Perfume | Emporio Armani Diamonds Rose

For Christmas I was given this perfume by my boyfriend's family, I had just run out of my Ralph Lauren perfume and was on the hunt for a new one. My boyfriend's sister works in the perfume shop so I went in and she had suggested I smelt this one. The bottle alone stole my attention, the soft pink gives a feminine feel. It looks like a shimmering diamond and has the Armani eagle logo on the front. The bottle itself I think is quite unique, it comes without a lid, instead has a square top which includes the nozzle and spray button. The top looks very secure, so I'd happily put it in my bag and not worry about it.

The perfume is wearable for both day time and night time, it's a light floral fragrance with citrus-fresh notes, mixed with rose and sparkly bergamot, raspberry and blackcurrant. The base of this perfume consists of lily of the valley, freesia, patchouli, and ambrette seed.

I adore this scent, I've had quite a few compliments when I wear this perfume! It doesn't last all day, but it does last quite a long time. It has definitely become my favourite! I will without a doubt be repurchasing it again when it runs out. I particularly like the blurb to describe this fragrance; 'As dazzling as her fragrance, she follows trends but defines her own style. Her appeal is revealed in the soft shimmer of pink diamonds. Ultra-feminine, irresistible and seductive.'

The perfume comes in the size 30ml and 50ml. 30ml is £26.50 and the 50ml is £34.50.

Has anyone tried this perfume before? What's your favourite perfume?

Eikc.

Liebster Award

For those of you who may not have come across this before, the idea is, someone nominates you and asks you 11 questions, you then answer those questions on your blog and nominate people (with 200 followers or less.) It's a great way of finding blogs which should have more followers than they actually do!

Rachel from AMomentInTime kindly nominated me for this, so I just wanted to say thank you for doing so. I've had my blog for just over a month now and I never thought I'd have many people reading my blog so it means a lot. 

Rachel's Questions:

1) Why did you start blogging?

A lot of my free time consisted of reading other peoples blogs and watching YouTube videos and I was always so inspired by them. My friend Libby (LifeofLibby) started her blog around 7/8 months ago and told me how much she loved it and how much fun it was, this further inspired me to start my own blog. 

2) What is your favourite motto?

I wouldn't really say I have one, but I'm quite into karma, so I'll go with 'what goes around comes around'. 

3) If you could change one thing about yourself what would it be and why?

I'm too sensitive and am anxious far too often, making me worry about everything all the time.

4) What was the last dream you had?

I can't really remember to be honest, I just remember my boyfriend being in it.

5) If you had to be trapped in a lift with anyone who would it be?

Probably someone like Will Ferrell or someone who is fun and humorous. 

6) What's your favourite book, film and song?

Book - Hunger Games Series

Film - Wolf of Wall Street

Song - Couldn't pick just one!

7) How do you relax?

I relax by lighting some of my favourite candles, listening to spotify and reading blogs/watching YouTube videos.

8) What's your favourite season?

Spring or Autumn.

9) Lipstick or Mascara? 

As much as I love lipstick, I think I'd have to pick mascara.

10) What advice do you have for bloggers just starting out?

Try and be yourself, don't think too much about how many followers you have because its a slow process. Don't just follow loads of random blogs just to get followers back, write about things you'd like to see if you were the reader.

11)What's at the top of your bucket list?

Check out my current wish list:

http://chandlernotbing.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/make-up-my-current-beauty-wants.html

I nominate: ( I apologise if you've already been nominated by someone else. )

- thatgirlcalledlauren.blogspot.co.uk

- greywalls94.blogspot.co.uk

- thegirlsnextdooruk.blogspot.com

- littlethingssheloves.blogspot.co.uk

- kateflowermaquillage.wordpress.com

My Questions:

1) Favourite perfume?

2) Straighteners or curlers?

3) 5 beauty products you couldn't live without?

4) How did you get into blogging?

5) Which blogs inspire you the most?

6) Blush or bronzer?

7) High street or high end make up?

8) Favourite nail polish brand?

9) Favourite place to shop?

10) How long does it usually take you to get ready on a day to day basis?

11) One singer/band you'd love to see in concert?

Eikc.

Nails | Going Out

Every so often I enjoy going out to town and hitting the clubs. In preparation for the night out, it is essential I have my nails painted as I feel it completes the outfit. These 5 would be my top picks.

From left to right:

Rimmel 60 Seconds - 315 Ready Aim Paint. - £2.69
Models Own - Mystic Mauve. - £5.00
Barry M Nail Paint - Gold Glitter - £3.99
Barry M Nail Paint - Amethyst Glitter  - £3.99
Barry M Nail Paint - Diamond Glitter - £3.99


Ready Aim Paint is one of the 60 seconds nail polishes by Rimmel. I wouldn't agree that it takes just 60 seconds to dry, but it definitely does dry fast. The colour is a classic bold red, perfect for a night out. The colour tends to last around 4-5 days if applied with a topcoat.

Mystic Mauve is a dusty pink foil finish nail polish, it's incredibly pigmented and applies smoothly. After only 1 or 2 coats it is fully opaque. Post application it makes the nails look super shiny.

I love Barry M glitter nail polishes, they're such great value for money. I usually need to apply about 3/4 coats depending on the colour. Amethyst Glitter is a mix of turquoise, purple, gold, pink and black small hexagonal glitter which is suspended in a clear base. Diamond glitter consists of different sizes of holographic glitter with micro fine glitter all in a clear base. This colour would be perfect to apply on top of another colour or just on its own. Applying on top of another colour requires less coats to create a sparkly effect. These polishes are fast drying and last up to a week. My only complaint would be that they are so hard to remove! I feel I have to properly scrub my nails for ages with nail polish remover to get every last bit off.

What's your favourite nail polishes to wear on a night out?

Eikc.

Issues | 'Why are you so skinny?'

Hi everyone!

This post was inspired by two of my house mates, both who would be classed as 'skinny'. We were examining the stigma towards being skinny and the discussion which developed I found deeply interesting.

There is a question that within society gets brought up time and time again, 'why are you so skinny?', personally I think is quite insulting. What right do people have to criticise an individuals weight? The same question would be asked.. 'why are you so fat?', that wouldn't be a socially acceptable question so why should it be acceptable to pick out someone who is skinny? There might be reasons why they are skinny, it might be due to their high metabolism or their smaller bone structure or perhaps they have an eating disorder. If in fact they do have an eating disorder, they already will have a negative body image of themselves, so why would you want to implant that thought into their mind any further? If anything, it is just plain rude and insensitive.

You shouldn't need to ask people why their body is the way it is, it isn't necessary. It can deeply affect their self-esteem and confidence. It isn't fair making people feel conscious about their body image. As long as the person is happy and healthy then why should they have to change? If they had an issue and weren't happy, then they themselves would address the problem. If however, it is someone who wouldn't be able to address the problem themselves (perhaps someone who has an eating disorder) and you're worried them, then they are ways of addressing it in a more sensitive manner. The way you communicate this is very important.

The word 'skinny' I feel is quite offensive, it comes across as being negative. The term 'thin' I'd class as more appropriate. If in fact you're trying to compliment someone, make sure you think about the way you say it so that you don't offend that person.  For example, 'you look SO skinny'. This could be interpretated the wrong way and upset that person. A better approach would be, 'your body is looking really good!', conveying the same message but in a more positive way.

Another issue which I find unfair is comments like 'you shouldn't have lost weight, you looked so much better before'. What if before that individual was a healthy weight but was completely unfit and couldn't run up and down the stairs without being out of breath? What if now they feel more comfortable and have more confidence? As long as they are healthy and happy, why does it matter? It appears there are people who they themselves have low self-esteem and feel better by expressing negative comments about another individual to make themselves feel better, that in itself isn't healthy.

The moral of the story is that everyone is different. If everyone was the same then our world would be a boring place.

Eikc.

Lifestyle | My Room at Uni

Hi everyone!

The one word which people always describe me as is QUIRKY. Many of my friends have said this is reflected in my room. I thought today I'd show you a few things in my room as I'm pretty happy with how I've decorated it as it perfectly reflects my personality. A lot of things have been given to me by my Mum or friends who know me to an absolute 't'. 

My wall I found was quite bare and as we aren't allowed to paint it, I thought I'd brighten up the room by putting up some wrapping paper. I got this particular paper from paper chase. 

You can get a better idea of my bedding here:

 http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/9133064.htm

These two canvases were beautifully painted by one of my best friends as a birthday present. Each year she paints me a new canvas. I love how sentimental they are and the detail that she puts in. (Sorry about the poor lighting on some of those images.) 

These are my pretty little fairy lights I have hanging across one of my walls. They were a house warming present from my Mum, they look great in the evenings when I have all my lights off. I think they are a set of 20 or 25 and were from Next. 

This was another cute thing that my Mum sent me, the quote is by Edward Monkton and definitely reflects my personality. I keep this on my desk as it is very sentimental to me.

I am a massive lover of food, so this box is perfect for me when I want something that I 'shouldn't eat'. I really like the concept of it and think it looks unique sitting on my shelf.

This is a little box that I got given by a friend for my birthday, it's perfect for keeping hair ties and bobby pins in as I seem to find I always lose them. I sometimes wonder whether my floor just eats them all up!

This was a little night light my Mum sent me last week, I love the pattern and looks super cute in my room. She knows me way too well.


Those are a few of things I particularly love in my room.
If you'd like me to write a post on a particular thing let me know in the comments section.

Eikc. 

Lifestyle | Self Image & Body Confidence

Hi everyone!

I know I've already written a post today but I really wanted to do a lifestyle post and address the topic of self image and body confidence. For girls growing up there is intense pressure to be and look a certain way, but why? As long as your healthy and happy with your own weight, why does it matter if you're not a size zero?

The society we are currently live in idolises celebrities and their lifestyle. We become addicted to how they look, and what they do to look that way. We've all been there, searching for a new diet to try out to quickly lose the pounds, but realistically these 'fad diets' won't permanently keep off the weight and will cause your body more damage than it's worth. The key thing is be healthy, each individuals 'healthy weight' differs and it involves looking at your height, gender, bone structure and metabolism. Therefore its impossible to compare yourself to other people and worry that you might not be as thin as them. As long as your confident within yourself then others will see it too.

If people comment about your appearance or body weight, take a good look at yourself in the mirror and ask yourself are YOU happy with yourself and the way you look and feel? Nobody else's opinion matters but your own. Only you know how you feel and only you can help yourself if you're not happy with what you see.

Why should we feel the need to all look the same? Essentially our appearance reflects the person we are on the inside and we express this through clothing, make up, hair, piercings etc. One thing I love about being a Brightonian is the diversity of people, personally I think its refreshing, they have nocare in the world what other people think about them and they themselves are confident with who they are. Something I think a lot of people struggle with. With the fashion world, there is always something for everyone, we buy things we feel confident in and that coordinates with our personality. If someone else doesn't like a piece of clothing that we wear, should we stop wearing it? The answer is no, as long as you like it, who cares what anyone else thinks. There is bound to be others out there who share the same taste as you.

The point I'm trying to get across is that we should be confident in ourselves and realise everyone has flaws. No one is perfect.

Body confidence is a struggle for many and this is something the media still needs to address, particularly within the modelling world. The photos we are presented with aren't realistic and are photo shopped in order for the model to look perfect and desirable. The video linked below I feel perfectly demonstrates this and carries an important message on self image.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hibyAJOSW8U

Eikc.

Bodycare | Soap & Glory's Sugar Crush Body Scrub

Hi everyone!

Today I'm going to be sharing my views on the 'Sugar Crush' body scrub by Soap & Glory.

The main ingredients in this product are; brown sugar, lime, almond oil and macadamia grains. The lime and the sugar gives the product a sweet yet refreshing smell.

Almond oil is great for the skin, this is due to it being a rich source of vitamin E. It also contains vitamin D as well as containing other nutritional components. Almond oil has many beauty and health benefits, a few include; deeply moisturising the skin, nourishing the skin making it soft and smooth. It additionally improves complexion and retains glow.

Brown sugar is a great natural exfoliator and has many benefits. Because of the smaller particles in brown sugar, it is softer on the skin, meaning it can be used for those who have sensitive skin. It's also great at scrubbing away dead skin cells making way for healthier skin.

The use of macadamia is known to be great in relation to haircare and skincare. This is due to it deeply penetrating the skin. It is known to help the elasticity of the skin as well as preventing stretch marks.

I think this product is great, after using it my skin feels replenished, moisturised and makes it feel really soft. The price tag for this scrub is £8.00 and for the amount of product you get I think it is very affordable. I tend to use this product once or twice a week, as it isn't necessary to exfoliate your skin everyday.

Have you tried out this product?

If your interested in a DIY lip scrub please check out my friend Life of Libby:

http://www.lifeoflibby.co.uk/2013/06/diy-sugar-lip-scrub.html


Eikc.