Wednesday Wish List

Happy Wednesday guys,

I hope you're all having a great week. 

Lately I've been admiring lots of beautiful pieces which I've been dying to add to my wardrobe, but unfortunately shopping isn't an option for me for the foreseeable future. I'm not sure why I'm torturing myself by window shopping online, but I guess it doesn't hurt to dream... 

Here's what I have my eye on at the minute...

And here's why... 

(Follow the highlighted number to the items shown above)

1. I'm not a huge fan of structured bags, but I've been admiring this textured frame bag from River Island for a couple of months. The texture and vintage look are perfect.

2. I'm partial to a beautiful tan handbag, and have been searching for a new staple brown bag for some time. This scalloped Oasis satchel is beautiful, and versatile, too.

3. I saw this Feelin' Dandy lip and cheek set in store recently, and fell in love with it. It's such a fantastic kit of products. They come in other shades, too.

4. All this cold dismal weather has left me dreaming of Summer, and I can't wait to start wearing sandals with everything. These coral studded sandals will look great with floaty maxi dresses.

5. I've been admiring the print on the Pin Up Girl Clothing Dee Dee and Evelyn dresses for over a year now. The blue and violet floral design is so stunning! I wish I could afford to make it my own! My older sister is graduating from university next January which includes a formal ball, so I'm considering this frock as my outfit.

6. I think this gradated Paris jumper dress looks so warm and cosy! Perfect with a pair of leggings or jeggings.

7. I'm dying to pick up a few of these maxi skirts from New Look. This navy skirt would be so versatile and could be worn all year round.

8. Another bunny print piece I have my heart set on. Perhaps something to honour my Honey Bunny who passed away last week aged eleven.

9. I've become infatuated with this amazing chevron print jumpsuit... it's so on trend and the colours are gorgeous.

10. There's nothing I love more than an injection of colour in my fashion. This Aztec satchel is wonderfully quirky but still has that classic quality, too.

11. Isn't the garden print on this Dorothy Perkins dress just fabulous? I can see myself wearing it with lots of lavender, and pale pinks.

12. At £55 these Converse are quite expensive, but I've fallen in love with the ditsy floral print. They're the prettiest trainers I've ever laid eyes on. Wouldn't they look perfect with the PUGC dress?

13. The heart print design of these shoes is so eighties! I love them!

14. These Converse would look lovely dressed down with a good pair of jeans.

15. My dream is to own some of Cath Kidston's luggage, and I'm loving the new strawberry print designs that are new in this season.

16. This Two Faced Sweetheart Perfect Flush Blush is just gorgeous! If only it could magically appear in my make up bag.

There's also a lovely pastel coloured necklace in Accessorize I love, but I couldn't find it online to share it with you.

Which piece is your favourite?

What's on your wish list?

Thanks for reading,

Shop My Wardrobe on eBay

Ever wanted to shop my wardrobe? Well, now is your chance!

I'm having a clear out of my wardrobe and have started listing pieces on eBay!

There are currently about a dozen items up on my eBay account, FrecklesandFrocks, in sizes 18-22UK which will be ending this Sunday or Monday. Most pieces listed are new and unworn tops, dresses and skirts, and are from Dorothy Perkins, New Look, Matalan, Red Herring, Mantaray and Peacocks. I have many other new and used clothes to list later in the week. Some shoes and accessories may be added at a later date.

Most items in my wardrobe are between sizes 16-22UK, and sizes 6-7UK in shoes.

Everything is in fantastic condition. There is also a point and shoot digital camera for sale at the moment!

I guarantee everything I sell is always quickly whisked off to the Post Office once payment has cleared. I often send parcels on the same or next day, and certainly within three.

Feel free to take a look, and if you've any questions about any of the items, don't be afraid to ask. You can contact me through eBay, or send me an email to polkaspotsandfreckledots@gmail.com.

Thanks for your time,

My Tips for Living With Disc Injuries... the ones Doctors never suggest but should!

I want to talk about something a little different today. I've not really gone in to depth about living with disc injuries before, but I would like to speak a little bit about it now.  I want to share how I get through each day with disc injuries, in case I can help anybody going through a similar situation. I'm going to start by sharing some of my tried and tested tips, but first a little about my situation...

For seventeen months, I've lived in constant pain from several disc injuries. These injuries have turned my entire life upside down and shattered it in to pieces beyond recognition. The pain in my lower back and spine keeps me confined to bed 99% of the time, and prevents me from living an ordinary life.

I had two choices: one, I could be miserable and negative; live a life feeling sorry for myself and give up. Or two, I could try to go with the flow; adapt; try to have more positive days than negative ones; be strong, and find ways to keep myself occupied. I chose challenge number two. I can't change what's happened, so I see no point in letting it bring me down. I refuse to let this set back win.

Of course, I do have days when missing out on life all gets too much to bare, and I feel fed up and blue- I'm only human, after all, but in general, I try to keep a cheery, laid-back persona. I've learnt to get myself through each day, one at a time, and the trick is to keep occupied.

I thought I'd share some of my tips for getting through the day while bed ridden or housebound. These are ways I've learnt to fill up my time and make it through to the next day without succumbing to cabin fever. I wanted to share them for anybody out there who may be having a hard time coping with a life-changing injury or illness...

Louise's Tips For Living With On Going Disc Injuries

1. Resist the urge to stay in your pyjamas all day every day. They may be comfy. You might not be able to stray far from the bed. Dressing may be a task and a half, but in my experience, slobbing around in pyjamas with unwashed hair every day will just make you even more miserable. Dress yourself in your favourite outfits!

2. Dress up in clothes that make you feel great. You might nor be able to control your pain levels, or your mobility, but you can control how you look. Of course vanity isn't the most important thing in life, but if you're like me, when you feel you look good on the outside, you feel great on the inside, too. I always feel a lot brighter when I'm wearing a great fitting dress with a quirky pattern- even if I can only wear it lying in bed.

3. Pamper yourself! Everybody deserves some 'me' time, some way that they can relax and unwind. Have a long soak in the bath, if you're able to. (Sadly, I can't get in and out of the tub easily right now). Apply a face mask. Paint your nails. Try out some nail art. Even call in a mobile hairdresser if you can sit up long enough to get your hair done. I personally find trying out lots of new nail looks very therapeutic and a great way to retain some normality.

4. Read! Reading is a great distraction, and will take your mind off your current situation for a little while. See your current situation as a chance to get stuck in to all those novels you've always wanted to read! Of course, some good magazines, and great blogs will fill up your time well, too! 

5. Distract yourself. Do what you can to keep yourself busy. Read, write, blog, make something, play computer games... what ever hobbies you enjoy doing from home, do them! Being busy makes the day go so much faster, and you'll have a sense of achievement, too. I started this blog to give myself something to focus on during my confinement, and it sure has helped to keep the boredom at bay.

6. Avoid spending too much time on Facebook. We're all guilty of checking our timelines several times a day, but chances are the statuses of friends having a ball will upset you if you're stuck in bed with just your thoughts for company. The lack of comments or likes on your own statuses from friends who no longer care will probably bring you down further. If either of those get you down, sitting at the computer hitting refresh every ten seconds will do you more harm than good. Log off and remind yourself it's their loss, not yours, and ring the ones who've stuck by you for a chat instead.

7. Don't spend time and effort being upset over the 'friends' who stop calling. It's only when bad things happen that you really learn who your true friends are. The ones who've abandoned you are not worth worrying about. If they can't be there for you when you need them most, then they were obviously never great friends to begin with. Remember, it's quality, not quantity! It's not you, it's them!

8. Let those feelings out. Living with an ongoing injury and constant pain can put a lot of strain on your emotions. If you're anything like me, you might have days when your situation stresses, frustrates, and upsets you. And bottling up those feelings won't make those worries any easier. You need to let them out.

 You could have a heart to heart with a close friend or family member. You could keep a journal, scribble those feelings down on a piece of paper, blog about them, or just type a word document. Even if you'd rather not share how you feel with others, just emptying those thoughts from your mind will take a weight off your shoulders. Trust me, it helps.

9. Get out and about when you can. Make the most of those 'good' days  and leave the house when ever you think you can manage to. Take every opportunity. You may only manage a short walk to the end of the street and back, or a trip to the supermarket with a family member, but the fresh air and doing something ordinary will work wonders on your mood and well being.

10. Take it one day at a time. Some days will be good, some days will be bad and some will be almost unbearable. Take each day as it comes and concentrate on making it through to the next one as best you can. Dwelling on the shoulda woulda couldas won't achieve anything, and neither will worrying about the future, or making unrealistic goals and plans you probably won't be able to keep. Don't think ahead. Set small, daily goals like 'today I'll go for a walk around the block', or 'I'll try to get downstairs once today.' Live in the here and now, and just go with the flow. Everything will work itself out in time.

Of course, what works for one won't necessarily work for another, but I hope that these tips might make life a little easier for anyone going through a life changing injury or illness. I probably have a few more tips stored in my head, but I'll stop at these ten for now.

If you've got your own tips for coping with being house bound from an ongoing injury, I'd love to hear them. Leave me a comment below! And, if you're going through a difficult injury yourself, don't give up. Life will get brighter in time.

A Mini Haul

Hey lovelies,

I hope you're all well and looking forward to the weekend.

This is just a quick post to share a few little things I've picked up this week.

I finally sourced a gorgeous iridescent Model's Own nail polish which I've been admiring online for many months, "Indian Ocean". Every beauty blogger and their pampered pooch seems to have been raving about this nail polish for months, while I'd only been able to admire it from afar... until now.

I went in to Boots to buy bandages and found myself distracted by the Model's Own display- I'd never found one anywhere before. The Indian Ocean polish turned out to be a beautiful lilac-blue polish with a hot pink and light gold metallic sheen, far prettier than I'd imagined it to be. It was £5 for a very generous sized pot. I also picked up a black nail art pen which was £6, which I later began using to turn my red nails in to ladybirds.

In Accessorize I found these adorable heart print hair grips for just £3 for 15. They're so cute and have a tight grip so hopefully they'll last a bit longer than the average kirby grip.

And, I also bought this quirky little pencil necklace from Accessorize. It was on sale with 70 percent off the original price, which meant I only parted with £1.80 to make it my own! Not bad considering it's guaranteed to be worn to death as it's just my style!

I have my heart set on so many accessories and make up products after this little shopping trip. My favourite find was a string of multi coloured necklaces in pastel shades combined as one pretty boho necklace. I desperately want to buy it to wear with my Spring/Summer wardrobe. Here's hoping for a lottery win on the horizon...

What have you been buying recently?

Thanks for reading,

What I Wore | Behind the Sea

As we've been having such a gorgeous little wave of sunshine and something resembling warmth these last few days, I've been pushing myself to take advantage of the weather and venture outside for short, gentle walks.

On Tuesday this involved a stroll around Portchester Castle again; a place close by to where my sister lives. Each step was a struggle, and progress was quite slow, but the pain was worth it to be outside on a beautiful day in such gorgeous surroundings.

 For me, there's not much better in life than being by the sea. I love the smell of the sea weed and salt water (if I could bottle that smell I would), and I just feel so at peace near water. I don't know why that is.

My sister dragged me out of bed and forced me to dress at lightening speed without showering to go for this walk, so this was the result. An outfit I ended up loving, except for the fact my hair was tied back in a pony tail revealing the ears I prefer to conceal because my hair needed washing.

You may remember seeing this dress on this blog a few months ago, when I wore it with bright teal tights in my garden at home. Well, this week I was itching to wear this dress once more, and this time built the outfit up with purples and blues.

The dress came from Dorothy Perkins, and is a lovely, lined chiffon dress with capped sleeves, and a beautiful bird cage print on a rich raspberry fabric. The colour is truly lovely. I wore it over dark purple tights (as I didn't have a black pair to hand), and a cropped navy cardigan to pull out the blue of the print. I wanted to wear a cropped cardigan as it was fairly warm outside in the sunshine, with only a little chill in the air. It must have only been about ten degrees, so I must have been mad, but I wasn't very cold! I wore it with my blue quilted ballet pumps, as they're one of the only pairs of shoes I can wear with my swollen toes right now, added a few beaded bracelets to my wrist, and borrowed my sister's purple quilted studded chain bag.

I felt quite good in this outfit, and I really wish I'd worn this dress more this A/W. Hopefully I'll get a little more wear from it before the colours of Spring return and make Winter colours look dark and out of place.

My Sister said I was vain for taking my glasses off for photos. I've never liked being snapped wearing my glasses, and I've had to wear them or lenses since I was a baby. Some things never change. This was my vain diva pose mid-blink. Attractive. LOL.

Here you can get a closer look at all the little details.

What I Wore

Dress- Dorothy Perkins // Cardigan- New Look // Tights- Evans // Ballet Pumps- New Look //

Bag- Accessorize // Black Beaded Bracelets- Dorothy Perkins // Pearl Bracelet- Matalan //

Glasses (in hand)- Roxy // Ladybird Earrings (not pictured)- Accessorize //

I really enjoyed being outside in the sunshine, but the walk took it out of me, so it was back to bed, with Grazia Magazine, Dirty Dancing, and some morphine for me afterwards.

Hopefully I'll attempt a couple more outings over the next few days for more outfit posts!

Thanks for reading,

Review | Stila All Is Bright Lip Glaze Set

I've been wanting to treat myself to Stila's All is Bright lip glaze set since I discovered it in ASOS's Christmas gift listings back in December. This week I was finally able to.

The set contains eight lip glazes in 2 best selling shades, and 6 limited editions. The lip glazes in the set are worth £75, but this set is amazing value for money as it retails for just £18.50!! I however managed to pick the set up on sale on Stila's website at the bargain price of £12.95! What a steal.

The pens are made from light weight plastic, and have a stylish, expensive appearance. They're light enough to carry around in your bag throughout the day or night.

Holly //  Sugar plum //  Black Cherry // Joy //  Jingle // Jack Frost // Jolly // Splendor

The lip glazes are full size Stila products, in eight wearable colours. The colours include a great selection of pinks, corals, and berries which are not only suitable all year round, but so versatile, too. The colours can be worn as a subtle layer of colour, or built up for a more bold lip, so they can be worn suitably for lots of different scenarios from work to nights out and just general every day wear. I really love that option with make up, and how the boldness can be built up depending on your confidence, preference, or situation.

Holly //  Sugar plum //  Black Cherry // Joy //  Jingle // Jack Frost // Jolly // Splendor

The variety provides so many fantastic options and looks. I don't know about you, but I like to change my make up looks from day to day instead of sticking to one or two favourite looks all the time. I like how this set provides the opportunity to change from pink to coral and fuchsia and berry as your mood dictates you.

Holly //  Sugar plum //  Black Cherry // Joy //  Jingle // Jack Frost // Jolly // Splendor

Holly //  Sugar plum //  Black Cherry // Joy //  Jingle // Jack Frost // Jolly // Splendor

I love every one of these lip colours with my very pale skin tone. They're all suitable for porcelain skin tones, although I think each of these would look equally striking on dark skin tones, too. I like the variety of bold colours and softer shades, and the pigment of the colours is amazing. I think my favourites are probably Holly, Black Cherry, and Jingle so far.

To use, all that's required is a quick couple of twists of the tube which distributes gloss on to the silky soft brush. It's so easy, and you can control how much gloss comes out. Then just brush the lip glaze on to the lips as you would normally.

A little goes a long way, and remains in place for hours, too. I find the lip glosses to have very little stickiness, unlike most other glosses which I find end up sticking to everything but my lips. I love this! They have the texture of a soft, glossy lip stick, and I find they soften my lips wonderfully, which is amazing as I'm prone to very dry chapped lips. 

Overall, I'm so very impressed with these lip glazes. The colours are fantastic and they're so easy to use and hard-wearing. The set was a complete bargain for eight full sized products, and I really love the cute packaging the festive set was given, as well as the cute festive names. Oh, and the set was dispatched swiftly  and delivered within 48 hours- plus the delivery charge is currently free! Can't ask for much better than that!

I'd say these are some of the best lip products I've ever tried, and would recommend that everybody gives them a try! The set can be bought on the Stila website here.

Have you tried this lip glaze set yet? What do you think?

Are you a fan of Stila make up?

Thanks for reading,

Broken down on memory lane

When the sun puts in an appearance and graces us with a beautiful warm sunny day, I always have the urge to dig out some uptempo music, and blast it out. I usually find myself gravitating back to two of my favourite bands: Fall Out Boy, and Panic! At The Disco; two awesome bands whose combined hundred or so songs are so catchy and cheerful, and never fail to put me in a content, nostalgic, and happy mood. I associate their songs with summer, and can connect them to so many fond memories.

 I've been listening to their songs a lot over the last couple of days as the sunshine and some warmth has started to trickle back ever so faintly in to English weather. Yesterday was a flawlessly sunny day, one warm enough to dawdle around the outlet village without a jacket, and even with a little arm exposed. feeling comfortably heated instead of fearing frostbite. It was lovely. It's feels like a life time since our last hot summer's day, and I'm excited for Spring. I can't wait for longer days, warmth, and delicate pastel shades making their way back in to our wardrobes. I can't wait for the opportunity to wear maxi dresses and sandals, cropped cardigans, and the excuse to listen to all my favourite summery songs. Winter lost it's sparkle months ago.

So, this meandering in the sunshine warranted an outfit post! The quality of the photos is atrocious, for which I'm sorry, but I hope you won't mind too much...

My outfit was nothing special, just made up of old pieces from my wardrobe. The purple jersey midi dress was a Dorothy Perkins purchase from about a year ago. I don't own many plain coloured dresses, but I was drawn to the vibrant purple of this one, and it's a great wardrobe staple to dress up. I originally started wearing it with tights, which are more flattering on the legs with midi lengths as the elongate them, but the tights were putting pressure on my bad toes, so I switched to leggings. Not great, but couldn't be helped. I wore the dress with my old faithful green striped v-neck cardigan with three quarter length sleeves. The cardi came from Next several years ago. I like the way the stripes on the sleeves become gradually narrower from shoulder to forearm, which give the illusion of slimmer, tapered arms. It's also really soft, and comfortable, and I also own it in red and grey. I accessorised with my new collar necklace, and a green skinny keeper belt.

It's been a while since I've worn the dress and the cardigan, together or separately, so I really enjoyed wearing this outfit out in the sunshine.

Outfit Details

Dress- Dorothy Perkins // Cardigan- Next // Leggings- Evans // Collar- Evans // Belt- Dorothy Perkins

I'm staying with my sister again for the week, and she's determined to drag me out for walks every day regardless of my pain levels, so hopefully I may manage a couple more outfit posts this week... Stranger things have happened! Don't hold your breath, though, I am struggling to move at the minute!

I hope you're all having a brilliant start to the week.

Thanks for reading,

Stila Make Up Bargain Buys

I love ASOS, as many of my regular readers are likely to have observed by now. 

As fashion retailers go, ASOS is one of the very best. Not only do they sell their own cutting edge clothes and accessories- which I'm sure you know also have one of the best plus size lines around- but they also carry clothes, accessories, make up, and cosmetics from a wide variety of other brands.

I'm particularly fond and acquainted with their 'Saved Items List'. I regularly add all sorts of wonders to mine to mill over, to wait to see if they may go on promotion, or to remind myself to purchase the amazing find at a later date.

My saved list has been cluttered with festive Stila make up since early December. I've been buying my time waiting for a little money to spare, and this week I was able to pounce.

I sold a coat on eBay, and exchanged the money for Stila make up. Not for myself, you'll understand, but to squirrel away for Christmas presents. No, I've not gone mad; I'm not usually this prepared, but I'm determined to spread the cost of this year's gifts throughout the year for a change. I'm not sure who I shall be giving them to, so I think it's okay for me to show you them.

I bought a Large Snowflake Eyeshadow Palette, and three Merry and Bright Palette and Lip Glaze Sets.

So, first up is the Large Snowflake Palette which is made up of eighteen eyeshadows and twelve blushers. The palette is shaped like a hexagon, with a pretty, festive snowflake design, and it's about the size of a dinner plate. The set also comes with a free black mascara.

It has a wonderful variety of blusher shades in pink, coral, terracotta, and red; which surely caters for almost every taste, skin tone, and look, whilst being suitable for everything from work to party time. There are equally a fantastic selection of wearable eyeshadow colours to create subtle looks for day time, or more intense looks for night. I honestly think this palette is brilliant; the quantity of make up in the palette is great, and everything is wearable- this is perfect for ladies who like to create a variety of make up looks and like a little colour, but nothing too bold.

This palette retailed at the reasonable price of £29.50, but it's currently on sale here for a modest £13.50 on ASOS! I really hope I can pick up a couple more before they sell out.

And next up is the Merry and Bright Palette and Lip Glaze Sets. These sets consist of a bronze lip glaze, six eyeshadows, and a multi functional highlighter.

Each set has lovely packaging in duck egg blue and light teal, with a girl on the front in an evening gown. It's a light-weight yet sturdy palette, which fits comfortably in the palm of your hand. The sets were packaged with cellophane, with the lip glazes beside them, and wrapped in bubble wrap for protection.

The palettes have a decent sized mirror, with tips on how to wear the make up. The six eyeshadows are displayed like a snowflake, with the highlighter beneath them. 

The eyeshadows in various browns and black are perfect for every day wear. This is basically a collection of the perfect basic neutral shadows every girl should own. This would be perfect for work, school, or play, and for creating natural, professional, and smokey looks. Perfect for colour-phobes and non colour-phobes alike. The highlighter is a lovely pale coral, again a colour suitable for every day, and one I'd imagine would suit most skin tones.

These sets were originally priced as £12.50 on ASOS, although I bought them for the purse-friendly price of just £5 each this week here! That's an incredible bargain when you take in to account that Stila Lip Glazes alone retail around the £15 mark! 

I'm determined to keep all these wonderful Stila sets aside for Christmas presents for my friends and family, but I'll admit I'm very tempted to just keep them all for myself! Yes, make up does have a shelf-life, but I'm sure they'll be just fine stored in a cool dry place.

So, whether you want to follow suit, or perhaps buy one for yourself, head on over to ASOS. They may be festive themed, but the make up is fantastic and works just as well at other times of the year, too. All the Stila sale items can be found here, and there are also various items on sale on Stila's website, too.

Have you tried any of this make up before?

Are you a fan of Stila cosmetics?

Thanks for reading,

Dorothy Perkins Star Sequined Collar

Just after Christmas, I was spending a few days with my sister down South, when we quickly popped in to town to run a few errands. Whilst in Dorothy Perkins paying a balance off my store card, I found two star sequined collars in their January sales. They were the classic shirt collar shape, of the softest fabric, covered in star sequins and tied at the neck with ribbon.

Exactly what I'd been looking for. They were so beautiful, and made my heart squeal. I had been searching for gorgeous collars which could fit around my neck, and liven up some old outfits.

Well, the collars were just £5 each instead of their original price of about £15 or so each. I forget their original price. My sister just so happened to owe me a tenner, so I quickly sent her to the till to buy me the two collars instead of returning the money to my pocket.

The edges are lined with tiny little beads, and the stars are not only sewn on securely, but embellished with tiny beads, too.

I bought the collars in this beautiful taupe colour, and also one in black. Although I've misplaced the black collar (which is why there is a lack of photos of it). I'm not sure if I've lost it at home, or have actually lost it for good, as I can't seem to find it anywhere. I can't for the life or me remember if I took it to my sister's or stowed it safely away at home with all the travelling I've done back and forth between our homes recently. I'm a little bummed as I have so many outfit ideas for the black version!

I'm tempted to pop in to Dorothy Perkins to see if I can find another.

The collars are no longer available online, but I'd recommend keeping your eyes open for them in your local stores if collars are your thing, as they really are stunning.

Do you like the collar trend? Do you own many?

Thanks for reading,

Just a Touch of Love

Happy Valentine's Day... or Happy Over-Commercialised Love Day, if you prefer... which I do.

Sorry, Valentine's Day devotees- I've just never been a fan of this highly commercialised holiday.

That's such a 'single-girl' thing to say, isn't it?

 It's not that I'm a forlorn single girl who sits at home listening to soppy love songs sobbing in to a pillow longing for Mr Right; nor am I the bitter single girl who curses men, swears off love forever, and spends Valentine's Day scowling at every loved up person that looks her way. I'm not either. If I had to say, I guess I'm the single girl in the middle of melancholy and hatred who's comfortable with her own company, and doesn't reject the idea of love.

I just don't think it should take a recognised holiday to show the person you love how you feel about them. It should be something that is shown every day, minus the tacky trinkets and paraphernalia, in what ever way is  right for each couple. It shouldn't be forced for the sake of showing society you're spoken for. But, hey, that's just me... Of course, if Valentine's Day is right for you, then that's absolutely fine, too!

Anyway, in honour of Valentine's Day, I've put together some of the best heart and love themed clothes and accessories I've discovered lately. 44 beautiful love-shaped pieces, to be precise. It doesn't matter if you're single or loved up, why wait for somebody else to treat you to something inspired by St. Valentine today? Use today as an excuse to show yourself you care by buying yourself some love!

First up, how about something darker than your average Valentine's treat?

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22.

Valentine's presents are traditionally deep red or pink, sexy or delicately pretty, so I wanted to compile a selection of more unconventional designs. I sought out blacks, greys, navys, and skulls with hearts for eyes. I particularly love the heart shaped bags, the snood, dress, and knitwear. I also have to note how fabulous the Iron Fist heels are, with ditsy heart prints in their designs. Amazing.

Or, perhaps you prefer more traditional Valentine's colours?

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24.

Valentine's Day wouldn't be Valentine's Day without lashings of red, pink, and gold, so I decided to include this little lot, too. I'm totally head over heels with the three Zatchels satchels which all come in red, pink, or white. My favourite is the red heart print barrel bag (no 8), which is affordable at just £45, and just my style. Again, I also really love all the knitwear, and I can recommend the heart-shaped earring holder which I have on my dressing table.

What do you make of Valentine's Day? Do you love it, or do you hate it?

How are you spending this Valentine's Day? Have you been spoiled rotten, or are you planning to treat yourself to something above?

Which is your favourite?

Thanks for reading,