SO  read on and enjoy

I thought I'd begin with a few facts about me as that is what is considered acceptable in society

1.I love everything about France and love French
2.I love The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Joy Division and loads of other bands
3.I am an avid reader and love the classics
4.I am against society
5.I love fashion! (who doesnt?!)
6.I knit and crochet
7.I am in love with vintage things
8.I have weird obsessions
9.My favourite musical is Les Mis
10.I dont like odd numbers

So thats all for this blog post I hope you stumble across me later, on this blogging journey both you and me are embarking on!

Amani x