My Style Diary - Beat the Heat

Hellooo :)

So, the past weekend in Perth was a scorcher. I don't think it quite reached the predicted 44 degrees, but it was damn hot! As I saw someone say on Instagram - when there's a heat wave like this there's only two places to be ... the water or the aircon. 

What better way to stay comfy and cool than in my favourite white shorts and shirt combo, with just a little pop of colour from this bright coral nail polish. 

This is actually one of my favourite outfits - nothing fancy but just really laid back and simple. In 40 degree heat, basics are your best friend :)

I hope you're having a great Monday night!

Lauren

xxx

Top - French Connection

Shorts - Cotton On

Shoes - Therapy

Watch - Calvin Klein

Necklace - I've had it for so long I can't remember!

Nail Polish - OPI My Chihuahua Bites

My Style Diary - Prairie Dreaming

Hello :)

So this is my first post of 2014! Happy New Year! 

I'm finally back with another outfit post after what feels like ages!

These pics were actually taken a couple of weeks ago, and I'd forgotten that I took them. (That seems to happen to me fairly often). 

I'm looking forward to getting my camera back on Friday so you can expect lots more outfit posts in the next few weeks. Summer is when I'm most inspired and excited about fashion, so I'm looking forward to getting back into blogging! Having said that though... my outfits will probably consist of simple summer dresses or shorts, so hopefully they're not too boring!

Anyway...

I like to think of this as my "prairie dress" and ideally for these photos I would be in a field full of grass and yellow flowers as far as the eye can see. 

That's what I picture when I wear this dress... something along the lines of this photo...

Image from

here

Sadly, I don't have access to that kind of scenery... so my back garden will have to do! 

I'll leave it at that for now - 

have to get an early night so I'm well rested going back to work tomorrow!

Goodnight

Lots of Love

Lauren

xxx

Dress - Witchery

Wedges - Aldo

Belt - from Singapore

Highlights of 2013

Hello :)

So once again it's been rather a long time since my last post. There are a number of reasons for that, the first (and main reason), is that my parents have taken the camera I usually use for taking outfit photos away with them to Sweden (lucky things!) Secondly, everything has been a little crazy due to the usual busyness that tends to accompany Christmas time, and I just haven't had a chance to sit down and blog.

 Speaking of Christmas though, I hope you all had a lovely day with your family and friends! I certainly did, despite the fact that my immediate family left me at home while they went off to have great adventures in Sweden! (I can't really complain too much, it was my choice to stay home and work... although I can't pretend I wasn't kicking myself the day before Christmas when I was still at work and they were exploring Stockholm!)

Anyway, I wanted to do a little post on the highlights of 2013. So without any further rambling, lets hop right in!

Highlight # 1

Kicking off 2013 in Verona

It was certainly a memorable night, which started with a concert in the Piazza Bra, and ended with spectacular fireworks launched off the Arena. We spent the rest of January continuing our adventures around Italy, so it was a great way to start the year!

Highlight # 2

My Graduation

This was by far the biggest highlight of the year! It was an amazing night that I will never forget. It marked the culmination of 5 years of bloody hard work, and despite having some great times at Uni, I was not sorry to say goodbye to life as a dental student. Don't get me wrong, I did for the most part enjoy my time at uni and made some lifelong friends, but if you're a dental student (or know any dental students) you will understand. Earning a dental degree is a rather torturous process!

Hightlight # 3

Starting my first "proper" "grown-up" job. Despite having occasional low points and moments of "What am I doing with my life??" I have, for the most part, been enjoying it. There are moments when I genuinely feel like I'm helping people, and those moments make it worth it! Although I do sometimes question my career choice (and daydream about other possibilities), I'm proud of what I've achieved and learnt this year and plan to continue learning and improving! 

Highlight # 4

Starting this blog! 

One of the benefits of finishing uni and starting work was that I suddenly found myself with rather a lot of spare time. What better way to fill that time than to finally get around to starting my blog! I was a little apprehensive at first, and I've still only told my closest friends about it, but it's been a great little hobby!

Highlight # 5

Weekends down south

I spent some lovely weekends down south in Margaret River with my family and friends this year.

I can't describe how relaxed I feel when I'm down there. Everything just seems right in the world, and they were just some of the most perfect weekends.

Highlight # 6

My 23rd Birthday

To celebrate, I had a little tea party with some of my closest friends, and it was just a really nice day :)

Highlight # 7

Cooking!

This year I've 

actually started to enjoy cooking and am very slowly getting better at it. It's still something I need to work on, but it's been a step forward!

Highlight # 8

Our 4 year anniversary :)

Highlight # 9

Trying out new places to eat!

Tom and I started a tradition of going out for breakfast/lunch on Friday mornings when we weren't working. They were always one of the highlights of my week :)

Highlight # 10

Seeing Taylor Swift

She was amazing. Enough said :)

Highlight # 11

Christmas

Christmas was wonderful. Even though my parents and sisters weren't here this year, I had a really lovely day celebrating with my grandparents and extended family. I was feeling particularly Christmassy too, partly due to the fact that I was watching so many people's Vlogmas videos on Youtube! (They're my secret guilty pleasure)

* * * 

All in all it was a pretty good year! I'm thinking about my New Years Resolutions now and how I can make 2014 even better!

Happy New Year!

Lots of Love

Lauren

xxx

Christmas Gift Ideas - For Her #2

I know it's getting a little late, but I thought I would quickly put up my final Gift Guide post seeing as I'd already made the collage!  These suggestions are probably more for the slightly younger, girly-girl :)

Soap and Glory - The Righteous Butter and Hand Food

Available from Kit Cosmetics, I'm sure that any "girly-girl" would enjoy something from Soap and Glory. These two products have the most amazing smell, are really moisturising, and also come in mini sizes so would make great stocking stuffers or just a nice gift if you're looking for something small. 

"Bird cage noticeboard" from Typo

I actually bought this for myself a couple of weeks ago with the intention of using it to store necklaces and earrings. It's currently sitting propped up against the wall as I haven't had a chance to hang it up, but once I do I'm sure it will get a lot of use! I think it would make a really nice gift - something a little bit different and quirky.

A Cute Mug and Tea

A cute mug paired with some nice tea (or hot chocolate mix if they're not a tea lover) will always make a nice, useful gift. I particularly love to give T2 teas as presents because they have such an extensive selection (and they're packaged beautifully!). Myer has some really cute "Little Miss" mugs at the moment, and Typo has a nice selection too. 

A Nice Toiletries/Make-up Bag

Another cute but useful gift. There's not much more to say about it!

A Lush Gift Set

Lush does some really lovely gift sets over Christmas and if you're shopping for a beauty lover I don't think you could really go wrong with one of these. I would just say that you do need to know what kind of scents the person likes, as some of the lush scents are quite strong.

A Fluffy Blanket

I mentioned this in my last Gift Guide (For Him). A super soft, fluffy blanket is always nice. Probably more appropriate for those in the Northern hemisphere though, seeing as it's a little too warm here for blankets!

A Wall Print

This one is from Typo. Just be a little cautious with this one because you don't want to pick something that will clash with the rest of their decor! (I'd probably save this kind of gift for my sister because I know what she likes and what would go in her room). 

Anyway, that's it for now. You can click

here

for links to where you can find these things.  

Hope you enjoyed!

Lauren

xxx

My Style Diary - Summer Cocktail

Hello!

It feels like it's been a while since my last post! The past few weeks feel like they've kind of whizzed by in a bit of a blur. I guess it's just that time of the year where everything gets a little crazy.

Tonight I finally had a chance to relax and unwind, and just have some "me time".

That's one of the problems about being an introvert. As much as I love catching up with friends, I can never feel truly relaxed and re-energised unless I have a little bit of time on my own... 

Anyway, I've had that time tonight, and now I'm feeling much better.

It's amazing what your surroundings can do to help de-stress you too. I went on a bit of a cleaning rampage this morning before work, as the house was a little cluttered and was just making me feel very tense. When there's mess around, I can never completely relax. It feels like my mind is just whirring around and around... but now that everything's all nice and neat I feel so much more calm. (I may or may not have just a touch of OCD :p ). I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels like that though? 

Moving on...

I'd nearly forgotten I took these photos. They're from a couple of weeks ago when I went to a friends "Summer Cocktail" themed 21st. It was such a fun night, and a perfect chance to break out this Free People dress that I found when I was in New York a few years ago. This dress reminds me of an amazing trip, and of my friend Alex who was such a good sport tagging along and being very patient as I did a ridiculous amount of shopping. I remember we were in Bloomingdales when I picked this up (and I went a little bit crazy in the Free People section). It's a shame there's no store here in Perth... ordering online just isn't quite the same!

Anyway, I really love this dress - the cream colour and the details of the fabric are really beautiful. I also love the low back and the high-low hemline. The only problem is it requires rather a lot of Hollywood Tape to keep everything in place, so it's a little bit of a fuss to wear! 

Ah well, you can't have everything! 

I hope you're enjoying your Friday night!

Lots of Love

Lauren

xxx

Dress - Free People

Wedges - Aldo

Necklace - Thomas Sabo (borrowed from my Mum!)