Discussions – Book Dust Magic

Sunday Post (Weekly Wrap Up October 24th-30th) #SundayPost #Blogging #WrapUp #Reading

Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

This meme was created for bloggers to spotlight posts they published in the week, as well as to talk about what they plan to write in the week that’s coming.

Sunday post is also great opportunity to showcase books we got in the week behind us.

Hi guys,

I have been quiet for a while. I skipped the last two Sunday Posts. The reason for that is: I haven’t been feeling well. I was too tired, spent most of my weekends in bed, caughing all the time. It was just exhausting. It wasn’t covid (I tested negative) but whatever it was took too long to finally end. I feel better since Thursday, so let’s hope it is the end game for whatever it is.
If nothing, this experience made me think of my body and how I treat it and I should take more care about my health.

I haven’t been blogging for a while. Most of the posts were pre scheduled and now I have lots of comments and blog visits to keep up. I hope I’ll do it til Wednesday. Unfortunately I have to go to work on Monday.

Last week on Book Dust Magic:

Tuesday: I reviewed The Shaadi Set-Up by Lille Vale
Wednesday: I talked about Sunkissed by Kasie West
Friday: I gave an early review for the novel Never Rescue a Rouge by Virginia Heath

Next week on Book Dust Magic:

Upcoming reviews:

The Ex Between Us by Nicola Marsh book cover UK edition

Dahmer MOnster: The Jeffery Dahmer Story

Book Haul:

I got two books for review from the publishers and I also won one in the contest organised on my work place.

Currently reading:

I am reading this ya novel for ages now. It is a solid coming of age story but I am ready to finally finish it, which I hope will be today (so I can read something scary for Halloween).

That is it!
Let me know what’s been going on with you, what you’ve been reading or watching this week and feel free to leave your links so I can visit you.
Have a lovely Sunday!

Sunday Post (Weekly Wrap Up October 3rd-9th) #SundayPost #Blogging #WrapUp #Reading

Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

This meme was created for bloggers to spotlight posts they published in the week, as well as to talk about what they plan to write in the week that’s coming.

Sunday post is also great opportunity to showcase books we got in the week behind us.

Hi guys,

Can you believe that I have been successful when it comes to keeping up with my blogging and have been posting for 9 days in a row? Me neither, but it is true. I guess hosting blogtober was a good step to get me back to blogging routine.
Now I just have to find a way to keep up with comments and visiting other blogs in a pace that I’d be happy with.

In my personal life it wasn’t the best week ever. My favourite colleague and a friend was let go from the job and working atmosphere was dull. In other words, going to a job is little bit harder ever since. But I guess I will get used to this with time.

We are spending this weekends in my parents’ house. We decided to visit them this weekend instead of next one when we should have gone, because my husband realized it would work better with his schedule that way.
Today we plan to watch The Luckiest Girl Alive which I am sooooo looking forward to because I remember I loved that book (even though I don’t remember much of it anymore).

I know it is Sunday and tomorrow is Monday, but I can’t wait for the next weekend to start again. Does it tell you something or what?

Last week on Book Dust Magic:

Monday: I talked about a movie called Me Time
Tuesday: I reviewed The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Wednesday: I posted my review for The Falling Girls by Hayley Krischer
Thursday: I gave my two cents on The Summer I Turned Pretty show
Frieday: I reviewed The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
Saturday: I posted my review for My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante

Next week on Book Dust Magic:

Upcoming reviews:

Book Lovers by Emily Henry book cover US edition

My Epic Spring Break by Kristin Rockaway

One Thousand Stars and You Isabelle Broom book cover

Currently reading:

Monsters among us by Monica Rodden book cover

I picked this book because I was in a mood for thriller, but I didn’t know how dark themed it actually is.
It is very good so far but reading it is somewhat an emotional rollercoster for me.

That is it!
Let me know what’s been going on with you, what you’ve been reading or watching this week and feel free to leave your links so I can visit you.
Have a lovely Sunday!

Sunday Post (Weekly Wrap Up September 26th-October2nd) #SundayPost #Blogging #WrapUp #Reading

Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

This meme was created for bloggers to spotlight posts they published in the week, as well as to talk about what they plan to write in the week that’s coming.

Sunday post is also great opportunity to showcase books we got in the week behind us.

Hi Guys,

This is my first Sunday Post in years. You might notice, but my blogging wasn’t the best for the last three years. There are always some distractions in my personal life ever since I became a mother and it wears me off. I feel like the person I was before was taken from me and I can’t bring her back no matter how much I miss her.
That theme is also hard to talk about because people often don’t have the tolerance and I should be happy to be a mother. Maybe one day I will talk more about it.
For now, I decided to at least give myself a pleasure to visit my previous life and blog because I used to love it so much. My blog to me used to mean more then a day job or any other hobbies.

So here I am, writing my Sunday Post in hope I will keep up with all of your new words and that somehow life won’t get in a way this time.
In October I decided to host Blogtober on my blog and I am still hopeful I will keep up with all of my blogging plans.

Last week on Book Dust Magic:

Sunday: I announced Blogtober

Next week on Book Dust Magic:

Upcoming reviews:

the very secret society of irregular witches book cover US edition

My Brillian Friend by Ellena Ferrante book cover

Currently reading:

I am reading One Thousend Stars and You by Isabelle Broom. I started it last month and my plan is to finish it before I start the spooky season. I am 25% in and so far it’s good.

That is it!
Let me know what’s been going on with you, what you’ve been reading or watching this week and feel free to leave your links so I can visit you.
Have a lovely Sunday!

So… Blogtober begins!

Blogtober vector Book Dust Magic Halloween

Hi Guys!
Few days ago I have been thinking how irregular my posts have been this year, and how, this year, it has been more days without anything new written on Book Dust Magic then days when I had something to say.
One of the results of me being absent from the blogosphere is my English started to deteriorate and, in all honesty, I hate it.

Therefore, I decided to host Blogtober this month. That means, there will be new posts almost every single day during October. My goal is to keep up with all the book reviews I am behind with (so I can have a clean start in November) and to also improve my English at least a bit. I also want to participate in blogging community now when I finally think I have more time for myself, now when my son is two and a half years old.

So… What can you expect on Book Dust Magic for Blogtober?
At least one movie review per week, 2-3 book reviews every week, Sunday Posts every single Sunday and my two cents for at least few shows.

The only thing that will make this not so Halloweenish Blogtober is that I won’t focus on horrors, but on every genre I tend to like. However, there will be some spooky, witchy and gory content for sure.

I am looking forward to share my thoughts with you and am glad to have you here.
These next few days I will go through all of the lovely comments that you left me in the last few weeks and will visit all of your blogs too. The new chapter for Book Dust Magic starts now!

Image by Freepik

Why I Disappeared and Getting Back to Blogging #blogging #books #MentalHealth

It feels like it has been ages since the last time I posted anything here on Book Dust Magic. It was never my intention to disappear. I guess life had other plans for me, and as much as I wanted to keep up with the same lifestyle I had before 2020, I couldn’t.

As I feel like I am ready to at least try to get back to blogging, before I do, I feel like I need to explain why I disappeared over night from the blogosphere.

Some of you may know that in 2020 I became a mother for the first time. I was really looking forward to a new chapter of my life. I had so much plans, including telling you about my experience as a first time mother here on my blog too.
However, each day after giving a birth was harder and harder, I fell into postpartum depression when I felt like I had no right to be in that state of mind, because I had no one except my fiance to help me with the baby. I felt like I had no luxury to have some rest, to be sad, or to just be myself, when all I had to do was taking care of my son. I really wished for my mother to help me, or to have a friend who would just look after him for couple of hours, just so I could sleep or rest, but wishes don’t always get granted.

I missed reading so much, but I didn’t have time or energy to do it, and I honestly felt like the old me was slipping away, until her final disappearance.

I was already in a bad shape, and then to make more room for the baby I had to give up on so many (un)read books. I sent them to my parents with plan to get them back when we move to a bigger apartment that we plan to purchase in next 10 years (we want to buy an apartment without mortgage), and then my father placed them in my late granny’s house and guess what? Dump ruined them.

And then I had to say goodbye to my cat GiGi (my father took him) because of his aggressive side, so our baby wouldn’t be in danger while he was newborn, and to be honest, saying goodbye to GiGi was a nail to a coffin of a person I used to be.
From then on, I felt like I was trapped in someone else’s body, living someone else’s life and not being able to live a life that was mine.

And then the earthquake happened (and another one), and cut the strings I still held onto with tips of my fingers.
I still have ptsd and I don’t think it will ever go away.

Anyway, I wanted to let you know why I wasn’t around, I practically stopped being part of this community not only because I simply didn’t have time, but because it was hard for me to look at everyone reading more books then ever. If I’m being honest, I was envy, and it was healthier for me to stay away from twitter and blogs.

Now when my son is 13 months old, I feel better and more rested as he started to sleep during night, and I started reading again.
It is still not as much as I would like to, and I will probably have to make piece with the fact that maybe I won’t read as many books as I’d like to for next few years.

My English suffered too, I find it hard to express myself as good as I used to, but I am working on it.

So… I decided to try to get back to blogging. One post at time. I won’t have a schedule because I can’t obligate myself to one.
I will cross post some reviews I have already written on Goodreads, and write new ones as I read, with hope that with time I will be able to write discussions and touch other subjects too.
And I hope someone will read them.

Winter photo created by jcomp – www.freepik.com

Changes I noticed on my body during pregnancy #Pregnancy #Lifestyle #mommyblogger #MumToBe

Pregnancy is the time when one’s whole body is changing. It is perfectly normal, as the body is growing another human being inside, so this whole state comes with lots of symptoms. Some are good, some are not so much.

Today I want to talk about four changes I noticed on my body, that I wasn’t prepared for. Three of them are positive, and as for one, I would like to live without.

My hair don’t get greasy as often

I always had oily hair that I had to wash every other day to look decent. I would only be able to afford a day without washing if I knew I would stay at home the whole day.
However, during my second trimester my scalp stopped producing so much oil, and now I can go up to 5 days without looking greasy, and if I use a dry shampoo, I can extend the time between washes to 7 days. I know, it’s a huge difference, and to be honest, it feels like a huge burden fell off my shoulders, as I hated washing my hair. Plus, it’s very hard to wash my hair during pregnancy.
I also noticed that my hair has more volume now.

My Keratosis Pilaris is gone

I always had this skin condition (or should I say problem) on my upper arms but now it’s gone.
However on my thighs there’s still some left, but it’s in a much better state then before.

I don’t have acne anymore

This is the biggest and most welcoming difference I noticed, as I started my war with acne in 2018. So yes, I had adult acne, around my chin and on my neck. They were painful, itchy and ugly. They were the only part of my body I truly hated, and now when I’m finally clear of those little devils, I feel like my life is upgraded. Like my prayers were answered.
These days I can even skip my face care routine, without a fear of waking up with a new pimple.
I hope they will never return, even though I am aware that they probably will.

I have cellulitis

I was one of those lucky girls who never had to fight cellulitis. Well, I guess I won’t be in that group anymore, as my behind and thighs are covered with those bastards.
I hope I will get rid of at least some portion of cellulitis after I give birth and start working out again.
Until then, I’m happy the winter is coming and my cellulitis will be completely covered with clothes.

That is it!
If you have any questions, feel free to ask me and I will answer them as soon as I can.
Also, tell me what kind of changes have you noticed while you were pregnant, if you have experienced it?

Woman vector created by freepik – www.freepik.com

Let’s talk: I am pregnant! #Pregnancy #LifeStyle #Bloggers #MummyBloggers

There is something I want to talk about for some time now, but I kept putting it off because of, to me, valid reason.

I am pregnant!

I am so happy about it. It was planned, but not expected, if it makes any sense.
In other words, me and my fiance really wanted to be parents, but as I come from a family where infertility is big issue, I didn’t want to have high expectations, to avoid disappointment.

Right now I am 19 weeks pregnant, and the reason why I didn’t announce it sooner is because I have been diagnosed with high risk of miscarriage.

It was not easy to deal with all the symptoms, but that is another theme, and I don’t want to spoil this happy post with it.

My diagnoses are also the reason why I don’t go to work anymore (I’m safekeeping my baby) and why there were no other posts then reviews on my blog for the couple of months now.
When all you have to do is rest and can’t go anywhere near children (a theme for another post) there’s not much to do then read and watch movies.
I also can’t travel or go to places I planned to visit and write about them in my lifestyle posts.

However, now when I announced my big news, there will be some lifestyle posts about my pregnancy here on my blog (and other things that come to my mind).
I understand it is not something that interests everyone, so I completely understand if you want to skip them, but it is something I do want to express my feelings about.

I still don’t know the gender of the baby, but as soon as I find out, I will announce it here, on my blog.

I am so excited about this new chapter of my life and am looking forward to see what our future will look like.

Background photo created by jcomp – www.freepik.com

Sunday Post (Weekly Wrap Up April 29th-May 5th) #SundayPost #Blogging #WrapUp #Reading

Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

This meme was created for bloggers to spotlight posts they published in the week, as well as to talk about what they plan to write in the week that’s coming.

Sunday post is also great opportunity to showcase books we got in the week behind us.

Hi Guys!

Long time no see! If you noticed, I stepped away from blogging for a while, and that is because I was working on new design for my blog. I wanted to focus only on that to make sure I did it right. I hope you like how it turned out!

Now with the new domain and fresh look, I am happy to announce that new posts will be live regularly, and there will be 3-4 posts per week.

As for my private life, there is not much going on. I was really sick on Friday, my throat hurt so badly I almost didn’t go to work, but I decided to try my best to make through that one day and see if it will develop into something more serious. I think it was just a bad cold, because I couldn’t breathe either, but there is nothing that warm bath can’t cure, so I am much better now, and I will be ready to go to work tomorrow.
My nose is still running, but with warm baths, paracetamol, vitamin C and Septolete, this cold is pretty much under control.

Last week on Book Dust Magic:

Saturday: I launched Book Dust Magic 2.0 and I also reviewed The Evidence Agains You by Gillian McAllister

Next week on Book Dust Magic:

Upcoming reviews:

I will also talk about books I read in April and how I visited Zoo park in Zagreb.

Currently reading:

This middle grade novel talks about magic and I am really enjoying it so far!

That is it!
Let me know what’s been going on with you, what you’ve been reading or watching this week and feel free to leave your links so I can visit you.
Have a lovely Sunday!

Welcome to Book Dust Magic 2.0! #bloggers #lifestyle #bookbloggers

Hi Guys!

I just wanted to quickly mention that Book Dust Magic is now updated to it’s own domain.
I want to say thank you to everyone who was looking forward to see it’s new design, and I hope you like it.

I am still working on small changes and updates, but I hope everything will be complete this weekend.

As for the blog itself, new posts will be published regularly from Monday on. There will be 3-4 blog posts per week, in which I will talk about books, movies, places, products and everything my heart is with.

However, there will be one book review posted later today, because I host the blog tour, and there will be Sunday post tomorrow.

I hope you’re all having a lovely time and I am looking forward to hang out with you here on Book Dust Magic in the future.

Take care,

Irena

I plan to self-host my blog #BloggingTips #Lifestyle #Business

It has been three years since I started blogging and in those three years, I had my ups and downs, but what is most important, I learned a lot.

When I first launched Book Dust Magic my main goal was to be part of reading community, and to improve my English as much as possible.
It was a hobby I gained so much from.

Now, after three years, I want to upgrade my blog to a next level.
I already stated that Book Dust Magic will become book/lifestyle blog.

I am taking my blog serious as if it was my second job, and I want to invest into Book Dust Magic like I would in my business.

Therefore, I decided to say goodbye to my free wordpress page and buy myself a new domain, to go self host.
I know I could upgrade my wordpress to next level, but after some thinking I decided to self host, and in all honesty, the main reason for that are plugins and freedom that comes with self hosting.

I already contacted several web hosting platforms to be sure in my decision.

Why am I telling you all that?

Firstly, because Book Dust Magic will be available on new address https://bookdustmagic.com from May 1st.

Secondly, I will try to move all of my followers to my new domain, but if you follow me via email, you will probably not get new emails every time I post something new, so make sure to subscribe to my blog after May 1st on my new domain.
If you follow me on wordpress, you should be able to see my new posts on your wordpress dashboard (if everything goes right, that is!).

I will try to make the transition on my own, so let’s hope I’ll succeed (and that I won’t lose my content).

You are probably curious why would I do it all on my own?

Well, I want to see if I can do it. And if I can, it will be one more skill I learned.
If I don’t, I will ask for help from professional.

Plans for the future…

Book Dust Magic will run on this web address until April 15th and then it will be launched on it’s new domain bookdustmagic.com on May 1st.

I hope everything will go well!
Please wish me luck and I hope we will have an amazing time on my new domain.

From May 1st you can expect to see Book Dust Magic in new, better, more professional and better looking version.
I can’t wait to see you there!

Business photo created by freepik – www.freepik.com