My Week in Pictures

This week was my last week at my current job in affiliate marketing. It's been an interesting (and frustrating) six months and I'm relieved to have finished but I've met some great friends and discovered the world of blogging. I've also learnt that I really enjoy training and "managing" people so I may have even discovered a few things about myself.

We spent the day Saturday buying a Christmas tree and brand new decorations as our other one is currently residing in storage. We then went to Bath Christmas Market today with my parents, and were planning on putting up the tree when we got back but I've been feeling a bit nauseous today so didn't get round to it. I've got the day off tomorrow so I'm going to put it up tomorrow and Jack's going to help me decorate it when he gets back from work. That combined with a getting my hair done and lunch with the girls makes for a pretty sweet first day as a lady of leisure!

Bye E-tail

Bath Christmas Market

 

 

Bye Bye Movember

Christmas Decorations

Models Own Nude Polish Swatches

I've been meaning to do swatches of my Models Own polishes for a while so here is the first of a few posts. I actually have a bit of an addiction as I just can't stop buying nail varnish! I even switched on QVC at the weekend when they were doing an O.P.I special!

So, I thought I'd start with the Nudes. I bought the Snow White during the 50% off sale. They'd actually sent me Moody Grey by mistake instead of the Snow White, but they were very lovely and let me keep it and sent along the correct polish - wasn't that nice!?

I find that with the lighter shades from Models Own they can be a bit watery so require a few coats. I don't recommend them for toe nail use. My experience has found that they just look awful no matter how many coats you apply. I must say I'm not really sure why I purchased the Snow White as I can't really see myself using it. I came across some gorgeous nail art that I wanted to try out, but previous attempts have been a bit of a disaster! 

Utopia is, again, very watery and looks a lot nicer in the bottle than on my nails. I haven't worn it for more than 5 minutes before I take it off again and apply a different colour. As you can see in the picture, it looks a bit of a mess, and thats after multiple reapplications and going round the edges with a cotton bud. 

Nude Beige, however, is a different story. This is by far one of my favourite nail polishes ever! It applies so easily and only needs one coat and I love the colour. It's really understated and sophisticated. I will definitely reinvest when it runs out.

 

 

                             Models Own Snow White                                                           Models Own Utopia

Models Own Nude Beige *Favourite*

All I want for Christmas is a Miu Miu Handbag

Bag envy! Is there anything more depressing (in a very shallow way of course)!?

My colleague Sheila came into work today with THE most beautiful bag I have ever laid my eyes on. In that moment  I thought I'd finally found the bag of my dreams! However, that moment instantly evaporated with the realisation it was a Miu Miu bag and I knew it would never be mine.

Now, I could be incredibly irresponsible and spend all of my savings on one of these beauties, but unfortunatley I'm too responsible (and boring!) So now I'm going to spend the rest of the week lusting after the bag that will never be mine and thinking of ways I could potentially steal it without Sheila suspecting it was me!

Miu Miu Top Handle Bag in Cameo - £950

Miu Miu Top Handle Bag in Cinnamon - £950 *Favourite*

Miu Miu Shoulder Bag in Cameo - £1050

A girl can dream...

OPI Rainbow Connection

Silver, Green, Orange, Pink, Blue and Gold chunks of glitter make up the fabulous nail varnish from the OPI Muppets collection. I had trouble finding this varnish in stock on a UK website but managed to snatch it up from Beauty Cow for £10.50. I've applied it here on bare nails but I can't wait to try it over colours. I think it would look fab over Models Own's Champagne!

Shop Focus: Ruche

I came across Ruche whilst searching through Selective Potential's blog for some Autumn inspiration. I love Tieka's blog - the photos are always gorgeous, as is her wardobe!

Ruche is an American site, offering vintage dresses, warm winter knits and pretty shoes. I could spend a fortune on this site, but shipping costs are $20 to the UK so I may just add them to my Christmas wishlist instead!

Cynthia Luxe Draped Black Dress by Dear Dorothy - $99.99 *Favourite*

Morgan Alyse Emerald Heels - $38.99

Leaf Pile Over the Knee Socks in Navy - $17.99

 Crystal Grace Lace Dress - $62.99

Winter Dusk Knitted Infinity Scarf - $19.99

Hampden Woven Belt - $11.99

Me & Zena

Me & Zena ran a fab Halloween promotion last Monday, whereby they reduced everything on the site by 50% for one hour. It was a great marketing ploy as they were clearly trying to get rid of old stock - and it was a very effective way of doing it as I succumbed and bought 3 pieces! Including the Leopard Necklace I'd had my eye on for a few months, but at £19 it seemed a bit steep!

They arrived in a couple of days in pink bubble wrap, and each item was individually packaged in a drawstring bag. The chain of the Leopard Neclace is a bit bling, and the UFO is bigger than I expected, but overall I was pretty impressed!

Here is my haul (the Love Bites necklace is a gift for a friend so I haven't been too greedy!)

*Love Bites* Necklace

*Leopard* Necklace

*We Come In Peace* Necklace

 

Shop Focus: Miss Selfridge

I had written off Miss Selfridge a few years ago, so was suprised when I stumbled across them again a couple of weeks ago. Guess what... Miss Selfridge has grown up! And they have a fantastic range of Party dresses, perfect for the festive season. I've been lusting after the Bodice dress for a while, but not sure it will suit me as nude shades tend to wash me out - and its a bit on the pricey side! May have to add it to the Xmas list!

                    Nude Sequin Bodice Dress -£65                                         Teal Chiffon Asymmetric Dress - £39 *Favourite*

             

             Nude Embellished Vest Dress - £70                                                 All-Over Sequin Dress - £150

Beetlejuice

I'm so excited about Models Own launch of the Beetlejuice collection tomorrow at 10am! They've done a great job of generating hype around this collection as it seems to be all over the blogger sphere. I'm certainly itching to get my hands on Pinky Brown and Purple Blue.

(l-r) Golden Green, Pinky Brown, Purple Blue, Aqua Violet, Emerald Black

It's really difficult to find any swatches online, but I came across the British Beauty Blogger who managed a sneak preview! Only 10 hours to go...

c/o British Beauty Blogger

In Bruges

As a surprise for Jack's 30th I planned a trip to Bruges. I'd wanted to take him on a city break for his 30th for a couple of years as he's always whisking me away on trips and holidays and I desperately wanted to take him away for a change.

I found the most gorgeous looking B&B on Trip Advisor, Huis Koning (check out my review here) and the last room was available over Jack's birthday so it seemed too good to pass up! I booked us onto the Eurostar - a bargain at £40 each, each way - and took Jack off to Kings Cross for our mini adventure!

Upon arriving in Bruges I fell in love instantly! It is one of the most beautiful cities I've ever visited. The architecture, quaint cafe's and vast canals had me in awe. The B&B didn't disappoint either. Positioned next to a shallow part of the waterways and exquisitely decorated, we were greeted with a smiling and accomodating host who brought us fresh coffee and Belgian chocolates. After being up since 5am this was a very welcome sight.

We spent everyday of our trip exploring the streets of Bruges, and sampling the local cuisine which mainly consisted of Beer, Frites and Cheese! They have amazing Brown pubs that stock vast amounts of beer at varying percentages. Our favourite was one that was recommended by our host, t'Brugs Beertje, which stocked over 300 varieties. We spent our first evening sampling the 9% and munching cheese and salami with mustard. Everything is within walking distance in Bruges so it's a fantastic city if you don't want to deal with public transport and taxi's. We were lucky enough to be treated to blue skies for most of our trip, even if it was a bit nippy!

We spent Jack's birthday seeing the sites and sharing the city with 1000's of Birmingham City fans. Luckily it didn't ruin the trip as we were leaving the day of the match and both teams are known as the hooligan types. We took a trip up the Belfry, as made famous in the film In Bruges, and finished up with the most amazing (and expensive meal) I've ever had at Rock Fort - another recommendation by our wonderful host!

Other highlights have to include the Frites Museum (the weirdest Museum I have ever visited, and that includes a visit to a sex museum in Paris) and a trip on the canal - cannot recommend doing that enough! It was a wonderful way to see the city, and we had an brilliant tour guide who kept us all laughing the whole time. It amazes me how the locals can switch in and out of English, French and Flemish.

All in all this has to be one of the most romantic and fantastic holidays that I have ever been on, and I was so happy that Jack had such a fab 30th. We've still got another celebration to look forward to, as unfortunaltely many members of Jack's family couldn't make it to the party so there's still more to look forward to!