month by month

Happy New Year! I hope you all have fun plans for tonight and have had the best year. 2012 hasn't exactly been my best year, so I'm hoping 2013 is much better! Here is my 2012 play by play...

Amber's Birthday night out  |  Random drunk evening including a trolley  |  drunken cuddles with Bex

Murder Mystery  |  Leaving Andra at Staples  |  dressing up!

 amber plate  |  eating pancakes  |  making pancakes!

Aussie Fashion Show  |  Travelling to Steps  |  Matt's 21st Birthday night out

Meeting Arthur  |  Arthurs First day at home  |  Our first cuddle

Museum time with the girls  |  Butterbeer  |  Ice bar!

Ambers graduation  |  At the Olympics  |  Race for Life

 Outdoors time  |  attempting tennis  |  picnic in the woods

 Guinness Factory  |  Dublin Zoo   |  Guinness

 Me and Hanah in London  |  Lola Rose scarves  |  LFW!

Mum's 50th Birthday Party  |  Firework night  |  More party!

Central Park  |  New York  |  Arthur's first Christmas

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

getting the latest dresses with sleeves

I've started to feel a bit old these past few weeks... turning 23 and working with young part timers spending their student loan while I'm saving for a house - yup, definitely old! But what I always wonder is this - while I am getting older, is my fashion sense becoming slightly more conservative?

I know the boy keeps saying lately that he prefers longer skirts on me as it's a bit more ladylike (worst boy in the world - who likes long skirts?) and since hearing this I have been observing older ladies and their fashion choices. For example, they should definitely stay away from purple leggings with stripey underwear underneath - never good! And also, maybe (as the boy has been saying) stay away from the mini skirts.

Once fashion choice I am loving at the moment, on all ages, is long sleeved dresses. They are one of the most forgiving styles and universal with age. It hides a multitude of sins (wiggle wiggle bingo wings), looks elegant, classy and fashionable - even the simplest of dresses can be made stylish with a long sleeve these days! If you pop over onto this link you can get the latest dress with sleeves and see Lynda Bellingham showing off some of Isme's latest sleeve obsessions and shows you just how gorgeous they can look - no matter what your age. My favourite being the Purple Lace Dress - it's an every generation evening out dress, teamed with my glittery Choo's and it's a winner.

If I'm honest I think as you get older, you learn what suits you and what doesn't, and as the years go on what may have suited you when you were in your teens won't necessarily suit you in your twenties, or what suits you in your twenties won't suit you in your fifties. I think fashion has a learning curve with it, synchronised with age - but I don't think your style has to be stunted because of it.

Merry Christmas!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!
I hope you all had a great day/days depending on how long your celebration lasted for (or when you went back to work...)

I had a very relaxed day at home with the family plus other halves of brothers and mine! I got lots of lovely presents - unfortunately no house or car in sight - but I can't complain too much. Many Pandora charms, a Lola Rose scarf, DVD's, Tiffany Necklace and Wolf Hat later I am a very spoilt girl.

As you can see Arthur and Rupert didn't go without either - although neither were particularly happy about their pressies! Much wine was consumers (I think Mum, Hanah and I went through 2 bubbly roses and a prosecco), as well as champagne and bucks fizz earlier in the day. All in all a good day - shame I was back at work on Boxing Day (boo!)

I hope you had a great day as well and got lots of lovely pressies.... And I hope you have a fantastic New Year as well!

Illamasqua Intense Lipgloss

Illamasqua Intense Lipgloss in Succubus £14.00 (was sent as a competition prize)

Firstly - I apologise for no picture with the product on said lips. I'm still getting used to the macro setting on my new camera and it got to the point where I wanted to throw it across the room... So I gave up and told myself I should be able to describe it to you all instead... So here I go!

This is my first Illamasqua product and if I'm honest, I have a bit of a mixed review. The colour is very pigmented and yet subtle when mixed with the gloss. It lasts a good couple of hours as well so a very dependable product.

However, I'm not a huge fan of tubey lip glosses. In fact, the only lip glosses I really like are the ones with the wand... if them really. I guess me and glosses have a bit of a meh relationship. Anywho, I found this really hard to apply - I think it would be better served with a brush to apply and it's quite thick going on as well which adds to the difficulty. On the plus side though it's really not that sticky so yay!

Overall, I'm not won over by this product unfortuantely. It hasn't convinced me to join the ranks of my fellow bloggers who love Illamasqua - but hey, maybe another product of theirs if you could suggest one?

What Illamasqua products would you suggest to change my mind?

Winter Warmers

I've been wanting to write this post for a while, but was waiting until I settled on my favourite products that have actually made a difference to me this winter... Every year I think "right - this year I will find my perfect combination" but it never happens - this year however I feel I have come pretty close!

Lips
Lush Bubblegum Lip Scrub (full review here)
Love this little post of miracle magic! Leaves my lips feeling lipstick ready and removes all the gritty dead skin and scabs left over from me biting my poor little lips. Tastes scrummy too!

Nivea Lip Butter in Raspberry Rose (full review here)
A nice little product. No sticky residue on fingers and leaves my lips feeling lovely and moisturised  despite the winter chill. A perfect partner for my lip scrub.

Face & Hair
Fade Out White Moisturising Cream (full review here)
A gift from a PR company and I love it. It's my everyday facial moisturiser and it's made such a difference the past month or so. I forgot to take it to NY with me and my face felt horrible - until I got home and rejuvinated with this baby!

VO5 Hot Oil Moisture Soak Elixir (full review here)
To begin with I was a bit iffy about this product, but I am now in no doubt that this is definitely saving my hair from being left dry and brittle with this weather. A definite hair saver - I just wish it lasted longer!

Hands & Body
Soap & Glory Hand Food (full review here)
Love this little hand cream. Not just for winter, but all year round (when you work in retail anyway). It gives my hands a new lease of life and the smell is incredibly scrummy!

Soap & Glory Whipped Clean (full review here)
This shower cream has saved my body, my legs especially, from this cold weather. I don't know what I did before it and I don't know what I would do without it either! A definite must in my shower from now on!

These products are all my little winter savers - it's taken me a couple of months to choose my favourites and these definitely are the best of a bunch (and I mean a great big huge bunch of products). Hope this helps you in some way - I definitely feel I have finally found the ingredients for healthy winter skin!

What's you winter warmers?

Nivea Lip Butter

Nivea Lip Butter Raspberry Rose £2.25

This beauty was part of my pre-New York holiday shop. I usually just use their original lip balm stick thing, but I thought I would give this a go as it was new, and pink. Can't go wrong with pink!

What can I say, it's a lovely little product. It's easy to use, lasts forever and smells/tastes amazing. It's very moisturising for my lips and I have been using it after my Lush Bubblegum Lip Scrub (here) and they seem to make a pretty amazing team! Go team lips!

Overall a really nice product, not too expensive and not as greasy as vaseline thank god (can't get on with that stuff). It leaves no residue on your fingers so thats always a thumbs up in my book!

What balms do you swear by for winter?

Mac Viva Glam V

Mac Viva Glam Lipstick in Shade V £14.00

My first Mac lipstick! I have wanted one f.o.r.e.v.e.r... but we don't have a Mac near me so it's a bit of a pain when you can't really make out the colours on the website. However, when I was in New York I popped into Saks on 5th Avenue and indulged at the Mac Counter. I asked for an everyday nude pink and was very quickly introduced to Viva Glam V by the very helpful assistant. I instantly fell in love.

It's definitely a "my lips but better" colour and combines a natural nude with a shimmery pink. I'm not usually one for shimmery lipsticks but this one is just a lover. If you catch it in the right light it seems to have some sort of gold shade to the shimmer but it's subtle enough to be unnoticable during the day, and smart enough to wear out in the evening.

I've been reaching for it daily and would definitely purchase another. It's moisturising and has about a mid-length wear (if that makes sense). It is the perfect everyday, first Mac, lipstick.

Which Mac lipsticks do you recommend?

Daisy by Marc Jacobs

Marc Jacobs Daisy Eau de Toilette Spray 50ml 

I picked up this little cutie in the Duty Free on my way back from New York, trying to spend my leftover dollars before I got home. I'm a big fan of Marc Jacobs fragrances with Lola already and Dot on my Christmas List and I just love this bottle. After spraying dozens of different perfumes between me and my Mum (and after feeling a bit dizzy due to this) I settled on Daisy. It was the first one I smelt and the one I ended up buying - what does this tell you!

It's a floral fragrance with voilet leaves, wild strawberry and ruby red grapefruit - which makes it a really nice mix of a floral fragrances with a fruity edge. It's sweet, with a touch of sharpness to it thanks to the grapefruit.  I think it's a perfect winter fragrance. Not only that but the bottle itself is just gorgeous. I love all of MJ's bottles, Lola with the huge floral arrangement on top and Dot with it's ladybird theme - they would all look amazing on top of your dressing table.

I got this 50ml bottle for $55, which I believe works out about £40ish. Prices vary across the UK according to the retailer you choose but I think the price is pretty similar to the duty free. Definitely glad I spent my dollars on this cute perfume - definitely an investment!

What's your favourite winter perfume?

Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush

Tarte Amazonian Clay 12 Hour Blush in Dollface $25

Okay, so when I went to America I really wanted to pick up this blusher. I had seen it on Kat's blog here and seen it on her in person and knew just what an incredible product it was. So I dragged my Mum into Sephora (my first ever trip eek) and we went round loads and I tried all the different colours until I settled on Dollface.

I like my deep, nude pink blushes (like my No7 Soft Damson) and Dollface fitted that category perfectly. So did it live up to the hype? Um. YES! It applies like a dream, you only need a little bit on your blusher brush and the colour is instant. Be careful though as if you do use too much you can look a bit clownish. Blended in though it looks natural and you end up looking beautifully flushed all day. Yes, honestly. ALL DAY! First time I wore this I popped it on at 10am, went to work at 12, came home about 9 and I was still blush perfect. I was incredibly impressed.

I don't think you can get it anywhere in the UK. I have had a look on eBay and I think that's probably the best bet.. so anyone going to America in the future will be getting a Tarte order from me - when I come close to running out anyway.

Definitely fallen completely in love with this product. The picture of me above doesn't do the colour justice I'm afraid but hopefully it'll come out better in another post I'm planning to do of a FOTD!

What US products would you recommend? Have you tried Tarte before?

New York: Part Two

Just a few more from New York to bore you senseless :) hope you enjoyed!

Chanel Inimitable Mascara

Chanel Inimitable Mascara in Noir Sample Size.

My mum gives me the nicest things... She goes and buys some lovely expensive make up and I end up with all the samples. It's a good deal as I then discover little beauties like this.

As you may know, I religiously use Chanels Intense Eye Pencil so I was excited about this and it definitely lives up to my expectations. The brush it quite thick with plastic bristles to help seperate and curl the lashes, creating a natural and full look. For a teeny tiny sample it has lasted quite well, which is surprising but good!

Looking it up, it's usually priced at £23, which is a normal price for Chanel, however with a new car and house on the horizon next year I think I need to stick to my Mum's samples - she happened to find another one for me in New York. A good egg my mother is indeed!

Overall I do like this mascara, I wouldn't say it really stands out above anything else I've used in the past, but it is the one I'm currently reaching to on a daily basis.

What's your everyday mascara? Any drugstore options for a saver?

Mac Smutty Green

MAC Mineralize Eyeshadow in Smutty Green £16.50

Look! It's a Mac product! While I was in New York I popped my Mac cherry and bought a lipstick and an eyeshadow. This is said eyeshadow. I completely fell in love with the colour and it happens to perfectly match the dress I bought from Forever 21 to wear to my work Christmas do. It was like it was meant to be!

It applies like a dream, it's really easy to use as the darker colour for a smokey eye and looks amazing with a flash of mascara and popped on the waterline as well. Definitely a winner for me. I'm not a huge eyeshadow person so for me to splash out on one I have to really love it. And that I do. It's also really long wearing, just don't rub your eyes too much or you begin to look like a green panda.

It's such a pain we don't have a Mac near me! As I've loved both my new Mac products and I feel like you can't see the colours properly on the website, but I may just have to settle for it as this is definitely a fab shadow and thoroughly recommended by me!

What MAC shadows do you love? Any other Mac products your recommend I try?