OOTD | 31.07.15

ASOS Shirt (Unavailable, similar) | £20.00

Topshop Jumper | £19.99

ASOS Jeans | £30.00

Dr Martens 1461's | £95.00

Silver Topshop Bag (Unavailable) | £15.00

REVIEW: Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick in "F-Bomb"

I am a self confessed lipstick junkie so it may come as no surprise that today I have yet another review on one for you! Today, we're looking an Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick in the shade F-Bomb.

Price: £15.50

Where to Buy it From: UrbanDecay.com

I've reviewed this range of lipsticks before from Urban Decay - the lipsticks in it are specifically formulated to give you intense colour payoff but with a creamy and shiny finish. They claim to be made for extensive wear as well to contain ingredients that help to nourish the lips and make them seem plumper and fuller!

Packaging:

As with most Urban Decay packaging, this lipstick oozes that feeling of sophistication and high end quality that you'd expect for the price your paying. I love the gunmetal grey of the lipstick tube and the way "Urban Decay" is embossed on it - the packaging really does feel and look like a high end product which is exactly what I would want it to.

Colour and Pigmentation:

The shade that I got this lipstick in was "F-Bomb" - great name, huh? It's described as the "classic red" and I'd say that's pretty spot on to be honest. 

F-Bomb is warm/neutral medium red that when swatched and in the tube looks more cool-toned. On the lips and depending on your skin colour, it can however appear a little warmer. For me, it's pretty much that classic, Hollywood red with a slight cool undertone and I love it!

This lipstick is insanely pigmented, one swipe and you have intense colour payoff - this is the same with the other Revolution lipsticks that I own. The colour spreads evenly on the lips and you aren't going to need more than one coat to get a perfect coverage, 

Formula and Application / Wear:

In terms of formula, this lipstick feels creamy and smooth on the lips. It spreads easily and feels pretty light on. It has a shiny finish (not lip gloss shiny, just a nice creamy shine) and it's comfortable to wear throughout the day.

Now, in terms of wear time, this lipstick really lasts all day - as it's so richly pigmented it does leave a slight stain to the lips as well - so when it does eventually wear, you aren't going to notice it too much. For me, it can last a good 8 hours and even then, you probably won't need to re-apply if you didn't want to. This for me is one of the most impressive things about this lipstick - most of the time you'll have to wear a matte lipstick to get that kind of wear time but this is far from a matte finish and it lasts for ages.

Overall, I'm really impressed with the lipstick which doesn't surprise me as I'm a huge fan of the Revolution range from Urban Decay. This lipstick is luxurious in both its feel and appearance and this shade in particular is that perfect, Hollywood red that'll make you feel like a star. 

I'd definitely recommend this collection and this particular lipstick - you won't regret it. The price range of this lipstick is similar to one from MAC and so though it's still definitely higher end, it's still on the lower end of the overall price scale for this kind of brand. If you fancy treating yourself to a higher end lipstick, this is one I'd totally look into!

First Impressions: Clinique Cheek Pop Blush in "Plum Pop"

Today I wanted to share with you a first impressions post on a makeup product that I received a few weeks ago for my birthday. It's one I had been lusting over for a while mainly due to how beautiful it looked and it's from the brand Clinique. 

I've never really tried Clinique before - bar the odd few magazine freebies (gotta love those freebies) - but I've always wanted to. However, the brand itself is rather pricey and none of their products ever called out to me enough. Whilst browsing at makeup one day though, I spotted their Cheek Pop blushes and was instantly drawn to them. After casually hinting my interest at one particular blush from the range, I was lucky enough to get it for my birthday.

The shade I got of the Cheek Pop blush was "Plum Pop" which is a cool toned, pinky-purple. It's similar to another colour in the range called "Berry Pop" but this shade is a little lighter and more natural looking which is why I went for it. I think this is a really beautiful, versatile shade that can be paired with a variety of different looks. You can definitely go for more of a sheer, flushed look if you wanted to but you can also definitely intensify that colour as well depending on how much coverage you desire.

This blush leaves a beautifully soft, smooth, satin-finish to the skin and it blends really nicely. As stated above, it leaves a very natural flush of colour to the skin and looks almost like a cream blush which I love. It's very glowy and is perfect for everyday - I think this is a colour that can work for a lot of different skin tones too due to the fact that it is easily buildable. From the the few applications I have worn the blush so far, it has had good wear time of around 6-8 hours.

And can we just talk about the product itself and how BEAUTIFUL it looks for a moment? I absolutely love the floral pattern in the product and it kind of hurts me to even sweep my brush across it, it's just so pretty!

I'm enjoying this blush so far and I'm very impressed with it's formulation and colour payoff in particular. You can grab this blush from FeelUnique for £17.00!

What's in my Travel Makeup Bag?

They say a girl keeps her life in her bag... Now, while I'm not sure that's totally true, I definitely keep quite a few necessities with me in my makeup bag and in todays post, I thought I'd share them with you.

* FYI, I'm calling it a makeup bag but there's really not much makeup in my bag at all, on a daily basis, I only ever really take the lip product of that day with me! *

The bag I'm currently using is one I've had for a few years now and I love it. I originally purhchased it from ASOS and it's by Cath Kidston. It comes with a handy little mirror and I think it's the perfect size to travel with as it holds a really decent amount. 

As you can see, I keep quite an array of products in my little bag and it pretty much keeps me covered with the necessities I might need to grab for on a daily basis. Firstly, I have gathered quite the collection of perfumes and little perfume samples. Every time I get samples, I just throw them into my bag to use on the go - that way you're using up the sample and always have a nice scent on you if you ever forget one. I also carry with me the 30ml Vera Wang Princess as this is just one of my favourite go-to scents!

Moving on to only the real "makeup" that I have in my bag, I firstly carry with me oil blotting sheets. I don't really like to carry powder as personally, I don't like to wear too much of it. I have dry skin, so I'd rather blot any excess oil than powder over it as this can make my skin look ever drier. I also carry with me my beloved lip balms! I have a simple Carmex one and then also one of the infamous Maybelline BabyLips balm in the red shade - it gives a nice rosy / just-bitten colour to the lips. 

Next off, I carry a lot of "emergency" things such as plasters, a cute little tin (that I think once held mints) full of paracetomol, a nasal inhalant and of course, gum. I've been wearing in some awfully painful Dr Martens lately so I've also got some plasters with me, too! Clean and moisturised hands are important so I bring with me my favourite sanitiser; Soap and Glory's Hand Maid as well as a travel sized hand cream from The Body Shop.

And that's everything in my makeup bag! As you can see, not really much in the makeup department and a whole lotta perfume samples.. but hey! That's everything that I pretty much carry around with me whenever I leave the house. 

Now that you've had a peek into my bag, what's in yours?!

Review: Travalo Classic Excel

I am a definite perfume addict and I love always smelling nice (who doesn't?). It's nice to have a scent with you whilst on your travels - especially on those days where you might not have gotten the chance to put anything on. 

However, you don't always want to be hauling around a giant glass bottle in my bag when I want a little spritz of perfume so finding the item I'm posting about today was a pretty awesome discovery!  The item I'm talking about is the Travalo perfume atomiser. It's a tiny little bottle that you can carry any one of your perfumes in - this particular atomiser carries a decent 5ml which makes it perfect for travel and an ideal size to pop in your bag.

Using the refillable Travalo is really easy as well. You can use it with practically any perfume you have that can have its spray head removed. Then, all you have to do once you've removed the nozzle, is pump the Travalo up and down on the perfume bottles tube and watch it fill up! This process takes a few seconds and then you've got a cute little bottle full of your favourite scent ready to take wherever you want! The Travalo also doesn't leak - which is something I had worried about before getting it but luckily, it's totally leak free and safe to carry around, perfect! 

Overall, I think this is a handy little item to have and it's nice not having to carry around a massive bottle of perfume everywhere. It also carries a good amount which means you can get quite a few sprays out of it before needing to refill. This is a really useful little tool and I think it'd make a great gift for you or someone else!

You can grab a Travalo from FeelUnique for £11.49

Why Do I Wear Makeup?

I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who has heard the phrases "girls who wear makeup are fake" or "wearing makeup means you're hiding the real you". 

I really can't stand and frankly just don't understand these phrases nor the point of saying them. Firstly, these phrases automatically indicate that a persons identity and thus the judgements made about them have to be spawned from their aesthetic appearance. For a judgement that implies we who wear makeup are insecure about our appearance, it sure does a lot to imply that how we appear (and how "natural" that appearance is) is indeed so very important. 

I'm not going to lie and say that wearing makeup doesn't make me feel better about myself sometimes, but at the same time I can't say that without it I'd hate myself and how I look, because I don't. I accept myself and I accept what I look like with nothing on - and this is something I strongly encourage every one to feel.
Nonetheless, I still enjoy wearing makeup and it still makes me feel a little bit more put together sometimes just like a suit can make someone look and feel little smarter.

These factors don't mean that I am insecure, and they certainly don't mean that I am hiding myself from people. I thought it wasn't all about what the cover of the book looked like, yet it seems like if that book doesn't look the "right way", it's fine to judge it before reading a little further...

I find it foolish for people to feel lied to or even betrayed by a persons appearance when they take their makeup off - I mean, you can clearly see when someone has makeup on, especially when it's a more extreme look - so why on Earth are you surprised that a person looks a little different after taking it all off? 

More to the point, why do you even care? Why does a person wearing makeup affect you so much? Makeup for me is a way of expression, it's a way for me to change up my look without any permanent commitments and it's a way for me to match my mood a certain day to my outward appearence. Of course that makes me feel a bit more confident but so does any act that makes a person feel happy or makes a person feel like they can express themselves. And that's okay.

People also forget that a person can still hide who they are without changing things about their appearance - people can hide behind far more things than a bit of eyeshadow or a spot of lipstick. At the end of the day, if it makes that individual happy and if it's not harming another, why is it such a bad thing, why must it be perceived so negatively? Why must a person conform to the beauty standards that say their look is too "fake"? 

I don't hide behind my makeup, my makeup enforces who I am and who the real me is - if makeup is anything, it is simply an outward extension of myself, not a barrier hiding that.

What does makeup mean to you? 

OOTD | 21.07.15

What I'm Wearing:

Levi's Jacket | Vintage

Polka Dot Blouse (Alternative) | £19.00

ASOS Skinny Jeans | £30.00

Dr Martens 1461's | £95.00

ASMR

We all have difficult things that we have to deal with in our lives sometimes; big or small. It could be the normal stresses of everyday life or the anxieties of big events to come, either way, it can affect us and cause us to need a little time to sit back and relax. 

I try to be as positive a person as I can - but nonetheless, I am a worrier at heart and I always will be. I worry about anything and everything and with that, my mind is busiest when it should be at its calmest - this is typically at night when I'm trying to go to sleep. So, in this post I wanted to talk about something that I have recently come across that has truly helped me and become a necessary part of my daily life to help me relax.

Photo Source: Unsplash.com

This "thing" is called ASMR and you may have heard of it. I have recently discovered the phenomena which has taken quite the storm on Youtube. It stands for Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response and is characterised as "tingly" sensations that can be triggered on and within the body from various triggers that can be both visual, auditory or cognitive. Sounds pretty weird, right? And it kind of is, but for me, it works.

To break it down, various people (referred to as ASMRtists) make all sorts of videos that utilise these common triggers and they are often accompanied by soft whispering or soft spoken dialogue. As this is generally intended for relaxation, the sounds are gentle and low in volume - they are just loud enough for you to hear but not so much so that they are distracting and overpowering. 

Some of these "triggers" as mentioned before, stir up a strange tingling sensation in some people and with others, they are just relaxing and nice to listen to or to look at. Common triggers include soft tapping and scratching, ear to ear whispering and crackling sounds. There are also role play videos to be found using these triggers and the ASMR style as often, people first discover that they are triggered by certain sounds in every day life. For instance, have you ever been in a normal situation in which there was something that especially relaxed you? The sound of someones voice, the tapping sound of a keyboard, the crinkling of a wrapper maybe? If so, these are all examples of what is now termed ASMR. 

Anyway, ASMR has really helped me to relax and many others have said it does the same for them. ASMR is widely used by people to help them relax, send them off to sleep and help them deal with issues such as stress, depression and anxiety. If you think ASMR vides might be something you'd be interested in, here are some of my favourite channels:

GentleWhispering

Olivia's Kissper ASMR

WhispersUnicorn

Fairy Char ASMR

It might not be for you, but I'd definitely give it a shot - it may surprise you!

Korres Japanese Rose Shower Gel

Usually, I don't get too excited when it comes to things like shower gels. The only thing I ever really look for in them is their scent to be honest and apart from that, I'm not majorly fussy. However, now and then whilst I'm trying different shower gels, I discover one that shines out from the rest and can be considered a little bit more.. special. 

That was the case with a shower gel that I recently received as part of a birthday gift from my brother. It is the Korres Japanese Rose Shower Gel and today, I thought I'd share with you just why I like it so much. 

First of all, it's all natural. Well, 91.2% natural if I'm being precise but hey, that's still pretty close to me! This is always a factor that makes me instantly steer more towards a product - as I've said perhaps a hundred times by now, I have sensitive skin and products on the more natural side are always less likely to effect it! 

(Here's the full list of ingredients):

Aqua/ Water/ Eau, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Coco-Glucoside, Glyceryl Oleate, Parfum (Fragrance), Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Althaea Offcinalis Root Extract, Arginine, Benzyl Alcohol, Castoryl Maleate, Citronellol, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Helichrysum Arenarium Flower Extract, Hydrolyzed Wheat Gluten, Hydroxyisohexyl 3-Cyclohexene Carboxaldehyde, Imidazolidinyl Urea, Lactic Acid, Limonene, Phenoxyethanol, Polyquaternium-7, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Dehydroacetate, Sodium Gluconate, Tocopherol

The second reason that I enjoy this shower gel is its scent. I'm a fan of rose smells though I definitely think they can sometimes be too much even for me. The scent of this product however is delicate and subtle, it smells fresh and just very pleasant on the skin. Getting in to actually using the gel, I can say that it is very thick in its consistency and so this means you really don't require much to cover your whole body. It lathers into a really rich foam and for me, that's always a good sign of a quality shower gel. The gel isn't drying either like some can be and instead leaves my skin actually feeling quite soft and conditioned after washing it off.

Overall, this is a shower gel that is really quite indulgent both in use and in price. Even at it's cheapest end on Amazon, it is still £6.99 for 250ml and though I think it'll last you for a decent while, it is still on the pricier side. Nonetheless, this is a really nice shower gel so if you want to pamper yourself a little or perhaps indulge you or someone you love in a little treat, I'd definitely recommend giving this a go. 

Outfit of the Day: Birthday Edition

Hello everyone! I hope that you're all well and that you're having a good day / week so far. Yesterday, I turned 21 (eek!) and in this post, I thought I'd share the outfit that I wore on the day. I had a lovely birthday and as always, I'm so grateful for all the wonderful presents and birthday wishes that I received from friends and family.

Lipstick is 'Rose Garden' by LA Splash

Look out for a "What I got for my birthday" post coming soon! Apologies for the not so great photo quality, I need to start using my DSLR for outfit pics but I'm always forgetting, my bad! Anyway, on to the outfit:

Longline Blazer - Missguided | £24.00 (On sale now!) Cropped Vest - ASOS | £9.00 (Similar, on sale!) Necklace - Urban Outfitters | £18.00 (Part of a set) High Waisted Jeans - Miss Selfridge | £28.00 (On sale now!) Dr Martens 1461 Shoe - Schuh | £95.00

Real Techniques Duo-Fibre Brush Set - ft. a Sigma Dupe!

It is a strong belief of mine that you can never have too many makeup brushes.  And so, naturally I enjoy collecting them - now, I probably do have too many but let's not focus too much on that!  A month or so ago, I purchased the Real Techniques Duo-Fibre brush set. In this post, I thought I'd share with you my thoughts and feelings on the set - enjoy!

Price? £23.99 Where to Buy? Boots This set is apparently Limited Edition (though it has been out for quite a while now with no signs of it discontinuing anytime soon) and it comes with three different brushes.  These are:

 - The Duo-Fiber Face brush: for lightweight application of blush / powder to the face. 

- The Duo-Fiber Contour brush: for controlled contouring and sculpting of the face.

- The Duo-Fiber Eye brush: for finishing touches to the eye and blending. 

My Thoughts:

I have been really enjoying these brushes and they have definitely conveyed me even more into a fan of the duo-fiber brush. This set is made beautifully well and are great quality as Real Techniques are well known for. 

What I love about this set and the brushes themselves most is that they give a really natural and soft flush of colour to the face. This makes them great for building up colour slowly as well as for allowing you to be able to control your coverage a lot more. This is particularly important element in terms of the brushes and their uses. Each brush is for a part of the face that you may not always want a heavy application. These brushes feel well made and soft to the skin and as mentioned before, blend products really well.

My favourite brush of the bunch is probably the contour brush. It's very easy I find to over-contour sometimes by adding too much product, but this brush picks up just enough allowing you to add definition and not sculpt the face too heavily. 

The Face Brush is one I have also enjoyed using as well and I have actually found it to be a pretty spot on dupe for a similar Sigma brush that I have in my collection. 

As you can see in the photo above, the Real Techniques Face Brush is just a little bit bigger than the Sigma F15 but in terms of performance, they're exactly the same and just as good in my opinion. 

The F15 is a whopping £21.50 in comparison to this 3-set collection set being only £23.99 for all 3 brushes. This means you're getting 3 brushes for more or less the price of one if you were to favour the Sigma brush of the Real Techniques one - now considering the brilliant quality of RT brushes, this is an amazing deal!

  

Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water

It is in the last year or so that I've really been trying to solidify a proper skincare routine and that for me started with nailing down a good cleansing regimen. An important part of that process for me what toning and it had been an element of cleansing that I had forgotten about in the past and recently, I've discovered how effective toning actually is.  With that in mind, I thought I'd review for you one of the toner's I've been trying out recently; Garnier's Micellar Cleansing Water.

Price? £1.99 for 125ml Where to Buy? Boots  This is considered a pretty bang on dupe for the very popular Bioderma Sensibio H20 Micelle Solution and I have to say, I agree. Both of these toners are great for use on sensitive skin and as someone with that skin type, I can definitely say that Garnier's toner caused absolutely no irritation for me.  Having tried Bioderma's Solution in the past, I'd say that the same does apply to that product too but Garnier's version is nonetheless still a fraction of the price.  At £1.99 for 125ml, it is half the price than Bioderma and for something you're going to use everyday - perhaps even to remove a full face of makeup, I think it's an amazing deal. 

Talking of removing makeup, whilst I don't use toner solely for this purpose and instead prefer hot cloth cleansers, this toner does a great job of removing any left over makeup and just generally refreshing my skin and removing any access oil or dirt from it.  I love to use this in the mornings or when I want to clean my face quickly because I find it gentle enough and frankly good enough to use on it's own.

This doesn't leave the face feeling tight like some toners tend to and instead leaves the face feeling fresh and hydrated - I find it effective at softening dry areas too. It makes a great base for a hydrating serum and the two in conjunction make my skin feel beautiful.  All in all, I think this is great product - it cleanses well and is perfect for all skin types. It's pretty much the same if not better than Bioderma's Micelle Solution in my opinion and at a fraction of the price, it's at least worth a try if you ask me! Have you tried this product? If so, I'd love to know what you think :)

Face of the Day: Summer Edition

Hey everyone! I'm bringing you a face of the day post and this time, I was going for a very neutral, toned down look. It's super hot here in the UK and so for me, that means more minimal makeup - particular on the eyes and face.

Revlon's Nearly Naked Foundation in Vanilla | £8.99 Revlon Colorstay Concealer in Light | £6.99 Urban Decay Naked Palette | £38.00 Seventeen Falsifeye Mascara in Black | £6.99 MAC Blush in Dollymix | £18.50 Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Powder Duo in Medium Brown | £17.00 Maybelline Brow Drama in Dark Brown | £4.99 Nyx Butter Gloss in Strawberry Parfait | £7.69

Mary Lou-Manizer Highlighting Powder | £17.50