I ❤ Drugstore Makeup Tag

Hello! 

So I haven't done a tag in a little while and I've been meaning to get around to this one for a long time. The world and his wife have done this task so I'm going to dive straight in and add mine to the bloggersphere. 

So first up: 

1. What is your favourite drugstore makeup brand overall?

This just HAS to be Maybelline. They're absolutely taking hold of makeup by the horns this year and with their mid-range pricing I find myself just gravitating towards them when I'm in Boots. Plus, they're lipstick range looks pretty impressive on display; there's just so many! 

2. What are your favourite face, cheek and lip products?
  
 My face products are constantly changing as my skin battles the classic British weather. My old favourite isn't going anywhere. I always try to find a foundation that I love more than my MaxFactor Xperience Weightless Foundation. The colour range always seems to match me and it really keeps that matte finish going all day. After all the hype I finally caved and swapped from my Collection 2000 Illuminating Touch Concealer to the Lasting Perfection Concealer. At the moment I'm loving them both for different reason, I may just have to have both! That's when my spending ban is over. (Which is going well by the way!) And lastly I've jumped on the Rimmel Stay Matte powder bandwagon as well. 

For cheeks I'm going crazy over the Topshop cream to powder blushes, more on those here: From Comfort Food To Comfort Face. 

For lip product I'm going to be terribly boring and say Burt's Bees lip balms. They smell divine and make my lips feel ridiculously hydrated. 

3. Least favourite product?

I know I'm probably going to be showered with shocked faces but it has to be the Revlon ColorStay Foundation. I just hate it. No matter what I apply it with or how I apply it I just cannot get it right. It's far too thick and considering it only had an SPF of 6 it smells so strongly of sunscreen that I can barely stand to have it near my nose. It's an expensive drugstore product to go in the bin but for me it is by far the worst, over hyped product out there at the moment. 

 

4. What is the best makeup bargain?

By a mile the best bargains out there are coming from MUA. Their blushes for £1 are just amazing. They're very pigmented with a slight shimmer. If you need a blush on the go, then these are your best bet. 

5. What is your favourite underdog product? (Something you love that often gets overlooked?)

There is definitely not enough hype out there for Natural Collection Eye shadows. I love their texture. Their eye shadows have a matte finish but if I look really closely I'm convinced there is a minute glitter in them. I especially love the eyeshadow duo's.  

6. A drugstore product that is overpriced?

I would say that Soap and Glory's lip glosses seem a little pricey. Perhaps I'm being stingy, but I would always expect to pay less for a drugstore lip gloss than I would a drugstore foundation. Soap and Glory's most expensive lip gloss is ten pounds. I think their far too sticky plus for an extra two pounds I could get my favourite Urban Decay lip gloss. They're on the wrong side of the price line for me. 
 

7. Show your best drugstore dupe(s)!!

So my dupe is the most obvious one out there but it has to be Revlon Just Bitten lip balms as a dupe  for... you guessed it, Clinique Chubby Sticks. Let's face it, they're the same product. 

8. Drugstore product that isn't worth the hype?

Other than the Revlon ColorStay as I said above however, what is all the craze about Maybelline Fit Me Foundation? Firstly, I followed Maybelline's match guide to the very letter and it doesn't match very well. I think their foundation shades are a bit off and last but not least, it oxidises like a crazy thing after you've had it on for an hour. 

I'm not going to tag anyone to do this because there isn't anyone who HASN'T done it already. My word, I am behind!

Another little something I found ;)

So you will not believe what I found the other day. Hidden somewhere in a folder on my memory still I found my birthday haul (from September) that never saw the light of day. I feel like I should put quotations around it or something. Either way, original intro included, please enjoy my very outdated birthday haul. I have made a few adjustments, were necessary.

Finally! 

It’s been a while, trust me I know, but after a brief spot of illness I’ve finally got around to it. So as some of you may already know I turned 18 on Saturday (of last year) and all I can say is that my family clearly know me very, very well. (I have left out gifts from my friends as this post was incomplete and I can’t quite remember what everybody got me, sorry!)

Disclaimer/Brightside: I may have been ill but I have had almost a week to try out each product so my opinion is 100% my own – unless stated otherwise. As usual this isn’t meant to be a show off it’s simple a haul and a collection of honest product reviews. 

1.       So first up was actually the last present from my parents that I opened.  My Mom decided to play the tease and said ‘I don’t know if you’ll like this one, we can send it back if you don’t.’ Do you recognise it? I know I did. Yes this featured on my August wish list and now it sits proudly in my bag draw.  So instead of me gushing on and on about how many hugs my Mommy received for this one I’ll just let you read again what I said last time I went on a love rant for this thing:

“If I see a bag and fall in love in an instant, it’s pretty safe to say that on closer inspection I’m going to find that it’s a Fiorelli. Whilst dragging my rather unlucky boyfriend around the bags I 

stumbled across a shoulder bag that took my breath away. Now it you haven’t already guessed, I’m a big bow fan and this does not disappoint. This bag has sparkles. It has prints. It has texture! What more could you want. And all for the not so bargain basement price of £39. But when did you ever get a Fiorelli for a fiver?” Taken from: http://www.topkattv.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/august-wish-list.html

Cue excitement! 

2.       Perfume. I thought I would do these ones after the others as I received perfume from my Mom (I say my Mom because my Dad deals with all the gadget type presents and Mom tackles the beautician in me)  and boyfriend (at the time) . The first bottle that I opened was the new Roberto Cavalli perfume. I do believe it’s the first fragrance but if not don’t hesitate to correct me. I firsts got a whiff of this perfume from a sample from which magazine I can’t remember, it may have been ELLE. It was love at first smell(?) I suppose. I have a big bug bear for people who describe a perfume by saying, ‘It’s... sweet, but musky, and fresh at the same time. It’s a little oriental, kinda floral...’ It always leaves me sitting there thinking, ‘erm, what now? It can’t be all of those.’  And yet I stand corrected, there is indeed a perfume out there that smells like all of those and more. This unique fragrance seems to be constantly changing on my skin. Sometimes it smells like chocolate, other times like walking through a meadow. It’s a wonder. 

3.       My next enthralling fragrance was one of my all time favourites that I may have carefully hinted to my then boyfriend that I loved (loved the perfume that is). I’m a big fan of all of the Christina Aguilera fragrances but By Night is definitely tops of her range for me. Beware though, this is very sweet so if you’re not a hard core ‘wish you slept on a bed of cupcakes’ type girl then I wouldn’t really recommend this as an every persons fragrance. 

4.       Whilst I love a good surprise my dear Mama kept quite strictly to a list of things I fancied. On that list was our next item, Benefit’s ‘Porefessional’ primer. I’ve been wanting to try this for a while and it certainly does the job. Pore minimising: check.  Matt: check. Long wearing: Definitely. This product leaves skin with a very very smooth base and soaks up oil like you wouldn’t believe. I decided that seeing as I’d been neglectful of my moisturiser whilst bed ridden I’d forgo this product as I was afraid it might dry out my already parched skin. Wrong! We’re talking oil slick by the time I got to college and I soon found myself in the bathroom dabbing this product on. It’s multi use with a hint of concealing power which means it can be used underneath make up and on top of foundations like a liquid blotting paper. 

5.       Last beauty related item from my Mom was the Nails Inc. Caviar Top Coat and Base Coat set. I’ve had these before and absolutely loved them. I’m a nail freak and there’s nothing I hate more than a chipped manicure. This set ensures that you’re polish is good to go all week and the top coat is super glossy. Mom also threw in a Nails Inc. Nail buffer as she knows I’m a big Nails Inc. Fan and let’s face it, why bother painting your nails if they’re not buffed to shining perfection underneath. You look after your skin under your make up, why not your nails!

So that’s a somewhat condensed version of my birthday beauty haul.

2012 is so last year!

A few, some experimental looks, that I stumbled across from last year :) Enjoy.

Enough is enough!

So today I had a little silent inside-my-head breakdown in a changing room when I looked in the mirror and for the first time in a long time thought, 'those aren't sexy curves.' I've always had hips, boobs and bum and happy about it too but today my body confidence hit a bit of rock bottom I realised that it wasn't about how I looked in the mirror but really about how I felt on the inside. A few months ago I made an effort to swap fizzy drinks for water, alcohol for juice and allow myself the cheeky cup of tea to flush out the system a bit more. Even just keeping the constant sugar intake down made me feel sooooo much better. But over Christmas we all let that down but moving into the end of January it's really time to break out of the winter cycle. So here it is. Chocolate is the enemy. Crisps are unnecessary grams of salt and water is my new best friend. I'm getting out the water filter and falling back in love with aqua.

That's all. Bye!

Style Icons

The general 'celebrity' concept may be a creation of the modern media minded world, style icons have been transfixing audiences since the birth of cinema and cameras making stars out of much loved legends such as Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor and on and on. For this reason I thought I'd share with you some of my vintage and not so vintage style icons.

So let's start our style time line in 1926 with the birth of Norma Jeane Mortensen. Whilst curves in all the right places will never go out of fashion, Miss Monroe made it a statement and those hips are a large part of her ever growing legacy. She began her career with The Blue Book Modeling Agency and after doing a bit of research decided to get in with her own icons by dying her brunette locks blonde. Now I think the brunette curls give Marilyn a lovely 'girl next door' look, it's a distinctive change from plane spray painter Norma Jeane, to the icon that we all know and love. Either way, she's absolutely gorgeous and for me the reason red lips mean you feel like a million dollars.


Moving on to 1929 when Ella van Heemstra gave birth to Audrey Kathleen Ruston, later to become Audrey Hepburn. Whilst Monroe went on to become a national sex icon Hepburn to me is doe eyed innocence encapsulated in a waif frame (your not fooling anyone with that Tiffany's breakfast pastry!) Audrey Hepburn however is another icon who decided that her brunette head of the 50's had to go and replaced it with her 60's blonde. Audrey's classic look is timeless and would look just as stylish on the runway today as she did on screen 'back in't day.' 

Skipping fantastically into the 21st century two of my more modern style icons. Born in L'Haÿ-les-Roses (Paris, France, if you didn't guess) in 1982 Clémence Guichard is one of my favourite icons. Taking her mothers maiden name of Poésy she's known to the UK as Fluer Delacour in Harry Potter but she became one of my favourite actresses starring opposite Kevin McKidd in Gunpowder Treason and Plot - spectacular performances from both if you're into Elizabethan England drama - but style wise she caught my attention in Birdsong and lets face it, I would love to live that life in Paris, well perhaps without the war and abusive husband... Either way, her style is chic, sophisticated and effortless.

Image of The Month

 Last but not least my most recently born style love is our image of the month Leighton Meester. Gracing us with her presence in 1986 she got effortless au naturel down to a T. I still shamelessly covet my Blair Waldorf style dress and remain mesmerised by the Vera Wang Lovestruck advert, which Leighton is owning every time. I think what I love most about her style though is that she's such a blank canvas. She can adopt a range of different looks and still look like she just woke up fabulous.

Face Base - I just woke up this perfect.

 

I was so happy to have this post requested that I decided to do it as a little two parter, because I feel that there are two sides to getting this right. So I’ve been asked to do a bit of ‘how to’ on getting natural blusher, bronzer and foundation. I thought I’d throw a little bit of highlighting in there too and do a big post about the face. As far as I’m concerned with the flawless base you’re pretty much good to go. The second part of this little segment will be uploaded on Saturday... hopefully. It's what I'm going to call English Rose. This look is all base. No filled in eyebrows or smoky black eyes. This is the skin you have, just at its very best. 

Is Liz Earle getting a run for her money?

Look familiar?

For Christmas this year I begged and begged for the Soap & Glory FabPore Hot Cloth Cleanser. The reason I set my sight on this is because it came as part of a Christmas set from Soap & Glory along with Bright Here Bright Now, their illuminating moisturiser that has become a huge favourite of mine over the last few weeks.

No we all know about the infamous Cleanse & Polish from Liz Earle but I want to have a little talk about whether she might be getting a little run for her money. Be prepared for ingredient comparisons, value for money, product size, actual usage results and a general ramble on the other hot cloth cleansers out there.


Soap & Glory FabPore.

• FabPore comes in a 4.6 stars average rating on the Soap & Glory website. 
• RRP of £10 makes this an affordable little addition to your skincare routine. 
• A little goes a very long way, which is good at 100ml per tube.
• Packaging is very pretty but of average quality. 
• Cloth included. 
• Ingredients: (The Good Stuff) Panthenol, Natural Sweet Almond, Orange and Lavender essential oils.

Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish.

• List as long as my arm in beauty awards. 
• RRP of £14.25 for 100ml.
• A pump! That may sound like a sill advantage but it just makes life easier.
• Solid packaging but no different to your average plastic can.
• Cloth is very good quality. 
• Ingredients: (The Good Stuff) Beeswax, Eucalyptus, Glycerin, Hops Extract, D-Panthenol, Cocoa Butter, Rosemary Oil, Chamomile.

(Ignore the following white box, apparently Blogger and Microsoft Word aren't compatible. Who knew!)

For me Liz Earle is a bit of a miracle but there’s always a little bit of a Earle bandwagon to be jumped on. Now I’m alright with a leap of faith but let’s face it, we’re talking about whether £4.25 extra is worth it.  Value for money is always important to me but what is £4.25. It’s a meal deal at boots, or perhaps it’s a new pair of earrings (if you’re savvy enough) I even bought a Mango t-shirt for £4.75  the other day so there’s a lot you can do with 50p and that extra difference.

So it really does, for me, come down to product quality and I’ll admit I’m torn. On the one hand I can spare the extra £5 for a really good quality cleanser  and at the same time I can’t help but think I can put up with a product that does a very good job, maybe doesn’t quite measure up but does save more money in the long run.

So there you have it, a little competition. If Liz Earle is a 10 then Soap and Glory’s a definite 9.

So what do you think? Who’s closing in on the finish line for best cleanser?

Some more hot cloth cleansers hitting the market:

-          Sanctuary Polishing Hot Cloth Cleanser (125ml)

-          Sarah Chapman Skinesis Ultimate Cleanse (100ml)

-          This Works Clean Skin Gentle Cleanser (120ml)

 

Christmas 2012 in Pictures :)

Hello!

So recently a little pre-New Years resolution has been to photograph everything that has made me smile over the Christmas period. I thought I'd quickly share some of the simple things that have put a smile on my face during the last few weeks :) You should know, I've received a few strange looks photographing some of these.

Winter Wonderland in Meltham:

These are just a few snaps of the lights going up in my village, the festive Victorian window in our village flower shop and a few Christmas decorations starting to pop up in the gardens on my road. This has been getting me ready for the festive season.

 Out and About Randomness:

These are some of the things that aren't particularly strange to see buy just made me feel wonderfully nostalgic :) So here's the old style gypsy caravan in the local orchard and a lovely man just playing his accordion. He was very friendly!

Childhood Memories:

The festive period always makes me feel at home and nothing does that better than taking a look through some old photoes. Recently my sister and I have taken to swapping old photoes of ourselves over Facebook, much to the embarrassment of both parties. However, these two aren't so bad and are a good reminder of family love.
So that little blond thing is me, on the left with my lovely Grandad and on the right with my beautiful sister.

 Student Life:

Last but not least a bit of student life. And clearly being at college is all about coffee as these are pictures of some truly cute ones I've enjoyed between classes. That heart is all natural by the way? Talented people at Coffee Evolution. And lastly a quick look at the Clockwork Orange poster up in the English department, just because it's awesome and my college is clearly cool enough to know.

 Have a wonderful Christmas everybody. Next post will be in a few days and I'll be talking all about how to beat those winter blues!

Bye.                

Party Pins

Merry Christmas!

Tis the party season and although shaving (whisper it) is often a bit of a taboo subject we've all looked at that dress that's more air than material and thought 'That's beautiful, I wish I had the legs to pull it off." Well the truth is, you do. A good close shave can turn those everyday things you walk around on to your best accessory and below I'm going to share a few tips on how to get perfect party pins.


1: Good Skin.

If you have a good skin care routine for your face, you're makeup is always going to wear better. Well it's the same for your legs. Good, healthy skin is always a good starting point. No, you don't need to start face masking your legs but there are a few things that you can use long term to keep those legs in ship shape condition. The first is moisturiser. Moisturising regularly improved skin by preventing flaking skin, especially around the knees and ankles that can become quite awkward, and often painful when you start taking a razor over it. Make those skin cells last longer and treat them to a body butter. It's a bit of a cliche but if you like results with a good scent to keep you fresh all day then Bodyshop have nailed it.  The next is toning. So you may not have cellulite just yet, but it's okay to take preventative actions, especially if you're lucky and are sporting a Marilyn Munroe figure. (Most just an excuse to insert a picture of the beautiful lady in question.) There are a lot of firming creams and gels out there but Nip + Fab's Cellulite Fix does exactly what it says on the tin. Apparently.

2: The Razor.

A quick tip is to take your time, don't just pick up the ones being thrust in your face by that sales woman who says, 'This is what I use' when you just know she probably doesn't and it's the most expensive blade on the shelf. Below are three examples. I prefer a mid priced razor. Cheap razors like example 1 rust easily, and usually have a single or double, poor quality blade that cuts you to ribbons. Expensive razors, the Venus Breeze (Example 3) springs to mind, are so overloaded with shave gel bars and other oddities that we don't really need prevent the blades from even getting near the skin. They claim that it's a comfortable shave, and that it may be, but you're still be left with stubble later. Example 2 however won't cost the earth but has the lovely handle, like a Venus, but with three blades that will actually do the job.

3: Scrub.

Skin cells are renewing all the time and it's likely that there are always dead skin cells just waiting to flake off. Gross, I know. However a body scrub, and this doesn't have to be anything special - although I am loving the Clinique Sparkle Skin Body Exfoliator - will leave your skin smooth and prepare for that ultra close shave. Here's the science. Imagine your skin as many layers with hair follicles buried deep below the layers. You shave away any hair above the top layer of skin, but then when you exfoliate and remove that top layer, there's just going to be a layer of stubble left. Moral of the story, always exfoliate your skin before you shave.

4: Tan.
The colour of our skin can often vary over our entire body. Our legs can often differ from our arms, or our neck and if you've found that having your legs covered during the winter months has led to a bit of a pale hue that doesn't quite match up, then you may be reaching for the fake tan bottle. However, an easier way to give legs a non-streaky radiance boost in gradually tanning lotions. These can be found in many different brands with varying degrees of sparkle to give legs that Jennifer Lopez glow, especially under party lights. However, if you are going for an all over fake take then don't forget to moisturise! Without moisturiser your skin will produce excess oils, which oxidises with fake tan and help create that not-so-delicious biscuity smell.


And there you go, four simple tips to getting party pins ready for the festive season. By the way, all of the above work much better with a bubble bath along side.

Happy Holidays.

Gift Voucher Blogger Challenge

Hello My Lovelies.

The Gift Voucher Blogger Challenge is almost over so I know I'm cutting it fine but if there really anything better than a gift voucher! I mean, really?

So here's how it all works. You trawl the internet (I love some internet shopping) and select 5 awesome gifts that you would love to give this Christmas.


Then, giftvoucher.co.uk will select 2 winners. And here's what you can win:

• ASOS Gift Voucher worth £35
• Topshop Gift Card worth £35
• Amazon.co.uk Gift Certificate worth £35
• JolieBox.com 3 Month Subscription
• BooHoo.com £35 Gift Voucher

So here's the catch, each gift must be under £35! Not too hard I don't think, time to get creative.

Competition closes on the 9th November and all you need is a blog and some gift ideas :)


 Lets have a look at my picks: 






My first gift, and I actually want this myself if the 17 Nail Clash Complete Collection.
I think this is a perfect gift for anyone who wants a quick, easy ways to jazz up their manicure. I also worked out that at £20 you really do get a lot more than what you pay for in this se.

 

Next up is probably something I would look at for a best friend. A little quirky but colour blocking is so on trend and I have a feeling it's going to come back with full throttle next summer.It's never too early to get started on your summer wardrobe so I'm going to take full advantage of the Little Mistress sale with this lovely lemon and coral play suit at just £11.40.

To me, Yankee Candle's are that gift that when you get it, you know it's cost money and I always feel like the person that's bought the gift has really put some thought into the scent they choose for you. However just receiving a candle alone can be a bit boring. That's why I love the Yankee Candle trays and shades. A small tray, shade and candle will come in at £24.69 exactly and look so adorable. I personally love the Vintage Blue Floral  shade.





I've recently become a big fan of the knuckleduster clutch bags that are all over the market at the
moment. It's a fantastic way to instantly get four rings on your hand without looking ridiculous and keep a firm hold on your bag. I know that this one from Missguided is on my Christmas list and come in way under budget at the affordable price of £25.99.




My last, and final gift is a piece of jewellery is something I bought a very long time ago for my Mom and I would love to buy again. It's such a lovely idea and the end result is very cute. For £24.99 you receive a silver cage pendant, and a shell containing a pearl. Each colour symbolises something different and it's from.... drum roll, Argos!




So if you want to get in on the action just head over to Giftvoucher.co.uk here: Click me!


Bye Addicts!