Keep An Ear Out..

I mentioned in my May Madness post that there are some new music releases coming up that I'm particularly excited for, especially in the male British singer-songwriter part of the music world, so I thought I'd share with you some popular and lesser known artists to check out.

Ed Sheeran's much anticipated second album Multiply is on it's way and I'm very excited. The first single 'Sing' was a small declaration in a way that things will be getting switched up a bit on this album but I although I am keen to see which direction he's taking some of his songs I hope that some of the raw acoustic notes of the first stay around.

Lewis Watson is one of my favourite singer-songwriters, his progression from acoustic to more alternative has been amazing and very natural I think as his skills and abilities musically have grown. His first album has been long awaited with a succession of EP's prior all of which I have fallen in love with. I have high hopes in the success of 'The Morning' and I think he is one to watch if you're not already.

Passenger's new album 'Whispers' is truly a thing of beauty, following the success of his single Let Her Go this album had a greater amount of people waiting for it and I think he rose to the challenge. He's stayed within his genre and it's not a dramatic change but it's more cinematic than his previous four studio albums and the strings section just gets me. Surprisingly '27' is my favourite track from the record as it's one of the most upbeat songs but I'm a sucker for a good clapping section (being able to clap in time to this is about as musically talented as I get).

I fell in love with Sam Smith's voice with his song 'Leave Your Lover' from his album 'In The Lonely Hour', the mainly acoustic guitar and piano track had me on iTunes listening to the rest of the album which I fell in love with and have had on repeat since. 'Stay With Me' was so good the BBC Radio 1 host Zane Lowe deemed it his 'hottest record' and I couldn't agree more. One of the best breakthrough pop artists so far this year.

One of the most popular youtube cover artists Kina Grannis recently released another album entitled 'Elements' and I think finally she has reached her music potential. Her covers have always been amazing but for some it ends there, and I had a fear that was the same for Kina but this album has proven me wrong. 'Elements' is a bit more unique than her previous albums and really showcases her talent more than her previous albums have. My favourite track is Winter but all of them are divine and worth a listen.

Hudson Taylor, an Irish pop-folk duo, have released their 'Battles II' EP with three new tracks and 2 remastered versions of Battles prior to the release of their first album due in September of this year. I love the 2014 version of Battles, it's very powerful and showcases how far they've come, as well as the track Throw Me A Line which is my pick of the new tracks.

Any new artists that I need to listen to before they get big? Let me know in the comments.

Link Loving #2

I spend a fair portion of my life on my computer (sometimes productively, I promise!) and I often come across some really great things which are too good not to share so here is the second instalment of my link loving series.

Nouvelle Daily posted a really great DIY for a jewellery display which is simple but very classy with easily accessible materials. I loved it so much that I'm keen to do my own when I get the opportunity. It's also very customisable to match your style and needs, you can change the hook set up or paint it a different colour with ease to make it your own.

Anna from Vivianna Does Makeup has recently started doing weekly vlogs (I say recently, this has been going on for ten weeks) and I absolutely love them! Her and her boyfriend Mark document the best bits of their weeks and wrap it up into a nice little weekly Tuesday upload. A part of the problem with daily vlogging is that sometimes it feels like people are trying to fill them out to make them more of a substantial video instead of being great content but making them weekly eliminates that and these have quickly become one of my favourites videos to see in my subscriptions feed.

Lewis Watson has been one of my favourite singer-songwriters for over two years now and he recently went back to his youtube cover roots and uploaded a beautiful cover of Oceans by Coldplay. I can't even begin to explain how much I love this cover so all I can say is click here, close your eyes and listen.

I've confessed my crush on Alexa Chung a fair bit on the internet and just when I thought I couldn't love her any more (I mean seriously, she used puns to name her eyeko range) she collaborated with Lisa Eldridge for a tutorial of her own signature look. Not only is her eyeliner applying skill incredible (she does it herself in this video) but she is also really interesting and I love the her laid back attitude in this video.

My handwriting is something I'm weirdly proud of, I personally think mine is neat but effortless at the same time and I have spent a lot of time making it how I want it to be (there was a time back in primary school where I spent weeks getting myself into the habit of doing normal f's instead of the really curly ones I'd been doing before). Cupcakes & Cashmere recently shared her faux calligraphy tips and not only is the writing beautiful but it is a very simple technique which I have loved learning how to do.

And last but not least is a bit of news that interests the Australian beauty lovers who read my blog. Somehow I missed the news that Australia was getting Sephora at the end of this year (right in time for my birthday, it's going to be grand) but they have revealed they intend to "price match the US on a portion of it's range" creating a new level of competition in the Australian market (you can read the article about it here). For those who don't know, makeup and skincare is incredibly overpriced in Australia with up to a 200% mark up so if Sephora do this well and stray true to their word this is just the right shake up that will make my bank account very happy.

What have you been loving on the internet recently? Anything that has managed to slip past my very watchful eyes?

The Casual Blazer

Blazer: Tokito // Tee: Lewis Watson Merch // Jeans: Jeanswest, customised // Bag: ASOS // Shoes: Betts