Monday, 18 August 2025

Life Lately - A Birthday, A Piercing, Some Outfits, A Couple Of Shopping Trips And Silly Buys, And A Whole Load Of Meh*

It's been a while guys but I'm back with another post x It's safe to say things have been pretty crappy over the last few months and alas at the moment it doesn't look as though things are going to get better any time soon. Not great I know but sometimes you have to put on your big girl shoes and make the best of it. So trying to focus on the positives, today I thought I'd share a little, all be it an un-edited photo heavy update post, focusing on some of the good things that have happened over the last few months x


May was the month when things started to go down hill but on the 15th I completed another trip around the sun and celebrated a birthday, it was a super quite one and I got some money and some lovely presents including this little beauty!


I got the Medium Longchamp Le Pliage in Navy for Christmas and it really was a game changer for me. As much as I love a nice leather handbag, they do have a tendency to be heavy before you've even put anything in them, and since my arm, and shoulder pain has been on the increase, I wanted a lighter alternative, and the Le Pliage is just that. The Le Pliage looks good, and even with the leather handles, and stuffed to the brim it still doesn't feel anywhere near as heavy as some of my leather bags.

You should know by now with me though, if I like something I want it in every colour, and so I asked for the black version for my birthday. I went for the large this time and whilst it isn't a lot bigger, it is a bit roomier and I could easily fit my Macbook or even a pair of shoes into it! The Large Le Pliage especially would make a great college or uni bag, or if you're like me and you carry a lot of stuff around, it makes a great everyday bag. I use a bag insert in both of mine to keep it more organised and to help them keep their shape. Love, love these bags  and I really can't believe that I didn't get one sooner. They come in loads of different colours and sizes, and the British Green is next on my list.



Since I mainly got money for my birthday and I still had Christmas money left over, my aim was to go shopping in some real shops either in my birthday week or in the week after but yeah life got in the way and I didn't actually make it the Metro Centre till nearly the end of June! Never mind I got there in the end and celebrated with an outfit pic!


What I Wore

Short Sleeve Silky Paisley Top - TEMU
Navy Blue Tie Waist Trousers - Saloos Via eBay
Medium Longchamp Le Pliage - Navy

Whilst the ultimate aim was to scour the shops and buy whatever I fancied, there was an itch that needed to be scratched and there was only one shop that could could fulfil that need and that was Doc Black Ink



Yes, I decided to get myself another piercing and i decided to match my conches up and I decided to get my left conch pierced.

Before


After



I honestly can't say enough good things about this place, everyone is always super friendly, and my piercer Bear made me feel so relaxed and comfortable. It’s been nearly 2 months now since I had it done an bar the first week when it was swollen and a bit tender, it's been great, I'm still getting crusties but the swelling has gone right down, and I haven't experienced any pain or bleeding since day 1 so fingers crossed it stays that way.


After that I headed into Primark and to be honest it was a bit mehhhh again, the size range was pretty much non existent in a lot of items, and just not that much appealed so I bought myself some burgundy boyfriend pjs, a candle and a couple of pairs of sandals, and that was about it. and what's with having to pay for the paper bags now?



Next up Sephora, I'd already claimed my birthday gift online (I bought the Color Wow Dream Cocktail Kale Infusion after a recommendation from my hairdresser and the REM Beauty Sweet Dreams Eyeshadow) , but nothing can beat looking at make up and skincare in the flesh. 

I only bought of a couple of all be it quite spendy things - first something I'd had on my wishlist for a while the Glow Recipe Dewy Babies Kit, which contains 5 travel sized mini products including the Plum Plump Hyaluronic Acid Hydrating Serum, the Watermelon Pink Juice Oil-Free Moisturiser. the Watermelon Glow Niacinamide Hue Drops Sun Glow Serum, the Watermelon Glow Dewy Flush and the Watermelon Glow Ultra-Fine Mist. A little spendy for minis but it's definitely a good way to try out a some products from the range without having to shell out for the full sizes.

The other item that I got was much more of an impulse buy but I'm so pleased I picked it up - it's the Sol De Janiero 87 Rio Radiance Perfume Mist. OMG this scent just screams summer, you get a bit of warmth, and sweetness, and almost coconut notes, alongside some tropical heady white flower notes - I think the sun creams have a similar scent but alas nothing else in the Sol De Janeiro range seems to share this scent :(


That was pretty much for my in store shopping- a few bits, and a new piecring and I went home exhausted with some money still burning a hole in my pocket, and we all know what that means - yes online shopping!

After trying a sample I did intend to treat myself to a Charlotte Tilbury foundation when I was in Sephora but then I realised that Metro Centre Sephora doesn't have a Charlotte Tilbury counter duhhh I could have gone to Harrods Beauty but I wanted my Sephora points so as soon as I got home I placed a little order online.


I picked up a tube of the Charlotte Tilbury Beautiful Skin Foundation, I liked it because it didn't feel too heavy , again it was pricey but I'm not wearing a lot of make up at the moment so hopefully it should last me a while. I also impulsively bought the Morphe Chroma Plus 6-Pan Eyeshadow Palette in Rich Glitch, and for an impulse buy I'm so so happy with it, the shadows are soft and buttery and the metallic shades especially are incredible!

Now I don't go to the Metro Centre or Newcastle that often now but exactly one week after my Metro Centre trip I was getting ready and getting on a bus to head into Newcaslte, again outfit recorded for posterity..


What I Wore

Blue Denim Jacket - NEXT
Black T-Shirt - SHEIN Curve
Animal Print Side Split Skirt - SHEIN Curve
Large Longchamp Le Pliage - Black

I was headed into town to meet up with my bestie Helen, she was staying up north for a few days, and I was super happy to see her and spend time with one of oldest and bestest friends. We pottered around the shops for a bit before heading to St James' Stack Powered By Sela for some drinks and some lunch.


I know some people have some issues with it but I love it. with loads of food and drink options and live entertainment on most days , it's the perfect place to meet friends, just be careful sitting on the benches if you're wearing a skirt IYKYK ;)


This time round we went to Acropolis a real north east institution, with restaurants in both the Grainger Market, and in the Metro Centre, as well as regular pop ups at markets, attractions, and even in random car parks across the region and beyond, if you like Greek street food then a trip to Acropolis is a must.


I went for the Halloumi and Roasted Vegetable wrap which was so good, slices of halloumi, roasted vegetables, salad, chips, and Acropolis' signature sauce, all stuffed into a giant wrap - incredibly difficult to eat, but it was so worth it and we had such a laugh as bits of wrap contents flew everywhere. Maybe not a first date food but arm yourself with a bestie and plenty of napkins, and you'll experience the true taste of Greece in the heart of Newcastle.


I washed my wrap down with a lemon Fanta and a pint of coke whilst we enjoyed the sun and the live music as we put the world to rights. As I say I love the whole atmosphere of the stack yes it's pricey but go during the day and obviously not on a match day and it has a really chilled, family and dog friendly vibe.

After an hour or so we headed back to the city centre and I resumed my mission of the day which was to find the Jellycat Amuseables Mozzarealla. It was love at first sight with this one - a cute ball of fresh cheese, with a tomato beret, and a basil leaf in his hand, he was just too cute, I only have a few Jellycats (I love them but they are way too expensive!!) but I knew i needed to add this one to my collection, the only trouble was I couldn't find him.

There are now no Jellycat stockists in the Metro Centre, and both Fenwick's and one of the independent stockists in Newcastle were sold out. John Lewis was my last hope and to be honest it didn't look promising I couldn't even find their Jellycat stand and then all of a sudden Helen spotted a tiny little display in the gift department with less than a dozen Jellycat's and guess who was front and centre - he was the last one, and now he's mine. Totally overpriced for what he is but I love him, he's so cute and so well made. A nice keepsake for a lovely day with a lovely friend x 


I'm almost embarrassed as to where this post is now headed but believe me over the last few months I've needed something to make me smile and spending money on stupid stuff seems to be the way forward.
Like most people these days I often find myself mindlessly scrolling Tik Tok late at night, some of the content pees me off beyond belief but about a month or so ago I found myself being drawn into Labubu tok. Initially I was not impressed they were quite frankly a bit scary and evil looking, and my bigest question was why? Gradually though the worm turned and after watching some hilarious lafufu (fake labubus) unboxings I wanted to join in so I bought a few from SHEIN and TEMU two of which you can see on the left and right below,  not great but at least they weren't bald lol eventually though good luck looked down on me and I managed to get a real Labubu x Pronounce Wings Of Fortune from Pop Mart online which you can see in the middle. She's lovely and much better quality than my fake ones but they are a lot more fun, so much so in fact that I've ordered another two from SHEIN...



I'm addicted but I think what I'm more addicted to is the blind / mystery box aspect and the surprise element. I've bought a few other Sanrio collectable blind boxes, and a few Sanrio stationary mystery boxes from SHEIN (you can see some unboxings of those on my Tik Tok here and here ) and I also recently picked up of these blind box plushes from the Sanrio Latte Series, so cute and great if you like the idea of a plush bag charm but you aren't that keen on labubus. Yes I know I'm an adult but it's all about what makes you happy and whether that's a blind big, a white cat in a bear suit or a scary looking rabbit demon hybrid, you do you!


I have one more buy to share with you and again it was a spendy birthday money buy - As a Newcastle fan last season was the best one in my memory eventually breaking the trophy drought and seemingly with everything to look forward to but then this summer happened and whilst we've made some quality signings a Swedish inspired cloud now hangs over us grrrr why cant we ever have nice things? Anyways I debated whether or not to buy a new season shirt but I saw these instead and I thought I'd probably get more wear out of them than I would a shirt. These are the official Adidas Newcastle United Sambas and I love them the branding is actually pretty discreet with the crest on the tongue and the word Newcastle gold on the side of the left shoe, so it's not that in your face which should make them easier to wear. I didn't own any Samba's so it really was a no brainer. 


So that's where I'm at, existing, stumbling on at times, and just trying to bring a little bit of joy into my life. I'm going to try and get back into blogging and social media again, and I've got a few drafts in progress so I'm going to be posting a little bit more regularly, next up will be the start of an epic empties catch up, I'm also working on some nail posts, and even more empties posts x I'm also hopefully meeting up with Helen's mam who is up north this week, so I may have another teeny tiny Metro Centre haul to share with you soon as well x Till then though thanks for sticking with me and if you have any questions on anything that I've mentioned in this post then please leave me a comment xx 

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