Sunday 30 September 2012

Victoria's Secret no longer a secret

As you may have heard, earlier this summer the flagship store for Victoria's Secret finally opene its doors on London's famous Bond Street. On the 29th August, one of the most anticipated launches finally took off. Originally planned to open prior to the Olympics, the enormous 40,386 sqaure foot heaven opened a month after the much smaller Westfield branch, having been delayed by over a year. But it has been every bit worth the wait. For those Victoria virgins of you, this lingerie brand puts La Senza to shame! Every bit exclusive, glamourous and luxerious as it looks.

The store consists of an impressive four floors to feast your eyes on. This is one shop that won't be a quick 'pop in pop out' stop. The glamour of the brand is visible in the exquisite choice of interior design with gorgeous sofas in rainbow array of colours with a touch of vintage charm. Polished, shiny floors, pink and white chandeliers, a mirrored-effect, grand staircase, Victoria's Secret will make you feel every inch the celebrity.

Large, glossy posters of the famous 'Angels' adorn the walls throughout the store all of which are signed personally by each model including Miranda Kerr, Heidi Klum and Karlie Kloss. Phew! That's one heck of a gorgeous, legs-to-die-for line up.

However it can be somewhat intimidating to those who are less body confident than these 6ft tall, size 6 models. Tiny figures and bodies are photographed everywhere which I personally feel could put girls off from buying the lingerie as it can leave you feeling a tad conscious of your own figure and certainly I feel that plus size girls may even be put off from entering the store in the first place as there seems to be such an emphasis on this marketing these model figures, which aren't representative of real girls everywhere. For me this element takes over more than the actual lingerie itself which is a real shame because the products are simply beautiful. But surely the point is to push the product, not the models and their physical attractiveness?

I find it really sad that they don't feature any curvy models or even your 'average girl' model. Despite the elegant and stunning setting of the store visually (which don't get me wrong, looks fantastic), I can't help but feel that this brand is typically very American in pushing the outer, physical appearence instead of providing our society with what we need more of - realism.



The 4th floor is a dedicated VIP section. No standing around for any tagging along men!  -
 Oh hi Miranda - this would make me so depressed whilst shopping!

 

Wednesday 26 September 2012

Shoe Love

Oh My Days! I am officially in love. Forget boys - shoes are far better, more reliable and lets face it, much, much prettier :) These babies are the latest addition to my ever-growing shoe collection. I bought them from Zara for £19.99 - bargain! I was instantly attracted to the spikes as these are everywhere right now; whether used for shoulder detailing or on leather handbags, it's a great way to get the biker chic look. I'll be wearing mine with jeans, leggings, skirts and dresses - so everything basically! The colour is perfect for transitioning from summer (what summer?) to winter and I'm going to mix them with purple colours as this is set to be the colour 'de jour' for this new season.

WARNING: potentially dangerous spikes (make for a very good weapon when in need)

Friday 7 September 2012

Ode to Barogue

Untitled #2

One of my new season trends: BAROGUE! So I decided to make a little mood board on Polyvore devoted to it. How gorgeous does Jessica Chastain look in Alexander McQueen?
 
Bag: D&G (wish list!!)
Cardigan: River Island £40
Dress: Topshop £39
Ring: Topsop £8.50

Fudge Talk

I'm going to hand you over to my beloved furry, ginger friend Fudge:

Meow...Well my week has been going very slowly indeed. You might wonder what I've been up to, (purrrrr) but if I'm being honest, which I shall with you, I haven't done much at all. On Monday I slept all day and night - I was feeling terribly tired after the weekend. Tuesday I went outside for a little while to make sure no one comes onto my territory - can't be too careful these days. Cats will try anything I tell you (purr purr). Wednesday and Thursday was pretty much the same. Of course don't forget that I also did a shed load of eating each day. Fish is my favourite dish and if Im good I'll have some more tonight. But I did get into trouble last night - I started clawing the carpet in my favourite spot and apparently this isn't good. I just can't help it. Meow, oh well. Fish makes it all ok. Well I best be getting back to my beauty sleep. I'll leave you with some pictures of me - don't I look hansome? So modest I am, meow.

Fudge X

London Town

I was lucky enough to go down to London yesterday, as I am part of a shortlisting panel for the charity, Mind - a charity which supports people with mental health conditions. Every year Mind hold a Media Awards Night in London, which acknowledges pieces in the media including documentaries, radio pieces, blogs and articles, that write sensitively about mental health in a clear and positive way, helping to break down the stigma surrounding it.

I can't talk about which pieces have been shortlisted, but there are some fantastic entries that are up for an award. The ceremony takes place in November and Stephen Fry will be presenting the event. I had a great day and thought I'd share some pictures of my day down there.


I had to head towards Southwark Bridge and we were in the building in the middle picture going down vertically, overlooking the Thames. Was so pretty.
And this is what I wore for the day: my new gingham, studded shirt from Zara, paired with jeggings.



Revlon Lips

Have any of you tried some of Revlon's new beauty products? Well I decided to try out their new 'Colorburst Lip Butter' and the 'Just bitten kissable balm stain' (that was a mouth full wasn't it!).

I bought one of each and decided that I wanted to buy a similar colour, to see if there was any difference between the two products, as it can be really confusing with so many different types now; lipsticks, lip glosses, lip balms, lip stains! So this is my verdict.

I bought the Colorburst Lip Butter in Tutti Frutti for £7.99. I chose this one because I've seen coral coloured lips everywhere at the moment so really wanted to start wearing a current, on-trend lipstick.
It went on really smoothy, with no trouble at all and the colour itself when on is really eye-popping. I had two different people comment on how nice it looked which is definitely a bonus. I also really loved the packaging of this product. It looks a little bit more sophisticated and luxe than some other brands, so I felt like I wanted to just carry it around in my hand on display! The lipstick itself stayed on really well. I only needed to top up after I had eaten lunch - about 5 hours after initially applying it. It's available in 14 different shades so I will definitely be investing in some other colours.




The Colorburst Lip Butter in Tutti Frutti on the left and Just Bitten Kissale Balm Stain in Rendevous Rendevous on the right  
 
 



The following day I tried the Kissable balm which was also £7.99, in the colour of Rendevous Rendevous. This takes a little more applicatons to initially put the colour on, otherwise you can't see the colour so well. The colour itself is not as vibrant and eye-popping as the lip butter, however is still the coral shade I'm loving right now. This therefore is ideal if you want your lips to look a little bit more natural and subtle. What I really LOVED about this one is that even after my lunch and drinking continuously all day, the lip balm still stayed on! By the time I got home I had been wearing it for eight and a half hours and it still looked as though I had just applied it 5 minutes ago. Majorly.Impressed. I urge you to go buy this product. A smaller range of 8 colours available but it's so worth it. By far the best 'stay-on' lip product I've ever bought.
 
Here's me wearing both products. I've not applied any techniques to the photos so you can see the real colour. I am wearing the lip butter in the top 2 photos and the balm in the bottom 2. Not sure if you can tell, but the lip butter is a brighter pop of colour, with the balm being more subtle. LOVE IT.
 
 
 

Monday 3 September 2012

Discount at Motel Rocks

Eeeeekkk! I'm so excited! I've officially become part of the Motel Rocks Street Team, which means anyone can now enjoy 20% off on any and every order they make, using the code 'bethypops.'
You may have come across some of Motel Rocks' clothing before as Topshop stock part of their range. Purse-friendly and uber stylish, Motel Rocks is fast becoming one of my favourite fashion outlets.What's even more fantastic is that you can use the code as many times as you like, unlike some discount codes which can only be used once per person.All the more reason to buy more beautiful clothes! Hmmm bank accounts beware!
I've picked some of my current favourite pieces below:



Tie-dye denim dip hem shirt: £38 - tie-dye to die for! So easy to dress down AND up!






Aztec print leggings: £21 - no need for me to point out how popular the aztec print has been lately. It's everywhere! Wear with a simple, plain top to bring all the attention onto that print.









Monochrome body con skirt in barogue: £35 - barogue is going to be BIG this Autumn/Winter. Not just big, HUGE! It was seen all over the catwalks and thankfully for us has trickled its way down to the high street. This trend can be worn head-to-toe for the more daring fashionista, but for those who just want a small dose, choose just one piece.


Bodycon Dress in Gothic Placement print: £35 - this dress just screams 'wear me!' With its nod to the gothic print style, another big winter trend, this dress is perfect for that Saturday night out. It would look great with a black, leather biker jacket and boots.





Pssst! Remeber enter 'bethypops' for a fabulous 20% discount. Now there's no excuse not treat yourself :D