Update: Blogging Reboot.

hiya guys; 

So it seems I went on an unexplained mini blogging hiatus. A lot was happening, and im sure my fellow students out there totally know how one, stressful exams get and two, how relieved/drained you are afterwards. Through July/August, I was away with my best friend in Gibraltar. It was the most relaxing and chilled holiday I have ever experienced. I am having major sun withdrawal symptoms though.

August has just been interesting for me. It consisted of work, work and oh, did i mention more work? Complaints aside (welcome to the adult world, Alana...), I have more money to be buying and testing new products for you all. 

(ps, major love goes to my friends for regular night drives to Starbucks to fuel this girls coffee addiction)

And it is now September. And we all know what that means - autumn is almost here! It's no secret that autumn is by far my favourite season. I love absolutely everything about it. The colours, the weather, the fashion. So be expecting some seasonal blogposts.

And to end my ramble, i now also have a DSLR camera. For all my tech-savvy readers, it's an EOS 100D. So that means no more amateur-y looking photos. This'll really put my photography skills to the test (hahahaha, what photography skills?!)

What would you like to see me blog about in the future? Let me know!

xo, alana

ps, I'm all over social media, find me on twitter, instagram and tumblr!

Update: Busy Bee, Procrastination and Depop

hiya guys; 

So in my last post, I apologised for missing my weekly blog post and promised I wouldn't do it again. Apparently I lied. My bad. It's just so easy to get side-tracked by my job, school work, revision, not feeling great, etc etc. But I won't make excuses. I literally had no time to stop and think, and therefore simply forgot. Again, my bad (x2).
I am the queen of procrastination and blogging is the best form of productive procrastination I have found. But sadly, it isn't productive in the right ways. School is priority and I need to stick to that (for now, at least). 
So for the next month-ish, there will be few blogposts. The posts I decide to do will be quick and really not as detailed as I usually tend to do.

If you want to see what I'm up to, my social network links are always at the bottom of each post. G'warn. Give them a follow.

Oh, and I now also have a Depop account!
For those of you who don't know, Depop is an app for selling mostly unwanted or unused items. It's kind of like eBay, but with an instagram layout. It's pretty cool if I'm honest. But I am very close to buying a lot (which kind of defeats the point of me getting the app. I'm trying to earn money, not spend it!)
I'll mostly be selling my accessories/clothes that I never seem to wear. I have a small room, so any extra space/less clutter is a major improvement for me. 
I'll try and gather the items and put them up within this week. 
As per usual, my account is @alanaraeward. Creative name, huh? That's me.

Any Depop users out there? Let me know and I'll give you a follow!

xo, alana

ps, I'm all over social media, find me on twitter, instagram and tumblr!

Nails Of The Moment: Orly's 'Perfectly Plum'

hiya guys;

It is no secret that I am a nail addict. Ask anyone. So where better to post my latest nail-related finds than here?

I am genuinely so boring when it comes to my choice of colours. I have a tendency of switching between black, burgundy and purple and that is literally it. Even in summer, my nails are jet black. Why? I don't know. (They just are, okay?) But being so fair, dark nails make my hands look almost vampire-like. I felt as if i had to break out of my comfort zone and dive into the pool of colour - and when is better to do this than in spring?

Admittedly, this colour is still kind of dark and doesn't stray that far from the usual choices, but it is very different to anything I've tried so far.

Orly's Perfectly Plum - £6.75 on Amazon

I don't do pink. Not ever. It literally just isn't an option. But this doesn't scream 'pink!' to me, (even though it basically is). Orly's 'Perfectly Plum' is a perfect mid-ground between raspberry and plum polishes. On my skin tone, it appears much more pink-toned and brighter than I've seen in other photos which I can only assume is down to the lightness of my natural nail colour.

It is totally opaque and never needs any more than two-three thin coats. I've used it on both short nails and my occasional 'feline claw' length (yes, this is in fact what my mum calls my nails). It looks beautiful on all skin tones, nail lengths/shapes and with a lot of outfits. It's something that I don't really have to think about. It just seems to go with everything - especially dark denim, black, leather, pure white, eg. everything I wear on a daily basis. It adds a pop of colour without being too garish and in-your-face.  I've actually been wearing this for two months straight now. I think that represents my love for it pretty accurately.

And it also unintentionally matches my blog's accent colour. Oh the irony. Cute though, right?

For those of you who haven't tried Orly, give them a try. They come in both 10ml  or 18ml bottles and are great quality for their price. I know that Boots retails their 10ml bottles for £5, but they don't have a massive selection online. I buy my 18ml bottles from beauty supply stores or on Amazon. The smaller ones are great for colours you don't use as often, and I buy bigger ones for colours I use all the time (eg black and nude).

On the nails. Midi ring from Accessorize.

This photo really doesn't do the colour justice; but it's as close as I could get to capturing its true colour. This is probably a bit brighter than it should be. Sorry! I'll get working on my photography skills..

So, Whats your all time favourite nail polish or nail trend? 

xo, alana

ps, I'm all over social media, find me on twitter, instagram and tumblr!

pps, I apologise for missing last weeks post. School comes first. I promise not to do it again though!

Trend Obsession: Delicate Torq Necklaces

hiya guys; 

Today's post is a little different, as i'll be sharing a current trend obsession (understatement of the century) of mine. As you may or may not know, I am absolutely jewellery obsessed. Six months ago, I accepted a job to work in a high street accessories store and since then, my paycheck has been spent on masses of necklaces and rings. Before then, I didn't really own many items of jewellery. I mainly only owned vintage rings/bracelets which have been passed down to me; and in all honesty, I am waaaay too scared to wear them. I tend to leave those to special occasions.

I've always loved 'torq'/plate necklaces, but since losing weight, I seem to have developed extremely prominent collar bones. This style of necklace is so incredibly beautiful, but on me, they just look plain awkward and uncomfortable (*quietly sobs*, I envy anyone who can pull them off..)

Whilst shopping, I came across this little beauty. Spring/summer jewellery trends seem to contrast - either being bold statement necklaces or dainty chains and pendants. This combined the shape of the bold and summery torq necklaces with the simplicity of the dainty spring style.

Delicate Torq Pendant | Accessorize | £14

This specific necklace is incredibly beautiful on; it just seems to hang perfectly on everyone who's tried it. It's so easy to wear and goes with pretty much any outfit. The thin chains are elegant but still quite sturdy (trust me, if I haven't broken it, no one will). It's by far one of my most frequently worn nowadays. It's part of Accessorize's 'Gold Plated' range, so the colour has not, nor will not change - even for dedicated wearers of perfume such as myself. The colour itself is a true gold tone, not too yellow and not too rose gold either. It compliments most skin tones. The 'awkward collar bone' incident is overcome by the placement of the two pendants, allowing the chain to comfortably sit on it rather than the metal itself. The length can be adjusted for deeper or shallower necklines if needed. Here, i'm wearing it on one of the tightest links - but I do have a weirdly skinny 'barbie neck', as I like to call it (is that weird? I think so.. But come on, just look at that photo?!)

My only criticism is that sometimes, the necklace does tend to twist around. In all honesty, I did think that this style may lay better and therefore move less. The pendants always stay at the front though. It isn't difficult to twist it back and all necklaces do eventually twist; so maybe I'm just being picky.

I can see many being put off of this by the price for such a small item, but being gold plated and good quality, it is definitely worth the extra few pounds. And please don't be unsure because of the photo online, it looks so much nicer in person!

If this is too expensive for your price range, I did a little bit of investigative shopping for you and found a few others of a similar style/inspiration. These are much more affordable and they seem to be decent quality too. 

Left:  Topshop | £6.50            Right: H&M | £1.99

So, what do you think of this trend? Are you for statement or dainty necklaces?

xo, alana

ps, I'm all over social media, find me on twitter, instagram and tumblr!

Review: The Body Shop - Shower Gels and Creams

hiya guys;

Mango | Vineyard Peach (disc) | Honeymania™ | Raspberry (disc)| Cocoa| Shea | Coconut

I've been a massive fan of The Body Shop for years; I am a sucker for all of their products. Because of this, my collection has become rather extensive over the past year. I apologise to my bank account in advance, as this will continue to grow.
I find that their scents are true to reality, with no overpowering 'artificial' smells (they all surprisingly smell like the real deal, I promise), and the wide range of scents enable anyone to find one to suit their taste. All products are cruelty free and work with fair trade companies. They're also good size bottles; so for those of you who are skeptical due to the price, they do last a decent amount of time.

I own a good range of their shower gels and creams (seven to be precise, with multiples of my favourites stocked up!), and can simply state that I love them. 

The Body Shop | Shower Gels | £4.00

These Shower Gels come in a 250ml bottle. I find that the lids are quite sturdy, so travelling with these is not an issue. The products contain organic oils, real fruit extracts, community fair trade and cruelty-free ingredients depending on the scent. All  shower gels are soap-free and therefore are really good for sensitive skins. SO much nicer than colour/fragrance free gels - I hated using those types of product when I had eczema. No fun whatsoever.

Mango - Contains real mango seed oil and extract; giving it a truly exotic scent. Pale yellow coloured gel. My sister loves this! (She's also obsessed with the fruit too, so I'm not surprised).

Vineyard Peach - Contains real peach extract. Coral/peach coloured gel. This is currently discontinued, but it is known to return every so often - look in outlet stores or in the sale. This is probably tied favourite for me;  I adore fresh Spanish peaches in the summer and this is exactly what it reminds me of. 

Honeymania™ - Contains Community Fair Trade honey made from the nectar of wildflowers sourced from Ethiopia. Golden/yellow coloured gel. It has quite a light scent with a real floral burst to it; great for those who do not enjoy very strong smelling products.

Raspberry - Contains real raspberry extract, making the scent extremely realistic. True raspberry/pink coloured gel (aaaaah It's so pretty!). Remember raspberry Petit Filous yoghurts as a child? This. This is what it smells like. It is perfect. I have nothing else to say.

The Body Shop | Shower Gels | £4.00

These Shower Creams come in the same 250ml bottle so the bottles are equally as sturdy. The consistency of these is similar to the gel, but is much creamier. The colours are opaque rather than clear. They are intensively moisturising and maybe even seen as luxurious on the skin. They leave the skin feeling soft and smooth and work incredibly well when followed by the matching body butters. These are perfect for both summer and winter, or whenever you need some added skin hydration. I own all three current Shower Creams; and if you were wondering, the two on the left are the old packaging and the one on the right is the new packaging.

Coconut - Contains Community Fair Trade virgin coconut oil and is targeted for normal to dry skin. By far the most moisturising and is great in the summer. The scent is beautiful and captures the coconut scent perfectly (without smelling too sunscreen-like).

Shea - Contains real shea butter, and is probably the least girly scent out of them all. Yes, it is still femenine, but it's got a much a deeper scent to it - not so floral. The website describes it as a 'nutty' scent, but that definitely isn't how I would word it. I must have gone through around five of these, and this was the first shower product I bought from The Body Shop.

Cocoa Butter - Contains real Community Fair Trade cocoa butter from Ghana. It is exactly as it describes: cocoa butter scented. it has a fairly natural smell to it too, so not too intense (in a similar way to the HoneyMania™).

It is safe to say that these are my absolute favourite body-related shower products. I definitely recommend giving them a try. I've even gotten my family hooked on them!

Have you ever tried these shower gels or creams? Which one's your favourite?

xo, alana

ps, I'm all over social media, find me on twitter, instagram and tumblr!

Blogging: a first for everything..

hiya guys;

eeeeeek, I guess I'm finally getting this blog going! I created this a while back and literally had no clue where to start when it came to posts, etc. I guess I'll begin here?

For those of you who don't know me, I'm Alana and from the UK. I absolutely adore anything to do with fashion/beauty/lifestyle. My taste in well, anything, is very spontaneous. Fashion? Beauty? Yes please. Gaming? Rock music? Also a 'yes please'. From colours and floral to leather and lace, It'll all be here.

I have absolutely no clue as to where this'll take me - or if it'll even take me anywhere at all. I hope to put up regular posts, but just bare with me as I begin. Expect fashion, hauls, beauty, reviews, and basically anything else that inspires me.

If you'd like to see anything in particular, please let me know! I'd absolutely love to receive feedback from readers; constructive criticism is always welcome in my books. 

alana, xo

ps, I'm all over social media, find me on twitter, instagram and tumblr!