RECENT PURCHASES | I Am a Cliché

I got my tax refund this month and I went to Topshop. This was the result. I think this may be the most clichéd 'shit Rachel always buys' recent purchases post ever. Breton striped jersey top? Check. Black mini skirt? Check. Necklace with my initial on it? Check. Just throw in a pair of black ankle boots and you've basically got my day-to-day uniform. 

The skirt is probably my favourite item out of the lot. It's high-waisted, of course, and a satisfyingly thick material, thus perfect for cold British winters. Not pictured is the gold exposed zip at the back. I'm always iffy on exposed zips. Done badly, I loathe them but I can be persuaded by them from time to time. This is a case of the latter, for definite. I can't wait to wear it. I love the summer but I miss layers and skirts with wooly tights more than words can describe. 

OUTFIT | #147

top: Topshop; skirt: H&M; shoes: Converse

I wasn't in the UK for much of July, to be honest, but when I was there, there was a banging heat wave going on. We're talking 30 degrees Celsius, or thereabouts, pretty much every day. Unheard of for British summers, so naturally we all had a good moan and I struggled to dress myself. Same old, same old. It could still be hot as balls over there for all I know, but I'm in the US now visiting some family so I've no idea what's happening in Blighty.

Between Latitude and coming to the US, I had a day at home to frantically pack and get some stuff done. Cue basic, but effectively weather appropriate, outfit. And no, I haven't fake tanned my legs. They're the only part of me that really gets any colour when it's sunny outside. Speaking of colour, I wish you could tell how patchy and ginger the sun has turned my hair. I have strange patches of orange-y red all over. It's definitely an interesting look. Note to self: Re-dye hair as soon as you're back in the UK.

TRAVEL | Latitude 2013

These pictures in no way accurately represent the incredible time I had at Latitude this year, but they've all I've got. I was volunteering for the second year in a row. Last year I got all fancy and brought a disposable camera so I had all these cool hipster-y pictures but I forgot to take many pictures at all this year. Oops. It was a cracking time though, take my word for it. I ate some damn good food, hung out with the best people, and the entertainment was stellar. 10/10, would do it all over again.

Some highlights include: seeing Karen O killing it on stage for Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Eddie fucking Izzard, dancing in the woods until the wee hours, pulling some major shapes at Disclosure, and this one wrap I ate that was so good I cannot even describe and will regret until my dying day that I didn't take a picture of because it was so beautiful. It's safe to say I now have a serious case of post-festival blues. Take me back. 

NAILS | Confetti

Mavala 'Lagoon' nail polish, L'Oréal Confetti top coat

Super late to the bandwagon (what's new, etc) but I finally bought one of those confetti top coats and hey, it is kind of great after all. Nail gimmicks are one of my serious pet peeves about the beauty world (caviar nails: just say no) but this stuff looks pretty damn cute, even on my stubby little nails. Blogger perfect nail beds I do not have. I'd been trying to find somewhere that stocked this nail polish for ages but it always seemed to be sold out. My hometown had a ton of bottles of the stuff on display in Boots though, so I was in luck. It may not replace my beloved glitter top coats but I'm definitely a fan. 

TRAVEL | Majorca 2013

La Seu cathedral, Palma

Santa Ponça beach

markets in Andratx

As I've mentioned previously, I went to Majorca earlier in July with my mum and sister. We went for a week on one of those all-inclusive laze-on-the-beach-all-day holidays. I've never ever been on a holiday like that before. Anyone who knows me knows I thrive on being constantly busy. I have no idea how to relax, but I gave it my best shot. Mostly I swam in the pool, read a lot, and got a killer tan. Aside from an altercation with an overly peppy holiday rep attempting to throw me in the pool fully clothed, it was all pretty great.

RECENT FAVOURITES | Summer 2013

Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine nail paint 'Blue Grape', Revlon lipstick 'Pink in the Afternoon'

BARRY M GELLY HI-SHINE NAIL PAINT IN 'BLUE GRAPE'

The Gelly range had always had a very disappointing colour range, as far as I was concerned. Their new summer colours are much more impressive, my favourite among them being this blue. I'd been looking for a bold royal blue for a while and the formula on this is nice, very shiny, if not a bit on the 'gloopy' side. I foresee myself wearing this to death during the summer months.

REVLON LIPSTICK IN 'PINK IN THE AFTERNOON'

I hate nudes and I hate pale, cool-toned pinks but this shade has been a firm favourite of late. It leans to the coral side and is vibrant enough that I don't feel corpse-like, the way some paler colours can make me feel. I love a bold lip at heart, but when I feel like toning things down I've been reaching for this.

Forever 21 and Primark shorts

Summers home from university mean I become particularly lazy and sit around a lot reading and catching up on TV I missed during term-time. These athletic style ('style' being the operative word, since there's nothing athletic about my summer past-times) shorts have become my summer-at-home uniform. A slight step up from wearing pajamas all day, but definitely not quite going to the whole hog and getting fully dressed. They're ridiculously comfy and I've found loads of different coloured pairs, particularly in Primark.

Soap & Glory The Breakfast Scrub and Clean on Me shower gel

SOAP & GLORY THE BREAKFAST SCRUB

I've previously been a big fan of Soap & Glory's Flake Away exfoliator. I use scrubs mostly on my legs in the shower, pre-shaving, but I decided to try this one for a change. It's definitely just as good as my old favourite, Flake Away, but has an even better scent in my opinion. It smells like warm porridge with maple syrup in it. I'm a big fan of toiletries that smell like I could eat them, so this one's a winner for me.

SOAP & GLORY CLEAN ON ME SHOWER GEL

This stuff has several great points. 1) It smells good. It has the same scent as the Flake Away scrub which is pretty much identical to Miss Dior Cherie perfume. 2) It comes in a massive bottle with a pump, so it'll last you bloody ages. 3) It's pretty moisturising. I have incredibly dry skin, so I still need to apply a body butter post-shower, but if you don't suffer from dry skin, you could probably get away without that extra step if you used this stuff. 4) It's fantastic for those annoying red bumps you get on the tops of your arms (a.k.a keratosis pilaris). I don't know what it is but I've suffered from KP all my life and this is the only stuff that's ever completely cleared it up. That in itself is reason enough to buy it, in my humble opinion. 

OUTFIT | #146

jumper, jeans, necklace: Topshop; shoes: Converse; watch: Casio; lipstick: Revlon 'Cherries in the Snow'

I wore this out for dinner with some of my oldest friends. One definite perk of my hometown is some of the people. I whine about being here, a lot, I admit. But seeing my family and old friends I've known since I was a bratty child with bad taste in eyewear, is pretty great. We went for a Nando's, classic, and a few drinks in a pub garden afterwards. I wasn't feeling like dressing particularly fancy, to be honest. I'd spent the majority of the day watching films on Netflix in my pajamas so I was in the mood for comfortable over anything else.

Hence the new jeans, which are basically my best find of the year. I'm not always one to be really excited to wear something new straight away, but I had to throw these one. Nothing else would do. I let my sister do my hair too, since I wasn't feeling having it down. She's much better at all that fancy hair crap than I am. Left to my own devices, I maybe curl it once a blue moon but otherwise I let it just do its thing. I leave it to her to do the cool stuff with it, since I'm useless at all that.

INSTAGRAM | #6

breakfast outdoors is my summertime favourite; wine after a long journey; how I'm spending my summer, basically

feast time with one of my favourite ladies; a new furry friend; fry-ups are a hangover's best friend

unpacking is the worst part of moving; selfies game is on point; more outdoor dining, you know how I do

I've just moved home for the summer so my life of late has mostly consisted of unpacking the ridiculous amounts of stuff I somehow own, watching a lot of TV in my pajamas at midday, and eating. A lot of eating. I always find when I'm home and bored, food becomes the central focus of my life. I live for food, even more than I usually do. Lunch is the highlight of my day. It's okay though, I've been watching a lot of documentaries too. My life hasn't become totally meaningless and dull. Louis Theroux and I are like that, y'know.

You should follow me on Twitter and Instagram for more general life musings and pictures of food I eat.

OUTFIT | #145

dress: ASOS; boots: Topshop; watch: Casio; lipstick: Revlon 'Cherries in the Snow'

I've had this dress for absolutely bloody ages. I think I bought it on sale during my first term of university and I've never worn it. At first it was because it was a bit tight. Now it fits fine but I find it intimidatingly girly. My style's changed a lot over the years. I used to love very girly 1950s inspired stuff and favour extremely feminine clothing. I'd say I still dress in a feminine style, but in a much simpler, less colourful approach. Nothing frou-frou, no frills, no bells and whistles.

This dress has always seemed to err on the side of 'too much' for me but I decided, in the spirit of my recent wardrobe clear-out frenzy, I either need to start wearing it, or part with it. Since I really do want to keep it, I decided to try it out. It wasn't as bad as I expected. Thankfully. I think the addition of my go-to black boots balanced things out. It is, after all, a lovely dress. And I've probably been being a bit of a wimp not to wear it. I mean, it's only a piece of clothing, for goodness sake. How scary can it be.

RECENT PURCHASES | Topshop Sale

So, funny story. You remember how, in my last wish list post, I was whining and berating myself for missing the opportunity to buy the Jamie ripped knee jeans in the Topshop sale? Yeah, about that. Literally the day after I wrote that post, I wandered into my local Topshop, completely avoiding the sale rails because I am so not in the mood to wade through that jumble-sale style mess. I was looking at the jeans and discovered one lone pair of the aforementioned Jamie jeans, in my size, no less, hidden on a rail. Now I don't believe in fate or any of that crap, but you better believe I snapped those up sharpish. 

Then, because I knew I'd get suckered into the sale in the end, I went and looked at the shoes and ended up leaving with yet another pair of black boots to add to my expanding collection. I couldn't decide between two pairs, but ending up getting the Parker boot in the end. I wear black boots nearly every single day (that it's not sunny) and my other pair are suede and less durable than leather, so I figured they were a good buy. Plus an absolute steal at £45 (with student discount), reduced from £110. A very, very successful shopping day, I must say.

WISHLIST | #6

New Look midi dress; Fjallraven Kanken Classic backpacks; New Look sandals; Topshop Jamie jeans

There's a whole lot of black going on in this wish list, predictably. Just because it's summer doesn't mean I'm going to start wearing colour. Oh no. Although the sandals are a reasonably summer-y item. I'm still yearning for a good pair of sandals and still, sadly, can't really afford any of the pairs I like. Also I don't know who New Look are trying to kid but, nice as they are, I would never pay £40 for shoes at New Look. Who do they think they are, Topshop? 

Speaking of Topshop, their recent sale was a bit of a sore point for me. I avoided it like the plague, so I didn't blow loads of money but finally couldn't resist having a sneaky peek at it. Lo and behold, the Jamie ripped knee jeans I've wanted for months were in the sale but, because I'd left it a few days before checking, they're totally sold out in my size. I'm a little bit heartbroken and pretty annoyed with myself. 

Ever since I got that midi dress from So In Fashion, I've been into the midi look. I fancy getting a few in basic colours (black, grey, navy, etc) for days when I'm not feeling a mini but still want to wear a dress. Although, realistically, the only item I really need on this list is the backpack. I've wanted a Fjallraven Kanken for a few years now and I think this summer I'll finally splurge and get one to use at uni. I just can't decide on what colour I prefer though. Such a hipster problem, I know. Don't judge me.

OUTFIT | #144

dress, jumper: H&M; boots: Rocket Dog; watch: Casio; nail polish: Barry M Gelly 'Blue Grape'

I forgot I owned these boots. During the whole clearing-out-my-old-room process I've been invested in lately, I rediscovered them. Something about summer dresses and cowboy boots is just endlessly appealing to me, plus these suckers are super comfortable. New favourite summer boots, sorted. Just because it's a little bit warmer (still raining though, it's the UK after all) doesn't mean I have to ditch my beloved boots. Plus I pulled out this sundress I almost never wear because pastels always terrify me. I'm still tan after my trip to Ibiza though, so I feel like I look less sickly in these kinds of colours.

The nail polish is my absolute favourite of late. I'd been seeing those Barry M Gelly polishes around for a while now but the colour range left me underwhelmed. Another pillarbox red? Snore. They came out with a bunch of new shades for summer though and this bright blue is exactly the kind of colour I've wanted since forever. We're perfect for each other. Plus the formula lasts pretty well and, for someone who famously chips polish 1 hour into wearing it, that's pretty cool too.