FOTD #2

Hi everyone, I have another FOTD post for you today. I wanted a soft smokey eye for the day time with a pinky nude lip. Here are the products I used...

Complexion:

The PoreFessional- Benefit

Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation mixed with Loreal True Match

Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer (undereyes, forehead, nose, cupids bow and chin)

Collection Loose Powder (Translucent)

Bourjois Chocolate Bronzer (to contour)

Rimmel Good To Glow (cheek bones, forehead, nose, cupids bow and chin)

Bourjois Chocolate Highlighter (cheek bones, forehead, nose, cupids bow and chin)

Pink Cult Blush-MAC

Anastasia Beverley Hills Dip Brow Pomade-Taupe

Rimmel Brow This Way-Blonde

Eyes:

Primer Potion- Urban Decay in Sin

Buck- Urban Decay (crease)

Suspect-UD (lid)

Busted- UD (crease, outer corner and smoked under the eye)

Blackout- UD (to line the base of the lashes)

Vanilla- MAC (brow highlight)

Rimmel Extra 3D Lash Mascara

Lips:

Angel- MAC

And there you have everything that is on my face!

What are you favourite products for a day time smokey eye?

Hair Growth with Lee Stafford.

If you've been reading my blog for a while you'll know that last summer I cut off about 15 inches of my hair and emerged from the salon with a relatively short A line bob, which I absolutely loved. It's was short, it was light and it was quick to dry. This was a major relief after having hair past my waist that was long and thick and would just take ages to do anything with.

A year on, the moment of "I miss my long hair" has finally hit and the time to re-grow my locks is upon me. I'm the kind of person that goes from loving something to loathing it really quickly...Which means that I'm also quite impatient, so I'm doing everything I can to grow my hair out as quickly as possible. I should mention that my hair has actually already grown a fair bit. It's somewhere between my shoulders and my boobs, so it's already long, just no where near long enough.

That where the Lee Stafford Treatment For Hair That Never Grows Past A Certain Length comes in.

Here is a picture of my hair before I started using the treatment:

I will do an update post when I've finished the treatment, so you can see the full extent of the growth, but for now I can report that it seems to be working!

The treatment itself retails for between £8 and £9 but I managed to pick up two for £10 at Boots, so keep an eye on their offers. I've already used up one tub, and got about 7-8 applications out of it. I used a palm full of the product, worked it all around my hairline, massaged it into my scalp and then worked what was left down the mid-shaft and ends of my hair. I then leave the product on for 5 minutes and rinse out. I should add, you do this step after shampooing and before conditioning.

Like I said earlier I have already noticed a difference, but I'm going to continue with the treatment and see how much progress has occurred once I finish up the second tub.

Do you know of any great hair growth products?

A peek inside the September Glossy Box

 

The September Glossy Box landed on my doorstep this morning so I thought I'd go ahead and show you what's inside. Obviously I havent had a chance to actually use the products yet, so keep your eyes peeled in the next few weeks for an in depth review.

This months box is the style edition, perfectly timed with London Fashion Week, so it promised to be a good box...Here's what's inside....

Bellapierre Shimmer Powder (£12.99)- This is a loose eyeshadow in the shade Whesek (I think). It's a great gunmental grey colour which will work really nicely as a wash of colour all of the lid or really built up for a smokey look. I'm looking froward to trying this out.

To go along with the eyeshadow we have the Eyeshadow Brush Pro from Marsk (£16.70)- This is a synthetic flat shading brush. I'm probably more likely to use this for concealer, as I prefer rounder blending brushes for my eyeshadow, but the quality of the brush feels lovely.

Maria Nila Luminous Colour Masque (£18.95)- This is a super thick hair masque, especially designed for coloured hair. It's sulphate and paraben free AND it's 100% vegan which is super difficult to find in hair products. I've heard good things about this brand so I can't wait to slather this on my hair.

Invisibobble Traceless Hair Ring (£4.00)- Glossybox have included three of these. They are essentially hair bobbles but in a spiral design to optimise hold but also protect the hair. Not the pretties but promises to be gentle on the hair. They're more expensive than your regular hair ties, but I'll give them a go.

The final product is a Nails Inc nail polish in the shade Battersea Park (£11). This is a straight up khaki nail colour. Khaki is a colour that I'm completely in love with at the moment, however, it wouldn't be my first choice for a nail shade. But, actually seeing this is the flesh has kind of changed my mind. I'll be trying this on my nails today so I'll feature it in a Mani Monday soon and let you know my thoughts on it.

And there we have the September Glossy Box. What do you think?

University Essentials/ What to Take to University.

As the time to pack up home and head off to university approaches for a lot of young people up and down the country, I thought I'd share my advice and compile a list of all of the essentials, plus a few extra bits that you'll need for university. No matter how organised you might think you are, there are bound to be things that you will forget. So here's my guide to what to take with you.... P.S I can't quite believe it's been a whole year since I moved to uni for the first time...scary how quickly time passes by!

• Bedding- Duvet, Pillows & Sheets
• Laundry Basket/ Bag + Things for washing
• Shower Caddy/ Something to carry to the bathrooms ( if you have to share)
• Slippers
• Door stop
• Snacks
• Laptop/Desktop and Stationary
• Earplugs 
• Alarm clock
• Kitchen bits (if you're in self-catered accommodation) 
• Towels
• Paperwork that you may need for registration
• ID
• Headphones
• Printer (not necessarily an essential, but handy to have)
• Medication and Plasters 
• Extension leads (there are NEVER enough plugs)

Of course you'll also need clothes as well! Uni rooms are usually pretty small so I would suggest taking clothes that are appropriate for the season. You'll most likely go home at Christmas and Easter, ans maybe in between if your uni is close to home, so you can swap clothes around then.

A few non-essential items I'd suggest are photos of friends and family, posters, fairy lights (if allowed) and maybe your favourite DVDs or books to keep you entertained when you want a quiet night in.

Is there anything else you can think of?

Home Made Chocolate Brownies

You know how this goes by now... I had a craving for something, took to the internet to find a recipe and then I made it. The result was super yummy, dense, chocolatey brownies that are just amazing. I thought I share the recipe with you all!

You will need:

3/4 cup of flour

1 1/2 cup of sugar

3/4  cup of cocoa powder

3/4 cup of butter (melted)

1/2 cup of chocolate

3 eggs

Icing sugar

Method:

Combine the flour, sugar and cocoa powder together in a bowl. Mix it all together.

Once mixed, add the melted butter and stir.

When you have a gloopy texture add the three eggs and work them into the mixture.

Chop half a cup of chocolate of your choice (or use choc chips.) Throw these in the batter and mix together.

Pour the mixture into a baking tray lined with baking parchment.

Bake for 20-30 at 165 degrees (325 F).

Pop a knife or cocktail stick in the centre to check it is cooked (this should come out clean.)

Tip out of the baking tray and leave to cool.

Once cooled, cut the brownies into squares. Dust with a little icing sugar and serve!

These brownies are super easy to make, don't require many ingredients are are so so tasty! 

What's your favourite sweet treat?

August Glossy Box

I'm brand new to the world of subscription boxes, so you may already be fed up of hearing what everyone is getting every month, but I wanted to share my box with you as I think there are some interesting products in there. This wont be a review at all as I've barely tried anything yet, I'm literally just sharing with you what I've received.

Manna Kadar Conditioning Lash Primer- A classic white lash primer. I've used this a few times so far and I really like it!

Mememe Lip Glide- This is one of those chubby lip pencil type products. This month's colour is a matte coral. Whilst the shade isn't really my thing, I really like the texture of the product.

Emite Colour Blush- This is a pro Swedish brand- the quality seems great and this is a full size product. Very impressed.

Noabay Cleansing Face Toner- Totally organic, super fresh and kind to skin. You can't go wrong with a great toner.

Sass Purifying Cleanser- This is branded as an "intimate cleanser". May not be your thing but give it a go, you might enjoy it!

August Favourites

Hello and welcome back to my monthly favourites! I missed out on doing this post last month due to illness and moving house, so as well as August favourites I'm also throwing in a few of my favourites from July too!

First up is the cult classic, Nuxe Reve de Miel. It's a super thick lip balm, packed with good stuff and it smells like oranges. I held off buying this for a while as it retails for around £9 in the UK depending on where you get it from...I thought that it was silly to spend that much on a lip balm, but honestly it's totally worth it. The glass jar also gives it an added luxe feel and it thoroughly hydrates the lips leaving them plump and chap free.

Next up is the Good to Glow liquid illuminator from Rimmel. I've really been in to highlighting over the past few months so I thought I'd give a liquid formula a go. You can either apply this under makeup, on top of it, or mix it in to your foundation for a really glowy finish. I like to take a small amount and tap it over my cheek bones once I've finished my based. It's subtle and leaves a really healthy glow on the skin.

Another complexion favourite this month is the MAC blush in Pink Cult. It's a cool toned matte pink blush that just goes with everything and it lasts for ages on the skin. As always with MAC check products it has a great texture to it and blends seamlessly.

Moving on to eyes...I'm a big lover of liquid liner, but I tend to stick to black- it's a bit of a staple in my makeup bag. However I thought I branch out into the world of colour and picked up the Collection Extreme 24 Hour Felt Tip Liner in Purple. I've used the Collection liner before in black so I knew the quality and staying power was good. The purple isn't immediately noticeable as it's a dark purple, but it just adds a little something to your everyday look. 

Another favourite for the eyes in an old favourite of mine..the Clinique High Impact Mascara. I havent had it in ages so it's really nice to use it again. It gives the perfect amount of lift and fullness to the lash, is really black and stays on all day.

L'Oreal have recently launched a new range of lip glosses to replace the old Glam Shine range (which I really loved), so I picked out a nude to check out the formula. I went for the cream formula in shade 103 Protest Queen. It's basically the perfect creamy nude gloss...great worn on it's own or layered over other products. It's not too sticky and actually lasts pretty well on the lips.

I have two nails favourites and they're both from Essie. Fiji is a summer staple as it's just so classic and instantly makes me feel tanned. A newer addition is Salt Water Happy, which has been released as part of the limited edition summer collection. It's the perfect pale cornflour blue and I absolutely love it. I've been looking for a cornflour blue for ages and Essie have got it just right.

My final favourite is a new fragrance...You'll have all seen that the Body Shop have been killing it recently with their new launches; the Spa of the World Collection and the new fragrance line. Well, everyones been going mad about the Fig fragrance so I popped into a store to give it a sniff. But it was actually the Indian Night Jasmine scent that got me. It's kind of difficult to describe, but it's a woody oriental fragrance with some serious depth to it. Honestly it just smells amazing & I've had many compliments when I've been wearing it, so i'd highly suggest that you go and check it out!!

And there we have my favourite from July/ August! What products have you been loving over the summer months?

My University Room- Year One

Leading on from my First Year Round Up and my Uni Essentials list, I thought I'd show you around my first year room. I lived in catered halls about a mile away from my university. You could walk in on a nice day, but we were all given free buses as the buses would go by every five minutes or so. There were around 198 (I think) rooms in my Hall, though not all of them were occupied, so it was a pretty small place. All of our meals were served in the dining hall which was opposite my room (I lived in a quad). Out of all of the accommodation options at my university this particular option was the most traditional style- housed in a beautiful country house with a lake, the old fashioned dining hall and our own library, there was also a junior and senior common room, a music room, tv room and a games room. We also had three different formals throughout the year. 

So on to the room itself, I was on a downstairs corridor (no stairs when coming home from a night out was ace). My room had a single bed, a desk, bookshelf, bedside table, large wardrobe with lockable cupboard up top, a sink and a mirror. This was classed as a medium room, though I actually found it to be far bigger than I was expecting. All in all it was the perfect place for my first year of uni and I really enjoyed living there!

I'm now house sharing with three other girls, so will do a post sometime soon about my accommodation for my second year of uni.

I hope you've enjoyed this insight into my first year room & please feel free to ask any questions!

Product Rave: Lush Bubblegum Lip Scrub

Welcome back to my second instalment of my Product Rave series. Today I'm talking about the wonderous little product that is the Lush Bubblegum Lip Scrub. Everyone that has tried it loves it, because it works so well and is so easy to use. 

The lip scrub comes in a few different flavours including Mint Juleps and Popcorn, but I decided to go for the Bubblegum flavour. I scoop out a little bit of the scrub, pop it on to my lips, rub my lips together and then use my finger to really scrub the product into my lips. I finish up my rinsing my mouth area with cool water to wash it off. 

My lips are left super smooth and ready for any lip product, no matter how drying. I'll definitely be continuing to use this! 

Product Rave: Liz Earle Eye Bright Soothing Eye Lotion

I had this product in my stash for a while before I actually used it. I found the name to be a little confusing..What was this actually for? A few times after a long day at uni or after a bit too much laptop time I'd soak a few cotton pads in the stuff and let that sit over closed eyes for a few minutes and that felt great, but I was sure there was a better use for the product. So I tried it as an eye make up remover. And that's when I really fell in love.

The scent is uber soothing as it's so herby and fresh and I'm not sure why, but this liquid always seems to be really cold, no matter where I keep it in the house, so it's super refreshing on the eyes. I just soak a cotton pad and leave it on my eye for a few seconds and that pretty much gets everything off. Another quick few swipes around the lashes and my eyes are totally clear.

What I especially love about this product is that it gets everything off without leaving an oil behind. My lids feel totally clean and I don't wake up with eyeliner or mascara still on my eyes in the morning!

Have you tried Eye Bright? What's your favourite eye makeup remover?

I'm baaaaack (Again)

So yes I know, recently I've been on and off a little with the blog, but I have good reasons I assure you! In the last few weeks I've been as sick as a dog AND moving out, so it's all be tres stressful and mad. But now all is calm and settled and I finally have time to sit at my new desk, in my new room, in my new house (how fancy!) to catch up with you lovely bunch and fill you in on the beauty/fashion/lifestyle bits that I've been loving whilst I've been MIA.

Speak soon.....

Product Rave: Model Co Eye Liner

I'm back with another product rave! Today the product I'm telling you about it the Model Co Black Eye Pencil- a classic black pencil eye liner. It's really pigmented, super easy to apply and doesn't smudge. It also still has that slightly creamy powder texture to it, rather than the even creamier gel formulations such as the Rimmel Scandal Eyes liners, which can get a bit too smudgey if you arent careful.

I've been enjoying using this as an altervative to liquid liner. I use the pencil to tight line my upper lash line which makes them look thicker and darker than they actually are. I then draw the tiniest wing at the end of my lash line, which gives a subtle but defined effect. Great if you aren't very confident with liquid liner or find that is is too harsh for you!

The eye liner itself retails as £14, so it is more of a premium product, but I think it's great value for money. 

University. Year One: The Round Up

If you've been reading my blog for a while, last summer around this time I talked to you about my A Levels and how I'd be moving on to university to study Law. Well, a year on I'm at the end of my first year of uni, having achieved a 2:1, so I thought I'd give you a bit a round up of the last year (similarly to my A Level Experience post, which you can find here.)

Law is an extremely popular subject to study in the UK, as I'm sure it is across the rest of the globe. It's challenging and difficult, but also extremely interesting and rewarding. Overall, I really enjoyed my first year. Some of it was really easy, and some of it I thought I'd never understand, but I got there in the end! It's the kind of thing that you really need to be passionate about...This passion will make the fun things more fun and the boring things bearable!

I'll try and talk about this in some kind of order, so we'll start with Semester 1, then move on to Semester 2, then briefly talk about Semester 3 (the exam period). So, during each teaching semester (1&2) I studied 4 modules, I believe this is the same at most English universities. For Semester 1 I studied Criminal Law, Contract Law, Legal Systems & Method and finally, Skills for Law. Both Criminal and Legal Systems were “short-fat” modules, meaning that they are taught just for one semester, whilst Contract and Skills were “long-thin” modules, meaning that they were taught over the period of two semesters.

For me, Criminal law was by far the most interesting module I studied in this last year. Perhaps because it was related to the things that people usually think of when someone talks about the law, such as theft, abuse and even murder. Whilst there is a lot of detail to be covered in Criminal law, once you get it, it's actually pretty straight forward, and simple to apply. At my university, Criminal Law was assessed with a 3 hour exam at the end of semester 1 which included multiple choice questions, problem questions (where you are faced with a scenario) and an essay question, where you are asked to debate or explain a point of law.

Legal Systems and Method was far more theory based and looked at the evolution of law and how it fits into society. It predominantly focused on Karl Llewellyn's theory of law jobs, so if you're looking to go and study law at some point in the future I'd grab a book on Llewellyn as his name always pops up! This module was assessed by a written piece which was around 5000 words long- I know that sounds mammoth, but it's split between two questions, and you'd be surprised at how much you have to say!

Moving on to Contract Law and Skills for Law. Contract, as you can imagine was hugely detailed. You look at everything from the formation of a contract to dissolving a contract and damages. Definitely extremely interesting if you allow yourself to be motivated by the subject matter, but it's easy to fall behind if you don't keep up, so make sure you do! Contract law was predominantly taught in S1, with around 4 weeks of teaching in S2, with the rest of the semester being allocated to completing the written assignment, which was a 5000 word piece, collected at the end of S2.

Skills focused on the research skills necessary for studying law- the practical things such as how to find relevant cases and how to cite them in academic papers. Not very interesting at all but completely crucial! 20% of the module mark came from an online quiz which tested your ability to use your legal skills whilst the remaining 80% came from a written assignment on an abstract matter, which focused on highlighting your legal research skills. Both of these were at the end of Semester 2.

Semester 1 over and done with, now on to Semester 2! As I previously mentioned two of my Semester 1 modules ran through to Semester 2, but I also picked up 2 new modules. Those being Public Law and the Constitution and Values and Law.

Public Law focused on the creation of law, why we need it and how the Constitution was created and is relevant to the law. It covers a lot of ground, is extremely fast paced, and honestly, is pretty difficult. What I would say is that if you have a sound humanities base from your A Levels, such as Politics or History, this will help a lot! Do not underestimate this module, it is tricky, highly detailed and is merely a taster of what is to come in your second year, so beware! 30% of this module mark came from an assignment, which was around 2500 words, whilst the other 70% came from a 2 hour exam at the end of S2.

And finally...Values and Law. As far as I am aware, this was an abstract module developed at my university which allowed us to focus on how the law really works in society in matters such as equality between genders and crime and punishment, it also looks at philosophical approaches as to why people are treated in certain ways. This enabled you to challenge what you thought was right and wrong with existing law and helped to understand why it is so. This was also entirely assessed by a 5000 word assignment at the end of S2.

So all in all, my first year consisted of 2 examinations, 4 written assignments and 1 online quiz.

It was tough. I really think it's important for prospective law students to understand that your first year is by no means a practice year that doesn't matter. It is extremely important as it lays the foundations for future years of academic study, and a lot of the core material that you're taught in your first year is absolutely essential for understanding future material!

Now that I've scared you all to death can I just say good luck to everyone that is waiting on A Level results (or any other exam results across the globe). University is one of the best experiences you can have and I wouldn't change my first year at all!

I know this post has been very  focused on the academic side of things, but I will be doing another Round Up post, focusing more on the social side of uni, which is probably what you're really excited/nervous/scared of!

Speak soon....

Current Hair Care Routine

Recently I've been playing around with the colour of my hair. Until recently I've never dyed my hair so it was a new experience for me and my hair, which has never been subject to real damage just a little bit of straightener over use in my early teens. So with my newly coloured hair I had to devise a new hair care routine that would keep my hair smooth and manageable and always optimise my colour and care for it maintaining it's vibrancy and colour. I've been trying out loads and loads of hair products in the last 6 months or so, and I'm finally happy with the products I'm currently using. So here they are!

Shampoo& Conditioner

This is going to sound majorly excessive, but I'm currently using three different shampoos and conditioners. I now...crazy. I currently only wash my hair about every four days...First day I'll wear it down and straight, second day will be wavy (using a no-heat method), third day and fourth day will be worn in a bun with a heck of a lot of dry shampoo. I do this to allow my hair to repair itself after the ordeal of being coloured. I've also noticed that my hair is growing VERY quickly as a result of not washing it too much! So, back to the shampoos and conditioners.

The one for coloured hair: TRESemme Colour Vibrance Protection Shampoo and Conditioner. This really conditions and nourishes the hair, as well as reaaally washing it. I grab this one when my hair is exceptionally greasy.

The one for dry hair: Dove Advanced Hair Series Pure Care Dry Oil Shampoo and Conditioner. This is a lovely range, and also very gentle on the hair. Probably more suited to hair that is washed every other day, or every three days, as this might have difficulty pushing through serious grease. It leaves a really rich, luxurious scent on the hair and cleanses it really nicely. This one is also great for restoring shine.

The one to give you texture:John Frieda Beach Blonde Cool Dip Purifying Shampoo and Smooth Seas Detangling Conditioner. This is a proper summer combo, great for beachy hair. It smells of mint which is really fresh and tingly on the scalp, clarifies the hair but still gives you great manageability. This one is also great for those times when you want to style first day hair, as it gives you a bit of grit and beachy texture for the style to hold on to.

The one for brassiness: John Frieda Colour Renew Tone Correcting Shampoo. This is a little extra, for any colour treated blondes out there. Every now and again when I feel like I need a bit of toning, I do one rinse of this shampoo as it just clears out any brassiness that is sitting on the hair. It also cleans the hair really well, which purple shampoos don't really tend to do.

Masks& Treatments

I think it's really important to treat your hair now and again, just to give it an extra boost of something. Think about it, you'd use face masks and olis and serums to nourish your face, so why not do the same for your hair? I have a few masks that I currently use for my hair and a couple of oils too. First up is the John Frieda Go Blonder Deep Conditoner. This won't actually change the colour of your hair, it's just part of their Go Blonder range, which is infused with camomile, a natural blonde optimiser. So, you can either use this one on wet hair, in place of your regular conditioner, or use it on dry hair (which is what I tend to do). About 20 minutes before I wash my hair, I cover my lengths and ends in this conditioner and let it sit on the hair. I then rinse it out, and continue washing as normal. It really makes a noticable difference to the condition of my hair, making it stronger and smoother. Other products that are great for this are the conditioners that come with box dyes. They are super nourishing, and usually smell pretty darn good too!

A further step I take to nourish my hair is putting a little bit of a an oil through my lengths before bed. I brush my hair hair, take about a pump of a hair oil, work it through the hair then pop it in a braid or a bun. This ensures that your ends get nourished, as the oils from the scalp don't often get down to the very ends. Two oils I really like are the L'Oreal Professionnel Mythic Oil and the more budget friendly Schwarzkopf Got2B Oil-licious Styling Oil.

Styling Products and Tools

Using thin layers of different products really helps to protect your hair from all sorts of damage. I start my spritzing the Aussie Miracle Hair Insurance all through my lengths, the I comb my hair through with a wide tooth comb. I then use some sort of styling lotion, at the moment I'm switching between the Galvin&Galvin Oh! Organic Head Heat Defence & Shine Spray and the Schwarzkopf Got2B Mind Blowing Xpress Dry Styling Spray. Both of these protect the hair from heat, restore shine and do a bit of extra detangling if you need it.

If I'm really treating my hair, I'll also pop a little bit of oil through the ends, pre-blow dry.

Finishing Products

I'd class something as a finishing product when it's used on dry hair that's just been styled. So here are my favourites: The VO5 Smoothly Does It Tame & Shine Spray. This is a really light mist that gives you hair a subtle sheen. Great for finishing off up-dos! The Charles Worthington Volume & Bounce Texturising Spray- the affordable Oribe Dry Texturising Spray dupe, with even better lasting power. Lee Stafford's Messed Up putty is great for short to shoulder length hair for really ruffling up curls and choppy layers to give you even more texture and volume. My hair spray of choice at the moment is the TRESemme Ultimate Hold Salon Touchable Ultra Fine Hairspray. Does what it says on the tin....it's super light weight, brushes straight out, but really holds your style in place. And finally....my dry shampoo of choice (because every girl has to have one) is the Batiste Dry Shampoo in the Blush fragrance. It leaves my hair feeling clean and refreshed, and doesn't break the bank.

Extra Tips

Finally, I thought I'd leave you with a couple of tips that I've learn along the way for healthy hair.

Get a trim every six to eight weeks.

Use nourishing treatments.

Sleep with your hair down, or in a loose style. Anything too tight stops your hair from growing and can cause breakage.

Wash your hair as little as possible. If you wash every day, try washing every other day. If you can go two, try going three days without!

Leave you hair in a towel for at least 15 minutes after washing. This allows a lot of the moisture to be soaked up and means that your hair won't get so damaged when you comb in through.

Use a wide tooth comb on wet hair. Wet hair stretches, the wider the comb, the less chance of damage!

And there you have my mammoth post all about my hair care routine. It really isn't as long winded as it sounds and in time you'll find yourself fitting it to your own routine, depending on what suits you and your hair type.

What are you favourite hair products? Do you have any helpful hair tips?

My new bag.

I wouldn't really say that I was in the market for a new bag, however, after coming home for the summer due to finishing uni for the year I've been having routine clear outs of all the crap that I've managed to accumulate at home. This involved throwing LOADS of stuff away, including several bags that I'd either not used in yonks or were seriously out of date fashion wise. I always used to be a big bag kinda gal. It must be some sort of security blanket thing- I was safe in the knowledge that I had EVERYTHING that I might need at some point. Of course this was killing my shoulders and back, so recently I've been reaching for smaller shoulder bags that can also be used as clutches. Going through my collection I had a couple of black bags that suited this description and a tatty old tan one. Into the bin the tan one went and then I stumbled across this little cobalt blue beauty. Non my usual choice of colour for a bag, but I though a pop of colour would be great seeing as my wardrobe is predominantly monochrome.

I had actually spotted this bag a while back but for one reason or another didn't go for it. But then I found it in the sale...Knocked down from the original price of £20 to to just £5. With a Channel-esque double flap design and not-too-long shoulder strap I decided it would be coming home with me. What's even better is that when I got to the till it transpired that I was also able to get student discount, bring my brand new bag down to the fab price of £4.50. I couldn't say no!

What do you think of brightly coloured bags? I'll be doing a What's in My Bag post soon, so keep your eyes peeled!

What's in my makeup bag?

As with all beauty bloggers, collectors and general make up hoarders, I have a giant stash of beauty products. It's really not practical to be rifling through a zillion products on a daily basis before I finally decide what to put on my face. Instead, I keep the products that Im currently loving in a trusty makeup bag which sits on top of my desk/dressing table. Every few weeks or so I change things up in there depending on season and my mood, but I'm currently really happy with the contents of my make up bag, so I thought I'd share it with you all. Let's dive in. 

The Bag

A pretty floral offering from Clinique a few years back. I do own a lovely Lulu Guinness makeup bag however, due to the shape of the compartments, it's just too small for a few days away. It would probably work for an overnight jobby though!

Base

My primer of choice at the moment is the Pore Fessional from Benefit (because it's wonderful.) I have two foundations so I can switch up what I want from my skin. A full coverage and long lasting option comes in the form of the L'Oreal Infallible 24H-Matte Foundation in 11 Vanilla. A lighter and more radiant formula can be found in the Rimmel Match Perfection Light Perfecting Radiance Foundation in 100 Ivory. 3 concealers at the moment: L'Oreal True Match (2 Vanilla), for highlighting the under eye area, Erase Paste (No.1 Fair) from Benefit for covering pesky under eye bags and the Mac Studio Finish Concealer in NW20 for any blemishes or scars on my face.

My current powder is the L'Oreal True Match which is great for setting makeup and touch ups throughout the day as it's non cakey and really finely milled.The shade C2 Rose Vanilla has a slight hint of coverage too which is great for when your makeup starts to disappear half way through the day.

Brows

I'm really in to my brows at the moment so I have more products than I usually would, but I find that these three work really well together. First up is the Soap and Glory Brow Archery Pencil in Blondeshell. Then comes the powder from the Benefit BrowZings in Light, then I finish up with a slick of the Rimmel Brow This Way gel in 001 Blonde to set my brows in place.

Complexion

This is super compact thanks to the perfect face pallete that is the Sleek Face Form Palette in Light. I use the matte bronzing shade to contour and add some colour to my face, a dab of the rose goldy blush on my cheeks, then a swish of the highlighter on my cheek bones and down the bridge of my nose.

Eyes

I actually don't keep too many eye products in my beauty bag..The majority of the stuff I use on my eyes comes in palette form and sits on top of my desk (but more about that in a minute). In the bag itself, we have two cream shadows in the form of the Maybelline 24HR Color Tattoos. I have the shade Pink Gold, which is a really pretty mix between rose gold and baby pink. It gives the prettiest rose wash on the lids, great on it's own or under shadows. I also have the shade Vintage Plum, which is a gorgeous taupe-y plum colour. Next up in a tiny little quad from Estee Lauder, which is super compact but has some great colours in it. Insides we have Sugar Cube, a sheeny white, Iridescent Violet, a shimmery taupe-y plum shade, very similar to the Maybelline Color Tattoo. On the bottom we've got Lilac Whimsy, a pink toned lilac and Purple Passion, a true matte purple. These shadows are great on their own just for a wash of colour, but in particular I'm enjoying the combination of Maybelline's Vintage Plum and and Iridescent Violet from Estee Lauder, for a slightly softer smokey eye. 

I have two eye liners; the Model Co Black Eye Pencil, which is just the perfect black pencil eye liner and the Rimmel Glam Eye Liquid Liner (Black) which is my go-to for a cat eye. My current mascara of choice is the Maybelline Lash Sensational. It separates, gives volume and has the staying power of a waterproof mascara.

I also keep all three Naked Palettes from Urband Decay on my dressing table because they're wonderful and I can create any look I want from theses palettes.

Lips

And finally, lips!! It's only now I'm realising just how overboard I've gone in the lipstick department, but hey ho, I'm keeping it real! First up in the Rimmel Lip Liner in East End Snob (the perfect nude & Charlotte Tilbury Pillow Talk Lip Cheat dupe). Next I have four lipsticks: MUA Lipstick in shade 15 Juicy. The is a really peachy pink nude. Then we have the Revlond ColourBurst Lip Balm in Demure- another peachy pink (more on the pink side with a bit of shimmer), my current favourite nude comes in the form of YSL's Rouge Volupte in 01 Nude Beige. SO PRETTY. If I want a pop of colour I'll go for the Rimmel Kate Moss Lipstick in 01. I have two glosses; Model Co's Strip Tease a sheer nude with blue toned simmer and Clinique's Long Last Glosswear in Air Kiss. My final lip product is the Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet in Don't Pink of It, which is gorgeous, I need to get more shades!!

So there you have my current makeup bag. I know there are quite a lot of products here, but I do like to have the freedom to switch up my makeup daily as I'm not the sort of person to stick to one everyday make up look. I also like to actually use my makeup seeing as I have so much of it! What are your makeup bag staples?