More Street Style

For this picture I thought I'd try watercolour with pen and I quite like it. More graphicy.

I spotted this cool lady (as always) on the street between The Art Gallery and Boots. She had white hair, despite being young, and was wearing a pink fake fur coat and a long turquoise jersey skirt. It takes a lot of confidence to wear a great outfit like this.

Pink and turquoise are two of my favourite colours too. I also love green and red. I think I got too obsessed by 'Color me Beautiful' when I was younger.(I'm a Winter, apparently). But it kind of works for me. Test your colour season at the link above. It's not just frivolous, Alistair and his colleagues had this done in their office for workwear by an image consultant. It could be a good way to update your look for next year!

52 Books Project

In preparation for my Book a Week Project, today I went to the library. I felt very ancient as, since I was last there, they had re-equipped it with self scanning machines and all manner of gizmos. My plan is to borrow four books, which I can keep out for a month.
(I would also urge people to support their local library before the government closes them all down.)

Anyway, the books I got are:

Notorious Nineteen by Janet Evanovich, the 19th (!) in a series of comedy romance crime novels I enjoy.

Jeanette Winterson's The Stone Gods. I like her books, I was actually hoping for The Powerbook, but it was out. It is a sci-fi romance.

The Streets of Babylon by Carina Burman ('Translated from the Swedish by Sarah Death(!)) Scandi-crime set in Victorian London. I'm far too addicted to Victorian London crime but this seemed a bit different.

And Sara Maitland's Gossip From The Forest, about the origins of fairy tales. I saw this recommended in Vogue but it wasn't in Waterstone's so I have ordered it online.

What Elinor Did (2012)

Following my plans for things to do in 2013, I am pondering what I did this year...

The biggy was, I became an Auntie! Little Ava (child genius, gorgeous, hilarious, brilliant and other devoted Aunt blatherings) is the kiddie of Alistair's brother Iain and his wife Lynsey. This is very exciting as she is the first new generation and the first genetic female Dunbar for many generations (all boys). Sadly she lives in Northern Ireland though so we don't see her much (sad face.)

My second excitement of this year was running a 5k. I've posted about this already, so I won't go on, but for me this is like the equivalent of the moon landing.

Some small ones: Hired a car and drove around somewhere completely new in it (Dorset). Next step, driving abroad...

And yesterday I cooked a lobster! Ok, it was dead, pre-cooked and frozen, but I did have to tear it apart with my bare hands (Alistair assisting with nutcrackers). It looked like something from Alien and was armoured like a tank. More scary culinary challenges appreciated...

What have you done this year, readers?

Pre-New Year Resolutions.

I do enjoy an architectural drawing, like when I was at art college.

Anyway, for many years I used to make a list of New Year Resolutions which were uselessly vague such as 'look fab'.

So this year they are specific, and following agreement at a girly pub gathering, they are before New Year to remove pressure and annoyance.

They are, so far:
Climb Bennachie and Dunnideer (spectacular and historic Aberdeenshire hills near my two places of work, one has a castle on, the other a prehistoric fort).
Climb the climbing wall (pictured) at my local gym.
Drive a tank (with Alistair).
Complete the Baker Hughes 10k.
Read a novel a week (I used to borrow 3 books a week from the library).
Go see a proper ballet and a big, classic musical (maybe in Edinburgh).
Eat out with Alistair once a month.
And, fittingly, do a big painting!

Welly Weather

It's very snowy in Aberdeen at the moment. I'm going out to a birthday party tonight and was trying to explain the classic British look of party dress, cardi and wellies. Strangely, I couldn't find a picture, although Vogue and suchlike are always depicting grungy ballgowns...

Anyway, I did my own. You can make up your own story for why this posh girl in a ballgown is standing thoughtfully in the mud.

Face at Forty-ish...

In a conversation at the weekend, my Mum Pauline remarked that there comes an age when you have to stop wearing make-up, and I countered that I was reaching an age where you feel the need to wear it.

As part of my towards forty project, a picture of my eye. I love my green eyes, inherited (well, not the eyes, the colour) from my Gran Jo. As you age, however, they tend to get a bit bloodshot, eyelids droop and creases appear beneath. To be fair, my eyes were often bloodshot when I was young too, but that was mostly hangovers.

Anyway, what make-up do I feel the urge to wear now?
I discovered on a trip to Boots, that make-up comes in a variety of hi-tech forms now. For instance, this Maybelline Colour Sensational Lipstain is actually a felt pen! Amazing. Good to draw in thin and faded lip bits but too dry for all over. Mine is in Blushing, which is a natural pink. Also lined up on the desk are: Benefit Sugarbomb (brilliantly natural blush colour) Max Factor Masterpiece Liquid Eyeshadow (stays on and doesn't go crepy), Max Factor Mastertouch Undereye Concealer (light and doesn't clag round eyes) and Benefit Ooh La Lift (undereye tightener and highlighter.) Moisturising Eyedrops are also good for those bloodshot days.

Things I've buzzed away include: shimmer eyeshadow (makes your eyes look like they've been mummified) thick foundation, matte lipsticks and powder (except on my red nose).

I also have two top tips; one from my boss: curl your eyelashes and then mascara them to make your eyes look bigger. And secondly; check out this brilliant website from Lisa Eldridge with gorgeous make-up videos, from the helpful to the outrageous!