The Money Pit

A lot of you will know I have recently moved to a new house which I guess my Mr and I class as a bit of a 'fixer-upper'.

We have been working hard and spending hard on it for a while and to be honest we are getting a little fed up and in desperate need of a holiday (NYC I mean you!!). So ... we have slowed down the progress so we can still enjoy the finer things in life.

One of the first rooms to be trashed and rebuilt was the bathroom.  It's not finished yet, we still need to paint a wall and replace some bath fittings that were delivered faulty :( However, it is getting there and I can start to see it take shape.

I thought I would show you some of my inspiration charted against how my bathroom looks currently.  This should give you an idea of what it should look like when it is finished.

Naked art whether it be sculptural or illustration, i love it!

A chandelier and a rolltop bath were always top of my list

Dark walls against warm rustic pieces look awesome

I wanted brick tiles, marble and vintage touches

In my head I had the idea of a 50's/60's era New York City style bathroom with brick tiles, monochrome colour scheme and a bit of marble thrown in for good measure.  You won't see in the photo but our shower cubicle is covered in brick marble tiles and a retro rain shower head.  The rooltop bath was debated over for weeks, we originally wanted a modern rolltop but this reproduction was too lush to resist.  I am a little obsessed with grey and black walls at the moment so I painted the bathroom a Valspar shade 'Caviar for the Tsars'.  I want to paint at least one wall in every room black for some reason while others desperately try to talk me out of it. Go figure. 

I'm also obsessed with fur blankets, rugs and taxidermy so as well as the Ikea sheepskin rug in the bathroom, I plan on adding a few extra creepy bits and pieces that will act as a talking point/incite disgust ;).  TK Maxx has been a bit of an interiors paradise for me lately.  I don't know what I would do without that shop.  I always find interesting and 'on trend' pieces for a fraction of the price.  I found these 2 framed naked lady illustrations there for £10.  whoop! 

rolltop, chandelier, black walls, sheepskin rug

TK Maxx bargain 'art'

Currently we are adding a pop of yellow/gold to the room to help warm it up and add a modern/vintage balance.  Hopefully we will have finished it soon and I can post some final photos.

Oh and a quick edit for you - I forgot to post a pic of the bathroom BEFORE I got my hands on it so here it is. It's small and blurry but it's all I have.

BEFORE the makeover

As ever, I would love your opinions of my humble abode :) 

Glamour Check!

I instagrammed this look ages ago and promised to do a blogpost letting you know what I used.

Tardy, much?

Anyway, i'll cut to the chase ...

It was to be an evening of bar hopping and a quick pub quiz (which we won, hell yeah! Team GB).  I was going for casual attire so I usually go for something a little more glam on the eyes.

Excuse the half stripped walls in the background ...

... and excuse the monkey eyebrows!

EYES: Chanel Illusion D'Ombre in Ebloui as a base. MAC Woodwinked all over lid with Glamour Check! and Twinks defining outer v and under the eye.  Glamour Check! and Twinks are such similar colours you could easily just use one.  Mac Blacktrack fluidline to add a flick and line the waterline and MUFE Smokey lash to finish off.

CHEEKS:  Benefit Hula to bronze and contour.  Mac Springsheen and Illamasqua unrequited mixed together on cheeks. 

LIPS: Hmm, i'm sorry I actually have no idea - I can't remember.  How rubbish am i?! 

A special shout out to skin.  I used Smashbox Studio Skin which has been likened to Mac studio fix fluid.  I don't find the consistency quite as thick and find the colour range a little better in terms of the lighter foundations. (I sometimes find Mac SFF shades too pink or too yellow).  

A little goes a long way with this foundation and piling it on will leave your face hanging by your knees by the end of the day, it's so heavy!  However, a light application gives just the right medium coverage and is easy to blend.  It looks fresh, flawlwess and lasts all day and night.  The only judgement I have yet to make on it is whether or not it photographs well.  This is always the clincher for me.

Now I am off to work out how to make the best of this blog and possibly come up with a better look and name for it.  I feel like I have grown out of Saskia the Style Fairy ... girl feels like a numpty! Any suggestions, you can let me know :) 

x

Matalan Style Project ... (whispers) ... I Won!

Gosh, it's been a looooong time since I have blogged.  So long, I wasn't sure I could start again.  I'm not sure if I lost the love for it or if this blog just didn't really feel like 'me' anymore, or if it was just that life gets a bit busy sometimes and before you know it you are out of the loop.

Whatever the case, here I am.  We will see for how long.

So, quick update, one of my last posts was a not so subtle plea in my bid to win some votes in the Matalan Style Project.  Well, I am hugely chuffed to say I ended up winning it ... which is all thanks to you guys!  I never thought in a million years I would get the most votes but I am so grateful to all of you who voted, thank you so very much! :)

Happy Dance?

There is a new style project on the Matalan website, with 4 great bloggers looking for your votes so take a look at what they have chosen for this months theme 'Holiday Day Trip'.

x

Take a spraycation with St Tropez

According to research conducted by St. Tropez, nearly half of the UK plans to stay at home this summer rather than fly abroad for their holiday.  I think I may end up becoming part of that statistic as a new home, new job and so many exciting things happening in the UK this year as well as an extreme lack of funds means a sunny beach holiday may be off the cards.

St.Tropez ambassador Millie Mackintosh of Made in Chelsea fame

Statistics also tells us that over half of Brits feel better and more confident with a tan so thanks to St. Tropez, we can have a 'Spraycation' instead of a vacation!  St. Tropez is going on tour across the UK, tanning the nation and bringing a beach themed pop-up to a city near you, giving luxurious skin finishing treatments regardless how deep or honey a tan you desire.  The tour kicked off last week in London at Westfield but is heading north this week at the following venues:

Bullring Birmingham 22-23 June
Trafford Centre, Manchester 28-29 June
Glasgow Braehead 6-7 July
Dublin Pavillions 13-14 July

There is also an online competition running in tandem with the tour, asking you bronzed lovelies to send a 'virtual postcard' of where your ideal spraycation in the UK would be and why.  You can find out more about the competition at the St. Tropez facebook page www.facebook.com/sttropeztanuk

Will you be taking a spraycation?

x

Something lovely ... and Laura Mercier Radiance Foundation Primer

A couple of months ago a lovely and very unexpected package arrived at my door.  I hadn't ordered anything and wasn't expecting to review any products, so I opened the parcel with some anticipation.

A Harvey Nichols bag of goodness was found within, a lovely present from their generous PR team.   This doesn't happen all that often from companies so I was delighted to receive it.  Not only did Harvey Nics send me a gorgeous make up bag in personalised Harvey Nichols graffiti, the bag itself was bulging with samples of various beauty products from Butter London to Clarins to Espa! Lucky me!

So I guess this post is really a (belated) thank you to the PR team for sending such a generous gift but also to let you know about a stand out product from my bundle of samples.

Laura Mercier Radiance Foundation Primer. I already love their oil- free primer and is a staple in my professional kit but I hadn't realised they had a Radiance version on the market.  The purpose of the Radiance foundation primer is the same as the normal primer, hydrating the skin and acting as a base for your make up but it also has light reflective particles that gives the skin a beautiful glow.

The primer has a peachy tint to it with an obvious pearlised finish.  It could certainly be worn on it's own although I worry this would result in sweaty face syndrome so I have stuck to wearing it under my foundation.  I absolutely love the results, it literally gives that 'glow from within' that everyone raves about and lusts after.

I find it every so slightly similar to MAC Strobe cream but with more hydration and warms up the skin better.

After using the sample to death, this has got to be an essential purchase for me from now on.  It leaves me with a healthy, warm glow that makes my skin feel and look alive.  It is a pricey one at £28 but based on my experience with Laura Mercier primers, I know a little of this goes a long way so it should take me a while to get through the tube before another pricey repurchase.

Has anyone else tried this? what are your thoughts, do you love it as much as me?

x

Matalan Style Project

Last month I was asked to take part in Matalan's Style Project where I create a look based on their given theme and pitted against 2 other fashion/style bloggers for the public vote.

This made me super nervous, I don't label myself a style/fashion blogger so to join a challenge that included legitimate fashion bloggers filled me with a little bit of dread but still very excited to be asked to take part :)  Matalan is a firm favourite of mine, offering affordable fashion pieces as well as fabulous homeware which I have been purchasing loads of recently.

The theme was 'Girlie' and in Matalan's terms they see this as cute cuts, pastel colours with some 1950's Americana thrown in!  One thing I don't do well is girlie so this was quite the challenge.  I don't wear a lot of frilly or girly colours so it felt a little unusual to try and style myself this way and in the end I went for something very overtly girlie!

I basically channeled Lana Del Ray, Frida Kahlo and Margarita Pracatan for this particular look! I went for a very feminine pastel yellow racer back dress, bow wedges, a floral satchel and I made a floral head dress a la Frida and Lana from a variety of floral accessories.

If you like my outfit, it would be lovely for you to leave a wee comment on the Matalan Style Project page here, where you will see the 2 gorgeous looks from the other style bloggers and a very 'special' looking pic of me in my get up ;)

x

Stella & Dot

Since it was my birthday, of course I had to treat myself.  This came in the form of an impulse buy at last months Girls Day Out at Glasgow's SECC.

US brand Stella & Dot had a stall at the event, showcasing their jewellery of which, I am now a massive fan.  I didn't know of Stella & Dot until the show but they sell well designed, beautiful accessories and jewellery at really reasonable prices.  Obviously a little pricier than the likes of Topshop but pricing is consistent with it's quality in my opinion.

My gift to myself was the gold renegade cluster bracelet as seen on Katy Perry ... so there you go ;)  At £45 it was pricey enough to feel like a treat but not too expensive that I couldn't justify the cost.  I adore this bracelet with it's mix of spikes and diamante and it has certainly fuelled my desire for more Stella & Dot creations.  I literally have a massive 'want' list!

Is anyone else a fan of Stella & Dot?  What do you recommend from their range? I think I am going to go for some chunky statement necklaces next :) 

x