september favourites

September is always well-known for being one of the busiest months, with starting school and getting back into routines that have been forgotten over the holidays. However, this month has been one of the busiest of my life. I used and experimented with a fair amount of makeup this month, yet was only impressed and stuck with a few. So, here are my monthly favourites!

Models Own polish in Red Alert.
I love Models Own polishes and I've been looking for quite a while for the perfect red. This is not too bright yet still not too dark, and as usual, Models Own formulas cannot be faulted. This has been on my nails a lot this month as it makes a nice addition, especially with a monochrome outfit! The one thing I would love to be improved on every Models Own polish is the brush. The brushes are fairly small but if they were a touch bigger, a lot more of the nail could be coated without painting and painting.

MAC lipstick in Creme Cup
When I posted the review of MAC's Creme D'Nude lipstick back here, I said that I would prefer Creme Cup as it's more pinky than beige. At the beginning of the month I picked this up and it's been on my lips almost everyday! It really is 'my lips but better' and it's such a cute, girly everyday shade. It has a cremesheen formula which means it's super super creamy and not drying at all.

L'Oreal Superliner
I also did a review on this too back here, and said it was perfect for creating the perfect winged liner. This somehow sunk to the bottom of my makeup draws and after a good clean-out, it was rediscovered. This liner is absolutely faultless. The nib isn't too thick or thin and it holds just the right amount of product. The way the nib of the liner is shaped means that it's crazily easy to create a simple cat-eye.

Bobbi Brown Longwear Gel Liner in Espresso Ink
I like to alternate and switch up my eyeliner, as some days I prefer it bold and defined, whereas others I prefer it subtle and smokey. After chatting to one of the lovely Bobbi Brown online makeup artists, she recommended me this gel eyeliner as I have dark hair and green eyes. It's quite steep for an eyeliner at £17.50 but in my eyes it's worth every penny! It's creamy and doesn't crease or leave a huge brown line on your eyelid, which is always a bonus.

Maybelline Mega Plush Volume Express mascara
After my beloved Jerome Alexander mascara being well and truly dried up, I was experimenting with my stash to see what other beauties I had in there, when I came across this. I used to absolutley hate this mascara with a passion, but gave it another whirl and I am now in love. It used to clump up my lashes and make them look quite spidery, but now it does the complete opposite! I am so confused, but I love it.

Elise ♥

sunday sum-up #6

What a mad week it's been! School, shopping and ferrying around here, there and everywhere was on the agenda for this week. It's been a bit of a mad one, but here is what I've been doing this past week...

Wearing: Rebel lipstick by MAC. Definitely my favourite Autumn lipstick.

Reading: Milly's blog Pearls and Poodles. I love her Instagram account too. All of her photos are beautiful!

Smelling: Victoria's Secret body mist. This has fastly become my favourite scent as it's so fresh and light.

Thinking: How am I going to eat all of this, even between two of us...

Buying: New clothes! I love buying new clothes especially Autumnal clothes.

Listening: to Baby I by Ariana Grande. It reminds me of a song I loved when I was younger but cannot for the life of me remember what it was. :(

Wanting: More makeup! Story of my life.

Feeling: Happier than last week, thankfully.

Loving: Everything.

autumn nails wishlist

With Autumn/Winter being my favourite seasons and nail polish-collecting being my hobby, the two combined makes me happy. Every year I look forward to wearing the deep purples, browns and greens on my nails in Autumn and into the Winter months. These picks are my favourite for this season, and the one's I've had my eyes on for a while...

1. Butter London nail polish in Sugar - doesn't everyone need a golden-glittery nail polish for Autumn?
2. Topshop nail polish in Brutal - A gorgeous deep matte purple which will look beautiful against the soon-to-come snow!
3. Nails Inc polish in The Mall - This colour is so gorgeous that it doesn't even need explaining. Just look. It's gorgeous, isn't it?
4. Chanel nail polish in Accessoire - A Chanel nail polish has been destined to be in my long collection for some time now.
5. Models Own Metallic nail polish - Metallics look amazing on your nails, especially in Winter.

my first time

After being tagged by the lovely Celine from Vintage Teapot to do the 'My First Time' tag, I figured that it would be a good, light-hearted way to let you all know a bit more about me. I'm not a really interesting person, but I like to switch things up a bit and do a fun tag like this instead of the usual makeup post. No doubt there will be a few embarrassing stories and confessions, but these are My First Times...

Image from WeHeartIt - edited by myself

First bestfriend - My first bestfriend was actually a girl I met in primary school when I was 5/6 years old. I still know her now but after almost 11 years of knowing eachother, we've drifted a bit and both grown and changed as people.

First concert - My first concert was with a girl I met in secondary school and we went to one of the Take That concerts. I went with her mum, brother and brother's girlfriend and because I did not know any Take That songs, I was sat on the chair whilst everyone was singing and dancing. Not the best of 'first time concert experiences'!

First celebrity crush - This has to be Aston from JLS. I found my old diary from when I was around 11 and all it had in was photos and stickers of JLS. Quite embarrasing, but I even bought a blue JLS jumper and walked around town with it on. I have just wondered why I am sharing this with you all... I will now never live this down!

First word - I have no idea what my first word was but I'm guessing it was one of the generic ones like 'mama' or 'dad'.

First job - I have never had a job but had a week as work experience in a care home last year. Not the best of experiences but we'll share that story another day when you have hours to spare. Or maybe weeks...

First phone - I remember one of my friends having a Sony Ericsson when I was in Year 7 and I was so jealous, my dad bought me a Sony Ericsson k800i. I loved that phone, but it was soon replaced with my dad's old iPhone and I've been on team iPhone ever since!

First tweet - My first tweet was something like '#RIPHarry', but the thing is, I don't know/have known anyone called Harry...

First makeup item - My first makeup item was one of the old Collection 2000 pressed powders which I got when I was 11 or 12. I just put all over my face, meaning I looked whiter than a ghost and very unhealthy. Not really the best of looks I suppose!

For this tag, I am going to tag Alice, Ines and Hayley.

sunday sum-up #5

Having not had the best of weeks, this weeks 'sunday sum-up' probably won't be one of the happiest, most jolly post of all. I've had a bit of a poopy week, and I'm hoping to explain what's been going on in a blog post soon. But for now, here is what I've been doing lately.

Watching: The X Factor. Recently, I've been really getting into Saturday night TV, but I have to admit that I do prefer The Voice!

Wearing: Leggings and boots. Autumn has fastly approached us and I find that leggings and boots are the perfect way to keep warm yet still look half-decent!

Reading: Zoella's blog. She's been blogging much more this month and I always trust her opinion on products 110%. Her photography is to die for and her blog is a pleasure to read. :)

Smelling: One of the F&F perfumes. It's amazing for only £15 and my neighbor said it smells more like Chanel.

Thinking: About how much I miss my little pup! My family got a Bichon Frise called Yogi in May and only had him a week as we were all working and he couldn't be left alone for even two seconds without barking and trashing the house. My aunty has his brother who was the runt so it's nice to see him often.

Buying: Toblerones. Toblerones are my new favourite chocolates. I love them!

Wanting: MAC's MSF in Soft and Gentle. This has been on my list of to-buys for quite some time, yet I always find myself buying something else instead of what I've saved up for!

Feeling: Sad.

Loving: Apple's new iOS7 update. Controversial, I know, and eventhough I think it looks a bit toy-ish, I still love it!

lfw favourites

Being a big fan of fashion, I anticipate Fashion Weeks all over the world to see what my favourite designers have strung together this year. I love watching the live catwalks, and seeing the (sometimes) creative backdrops and clothes, and the whole vibe of fashion week is exciting. This is just a quick post today to show you all my favourite pieces from this season's London Fashion Week. Enjoy! 

My favourites all together has to be Antonio Berardi. I just love pink and feminine clothes, so his SS14 show did it for me. Closely behind is Mulberry, with their patterned outfits (and gorgeous shoes!) stealing the show. Plus, how can anybody resist that little face of the dog? Well, on second thoughts, maybe you can. Next behind Mulberry was Topshop Unique, which meant an incorporation of high fashion and one of my favourite clothing brands. I also liked Christopher Kane's SS14 collection, but the majority were dark, dull colours, but I loved the variety of patterns.

starting off: blusher/bronzer

I'm a bigger fan of nail polish and lipstick rather than blusher and bronzer. It's typical of me to say "how can bronzers possibly different?" and the same goes to blush. All they are is shades of brown and pink/coral, and I find that one of each can do me for every occasion. Therefore, I've combined the two together, meaning there won't be a 'starting off' post on blusher next week. In this genre, I'm neither use nor ornament as I know very little about either!

George at Asda Bronzer
Possibly one of the most underrated and less talked about make-up/cosmetics line ever. I really don't see the problem with buying cosmetics from Asda, especially if you're on a budget. I've been using this for years and still haven't hit the pan. You have to tap the excess off as it's quite orangey and cakey if you pile it up, but it's easy to blend and give a nice, natural finish for an inexpensive product.

MUA Blush in Shade 02
Another cheap, inexpensive product that it's amazing is the MUA Blushes. They give a nice colour in a small package, also with a quite large shade range (if you like collecting blushers!). They cost around £1 from Boots and Superdrug and I really can't fault them. This shade I've got is an incredibly versatile pink, and can literally compliment any make-up look.

Sleek face form palette in Light
I wrote this post back in June about how much I loved Sleek products. The kit itself includes a bronzer, (quite naff) highlighter and a pink blush with golden highlights. The bronzer is pigmented, yet is easily blendable so doesn't look like a mud stain. The blush is very pigmented too, and gives nice highlights when caught in certain angles. The highlighter however provides patience and precision as you do have to work with it for it to show! This is perfect for only £9.99 if you'd prefer a compact, all-in-one combination rather than singles all over the place.

Real Techniques Powder Brush
My love for Real Techniques brushes is never-ending. I can't fault them, and they're great for beginners. Although I also love MAC, I personally think that £22 is ridiculous for one plastic handle with a few bristles. I can't justify more than £10 on a single brush because I know I can get the same quality from cheaper brands like Real Techniques and Crownbrushes! This brush covers a large area - perfect for an overall bronzy-ness.

sunday sum-up #4

This week was my first full week back at school, and it's definitely been one of the busiest. However, I did manage to fit in a small shopping session amongst the masses of homework and classwork I should be doing. So, this week I have been...

Watching: Coronation Street! I'm becoming addicted to this programme and it has been my favourite show to settle down with at night. :)

Wearing: The Bobbi Brown Long Wear Gel Eyeliner in Espresso Ink. This has such an amazing formula and is a great alternative to a dark black liner. Brown looks a little softer and smokier and is amazing for green eyes!

Reading: English Literature books. How boring.

Smelling: Paco Rabanne's perfume Lady Million. I bought this for my mum's birthday but it's too nice not to have the odd spray every so often. ;)

Thinking: About how much I can't wait to start college! I hate school and always have done, so going to college and doing a makeup course appeals to me so much more than sitting in a classroom learning what different compounds and elements are.

Buying: High-end makeup! I save all of my money up and at the end of the month, I go on a small shopping spree. This week it was with my dad, as we had a nice little father-daughter bonding trip and picked up two MAC lipsticks and the Bobbi Brown liner.

Wanting: To sleep! I spent the majority of this week being up at 6:30am and not being able to sleep at night. At most I had 5 hours sleep, so at school I look like the walking dead.

Feeling: Happy as it's only a few months until we leave school and me and my friends are planning to go indoor skydiving instead of prom! I love my makeup and dressing up, but I love being adventurous, so I'd rather do something fun rather than sit at a table with people from school anyday.

Loving: My family. It was my dad's birthday on Friday (the 13th) so it was nice to celebrate it as a family. Even though he was working in Edinburgh for most of the day!

monochrome fashion finds

Almost all of my clothes in my wardrobe are of a similar theme. Monochrome. Why? I ask myself this all of the time. Maybe it's because black is said to make you look slimmer, and that's subconsciously in the back of my mind when I buy clothes. It probably isn't, but here I am again, waking up and finding myself picking out monochrome fashion pieces that I love.

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 

Leather jackets are one of my favourite items of clothing. They can literally be paired with close to anything, and they're so surprisingly comfortable! I personally hate slim, skin-tight and fitted dresses, but if you're confident enough to wear them, I have no doubt that this cut-out dress from Topshop will look amazing on you. I'm such a fan of dainty jewelry, and when I saw this floral necklace from Humble Chic, I fell in love. The only thing that I'm not a fan of in the monochrome theme is bags. I prefer tan or beige bags, maybe because they don't get as dirty as white bags! With that being said, I think I'd be able to cherish this one, and make sure that it doesn't get dirty! My wardrobe is almost over flowing with simple printed tees. I love band tees and tees with a simple pattern. They're so easy to wear with leggings or jeans! Take your pick :)

mac creme d'nude

I tweeted the other day that Mac lipsticks bring me a strange sense of satisfaction, and I couldn't have strung together a better sentence of how I feel. Because I'm only 15 and don't have lots of money rolling in at the end of the month, when I buy Mac products I feel happy and very satisfied. I walked into Mac knowing I wanted a nude lipstick, but had no idea where to start. When I walked in, lots of the sales assistants were waiting around and I wasn't asked for the help that I needed. When I asked the lady to get me this lipstick, she seemed very snobbish and stuck up, so my experience wasn't the best and I left feeling a little dis-heartened.

When I walked away from the counter, I somehow ended up with this lipstick in my hand. I physically can not go into a makeup store like Mac and not want to buy anything, so I picked this up. To be honest, I really dislike it. Because I am so pale, it looks too orangey-concealery and golden on my lips. I wish I'd have picked up Creme Cup which is more of a pinky nude rather than golden and beige.

One of the only things I like about this lipstick is the finish. This is a Cremesheen formula and it applies like a dream. It feels more like a lip butter than a lipstick and does not drag along this lip at all. I suppose this really was my fault essentially, because I spent £15 on something I don't like without doing my homework! I also love the smell of MAC lipsticks. They smell like vanilla and I love it when my makeup smells nice when I'm applying it!

I've found that when I wore this, it lasted 2-3 hours. The time that it lasts is good for a Cremesheen finish, so I don't usually mind reapplying it. Overall, I'm not really happy with my whole MAC experience, and wish I could swap for Creme Cup! Oh the downfalls of having pale skin. :(

starting off: foundation

So, here we are with another #theSOproject post and this week's theme is foundation. Being a foundation junkie, this post has been one of my favourites to write. I missed out on last week's post because the theme was concealer, and I only use one concealer. I'm don't experiment with concealer too much, but with foundation, I'll try almost everything.

Rimmel Wake Me Up foundation - £8.99
When I was just beginning in makeup, this foundation was a staple in my makeup bag. It's a drugstore foundation which is cheap for the quality. This product is said to have small radiance pearls, which means it gives off a healthy glow but doesn't make you look like a walking glitter ball, which is always good! This is a good foundation for a beginner, as it has a light coverage and looks very natural.

Rimmel Match Perfection foundation - £6.99
If you have fairer skin and still want a light coverage drugstore foundation, I'd always recommend this one. This is one of the only drugstore foundations that do very light shades for fairer skin. The formulation is great, and doesn't look too cakey on the skin. It also comes with a pump - something high end foundations should learn from!

Olay Complete Care Touch of Foundation - £9.99
I would describe this product best as a tinted moisturizer or BB cream. This is probably the lightest coverage I've seen in a 'foundation' and just basically adds a bit of colour and covers a tiny amount of redness. I have had this product for years, and still have tonnes left as you hardly need any product at all. It also has an SPF of  15 which is great for summer! It is great for almost all skin types as I mainly use it as a tinted moisturizer.

Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum - £10.99
This is my all-time favourite drugstore foundations. This, again, has a light to medium coverage but smells absolutely gorgeous, which makes it feel like a luxury to put on. The formula of this is quite liquidy and light. When it is applied, it looks very dewy on the skin but it does slightly cling to drier skin. It lasts a long time, and cannot praise this serum enough!

MAC Studio Fix Fluid - £21.50
Now onto my absolute holy grail foundation. If you're not too bothered about price, but are more concerned about quality, definitely try out this product. This is a medium to heavy coverage, but still doesn't feel to heavy on the skin. Yet again, this clings to dry skin, but if you exfoliate and moisturize thoroughly, it shouldn't be too much of a problem. The shade range is amazing, and covers everything from freckles to red areas and blemishes. My only grumble with this foundation is the fact that you have to buy the pump for an extra £3.50.

sunday sum-up #3

So, yet again it's time for another Sunday Edition post. I love writing little summaries of the week, and makes me realize the highlights (and lowlights) of the week. So, without further ado, this week I have been...

Watching: Britain and Ireland's Next Top Model. I love this show, and was so sad that it was the final this week! I don't know how I'll be spending my Thursday evenings now :(

Wearing: M. Asam Magic Finish Makeup. Such a perfect product for a natural everyday look. I was thinking of doing a post on this, but to sum the product up, it's a skin corrector/very very light foundation that cancels dark circles and unwanted red areas.

Reading: Ellie's blog Ellalogy. I love her blog and have been following for quite a few months. Her photographs are to die for.

Smelling: Nice cups of tea and custard cremes. Mmmm.

Thinking: I should really stop blogging and do my homework...

Buying: Nothing! I have no money as I'm terrible at saving and do not have enough time to go shopping with school and tonnes of homework!

Wanting: To go shopping :( I've literally not bought anything like makeup, clothes or jewelry for over 2 weeks and I feel like I'm lost.

Feeling: Tired! School is so tiring - getting up at 6.30 am is not ideal.

Loving: Making shapes with my sugar in a mug of tea :)

soap and glory dr spot

Somehow, breakouts and blemishes only seem to surface when you need to look your best. The night before a holiday, or the day before a party. For me, that's bound to happen. That's where this little tube comes in handy! I'm very skeptical about trying new spot gels and serums as most tend to break me out even further or just even irritate my skin. 

As for this working, I've noticed that it definitely reduces the size of blemishes, and what can seem like volcanoes, in as little as 2 days. The gel has a cooling sensation, rather than burning which feels much nicer on the skin! The formula includes lactic acid and salicylic acid which can improve skin texture and increase overall hydration, but it can irritate allergy-prone skin. It doesn't make the skin flaky or dry, which is another amazing thing about this product compared to the rest.

I love it when a product smells good, as it feels more like a luxury to put it on. However, the smell of this is absolutely awful. It smells extremely chemically and the packaging is awful. It's quite typical for spot serums to come in packaging like this, and because the tube is re-shapeable, when you take the cap off some product does leak out.

This gel costs about £8 and you can buy it from high street shops such as Boots. I have used many spot clearing gels and serums and for the price and quality, I can't fault this one!

top bright nail polishes

As soon as I hear the words 'nail polish', my eyes light up. I am a self-proclaimed nail polish addict. I love bright nail colours, and I can't believe that I haven't written this post sooner! If you ever see me out and about, it's guaranteed that I'll either be wearing a bright pink or green shade on my nails.

One brand that I know for certain are overlooked is George at Asda. For £1, their nail polishes have an amazing formula and do not chip whatsoever. Not to mention their amazing colour range. Admittedly, the pink shade 'Groove' doesn't have the best colour pay off and you'll definitely need to double coat it, but the colour is gorgeous, and so is the name! The drying time is also one of the best I've seen.

Nails Inc's Queen Victoria Street has also been on my nails acting as an injection of colour. This is one of their new shades and although they cost a massive £11, they're definitely worth it. The formula of these is perfect. If you could have this exact formula in every nail polish in the world, the world would be a better place.

Another brand that is overlooked in the nail polish world is NYC. This shade is called Water Street Blue, and is the perfect true, bright blue. This has an amazingly fast drying time, as in literally seconds. I really can't fault this, and the price makes me love it even more.

Models Own will always be one of my favourite all-time nail polish brand. Their colour range is amazing for just £5. Hey, it's not the cheapest of the bunch but it's a good medium. If you're looking for a classic red polish, Red Alert is brilliant. Another thing I love about Models Own is how readily available they are - you're guaranteed to find them online or in stores like Boots.

Finally is another one from the George at Asda collection. This is called Buttercup Sunshine and is one of the most adorable nail polish names I've ever heard of! This only really needs one coat for a full, promenant colour but I add two just for the sake of it. As I said before, it does not chip and dries within seconds.

mac russian red

Before we get started here, you should probably know that this is one of the boldest and brightest lipsticks you'll see. The infamous Russian Red lipstick is one of MAC's best selling products, and you'll definitely be able to see why! This was actually my first high-end ish lipstick and I was so excited when I bought it! Although it's saved for special occasions (or when I'm brave enough to wear it), I still love it nonetheless.

This is a matte lipstick and when you first apply it, it's really thick and seems moisturising. It definitely doesn't hold the problem like other matte lipsticks where it drags the product across the lips. It glides and feels very creamy. However, with it being matte, it super super dries out your lips. This is where a good primer and lip scrub comes in handy! 

One swipe of this lipstick and you're seriously good to go. It is so extremely pigmented that you only need one tiny sweep of it and it'll last all day. Because it has blue undertones, it also has the teeth-whitening effect. You really do need a lot of patience and time to put this on, because it is incredibly staining if you get in the wrong place! I use a Real Techniques detail brush to get a fine defined line as it's quite difficult to apply and not have it smudge everywhere! I'd definitely recommend the Cherry lip pencil, again from MAC to just make the line of your lip defined and precise and also to act as a base to make it stay putt for longer. As for staying power, I've found it to last around a good 4-5 hours before I need to reapply. 

Overall, I would really recommend this to anyone looking for the ultimate bright red. It's a timeless intense blue-toned red, and would really suit just about everyone. This lipstick looks incredible with a black winged eyeliner and it screams Hollywood glamour. It's slightly pin-up girl-ish, but I can almost guarantee that if you wore this out, you'd get at least one comment on how amazing it looks.

sunday sum-up #2

So, the time has rolled in once again for another post in The Sunday Edition. I can't believe how fast the weeks have been flying by. The next time I write another Sunday Edition post I'll be back in school! How upsetting. :(.

So, this week I have been...

Watching: A small school of dolphins swimming in the waves of a boat in Newquay Harbour. Also watching the boats come in and a young family on a set of jet skis. I love the seaside, and I love Newquay!

Wearing: No makeup whatsoever. I hate wearing makeup whilst I'm camping, so I didn't even bring back ups or essentials with me. It's nice to let your skin get some fresh sea air and a nice rest, especially after wearing makeup almost everyday.

Reading: Lily's blog, What I Heart Today. I recently got the Bloglovin' app on my phone and her blog has been one of the only blogs I have read everyday.

Smelling: Fish in the harbour at St. Ives. I've been in harbours a lot this week! We toured Cornwall and stopped in St Ives for an ice cream and a walk around. There's just something about harbours and seaside life that I love. I'm not so keen on the fishy smell, though...

Thinking: How today is going to be my super-organize-everything-mission day. I start school again soon (boo) so I need to start writing posts to schedule and get all of my school things organized!

Buying: Ice creams and souvenirs, like fridge magnets from Land's End. It's so strange how in one week, I've toured almost all of the attractions in Cornwall and only mainly bought ice creams.

Wanting: To feel clean again! Camping makes me feel so unclean, so a nice bath and paint of my nails will probably aid in helping me feel like a girl again.

Feeling: Happy. I've got to spend quality time with my family and although we may have had a few, well quite a few, arguments, it's been so much fun.

Loving: Life.