Buying For The Boy

Guys are the hardest people to buy presents for, ever. FACT. I'm always stressing about what to buy them, whether it's a boyfriend, a friend, brother or my Dad! This article suggests a few present ideas to spoil your boy this Christmas:

 (I was going to incorporate it with a few of my own ideas but since I got my new mac I'm having trouble downloading the picture editing software I normally use)

Knowing what gifts will be an instant hit with boyfriends has long been a puzzling mystery. Whilst women will usually be very vocal when it comes to suggesting gift ideas (or at least skilled at dropping heavy hints into everyday conversation), men tend to keep their cards far closer to their chest – much to the despair of girlfriends and wives everywhere, who struggle to work out what to buy their hubbies for Christmas, birthdays and anniversaries.

Of course, there are always the tried and tested options of aftershave, chocolate, socks or soap, but frankly these can feel a little bit boring. The trick is to look for fun alternatives that will appeal to the boy inside who never really grew up. As a general rule, men can be relied upon to enjoy fiddling with gadgets, so why not opt for a technological gift?

Tablet computers have become this year’s must-have gadget, and rumours suggest that Apple will be bringing out an iPad mini in the not-so-distant future - a lighter and cheaper version of the latest iPad. If the hype is to be believed, this will be a hugely popular piece of kit, likely to make handheld tablet devices more affordable to the mass market.

After making a big splash in the US, Amazon’s Kindle Fire 2 is also soon to be launched in the UK and will go into direct competition with the Google Nexus 7. With so many tablets newly launching in the UK this year, it looks as though you might be spoilt for choice – and this is one gift that your significant other is sure to love, whether they’ll use their tablet for playing games, reading the latest bestsellers or even simply browsing the web.

If you’re planning on hitting the shops in search of the perfect gift for your boyfriend, make your money go further with rewards cards from American Express UK. With an American Express rewards card, you can earn membership reward points on virtually every purchase you make, which can be redeemed in exchange for a fantastic range of exclusive rewards, including experience days and flights.

Spook Boutique

This halloween I went to a haunted lodge party hosted by Shapes and Native Tongue, where the location was kept at a secret until the night and we had to do a haunted ghost walk through a graveyard to get there. There was a strict fancy dress code so we decided to go as creepy dolls. We followed this great make up tutorial to get the doll type face and after a practice it ended up pretty easy to do. Although trying to cover up eyebrows is a nightmare, we used so much pritt stick and our heads felt tight and crispy for the whole night! In terms of the outfit we just picked up some socks and leotards from Primark and the tutu's came from this eBay seller, we added some ribbon and it turned out to be a fairly cheap halloween outfit. What did you do for halloween this year? 

Don't forget to enter my REDROCK competition here.

Glamorous Wishlist

1. True Decadence Shirt - £30 // 2. Striped Bodysuit - £11.39 // 3. Sequin Knit - £29.99 // 4. Pewter Disco Pants - £29.99 // 5. Studded Creepers - £26.99 // 7. Alexander Sequin Dress - £47.99

TOTAL: £176.35

Glamorous are offering bloggers the chance to win £200 to spend online, all you have to do is create a wishlist of items from their site with a budget of £200 (so if you haven't already, get involved - you have until Monday). I've noticed that Glamorous is now being sold in so many shops and it's great to be able to try on things. So, I officially need everything on this wishlist! At the moment I'm loving sparkles; I'm instantly drawn to anything with sequins, beads or glitter. As you can see my wishlist reflects this completely, I never usually like anything 'girly' but I feel I'm a changed person since this glitter craze, I genuinely got excited the other day when I saw a sequin blazer in Primark! I'm becoming ridiculous aha.

Don't forget to enter my REDROCK giveaway here.

...On the theme of buying, check out these Black Friday infographics :)

Source: WomensPersonalFinance.net

Red Rock Giveaway

I have good news, REDROCK are running a competition where you can win £65 worth of vouchers!! As you will have seen in my last post I was lucky enough to win a pair of the bluey's rose shorts from REDROCK and since then I have been a big fan of their site. They have the perfect mix of vintage and modern wear with a lookbook which makes you want to own everything on sale. As I'm currently on a spending ban (going back to uni and keeping up my spending habits has resulted in me being unsure how I'm going to pay my rent next month...) I thought I'd put together an outfit I'd buy IF I had £65 (plus some- who could resist these horse print shorts?) to spend at REDROCK. 

Wild Horses Shorts: £42
Gladys Top: £25.99
Total Cost: £67.99

All you have to do to win £65 of modern and vintage goodness and look as cool as the REDROCK models is: 

1) Follow REDROCK on Twitter at: @TEAMREDROCK_ 

2) Follow REDROCK on instagram at: @TEAMREDROCK_

3) Leave a comment on this post with your email, twitter and instagram name 
(If you have a blog then follow me on GFC too please)

This closes on the 17th of November and the winners will be announced on the 18th- it's such an amazing competition so get following and get involved :)

For more information about #TEAMREDROCKBIGBLOGGERCOMP click here.

*you must have a valid twitter and instagram account to enter this competition

*this competition is open internationally

Rose Rock

top: urban outfitters (old), shorts: c/o red rock via Lydia's giveaway, shoes: dixi, necklace: c/o wired jewellery via Vicky's giveaway, belt: primark, hat: rokit

I won these amazing shorts a couple of months ago when Lydia hosted a giveaway for Red Rock Fashion, I wore them on holiday but hadn't worn them since as it's been pretty cold and I thought they were too summery. But last week I paired them with a long sleeved top, tights and bobble hat and wore them into town where I bought this coat from Topshop and am in loveeeee.. Red Rock is one of my favourite up and coming vintage brands, they have the nicest customised items and the photos used on their website and lookbook are AMAZING. Go and check them out if you haven't already!

Tassled Up

tee & levis: camden market, belt: vintage, boots: primark

I got a Glastonbury ticket WOOOOO. So happy, can't believe they sold out in 1 hour and 40 minutes this year it's crazy.

Oh hey I'm fake tanned... wore this outfit to Brisfest a couple of weekends ago, (where I was meant to meet Chloe but we were both so drunk we kept missing each other aha- making up for it this week with a spot of window shopping though) the sun was shining and besides getting kicked out of the hat shop and having to try and put tights on in the middle of a field it was the best weekend and the perfect end to the summer.

My outfit it is so summery which is sad as it's starting to get so cold! I don't usually wear pink but when I saw these shorts I fell in love, I'm a strong believer on never having enough levis- I think I have 6 pairs now which I promise is not excessive at all... 

I've also wanted to own a top with tassles on for such a long time, I 'tassled' one of my tops a while back but it looks awful with everything I own. I found this in a stall in camden for £12, however I'm wearing it inside out as the other side has a skull on it which I'm not a fan of! I went into COW vintage last weekend and they have the best selection of tassle'd tees, including plaited ones which I hadn't seen before. As I'm on a spending ban (due to the extravagant month I have ahead- Amsterdam YAY) I'm planning to DIY a few tees I already own, there are going to be too many tassles in my wardrobe. Wow I've said tassles a lot in this post... it's starting to sound like a made up word. 

Black Heart

dress: c/o glamorous, belt: vintage from the dandelion, gloucester, shoes: ebay

How beautiful is this dress from Glamorous? It is 100% my favourite item in my wardrobe- I don't tend to wear dresses that often but I want to wear this ALL the time. The lace detail is really pretty and it has an underskirt which makes the dress puff out a little bit making it more dressy and perfect for me for a more glam look. This dress retails at just £37.99 and don't forget you can enter GLAMOROUS20 at the checkout for 20% off.

Usually when buying dresses for special occasions I have to go to the shop to try before I buy to make sure that it fits and suits my figure; this usually ends up with me spending a fortune on something I could have picked up online for half the price (although with Glamorous I don't have this problem, both this dress and the dress I wore to my ball fitted perfectly!). The other day I was sent this article about how to buy dresses for your body shape and have found it really useful. Although I wouldn't put myself directly into the 'athletic' category I have quite a straight figure and definitely agree that dresses with a tight top and a-line or skater skirt suit my figure best- bodycon definitely isn't for me. 

Here's the article, do you think these tips are true for your body shape?

Party Dresses For Every Shape

It's party season and you want a new dress. You want to look the best you can, be the envy of your friends, but you don't know how to do it - sound familiar? Buying party dresses can be a challenge, but knowing your shape and what will suit you can really help navigate the mammoth task.

Pear Shaped

For pear shaped ladies, A-line skirts are definitely a blessing. They skim the hips, making the bottom half appear smaller and also highlighting your waist at the same time. A tighter top will show off your bust by drawing attention to it, creating the look of curves and a strapless dress (or one with narrow spaghetti straps) will accentuate your shoulders, balancing them out with you hips and improving your proportions.

Apple Shaped

Women who are apple shaped will suit a low scooped neckline as this will draw attention to the larger bust. Detailing or folds on the stomach of a dress will make it appear smaller. A wrap dress will also make you appear as if you have a waist, drawing attention to this area while clinching it in at the same time. Dresses with an empire line also flatter as the fabric skims over the stomach.

Petite

Petite women suit a tailored look, with fitted garments creating lines and making you appear taller and more in proportion. It would be better for a petite lady to choose a dress specifically made to petite proportions to ensure that the dress sits right.

Hourglass

You want to wear something that will clinch you in at the waist, highlighting it and showing it off to its full effect as it's your narrowest point. A scooped or v neck will highlight your bust and a dress that skims over your hips will make them appear smaller while still showing off your curvaceous figure too. Detailing around the neck will also draw attention to the bust.

Athletic

Fitted tops and A-line skirts suit an athletic figure, giving the illusion of curves. The dress itself is less important with this figure, whereas accessories are extremely important in adding that desired look of femininity to an outfit.

In the end, it's really down to what you feel most comfortable in that matters but hopefully these pointers will help you to be able to get it right first time so you're not wasting hours and hours trawling around the shops trying on endless dresses which fail to flatter your figure.