Catch Up

My laptops broken! It was slowly becoming more and more useless so I decided I should probably pop down to the little computer shop in town. So that's what I did, and was told that the hardrive was on its way out. SOB. Luckily everything was backed up as it's all getting fixed now. So whilst patiently waiting for it to be fixed I have been Internet free, well minus the usual bit of browsing on my phone! I've missed blogging so I thought I'd attempt a post from my phone. 

Trips

Despite wanting to chuck my laptop out of the window, prior to the computer shop visit, things have been good. It was the boyfriend's birthday a couple of weeks ago so I planned a secret trip to Cornwall. I love surprises and he had absolutely no idea. Although the weather was a bit temperamental (not at all surprising) it was a lovely little trip away and we had a great time. We travelled around most of Cornwall and stopped at various little places for walks, pictures, hot drinks and food. To name a few places - we stopped at St Ives, Padstow and Newquay. It was so relaxing and nice to have a change of scenery. I love being by the beach and Cornwall definitely has some really beautiful beaches! Carbis Bay in St Ives (top left and bottom right) has a lovely beach. After browsing around the town we walked back to the car, it then started to rain. By the time we got in to the car we were both absolutely drenched!

I also spent a week in my old home town catching up with some family and friends. It's always nice going back home and spending some quality time with loved ones. As its over a two hours drive from where I currently live I sometimes struggle to find the time to go and visit everyone, so sometimes months go between each visit. It was quite a chilled out week. I just enjoyed having the time off work and doing the simple little things such as having a cup of tea and a girly chat and catch up with my best friend or watching a couple of films with my Dad! Ahh the little things eh :)

Valentines Day

My boyfriend is the sweetest. We had nothing planned for valentines... to be honest I'm not a huge valentines day type of girl. A nice simple meal out would have been fine. But my boyfriend had planned a really special afternoon/evening. He'd booked us both in for a hot stone back massage at a spa hotel, a lovely meal and a room for the night. The hotel is a favourite of ours and one we often visit it when we can as a bit of a treat. It's in a really scenic location sat beside a beautiful lake. The hot stone back massage was a little slice of heaven. It was so relaxing and therapeutic. My work can be quite punishing on my back so I felt so much better for it. I can't recommend it enough if you're yet to try one.

Well in a nutshell that's it. Aside from all of the above I've been working like the busy bee that I am and trying to save up those pennies.  When I've had the chance to watch a bit of television my TV picks have been 'Nashville' and 'My Mad Fat Diary' (I love both of these, especially the latter) and a bit of 'Hollyoaks' on the side every now and then. Thankfully my laptop will be returned tomorrow all shiny and new, well kind of. I've missed catching up on my favourite blogs and being able to go on to my iTunes and update my music. Although you can do pretty much all of it these days on your phone, I much prefer my trusty laptop :)

Red Lips | MAC Lipsticks

I've always admired how beautiful a red lip can look on others, but felt that such bold colours don't look quite right once on my own lips. Although I hadn't particularly tried many, those I had tried I felt were too bold and definitely weren't for me. After receiving a Debenhams voucher for Christmas I decided I'd pop to the MAC counter and take my time to search for a red lippy that I could (hopefully) see myself wearing. I did just that. I actually ended up with two as I couldn't decide which one I preferred! I took home a Lustre Lipstick in Lady Bug and a Sheen Supreme Lipstick in New Temptation (both of these were recommended by one of the MAC ladies). I also purchased a Lip Pencil in Cherry. 

Lady Bug is a buildable sheer red which has some orange tones to it. I find this red is very wearable, adding a subtle pop of colour. New Temptation is also a buildable sheer red but is more vivid in comparison to Lady Bug and I would say more of a cherry red. Due to the formula New Temptation feels very smooth and moisturising once applied. I love how New Temptation can be patted on to the lips to create a softer more subtle look. I think of the two New Temptation may be my favourite shade. 

{L-R- Cherry Lip Pencil, New Temptation & Lady Bug}

{L-R- Lady Bug & New Temptation}

Both of these lipsticks are, in my opinion, very wearable reds and are definitely shades that I feel I can confidently wear. Of course being the type of girl that normally wears more subtle shades it initially took a little getting used to but I'm pleased that I've managed to find reds that I feel suit me! The lovely thing is these reds are so versatile and easy to work with, both work well as an everyday colour but are still pretty enough to wear on a night out. 

What do you think? Any red lippy fans... if so what are your favourite's?

The Little Things

-Having a few days off work after working some very long and tiring days!


-Enjoying a hearty homemade shepherds pie dinner the other evening. The melted cheese on top was delicious. Yum


-Giggling fits. I woke up the other night and to my amusement my boyfriend was sleep talking. He was wondering where the "hundreds of pieces of paper had disappeared to" Hilarious!


-Long phone conversations with friends that live miles away


-Working my way through my lovely stash of Lush goodies that I received for my Birthday & Christmas


-Discovering a red lipstick which I actually feel comfortable wearing


-Waking up Friday morning to see everything covered in snow. It was snowing lightly throughout the day - everything looked so pretty. Friday involved chucking snowballs, long walks, Mum tripping over in the garden and the dogs playing excitedly in the snow. So pleased I had the day off work. (The above picture was the view from my window yesterday morning)


-Sticking to one of my NY's goal/resolution of saving up those pennies. I've been quite strict on what I can spend my money on - so it feels good having a little chunk of money to put away and save after payday 

Words To Live By

{All images - Pinterest - Original - Unknown}

A New Year

In 2013 I will....

• Try to start saving those pennies (more specifically put away a minimum of £40 a month)

• Aim to be a lot healthier by looking after myself and eating more of the right stuff

• Be more organised. I'm normally quite an organised person but in the last couple of months I seem to keep leaving things for another day. The to-do list becomes ever growing! 

• Try to not let certain things get to me - worry less. I can be such a little worrier. Some things are just out of my control and aren't really my problem. I need to learn to take a step back and remind myself that some things are either not my problem or aren't important

• Find a new job. This one is quite important. I hope to find something that's pointing more in the right direction in terms of what I would like to be doing in the future

• Make time for things that I enjoy doing. It's important for everyone to have some 'me' time!

• Make plans. Due to having some of my closest friends and family members living a couple of hours away, it can be difficult to find and have quality time with them all. This year I will make sure that plans are made to make the most of the time that we do have together - however small those plans may be :)

What kind of resolutions/goals have you set for yourselves?

Sparkle - Glitter Nail Polishes

It goes without saying that I love a bit of glitter. So it may come as no surprise that I received a little handful of gorgeous glitter nail polishes for Christmas. Yes they're an absolute pain when it comes to removing the stuff but that doesn't put me off in the slightest!

Leighton Denny - Best Seller. This is a gorgeous deep red shade which contains specks of shimmer.

Leighton Denny - Angel Dust. A clear polish packed with lots of tiny specks of silver shimmer. I love the name of this polish I think it's very sweet and fits well with this shade.

Deborah Lippmann - Ruby Red Slippers. A black base shade filled with tiny pieces of red glitter and bigger hexagonal pieces of red glitter.

I also received the Essie - Winter 2012 Collection (Minis) which includes the shades; Leading Lady, Snap Happy and Beyond Crazy. I will probably do a separate post on this lovely little Essie set. 

I'm yet to properly apply these shades to my nails but I have had a little play with them and swatched each shade on a nail for you all to see! I think these are all beautiful shades and a lovely quality. I already own two other Lippmann polishes (Stairway To Heaven and Glitter In The Air) and despite the high price tag I think there are some really gorgeous shades available that, in my opinion, are difficult to compete with. 
I don't feel that the below image captures how beautiful these shades are in real life. I found it quite tricky to get a picture that is true to how these shades look on the nails. Best Seller and Angel Dust have a lot more shimmer and the black base of the Lippmann polish looks slightly darker in real life.

{L-R- Ruby Red Slippers, Best Seller and Angel Dust}          

The Denny polishes are my first ever owned products from the brand and although I can't comment on how well these polishes last on the nails I can say that these two shades are lovely, the packaging looks sleek and professional and one coat of Best Seller gave a full opaque look. Angel Dust is very subtle and pretty on it's own adding a very light hint of glitter and a clear gloss to the nails, as the specks are so tiny it's not too heavy and catches your eye as you move your hand around. I tried a layer of one coat over a darker shade and loved the effect it added. It added a very subtle glitter topcoat which on close inspection makes me think of tiny stars sparkling. I adore this polish... it's simple yet effective. The Lippmann polish required three coats to achieve a more opaque finish. One coat left the black base looking very light so more than one coat is definitely needed in my opinion. 

Considering I already own a handful of polishes containing some sort of glitter I love how these three polishes add something different and unique to my little collection. 

Recently...

-New room decoration
-A box of Thornton's chocolates... Mmm
-Charlie
-LUSH goodies
-Belle. I was cooking and had the feeling someone was watching me, turned around to see this :)
-The tiny bit of snow that fell a few weeks ago

-The gorgeous flowers I received for my Birthday
-The little poser
-Cute glitter Birthday present bag
-My giant jasmine candle
-Love these Zebra slippers.. they are so warm and cosy
-My Christmas nails Bewitching (review here) and No7's Gold Glitter)

It's Christmas Eve!! I really can't wait to have a nice chilled out day tomorrow with some of my loved ones. 

Wishing you lovely lot a Merry Christmas!