October Musts!

1. Pumpkins! Who doesn't want to carve a pumpkin for Halloween, it's a must right? 2. Face paints! I've seen these relatively inexpensive on amazon.co.uk, and they're pretty damn good too! 3. Not for me, but perhaps scaring yourself to death by watching Paranormal Activity 4 is a good way to celebrate Halloween! After seeing more of my hands than the previous 3 movies... I will not be paying to see this... 4. Leaves. If you don't jump into a crunchy pile you haven't lived end of. 5. CANDY CORN! Okay so only for you American bloggers... but sweets for Halloween are a much needed purchase for all the kiddies, or yourself, depending on how desperate you get! 6. Winter warmers, chunky knit scarfs and bobble hats! Considering it's going to be less than 10 degrees celsius on Friday... THESE ARE NECESSARY!

I think October is one of my favourite months! Everything is orange and crunchy (or damp, if you also live in England...) but in all honesty, layers are my thing! I love nothing more than to wrap up in copious amounts of clothing, so much so that only my eyes are visible. I raided Primark the other day for jumpers and cardigans, win! But working in Next I'm seeing more and more of the pricier options that I don't think me or my bank can say no to!

What's your favourite month?
Are you a fan of Halloween!?

Katie xo

All Things Lippy

1. This design would look amazing on Jessie J or Lady Gaga, maybe even Rihanna! Any big star could pull this off, the detail is beautiful. 2.This crab is adorable! Like all of these looks, not something you'd wear out on the street... at least I wouldn't! 3. Jessie J. Ugh. If anyone can pull off studded lips it's her. And she had that way before studs even 'came in' so to speak... trend setter I think!? 4. Adorable, and yummy looking! Love this look. 5. This is a look I did a few months back, hehe I love my cute little fox! 6. Rainbow lips! Lip Tar would be the best product to create this look I imagine!

Lip designs are becoming so popular at the moment, for music videos in particular I've noticed! I really hope the star's makeup artists continue to be inventive and creative with their looks, it really adds an edgy look to the whole creation!



My take on Jessie J inspired lips from her video 'Price Tag'

This is so incredibly easy! Literally all you need is a glue suitable for the skin (I use Spirit Gum, you can buy it for £2.95 from www.screenface.co.uk), cotton buds or another small applicator, and gems! I bought mine from a craft store. They don't have to be specifically for the skin!

1. Clean your lips to remove any unwanted substance

2. Dip a cotton bud/applicator brush into the glue and dab on the underside of the gem

3. Place on to the edge of either the top or bottom lip

4. Continue to do this, starting with the outer edges of the lips to give you your shape

5. Fill the centre with the remaining gems

6. Leave to dry, it's uncomfortable but good for short-term wear (some tend to drop off if they're tiny, avoid swallowing!)

Simple! I added some silver in with the pink to add a bit of a quirky look, mix colours around yourself, see what takes your fancy!

Who loves the gem lip look?

Would you wear any of these out and about?!

Hope you're all having a lovely Monday.

Katie xo

October Instagram Favourites



1. Hot drinks, I'm loving vanilla lattes and Belgian hot chocolates at the moment! 2.Messy buns, although summer's over, I'm still wearing my hair in one of these a lot of the time! 3. Dark nails! YES. I've never been a fan of black, but a balance between brown black and purple creates this gorgeous classy look. 4. Ed Sheeran at Hammersmith! I saw him there the other night. A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! 5. This woman, ugh. She is incredible at eye makeup. She's called 'queenofblending' on instagram, follow her! 6. Funky nails, always a good look. 7. Halloween cookies, so cute! Definitely going to whip up a batch myself soon... 8. I have no idea who she is, but I love what she's wearing and her overall look, jealous!

So this month's been a tad hectic, hence the lack of posts! I've recently started writing for my boyfriend's magazine, CheerUp, and I've had a big part in it recently. At current I write a TV article on a recent drama series or reality series. But just last week I went to Birmingham to interview Newton Faulkner, so since then I've been writing up the interview! I always loved English at school a little more than the majority of people, but I never did anything with it! So writing for CheerUp has made me remember just how much I love it. I always said to myself one day I'd write a book based on 'events' in my life, just twisted a little so it wasn't too personal. Who knows, could happen one day! But in the mean time I'm working at Next. Retail's a good place for me if I decide to go into Visual Merchandising, but if I take the Journalism route, I think I'm possibly in the wrong place! So I'm continuing to email CV's and apply for writer positions, not easy when you only have a month's experience! But hey ho, I'll get there.

Never been a fan of the idea of sixth form or uni, so I'm doing it the hard way and working my way up from nothing! Gotta give it a go right? Other than that, I'm contemplating trying out some new makeup looks, as it's been MONTHS since I qualified as makeup artist, but unfortunately due to funding issues I haven't been able to pursue it just yet! In other words, I need money for a CAR. Ugh. Why insurance is so expensive I'll never know, it's a joke. But once I've saved enough to get a car I will certainly be making the most of it!

Christmas. Even the word is exciting me right now. It's only October 21st and I'm itching to go and put up the tree and stuff myself full to the brim with quality street choccies. There's a chocolate orange that's practically screaming at me to be eaten, along with a hot chocolate and baileys... with the mini marshmallows. But that'll just have to wait, hmph. I'm even craving egg nog, I hate egg nog!? This week I'm working a ridiculous amount for what's meant to be a six hour contract (not complaining, money's good, but I wanna blooooog!). So I apologise for the lack of it all guys! But I have been planning a few 'seasonal' lifestyle related posts, so fear not.

Who else is excited for Christmas?!

What do you think to my instagram pictures?

Katie xo





Autumn Wants

October now, Autumn's here! And it's possibly my favourite season, there's nothing nicer than crisp blue skies with crunchy leaves and the excuse to wrap up warm! I've been looking round the shops quite a bit recently and a few autumnal items of clothing/accessories caught my eye, so I thought I'd blog about a selection of them!

Blouse: New Look - £29.99
Leather Jacket: River Island - £65.00
Jumper: Republic - £45.00
Shoes: Wallis - £29.50
Tights: Wallis - £5.00
Shorts: Republic - £30.00
This is the perfect Autumn outfit! I have already hit the shops now I'm back from Portugal to start buying the big woolly jumpers and thick tights!

Which is your favourite item?

Who else loves Autumn!?

Katie xo

Bath And Body Works

When I was younger I used to go to America every year to either travel around or see our friends in Chicago, and we discovered this amazing store called Bath And Body Works. As soon as you walk in you're overwhelmed with the smell of incredible products! I easily spent a good hour in there each time. My favourite product was the Winter Candy Apple scented shower gel/body lotion but annoyingly I've ran out and can't get anymore till I go back!

But thanks to my Dad and Stepmum, Amy, they recently bought me back a couple of products from their holiday travelling around Utah and Las Vegas. They bought me Sweet Pea Shower Gel and Body Lotion which I've already used endlessly. The scent is beautiful, I can't get enough of it! It may even top my love for Winter Candy Apple...

Left: Shower Gel    Right: Body Lotion

Swatch of the shower gel

Swatch of the body lotion

Not only does it smell nice at first, the smell lasts on your skin for hours which is an extra bonus! Next time I head across the pond I'll definitely have a good spending spree in Bath And Body Works! The shower gel is $11 and the body lotion is also $11. I believe you can actually buy these online and get them shipped.

Has anyone used these products themselves?
What's your favourite Bath And Bodyworks Scent?

www.bathandbodyworks.com

Katie xo

All Things Jewellery

I was never one for wearing much jewellery however recently my collection increased and now I'm obsessed! Rings are my favourite, however I've only got small hands so I can't wear many :-( I've just put together this small post to show you my favourite bit and bobs to wear!

My favourite ring!

I bought this from Accessorize a few years ago now and it's still my absolute favourite ring! It was roughly £6.00. I love it mostly because of the intricate diamante leaf design!

Looking a tad rusty... oops

I bought this also from Accessorize about three months ago purely for my holiday (either that or I was so in love with it I found any pointless reason to buy it). Again it was £6, I find this quite pricey for a ring which being honest isn't great quality, but I love them, so I'm prepared to pay it! Again, a leaf design, however a more bronzed colour this time with pink gems. Gorgeous!

They're like golden pebbles, aw!

Surprise surprise... Accessorize! I think I'm a tad obsessed with that shop. This was also bought for my holiday to match the ring (colour wise) and I can't waaaaait to wear it! It's quite heavy and bold for me, but why not go for a change right!? It was on sale when I bought it at about £3.

I love the colours!

We recently got a new shop in the city where I live called Bijou Brigitte, I went in there for the first time the other day and it's safe to say I'll be going back very soon! I only had enough money at the time to buy these two bracelets unfortunately but I loved the colours and felt they had a sort of Moroccan look to them with the gold beads so purchased them both for £4.95!

I think I have a thing for this colour...

I bought this from Debenhams the other day as I start my new job at Next soon and wanted a watch! Originally I was going to buy a bronze coloured one with the same style from River Island for £25 but tried it on and because of my stupidly small wrists it didn't fit. When I found this I was unsure because of the gold colour but I tried it on and new I had to have it haha! It was £30, but conveniently it was 20% off that day so it ended up being £26! I had it fitted to my wrist size that minute for free actually at Debenhams and walked away wearing it.

The diamonds are clear... not black... silly flash

This necklace is very special to me, it belonged to my Grandpa's sister, Janet, and she gave it to him, who passed it on to me a few years ago. I've never really worn it as it's very delicate but just recently after being very ill for 5 years and sadly passing away two days ago I feel now is the right time to wear it.  

Do you have any pieces of jewellery that mean a lot to you?
Which is your favourite item of mine?

Katie xo

CheerUp Magazine Photo Shoot

As promised, here is my post on Saturday's photo shoot, with me as the makeup artist! In case you're not aware my boyfriend and friends run a magazine (which I contribute to) called CheerUp Magazine, and for their next issue they wanted to put together a fashion shoot which took place on Saturday. It went really well, it was hot and sunny with great models and friends around us. It was a 6 hour day but it flew by as it was all good fun! They are a ridiculous amount of shots, however I chose the best ones to represent the makeup that I did for them. So here's a few for you to look at...

Model: Daisy Lawless
MUA: Me
Photography: Darryl Merkli/CheerUp

Model: Daisy Lawless
MUA: Me
Photography: Darryl Merkli/CheerUp

Model: Daisy Lawless
MUA: Me
Photography: Darryl Merkli/CheerUp



Model: Jess Leathem
MUA: Me
Photography: Darryl Merkli/CheerUp

  



Model: Jess Leathem
MUA: Me
Photography: Darryl Merkli/CheerUp





Model: Jess Leathem
MUA: Me
Photography: Darryl Merkli/CheerUp



Model: Zara Brooke 
MUA: Me
Photography: Darryl Merkli/CheerUp



Model: Zara Brooke 
MUA: Me
Photography: Darryl Merkli/CheerUp

Model: Zara Brooke 
MUA: Me
Photography: Darryl Merkli/CheerUp

We're looking forward to the second photo shoot next month! Also, I'll be starting up a fashion blog specifically for CheerUp Magazine very soon - so keep an eye out for that!

Please take a look at their magazine: issuu.com/cheerup 
You can also find them on facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/CheerUpMag


Which out of the pictures is your favourite look?

What are your thoughts on the leopard print!?

Katie xo