Birchbox Review: December

This month my Birchbox was actually a Birchbag; a really cute, emerald green/sparkly/velvet beauty. I haven’t had the opportunity to use it as a clutch yet, but apparently you can also buy a chain on the website and make it a cross-body bag too! Which is great because I always forget to pick clutches up (eyes covered monkey emoji). I also got two, as I bought my sister a subscription for Christmas! So I was a little cheeky and swapped a few things around (shhh, don’t tell!). To be fair, she’s pink-crazy so I was kind of doing her a favour swapping her red lipstick for my pink one!

Birchbox Review: November

This month's box was a collaboration with Skinnydip London, an awesome accessories company that I’ve known about for a while. It seemed like a bit of a random pairing, and bar the box design and an add-on phone case and voucher (which you had to spend £22 to redeem anyway) there didn’t seem to be much Skinnydip influence. I was disappointed in the phone case design, as Skinnydip do a lot of really cool, quirky cases - such as this one - but the Birchbox offering was the same shell print as was on the box. I didn’t go for it because you also had to pay a small fee to have it included. The brand did take over Birchbox's Instagram page for a day, which was fun, and the box itself was packed!

Birchbox Review: October

So since I'm on a bit of a reduced budget now that Student Finance isn't my main source of income, I decided to invest in a monthly beauty box. I spend way too much money on new products every month, so I figured this was a way to try out new things without breaking the bank (and my dressing table drawers!). After a bit of research, I chose Birchbox, and I've been recording the results by posting reviews on my new Villoid profile! But as that's a rather limited platform, I wanted to include an expanded version here. This month there were a few products that I’ve decided to save, so I’m not able to review them just yet! One of the things I like most about these kinds of boxes is the size of the products; I can keep them to use when travelling! This way I save money, and have loads of luxury beauty items to use whilst I’m away. Let me know what boxes you subscribe to (or would like to!) and your opinions on the products featured, and any others!

"Welcome to the world Caitlyn"

Disclaimer: I acknowledge that I am not the ideal commentator on this topic, being a cisgendered, heterosexual, middle-class white woman. I don’t often talk about these matters for fear that I will offend and/or upset someone. But as I think of this blog as my space to express – amongst other things – my personal opinion, I decided that I would give it a go. Like most people, I am not perfect, and if anything I’ve said does trouble you, please let me know in a kind and respectful manner. To that end, I use male pronouns when talking about (the now-eradicated) Bruce Jenner, and switch when I start to discuss the post-transition woman Caitlyn Jenner.    

So after years of speculation – accelerated especially within the last few months, since his divorce from Kris Jenner – an exclusive interview with Diane Sawyer, and a two-part Keeping Up With the Kardashians special, Vanity Fair today released shots of Bruce Jenner that will form the core of their next issue. These photos are the first that show Jenner as she will now be known: as Caitlyn Jenner. That is her chosen female name, and it is now clear that she has undergone gender-reassignment surgery. On the cover, Caitlyn perches on a stool, her arms behind her back and her curly hair falling over her – yes, still broad – shoulders as her eyes stare into the camera in a way that turns her closed mouth into a slip of a smile.

Le gai Paris!

Our tiny (perfect) little apartment!

I was fortunate enough to spend a few days in the beautiful city of Paris at the start of this year, so I thought I'd write a little post on the adventure!

I actually managed to get very cheap (£60 return) plane tickets with EasyJet, which worked out as quicker and cheaper then taking the Eurostar! My boyfriend and I stayed in a lovely little apartment a five minute walk away from Notre-Dame and packed as much as we could into the three(ish) days we were there. 

The first thing we did was go and look at the Eiffel Tower (#tourists). We'd both been up it before, and were planning on climbing the Arch de Triumphe, so decided to save on the entry tickets and instead had our first crêpes of the trip. We didn't actually manage to make it up the Arch either, because it was so foggy the entire time we were there that it probably wouldn't have been worth it.

Shoe review: Drench 'em.

One thing about getting a dog is that you (quickly) learn that you're going to need a better pair of Wellington boots than the ones you picked up in the Topshop sale for £12 two years ago. Granted, I do have the trusty bogey-green pair that have somehow managed to fit me for the last ten years, but my mothers commandeered those recently. Luckily, I was perusing the Dr. Martens sale the other day (yes I'm waiting for you Molly/Holly) and saw that their "Drench" style - aka Doc wellies - were in the sale for £40! Jumping right on that, I ordered a pair in matte purple, just to be on the jazzy side of things.They came a couple of weeks ago, and even though I had time to Instagram them fresh out of the box, I haven't (/still don't, really) had time to write a proper post.

Film Review: 'What If'

One of the best pieces of news I've heard in recent weeks is that you can now use Orange/EE Wednesdays codes to book cinema tickets online (yes, I'm that sad). Even though it's such a bargain, I rarely used to participate in Orange Wednesdays because the queues were always so long and several times I've missed out on seats. So, last Wednesday, my sister and I took her boyfriend and my best friend to see Daniel Radcliffe's (aka Harry Potter) new film, What If. The friend I went with, Fiona, had heard about it a while ago, but I was a bit skeptical at first. Daniel Radcliffe in a rom com? Would that work? Did I really believe that Daniel Radcliffe could act anything other than Harry Potter? Had he even done Harry Potter justice?! These thoughts were probably because of my aversion to Emma Watson (I'm sorry, but the girl just can't act, full stop) but I had since seen Radcliffe in Kill Your Darlings - last year's indie flick about one of my favourite poets, Allen Ginsberg - and, I must admit, been pretty impressed with his portrayal of Ginsberg.

Hello, British summertime

Okay, so it seems like this week the real British summertime has arrived. We can't really complain, considering this year's glorious heatwave that lasted much longer than any previous ones. 

And the relentless rain and grey skies - as well as a visit to Reading that was supposed to be for purchasing new kettles - has made me think about the most important item of one's winter wardrobe: a coat. I don't know about you, but I spend a considerable amount of time in my coat come the cold weather, and I've learnt (and this applies for most things) to splurge a little in order to get good quality. Unfortunately, I get restless for a new one every year; working on the cost-per-wear principle, I just about let myself off for this. It also means I have several options each year (probably too many - I need to do a clear out!). This year, I've already marked out some strong contenders - and here they are!

Café review: Caracoli (Guildford, Surrey)

Once again I found myself in Guildford this Friday! In order to get the biggest bargain on a pair of shoes from Urban Outfitters, I had to return two pairs and re-buy them instore, so I was back again this week to return the last pair! Wanting to try somewhere different - as always - I did a bit of research and came across some great reviews of coffee shop/food store Caracoli. 

Café review: Coffee Culture (Guildford, Surrey)

I went for a little shopping spree in Guildford last week, with my mother and sister, and we stopped in this lovely, independently-owned coffee shop in the town centre. I love independent café's - probably because I used to work in one, but also because I go to university in Brighton, where new ones open every week! I know that familiarity can at times be useful and comforting, but exploring what different things the world offers is so exciting! I also feel that independent establishments can be more interesting and welcoming, with an eye to detail that chains don't need/want to bother with.

Product review: MAC Brow Set

It is a truth universally acknowledged (or at least by everyone that looks at them) that I have the unruliest eyebrows EVER. And the funny thing is, I never really paid attention to them until everyone else did - so, basically, when Cara Delevigne came along and seemed to single-handedly bring 'bushy' eyebrows back. Initially I was thrilled, but truth be told my eyebrows can't really be identified as 'bushy'. They're actually quite sparse, but very long and curly, so do need some taming. My first foray into this new world of brow-related products was a retractable brow pencil from Sephora, that had a handy mini-comb on one end. It soon became obvious, however, that I was going to need much more help than a tiny comb... I moved onto a Revlon Brow Fantasy pencil and gel duo, but disliked the brush (too bristly) and found that the gel dried out far too quickly. A quick Google suggested MAC's Brow Set as one of the best brow gels on the market, so on a visit to Cardiff with a friend I made the purchase.