Monday 30 June 2014

collective haul: june 2014


since returning home from the summer, i've sold a bunch of clothes, and i must admit, i've also had a little bit of a splurge on new bits and bobs for myself, so i thought i'd bring it all together and share what i've been spending my pennies on as of late.


first up, some basic tops. i've have some plain vest tops hanging around in my wardrobe now which i've probably had since i was around 15 (ew,) so i thought it was time to treat myself to some new ones with a more feminine, flattering fit, and these vests with a slight v neck and boxy backs are perfect for when i want to keep my top half simple but feminine. i also picked up a plain black off the shoulder crop as i find the fit extremely flattering, and let's face it, black goes with everything. these were all from new look, the two vests being £10 and the off the shoulder crop was £5.99.


you may have already seen the blouse and sandals as i shared them with you all in this outfit post, however to recap, i found the blouse in a charity shop and picked the sandals up from primark for just £14. i spied the skirt in the select sale, and for £7 i thought it'd be a perfect transitional piece from spring/summer to autumn/winter as i feel that the colours are versatile enough to wear as either summer or winter florals – you can't sniff at an all-seasons piece!
 

i got these next few pieces from vinted, which doubles up as a mobile app and website. it's something of an ebay/depop hybrid, giving you the option to swap items as well as selling them, and if you were wondering, the people on it i've encountered so far are much nicer than your average ebayer, so don't fret! when i signed up for vinted, they very kindly gave me a free £9 to spend on anything i liked, so i opted for the midi skirt to the right; i'd previously thought i couldn't get away with a midi due to being so short, but i took the risk and it doesn't actually look too bad after all! i also decided to pick up this silver detailed vest top and a fedora hat, although i'm still not sure if it looks right on me – i just can't shake the feeling that it makes me look like i have a pea head! i'm also selling a few items on vinted myself, so if you'd like to, you can take a peek at my profile here.


lastly, i was in need of some new make up bits and bobs so i placed a superdrug order to take advantage on their half price B. items. i stocked up on some of their micellar water which you can read about here if you'd like to, and also picked up some of the day cream to try out. i also decided to give a gosh primer a try as it seemed generous in size for the price, and lastly i needed to stock up on bronzer and highlighter so i opted for some cheap collection and mua options to see how they fared.

and that's everything! i always feel a bit naughty when i reflect on my collective purchases like this, but considering i made around £50 selling unworn clothing on ebay i suppose i can kind of justify all this...

Sunday 29 June 2014

sunday synopsis


ok, i can't lie, i've had a bit of a shitty week. i started the week feeling anxious and uneasy for some reason i couldn't identify, and it now feels like it was a weird sense of foreboding knowing that bad stuff was to come, as later in the week i was involved in a minor car accident. it was only between me and a friend meaning there wasn't any involvement with angry strangers and everyone's come away completely fine, however i'm now left with a bit of damage to repair that i'm not entirely sure i can completely afford and it's sent me into a state of worry about finances as i also have a £300 bond to pay for my student house next year in august... sigh. it really gets me down how much money dictates things sometimes and it's something i hate to have to worry about, however it's something that's totally real and you just have to deal with it. in short: it sucks. 

luckily for me, i've bagged myself a summer job at a friend's sweet shop, so i'm thanking my lucky stars for that and hoping that the money i make there will help to make this all too unfortunate situation a little easier to deal with; financially, at least. as well as damaging my bank account, i've seen a slight damage to my confidence as every time i've gotten into my car since, i've been filled with nerves and worry that it'll happen again. i hope everything gets sorted out quickly and smoothly and that in time my nerves will iron out and i'll be back to driving around as confidently as i used to.

i'm headed to london this coming tuesday as me and a friend are visiting new blood and new designers, so i'm hoping that this incident with the car doesn't interfere too much so i can at least try to relax and enjoy my time in london. i've a couple of posts lined up for throughout the week, and i'm also hoping to get some snaps of the exhibitions and things i get up to while i'm there, so watch this space. as for now, i'm heading to down to the sweet shop for the evening and i'm going to try to not eat myself into a sugar-induced coma in an attempt to feel a little less crappy about the past week's events.

Saturday 28 June 2014

saturday scribbles


a bit of a different saturday scribbles this week, however i've ended the week with a new creation nonetheless! one of the illustrators at hallmark was a bit of a felting fanatic and had made some fabulous felted characters that were dotted around the studio, and from there i was feeling massively inspired to have a go at creating my very own sloth plush using the fabric i have laying under my bed doing nothing. it took me quite a while to complete, and once i'd finished i realised that i'd perhaps done it all a little bit backwards as i left his head open to stitch up by hand at the end, resulting in a bumpy head rather than the smooth, rounded one i was aiming for; all valuable lessons to consider in the future! it was something a little different to have a go at and fill an afternoon with, and i think throughout the summer i may have a go at making a couple more using some different patterned fabrics so i can slowly build up a collection of colourful, handmade sloths to sit on my bed alongside big and little mallory. i named this little fella cecil, by the way!

Friday 27 June 2014

embroidered flowers



hat: h&m
neck bow: asos
blouse: charity shop
skirt: miss selfridge
bag: primark
sandals: primark
 
on tuesday i headed out to meadowhall for the day with my mum, and here's what i wore for a day mostly made up strolling around, casually browsing through shops. i've always had a good, somewhat close relationship with my mum, but now i'm away at uni and only see her once every couple of months or so i really do appreciate spending time with her where we just get a chance to talk and do all the typical mother/daughter bonding style things... yeah, those. you know what i mean.

while in meadowhall i was eager to browse the new stock as i'd not been in a primark for well over a month (oh, the horror!) and for the most part, i was horribly let down. the only thing redeeming primark on this trip was the selection of footwear available because there were some absolute beauties sitting on the shelves! as ever, i didn't allow myself to go crazy by buying more than is sensible, so i whittled it down to these sandals instead of a metallic pair as i thought they'd go with more things and see me through more seasons that the metallic ones would; a decision i'll later regret? we'll have to wait and see! (i hope not!)

i also picked this beautiful blouse up from a local charity shop last week and it cost me just £2.50. the colour and beautiful floral embroidery sold it to me right away, despite the fact that it's a size 8 and a little snug around the chest area; i've found that with regular checks i can go the day without flashing anything to anybody that neither i or they would wish to see!

Thursday 26 June 2014

a day out at chester zoo

 
yesterday me and a friend from college who i'd not seen in around a year headed out to chester zoo for the day, mainly because there was the promise of sloths (!!) it was really nice to meet up again and chat as though there'd never been any horribly long gap since we last met up and it made me wonder why the hell i struggle to make more of an effort to meet up with old friends i know i can have a bloody good time with; note to self: friends should always be glad to hear from you, so go for it!

£20 in as a student doesn't make for a particularly cheap day out, however when you look at how easy it is to spend £20 on a shopping trip and that the money you're paying into the zoo goes towards the care and conservation of the animals, it makes it all worthwhile. i also think a trip to the zoo makes for a great day out because it offers you the chance to enjoy the (hopefully nice) weather, it keeps you active, it's fun, educational (if you take the time to read about all the animals) and offers you the chance to really watch and observe all the different animals, and if you're anything like me, that'll be the part you love the most; in particular i always love to watch the apes because i'm always astounded by just how humanlike they are; see picture 8 and the chimp sat like a human, for example.

of all the animals i saw yesterday, there were a couple in particular that i really enjoyed seeing. one were the tapirs, who shocked me with their size the first time i saw them last year in germany – i'd always imagined them to be tiny, dog sized like creatures, so when i saw something that was more similar to a hippo in size it took me by surprise! i really like animals that appear to interact with you, and the tapirs yesterday really held eye contact and appeared to be really interested and aware that you were around, unlike big cats who appear to purposely ignore your presence (typical cats, eh?) i just felt like reaching out to give them a fuss every time they stuck their little noses through the bars towards me, so sweet!

and, of course, the other creatures i was excited to see were the sloths. when we arrived at the enclosure, both sloths were asleep – shock horror! however after waiting around for a while and going outside to see the jaguars for a short while, we headed back in and luckily caught sloth feeding time which very quickly woke both sloths up and saw them crawling down towards the keeper. i can't put into words why it is, but sloths fill me with such an overwhelming feeling of joy that it's hard to not turn into a giddy young girl around them, tearing up and squeeing involuntarily. i just love how they move, so slowly but steadily, tilting their head upside down and peering around, scratching at themselves so carelessly and just hanging around looking oh so content; if you've never seen a sloth in the flesh, i really recommend going to do so! where big cats are as they sound – just like cats, but larger – a sloth is unlike any other creature you're likely to have encountered in your life and it's just so fascinating to watch how they exist. they're also less common in uk zoos than animals such as elephants and rhinos, so they're always something of a treat to go and visit.

all in all, a really positive day out. a catch up with a good friend and the chance to spend some time around my all time favourite animal really does make for an extremely happy version of myself; i already can't wait to head back to the zoo in germany this august to see some sloths again!

Wednesday 25 June 2014

micellar water: a love/hate relationship



so, it took me a while to jump on the micellar water bandwagon, but i finally got there. i've been using superdrug's 'b' offering for just over a month now, so i thought i'd drop by to talk about how i've been getting on with it.

being new to cleansing waters, i wasn't quite sure what to expect, but i was pleasantly surprised by how quickly and easily this removes your makeup; one cotton pad for each eye and then one all over my face tends to do the job. the product information states that it's a 3-in-1 cleanser and cleansing afterwards isn't required, however i like to go in with my dark angels afterwards because i find that the product leaves a slightly oily residue on my skin that isn't all too pleasant to sleep in.

so good so far, right? so why a love/hate relationship? well, it all boils down to the tiny fact that on occasion this product irritates my eyes slightly. i don't know if it's because my eyes are particularly sensitive (scented products usually irritate them) or whether i just occasionally use too much product, but if i'm not careful i find that the product can sting a bit and cause momentary discomfort. nothing too extreme, however it's not the perfect, gentle make up removal that i used to get from make up wipes.

the one negative aside, i'd like to finish by saying that overall i've been extremely impressed with this product. i did wonder just how much good a cleansing water could do for my skin, but it seems to have evened out my skintone somewhat, brightened my complexion and helped me fight off pesky breakouts more effectively; nowadays i'm much more likely to get one or two spots rather than an angry load of them all at once, meaning they're much easier to combat when they do appear. in the above photos you can see that my skin is far from perfect, however aside from a couple of spots on my chin (my problem area, sigh,) my face is practically free of spots. the redness around my cheeks has also reduced significantly, and now i only really find that around my nose and chin is red.

for a reasonable £4.99 and a product that i assume will last around 2 months, i'd be happy to repurchase this again. i am now however intrigued as to what other cruelty free micellar water options there are available, so if you know of any, please do fire away!

Tuesday 24 June 2014

waving goodbye to wilkos products


from leaving school i worked at wilkinsons for what seemed like a very long three years, and during my time there i grew extremely fond of some of their hair and beauty products because they were pretty good quality and at pocket friendly prices. since choosing to go cruelty free back in october, i've mostly avoided wilkinsons because i wasn't sure about them – my main swap being dry shampoo as wilkos' offering was once my holy grail – but on occasion i'd pop in for this or that if i was in a rush and in need of products. recently i've been questioning their stance on animal testing, thinking that there may be a good chance of them being in the clear because as far as i know, they don't sell outside of the UK, however this week i decided to settle my disputes once and for all and get in touch with them about their policies. i was met with this extremely confusing reply:

Dear Robyn

Thank you very much for your email, regarding our own products and the issue of testing on animals.  Please be assured that Wilko is a responsible retailer and as such, we have a policy in place regarding this particular issue.  This is as follows:


Our Policy: Animal Testing

We recognise the importance of making sure the products we sell and use are of high quality, safe and effective in carrying out the task expected. We believe that developing products from ingredients to finished products should not involve animal testing, however we do recognise that for some products there is still a legal requirement to do so. Therefore, as a minimum, we will meet legislative and regulatory requirements whilst seeking to adopt best practice where possible.

In support of this commitment, we operate a fixed cut off date of 2000 whereby we have not conducted or commissioned animal testing on our own brand products or their ingredients. Furthermore, we will ensure that our own brand suppliers do not carry out or commission animal testing of either the product or its ingredients.

Own brand products
The scope of our commitment extends across our own brand cosmetics, toiletries, personal care, household cleaning and baby care ranges. However, we will continually review our other ranges on a regular basis and amend the scope where appropriate.

I do hope that the above information is helpful Robyn and thank you again for taking the time to contact us.

wilkos responded very quickly to my question (within 2 days,) however it seems that they couldn't quite make their mind up about the answer they wanted to give me. they go from stating that they will test on animals where required by law, to then stating that they haven't tested on animals or commissioned others to do so since 2000, making for an altogether confusing and frustrating answer.

where it appears that wilkos may not have been involved in testing for some 14 years now, i do find their moral stance questionable as they clearly state that they are happy to do so wherever law requires it, suggesting that they may sell within areas outside of the UK that require testing. of course i'm far from an expert on this topic and i'd love it if any of my readers could shed a bit of light on this situation for me.

as of now, i'm choosing to boycott wilkinsons' own brand toiletries, cosmetics and cleaning products, and am thinking about boycotting the shop altogether. where wilkinsons is handy for picking up stationary and homewares, i don't know how i feel about giving money to a company that is perfectly happy to test on animals where money comes into the equation. what do you think?

Sunday 22 June 2014

sunday synopsis: my hallmark placement


if you'd have told me two years ago that i'd been on placement within the world's (yes, world's!) leading greetings card publisher's studio, i wouldn't have believed you. however, on friday i headed home from bradford and battled the god awful traffic after a fantastic two week placement in the hallmark creative studio. on my first day i remember looking around like a kid at christmas; the place is just full to the brim with colour, characters and imagination and everywhere you turn there's something to indulge yourself in or become inspired by, making for a very impressive, motivating and inspirational workplace for the various creatives that work within it on a daily basis. 

after a brief tour of the building and being introduced to the people i'd be working amongst, i was set my first brief that i was more than happy and comfortable with as it was tailored to suit my interests and the strengths of my portfolio. i'm not entirely sure how much information i'm allowed to disclose about what it was that i was working on, so i'll just say there were plenty of characters to get stuck into! my first brief lasted around 3 days, my second brief around 2, my third around 3 and my final again around 2, meaning there was always plenty to be getting on with but never anything tedious enough to become boring. it's fair to say i was more than pleased and very impressed with the carefully considered workloads and constant support and check ins from the various members of the team that were guiding me along the way. 

i surprised myself with the sheer volume of work i managed to produce in two weeks and it's really given me a swift kick up the bum to do more off my own back and to be less distracted by silly everyday things (such as television and poodles.) of all the work i produced there was only a select handful that i was really happy with, but the whole process of creating the work has been extremely helpful and insightful. talking to other illustrators, working with different photoshop set ups and just simply working in a different environment helped me to understand how others work and then apply it to my own working methods, meaning i've left with a lot of useful knowledge and working process tips that i'm now keen to put to use working individually.

while on the topic of being around other illustrators, i found it extremely refreshing to be working amongst other doodly-folk. as an illustrator on a graphic design course, i often feel immense pressure to be churning out shed loads of work, and more often that not feel panicked, rushed, and like i can't quite work at a pace my tutors expect me to. in the hallmark studio, the atmosphere was extremely relaxed and supportive and a lot of people commented on how quickly i worked, which came as a surprise to me! it was nice to be around others who know that drawing takes a long time and therefore give the illustrators the time to do so without hassling them, and also to realise that professionals generally don't have any top secret tips and tricks for getting things done super fast; i don't know why i ever expected they would have, but my silly mind always fooled me into thinking that there must be shortcuts in the industry, and it turns out that perhaps there aren't after all – phew!

as well as picking up some illustrator hints and tips, i also got a really valuable insight into how greetings card publishers are run. it was interesting to learn about all the various roles, from creative to business, how ideas are born, developed and then chosen and edited to make them shelf ready. for a process that's somewhat long winded, all the people in the studio seemed extremely relaxed about it all and just simply got on with things – an atmosphere that i'm assuming helps everybody out because there's no one panicking which may then cause you to panic! i also got to play with machines i wouldn't ever have otherwise, and after being introduced to the foiling machine, it quickly became my best friend. suddenly i was imagining all my designs with tiny glistening components and to then see that in real life was just fantastic, it's amazing how such a tiny technique can really give a card that extra, special dimension! it was also lovely to have the foil appreciated by others and not just written off as a gimmick... 'where's the harm in doing things sometimes because they look nice?' seemed to be a shared opinion in the studio, hurrah!

as well as having lots of fun on projects and meeting a bunch of lovely people who work there, i also got along very well with the girl i was on placement with, too. after chatting away, it turned out that i was already following eilidh's blog and we had a giggle about how small the world can seem at times and really had some good conversations about our work ethics, interests and lives in general, and by the end of our placement we were pretty good pals, and it was truly sad to have to say goodbye. i'd hoped while living in the house that i'd come away having made a friend or two, but i don't think i ever expected that i'd get on so well with someone like i do with eilidh; it's a shame that she lives a few hours away up in edinburgh! never fear though, there could be potential meet ups in the future what with edinburgh being on my list of lovely places to visit – fingers crossed!

all in all, my two weeks of placement have been thoroughly enjoyable, insightful and an experience that i'd happily relive in a heartbeat. i've come away from it feeling extremely inspired, positive and with a clear idea of what it is that i want to push myself to achieve. as much as greeting card design is fun, i think i've realised that my heart lies in picture books as i always found myself reverting back to creating silly characters and dropping them into various scenarios which naturally led to a narrative of some sort being developed, however big or small – this doesn't mean i'll be ruling greetings cards out altogether, though! just perhaps making them an every now and again thing. 

so, now what? with all this positive energy and new found sense of motivation, i want to get on with a couple of project ideas i've had while away which involve some typography and 3d sewn characters, develop and write up a couple of stories i've had ideas for, and lastly, give my portfolio the huge makeover that it's been longing for for quite some time now. i initially entered the summer holidays feeling a little uninspired and lazy, but now i'm excited for the next few months and all the things i could potentially achieve within them. watch this space (i hope!)

Saturday 21 June 2014

saturday scribbles


good evening, all! I'm currently having Internet issues and can't get online via my laptop, so all I have to share with you is this brief Instagram snap from earlier in the week. it's a quick doodle of some thoughts I had the other night while I couldn't sleep, and I hope to get the chance to develop the idea more throughout the next week, which will hopefully make for plenty more to share with you to make up for my absolute lack of doodles over the last couple of weeks! 

this evening I started my summer job in my friend's sweet shop, so I'm hoping some evenings in the shop will also provide me with a little extra time to do some loose doodling; it seems to be within those that the better ideas of mine are birthed!

Wednesday 18 June 2014

sleek | true colour lipsticks

sleek true colour lipstick in cherry: £4.99
sleek true colour lipstick in mulberry: £4.99






there's a firm place set aside in my heart for dark, vampy shades of lipstick that strike fear into the hearts of men all over the world (ok, i'm just kidding), so when i noticed that sleek had a good selection of vampy shades available within their lipstick lines, i decided to pick a couple up to see how they got on after having loved every other sleek product i'd ever purchased. i opted for the shades cherry and mulberry – cherry being a red with blue undertones and mulberry being an intense browny-purple – which perfectly satisfied my vampy-lip needs and i very quickly tried them out once they arrived.

the formula is extremely creamy and, as you'd expect from sleek, highly pigmented; one swatch and you've got intense, opaque colour. i tend to wear these lipsticks one of two ways: either over the top of lip balm for a more subtle, diluted pop of colour, or over the top of a deep red lip liner to really help the colour thrive and stay in place for longer (just for reference, i'm wearing the lipsticks over lip liner in the above pics.)

as for wear time of the lipsticks, i'm definitely impressed. if you wear the lipsticks alone you'll get a good few hours of wear out of them before you even need to think about reapplying them (providing you don't eat, however i have managed to keep them in place while drinking), however because the formula's so thick and creamy i've found that it can move around a little on your lips and leave it looking a tad patchy in places as the formula can tend to gather more around the outer edges of your lips. to try and combat this, i went out and grabbed myself a cheap mua lip liner, and since then these lipsticks have been an absolute dream to wear. i apply the lip liner all over my lips, pop the lipstick on top and i'm essentially good for the day; intense colour and zero patchiness until i ruin it all by stuffing my face with cake, so my best advice for perfect all day wear is... don't eat cake! but how could you not? reapplication is definitely a worthwhile compromise.

i think i'm ready to announce that these are probably the best quality lipsticks i own, and they definitely aren't the most expensive, either. at a very reasonable £4.99 each, i don't think you can go wrong with these lipsticks if you're looking for intense colour, a creamy finish and long lasting wear... that being said, what else could you possibly want from a lipstick?! another massive thumbs up for sleek, who are quickly becoming one of my favourite brands.

Monday 16 June 2014

sunflowers & gingham


hat: h&m
necklaces: lilac edge
playsuit: forever 21
belt: asos
shoes: dr martens

summer's awesome because i can now rock this awesome gingham/sunflower number that i picked up from forever 21 in (what felt like) the dead of winter in new york city. i wore this outfit on saturday when my parents came to bradford to visit me during my weekend in the placement house while all the other girls had gone home, so to fill the day we headed off for a nando's and a cinema trip.

me and my mum decided to watch maleficent while my brother and mum's boyfriend opted for edge of tomorrow(?) and i can hand on heart say that maleficent was thoroughly enjoyable. i really loved the magical, mystical creatures that featured throughout and found the overall atmosphere of the film somewhat hauntingly enchanting in the same way that pan's labyrinth is (another film which i love,) so if you're all into things like that, i'd recommend going for a watch. i'm also really loving this seemingly whole new disney take on *SPOILER ALERT* true love and what it means for the protagonists as within maleficent and frozen the love interests have failed to save the characters when they most need it and man, i'm just digging the whole idea that you shouldn't have to rely on men to save you because, ultimately, it's just not their job to, while highlighting the fact that strong love exists within relationships between mothers and daughters, brothers and sisters, close friends etc. etc. i dunno, it's just nice to see traditions being flipped on their heads and relationships of all kinds being celebrated. i also just really liked the retelling of a classic story and the fact that it showed both sides of the story and really made me think about good and bad and how we perceive it. altogether a charming watch, definitely go see it if you get the chance.

so, that's me. a few more days of placement and i'll be heading off home again back to my prim little poodle, and while i'm looking forward to seeing her little face again, i am sad that placement's coming to an end because i've been having a fantastic time. all good things must come to an end though!