New Look Haul // Summer 2015

Hello, hello! What with it being Summer and all, I needed a new pair of shorts, so off we trotted to New Look after being told theirs were lovely. And they were so lovely, I came away with two pairs... and a crop top... and a floppy hat... and some shoes! Oops!

Stripy Crop Top £7.99

I'm a stripy top hoarder and already own plenty of them,  but this one was so pretty, I couldn't help myself but to add it to the basket! Besides, there's no harm in owning too many stripy tops!

Floppy Hat £9.99

I love floppy hats, but had never owned one because I could never find one that was just the right "floppiness" for me.  That was till now of course; this one's just perfect! Also, I'm going on holiday soon and I'm sure it will do a grand job keeping the sun off my head!

Navy Canvas Slip-ons £7.99

We were passing through Shoe Heaven (as New Look have named their shoe section) and I spotted these gorgeous pumps! Mum said they'd be good around-the-campsite shoes, so they, too, came along to the till with us.

Ripped Denim Shorts £12.99

We went to New Look with the intention of buying new shorts and these were exactly what I'd had in mind. As soon as I saw them, I snapped up a pair and raced to the fitting rooms, giddy with excitement! They're were the perfect fit, so, as you can imagine, these were definitely coming home with me!

Ripped White Denim Shorts £15.99

These shorts are so festival chic and I love, love, love them; they look especially gorgeous paired with my new top!

I hope you enjoyed this post!

Lucy x

My Weekend in Paris

Hello everyone! Last weekend was spent in Paris with my family and I had a truly spectacular time! The purpose of the trip was to meet Dad at the finish line (he was riding the whole Tour de France route along with 30 others a week ahead of the professionals), but also to squeeze in a sneaky bit of exploring! Now, be warned this is is a pretty picture-heavy post! 

Mum and I traveled to Paris on the Eurostar and then took the Metro to our hotel. It was a smooth, stress-free journey, but when we arrived at the hotel, apparently we weren't booked in when in actual fact, we were. A few phone calls sorted that out though and soon we were free to relax and really enjoy the weekend.

Once we'd unpacked and settled, we met up with my grandparents and went exploring. Above is Palais Garnier, a famous opera house.

When I saw this in a patisserie shop window, I had to snap a quick pic because, seriously, how cool is an Eiffel Tower made of macaroons!

For dinner, we met up with my uncles and went to a place called the Bouillon Chartier. The atmosphere there was amazing, the food was wonderful and I loved they way everything was vintage (the tables, the chairs, the chandeliers etc.)!

On Sunday, we met with the rest of the family and hung about the Eiffel Tower, where Dad and the other cyclists were to come and get some photos taken. They were running a bit late, so we decided to go go-carting and, as you can tell by my face, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

At 7.45 PM, a bus picked us all up (the cyclists and their families) from the hotel and took us to River Siene, where we boarded our dinner cruise. The food was lovely, as was the experience! 

I hope you've enjoyed this very different kind of post! It's been good fun sharing what I've been up to!

Lucy x

Book Review: Life with a Sprinkle of Glitter

Louise's new book, Life with a Sprinkle of Glitter, sounded right up my alley, so when I discovered it had been reduced from £12.99 to £4.99 (BOOM!) on Amazon, I knew at once I had to have it.

When it arrived, I was beside myself with excitement and couldn't wait to get reading.  The front cover is beyond gorgeous and so are the illustrations inside. Each spread is different and I love turning the page to see what the next one's like.

The book's written beautifully; it's full of wit and charm. Also, you quickly begin to feel as if you've known Louise your entire life, which can only mean she's a fantastic writer.

There are four chapters: Glitz, Create, Need to Knows and All About Love. In these, Louise shares her experiences across many topics (boys, education, etc.), as well as giving tips and advice on how to travel in style, be a savvy shopper and much, much more.

I particularly liked the section on kindness. Oh, and the one on confidence. In fact, I liked it all!

It's the sort of book I'll treasure forever and read whenever I need a pick-me-up! Thanks Louise for creating such a gem!

Lucy x

Beauty Haul: The Body Shop, Cath Kidston & Rimmel

Hello, hello! I know I did a haul just last month but I got great feedback on it, so thought I'd do another! Here's what I bought in Oxford...

Rimmel Lasting Finish High Coverage Concealer £5.49

Superdrug were doing a buy-one-get-one-free deal on all Rimmel products, so I picked up this concealer as I didn't own one that provided full coverage.  I've used it three times now and it's perfect for spots and blemishes. However,  I wouldn't say it's best for the under eye area though as it's quite thick and pasty.

Rimmel Lasting Finish Kate Lipstick 43 Nude Collection £5.49

I also picked this lipstick up, which is a part of Rimmel's new Nude Collection. It's the loveliest shade and I adore the packaging!

The Body Shop Honey Bronzing Powder £13.00

This had been on my wishlist for a very long time and, although, previously, it's hefty price tag had always scared me away, I could no longer resist and just splurged! The shade I went for was 03 and to be doubly sure I'd chosen well, the lady applied it for me in the shop. I love the honeycomb pattern and the sturdy packaging, but won't go into any further detail as I shall be doing an in-depth review of it soon!

Cath Kidston Classic Make-Up Bag £10.00

Originally, I'd planned to get Zoella's new cosmetics purse, but, although it was nice, it was a lot smaller than I'd imagined, so I got this one instead and I love it. The design's beautiful, it's incredibly spacious inside and, fingers crossed, it should last me years because it's made of oilcloth.

I hope you've enjoyed this haul post as much as I've enjoyed writing it! 

Lucy x

*Thanks Gran for both the concealer and lipstick! You're amazing!*

Superdrug's Vitamin E Skincare Range

Until lately, I'd never really paid much attention to Superdrug's Vitamin E range, but, last month, when my skin was going through a not-so-great patch, I decided that new skincare products were absolutely necessary (well... perhaps not absolutely necessary, but you know what I mean!).  So, off I trotted to Town, hoping to pick up a few new bits and bobs and that's when I discovered the range.

I'm a sucker for anything containing vitamin E, so as soon as I'd spotted these products, I was over like a shot. The two I ended up purchasing were the SPF15 Moisturising Day Cream and the Nourishing Night Cream, both of which I'm now in love with.

Both creams come in 75ml pots with screw-top lids and a simple design. Packaging-wise, it is extremely similar to The Body Shop's skincare products.

The day cream is lightweight yet hydrating and on application, makes me skin unbelievably soft. Although it contains an SPF, it truly doesn't make my face at all shiny.

The night cream is, as you'd expect, thicker than the day cream, but sinks in tremendously fast.

Another perk to this range is that all the products (or at least the creams) smell deliciously coconutty!

I'm massively impressed by Superdrug's Vitamin E range and cannot wait to try more from it (the Leave On Moisture Mask looks good!). For only £2.99 each, I seriously recommend the day and the night cream; their the best I've tried and I'd willingly pay much more for them!

Have you tried anything from Superdrug's Vitamin E range? If so, did you like it?

Lucy x

Barry M Chisel Cheeks Contour Kit

Hello everyone! Last weekend in London, I was after a contour kit, so decided to purchase Barry M's. As soon as I was home, I put it to the test and to be honest, I was hugely disappointed; the highlight/brightening powder did nothing whatsoever, the bronzer was made my face look muddy and the contour powder was too harsh for my light olive skin tone.

Available in Boots & Superdrug

On a more positive note, the packaging's lovely! And, thankfully, I do not feel as if I've wasted £6.49 because all three powders make the most wonderful matte eye shadows! Also, because I'd spent over £6, I was gifted a free Jelly Shine Nail Polish, so, really, the situation could have been worse!

Although I'm not a huge fan of this product as a contour kit, that doesn't mean you won't like it, so, if you were intending to buy it, do not let my personal opinion sway you.

If you own this product too, I'd love to hear what you think of it!

Until next time,

Lucy x