Subscription Box - Astrid & Miyu Jewellery - December

It's December, therefore time for another Astrid & Miyu Secret Box. And this time it comes with surprise extras! 

The secret box costs £39 and are available every 3 months - March, June, September and December. In it, you receive various items of jewellery from their site which totals around £80. Unlike some boxes, these are not just the items that don't sell as well or are left over from previous seasons, but quite often their best selling or brand new products!

You can subscribe to the box here, and read my previous reviews for the September and June boxes.

Now to this months' box. Especially for Christmas, the boxes this month are a festive red so as soon as I spotted the box I knew what it was. The box inside is also looking festive with a green ribbon.

Crystal Spring Natural Empathy Hand Wash & Hand Lotion

I recently won Crystal Spring Natural Empathy Hand Wash & Hand Lotion in a wonderful group I am part of on Facebook called Battle of the Boxes. More about them later.

I was delighted to received these items as, with Winter coming, my hands start to get drier than usual around this time of year. And after hearing these products were all natural with no chemicals or synthetic chemicals I couldn't wait to try them out.

NOTD: Models Own

This week I have gone for a more autumnal shade, which is fitting with the weather at the moment!

I love Models Own nail polish as they have great coverage and are very reasonably priced. There are usually offers at both their site and in-store at Boots too. They currently have a free nail art kit if you spend £25 or more on the Models Own site if you use the Promo Code NAILARTKIT.

I have used Purple Ash as a base. I needed 2 coats for this. I then used Jack Frost from last year's Wonderland collection to create a glitter fade. A very simple but eye-catching design.

Music of the Week - Arcade Fire

This weeks' musical treat was very nearly Arctic Monkeys, with their brilliant new album being released today. They were however outshone by Arcade Fire's new interactive video.

You can always rely on Arcade Fire for innovative, unique and very weird videos and this is no exception. When you first go to the site https://www.justareflektor.com/, you are asked to link your smartphone or tablet to the computer if you have one. Alternatively you can use your mouse. After you input a code into the site on your mobile or tablet, the video will begin and you can use the device or mouse to manoeuvre various elements in the video. You can also see your own reflec(k)tion (get it?!) at times in the video.

The song itself is a funky, disco beat with, what sounds like David Bowie on backing vocals! Very different from their previous music, but nothing comes as a surprise from the Montreal band. And with James Murphy, formerly of LCD Soundsystem producing the new album, I can't wait to hear what else they come up with!

Subscription Box - Astrid & Miyu Jewellery - September

It's that time again, a new Astrid & Miyu Secret Box! If you didn't see my review of my June box, you'll find it here.

The jewellery comes in a lovely box.

NOTD: Indie Polishes by Taras Talons and Pocket Money Polishes

The wonderful Tara at Taras Talons and Charlie at Pocket Money Polishes recently collaborated with The Cinderella Collection which was 4 sets of 2 one off polishes. I managed to get Driella and Wishing Bubbles before they sold out (in 15 minutes!) Technically because Paypal screwed up and sold these colours twice they are 2 of a kind, but the lovely Tara and Charlie mixed extra so we didn't miss out :)

Drizella is a gorgeous aqua green colour, which is one of my favourite colours at the moment. Wishing Bubbles is a beautiful mix of pastel glitter. I'm a huge fan of pastel colours and it works wonderfully with the aqua. The combination couldn't be more perfect for me. It's exactly what I would have chosen if I had made them myself so I am delighted I got hold of them!

I have linked both stores above, and if you want to find out more about any upcoming collections, make sure you check out their Facebook pages, Taras Talons and Pocket Money Polishes.

Music of the Week: Frank Turner

I have been a huge fan of Frank Turner's for years now and Tape Deck Heart, his most recent album is definitely my album of the year (so far). The latest single taken from the album is Losing Days:

I really love that he used fans who have tattoos based on his music in the video.

If you love this, you can find his album here. You can also follow him on Twitter here. 

NOTD: Mood Changing Polish

Recently I ordered Ylin Mood Changing Nail Polish from Born Pretty. I went with the Purple/Sky Blue colours which you can find here but there are other colours available.

The polish is quite thin when applied so I used 3 coats. A top coat is required as it chips very easily so I used OPI Nail Envy in matte as I prefer the effect not looking too glossy.

Music of the Week: Dan Le Sac vs Scroobius Pip

Ever since the video and download of Dan Le Sac vs Scroobius Pip's new track Stunner were made available I have been listening to it non stop. I love the bassline, and Scroobs lyrics are brilliant as always. If you are a fan of their music, you may also spot mentions of their previous material in the song, and the video.

As well as releasing the video, they also made the track available for free via their website www.lesacvspip.co.uk/

You can also pre-order the new album Repent Replenish Repeat which is available 7 October here.

NOTD: Pink Sparkle

This week I decided to try out my new Barry M Rose Quartz Glitter Nail Polish which I bought last week. I used Ciate Pocket Money underneath and I love the result!

Kindle Giveaway at Pretty in Pink Blog

The lovely Sara at Pretty in Pink has very generously offer a new Kindle 4 as a prize in her latest giveaway!

To enter, you will find the details here.

Subscription Box - Coco Rocha Fancy - June Box

I am a huge fashion fan and when I discovered one of my favourite models, Coco Rocha, curated a subscription box on Fancy I had to try it out. This is now my second box and the best yet! This box costs $39 + $17 shipping to the UK. You received at least $80 worth of products. Here is what I received this month:

NOTD: Summery Orange Splash

As summer has most definitely arrived this week, I decided to celebrate with some orange nails!

To create the marble effect I used Leighton Denny Do Me A Flavour as a base. I then tore up a plastic bag and crumpled each piece. I added a drop of Nails Inc Carnaby Street to one piece of plastic and dabbed onto each nail except my ring fingers. I repeated the process with Nails Inc Savoy Hill and Nails Inc Porchester Square After leaving them for about 5 minutes, I then sealed them with Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat. For the ring finger, I used a new indie polish called Pocket Money Polishes. These are limited edition hand made by Charlie. The one I used is called Pina Colada and is still available here. I only needed 2 coats of this to create the look I wanted. I also ordered Summertime which is a green glitter. I can't wait to try it too!

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Subscription Box: Astrid & Miyu Jewellery - June Box

After trying (and failing) to find a beauty box I loved every month, I decided to try something different. A site called Astrid & Miyu was recommended to me so I thought I would check it out. For £39 every quarter (March, June, September and December) a box of jewellery hand picked for you is sent out. A detailed survey is sent out to you asking about your likes, dislikes etc after you make your payment. Although personally, I have yet to find an item of their jewellery I dislike!

This is what I received in my June box.

The jewellery comes in a box with each item in a cute little bag.

Anyone who knows me will know I have a worrying obsession with nail polish. So here are a few of the designs/colours I have worn in the past.

Leopard Print