March Favourites

This is my very first monthly favourites, and I've decided to include more than just fashion items or beauty products. Let me know if you like these types of posts and I might make them a more regular thing!

I've spent most of March shopping for things that will be erm, 'beneficial' for me on my holiday (including nail art pens and expensive face cleansers... ahem)
The following are the things I've been enjoy the most in this past month of March...

1) Denim Shorts
- Primark Floral Shorts £8.00
- Primark Denim High Waist £8.00
- Levi Vintage Cut-offs £10.50

2) St Moriz Dark £3.00 and under
- creates a more satisfying summer bronzed look

3) Spring Colours
- Topshop Coral Cropped Tiered Top £18.00
- Pastel Nail Polishes from Models Own £5.00 each

4) The Ricky Gervais Show
I'm seriously enjoying the second series of this podcast-turned-animation-comedy-banter show with Ricky Gervais, Karl Pilkington and Steven Merchant. And as much as I dislike Ricky Gervais's comedy I find this show hilarious!



5) Making Plans
Travelling up to Leeds, work experience plans, travel plans, meeting up with friends, and making summer plans. I've loved filling up my diary this month and having things to look forward to. I feel pretty organised as of late and have even managed to control my list making to one notebook only.

6) Acoustic Versions
In particular, Robyn's 'Dancing on my Own' acoustic version - I've been listening to it over and over and over again, its just beautiful. Other mentions go to Kate Nash's cover of 'Men's Needs' by The Cribs.

7) Favourite Blog of the month : Vivianna Does Makeup
Love this girl's blog! She also makes videos on YouTube on everything beauty related and she seems so natural and real. She's very popular but I thought I'd share the love never the less in case you've not checked out her blog before.


Hope everyone's well and looking forward to the weekend xx

Vintage Floral Nail Art

On Tuesday evening I was browsing ebay for nail polishes and decided to take the plunge and purchase a 24 set of nail art polish/pens! I've been deliberating about them for a while but for only £6.95 I couldn't go wrong!

I was delighted when they turned up at my door this morning, I thought I'd have to weeks until I could try them out. There's a huge assortment of colours, ranging from the basic black and white to lovely purple hues, deep reds and coppery browns.

I was at first a bit sceptical about the 'pen' tip as in the past any nail art 'pens' have always dried up and been utterly useless within the first use. These however, work like a dream! The nail brush is so thin and long for making perfect lines or strokes across the nail and the pen tip works for creating dots and fine detail.

After seeing a few YouTube videos and images on sites such as Tumblr.com and weheartit.com I wanted to try out a floral and striped design....

My Inspiration... 

The design didn't turn out flawless - but I'm actually pretty happy with the results for my first go! I'm excited about trying out new patterns too.

Nail Polishes Used: base colour blue - Barry M Pale Blue, base colour pink - Rimmel 60sec Rose Libertine
all other polishes from 24 nail art set.

If only I wasn't so clumsy and heavy handed, these nails will most likely be chipped by tomorrow :(

What do you guys think? Ever thought about trying out nail art for yourself and what design should I try next?!

xx

Bake with Me: Vanilla Chocolate Cupcakes

I had a day of relaxing around the house today so after a quick trip to the shops for a few ingredients I decided to bake chocolatey cupcakes! The frosting could have been a bit less runny but they still tasted delicious! 

If you'd like to make them yourself, follow these easy steps... 

My Very Easy Vanilla & Chocolate Cupcakes...
(makes 12)


Ingredients: 
150g softened butter or margarine
150g caster sugar
100g self raising flour, sifted
50g cocoa powder
3 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 tablespoon of milk
Paper cupcake cases and a muffin baking tin
Decoration/Topping/Chocolate Chips

Vanilla Frosting Ingredients:
75g softened butter
150g icing sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

What to do...
Cupcakes:
1) Preheat oven to Gas Mark 4 (or equivalent based on your oven)
2) Set out 12 medium sized cupcake cases into a muffin baking tray
3) Weigh out ingredients and have everything to hand
4) Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy
5) Mix in the beaten eggs, alternating with the flour and cocoa powder (gradually)
6) Stir in vanilla extract and milk
7) Carefully place even amount of mixture into each cupcake case
8) Bake for 15-20 minutes until springy to the touch
9) Remove and cool on wire rack

Frosting:
10) Beat butter with a spoon until smooth
11) Slowly sift in icing sugar
12) Add vanilla extract, frosting should be light and creamy
13) Spoon onto to cupcakes carefully!
14) Decorate with chocolate chips or topping of your choice
15) Leave to set for 30 minutes and restrain ones self from eating them straight away
16) Eat and enjoy!

xx

My Travel Essentials...

If you've been following me for a while you may have picked up on the fact that I will be travelling to America in just over one months time! I'm trying not to get over excited because I wont sleep at night for the whole month leading up to our flight day if I do...but I still am....very excited!

I thought I'd blog about Travel Essentials as it's getting to that point where I start making numerous lists of things I need to buy and things I need to take on the journey.

Me and the bro will be flying from Manchester to Philadelphia direct and then catching a transfer flight to Washington DC. We'll meet my sister (who lives there) and stay in DC for about 4 days. We'll then be flying to Boston to spend a few days there, catching a Greyhound Bus to New York to see the Big Apple for a few days and then bus-ing it all the way back to DC! 

So as you can see we'll be doing some major travelling.

This post will include on-the-move necessities for plane, train, bus, car, boat and on-foot journeys. 

So if you're planning a trip this Spring, listen up!

What will I be taking?

• Large roomy bag - rucksack or shoulder style for comfort when on the move with heavy goods
• Ipod fully charged and full of great summery bright tracks (no depressing songs allowed!)
• Magazines/Books
• Ear plugs, for peace and quiet
• Sleeping eye mask, for dozing in the daytime
• Comfortable clothes, I'm thinking hoodie and leggings! Removable layers too
• Face Wipes and Deodorant for freshening up after 8 hours on one plane
• Mints for fresh breath!
• Bottled water (I wont be drinking any plane water that's for sure)
• Pain Killers 
• Snacks such as hard boiled sweets (stop ears from popping) and nuts or dried fruit
• Plasters for sore feet, rubbing shoes etc
• Comfy walking shoes... Primark's £2 pumps are the ultimate comfy shoe
• Camera (or if your me, several cameras and several memory cards)
• Travel documents - most importantly don't forget your passport!
• Sunglasses for covering tired looking eyes
• Mini Umbrella - you never know
• Small amount of cash - in the currency of your destination and origin ( pounds £ and dollars $)
• Notebook and pen
• Plane socks to help with circulation!
• Friends or family to help pass the time, provide entertainment on your journey. Demand it of them.

Images from weheartit.com

If you'd like to see more holiday updates and 'what I'm wearing when I'm there' blogs just let me know!

xx

Book Worm - Recommendations

...This post will not be relevant to fashion, photography, beauty, etc.. etc.. all the usual things I blog about but instead I'm going to take you through some of my favourite books of all time and just some lovely ones that have stuck in my memory.

I love to read and I wish I did it more often, I find that I wile away the hours on the internet these days, flicking through YouTube and blogs, watching videos of cats and laughing babies. If I have a spare few hours I will most likely be online rather than watching TV or reading.
But when I do get chance I can stay awake for hours reading until my eyes are heavy or find myself lying in stone cold bath water because I just had to finish the chapter.....

But what I like more than reading is being read to. My favourite part of school was sitting quietly on the carpet while the teacher read to the class. (I was no trouble as a child.)

I cant choose a favourite book, its too difficult, and in this list I will be missing out LOTS of brilliant reads that I have forgotten about .....

1. The Book Thief - Marcus Zusak 
Read it:  Once
This one has to be first as it is my most recent all time favourite. Big love goes out to Zusak for writing this. Last year my sister introduced me to The Book Thief and I must admit, the first few pages I wasn't convinced.
I ended up staying awake until 3 in the morning to finish it and actually sobbed for ages at the ending! I wont spoil it for those who have not read it but it has been the only book to make me cry so much. It's safe to say I didn't sleep very well that night....

2. Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne
Read it: Countless times
My parents used to read Winnie the Pooh stories to me when I was little and I read them myself once I could. I remember my mum reading Pooh's snow poem, "The more it SNOWS-tiddely-pom...." when I was poorly and home from school. It always used to make me laugh because she used funny voices for the exaggerated parts! I plan to read Pooh stories to my children in the future!

3. The Harry Potter Series - J K Rowling
Read them: At least twice each
Some people are HUGE Potter fans, and some people are not.
I was bought the first 3 Harry Potters for my birthday when I was about 11-12 (when they weren't as popular) and became a huge fan. Best one? Hmm, perhaps Prisoner of Azkaban or Order of the Phoenix but the last two were also brilliant! (Ahh Potter geek right here!)

4. The Time Travellers Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
Read it: Twice
I refuse to see the film because I'm afraid it will ruin my image of Clare and Henry. Its quite sad that I like this book so much and even though the story has major loopholes I love the idea, the way its written and the characters.

5. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
Read it: About 6 times
Studied Pride and Prejudice at High School and fell in love. If you haven't read the book, do it, don't just watch the film!

6. Orange Girl - Jostein Gaarder
Read it: Twice
Lovely romantic story. Another unique one. Not a difficult read and a good one to take on holiday. Made me want to eat oranges.


Books I feel I should really read:
Lord Of the Flies, A Clockwork Orange, The Kite Runner, Memoirs of a Geisha

I may even set myself a challenge, write down classic books I should have already read, and try to read them all before 2012. Sort of a late New Year resolution.

I hope some of you found this post interesting, I know not all my followers follow me for this sort of post and that's perfectly fine, but well done to those of you who reached the end!
If anyone has any recommendations for me let me know, have you read any of the above and share my love for them?

xx

One Day Like This A Year

Batwing Jumper - Topshop  

Brown Loafers - ASOS  

Levi Denim Cut Offs - Ebay  

Turquoise Stone Ring - LLYMLRS Shop

The windows are wide open and the central heating is turned off for the first time in months. The sun is beaming down and although its not yet summer temperatures, the weather is just lovely. As you can see my cats have been enjoying the sunshine just as much as me.

I know when the sun shines it makes me feel so much better, and science geeks tell us that its the sun rays that  release feel good chemicals in ourselves and that a little amount of Vitamin D (produced in our skin when met with UVB rays) is good for us!

A very casual outfit today, I just threw on this oversized jumper from Topshop which if I remember was about £18.00. These vintage high waist denim shorts are originally Levi jeans and I bought them on Ebay for under £15.00 without even knowing they were Levi. So I think I got a great bargain there! Still wearing tights, its not quite warm enough not too...

I love my new ASOS loafers. I can see a few of my less fashion-knowledgeable friends giving me a bit of stick about them as they are quite 'grandad shoe' but I don't care! Hoping to break them in enough to I can wear them with bare feet for hours of walking.

I purchased this oversized stone ring from Lily's shop, she's one of my favourite bloggers so go and check her out if you havn't heard of her already. 

I'm wearing my new Hue lipstick from MAC and I love it! I think it might be better suited to nights out where I'm wearing heavier eye make up as during the day it can look too nude.

I also made this little video today just for fun....

xx

In a Week...

A sunset view from my bedroom window, I love looking out of my window at night to see all the little houses with hundreds of tiny lights....

Pancakes galore at a DVD night in with friends, as you can see mine was a little 'crispy'. We watched Dinner For Schmucks which I've seen 3 times now but always makes me giggle....

Very flattering photo of me in Halo, Leeds on Thursday night - probably drinking a Jagerbomb...

Doughnuts! This was the day we dressed as Hanna Barbera characters (Bubbles, Powerpuff girl and Olive Oyl) and did the famous Otley Run in Leeds. 

...Waiting for the bus to start our pub crawl with the other powerpuff girls and Popeye of course!

The crawl of the fancy dressed, draws no attention - its apparently a regular sight in Headingly, and we managed to bump into a fair few other groups...

It's been one full week since my last post but I have been pretty busy. After a bit of a splurge in the shops on Wednesday (more of that to come) I decided a trip up to Leeds was in order to wear some of the new things I had bought and spent 3 nights with my partner in crime Alison who's probably quite used to having me around now.
I actually quite enjoy a long train journey on my own with my ipod so the hour trip up to Leeds from Manchester is perfect. I had no costume planned for the Otley Run on Saturday but thankfully a blonde power puff girl was needed so I stepped in!

I'm back home now and well into blog mode again so you can expect some updates soon.
Hope you've all enjoyed your weekends and are ready for this week ahead!
xx

This Week's Wish List

These are my most desired items right now, and I'm planning a little trip into town very soon.

I have in fact, already purchased some high waist vintage style denim shorts (A surprising win on a ebay auction last night) originally from Urban Outfitters, but I'm still dying to try a pair on in New Look this week. If I end up having two perfect pairs I can always return my New Look ones. 

High waisted denim shorts were everywhere last spring/summer too but I somehow never got around to buying any. I think they will be fantastic for all things summer related and even for nights out. Until some warmer weather I will be wearing them with black opaque tights!

Another New Look treat, this boxy knitted jumper is doing its rounds on the blogs, and seems to be a firm favourite. I'm hoping they have some left in store for me! I think this camel colour is my favourite but the peach shade also looks appealing. 

Mac 'Hue' Lipstick is one I have been deliberating over for some time. I love my pinks and I love my nudes but I always worry about appearing too washed out. I have very pale skin with pink undertones and there is no way I could off Myth. Can anyone help me out? Will Hue be suitable for me?

Love everything and anything feather related at the moment. This hippy style necklace from H&M looks right up my street. I don't wear earrings, I've never even had my lobes pierced but the beautiful feather earrings I keep seeing everywhere might persuade me! 

Any shirt that ties up 1950s Pin Up Girl style I will be happy to adopt. This one would be perfect with high waist shorts/jeans/leggings. 

Finally I will be popping into WHSmiths with my vouchers in tow. I'm planning on saving most of the vouchers until September when I may need new stationary supplies or art books for Uni. But right now I do need a journal/planner/notebook for keeping track of all my scrappy post-it note lists and doodles. I buy new notebooks all the time with all these fresh ideas that I am going to be the most methodical person the world has ever seen. Not going to happen. I tend to organise with wild abandon.

xx

What's on my face?

I'm just off to work tonight, so nothing special. I quite like how my hair is at the moment, these photos aren't a great indication, my hair looks much more golden here than it is in real life. It's actually a medium ash blonde with hints of medium brown and light blonde running through it. I think next time I will ask for even more brown lowlights....

Here I just used my conical wand by Babyliss to create some more defined waves but mostly its my natural hair. I'm going for the lazy look tonight!

I'm wearing the usual assortment on my face, Collection 2000 concealer and Mineral Foundation (which is now discontinued!!) ELF's blush and bronzer duo, ELF gel liner, a MUA eye shadow and Colossal Mascara by Maybelline. I slightly filled in my brows with a blonde eyebrow pencil and I have Angel by mac on my lips. Used mostly bargain products
Not a very exciting post but I thought I'd check in before work.

Hope your all enjoying your weekends
xx

What's In My Bag?

Black and Grey, Leather and Canvas Slouch Bag from Urban Outfitters

So If you're anything like me, you love a good nosey into other peoples belongings! I've seen numerous 'What's In My Bag' tags on Youtube and Blogs so I thought I'd leap on the bandwagon. 

The bag I'm currently using is my Urban Outfitters slouchy one. I bought this in the sale about 6 months ago for about £30 reduced from £85! They also had it in brown and I'm still kicking myself for not buying both. Its very roomy, with a zillion zipped pockets, and one huge zip running down the middle, so you can store things (and lose things) inside the front too. The strap is just long enough to sit on my shoulder, I find bags you have to carry on your arm or in your hand just get in the way.

So what is actually in my bag?

1. Purse from Jane Shilton bought at TKMaxx, hold all my important cards, money, and shopping lists written on post-it notes.

2. Nokia E63 - I love this phone I wouldn't go anywhere without it.

3. Filofax Diary - for writing down important dates.

4. Ipod Nano - the first edition! I've had this ipod since I was 13 and now refer to it as 'retro' Its very beaten up but still works just fine! My ear buds are brilliant too, they cut off any outside noise.

5. Keys - for the obvious. Chunky pool ball keyring with my lucky number 5, and a mushroom from Super Mario Bros, great for finding at the bottom of my bag in the dark.

6. List Note Pad from Paperchase - for my list writing obsession .

7. A couple of biros 

8. Compact Mirror - from a Christmas Cracker!

9. Nivea Lip balm - my holy grail.

10. Blistex Lip Splash - for a more glossy hydrated lip.

11. MAC Lipstick in Angel.

12. ELF Lipstick in Runway Pink.

13. Hair Bands.

14. Aviator Sunglasses - Just in case!

15. Hand Food by Soap and Glory - best hand cream I've ever tried, for when my hands feel a bit dry.

16. ELF Studio Line Pressed Powder - good for creating a matte face.

17. Current Book/Magazine - this ones The 19th Wife, I'm halfway through at the moment. I like to always have something to read, you never know when you'll be stuck in traffic or in a waiting room.

Is there anything peculiar in your hand bag? I think mine is fairly tame, although I did discard all the sweet wrappers, old tissues and bits of fluff...

xx

Thursday Thoughts

Polaroid Note cards, on my bedroom walls from Urban Outfitters

I've recently had the urge to spend spend spend and I'm building up quite a list. I've decided the best idea is to only allow myself to purchase items that will be beneficial to me on my trip to America. This includes, new spring clothes, essential make up purchases, travel sized versions of products, memory cards for my camera, transformer plugs, notebooks for organising and anything else I can possibly think of that can fit into a suitcase or will entertain me on the plane.

Going away is a great excuse to buy new things. I've recently purchased some lovely shoes from ASOS which I will post about as soon as they arrive, and told myself they are going to be the most comfortable pair of shoes I have ever owned - perfect for walking around New York all day long! ....This may not be the case.

I'm desperate to get my hands on MAC Hue Lipstick (being the only female in the world not to have tried it) but am avoiding MAC like the plague because its quite possible I will end up buying more than just a lipstick. I may have to send in a stronger willed friend to buy it for me.

H&M's Spring Collection catalogues (up to around 5 different ones now) keep appearing through my door - and at work! I think H&M have scoured out my places of existence and are tempting me in as many ways as possible.
But after the last fiasco I will NEVER be ordering online from H&M again, so I may have to pop down and see what they have in store...

Plans for the weekend include a DVD night in with friends tomorrow and working Saturday and Sunday.
xx

Sheer Beauties

As Spring (rather slowly) approaches I've found myself drawn to some beautiful silky chiffon blouses, and right now you will definitely find them all over the high street.
The first top pictured was actually a bargain find, bought on ebay for a few pounds and originally from H&M. It requires a little cami to be worn underneath as the neckline does come quite low but its very comfortable, and a lovely oversized fit. I wore this to my works party with skinny jeans and wedges.

The second patterned blouse is from Primark (would you believe they have some fantastic things in store at the moment) and initially is not something I would normally pick up. But the little house design and the gold buttons appealed to me and although I have not worn it yet (see tag still attached!) I'm waiting for a lovely warm spring day to really show it off. RRP £8.00

The third sleeveless blouse is also from Primark. I spotted this straight away as the colour is beautiful, described as 'Cinnamon' on the label. I rushed over and could only find size 20s left at first, until I spotted one single lonely size 10 shoved between cardigans at a different part of the shop and I grabbed it! They also do this in white. RRP £8.00
After visiting a Primark in Leeds shortly after I realised this must be a best seller as they only had the larger sizes left there too, and many girls panic searching through the rails for their size.
It comes with the same cute little gold buttons, which for me are just decoration as I pull it on over my head anyway.
I wore this on a night out in Leeds with black leather-look leggings and again my black wedges. Its super comfy but super sheer so if I was to wear this in the day time I would definitely have to wear something underneath. It looks much more expensive than it is and the material is really high quality too.

Some places selling beautiful sheer blouses at the moment include New Look, H&M, Topshop and Miss Selfridge but I think most high street stores will have their version. Long sleeved, sleeveless, batwing, etc etc...
I plan on buying more once warmer weather arrives!

xx

Inside the Ring Box...

 Wooden Hexagonal Ring Box - vintage 

Cross Ring - Urban Outfitters

Studded Ring Collection - H&M

Pinkie Ring/Knuckle Ring - Fashionology.nl

Pink and Gold Ring - Topshop

Blue and Silver Ring - H&M

Gold  with gems set - H&M

Recently I have been wearing more rings than any other type of jewellery. I'm particularly loving these huge oversized stone rings (which I don't normally wear all at once!) Topshop and H&M have always been my go-to places for jewellery, and have some great pieces in at the moment. The only problems I find with H&M jewellery is how easily it tarnishes and the metal can cause those horrible green marks! You can fix this with rings by coating the inside with clear nail polish, just make sure you let it dry completely. 

Urban Outfitters also do a brilliant line of jewellery but it can be a bit more expensive. I get a lot of comments on the double finger cross ring some good and some curious but I know these style of rings are really popular at the moment.

I have a collection of both gold and silver jewellery but after always being a silver person I'm finding myself buying more gold pieces now. The pinky-peach stone surrounded by gold has to be my favourite at the moment, the shape is really different and I think the little crack shaped mark makes it unique and makes me like it even more!

My nail polish is Barry M's 'Navy' with a coat of ELF's Matte Top Coat over the top if anyone was curious.

I think I'll be in search of some interesting vintage rings this spring, strange jewellery is always a talking point and can make a simple outfit a bit more fancy. I've had my eye on some turquoise and silver oversized rings that LLYMLRS is selling in her shop, unfortunately she's all sold out at the minute because they are so popular!