Saturday 30 June 2012

June Favourties


Hey guys,

Its that time again, another month over, another realization that time doesn't last forever. With the end of my school career this month, it has really dawned on me that I'm 18, currently not going to uni with no plans. I have seemed to hit a period in my life, where for once, I have nothing I really need to do each day. From going to school, waking up at 7, to staying at home in my pj's, applying for jobs, and presumably getting bored, my life has completely changed, and I'm not so sure I like it. Fair enough I will have my days frees, but I know I wont see my friends as much and that's sad! So for all you younging's enjoy your time at school, its cliche but they are the best times you will ever have!

Anyway, what I have been enjoying this month;

L-R (all MAC)

Viva Glam Nicki
Snob
Impassioned

(The pictures are my actual lips)




 Rubicon Guava -my second favourite drink in the world- its so delicious.



 Yankee Candle in Tropical Fruit - I have actually burnt this almost to the bottom! It smells divine, I mostly smell the mango in it, then a hint of Banana! Yummy.


Lastly is the shoes I haven't had off in, what like 2 1/2 weeks now?! Ah, I love them so much!

They are from Matalan for £16 and they are called the Geisha Wedge Heels.



What have you been loving this month?

Leave me a comment,

Emily x


Friday 29 June 2012

Storm & Haul; 17 and The Sims 3 Expansions

Hey guys,

This will just be a really small and quick post today! 

Ive been feeling under the weather the past few days! Plus as most of you know in England yesterday there was a massive storm,  in Newcastle it was really bad with flooding and lighting hitting the area. The ‘supercell’ thunderstorm was really interesting for me as I really love learning about weather *such a nerd* it made me feel smart knowing that I knew why it was happening and how :P The most famous video/photo of yesterday would be lighting hitting the Tyne Bridge, it was mental! It has been all over the news and has gotten so many view on YT. I have included the photo below so you can have a look! Also the Metro Center and parts of the city center flooded too, which caused evacuations in both places.


What makes it scary, is that those are cars on the bridge, and that the people inside could have easily been killed!

This is my garden too, it flooded but not as bad as some peoples! A few of my friends homes were  flooded :(


The water was pretty deep!


Anyway onto the haul;

First I picked up 17 Wild Metallic Eyes in the shade Wild Nude. I think it cost £3.50


The shade comes of a nice bronzey nude with slight shimmer.




Next I went to GAME to get Sims 3 Pets and Ambitions expansion packs. 


I love the Sims, and since Im going to be off the next few months looking for a job I thought these would ease my boredom :D

So thats it, like I said only small!

Have you been affected by yesterdays storm?

Leave me a comment,

Emily x

Wednesday 27 June 2012

Review; Accessorize Baked Bronzer Duo - Bondi

Hello guys!

As someone with very pale skin, I've always been really scared of bronzers! I hate looking remotely orange or muddy, so finding a bronzer is quite difficult. However I can safely say, that the Accessorize bronzers is a winner!


I have had two of these bronzers, as my first one broke -see evidence below- and I do really like them! I currently own the colour Bondi, and my previous one was Golden Sands. The range itself has 4 colours I believe. 




I love the packaging, and it feels really secure too so I know it's going to explode everywhere all over my things. The first one broke as I dropped it, with the case open, onto the tiles in my kitchen, so it wasn't the products fault! 
 
The bronzer itself is beautiful, as the two shades are marbled with lighter and darker threads of gold running through them. There is something I really enjoy about baked beauty products, they always look so much more appealing in the pan than a standard product. These bronzers also really remind me of MAC MSF powders! 



Yes, that is a chunk missing in it, I dug my nail in my mistake - oops!



Both halves of Bondi are slightly frosty, but there are no glitter particles at all. It just leaves a nice sheen of colour on your face.



The pigmentation is fab too, as you can see from the swatches, but you can easily control how much colour you want by just using a light hand. I personally like to swirl my brush onto both colours, then to swirl my brush into the lid to make sure the colour covers all the brush, so it doesn't go streaky on my face. 

The top swatch is the light colour,
middle is the darker one,
the last one is both of them together.

Overall, I think this bronzer is great! I was using a matte MUA powder in a 'tan' shade, but I found it was too easy to end up looking muddy. I really these bronzers but also the brand as I haven't found anything I don't like.

Currently in Superdrug, all Accessorize products are half price which is great! I suggest going to have a look to see if you can snap up a bargain.


Leave me a comment,


Emily x 

Tuesday 26 June 2012

Review; Maybelline The Falsies Volum' Express Mascara

Hello everyone! 

Another mascara review today! This was another item I had for my birthday in the makeup goodie bag from my parents.  

What Maybelline says; " False lash glam, instantly! • Patented Spoon Brush fans out lashes from corner-to-corner, while our Pro-Keratin formula instantly builds volume without clumping • Unique flexible wand helps to lift and separate lashes to provide the look of 300% more visible, fuller lashes, no gaps from any angle."


As I have said in previous posts, my lashes are nothing special. They are pretty normal, but with this mascara they do kinda look false! They are definitely fuller and look more visible, and I could see how Maybelline claims it makes lashes look false. 

I love the shape of the brush and it really seems easy to sweep your lashes and build up some length and volume, right to the corners. It can sometimes clump if you apply too much, so I tend to just brush on one coat if I am wearing it alone. I find it lasts well,  and only smudge when the formula is still wet. 




The only downside to this is the very liquid formula which makes getting the mascara all over your face very easy. It also makes your lashes extremely wet when you first put it on, which I don't really like. 

As I said the mascara can clump, very easily in fact, so I recommend putting 2/3 coats max on, as I found that is the cut off point for the 'clumpyness' factor!


With one coat my lashes looks thicker and darker, and it also adds length as well.

 Overall, I really like this mascara and I believe most people would too! 

Leave me a comment,

Emily x

Monday 25 June 2012

Review; Maybelline One By One Volum' Express Mascara

Hello guys!


Today I burnt my hand with bleach, I was bleaching my hair extensions and now have a lovely blister on my middle finger - ouch! I will be doing a post on my newly coloured extensions soon :P


But anyway...


For my birthday my mam and dad got me a goodie bag of makeup, included was Maybelline One By One Volum' Express Mascara. I have been trying the mascara alongside Benefit's BAD Gal and Maybelline's The Falsies Volum' Express and it's quickly become my favourite every day mascara.

What it says; "Maybelline The One-by-One Volum' Express mascara. Up to 4x bigger looking, flirtier lashes. You’ll discover lashes you didn’t know you had, for clean, clump-free volume, instantly!"



My lashes are nothing to brag about they are medium in length, and quite full, pretty normal. The difference between using a mascara that separates and doesn't separate is really important for me as I hate the look of lashes when they are clumped together into like 5 lashes! So when I saw that this mascara had quite fanned out bristles I was really eager to try it!


This mascara lengthens my lashes without clumping them, and separates them nicely. Perfect! Although it doesn't give much volume, it definitely lengthens them! 


 The mascara doesn't dry and flake into my eyes either as the day goes on and the mascara lasts all day. 


I like how you buy this with the brush not in the mascara. It comes in a red tube with green writing. Its nice and bright and stands out when you walk past the makeup stand. The brush is one of the rubber kind that starts off red too.



The awkward  eye shot 

Overall, I think it's a really great mascara. But, for those who want really dramatic lashes, this mascara may not be the right one for you.


Im going to be doing a updated mascara routine soon, as the mascaras I use have completely changed! You can read my older post here.


Leave me a comment,


Emily x



Sunday 24 June 2012

Hair Envy; Rainbow Hair

Hey guys!

If you follow me on twitter you would know I had this crazy dream that will.i.am bought me some rainbow curly hair extensions! Mad I know, but since then I cant stop thinking about having rainbow coloured hair.

I know it so impractical because I'm looking for a job and that, plus the cost would be huge but it would be soooooo cool! 

So anyway I thought I would share you a some images that make me want rainbow hair!


This is exactly what my hair looked like in my dream! I love it <3


This, to me, looks amazing! I know its probably not real, and probably never possible, but I can dream :D


This drawing is my ultimate rainbow hair. It would be amazing. Just amazing. 

What have you been lusting over?
Have you got any plans to change your hair over summer?

Leave me a comment,

Emily X

Haul/Review; MAC's Hey, Sailor! Crew Highlighting Powder


Hey everyone :D

I had a little impulse buy yesterday...when do I not? Haha! I ended up getting MAC's Crew highlighting powder. This product launched in MAC's Hey, Sailor! Collection and is only around for a limited time, so I thought why not, and bought it.


Crew is a multi-colored highlighting powder that has three shades: soft peach-orange, a cool pink and a cool-toned pink-lilac. There’s also creamy beige overlay, but since it is an overlay of color it does not go all the way through.




When the product is swirled together, the end result turns out as a cool tone barbie pink on my cheeks. There is a very faint sheen, but it’s incredibly subtle. The texture is soft, smooth, and finely-milled.  


 Personally I wont use this as a highlighter but as a blush, it works well on my pale skin but may be a little light and chalky  if you have a medium-dark complexion.  



If you're looking for a traditional frosty highlighter, this won't be what you're looking for. But, if you're in the market for a natural, cool pink blush, definitely check this one out. 


Do you find limited edition packaging/product more enticing than regular products?  I do... I'm a sucker for a cute makeup theme!

Leave me a comment,

Emily x

Saturday 23 June 2012

Haul/Review; Fake MAC Hello Kitty Kabuki Brush

Hi ladies :)

I am always on the look out for new brushes, I really don't think you can have too many! After my pleasant experience with my other FAKE MAC Hello Kitty brush set, I finally gave into this brush. My other Bourjois Powder Kabuki Brush was becoming a little on the rough side after plenty of washes, it wasn't really a pleasure to apply products with it, so this is definitely an upgrade!


I couldn't find many reviews before ordering the Kabuki, but I went ahead anyway. 




The brush comes with a little case which is so cute! The print isn't perfect, but I don't mind as its soft and has no smell. The case will prevent damage to your kabuki brush, from either dust and germs but also inside your handbag! The brush I used to have in there got so dirty and covered in crumbs & rubbish - all sorts really- it was so nasty! This case however is perfect. 


The brush is perfectly sized. Not too small and not too big. 

As you can see in the photos, the bristles are incredibly dense and are shaped into a light dome. This means that the brush picks up products really well and gives a lovely flawless finish. What I really love about this brush though is how wonderfully soft it is. 

I have had no issues with shedding on this little guy and it works flawlessly buffing my powder in everyday. 

I washed this brush 3 times, its easy to wash and it dries over night or around 5 hours! 





As I said, I bought this knowing full well it was FAKE MAC, and like I said in my previous post -here- I have no issue with buying fake products.

I bought it for £2.88, and I am really pleased.

The seller I bought it from no longer has the item, but it is easily found on ebay. 

Leave me a comment,

Emily x

Friday 22 June 2012

Everyday Makeup Storage

Hello everyone, 

Today I wanted to show you my everyday makeup storage. I am always interested in how people store their makeup and I'm always watching these on YT so I thought I would share!

I have always wanted a pretty, little vanity table a bit like the one in the picture below! But it wouldn't go with my decoration in my room :( 



The desk I have now is probably as close as I will ever get to owning something like that :(

But anyway as the title says is my everyday make up, I dont use all these products everyday, but its the ones I tend to switch over on a daily bases. Currently its sitting on my desk, in the corner. The draws fit perfectly on my desk.


 As you can see I have my new mirror on there and a few other bits I tend you use everyday. 
I like having my everyday stuff away from the rest of my makeup as they are my favourite products. 


I also have my Hello Kitty "MAC" brush set on top, you can read my review here.

The draws are from Whsmiths, but I could not find them on their website. I could only find these cupcake draws, which are basically the same just a different pattern. If you are looking for these kind of draws, go have a look inside a store, they have much more stock than the website. 



These are the draws, on top I have some perfume, moisturizer, heat defense stuff and my brushes.

In the two Hello Kitty tins I store bobbles and bobby pins.



These are the three top draws. 
The first draw holds lip products, the second powder products and third mascaras plus eyeliners.

These two are the middle draws.

The left contains face stuff like primers, foundation and concealer.
The right holds pallets and random stuff like my spare razor, my Lush lipscrub, Benefit high beam sample and a few blushes. 



The last draw is the largest and holds a lot of random stuff.

In the black decorated pots are Lush body scrubs and a tinted moisturizer I made the other week.

 It also houses my eyelash curlers, my random samples and two memory sticks - I don't know why they are there o.O 


Closer look of the draws.

The 'handles' are little bits of ribbon.


Close look at the print - so pretty!

I hope you liked my post, if you decide to show your storage, please leave me a link! I would love to read the post <3

Also if you see anything you want a review on just leave me comment!

Emily x
(For the record, I am not bragging here, I just want to show my everyday storage)




Haul; Lush, Lipcote, Shoes & Mirror

Hello everyone :D 

Yesterday I popped into town to pick up a few things I wanted, so I thought I would show you my little haul :)

First off I went to Lush! I haven't been in for a really long time as if you have seen my Lush collection post here, you would know I had loads to use up!


So I just picked up Honey Bee, Butter Ball and Space Girl all bath bombs, and Dirty Body Spray.

You can read a review on the bath bombs here, and my Holy Grail body spray here!


Next I went into Boots and picked up Lipcote, for £3 and some change.

I've tried it once so far, and it seemed to work. I will be doing a review on this in the coming future. 


I then went into B'n'M to pick up a cheap mirror as mine broke. This one only cost £3.99 and it is super cute and big so I'm chuffed!

Lastly I thought I would include these shoes. I bought them last Thursday and they haven't been off my feet! I bought them in Matalan for £16 and there called the Geisha Wedge Heels. They came in two colours, black or brown, and are sooooooooooooo comfortable!

The wedge is made from a sponge material so your feet feel like your walking on clouds.

There is a few scuffs on them, as I literally have only wore these all week!



So that's what I bought yesterday and a few days ago :)

If you have any questions, leave me a comment!

Emily X

Thursday 21 June 2012

Review; Cucumber Collagen Mask

 Hello lovelies! 

This post is very over due, as I won this mask on the 28th of May, almost a month ago! 


I won this from LolaStar Hearts.

I love face masks but I have never tried this sheet one, so when I won it I was super happy! It is the first thing I have ever won :D It says it's 100% pulp and can feel the product being 'gel-like' inside the pouch. 

I didn't try this mask as straight away as I was saving it for a day when my skin felt really dry, as it says "the cucumber is ideal to restore the skin after UV exposure and create a cooling effect" it sounded like it would be perfect for dry itchy skin.





But for the past 2 days my boyfriend Ross had been suffering from itchy, sore, puffy, runny and tight eyes, so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to test this mask out! He tried this mask today, with a little 
persuasion, and you can totally see the difference!


 So since I cant review it, I thought he could! :D

"Emily forced me against my will to use it. I guess it wasn't too bad, i had really sore eyes from my Hay-fever, and it was pretty cooling. She tricked me into saying she would tear small pieces off just for underneath my eyes, but then she plastered it all over my face. Luckily she ripped it around my beard otherwise it could have been difficult to remove the watery bits, i guess they didn't think many men would be using this though, or bearded women...

So, although i was forced against my will and tricked into using it, i think it did a pretty good job at cooling my face, which was great after my Hay-Fever was acting up really bad. My skin feels nice i suppose, although my ego took a hit." -Ross



I sneaked a photo of him with it on! 

Ross' eyes seem to have reduced in puffiness and itchiness, and he is complaining less so thank god!! Haha! Also his skin is really soft and moisturized, especially around his eyes and nose.  

I'm really pleased with this mask, and so is Ross. I think in the future I may be buying more.

If you suffer from hay-fever what kind of products do you use to cool your eyes? Ross takes tablets, but his reaction is really bad and often seem like they do nothing :( 

Leave me a comment! 

Emily x

Review; Benefit "that gal", BADgal lash mascara, and the POREfessional.


Hey Guys!

So, just about everyone and their dog have been raving about the free Benefit samples from Glamour this month. Glamour team up with Benefit every year to offer three mini versions of their products, this year they offered Bad Gal Lash mascara, The POREfessional and 'that gal' primer. I picked up all three, because at £2 it's a brilliant offer! I also got a spare one of the BADgal mascara as I ended up loving it!

the POREfessional

PRO balm to minimise the appearance of pores

£23.50 


What Benefit says; "Quickly minimise the appearance of pores & fine lines for smoother-than-smooth skin! Apply this silky, lightweight balm alone, under or over makeup. Translucent, oil-free formula complements all skintones and helps makeup stay put. Contains a Vitamin E derivative, known to protect skin from free radicals."

I use this underneath my eyes on the top of my cheeks and near my nose, as I feel those are my problem areas - I have quite large pores there. The primer is coloured beige, but once it is rubbed into the skin it becomes translucent and it did not tint my skin at all.  I found that the oil-free formula worked for me. My skin isn't completely oily but in the places that it is (t-zone) the POREfessional didn't make greasy.

This retails at £23.50 for 22ml of the product, which is ridiculous. For the money you pay, its tiny! However if you bought 3 Glamour magazines for £6, getting 3 primers free you would end up having 22.5ml of product! That means you save £17.50 and get 0.5ml more! 

If you like this primer I suggest running to your newsagents or supermarket and getting the 3 magazines, it is an amazing deal!

Overall, I didn't think it made my makeup stay on longer, just go on smoother. 
I don't think I will be buying the full product or 3 more Glamour mags.



BADgal lash mascara

mascara

£16.50


Benefit says;  "Sexy, sultry, pure unadulterated black mascara for full, voluminous lashes. It's as BAD as you want to be! Famously big, bodacious brush coats lashes with our super black formula."

I’d heard a lot of good things about Benefit’s Bad Gal Lash mascara before and this was on my list of “things to buy”, so I was excited to have a sample to test out before splashing out on the full sized product!

Badgal Lash comes with a pretty massive brush, which if you have read most of my post you would know I love! I absolutely love this mascara! It didn't clump, it separated my lashes, and added volume, everything I'm looking for in a mascara. I definitely would recommend it. The only thing I don't like about it, is that it is a little dry, other than that it's perfection!

I have bought two of these, as you get 4g in the sample size and only 8.5g in the full size! Meaning I spent £4, and basically got the full size saving £12.50

Again such a great deal!




"that gal"

brightening face primer

£21.50


Benefit says; "Our silky pink primer takes your complexion from dull to darling! Simply blend it on for the look of brighter, smoother skin. Contains light-reflecting pigments to help brighten all skin tones and raspberry & camomile to soothe skin."


I don't really understand what this product does, that others don't. Yes it gives my cheeks a very subtle glow and a slight pink flush that is really pretty, but the same glowy look could easily be accomplished with any cream highlighter or tinted moisturizer. Plus why is this product called a PRIMER if it doesn't PRIME anything? My makeup seemed to wear off faster than it does normally! I don't know if that was just a 'bad' day but god this little thing is expensive!

I'm glad I have the sample in my collection, but alas, I don't think I will be buying this full size or another mini. 

If you did want to buy the full product, it costs £21.50 for 11ml, so buying 2 samples at £4 you receive 15ml of product which is cheaper for more product!

Did you try any of the Benefit samples?
Leave me a comment!

Emily x