More Winter Buys (Primark, New Look and Paperchase)

I did a spot of shopping today, even though I only went in town Wednesday! (You can read my 'Primark Winter Haul and more' post here). I now have a draw full of socks. I can't help it! Socks are one of my weaknesses.

Primark - Various socks - £4, £3, £1.50 and £3

I was actually restrained today - Only the burgundy/red socks are for me. Both of the penguin pairs are for my sister for Christmas :)

New Look - Vests and owl slippers - £2.49 each and £9.99

How cute are these slippers?! When I walk, the little wings move, making it look like the owls are flying!

The vests are a size S and they're a little big, so I think I should have bought the XS ones (Yes, I did try them on - I've just changed my mind on the sizing!). They're still wearable though, so I'm going to keep them and just buy XS ones next time. Why did they have to change the sizes? Numbered sizes are so much easier to understand!

Paperchase - Notebooks - £2.50 and £1.50

I've been looking for some small ring bounded notebooks for a while because they're perfect for writing lists! The bird notebook cover is made out of wood, which is cool. I bought the plain notebook so I can decorate it with the washi tape I have coming in the post.

I hope you have a great weekend!

Primark Winter Haul and more

Primark - Socks - £4, £2.50 and £2.50

I love Primark's socks and pyjamas in the Winter! The ones above look and feel so cosy.

Primark - Bird print pyjama bottoms and owl gloves - £5 and £4

Another pair of cute pyjama bottoms to add to my collection :) The owl gloves are also adorable!

Primark - Tights and hair turban - £2.50 each and £1.50

I love Primark's thick tights. These ones are lovely because they don't go 'bobbly' and stay opaque, even when stretched over your legs. The hair turban was an impulse buy. Towels can be too heavy on my head, so this should be perfect :)

I also bought a coat for £26. In store, I thought it was a dark green, but when I arrived home, I realised that it was actually black, so I've given it to my sister. My hunt for a coat continues!

New Look - High waisted super soft skinny jeans and plimsolls - £22.99 and £6.99

Both of these are repurchases. I've been wearing the jeans a lot, so thought I'd buy another pair. I had never worn super soft jeans before these because I thought they'd easily lose their shape, but they haven't and I really, really like them. 

Superdrug - TRESemme shampoo 900ml bottles and long beaded necklace - 2 for £6.99 and £2.99 (Originally £6.99)

I'm running low on TRESemme shampoo, so stocked up while they're on offer. They're usually £4.99 and £5.49 each, so that's quite a saving! It's even better when they're half price, but I couldn't wait until then. The necklace is really pretty and was a good price. I'll probably wear it with a plain white top.

Poundland - Chocolate cream wafers - £1 each

Wilkinson - Flower cookie cutters and scented ornament - £1.50 and £1

I loveeeee these chocolate cream wafers and always buy some when in town. I can't wait to bake and use the cookie cutters. The scented ornament is cute and looks pretty hanging on my chest of drawers.

My Favourite Affordable Duvet Sets!

Sorry about the creases!

I was looking through my phone and Twitpic profile, and found these photos of my duvet sets, which reminded me to blog about them!

Since getting a double bed, I've been investing in duvet sets because I know I'll be able to use them when I get my own place. I've bought 4 or 5 in the last few months, but the two above are definitely my favourites. They're from eBay and were very reasonably priced. When I say eBay, I mean an eBay store, not a personal seller, so they come brand new.

The first bedding set is from here and cost £14.97, including P&P.

The second set is from the same seller, but the listing is no longer available (for a double), but you can buy it here for £19.80, including P&P, or here for £19.95, including P&P. All of them are from top-rated sellers.

Do let me know if you've found any nice and affordable duvet sets!

Meet Buddy!

This is Buddy, our new family member. He's one-one and a half years old and a Rottweiler cross Bull Mastiff. He's already had a few owners in his lifetime because he's rather big. The woman we got him off lived in a flat, which was too small for him. She also didn't live near any woods or fields, meaning he couldn't have a much needed run. 

He is the biggest baby and not like his breed's stereotype at all. Even with Jessie growling at him, he hasn't growled once. He just wants to play.

The main things we need to teach him is to not chase Jessie or the cats. His intentions are innocent and playful, but they don't like it, for obvious reasons.

We haven't had a male dog before and we've always had animals from birth or 2 months, so this is a new experience. My dad is great at training dogs though and all of our others have been very well behaved, so we have no doubts that Buddy is going to make a great dog. His obedience has already improved after a few days.

Because of his name (He was already called Buddy before we got him), I think he would make a great Christmas elf ;)

Nails of the Week

Although the camera on my phone isn't as clear as my actual camera, it picks up colours better, so I've used it for today's post. Above, we have China Glaze's Secret Periwinkle with Models Own's Silver Nail Art Pen for my French tips. At first, I wasn't sure I liked it, but it's grown on me. I initially wanted to do this manicure with a dusky blue polish, but I don't have one, so went with this darker, purple blue.

I hope you have a lovely Sunday! We're having roast chicken with a fresh loaf of bread this evening - Yummm. I have my first 2nd year lecture tomorrow, which I'm not looking forward to because I don't know many people in the module.

Also, I should have a post up in the next couple of days about our new family member! He's very cute.

Models Own Silver and Gold Nail Art Pens

I've been waiting for Models Own to bring out a silver nail art pen for ages! I'm so glad they finally are. Along with a silver, they'll also be releasing a gold. I won these, along with some nail polishes and accessories, from the Models Own Facebook giveaway, so I don't know when they'll be hitting stores, but it should be soon. I did swatch them, but the swatches were so messy, I couldn't bring myself to upload the photo! All you need to know is that they're as opaque as the other nail art pens Models Own offer and I'm very pleased with them. I can't wait to paint my nails a dusky blue and French tip them with the silver. I also can't wait to use the gold for Christmas manicures!

Affordable Alternatives to Designer Perfumes - Perfume Parlour

Last week, I read Kate's blog post and watched her video about the perfumes she ordered from Perfume Parlour. I had never heard of the company before then. Their website design is not great, so I was initially sceptical, but after reading a forum full of happy customers, I decided to order.

Perfume Parlour offers perfume sprays and oils with similar notes to designer ones, but at an affordable price. The 25ml sprays are £8 for one, £15 for 2 and £20 for 3. The perfume oils, which come in a roller ball bottle, come in a variety of sizes. I ordered the 3ml ones to try a couple of scents I'd never smelt before, and they were £2.25 each.

Okay, so firstly, I ordered Body, which is the dupe for Burberry Body. I've compared the two and can report that they are very similar. I like Burberry Body more, but I can't put my finger on why. However, for the price, I'm happy with this fragrance.

Next, I ordered Debate, which is the dupe for Marc Jacobs Daisy. I have a sample of Marc Jacobs Daisy and I really like it, but I don't like this. It's in the same family of scents, but Debate has a note in it which I really don't like. It takes the scent from being a fresh one to a heavy floral, 'old' one. I know Kate ordered this and likes it, saying it's very similar to the original, so it may just be my nose!

I then ordered a perfume oil of Sweet Lime Tart, which is the dupe for DKNY's Sweet Delicious Tart Key Lime. I haven't smelt the original, but I really like this. In fact, this is my favourite of the bunch. It smells like sweet lime, just as the name suggests!

Lastly, I ordered Sweet Meringue, which is the dupe of DKNY's Sweet Delicious Creamy Meringue. I'm not too keen on this one either. I normally love sweet scents, so was expecting to like this, but it's overly sweet, bordering on sickly.

The perfume oils came in these little bags, which are cute.

Even though the perfume oils I bought are only 3ml, I can see them lasting a while (Especially Sweet Meringue, since I won't be using it haha).

P&P is £1.50 or free if you spend over £15.

Overall, I love the idea of Perfume Parlour, but the Debate scent did let me down and has me questioning how similar the rest of the scents are to their originals. 

New Books!

"They say that the cure for love will make me happy and safe forever. And I've always believed them. Until now. Now everything has changed. Now, I'd rather be infected with love for the tiniest sliver of a second than live a hundred years suffocated by a lie.

There was a time when love was the most important thing in the world. People would go to the end of the earth to find it. They would tell lies for it. Even kill for it. Then, at last, they found the cure."

"They say to live every day as if it's your last - but you never actually think it's going to be. You always think you'll have more time. That's what I thought. But I was wrong. The thing is, you don't get to know how it happens. You don't remember to tell your family that you love them or - in my case - remember to say goodbye to them at all. What if, like me, you could live your last day over again? Could you make it perfect? If your whole life flashed before your eyes, would you have any regrets? Are there things you'd want to change?"

 

"When the doors of the lift crank open, the only thing Thomas can remember is his first name. But he's not alone. He's surrounded by boys who welcome him to the Glade, an encampment at the centre of a bizarre and terrible maze. Like Thomas, the Gladers don't know why or how they came to be there, or what's happened to the world outside. All they know is that every morning when the walls slide back, they will risk everything to find out."

"My name is Anna and I shouldn't be here. I shouldn't exist. But I do.

Anna hides her secret diary away each night because she doesn't want to get into trouble for breaking the rules. Life in Grange Hall is governed by rules, rules that have to be obeyed in order to make up for breaking the biggest rule of all. Being born. But when Peter arrives and starts to tell Anna shocking things about the outside world, she learns to question the rules and, with Peter, struggles to escape the past and find a better future."

Oh, I love books, so you can imagine how happy I was when the four books I ordered from Amazon arrived today. I bought Delirium because it was recommended to me by you lovely lot on Twitter. Before I Fall also had a lot of positive ratings, so I thought I'd give it a go. The Maze Runner has some mixed reviews, but I've been thinking about reading it for months, so just bit the bullet. Lastly, I bought The Declaration. I had never heard of it before the night of ordering, but it sounds interesting. The cover is also pretty!

I'll let you know my thoughts on them once read! I'm a little sceptical about the last two, but we'll soon see if they're any good!

Fragrance Direct Haul - Marc Jacobs, Essie, Maybelline and more

I've been waiting to post about this for about a week, but I kept ordering, so had to keep waiting! Let's jump into things. 

The Maybelline nail polish in Nude Rose was 99p. I've been wanting this polish for months, but always resisted it when in Boots or Superdrug. It retails for about £4, so that's a nice little saving. It also looks better in real life! 

Of course, I had to buy some Essie nail polishes! For £1.99, I just couldn't resist. Everyone is talking about these little bargains, so you can't be surprised to see them. I ordered Mademoiselle, A Crewed Interest, Lady Like and Mod Squad. Mademoiselle and A Crewed Interest have the new thicker brushes. Fragrance Direct also have some Essie base and top coats for £2.50, but I never use them, so passed.

I then ordered the Badger Balm in Ginger and Lemon for £2.50 (Normally £4). It smells delicious!

The last make-up item I ordered was Maybelline's One by One mascara for £3.50. I've repurchased many tubes of this mascara and recently bought one in Superdrug for £8.49! I'm definitely going to check Fragrance Direct before I buy mascara from now on. I was a bit sceptical at first because the font of 'One by One' is slightly different to the ones I've bought in Superdrug, but I've been reassured by the people at Fragrance Direct that it is authentic.

My most recent order from Fragrance Direct included Marc Jacobs Eau So Fresh Eau De Toilette set for £24.95. It contains a 20ml bottle and a 15ml refill (With a funnel). How cute is it?! And it smells good. In three words, I would describe it as light, fresh and citrusy. It's my first designer perfume too.

This brings me on to the perfumes I've ordered today (Thanks to Kate for mentioning them!). Perfume Parlour sells perfumes that are very similar to designer ones, but at affordable prices. I've ordered the Marc Jacobs Daisy dupe spray (£8 for 25ml), the Burberry Body dupe spray (£8 for 25ml), the DKNY Sweet Delicious Tart Key Lime dupe perfume oil (£2.25 for 3ml) and the DKNY Sweet Delicious Creamy Meringue dupe perfume oil (£2.25 for 3ml). I only ordered the 3ml perfume oils of the last two because I've never smelt them before. I was initially sceptical because the website doesn't look the best, but I then read many positive reviews from a forum. I will be writing a post on them when they arrive. My mum has Burberry Body and I have a sample of Marc Jacobs Daisy, so I will be comparing them!

Essie A Crewed Interest

Natural light

Flash

I filed my nails right down last night and wanted a light, fresh colour to accompany them. Essie's A Crewed Interest was my shade of choice. I don't own anything like it and it makes a nice change. It looks similar to Barry M's Peach Melba - A shade I've been tempted to buy for months, but didn't know if it would suit me because of my pale complexion. After applying this, I think pale peaches do suit me!

I bought this nail polish from Fragrance Direct for just £1.99. I also bought a few more, which I will show in a haul post very soon (I'm just waiting for my last order to arrive).

Penguin Memory Stick

I wanted to show you my new memory stick because I think it's so cute! It holds 8GB worth of files and you can buy it for £7.99 from here.

ASOS Cardigan

Pyjamas and bed hair, woo!

This is my new favourite cardigan. I wear a lot of simple outfits (skinny jeans and white tops), so I thought this cardigan would spice up and add some colour to my wardrobe. I love how the colours mix in with each other and continue into the next block of material. It was £35, which is more expensive than the usual cardigans I buy, but I had money in my PayPal account, and we all know PayPal money isn't real money ;)

This cardigan may not be everyone's cup of tea, but if you like the look of it, you can buy it here.

Toodles!