Happy Easter!

Hi folks, just wanted to make sure I did a quick post today to say Happy Easter! At the grand old age of 27 I still recieve Easter eggs from both my mum and my nan. I think if I didnt there would be sulking! This weekend i took the epic journey from down south to up north to Bolton, where my friend Amy lives. Its her Birthday so we are off out in Liverpool tonight, Ive never been there before so am really looking forward to it! Hope your all doing something fun this Bank Holiday!

Jewellery Hooks Tutorial

I recently found this lovely piece of driftwood on my local beach and was wondering what to do with it. Then I came up with the idea of using door knobs and turning it into a jewellery hanger.

Items Needed....

Piece of driftwood

Door Knobs

String

2x Hooks

Drill

Saw

 

What to do.....

1.    Drill 5 holes evenly spaces along the piece of driftwood, the same size as the thread of the Door Knobs.

2.    Using a slightly bigger drill piece, widen the end of the hole in order to place the nut discretely, that will hold the door knob in place.

3.    Thread door knob through hole (I used a selection of different ones as this fits in more with my style, but you can use whatever takes your fancy!)

4.    To tidy up the back, and so that it can rest flat against the wall, I used a saw to remove the excess thread on the door knob.

 

5. Finally screw a hook at the top of each corner of the piece of driftwood, and using a piece of string (I went for a thick rustic looking piece), cut it to length and tie it on to the hooks. You can then use the string to hang it.

I was really pleased with the results of this, and it’s something a bit quirky! Would love to know what you guys think?

Book Club: Amy & Zach by Sarah Louise Smith

 

The Blurb

Meet Amy & Zach

Flying home to the UK from the US for her sister Libby’s wedding, Amy has some major issues with her homecoming.

She is furious with Zach, who should have been travelling with her, but after he dropped a bombshell the day before she left, she hid his passport and flew alone.

Now, can she act normal when she meets Libby’s fiancé Tim?

After he finds his passport, Zach heads for the UK to surprise Amy. He wants to apologise to her and finally meet her family. He has kept his secret for way too long and knows he has a lot of explaining to do.

So, how did Amy and Zach get to this point? What is Zach hiding anyway? And what's going on between Amy and Tim?

How well do Amy and Zach really know each other?

The Review

I was looking for a new book to get my teeth into, and this one came up as a recommendation whilst browsing Amazon. The blurb didn’t blow me away, but with a lack of anything else interesting to read I thought I would give it a go. This is Sarah’s first novel, and I was pleasantly surprised.

The book tells the story of Amy and Zach’s relationship, going through their first year together and is narrated by both characters going back and forth from Amy to Zach. Previous books that I have read that have been narrated like this, I have found hard to follow or get engaged in. However in this case it was really well done, it kept the story moving along at a good pace and I felt really connected to both characters, it was great to get both perspectives. There was no repeating of the story, they just seemed to pick up where the other one left off and this flowed really well.

It starts off with Amy travelling back to London for her sister’s wedding. Amy has been gone for a year, living in Boston, finding herself, finding love. Zach shows up in London in a big and unexpected way and we flash back a year when Amy moved to the US to ‘start over’. The book is mainly set in Boston, USA but as Amy is from the UK there is a fab contrast between the two countries.

This story of their relationship is creatively weaved with complex relationships with various family members and you can really understand how they are feeling and why they act the way they do. I wouldn’t say it’s a fairy tale love story, it’s a story of a couple who face real issues that anyone can relate to.

The book as a whole was really charming, funny and entertaining, there are some great little surprises and twists. I couldn't help but smile, laugh and gasp whilst reading. My only criticism would be that I wanted a bit more detail in some parts but I think that’s just me getting drawn in and liking to know everything!

Once I started I couldn’t put this book down, I really want to meet my own Zach now. It’s a great story that really has you cheering for the couple to have a happy ending. The ending was lovely but I wanted it to continue, I wanted to know what happened next and feel there is more to be told....please write a follow up Sarah!

Topshop Goodies...

I know I’ve raved about Topshops range of make up before (see here) but I am truly impressed and have made a few more purchases since!

In the past I’ve always tended to find that when brands who are good at what they are known for venture into a beauty range, it always tends to be a massive disappointment. That just can’t be said when it comes to Topshop.

 

My latest purchases have included their precision eye liner and a couple of their makeup brushes. I always wear black eye liner and keep an eye out for new ones to try. Topshops precision eye liner in black is now definitely of my faves. It really stands out, doesn’t smudge all over the show and is easy to use. I also quite like the white packaging.

Next up is their brushes, I’m always wary of buying brushes as poor quality ones as ones that bristles fall out of and make application a painful process, do my head in! For this reason I tend to stick to MAC brushes as they are a trusted favourite. However I decided to be brave and have a go with Topshops brushes, purchasing their eye liner brush and their Kabuki brush. I’ve been using their eye liner brush for a while and its fab as the bristles haven’t splayed out so I can still apply my eye liner straight and it’s the perfect width.

The Kabuki brush I use for applying blusher and bronzer and it’s a lovely big soft brush to work with. Over all I will definitely be venturing out and investing in more of Topshops make up products in the future.

Liebster Award...

 

 



To my complete surprise Claire from Claire Does Beauty contacted me today to say she has nominated me for a Liebster Award. I’m really honoured that she would think of my blog, so massive thank you Claire! (If you haven’t already, go check out her blog!)
 

I have to admit as a relatively newbie to the blogging world I was a bit dubious about this so I had a little Google. By the look of things this award has been doing the rounds for a few years, and is kind of like a chain letter. This initially put me off but then I look up the meaning of Leibster. It’s a German word that means sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing, and welcome.

The idea is once you accept your award you have to nominate 11 of your favourite bloggers who have less than a certain amount of readers. The number seems to vary between 200 – 3000 followers, so I have decided to just ignore this part and nominate a few of my favourite bloggers that I would love others to check out. Blogger awards are also such a great way to learn more about your fellow bloggers so I knew I had to participate.

The Rules

1)    Each person must post 11 things about themselves.

2)    You must answer the 11 questions that the tagger as created for you.

3)    You must create 11 of your own questions.

4)    Choose 11 bloggers and link them in your post.

5)    Go to their page and tell them.

 

11 Things About Me...

1. I am trying to teach myself Ukulele using You Tube videos, not that successful so far!!

2. I have a desperate need to travel but am useless at saving = vicious circle!

3. I failed my driving test 13 times before I finally managed to pass.

4. My guilty pleasure TV show is Keeping up with the Kardashians

5. If I don’t write things down I WILL forget it

6. I hate Mash Potato.

7. Huge fan of 80s films such as the goonies, lost boys etc

8. I can touch my nose with my tongue

9. I worry way too much about EVERYTHING!

10. The sun instantly makes me happy and rain instantly gets me down

11. I collect things with Dinosaurs on them

 

The questions I received from Claire...

1.    What is your biggest achievement in life so far?

Ooooh this is a really hard one! I think my biggest achievement is that I’m happy and have no real complaints! I’m also a huge dreamer with lots of things I would like to achieve in the future, so watch this space!

2.     If you could be anywhere in the world right now where would it be?

Anywhere tropical with plenty of sunshine, cocktails and my friends! Anyone else UK based fed up of this never ending winter?

3.    What is the one thing you couldn't live without?

Tea and Toast!

4. Describe 5 words that best describes you?

Kind, caring, worrier, impulsive, dippy!

5. What is your signature scent? (If you have one)

Giorgio Armani Black Code

6. What would your dream job be?

A travel writer or a writer that travels... I would love to be a full time writer and travel round the world, my two favourite things.

7. What is your pet hate?

People who stand up your backside in queues, personal space do not invade!

8. Who is your favourite band or singer?

This varies completely on my mood and what’s happening, right now I am having a blast from the past with The Offspring album playing in my car. Reminds me of my teens and always gets me jumping around!

10. What inspired you to write your own blog?

It encompasses a few of my loves! I love writing, beauty products, being creative etc and it means I can focus on all these things in one place.

11. Who is you're role model?

My Mum. Cliché I know! She has MS and can be really poorly with it. Yet she still acts as a rock to us all, no matter how much pain she is in.

My questions for my lovely bloggers

1.    What’s your one can’t live without product?

2.    Favourite smell?

3.    Who is your favourite author?

4.    Something new that you learned recently?

5.    If there was a zombie apocalypse and you had to hit the road to escape, what 3 things would you take with you?

6.    If you were an animal what would you be?

7.    What's your biggest fear?

8.    Having a bad day, what’s the one thing guaranteed to put a smile on your face?

9.    What’s your favourite joke?

10.  List the three famous people you would snog, marry, and avoid.

11.  Shoes or handbags?

The Bloggers I would love to nominate

1. Rosie at A Rosie Outlook

2. Callie at Student in Scotland

3. Daniela at Oh Ella Bella

4. Elsie and Emma at A beautiful Mess

5. Natasha at A Design Rookie

6. Laurina at One Year of Fashion Fasting

7. Lauren at Laurens Place 743

8. Becky at Becky Bedbug

9. Georgie at Style Princess Diaries

10. Rosa at What Rosa Wants

11. Jennifer at Art Style Love 

Obviously you don't have to take part if I have tagged you, and if I haven't tagged you then please take part if you feel like it and post me the link to your post in the comment box below:

 

Monday Motivation! #9

I found this the other day and its really played on my mind! It makes me want to make the most every day and thats what im determined to do! Hope you all appreciate it too!

Candle Making Tutorial...

 

I’ve got lots of tiny jam jars and was wondering what to do with them for a while, until I thought they would make cute candle holders. Here is a step by step guide to how I did it

Items Needed...

 

Jam Jars

Wax

Cord

Sustainers

2x Saucepans

Glue dots

 

What to do...

1. I’ve got loads of old candles that are gathering dust so I chopped up the wax into small pieces.

2. Boil water in a saucepan, place another smaller saucepan into the water (use one you don’t mind getting wax on). Put the wax cubes into the smaller pan to melt.

 

 

3. Cut cord to length desired, add an extra inch (this will make sense later) and attach to sustainer disk. I purchased both of these items on eBay – cheap as chips!

4. Dip the cord and sustainer into the melted wax and then allow to dry. This helps to make cord straight and stay in place.

5. Warm up jar with warm water, this will help the wax stick to the sides of the jar and not lift.

6. Place the sustainer and cord into the jar. I used a glue dot to hold sustainer in place. Then wrap the other end of the cord around a pencil that will balance on top of the jar to make sure the cord stays straight

7. Pour wax slowly into the jars.

8. Allow to set over night.

 

I love these little candles and think they will make fab gifts for my friends. Let me know how you get on if you have at making some of these!

Book Club: Jenny Lopez has a bad week by Lindsey Kelk

 

The Blurb

Jenny Lopez is miserable. Having spent the summer working in LA, she’s back home in New York, and missing the three key elements in a girl’s life — a roommate, a job and a boyfriend. Jenny formulates a plan; surely someone must need a roommate and surely someone must need a girlfriend? By the end of the day, she has arranged a viewing for a potential roommate, the gay blond aka Stefan the Swede, secured two dates, and work looking after a top supermodel. Things look like they are back on track; everything is going to work out great. If only life was so easy!

The Review

I am a massive, massive, fan of Lindsey Kelks I heart books and when I heard about this little number I just couldn’t wait to read it. If your familiar with the I heart series you will know that Jenny Lopez is a sub character in the books, and is the main character Angela’s best friend. She is a character that’s full of fun and most definitely entertaining.

I was intrigued to see how she would be as the lead in her own story. This is only a short story, a mere 82 pages and took me just under an hour to read. I found the book funny and was actually quite sad when it came to an end as I wanted to carry on with her life’s journey. Jenny could easily carry a full length novel if Lindsey was up for writing it, and I’d definitely be reading it. On the whole the story is nice and light hearted and funny, great characters I wanted to know more about and it wasn’t too predictable.

On the flip side my only criticism would be that as a huge Angela fan I found it hard that she wasn’t the focal point also ended a little abruptly for my liking as I still wanted more, but perhaps that’s because I’m not adapt to reading many short stories, who knows!

Fab little short story to entertain you for a few hours.

 



Nailed it!

I've seen quite a few people with dark glittery nails lately, and when asked they seem to just paint there nails a dark colour and then coat glitter over the top. If your like me and find it a bit of a nightmare waiting for your nails to dry without smudging them. The idea of waiting for two separate coats to dry is just too much effort!!

With this in mind I was browsing in the makeup isle at my local boots and came across this little gem Barry M's Nail Paint in Black Multi Glitter. It was just what I was looking for!!

Sadly wasn't quite what I was expecting as the glitter doesn't really stand out that well it just makes it look textured. However I still love the black and have had a few compliments. What do you guys think?

Benefits World Famous Neutrals - Sexiest Nudes Ever

 

Benefits World Famous Neutrals were released a few weeks ago. There are three variations of these sets and they are all gorgeous and I love the packaging, but being good for once I just purchased the one! I went for the Sexiest Nudes Ever as I loved the colours. Each set includes two cream shadows and four powders.

I’ve decided against boring you with colour swatches as I’ve seen so many on other blog posts for this item. My purpose for this post is just to give my two pennies on it!



 

 

The tips and tricks show you how to create looks for daytime and playtime and as usual with Benefits products, it’s easy to follow.

These colours are sooo gorgeous and creamy I love them especially the silver called blingo, it goes on exactly the same colour as in the palette unlike some other brands when it comes to silver colours! Benefit did a really good job with this palette! The 4 powder eye shadows are so pigmented and the colours are so complementary of each other. The looks that you can create are so dainty and girly. The powders are also long lasting and don't crease.

 

This is me, wearing the lighter cream shadow and raincheck. They suggest this duo for the day time look but i think you could easily use it for an evening out!

 

 

I’m not a huge fan of cream shadows, I find they usually crease and fade pretty quickly. So I’m surprised I’m saying this but I absolutely love the cream eye shadows. The cream shadows are smooth, long lasting and truly creaseless and using them as a base makes the look last all day.

Im really impressed with this set and feel its a really solid investment!

Book Club: You Before Me by Jojo Moyes

The Blurb

Lou Clark knows lots of things. She knows how many footsteps there are between the bus stop and home. She knows she likes working in The Buttered Bun tea shop and she knows she might not love her boyfriend Patrick. What Lou doesn't know is she's about to lose her job or that knowing what's coming is what keeps her sane. Will Traynor knows his motorcycle accident took away his desire to live. He knows everything feels very small and rather joyless now and he knows exactly how he's going to put a stop to that. What Will doesn't know is that Lou is about to burst into his world in a riot of colour. And neither of them knows they're going to change the other for all time.

The Review

This book was sat on my bedside table for a while before I picked it up and started reading it. I had read a few reviews and on those I purchased it. My usual read tends to go towards cheesy chick lit and I think that’s why it took me a while to start it. As although from the Blurb you’d assume it was going to be a romance novel, this is not a love story or at least not a love story in the typical sense.

All that being said, I can’t rave about this book enough, it took me a little while to get into it but as soon as Lou meets Will I was hooked to see what was going to happen and let me tell you Jojo Moyes doesn’t disappoint. The last 50 pages had me sobbing at 4 in the morning, I couldn’t put it down. Jojo Moyes definitely made this stone heart melt and I’ve never felt such a strong emotional reaction to a book before.

She writes about a very sensitive and controversial subject without being judgmental or turning it into a political piece. You get a real sense of everyone’s views and feeling which really pulls at the heart strings. The six months they spend together really gets you fighting in everyone’s corner. The sub characters, all Will and Lou’s family members, added to the humor and were realistic at some points I felt like I was reading about my own family.

Overall this book is so beautifully written, it is warm, funny, touching, poignant and thought provoking. Be warned though, this book is distracting, when you're not reading it you either can't wait to get back to it or you're thinking about the characters and their story.

This is the best book I’ve read in a long time and strongly recommend it (Make sure you have plenty of tissues on hand!). I will definitely be taking a look at Jojo Moyes other literary goods and will let you know what I think!

Mug Graffiti

Being on a mission to save my pennies (I’m determined to get my act together this year and go travelling!) I thought I would have ago at up cycling and getting creative. Turning old things into new! I will say up front that I like to think I’m creative but don’t always manage to pull it off! However on the odd occasion I do manage to make something look half decent, I am going to post a how to guide on here.....

So for my first attempt at being a bit arty I decided to Graffiti some Mugs. I’ve seen this a lot on Pinterest and thought I would give it a go!

Items Needed....

1.       Plain white mug

2.       Sharpie Pen

What to do.....

1.    Using your sharpie, draw whatever design that takes your fancy onto the mug.

2.    Place the mug into the oven for 30 mins at 150c

TaaDaa!!! A fancy new mug! Check my first attempt out......

I drew a tea bag for this one, but think for the rest of the set I am going to write different quotes about Tea and Coffee onto them. I will make sure I add a photo on here when I’ve done it.

I’ve also popped this mug into the dishwasher since drawing on it and it stayed on! Very impressed and pleased with this as it’s such a simple way to update a plain boring white mug!

Motivational Monday Inspiration.... #8

I don't know whether I am getting older, wiser or just less patient but over the last year I have come to the realisation that I don't want people in my life that are like the death eaters from Harry Potter and just suck the life out of you! I think for a long time, people would think I was a bit of a mug as id go out my way to help people, and I think that may have been to satisfy my need for people to like me. But now I don't want or need to be a walk over, people who would abuse my good nature aren't a real friend of mine. I am slowly cutting off people who don't see friendship as a two way street. I deserve better than that. Therefore this quote is perfect, I want to surround myself by people I respect and love, people who inspire me to be the best I can be. Since I have had this realisation I am feeling more confident and positive and do you know what? that feels great!

Top 5 Beauty Cupboard Basics...

What are your beauty cupboard basics? You know, those items you religiously use, take for granted, don’t really spend a fortune on, the basic...

I’ve been thinking about this for a while and I have a few staples that aren’t anything fancy but if I were told they were no longer available, there would be real issues and tissues! So here are my 5 basic needed/can't live without items. I would love you to leave a message in the comment box with what your top 5 are!

 

1. Sure Deodorant. I’ve been using this stuff for years, and before I came across it I tried many different sprays, roll on's and creams. All of which left the fabulous white stained look across my tops, smelt gross or didn’t actually do the job. I’m not like a horrendously sweaty Betty but I do like to know my deodorant will protect me from the B.O monster! This stuff leaves me feeling fresh, smelling good and most importantly doesn’t stain! Who would have thought the quest for perfect deodorant would be so hard to find but I can assure you it was!

2. E45 Cream. This stuff is essential for my uber sensitive skin. I use it as a makeup remover by massaging it in to my skin and then removing the excess with damp cotton wool. It works a treat at removing all the crap off my face at the end of the day and also leaves it feeling lovely and soft, bonus! Also since using this, my skin has improved so much, with not so many spots and my eczema is less noticeable.

3. Bic Twin Lady Razors. I’m too much of a wimp to wax so I have to come clean and say I shave my legs. Some razors are cheap and nasty and seem to like to shred your legs, whilst I’ve found some of the more expensive ranges don’t seem to do such a close shave and leave you feeling like a bloke with a 5 o’clock shadow. So these are fab as they are cheap, removes hair nicely leaving you with lovely smooth pins and for bonus points they come in pretty girly colours.

4. Sudocrem. I swear by this stuff if you’re having a break out! It really helps to soothe and reduce redness of spots. I layer it on before going to bed, just be careful as it can stain your pillow!

5. Original Source Lime Shower Gel. I love this product! I use it every morning when I have a shower. It smells so good and really wakes me up! It’s yummy!

Holographic Nails

Topshop Holographic Nails in Winter Frost! For those that are as useless as me when it comes to nail art and the like, this is the next best thing! Great way to make your nails stand out from the crowd, it looks ace. The polish itself is easy to apply and quick drying. Ive had it on for 4 days now and its still chip free and not fading.

Benefit Fine One One

I was unsure about this product but reading a lot of other bloggers reviews I thought I would give it ago. I usually tend to use powder blush, and the colour’s in this product seemed quite bright so wasn’t sure it would suit my pale skin tone.

 

The cheek and lip brightening trio has three shades – Pink Champagne, Sheer Watermelon and Soft Coral. To use I ran it across my cheek bone with the lightest shade closest to my eyes and then blended in with my fingers.

It definitely added contour to my cheeks, I was really pleased with the colour. It definitely didn’t go on as bright as I was expecting, it’s very subtle which suits my style, it’s such a different product! It’s very quick and easy to use!! it also blends beautifully, and is so easy to apply and creates a nice happy glow which brightens up my whole face. 

 

A highlighter, blush and bronzer in one stroke, how clever is this?! The 3 colors together are FAB! And I love how it’s not a powder blush, and the packaging is adorable!

Although it does go on in three stripes they blend easily. The highlighter isn't too shimmery for me either. You can also use it as lipstick, but I think it needs liner for definition and shine. It's somewhat flat on lips alone so I will only be using mine on my cheeks.

I have definitely been converted, and will be using this as part of my daily routine.

MAC Archies Girls Collection

I love this range and was counting down the days till its release at the beginning of the month. I love the graphics used on the packaging, its so cute and quirky. Archie's girls are Veronica and Betty who are both vying for his attention. Beautiful Blonde-Next-Door Betty inspires a limited-edition colour collection with a soft, innocent sexiness all in peaches and pink girly shades. All packaged in exclusive designs. Whilst Veronica smoulders with a limited-edition colour collection rich in deep, seductive tones such as violet, red and blackened plum. All packaged in exclusive Archie's Girls designs. I am definitely more of as Veronica as I love the dark vampy shades!

 

 

 

Being on a tight budget at the moment, I really had to restrain myself from buying the whole collection and rinsing my overdraft at the same time! I decided to treat myself to one item which was so hard to choose! So the winner I went for was ‘Archie’s Girls pearl glide intense eye liner in Designer Purple’ which I am really pleased with! It’s a gorgeous purple with a lilac shimmer in it, as you can see from this swatch.

 

I've been wearing it on its own with some Mascara, I use Benefits They’re Real, and put it on the inside rims and above my top lashes. I've also applied it to above my top lashes when I've been wearing a purple shadow. It is easy to apply, glides on nicely. I have been using it on my water line but this isn't recommended due to the shimmer.

Pearl glides always have an intense colour payment with deep, dark, rich pigment that once applies simply pops on eyes. The creamy texture applies complete colour on the first pass and a quick second or third pass will add super drama to eyes. The texture is so soft that it glides effortlessly across my lash line without tugging or pulling. I typically get about 8-12 hours of wear with these before any fading occurs.

 

The pencil is wrapped in a solid white shade of colour with little red hearts they are really cute. YOU NEED these. Seriously, the formula is creamy, pigmented, and oh so wonderful to apply.

The best thing about MAC Archie’s Girls product range is that they are bright, fun, and very wearable in daily looks. I will definitely be saving the pennies and purchasing a few other bits, next on my want list is this pencil in Petrol Blue (Veronica) which is a bright navy with pearl. After seeing Adele at the Oscars with gorgeous blue eye liner which looked stunning, it’s definitely a look I want to try out!