When I get home.

You may have noticed, but this isn't an outfit post. Actually, what I'm wearing right now is a pair of jeans, a t-shirt, and a ponytail that probably has some leaves in it, so I think I'm going to save myself some BB cream and not document this one. The reason for the casual attire is that I'm (finally!) moving house after living here for over ten years, and I've just helped my mum to take down the swings in the garden. The past week has been a series of finding the ends of brown tape (the trick is to trace your nail round the roll, who says blogging isn't educational?), and going back and forth to one of the Havens Hospices charity shops with a fair amount of the clothes I've been lucky enough to receive from blogging. I know that It's Cohen is a place for me to share my sartorial disasters, but it is also a personal space, and this is a pretty big thing for my family. We'll be moving from this pretty thing to somewhere more normal, as this is the last thing tying my parents together (trust me, this is a lot more pretentious than we are, and doesn't reflect my family at all). I managed to escape last week to attend the boohoo wrapup party near St Paul's, and had some of the best cocktails I've had for a long time, not to mention a chance to meet Natasha, Shore, Shope, Alex and Lucy, which was an evening off I definitely needed! Post-move tomorrow, I'm off to my friend Amy's 21st birthday celebrations, and then it's time for Brownstock! I'll try my hardest to keep blogging throughout the transitional period, but here's my longwinded excuse for being rubbish at replying to tweets and emails, and a prayer for a good wifi connection in the new place.

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Shake it, break it, make it bounce.

Liquid eyeliner: £6.79, Bourjois Liner Clubbing. Concealer: c/o Benefit Fake Up. Lipstick: £14, MAC Ravishing. Eyebrow kit: £23, Benefit Brow-Zings, via Harvey Nichols Beauty Bazaar. Mascara: Soap and Glory Thick & Fast, free with Elle. Exfoliator: Boots Botanics Microdermabrasion Polish. BB Cream: £23, MAC Prep + Prime. Blusher: mum's Avon one from years ago. Cleanser: £15, Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish. Lip scrub: £5, Lush Bubblegum. Micellar cleansing water: c/o B01. Pore-reducer thing: free!, Benefit Pore-fessional. Lip balm: Vaseline. Shampoo and Conditioner: won in Duke of York Square's twitter competition, Liz Earle Botanical shine shampoo and conditioner. Base coat: Essei Rock Solid. Top coat: Essie good to go. Eye drops: £3.79, Optrex. Moroccan argan oil: £5, Organix. Final Shine spray and Straight and Smooth spray: c/o ghd. Day cream: Boots Botanics.

If I think I don't use that many products, then I don't understand how beauty bloggers can fit half their stuff in the bathroom! I tried (a long time ago) to do a review of liquid eyeliner, and I haven't been back since as I really don't think I know enough to give a reliable opinion. Although I love a bit o' cleanser (liz earle, I love you), I know what I like, and I stick to it, and the above photo is documentation of what I use on a daily (ish) basis. Whether it's something pretty like lipstick, or something basic like eye drops (no matter how good your lenses are, mine are from Optical Express, I think, never underestimate how much screens can frazzle your eyes), it's rare for new products to make it into my make up bag, and I rely on the few beauty blogs I do read, such as Kate's, to help me whenever I do decide it's about time to shake it up a bit. A while ago I got an email from Fran at Best British Bloggers who asked if I'd be interested in receiving a few hair styling products, and I thought I'd accept the challenge of creating a simple up do, if only to do more to my hair than wake up and flatten it with my hands. So, ladies (and gents, maybe), grab yourself a cuppa and a hairbrush, as I present to you the Iggy Azalea ponytail.

one brush your hair. If you're anything like me, then this is Big Deal. Once that's out of the way, spray some heat defence spray in, and wait for it to dry.


two straighten it. I personally work in layers from the nape of my neck till I reach the crown. Just make sure you get the bits that'll sit on the top of your head straight, so you don't have flyaways later.


three 2:13.


four flip your head upside down and smooth your hair into a ponytail on the top of your head. Once upright, use a brush or comb, whatever's easiest, to make sure it isn't bumpy. Secure with a hairband.


five cover that bad boy in hairspray. Don't breathe, for health and safety reasons.


six just add a touch of shine spray - it helps with the finer hairs that your hairspray didn't get.

Ta-dah! This is possibly the simplest style you'll ever have to "create", and I've been doing it since I was about six and able to hold a hairbrush.

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Dressed in black he walks alone, a shadow in the night.

Columba cut out bodycon dress: c/o Lashes of London. Leather jacket: The Kooples. Leopard print boots: Topshop (old). Broken bag: Topshop (old). Collar necklace: Miss Selfridge. Nails: Red n Black, Models Own. Lipstick: Kate Moss 107, Rimmel.

Make the most of these photos, because you're not going to see body con or cut out again for a while. When I saw this badass Lashes of London dress on their site, my inner Essex knew it had to make its way to my wardrobe somehow, not quite realising what a big deal it'd be for me to wear it. Then along came Amy, and her more dressed-down approach gave me more ideas for how to style it. Out came the leopard print booties, leather jacket, and other Amy's (from sixth form/Liverpool) lipstick that I borrowed stole from her last night, and I felt slightly more "me". This is definitely an after-dark outfit - all the best ones are! - and although I don't think I'll be in a rush to wear bodycon in the day any time soon, I'm slowly being brought round to its virtues. I do like a good LBD (little black dress, for those of you who don't use hip 'n' cool acronyms), but in future I think I'll be sticking to skater styles - more room for dinner! I'm planning to wear this particular one to Selena's twenty-first this weekend, but it's a bit different to my "just going to the pub" (and then come home at 3am) white tee and skirt combination. They do say that life is like a box of chocolates after all, just maybe they're liqueur ones.

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