Pack up

- I feel like my blog has been losing a personal touch recently so I want to get back in to sharing more day to day things. I want this blog to be something to look back on when I'm older so I think it would be nice to show the things that would be forgotten. I used to do Sunday Roundups but somewhere along the way I stopped. I think that's probably because university took over and I didn't actually have anything interesting to photograph! I've been using my ipod camera more this week in an attempt to capture the little things, so I'll be popping posts like this up from time to time. The quality won't be great but that's okay :) -

L-R; Crazy weather this week. It's been blue skies but SO cold. I know some places in the country have had snow, and I heard Southampton got a sprinkle this morning. This photo was of the hailstones that were pelting down and making some loud noise on my velux window. 

I tweeted this picture of my gorgeous new shoes from Asos the other week, the Leigh Patent ballet shoes in nude. I deliberated on these for weeks because I don't like buying shoes online, but finally took the plunge to make my first ever Asos order and I'm so glad I did. I expect these will feature in an outfit post soon! 

I bought a new computer this week. My beloved mac was starting to get far too slow and it made working on it a right hassle! I'm back to being a PC, as it's much easier to sort out if I want to customise it. It's got much more ram and other technical stuff so it's definitely sped up my workflow. Tempted to buy a second monitor too but my cars MOT is coming up and it's definitely going to be expensive!

Here's a photo of my new haircut. I finally bit the bullet and got it done professionally. I had some layers put in and a good three inches of the bottom and its still pretty long! My hairdresser cut my fringe pretty short which I was a bit unsure on but I love it now.

I've had the week off work so I've been painting my nails and trying out some designs a la Gem Fatale. And finally, a picture of some chocolate, which my week day is not complete without!
Hope you all have a good week! xo

Ecotools review

After somehow losing my foundation brush the other day between my boyfriends house and mine, and with my blusher brush falling to pieces, I decided to purchase some more. I popped in to Boots, and to be honest was quite surprised! Who knew make up brushes were so expensive? I was thinking of getting some Superdrug ones, that are about £3 a brush but they didn't have any in stock. Perhaps I'm a bit tight when it comes to spending money on makeup, but I wasn't prepared to spend £5 on a single brush, especially as I needed brushes for foundation, blush, concealer, eyebrows etc. I then spotted the Ecotools 6 piece brush set. One word. Bargain! Each individual brush cost upwards of £6, but this set comes with 6 brushes for only £16! So, here's my review (note that I don't really know much about makeup brushes so take this with a pinch of salt. I'm just stating my novice opinion :))

I am very impressed. The blush brush is SO soft. It takes a nice amount of pigment too and is really lovely. The eyeshading and the concealer brush are pretty similar, I don't even know which one is which. I think the concealer one has the white bristles with brown tips, but they are again, really nice quality and they blend really well.

The eyeliner brush I use for my brows, and has a nice sharp angle so precision is great.

The lash and brow comb is also good. My unruly brows are combed down with the bristles and the comb helps separate my lashes from the unsightly clumped together mascara.

I have to say I am really impressed with the Ecotools set. Like I said before, it is great value for money, not just because of the amount of brushes but the quality too. I've heard good things about this brand from my sister who has a couple of the brushes. As the name suggests, they're very eco friendly and are made from bamboo and soft taklon brushes. 

The set came with a natural cotton makeup bag which is on the small side, so perhaps not so practical! At the moment I'm keeping my essentials in there and then I have another bag for all the rest, such as my spares/samples/things that are only used on special occasions (aka expensive!). I do like the elastic slots though because it means I can keep my brushes together. I highly recommend this, especially if you are after more than one brush and want a cheaper option that doesn't compromise on quality.

N.B. This isn't a sponsored post. I paid for the set with my own money, and even if these were sent to me, my opinions would be the same! You can read my disclosure here.

Intial Rose

 

Shoes. I own far too many but I can't seem to stop myself from buying more. Why would I want to?

Despite my many pairs, the ones I reach to the most are my boots. They just seem to go with everything and are pretty perfect for the English weather. I wear boots with tights, skirts and dresses, or simply with skinny jeans and a jumper.

I picked these ADDICT-INITIAL Rose boots as my favourite from the huge selection at Sarenza. Granted, they're not the most elegant, special or jaw dropping. But I don't think shoes always have to be. These are suitable, comfortable and very me! I love the colour Fango, a lovely medium to light brown that will go with anything. I love the shearling ankle collar, the contrast of the material with the leather. The slight heel, for that little bit of extra height to make me feel that bit more confident. The satisfaction of tying laces, when you pull the cord tight to make the boot fit. A nice wood effect rubber sole to add a rustic feel. 

For me, a pair of boots are perfect. I'd wear them all the time, therefore get as much use out of them as I can. That's what I think shoes are for. Not that they get the most attention, are difficult to walk in or make the most outlandish statement. Ones that suit me, that I'm happy with and that I'd wear with pride. This is my entry to the Sarenza Ambassador competition. If you want to have a go, all the details are here :) 

Adrift

 I wore this outfit last weekend and it's one of my 'go-to' styles. I often wear dresses and layer my thick jumpers on top. This one is actually pretty thin, so perhaps not so suitable for winter but I love it anyway. I have a huge pile of wooly jumpers which need to be worn before summer sneaks upon us, although it feels weird talking about that now, and I doubt the UK will get much warmth anyway!
The dress is from New Look, and I picked it up last year in the sale for a measly £4. I have a similar one in black with a polka dot collar and as much as I love the peter pan collar, I find the sleeves rather annoying. I don't personally like half sleeves, especially when they are elasticated as I find them a bit too tight on my arms. The black dress I have isn't really a dress, more of a tunic as it is so short but this one seems to be a good length.

My hair is getting so long! I really like it but it does get in the way sometimes and I'm always lying on it/catching it/pulling it in some way. My boyfriend and Mum convinced me last time to get it cut, and I got quite a few compliments so I'm not sure what to do! I hardly ever wear my hair down anyway so it's a bit pointless having it long I guess, and I'd get it cut professionally this time (I'm a cheapskate and do it myself normally!) and probably get some layers cut in. A bit longer than shoulder length I'm thinking, as I'm told it makes me look older. What do you reckon? Do you think my hair is nice long or a bit too schoolgirl? I'm absolutely hopeless at decisions so a few more opinions would be lovely :) It grows really quickly anyway so if I get it cut it wouldn't take long to grow back!

Papercuts

(Dont laugh at my attempt of a busy schedule! I hadnt added the stickers at this point! ;))
In a bid to get organised for the new year I bought a diary. I chose one that is super cute in an attempt to keep it up for longer than a month.
Its japanese kawaii inspired from ebay and I found it after the lovely Laura linked it on twitter. I also
bought some stickers from UK seller rikyandnina (here on etsy and ebay).

I got the Sukie correspondence card set from my friend Carlie who knows my love for sending post!
The pen you can see in some of the photos is from the generous Kate, and the whimsy crab paper clip
from my Grandma.

We flood empty lakes

 

 

 

 

Bit of a special post for you today ;) My boyfriend is always the one behind the camera taking my outfit photos for me, and today we decided to swap roles. We bought the new boots today in the H&M sale reduced from £35 to £15 and wanted to show them off! He's always had good style, maybe I'll make this a regular feature if it goes down well :) All his clothes are basically from Topman and H&M, but as he says, "Where else is there to buy mens clothes on the highstreet?" Where do all your other halves shop? Hope you are all having a lovely week xo

We are golden

Well it's that time of the year again where your dashboard and readers get full up with goals and resolutions. So heres one more to add to the list!

My 2011 resolutions can be found here. Becoming closer to God certainly didn't happen (see here) but I'm pleased with the rest! My confidence has improved so much in comparison to this time last year and I feel a big change in my self! I still need to work on my procrastination (big time) and stop worrying so much, but they are the more difficult ones I think!

My resolutions for 2012 are:

Work harder. Do more. (Spend less time on the internet!)
Earn money from art - Set up shop
Get some art published
Be happy - Change my attitude. (Happiness is a skill.)
I found this quote - "To say 'happiness is a skill' is to say that there is a way from here to there, that involves application of self, dedication and learning, with each step along the way being a step into more and more happiness."
Learn to love myself.
Keep working on my confidence.

I've also updated my goal list (the less important objectives of my year) here and I'll be changing these to 2012 ones soon! xo