This is just a quick post to make you aware (if you’re not already) that Technic are doing a dupe for OPI’s Rainbow Connection. It’s just £1.25!! a bottle over at Lovethymakeup

Updated Pic of it Layered ♥

Now, I don’t own the OPI version, but from looking at swatches online I would say that this is VERY similar and totally worth picking up if you’re into your glitter polishes. Above is just one coat (I was in a rush) and I was impressed with the amount of glitter it deposited. Hopefully it’ll layer well.

It’s worth noting that the first swatch doesn’t do the glitteryness? justice. As you can see in the last pic my camera phone couldn’t even cope with the shine it gives off. It’s much more sparkly IRL.

Leave “Enter Me” below if you would like to be in with a chance of owning a bottle (as I bought two). I realise that it’s not an expensive prize, but it is free so….. *shrugs*

I’ll pick the winner via random.org on Sunday night. No third party entries (ie money supermarket etc). Will post worldwide. Over and out

xo

Did you guess correctly?

I am thrilled to be working with Voucher Codes on their latest “Most Wanted” campaign. Of course, when I opened the email and read that they wanted me to road-test GLITTER SHOES on your behalf I knew it would be an obvious hardship…

Dress - River Island (2010 Sale)

My shoes are the ASOS Pepper Peep Toe Mary Jane Platforms (bit of a mouthful) in glorious ruby red. When I first opened the box I couldn’t help but squeal with delight, but having been burnt by ASOS sizing issues in the past I was also anxious that they wouldn’t fit. I needn’t have worried, the UK size 7 is refreshingly true to size. No gap at the back, no ugly overhanging toes at the front. I’d go so far to say these are my perfect fit.

The attention to detail is excellent. The Mary Jane strap is elasticated but also has a functioning buckle. A god send in design where I am concerned as I am very narrow across the top of my foot and these kind of straps are usually baggy and offer little support. I love the fact that the peep toe is colour-matched to the upper. So often this is not the case and I personally think it’s a tell tale sign of a cheaper shoe when they differ. I’m always lusting after the latest Miu Miu sparkly creations but if the high street can keep getting the quality as right as it is with these I think the big designer labels are in real trouble!

Comfort wise they also get a massive thumbs up. So far they have withstood a night of dancing and I have zero blisters/ discomfort to report. I think it’s the concealed platform that does the trick, in fact I’ve noticed that I always favour going out shoes with this feature. All sequins are also present and accounted for. Yay!

Price wise these normally retail for £50 which I think is excellent value considering the finish, comfort and style however the whole Pepper range is currently on sale. Most at £37.50! Have a nose here. I am sorely tempted to treat myself to the black glitter ones too. Can a girl ever have too many sparkly shoes?….

You all know how much I love a bargain, especially in this current climate. It’s extremely rare that I’ll just purchase something without searching for a discount code first. Free Delivery is also a BIG pull for me, I really begrudge paying shipping costs. Stay savvy and be sure to check out Voucher Codes ASOS offers page here first should you decide to splurge! xo

P.S How dodgy does my hand placement look in my outfit picture? I SWEAR it was just behind my back LOL

Let’s just get stuck right in shall we?

I am up to my eyeballs in life stuff at the minute and my current daily uniform consists of paint splattered jeggings and an equally decorative jumper. Wouldn’t make for the most dynamic outfit shots….

So I’m a little stressy (but in the productive way) and free time is sparse. This hasn’t stopped me indulging in some retail therapy tho, helps relive the tension dontcha know

Oxblood Pleather Shorts from Topshop £30. Gorgeous colour, really Xmassy and easy to wear with thick opaque tights and ankle boots. What’s not to love? Well, if you buy online the sizing. It’s atrocious. I would suggest the Size 14 if you are normally a UK Size 10-12. Anything smaller would imo be indecent (think arse cheeks hanging out to say hello).

New Look Mittens £5 ish pounds. Everyone comments on these. Pure 70′s and ultra cosy. On the downside they (along with any mitten) are of course deeply impractical. It’s like having a pair of flippers and I struggle to lift anything when wearing them. Cute tho

Versace for H&M Leggings £24.99. I couldn’t resist. In fact if money was no option I’d have bought lots from this collection. Not everyone’s cup of tea, granted, but isn’t that the beauty of fashion and life. We all like different things? Quality wise these are not your average Primarni style leggings. Very heavy glossy material and ridiculous flattering. WIN

Charity Shop Purchase and I could not have been more delighted when I clocked this. I have been after a decent vanity case for an age. The modern equivalents just don’t cut it size or quality wise. My ultimate aim is to reduce my (still frankly embarrassingly large) make-up collection to the point where it all fits in this. Rome wasn’t built in a day tho…

One of the rare days where I did actually wear real clobber and a visit to the hairdressers. Namely Hedonist Hair on Botanic (apologies if you do decide to click the link. Their website hurts the head and eyes. Trust me).

You clicked didn’t you? Matt had bought me 2 cuts and a 50% off colour deal through Living Social and I must admit that because of the price my expectations were low. However I was pleasantly surprised, the salon is quirky but cool and the stylist I had (I believe her name was Cathy) was bubbly and friendly. She also listened to me (massive thumbs up). I told her I was growing it out and simply wanted a tidy and a bit of shape to the back while the layers grow down. Now at this point what normally happens is the stylist nods and proceeds to “thin out” my hair and generally undo all my hard growing out work. She didn’t. Refreshingly she did EXACTLY as I asked. SUCCESS!!

Now on to what has been taking up almost all my days and nights. Decorating. Yes painting, papering and sanding shit. I’m doing it all and YES, I too wish it were more exciting. We are moving house this time next week and I still have an absolute mountain of work to do BUT I really feel like I’ve broke the back of it today. So YAY!!

This afternoon I completed our bedroom (carpet is coming on Thursday). I kept it pretty neutral. Cream walls and a simple floral paper behind the bed. That way I can put any duvet/ curtains with it.

In natural light (on a dismally dull day) it gives off an almost silvery hue

Under lamplight it takes on a lovely warm buttermilk colour ♥

Finally… if you’ve made it this far give yourself a little round of applause and feast your eyes on my sneak peek….. what’s in the box???

Find out this weekend

xo

I was delighted when I learned that the recent #ASOSsavvysunday was going to be 50% off Winter Coats. I am big into my outerwear. Living in these chilly climes you can be sure that a good coat will never go to waste.

My first choice was this Aztec number. Normal RRP £100. Sale Price £50
I cannot describe how disappointed I am with this coat. It ticks so many boxes for me in terms of colour, pattern and material but sadly it’s let down by sizing and fit. The sleeves are meant to be full length but they hit that really annoying wrist point on me, which I’m guessing would only be exasperated with knitwear worn underneath. I’m positive that I would constantly be trying to tug them down. The other issue is that this is the size SMALL. Now I realise that there is a certain amount of balloon design to the coat but it really is just utterly shapeless from the front. All the more annoying as I love how it looks from the back.

So my dilemma is this. Do I see if I can let the sleeves down slightly and re-sew or is it really doing nothing for me? Honest opinions please. EDIT: My lovely fashionistas have spoken and it is unanimous that the jacket should be returned

Next up is this shaggy faux fur. Normal RRP £80. Sale Price £40
I saw myself channeling my inner Rachel Zoe in this one. It’s a nice fit and length on me, the arm length is acceptable but again far from generous (and my arms are not above average in length I assure you). What’s with the stingy arms ASOS?! The material itself is soft but I dislike the colour tone (almost like dirty snow in good lighting) and it looks very plastic/ shiny IRL. *le sigh* This will definitely be returned.

On the plus side I’ve just saved myself the guts of £100

The only success from my order was the 2 Models Own Nail Polishes from their new Beetlejuice Collection. I opted for Pinky Brown (with this being my stand out fave so far) and Purple Blue (jury’s out)

xo

Did your heart skip a beat?

Mine certainly did when I set eyes on these frankly DELICIOUS New Look sparklies.

Then it promptly plummeted to my feet as I realised (with a large degree of overly dramatic) horror that they only had a size 6 left and it was too small. %&$£!!

I looked for them online with ZERO success.

Then I went to a different branch and……

they had 5 pairs of size 7… *whistles tunelessly*

To me they just SCREAM Christmas Party, which is where I intend to debut them. I’m gonna go the whole hog and pair them with a festive red frock, HELL, I might even wear some novelty earrings and a Santa Hat (I definitely won’t do either of these things). I’m all the more delighted because they were just £24.99! An amazing price considering places like DUNE are selling similar styles for £90 *faints*

Get them in store while you can, oh and I believe they also come in black and purple if that’s your thing!

xo

Don’t they just!

I think it’s the best bit of PR I’ve seen from a cosmetics company in a long time!

The premise of the deal was that if Models Own got to 100,000 likes on their Facebook page then they would throw a 50% off sale for one week on their website.

They reached that number last Friday and I don’t think that even they were prepared for the sheer volume of traffic the site would receive. Since then it’s been constantly falling over but with perseverance and a hell of a lot of patience orders can be made! Trust me!

I placed my order late Friday and it arrived this morning. Tbh I didn’t expect to see it for a few weeks so kudos to the staff. I’m very impressed by any company that doesn’t just fold under the pressure of a big sale.

Also loving that each polish was individually bubble wrapped. To me this says Models Own are a company that care about what state my purchases reach me in. I like!

On to the haul….

Well… initially I had 4 polishes in my basket but OBVIOUSLY the lure of 50% was just TOO much of a bargain. I ended up with 8.

Total was £20 inc free p&p. Now that’s flipping fabulous! I already have several Models Own polishes and I believe that even at £5 they are ridiculously good value for money. £2.50 each is just a steal!

I got:

L: Pearly Queen R: Snow White

Pearly Queen is very subtle pretty pink and the name is apt. It’s pearl earrings in liquid form.  The Snow White swatch is a bit pointless but basically I got this as a base for the blue glitter.

L: Champagne R: Nude Beige

Going on sight and swatches alone Champagne is the stand out beauty, a rich pearly light gold. Nude Beige on the other hand is slightly disappointing, definitely not as nude as the site swatch. Much more minky than I was expecting. Jury is OUT!

L: Raspberry Crush R: Tickled Pink

I love both of these. Raspberry Crush is much more cerise than it’s appearing here, really vibrant and it’ll make a great toenail colour. Tickled Pink is a great glittery rose. Super feminine.

L: Blue Sparkle R: Silver Spangle

I’ve wanted both of these for an absolute age but I probably wouldn’t have bought them unless the sale was on. Why? Well crazy glitter polishes always seem like a bit of a waste. Lets be honest I’ll rarely wear these. I am looking forward to experimenting with them though.

Initially the glitter seems like it will be easy to place on the nail. If I had to pick a negative I’d say that these took almost twice as long to dry on my swatch card. Definitely not ones to be apply if you’re in a hurry.

Overall I’m delighted. I really hate spending big bucks on nail polish, unless it’s something super special, because quite honestly it’s not my favourite beauty product. However I’m well chuffed that I have eight new shades to play with and they didn’t break the bank.

You can still take advantage of the offer here up until midnight Friday the 27th of August. Make sure you add in the code FACEBOOK50 at the checkout

xo

Party season is upon us and its a rare chance to break out the glitter with a vengeance, plaster on the eyeliner, and generally teeter on the thin line (of taste) between glamourista/ strictly come dancing contestant/ drag queen!

I adore silvers and greys but I think they are really hard to wear, especially with my pale skin. Adding glitter to the mix is a must for me, and also a rosy blush, essential if I am to avoid looking like an ice queen.

Although I’m just wearing lip balm above, if I was wearing this look out on the works Christmas do etc I’d wear a bold red lipstick/ gloss with the obligatory falsies (thats lashes, not boobs).

I know its “apparently” a big no no to accentuate both eyes and lips in one look, but I think thats a very boring 21st century rule that I like to break whenever possible. Certainly there are times when playing one up against the other works better but Christmas is NOT that time.

Pump up the volume and glam it up!!!! xox

Face

• Revlon Colorstay Foundation in Sand Beige
• Autograph Illusions Dark Circles Concealer in Light
• NARS Blush in Outlaw

Eyes

• Urban Decay Primer Potion (eye base)
• Bourjois Loose Glitter Eyeshadow in Gris Pixel 26 (main eyelid)
• Barry M Dazzle Dust in Silver Iridescent 8 (inner third of lid)
• No 17 Eye Dazzle in Star Crossed (crease)
• MAC Eyeshadow in Vellum (brow bone)
• Rimmel Sexy Curves Mascara Black

Lips

• Carmex Lip Balm