Inherited Treasures

All of these items belonged to my Grandparents and have been in storage for a while. My Aunt wanted to get rid of some stuff so my parents brought some of it home. Mum thought I would like these couple of things which surprise surprise (not really) it's mostly art.

According to Mum this was a school bag back in the day (I think). I love vintage briefcases, I already have one of my Granddad's which I mentioned in one of my first posts on the blog.

 

 

I'm pretty sure this is a paper weight. I remember being fascinated with it when I was younger. Whenever we visited my Grandparents I would always play with it. I'm pretty sure I was intrigued by the birds inside and how they look like they're flying.

 

 

These are the random pieces of art that my Grandmother had. Mum says that the top one was done by a relation of ours apparently. I've googled the initials but haven't found anything.

 

The one below that is of Shakespeare's birthplace and underneath that one Anne Hathaway's Cottage.

 

Have a great weekend everyone! It's my last shift at the Pah tomorrow, kind of dreading it to be honest. I've also got to finish my proposal for the exhibition, it's like uni all over again when I leave things till the last minute.

 

Ashley xx

Magic Unicorn Necklace

So last week my Mum randomly gave me a necklace. At first I was confused, then she told me to look at the card before I saw the necklace. I was intrigued so I had a look. It's a magic necklace guys. There are a number of different charms you can get representing money, travel, love, getting yourself seen or protecting you from others. Mum got me the dream charm.

 

Before putting it on you have to hold it in your hands and close your eyes. You are to visualise your dream and imagine the charm glowing as it attracts your dreams to you. Sounds easy till you have to think about what you want and realise you have no real idea.

I love that the charm is a Unicorn, I have a soft spot for mythical creatures. I've worn it non stop since I've got it, mostly because it is hard to get off and on so I just leave it. It's a good length for me, just sits on my chest. Who knows whether it will work or not, guess I'll have to wait and see.

 

I'm not entirely sure where my Mum got it from, I think she said she got it in Pukekohe.

 

Ashley xx

Everybody Rise - Stephanie Clifford

It's been quite a while since I've done a book review. Lately I just haven't felt compelled to pick up a book, maybe it's the mood I'm in or it's the book I'm currently reading. It took me a while to get through this book as well as to actually write a review of it. I'm all over the place these days, I blame the weather. It's been too hot for me to properly function, I can't deal with this heat.

 

Book Summary

Everybody Rise* is set in Manhattan of 2006 and focuses on Evelyn Beegan who feels like an outsider to her privileged peers.

 

When she gets a job to recruit new members for a new social media website she targets Camilla Rutherford, an heiress/socialite, top of the New York social scene. Through their friendship Evelyn starts to move up but starts lying to fit in.

 

Review

As I was reading I was getting a strong Gossip Girl vibe. One, it was set in New York as well as the story being centred around the upper social scene. Evelyn kind of reminded me of Dan Humphrey and him trying to figure out the upper social scene. The difference is that he had Serena who is kind of more levelled and a lot less self-centred than Camilla.

 

The story follows Evelyn's rise and fall with her social status and the consequences of it including the fall out with her relationships; boyfriend, friends and parents.  At times it was hard to sympathise with Evelyn, she did some really stupid things and I felt like she deserved what her consequences were. She was a desperate girl trying to get in anyway she could and did not care about anyone else including herself.

 

I did enjoy the story, like I said it gave me Gossip Girl vibes and it's one of my favourite shows.

 

*This book was sent to me by Hachette NZ, the review is all my own opinion

 

Ashley xx

My Favourite Things #36

Kit Kat Gooey Caramel

These were my favourite chocolate bars in the world and then they had to go and stop making them. I was not happy to say the least. Since then I've been contended with just an ordinary Kit Kat until I saw them at the Supermarket.  Needless to say I was very happy, not even going to mention how many I've consumed so far...

 

Blue Sandstone Necklace

I just realised this was in the last My Favourite Things post but it's still one of my most favourite things I own so it deserves a second mention. Late last year Ellen and Tara from Shop Style Conquer opened a store which you can check out here with some gorgeous stone and crystal necklaces. Just looking through them all makes me want to get another necklace.

 

Design Life Podcast

Design Life is a show about design as well as side projects for motivated creators. The show is hosted by Charli  and Femke and each show approaches a different topic or issue.  While I'm not a designer I enjoy their discussions about side projects which make me think about mine (this blog) as well as the possibility of more. Every time I listen to an episode I'm inspired to do more and make better use my time.

 

Hope you all have a great weekend, I would love to know what are some of your favourite things at the moment.

 

Ashley xx

Wellington Haul

I think the word 'haul' might be a bit too overzealous. I only got two things while in Wellington. On our last full day we drove down to Westgate for a bit of shopping. My sister was in her element and bought herself two pairs of shoes, I swear she's shoe mad. I however got myself a couple of tops which I am rather fond of.

 

 

Both tops are from Crossroads and I'm pretty sure that they were on sale. This first top is just a plain grey with a V neck. I liked the white stripes on the sleeves which kinda makes it less plain.

 

The other top is just plain white with the back being a little lower than the front. The lower third at the back is a different material which is more see through. That and the details of the zips on either side really appealed to me. The shade of white also greatly appealed, lately I've been obsessed with neutral tones such as white and greys.

 

Most of the time when I shop I find something I really like but then don't end up wearing it ever. I'm trying to fix that and actually think about where and how I'm going to wear it. These two shirts are casual and can go with a number of outfits so I think I did well.

Removing Makeup for the Lazy Girl

I admit, I'm a lazy person. I always try to look for the easiest option in a situation, this applies to everything including makeup. When deciding whether or not to put on makeup I fast forward to the end of the day when I have to take it off. Usually the thought just makes me depressed so I forego it just so I don't have to go through the process.

 

I first heard about the Trilogy Make-up be Gone Cleansing Balm through Cass's blog, she loved it so I was wanting to try it out. As luck would have it the balm turned up in the September Beauty Box which I bought off Beauty Review.

I prefer this to using makeup remover and cotton pads as you just rub it all in your face and using a damp cloth just wipe away the makeup.  Easy. I follow this up with a cleanser and moisturiser.

The balm has a lot of amazing this in it including mango, coconut and rosehip. It's smells great and my skin always seems to good after I've used it,

The Cleansing Balm  retails for $38.90 online. Trilogy has amazing products which are worth trying out.

Wellington Photo Diary

As mentioned I went to Wellington for New Years and I loved it. I think I would love to live in Wellington, I often feel tired of Auckland and in need of change. Of course I took some photos as well as a video which is not edited, oops. Yeah, I don't know what I'm doing with it. I'll get it done eventually.

 

 

Red Panda!!!

 

We managed to do a couple of things there. We went to the two war exhibitions at Te Papa and the Dominion Museum, the DreamWorks exhibition at Te Papa and Wellington Zoo. In between that was a lot of walking and we also went and saw the new Star Wars movie which was awesome. The weather was amazing most of the time, the last couple of days weren't that great but that was fine.

 

There is still so much I wanted to do so another visit is definitely needed.

Christmas Gifts 2015

Hello 2016. I hope everyone had a great New Years. I was in Wellington and I'll do a little post on Friday with pictures and possibly a video if I can get my act together.

 

I enjoy seeing what other people got for Christmas so once again here's a post dedicated to what I received this past Christmas.

 

LED Fairy Light Orb

This was from my sister and I think it's pretty cool. I love having light's in my room, I have an orb which changes colours and some flower fairy lights. When I first saw it I thought the whole bulb lit up but it's just these little lights around it.

 

Remix Magazine

This came in a pack of two, the other one was from last year. Unfortunately I didn't get a Frankie Magazine, I'll have to venture out and find one.

 

Colouring Book

Colouring was my favourite thing when I was younger, I'm so happy it's back in my life.

 

Juice Up Slim Pocket Power Bank

This is one of the practical gifts I received. Just charge this up and you've got a power source for your phone whenever and wherever you need.

 

CK One Shock for Here Perfume

This gift was from my aunt, I have never had a Calvin Klein fragrance before so was a bit nervous if I would like it or not. I love it, it has a very citrus-y floral scent (I'm no good at this) and is great for summer.

 

Sony Digital Camera

I use to have a small camera but it stopped working and I've been wanting another so I can take pictures without having to carry around my large one. My parents got it in pink, which I am very excited about. I took it to Wellington and got a couple of snaps as well as videos which I plan on making into a vlog. I'm not sure about how good the video quality is though, I'm still to figure it all out.

 

Tom Tom Multi-Sport Watch

Yet another thing my parents managed to get in pink. I definitely want to get more fitter this year, so hopefully this will motivate me. I just have to figure out how to work it though...

 

Hope you all enjoyed this post! I also got some vouchers which are always great to receive. I would love to know what cool stuff you got for Christmas  xx