Everything Eleanor

It's no coincidence that the only 'beauty discovery' posts I've done this year come in July (my birthday month) and December (Christmas time) - this year I've been incredibly lucky and received some gorgeous beauty gifts that I've slapped on my face and pushed to the limits as soon as I could. This Christmas was no exception. And what better time to test some beautiful, sparkly new products than in party season itself? So strap in for the eye shadows dreams are made of, an eyeliner that doubles as an excellent freckle-maker, and lipsticks that will make you say "I can't believe these aren't butter".  *Disclaimer alert* - in no way am I bragging about these gifts! I'm super duper lucky to have received them and these are honest reviews of the products. Okay? Okay.  I Heart Revolution Rose Gold Mini Palette  If you guys read my July Beauty Discoveries post, you'll know that my friend Rachel always kills it with the ...

I feel like in 2018, I stepped back into my online-writing roots of musical criticism. It's been nice. Since I stopped writing music reviews for other people and websites, I've got to explore music I personally enjoy a lot more, and found some new and really exciting artists. I've also dabbled in some genres I never thought I could listen to without my ears bleeding. Naturally, I've taken to the blog throughout the year to spill the beans on the great music I've been head over heels for, so it only felt right to do a big round up of my favourite music of the year - which, despite what my Spotify Wrapped told me, won't include any of the Harry Potter soundtracks, promise.  BEST ALBUM - Trench by twenty one pilots Like The Brits, I'd usually leave the big 'best album' award revelation at the end, but I feel like this was a bit of an obvious one. There hasn't been anything this year - or since Blurryface tbh - that compares to twenty on...

As soon as I jumped in the car on my way back home yesterday, I finally started to feel it: that Christmas buzz. Before then, my Christmas shopping was just another thing to cross off of my to-do list, and Southampton's Christmas market just meant one thing: don't go into town on a Saturday. But now, I'm helping myself to a Celebration or twelve, writing this in the soft glow of our tree, and that bit of Christmas joy has hit me like a bit too much mulled wine. This time of year inspires so many different make-up looks and outfits across the blogging community - much like one I did last year, give that a read here if you fancy - but in 2018 I've decided to ditch the bold red lip and swap it for a pretty purple instead, and bought some party to the eyes and cheeks with a tonne of sparkle. So I present to you another little Christmas look, perfect for the big day. Let's start off with the make-up, shall we? For base and eyebrows, I used the same hol...

As 2018 draws to a close, you're going to see (hopefully) a lot more content from me reflecting back on this year. The first lot of this little saga is this one: 2018's gig round up. I love a good gig, don't you? And 2018 has been the year of gigs for me. I've been to 8 - and for some, that might not be a lot, but that's pretty impressive for broke little me. I've managed to zip here, there, and everywhere to see some A* performances and had some truly memorable nights. So here we go, ladies and gents; I'm going to be ranking my 2018 gigs from least best to the ones that well and truly rocked my socks off. So starting of with number 8... 8. DON BROCO - 26th April @ O2 Academy Oxford  Bit of a no-brainer, this one. Don Broco have been one of my favourite music discoveries of the year, and their album, Technology, is definitely up there with one of the best releases of 2018. So it's no surprise I was super duper excited to see them live in Ox...

Hey you, happy Halloween! I've never gone all out for Halloween before - I've been a cat for about seven years now - but this year, I decided to do something a little bit more adventurous. And by more adventurous, I mean don a wig. This year's costume choice was a close toss up between Ariana Grande (mostly because I wanted an excuse to get a ponytail extension) and Mia Wallace from Pulp Fiction. I decided to go for the latter. Mia's look is so easy to recreate but looks pretty effective, even if I do say so myself. I love Pulp Fiction, and transforming into Mia has been a lot of fun. So, if you're looking for some last minute costume inspo, or wanted to see how I got Halloween ready in about 15 minutes, you've come to the right place (*plays Uma Thurman by Fall Out Boy for the rest of the day*).  makeup If you don't want to slap much makeup on your face this Halloween, Mia Wallace is probably one of the best costume ideas for you. She has such ...

I feel like everything I've written lately has been about twenty one pilots. I'm gonna apologise to my lecturers now, as one of my assessed blog posts was analysing their main promotional photo, and I'm pitching a feature idea right now about pop punk/emo in 2018. Also, s/o to all my friends that have had to put up with me slipping their new album into every single conversation, you guys are troopers. But why stop now? Their new album, Trench, was finally released last Friday, and I just can't get enough of it. It's easily my favourite album of the year - not that I expected anything less from a band I've been head over heels for for years. But today, ladies and gentlemen, I'll be ranking all 14 songs from the album, starting with the least best to the gosh darn amazing. So let's get started:  14. SMITHEREENS  I want to start by saying that there isn't a song on Trench I don't really, really like. But if we're ranking them, I...

Even though shooting these pictures today made me feel like I was back in Lanzarote snapping pics for my last post, I'm pretty sure the best time of the year is upon us now. Autumn is just such a delight. The crackle of the falling leaves under a heavy Doc Marten boot, snuggling up under thousands of blankets writing blog posts in the glow of fairy lights, and CHUNKY KNITTED JUMPERS. Can I get a hell yeah? Mostly, it's that last point - or just Autumn/Winter fashion in general - that makes this my favourite time of year. I love the khakis and the burgundys and deep purples that pop up in our shops and convince me to spend lots of money. I've already splashed some cash this season, and alongside some beloved bits from years gone by, I've come up with my perfect Autumn/Winter wardrobe. Here are my highlights: So even though Autumn is out and about, I still think t-shirts are an essential piece for round about now. Our weather here in the UK is a little bit unp...

Dear whoever you may be,  Lovely to see you here! This may be your first time on my blog (if so, welcome, make yourself feel at home). I might not know you personally or have never seen you before, but let me start off by saying I think you're beautiful. I don't need to know you or see you to tell you that. Isn't it so insane that we're some of the lucky few bought onto this earth, with this machine called a "body" we use to get on with our daily lives and do so many things? That in itself is pretty beautiful. But, if you're here, you might be someone like me, who sometimes feels the complete opposite of beautiful. There a days when I'm in my favourite clothes or done my eyeliner really well and I think, "yes look at you, you absolute queen" - but there are equally days when I look in the mirror and just think "ew". I think there are always going to be days when I don't feel myself, and if you're having one of those day...