LOTD

My new vintage jacket arrived in the post the other week and the weather was finally warm enough for me to wear it instead of my winter coat! I decided to pair it with my black leggings, a cream jumper and my trusty red scarf. For the first time, I decided to challenge the wind and wear my new topshop pork pie hat. I curled my hair a la Perrie little mix style because I thought that would look best with the hat! Overall I'm very happy with this look :) 

Angle and curve headphones

For my birthday I received these angle and curve headphones. I wanted some new headphones that gave better sound quality than my earphones. 

I have been pleasantly surprised with the quality and look of these :) not only do I love the retro look, but the sound quality is great, especially for the price. They are really comfy and at a great price too! Check out their website https://www.angleandcurve.com/shop/ and let me know what you think :)

Perrie Little Mix Purple Lip style

I recently picked up Perries purple lipstick for Collection 2000. If you didn't know, all four girls from Little Mix have teamed up with Collection 2000 to create their own make up products each, based upon their make up looks. 

So after buying this lipstick, I wanted to try out Perries look and do my very own version.

First of all I applied foundation and loose powder to my face. Next I used my eyebrow colour kit to colour my eyebrows a medium brown colour, fixing it in place with the wax. For the eyes, I used my cream/neutral eyeshadow and used a eyepencil to define just above the lash line before applying mascara. Lastly, I used a lip brush to apply the lipstick (I find this works better and seems to make the lipstick last longer due to the build up of layers) and used a dusting of light pink blusher on my cheeks!

My kit: No7 Beautifully Matte Foundation in Calico, No7 Perfect Light Loose Powder in Fair, GOSH Brow Kit 001, Collection 2000 Shimmer Shades in 2.Blushalicious, No7 Stay Perfect Shadow Palette in 05 Good Earth, Collection Longer Lash Waterproof Mascara in Black, Fearne Cotton Black Mascara (for the lower lashes), Rimmel London Soft Kohl Liner in 061 Jet Black and the Collection 2000 Little Mix Perri Lipstick.

I was very happy with the results and felt as though the lipstick added a punch of colour to my otherwise quite boring outfit. However, the colour was not as bright or light as I had anticipated although I am definitely going to keep using it. I was a bit worried about the staying power because the product is fairly low budget but I am glad to say that it lasted just as long as my normal No7 lipstick (3-6 hours depending on whether you have something to eat :p) so I would be confident to wear this everyday! 

Misguided Skort

My sister ordered this tartan style skort from Misguided but gave it to me because it doesn't fit her properly. Normally I wouldn't pick out this sort of thing for myself but I have to say that I quite like the folded effect at the front and the colours used in this design. For a daytime look I decided to tuck an oversized black jumper into the shorts and wear with plain black tights. I would suggest wearing with some brogues or heeled boots depending on what you'd prefer. Also, if you're shy about adding more colour, it's a good idea to add texture such as a leather jacket and some jewlery.

For a more evening look I suggest a black or white shirt with some black courts or heeled boots. Add a pop of colour by wearing a bright lipstick or eye shadow - perfect for the christmas season! 

Check out my next post for how to achieve my version of Perrie Edwards Little Mix purple lip look :) 

The Student's Way to do Christmas

This week, I've been super busy, what with the last week of uni and with all the Christmas shopping I needed to do. As a student, its very hard to afford lots of nice and unique presents for everyone however, I've had to become more inventive and saver savvy to help me not overspend. I'm going to share some of my best top tips and ways to avoid the Christmas splurge that leaves you broke for New Years.

1. Home-made Gifts:

I'm not a very creative person but if, unlike me, you are a dab hand in the kitchen or with the sewing machine, its always a good idea to make a personalized gift. Its also nice for the recipient to receive something that hasn't been purchased from a shop. Last year, I brought a glass jar and lots of sweets to fill the jar - I brought the person's favourite sweets to make it more personal and special and they were thrilled. Whether it be homemade cookies in a jar, a hand-made card or a cushion, the person who receives it will be thrilled that you spent time (not lots of money) on it.

2. Online Shopping

Websites like Ebay and Amazon are great place to look in the run up to Christmas to find some good deals. Some more expensive make up such as Benefit and Mac can be found cheaper, even if it means buying lots of separate items and arranging them into a gift box - it makes the present feel more individual and you usually end up spending less than if you brought a gift set. I like to do this because I'd rather buy lots of individual items that I know the person will use rather than a set where they probably won't use everything in it. A word of warning though - its easy to get caught up in buzz of shopping online and online auctions. My mantra is: it's only a good deal if i would have considered buying it if it was still full price - there's no point buying something just for the sake of it or because its on offer.

3. Write a List

It sounds simple but write a shopping list of what you aim to buy for each person and for how much and stick to it! If you go shopping without any idea of how much you plan to spend, you end up going crazy and overspending on unwanted items that you normally end up keeping for yourself.

4. Make Use of Vouchers, Offers and Student Discount

I currently use the VoucherCloud app on my phone to find local shopping deals. Today I went to The Works to get some gifts. The shop sells books and various other items at great prices - I managed to get a £12.99 book for £4.99. In addition, I managed to find some great children's books and DVD's. I also used my voucher cloud offer: get 10% off when you spend over £10. Even though its only 10%, I was planning on spending over £10 anyway so it helped me to save a few pounds. Another great shop is Topshop for their accessories. They currently have a sale on some of their jewelry so I brought some nice little earrings and bracelets as some cute little presents for my sister. Topshop is the only store I know that lets you use your student discount on top of the sale price, making the total spent even less so its sometimes worth checking it out because you can end up spending a similar price to what you would have in Primark - yet end up with better quality products.

Don't get me wrong though, I love Primark - perfect for those stocking fillers such as socks, knickers, boxers, slippers, tights, make up bags, purses, small argan oil products and make up for little girls :) For lovely gift sets, Boots and Superdrug are great for bath products, make up sets and perfumes and normally have offers such as 3 for 2 so its worth checking out but some products are pricey so its important to stay focused and not accidentally overspend, even with the offers. Lastly, cheap £1 shops such as Poundland are my go to for any sweets and chocolate based presents. These places are great for more stocking fillers like chocolate coins and Malteaser boxes, you can't go wrong!

I hope this provides some help for those of you out there who have yet to buy your christmas presents.

Han xx

Out and about for christmas

Last Friday, I went to my university christmas ball and wore this lovely backless dress I got off eBay. 

It was so comfortable to wear and the long sleeves kept my arms warm in the cold weather. I wore my trusty red New Look shoes and the Nails inc red nails I previously wrote a post on. In a nod to the Hollywood-esque beauty looks, my hair was curled and worn to one side and  I wore No 7 Stay Perfect Lipstick in Sultry. 

Due to the backless nature of the dress, I ordered the black Natural Feather-Lite stick-on Bra from freebra. I'd read some good reviews about it's staying power so I had high expectations. However, I found it difficult to position meaning that I kept having to peel it off and reapply: this decreased the stickiness of the bra. I didn't feel like it's staying power was great but with a little help from Sellotape the bra stayed in place all night. I'm not sure if I'd wear it again but we'll just have to see. 

Nails inc Katy Perry 'Kate Spade'

So I got this nail varnish free in Glamour magazine this week and thought I'd try it out! Nails inc has always been a favourite of mine and the double decker red seemed like the perfect hue to match the christmas season, so I had high expectations for this. 

After painting on two layers of the varnish, I can confidently say I was very happy with the results. The colour was bright enough without being in your face and the finish was glossy and smooth. I only wore the varnish for two days so I can't comment on how long it lasted but in those two days, there was no chipping. For a magazine freebie, I was extremely happy and would recommend.