I don't know about you...

...but I'm feeling 22! Okay I'm sorry Swift-haters but I couldn't resist that one seeing as I'm going to tell you a little about my 22nd birthday earlier this week.

I didn't have much planned for my actual birthday- if I'm being honest I felt a bit 'meh' (for lack of a better word) about the whole thing, but I ended up having a lovely, if rather chilled, day in the end. I actually opened my cards and presents the night before, as if not my parents would've tried to wake me at the crack of dawn before they went to work the next day and if my 22 years on this earth have taught me anything, it is that I am not a morning person. I was lucky enough to receive a couple more of my beloved silver knuckle rings, Foals' 'Holy Fire' on vinyl, a lovely new leather purse and a MAC lipstick- nothing extravagant but it doesn't take much to make me happy.

I'd arranged to meet one of my best friends, Gaby, in Leeds to take advantage of Pizza Express' annual free bottle of birthday prosecco. She just came back from working in Marbella all summer so a pizza and prosecco was exactly what we needed- I went for the rustichella which is basically a Caesar salad on a pizza, need I say more?

Once we'd finished our food we met up with another of my friends, Susie, to head to Belgrave Music Hall's roof terrace, which I think it's now fair to call my favourite place to go in Leeds. We had a lovely leisurely afternoon drinking Amstel (just a little less sophisticated that prosecco) in the sun, only popping back inside to take advantage of resident Dough Boys' half price slices; because apparently one pizza wasn't already enough..

Like I said, it was nothing too exciting and most of my friends were either back at uni or working, but it was a good day with a few good friends nonetheless. Really I just wanted to post a few higher-quality photos on here as I remembered to take my DSLR camera out for the day- seeing how much better these photos look than iphone snaps makes me really keen to do more lifestyle-y restaurant-y posts. Watch this space!

Birthday wishlist: edition 22

My 22nd birthday is just around the corner and between settling in at my new job and various preparations for my older sisters wedding (in 10 days!) I'd almost completely forgotten about it. I've accepted that I'm heading into legitimate 20's territory now and I'm okay with it- plus I have an excuse to sing Taylor Swift for a whole 24 hours. There isn't much I'm coveting this year but I thought I'd show you the few things I have on my wishlist.

1. I haven't bought a new lipstick in what feels like forever and I look at this one (Russian Red) pretty much every time I'm near a MAC stand. I think it's about time I actually owned it.

2. My current purse is a Cath Kidston number and while it is still perfectly functional it has gotten rather grubby and, while I still appreciate that it is loved by many, I feel I've outgrown the twee patterns somewhat. The above purse is from & Other Stories and is exactly the kind of thing I'm after- black, simple and leather.

3. I've had this moon ring from Shop Dixi bookmarked for ages and I'm always on the hunt for more simple silver rings to add to my collection.

4. Now, I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before but I don't like tea. At all. I don't understand the point of it. You may wonder then why I'm after this mug from Anthropologie; actually, I have quite a penchant for eating cereal out of mugs. It just tastes nicer than out of a bowl. Plus ever since my first trip into an Anthropologie shop earlier this year I'm dreaming of being able to buy the whole dining collection- this would be a nice beginning to that.

5. This Bumble & Bumble Surf Spray is something else I've had on various wishlists for years but always wondered if it was worth the money. A few weeks ago I had my hair cut for the first time in 3 years and while everyone else insists it's still long, I'm finding it quite hard to style. After reading Kate's recent post, I've been convinced that a good salt spray will be helpful in my constant attempt at creating waves a la Olsen twins.

So there we have it- nothing too ground-breaking but I think as you get older it's less about having tons of presents to open and more about receiving a few little things that you'll really get use out of. I haven't really thought about what I'll do on the day but I'm sure a night out in Leeds will be on the cards!

What do you think of my picks?

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