try on haul

 

BLAZER FIT

 

OUTFIT LINKS: 

BEIGE BLAZER: https://bit.ly/38nTa26

BLACK HOODIE: https://bit.ly/3mUzozg

BLACK TIGHTS: https://bit.ly/3eAjOFZ

BAG: https://bit.ly/30NbbCl

CHUNKY CHELSEA BOOTS: https://bit.ly/34EImcq

CHECK OUT MY INSTAGRAM: https://bit.ly/2O8QXfR

MY FIRST VLOG

 

The Gilet Edit

Hi all!

I posted this outfit yesterday on my Instagram. 

I am styling this gilet that I bought last year from Zara. 

I decided to get this back out of my wardrobe this year for A/W as I have seen so many nice ones on the high street recently! So I thought I would do a blog post for you with some of my favourites. 

Scroll down to see my Gilet Edit

What I am wearing

Topshop Leather Leggings: https://bit.ly/3dkUNOL

Gilet is old Zara but here is similar: https://go.zara/3jUKvag

Jumper is old Primark but here is similar: https://bit.ly/31eM0sT

Boots: https://bit.ly/36XybCw

Red Bag: https://bit.ly/3k4TmXj

 

LINKS

ASOS: https://bit.ly/34HxWZu

BERSHKA: https://bit.ly/3nJOw3V

STRADIVARIUS: https://bit.ly/36VwaH9

MANGO: https://bit.ly/2H0g43P

ZARA BLACK GILET: https://go.zara/3dl2RyM

ZARA BROWN LEATHER GILET: https://go.zara/34Pa2vh

VERO MODA: https://bit.ly/36WS2lu

MY LATEST YOUTUBE VIDEO

5 ways to wear slouchy jeans

Hi all!

I recently launched a new styling Instagram, somewhere that I can post outfits and all my styling tips. Since I have a degree in styling, I wanted somewhere that I can be creative and maybe help other girls by giving them ideas of how and what to wear!

I am going to try and post some of my fashion content on here too just to mix things up!

This is 5 WAYS TO WEAR - Slouchy Jeans from Stradvarius 

Everything is tagged on my Instagram so head over there to find out what I am wearing is from. Some of what I am wearing is older product which you may not be able to find anymore but I wanted to also show ways that you can reuse items you have in your wardrobe, so that you are not splashing out all the time. 

My Instagram is @styledbylsh 

If you search the #styledbylsh you will see a feed of all my outfits 

I have featured on my Instagram so far!

Enjoy!

Making small steps to a more sustainable life

Hey!

I hope you are all well! 

Over the next few weeks I want to cover a few topics I feel really passionate about. 

 I love fashion, I have a degree in that forte but as I get older I am becoming more aware of my surroundings and what kind of a world we live in. As I think about the future for young people today and the earth I will leave behind for my children I feel I have more responsibility than ever to look after the world we live in and do what I can for nature. Yeah I love fashion and love wearing nice clothes but is it actually bringing any good into the world? No! 

Lately I have become more passionate about natural living, doing good in the world and trying to live a more sustainable life. Thinking about what I am wearing, using, putting into my body externally and internally. I have been trying to maintain a sustainable lifestyle for a while but as me and my boyfriend have just bought a house I thought what better way to have a clean slate and really give this sustainable living a good go. 

Small steps make big changes so I am sharing with you a few things you can start off with if you too want to help the planet. 

Starting off with this book by Jen Chillingsworth '52 Steps for a more sustainable life'. 

In this book you will find some great tips and tricks on how to make changes in your home and lifestyle over the course of a year. It includes making your own cleaning products, shopping vintage, using less plastic and many more interesting things! I am starting off by reading the whole book and then slowly incorporating certain ideas into my home and lifestyle. I am really enjoying it so far and it has given me some great ideas. I recommend this if you are just starting out properly like me and need some inspiration and ideas easily at hand. 

Next up is organic sanitary products. This is a topic which I recently covered on my Instagram story.

Some of you may not realise that with non-organic sanitary products you may be putting pesticides, chlorine, and all sorts of potentially toxic chemicals into your body. When buying sanitary products the bad ingredients to look for are things like chlorine, non-organic cotton, fragrance, rayon and BPA.

I want to do a whole blog post covering this topic so I won't go into too much detail right now but non-organic sanitary products are so harmful to the environment. A conventional sanitary pad contains the equivalent of 4 plastic bags! 

Using organic sanitary protection means they are plastic free, perfume free and chlorine free. They are made from certified organic cotton and are biodegradable. Other waste free products you can use is the moon cup but I am not yet brave enough to try that out. My favourite organic sanitary brand is Natracare and I have also just bought some organic tampons from TOTM. 

Better for the environment and better for our bodies, its a win win!

Re-usable take out cups. 

I personally don't ever buy drinks from places like Costa because I used to work there and know how overpriced it all is but I do like my cup of tea on my way to work in the mornings. If you take your own coffee cup to a coffee shop they usually offer a small discount for bringing your own. 

The paper cups they provide are actually covered in a plastic paste known as polyethylene, this prevents the cups from being recyclable. 

6.5 million trees cut down each year for a paper cup

4 billion gallons of water wasted per year

Enough energy to power 54,000 homes wasted per year

BRING your own cup! 

I got mine from Primark, it has a silicone lid, is BPA free and glass. 

Other great brands include Keep Cup as they are made from glass too. 

My next favourite is using a natural deodorant. Now, I know the deodorant is in a plastic container BUT one of these seriously lasts me about 6 months. 

A conventional deodorant contains triclosan, formaldehyde, parabens, diethanolamine, aluminium, aerosol (as propellant) etc like chemicals. All of these have bad effects on the body as well as the environment and most are unaware with the severe damage caused by deodorants. - www.naturalquestproducts.com

I look at this way, if I am spraying deodorant that toxic onto my skin and into the room then what must it be doing to the atmosphere. 

Buying natural deodorant lasts so much longer than these cans so therefore you are cutting down on waste and it is also so much better for you. My favourite brands are Faith in Nature and Tisserand, these are also cruelty free and vegan!

Ok so another favourite is a bamboo toothbrush. 

I never even used to think about the plastic on my toothbrush until I watched Bear Grylls The Island and saw that they found toothbrushes washed up on the shore to use! Ever since I have used bamboo toothbrushes and my electric toothbrush. 

They are much better for the environment as the toothbrush handle is made from bamboo and once you pull out the nylon bristles you can put them in your recycling bin, then put the handle in your compost bin and it will biodegrade. 

I use Humble Brush which I buy from Tk Maxx for £2.99 but you can find many on eBay and Amazon. 

PS. Tk Maxx sell so many eco friendly products.

And finally a Sea Sponge. 

Sea Sponges are sustainably harvested, when sponges are collected parts of the sponge are left on the ocean floor grow back. They can be harvested over and over again as they regrow to their original size within a few years. 

Most artificial sponges are made from petroleum and dyed with a chemical. Sea sponges are antibacterial and self cleaning because of the little holes they have on them, they won't develop any nasty smells. 

You can use them to clean your body, clean your kitchen, bathrooms etc. Once you are finished with it, you can put it in your compost bin and it will biodegrade. 

Other great ideas is using a glass water bottle and refilling it yourself, again better for the environment but also better for you as it won't contain any nasties in plastic. A bamboo lunch box or tupaware as again bamboo is biodegradable and doesn't contain any BPA found in plastic.

And finally always say NO to single use plastic bags and bring your OWN!

I hope you found this post useful! 

Let me know if you have any other great tips to live a sustainable life. 

Lauren x

Amsterdam 2019

Hey!

I love our yearly trip to Amsterdam, it was the third year me and my boyfriend had visited the city and I love it every time we go. Although this year the weather was so gloomy and very windy!

The trip didn't start off the best as we were delayed a couple of hours due to not being able to land in Amsterdam because of the windy conditions. So we didn't manage to get a full first day there and instead didn't get to the apartment until late afternoon. 

This year we stayed in another Yays apartment, this time we stayed in Zoutkeetsgracht which is a side of the city neither have us had stayed in before. The apartment we stayed in was so awesome, we had a canal view, a full working kitchen, bathroom, living space and bedroom. My only complaint would be that the bed was really not comfortable at all. The location of our apartment was about a 20 minute walk into the centre, the walk wasn't fun in the rain but usually it doesn't bother me walking that far. 

We stayed in Amsterdam for 3 nights, it cost us around £400 for the apartment. You can get cheaper accommodation, its just up to you what you want to spend. I like the fact that all the Yays apartments are always in local areas so you get to see how all the locals live.

If you'd like to see more of the apartments and book there yourself click HERE

If you don't go to Amsterdam and have a stone baked pizza then you are really missing out!

There are plenty of places to go for one, we tried out somewhere new to last year but to be honest it wasn't half as good. 

We went to La Perla in Jordaan. This place confused me because we went in there wasn't many places to sit, so we made our order and sat down on the window seats. Then we saw the staff taking pizza from the kitchen to the restaurant over the road and realised we would of rather gone to the restaurant, but never mind! These pizza's were OK, I'd rate them about 6/10. Well for one I ordered the wrong thing, I didn't expect a whole pig to come on top of my pizza. I was meant to order the prosciutto one but got confused with the menu and was shook when they bought it over ha ha! The pizza didn't come sliced so it was hard to cut it and yeah it just didn't have that much flavour, it looked nicer on trip advisor! It seemed to be popping there though, so many people were coming and going.  

We also went back to the Dirty Chicken Club for a beer can chicken! This place is good food and a cool atmosphere, I'd definitely recommend. 

BEST breakfast in Amsterdam @ Bakers and Roasters! We walked 40 mins in the wind and rain for this breakfast and it was so worth it! 

Outfit details are: 

- Hoodie is Pretty Little Thing

- Coat is old H&M

- PU leggings are Topshop

- Bag is Louis Vuitton

- Trainers are Adidas Stan Smiths

We finished the trip at another of our favourite restaurants called Humphrey's

The food is so good here and it is a set menu, 3 courses for 29 euros each. I had the onion soup to start, steak for main and a chocolate fondant cake for desert. I like it because its somewhere nice for a sit down meal, you can wear trainers without being judged, its affordable and the food is always perfect. 

Not too much to report this year unfortunately! The weather was rubbish and we got wet through a few times which made us a bit fed up. We did a lot of chilling and eating basically. I much prefer the city when the weather is nice as the rain makes me feel lazy and unmotivated to do anything or walk anywhere. 

Where are your favourite spots in Amsterdam?

Lauren x

My jewellery collection

 Hey!

I have been curating my jewellery collection for a little while now, I only like gold as I feel it compliments my skin tone the best. I love how it is displayed in my acrylic drawers from Muji, a shell as my trinket tray and my jewellery stand from Argos. I have a mix of earrings, rings and necklaces. If I am honest I don't wear half of it but I really enjoy buying bits and just having them in my collection. I go through stages of wearing different earrings, sometimes I feel like certain styles don't suit me and then stages where I love a massive gold hoop. 

Where are your favourite places to buy jewellery?

Shop the acrylic drawers here 

Shop similar jewellery stand here

Some of my favourite places to buy jewellery are Asos, Topshop,

 H&M, Shein, New Look and Primark. 

Two of my faves from Topshop! I love that shells are really in this summer, I've been seeing them everywhere and I definitely need to get more! I have a shell ankle bracelet on its way to me, I can't wait to wear it with my Balenciaga Triple S and a cute dress in the summer.

Celine style necklace from Primark (C for my boyfriend Chris & I also have an L to wear), ring is Matilda Djerf X Nakd but I also had the wave necklace from her collection but cannot find it anywhere CRY.

I hope this gave you some inspiration on how to display your jewellery collection. I used to have mine shoved in a storage box in my wardrobe then realised it would look really pretty in my room. 

Which are your favourite pieces?

Lauren x