Don't Want Your Diamonds

song of the day - Dolls by Primal Scream 

I do have a shalwar, undershirt and dupatta that go with this dress, but at the moment they are hiding from me. 

Oh it's been a long week. I've been ill since Wednesday, which really messed up my plans for yesterday. Thankfully I had the week booked off work anyway, so at least I have been able to relax and mostly get over this cold/flu.
Anyway, I bought this dress (and the rest of the suit) for my cousin's wedding a few years ago. I love the colours, and the layered skirt. As soon as I saw it I knew that it would be my outfit for the wedding (and for some of the other weddings I'd be going to for a few years). 

Sometimes you just need to wear something that swishes.

Rubi
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Hustle For Me

song of the day - Tilt Ya Head Back by Nelly & Christina Aguilera

For the longest time I avoided nude lips, certain that there would never be the right colour for me. Oh how times have changed. Sarah has been raving about MAC's Nice 'n' Spicy lip pencil for so long that I finally decided to check it out, and I just had to buy it. It's the first lip liner that I've bought from MAC, and it will not be the last.
The colour is described as "pink cinnamon stick" on the mac website, and although it's not very pink, I have to agree on the description. It reminds me of the paint colour Burnt Umber.
The pencil applies smoothly, and is fully opaque. You can wear the colour by itself. As a matte pencil it is drying, but a good lip balm can sort that out if you want to wear the pencil with no other colour.

Nice 'n' Spicy is part of the prolong wear range, so at £15 it's a little more expensive than the normal MAC lip pencil range, but totally worth it. I don't own backups of any product, but I'm thinking of getting a backup (or 3) for this one. It is just that good.

I've been wearing it obsessively with MAC's Oxblood and Buxom's White Russian. The three have become my holy trinity of lip products. I wore the three for a 8.30-18.30 shift at work and I only had to touch up once (after eating).
Have you got any MAC lip liners? What's your go-to lip colour at the moment?
Rubi
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Because She's Like A Girl I've Never Seen

song of the day - Granger Danger by Team StarKid

shirt dress - Missguided. top - Primark. jeans - Forever 21. lips - Bauhua5 by KVD.

I told you there would be an outfit post with this top in soon! I'm feeling very chill right now. I have another week off work this week, and it will probably be my last one for a few months. I doubt I'll be as productive this week as I was for my other week off, but you never know.

boots - Bertie

These are my every day boots, and I wear them with pretty much every outfit. I've had them for over a year and they're still going strong. I've seen similar pairs in NewLook, and Forever 21, but I don't feel like they would last as long, at least not with how often I wear them. It will be a sad day for me when these bad boys are no longer wearable.
Do you have a go to pair of boots? Which is your favourite boot brand??
Rubi
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They Told Me The Same

song of the day - Magic by Ladyhawke

camera - canon 550D. lens - canon 50mm f/1.8 ||

At least once a month I'll meet up with my best mate for a brew and a catch up in one of our towns many coffee shops. We'll waste time chatting about this and that, then waste more time mooching round Primark and a plethora of Charity shops. We've been doing this on a regular basis since 2012, and a semi regular basis for a few years before that. Sometimes it's hard to sync our schedules up (because of work), but we always manage to get there in the end.

Rubi
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She Walks Right Through The Door

song of the day - Been Caught Stealing by Janes Addiction

I love the look of jumpsuits, but I only own one. The reason for this is that most don't fit me well. Either they are a little too high in places, or too baggy. When I saw this one I knew that I had to have it, and I managed to nab it for £12 in the Missguided sale. The elasticated waist gives me a bit of shape, and the adjustable straps means that the top part isn't hanging off of me. The only downside is that the material is very fragile. I'm hoping that it will survive a go in the washing machine, but who knows.
The 70's trend that is around at the minute has really caught my eye, and that's what came to mind when I first spotted this jumpsuit. I could just picture it my head; a blouse, thick soled shoes, and this jumpsuit. With a colours reminiscent of Jack and Vera wallpaper, it's doing its part to brighten up my wardrobe.

jumpsuit - Missguided. blouse - Zara.

Are you a jumpsuit fan? Which current trend is your favourite?
Rubi
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People Should Smile More

song of the day - People Should Smile More by Newton Faulkner

I've had this past week off work, and so I decided to take my camera on a few days out. I bought a new lens the other week and wanted to have a bit of practice with it. It's a 50mm lens, so it's been a bit weird for me getting used to not being able to zoom in and out. The autofocus isn't very good, but I've been wanting to be less reliant on autofocus anyway.

focusing fail

On Monday I went to Manchester centre and the weather was not on my side. I was hoping that it would not be raining so I could sit outside for an hour or so and just take photographs. That did not happen. Hopefully when it warms up a bit I can just sit on a bench and take photographs.

The sun came out to play on Tuesday, so I went to Bolton and had a bit of a mooch. I sat on the town hall steps for a bit with a brew, doing a some people watching. I also maybe kinda names a few of the pigeons. It was so nice to just sit there and not have to think about anything but Bob, Gilda, and Jeffrey (aka the pigeons).

On Thursday the sun decided to go into hiding again. It didn't rain though, which was good. Especially since the Global Market was on in Bolton Town centre. My friend and I didn't actually know it was on until we got to town. It was a very happy surprise. I didn't buy much, just some cupcakes, and tulips. We also went to the museum and aquarium, because we are obviously 5.
Today is my last day off, and I'm not sure what I'm going to do yet. Here's hoping whatever I decide is good though.

What did you do this week?

Rubi
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camera - Canon 550D. lens - Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 ||

It's Down To Me

song of the day - Under My Thumb by The Rolling Stones

More than a few subscription boxes have come (and gone) over the past few years, but none have ever really caught my eye. I bought 2 Glossyboxes when they first came out, but they were kind of underwhelming, so I just gave up on them. 

A few months ago I heard about MyLittleBox, a French subscription box that has a few makeup and lifestyle bits in it. I was intrigued to say the least. After umming and ahhing for a few months I decided to subscribe last month, and I have not been let down. Yet. I didn't write a post on last months box because I didn't receive it until late in the month, but I did post photos of the products I received on Instagram.

This months theme is Superheros, and the illustrations that go with the theme are so cute. In this months box the 2 lifestyle items are a tee (there are at least 2 designs available), and some stickers. I'm not sure what I'll do with the stickers, but the tee is so cute. It looks a little big for me, but it'll do. I'm going to be feeling very Space Jam while wearing it.

The one thing that really drew me to this brand were the beauty bits that they include in the boxes. So far there isn't anything that I wouldn't love to try. This month there is a Caudalie hand cream, a Kerastase conditioner, and a MLB lip and cheek colour. Other people have got different items, I've seen a Garnier product floating about, and a MLB lip balm.

I never jumped on the Caudalie bandwagon that was pushing through the blogging world a few years ago, but everyone raves about the brand so hopefully this hand and nail cream will be good. I've had very dry hands this winter, so I'm not sure if this will be heavy duty enough for me, but we can only see.

The Kerastase conditioner is supposed to leave hair feeling silky soft, and looking luminous. I'm not a conditioner girl, because every one that I've used so far has made my hair feel and look greasy. Hopefully this will work better for me.

And finally is the MLB own brand beauty product. This month (for me anyway) it's a lip and cheek colour stick. It's a pretty coral colour, and I think I'll be more likely to use this on my cheeks rather than lips. The texture of it reminds me of the Topshop cream to powder blushes, and hopefully it'll be just as good as them.

Overall it's a pretty good box, and it's a great mid-month pick me up.

Have you subscribed to MLB? Or any other subscription box? Have you tried any of these products before?

Rubi

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Honey Got A Problem

 song of the day - Slow Down by Brand Nubian

I've been trying to stay away from slogan tees, because they just remind of the stuff I'd wear for home clothes day at secondary school. I have not succeeded. Primark do slogan tees so well, and I just can't resist. Today while in town I ended up buying 2. I tried on a few other none-slogan items as well, but they just didn't suit me.
The Dory tee above cost £6, such a bargain. As soon as I saw it I wanted it. Anyone who knows me knows that I have a bad memory, thankfully it's not as bad as Dory's. Yet.

I have finally accepted that I am a Muggle. It's taken a while, but at 23 I'm not going to be getting a (very late) Hogwarts letter. Sob. This sleeveless number was £5. I can't wait to wear it with my Deathly Hallows necklace, and a pair of jeans. Expect an OOTD before the months end.

The only other purchase I made today (that was not food related) was the book Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. I've heard such good things about it, and it was only £1.20 in Cancer Research UK.
Have you made any good Primark purchases recently? Or found any hidden gems in charity shops?
Rubi
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There's No Way I Could Pay You Back

song of the day - Dear Mama by 2Pac

gift bag bought from Card Factory

With mothers day so close I thought I'd join the hoards of bloggers doing gift guides by doing one myself. This is pretty much what I've bought my mum for mothers day either this year, or in previous years.

For the bast 5 years I've bought my mum flowers from Bunches for different occasions (mainly mothers days and birthdays), and they have never let me down. The above bouquet is called the Damson Delight XL, which I bought for mum last year. The bouquets are long lasting (over 2 weeks), and well put together. In 2012 I bought my mum a Peace Lily from this website, and it's still going strong.

This year I wanted to go with something a bit more personal for my mum. So, after sorting through my photographs I put together a photo book for her. It has photos of me and my three siblings, as well as a few flowers. There are plenty of websites out there that will produce these, and I went with Boots. I can't wait to see my mums face when she sees the book. Thankfully mum doesn't read my blog, so she can't sneak a peek on here.

Chocolate always makes a great gift in my family. As my mum loves coconut too I bought her some Coconut Bombes from Hotel Chocolat, as well as some Shortbread Cookie Caramels.

A few other gift ideas include candles, bath smellies, and a nice day out. Mums always seem to appreciate spending a nice day with their kids.

What have you bought your mum for Mothers day? Do you have any other good gift ideas for mums?

Rubi
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Step Out Tonight

song of the day - Step Out by Oasis

A few weeks ago MAC released a new collection (as they constantly seem to do) designed in collaboration with Isabel and Ruben Toledo. I've been waiting for this collection since I saw the promo photos on Temptalia's blog in January. The main reason I was attracted to this collection was because of the blush ombre's, they look so pretty. Sadly the shade I wanted was sold out. I did manage to get one of the lipsticks though.

I went for Oxblood, which contrary to the name is a nude. This seems to be the most popular colour from the collection, and it's sold out on the majority of websites. If you can find it I'd definitely recommend buying it. It's paler/more peachy on the lips, than it is in the bullet.

Oxblood is a matte, and described on the MAC website as a light peach nude, which it is. This is the type of colour that I would wear to work, because it's not in your face but still very pretty. As you can see in the picture above it's a very natural colour.

I'm not the biggest fan of MAC's matte formula, but with a hydrating lip balm underneath this colour goes on very smoothly. It lasts an alright amount of time (over 3 hours), and the pigmentation is pretty good. Then again, mattes usually are.
Have you made any purchases from any of the recent MAC collections? Are you a nude or bold (lipstick) kind of person?
Rubi
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You Used To Be My Romeo

song of the day - Romeo by Basement Jaxx

I don't do very girly often, maybe a few times a year. I'm usually not attracted to florals, but I honestly couldn't resist this dress. The mix of colours is just perfect, they actually reminds me of a sunset. I bought this dress in the sales last year, and I've only worn it a handful of times (if that). It is stunning, but a bit too formal for my usual everyday wardrobe.
I love the structure of this dress, the lines and pleats are perfection (gum would be perfection).
The only down side to this dress is that the zip is in the back. Seriously, you should have seen my try to do it up by myself. I was tempted to do a Phoebe and go out with it down until I saw someone who could zip me up.

dress - Warehouse. leggings - Primark.

(yes, I'm using this photo again)

Do you prefer bright floral prints or monochrome? Have you ever been bested by a zip (please let me not be the only one!)?
Rubi
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You've Got To Make It Hot

song of the day - Gimme All Your Lovin' by ZZ Top

Last year to celebrate Nars' 20th anniversary a collection of 40 lipsticks was released. The line is described on the Nars website as "Modern lipstick so shamelessly seductive in touch and texture the sensation is audacious. Unadulterated luxury glides on like satin across skin with single-stroke coverage. A spectrum of 40 shades for unstoppable impact". The collection is permanent, but a few of the shades are exclusive to Selfridges and the Nars website.

I currently own two lipsticks from the line; Claudia and Dominique. Both of the colours look so much more vibrant in the bullet than on the lips, but I prefer the colour on the lips.

Claudia is a cool toned pink, and probably the most Barbie pink I have in my lipstick collection. This was my first Nars lipstick so I wanted something different to what I normally go for. I tend to rock this when I'm feeling very girly.

Dominique is one of the exclusive to Selfridges shades. I swatched this shade back in December and fell in love. At the time though Selfridges was sold out. Last week I noticed that it was back in stock on the Selfridges website and so of course I had to go and buy it. It's a very unique Lavender shade, which is why I was drawn to it in the first place. I feel like I need to be careful with this shade though, because on a grey day it may make me look a little dead.

Review in short: Both shades are fully opaque, smooth to apply, and long lasting. They have a matte finish, but don't make the lips feel dry. Nars really know how to make a good lipstick! If only they didn't cost so much.

Have you tried an Audacious lipstick? Are you a fan of Nars?
Rubi
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