#IamWearingRi

River Island have got some beautiful clothes in for autumn/winter.

I recently picked up a few new items. First is this black slouchy V-neck asymmetric knitted top (£30). I love the way it drapes and it works with so many different looks. Worn below with my faux leather trousers also from River Island (I got those a while back)

I also got this faux suede a-line mini skirt (£28). This skirt comes in quite a few different colours but I loved this light camel shade.I also grabbed these gorgeous Black ghillie lace up pointed flats (£28). I think they will also look great with tights.

Finally I got this elegant grey zip-up split front midi skirt (£32).

I love the zip detail and the huge pockets.

 

 

A Dark (Matte) Love Affair

I am really getting into a darker matte lip this autumn/winter.

Last year I got my first Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution lipstick – Walk of Shame which really introduced me to the joys of a good matte lipstick. My previous experiences have left my lips looking dry and flaky – not a good look! I loved Walk of Shame so much I am halfway through my second one! I then went on to Love Liberty which is an amazing darker red and also Bond Girl which is the most subtle of the three.

Below from left to right – Bond Girl, Walk of Shame and Love Liberty.

Bond Girl (below) is sort of my lips but better and a bit darker! I love this colour, it’s so easy to wear and suits a range of makeup looks.

Walk of Shame (below) is a slightly darker brown red that is so versatile and chic.

Love Liberty (below) is much more of a dark red. I absolutely adore this colour on my skin tone, it’s very wearable – I have worn this a lot during the day to work. I do tend to keep the rest of my makeup subtle and clean.

Charlotte Tilbury as always has really nailed the matte lipstick – which one will you try?

Investment Skincare (fail) – Chanel Le Weekend

I wrote about lusting after this cream in my skincare wish list way back in September 2013. Well 2 years later I took the plunge.

This is part of my investment skincare series ( see here and here and more to come!).  I got this in duty free in  Cyprus and it was about £56 (I think usually about £70).

This is meant to be for the weekends only as it is an exfoliating moisturiser. The cream contains May Rose water, combined with a high-tolerance glycolic acid. The cream itself is very light but moisturises really well so I didn’t feel like I needed anything more.

I have to say that unfortunately my skin did not like this cream at all. I think the glycolic acid just made me break out. Having tried it at least four times across a number of months it just keeps causing breakouts which I obviously don’t want! So I am sad to report that this investment purchase was a fail – oh well at least now I know!!

 

The Bohemian

This autumn the boho dress has well and truly been revived. I love the combination of dark florals or prints with long sleeves. The long sleeves just make these dress so much easier to wear when it’s cold without having to opt for a cardigan.

These are two of my favourite boho dresses. This first gorgeous dress from Marks and Spencer (£45) ticks all the boxes – long sleeves, gorgeous floral print, floaty material, tie waist and the neck tie just gives it that extra something.

I love that this dress looks great with bare legs and heels (Clarks) as well as with long boots (these are my Duo boots).

The second dress is from H&M (£14.99). I love the print with flecks of gold. I also really love the ruched neck and sleeves.

Worn with Clarks shoes.

Investment Skincare – Estee Lauder Revitalising Supreme Global Anti-Ageing Eye Balm

So carrying on with my investment skincare series – I have been meaning to invest in an eye cream for a while now seeing as I am over 40!

I decided to go to a trusted skincare brand Estee Lauder and chose the Revitalising Supreme Global Anti-Ageing Eye Balm (£43 – I picked it up in duty free for £35).

As you can see this has a lovely creamy consistency which isn’t to thick and heavy. It absorbs really well and feels lovely on the skin. I have been using this for over two months now and I love it. I don’t have many wrinkles but my eye area was starting to feel delicate and dry. This has really helped make my skin feel stronger if that makes sense! Definitely a great purchase.

Investment Skincare – Aurelia Miracle Cleanser

So when I bought Sunday Riley’s Luna Sleeping Oil I started thinking about really investing in my skincare. So this is part of a series on my investment purchases that I will posting about in the next couple of weeks.

This Aurelia Probiotic Miracle Cleanser (£34) has had rave reviews and I because love anything that is full of natural ingredients I decided to give it a try.

This cream cleanser contains a blend of of Eucalyptus, Chamomile, Rosemary and Bergamot essential oils. It smells divine!

Its a thick creamy consistency that takes off all my makeup (including mascara) easily and quickly. It comes with a bamboo muslin cloth that you use to remove the cleanser.

I love this cleanser, its luxurious and feels good on your skin, leaving it clean and not tight or irritated. It is quite expensive so I don’t know if I would re-purchase this but I am really enjoying using it while is lasts!

Autumn Makeup Wardrobe – New Beauty @ H&M

H&M have recently launched a new range of beauty products and of course I had to take a look and see what was being offered! I have to say I was extremely pleasantly surprised.

I was after some new nail polishes to start my “autumn makeup wardrobe” and their range did not disappoint. There were so many gorgeous colours to choose from but I finally managed to narrow it down to four perfect reds (£3.99 each). The polishes are really opaque and two coats were more than sufficient. I used Essie Gel Setter as a top coat and the colour stayed chip free for almost 5 days! The four reds I went for were from darkest to light – True Tyrian, Red Carpet, Bordeaux and Red Over Heels.

Below is True Tyrian.

The next section that caught my attention was the eye shadows. Again the colour selection is amazing. I was looking for something completely different to anything I already have and this orangey red called In the Red was so perfect. I absolutely love how this looks on, its so unique yet so pretty and wearable (£4.99).

Finally I moved on to the lips section. There were loads of lipsticks, glosses, stains, creams, etc. It took many many swatches to decide on the Lipstick in Scarlett Fever (£7.99). This is a lovely brick red. The lipstick is creamy but lasts really well.

The second lip product I chose was the Velvet Lip Cream in Screen Siren (£6.99). This is a matt lip stain. I adore this colour, and it works so well with the eye shadow to create the perfect autumn look.

There were so many other products including foundations, blushers, powders, bronzers, palettes the list goes on!

The Fedora

I love hats – they are prefect for those wet but not pouring rain days, when you need some cover but don’t want to have to use an umbrella. I of course also think they really make an outfit. I have two new hats – both sort of fedora style.

The first is from Primark (£9), and is a lovely light tan. I love the shape and colour and its the perfect autumn hat!

The second is from H&M (£19.99) and is a slight wider, floppier style.

Dress is also Primark, boots are Ash Jalouse.

 

The Fringed Skirt

I didn’t know if I could get away with wearing a fringed skirt, but I decided to go for it when I saw this one in Forever 21 (£18). Its faux suede and just fun to wear. I have teemed it with a simple black polo neck from Zara and my Ash boots.

Autumn Wardrobe @ Zara

So autumn is almost here and I have to say I am ecstatic! I know I know, you’re thinking why would I be happy about rain, greyness, darkness ?! Well because autumn is also golden hues, deep red lips and nails and best of all layers of beautiful, grown up clothes!

There is something about Autumn dressing that is sophisticated, elegant, chic…n’est pas?

So my autumn shop of choice has and probably always will be Zara. They just get autumn wear. I spent about 3 hours in Zara a few days ago to get some key pieces to get me through this autumn and winter.

So first something that may not obviously be an autumn wardrobe staple – faux leather culottes! Yes I did say all three of those words together! These culottes are buttery soft and the “stone” colour is perfect to match with darker shades (£25.99). I have been converted into the culottes world (these palm print ones in the summer were so fun!). In the cooler months, before the tights have to come out the length of these culottes makes them the perfect transition wear. BUT I will be rocking these with knee high boots – well and truly 80’s style!

I teamed mine with another brilliant Zara basic for this autumn/winter – the polo neck (£12.99)!  This is a simple beautifully draping black one, I am also going to get the grey one as I haven’t stopped wearing this!

The next two purchases were outerwear. First is this transition coat/cardigan (£39.99). I love the contrast drape in black and grey. It’s very versatile and easy to throw on. It’s quite a heavy knit so will definitely keep you warm and toasty whilst still looking chic.

Of course I also needed a new coat. I wanted something a bit lighter but still warm enough for cold winter days. I love this simple light grey coat (£69.99). It has a very feminine shape and just works with such a range of outfits.

So that’s me ready for autumn and winter and enjoying changing up my look from light and summery to dark and vampy! To that end I am also doing an Autumn makeup wardrobe post soon!

Wearing my Ash Jalouse boots.