April Favourites!

April has really flown by and like every month, there's been alot of things that I've been loving. I've whittled it down to just these...

Garnier Ultimate Blends Shampoo & Conditioner - I picked these up on a quick dash to Tesco after running out of shampoo. After sampling every scent I settled on Argan & Camellia Oil and it smells heavenly. They lather up really well and leave my hair feeling silky smooth and smelling amazing all day.

Tangle Teezer - I have such fine hair that it gets knotted really easily, which is where this steps in. It's the perfect size and shape to fit in the palm of your hand and just run through your hair. I love it because it doesn't pull at all and just glides through my hair, detangling my unruly hair on its way.

No7 Stay Perfect Nail Colour (Cheeky Chops) - This is a nail varnish I have re-purchased time and time again, along with their Pink Grapefruit colour. I love the No7 varnishes as they don't chip as quickly as most and really do stay perfect. I'm loving the shade Cheeky Chops at the moment as it's the perfect bright coral for Spring.

Propercorn (Sweet & Salty) - You could say I've become a little obsessed with this stuff...I may have even stocked up with a few bags. Propercorn is the perfect snack if you're not sure what you fancy as you get a little bit of sweet and a little bit of savoury. Also, at 129 calories a bag, it's a guilt-free treat.

L'Oreal Paris Sublime Bronze Summer Glow Lotion - Now we're starting to get the warmer weather I needed a little something to make my legs look a little more human and a little less ghostly. As this is a gradual tan you can use it just like a moisturiser, and it will slowly build up a lovely, subtle colour. I apply this with a mitt to avoid any streaks and after a few applications I have a nice summery glow.

The Body Shop Pink Grapefruit Body Butter - All of the body butters at The Body Shop smell ridiculously good, but I'm a sucker for a citrus scent. This smells delicious and leaves my skin feeling nourished and fresh!

What have you been loving in April?

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My Top 5 Mac Lipsticks

 L-R: Ruby Woo  -  Lady Danger  -  Morange  -  Impassioned  -  Coral Bliss

Narrowing down my 5 favourite Mac lipsticks was tricky, but I think I've managed. I'm a lover of bright lipsticks as you can now probably tell, and these 5 are my most used & loved. At £15 a pop I can see why some people opt for drugstore lipsticks instead, I have loads myself, but I do like treating myself to Mac lipstick now and then as they last forever, have a huge variety of colours and just feel good!

First up, Ruby Woo. This is one of the Matte formula lipsticks by Mac and can be quite drying and tug when applying, but if you use a lipscrub (recipe here) and balm beforehand you'll have no problem. I prefer to apply this with a lipbrush to get a neat lipline or it can look a tad messy. All that said, I love this. Being an opaque blue-based red it makes my teeth look whiter, which is always a good thing. I love wearing this all year round (who says reds are just for winter?) and it makes me feel kinda sassy. I have a lot of red lipsticks (and I mean alot), but this is my go-to red.

Lady Danger. Mega heart-eyed emoji. I bought this in duty-free at the airport before a holiday and I'm glad I did because this looks so good with a tan. This is another matte formula lipstick but I don't find it drags upon application at all. It's described as a 'vivid, bright coral-red' and it really is. I think this colour would suit pretty much every skin tone, but I especially love this when I'm tanned. 

On braver days, I like to wear Morange. 'Loudmouth Orange' is how it's described, which I would say is pretty on point. This looks best with a pretty simple face, so a flawless base and a quick swish of mascara is all you need with this. Being it's complimentry colour, it really makes blue eyes pop, but I also think it'd really suit brown eyes (and all other coloured peepers) too. It has an amplified cream finish and is smooth and easy to apply. If you looking for a wearable but intense orange, this is for you.

I never feel Impassioned is done justice in photos, the true colour never shows but this is an 'amped up fuschia' with purple undertones. Again, it's an amplified cream formula, which is great for sore lip days (which I have more than my share of) as it doesn't cling to dry patches. This is another one that suits every complexion, and I find it really wearable both when I'm palest of the pale and when I have a nice tan going on.

I mentioned Coral Bliss in this post, as my everyday go-to shade, as it's so wearable and goes with pretty much everything. Great for a fresh, spring face.

What are your favourite Mac lipsticks?

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The Body Shop - Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter

Cleansing Balms/Butters have started popping up all over the place again lately, I know my Bloglovin' feed is full of 'em, and it's one bandwagon I'm glad to jump on.

Last year everyone was raving about the Emma Hardy Amazing Face Moringa Cleansing Balm (bit of a mouthful that!), and I very nearly caved into the price and bought it several times. Luckily, this year a whole variety of balms and butters have made an appearance, and at a whole range of prices. 

I recently went shopping with plans to purchase Cliniques 'Take the Day Off'' cleansing balm but every single shop was sold out. I sulked at the time but then I saw that The Body Shop had brought out the Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter, and even better, it was half the price of the Clinique balm!

I picked this cleansing butter up at the weekend and have used it every night since to remove my makeup and I know it's only been a few days but...I love it.

The butter is for all skin types which I was happy about as I'm always wary with skincare that it won't be right for my skin and will break me out, but so far, so good (touch wood).

I'm so lazy with skincare, especially at night-time when it comes to removing my make-up, but this is so easy! Just massage a tiny bit into your face and it gently melts away all traces of make-up, even my stubborn eyeliner and mascara, which I usually have to scrub off. My face has never felt so clean and fresh!

Have you tried any of the balms and butters floating about?

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My Everyday Face

Happy Easter! For me Easter Sunday is about eating copious amounts of chocolate and chilling with my Family. We all went for a little stroll around Battlesbridge this morning, until the heavens opened, and then came home to chill, nap and enjoy a lazy Sunday together.

On days like today, and even on usual work days, I don't fancy slapping a lot on my face. Here are my top picks for everyday, natural makeup. It's funny how a 'natural' look still requires a fair few products! #firstworldgirlproblems

The Body Shop Tea Tree Pore Minimiser - I bloody love this! It basically smoothes, mattifies and primes your face all in one, while minimising the appearance of pores. Tea Tree products always leave my skin feeling fresh and I like knowing it's doing something good for my skin too.

Liz Earle Skin Repair Moisturiser - I think I have found the one with this Liz Earle gem! I seem to struggle finding the right one for me and am always worried the wrong one will break me out, but then without my skin will be tight and dry in patches which looks and feels equally as bad. My Mum suggested trying this and it's without a doubt the best I've ever used.

Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum (52) - This is up there in my top 3 bases and is the one I go to for Spring/Summer. It's gel-like formula is easy to blend and is packed with vitamins & a  fruit therapy formula which includes goji berries and pomegranates. If you want an even complexion with light/medium coverage then this is the one.

Seventeen Stay Time Concealer - Now, I'm a lover of the beloved Collection Lasting Perfection concealer like everybody else, but I recently wanted to switch it up and give something else a go. I was mooching about in Boots and saw this new concealer as thought I'd try it out. The coverage on this is so good and it's so creamy and blendable it reminds me of the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer but at a fracton of the price! Also, like the name would suggest, it stays in place all day. Dare I say this is my new holygrail concealer?

Natural Collection Suntint Bronzing Powder - I wasn't expecting much from this bronzer, I just picked it up on a quick visit to Boots after smashing my usual one, but I was pleasantly surprised. It's a matte powder, which for me is perfect, as it looks more like a natural glow than when you use a bronzer with shimmer in.

No7 Instant Radiance Highlighter - I spoke a bit about the blush version of this here, and is pretty much the same in all aspects, other than obviously being a highlighter. I actually prefer having my highlighter in this stick as it means I can't smash it like my previous one. (Can you tell I'm really clumsy?!)

NARS 'Orgasm' Blush - No matter what blush I use I always come back to this little love. It's just the perfect natural, pop of colour for a healthy-skin glow. I've written more here, if you'd like a read.

Sleek Eyebrow Kit (Light) - This handy little brow kit is perfect as it has everything you need for perfect brows in one tiny compact, think Benefit's Brow Zings but cheaper. I comes with shaping wax, setting powder, mini-tweezers and two little angle & blending brushes.

Seventeen High Drama Liquid Eyeliner - I feel naked without my winged liner and this is by far my favourite liquid eyeliner to use. I've tried the gels and the pens but nothing beats this. It's easy to control and when it says it's black, it really is black.

Seventeen Back Lash Mascara - No mascaras come close to Seventeen mascaras for me. I've tried alot but I've never been dissappointed with a Seventeen Mascara. Even the cult-favourite They're Real from Benefit doesn't float my boat quite like these do.

MAC Color Bliss Lipstick - This is my favourite Cremesheen + Pearl lipstick by MAC. Coral lips are my favourite and this sheer lipstick is perfect for an everyday look.

What products do you use for an everyday look?

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On Wednesdays we wear black...

Another post, another outfit ft. this black hat. Can you tell I'm seriously loving it?! But it's not the star of the show this time...

This time it's this pretty swing dress  from Missguided. Swing dresses are so flattering as they literally skim over everything. I bought this little number a couple of months ago and I've recently re-kindled my love for it. It's so easy to wear as it hangs so beautifully and makes me feel all girly and swirly (yes, that's right!). I love that this can be worn with tights, like today, or with bare-legs when the warm weather (hopefully) makes more of an appearance, which makes it an easy, go-to outfit to slip on all year round. I actually have a lot of variety, colour-wise, in my wardrobe, but black is a firm favourite. You just can't go wrong with a black dress. Just add a bit of jewellery, in my case my Great-Nan's locket and my favourite Moonstone ring, to add a little summin, summin (I can't pull that off can I?!), and you're good to go! 

As Karl Lagerfeld said 'One is never over-dressed or under-dress with a Little Black Dress'.

What's your favourite go-to outfit?

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Mally - Guide to Gorgeous!

"Make-up is simply the accessory that allows someone's true nature and beauty to outwardly manifest itself"
Mally Roncal

Now I'd never heard of Mally Roncal, nor the make-up range Mally until a couple of Sunday's ago when my Mum and I stumbled upon it on QVC. It's not my go-to place when buying beauty products but Mum always uses it to stock up on Liz Earle bits. Mally Roncal, is a celebrity make-up artist to JLo, Angelina Jolie and the Queen Bee, Beyoncé, and she now has her own make-up line 'Mally'. 

We decided to try out this seven piece set (and by we I mean Mum bought it and I use it, sorry Mum!), and we love it.

The first thing included in this set is the Evercolour Poreless Face Defender which instantly mattifies and sets your make-up in place. It's clear, lightweight formula is easy to use, just dab a little on the sponge and gently pat onto the skin once your base has been applied. This is my favourite item from the set as it smooths skin and keeps your make-up in place all day long.

This two-piece set includes an eyeshadow base and eyeshadow. The base creates the perfect canvas for any eye look and helps to keep any shadow or liner in place. I really love this shadow as it's so pigmented and easy to blend, perfect for me as I'm useless at applying eyeshadow. The shadow in the shade Taupe is gorgeous, as it has a slight shimmer but it's not too OTT. It's also super flattering on blue eyes and make my eyes 'pop'.

I apply the 'Open Up!' eyeliner to my top waterline and also along my lash-line of my lid and it really does what it says on the tin, opening my eyes instantly. It stays in place all day, and literally will not budge.

When I first saw the Brow Fix I was not sold atall. It's so thick I thought it'd be impossible to fill my eyebrows in properly. How wrong I was! Along with filling your brows in as usual, it also help 'fix' them in place, as the title suggests. I have a love/hate relationship with my eyebrows, but this product is so easy to use, that they're done in a minute and don't stray all day.

 

This High Shine Liquid Lipstick in Cherry Blossom is perfect for everyday as it's such a subtle shade and one twist of the base gives the perfect amount on the brush, so you're not wasting any product. 

The last product in the set is the Get the Last Lash double-ended Mascara. The 'defining' side has a smaller applicator and I use this first to seperate and lengthen my lashes. Then I use the 'maximising' end with the bigger brush to thicken and well, maximse my eyelashes.

I really enjoyed using all these products and their staying power is incredible. Each product is great for a natural, everyday face and I already know which products I'll be re-purchasing.

Have you used an Mally products before?

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DIY Lip Scrub!

Despite religiously applying lipbalm, I still seem to have really chapped lips which is not a good look, especially when you're a lipstick addict like myself. That's where lip scrubs come in! They're a quick way to gently exfoliate your dry lips and make them super soft and lipstick ready. If you like the LUSH lip scrub (the bubblegum's my favourite!) then you will love this.

What you will need:

-Sugar (Caster or Granulated, they both do the trick)

-Olive Oil

-Honey

-Vanilla Essence

-Food Colouring

 Start by putting 1 tbsp of sugar in your container and add ½ tbsp of olive oil. The sugar obviously acts as the actual 'scrub' and the olive oil helps to moisturise your lips as you're scrubbing to keep them from getting sore. Next up, add a tiny drizzle of honey (just enough to bind the ingredients together). A couple of drops of vanilla essence, to make it taste nice and a tiny drop of food colouring and you're nearly done. Mix it all together and check the consistency is how you like it e.g if it's not all bound together, you'll need to add more honey. Then, voilà! Scrub your lips, apply lipstick and you're good to go. It really is that easy and you can probably find all of the ingredients in your kitchen cupboard! 

Do you have any beauty hacks?

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