Code red

Last night I swooped by Topshop for one thing, and came out with three. Thankfully they were all make-up, otherwise I would have seriously destroyed my July clothing embargo.

Regular readers will remember my quest for a red lipstick, and I thought, before diving headfirst into an expensive Mac purchase, I'd try something more thrifty and see if I wear it often enough to warrant the big investment.
So I picked up Topshop Lip Stick in Flame.

Here's the rather embarassing picture of me wearing it...

(pic by David Cotter)
You see, whenever I've tried to take lippy pictures myself in the past they are blurry, or washed out, or a totally different colour to real life, so I asked my photographer colleague to lend a hand. I asked him to just crop the lips but he wouldn't play ball.
No, I haven't had a stroke, I just appear to have a rather droopy eye... who knew! Anyway, the stick is very pigmented, to the point that it's actually quite nervewracking to apply without a brush. It's quite versatile; nice and shiny, matte if you blot. I did somewhere in between here.
It lasted around two hours before I needed to reapply, and surprisingly for a pencil it isn't drying - it's more of a regular lipstick in pencil form. Altogether, this product is really impressive for £7.
The only problem is, I just realised I now also need a big fat pencil sharpener.

PS I didn't take a 'swatch' hand photo, because I'm never sure how useful it is to know what a lipstick looks like on your hand, unless you are comparing a few? Please do let me know though if you find these helpful though!

UPDATE: This lasted about 5 hours, including a strenuous aerobics class! It's amazing! 

My favourite Kings

I love nothing better than an outdoor gig, and circumstances will have it I'll have been to three in eight days by Sunday - Pearl Jam last Friday, Kings of Leon last night and Jay-Z on Sunday.
So yesterday at KOL in Hyde Park I was faced with the ever-difficult task of dressing for a 2-11pm Summer event, in cloud cover that threatened intense sun... easy it was not!
I plumped for this pretty functional ensemble...

Shades - Accessorize// Shorts - vintage Levi's cut-offs// T shirt - Primark// Necklace - a market in Williamsburg NY (how hip am I?!!)// Lippy - Rimmell Moisture Renew Lipstick in Lily Extase (more on this later)
Here's a better pic of the Lush Motorcycle bag I blogged about before - you can see it's pretty worn in nowadays!

So it was nice and breezy in the sun, which is good. Got filthy feet wearing my Havianas, but that goes with the territory, and the evening was slightly marred by Lovely Beth getting knocked out by a bottle (who are these drink-wielding morons? Throw it down your neck not in the air!) But all in all a great time was had by all!
Oh, and here are our happy hands!

Humpday Hello!

This week’s muchos respect goes out to the beautiful and thrifty Pretty Much Penniless.

Every time I read this blog I'm jealous of her amazing jumbling skills, everything she owns and her sense of personal style - she always look pretty, fresh and vintage-inspired. Keep it up lady! She also does a lovely mix of outfit posts, beauty reviews and lovely objects she's collected, parties she's attended. Simply put it's a lovely blog.

So, a few more reasons I love it... (just in case I didn't sound enough like a stalker freak!)

 She's such a pretty lady! Check out the print of that dress, and that lippy - perfect look Mrs!

She owns a phone shaped like a piano - that she found for a pound.

These amazing thrifted maxis...

Keep up the good work! x

Lip service

So, I'm obsessed with red lipstick - especially during the day - on other people, but the problem is I don't own a red lippy.

You see, the last time I sported this bold look was about three years ago at my uni final fling, where I got so drunk I lost the brand new Mac lippy I'd bought especially for the occasion (Russian Red, I think) and could never bring myself to fork out again, until now.

This is that fateful night... (Hi Callum!)



So now I think I'm going to go for the same again, or Ruby Woo. I want a matt, bold, opaque red, but one that's not too brassy, al la les Olsens. Wish me luck!