Bye Bye Google Friend Connect ♥

Hey lovelies,

So if the rumours are true, then GFC will be closing tomorrow - such a MASSIVE inconvenience, I know! BUT that's why I'm on Bloglovin' - so if you like my blog and do want to continue to support it and keep up to date with it then please hop over to there and click follow. It's actually really easy to use and you can keep up to date with blogs daily as it has a mobile app. 

This is my link so please click, I'd hate to lose you all because of some new changes.

http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/3383459

Sneak peak of what else is to come, you don't want to miss out ;)

My Mac Lipstick Collection ♥

Hello lovelies, LONG time no blogging I know, and this post has been a very long time coming, I think I actually wrote it back in february and it's been just sitting here unloved for months!

Left to Right: Hue, Modesty, Faux, Snob, Lovelorn, Speed Dial, Plumful

I think every beauty blogger out there owns and loves at least one Mac lipstick and my collection is always growing. I love Mac cosmetics but I think their lipsticks especially offer a quality that not a lot of others do. I have 7 in my collection now and my oldest are are Faux and Speed dial, although it's obvious that my most used a Faux and Hue. These are definitely the most wearable shades as I think a nude or a brown go with everything and I tend to just quickly apply on the days when I'm in a rush but need something to finish off my make up. Modesty is my newest addition as I got it off Santa Claus and it's a lot like Faux but it's a Cremesheen so it's a bit more subtle.

Snob was a bought on a bit of a whim as my boyfriend was living in Hamburg for 4 months and there was a store near him, so I gave him a little list full of shades that I'd seen on other people or other blogs. I hadn't ever swatched it for myself but I really like it, I think of it more as a summer colour as it's a pastel-y shade and I like that it adds a cute girly touch to a plain outfit and looks a bit different to a normal pink.

Next up - Speed dial and Lovelorn are my little gems of the collection. I love these for a day to day pink as I think they're just both so pretty and feminine. Speed dial is a Cremesheen lipstick which I love because it feels so creamy on the lips and doesn't dry them out at all. These are definitely the ones I'm reaching for at the moment.

Finally, Plumful was an autumn/winter purchase as I wanted to add a darker shade for the colder months and I love it. It applies quite sheer but can be built up to a stronger colour when necessary, which is perfect for a day to night transition lipstick. Although I don't wear it much in these warmer, summer months it was definitely a staple towards the end of last year and it's just as loved as all the rest.

For pigmentation and staying power my favourites are definitely the Satin finish lipsticks, which are Faux and Snob; I think they just provide thicker, all over colour and are the best at staying put. My least favourite, if I had to choose, would be the Glaze finish lipsticks as they're so sheer and on dry lips, they can look terrible. With a nude colour like Hue it's not really a problem and I do like this lipstick, but I can't say that I'd be queuing up to get another colour for a while.

Do you own any Mac lipsticks? Which are your favourites?

Love 

x

Dior Nudeskin Foundation: Review ♥

Hey guys,

Another cheeky little review as I recently bought myself a new foundation and when I say recently I mean the end of October - I needed some more foundation for my Graduation.I have to admit I did go into the store with the intention of re-purchasing my trusty Estee Lauder Double Wear Light, but as a result of inattentive staff just talking to each other and not bothering to check if I wanted anything, the lovely lady from Dior spotted her chance and stole me away from Estee Lauder, and I'm actually really glad.

My Double Wear Light is still a favourite of mine but this new Dior foundation is a definite contender for the top spot. The foundation literally glides over the skin, and provides a medium coverage which is enough to cover any blemishes but not too much to look thick or cakey. I apply it with my Real Techniques buffing brush after prepping my skin with either my Mac primer or my Benefit Porefessional and then apply my Bobbi Brown concealer and corrector on top (post coming soon on that).

Face in different lights...

 Finished day to day make up look...(will do a post on my 'daily face' too soon)

The foundation isn't the cheapest on the market and will set you back around £31 and I would say that some 'drugstore' foundations are up there with this one (Rimmel Wake Me Up foundation I'm looking at you) but I have been impressed with it and a little really does go a long way - thankfully, because I wouldn't like to have to keep buying it every month at £30. Its staying power is brilliant and it will easily last a full day at work and there's only the odd occasion if my skin is particularly bad that I'd need a little concealer help throughout the day.

I initially bought the foundation with my graduation pictures in mind as I wanted my skin to look flawless, especially as I was having them taken at 7:30am, and that's exactly what it did, it definitely brightens up morning skin and I love my grad pictures. I would buy this foundation again and would recommend it to anyone looking for a high end foundation that adds a medium coverage whilst being light enough to look like you aren't wearing much make up at all...oh and it smells nice too. Winner.

Have you ever tried this foundation? What do you think to spending £30 on a foundation? Would you buy it?

Love 

x

La Roche Posay. Effaclar Duo: Review ♥

Hey guys,

Another product I've used on the quest to have perfect skin. A couple of months back my skin went through a stage of having breakouts and as my Liz Earle had ran out whilst I was waiting for christmas for some more, my cleansing routine wasn't having the great effects it would normally have. Although I was cleaning my face properly and haven't gone back to using face wipes (they do nothing for my skin, apart from move the make up around and clean about 5% of it off) the Hot Cloth Cleanser I bought from Superdrug just wasn't as good as my Liz Earle and my skin wasn't clearing up as fast as I'd have liked. My skin type is mainly dry/sensitive as opposed to being oily but I think with all the products I use on it, it does have the tendency to develop imperfections, so I need these remedies in my life.

I've heard about La Roche Posay on numerous blogs and youtube videos, but it wasn't until I watched one of Tanya Burr's haul videos and she was talking about using Effaclar Duo to clear a breakout on her face that I thought about getting it. I bought it a few days later and I have to say I saw results from day one.

The consistency of this cream is more like a serum, and isn't thick so it doesn't feel like it's clogging up the pores, it just smooths over the skin and gives it enough moisture whilst doing it's thing on any spots. It has a cooling effect when it's applied to the skin which is nice and just what you need to sooth any redness.  I used it morning and night after cleansing, sometimes after using my Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair if I wanted to give my skin that little extra push to clear up. A little goes quite a long way too, I used about two or three blobs (the size on the picture) all over my face and that was enough, and after just a few days my skin had cleared up considerably. You have to hand it to the French, they do produce some fantastic skin care!

The cream claims to be 'corrective and unclogging anti-imperfection care' and has lots of magic scienc-y ingredients to do just that and I definitely agree that it works. The scent is quite hard to describe, it smells a little like a cleaning product if I'm completely honest but at the same time, it smells like it would work? A weird concept I know but sometimes some spot products just smell like they are thoroughly cleansing out your skin...hard to explain, but trust me on this one. It's not unpleasant anyway, that's all that matters.

For £13 it's not the cheapest skincare product of it's type on the market but it does what it says and as a little goes a long way I think it's worth the price and if you buy it in Boots you could use your points if you have enough saved anyway :).

Have you ever tried this cream? What did you think? Will you be purchasing it any time soon?

Love 

x

Revlon Lip Butters: Review ♥

Hello lovely followers,

Firstly, HAPPY NEW YEAR! Is it too late to say that now? I hope you all had lovely Christmas' and New Years, and that you all ate and drank too much and were very very merry. I had a lovely Christmas and skiing holiday in Austria over new year, and I'm now back to my usual motivated blogger self with lots of exciting posts coming up featuring some of my new presents and goodies.

To start 2013, I thought I'd do a long awaited post about my Revlon Lip Butters - they've caused quite a stir since hitting our shelves and I think most bbloggers have at least one in their collection, so this won't be the only review out there, but I'm going to add my pennies worth anyway. It was back in summer that I bought my first one, a light pink shade, 'Strawberry Shortcake' and I found it perfect to just add a bit of colour whilst on holiday and it looked amazing with a tan, whilst also giving my lips a burst of moisture which is essential in sunnier climes.

Along came autumn/winter and I have to say I forgot about it a little bit and was more focussed on darker shades and strayed more towards my Mac Plumful and other similar lipsticks, then one night whilst I was browsing Boots I remembered how much I loved my 'Strawberry Shortcake' and decided a darker shade would be perfect for winter as it also has a lip balm effect which would combat the inevitable dry winter lips. 'Raspberry Pie' jumped out at me and I just fell in love. I loved it that much I even bought my sisters one each too as a stocking filler for christmas as I knew they'd love it too (even better was the fact that because I bought three I got a gorgeous gold glitter nail varnish for free!!)

Revlon Colourburst Lip Butter in Strawberry Shortcake

Revlon Colourburst Lip Butter in Raspberry Pie

Raspberry Pie has been my go to winter shade as the bright colour definitely spices up any outfit and it's so moisturising it barely feels like a lipstick at all, the shine it offers too is amazing. They each retail at around £7.99 I think, which isn't bad at all compared to Mac lipsticks being around the £13-14 mark and the pigmentation is amazing for a lip butter. All in all 10/10 from me! I can't wait to add a few more to my collection.

What do you guys think of these lip butters? Do you have any in your collection?

Love

x

OOTD: Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree ♥

Hey guys,

So today was a christmas shopping day, pretty chilled really as our main priority was getting our christmas tree for our lounge, we got a real one last year for the first time and I couldn't wait to go and choose one again this year. We started putting our decorations up last night and we put up one tree and decorations around the rest of the house but we just needed to get our hands on a lovely tree today to finish it off.

Here is the outfit I wore for the day....

A little bit windswept...

I bought my dress a couple of days ago from Primark, I only actually intended to go in for a onesie but I spotted this and knew I had to get it, I bought the necklace and studded bracelet too because they were next to the dress and I thought they'd all look lovely together, I can just imagine the bracelet going with so many outfits over the christmas season too! My watch is Michael Kors which was a graduation present from my sisters and my cardigan is from H&M, leather jacket is Wallis, fur headband is Miss Selfridge, pumps are Converse and scarf is Topshop (I think - it's my sister's). I kept my make up pretty simple with just my Dior foundation, a little bit of blusher and some brown eyeliner and make up, I didn't want a really full face as it was only a chilled out kind of day. I did wear my new Raspberry Pie lip butter but that was a last minute decision after the pictures.

I actually wore two pairs of tights because I didn't think one would be enough to keep me warm, and I very nearly didn't wear my headband, but I'm so glad I did because I was so cold and I think my ears would have actually fell off without it! The day was a success anyway and we chose a gorgeous tree, (I will put a photo on my instagram) and I even bought a lovely, snuggly christmas jumper... look at those cute little reindeers, awwh.

....Perfect for my skiing holiday after Christmas.

What do you think of my casual sunday outfit? What did you all do with your weekend?

Love 

x

Eyes Lips Face Brush Cleaner: Review ♥

Heyy guys,

I don't know about you but cleaning my make up brushes seriously is the bain of my life. It's just so time consuming and the more brushes you have the worse it is. It's just not a fun task. This is why I decided I needed to get myself a daily brush cleaner to keep my brushes hygienic and clean in between thorough washes. I'd heard lots of good things about e.l.f cosmetics, particularly the amazing prices so I thought I'd have a look there before splurging on the Mac cleaner I was considering buying. Needless to say, they sell everything on that website and for around £3-4 I spied this massive 250ml bottle, so it would have been pretty rude not to buy it really.

I use this cleaner every couple of days, not daily as it suggests because if I'm honest I don't have the time, although the spray head does make it SO easy quick to use.I just spritz a few times onto my make up brush and rub the brush with a clean cloth and then leave to dry for the rest of the day and then my brushes feel lovely and soft and fluffy again when I come to use it my foundation or concealer is applied much more evenly.

I'm in two minds about its scent...you can sort of smell the anti-bacterial ingredients in it (if that makes sense) because it smells a bit like germ spray/gel for your hands, which is good because I know that it's probably doing a good job killing germs and it smells like it's actually deeply cleaned, although it makes me feel a bit sicky if I use it too much all at once because it's quite strong. The after-smell on the brushes once they've dried isn't strong though and it leaves them smelling quite fresh, and it certainly hasn't done anything bad to my skin which can sometimes be quite sensitive. The consistency is just like water as well so it's really easy to spray and coats the brush enough to know how much you're using, I hate products with a spray nozzle that don't spray evenly because they're too thick to come out. Overall I'm a happy bunny with this cleaner as for around the £3-4 mark it's an absolute bargain for such a large bottle I think. I've had it a couple of months now and Ive still got loads left. The good thing about cleaning my brushes regularly with it means I don't need to use lots every time because they're pretty clean with only a couple of days worth of make up on them (handy tip there) so it saves me pennies in the long run.

The bad news is I think they've downsized the bottle online, unless it's sold out because I couldn't find this bottle when I looked but it's still only £3.75 so it's still a bargain compared to others on the market.

Have you ever tried this brush cleaner? What do you think? What other brush cleaners would you recommend?

Love 

x