One I Made Earlier…

Bonjour fellow magpies! and may I initially apologise for the prolonged absence of anything relatively ‘informative’, let alone *sparkly*…

Apologies over, I do have a little ‘gem’ for you today…

As some of you may be aware (from previous posts) that I have been in the long-suffering process of decorating my previous ‘blue & chocolate brown’ room into a mini palace fit for … well, me! (of course!)

However, progress has been about as slow as the traffic on the M6 at rush hour … and so it is only just now that i can inform you of any progress…

After a couple of rather tedious weeks in a room that would make Harry Potter’s cupboard look like a suite at the Ritz, i was released into a ‘livable’ abode which had received a much-needed lick of paint and one wall of floral paper (don’t worry, my Dad wasn’t on strike, it’s a ‘artistic statement’! … or so the gay bloke on 60 Minute Makeover tells me every morning!)

Fast-forward yet another week or so and I am starting to add my own little details here and there, from out of my secret store that I’ve been rather candidly adding to over the last few months or so. My Nan always keeps on at me that I’m supposedly ‘at that age’ where I should be ‘saving for things to put in my bottom draw’ for when I move out. (Between you and me i think she’s hinting!) Anyway, that’s kind of what I’ve been doing for my room … minus the intension to leave a rather cosy free house, food, water, & warmth!

I have been rather ‘inspired’ of late, by ‘butterflies’ in general, and therefore I felt it would be a good ‘investment’ to buy this rather beautiful wall clock…

'White Butterfly Clock' - £30 - NEXT

I perched on my bed for up to an hour, before my hands went numb from lack of blood-flow and all butterflies were placed painstakingly to within an inch of their ‘perspex lives’…

The clock comes in little separate pieces as you can see above. It also includes a sheet which gives you some idea of how you can stick on your butterflies, but I decided I actually wanted mine to help me tell the time, rather than simply being a decorative addition!

Though, if you do now go out and purchase this clock, can I suggest you don’t necessarily need to screw the butterflies to the wall, but you will most definitely need to screw the actual ‘clock fixture’ to the wall, as I discovered the ‘hard way’ one night last week as I was just dozing off, when I received a rather nasty bump to the head that consequently snapped off one of the hands, rendering it about as useful as a chocolate teapot, and incurring a further £30 for yours truly! :-/

Moving on … I was feeling quite ‘creative’ this morning, and so with a mission in mind, I headed to my local garden centre, and up to the crafts section, where I purchased a beautiful vintage object that I can only describe as: ‘an iron corset-thing on a stick’. I also purchased an artificial ‘rose garland’, which I wound around it and secured with florist wire…

my wrought iron corset, draped in rose garland

I then took some ‘craft butterflies’, which were on craft wire, and added these to the corset, securing the garland further.

I also added some ‘sparkly pipe cleaners’, which I wound around a biro to make it spiral.

corset with added garland, craft butterflies, and pipe cleaners

I love the finished result! And it really sets off my new room!

More pictures and blogs to come, following the inevitable ‘final touches’ to my room!

I can just feel the excitement…

Get ‘IN2′ this hot summer fragrance…

ckIN2U 'Heat' for her, available it Boots now for just £29

It must have escaped my knowledge that this ‘hot summer fragrance’ has been around a wee while, but I’m definitely lapping it up now, following my most recent exploitation of the ol’ Boots points!

On morning the fact that (hard as I tried) I just couldn’t justify forking out £45 for a perfume, who’s advert features an ‘over-excitable’ naked lady clutching it as if her life depended on it, I ventured into Boots slightly down-trodden when a most interesting scent alerted my schnozzle…

the perfume i couldn't justify, available from Debenhams for £45 (if you do buy it could you spare me a spritz?)

The only way I can describe it is a strong smell of ‘Kali’, it’s very sweet all round, a perfume with my name on it basically! (no my name is not ‘ckIN2U’ before any clever dick suggests it!)

Kali sticks, ahhh 'old school' or what?!

And if you are wondering why it is I’m posting this ingenious find on *sparklysparkly*, it comes in a rather eye-catching pearly-lemon glass bottle (which also added to the ‘super-speed’ purchase).

As the scent is from the ‘ckIN2U’ range, it does indeed come with a ‘male counterpart’:

CKIN2U 'Heat' for him, available from Boots for £29

…And if you are partial to men with a hint of ‘toilet duck’ then i would highly suggest it! … (or just spray it over him as he gets ready for a ‘lads night out’….that’ll keep any ‘unwanted’ attention faaaaar away from your man!)

Spritz your ‘do’ with Soda Sparkler

Be the ‘glitterbug’ at the ugly bug ball with this new sparkly spray, by L’oreal!

I discovered it while taking full advantage of an ‘introduce a friend to our extortionately-priced hair salon, and have both your hairs done for £25!’ offer.

I was being nosy while my highly-tatooted, 10-year-old male stylist disappeared to cease coughing into my freshly-washed locks for 5 mins, when i spotted this strangely-shaped gizmo on the side (which I thought was a maraca at first … and then I thought “why would there be a maraca in a hair salon?!”) …

Moving on from my original thesis of the ‘hair dressing world’s answer to ‘Marcel and the Maracas’, and glad my new year’s resolution of ‘think before you open your mouth’ had worked for once, I read the label and took note.

On arriving home, £25 worse off and a lot less hair, i googled the maraca-shaped hair product and found that my *sparkle senses* had been right, it’s sparkly!!

According to ‘www.hqhair.com‘ it provides:

‘A sparkling spritz with light hold. The perfect finishing touch to party hair – be a glitter sensation!’

I was sold.

I paid my 11 English pounds and continue to eagerly await its arrival. I’m sure it will be great!

I will make sure to update you on its arrival and inevitable first tryout!

“Your my doll, rock ‘n’ roll, feel the glamour in pink”…

Breaking news girls! … you can now accessorize with Barbie and still be cool!

(and no it doesn’t involve ‘re-inventing’ your hair, ‘Britney style’ like we used to do when we thought Barbie needed a ‘change’!)

Hello Paul’s Boutique … ‘Barbie range‘!

Now before you cringe at your childhood flashbacks of ..

D.I.Y 'hair DONT' Barbie - admit it! we all used to do it! ... poor Barbie!

and are blinded by the inevitable (i.e ‘CERISE PINK’, ‘PLASTIC’, & ‘TACKY’) …

I assure you IN MODERATION this range can add that much-needed ‘girly touch’ to any outfit!

I personally have just invested in:

'Lizzie' purse - £35.00 - Paul's Boutique.com

… after being unable to find it in my local BANK store, in Birmingham’s Bullring Shopping Centre. There’s ‘gold’ and ‘black’ in abundance, but a severe lack of pink (ironic?!) so get your hands on these quick ladies!

I am also in the process of ‘persuading’ my girlfriends to invest in:

'Kiki Case' - £35.00 - Paul's Boutique.com

… which is classed also as a ‘purse’ by Mr P. However, as it is a rather large ‘clutch’ in size, I would suggest it be used so, or as a make up bag!

Now i have eased you in slowly, i will warn you there are some rather ‘brave’ numbers in this collection, some that wouldn’t even look out-of-place on the rigid arm of the ‘plastic princess’ herself! Saying that, Paul’s Boutique is renowned for their bold statement handbags and clothing, and so an existing customer would already be ‘broken in’.

'Gracie' bag - £80.00 - Paul's Boutique.com

'Maisy Large' bag - £65.00 - Paul's Boutique.com

'Molly' bag - £65.00 - Paul's Boutique.com

'Polly Padlock' bag - £80.00 - Paul's Boutique.com

'Tilly Twister' bag - £80.00 - Paul's Boutique.com

So what do you think ladies?

I think they’re well-worth the investment, personally!

And who knows … they may attract your very own ‘Ken’!

So grab yours! After all, Aqua said it …

Life in plastic, it’s fantastic!

Put Some Colour Back In Your Cheeks

I bagged this nifty little pot of *sparkle* the other day while shopping in my usual make-up haunt … The Body Shop.

They’d had their new summer range in, and my initial intention of popping in to see if they’d got anything for my awkward mother (who only wears Eternity and very little make-up) soon disappeared from my mind as this rather curious little white pot caught my eye.

On unscrewing the lid a little sponge springs out, coated with a sparkly coral blusher/bronzer. The actual palette of bronzer/blusher is niftily hidden inside the top of the lid, and so every time to replace the lid, the sponge rubs against the palette, re-coating it with blusher/bronzer.

I instantly fell in love with it, and with my loyalty card burning a hole in my purse i wasted no time in the inevitable purchase. At £10 for something so little it may seem a little over-priced, but i think it’s definitely worth the indulgence. An avid Body Shop addict, i know that you can rely on the quality of their products, and the shimmery effect sticks around for a long time.

It’s also available in a pink colour so you have the option of what effect you want to go for, but in my opinion it’s well worth the £10!

Curiouser and Curiouser…

Like millions of avid Tim Burton fans, I have rather impatiently been awaiting the opening of his most recent ‘freaky’ flick…

There has been a huge hype surrounding this latest blockbuster, however, unlike the likes of most ‘flavours of the movie month’, this film has created a big buzz in terms of ‘merchandise’…

On visiting one of my best friends at her student apartment last week, i met one of her course friends Rachel, who in the midst of getting ready pulled a rather familiar (and favourite choice of mine) make-up brand out of her bag, emblazoned with a rather different covering than i was used to seeing…

Yes, ‘Urban Decay’! personally, i love the stuff, as i always find (like you may also do) that on a hard-core night out on the town with the ladies, most eyeshadows just can’t seem to stick around all night, and the photos of the night before seem to feature a rather familiar-looking ‘Coco The Clown’ and not the ‘Coco Chanel’ you last saw whilst adding the final touches to your wall paint. Like a rich tea biscuit, they just can’t stand the heat!

Urban Decay however is the ‘Hobnob’ of the eyeshadow world (“I’m going nowhere me love!”), as seems to me to be a lot more ‘waxier’ in texture, and with the handy little pot of ‘primer potion’ provided with many of the Urban Decay sets (like the one pictured above), it wouldn’t shift if you put a flame-thrower to it!

Anyway, there was something remarkably different about this set in particular, as it looked nothing like the one i had from Santa at Christmas … and it was then that i spotted the ‘Alice In Wonderland’ logo emblazoned across the front…

I wasted no time in the spanish inquisition…

“ooo!”

“where did you get that from??”

“how much was it??”

“HOW MUCH?!”

“ooo it has a pop-up thing inside?!….yes you definitely get your money’s worth!”

Apparently the mini cardboard cut-out scene that is unveiled in all its shiny-carboard-3D-pop-up-wonder when you lift the lid on the box is well worth the hefty price tag compared to the normal Urban Decay sets, at a shade under £70….on Ebay! (so you can imagine what ridiculous prices they are normally!)

Rachel thought it was well-worth a week’s wages:

“I saw it and I thought I’ve got to have one! But i did get it from America, so it was a little more expensive anyway!”

(not half Rach!)

While the palette does include your normal brown and black for those nights out, it also features a number of ‘brighter’ colours that I’d say only the brave could pull off!

In my opinion, if you know how to pull off a purple that reminds me of the shade of a ‘healing black eye’, then be my guest! But with a hefty price tag on Ebay, I’d leave it for the time being!

A Right Bobby-Dazzler!

A few months ago i had only recently lost my ‘Twitter virginity’ and to be perfectly honest, i couldn’t tell a ‘tweet’ from a ‘twat’ (it’s a pregnant fish dnt’cha know??)

Anyhoo, i decided to search for people/organizations that would interest me … and i stumbled upon ‘Crystyled’, made famous by its celebrity customers including Ferne Cotton and was in awe at it’s wares. Basically, it’s a company that will stone absolutely ANYTHING, but mainly just phones, MP3s, car keys etc and really bling them up!

On searching this site I found a design I absolutely fell in love with …

(IMAGE REMOVED AT THE REQUEST OF A RATHER ‘SNOOTY’ EMAIL. HOWEVER, THE IMAGE IS AVAILABLE HERE)

i love the whole ‘vintage vibe’ that’s going on here as well as the *SPARKLE*! So I just had to have one …

“HOW MUCH?????..”

Okay so i don’t know for sure how much they actually cost to get done but i do know that its ‘price on request’ and you have to send your phone/MP3 off to them so they can do it, which leaves you totally phone-less for however long it takes…

But as they say “it’s not what you know but WHO you know!”

So a few emails and texts later i had sent off the image above and a silicone case for my iPhone to a friend and awaited the *SPARKLYNESS* to appear a few days later…

“Who is this ‘friend’??” i hear you cry…

Meet Jess! of JRaybould Design

Jess and my little sister have been dance partners at Class One Dance Academy for a few years now, and hold many regional and national titles…

A few years back Jess (being the same age as myself) chose to opt out of the proverbial ‘university’ path and instead take some rather brave steps towards setting up her own dance wear business.

A couple of years later, and a succession of loyal customers in toe, she’s well on the way to ‘making it’…so i approached her to stone my iPhone case.

She was more than happy to oblige and within a couple of days I had my bea-U-tiful phone case!!

I paid £40 to Jess for the Swarovski stones and went on my merry and very *SPARKLY* way…

n.b: if you would like to have any possessions/trinkets/household items/pets (im joking!) plastered in stones, please contact Jess: