Spring Wishlist

1. YSL Volupte Shine Lipstick in "Pink in Paris" £24 / 2. Cobalt Blue Work Wedge Shoes, New Look £17.99 / 3. Green Speckle Skater Skirt, Topshop £16 / 4. Urban Bliss Twitter Print Sweater, New Look, £16.99 / 5. Scenic Print Clutch, Dorothy Perkins £22  / 6. Lip Crayon in "Secret Party", Topshop £7 / 7. Lancome Hynose Drama Mascara £22

With any hope, springtime may start anytime in the next four to five months. Bloody weather. As a slightly "curvy" girl I tend to wear darker colours to cover my shape but this year I am determined to add more colour into my wardrobe, and with my new job starting next week, it's a perfect excuse to revamp my look.

1. Everyone and their wife seems to be investing in the latest YSL Volupte Shine Lipsticks at the moment; a sheer coverage in a range of colours are all perfect for spring. 

2. I tend to buy high heels and then cry from crippling pain after 20 minutes of wearing them, so this spring I plan to purchase some more comfortable and wearable heels for work. These cobalt blue mid height wedges are perfect for trapsing around London and running around a busy office (but can be worn on the weekends too).

3. Skater skirts have always caught my eye and this teal coloured skirt from Topshop is no exception. A steal at £16, it can be dressed down for a day at home or paired with tights and black suede boots for work.

4. This candy pink jumper from New Look makes my inner Twitter queen squeal with joy. It's amazing. Enough said.

5. I cannot get enough of this gorgeous scenic clutch. A little bit pricier than what I would spend on a going-out bag, but the colours are gorgeous and has an attached chain so I can wear it over my shoulder.

6. The Topshop lip crayons are all gorgeous colours. Although white makeup packaging is one of my pet peeves, Topshop is completely forgiven because all of their lip products are deeply pigmented and come in the best shades.

7. Finally, this has to be one of my favourite mascaras of all time. This summer I am loving flushed cheeks, bold lips and big lashes with minimal eyeliner and/or eyeshadow. The Lancome Hypnose Drama never fails to deliver, never dries out and gives my lashes a life of their own. A definite must.

What do you want this spring? :)

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Easter Nails

Barry M nail paints, £2.99 each

17 Lasting Fix nail polish £2.99 

Happy Easter everyone!

Beauty bloggers and fanatics love to use the holidays as an opportunity to combine colours and create looks suitable for that time of year, and Easter is no exception.

Although the weather seems to think it's being funny by making it snow in March and April, the pastel nail polishes are still going to dust themselves off and make an appearance this weekend, to celebrate the possible arrival of spring time, and the definite arrival of easter eggs!

I find that for fun colours, it's always better to opt for drug store polishes. Barry M never fail to deliver in this category, with what seems like hundreds of colours to choose from. For my easter nail colours I used Barry M "Berry" (the lilac colour) and "Blue Moon" (the pale blue colour, obviously). Teamed with 17's "Fairy Cake" (the bright pink in the middle), the trio of colours are fun and happy spring colours, but are still wearable (as opposed to yellow and green polishes which really do not tickle my fancy).

I was particularly surprised by the thick formula of the 17 polish, and expected it to be very opaque and paler than how it appears in the bottle, but this was my favourite polish of the three, delivering a quick drying and no-chip coverage.

What are your favourite colours for Spring? :) 

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Lee Stafford Breaking Hair Leave in Treatment

Lee Stafford Breaking Hair Leave In Treatment, £7.99 from Boots

Mid to long hair. Dyed 2-3 times a year. Blow-dried and straightened three times a week. This is my hair for the past ten years, so it's no surprise that it's not in the greatest condition.

I am always on the lookout for moisturising and repairing hair care products that can bring my hair back to life so I couldn't resist the latest release from Lee Stafford.

This leave in treatment has worked wonders for my dry and damaged ends. Even after just a few uses I can already feel the length of my hair coming back to life! The instructions suggested that I put a "brazil nut" sized dollop of product into my hands (I'm not going to lie...I had to Google brazil nut), run the treatment through the mid length and ends of my hair after towel drying, and then brush through and style as usual. It made my hair instantly smoother and easier to brush, and my hair felt silkier and stronger after just one use. The consistency of the treatment is thinner than I thought it would be, but this actually bodes well for my greasy/dry/damaged/stupid hair type, as I dread product build up and that thick, gloopy product feeling.

The product doesn't have its trademark Lee Stafford scent, but it does have the added Jojoba Oil which does smell great and gives my hair a much needed drink. Severely damaged hair can use this product after every hair wash but I have decided to save this product for my Sunday night pamper - a night where I only use my holy grail products ;-)

What are your favourite Lee Stafford products? 

The Valentine's Look

While Valentines day is hated by many, it's also a great day to force your boyfriend to buy you overpriced roses and massive heart shaped boxes of chocolates. The least you can do in return is look gorgeous for him when he takes you out for an expensive meal that he doesn't even really want to attend.

While hunting through my makeup stash for a simple yet slightly dramatic look for an evening out, I came across a MAC eyeshadow quad that had all the perfect colours for a romantic Valentines look. They're outlandish, but not too dark. Shimmery, but not glittery. MAC's Naked Lunch, Paradisco, Star Violet and Hepcat can all create an easy-to-do, romantic look without looking too plastered or vampy. Teamed with a flick of liquid eyeliner (my all time favourite is myface.cosmetics slinky liquid eyeliner), some natural looking lashes and a slick of clear lipgloss, your face will be food-proof and snog-proof for the night!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Cream Eyeshadows - Hit or Miss?

Cream eye shadows have become increasingly popular over the past 12 months. As someone who prefers to use brushes for all makeup application, I was skeptical of sticking my fingers in pots of coloured cream and rubbing it willy nilly all over my eyes.

When the Maybelline Colour Tattoo range came out though, I began to sway. The word "tattoo" really got me thinking "could a wet cream really stay longer on my lids than a dry powder?" On and On Bronze is my favourite colour of the bunch, producing a warm coppery tone infused with gold shimmer, perfect with almost any eye colour. The formula truly is long lasting and not too hard to blend with fingers or a brush. Additionally, the amount of product in the pot is insane compared to the amount that you would get in a powder shadow.

The Benefit Creaseless creams are another favourite but apparently they are being discontinued which is so annoying! A little more on the pricey side but there are definitely an array of great colours, again with a great formula and consistency.

The downsides are that they are probably more unhygienic to use - sticking your dirty fingers in them over and over can create a battlefield of germs in the pots. Additionally, creamy makeup products have a shorter lifespan than powder products do, so even if you do get more product in the pot than a powder, you'd have to use it pretty frequently to really get your money's worth. 

At the end of the day, I think powder eyeshadows remain at the top of my list. I'm not as hesitant to buy them as I was before, but I prefer to use these creams as a base for a powder shadow, rather than using them on their own. 

What are your thoughts?

The Perfect Flick

Renowned for being one of the most famous and timeless makeup looks ever, the black eyeliner flick will suit almost any eye shape and can completely transform any makeup look. The only problem with the flick is that with even the slightest motion, it can go oh so terribly wrong. From a wobbly hand, to a line that's far too thick, the infamous flick can make your eyes go from glamorous to gothic. And nothing (and I mean nothing!) is worse than uneven flicks. THE HORROR!

I first discovered eyeliner when I was about 10 years old. Far too young some of you might say, but my Dad was always a firm believer of letting me experiment at a younger age and getting it wrong when it was acceptable because I was young and silly, instead of being a 20-something female who didn't know the different between a lipstick and a pink highlighter pen. I have found that over many years of trial and error, I have somewhat perfected the art of the flick.

A lot of it comes down to practice, of course. Knowing your eyeshape and understanding where the flick needs to be drawn in terms of the position with the corner of your eye are key in obtaining said flick. Your upper lid fluid line should always reach the end of your eye, as the point of the flick is to elongate your eye. It can't elongate our eye if the flick begins halfway alone your lid line!

A straight line needs to be formed that aligns with the end of your eyelid and the just after the end of your eyebrow. Creating this initial line is key for your flick to form. Of course this is much easier said than done, so I have made a video to accompany this blog post which will show you in detail how to know where to position the line to begin your flick, and how to fill out the shape of the flick to perfect the look.

Having a good quality eyeliner is crucial. You won't be able to create a flawless flick without an eyeliner that's going to flow well on your lid and last all day. My all time favourite eyeliner that I strongly recommend to create the perfect eyeliner flick is the myface.cosmetics slinky liquid eyeliner in "paint it black". A dramatic and long lasting eyeliner, myface.cosmetics really pulled it out of the bag with their most recent line of liquid eyeliners.

 It's available in an array of matte and chromatic shades (including silvers and golds for crazier party looks, but also deep browns blues and blacks for my sultry looks) the density of this liquid eyeliner delivers a strong and long lasting line which will not move, smudge or crack throughout the day or night. The brush is tiny yet precise and is able to get into all the difficult areas around the eyelid, and is capable of delivering a thin line as well as being fluid and supple enough to build up for a more dramatic look. I seriously consider this to be the staple item in my makeup bag, and the one makeup item that I would not leave the house without wearing. Have I sold it to you yet?! This product is amazing!

I hope that the video and post help you in the uphill battle that every woman faces with eyeliner. The key things to remember here are practice and a good quality product. Even professional makeup artists struggle to achieve the perfect flick, so remember that you're not alone! Practice makes perfect :-)

Winter Body Skincare

When listening to the radio this morning, Sara Cox revealed that if she removed her tights, there would be a dessert spoon full of Ready Brek- like dead skin in each tight leg. Gross. It made me realise that no matter the season, or whether youre bearing your skin or covering it up, taking care of your skin is never unimportant. Ageing is something I don't really have to worry about at 22, but it will become a problem if I don't take care of my skin now!

Enter my favourite body skin care picks.

Body Shop Shower Gel in Peach & Mango
A continuous repurchase for me, the smell of this shower gel wakes me up instantly in the shower and teamed with my loofah, is a great cleanser for my skin.

Soap & Glory Sugar Crush Body Scrub
This little tub of heaven gets rid of any rough or dead skin in a heartbeat. It smells like lime Starburst and has the texture of raw cookie dough (which seriously confuses my brain, it's a real struggle not to eat it!). An absolute dream skin care product!

Vaseline Essential Moisture Body Lotion
Oddly, my favourite thing about this lotion is the size of the bottle. I go through a bottle a month of body lotion because I love to use so much, so the fact that this practically comes in bulk is a real perk for me! Smells amazing, soaks in quickly, not expensive, great product overall!

Without these three products my skin would truly suffer. Although I do love a higher end product, my body is unfortunately bigger than my face, thus I have more skin to take care of, and I can't afford to spend  €100 a month on cream for my legs haha.

What are your favourite body care products? X

Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in "Dolce Vita"

Living back at home in Brussels means limited access to some of my favourite makeup brands. So when I was in London a few weeks ago, I warned the boyfriend that a large chunk of my time would be spent in Selfridges, inhaling the makeup counters and treating myself to a few beauty luxuries.

As soon as I hit the Nars stand I knew that money needed to be spent. To me, Nars is high end but still young and fresh - something that every 20-something beauty obsessive longs to be. Its less "classic" and conservative than some of the other older brands like Chanel (nothing against Chanel!) but still has loads of timeless products (such as their beautiful collection of bold lipsticks)

Enter the Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil. I was looking for a lip colour that was "my lip colour, but better". Something that I could wear on a daily basis that wasn't too out there, but still looked as if I was wearing makeup.  I picked up this beauty called Dolce Vita, which although is more red toned than my pinky-blue undertoned lips, it still gives my smile that little bit of oompf while I'm at work.

I loved the idea of a matte finish rather than a glossy one, as I prefer to wear matte lip products in the winter when the wind isn't constantly blowing my hair in my face. I absolutely love this pencil and while it's not as long lasting as hoped, the colour pay off is beautiful and the thickness of the pencil makes it easier to apply than a lip pencil and its more precise than a thicker lipstick bullet. Perfect!

Have you every tried the Nars Lip Pencils?

The January Makeup Bag

A new year means a new makeup bag for me. I am not one for expensive makeup bags because my bags seem to get grubby within minutes after I purchase it. This bag is reminiscent of the shape of the Louison Paris makeup bags but with a wipeable surface material and thankfully only costs about a tenth of the price (woohoo Primark!). I love this  bag because it's actually enormous for a makeup bag,  and doesn't weigh down my handbag like a ton of bricks.

As my life revolves around work these days, I have to have a daily makeup look that's easy to apply, long lasting, and not too guerish. A medium to full coverage foundation like Rimmel's Wake Me Up is essential for covering my tired winter skin, and the Rimmel Clear Complexion Powder goes perfectly with it to cover my blemishes and set my face. I like to play around with different lip looks and opt for either a nude lip with a myface.cosmetics lip pencil in "nude" (the only nude lip colour that doesn't make me look like I've slapped a load of concealer on my mouth) teamed with a myface.cosmetics lipgloss in "sweetest thing" are perfect for a fresh daytime look. But if I'm feeling a tad more vampy (but still reserved!) I'll go for a Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in "Dolce Vita".

My eyes are simple. I never leave the house without applying my myface.cosmetics slinky liquid eyeliner in "paint it black" - hands down the BEST LIQUID EYELINER EVER. I am determined to do a separate post on the brilliance of this eyeliner. Teamed with a taupe or brown colour from Revlon's Addictive quad palette through my crease and lashings of Soap & Glory's Thick and Fast mascara and my eyes are good to go. Finally, some Nars Luster on my cheekbones and I have effortlessly achieved a perfect day look, whether it be for the office or for a weekend day out. Using winter colours such as nudes, taupes, browns and soft reds and oranges, I'm sure that I could survive for the next few months on these products alone.

What are you wearing for the new year? 

Winter Essentials: Skincare

So we are finally into those oh-so-dreaded winter months. Dark days, dozens of layers, but worst of all, red skin and chapped lips. I for one get a deadly dose of the winter blues each year, and find it so important to take care of my hair and skin to make sure they don't suffer too much in the cold. As someone whose skin goes from normal to oily to spotty to dry to red to every other possible skincare problem, taking care of my (beautiful) face is high on my list of winter priorities!

After neglecting my blog and youtube channel for months due to finishing my Masters and moving back to Brussels, I thought it was high time to get back into the habit of regular postings. Click above to see a video compiling a list of my winter essentials for skincare, to get you through these dreadful times! I will be making a video on winter beauty essentials and winter haircare essentials too! I invite you to do the same! :)

How To Remove Glitter Polish Without Losing Your Shit

As we are entering the Christmas Party season, nothing is better than adding some glitter to your nails. I think over the past 1-2 years, glitter nail polishes have become incredibly fashionable, but they never seem to mention on the bottle how INCREDIBLY DIFFICULT it is to remove the damn thing from your nails. 

I've lost count of how many times I've sat on my bedroom floor, practically pouring the entire bottle of nail polish remover over my fingers, desperately trying to get the stuff off, and I'm sure I'm not the only one.

So one day, some girl in a similar situation came up with an idea on how to successfully remove glittery nail polish! I personally think this woman should receive an award for this.

YOU WILL NEED:

- Glitter nail polish that you regret applying.
- A bottle of nail polish remover (that Bourjois 1 second bottle that you dip your finger in won't work here ladies)
- Some cotton pads
- Some tin foil
- A pair of scissors
- Patience

Step 1

Prepare your cotton pads and tinfoil. I cut my round cotton pads in half, as it's easier to wrap it around your finger if one edge is straight. It also saves on cotton pads! Cut five cotton pads in half to make ten semi-pads to wrap around. Then cut your tin foil into rectangles. I cut some extra ones out just in case I messed up.

Step 2

Soak the cotton pad in nail polish remover and wrap around the nail. Although this photo shows it wrapped around my index finger, I found it easier to start from the pinky finger, so your index finger and thumb are free to keep working when wrapping other fingers up. Once you have wrapped the soaked cotton pad around your finger, wrap a rectangle of tin foil around the finger and secure tightly.

Step 3

Once you have wrapped all of your fingers up, wait 5-10 minutes for the nail polish remover to work its magic. I would recommend doing one hand at a time, as it is difficult to wrap foil around the other hand when one hand is already wrapped up. After a few minutes, take the foil and cotton pads off and HEY PRESTO! your nails should be (almost) completely glitter-free! There might be some leftover around the sides of your nails but this will come off very easily with a quick rub of the same cotton pads that were on your fingers.

It seems like a long process just to remove nail polish, but after realising this way of removing it I am much more likely to wear glitter polish from now on!

Have you ever tried this method? :)

Dip Dye for a Day

I've never been very daring when it comes to my hair. I like to keep it long with blonde highlights,  because it suits me, so why would I ever want to change?

But in the past 12 months, dip dye has become so fashionable and I have to admit that I love the idea of having coloured hair. But committing to such an unorthodox hair colour is a big step, especially with my new job starting in a few weeks. 

Enter Colour Xtreme!

It's a wash-out coloured hair spray, perfect for those who want to see what dip dye would look like before committing to properly dying your hair.

Using this was a great little "test drive" for dip dying my hair, and I loved it! 

I've used it twice now, and everytime I have it in my hair I get loads of compliments. It definitely made me decide that I want to dip-dye my hair properly, but I'm going to wait until next spring/summer when I'm not working in an office anymore. 

The only issue I had was that it did dry my hair out a little bit. So it didn't look like it was dyed, it looked like it was sprayed with a strong hair spray. But it doesn't matter because it gave my hair a great colour.

I would definitely recommend this for anyone who's on the fence about adding colour to their hair. Colour Xtreme is available in loads of colours and you can buy it from Boots.

What are your thoughts on dipdye?

My Top 5 Blushers

Hello!

I haven't blogged in TWO MONTHS. Oh my God. I started an internship in London and had to commute every day from Canterbury which was absolutely exhausting. I don't know how people who have jobs can blog and vlog full time! But now that my internship is over I have a little more time to concentrate on writing about makeup :D

SO! onto the important stuff.

Whilst riffling through my unnecessarily ever-growing makeup collection, I thought I would write a series of "Top 5" blogposts for things like blushers, foundations, lipsticks etc. That way I can think twice about buying more makeup when I already have favourites haha. So today is my top 5 blushers!

Number 1 is NARS Orgasm

A blusher that I have thoroughly worn down, Orgasm is a favourite amongst many, as it complements almost every skintone with its peachy pink base with gold speckles that reflect the light and make your cheeks look positively glowing! The NARS blushers are also wonderfully pigmented, and the only bad point I've ever heard about NARS products is their matte packaging which get scuffed and dirty very quickly.

Number 2 is NARS Luster

Unfortunately Luster doesn't photograph very well in the pan, but on the cheeks it is sheer heaven! Like Orgasm, it has gold speckles in it and a fabulous deep coral colour which is perfect for summer days. Also looks amazing on tanned skin! 

Number 3 is Rimmel Blush in Pink Rose

A nice little compact blusher compared to the rest of them, much better if you're trying to save space in your makeup bag. It's much more matte than the NARS blushers but still pigmented enough to last all day. Perfect for a more every day look!

Number 4 is Soap and Glory Cheekmate in Rosy Glow

I was never really one for liquid or creamy blushers but I got this for my birthday and I've never looked back. I think this will be better for a "flushed" rosy cheek look in the autumn and winter months, as I prefer peachy tones during the summer. But I still love it nonetheless!

Number 5 is Makeup Forever HD Blush in Coral

I forced my American flatmate to bring this back for me from California and I LOVE it. I find it a bit difficult to apply because it's SO highly pigmented and it's a bit difficult to blend, but the colour pay off is phenomenal and you only have to apply the tiniest amount to cover your cheeks for the full day.

Surprisingly, Orgasm was the most difficult one to swatch, as it applies so well to my cheeks, but it's probably my favourite blusher ever. NARS blushers are probably my favourite because I do like the shimmery look on my cheeks, but I have to stop myself from buying too many!

What are your favourite blushers?

:) X

Summerball & Purple Smokey Eye Video Tutorial

This weekend, in true fashion of a University student, my friends and I went to our fourth Summerball. Some of us are Masters students and some of us have left University (and just came back for one last hurrah!) but despite all the excitement, it turned out to be a massive failure. The previous three Summerballs were an absolute hoot, but this year instead of having the ball in one massive outdoor tent/marquee, they split it into two smaller tents. With the monsoon that engulfed us all in our fine attire, it was impossible to get from tent A to tent B without getting soaked so most of us were stuck for the night. The Saturdays and Noah and the Whale were performing, but because of the bloody storm and too many people being stuck in one place, I missed both acts! £47 spent on a ticket, only to be washed out like a drowned rat!

But it's all behind us now! And the good news is, I looked fabulous. Here are some photos of our group (including a very nice photo of me and my boyfriend Jeremy) and a tutorial that I filmed of my purple smokey eye look for the ball. Enjoy!

Did anyone else go to Prom or Summerball recently? :) X