Warmth in Your Eyes.

            

Afternoon!

It's been getting warmer here in the north of England, but I couldn't resist showing you this jumper before it gets too warm to wear it. Its been great for nipping out and about, and not needing a jacket. As well as being comfy enough to wear indoors. 

I paired it simply with these skinny jeans. Mid-wash denim is my favourite as they look a bit more worn than dark coloured jeans. Realistically I don't think they're as flattering as these photos make them look, as they re a bit long, but with heels like in this picture my legs look longer. These wedges are really comfy surprisingly. I featured them along time ago when I originally got them but never thought about wearing them with jeans. I think they spice up this otherwise teetering on boring outfit. 

I also want to introduce you to our dog Marley, I mentioned ages ago that our first dog, Sebastian, who we had for twelve years died in January 11'. We left it until October to get a new one, and whilst he'll never replace Seb coe, he's been an amazing bundle of energy. My Mum and Dad surprised me and my brother with him one day, and whilst we're now 19 & 21 the excitement of having a 6 month old Border Collie puppy has just been great to have. We all love having him in the house again. 

I wore a green ring a couple of posts ago. This is actually the necklace from topshop that goes with it, I popped it on half way through taking photos so my apologies for the lack of continuity! I also wore my rings that I never take off!  The star one has caused me so many injuries because of its sharp edges. But I love it so much.


Anyway, moving away from all the emotion, this is a scheduled post as at this exact moment in time (2.40pm UK time) I am having an interview. So send me your good luck and hope (and many prayers) that I get it.

Jumper - Marks & Spencers

Jeans - DP

Wedges - Market shop ages ago.

Necklace - Topshop

Rings - Pia and vintage.

Gem xo

Recent Buys #2

Yesterday I mentioned this dress from ASDA. I have a few interviews coming up for jobs, and I thought this dress is smart but shows that I have personality as well, as the jobs I'm going for are more creative roles. The print on  the dress is a floral/poppy print. I really like it, but like I said yesterday I don't think it's to everyone's taste. As well as this one there is a black spotty print too. But I already have a black spotted shirt dress from ASDA in a chiffon material, and whilst I'm an advocate for 'if you like it, buy it' I thought I'd be a bit more daring. The fit on this dress is lovely too. I sized down to an 18 and there is still a lot of room around the bust ;) and belly, which is surprising as the dress has no give in it at all.

To go with the dress for interviews I bought this smart jumper from H&M. The knit is very fine and it is quite a thin piece, but again its a great fit and long enough for me to belt it over the dress. I do have other black similar jumpers from H&M but the wool is so plucked. I need one of those machines that pluck all the bobbles off the wool to make it look new again. I've had a look online but I don't know the exact name of it so I'm not getting the greatest searches back. If anyone knows the exact name I'd love to try it out?

Anyway, sorry there isn't much to report back on but I'm trying to save moneys until I have a steady income (a boo hoo for my wardrobe). I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend! 

Gem xo

Wants of the Week#3

Prints are everywhere at the moment, so this is what inspired my wants this week. I've seen them in every magazine and all the different style segments on This Morning and Daybreak etc.

1. Dress - George @ ASDA. £14 I actually bought this dress today, but it fits in so well with this post that I still put it in. I'll feature it tomorrow on Recent Buys and tell you about it. I know its not to everyone's taste but I think this dress is quite smart.

2. Top - Dorothy Perkins. £19.50. This aztec print top is really cool. It's quite oversized too as I saw when I looked at it in the shops today. And the material is lightweight which is great for summer. 

3. Top - Dorothy Perkins. £22 Florals are the easiest print to pull off, and this peplum wrap top is a very flattering cut. 

4. Butterfly print shoes - ASOS. £16 These shoes are very cute indeed. The slip on slipper style is still going strong, and whilst I have a leopard print ones I think these would be lovely for spring, and for 16 quid they're a great price too.

5. Floral print trousers - ASOS Curve £28 These trousers aren't on the website anymore but the pencil skirt is. Which I do think I'd wear more if I'm honest. 

6. Polka dot iPhone Case - Cath Kidston £25 If you don't think you can pull of prints on your clothes why not accessorise instead. This iPhone case from Cath Kidston is very pretty, as are all of her items!

7. Aztec Print Ring - Topshop £8.50 Again if I'm not sure I can pull off any prints this ring will add instant prints to any outfit. In gold aswell, which although a lot of people think is tacky, I can't get enough of gold jewelry. 

Hope everyone is having  good week!

Gem xo

My Own Secret Ceremonials.

Hello again!

This morning, I went charity shopping. I didn't find much except an old fur stole which is mentioned later on, and some very questionable Gucci boots, which I didn't buy as they had too many buckles and zips for me to even comprehend.. I also treated myself to some oil for my hair, this was a cheap version of the Moroccan Oil, but it has the words 'Moroccan Oil' on the bottle so I'm gonna go with it. As you can see from the photo above the ends of my hair are so crispy and dry (how much do you want to run your fingers through my hair right now, ey!?), so hopefully the oil will put a bit of moisture back into them. 

I wore my trusty boots, but I've also been eyeing up some heeled chelsea boots that were £19.50 in my local Tesco. I've seen them on a few bloggers but wasn't that taken by them until I tried them on. But now I have the Office ones... I don't know what to do. Should I just buy them too? They have a lovely heel size and are the right height on the ankle to wear with jeans or skirts, if I haven't given you enough reasons for buying them yet. Anyway, I stuck on this dress and layered up the jumper to add some colour. I'm trying to stear clear of all black as I've been wearing it a lot recently. The dress is one of my favourite go to items, it looks great layered up and I can wear it out with heels or just during the day with boots or brogues. 

This is the fur stole I bought for a lovely £2.50! Its faux fur by the way, just to point out, but I suppose next to the leather jacket, I'm being a hypocrite. My apologies. Anyway I've styled it here over my leather jacket. But I really wanted it to put over a camel pea coat I got from a charity shop, down south, before Christmas. So I will style that up before it gets too warm to wear both of the items!

Have you got any hints or tips for how to put moisture back into my hair? What do you usually buy from charity shops?

Dress - Evans

Jumper - H&M

Boots - DP

Tights - Tesco 

Necklace - Market Stall.

Leather Jacket Very

Stole - Charity Shop.

Gem xo

Drinking In Your Room

So I'm trying to wear all the old clothes in my wardrobe, rather than purchase new ones. As I love the whole rock look with biker jackets and leather I found this old tshirt at the back of my wardrobe and remembered how I quite liked the colour, the studs, and the longer length meaning it looks okay with jeans too. 


I layered it over a normal black tube skirt from New Look. It sometimes rides up and I lose my dignity but not too much. I then wore my black leather jacket which as mentioned before I think goes with everything. I'm looking at new leather jackets, and saw quite a chic one on ASOS Curve that was collarless, but its on my watchlist and if it doesn't go into the sale I might have to take out a loan to buy it. At £120 I don't think I can justify spending that much on it when Summer is not too far away (well that's if we're going to have a hot one)

I just wore silver accessories with it, including my lucky charm necklace and opalite ring from a shop in sunny Brighton.

Anyway not a very exciting outfit today, but I'm trying to wear all of my old clothes rather than buy new ones...

I'm not going to give up anything for lent, I think I'm going to put more effort into doing things instead, like being healthier, seeing friends, and making new ones, hobbies and finally I don't actually know how much more effort I can put into getting  job but I am going to do that as well.

I can't wait for pancakes either. My favourite is lemon and sugar, simple yet effective. What are you giving up, and what pancake is your favourite?

Top - Primark (old)

Jacket - Very

Skirt - New Look

Scarf - New Look

Necklace - Warren James

Rings - Pia, vintage and unknown silver band.

Black pumps - New Look

Gem xo

Recent Buys.

 Hello, hope everyone is having a lovely weekend!

These are some of my recent buys! These boots are from Office, and if you follow me on twitter you'll have seen that I got them in the sale. I've been looking for some cheap chunky heeled chelsea boots. And I found them! £15 from £80. Such a bargain! 

As well as that, I bought some Soap & Glory bits, a body spray and Clean on Me which is a moisturising body wash. I love the smell of all the Soap &Glory stuff, and have used the body wash before, with brilliant results.

I also bought the wonderful Company magazine, seriously impressed with the makeover. I was an avid reader before but love the look and feel of it now. You really get a feel for street style over just whats hot on the catwalk. 

I also found a small bun ring! Its from the kids section in primark. As well as this I found these three belts too. Black, tan, and cream go with everything in my wardrobe so they're a staple.

Shoes - Office

Soap &Glory - Boots

Belts & Bun ring - Primark

Magazine - ASDA or your nearest newsagent.

Anyway a curry and the tele is calling my name, enjoy your saturday night!

Gem xo

Rock 'n' Roll Queen.

Hello!

So, recently I've been wearing alot of red. I don't know whether its me subconsciously channeling a need for love, and obviously valentines day was recently, or I just love the colour. Anyway I was running a few errands the other day and just stuck on an easy, go to outfit.    

This top has sheer stripes at the back so you can wear in back to front if you want to add something to your outfit. I mentioned these jeans with my last outfit post and they'll probably feature a lot more. They're so comfy, and as I mentioned a great fit. The black skull scarf  adds a rock edge. Well I hope so, when I wear it children have been known to actually call me a pirate. No lie. And the leather jacket is my favourite piece of clothing ever. It is a great fit and is actually leather! I also got in on sale last year from very for 25 quid. Which is good for a bargain hunter like me.

I've been putting my hair in a top knot for quite a while now, but I used a bun ring here to do it. Only done it a couple of times, but think I have the knack for it now. Would like a bit of a smaller bun, does anyone know if you can get small bun rings? or are they all quite big? This particular one was from Primark, so its pretty bog standard. 

Love gold rings at the moment too. All the ones I'm wearing were presents apart from the purple gem one I bought myself. Gold is quite expensive but they mean a lot to me from friends and family.

Leather Jacket - Very.co.uk

T-shirt - Primark

Jeans - ASOS curve

Necklace - A market stall.

Scarf - Pia, vintage and markets.

Bangle - Vintage (mums)

Boots - Evans.

Gem xo

Wants of the Week...

1. Animal Print Dress, ASOS: £30

I think this dress is very cute! And I love how the model is wearing it with chunky boots. And for £30 I think it's a steal really.

2. Dr. Martens, Amazon:from £60 

I already have some tan docs that I've ruined from wearing them too much (and walking the dog in them) but I think the black ones are really cool, and would go with some much. Maybe not for summer, but I think they're an investment anyway. 

3. Peace Toe Ring, Topshop: £4

This toe ring will be lovely for summer. They have lots of different styles in it, I like this one and the skull one. 

4. Mulberry Lily Leather Bag, Net-a-Porter: £495

This is way, way out of my price league. And I'll probably never have it, but I think its one of the more subtle Mulberry bags. Even though really, I'd kill for an Alexa.

5. Merlot Pencil Skirt, Dorothy Perkins: £16

When I saw the price of this, I thought it was amazing. And the colour is my favourite at the moment too. A bargain, and a stunning colour, DP, I applaud you.

6. Black Stone Ring, H&M: £3.99

I really like this ring, it's big but quite simple too.

7. Olympus PL1 Compact System Camera, Amazon: from £190

I need a little camera to pop in my bag, as iPhone cameras aren't the best, and my DSLR is too heavy (and my bags are always breaking when I've had it in for long enough) So a PEN would be ideal. Between a DSLR and a digital camera, this has had great reviews on Amazon and camera reviewing websites.

8. They're Real Mascara, Benefit: from £15

This mascara is great, I've been using it since October/November. I've found it dries out quite quickly but I'd still buy it again.

9. Rose Print Bra, Evans: £20

I have the other floral bra they had on their website, it's purple floral. And it's so comfy. I'd love this one though. And the matching shorts.

When We Come Back We'll Be Dressed in Black.

Hope everyone had a lovely valentines day! 

I just applied for jobs, dreamed about living in a flat away from Warrington(which is a long way off) and popped out for a bit to Altrincham. Nothing special. It's still a bit cold out but getting warmer so I wore this dress, which is pretty short, but with a longer coat I was a bit more modest!

I love the colours in this dress and it has a cute woven collar too, but you can't see in this photo. I tried to bring out the purples in the dress with this bright scarf but not sure if the two tones of purple work together. What do you think? The jumper is another one of those H&M ones.But like I said they've been one of my favourite things to wear this winter. They go with everything, including dresses and just with jeans.  And I also can't stop wearing these boots! They're so comfy and supportive, and as I suspected look nice with tights and dresses as well as jeans.

How was your week anyway, get up to anything exciting? Hope your valentines was more eventful than mine!! 

This cute charm necklace I put together myself, the charm is from a cheap jewellers in the UK called Warren James and the chain is from their too. I've used these charms before to make necklaces and bracelets for peoples birthdays and presents, using a piece of leather rope or silver chains to make them all one of a kind gifts. 

Dress & Scarf - Primark

Jumper - H&M

Boots - DP

Tights - Tesco

Necklace - Warren James

Gem xo

Walks Like a Man.

So this is what I wore over the weekend for an impromptu window shopping trip with my mum. We ventured into Bury because the market and charity shops are great, and plus they have a Simply Be shop and I wanted to ogle clothes and dresses I cannot afford. They have some beautiful dresses. And I always love to look at the sexy underwear (not as creepily as that made it sound). Anyway, all I bought were two books by Nick Hornby from a charity shop, and some coconut baked macaroons from a bakers. They're one of my guilty pleasures. And a peanut butter kit kat chunky.

I've loved the preppy look this winter. Wearing jumpers over button downs has been my uniform. These jumpers from H&M I've seen on quite a few bloggers, and I now have four different colours in it. I think a black sheer shirt never fails, and is a wardrobe staple. I'd love a bit of a longer one but this one does the job. The skinny jeans are another ASOS curve buy. They fit great and have a slight stretch in them for comfort. 

The boots are my favourite item in this outfit. After posting those topshop boots in the Wants of the Week I've been looking for a substitute. These aren't chelsea boots, but the zip adds an edge to the boot. Not sure what type of edge, but I think its a good one!

Whats been your favourite look this winter?

Jumper - H&M

Jeans - ASOS Curve

Boots - DP

Shirt - Peacocks

Rings - Pia, and vintage.

Gem xo

Graduation!

So, I graduated this year! This is me in all my finery. Not really, I look a mess. It was lovely seeing my friends and family, but at the same time your graduation is technically not 'your' day. It's for your parents. But I made them proud and they enjoyed it (hopefully!!). I ended up with a 2:1. Not too shabby if I do say so myself. 


On the day, I wore some navy gowns and was completely naked underneath. That would have given my lecturers something to look at. No, obviously I wore this outfit. I wore a vintage (its actually old M&S) cream midi skirt I won off of Ebay and a black lace top. I do love lace at the moment. I then wore some small courts so I could walk around all day, and a wonderful hat, and sash. A slick of red lipstick never fails so that went on too. 


The ceremony was held in the Anglican cathedral in Liverpool, and whilst it was lovely in there and provided great photos outside, I couldn't hear anything or see anything where I was sat. But my mum bought the DVD and you'll be happy to know I look as frightful on stage as I do in these photos!

Here is me and my parentals, now you know where I inherit my good looks, and awkward poses from.
Again everyone in the class looked lovely! As you can see below. And I had some serious shoe envy going on as everyone wore lovely shoes. I don't know how they stayed in them all day but they did. Now everyone is working hard in their new jobs, or setting up new companies, I'm really happy for them! You go MPS '11! Woop woop. 

Skirt - Ebay

Top - Very.co.uk

Shoes - New Look

Cap n Gown - LJMU

Bag - Vintage shop in Liverpool

Jewellery - DP, New Look, Vintage

Gem xo

21st Birthday.

Not got great photos of what I wore on my 21st. So apologies there, but you will know the dress. It's from Asos Curve again. And I managed to get it in the sale. I kept it for a long time and thought my 21st was the perfect time to wear it. I had a small group of friends come out to Manchester. We went to Deansgate locks and had champagne, shots and cocktails. And they all ordered pizza in the bar! It was great. The only thing I would complain about is that it was house music. We're not really fans of house, but we danced anyway. 

The dress itself was another great fit from Asos. And a perfect length. On myself anyway. I'm 5ft 7 so it finished just in my mid thigh area. It is flattering with the scallop edges and the colour is great, although it does show up stains quite easily! Well, when you're spilling shots on yourself I can't really blame the dress.

I then went to my favourite place in the world for two days with one really good friend, Steph, and met up with Roisin again. Brighton! I will use any excuse to go back there! We had a lovely weekend, and went shopping. 

So thats what I did for my 21st! 

Dress - Asos Curve

Tights - Tesco

Rings - Vintage, New Look, DP, Past Times

Gem xo

Wants of the Week

Since its Valentines, and I haven't got one. I think I'll treat myself to some presents instead.

1. Red Spotty Dress - Dorothy Perkins - £28.

A pretty dress, perfect with tights, for dates with friends.

2. Red Peter Pan Collar Dress - Dorothy Perkins - £34.

Another cute dress, a little bit dressier, maybe for an evening out.

3. Ring, Pandora, Around £100.

A nice thoughtful gift, to myself.

4. Valentina, Valentino, £71.

This perfume is lovely! Very light and perfect for spring. Very romantic.

5. Red Varnish, Chanel, £10.50.

A strong shade. Red nails never fails.

6. Red Lipstick, MAC, £13.50.

Another bright shade, a little more expensive than I'd usually pay for lipstick, but I think, like red nails, this is a sure fire great look.

7. Boots, Topshop, £80.

I originally wanted the Allegra Boot, but I cant see them anywhere. I also can't afford these at the moment so they'll probably go too.. Obviously its something thats never meant to be. We shall never be together.

8. Charm Pendant, Cath Kidston, £25.

Another cute gift for a girl.

9. Glitter Collar Top, New Look, £26.

Going away from red, this cute, pink top is also very romantic and pretty. Another good one for an evening wear.

Happy Valentines Anyway. I have more posts coming with stuff that happened in 2011!

Gem xo

Graduation Ball.

Okay so this is what I wore to my graduation ball. I know its eight months late, and what can I say I'm a terrible blogger. But here it is. It was a beautiful hot night back in May 2011. It was held in the Liverpool Adelphi Hotel, and it was a lovely night I still haven't forgotten.

Everyone dresses up into their finery for one last MPS LJMU Graduation ball and last night out. I miss them all! And miss living in Liverpool. 

My dress was the ASOS Curve black prom dress. It was a beautiful fit and underneath that I wore a net skirt that I made myself to give the dress more structure on the bottom. To cover my arms I wore this lace top (which is actually the lace top I wore from a couple posts ago, I just bought a new one and cut off the tassles) 

Accessory wise I opted for black to keep it all classic. Black clutch,and black butterfly shoes. A slick of red lipstick, my favourite for ultimate glamour.

I wore white bows in my hair to match the cream lace.

And here is a photo of some of the people from my class, all dressed up. And on the night everyone looked lovely.

Dress - Asos Curve

Lace top - Primark

Shoes - Schuh

Bangle - Vintage

Rings - Vintage and Pia.

Clutch - H&M

Gem xo