The Diary of a Girl Who Doesn't Wear Make Up

I have a confession to make. I don't wear make up. I don't mean not ever, I wear it if I'm going somewhere nice or to a club or a party. But on a day to day basis I go bare faced. I don't understand people who consider foundation 'essential'. I don't get people who won't see people until they've 'got their face on'. * I don't get excited for the new apocalips lip gloss. I don't spend a fortune in boots. Honestly, I like not having an extra thing to worry about. I like the extra time I get in bed in the morning, the fact that I can hop into bed without taking of make up first. That I can rub my eyes when I like. My skin is mostly clear, which is good because looking at my mum and my sister, I should be prone to spots.

I'm also not very good at doing my own make up. I don't know why, but all of my life, other people have offered to do my make up for me. I don't know what it is about me that screams 'make me over', but I have had people actually beg me to do my make up. So I don't always get a chance to practice.

I do own make up. Another advantage, if you don't have to buy new stuff every month you can afford to splash out a bit. And I can do the basics.

However I started a new job recently and I wanted to have a more polished look. I've seen a few people blogging about their experiences not wearing make up. So I thought I'd write about the opposite. About actually having to put make up on.

Day One - Actually putting on make up didn't take as long as I thought. 10 minutes max. This lipstick smells a bit soapy, but is glossy and doesn't dry out my lips. I might actually be able to kick my vaseline habit. (I apply vaseline constantly. Like once an hour)
Foundation - Clinique Super Balanced Make up , Eye Shadow - Virgin Vie Set, Mascara - MAC Plush lash, Lipstick - Bourgeois 

Day Two - Putting on eye-shadow seems a bit too dressy for the day actually. I stop using it. also my face wipes are burning my skin. Swapping to using baby lotion and cotton wool.
Foundation - Clinique Super Balanced Make up, Mascara - MAC Plush lash, Lipstick - Bourgeois 

Day Three - About half way through the day I notice that there are big patches of dry flaky skin on the side of my face. They are kinda orangey from the foundation. Have to attempt to rub off the foundation in loo with a tissue. The mac lipstick is a bit more drying on my lips, but has some hard core staying power and I prefer the matte look. I might actually have to buy some more of these.
Foundation - Clinique Super Balanced Make up, Mascara - MAC Plush lash, Lipstick - MAC Pro Longwear Lip Creme Love Forever

Day Four - My skin has become kind of blotchy  I wonder if this is a conspiracy on the beauty industry's part to make me wear more make up, a bit like when people put lead on their faces which made their skin look old, so they'd put more on.
Foundation - Clinique Super Balanced Make up, Mascara - MAC Plush lash, Lipstick - MAC Pro Longwear Lip Creme Love Forever

Day Five - Switched to Bourjois healthy mix foundation. Lets hope this foundation doesn't dry out my skin. It smells soapy as well. Nope, I still got the flaky patches on my face. Cover my face in Boots aqueous cream to combat the effects.
Foundation - Bourjois healthy mix, Mascara - MAC Plush lash, Lipstick - MAC Pro Longwear Lip Creme Love Forever

Day Six - After not wearing make up over the weekend and some intense moisturizing, my face is looking a little better. Still get the orange flaky skin though from the foundation about halfway through the day. I hope no one has noticed. Another MAC lipstick, Satin Rebel this time. I like finding all my old lipsticks and actually using them.
Foundation - Bourjois healthy mix, Mascara - MAC Plush lash, Lipstick - MAC Satin Rebel

Day Seven - Wake up with the dry patches. I hope my eczema isn't coming back. I hate getting eczema on my face. Decide not to bother with foundation any more. I should find a BB cream or a tinted moisturizer. I wonder what the difference is?
Mascara - MAC Plush lash, Lipstick - MAC Satin Rebel

Day Eight - Wake up late and have to do my make up on the train. Yes, I've become one of those women. What would my mother say? Actually she does hers in traffic jams, so probably nothing.
Mascara - MAC Plush lash, Lipstick - Bourgeois 

Day Nine - Entirely forget to do make up this morning. Have to do it on the train again.
Mascara - MAC Plush lash, Lipstick - MAC Pro Longwear Lip Creme Love Forever 

Day Ten - Have decided that it's much more convenient to do my make up of the train. But just mascara and lipstick. when I figure out BB cream I'll do that at home. It looks odd to smear stuff over your face in public.
Mascara - MAC Plush lash, Lipstick - Bourgeois 


So wearing make up hasn't been so terrible and I do like looking a bit more polished.

Is anyone else out there a no make up wearer or a former no make up wearer? Or are you a make up expert and have some tips or advice for me? Do you know the difference between BB cream and tinted moisturiser  I'd love to hear your views on the whole thing, leave a comment below or tweet me @nadiacupcake



*I do understand that it's a confidence thing, a security blanket. I just can't imagine feeling that way.

You're so 2012

Have you ever worried about looking "last season"? I'm not talking about wearing your clothes for longer than a year (I have plenty of things that are 5+ years old and still good) or returning trends (like peplums) or even totally random stuff picked up in charity and vintage shops. I'm talking about trends that are so ubiquitous were everywhere just last summer. Specifically I'm talking about this car print from prada that exploded everywhere on the British high street last summer, from Primark to Topshop. And I loved it. But will it still be wearable this summer?

It's a very specific print. It's not bold florals or 50s style or pastel colours. It's got a very clear and instantly recognisable look. It's not a very transitional look.

As I'm sorting through my wardrobe, switching winter for summer and deciding what needs to go to the charity shop, I'm beginning to wonder if I'll feel comfortable in this print this summer. I'm not one to shy away from bold fashion choices, so why am I worried about this? I worry that people will look at me and think "last years clothes" because the print is so distinctive. I don't much care about following every single trend, knowing its more important to look good in clothes that suit you. Which makes me feel silly for even thinking this.

It lead me to another thought. This look was really big in cheaper fast fashion brands. Ones where the clothes aren't forever, just for right now. Maybe everyone else knew this would be a flash in the pan and didn't want to invest too much.

I know people will say just wear whatever makes you happy, but if I feel like I'm being judged, I won't be comfortable and that's what's most important of all. I have been asked if I'd judge someone else for wearing an old but very distinctive fashion and I don't think I would. But not everyone is just like me.

Does anyone else worry about this sort of thing? Or am I just thinking about it too much?

Uniqlo UTs

Every summer I haven't been that impressed with this years UTs at uniqlo. Compared to last year, the selection is pretty sparse, I don't know whether that's because they have been focusing on non UT collaborations (Celia Birtwell, Orla Kiely for heat tech -which was stroke of genius, Greengata) or because it's still only march as as the spring and summer go on, more collaborations will be announced.

As you can probably tell from the above picture, my favourites are the Pixar ones from menswear. I don't tend to like wearing tees that aren't 'girl cut' but the uniqlo men's t shirts are sized quite small. My super cool Monsters Inc. tee is a size S and fits pretty good. I'm so pleased to have a Monsters Inc. tee, it's my favourite Pixar film, I'm going to wear it when I go to see the new one. I'm so excited for Monsters Inc 2, I actually had a bad dream that I was going to die before I had chance to see it (kinda like that star wars film).

Btw, I took these photos last week, before I dyed my hair pink. It hasn't washed out that fast and remains pink...

L'Oreal Feria Pastel Hair Dye

As you know if you follow my twitter or instagram, I've been super excited for the new range of L'Oreal Feria pastel hair dyes. I finally got my paws on some last week. I love it when you've been trying to get a specific thing for ages, then you do. I don't usually do beauty reviews, mostly because I don't really wear make up and I'm not very interested in trying the latest face creams etc. so I don't really know what I'm talking about. The two things I am interested in are painting my nail and dying my hair. So here's my first proper beauty review.

I'm less than impressed with the range of colours, only three shades, pale pink, lilac and peach. (Also the names are stupid. Pink panther? Lilac Lavender?) I haven't used the peach one but the pictures just make it look like a warm blonde colour rather than a pastel shade, so I don't think I'll be bothering with that one.

The dyes don't seem to be widely available, which I was surprised at from such a big brand. I went to my nearest big boots and despite having posters up advertising the pastel dyes, they don't actually stock them. Boots actually did order them in especially for me and it only took a couple of data for them to arrive. They were still included on the 2 L'Oreal dyes for £9 offer and I have a lot of hair so I bought two boxes.

The dyes are described as toning conditioners rather than dye and the box says they will last 3-5 washes. I will probably try and prolong the colour with some batiste.

When I opened them I was surprised that there was only one bottle, but then I thought about it and stargazer is just one bottle too. My first thoughts were what a large bottle of dye. It says it's 100 mls. It says on the bottle 'multiple use' and I started to think I might get more than one go out of the bottle.

What I did

Before I used the L'Oreal Feria Pastel, I bleached my roots since they needed doing. I used Schwarzkopf Live Colour XXL Absolute platinum, which I often use and I do recommend, for it's ease of use. I gave the bleach a little comb through on the rest of my hair because coloured dye sticks better to bleached hair. When I washed the bleach out I used some fairy liquid to wash my hair, since I've read that it helps to use a clarifying shampoo before dying and I've used fairy a few times instead. It can't leave build up because it doesn't have anything to leave. And if you don't like your temporary colour, it can speed up fading.

I then straight away put on the dye as a conditioner. It smelt really nice, which is unusual for hair dye. It has a thick creamy consistency but was difficult to get the pigmentation even. Some parts went on really pink, others were more white. I was worried it was going to look really uneven.

The instructions say to leave it on for 15mins if your hair was bleached more than two weeks ago and 5mins if it was done in the last 2 weeks. My hair always needs longer with the dye on it, even at the hairdressers, so I decided to disregard this and leave the dye on for 30 minutes. I then accidentally left it on for 45.

How it turned out

The colour stuck better at the roots and places where the bleach had been most concentrated and faded out to a pale pink at the tips. The colour at the roots is a lot more vibrant than shown on the box, the tips are a more similar colour. My hair is super soft, even more so when you consider that it's recently been bleached and washed with washing up liquid. I guess that's the effects of leaving a conditioner on for 45 mins.

I'm pretty pleased with the look and I would probably use the dyes again. They make a nice change from my usual bright colours and are going to look great in summer. I imagine they'd look great with a tan. I've had quite a few compliments from strangers so it's not just me who thinks it looks alright.

I will post an update on how well it washes as well as how the smart beauty pastel dyes compare.

S/S 13 Trends on the High Street; Iridescent

I'm already starting to see the iridescent trend for spring/summer 13 showing up on the high street. Here are a few of my favourites if you want to be an early adopter....

Tops; 1. MissGuided 2. Warehouse via Asos  3. Topshop

Skirts; 4- Forever 21 5- Forever 21 6- Forever 21

Accessories; 7. Miista 8. Next  9. Gosh Holographic nail polish (it doesn't look much here but look at these swatches!)

Would Like To Sew

After my post around this time of year, last year of clothes I'd like to sew, I thought I'd do it again, partly to show you what sewing patterns are out there and partly as a motivational thing for me to get my arse in gear and actually use up some of that fabric I have hoarded away. (Despite the fact I actually only sewed one thing from my last would like to sew post.)

New Look 6143; I love this party dress, I think I'd make dress E (the red polka dot one) exactly as it is, with red and white polka cotton and white power mesh, except I'd probably add in sleeves as I think the tops of my arms are a bit funny looking.

Burda 7063; I really love this cute and casual blouse, it will be perfect for summer. Although the american website describes it as 'almost a little frumpy' which I dont really see how that sells it... I'm going to make the blouse in a blue ala these ones and white polka dot and maybe a red and white striped one with a lace collar. I might make up the dress too, in a pink with birds that I have stashed away. I wish the sunglasses were included too.

New Look 6051; I actually already have this pattern, it's one of those I bought ages ago and still haven't gotten around to sewing it. At least I haven't bought the fabric for it yet...

New Look 6130; I don't much care for the trousers or the pencil skirt, but I love the peplum top. I could make it in a satin for an evening type look or floral cotton for a day time look. It's worth it at the moment because New Look patterns are currently on offer for £2.95.

New Look 6125; I have already used this pattern to make my halloween costume but I was thinking that I could make it up again in a nicer fabric. I wouldn't bother with putting in a zip this time I found it was loose enough to pull over my head. I'd take it in somewhat too. The model on this picture must be very tall, I shortened the pattern for my costume and it was still too long, I don't think I'm that short...

Burda 7052; The two sleeveless blouses are really nice, but I just don't like the sleeves with the massive shoulders, it looks so unflattering.

A Sunday at the London transport museum

Since I'm a bit of a London transport nerd, I have been begging everyone I know for about a year to come with me to the London transport museum. Finally my cousin agree to come with me for an exciting sunday out. Although it turns out a lot more people would have been interested if I'd have mentioned they serve cocktails there. Tfl themed cocktails, no less. I had a metropolitan with a little tube logo ice cube.

For such a day out I wore quite a boyish outfit for me, with my Sonia Rykiel wool shorts and a batman sweatshirt stolen from the bf. I'm starting to get quite excited for the summer but it's still a bit chilly (read; bloody freezing) for shorts etc, so I think these wool shorts are a pretty good compromise. I got them in a charity shop in pimlico for £2.99.

It cost £15 to go into the museum, but I think you can go as many times as you like for a year. I used a paper train ticket instead of oyster for the day so I could take advantage of the 2-4-1 when you travel by train offer. I really recommend using this site if you can buy british rail tickets since the savings can be pretty big. The picture below is the long paper that changes the destination on the front of the bus.

There is currently an exhibition on of posters from the tube, since it's the underground's 150th year, which was the sort of thing I was interested in. I love the abstract tiger one for the zoo, I may actually have to go buy a print of this. The one with flamingos on is advertising what is essentially Lates at London Zoo. Can you believe they did that back in the 60s? No cocktails though, I'll bet.

I agree with the top poster advertising the tube as being warm in the winter (My favourite line in winter is the central line because it's toasty warm) but I strongly disagree with the poster saying it's cool on the tube is summer... yeah right!

 I also got the pretend to drive a bus. I think I look a bit too cheerful to be a bus driver though...

Afterwards we went to this funny little Korean cafe, the windows and walls were covered in post-it notes and there were probably about 10 seats total in there. However the food was amazing, I really recommend it, if you're ever round the back of TCR.

Wishlist

1. Miss Selfridge Cat Jumper - Another jumper with a cat on. I just can't resist.
2. Wellipets Frog Wellies - These are perfect for the miserable weather we are having and still great for festivals in the summer. I used to really want a pair of these when I was little, but my mum bought me a pink sparkly pair instead. I was really disappointed  This was probably the only time in my life I didn't want the pink sparkly ones. However, I think I've found this pair in adult sizes.
3. MissGuided Rucksack - This bag reminds me of a paper bag for sweets. There's something about a rucksack that makes me think of summertime adventures.
4. Batiste Dry Shampoo - Oh this Batiste would look so pretty in my bathroom, so much prettier than the brightly coloured cans. It's almost worth paying the extra.
5. L'Oreal Pink Dye - I'm really looking forward to trying this out, but I can't find much info on it...
6. Topshop Blouse - This blouse is the perfect blouse. It checks all the boxes; peter pan collar, buttons up to the top, cap sleeved, white.
7. Boohoo Platform Shoes - These don't need me to say anything, other than 'ONLY £20??'
8. Boohoo Pinafore  - to wear with my topshop blouse...

Jeremy Scott for Adidas

I'm not usually one for designer collaborations with sportswear brands, having absolutely zero interest in sportswear and 'street' fashion. (The one exception is reading sportswear international which has some amazing spreads and as far as I'm concerned very little to do with sportswear) However I saw these teddybear trainers in Offspring, and I love them.

A little bit of look at things online and I found out the collection was a collaboration with Jeremy Scott, so no surprises that I like it. The collaboration originally launched in 2008 but since I don't pay much attention to things like this, this is the first time I've really looked at it. Since I love ridiculous and impractical shoes, I'm already saving up for a pair. These are a few of my favourites.

All images taken from Offspring.co.uk or Adidas.com

Google Web Lab

On Sunday, I went to the Science Museum, because they had a weekend on the science of zombies, but I actually became more interested with the google web lab exhibition. When you go in there is a disclaimer;

When you get in you get given a card with a unique combination of shapes which you use to interact with the exhibitions. This is mine and my brothers.

The first 'experiment' was writing and playing a tune on these large instrument type things. Mine didn't save properly.

The second was to look into a viewer to look at a live camera streaming from a location in another country controled by you. You could also take photos. My favourite was watching the people at Amelia's 24 hour Bakery.

The third was to have your picture drawn by a robot. My picture wasn't the best, but I don't think it was ever going to be. I filmed the robot drawing my picture, as you can see in this video, but the one that Google made was better.

I didn't really understand the fourth experiment...

I quite enjoyed the experiment and it's pretty good that you can look at your results at home online. The queues weren't too bad, but it was 5pm on a Sunday, I can imagine they are worse at other times. If you're in South Kensingston, I recommend a look. You can also have a go online.

Couture!

Has anyone else been following couture fashion week? Despite the fact that I think it's wholly irrelevant (only around 5000 people in the world wear couture) and has basically no influence on trends as far as I'm concerned, I still like to look at the shows. Most of them are what a little girl thinks of fashion as being a.k.a pouffy  sparkly, frilly dresses, which I actually quite like. The craftsmanship and time that goes into them is just unbelievable  watch the Valentino documentary for a great example of this. The shows are usually more spectacular, which makes sense because really the shows are just adverts for handbags, sunglasses and perfume (a.k.a where the money is)

Anyway, here are some favourite bits and pieces from the couture shows. There's no Valentino on this collage because I liked it so much, it will probably get its own post.

All images are from style.com

Daddy, Who were The Clash?

This outfit is my dedication to Luella's second collection 'Daddy, Who Were The Clash?' The Luella jacket is not from that season at all, but I love it so much. I made the Blackwatch tartan trousers myself, after not being able to afford the pair in my wishlist or the pair featured in Betty Magazine. I'm pretty pleased with them as they aren't too baggy but are super comfortable. I used Butterick Pattern 5614 again, I love it when I get more than one use out of my patterns. I have a bad habit of loosing the pieces.

This is what I wore for a trip to Camden with my fam. Maybe a slightly cliche outfit to wear, but  then I did see a boy in a banana suit so I was at least better dressed than him. My brother has never been to Camden and is 16 so I thought he'd really enjoy it. We went on a Saturday, so obviously the crowds were awful. I haven't been to Camden in the daytime in ages and I remember why... The place being full of idiots, the fact that most of the shops sell the same lame novelty tees, did I mention the crowds? I really wanted to pick up a couple of new band tees, and maybe of of those tops with the dripping double Cs on, but honestly I just got annoyed. 3 things made up for this; a trip to The Diner, a look in the Irregular Choice shop and a bubble tea.

MultiColoured Polka Dot Nails

Do you ever find that you only ever use a nail polish once before you get a new one and then never use it again. It's kinda boring to paint your nails the same all the time (unless it's glittery) I'm trying to use some of my old nail polishes in new ways to get some more use out of them.
Today I've painted them with a Kiko nail polish in colour 319 and then done polka dots in different colours using my Barry Ms.

Houndstooth dress

I made this dress using burda pattern 7132. This is one of those rare patterns where I really like all the garments on the envelope, rather than buying a pattern for just one thing. I got really carried away and bought enough fabric to make 2 dresses, 2 peplum tops, 1 skirt and a jacket. So far I've made one dress. The rest of the fabric is sitting in my fabric cupboard where it will probably stay forever.

I actually started this dress way before Christmas, before all my Christmas sewing got in the way. I basically finished it apart from putting in the armhole facings, partly because they were difficult and partly because I melted the facing on the iron (and proceeded to sporadically put black gunk on various things I ironed. For 2 months. It's not even difficult to clean the iron, I don't know why I didn't) and it seemed like a lot of hassle to cut out new pattern pieces.

I had to shorten the pattern, because I'm not very tall and then I had to take up the hem a little at the end too, so it would sit at the knee so it's a little wibbley. I managed to make those fancy looking pleats on the skirt inside out, but I don't think it looks bad, so I got away with it.

I really like this dress (obvs, I made it) for it's 60s office-y feel. I recon I could work at Stirling Cooper Draper Price in this bad boy.

Wishlist

1. Rabbit Nightlight - I know this nightlight is for children, but it's just so cute, look at it's little face. I'm just a big kid really.
2. Watermelon Shorts - I know it's freezing but I love these shorts. Hurry up summer, I want to wear fruit themed shorts!
3. Galaxy Tee - I love this spacey tee. Space prints is one of those trends I don't recommend spending a lot of money on because by next year it will look dated and old hat. This tee isn't too expensive  but doesn't look cheap.
4. Heart Patterned Trousers - So pretty, but without a huge price tag.
5. Cat Face Jumper - I really don't want to become a cat lady, but this jumper is sending me on a slippery slope.
6. Tartan Trousers - After sewing my sister a pair of tartan trousers and seeing some in Betty magazine I really want a pair too.