Redhead Rambles #3

Hello everyone and welcome to ‘Redhead Rambles’. The series does what it says on the tin, it is a redhead (me) rambling about her week. I share what I’ve been up to each week, how I’ve been feeling and what I’ve been listening to or watching. Occasionally I will my share favourite blog posts and links I’ve found useful or interesting.

• Last Sunday I got out of bed at 2pm. I haven’t been sleeping well some nights with the heat and I am someone who needs her sleep.
• I have committed to a Project Pan type exercise and named 18 products I want to finish in 2018. Read about the products I selected HERE. Aside from this I want to have a makeup declutter to get rid of items I never use and products I no longer like.
• Tuesday’s makeup look was classic, old school Chanelle – silver eyeshadow and a fuschia lip.
• I loved nerding out reading Stash Matters trash stash summary for 2017!
• Making healthier food choices has been happening. I haven’t had chocolate for a week and haven’t had a lot of sugar either.
• I uploaded a video to YouTube giving you a glimpse inside my Bullet Journal. Click here to watch the video. Fun fact, I filmed the video on my iPad.
• Thank you to my kind blogger friends for mentioning me and tagging me in your Instagram stories this week.
• I got my work uniform and had a tour of the library building we will be moving back to. The library has been in a temporary space for the past 18 months while the original building has been earthquake strengthened and modernised.
• Started a jigsaw.
• Don’t forget I will be running a giveaway when I hit 1,000 blog followers – we are close!

What I’ve been listening to:

Troye Sivan – My My My! – I stumbled upon this song randomly on Twitter last week and I have played it a handful of times since. I haven’t listened to Troye before. This song has an electropop feel similar to Years & Years.

What I’ve watched:

Pretty Little Liars – I have watched this show since season two and I am episodes away from the finale and finding out who A is. I haven’t read any spoilers and I can’t wait to see how the final episodes play out.

Steve Jobs (movie) – This movie is based on the biography of the same name by Walter Isaacson. The movie is split into three parts, each part taking place as Steve Jobs prepares to launch three products which defined his career. The movie was simple but an interesting watch.

How was your week?

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April Favourites 2017

April has been the month I have finally nailed down a stable blogging routine and even got back into planning posts! I feel like I’ve got my mojo back and over the next few months I hope I can return to posting every week. I have a new blogging routine, two posts per week on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I have also been lucky to have a couple of long weekends and a few bonus days off work. I spent most of that time sleeping and catching up on TV shows.

Onto this month’s favourites:

1. Cat ears headband – My boyfriend bought me this headband for Christmas and I have been wearing it more recently. I remember mentioning to him once that I’d wanted a pair for a long time and I don’t know whether he remembered or if he saw it and thought of me. He says I make a very cute kitty so I like wearing it when I’m around him. The headband has black and pink furry ears with ribbons and little bells that jingle when I move my head.

2. Clarins Instant Light Lip Comfort Oil – Honey – This is one of the products I received in Stashy’s giveaway. I didn’t try it for a little while but when I did it was love at first use. I’m not the biggest fan of the smell and taste of honey but I like this. It’s sweet but it’s not overpowering. The texture doesn’t feel sticky on the lips and doesn’t leave residue as it wears. The applicator looks big but it is the perfect size.

3. Vanessa White – Chapter Two – Vanessa is probably best known as being one fifth of The Saturdays and she released her second EP in March. Vanessa continues the R&B sound from her first EP and her voice sounds glorious. Vanessa has the type of voice where she can belt but also sound soft and tender and evoke emotion. R&B isn’t normally the type of music I like or listen to but I have a special appreciation for Vanessa’s sound. Standout Tracks: Running Wild and Good Good.

4. Mini Eggs – With April being the month of Easter I have had more of a sweet tooth and a craving for chocolate. I’m not a chocoholic but I did enjoy treating myself and properly trying Mini Eggs. I tried them a couple of years ago and kind of forgot about them. I rediscovered them and I’m a fan! The pretty pastel colours and mini size make them very more-ish. I’m not afraid to admit I polished off a whole bag by myself on Easter Sunday. I’m glad these aren’t sold year round as I would polish off several more.

5. Jigsaw puzzles – Over the past few months I have gotten back into doing jigsaw puzzles. I used to love doing them when I was a kid (I even had a Barbie one). My boyfriend’s parents have been picking them up second hand for a couple of dollars each and I’ve been helping complete the jigsaws when I visit. I especially like the Wasgij brand as the pictures are so detailed and full of bright colours. I got given a couple that were duplicates and I’ve loved doing them in front of TV of an evening. It’s relaxing and it’s a good feeling when one is completed.

6. iPad Mini 4 – Gold – I have always been an Apple fan and in March I treated myself to an iPad. I have had my laptop for four years now and while it’s still going strong some days I’m not online much so the iPad is more portable. I can play games, listen to music, watch videos and catch up on news in a smaller format. I am still getting into a routine with my iPad and which apps I need/want to download. One of the hardest things I’ve found is picking a background image, they either haven’t looked right or been high enough quality.

April’s Spotify Playlist:

Combining artists I’ve listened to for years with a couple of funky, new tracks.

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What were your favourite things in April?

Tech/Lifestyle Wishlist

Hello! I know I haven’t been on as much of a beauty kick lately as I normally am – you can probably tell by the lack of beauty related posts. This wishlist is five homey, tech, life, gadgets I’d love to buy. We all have items we want but don’t need and unfortunately, I think that’s what’s making them more appealing!

 

1. Fitbit Zip – Magenta

In the past I’ve been one of those people who has said, “Fitbits are silly. What is the point of them?” They aren’t the cheapest, I’ve heard lots of people have had problems with theirs and they probably wouldn’t make them small enough to fit my wrist. Enter Fitbit Zip: you clip it on instead of wearing it on the wrist, it’s the cheapest of the Fitbit family, it’s simple and comes in a gorgeous bright magenta!

Why I want it: I’m curious to see how many steps I walk in a day. My iPhone has a pedometer as part of the health app but when I’m walking I don’t always have my phone in my hand.

Why I don’t need it: My phone has a pedometer and I’m not sure where I’d clip this so it wouldn’t get in the way when I sit down. The Fitbit website suggests clipping it to your bra which I guess could work as it is only small.

2. iPad Air 2/iPad Mini 4 in Gold

I have always been an Apple girl! I don’t like Apple because it’s ‘trendy’ or certain people use it. I find the technology simple, great quality and all the products I’ve owned from Apple have lasted well. I’ve had my laptop for four years now and while it still works fine and has never had any problems, I’ve been considering downsizing to a tablet. I would still keep my laptop for printing documents and anything else I couldn’t use the iPad for. Sometimes it would be nice to have more portability, if I’m watching videos in bed (which I don’t often do) I could rest the tablet on my desk or on my knee and it wouldn’t be as heavy. The iPad would also be handy for taking blog photos and storing them. I don’t store photos on my phone as there isn’t enough space.

Why I want it: It would enable more portability and reduce how much I use my laptop. I would be able to download the WordPress app and write posts straight onto the iPad. I have the app on my phone but only use that to reply to comments.

Why I don’t need it: Apple technology is always updating so it does make me question how long this would be usable for. My laptop can also perform most of the same functions.

3. Sunbeam London Collection Kettle – Blue

If you know me well, you’ll know how obsessed I am with anything related to England! When I saw Sunbeam had created a London collection I immediately wanted to own something from it. The collection comes in pastel colours and metallics but this baby blue caught my eye! There are two styles of kettle, this traditonal one and a smaller, pot kettle with the handle on the top. I prefer the traditional style as it holds more water.

Why I want it: The colour is unique for a kettle and I love England!

Why I don’t need it: I still live at home with my mum and she already has a kettle.

4. Sunbeam London Collection 2 Slice Toaster – Blue

Not only does Sunbeam make blue kettles, they make blue toasters too! It would be adorable to have a matching set. The toasters came with a 2 slice or a 4 slice option which is good if you have a big family because it means you can do more than 2 slices of bread at once.

Why I want it: Same reason as above, you don’t often see coloured appliances and I’d love to have these in my house.

Why I don’t need it: Again, same reason as above. Maybe I can convince mum she needs these and buy the set for her for Mother’s Day.

5. KitchenAid 5 Speed Diamond Blender – Raspberry Ice

I’m a very visual person and love colour and things that are different. Pink is my favourite colour and I’m sure there are plenty of women who would love a bright pink blender! It would go so well with that Fitbit! Juices and smoothies have become popular lately and I know lots of people use a Nutri Bullet to make theirs but I’d chose this blender any day.

Why I want it: Not going to lie, basically for the colour!

Why I don’t need it: I don’t have a house of my own, I don’t juice and my mum has a blender already.

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I hope you enjoyed reading about the gadgets I’m lusting after but really don’t need! Let me know if you’ve tried any of these products and what’s on your lust list!

What’s On My Phone?

I have watched a few “What’s On My Phone?” videos before and really enjoyed them. I like being a bit nosy and seeing which apps people install, which apps they use frequently and how they organise them. I recently did a clean up and got rid of some apps and photos to free up space and I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to show you what’s on my phone. I’m not someone who downloads a lot of apps, I only keep the ones I use frequently and I like to use my phone as a phone for calling, texting etc.

If you weren’t aware I have an iPhone 5S in Space Grey and I absolutely love it! I purchased my phone about 12 months ago and it was the first real treat to myself after starting my job. I use my phone a lot more than I thought I would which I am glad about. Previously, I didn’t even own a smartphone and used it for texting and that was it. For anyone who’s curious as to where my phone case is from, it’s made by London based graphic designer and illustrator Lili Price. The cases are made to fit a range of phones and Lili’s patterns and designs are always eyecatching!

I like my lock screen and home screen to match and I normally just use the default backgrounds and images on the phone. At the moment I’ve got a simple, grey dotted background. I like light, neutral colours as it makes the names of everything easy to read and it makes the colours of the apps pop. The apps on my phone are spread over two screens and I’m not really one to categorise everything too much. I have a Social menu and an Extras menu which I keep all the apps that come with the phone but don’t use in. The easiest way I could think of was to show you images of each screen and explain a little bit about each app. Let’s get started!

Screen #1

• Westpac One – This is my banking app. I can make payments, transfer money and check balances on the go.
• 2degrees – 2degrees is my mobile phone network. This app allows me to top up and check how much data and minutes I’ve got left on my plan for the month. I have been a 2degrees customer for years and never had a problem.
• Gmail – I use Gmail for my blog email address. It’s always handy to have access to blog emails.

Screen #2

• Instagram – Instagram is one of my favourites! I love sharing photos with you and getting inspiration from everyone else’s. How are we feeling about the new logo? Yay or nay?
• Social Menu:
  Twitter – I just love Twitter so much and I’m so grateful for all the good memories I have as a result of using it. It is probably my favourite social media platform.
  WordPress – I check this app every morning when I wake up so I can reply to all of your lovely comments. I’ve never written a post on the app though, I prefer to go oldschool and sit at the laptop and type.
  PhotoGrid – If I want to make any collages for Instagram or play around with photo effects this is what I’ll use. You can flip photos horizontally and vertically and add borders, text and cute stickers. It’s really easy to navigate and use.
• Candy Crush Soda – This is now only the game I have on my phone and most of the time I still manage to play this every day. My mum first got me into this game when I bought my phone and I’m currently on level 224.
• Spotify – I just use the free version of Spotify which unfortunately means I have to endure the ads and can only play an album or playlist on shuffle. I don’t use this app very often to be honest and prefer to use the desktop version of Spotify to listen to my monthly playlists.
• Clue – I like how the name of this app is very unassuming and doesn’t give away what it is actually for. Clue is a period tracker and you can enter different data which predicts when your next period will be, how long it will be etc. You can also enter information about any pain or your mood on a certain day. I find this good for recording headaches. Clue also keeps track of your past cycles and predicts three cycles into the future.
• Pinterest – You might be thinking why isn’t this categorised under Social but the truth is I didn’t want the second screen to look bare and only have one or two apps on it because they couldn’t all fit onto one. I have recently started a series on Instagram called #PinterestThoughtTuesday where I share a quote from my Pinterest once a week on Tuesdays. Being able to save the quotes straight from the app is handy.
• Kindle – Recently I branched out and downloaded two eBooks from fellow blogger Aneta Quinn to read using the Kindle app. I do prefer physical copies of books but Aneta’s novels are only available digitally.
• Revolution – I have been obsessed with Makeup Revolution lately and after adding things to my cart and taking them out I finally made my first order two weeks ago. I’ll admit I was sneaky and downloaded the app purely so I could apply the discount code and get 20% off my order.
  

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There you have it, a sneak peak into my phone! Do we use any of the same apps? Be sure to let me know what your favourite apps are!

My New iPhone!

Hey there!

I’ve been looking forward to sharing this post with you all week and I am VERY excited to report that last weekend I got a new phone!!! I am now officially part of the smartphone brigade.

My previous phone was very basic, it wasn’t a smartphone and all I used it for was text messaging. Don’t get me wrong I had it for almost three years and it was great but I found a pretty good deal on an iPhone last weekend took the plunge and went for it! Now if I’m on a break at work I’ll be able to check emails and respond to any of your lovely comments a lot quicker!

Isn’t it beautiful!

I got the iPhone 5s in Space Grey – I’ve very much always been an Apple girl. I’ve used Apple products in the past and never had any problems. I was tossing up between the Space Grey and the Gold but went for Space Grey in the end as the colours go with everything and I was worried the Gold would get fingerprints on it. I’ve only had the phone for a matter of days so I’m still getting to know how it works and learn about everything, but one thing I would like to add is how quick and easy it was to setup. Within a matter of minutes I was ready to go! I’m really excited to start using my phone properly and in a few weeks time, I’ll be a total pro!

Having a camera on the go will be handy as I hardly ever took my iPod with me and don’t take my digital camera (my blogging camera) out. It’ll be nice to have everything on one device rather than using my phone for texting and my iPod for Instagram and music. I only got the 16GB size so I hope there’s enough room for everything haha. I’ll probably end up giving my iPod to my brother so he can use it when he goes to the gym.

Do you have an iPhone? What do you think of it? Let me know if there any apps you think I should download!