Going Minimal

So before you despair that I bought yet more make up in order to 'go minimal', bear with me. As much as I love, love, love make up, I'll never be a girl who makes a lot of effort every day, maybe just because I love being in bed for those extra five minutes that it would take me to do winged liner, maybe I'm just lazy. Who knows.

With that in mind, I picked these bad boys up for multiple reasons...

Stila one step correct primer

Maybelline fit me! anti-shine foundation stick

I'll throw it out there now, I bought both these because of Kate from ghostparties. If you've not read her blog, you should. I have a complete girl crush right now, she's totally amazing.

Here's the two posts you should read if you want to be sold like I was: Stila and Maybelline.

Besides that, I think that these two will make a good match for flawless natural skin, with just the right amount of coverage where you need it. The primer is correcting for redness, sallowness and brightening, while I think the foundation stick is a mix between a heavy concealer and light but buildable foundation. I'm looking for a perfect skin duo along these lines, because I know I'm going to be in travel mania soon so I don't want a million and one products to cart around with me everywhere!

Let me know if you guys would like to see individual reviews of these, but I'll likely report back on how I'm liking them as a duo anyway!

n xx

Sunday life | Getting up close and personal

Don't panic, I'm not about to post my bare naked face all over the internet (no one is ready for that), but I thought that I would just take a minute or twenty to let you guys know what's been happening in my life recently.

image from google
this is my current phone screen, I'm obsessed with an inspirational quote or 20

University

If you didn't know, I'm in my second year studying English. It's very stressful, and although I don't necessarily regret my degree choice I can't say I'd choose it all over again! I'm not a very academic person, so if you ever notice that I don't post when I promised to, it's likely because I'm having a minor melt down and crying in a corner. Because who cares that much about Derrida or Lacan anyway? I'm currently up to my eyebrows in deadlines and consuming more caffeine than I even thought possible. I'm thankful that I can still just about manage to form coherent sentences.

Italiaaa!

I've not mentioned this too much yet but I'm off to Italy in May with my bestie Laura. I'm super excited but also terrified because it's my first holiday a. without parents and b. in a hot country. So I might come back like a lobster, but hopefully it means that I can pull together some of those mandatory packing style posts!

Lola Lo's

I got a job back in February with Lola Lo, newly opened at the start of April in Derby. It's only the 10th in the country, and 2nd to serve food. I'm a waitress, and I honestly can't have wished for a nicer place to work! The managers are amazing, and the bar itself is just stunning. I'm not sure how long term my place there will be what with moving home over the summer, but it's been the most amazing experience so far! Though I have well and truly established I am not a night owl, working till even 2am kills me for days.

New Ventures

I can't really say too much about this right now but I'm hoping that this summer I'm going to get myself organised and finally start doing some things, slightly connected to my blog, that have been dreams for a long time.. is that mysterious enough? I think so. Watch this space.

I'm also super excited that one of my favourite people, my friend Mia, has just started a blog, which you can find here and follow on bloglovin' here. She's make up obsessed even more than I am, but I can't tell you guys how exciting it is to finally have a bestie who's as crazy for make up as I am!

I hope you guys are all having a lovely weekend, and if you're going through deadlines like me, you can make it!

n xx

Mini Haul!

I was let loose in shops again, so of course I couldn't leave without buying a little something...

Topshop treggins £28

Primark dress £5

Accessorize rings £10

The Body Shop colour crush lipstick in 115 £8

I fell in love with these leggins/treggins (I'm so not up to date with these things) when I saw a few other bloggers loving them, so I treated myself! I also bought this dress on a whim, just because I really like the pattern and I don't have many dresses with 3/4 length sleeves. I bought the lipstick for work, and I've never really played around with Body Shop make up so I'm excited to try it out! Finally I bought these cute midi rings, I've been searching for some that I like for ages!

I also may have a cheeky little Boots haul, please let me know in the comments below if you'd be interested in seeing that!

Have you treated yourself recently?

n xx

Review | Essie Ballet Slippers

Without a doubt, Essie is my favourite nail varnish at the moment; it might be considered one of the more expensive high street brands for £7.99 for the coloured nail varnishes, but I happily fork out that much on a regular basis for these beauties. Their colour range and quality are amazing, and I can't really fault it.

 Although I have multiple favourites, Ballet Slippers is my original go-to choice. It's a really soft pink, but can seem quite white in the right light. It's super sheer, which is really it's only downfall, because it means that you have to apply two coats to get a true feel for the colour. The brush makes panting super easy too; I can cover my nails in two brushes because they're so wide and easy to use.

That said, even though I'm always applying two coats, it's taking me forever to finish the bottle. Essie, in my opinion, is so worth what you're paying because you get so much product. I bought this around summer 2012 or before (I have a rubbish memory for these things), and I'm only just past half way down. I would say that in an average month I would use it maybe twice, so I consider that to be pretty good going!

 I've found that with a base coat, it's one of the longest lasting colours I own; it tends to stay on for at least a week with barely any wear (and any that does show tends to be because of my awful nails at the moment). I can once again see this being a strong staple in my spring nail collection!

Do you have a favourite Essie colour?

n xx

Chin up buttercup

A bit of a different post today because I can't lie, university has me so swamped with work and I went home this weekend so I've been too busy to turn on my laptop, let alone take post photos! Praise the usefulness of apps and last minute rushes. 

So for today, because I know it's quite a stressful time of year for students, I thought I'd post a bit of a 'how to destress' theme and let you guys in on the magic that does it's very best to keep me from tearing my hair out. I have a hell of a lot of deadlines over the next two weeks, and sadly I haven't been half as organised as I should have been recently!

Spend time with your loved ones

I can't always go home that much to see my parents, but I always try and squeeze in seeing them not too long before deadlines, and frequently call my mum because let's be honest, who else knows me better?!

De-stress with a bath and full pamper

I do this about twice a week. Lush bath bombs, scented candles and Origins charcoal face masks are my life. 

Make plans to look forward to

My friends are all just as stressed as I am, so I try to make day plans with them, rather than nights out; that way we still destress, just without the hangover! My favourite thing is going to a coffee shop with a bit of work (enough to last an hour if you're out for four hours- I factor in for a lot more talking than work).

Exercise for endorphins

I'm one of those gym people. But if you're not, why not just go for a walk or even just a workout on YouTube?! 

Organising and tidy

There's no two ways about it, I am OCD. I can't work if it's messy, but don't let tidying get in the way of you doing work! I do a wonderful line in 'I'll just tidy this..and put the washing on..and clear out my wardrobe..'

Get a good nights sleep

With a new job on the cards (more to come on this soon!!), I sometimes don't get in till 3am so a goods night sleep is a must have. I have a whole range of products that help me sleep, candles, pillow sprays, herbal teas, moisturisers, hot water bottles...

Make a plan where you need to dress up

I have yet to meet a girl who likes the going out part if a night more than the getting ready part. No matter how hellish choosing your outfit was, no matter how long you pondered over fake lashes or not, getting dressed up just makes a majority of is feel better. My favourite thing is to have a full face pamper, put on a basic days make up, do my hair nicely then throw on a hoodie and grab a hot chocolate before camping down for a solid 10 hours essay writing.

I hope, if you didn't find anything here that's going to help you destress, then you at least enjoyed reading this!

Any tips for me are very, very welcome!

n xx

Review | Maybelline Baby Lips

Maybelline Baby Lips Lip Balm 

"Baby Lips lip balm from Maybelline New York gives intense care and 8 hour hydration, and is nourishing for baby soft lips. SPF20."

I'll go ahead and admit this right now; I never expected to firstly purchase this, and then also end up liking it. If barbie-esque doesn't describe this shade, I don't know what would. But before you turn away in horror of that reference, let me redeem this lip balm and tint combo.

Although it is very pink, it's a lot more subtle when you put it on, being aimed more towards moisurising and such than colouring. Having said that, it's a lot more pigmented than I originally thought it would be and it is fairly easy to build up if you want more of a lipstick look. I chose this colour because although its way out of my comfort zone, it just looked nice and so far I've not regretted my choice! 

What I love most about this product, aside from it being moisturising and not drying my lips out, is the smell. It's absolutely divine; I'd describe it as being quite fruity and fresh. I can always smell it for a while after I've put it on, which is really nice. I would say that it lasts for about 1-2 hours, though sometimes the colour lasts longer depending on what I'm doing.

I'm not overly keen on the packaging for some reason. I can't put a finger to why, but for a product that costs £2.99 I'm really not complaining! I definitely think that it's worth what you're paying if you're thinking of giving this a look see. There are other colours/ fragrances here.

Another thing is that it's SPF 20; I didn't realise when I picked it up but when I did, boy was I happy. I've been through the trauma of sunburnt lips. Trust me when I tell you that you want SPF lip balms, it's absolute agony!

I hope you guys liked this review!

Are you thinking of giving this a go, or have you already?

n xx

Evening Skincare | Pamper Face Routine

 I've posted a few skincare routines before, but as I was treating myself the other night I thought I'd take you through what I do when I go for an all out skin pamper! I try to do one at least once a month, with mini ones in between about every week to keep my skin looking and feeling healthy.

The Body Shop Tea Tree Skin Clearing Toner

Full review here

I start with this after taking off any make up, or if I've not been wearing anything as my first step, just to get rid of anything that might be lurking on my skin.

Origins Clear Improvement Charcoal Face Mask

Full review here

This is my favourite face mask of all time; I found it not that long ago, but its been all I've used (with the occasional Lush exception) since. The charcoal is really purifying and leaves my skin feeling clear and perfect. It also doesn't take very long to dry, which I love!

The Body Shop Vitamin E Overnight Serum Oil

Full review here
It took a majority of the beauty blogging world by storm earlier this year, and ever since I've tried this my skin just feels nicer. Happier, if you will. It's the only oil I've ever had the courage to smother over my face, and it's possibly opened my eyes to trying more out. Maybe.

Are any of these products staples for you?

n xx

Review | No7 Instant Radiance Highlighter

This one is a bit of an unusual purchase for me; I'm not a highlighter girl. Until now I've only had one highlighter in my collection (a Topshop one, if you're wondering) and that wasn't even in my make up bag, more in the back of beyond of my hoard of make up.

But when I saw one of my favourite bloggers ever (she's amazing- ghostparties) raving about this, I had to have it. Bye bye budgeting, hello glowy face in all the right ways. You might have seen me post about picking it up here, by which point I'd already had it a week or so and was completely addicted.

One of the main reasons for that is how easy it is to apply; this kind of bullet style packaging is becoming more and more popular. I'm not a huge fan, but for this it works. You can just literally run this onto your face and that's it. You can blend if you want, but if you're light enough applying you won't even need to do that. I normally use my fingers to just lightly blend it out into a more natural glow.

I've swatched it quite heavily so you can get a good idea of how pearly the product is, and see the creamy/ pink undertones

When applied, it's a subtle shimmer that isn't too glittery, and even has great lasting power. I would say it lasts mostly until I take my make up off (so at least 12 hours), but obviously it lasts better if I put a bit more on. The thing that I can't get over is just how easy it is to add something so pretty to my face!

You can pick this up for £9.95 in Boots, which I think is absolutely amazing for how many applications it's going to last me! I've barely even scratched the surface and I've been using it for weeks.

Overall, I love this so much! I'm so glad that I picked it up, and would 100% recommend it even if you're not that keen on highlighters. I'm thinking about picking up one of the No7 Pop & Glow blush sticks that were launched at the same time as the highlighter, would you guys like to see a review if I do?!

Do you think you'll be picking up this little beauty for yourself?

n xx

ps- I'm having trouble with my comments section, so please please don't think I'm ignoring any of your lovely comments! I'm not sure why I'm not able to reply but I've got my tech support working on it!

Real Techniques Brushes

If you haven't heard of these brushes, I would be very surprised. Even my most un-savvy make up friends know and love these bad boys. Why? Not only because they're so amazing, but what else can you expect when they're made by make up artists as fabulous as Pixiwoo?

I'm sorry my brushes aren't clean; but I am only human, and my options were slightly dirty and see-the-love brushes or wet from washing brushes.

I don't have a massive collection of brushes, Real Techniques or otherwise, but I thought of share with you my core collection. The quality of these brushes is amazing; I've had the powder brush the longest, but it's showing no signs that it's going to fail me any time soon. I've never seen these shred a single fibre, even when I wash them. They're such amazing quality and so well designed; here's what it says about them on the website..

"Designed with pro makeup artist Sam + Nic Chapman, Real Techniques brushes combine high-tech materials with innovative design to make creating a pixel-perfect look easier than ever:

• Synthetic bristles are ultra plush and smoother than the hair you'll find in other brushes. Since taklon is synthetic, it's 100% cruelty-free. The soft fibers help create a flawless, high-definition finish in any type of light – from sunlight to harsh indoor lighting.
• The color-coded system corresponds to the key steps of makeup application so you can create a flawless base, enhanced eyes, and the perfect finish like a pro.
• Each brush head is hand-cut to the perfect shape, allowing for precise application from dense coverage to a soft, delicate finish.
• The collection is suitable for a wide range of products and every makeup need – from powders, creams, and liquids to mineral makeup, highlighter, and shimmer.
• Brush names on the handles make for easy reference when creating your favorite look."

For me, it all started with the big daddy; the powder brush. I love this as a powder brush, but it's great for multitasking as a bronzing brush if you want that all-over glow. I know some people find it too big, but I think it's a perfect size for just swooshing over my face. 

 I added to my collection with the blush brush. I use it as it says on the tin. I can't imagine using another brush replacing this; I use it daily for bronzer, because I don't like anything too obviously contoured, and then blush if I'm wearing it. 

Next up is the expert face brush. Holy moly, how did I apply foundation before this? I have no idea. I love it so much to use with my base products, blending in foundation or concealer. I also use it if I want powder around my eyes/tzone to be a bit more focused, and also for more precise contouring. If you've never tried a brush from this range before, this would be my first recommendation.

I only have one of the eye brushes, the shading brush. I'm not that much of an eye shadow gal, but I've been using this to help whack on some of the more glittery Naked 3 (see my review here) shades, and it's working a treat. I'm definitely looking at investing in more of these purple handled beauties.

Last but no means least is my most recent purchase; the setting brush. This was the only brush I bought on impulse, but I'm so glad I did. I mainly bought it to use with highlighter, but also sometimes to blend concealer or for shaping my nose with bronzer (if you're not sure what that is, it's putting little lines of bronzer down either side of your nose to make it look thinner). 

So there you have it! My collection of Real Techniques brushes. This is the biggest set I have, as everything else is one off purchases from all over the place. If you have any that you love that I've not mentioned, don't be shy and let me know!

Do you have a favourite brush from this range?!

n xx