MIXING THE METALS

Ask me a few years ago, and I would have claimed rose gold to be my favourite type of jewellery. I then moved onto gold, then more recently silver, then onto both gold and silver. What? Mixing metals has been a new thing for me and I actually have been enjoying it. I know a lot of people hate the clash between gold and silver but I really like the contrast. 

What got me into this is the larger necklace from Primark. It cost a mere £1.50, so isn't the best quality but the concept is what I love. The gold 'v' is about as statement as you will see from me when it comes to jewellery, but it's pretty thin and dainty, and what I personally like is the thin contrasting silver chain. In terms of necklaces I also have some more subtle options, and I have a selection of gold ones from Forever 21 that I sometimes wear at once, or wear one with this silver knot necklace from H&M. 

In terms of rings, I have quite the collection, as I tend to go a little bit mad in the sale section of H&M, and pick up a good four packs at a time - especially when my older ones are looking a little worse for wear (I don't have the money to invest in pricey rings). I like either really thick, bold rings or very thin dainty ones, and at the moment I have a good mix of the two, in gold and silver, both midi and regular in size. I love wearing rings, because I have quite short stubby fingers almost and I really dislike my bare hands, however when I wear lots of rings they look far more elegant. 

Do you love or hate the mixed metal look?

SUNGLASSES SEASON

Perhaps a little typically British of me, but as soon as a hint of sun shows I go mad for sunglasses, rooting through my old collection as well as picking up some new ones. I am the type of person that leaves them lying around in the car or in the bottom of my bag and they end up looking tatty, so cheap and cheerful options are always what I go for, and I hit the jackpot with these £1.50 pair from Primark. They're oversized, but for once I don't look like some sort of bug.

What I like about these is the balance between them being square and slightly cat eyed at the edges, as they don't look too heavy and harsh on my face that is rather small. Sunglasses are one of the things I find hard to suit me, they are either too big, too small, too square or too round, and it is rare I find a good pair for me, especially in Primark where some of them look too plastic and cheap.

These also have a thick, shiny rim around them which I quite like, and I'm surprised at how fashionable these sunglasses actually look, and the seem sort of Céline to me, of course not quite matching the style, price and brand, but it must just be the classic style to them that does it for me. I'm hoping the sun sticks around, because I'm itching to wear these more.

WORKOUT GEAR ON A BUDGET

I've always wanted to be a regular work out do-er, but have never had the gear, the effort nor time and to be honest I deemed it as expensive and thought I needed branded clothing and a gym membership. A while back I started doing cardio videos in my living room from Youtube and got into it, but I only vest tops and leggings which served me well but wasn't quite cutting it. I searched around and ended up getting the bulk of my equipment at a really good price.

The Workout Mat you see behind is from Primark, and usually these cost £5 but mine was reduced to a mere £2, so a total bargain. If you can't get a Primark mat, I suggest looking in TkMaxx as I know mine has a lot of fitness wear as well as equipment. I also got a sports bra/top from Asda actually, and this cost me £6 and is a standard grey stretch material that is absorbent as well as giving plenty of support.

The rather exciting trousers/leggings are from Primark too, and these were £7. They were the nicest pair they had in my store, as I didn't want just black and they fit really nicely when I tried them on. They are hard to describe, but they sort of have a monochrome pattern which almost looks like a water marble nail design. These are cropped and sit around my mid shin, although I am 5'4" with short legs so bear that in mind.

I have been really enjoying working out at home with this gear, and I feel much more comfortable doing so too. This lot cost me £15, so is definitely worth it (although I have ordered some Nike Free Runs which could arrive any day now and if I like them/keep them I will certainly to a post on them). Right now I do a mix of dance cardio workouts and a Candice Swanepoel toning workout which really feels effective - you can certainly feel the burn.

DIY RIPPED KNEES #2

Ripped jeans has been a trend a lot of fashion bloggers have enjoyed throughout last year and going into this year. Personally, I don't have the money to fork out for a pair of pre-ripped jeans as they seem to be more expensive than regular jeans, and having short legs the slits never quite match my knees anyway, so I do it the budget way and DIY it.

The jeans I used were from Primark, their Ultra Soft Super Skinny £11 ones, in the Petite leg. I'm rather short and it's such a struggle to find jeans that I don't have to turn up due to extra length, but these are the perfect fit, and aren't baggy on me at all either. Because they have a slight stretch to them, it made the ripping much more simple, compared to last time where I used a pair with more of a stiff denim.

All I did was mark out where my knees are with tailors chalk I had lying around, and then took the jeans off to make it safer and easier. I cut two small holes and then used my inner strength (I joke) to rip that hole the entire width I had marked. This caused fraying and that distressed look I was going for so I didn't have to go mad with the cheese grater nor tweezers like last time.

After months of searching, it seems I've found the perfect fit of ripped knee jeans in the comfort of my own home.

SHOE COLLECTION 2014 - THE BASICS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cfO-Ej9zCk (video widget wasn't working, sorry!)

Everyone loves shoes, so I thought 'why not put them on a strut around in front of a camera in my front garden and make a video?'. I was stumped for posts so I thought rather than forcing something out I'd give you all the chance to check out my new Youtube channel and hopefully gain a few subscribers from it.

By shoe collection is pretty condensed and small with just the staples and basics in there, so the video isn't all that interesting, but in the future I can see multiple minutes being added to the video as time goes on.

SIMPLE BASICS, STATEMENT SHIRT

 OVERSIZED SHIRT: PRIMARK £12

SHORTS: H&M £5 (SALE)

VEST TOP: PRIMARK £2

SHOES: NEW LOOK £19.99

WATCH: JULES AND JAMES

SUNGLASSES: PRIMARK £1

I have wanted a kimono for a long time now but since I have been seeing a lot of people wearing them around now I thought I would leave it for a while until I saw a really high fashion looking one. That was until I spotted this oversized shirt in Primark that I thought paired with jeans and a black crop top or as pictured above. I rolled the sleeves up to make it look less like a shirt and more like a layering item.

I genuinely love this shirt and looks like it is worth so much more than I payed and I think styled right you would never guess that it was a Primark purchase. This could be love... and a new wardrobe essential.

PRE HOLIDAY HAULING

My trip to Madrid is getting crazy close, and Megan and I are beginning to get into the holiday spirit, and to do so I have been doing a spot of hauling, and of course a stop at the minis section...

Being in land, the temperatures are going to be pretty hot *touch wood* and my skin needs some serious protection. I ordered the La Roche Posay Anthelios XL Ultra Light SPF50+ from Feel Unique and I gave it a trail run the other weekend, and I really like it so far. It's light, almost like moisturiser texture and isn't greasy on the skin at all. My only complaint is the small bottle, as this normally costs £16 for 50ml, but I got it for £11 on offer.

I also got some scrunchies from Primark for £1.50 in a pack of a plain pink and a floral. I thought these would spice up a simple wavy ponytail in summer. I also found the NSpa Jasmine and White Must Body Fragrance in ASDA and although it smells good, I often think its a touch too musky for the summer so perhaps I need something a little more fruity for my getaway.

As for minis, there was some kind of 3 for £4 offer I believe, so of course I had to get a Batiste Tropical Dry Shampoo as when the heat gets to my hair, it's going to get greasy. I also got the Aussie Miracle Moist Shampoo and Conditioner and these smell pretty good too. Last but not least, is the Original Source Lemon Shower Gel, as if I need waking up in the mornings this'll be sure to do so with the szesty scent.

What have you been hauling for summer?

A £3.50 MANICURE

I'm not a regular false nail wearer, but after seeing a few people wearing the Primark P.S Love 'Fashion Nails' I thought I would give them a go. I am very anti-glue so instead of putting myself through that, I picked up some of the Elegant Touch Super Adhesive Tabs, and I am so impressed and I think this may be my favourite ever false nails mani.

The first huge plus is that the whole lot cost me £3.49, with the tabs being £2.49 and a pound was spent on the nails. I went for these tribal/Aztec print ones as I thought they were a design I would stggle doing on my natural nails rather than a block colour which I could recreate easily.

As for lasting power, the tabs are incredible. I got two wears out of the pack, and on my most recent wear, I applied them on a Wednesday night and I peeled them off on Sunday (which was quite hard to do), and I am certain that they would last another day or two, I just wanted a change.

Although you have to do the whole peel off, stick on nail, peel layer off, stick on false nail, press on process, it really is worth it as I am so impressed by the finish and how they looked on the nails (I did cut them down a bit because I had exams etc. and I didn't want to be restricted from doing everything haha), and is so much more affordable than Impress nails that don't last anywhere near as long on me as these.

Will you be trying this manicure combo?

DRESSING UP THE MOM SHORTS

MOM SHORTS: NEW LOOK

BELT: PRIMARK

LEATHER JACKET: SELECT

JUMPER T-SHIRT: H&M 

SHOES: NEW LOOK 

NECKLACE: FOREVER 21

SUNGLASSES: FOREVER 21

In the same way as my best friend Megan, I think after adding a pair of 'Mom' shorts to my wardrobe (at a pretty good price of £19.99), I will be doing a few of my weekend outfit posts dedicated to them, from dressy, to casual, to summer day wear (and if any other suggestions, leave them below). 

I think the leather jacket, shoes and sunglasses really finish off the look, adding the monochome touches I have in every outfit I sport. Even though the sunglasses are very oversized they were such a bargain and I am determined to make them work. 

DIY RIPPED KNEES

The ripped-knee jeans trend has been something I have wanted to jump into myself for a while now and as they have been hitting the shelves more these past months I have been even more intrigued, but being on a saving spending ban there was no way I could buy  myself a pair. After Megan sent me an iMessage of her DIY ripped knees I headed to Google and gave them a go myself to revamp some old Primark skinnies.

The process was simple, I popped the jeans on, and drew with a pencil where I wanted the slits to be, took them off and cut two simple lines through the fabric. The next steps can be a bit difficult but I put a small cardboard box (Lush Fun Set to be specific) in the legs to get some support and it seemed to make life a lot easier.
 Using a cheese grater (weird huh) and rubbing it across the cut edges made them fray and get some texture in there to make them look more ripped seems to work a treat, and then I took some old tweezers and grabbed some of the edges and pulled tightly to get some loose strings going on which made them look much more distressed.

I honestly love the outcome of these jeans and I am tempted to try it on some other pairs as this is a something that I feel is very flattering on me and many others...

ALL MONOCHROME EVERYTHING

PLAID SHIRT: NEXT £16 (SALE)

FELINE MEOW TEE: EBAY £7.99 

DISCO PANTS: PRIMARK £16

CHUNKY SANDALS: NEW LOOK £24.99 
CHAIN NECKLACE: OLD

PHOTOS: THE BEAUTY PIER

Today marks the day in which I will be putting up an outfit post and what should be an ongoing theme most weekends if you enjoy this one (let me know in the comments).
I am a lover of monochrome and so putting this outfit together was no chore, and I feel like the Next Plain/Flannel shirt really made the outfit come together - so a thanks to Megan for letting me borrow hers, I am not on the hunt for one of my own.

The chunky sandals with the turned up disco pants seem to add a bit more 'glam' if you will to the casual upper half of the outfit, and I honestly think the balance is just right with this outfit.

Do let me know if you enjoyed this post, I plan for them to be quite concise when I put them up, as a nice end to the week of posts here on the blog.