Outfit: Sunny Saturday

It was another gloriously sunny day today and I was finally able to take some pictures outside. I spent the morning doing chores and as I was making soup for dinner, a friend turned up so I invited him to stay. In the afternoon the young man and the friend went for a drink and I walked up to the local retail park. I got a couple of leads in Currys to hook my laptop up to the TV, and some bits and pieces in Boots with my No7 vouchers.

Although it was sunny it was also cold, hence the scarf and the cardi.

Black cardi – New Look Tall
Grey stripe top – Dorothy Perkins Tall
Pink top – H&M
Jeans – River Island
Pink patent flats – Ethel Austin
Pink scarf – eBay
Sunglasses – Ethel Austin

Total Est. Cost £86

Outfit: Moto Friday

The last of my sale bargains FINALLY arrived from Next yesterday. It was reduced to £15 from £50. I paired it with skinny jeans and a polo neck for a casual Friday look. I was unsure which shoes to go for so I followed my rule and put one red ones.

Grey moto jacket – Next Tall
Black sweater – Long Tall Sally
Jeans – Topshop Tall
Red shoes – NOW Discount Shoes (gifted)
Silver earrings – gifed

Total Est. Cost £55

NYC Cosmetics Review

The lovely people at Superdrug sent me over some NYC (New York Color) make up samples to test out. I have tried 4 out of the 5 products so far and I am very impressed. I have yet to try the Sparkle Eyedust as I think that is more an evening product, so I will review that one separately at a later time.


The Metro Quartet Eyeshadow I was sent in the South Street Seaport shade is a collection of four (surprisingly) different shades of brown eyeshadows. First of all I love the name South Street Seaport as I visited that area in New York and hearing it brought back memories. I have used 2 out of the four shades so far and they glide on very smoothly. The shadow stays put all day with only minimal creasing. There is a tiny brush & applicator supplied so you don’t need any extra brushes, although some people may prefer to use a larger brush to apply the shadow.


The Colour Wheel Powder in Pink is the product I am least impressed with. I used it as a blusher but it was a bit too pink for me. There is nothing wrong with the way it went on, and it stayed put all day, I just didn’t find the colour to suit me.


I am not usually any good at applying liquid eyeliner. However, I gave the NYC Liquid Eyeliner in Jet Black a go and managed to get a fairly straight line. There is a tiny brush at the end of the stick, rather than a pen tip as I’ve used before. As liquid eyeliner is not something I would usually buy I don’t know whete a brush tip is common or not. The design is good though and the liner went on smoothly.


Finally, I was sent the Lip Sliders Tinted Lip Balm in Sugar Baby. This is a kind of cross between a lip balm and a gloss. It’s stickier than a lip balm but more moisturising than a gloss. Although it looks very red in the tin (the shade I have is not the one pictured here), the colour that transfers to your lips is minimal, but it does have a hint of sparkle to it. This would be ideal for someone who wants something more than a slick of lip balm but nothing as full on as a gloss. It is in my handbag and I can tell it will be getting plenty of use in the coming weeks.

The colour wheel is available on the Superdrug website for £3.99, and you should be able to find the other products in stores.

Outfit: Inspired by the Calendar

I was at a loss yesterday as to what I should wear today so I consulted Kimberley’s Inspiration Calendar. It said ‘black & white with brown accents’ which is fairly easy to do. I thought about a white shirt but settled for a long sleeve t instead, with my old faithful cardi and cord trousers. Add a belt, boots and scarf in brown and I was pleased with the results.

I decided to switch out my bag again too (twice in a week, impressive for me!). I love this bag. It was a gift from the girls in my office when I left my first job. It is not something I would ever have bought for myself but I really like it and I’m glad they chose it for me.

I put my leather jacket over the top because it’s brown. I love that there is still a smell of leather everytime I put on this jacket.

Black cardi – New Look Tall
White long sleeve t – Long Tall Sally
Black cords – Topshop Tall
Brown boots – New Look (eBay)
Brown belt (free with a skirt) – Dorothy Perkins
Brown & silver scarf – mall market stall
Brown wood earrings – Dorothy Perkins

Total Est. Cost £80

Leather jacket - New Look Tall

Outfit: Drama Group

The ladies didn’t have to be at rehearsal until 8.15pm last night, giving me plenty of time to curl my hair. As bonkers as it sounds, I think it curls better if it’s been straightened already, rather than doing it after only blow-drying it.

The hall was far warmer last night than it has been of late so I was right to go for layers. It was a good rehearsal as most of the principals were there, but we are still some way off knowing it by heart.

Black cardi – New Look Tall
Grey sweater – Long Tall Sally
Jeans – Next (charity shop)
Red boots – Shoe Express (eBay)
Red belt – mall market stall
Diamante hair clip – Babyliss (Boots)

Total Est. Cost £71.50

Outfit: Blue & Teal

It is supposed to be a bit warmer out today so I deciced to brave it and wear my new blue jacket. I am back in the second office today and knew I would be shifting a chair from downstairs to upstairs so trousers and flats seemed like a good idea. I haven’t worn this sweater very much so far so thought it would be an unusul colour combination with the bright blue.

I curled my hair again last night and this time used styling spray and hairspray to hold it so I was pleased with the results. I am trying to get quicker at using my tongs so that perhaps one day I will be able to curl my hair in the morning withot taking too long over it.

Blue jacket – H&M
Teal sweater – Long Tall Sally
Grey wool trousers – Dorothy Perkins Tall
Blue scarf – gifted
Blue flats – Ethel Austin

Total Est. Cost £95

Outfit: Colour Blocking

The colour blocking trend comes round every so often and this dress is from January 2007 when it was a popular look. I have worn the polo neck under the dress many times before, and I wore the blue t under it last summer. But I’ve never worn both at the same time before and I like how the blue sleeves give a colour blocking effect on my arms too.

I was going to wear my new blue jacket today, but decided it was still too cold out, so I wore my blue & black coat instead. I don’t take enough pictures of my coats so there’s a couple included today.

Tuesdays are notoriously slow, but I am glad Monday is over. They are just too busy! I have an evening in tonight and plan to play on the Wii Just Dance game a bit, and then generally chill out.

Black & blue dress – Dorothy Perkins Tall
Blue t – Dunnes
Black polo neck – New Look Tall
Black leggings – New Look Tall
Blue boots – Priceless Shoes
Silver hoop earrings – gifted

Total Est. Cost £67

Blue & black coat – Vila (Great Clothes)
Black elbow length gloves – ASOS
Blue scarf – gifted

Why I Love…Waistcoats

I appear to be wearing waistcoats quite a lot at the moment. I have always loved waistcoats. Back in 1995 when I was 16 I had a fabulous little dark red waistcoat that came from a charity shop. It had a sort of brocade front to it and a fastening thing at the back to tighten up the waist. I seem to recall the buttons being on the right suggesting it was designed for a man. I wore it over a white top all that summer and possibly on into the following year. At some point I must have decided that waistcoats were no longer the thing to wear and sent it back to the charity shop.

Today I own three waistcoats: a blue velvet fronted one from Primark, a black one from Next Tall (worn last Thursday) and a grey one from Long Tall Sally (worn last Friday). I love that a waistcoat can give an outfit the structured look of a jacket, but without the sleeves, which I sometimes find can be restrictive to movement. It will nips in your waist without the confinement of a belt. It will add an air of formality to an outfit – for example, a waistcoat is an easy way to instantly smarten up a jeans & sweater combination. A waistcoat is also an easy way of adding a layer to your outfit – over a sweater, t shirt, dress or shirt, or under a jacket, it works and adds texture and interest.

When I think of that red waistcoat I had as a teenager, it takes me back to my summer holiday in 1995 when there were several photos taken of me wearing it. It was a happy time and although I no longer have the garment itself, the memories will be attached to it forever.

Curls

I bought some curling tongs on Saturday. I have tried several times (unsuccessfully) to curl my hair with my GHD straighteners, and decided curling tongs were the way to go. I asked for advice on Twitter and was told Babyliss made good one. Spying a set for £9.99 in Argos I went for it.

I had a little play around with them last night (and managed to get a minor burn on my face in the process) and I got some good waves and curls with them. I took a picture but as I didn’t use any styling spray or hairspray, the curls didn’t hold terribly well.

When I tweeted about curling tongs, my friend Kate piped up and said she couldn’t imagine me with curly hair. What she (and the rest of you) didn’t know was that I had a perm all through high school. I said I would dig out some pictures over the weekend and post them on here. Excuse the quality – it was the mid 1990s, digital cameras didn’t exist back then and these pictures have been scanned. So Kate, just for you:

Taken in the 4th form I think, age 15

Expeditions Day, 1994, age 15

Summer of the L6th, 1996, age 17

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing my red boots
…reading the February issue US Glamour
…watching Glee
…listening to “Weird” Al Yankovic
…eating mini eggs
…shopping for nothing

Outfit: A Different Suit

I should be wearing the jacket that matches this skirt by now. I ordered it on December 27th, for delivery within 2-4 weeks. That was 4 weeks ago yesterday. I phoned Next to find out where it was and they said it was on a further 1-2 week delay. Well how about an email to let me know that Next? Or better still, how about a section on your website where I can view my outstanding orders to find out whether they’ve been delayed? I shouldn’t have to phone you to find out where my things are. [/rant]

Anyway, I was in mind to wear a biker jacket today so thought I’d try out the one I usually wear as a coat and use it as jacket instead. I was watching some of Jess Cartner-Morley’s videos on the Guardian website yesterday and she suggested wearing a biker style jacket with stripes. I added the polo neck for warmth, the skirt because I love it, and the red boots for colour.

Black polo neck – New Look Tall
Striped top – Dorothy Perkins Tall
Grey moto jacket – Dorothy Perkins
Grey skirt – Next Tall
Black tights – Primark
Red boots – Shoe Express (eBay)
Red beads – eBay
Silver earrings – gifted

Total Est. Cost £64