Colour Inspiration...Orange

Orange is a colour I usually avoid, well to be honest I usually avoid most colours and stick to black but I have been trying to be a bit more adventurous recently. Orange is definitley the colour of the season and I thought I would make a colour board mixing and matching some orange pieces with some of my other favoruite colours at the moment, naturals such as tan and khaki plus navy (which is a great alternative to black!) I have opted for a bright orange as the other colours are quite muted and I wanted a contrast but there are many shades depending on how brave you want to be.

Orange, Khaki, Navy, Tan by Invisible_Squirrel featuring fringe shoes

What colour would you wear with orange? Which shade do you prefer?

Alyssa xx

Essential Summer T-shirt & Big Wardrobe Haul

I came across this post on the blog 'A little Bird Told Me' about the essential summer tshirt, and when I went into Primark on Saturday I came out with my very own! I bought it in red but I would say it is more of an orangey-red, very summery though and the material almost has a sheen to it!
This is the stock image of it in taupe and then how I wore it with skinny jeans. Its such a great t-shirt that I'm thinking of getting it in other colours once I find out how it wears and washes.

Tshirt Primark £8

Jeans New Look vis ebay 99p

Wedges M&S £9

I came home today to a large package, I was expecting it but its always nice. It was a mutli-swap from a lovely girl on Big Wardrobe if you havn't heard of it, its a website where you can swap clothes, shoes, accessories and other things. Its a way to save some money as all you are paying is postage and you get to refresh your wardrobe all the time. If you sign up then you can do it through my referral and then check out the swaps in my wardrobe!

Here is what I got today, apologises for the creases:

A gorgeous tie back dress originally from ASOS, I have been trying not to get more black but I love the cut of this dress and the fabric is really lovely.

Another ASOS dress, its a subtle light tan colour with buttons down the side, this will be a great summer dress once it's ironed of course!

Finally, a capped sleeve white shirt from New Look, it has attractive pleats and ruffle detail which you can't really see and I think it will look lovely worn open over a vest as well.

What do you think to today's bargains?

Alyssa xx

My Favourite Things...

Suzy Smith Handbags

I own quite a few Suzy Smith bags now after admiring them for a long while. The styles are just very me, practical but colourful and interesting at the same time. I don't have this one above but I have a cross body one in this colour which is probably my favourite and I got it for £60 instead of £85 so was rather pleased. I have managed to get a few bargain second hand ones off ebay too including some 'Vintage' ones.

Henry Holland Prints

Anyone who knows me who comments about what I'm wearing I usually reply with its from the H! by Henry Holland collecton at Debenhams as I have loads in my wardrobe. I love the quirky prints in particular such as this Zebra Print blouse. The prices are very reasonable too especially as Debenhams is always having special 20% off events!

Ribbon

As a crafter I love ribbon, I could look at it for hours and not actually do anything with it. I do use some in my Cotton Cakes so I can justify buying it!

Ted Baker Body Sprays

I have loads of bottles of these body sprays, I keep miniature ones in my bags too. They are a lovely sweet scent and great for a pick me up as I find perfume too strong. I also like the fact that they arn't an aerosol so not damaging to the environment.

Pantone Books/ Swatch Cards

I have always had an obsession with swatch cards and always had to pick some up when I went to a DIY store as a child. Now I work for a graphics company I get to use Pantone colour cards, I think I have OCD as I love seeing all the colours in the correct order!

Digipaks

Basically any CD in cardboard packaging. I don't have a CD player but I still buy CD's rather than downloads as I like the look and feel of them on my shelf especially digipaks. My favourite is System of a Down when they released these two separate albums and the cardboard sleeves actually slotted together to create a double album. The artwork inside is amazing too.

Lolcats

If I am ever feeling down I go onto the Lolcatz website and just have a look through. If you have never been on, try it!

Just a few of my favourite things, what are yours?

Alyssa xx

Budget Basics and OOTD!

I feel bad for not blogging for a few days but I just havn't had the chance! I usually get a few spare minutes at work but I just havn't had long enough probably catching up after all the bank holidays!

Here is a quick OOTD from yesterday. Its so chilly at work that I have to wear lots of layers so I decided to mix up the colours a little bit and I also wanted to wear my new mustard vest. You will notice the background is different as I actually took these at work when I was in the office by myself!

Grey Pocket Tshirt- Select £5

Mustard Rib Vest- Asda £3

Tan Belt- Dunnes £2

Charcoal Chinos- Select £10

Tan Mocassins- Clarks £17.99

You can see I like to wear plain things layered up and I think this means you can get lots of different looks from the same items. Mixing and matching colours. I also have this vest and t-shirt both in cobalt blue as well. The T-shirts are actually quite long so I knotted it up at the front to look a little different. I like items which are versatile and can be worn a few different ways.

My second outfit I couldn't resist showing as it was such a bargain. It cost me a total of £1.99 (well £3.99 if you include postage!)

Henry Holland Oversized Tshirt Ebay 99p

Leather Belt Charity Shop £1

River Island Skinny Jeans Free from a Swish!

The picture is rubbish and doesn't show any detail but I got the jeans from a clothes swap, they are River Island sort of dark blue distressed style with studs on the back pockets, they are super skinny though and it can be tricky getting in and out of them!

This tshirt arrived in the post this week from ebay (99p!) and I already love it as its so easy to wear. Henry Holland himself has even been spotted wearing it even though its from the womens collection. I think I look much better in it though! haha :)

That's all for tonight, I have lots of ideas for more exiting blog posts but maybe when I have more time to think about what I'm writing!

Alyssa xx

NOTD: Safari Feet!

Just a quick post to show you another experiment using the Barry M Crackle Effect. I tried out the Sally Henson Gold Chrome Nail Polish but it didn't look striking enough as I am used to wearing bright colours. However, with the black crackle over the top I think it looks quite impressive to say it took less than 5 mins to do. Sorry about the gross toe pics btw but I never paint my fingernails!

I think it looks a bit like animal print, inkeeping with my new safari style phase. Obviously in real life it looks much shinier becuase of the gold chrome and I put a top coat on as it had a tendency to chip off otherwise!

What do you think?

Alyssa xx

What's in Your Make-up Bag?

I tidyed my en-suite cabinet/shelves this morning and after seeing a few other bloggers put up pics what they keep in their make-up bags I thought I would show you mine. I like to keep things really minimal as I don't wear much make-up and I hate the thought of having loads of half used things lying around as I don't think its very hygenic!

1. Perfumes

I generally like either musky or sweet smells. Anais Anais is my all time favourite, I also love Miss Dior Cherie but its a tiny bottle so I only use it on special occasions. Lancome Miracle was bought for me by a friend years ago but I still use it from time to time

2. Facial Skincare

I'm a big fan of Clinique's 3 Step Skin care and I try to use it everyday but after a night out or when I've had to wear a lot of make-up I use the cheap cleanser and toner first which works just as well!

3. Nail Care

I only ever use nail polish on my toenails not my fingernails (hate the feeling!) so my nail polish collection is very limited. The max Factor nailfinity is my favourite as it goes on smooth and lasts for ages. I can't wait to try the Sally Hensen Chrome polish as I only just got this.

4. Hair Care

I'm very lazy with my hair products, I usually borrow something my mum has when blow dying but I keep these on my shelf. I have only used the Soap and Glory Hair Supply a couple of times but it didn't seem to make much difference if i'm honest.

5. Skin Care

This is by far my biggest collection of products but most of these were only purchased within the last couple of weeks. Its mainly Ted Baker and Soap & Glory stuff but I also use the Body Shop one sometimes but it has a really strong lavender smell so its nice to use as a massage cream.

6. Eyes

3 mascaras Black, blue and purple, 3 eyeliners 1 blue and 2 blac although the Benefit one is rubbish so I never use it! I liquid liner which scares me slightly and a couple of neutral eyeshadow palettes.

7. Lips

I can't stand lipgloss so I have to wear Lipstick. My favourites here are the Clinique one which is a neutral shimmer colour and the Avon one which is a really dark pink but its so soft and moisturising. My mum bought the Loreal lipstick and matching lip pencil but I'm not so sure the colour suits me.

8. Face

Finally, a random assortment of face stuff. I don't really wear foundation anymore but I'm trying to use up the Max Factor mineral foundation. I tend to use the Nivea tinted moisturiser day to day and maybe some bronzer over if I'm feeling exceptionally pale. Concealor is also one of the most important things to me as I have very dark circles under my eyes. I have yet to try the Avon face palette yet although I will probably wait until the Clinique blusher runs out completely.

What do you have in your make-up bag? I'm sure you will have more than me!

Alyssa xx

Car Boot Mini-Haul

I was up early this morning so went for a mooch around a car boot, its only a small one but its always really busy. I usually sell there as its only on Bank Holiday weekends but I went to pick up some bargains this time!

I picked up this camel cotton twill pencil skirt with matching belt for a quid! It is from the M&S Autograph Collection so will have been about £40 new, it still had all the tags on. Its a perfect fit and comfortable to wear, its quite 70's safari style and I think it will look great with leopard print.

River Island 3/4 length leggings new without tags. These have cute little button detailing on as well and will be great for summer. They were asking 50p but I asked if they would throw in a huge Ted Baker body spray for free and he agreed. So they were essentially 25p!

I also got some brand new beauty stuff. Ted Baker body spray was free with the leggings above. The Ted Baker body lotion was 50p. Sanctuary Shimmering Body Oil (which I can't wait to use!) I bargained the seller down to £1. Finally, the 3 Avon items were £5 in total, Marimekko all-over face palette in Poppy Bouquet, Glazewear Diamonds Eye Colour in Gold Foil and Colour Trend Lipstick in Rocking Rouge. All were brand new and still sealed.

What do you think to my baragins? Worth getting up at half 8 for?

Alyssa xx