September's rolled around extremely fast which means it's time to share another reading list on the ol' blog. I'm on a bit of a book buying blitz for the time being, largely because my TBR was getting out of control so aside from the odd essential purchase, expect to see a fair few library books around these parts instead. This month it's all about novels with a sprinkling of non fiction in there for good measure. Sometimes I go through a phase where I only want to read memoirs and then I go the other extreme and only want to read novels. The latter is certainly happening at the moment. Anyway without further ado, here's the contents of my September reading list..

You Deserve A Drink by Mamrie Hart-I really have Joan Rivers and Grace Helbig to thank for the discovery of Mamrie Hart. She's one entertaining lady and she makes a rather extraordinary cocktail, if her videos are anything to go by. You Deserve A Drink is presented as a book of boozy misadventures and tales of debauchery. To accompany each story there's a cocktail so if you wanted you could become the Julie and Julia equivalent of cocktail creation. Drink responsibly kids. I'm really looking forward to starting this and am expecting hilarity. 

Submarine by Joe Dunthorne-This book was recommended by Emma of ohflowerchild and I am so glad she mentioned it because this is easily one of my favourite reads of the year. Joe Dunthorne's narrative style reminds me a bit of Nick Hornby so maybe that's why I was so taken by this book. Anyway, Submarine tells the story of Oliver Tate, a British high school student in the midst of his GCSE's and on the path to understanding the complexities of the teenage girl brain, or in his case Jordana's mind. Each chapter is constructed as a diary-like entry so it's a quick read. This book is so hilarious though and at times a bit sad but the dialogue and Oliver's thought process were so entertaining to discover. I highly recommend you give this one a read if you haven't already done so.

You're Never Weird On The Internet (Almost) by Felicia Day*-This book came to my attention thanks to the wondrous corner of the internet that is Buzzfeed. Felicia is a self-described digital misfit who is at home in the lands of Buzzfeed and Goodreads book clubs. Can you see why this one sounds right up my street? I think I'll read this one after I Was Here, because the tone of that book makes me think I'll need something uplifting to follow on from it.

I Was Here by Gayle Forman-I've read none of Gayle Forman's books despite owning two of them and having this one out from the library so I am amending that this month. The plot of this book sounds similar (ish) to All The Bright Places so if you enjoyed that then this may appeal. It also has positive reviews from Stephen Chbosky and Sarah Dessen which I'm taking as a good sign.

-What do you plan on reading during September?

*Review copy

I am often asked by friends, family and readers what products I'd recommend they buy from a range of categories. It's primarily beauty but I do get the odd outfit query via various messaging outlets as well. Now Lily of Lily Pebbles blog created the categories and this non-tag of sorts over on her blog and it was one I wanted to quiz myself on and see others answer as well so here you go. Here are my go-to beauty and fashion brands for a range of answers. Enjoy! 

Makeup brand to use: This is a tough one, and I cannot think of any makeup brand that does every single product to my liking. I'm a fussy one, not gonna lie.. If I did have to pick one though I'd go with Nars. I cannot think of a product I have tried from them that has disappointed me, with the exception of Orgasm blush. Their concealer, eyeshadow primer and newest foundation are my must-haves. 

Mascara to wear: Mascaras are something I alternate a lot but at the moment my favourite has to be the Covergirl Full Lash Bloom mascara. Not only is it relatively cheap and cheerful, it really makes your lashes look amazing. It holds a curl so well and it's one of those mascaras I can see myself repurchasing again. Special mention has to go to to Benefit's Roller Lash mascara as well. I am yet to repurchase it but I want to so badly.  

Skincare item to use: Pixi Glow Tonic. Thanks Caroline Hirons and all the UK blogging set for raving about this product. The first reason I love using this is the scent. There's just something about it that makes me want to bottle it up and wear it as a fragrance. It's also great at reviving the skin and leaving it looking ten times better. 

Highstreet store to shop from: We don't have a bunch of highstreet stores in New Zealand and I yearn for the day H&M, Zara and Urban Outfitters set up shop here. So with that being said I have to choose Topshop. Their Jamie jeans are my favourite jeans I have ever owned. They also design such versatile pieces that never seem to look identical to what other brands are releasing. Their collaborations are usually pretty on-point as well, like their Kendall+Kylie and Kate Moss collections. 

Makeup brush brand: Easy peasy, Real Techniques. Their brushes are designed with the average woman in mind and are so lovely to work with. They're synthetic, cruelty-free and such good quality. I've had a lot of my brushes for nearly two years now and they're still going strong. I love that their brushes are so versatile too and can be used for a range of purposes. 

Lipstick to wear every day: Definitely one of my Mac nudes. Yep, nudes plural. I have a lipstick problem okay? On a day to day basis I alternate between Syrup, Peach Blossom and Patisserie.

Eyeshadow palette: Urban Decay's Naked 2 Basics. My answer would've been my Mac palette but I've downsized it a lot lately. More on that another time... This palette is so versatile and the mattes work with virtually every single eyeshadow I try them with. It's such a staple if you love eyeshadow or want an everyday palette that is so user-friendly.

Haircare brand to buy from: Bumble and Bumble. Hands down. It doesn't have a lot of competition because once I find haircare bits I love, they don't tend to change too much. I have to give a shout-out to their Invisible Oil shampoo. I've been through two bottles of it and love the stuff. Their primer's pretty awesome as well.

*What would be your go-to beauty brands?

Stationery has and always will be one of my one true loves. There's just something about the colours, textures, designs and tangibility of it that's so pleasing. If you're in a similar frame of mind, you're bound to love Kate of gh0stparties' newest venture, the Nouvelle Daily Shop. It is a stationery lover's treasure trove with fresh new stock being added regularly. There's prints, agendas, notepads, cute cards and more. Today I thought I'd share what I bought from her first drop of stock..

Red Pattern Washi Tape-If you've seen this photo you will know I have a bit of a washi tape obsession. I couldn't resist this one though with its white spots, mainly because it reminds me of a Summer dress I used to have ages ago. Aside from being useful for adorning wrapped gifts and taping pictures to walls, washi tape makes a nice little prop to use in flat lays. I've seen people creating some pretty wicked DIY's with it over on Pinterest too actually. It's extremely useful stuff. 

Desktop To-Do List x Rifle Paper Co, also available here-The main idea of the Nouvelle Daily shop is that the stock will constantly be fresh so once most things have sold out, they'll be gone. I'm not too sure if Kate's going to get these back in but you can find Rifle Paper Co at a bunch of places. I've wanted this notepad for ages so I was really pleased to see it in her store. It's just such a gorgeous birds-eye view style illustration and I love it.

This and That Marble Notebook x The Paper Bunny-Marbled things haven't really taken off in NZ yet so when I saw this patterned notebook, and c'mon, you can never have too many notebooks, I had to get it. It's one of my favourite things I purchased from her store and I'm obsessed with it. Case in point: if I like something a lot you'll see it in my photos and this has made many an appearance over the last few weeks. Now these notebooks are sold out at the moment but they are going to be restocked so keep an eye out for 'em, and the marbled phone cases.

-Have you bought anything from the Nouvelle Daily shop? What takes your fancy?

*As always, have the raddest of weekends everyone! Mine's gonna be low key, although I found out the Maccas near where I work has started doing that fancy burger thing+fries (y'know the Instagram vibes) and I want to go there for lunch one day. Gosh I'm classy. Haha. Sunday is Father's Day here in NZ and I'm going for lunch with one of my friends, to a place which is hopefully not overrun with kids and Dads. Have a good one, and I'll see you all on Monday with a lil' beauty post x.

Another month and another book haul. I need to stop buying books! Although to be fair, a lot of these were sent to me by publishers. My to-read pile is getting out of control though so I think, with the exception of one or two YA books out next month, I'm gonna ease off on the book buying for a while. Anyway, below is my haul of books from late July and most of August. I received a couple of books after this video was filmed but I will include them in my September haul. Enjoy! & be sure to let me know your recommendations in the comments section on this post or under the video.

September symbolises the changing of the seasons and also one of the most important months on the fashion magazine calendar. September issues are hotly anticipated, not only for their cover stars and number of pages. It's seen as a time for reinvention, inspiration and a clean slate. Hence it is dubbed 'the January' in fashion. American Vogue is notorious for their extremely hefty September issues, this year's has 800 plus pages alone. Today though I wanted to focus on September issues that I've picked up, both within fashion and outside of it. One of the first blogs I read, Girlwithasatchel used to do this most months with magazines so I thought I'd put my spin on it..

British Vogue, September issue-All hail British Vogue for regularly putting kickass women on their covers. Seriously, I can't think of a muse of mine that's not been on their covers and as a result on my bookshelf. Covers and Emma Watson appreciating aside, British Vogue is still my favourite of all the Vogues. There's always the perfect balance of inspiring editorials and insightful stories. Their beauty pages are pretty top notch too if that's your kind of thing.

Frankie Magazine, issue 67-Frankie have seriously been on top of their cover game this year and this one is hands down my favourite. This issue also has a couple of bonuses in there, one of two collectible art prints (mine is on my pinboard ) and also their first inclusion of fiction stories. There's also a flower village aka heaven, a lady who makes books by hand, flatmates and whether their situation is really like Jess Day's and more.

Fashion Quarterly, Spring 2015-How dreamy is this cover? Antonia Prebble+floral walls=perfection. Fashion Quarterly mightn't be as accessible overseas but if you're ever passing through NZ and want a glimpse into our fashion culture and trends, I highly recommend you grab a copy. As the cover boldly states, this month's issue is about all things film. There's interviews with costume designers from some of our most iconic moments on screen, a really rad Royal Tenenbaums inspired editorial, a brilliant glossary for all the key beauty terms of the moment (strobing anyone?) and a whole heap of fashiony goodness. 

Teen Vogue, September 2015-My copy of Teen Vogue's September issue arrived on Monday so I've not really had a proper chance to look through it yet. How good is that cover though? Ansel Elgort *swoon*. There's an amazing beauty editorial inside with Lisa Eldridge, Suki and Imogen Waterhouse, a look at the transgender community and of course a plethora of Fall fashion trends to incorporate. The September issue's of Teen Vogue are usually good but I feel like their October issues, the Young Hollywood ones tend to stand out that little bit more.

Collective magazine, issue 24-So this is technically not a September issue but it's available in New Zealand for most of the month so I'm including it here. There's something about Collective that just makes you want to go out and do amazing things. It helps that there's a tonne of inspiring interviews and stories throughout, but those words of wisdom on paper really up the motivational ante. If you're a bit of a design buff, the whole magazine is designed really well and there's plenty of striking visuals throughout. Now this one is a bit of a mission to find here in NZ but if you can get yourself a copy, buy it. 

*What magazines have you read and enjoyed recently?