Moved into uni!

Just my luck to get a cold!!

Loving it so far, the clubbing/drinking thing isnt for me so i've not been doing that, just explored a bit to be honest, i got lost on the way into the city today, its only about 25 min walk from my halls but i got lost!! Craig's come down to stay with me for a bit to keep me company... believe it or not i'm actually quite shy! So it's good to have support. He's off work at the moment as he has to have an operation on his hand (eek) he broke it a couple of months ago (he's into mixed martial arts and cage fighting, worries me!) At least i know he can look after me ;)

Hope you're all ok, just thought I'd update you on everything!

I dont have any pics to add so i thought id throw in some oldies i found on my lappy!

Shoes glorious shoes!

New Look has stepped up it's game!!

These gorgeous wedges were £24.99 each, how cheap?! Similar ones in dune begin at around £80

They do fit a little tight though, but i'm wearing them in, they make me crazily tall, i thought i was about 5'8 5'9 but i got measured and i'm 5'11, with a 4 inch heel i'm around 6'3, The same as Craig!

Haircare

My question is, is it worth spending that bit extra on hair care, is a loreal elvive £5 hair mask as good as a £25 kerastase (by loreal) hair mask?

In my opinion, you pay for what you get, with a few exceptions. I am constantly buying new haircare products and rarely repurchase the same ones, bar a few exceptions.

When you're strapped for cash, the Loreal elvive shampoo's are fabulous, in particular for me the pink and green bottle. I also love lee stafford 'for hair that never grows past a certain length'

I've just bought the bed head superstar shampoo and conditioner, and the fact that they're sulphate free has got me thinking, i have noticed that when i only use sulphate/paraben free shampoo and conditioners, my hair is softer, healthier and seems to grow faster.

I really do think hair is worth investing in, if you'd be happy to spend hundreds on make up, why not hair, if anything it is more of an extension of who you are than make up, because make up washes off...

My current hair routine goes a little like this... Shampoo hair, (liz earle at the moment) wash out, lee stafford growth treatment, 5 mins, wash out, condition, either lush american cream (trying to use it up, not worth the money) or an intensive mask, leave, wash out, occasionally i use some kind of volumising spray but mostly i just brush it into shape and leave it to dry naturally.

What are your favourite haircare products tips and tricks?

Sew Psyched

Most of you will have heard about the les khakis des chanel collection, sadly it is only available in london, so to me this is a pretty good dupe for khaki vert, though im just guessing!

It's called sew psyched and it's by essie. I bought mine on ebay for about £5 delivered.

i hate feet, dont judge me! especially when theyre a tad swollen from new shoesies!

Elizabeth Arden red door anniversary

There have been a number of products released in this 'collection', though i feel the most iconic is the red door anniversary lipstick.

It is a classic red with gold flecks and is a sheer modern interpretation of a classic red.

The sheer tone is flattering on most skin tones, and the golden flecks brighten and warm the overall finish.

This is a stand out piece and is not easily dupeable, it is one you NEED in your collection!

rrp- around £20 i think.

Jo Malone

Having never tried this brand before, i toddled over to their stand in selfridges in the trafford center, previously id read on the brand's website about all the different scents and was already aware that the nectarine blossom and honey was for me.

So i bought the shower gel, body lotion and cologne.

I truly cant explain to you how beautiful this scent is, it's fresh, it's young, and it's very me. Like summer days spent with nature, that sweet, warm scent. It's just perfect, it reminds me a little of apples, not supermarket apples but home grown fresh little apples.

The customer service is amazing, everything was wrapped, boxed and ribboned, and i even received an invite for a hand and arm massage with the new scent, pear and freesia, hmm.. do i sense another addiction?!

Prada

I love end of season sales!

Alternative use for MAC superslick liners...

Chanel inattendu with tips done with the gold liner and topped off with seche vite.

Winter Skin

I think it's safe to say the autumn weather has begun! Which means dry skin, bye bye tan and hello dark days. I think it's important to make sure that you keep your skin in good condition, but also looking healthy, so i thought i'd try some new skin care.

Lancome skin care, benefit brow bits to keep them defined, and a lancome highlighting powder, to keep pale skin dewy.

I also got my first bit from Bobbi Brown, the bronzing shimmer brick, and i love it, it applies beautifully.

What are your a/w skin tips? x

New Cosmetics

I read that there is no better reason to go shopping than to update to all the new season colours.... did i really need an excuse??

Lush colour supplement base colour, i like the fact it is natural

Chanel nail vernis in inattendu

Dior lip glow (amazing)

Mac strobe cream, for a winter glow

Chanel rouge coco lipstick in orchidee, this is my second as i gave my first one to my nan.

New Mac superslick liquid eyeliners in Pure Show, Desires and Devices, On the Hunt and Marked for glamour. Love these, also have an alternative use of them to show you later.

New tub of lee stafford hair growth treatment, love it but last time i stopped using it as it began to work, boots are ALWAYS sold out it seems!

Sally Hansen airbrush legs in medium, heard it was nice for a glow all over, 1/3 off in boots

Flower for my hair, i love up do's with a big flower

Liz Earle foot lotion, i got the scrub too but it's in the bathroom

Liz Earle Mask, this is fantastic.

Zara perfume, actually really nice!

Is there anything else you recommend i need for a/w? leave a comment below!!

Jewellery

I love using jewellery to accessorise, it makes as much as if not more of a statement than your clothes. A plain black dress with a long gold pendant, some diamond studs and a nice rolex will look beautifully luxurious whilst the same black dress with layered chains, piles of bangles and rings will look extremely grungey.

My style

I tend to go for the more classic pieces these days, and i have a soft spot for gold. Simple gold chains with pendants, if i'm not wearing yellow gold it'll be white gold as i don't like silver on myself. My most recent addition to the collection is this swarovski necklace, i've never been keen on swarovski as it is all costume jewellery and i like being able to shower/bathe in my jewellery.

I'm also waiting for the infamous sideways cross necklace to arrive, it looks beautiful!

Making a statement

With things such as earrings, i find it is important to maintain balance amongst your jewellery, so big statement earrings with big statement necklace and big statement watch are a no no for me, generally abide by Coco Chanel's rule of removing a piece or two before leaving the house, and for me, one statement is plenty!

Favourite pieces and styles

-Pretty much any long gold chain with a plain pendant. I like amethyst, citrine, topaz and emerald. Peach morganite is also beautiful

-With rings, i always wear my engagement ring obviously, so i have to be careful not to clash. My ring is a simple gold band with a raised cushion cut diamond with a white gold heart under the diamond. My personal taste in engagement rings is i much prefer the simple timeless styles, i believe it was Audrey Hepburn who once said a flashy engagement ring is the epitome of bad taste! So if i wear another ring it must always be on my right hand and is either on my ring finger or pinky, at the moment i'm wearing a little white gold snake ring my grandmother gave me to bring me luck when i was in a rough patch.

-I believe watches are worth investing in, and i have a few that i rotate. I have a rolex oyster perpetual (was my mums), a marc jacobs gold watch, a michael kors tortoiseshell watch and my guess watch that i wear regularly. I like simple, classic watch styles in masculine designs.

-Earrings can clash with your neckwear if you are not careful to avoid this and as such i like to co-ordinate before hand. If i'm wearing a necklace i usually stick to diamond studs, if im not wearing a necklace, or if i am but its very subtle, then something larger, such as the classic vivienne westwood orbs can look beautiful, I am a fan of the chanel double c earrings but with so many fakes, i dont think it is worth investing in.

Creme De La Mer

Review, as asked for by Gaby :)

There are a few questions surrounding this product as it is one of those that most people have heard of, yet few own, i put this down to many not fully understanding what it is for.

Creme de la mer is a rich moisturising cream consisiting of a 'miracle broth' formulation. The creator suffered serious burns when a bomb exploded in his face, and created this to help heal the scars. It contains sea kelp amongst other things which is renowned for its properties.

I've been using this cream for almost a month and i have nothing but good to report.

As a moisturiser: If i'm using this as a facial moisturiser, i use it after a strong cleanser, scrub or mask when my skin feels particularly parched. You need the tiniest amount, which needs to be warmed in the palm before being applied to 'activate' the miracle broth.

The cream applies smoothly and feels slightly greasy for 5 minutes or so, but it then sinks in leaving the skin soft and smooth.

As it is such a rich cream i was concerned i would break out, but this has not been the case.

As a scar cream: Craig has a large scar on his arm ( a little smaller than a 5p piece ) from where a hot water bottle leaked, he used the cream twice and the scar is less red, it has smoothed out and is much less noticeable.

I had 2 scratches from playing with our kitten, i used the cream once, the next day the scratches had almost vanished.

Also, i have 2 scars on my face, one from a dog bite, one from cracking my head open when i was young. Both of these have noticeably diminished.

Overall: I am so impressed, and will definitely repurchase. It is not cheap (the smallest jar is around £95) but to me it is worth it... I also wonder if it would help with things such as stretch marks... hmm!

Just after applying. Slightly shiny but no obvious oiliness
The amount i use for face and neck

Ipad

I was sceptical at first, but it really does make life much easier, if you're considering, DO IT!!

I loveee the photo album, much much better than iphones!

If a dog is a man's best friend..

Can shoes and jewels be mine?....

Tory Burch and Vivienne Westwood *sighhhh* a match made in consumer heaven.

I'd lusted over the classic v.w orb earrings for months, selfridges often sold out of the plain version, and i refused the coloured, now i have both.

The earrings are beautiful, so much so that you dont need a necklace or any other jewellery for that matter, they stand out for themselves.. and the price point is very reasonable for what you get, i would happily have paid double.

Oh i love thee. Soft buttery leather, gold detail, these are my dream flats, i may get a back up, watch this space. All i can say is, go try a pair on. If you want classic, beautiful shoes but don't require heels, these fit the bill to perfection.

What girl doesn't love her make up?

Ok, ok.. so i know i said i wasn't mad about the naked palette, well, i began looking at it in detail online, and the 'only shadows you'll need' tipped me over the edge.

I know you'll have heard it all before but.. YOU NEED THIS IN YOUR LIFE. It is perfection in eyeshadow form.

My favourite combination is sin, naked and smog. So gorgeous with smudgey black kohl. Perfectly framed with corner lashes, normal ones of which are too thin for me, so i buy strip lashes and chop them up. Shu are my favourite.


The chanel counter also recieved a visit!

The pressed powder is beautifully silky, the blush in 'reflex is a beautiful warm pink with a peach vein, although it isnt particularly concentrated. The felt tip style eyeliner is wonderful, if you struggle with liquid liner, i cannot recommend this more.

The new lipstick in chintz smoothes on creamily, though none are as creamy as the ysl, i dont know the name of this, but its a lovely peach colour from their new pearl lipsticks.

I'm currently trialling a shu uemura uv under make up base which smoothes my skin so much i just wear this with a little powder on top.

Eyelashes curlers also by shu.



I've bought so many books recently, yet i never seem to have the time to read. Oh well.

I bought the liz earle cleanser to try out.. havent used it yet, but i will let you know how i find it.

Chanel chance eau tendre has been a favourite of mine for such a long time, picked up a bottle and clarins' recent offering. Both beautiful, timeless scents.

But what may have caught your eye is the infamous 'creme de la mer', i know before i bought my first question would have been 'is it worth the money?' as well all know this is by no means cheap, but it is, it heals cuts, scars, grazes, my pores are smaller, my skin tighter and it glows. MIRACLE CREAM!.

I hope you are all well. If you have any questions about any of the products please feel free!

Meet Alexa

Welcome to the family Alexa... (oversized)

Chanel polishes

Until recently, i hadn't tried any chanel 'le vernis', preferring opi et al. But recently when picking up another couple of my beloved coco rouge lipsticks, my eye caught the nail varnish stand...


I chose the classic lotus rouge, a gorgeous, dark red with a hint of rust, I have also since bought 'dragon' which is a much brighter, more orange red.

Jade rose, a beautiful soft pink with a hint of peach.

Paradoxal, this seasons 'it' colour, i know many people were disappointed by this colour, expecting it to be more multi toned, but i love it, it's quite similar on me to metro chic.

And finally the coveted Particulere, The original greige.

Chanel polishes are beautifully packaged, i also love the smaller lid for application. If i take these along to a mani pedi, i find they will last about a week, if i apply myself, they do seem to chip rather quickly, but that may be attributed to how thickly i paint it on.

Whilst on the subject of hands, i also bought something else to adorn my wrist.

I like the one by michael kors in this style but i already have it in tortoiseshell so i thought id delve into a new brand.

Coolest Vfx Breakdown!

Gonna be blogging again soon. Just had a relaxing summer, but that is over as from... NOW!

Here's a wicked vfx breakdown for a Peugot advert. The breakdown is almost cooler than the actual ad.

Making of Peugeot 207 - Oh to be Young from stephane pivron on Vimeo.