Cuffed

After seeing Rumi Neely (fashiontoast.com) wearing a Dannijo ear cuff, I have really wanted one.  Or one similar. The Dannijo cuff costs $40. I only have each ear lobe pierced once and the top of my left ear once, which is more than enough holes for me, so I think a cuff would be the pefect accessory for anyone who isn't keen o any kind of puncturing involved. They currently have ear cuffs in Forever 21 now in Jervis Street Shopping Centre for about €3.90 each - one of which I bought, complete with all kinds of dangly things but I definitely wanted one as simple as Rumi's. The one below will do nicely, which took two seconds to find on Ebay and cost less than €2. Win.

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Lauren Bejaoui

Amazing Irish model, and only 16 years old. I hope she goes far, although I have a feeling she will!
Image is from her Lookbook, http://lookbook.nu/laurenbejaoui

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Kilkenny

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Satch Hell?

So a few posts back, I mentioned my new Nica satchel. I got it on sale in Topshop, at an amazing price of less than €20.

I still love it, that hasn't changed. It sort of 'files' my things, making everything quicker and easier to find. And on nights out I don't do the thing I used to do with giant bags, where I'd drunkenly search for my phone, paw around for a few seconds, frantically grabbing the lining. I would then flail my arms and annouce to everyone that my phone has disappeared - when all of a sudden for reasons unknown it has suddenly found itself in my grasp at the bottom of my bag. Hmm. (I swear it wasn't there the first time.)

What my actual problem is with my satchel is the clunkiness. I think it's because it's shaped more or less like a brick, with all weight pretty evenly distributed. So I find when I carry it on my shoulder, it smacks into innocent strangers, resulting in the strap spinning around aggressively creating a sort of two strand plait effect, which always spins back. This occassionally creates surface items to escape, which occassionally happens when I forget to fasten the catch.
Not to mention the times when I lean in any direction at all and it slides down my arm, crashing to the floor. Surely other satchlers have experienced this with theirs?
I definitely don't regret the purchase but I do have a new found appreciation for my older softer not so constructed squishy bags and their ability to stay by my side, through better or worse.

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Mint minis

Last Monday I got two free samples of Aveda products when checking out of our hotel in Kilkenny. The samples were Rosemary Mint Shampoo & Conditioner..such a nice surprising parting gift! They were wrapped up, side by side in shiny crinkly plastic, tied at the top with an Aveda ribbon, inside a small brown paper bag.

A post Kilkenny trip into Dublin city also meant seeing the Aveda concession in the middle of Brown Thomas, reminding me of the natural treats that awaited me. Rats! I had just washed my hair the previous evening. So I tried them last Tuesday and the products were very impressive.

Although, I washed my hair before bed that evening, in hindsight, this wasn't the best idea when minty ingredients were involved. The products smelled lovely, and cleaned my hair thorougly. It seemed to remove all traces of styling product build up which I haven't really experienced with any other shampoo and conditioner duos. The ingredients really woke me up and my scalp felt cool and tingly - in a good way of course! This is what I meant about it's probably not a great pre-sleep choice but it would be perfect for a morning shower pick me up.

My hair felt light and stayed cleaner longer than it has with other products and it stayed smooth and frizz free. My bathroom still smelled of mint the next morning and the only con I could find was the scent was a little overwhelming and slightly nauseating  (very much like green Extra chewing gum) when I rinsed the shampoo with hot water. I think in euro, each 250ml bottle cost around €12 each but it would be worth the purchase and not much product is needed.

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Step on it

These boots are some of the nicest boots I've seen in a long time. I'm far too tall for the ASOS Archies (now £22.00 in the sale) but I think the Topshop Paddington Stud Chelsea boots in either black or brown would be worth every cent at €150. I wonder if the latter would set off metal detectors at the airport...

Update: These are now sold out in all the shops, sold out online...FAIL.

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Tick Tock...

I've wanted to get balayage done since last summer, when I saw the below image of Jessica Biel at the A Team premiere. I thought I'd have it myself by now..how hopelessly naive I was!

In my efforts to achieve more length, I have been taking extra special care of my hair ever since I got bitten by the balayage bug. I have refrained from hacking it myself with a cheap scissors, opting for semi-permanent hair dye...even taking vitimans. But it just. won't. grow. My hair is barely past my shoulder now, so it could be another year until I get to visit the Style Club to avail of the French free form process.
Of course I could get it done now, as balayage can look nice on shorter styles - Alexa Chung is a great example...but I never really paid much attention to or noticed hers. So I guess i'll wait and wear a longer style. Jessicas, Rachels and Lilys are the perfect length and colour.

Jessica Biel

Rachel Bilson

Lily Aldridge

I'm also interested this Hairspray hair scrunchie for fuller buns. They also have a clip in fringe extension for a full fringe. I'm considering both as they're both between €15.00 and €18.00 and it would be nice to have a detachable fringe. I'm a bit dubious about the fringe though. I wouldn't like it to fly off when i'm dancing/slide down my face when I'm driving or fall into my cereal.

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July Haul

I didn't buy any new clothing in July but I did pick up some lovely random things and stuff in the sales lately, all of which I'm very happy with.
The box below was originally a biscuit tin for French butter biscuits from Bordeaux. Once everyone in the office cleared out the contents, I claimed the box. It's tin with a gold interior and a hinged lid. No idea what to put in it yet, but for the moment it still smells of butter!

The jewellery box below I purchased in TKMaxx for €9.99. I liked how lightweight it was, the collage print is nice and there's plenty of room inside. They have various different prints available at the moment, all for the same price.

This black satchel I bought in the Topshop sale, for €19.80. The sale price is €22.00, but I used my student card. It's exactly the style of bag I was looking for, so it was pure luck that I came across one at such a good price.

The bag is made by Nica...a really good brand in my opinion. This is my third Nica bag. The other two are excellent quality and have never fallen apart, despite all the books, makeup, shoes and heavy bottles of booze concealed inside on nights out.

Dove clasp detailing

It's not very clear here but the interior lining is a purple, pink and white floral print. It's quite a practical bag, lots of seperate compartments and it's easy to find things inside.

I also bought lavender oils in TKMaxx, €5.99 for the box below. It comes with 24 diffuser reeds and three bottles, each one with a name; 'Love', 'Peace' and 'Happiness'. They smell lavendery as they should and last ages..although the diffusers don't carry the scent as well as they should, so I usually put a few drops on some pillows or the curtains or whatever.

And finally,  I bought two hair products. The one on the left, 'Groupie', is part of Tigi's Rockaholic brand. It's also from TKMaxx and was €6.99. This one is new to me. I thought it looked interesting and the colourful packaging got me. I love texturising sprays and anything that add mess and volume.
As the bottle says, 'a ménage á trois of rosemary, basil and spearmint meets all your needs for sexy separation or dirty texture.' I found it quite good, if my hair goes a bit lank I find a few squirts through dry hair and a blast of the hairdryer creates good results. It also smells amazing and really fresh and I find it doesn't fade at all. It would probably come in handy for dirty festival hair.

The product on the right, John Frieda's Luxurious Volume Thickening Blowdry Spray (€6.79 Boots) is the best hair product. Ever. I've been buying it for years and each bottle lasts about 3 or 4 months, as only a few squirts are needed through the roots. It creates volume so hairspray isn't always essential, eliminates frizz and takes weight out of hair no matter how long it is.

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Thursday's purchases

I bought this foursome online on Thursday, on awear.com and asos.com. I cannot wait for them to arrive! Sure, I live ten minutes from an AWear (which I rarely bother visiting) but this one in particular didn't stock the necklace so I opted for purchase online.

ASOS Wishbone Knitted Dress (In Black..grey was the only pic I could save) - £22.00

AWear Animal Pleated Skirt - €30.00

Benefit Cha Cha Tint - £24.50

AWear Camera Necklace - €5.00


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Eleven

Yikes. I can't believe I haven't updated this page in any way for eleven months. Not even as much as a random picture or pointless thought. In fairness I have been very busy with college and work, and 2011 didn't exactly have it's ups for the first six months. I did however pass all my exams, get a new kitten (pictured below), have a bit of money from full time hours and have a few days off work next week so it has improved greatly.

                                                            

Cookie the Kitten

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