April Rate Or Hate

I'd just like to say a HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who wished me good luck for my art exam in my last post, you guys gave me confidence and helped me when I was incredibly nervous on Monday morning, so thanks again. Oh and in case you were wondering it went fine!

Even though I've got my drama exam tomorrow and I am becoming quite busy, I knew I had to make time to blog about my April rate and hates.

This months rate or hate -

V05 Mega Hold Gel Spray and Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer

Rate -

I bought the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer at the beginning of the month but I wish I'd bought it sooner as it is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! It doesn't cost a lot but doesn't feel like a cheap, rubbish product and it is good enough to be sold by high end brands such as Estee Lauder or Mac. 

This is a medium to high coverage concealer and unlike other concealers it isn't cakey but easily blended with a fluffy brush such as the Real Techniques Deluxe Crease Brush.

The only bad points are the packaging, as all the writing rubs off onto your hands which can be quite irritating, the shade range (it only comes in 4 shades) and also I wouldn't recommend this as an under eye concealer because it does crease but considering this concealer is only £4.19 you can't expect it be to a miracle worker!

Hate -  

The V05 mega hold gel spray is one of the most hideous products I have ever put on my head. I don't really know what I was expecting it to be like when I tried it so it somewhat surprised me - but not in a good way. I sprayed it on my hair and ran it through to the ends of my hair as instructed but when it dried on my hair it when hard and crunchy, which is not a good look.

To be fair it did smell really nice but I'm not going to spray a product on my hair if it doesn't hold my hair and makes it crunchy, but it smells nice.

I hope my hairdresser doesn't use any similar products to the V05 gel spray, as on Thursday I'm having a trial run for my Prom hair, I'm so excited! 

Eleanor xx

Sunday Nails - Already Dead

Please ignore the hideously chipped state of my nails, I've had this black nail varnish on for a couple of days now and my nails are looking a bit worse for wear. 

Since I took this photo this morning my nails have chipped even more, so I'll probably take this off later, which I don't mind as I've got my art exam tomorrow and acrylic paint doesn't come off if I get it on my nails.

I love it when nail art forms a picture across your nails. 

I hope you've all had a lovely weekend. Apart from being snowed under with art preparation and general revision I had a lovely day yesterday, shopping during the day (which included a delicious piece of gateau in Patisserie Valerie YUM!) and going to round to my friend's house in the evening for her birthday. 

We all had a girly catch up over pizza and the film John Tucker Must Die, it's old but still a great film and I'd recommend you watch it if your into films like 10 Things I Hate About You and Clueless. If you've got any good, classic film recommendations leave them down below as I have a feeling after this week I will defiantly be in the mood to watch some rom-coms with a big bowl of sweeties and popcorn! 

Eleanor xx

Outfit Post - The Secret Garden

I love black and white. It's simple, easy but also quite boring. So I've decided my new mission is to have a basic black and white wardrobe but also have items that can inject a bit of colour into my dark and dull wardrobe; enter my new patterned trousers. 

These are the babies that I bought from river Island while I was in Southampton, and they are gorgeous! They are simple tailored trousers but they are covered in this black and white paisley pattern that is entwined with leaves and ivy. As they are tailored it does make them quite smart but I think they could easily but toned day for a more day time look.

Jumper Topshop, Shirt Ben Sherman (Mother's), Trousers River Island

Necklace Topshop 

Boots Asos

Also I don't know whether you noticed but I've edited my photo's differently today. I can't decide if I like it and whether I'll edit my photo's like this in the future, so feel free to tell me what you think of the pictures or whether you'd be daring enough to wear the matching blazer River Island are also selling? I'm not so sure, but maybe if I was at FROWing at Fashion Week... a girl can dream...

Eleanor xx

Sunday Nails - Who gonna run this town tonight?

This week has been very strange for me, reminding me that you can't always predict the future and surprises will come from the most unlikely sources, hitting you when you least expected it. This can be good, bad or sometimes a bit of both as I found out yesterday while shopping in Bath. 

Me and my mother had just come out of Topshop, where I had just bought that B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L american football style t-shirt  which was featured in my last wishlist, when a man from the Bath Chronical approached me and asked if he could take a picture of what I was wearing, as part of Bath In Fashion. While initially being very shocked, I apprehensively agreed to have my photo taken, whether this is something I will come to regret, I do not know so I'll just have to wait till the paper comes out! 

Anyway onto the nails. I saw a very similar pattern to this on WAH Nails' Instagram and I loved it. It's like a harder version of paisley inspired by patterns you would typically see on a bandanna, and instantly reminded me of the video of Run This Town by Jay Z, Kanye West and Rihanna.

For the blue base colour I used Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine Nail Paint in Blue Plum 234, which looks a bit darker in reality than in the picture. I then used my beloved Models Own White Nail Art Pen which never fails me.

I'd also just like to warn you in advance of my exams as on the 29th and 30th of April I have my art exam which is two full days of art and then the next day I have my Drama Exam which is a performance. Then from the 13th of May right through to the 17th of June I have Exams, so posts will be sparse but at least once a week. But then after that I am off of school till September so I will have lots and lots of spare time to blog, chill and sunbathe...WOOP WOOP!

SO EXCITED...

Eleanor xx

Sunday Nails - Blue Spots and Polka Dots

Yet again another post where I am ashamed to admit to how many shades of one colour I possess, this time it is the colour blue. 

I love the colour blue. It is the name of Jay-Z and Beyonce's baby, the colour of Tiffany's, the colour of Cinderella's dress at the ball and as you can tell my favourite colour. That's why when I saw my friend do something similar on her nails earlier this week I knew I had to give it a go!

As you can see on my right hand I made a mistake, I was meant to do ombre with white spots on every other nail but accidentally did it on the thumb and my first finger, oops!

I think I might do a nail varnish collection type post at some point, I'm not quite sure how or when yet but I will do it somehow, that is if you want to see one? If not, what kind of posts would you like to see in the future? Let me know in the comments!

Eleanor xx

April Wishlist

Warning if you like do not like the monochrome trend and are very colorful, this may not be your favourite post as it is very black and white! 

I don't really know how this happened. I think it might be because I am trying to build a more versatile wardrobe, that I can create lots of outfits from and the easiest way for me to do that is to stick to the same range of colours: black and white. 

Ebay Round Retro Sunglasses - £3.99 (Including Postage)

These sunglasses have been featured on so many blogs and seen on lots celebrities, I just have to have them! I'm not sure who the original designer is but there are hundreds of sellers on ebay selling them. I love the curved arm as it makes them so elegant and different to any other over sized sunglasses I've seen. I doubt they'll suit me but they are perfect for those summer days when you are acting all lady-like sipping afternoon tea in the garden of a country house because that happens all the time...

Topshop Number 86 Tee - £20

Recently I've really been loving the sport luxe trend as it means that I can look casual and effortless while still being fashionable, and this american football t-shirt is the epitome of this spring/summer trend. Luckily Topshop have done this t-shirt in not only the normal range but also the tall and petite sections, so everyone can buy this beautiful t-shirt. Note - I have put the link for the petite t-shirt as there is a wider range of sizes and personally I wouldn't wear it as over sized as you could risk it looking like a weird dress!

River Island Cut Out Bikini Top and Bottoms - £25 (£10 and £15 Individually)

I actually tried this bikini on the other day when I was out shopping and didn't buy it as I wasn't sure but now I really wish I had bought it! I normally stick to cute floral swimwear but I love how classic this bikini is and the cutouts do not reveal to much unlike other bikinis and swimming costumes. £25 is a lot to spend on a bikini but I think that this one will last me because it is such a classic design, so next time I am out I will be buying this.

Urban Decay De-Slick Setting Spray - £19.50

SKINDINAVIA setting sprays are favourite's of makeup artists and beauty obsessives alike because of the amazing lasting power their sprays give your makeup. This is because of their patented technology that forms a lightweight breathable web on top of your makeup that slowly releases over 16 hours allowing your makeup and skin to retain moisture longer while drawing away heat from the skin preventing oiliness. The Urban Decay setting sprays are made by SKINDINAVIA so they also hold this amazing technology, and will hopefully control my oily skin as I hate wearing lots of powder. But I think I'll wait till Debenhams are doing 10% off beauty and fragrance.

Pandora Black Leather Bracelet - £40

I've never really wanted a Pandora bracelet before as I already have a simple charm bracelet but when my sister got the pink version of this bracelet for her birthday I fell in love. I love the leather as its not as fancy as the silver bracelets and can be stacked up with other bracelets, it's also black which will go with everything I own. I think they also look nice with or without charms which is a bonus, the only thing I can't decide on is whether to get the double wrap or the single wrap.

Should I pay £5 more to get the double wrap or stick with the single? Please help me decide!

Eleanor xx

Sunday Nails - New Galaxy

I've always loved galaxy nails. They are so simple yet have so many different dimensions. But today I wanted to do something a bit different using my new found love of sellotape and like Ben and Jerry I think that galaxy print and triangles go together like a match made in heaven.

On another note I went shopping in Southampton yesterday, the sun was shinning, I had a lovely day and bought a few things. I bought my prom shoes and some beautiful patterned trousers. 

The shoes aren't typically 'prom-ish' as they are black and from Zara but you'll have to wait till June to see what I will be wearing them with to my Prom. But the patterned trousers are from River Island and I'm sure you'll be seeing them in an outfit post very soon.

Just wondering and being a bit nosy but what did you wear to your prom (for a bit of inspiration)? But if you didn't have a prom I'd love to know what you think of my nails.

Eleanor xx

Outfit Post - Double Denim

You may or may not know but I love 90s fashion. Everyone in the 90s looked so cool whether it be Kate Moss and Johnny Depp's grungy glamour, preppy chic in the film Clueless or Will Smiths colour clashing tracksuits in The Fresh Prince of Bel Air; everyone in the 90s had their own style and rocked it.

I wish more people (including myself) would be adventurous with their clothes these days, instead of falling back into leggings, vans, a geek top and american apparel hoodie... okay, that was very stereotypical of me but a lot of people dress exactly the same and end up looking like clones.

So today I thought I'd be adventurous and try a bit of double denim, a trend has always scared me as it is so difficult to pull off. Hopefully I have done it justice but I'll let you be the judge of that. 

Jacket Topshop, Jeans Topshop and Shoes Converse

Top Topshop and Necklace H and M

Ring H and M, Watch Timex,  Bracelets Topshop

I hope you liked my outfit and my attempt to look normal in photos taken when it was very windy. Also prepare yourself as you will probably be seeing a lot more from this top and necklace in the future.

Also on another note, when I was in town the other day I popped into Republic to see if I could pick up some bargains as it is closing down.

Previously I have never liked Republic as I felt a lot of their clothes were copies of items that other high street shops were selling but they actually had some lovely things in there including some nice midi skirts I was tempted to pick up and amazing baseball/bomber jacket with leather sleeves. 

Sadly I didn't buy anything as they didn't have my size but lots of things were reduced by 20-50%, so if you need some new clothes I would suggest popping in there for a quick look around.

Eleanor xx

The Easiest Smokey Eye You Will Ever Do

I thought I'd do a quick makeup look today showing you my go to smokey eye. I don't wear eye shadow on a daily basis but when I do wear more makeup to go out, this is normally what I do as it is quick and simple but also looks nice.

This look can be toned down or you could build upon the look, it is incredibly versatile and can be adapted to suit anyone.

Sorry about my saggy eye lid aha!

I am not very neat when it comes to eye makeup, my lines never look sharp and I just end up making a mess. So a fail safe way to make your eye makeup look perfect is to use a trusty bit of sellotape. 

First cut a piece of sellotape and put it on the back of your hand then pull it off a couple of times. As if you put it straight under your and then tried to pull it off, it would really hurt and pull off half of your foundation or concealer. Then just line it up with your lower lash line.

Then get a black eyeliner, I like to use the MUA intense colour eyeliner as it is creamy and easy to blend, and run it along your lash line. It doesn't have to be neat as next you need to get a small blending brush and blend the eye liner. 

Then repeat this as many times as you like to achieve the desired smokiness and remove the sellotape. To finish off the look run a bit of black eye shadow under the eye joining it to the wing.

You can then apply more mascara or some false eye lashes and your ready to go out! I hope this post has been useful and how do you wear your makeup on a night out?

Remember to nominate me in the Company Blog Awards here and follow me via Bloglovin here.

Eleanor xx