my day off

So last Friday my school had a non pupil day which meant a lovely day off from school which was much needed. I had been planning to go into Manchester that day to go and purchase some winter jumpers from Primark that Emma spoke about in one of her posts (can't remember which one, sorry!) and some Topshop bracelets but then my friend Emma (a different one!) said she wanted to go in so a trip was planned!

So, unfortunately, I couldn't find any of the winter jumpers in Primark (although there were some lovely ones in the men's section that i wouldn't mind getting a few of!) so my friend Emma took me to this place just off the centre of Manchester called Ryan Vintage where you can get loads of second hand clothes for pretty reasonable prices. I got this jumper from there and it was only £10. Obviously I had to give it a wash (see if you can spot the lovely brown mark on the top row of white diamonds...) but it's definitely worth it because it's so cosy! Also, the design probably wasn't meant to be Christmassy but I get such a festive feel from the jumper and I have a feeling I'm going to be wearing it a lot this year! I've already planned on wearing it to Clothes Show Live on Sunday so look out for it in that post!

I first saw these bracelets on the Topshop website after they sent out a link on their Twitter account. Excited about both the cuteness of them and the price (£2?! yes please!) I added them to my basket and went to checkout. But oh no. Of course something would go wrong. For some reason, Topshop said that they couldn't deliver these to my country? Disappointed I just forgot about them and justified it with the fact I don't need any more bracelets. However, when I decided to go into Manchester I made sure to go to Topshop in order to pick these up. But I couldn't find them anywhere! I almost gave up hope until my friend Faye went to go and buy a pair of boots and I saw the bracelets on the counter! You wouldn't believe my happiness. With 2 of them at £2 each and a 10% student discount, I walked away extremely happy and only £3.60 poorer (some of which will go on to a charity!). The squirrel one is my favourite and so that was a definite. I also really liked the heart one but I did think the heart would be bigger. Don't get me wrong, I much prefer the heart this size but I just assumed it to be a big heart! There is a wishbone one but I wasn't interested as I'm not a big believer in luck 'enhancers', if that makes sense?

And the final thing I bought was a new piercing. If you don't know me very well you won't know that I'm slightly 'addicted' to piercings. In total I would love to have 10 ear piercings, a possible lip piercing and maybe my nosed pierced. It sounds crazy but I will try and make it tasteful. I currently have 6 ear piercings (4 on my right, 2 on my left) and on Friday I got my 6th one, my rook. At first I wanted to get a 3rd on my left ear but Emma persuaded me to get this one done and after not really thinking about it I just went for it. Honestly though, I was so nervous as I almost fainted with my other two cartilage ones but the man who did it was very nice and after a quick needle prick and a bit of fumbling, it was over and I felt hardly any pain. I'm really happy I've got it done even if it is a bit sore at this current moment and if anybody wants to get it done but is worried, do it! It's definitely worth it and it honestly doesn't hurt that much (about as much as an injection).

Anyway, I don't really have much else to say apart from I hope you enjoyed this post and that maybe I have inspired you to go out and buy some nice treats for yourself before the Christmas shopping season begins. I have to say that I'm pretty proud of myself as I've already started my Christmas shopping - I've got 2 tickets for Strictly Come Dancing Live for my mum and whoever she wants to take (though it will probably be me going) and then possibly some tickets for a wine tasting show for my dad and mum. Not much but it's a start and I'm very happy with my early start!

How is everyone else doing with their Christmas shopping (if you've started)? And what does everybody want for themselves for Christmas? :)

benefit carmella perfume

Well, I think a post is due! I meant to post at the weekend but I had so much going on that any spare time I did have, I just couldn't be bothered to make a post or I was too tired and then I was going to post yesterday but again, no time. However, I had a bit of time yesterday whilst I was just watching TV (after parent's evening - went well guys!) and thought I would start writing then and take the pictures today (hope that makes sense!).

I got this perfume, I think, last year for my birthday after I'd tried the 'Crescent Row' collection in my nearest Debenhams' store and Carmella was definitely my favourite out of all the fragrances. If you don't know, the collection consists of 7 different eau de toilettes (there were originally 6 but Bella was recently introduced. i also have Bella and when it is used up, i intend to do a post on it like this one) and, personally, I think this is such a great way to produce a fragrance line as you can keep adding to it with different names. Also, if you haven't had a chance, I'd go and take a look on the Debenhams' website as all the fragrances have a really different scent so I think there is something to suit everybody.

Carmella's 'full name' is So Hooked On Carmella and I mainly spray this at the start of the weekday (i have a different perfume for the weekends). It lasts me all day because it's quite a heavy and strong smell which is great because it means if I'm working or at school, I don't have to worry about topping it up during the day.

The website says So Hooked On Carmella features "top notes of lemon, grapefruit and rhubarb; middle notes cyclamen, peony and tiare flower; bottom notes of vanilla, sandalwood and amber". For me, the vanilla just stands out so predominantly, it's unreal.

As well as loving the scent and concept of these fragrances, I really really love the packaging. Each perfume bottle comes in a little 'house' with gorgeous details on the outside of the box. To get inside, to the perfume, the roof must be lifted and the front 'flap' pulled down (essentially opening the front door) and inside is made to look like the inside of a room/house. The perfume has a little slot to stand in and if you pull it out, you can see the full effect of the detailed box. Honestly, I've never seen anything like it in my life and don't think anything could compete with it. I mean seriously, what other fragrance box is made to look like a house?

I really can't rave enough about this perfume and after I've finished my Bella perfume, I can't wait to buy another in the range! I could definitely see myself building up a collection here...

outfit of the night

Got a little outfit post for you guys! I was going to post it yesterday but I didn't have time due to my friend's and I having our first Come Dine With Me night. It was honestly SO fun and I recommend everyone having a go with their own friends/family!

popadoms, nom.

naan bread, so good!

Last December, my parents and I decided that each month we would go out for dinner to a different restaurant to a) try out different places near to us that we've never really noticed/tried before and b) have some more family time. Therefore, on Saturday we had our November meal at this Indian restaurant near us. I'd never been before but I know my parents' love to get a takeaway from there so I was very interested in trying it out. We ordered popadoms and naan bread to start with and gosh, they're my favourites. So so so good! For my main I ordered this chicken dish with some roasted and almond nuts with some basmati rice. However, I wasn't too keen on it. It had a very weird texture and the chicken was too pink for me. I ended up sharing my mum's lentil dish and my dad had mine. Even though I didn't enjoy it much, I would probably go again to try something else.

The outfit I wore was a zebra print vest that my dad got me years ago from America (i think?) with some black harem pants that I've had for a while too and love! The belt in the picture is one I wear with practically everything! It came with a River Island skirt that I initially got for school but I wear it with a lot of other things. I also wore my trusty Vans that I think everyone should own a pair of. They're so comfortable and you can wear them with practically everything! Also had my lovely Gorilla bag that my mum got from Portugal  about 10 years ago, I think, and I've just stolen it because I love it so much. And then the 4th and 5th picture show the nail varnish I wore.

I hope you've enjoyed this post because I don't usually do outfit posts and it's not because I don't like them but it's because I don't explore with what I wear. I wear what I like and I think looks good on me but I'm going to try and start doing more outfit posts. I also don't buy new clothes often and I'm sure you guys wouldn't like to see the same old outfits, week after week!

LATEST IN BEAUTY box #1

Now I know that everyone's heard about beauty boxes (GlossyBox, Boudior Prive, Carmine, Feel Unique - if you have any others, please let me know, i really want to look into more) but I've never seen a post on Latest In Beauty boxes (only mentioned by Kate on an old post which is where i first heard about it) and I really wanted to put my two cents in because although it's not very well known and the quality is not as good as the others, it's the cheapest and most interesting.

Basically, the concept of Latest In Beauty is you only pay £1 for a text to recieve a code that allows you to order your box and then the box is essentially free. At first I thought I wouldn't have to pay anything but when I found out you had to pay a £1 I thought it was understandable because they have to make some money (you can order full size products from them after you've tried out the sample but i'm not sure how much profit they make out of that) and I still went ahead with the order.

Latest In Beauty is a lot different to the other boxes because instead of being 'surprised' with the products you receive, you get to pick which samples you want to try out. There are three categories Make Up, Fragrances and Hair & Body and you can pick 3 samples each month. These can either be one from each category or three from one. Whatever you want. This month I picked one from each and I'm happy with the ones I got. I'm really excited to try them out.

I picked the Blemish Relief Kit because I've always had problems with my skin and am up for anything that says they can, basically, sort out my face.

The reason I picked the Nicky Clarke Volume Shampoo & Conditioner is because I always like trying new hair products. I'm the type of girl who doesn't really care what she puts on her hair, as long as it washes/cleans it so I'll be interested in seeing if it really does give me volume.

And lastly the Crabtree & Evelyn Body Lotion & Eau De Toilette purely to try more fragrances and to break out of my comfort zone with my perfumes. I've never owned a product that smelled of lilies before so I'm looking forward to trying that out.

I can order my next box in 19 days (the website told me, i'm not keeping track...) and I'm already looking forward to it! I'm not sure if I have to pay the £1 next time but I'm not entirely fussed if I do.

I'm also planning on ordering two of their 'themed boxes'. They basically have themed boxes that come out at certain times of the year with quite a few samples in (you know what they are before you order) that are priced at £4.95 (again cheaper than the others). When I get the chance I'm going to get the 2011 CEW Beauty Insiders Choice Award Winners Box and the Festive Stocking Box so look out for those posts soon!

Hope you've enjoyed this post as a 'twist' on the ever famous sample boxes.

KATY PERRY

Another little concert post for you guys. On Monday (halloween!) I went to the MEN Arena to see Katy Perry. She was incredible! Like honestly, she puts on such an amazing show.

So Monday night was a lot more stressful than Jessie J but was still incredible! Anyway we got the tram to Victoria and then headed into the arena. Luckily, we were seated so it wasn't like we had to rush in to get a good place. Our seats were in the Gods which isn't the best seat in the house but I definitely wasn't complaining as Amy (my friend) got the tickets at such a good price at such a late date. As we were heading to our seats, the lights switched off and the support act came on. Now, the support act was a girl and her 'band' (basically a man on the keyboard and a man on the drums) called Oh Land. She had a very unique voice but after about 3 songs I just wanted Katy to come on. Anyway, she finished after about 7 songs or something like that and then there was a break where the big screens showed some tweets people had with the hashtag '#manchesterdreams'. This lasted for about half an hour before the main star came on and the night properly started! I don't actually know where to start with explaining it so I think, because a lot of people are interested in fashion, I'll start with her costumes. Now, Katy Perry is very creative with her costumes and Monday night was no different. Every two or three songs she would have a costume change and during Hot n' Cold she had about 7 during the song. Each time she had a costume change (between songs) a video would play that told a story. It was really good and it kept the audience entertained and it kind of explained the whole 'candy land' thing and sort of showed a bit of 'background' to her videos and songs if that makes sense? Also, in between songs she would talk to everyone and tell some stories which was lovely because she's absolutely hilarious and so sweet. Also, because it was Halloween she told us some stories about her Halloween experiences and some of her costumes (which included a holy shit - yes really). Anyway, she played a set of Teenage Dream, Hummingbird heartbeat, Waking Up In Vegas, Ur So Gay, Peacock, I Kissed A Girl, Circle The Drain, E.T., Who Am I Living For?, Pearl, Not Like The Movies, a medley of The One That Got Away and Someone Like You by Adele, Thinking Of You, Hot N Cold, Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F), Firework and an encore of California Gurls. The dancers also performed an amazing routine of a medley of I Wanna Dance With Somebody and Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. So she basically played everyone's favourites and some of her more 'unknown' but still great songs. After the show we had to catch our tram back but there was a bit of difficulty with that and we ended up missing our last tram back. HOWEVER, if we ran to Picadilly, we could try and catch that tram. So off we went. Running. To catch a tram home. It was horrible. I ended up giving up and walked to the tram stop and we had a bit of a panic where we thought we'd missed it again but we hadn't and we managed to get home. I ended up getting to sleep though at like 12 which was draining the next day but it was totally worth it.

I'll finish my post there or else you'll all get bored of me rambling on. Like I said about Jessie J, if you have the chance, go and see Katy Perry in concert! I think the European part of her tour is over now (the whole tour may be over actually...) but when she comes back, just go! It's definitely worth the money. I was planning on getting a t-shirt, because I usually do, but I didn't have time this time and I didn't particularly like any designs.

ANOTHER LITTLE UPDATE:

• This week I planned to do more posts but unfortunately I've had THE busiest week of my life. On Monday I obviously had Katy Perry, then on Tuesday I had to help out at school with Year 11 Parents' Evening, on Wednesday I went to see Bruno Mars (yes, another concert. i don't actually go to that many, they've all just come at once!) and then yesterday I had a driving lesson. Today is the first time this week that I've had a proper chance to relax. I was supposed to be going to this bonfire and firework do near me but I decided to stay home and get some work done (which i haven't done much of, urgh) and my parents wanted to spend a bit of time with me.
• I've got two posts planned for tomorrow and Sunday so look out for them!
• Two of my favourite blog's, Lily and Laura, are holding some competitions/giveaways so I'd definitely go and check them out!

Don't think I have much else to say so I'll just round this post up. Enjoy your weekend and remember it's only about 7 weeks until Christmas! Wooo!