What I Got For My Birthday

I have to admit that right now I'm feeling quite guilty for not posting yesterday, I'm sorry I was busy so please don't shoot me. I'd wanted to post a bit more this week as I have a lot of content planned in my head but life just got in the way and I've still got things to do before I start Sixth Form next week *hysterically sobs at the thought of going to back to school*. But I've got a lot of things to be grateful for and one of them is how spoilt I've been by my friends and family for my birthday so I thought I'd share with you what I got. One thing I'd just like to add is that this post is going to be filled with lots of pictures and not a lot of writing, I hope you don't mind!

Disclaimer - I am extremely grateful for everything I received for my birthday and in no way am I 'showing off' (who would even do that?). I personally enjoy reading these posts so I thought you might be too and some people mentioned on my last post that they'd like to see what I got (minus some chocolates,vouchers and money) so here it is!   

The first thing I got was this beautiful candle and photo frame from one of my best friends Harriet. This candle is actually one of best things I have ever smelt in my entire life, I'm not a candle connoisseur but as you can probably guess it smells like apple and elderflowers and will probably rival my Yankee Candle in Fluffy Towels for the prime position of my favourite candle. The picture in the photo frame is of both of us on our last day of school and I think she might have said that it is from Urban Outfitters.

My friends Lizzie and Megan bought me these beautiful pair of sterling silver butterfly earrings and some truffles yummy (the truffles that is not the earrings)!

One of my oldest friends Beth bought me these cute little friendship bracelets from Accessorize and a couple of yummy chocolate bits including a personalized happy birthday chocolate slab from Thorntons which is always a good present for chocoholics like myself!  

This next present is from my friend Abi who lived in California for a long time before she moved back to the UK a couple of years ago so of course she had to get me something american in the form of a Victoria's Secret spray, which may I add smells A-MAZING, and this really pretty mug with flowers on (all of my hot drinks will definitely be tastier in this mug)! 

My friend Maddie, who like myself is also obsessed with beauty and painting my nails, got me a few nail varnishes and a Maybelline Baby Lips. Now Maddie did an amazing job here because she managed not only to get me a Baby Lips in a colour I don't have but also 3 nail varnishes that I have nothing similar to in my collection, which is pretty difficult considering I have over 80 nail varnishes, I take my imaginary hat off to you Maddie!

This butterfly is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen! It's made out of glass and I'm going to hang it in my room by the window so that all of the light shines through it and it's from my friends Marianne.

There's a bit of a story behind this teacup but basically when I'm older I don't want matchy matchy mugs like normal people I want teacups. Every teacup will be different and have it's own story so one of my oldest and bestest friends Helena got me this beautiful china blue tea cup and it is just perfect.

This present from my best friends Hannah and Louise was such a suprise as they'd hidden them in a pot of pic and mix so I'd unwrapped this pic and mix and Louise was like "look inside" so I opened it and all I could see was sweets but then I dug down further and saw some Mac goodies and I literally screamed with excitement! I've never owned a Mac nail varnish or pressed pigment but I don't know why I've never bought these because they are the most beautiful colours I've ever seen! The nail lacquer is in the colour Girl Trouble and the pressed pigment is in the colour Light Touch.

Me and my sister like to spend a lot of money on each other at Christmas and birthdays and this year she has really treated me so much, I couldn't believe that she'd got me a Pandora bracelet and a Mac lipstick, they were both things that I've wanted for so long! The Mac lipstick is in Vegas Volt a beautiful pink/coral/orange in an amplified finish.

For my birthday my parents are getting me some new wardrobes for my room from Ikea and a new phone because my contract is running out in September so I wasn't expecting anything from them at all but they bought me a charm for my new bracelet and the book Revenge Wears Prada the sequel to Devil Wears Prada. Devil Wears Prada is one of my favourite films ever but surprisingly I have never read the book so I have bought the first book and I am going to read that and then the newest book.

Thank you everyone so much who wished me happy birthday, I had a lovely day shopping in Cardiff with my family getting a few new clothes for Sixth Form that will be in haul sometime next week I promise...

Eleanor xx

Sunday Nails - Happy Birthday

It's my birthday on Tuesday and I think it's fair to say that I am a bit excited, okay that's a bit of an understatement...I'M SO EXCITED I CAN BARELY BREATH! Yes on the 27th I'll finally be turning 16. One of the worst things about having a late birthday is that everyone else in my year can apply for jobs and some will be able to start learning to drive next month, and it will never change; when they're out drinking and partying in clubs at 18 I'll still be too young. But then again you can look at it from the brighter side, when they're all crying about turning 50 I'll still be in my 40's, oh yeah!

You may be wondering how I am going to celebrate my birthday and the answer is the same way I always celebrate momentous occasions: by painting my nails. But apart from painting my nails I am going to celebrate by going to Cardiff shopping on my birthday as I've already had a 'party' with my friends last Friday. We went for a lovely picnic in the park and even though it did start to spit with rain at one point the rain held off and it was a great afternoon.

I'd love to know how you've been spending your week, maybe celebrating GCSE results perhaps? (I know I was!) Also do you want to see a 'What I Got For My Birthday' style post? I love reading them but I just wanted to know if anyone else does!

Eleanor xx

Back To School - Stationary Haul

With lots of people already going back to school I thought it was about time I started my back to school series. In this series of posts I'm planning on doing this stationary haul, a fashion and beauty haul, what's in my school bag and then I'll finish with a week in school outfits, hopefully it'll be interesting to you whether you're going back to school or not! Onto the haul! 

Isn't stationary beautiful? Stationary really feeds my need to be organised and neat, it's also bright, colourful and pretty but if stationary ain't your thang I'd probably exit this post right now because I will probably say the word stationary over 50 times and I'll be getting overexcited about coloured pens and hole punches.

But even though stationary is very pretty it can actually be very expensive and however much I'd like to spend £10 on a pad of paper from Paperchase because it has a pretty pattern on the front I can't afford that so I've just bought all of my things from Tesco and Asda who both have large back to school ranges for very low prices, plus I still think I managed to get some cute girly things to satisfy my needs!

First thing I got were these folders or ring binders (whatever you like to call them!) I got 4 large ones (one for each subject) and one small folder. I'm planning on taking the small one to sixth form everyday and putting all my notes in it and then at the end of the week I'll transfer each subjects notes into the larger folders, because there is no way I could bring all four big folders in my bag everyday, they would be way to heavy and big!

I got all five from Tesco sadly they didn't have many nice patterns so I ended up with two plain coloured folders and three patterned ones, I think they ranged from around £1 - £4 or £5 the Zebra print one being the most expensive.

I then got some plastic wallets, dividers, a 360 page refill pad, reinforcement hole thingys, sticky notes, rubbers (or erasers if your american), a stapler, a hole punch, highlighters, maths set, tipp-ex, fineliners, rainbow pens, black pens and pencils and they were all under a fiver each. The only thing I couldn't get was a pencil case but that was just because I was too picky and couldn't find one I liked and anything else I didn't get like a scientific calculator I didn't get because I already have it.

Sorry I couldn't be more precise about prices but I've lost the receipt *slaps herself on the wrist*, but it was all reasonably priced and quite cheap because there were lots of offers on. So how are you getting ready to go back to school/college/uni/work?

Eleanor xx

Sunday Nail - Tartan Disasters

Who knew tartan would be so difficult? Seriously this took me hours and it ended looking a mess anyway but it just goes to show that my nail art isn't always as perfect as it seems. Nail art takes a lot of practice and even when you think you're getting somewhere, not everything looks as great as you imagined it. 

Occasionally my nail art is such a fail that I don't even show you it, I panic like it's the end of the world then quickly do a different design (so that no-one will ever know about my disaster) then post that. But maybe I should admit my failures and show some of my 'dodgy' nail art? 

Hopefully when I get my GCSE results on Thursday I won't find that this nail art isn't the only thing I've failed at! Good luck to anyone else getting results on Thursday and I hope all of you who got your A/AS Level results got what you wanted, if not it's not the end of the world now is it?

Eleanor xx

Primark A/W Collection - My Favourites

Occasionally I like to go onto the Primark website and look at the 'Products' section. In this section they often have pictures of their new season collection giving me an idea of what they are stocking in stores, as even though they are starting to sell their clothes through Asos it is only a small selection, so apart from this the only way I have of knowing what is in stores is by watching Primark hauls on YouTube.

The truth is that I was pleasantly shocked and impressed by this year's autumn/winter collection as the clothes look not only on trend but my style as I love wearing neutral colours but experimenting with different textures and patterns. That is why I have decided to share with you my favourite outfits from the collection!

Images Sourced from http://www.primark.co.uk/products/womenswear/products/

Image 1 - Coat £32, jumper £10, trousers £12 

Image 2 - Coat £28, shirt £12, trousers £12, bag £10, trainers £12

Images Sourced from http://www.primark.co.uk/products/womenswear/products/

Image 3 - Dress £13, boots £20, tights £3.50

Image 4 - Coat £35, skirt £10, top £10, shoes £14, tights £3.50, necklace £8

Images Sourced from http://www.primark.co.uk/products/womenswear/products/

Image 5 - Skirt £10, top £6, sweatshirt £8, boots £15, bag £8, tights £3.50

Image 6 - Jumper £14, skirt £14, shoes £16

One last thing I did notice about this collection was that prices are definitely higher than the usual low prices I'm used to paying in primark but I think that the pieces in the collection are nicer than in the past and if they were being sold in Topshop we'd be questioning why they were not double the price, I just hope that they are good quality and I'm not disappointed when I go to buy them in store!

If you want to see more pictures of the collection there are hundreds on Look Magazines' website here.

This post is a little different to my normal posts so if you liked it tell me and I might consider doing more of these in the future! Also I'd just like to add that this is not a sponsored post I just thought it would be nice to share my thoughts on the collection!

Also I'd just like to mention that I've just noticed that I've reached over 700 followers on Bloglovin and GFC combined so I just wanted to say thank you so much as it really means the world to me and I promise I'm not just saying that! 

Eleanor xx 

Sunday Nails - Unicorns I Love Them

As you may have noticed I've redesigned my blog (again), it's still not perfect but it's closer to how I want it. When I was redesigning it I made my own blog button, now that I have a blog button I'd love to do a button swap so if you are interested please let me know in the comments or email me or tweet me! Anyway onto my nails...

I love unicorns, I mean seriously who doesn't? They're so fluffy and cute and sparkly and magical and everything the five year old girl inside me dreams about. This love for unicorns was recently reignited when I bought myself a unicorn onesie from primark (it sounds amazing I know). I've never been one for a onesie and didn't really get on the onesie band wagon but when I saw the unicorn onesie I knew we were meant to be. 

So in tribute to my new best friend (soz Harriet) I have painted a unicorn on my nails. Okay the unicorns a bit dodgy but you can still tell what it is, so it is a success in my book!

The sparkly top coat I used is L.A Colors Sassy Sparkle, it was £1 and is one of my favourite topcoats because it not looks amazing over any colour but catches the remaining light in the evening making your nails look like a mermaid's tail. 

Please tell me I'm not the only one obsessed with unicorns?

Eleanor xx

My Birthday Wishlist

Ah August, my favourite month of the year as it is not only famous for it's British beautiful summer weather but my birthday! But even though it's my birthday in 20 days and this post is titled 'My Birthday Wishlist' this post is basically the same as my other monthly wishlists (I am not asking people to buy me these things, they are just things that I am planning to buy myself) but if anyone did fancy buying me these of course I wouldn't refuse that would be rude...

SUPRA Womens Skytop Trainers £54.99
The sad but true fact is, I have no shoes. Okay that was a lie but I only have a couple of pairs which is definitely not enough (a girl can never have too many pairs of shoes) so to solve this problem I've been looking for a nice pair of black high top trainers. I had considered getting a pair of Nike Blazers but I can only find them in a suede finish, which knowing me I will wreck, but I have finally decided on these little beauties and what's even better is that they are on sale on Footasylum for £54.99 instead of £74.99.

Models Own Nail Art Pen Box Set £20
I don't think I really need to explain this one as you all know about my obsession with nail art. I already own 2 Models Own nail art pens in black and white but I want to venture out and get some new colours as I always end up using a tooth pick for colourful designs because I simply do not own enough colours. By buying the box set you save £10 as individually each nail art pen is £6 making this a great deal.

The WAH Nails Book of Downtown Girls £11.99
I bought the first WAH Nails Book as a present for one of my friend's birthday but before wrapping it up I did have a cheeky flick through (I had to make sure it was good okay?) and truth be told I nearly keep it for myself! The second book by WAH nails' founder Sharmadean Reid not only includes tutorials on WAH's famous nail designs but beauty and hair tips from industry professionals and advice on starting your own blog! The book is to be published on the first of September, a couple of days after my birthday, belated birthday gift anyone?

Cream Topshop Cami £18
How many cami tops do you have then Ellie? Ummm maybe 4 or 5 but one more can't hurt can it? Look it's cream, soft, has a lovely neck line and it's from Topshop, I am destined to own this beauty. Plus it's really floaty so I can swish around in it to my hearts content, oh alright I do love swishing!

Jay Z Magna Carta Holy Grail £8.99
When someone looks at me they probably don't expect me to be a Jay Z fan. I don't often swear and I'm not very gangster but Jay Z is one of the smartest musicians around. There is something about his music that just works, I can't explain it but whatever it is he's got it! I've left the link to ITunes as even though I prefer CD's to downloads I doubt it's the kind of music you'd listen to in the car with your mother if you get what I mean!

Real Techniques Blush Brush £9.99
Real Techniques is by far my favourite brush brand as all of their brushes are extremely soft, synthetic and reasonably priced. I've put that I want the blush brush but the truth is I want all of their brushes! The one's I want the most are the blush brush, powder brush and expert face brush so I'll probably pick them up next time boots are doing 3 for 2.

I hope you liked my wishlist and that you all had a lovely week while I was away, it was a lovely suprise when I got home to read all of your comments on my posts! Anyway I'm now going to go get in my unicorn onesie and watch a film...

Eleanor xx

Sunday Nails - Summer Blossom

*Note - This is an automated post as I am on holiday (WHOOP!) but don't worry I'll be back on Monday 5th August to answer all of your questions and comments.

A lot of the nail art I have been doing recently has been very detailed and complex so I thought it would be a nice change to show you some simple and pretty summer nail art. 

The base colour that I used was a Barry M Gelly Hi Shine Nail Paint in 324 Grapefruit, it is a beautiful bright pink that, as the name suggests, resembles the inside of a pink grapefruit. I bought it recently when Superdrug were doing a 3 for 2 and I also bought 2 other Gelly Nail Paints as I love the formula of them.

To create the flower on my ring finger I just used the smallest amount of white acrylic paint and layered it to create a more feathered petals, I then did the same with some yellow paint to create the middle and then added a bit more detail with orange paint before finishing it off with a glossy top coat.

This nail art is really quick as the paint dries quickly and you only have to do one finger on each hand so don't worry if you find nail art a tricky at times. I hope you are all having a lovely summer right now I'm probably chilling by the pool in Portugal but I'm coming home tomorrow so if you have any suggestions for next weekends Sunday Nails it'd be lovely to read them all down below when I'm back tomorrow.

Eleanor xx