THE LIFESTYLE EDIT: GEO-FLEUR

One of the reasons I love blogging, is the amazingly lovely and talented people I meet along the way, at events, on social media and through other bloggers and their beautiful blogs. I first came across geo-fleur just over a year ago on Stylonylon's Sunday Edit, I'd wanted to add some greenery to my home and I instantly loved the cute collection of succulents and geometric pots on the post and so we headed out on a very rainy Sunday in August to geo-fleur's stall on Chatsworth Road Market. I was so glad I did brave the rain that day as I got to meet the super lovely Sophie Lee, founder of geo-fleur and also discovered the most incredible donuts from Vicky's Donuts (Vicky's stall was next to Sophie). I came away that Sunday with the best donuts, a beautiful terrarium and signed up for a terrarium work shop at West Elm. Now my house is full of greenery and I've spread my love of West Elm and Vicky's Donuts!

REVIEW: L'OCCITANE ALMOND VELVET HAND CREAM

Unless I'm on holiday somewhere hot and a little humid, my hands can get really dry so I'm always on the look out for a really good hand cream. The L'Occitane Almond Velvet hand cream was a recent discovery and it instantly has become a life saver for my hands.

THE STYLE EDIT: CUTE PRINTS & METALLICS

Lately I’ve been feeling a little stuck in a style rut, so I’ve been tackling my wardrobe, getting rid of the things I no longer wear; so far I’ve donated four full bin bags of clothes, shoes and accessories to the charity shops and I’m making an effort to try new things like my pink Mango skirt and this kitten print and mint green shirt from Topshop.

THE WEEKEND EDIT

I know I say this most Monday’s but this last weekend really flew by and I was a little shocked to hear the alarm go off at 6.30 this morning. As quickly as it may have gone, I had such a lovely weekend, full of friends, family and fun activities.

REVIEW: CHARLOTTE TILBURY MATTE REVOLUTION LIPSTICK - LOST CHERRY

When it comes to lipstick, it really doesn't take much to enable me so when I saw this pretty Raspberry-Peach sorbet lipstick from Charlotte Tilbury on Rougepout Beauty's Instagram, I knew it would be the perfect Summer shade and couldn't wait to add it to my lipstick collection.

THE TREND EDIT: THE HOUSE OF FRASER A/W 2016 COLLECTION

This is my one of my favourite times of the year; it's still Summer with sunshine and warm weather to enjoy, but thoughts are gradually turning towards Autumn (I love Autumn!). In stores the last of the sale stock is being phased out to give way to the fresh and exciting AW16 range and whilst summer is still here, we have the luxury of having some time to pick out the key Autumn pieces to add to our wardrobe. I was lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the beautiful things to come in Autumn at the House of Fraser AW16 press day. Everything was lovely, there was no denying that, but there were some key pieces which really caught my eye. It was fun to see how the season's trends have come from the catwalk onto the high street.

Suede Jackets

This suede trench coat from Therapy was a real show stealer for me. I loved the attention to detail and the fitted style of the coat, it's gorgeous and a real timeless investment piece. Suede is great for Autumn and this coat channelled the Americana trend we saw on the catwalk.

Victoriana Lace - New Romance

Lace has been a trend staple for a good while now and I love that the trend is here to stay for a while yet. The Victoriana style has had a bit of an update in the 'New Romance' trend. I love to combine a black lace dress with a slick of eyeliner and some red lipstick for that femme fatale look, perfect for date nights and parties.

The lace detail remains feminine but a little twist in the detail or colour palette can easily give the look an edge.

Embroidery Detail - Beautiful Botanicals

The beautiful florals from Spring have also had a little update with rich tones of Red and Oxblood really standing out in the embroidered detail which is going to be a big trend for Autumn. 

Faux Fur

AW16 wouldn't be the same without some snuggly faux fur to throw into the mix. Lots of 70s inspired faux fur gilets continue to be an AW staple with plenty of decadent faux fur coats to take you into the party season, not to mention a gorgeous range of fur wraps to dress up any coat.

Animal Print

I love a bit of animal print as you probably already know by now. Animal print is a great neutral which can make an outfit just pop! Shoes and accessories are a great way to incorporate the trend into your look, but there are also bold pieces such as this gold animal print pencil skirt from Biba which would looking amazing with black or you could  team it with the matching top for a high impact look.

 Structured Bags

Of I couldn't leave out accessories, there were just too many which caught my eye. The structured shape with the little extra details added a subtle edge to the outfits and really completed the look. I completely fell in love with the Lulu Guinness collections, it's beautiful and I just can't resist a statement clutch!

Jx

THE FITNESS EDIT: LET'S DO THIS!

'What you do every day matters more than what you do once in a while.'

                                                                                         Gretchen Rubin

REVIEW: COLAB SHEER+INVISIBLE DRY SHAMPOO

I've followed Ruth Crilly and her blog A Model Recommends for quite a while now and what I really like about her blog are her honest product reviews. So when I heard that Ruth had launched her own range of dry shampoos, I had a good feeling that they weren't going to be a faddy spray that smelt nice but did nothing for my hair and I was right.

REVIEW: KIKO MIRAGE LIP STYLOS

These limited edition Kiko Mirage Lip Stylo lipsticks launched in a range of gorgeous shades with the Kiko x Lovegrove Summer 2016 Collection recently and of course the combination of Rose Gold packaging and a bright lip colour was something I just couldn't resist.

THE TRAVEL EDIT: ALGARVE PHOTO DIARY

Last month I headed off to the Algarve in Portugal for a much needed holiday and of course sunshine. The holiday was my 21st birthday present to my baby brother and as my brother is away at uni usually, it was really lovely to have some brother-sister time and catch up! Our time in the Algarve was amazing! We'd hired a car, so we explored the region, starting off in West Algarve and gradually moving East with everyday being a little adventure. I'll be sharing my top recommendations of things to see, do and eat while in he Algarve soon but today I thought I'd share a photo diary of the trip with you all. Warning it's going to get a bit photo heavy from here on!  

THE WEEKEND EDIT

It's been a while since I've done a weekend edit post, mainly because I've either been away, getting on with 'project declutter' or trying to rest and recharge for the week ahead. This last weekend however was pretty active as I tried new things, caught up with my best friend who is overseas and enjoyed the sunshine, all in all a really lovely weekend! 

Friday night was pretty chilled with a soak in the tub and then curling up & catching up with Betty magazine; just what I needed after a long week at work. 

Saturday I was up and out early as we were off fruit picking. It was the first time I've been although it's been on my bucket list for ages so it was great to try something new and it was such a beautiful summer's day too. We'd headed to Parkside Farm just outside of Enfield & it was amazing to see urban London quickly roll away into fields and fields of fruit and vegetables. I gotta tell you though, fruit picking, it's addictive! Before we knew it we had punnets full of all kinds of berries and bags of fresh vegetables. You just can't beat that feeling of pulling fresh produce from the earth & then rustling up something delicious to eat.

We had time for a quick ice cream pit stop before heading off to Oxygen Freejump trampoline park in Acton. Again another first for me, I haven't really been on a trampoline since I was 16, but the trampoline park was great! There were of lots of trampolines but also trampoline dodgeball ball and my favourite bit, the foam pit assault course which looked like something from the Gladiators! It was time to pick up a punch bag equivalent of those giant Gladiator cotton buds and do battle on the beam. Suffice to say I ended up in the foam pit and it wasn't my most graceful moment as I attempted to get out (ahem I may have needed the Body Coach lookalike to lift me out), but it was all so much fun & I can't wait to go again!

We ended the busy day by chilling out on deck chairs at Camden Beach at the Roundhouse. There was such a lovely summery vibe as people sipped rum punch and built sand castles or played volleyball with the complimentary essential beach accessories. One of the best Saturdays of the year  so far for me.

Sunday was a much more laid back affair as I got on with all my usual Sunday tasks done, starting with picking up some beautiful fresh flowers. 

The afternoon was spent blogging away at my little patio table in the garden before I pottered around the fruit and veg plants having been inspired by the farm the day before. The perfect Sunday afternoon!! 

The rest of Sunday was spent making progress on 'Project Declutter'. The end is in sight but there's been a fair bit of furniture rearranging lately as I'm working on  a dedicated blogging space, which is very exciting!! I'm looking forward to sharing the results of the hard work with you all soon. 

Sunday evening was of course spent curled up with the new Harry Potter book. I had that same buzz I used to get when the previous books were released. I have to admit I'm reading this really slowly as I just want to make that excited feeling last.

Hope you all had lovely weekend too!!

Jx