I'm Baaaccckk!

Aloha Bloggerinos!

I'm back! Hurrah Huzzah! I've actually been back since Sunday but in that time it has gone wedding mad. I've collected the rings, picked up my dress (all the way from Liverpool none the less!), met with the photographer, finalised numbers and menus with the venue and bought the wedding party presents. I have been one busy bride-to-be.

However, I shan't be leaving you high and dry and ignoring my lovely Bloggerinos. I'm having a bit f Bloggers Block so wondered what you would like to see next. Cast your votes and I'll get crackalacking.

Options arree:

1. Wedding makeup I plan on using

2. Home Corners : Room Tour

3. Blogsale of Accessories and Bags

4. Lou's Reviews

5. Something crafty (more than likely wedding related)

So do let me know, apologies for such a nothingy post- I am feeling so sick today and motivation is thin on the ground!

Lots of love and squeezes!

Toodlepip!

xx

Come fly with me, come fly, let's fly away!

Aloha Bloggerinos,

Just a chatty post to keep you up to speed. I'm off on my jolly holidays today for a blissful week of sun, sand and ......tapas! (What did you think I was going to say?!). We are so excited because this holiday is going to be treated as our honeymoon. We were going to be honeymooning in the Easter 2011 break (Matt's a teacher) but then something has happened that will make that a little difficult so things have been sped up! Yay! So with that in mind I won't be blogging too much. I will be taking six million photos to share with you though- hurrah!

Also, a great big thank you to all of you who said such amazing things about my Curvy Girl OOTD : Swimwear post. That was the most nerve wracking thing I have done blogwise and I was so touched by your kindness, I really appreciate you.

Slushyness over, I need to get cracking on my packing!

Duty Free! Here I Come!!!!

Toodlepip!

xx

Curvy Girl OOTD - SWIMWEAR!!! Gee Wizz!

Aloha Bloggerinos,

Well I have bitten the bullet and am going to bloomin' well do it!

I was feeling a bit unsure because in the last few weeks I have put on a few pounds. A LOT of you lovely Bloggerinos have been asking/guessing if I'm pregnant and if that is the secret. Well folks, I can neither confirm nor deny it at this stage and you will have to wait, ooohh about 4-5 weeks to find out. Sorrrryyyyy!!!

So basically I have taken a couple of snaps of my 2 swimsuit jobbies but will also be sharing my top tricks to use poolside!

To sum up my body shape and hang ups for you (with brutal honesty!) - I am a size 16 on top and 18 on bottom. I like my face, neck, boobies, legs below the knee and arms below the elbow. I don't like my tummy (bleaugh jellybellytastic!), thighs or upper arms. I'm pretty non-plussed about my bottom, it's sizeable but a decent shape so I don't loose too much sleep over it. So that's my body in a nutshell. I work very hard to dress my shape but when it comes to swimwear, the ante is upped! You are basically naked but for a few (and these are our saviours) props!

I have 2 sets of swimwear and find this is enough for my rare swimwear needs. My first is a pink floral tankini that I bought from Matalan about 4 years ago (I really don't wear beachwear that often!) and I was a bit lighter then as well! Oh well.

What I LOVE about this tankini is that is comes with a little separate skirt bit that you can pop on and feel a little more covered in. It's really short but it just gives that bum and upper thigh shield that I want and need! So prop number one- Frilly Skirt.

Illusion number one- The pattern on the tankini draws your eye to the colours and shapes, and not my fatty wobbly tummy bits. Score.

Illusion number two- Low cut boobiliscious neckline draws eyes to this area, rather than my thighs.

This is my other swimming cosie and I bought it from Debenhams last year. It claims to have 'tummy control' but lets face it, when you're a size 18, it's not going to make you look a size 10. It does sort of smoooooth out any lumps and bumps though I suppose.

I couldn't bring myself to give you a full body shot as there is not thigh cover and I felt a little naked.

Illusion number three- Pattern again (I tool a close up of the pattern because I think it's really funky)

Illusion number four- The neckline is strapless. Little spaghetti thin straps on chunky arms will only make your arms appear larger, go for thick straps or no straps.

(Ze Pattern!)

This is another of my props. BIIIIGGGG Beachbag (Monsoon/Accessorize) can be positioned to make you feel a bit less nudeytudey.

So Prop Two- Huge Bag. The bigger the bag, the smaller you will look, the smaller the bag, the bigger you will look (I think anyway).

Other props I like:

Sarongs- Always wear them diagonally for a more slimming look across the legs, it creates an elongating effect rather than a chopping off effect.

Nice flipflops- When feeling a bit self conscious, you may as well have pretty footwear.

Big Hair- I try to wear my hair as volumised as possible so that it balances my figure out and I don't get the old pea-head-big-body effect. Can be tricky if hair gets wet but give it a whirl.

Tan- An all over tan will do wonders in making you seem slimmer

CONFIDENCE- You're not going to loose three stone in 2 days so look at yourself and say "I am curvy and I am lovely and I will be proud of myself for who and what I am" and go and have HOLIDAY FUNNN!!!

I hope these have helped. They are just my personal tips and nothing overly special. Do you have any good tips?

Toodlepip!

xx

Upcoming Curvy Girl OOTD Chat

Aloha Bloggerinos,

I know I have been promising for so long that I would do a Curvy Girl OOTD - Poolwear and today I finally got round to taking the pictures for these. I haven't worn poolwear for a year and in the last few weeks have gained a little bit of weight around the middle and now feel a bit wobbly (excuse the pun) about putting these pictures up.

(That's how I feel!)

I'm umming and arring about what to do because I was going to tie it in with my Top Tips for surviving a swimwear holiday, which I still definitely want to share with you.

What do you think lovely Bloggerinos?

Toodlepip!

xx

Lou's Reviews : : Benefit's Confessions of a Concealaholic Kit

Aloha Bloggerinos!

How are you all? I've been a bit under the weather this week and also busy busy so have had to put the blog on the backburner- soorrrrryyy! I did get back in the YouTube saddle and made a new video- have a little looksie on my channel if you are interested.

Well, this is a review of this new jazzy little thing I picked up last week, in preparation for my Big Pink Sparkly Wedding- woop woop!

This is the Confessions of a Concealaholic Kit by Benefit and it retails for £28.50. I do think this is a lot of mula to spend on concealer but I have been looking at some of these full sized items for some time and decided that by combining them all into miniatures and trying out so many different Benefit products, this was actually a good deal. Also, if you can't splash out on wedding beauty, when can you?!

This item starts of as a box, pull off the card sleeve, open it up and its like a little book- tadaa! I love that is has a proper mirror (not one of those rubbish flimsy plastic ones that makes you look like a gargoyle) and that is has a handy booklet of instructions and diagrams. The design of the packaging is spot on, as usual with Benefit, but I feel that the cardboardness off it is going to get pretty tatty very quickly. Something to look pretty on your dresser, but maybe not to sling in your handbag. When will Benefit stop making everything out of card?!

So here we have the contents of this little beauty, all pristine and new (they have been used lots since!) and I love love love how they are all laid out. Mmm eye candy. :)

 

The little brushes are actually alright and the products themselves did not disappoint. I felt a lot more confident after using this kit and will certainly be using every item on my wedding day and keeping it to hand for touch ups. This little beauty even saved the day at the wedding I went to this weekend, when the Groom (my Fiance's brother) woke up with a HUGE red spot on his cheek. Boi-ing 2 and Erase Paste saved the day and the Bride still said "I Do".

I would definitely recommend this to anyone who is curious about concealers by Benefit and would also say, next time you are near the Benefit counter, pick up a catalogue. It's great to peruse their stock at your leisure (I know some people aren't keen on the sales ladies at the counters watching you etc) and on the back there are little tokens for free makeovers. I usually give these to my sister but if you were going out or something that night, you could treat yourself for FREE. Woop woop!

 

Have you tried any of these items or are there any Benefit products you are crazy about?

Toodlepip!

xx

Lou's Review's : : Urban Decay All Nighter Long Lasting Setting Spray

Aloha Bloggerinos,

What a weekend I have had! I will do a little post shortly because I have done lots of lovely weddingy bits and I know you like to hear about those :)

First of all though, here is a 'Lou's Reviews' of a product I was given way back in April for my 25th and have only recently started using it.

This is the Urban Decay All Nighter Long Lasting Setting Spray which retails at £17.00. It basically claim that if you spritz it over your make-up'd face, it will ensure there is no caking, smudging or smearing.

My initial thoughts on the box that contains the bottle were that the packaging seamed a little 'un Urban Decay'. My other UD products all have really cool or eye catching packaging, where as this just looks like someone lifted a picture of a skyline off the net and shoved a load of writing all over it. It definitely wouldn't have inspired me to buy it (gee wizz I hope the chum who bought me it doesn't read this-haha I am grateful really!).

Click on the picture below to enlarge if you would like to read the blurb.

Here we have the actually spritzer bottle. I like the pump as it keeps it hygienic but then what would you expect with a spritz product? I was even more disappointed with the bottle inside the box. White plastic and cruddy purple and black skyline picture just add to the cheapness. It's not something I am proud to display on my dresser that's for sure.

I tried not to judge a book by it's cover and have been using this product most days last week, for different scenarios. I apply my usual makeup, spray on a few spritzes of this and then go about my day. I tried this to work where I wear foundation, powder, mascara and eyeshadow and I also wore this to Liverpool when I went on a whistle stop trip, wearing a little more makeup.

Usually I find that by the end of the day my foundation and powder has faded and my eyeliner and mascara has slipped and smudged. I hoped that this product would alleviate this. It didn't.

I'm sorry to say that I thought this spray did little to nothing. It wasn't greasy or oily and had no scent but it also seemed to have no beneficial properties either. I may as well have flicked water on my face for all the good it did.

All in all, a very low review I know, but I suppose not everything is going to be a winner. I defo won't be buying this and I'm not sure if I will finish the bottle. What a bummer.

Have you ever used this product? Have you found a better setting spray that you think is really good?

On the upside, Mindycat doesn't care. How cute and shnuggly does she look on the blanket? Ahh.

Toodlepip!

xx