Everything Eleanor

My 2019 has been pretty bare-faced. That call for an extra 15 minutes in bed is too strong, and these days the most makeup you'll probably see me in is a bit of waterproof mascara too resilient for the micellar water. Remember when I used to wear faux freckles every day? Why do that when you could be catching those precious minutes of shut eye? However, my lack of effort in the everyday-makeup department has made it a bit more special when I do slap on a bit of eyeshadow, and I've grown to love playing around with different looks. And even though I am enjoying the experimentation, some real beauty gems have shone through this year and I have found myself gravitating to some specific products and colours. So to close off the year, and in fact the decade, I thought I'd put all my favourite makeup discoveries and purchases from 2019 on my face to create a version of the pinky-purple soft glam look I've been digging over the past 12 months - perfect for an NYE shindig. ...

2019 - a year of big ups, big downs, and a whole lot of " I CAN'T DO THIS ANYMORE "s. But we made it! Pat on the back for you. We're one year on from my last 'Best Music of the Year' post , and once again I find it very difficult to pin-point the best musical moments of the last 12 months. My Spotify Wrapped 2019 was both insightful and a bit embarassing - who knew I'd listened to OT Bop for 5 hours? - but many of these songs have made up the playlist to a year that, for the most part, has made me a happy, soppy mess. I always love doing my research for these posts, looking back over a year of huge musical bombshells and remembering tracks from way back in January that had slipped my mind. And today, we take a trip down memory lane to give massive s/os to the musical geniuses that helped make 2019 for me. BEST ALBUM - NFR by LANA DEL REY  If you're surprised by this, you're clearly new around here - in which case, hi, my name is Ellie...

So I came to the realisation the other day that I hadn't written a blog post in over 3 MONTHS. Firstly, where has that time gone? It seems like only days ago I was getting all existential about starting third year and now I'm halfway through it. Secondly, if you're wondering why I haven't been uploading or where I've been, the short answer is: in. the. library . I hadn't quite realised how intense third year would be, and my life has seemlingly become just a series of deadlines. And when I have had some time off, a lot of it has been consumed by a craving for 'just one more episode...'  That being said, looking back on my first semester as a third year uni student, I have been up to some pretty snazzy things. I've been on some fun little adventures, discovered some brilliant new products, and even got another tattoo . So, without further ado, let's reflect on what I've been up to these past few months - or the parts that don't invol...

On Friday 20th September, I was a bridesmaid for my Uncle and Auntie. It was the most beautiful day: the weather was perfect, I was surrounded by family, and having my makeup done always brings me more joy than it probably should. It was the best way to conclude my summer. Fast forward to Monday 23rd September - I'm back in Southampton for uni, the torrential rain has made sure my makeup looks nowhere near as good as it did 2 days ago, and I'm stressed. As many of you may know, I'm a Multimedia Journalism student at Solent University. And for the most part, I love it. I've written blog posts rounding up my first  and second  years of uni, and from those posts, I think it's obvious I've made incredible friends, lifelong memories and had a blast doing a course that I genuinely have a huge passion for. But on a soggy walk home from Asda on Monday evening, ready to cook my classic dinner of veggie sausages, hash browns and beans (guaranteed to have that at ...

So if you're following my brand new blog Instagram (and if you're not, give it a gander: @everythingeleanorblog ), you'll know that a couple of products * accidentally* fell into my shopping basket at Selfridges. You know the drill - you go in there for one teensy-weensy browse and the next thing you know, you have a drained bank account but a full yellow carrier bag. One of these products was the Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Powder Duo in Ash Brown - which I reviewed on my Insta stories, now in my highlights - while the other was the Huda Beauty Amethyst Obsessions Palette . The latter definitely wasn't a spontaneous purchase - I'd been eyeing up this palette for months. I've really wanted to start playing around with more purple eye shadows, and until recently they've been fairly hard to come by. That's why when I spotted a whole palette of luscious sparkles, bold mattes and chunky glitters all centred around purple, I knew it had to be mine.  ...

Friday was the day we've all been waiting for! And when I say "all", I mean the crazed and obsessive fans of pop music's resident sad girl, Lana del Rey - which includes me. Her new album,  Norman F---ing Rockwell (here on referred to as NFR ), has been in my life for about a day and a half as I write this, and I can already pretty much guarantee it'll be my favourite album of the year.  A few notes on the album before we get started on ranking the songs (which is probably the hardest thing I've had to do since quadratic equations in GCSE maths). While I absolutely love this album, I don't think it's my favourite Lana record to date. I think previous albums - especially her last one, Lust for Life - had more variety in terms of genre and sound. NFR, for the most part, follows a strategic formula, of songs driven by piano, letting Lana's elegant vocals take centre stage. On occasion this does mean the album can become a little repetitive, but u...

What do you think of when you hear the term, "fast fashion?" The little scene that pops into my head is of me walking into a McDonald's, ordering a cheap-as-chips outfit for my next night out, and it being served up on the counter within a matter of minutes by an underpaid cashier who would really rather be somewhere else. Because, yes, whatever the subject - I will not stop thinking about food.  But fast fashion and fast food do ride on a similar wave: both provide a service that pride themselves on two things they know their customers love - speed, and a low price tag. So their products are made as quickly and as cheaply as possibly to get ready for millions of customers who want the latest thing now, now, now, with a price equally as exciting. Here lies the big problem with fast fashion: that slinky £6 bodycon dress isn't made to last many a night out (much like myself), or that £10 pair of jeans might not even see you through the season. They are manufactur...