Faffing Friday #2

My week of faffing around on the internet so you don't have to; wedding guest dressing, holiday wardrobe planning, deep fakes {trigger; sexual content }, Baby Reindeer { bit of a spoiler, maybe 🤔}

No paid ads, no affiliates, just me to you.

Also .. don’t be lulled into any false impression made by me that it will be every Friday. I just thought that it was a good name to call it if I did happen to write on a Friday and yet here I am again .. week two .. go me.😆

Oxford Dictionary meaning of ‘to faff about’:

to spend time doing things in a way that is not well organised and that does not achieve much.

I disagree Oxford D .. Faffing brings me joy and helps me escape from adulting 😊

Here’s what I’ve faffed about this week doing …

SHOPPING 👗 I’ve been buying bits and bobs to add to my holiday wardrobe this week. In just under 3 weeks we will be en-route to some sunshine. How miserable is UK weather right now?

I was influenced to buy these Black Whipstitch Chunky Sliders after reading my friend,

Lisa Barrett

‘s Come Fly With Me post.

Come Fly With Me!

They were out of stock and I literally just checked again while writing this and just like that they were in my bag, hey Klarna, job’s a good ‘un. Too easy 🙈

I have loads of sandals like these Birkenstock fakes and the real things. I think heels have only graced my feet about half a dozen times since lock down now. If it’s not them its boots or trainers du jour.

I’ve been eyeing up this pink beauty at Phase Eight after seeing it on the fabulous Carrie aka The Thistle Edit on Instagram. We’re going to a family wedding at the end of May and while I do have plenty I can wear and don’t really need to buy anything I am a little bit lot in love 💕

It keeps going OOS and I haven’t seen a size 16 come back yet but if I check and it does then I can’t be responsible for my actions.

I have bought this black and white linen shift dress from M&S although it hasn’t arrived yet so don’t know if I’ll be keeping it.

My intention is to accessorise it in the day with this Waitrose X Lulu Guinness tote bag as I swan over to Capri on a boat trip.

I was sublimely happy to ‘bag’ it the end of last year.

They are going for ridiculous prices on eBay but I wouldn’t part with mine for anything.

SKINCARE 🧴 I was sent some PR samples to try out a couple of weeks ago of and I’ve got to say I’m pleasantly surprised. I was sure being a gel formation they would be too drying for my lizard skin but not at all. It works well. I’ve been trying out the Hydra-Collagen & Black Pearl gel.

I do love a nice smell. the description of this one’s fragrance on the website says,

A light citrus accord, leads to a floral heart of violet petals and powdery iris, interwoven with heady jasmine and red velvet rose. A rich oriental layer of fine woods, balsams and vanilla, twisted with a warm coffee hint lingers on the skin.

I think that’s a lot to decipher nose wise but it’s certainly a pleasant smell.

My mum is a bit hooked too as I passed the Vitamin E one on to her to test and she said it feels nice on her skin. I was tempted to ask for it back but I know she won’t give me it!

I’m not sure I’d use on my face because I’m very particular with my facial skincare regime but definitely recommend for body skin hydration.

One thing that did bug me slightly and that’s probably because I have zero patience but we both struggled getting into them for the first time. We had to ask the men in the house and even they were challenged. I get why they have to be tamperproof because of the viscosity of gel if it leaks but I nearly flung mine at the first hurdle. Worth persevering, though.

I particularly liked seeing this about SBC Skincare’s ethos and ingredient choices ..

We are uncompromising in our use of ingredients that are non-harmful to animals and humans. Our Chemists source and test the safest, most effective ingredients, whether that be natural, naturally derived, or scientifically derived, and never compromise quality.  As a global brand operating in over 30 countries, we abide by the strictest regulatory requirements for each and every product we develop for you.

WORLD OF WORK 🤑 You might remember I shared some news about retirement last week. And then I read this, ‘What I can’t bear is the lack of respect the Government shows us, as if a pension is a benefit, which we have to grudgingly ask for, and then be grateful for. It is reprehensible.’

I do not want to be in this position but who knows? It’s really a bitter pill to swallow when you’ve worked hard all your life and contributed to society and paid your taxes.

I do feel as if our government is really alienating this demographic who are still fit and able and have a desire to work.

I’m going to let you into a BIG secret that is so very, very personal for me. I’ve never shared about it before but I think it’s an important conversation. I carry a lot of shame with me about the way I’ve managed my money throughout my life.

I don’t have a private pension.

I’m going to write about that another time so do hang around and for now I’m just leaving this here which made me cry laughing this week 🤣

dancinwayne

A post shared by @dancinwayne

NEWS 📰 As if Victoria Beckham has joined our midlife club now? She celebrated half a century on 17th April and looked like she’s had a right good time doing it 🎉

victoriabeckham

A post shared by @victoriabeckham

As to be expected she had a star spangled guest list at her bash.

On the other hand I’m hating the Victoria Beckham X Mango fashion collaboration. In my day job I’ve been education myself about sustainability across a wide range of industry verticals. Also, those prices?? and for such cheap materials?? How and why are people spending their cash on this? Don’t they look further than the hype and the influencer marketing?

I have a lot to learn and change about my own past and present buying decisions but everything about this is just so bad and sad. What do you think? Am I in the minority thinking like this?

Abha Shah, Deputy Shopping Editor at the Evening Standard puts it better than I can .. and there’s also that ‘small’ thing about inclusivity ..

Stop Right Now Thank You Very Much.

FOOD 🍲 We try to create a shopping list every week around what we’re going to eat for dinner each evening Mon-Fri. We live in a multi-generational household so pleasing everyone can be a challenge. This Creamy One Pot Chicken from the Tom Kerridge recipe section on the M&S website went down well mid week. Next time we .. that’s the ‘royal we’ - aka me, agreed we’d swap out the cream for maybe crème fraiche to make it a healthier option. It is only 150ml of cream and it serves 4 people so not too bad.

My husband told me that it was very quick and simple to prepare. He’s head chef of the house, not me.

It tasted lush.

Don’t tell M&S but I actually bought all the ingredients from Aldi 🤫

STREAMING 🍿

I’m still reeling a bit from watching Baby Reindeer.

It’s based on a true stalking story .. AND .. get this I only realised afterwards that the stalkee { is that a word?} is actually Richard Gadd who wrote it and plays the main character, Donny. That made it all the more poignant. I was like .. whattttt????

It all started by him offering someone a cuppa he felt sorry for.

The relationship between them both had me shouting at the screen, ‘Donny WTF are you doing?’ but then equally I could see how he managed to embroil himself in certain situations. Lots of those moments where you’re thinking, ‘why is he doing that?’

This week is actually National Stalking Awareness Week so really timely.

🤖 Thankful for people who make the right decisions around Deep Fakes and trying to make the internet a safer place for women while AI surges.

The Biggest Deepfake Porn Website Is Now Blocked in the UK. “We should name this abuse for what it is – creating a digital forgery. It’s stealing someone’s likeness and sexual identity, creating a false representation of someone.” Via Glamour.

I worry for our young women I really do in this new world of Artificial Intelligence that’s advancing so quickly. It’s going to be way beyond any control. I don’t think we can even comprehend.

AGEING 👵🏻 Fashion’s Golden Opportunity With Older Shoppers - often left out of the picture in a youth-obsessed industry, Gen-X and Baby Boomer shoppers are an increasingly attractive prospect for brands looking to court stable, high-spending consumers.

That’s it for this week’s faffing.

I’m off out for lunch with a friend today, then visiting a friend whose just had an operation, hoping to cheer her up. Saturday, Mr B and I are out together with a group of friends … no idea where to yet. It’s a mystery tour one set of friends arranges once or twice a year. Always good fun and includes 🍻

Ciao for now,

Sharon xo

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