Image Map

Wednesday 21 December 2011

Get your toes wet dipping into this series ★★★★



Another teen series for you this week, but this time one which is traditionally aimed at the boys. 

The Percy Jackson and the Olympians series of books by Rick Riordan is a set of five books (with a spin off set of books having just recently been published) featuring the main character Percy Jackson and his group of friends going on adventures. 

As the title suggests the series is based around the mythical Olympus, the adventurers in the stories are children of the Greek Gods, half bloods, who are brought to Camp Half-Blood in order to train to undertake quests just like Hercules and the other heroes of myth and legend. Percy, the hero of the stories is the son of Poseidon, one of the Big Three Gods (along with Zeus and Hades) who were forbidden from having any more children, and so is in somewhat of a lonely position at the beginning of the series. The quests he undertakes with his friends vary in nature but they all relate in some way to the prevention of the rise of the Titans, who in the old myths were the race who came before the Gods and Demigods and Heroes. Is this sounding like a history lesson?

Although the whole idea of Greek mythology can be crazily complicated, the series manages to make it interesting and simple enough for kids (the books are technically placed in the 9-13 age bracket) while getting enough of the mythology in there for it to be educational. A full range of characters from the myths make regular appearances as both friend and foe, and the challenges are exciting enough to keep the reader entertained and thrilled. 

While they are obviously written to entertain, these books also manage to provide a role model for kids, especially kids who might traditionally shy away from reading. The main characters, the teenage Heroes, all have a range of learning difficulties such as dyslexia and have ADHD due to their God genes, and they use these features, which traditionally would be classed as a weakness, to help overcome battles, for the right child this sense of purpose could really provide inspiration.

For anyone interested there is also a film which is fun, though not as good as the books, and I know several adults who have read these as well as a fair few teens as well, they managed to keep them all happy, so good all round!

★★★★

Thursday 15 December 2011

The Book of Yesterday ★★


I will start this review by saying that I had never read any Cecelia Ahern before reading this book, so I am not used to her writing style and I cannot compare to her other bestsellers. She is a very successful author, she of P.S. I Love You (made into an adorable film featuring the wonderfully rugged Gerard Butler) and Thanks For The Memories, but personally this book has put me off reading any more of her work. I have several of her books sat on my shelf (all purchased for about ten pence each from the library book sale) and I really am not inspired to read them, I shall explain why.

The Book of Tomorrow follows a teenage girl, Tamara, as her and her mother are forced to abandon their high flying lives in Dublin following the death of her father and the subsequent reveal of a huge mass of debt. Tamara and her mother, who it appears has fallen into depression,  move in with family who live in the gatehouse of an old country estate. Tamara being a typical teenager hates the situation and her new surroundings and finds it difficult to adjust. While out attempting to entertain herself Tamara then finds a book which reveals the next day's diary entry to her (written by herself) and of course in typical fashion, she tries to change events. 

My main problem with this book was initially a general confusion about the target audience, in the UK this book is marketed generally as adult fiction, however the book follows a teenager and her experiences. I believe in the US this book is also categorised as teen fiction. This is hugely confusing because an adult may find it very difficult to identify with Tamara without finding her annoying, and it distracts somewhat from the story Ahern is trying to tell.

That story is my other issue with the book, primarily in that it takes so long to get anywhere and then when the real plot does suddenly appear it becomes really quite predictable. The story itself is a generally a good idea, but it shouldn't have taken a third of the book for me to really get into it. I understand Ahern is trying to create this desolate boring image of life in the country for Tamara, but instead I simply found my mind wandering and longing for other works of fiction to read. 

I wont give it away but the story concludes with what is supposed to be a shock reveal of a deep dark family secret, but I found myself guessing what it was about half way through (and getting most of it right) and so the writing which was supposed to be gripping, instead just dragged on for a couple of hundred pages more then I felt it should have.
I will give Ahern something though, I loved her characterisation of the Nuns, it really did make them sound oh so fun to be around :)

All in all, this is only getting two stars, and really it should get one. The story itself was a great idea but I feel it was weakly executed which is a shame because I had been looking forward to this book. Let's hope some of her other work is more impressive!

Rating: ★★

Thursday 8 December 2011

NOTD: Festive French


Barry M Gold topped with Barry M Gold glitter.
Tips are Barry M Bright Red topped with Barry M Red Glitter

I have been wanting to paint my nails all Christmassy for days and finally got around to it last night!

These were really simple, just 2 coats of a gold polish followed by a gold glitter topcoat and then freehand painted 1 layer of red on the tip and added a layer of glitter.

A simple way to get sparkly Christmas nails without getting too messy playing around with nail art brushes and actual glitter.

:) xo

Wednesday 7 December 2011

I want candy! ★★★


Now, don't go running away thinking "Oh I thought she had more class then to read Lauren Conrad! What twaddle!" Hear me out for a second because you might be a little bit surprised.
For people who know me in 'real life', i.e. not the internet, this might be a little bit of a shock, but I rather enjoy one reality television series of shows. It is the only, I repeat the ONLY, reality television that I really enjoy, and it is Laguna Beach/The Hills/The City. 
My mother is to blame, like, totally.

You see they started repeating these shows in the afternoons, when my mum would get home from work and put the kettle on and sit and chill before she had to make dinner or anything, and on days when I wasn't trekking back and forth to Sheffield or at work I would join her in watching, and I came to love them. 
They have the drama, which you know isn't real, but they make it just real enough that it is interesting. Plus there are all the parties and pretty clothes and makeup and things. We know (or at least if you follow my beauty blog you know) that i love pretty clothes and makeup.
Specifically my love for Lauren Conrad (or LC) came from watching these shows and seeing how she dealt with it all, I love her humour, and I hate Heidi so it was a given I would be team Lauren.

When I was bookselling I looked down my nose at her books, but having watched the show I decided I really wanted to read them as they are basically a behind the scenes look and Lauren's side of the story for the making of the Hills and Laguna Beach. I could definitely justify this with bookseller speak too, after all these books were New York Times best sellers!

The three books, L.A. Candy, Sweet Little Lies and Sugar and Spice, tell the story of two girls, best friends Jane and Scarlet, who move to the city and are approached by television producers to star in a new show 'L.A. Candy'. The girls share the stage with two other girls, both not nearly as down to earth as the two heroines and the four girls are then manipulated and their lives made a mess of through the producers need to create good television and the stars themselves being desperate for a cut of the limelight.

They were never going to be amazing literature, but they were some of those I-can't-put-this-down-dammit-where's-the-next-one-I-need-it-now books which I admit to loving. They give you an insight into the land of Hollyweird, which if you find the fake surface horribly cheesy and it grates on your senses you might find interesting for its seediness, and it allows you to look past the polished exterior of a show like The Hills and see how it can be truly damaging. The crazy events which occur help to illustrate the trappings of the high life and show readers that life in L.A. isn't just as sunny as its weather. The heroines themselves also help to highlight the importance of education and hard work as they continue to hold down steady jobs and go to university during all the happenings.

It also might help (to some extent, obviously she isn't a saint herself) to put the author, Lauren Conrad in a better position in your mind as it becomes clear she isnt as superficial as portrayed on the show. She really is a half decent role model for young women as her business sense is clearly strong. She has become very successful in turning the manipulation of the showbiz world she was thrust into on its head and taken control, something which we see the beginning of in the books.

Much like I expected, these books are great quick reads, a series that a teenager would love for the drama and their parents might actually like to consider for the message the series provides, that money and possessions really aren't worth the sacrifice. Anyone else might also find these interesting for the inner workings of reality television, but more then that they are inspirational. The books take a superficial character in a superficial world and add in the technical knowledge, the grit, and the determination to succeed which turns the heroine in these books into a well rounded character, and one to look up to.

Well done Miss Conrad  ★★★

Roaccutane VLOG 14: The final vlog!



So this was my final final roaccutane VLOG, which I uploaded the other day, 
it's short and sweet, with a happy ending. 
I hope all who are considering and/or going through treatment are doing well and I wish you all the best of luck!! 
xo


Thursday 24 November 2011

Nail Polish Collection







Regular readers of the blog will not be surprised by the length of this video, 
it is no secret I am a fan of nail polish.

I was really excited to make this video though even though it took me a whole day!
Enjoy :) xo

Wednesday 23 November 2011

The great knitting update

So I think after a several months knitting absence an update is in order. A refresher of sorts.

While I haven't blogged about knitting in a while, I also haven't actually been knitting. University really did just take over for the majority of the past year and it has taken me several months recovery to slowly get back into several of my hobbies, I sadly had to set both my knitting needles and my books aside which I found really quite odd and it didn't really help my stress levels. 

Obviously this means that I had several projects part finished, so I have taken some quick pictures to give you an update on their current progress to start fresh.

Calm Sweater

calmnov11


Pattern: Calm by Kim Hargreaves
Yarn: Rowan Kidsilk Aura in Vintage
Needles: 6mm
Progress: What you can see above is literally the current extent of my progress, about 10-15 rows of kidsilk knitting. This forms either the front or the back panel, I haven't quite figured it out yet, but I think I shall probably frog back and start again. I don't have any other plans for the yarn however so I will be re-knitting in the same pattern.

Eric Socks


ericsocknov11


Pattern: Eric by Janine Le Cras
Yarn: Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock Solid in Powder Blue
Needles: 2.5mm Needles
Progress: As you can see from the mess above, I have pulled the needles out of these. I have done this for two reasons, firstly because I cannot pin point which line I am on, and secondly because I am not as in love with the pattern anymore, and so I shall be recycling the yarn with a different one. I will probably keep this for another pair of socks though.

Bon Temps Marina


marinanov11


Pattern: Marina by Kate Blackburn
Yarn: Fresh From the Cauldron Super-Wash Sock in Sookie Stackhouse
Needles: 2.5mm
Progress: This is the only already existing project that I have worked on since I put down my needles at the beginning of the year, though only in the past few weeks. As you can see it really has gotten quite large, I am half way through the fourth repeat of the second chart and I intend to knit at least seven repeats so this actually isn't that far from finished. I can't wait to get this one finished as it really is a beautiful pattern so I am continuing to work on this at the moment.


Ishbel


ishbelnov11



Pattern: Ishbel by Ysolda Teague
Yarn: Noro Kureyon Sock
Needles: 4mm
Progress: This right here is a newbie. I cast this on a few weeks ago shortly after my "can you hear that clicking" blog post. Eagle eyed knitters will know that the shawl I was knitting there was actually Damson, and I intended it as a present, but I changed my mind and made my friend some cupcakes and instead frogged Damson to make myself another Ysolda Teague pattern. Ishbel so far is almost at the lace stages, and I am reasonably happy with the way it is turning out, I'm not overly fond of the mucky green in the yarn, and am contemplating doing the maths and seeing if I can chop it out and still have enough yarn to finish the pattern. I have seen an Ishbel knit in this same yarn however and it looked beautiful completed so I may just persevere.


So that is where my knitting basket currently stands, and I think I shall have to finish at least the Marina before I cast on for anything else, otherwise they will get away from me!






Monday 7 November 2011

NOTD: What's With The Cattitude?


Blue seems quite apt for today seeing as I am rather cold, I swear our heating is never on!

Anyway this is OPI What's with the Cattitude, one of the limited edition shades from the 2010 Shrek Forever after collection, and my personal favourite light blue.
The shade is almost opaque with two coats, you have to be careful to get them even, but it is such a nice shade that it is worth the little bit of effort.

Although this is limited edition, I got mine from eBay where there are always a few bouncing around, it was also still on ASOS a short while ago.

The dots (which I added because I was bored, story of my life right there) are OPI - OPI Ink, a new winter favourite.

XO

Saturday 5 November 2011

October Favourites


I managed to keep my October Favourites quite short this month, which is something I have been trying to do in order to keep the upload times down. 

Obviously I filmed this a few weeks ago now, but I have pretty much been sticking to the same products all month. 

Enjoy!
xo

Monday 31 October 2011

Happy Halloween!

I thought I would put together some pictures I took today while thinking about the seasons.

october


1. Obviously today is Halloween, so the first picture is of my candy corn scented Yankee Candle. I love candy corn, which we don't have in this country (but my awesome American friend is sending me some, she really is amazing!!) so I had to make do with the scent for now. I had to get the little candle because they didn't have any larger ones at the garden centre, typical for this country unfortunately.

2. I spotted this plant randomly while I had wandered outside into the back garden to take a picture of the trees in picture 4, everything around it was still a lush green and there was just this fiery plant in the middle of the bed, it looked really quite striking.

3. You wont see this often, because I hate feet, especially my own, but these are my toenails at the moment, rather seasonal yes?

4. The red tree is actually in next door's garden, while the half yellow half green is in ours, it was screaming at me from my window and got me out of the house for a short while to take some snaps. I didn't manage to capture how bright the red is from so far away (it's a bloody tall tree) plus the clouds, and the wind making it hard to get it in focus, but trust me that it really is very bright red and truly hard to miss!

I hope you have all had a spooky evening, I am watching a bit of Poirot :)
xo

Sunday 30 October 2011

Tutorial: Halloween Spooky Nails



I forgot to post this to the bloggy! It is my pumpkin and ghost nail tutorial which I uploaded last week. Obviously this is in the halloween spirit, and here is a close up for you. 



I also almost filmed a tutorial for this look:


These are werewolves and vampires, if that wasn't clear, complete with sparkly skin for the vampires but I wasn't entirely happy with them so I didn't film, I shall definitely be thinking about how I can improve them for next year :)

Happy Halloween everyone!!
xo

Friday 28 October 2011

OOTN with Rouge Noir

Terrible lighting, but a diddy OOTN, black H&M flippy skater hem dress and blazer, M&S opaque black tights and I am wearing some black patent Mary Jane block heels from ALDO.

The lippy is the awesome Chanel Rouge Coco in Rouge Noir, topped with MAC oyster girl gloss :)
Wish I had had time to take a picture of my eye makeup, it's a pretty grey crease with winged liner though, and perfume is Armani Diamond.

Happy Friday people :)

Wednesday 26 October 2011

September Favourites



My ridiculously late September favourites are up on the YouTube, apologies for the delay, but be cheerful that I also filmed my October ones on the same day (because I'm oh so for forward planning like that) and so they shall be up on time next week! 
xo

Monday 24 October 2011

Can you hear that clicking?


So I picked up some knitting needles today for the first time in months in order to make a special item for a friend.

I can't even explain to you how great it makes me feel to be doing this again, it really is a bit like coming home. I get all excited as I complete each row and it turns out successfully. It was great to dive into my antique leather suitcase and rummage through the yarn in there too.

To happy knitting from this point forward!

Roaccutane VLOG 13: 4 weeks later



During my crazy little filming session the other day I also managed to do a quick little roaccutane update. 
If you don't follow me on twitter you might have missed that I was finally discharged from the dermatology unit after seeing the doctor last tuesday.

Suffice to say I was ecstatic, and they were really pleased at the change my skin has undergone. 
I still have 4 weeks left of my "wash out" where the drug will still be working its way out of my system, but as of right now I am classed as a roaccutane success story.

I will still be keeping you updated on how things go, and I shall definitely be filming a concluding video for the little series.

I would just like to take a second before then though to encourage anyone who has ever been self conscious about their acne to at least go and see a GP, and if what they try doesn't work then to be asked to be referred to the dermatologist. At the end of the day, your happiness is the most important thing, and if your skin can make you unhappy every time you look in the mirror, then it is worth taking the time to get help.

xo

Review: Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum


I reviewed the new Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Gel Foundation the other day.
I picked this up for around £8 in Superdrug (though I can't find it on the website),
 but it is also available at Boots.

After using the product for a couple of weeks I am really enjoying it as a light coverage, fresh looking and feeling base. For the winter I feel it will possibly be quite moisturising and might help me stave off the dreaded dry skin dullness.

Definitely worth taking a look at!
xo

Wednesday 19 October 2011

NOTD: Sex Kitten

ldsexkitten

Leighton Denny - Sex Kitten

This polish popped through my letterbox the other day as a part of my GlossyBox (more on that in another post) and I was a bit dubious about whether I would like it or not to be honest. 
If you have followed my nail of the day posts for long you will notice that I don't really favour the whole pearlescent metallic look very often, I am more of a creme polish lover or i go for shimmer so the finish wasn't something I was looking forward to.
This is the first Leighton Denny polish I have ever used, so I can't comment on all the other ones out there, but the finish on this polish did exactly what I thought it would upon application, and its the reason I don't go for them, they streak.

Now obviously I am not talking streaking as in uneven coverage, I am talking streaking as in I can see where the brush bristles were. It drives me insane, I openly admit I am a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to my nails, but the lines in the application are something I can't tolerate, and I have actually just taken this off after wearing it for a day.

Other then the streaky appearance this went on fairly well with two coats. I can still see the whites of my nails which is always an issue when dealing with a light shade polish, but the colour was fairly opaque and it is pretty being what i would call a true ice blue.
I did find the brush to be a little hard to control because the cap is quite large but fairly short, which never allows for graceful application (all polish producers should take note of Ciate bottles I think) and this probably increased teh streaking as it meant on my fairly slim nails I had to attempt to curve the brush away from my skin. 

At £11 each these polishes aren't cheap, and I think that although I would be happy to try a cream finish polish by them I won't be rushing out to pick one up, if I happen to spot some in T.K.Maxx though I might grab some to try.

xo


OPI Muppets collection


Picked up some limited edition OPI polishes just now from the muppets collection, the Fozzie Bear one reminds me of the Chanel Peridot Polish.

OPI - Warm and Fozzie and Rainbow Connection

Friday 14 October 2011

NOTD: Ombré Nails


OPI-Just A Little Rosti At This

This is my first attempt at an Emma Watson inspired ombré nail look.

Emma had these awesome blue black airbrushed cuticles in the November Elle magazine that immediately drew my eye and I have been excited to try them ever since!

Obviously i don't have a nail art airbrushing kit, so i just used normal polish and it did take a bit of practice, but Once I have the technique perfected I shall film a quick tutorial for you :)

XO

Thursday 13 October 2011

Roaccurane VLOG: 12, 2 weeks later


So here is my little vloggy video which I think is at about 2 weeks after I had finished treatment. It takes between 6 and 8 weeks for the roaccutane to evacuate the system, so I should still be seein effects for a short while yet but I will keep you posted on any major changes.

I also have a doctors appointment coming up so I shall give you an update after that too!

xo

Sunday 9 October 2011

NOTD: Oh so Perdy!

I succumbed to the whole dalmation thing and broke out my OPI Alpine Snow and Bourjois So Laque in Noir de Chine to give it a go.
I tried to do just random splodges but it didn't quite work so I had to break out my nail art pen too for the smaller dots.

I do like how it turned out though, very funky!!

Thursday 6 October 2011

NOTD: OPI Ink

opiink


Another almost impossible to capture nail colour today:
This is OPI Ink

It really is beautiful, I have it on both my fingers and toes at the moment, that is how much I love it.
As you can (hopefully) see the polish is a purple/navy colour with purple, blue and pink shimmers in it.
It is one of the few polishes that I own which has an effect in the bottle which translates accurately onto the nail, the almost oil slick look that the shimmer has in the sunlight actually works, though I will say it works more so on my toe nails.

My favourite Barry M polish, if you have followed/known me for a while you will know is called Navy, and I like to think of OPI Ink as Navy with extra juice, it really is beautiful.

:) xo

Sunday 2 October 2011

NOTD: Sweetheart


Random on the go post today, as I am off tutoring and forgot it would be dark by the time I got back.

This is OPI Sweetheart, taken with two coats, most people say they need three but two medium coats always seems to work for me!

xo

Saturday 1 October 2011

NOTD: OPI Lincoln Park After Dark


Well I think October officially means that I can start wearing dark nails again!
I have had my eye on this one for a while so I knew I had to grab it up when I was recently at Sallys, I also grabbed OPI Ink so expect to see that soon too.

OPI LPAD (Which ALWAYS without fail makes me think it says Linkin Park, as in that band that I used to listen to at school lol) is actually an aubergine colour, even though it just looks black here. Next time I wear it I will try to photograph it again, but it is very difficult to get the purple to show up on camera.

In person natural light let's the deep shade reflect the purple however and it looks smart and sophisticated, perfect for pairing with my favourite winter lipstick, Clinique's Black Honey.

Tuesday 20 September 2011

Haul: Mahoosively Collective (June-Sept)


I have nooo idea why the video looks like that at the moment,  I have changed the image now so maybe it will fix, but anyways the actual video works if you click play!

So over the past few weeks I have worked a huge amount of overtime dealing with kids sweaty feet and so decided to treat myself, and for the couple of months before that I have just grabbed some items every so often so I have shoved them into a haul.

Hope you enjoy :)
xo

NOTD: Orly all the rage?


Orly - Rage

So I mentioned this in my haul video, which I think went up yesterday, but I grabbed this polish from eBay the other week. I have been after it for a while, I love the whole Rose gold metallic thing at the moment.

When I first opened the package I thought 'ohhhh dear' as it looked very similar to GOSH Frou-Frou, but actually that one is much more pink, where as Rage has a very subtle peachiness to the gold.

I don't like the brush, but I never do unless it is OPI/Ciate so that is no surprise. The wear we will just have to wait an see, I have had this on my toes for a week with no top coat and it hasn't chipped yet, but I have only just popped it on my fingers.

Overall I am glad I got it because I had wanted it for so long, but it isn't as amazing as I thought it would be, maybe it will grow on me in time?

Xo

P.S. I'm posting on that there new blogger app on my phone, so have nooo idea how it will turn out!

Friday 16 September 2011

August Favourites



My August favourites!
They are a bit late, but it is better then never yes? 
I should have a haul up tomorrow too. I am on a roll!!
xo

Thursday 15 September 2011

Thursday 25 August 2011

OCD


So I think i mentioned in my storage video that I wasn’t quite happy with how much everything is just shoved into some of the boxes I use for storage, and the other day when I was taking one of my mini breaks from doing work I broke out my hot glue gun and started making some dividers!


So I made 3, well I cut one and then cut two that slotted together. I made them from more notebook covers. It probably seems odd to use notebook covers but the plastic is just thick enough to stand up but not too thick to cut etc. They are actually stronger then the inserts I bought for my desk drawer.


This is the first one, I moved my blushers to one of the lidded boxes (which I removed the lid from) and popped my lip glosses, lip balms and lip stain/pencil shaped lipsticks into this bucket style box with two plastic dividers.


This is where I moved my blushers to, I just made a slotted divider, and glued it securely with the hot glue. I separated them all into powder blusher, bronzer, highlighters and then cream blushers. Let me tell you, it is so much easier to find what I want like this! There is more space for the products and although they were neat before I was separating them based on size rather then product. I also much prefer having removed the lid as I can now just grab things easily.


And here are the eye products, obviously here the letter stand separates in its own way but I still made a section for that so that if I took it out I would still have a designated space which I could use for something. At the moment though I haven’t room for the rack anywhere else so It is living in the box. I also love that I now have my pigments/glitter dusts separated out. They were always a pain to store because of their shape.
Needless to say my OCD side is much happier with things organised this way, and it was a good way to fill my break from doing uni work (I try to make sure I am away from the computer for those because I am getting serious headaches!) so I felt all productive and creative in a different way for a while.
xo



Monday 22 August 2011

Top Pout: Revlon Peach


Revlon Colorburst Lipstick in Peach (Spelt the american way, for searchability)
There was a totally hilarious pouting picture to accompany this post, but It was blurry, such a shame as it was hilarious!


Anyways, so.
Let me take you on a journey. There was a girl who last winter/spring decided she wanted to try a peach lipstick, she had a major search around for peach lippies, as she didn’t own any previous to this and tried very many. She purchased a few (which she still loves, just not as much as this), and still hadn’t quite found her perfect match. Then spotted this on one of the many blogs she followed, popped along to Superdrug and fell in love. Awww. 
Obviously, that was me! I think this may be my favourite peach/orange lipstick ever. Simple. 
At around £8 this is definitely the cheapest of the many peach lipsticks I tried, and the shade is definitely the most flattering for my skin tone. It makes me look lightly tanned and ‘finished’ when I’m not, and can take me from ‘bit of a mess really’ to ‘boho/beach chic’ with one swipe. I. LOVE. IT.


The problem? I cannot figure out how. Normally I can be like “oh yes that particular undertone there works wonders on this feature of my mug and makes me look fabby,” but this one, it doesn’t just makes me look good, it also makes me feel good which may help. There is something about Peach which makes me feel relaxed and chilled and happy and makes me want to pull funny faces at the camera and be miffed when they turn out blurry.
The formula of this lippy is also fab, nice and moisturising it is great for keeping lips soft and doesn’t dry them out. This does however mean that it falls into the melts and snaps easily category. In fact it did just that while I was swatching. Boooo! 
Anyways, bottom line, this is a fab summer lippy (and I shall be buying another one just in case Revlon decides to stop making them. I like to be prepared) and I cannot wait to see how it does over autumn/winter, the tone of the peach is just rusty enough that I think it will carry well through autumn. Fingers crossed!
xo



NOTD: Nail Envy


OPI Nail Envy for sensitive and peeling nails.


So this is why I haven’t had any NOTD pictures lately, my nails have been a mess ever since I tried to use up my Sally Hansen Hard as Nails. That stuff completely ruined them, they peel and flake like mad now so I am giving them a break and using some trusty Nail Envy to try and get them all nice again.
This is the first time I have used this one, I used to use the original Nail Envy exclusively. The price may be astronomical (and it has risen since I bought my last bottle, by about £4!!!) but I really do think that this stuff helps.
XO

Saturday 13 August 2011

Makeup Collection/Storage



Makeup collection storage!!
I have been meaning to do this for literally ages now, and had to film it in two parts so it is pretty long. I wanted to film it because I found when looking for storage ideas most of the videos were from the US and had some sort of plastic or acrylic element to it, which doesn’t suit my antiques and classic decor of my bedroom.
I hope you find it interesting, and you kinda get a quick look at the sort of things I have in my collection :)
xo

Thursday 11 August 2011

Current Tinted Moisturiser Routine



My current tinted moisturiser routine.
I have been meaning to do this for so long, and I think I even attempted it once with my old camera but it sucked. Hopefully this time it is clearer and you will just generally get an idea of what I like to use at the moment :)
xo

Roaccutane VLOG 10: Skincare Routine!



Roaccutane VLOG 10: Skincare routine and weeks 9&10
Here is my current skincare routine, and one I would recommend considering if you are undergoing treatment :)
xo

Wednesday 10 August 2011

NOTD: Knotted Leopard Below Deck!



China Glaze Knotty,

China Glaze Below Deck,

Star Nails black art pen.
A few days (and a long shift fitting shoes on children) wear on these, but this is the leopard print look I did the other day. It was really simple, I just blobbed the darker colour on randomly and then outlined with the nail pen in a few different ways. I found it looked better if the black lines were a bit blobby too, and went back and made them less neat!
I really quite liked this neutral version, so it might just pop up again!! 
XO