Monthly Favourites | April

Byebye April, welcome May. I'm kind of looking forward to this month as 1 it is my birthday on the 6th and 2 hopefully the days will be getting a little warmer..hopefully. But for now I have to share with you a few beauty and a couple of fashion favourites I have been buying and loving this April some are pretty recent too.

I have been using blushes quite a lot more recently and I have two which I have really been enjoying. Legendary is by the Mac Marilyn Monroe collection they bought out last year and it was the only thing left I could get my hands on, but not only is the packaging lovely, but the peach toned bush is perfect for spring summer and looks really flattering on my skin tone as well. The other blush I have been loving is the Dainty Doll Blush in  002 My Girl which is so beautiful. I did a fragrance direct haul here, and to be honest I didn't think I would get much use out of this but it is pretty much the only one I have been using. I just gives my a beautiful flush of colour and doesn't look like I have just been slapped across the face. 

Two new new products this month that have,very quickly, become favourites are they Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation in Medium Ivory. The coverage of this foundation is just shocking. It puts most foundation I have used to shame. It has a true, high pigmentation so only a small amount is needed and it just covers the face flawlessly and effortlessly. The end. The second love is the Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer in Cool Sand this is, by far, THE best concealer I have tried yet. It just covers my pesky dark circles like a dream and both of these products last all day so I don't look in the mirror half way through the day and think ''oh my bags need covering...for the third time today'' its just easy to wear,easy to apply and easier to look at myself more often in the day. Ha.

The last beauty thing I have to share with you is also new and fast became a new love of mine. It is the ever so popular La Roche-Posay Effeclar Duo which has minimised my pores dramatically in about a week. I can't comment on my spots are they are just ridiculous at the moment but it is making a slight bit of difference. It has yet to show me its true powers, by reducing any scaring from spots and things but so far so good in the pore area and I have really been loving this for a minor confidence booster, I guess.

On to a couple of fashion items I have been a recent fan of this month firstly is these beautiful heels that I was gifted from my man at christmas so I don't know where they are from but all I know is that they are super comfy, super sexy and just amazing to look at. I am planning on hopefully, wearing these on my birthday if they go with my birthday outfit. But they are gorgeous, don't you think?

Next are the really plain and simple chelsea boots from Boohoo (£30) and I pretty much wear these everyday with no pain and full comfort. They are really easy to walk in and go with pretty much any outfit. Easy shoes.

The two tops I have been loving are both from topshop and they are vest tops (as you can see) I'm really more into make-up then fashion, I just have no idea when it comes to clothes I'm just like ''yeah thats nice, but not on me. What would I wear with it?'' and I stick to simple things and versatile pieces. Like these two can be worn day or evening so really good for the price as I have gotten quite a bite of wear out of them even in the colder days if your layering, just a bit of pattern shows through or the vibrant orange catches the eye underneath your jacket. 

What are you favourites this month? Do you have any fashion tips you would like to pass on? 

xx 

My Mac Lipsticks

Hi everyone, the other day I did a post on my Mac Palettes here and I thought well why not do a short post on the Mac Lipsticks I own. 
Much like their eyeshadows I find it a little overwhelming with all the colours and I never really know which to pick for and never really go crazy with colours. 

So these are the lippies that I own so far. I love the sleek packaging of all mac products and especially the bullet-type shape of the lipstick packaging. All Mac lipsticks are £14.00 unless they are from a collection they are sometimes a little more.

Vivaglam Nicki - is a very barbie pink and I find it really hard to wear so if I go for this colour I will mix it with a darker pink, so its not so .... pink(?) not saying I dislike the colour, I love the colour, on other girls I think it look better but I just can not seem to make it work for me. 

Rebel- this purple is amazing. I find it looks different on most people who wear it, like on me it looks a darker purple and on my mum its more bright. This colour is perfect for day and night it is just the icing on the cake, if you will. Adds a little bit of edge to an evening outfit, which is why I love it so much really.

Rubywoo - this red is matte and I find it quite drying on my lips, but that will not stop me wearing this retro red lipstick. I just feel like sometimes it just brings my make-up 'to life' I don't wear this lipstick as often as I would like, usually in the evening when I go to work or out depending on how I feel. This red is perfect for creating a pin-up style make-up look paired with a winged liner..mwah. 

Angel - actually is the first lipstick I ever got from Mac and it took me a while to get to like the colour, now I just pop it on in the morning over the top of a lipliner and I love it. Its sort of natural looking but on the lips it is comes out a slightly different shade, and a lot more shimmery.

Oh Oh Oh - actually I got sent this from Debenhams as a mistake, obviously the colour I originally wanted they didn't have, so I was sent this. Admittedly it isn't so appealing to the eye in the ''bullet'' but as you can see in the swatch it is the most gorgeous, sheer purple-pink  lipstick and it is very easy to just apply in the mornings just if you want a little summin'summin' on your lips. 

Id love to see what Mac lipsticks you own :)

xx

Haul | Topshop, Boots & Newlook

Tonight I am off to Portsmouth with my boyfriend and a friend of ours who is DJing somewhere, I don't know where but all I know is I need a new outfit. Right girls? 
So I headed off to town at 9'oclock with morning on the hunt for something fun and kinda casual, and I'm gonna show you what I found.

First stop +Topshop. I feel a little intimidated when I go into my local Topshop as some of the girls really give a look as if to say 'you shouldn't be in here' so I kind of rush myself to find something. But anyway, I saw these two beautiful nail polish's left 'Jewel in the Crown' which is a deep turquoise and right is 'Peaches and Cream' which will look beautiful in summer. On the stand it said that these were 2 for £8 but I was charged £10 but I didn't want to say anything cause the girl was pretty rude anyway and more or less threw my bag at me. Then I left and went back a second time to pick up this gorgeous neon orange vest top (£18) which is casual as nice as a pop of colour + its a change from black and neutral colours.  

I hadn't been to +New Look for a little while but I stopped by today and found this real pretty,also neon, clutch bag. I love the print on the front of this bag not sure what the word for it is, but I really love it. I thought it would look pretty nice with my Topshop top. Its a good size bag to hold and has two pockets inside for extra space too. this was £9.99 which isn't too bad.

Some of you may know how much I love Boots, and I just cant go into town with out looking in Boots. But I am in need to new hair things and my hair to be honest is pretty crap at the moment, and in need of some help. I saw this hair brand in Boots a couple of weeks ago and have not heard anything about them. All three of these products cost £4.19 each which I think is good. I picked up the Naked Strength Renewing Shampoo & Conditioner for weak, brittle and mature hair. Like I said my hair is in need of help and these products are 97% natural and this brand do not use harsh detergents only plant based ingredients. 
It says on the bottle that it doesn't lather up very much but if you wash twice you get a better foam second time around. If there is anything that can help my weak hair at the moment, then hopefully this will do the job. Also I picked up the Little Miracle Leave-In Conditioner which says it can help repair and protect dry hair again heat and breakage, so again this will just help maximise the health of my hair. 

Follow me on Instagram if you would like to see how I style up my new top, and I hope you liked this post. Speak soon.

xx

My Mac Palettes

I have been trying to grow my Mac eyeshadows for a while when I get the chance but I always get so overwhelmed with all of the different colours I just don't know what ones to buy, so I thought I would share with you which ones I have so far. 

I love looking around to see what kind of colours people have in their palettes so I have an idea on what colours I should get and I know what ones I want next *wink*, and I am lucky enough to have a hairdresser/friend who is also a bridal make-up artist, and she lets me use her pro card. Well I just give her the money when she goes to Mac and she does the rest. Thank you Gemma (my H.D).

Top L-R; Era and Kid  Bottom L-R; Brule and Naked Lunch

I don't really have like a neutrals palette but I suppose you could say this is along those lines, I just think of this as an everyday basic kind of colours that also work with my blue eyes helping pop the shade. I love using Brule and Kid together they are so pretty together and both are quite complementary to my eyes so that is a win. Naked Lunch I know is a favourite of the lovely Tanya Burr and looks pretty gorgeous over the top of the Maybelline Colour Tattoo in the shade 65 Pink Gold..I think it does anyway. Era I don't play around with as much as the other colours but if I do use it I tend to just use it alone all over the lid as it does look rather pretty alone. 
I'm a simple gal when it comes to eye shadow I like to play it safe, keep it subtle but you can just catch it there. I don't go wild with colour unless its fancy dress or halloween. When I find shadows that work well together and also look nice with the rest of my make-up then I pretty much stick to that. I guess I should be a little more experimental, but I am always a little apprehensive when using darker colours purely because I always feel like I look like I have 2 black eyes, and with bright colours I just literally cannot make them work for me. Sad times. 

Top L-R; Brun and Typographic  Bottom L-R; Cranberry and Aquadistic 

As you can see with quad is a mix of a couple colours which have hardly been touched. 
Brun I used to use in my crease but I don't know I just wasn't feeling it(?) and I find it a little too dark for my brows (it is a lot darker than it looks here) I am really trying to find a way to make this work so if you have any suggestions, please leave a comment. Typographic is a nice really dark grey almost black smoke, colour and looks rather lovely pushed into the upper lash-line with a tiny little flick. Well, thats how I like to wear it anyway. 
Cranberry I saw the Nic from Pixiwoo do a Kristen Stewart tutorial on and it was just beautiful and I wanted, so badly, to re-create it so I asked for this colour for christmas. Although I have never got round to doing the look that Nic done, I still love Cranberry as a subtle shadow liner, where you would place your normal liquid/gel/pencil liner on the lid. It looks so pretty and you cant really notice it but you can notice there is something there, and again it works nicely with my blue eyes and doesn't make the rest of the pink in the eyes stand out. Lastly is Aquadistic which I have only used once which was on halloween I love love love the colour but It just doesn't work at all for me. Shame. However, that doesn't mean I can't find another use for it somehow.

I hope you liked this short post. I'd love to see what is in your Mac palettes, leave a link bellow.

xx

Get Glowing!

Hi guys, hope your well I have a post for you today on 2 products I love to use to help my skin go from looking so dry and dull to radiant and healthy.

So the first one I have to share is the Mac Strobe Cream I received this for christmas and I was using it everyday for the first 2and half months of 2013, it just gives my fatigued skin a really pretty radiant glow. More recently I have been using it in the evening if I am going to work or going out and I feel it is more suited for night, compared to the other product I have. 
As you can see in the picture the product is white, however once you start to blend it out it shows a slight baby pink tone, and it is very pearlescent. 
I like to apply this all over my face underneath my foundation and on top of my moisturiser and primer. Mac don't actually class this as make-up but as skincare is it has moisturising properties with a luminous finish. When you catch light on the face the strobe cream just shines through so pretty and I think it looks rather nice in photo's too. 

I will be honest and say I think this product does break me out on my forehead only, but it doesn't bother me they aren't major spots they are only small and never really last long, plus I have hair to cover those problems. If I didn't like this product then I wouldn't use it, but the minor spots aren't enough to put me off. 
You could just use this product as a highlighter in certain areas, not all over the face, just on top of the cheekbones, nose and cupids bow. Or you could also mix it in with your foundation. 
I haven't found this product to make me look oily or greasing or over shiny, but I find it highlights in all the right places even when I put it all over my face. Also a little bit goes a long way, but depending on how much luminosity you want depends on how much you apply. 

The last one is the oh go gorgeous Clarins Beauty Flash Balm which I have heard loads about on YouTube and blogs. I use this balm in the mornings as it really helps to awaken my skin and again making it look healthy. 
The balm has a tightening effect on the facial contours to help the skin look like you had a really good night sleep, basically. I really love the fresh smell of this product for the morning as well it just subtle and just really fresh and clean(?) (if that makes sense to you guys) 
I use this in the mornings because it is a little more subtle than the Mac Strobe so really easy for day time wear and really beautiful under foundation.

Again I apply this all over my face after moisturiser and primer and before foundation. This product is pricey (£29) but it is worth it and does last a long time, as just a large pea size amount covers the whole face. As you can see in the picture it is a light peachy colour but blends into nothing, also you can see the glowing effect it leaves. 
If your looking for something to brighten up your skin then I would suggest trying either both, or one or the other and Mac do, do a smaller version so go and check that out on their website (which is linked above) and for the Clarins Beauty Flash you can go onto Cheap Smells and pick that up for £20 so your saving money and it is still a lot but it is really worth it. 

Have you ever tried either? What did you think? Oh and one other thing I would love to know if any of you have any fake tan recommendations? Please, leave a comment below :D

xx

Real Teachniques Brush's Review

Hi everyone I hope you're all well. Firstly I would like to apologise for not posting at all last week, but I was in wales visiting my boyfriends family and friends (as he is welsh) and generally had a week off. I did have all my posts ready and pr-typed but where we were staying (at his friends house) there was a problem with their Wi-Fi so I couldn't post anything or get any internet so I am sorry for that. 
However I am back now and can get on with the post and one I have wanted to do for ages is about the Real Techniques Brush's by  +Sam Chapman (Samantha) from Pixiwoo on YouTube. I suggest checking them out if you haven't already as Samantha and her sister Nicola are absolutely brilliant at what they do.

There are 3 Sets of brush's and there are also a few sold separately, and as you can see in the picture the brush handles are different colours also 3 sets. Orange is for base, Pink for finish and Purple is for eyes but of course you don't have to stick to this. As we go through I will explain how I like to use each brush and what set they are from and of course how much I love them.

L-R; Detailer Brush, Pointed Foundation Brush, Contour Brush, Expert Face Brush, Buffing Brush and the Powder Brush.

How I like to use them;

Detailer Brush - I like to use this brush as a Lip Brush as it is the perfect size. It is really good for smoothing lipstick out making your lips look extra smooth and kissable. 

Pointed Foundation Brush - I like to use this brush for applying cream/liquid highlighter to the top of my cheekbones as I use other brush's for foundation as I will explain soon. This brush blends cream highlighters evenly across the high points of the face which leaves a nice finish. 

Contour Brush - I use this for what it is for, which is contouring the cheeks, temples and jaw line. I like to swirl the point/tip of the brush in product and then work in circular motions, leaving the edges of the brush to blend for me. This brush fits perfectly into my cheek bones and other areas mentioned. 

Expert Face Brush - I use this brush for applying foundation as it is quite dense and the sids are flat and it is quite oval at the top so it fits nicely under the eye and in all those little areas that are a pain to get to. This brush is also nice for cream blushers and blends everything nicely together and leaves a flawless finish.

Buffing Brush - I also like to use this brush for foundation, I like to switch between the EFB (above) and this brush. I feel this brush really buffs the foundation in better than the one before and also leaves an amazing finish. 

Powder Brush - I use this brush for powder, not personally on myself but if I do a friends make-up then I will use this. It is really big so brilliant for large areas but not for precision powdering. This brush (like all the brush's) is amazingly soft so it will not scratch the skin or feel rough and tacky. 

There is a collection called the Core Collection which is available online and in Boots too and costs £21.99 which isn't too bad as they are excellent brush's so it is really worth the money. The collection contains the Contour Brush, Detailer brush, Buffing Brush and Foundation brush. It also comes with a brush case to make traveling easy. 

All other brush's mentioned above, are sold separately which are from £9.9 - £12.99.

L-R; Deluxe Crease Brush, base Shadow Brush, Shading Brush, Brow Brush, Fine Liner Brush, Pixel-Point Liner Brush and Accent Brush.

Deluxe Crease Brush - I like to use this brush sometimes for blending concealer or concealing those pesky spots. I have used this once for blending eyeshadow and it was really nice but I have other brush's that I use and this brush is a little too big for my eyes.

Base Shadow Brush - I use this brush for under eye concealer as it blends really nicely and it is flat on the sides and pointed so it lays the concealer down and the point fits into the inner corner really nicely.

Shading Brush - I also use this brush for concealing blemish's and under eye circles, depending on how I feel that day. This brush is small and quite dense, and also blends really nice.

Brow Brush - I use this brush for concealing around the eyebrows for a more defined look if I am going out. I find the brush again a little too big for my brows and I prefer to use a smaller brush for brows.

Fine Liner Brush - I love using this brush for gel eye liner. The brush just smooths it over the lid and it quite thin so if you like thin eye liner this brush is good for that as well as thick liner also. 

Pixel-Point Liner Brush - Honestly I haven't used this brush yet as I have the eyeliner brush but it came with a collection so I had no choice, however I will find use to this brush in my life.

Accent Brush - Like the Brow Brush this brush is good for concealing around the brows but also around the mouth too as it is dinky and small. It smooths the concealer lovely around the mouth and is small enough to cover any lipstick that may have bled that you may not have been able to get to.

As you can tell I don't use many of these brush's for eye make-up at all but that is only because I have other brush's I use and these are just as good for base make-up as they are for eye-make up as well. The Starter Set contains Base Shadow Brush, Deluxe Crease Brush, Accent Brush, Pixel-Point Liner Brush and Brow Brush the collection cost's around £21.99 like the Core Collection. And the other brush's are all sold separately from around  £6.99 - £7.99 which is a good price.

Setting Brush, Stippling Brush and Blush Brush

Setting Brush - I used to use this brush for contouring under the cheekbones before I got the contour brush, it does the job just as good but now I do use it for setting concealer under the eyes with powder.

Stippling Brush - This was my first Real Techniques brush I bought and I used to use it for foundation however I now sometimes use it for applying blusher. I like to stipple and use circular motions when applying cream, liquid or powder blushers. 

Blush Brush - I use this blush for bronzer and blusher but it could also be used to powdering the face. I love this finish the brush leaves on bronzer and blush. 

All these brush's are sold separately from around £8.99 - £11.99 which isn't too bad. 

I love the Real Techniques brush's and I will be re-perchasing them to go in my make-up kit which I am currently building. All of the brush's are really soft and made of 'Ultra-Plush taklon Bristles' which is synthetic. 

Do you like these Brush's? 

Fragrance Direct Haul

Recently I have been seeing a few bloggers mentioning that +Fragrance Direct are selling Dainty Doll products for only £1.99. This is the first time I have heard of fragrance direct and a great opportunity to try Dainty Doll for the first time. Also I noticed that the site was/are selling Calvin Klein and Jemma Kidd products for £1.99 - £2.99. Such a super bargain! 

Dainty Doll, if you don't know, is owned by Nicola Roberts from Girls Aloud and she created this make-up to suit girls with pale skin, like hers, who may find it difficult to find colours to match their skin. Also there is other make-up I decided to grab myself 4 blushes, 2 concealer pens (however I received 2 of the same colour, which I don't mind) 1 brown eyeliner (which I also received a second of) all of these costing just £1.99 each and I can not believe how much money has been saved(!) Also from the sight I got the Jemma Kidd Front Cover Touch-up Concealer Pen in 01 Fair and the Calvin Klein Delicious Truth Lipstick in Illusion.

1- 001 Hippy Shake which looks like a real pale pink but actually it is a pale purple and surprisingly I really like it. It is very light and I had to keep going back in the get the swatch I got and it is darker than that in the flesh, but I just can't wait to see what it looks like on and if you don't want to use it as a blush then just use it for an eye-shadow instead, as it is a matte blush so it will work great as either.

2- 002 My Girl a really nice pink and will look nice in the summer as it is a 'healthy' pink I think (oo that rhymes) and will look beautyiful as just a wash/pop of colour. I would say if you were going to buy one blush then buy this one as it is a good natural, everyday pink and so you can use it very lightly or build on it if you were to go out maybe. This blush has a little shimmer to it as well so it will also work really nice as an eyeshadow, if pink is your thang. 

3- 004 You Are My Sunshine after seeing quite a few swatches of the Nars Orgasm Blush I think this pretty close to that but perhaps I will have to look at them properly together but from looking as some pictures they look pretty much the same. So for now this would be a good dupe (and perhaps an excuse to splerge on a Nars blush *wink*) This is a nice warm peach toned blush with gold shimmer, not sure about how this will look on me yet but I guess we have to see. 

4- 002 Orange County Girl this one is a Cream Blush and I would say that it is basically a cream version of You Are My Sunshine blush only a lot less shimmer and a cream. So the way I look at it is not ''oh well thats basically the same'' I look at it as ''well if I don't like that one I can use this one instead due to the less shimmer and I love a good cream blush'' plus it was £1.99 I will not complain. 

My first thoughts on these blush's they are really soft and creamy but the powders are a little powdery, in the sense that when if I swirl my brush in there, then there will be a lot of fall out product(?) is that the phrase, fall out? It is just a little messy and a little excess powder left is what I am trying to say. I actually like the packaging of all the Dainty Doll products as they are a matte black, like the old Mac shadow palettes. I like that. All of these costing £1.99 each.

Next up is 2 of the It's A Kinda Magic Concealer Pens and for some reason I also received an extra 2 which aren't on the little paper thing I got inside my package, but again I'm not complaining. 

004 is a green corrector which is good for correcting any redness on the face like around any spots you may have. It is a clicky pen and the product comes out at the the top through the brush, like all the other pen applicators. 

003 is far to light for me but it also has a slight orange tinge to it as it is drying, so I will definitely be giving this a good trial. Nicola says that these are full coverage however they are quite thin and light with one swipe.

I also ordered the Eyeliner Pencil in I'm So Pretty which is a nice brown and I think this will look quite nice with my blue eyes. I'm thinking of this worked into my upper lash line and lower lash line too. I really like this look at the moment. I also got an extra one of these in my package as well so thank you Fragrance Direct for those, even if they were an accident. 

So thats it for Dainty Doll products I seriously suggest getting over to Fragrance Direct while stock lasts in their clearance sale.

Also in their clearance sale I picked up the Jemma Kidd Front Cover Touch Up Concealer Pen in 01 Fair. Not sure why I needed another one but hey this one was £2.99 so yeah also saving a lot of money here too. This is far too light for me, but sometimes I like to have the Kim Kardashian effect under my eyes mainly on a night out I like it. I've also heard good things about Jemma Kidd Products so this was a good way to get my Jemma Kidd game going. 

Lastly I got the Calvin Klein Delicious Truth Lipstick in Illusion which is a really pale, barbie pink and it is sheer so it looks super pretty on the lips. Kissable lips achieved. This was also £1.99 and they have other Calvin Klein products which, after my ''holiday'', I will probably go back and purchase if you guys haven't already gone and got them yourself ;) (kidding) 

I hope you like this haul I'm so happy with the things I purchased and seriously get your butts to the website and get yourself something while stocks last because you are saving sooooo much money I think I saved at least £25-£30 I must have done. 

xx

Monthly Favourites | March

Another month gone which means that thankfully I am closer to my week off to wales, on tuesday. In the month of march there wasn't really anything special that I found that stood out to me but I have got a few little bits that, well, I have had for a while and have just constantly been reaching for.

 I have three skin things to share with you and the first thing is the Dr Renaud Raspberry Soft Cream which I received in my February Glossy Box and it is basically a hydrating moisturising cream and recently I have had a few dry patches on my forehead and nose and once I applied this there were no flakes or anything on my skin. Amazing! My skin was soft as well and smelt like raspberry's. It is just an all round good product, and good for all skin types. 
Next is the La Rouche-Posay Physiological Cleansing Milk which I have done a review on here and much like the Dr Renaud product if I have any dry patches on my skin then this completely got rid of them, not for very long but with the Raspberry Soft Cream as well it just helped to reduce the dryness. 
Lastly for skin is the Clarins Beauty Flash Balm which I really love using in the mornings to awaken my skin. I find it has quite subtle radiance effect and looks beautiful under makeup and just gives my skin a really nice glow. Also the smell is, not fresh, but it is a clean smell (if that makes sense) which is also why I like to use it in the mornings. 

Next up you may have seen this floating around a lot on blogs and YouTube it is the popular BarryM Gelly Hi-Shine in Lychee. It is a perfect nude for spring/summer and the finish is beautiful, and there is no need for a topcoat. I can go up to at least a week and a bit without any chipping so that is great. I think this is overall just a good staple nail polish in the up coming seasons. 

Lastly for my monthly favourites I have really been loving my Mac quad and I just filled it with quite neutral shades, the two I have mostly been loving is Brule all over the lid and then a little bit of kid through the crease. It looks really nice with my blue eyes and I either were them together quite subtle in the day or I build it up a little more if I go to work, or out. 
I just think it is quite a nice eye look and really wearable on an everyday basis. 

So that was all the beauty things I have been loving this month like I said there wasn't many things that really caught my attention or stood out to me. 
What have you been loving in the last month?
xx