Nails ETC: Valentine's Day and Candy Heart nail art

Ah, February 14th. Just any other day really, but unfortunately we get bombarded with advertisements about 'the perfect gift' and instructions how to 'show her how much you really care...' Flowers, chocolates, jewellery, romance, pink, red, lions, tigers and bears, oh my! I'm firmly of the opinion that you should show love and care to the people in your life every day, rather than just a burst of affection on Feb. 14th. So I reassured my boyfriend that I really didn't want a present and secretly hoped that he would. No, I'm just kidding! I really didn't want a present. But I think he was sucked in to the whole Hallmark holiday schtick and I answered the front door to a rose, box of chocolates, balloons and a sweet card - also my boyfriend too. And despite myself not wanting a present, I did get him a gift voucher for the hot springs. So I guess I did give in. Once again. Damn you, clever marketing and guilty conscience. 

I've seen some lovely Valentine's Day ideas online though - like taking your children out for little dates, special cards for strangers and making baked goods and delivering them to neighbours. That's something I can get on board with!

Date night: Cotton On 'Miranda' denim shirt, OPI 'Minnie Style', OPI 'French Quarter For Your Thoughts,' Sportsgirl 'Mistress' sunglasses, Fujifilm Instamax 8 camera, Marc Jacobs 'Dot' perfume, Jo Mercer 'Hermione' heels
 

Swatches: Sally Hansen 'Triple Shine' nail polishes: 'Reef-Raf' and 'Dive In'

I went into Priceline a few weeks ago and noticed that Sally Hansen (whose top coats I swear by and whose formulas are consistently great) had a new range of nail polishes named 'Triple Shine.' There were only a few colours (mostly glitter) the first time I went in, but since then there is a full 29 colour range, including glitters, cremes and shimmers. Which is ten kinds of awesome for me, and ten kinds of despair for my bank account!

Triple Shine is marketed as a "High Shine Nail Enamel with Patented Gloss-Tech Brush to maximize shine with smooth colour application for a flawless finish." Phew! Basically, it's just extra shiny. I usually use a top coat anyway to seal in colour and prevent rapid chipping, so this isn't really a massive selling point for me. However, I can't really fault the colours I bought - they really are super shiny and well packaged. The brush is the same as the brushes in the Salon Manicure range - a thick flat, wide brush so that colour is evenly distributed and is consistent.

I purchased these two colours at Chemist Warehouse, as they were having a 2 for $15 sale. These usually retail at $9.95, but are currently on sale at Priceline for $6.95 I believe!

RIGHT: 'Dive In' LEFT: 'Reef-Raf'

 

 I tried using 'Reef-Raf' as the base for some Valentine's Day themed nail art today. The formula is pretty good. I used two coats for full opacity, and waited for the first coat to dry before applying the second, as it seemed to pull and drag if the first coat was still mostly wet. The picture below isn't that colour accurate - it's a pretty hard colour to capture on camera! Reef-Raf is a bright pink, not as neon as the photo suggests. It looks quite coral-leaning in yellow lighting. For a girl who's not a massive fan of pink, I do love this colour! Reef-Raf also reminds me a lot of Essie's 'Off the Shoulder' from a couple of years back. 

Must. Not. Go. Back. And. Buy. Them. All.

My Skincare Essentials

Wishlist: Romersk Sleepwear

Hello to anyone reading this! Summer is burning beautifully bright this year. I'm not a massive fan of the over 40 degree days, especially when I'm stuck at work, but with some air-con, ice-cubes and near naked attire (NOT when I'm at work), it's been manageable! I'll do a spam blog post soon of some of my favourite photographs taken recently. (I'm no professional photographer, these are all silly snaps taken on my iPhone!) Gotta love friends with pools in their backyards ;)

Another label that has caught my eye this year has been Romersk Sleepwear. I first spotted the label through an Instagram comment (@romersksleepwear - I bloody love the convenience of Insta) and I discovered that I adore their products! They've recently launched a new line of intimate sleepwear, suitable for the hot summer nights that await. Romersk do not have a large range of sleepwear items, but I think this just makes them all the more special. Items are suitably priced, and as written on their website, they exude a lovely state of mind - freedom, happiness and comfort. For dreamers, road trippers and lovers of life! Below are some of my favourite items from their intimates range - product names are clickable and will send you to the product page on the Romersk website.

Above: Alli Simpson for Romersk

 

 Above: HARLEY Ruffle Bralet in 'Raspberry' (from $34 AUD) and TALI Ruffle Short in 'Raspberry' (from $46 AUD)

 Above: LULU Romper (from $105 AUD)

Check them out on Instagram or on their website: <http://www.romersksleepwear.com>

Sweet dreams!

Wishlist: TRIANGL

The weather in Melbourne has finally delivered the goods! Today is a steamy hot 41 degree day, and the rest of the week looks to be much of the same. (I sound like a weather girl. Don't have the looks I guess. 'There's a 34% chance that it's already raining!') 

In the next week, I'm going to do several blog posts about items/products that are in my wishlist for this summer... forever drifting through my imagination, never quite attainable... But still lovely to admire!

1. TRIANGL Swimwear and Underwear (http://www.triangl.com)

Triangl is a Hong Kong based company that is Australian owned and managed, and their bikinis have been massively popular over the last few months. Their swimwear line is fairly minimalistic in design, but have a flattering cut, exude bright summer neons and neutrals and are made out of a micro-mesh/nylon and spandex blend - similar to wetsuit material. Personally, I prefer their underwear line designs to the swimwear range. Plus they're cheaper, so that's a bonus! And like always, Triangl's popularity paves the way for numerous other look-a-likes from other surf brands, so if you don't mind not having the label itself, you can probably find a similar look for a lower price. 

Triangl operates solely as an online boutique. They offer a flat rate of $10 shipping within Australia, and offer international shipping as well. Their website also offers a live chat to ask questions which is very helpful, as buying underwear and swimwear online can be quite difficult size-wise!

Cover: A Thousand Years (Christina Perri)

One of my great loves in life is music. And I'm slowly, slowly improving at guitar. I've always loved singing - even if I'm not amazing at it - and enjoy playing, even if it's just in the early hours of my morning in my bedroom alone. I covered this song recently, because it's one of my sister's least favourite songs ever (yes, you read that right), so I wanted to irritate her but it turned out that I really like the way it sounds! Please watch and subscribe to my channel, because it's looking quite lonely at the moment!

(http://www.youtube.com/user/stepha316)

Regular Dosage: Hello 2014!

And we're already two weeks in! Crazy. Two weeks into the new year means two weeks closer to getting back to uni, and that makes me cry tears of sorrow and joy. Sorrow because assignments and exams and hello again to late nights reading pointless essays and joy because it's my final, FINAL year of uni! Soon my fifth year will be done and dusted, and I can't wait. I'm planning on finding a full-time or another part-time job this year while I'm studying this year, as most of my classes are night classes and I really need to start saving some dollars. My part-time job at the moment is sufficient, but I think I could really use some experience before I start teaching next year. The bonus is that I already have a Bachelor's degree under my belt as qualification so hopefully I'll be able to find something good, and not too crappy (sick of retail so much).

I have several goals for this year. Some academic, some personal, but all of which I am going to try my hardest to achieve.

1. Find a part-time or full-time job.

2. Strive to complete uni work a few days before each due date to prevent stress and anxiety attacks.

3. TRY and attend all lectures.

4. Find a volunteer job during the holidays (community centre, museum programs, charity work)

5. Lose weight! Keep fit and eat healthier every day. Less chocolate. (That broke my heart to type).

6. BE HAPPY and BE POSITIVE! (Something I've always struggled with).

7. Read more of the unread books on my every growing bookshelf.

8. Save and earn more money. This includes spending less on outings, food, clothing and makeup, transport, phone bills etc.

9. Create better and stronger connections with various groups of friends. (Youth group, younger kids and the leaders too, high school friends, uni friends, work friends, family, boyfriend).

10. Finally - blog more often! I always have a heap to write, but I really wish there was a better Blogger app maybe more similar to the Tumblr app, which is incredibly easy to navigate... Excuses 101!

So here we go 2014! I already started the day with an hour long, 5.65km walk and a healthy lunch, and then lounged around reading in this 31 degree weather so I'm feeling good!

Polyvore Outfit 003 - Harry Styles Inspired

HES Inspired 002 by judeswardrobe featuring Butter London

So maybe this is super lame, but I really do have a (not-so) secret love for Harry Styles. I could write an essay about how lovely and cute and caring he is, but maybe I'll save that for another time. Or just keep it in my diary, who knows. This Polyvore outfit is directly inspired by one of my favourite looks on Harry - slouchy beanie, skinny jeans, winter coat, baggy sweater and his classic brown boots. Definitely a look that I tend to wear a lot during winter when I can't be bothered being too creative with clothing. But still a classic outfit!