After that big haul i did a couple of weeks back.. i have shopped again but unfortunately this isn't a haul post. I think maybe its time for me to admit to being a shopaholic. anyone who follows me on twitter and is up late at night may have seen my ramblings about how much i loved to shop.. I cant find my tweets (i tweet too much and it would take forever to find them!) but safe to say i sounded like i belonged in shopaholics anonymous (any of you who have seen confessions of a shopaholic or have read the book will be aware of what im talking about...) well i thought now was time for a confession.. my name is Laura, im 17 years old and i am a shopaholic. done. it wasn't difficult.. but what is difficult is the fact i now have no money... no job... and an insatiable urge to shop. i am going from a 2 door wardrobe to a 4 door wardrobe (i have a tiny room and would rather have the wardrobe space than draws for clothes) and worry that when i eventually do get a job.. i will need a seperate room for my clothes. Im not a silly spender of money, i only buy the things i see that are worth getting or that are ridiculously cheap and dont make a difference either way.. so at least i have it under control in a way... however there are those moments of weakness when you see something.. and you know you just have to have it.. and then you look at the price and think hmm thats a bit pricey. This is when i leave it to fate. i place the item somewhere in the shop and return at the end of the day.. or the following day or even the following week.. if the item is still there, in my size i take it as fate for me to buy it.. if it isnt i feel sad for a while.. then find something else to spend the money on. anyway i dont really think that this blog post has all that much of a point.. i just thought i would confess to being a bit of a shopaholic and hope that some of you are the same.. and maybe im not so bad after all!

until next time.. laura xx

some things are better left unsaid.. or not

This is a blog post addressing a few things, for those of you who follow me on twitter (@09lauraspain) you will be aware I am leaving the beauty blogging community .. but before you all cheer that that girl who rambled on for pages without having a point has left.. I thought I would tell you I will still be blogging.. just a bit more about me and my life and a lot less about make-up. This is for several reasons mainly being my lack of motivation to blog about make up (despite my love for it) also the fact I don’t have the money to fund products to blog about combined with the fact it doesn’t really reflect me as a person because make up is such a small part of my life! So my new blog.. which I am so sorry to anyone who I practically forced to follow .. is now going to be gone.. I know I started it only the other day but right now it just seems unnecessary so to any of you reading this on my ‘all things made up’ blog.. make sure you are now following my other blog ‘follow laura’s rainbow’ because I’m going back to having one blog (same goes to my 3 book blog followers)

I would also like to apologise for disappearing again, what with the exam results looming last week (which I do not want to discuss) and then being disappointed with them, and then coming to my dad’s for 10 days since and him having no internet for the first few blogging was not an option.. and I’m also (as much as I love to write) not going to feel pressured by my lack of blogging into blogging.. I think there is nothing worse than a blog post which is anything less than heartfelt and meaningful! Sorry to those who disagree. So I can’t promise anything on the regularity of my blogs because it all depends what I feel like and when.

I sound so unoptimistic in this post and I’m so sorry about that, I think this post has been a while overdue though and  I think it was just best to make this decision and see where I go from here. On a more positive note my room at my mums house has been decorated since I left and my furniture comes less than 48 hours after I return.. happy me J and I just won a collection 2000 competition.. I think.. I hope it wasn’t a spam/scam email anyway JJJ and also my dad has just moved into a new house.. well actually it’s a 300 year old thatched cottage (like the ones you see in homes magazines.. or will be when its decorated) and I reminds me of the one Alice grows into in the Disney ‘Alice in wonderland’.. (which for all of you unaware is my favourite story/selection of films and books ever) . So hopefully you will see more of my posts around.. but maybe you won’t (MUST STAY OPTIMISTIC)  but I will more likely post from next Monday (but back to school might slow things down again.. ooh on this note because I’m not going to UNI this is my last ever back to school.. from then on it will be shorter holidays and work no doubt but still this makes me even happier!!!

Until next time… Laura x

Collective Haul

This post is going to be very picture heavy! so apologies in advance... Well back on the 26th July it was my birthday and i had asked for money as I was planning on getting driving lessons (it was my 17th) but then i had over £250 burning a hole in my pocket and i thought realistically that i would get about 10 lessons from that and even though my mum offered to pay for the rest it wasnt very fair on her. And so Im postponing the driving lessons until i get myself a job (believe me im trying, and its proving very difficult! and im looking specificlly for waitressing jobs..) And so with my £250 i have tried to buy as much as i can and unbelievably i still have about £60 left!!! I have been sensible with this money and have got rather a lot to show for it so here are my buys!

CLOTHES/SHOES/SCARF

New Look:

I normally hate a new look sale but i have found 4 pretty good bargains and in my size surprisingly. however some of the prices im a little unsure of because i have taken the labels out (sorry) 

First find is this lovely denim looking skirt with a stripy elasticated waistband, this is high waisted and so pretty and flattering. and i think this was about £8 and i was sold! I had been looking for a skirt like this for ages and its definitley one of those pieces which i dont see going out of 'fashion' for a while and its definitley very 'me'

My second find is this very delicate looking white dress/long top it is about a size too big typically but i think it fits me just right and is an ideal length to wear with leggings (bit too short to wear along.. and also a bit too see through)  and although you need a vest top under the top part it is so pretty and flattering and lovely with a skinny plaited belt around the waist... even better it pairs nicely with my skirt above!! this was about £12

My next bargainous find is this blouse type top, i never really attempted the pussybow blouse and finding this have found it might be a safer alternative for me as well as being ideal for me to wear to school tucked into a skirt, i love the cute side bow and the pattern on it is so cute! This was reduced from £20 to £6.. like a quarter of the price! so impressive...

My final piece of Clothing i picked up was this cute coat/jacket.. its going to be ideal for back to school when it gets a bit colder, i also think it looks quite smart as well as looking adorable! the buttons arent my favourite but it was only £9 and they can easily be covered up with a scarf (this was originally about £35)

My final thing i bought from new look was a pair of shoes. I had my eye on these when they were full price as i have wanted a pair of white wedges for a while, And then they were in the sale, and in my size, and I fell in love. I picked these up for £12, have yet to wear them though as they are rather high.. i will find an occasion though!

Primark:

Normally i pick up a few things in primark, and have tried a few things on in there lately but in all honesty i dont think some of their things are worth the money for their quality so i only have three things to show you today

I only purchased one full price item which is actually a bit of a basic; a pair of leggings... however they arent your typical black leggings, they are actually a navy/grey pair (i tried thinking of a word like 'greige' for navy gray.. and all i could think of was gravy....) however sometimes i think black leggings can be a bit harsh and so i have these instead.. these were £3

The other clothing item i picked up in primark was this dress that was in the sale for only £2, i liked it apart from the buttons which i have since cut off to make it much nicer.. cant wait for a sunny day (bit hopeful i know) to wear it.. might even be able to get away with it length wise for school....

I also picked up these gorgeous earrings which Sara Walker mentioned in her haul video and were a bargain at £1.50 and i love love love them.. i now am an earring obsessed girl constantly looking in the jewellery section!

Final buy from primark was this gorgeous scarf.. i love it and it was reduced to £1.. why i dont know!!! how i never saw it before is a mystery too

Internacionale:

I only have a couple of things which i will show as one.. im not an internacionale fan, i think there clothes are quite overpriced for their quality and i think there is a level of 'tackiness' that comes across when im in there.. maybe its the dodgy covers of chart music? but when i went in with my sister i saw this black basic summer dress for £9.99 which i think is overpriced for the fact it is so basic! but it was on a 'mix and match 2 for £10' offer and so i picked the same one up in pink.. they are ideal with a skinny belt at the waist and a pair of sandals of flip flops

Peacocks:

I always go into peacock expecting to find something i like, and i never do.. maybe its my local one? like internacionale everything is that bit overpriced for what it is and i think a lot of it looks a bit copycat of other high street clothes that are a bit more expensive.. as a result they dont look as nice! but anyway i found a top in the sale which isnt my size but as a result is long enough for me to wear with leggings... as long as i wear  vest top underneath so the whole world isnt exposed to my underwear! it was around £4 i think.. not sure though and its very summery!

Debenhams:

This isnt a shop i tend to venture into very often but i did to look at make-up and came across a sale rail that was £15 and under.. and then i clapped eyes on this dress. Perfectly summery, my size and under £10.. (about £7 but im not sure) and even better it was £18 pound off!!!i tried it on and snapped it up..i now go into a debenhams whenever theres one around in hope of finding another bargain.. its by a company called 'Mela Loves London' which i havent heard of before but i love it!!

MAKE-UP/HAIR etc

Poundland:

Not wanting to sound like a complete cheapskate here but when i want spomething, the first polace i look is poundland, in this case it was velcro rollers. I had been desperatley wanting some for a while and i popped in and they had packs of 12 for £1, admitadley i only wanted the larger ones in the set but i thought it was good value for money and picked up for sets.. two pink and two black and i have used them out and i love them, definitley wouldnt bother paying a lot of money out for them now! the brand that makes them is called allura i believe

Primark:

My local primark doesnt seem to stock any of the make-up or anything like that sadly but one thing it does stock is the fake tan glove.. mine had fallen apart and i was in desperate need of a new one PLUS i love the colour.. hopefully it does a nice job!

Superdrug:

I have picked up a few bits from superdrug lately.. as any make-up addict does ..

First i picked up three of the 2true products to try out; the matte foundation in shade 1, all over natural bronzing powder and a french manicure white nail varnish. I cant say i have high hopes for the foundation but im hoping it will be good as a general foundation when im popping out somewhere or something.

There was also a 2 for £5 on selected collection2000 products when i went in and so picked up a new 24hour felt tip liner in black.. this is my favourite! and the new creme puff lip cream in Fairy Cake.. it smells amazing!!!!!!

The barry M nail paints were 2 for £5 as well so i picked up the shades navy (which i am now in love with) and also Bright purple which i have yet to try out!

Another beauty addict must-have i have picked up is the MUA heaven and Earth palette which has become my most used piece of make up ever! so many looks to be created! love Love LOVE

Finally i picked up the Maybelline Superstay 24h foundation however it is a tiny bit dark for me (damn shop lighting) and so i mix it with my healthy mix at the moment! its about £9-£10

Amazon:

I have been after the Babyliss Glamour Waves curling iron forever.. and i finally got my hands on it.. at less than £15 on amazon with their free supersaver delivery and i have found my new favourite piece of hair electonics.. i love babyliss hair tools and this has just confirmed my love!

Soryy for the longggggggg post.. hope you enjoyed seeing what i have picked up lately.. lots of reviews and outfits posts to come :)

sorry about the bad photo quality

follow my new blog.. beauty posts will no longer be on here at the end of the month 

until next time

Laura xxxx

Want an organised wardrobe?

Any of you that have every watched clueless (yes that 90s film with mike from friends) will be aware of  that wardrobe with the touchscreen (did they have touch screen in the nineties??) computer for her to mix and match clothes and it even tells her if it matches or not? and we all have to admit to being guilty of wanting one of them (just without the bulk) .. if you dont know what im talking about GO AND WATCH THE FILM!!!
Well it seems those of us guilty of wanting such an invention have had out prayers answered.. except this comes in the form of an app for the iPhone/Ipod.. its called stylebook (find them on twitter here) it costs around the £2 . 50 mark which for an app may be a little pricey.. but for organisation its amazing!

Here is there video.. (they also have video tutorials on how to use the app on their youtube channel.. (link here)

In brief for you all it is essentially an app which helps you to categorize your wardrobe and put looks together.. it comes with sections (tops;blouses,tshirts..dresses;sundresses,cocktail dresses) already on it.. if you dont like them you can remove them and add your own! and you take photos on your iphone/ipod/ipad (but it doesnt take up the whole screen) and then upload them to the app (very quickly) nd then you can get rid of the background (if you take a phto on a contrasting background to the clothes then its much more easily done (unlike me who took a picture of a white top on a white background and had to go in and remove the background by hand!) once everything you want is on the app you cn put outfits together and adjust the clothes size. as if this wasnt enough you can use the calender tool on the app to plan when you will wear outfits so you never have that 'what do i wear today?' problem! i believe it also tells you how many times you have worn something too. ANOTHER point about the app is that you can put in any inspiration to the app such as blogs and pictures that sum up your personal style. Like i said this app is ideal for girl (and boys too!) who have too many clothes they lose track of them all.. the only downside is that it can be time consuming if you have a few too many clothes to take pictures and remove the backgrounds of them all! but thionk of the time it saves you having to try on a million outfits in the morning?

I really recomend this app to anyone with an ipod or iphone or ipad, not only is it useful and very organisational but its fun putting together outfits using your own clothes without the hassle of trying everything on.. the only real difference between this and that contraption in clueless is that it doesnt tell you what looks right! (oh and there is not picture of you on it!)

I hope this wasnt too rambly and actually made sense

to those reading this on my 'lauras in wonderland' blog please click here nd follow my new beuty blog because at the end of the month i will stop posting all beauty related posts on this blog!!!

until next time
laura xxx

UPDATE

My new beauty blog is up and running follow it: its called 'All Things Made Up' i changed my mind since last night and will not be putting beauty posts on here after the end of august  .. please also give feedback on my new blog designs on if you prefer how it used to be etc... sorry for the changing of things around, im just one of those super organised people and i didnt like the unorganisedness of my blog before! hope you like it..

ALSO i have a book blog, reading is one of the things i love! i probably spend more on books than i do on make-up so if any of you like to read then follow my book blog 'time for a bedtime story'

thank you anyone who follows either of these blogs.. sorry again for the hassle
until next time laura xxx

If you havent noticed already i have changed the appearance of my blog.  This is for several reasons, but mainly i like a change. I have also decided to take away the beauty blogger status of this blog and it is just a general use blog for me where i can post anything and everything i want.. and this is where the explanation gets a bit complicated.. i also have two new blogs; a make-up/fashion/etc specific blog call allthingsmadeup.blogspot.com which is currently under construction and a book blog called timeforabedtimestory.blogspot.com which is also under construction. all the posts from these two blogs will feature on here as well but because i want to make this a more 'generic' (for lack of a better word) blog which feautures things that i want to write about that dont apply to the other two blogs such as cooking, views on recent events, my love for film, weekly/monthly/whenever i bother roundups. I would love for you to follow the other two blogs if you want to.. and in future you can access them through the page buttons above! i figured that although this has made thins more complicated for me, for my beauty followers/bookish followers its simpler because you can just find the posts you want at a click of a button rather than looking in amongst the other rubbish i will doubtlessly post! excuse the randomness of my two new blogs at the moment .. havent quite got round to sorting them out but they will look identical to this so they simply look like extra pages.

sorry for the babbling and rambling and making this seem 1000000 times more complicated than it is, i just thought i would tell you all about the changes taking place! after all i want this blog to reflect me entirely and not partially.

until next time... Laura xx

NOTD -my fair manicure

The other day I picked up Marie claire and recieved a Ciate Nail Polish in 'My Fair Lady'and was disspaointed that its 'full coverage' was actually very sheer. i then decided it would be perfect as a base to a french manicure  and so i have ended up with these nails....

To create this i used 2 coats of ciate my fair lady and then on the tips i used two coats of 2true french manicure nail tip white and then over the top to smooth everything down i used another coat of my fair lady (yes it really is that sheer!) 

until next time

laura xxx

Chase thunder with the volume down

As I mentioned in my previous post, I had lost my blogging motivation, however, right now it is back.. at almost midnight. apologies to my followers who don't have much of an interest for reading as this post is about my challenge i am setting myself and also a review of the book i finished about 5 minutes ago!

I believe it was Kelly (twitter name kelanjo) who mentioned she was doing this, and I decided that I wanted to try it.. this was a while back and I was too poor to be able to buy books.. and so since my birthday I think I have about 12 books I have accumulated that I now have to read.. and so I have decided to attempt to read a book a week. I will do a weekly post.. probably around wednesdays.. about the book I have just read.. I will also tell you my next book and so if any want to join me you could also read the books as I do.

The book that I decided to start off my challenge with really was a task. It is called 'The Lady Elizabeth' by Alison Weir and at 500 pages I was doubting my ability to finish it in time.. but nevertheless I finished it with ten minutes to spare.
 

picture not my own; source: 

http://www.womanandhome.com/articles/travelandentertainment/books/368232/the-lady-elizabeth-by-alison-weir.html
I found this book whilst at Dover Castle last Wednesday and paid about £8 for it.. which I am aware I would of got a lot cheaper elsewhere, however I was so intrigued by it that I had to buy it there and then and started reading it when I was in the 40 minute queue for the wartime tunnels. I have always been interested in the Tudors since I learnt about them in year 3 and so whenever I come across a book whilst I have the money to spare I end up buying them.. and this book has made me want to read about Queen Elizabeth I as a queen.. so if anyone has any suggestions of good books about Queen Elizabeth please comment!!!

The Blurb of the book says; 'England, 1536. Home to the greatest, most glittering court in English history. But beneath the dazzling facade lies treachery... Elizabeth Tudor is daughter to Henry VIII, the most powerful king England has ever known. she is destined to ascend the throne and deferred to as the King's heiress, but all that changes when her mother Anne Boleyn - Henry's great passion and folly - is executed for treason. Elizabeths life alters in a heartbeat. A pawn in the savage game of Tudor power politics, she is disinherited, declared a bastard, and left with only her wits to rely on for her very existence. But Elizabeth is determined to survive, to foil those who want to destroy her - or who are determined to use her as a puppet for their own lethal ambition - and to reclaim her birthright...'

I read the authors note at the end to see how much of this novel has been kept true to history and she assures that majority has.. and that there are few things (which are named but I don't want to spoil the story) which she has built on or practically made up to create a more risky story. however I don't think there is much that hasn't been based on at least rumour! I think that Alison Weir is a lovely writer and I will definitely be checking out other stories by her.. and as much as I rushed to finish this book it definitely wasn't a chore to read and i loved it! if only i had a book on Elizabeth as a queen to carry in with! I recommend this to everyone, for as much as she likes to use as much of the language used in the times (though slightly modernized) it is an easy read and never boring.. and I think that's because she cleverly skips out years where not much would of happened. Also the sectioning of the story into three parts makes it much easier to red because its like 3 books within one.

My next book is 'The Last Song of Dusk' by Siddarth Dhanvant Shangvi and I bought this from poundland for  pound!

Hope this wasnt too rambly... until next time
Laura xxx

I have spent the past few weeks wondering what to blog about, and even when I have gone shopping I have just lost my blogging motivation. BUT today after I had eaten my dinner i noticed I had awful roots.. then thought I would tell you all about my bad experience with GARNIER BELLE COLOUR hair dye in their lightest shade.

I can tell you that I am not allergic to bleach, nor hair dye generally and in the past I have used home hair dyes and hairdressers to get lighter blonde hair. So I thought that I wouldn't have an issue with this one. I didn't do a skin allergy test for 2 reasons 1. I didn't think I would be allergic seeing as I have used bleach which as strong as you get surely and 2. I don't quite know how to do one because your not supposed to leave hair dye opened. ANYWAY as soon as the hair dye was on my head I felt a slight burning on my scalp but though nothing of it because I wondered if maybe I had a small cut or something on my head. I was sooo impressed with the colour after as well and thought i had found my go-to hair dye.. then about a week and a half later (this surely wouldn't of shown up in any allergy test anyway?) my face became very dry, especially on the middle of my forehead (which is usually oily) and around my eyes. This meant that make-up looked disastrous on me! and whenever I put anything on the skin it stung crazily! I have only just got rid of the dryness on my forehead and its still there on my eyes weeks later! However this wasn't the worst of it.. I also have red dry patches of skin on my neck similar looking to ringworm.. and so that's what i presumed it was however (thank you internet) I googled hair dye reactions and there are several images (some worse than my own) that depict the same thing.. dry skin on the face and red dry patches on the neck.

I my not be experiencing a reaction to the hair dye as I haven't been diagnosed, however I haven't changed make-up products lately or even skincare products definitely not for a good month before this reaction showed up anyway. and another factor that makes me think this is linked is the reactions people have had to garnier summerbody.. I am aware these are two very different products however this reaction came about the same time as the people who were using summerbody.

I still have dry patches on my face/neck and I think that this may ave contributed to me not wanting to blog lately because my idea have been FOTD which I haven't felt comfortable showing for obvious reasons. unfortunately I do not have any pictures of my skin to show you and I also haven't contacted garnier because their words of sympathy and a few garnier vouchers wont improve my skin! I have heard from others that garnier hair dye has had this affect on them and feel free to comment below if you have had similar experiences.

Sorry for my garnier rant just thought i would warn you of my experiences and ask if any of you have any remedy for this because no exfoliating or moisturiser seems to help! and if i use oily moisturiesrs i just develop spots under the dry skin!

hopefully next time will be a happier post
laura xxx