Last week, the boyf turned 24. I know, how did that happen?

To celebrate we went out for a meal at a new restaurant as our normal haunt had closed down (slightly still heartbroken, but hey ho)

As we were going to a new restaurant, I wasn’t too sure what to wear… I didn’t want to be massively over dressed, but I still wanted to look dressier than normal. As such, I decided to play it safe (read: boring) then add a splash of colour.

I wore a jersey tube skirt, and black vest top (which is actually pretty similar to this post) but smartened it up with a black crepe jacket. I love how fitted this jacket is, without the need for buttons or central zips, I think the gold zips on either side also just give it a little bit something more.

Sticking with the gold, I went for a gold/metallic smokey eye look. Having never really worn metallic eyes before, I wasn’t too sure how this look would pan out. I love gold eyeshadow when you see it in the magazines, but then again, none of the models are ever quite as pale and pasty as me. The eyeshadow was part of the Poudland haul from a few months back (you can read about it here) and was quite a soft gold, not a glaring, glittery in your face gold. It went on like a dream and stayed put all evening. So that was good. You can kinda see it on this selfie (it is blurry but it was the end of the night, forgive a gal, yeah?) from later on in the night.

As the outfit was quite toned down, I felt it needed something to give it a bit of a punch, so out came these old statement shoe-boots. I say old, because they actually are at least 3 years old from when I worked at Pavers.

Retro in style, with bright orange Italian suede, what’s not to love? I adore these shoes, though I don’t wear them often enough (who knew orange didn’t go with everything) I imagine if you’re a bit taller and more tanned, they would look even better. But even if you’re 5ft 3inch, I think they still look pretty babein.

To answer that in one sentence: the worst beauty idea you will ever try. Apart from maybe a vampire facial a lá Kim K. It is so horrid, it makes the featured image on your blog all blurry because it is shuddering at the thought of it.

Oil Pulling in theory very simple. You get a table spoon of solid coconut oil, let it melt in your mouth and swill it about for a minimum of twenty minutes. You then spit it in the bin (not down anything connected to a drain, as when the oil cools it will solidify again and block it.) Easy.

The theory behind the practise comes from traditional Indian dental practises. It is said that doing oil-pulling daily, on an empty stomach will help draw out the toxins; although it is primarily focused on oral health, some people claim it will also improve your overall health, one of the main (apparent) results that has had the beauty world in a tiz is that it supposedly whiteness teeth.

Various practitioners also claim incorporating oil pulling into their regime has helped with sleep problems, skin conditions, headaches and reduced their risks of cavities.

When I first heard of oil pulling I thought I’d give it a go – after all, it sounds simple, it sounds like a small miracle. Do almost nothing for twenty minutes and let it whiten your teeth, improve your skin and give you a good night’s sleep.

That said, when faced with a lump of the white stuff, I bottled it and opted for a heaped tea-spoon sized portion as opposed to a table spoon full. When you first take the oil in your mouth, it doesn’t seem too bad. Then it begins to melt. It feels like you have an iceburg floating in your mouth on a sea of grease. Which in essence, I suppose you do. When it finally melts completely – which can feel like a long time coming- it’s time to begin swishing.

After the first few minutes the idea of it doing you some good begins to wear thin, after ten minutes you begin to think about quitting. I am not a quitter but a mouth full of lukewarm grease does this to a girl. Towards the end of the twenty minutes (trust me it was twenty minutes, I was counting down) my cheeks ached and my mouth felt horrible, it didn’t even taste like coconut towards the end, it was pure oil.

To be totally honest, when I did spit it out, my teeth did feel cleaner and smoother. They might have looked a tiny bit whiter, but I’m not too sure that isn’t just wishful thinking. Despite practising oil-pulling for a week, I wasn’t convinced that my teeth look any better (I’ve done my make-up the same for both photos so it doesn’t interfere with tooth-whiteness.)  That said, now I’ve put the before and after photos together, I think they do look noticeably whiter, what do you guys think?

As for sleeping better, better skin and reduced risk of cavities? Well I can’t say I’ve being sleeping any better. There have been about two nights this week where it hasn’t been much of a sleep, and more like a black out, but both times I’ve still woken up tired. Maybe it was all the toxins coming out, instead of mixing in with the oil, but my skin seems to have gotten worse this week. Apart from the odd bulbous zit around the time of the month, I’m generally pretty lucky when it comes to spots. This week has had me reaching for the concealer.

So, what happened to me after a week of oil pulling? I was tired, and suffered from bad skin, though my teeth did feel slightly cleaner in the moments after the oil pulling and do look a bit whiter in the photo. As for the reduced risk of cavities, I guess we’ll have to wait for a dentist appointment for that one.

We’re midweek and the August bank holiday seems like a distant dream. So it’s time for a little pick-me-up, right? I don’t know about you, but September always feels like the kinda month you need to buy new things for… the weather starts to change, the shops bring out their new lines and school has brainwashed us all into thinking the start of September = new clothes. Hopefully no uniforms though, unless that’s your thing… who am I to judge.

I’ve been scouring the websites from some high street favourites (I know – it’s a hard life) to find the hottest bags for Autumn under £30. Because let’s be honest, you guys probably spent more than you should on shenanigans over the long weekend. Unless you headed over to the Higham Scarecrow Festival like me – dem scarecrows be cool, gurrl.

1. River Island – Large Grey Satchel £30.00
2. Topshop – Ha! Applique Duffle Bag £28.00
3. Topshop – Embroidered Novelty Eyes Clutch £22.00 (cutest clutch ever?)
4. H&M – Bucket Bag £19.99
5. New Look – Camel Stripe Zip Front Tote Bag £24.99 (aka the bumble bee bag)
6. Dorothy Perkins – Black and Orange Pocket Tote £24.00 (was £32.00)
7. Accessorize – Studded Tassel Zip Top Clutch Bag £15.00 (This will go with anything)
8. River Island – Black Glittery Box Clutch £30.00 (Limited Edition & creative name, obz)
9. Next – Square Based Shopper Bag £28 -32.00 (top marks for the website having exact prices)
10. Accessorize – Double Twist Lock Mini Satchel Bag (also available in blue)

Looking back – all these seem fairly sensible bags, no novelty features (on the whole) or colours that don’t really go with anything you own but are really pretty. Perhaps that is what happens mid-week, perhaps we go all professional and sensible. God forbid.

Every August Bank Holiday two things happen in Pendle. The Colne Blues Festival and The Higham Scarecrow Festival. So just a head’s up, if you were planning on visiting Pendle – August is probably the month to do it.

The Blues is a Pendle tradition and attract acts from all over the world – if you live in the region you’ve probably seen it on the news at some point.

I didn’t go to The Blues this year, but I did go to the Higham Scarecrow Festival. If you are reading this outside the UK and want to visit a quintessentially English village during one of its quirky fêtes, this is the blog post for you.

The premise is pretty simple, the residents of Higham are given a theme, this year it was ‘Holidays and Travel’ and construct scarecrows that represent it (there are generally about 60 households taking part, then a few extra scarecrows added by the village committee). Villagers and visitors can then buy a map from the village hall (for £2.00-ish), and an ice-cream from the famous Slater’s Ice Cream truck, before heading out. To say the village is reasonably small, the trail can take a while but the various displays are enough to keep the kids entertained. For every scarecrow you find, you jot down what it is depicting and hand in your completed map at the end to hopefully win a prize. You also get to vote for which one is your favourite – this element was particularly relevant this year, as my sister was competing.

Having recently moved to Higham she had spent the last few months constructing a life-size dragon in our cellar, getting it perfect for the big reveal. Now I’ve typed that out, I realise having a bright pink dragon in the cellar of a family home probably isn’t the most mundane of things, but hey ho. (Just in case the dragon and lanterns didn’t give it away – she went with China.)

Along with the scarecrows there is lunch available in the village hall, tea and scones, a fun fair and a second hand book fair in the church, just in case Waltzers aren’t your thing.

All of the proceeds from the festival are put back into the village and the upkeep of the church. Higham also got bonus points this year for the amount of Schnauzers pottering about (though admittedly most put my scruffy pup to shame)

As well as the Scarecrows and small dogs, the main street (especially the area surrounding the main hall) host stalls from local market sellers with wares that range from fruit and homemade jam to miniature scarecrows and potted plants. FYI it’s worth checking out the stalls selling home-made jam just to see some of the mindboggling concoctions the maker has dreamt up.

If you’re involved in the village there is also a Scarecrow Ball in the following weeks. All very Midsummer Murders (just without the murders, touch wood.)

If you’re in the area next year, and need to keep kids (or grandparents) entertained I would definitely recommend sticking this in your diary.