HOBBS A/W14 Collection Preview

Whilst I am still awaiting my college grade results, I decided to go on a little trip to London where I was lucky enough to be invited to view the Hobbs AW14 Collection and it certainly lived up to it's name. We were let loose in the press room where delightful cakes and Prosecco awaited our arrival.

Ruby from Modus and Hobbs chief designer Jason talked us through the 3 collections and their inspiration. First was the Invitation collection which was probably my favourite, full of detailed and elegant evening wear. There was a lot on emphasis on how these fine evening pieces could be transformed into daywear by adding a textured knit to the equation. Latest Exclusive: Hobbs have now teamed up with the Royal Palaces to allow them access to their archives, which is the root of their inspiration for A/W Invitation collection however its all very hush hush, but once more is revealed, you will be the first to know!

MY FAVOURITES OF THE INVITATION COLLECTION

The Hobbs London Collection; tailored and polished to perfection, this collection was  full of camel, navy and granite coloured tweed jackets, thick pencil dresses and skirts. Perfect for a winter work wardrobe, although styled with a casual tee or some converse and these pieces can easily be put to everyday casual use as-well.

MY FAVOURITES FROM THE LONDON COLLECTION

NW3 is much more playful and casual than the other two collections, mainly for its use of colour. To be honest I was very intrigued by this collection as previously my only thoughts of Hobbs were "classic everyday workwear and elegant evening outfits made for a more mature generation" however NW3 completely smashed through this pre-misconception and showed me that Hobbs also caters for the more "relaxed at home" type of person and for a younger audience as-well.  NW3 was filled with similar styles and trends that you would see in favourite high street stores such as Topshop, Zara, River Island and New Look however you can tell that the clothes at Hobbs are made to a much higher standard.

MY FAVOURITES OF THE NW3 COLLECTION

One of my favourite parts of press gatherings is meeting new people/bloggers!

Here are some of the lovelies I met that day:

Bessie from FashionNoodle

Justine from FashionMixBag

Banke from A Style Diary

Jasmin from What Defines Us

Cristina from ChrissaBella

Tricia from Thread and Mirror

Tolu from FashinateMe

Thank you so much to Hobbs for inviting me to the event! and also a big thanks to all the team at Hobbs HQ for putting on an hosting such an amazing preview! Go check out the Hobbs Site HERE as they have a big sale on right now, and some of their A/W pieces have already started to be released. Go! Go! Go!

(P.S. I uploaded some more pictures from the event up on my Facebook Page for you guys to marvel over as-well so go have a look HERE if you're interested)

LUSH "The Comforter" Review

(image from weheartit.com)

To be honest I used to hate baths. I don't own one and I never saw the benefit of one until I found "The Comforter" in my Local LUSH store. I had to head over to my boyfriends house to use this as none of my family own a bath!

"The Comforter" is a bubble bar made from Cassis Absolute (a fruit that smells very similar to blackberry) and Bergamot Oil.

Firstly it's a long lasting product as you only have to use about a 1/5 of it to get lots of bubbles.

Secondly it's easy to use as all you have to do is crumble the bar under your tap and voila! Instant fuchsia bubble bath.

Another thing to note is that its one of LUSH's best scents, it's quite a fruity smell (similar to  blackcurrant)and it's my personal favourite scent.

Would I repurchase?

Definitely, as it's my favourite product from LUSH so far.

Score: 5/5

You can buy it from LUSH here at £4.50 a bar.

Go give it a try and tell me what you think in the comments! Also I was thinking of videoing bath bombs, bubble bars etc on my Instagram so you can see what it looks like before you buy, do you guy's like this idea? or am I mad?

New Look Autumn/Winter Collection 2014 #NLAW14

Yesterday after college I headed down to London to visit the #NLAW14 (New Look Autumn/Winter 14) collection event. As im reletively new to the blogging scene being invited to event like this was a major suprise for me (also the fact that im ot exactly a fashion blogger)and I started planning my outfit straight away!

I was decked out head to toe in Primark, wearing a bright printed lime green dress and glitter jelly sandals (not my best choice of footwear for walking) paired with a Topshop leather jacket.

When I got to the event it was like wonderland! There were rows and rows of selectively styled mannequins, cocktails, hangers showing off gorgeous garments and accesories, not to mention a nail bar! Straight away I headed over to get my nails done. They were doing 6 different types of nail art along with a base colour of yor choice. Here's mine:

The ladies were lovely to chat to and I was really impressed with how she did the small litlle flowers so thankyou @effy_nails and @clairek_nails!

After my nails were done I managed to pop around the showroom and takes some pictures for you guy's (featuring some of my favourites from the collection)

This is the new "mermaid" trend, they've combined both pastel colours with translucent sequins giving off the effect of a mermaids shimmering tail. This is definately going to be one of the staple trends of A/W14 I feel.

There were also some much bolder sequined pieces including this gorgeous fuschia dress. Elle Woods would be jealous!

Velvet seem's to be really popular as-well for next season as it was an ever-present texture mainly in the darker tones. As a long time lover of velvet im really looking forward to seeing this in stores!

Oriental patterns isnt just for kimono's! The intricate pattern is now being seen on skirt's and dresses galore. I have a real love of japanese culture so the idea of bring this to UK stores really excites me!

After looking round a bit more, I grabbed a cookie and a goodie bag and jetted off to Primark. Everything I bought will be up in a video/blog post soon, so keep your eyes peeled!

Whilst on the train home I took the time to check out my goodie bag from the event. I got a lovely thick woollen scarf (pictured above) which I loved so much I wore it on the train; even though it was hot and sunny...and I also got a £50 gift card for New Look which will probably last just under a day. I thoroughly enjoyed my first fashion event and look forward to attending some more in the future (invite me please?).

Leave me a comment in the box below telling me what's caught your eye in your local New Look store recently or alternatively check out their website here :)

My LUSH Recruitment Evening

A couple of days ago I spotted an advert for a retail assistant in my local LUSH window and popped in to apply straight away! The girl I spoke to was lovely however she did "grill" me a little, asking my age, availability (apparently I wasn't likely to get the job because I couldn't put down "full availability" as I go to college 2 & 1/2 days a week) and finally she asked me to sell a product to her right on the spot. Even though I haven't done much in the way of selling before I blitzed this stage by reciting all the ingredients and pro's of the product (impressed her quite a bit apparently). She then finally invited me to a LUSH recruitment evening!

I swear I researched half the internet in preparation for the evening because I was so nervous, however I managed to pile key information down so I could remember it all. We were also told to bring an item that represented us in some way (I'm guessing to show what kind of person we are). 

I headed off to LUSH, and arrived about 20 minutes early and already there was a line forming. Over 40 people turned up for one job! I was quite surprised by this considering it was such a small shop. We bundled in and were given a form to fill out with our details; the sheet also had an random question, mine was "If you could have any actor/actress play you in a movie, who would it be?". I hate this question so much, it makes me want to scream every time I see it! I have no idea who would play me, so I scribbled down a quick answer "Anna Paquin" and handed it in without a second thought. 

The group was then separated into half to introduce themselves and their "item", I have to say there were some interesting one's! I brought a picture of my edge walk experience (see my post here) and that seemed to be "individual" enough.

The second activity split us up into group of 4's and 5's, we were then oven a scenario and were told we could ask two question's to help us find the perfect gift for this scenario. My group did well on this activity and I was allowed to impart some of my LUSH product knowledge. However when it came to presenting our gift I could hardly get a word in edgeways, which really annoyed me as the staff didn't really notice me because of it.However all of them were lovely and really hospitable and it was a very relaxing atmosphere.

That was the end of the evening! It was really fun and different, and even though I was anxious I really enjoyed it. However I personally think they should of conducted 1 to 1 interviews as well  because a lot of the girls there (myself included) couldn't really get their view's or knowledge of lush across in simple group exercises. I had spent 5 whole day's revising my butt off learning about the company and the products and how to sell, but the staff never got to see any of it which I think was a real shame. I'm still waiting for a phone call so you never know!

 I do however have some tips for you all who plan to get a job at LUSH one day! 

Be outgoing/confident - You can't be shy in these kind of things! From experience I can say, the people who were noticed were the one's who talked whenever there was an opportunity.

Be humorous - Don't be afraid to slip a joke into conversation, it will give off the image that you're relaxed (even if you're really not!)

Lush Knowledge - Wherever you can slip in your knowledge of the LUSH company, it's ethics, the ingredients they use, as staff love to see someone who is passionate for the company (a little LUSH can go a long way).

and last but not least

Be individual - Whether it's your clothes, hair colour or personality, do whatever you can to stand out and be noticed (in a good way!)

HAPPY LUSHING!

p.s. all stores will be different in the way they conduct recruitment evenings as Lush is a franchise not a company! 

A Walk in the Countryside

Normally I only visit my dad's house twice a year (even though it is only a half an hour car ride away) as he lives I'm my old hometown where I spent the majority (16 years) of my life growing up. However since my boyfriend had two days off work I thought it would be a brilliant opportunity for him to "get to know" my dad a little better.

We arrived on Friday evening where we were treated to some food at the local pub. I opted for a vegetarian lasagne whilst the boy's went for the Scampi and  Chips deal. It was a lovely evening to just have a chat and a catchup, dad and Ben even had a mutual friend in common...weird!

The next day we woke up bright and early for once (9AM) and munched on our peanut butter and Nutella covered crumpets in front of The Amazing Spiderman.

Here was my outfit for the day:

Jacket - Topshop || Top - Forever21 || Jeans - Forever21 || Pandora Bracelet || Brown Ankle Boots

After breakfast we headed out a walk to a nearby reservoir (popping into the corner shop for some sweeties on the way). We then walked to the nearby park, taking time to stroll past my old house where I spent the first 16 years of my life!

We then walked down to the near-by park where we spent a good few hours playing on the swings, the monkey bars and all-sorts! Seeing that the toddler park was deserted we took over and made good use of the seahorses. However I made the bad decision of boasting that I was small enough to fit in a children's swing; I successfully managed to fit in one but then got stuck, so poor Ben had the struggle of pulling me out (much to my embarrassment).

The big dome swing was my favourite though, as we both laid in the dome enjoying the sunshine and a small breeze; it was like paradise! We stayed in that position for a good hour or so...

We then took ANOTHER walk (see a theme forming here?) to the beach/deserted sand mines where my shoes got ruined by the mud! Although I found a cute two-part seashell and i'm planning to create a necklace from it (blog post coming soon!) 

To end the weekend we drove down to the nearest town with the roof back to make the most of the sunshine, and all three of us (Dad, Ben and I) had an ice cream with a flake. Although we made a quick get away when the swans started chasing us!

Overall It was a beautiful, relaxing and fun weekend that I think ill never forget. Hopefully we'll go back there soon when its hot and go to a proper beach!

How have you been enjoying the April Sunshine?

Trip to NYC : Day 1 - The five hour delay

After a sleepless Sunday night, myself and the girls (Abi and Zoe) awoke to an early 3AM start; with difficulty we managed to head off to the airport to start our little adventure! However when we arrived we found our flight had a 5 hour delay. Given a food voucher we scoured duty free, until we came upon a Wagamama's.

As a Wagamama's virgin I was a little apprehensive to give it a try but both Zoe and I ended up getting pancakes whilst Abi opted for a breakfast stir-fry. 

The smell wafting from Abi's stir-fry was so enticing, but sadly I couldn't have a taste because it contained three types of meat (and I'm pescetarian). Soon our pancakes arrived and they were oh so scrummy and delicious especially with extra nutella, although they were so filling I couldn't eat them all (a very depressing moment)! 

Finally we found ourselves on a seven hour flight to New York, with a massive selection of entertainment to chose from (yes, the films are my favourite part of a long-haul flight). I watched Frozen (my new favourite film), Hobbit 2 : Desolation of Smaug and Were the Millers.

When we arrived in NYC it was a bitter -15 Degree's with wind which I think no-one was prepared for. We had to wait an hour in the cold for a bus to our hostel and we were all ready to dump our stuff and settle into our duvet's once we got there; but not before we ordered  a chinese takeaway (it even came in one of those little boxes you see in the movies)!

That's all for Day 1 but keep checking back for Day 2!

A Trip to the Zoo

Hi guys! This last Monday my boyfriend and I decided to take a trip to down memory lane and head over to Colchester Zoo for the day. We got to the zoo super early to make sure we didnt miss any of the animals and to beat the queue's , however when we got there it was pratically deserted (thankyou winter weather!)

This is us (forgive my lack of makup and dazed look, it was too early in the morning for me!) in the underwater Sea Lion enclosure. Luck was on our side and we had glorius sun all day (even if it was windy aswell). We stayed until about 2.30pm So spent most of the day strolling round the park.

Colchester Zoo recently celebrated its 50th anniversary and is well known for being one of the biggest and best zoo's in the UK. Both me and my boyfriend Ben agreed that a day around the zoo beats lagging around town anyday!

For 4 hours we felt like small children again, bouncing round the park and enjoying the mini-train ride. There was so many different species of animal to see, my favorite (despite myself being a cat lady in training) being the Red Panda, and Ben's being the Monkey's and Fish, specifically the beautiful Orangutang. Unfortunately we kept missing the talk's and feed's by minutes but normally they are a mjust for me as they are so fun to take part in!

I couldn't leave out a picture of the cute small Squirrel Monkey's we found! Myself and Ben fell in love with these gorgeous creatures due to their playfulness and their ability to entertain for hours on end!

So that pretty much sums up our day at Colchester Zoo, Just to let people know, I prepared a picnic for the zoo as I think it was a bit more appropriate, and as I'm a student, money doesnt come easy!

I hope you guy's enjoyed this type of post, as it was fun for me to write!

Click on "Colchester Zoo" to head over to their to their site.

When was the last time you visited the Zoo?

Let me know in the comments or on Twitter!

New Years Resolutions

As a child my new years resolution was always to "Eat Pie". Sad to say I'm 18 now and have still not gone within an inch of any kind of pie, so I decided to start anew and think up some new years resolutions for 2014!

DO MORE BLOGGING

I've hardly been looking to my blog for a while recently (due to some big life changes- which I will talk about later) and it's gotten me really depressed that something I'm really passionate about, has taken a back seat in my priorities list. So starting the 1st of January 2014 I will be blogging everyday. Yes, everyday. I want to put all I have into this blog to make it the best It can be. 12 blog posts are waiting in the wings already so I hope you enjoy reading them when they are published!

GET A JOB

One of the reasons I've been away for so long Is that I found a part-time job at Wilkinsons Retail. However it was only a temporary contract over the Christmas period, so I am now jobless (and without money to buy my weekly beauty treats). So, being a motivated girl I am already handing out CV's to everywhere and anywhere, and hopefully this persistence will pay off.

30 MINUTES OF EXERCISE DAILY

I have finally found the motivation to do some exercise and get fit again after a 3 year break from dance lessons. Now I'm not one of those induviduals who find it easy to go to the gym weekly or get up at 5am each morning to run, so instead I have decided to give "Zumba" a try! I will be posting weekly results on this blog to document my journey, motivate myself and maybe along the way encourage others to get up and shake their bum to get fit!

These are a only a few of my resolutions for the upcoming year, but I'm sure even more will crop up during the year.

What are your resolutions for the new year?
Leave a comment below or find me on Twitter

Talk to you later,
AnnieMAC 
xxx