Spring / Summer Summer Outfit Inspiration

I'm a huge fan of putting together Polyvore style sets of outfits on Photoshop- there's something so satisfying about seeing an outfit all laid out together, not to mention the fact that you feel your wardrobe is the entire internet. You might remember i put together some Autumn Style Outfit Suggestions last year for Moneysupermarket's competition and it really helped me with my Autumn style, so when i saw Travelsupermarket were doing a similar challenge i thought i'd give it a bash too!

My first thoughts for the 'Clubbing in Ibiza' outfit involved a lot of high waisted shorts, crop tops and neon but then i suddenly realised i'm not 17 and my 'high school girls holiday' was ridiculously almost 7 years ago. In my (slightly) more mature years, Ibiza to me is now more about beautiful sunsets, chilled out bars and glamour than foam parties and getting spew on your flipflops so i decided to go for this slightly more sophisticated outfit. The pelmet skirt to me is perfect Ibiza- a little bit of glamour with a very cool aztec pattern and light colour pallet. I then paired it with a more sophisticated nod to the neon trend and some on trend edgy accessories to keep it stylish and clean. Not to be worn with face paint.

I spent a few weeks in New York and America's East Coast just before my 18th birthday and as a frequent barer, clubber and general drinker back home at the time, i was totally gutted not to be able to experience the real bright lights of the city that all the late 90s sitcoms had presented to me so beautifully. It's now firmly back on my list of 'to visits' and i'd be straight to the nearest bar. I actually hate the UK notion of 'going for cocktails' as it's all a bit faux-girly-fun, but in New York it's a different story. I imagine jugs of Sex on the Beach (with a straw) swapped for sophisticated concoctions made with beautiful spirits in the chicest of settings. This all calls for one thing- a LWD (little white dress.) A dangerous thing in the wrong hands, ive started to see white dresses as great chic, stylish alternatives to the overdone LBD. I've mixed it with some bright pops of colour, classic clean shapes and on trend accessories.

I'm probably one of the most uncomfortable people ever. I can't be doing with sore feet, itchy cardigans and coats that make you too warm and it's never worse than when shopping. With that in mind, i've gone for the most comfortable of options for the London Shopping outfit. I'm far from 'street' and im far from a Londoner but i decided to go for a simple take on the ever cool style with basic tee and jeans paired with this season's oversized denim jacket, Nike Blazers and chunky chain. I also added a 'big enough for shopping but not big enough to knock people over in Primark' bag and one of my favourite Mac Lipsticks to girly up the more masculine outfit.

Without hesitation, 'Sightseeing in Paris' to me equalled pastels. A trip to the romantic city just wouldn't be the same without some muted whimsical hues. I started with the latest Joni Jean offering- the perfect Summer vintage wash and paired it with this oversized slouchy lace style tee for an easy and comfortable base. I then added this mint boucle jacket which you'd never guess was from Primark because Paris always has to involve boucle and a nod to Coco, it's also just enough of a cover up for cooler Spring days but comfortable enough to allow you to freely skip around the City. Flats are also a necessity to keep comfy on the move so i opted for this gorgeous Zara pair for yet more girly chic. Topped off with the perfect sized bag for all the day's necessities, a statement necklace to remind everyone you're not quite ready for pearls, nude nails and a slick of a wearable day lipstick you're good to go.

To me Summer Holidays and in particular Thailand, has to involve some boho glamour. This high waisted bikini is perfectly on trend and enough to keep you feeling demure and comfy throughout the day while the Kaftan is statement enough on its own to wear from day to night and will make you stand out in a sea of denim shorts. Some dainty statement jewellery gives a more chic version of those beach friendship bracelets while a sturdy bag and shoes are practical but still on trend. All finished off with some neon orange nails and toes to match your body paint- obviously.

So there are my outfits! Sadly all it's done is made me want to go to each of these places! What do you think? Will you be entering the competition?

wishlist

Clogs: Topshop

Blazer: River Island

Tee: Black Score

Travel Wallet: Cath Kidston

Chain Detail Tee: River Island

High Waisted Jeans: Topshop

Breton Stripe Dress: Glamorous

It's been quite a while since i did a wishlist post but as you can imagine it doesn't mean i haven;t been gathering the wishes elsewhere. I've become pretty obsessed with Pinterest and whether it's on the bus first thing in the morning or curled up on a hungover couch, my wishlist board is always being added to. These are a few of my current faves sitting on there.

I'm probably somewhat premature with lusting after sandals but im obsessed with the idea of a low heeled wedge clog for daytime Summer wear. Paired with something simple like a tee and jeans i think it would just be perfect. That's also the reason for lusting after all these oversized tees- the Tom Ford one NEEDS to be mine asap. As for the nautical style items, i can only say this is a coincidence because it's a style ive always hated. I just adore the oversized yet simple cut of the blazer and breton stripes are in my opinion casual perfection. Seeing them in a simple casual day dress seems like the ideal Summer throw on and go option! Finally- the travel wallet. Basically i adore not-strictly-necessary-accessories like this. I already got my paws on a longchamp travel bag when i realised how much i was travelling with work and ending up on weekend trips away and a travel wallet just seemed like the next over the top accessory to go for. If nothing else it will stop my boss having to watch in despair as i rifle through lip balms and tissues at security in search of my boarding pass.

So there we have it. What's top of your current wishlist?

Google Reader Alternatives

As you may or may not know, Google is pretty much my life (or at least my living!) So every time something annoying happens in the big bad digital world, there's an email in my inbox before i'm even at my desk.

This morning one of those emails was about Google Reader and its imminent removal from internet land.

Now. I'm not going to say this didn't catch my attention. As a blogger and avid blog reader i use it every day and we all know peering at fluctuating follower numbers on Google Friend Connect is a guilty pleasure we all like to indulge in now and then. However, for one there's been no confirmation that the closure of Google Reader will automatically mean the end of GFC (although it does seem to follow since the two are intertwined.) Aside from that, what people fail to remember is that GFC is just a tech-phobes RSS reader and Google Reader is far from the best of those.

SO! What are the options for all of you lovely lot looking for a new RSS reader (and more importantly a new way to follow my sporadic posting?)

Feedly

Feedly is a great aesthetically pleasing RSS reader that lets you aggregate your feeds for easy viewing. It's my new weapon of choice in the RSS world and this morning's news has given me the final shove i needed into organising everything into a manageable order as the mishmash of nail varnish and SEO tips wasn't quite sitting too well in my Google Reader. It's easy to use, there's a chrome extension available in the web store if you like everything readily available and of course a mobile version for on the go. There's also a handy option to instantly import your reader data by simply logging in via your google account so its a no brainer for tech phobes! A word of warning though, it's kind of suffering from Google Announcement Panickers at the moment so bare with it if it's looking a bit on the slow and clunky side for now. Once your there, if you like you can follow me here or by simply searching 'one girl and a blog.'

Bloglovin'
Bloglovin sometimes manages to accidently present itself as a reader only available to bloggers who have joined but it is just a simple RSS reader with a specific follow me badge thrown in for good measure. It's a great resource for finding new blogs and reading your old favourites all in one and they've also been quick to jump on today's Google news with a massive banner telling you you can import your google reader feed. You can do that here. You'll also find this little old blog on there by searching my name or right here with a big friendly follow button.

Those or my two main recommendations for our pretty fashiony, beauty, lifestyleish kinda world but there are of course a whole host of other RSS readers you can find- NewsBlur The Old Reader Fever NetVibes FeedDemon FeedReader are just a few. 

So there we have it, the world isn't over after all! Let me know what you think, what will be your new reader of choice?

OOTD: Mirrors

Tshirt & Boots: Topshop

Midi Skirt: Primark

Watch: Michael Kors

Necklace & Bracelet: H&M

Spiked Cuff: ASOS

Welcome to another glamorous outfit post featuring my living room radiator... Other than that, it does feature one of my new favourite things- midi skirts. I picked up this beaut in Primark and am absolutely delighted with it. It does have that tricky tendency to look like misplaced office wear if you're not careful. I stick to teaming it with simple slouchy tees and a bit too much jewellery which seems to work. I'm also in the process of filling my slightly premature Summer Wardrobe with midis that i hope will look way better without tights. I've started with a tomato red number and a simple breton striped other but can see it (as with all my other obsessions) being taken way further and i'll end up with more midi skirts than acceptably sunny days to wear them.

Have you all started filling up theoretical or otherwise Spring wardrobes? I've started a pin board of my general intentions if you're interested in more than midis. I'd love to hear what you guys are planning, too!

OOTD: 'Silver Lining'

Shirt: Primark
Skirt: ASOS
Boots: Topshop

Lipstick: MAC Ruby Woo

Well hello there! Finally i've got around to posting some outfit snaps. As i said in my recent videos, i finally took the plunge and bought a MacBook which has really made blogging easier again- i convinced myself it was a blog related investment as my old uni Vaio only added to the reasons i wasn't blogging very often. I actually can't believe how amazing MacBooks are though- everything is just so beautifully easy and intuitive. Hopefully you like my new layout, have been enjoying my haul videos and are actually still interesting in seeing my updates- although i can't promise a night at the pub won't often win over me taking pictures of myself, i do hope to be back blogging more frequently.

This outfit is actually really dressy for me as i've become more and more casual of late. You might have seen me instagram a pair of Vans i got at Christmas time and i even bought a pair of Nike Blazers last week, something i never thought would happen... I guess working in a casual office makes you want to slum it in jeans, tee and trainers every now and then. I love this little velvet skater skirt i picked up at the end of the year from ASOS- skater skirts have featured pretty heavily in my winter wardrobe just because they're so easy to chuck on with shirts, tees, jumpers etc... I actually don't particularly like it with this shirt though, it's just not very flattering as much as i've tried to make this shirt work, with jeans as well, it looks set for the ebay pile!

I hope you're all still there reading and doing well! I'm in the process of updating my blog reading list as well so please leave your blog address in the comments so i can get some new reading material!

Primark Haul Feburary 2013

Another haul, this time all Primark! Enjoy..

February Collective Haul

Just a little collective haul i filmed at the weekend. If you'd like to see more of my videos you can check out my Youtube Channel.
Please feel free to leave any questions in the comments below here or on the video itself.

Kiehl's Edinburgh Review

I was recently invited along to the Kiehl's store in Edinburgh to have a chat with the lovely Cheree about my skincare and generally hear a little more about the brand. I've always been intrigued by Kiehl's as a brand but haven't ever tried it out before so it was great to go alone to a stand alone store and hear all about it first hand. 

After a little chat about the (frankly adorable) history of Kiehl's and how it started as an old school chemist, Cheree did a full skin consultation with me. It's something i really appreciated as i've been getting more and more into skincare recently but have never felt like someone really took a look at my skin and tell me what it's 'really' like. I have extremely dry skin to the point of flaking and just because that's not annoying enough, it's also extremely sensitive and reactive. I told Cheree all about this which she of course took into consideration, but she also did a nifty little skin test with two mini tabs, one held against my forehead and the other against my cheek. These showed where the different areas of my skin ranked in terms of oilyness and actually showed that i do have some oilyness when i thought i was bone dry. It turns out although my cheeks are really dry, my t zone has quite a bit of oil. I loved this as it wasn't someone taking a look at my skin and telling me how it looked or taking my word for how i found it- it was real proof. This was a great part of an extremely thorough consultation where cheree gave me a full face, body and hair care routine recommendation, taking me through the detail of every product and letting me have a touch and feel of the products. The whole thing was so thorough and personalised in a way that i've never experienced with other brands and it gave me real faith in the recommendations i ended up with. 

I'm currently in the process of trying out the bits and pieces that Cheree gave me on the day which i'll tell you all about soon but in the meantime i'd definitely recommend popping into Kiehl's if you're in Edinburgh or have another store nearby. The best thing about my experience is that it wasn't something offered just because i'm a blogger- it's a standard experience that anyone can pop in for at any time and  if you are in the Edinburgh store, Cheree has been lovely enough to offer all of my readers a little goody bag with any purchase. Just mention One Girl and a Blog when you purchase!

Primark Haul December 2012

Argania Shampoo & Conditioner Review

Argania Shampoo & Conditioner*- Boots

I was recently sent a gift set of Argania products from the lovely people at Boots so i thought i'd get started with a review of the shampoo and conditioner. My hair is extremely dry and damaged due to years of heat, ombreing and going blonde after 10 years of dying it dark so a product like this that promises to repair and nourish hair naturally without covering it in awful silicones is perfect for me. 

Both the shampoo and conditioner retail at around the £8 mark so i'd place it in the mid range of hair offerings. The products themselves are both nice and thick so easy to work with when lathering and conditioning. This is the first argan oil type product i'd used but with all the hype at the moment i was expecting good things. My hair was definitely nice and smooth after blow drying without being greasy as can so often be the case with hydrating shampoos. I was also pleased to still have a good amount of volume in my hair. The one downside was the smell which is very 'natural.' I know some people are all about the natural but i personally found myself wondering why i smelled like i'd been in a greasy spoon cafe by mid morning..

Overall? Nothing ground breaking but a nice day to day shampoo that naturally hydrates without overloading hair with silicones. 

I'll be giving away an Argania set later in the week so keep your eyes peeled for a chance to win...