machu picchu.

top: primark
skirt: asos
tights: primark
necklace: asos
rings: asos, topshop

For some reason this outfit reminds me of two things, Pikachu (from Pokemon) and Humbug sweets. It has to be the colour and the stripes right? So for this reason the strokes song just had to be the title - considering that always reminds me of Pikachu with it's spelling.

I'M LOOKING DOWN. AGAIN. Sorry. I told you I would always pick up on that. Anyway my top is from primark and was a cheap £4. What's not to love about it. The colours of camel and black are a favourite of mine and I think the cropped length gives a twist on an other classic item. Of course I would only ever wear a higher waisted type of skirt with this top considering I don't have the figure for anything else but for how simple this outfit is it looks great.

One thing I think about fashion isn't it doesn't always have to be complicated. As long as you know that you feel good then you will look good and that's that.

pretend to be nice.

cardigan: primark
top: primark
skirt: asos
tights: topshop
necklace: asos
belt: asos
rings: asos, forever21, h&m

To think that Christmas is less than a month away and I haven't even started my shopping. Not that I have a lot of people to buy for or anything, my family and my friends and that's it. No more than ten people. But I get so stressed about the littlest of things that sometimes they become a chore. Yes I am one of those people who make mountains out of moles hills (as my Mom would say).

It seems that lately I'm either a walking advert for primark or asos. Sorry I just find some great things on there that I can't help but showcase. I brought this cute peter pan top a while and haven't gotten around to wearing it until now. I'm always in two minds about having to wear a vest top underneath sheer things but it just has to be done unless you want your dignity to be thrown out of the window. Maybe I should invest in a black one though because the nude one underneath sort of washes out the pattern.

sunday snap #56.

#1. Currently sitting on my bed wrapped up in my duvet with my electric blanket on. How cold is it right now?! Winter is definitely upon us, not that it never isn't cold or anything in England? You'd think everyone in this country would be immune to the cold right now, but apparently not.

#2. My Christmas shopping underway/done now. Spending money isn't my favourite thing in the world to do unless it's on myself (I'm totally kidding). This is only because I hate seeing my bank balance slowly diminishing. I've bought quite a couple of nice gifts this year, mainly for my Mom, one of which is seeing Westlife (that's for me also, and I'm not embarrassed to admit it!) Our house is going to be manic this year with family coming over and I can't say that I'm pleased about that but I've got to deal with it, I suppose.

#3. Working hard with University stuff these passed couple of weeks (What's new?!) and I've noticed that the earlier I do things that less stressed I am about it. I think I've sort of got back into the swing of things academic wise (maybe) and I'm liking not having to stress out as much (I still stress out, slightly, because that's just my nature I guess?) Helps a bunch!

#4. One Direction's album came out this week and I love it so much! I don't even care if people laugh at that fact, there songs are catchy and that's it! I must admit they are slightly cute (cougar much?!) and that sways decisions but overall it's just nice to see another boy band come out. I've always been a sucker for boy bands, as are most girls, and these are no exception. Haha!

#5. Off to watch the xfactor results, like every other person in the UK. Sunday lazy day.

topshop liner.

Topshop felt liner.

This Topshop liner is meant to be one of their best selling items so when I received it free with an order I was actually quite excited to use it. Usually I use Rimmel Exaggerate Liquid Eye Liner Black and at the point of getting this product remained relgious to this product because it achieved a thick line, not too thick, but enoough to define and give an easy winged look.

It's a shame to say that I still remain religious to my Rimmel product because of the great reviews on the website, but I'm going to tell you why.

There isn't really any control with the product. With a thicker tip you can easily swipe the brush over your eyelid and be done with it, but this pen is so fine that I find errors are easier to notice. The colour isn't, and I quote "Jet" (Black). When applying the actual product to your lid to get the actual colour that is suggested and most likely desired, true black, you have to apply the line several times. And I think this has a lot to do with the actual tip which I prone to drying. Bringing me onto my third flaw, the product drys quickly. As you can see by my picture, the tip of the pen is lighter than the section above it. It's actually quite disappointing considering I haven't ever left this pen without a lid. Surely that isn't supposed to happen.

Overall I find this product quite disappointing. I may have got a "dodgy" one but in getting/buying a product (I pay £5.29 for my Rimmel liner and Topshop retails as £6.50) you expect it to do pretty much what it says on the tin. One positive that I do have to stress is the packaging, even though it can get incredibly mucky with fingerprints and makeup debris the quirky idea of crayon looking writing fits perfectly into the Topshop brand. -Sigh- Looks like back to Rimmel I go.

tired robot.

blouse: topshop
skirt: asos
tights: primark
rings: primark, dorothy perkins

Who needs sleep? It's for wimps right? Living is more important and making sure you can cram everything into your day. Yeah, of course, and then you drop because you're running off empty. That or because whiny, grizzly, girl. The latter is completely me by the way, so beware.

Of course as per usual this tiredness is seeping into my outfits. Meaning I seem to go into mourning and reach for black, black and yes you guessed it, more black. I have to say however that I absolutely love this shirt from topshop, such a classic item to have in your wardrobe. The gold detailing gives it a little something without being too much.

I would write more but I'm just so tired I can't even finish this senten/

give me anything.

cardigan: topshop
skirt: asos
top: new look
tights: topshop
necklace: asos
belt: asos
rings: topshop, primark

I get so many compliments about this cardigan and how can you not love it. Lovely netural colours, vintage looking, cosy, over sized and just siiiiiigh. Of course it's topshop and was incredibly steep in price but like I said I'd get my wear out of it and I have done. And I'm going to continue doing so.

Again I must be feeling ignornant because here I am with another two set of pictures where I'm not looking into the camera. I seriously hate doing that so every time I see it no doubt I'll comment on it. (Sorry!) I have had quite a few questions in my formspring so thank you or that, when I'm free or have the time I will definitely get around to posting/and answering some of them so watch this space on that!

Other than that I don't think there is much else I have to say. Just another boring outfit post with nothing amazing, sorry for that, maybe I need to somehow become a secret wonder woman by night because then I would have so much more interesting stuff to write...

sunday snap #55.

#1. Had such a great week last week that this week was no doubt going to be a downer. I have done nothing but go to uni and come home which is so thrilling of course! Not!

#2. There was a power surge in my area on Tuesday night which mean I was awake from 1:30am in the morning until 4am. It was horrendous. I absolutely love my sleep and these passed couple of weeks I've been lacking it so much. No more than five hours if I'm lucky, usually I need double that just to function. It's horrible! Insomnia? I'm not quite sure, but if it is... It needs to go away. ASAP!

#3. With the dark nights drawing in earlier I have noticed a change in my mood. Who knew that weather could have such a huge impact on everything in life. Like your mood, energy etc... As much as I love autumn/winter this is definitely a negative. Big time!

golden pendulum.

jumper: primark
skirt: asos
tights: topshop
rings: topshop, asos, h&m

Sometimes Primark is hit and miss and this item was definitely a hit item. 10£ for a jumper than is incredibly cosy, such a nice colour and the cut is really good. The quality has been rising in Primark for quite some time (and so have the prices, unfortuantely) which is great for my wardobe and even better for my bank balance. There are times though when I sit and think about how the items have actually been made and feel guilty. Of course my trusty asos skirt and black tights combo came out and I threw this jumper on top to cuddle with.

Today consisted of me having to focus on uni work. I have to say a lot of the modules this year that appear boring on paper have been far better than those that are vice versa. Maybe I'm just growing up, I'm not too sure. For when I'm done I'm thinking of opening my formspring page for people to ask me fashion related questions that I could possibly answer on this blog? Sound good? Stuff like outfits for certain body shapes, what I'm liking designer wise, how I would recreate designer looks for less... Up to you. Just drop me question at my formspring here.

soap and glory.

soap and glory available online.

Soap and Glory is a brand that up until recently I was unaware of. I had seen many of their products in drugstore on the high street and admired their wonderful packaging, but had never really used them. It was not until using this product that I understood the where everyone was coming from when they raved about them.

The item that particularly stood out for me was the Hand Food. My skin is particularly dry on my arms/legs and I have this one section of my hand that is always drier when colder months come around. Using this product I have seen the change immensely, my skin is softer and smoother. You barely have to use a lot of product because it goes a long way which is always a plus.

The Heel Genius cream holds a lovely smell of orange that lingers and mixes well with citrus lemon. The slogan "better than a pedicure" isn't something I can actually back up considering I have never hand one but like the hand food this product does it's job and had made my skin smoother too, even though the effect is a lot less noticable than on my hands.

ginger wine.

top: primark
skirt: asos
tights: primark
necklace: asos
rings: h&m, forever21, primark

I'm still obsessing over peter pan collars and rust colours so this blouse just had to be snatched up. It's from Primark and was a steal at 7£! The floral pattern on it is incredibly cute and fits the dainty style and feel of the shirt, completing it perfectly. My ASOS skirt is my new go to and I'm definitely living in it. The pleated front gives an illusion of a slimmer figure which is always a plus too!

My beloved galaxy nails are forever going to be shown until they become to chipped for photography. Sorry if it's annoying but I still cannot get over the fact that they look so professional and it took not longer than twenty minutes to achieve the look. I hope everyone enjoyed the soap and glory post yesterday, I'm trying to "review" a selection of things and weave them through my fashion related posts but it's hard when you're on a spending ban and can't really buy anything that isn't necessary. Thank goodness I got a quite a few presents when turning twenty three days ago (still don't like typing/saying that) so expect something from me review related soon-ish.

sunday snap #54.

#1. Just finished watching my installment of Supernatural. Cannot believe that show is on Season 7 already! I've been watching it from the beginning and I have to say I'll stick with it no matter what, but part of me thinks they are killing it now. It's so complicated with all the god, angels, hell etc... Sometimes I wish they would go back to their old way of thinking and just let them kick demon ass like they used too haha!

#2. I enjoyed a night out for my 20th birthday last night. Decided against Liverpool because my friends and I ended up leaving it too late. Hotels were either fully booked or far too expensive to justify, so ended up going to my local town. To be honest I can't believe I'm 20... It's so old...

#3. No rest for the wicked though! I'm trying my hardest to get on top of any course work/assignments I have for this year. Rather than letting them build up I'm trying to get space them out and get ahead of the game. My obsession with writing lists is definitely back in full swing.... It's quite OCD but you've gotta do what you've gotta do.

#4. Other than the above nothing much has been happening. Same old same old of uni work, and just generally being busy studying. Most of the time I find myself only leaving the house for uni, how sad is that?! Oh well, that's life I guess... When it gets to this time of year it's expected... I guess?

colourworks: smokin' look book.

colour works available at superdrug.

Colourworks brand was something I had never heard of until I was kindly given this makeup set by my brother and his girlfriend for Christmas. Since I am interested in makeup but not the best at applying it "professionally" this set has been gathering dust in my room. Up until now.

The smokin' lookbook holds everything you need to create the perfect smokey black eye. The eye shadows are pigmented with just the amount to give a shimmery look that is completed with the glitter laced eyeliner. I would definitely recommend newbies to the makeup world pick up this set and practice to your hearts content.

It's my birthday tomorrow, can't believe I'm 20! (Or as my friend calls it 19 + 365 days!! Ha!) Such a scary thought! Posting will most likely be slack but I'll make up for it. Heading out to Nandos tonight with some friends, hope everyone has a great weekend.

galaxy nails.

try the galaxy nails out for yourself here

Nail art has always been something that has interested me, not so much that I wanted to gain a qualification in it but still enough that I enjoy painting my nails and rarely don't ever have them polished. I came across this youtube channel and I have to say it kick started my nail craze all over again.

I have to say that I'm really excited to try out lots of different examples that are on that YouTube channel, particularly the Harry Potter nails, the tribal aztec and the ladybug nail art (this one especially because it reminds me of my love for lady bugs when I was younger!).

As for the actual nail art itself, it's easy and if you're a beginner have a dabble and you'll see. My advice would be to just take your time and try to get colours as close to the ones that are used on the video for the overall effect to actually work. My colours are a little out there but I was just too eager to try the idea out that I didn't check my colours first off. For a first attempt I think it's look great (if I say so myself, haha)! Layering the nail polish is pretty simple but the actual look gives the feeling of advance and professionalism.