Eat, drink and be merry

Christmas has been and gone for another year; though this year I haven't really been my usual festive self. In previous years, I have been known to begin weekly viewings of The Muppet Christmas Carol halfway through October and to be counting down the days until the german Christmas markets arrive in town. Obviously, and sadly, it can never really be the same as being 7 and eagerly anticipating the arrival of Santa, but for some reason I just wasn't feeling that excited.

Nevertheless, I had a great day with my parents and older sister, rounded off with a four and a half hour (yes, you read that right) game of Trivial Pursuit. I'm not sure whether we can blame that on our sometimes very questionable answers or the rather strong cosmopolitans I'd been mixing all day..

Despite not really knowing what I wanted this year, I was lucky enough to receive some lovely presents.

Rabbit slippers from Accessorize, Jon Ronson 'The Psychopath Test', crystal nail file from Leighton Denny, earrings from Wue, Chanel Coco Mademoiselle, Moleskine small ruled notebook, opal stacking ring from gingerpickle.co.uk, Bobbi Brown Long-wear gel eyeliner in Black Ink, Morrocan Oil

Close-up of my lovely ring

I also received a reindeer onesie, a blouse from Ark, a dress from Urban Outfitters...and a micro-pig calendar. Slightly less glamorous but greatly appreciated.

I haven't yet looked at any sales and to be honest it's unlikely I will; even if I wasn't so depressingly far into my overdraft (counting down the days until my student loan comes in), sales just stress me out. I have been the person working in retail at 8am on Boxing Day dealing with rude, greedy customers and I would hate to be that person for another poor sales assistant. Though, maybe the asos sale could tempt me..online shopping can't hurt anyone, right?

What did you get for Christmas?

Days are gone

It happened. I neglected my little corner of the internet yet again. 

I've said it before and I'll say it again; I would really love to actually start blogging regularly and for the past few days I've been feeling a little blue, so I thought what better way to (yet again) re-start my half-hearted foray into the blogging world than with a run-down of a few of my favourite things from the past few months.

1) HAIM 'Days are gone' album - The title of this post gives this one away. I was eagerly anticipating HAIM's debut ever since hearing their EP earlier this year, and I wasn't disappointed. My lovely housemates actually bought me this album on vinyl as a birthday present, and while usually I'm not bothered about buying current music on vinyl, I was actually planning on adding this one to my Christmas list, so well done housemates! I've listened to this album more times than I'd like to admit to and I'm getting ever-more excited to go see them at the institute in town on the 5th of December- I have such a girl crush on Este, not even her bass face can put me off.

2) Christmas Cookie yankee candle - I think it's become ingrained in me that come the 1st of November every year this candle comes out and is burned constantly. Part of me thought maybe I'd grown out of this sweet-scented tradition this year, maybe to discover a slightly more mature candle, but it seems I am once again a slave to it. Also, it can be very useful in my chilly student house as a hand warmer - I have been known to wander the house clutching this like an extremely early carol singer. I'll definitely be asking for another of this for christmas.

3) Malteaser 'Merryteasers' - Every easter I indulge my addiction to these little bars of heaven (A.K.A malteaster bunnies) so it is both a blessing and a curse that they've now been brought out in a reindeer version for Christmas. Especially seeing as they're usually on offer at the Tesco express down the road and I have a terrible inability to control myself.

I seem to have written a surprising amount for just three things, so I think for now I'll leave it there. I'm hoping to figure out where I can take this little blog- it just seems so hard to stand out with so many others out there.

Until next time x

21st birthday

I turned 21 yesterday. For the last few years I've hated the fact that my birthday is so early in my year group, especially last year being the first of my friends to leave my teenage years behind. This year however I decided to embrace my birthday and I had a lovely day in the end. It actually began the night before as my friends and I had a night out in Leeds, starting with cocktails at The Alchemist then heading to a bar on Call Lane just in time for midnight to strike and my birthday to begin.

Fast-forward 10 hours and I was waking up a little worse for wear, ready to head home for cake and presents time. My sister and mum made me a salted caramel chocolate cake from the 'Cake Days' book by Hummingbird Bakery. I think the photo below speaks for itself really..

Then I opened presents from my family. I was very lucky and received some lovely things.

Hotel Chocolat cookies & creme caramel slab, MAC 318 retractable lip brush, Philip Kingsley elasticizer, 'The unbearable lightness of being' book, a vintage leather rucksack, OPI 'Tickle my France-y', earrings from Annarack, The Bohemian Collective knuckle rings, YSL Rouge Pur Couture in Rose Tempura, REN AHA concentrate, & Other Stories couture carnival hand wash & cream

Chubby hand modelling my new nail polish and rings

My friends had also surprised me the night before with a caterpillar cake (you're never too old for caterpillar cake) and a print which they'd had made with some memories written on it which I thought was lovely. I'm currently on the search for a nice frame to put it in so i can take it back to uni with me.

When I'd showered and made myself look a bit more presentable, my family & I headed back into Leeds to Reds BBQ where I was embarrassingly defeated by my pulled meat nachos, practically crawling back to the car afterwards.

All in all, I had a really lovely day and I'm feeling very grateful to my friends and family for making sure that 21 started well.

Birthday wishlist

My 21st birthday is coming up in just over a month so I thought I'd do a wishlist post. I'm actually quite excited for 21 now that I've finally got used to the fact I'm no longer a teenager; at least if I was whisked away to New York by some handsome stranger I'd be able to enjoy a cocktail or five.. Alas my life is not Sex and the City-esque and this is highly unlikely to ever happen. But a girl can dream.

Anyway, onto the wishlist..

1. OPI Tickle my France-y nail polish; I got a miniature version of this in a gift set for Christmas and I love it. It's a perfect nude-y pink-y colour and it helps make me feel more put together when I'm wearing it.

2. American Apparel stripe crop top; I've recently developed a bit of a love for crop tops due to buying a pair of the high waisted Topshop 'Mom' jeans. I borrowed this crop top off a friend for a night out recently and decided I liked it so much I wanted one for myself.

3. MAC retractable lip brush; My current lip brush isn't of the retractable variety and gets a bit battered in my handbag so this seems like a sensible purchase for such a lipstick addict as myself. I find using a lip brush helps my lipstick stay on much better.

4. YSL Rouge Pur Couture glossy stain, colour 11 or 13; I've been longing for one of these for ages after hearing only good things about them from my favourite bloggers. I've been trying to save up my Boots points to buy one but I might just give up and ask for one for my birthday.

5. Silver above knuckle rings from The Bohemian Collective; I love the look of these and I've been searching for some good quality ones for ages. While these won't necessarily break the bank (£12 each), I've been resisting buying them for months so I could ask for some for my birthday instead. Absence only makes the heart grow fonder after all..

6. REN Resurfacing AHA concentrate; I believe Kate at Gh0stparties raves about this as an exfoliater to help dull skin. I don't have bad skin by any means but I do sometimes think it looks a little dull, probably because I'm so pale, so I think I'd like to give this a go.

So there you have it, my fairly beauty-oriented wishlist. I can't really think of what I'll do to celebrate my birthday as I'd like to do something a bit different from the standard night out in Leeds..hmm.

Any ideas?

xx

Everyday make-up

My everyday essentials

MAC Well Dressed; Rimmel Kate Moss 107 'Wine'; NARS Douceur

I thought I'd show you my everyday make-up today. When I get into a routine I stick to it for a pretty long time; everything I'm using currently has been part of my everyday routine for a long time. The only things that tend to change are lipstick colour and mascara.

Brushes:

• Real Techniques Blusher brush : I got this brush for Christmas and I'm really liking it, I'm thinking I need to buy the core collection soon..
• MAC 187 S.E. : I have the short handle version of this as I received it in a brush set a few Christmasses ago. I really like it for foundation, it buffs in the product really well and I've not had much of a problem with shedding
• Eco tools angled brush : I use this for putting eyeshadow through my eyebrows and it seems to do the job just fine
• Tweezerman eyelash curlers : No, not a brush but it comes under the 'tools' category. I've had these years and they still work really well

Make-up:

• Max Factor False Lash Effect mascara : As I said, mascara is something which changes every few months when I run out. I've never found a 'holy grail' status mascara, but I do rather like this one and Bourjois Volume Fast & Perfect, though sometimes I can't justify paying £11 for it..
• NARS Douceur blusher : I'd wanted this for ages after seeing it on various blogs; honestly I'm a little underwhelmed with it. Maybe I'm not applying it properly but I'm not getting the cheekbones that Meg at Lipsofacto promised yet..
• MAC Omega eyeshadow : I use this for filling in my eyebrows and it's a great colour match. I have 'strawberry blonde' (I hate that phrase but honestly it really is that colour) hair and this isn't too dark for me
• MAC Studio Finish concealer in NW20 : I've been using this concealer for years both under my eyes and on spots and I generally like it, though sometimes I find it looks quite dry under the eyes
• Benefit Pore-fessional primer : I had the full-size of this but it ran out so I'm using a sample I got in Glamour last year currently. I do like it but I'm not sure if there are better ones out there for the price it is. Any suggestions?
• NARS Sheer Glow foundation in Mont Blanc : I really like this foundation and this is my second bottle of it. It is pricey at £31 but I think it's worth it; my first bottle lasted me a year, the colour match is great, it's a buildable coverage and people often say they wouldn't know I wore foundation had I not told them. 'Glow' is definitely misleading; I have oily skin and I don't have any problems with looking greasy with this on
• MAC Well Dressed blusher: As you can see this blush is well-loved. I've had it a few years now and I go back to it often for an easy option. It is quite sheer but I don't see that as a negative
• Rimmel Kate Moss lipstick in 107 Wine : I really like the colour and formulation of this lipstick and it's a go-to colour for me at the moment. I have no problems with a bright lip during the day and in fact I'd say lipsticks are my favourite make-up category. Maybe I'll introduce you to my growing collection one day..
• MAC Studio Fix powder (not photographed because I'm silly and forgot about it) : This powder does the job pretty well, I have fairly oily skin and once I've set my foundation with this on a morning I don't have to touch-up for a good few hours

So there's a quick look at my everyday make-up, do you use any of these too? Do you have any other primer suggestions for me?

xx