(OOTD) An evening at Browns

Good evening!

Sorry for a lack of posting for a couple of days! Everything has been very hectic, what with the Queen visiting York and all! But I am at home for the weekend so things have settled down, although, I am still editing a shed load of photos from when HRH visited!

But I have got through the photos of the Estée Lauder at Browns event. It was fabulous! I think I spent a tad too much, but it was definitely worth it for all the goodies I got! Anyway, I will start with what I wore...

Shirt- Select, £7

White Vest- New Look, £2.50

Belt- Peacocks, £2 I think

Jeans- H&M, £7 in sale

Socks- Primark, £2

Boots- Vivienne Westwood, gift

And accessories...

Necklace- Gift

Earrings- Miss Selfridge, £2 (I think!)

So, now to the event itself. We were greeted at the door and directed to the restaurant in the store, where we were handed glasses of wine and told to help ourselves to chocolates and canapés. We also bought some raffle tickets as the entire event was to raise money for the Alzheimer's Society, a great cause that does fabulous work to support those with Alzheimer's, and also their families and carers. The prizes were amazing, but unfortunately we didn't win any :( I am pleased to say that the evening raised around £750, which is great, so well done everybody!

Anyway, the first part of the event was a fashion show, displaying some of the lovely brands that Browns has to offer, including, James Lakeland, CC, Phase Eight, Kaliko, Planet and Gelco just to name a few. Enough of me rambling, here are the photos.. 

There were some fabulous outfits, (and fabulous characters!), in the show. I had not seen some of the brands in this show before, but I was very impressed with the collections, and how there was something to suit everyone. 

After the show there was a couple of demonstrations from the Estée Lauder team. I had obviously heard of this brand before, but had never really thought of buying from them. Maybe the price tag put me off slightly, or maybe I just didn't know enough, but the demo's explained the use of some of the skin care and make up products very well, and I felt like I not only learned a lot about Estée Lauder, but learned some nifty (yes nifty!) skin care tricks! For example, never put your foundation right up to your eye, use a specific under eye concealer, otherwise you can end up with puffy eyes! 

After the demonstrations we were let loose on the fashion and beauty floors in Browns, which was a bit dangerous really! The first thing I snapped up was this little beauty...

This fine cable knit jumper is from CC, a brand that I have heard of, but have not really looked at in the past. This jumper is unbelievably soft! It was the last one left, and is an XL so it's lovely and baggy, AND it was only £24.50 in the sale, bargain! I have been wearing it with shorts and leggings for the past couple of days. I love it.

Also on the fashion floor, a lovely company called Gelco were giving a way goodie bags with cute little bits and pieces in. My mum and Rosie got candles and bits in theirs, but I got a make-up bag and a lavender bag. I love lavender, so mum gave me her little lavender bag too, bonus!

And now for the main attraction, we headed for the Estée Lauder stand in the beauty department. I was advised by a lovely lady called Marie about which mascara and under eye concealer would be best for me. These were the two products that I was running short of in my make up bag, and I was looking for something new to try...

So I got the Sumptuous Waterproof Mascara in black, and I am loving it so far, it makes my lashes really long, but can also be built up to create a fuller effect. 

I haven't tried the Illuminator yet, as I am running my current one out, but I will let you know how I get on.

So not only was there 10% off on the night, but if you bought two items you got the best goodie bag ever!

The colour of this is beautiful! I can't wait to try it!

Such a pretty bag.

I am so impressed with the free gifts. I haven't had the chance to try them yet but I will do a full review once I have had some time. Just know I am impressed!

As we left we were given ANOTHER goodie bag, (I know right!). In this bag we were given some fragrance samples, all of which smell lovely! I especially like Flowerbomb by Viktor & Rolf.

So there we have it! Quite a mammoth post but it was a fab evening and I needed to tell you all about it! I am sure Browns will be having more events in the future, so make sure you are there!

I will hopefully have the chance to blog about the Queen's visit tomorrow, if not, see you Monday! Have a lovely easter break!

Absolutely Shattered! But here's what's coming up in March!

Well the two day slog to clean my room is finally over. I finished at 6 tonight, then cooked a Sunday dinner, then just finished cleaning the rats out, and I am going for a well deserved bath. But first, I thought I would let you know what's to come in Lucy's Lil World!

Sorry for the lack of OOTDs this weekend, I have literally been cleaning in my trackies and a hoodie, and I am now covered in dust, so not really photographic material! Back to normal tomorrow I promise!

So March promises to be interesting, with two vintage fairs, one week after the other, and I am going to be blogging at them both.

 York Does Vintage is first, on the 10th March at the Merchant Adventures Hall in York (10:30 - 5pm), so if you're in the area get yourself down there, for £1 entry (50p for students) you really can't go wrong! I am really looking forward to this, there is going to be all sorts there, not just vintage shopping, but makeovers, live music and tea parties!

The weekend after, on the 18th March, the Guildhall, York, is going to host The York Vintage Fair (12-5pm). Tea parties and make overs will also be available here, as will 40 stalls of vintage goodies!

I don't think I have witnessed so much vintage activity! I am very excited, and I hope you are too (if you're in the York / Leeds area of course, or if you are visiting!)

Right, time for a bath now! Hope you're looking forward to March as much as I am! 

(Also looking forward to it because I will be getting my iPhone 4S, eeee!)

(OOTD) Vintage-tastic!

Hello!

Just to let you know, this will be a picture and link heavy post! I am splitting today into two posts, this vintage one, and a haul that I will post tomorrow...

There are so many reasons to love York, but one that stands out most for me is the vintage scene. There are several vintage shops in York, and several vintage fairs throughout the year, like the one I attended today.

Nestled in the York Museum Gardens is the beautiful building known as the Hospitium, the venue for Judy's Affordable Vintage Fair. Judy's Fairs occur throughout the country, (to find one near you visit their website), and never fail to impress me when they visit York. 

The Hospitium in the Snow

(at this point I would like to remind you that you can enlarge images by clicking on them)

So for the princely sum of £1.50 (or £1 with a student card), you are welcomed to the vintage fair, including a lovely tea-shop with home baked goodies.

Some stall holders were kind enough to let me take some photos of their displays, mostly jewellery as I can't resist a bit of sparkle, but there are plenty of vintage and up-cycled clothes to be awed at too!

The first stall I visited is a firm favourite, it is here every time, unfortunately, there is no business name for this stall, or I would have happily linked her into this post. This stall has everything, from beautiful jewellery, to leather bags, scarves and vintage clothing. I didn't get anything today but I have treated myself in the past!

Another exciting thing about the fairs is that every one is different, sure there are some traders that are there every time, but there's always something new too!

Another stall that caught my eye was Twopenny Lane. The website can be found here, and the Facebook here. The business card describes "fairytale and dolls house vintage style jewellery" and you definitely get what it says on the tin! As a packaging fanatic (marketing students...) I am in LOVE with the cute little 'parcel' style boxes, I think this is so innovative and quirky.

The jewellery is beautiful, as was the presentation, as you can see below.

I especially loved these necklaces! Bird cages have been so popular in jewellery recently and I love them, but I have to say I am more taken with the globe and the harmonicas! I think these are incredibly sweet and are something a little bit different to what you can find on the high street, which I purposefully look for in my accessories.

I hope to see this jewellery again soon at more fairs around York, I will definitely be looking to make a purchase!

I did end up treating myself at Diamond in the Sky, as did Rosie and her friend. The jewellery was quirky, yet simple. I could have gone mad creating a cluster of bracelets for myself, but I managed to control my excitement and chose one that particularly stood out to me. At £3 each or three for £10 (hence all three of us getting them!), I thought these were pretty reasonable for something hand made.

Bracelets were available in many styles, on bangles, chains and cords (clasp or tie), which I think is great, because as well all know, everyone likes something different. Necklaces were also available but personally I was taken with the selection of bracelets more. I will definitely consider expanding my collection in the future, I would love to wear loads of them with different charms in different colours.

Now, if this cake stand wouldn't catch your attention then I don't know what will! I was instantly intrigued by Threadbear's quirky cake stands and gifts. You probably can't see very well on this picture that the cake stand is comprised not only brightly coloured plates but wine glasses too!

Great affect with stamps!

I LOVED the sock monkeys and valentines day cards, they were adorable. I was also particularly taken with the letters covered in stamps, such a simple idea, but so effective! I think there are some great gifts here, and I will be having a nosey around their website when birthdays are coming up, and hinting to people to have a look for me!

 And now for something a little bit different. I love vintage fabrics. Although I have done a tailoring and dress making course, I am no expert in sewing. I am hoping that I can stretch to covering a head board (when I get one!) and to covering my dressmakers mannequin, who is looking a little bit shabby at the moment. I picked it up from a car boot for £5 (to buy a new pre-covered one was around £99!), and I have intended to cover it for quite some time. So I was delighted to see Sago Design (website to be launched soon as far as I understand, but for now visit this blog, to keep up to date with developments).

I did treat myself to some Laura Ashley 80's fabric, which I think was very reasonable at £5 and will compliment my Cath Kidston (headboard) fabric perfectly! If I have any spare I hope to make cushions. Anyway, the stall was a mish mash of fabrics from different eras and was exciting to behold, great for a rummager like me!

My Fabric

I will definitely keep you up to date with how I get on.

The last stall I took some snaps of was Nellsvintage Boutique. The presentation of brooches really stood out to me, and I loved the overall presentation of the stall. There were some incredibly cute things available, at very reasonable prices, e.g. scarves from £2.

This stall also had clothes available, but being a handbag and jewellery fan, I was more attracted to this area. 

So there we have it! I did treat myself to one more thing, but I was unable to take pictures of the stall because there were a lot of people rummaging. I ended up leaving with a vintage fur coat from Gold Rush Vintage (site under construction, please visit their Facebook). I thought it was incredibly reasonable at £40, its not something I am likely to get rid of for a long time! It is heavy and unbelievably warm. The issue I found is that a lot of fur coats are quite big, but with a belt I think it looks a lot better. I am also excited that I can change it up with different belts. I know some people are anti-fur, and I am to an extent. But I think vintage fur is completely different to purchasing a brand new fur coat. There is not much I can do about the animals involved in this coat, it was made 50 years ago. However, I don't think I could bring myself to buy new fur, knowing that more animals would then have to be killed to replace my purchase. 

What is your opinion on fur?

Speaking of fur, I had to take a snap of this little guy. Little did I know when I got my camera out that shortly he would be trying to scale my leg! I wish I could have got a picture, but it all happened so fast and he was too close, he was on me! He went from sniffing around my wellies to launching himself up my leg. Needless to say we got quite a giggle from passers by, I have never seen such a tame squirrel.

And today I thought I would leave my OOTD for last...

Dress- H&M, £7, post Xmas sale

Horse Belt- Primark, £1, last week

Crochet Waistcoat- Vintage, inherited from my Grandma

Brown Leggings- Select (two for £8)

Socks (for under my wellies)- Primark, £1, last week

Accessories:

Top Left- Cut Gem Necklace- Craft fair in Edinburgh, last summer, I think it was around £7.50

Top Right- Glasses and 'Pocket watch' necklaces, £2.50 and £4, Primark, last week

Bottom- Zigzag bracelets (came in a cream and blue set), £5, Primark last week.

So yes, this has been an incredibly long post, but I wanted to make sure I fit everything in! Tomorrow I will post about my none-vintage purchases from today. Now I am going for a nice long soak and to test out some of my Glossy Box products.

So until tomorrow...