Sunday 25 September 2011

Kindle Craft

OK, so it's not actually craft, more like accessorizing for my Kindle but hey, alliteration beats reality for me every time. I can't help but feel like the beauty section of this blog can and will flourish, while the blurbs side might be left to languish if I don't pay it some TLC. This is probably because I work/ study in the field of books (sorry I have distracted myself now, imagine an actual field of books, that would be fantastic!) whereas beauty is more of a hobby. So, to keep up the bookish side of me I thought I would show you guys how I have decorated my Kindle. 

Firstly I thought I'd say just a little bit about how I came to have a Kindle. For absolutely ages I was completely against the idea. 'How can they do this, nothing can replace books!' I cried to anyone who would listen (read: my cat and occasionally my boyfriend). I was outraged, affronted, perplexed... Then slowly over the course of I don't know how long, I became lass outraged, affronted, perplexed. I became open, intruiged, perhaps a little appeased. Then some more time passed. Before I knew it I was actually researching, questioning and reasoning with myself as to whether purchasing one might be a good idea. I think the reasons for this are two fold.

Firstly, at the time I was working in a terrible dead end job which involved mind numbingly boring work. The only upside to this job was that the repetitive and untaxing nature of the work meant that I had a lot of time to talk to my colleagues, one of them being an avid reader and proud Kindle owner. She spoke convincingly of their convenience. 'If I feel like reading a book, I can have it that second, without going to the shops or waiting for an Amazon delivery.' So far, so convincing. But I remained dubious as to the effect a Kindle (and E-readers in general of course) might have on my beloved books and the publishing industry as a whole. I think the second and more important factor in my getting a Kindle was my sudden realisation that all the e-readers in the world are not going to take away from the importance of books. The words in the novel are the same whether you are reading them on the printed page or electronic screen. I am still never going to want to take a piece of equipment that cost me £152 anywhere near a swimming pool, so browsing my local bookshop for the perfect holiday read is not going to stop. A great story will win through in any format.

I am always going to buy books. They lure me in like an intoxicating scent. Boots and Waterstones are shops where I can find myself at the counter paying for something without realising how I've got there. The great thing about the Kindle however is that I can read a heavy tome like 'A Game of Thrones' on the train to work without having to lug it about. I can read documents for uni on my way in without having to print them off and hurt the enviornment, or lug my (increasingly frustrating but ever loyal) laptop about with me. Those are my justifications anyway. I think the most insightful thing I have heard on the digital debate was passed on by children's author/illustrator Oliver Jeffers when I heard him give a talk recently. He said his colleague had pointed out that although films from previous decades now seem dated when compared with new technology, digitalisation of books doesn't make older novels seem out of date or irrelevant at all, proof that the book is a universal product that will withstand the test of time. Therefore I think we should be excited that these advances in technology might give us, not scared of how they might change things.

Wow, I really didn't expect to write that much. I will conclude with a pretty picture of my Kindle, as a reward for making it through what turned into a bit of a speech!




That's all for now folks. Thanks for reading. I would love to know your thoughts! Do you use Kindle or do you prefer a different e-reader? Or will you never convert? Leave a comment below! Xoxo

Ebay spree

Here is a quick post via my phone of my first experiment with my new nail dotting tool that I got from ebay. I'm a little bit addicted to ebay for all things beauty and as I'm interning ie working for free, I thought a cheap beauty treat was my only real shopping allowance this week. So I got this and some nail transfer which I will post later in the week. Here is my first attempt at dotting, which will hopefully be expanded to all sorts of wonderful patterns eventually. Xoxo

Sunday 4 September 2011

Nail Of The Day: Autumn Neutrals

I thought I'd post a quick nail look today as it's the beginning of September and if the rain in London today is anything to go by we've got a long winter coming. So instead of getting gloomy about the lack of sunshine, sandal opportunities and beer garden ciders I decided to do an loosely autumn inspired nail to get me in the mood for crisp autumn walks, new season knitwear and a new academic year! My best mate does this look on her nails all the time in rich purples and golds and it always looks fantastic but I thought I would give it an autumnal twist.

excuse the messy room!
This is the clearest picture I could get of the look, but here's a picture of my whole hand just to give you an idea of how it looks.
Not the clearest but my camera was in no mood to be messed with.
Get the look:
  • Apply one base coat of Rimmel 60 Seconds in 740 Clear.
  • Paint the entire nail in Max Factor Nailfinity in 214 Earth.
  • Use Barry M Nail Paint No. 129 to draw a diagonal line across your nail, then fill in the nail using vertical strokes from the edge of the line, up to the edge of your nail.
  • Finish with any top coat. I used Sally Hansen Mega Shine as I'd just got it today but any clear nail varnish will do the job.
I really like this style and the great thing is you can do it in any different colours depending on your mood, style and season. 

Hope you like it!
xoxo

Saturday 3 September 2011

Wilkommen, Bienvenue, Welcome

Hi, welcome to my blog!

I've been reading blogs for a while now and have only just plucked up the confidence to actually have a go and do it myself. I'm planning to mainly write about two of the things which take up a fair amount of my time- books and beauty. Although I'm certainly not an expert on either of the two I love talking about them with friends and hopefully now with some fellow bloggers too. I'm still finding my feet at the moment so I thought that I would just post a quick review of my favourite holiday read of the year... Baby Be Mine by Paige Toon.

I've been in a really relaxed mood over the summer and I think the books I've been reading have reflected that. Nothing heavy going, no classics just a few well-written (for the most part) chick lit books that have let me really relax whilst still enjoying a great read. But of all the books I've read this summer, Baby Be Mine is definitely my favourite.

**WARNING** Now, if you haven't already read Johnny Be Good by Paige Toon and you're planning on it then be warned it will give away a lot of that book's ending, although no more than is revealed on the blurb of the book.

Baby Be Mine is the fifth novel by ex heat writer Paige Toon. Although all her books reference other characters that you might have met in previous novels, this is the first book of hers that could actually be described as a 'sequal.' It follows the story of Meg, former PA to rock god and ultimate bad boy Johnny Jefferson. She's living with his best friend, dependable music journalist Christian in the south of France with her child Barney. The main problem is that although Christian thinks Barney is his, he is really a product of last gasp attempt by Johnny to persuade Meg to give him (yet another) chance and as you can imagine, drama ensues.

The thing with main character Meg is that she is flawed. Totally flawed. She fell pregnant with her boyfriends best friend, would you be able to not judge that girl at all if you met her in real life? And yet I was still routing for her and the book is ridiculously addictive. I think it is partially to blame for my lobster looking face as I was so involved in it that perhaps I didn't reply the Ambre Solaire as much as someone as pale and English as myself should! Paige Toon manages to get you really caring about these realistically flawed characters that are leading ridiculously unrealistically glamorous lives and perhaps therein lies the charm- the escapism of the rock star lifestyle, paired with characters prone to very human errors. Also, judging from the rave Amazon reviews , I am not the only one who couldn't put it down!

All in all if you haven't read anything by Paige Toon yet I thoroughly recommend that you do. If you like the sound of this book (and I doubt this highly incoherent review has sold it to you even half as well as I would have liked) then I definitely recommend reading Johnny Be Good first because it sets the whole thing up so nicely and you'll have so much more knowledge of the characters. Or if the rock god affair isn't quite your bag then definitely go for Chasing Daisy, in my opinion Toon's best book and one of the best chick lit books I've ever read (and there's been oh so many!).

If you think I ramble about books, you should hear my cat!
If anyone is actually still reading this review you have my eternal gratitude and I hope you aren't too bored and will come back again soon! xoxo