Winter Warmer

Coat- Miss Selfridge

Dress- Topshop

Scarf- Topshop

Cardigan- New Look

A quick apologies for these photos! The weather was grim outside so I didn't fancy going out there for photos and there's a bit of a mess in the background too, oops! It was quite a chilly day so I was actually quite pleased to put on my winter coat and scarf. I expect you'll see this coat in a lot of upcoming outfit posts because it's so warm and it goes with almost everything. I dug out this old bag too and it's just the right size to fit in my essentials- phone, headphones and lippy (which today is my Maybelline Baby Lips in 'Cherry Me').

Olivia Ellen XXX

Trend of the Week: Mini Bags

Oversized totes are on their way out (at least for this season anyway) and small bags are in. Bigger than clutches but still cute, I'm a big fan of these bags. Yes, you may have to downsize what you carry around with you but they're a really flattering, simple addition to an outfit.

The jewelling detail on this grey satchel type bag from ASOS is really cute and would add a great, statement touch to a simple winter outfit. This nude one from Boohoo is a bargain and is so simple it would go with everything. If you're not a fan of a clutch for a night out this would be a simple alternative. Despite the price of this Vivienne Westwood bag from Urban Outfitters, it's absolutely gorgeous. As you all know, tartan is a big trend at the moment and the colours of this bag are just lovely. Sling this over your shoulder with a midi dress and some mid heels and you have an instantly classy look. This mini yellow holdall is super cute too- it comes with a long strap or short handles so you can go for different looks. Yellow is great for adding some fun to your outfit too (from Topshop).

Olivia Ellen XXX

How Much Does My Face Cost?

I really love reading these posts and thought it was about time I did one of my own. For those of you who don't know, this is where you add up how much the make-up that you wear on your face everyday costs you, and it's really interesting to find out. Now for me, this won't be completely accurate because I change up my make-up look everyday but for the sake of this post I'm showing you one of my fuller coverage looks but one that I still like to wear in the daytime. I've included brushes in this (whether you're meant to or not I don't know but hey ho) and I've linked all the products for you as well. So lets see how much my face is worth today...

FACE:
- Maybelline Dream Pure BB Cream (to prime) £6.99
- Covergirl Clean Whipped Foundation £3.84
- Maybelline Superstay 24hr Concealer £6.19
- Bourjois Healthy Mix Concealer £7.99
- Rimmel Stay Matte Powder £3.99
- Bourjois 'Chocolate' Bronzer £6.99
- Bourjois Little Round Pot Blush £7.99
- MAC Mineralize Skin Finish in 'Adored' £22

EYES:
- Sleek Au Naturalle Palette (shade 'Bark' for brows) £7.99
- Maybelline Brow Drama £4.99
- Eyeko Skinny Liquid Eyeliner £10
- Miss Sporty Mini Me Eyeliner (for waterline) £2.59
- Maybelline Colossal Mascara £7.99

LIPS:
- Revlon Lip Butter in 'Strawberry Shortcake' £7.99

BRUSHES:
- Real Techniques Core Collection (Buffing Brush, Contour Brush, Detailer Brush) £20.99
- Bare Minerals Flawless Face Brush £19
- Boots Powder Brush £7
- Elf Studio Stipple Brush £3.75
- Elf Brow Wand £1.50

TOTAL = £159.77

Wow. I was not expecting that. A couple of things to mention here are that obviously all these products are used many many times and I like to use a mixture of high street and high end items and I expect them all to last (for example I've had this sleek product for ages now and haven't hit pan on any, not even my brow shade). But still, over £150 is a lot of money, and if I actually stopped and thought about how much I spent on make-up in a year, I might die a premature death. If you're interested in seeing one of these posts for a more light/natural look let me know and I'll get on it!

Olivia Ellen XXX

Galaxy Sunset

Dress- Motel Rocks

Shoes- Next

Bag- Warehouse

Rings- Dorothy Perkins

Bracelet- eBay

Whenever I find out I have a party coming up, I always feel two things: a) excited, it's a party right? And b) what on earth am I going to wear?! I showed this dress in a recent haul (read here) and I bought it particularly for a friends party which is the look you can see here. 

I'm so happy with the way this outfit turned out- you'll often find me in a black dress but it felt so good to be wearing something colourful and I got so many compliments. For make-up, I did a shimmery smokey eye using pinks and dark blues with winged out eyeliner and on my lips is the Rimmel Apocalips in 'Luna'. 

Olivia Ellen XXX

Trend of the Week: Sweatshirts

I've always been a fan of sweatshirts, despite having only recently bought my first one. They're so easy to throw on and make for a really nice look. Here are some of my favourites at the moment:

First up is a really simple grey quilted sweatshirt from Urban Oufitters- I've seen a lot like this around lately and think it's a great way to inject some texture into your wardrobe. Teamed with some leggings and some trainers this would be a really great casual outfit. For something a little more Christmassy, how about this cute one from Topshop? I love the motif on the front, plus it's knitted so will be super warm but still looks like a sweatshirt. This would look lovely with a skater skirt and some ankle boots.

If you're after something a bit simpler, I'm really liking this dark red one from Boohoo. I love the studded detailing on the shoulders as it adds an edgy touch, plus this is super cheap. Finally for my favourite one (this is from ASOS) as this perfectly describes me- or at least what some people say about me! I love things with eye-catching slogans or designs on them as they are so fun.

Olivia Ellen XXX

Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Mascara

Like many people, my brows are very important to my make-up look and having quite wild brows, I always need to use a clear brow gel to set them in place. I normally just use a clear brow gel, but I ran out of this and was going to repurchase it when I saw an advert for the new Maybelline Brow Drama brow gel. I was really interested to try it out so I picked it up in Boots for about £4.50.

I bought the shade 'Medium Brown' which is the perfect shade for my brows. The brush is really interesting in shape but actually works really well for combing my brows into place. After I've filled in my brows, I brush this over the top and the colour just matches the brow powder I use perfectly. The staying power is really great, even through rain it lasted all day and tamed my rampant brows. It's also great for very natural days, the colour just slightly tints my brows and also keeps them neat.

I'm so glad I bought this and I would really recommend it- it's definitely worth the extra money and is available here.

Olivia Ellen XXX

Sleek Face Form Palette in 'Light'

If you've been reading my blog for a while, you'll probably know that I am a huge fan of Sleek products. I've been wanting this Face Form for a while and when I recently decided I was in need of a new blush, I decided to pick this up instead. I bought the shade 373 'Light' and it costs £10.

Firstly, the packaging is very similar to that of the palettes, a matte black case with the logo on it, only it is a little smaller than the eye palettes. You get three shades- a matte brown for contouring, a pale shimmery highlighter and a blush called 'Rose Gold'- a pink shade with gold flecks of shimmer.

The contour shade is really highly pigmented- the first time I used it, I applied it with a Real Techniques Contour Brush and ended up with very dark stripes on my cheekbones! I love the highlighter, as it is more subtle than my MAC Mineralize Skin Finish so it's perfect for a more natural look for daytime. Finally, the blush is a really pretty pink. I'm not normally a fan of blushes with shimmer but this is lovely because it comes out looking lovely and natural.

Overall I'm super happy with this palette and would definitely recommend it. It comes in four shades: Fair, Light, Medium and Dark so there is one perfect for every skintone. Have you tried any Sleek products, any favourites?

Olivia Ellen XXX

Maybelline Superstay 24 Hour Concealer

I bought this concealer in the shade 3 'Medium/Beige' after reading lots of reviews of it. It has a sponge applicator and when I tried this on my hand in Boots it seemed to be the right shade, but on my face it is a little too dark. To overcome this, I apply it before my foundation and blend it in with a flat Real Techniques foundation brush. It has medium to full coverage but doesn't look cakey. It claims to last 24 hours- I can't say this is true but I do think it lasts a long time on my face, blemishes stay covered for the whole day. I think my only complaint about this is that after about 7 hours wear, as my face starts to turn shiny, this does start to go a little orangey which isn't a great look so it does need to be re-blended if you want to wear it longer.

Overall however, I would recommend this as a good all-round concealer. Plus it's pretty reasonably priced at less than £5 I believe.

Olivia Ellen XXX

Beauty Haul!

So I have a small-ish beauty haul for you today- a lot of these are things I actually needed, but a couple were impulse buys!

Firstly I picked up this 'Strawberry and Raspberry' shower gel- it's a Superdrug own brand product, and I picked this up as it was on special offer at only 99p. I've got the 'Orange and Tangerine' flavour already and have almost finished that one so I picked up another as I love these when I shave my legs as it makes them extra smooth! Plus it smells lovely and fruity- if you're not a fan of 'loud' scents then you probably wouldn't like these, as the whole range contains pretty strong flavours.

This is a repurchase for me as the Rimmel Stay Matte powder is a staple for me in my make-up routine- it's definitely the best powder I've tried for my combination skin. I wear the shade 001 'Transparent' and it completely mattifies my skin, and it's reasonably priced too at £3.99.

I saw an advert on tv for the Maybelline Brow Drama recently and instantly knew I wanted to try it. I was in need a new brow gel and before I had just been using a clear mascara (which I was going to repurchase) but I decided to give this a go. It is more expensive that a regular mascara- this cost around £4.50- but I figured it would be worth a try as I may really like it. Also just to let you know, I've got reviews on the majority of these products coming up for you soon!

Another product I needed was a new concealer, as my Bourjois Healthy Mix concealer has quite light coverage and lately I've been feeling the need for something heavier. I did loads of research and decided on the Maybelline Superstay 24 Hour Concealer. I bought the colour 3 'Medium/Beige' which I actually think is slightly too dark for me, but if I blend it in well I can make it work.

I have been wanting the Sleek Face Form Palette for ages and finally decided to pick it up- I wanted a new blush but decided to get this as it has 3 shades in it for not much more than I was originally going to spend. I bought the shade 'Light' and it has a contour shade, a pale shimmery highlighter and a rose gold shimmery blush.

Olivia Ellen XXX

Trend of the Week: Four Coats

I've been reading a lot of magazines lately to try and find inspiration for my autumn/winter wardrobe, particularly which coat to buy. I'm one of those people who likes to buy a new on-trend coat every winter and I've come to the conclusion that there are 4/5 biggest coat trends that I'd like to share with you today.

A classic British coat is the duffel coat like this one from Topshop. Seen regularly on the likes of Alexa Chung, they're made of a thick wool and typically have toggles for buttons. I love the fit of these and love the length of this one. Oversized/boyfriend coats are next up- this red one is from River Island. I can see this paired with a black skater skirt, some tights and boots for an evening out- I'm a big fan of these coats although I'm not sure hey would suit my smallness.

Very Cold Shoulders

Dress- Boohoo

Jacket- Miss Selfridge

Shoes- New Look

Rings- Dorothy Perkins

Cuff- eBay

This is exactly what I was looking forward to about Autumn- cute dresses with black tights and my leather jacket. I adore the cut-out shoulders on this one and the loose fit. I've teamed it with these chunky brown loafers, a few bracelets and my some midi rings, which I think are a cute addition to any outfit. What a lovely setting this is too- if only I could take all my outfit photos here, but I can't drive for 45 minutes every time I want to take some shots!

Olivia Ellen XXX

Haul! ft Monki, Miss Selfridge, Boohoo etc

Recently I've been trying to cut down on my spending but somehow I ended up picking up a fair few clothing items- however I'm so happy with them all and I can see myself getting a lot of wear out of them.

I picked up this lovely dress from Boohoo a few weeks ago- I'm a huge fan of cut-out shoulders and this dress is so cute, especially the denim look effect and loose fit. The length is really nice and I like the skater style. With some tights and boots and a chunky coat this will make for a great look.

In the September issue of Vogue, there was a big 4-page spread about the coats which are going to be huge this winter. I really loved them all but decided this year I wanted to get a duffle coat, as seen on the likes of Alexa Chung. I looked in so many different shops, but coats all seem to be so expensive so I eventually found this one from Miss Selfridge- it was still pretty pricey but I'm counting on it lasting me well. A duffle coat is a really classic style (my mum actually told me she owned one of these when she was about my age) but this one is updated with the fur trim on the hood and the tartan trim around the pockets, which is bang on trend at the moment.

I am in love with this super cute shirt from Monki at ASOS. It's a soft cotton material with the most incredible cat print! It's a lovely fit- I think you can wear it tucked in to some jeans or as a layering piece just thrown on over a top so it'll be perfect for autumn. I like the sleeves rolled up but they also look really smart full length.

How cute is this hat?! I picked this up on eBay for so so so cheap, plus it comes in loads of colours. It fits my head really well and the cat ears are lovely, this is going to be a great piece for the winter, as it will keep me warm and will add a fun touch to an outfit.

I adore my Leigh jeans from Topshop but I've had my dark blue pair for a while and they've started to lose their shape so I decided to pick up a pair to replace them. I love these black ones- the super skinny fit, soft material and I haven't own a pair of black jeans in a good few years and forgot how much I liked them. The rose gold buttons are so cute too, but some people have said that these fade quite quickly- this isn't much of an issue for me because I like the faded look but if you're after a pair of strong black jeans these probably aren't the right way to go.

Again from Topshop is this super cute black and white. floral skater dress. It's a really nice fit and the material is perfect for winter as it has a lovely, slightly fuzzy texture. I reckon I'll be wearing this with heels and a leather jacket for a night out or with tights and boots on a chilly day. I love the cap sleeves too, I think they're a very flattering length on everyone.

I have to admit- I know it's important to keep fit but I'm not a big fan of exercise! I recently joined the gym but only had one pair of gym trousers so I picked up this pair from Sports Direct. I love the slightly longer legging length and they're made of a really soft material. They fit lovely but aren't so tight that I have to wriggle my way into them, and I'll definitely be wearing these a lot.

Finally I picked up another dress, this one is from Motel. I bought this for a party I have coming up and how great is this print?! I've always been a big fan of galaxy print and I think this one is really unusual because of the colours. I love the bodycon fit and high neckline, plus the length is great. I got a great price for this too as I used the discount code cakesfordorothy for 25% off. The only thing I find about Motel is that the sizing is weird- I'm a size 6-8 so I can get away with a size XS/8 but it is very small. Also the neck hole on this is so tight, you really have to stretch it over your head but it does get looser the more you put it on.

Olivia Ellen XXX