august favourites

Saturday, August 31, 2013
I'm not usually fond of writing monthly favourites, probably because I struggle to photograph them. I've tried at least four times to photograph what I've been loving that month, but I've either not been happy with it or it was feeling forced. However, this month I've been getting my act together and using new products to finally do a monthly favourites post. So, here are my August favourites. :)




The first thing I've been loving this month is the Bourjois Healthy Mix serum and I use the shade Vanilla. This is quite dark for my pale skin, but I've been on holiday twice in these six weeks so I've got a tan on my arms and neck which means I can get away with wearing this! One of the things I love most about this product is the smell. It smells very fruity and summery, and I'm sat smelling this as we speak because it smells so good!

For me, Bourjois have been the brand I've been most impressed with so far this year. Everything from their foundations and bronzers to lip crayons and glosses have surprised me. To be honest, Bourjois was always a brand that I overlooked, but I think they're one of the best drugstore brands out there. Their Colorboost lip crayon in Fuschia Libre has been one of my makeup bag essentials for this summer. I did a full review on all of the shades in the collection here, but this has become one of my favourite shades.

I've been loving lip products this summer, and I find them more suited to summer than eye makeup is. My first and only Topshop lipstick has been one I've been loving this month. This one is in the shade Innocent, and is a beautiful baby, beachy pink which is so easy to wear! Nails Inc have also impressed me this month. Even though I only own two shades from their whole collection, I've fallen in love with Elizabeth Street. There is a (quite old) full review here.

I've also been using the St. Ives Blemish Fighting Apricot Scrub, (that was a mouthful). I mentioned this in my skincare post here, and mentioned that it says on the tube to use it 3-4 times a week. However, this is quite a tough scrub and it could be very irrative on your skin if you used it too much. I use this 1-2 times a week and leaves my skin feeling very clean and fresh.

Finally, I've been loving my Yankee Candle in Midnight Jasmine. The scent is very floral-y, fresh and delicate. I've been burning this in my bedroom with all of the windows open in the blistering heat, and it fits in perfectly :)


starting off: skincare

Tuesday, August 27, 2013
 So after having a snoop around the #bbloggers chat on Sunday night, I saw a little project called #theSOproject. In a nutshell, it basically means 'starting off' and aims to help people who may be new to makeup, or for younger teens. Because I am only 15 but I have been blogging for almost a year, I thought that I could bring my version of this for teens with similar skin and not much money! To read more about #theSOproject, read this post on Steph's blog.

This week's topic is skincare. I know teenage skin is horrible as this is probably the time when you're most likely to get acne, and it is probably the oiliest skin you'll ever have. My skin is oily around my nose and dry everywhere else, just for reference. I've been really getting into my skincare recently, as I've realized that you need a good base to get good makeup. Plus, it's good to start looking after your skin whilst you're young!


So, to kick things off I'll start with a cleanser. On a day to day basis, I use Philosophy's Purity cleanser. This is slightly on the more expensive side, costing £28.50 for 480ml from Boots. This removes waterproof makeup, especially mascara that won't budge! (Benefit's they're real, I'm talking about you.) There's nothing worse than waking up in the morning with panda eyes, even though you've cleansed! A negative to this product is that it doesn't smell the nicest. This is formulated to cleanse and tone in one, which is a bonus for when you don't want to do a full long-winded routine. The formula is quite gel like, and although it doesn't feel the nicest on your skin, it does the job well and leaves your skin feeling beautiful after!

For a spritzer I use Liz Earle's Instant Boost Skin Tonic Spritzer. Again, this is quite expensive, but I bought this in a set with a moisturizer and the infamous Cleanse and Polish. I rarely use this, but when I do my skin feels fresh and light after quite a heavy cleanser.

As my moisturizer I use Simple's Kind to Skin Light moisturizer. Finally, a cheap one! I know what it feels like to not have much money to spend on makeup if you're young and just starting out, but I really do recommend this if you have dry skin. Also, if you have oily skin, moisturizer is your best friend. You need to keep all of the moisture in your skin, as that's what keeps it looking and feeling light and fresh.

For exfoliating I have been trying out this St Ives Blemish Fighting Apricot Scrub. How ironic, because I've scheduled this post for when I'll be down in Cornwall! On the tube, it says it works best when you use it 3-4 times a week. I find this to be a harsh scrub, so it would be quite irritative if you was to use it that often! I use this every Sunday. This smells amazing and you only need a pea sized amount so it would last ages! This is cheap too, and you can get it from Boots, Superdrug and even Tesco.

I rarely use eye creams or eye balms, but I bought this one from Simple in Tesco's 3 for 2 offer and I love it! I keep this on my bedside table for mornings when my eyes feel or look red and puffy. This reduces the redness and makes you look that slight big more presentable in the morning!


sunday sum-up

Sunday, August 25, 2013
I got the idea from this post from the lovely Lauren from Sidda Thornton. I love list-making and I find that if I do this every week, I could look back in a few months and years and see how my life was week by week. So, without further ado, this week I have been....

Watching: Extreme Couponing. This is one of my favourite all-time TV shows, and it basically just shows how people (mainly women) in America can buy items from the supermarket for thousands of dollars and only pay around $50. It's so fascinating!

Wearing: One of the Revlon lip butters in Berry Smoothie. These are so easy to wear and give a nice subtle colour. Perfect for this late Summer.

Reading: The August edition of Company, Elle, Harper's Bazaar and Red magazine. Company has to be my all-time favourite magazine, although it sometimes can be quite controversial!


Smelling: The Red Velvet Cake candle by Yankee Candle. This smells just like red velvet which is my favourite cake flavour.

Thinking: I should really get some blog posts scheduled for next week for when I go on holiday. I have so many ideas scribbled down in my blog notepad, but can never find enough time to sit down and write!

Buying: A MAC lipstick in Creme D'Nude. I'm not too sure about this on my skin tone. Even though it's a nude, I find it to be too concealer-lips nude because my skin is so pale.

Wanting: The Naked palette! I feel like the only blogger not to have this palette. That reminds me,  I need to fill the rest of the spaces in my MAC palette. Woops.

Feeling: Sad because there's a week until I go back to school. The only good thing about going back to school is buying new stationery - I'm a stationery freak!

Loving: Buying new Autumn and Winter clothes! Winter is my favourite season because it's so cosy and I love the feeling you get when you drink hot chocolate around the fire... Ah, it makes me happy :)


bronzed eyes

Friday, August 23, 2013
In this late Summer, bronzed eyes are my favourite makeup look. They are so incredibly easy and look effortless, and I achieved the following eye look with only 1 product! Super easy and simple :)




On my face is MAC Studio Fix, as usual! I love this foundation to pieces - I did a full review here. I bought this from Selfridges a few months ago and the lady on the counter matched me perfectly! This is a medium to full coverage foundation and has an SPF of 15. I then used the Sleek Face Form palette in Light to bronze and warm up my face as I knew I was going to have warm eyes. Then just dust a light amount of the blush in the palette over your cheeks and you're good to go!

On my eyes is one simple product - a Collection work the color shadow stick. These little pencils are genius. They're so creamy so they don't drag over the eye and can be blended nicely within seconds. Once they're blended, they do not crease at all and stay putt all day. What more would you want from an eyeshadow?

Lips are kept simple and just look like a light gloss. I'm wearing one of Revlon's lip butters in the shade Berry Smoothie. You don't really want a full eye look and bright lips - I think it only works if you get it balanced!


everyday makeup

Monday, August 19, 2013
 I've been asked a few times what my 'everyday makeup routine' is, therefore the reason for today's post. I don't know why I've not done this post earlier or done any more routines or tutorials, but hopefully this will be the first of many!
For a start, please excuse my (very) annoying baby hair. It will not stay down with anything!
Although I don't wear makeup everyday, this look is the one I seem to lean to the most. It's very simple, easy to do and quick - the best three things to have everyday! I start off with my MAC studio fix fluid in NW10. Yes, I'm that pale! This is sometimes even too pale for me in the winter, which is not good at all. I then conceal under my eyes with the Collection lasting perfection concealer in fair. I love this, it works like a dream! Spots, red areas and bags, it covers them all. I just use the Real Technique powder brush to put the MUA blush in shade 2 on my cheeks. I then powder all over with my Rimmel stay matte powder.

On my eyes I use Naked Lunch by MAC all over my lid, then add a tiny bit of Smut to the outer corner and blend with a Real Techniques base shadow brush. Then I take Carbon, again by MAC, and very unneatly line my top waterline. After that, I blend again to get it more scruffy! I'm not a fan of neat, crisp makeup. I prefer it looking messy and more edgy as I think it looks much nicer! I just use Benefit's they're real mascara for my lashes. For my brows I just comb them and add fill them in a tiny bit with Espresso from MAC. Easy peasy.

I like to keep my lip colour very simple, and I usually opt for one of the Bourjois lip crayons. Today, I chose the shade Peach on the Beach which is a gorgeous nude pink. I usually blot this off as I prefer the colour more toned down.

How do you like your makeup?


get the look: miley cyrus

Sunday, August 18, 2013
Despite controversy, Miley Cyrus must've been every young girl's fashion icon at one point. Whether it be from her younger days in Hannah Montana, or now, when she dresses more edgy and grungy. It's fair to say she's changed a lot over the past few years, from cute pigtails and pink outfits to cut off denim shorts and classic red heels.

Photo credit


In the photo above, she is wearing a white skin-tight crop top. I found this similar one from Topshop for only £8 is an amazing dupe. These absolutley gorgeous red strapped heels from Zara are one of the nicest red heels I've seen in my life. Shorter heels seem now to be the fashion, rather than 6 inch stilettos that we're all familiar with! This gold bag from Michael Kors is probably not one that I would wear myself, but Miley seems to be a fan. These denim high waisted shorts are literally on everyone's summer list. Everybody needs a pair of high waisted denim shorts!


collection lasting perfection concealer

Saturday, August 17, 2013
The Collection, previously Collection 2000, lasting perfection concealer is probably one of the most talked abut products in the blogosphere. Everyone's fallen victim to a beauty product rave atleast once in their life... right?





This is one of the best concealers I've ever tried, and I personally think that it is better than higher end brands such as MAC and Nars. It does exactly what it says on the bottle - that is, if you manage to read it before it disappears! The only fault with this concealer is the packaging. The writing rubs of extremely easily. I only had this product for 2 days before photographing and the writing has already began to disintegrate.

I'm usually NW10 in MAC shades and I find this the perfect match for my skin tone. It covers blemishes, dark circles and any unwanted freckles in one coat, therefore it's a very high coverage. The shade range is not the most extensive - there's only 4 shades. The formula is quite creamy, and I usually use the Deluxe Crease brush from Real Techniques to apply it with.

The doe-foot applicator tends to bring out a lot of product. I tend to wipe the excess off onto my hand before applying it because it can seem to look cakey if you overload it. It doesn't break me out or irritate my skin, which is always a plus for concealers! Collection claim this product lasts up to 16 hours. Honestly, I haven't had this on for that long, but it does last all day when I wear it which is usually 9-10 hours. At only £4.19 from drugstores, it really is a makeup bag staple!


bourjois colorboost

Thursday, August 15, 2013

Red Sunshine // Fuschia Libre // Orange Punch // Peach on the Beach
I originally only bought Peach on the Beach, and I loved it that much that I went back and bought the other three when Boots did their 3 for 2 offer. They only currently do 4 shades, and I think there really is something for everyone, even though there's only 4. There is a strong red, fuschia colour, orange and light peach. My favourites have to be Fuschia Libre and Peach on the Beach. They're both very wearable and versatile, and they suit literally any skin tone.

The formula of these lip crayons is somewhere between a lip stick, lip balm and lip gloss. It does really show the best of all three. I find the lip colours quite sheer, which was unexpected when I swatched them on my arm. They're perfect for summer when you don't really want to be fussing around with accurate lip colouring!

As for staying power, I find these to be OK. Bourjois say that they last 10 hours, and I don't find this very accurate. When I wear these through the day, they usually need topping up every 3-4 hours. However, they're amazingly moisturising and hydrating. I'd recommend them to everyone!

orange loves

Thursday, August 08, 2013

With orange being my all-time favourite colour, an orange Polyvore collage was in order.

These sunglasses from Asos are on my late-Summer wishlist. Oversized sunnies are my new favourite things to wear and style. This Sunset Orange eyeshadow from Etsy has been catching my eye whilst browsing the beauty section. How gorgeous is this Rag & Bone bright orange blazer? A white t-shirt and plain trousers would go perfectly with this. Butter London's nail polishes has been on my lust-list for so long, and this orange shade would look gorgeous in the late-summer. I spotted a gorgeous orange pair of shorts similar to this in Zara a few weeks ago, but these from Rebecca Taylor definitely  need to be in my wardrobe.


summer dresses

Thursday, August 01, 2013
One of the very few things I like about summer is the dresses.
Being a winter-lover, I'm not usually used to wearing dresses (I sometimes even wear leggings in summer). 
However, considering I'm on holiday, I wore a dress. Here's a few snaps for ya!




My dress is from New Look but I bought it last year for my mum's graduation, so I doubt they'll still sell them.
My bag is from Matalan and was talked about in this blog post.
My shoes are from Peacocks and I love them to pieces. They're the comfiest sandals I've ever worn. What's worse than shoes that give cuts and blisters every time you walk in them?