Top - Matalan (in the sale for £4!)
Jeans - Matalan (£16 - see this post for link to jeans website)
Belt - Primark
Necklace - eBay
Shoes - Vans
Lipstick - 17 Lasting Fix in Dreamy

   Sorry for not posting over the past few days, I'm bogged down in uni work. Can't really complain though, considering I have and extra day to do it today - good old leap year! 

   Anyhow, just a little spring-suitable casual outfit. I'm not brave enough yet to wear this few layers out, considering the temperature here! But just felt like showing off these gorgeous new jeans that I picked up in Matalan after browsing the web for some pastel bargains (mentioned in this post). They are full length but I've rolled them up here and paired them with a loose, slightly sheer top and some Vans with little strawberries all over (they're dead cute!). 

   I'm motivating myself to get some colour into my wardrobe this spring / summer - as I'm sucker for black or neutral colours. So I thought these jeans would be a good start considering the dreary weather in England 80% of the time!

   I'll give a quick mention about my thoughts on these jeans. I tried on and 8 and a 10 and purchased the size 10 pair as they were more comfortable. Now I'm regretting not getting the 8, as I didn't realise how elasticated these are, meaning the waist is becoming looser with each wear - argh! I was walking around in them at uni on Monday and they were threatening to end up around my ankles... I'll just have to wear a belt with them all the time. I guess you can't expect the fit and cut to be mind-blowing for £16. Regardless, I'm happy with them. I guess they will only be a seasonal purchase anyway so I'm not hugely bothered.

   A few of you have asked about my hair - not sure if you mean in terms of cut / colour / maintenance!? But I'll do a post soon to cover all of that!
   I've put together a little selection of aztec numbers I have come across and loved! And they're all affordable at less than £20 each. Hope you like these dresses as much as I do!




1) Catwalk Looks - here - £15.99

A cute little skater dress available in black and white too! I think this is one of those dresses which can easily be dressed up for a night out or down for a day-time look.



2) Chiara Fashion - here - £12.95
Now, I really love this dress. It could be worn as a top or a dress (if you regularly read my posts, you might have identified by now that I love versatile clothes!). And it's really well priced. Might have to buy it for myself!



3) Ebay - here - £6.50

A pretty little dress / tunic that would look great with leggings and a leather jacket. I own something a but similar to this but in black and white - annoyingly I've left it at home and I'm at uni at the moment! Unfortunately they only have a couple of sizes left - but there are other very similar dresses on ebay, I just really liked this one!

   This jumper has a bit of a story behind it - basically, I saw it on Molly King and googled it straight away (see her wearing it here). I like versatile staples like jumpers and the colour and style of this goes with anything - so it fits the bill in that respect. From my google search I found out it was a Religion jumper. So pretty pricey... I can't remember an exact figure but I think it was around the £40 mark.
   A couple of months later and the jumper was still playing on my mind so out of curiosity I googled it again. To my delight, it had been reduced! It was £26, reasonable, but I didn't want to fork out that much still (I'm a sucker for a bargain). So I sat it out for a week and to my delight Amazon dropped the price to £17 with free delivery! Needless to say I picked up the last size 10 (small) straight away.

Also just a quick mention, I've reached 100 followers today! Thank you all so much, I really appreciate each and every one of you following me.

Here's how I prefer to style it most of the time:





Junper - Religion
Vest Top - Topshop
Jeans - New Look
Scarf - Miss Selfridge
Ring - Topshop
Lipstick - Barry M (Pillar Box Red)
   This afternoon amongst doing uni work I've been browsing the web for some spring-appropriate pieces. I'm absolutely loving the pastel trend which I've seen a few posts about on my feed. I'm definitely going to be picking up a few pastel pieces! 

   I've come across a few gems, which are really affordable and I hope you like them as much as I do! So here's today's top 5 pastel shaded finds... in no particular order!

(Click through images to go to the product webpage)



1) Matalan - Aqua Skinny Coloured Jean - £16
I couldn't believe it when I came across these beauties! The colour is gorgeous - the price is even better. Having purchased bits and bobs from Matalan before I can say that I have never been disappointed by the quality for the price. I will definitely be buying these myself!




2) Matalan (again!) -  Online Exclusive Chiffon Midi Prom Dress Coral - £18
Ok, so not quite a pastel colour, but i think the chiffon makes the coral slightly softer and more pastel-y! I don't own any midi dresses myself, as I don't think they complement my almost petite stature, but this is a bargain and a beautiful colour I had to include it. Remember, as this is an online exclusive though, it won't be available in stores.





3) Desire Clothing - Cornflower Double Split Chiffon Maxi Skirt - £24
Another beautiful pastel shade. I can see this skirt being really versatile - great for teaming other pastel shades with or a simple black jumper tucked into the waistband with some statement jewelry. I think it's a little on the pricey end including delivery (£27.95), considering there are similar Maxi skirts in Topshop for just a few pounds more, but I haven't seen any from Topshop in such a lovely colour.


4) Missguided - Kolett Lace Up Suede Shoes in Lime - £40.99
I came across these and had to include them in this post - as you've probably already guessed, they're JC Lita look-alikes! They are quite pricey, but much cheaper than real JCs. I'm pretty sure Missguided have frequent 10% voucher codes which can be easily found through a quick Google search. Delivery is only £1.95 (I think!). They're available in some other pretty shades too so go have a peek!


 
5) New Look - Lilac Denim Shorts - £14.99
I love denim shorts and these are no exception. Click on the photo and follow the link to these shorts - there are tons of different colours available! All very eye catching, but these stood out to me the most. Well priced and so many colours to choose from.



  This is what I wore on Saturday for shopping and watching the Ice Hockey with my boyfriend. It was my first time watching Ice Hockey and I couldn't keep up with the puck... but it was still entertaining!









Outfit
Top - Primark
Skirt - WoowNow
Belt - Primark
Tights - Henry Holland
Leather Jacket - River Island
Necklace - ebay
Ring - H&M

Face
Foundation - Estee Lauder Double Wear in Ecru
Eyebrows - Sleek Eyebrow Kit in Light
Eyes - MUA Eyeshadow in Shade 12 blended with Famous (by Sue Moxley) Matt Eyeshadow in Shade 12

Nails
Beauty UK Lilac Nail Varnish
Northern Lights Holographic Top Coat in Silver
   Picked up this Tee and Cake jumper in the Topshop sale - I had seen the t-shirt version of it on their website and fell in love at first sight! I have a things for anything quirky or nerdy! I came across it in the sale rails and had to buy it! It was only £9 with student discount, I think it was £32 originally (?) and as it was the only one left (and it was in a size 10!) I had to get it. The Tee and Cake designs are always really quirky - right up my street.

   I wore it the other day paired it with a chiffon blouse, HH bones tights, DIY shorts along with some studded boots. Layering is definitely needed as it's pretty chilly outside. I will be putting a scarf around before heading outside for my walk to uni! Hope everyone is having a great weekend :)


Jumper - Topshop      Chiffon Shirt - Primark       Shorts - Levi Vintage Studded 501s (DIY)       Tights - Henry Holland

Rings - H&M

Boots - Denners

    Very impressed by the delivery service from Forever 21 - came about 28 hours after I ordered it! I'm pleased with the quality of the products too.For some reason I expected the shirt to be less cotton-y and a more linen-y texture from the picture (not sure why!). But it is a very light cotton, so perfect for layering. Here I have worn it over a long black H&M top / dress, as the shirt is slightly sheer and it's too chilly out not to wear something underneath! For just under a tenner, I am more than happy with this shirt!

    I love the necklaces too - they seem very good quality for the price. I can't say that Topshop jewelry I've bought before, which is often more than double the price of these F21 pieces, has looked any better than these two necklaces! To be fair, I did pick some of the cheapest pieces on the website (some other items are probably similarly prices to stores such as Topshop), but again, for the price they are excellent.

   So, here are my purchases opened / tried on. See yesterday's post for a link to the products on the UK website. Hope you all like the pieces as much as I do!









 



   I had been pondering over buying a few pieces of  jewelry  from Forever 21 for the past couple of days. This morning I caved and whipped out my credit card to spend just £14.40 on two necklaces and a shirt. It's my birthday on 9th March and as I live over 4 hours away from my parents they can't just pop round to give me presents, so I'm ordering them to be delivered here on their behalf! 

   Although delivery from Forever 21 is £3.95 (if you spend under £50), you do get free returns, which is always handy when shopping online. 

   I'm a little bit concerned about the sizing of the shirt as I sometimes find these kind of shirts cling to my boobs and hang weirdly, so I went for a size up, I'm hoping it will be a bit looser fitting. Fingers crossed it will look nice on! I will write a post about the items when they arrive.


   Here's what I've bought:




Duo Cross Necklace
£3.15




Faceted Cross Necklace
£1.50


Striped High-Low Button Up
£9.75


All images from Forever21.com
   Just a quick OOTD post - keeping it simple! Plain white tank top, light wash jeans, leather jacket, fur stole and a few pieces of jewelry. An outfit I don't think anyone can go wrong with!

Jacket - eBay (£5!!)      Top and Jeans - Topshop      Faux Fur Stole - New Look      Lipstick - Barry M in Pillar Box Red       Necklace - Gift


Rings - H&M

   Hope everyone has had a brilliant Valentines Day! I spent the evening with my boyfriend munching Dominos (ohh how I've missed it!) and I even got a rose!

Jumper - Pull and Bear     Skirt - Woow Now     Belt - Primark     Tights - Primark      Shoes - Matalan

   Had to squeeze a bit of Valentines-ness into my outfit so wore my heart-print topped stocking tights! So pleased with the skirt - I ordered it yesterday at 5:30pm and it arrived this morning - amazing! There are a couple of other colours too, but I have a habit of buying black clothes. I've wanted a skirt like this for weeks and I'm so so pleased with it - I wish it was slightly more high-waisted but I still love it. 

   It was only £5 (+£2 for 1st class delivery) from Woow Now,  a website I'd never tried until yesterday, but I will certainly be buying more from their site. There are some absolute gems to be found on their website!


Necklace - Gift     Twig Ring - H&M    Bear Ring - Ebay

   I'll put it straight out there and say I'm not impressed by this 'lip balm'. On a trip to Boots a couple of months ago to pick up some skin care products and nipped by the cosmetics area before heading to the till (dangerous move!). As always, the Models Own range stood out to me - the brightly coloured products against the white background are irresistible! I've used their nail varnishes before and thought the quality was excellent and the range of colours impressive. I had never tried any of their other products though, until trying this lip balm.







   The packaging of the product is cute and simple - easy to pop in your bag. It appears well pigmented and quite creamy, yet quite firm for a balm in it's little glass pot. For some reason (really don't know why, as this product is still stocked) many of the Models Own products had been marked down in the Boots by about 25% - I got the balm for £3 when it's usually £5. As I had heard good things about the balms from other reviews it was hard to resist this deal!

    I'm not sure why I chose this shade in all honesty. I guess it's different to any other lipsticks / balms that I own already as I tend to go for pinker or just plain red shades. It's not the colour which was an issue for me though, it was the fact this this was called a 'balm'.


Applied relatively lightly to the lips

  'Tangerine' seems slightly glossy at first on my lips - but it dries out quickly, becoming less creamy and more sticky (especially after gong outdoors - it dries out within minutes). I expect a 'balm' to provide more hydration. It looks glossy, but after a couple of minutes my lips feel quenched of moisture! Upon applying the balm the thick / tough consistency drags a little until it melts... this also doesn't seem very balm-like to me! 

   Don't get me wrong, I don't think it looks bad on at all, in fact, I do like the (initial) finish and colour it gives. It just doesn't provide a balm-like result - for me at least. I've seen other reviews recommending this product before, although they weren't reviews of this shade - so I wonder if the formula for this shade is less balm-like than the others?

Left - Heavily swatched    Right - Blended swatch: you can see here how it starts to dry out and gives an almost matte finish

   As a 'balm' I don't expect much pigmentation, but I was surprised by the significant wash of colour the balm gave using just a small amount - although I like the colour, I think this may be where the products falters. Perhaps the pigmentation of this shade comes at the expense of it being moisturising... I don't have unusually dry lips so I wonder if anyone else feels the same way?

   I wasn't purchasing the balm for the finish or feel it has proven to actually have, so I'm not impressed by it. I only wear this balm with lashings of Vaseline - which seems a little pointless to apply a balm to a balm! I'm a little put off of exploring their other balms because of this experience!

  So, a few posts ago I mentioned that I had picked up some foundation samples from MAC and Estee Lauder. After a few days trying them out, I decided on what one to purchase. The samples I tried out were MAC's Pro-longwear and Studio Sculpt, both in NC15, and also Estee Lauder's Double Wear foundation in Ecru.





   Needless to say the MAC sample is much more attractively presented. I'm pretty sure Estee Lauder own MAC so I was a little disappointed with the effort put in to the Double Wear sample pot compared to the way that MAC presents it's samples...

   My initial impression of the Double Wear foundation was quite negative - upon decanting a little of the liquid onto the back of my hand I instantly thought it was far to dark and warm for my skin tone!I was quite disappointed as I had heard such brilliant things about this foundation and I always seem to have trouble finding the right shade for my skin (I'm quite pale and have a cool / neutral-ish tone to my skin, making most MAC shades not ideal due to their lack of neutral shades- yet to try out Matchmaster foundation- but this issue is  bearable!). 

    The Studio Sculpt foundation instantly felt too hydrating for my skin type. It's gel formula was probably not going to be the best for my skin, which becomes quite oily in places throughout the day. The retail artist in MAC had advised me to give it a go if I liked the coverage of Studio Fix. I had initially just asked for Pro-longwear, but she noticed that my foundation was medium / full coverage and claimed that Pro-longwear couldn't achieve this. Both colours are quite similar, as shown below, but as with many foundations the colour (ie. NC15) does often vary ever so slightly, even though they are made by the same brand - so it's always a good idea to get a sample to see how it suits your colouring!

   Pro-longwear seemed a much better formula for my skin. It blended better with my skin colour compared to Double Wear when I swatched it on the back of my hand. However, it did seem to provide less coverage than what I am used to.

Swatches in daylight L-R Studio Sculpt, Pro-longwear and Double Wear

  I applied Studio Sculpt to my skin first, as I wanted to rule it our as an option before trying the other two. It was definitely not right for my skin. I know this foundation is recommended by many other bloggers, I can see it being great for dryer skin types (I'll take it home for my Mum to try out!), but it really isn't for me. It sunk into my pores (I have quite deep ones on my cheeks, just under my eyes), really exaggerating them - not a good look! It also made my skin feel quite greasy, which isn't a great feeling when you've got skin already prone to this feeling!

   On my first trial of Pro-longwear I was disappointed with the coverage, but upon trying it again (...after purchasing Double Wear) I am actually quite impressed with it! It definitely needs a bit more building up than Studio Fix to achieve the coverage I like best, but it last longer than Studio Fix before starting to become cakey looking (I think this is the result of the greasier parts of my skin ruining the finish of the foundation gradually over the day!). It is a good foundation. I would actually buy it if I wanted a slightly less expensive option than Double Wear. But it doesn't control the oilier parts of my skin quite as well.

   When I first applied Double wear in Ecru, I expected it to look far to dark and orange for me. I was pleasantly surprised though, as I blended it in it actually matched my colouring very well. It mattifyed my skin brilliantly (as you can probably tell, I really like a matte finish to my skin!) and after a day at uni it still looked exactly as it did before leaving the house! I was really blown away.

   I did trial it for about 3 days before purchasing, as my skin is sensitive / easily aggravated and although many companies make claims that their products are non-acnegenic / dermatologist tested, they don't always live up to what they should! However, this hasn't been the case (so far) with Double Wear. I, personally, won't be wearing it every day as I don't always like having such heavy coverage just to pop to the shops or what have you.


Double Wear in Ecru, applied with ELF powder brush with powder and blush. Photographs really nicely! (Excuse the lack of make-up! I'm in such a rush these days before heading off to lectures!)

   I went out and purchased Double Wear after a few days of trying it. I picked it up in Boots for about £26. It's handy that Boots have Estee Lauder counters in their larger stores, as you can collect Advantage Card points on your (pricey) branded cosmetics purchases! 

   If you have a similar skin type to mine and want a long lasting foundation, I would really recommend trying out Double Wear for a couple of days. Just pop to your local Estee Lauder counter and ask for a sample / a shade match. It is quite pricey, especially on a student budget, but if you know you're busy all day and don't want to have the bother of re-apply your foundation / powder regularly, then Double Wear is such a great option. I will still be using Studio Fix on the days where I don't need such staying power, but Double Wear has impressed me more than expected!





 Top - Primark £4    PU Panel Leggings - Internacionale £8 (sale)   Boots - Topshop £36 (pre - sale £80)   Cross Bracelet - Miss Selfridge  £4 (with student discount)




Foundation - Estee Lauder Double Wear in Ecru     Eyebrows - see everyday routine     Blush - see everyday routine    Highlighter - E.L.F All Over Colour Stick in Spotlight     Mascara / liner - everyday routine    Eyeshadow - MUA shade 12 and MUA Heaven and Earth Palette    Lips - Barry M Lip Paint in 12, Rimmel Lipstick in 008 Pink Corset and Dirty Works Lip Plumper (phew!!)

Trying out Estee Lauder Double Wear in Ecru today! Will do a post about all 3 of my foundation samples in a few days after giving them all a go! 
Off for a Pizza Hut soon (the Happy Hour deal is amazing!)

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