How many of you love The Only Way is Essex? It's a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine. Ammitedly, I only watched the last 2 seasons as at the beginning I thought it was just inforcing the white stilleto prejudice of the Essex girl, which I find degrading enough.

But though I pray to god people across the world don't actually think everybody in Essex is like that, I find the show quite amusing and love seeing what everybody wears (especially Lucy Meck!)

I know they wear a lot of items from Forever Unique, their own boutiques (Minnie's, Bella Sorella & LoveLucyx, etc) and Lipsy but it also turns out that often the stars turn to a little store called AX Paris - and lucky for us, the prices are more bar staff than billionaire!!

From, evening dresses to baggy knits this website has it all (I really, really, really need to stop finding all these clothing stores or I will have no money left to pay my rent!




Plus, AX Paris are also offering 20% off your first purchase of £30 or more using code WELCOME20

What do you think of the TOWIE christmas single? Although it's clearly edited to the extreme I still don't think its a bad try! (& keep an eye out for the stars wearing AX Paris in this music video too!!)

After having the same 'skin care' routine for the past 5 years (i.e. 1 face wipe in the AM, 1 face wipe in the PM) I have decided to take better care of my skin! After all, i'm 21 this year and don't want to wrinkles to be coming through just yet!

Half Price Perfumes is a great place to start. From £1 - £50, their skincare range suits all budgets and you even have the option of £1.99 2nd class post! (or free over £60 use code FREESHIPPING)

Personally, I love Crabtree & Evelyn products and this toner at only £4.99 fits the bill perfectly!



Alongside this they also offer well priced skincare from names such as Rogert & Gallet, Roc & Vinchy.

AND, of course (bit of a giveaway in their name) they have a HUUUUGE range of perfumes, at half price or more! I know where i'll be stocking up once my perfumes run out!

PS

Shouldnt these be a handbag staple for all girls! No more throwing toilet roll under/over cubicles!

What did you all get for christmas? I hope you got pressies as fab as mine! It's always dissapointing when christmas is over, all the hype and build up for one day that flies by - only have to wait 3 months for birthday presents though I suppose!

So, how are you planning to spend your christmas pennies? I want clothes, clothes & more clothes! Maybe some shoes and bags for good measure too. Where is your favourite place to "splash the cash".

I've used this site, Dressrail, before and I think I might be buying a few things.

Their delivery charge is only £3.95 too which I dont think is too bad, especially if you're ordering a few things, although for only £1.05 extra you can get it delivered the next day instead!

Im looking to revamp my wardrobe this year.. I love bargains but often find myself buying things for their price rather than there look, so what better place to start than Dressrail....







Black Panelled PU Leggings - £14.99
Red Ponte Smart Tailored Crop Button Blazer - £24.99
One Shoulder Embellished Chiffon Dress - £14.99
Rust Sienna Faux Suede Platform Shoe Boots - £14.99
Maya Faux Suede Side Lace Up Wedged Shoe Boots - £27.99

Plus, they currently have 10% off if you use code dra10

Shop now @ Dressrail

You aren't alone this Christmas. If you need to talk to someone please use one of the contact details below. Please share this post with as many people as possible, if it helps just one person it will be a sucess!


MIND
www.mind.org.uk
0300 123 3393

Samaritans
www.samaritans.org
08457 90 90 90

Alcoholics Anonymous
0845 769 7555
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk/newcomers

Stonewall
Info line 08000 50 20 20
www.stonewall.org.uk

London Lesbian and Gay Switchboard
0207 837 7324

SANELine
0845 767 8000
www.sane.org.uk


Preventing young suicide
www.papyrus-uk.org

For people in Northern Ireland
www.lifeline.info
0808 808 8000

Childline
www.childline.org.uk
0800 1111


Depressionalliance
www.depressionalliance.org

Refuge
www.refuge.org.uk
0808 2000 247

Eating Disorders Association
www.edauk.com
0845 634 1414

Shelter
www.shelter.org.uk
0808 800 4444

NHS Direct
www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk
0845 4647

No Panic
0808 808 0545
www.no-panic.co.uk

Another store review, I know - but I get so excited about finding websites like this that I just want to share them with you all! We all love a bargain.

Today's review is about a site called Brand Quarter

They say:

"Brand Quarter is an exciting new fashion site launched by the Shop Direct Group in addition to their existing portfolio of household brands which include Littlewoods, Very, isme and K&Co.

Brand Quarter has a huge selection of branded fashion which is heavily discounted – from 40% to 70%. We specialise in Men’s, Women’s, Sportswear and Footwear, with desirable products at unbeatable prices from brands such as: adidas, Fred Perry, Ted Baker, DKNY, Diesel and Superdry."

I say:

My first spot, as I always head straight for the footwear deparment, was some Converse All Stars in black or white for just £17.00 each! I need these in my life now:



Overall, however, I find their shoe department a bit lacking. There are some cute Ravel heels but probably not something I would wear.

I was impressed with their womenswear deparment though! Diesel, DKNY and Lipsy to name but a few. Dresses down to £26 from £70 is a bargain in my eyes! There's even a cute Superdry tennis dress that would be perfect for the summer (alas, it is far away!)



I really like the prices on this site, and postage is a reasonable £3.95 too!

Think this is definetly a site to keep your eyes open for, as being in the same group as Littlewoods alone should mean their variety of brands and stock will quickly expand!

PS

How gorgeous is this gold watch and ring set? I need this in my life and at only £24 it's a bargain too! Brand Quarter

I recently came across the website Own The Runway, they describe themselves as:

"a young, fresh, new and up and coming fashion e-tailer boasting large trend led clothing, footwear and accessory collections. Aimed at fashion forward 16 - 40 year olds, owntherunway are a rapidly growing online fashion retailer and one to watch out for!"

After seeing items from them in a couple of magazines I finally decided to log in and take a look, presuming that the items would be too expensive for me to buy anyway! But, oh, how surprised I was!

They have such gorgeous things, and at prices that won't break the bank, or even put a slight dent in your credit card!

They have a normal range, a "boutique" range (which isn't as expensive as expected either! and a 'plus size' range called "Figure" for size 16-26.

Own The Runway has now become my go-to website when I am on the look out for a new party dress, or 3.

Here's a couple of gorgeous things I have my eye on (hurry up christmas money!)








Will you be buying anything from the website? Have got my eyes constantly peeled for new additions!

On every birthday and christmas list since I was around 14 you will see me asking for some form of Benefit product. Who doesn't love the quirky packaging, bright department store counters and promises of the products to work wonders?

Well around 2 years ago I finally went in to Debenhams and purchased something from Benefit, High Beam to be precise and I can't say I was impressed. It seemed very glittery and as a highlighter did't seem to highlight as much as I had hoped. This was put in the back of my drawer and no doubt eventually given to a family friend or such like.

Despite this dissapointment I still wanted more! I had seen advertisements for Miss Popularity, a precision highlighter. It looked interesting and promised a lot, so I thought why not!

Whilst there I also purchased... Georgia blush and Erase Paste.






Miss Popularity

I do actually like this product, when put in the corners of my eyes it does brighten them and it also narrows the nose when put on either side, which is something I am happy with. However, for the price I do feel you could just purchase a white, shimmer eyeshadow and have it do the same job. Although I do like this product and what it offers I do think it is overpriced and you would be best off looking for an alternative. 6/10

Georgia Blush

I rarely use blush, I am a bronzer girl all day long. However my reasons for purchasing this were to highlight the cheekbone and create a more 'fresh' look. I find this product quite chalky, although I am impressed with the colour and finish and it does exactly as I wanted it to! Again, just a bit too expensive for what it is! 6/10

Erase Paste

This promises to camouflage bags under eyes and any other unsightly facial areas. You are provided with a small 'scoop' and you are supposed to put, what I think is, quite a large amount of the concealer on to the area and then 'spread' it across. I don't use the tool and instead just use my fingers or a smaller brush. As for coverage, I do not think this camouflages as much as I had hoped however I do feel that my eyes look brighter when using it and therefore won't be gettign rid of it just yet! 7/10

What do you think of Benefit products? Have you been dissapointed or do you just avoid the hype?

You can tell these are dated from the advertising, from the 1980's infact!



I recently purchased some heated rollers and couldn't get them to stay in my hair for love, nor money. I thinkthinkthink they were by Babyliss and came with these thin metal 'pins' to hold them in that really did less than nothing!

So when I saw these I thought they might work a bit better.



The idea is that you heat them up, then wrap a piece of hair around the protruding end and then simply fold the other side back over itself so that it holds your hair in place.

Now let me tell you, these bad boys work wonders! Loose, wavy curls in 5 minutes and heavier curls if left in for only a little while longer!

These are quite hard to get hold of, I had to find mine on ebay but last time I looked there were quite a few available. Honestly, I don't know what I did without these! I have no idea why they don't sell them anymore either, so much easier than normal rollers.

I bought mine for £9.91 including postage - the best money I have spent this year!

Do you have these, what do you think? Or, will you be getting some now?

I have been driving work, my neighbour, my parents and my boyfriends parents mad with my recent influx of ebay parcels! But where else can you find so many bargains and one off items?

My first case in point: A gorgeous silver, charm bracelet with extracts of vintage book pages encased in several of the charms - I love books, so this was a perfect purchase! It was a bargain at only £2.70 including p&p too!

You can find the seller, with lots more cute jewellery, here: http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/peskychloeus



Secondly, I am SO in love with these shoes right now! I have worn them at every opportunity since I bought them! They're from Miss Selfridge and were only £13.40 including p&p - brand new!



Thirdly, I've been on the look out for a cable knit jumper to pair with a white, long sleeved shirt - and I found perfection in this berry coloured affair! It was originally only from Primark, but I got it this morning (god bless the postie knocking at 8am, saving me a journey to the depot!) and it's gorgeous, really thick and warm. It cost £8.90 including p&p.



Some other gorgeous goodies i've received include the following:





White, vintage leather gloves

Large, "sultans" ring - an imitation of the one worn by the wife of Suleiman the Magnificent Hurrem Sultan!

Black cascading necklace

What do you think of my nails? I recently bought some varnish from ELF (Golden Godess)

(credit to elfukblog.blogspot.com for the image)



... and then paired it up with a candy pink polish - which I think was by Colourtrend @ AVON.

I think the result is very sparkly, pink barbie!




I've seen some fab nails on blogs recently (& know these don't compare!) but can't imagine I have a steady enough hand for nail art!

Have any of you got in to nail art? Do you have any easy designs I could follow?

I might try polka dots next time!

Have you had a look at the Primark Spring/Summer 2012 collection yet? I'm sure many of you have seen it already but here's a sneak peek at some of the hotter items!




Firstly, I have been pleasently surprised with many of the recent 'shoots' of upcoming ranges Primark has had on offer. In fact, you would be very easily mistaken for thinking these were for another high street store.

I really think the items above are cute, although I don't think i'd opt for the 3rd dress as at only 5ft 2(ish!) I think it would be just that little bit too long for me.

The only dilema, that i'm sure everybody has with Primark, is actually finding things in store! You have to dig through rails of assorted clothing, only to find the dress you want at the back on a size 16 hanger.. oh no, check the tag and it's the size 8 you've been after! Their lack of online store is also a big drawback and often I will pay a higher price in a quieter store than face the 50+ lunchtime queue.

I also think that recently Primark's prices have gone up too much. I've often seen dresses in their, albeit from their "limited collection" range, for upwards of £30 - it's still Primark after all!!

What do you think? Will you be buying anything from their new range?