Off With Your Head.

Top & Necklace - H&M, Skirt - Urban Outfitters, Lipstick - Sleek Peaches & Cream

I threw this on this morning because it was sunny but eventually had to admit defeat and put on some tights instead when the wind and clouds kicked in.

I put together a blog sale which you might have seen. Some bargains to be had! I'm going to try and update my blog sale a lot more often because I really need to clear out everything if i'm going to be moving at some point! 

Today I went for a look around town, for some reason I absolutely hate shopping in Leeds. I'm not a massive fan of shopping anyway, I'm extremely impatient and can't deal with people walking slowly/in to me. Leeds is very badly laid out, the shops are miles apart (and New Look is a mission to get to!) 

I wish there were more high street stores as well, not just in Leeds but in general. I guess it's heightened in blogging that there isn't enough variety, we really only have Topshop, H&M, Miss Selfridge, Urban Outfitters and Zara etc. 

I know from my own experiences with blogging that you do get a lot of "so and so is copying this blogger" but well, we don't got much to work with!
Personally, one of my favourite things about fashion blogs (those which are predominantly high street fashion) is you get to see how different people wear the same or similar items. Everyone can wear a Topshop skirt, but the real creativity lies in how they wear it and what they wear it with. I'm pretty much a "throw on and go" type of person, but I love seeing how an outfit can come together!

Blog sale.

A quick heads up - my blog sale is happening right now over at my blog shop.

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Hope you pick up some nice things. xo.

Sunday Best.

Skirt & Top - H&M, Belt & Necklace - Topshop, MAC Costa Chic Lipstick

A few snaps of my outfit from yesterday/last night which I took at night so the lighting is rubbish! I went out with Dora & Harriet in Leeds which was so much fun! I had a massive issue trying to find something to wear, I've had a clean out and now have about three tops and two skirts so this is all old and literally thrown together. I never thought I'd wear this belt again but I love it, and when I posted an outfit picture on Twitter I got some lovely compliments so I went with it.

Tomorrow consists of desperately seeking out a new outfit for the Glossybox event on Thursday! I honestly have no idea what to wear and haven't seen anything I like in forever!

In other news, I possibly named the new Illamasqua mascara, they posted this on Twitter a while back and I replied with my joke suggestion. I didn't hear back and forgot all about it, until they mentioned today that their new mascara "Masquara" is out soon. I feel used! ;)

Updates: 35mm.

A few pictures from the last week, which has mainly consisted of baths with Lush bath bombs, painting my nails and having copious amounts of honey and lemon drinks because I've been ill!
I ordered a few new Models Own polishes in the sale (like everyone else!) which is pretty exciting! I've never really been interested in nails before, but now I'm obsessed!

I'm planning on heading down to London next Thursday & Friday for the Glossybox event, is anyone else planning on going? I hardly ever make it to London because it's an expensive journey for just a few hours but I thought I may as well! I'm looking forward to moving to London, and it's good to get myself familiar with the big smoke before I move! I'm going to be such a n00b! Send help.

I've also emailed my Aussie giveaway winners, so if that was you... please reply ASAP! Thanks.

Joe Browns A/W Event.

I recently attended the Joe Browns A/W event in Leeds with a few other bloggers. It was an amazing event, they'd gone to so much effort with the Mexican theme and everyone was lovely!
I remember the Joe Browns catalogue from when I was younger, I remember loving everything, especially their relaxed style and fun, easy to wear items. Autumn/Winter trends are my favourite, I instantly spotted a few gorgeous fur coats on the rails as well as those gorgeous patterned wellies!

No doubt you'll spot a few Joe Browns items in my outfit posts over the next couple of months!
Massive love to Lucy, Victoria, Charlotte, Becca, Laura, Lauren, Laura & Jamie... and everyone else!

Crown of Gold.

Top - Ark Clothing

Skirt - New Look

Belt - Primark

Necklace - H&M

Nails - Barry M Peach Melba & Models Own Jade Stone

A quick outfit post from today, I bought this top last year before I went to Barcelona but it's quite awkward to wear... much like yesterdays body! The sleeves always seem to fall off my shoulders!
I bought this amazing crown necklace from H&M and I love it, it's very "me" as I love long, simple pendants, they always complete an outfit.

I also used fake nails for the first time today, I've always loved Barry Ms Peach Melba but it doesn't go on my nails very well and looks streaky so I can never wear it. It goes on so well on fake nails!
The Jade Stone is a lot lighter in real life, and the colours look lovely together. Hopefully the nails won't fall off mid shift tomorrow!

Aussie Giveaway!
I mentioned on twitter that I'm now an Aussie Angel. I was going to do a full post on this, but unfortunately my delivery hasn't come (I have so many issues with delivery companies!). This month is all about celebrating Aussies 110th anniversary, so Aussie are giving away a party pack (including your choice of an Aussie product, as well as sparklers, party poppers and flip flops!) to 7 non-angels!
The winners will also enter into a draw to win a VIP ticket to the amazing Aussie party on the 29th October!
All you need to do is reply before tomorrow at 1pm with what you'll be celebrating this month & your email address! I'll pick the winners based on the best answers tomorrow afternoon. Good luck!

T&C: You must be over 18 and live in the UK. Full T&Cs here.
For more information, here is a link to Hannahs post with more details!

Garnier Miracle Skin Protector (BB Cream)

Yesterday was a bit of an achievement for me, it was the first time I went without foundation! I was sent the Garnier Miracle Skin Protector (or BB Cream) at work after eyeing it up for so long. I kept testing it out, putting it on one hand and comparing it to the other and the results were amazing!
I was really pleased when I got it, they sent me a Medium and a Light and I was unsure which I should use but Light seems to be better for me.

The idea of a BB cream is to provide an "All in One", which makes skin look naturally healthy and radiant as well as providing 24hour hydration and a Sun Protection Factor. They've been popular in Asia for some time and have recently hit the UK, with this version from Garnier being the first to hit Boots (it's been flying off the shelves!).

I usually use quite full coverage foundation, I don't like my skin at all. I'm prone to blemishes on my cheeks and chin (although it has been better recently), have oily/combination skin, visible pores and marks that blemishes have left and are still fading. However, where my skin is free of blemishes and visible pores, it's generally quite nice and doesn't need heavy coverage.
I decided to try Garniers Miracle Skin Protector, using concealer on the areas which I find need more coverage and a bit of powder on my T-zone. It did work really well to give me a lovely naturally radiant look, and although I didn't have my usual full foundation I felt comfortable.
It seems to last well throughout the day, it's not on par with foundation but I didn't need to touch up (apart from a bit of concealer on my blemishes).

I think it adapts to my skin colour really well, and blends in to look really natural. My skin looked more radiant, but I found that my dark under eye circles needed more concealer than usual... but this may have just been because I haven't had a lot of sleep recently. I'm hoping that after a little while of using this, it will help my skin and I won't feel the need to use such heavy foundation (which probably isn't helping my skin at all!).

This is ideal for all skin types, especially normal/dry skin which doesn't require heavy coverage foundation but needs a bit of a hydration boost and to look brighter and more radiant.
With oily skin, you could always use a mattifying moisturiser first (or an oil control primer) and a bit of powder to set. I really do think it's a good product, and a lot better for your skin than foundation. Whereas usually, you can tell I wear foundation and it does look a bit caked, although my skin looks lovely. I think this is a nice balance of having natural looking skin, albeit not as "flawless".

Has anyone else tried this product? Do you think this is something you would be interested in buying?

This Is The Life.

Top & Necklace - Topshop, Skirt & Ring - H&M, Lipstick - Smoked Peach, Revlon

Todays outfit pictures didn't turn out so great, which is ironic/typical as I gone done did a post about my photography tips today! Some days it takes a couple of quick snaps, other times it feels like I spend my life infront of my camera.
I've worn this top before, I really do love it but it's quite awkward to wear as it's actually a body and the back comes down quite low and exposes bra. I hate exposed underwear!

I'm very pleased to announce that Escentual featured me as their Blog of the Week this week! I also put up some little interview-like questions here which was so much fun as they were really inventive with their questions.

I'm feeling a bit poorly today, I was going to go out after work but decided to stay in with some dinner and DVDs in bed. Hopefully this cold is a sign that it's going to start being wintery soon as I've already picked out my winter coat!

How To: Photography.

I get asked a lot about what camera I use to take my blog photos, I actually have two which I use for a number of reasons. If I'm at my flat in Leeds, I'll use my DSLR camera which is a Nikon D40, I got it almost two years ago and it's a great "entry level" SLR camera. Eventually I'd like to step it up a gear and get a Canon, but at the moment it works great and I see it as a really good "starter" DSLR as it can be hard to get into the settings etc. I was taught basic photography at university, although I studied Forensic Science, photography is pretty crucial (you'll know this if you've ever watched anything involving a crime scene).
This camera, the Nikon D40, is actually discontinued but the D50 is the next one up in the range.

If I'm travelling or going to festivals, gigs etc. I tend to take my bridge camera, bridge cameras are those that are in between a typical digital camera and a DSLR. I have a Nikon Coolpix P5100 which is great, and produces good quality pictures which are a step down from a DSLR camera.
Do you need a fancy camera to produce outfit photos? Probably not, but it does help. If you're happy with that you work with, then fine. If you feel the need to upgrade, choose one which is a good "entry level" camera that will be easy to get to grips with.

For taking outfit pictures, I use a tripod. I bought a cheap one from Amazon which is really great and lightweight (not because I take it anywhere, but because I move house a lot). It cost about £10 and is a good height and easy to use and pack away. This one is pretty similar, if not the same, as what I have but make sure you purchase one that works with your camera. It should say in the description.
I personally don't use a remote control for my camera, I've never needed one and I like the way I do my outfit posts so it's never entered my mind to buy one. Some people prefer to use them, but I just get in place, reach forward and focus my camera and then shoot whilst on a 10 second self-timer.
I think if I was to start taking my outfit pictures full length, then I would need a remote for my camera, but at the moment I'm fine with my "set up".

When I was looking for a new flat, I made sure to find one with a blank wall to take outfit photos (sad, I know). I adjust the lighting using my blinds and/or light and sometimes edit the brightness/contrast and/or levels in Photoshop afterwards if the colours don't look right.
Sometimes for portrait style photos or other non-outfit photos I'll edit the settings in Photoshop to make it stand out. Like most people, I use Photoshop Actions for this, usually ones I've made myself but you can get heaps online for download.

I'm not a professional photographer, I haven't had massive amounts of training and I'm still learning myself. If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you'll know that my first attempts at outfit posts weren't spectacular and they still aren't perfect. These things come with practice, it sometimes takes me 50 attempts to get a few outfit photos so it really is trial and error!

Mustard.

Top - H&M, Jeans - Topshop Leigh

A quick post of what I wore today. I was originally going to buy the dress version of this top, but I settled for the top in the end. I planned to wear it with just a black bodycon skirt but that's what I always wear so I went for skinny jeans! It was quite sunny and warm today, and I thought blue jeans would look more summery than black skinnies.
I didn't accessorize at all (apart from my Ray Bans) as I don't think it needed anything really and I was wearing almost no makeup as it's Sunday and I'm allowed one day off to look a bit scary.

I also received my Glossybox today (it had been waiting at my old address, too lazy to update it!), which was interesting. The Nail Wraps are truly hideous, but we had a good laugh on Twitter about them. I'm really excited about trying the Daniel Sandler mascara, the Murad Acne Cleanser and the Ahava Body Lotion, but not so keen on the KMS hair protection spray as I've tried a product of theirs before and didn't think it was that great (I always thought it was a bit of a cheap brand...?) but I'll give it a go!
What has everyone else thought of the boxes?

I posted about some Mavala products here earlier today.

Review: Mavala.

I was recently sent some Mavala products to try out, a brand which I've never tried before but I often have a look at their nail polishes at work as the colours are gorgeous.
I was sent three nail polishes, and they were all the most amazing colours! If I had picked the colours myself, I'm almost certain I would have chosen these three. Cyclades Blue is the lovely cornflower blue you can see first in the top picture, I don't own any polishes like this and I really love it.
Next is Blue Curacao, a gorgeous teal/blue. I love the colour teal, I think it suits everyone and can be worn with any colour. I can't wait to try out some nail art matching up different shades with this colour.
Lastly, Waikiki Orange (third in the first picture) is a beautiful coral pink colour, which is probably my "go to" nail colour. For some reason I'm always instantly attracted to coral polishes, and this is my new favourite!

I was so pleased I got the Nutritive Nail Cream as my nails have been horrific recently, not only have the nails been really brittle but my cuticles are really dry and splitting. I find my nail polish remover is extremely drying, and after using it my nails are so dry and look awful. I put some of this Nail Cream on and they instantly looked so healthy. It's meant to be slathered on at night, but I think a tiny bit during the day can help a lot as well. It's not really greasy, and I can see it working already. My cuticles and nails are both looking a lot healthier and moisturised.
If you haven't already got a good nail and cuticle cream, I really recommend this as it's one of the best I've tried.

Finally, I was also sent a lovely lipstick in Euphoric Orange, a bright red/orange shade which is extremely pigmented. I don't own any orange/red shades but I do love the way this looks on me. It's one of the creamiest lipsticks I've tried as well, so no dried out lips.

Overall, I'm massively impressed with the quality of Mavala products. The nail colours are gorgeous, and will hopefully inspire me to try out some more nail art soon!