Victoria's Secret Fashion Show

Ahhhh the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. If you only ever watch one fashion show make sure it's this one; it's truly spectacular. The outfits, the models and the show as a whole is truly amazing. This year Candice Swanepoel wore the luxurious Royal Fantasy Bra, which is worth 10 million dollars. A tad extravagant if you ask me, but I'm just an average human being. Here it is...

So precious she has to wear gloves!

This year they had performances by Taylor Swift, Fallout Boy and Neon Jungle. I love Taylor Swift and I think she looked right at home on stage with all the models. 

This year the trends were British Invasion, Birds of Paradise, Ship Wrecked, Pink Network, Parisian Nights and Snow Angels. Of all the looks I loved Snow Angels the most. Of course each one of them looked amazing in white because they're all tanned, and the ladies with darker skin tones just stood out even more. I'm not so in love with the Pink Network looks. They're meant to represent the modern girl who is always on her phone, they have lots of text language etc, but I think some of it looks tacky. For Birds of Paradise they each channelled a particular tropical bird and the wings for these looks are simply incredible. Ship Wrecked was lovely and delicate, wispy and whimsical. The sexiest trend was Parisian Nights. You'll see why. 

Here are my top two looks from each of the 6 trends. 

British Invasion

Behati Prinsloo

Jourdan Dunn

Birds of Paradise

Maria Borges

Hillary Rhoda

Shipwrecked

Candice Swanepoel

Constance Jablonski

Pink Network

Malaika Firth

Ming Xi

 Parisian Nights

Adriana Lima

Barbara Fialho

Snow Angels

Toni Garrn

Candice Swanepoel

Sources:
http://www.homorazzi.com/article/2013-victorias-secret-fashion-show-best-outfits-segments-karlie-kloss-lily-aldridge/

http://gr.dentell.es/fashion/lingerie-12/l/victoria-s-secret-4007

http://www.cbs.com/shows/victorias_secret/photos/1000937/2013-victoria-s-secret-fashion-show/46133/

http://models.com/mdx/victorias-secret-show-2013/

Christmas Nails

Christmas is only two sleeps away, who's excited? We're so lucky to live in NZ, we get to celebrate Christmas in the sun :) The irony is that we still use a winter theme for most of our festive decorations!

Anyway, I did mine and my sister's nails all festive today so here are the results...

I still have to clean up the edges but I'm pretty pleased with the results! Mine are the French tips, which took a bit of trial and error. I initially did white nails with red tips (and one feature nail with the reverse) but the white took a lot longer to dry than my Revlon Top Speed, so I ended up taking them off and starting again. I really liked how the feature nails looked so I kept them and made the rest to match. The look like little Santa hats on my nails. 

For my sister's nails I used a nail pen that we got given ages ago, by Nail Supreme. I used the mug featured for inspiration and just went free-style :) Sadly she smudged quite a few pretty quickly after they're done so there may be a lot of touching up on those ones. 

I used Sally Hansen Lavender Cloud  and Revlon Top Speed Fire. It was really easy to do the tips, I've used a manicure strip here but you can also use cellotape apparently. The key is to make sure the bottom coat is completely dry, otherwise it all turns to custard.

Happy holidays everyone! Have a safe and jolly Christmas and a crazy New Year!

Loving - McDonald's Fresh Choices range

Salad makes me look small!

If 10-year-old-me met 21-year-old-me, I think she would be horrified. I’m now eating sushi instead of chips, I eat more than 3 different vegetables and I ordered a salad at McDonalds. Crazy how we change!

But it looks like Maccas and I are both starting to realise that vegetables are good. Their new Fresh Choices range is healthy but still tasty and doesn’t leave you hungry.

I was pleasantly surprised with my Crunchy Noodle Chicken Salad. The chicken in it was lovely white chicken, which I’m guessing is very processed but still tasted great. There was a huge range of veges and although I picked out all the ones I didn’t like, there was still plenty of goodness left. I opted for the sweet sesame dressing which was a nice flavour.

My friend had the Crispy Chicken and Honey Soy McWrap which was also massive. I had a bite and it tasted really good and she was happy with it.

I always struggle to find a lunch option that hits all three of these requirements – cheap, satisfying & healthy. So it was such a nice surprise to find a yummy, filling, healthy option at McDonalds for under $10. Will definitely be going back for more!

They even give you instructions on how to eat it!

Time waster of the week - Buzzfeed

If you haven't found Buzzfeed yet, you need to. It's so easy to waste so much time scrolling through its countless lists. Here are a few of my personal picks:

These comparisons of babies and drunks:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/awesomer/reasons-kids-are-pretty-much-just-tiny-drunk-adults

One for the Mean Girls fans:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/22-things-you-probably-never-knew-about-mean-girls

Giant dogs for dog lovers:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/newu1085/21-dogs-who-dont-realize-how-big-they-are-654m

People who make you feel like you won the gene pool lottery:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/the-dumbest-things-ever-said-on-twitter

There is lots of Disney stuff too:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/thebumblekee/22-times-disney-lied-about-hair-f750

And here's a random one - Justin Bieber's incredibly white-trash father has a twitter account: 
http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/hottest-selfies-justin-biebers-dad-took-this-year
I'm not going to post a photo tho, I'll let you take that journey by yourself :)

All photos from this blog post are sourced from the provided links on Buzzfeed.com, I do now own, nor claim to own, any of the images

Loving - New SGC jumper

On the weekend I went to the Stolen Girlfriends Club Sample Sale and I loooove the jumper I bought! 

One of these days I'll get someone to take proper pics of this kinda thing. SGC always have good sales, making their stuff more affordable for students like me, whose eyes are bigger than their wallets. 

There wasn't as much stuff this time but they did have some of their really recent stuff on sale which was cool. I find they're always worth a look. Doesn't help that I'm a sucker for the word SALE. 

Product Review - Maybelline Color Whisper lipstick

Recently thanks to nzgirl I got to review Maybelline's new Colour Whisper lipstick!

 

Maybelline’s new lipstick range – Color Whisper – promises a soft, sexy gel colour with no heavy oils or waxes. It achieved this, plus a little bit extra!

It feels like a lip balm, provides colour like a lip stain, but is a lipstick! It might just be the colour I tried, Who Wore it Red-er, but it gave me a really lovely bright lip. It doesn’t feel heavy or oily which is really nice, it’s a much nicer finish that most lipsticks and it provides really good coverage.

I found it similar to Clinique's Chubby Sticks or Revlon's Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains. I definitely prefer this to the Chubby Stick which is good seeing as the Color Whisper lipsticks are only $14.99 NZD compared to the Chubby Stick which is around $28! I have only tried one Balm Stain and I really liked it so I might wait until I have more of either before I decide on my favourite. 

I liked the colour on but my mother and sister weren't so kind about it, so not entirely certain. It also didn't look as red as you would imagine with a name like Who Wore it Red-er. But I really want to try some of the other colours and I'll be asking for them as stocking fillers this Christmas!

Life as an intern

I just finished my first internship at Starseed PR last Wednesday, which was bitter sweet. On the one hand I was getting sick of gift wrapping and doing menial jobs, but on the other hand it was a really cool, inspiring place to be and I really liked the people. 

I got to attend this cool event, Instasummer, for Number One Shoes while I interning at Starseed PR

Unfortunately I don't think I got to prove myself to them, whether they didn't need my skill set or I just didn't get an opportunity to. Either way, at the end of it I didn't get offered a job, but I got a lovely farewell gift and I'll hopefully be getting a good reference from them. Although I didn't learn a great deal while I was there, I don't consider it time wasted, but an opportunity that I was lucky to have had.

From my previous post, I got an awesome farewell gift from them!

I read an article in CLEO a while ago about an intern they had who quit after a day because she basically thought she was above all the work they had her doing. They pointed out that they aren't looking to see how good you are at getting coffees and filing, they want to see your attitude, qualities and whether you're the right person for them. I had to agree with this and while I was at Starseed I kept this in mind the whole time. 

My advice to anyone who is going to do an internship is to just enjoy it and try to make the best impression you can. An intern is not there to replace a full time worker so you will be doing stuff that they don't have time to do, but don't think you're being hard done by because its an opportunity. They won't be saying "oh she was so good at organising couriers", they'll be remembering that you were always willing to do what was asked, or that you were conscientious and had a good attitude. Well, I'm hoping I achieved something along those lines, we'll see when I get back my reference!

I have a paid internship lined up for next year at New Zealand Fashion Week head office which I'm super excited about! I volunteered there heaps before, during and after Fashion Week this year so I got to know the team in charge. Recently when I was there I asked one of the staff if I could work for them next year and she spoke to the founder and they've offered me a paid internship. I definitely believe If you don't ask you don't get. I had nothing to lose because I was only a volunteer there so I just went for it and it paid off :)

Bloglovin

I'm now on Bloglovin!

Loving - Joico

I got given a bunch of Joico product yesterday because it was my last day at my internship with Starseed PR. I was really stoked because it was the second lot they've given me and the first lot was amazing, so excited to try the new stuff!

I got the Daily Care Treatment Shampoo and Conditioning Shampoo, Power Whip foam, K-Pak Revitaluxe treatment, Power Gel and Smooth Cure conditioner, all from Joico. Also got a Daily Shine Gel from ISO and a Cleanser from Rosehip by Essano :) My hair will be so happy! And of course the lovely Joico clutch that it all came in.

Will do a separate post about my internship later. 

Experienced - Taylor Swift RED Tour

Last year I went to Taylor Swift's concert when it hit New Zealand and it was amazing. I'm very stoked that I decided to go again - got to touch her hand! We were in the General Admission standing area initially, but then God sent us a gorgeous tubby man-angel who gifted us magical wristbands, letting us into the VIP pit right up the front, between the main stage and the semi-circle that surrounded it! Basically we were surrounded by the stage so we were as close as you could get :)

That's probably the best shot to show how close we were. It was really an amazing show, 
I was thinking that it wouldn't be as theatrical as her Speak Now show, because Red is much more mature and less fanciful. But she did not disappoint at all, there were dancers and fireworks and confetti...

One of my favourite things about her concerts is that she goes around the arena so that everyone can see her and people at the back don't miss out. Last time she was in a suspended balcony which swung around the arena, this time the stage runway lifted up and pivoted around the stadium....

All in all it was an incredible night, being down there instead of up in the stands was worth the extra money by far, especially when we got upgraded! 

Photos courtesy of my dear friend Holly x

Time waster of the week

I spend a lot of time on the internet. A LOT. And I thank my lucky stars I don't pay the bills yet. I also get very easily distracted. Here is what's holding my attention this week:

You get to create cute sweaters and vote on them. I think there is a prize but to be honest I'm too busy making sweaters to care!

Vote for me!

Loving - Smashbox

The kind ladies at Fashion Week gave me a Smashbox make-up voucher recently as another thank you for the work I did for them. Thank YOU Fashion Week :)

Photo Op Eye Shadow Trio & Halo Hydrating Perfecting Powder

The powder is lovely and light, but layers nicely. The eye shadows are the best I own by far, great quality and awesome colours. 

Coveting right now - Kimonos

I've always had a soft spot for Japan. I fell in love with it in high school where I learnt Japanese for 5 years and every so often something will happen that brings back that obsession. At the moment it is the Kimono jacket/cardi that is coming into style. 

At NZFW I saw this COOP Kimono by Trelise Cooper and since then have been scouring the internet for one that I like and can wear.

Here's my top 5 from around the net:

Somedays Lovin' Cobra Kimono, $92

Topshop Floral Print Kimono, 55 GBP

Lookbook Store Vintage Chiffon Kimono, $36

Nasty Gal Baroque Burnout Kimono, $58

ASOS Love Kimono in Floral Print, $67.63

adidas Auckland Half Marathon

So on the weekend I did the Auckland adidas half marathon. People keep asking me how it was. Here's how it was:

Terrible. Bloody terrible! I ran...for ages...literally ran for hours! Who actually likes running? Just plain running? It's boring, repetitive and painful. You literally just put one foot in front of the other....lots of times. So running (and a bit of walking) for 2 hours & 24 minutes, after waking up at 5am, is just awful! 

But the weirdest thing is that I'm totally doing it again next year! As difficult as it was, and even though I didn't train as much as I wanted to (my final final University assignments were due two days before so I'd been at Uni for 12 hours a day for about 2 weeks), I'm super stoked at myself for persevering and doing it. I can be a real quitter, so the fact that I did it is so cool *self five*.

Me, Lydia and Isaac at 6am, pre-marathon

Some of the highlights :

People along the whole course were cheering us on, including my mum

I got to run over the Auckland Harbour Bridge (there's no pedestrians crossing normally)

My boyfriend, Isaac, and I crossed the finish line with our hands held

I get to say I ran a half marathon XD

I'll definitely do it again but I don't know if I'll ever do the full marathon. 

My tip for anyone aspiring to do a half marathon is to do a 21km run before the actual event. I wish I had. I did 16kms about a week before, thinking that I'd be fine, just wing the last 5 kms, but it killed me. The bit at the end is the hardest and I felt totally unprepared. But don't do it too close to the event because you need to re-cooperate. 

Shore life

It's so easy to take what we have for granted! I've been redesigning the website for Browns Bay for my final Uni assignment and when I went to take photos I was super happy with the results. This is why I love where I live :)

I was so tempted to try steal this dog!

It was a lovely, crisp Spring day with the sun shining; it just made me so happy to be alive and so grateful to live on the Shore. I regret not getting gelato and waffles from Ben Gusto though!