Life lately: Reading and writing

Hello!

Autumn is well and truly upon us and I am trying to adjust accordingly.  I try not to let the overcast weather get me down too much by distracting myself with the cosier things in my life.  It's nice to be snuggled up in my apartment and finally make use of all the crafty bits and bobs I buy myself and then neglect for too long.  In summer I'm obsessed with being outside.  If it's sunny I have to be outside and can't stand been cooped up indoors so I suppose now is time to enjoy life indoors!

I wanted to share this super cute 5 year diary my boyfriend bought me about a month ago.  I've been staring at them in the bookshop for absolutely ages but because I knew I could get one much cheaper back in England I never bought it.  Well I think he had had enough of me staring at them and one day he came in to work with one as a surprise gift!

The cover design and inside is just gorgeous.  The edges of the pages are lined with gold.

You answer a different question that is at the top of each page for every day of the year, for 5 years, and see how your ideas change over the time. 

I've enjoyed writing in it even more than I thought I would!  I think it would make a great gift.  They are produced by a company called Potter Style and I think you can buy them on Amazon in the UK.

Today I've been suffering from really bad stomach cramps so my lovely boyfriend bought me Vogue to read when he went to do the food shopping.  Another surprise gift!  I know I'm a very lucky girl :)

The horrible weather is another great excuse to cosy up with a magazine. There's even ballet on the cover!

Here's a peak at my knitting too.  I'm trying to knit a cosy throw for winter.  I have a feeling it's going to take me a long time though!  I'm knitting with mohair wool which feels luxurious!  I have to knit 2 then pearl 2 and I keep losing track of where I am!

What do you do to feel cosy when the weather gets colder?

Until next time, stay cosy :)

Twirlybirdie

Too Faced Glamour to Go Pocket Palette : Review

Hi there!

Recently I have become obsessed with the Too Faced make-up range.  It only recently arrived in department stores here and it really stands out, mostly because of it's super cute packaging!

I've been playing around with the testers for weeks but unwilling to splash out on anything because of the price.  In the end I decided that one of these Glamour to Go Pocket Palettes would be the best value for money and I would get to try out a few different products in one go.

Firstly the packing I'm such a sucker for.  It's so girly and cute and I love the small, portable size of this palette.  It's great that it has a mirror and a good range of 8 different eye shadows.  There is also a pretty pink blusher, a bronzer and a lip gloss.  The one thing it is missing is a set of brushes.  So you will have to carry something with you to apply the make-up with if you're taking this to use on the go.

My favourite colours to use so far in the palette are the bronze/gold or the pink eye shadows during the day.  They are both quite iridescent subtly shimmery shadows.  I like the brown shadow which is quite matte and natural looking but I've not used matte shadow much in the past and need to experiment with it a bit more.  The white shadow seems to be between a matte and a shimmer.  There is a plummy/grey shadow, a silver shadow, a dark grey and a black.  There are shadows in the palette for both day and night and I've even used them for my stage make-up!

I like the light pink blush, it's a natural and subtle pink.  I don't really know how to use bronzer but it's a pretty sparkly brown/gold which I'm sure would look great for summer.

The lip gloss is a transparent and sweet smelling shimmer.  I don't wear lip gloss normally but I can imagine I might use a dab of this in the middle of my lips over some lipstick for a night out.

I've not owned this palette for long but I've been enjoying using it most days since I bought it!  I wish I could afford to test out other products from this brand.

Otherwise I have been trying to cope with the colder weather and earlier nights.  I think it is time to get out the candles to try to cheer myself up about the end of summer!

Till next time :)

Twirlybirdie

Life lately; settling in to autumn

Hi there.

I hope your week is going well.  It's been getting very cold and autumnal over here with many many grey days and just the occasional bout of sunshine.  Yesterday the sun was out so I decided to make the most of it and took my camera out for a walk.  I have an obsession of taking pictures of trees.  I find them so beautiful, particularly in the sunshine and when the leaves are changing colour.

Leaves on the ground

Red berries in the trees

I love a good solar flare!

Some of the houses are beautiful in the sunlight

Sunny yellow house!

There are some quirky shops on our street.  One selling second hand furniture and the other some sort of pottery shop which has very recently opened.

Then we popped in to a little Jazz cafe we hadn't been to before for coffee.

I spotted this cute post office sign on the way home.

Today the weather has been overcast and miserable so to make up for it I'm trying to get autumnal by making sweet potato chips and trying to take up knitting again to make a mohair throw.  It's a bit of a disaster at the moment though and I think I've restarted it about three times.  I'll let you know how it goes!

I'm going to go and get on with eating my chips now!

Until next time :)

Twirlybirdie xxx

The Balm Stainiac in Prom Queen: Review

Here is another new product I bought to try in the sales.  I haven't used a lip stain in ages as I've been trying to make myself wear my lipsticks more often.  My lips are naturally really pale and normally I wouldn't wear a lipstick to work so I've been wanting to find something that will add just a little bit of natural colour.

I saw the Stainiac lip and cheek stains in the sale here and decided that the shade 'Prom Queen' would look the most natural on my lips.

I really like this product.  It's very natural looking on my lips but I think it can be built up if you want a brighter stain.  I wear just a small amount on my lips to work and don't feel over done like I would do with lipstick.  I'm glad I bought this product and wish I had got another shade to try when they were on offer!

I think you can see the colour looks really natural in these photos.

I bought a two faced Glamour to go palette yesterday which I'm looking forward to testing out and reviewing soon!

Till next time! :)

Twirlybirdie

Clinique blusher review: Blushing Blush Powder Blush in Pink Love

Hello!

Are you having a lovely weekend?  It was pretty grey and cold here in the early part of the day but now it's sunny and gorgeous!  I've decided to write some posts about some make-up products that I've been enjoying lately.  This one is about a Clinique blusher that I've been using called Pink Love.

This blusher was given to me by my very glamorous grandmother.  I never usually wear blusher, especially powder blusher which for some reason has always struck me as old fashioned.  As a ballet dancer I tend to be exercising and going rosy plenty enough with out needing any extra help!  I decided to give this a go as it looks so pretty and the colour was so very me with it's bright pinkness and gold flecks.

I really like this blusher.  I don't need to use much to create a natural looking flush as the colour is so bright.  It's a quick and easy way to brighten up my face when I put it on in the morning.

I'm glad I decided to try this out.  I love the compact too and it's useful mirror on the inside!

Do you use blusher or have a favourite shade at the moment?

Till next time,

Twirlybirdie :)

Cath Kidston glasses case

Hello!  I hope your week is going well.  I wanted to show you some pictures of this great new glasses case I bought in the summer sale at Cath Kidston.

I had had the same case since I was 15 years old when I got my first pair of glasses.  I had even lost the cleaning cloth for it a while back and the case was looking pretty ragged so it was time for a change!

I often think replacing things like this that have a case already is a waste of money but I'm really glad I bought this.  It's really pretty and came with a cleaning cloth so it's good to have one of those again!

Till next time

Twirlybirde :)

Mondays are pretty little dress days

Hello, I hope you have had a great start to the week.

Sat here in my kitchen the sun is streaming in through the window which is always nice.  I've managed to convince myself to try to start drinking green tea again and I'm impressed with how well I've been doing with it.  I actually don't mind the taste as much as I used to.  I think I've got the hang of making it now so that it doesn't taste too bitter.

Wth that my health kick is well under-way as I try to shape up for the performing season starting in October.

On Monday it was a warm day which I decided I had to make the most of before the hard long winter begins.  So I wore this cute little tea dress by A-wear which my boyfriend bought for me as a surprise off of Asos.  He does know my style finally after four years!

I bought this bag in May.  It's quite useful as it has lots of pockets which means I'm not always loosing my things in my bag.  It is a bit heavier than my cute little Cath Kidston one though!

I dyed my hair this weekend with L'oreal Casting Cream Gloss hair dye in Spicy Chocolate or Chocolate Chilli depending on which country you're in!  It's shade 544.  I'm really pleased with it as it's quite subtle.  My hair was a bit redder before and now it's a slightly darker brown red.  I hope it lasts a little while as the last time I dyed my hair a brown shade it faded faster than when I dye my hair red.

Sadly it isn't actually summer any more so I brought this cardigan out with me to keep warm.  I bought it this weekend from a shop called Springfield which I'd never been to before! They have some cute things, this cardigan was only 15 euros in the sale.

So that's my outfit post for today.  I hope you have a great Tuesday!

Twirlybirdie :)