What's in my Bag // Lauren

Hey lovelies, 


Last week Rhi shared the contents of her bag, after the purchase of a new bag forced her into evaluating the just what exactly her shoulders were bearing the weight of everyday and so it's time for me to do the same! 


As I currently split my time between Twee Towers & the boy's house, I am forever lugging around bigger overnight bags, so my daily satchel is as streamlined as possible, reserved for absolute essentials...

1. Moleskine Journal - I've said it before, and I'll say it again, I cannot live with my journal. I'm continiously dragging it out of my bag throughout the day to scribble down ideas to come back to later, writing to-do lists, sketching, scheduling the week ahead, taking notes on new things I'm learning & also for taking stock of goals, achievements & aspirations. I know that sounds especially sickening, but it really does help to reflect back on to maintain creativity & productivity when you're having a bit of a lull! I also happen to have the worst short term memory in the word, so I really do have to jot everything down and soon as an idea slips into my head!


2. Books - 'Love Letters of Great Men', a collection of the most romantic letters in history from the likes of Lord Byron, Beethoven & Alexander Pope! I'm currently making my way through The Berlin Novels by Christopher Isherwood but the book is so bulky to carry around, I usually just pick up something like Love Letters so I have something to read if I need it! 


3. Sunglasses - Ready for all weathers! No idea why I need the two pairs in there, sometimes you need a classic RayBans moment and others, it's good to pretend your Lennon. The glasses are usually accompanied by an Umbrella but due to the relentless downpours we've been having recently, that hasn't had the time to get back into the handbag! 


4. Nail Varnish - Again, probably non-essential in the grand scheme of things, but it's always handy to keep key colours in there if I'm traveling back and forth between my house & James' to tidy up the colour! Current faves are minty green and custard yellow! 


5. Beautifying Bits! - To be honest, I wouldn't carry these around day to day, I'm a 'fix my hair and face in the morning' kinda girl and that's it for the day! That's unless, I know I'm heading somewhere which would require a quick refresher, in which case I love, Mac & Benefit for Face & Lips and Bourjois Blush. My Gran gave me the Lancome foundation brush as she'd got it free with her perfume and it's honestly, the best brush I've ever came across, blends so well! A little tip: I use Body Shop's Tea Tree Oil Cleanser to wash my Foundation Brush with - it gets all the foundation out of it! 


6. Perfume - Marc Jacobs' Daisy, always. 


7. Purse - This was a quick little purchase from New Look, intended only to be used as a replacement for my normal bigger purse on a night out, but it's kinda stuck with me. The only annoying thing is that I never have my store cards (namely costa) to collect points! 


8. The absolute essentials - Never take these out of my bag, a cute little compact and Aloe Vera Vasoline (love it, my lips smell like mojito!)


9. Keys on Ribbon - Like Rhi mentioned, especially handy if you're forever trying to find your keys in the depths of your handbag! 

Forgot about my ipod, the trusty satchel companion, it's always hanging around too! Well, that was pretty damning evidence, that I am perfectly prepared for a switch in weathers but not at all prepared for  any kind of practicality... I really need to add plasters to the essentials with the amount I've been falling over recently!


Hope you enjoyed taking a peek into the things we can't live without! 


Much love, 
Lauren xx

PS.  To celebrate our first year in Twee Towers on Sunday, we're giving you the chance to win all of our fave twee-treats in a GIVEAWAY! ♥  Remember to check back for your chance to win!

Lauren Likes // Wartime Love Letters

Hey darlings,

My turn again to shed a little more insight into my 'likes' and as valentines day is almost upon us, this week I'm sharing my penchant towards old-fashioned romance and Wartime Love Letters!

I've been interested in War Literature since school, delving into endless accounts of the horrors of WW1, which were often so heart-breaking but at the same time, incredibly fascinating. Frequently, the narratives confess the camaraderie that existed between the men on the front line but rarely, do you find out about the relationships that underpin that era, those between the men and their beaus.

Before the age of texts and emails, beautifully hand-written letters were the only way to express feelings to loved ones far away and now through online archives, it's possible to read through these personal and ever so lovely exhanges! Yay!

I love the idea that these letters may well have become airlooms, passed down through families, revealing the secrets of an individual's ancestry and how it all started out during such troubling times.

My absolute, favourite has to be the letters between Idris & Winifred, contributed on the BBC's WW2 archive. Sent to his sweetheart at the dawn of the Second World War, Idris uses the most heart-warming words & beautiful musical metaphors to describe his love for Winifred.

Letter source: BBC WW2 Archive - take a look to read all of Idris' letters!

My gosh, I don't even think of myself as an overly romantic person, just a sucker for some well-written words, but gah, just completely lovely! The line, "Our lives are ours to shape as we will" is the sweetest ever. It really struck a chord, it's such a simplistic meesage but an inspirational sentiment to live by.

I can't help but wonder how it all turned out for them both!

I hope you all enjoyed reading :)

Much love,
L xx

Twee Troubles // To Fringe or Not To Fringe...

Dearest Fringe,

Alas, we are compelled to write this letter as our enamourment with thee lies in tatters.

When you first came to be, adorning our foreheads, you brought with you all the promises of Sixties flair and allurement. We were first introduced to you by our mothers when we were still small, little did they know the tumultuous relationship we would share with you from that moment on...

Whilst we appreciate that you have shielded our unkempt eyebrows nicely in times of lapsed beauty regimes, it saddens us that you are so quick to part when the slightest wind comes a-blowing. But oh! The blissful feeling you evoke when you are sitting just right, making us feel on par with the be-fringed greats such as Francois Hardy, Jane Birkin, Jean Shrimpton, Marianne Faithful...like moths to a flame we flew time and time again into your rapturous clutches... we could not escape.

Though our love for you still burns, passionately like the star-crossed lovers of Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet. To fringe, or not to fringe; that is the question...

Do not despair darling fringe, your presence here is not loathed entirely but we fear you may have abused your position a few too many times. We have found you toying with your boundaries, slyly creeping way beyond the eyeline till you're almost skimming the ends of our noses, blurring the limits of decency and driving us to fornightly trips to the hairdressers.

Trust us when we say that we love you dearly and earnestly, we just wish for you to be more compliant when we need you most; to grow a little slower perhaps, or maybe even to sit a little straighter without the cajoling of ceramic plates and heated rollers.

Fringe beware, much more of this and it will be curtains for you. We are simply asking you to at least consider our request to show that you love us as much as we love you.

Yours eternally and faithfully,

Lauren & Rhianna

Fringeaholics since 1988

For more Twee Troubles check our open letter to Twinings...