Mini Shopping Trip!

Yes, more skincare products! This is what I got yesterday! Currently my face is going through a bad stage of hormonal acne, it attacked again because I didn't balance my hormones by taking my Liv Cleanse Complex this month! Also, I feel like my Neal's Yard Jasmine enriching cream is just a bit too much to use during the day and night in the summer as it's very rich.


Therefore, being on a budget I picked up this vanishing cream from Boots, it's supposed to vanish on your face creating a moisturised matt finish - which it does. So far so good. I also picked up the toner as I was out of my Neal's Yard orange flower water which seems to finish suprisingly quickly - a very expensive addiction indeed! The danmask rose skin tonic smells beautiful and how cute is the bottle? :) Yes I'm a HUGE sucker for packaging! My skin is less angry and calm at the moment, the lighter option seems to be working, now I have to get rid of my scars from picking and squeezing - Eeek!

Still in keeping with the budget mode, I remembered my Mac Fix + had finished but this time I decided to get spring water in spray can form instead. Evian does it but for some reason Boots do not stock it anymore and this La Roche posey was my other alternative. It's a French brand that was recommended to me from a skin care expert quite a while back. I'm really liking this so far, it has been a great refresher throughout the day and quite nice to use to set your make up.


However, not in keeping with budget mode, I finally picked up the Bobbi Brown skin foundation, I did a review a while back. It's a very light liquid formula and is basically supposed to feel like skin - perfect for the summer! Oh and i'm so pleased this has a pump!

What's in my Mac palettes?

Palette 1



1) Femme Fi 2) Rice Paper 3) Flip

4) Tempting 5) Woodwinked 6) Bronze

7) Paradisco 8) Expensive Pink 9) Coppering

10) Body Shop No 40 11) Naked Lunch 12) Sable

13) Vex 14) Beautiful Iris 15) Stars 'n' Rockets


Palette 2



16) Body Shop No 1 17) Body Shop No 07 18) Vellum

19) Body Shop No 45 20) Body Shop No 44 21) Body Shop No 08

22) Bio Green 23) Sumptious Olive 24) Steamy

25) Humid 26) Body Shop No 43 27) Club

28) Contrast 29) Body Shop No 42 30) Moon's Reflection

Jemma Kidd Haul

If you live in the UK, you may be interested in this! Today, to my astonishment these lovely goodies were on a 75% sale in my local Boots. I must stress that not all brushes were marked down, some were still annoyingly full price. I already own a few from the range and if you would like to know what I think about them, click here!
Rumour has it that Jemma Kidd will no longer be stocked in Boots as they will be relaunching, only to be sold in Space NK.


Kabuki Brush: £2.50
Retractable cheek brush £1.96
Cleansing Wipes: 86p:

I have been wanting that retractable cheek brush for AGES, i'm so glad I waited - it's going to be the perfect addition to my on the go makeup bag.


Look at the Kabuki, I mean what a bargain! The bristles are of natural hair and are white. The hairs are tightly packed with a rounded top to ensure easy blending! The bristles are the same softness as the Mac 181! I mainly got this to make sure I always have a clean blending brush or to apply a dusting of mac msf natural and also because it has a pink base, yes i'm shallow like that!

I checked online and prices are not reduced, so I assume the discount is only valid in store! I got the last kabuki from my local small Boots, but there were plenty of the other two items.

Outfit for the day!

Here's what I wore..


Silk skirt: Warehouse
Top: Dotty P's
Linen Jacket: Mango
Leggings: New Look
Shoes: New Look
Bag: Jocasi

How gorgeous is the detailing on the skirt? Very!


On to the makeup shall we?


Face: BB tinted moisturiser, BB creamy concealer & Mac msf natural.
Cheeks: Smashbox soft lights in Supermodel, Mac matt bronzer to contour & Prestige glam tan for warmth to face.
Lips: NYX Tea Rose & a dab of Gosh Darling on centre of lower lip.
Eyes: Mac Naked Lunch all over & as highlight, Mac Bronze on crease & lower lashline, Mac Dark Devotion to deepen crease. Mac blacktrack on upper lashline, UD Zero on waterline & Chanel exceptionnel mascara.

20% off shimmer cubes!

FABULOUS NEWS: The Body Shop has let me and my readers have 20% off their shimmer cubes which is an exclusive code for those who attended the Body Shop beauty bloggers event, how great is that? Check here and here to see me using it! They are really versatile, and easy to apply with your fingers, great for the summer! The shimmer cubes are available in 3 colour ways, and all 4 cubes inside the cube are interchangable. I am yet to do a detailed review on them! But, can I say out of all the stuff we got, the shimmer cubes are by far my favourite! I heart them!

Click here to order online now!

THE CODE: BLOG_SHIM
Enjoy :)

TEA TIME!

Here's another peek of my flair for styling created on polyvore, I wanted to share with you 3 looks that were inspired by Twinings tea packaging :) I love the whole English tea party theme and had so much fun creating these.

Enjoy!




Let me have your thoughts below :) oh, how I wish I could organise a tea party where all of us bloggers attended in our top notch frocks and spectacular makeup :) Thank you to all of those who commented on my new banner and blog colours, i'm glad you are liking it and finding it more welcoming :) FYI: The banner is courtesy of Polyvore, of course! x

My Hair History..

Here's my story...

Enjoy :)

Born with light brown"ish" hair, with an ever so slight curl which dissapeared as the years went on. I supported various peculiar looks and even cut my own hair numerous times. I had a musroom bob which was the funniest, a bent fringe and spectacular updoes that I insisted I needed for a trip to the park.


By the age of 10 I had really long hair down to my lower back, it got darker and straighter.


Me and my mum later decided it was time for a change and I had my hair cut into this short bob, it was a drastic change but I loved it! This photo is from my modelling portfolio as a child.


As a teenager, I looked alot older than I was as I was in a hurry to grow up. I was uber tanned, had overplucked eyebrows and even wore coloured contact lenses. I went through a stage of being really blonde - don't worry that was at a stage in my life where I wasn't as tanned :) I mainly supported the mid length layered look...


I soon went back to being "normal" when I started uni, I ditched the contact lenses and re shaped my eyebrows, however, the length of my hair remained the same, due to regular trims because of heat damage! Below is a photo of me on my graduation day - June 2007.


A much deserved holiday afterwards, and yes.. I still have the same hairstyle.



I got married last year, for my London ceremony I opted for darker hair and some clip in extensions, and as for my beach wedding... well I ditched the extensions and my hair was ALOT lighter thanks to the sea water.


On our honeymoon, my hair continued to get ridiculously light..



I soon sorted that problem out and dyed my hair dark again as the lighter tones in my hair really looked odd with a tan. But, I soon went back to my lighter shade of hair and supported the sew in extensions.


Then, a couple of weeks ago I dyed it really dark :)


You will have to wait for my fotd to see what it looks like currently. As you can see for about 7-8 years I have had mid length layered hair which I love but it gets boring, I have the urge to cut my hair into a layered bob, short like a boy, then I also have the urge to grow it really really long so I don't need extensions too. I'm just a whole big pot of undecisiveness!

Summer Beauty Trends

Summer is upon us and as you all know the biggest two beauty trends on the catwalk for this season are bright lips and rainbow eyes.
I wanted to share with you products I would use to recreate these looks and also share the inspirational images for my readers as they are quite spectacular.
Images from here!


To achieve bright lips try:

Nars - matt lip pencil in "Red Square" a lovely coral red.
Barry - M lip paints in 144 (cerise pink), 145 (punky pink), 146 (dolly pink) and 147 (peachy pink).
Mac - Russian Red and Lady Danger

To achieve rainbow eyes try:

Urban Decay book of shadows palette - Shattered, Absinthe and Goddess.
Mac - Steamy, Moon's Reflection, Contrast and Bio Green.
Barry M Dazzle Dusts - 22 (electric blue), 92 (aqua Gold)79 (gold green) and 80 (blue grey)

A good buy for multicoloured high standard eyeshadows I recommend Urban Decay book of shadows.

What other products do you recommend to help recreate these looks?

What's in and out!

What's in?
Relaxing
Having no-makeup days for better skin
Bright coloured clothes
Cream blushes from Illamasqua
Solstice liquid metal from Illamasqua
Conical wand
Being Curvy
Nails inc miracle buffer
Statement jewellery
Coral, pink and orange lips
Water

What's out?
Extensions - I'm bored of them AGAIN, but i'm still keeping them for now!
The "powdery" look
London traffic
Having no money to go shopping *WEEP*
People aspiring to be stick thin
Not making the most out of my makeup due to my no-makeup days (win/lose situation)
Fizzy Drinks

NYX!

I did a mini swap with the lovely Lisaz09 from YT! She sent me these lovely goodies, thank you sweetie.. xx


Yeap how cute are they? I have been dying to try NYX products and am so grateful that I have these lovely colours to experiment with, so expect some fotd's with these :) I love the pacakaging and the sound the lipsticks make when you close the lid!


Details:
Goddess of the night lip gloss - 104 Sweet Heart (SMELLS AMAZING)
Lipstick - 628 Tea Rose
Lipstick - 546 Ceto

Origins Get Down Review!

All skin types.
150ml
£14.68

What it is: Deep pore clay cleanser.
How often: 1 - 2 times a week.

What it claims to do: White china clay gets under your skin to pull out pollutants and keep stopped-up pathways purged of pore-cloggers. Lecithin cleanses, sage purifies. Ylang ylang soothes. Leaves skin-pristone clean, refreshed, refined. Wont irk or irritate

This is another multifunctional product, it works as two things;
As a cleanser: Squeeze into palm and swirl onto dampened skin. Rinse.
As a mini mask: Apply a thin layer to face, avoiding eye area. Leave 1-2 mins. Rinse. Pat dry

I adore the way my skin feels after I use this. It feels SO soft and clean and I can honestly say no other cleanser has made my skin feel this soft! It has a thick creamy texture with tiny beads in it to help exfoliate and deep clean pores. I use this once or twice a week, either to cleanse or as a mask. However, when I use it as a mask I leave it on for about 5-10 mins which I prefer. I also sometimes apply a pea sized amount onto an inflamed spot and leave it on for a few hours so that it dries it up, which works great!

Please note: This will be to harsh to use on sensitive skin everyday.

Kiehl's Washable Cleansing Milk Review!

For dry, normal - to - dry or sensitive skin types.
250ml
£16.64

What it is: A non lathering gentle cleansing milk that can be used to wash your face, or applied on a cotton round to remove light facial makeup. It can also be massaged into facial skin that has not been dampened and removed with a warm, damp cloth.

How Often: Everyday.

I love multifunctional products, and this one ticks all the boxes, previously I used a face wash by Neal's Yard and a cleanser by L'occitane which are equally as effective. But, why have two products when one does the job? Great for travelling!
I have been using this product for a while now and have to say that I am really extatic with it. My skin is looking better than ever and i'm wearing less makeup throughout the day. Usually i'm quite sceptical about trying new products as my skin breaks out really easily but, this hasn't broken me out at all.
The texture of this is quite runny and I quite like the smell of it too.
The only downside to this product is that I wish it had a pump applicator as sometimes I can squeeze too much out.

Word of warning: What works for me doesn't neccassarily mean it will work for you!

Smokey Smokey...

I have made myself up doing what I love most.. a smokey eye and a nude lip :) But this time I used colour! How exciting? ok, perhaps not! But, I had fun anyway. :)



Face: BB tinted moisturiser & Eyeko bronzing cream. (Loving this combo) BeneFit Boing as under eye concealer.
Cheeks: Nars multiple in Orgasm as blush, South Beach as contour - this wasn't enough so I used BB cream blush stick in Dusty Mauve. Barry M bronzer. YSL Touche Eclat as highlight.
Lips: Gosh Darling, Mac Underage and Mac Oak lipliner - I then added a tinge of the rosey one, not sure why, im just weird like that! :)


Eyes: Mac Cornflower pigment all over lid, Mac Teal pigment on outer V, Mac Club eyeshadow on outer V and blended into crease, Bourjois Blanc Diaphane on inner corners. Mac Carbon to softly cut the crease. Everything has been super blended hence the colours are not so vibrant! Mac blacktrack fluidline on waterline. Chanel exceptionnel mascara.

Moving onto the hair, why oh why didn't I get a conical wand sooner? I avoided getting it because I really didn't mind using my hair tongs as I thought it gave the same effect but quicker, I was wrong! The conical wand gives you more "beachy" waves as opposed to ringlets.


My one is by Babyliss and is £24.95 from Boots! I'm not sure what size it is but basically if you want a thicker wave, just grab more hair!


Btw I have not needed to dye my hair again :) it's become alot more of a softer dark brown and i'm quite enjoying it - FOR NOW!

Top 10 Nude Lip Products!

As you all know, I am a big devotee of the smokey eye and nude lip combo and I thought it was only fair for me to share my most favoured!


Lipsticks
1) Mac Creme d'nude (Cremesheen) - Gorgeous perfect nude!
2) Mac Hue (Glaze) - Everyday pink nude!
3) Gosh Darling - Evening nude!
4) Barry M 101 (Marshmellow) - The palest nude - great for toning down other colours!

Lipglosses
5) Mac Underage - Very pigmented pink nude
6) Mac C-thru - Very pigmented peach nude
7) Mac Mouthwatering - Shimmery peach / pink nude
8) Nars Turkish Delight - Gorgeous pretty pink nude
9) BeneFit (LG23) Didn't hear it from me - Beauitful pigmented peach nude
10) Dior Addict Ultra-Gloss 313 - Shimmery frosty brown nude

The swatches speak for themselves...




What are your favourites? Is there anything I need to add to this list? :)

Eyeko Bronzing Cream Review!

I was initially thrilled about this bronzing cream and really wanted to love it, and when I say "love" I mean HG material! After several different types of application; fingers, 187 brush, small dense blush brush.. to achieve the perfect bronzed look, I have found it to be patchy and not very flattering at all. I think this doesn't work very well on top of any kind of base, it just creates a hole in what you have just applied. So, a friend (thanks Fidan) told me that I should mix it with a little bit of moisturiser and then try and apply. So here's what I did...


It actually works alot better like this, as it makes the consistency of the product much more blendable and the colour alot more flattering, so try it like this if this product hasn't worked for you either! I like using it like this, applied with my 187 brush to contour and I think I will enjoy it alot more since I have discovered this simple secret.

I think however, that it will only work well over liquid foundation or just moisturiser - do not apply over powder or you will look even more patchy!

This product will work well as a primer to give you more of a deeper colour to your skintone when mixed with moisturiser and applied all over the face. It will also work well mixed with your body cream and applied all over legs, how amazing! I can't wait to do that!

Do you have any tips and tricks I need to know about in order to get the most usage out of this product?

Random Lip Combo!

Once again, I think I have discovered my perfect tailored lip colour and I LOVE it! I think it's the way forward and works well with my new hair colour :) I have been so confused lately and have had to change the way I wear my make up to cater for my darker locks!



In photo order (see below) - I have applied Maybelline watershine diamonds in shade 100 pure diamonds for moisture, it's just a sheer shimmery colour, then I used Mac Hue to nude my lips out, then I applied Max Factor English Rose a gorgeous frosty pink to "pinken" my lips a little.



I finished the look off with this pinky lipliner, I have no clue where it's from or what shade it is, but I would describe it as a deep rosey pink.


On the rest of my face I have on, BB tinted moisturiser, Boing undereye concealer, Barry M bronzer, and I had applied some Nars Gina blush in the morning which has kind of rubbed off. On my eyes I just have lash stiletto mascara and some mac carbon smudged into my upper lash line, I also blended a TINY bit of carbon into the crease, so it looks a little grey. I also fix +'d!

I think it helps warm up my face? it kind of takes away from the harshness of my hair - I think so anyway :)



What do you think? Do you mix and match several lippies like I do to achieve your perfect colour for the day :) ?

Barry M Pink Lip Paints!

I have kindly been sent these lip paints to review before the "Pink Lip Paint Collection" hit the shops this summer! Below we have Dolly Pink no 146 & Punky Pink no 145. I already have a reputable collection of lip paints by Barry M, in which my eyes are very successful products. I would buy every colour in a heartbeat!

I have swatched and sampled them for you to give you a clearer vision of how gorgeous they truly are! What a great blogger I am :) The Dolly Pink was a bit of a suprise for me as I thought I asked for Peachy Pink - typing error, nice one :) Anyhow, I'll just have to wait!

Dolly Pink no 146

Punky Pink no 145

I personally love the texture and consistency of these lip paints, for under £5 you can not go wrong! They are lovely and moisturising and the collection includes four different shades of pink, so there's definately something out there for eveyone! I would wear both colours even though i'm not really a "bright" lip person, but I think these work really well and will compliment any skin tone beautifully. The punky pink reminds me of a Nars lipstick that I wanted which I can't remember the name of, but it's a perfect dupe!

I can't wait to see what Barry M come up with next!

My Hair!

Even though the majority of my followers and friends have told me that they actually prefer me with really dark hair that is almost black, I am not having a great time dealing with it!


I find it hard to choose what clothes to wear in the morning, l avoid wearing black as not to look like I am going to a funeral. I have also found that it can make me look really harsh, I feel pale when I am not wearing bronzer and I never really feel pale! Overall, I just think it's TOO overpowering for me.

Therefore, I have hit the anti dandruff shampoo bigtime!!! I have been washing my hair day and night so I can strip some of the colour out of it and make it lighter! This is what it looks like this evening. It's no longer looking "black" but more of a really really dark brown - or is it my imagination? I hope not becuase I can actually see the colour running out everytime I wash it!

I have also added lots more layers to my hair to make it alot more "ME" :)

Excuse the lack of makeup I am wearing, I was having a no make up day but I then FYI later decided to add a bit of BB tinted moisturiser, Boing undereye concealer, Barry M bronzer, some eyeliner on my upper lash line and mac pink fish tlc.

Furthermore, I have a backup plan! If, still after a few more washes my hair isn't the colour I want it to be, I assume that I would have stripped off enough colour to dye it again, this time with L'oreals ultra lightening natural brown. This should work - I hope! I have two packets of these that just keep staring at me :)

Hair is a big thing for me, maybe I shouldn'y have gone for such a drastic change, I don't know.. I always change my mind and end up wishing I just left it alone :(