30 Day Challenge (Post 3) - 'A Gift'

Evening ladies,

Hope you're all good and have already got that Friday feeling in anticipation for tomorrow - I have, and can't wait for the weekend!

Last night I had a very exciting evening, as I went to the National Movie Awards at Wembley Arena :-D Typical me, I forgot to take my camera, but my friend who I went with had hers, so I'll share some pics as soon as I get them from her! There might even me the odd snap of a celeb or too, but I'll keep you waiting...

Anyway, back to business - this is the third post of the 30 day challenge, and the challenge is to post a picture of 'A piece of clothing or jewellery that was a gift'

To be honest, I thought this would be really easy, but when I looked through my stuff I really struggled to find anything that was a gift. However, then I remembered this cute necklace that I got from a friend in a not-so-secret Santa.

I'm not sure where it's from but I really like it and wear it quite a lot :-)

I do have some really 'special' jewellery that's been passed on to me, but I'll save that for another post in the series.

That's me for now, and as I said, hopefully I'll be able to post up some pictures of my glamorous evening over the weekend :-)

Take care all and have a good Friday!

xx

30 Day Challenge (Post 2) 'Your Favourite Shirt'

Hi all!

Hope you've all had a great weekend :-) I had a great night out on Friday (no photos were taken unfortunately) which meant that due to a combination of alcohol and tiredness, yesterday was pretty much a write off! I've had a good day today but now it's Sunday night and I can't believe how quickly Monday comes around.

Anyway, moving on, here's the second part of the '30 Day Challenge', which is...

2. Post a picture of... your favourite shirt.

I've taken 'shirt' to mean 'top', assuming this tag started in America. So, here it is. I am just loving this top from Next at the moment, which I got a couple of months ago, I think for around £28. The colours are really rich and gorgeous, which I think you can see from this photo. It's also got a lovely silky feel, so it feels nice to wear.

The reason this top is my favourite, and not just a top that I like lots and lots, is that it is really versatile. I can wear it with a maxi skirt, shorts or trousers to create different looks, and it can be made to look really casual or really dressy. It's so nice when you buy something you totally fall in love with which I did today when I bought a new handbag, but that's a whole different post!) :-D

That's all for now girls, and enjoy the last few hours of the weekend!

xx

30 Day Challenge - Post 1!

Hola chicas,

I said last night that I really want to become more consistent with my blogging again. Up until a few months ago, I was blogging really often and really enjoying it, but recently I seemed to have lost my way a bit.

So, when I stumbled upon a tag on Selina'a blog I though it would be something that could help me get my mojo back!! (You can find her blog at flyingsaucer.typepad.com - check it out, its amazing!) It turns out the tag was originally meant for tumblr, but like Selina I'm going to give it a bash on my blog. The idea is that there are 30 posts you do in 30 days (I'm going to admit right now that I might not quite do it in 30 days, but I'll do them all as quickly as possible).

So without further ado, here goes!

1. Post a picture of... Your closet.

Ta daaaaa! This is my wardrobe. I got it from Ikea quite recently and it was a bargain at about £80. It's only small, and isn't quite the build in double wardrobe I have at my mum's house, but it get's me by!

On top of my wardrobe I have these two baskets I got from Tiger Tiger. They are perfect for all my bags....

And here is inside my wardrobe (it's quite tidy so I'm rather proud of myself!). I have most of my clothes hanging up, and then on the top shelf have plain vests and t-shirts, and my gym clothes. On the bottom are my hoodies, and shoes that I don't wear very often (I have the shoes I wear more often on a separate shoes rack). As you can see it's a tight squeeze so I have to keep it tidy really, else it would be ridiculous!

And there we have it - my wardrobe :-)

See you tomorrow (hopefully!) for post number 2!

xx

What's In My Bag?...

I love watching 'What's In My Bag' videos and toyed with the idea of making one myself. But seeing as I've gone off the idea of seeing my own mug on YouTube, I thought that writing a post on it may be a good compromise. It's not quite the same I know, but at least I can still show you 'what's in my bag'.

So first up, the all important bag. This is the baby I'm carrying round on a day to day basis at the moment...

I got it from Accessorize for a bargainous £8.40 in the sale. My mum bought the same one - we match! I love it because it's big enough to fit everything I need, but is still pretty light. I don't know about you, but I find some bags are just so heavy before you even put anything in them, so once you have got all your things in it, they're just ridiculous.

Here's what I have in my bag at the moment. I didn't realise I carried so much 'stuff' around with me all the time - and this is on a good day!

So I have some random essentials - I usually keep these in the little pocket on the inside. Tissues, hairbands, chewing gun, paracetamol, lipgloss and lip balm. I love cute little packets of tissues like this one :-)

Then we have the three items I never leave the house without - my Accessorize purse, iPhone and keys (complete with Tesco clubcard!). I literally couldn't live without my iPhone - I don't know how I used to function without it!

My iPod and pass holder with my Young Persons Railcard and Oyster card are always in my bag. I always need them on the tube/train/bus, so rather than have to remember them everytime, it's just easier if I always have them with me.

Looking in my bag it seems I'm prepared for all weathers! I've got my leopard print umbrella which I got in my goodie bag at The Look Show, some fingerless gloves from Primarni and sunnies from Dorothy Perkins. Come rain, cold or sunshine, I'm ready!

Last but not least, I might have been a little bit naughty as in the front pocket I appear to have a half eaten packet of Skittles (better than an empty packet I guess!).

So that's what I have in my bag :-) It's pretty tidy for me - no random receipts or half empty water bottles like there normally are! I might do another one of these posts in a couple of months time if I change things up at all.

If you've done a 'What's In My Bag' video or blog post, link me up :-D

xx

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day one and all!

I spent my evening alone watching Bridget Jones. Tragic.

Please fill me in on your Valentines stories to cheer me up!

And just because I'm a bit of a maths geek..

All pictures from weheartit.com

Loves.

xx

Alphabet of Love! M-S...

Hi ladies,

Sorry for the lack of posts this week - it's been a rather hectic few days in the life of Erin. To sum it up, I had a second interview for a job I REALLY wanted, and I actually got it! I am so happy but so nervous at the same time. In a recent tag post I did (which you can find here) I described my ideal job, and this new job is basically exactly this, so really I couldn't have wished for anything better :-D But now the frantic search begins for a flatshare, as I need to move back to London again.

Anyway, after a busy week, I'be finally managed to put together the third part of my 'Alphabet of Love' series. The first two parts are here and here. So without further ado...

...Macbook

Without doubt the best purchase I've ever made. I just couldn't live without my lovely little macbook. I got it in my final year at university and compared to my old, super slow laptop, I would say that it's genuinely changed my life.

...Names

Ok, so this one's quite weird, I admit. I have a slight obsession with baby names! I just find it interesting what names mean, what celebrities call their children and what names go together for siblings. Maybe I shouldn't have admitted that one?..

...online window shopping

I love a good old bit of surfing my favourite sites to see what goodies I'd like to buy if money was no object. I've bought a few things online but don't tend to do it that often, as for me I like the whole shopping experience and trying things on. But I do like to see what's out there and create my own little wishlists :-)

...Puddles

No, not of the rainy variety. Puddles was the name of my dearest pussy cat who sadly passed away about two years ago. We called him Puds for short.

He lived to 18 years and I'd like to think he had a very happy little life :-) I still miss him all the time though. I don't think people who don't have pets can ever understand how close you can get to them.

...Quizzes

I LOVE quizzes. I don't know why really though, as I'm not actually that good at them! My general knowledge is pretty poor, especially geography and history. I tend to do alright on the celebrity, entertainment and music rounds though (no surprise there then!). In my first year at university we used to do the pub quiz every Monday, and those were some of my happiest times :-)

... Revision

Jokes. I HATED revision with a passion. At uni I didn't mind lectures, tutorials, coursework, or actually doing exams themselves. But revision periods were just the worst ever - I could always find something better to do with my time. So for all of you that are revising for school or university - I feel your pain. But believe me it will all be worth it in the end when you can be proud of yourself. Then you can LOVE that it's over!

This picture was taken when I was revision for my finals - hoping that all the contents of my Operations Strategy module would go into my head through some sort of osmosis-like process!

...Stationery

I'm a sucker for cute stationery - I could get lost in Paperchase for hours. Having pretty stationary just makes writing things down so much more fun! And as I'm always writing lists, I go through them really quickly. This is my current notebook - so cute from WHSmith...

Only one more post to go! As i said before, if any of you want to do this tag then go for it - just send me the link so I can check it out :-) You don't have to make it a mega 4-part series like I have!

xx

Alphabet of Love! A-F...

Hi girls,

I thought it might be a nice idea to do something different with my blog. I read so many other blogs and feel like I know some of the bloggers so well, even though I've never met them. The photos they share, the way they write and experiences they talk about make me feel like I've known them for years!

When I was looking through some old posts on my blog I started to think that maybe my blog doesn't really allow you to get to know me as a person. I would love to get to know some of you lovely people from the blogging community, whether you have a blog yourself or not, and I figure the best start is to allow you to get to know me a little better :-)

So I've come up with the idea of doing an alphabet of things I love. Hopefully this will allow you to understand the people, objects and slightly random 'things' that rock my boat, so to speak!

I'll be doing this in four separate posts over the next week or two. So, where better to start than with 'A'?!

...A Walk to Remember

I'm such a girly girl when it comes to films. I hardly ever settle down to watch a movie as I don't really have the patience, but whenever I do it's always for a real chick flick! A Walk to Remember is a real favourite of mine - so happy yet so sad at the same time. If you are one of the few that hasn't seen it, I can't recommend it highly enough. (And who wouldn't want to change Landon from bad boy to marriage material like Jamie does?!)

...Britney

So Britney's staging a bit of a comeback at the moment what with her recent Glee appearance and all, but I've been a fan since waaaay back in the day. I was lucky enough to see her perform at the O2 a couple of years ago, and although her voice wasn't the greatest, the show she put on was just unbelievable.

It's Britney, bitch!

...Cheese

Anyone who knows me in real life knows what a terribly fussy eater I am, and that basically my whole diet is based around cheese (I'll worrry about my cholesterol in a few years). Even on Christmas day when the whole family tucks into a traditional meal, I have a cheese and tomato pizza! This is serious - the picture below was Christmas Day 2009...

I need to start expanding my list of 'Erin-safe' foods!

...Dancing

'Dance like no one's watching', so the saying goes. I just LOVE to dance. I never went to lessons as a child but spent many an hour in my bedroom dancing along to the Spice Girls, Five and the Backstreet Boys! When I went to university I joined the dance club - the Aston WildKatz, and had the most brilliant time. Here's a pic of some of us after one of our performances...

I met so many great people and had so much fun performing and competing with them. Now I've left uni I'd love to join a new dance club, as I really miss it.

...Ebay

I am a little bit addicted to ebay, although much more on the selling than buying side. I've bought a few things but mainly sell items I buy from car boots and charity shops, or my own no longer wanted goodies. I tend to go through ebay bursts though, so whenever I have 20 parcels to post, people in the Post Office better beware - they're in for a long wait!

... Fancy Dress

I am a huge fan of fancy dress. When I was at university (I graduated last summer) no night out was complete without fancy dress! It's one of the big things I miss from my uni days. I did a post here on some of my favourite fancy dress outfits if you want to check any of them out.

Join me next time for 'G' onwards (if you're at all interested!)...

xx

Tag: 15 Random Questions

Evening lovelies.

Something exciting happened today - I was 'tagged'! ha ha. I know this might not seem exciting, but seeing as I've never been tagged to do a post before I was very excited :-) As you can see I don't have that many 'followers', so I'm so grateful to those that I do have and to anyone else who reads my blog. It makes me happy!

Anyway, on to the tag. I was tagged by the lovely Leslie at Strategic Skin to do these 15 random questions. You can check her blog out over at...

http://www.strategicskin.com/blog/

So, without further hesitation, here goes...

1) What is your dream job?

Ideally I would love a career in the sports industry. I graduated in the summer and managed to get a good job with a national retailer, but I just wasn't passionate about it. I've always had a passion for sport, so my dream job would be to work for a top sports club or organisation, maybe in a Marketing, PR or Player Liaison role. I'm on the job hunt as we speak, so if anyone knows of any good opportunities, send them my way! ha ha.

2) What is your favourite fragrance for winter?

If I'm totally honest I don't have a lot of different fragrances and don't have much knowledge in this area. I tend to have one fragrance, use it until it runs out, and then buy a new one. I'd love to have a big collection, but I just don't. This winter I've been wearing my Herve Leger Femme. I think it's gorgeous.

3) How do you take your tea/coffee?

I don't drink tea or coffee at all, I never have. Instead I survive on water, milk and Diet Coke!

4) What is your most important beauty secret?

I don't think I really have a beauty secret - I have a pretty basic routine and don't do anything particularly unusual. Two things I would say are to always take your make up off before bed, and smile! Everyone looks so much more beautiful when they're smiling not scowling!

Picture from weheartit.com

5) If you had an all expenses paid vacation anywhere, where would you go?

I would love this so much right now! Quite random, but I'd probably say somewhere like Iceland. I just love the idea of it being freezing outside and being in a hot spring with a drink in hand. Plus, I believe Iceland is very expensive, so I would probably never be able to afford to go there unless it was paid for by someone else!

6) If a genie popped up in your lap right now and offered you three wishes, what would you ask for?

I would ask for good health for me and all those I care about, enough money for me to get a nice flat and not have to worry about rent, and to meet the man of my dreams :-) One can only hope...!

7) If you could only have breakfast, lunch, dinner or dessert foods for the rest of your life, what would you pick?

I'd have to go for breakfast. Crumpets, bagels, toast, cereals, fruit, yoghurt, milk, juice - I don't need anything else!

8) If you were Hello Kitty, what colour hair bow would you wear?

I'm not much of a Hello Kitty fan to be honest. But if I had to choose, judging by the general theme of my wardrobe, I would probably have a black bow, maybe with a bit of sparkle thrown in for good measure. I need to inject more colour into my life and wardrobe...

9) What is your biggest make-up pet peeve?

Hmmm, difficult one. I have a few, but my biggest one would probably be bad foundation/fake tan, where someone's face is a totally different colour to the rest of their body. I may have been guilty of this in the past when I haven't done my make up in the best light, but I don't reckon it's ever been too noticeable! Fingers crossed anyway...

10) If you could wear only one piece of jewellery for the rest of your life, what would it be?

I don't own a piece of jewellery that is particularly special to me, or something that I wear on a daily basis. Hopefully when I meet the man of my dreams (which the genie from the question above will find me!) then I'll have a wedding ring which I wouldn't want to be without.

11) What one talent do you wish you had?

I'd love to be able to sing. I wouldn't even want to be a professional singer, but if I could just get up at karaoke or a party and blow people away I'd be happy :-) And I am a loooong way off from being able to do that I assure you.

12) Which product will you continue to purchase?

Not particularly exciting, but one thing I can't ever imagine not having in Vaseline. I always have a small tin by my bed and one in my handbag - it sorts out my dry lips a treat :-)

13) If you could look into the future, would you? And what would you like to know?

Although it would be majorly tempting, I don't think I would do it, in fear of not liking what I see! But if I did do it, I'd just want to know if I was happy.

14) Who is your biggest celebrity crush? Include pictures!

I'm not sure if he would really be classed as a celebrity, but there's no way I could ever pick anyone other than this person - Sami Hyypia! No, you don't know who he is?! Well, he's a Finnish footballer who used to play for Liverpool but now plays in Germany. I've pretty much loved him for the last 10 years! Seriously. I can't quite put my finger on what it is about him, as I know he's not the most stereotypically good looking person, but I just love him! Oh, and he's 37, not that a bit of an age gap ever mattered!

15) What made you start a blog?

I was encouraged to start a blog by my then boyfriend and a couple of his friends. They had blogs of their own about technology and music and told me I should write about something that really interested me. So I gave it a go and have been hooked since! I enjoy reading other people's blogs just as much as I enjoy writing my own.

So there we go - my random answers to some random questions!

I tag anyone to do this tag who wants to give it a go! If you do it, leave a link in the comments so I can check it out.

xx