My Shopcade Wishlist

Happy Monday everyone! Although I'm pretty sad another weekend has flown by, my world seems a little brighter when I hear of sales. Sales mean, that I have to make a list, and buy what I really want...and then of course the odd sporadic purchase can't be helped now can it?! I love the layout of Shopcade which makes it so simple to create wishlist's of everything you want and don't we all love a good wishlist! You can also get exclusive deals so it's best to be in the know and using Shopcade than surfing the vast internet as a lone ranger!! Here are a few of my current favourites, high up on my Shopcade list!

Theses are beautiful handmade oriental floral bangles. They are so unique and colourful, I am going to purchase a few so I can stack them. They are ideal for holidays and wearing with white. I wear a lot of white in the summer so these are ideal for a pop of colour. 

I bought the exact same dress in a turquoise blue colour last winter. This dress is from ASOS and I love it so much and it's so comfy and pretty, you can just throw it on with a pair of chelsea boots and you are good to go. I love the colour of this dress and the bright yellow roses make it look even more summery. 

Wildfox tshirts have been a favourite of mine for so long. They are soft, fit well and easy to wear with jeans, jeggings or leggings! Paris is such an amazing place, I want to visit it again so hopefully maybe near the end of the year..taking a winter trip! 

I am a candle collector, (unofficially!) and tend to have too many candles around because I just think they look pretty. I love to light a candle in my living room and chilling out in my bedroom.
These Laura Ashley Cupcake candles are so cute. They would be the ideal accompaniment to a birthday gift for a friend, lighting one of the cupcakes while singing happy birthday...and then giving them a real cupcake! Or even just to treat yourself, although I think I will buy these to keep as a gift.

How cute is Bob the iPad case?! He looks like a cross between the Cookie monster and a hot water bottle cover. I don't know if Bob would be as useful as my current iPad cover but it's definitely softer and makes me laugh! 

Visit Shopcade and start to make your own wishlist. Find more information on the competition and the chance to win vouchers for Shopcade here.        

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Weekend Makeup Bag

Whether you travel every weekend - home, abroad or exciting weekend surfing trips, festivals, spa breaks, visiting friends or maybe you are just always out, your weekend makeup bag is essential.

I have carried too many items in the past which has made my bag extremely heavy! So overtime I have condensed my weekend essentials and if I had to make do with a few items - this is my shortlist!

Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum

I read a lot of great reviews on Healthy mix and Beauty YouTubers singing it's praise! I couldn't "make up" my mind (excuse the pun there!) as to whether it would suit my skin or not. However, I felt it was about time as I live by a rule..if you think of a product or item of clothing for a few months and still are intrigued, you must buy it. 

The texture is smooth and it feels really light on the skin. It's so light it doesn't feel like you are wearing any foundation. This is the perfect foundation for the summer, although I would still wear this in the winter.

I bought this in Boot's but you can also buy this online at ASOS

Guerlain Bronzer

My Mum bought the Guerlain bronzer for me quite a while ago and I love it. The packaging is really pretty so I didn't want to use it too much. Although over the last couple of weeks, I have been using this every single day. Part of that reason would be because my Nars Laguna has met pan (horror!!). It is a shimmery bronze with peach and pinky tones throughout. I love it and leaves your skin looking bright and bronzed which lasts all day. 

Chanel Coco Mademoiselle

This is simply a classic and I don't think I really need to go into detail into how amazing this perfume is. You know when you try a perfume and you aren't really sure if it suits you..well I have no doubt about this. I take it everywhere, and usually try to put it into a smaller perfume bottle for travelling. 

Barry M Lip Gloss

This lip gloss came free with Impulse deodorant in Superdrug. It's a beautiful natural pink colour which is a perfect match for my lip colour. I love this as it looks very natural for during the day. 

Benefit - Girl Meets Pearl

Girl meets Pearl by Benefit is a soft pink highlighter. Usually, you apply highlighter to above your cheekbones to accentuate them as well as on areas of the face which catch the light (generally top of forehead and straight down the line of your nose). However, I don't follow those rules! I started to place a little on the back of my hand, then put my foundation on top of it and blend it with a stipling brush and dab onto my face. It made my skin look a lot brighter and left a fresh feeling - if that even makes sense! 

Rimmel - Glam Eyes liquid eyeliner - Black

I am a liquid eyeliner hoarder! I seem to collect them and pick up a new one anytime I see one! I have so many but the Rimmel glam eyes is my favourite at the moment.  A few months ago (yes only a few months ago) I learned how to create the "flick" eyeliner look. Apparently, some of my friends have been creating this look for years! Anyway, I prefer that I only started to do this now and it's giving me a new look and I felt it was time for a new look!! 

This eyeliner has great staying power and if you apply to the top lash line with a line of black eyeshadow underneath, it stays even longer!

Benefit - "They're Real" mascara

I love love love this mascara!! It makes lashes look extra long and it basically does exactly what it says on the tin (well the tube in this case!). Black. Mascara. Love it. What more can I say!?

Catrice - Prime and Refine Primer

On the way to repurchase L'oreal Studio secrets primer, I came across Catrice Prime and refine primer. It is half the price so I thought I would give it a whirl, and I was pleasantly surprised!  The quality, texture and consistency is amazing. I apply this after moisturising and it's incredibly light. My makeup looks great after using it and holds makeup all day.

Nivea Lip Butter - Vanilla and Macadamia

These lip butters are amazing. If you haven't tried, get down to your nearest boots and try! I especially love the Vanilla and Macadamia and take it everywhere!

Topshop - Blush "Prime Time"

My favourite blush for the past couple of months is, hands down, Topshop cream blush in the colour "Prime Time". It is a deep pink colour which looks beautiful on the skin. I can't live without this now, and I didn't think anything could replace my Bobbi Brown blush...love them both equally! 

Body Shop - Nutriganics Soothing Night Cream 

After a long day, it's nice to cleanse your skin and finish off with a soothing night cream. Using a night cream leaves your skin looking instantly brighter when you wake up. I generally forget to use a night cream but when I do..my skin thanks me in the morning! 

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OOTD: Saturday Outfit

I love when you buy an item of clothing, that you have for years and years and you don't get bored of looking at it. This jacket is something which has remained in my wardrobe for quite a few years. I remember at the time thinking it was too expensive to buy, when I didn't really need a jacket. I think it was €85..when I had bills to pay. Trying the jacket on in Topshop, I decided I wouldn't buy it because I didn't "need" it. When I got home, I felt that I made a big mistake and searched for it on topshop.com.

It was still there but I was so afraid it would sell out fast, I needed to buy it! With the blink of an eyelid, I was in Paypal and selecting "make payment". Looking back, I don't regret it and have worn this jacket so many times. It is more for summer but sometimes I wear it in the winter with a cardigan and faux fur collar. 

The jeans are a new purchase from Zara - I love the indigo blue colour with blue print throughout. They are ideal for summer, lazy, casual days. I wore these with navy blue and white pokadot Tom's. 

Top: River Island

Jeans: Zara

Jacket: Topshop

Shoes: Office

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Sale Part I: Zara Black Slipper Shoes

The clock struck midnight on Thursday the 20th of June and there was only one thing on Zara lover's minds...The Zara Summer sale has officially begun. Well maybe two things....a girl has got to sleep after all!

I couldn't stay awake, even though I tried and tried! So when I woke up on Friday morning I had a browse through the site. Even though I shop quite a bit online, lately, I love to go into shops and really see what I'm buying. It's difficult to judge how an item will look on you and I love to feel the quality of the material. With work filling up most of Friday, I left it until Saturday before I ventured into Zara. I felt I may have missed lots of great items but alas, there was plenty of stock left for everyone..after all, we all have different tastes.

Underneath a bundle of bright coloured jeans, I saw a black "slipper" pump peeping out in a size 40. I couldn't believe my size was the only size left. I searched through the bundle of jeans to find the other shoe...clutching just one shoe for a few minutes. I looked underneath the table...where was the other shoe?! Finally, I saw a hint of a black shoe peaking out from jumpers in disarray. Yay, a pair of shoes, in the sale, that were comfy and just what I wanted for winter. Yes WINTER! I shop for Winter in the summer and summer in the Winter. It might seem odd, but you can make some huge savings. 

I love storing it away to take it out when the next season comes in and I have a ready made new wardrobe to start me off for the new season! I also live in Ireland, so Winter clothing pretty much goes all year round. It doesn't really make sense to buy summer clothes, even though I do! 

I am going to wear these with black skinny jeans and a black and white blouse. In Winter, I live in monochrome. So I will say goodbye to these shoes for a few months...but they are worth it!

Does anyone else buy winter clothes in the summer sales? Let me know in the comments section below.

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My Week In Outfits

Last week, I had a four day working week. I took the Monday off for my Birthday and relaxed and enjoyed a longer weekend. My outfit for my day off was pretty boring...just a cream dress and pink pokadot Tom's. For that reason, I have decided to write about my four outfits for four days of the week....starting with Tuesday. Luckily, we have been enjoying some relatively sunny weather. I think this is the best summer we have had for a few years and it means I can wear more brighter clothing - dresses, skirts, coloured jeans, tshirts and not have to worry about bringing a jacket!

All of the other bloggers can relate, it's not easy to take a picture of your outfits everyday with anything other than you phone! I tried to set up my camera on a tripod and set the timer, but right now the photos are appearing blurry. I need to get that right first and maybe one day, I won't have to wait for one of my kind friends to take a photo for me! Until then, I had to make do with photos from my phone! I have the Nexus 4 and the camera quality is pretty good. It is the same quality as the new Samsung galaxy. I use the camera on this a lot more than my previous phone and I am really impressed with it.

Day 1

Turquoise paisley print dress from H&M. I bought this dress a year ago, however, H&M repeat this style every summer so you can buy this dress in plain yellow or a nice khaki colour. This dress is so light and perfect for warmer weather. I wore this with a gold and mint green necklace from Forever 21. If you haven't checked out Forever 21 accessories...I urge you to visit a shop near you soon. The accessories are such good value and with such a huge range, you are sure to find something you love. 

Day 2

I bought this dress in the "Concession" section in Topshop, so it's not the Topshop brand. This dress is really unusual so it stood out to me straight away. I also don't have any other clothes in this colour so it's unlike anything I have. There are little pink and red roses throughout with a beige belt. I don't really like the best so much so will probably swap this for another belt. Generally, the belts on dresses aren't as nice as belts you find separately...does anyone else find that?

Blue floral dress - Topshop

Day 3

Today was a little over-cast so I needed a jacket. I decided to wear a white top I recently purchased in River Island, lilac blue jeans from Penny's with a faux leather jacket from Miss Selfridge. The stripey snood is from Topshop (last summer) and I wore navy and white pokadot Tom's. Ever since I bought my first pair of Tom's I want to wear them everyday..they are so comfy!

White top from River Island. Faux leather jacket from Miss Selfridge. Jeans from Penny's. Cotton snood from Topshop.

Day 4

The last outfit is my cream forever 21 skirt, which I seem to wear a lot this summer. I love when you find something that you definitely feel was worth the money. I bought the tshirt on sale in New Look last September. I tied my hair back in this gold leaf hairband from Penny's  which is still available in shops. 

Tshirt from New look. Skirt from Forever 21. Hairband from Penny's. 

Do you have any favourite outfits this week? Leave a comment with your thoughts below. 

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Catrice Nude Naked Palette

Urban Decay's cult beauty product, "naked" eye palette was so popular, they even made a sequel...Naked 2..and then they made a condensed essentials palette. If you had one, you probably didn't need the other, but if you are a beauty product junkie, I'm sure you bought all three! The eye shadows in the naked palette are what I reach for every single day. However, given my love for Catrice, I wanted to try their new palette. The pigmentation is amazing and it includes every shade of nude & brown you would ever need. You can see the colour swatches in the video below. Catrice is excellent for value and quality and if you haven't tried yet...I would highly recommend!

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The Neon Effect

For a person who doesn't embrace colour during the winter, I completely immerse myself in colour in the summer. Last year, when neon colours were everywhere, I thought it wasn't for me. I tend to not follow trends and just wear what catches my eye. During a flying visit to Spain, I saw a pair of shoes that I felt had the perfect hint of neon. My feet won't be completely covered by neon yellow, just a few subtle (well more than subtle!) hints throughout. 

My favourite outfit to wear with these includes: white jeans, yellow top or a grey or white dress.

What are your favourite summer sandals? Where do you find your holiday clothes? Let me know below in the comments section.

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Suspicious Pink

I think I love the summer more than any other season. I know we get rain, sunshine and sometimes even snow (my Mum informed me of a very cold July back in the 80s) but it's just so much brighter for longer. It makes me feel HAPPY. And when I'm happy, I tend to shop..and eat. My favourite food at the moment has to be a tomato-feta salad with baked potato...followed by blueberries and strawberries for dessert ..and then maybe some Smarties. Smarties were like the Nestle forgotten child for a while. As kids, we all made the request for a packet or a tube of smarties so we could collect the lids with the letters on them. If you got the rectangular box, you couldn't collect the letters so that was quite sad! For my final school exams (Leaving cert) I took a packet of Smarties into every exam. I told people, just to make them laugh, that it made me smarter but to be honest, that just isn't true. I just liked them during the exam because they gave me that little energy boost that we are all warned against. The sugar rush energy boost. But I figured it was fine to do that considering they were the most important exams of my life. I got through them, achieved good grades, and now I am telling you the story! 

Now that I have discussed my favourite food at the moment, I would like to move onto nail polish. Nail polish is becoming quite an obsession of late, and I generally change the colour on my nails every two days. Sometimes I end up going the entire working week with no colour on my nails because I get so busy. But lately, I am trying hard to use every bottle in my nail polish box!

I couldn't quite justify spending the money on one bottle of nail polish, but when I tried "Suspicious", I really had to have it. The quality is excellent and you only need one coat. My first bottle of Chanel polish was a baby pink colour - it was beautiful. Not sure if they still do that colour as it was about 5 years ago! My advice, go to a Chanel make up counter and test out all of the colours. Not only is it fun, you will have beautifully painted nails in an array of colours! 

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Red Tea Dress

Weekends roll into weekdays and weekdays into weekends. An endless cycle, wishing it was the weekend all of the time! I divide my wardrobe into weekend and weekday outfits. Sometimes, there is a cross-over, which can't be helped but I tend to have a set of dresses and skirts which don't feature during the week. When I saw the red tea dress in Topshop, it automatically slotted into my weekend wardrobe. I love that on a Saturday, I don't have to think because I have my weekend outfits organised!  The only issue I had was, what jacket to wear with it. I definitely think this dress can by styled in many different ways - black tights, black boots and a black leather jacket or without tights and a cream blazer, or as I have styled it with a navy and black vintage YSL jacket and tan pumps. The blazer was one of my favourite vintage finds in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York last year. I would only love to hop on a flight and return - need to get saving! 

Dress: Topshop

Jacket: Vintage

Pumps: Accessorise

Scarf: eBay

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Birthday Celebrations

It was my birthday yesterday, so we took off for a weekend to the West of Ireland. The sun was shining on Saturday so we enjoyed a nice walk on the beach and wandering around the shops. The evening was spent in a restaurant called "Artisan", which served delicious food. I was treated to lots of nice food and some lovely presents.

I love birthdays and always try to make them last as long as possible - although they always seem to fly by!

This past year has been an exciting year filled with surprises and lots of fun. Looking forward to more fun adventures over the next year.



Jeans: Topshop - Baxter
Wedges: Pennys
Top: Jack Wills

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