New Year, New Resolutions.

Last year was one of the best years of my life so far so I'm going to have to keep up the pace with 2015! I love setting resolutions at the beginning of the year. The optimism of a fresh start, new year ahead, makes everything seem infinitely possible.

For call me honey bunny my first and foremost resolution is to blog more. It gets a bit quiet over here so I would like to make this bunny a bit more happening!

I've set my list of personal resolutions that I hope to work on throughout the year but in the spirit of having a blog about clothes, food and adventures then I thought I better make some resolutions for them too.

Clothes:

After doing a massive spring clean of my wardrobe at the end of last year and selling nearly 60% of it on eBay it's ready to be added to, thoughtfully. This year I want to refine my personal style. I've experimented, through the hippy-festival girl stage, the rocker girl stage, the vintage/floral girl stage (although I will probably be partial to floral prints for ever) and have reached the point where I have a great professional job and would like to start looking a bit more grown up and effortless. So this year's purchases will consist of good quality, timeless pieces. I have also made myself a colour palette to stick to which consists of black, white, navy/denim, grey, red, yellow and pale pink. I will never be able to live sans colour so with this combo I will always have a little punch of colour.

My quick Paint job colour palette guide....

Food:

Ah food. Sweet, sweet, food. One of my greatest loves. My food resolution this year is to try a new recipe every week. *Gulp, am I sure I want to write this?!* I have a thousand recipes, a ton of pins on Pinterest, magazine cut outs and cook books so it shouldn't be too hard to find something new to try! I will share my weekly recipe cook-ups on my Instagram.

Beauty:

Two simple beauty resolutions this year: embrace lipstick and have nice nails.

Adventures:

This years adventures will include London, Paris and Amsterdam in July which is very exciting!! I'll be going for two weeks with my younger sister... it's going to be so much fun! If you have any recommendations please leave a comment to let me know, I would really appreciate it! Other adventures I would also like to do are to explore more of Sydney's little coves and beaches while it's summer. In winter it would be great to get out to the Blue Mountains or Southern Highlands for a tree change. A Melbourne trip would also be nice...!

So these are my intentions or resolutions for this year. It's obviously going to be very busy but I'm so excited for everything ahead! Let me know what your resolutions are by leaving a comment! Can't wait to start sharing more on call me honey bunny in 2015! 

Blonde, mid-length and choppy.

Images from Pinterest.

Getting my hair done this afternoon. This doesn't happen often, maybe once every 6 months. I'm thinking mid-length, lighter and choppy - perfect for achieving beachy waves all summer long!

Monthly Beauty Buys: September

As a sneaky way of getting myself back into a blogging routine I have decided to start a monthly beauty buys series where I share a few of my favourite products both new and regularly used. By nature I am pretty low maintenance so when it comes to beauty it's safe to say that my regular regime is pretty basic. Therefore I see this series as not only a way to document my favourite products but to also experiment with trying out new products. This is my first instalment of what I hope to be many more to come!

Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water After reading multiple articles about micellar water in the space of a couple of days curiosity got the better of me and I knew I needed to try it out. Unlike other facial cleansers micellar water contains little micelles - oil molecules - which act as magnets to impurities on the skin, e.g. make-up, oil and sebum (which causes pimples), and dissolve them without any extra work. I suffer from regular breakouts and since starting to use this micellar water my skin has shown improvement in not only a reduction of breakouts but it also feels more hydrated and less congested. It's so simple to use as all you need to do is put the water on to a cotton pad, wipe all over your face and you're done!

Benefit Gimme Brow gel Arriving early to the airports has its perks. I picked up this little gem while wandering the make-up counters at Sydney Airport before departing to Melbourne recently. Having well manicured and maintained brows is important for me as I feel they set the frame and structure your face. Plus they help you get away with wearing a lot less make-up! I was looking for a product that would make my brows look fuller without too much fuss and voila, that's exactly what this little bad boy does thanks to the mini fibers that gel to the hair and skin on application. I also find it to never smudge and last me the whole working day.

Rimmel 60 Seconds nail polish in Rapid Ruby For someone with as little patience as me this nail polish is a godsend! The thick brush allows for quick and easy application and it sets within 60 seconds which means a greater decrease in smudges for those who can't bare to watch paint dry. 

Chloe Signature EDP Fresh, floral and feminine, the perfect scent to get into the spring spirit!

Summer essentials.

Clockwise from left: 1. Towel/throw Dreams in Colour 2. Reef Dry-Touch Sunscreen Lotion 3. Garnier Surf Spray 4. Hat Seed  5. Schwarzkopf Marrakesh Oil & Coconut 6. Tigerlily bikini 7. BronZinc

To live the life of a beach goddess with a golden tan, perfectly tussled locks and glowing skin you need to have the right equipment. It's important to slip, slop and slap, keep hydrated and seek some shade where possible. You will also need the right products: a good sunscreen, zinc and something for your hair. I have been using the products pictured above almost daily. The Reef sunscreen lotion is powder based so it goes smoothly but doesn't leave you with that greasy feeling other sunscreens usually do. There is nothing worse to set on early aging than sun damage to your face. I have been using BronZinc for years - it goes on nice and thick and the tan colour adds some bonus coverage. Your hair can almost end up forgotten by the time you have looked after your precious skin but after showering I like to put a small amount of leave-in treatment through my hair; this new Schwarzkopf Marrakesh Oil & Coconut works a treat! After the leave in treatment I spray with my trusted Garnier Surf Spray and let my hair dry naturally for the 'I've just come from the beach to the bar' look. To top it all off a day isn't complete without the right accessories: a cute bikini, hat and towel.

Step into spring beauty.

Clockwise left to right: Sukin sensitive face moisturiser, Sportsgirl white nail polish (similar), Face of Australia Illuminator, Chi Chi BB cream, Body Shop Vanilla perfume oil, Face of Australia blush, Revlon PhotoReady eyeshadow pallet (505 - Impressionist), Revlon ColourStay Ultimate Suede (060 - It Girl) and Chi Chi Dramatic Lash in very black.

The weather is warming, the sun is rising earlier and setting later, flowers are in bloom and the world seems rather cheery. It can only mean one time of the year: spring. Everyone is shaking off the winter's chills and heading back outdoors to enjoy everything the world has to offer. It's the time of the year when fashion is at its most colourful which means the beauty is usually quite simple and effortless. I have compiled my everyday go-to make up products which will see me through the spring and into summer. They are your everyday basics with the inclusions of a pretty-in-pink blush and lipstick to keep the look fresh and rosy.

 On a side note, I can't rave enough about the Chi Chi BB Cream - it's brilliant! I have annoying combination skin and this cream smoothes out all of the uneven skin tones and redness to create a flawless looking base. And the best part is that it's just a moisturiser so it's light and doesn't require a ton of foundation over the top. Oh and it's SPF 30, so it's basically moisturiser, foundation and sunscreen in one tube! Brilliant!

What are your go to makeup products for spring?

Loving: Red Wine Lips

My Picks:

L'Oreal Paris Infallible Le Rouge in Bold Bordeaux 

Revlon ColorStay Ultimate Suede in Backstage

"You see these red wine lips? I didn't dream of this" - Lisa Mitchell (sorry, I can't help of think or this song whenever I put the words 'red wine lips' together!)

Looking for a cheap and simple way to get 'on trend' for this autumn/winter? You need to look no further than a slick of red wine coloured lippy. It was a major player in many of the Fall collections in the northern hemisphere and now has finally made its way down under just in time for winter! I scoured Priceline the other week looking for the perfect colour whilst taking notes on my iPhone so I could rehash them here. I ended up purchasing the L'Oreal lipstick because I was after a more matte finish. It was my first time delving into the 'long lasting' lipstick world and despite the glossy ads and bold claims, the L'Oreal Infallible isn't quite as 'infallible' as it makes out to be. The Revlon colour was really nice but had a glossy finish to it, again I was after something a bit more matte. I have since bought a nice natural pinky coloured lipstick from their ColorStay Ultimate Suede (why such long names?!) collection that I am enjoying for a day to day addition to my simple makeup routine. Other notable mentions include this Rimmel one and this Models Prefer one.

Just a tip for your red wine lips: make sure your base is flawless and your eyes are simple to reap the maximum rewards for this lovely statement lip. 

Blue crush.

    

Earrings: Colette 

Nail polish: Sportsgirl

Mascara: Australis

This post started with me typically not checking the colour of mascara that I was purchasing - just trusting that because it was in a black tube that the colour would be black. Just another blonde moment on my behalf. I realised it was blue when I got to the end of my make-up routine before going out for the night. My first thought of blue mascara was a 90s nightmare. Something I would have worn with blue glitter eye-shadow to a school disco in grade seven. Not as a 21 year old heading out with her girlfriends for the night. It has been sitting in my dresser draw ever since. The other day I found it in there and thought for the fun of it I would put it on and see how bad it actually was... Needless to say I was pleasantly surprised! Not as tacky as I thought! It's like it gave my eyes hint of freshness and you could hardly notice, except for the tips, that it was in fact blue mascara. To embrace the blue mascara, and put my spin on this 'mermaid-style' trend floating around spring, I have paired it with these chunky earrings  my favourite sea blue nail polish from Sportsgirl and simple make-up including a nude lip (not to over do it). 

Is there anything you have been pleasantly surprised from lately?