Bloggers Love Fashion Week #BLFW

Previously I had heard about the Bloggers Love event's but had never managed to go to one, luckily I popped it into my calendar last year so I could remember to book a place this year!

Blogger's Hangout (Previously Blogger's Love) are a company based on bringing blogger's and brand's together for new opportunities. The dress code for the event was Black Chic but unfortunately I have nothing purely black in my wardobe so I opted for this Black and White Dogstooth Dress from Primark with Joe Browns Ankle Boots and a Green Hat from Asos.

When I first arrived at Waterloo station I tried to find the people I had been messaging on Twitter but to no avail, instead I occupied my time playing "Spot the Blogger" (ie. who's wearing black). Whilst playing the game I met Katrina who was also waiting for other bloggers, Ana and her friends.
We all headed off to the OXO Tower in London to be greeted with a room full of bloggers and brands.

First up was the brand With Love Lilly, featuring a mother and daughter power duo focused on bringing girls unique and handmade intimates which make them feel Confident, Free and Sexy.
One of the things I love about this brand is its ethos and how they want their beautiful lingerie to empower girls, and let's face it with the media nowadays a lot of girls are not as body confident as they should be myself included. I also noticed whilst scrolling through their site that their bra's go up to a 34 DD/E which I expected as most delicate lacy bra's are more suited to a smaller bust however they have inserted a "Custom" option where you can give them your size details and they'll make the product tailor made for you. If only I was small enough to not need an underwire....sigh.
Here are some of my favourites:
 Champagne Blush Bralette | Luna Bralette | Ariel Bralette | Nina Bralette

One of my many favourites of the day was MaisonVes, a company that sells luxury hashtag candles! With themed printed hashtags around the candles base, this makes them ideal gifts for special occasions such as Birthdays, Engagements, Weddings or even as a simple Thank You.  As candles go they look clean, modern and "totally instagrammable" (is that even a word?). My favourite is the #BFF Candle with a Cassis, Apricot, Fig and Cherry Blossom scent..yum! Which includes the following hashtags, #BFF #BESTIE #PARTNERINCRIME #FRIENDSFOREVER #GIRLS #MEMORIESFORLIFE #YOUMEANTHEWORLDTOME #XOXO.

A brand i'd researched quite a bit before the event was Little Ondine, this nail varnish  promises to be odour free, quick drying and easy to peel off (instead of using acetone) so I thought I would investigate. I was pleased to find that all of this and more was true! Little Ondine uses natural ingredients in it's varnishes so your nail-beds remain undamaged by chemicals, this is also to give your nails a smooth and hydrating finish. Take one of their twins sets in your handbag to either refresh or change your colour on the go without worrying about stinking out the room thanks to their odour free formula. These are the elements of varnish that put me off painting my nails more often (mainly because its more trouble than its worth) but after trying some out at the event, I might have to buy some for myself! My favourite colours of the moment are:
Ripple | Admiration | Afternoon Tea | HoneyMoon

Motel Rocks was next with their new Autumn/Winter Collection which looked absolutely stunning. We were asked to pick out our favourite piece and mine was this gorgeous turtle neck black sequinned dress pictured below, perfect for a winter evening event! They were also lovely enough to give me a gift bag filled with lots of goodies which will be at the end of the post. Here are some of my favourite picks from their site:

Suede Winnie Dress | Gabby Sequin Dress | Paulo Jumpsuit | Deena Dress

Fleur of England was a brand I had never heard of till this event, and I must say I am in love with their lingerie! A luxurious brand which prides themselves on being purely British, Fleur of England is designed by women for women. They also have a handy "Gentlemen's guide" which makes the process of buying lingerie for your partner that much easier. The brand styles up to a 36DD which again unfortunately is too small for my bust, maybe a diet might be in order to fit into these beautiful bra's.
My favourites are:
After Dark Balcony Bra | After Dark Playsuit | Scarlet Boudoir Bra

Paul & Joe is possibly one of my favourite brands ever despite not owning a single item from the beauty brand. Apart from it's amazing quality Paul & Joe is best known for its emphasis on packaging which was something I noticed when I first started looking at the brand (They had a beautiful Alice in Wonderland collection a few years ago and I was hooked from then on). This year they have wowed yet again with their AW15 collection featuring many a cat print, as you can see from the images below there are individual cream eye colours, cream and powder blushes, waterproof eyeliner, balms and my favourite of all lipsticks which feature a "chat de cafe that reappears with every application" in the centre of each lipstick. You may have also noticed the makeup bag sitting in the first image which comes with a few of the collections products as-well as eyeshadow slips which can be opened and sealed (so it doesn't go all over your bag) and each can be used about 15 times. Perfect for a christmas gift or if you don't want to lug an eyeshadow palette on holiday with you.

I had lovely time at the event meeting lots of new bloggers and brands, and I for one can't wait till next year! I brought home two goodie bags filled with items that I thought i'd show you. Thank-you to all the brands who worked at the event and gifted me lots of lovely items, and thank-you for Bloggers Hangout for putting on a great event!

The Body Shop Event

Recently I was lucky enough to be invited to The Body Shop event in partnership with Rakuten Marketing, this was one event is really hoping to be invited to as I am in love with The Body Shop! As per usual I arrived an hour early (as they say the early bird catches the worm) to the Grace Bar just off of Piccadilly Circus, thankfully there were some other early birds out there as I sat and exchanged blog urls with Abbigayle and Pippi. As the event began we were handed our exciting goodie bags and let wild on all the new releases.

First up were the Body Sorbets which have been released already this summer in Body Shop stores. They boast a new lightweight texture experience with 24 hour moisture, so perfect for summer when you don't want to feel sticky all day in the sun. They come in 5 different scents (Mango, Satsuma, Moringa, Strawberry and Pink Grapefruit) that will make you want to eat it right off your own body. My own favourite is pink grapefruit.

Next was the New Wild Argan Oils Collection, which has only just been released in stores. Argan Oil has become increasingly popular recently in the beauty industry however I've never really gotten into the fad, mainly because my skin type is oily and my common-sense says oily skin + oil is never a good idea. The collection includes Body Butter, The Radiant Oil, Bubbling Bath, Rough Scrub, Body Lotion, Shower Gel, Miracle Solid Oil and Solid Oil Balm. After trying out their Radiant Oil Spray it felt initially oily however after a few minutes my skin felt moisturised, soft and I was glowing like Beyonce! FleurdeForce recently went to Morocco to see the development and beginnings of the new collection; check out her video here. 

At the start I didn't believe the Drops of Youth collection was made for my age group, mainly because products with the word "youth" in their name automatically make me think of anti-ageing and wrinkles. However I was pleasantly surprised by the Drops of Youth eye concentrate that I found in my goodie bag. Using Edelweiss stem cells it refreshes your under eyes, making you look and feel more awake. I also find it hard to get up in the morning (normally taking well over an hour to get ready due to feeling sluggish) but adding this into my daily morning routine cuts that in half, just because I feel more awake! P.S. If you have sensitive or irritated skin around your eyes(due to scratching or rubbing) this product is brilliant for soothing and calming those areas.

Finally The Body Shop Colour Crush Nails have arrived! They've started off strong by coming out with 24 gorgeous shades and they only cost £5...bargain. Body Shop claims that their polishes "don't yellow nails" and that they're "chip-resistant", but I wanted to test these out for myself so whilst I was at the event I gave myself one coat of a pastel pink colour (still hating myself for not catching the name). Now I know because I did not apply a base coat, a top coat and a few more coats of the actual nail varnish, I wouldn't of seen the best of the varnish however with only one coat it managed to stay pretty on my nails for a week! (virtually impossible for an artist)

Thank you to The Body Shop and Rakuten Marketing for putting on such a fabulous event! I met lots of new bloggers as-well so go check out their blogs below:

Tricia from ThreadandMirror.com

Abbigayle from StealStylist

Lynne from Populairelife

Yolanda from YolandaasY

Freya from Freydefleur

Angelique from Angelique-ald

Dovile from Diaryofamodernsocialite

The Team from Studentmoneysaver.co.uk

Whats your favourite product from the new collections?

Tell me down in the comments below!

Anna

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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)

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!