Spending splurges III

After reading Emmerliejays post on her new Topshop ankle boots and spotting a few people in London, I have been toying friviously with the idea of purchasing a pair of ankle boots. I loved the edgy look they were giving peoples outfits, it instantly attracting my grungy side. The cheaper alternative Emmerliejay came up with (here) which really fitted the bill for my tight budget type of spending, so I decided to do a bit more research into my upcoming investment.

I decided to play around with some outfit ideas which you will find in my post here to really make sure this wasn't going to be another pair left in the back of the cupboard. I have only ever had one pair of boots I have loved. My military, or JLS boots (nickname created from many HILARIOUS unfashionably educated men, cough - bitter? no.) from River Island have literally seen better days after the fit felt like Cinderellas glittery slipper. The look was also perfect for rocking up some of my looks and of course they were ideal for saving my tiny toes from the winter cold. (However, it must me noted there was NO grip on the sole which didn't save my humiliation on a few slips and slides.)

But I took the plunge and went straight in and brought the Topshop alternatives Emmerliejay recommended. I really did love these and with a cheeky bit of student discount they really are a steal. I decided to keep in the bag for a few days however in case I found something else I liked after looking online. I cant really explain it more than a fashion sixth sense and it obviously meant something as I came across these and just fell in love. PERFECTION.

These are from Next at £65. They are a little more pricey but with my discount only came more expensive to the Topshop pair by £5. The heel is a little higher and combined with the cut around the ankle makes my legs look a lot slimmer, or so I feel. The studs and the silver plating on the ankle make them a bit more unique and as I always say....will  help 'rock up' my outfits a bit. I love them, litterally LOVE, I am so happy I waited out. They are actually pretty much identical to Emmerliejays Amelie Topshop boots apart from a slightly higher heel ( I think). I didn't really realise untill I wrote up this post so I hope she doesn't mind - I obviously just loved the ones she chose! A happy shopper indeed :)

K xx

Outfit post: Let the sun shine

It was sunny this morning when I got up so I thought I'd embrace the sunshine in attempt to keep it around. I am quite looking forward to winter to be honest after spotting all the new season stock in shops but today, I felt celebrating the last of the sunshine. Excuse the bathroom backdrop, this isn't my attempt at a location shoot I promise, my photographer just wasn't around today. It's pretty hard to do a full shot by yourself especially when I am without a tripod so I hope this still gives the idea. (Yes, you guessed it, my tripod is on my 'I need' list) These shorts are so comfy I love wearing them and I felt the longer sleeves on this top prevented me from the 'beach look' as well as keeping me a tad warmer. I matched it with my grey ballerina pumps but I think if the weather had been just a tad warmer I could have got away with my tan wedges or greek style sandals.  Has anyone else been in denial of the winter weather?

Katie xx

Top, Next. Necklace, Asos. Shorts Missselfridge.

Thank you gifts

Hello, sorry for the 10 day delay in posting. How are we all? I have recently been offered a new contract at work so I have been busy trying to balance this with CV writing and job applications. Anyone else still struggling with the career ladder? I'd love some reassurance during this time. My days seem to be full of writing CVs, thinking about CVs or writing a to do list of CV writing...oh and dreaming about CVs!! All with the over consumption of chocolate to comfort my unemployement fears. This irrational behaviour meant a break was definitely in order....back to blogging! :)

This post is one I meant to do a while ago after finishing my internship at B public relations. I've been doing some serious blog catching up so apologies for it not coming sooner.

I was extremely flattered to be given a bag of goodies when I left Boudoir (now B public relations) and was so excited to be able to experiment with a few brands I havn’t ever brought into.

Firstly these 5 pots of Ciate nail varnishes were a big love. I have seen the brand featured on quite a few blogs recently so have been interested in investing in some shades – I am so thankful I got them for free! A double bonus was when I spotted I had been given a croc embossed effect set in gold and purple. I have been wanting to try the crack effect out since last winter, I just had not got round to updating my nail varnish set. This look will be perfect for this Christmas and the party nights ahead. The purple is really wintery and warm with the gold adding a bit of glamour. This single pots are also ideal colours for me. The plain berry colour ‘guest list’ 042 is a mega heart as I adore deep palette paints to edge up an outfit. The grey ‘cream soda’ will be great in pushing me to experiment with my shades and the brighter ‘cabaret pink’ 046 adds a wicked paint to make the three a dynamic trio. I am not really a baby pink or pastel nail varnish girl, I like to keep my nails dark and grungy so these are PERFECT! 

Also included in my goodie bag were some Nourish products; a cleanser, toner and a face mousteriser. First of all I have to say, I have never used a cleanser or toner before in this sort of a trio. I normally either just moisturize, sometimes use a black head face scrub or a moisturizing make up remover for my daily beauty routine – well, when I can be bothered. Because of this I don't feel I can really review the Toner as I don't have much to compare it to and don't know anything about toners in general. To me they seem a bit of random product with not much purpose. I would love some advice and tips on this so I can really understand their purpose. 

The cleanser was a thin gel rather than the cream I expected ( I don't know why I expected this just assumptions!). I didn't need much to cover my face and to be honest, I used little due to being concious of the zingy scent. The orange and mandarin is really powerful in this product and having sensitive skin which has suffered from rashes with orange based products in the past, I am always weary. It really feels like you have squeezed oranges onto your face which is a bit odd. This will be either a love or hate for many. My favourite was the moisturizer. Having dry skin  I have a lot more experience in this area. Again the scent of this product is quiet strong but held more of a musky scent than the other two products. Not much is needed and it is a bit heavier with a creamy sort of base rather than some gel ones I have used. I felt a bit of tinglyness if I am honest, now that might be my paranoia but other than that my skin feels really soft and I would use it again. Has anyone else used any Nourish products? I am going to continue using this trio for a while to see if this improves my skin at all so if anything else changes, I will let you know.

I was then given a wonderful card full of messages from the girls. It was so lovely to read all the comments and to hear my time at the office was appreciated and worth while to them. I am going to miss the girls and can’t thank them enough for my lovely gifts!

Has anyone else been lucky enough to be given any goodies from any work placements? Work experience may be tiring when all you want to do is succeed but honestly, it is worth it. You just got to push through the storm to see the rainbow. :). Internships are becoming  my forte at the moment (another sleep, eat breath syndrome) so I would be really interested to hear on anyone elses experiences - leave me a comment and we can natter!

Katie xx