Tiny asos loot & my face of yesterday!

Last weekend I found myself perusing the clearance section on asos and did a little happy dance when I saw the necklace I'd been keeping my eye on for ages massively reduced! It's long, it's nautical, it's cute & it was £3.50 reduced from £10 - I had to have it.

Also, just because I couldn't just buy one thing, I got Barry M's peachy pink - I know, I know I'm so last summer on this one. It's peachy, it's pinky, it's perfect for summer and I'm super happy I got it.

I thought I'd add on my face of yesterday at the end here. I had an interview to go to so I wanted clear & flawless skin. I haven't heard back from them yet, I'm pretty sure I probably didn't get the job which sucks because I really wanted it, but at least I got to dress up for the afternoon!

♥ Revlon ColorStay.
♥ Benefit Boi-ing & Erase Paste.
♥ Beauty Without Cruelty loose translucent powder.
♥ Illamasqua Unrequited blush.
♥ Rimmel Sexy Curves mascara.
♥ Revlon Pink Pout lipstick.
♥ Australis lipgloss - lambada.

xoxo

Current Favourite Perfumes ♥

My perfume collection isn't very large; I think I must be very choosy when it comes to scents. I also don't tend to change my perfume with the seasons like most people do. If I like a scent, I'll wear it whatever time of year it is! My two favourite all time perfumes are Boudoir by Vivienne Westwood which is gorgeous for night time & Eternity by Calvin Klein that I've been wearing for 7 or 8 years now.

I saw Boudoir in TK Maxx for about £17 and I just had to have it. I'd never smelt it before so I must admit that I bought it because it was Vivienne Westwood. Luckily my gamble paid off and I adore the scent. I'm rubbish at describing smells but I like it because it's a very sexy, feminine & grown up kind of scent. While I'm not sure many people my age would like or wear it, it's my go to scent for the night time & I've had many compliments on it! Vivienne Westwood online describe it as having top notes of vibernum, bergamot & mandarine with heart notes of red English roses & garden evening notes of tobacco flowers and heliotrope. Everything, even down to the packaging, is gorgeous and the best part for me is that it hasn't been tested on animals!

I've been wearing Calvin Klein Eternity since I was about 14 & it has become my signature daytime scent. It's described as being a feminine scent with white lily, white florals, marigold & mandarin accompanied by amber and sandalwood. I rather like the tagline for the fragrance "As long as intimacy goes on, so will Eternity" I wonder how long it took someone to come up with that gem? To me, this is a really fresh fragrance that I always get comments on telling me how much it suits me, yay! The only negative for me is that I'm unsure whether it has been tested on animals. Peta's compassionate shopping guide says that it hasn't but every other site I've seen says that it has. If anyone can shed some light on this for me I'd be very grateful.

What are your favourite perfumes at the moment? If you have any recommendations of perfumes that haven't been tested on animals I'd love to hear them!

xoxo

Everyday Jewellery Favourites ♥

I adore jewellery; whether it's costume or delicate, I love it. Antique jewellery or antique-esque jewellery is my absolute favourite. If I ever get engaged I don't want a brand new really expensive shiny ring, instead, I'd much prefer a vintage ring picked out from an antique shop. That's what my Grandparents did & I'm very lucky to now have that ring and I think it's perfect. I haven't included it here because I don't wear it every day but I think that explains why my everyday jewellery favourites are, I was going to say simple but I'm not sure that's the right word. They're not very bling, lets put it like that.

The clock ring I made myself and I'm amazed it's still in one piece. It's probably the only thing I've ever successfully managed to make that turned out right. The bird ring I got in the sale from ASOS a while ago. The gold colour is wearing off but I actually quite like the copper colour underneath, plus I can't really complain for the £2 price I paid for it.

These are a good portion of my earring collection. I don't own many pairs because I wear my hair down all the time so no one really ever sees them. The elephants are probably my favourites because, well, they're just so cute! I love getting earrings as presents; every pair I own has been a gift and I love them all. I'm easily pleased, me!

My anchor bracelet is my love! Yes it gets caught on everything, yes it's a bit impractical but I don't care because it has a huge anchor on it.


The charm bracelet that these charms are on is broken, but it's the charms that I really love. For my 21st (in 2 weeks!!) I'm getting a charm bracelet and I'm going to get these 2 soldered on to it. It's a silver bracelet but I have no qualms about mixing gold and silver charms. *Cue sharp intake of breath from some people* Never been one to conform! ♥

I think everyone and their dog has the birdcage necklace from Accessorize but I can totally see why, it's gorgeous! I love the colour of the little birdie, he's very on trend! My second necklace is also from Accessorize & it feeds my nautical obsession just nicely. I am so very predictable, I know!

What are your favourite items of jewellery?
xoxo

Neal's Yard Wishlist.

My boyfriend and I have booked a weekend away for my birthday which I am so so excited about. We live 200 miles apart and we don't get to see each other as often as we'd like so any time we do get is precious! Apart from getting to see my boy the thing I'm most excited about is going to a Neal's Yard shop. Most people are going to be like 'errr..that's a bit sad, no?' but I don't care because skin care is my new obsession!

So this is my wishlist and.. uhh, all of those together would cost £197. I think I'm going to have to do a lot of narrowing down here! I think I'm swaying towards the chamomile cleanser the most & perhaps one of the moisturisers at the moment. But I secretly wish I could buy the whole shop!

Have you tried any Neal's Yard products? Have you got any recommendations of products to try & ones to avoid?
xoxo

My long lost sister?

I'm pretty chuffed right now, the beautiful Nikki's mum said I look like Billie Piper! I adore Billie, I think she's gorgeous so I'm taking that as a massive compliment! I mentioned it to my boyfriend and he & his mum agree, apparently his mum said it when she first met me a couple of years ago!

What do you reckon? I don't think I see it but blimey, I wish I did look like Billie! ♥

Have people ever told you that you look like someone famous?
xoxo

Review: Naked Volume Body Building Shampoo & Weightless Conditioner.

I'm going to start off by saying that I love this shampoo and conditioner; I love the scent, I love the price and most importantly I love the fact they are 97% natural & don't contain parabens, petrochemicals or SLS. These two particular products from Naked are vegetarian friendly; some products are vegan friendly also.

For me personally I have seen a definite improvement in my skin and hair since I have started using products that are free from potential nasty ingredients. I will concede that most of the make up products I use probably contain parabens or something equally not particularly nice. However I'm getting older, (granted I'm not old just yet!), but skincare is pushing it's way up to the top of my list of things I need to be more educated about. Anyway, I've gone off on a tangent yet again, back to shampoo & conditioner.
I have fine hair that has absolutely no volume to it whatsoever - it's flat and I really don't like that so, I always tend to gravitate towards shampoos that claim to volumise and conditioners that say they are weightless.

Here's what Naked say about their Volume Body Building Shampoo:
"Give your fine hair a chance to plump up the volume for a Big Hair Day. Wheat amino acids and corn extracts help keep locks plumped up and Chicory extract helps to control the annoying flyaways you can get with finer hair. Fruit extracts full of naturally occurring AHA's lightly smooth down hair's surface scales and hair becomes soft, bouncy and a whole size bigger (but it only works in hair...)"

In my opinion this is a completely accurate description. It's not a miracle worker; my flat hair isn't magically a million times the size after using this but after my usual styling routine (which isn't anything special) I would definitely say my hair has more volume than usual & my hair is left incredibly soft and manageable.

The shampoo is a gel type of consistency.

I've read other reviews about their shampoos that have said that they don't lather but I disagree. Even though they don't contain SLS (the ingredient that makes products foam) I find if your hair is completely wet and you massage the shampoo into thoroughly, it will lather. I personally find that I get a better lather on the second shampoo.

Naked Volume Body Building Shampoo costs £3.99 for 250ml, which I have to say is a bit of a bargain! You can purchase online from the Naked website or in-store at Boots.

Here is the description for the matching Weightless Conditioner:
"Fine hair needs to be conditioned but doesn't need to be weighed down with the burden of a heavy conditioner."

This is the perfect conditioner for my hair because it is definitely weightless yet it manages to tame my locks at the same time. The consistency is quite a runny liquid but it's very easy to distribute the product in your hair. My hair is left looking sleek and soft after styling and more importantly, not weighed down & flat or full of fly away hairs. It's a winner in my book. Scent wise, both products smell natural - they smell like they're packed full of ingredients that are good for you and your hair.

  The conditioner is a white fairly runny cream consistency.

Naked Volume Weightless Conditioner is priced at £3.99 for 250ml as well and I will be continuing to purchase these beauties over and over again.

Usually here is where I would talk about the negative points of a product, but I honestly can't think of anything. I know it can be a bit annoying when a review is only 100% positive; it makes you wonder if the person is telling the whole truth. All I can say is I purchased these products with my own money and I'm not being paid to talk about them. They're simply products that I enjoy using and maybe some of you will enjoy them too.
You can find out more about Naked Bodycare on their website http://www.nakedbodycare.co.uk/ which I think you should have a look at. They don't test on animals, their packaging is totally recyclable, where possible they source ingredients from the UK but if that's not possible then they buy from sustainable and community trade sources. They may not be what you look for in a company, but they're definitely what I look for.

Have you ever tried any Naked products?
xoxo

Outfit of the Day.

Today (well, errr, now yesterday) was a beautiful sunny day & I went all out on the florals in celebration!

♥ Revlon ColorStay.
♥ Benefit Boi-ing.
♥ Rimmel Sexy Curves Mascara.
♥ Modelista Blush.
♥ The Body Shop Lip Butter.

I got the chance to take my new bag out on it's first outing & I got some compliments on it! Yay!
♥ Floral jersey dress - Primark.
♥ Grey cropped cardigan - TK Maxx.
♥ Postcard bag - Yumi.
♥ Red flower hair clip - From the gorgeous Nicola!
♥ Gold Charm bracelet.
♥ Anchor Necklace - Accessorize.
♥ Nail polish - Mint Choc Chip my 17. Which has lived up to it's name and chipped after less than 24 hours. Boo!


What did you wear today?
xoxo

Come and meet my new love!

After umm-ing and ahh-ing for ages, going on & on about it, and asking all you lovelies your opinions I finally decided to purchase the bag. Yes that does mean you won't have to listen to me go on & on anymore, well, after this post! I had a little bit of Easter money left over from my Grandparents and I didn't want to fritter it away on boring every day things because that's no fun! I think it was the 15% off code I found and free delivery that finally swayed me! Plus I think it's absolutely gorgeous & what I would call my first 'proper' bag!
It's the Yumi Dandy bag & it has a beautiful post card design and pretty pink flowers that is perfect for spring and summer. I've already planned out outfits to wear with this. ♥

The back of the bag has this pretty vintage stamp design that's full of gorgeous spring & summer colours. I'm pretty much in love with it, can you tell?

The reason I say it's my first 'proper' bag is because it's the first bag I've ever had that's been this well made with as much lovely detail. The lining is black polka dot & there's a zip pocket and a place for a mobile phone.

I think I paid about £37 with the 15% discount from Uttamdirect.com that also has so many pretty items. So, it wasn't expensive at all and I love it so much!

What's your favourite bag?
xoxo

Review: Neal's Yard Power Berry Daily Moisture.

I must confess, the only reason I picked up this months edition of Marie Claire was because of the free 50ml tube of Neal's Yard Power Berry Daily moisturiser. I don't normally buy magazines but I was facing a 6 hour train journey and I figured I needed something to occupy me. There wasn't much choice in the train station and the ones they did have all looked equally unappealing until I saw this as a free gift. Well, we all love a freebie don't we?!
Neal's Yard is a company that has had my attention for a long time because they seem to encapsulate everything good. They don't test on animals, they don't use parabens or any other potentially nasty ingredients, their packaging is 100% recyclable, they're carbon neutral & to top it all off their products have received a whole bunch of awards; sounds like a winning combination to me.

 Here's how they describe the power berry daily moisture on the website:

Boosts radiance and protects YOUTHFUL skin. This lightweight, easily absorbed daily moisturising lotion containing antioxidant-rich acai, bilberry, goji berry and rosehip, supports the skin with hyaluronic acid to boost skin moisture levels, whilst a synergistic combination of buddleia and thyme, containing antioxidant flavonoids, and anti-inflammatory saponins and triterpenoids, acts as an anti pollutant to help combat ‘city stress’ and promote skin radiance and vitality.

Now, I really like that description. I have no idea what some of those ingredients are but that's nothing new; have you ever looked at the ingredients on something and gone "...huh?" I do that all the time! But it is nice to know what the ingredients they use are expected to do.

For me, the lotion has done everything the description said it would. It's easily absorbed & my skin feels more balanced and radiant. Before I started using this I had a little break out on my chin and a fair amount of redness. Usually after having spots the redness would stay for at least a few weeks but it has almost disappeared now after only a few days. The only thing I've changed in my routine is the addition of this cream so I'm thinking it's done my skin some good.

I have pain in the bum combination skin that likes to vary between being dry & oily and this cream is probably verging on being a little to light for me right now. Once the height of summer kicks in, if it ever does, I can see this being my perfect day time moisturiser. However just now I definitely need to use something a little heavier especially at night time.

I've been so impressed with the power berry that I've been reading into the other facial moisturisers they make and I've made a very long list of the items that have caught my eye. The almond moisturiser & the rehydrating rose daily moisture have particularly interested me. Potentially very good for my skin, but not so good for my purse & at the moment I simply couldn't spare the money. In my opinion the products are pricey but definitely not hideously over-priced. Skin care is something that I am willing to invest money in (when I have any) for the right products.

The Power Berry Daily Moisture in the 50ml tube is limited edition and costs £10.50. The 100ml version costs £22 and comes in the signature blue glass bottle with a pump. Available from Neal's Yard stores and nealsyardremedies.com.

Have you ever tried any Neal's Yard products? Or if not would you like to?
xoxo

Tag: I like. I love. I hate.

I was tagged by the beautiful Tennille who I love lots to do this tag. She tagged me yonks ago, I'm so so bad at keeping up with these, so if you've tagged me recently I might need a kick up the bum gentle reminder!

The Rules:

Fill in 12 likes, 1 love and 8 hates. Then tag 3 other blogs you admire.

I like secretly believing magic is real! I like wearing pretty floral tea dresses & sandals on warm summer days. I like buying pretty things that I don't really need. I like the smell of the seaside. Salt water, salt and vinegar soaked chips & ice cream.
I like smiles. I like getting nice post in the mornings. I like putting crisps in my sandwiches. I like cosy nights in. I like Sia. I like animals ♥

Image we heart it: here.

I like vegetarian sushi. I like photographs.
I love those butterflies I still get in my tummy whenever I see my boy, even after 2 years together. ♥
I hate that mint choc chip nail polish by 17 takes forever to dry. I hate clutter. I hate being too hot! I hate unnecessary rudeness. I hate feeling like I'm wasting my life. I hate the word meal. Ick. I hate that the vegetarian options in restaurants are always horrible. I hate goodbyes.

So many people have done this already, I've lost track. So I tag everyone!
xoxo

Primark Loot.

When I was up in Yorkshire over Easter I tried so hard to find something to buy, but sods law kicked in and I couldn't find anything I liked. Nada. Not even in the cosmetics company store! Well actually, I lie. I did see a beautiful bag, the most perfect bag in the world apart from one thing, the handles are short. People are sick of me talking about it on twitter now but I'd like your opinions on carrying a bag on your elbow as opposed to on your shoulder. My question is, will I look stupid carrying a bag on my elbow? Answers in the comment section below thank youuuu! ♥

Anyhoo, I digress. Yesterday I decided to wander into town to have a mooch around Primark in the hope that I'd find some of the pretty things that have been popping up on blogs recently. I have a love hate relationship with Primark. I love the prices & I love the variety. I don't love that the staff in my local store need some serious customer service training; a smile doesn't go a miss every now and then does it? And I also don't love that people just throw everything on the floor; you wouldn't do that in Vivienne Westwood would you? Heck, you wouldn't even really do that in Topshop. But with all that said, the prices are worth the extra hassle.

The first things I picked up were some gorgeous shoes. I've had a big shoe clear out recently and sadly my most loved flats have had to go to shoe heaven. Sad times!

I live in flats. I'm 5'8 and feel ridiculous in any kind of heel. Plus flats are comfy, three cheers for comfort! These beauties are lovely to walk in and look how pretty they are! I was pleasantly surprised to find the size 8's were far too big for me so these are a 7. Now this has been happening in lots of shops. Either my feet have shrunk, (is that even possible?!), or vanity sizing has well and truly kicked in! Either way, I love these and they were only £5.

These have a much more subtle floral print and are a light grey & gold colour. I bought these to go with a navy blue dress that you'll see in a moment. These were £5 also.

I think these are my favourites, black with bright pink roses are a winner for me. Again, comfy to walk in, super pretty and only £5. Ooh, I do love a good bargain!

Next I got three pretty dresses that will be perfect for summer. Now, I didn't really need 3 more dresses neccessarily but shhh, that's not important!

This one is quite short by my standards, it sits about 4 or 5 inches above my knee so I shall be pairing this with leggings. You slim legged beauties will look lovely without but sadly I can't work that look at all. I couldn't leave this in the shop, it was the last in my size and only £7.50.

This dress is surprisingly well fitted. It nips in at the waist and skims over my hips and is a really nice soft kind of jersey material. Laarvly! This was £9.

Finally I got this super pretty Navy Blue dress which will be oh so perfect for dinner & drinks at the beach in summer time. It would also look nice with that damn bag I'm lusting over. Don't forget to tell me if I'd look a complete tit carrying a bag on my elbow! I'll shush about that now, promise! This was £11.

Oh and I also got a pair of black plimsoles which I forgot to photograph. They're not very exciting but very practical & they were only £2! So i got all that for just less than £45. Roll on summer time ♥

What are your thoughts on Primark? Have you found any bargains there lately?
xoxo

March Favourites.

I know, I know I'm late doing this post again! Is it just me or are these months flying by? Anyway, it's time for my monthly favourites once again! I've been pretty boring this month and not really added anything new to my routine so these are things I may have talked about a little bit before but I've set myself a little challenge not to miss any monthly favourites out this year.

Okay, so first up we have Bourjois 10 hour sleep effect foundation. I've had this since early last summer but have recently been reminded of how much I love it when Muhsine from Bubblegarm did a review of it. This isn't a high coverage foundation at all but with a decent concealer I find that I can make this work despite not having perfect skin. I love everything about this even down to it's fruity scent; it's easy to work with, takes seconds to apply and feels really light on the skin. I think this is going to be one of the foundations I use all through the summer and will keep repurchasing.

Since I mentioned concealers a second ago I'll move on to my favourites at the moment. I really like Benefit Erase Paste & Benefit Boi-ing for different things. The Erase Paste does a decent job of brightening the under eye area but the trick for me is to not apply too much so that it settles into any lines and when warmed up before application Boi-ing covers any blemishes or redness I have really easily. For me these work best when I apply them with my fingers.

Another favourite this month is The Body Shop cool dusk blush trio. I do love a bit of shimmer every now and then and this is perfect for when I'm in that kinda mood. It looks pretty in the pan and it gives a beautiful colour to the cheeks. Again, something I'm sure I'll be reaching for a lot during the summer.

I noticed that Gemma from Gem's Maquillage & Kavita from iheartvintagex both use the Collection 2000 liquid liner and said that they find application with it really easy and it's so inexpensive. Up until I purchased this I had never used a liquid eye liner but I was in Superdrug and I thought I'd give it a go. I absolutely agree that application is so easy with this and although I've not mastered the perfect straight line just yet - I'm getting there!

This crease brush from Crown brushes was one of the prizes I won from the lovely Tanya's giveaway a few weeks ago. I find it the perfect size to work with and it's not scratchy at all. Plus it's pink, how cute! Hopefully it'll get me playing around with eyeshadows more.

Finally blistex intensive moisturiser lip balm has been my best friend this month. My lips have been so chapped and sore that most days lipstick was completely out of the question. I find this really soothing and it's not been off my lips all month.

Have you tried any of these products? What were your favourites during March?
xoxo