Liebster Blog Award No.2

At the very beginning of this month, I was nominated for the first time for the Liebster Blog Award by KAYLALISCIOUS. Since then I've been nominated for it 2 more times! It means so much to me that people enjoy reading my blog and I can't thank you enough for nominating me, and commenting and following me on twitter etc :)

The Liebster Blog Award post is quite lengthy, but I don't want to ignore the fact that people are nominating me. So I really hope it's alright if I just answer the questions they've written. The two other bloggers who have nominated me since are candlesandcurls & PureAllure. You can read my first Liebster Blog Award post here.

candlesandcurls Questions:

What made you start blogging?

I really wanted to start my own blog after spending two years watching the YouTube channels and reading the blogs of some well known YouTubers (Tanya Burr, Sprinkle Of Glitter, Jim Chapman etc.). I loved everything they did and I really wanted to do the same. After reading Zoella's blog and hearing her story (Draw My Life), all I wanted to do was start a blog and YouTube channel myself :) Like Zoella did when she first started, I don't feel confident enough right now to start a YouTube channel, but I finally plucked up the courage to start Stylish England :D

When did you start blogging?

I started my blog in early June 2013. I'm still quite a new blogger ;D

Pastel colours or bright colours?

I love bright colours on other people, but I struggle to pull them off. I love pastel colours, I think they're perfect for any season and I don't think (hope) they won't ever go out of style. (Plus I can actually wear them!)

Shorts or skirts?

As a guy, I'm gonna have to go with shorts. Which actually links in quite well as my favourite pair of shorts are a pastel green colour! Coincidence?

High street or High end?

Definitely high street. You get so much more for your money, and I think the high street brands are leading the way in fashion/style at the moment. So many well known fashion brands aren't actually creating new trends, clothes or styles anymore. A lot of luxury fashion brands now a days just plaster their products with their logo. Whereas places like Zara, River Island, H&M etc are creating new styles of clothing. (Apologies for the rant)

What is your best piece of advice for new bloggers?

I know it's really cheesy and corny, but it would be not to give up. I think the first couple of months of blogging is the worst for bloggers confidence in their posts. I honestly felt like no one was reading my blog and (because I'm a drama queen and make a mountain out of a molehill) questioned whether many people would ever read it. Don't worry, with time your blog will begin to come up in search engines and your blog will grow and mature as you do. In the meantime, make sure everything you post is good material, so that when people do find your blog, they'll come back!

What is your favourite TV show?

I watch a hell of a lot of TV. So it's really hard for me to pick. Even though it's been cancelled now, I'd have to say The Secret Circle (it was on CW). It's basically the vampire diaries but with teen witches as the main characters. I like the vampire diaries but after they killed off Bonnie, I was not happy :(

Topshop or River Island?

I really can't decide haha :D

Favourite party outfit?

You can't go wrong with dark skinny Jeans, ankle boots, a shirt and a waistcoat.

Night in or Night out?

I'd probably have to say...night out. I hate staying indoors and I'd rather go out and do more, that being said, a film and junk food every once in a while isn't a bad thing.

Your favourite blog post that you have written?

My No7 Beautiful Skin Normal/Oily review. I loved how the pictures looked and was so pleased with the quality :D Overall I was just really pleased with the post :)

PureAllure's Questions:

How are you today?

Not bad thank you, bit bored but oh well...how are you?

Whats the best piece of advice or quote you've ever heard?

"There's nothing wrong with loving who you are". It's from Lady Gaga's song "Born This Way" and I think it's so important to get that message across nowadays. So many people are un-happy with how they are and I think thats so upsetting and wrong.

Whats your favourite song right now?

Lady Gaga's stunning new single "Applause". Everything Gaga does is amazing :D

Do you ever want to have kids?

I have absolutely no idea. I think I'm more someone who'd like to focus on their career. But I wouldn't say no.

If you had unlimited money what would you do with it?

I'd like to buy my parents a really nice house wherever they wanted. I'd give some to my brother. I'd buy myself a penthouse apartment in Manhatten, New York City. I'd go on lots of holidays with friends and family. I'd also give some to charities and help fund research to beat diseases. And it's a dream of mine to have my own store, so I'd do that. Plus, I'd buy bad-ass birthday and Christmas presents :D

What's your biggest fear?

Snakes, I don't even want to elaborate.

Do you have a hidden talent? If so, what?

I wish I did. I don't stop talking very often so I suppose that could be classed as one? I once came downstairs at 8:00 and kept talking non-stop until it was 10:00, true story.

What is something you couldn't live without?

Good Wi-Fi connection. I had to go nearly a week with no Wi-Fi at all and it was horrific.

Do you prefer Summer or Winter? Why?

Winter! One because of how I dress. I like to layer clothing (Coats, Leather Gloves, Scarves/Snoods etc.) and I like wearing boots :D Also because I like it snowing, and having hot drinks in cafes and at home whilst looking out a window at the snow (corny?).

What's your favourite thing in your wardrobe?

It would be my dark skinny jeans. Simply because I wear those with everything. They go with all my other clothing/accessories, and I just love wearing them :D

What's your favourite shop?

ASOS. It sells a phenomenal amount of clothing for both men and women. Usually there's always more for women in stores but ASOS sells a hell of a lot of mens clothes and accessories. As well as that, their sales are INCREDIBLE :D

Again, thank you so much to those three amazing bloggers who nominated me, and thank you to everyone else who reads my blog. To know that people are reading my blog, and enjoy what I write means so much to me and makes me incredibly happy :)

Please have a look at those blogs who nominated me (you can click on their names to go to their blogs), as they are all talented bloggers :) Please follow me on Twitter and 'Join This Site' at the side :) 

Please comment as I love talking to readers and I always reply :) If you want to tweet me as well then please do cause I'll always reply :) Thanks!

James

Prairie Charms

Very recently I was lucky enough to be invited to take part in #ProjectBlogger with Prairie Charms. Prairie Charms is a gorgeous online shop that sells accessories (and you all know how much I love accessories). They're main target audience is women and pretty much all of their products are for women. However, after getting in touch with them through twitter, they offered me the chance to have a men's custom made leather bracelet from them. These bracelets aren't currently being sold on their website as they explained to me that they currently don't have the high demand for them.

I was extremely excited to receive this opportunity as it's my first ever company-blogger collaboration!!!!! :D #ProjectBlogger is basically where bloggers can buy products from their online shop for half-price and in return the bloggers write a review (although it's not obligatory). I ordered the bracelet through Twitter by direct messaging them my order. And (after much changing my mind) I ordered a medium toned leather bracelet with teal and grey cord and a silver chain fastening. With the 50% off and P&P applied my whole order came to £11.49.

The payment was done through PayPal and before I knew it they had started making my order! The customer service was fantastic! They were so friendly to me and offered advice and help whenever I got a bit confused with what I was ordering (which happened a lot).

The bracelet arrived I think just over 2 weeks later. However, considering they were bombarded with blogger orders (I think quite a few ordered more than one item as well) along with the fact that everything they make is hand-made, the delivery wasn't that bad. It arrived in this shiny gold packaging and was beautifully wrapped inside as you can see from the pictures...

I enjoyed every part of this process and am extremely happy with their customer service. I really recommend you take a look at their website, as they sell some gorgeous stuff. And! For any guys reading this who would be interested in getting a custom made leather bracelet, tweet them (this is their twitter) and ask them. They need the demand for them to start selling them on the website :) I also just want to say a massive THANK YOU to Prairie Charms for everything :D

I hope you've enjoyed reading this, please follow me on Twitter and 'Join This Site' at the side. Also please leave a comment as I always reply and feel free to tweet me :)

Have a look at their website- http://www.prairiecharms.co.uk/

What are your favourite acessories?

James

Queen Helene- Mint Julep Masque Review

So this is my second review, and I'm really pleased to finally be writing it! My skin is combination skin, and because of my skin type I find it hard to find products that really work. Thankfully though, I found the most amazing skincare range that has made my skin look a hell of a lot better (read about it here). Although, even when I'm up to my eyeballs in skincare products, I still have those times when I get breakouts. If your someone who puts a lot of effort into your skincare then I think you'll know what I mean when I say that I panicked and freaked out when I saw the spots surfacing.

I can't just wait for them to go, and just keep washing my face daily etc. And spot treatments are realllllyyyy hit and miss with me (although most of the time it's miss). So with both of those options (if you like) out of order, I resort to...face masks. About a year ago, I went through a phase of buying loads of face masks. I bought a lot of them from Lush as they're all made with natural ingredients and you can leave them on for hours without them damaging your skin. I did use some chemical peels from places like Superdrug but I'd always leave them on (by accident!) too long and they'd make my skin look terrible.

This past week I've been eating a lot of ice-cream. I haven't eaten pretty much anything healthy, and so my skin has broken out all over. So my mum provided a solution...Queen Helene Mint Julep Masque. I've used it once before and was happy to use it again as it's completely natural (Yes!). When it's first applied to your face, it's quite a strong green colour and as it stays on your face and brings out all the impurities in your skin, the colour lightens. There isn't really a recommended time for it to stay on your skin as you can leave it on for as long as you want. I usually leave masks on for 15-20 mins so that it can make my skin as good as it can. (btw, A bloke in Lush said that Lush face masks (and ones like this) are great to leave on in the bath)

This mask is meant to absorb oil and minimise the appearance of pores. Although, as it draws out all the bad stuff in your skin, it helps get rid of your spots much faster than cleansing and (in my view) more successfully than spot treatments. As the website said it would, my skin feels incredibly smooth after using it and it evens out my skin as I struggle with redness. This mask smells really strongly of Polo Mints, so it's quite a refreshing smell, but it's up to you whether you like it haha :D

This mask is fantastic & I'd recommend it to anyone and everyone as I am more than happy with the results. After using it once, the next day my breakouts were so much better and on the second day, they're nearly gone! Overall, I'm incredibly pleased with this mask :)

The picture above shows when it has been applied on to the face. The picture below shows that after a while it will begin to dry out and crack. Once it's completely dry then it's done all it can, so you can wash it off with water and a flannel (I just use my hands instead of a flannel but it's a much harder & longer process).

Apologies for how bad my skin looks in these pictures!

Thanks for reading this post. Please follow me on Twitter and 'Join This Site' at the side. Please leave me a comment below as I reply to all of them and I love being able to interact with readers. I'm also more than happy for readers to tweet me as I always reply :)

James

The best hair-care products I've ever tried...

These past couple of days I've been itching to write some reviews (not literally) and am so glad to be able to finally start on one. I am a self-confessed beauty addict. I've spent 2 hours + in Boots and then gone on to Superdrug. I'm literally running out of room for all my creams and cleansers, and yet find it impossible to find good products! God knows how much I've spent in these shops (lets not forget you can order online....) and I really do struggle to find stuff that works. 

Because of this constant struggle, I was amazed when I tried these 2 products. These are the Schwarzkopf Gliss Liquid Silk Shampoo and Conditioner. My mum gave them to me to try after having success with them herself. I'd seen these on other blogs but never been interested in trying them out for myself, and because of my luck with beauty products, I wasn't expecting much...how wrong I was.

I have thick hair. I mean really thick hair. It might not seem like it from just looking at it, but it's almost un-manageable. Sometimes it can take me over half an hour to do my hair in the morning! Which is ridiculous because my hair isn't long and my hairstyle is in no way complicated (grumpy face). I usually use volumising products to take the weight out of it and make it easier to handle, but then my hair ends up quite dry (sad face). 

At first I didn't notice much a difference in my hair. But after a few days of using them my hair has completely changed. It sounds ridiculous but my hair has completely changed. It doesn't have knots in it, and doesn't look dry. My hair is certainly not as heavy as it used to be. All I do is use both in the morning (sometimes twice a day) and after a matter of days I've had these results! I haven't had to use hair masks or other treatments (which I'm very pleased about as they take up so much time). 

The best part about these products is the price (dollar signs in eyes). In places like Home & Bargain (as well as more), each bottle is £1! I was stunned when I realised this! I've spent a lot more on other products that have not worked at all. These are by far, the best hair-care products I have EVER tried (which says a lot considering how much I've bought). 

I recommend this to anyone who's looking to make their hair silky and healthy. So many products/brands promise 'Silky Smooth Hair' but they don't deliver. These products are some of the rare ones that do. These shampoo's and conditioners are hair-repairing so I can't really see any downside to them. The price, results everything about them is amazing. I really do recommend you try them. 

Have you ever used these products or other hair-care? What did you think?

Thank you so much for reading this post. Please follow me on Twitter and 'Join This Site' at the side. Also, please leave a comment as I love replying and talking to readers and feel free to tweet me :) 

James

Birthday Post!

So these past few days have not been particularly pleasant. My birthday was on Sunday and even though I received some amazing gifts from my parents, the day wasn't very happy and ended up with all of us quite upset. I'm not going to go into detail about it, I just wanted to explain this as I don't plan to write a post about the actual day although I will tell you what I got. (I really hope you don't think I'm bragging or anything, I love reading these posts and find them really interesting, so I hope that's how you'll feel about this post as well)

( Just wanted to say that everything is okay now and no one is upset anymore :) )

For my birthday I very kindly received the new fragrance by Paco Rabanne 'Invictus' which smells AMAZING, and if you follow me on Twitter then you'll know how much I've wanted this fragrance ever since I smelt it! I could not recommend this fragrance enough. It smells so natural and is perfect for summer. I hate how a lot of mens fragrances smell really fake and unnatural, you know the ones that when you smell it make you cough? This one is not like that at all and Its currently my absolute favourite fragrance :D

I also received the fragrance 'Jet Homme' by Avon which I have used before and love! It's main ingredient (that doesn't sound like the right word but oh well) is Sandalwood. I love the smell of sandalwood so this is definitely a fragrance favourite of mine :D

I'm counting this as a birthday present as it arrived just before my birthday. I'm not going to say anything about this as I'm going to be doing a review of Prairie Charms in the next few days :D

I also got a MIANSAI silver Anchor bracelet that I picked out online on the Selfridges website. I've seen these style of bracelets a lot recently, and I've seen them on loads of shopping websites as well as in photo shoots. The brand MIANSAI makes these in the USA and ships them to retailers elsewhere as well as selling them themselves. This bracelet is perfect as not only is it absolutely gorgeous, it's come from the USA! (If you don't know, I love the US sooooo much! Some would call it an obsession haha :D).

My last present is a Sony VAIO laptop. I am so excited to get this as It's my first ever laptop! It's going to be so useful for blogging, school work and college and I'm incredibly thankful to my parents for giving me this (my mum will get a chance to get back on the home computer now!).

I hope you've enjoyed reading this post! Please follow me on Twitter and 'Join this site' at the side :)

What have been your favourite/most amazing gifts you've ever received?

Stylish England :)

Day At The Beach!

Hello!

This isn't going to be a wordy blog post, as me describing the whole day would probably be quite boring! Yesterday (Friday 16th of August 2013 for those of you who are reading it in the future) my family and I drove to Talacre beach in North Wales. We've been there before and loved it :D It's really easy for us to get to as it's only an hour and a half drive! We spent most of the day at the beach but also went to get some Fish & Chips for lunch :D I haven't done much this summer so I really enjoyed spending time there with my family :) I'm going to upload some pictures that were took there (Sorry for the bad quality in some of the pics as some of them were taken on my Iphone). 

Btw, I have used photo editing software on 2 pictures. The first being the one above, I've used software to make the colours bolder and to add text as well as a shadow border. I'll point out the other edited one in its caption. Sorry for editing I just wanted to make some of the pictures a bit more interesting :)

Also, apologies for some of the weird pictures! I don't know why I was pulling those faces :D

This is one of those weird poses I meant! What was I thinking?

Another weird pose...

And again...

There's a Snugbury's near us (Its a place that sells realllllyy nice Ice Cream!) and they always build these huge straw sculptures, this time it was a Dalek and because we passed it I had to share it with you :D 

This is the only other one I've used photo editing on. It was the view from the car whilst we were driving through the hills towards the sea :D

This is the Fish & Chips shop we went to for lunch! Their food is amazing!

My lunch ;D

It was so peaceful reading on the beach...

This is my absolute favourite picture! I haven't edited this at all. I took it whilst I was having a walk through the shallow area of the sea :) The sun was going down and reflected off the water, I am so pleased with this picture, I think its stunning :D

I hope you've enjoyed reading this post :) I highly recommend anyone visit this beach, it's a fantastic beach and doesn't tend to be one of those beaches where there's people everywhere (It's quite calm and a great place to relax) Please follow me and 'Join This Site' at the side (It really means a lot to me!). And also please comment as I love hearing from people who read my blog :)

Where's your favourite 'go to' destination? Where have you been on holiday this summer? :)

Thanks for reading!

Stylish England

TK Maxx Haul!

Hello!

I've re-written this post quite a few times as I can't seem to word it right, so what I'm going to do is tell the short version of the story so that I can get straight to the haul :D

On Saturday my parents and I went to our local retail park to visit Currys/PC World. My birthday is this Sunday and I still haven't decided on what I would like (sad face). Whilst there, we popped in to the TK Maxx store close by :D I don't know why, but they had a lot more stock then they usually do so I was very excited to have a look!

I found a Cardigan, Jumper and Leather-Look Jacket that I thought were fantastic. After trying them on, my parents offered to buy them for me! My dad also bought some electronic weighing scales (for humans) and a pack of biscotti biscuits (I love them). Sadly the biscuits didn't last for more than a few minutes when we got home so I can't include a picture, but the rest is still around :D

PS. It is me in the pictures I just thought my facial expression was weird so I decided to crop it.

I was really excited to get this as I've been looking for a nice cardigan for quite a while. The great thing about cardigans, jackets etc is that you can layer different clothing to make it look completely unique and personal to your own style. 

I love the design of this, the stripes stop where the sleeves begin and because of the band of navy where the buttons are the whole cardigan contrasts in a great way. This is in TK Maxx for £16.99 but that won't be its RRP.

This jumper is incredibly soft and is a gorgeous blue colour. Because it's got quite a short v-neck it's ideal for wearing on it's own. However, I think that I'll probably layer it with maybe a snood or jacket when I wear it. This is in TK Maxx for £19.99 but again that won't be it's RRP.

This was the most expensive item as it was bought for £39.99 (not it's RRP). I never thought I was the type of person to wear a leather or leather-looking jacket, but I love this :D It's not leather but certainly looks it, the jacket has lots of pockets and always keeps me warm. Plus, it's not bulky so it doesn't make me look big,

The scales! My dad bought these for £9.99 (bargain!). I love the Union Jack design, and they work really well.

I hope this haul/post wasn't too bad. I don't know why but I've really struggled writing this :(

I really need a good intro for each post, and it would really help if you would leave some suggestions below in the comments section :)

Thanks for reading!

Stylish England