Summer Outfit #2

Oh I do love a good bargain! This strapless, chequered dress has more than a nod to rockabilly fashion (it'll definitely be in my suitcase for the Hotrod Hayride!). I picked it up at Primarni a couple of months ago when there was that odd little heat wave back in early April, for a measly £7! I've worn it in winter/spring over jeans as a long tunic kind of top but now the sun is out I can wear it bare legged!

It has pockets too!

It is quite short, but oh well! It's probably normal sized on other gals!

A Bit of Girl On Girl Action with Sailor Jerry

I'm not one to turn down a competition to win some goodies, especially if the goodies come in the form of Sailor Jerry rum. There was an advert up at work to represent your bar at an arm wrestling competition at Mojo Liverpool so I thought I'd give it a shot. I've been hitting the gym recently so I thought I'd be pretty good at it - that was until I met the all-powerful Karen with her arms of steel! There was a good few pairs of lads to battle it out but the lasses were few on the ground, but we held our ground and put up a fair fight!

We started the night slapping some temporary Sailor Jerry tattoos on ourselves - the Mojo lads looked amazing with anchors, roses and pin up girls all up their arms and necks.

I really like mine! Perhaps a smaller version for real?

Heather wasn't so keen on her's...

It was soon down to business! Starting with a shot of the nectar itself, the lads went first, showing off their muscles and manly strength. Some of the wrestles went on for a while, others were over short and sharp. I got knocked out in the first round to the formidable Karen, but I like to think I would have won against the other girls...

Ash from Aloha also got knocked out in the first round, but Kieran kept it up for the tiki crew, winning the boy's round for the bar!

Me in action. I have seriously never met a stronger woman than Karen!

The winning round for Kieran

Now, although I went out early, the lovely Karen said I put up such a fight she very, very kindly donated some of her prizes to me, including a delicious bottle of Sailor Jerry rum, a Sailor Jerry t-shirt, a CD (which I've yet to listen to), some stickers and a pack of cards (which I gave to Heather for our house next year).

Look at my goodies!

So, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the gorgeous Sailor Jerry team (Emma-Li, Scarlett and Karen) and to Mojo for giving me such a lovely evening! Hopefully there'll be another one in the future!

Park Life

The entire world probably knows that Britain is currently in the arms of a rather pleasant summer. I, however, am in the middle of my second year exams and so most of my days are spent locked in my room doing revision. Yesterday, I had had enough! I took a wee break and took the short walk from my house to Liverpool's famous Sefton Park. It was stunning. It was full of people lounging around and enjoying the sunshine, eating ice creams and slowly turning into lobsters as only British people know how. I took my camera along to snap some photos to share with you the beauty of this historic park.

The History Part:

Constructed (is that the right word for a park?) in the 1870s Sefton Park was designed to give the industrialised city a green space of over 100 hectares, away from disease and foul city air. Sir William Rathbone V (got a photo of his statue below) had a big part in making Victorian Liverpool a tolerable place so he's commemorated throughout the park. The layout of the park itself hasn't changed that much at all in the 140 years it's serviced the city; it's gained some new buildings, lost an aviary and sunk a pirate ship, but other than that it's pretty much as it was designed.

Sorry about the dirt! I cleaned it up as much as I could!

The Green House was revamped in 2008 and was previously derelict! It was closed when I went, not that I'd want to go into a glass building on a day like that!

Sefton Park is only about 15 minute walk from my house, but I'm ashamed to say I don't get down there enough. We go down for the annual Fireworks Night frivolities and the odd ice cream, but I do wish I got down there more! Hopefully this summer I shall find the time to wander on down. My favourite parts of the park are always by the streams and lakes they have running right through the centre. There's something very peaceful about picnicking by water, even if it does make you need the loo every half an hour! (There are no loos in the park - my only complaint - so this is a tricky situation)

The 'Fairy Grove' - an original feature of the park near the Iron Bridge

These flowers were everywhere!

The Fairy Grove and Iron Bridge entrance is the one nearest me - the other large entrance is off of Lark Lane, the entrance that both my grandad and mum used in childhood! It's a magical entrance, but with spooky undertones...

Anyone that knows me knows I love the paranormal. Some would say I am slightly obsessed by it, always on the look out for a haunting, a story, and any ghosts in the wardrobe. So imagine my excitement when I saw this plaque! What a story!

I took the long way around to the ice cream parlour so I could enjoy the streams and see what other things I could find. This is when I wandered across the 'life size' statue (it was pretty big, so I doubt it was life size) of Sir William Rathbone V. His history is pretty immense, this guy had a big heart!

Look at that sky!

Finally the ice cream parlour! Run by an Italian family it does scrummy yummy ice cream. I fancied a tropical flavour, but alas, they had none, so I settled for pistachio. Delicious!

Not a bad spot to eat ice cream!

Finally, I thought I'd share with you a little piece of my family history. My late grandad was a Liverpudlian born and bred from an Irish working class family. After the war, when he was evacuated to Derbyshire, the family settled in Aigburth, right next to Sefton Park. Then, when my mum moved back from Singapore aged six, she lived for a little while with her grandparents in the same house in Aigburth. So, my family has quite a long standing connection to the area, and to Sefton Park! My mum remembers there being a pirate ship and a statue of Peter Pan in the park, but just thought she was going insane when we couldn't find it when she came to visit last year. Well, I have solved the mystery! ...It sank. Sorry mum.

You can just see the tops of the sunken masts in the lake :(

The road my grandad and mum lived on - Panoramic photo, sorry about the curve!

Summer Outfit #1

Now I have my new swanky camera I am aiming to do more outfit posts (vintage, rockabilly, or whatever) and just general posts full of glorious photos. Like today's! Today's outfit post is not vintage or rockabilly at all as I am just having a revision day and needed something comfy and cooling to wear in the summer heat - which has finally hit Liverpool!

(Plus, I am hooked on editing photos so the look all professional by using PicMonkey)

Ahh the mirror photo - I apologise about the state of my room

My outfit today consists of:

• Mint vest top by H&M (£7.99)
• Blokes jeans customised into shorts by Primark (£4)
• Black leather belt (unseen, sorry) from the 1980s that I stole from my mum (Free!)

And I thought I'd show my face too as I bought a new lip stick yesterday in my current favourite trend ORANGE!

My hair is in it's natural-ish colour and in it's natural wavy state, although from this angle you can't really see that...

My make up is:

• Urban Defense Tinted Moisturiser in 'Halo' by Urban Decay (£20 - Yowch!)
• Shine Control Loose Powder in 'Translucent' by 17 (£4.99 - I think)
• Eye Brow Crayon in 'Lingering' by MAC (£11)
• Eye shadow in 'Rule' by MAC (£12)
• Glam'Eyes Professional Liquid Eye liner in 'Black Glamour' by Rimmel (not sure on price...)
• Volume Flash Scandaleyes Mascara in 'Extreme Black' by Rimmel (£7.99 I think)
• Blush in 'Life's a Peach' by Sleek (£4.99)
• Colourburst Lip Butter in 'Tutti Frutti' by Revlon (£4.99)

So there you have it, my first outfit post of this summer! Hopefully there will be many more to come!

I Promise I Don't Buy It For The Packaging.

...But it does help.

What am I talking about? Soap & Glory of course! The shops are now full of bath and beauty smellies adorned with retro photos of bathing beauties (I even saw some in Asda the other day!), but Soap & Glory were the first. I think everyone has heard of this company since it's foundation in 2006, and most women (and men!) have owned at least one of their products. I have the slightest obsession with their products since I received Clean On Me shower gel and Righteous Butter moisturiser for Christmas in 2007, and I am now slowly working my way through their entire, ever growing collection. I've tried most of the beauty products, but I have yet to move on to their new make up range, so I won't say much on them, but from what I've heard and read the reviews have been great, and they're not too pricey either - I'd hazard a guess at them being within the same price range as L'Oreal, Maybelline and MaxFactor.

These are my present Soap & Glory products

 So where do I begin? I think the shower is the best place. Presently, I have a miniature of one of my favourite of their products, the Clean On Me shower gel. It's a really thick formula that gets you squeaky clean and leaves your skin nicely moisturised without the need for a body lotion. The full 500ml bottle lasts me around six months and seeing as I shower everyday that's not a bad deal for just over a fiver! Once or twice a week I like to exfoliate my body too, at the moment I'm using Flake Away which is fragranced with shea butter (good for moisturising!), sugar and peach; the full 300ml tub cost me £7.00 from Boots, and the mini was part of a gift set I got for Christmas - I get a lot of this stuff for Christmas! I have also given the Breakfast Scrub a whirl too, and was highly impressed, but it's a little more pricey for a little less product. I won't lie to you, I haven't used the Glad Hair Day shampoo yet, so I won't give my opinion, but once again, I have heard great reviews of their stuff. 

After my shower, I need to moisturise. My skin just goes all tight and nasty if I don't. I've been using Soap & Glory body butters since I was introduce to them way back in 2007, and I have yet to find a decent enough replacement. I get my regular supply every Christmas so have never actually needed to buy one, but the three tub collection shown below will probably last me the year. The Righteous Butter smells of their signature scent, similar to most of their products so blends well if you are also using their shower products. My personal favourite is the Butter Up body cream, which has thicker formula and more of a citrus scent, which is much more my thing. Finally the Daily Smooth body butter is the one I am making my way through at the moment as I have both a tube and tub of the stuff. It's the most flowery of the three scents, and probably my least favourite.

For a little extra moisture I do like to use their Flirtigo Moisturising Mist which is a lighter moisturiser that is great for spraying the tops of my arms, which get very dry, in the morning if I don't want to use a heavier body butter. My favourite scent is the Glam-A-Lot body mist; it's a heavier scent, more perfume-y than a body spray, and it sticks around all day. The Mist You Madly spray is the same scent as the Daily Smooth body butter and so, like that product, is my least favourite one. I got these as part of a set, I think it was £20 for all three, but don't quote me. The great thing about these sprays is the fact that they're not in an aerosol, so not only do they smell nice, are in nice bottles with catchy names, they are eco-friendly(ish) too!

Finally for the beauty stuff we have the odd and ends that I just have in my collection. Hand Food is a great hand cream that isn't too greasy and sinks into the skin pretty quickly, plus has that signature Soap & Glory scent to it. I actually use this as a face moisturiser in the summer too; I know you're not supposed to but it keeps my skin moisturised all day and it hasn't caused me any issues. I use Heel Genius after every shower because I have disgusting feel (to say the least), and it does make them soft on top, but it hasn't done much for the rough skin underneath; the smell is a little weird too, and it is slippery on your tootsies until it soaks in. I got this as part of a package, and probably won't purchase it again. Lastly is my least favourite product: Scrub Your Nose In It. I have yet to find a facial exfoliater that my skin likes, some are too heavy (Lush, I'm looking at your Salt Scrub) and some are too light. This one is certainly too light. It's supposed to clear out your pores around your nose and leave your skin silky smooth without causing damage. Well...it doesn't. My skin didn't feel any different, my pores weren't any clearer and the smell reminded me more of toothpaste than face wash.

I said before that I have yet to explore their make up range, but I was telling a little white lie. I do have their clear Sexy Mother Pucker (careful how you say that one...) which is a lip gloss that has a little chilli in it to plump your lips. It smells pleasantly of chocolate and it does give you a glossy, plump lip so it does what it does on the tin. It's just not a favourite of mine because I don't tend to wear clear gloss because I naturally have quite pale lips, and I like to wear colour on my lips instead. Maybe if they did a red tinted one it would be more up my street...

It lived in my bag for a long time...

So, there you have it, my present collection of Soap & Glory products. I promise to update you on any new purchases as I do believe in promoting the products I think are best! Plus, I just got a new camera (hence the lovely photos) so I'll be snapping lots of things with no excuse not to share them with you!

It's been a while...

But I now have my natural(ish) hair colour back. As I said in my last post, it was a necessity for me to do as my hair was frazzled beyond belief. So, for this summer I am giving it a wee holiday and am letting it grow naturally. To save myself from dreaded roots I have dyed it to a colour near my natural tone - hopefully it won't fade too much, but it does have a grey tinge at the tips from the white hair underneath it. What do you guys think?

'Scuse the photo - it's from a night out but the best I could get

Nothing much else to report. Uni work is going well, just writing my last essay for second year (on deforestation in the ancient Mediterranean, if you care to know) and then it's exams. I'm staying in Liverpool for the majority of the summer - except for my two week dig on the Isle of Man and, of course, the Hotrod Hayride - for work, so hopefully I'll be able to see quite a few things out and about to feed back to you lovely people.