Saturday, January 31, 2015

Benefit Haul


Benefit is one of my all time favourite brands. All of their formulas are amazing and their packaging is so beautiful. On Friday, I was very lucky and got to have a free make-up lesson by one of the Benefit therapists. I used to use Benefit all the time but recently I started to move away and onto drugstore brands. This is partly because it is at the higher end of the price range and also because I fell in love with a few drugstore items. As soon as I stepped into the Benefit boutique though, I knew I would be buying a few products. Before the make-up lesson, I got to choose between a lesson in base make-up or eye make-up. I chose base as I knew that it included a lot of things such as skincare, priming, contouring and other tips and tricks. I ended up learning a lot of things and that resulted in a huge splurge of money. Below are the products that I brought..


Ever since the 'rockateur' blusher was released, it's been on my wishlist. And ever since my make-up lesson had been booked, I knew I was definitely going to buy it. I asked my therapist if she could use it on me and when she did, it confirmed my want for it. I brought it straight away as well as the 'high beam' highlighter to go with it. The best thing about this highlighter is that you can use it everywhere. On your browbone, the inner corner of your eye and even your cupid's bow. 

Rockateur cheek powder and High Beam complexion enhancer
The third thing I brought was the 'that girl' primer. My therapist mixed together 'porefessional' and 'that girl' to make an amazing combination. It felt super light on my skin and I knew that I had to get it. Luckily, I already had 'porefessional' so it wasn't too much money to spend. I seriously can't wait to use this. I also received a free sample of the 'hello flawless' foundation as this is what was used. I didn't end up buying it because I prefer matte finishes, although this one would be perfect for the summer! 

'Hello Flawless' liquid foundation and 'That Girl' brightening face primer
Lastly I went for two skincare products. In the past I used to swear by Benefit skincare but then ventured into the world of Liz Earle (she's amazing!!) but since Friday, Benefit products have been re-introduced into my skincare regime. As I already own the facial polish, I decided to go with a moisturiser and an eye cream. I am actually in love with these two products. Not only do they smell amazing, the lasting effect both items have is great. I make sure to moisturise morning and evening and my skin is never ever dry. It is now my holy grail. 

'It's Potent!' eye cream and 'Total Moisture' facial cream
I literally recommend to everyone to go and get a make-over/make-up lesson by Benefit. All the products are amazing and the treatment you get is incredible! I just want to say thank you to Hannah for giving me the most amazing service and making me feel super comfortable. 

Sunday, January 18, 2015

What I Got For Christmas '14


Wow, I can't believe Christmas is over! This post is a little late but that's purely because Christmas is such a busy time and it was super refreshing, being able to relax. So, below are a couple of things that I received for Christmas. I've not included everything because it would be too long of a post but I realise that I am a very lucky girl and appreciate all of my gifts from various people. I just love reading this sort of post so thought I would join in!

For one of my main presents, my parents put together a hamper full of all different things. The idea behind it was that we booked a cruise for the summer and they thought it would be nice to create a hamper to take on holiday with me. It included make-up, body products, summer clothes and a few other bits and bobs. The pictures below show a few of my favourite things that were included..

L-R: Benefit Skincare Set, Bumble and Bumble Surf Set and Philosophy Cocktail Party Set.

These sets of minis are perfect for holidays! They all fit perfectly inside a suitcase, without taking up too much space and also let you try out new things whilst being away. All of the brands I have tried before but not the specific things inside the packs. The one thing I'm looking forward to trying the most is the Bumble and Bumble set, especially as it'll be summer.

Katy Perry - Royal Revolution Set

The next thing inside my hamper was the Katy Perry Killer Queen's Royal Revolution set. Whenever I go on holiday, I love to have a new scent. This is so whenever I wear it at home, it'll remind me of the times away. Does anyone else do that?? Also, I love sets like this as you can layer the scent, meaning it'll last all day.

Nyx - The Heat Is On  Nail Varnish Set

This has to be my favourite thing that was inside the hamper. It's the most perfect thing to take on holiday and I literally can't wait to use them. This is ideal because it means that you have a selection of colours which you can swap and change as you please. Also, the fact that they are all miniatures, means that they will easily fit inside your suitcase. 

Now onto the gifts that weren't inside the hamper..

Yankee Candle Simply Home Winter Collection and Yankee Candle Pink Dragon Fruit Tealights

As I've said before, I have a serious addiction to candles. All of my friends know this, resulting in a ton of them! I'm so so happy and can't wait to burn them. My room is going to be smelling amazing for days.

Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette and MAC Keepsakes Smoky Eyes Palette

I was a very lucky girl this year and received a lot of make-up from my family. Above are two of my favourite things. The first being the Naked 2 palette by Urban Decay. I've already got the first one and love it so when my brother brought the second one for me, I was over the moon. The quality of the shadows is great and you can do all sorts of looks with the variety of colours. Next to it is the MAC Keepsakes palette. The packaging of this is so beautiful, I literally squealed when I opened it. I love that the palette contains eight shadows, giving you a range of colours. Definitely one of my favourite collections by MAC. Below is a picture of the beautiful colours,


I hope you enjoyed seeing some things that I got at Christmas. As said before, I was a very lucky girl and appreciate everything I was gifted.

Happy New Year, everyone!!

Friday, December 5, 2014

Black Friday Sale Haul

As promised, here is my Black Friday sale haul! It was a very spontaneous shopping trip so I didn't manage to go to as many shops as I would've like but I still managed to get some great deals. Whether that be online or in store. Here are some things I purchased:


On Amazon, they had a great deal on all paperback books. This was three for ten pounds. I was totally in need of some new reads and I had heard a lot of good things about these three. These books are Paper Towns by John Green, Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn and The Pointless Book by Alfie Deyes. Although the far right one is slightly different, it's always great to support people who started out on the internet, doing what they love. 


Also on Amazon, they had a deal on Bomb's Cosmetics gift sets. This was three for thirty pounds. I loveeee Bomb's Cosmetics so obviously had to buy some! I brought two for some friends as Christmas presents but decided to keep the last one for myself. This is shown in the picture above and called 'Merry Kissmas'. 


When going to town, the only shop I really wanted to look at was Boots. I decided to go there first and was totally not disappointed. Bourjois had an amazing deal on which was, spend over fifteen pounds and get a free gift. The things I brought to make up the fifteen pounds was Little Round Pot Blush in Rose, Queen Attitude Khol Kajal in Black and So Matt nail polish. The free gift included four full-sized products. I thought this was amazing so totally didn't waste the deal. 


On my way out, I noticed the Collection counter also had a deal on. This was, buy two products and get a free lip butter. The two products I purchased were two Lasting Perfection Concealers in Fair. I go through these like nobody's business. There was only a choice of two colours for the lip butter so I went for the berry toned one named 'Perfect Plum' as it suits the winter season. 


Before leaving, I decided to look at the Real Techniques collection. I actually own most of the brushes but have had my eye on the special edition ones for ages. When I saw that there was deal on which was, buy one get the other half price, I totally went for it. As well as the special edition set, I also brought the silicone liner brush. I got super excited when I saw this. No more having to wash my brush every day! 


Lastly, the Essie counter caught my eye. They also had a similar deal on to Collection which was buy two products and get a free gift. I brought the 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star gift set and the 'A Cut Above' single polish. This meant I got a free mini set which included three polishes from their winter collection. I thought that this was a great deal! (I couldn't find any links).

I hope you enjoyed reading about my bargains! There was a few more things that I brought but are for Christmas presents. I don't want anyone to see them! I definitely can't wait until the Boxing Day sales..

Friday, November 28, 2014

LUSH Christmas Haul


So, today is Black Friday! This is something that is relatively new to the UK and it was my first year exploring the sales. Next week, I will post my Black Friday bargains! Although LUSH didn't have any Black Friday sales this year, I was in need of doing my seasonal haul, this one being my all-time favourite. Here are some things that I purchased:

The things that I always go to first are the bath bombs and bath melts. There were SO many to choose from, that I really struggled to pick just three. The ones that made the final cut were Dashing Santa bath bomb, Butterbear bath bomb and Snow Angel bath melt. All of them smell differently but each contain a little bit of Christmas, whether that be glitter or cinnamon.


Opposite the bath bombs were the soap bars. Now, I have a love/hate relationship with bars of soap. I find it takes a lot longer to lather them and also finding ways to store them is always difficult. They make the shelf in the shower go all sticky. So until recently, I never used bars of soap. But, since purchasing a bar in LUSH about a year ago, I've started to like them again! They just smell amazing and last so much longer than shower gels. The ones I brought were Snowcake, Yog Nog and Baked Alaska.

Snowcake

Baked Alaska

Yog Nog
As well as the bath bombs, bath melts and soap bars, I decided to look at the other various festive things that LUSH sold. The first thing I brought was a cleanser called Buche de Noel. I've never actually tried a cleanser by LUSH before, just the face masks. When it comes to skincare, my skin is super sensitive so I have to be careful when trying out new things. As much as I'd love to, my skin just tends to break out so instead of persisting and waiting for the product to work, I just give up and retreat to my usuals. I decided to take the plunge and purchase a new cleanser. It smells absolutely amazing so I owe it really. (I will be doing a review on this over the next couple of days!) The next thing I came across was the Snowman jelly. I've tried Whoosh and loved the fun of it so thought I'd try out the festive version. The final thing I saw was Hot Toddy  body wash. This literally smells like Christmas in a container and the glitter specks just add to this. Definitely one of my favourite purchases today!


As I made my way to the counter and the server started wrapping up all of my goodies, I spotted the Santa Baby lip tint. Last year, every time I went into the shop, it was always sold out or unavailable so I took the opportunity to add it to my basket. I can't wait to try it out and see how the pigmented the colour actually is.


I hope I've inspired some of you to go wander around LUSH and grab some real festive products! It's definitely fueled my excitement for Christmas and I'll more than likely purchase some more things over the next couple of weeks. Their products are just so fun!

Friday, November 21, 2014

50 Random Questions

Something a bit different than my usual posts but I thought it would be a good way for you to get to know me better! This post is pretty long so grab a cuppa and make yourself comfortable.

1 - What's your favourite colour? Mint green.
2 - Do you have any siblings? I sure do! I have three siblings - two older brothers and a twin sister.
3 - Who's the best artist that you've seen live? This is such a hard question to answer! It would have to be either, The 1975 or Ed Sheeran. Both of them put on such a good show. I would definitely see them again!
4 - What's been your worst experience? I can't actually think of one. Nothing really stands out in my memory as being that bad. Just the usual accidents and mishaps.
5 - What is your favourite Disney movie? Hands down, The Little Mermaid. For a while I had red hair and basically pretended I was her.
6 - Do you have any pets? Yes. I have two cats and their names are Korky and Felix. I am literally obsessed with them, just call me the crazy cat lady.
7 - What is your dream car? I don't really have much knowledge when it comes to cars but have you seen the Benefit Citroen DS3!? It's literally beautiful.
8 - What is your favourite book? I'm totally going to follow the crowd and say The Hunger Games series. Seriously addicting and heart-racing. My advice? Definitely read it before watching the movies.
9 - Who's your celebrity crush? Evan Peters. He is just gorgeous.
10 - Do you have any phobias? If so, what are they? Of course I do! Spiders and zombies. Just looking at them makes me want to curl up into a ball.
11 - What is your go-to song when you're feeling down? Definitely one I can dance to. One of my favourites is The Remedy by Jason Mraz.
12 - Who is the most influential person in your life? Definitely my family as a whole. I inspire to have the strength of my parents once I'm that age.
13 - Tea or coffee? Definitely tea. But if it was a choice, Chai Latte would be the winner.
14 - Do you have any tattoos or piercings? I do! I have two tattoos and seven piercings.
15 - What time do you get up in the morning? Normally 8AM. I love getting up early so I have more time to do things.
16 - What do you think is your best physical feature? I would say my eyes.
17 - What are you looking forward to? CHRISTMAS!!
18 - What is your favourite season? Autumn.
19 - What do you think is the best rainy day activity? Snuggling under a duvet, watching your favourite TV shows. Maybe add in a hot chocolate.
20 - What's your favourtie fashion accessory? Midi-rings. I love how they look, paired with some full-sized rings.
21 - What is the most played song in your music library? Drive By - Train.
22 - What is your favourite reality TV series? At the moment, I am seriously addicted to watching 19 Kids and Counting. I just love their optimism. I also love the usual I'm A Celebrity and The X Factor, of course!
23 - What are your future goals? My main future goal at the moment is to move out into a place of my own. I just can't wait to design it and have my own space.
24 - What are your favourite pair of shoes? My grey converse. I love all converse but these are definitely the ones that get the most wear!
25 - What was the first album you brought? Busted's first one! I was totally a cool kid.
26 - What is your favourite summer activity? Definitely going to the beach and sunbathing. Super relaxing.
27 - What has your favourite family vacation been? Florida. It's such a lovely atmosphere and nothing can beat being surrounded by all of your family.
28 - Pick one thing that you couldn't live without. Food. No particular food, just food as a whole. Who doesn't love food!?
29 - Name three places that you wish to travel to. LA, Hawaii, Barcelona.
30 - What is your favourite alcoholic drink? Malibu and coke is my go-to.
31 - What is your favourite make-up brand? Either Benefit or MAC.
32 - What was the last photo taken on your phone?


33 - What are some of your pet peeves? People who chew their food loudly. People who bite their nails. People who are ignorant to the 21st century. Not many things.
34 - What's been the most memorable day in your life, so far? Definitely having tea and cake with Simon Cowell. That was a seriously surreal moment.
35 - What is your favourite candle scent? Oh god. Candles are one of my addictions. Yankee candles are my all time favourite candle brand and the Christmas scents are my favourite, particularly 'Fireside Treats'.
36 - Do you support any charities? If so, which ones? Children's Hospices South West and Spinal Muscular Atrophy Support UK.
37 - What is your all time favourite meal? There are so many! I would say a Sunday roast.
38 - When was the last time you cried? This morning. I was laughing so hard that I started to cry. That's definitely the best way to cry.
39 - Do you and your family have any Christmas traditions? Of course! We always open a present together on Christmas Eve and then watch a movie together. It always gets us into the Christmas spirit.
40 - What is your all time favourite beauty product? This is the hardest question ever! Super hard to choose. Either Instant Boost Skin Tonic by Liz Earle or Ro's Argan Body Conditioner by Lush.
41 - What is your best childhood memory? Definitely sitting in my back garden with some friends, trying to make perfume. And then we tried to sell it around the street. I don't even know what we were thinking.
42 - What did you do yesterday? Yesterday, I had several meetings about finding a house. Very exciting!
43 - Do you sing in the shower? Always.
44 - If you could spend an evening with anyone in the world (dead or alive) who would it be and why? Probably someone who has tons of knowledge about the world. I'm not really sure.
45 - Who was the last person to call you? My twin!
46 - Would you bungee jump or skydive? If I could, I would totally do both. I'm all for trying new things and love experiencing different things.
47 - What did your last text message say? 'Alejandro!!' Don't even ask.
48 - What was the last film you saw? Elf. The first Christmas film of this year.
49 - What would you do if you won the lottery? Travel the world.
50 - What's the time? It's currently 7:50PM.

Wow, that took a long long time. Please feel free to leave anymore questions!

Friday, November 14, 2014

Review - Nicky Clarke Colour Prolong Hair Straightener

So, my beloved GHD hair straighteners broke and me being the idiot I am, failed to keep any receipts or evidence. They were the wide plated ones, perfect for my thick hair and I had a bit of a panic when they stopped working one morning. I went straight onto the GHD website, about to add some to my basket, when I realised that instead of spending tons of money on some new ones, I would try out some cheaper ones. So I did some research and these were the ones I came across, Nicky Clarke - Colour Prolong. I couldn't quite believe how cheap they were, compared to my usual ones and the reviews looked great. I thought I would do a quick review and share my opinion.























First glance, these hair straighteners look very professional and I love the design of them. The blue plates make them look super sophisticated and unique. The button to turn them on is a similar design to the GHDs but you can also change the temperature. For me, this is something that worries me as I have no idea how hot my hair should get or how effective the lower temperature is. It takes a lot of trial and error to find the temp that works so this isn't great if in a rush but it's nice to have the option!

Another great feature of these straighteners is the lock and unlock button. It makes them smaller and compact to fit into luggage and are ideal to take on trips away. Although, the length of the wire could be an issue. It's a lot shorter than I'm used to and could be a problem if there isn't a plug socket close to the mirror. Also, compared to GHDs, my hair doesn't seem to stay as straight, as it did, for a long period of time and I usually end up re-straightening in the evening.

                       
                                            Nicky Clarke Colour Prolong Hair Straightener

With all things considered, I am pretty happy with my purchase. I love trying new things and am super glad that I gave another brand a chance! 

Friday, November 7, 2014

Favourite Autumn Lipsticks

Autumn is most definitely my favourite season. Just the sound of leaves crunching and the smell of toasted marshmallows never seem to get old. It reminds me of watching movies, all snuggled in blankets or having a red nose when outside because of the cold weather. Also, it means that Christmas is on it's way. However, the best thing about autumn is the fashion. In the summer, I can never seem to pull off a burgundy lip but when autumn arrives, it's a staple in my make-up bag. Here are a few of my favorites, including a drugstore and high-end option:



Beguiled by Topshop - This is definitely one of my favourite autumn lipsticks. The colour is exactly what I would expect in this season. It is super long-lasting and fades all together, rather than leaving clumps. The only thing I would say is to make sure that you moisturise your lips before applying because this lipstick seems to cling to dry patches.
01 by Rimmel (Kate Moss Collection) - Definitely my all time favourite, No matter what time of year it is, this is my go to. The colour just reminds me of Christmas and the lipstick is so creamy, leaving a gorgeous finish.
107 by Rimmel (Kate Moss Collection) - Surprise, surprise! Another Kate Moss lipstick. I love the berry undertones of this lipstick and it's one of my constant re-purchases.
Mauve by Bourjois (Shine Edition Collection) - This lipstick is a beautiful sheer colour that gives a very subtle plum colour. It's very moisturising and looks like a mixture between a lipstick and a balm.
Sugar Plum by Revlon - This is very similar to the lipstick mentioned above but is a lot more pigmented. I love the whole range of this lipsticks and this colour is just gorgeous! (I couldn't find a link for this one).
Red Dahlia by Burt's Bees - The most amazing lip balm for autumn as it's two in one! All Burt's Bees products are amazing but a tinted lip balm is a must in a make-up bag. This one is just perfect and it being 100% natural is a bonus!




St Honore by Lancome - A very bright red but perfect for the night outs and christmas parties around autumn. This lipstick lasts forever and is super pigmented. The packaging is my all time favourtie!
Hibiscus by Liz Earle - A similar colour to the one above but slightly deeper. Liz Earle is one of my favourtie skin care brands and when they brought out cosmetics, I was super excited. This lipstick totally lived up to my expectations. The packaging is also very festive.
Fanfare by MAC - Although this colour isn't a very autumn one, it's definitely a must in my make-up bag. It's such a neutral colour that I can wear with anything and also smells amazing! The only thing I dislike about MAC products is the packaging. I would love to be able to see a colour swatch on the bottom of the container!



I hope this post inspired some of you with your autumn make-up looks. As said before, I love love love this season and can't wait for winter!

 
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