Cheshire Oaks Haul

On Monday 24 August I had a day off work and headed down to Cheshire Oaks, an outlet village on the outskirts of Chester.  The Blue Planet Aquarium is next door, there is also the Coliseum shopping area, plus Vue Cinema, a range of eateries and a large Marks & Spencer.  You could easily spend all day here if you felt inclined!

The stores I had the most success in were Gap, Karen Millen and M&S.  I almost bought a new handbag in Fossil, but they didn't have a good neutral colour.  In Gap, I picked up a couple of vest tops, a long sleeve tee and a casual cardi.

In Karen Millen, I picked up the most amazing animal tshirt, plus a beautiful pleated skirt that will look great at a wedding, I reckon, or a smart work look.

In M&S I got a pack of 2 bras and a couple of pairs of cool shades.  I can't decide what I like more, the shades or the little pockets that come with them!

I wandered over to the Coliseum and into Debenhams, where I picked up a cute little bag.  Then I wandered into Outfit and grabbed some shorts for my holiday, plus a lovely shawl from Miss Selfridge.  The photo doesn't do it justice, plus I can't share with you it's lovely soft chenille feel.

I did see some lovely items in H&M but by then I had blown my budget, so they will have to wait until next time (boo).

http://www.mcarthurglen.com/uk/cheshire-oaks-designer-outlet/en/ 

Catch you soon!

Good News & Bad

This week I am returning to exercise at full pace.  I've been running, spinning, lifting a few weights and doing some yoga.  It's amazing how refreshing you feel after exercise, isn't it?  Ok, after the shower you feel amazing!!!!

I do most of my training at home.  There is a gym at work, but I tend to find I like to run when the weather is good so I'm not a member.  I should join really as it's only £12 a month and there are free classes included in that price.

Thè DVDs you see here are from a range called Spinervals (easily found on Google) and I love them because they are focussed on developing you as a mini athlete! They focus on triathlon style training, so you can do running, weights and yoga.

I have to temper the good news with a little bit of sad news.  My beloved little boy cat, Scooby, was taken from us last Friday.  He had suffered a stroke and lost sight in his left eye, after a 24 hour assessment he started to lose feeling in his left side.  He was 17, so he had had a long and hopefully happy life.  My husband and I miss his presence dearly. Bo kept looking for him and looked sad that she can no longer find him.  He has pride of place in the garden, where the summer house will be, as we know he would have loved to survey his domain from the rooftop.

My Verdict On Shampoo & Conditioner For Blonde Hair -John Frieda Range

Anyone who follows my Instagram feed is aware of my recent hair colour change.  After years of being varying shades of black, purple and red, I decided it was time to head back to Blonde.

This creates the usual conundrum - how to keep blonde hair in good condition?  I've decided to try a shampoo and conditioner dedicated to this quest.

The John Frieda Sheer Blonde range had an alarmingly large range of products for blonde hair, I didn't really know where to start!  After a good scour of the shelves in Boots, I came across the highlighting shampoo and conditioner, which I thought would help make my highlights stand out. 

To be fair, the first wash was excellent and my hair feels lovely and soft.  I applied a Euro/Pound sized blob of shampoo, mixing it into a mild lather, then washed out.  I then applied a similar amount of conditioner, but concentrated on the ends of my hair more than the top.  I left the conditioner in while I showered, then rinsed it out.  After loosely drying my hair, I left it towel dried for around 30 minutes, then applied the styling oil and blow dried the hair.

At this point in time I am very happy with these products.  The blonde highlights look as wonderful as day one and my hair is very soft to the touch.  I will monitor the situation over the coming 4-6 weeks and report back if the situation changes, so you can decide for yourself if this product is worth pursuing.

You'll note that the photo shows some Imperial Leather shower gels - unfortunately I haven't tested them yet as I'm using up my Original Source Mint gel.  It's almost empty, so I can let you know about this product when I have started to use it, just let me know!

Thank you for reading my blog today, have a lovely rest of your day and catch up with you all soon.

@ukstylechicky #ukstylechicky

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More Photo Experiments

Wow, I now have over 1200 followers on Instagram, with a good 300 or so regularly liking my photos.  I am doing my best to keep up with it all.

It's given me an opportunity to experiment with some photography.  The jeans pile was only photographed and posted earlier in the week.  I was trying to emulate some other photos where they do similar things, but I think they cheat and use proper studios (how dare they?!!)

I will attempt some more photo trickery over the coming days.  Ideas in mind include a pile of belts, plus a close up of some items in a square.  If you have any other thoughts or tips on how to present a good photo shot, feel free to comment.

I've also squeezed in a few foodporn shots, so if you want to see more let me know that as well.

I've been asked a question about how I amassed so many followers in such a short space of time.  My tips for being a good instagrammer are;-

If you say you like for like or follow for follow, follow up on those promises

Keep an eye on the likes you get, if you're getting more likes for certain types of photos, then your followers clearly want more of them

Try and post comments for photos you really love. It can be tough when you're pressed for time.  If I see something that is truly exceptional I do my absolute best to comment.

Don't panic if you can't post every day, your followers and likers will soon remember where you are

Ditch unfollowers quickly as they're just trying to look popular, you don't need those selfish half wits in your life

            Xxx #ukstylechicky is also available on Facebook - look me up!

Back To The Matrix

For those of you who have been following me over the last few months, you'll be aware that I have an adoration for science fiction.  I went to see Star Wars when I was 7 and I was totally taken with outer space.  One day we will travel to the stars, I was clearly born too early for this to be the day to day norm.

One of the most iconic films of its time is The Matrix.  Not only does it get you thinking about your very existence, but there's also some great music and sound effects.  I absolutely love this film, especially for the music.  I have a great surround system which helps.

There was also some iconic fashion, with the long leather jackets and cool shades.  Grunge was huge at the time and I remember having some similar items in my own wardrobe.  The most iconic fashion items were the shades (sunglasses for the uninitiated).  The boots were also a big fashion item at the time and I've noticed a recent theme for Autumn 2015 where some of these fashion items are making a come back.

It's a real shame that films 2 and 3 went a bit off track.

Just remember - there is no spoon.