Thank You So Much River Island Sale- My New Baby

Thank you so so much River Island sale.

I have been lusting after this bag for so long and have resisted, but what do I spy right at the bottom of a sale rack? This baby just sitting there, with £20 knocked off it. WIN. Even luckier was the fact that the other two were broken and this was the only one in tact.

I don't mind that it's missing a few of the studs and I'm going to punch a hole in strap as it's a little too long for my liking. Unfortunately, it's too small to fit my uni work into it but I'll damn well find a way

Easily my best sale find so far

Chuffed nuggets

What have been your best sale finds?

xx

FOTD and New Year Resolutions

A Happy New Year to you all :)

Today, I actually managed to get myself out of pyjamas today and make myself presentable. We are going out as a family tonight as it is my Dad's birthday- there's a steak calling me :D So I thought I would make an effort

With and without flash. 

My Blackberry contract *finally* runs out in about 2 months time so I'm looking into getting a new phone with a decent camera and already have my eyes on a Samsung Xperia on T Mobile. I've been with Orange for years now and I've finally had enough-just way too expensive now. Definitely something I'm looking forward to in the new year, my Blackberry has been driving me round the bend!

*mobile rant over*

I liked this look as it is a wearable warm smoky eye done with bronzes and shimmery pale golds, mainly done with the Sleek Storm Palette. My eyes are quite round though and I think my eyes look huuuge in the first photo O_o, don't you?

Face

 Revlon PhotoReady Foundation

MAC Select Sheer Pressed Powder

Collection 2000 concealer

Lips

Topshop Lipstick in Rumour Has It

Topshop Glaze in Antique

Resolutions

So, every year these are made and I never keep them. 

I have self disciple as strong as a jellyfish's arm...

But this year, I've only given myself a few that I can actually stick to.

1) Walk more-

Stop using my car so much when I'm at home and stop getting the bus back  to halls when I'm at uni. I do actually really enjoy walking, especially if I have my iPod on me. Laziness just gets the better of me the majority of the time.

2) Wear jeans less- 

Bit of an odd one but I really want to move away from wearing jeans so much. They're my go to item in the morning when the majority of my clothes would look just as good with a skirt. I will definitely have to be investing in more tights though.

3) Find a skin routine that works for me and damn well stick to it- 

I've always struggled with my skin. It's not terrible but it could be a whole lot better and I have a lot to answer for. People often say my skin is fine, to which I reply I've had plenty years practice hiding it. Either way, the Liz Earle is shaping up to be a winner so I might be on track with this one already!

And there we have it. I have a niggling feeling there was one more but if I've forgotten it already, it can't have been that important...

What are your New Year's resolutions?

xx

Top 11 Of 2011

Happy New Year guys!

I hope you all had a fun time last night, whatever you were doing. It is unfortunately lashing it down with rain where I am at the moment and as such I haven't made it out of my pyjamas today. So, as a way to kill time and avoid Spanish and Portuguese revision, I thought I would do my Top 11 of 2011

Skin

Lis Earle Cleanse and Polish Skin Duo

This is something that I got for Christmas so it's really only managed to sneak into my top 2011 products. But, I've been using it ever since and am already in love with it. I already feel like its doing my skin good and it leaves your skin feeling so so soft. The only criticism I have is that it has quite a strong rose water smell and I *really* don't like artificial rose smells. But that's just me.

Estée Lauder Double Wear Foundation

If you've read my review of this foundation, you will know how much I rave about this foundation. If you haven't, you can read it here because really all the information is there.

But this absolutely my holy grail foundation and I'm so glad I bought it

Ecotools Powder Brush

I use this brush to do both my foundation and my powder and it is a *big* step up from the shoddy e.l.f. Kabuki brush I was using. It is wonderfully soft and really blend my foundation in beautifully.

Eyes

Sleek Storm Palette

The perfect mix of nudes and gold combined with warm darker shades make this the ideal eyeshadow palette for me and I use it nearly everyday. It was something my makeup collection was severely lacking

Revlon Grow Luscious Mascara

Again, I have a review of this mascara and so far, it is my perfect mascara that just lengthens and volumises my short lil eyelashes. In my review, I hadn't quite decided if it had bumped Max Factor 2000 Calorie Mascara off the the top spot and I can say now that it has.

Cheeks

MAC Springsheen Blush

A beautiful corally pink with shimmery gold undertones. It is very similar to the other MAC blush that I have- Fleur Power- but it far more wearable. Both are very pigmented so you definitely need a light hand with it.

Lips

Saving the best till last. I am a big lipstick girl and these are my new loves

MAC Chatterbox Lipstick

Quite a bright pink lipstick but I'm never one to shy away from the brighter colours. I absolutely adore this colour on me and actually find it surprisingly wearable so much so that it has become my go-to lipstick

MAC Ruby Woo Lipstick

The ultimate red lipstick. 

As long as you moisturise your lips before as this is a very dry formula. But if you do that, you're set for the whole day. Absolutely brilliant red lipstick

Rimmel Heartbreaker Lipstick

My all time favourite lipstick and the only lipstick I have completely worn down. It can be worn both day and night and is often the shade worn by Zooey Deschanel in the Rimmel adverts. A gorgeous colour.

Topshop Glaze in Antique

A gorgeous muted peachy pink lipgloss. A bit on the sticky side but it's perfect on its own and  to tone down a bright lipstick in the day as it isn't too pigmented

Hair

I use it everyday without fail to keep my hair in check and it has never let me down. It leaves no crispiness in my hair and keeps my hair frizz free. As it is dirt cheap as well, it's pretty student purse friendly 

And there you have it, my top 11 of 2011.

I have a big hair post planned as I'm stuck in hair limbo at the moment, not really sure what to do with it and it got me thinking about curly hair in general so I figured it would be useful to put on here. So keep an eye out for that, if you are interested.

Hope you're having a good day

And what have been some of your top products of 2011? - I'd love to know.

xx

Belated Merry Christmas and Pre-emptive Happy New Years

Merry Christmas

*belatedly*

I hope you've all had a lovely Christmas with your friends and family.

I, unfortunately, have been working solidly- the joys of a student holiday job, aye? 

Including working Christmas Eve and Boxing Day. It hasn't been much of a holiday.

However, it has been the sales and I have managed to snap up a few bargains. Christmas isn't a hugely massive thing in our house so I often get some money to spend on what I want- the parents judge it to be the safest way.

Rather macabre picture of some poor Christmas robins hanging off one of our lights that I found rather amusing when I came back from uni.

So, I'm pretty much solid until I go back, when I'll show you what I managed to snap up in the sales and have enjoyed receiving on Christmas.

So, if I don't post before then, I would like to wish you all as well

Happy New Year

Have an amazing time and I'll see you in the new year :)

Battle of Two Mascaras- Rimmel Day to Night VS Revlon Grow Luscious- Review

So, in a recent bid to branch out and try new make up and in a move away from my beloved Max Factor 2000 Calorie Lash Mascara, I decided to try a new mascara. So, first into the ring is...

Rimmel Day to Night Mascara- £7.99

As you can see, it consists of a trick double wand where the Length wand goes down and in the middle of the Volume wand (at least that's what I've worked it out to be) You use one wand followed by the other if you want both length and volume- which I most definitely do.

I have to confess I have tiny eyelashes- if I were to look straight on at you, without mascara, you probably wouldn't even see them.

Seeeee?! Barely anything there. 

*this is an old photo before I discovered mascara and also excuse the eyebrows*

So it's always a massive thing to me for me to find a good mascara.

Anyway, onto Rimmel...

I HATE this mascara. It's rubbish. For me, at any rate.

The formula of the mascara is dire- it is far to liquid-y if you know what I mean. I know mascaras tend to take a while to get to the right sort of consistency but with this one, it has just not happened. 

Combined with the Volume brush, which is far too big, it's a disaster. It sticks like crazy. Too much product build up in between the bristles so if you want more than one coat- good luck. It will be a classic case of fat spider legs stuck to your eyes. I had to use an old mascara wand to separate my lashes out again.

The only good thing about it is the 'length' wand on its own which does add length on its own but needs several coats to build up a noticeable look.

As I quickly abandoned this mascara, I will hold my hand up and say I don't have any photos of this. I just really dislike it that much

However all is not lost, mis amores, as a new contender has arrived.

Revlon Grow Luscious Plumping Mascara- £9.99

My new love. 

It is equal or just pipping Max Factor 2000 Calorie to the top spot mascara.

It ticks all my boxes ;)

The wand size is just right. The consistency is great from the first application. It gives me length and volume without the spiders and I can easily apply 3 coats without it clumping and it is only £2 more expensive than Rimmel.

It won out over Max Factor False Lash Effect, which also used to be one of my top mascaras, as I much prefer bristle wands than plastic. Much less painful when I stab myself in the eye with it. Unfortunately, a very common habit of mine.

I will edit and post photographic proof when I look less like a zombie from doing the breakfast service at work. I just wanted to write it all while it was fresh.

Have a good day!

Have you tried either of these?

xx