Flying out of the Nest

Hello there! I feel like I haven't posted for a long time :( Sorry if you feel like I have abandoned you but that is not the case! I just have been super super busy at the moment. Why? Because I am officially leaving the nest and flying out into the big, scary world in just a few days! EEEKK! Yes, I am departing from the comforts of my lovely home to go to University. But, I've decided I'm not going alone. Instead I am taking you with me! As I plan to start a new chapter in my life, I have decided to start a new chapter on my blog as well. I plan to document my student life on my blog in a new 'Student Chronicle'. The first section will be all about my university room hauls, then to night-life, fashion and finally the actual studying! So what do you say? Are you ready to enter the big wide world with me? Then let's beginnnn!!!!!

Shellac Nails Review

Hey there!!

It feels like it has been so long since I last blogged, but life has been busy busy busy at the moment with getting ready for university in September! (Will hopefully do a 'University Haul' soon!)
Anyway, as the title of this post suggests, I recently got a Shellac manicure at a Hen Party. I was a bit reluctant about it at first because I had heard bad reviews about how it can damage your nails etc.. But I thought I would give it ago and honestly, I am so so happy I did!

The application of the shellac nail varnish took about 15 mins, which included a base coat, two coats of the nail varnish and a top coat and each coat dried by a UV nail dryer. It dried within seconds so there was none of this 'wafting your hands around in the hair for half an hour until completely dry' that you are meant to do with normal nail varnish.

So after I had it done, the manicure stayed perfect all through the 'Just Dance' Wii session and 'Sing Star' and has in fact remained perfect 5 days after! In fact shellac is said to staye on for 2 weeks which is amazing as my usual nail varnish usually lasts for a few days!
Overall, I am very happy with my shellac nails and it only cost me £16 which is definitely worth the value!

I plan to update this post in about a week's time on how my nails have lasted and how easily the nail varnish removed and the condition of my nails so watch this space!!!!

This is how my nails looked minutes after the manicure!!

 

 

 

 

This is how my nails looked 5 days after my manicure!! 

A Night In Town Outfit Choices

Hi guys! How are you?
I'm going into town tomorrow night with my best girlfriends for some drinks and a bit of night clubbing. But I need your advice on which outfit I should wear!
I brought some cute wedges today so would like to wear them but which outfit do they go better with? Should I play it sassy and sexy it cute and girly? 

I need you! Just post a comment down below which outfit you prefer or maybe you might have another suggestion?

Thanks, you lifesaver!

Love Just Al xxxx

Shopping Outfit of the Day- British Summer Edition

One thing us Brit's have to get used to is that summer doesn't always mean sunshine and warm weather. Today I had a driving lesson and then went to do a bit of shopping. Although it was sunny outside, the weather wasn't near the 20 degree mark. So I decided to show you my take on an English shopping outfit to show how I look summery, without getting goose bumps!

So my shopping look is made up of black skinny jeans from River Island, I light, white, floaty blouse from New Look which keeps you cool even on the hottest days, a denim, spotty waist-coat from the Angel range in Marks and Spenser's, nude ballet pumps from Tesco's and a brown bag from New Look.

Because this look is sleeveless, it keeps me cool throughout the day and has a summery feel even if there are clouds in the sky. I can also take the waistcoat off throughout the day if it warms up a little bit and the outfit still looks good. On a hotter day, I could team my top half of my outfit with a skater skirt which would look really cute too!





Accessories!


 My ring was a present from one of my friends so I'm not sure where it is from but my pale pink bracelet's are from Primark.

 I seem to have a bird theme going on with my jewellery as my bird necklace is from Dorothy Perkins and matches my bird ring :)





I keep my hair out of my face with this cute spotty clip from New Look :)

And that's it for my outfit of the day! I hope you like it :)

 

Love Just Al xxx

 

 

Nail Varnish of the Week!

When I think of summer, I think of pastel, light colours, sunshine and happiness. And it's only fair that my nails reflect that right? So I took this as an excuse to buy some new nail varnish and this lilac colour is officially my nail colour this week! I got it from Claire's Accessories for £2.50 and it promises to be chip resistant.
I have had it on for two days and no chipping is insight so far despite testing it out on opening cans/containers and washing my hair (all in the name of research right? ;-))
I did put two coats on although the colour looked okay with one coat. I am happy with the colour as it is different to any other colour I own and very on trend with the summer pastels this year. It is definitely worth the price so if you're looking for a new summer colour for your nails, check this out!
Happy nail painting!

The Lady, the lift and the Strangers

I love the stories you hear from people you have just met. You know that they have said this story a few times because the words sound more confident and structured. But there is some magic about hearing a new story and knowing that you will tell it to your friends or maybe a person you’ve just met and that will be their first time hearing it and it will spread from their ears to their tongues and the story will keep travelling through different ears and mouths…

So I decided to share this story to you and maybe you will share this story?

Background information

I heard this story (which is true, may I just point out) about two weeks ago from a guy called Steve. I was doing some acting work with him at Birmingham City University and at lunch we drifted to that silence you get with people you’ve just met and don’t really know that well. And then he said, ‘One of my friends is a travel agent. Travel agents have the best stories they do.’ And that’s when I knew I was in for a treat.

The Lady, The Lift and The Strangers

One day a Scottish elderly couple in their 70s walked into the travel agents to book a holiday for their wedding anniversary. Neither of them had been abroad before but for some reason they decided they wanted to visit Las Vegas. Everything was going well on their holiday until as they were walking out of their hotel, the old lady realised she had left her handbag in her hotel room. She told her husband to wait in reception whilst she retrieved it and headed towards the lift.

As she was walking, she felt the presence of people behind her and turned to see three black men following her. (No racist comment intended- facts are facts) The old lady felt threatened by their presence and hurried into the lift with the hope it would close quickly. Unfortunately, her wish was not granted and the men followed her into the lift.

‘Hit the floor’, one of the men said. The old lady quickly dived onto the floor, her hands on her head, trembling with fear. The men seemed taken aback by lady’s response. They had merely meant for her to choose which floor her room was on, yet she presumed they were going to mug her! The men felt terrible that they had upset the old lady and calmed her down and walked her to her room to make sure she was okay.

The last day of their holiday arrived and the elderly couple went to reception to pay for their room. Yet, the staff at reception seemed adamant that their bills had been paid. Confused, the elderly man asked to see the manager to explain.

‘Are you the lady from the lift?’ said the manager to the old lady. She blushed, presuming her incident had travelled around the hotel.

‘Yes.’

‘All your bills had been paid as an apology by Mr Will Smith,’ the manager said with a smile. It turned out that the three men were none other than Will Smith and his body guards!

Hope you enjoyed this (true) story!

What would you do if you were in a lift with Will Smith?

xxx

 

 

My Summer Sountrack

Summer has finally hit England! YAY! And with it, it has brought lots of lazy days, road trips and just hanging out with friends. But one thing that has accompanied summer and all it's events is music. Music is such an important part of my life just because it can have such an impact on my mood and can make me feel happy when I am sad and relax me when I'm stressed. So I thought I'd share with y'all my favourite tunes that I have been loving during summer!

Road Trips

My boyfriend has recently passed his driving test which luckily for me means a lot of free lifts and the chance to have road trips :) I am definitely the type of person to be travelling in a car and imagine I am in some music video with some dramatic music on in the background! But for summer, upbeat classic songs are the way forward for me.

1. 'Drive By' by Train. This song is perfect to sing along to with your friends. It may old now  but I love the upbeat chorus and the way you can't help but bob your head along with the beat!
2. 'Wouldn't It Be Nice' by The Beach Boys. This is what you call a classic summer tune. This song is so retro and put's you in a happy, relaxed mood- fabulous for swaying along to in the car.
3. 'C'est La Vie' by B*Witched. Okay okay this may be a bit of a guilt pleasure but I am a 90s baby and B*Witched ruled my school discos as well as S Club 7. But this song is the one all my girl mates can't help but belt out and make us feel five years old and carefree all over again!
4. 'Livin' On A Pray' by Bon Jovi. I don't think I need to say anymore about this song other then, roll down the windows, turn up the volume and prepare your vocal chords for some serious singing!
5. 'All These Things That I've Done' by The Killers. The 'I've got soul but I'm not a soldier' chant in this song is one that everyone joins in with. I actually first heard of this song on a school trip when I went skiing in Austria and this song reminds me of that long but happy coach journey to get there.

Chilling in the Garden with Friends

I've spent most of this week soaking up the rays on my friends hammock in her garden drinking strawberry milkshake and singing along to uplifting songs. Fabulous.

1. 'Walking On Sunshine' by Katrina and the Waves. This song is guaranteed to put a smile on everyone's face and create a summery atmosphere!
2. '5 Years Time' by Noah And The Wale. 'And they'll be sun, sun, sunnnn...' Get everyone whistling to this song and feel young and carefree :)
3. 'Come On Eileen' by Dexys Midnight Runners. This song used to be one stereotyped for weddings to get the great aunties and grandparents to wiggle about too. But since 'The Perks of Being a Wallflower', this song has suddenly become cool again and who can not help but copy Charlie's walk up to Sam and Patrick in the dance scene?
4. 'She's So Lovely' by Scouting For Girls. This song is so so catchy and uplifting that you just want to jump around the garden!
5. 'In The Summertime' by Mungo Jerry. 'In the summer time when the weather is hot, you can stretch right up and touch the sky...' Perfecto.

Summer Parties!

Colourful, homemade punch and summer dresses, summer parties are the best. Let's turn the music up and get everyone dancing!

1. 'Blurred Lines' by Robin Thicke ft. Pharrell Williams & T.I. This song is high in the charts for a reason. And that reason is that it is so catchy and has this cool, relaxed feel about it that makes even the most uncoordinated person feel like they can dance along.
2. 'The Other Side' by Jason Derulo. This song just screams 'PARTY' with it's steady bass and an uplifting chorus!
3. 'Mr Brightside' by The Killers. And the award for the most reliable song to get a group of teenagers to jump around like crazy fools and to wave their hands in the air (like they just don't care!) goes to.. 'Jealousy, turning saints into the sea. Swimming through sick lullabies. Choking on your alibis. But it's just the price I pay. Destiny is calling me. Open up my eager eyes. ‘Cause I'm Mr. Brightside" (Yeah I totally just sang along to that..)
4. 'I Love It' by Icona Pop. The repetitive lyrics in the is song make sure that by the end of it's two and a half minute duration you know every word.
5. '22' by Taylor Swift. I am a bit of a Swiftie so I couldn't resist including this song. However it's a great song to get you into the party mood :)

So that's a few of my summer songs. Have you got a song you have been loving this summer? I would love to hear about it in the comments! Have a fabulous summer- be safe, be happy and be carefree. :)

Love Just Al xxx