Like the legend of the phoenix ...

As I mentioned in my previous post, I recently went on holiday for a few days in Paris. Although I didn't have that long there, I did manage to squeeze in a trip to City Pharma in St. Germain on the last day, and stocked up on the necessary bits and bobs of French skincare. I always forget just how much cheaper it is over there and how much choice there is. I only picked up a few bits this time as I'm hoping to take another trip to Pari towards the end of the year when I can pick some more things up after I've done some more research into what's really suited for my skin, as well as seeing whether what I got this time works for me or not. For the record, I have normal/combination skin (although it gets oilier in the warmer months) but dehydrated, so it tends to soak up all my makeup, giving me the ever attractive look of dry and oily skin at the same time.

Left to right: Embryolisse Lait-Creme Concentre, Avene Eau Thermale Spray, Bioderma Solution Micellaire, Vichy Purete Thermale Toner, La Roche-Posay Cicaplast.

The Vichy toner is one I've seen recommended by Caroline Hirons, and is supposed to help pump moisture back into the skin after using an exfoliating toner. Of course, I couldn't go to Paris without picking up the classic double bottle of Bioderma, which I love using to take of the first layer of my makeup and I then go in with a balm cleanser. La Roche-Posay Cicaplast is supposed to help with skin healing/renewal as well as with dry/chapped skin, which I've been having around my nose in particular. 

The Lait-Creme Concentre is supposed to be excellent for moisturising under makeup. I know that the Pixiwoo girls use it and I'm hardly going to argue with their choice of products. Although this is supposed to be quite rich, and might therefore be a bit rich for my occasionally oil prone skin, I'm hoping that it'll help with the hydration problems and therefore let my makeup sit better on my skin. The Avene Eau Thermale is a lovely cooling spray which is also supposed to be great for hydration (another Caroline mention). I'm really looking forward to taking this one to Italy next month as it can get so hot there (I'm talking 40 degrees at midday) and running around waitressing can get very hot, so it's lovely to have something that cools off my face.

Baby it's in your nature ...

So here's the first of many updates. Firstly, thank you to all of you who've stayed with the blog whilst I've been absent, and just a reminder that if you want to keep getting updates, the best way to do so is probably to click the bloglovin button just to the right and subscribe via bloglovin as I'm sure you all know that GFC will be no longer. I've finally finished all my exams and can start putting all my time back into my blog. To start this off I thought I'd share some pictures from my trip to Paris last week. I went with 2 of my closest girlfriends and we had amazing time. You really know that you've got great friends when you spend the whole time laughing and you have no idea why. We were only there for a few days so didn't manage to do as many tourist sights as we wanted to but we did lots of walking, lots of eating and plenty of sipping on wine (to any of those who are concerned, we are all very much 18). Despite this, I did manage to drag the girls to St. Germain to make a trip to the infamous City Pharma and pick up some goodies which I'll be showing and reviewing soon! Some of these photos were taken on my camera, some of them on my friend's iPhone as dragging my camera out all the time was a bit difficult, so I apologise for the varying quality.

This is a dress I'm sure you've seen in a previous OOTD, a maxi dress from Peacocks, and a 'leather' jacket from Tescos.

In the Louvre courtyard. My white dress is from a market in Italy last summer and was about 10 euros. The leather jacket is the same as before and my red bag is Fiorelli but purchased in TKMaxx.

A photo from our first night out. My wedges are new from Next. If you're in the market for a pair of comfortable but high black wedges then I really recommend these. We walked for hours and my feet were surprisingly okay (still comfortable would be a push for any pair of shoes after the amount of walking we did.) My black jeans are highwaisted and from Topshop, my crop top from Primark and the denim jacket borrowed from my friend.

We went to the Pont Des Artes (or lovers bridge) where al the couples lock their love in place with a padlock. Naturally, we had to do the same with our friendship and it's now locked in place alongside all the names of lovers throughout the years.

In front of the Louvre pyramid. Outfit the same as before except you can now see my red/burgandy vans which I'm currently living in. For a day of walking around tourist sights, comfortable shoes are an absolute must have.

The three of us outside our hotel. We managed to bag a real deal with it, got a great room for the 3 of us on the ground floor leading out onto the courtyard. It had a view of the eiffel tower and 2 minutes walking distance from the Arc de Triomphe. Jeans from Topshop, sandals from Next, and top (with cutout shoulders) from Next as well. 

In front of the obelisk on the Place de la Concorde.

And ditto with my beautiful best friends ;)

Reminding me how small and 'squishy' I am.

And pulling out the stereotypical asian tourist pose - what can I say, I can't deny my roots.

FYI

Hi all. I'm afraid this is a rather unexciting post, but thought I should leave you with an update. As you've probably noticed I've been rather inactive. I'm fast approaching my final exams at school and those are taking priority at the moment. However, I'm done mid-May so should be back in action after that. Thanks so much for sticking with me though :)

love, Naomi

Sorry, just sorting a bit of admin with the new layout.

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45 Life Lessons, written by a 90 year old

Just a little something I saw online and wanted to share :)

1. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short not to enjoy it.

4. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and family will.

5. Don’t buy stuff you don’t need.

6. You don’t have to win every argument. Stay true to yourself.

7. Cry with someone. It’s more healing than crying alone.

8. It’s OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for things that matter.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present.

12. It’s OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye… But don’t worry; God never blinks.

16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful.  Clutter weighs you down in many ways.

18. Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger.

19. It’s never too late to be happy.  But it’s all up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Overprepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words, ‘In five years, will this matter?’

27. Always choose Life.

28. Forgive but don’t forget.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give Time time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

32. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn’t do.

35. Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

36. Growing old beats the alternative — dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d
grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. Accept what you already have, not what you think you need.

42. The best is yet to come…

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

44. Yield.

45. Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.

So I've been missing for a while ...

So I'm finally back, after a very long break. I could go into lots of detail explaining my long absence, but honestly, I don't feel I need to. I'm in my final year of school, and honestly, there were a lot of things that had to take precedent over blogging, as much as I missed it. Again, I'm going to try to get back into blogging, but I'll be busy as soon as I get back to school as I have mocks in February which I'm gonna have to work pretty damn hard for. To get back into the swing of blogging, I thought I'd do a beauty blogger tag, as I think that's more the direction that I want to take the blog in from 2013 onwards. So, without further ado, here it is: 

1. Is your hair naturally curly or straight?

Main straight, with some kinks and very very poofy.

2. What it your natural hair colour?

A dark chocolate brown, but I've added a bit of red every year since I was about 13 so it's now very multi-coloured. 

3. Do you dye it yourself or do you go to a salon?

Dye it myself. I can't justify paying that much to go to a salon when I don't have a regular income.

4. How often do you wash your hair?

Every other day, although I can go one more day without it looking too bad if I don't have time.

5. Do you wear the same hair style everyday or do you change it up?

I tend to start the day with it down, get to school, get frustrated and throw it up into a turban style bun by about 10am.

6. Do you do your own nails or do you go to a salon?

I do my own generally, although I will very rarely treat myself to a trip to the salon, especially since I found one locally that does a quick manicure for a very very reasonable £5.

7. How often do you change your nail varnish?

I'm terrible at changing up the colour of my nails, especially when I'm at school so I tend to just wear a clear base coat and change it when I have dual-tone nails from the base coat growing out.. 

8. Do you always wear nail varnish on your toes?

I always have nail varnish on my toes, although I do tend to forget to repaint so end up with scraps at the end of my toenails as I almost never have my feet out ...

9. How long does it take you to put on your makeup?

Urm, for school I go for the au natural look as I really value that extra 10 minutes in bed, so when I'm on holiday and going out to London or something I tend to spend a bit more time on my makeup, so maybe 15 minutes or so?

10. What do you do first, your face or your eyes?

Face as I don't tend to wear a lot of eyeshadow so there isn't a lot of fall out.

11. Do you collect makeup or just buy it when your need to?

Considering there is very little makeup I actually need, I'd say it's probably more of a collecting inclination.

12. How often do you wear false eyelashes?

For a night out I'll almost always ear false lashes, just because my own natural lashes or so short and sparse.

13. Do you wear a full face of makeup everyday?

Nope, like I said earlier, school days usually mean the ever attractive, no makeup look.

14. Do you wear makeup just around the house?

If I'm not leaving the house or only popping over to the corner shop then I won't bother, but if I've gone out then come home, I'll probably keep my makeup on until the end of the day in case I need to pop out again.

15. Will you leave the house without makeup on?

Yep, do it quite a bit. If there's no point putting makeup on then I won't.

16. How many high end products do you have? 

Hardly any.

17. How often do you wash your makeup brushes?

Not as often as I should .. honestly, I'm a bit embarrassed/disgusted at how little I wash them compared to how often I should was them.

18. Do you plan what you will wear the next day, or when you are getting dressed?

I tend to try to plan, but I always end up changing my mind.

19. How often do you change your handbag?

Hardly ever. I have a school bag, a medium sized handbag and a small clutch bag and that's all I really use.

20. What time do you get up and go to sleep?

I try to get to bed by 11pm as it's a 6.15am wakeup for me to get to school.

21. How often and when do you workout?

I'm forced to go to the gym by my school twice a week as part of my course .. does that count? .. 

22. Left or Right handed?

Right.

23. How tall are you?

5'2"  .. I know, I'm a shorty.

24. Do you speak a foreign language?

I speak Danish fluently, Japanese enough to communicate with my family, GCSE level French and I'm learning Italian at the moment :)

25. How many pets do you have?

None, although I have a cat at my dad's.

26. How often are you on blogger?

Hopefully more often now!

27. Do you read the comments posted?

Of course! As soon as I get that e-mail I have to check it.

28. Do you keep a list of products to try as you see other posts?

Only a wishlist kind of thing if it's something I really, really want. Otherwise I'll make a mental note to try and find it at some point. 

29. How did you come up with your blog name?

I started it because I wanted to keep in contact with my friends abroad, as I was known as the one who lived in London, I wanted to keep that aspect in the name. That's how I came up with from london with love. As for the URL, London Ramblers kind of describes me, rambling around London aimlessly.

30. What sort of camera do you use to take your photographs?

I have a Nikon 1.

31. How often do you clean your room?

Very very rarely, it can be so messy and I won't bother to clean it.

32. What is your favourite colour?

Burgundy.

33. What is your favourite magazine?

Company, especially after their re-design.

34. Do you swear?

Yep, like a pig. 

35. What are you going to do today?

Hopefully do a few posts, take some photos and do some school work.

Well now I've reminded you of who I am, hopefully I've caught your interest again.

from london, with love.

Don't know why I didn't come ...

Just a quick outfit of the day to show you what I wore today. I had lunch with my friend Lucy, then headed out to Bluewater with my mom, mainly to get our eyebrows done and I also needed to pick up quite a few things from Boots for my trip to Italy (which is so soon, and I am so excited!) I may do a review on a few of the things I've picked up so I can post something whilst over there. The weather's been on and off a bit horrible over here, so I've been spending a fair bit of time indoors watching the Olympics. Now, I didn't think I'd be particularly interested in them, but something about watching men rowing along a river is just so addictive to watch ... Anyway ... I watched the opening ceremony in Duke of York square along the Kings Road in London, and then went back to my friend's house. On Saturday we went towards South Kensington and had our nails done before heading to the Science Museum to watch BATMAN at the imax. Batman is by far my favourite marvel hero, and I'm so glad I went to see it. In fact, I may have to watch it again, I loved it that much. So here's what I wore today to Bluewater ... (sorry about the wet hair, was in a bit of a rush.)

Maxi Dress from Peacocks £12

Belt (old) from Primark

And now for the ever attractive mugshot of my face today. I was wearing Garnier BB cream in Medium, L'oreal False Lash Telescopic mascara, Maybelline Master Precise Liner, Hoola Bronzer as a contour, Natural Collection blusher in Peach Melba. 

from london, with love.

Music Monday

As I was browsing youtube, trying to find some music, I stumbled across some new, 'unknown' artists, and thought I'd post some of their music for the next few weeks. This is a girl called Ebony Day, who I believe lives in Australia. She has a fair few covers to her name, all of which are a delight to listen to, but this is an original song of hers that just popped up in my subscription box. It's called 'Gone', and I find the lyrics very heartfelt, not as cheesy as a lot of songs you hear these days. It almost reminds me (in terms of the lyrics) of Ed Sheeran's 'Small Bump'. Hope you enjoy, and if you like her, go and subscribe to her: http://www.youtube.com/user/ebonyday1/videos

from london, with love.