New Year's Resolutions...

I KNOW that many of you think New Year's Resolutions are silly and a waste of time. However, I am an optimist! So get over yourselves and read my list :)

1) I want to get my passport stamped in at least three countries I have never been to before.

*My favorite photo of 2012... I was in San Francisco, I had just bought this dress new and I had absolutely no commitments apart from to enjoy myself in my favorite country. I was literally carefree. Wishing for more times like these in 2013 please!*

A Somewhat Belated Merry Christmas and Haul...

Merry Christmas beauties!

I know I'm slightly late wishing you a Merry Christmas, but what are you going to do about it? I was too busy scoffing all the treats my Dad bought, looking through all of my brilliant presents and drinking myself into merriness. So I'm sure you can let me off for not posting on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day or Boxing Day... can't you?

*Proof of the scoffing...*

Happy Graduation GabriellaSofia!

It happened... it finally happened, I graduated! And I absolutely can't believe it.

I actually missed my official graduation back in June because I went on my USA road trip but this nearly broke my poor mom's heart, so I got my butt in gear and decided to do graduation in December rather than missing it all together.

For those of you who have followed my page for quite some time, you will know that university became a real struggle for me towards the end as I just couldn't hack the pressure. It basically turned me into a miserable, nervous wreck because there were just so many people telling me that if I didn't do well I wouldn't get a good job or might disappoint my family that it almost made me ill with worry. Even during my last exam, I literally just thought to myself, 'Why am I even here???' and almost got up and left! Nonetheless, I pushed myself to stay and finish the exam and I now have a 2.1 in English Literature from the University of Birmingham. And I have the pictures to prove it...

*Look how lovely and red brick the buildings are! Got to love them!*

The Clothes Show Live 2012 Review

A couple of weeks ago, I got my stuff together and head to Birmingham (AGAIN) to go to my second ever Clothes Show Live experience. Having been kindly offered a press pass once again I thought it would be a great opportunity to go and pick up a few bits and bobs to give as Christmas, so off I went!

I must be completely honest... Last year, I didn't enjoy the Clothes Show Live all that much at all, purely because I found it too chaotic, full of brands I rarely purchase from and just very overwhelming. The fashion show itself was the main redeeming feature with a department store theme. This year I found the overall feel of The Clothes Show to be slightly different. The brands in the beauty section were better (in that they had more products on offer and seemed far from selling out), the deals seemed to be more cost effective and the general atmosphere felts a lot more relaxed than last year. The fashion show on the other hand was really quite average by comparison with that of 2011... Here is my Clothes Show Live 2012 story...

*On with the show!*

January Sales Scouting: Paperchase

During my time in London a couple of weeks ago I found the enormous Paperchase store based on Tottenham Court Road and I just fell in love with, well, everything! The entire store was so gorgeously decorated for Christmas and the ornaments and trees on sale were so sparkly and beautiful that I was so disappointed at the fact that I really don't have enough money to spend on glittery items which are only really appropriate during December. So I came up with this idea, that I'm going to bide my time, keeping my eye all the while on the different bits and bobs that will make me a much happier person, and buy them all as soon as they go on sale in January. I've done this with a few shops recently because it is breaking my heart spending all my money on other people. Yes, I went there.

Anyway, here are a few snaps of the store, so hopefully you will be able to understand how I've been taken in by the unique stationers...

*The shop window enticed me in. I couldn't help it*

Hotel Russell Review

This week just gone my company happened to send me to my second favourite city in the world so far (Los Angeles is my first) LONDON! As I would be based on Tottenham Court Road for three days, the company booked me into a nearby hotel... Hotel Russell is a 373 bedroom situated in the picturesque Russell Square, not a five minute journey from the Russell Square tube station. Upon walking into the hotel, I genuinely thought my company had made a mistake and thought that a director was going to London instead of me, because it was so grand and majestic!

*Impressive, right?*

Doing Our Bit For Charidee: The Rebel Bear Band

I haven't written a Doing Our Bit for Charidee post recently, which I'd like to make a monthly thing of in 2013 because I think it is really important to offer whatever help we can give to those that need it. This post is about a group of bands local to my area who are so compassionate, innovative and driven that they have actually collaborated with one another to write, produce and promote their very own Christmas single of which all the proceeds will be donated to the Joe Gilligan Trust.

Click 'Play' on this video and once it has started playing, read the rest of this post...

Selfridges Spring/Summer 2013 Bloggers Preview

Isn't December just manic??? I have been so busy collecting top class blog content that I haven't had enough time to actually write the posts! Anyway, it is the thought that counts right? And it is better late than never, so here we go...

On December 5th I was lucky enough to have the afternoon booked off work as annual leave, so I hopped on a train and headed to Birmingham's Selfridges Spring/Summer 2013 Preview for bloggers. I attended the same event last year simply because I invited myself when a fellow blogger had to cancel. Last year was fantastic fun and I met some brilliant girls, so I knew it would soon become and annual must-do. 

*My face-of-the-day was pretty simple to be honest... I did a more pronounced brow than usual, put on more mascara, my MAC Frankly Scarlett blusher, MAC New York Apply lippy in the Frost finish and when I noticed I had a nasty zit to the left of my nose which was refusing to be concealed, I decided to disguise it as a Cindy Crawford-esque beauty spot with the help of my MAC Brun eye shadow*

Ted Baker Workshop Men's Accessories Line...

About six weeks ago I received an invite to the launch of Ted Baker's Pop Up menswear accessories line entitled Workshop. As a lady who is constantly walking around moaning about guys who wear slogan t-shirts and terrible jeans, I figured I'd go along to learn about the alternative menswear options. So I hopped on a train to Birmingham and wandered on up to the Ted Baker concession in Selfridges. 

I was immediately accosted by a rather handsome-looking salesman, smartly clad in a suit and apron (inkeeping with the 'Workshop' theme I assume...) proffering glasses of bubbly. I politely accepted one and got stuck into looking through the collection... 

*The pop-up presentation rack full of bags, folders, iPad cases, wallets and laptop carriers*

Getting the Most From A Powder When You've Hit Pan

There are numerous terrible things about hitting pan on your favorite powder beauty products... the three worst are:

1) Knowing that your product is running out and that you're going to have to spend money on a replacement
2) Wondering whether you will even be able to find the same item in store because beauty companies just love discontinuing desirable items for some reason
3) Not being able to access the product as you used to with a normal powder brush

These were my thoughts exactly when I spotted the silver circle beginning to grow in the bottom of my pink Coralista box blush by benefit. Rather than crying and throwing all of my toys out of the pram though, I decided to make the most of my remaining product by turning it into a loose powder (which usually has better colour pay-off than baked powders in my opinion anyway) and re-potting it into a little container which I actually managed to get free from benefit once with a foundation sample in it. Here's how I did it...

*Step 1: I took the boxed powder and a blusher brush*

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree, How Lovely Are Your Branches...

Call us crazy, but my family and I put up our Christmas tree on the 25th of November this year. We usually like to get it up (oo-er) on the first weekend of December, but as we're going on a weekend away to Brighton and London during that weekend and the following weekend is The Clothes Show, we just figured we'd rather get it up (and I repeat, OO-ER) sooner rather than later...

Usually we go for a really tall tree but this year we decided to go with a slightly shorter one as it usually stands beside our sofa which covers the bottom part. That means we're usually spending an extra £20 for the part of the tree we can't even see! This year, I chose a tree which must be a couple of feet at least shorter than we would normally choose as I had an idea that we could stand it on a little table in the corner of our living room. Genius.

We have gone with the same colour scheme as last year as it matches our furniture, lampshades and curtains... So we got out our fairy lights, our purple and gold baubles, our sparkly gold snowflakes, the gold angel's hair and the all important gold star and set to decorating! Here's the end result:

Although putting the tree on a table was a good idea, my Mom didn't like how the table looked, so we draped a red and green table cloth over it at first. We've since changed this for a gold sheet because the table cloth didn't match.

A UK Thanksgiving Meal...

Hello there Starshine!

No, I haven't gone insane and convinced myself that I'm an American. However, as my family holidays a lot in the USA, part of my family is based over there and my Mom comes from the Dominican Repubic (a country with a lot of American influence) we decided to throw together a lovely thanksgiving meal on the 22nd of November.

I'm not sure about you guys but apart from 'a turkey' we weren't quite sure what else goes into a thanksgiving meal so we took to the Good Food channel to watch the Barefoot Contessa and a bunch of other American chefs create their own meal. We settled on a few different sides and two types of meat as we didn't want to go with a traditional turkey because we were worried it might ruin our Christmas dinner having such a similar meal within the same season. The menu was as follows...

Turkey Wellington

Barbecue Pork Chops 

Green Beans Cooked With Bacon, Onions and Garlic

Macaroni Cheese

Sweet Potato Mash with Melted Marshmallows

Potato Salad

Cranberry Apple Chutney

Turkey Gravy

 *Oh yeahhhhhhh*

My December Planned...

Hello lovelies,

So I know I haven't been as devoted to my lovely blog as much as I should have been over the past few months, but that would be primarily because I have been so busy with work, my boyfriend and my family that I've barely found a moment to breath! However, my temporary contract as a Recruitment Consultant at Phones 4u finishes on the 21st of December and as I've saved most of my holidays for the end of my contract, I only actually have four full days in the office before I finish for good. This, combined with the face the it is December and there are tons of fun bloggables coming up, means that you will be seeing many more posts within the next month or so. I just wanted to let you know what to expect so here my December plan...

1st December - I'm going to Brighton with my parents, sister and boyfriend for the day. I've never been before, but I hear the shopping is pretty awesome down there in terms of kitschy one-offs so I'm hoping to get quite a bit of Christmas shopping done... I've never been to the coast in winter, so that should be fun.

*Brighton at Christmas*

2nd December - My family, boyfriend and I will be in London for the day, so I'm hoping to have a mooch around Carnaby Street and Harrods as I'm sure the Christmas decorations will be beautiful...

*Carnaby Street at Christmas*

5th December - The annual Bullring Selfridges Christmas Bloggers Event will be taking place in Birmingham. So I've booked off work from about 12.45pm and I'm hoping to nip into Tony and Guy or Umberto Giannini for a trim and blow dry in preparation.

*Me at last year's Selfridges bloggers event*

7th December - I've booked this off work as I will be going to my graduation at the University of Birmingham. After I've graduated, my family and I are all going to eat some place lovely in Birmingham. Nom gobble.

*The University of Birmingham in the snow...*

8th December - The Clothes Show Live have kindly offered me a press pass for the event, so I will be taking the train to the NEC in Birmingham and watching the fashion shows and (hopefully) purchasing a lot of beauty bits... expect a haul video!

*Eeeeeeeep... can't wait for the Barry M stall!*

9th December - I'll be taking the train down to London as I'm going to be spending three days working in the Phones 4u Tottenham Court Road store so that I can get a feel for the field that I have been recruiting for. I'll be checking into my hotel and grabbing some dinner before settling down for an early night in preparation for my three hard-working days in a bustling retail store at the busiest time of year.

*I haven't worked in retail for ages... I can't wait for my Phones 4u store experience!*

10th December - Working at Phones 4u and maybe hooking up for some dinner and drinks with my friend Louise.

11th December - Working at Phones 4u and maybe hooking up for some dinner and drinks with my friend Jayne.

12th December - Working at Phones 4u and going for a mooch around the shops at night before returning to my hotel for the a good night's sleep so that I'm not TOTALLY exhausted for my trek back to Stoke-on-Trent the following morning.

13th December - I will be journeying back to Stoke-on-Trent. I'll be back in the office for a couple of hours before leaving at 3.15pm as I've booked the rest of that afternoon off as holiday.

17th December - The Phones 4u Recruitment and Development Christmas Conference will be held from 9.30am at some swanky Carden Park in Chester. The evening will be full of dinner, drinks and merriment.

*Doesn't Carden Park just look lovely?*

24th December - I will be going to church with my lovely boyfriend and my family if they wish to come, followed by eating a delicious meal at home of ham and pork and potato salad and all kinds of yumminess! Before going to bed I will be allowed to open one present which Santa Claus has dropped off a day early. It will be pyjamas. Without fail.

25th December - Christmas Day is always my favourite day of the year. It is the one day out of the whole year where calories really don't count. We are having my Grandma and Grandad round for Christmas this year, so it should be a right jolly old feast. NOM.

*Me last year on Christmas Day*

So those are the major plans I have so far... However, I've also booked the 14th, 19th, 20th and 21st off work and would ideally like to take those days to go to the Birmingham Christmas market, the Trafford Centre and Trentham Gardens. Plus, I haven't been clubbing in months and even though I don't usually enjoy it that much, I feel like I miss it a little, so I'm going to try and get a night out in before Christmas and maybe even one on New Year's Eve if my boyfriend, sister and friends fancy it...

As you can see, I will be a busy bee. However, I fully expect to have enough time and content to blog throughout December...

What are your plans for the festive season? Have you done all of your Christmas shopping yet? Is your Christmas wardrobe planned? I'm having a nightmare trying to think of what to wear for all of these busy busy days!

Love and snuggles
GabriellaSofia
x

I've Been An Awful Good Girl, Santa Baby...

Dear Santa Claus,

This year I have completed my degree, travelled the United States alone and started my first real-life grown-up job. I have spent plenty of time with my grandparents, my cousins, my mom, dad and sister and I have always been kind to strangers in the street. As ever, I have been a good girl all year round, so I have a couple of requests for you... I hope you don't mind.

I would a select few of the following make-up artistry books (all of which are available on Amazon and I don't even mind if they have been pre-loved!)...

I would like the following makeup bits and bobs...

The Coastal Scents 252 Ultimate Eye Shadow Palette (available on Amazon)

My favourite benefit perfume, So Hooked on Carmella

The Coastal Scents Eclipse Concealer Palette (available on Amazon)

The Coastal Scents 10 Piece Professional Blush Palette (available on Amazon)

Anything and everything from the Trevor Sorbie Beautiful Volume collection (available from Boots)

A couple of clear, acrylic, drawer-storage makeup boxes (available on eBay)

A clear acrylic lipstic container (available on eBay)

The Real Techniques Core Collection of Makeup Brushes (available from Boots)

The Real Techniques Stippling Brush (available from Boots)

I would love a Company magazine subscription

Clothes-wise anything in my Mona Lisa Vito blog post would do just fine :)

And finally, I would like an ABUNDANCE of chocolate. Like, literally, I want to eat so much chocolate I nearly throw up and then when I feel that way, I'll let it go down and eat more.

As I say, I have been an extremely good girl this year, hence why I believe I deserve a few surprises from my list. Also, Santa, if you fancy throwing in some bits of Topshop jewelry, a Glasto ticket and a brand new Samsung Galaxy, I promise I will do ALL KINDS OF charity work next year :) Promises!

Thanks a bunch SantyClaus!

Love and snuggles
GabriellaSofia
x

Outfit of the Day: Christmas Fayre

Hello festive bunnies!

Here's a cute winter outfit for ya'll... Could have done with a scarf as I spent most of the day freezing my nick-nacks off but you know, we all get it wrong sometimes...

I always love to get excited about Christmas far too early and this year has been no exception! My family decided to throw together a Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday and ever since then I'm in a really super-festive mood, so it was rather convenient that my old school was running their annual Christmas fayre this weekend. My boyfriend, his mother and I threw on our gladrags (in my case, a red bodycon from Forever 21, my sisters Topshop Tinie Tempah vest, her Topshop coat, my navy Dorothy Perkins tights and my khaki Forever 21 booties) and braced ourselves for smashing the tombola...

And we did :)

We managed to get all of this for just £17!!!

Not bad eh? I think it will become a bit of a Christmas tradition to us as we probably won't need to buy another bottle of wine until the New Year... CLEARED UP :) One of these bottles was worth £10 from Morrisons and another was worth £7. Most of them were worth over £4 so we saved quite a wedge of money. Great success.

I have lots of blog-related Christmas plans so stay tuned over the festive season as I will be working hard to do regular posts.

Do you have any Christmas traditions? What have you been wearing in the colder months? Would you have hated us for winning most of the bottles on the tombola table?

Love and snuggles

GabriellaSofia

x

Blog Sale: Topshop, Abercrombie and Fitch, Miss Selfridge, Delia's, Gap, Forever 21, American Eagle and River Island

Hello Cheeky Bunnies :)

So I could do with making a bit of money at the moment because I'm planning another travelling excursion. On top of all that, I did a serious hunt through all of my clothes (as my room is full of them!) and realized I have so many items which deserve good owners who will give them the wearing they well and truly deserve... As much as it kills me, these are the first few items which I am going to sell:

My Size 10 Gap Shorts are really nice and good quality. However, they are a little big for me... to be honest, I'd say they are closer to a size 12, which is why I've listed them as such. I tried them on a couple of times but never wore them because they were a little too baggy. My friend tried them on once and I was amazed by how they can hug the right body in all the best places... her big butt looked great in them! The bids start at £0.99.

I'd always wanted a pair of these Topshop Hot Pants so I snapped them right up in the sale. Sadly, these too ended up being closer to a size 12 than a 10 so didn't fit me like I wanted them to. They are sexy with a relatively high waist and they show a nice bit of butt cheek if you have the right figure :P The bids start at £0.99.

These Grey Short Shorts from American Eagle would look awesome with a crisp white t-shirt and flip-flops or gladiator sandals. Once again, these shorts were slightly too big for me, so would fit a size 12 comfortably... Are you sensing a pattern here? I have a thing about girls with big butts in short shorts haha :) They are super flattering and show off the curves which you know you have! Bidding starts at £0.99.

This Abercrombie and Fitch Denim Mini Skirt is one of the things which hurts me the most to get rid of, as every time I've seen it in my drawer I've wanted to wear it, and I've tried it on a few times. However, it has just been one of those things I've never got round to wearing so I've decided enough is enough and I'm sure there is someone out there who would wear it as often as it deserves! This skirt would fit a UK size 10 the best and would look great with some sky-scraper wedges on a holiday. The bidding starts at £0.99.

I feel like a stuck record but these Yellow Floral Delia's Shorts were such beauties when I spotted them in the States but they just don't fit right :( These are for girls with a size 10 waist and a size 12 butt as they felt a little loose on me. I love the intricate floral design though and they would look great with a pair of booties and a blazer for winter. Unsurprisingly, the bidding starts at just £0.99.

These Miss Selfridge Floral Denim Shorts are just too cute. I'm just gutted to be selling these but they just don't fit :( I tried on the size 10 in store and they were a little too snug so just went ahead and purchased the 12's but when I got them home I found them too large. Its a real shame because I thought they'd look great for festivals this summer with wellies, but it just never happened :( The bidding starts at £0.99.

This Lacy Topshop Crop Top looked absolutely gorgeous on the hanger in store, but as a bigger busted lady I have to admit it really wasn't very flattering for me as it just made my boobs look overwhelming! Its a great item for a chick wanting to draw more attention up-top though as it gives the impression of a bigger bust. Plus, the lacy embroidery is just so cute. It will fit a size 10 best. Bids start at £0.99. 

This Floral Cotton Mini Dress from Topshop is so comfy as a simple throw-over during the summer. It looks equally good with heels and a denim jacket for the evening though. It will fit a size 10 best as the elastic waist can make things a little uncomfortable as it could cut into anyone bigger. I've never worn this but was always saving it for a day when my legs would be brown... Sad times! The bidding starts at £0.99

This little Topshop White Lace Vest Top is one of those things that I've bought in the pas thinking, 'Ahhh that will look amazing with skinny jeans' and in the heat of all the excitement I forgot one major thing... I DON'T WEAR JEANS. Idiot brains. Anyway, it will fit a size 12 the best, but looks cute and slouchy on a size 10 frame too. The bidding starts at £0.99.

As you can see this Pastel Green River Island Top actually still has its tag attached because once upon a time I thought I had a belly worth showing off... Whoops! HAHAHA :) Just kidding, we all know tops like this look awesome with high waisted skirts, shorts and jeans but to be honest, its just not my style... I've never owned anything in this colour before and don't really know how to work it. I'm sure you can though! Will be comfiest on a size 10 but would suit a size 12 too. Bidding starts at £0.99 

This Full Topshop Mini Skirt can be so adorable with a tiny cropped t-shirt, a belt and heels. The reddy-pinky polka dots MAKE this skirt worth wearing. Plus its really short which automatically makes it sexy, but with it being quite a full skirt too it moves in an amazing way... You all know the feeling you used to get when you spin and your skirt flies up and you feel like a naughty princess... that's the feeling you'll get with this skirt on. It will fit a size 10 most comfortably. Start your bids at £0.99.

Another one of my favourites, especially for autumn/winter, is this Forever 21 Floral Mini Skirt. I bought it in the States last summer and literally forgot I had it. It will fit a size 10 perfectly and looks good with an autumn coloured blazer (I know this because that is how the mannequin was dressed in store!) Wish I had clothes to wear with this :( Start the bidding at £0.99

This Purple Jersey Skirt from Topshop is great to pull on over a bikini on your holidays. I bought it about a year before I went on my next holiday though, so by the time I was next by the beach my style had changed. If I was to wear it I'd probably go with a plain white t-shirt, a pale denim boyfriend shirt and a pair of white pump shoes. The skirt would be most comfortable for a size 10. And you've guessed it... the bids start at (any guesses?) £0.99

My boyfriend nearly died when I emptied my carboot into his house telling him I had 'a few bits to sell on eBay' bless him! He literally stood with his hand over his mouth shaking his head saying, 'Are you selling on eBay or moving in???' (which I should discuss with him really because he shouldn't be so concerned about that concept really... but that's a topic for another blog post entirely!) And yet, I knew I had to get rid of these things, so please if you can help take them off my hands in any way it would be really much appreciated! Each of the items are in very good condition (I take good care of my clothes... they are my babies!) and they are all clean. Also, if you decide to purchase any of these bits on eBay please send me pics of you wearing them because I'm really interested to see how you would style them up! This is my first ever eBay selling experience, so let's make it a good one...

Have you had much luck selling on eBay in the past? Can you think of a more profitable way of getting rid of unworn clothes? Do you see anything you like here?

To buy, please click on any of the links above and please keep an eye out for my next Blog Sale blog post which should be up in about a week. Happy bidding!

Love and snuggles

GabriellaSofia