Monday 20 February 2012

Sleek blush BY3 compact

Sleek have brought out these new blush palletts so of course I had to buy one.  I want all of them, I don't wear blush that often I like Ambering Rose and Razin by Mac and a few sleek ones.  But I collect make-up so it's nice to have new additions to the colledtion.
Outer packaging
Lantern, squash, P Pie

The packaging looks good to me, in sleeks usual style.
Swatches



Sunday 19 February 2012

Because I'm his stylist...

My pride and joy, my son is now 12 weeks and he has just about as much outfits as I do.  I often reorganise his clothes just to ensure he wears everything at least once. 

I've been dressing him in non-baby sleep suit stuff for a while.  It's great dressing him or as I like to say being his stylist; whenever I get something for myself I have to throw something in for him as well, just because.  He's my only baby so why not.

Anyway, I was in Next with my mum (who buys 95% of her clothes and shoes from there) and wondered, as you do, into the kiddies section and picked up these two for my baby. One he can wear now the other when he's 6 months.  I often do that now, buy two of something I love or a variation in a bigger size because I like shopping, I like to think I'm thinking ahead.


I recently got him a few pairs of Jeans from Gap so he was in need of some tops. 

Minnie Miss KG

Love this shoe!
I snagged these in the Kurt Geiger sale this winter and they are in the top 5 in my shoe collection.  The name perfectly reflects their style; the bow and look is very Minnie mouse.
Bowwuutiful!

They look good with above the knee dresses; black tights, sheer or opaque.
Strangely comfortable!
Cute from the front, sexy from the back

Saturday 18 February 2012

Accessorize Metalic nail polishes

Amethyst, Mink (non Metallic), Cooper
 I said I was going back for more and here they are; to more metallic polishes by Accessorize to add to the collection.  I'm wearing Amethyst on my toes and it is too pretty.  For the price they are such good quality and it is true, you really do only need one coat. 

I like to collect nude looking polishes.  Some of them don't look very good on my complexion, so I'm looking forward to trying Mink.  I have Mushroom by Barry M and it kind of clashes with my colour. It's a taupe that doesn't look good on dark skin in my opinion.

This works... Elegant touch rapid dry for nails

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Elegant Touch rapid dry for nails

Since having my baby I value the time I can spend doing little things like painting my nails.  I usually grab a few minutes when my son is asleep or having a nap and go into another room so he doesn't inhale any of the chemicals.  Painting them is pretty much a quick process, but waiting for them to dry properly isn't.  So when I can across this product on a recent trip to Superdrug I didn't need much convincing.  I don't usually buy products like this (with wild claims), but I did, I tried it and it works.  I would buy it again and recommend it for others who like pretty nails in a hurry.

Thursday 16 February 2012

I spotted...

This colour block shopper in the window of Wallis today and nearly ran over an old ladies foot with my pram. Such a shame it isn't real leather.

Wednesday 15 February 2012

NOTD: Nails Inc Denim

This was a freebie I got from a Boots purchase, a real true blue, very eye catching for such a dark colour.

H&M Spring/Summer 2012 collection

I was flicking through the above on the Marie Claire website, as you do, and picked out the following pieces as must haves.

What do you think? Do you have any favourites?

Golden eye

Gold accessories -New Look
On my recent trip to the high street I popped into New Look and could not walk past their BOGOF offer on all jewellery, especially as I have been after some cuffs for a while.

Smooth dome ring

Gold groove cuff bracelet

The four pieces above will be a welcome addition to my collection.  I plan to wear the cuffs at the same time (OOTD to follow) on each wrist.  I love the ring as the colour of the dome goes with so many things in my wardrobe.  I love that they are all really yellowy gold and not dull or distressed; it looks a lot more elegant.

Tuesday 14 February 2012

L'oreal false lash telescopic mascara

You've seen the silver tube in the stores so I'm going to cut to the chase and show you the wand/brush.

L'oreal false lash telescopic mascara wand
The wand is plastic and that isn't my personal preference, I perfer brissly brushes that I can wiggle through my lashes, if you know what I mean.  I used the mascara all last week and it didn't wow me or make it look like I had false lashes on.  I have really small lashes so mascaras like MAC Zoom Lash do it for me.

Mini Superdrug haul- Metalic nails and MUA products

Thanks to my baby daddy I was able to do  quick dash n grab at my local superdrug this week.  There were are a few things I'm after at the moment; one being the perfect boogie green and teal nail polish (don't ask why!).  A bit late on the band wagon, I know but I'm also just starting to fall in love with metalic nail polish.

From L to R: 
  1. Miss Spoty nail polish No 26
  2. Accessorize nail polish in Jewl (love this!)
  3. Loreal False Lash Telescopic Mascra
  4. Accessorise lip gloss in Diva (shade 9)
  5. MUA eyebrow pencil in Brunette
  6. MUA 3 in 1 extreme contour liner in Sea Blue shade 4 (free with no 5)
The best item out of this lot for me is no 2. This only requires one coat and it's so pretty that I', going back for some more metalic colours soon as I can.

The brow pencil is a 3 out of 5; it has a brush attached to the end which is ok for blending, but it doesn't last all day then again it was £1; you get what you pay for. 

The sparkly lipgloss is cute, but I'm trying to avoid these because I can't kiss my son as much as I want to; he ends up with sparkles in his hairline, poor lad.

What metalic polishes have you tried?

Monday 13 February 2012

Sunday Baking: Muffins and Coconut cake

Coconut and Cherry cake
Plain muffin with chocolate chips

During my maternity leave I've developed a love for baking on a Sunday. The original aim was to use up all the stuff I have in my cupboard so I got myself some baking tims and baking essentials, including the book below, which is fablous for someone like me who wants a pretty product without a hard slog.


You can get this and other books from this series from Amazon. But I got mine from Wilkinson for £3 (I also got 1 mix, 50 cakes).





The coconut cake recipe can be found here http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/8660/coconut-cake

Tuesday 7 February 2012

My Sam's arrived!



















Love, love, love them

Baby bloggin'

I am the mother of a 10 week old baby and from time to time I will blog about baby related things. I'll tell you my favourite products (and his too of course!), share tips I wish I'd be told myself and pic of all his lovely outfits.


Everyone raves about baby girl stuff, but its much more fun styling my little boy. My favourite stores for his clothes are currently BabyGap for their Jeans, Next for footwear and Jumpers and H&M for tops and knitted hoddies. Debenhams have some nice stuff in their designer ranges; Ted baker and John Rocha

Transition mid-season Jacket

http://www.next.co.uk/x492858s1#801322x49

My fave Jeans for boys

http://www.gap.eu/browse/product.do?cid=57167&vid=1&pid=552676&scid=552676007

(These are so smart, I want these in every size!)

He wear's his Jeans with this shirt:

http://ww.debenhams.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/prod_10001_10001_239010601294_-1?breadcrumb=Home%7EKids%7EShirts

Lazy mums carrot juice

I love carrot juice, I love to buy it, don't love to make it but maternity leave does funny things to you. I like cooking, but don't like spending all day in the kitchen and getting my hands too dirty so I made carrot juice like this:
















You will need about 8 carrots to fill a regular size blender. As well as Evaporated milk, Condense milk, tea spoon of Nutmeg, tea spoon of Vanilla Essence. It really depends how sweet/spicy/seasoned you like it. I didn't follow a recipe to the T I just added small bits with water to get a nice taste that wasn't too milky.
















Once blended if you don't like the juice too thick then take it too a sieve to thin it out.



Save yourself £4 a go and make your own Carrot juice at home for much less (Thanks to Mum for donating the blender).



Baby's Skincare

With such a wide selection to choose from in our stores finding the right products for your baby's skin is something that requires a bit of research. You could take the simple decision and use the most popular brands like Johnson's; I decided not too as I wanted the products I use to be as natural as possible.

I started by looking for products that have as little ingredient's as possible and no long words that I couldn't pronounce. I'm still trialing but this is what I've come up with so far.




1. Burt's Bees Baby Bee Shampoo and wash
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000GVTCSO/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE

I imagine this is what a new born bumble bee smells like, this product smells delicious and creates a good amount of bubbles for baby to play in. It is my fave product and I buy it in bulk from amazon. I've previously used the oil myself but I'm yet to try it on my son. I have purchased some and will post a review after 2 weeks of usage http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B001E6TXCU/ref=ox_sc_act_title_4?ie=UTF8&m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE.

2. The Body Shop Buriti Baby Bamboo Hair Brush
http://www.thebodyshop.co.uk/_en/_gb/catalog/product.aspx?ParentCatCode=C_BathBody&CatCode=C_BathBody_Buriti_Baby&prdcode=57913m

I'm not in the habit of messing with my baby's hair. Our routine is wash with Burt's Bees, pat dry, Olive Oil and go. I seldom brush his hair in the early days and he has had a full head of hair since birth. I got this brush when I have a 40% off code; it is so soft, it's perfect for babies and you can use it from birth.

2. Green Baby Nappy Balm
http://www.greenbaby.com/Green+Baby+Products/new+mums/baby/organic+skincare/NAPPY+BALM+TUBE+50G_GBT031.htm

This was gifted to me by my lovely work colleagues. I've only recently started using it. I've done well so far in avoiding nappy rash but prevention is better than cure so I put this on my lil man's botty after a bath. It says that you can use it after every nappy change, but it smells a bit too strong for my liking and I've never been a big fan of Lavender; I've just learned to appreciate it with age.

3. Dr Bronners Organic Aloe Vera Baby-Mild Cast Liquid Soap
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bronners-Organic-Baby-Mild-Liquid-1Litre/dp/B000HK1OOY/ref=sr_1_1?s=drugstore&ie=UTF8&qid=1329075490&sr=1-1

I'd never heard of this brand before, but I am impressed with Dr Bronners and its 18 suggested uses (haven't discovered what they all are yet!). It's not a cheap product but I was drawn to it because it only have 5 items listed as ingredients. It doesn't smell as nice as Burt's Bees and it is a little drying however it does the job and there are a load of interesting facts to read on the bottle. If you decide to go for this it's more cost effective to buy the larger bottle. Also I discovered that American Apparel stock this range (Westfield, West London).

4. Geranium & Vanilla Baby Lotion
http://www.greenbaby.com/Green+Baby+Products/new+mums/baby/organic+skincare/GERANIUM++VANILLA+BABY+LOTION_GBT038.htm

Gifted again, although I have lot's of other Green Baby stuff, I'm drawn to the range because its Organic and fair trade, I'm not a big fan of this product. It smells ok, but it doesn't soak in the way I feel it ought to and again a more expensive product that the more common brands.

5. Vaseline

The offical staple in every baby bag. I don't use this on baby's skin to moisturiser, it's a barrier so I use it to seal cuts and to moisten his little bum (sorry TMI!).

Monday 6 February 2012

The perfect black court shoe

















Primark! I’m always on the hut for pretty basics such as a black leather bag, crisp white shirt, perfect skinny Jeans etc. So when I came across these in my local Primark for only £12 there was no way I was letting them go. The funny thing is that not only do they look good on but they are also really, really comfortable. They don’t squeeze or rub like some of my other high heel pointy shoes. I’m not expecting them to last an eternity, but for the price I’m happy to enjoy them whilst I can

I give them 8 out of 10. Well done Primark!

Coming soon... Baby post

My favourite baby products so far

Saturday 4 February 2012

Snow haul
















It has just started snowing in the UK so thank heavens for Internet shopping and the valiant men and women that deliver my on-line purchases. Outside looks very cold and I'm looking forward to showing my two month old son what snow looks like.


I have a bit of an obsession with well tailored dresses. Elegant, chic looking pieces with clean cut lines plus now I'm getting nearer 30 and I am a mum it just feels appropriate to look sophisticated. I have a few dresses, all high street and all under £100 which are well tailored and look more expensive then they are when styled well. To add to that collection I copped 3 dresses from the Dorothy Perkins sale. I'm a bit sceptical about the additional brands they stock sometimes as the material can look cheap and a bit to form fitting for my liking but these 3 stood out.


These beauties came in all under £60.












Feb: This month I'm after......

Sam Eldeman Kellan

I've decided against Foxy Wood's and have been admiring the designs of Sam Eldeman. This is definately going to be my summer wedge to go with everything, including my bright yellow pleat skirt midi dress from Primark.

I'm in the process of tracking them down, at the best price of course, I'll report back when they are on my feet and I am smiling.

Wednesday 1 February 2012

Another one for the collection








This mornings impromptu trip to the supermarket also included a detour to the high street. Three bags, a H&M Mac a nude Primark vest, t-shirt and blazer later I'm back at home to start the breakfast and feed my baby.


I'm most proud of the above purchase; it was 20% off the original price and BOGOF!!!! It looks even better in the flesh and I have been searching for the perfect black handbag for weeks (I'll post other bags that I have purchased on my quest soon).


I love this bag because its stylish and chic but also practical for a mother as it is spacious and has a zip closure. Can't wait to style it up with my outfits.