Electric Run at Wembley

At the station waiting for the train - yes we got lots of funny looks!

So a few months ago, a friend of mine suggested we get a group together to run the Electric Run at Wembley, London. I'd never heard of it before, and more importantly, I don't run much (well, only to catch a bus!)

I thought it'd be a good challenge and had every intention of doing a bit of training in the lead up to it.

Us girls being silly on the Underground!

When doing some research on the run itself, it sounded like a real laugh - lots of neon lights and different Electric lands, dance music being played and a chance to dress up. Needless to say, I didn't actually do any training before the day arrived and decided I could walk a little if I needed to. 

I ordered some neon leggings from eBay which were so thin you could see my underwear so put a black leotard over the top and wore two vests for extra warmth with neon fishnets, again purchased on eBay.

My lipstick was Mac Candy Yum-Yum for extra colour!

Sam, Me & Anneka

We paid £35 to enter the run, and on arrival, we were given our packs - this included an Electric run t-shirt, glow sticks, flashing glasses & a light-up wristband, plus our running number. Sam had bought with her some neon glow paints, so while we waited for it to get dark, we painted our faces and I took way too many selfies!

There was dance music playing whilst waiting at the entrance to the start line and the crowds were really starting to build - we heard around 15,000 people were signed up to run! The atmosphere was buzzing and as it started to get dark - we could really see what we were about to experience.

My nerves started to kick in while we were at the start line, but I was excited too, about to run my first ever 5K! I could see there were lots of runners that clearly do this a lot, and the 3 other girls in my group all love running - two have already run a marathon and the other is due to next year! I didn't want to be lagging behind and have them feel like they couldn't enjoy it, so I said to them they could speed off if they wanted to.

It took about 45 minutes for us to actually get to the start line and there were plenty of runners behind us waiting too.

The course of the run was great - from one side of the stadium to the other, then lapped back on itself, down in to the car park with dance music playing as we were running...

It seemed to go really quickly too, I felt like I'd only been running for ten minutes when I heard we'd already done 3K!

Sam & Kim having a mid-run photo!

The four of us girls almost at the end!

One of the 'lands' we ran through at the end of the course.

There was a waterstop halfway through but I was surpirsed that there weren't more stewards around to pass out drinks. Even the cups the water was served in were neon!

Where a lot of the cups had been thrown on the floor, they had all been trodden on so there was a lot of broken plastic around!

When we saw the finish line we could hear Disclosure - White Noise playing and I swear that is what got me to the end! There was a huge crowd dancing by a giant dance stage once past the finish so we got involved for a bit having a good dance and really soaking up the atmosphere. There were a few bars but it was so busy we couldn't get a drink to celebrate. Also the food stalls all had greasy burgers etc, nothing healthy which I thought was a shame as not everyone would have wanted that.

All in all, I was really proud of myself for doing it, I only walked for a bit of it where I'd heard a song I loved and just wanted to dance and not run! Plus the girls were fine with that too as they didn't want to sprint through it and not be able to really enjoy it. Saying that, we did manage to finish in around 45 minutes.

I'd recommend it for a fun night out with a group, maybe not for a runner looking to achieve a PB! 

I'm now going to look for another 5K run I can do. Have any of you pushed yourselves out of your comfort zone? What runs might you recommend for me to try?

Thanks for reading!

Chloe x

Easter Weekend Fun

I hope you all had a great Easter - I worked Saturday & Monday so made sure I enjoyed myself on Sunday.
This meant seeing the family and a chance to wear an outfit I'd been putting together in my head for a while.

I love taking a casual look to the next level with a statement piece, a great pair of shoes or some serious bling, and I think this outift really showcases that.

Jacket - River Island // T-Shirt - River Island // Jeans - ASOS // Heels - River Island
Necklace - Topshop // Watch - Michael Kors

Firstly the oversized blazer, I bought this a few months ago from River Island and I absolutely love it. Always a sucker for anything animal print - I had to purchase immediately! It is really soft and therefore very comfortable and can be styled in so many ways. I like to fold over the sleeves of mine to showoff my arm candy!

Then the jeans! When I saw the ripped look popping up on blogs and maagzines etc, I knew this was another trend that would work really well with my personal style. These beauties I bought from ASOS for only £40. I'd never bought jeans from there before so was curious to see what the fit would be like and the quality but I am seriously impressed. I always wear mine rolled up to show off whatever is on my feet!
However, I actually went to buy another pair yesterday but they don't seem to be on the website anymore - gutted!The rips were not that big when I first wore them, but with every wear they seem to get bigger - I am putting this down to my wintery thighs, when I sit down I can hear the rips reminding me I've got to shed a few lbs!

I've had these shoes for just over a year now, purchased from River Island whilst on a girls trip to Manchester - again I had my eye on them for a while.
They are really comfortable as the sole is really squidgy (!) so I can wear them all day with no bother at all. Amazing!
The gold detailing luxe up the shoe and I am still going for the hardware trend, who doesn't love a buckle or four?!!

The t-shirt is another old purchase from River Island that I had bought to go under some dungarees I'd bought in there too - did anyone else buy into that trend?!!?
Then the necklace - ah the necklace! I have wanted my name in pendant form ever since Carrie Bradshaw had hers in Sex And The City - remember when she loses it in her Dior purse whilst in Paris? And then The Russian buys her that diamond beauty she ends up breaking and leads her to Big? Anyway I digress...
When I spotted some name necklaces hanging in my local Topshop store, I raced towards it like a total magpie and eagerly thumbed through each name thinking 'they won't have Chloe, I know they won't' and then to my utter dismay (and delight of course!) I found my little name at the back!
Happy Chloe!

So what do you think of the outfit? What did you get up to over the Easter weekend?
Here are some photos of my family fun day - enjoy!

My gorgeous Goddaughter Lyla in her pretty tutu with my friend Laura - so much love for this little lady : )

Delicious traditional roast lamb dinner at Mum & Stepdad's house!

These aren't just any Easter chocolates!

Daffodils & Prosecco - the perfect Spring combination

My baby sister Claudia & her pug - Albert (who she thinks is an actual human child!)

Me enjoying some prosecco - again!

For me, spring is all about having flowers in every possible space at home - like these little beauties!

Would love to hear your comments!

Chloe x

A Bridal Makeup Lesson at the Bobbi Brown Counter

In January I booked a makeup tutorial at the Bobbi Brown counter in Fenwicks, Canterbury for last week.
I'd always known I wanted to do my own makeup for my wedding, as I feel like I am reasonably good at doing it, I just needed to learn about how to create the best long lasting base, what looks good in photos etc.
I also think that I'd rather spend a few hundred pounds on decent products I can use again, than have someone I don't know come in on the morning of my wedding and maybe not get it right!

The look that I am trying to achieve would be quite glamourous, more attention paid to the eyes than lips, I'd say my eyes (and my hair) are probably my best features so I want to highlight that.
I love Bobbi Brown products and really don't have enough of them! My makeup artist Anna was super friendly and chatty, found out what I was looking for and really got me involved in the choosing of colours etc - which I thought was fab, not some know-it-all MUA doing whatever they like.

First off Anna used an oil cleanser and hydrating tonic on my skin to get rid of any makeup on my skin already. Then I had hydrating eye cream and the vitamin enriched face cream, it was super soft and smelt divine!
Then came the Bisque Correcter - a product I've read rave reviews on so was eager to see what it was like on my skin. It was great to even out my skin, and dark circles or patchy areas.

The foundation Anna used was the shade Warm Beige and advised me that anything with an SPF higher than a 15 is going to really wash me out in my wedding photos!

A light skin powder was then used with a powder brush to hold it all in place!
To add colour back to my face Anna used the Golden Light Bronzer in a 3 shape - from the centre of the forehead round under the eye to highlight the cheek, then over the jaw line (repeat on each side!)

The blusher Anna used on the apples of my cheeks was called Pink Sugar - it had shimmer in it which I prefer, I don't like to look too matte. To just add a further flush of colour, she added Pale Pink to make my cheeks really pop!

Now my favourite part - my EYES!
To cover the entire eye, the Long Wear Cream shadow in Shore was used as a base - this would also be perfect just as an eyeshadow on its own. Then Bone Eye Shadow was used to cover the lid, with Rich Brown on the lower lid and Smokey Quartz dabbed on with a fingertip.

Anna then used the Black Ink Gel Liner on the upper lids to bring extra glam to my eyes! This looked so easy to apply with the Eye Liner Brush, and that has been a real issue for me in the past - trying to get the right liquid liner is such a pain!
Lash Glamour Extreme Lengthening Mascara was used to give me long lushious lashes!
Sable Eyeshadow was used to fill in my brows to frame my face.

And finally for my lips, I usually just wear a clear or pale pink glass, but Anna explained that opting for something darker will make them stand out a bit more in my photos - however, Bobbi Brown's mantra  is that you should pick a colour close to your natural lip shade for the best look.
This is a rule I think that really works and Anna told me it also applies to blushers too!
Bikini Pink lipstick was used with a dash of Bright Pink gloss over the top for extra shine!

So what do you think? I love the eyeshadow colours and think they work really well with green eyes - my eyes seem to really stand out! It was also unbelievable how long it all lasted - it was applied at 11:30 and looked super fresh come 8pm that night - so I have huge confidence in these products.

Above is the summary sheet of all the products Anna used in my tutorial and I honestly wanted to buy them all!

Here I am after a few hours wear, out in the natural light to really see what it looked like - I love it!

You can buy all Bobbi Brown products here.

Are you a fan of Bobbi Brown? Or what are your go-to beauty brands? I'd love to know!

Chloe x

Our pre-wedding photoshoot

As you know I get married at the end of June, and an engagement shoot - or 'pre-wedding' shoot as they're also known, was included in our photography package.

Finding a photographer was quite easy really, I scoured wedding blogs such as www.rockmywedding.co.uk and www.lovemydress.net for recommendations. I knew I wanted natural, reportage style photgraphs, with an emphasis on couple shots, something soft and romantic that will also look timeless in years to come.

Hannah-May came up a few times and her clients gave her amazing reviews so I enquired and found her package prices to be extremely reasonable compared to some quotes we had received.
After a few emails back and forth with Hannah-May, I found her so friendly and totally understood what we were looking for. The Boy doesn't necessarily work well with a camera, so natural, non-intrusive shots were our priority. If someone puts a camera to his face, he goes all Chandler like (from Friends - you know the episode right?!) and he doesn't look like him in the photo. I know, it is funny.

Here are some of our pre-wedding shots we got back last week.

Hannah-May suggested we go to Capstone Country Park in Gillingham to meet her and have the photos done. I'd never been there before and was pleasantly surprised by the beauty of the spot. Lots of open fields, pretty blossom trees, people taking their dogs for long strolls on Saturday mornings.

I was really happy with the outcome.

Hannah-May suggested that we stand in the blossom tree, as the flowers would be out of focus and it creates really great pictures, I completely agree with her. Plus, it was slightly unusual too, I liked that it may be something people haven't really seen before.

After meeting Hannah-May and then seeing these photos, it has really assured us that we have made the right choice and we wouldn't want anyone else to take on the task of capturing our special day. If you want to take a look at Hannah-May's work, or read her blog - its beautiful, then you can do so here. Who captured your wedding or who have you booked to do so?

I'd love to know what you think of the pictures!

Chloe x

Casual Tuesday

Top - Topshop £24

So today saw Mother and I head down to the beautiful city of Canterbury. I had a bridal make up lesson with the amazing Anna at the Bobbi Brown counter in Fenwicks, I've always been a fan of Bobbi Brown products but don't seem to actually own many at the minute (that changed after the make-up tutorial!)

New Balance 420 Trainers - ASOS - £60

I recently bought a pair of New Balance trainers, and they feature heavily in my day to day style. I usually pair them with my favourite jeans and a jumper. Today was of course no exception, my super comfy River Island slim leg/skinny dark blue jeans - although I could almost call them a jegging (hate that word!) as they are very stretchy and my neon ribbed Topshop jumper I purchased in February.

Miu Miu Sunglasses £215 - available now at eyewearbrands.com

 I had seen these sunglasses on Millie Mackintosh and Miranda Kerr back in December 2012, I was heading to London a few days later so went straight to the Miu Miu store in Bond Street but was informed the colour I wanted was limited edition and had completely sold out! The sales assistant in the store called Harvey Nichols, Selfridges etc, but alas, there were none! But then one of my Mum's fellow blogging friends suggsted Eyewearbrands.com and TAHDAH - I found them! They are my babies.

Michael Kors Rose Gold Large Watch - £229

I love giving my casual wardrobe a dash of glam with my large man style Michael Kors watch - I think it can instantly update any look actually, and I wear mine constantly. Amazon have some amazing offers on Michael Kors watches at the minute, perfect if you can't afford a Rolex!
Any outfit can get instant style brownie points with a great pair of shoes, a beautful wristwatch or some seriously special sunnies!

What are your go-to accessories for updating any look?

Chloe x

Allow me to introduce myself

Hello and welcome to my blog! I have been thinking for some time now that I needed a place to come to where I could share all my ideas and thoughts on everything from fashion & beauty, to interiors & travel. I will also throw in some food & wedding posts for good measure! I spend a lot of my time reading other people's blogs, when I realised that I should be writing my own. I love writing and combined with my passion for all things pretty, I think this is going to be an exciting new adventure for me. Plus the Boy said I needed a hobby - er I thought sitting at home with a tub of Haagen Daaz and Keeping up with the Kardashians was a hobby? Apparently not. I live with the Boy in our lovely home and we are getting married soon, which I am too excited about. I love travelling and have been to some incredible places in my short life so far. Passed through my genes was an obsession for fashion & style, whether it be high end designer or high street. Plus, if it has sequins or glitter on it, I WILL buy it. I work for a premium travel company as a sales consultant - which basically means I get to sell awesome holidays for a living - I know, it does kind of rock! So here it is, I am submerging myself into the blogging world, whilst working full time and planning a wedding. (27th June - Oh.My.God) If you have time, let me know what you think!

Chloe x