Fashion

ZAFUL FASHION MINI HAUL

Thursday, December 01, 2016

I was recently sent some items to review from the lovely people at Zaful.com . I LOVE fashion and when its at such affordable prices as Zaful offer its always more exciting to receive the products and check out the quality. Even though Zaful are based in China, they offer FREE worldwide shipping AND it arrived under 2 weeks which for china to the UK is fantastic!

I got to choose the items so that they fitted in with my style and I didn't expect the quality to be as nice as it is if I'm totally honest. I chose a few choker necklaces as they are really in style at the moment, a Rock 'n' Roller Printed and if you've followed my blog for a while it will be no surprise that I found a PARIS sweatshirt on their website and requested that also as I'm obsessed with all things Paris!

The quality of all items is beautiful, really well made and not a stitch out of place. The sizing is spot on although I ordered the sweater two sizes to big so its huge on me but still a lush cosy sweater for snuggling in this winter! The only thing I think could have been made more obvious on their website was that the T-shirt is a crop which I wasn't expecting so ill have to wait until I've lost a little belly fat to pull this one off but that's not a huge issue. Zaful have a great product description on every product which is normally representative of the item but in this case Id have changed the Style : to CROPPED not casual.

Letter Pattern Short Sleeve Round Neck T-Shirt

Product Description

Collar: Round Collar

Sleeves Length: Short

Style: Casual

Pattern Type: Letter

My favourite items have to be the Lace Sleeve Hooded top and the simple black choker, this paired with ripped jeans and boots looks awesome, its 100% my style and a little edgy which I like. Its totally different from any hooded top I've seen before with a lace up neckline also and the lace hood just adds that extra uniqueness.

Zaful is such a fab website with legit thousands of products to suit everyone's style. I've spent many evenings on their site adding item after item to my basket as there is soooo much lush stuff on there. You will certainly find a load of stuff you LOVE and cant leave sitting in your basket hehe...Im not affiliated in anyway with Zaful, They have sent me items to review but I honestly never review items unless I 100% like them and in this case I'm so pleased they got in touch as Zaful will now be my go to for the latest trends at bargain prices.

*Items sent for consideration of review. All opinions are my own 100% honest opinions.

Design

END OF AN ERA...NEW OFFICE

Tuesday, November 29, 2016

For a while now Craig and I haven't been enjoying making wall stickers for a living. I still love designing but manually making each and every wall sticker order by hand in our tiny office was starting to take its toll. The busier we got the more unhappy we where going to work as it was so cramped and cluttered with hardly any space to move let alone make cut weed tape and pack orders. So with that being said...we decided with a heavy heart to close Vunk.co.uk and stop selling Wall stickers.

Even though we both know this decision is the right thing to do for us both, it's still a risk closing something that's made us a living for years now. but it's a risk we are willing to take because quality of life is more important and working all hours of the day and weekends was really starting to get us down. I can now concentrate on what I love most...illustrating and graphic design for my website sjillustration.bigcartel.com

So....as you can see...I have a whole new office space and set up. We no longer need a 4ft x 6ft table in a 6ft x 8ft room to make wall stickers on so we whipped out the jigsaw and starting creating a new desk . We both wanted a fresh modern and inspiring work space to keep us motivated and happy whilst we work. I painted the new desk white and we rearranged the room so it's much more spacious and easier to work in.

I also painted the office white so that any colour would be added by cool quirky accessories. I immediately printed some artwork off of Pinterest and created a mini gallery style display above my computer.

Being my own boss how could I not have a GIRL BOSS print on my wall. I love unusual art so the raccoon painting by is so beautiful to look at and I think it fits in really well with the mix of colours I've chosen as well as a few monochrome prints.

Of course I wasn't going to not have a few up to date photos of Craig & I and our beautiful boy Scottie Cat. I've used a cactus wire photo holder from Primark to hold these pictures.

And lastly but certainly not least...you all know how much I LOVE creating things and craft in general. We will be getting some small succulent plants soon but for the time being I've made these origami cacti which I've placed in brown shredded paper inside of empty coffee cans. I'm really pleased with how these turned out as they were my first origami cacti and I they were super easy and quick to make.

I also added some fairy lights around my computer and a 'work like a Boss!' watercolour background which makes me smile everyday! id love to hear your thoughts on our new office space / design studio? Im so pleased that I can stop pinning inspo and dreaming of a pretty office because we now have an office we enjoy as much as I adore my job!

If you've not already checked out my website sjillustration.bigcartel.com then I hope you like it and also my full range of art prints is still available on my eBay Store here.

beauty

PS...Matte Lip Swatches & Review

Friday, October 21, 2016

business cards

Printed.com Business Cards

Thursday, October 13, 2016

Recently I stumbled upon Printed.com when googleing business cards for my new business Sjillustration.bigcartel.com . Printed's website really caught my eye as their branding is ultra modern and the pink logo stood out to me straight away as pink is one of my fav colours and I am easily biased like that.

I ordered the Free sample pack from printed.com straight away and I was so pleased with the samples when they arrived very soon after I ordered them. The samples include the different paper options and finishes as well as how different colours look on each paper. I think this is an awesome idea for samples as It really gave me more confidence in ordering with them as I could set my CMYK colour codes on my computer as the same as the sample cards and I could trust that the colours would look how I wanted once printed. This is always a worry of mine when getting anything printed as the colours you see on the computer can look totally different when printed.

Printed give you the option to use your own design or use one of their deign templates which is perfect for people who haven't been able to design their own logos or branding just yet. They have tons and tons of great designs and variations for different style businesses. I had made my own card design and logo so all I had to do was fit my design to one of their business card format templates which you can download free to ensure your card design fits and wont be cut off when they trim your cards.

There's some formatting to figure out including the bleed areas etc but its pretty straight forward and once you've done it once its so easy. I had a little trouble with my formatting but the team at printed where so helpful and supported me 100% to achieve the best format and spacing for trimming. They have a live chat help so if your stuck with anything you can quickly chat to the team and they will assist you so there's no stress involved in ordering your cards.

I ordered 50 of the LUX 810gsm Double sided Business cards with square corners and with a fascia pink core colour. I also had them finished with a Velvet lamination which feels amazing!

From the moment people have held this card in their hands you can tell they are impressed with the quality. I've even had gasps of 'ohhhhs' and 'awwwws' from a customer recently who asked where I had my cards made. Which is always a plus when people notice the quality of your business cards. The LUX cards I think give an incredible first impression of any business and I highly recommend them. They are a little more expensive than the others in the range but your getting exactly what you pay for with these. Real Luxury which is worth the extra cost if it brings in more orders.

I also ordered 50 of the Double Sided Conqueror gold business cards which are 350gsm in weight and again with square corners as opposed to the rounded corners option. I went for the standard size of 85mm x 55mm business cards and used the same design as on my LUX cards. These have a beautiful gold sheen to them which catches light perfectly and looks super pretty. These are a lot thinner than the LUX cards but still feel great as they are a nice thickness comparable to most regular business cards, the LUX cards are just special.

And lastly I also ordered 50 of the Folded Landscape Double sided 150mm x 55mm business cards on Silk 400gsm paper with velvet lamination again on both sides. The Folded business cards are new to Printed and are such a great idea for businesses who would like to showcase what they have on offer as well as use the card for contact details. You can also use a side for loyalty stamps which your customers can use for rewards and offers.

I chose to use my previous design on the inside of the cards and for the outside I designed a mini portfolio style strip of images so that potential customers can see my previous work and what I have on offer on my website.

If I'm being totally honest (as i always am), I wouldn't have ordered the folded as I wouldn't have seen a need for them but as Printed.com had asked me to review their folded cards especially, I'm glad they did as I love the folded cards much more than I expected too.

Printed.com offer such an immaculate service at such a low cost. The prices are cheap but their products do not feel cheap at all. Also the higher quantity of cards that you purchase reduces the overall unit cost per card, so your better off ordering a few hundred at once. For example 50 of the folded business cards with lamination on both sides would be £15.90 inc VAT so that works out at 32p per card which is awesome. BUT if you where to order 250 cards you'd be paying £55.87 / 22p per card.

They even offer a Printed Promise, therefore if your not 100% happy with your order once it arrives, let them know and they will reprint for you or offer a full refund. There where a few sizing issues with my folded business cards but Printed where sure to send me another 100 of the cards as part of the printed promise.

I cant express to you enough how pleased myself and my customers have been with the quality of my business cards. Personally the whole design, order and delivery service from Printed.com was a really positive experience and I highly recommend them. From start up businesses needing help to order their cards to the business card expert, I honestly think Printed.com are the company you need to print with.

What do you think of my cards? Will you be ordering from Printed.com?

daily vlogger

VLOGTEMBER 2016

Thursday, September 29, 2016

Nail art

Emoji Nails

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

Gel Nail Polish

BLUESKY SHELLAC GEL NAIL POLISH REVIEW

Friday, July 22, 2016

I love gel nail polishes so when my friend ordered a polish from BlueSky gel nail polish I as intrigued as I hadn't heard of that brand previously. The polish my friend had was the temperature colour changing gel nail polish which unless I'm super late to the party, I totally haven't seen a polish like this before!

I was so wowed by the BlueSky Colour Changing gel polish in the shade Bubblez, I sent them an emailing stating how much I loved their innovative new gel polishes and was totally blown away when they sent me their new Double Denim collection of gel polishes, their base and top coats and two of the colour changing gel polishes to review.

The Double Denim collection is stunning!! With a selection of blue denim shades and 3 complimentary shades to accent them, you really can mix up your nails this summer!

What BlueSky say about their Double Denim collection -

'Jeans are an all-season staple in anyone’s wardrobe. Now that summer is in full swing, you’ll probably get to wear out more of your favorite denim. Bold, eye-catching and stunning gel colours, our Double Denim Summer Collection fits perfectly those summer outfits that make you look so fabulous. Get the perfect denim statement for a monochromatic or mix-match looks that looks fantastic!'

(left to right)

Denim Sparkle, Powder Pink, Electricity, Java Latte, Deep Sea, Lemon Sorbet.

My favourite shades for summer out of the double denim collection have to be the Demon Sparkle and Powder Puff. These are just so pretty in the sun! They have a very finely milled glitter fleck to them which I absolutely adore. I do like Electricity and Deep Sea but these shades for me are more autumnal shades which will look perfect with my winter denim fashion.

Lemon Sorbet looks incredible on the first day but after a day it starts to look more on the green lime side of yellow which can look a little off. For me it's not bright enough to be a neon yellow but then not pastel enough to be a Sorbet inspired yellow. But that's my personal honest opinion, I wouldn't want this shade on my nails for 2 weeks, but its perfect for a one night 'matching your outfit' type of situation.

What Makes Us Love Bluesky Gel Polish?

♥ Hard as nails high gloss finish.

♥ Lasts up to 14 days.

♥ Cures with UV or LED lamp. It’s your choice!

♥ Over 500 amazing colours to choose from.

♥ Will not damage your nails

♥ High quality gel nail polish at a fantastic price!

I'm also unfortunately not too keen on Java Latte but each to their own, somebody else might love it! But for my skin tone it just washes me out and looks a bit bland.

The BlueSky colour changing gel polish is the bomb!! The bright fascia pink is the temperature colour changing polish in the shade Bubblez and the lighter pink is the sunlight colour change polish in the shade pinch of peach. These are a whole load of fun as they change so quickly and back again, it really is fascinating to watch.

As you can see from the images below when Bubblez is hot it turns the polish totally opaque white with glitter flecks. But as soon as your cold it changes to a bright fascia pink which is so pretty! It's fun to wash your hands when wearing Bubblez as generally they are white as normal body temperature is quite warm, well mine is anyway. But run your hand under the cold tap and they are pink again! I was fascinated by this fast innovative formula.

I haven't got a good picture of Pinch of peach in action but if you follow me on Snapchat or instagram then you'll see a short clip of the colour changing when exposed to sunlight! The peachy pink shade is really unusual and unlike any pink polish I've used before!

I find it's a really complimentary shades on many skin tones and when it turns purple in sunlight it's even more stunning with the glitter throughout it.

BlueSky also sent me their base & top coats for the perfect manicure from start to finish. The BlueSky nail polish I've found does last a good 10 days without any chipping at all but as I work such a manual job the 2 weeks chip free is a stretch but it's so pretty that I dont mind redoing it touching up a few nails. My thumbs and fore finger along the edges normally chip first. I use the Bluesky Gel Wipe Pads which are nail cleanser pad that are an essential part of any gel manicure ensuring a shiny, glossy finished look that will make your gel finish last longer. The finish on my nails is beautifully shiny!

Diana from BlueSky was so very kind and made me a discount code and graphic to share with my lovely readers & followers!

This code is applicable until the 31st August and entitles you to 10% off your first order on www.blueskygelnailpolish.co.uk . Enter SOPHIE10 at checkout to redeem your 10% off!

Have you tried any of the BlueSky gel nail polishes by shellac nails? Let me know in the comments which shade is your favourite from the double denim collection?

*This post contains products sent for consideration of review. All opinions are 100% my own and honest.