Pre-Graduation-Prep

‘Graduation Dress in Selfies’

The weekend before last, I suddenly realised that my graduation was only three weeks away and the most I’d actually done was confirm with Uni that I was going.

Cue: panic.

SO I did everything in one weekend.

I hired my robes, booked the photos and even found the perfect dress!

(proud moment!)

I wanted something unique and beautiful which would still go with the university colours (black, red, white). As a pale, ginger-type person, clearly the best option here was black.

Plus – I really like black…

So when I found this dress with a beautiful velvet design I completely fell in love… and I love it so much, that these are the only photos I’m going to take until the proper ones on the day. (Stay tuned!)

The Dress- http://tinyurl.com/odrg4dp

Bloglovin

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/13087775/?claim=pbk3wbknpxg">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

I’m finally on Bloglovin! 

I’ve been tagged! #liebsteraward

First, thank you to Nadine of http://www.nadinealex.blogspot.co.uk/ for tagging me! It’s pretty cool that new bloggers are all supporting each other and growing the blogging community!

Before I start, here are a few points…

-      Answer the 11 questions sent to you…

-      Nominate 11 bloggers who have under 200 followers on twitter

-      Ask them 11 questions of your own

-      Tag them in your nomination tweet

-      Enjoy! :)

So, here’s my bit…

Questions sent to me:

1)    Name your top 3 bloggers

-Kaitlyn Ham; modernlegacy.blogspot.com

 I wish I had her wardrobe…she has stylish work-wear to a T.

-phoenixlovechild.blogspot.com

 Effortlessly cool. What more?

-Kavita; shewearsfashion.com

 She has the lifestyle I can only dream of – inspiration to dream big!

2)    What is your signature makeup look?

Because I work in an office and have to get up fairly early I keep it pretty simple:

-a light base;

-a sweep of contour and colour so I don’t look too pale and ill;

-eyeliner with an upwards flick to open up my tired eyes;

-mascara on the top lashes

3)    What is your statement piece in most outfits? Could be jewellery, a scarf...

I have two current favourites:

-The necklace I was given my by cousin for being a bridesmaid

-The vintage kangaroo-print scarf my sister bought me for my birthday

4)    What is your favourite magazine to read?

I have a subscription to Elle, which I love for the updates on catwalk trends and the beautiful photography

5)    What do you think is the most successful fashion & beauty brand?

This is a toughie! -there are so many! And I think success can be defined in many different ways.

As one of my favourites, I’ll pick Topshop, because they are good on so many levels: high street fashion, high end fashion, amazing accessories and a pretty decent beauty collection on top.

6)    Are you a feminist?

Absolutely! I think that social and gender equality needs to catch up with the rest of our progress in the modern world.

I think that the biggest myth about feminism is that it’s about female supremacy when really, it’s about empowering everyone, including women.

7)    What inspired you to create a blog?

I love all things beauty and fashion and wanted somewhere to collect my thoughts. I suppose I do this as much for myself as I do to inspire others to do the same J

8)    Do you follow any YouTube bloggers?

I don’t! I should probably sort my act out on this!

If you have some recommendations please let me know in the comment section at the bottom!

9)    What was the last thing you bought yourself?

Another hard one! This will probably have changed by tomorrow!

The last item I bought was a Catfish and the Bottlemen album (check them out, they’re pretty cool!) And the last piece of clothing I bought was a navy jumper from Pull and Bear-which I love beyond reason (but then I do have a slight addiction to jumper purchasing…)

10) What 4 cosmetic things could you not live without?

Absolute top is my eyeliner – with my colouring you need a bit of     definition. I have many eye-liners. Maybe I’ll dedicate a post to them soon..?

Second, my Porefessional primer – it goes on like a dream and leaves my dry skin feeling really soft!

Mascara – for a similar reason to the eyeliners! Currently, I love No7 extreme length mascara.

And lastly, my Body Shop hemp lip balm – especially with the weather getting colder! It makes keeping lips soft that bit easier!

11) What advice would you offer to someone who is starting out in makeup?

My main point with make-up is this:

Stick to what suits your skin type/colouring and to what you love!

That’s not to say don’t try new things, of course do this! But don’t buy something because everyone is or because it’s the new ‘thing’. Keep it unique, fresh and interesting. If we were all the same, there would be no point in blogging about it!

Wow! Thank you again Nadine for the questions, and now let’s see who is next!

So here are my 11 nominations:

1.     @Leanneofarrell1

2.     @bodyofnature

3.     @AnniaHale

4.     @steph_blog

5.     @naturallybeige

6.     @Just506

7.     @Polishedbymaria

8.     @ajoyfulblog

9.     @zoebowx93

10.            @danakay16

11.            @Maddy_Blackburn

And here are my 11 questions:

1.     What keeps you inspired to write a blog?

2.     What is in your essential beauty toolkit for this winter?

3.     Name the piece of clothing you couldn’t live without and why?

4.     Boots: Ankle or Knee-high?

5.     What is your favourite thing you bought recently?

6.     Whose style do you admire at the moment?

7.     Bags or shoes? …or both?

8.     Where/when do you like to write?

9.     Are there any other bloggers who particularly inspire you?

10.            Reading: books or magazines?

11.            What advice would you give to someone considering starting a blog?

Weekly Nail Routine

How I maintain my nails...

I don't normally do tutorial type posts, but this is one beauty routine which is easy to forget, even though it doesn't need to be lengthy or complicated.

So I thought I'd share my weekly routine, as well as my current favourite colour.

For my weekly routine, I like to keep it simple. I have divided the process into a ‘3 Steps & Done’:

1.     File the nails into shape; remove any jagged edges and try to return them all to roughly the same length. I prefer to use a metal file for this.  Smooth them off to create an even surface for painting. I love my 4 way nail file block

find a similar thing here: http://www.boots.com/en/Boots-4-Way-Buffer-Block_1114957/ 

2.     Once shaped and prepped, I paint my nails with a base coat. My product-du-jour is the NailsInc. ‘Nail Kale Superfood Base Coat’:

 http://www.nailsinc.com/nailpolish/superfood-nailkale-base-coat/1509/  

(which I am currently still trialling, so more on this one soon)

But, basically, two coats of any good base, and they’re ready for colour.

3.     I mentioned in my last post about finding the perfect bronze, and I was on a mission for a little while, until my sister bought me Revlon’s Colourstay Gel Envy in ‘Double Down’. It’s not quite bronze and not quite gold, but actually quite perfect. As a relatively light metallic, this is my answer to the nude palette for autumn. 2 coats of this, and it does a good 5 days wear: definite hero product.

And that is pretty much it! Easy to do, and lasts for my working week.

Any questions or suggestions? Please comment below!

AW14 Nail Colour Palette

AW14 Nail Colour Palette

The other week, I started pondering my colour palettes for the coming season. Just so I’m prepared for when it happens.

I always find autumn creeps up on me, and BAM, I’m in full cold weather regalia, wiggling numb toes in the vain hope they might come back to life before I go back inside. (They never do). Therefore preparations have begun, though mostly in my head, and nail colours are the easiest for me to decide. (I’m also on a mission to find the perfect dark red/plum coloured lip product, but more on that later…)

So far, I have settled on an almost-black navy blue by Umberto Giannini, as well as a dark grey (very akin to ‘rainy-sky’ and ‘wet pavement’) and a dark red from Barry M. 

The blue was a specific one, I wanted a colour so dark that it could be black, but isn’t quite. And frankly, after I saw the blue eye make-up on this season’s catwalks, it had to be a blue. This shade by Umberto Giannini is perfect, but unfortunately I haven’t seen it anywhere in a while. It was part of a gift set a couple of Christmases back and though I wasn’t sure at the time, but I recently rediscovered the colour and I love it! So if you see it…get it, and if not, a very black-blue is about right!

The Barry M colours are much more accessible: I bought them in Superdrug the other week. They are ‘Red Black’ and ‘Grey’ in the Classic line. In the bottle, the red looks almost brown and because it is so dark, it is slightly brown. However, the colour is rich and reminds me of fallen leaves (while that is a bit cheesy, that was the kind of shade I had in mind, so this is It!)

The grey is pretty much a normal mid-dark one, but that’s good: I can go one coat for a lighter shade and build it up if I want it darker. Buying this, I wanted a neutral option to replace summer’s defining white, which I could wear as a full nail colour. As black is a little severe, I went for the halfway house and bought a grey called grey.

For this post, I wanted to be able to show each colour without repainting all of my nails three times, or wearing alternating fingers á la my 12 year old self, so I went a little arty. Actually I quite like the result and intend to repeat it, so all good!

(In case you wanted to know, I applied a base and then used nail painting guides to help get the curves even and where I wanted them.  Finally, I applied a gloss top coat. Easy!)

  

PS/  I’m also in the market for the perfect bronze/brown, so any suggestions, please let me know!

SHOPPING LIST

‘Red Black’ and ‘Grey’ by Barry M

Umberto Giannini ‘Love letter Blue’

(Or a black-blue, if you can’t get it) ((If you can, let me know where!))

Wedding Weekend / Shopcade & Barry M

Shopcade & Barry M Promo (and a quick note on my cousin's wedding)

A quick word on the wedding: it was beautiful. We spent the weekend just outside of London in the cutest old hotel. There was lovely sunny weather for the photographs and the rain managed to co-ordinate with the speeches—win! 

I was lucky enough to be a bridesmaid (along with my sister, cousins and other lovely ladies) and there is a photo of us below, just in case you’re interested…

Okay, part 2: my lovely goodies from Barry M. I received the Loud Mouth Lip Colours in ‘Gossip’ and ‘Chatterbox’ in the post on Thursday, but then there was the long weekend in London for my cousin’s wedding (amazing) so apologies for delays etc. I am back to writing after my mini-break!

 With a high pigmentation, vibrant colour is easy to build up and the product feels smooth on application. While packaged like a lip gloss, these are so much more. The lipstick/gloss hybrid gives the opaque colour of a lipstick, but with the ease of applying lip-gloss and a shiny finish.

                         'Gossip'

I tested the staying power on the day after the wedding, and it got through drinks after breakfast (lemonade, we aren’t that bad!) the goodbyes and the journey home. So I’m pretty impressed! By this point my lips still felt soft and moisturised by the product, and while the gloss effect had worn off, the colour was still there.

                         'Chatterbox' 

I would pick a favourite out of the two, but honestly, I love both. I like the more natural finish of ‘Chatterbox’ as well as the colour pop of ‘Gossip’, so I’m lucky I have the pick of both! I would recommend these if you want a quick colour fix on the go, with a few guts, a handful of staying power and all for £3.99!

PS/ excuse my bare skin...I'm giving it a break from foundation at the moment ... wish me luck and will-power!

                 

 SHOPPING LIST

Barry M Loud Mouth Extreme Lip Colour in ‘Gossip and ‘Chatterbox’