Edinburgh | My Home Town

I live in such a completely beautiful city. Edinburgh is a city rich with culture, and on every turn there is beautiful scenery and amazing experiences. On my way to work today I found myself admiring the gorgeous scenery on Princes Street. Literally everywhere I looked there was beauty, and it made me realised how lucky I am to live in this gorgeous city. 

Dry Skin Drama #1

Dry skin is something that can affect you year round. Its uncomfortable, unattractive and extremely annoying. It affects the make up you can wear, how you apply your fake tan, how long it takes you to get ready in the morning and not to mention your self esteem. Whether its on your face or your body it’s a complete pain, and something they can be very difficult to fix. Its all about using the right products for YOU, because everybody's skin is completely different.

I have extremely dry skin which is prone to eczema, so these posts are going to focus on what I use to tackle this. I will also include my trial and error products that might not necessarily work for me but that I think would work for other dry skin issues, or different skin types. I am obviously not a doctor so I can't 100% advise any sort of treatment, but these posts will just be about different products that have helped improve the condition of my skin. I hope these posts will be able to help other people who suffer from dry skin, dermatitis or eczema.

Aveeno Skin Care

As the winter months start to creep in, my skin will undoubtedly begin to get very dry and irritated. The weather seems to have a massive impact on the condition of my skin, warmer weather seems to calm the dryness but the harsh cold makes it severely dry up. Every time this happens I always go back to using the same moisturiser Aveeno Cream. 

I find that treating eczema and dermatitis can be one big cycle of dry irritable skin hell. The steroid creams I am often prescribed by the doctor do a good job to clear the irritation but they completely dry out my skin. The main problem I have is that once the main flare up clears up, my main priority is to keep my skin hydrated and moisturised. If I use any body butter or lotion that is perfumed even mildly or that isn't completely natural it will make my flare up all over again. 

About a year ago, my Aunt who is also a sufferer of dermatitis recommended Aveeno to me. She said it had completely cleared up her skin, so I decided to give it a go. I purchased the Intensive Cream because my skin was particularly bad at that time. I used it twice a day every day and I noticed a huge difference.

The product is a medium thickness, fairly rich cream that applies smoothly to the skin. It is made of completely natural ingredients including Colloidal Oatmeal with rich emollients, which is dermatologically proven to help soothe and treat a variety of skin conditions. It leaves a protective barrier of moisture on the skin after application which is vital for people with dry skin as it locks in moisture and prevents loss of hydration. It smells a little bit strange, very strongly of oatmeal. It's not necessarily a bad smell, it doesn't smell medicinal or clinical at all. Personally I would prefer a fruity smell but it is made of skin hydrating oatmeal so we can let that one slide.

Within two weeks of using the product I noticed a massive difference within my skin, especially the dehydration and dryness of the skin on my forearms. There was a definate improvement and the more I used it the more my skin began to clear. I don't use the cream everyday when my skin is clearer as it doesn't have the nicest scent. Aveeno is my go to product for any flare ups or just dry patches of skin. Boots and Superdrug supply Aveeno and the price is around £4.00 to £20.00 which is fairly reasonable for the quality of the product. I highly recommend this to anyone with any sort of drying skin conditions, it truly is a wonderful product.

Buy Aveeno at Boots

Buy Aveeno at Superdrug

Aveeno Website UK

Confessions of a TV Addict #1

The Carrie Diaries

Okay so the first show up in this series is The Carrie Diaries. The programme is based on the book by Candace Bushnell of the same name. It follows the young and ever fabulous Carrie Bradshaw through her teens in the 80s and is all about love, relationships, friendships and drama.It stars the up and coming curly haired starlet AnnaSophia Robb (Violet Beauregarde in Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory). It is on the CW network and has just finished its first series (I watched it on HULU by telling my account I was in the USA, smart I know :))

Quick Summary: Carrie Bradshaw is a young girl living in Connecticut restless and a little lost after her mothers untimely death. Her father manages to get her a part time internship at a New York law firm, which finds her in the city regularly. This is when Miss Bradshaw begins her long love affair with the city and her love for fashion begins to blossom. While browsing the rails in her first ever department store trip she meets fabulous art director Larissa who immediately wants to shoot her customised hand bag. This leads to a beautiful and fashionable bond forming between the two and Carrie being offered a PA position at the magazine Larissa works at. Between New York, Carries writing ambitions, drama with family, friends and love interests back in Connecticut, Carrie has her hands full.

So now for the real information. I LOVE SATC in a big way, so obviously I was apprehensive and I would say I almost had my guard up about this TV show taking over the cult classics glamorous reigns. Not to mention that Sarah Jessica Parker originated the character of Carrie Bradshaw and those are some pretty big Louboutins to fill. Now let me tell you, this show met all my expectations and more. Its fun, has an amazing cast, engaging and realistic plot lines with just the right amount of drama, and its all pretty relevant today even though its set to an 80s backdrop. I actually think the 80s vibe adds to everything, its different, bright and makes room for loads of cool cultural references that had me googling the night away.   

The star of the show AnnaSophia Robb is the perfect choice for the young and slightly naive Carrie. She is so likeable that you start to believe she is your new best friend, and just want everything to work out for her in New York. She also works some amazing and not to mention perfect curly locks, which has every girl watching reaching for the curling tongs. Her love interest Sebastian played by the gorgeous Austin Butler is reason enough on its own to tune into the show. He is charming, a complete bad boy and doesn't seem to mind taking his top off every few episodes. Other characters needing honourable mentions are Carrie's angsty and hilarious younger sister Dorrit played by Stefania Owen she seems to be setting the bar for the 80s rebellious wild child. Also Larissa played by well known British actress Freema Agyeman is the perfect eccentric and stylish mentor for young Bradshaw.

The aspect I love about this show which I also think sets it aside from other teen shows, is the 80s fashion and music. The soundtrack is amazing and had me racing to make a 80s playlist for my ipod. It features classic 80s hits which had been left forgotten such as Missing You - John Waite, Brass IN pocket - The Pretenders, Dancing with myself - Billy Idol, Heaven - Brian Adams and not to mention hundreds of Madonna classics thrown in there. The fashion on the show is bright, fun and is also styled in a way which is definitely still wearable in 2013. Carrie rocks tutus, neon, glitter, bright prints, while her sister goes all goth grunge on us in ripped tees, leather and distressed denim. Each episode leaves me completely inspired in the fashion department and gives me an itching to raid my mums wardrobe for some vintage 80s garments.

All in all this TV show is a definite watch for any girl who loves fashion, hot guys, New York  and is looking for some light TV relieve. I love it as you may be able to tell, but let me know what you think in the comments :)

credit for the little icon goes to @stylestrology twitter account.

Everyday Jewellery April

In the last few days I have been rocking this jewellery combo non stop. As the weather is slowly but erratically getting better, I have been introducing more colour into my wardrobe. These peices are simple and classic so are perfect for a pretty spring outfit. 

Watch: Fossil 

Bracelet: Lola Rose at John Lewis

Earrings: New Look

Confessions of a TV Addict

I'm coming clean, I have a ridiculous obsession with TV. I watch literally everything! Drama, comedy, reality, documentary's, fantasy or crime, it doesn't matter my preferences show no bias to genre. I don't even know how it happens, I just get hooked!

 It started at a young age too, when I was little I was hooked to our shiny sky box and would watch endless hours of Disney Channel and Nickelodeon. I was also into ALL the soaps, even the rubbish ones with the bad actors, much to my parents annoyance. As I grew into a teenager I grew to love channel 4, E4, Living TV and MTV. I was having a very involved relationship with The Hills, The O.C, Will and Grace and that is just to name a few. My friends enabled me too, they at the time were just as bad and we would spend hours discussing the characters and the dramatic plot twists. To bring it back to present day, I haven't out grown this obsession it has only magnified and now I find myself watching 30 plus programmes. EXCESSIVE I know, but it does land me in the position to be able to analyse, compare and critique the new kids on the TV block, as well as allowing me to continuously re-evaluate my opinions of the long haul programmes deciding if they should be renewed at the end of the series. (as if my opinions really matter) 

This has led me to decided I am going to do a little series of posts about the TV I am loving at the minute. It will vary from trashy telly to serious ground breaking pieces and I will be completely honest about everything.   So then you will know whether things are worth a watch, plus if your looking for a new series to watch on a Sunday afternoon on a hangover you can skim through my reviews without much effort.

 So let me know if there's anything you would like to see reviewed and I will do my best!

Glow in Spring | my makeup look today #1

In Scotland spring has not quite sprung, but there is no harm in wishful thinking. To get myself in the Spring mood, today I put together this simple, light and radiant make up look. I may still have to be wrapped up in multiple layers but that doesn't mean my face can't look fresh and radiant. Welcome to Spring!

Face: Laura Mercier Illuminating tinted moisturizer spf 20 in Bare Radiance

Bronzer: Nars Laguna

Blush: Nars Orgasm

Highlight: Topshop Glow in Polished

Brows: Mac Matte Eyeshadow in Charcoal Brown

Eyelid: Mac Frost Eyeshadow in All that Glitters

Liner: Clinique Cream Shaper in 05 Chocolate Lustre

Lips: 17 Mirror Shine Lipstick in Beehive

Nails: Nicole by OPI Kardashian Kollection in Disco Dolls