3 year break over

So after an extended sabbatical from blogging I am happy to say I’m back! The reason for my hiatus was a culmination of things but with a clearer direction of where I want my blog to go I’m raring to get back into it. This time I’m doing things for me, I have my own style and point of view: there are loads of bloggers I admire and previously I felt pressured that I wasn’t stylish enough or trendy enough. Now I say bugger that! The whole reason I started blogging in the first place was to document my ramblings and I lost sight of that. In the time I’ve been away it seems that blogging has changed, for the better in my opinion: there seems to be more of a shift in empowering each other and accepting that everyone is different. I’m not going to get stressed out by site views or if I’m invited to swanky events etc. I had thought about starting a brand new blog but this one was my baby for so long and I feel I’ve come such a long way that it should become evident quite quickly with new posts versus my old posts. Now it’s about saying my piece (hopefully somewhat eloquently) and posting random photos.

 

With that in mind this photo was taken by my 11 year old niece yesterday, I spy a future in photography when she’s older! No photoshop, editing or filter: I’m thankful for natural lighting.

My niece was amazing and didn’t mind taking 8 different photos until she got this shot, in fact she ended up giving me some direction!

My mind is already brimming with ideas for blog posts so I need to sort out a schedule for blogging and stick to it. Any tips??

Lastly I’d like to say thanks to those that have inspired me to get back into blogging , love you guys x

One(sie) Love

Yup it’s that time of the year with the dark nights drawing in and the temperatures rapidly dropping that I reach for the onesie to keep me cosy warm at night. My sister bought me one 2 years ago for Christmas and it’s safe to say I love it. Not the most attractive but ever so comfy. The only downside to wearing a onesie is having to unzip to pee. Oh and looking like an overgrown toddler/tellytubby!

I bought the bestest a pink patterned onesie from TK Maxx as a Christmas gift last year and we have decided to buy each other ones this year.

Here’s a look at the best around the web that I’ve found:

BHS £25

Next £32

Matalan £14

George @ Asda £14

I’m particularly drawn to the Matalan one. I would just like to state that I would NEVER venture out of the house wearing one of these, strictly for lounging/sleeping in.

Are you a fan of the infamous onesie?

Random Things That Annoy Me… Part 1 (of many)

I don’t know if it’s the change in the weather or because I’m so tired from working non stop but I’ve been such a grumpy cow lately and here is a list of the things that have been bugging me:

1. Side zips – I’ve never been a fan of side zips after having to get cut out of a dress years ago when the zip completely stuck. They never close properly even though the dress fits. I purchased this In Love With Fashion dress with the intention of wearing it to a bloggers event but again the zip wont fasten over the seam.

2. Couples who go lingerie shopping and have overly passionate PDAs – OK, we get it, you have sex. I do NOT need to see you snogging each others faces off at the till point while I’m serving you.

3. Not being able to wear tartan – as a Scottish blogger I fear I’d look like a cliché

4. Books I love being turned into movies – I inevitably end up screaming at the screen “that’s not how it happens in the book”

5.  Being crap at putting on nail polish – It dries completely, I’m just sitting there doing NOTHING for it to chip and then all of a sudden, boom! chips galore

6. Winter– Go to work, it’s dark. Leave work, it’s dark.

7.  Being asked what is wrong with me because I’m single – it’s my life, get the fuck over it!

8. Everyone banging on about bloody pumpkin spiced lattes – not everybody likes coffee, make a seasonal beverage for us tea drinkers Starbucks

9. Taxi drivers who take the piss – erm just cos I’m on my phone doesn’t mean I haven’t noticed you trying to take the long route mister

10. Mundane Statuses– Those folk on Facebook who update constantly with every single thought the have. Bugger off already

I have many more pet hates but I’ll get around to posting them later.

Back to looking at pretty dresses that I can’t afford to cheer me up… or not!

L     x

Related articles

• In Which A Tartan Dress Creates Discord (stylonylon.com)

August Round-Up

It’s been quiet on the blog front lately but that’s because I’ve been a busy little bee this past month with seeing a few shows at the Edinburgh fringe and still trying to get used to working 2 jobs. Enough of the excuses though – on to photos of my life from August:

Yay! I FINALLY managed to get my hands on the Clinique Super City Block. Had been trying to track it down for months but it was sold out everywhere. Eventually managed to buy it from Debenhams during one of their sale days so only spent £17.30 on it 🙂

As someone who has ridiculously pale skin (i may have mentioned before I have the skin of a ginger but not the hair colour) the SPF 40 means I can wear my sunglasses without running the risk of getting panda eyes which I inevitably do every year.

LOVE this photo of me and the bestest. A catch up in the pub, she called my outfit – black and white printed H&M trousers, black Johnny Cash t-shirt and vintage black bowler hat – “interesting” which meant she hated it however I don’t care, I like that outfit. Only a true friend can say shit like that to you without causing offense!

Hotel Chocolat Mojito truffles – possibly the tastiest thing I’ve ever eaten. There is a Hotel Chocolat not far from my work but I have resisted going in very often due to the ever-expanding waistline issue.

Such an attractive face to make

 

Sick of my hair colour and fancying a change I opted to go blonde however my hair is a pain in the arse to colour and I ended up with bright orange roots – such a good look. My hair dresser then buggered off on holiday (jammy cow) and I had to resort to half a tin of dry shampoo each day just to lighten it. It has since been fixed.

There is mixed opinions on my new colour. One of the most bizarre comments has been that I look like a “chubby version of Helen Flanagan” needless to say I wasn’t overly pleased about the chubby part but was more upset about the Helen Flanagan part! Yes I can be ditzy but I sincerely hope I don’t come across as brain-dead as she did on I’m A Celeb.

I just don’t see it! What’s more disturbing is that people in the pub I work in are now calling me Helen. Perhaps it is time to go a bit darker again although I think my hairdresser may kill me considering it took about 8 hours in all to get my hair all the one (non orange) shade.

I had a brilliant and rather drunken night out in a gay club with a couple of friends recently where I danced my socks off and ended up with a bit of a fan club! Rubbish photos but fantastic night out. I went straight from work so wearing a basic black New Look dress, my snake skin Guess heels and zebra print Julien Macdonald clutch bag. During August most pubs and clubs in Edinburgh have a late licence due to the Fringe festival. It seemed like such a good idea to go out until 5a,m however my hangover when working in the pub the next again day reminded me I am an actual idiot sometimes!

Festival wise I was lucky enough to see both Chris Ramsey and Jason Byrne, was in stitches at the Chris Ramsey show. Also went on our annual excursion to see The Ladyboys Of Bangkok with several family members, we never fail to have a great time. I spent most of the show deliberating which body parts I wanted from each of the cast members. Bad times when you are jealous of a man’s body! And slightly disturbing how much I coveted alot of the costumes.

Insane face with the momma. She’s sick of the sight of me wearing that hat.

There’s a reason for this. I just can’t remember why. Standard behaviour for our nights out.

My partner in crime, Ashley, and I decided to drink bottles of Prosecco all night, luckily there was no hangovers in the morning.

I’m sure there’s been much more happened but as I have the attention span of a goldfish…….

L  x

July RoundUp

July has been a fabby month – glorious weather, trip to London, lots of animals and birthday fun 🙂

Here’s what it looked like in picture form:

I’m putting weight back on and I blame my lack of will power when it comes to yummy puddings!

My niece and I had a blast at Edinburgh Zoo one very sunny day. Our impromptu trip ended up costing me a fortune but we had bags of fun so it was all worth it. My particular favourite animals are the tigers but I didn’t manage to get a decent photo. Thankfully Mya wasn’t bothered about seeing the pandas, just as well as all the bookings were sold out.

The weather was scorching and despite wearing SPF 25 I still managed to get burnt

That white banana shaped mark is from my necklace – I’m so smart sometimes.

Yet more London photos! I HAD to buy Laduree macarons, also tried some from Fortnum and Mason too. The caramel filled churro is without doubt the best food I have ever eaten. It was from one of the food stalls at Greenwich market. I would quite happily be the size of a house if I could live off these for the rest of my days!

SpencerClothing have named a skirt after me! They’ve named pieces from their newest collection after some of their Twitter followers which I think is a great idea. I’m ever so pleased with the skirt and am coveting quite a few of the other pieces. SpencerClothing design ladieswear right here in Edinburgh and as I’m very much in support of local businesses I’ve been following these guys on Twitter for quite a while. Feel like I kinda HAVE to buy my namesake skirt now 😉

Yet more goodies from JiJi KiKi. This time I opted for the Jewellery lucky bag. Worth £20 but only costing a tenner you get a random selection of jewellery and I was impressed with the quality of the pieces especially the necklaces. I couldn’t wait to wear the camera necklace and have rarely taken it off since receiving it.

A zoo trip and a safari park trip in one month. I was more excited than half the little kids at Blair Drummond Safari Park. It’s been a few years since I was last there, I have some great memories of visiting as a child. Most memorable was years ago when my little brother, who’s now 20 but we never let him forget this, shouted out “look at the dancing camels” needless to say the camels weren’t actually dancing but getting fresh with each other. The big cats are my favourite animals and we repeated “Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!” over and over again. The sea lion show was fantastic and as we were there for my niece’s 6th birthday I asked the show’s host if he could mention it. He did one better than mention it, he had the audience sing happy birthday to a mortified Mya although she did love the sea lions for barking along.

Yes I was made to go on the pedalos despite me wearing heels and struggling to get into the damn boat. The life jacket was a struggle to get fastened over my boobs and it didn’t help when my darling niece announced (loudly) “oh LeeLee just get the man’s one, that’ll fit over your big boobs” Out of the mouths of babes and all that. I do love this photo though, the look of concentration on her face is so cute and we are both holding the same position.

Proving yet again what a proper little mini-me she is, Mya chose this unicorn “tattoo” all by herself. It’s amazing, I was sorely tempted to get one for myself. We both had a little nap in the car coming back from the safari park. Stirling isn’t very far from Edinburgh but all that playing at the awesome park must have knackered us out.

With cake and lollipop trees like these I want it to be MY birthday!

A busy and fun filled month, I’ve loved July. It’s also my bestest’s birthday month but we are waiting until the 9th for her birthday night out. I’m expecting carnage. And a 3 day hangover.

What have you been up to this past month? Any recommendations for avoiding hangovers?!

L     x

Related articles

• Edinburgh Zoo celebrates 100 years since the gates first opened (news.stv.tv)
• Greenwich Market (jacklikeslondon.wordpress.com)

People Be Crazy

It looks like Summer has officially arrived and today saw highs of 21 degrees in Edinburgh. Unfortunately I was working all day and only managed to soak up some rays and a much-needed dose of vitamin D during my lunch break. I sat in Princes Street gardens and admired many handsome topless men (cos I’m a perv like that) when a sight you don’t see every day came strolling towards me – a boychild wearing the shortest shorts I’ve ever had the misfortune to witness. I wish I’d taken a photo but my brain was in shock at the sight before me! Seriously these shorts looked like hotpants more commonly seen on hookers in movies. It’s not as even though he had a particular good physique.

Imagine a fatter version of this topless

He had obviously styled his look on Joey Essex of TOWIE fame, a look no one should ever replicate.  The guy was just casually wandering along listening to music through ridiculously large headphones, not a care in the world and oblivious to the incredulous looks from those around him.

On my way home I then encountered another guy in a bizarre ensemble, this time a guy in his 50s wearing a wolf fleece. No the weather hadn’t changed dramatically, the sun was still splitting the stones, but this guy was wearing a fleece. Not just a fleece but a WOLF fleece! I’ve seen these fleeces worn before, god awful things even in winter but mind-boggling on a day like today.

Not the exact fleece but close enough!

Now I’m all for animal print clothing but this is an assault on the eyeballs.

Surely there must be a happy medium between the 2 extremes I witnessed today? Is it the sunshine frazzling people’s’ brains that makes them dress strangely? Have you witnessed any bizarre outfits this summer?

L       x