The Fortnightly One #6

25 June 2014

"Apply" - The Products
My fond favourite Revlon ColourBurst Lip Butter in 'Sweet Tart' has been temporarily replaced by its hotter big sister - 'Raspberry Pie'. I won't go into too much detail about these as they've been big on the scene for a while now, but they're really good. With their tendency to melt in your bag on hot days aside, the buttery formula is simply unbeatable.


"Watch" - The Films, Series & YouTube
Let's talk American Hustle. The accents, the clothes, the soundtrack... j'adore ça. My girl crush on the babe of life that is Jennifer Lawrence grew after she whipped her bouffant around with Marigold's on to Live & Let Die, I had serious hair envy over Amy Adams' silky waves, the image of Bradley Cooper in those pink curlers will never leave my mind and I can't stop listening to Duke Ellington - "who starts a song like that?" Well worth a watch.


As Fargo has been put on hold until Will and I are reunited, I've turned to an old and well loved favourite of mine - Dexter. Rapidly making my way through eight seasons in my first year of university, there has been a dark-passenger void in my life since and one sleepless night I decided to start again from Season One. Best decision ever.


P.S. Is it morbid that I kinda want this chronological poster of Dexter's victims? 

Whilst we're on the topic of serial killers, I watched American Psycho again last week and came to the conclusion that Reese Witherspoon's reaction when Patrick Bateman breaks up with her is pretty much the same as when Warner Huntington III does. 


"Eat" - The Food
I talked about Zanna's 'Devilishly Delicious Guilt Free Treats' eBook (here) in my last post, and this fortnight has been no different - I just cannot get enough of her clean alternative recipes! My friend Josh and I whipped up her chocolate chip blondies and they may have even surpassed her Nutella brownies in the taste test, which is no mean feat. 


"Read" - The Books, Blogs & Magazines
I finished Broken by Karin Slaughter recently and thought it was pretty good, I enjoy a good whodunnit on the odd occasion and will probably start another of hers soon. Glamour magazine has been my choice of glossy for years, and their July issue - with Alexa and a free Eyeko liner, you know the one - proved a motivational read and afterwards, I felt enthused. Being mostly housebound shouldn't distinguish your ambition.

A few months ago, I 'met' Lydia from Lydia Rose on Instagram and have loved reading her blog ever since - with impeccable style and a sweetheart personality, she's one to watch and I'd like to take a moment to congratulate her on winning Best Personal Style Blog (Newcomer) at the Company Style Blogger Awards - a truly well-deserved win!


"Wear" - The Style, Sleepwear & Loungewear
Little white summer dresses. They're just so pretty. I've got a thing about white, dainty pieces and they just do it for me - especially if they have some broderie anglais going on. I'm currently lusting after this sundress from Revolve and this one from Topshop.



"Listen" - The Music
Thanks, American Hustle. Thank you, Ella.


"Inspire" - The Quotes


Of any of the above categories, what have you loved this fortnight?

Meg 

FOTN: Birthday Celebrations

17 June 2014

It was my wonderful Mum's birthday last week - love you, Mumma! - and although I sadly couldn't spend the day with her as I wasn't well enough to leave the house, I rested as much as possible and thankfully was able to join her and my family for a celebratory meal that night. With low energy levels to contend with I skipped the time (and spoon) consuming eyeshadow, liner and contour and opted for a minimal base with a pink lip.







Face

Cheeks

Eyes

Lips
Rimmel Apocalips lip lacquer 'Nova'

Earrings - Cath Kidston - here
I let my hair dry naturally - ain't nobody got spoons for hairdryers - and parted it in the middle, spritzing a little Aussie Dual Personality Texturising & Conditioning gel spray into the roots and giving it a quick tousle. Fuss-free and energy saving, Bob's your uncle.


























Which products or makeup look do you choose when you're low on time or energy?

Meg

P.S. Outfit of the Night coming soon!

Blue Sunday 2014

11 June 2014

It's the 11th of June, meaning that one month ago today I was donning a blue dress and arranging cupcakes in preparation for the Blue Sunday tea party fundraiser. If you aren't familiar with Blue Sunday, it's the brainchild of our lovely Anna this post explains the ins and outs - and basically involves eating cake and drinking tea to raise money for crucial biomedical research into ME, as well as all-important and much-needed awareness.

What I love most about Blue Sunday - apart from the cake, let's be real - is the inclusivity. With an 'anyone and everyone welcome' policy, hundreds of people joined in virtually by sharing their photos via social media or had their own tea party with loved ones. Donating what they would've paid in a cafe for a cup of tea and slice of cake, my family backed the cause - my mum made a coffee date with one of her best friends, my dad wore a blue shirt to show his support and my grandma got together with her neighbour for the occasion. 

Sick chicks version of a tea party - comfort is paramount!
As for me, I had the pleasure of spending the day with the (spoonie) sister I never had - Hayley. After talking daily for months, meeting her in person felt like we'd known each other for years and we ended up chatting for 4+ hours - safe to say, we were comparing our shaky hands and felt drunk with adrenaline by the time we said our goodbyes, but we had a lot of catching up to do! A beautiful person inside and out, she gave me the kindest and most thoughtful gift that I treasure - every chronically ill person needs a friend like Hayley.


Pre-cake


Post-cake!
My usually shy cat Tom took a liking to Hayley - maybe he has a soft spot for spoonies?
 I also feel a tremendous amount of love for Anna, who deserves the hugest round of applause and a million high-fives after such a successful, triumphant Blue Sunday 2014. Severely affected by ME yet raised almost £900 for the ME Association, brought empowerment (and more importantly, cake) to hundreds of sufferers and has been nominated for the Just Giving Awards? Your fellow spoonies couldn't be prouder, Anna.

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Anna's blog - Life in the Slow Lane with ME - see her videos of Blue Sunday here
Hayley's blog - Hayley-Eszti - read her post on Blue Sunday here and on our day here
Donate to Anna's JustGiving page for the ME Association here

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Bring on Blue Sunday 2015!

Meg

The Fortnightly One #5

7 June 2014

"Apply" - The Products
The love I feel for anything powder blue has banished all other colours from my spectrum, and I've been on the hunt for the perfect pale blue nail polish for a long time. The search ended - kind of - with Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine nail paint in 'Huckleberry' (£3.99). I say 'kind of' because it isn't quite perfection and - a little pedantically, I know - it looks too turquoise in some lights and aqua nails just ain't what I'm after... I'm after powder blue, people.

'Huckleberry' in action - May Favourites - read here
"Watch" - The Films, Series & YouTube
Will and I rapidly made our way through seven episodes of Fargo during his stay and I have to say - it's filling the Breaking Bad-shaped hole in my life. If the Coen brothers have anything to do with something you know it's going to be good, Martin Freeman is just a peach and I'm living for his Minnesota accent - heck, you betcha - and I have a soft spot for Colin Hanks as I love his papa with all of my heart. The references to the film make things extra interesting, oh and Saul Goodman is (sort of) in it. A recipe for true greatness, oh yah.



For Netflix night - accompanied by an epic selection of snacks - we chose Alpha Dog, a gritty crime drama that'll have you shaking your head in disbelief and googling the horrific true story of the Nicholas Markowitz kidnapping as soon as the credits roll. A must-see.


Also, can we quickly address the 'Goodbye, Michael' episode of The Office... I have no words. Only tears. And don't even get me started on that '9, 986,000 minutes' song. If crying at Jim Halpert and Michael Scott crying is wrong, then I don't want to be right. 


"Eat" - The Food
If you're like me - e.g. you have a sweet tooth but don't want to fill your body with refined sugar and half a day's worth of calories in three bites - you need Zanna aka Blonde Health's 'Devilishly Delicious Guilt Free Treats' eBook (here). She was kind enough to send me a copy and I'm in awe of her amazing recipes. Peanut butter heaven, here I come.

Zanna's Nutella brownies - simply divine!
"Read" - The Books, Blogs & Magazines
I mentioned Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn in this post after I read it a couple of months ago, but my boyfriend has just finished it after I lent him my copy and discussing it has made me remember just how flippin' good it is all over again. Lookswise, Rosamund Pike is exactly how I pictured the psychotic Amy and I can't wait to see the adaptation with Will. 


P.S. Did anyone else picture Mila Kunis' in Friends With Benefits whilst reading the book? The character she played epitomised the 'Cool Girl' to me. 

P.P.S. I also have muchos excitement for The Fault In Our Stars. There's no doubt in my mind that the film will be stunning, I read the book about a year ago and it broke my heart. And yes, it was a privilege.


This fortnight I've loved perusing "the musings of a chronic optimist", aka Katherine & M.E. As well as having one of the loveliest styles of writing I've had the pleasure of reading - I'm an English student and appreciate the heck out of beautifully penned posts - she's also an absolute babe and one of the kindest souls. Katherine's brilliant overview of ME Awareness Week is an absolute gem, as was her post for May 12thME Awareness Day.


"Wear" - The Style, Sleepwear & Loungewear
It'll come as no surprise that my current favourite item of clothing is powder blue. Go figure.


"Listen" - The Music
Catchy since last summer, yo. *peace sign emoji*


"Inspire" - The Quotes
This is one of my favourite Oprah quotes - yes, I have a selection - as the woman just has a way with words. And these words in particular make me want to give OW a fist bump.


Meg

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