Everything Erin

I am always checking out new Spotify playlists and the like to find more music to listen to - I am so guilty of discovering an amazing song and then playing it way too much to the point I can't listen to them anymore! Today I thought I would share five songs I am obsessed with this month, even if I have possibly already overplayed them too much!

Kiwi - Harry Styles

Since I went to see Harry Styles this month (seriously take me back), of course I have been listening to his music again a lot (although when am I not?). I was blown away with Kiwi live, definitely my highlight of the whole show, so I have listened to it loads ever since.

Paradise - George Ezra

I happened upon listening to George Ezra's new album on Spotify one night and was immediately very impressed - the whole album is full of amazing tracks, not one skippable track on there! The first track, Pretty Shining People is one of my favourites, as is his latest single Paradise which is SO catchy and an incredible tune, I get a little too into dancing to the chorus every time... I'm even more excited about it now as I am going to be seeing him in my hometown with my friends this summer - and I can tell Paradise will be insane live.

Youngblood - 5 Seconds Of Summer

I can tell I am going to be absolutely obsessed with 5 Seconds Of Summer's third album when it is released in June as I really love their latest releases, both the first single Want You Back and now early-released album track Youngblood. I am so excited that they are back on the scene - this song is so amazing and they really are my music taste summed up!

Turn - The Wombats

I also really love the song Turn by The Wombats at the moment - I'm pretty sure it's a new one of theirs, I think I found it on some Spotify playlist? It's more of a chilled track and I just love the guitar riffs throughout. I actually like their new song Cheetah Tongue too so I have a feeling I am going to have to listen to their latest album properly soon.

Hard Times - Paramore

Hard Times became my 'summer song' last year so it hopped back out onto my playlist again when we got the slightest bit of sun a few days ago. It's just such an uplifting song (it's the first song of my happy playlist for a reason), and I honestly have no idea how I'm not bored of it still as I've been listening to it for almost a year now! Hard Times must just be one of those songs that never gets too overplayed for me - which is such a gem as that happens to nearly every song I listen to.

EG x

My life will never be complete until the UK finally gets a Sephora - it seems every other country has this store I prefer to refer to as a beauty heaven. Not only does it boast an amazing range of brands you can't get easily over here, Anastasia Beverly Hills, Huda Beauty, even Tarte in the US, I was really impressed with their own Sephora Collection range.


When I was in France, I visited the Sephora in Lyon, where the whole of their ground floor was packed full of Sephora collection products. I couldn't resist picking up at least something to try from this huge range, so I settled on one of the Sephora Collection Color Lip Last Lipsticks. I mentioned this in my Sephora first impressions post, but now after I have had a good try of this lipstick, I decided it definitely deserves its own full-blown review.


I picked up the shade 04 'brown is back!', a really flattering brown nude. It's a bit darker than cult classic MAC's Velvet Teddy, but along the same spectrum, so still super wearable for every day. Sephora boasts a whole range of shades, and there's definitely still a few I would like to try out.


What really impressed me was how long lasting it is. They call them 'Longue Temps' lipsticks in France, so I presumed they were supposed to last a while, and they certainly do. Sephora claim they have '10 hour wear', and I'm not exactly sure whether they live up to that bold claim or not, but they do last a lot longer than your average lipstick.

With a long-lasting, matte lipstick, it would be expected that it would be a little drying, and I have to admit that it can be, but keeping your lips hydrated with a clear lip balm throughout the day will solve this problem while keeping the colour lasting.


The packaging is sleek and slim, making the lipstick bullet smaller and rounder than others, which I find makes the application even easier. Unfortunately for us lot in the UK, they aren't the easiest of lipsticks to get our hands on, but if you ever happen to be making an order on Sephora or on holiday where there is one, I would definitely recommend picking a shade up to try. For €12, or $14 in the US, they are amazing quality for the price - I am making sure to get another when I am in New York next month!

EG x

If you asked any of my friends who I have been obsessed with over the past eight years, they would straight away say Harry Styles. I loved him throughout One Direction, and ended up absolutely loving his solo music too. So, of course, I was going to get tickets to his tour, at my nearest location of Manchester!

I was so pleased, after I hadn't managed to get tickets for his first, smaller tour, that he added more dates in 2018, including Manchester Arena, rather than the much smaller apollo of the first tour, meaning I managed to get tickets this time - in block 114, somewhere I had always wanted to sit in the arena, as I've always figured the view would be good of both the stage and if an artist has a B-Stage.

Heading straight to the merch stand, I picked up his photobook, full of lovely polaroids from while he has been on tour and behind the scenes of the Kiwi video, and the Treat People With Kindness hair ties. I had to pick these up as I thought it was so lovely that all the profits of them went to a local charity - you can find where for each location here - and I have been wearing them as wristbands everyday since.


Being a Monday night, I wasn't sure if the arena would fill up quite as much as it would on, say a Saturday, but why did I doubt the fact it would be completely full. It's HARRY STYLES. The arena was pretty much full by the time the support act Mabel came on at 8pm. Every time she would mention Harry Styles was coming up next I would almost be in tears, having that realisation that I was finally seeing him live. The last time I saw him was in October 2015, on One Direction's last tour, and it had been a long wait to see him again.

Harry came onto the stage at just after 9pm, after a little cartoon of him playing with a Rubiks cube played on the screens (I still haven't quite figured out the significance of this). He began the setlist with Only Angel, in my opinion the perfect way to begin with its intro I can only describe as 'heavenly'. As the screen lifted up to reveal Harry and his band on the stage, I was definitely crying as I was shouting WE GOT PINK! HE'S WEARING A PINK SUIT! in absolute joy. Wondering what sort of suit he would be wearing was definitely part of the fun, and I was overjoyed at the fact he chose pink for Manchester.

*possibly my personal favourite photo I took...

Of course he played all the songs off the album, including my personal favourite Carolina. I also loved watching him play guitar for more accoustic tracks, including those he sang on the B-Stage, Sweet Creature and One Direction track If I Could Fly. I love that he brought back some One Direction classics, Stockholm Syndrome has always been an all time favourite of mine so I was super excited about that and you can't go wrong with a bit of What Makes You Beautiful!


He also performed a couple of new songs, Medicine and Anna, which were amazing - I can tell his next solo album is going to be just as amazing. An emotional moment was his cover of Ariana Grande's Just A Little Bit Of Your Heart, which he actually wrote, and felt really poignant being in Manchester arena. A bunch of fans held up signs in tribute which was really heart-warming and emotional.


He performed the masterpiece Sign Of The Times before going off to prepare for the encore, which sadly meant we were heading to the end of the show. I really think he did save the best until last, as the last song, Kiwi was actually the highlight of my whole night. I had always thought it would be amazing live from my very first listen, and still exceeded all my expectations. The people stood next to me left right at the beginning leaving me with loads of room, so I jumped and danced around as crazy as I could the whole time, singing from the top of my lungs, having the time of my life. It was a truly incredible moment and I never wanted it to end.


It was definitely one of my favourite concerts ever and I can't wait to see Harry Styles again on his next tour. And the one after that. And you'll definitely find me at the one after that, too.
 

EG x

It's no secret I am a huge fan of Friends, and something I have always found so interesting about the show is how although the early seasons are set in the height of the nineties, the outfits of characters such as Rachel and Monica have seemed to come back into style over 20 years later! I thought I would round up some of their best looks in terms of items you might actually see something similar of in the high street today!

Rachel Green, being the queen of fashion herself in the show, going on to work at Ralph Lauren, would be an obvious choice to start with. Her brown trousers look is one of my favourites, and these ones sold in H&M are almost identical! She also wears them with a little white cropped t-shirt which I think is a wardrobe essential - they're as cheap as a fiver over on Boohoo!





One of my all-time favourite Rachel looks is her little tartan skirt from The One Where The Monkey gets away back in season 1. Topshop actually stocks a whole bunch of tartan skirts in, in a bunch of different colours, this one being one of my favourites! I could definitely imagine Rachel wearing that, paired with her super cute matching long socks.


Even though Monica isn't known for her style, she has some amazing looks too throughout the show's run. Her black crop top and stripy trousers look are easily one I think anyone could wear, while looking and feeling amazing, in 2018. I'm obsessed with the patterned trousers trend that seems to have reemerged this year, shops like New Look are absolutely bursting full of the style at the moment. These striped trousers will bring out your inner Monica, while pairing it with a black t-shirt like this one at ASOS will help create the full look.


Sticking with Monica, she rocks some amazing denim looks, especially the ripped jeans with a simple tank top and trainers in The One With The Flashback. Topshop's ripped mom jeans are so similar to those that Monica wears, and I feel like Mom jeans have become a real trend again the past couple of years.  Even the double denim look in season 3 would totally fly today, while looking effortlessly put together. The light wash of this Dorothy Perkins shirt reminds me of the one Monica pairs with jeans in The One With The Beach.


Phoebe definitely has the most eccentric outfit taste, but there are some outfits I feel still fit with today's trends - though Phoebe was definitely not the sort to pay attention to fashion trends, much preferring her own unique style! Her spotty dress from season 2 is a favourite of mine, and this one from ASOS is a very similar style, while the mixed spot prints tie in with that unique Phoebe-charm.

EG x

Now I'm at college, the high school 'no nail polish' rule finally doesn't apply to me anymore, so I wear nail polish all the time - it feels very strange when I have bare nails! Therefore I'm always after a new nail polish to add to my ever-growing collection, and Barry M's new Under The Sea collection certainly caught my eye.


I mean, a two-toned formula that looks so majestic as it seems to change colour in different lights, in a variety of shades? Yes, please! I picked up two of the four shades, so far anyway! The first being Angelfish, a light pink sheen that I have worn constantly for at least a month now, I just couldn't get enough of it! Then recently, while taking advantage of Superdrug's current 3 for 2 across all cosmetics offer, I picked up the blue shade, Butterflyfish.


Believe it or not, before these nail polishes, I had never really tried Barry M's selection; crazy I know! So I was, of course, intrigued to see how their formula compares to other brands. At only £3.99 these nail polishes are easily affordable, especially for their unique shades, but I couldn't be sure how good the quality would be. I'm very glad to say they apply so easily - the brush with them makes it really easy to apply the polish precisely, while they do dry fairly fast so I don't have to wait forever for them to dry. I generally apply them in three coats, while also using a base coat and a top coat and that seems to do the job just fine.


What I was most impressed by, however, was how long they lasted on my nails! I mentioned before I had the shade Angelfish on my nails consistently for over a month, and it's probably because I'm not having to apply it all the time. Most of my nail polishes, even the more expensive Essie shades, usually last a week before they have badly chipped off, but with the Barry M selection, they have lasted at least two before I need to reapply. I am so excited about this because I hardly ever have time to paint my nails, so they make it a lot easier!


The shades themselves are absolutely gorgeous, obviously, the main thing that stood out to me, and they look just as pretty on the nails as they do in the bottle. I love how unique they are and the fact they do four shades in the formula means there's at least one to suit everyone. I would love to try the purple shade too, but I have never found it in my local Superdrug, and the fourth shade is a bright pink which can be a bit bright, especially with its yellow undertones.


I love the idea of two-toned polish, the lighter shade Angelfish is mostly light pink with a light blue tone, while Butterflyfish is a blue with a bit of pink in it. They're honestly so gorgeous and I love how shimmery they are too! Have you tried Barry M's nail polishes before - I would love some more shade suggestions to try!

EG x

When I think about the beginning of March, it feels like years ago, instead of only a month ago! It's weird how each month can feel really different - for me, January seemed to drag, February flashed by and now March seems a lifetime ago? So far I have actually been really liking reviewing my months as they go by; although I'm always worried 'favourites' style posts are a little predictable, I love looking back at them a few months, or a year, later and seeing what I was loving at that time. So, on with March!

B E A U T Y //

As I mentioned in my Sephora first impressions post, I finally got the chance to visit a couple of Sephora stores in France and it was such an amazing experience. Since then I have used my Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz that I picked up then every single day and I am in love with it! I think I paid about €25 for it and it was totally worth it - there are a few dupes on the high street but I don't think anything can compare to the original. It makes filling in brows so easy but most importantly, really natural and the shade range is really good.




My other beauty favourite you can't actually pick up right now... but when I went to France I took my little Lush Snow Fairy shower gel I got in a gift set for Christmas, and I'm not exaggerating when I say it is definitely the best thing I have ever smelt! It is so incredible and pretty with its pink colour, I am so glad I picked up a full sized bottle on sale, waiting for me once I finish my Soap & Glory Clean On Me - my other favourite shower gel out there! Unfortunately, as Snow Fairy is one of Lush's Christmas products it is unavailable right now but get ready for autumn when it will come back again!

 

M U S I C // 

I'm sure I mentioned 5 Seconds Of Summer's new single Want You Back in my February review post when it had just been released - no surprise I am still absolutely obsessed with it! I've gone back and listened to their old stuff while I've been loving their new single, remembering how amazing it is. I really cannot wait for their new album!


I have also been loving Shawn Mendes' new singles, my favourite being In My Blood. It's a daily debate between me and my best friend about which one is better - she prefers his other single, Lost In Japan, which I think has a bit of a Justin Timberlake vibe to it, I just prefer In My Blood because it feels like it has so much emotion and meaning. It's so relatable with a really positive message so I definitely recommend a listen, I was blown away by it.

I have also been loving the band HAIM, I have both their albums saved on Spotify so I'm working through them and loving every track so far! A couple of my favourites are 'Falling' and 'Want You Back', they're really catchy and I just love their sound so much.

T V //

Crazily I haven't been watching that many shows this month, apart from the usual Friends - which I, of course, watched loads of again when I got tickets to Friends Fest for the summer to get me excited! I've also started watching the second season of Riverdale - I managed about 3 when it came out and got a little disinterested but I was recommended by my friend to continue watching so here's to hoping it gets a bit better! 

L I F E //

The biggest thing that happened this month was that I went to France on our college's French Exchange, which honestly feels like it was years ago somehow not just a few weeks! I saw some amazing places such as Lyon and the most amazing chocolate factory so it was a really good trip.

EG x