A-Z of Becky: P

P is for Pepsi

I've made no secret of the fact that I love Pepsi. I know it's bad for my teeth. I know it's full of bad stuff. I just can't help it: I love it! I used to drink full fat Pepsi all the time but then I switched to Diet Pepsi when I realised how many calories were in it!

It took a while to get used to the taste but these days I much prefer it. I'm not trying to lose weight or anything, I just enjoy it more. Regular Pepsi always seems too sickly for me.

As well as enjoying the drink, I love Pepsi paraphernalia, especially if it's vintage. My mum bought me an awesome tin sign for Christmas a few years ago and it hangs up in our kitchen. I love these vintage advertisements too- So adorable!

Review: Topshop Head Over Heels Blush

It's kind of funny how I came across this blusher. After watching Styled to Rock for a few weeks, I noticed how pretty Heidi's orange-peach blusher was. After a good while of wondering what blusher she wore, I finally had the good sense to tweet her and ask her what brand it was. She very kindly replied to tell me that it was from Topshop so I had a look and discovered Head Over Heels.

Ok, so first things first, the packaging. I love the Topshop packaging. It's very cute, with little black polkadots on white. It seems fairly sturdy and has a little mirror on the inside which is always handy.

On first opening, the blusher is a bright coral, almost orange in tone. On application, it's a very similar tone on my skin, although it becomes more sheer as I blend it in so it's not quite as bright. The pigmentation is great though and it's easy to build up to a brighter shade.

The consistency is creamy. It blends really smoothly on my skin and dries to a natural matte, unlike the more dewy cream blushes I've tried in the past. I prefer the more matte appearance of this blush as it doesn't slide around my face and it looks a lot more natural.

In terms of longevity, the blush is ok. It's not fantastic but it does last a good few hours before fading evenly. At least it doesn't smudge or run, just gradually fades away. 

This blusher retails at £6 which, for me, is incredible! I usually wear Benefit and MAC blushers which are £20+ so this is a revelation. I've also got a Topshop lipstick that I love so it looks like Topshop make up really is a gem! 

A-Z of Becky: O

O is for Oliver!

Source

Oliver! has been my favourite film for as long as I can remember. In fact, I can't even remember the first time I saw it. All I know is that we used to have a dusty old VHS with it recorded on from the BBC circa Christmas 1993, with the ending credits of Eastenders and an advert for Ghandi as a prelude.

I'm not ashamed to admit that I know every single word from it. Of course I now have it on DVD (I have no idea what happened to the VHS tape) and I couldn't even begin to guess how many times I've seen it. I have the soundtrack on my iPod too, for those days when I feel like bursting into song on the train.

In fact, Rich even took me to see the stage show for our one year anniversary and proposed afterwards. Although it was all a bit of a disaster. We were late, we ran out of money, Nando's was closed for refurbishment and the ring broke within 90 minutes. Maybe I'll go back and see it again some time.

A bit of politics

Ok, this is going to be the most personal post I've written. So far I've steered clear of politics and campaigns on my blog. However, there is a cause that is extremely close to my heart, unlikely to offend anyone and I need to rally some troops.

Let me start by asking you a question: Would you rather visit a historic local pub and live music venue or a McDonald's?

Hopefully you answered the local pub, in which case we're on the right track. Now bear with me as I tell you a little story.

The Tumbledown Dick in 1908. Source

Way back in the eighteenth century, a coaching inn opened up. It was a favourite with highwaymen as it was on a road that came out of London and provided a place to meet up with partners in crime. Eventually it was named the Tumbledown Dick, after the nickname of infamous highwayman Richard Cromwell, a regular who was courting the landlady, Nancy.

Fast forward to 2006. It is now a pub and live music venue. It champions unsigned bands and was even played by The Jam in 1975. It provides a meeting place for the local alternative scene. Indie hipsters, emo kids, metalheads, goths and punks alike congregate there for the community atmosphere. Everybody knows everybody. The staff are on first name terms with every patron. It's the only place like this for miles, so it's a local even for those who live in towns further afield.

Here, have two incredibly poor quality photos taken on phones circa 2006 in the pub (right) and adjacent club (left). Apparently I had a signature pose! 

Then comes February 2008. With no notice at all, it is closed down. People turn up for a burger at lunch and find a notice on the door saying that it will be re-opened in October. It isn't. In fact, it never re-opens. In 2012, after standing derelict for almost 5 years, it's announced that the land has been sold to McDonald's.

This is how it looks today. Sad, right?

This place was so important to me in my youth. It's a piece of local history. We already have a McDonald's (and a Subway, and a Burger King, and a KFC...), we do not need another one. What we need is a local pub and live music venue.

So I'm calling on your support to sign this petition. It will take you two seconds and it really will make a difference to help save this piece of local history. Please like the Facebook page and follow the campaign on Twitter. I don't care if you live in England, America or Central African Republic. The more numbers we have, the more seriously our campaign will be taken.

If you know anyone who has successfully saved a local business/landmark from a global powerhouse or if you know anybody in the music/catering industry who has some form of influence, please do get in touch.

Together, we can save this piece of local history. Let's rock it! 

Review: Lush Bubblegum Lip Scrub

I have wanted to try this baby ever since I first started getting involved with #bbloggers. If you've been living under a rock on Mars for the past couple of years, you won't know that this is a godsend in the beauty blogging world.

I'd never really tried Lush before. However, today I was passing a Lush store and thought I'd pop in to find one of these to try.

My goodness, it's the greatest thing I've ever done! I have not stopped applying it since I bought it. As you open the jar, which is a decent size for a lip product at 25g and pretty sturdy (it seems virtually unbreakable- perfect for sticking in the handbag!), the bright pink colours hits you. Seriously, it's neon. Luckily, it doesn't leave a stain on your lips because this would be pretty severe for day time.

I take a pretty big scoop out. It's about the consistency of granulated sugar, although slightly stickier. It's not gloopy or sticky on the lips at all though. Then, of course, there's the bubblegum flavour. It's gorgeous! It's so sweet, it tastes and smells incredible. The best bit, though, is that the instructions actually encourage you to lick it off, which I do... in great quantities!

Once it's all been licked off, my lips are so smooth and a little tingly from the buffing. It leaves no residue or stain at all so it's perfect for every day use.

I'm a total Lush convert now, partly helped by the lovely staff at the Reading branch. We popped in twice in the end. The first time it was pretty busy but one of the sales assistants still asked me what I was looking for and showed me where to find it. He also showed me Snow Fairy and let me have a sniff since it's a similar scent. When we popped in for the second time, it was very quiet and we had a nice chat with a very lovely team member. He showed me all the gift sets and got the best one down off the top shelf to show me. Props to the team there for converting me to Lush!

16th November 2012

Jumper: Next
Skirt: Topshop

One of my favourite things to wear is monochromatic stripes. I don't care what people say about horizontal stripes. I love them! I actually once saw on QI that it's a myth that they make you look wider. I've certainly found that they enhance my figure! 

15th November 2012

Shirt: Primark

Skirt: Topshop

I don't wear this shirt anywhere near enough. It's difficult to make work for winter so I'll have to get imaginative with my knitwear! 

14th November 2012

Top: H&M

Skirt: Topshop

Yes, I'm wearing the same skirt again. I took all these photos in one bunch on Sunday and, if I'm truly honest, I couldn't be bothered to change my entire outfit! I do wear these outfits. I just don't have time to photograph them at the end of each day. Oh, the woes of working life! 

13th November 2012

Jumper: Primark
Skirt: Topshop

Another day, another Primark jumper. They're so snuggly- perfect for the cold weather. Speaking of which, how freaking cold has it been lately! It's so, so cold at night time- My toes are freezing!

12th November 2012

Jumper: Primark

Skirt: Topshop

Another Primark jumper! This one was also in the sale. I love Primark jumpers even though they're hugely oversized. After my last one, I went a size down and it's still massive on me!

I can't believe it's approaching mid-November already. Only 6 weeks until Christmas!

Bonfire Night

I'm still poorly. It sucks. I missed out on the big local display on Saturday so, to appease me, Rich bought some sparklers to play with. 

I haven't used a sparkler in years and I was always that child who held it as far away from my body as possible, squealing the whole time. So it's fair to say I was little apprehensive. Turns out, I had nothing to worry about! It was a lot of fun and I soon went crazy with the sparkly goodness!

This didn't work so well so I tried again:

Much better! 

3rd November 2012

Jumper: Primark
Skirt: Topshop

Today I attempted to be a bit of a political activist and go along to an event promoting a cause that's very close to my heart (but I'll tell you more about that later).

Unfortunately, I'm pretty ill at the moment and have been coughing my lungs up so I had to leave after about 5 minutes. Oh well, maybe next time! 

Halloween Party

I've never had a Halloween party. I've always wanted one but, for one reason or another, I've never been able to. Finally, this year, I had my own house and the funds to accommodate one. I have to admit that I might have gone a little over the top. I ended up buying far more decorations than was actually possible to use. It was a lot of fun though, and I can't wait until next year! 

 I picked up this cutie during a last minute trip for Halloween goodies.

I made some ghosties!

Here's me and Rich. Just to prove that he does exist, if anything!

What did you do for Halloween? I'd love to hear about your festivities!