Project J

A while ago I came across Project J, an online accessory retailer. They discover and sell fashion jewellery designed and made by designers from around Europe. I’m a sucker for jewellery, especially jewellery with that handmade element, so as you can imagine I wanted to purchase everything. Fortunately for my bank balance I ended up only purchasing a couple of bracelets. Last week my project J order came through my letterbox, beautifully gift-wrapped in their stylish and original packaging and I couldn’t wait to open it.

I purchased a turquoise beaded bracelet, with a gold plated bar and magnetic clasp by Italian jewellery designer Minnie grace and a Turquoise Boho wristband detailed with diamond studs and bright pink tassels by Hermina Wristwear based in Greece.

Seeing all the amazing pieces on Project J has really inspired me to start designing and making jewellery again, I cant’ wait to get back to being creative.  Maybe one day I’ll have my own jewellery brand, so watch this space!

My Summer Beauty Favourites

In a bid to make myself feel and look healthier, this summer I’ve been making extra effort to look after myself so I’ve made a few changes to my skincare routine. In the process I’ve discovered a few beauty products that have made a massive improvement to the condition of my skin and have become my favourite beauty products to use this season. 

Bodyshop Tea tree Flawless BB cream

Apart from the odd spot, I’m really happy with the quality of my skin at the moment and its mostly been blemish free so I’ve been trying to avoid wearing makeup when I can, but on days where I feel I need to wear makeup and want a little bit of coverage, instead of wearing foundation I’ve been using The Bodyshops Tea Tree Flawless BB Cream for blemished skin.  Its very light on my skin but gives great coverage and because it is tea tree based I feel a lot less guilty about wearing makeup and its even kept blemishes at bay. I’m currently using shade 01 which is almost a perfect match to my current skin tone and adds a little warmth to my skin.

Essie’s ‘lapiz of luxury’

Now I know nail varnish obviously isn’t going to make an improvement on my skin but I wanted to give this product a mention. Annoyingly I’m not allowed to wear nail varnish at work but if I have a few days off I like to paint my nails as a little pick me up, its amazing how much better you feel when you’ve had a bit of a pamper and applied a lick of nail varnish. There’s one polish that I’m wearing on repeat this summer and its Essie’s ‘lapiz of luxury’. I’ve never worn blue on my nails before, as I’m more of a neutrals, or pale colours girl and like to play it safe but the colour looked so pretty in the bottle I couldn’t resist purchasing it and I’m so glad I did because its even prettier on. I am in love with it!

Lush Tea Tree Toner Water

I don’t really like to say statements like ‘the best skincare product I’ve ever used’ but this one is pretty high up there. Tea tree oil is amazing for getting rid and preventing spots but rubbing oil over my face every time I had a spot just didn’t seem practical to me, so when I had a little browse around my local lush store I spotted their tea tree toner water. I was told that you apply it by either spraying it onto a cotton pad and wipe it around your face or it can be sprayed directly onto your face in a mist. I thought I’d give it a go and after cleansing, every morning and evening I lightly spray it over my face and let it sink in to my skin. It has made a drastic improvement to my complexion, I do get the odd spot but my skin is so much clearer which has made me feel better too.

Hawaiian Tropic’s After Sun Body Butter

A few weeks back I got rather sunburnt after spending way to much time in the sun at a family BBQ (oops) My skin was so dry and I’d tried every moisturiser I owned and even generously applied Aloe Vera gel twice a day but I felt like nothing was really helping so I thought I’d give Hawaiian tropic’s after sun body butter a try. Not only did it help my skin to recover quickly but it also helped to stop my skin from peeling. I also love the refreshing coconut scent and because it is body butter I’ve been using it as a moisturiser when my skins feeling dehydrated.

The Bodyshops vitamin E Intense Moisture Cream and Vitamin E Overnight Serum-in-oil.

Several months ago The Bodyshop launched its Vitamin E Overnight Serum-in-oil, it rapidly became one of their best sellers and for a while I was a bit intrigued to find out what all the fuss was about so one afternoon I ventured into Bodyshop and finally purchased a bottle which had been paired with the vitamin E intense moisture cream. I didn’t really need another moisturiser but I can’t say no to a bargain so I thought I’d give that a go too. I’ve never used an oil serum before because I was a little worried the oil would make me breakout but after using this overnight oil I am hooked, its so light, doesn’t break me out, and applied before the intense moisture cream which locks in the oil and stops it from rubbing off on my pillow, I wake up with softer and nourished skin in the morning.

What beauty products are you loving this summer? 

Oh My Love

L | R

If you read my last post you may have noticed I’m obsessed with pastel colours. I also love a pretty print. A few months ago I came across the edgy east London fashion label ‘Oh My Love’ and fell in love with a couple of their pastel printed playsuits. When I heard they had a sale on, I had a quick browse and too my luck, both playsuits were on sale; so as you can imagine I took no time in hesitating to purchase them.

My favourite playsuit of the two is their ‘Night Bloom Purple Crystals Black Trim Playsuit’. The print looks delicately feminine in faded bright hues and the cut is really flattering complimenting the light fabric. I’d wear this playsuit on nights out with a silver statement necklace and chunky heels or on hot summer days with Birkenstock style flats.

I also purchased their ‘Swept Away Mint Calypo Bar Front Playsuit’, which I prefer to wear for casual occasions and goes perfectly with Essie’s ‘mint candy apple’ nail polish.

Have you checked out ohmylovelondon.com yet?

Summer wardrobe update

At the beginning of the year, I gave you all an inside into my wardrobe, now its summer and the weather here in England is nice and hot, so obviously I’ve been doing a little bit of shopping, resulting in a few additions to my wardrobe. So I thought I’d do an updated summer version of my wardrobe and show you some of the outfits I’ll be wearing this season.

This summer I’m wearing pastel hues. I own a lot of black so before buying any new clothes, I made a promise with myself to stop buying black and to inject a bit of colour into my wardrobe. Needless to say I found this a little difficult, the majority of items I picked up in shops were black and I found myself having to talk my self out of buying them. 

Last year I fell in love with pastel colours, anything from nail varnish to instagram photos, if its pastel I’m all over it.  So on one of my many visits to Topshop recently I picked up one of their scallop cropped vests in mint green, its one of my favourite items of clothing I own, not only do I love the colour and cropped scallop edge, the light delicate material is perfect for scorching hot days. I like to pair this vest with high waisted blue jeans and shorts but here I’ve paired them with my favourite pair of jeans and most recent purchase; Topshops Moto white and blue tile print Leigh jeans. These jeans are the perfect fit and I love the geometric tile print pattern.  I style this outfit with a silver chain necklace and an assortment of silver midi rings, all H&M, a bracelet from Miss Selfridge, a pair of ray ban style glasses and a summer scarf from John Lewis for chillier days. The sandals are from Topshop last year and the satchel is from Zatchels in pastel blue. 

For days where I am at the beach or just sat reading a book in the garden I want to wear something comfy and casual. I recently visited the H&M store in Whitely; I usually avoid my local store because its way too packed and untidy for me but the whitely store looked really inviting and their displays really inspired me, so much so, that I walked out with a massive bag. I picked up a few tops and accessories as well as a light pink pair of shorts for £7. I could have picked up a pair in each colour and print had they had my size. They fit so well and I love the colour and high waisted cut. These shorts are also so easy to wear and can be paired with cropped tops and shirts. Here I paired them with a white cami from Asos, which came in a pack of two. I find this look really easy to style with jewellery and wear with a bikini.  I’ve styled this outfit with a silver chunky chain necklace (Miss Selfridge) and blue and white striped espadrilles from New Look.

Now I know I said I agreed not to buy anymore black but I made an exception for this patterned cropped cami. As soon as I picked it from the rail in Topshop, I fell in love with it so I was willing to break the rules; at least it isn’t plain black. I love the tropical pattern and wide edged lace trim around the bottom, which creates the look of being cropped but still covers my stomach. While in Topshop I also picked up a pair of high waisted distressed shorts. I’ve teamed them with the cami and a pair of black converses, for a laid back and feminine look. For an evening look the cami can be worn with high-waisted black trousers or skirt.

What are you wearing this summer? Let me know in the comments below.