Lately......loving

Hiya

I am back and trying to get back to blogging again after the sudden death of my cat.  I will never be over it but feel I have to move on.  I also wanted to thank everyone for their kind comments.

When it first happened I spent 3 days in bed not wanting to eat or face anyone and crying all the time...it was a terrible and I have still not gotten over losing him, he was a massive part of my life and its hard to think I will never ever see him again.  I just have to remember the good times and realise the fact that he had a brilliant life, a lot nicer life than a lot of cats who maybe homeless or are subject to abuse. Ollie had everything and we gave him so much love and attention. He also gave us so much happiness and love.  He will be truly missed.

With this in mind we have decided to get another cat or maybe two cats, they will never ever replace Ollie as he was unique but it will help to have more furbabies around.

Also we are unsure if Ollie passed away on my birthday or the early hours of the day after so unfortunately my birthday will always be tinged with sadness from now on.

Anyway trying to move on to nicer things I thought I would do a post of things I have loved lately just as a way of easing myself back into blogging.

My new Pandora ring bought by my lovely husband for my birthday back in November.

my pretty Initial necklace from a lovely friend

also these pretty glasses which she also bought me when she was in the Lake District...they are so me.

my new Miss Selfridge coat from the Petites range...which I got in the sales.

I am really behind with posts at the moment.  I have a massive H&M haul coming up so look out for that..I have literally bought loads in H&M recently sale and non sale items.

I have also purchased a couple of other sale items which I shall get around to showing you all.

Oh well Christmas is only a few days away, to be honest it does not feel like christmas to me but I am hoping I will feel more festive very soon!

ps - since writing this we have welcomed another cat into our home....more about him very soon :) 

Take care

Lisa-Jane

xx

Sad News

Hi everyone

I really hate having to write this post but we lost our beloved cat Ollie this week and words cannot express how sad I am.

We had Ollie for just over 3 years, thats all just 3 years and he was only 5 years old.  

Basically we went to Devon last Sunday to celebrate my birthday only for a few days as we were coming back on the Wednesday.  A trusty neighbour was coming in 3 times a day to feed him etc.  On the morning we were due to come home she entered the house and usually he would come running downstairs to greet her but there was nothing.  She went into the living room and found him laying on his side.  Unfortunately he had passed away sometime between 8pm the following evening and 8am that morning. 

I feel to blame, I feel that he died all alone with no one to help him.  You may ask why we did not put him in a cattery?  We have done this before and when he came home he was even more distressed and was really light so I thought he had not been fed well.  Since then when we have gone away usually Mike's parents woud come in and also the neighbour.  Mikes dad has to go into hospital that Monday as he has just be diagnosed with an aggressive cancer so therefore we thought he would be ok with the neighbour coming in 3 x times a day and it was only for 2 days.

We took him to the vets and the vet thinks he had a fit as he was biting his tongue when he died and there was saliva around his cheeks and on the floor.

I am totally and utterly devastated..I have been in bed for the last 2 days and have not hardly eaten.  Ollie was our life, we don't have children so he was my baby and I feel so lost and alone without him.

Ollie was the most loveliest cat ever, he was so affectionate, gentle and loving.

I really don't know how I am going to come to terms with this I am just constantly crying and nothing can comfort me and make me feel better.

I am not looking forward to christmas and feel there is nothing to look forward too.

Here is the story of when we got Ollie..... http://brunette-lady.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/our-new-ginger-addition-ollie.html

I cannot believe we just had 3 years with him and I feel totally responsible for his death..

Lisa-Jane

xx

Its time for another collective HAUL!

Hello everyone

I just thought I would do a quick haul post to show you some of the items I have purchased over the last month or so!

Ok so there have been a few sales around of late so some of these are recent sale items and others (like the Primark bits) I purchased about 4 weeks ago.

Firstly we head to ASOS (my favourite online shop) where I purchased this pretty crochet cream dress in the sale.  This was £40 reduced to £18 and its still online.

Its quite a summery dress but I think the long sleeves make it more autumny (is that a word??) and I had this vision of wearing it with thick tights and chelsea boots and maybe layering with a cardigan.

I also got a Nica purse this was £25 reduced to £9.50...love this nude purse with the owl on the front.

Then onto Miss Selfridge a shop I don't go into much but I love their website as they often have good discount codes.  I purchased this denim dress in the sale it was reduced to £17.  Its very fitted like a bodycon style dress

In Topshop I purchased this Ribbed Funnel Neck Top.  The colour of this top is gorgeous, its so soft and has a lovely fit and overall look.  I would like to purchase more of these in other colours! 

In H&M I got this pretty pink butterly top, this is really nice with jeggings

Finally in Primark I purchased the following:

Knitted A-line skirt, this was £10 the material is so so gorgeous you would not believe its from Primark.  Its like a super stretchy woolly material.  They also had it in tan but I have a tan skirt and I really wanted the black,  I love the buttons up the font.

Terracota ballet pumps- love these and I love the colour...they are really comfy too.  I admit I was not keen on the gold bit at the front (reminds me of the villain in the Bond film where she had blades in her shoe lol) but I overlooked this as I loved the shoes.

Cream hat and cream headwrap.  I love the idea of wearing a headwrap but think would I look silly? However I have seen people wearing them and think how cute they look.  I tried one on and a few people have said it really suits me.  I have not actually worn it out though yet haha

I love the hat its supersoft and I will definitely wear this when it gets colder.

I have also purchased 2 new pairs of Boots and 2 coats!!!  I thought I would put these in a seperate post as I just have bought too much...naughty me!  

Let me know what you think of my purchases and also what you have been buying?

Lisa-Jane

xx

Latest Homeware Buys

Hello everyone

I have been meaning to do a homeware haul for a while now and have finally got around to it!  I am a sucker for bedding I think I have a slight obsession with it and find myself drawn to bedding whenever I go into homeware stores. 

I saw this duvet cover on Matalan's website for £30 and was so tempted but tried to reason with myself as I have many bedding sets that I did not need another..yeah like that lasted long!   As it happens I logged on one day and Matalan had some 'One day deals' and this bedding happened to be down to £12.50!  I had to have it as thats a complete bargain. I was not disapponted either as its stunning. Sorry I could not get a better photo of this.

I also purchased these gorgeous cream curtains from Kaleidoscope for our spare room.  We have ust decorated it I will take some photos when its finished.   I wanted the bedding to match but unfortunately it had sold out! These are gorgeous they are fully lined and are like a silky material with a gorgeous lace trim.  They were only about £40 which I thought was great for such pretty curtains.

Storage drawer for the bathroom from B&M..used stock photo :) 

Butterfly lampshade from B&Q.  If you look closely you can see Ollie is trying to photobomb my photograph!!!

I have a Primark haul coming up and an Online haul.

I hope you enjoy reading my hauls...personally I love reading haul posts so if you are doing any please let me know.

Lisa-Jane

xx

Liebster Blog Award Tag

Hello

I have been nominated the Liebster award by a blog I love reading /http://thistattandtheother.com  Thank you so much for this :) 

I had to answer the questions below and then set 10 questions and award this to other bloggers.  I will just nominate anyone who wants to do it but please let me know.

Here are my questions given to me:

Here are the questions I was given: 

1. If you could only shop at one clothes store for a year, which one would it be?

Oh gosh this is hard as I like many but if I had to choose I think it would be New Look. Basically I think they do everything pretty well.

2. When and where was your last holiday?

Palma Nova, Majorca last July

3. What’s your favourite band or genre of music?

This I cannot answer as I honestly like all genre's of music apart from Rap.  I mainly tend to like Rocky/Pop or Indie.

4. What’s your worst bad habit?

I have slight OCD so I check things a lot, this can be annoying.  

5. Who’s your celebrity crush?

hahah well believe it or not it used to be Simon Cowell...glad I go over that one..phew!  Then it was Jack from Lost. I suppose now I have to admit I do like Aliajz from Strictly Come Dancing..he has a gorgeous smile and a nice body.  I don't think I really have major crushes though I mean everyone seems to like certain films stars but I have never had that! I don't tend to go for who everyone else goes for aka Brad Pitt etc! 

6. Would you ever consider plastic surgery?

No never ever!  Don't get me wrong I don't think I am perfect and I would love to make some changes but would I ever do it...no way! 

7. What’s your favourite cuisine?

Italian or English.  I am vegetarian and I have to have gluten free so it makes food options a bit more limited but I love GF Pasta or GF Pizza.  

8. Have you ever fallen over in public?

Yes....many times!  The worse time was in work years ago when I tried to get up from my desk in a rush and my heel caught on the wires under the desk and i just went smack down on the floor right in front of a team of people having a meeting!  I laughed so much I cried ...it was so funny but very very embarassing! Another time my heel caught in a pavement in a busy town centre....!  It always seems to be in front of loads of people.  Glad I don't wear heels much now! I am a bit clumsy I walked into a recycling bin at work once too. 

9. What was the last book you read?

Sophie Kinsella - Shopaholic to the Stars.  I keep meaning to buy The Girl on The Train as everyone is raving about it! 

10. Do you have any tattoos or piercings?

I hate tattoos, I have nothing against anyone who has them its their choice but I just feel to me its just ruining your lovely skin...!  Each to their own though.  I have my ears pierced and when I was younger I did want my bellybutton pierced but never did it.

My questions to you are below:

1. What is your ultimate fashion purchase?
2. What is your favourite animal and why?
3. What is your favourite online fashion store?
4. Favourite holiday destination?
5. Have you ever won anything?
6. Do you believe there is other life out there and not just on earth?
7. What is your favourite time of day and why?
8. What is your favourite style of footwear?
9. Have you ever done anything for charity besides donating money?
10. If you could have one thing in the world and only that what would it be?

Please let me know if you do this as I really want to read the answers :) 

Take care

Lisa-Jane

xx

♥ Large Collective Haul - New Look, Forever 21, H&M, Primark, Dorothy Perkins, Select & Missguided ♥

Hello lovelies

I am back!!!  I have not been blogging for ages as I have been finding it so hard to get inspiration.  We are in the middle of decorating the spare room, so we have been buying wallpaper and paint.  I am going to make it very shabby chic but classy and I want it to be a dressing room and a spare room for when people stay!  I have bought some gorgeous curtains and want to get a new wardrobe and dressing table.  I do have a small homeware haul which I will have coming up.  I feel when I can get this room sorted out I will be able to do more outfit posts plus should have more time to blog!

I do really want to get back into blogging I just need to find the time. 

Just to give you an update as I have been away for a while...eek!  I have kept the weight off that I lost through going Gluten Free and have lost a bit more weight.  I weigh less now than when I got married and I am easily into an 8-10 so this is another reason I would like to do some outfit posts as I do feel a lot happier about my body.

Anyway onto this haul post.  I thought I would just show you a few clothing items I  have purchased over the past few months ( I mean as I have been away did you really think I had not been shopping! haha!!!) .  

I do love haul posts as I like discussing things I have bought and also I love reading other hauls posts too...I just love to see what people have been buying.

Just to make you aware I have used my own photos on some but used the websites pictures on others as to be honest a lot of this I have worn and forgot to take photos. 

I will do this by store as its makes it easier so first up we have New Look...one of my favourite stores on the high street.

New Look 

I noticed this Black Pinafore dress online and they only had a size 10 left, usually I need size 8 in New Look so was worried this would be too big!  I was so happy when it arrived its so nice.  It reminds me of a Jennifer Aniston dress, I don't know why though! Worn alone its very sexy without showing loads of flesh.  It's also nice with a jumper or shirt under.  

Navy A-line Skirt, again I love this it was reduced to £10 in the sale and its very flattering.  The material is really thick like 'ponte' material and it has stretch to it.

Ditsy Floral Wrap Dress - I was unsure about this when I saw it online but it was reduced to £10.  Again they only had a 10 left so I ordered it and I must admit I would have preferred the size 8 as the 10 is rather baggy around my chest and waist.  One thing I have loved about losing weight is going from a having massive boobs to just big boobs.  Its made such a big difference and I am a lot happier!  This dress is very pretty. 

Forever 21

There has not been much in F21 lately that I have really wanted however when I saw this Rose Print Dress I thought it would be a really nice 'winter floral' dress. Its very pretty and was only £10.00.

H&M

I bought this cream stretchy bardot jumper in H&M which was £19.99...a but steep for H&M but I can really see why its so expensive as the quality, feel and look of this jumper is amazing.  Its very very stretchy like elastic and nice material so it retains its shape.  I am not a fan of baggy shapeless jumpers as they don't suit me.  I was tempted to get it in red too but its quite a lot of money to get both and I knew the cream would go with everything.

Cream Ribbed top

Superstretch Treggings - these are only £12.99 and H&M have them in various colours.  I love them the only downside is that being short they are a bit too long for me as H&M only seem to do the 32 inch leg!  

Sweetheart ribbed top, I am loving ribbed tops at the moment I love the fact they fit nice and retain their shape.  

Primark

The last time I went to Primark it must have been at least 6 weeks ago but I am planning on going there next weekend.  I did purchase at peach butterly print cardigan but unfortunately I don't have a photo and its in the wash at the moment!  I also bought these tan punchole boots.  The boots were only £13.00 but now I am not so keen on them as I don't like the pale coloured heel much.  I am so fussy I am  hoping I can get over that and wear them sometime! 

Dorothy Perkins

Another basic ribbed top this was such great value and looks fab with so many skirts I have.

Select

Not a great fan of Select but they do have some cracking items in the sales.  I picked up this Floral Tea dress for only £6.99...its very pretty and ideal for work 

and this textured skirt was a fiver.

Missguided

I purchased this pretty pink ribbed top.  I love this it goes really well with my New Look Floral skirt and I am thinking I will wear it with my camel a-line skirt and it looks so nice in this outfit.

Well thats about it for now!

Let me know what you have been buying lately.

Take care

Lisa -Jane

xx

Skirt Alert - Haul

Hiya everyone

I have gone a bit skirt mad of late, its funny when I was a bit bigger I hated wearing skirts as I found dresses were more flattering but since weightloss I feel a lot more comfortable in skirts.

I have been purchasing quite a few over the past month or so, here is my little 'skirt' haul.

These skirts look quite short but as I am 'very short' they are ok for me plus I would wear them with really thick tights so I feel you can get away with shorter things when wearing opaques.

Firstly in New Look I purchased this Camel a-line skirt.  I love an a-line skirt they are just so flattering and I love camel as its one of those colours that just look so classy and lovely for autumn/winter.  I love the little suedette effect belt with it too.

Also from New Look I purchased this Ditsy Floral A-line skirt which is like a corduroy material and has poppers at the front.  I am thinking I will pair this with a rose pink, or rust skinny knit.

In Primark I got this black 60's style again a-line skirt.  This skirt is really flattering.

In H&M I purchased this gorgeous dark red (again a-line!!!) textured skirt.  I love this skirt its so flattering and the colour is gorgeous.  Its a shame I could not get a better photo

Also in H&M I got this in the sale.  It said £7.99 on the label but when I got to the till it was £2.00.  This is very short but its the kind of skirt I will wear with 200 denier tights.  Its so pretty with daisy print all over.  

Are you skirt mad?

Lisa-Jane

xx