The Fashion Edit: New Year's Eve Sparkle

Happy Saturday everyone!

I hope you all had a very merry Christmas with your friends and family and aren’t going too crazy in the post-Christmas sales!

With New Year’s Eve being only a few days away, I thought it was only appropriate to bring you my fashion edit of the best New Year’s Eve sparkly outfits for your celebrations.  I have a bit of a mixed bag in terms of the price range, so hopefully there is something to suit everyone.

Sparkle 1 / The Ultimate Maxi Dress

Let's start off with the ultimate maxi dress which screams - bring in the New Year in style! This ASOS Red Carpet Premium Dress is stunning, a bit pricey at £150 but it is now down to £90 in the ASOS sale! It is such a unique, exciting dress; the balance between the gorgeous large kimono sleeves and low cut v-back make this an elegant, on trend option for your New Year's celebrations.  The large sequins are so eye-catching and you will definitely turn heads at the party!

Sparkle 2 / The Playsuit
A little easier on the pennies is this Motel Rocks Paulette Long Sleeve Playsuit in Burgundy coming in at £59.  This is super sparkly and in a staple winter colour.  The long sleeves, plunging neckline and cinched waist makes this a very flattering option for New Year's Eve - get a pair of gorgeous heels and statement necklace and you're good to go!

Sparkle 3 / The Co-ord
Another ASOS number! This Triangle Embellished Turtle Neck Crop Top & Pencil Skirt in Scuba are a stylish choice for New Year's Eve.  The golden metallic embellishment against the black edging is a nice touch and breaks up the sparkle, making both items of clothing really stand out.  This outfit comes in at £72 which is good for 2 separate items which can be worn all matchy matchy or worn again with contrasting crop top or skirt.  

Sparkle 4 / The LBD
If you're looking for the classic LBD with a bit of a twist then this Nicole X Cut Out Midi Dress Black Sequin from Missguided is the dress for you! The front of the dress looks like a co-ord top and skirt, and the high neck detailing makes this a little different.  It is usually £40 but is now down to £24.99 - bargain!! Get out your bold red lipstick and gorgeous strappy heels to go along with the gorgeous, reasonably priced dress.  

Sparkle 5 / The Accessory
Sparkly outfits not your thing?  This Sequin Crossbody Bag from Topshop might be just the right amount of sparkle for you.  It is the cutest little bag with a long chain strap and tonal sequins.  It's a perfect party bag and was £25 but now £15! 

Have you already got the perfect NYE outfit ready? Let me know what it's like!

I hope you all have a very Happy New Year and have amazing memories of 2014.

♥︎ 

Festive Treats: Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

Happy Saturday everyone!

Only 5 more sleeps until Christmas!  I love the run up to Christmas - party nights out, wrapping loved ones presents, Christmas movies and eating some goodies you usually would avoid!

On that note, todays post is all about making your own Christmas treats over the festive period, in the form of chocolate covered marshmallow reindeers, too cute!

For this treat you'll need:

• Marshmallows
• Pretzels
• Milk Chocolate
• Red M&Ms
• Silver or White Chocolate Pearls
• Cake Pop Sticks or Straws

You'll also need a spoon, scissors, bowl, pan and something to stand your sticks or straws in - I used a mason jar but a foam block would be best if you were making a lot of these so they don't stick together!

Step 1 / Cut your pretzels in half to create the antlers, this can be a bit tricky in getting the pretzel to cut in the right place - just make sure you have enough for trial and error!

Step 2 / Pop your marshmallows onto the end of your sticks or straws, I used festive straws from Ginger Ray with little tags saying 'Be Merry!' and 'Ho Ho Ho' - I love them!

Step 3 / Create 2 small holes in the top of your marshmallows to make it easier for the pretzel antlers to be added.  To do this I opened up a pair of scissors and jabbed the marshmallow a few times, there is probably a much easier way to do this - if you can think of another way please let me know! :)

Step 4 / Next you want to break up your chocolate and put it in a glass bowl.  To melt the chocolate you can either pop it in the microwave for 30 seconds and keep bringing it out and stirring until melted, or you can place the glass bowl on a pan of boiling water while continuing to stir the chocolate until it has melted.  

Once it has melted pick up each of your marshmallow sticks and coat your marshmallow in the chocolate.  Once it is covered use a spoon to even out the chocolate a little and pop them back into your jar/foam block.  

Step 5 / Pick up your antler pretzels and position them in the small holes you made earlier, this can be a bit fiddly and I held the pretzels in place for a minute or so they wouldn't slip out - patience is key here! 

Step 6 / This is where your little Rudolph's come to life!  Add your silver or white pearl sprinkles as eyes and a red M&M for Rudolph's nose.  Again just make sure the eyes and nose don't slip off if the chocolate is still pretty melty.  Then pop them in the fridge to dry and your Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer are ready!

Are you going to try and make some homemade treats for your family and friends this Christmas? 

I think I'll make more of these for Christmas day :)

Have a wonderful Christmas everyone! 

Nails Inc Champagne Nail Bar

Recently my family and I had our annual festive day out in Edinburgh - a day of eating lunch at The Dome around the Christmas tree (if this place can't get you in the festive spirit - nowhere can!) and a wander around the Christmas market with some mulled cider - yum!

Earlier that morning my mum and I made our way into Edinburgh to get a gel manicure at the Nails Inc Champagne Nail Bar in Harvey Nichols - we couldn't wait for an early Christmas treat.

When we arrived we spent time picking out the perfect shade of polish, and since I was feeling festive I went for a champagne sparkly number with a nude bottom coat.

We then sat down and were given a glass of champagne, the manicurist started tidying up our cuticles and nails, while they asked what nail length and shape we'd liked.  I can't do much with long nails so I was happy to have them filed down and neatened up.

My nude bottom coat of polish was applied and then 3 coats of the glitter polish.  As much as the 3 coats look great, if I was to purchase this polish I don't think it needs 3 coats, the glitter is packed into the polish really well and has great coverage on the nail.

The manicure was then finished off with a gel top coat and oil applied around the nails - I have the cuticle oil at home and it really is great, even when applied to your nails before applying polish, it helps to hydrate cuticles and nails and I can always see the difference after the first use.

(Nails had grown in a bit in this photo)

The manicurists were lovely and I liked that the champagne nail bar was in the centre of the beauty department - plenty to see with lots of tempting beauty products everywhere!

I'd definitely recommend it, go treat yourself.  :)

Benefit Candy-Coated Countdown

Beauty advent calendars seem to be popping up everywhere at the moment, and I have been very lucky to receive the popular Benefit Candy-Coated Countdown this year.

It's in the pleasing candy shoppe style of Benefit, while incorporating some lovely greens and reds of Christmas, with some of their best selling products and other gifts behind each door.

I'm really pleased with what I've opened up so far! I haven't tried out their It's Potent Eye Cream or Stay Don't Stray Primer yet - looking forward to using them over the weekend and opening up more doors with fun-sized Benefit goodies behind them.  

What beauty advent calendar do you have this year?  Are you enjoying trying out the products? 

Have a great weekend everyone!