I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You - Colin Hay

after been given the task of becoming a snowflake for an impending festive fiesta (and that means literally, becoming one...not simply adorning myself with some paper flakes...) , i started thinking about my makeup and of COURSE, i decided that nothing but snowflake nails would do! 

i just rummaged around my nail varnish collection (supplemented by my aunty's impressive stash - girl after my own heart, that one!) and ta-da! 

inglot XL5/inglot 955/miscellaneous silver nail striper

it was one of the more time consuming designs i've done (third only to strawberries and hello kitty!), but so adorable! i'm thinking i might try and do Father Christmas nails next...!

Bonnie Somerville - Winding Road

so, my other half/yin to my yang/louise to my thelma/BEST FRIEND IN DA UNIVERSE (aka. claire at little love) completely upped her game in the best bud stakes and sent me a care package from the U.S of A!



it contained a multitude of wonderful things, each carefully selected and chosen (i hope!) to bring smiles to my generous cheeks! inside i found; a mascara (called fairy drops, how cute!), Ole Miss Hotty Totty knickers, Ole' Miss chocolate, Urban Decay primer samples, sephora primer tester, a DONT DO DRUGS pen, philosophy shower gel and my all time favourite perfume!

this last particular inclusion is quite possible the best thing she could've sent me. about half year ago, i discovered the most divine scent - The Body Shop's Vanilla Perfume Oil.



unfortunately, as with all utterly brilliant things, TBS decided to discontinue it in the U.K and despite my hardcore looking, a frantic search for back-up bottle was not fruitful. luckily for me, they still sell in the the U.S, so having a best friend there for a year has turned out to be rather handy.

this stuff is MAGIC - you dab on a teensy bit on your wrist and neck (pules points people) and the boys go gaga for it! everytime i wear, i have men (and women) telling me that i smell amazing- friends, ticket inspectors, random strangers in clubs/bars. it's INSANE - so i'm very glad to have my signature scent once more upon my person. this miniscule bottle last around 6 months with everyday use, and at around $12 is consequently, a BARGAIN!

what's your signature scent? and has a company ever decided to discontinue your HG item? vent below!

Regina Spektor - Laughing With

i think this song has to be one of my all-time favourite songs - regina spektor has a magical voice, with her dulcet tones are instantly soothing and possess the ability to dissapate any of my worries. for once i seem to be at a loss for words in order to describe her music adaquetely, so i suggest that you just listen to this and all will becom crystal! if you are to listen to just one of her albums, pick Far!  

poland is continuing to be a perfect adventure, filled with friends, teaching Europeans the joys and jubilations of Ring of Fire, flirting with barmen till they let you pour pints and mix your own cocktails and exploring the city! it's now getting so cold that your breath curls out in little cloudy mushroom puffs and i'm barely surviving! when winter really arrives (hello temperatures of -20 degrees!) i'm not certain what i'm going to do...i think i'll have to hibernate till march!

my new beautiful pin-up flowers from this ebay seller (expect a longer post on these) - classic polka dot nails - my new f21 leopard print mary-jane heels - painting with my little cousin Maja - borrowing jumpers from boys because you're incapable of dressing yourself appropriately

what things have been floating that proverbial boat of yours this week?

Shania Twain - Black Eyes, Blue Tears

just to clear up after a few questions from my last post and some confusion, i have not relocated to Poland forever - i'm merely here on my year abroad, so when i graduate i'll have a BA in History, with a year abroad, BIG YAY! it is cheating a bit seeing as i am a) already pretty much fluent in Polish and b) i have my whole entire family here (hence me living with my uncle in his HUGE house, complete with hot tub, sauna and gym HUHELLO beautiful body, mebs...). however, i wanted to spend time with my family who i don't see all that often, depsite being very close and also, i wanted an opportunity to improve my academic and written Polish, because even though my oral skills (<--- ahah, INYOURENDTHO) are really good, my writing, not so much!

plus, i've never really had the chance to explore Warsaw as an adult (18+), so i'm looking forward to getting to know the city :)! 

in the meanwhile, as i'm getting my bearing and figuring out how to work my new camera (a Panasonic DMC-FS35 with Lumix lens if anyone is interested), i shall begin with a beauty post - ther are plenty of these to come, as i got a little homesick and did what any girl does when melancholy - i online shopped! 
my skin started misbehaving a wee bit since my arrival, and was looking decidely grey and lacklustre so in my money-spending frenzy, i succumbed to something which has been on my to-try list for a long time - Clarins Beauty Flash Balm.




the aim of this product is to add a certain radiance to your skin, instantly making your skin look brighter and glowy and just NICE! certainly what my skin needs right now! it contains witchhazel and olive extract (both of which my skin likes!) and it can be used in two different ways;
 
i) as a radiance boosting facemask! i slathered on a thick layer of this balm on my poor, colourless skin and left on for 10 minutes, before rinsing away with warm water. my skin felt instantly softer, but, if i'm being honest (which i always am!), i didn't see a significant difference in the glowyness of my visage.

ii) underneath makeup, as a brightner and glow-giver! the preferred method is is pat this balm on after moisturiser and before foundation, then apply makeup immediantly. this is where the product really worked for me - i instantly had brighter, more radiant skin and it looked like it actually had some dimension (oh curse you mattifying foundations for your two-dimensional ways!). i've been using this on nights out, when i've been wanting that little boost to look a little more fresh and dewy. 

it IS a very expensive product - i purchased mine at feelunique.com at £21.50 for 50ml, which definitely makes this a product to place on christmas lists, as i could practically feel my purse winicing! i have plenty more beauty product posts coming up, as i went a little crazy on feelunique.com (which, by the way, has plenty of products for slighter cheaperthe the RRP which are 100% genuine, and i was very impressed by how fast the products got over to me in Poland - about 5 working days?). 

have you ever used a radiance balm? what beauty products do you rely on to get that GLOW?

Beyonce - Why Don't You Love Me

this is just a little post to say that i'm still firmly alive and that i'm now residing in Warsaw, Poland! it's been very hectic and kerrrrrazy these past few weeks, hence lack of updates! additionally, my cruel brother decided not to let his camera travel across the continent, and so i've been left without one for while - HOWEVER, this has been remedied and i have one winging it's way over to me thanks to the magic (and convinience) of Amazon.eu.

so, hopefully, i shall be able to resume posting in the next week or so! cue pictures of nails, makeup, outfit posts as i battle with Polish weather, all with a smattering of culture as i snap Warsaw with my digital device.

now here are some puppy/doggy pictures of my Lily, to try and convinve you all not to leave me.

 

The Civil Wars - Poison & Wine

i'm so sorry i missed this week's wishing wednesday- i've had a funny week which has meant i've burrowed underneath my duvet and not really re-surfaced until now. i managed to find enough strength to make a life-long dream come true - strawberry nails! i used cutepolish's tutorial, but adapated it a wee bit as i was missing all the tools (unfortunately i am rubbish and forgot to take a picture of all the varnishes and aforemention tool of old, clean liquid eyeliner brush as my nail art brush)!

this has to be one of my favourite manicures i've ever done - i got so many compliments (albeit from corner shop owners and sainsbury's checkout cashiers, as i've ventured nowhere else). quite a few people aske me if they were those nail stickers - ER NO, crafted by my own fair hands!

Model's Own Red Alert/Model's Own Green Grass/Model's Own Lemon Meringue

oh and this exciting bit of news cheered me up considerably - i've won pearls, lace & ruffles giveaway and can pick something worth up to $37 from Petite Delight's etsy! it's such a generous prize and i can't quite believe it - thank you so much!

i have no idea what to pick! what would you girls choose?

Eva Cassidy - Fields of Gold

sometimes you have one of those days when only dressing up will do, even if you don't venture further than your local town! yesterday was one of those days, and i gleefully donned my previously unworn dress, victory rolled the sides of my hair AND gave myself a rolled fringe that perhaps bettie would be proud of (maybs)!

i love wearing my hair in a 1940s style - it always gets compliments and is surprisingly easy to do, once you master the pincurl/victory roll! it's also unerving how DIFFERENT i look with the hair swept from the sides of my face and with a little rolled fringe (i'm almost thinking my face looks REALLY round and doughy?!).

ps. i hope you enjoy my feeble attempts to try and make my photos look more vintage-y!

dress - topshop

what do you think of the vintage/pinup look? have you ever tried it?

a recent spurt of boredom and friends abandoning me to return to their respective unis, mean that i have to fall back on my old-age buddy - retail therapy! splashing my cash and browsing dozen of online stores, mean that i've reawakened my longing for a pair of raybans. sigh, a girl can dream! (N.B. those are fakes below, thank you Turkey!) 

Mel's wish from bluebells!

 

Joy's wish from Dear Joy!

thank you for sending me your wishes this week, i received quite a few! if you don't see yours here, don't fret, i'll be post them next time! 

please please PLEASE continue sending me some of your wishes, even if you've never said hello on this blog before!! just write them on a piece of paper, create something on paint, write something over an image; SEND ME YOUR WISHES to kissesgrantwishes@hotmail.co.uk

ps. if you would like to use any wishing wednesday pictures - you're very welcome to - but just make sure to source the creator (ie. me and and sumbitters!) :)

Amy Winehouse - Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?

ever since i was around 11 years old, i've struggled with my skin and in these struggles, i've purchased dozens and dozen of various foundations (all of which falsely claim to give me airbrushed, flawless skin, PAHA). i've tried low-end brands (rimmel, collection 2000 etc.), medium-end brands (maxfactor, revlon etc.) and high-end brands (dior, chanel, clinque etc.) and so far, the foundations below are currently my top two. 

here we have Bourjois's Healthy Mix in shade 51, and Chanel's Mat Lumiere in 05.




Bourjois Healthy Mix - this retails for around £9.99 and is one of my favourite makeup finds ever! i would say this is a medium coverage foundation, which is completely buildable. the finish is neither matte nor super dewy, but rather luminous. it completely covers any pinkish scars without the need for concealor and any particularly appetising red spots you may have (mm, yummy!). the lasting power is reasonable - roughly around 6 hours, but after that, it does need a little touch up. i use this as my "day" foundation, as it doesn't look mask like and gives a natural finish (when i want a SUPER natural finish, i use Bourjois' 10 Hour Sleep Effect; read my review here). 

Chanel Mat Lumiere - as suggested, this foundation is intended to give a glowy matte finish and generally, i would say this it does exactly that! as opposed to the Bourjois foundation, i would say that this is more a a medium/high coverage foundation as it 100% disguises pink acne scars and red spots. it also doesn't accentuate any dry patches i have, and after several hours, i'm not a shiny discoball. this is definitely my "going-out" foundation as it does provide heavier coverage, but i do often mix it with my Bourjois Healthy Mix because otherwise it can look a wee bit mask-like. however, at a MASSIVE £33, i don't think i'm going to repurchase (i would however happily be gifted it!)

N.B: for reference, i have super oily, senstive and acne prone skin (a joy, eh?). i have pinky acne scars to cover and get the occasional red spot. in regards to colour, i am a MAC NC10 (if such a thing existed). i use an ELF flat-top studio line powder brush to apply my foundation, and always top off with my MAC prep+prime powder.

do you have a favourite foundation? or perhaps one that you would warn against buying?

Cat Power cover (original Cat Stevens) by Youtube user Octave121 - How Can I Tell You that I Love You

this is another staple outfit of mine, based entirely on my three most favourite colours in the world - cranberry, forest green and navy! i know these make a peculiar little trio but i gloss over the fact that they might not work together with my sheer adoration for these wonderful shades! 

this AA skirt i've worn to absolute DEATH - i wear it during the day with leotards/vest tops/teeshirts, and at night with pin-up style crop tops/bralets/more risque leotards. the elasticated waist means that it actually fits my small waist and it's extendable properties make it fitting (literally, ohoho!) for a lunchtime nandos <3!  

my cranberry coloured cardigan is a relatively new purchase, and it's lovely and long - i like my cardigans to flirt with the back of my knees, almost! the leotard you've seen before, worn here with my all time favourite skirt (which really actually, ties in first place with the one below. oooh i am so fickle).

 

(i liked this ^ photo because my hair looks like chestnut-brown fluffy clouds) 

leotard top - AA/skirt - AA/cardigan - New Look/rings - assorted/nail varnish - Topshop's India Rose/necklace - borrowed

what do you think of such simple, colour block outfits? boring or timeless?

it's a bit of a vacuous one this week, but it ties in with my best friend (claire at little love), because as aforementioned on this blog, she has an addiction to all things hello kitty (click here to see a nail tutorial I did for Hello Kitty nails, as an ode to her)! i miss her terribly - it's like one of my limbs has decided to wander off and not to return!

claire's wish from little love

please please PLEASE send me some of your wishes! write them on a piece of paper, create something on paint, write something over an image but SEND ME YOUR WISHES to kissesgrantwishes@hotmail.co.uk

ps. if you would like to use any wishing wednesday pictures - you're very welcome to - but just make sure to source the creator (ie. me and and sumbitters!) :)
 

Laura Marling - Ghosts



the perfect pair of black skinny jeans has been something of an elusive pursuit for the last 5 years (and no my friends, that is not a hyperbole) but FINALLY, the quest ended yesterday. i found the most perfect pair in PRIMARK of all places, though this should have been obvious, as my one pair of jeans - now with a hole in the crotch due to 4 years of wear - are also from the same souless emporium. they're super black, not stupidly skinny (AVOID the "super skinny" jeans unless you wish for your legs to resemble blackened sausages stuffed into denim) and have a wee bit of stretch, meaning they actually accomodate the large amount of junk in ma trunk! 

and the best bit? they were only £9! i unashamedly bought three pairs, to make sure i've got these for at least another 10 years. 
 


i also bought the loveliest blush pink skirt (£12), which is wonderfully high waisted and falls just exactly on the knee (i'm so switching the belt for a leopard print one though, as soon as i get my paws on one!), as well as a jewel encrusted cheetah on a long chain (£4). no doubt it will turn my neck an appetising shade of green and break me out in a rash, but i'll try the old coating-the-chain-in-clear-nail-varnish trick.

has anyone else found a holy grail item in primark?

ps. Silhouette Skies is having a celebratory 200 followers giveaway complete with wonderful prizes (a BOOK! clearly a girl after my own heart!)

third week, and they say that the third time is the charm! this week i confess that i sit here longing, and hoping that someone out there in the big bad world will think enough of me to surprise me with a floral bouquet.



if you want to send me some wishes, please do to kissesgrantwishes@hotmail.co.uk 

ps. if you would like to use any wishing wednesday pictures, make sure to source the creator (ie. me and and sumbitters!)

Regina Spektor - Field Below

 
 
it's been almost week since my best friend (claire at little love) in the whole in entire world - and the world is indeed large - packed her worldly possessions into material rectangles and moved across the big blue expanse! while i'm stuck on a tiny island named Britain, she's basking in Mississippian sun, in the U. S. of A!

this widening distance has left me to enjoy my vegetarian-friendly jelly beans, alone.




has anyone else had their best friend escape halfway across the world? how do you cope?

City and Colour - Northern Wind

1. new pjs!

2. playing ball with lily <3

3. leopard print nails

4. going away present from my bestest best friend 

5. listening to moosic 

ps. one of my favourite blogs Being Little, is having the most generous giveaway to celebrate Being Little's 1st birthday!

welcome to the second installment of wishing wednesday!
this week, my wish is a cry for there to be more believers of things magickal and inexplicable!

claire's wish (from little love)

 

nate's wish (from Nate Radio)

it would seem that this week, three is most definitely not a crowd and you knows what, I LIKE CROWDS so please send me some wishes to kissesgrantwishes@hotmail.co.uk I WANNA KNOW YOUR DREAMS! 

ps. if you would like to use any wishing wednesday pictures, make sure to source the creator (ie. me and and sumbitters!)

Realize - Natalie Duffy (cover of Colbie Calliat)

everyone has a failsafe outfit - one that you can throw on and you KNOW that you look nice and feel comfortable (for there's nothing worse than spending a day tugging and pulling at your clothing, feeling uneasy because of the high chance of bum-cheek exposure)! 

this is my failsafe outfit. it's appropiate in almost all situations - shopping trips, eating out, a date, the pub, a family dinner - it covers ALL! this is my favourite skirt in my entire wardrobe because of the wonderfully bright colours and the shape is perfect!

skirt - primark, green leotard top - AA

what is your failsafe outfit?

Hugo - 99 Problems

today, i straightened my hair for the first time in two years (normally i sizzle the frizzy mess into spirals and curls with a curling tong) and it looks so peculiar! like long brown reeds or masses of muddy threads, all pin-straight!





i think i much prefer my waves? what do you think? are you fan of straight hair or curls?

this is the first ever wishing wednesday, and all i can do is to sit, squeeze my eyes so tight my face crinkles and wrinkles into a little ball of scrunched up mush and hope that my wish comes true!

  

there is just one other wish alongside mine, making two wishes for this week (one is lonely and three is a crowd, so i'm quite content for now) - thank you clairey-bestbud-sista from little love!

  

i would love to hear from you if you have a wish you'd like to share - just write it down, scan it/photograph it.create something pretty and email it to me at kissesgrantwishes@hotmail.co.uk