Tag Archives: Loves

Wish List – Sale Shopping

I am terrible at sale shopping. I get stressed by messy shops (must be the memories of Saturdays spent folding jeans), I get my head turned by stuff that is not on sale and inevitably come home with stuff I don’t actually want. So this year I’m being more considered.

The work ‘black-tie’ event appropriate dress Asos Skater dressFirst things first – avoiding last minute “whaddya mean it’s black tie?” panic. This Darling Skater Dress with Polka Sleeves from ASOS would do the trick nicely. And Hallelujah – it has sleeves! Down from £59 to £38.

Trainers. For ‘sports’ SchuhUrgh, yeah New Years resolutions and all that. I need some decent trainers and I like these Nike Air Max Triax 94s from Schuh. I like Nike as they tend to be quite narrow and I have narrow (but long) feet. Down from £87 to £56.99.

New, non-tatty Boyfriend Jumper Urban Outfitters jumperI love a slouchy jumper to wear to work, but the ones I have are looking a bit worse for wear so need replacing. I love this BDG Waffle Boyfriend Jumper from Urban Outfitters, especially the colour. £20 down from £45.

A Treat for being a Good Shopper Asos t-shirtBecause you can never have too many cat themed t-shirts. This CAPTURE by Hollywood Made t-shirt at ASOS is £18 down from £55. What an adorable bargain.

And that’s it. Er, not counting the Lush order that’s on its way. Total cost is £132.99. Not too bad considering I totally need this stuff! What do you have your eye on in the sales?

 

Tech: Christmas Shopping List App

If you’re doing Christmas on a budget, or at least wanting to keep a track of what you’re spending, you need this app. The Christmas Shopping List by iDelux has been my go-to for three years now. I should note – this is not a sponsored post – I just really like this app and think you might too!

Shopping App 1Look, Smurpho loves it too! 5 reasons I rate this app:

  1. It’s password protected to no one can snoop on what presents you’ve bought them.
  2. It adds up your total budget based on how much you allocate to each person, tells you what you’ve spent so far and your total remaining – no mental arithmetics required woooo!
  3. The satisfaction of hitting the tick box for ‘Finished’.
  4. You have somewhere to jot down ideas: vague or specific.
  5. It doesn’t delete the info year to year, so when you log in next Christmas, you’ll see exactly what you bought for everyone the this Christmas. I find this especially useful for people who are tricky to buy for – note to self, not another candle for Mum this time!

Shopping App 2This app costs 69p, which I think it worth it as it’s a bit of a lifeline for me at Christmas, I do tend to get carried away with Christmas shopping and seeing the budget I have set and what I have spent helps me keep it under control.

Do you plan out your Christmas shopping or do you just go with the flow?

Confessions of a Stationery Addict

stationeryFor someone who spends a vast amount of time online, I do love a good piece of stationery. Evernote and the like can shove it, you’ll never part me from my paper notebooks. Where other bloggers fill their IKEA plant pots with make up brushes, mine is filled with pens and pencils. And Smencils. That’s scented pencils to the uninitiated.

stationeryStaedtler Fineliners, Sharpies and gel pens, fancy patterned calculators, neon highlighter tabs and mini rubber stamps. These are a few of my favourite things.

Magazine filesMuji don’t just do make up storage y’know, they also do awesome acrylic magazine files. And when the magazine file overflows, they get cut up and go in the folder.

NotebooksA small selection of my notebooks. There is nothing I love more than a good notebook! NOTHING! A cute notebook is honestly one of the best presents you can get me. Some of these have a use – my Nail Polish Diary (cats), my Job Hunting Journal (skulls, obvs), and my Ticket Stub Scrapbook (you can work it out), the rest are still to be assigned but no less loved.

StationeryAnd the current cream of the crop – a polar bear eraser. I couldn’t bear (haha) to use him, instead he stills on my desk looking up at me, reminding me not to make mistakes lest I have to rub his adorable little face in it. Here he stills on top of my current blogging notebook. It’s a little beat up because it goes everywhere with me. Not shown are my matching orange pens (one blue ink, one black). I’ve got the stationery addiction bad.

Slightly random post there, but I had to get the love out! How do you feel about stationery? Please tell me I’m not alone in marveling at its wonder.

 

A Mag Education – The November Issue

A Mag Education NovemberI kinda have a bit of a magazine addiction. So I’m starting a new series here – A Mag Education aka What I Learnt from the Magazines I Bought This Month. Sound good? Lets go.

November Magazine freebiesFirst up – who won the battle of the freebies? We were given a generous offering from Marie Claire with a L’Occitane hand cream (I got the violet one which smells divine) but it has to go to Instyle for its trio of Ren’s skin care minis.

Nail It! Sept/Oct 2013Nail It Nail MythsA special guest from the States! Nail It busted some nail related myths including the whole “you need to let your nails breathe” one. Nope! Nail polish every day it is. Nail itNail It also taught me that I will never have the patience to paint my nails with oil paint, no matter how cute that textured tartan look is.

Look October 21st 2013 LookSpeaking of tartan, Look taught me that ‘funnel necks’ are officially a thing and that I need this beauty from Closet. Tartan and Funnels – double trending done!

Look diet“Would you try Hollywood’s Corset Diet?” Hell no! I’d like my organs to stay where they are, ta very much.

Company November 2013 CompanyTurns out Company are “well impressed” with little old me! Aww.

Glamour November 2013Glamour NovOlivia Wilde is pure awesomesauce. I loved her The Dos & Don’ts of Turning 30 feature. “I’d rather be a good person who makes people happy than a dick who wins a nobel by 32.” Slightly implying that Einstein was a dick, but hey, it was funny.

Cosmopolitan November 2013 Cosmo Nov 2013I am a sucker for a heavy-handed film reference or two. I loved the styling of this photo shoot.

Shortish post this month – testing the waters here. I’ll have a bumper edition next month including the first issue of Blogosphere magazine! Let me know what you think of this feature.

Tech: Mallzee App

Mallzee app

Us Edinburghers are a wily bunch, aren’t we? First we brainwash all the menfolk with Grand Theft Auto, then we distract the ladies from their abandonment with a brand new shopping app.

I joke, I joke! Of course women love GTA as much as guys and luckily, Mallzee caters for both sexes.

Exhibit A – Me and the Other Half:
Me: Hey, do you want to come shopping with me this weekend?
OH: What… Hang on …*pauses game*… oh. No. Nah not at all.
Me: OK. *installs Mallzee on OH’s iPhone* What do you think of this dress?
OH: *Glances at phone* Oh yeah that’s nice.
Me: What about this one?
OH: Err, I like the other one better.

Hallelujah, an actual opinion expressed!

Let’s face it, shopping has changed. In my high school years Saturdays were for spending the entire day on the high street browsing the aisles with a group of mates or your mum. Now, it is a rare treat to spend the day shopping with someone, not a weekly occurrence. It’s just so much more convenient to shop online. But we’re missing the social aspect. Nothing beats your mum’s opinion on whether that skirt if going to “do you justice” or the pang of joy when your Bessie mate says “no, you get. It’ll suit you better anyway”. And come to think of it, retailers must do better when shopping is a social activity. I am the worst for succumbing to the tiniest bit of peer pressure. Not even peer pressure – peer persuasion – “of course you should get the socks with the foxes on them!” And I am happy to admit: I am an enabler. Just ask my friend who has not one, but three bejewelled heart-shaped bags. They’re so different!

And this is where Mallzee comes in. All the convenience of shopping at home in your jammies but  with the added bonus of having your mates with you. The set up is simple, select your favourite stores, connect to Facebook, browse. Swiping through the thousands of items of clothing feels a little like shopping bingo. Fun and addictive. You double tap the clothes you like, pinch the ones you don’t (not that kind of pinch!) and share the ones that you’re not too sure about to ask for opinions from your buds. You can also use the sharing function for bragging about your fashionista credentials – up to you! Best of all, the more you use Mallzee the smarter it becomes, meaning more chance of it finding a hidden gem for you, and the less it’ll suggest stuff that just isn’t you.

DressObviously, with this being a new app, a few things need to be ironed out, such as suggesting dresses on the male profile (although each to his own I guess). It also doesn’t seem to be completely synced with the websites of the store. Mallzee suggested the above striped dress for me, which I love, and when I tapped through to buy, discovered was reduced to £14 in the ASOS sale. Now I certainly ain’t complaining about that!

And just to dispel my earlier stereotyping, proof that an easy shopping app can appeal to anyone: MallzeeOH: Do you like this?

Mallzee is available on the app store for free (link here). Why not give it a go?

I am entering this post in Mallzee’s Scotland’s Top Blogger Competition. Click here for more info.

Weekly Loves: Beauty Wish List

Beauty Wishlist10 things that are currently on my beauty wish list. 10! I’m so greedy. Luckily most of this stuff is fairly inexpensive. I am still on a spending ban for this kinda stuff though, so it’ll just have to remain a wish list. For now.

Top row: Bleach London Super Cool Colours (especially Rose); Stila Countless Colour Pigment in ‘Groupie’ (this and ‘Encore’ are currently on sale on ASOS!); Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge.

Middle row: Bourjois Java Rice Loose Powder (mostly because it’ll look awesome on my dressing table); MUA Pro Brow Kit (currently out of stock everywhere, ugh); Lush ‘Cinders’ Bath Ballistic (my absolute favourite from the Christmas range).

Bottom row: Maybelline EyeStudio Colour Tattoo in ‘Metallic Pomegranate’;  Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer (heard lots of good stuff about this, intrigued to try it out); Loreal Nude Magique Eau De Teint (swatched this in the shop and it feels sooo silky!); Superdry Kabuki Brush (or any kabuki brush, but it has to be a pretty one like this as it will be sitting out).

The total cost of this wish list of £64.40, which is not bad considering it’s 10 items. The most expensive item is the kabuki brush (£14) but I’m sure I’d be able to find a cheaper alternative.

Do you have any of this? Would you recommend it?

Weekly Loves #5

I am currently away on holiday but as I had not posted last week I scheduled this post a few days ago. In reality, my current faves will probably be my flip-flops, my Kindle and an icy cocktail! But I’m also loving this stuffs:

Bumble and Bumble Freebie Bumble and Bumble FreebieI do love a good freebie. I’ve been drooling over the Bumble and Bumble Surf range but unfortunately my budget doesn’t stretch to £20 shampoo. Luckily, Elle have kindly given us a free sample of their Thickening range. I haven’t tried this yet but I’ll report back when I do!

Sharks SharkI love sharks. They’re getting a lot of attention this week due to Discovery’s annual Shark Week, but the one thing that’s a bit of a shame is the number of programmes that are aimed at driving people’s fear of them. Shows like ‘Great White Serial Killer’, ‘I Escaped Jaws’ and ‘Sharkpocalypse’ are fun but do nothing for the long term protection of sharks. I’m not saying we should attempt to go swimming with sharks but there should be less fear-mongering and more appreciation for the role they play in the oceans eco-system.

The film Sharkwater explores the truth about sharks and I recommend watching it to learn about the threats posed to them, and to us (just try and get past the annoying narration). More info at www.sharkwater.com

Pink hair! Pink hairDyed my ombre pink and I’m so pleased with it. It’s so bright! More pink than it looks in the above photo, I used Schwarzkopf Live XXL in Raspberry Rebel. I just hope that it’s not going to dye the hotel swimming pool pink!

Urban Outfitters Turquoise Polka Dot Bedding Urban outfitters duvet Still on daydreaming about house decorating and I think that this bedding is ‘the one’. At £60 for the duvet cover and £35 for the pillow covers, it’s a bit steep but I looovvvee it!

Available at www.urbanoutfitters.co.uk

Orange is the New Black  Orange is the New BlackI’ve just finished watching season 1 of this and I’m devastated! I need more! What happens? For the love of God WHAT HAPPENS??? It’s so good.

Exclusive to Netflix, get it here.

Thanks for reading. What has made your week?

Weekly Loves #4

Happy Friday everyone! Hope you have all had a good week, I have but still couldn’t wait for the weekend! Here’s a few things that I’ve been loving this week.

Sighh Designssighh designsI absolutely love Sighh Designs phone cases! Pretty difficult choosing the cutest but I ordered the nail polish design. Also love this sushi one!

Available for a bargain £14.00 at www.sighh.bigcartel.com

China Glaze Sunsational Collection China-Glaze-Summer-2013-Sunsational-Collection-1How have I not seen China Glaze’s Summer release until now? I need these!! Maybe not the jellies (don’t see the point myself) but deffo the cremes.

I can’t find the 6 polish cremes set on any UK websites – please help me! If you know where I can get my hands on this, let me know in the comments.

The Moo Man

I love a good documentary, this one looks adorable and awesome. Find a screening near you here.

A Beautiful  Mess Book A Beautiful Mess BookFirst an app and now a book, Elsie and Emma are fairly spoiling us recently. Looks gorge – obv!

Released on 7th Oct, you can pre-order on Amazon here, I will be.

What things have caught your eye this week?

Weekly Loves #3

Stuff I want, stuff I have and love, stuff I can’t wait for. Deep.

Marie Claire’s Eyeko Freebie  Marie Claire Eyeko freebie Summer always seems to be a good time for magazine freebies and Marie Claire is really stepping up to the plate. Last month I was kinda underwhelmed by the Ciate Caviar beads freebie (aren’t they a bit over now?) although I know it was a pretty sweet deal with the matching nail polish. This month however, super excited. This eyeliner pen is amazing! Eyeko is a brand I’ve never tried but heard good things about. Well done, Marie Claire!

On newsstands now.

Tiger Swimsuit  Tiger Black Milk ClothingCan we just stop for a moment to appreciate the pure awesome that is this swimsuit? Oh how I wish I could afford a Black Milk Clothing swimsuit! They have so many amazing ones:, Galaxy print; Dinosaur; R2D2; Jaws vs Ariel!!! But my favourite has to be this tiger one. And tigers love water so it makes perfect sense, fact fans.

Marvel at the wonder here: www.blackmilkclothing.com

Matalan Homewares fluro-zig-zag-cushion-matalanMost of the time Matalan’s homeware collection can be a bit going-for-the-antique-look-but-actually-a-bit-heavy-on-the-faux for me, but sometimes it looks like something straight off of my Pinterest page. Neon. Colour-blocking. That is all.

Buy online at www.matalan.co.uk 

Frances Ha

My favourite film from this year’s EIFF. It’s perfect. UK release date is 26th July, so go and see it.

Innocent Peaches and Apricots Innocent smoothiesNow that it’s officially summer, I think I could live on this. With some strawberries and pineapple. Mmm!

Hawaiian Tropic After Sun Hawaiian-Tropic-Silk-Hydration-Aftersun-Lotion-187003And if Innocent is the taste of summer, this is the smell. Seriously, go into a chemist and sniff it, it’s amazing!

Retails for £12.59, worth it for healthy summer skin.

My other favourite this week is having the whole weekend off! Yey! Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off for a nap.

 

Weekly Loves #2

Hello folks, I’ve been itching to do some craft projects recently. Can’t wait to have my own place for that I can fill it with DIY kitsch.

Succulents SucculentFirst thing I’ll start when I get my own house will be a succulent garden. Lovely and easy to look after – perfect!

Visit www.succulentandsunshine.com for tips. Image via Tumblr: link above.

Man of Steel

Cannot wait. Superman every day of the week!

Spring Sweaters Topshop Knitted Mix Stitch JmperIt’s always jumper weather in Scotland and I love this lilac one from Topshop. At £36 its a pay-day treat and also available in blue, yellow and peach. This one looks like the perfect match for Barry M ‘Prickly Pear’. Must have it!

Available at www.topshop.com and in stores.

Coral Cambridge Satchel Coral cambridge satchelThis coral and white satchel is gorgeous. I wish I could have one in every colour!

From £120 at www.asos.com

YSL La Laque Couture Tie & Dye Nail Polish YSL Tie Dye Nail PolishOk, I have no idea how these work, apparently you can shake them up for a sheer colour or apply as is for a graduated effect. Regardless, they’ll look pretty cool on your dresser.

They are available at www.selfridges.com for £18 a pop.

Cheers m’dears!