I know I finished my last blog post telling you I was writing some lockdown blogs but do you know what, I've decided to park lockdown.....I want to forget it for now. I'm praying there won't be another and focusing on something that's been on my to-do list for ages and has nothing to do with covid....my skincare regime.I used to have a mix of all sorts of everything - cheap gimmicky stuff that I saw on social media, more expensive products that promised the sun, moon and stars & never delivered, and in-between priced stuff that was just ok. A mix of brands and price points and basically a ..read more

*Picture credit for Brexit cartoon - Rosie Made A Thing It's been a while and I'm so sorry about that - I do have a few posts in draft format that I will finish up and get posted on here asap but I thought it was only right that I do a 'hello' and life lately kind of post for you before that to partly explain my absence and also to see how you are. Lockdown has been a real up and down experience for us all hasn't it? I initially struggled with what was going on but then found myself adapting quite well for a good while. I got an exercise routine going, I was working for Field Day for about 2 ..read more

Throughout the lockdown, I've been blown away by how innovative some local businesses have become. When shops were forced to close, instead of lying down and taking the hit, so many of them have raised their games impressively in order to give themselves the best chance of having a business to return to after Covid. So I thought I'd do a blog post to showcase some of these, in the knowledge that this is always going to be a difficult one because I can't shout out everyone or you'd be reading for days. I've featured a few in a bit more detail first and then I've added a few more names & li ..read more

Well hello there and how are you? It's been longer than I intended. When I wrote my last blog post, I didn't expect things to change so quickly. Looking back, we weren't really wise were we? I remember being at my book club on the 29th February and one of the girls said she'd been told in work to expect life to change beyond belief and to prepare for personal bereavement. None of us believed it - some even scoffed.  Her words stuck with me though and I bought some extra store-cupboard items the next day. Not toilet roll, I hasten to add. The baker in me bought yeast, flour and baking powder ..read more

In the current situation, it's really difficult to know what to blog about. I'm pretty sure try ons, distracting and all as they are, are not going to be widely welcomed because there's so much uncertainty out there. Most of us are facing lost income and won't have money to spare for new clothes for a while. Many of you however told me you would welcome the distraction of this month's M&S post and being completely honest, I can't really afford NOT to do it given the lack of other paid work at the current time. I've a feeling this could be one of my last paid gigs on here until we get thro ..read more

(This post contains affiliate links so must be tagged as an AD - however I have not been paid or asked to write it. If you click through and purchase from some of the links, the company you buy from can track that link back to me and may pay me a small commission if you keep your purchase. This is the income I use to maintain the running costs of the blog, so I'm grateful when you do click through on my links but you can google the items if you don't wish to use my links) I've blogged about wardrobe foundation items before but I'm aware that the other posts are older and a bit out of date so ..read more

For my February collaboration with M&S, I'm looking at their denim. This month saw the launch of their three key denim styles for SS20, Lily, Ivy and Sienna, great wardrobe staples all priced at £19.50, alongside a wider range of denim items to include shirts, jackets and dresses.  On a recent visit into the Belfast store, I tried on as many of the pieces as I could find in my size, starting with the Sienna Straight which is a lovely looser fit jean. They came up a bit neat size-wise (I'm wearing the 12S) and I've turned them up one turn in this photo. Wearing with a classic M&S w ..read more

[AD - includes affiliate links] A post around kidswear today. As part of my regular work with M&S, I'm looking at school uniform because how many of us have kids who've grown out of their uniform only 4 months into the school year?! This blog post is here to remind you that M&S keep all of their uniform in stock ALL year round, including in store in the bigger outlets - such a help for busy parents, or for those of us who didn't need to buy all new stuff in September but do now because of the growth. When it came to my son, he is almost 16, 6 foot tall and fussy as anything with hi ..read more

I've been asked a few times about the usage of AD declarations on my content so I've had this blog post on the back burner for a while. Mainly because it's all so confusing and as a lay-person, I was concerned about not knowing all of the finer details but I think I have a fair gist of it all a year on from the introduction of the regulations so I'm going to try to explain it as best I can. And I say 'try to explain' because despite the regulations, it's still a bit confusing whether you're inside or outside the blogging business...and that includes brands. What doesn't help is that people a ..read more

For the first of my M&S posts this year, I'm looking at their new Goodmove range. Described as "an energetic and uplifting activewear edit",  Goodmove includes sports leggings in five new styles designed for different activities, sports bras and what M&S describe as “24/7 trainers” and jackets for the high street. Before I went in to try on, I did a bit of research online about the range as I was keen to see how it's being perceived by retail experts. It's fair to say that the reaction is mixed. Some feel it's not going to work for the older demographic who love to shop in M&S ..read more