HUGE haul - Spring wardrobe!

Hello friends!

Today is the first day of spring, so first of all, happy spring! 

I can barely refrain myself from having a cheeky peak into people’s shopping baskets when I’m in the queue at Tesco, so you can imagine my excitement when someone posts a good haul for me to nose through. Lately I’ve been feeling so bored with all my clothes, and like I have nothing to wear and no particular style which always makes me feel a bit run down. I haven’t really made many new additions to my wardrobe recently, and as spring is on its merry way I thought it was about time to freshen it up a little. I don’t want you to think I’ve gone insane by buying this many things in one go, with clothes I tend to save up for a while and keep my eye out for the type of things I want then do a one off military-style sweep of every shop within a ten mile radius until I locate exactly what I want for the cheapest price possible. The things I’ve gone for should see me through spring and into summer and, inspired by Gok, I’ve tried to go for items that I can mix and match so it’s all nice and easy for me to throw something on for a 9am lecture and still feel stylish. Some of them are just basics that I needed for one reason or another, but I hope you enjoy reading.

New Look                                                                                                                                               

I’m absolutely loving all the ‘spiritual’ style things that are popping up in shops recently, and when I saw these t-shirts in New Look it was love at first sight. I really do appreciate that some of these symbols and things are not just passing fashions but representations of people’s values and beliefs, so I always make sure that I understand exactly what they mean and where they come from and do a little reading before hand. I don’t really subscribe to any religions but I find things like this so interesting.  

Hand of Fatima top: £12.99, New Look

Absolutely love the colour of this top, makes me feel summery already. The Hand of Fatima (or Hamsa) is said to predate Christianity and Islam, and goes by a few different names although Fatima was the name of Muhammad’s daughter. They are said to provide protection from the evil eye if facing upwards, and represent good luck and God’s blessings if downward.

Yin and yang top: £9.99, New Look

As soon as I saw this boyfriend style Yin and Yang top, I knew we just had to be together. It was definitely meant to be because it was the last one left in the shop! Yin and Yang are Chinese symbols of opposite, but complementary forces found in everything from femininity and masculinity to darkness and light.

Zodiac T shirt: £6.99, New Look

And finally I got this astrological chart top, showing the 12 signs of the zodiac. I thought this was really cool and unusual.

ASOS                                                                                                                                                          

Leather skinnies: £15, ASOS

I’ve been after the perfect pair of leather skinnies for longer than I care to think about, and I came across these bad boys from ASOS in the sale! They were exactly how they looked on the website and I’m so so so pleased with them, they’re trouser style so fine to wear with short tops, skinny fit, and the detailing and matte-effect makes them look like real leather even though they’re not. They’ll go with everything and not bad at all for £15!

Primark                                                                                                                                                  

Skull jumper: £10, Primark

I thought this skull jumper was really unusual and looks like something you might find in Topshop for about 5 times the price! It’s quite thin so it’ll be good for Spring and the 90s-esque almost-crop style is going to look amazing with high waist jeans or shorts. 

Black jumper: £5, Primark (reduced)

                                                       Essential black jumper!

Knitted vest: £6, Primark

I love this for Spring because of the contrast between the knit and the vest style top. I have a sneaking suspicion that this might go fantastically well with my leather ASOS skinnies. 

Midi dress: £7, Primark

I’m not entirely sure how I’m going to style this midi dress (falls just below the knee) or how flattering it will be, but I'm going to give it a go!

Maxi skirt: £8, Primark

Maxi skirt: £8, Primark

These skirts are so perfect for throwing on in spring or summer with a t-shirt for day or even a little vest or bralet for the evening. They’re so easy yet so stylish, I have a similar black one that I pretty much lived in last summer.

Closed toe sandals: £12, Primark

Half way between shoes and sandals. So perfect for those inbetweeny days that don’t call for shoes but aren’t quite warm enough to get your toes out! 

Bracelets: £1.50, Primark

And I adore these bracelets for £1.50, they’re so unique and will match my tops and earrings perfectly to jazz up my basics.

H&M                                                                                                                                                         

T shirt: £3.99, H&M

T shirt: £3.99, H&M

Boyfriend T shirt: £7.99, H&M

T shirt: £3.99, H&M

 Basic t-shirts in pretty simple colours that I can throw on with my skirts or jeans.

T shirt dress: £7.99, H&M

And finally I picked up this simple grey T shirt dress. I have the black version of this and they’re so easy to wear with bare legs and sandals or tights if it’s cooler. 

So I’m all set for Spring, now I’m just hoping the weather will keep up with me! Hope you enjoyed reading, let me know if you’ve picked up any spring things recently or any good bargains, and if you’ve just done a haul of your own then please link me below so I can read yours too!

Loves loves

Sophie xxx

Outfit of the evening & Zucca Plymouth mini restuarant review

Hey guys, Sophie here J

I’ve been more ill this weekend than I think I've ever been in my life! I've ached all over, had the worst headache, my face felt like it had been punched repeatedly, my nose can no longer be used for breathing, etc. etc. So I’ve spent most of my weekend lying in the same position trying to keep living. Today I have finally summoned the strength to sit upright and type so I thought I’d come and do a little bit of blogging to cheer me up. I promise this post isn’t just a tale of woe, I’ve got a little outfit of the evening for you.

This was from a few weeks ago when my boyfriend and I had a little dinner date. Usually we’ll just go to the cinema or for a pub meal or a Nandos or something, so as we hadn’t done it in a while, we decided to go all out and really dress up and pick a nice place to stuff ourselves silly. As you may have guessed I did not pick appropriate attire for this.

My dress is from Warehouse and was a gift from my dad quite a while ago now. Warehouse may be my all time favourite place for occasion dresses – I would never spend hundreds of pounds on a dress and the Warehouse ones are still quite pricey but justifiably so for birthdays and such as they’re excellent quality and always feel so special. The one I’m wearing here is a silvery metallic grey, almost like a shiny gunmetal colour which is brilliant as metallics are always popping back on trend for most seasons. The neck and chest area is made up of dark embroidered beads (none of which have fallen off) on black lace, which is repeated around the waist, and there’s a bow at the back in the silver colour. Like most Warehouse dresses, it fits like a dream (at least it does before your 5 course meal!), it’s a lovely length and there’s a lovely scoop type thing going on at the back. I think every girl deserves a pretty, sparkly, go-to dress like this for when you want to feel extra special. As the dress was the star of the show I paired it with my very pretty (very high) nude wedges and matching nude clutch (on the piano seat) from New Look and kept jewellery to a minimum with a few bracelets, stud earrings and my watch.

I must apologise for the pictures here (or lack of). I did take loads but during the process of transferring them from my camera card to my laptop they got deleted by forces unknown L These are the only two that survived!

 

  My boyfriend donned a pair of dark brown suit trousers and a white shirt for the occasion, with some shoes and a grey tailored coat. We’d asked around our friends for recommendations on a good restaurant, I wanted to go to the Barbican which is one of my favourite parts of Plymouth. In the end we chose Zucca as a few people had good things to say about it. I’m not entirely sure whether Zucca is on the Barbican itself or the harbour next to it, but we sat by the window and had lovely views of the boats on the water regardless. The restaurant itself is very well presented, it’s quite snazzy looking but there’s a lovely atmosphere as the staff were so friendly. There weren’t many people in, just a few other tables and although I usually prefer restaurants to be a little busier, I don’t feel like this hurt the vibe at all. It also meant that the staff were extra attentive to us and we were never left with an empty glass or finished plate. The food was amazing, all really well presented and delicious, and the portions were huge! We ordered appetisers, starters, main courses and a desert not realising that they give you breads to start off with too, so we had gained about twice our body weights before we left and ended up taking most of our mains home with us. All in all we had such a lovely evening, we couldn’t fault the service at all and the food was delicious, I strongly recommend Zucca if you’re ever in Plymouth wondering where to go for a meal.

Click here for more information about Zucca and menus and such. 

 I think that’s all folks, thank you for reading! I was going to do a more detailed restaurant review but I didn’t know how interesting that would be and I forgot to take pictures of the food L (too busy eating it!) but I hoped you enjoyed reading anyway. Do let me know if you’ve been to any nice restaurants lately as we’re always looking for new places to go!

Love you lots

Sophie xxx

Something for the weekend

Hey guys, here’s a look I put together to meet some friends I hadn’t seen in far too long for Bella Italia and drinks.

Urban Decay Book of Shadows IV

I did a goldy browny smokey eye using my Urban Decay Book of Shadows IV, this was originally around £40 from Urban Decay at Debenhams - as far as I know they don’t carry it anymore but you might be able to find one knocking around Ebay or somewhere! 

I used Baked, Bust, Sin and Midnight rodeo:

Swatches of Urban Decay eyeshadows in Baked, Bust, Sin and Midnight Rodeo (Left to right)

Baked is a gorgeous shimmery, brassy gold with orangey undertones, ‘Bust’ is a really soft, satin medium brown with pinky-purpley undertones, ‘Sin’ is a beautiful soft shimmery rose pink, and ‘Midnight rodeo’ is a shimmery medium brown with glitter particles.

Here’s what I did:

• Smoothed some Urban Decay Primer Potion (in Original - £14.50) over my eyelid with my finger, as I find that UD shadows work best and last longer with their primer underneath.
• Packed Baked onto my lid with a packing brush, and really layered it up to get a strong colour, all the way from my lash line to my socket line.

• Blended Bust into the outer corners and about half way across my socket line with my trusty Mac 239, winging it out slightly.
•  Took some Bust underneath the eye to add some definition.
• Tight-lined my upper waterline in a black eyeliner (Smolder by Mac - £14.00) and a really thin line of a dark brown kohl (Black Brown by Elizabeth Arden) on the top lash line, which I really smudged out and blended up into the shadow.
• If I could find my nude kohl pencil I would have used this on my lower waterline!
• Finished off with plenty of black mascara (Maybelline The Falsies Black Drama - £7.99)
• and just a touch of Urban Decay Sin as a highlight on my brow bone, blended down into the shadow underneath with a clean 239.

And here’s my face!

I went for my current favourite pinky nude lipstick – Hue by Mac (£14.00) and topped off with a super thick, light-reflecting gloss:  Angel Food Cake by Bare Minerals, as it’s so wet looking and glossy (if a little sticky!).

I wore one of my new black shift dresses (as discussed here) with lacy shoulder panels and ¾ sleeves.

I let my hair fall loose in my usual messy natural curls and finished off the look with my trusty black heeled shoe boots (New Look).

Thanks for reading guys I hope you liked the look! What are your plans for the weekend??

Sophie xxx

Cheeky little haul

Hey guys! Sophie here, just thought I’d share with you a few bits that I’ve picked up over the past week or so.

Dangly gold and silver cross earrings - £1 each pair, Primark; 12-pack stud earrings - £2.50, Primark; Rimmel 60 Seconds Nail colour in Caramel Cupcake - £2.99, Superdrug; Rimmel Scandaleyes Kohl Kajal pencil in Nude - £2.99, Superdrug; Rimmel Professional Eyebrow Pencil in Hazel - £2.99, Superdrug

I went to uni as usual last Friday and accidently came back with 4 new dresses. They’re all little black ones, and all 3 quarter or long sleeves which are perfect for the colder months. I was only going to pop into H&M just for a little browse (honest) but the following 3 dresses were on sale for £10 each – would have been rude not to!

   

Leather shoulder black shift dress - £10, H&M sale

Leather shoulder black shift dress - £10, H&M sale

Leather shoulder black shift dress - £10, H&M sale

This first one is a shift dress, meaning it hangs straight down from the shoulders. I absolutely love shift dresses as I like to pretend that it’s the 1960s. The visible silver zip at the back and leather effect patches on the shoulders give the otherwise plain style a bit of jazz – I will forever love leather and this is a flirty little nod towards it.  

I adore this next dress, it’s not what I usually go for but I’m so glad I did. Seeing it on the hanger here really doesn’t do it justice but here goes:

Black fitted dress - £10, H&M sale

Black fitted dress - £10, H&M sale

 

 

 

H&M black fitted dress - sleeve detail

 

  

It’s really low cut but balanced out beautifully by the long sleeves and the length as it falls to my lower thigh. It's very fitted, especially around the waist, but definitely isn't bodycon. I think this one’s an 8 – I’m usually a size 6000 in H&M as their clothes are always so inexcusably tiny, but I was lucky with this as it fits perfectly.

Lace shoulder shift dress - £10, H&M sale

Lace shoulder shift dress - £10, H&M sale

Another simple black shift, livened up a bit with the lace detail on the shoulders. This one hangs beautifully so it looks really elegant and pretty when worn. Ideal to throw on for an impromptu drink or two.

 

I picked up this next one thinking it was also on sale, it actually turned out to be full price (oopsie) but I really like it so I think it’s worth the £29.99 I paid.

 

Gold stud shift dress - £29.99, H&M

Gold stud shift dress - £29.99, H&M.

Another 3 quarter sleeve, high neck shift dress (are you sensing a pattern?) but this one has these pretty understated gold studs along the neckline. The reason I fell in love with this one was the back:

Gold stud shift dress - £29.99, H&M

Gold stud shift dress - £29.99, H&M

Can not wait to wear this with a messy bun to show it off!

 

Rimmel 60 seconds nail colour in Caramel Cupcake - £2.99, Superdrug; Rimmel Scandaleyes Kohl Kajal Eyeliner in Nude - £2.99, Superdrug; Rimmel Professional Eyebrow Pencil in Hazel - £2.99, Superdrug.

 I also slipped on a banana peel and landed in Superdrug.

Rimmel Scandaleyes Kohl Kajal in Nude - £2.99, Superdrug.

This nude eyeliner has quickly become a staple of mine: bigger, brighter, opened up eyes with no white liner in sight? Yes, yes please. 

Rimmel Professional Eyebrow Pencil in Hazel - £2.99, Superdrug

 I also got this Rimmel eyebrow pencil in hazel, as I needed a new one. Really liking this so far, the colour is excellent for me and it’s soft enough to go on easily but hard enough to last. The little comb on the lid is useful too although I do prefer a spoolie!

Rimmel 60 Seconds nail colour in Caramel Cupcake - £2.99, Superdrug.

  Loving Rimmel, also got this 60 seconds nail varnish in a nude colour (Caramel Cupcake). These are my all time favourite varnishes as I usually find doing my nails a real chore, I physically can’t sit still long enough for them to dry. These are really quick drying (maybe a little over 60 seconds), really quick and easy to apply due to the big flat brush, and you can usually get full coverage in one coat. I also find that these varnishes last quite a bit longer than others without chipping. You do need to work quickly with them though: the reason they are so quick to dry is because they are formulated so thickly.

I hate having bare or messy nails, so this nude is an ideal wear-every-day, goes-with-everything shade. Here it is on:

 

And finally I’ve got a few items of jewellery to show you. They’re all from Primark and amazingly cheap, I had to pop in after Jenn told me how good their jewellery is at the moment. She wasn't wrong!

12-pack stud earrings - £2.50, Primark; Silver dangly cross earrings - £1, Primark; Gold dangly cross earrings - £1, Primark

12-pack stud earrings - £2.50, Primark

Iwill never get over the fact that these 12 beauties cost me £2.50!! I’d just like to point out that Jenn got these first and posted them on instagram, so I feel a bit cheeky putting them in my haul, hopefully she won’t mind! I think I’m most excited about the little Buddhas and hands of Fatima.

Buddha and eye studs - Primark; Rose gold effect cuff - £2, River Island

I had my second ear lobe piercings done 6 weeks ago and today I was finally able to change the studs!  I went for the Buddhas and the little eyes, are these the evil eye sumbol, I'm not sure? I'm really wanting a 3rd one now but I'm running out of ear space! I got the rose-gold coloured cuff I'm wearing here from River Island in a set of three (gold, rose gold and silver colours) for £2!

Silver dangly cross earrings - £1, Primark

Also from Primark, I got these really pretty, dainty silver cross earrings.

Gold dangly cross earrings - £1, Primark

And I don’t usually wear gold (bar my beloved Michael Kors) but for £1 a pair I indulged!

That's all for now but I'm sure I'll have some more things to show you soon enough! Have you found any good bargains recently? Let me know!

Sophie xxx