Summer Scents!

Since we're in the swing of things, I thought I'd share my favourite scents for summer. I love floral scents pretty much all year round. So I've been trying to diversify, but I'm not sure how much I'v succeeded. My spring/ summer scents tend to be a lot lighter than winter scents, they're not heavy and don't give me a headache if it's too warm. I just want something light to mask my scent on those 'muskier' days, shall we say ha! So I'll explain my choices!

Daisy Eau So Fresh - Marc Jacobs

I've fallen in love with this perfume. I bought it at a bargainous price when 'the perfume man' came into work. So I got a lot of perfume for my money. The bottle is so pretty, and whilst I know Daisy is everyone's kind of go to perfume I've fallen for the hype, and love it. It's very sweet and fresh, and I love how even though it's light, I still smell whiffs of it throughout the day. It smells super summery with the floral smell I love (can't hold me back) and it's very fruity, I think it's definitely for a sweet tooth, and maybe for a younger crowd, but it does suit a lot of people. 

Stella Summer - Stella McCartney

As a big fan of the Stella perfumes, whenever a limited addition comes out I whip it up quick as a flash. I've had the Stella Sheer, which is lovely. And whilst I think the Sheer is a prettier bottle, you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover. Or a perfume... by it's bottle... I guess!? This is lovely. It has the Stella smell of Rose, but again, is very similar to Eau So Fresh in the sense that it incorporates the fruitiness and sweetness, like apples and lemons, that is more associated with summer. Hence the name! I just got it! This has been retailing for about £38 for 100ml and I'm thinking of buying another bottle for next summer as I think it leads really nicely from Stella.

CKIN2U - Calvin Klein

I've worn this for years as it's so cheap and a great handbag perfume to spritz on during the day. It's very citrusy and light, which I've noticed brings in the men 'wink wink'. Everytime I wear this perfume a guy has been like 'You smell amazing' from work colleagues to friends. Whilst I don't think that you need approval from a man, at all, quite the opposite. I like that this appeals to everyone and is a very yummy smell indeed, it's very clean and whilst it doesn't last long on the skin I can smell it on my clothes the day after and I find that quite a comforting warming smell.

So, those are my three scents I'll be wearing this Summer. Hope I've reviewed one that maybe you'd like to try and let me know what your picks are for Summer! 

Gem xo

I Desperately Need An Injection of Colour!

Seriously not over this hot weather yet, at all! I can do with less people with no tops on but honestly I'm loving it. I spent a lot of my weekend with my family, and activities included winning a quiz night on Saturday, not taken off my medal yet, and a family BBQ yesterday. I do love my family, and especially my auntie because I know she reads this. Stop reading Joanne! Anyway the only thing I'm struggling with is, is trying to inject a bit of colour into my wardrobe. I have the orange Zara bag which I'm yet to wear but I think it'd go amazing with this outfit in particular. It was love at first sight when I saw this printed maxi skirt in Primark. It keeps me cool, but looks really on trend. I think it'd look amazing with a coral t-shirt or boob tube on a summer holiday. It's quite large and I'd say it would happily fit a size 24, as it's still fairly loose on me with a very stretchy waistband. I hope they have some more colours as they're a really easy thing to wear, and I'll be snapping them up! I wore chunky jewellery and sandals to glam it up a little bit. 

Skirt - Primark

T-Shirt - Marks and Spencers

Belt - ASOS Curve

Necklace and Shoes - Primark

Gem xo

Wildest Moments

Helloo, so the week is over again. Hopefully we'll have the same sunny weather we've had this week this weekend too! I know this isn't appropriate for dress down Friday's at work! But I really wanted to share another amazing body con midi dress. I've never been one for body con, as I've never felt confident in one, and when I bought this dress to wear during the summer without tights, I thought it'd be good as it's cotton and would be light if it were hot in the office. I did not think I'd be happy to wear it and I thought as it would be tight I'd use it as a last resort if I were boiling. I did not realise how much I'd love wearing this dress, how cool and unclingy it is and how comfortable I feel wearing it. The length sits really nicely just below the knee and it tapers in, almost like a pencil dress. I love wearing it with a skinny belt. And I honestly can't rave enough about this dress and hope H&M plus bring out a few more styles. Maybe a tropical print one *hint hint*. The panel down the front makes for a difference to my usual all black ensembles and I love the animal print. I paired it with black slip ons for the office and the red lip. But these red shoes turn the dress ultra sexy! (In my humble opinion anyway). I doubt I could last all day in these heels but they go really well with the dress. Pardon my wonky smudged lipstick! Hope everyone has a lovely weekend lovely ladies!

Dress - H&M

Necklace - Primark

Shoes - New Look (Old)

Gem xo

What I Got For My Birthday!

Just thought I'd pop on what I got for my birthday. Now I don't want this to come off as if I'm bragging at all. But I apologise if it does. Now 23 is not a special age at all! It comes creeping up on you, and it's kind of the age of responsibility, maturity. Borrrrrring. I'm still 21 at heart I promise! So I got a few clothes bits from Primark, you've seen the t-shirt in my last outfit post. And I love it. I bought it mainly to go with this pencil skirt. I think with some chunky heels it'd look great as a monochrome outfit on a night out. Maybe an idea for an outfit post. I got some little Clinique face goodies, a recipe book, some bits of make up and nail varnish and perfume. Plus a lovely ring that I've not taken off. But the two things that I am most most most grateful for are my orange bag, which I was searching high and low for. I needed something to bring some colour into my outfits for summer, and this is just the thing. I love it so much, I'm planning a 'What's in my bag?' post as I haven't done one in a while. And lastly, but no means least...ly(!?) is my iPad!! I looooveees it, even more than the bag. It's taken over my mac as favourite gadget. It's something I would never ever buy myself as it's such a frivolous buy. But I wanted one so I thought I'd request it for my birthday, never thinking it would happen as it's very extravagant. I'm on it all the time now, mainly using it to read blogs, twitter (although I'm shite at tweeting!) and reading magazines. If anyone has any other suggestions for great apps, fun or useful, let me know!!

Gem xo

Carnival Day!

So a bit of a summery post! Yesterday me and my mum and a couple of friends wandered over to the park that is near my house where they hold the annual Birchwood Carnival! It's been a part of my child hood but usually it rains. So when we saw the sun shining yesterday we took full advantage. We had a go at old fashioned tombola's and coconut shy's. We met  little lambs and chickens, and even a racoon. I know it sounds like the perfect day out for a three year old but I love going! There was still a chill in the air and a cool breeze so I couldn't get too naked. But I wore this little ensemble. I've been itching to wear this vintage Levi's shirt I picked up in Birmingham market. There were loads, and they also had plenty of vintage Burberry macs for a good price! It was a tad smelly so I've had to wash it twice to get the smell out but now it's good to go. I love the look of stripes and denim together so I'm on the lookout for a black and white t-shirt dress to wear when it gets warmer. Actually scratch that, I have a black and white midi dress that will be perfect! As you can see I also have a new addition to my face, a full fringe. I can't get used to it and I'm struggling to style it but I do like it, more so when my hair is straight. So, when I'm quite done rambling, I hope everyone had a lovely weekend and took advantage of the sun!

Jeans - Dorothy Perkins

T-shirt - Primark

Boots - Topshop

Necklace - Dorothy Perkins 

Shirt - Levi's

Gem xo

Selfridges Summer Beauty Bazaar 2013

Last Thursday night I was lucky enough to go to the Summer beauty event at Selfridges in the Trafford Centre. My friends mum was going to pick up some bits so it turned into a girly night with lots of money spent and a well deserved Nandos. Now, the Selfridges beauty hall is hotter than the sun. So I usually can't spend more than five minutes in there without running for any air conditioned shop I can find, even if it is some properly chavvy shop. But with the offer of freebie products, free make overs and facials, snow cones, popcorn and smoothies, I had to stay until they were dragging us out. (Not really, spicy chicken was calling my name). I didn't really go in the home of getting anything but I picked up a fair bit, including some freebies! My first round of freebies were lots (about ten) of perfume testers which have found their way into my office drawer. Next up I found the Nars counter and with my ten pound off voucher I picked up my favourite base, their tinted moisturiser, and my first Nars Multiple. I opted for Orgasm as I thought the colour would be best for Summer and the highlighter would come in handy. I then headed to Chanel where I bought my first Chanel lipstick, obviously a classic red. I couldn't go wrong. I then picked up a Nails Inc colour, they're my favourite nail polish brand really, their polishes are so easy to use. This pale grey purple is perfect for the office. My last stop was Bobbi Brown. I've recently run out of erase paste and wanted to try a new concealer. I like potted concealers for some strange reason, and this comes with a little setting powder. Now onto more freebies I won some L'ancome toner in a lucky dip they had going on, but my friends mum won this cleanser. I jumped at the chance to swap as I have millions of un used toners as I always go back to the same ones. And I love a good cleanser, so that was amazing. She also kindly gave my some very pricy Creme de la Mer to try. So I feel proper posh upmarket slapping that on me face! It was a great girly evening, and would recommend it to anyone if they hear of one coming up in their area! 

Gem xo

Birthday Dress

So today is my birthday. I've had a really lovely day with my parents. I went to Birmingham and I made a few cheeky purchases and finished the day with a good ol' Wagamamas courtesy of the bank of the parentals. But first I thought I'd share the dress I bought myself for my birthday. I bought it with mind of going out on a night out. I originally bought it thinking it was going to be a lot shorter, as ASOS Curve describe it as a t-shirt dress. Now I did size up as I wanted it a bit baggier, but I'm fairly tall. At 5ft 7/8 dresses are usually a tad short over the bum area and on my legs. But this dress is super long. As you can see it's much more like a midi dress. I was initially annoyed as I thought, great I'm going to have to alter it. But after trying it on, I really like this style and length of dress. It clings to me in all the right places. And I hate to use the word but it ends at a really flattering length just below my knees. I know I'll definitely be able to wear it in summer without tights as I dislike getting my thighs out. But yes, well done ASOS Curve your cock up has provided me with a perfect dress! I love the skull print, and the as you know I love a good grey marl! Anyway I paired it with my chelsea heeled boots, a must for a night out as the only heels I'll wear out now as they're the only ones I can walk in! And a chunky necklace. I must say I do think this dress suits me! I am looking forward to sharing my birthday purchases. Including a not so quiet orange Zara bag! Happy Birthday to me woohooo.

Dress - ASOS Curve

Necklace - Dorothy Perkins

Tights - M&S

Boots - ASOS

Gem xo