Midweek Post: What have I been up to?

I have been a bit absent from blogging recently for a few different reasons. Firstly I have been working three jobs which has obviously been taking up a lot of time, then the days off I have had I have wanted to spend with friends or Ben, or on the sofa watching films! Secondly, I've lost a bit of 'mojo'- I'm using lots of products but I am having a bit of trouble forming an opinion on most of them, so I don't want to blog about them as that would be pointless, so I think I might include more makeup looks into the blog as I like to do them. Thirdly, I have been really busy aside from working, but it's those bits I'll include below :-)

I popped down to London a couple of weeks ago to be a practice model on a makeup course held by celebrity makeup artist Louise Constad. She was teaching a one day shortcourse to a lady who is a hairdresser at the BBC and wanted to branch out into makeup too. I'm booked in to attend Louise's 'Mastering Makeup' Course in March and she invited me down to meet her and to be a practice model. I really enjoyed myself, she has a crazy mini poodle who was so small! In the morning we had coffee and went through different magazines like Harpers and Vogue and talked through different makeup looks and trends. Couldn't help but notice an abundance of bleached brows! In the afternoon they did a natural makeup look on me, which included perfecting foundation and concealer, how to contour, different ways to do brows and a natural lip. Then they created a more dramatic look on me with graphic liner and Lady Danger lipstick from MAC (which I much preferred to the natural look ;-) ) My skin was so sore by the end of the day because my makeup had been off and on and off and on and being removed with makeup wipes each time which don't really agree with my skin. I had a great couple of days but they were so exhausting, really excited to do the week long course with Louise, March can't come soon enough!

Last Sunday I drove to Birmingham after work to see an old friend. On Monday morning we headed into Birmingham to do a bit of vintage shopping, we started in Digbeth and looked around the emporiums there. There was so many awful christmas jumpers I had to resist taking photos of all of them! She also took me to a sack sale where everything is a pound, and if you fill up a sack you get the lot for a tenner. I only picked up a couple of bits but I'm really pleased with them and you can't go wrong for £1 each! Later in the day we went to the German Christmas Markets which was absolutley huge, stalls included foodie ones with gingerbread, chocolates, candied nuts, deep fried cheese, waffles, pancakes, pretzels, reindeer burgers! Alongside mulled  cider and wine stalls, and Baileys hot chocolate. Shame I was driving home that night becaue I could have easily got pretty tipsy and spent the day tasting the alcoholic delights! There was crafty stalls too with German woodwork etc as well as local businesses that had hired pitches. Finished off the day in the Art Museum at the Pre-Raphaelite exhibition. I don't go to many exhibitions any more, but I should make more effort as I did a degree in Art History! I loved seeing Alma-Tadema's 'The Bath' in real life.


Right, I won't bore you with anymore, just thought I'd include the highlights from the last couple of weeks! Have you been to any christmas markets this year?

Counting down to December 1st...

When Ben told me the other day that he had ordered my advent calendar I was baffled and confused. Firstly, why was he ordering my advent calendar? Just go down Tescos, innit. And secondly, why was he ordering it in October?

As soon as a Selfridges box arrived (damn, I love them yellow boxes) I opened it up to discover an advent calendar, but not just any advent calendar, it's one from Ciaté. If you've not heard of Ciaté before, they're a nail polish brand with the cutest packaging- sweet little bows adorn every rectangular bottle and their shade range is to die for, they are also famed as founders of the 'caviar manicure.'
So, each day on the countdown to Christmas I will open a little window to discover a mini nail polish, how cool is that?
I only wish they hadn't included the contents on the back. Despite this I'm really excited to see what colours I'll get each day, bring on December!

The Pennywell pig farm and my baked goods.

I very rarely do these, but I wanted to document my recent ventures, and as part of it involves cute tiny animals and the other shows my 'rad' baking 'skillz', I thought it might take a few of you by interest!

It was my birthday last Monday, and while I've never really enjoyed my birthdays (I always feel a bit depressed and pressured to have a good day!) I was so grateful for some thoughtful presents (including a bakery cake in a box which I have always wanted and a voucher for a makeup course at Illamasqua) and I persuaded the fiance to drive three hours to Devon to visit the Pennywell Pig Farm which I have wanted to visit ever since I was made aware of micro pigs!

Then at the weekend I had a free day on my hands as I was waiting for the man to come and install the TV and internet, so naturally I baked. I baked cheddar and onion soda bread and white chocolate and cherry scones. I gotta say, they were pretty damn good.

If you want the recipe for either of these please tweet me (@emilydimplesxo) or email me. Also, don't forget to follow me on Instagram (@emilylaurenbethxo)

Bye for now!

Midweek Post; The Newest Shoes

I bought these shoes about a week and a half ago when I visited Westfield Stratford for the first time! That place is crazy, I love the food court and the choice of shops, but the crowds were too much (but I suppose it was a Saturday...) and people were actually queuing to get into MAC........Really?!!!

I love loafers, I always have a pair on the go but I've never really 'invested' in such a sturdy pair. Me and my friend spotted them through the window and both of us fell in love, I got the pink and she got the black (which I would also like!)

I've been living in my Converse mainly, and although I love 'um I wanted something a bit smarter too, just so I had options. These ice cream pastel pink loafers are doing the trick, they smarten up any outfit but also add a dash of colour to my otherwise monochrome wardrobe.

What shoes are you loving at the moment?

New Video: What's in my bag?

I've been MIA for a week!! I've been ill in bed for the majority of this time, and then worked the rest. I'm back with another video I made a couple of days after my first one. Still not sure if it's really worth me doing these! You don't know until you try I suppose!

It's quite a good 'getting to know me' post but I did miss out my flat/car keys and my solid perfume from LUSH which is always in my bag with me too! D'oh!

Again, let me know what you think or ways to improve or ideas for any more, and I'd love a few more subscribers if you do enjoy it!!

Thanks for watching!

Two new acquisitions for summer...

I thought I'd just do a post to show you two of my favourite new purchases that I've got for the summer months and know I'll be wearing a lot!

White canvas Converse Allstars; I bought these from Office but they're available in lot's of shoe retailers. I wore Converse when I was a young teenager, back in the day when the more beat up and muddy they were, the better! These ones I want to keep as fresh as possible, for as long as possible! Oh how the tables have turned. They fit my feet so comfortably, Vans rip my feet to shreds with their round toes and I think I'm inbetween sizes in those. I like to wear these with jeans, but they're also going to look cool with dresses when it's summery outside again, especially my grey marl midi dress.

Dior sunglasses; my boyfriend bought me these as a present last week, I love them so much and know that I'll never need to buy another pair while I've got these. I've never owned an expensive pair of sunglasses but I think Ben took pity on me because every year I've dragged him around the shops to buy a pair, only to complain about them a week later that they were either too big for my face (I have a little face)/gave me a headache/etc etc and I tried these on and it was love at first sight. They frame my face well, and fit me perfectly, no more headaches or horrible sunglasses marks for me, hooray! Thankyou Ben!

What items are you looking forward to wearing this season? 

Instagram: emilylaurenbethxo

My First Tag Post!: 11 Questions

I was tagged to do this post by Ruby over on Wake Up, Make Up! And although I've never done a tag post before I thought it couldn't hurt in doing one, could it!!

The rules of this tag are, you have to answer 11 questions, and then tag 11 people to answer your own 11 questions! So here goes;

My Q&A!;

1) What's your favourite thing about blogging?

I love having a creative outlet for my passion, and the fact that some people read what I have to say is a huge added bonus! I suppose I like the thought of helping somebody out with a product review and it keeps my mind active as it keeps me writing and thinking!

2)What is your favourite makeup brand?

This is such a hard question. If I'm on a budget then I would tend to choose 17 and MUA as these are the two cheap brands that have impressed me the most in terms of their colour and product quality. In terms of high end, I'm a firm believer that every brand has it's place in the market and each excels at different things; for foundation and skincare I would pick Estee Lauder, for colour and product range I would probably pick M.A.C yet for brand message and marketing it would be Illamasqua. But I also love the sophistication and femininity of Laura Mercier, and the sleek and modern edge that NARS have! But you could name any brand to me and I'd be able to tell you something that I love about it!

3) What is your dream job?

This changes and has changed quite often throughout my life and I'm still not sure about what my 'dream' job would exactly be. Ideally I'd like to work in the city in a fast paced environment, the problem with my current job is it can be excrutiatingly boring when it is quiet. I know that I'll always want to continue working with makeup and beauty, I'm working on developing and progressing as a makeup artist by going to courses in the hope that I'll be able to set up a freelance business within the year. Ideally that would grow and I'd be successful in what I do, that's the dream.

4) If you could receive one thing as a present right now (any price!), what would you choose?

Maybe a whole new wardrobe, I mean from basics like underwear, to full on outfits and shoes. Failing that, it would be nice to own an apartment in a good city so a few hundred grand wouldn't go amiss please? Or a new laptop...I'd really like to make a couple of YouTube videos! Or a nice holiday pls!

5) What's the cheapest makeup product that you own, and love

Off the top of my head it is probably my £1 MUA eyeshadows, so far I've been nothing but impressed by them and am hoping that they release a wider colour range.

6) Describe yourself in one word.

Nice.

7) If you could be anyone for a day, who would you pick and why?

I can't really think of anyone particularly...I'd love to re-live a day in my life when I was 15-16 they were the best of times and I definitely didn't appreciate it at the time! Or to live as Alex Box for a day would be really interesting!

8) What do you prefer to spend your money on -skincare, makeup or clothes?

Up until recently I'd spend the most on makeup, because it genuinely brings me joy! I love using and trying out new products and it was always a pleasurable experience because I'm within my comfort zone. However recently I've been attempting a wardrobe overhaul because I dislike the majority of my clothes and have been trying to build a new core wardrobe bit by bit. Because I am focussing on that so I suppose most of my spare money goes on clothes at the moment.

9)Tell me something about yourself that people may not already know

 I currently have 6 tattoos, my largest one took 4 1/2 hours to complete and my next one is planned for next month!

10) What's your favourite song at the moment? 

That's so hard. Anything by Nicki Minaj. I love her.

11) What's your favourite book? 

I've never really enjoyed reading books because I hate the feel of that book paper on my thumbs (OCD or something!) and so I find the whole reading experience pretty uncomfortable so I avoid it (maybe would be avoided with one of them kindles) I love my books I've bought from art exhibitions, cookery books and also loved reading Andre Breton's Manifestoes of Surrealism when I was at University, and am currently attempting to re-read it now!

My questions for you;

1) What is your 'go- to' lip colour?

2) Where is your favourite place to be?

3) Which of your nail varnishes do you pick up time and time again?

4) If you had to buy makeup products from only ONE brand for the rest of your life, what would you choose?

5) What magazine do you enjoy reading the most?

6) If you could recommend one hair product to me, what would it be and why?

7) Nights out or nights in?

8) If you could release a limited edition collection with any makeup house (low or high end) which would you pick?

9) What's your most expensive makeup item?

10) What skincare item couldn't you live without?

11) Tell me something unusual about yourself!

I tag; All of my followers!! And let me know if you answer, so that I can read the post. :-)

 

P.S. I'm now a ginge

All change! Having been really well behaved and spent the last year growing all my hair dye out and getting it back into a nice, natural condition I go and spend 5 hours in the hairdressers chair last week to go ginge. Copper blonde, technically. Needed a change, plus starting a new job on Monday! I'll still be working on a makeup counter, just swapping which company I work for!

Ello!

Hello all!

I'm Emily, I'm 21.

A bit about me;
I grew up in Essex before moving to Brighton in 2007 to go to University. I studied Art History and graduated in 2010, I stayed in Brighton for a further year and was working full time in cocktail bars, venues and pubs. About a month ago I left my job as Supervisor and (pretty randomly) relocated to just outside of Swansea, Wales. I now live with my boyfriend in a lovely flat :-)


Why have I started a blog?
I need a creative outlet where I can talk about beauty products! I really want to see and talk to other girls who have the same interests and passions as me, I've wanted to start one for a while but now I have more time. I'll blog predominently about beauty products but I might post some outfits every now and then.

What do I like?
I love Hip Hop, cats, liquor and mixology (I have worked in bars, clubs and pubs for years), cooking, and spending time with my loved ones.

You can follow me on Twitter if you like- @emilydimplesxo

Hope you enjoy the blog. 

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