Accessorize Haul

Now this haul's long overdue, think two months overdue but somehow I've only got round to using the things properly now, am I the only one who loses things amidst their room for ages and then remembers about them? It seems so! Accessorize is a shop I love for their cute and bang on trend jewellery and bags especially in the spring/summer seasons but I haven't bought much from it because of its location, although there is one in the city centre its just seems out of the way and I always forget about it, thats about to change because their stuff is too cute to ignore!

You may think I'm overly strange buying a pair of slipper booties in March? usually I'd be the first to point out that you don't need them but in January thats not the case. I was also trying to be super organised for the end of summer/start of Autumn because its so hard to find a decent pair and I don't think my slippers at present are going to last me six/seven months so I'm prepared and have a back up if needs be. I also really liked the style & the colour and I'm not normally a blue kind of person -they have little pom pom's by the ankle and they're not too long, not too short, perfect ankle covering length so I can't wait to lounge around in these when the time comes.

The second thing I needed or convinced myself I needed was a new purse, I think I featured my purse I'm using at the minute in an old spending ban post, it's lasted me ages and although its still in tip top shape I've now gathered too many cards and theres not enough card slots. Its a lot harder than it sounds to find a purse with lots of card slots and so when I seen this one on the Accessorize website, plain black, sleek and professional with enough room for 13 cards and a hefty sized coin part in the back I knew it was ideal and into the basket it went.

Lastly I picked up this adorable handbag, perfect for Spring and for one of my friends upcoming birthday (this is only one present ticked off the list but its a start). I love the contrast between the light blue and navy, the straps also a good length for wearing over the shoulder and I especially love the gold embellishment. With handbags I hate having to squeeze everything into too small a bag or carrying around a bag, likely to make me look as if I'm going on a three week break but this I've found is the perfect size and I've a feeling my friend will be thrilled with it, I'm sort of sorry I didn't pick one up for myself at the same time  though! So thats all the things I picked up, let me know what you think!  

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo 

P.s what do you love from Accessorize? Or if you had to pick, jewellery or bags?

   Bloglovin'  //   Twitter  // Instagram  

August Non-Beauty Favourites

The Summer has dissappeared? With it being the end of August and September right around the corner I think its safe to say Autumn is on its way and I'm both happy and sad about it. Although we haven't had too much sun, its been nice to have no routine & simply relax before we all get back to the boring 9 to 5. Anyways less ranting, more favourites. This is my non beauty favourites because nine times out of ten I enjoy writing these more as there less common & it lets you know more about me and my interests and such so here we go. 

Not too long ago I was looking lusting over mid year diaries and planners in Paperchase for writing down all my blogging thoughts in for the next year and a half, I thought I would upgrade from planning on my iPad but walked away without one. Then I stepped into Poundland, not quite the same but they had a bunch of mid year diaries for you guessed it, a £1 and I thought why not. It can easily just be chucked in my bag, its a bit dull (I'm having a monochrome moment) and small but it does all I need it to do and honestly its made blogging, planning and organising so much easier having it all down on paper. 

As for skincare bits and pieces, I'm not sure if these should be in the beauty favourites or not but skincare is a bit different from makeup so they're here for now. I'm loving The Body Shop at the minute and have been raving all month about their cleansing butter, if you read my review here (link) and their seaweed mask. I'm a face mask addict, I think. They're the skincare item that I can't seem to stop buying but this tops all of them - I'll be doing a review soon on this but oh my goodness I'm in love and between these two my skin has been (touch wood) far clearer than normal. 

I always try and include an album or tv programme in my monthly favourites and although Pretty Little Liars and Teen Wolf are amaazing, I started watching Scandal this month and I'm already halfway through the second season. I love law programmes, murder mystery that sort of thing, and this is definitely more on the law side of things. It follows around Olivia Pope, her team and the drama in their personal lives as well, making it more light hearted and I can't wait to catch up enough to watch the third series. I just can't recommend it enough! Also Taylor Swift released a new song, Shake It Off which has been stuck in my head for the past two weeks and although I much prefer her older music this is unbelievably catchy and I love the message behind it! 

Lastly I purchased new sunglasses in the sale, I was hoping for sun and I love the design - when it comes to sunglasses the bigger the better and I'm going through a tortoise shell phase too so the first chance of sun we have in September (we all know its sunny when everyone's back to school) these will be my go to. I think that's all of my non beauty favourites for this month, I hope you enjoyed it :) 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo

P.s what non beauty things have you been loving throughout August? 

 BlogLovin'  //   Twitter  //  Instagram  

The End of Summer FOTD;

Whilst I've been blogging, I've haven't actually posted many photos of makeup on my face when I'm reviewing or FOTD's as I'm quite forgetful & usually remember once I've taken it all off or else I don't think the way the makeup shows up is right although I'm trying to change this. Since my last fotd post was back in January (link here) I thought it was about time I did another, this is the way I've been wearing my makeup a lot of the time throughout the summer, very natural and glowy. I'm also trying to mix up the products I'm reaching for to use them all up & of course buy replacements so this'll include a bit of everything! .

I much prefer landscape to portrait photos but hey! :)

Considering summer brings warm weather supposedly, I thought a matte foundation would keep the shine at bay, the one I've been trying is the No7 Beautifully Matte Foundation from Boots in the lightest shade Calico which is more of a medium coverage, SPF 15 (always a bonus in the summer) and its hypo-allergenic so its shouldn't even be a bother to sensitive skin. Since this is a matte foundation I haven't been using powder, only a light swirl of the MUA mosaic blush in English Rose on the apples of my cheeks and then a light dusting of the Natural Collection Bronzing Pearls in Tropical Tan as a contour and that's my base done in three steps, easy peasy!

As for eyes I've been trying to add a bit of colour so I used the Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Pink Gold as a base and then my Wet 'n Wild Sweet As Candy eyeshadow Palette to build up the colour all over my eyelids. I then used my Collection Extreme liner to add a little definition to my eyes, my Clinque high impact mascara for my bottom lashes and then the Rimmel Scandal Eyes volume flash mascara on my top lashes. If you've ready my most recent post on mascaras (link here) you'll know I didn't really get on with the Rimmel mascara but I'm determined not to waste it.

Lastly (my favourite part of the look) I'm wearing my Wet 'n Wild lipstick in Mauve Outta Here, I bought this when I was in Dublin without swatching it and upon trying it back home I was pleasantly surprised to see its a pinky/purple lipstick (more purple) and nothing like anything I own so I'm definitely going to have to use it a few more times before the summer season ends. Hope you enjoyed this face of the day :)

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo
 P.s let me know, would you prefer to see more face of the day posts or photos in reviews?

 BlogLovin'  //   Twitter  //  Instagram  

Ikea Haulin'

So I know a homeware haul isn't exactly everyones cup of tea but I love them! Its so fun having a nosy and getting inspiration for yourself at the same time. I may or may not have unintentionally went to ikea over the weekend and if you follow me on twitter (link here) you'll know I asked in the #bbloggers chat if this was something you would want to read and surprisingly received an overly positive response so here we are, an ikea haul. 

I've been thinking of redecorating my bedroom for a while but I just didn't know what direction or colour scheme to go in but when I saw these cushions covers from the Svarttall range I fell in love and knew these would look lovely with a monochrome themed room (more white than black) and plain bedding. I bought two of the tiled print cushion covers as I liked the yellow running through it and thought that two of the other pattern would just be too much. Plus when I got to the cash desk, they were on sale, what a bonus! I think the cushion and cover together were £6/7, total bargain since most of the other cushions were over £10.  

Since my room was looking a little empty and I've been going on a print binge as you may be able to tell from the previous photos I decided to pick up this set of five cute prints, all floral and in a range of colours. I then realised that they were a size bigger than all of my photo frames at home and decided to pick up a pack of two white frames which will be hung on my wall as soon as. I'm not sure whether to keep the two prints I have in them at the minute or to change it to one of the others, we'll see.  

This one was a bit random, I already own one of these and probably didn't need another but with an ever expanding makeup collection they do come in handy and keep everything organised. As weird as it is, its actually from their kitchen range and meant to be used to store cutlery in but of course I wouldn't use it for that, plus its under £2 what a bargain. Also they're so easy to keep clean and don't risk me destroying my white desk.  

This is the last thing I picked up whilst I was shopping and again it might seem a bit odd but with white furniture you've no idea how handy these are. I used to have a green, white and pink floral print mat but since I'm thinking of redoing my room I thought a black and white one would be more fitting. I've also tried it out and it makes an amazing background for photos, you'll have to keep an eye out for tomorrows post to have a look ;)

On top of that, it actually does the trick of keeping my surfaces clean, no one likes makeup marks! This again was from the kitchen department and a bit of an impulse buy, I was stuck between this print and another black and turquoise one but I might just go back and get that because they're only 75p or something, absolutely ridiculous. Anyways I hope you enjoyed this sort of haul, be sure to let me know in the comments. 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo

P.s have you bought any nice homeware bits and pieces lately?  

Summer Fragrances

Over the past few weeks the sun has been out in full force and with that so have the summer perfumes - I guess it just doesn't seem acceptable to wear something floral and fruity in the midst of winter, July however is a different kettle of fish. I don't usually post about perfumes which is a bit of a puzzlement as last year I went through a phase of constantly buying new perfume for the sake of it - I admit my collections a little extensive now (most of them are untouched and simply looking pretty on my dressing table) but I'll get round to using them eventually. These are my three most reached for at the moment, can you tell I'm partial to the odd sweet smelling celebrity scent?

The Enchanted Wonderstruck perfume by Taylor Swift which I was kindly bought as a present last year is definitely my most used of the three, this is the 30ml sized bottle and its ever so handy for popping in my bag. The packaging however is an absolute nuisance - in fact all three of these perfumes are (this photo was the best of a really bad bunch) to photograph as its holographic with an intricate design on the lid. It has top notes of wild berry and passionfruit and smells perfectly florally without overdoing it which I love and as its a lighter scent its ideal for wearing throughout the day.

The second perfume Our Moment is by One Direction and again I was kindly bought at Christmas there, I hadn't smelt it beforehand so I wasn't sure what to expect however I was pleasantly surprised. The bottle is aimed at younger girls and the bottle lid is shaped similarly to a crown or jewel making them feel like utter princesses - cute. This is much sweeter in comparison to Enchanted Wonderstruck (which is muskier) and is the typical girly floral smell with top notes such as pink grapefruit and jasmine. Again so easy to spritz on during the day and the scent lasts for ages!

My third favourite is Honey by Marc Jacobs and is probably the most summery of the trio. All Marc Jacobs perfumes have beautifully designed bottles and this perfume is no exception, the white and yellow spotty colour scheme just screams summer and I love the bee shaped lid as well. This perfume is definitely a fruity and fresh scent with top notes such as pear and mandarin and base notes of vanilla and of course, honey! Unlike the other two I prefer to use this at night or for occassions throughout the summer as its more expensive and I'm trying to make it last but its definitely a must buy for the summer months.

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo
P.s whats your summer go to perfume? 

Second Thoughts

When these new additions from Barry M arrived on our shelves at some point last year it was chaos - the hype for these little bottles at the time was something else! Now I'm not someone that'll go out and buy something just because everyone else has it and if I'm honest I think the hype put me off. I did however a few months later pick up one summery shade just to make my own mind up about the range and have only got round to giving it another go again, now.

The Gelly hi shine nail paint is supposed to be long lasting and shiny; giving the illusion of wearing gel nails however none of this actually seemed the case. In fact the first time I wore this I had high hopes and applied two coats (as usual) and was left greatly disappointed! They just appeared the same as any other nail polish in my collection and the gel effect just didn't seem to happen. On top of that within 2 days a couple of my nails had chipped - now I know I like to re-paint my nails alot, but I don't like to that quickly. The sad part was I wasn't even doing anything that would necessarily chip them so I said my goodbyes and stored it way way down at the bottom of my collection.

And that is where it stayed until the other day, I was looking for a nice summery shade and thought it was time to give it another whirl - even if I'm not too keen on a product I'll always try and use it up (I hate wasting things and most of the time the product just needs a little getting used to). I've now been wearing this particular colour on my nails for four or five days and they look as if they've only painted, a bit of a turn around from before! #success I've also had numerous compliments on the coral shade and although it still doesn't look as if I'm wearing false nails as such, the formula is super glossy and gives more of a finished look to the nails. Now that I've passed my hate phase (well dislike) in the love/hate relationship I'm really loving the gelly nail polishes and I'm determined to pick up a few more summer shades to keep me going. Leave me a comment below if you can think of some nice summer shades....

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo
P.s have you tried any colours from the Barry M Gelly range? what do you think? 

Summer Clothing Haul

Summer sales are possibly the best and the worst thing for my bank card - good because I can buy a new wardrobe and not feel guilty about spending a fortune, bad because I tend to go a bit overboard. This year though I seem to have had some self control and my sales shopping has been kept to a minimum but I still thought I'd show you guys what lovely things I've managed to pick up. 

The first place to shop was h&m, I love their clothes and whenever they have a sale if you have the patience you can always find a bargain. I didn't have anything particular that I wanted but then I saw this black and white stripy crop top I thought it would be perfect for a cooler summer night as its a loose material and can be jazzed up or down depending on the occassion.

Whilst I was paying at the till, this little black dress caught my eye and it was only when I picked it up that I noticed the entire back to the waist was made up of lace - perfect for a night out when you don't want to go overboard but still look as if you've made an effort, plus it was only £4 so how could I not get it!

Sadly Topshop was one of the last places I popped into and it was closing (therefore closed changing rooms) and me not able to buy half the stuff I wanted - I was in need however of a plain short sleeved tee to wear with jeans and this fitted all the boxes. This is supposedly a size 8 but I'm pretty sure its way bigger, don't know whether its due to the batwing sleeves or not but just as well I love a baggy tee. 

Another place that I didn't have nearly enough time in was Zara, it was absolutely packed and there wasn't a chance of me looking around everything however I did find this little gem! Its not usually a colour I'd go for (peachy/pinky pastel) but I really liked it together with the bird print.

Urban Outfitters is one of my favourite shops and so visiting their sales was a must! I thought this little top would be perfect with jeans as well (I have a thing for spots too) and its so comfortable - that and it was only £5! Now I know UO have good sales but £5 is an ultimate steal even for them :)

This is probably an odd thing to buy in the midst of summer but I couldn't not buy it - it screamed the perfect Christmassy winter jumper and so I bought it with the intention of packing it away in my wardrobe until at least Autumn. I'm a serious baggy jumper fiend and this is far too cosy! Red isn't usually my colour but I thought why not step out of your comfort zone a tad and I'm seriously glad I did. Urban Outfitters, you've made me very happy (especially as it only cost around£10).

As for accessories I bought a black and white aztec print bag from Topshop, surprisingly I don't have any small bags and I don't want to be hauling around a massive shopper if I'm just popping down the road so I bought this solely for just putting my purse and phone in and being on my way. Also I wanted a brighter purse one that would easily stand out in the bottom of a handbag so I picked this one up from Monki at Asos and so far I love it. 

The last two things that I bought was a gold hexagon necklace from Topshop (if I could buy all of their jewellery range I would), minimal but pretty and a spiky silver ring from H&M which I love. I used to have a ring just like this but I don't know where it ended up so its nice to have another :(

Although all of this may seem like a lot or not to some people, this was all bought in the space of about 2 hours so I think I did quite well in finding it all. Plus there were so many bargains and all together I saved well over £100 - definitely a happy girly! I'm still getting used to photographing clothes, its rather odd but if you'd rather see OOTD's or how I style the clothes, I'd be happy to do that, let me know in the comments below :)

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo
P.s what sale steals have you managed to snap up? 

Weekly Ramble #5

I refuse to religiously post weekly rambles, my sort of catch up on the week lifestyle posts if I don't do all that much in my eyes - if I'm honest my life ain't that interesting. However this was my birthday week and I made sooo many plans probably too many and the weather was amazing so I was barely indoors and therefore this seemed like the perfect opportunity to fill you all in :) 

Officially a month since I moved out of my university house // went for a lovely pre-birthday meal // the sun made an appearance for once and I relaxed with ice cold drinks // it wouldn't be a birthday without a massive chocolate cake // cutely wrapped birthday pressies // took a trip to the zoo // had my first slush puppy of the year // took a selfie with a giraffe, totes normal // jealous of the seals sunbathing and doing nothing // played about with settings on camera // went bowling for the first time in years // chilled with friends and took a few selfies as you do  

It being the end of June, well close enough, I've officially moved out of my university house almost a month - this is such a big thing, moving away from home was such an experience but I couldn't be happier to be home. As I said on Tuesday I turned 20 agh, no more teenage years :( and so on Monday I spent a lot of time in the garden and might have had an ice cold cider or two in the back garden, when the sun comes out you really do have to make the most of it, as I'm writing this post, five days later and its cloudy and dull outside. On Monday evening my friends treated me to a lovely pre-birthday meal and cocktails at Frankie & Bennys which was nice, Italian food is my absolute favourite and I had a lovely pasta dish and of course to finish it all of desert.  

On Tuesday I went for dinner with my family and was treated to a massive birthday cake which tasted amazing and its safe to say at least half of that has been demolished since then - what can I say I'm we're all chocoholics. I was also treated to birthday presents which I've ever so grateful for from friends and family. Is is just me or are wrapped presents not ten times better than those left unwrapped in a gift bag? Its like Christmas all over again! Wednesday we made the most of the good weather and took a trip to the zoo, I was incredibly jealous of both the elephants who had their own personal sprinklers and the sea lions who spent their time sunbathing whilst I was roasting however I did have my first slush puppy of the summer at the restaurant at the top (the zoo is on a mountain). Also I took a selfie with the giraffes, totes normal but they were adorable. 

Throughout the week I also played about with a few settings on my camera and these beaut flower photos were the outcome, as well as that I went bowling for the first time in absolute years. The bowling alley wasn't too busy but I loved the whole colourful aspect, it also had a bit of a vintage theme to it, there were no illuminating lights along the lanes or nothing, thank goodness and as if it was a miracle I managed to come second out of five people, it was a fluke I'm sure, enjoyable nonetheless. Finally I attended a party/bbq of my friends - many I hadn't seen in a while and it was nice to have a catch up, taking a few selfies along the way. 

What have you all been up to, anything exciting?
Thanks for reading, Jenny xo 

Tag: This or That

Since realising the other week that I hadn't posted a tag post before I jumped straight to it and not only posted one tag post but two and its safe to say I'm hooked. One tag that has been floating about Bloglovin' is the 'This or That' tag beauty edition but theres actually a this or that tag with categories fashion, hair and random - way more of an all rounder and I decided to do that one instead, therefore its the best of both worlds (yes, Hannah Montana automatically popped into my head whilst writing this) beauty and not. I hope you enjoy :) 

Makeup:

Blush or Bronzer
I'd have to say blush, bronzer never works on me too well being pale and all that 

Lipgloss or Lipstick
Lipstick! I hate the whole lipgloss getting stuck in the hair sort of look

Eyeliner or Mascara
Although I've been loving them both recently, mascara wins hands down

Foundation or Concealer
I could always go without foundation if it came down to it so concealer

Neutral or Colour Eyeshadow
I'm definitely a neutral gal even though colours nice every once in a while. 

Pressed or loose eyeshadow
I don't think I've tried loose eyeshadow so pressed it is

Brushes or Sponges
Again sponges don't really appeal to me so brushes, more specifically the RT brushes 

Nails:

O.P.I or China Glaze
O.P.I

Long or Short
Long but not too long if that even makes sense, I hate the idea of them being too long and breaking but being short and looking boy-ish

Acrylic or Natural
I've worn acrylic a few times and loved them but the damage the glue does is just not worth it so natural 

Brights or Darks
I love both, it depends on the season or what mood I'm feeling when I'm painting 

Flower or no flower
Um what flower? 

Body:

Perfume or Body Spray
I'd have to say perfume it always lasts way longer and usually has a cuter bottle 

Lotion or Body Butter
Body lotion!

Body wash or Soap
I'm not too fussed about either really, they both do the exact same in my eyes. 

LUSH or another bath company

I don't actually own too many products from LUSH but I love their products so yeah

Fashion:

Jeans or Sweats
Sweats around the house and jeggings (that sort of counts, they're half jeans) if I'm heading out

Long sleeve or short
Considering its summer I'd have to say short

Dresses or skirts
I quite like both, either work for me

Stripes or Plaid
I have a thing for stripes, I must have at least 4 stripy tops that're almost identical in my wardrobe oops

Flip flops or sandals
For holidays and such flip flops

Scarves or hats
Scarves! I would happily wear them all year round

Studs or dangly earrings
I don't actually have my ears pierced at the moment

Necklaces or bracelets
Necklaces, they make more of a difference to an outfit although I do love new bracelets 

Heels or flats
Heels if I'm going out for the night (I need all the height I can get), I'm now reaching for shoes with a little bit of height for during the day even so no to flats

Cowboy boots or riding boots
Cowboy

Jacket or hoodie
I love just chucking on hoodies and running to the shop

Forever 21 or Charlotte Russe
Forever 21 always has some gorgeous stuff, the other place I haven't even heard of

Abercrombie or Hollister
I think both are equally as nice, they basically sell the exact same thing, except Hollister is a bit more colourful

Hair:

Curly or straight
Straight I guess, although my hairs a mixture of straight and crinkly? 

Bun or ponytail
Messy bun in the house, ponytail outdoors

Bobby pins or butterfly clips
Bobby pins (which I'm constantly buying and forever loosing) 

Hair spray or gel
Hair gels more of a boy thing so hairspray

Long or short
I'm not a fan of short hair on myself, in fact I can't remember a time it was shorter than shoulder length

Light or dark
I've been both and now I'm a mixture of natural and brown/blonde but I do miss being blonde :(

Side sweep bangs or full bangs
Side sweep bangs

Up or down
When I'm going out down, in the house I can't wait to get it up and out of my face

Randoms:

Rain or shine
Shine, its rare that we actually get any sunshine but then I do love the odd rain shower (when I'm warm and toasty inside, usually with a cup of tea and a lot of blankets) 

Summer or winter
With a June birthday I'm always going to be a summer baby, although I love the winter months and the build up to Christmas etc 

Autumn or spring
I love them both equally! 

Chocolate or vanilla
Chocolate 100%

As I said this post is a little different from my usual ones but I actually really enjoyed writing this as it allows you to get to know the blogger (me) a bit more and I always love doing that with others. I tag anyone reading this to give this tag a go, it's really enjoyable

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo