The Wishlist | Summer 2014

One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six | Seven | Eight | Nine

i am finally back (not that anyone will have noticed i ever disappeared!) and easing myself back into blogging with a wishlist post of bits and pieces i've found myself lusting over lately. i'm hoping i'll be able to get back to blogging more frequently, but who knows! 

One | Ring | ASOS | £32 | There is nothing i love more than a classic, simple ring, and this beauty from ASOS will go with any outfit you throw on.

Two | Clutch | Dorothy Perkins | £20 | The only reason i haven't already snapped this up is that i can't bare to spend £20 on a clutch (and the fact that i never go 'out out', but we'll ignore that). I like to think Micky Flanagan had a little input into this...

Three | Shirt | Vila @ ASOS | £20 | I think this is going to be the next ASOS purchase i make, there's just something about the print that's made me fall in love! 

Four | Cut-Out Tee | Ebay | £4.45 | I came across this beauty whilst on one of my many ebay trawls, and i love the cut-out and cross back detailing - an edgy take on a classic white tee.

Five | Birkenstocks | ASOS | £54.50 | I've fallen for the Birkenstock trend, and missed out on the Primark dupes, so i've ended up lusting over these gorgeous pale blue ones, but just can't bring myself to spend £50 on them. I'm hoping they'll have some at the airport when i head to Miami in October!

Six | Heels | Office | £65 | Believe me, these are even more beautiful in real life. I am dying to get my hands on these as the perfect daytime heel!

Seven | Suitcase | Ted Baker | £295 | I mean, just look at it... UGH!

Eight | Kimono | Ebay | £3.58 | Another ebay bargain, and perfect for crossing into AW!

Nine | Dress | Missguided | £24.99 | I am so obsessed with this colour lately, and the tonal embellishments just make this dress dreamy blue perfection!

The Vlog | Paris

Sorry I've been so quiet on the blogging front lately, it's just not something I have time for right now due to my job, but I will be trying to make some more time for it as and when i can. Having said that, I did head off to Paris with two of my best friends Ellie & Pia this weekend to see McBusted & One Direction, so I decided to vlog the weekend, so here you go! I'll warn you now, if you're not a 1D fan, you may not enjoy it!

The Beauty Post | Max Factor Facefinity All Day Primer

since primers became a 'thing' in the beauty world, i've tried out a fair few, but i've never really found that any of them have made a difference in making my makeup last any longer on my face than normal so i sort of gave up with them. but recently i heard a fair few things about this new release from Max Factor - their Facefinity All Day Primer. This is supposedly the secret ingredient in their best-selling All Day Flawless foundation that makes it last all day, and they've taken it out and made it into a free-standing primer, and let me tell you that this is the only primer that has ever worked for me.

now i've started work, early mornings are routine and i'm applying my makeup at around 6.30am and i was finding that my foundation was almost gone by the time lunchtime came around and my makeup just looked terrible. there was barely any trace of it left by the time it came to taking it off at night and in all honesty it was getting me down quite a bit. and this little beauty has definitely been a game changer for me. my makeup is lasting for the whole working day and there's actually makeup left on my face at the end of the day to remove. it creates a flawless base for my foundation and honestly helps my makeup stick around all day, and it only needs the odd touch-up if i'm then going out in the evening. it's a white creamy formula which is super blendable and sinks into the skin leaving it feeling fairly soft and silky, and one pump gives enough product to cover your whole face, so this bottle will definitely be lasting me a long while, too! it's also left me wanting to try the All Day Flawless Foundation too, as they sound like a pretty long-lasting duo.

you can pick up the Max Factor Facefinity All Day Primer in Boots or Superdrug for £10.99

The Beauty Post | My MAC Eyeshadow Quads (Naked Lunch, All That Glitters, Patina, Woodwinked, Satin Taupe, Cranberry, Sable & Mulch)

L-R | Naked Lunch | All That Glitters | Patina | Woodwinked | Satin Taupe | Cranberry | Sable | Mulch

i'm going to put it out there, it makes me a little queasy that this post contains over £100 worth of eyeshadow... but isn't it just so pretty!? back in october i shared my first MAC quad with you, and somehow i've ended up with enough shadows to fill a second one! half the blame for this is going to my best friend Mollie, after i fell in love with two of the shades in her palette a couple of weeks back, and the other half is going straight to Debenhams for 10% off beauty... a girl just can't resist.

i've actually shuffled the shades around a little since my original post, so i thought i'd update you all here! i also found it so tough to get pictures that accurately show off the colours, but i can promise you that the image of the swatches is true to life! i've kept the first quad for the lighter colours, and that kicks off with one of my new additions - Naked Lunch (top left). a cult blogger favourite, but one i'd failed to add to my collection until i'd tried it, and i just knew i had to get my hands on it. it's a gorgeous champagne colour from the frost line and i've been using it as a base shadow all over my lid and occasionally as a highlight for the inner corner. top right is All That Glitters, which is a veluxe pearl finish. this is similar to Naked Lunch, but this is slightly more pigmented and is more gold-toned than the pink flecks in Naked Lunch and this is another fab base colour. Patina is in the bottom left and this is another new shadow, again from the frost finish. this is the perfect brown for an everyday nude smokey eye - it's not too heavy and just adds the right amount of definition. finally in my lighter quad is another veluxe pearl in the form of Woodwinked which is a gorgeous bronze/gold shade which i tend to use on the outer half of my lid to add a bit more dimension to an eye look.

the second quad has the darker of the shades, and the first is Satin Taupe which is a frost finish. this is the only shadow i have which has more of a silver tone to it than a nudey gold tone, and works great for a warm smoky look. Cranberry in the top left is the odd one out in my collection and the least used, especially in the spring and summer. it's another frost finish shadow and i use this in the winter just as an accent colour in my crease and sometimes on my lashline just to go for a more wintery eye look. Sable, on the bottom left, is quite possibly my favourite, which has plummy undertones to it's bronze colour and blends in so nicely with Satin Taupe for the ultimate warm smoky eye; it's just to die for and is another frost finish. finally i have Mulch, a frost finish would you believe, which is my favourite colour for the outer corner and crease definition. it's not too pigmented or dark do that it looks like you've piled on the shadow, it's great for an everyday eye, but can really be built up for a more dramatic evening look.

so there we have it, my MAC shadow collection! is it obvious that i never venture from a nude eye look?! i hope this post helps some of you, and this is me officially telling you all to not let me ever be tempted to get a full palette!

The Beauty Post | Topshop Glowstick in Spotlight

Topshop Glowstick in Spotlight

finally, a new beauty review! i'm so sorry i've been so absent lately, but i've just finished my final year of uni and started a new job, so i've had other priorities at the moment! but alas, i am back with todays review, and i also posted my April haul last week which you can watch by clicking here.

but back to the good stuff! half the reason i've not blogged recently is because i've not actually bought any new beauty bits, but i've had a bit of a splurge these last few days and have lots of new bits to share with you! this is actually one of those naughty blogger inspired purchases, and i'm pinning the blame for this one on one of my favourites Becca Rose. She actually featured the new Topshop Glowstick in the golden shade - Play Up - which is the shade i went on the hunt for, but alas, my luck was out but i ended up falling in love with this one, too. Spotlight is a gorgeous shimmery pink shade, very similar to NARS Orgasm and Sleek's Rose Gold blushes, but in a cream, wind-up stick form.

the consistency is super silky, and glides on really easily, plus it's easy to blend, too. i know these are intended as highlights, but i will definitely be using this as a blush as i think it just adds a really natural, rosy flush to the cheeks, but i will definitely be picking up Play Up too to use as a highlight as i just love the formula of these. it doesn't feel heavy or cakey on the skin, and just blends to a really light coverage, or you can build it up for more of a statement look. plus, a little bit goes a long way, so i can see this lasting me a long while too, and it really stays put throughout the day so there's no worrying about reapplying.

Spotlight is £10, and available in Topshop stores and at topshop.com.

The Video Post | Makeup & Beauty Collection and Storage

If you're going to settle down and watch this one, i'm going to suggest you get yourself a cup of tea (or three!) as this ended up being a lot longer than i anticipated. if you make it to the end, kudos to you!

The Beauty Post | Models Own Polish For Tans Collection

last week i was lucky enough to win the new Models Own Polish For Tans Collection, and i'm so in love that i couldn't resist sharing them with you!

the collection is designed to enhance to golden colour of a natural (or fake, if you're as pasty as i am!) tan and consists of five complimenting summer shades. Models Own describe them as 'neon-pastels', but they are definitely much more on the neon side in my opinion, and i think they've definitely caught the attention of a few people when i've been testing them all out this week, especially as i normally stick to pastels in the warmer seasons. these definitely look a lot better with a tan than my usual pale complexion and i think that's because the neon hints of colour just make it stand out so much more against lighter skin, so i will be reserving these for the times i can be bothered to tan. i just really love the concept of this collection and the shades are the perfect subtle neon in comparison to other neon shades which are far too in your face. if you want to add a pop of colour to your look without it being too OTT, then these will be fab, especially when they're complimenting that summer tan!

shade-wise, i think Bikini (a stunning fluorescent yellow) and Flip Flop (a really eye-catching limi green) have to be my current favourites, especially as there's also so much of these colours on the high street and making its way into my wardrobe at the moment and i love being able to match my nails to an outfit. Beach Bag is your typical orangey coral shade, and Shades is a much more pink-based coral. Sun Hat is the ultimate girly shade and can only be described as Barbie pink! who else loves the equally summery shade names?

all of the colours are opaque in two coats, and are a lovely thick and even consistency. they last about two to three days before big chips start to show up, but they still work great for topping up those little chips. it's safe to say that these are now my staple summer polishes, and if you want to pick them up then they're currently in the Models Own 6 for £20 offer (basically 6 for the price of 4!!).

The Beauty Post | L'Oreal Color Riche Nail Polishes Les Blancs Collection

pastels have to be my favourite shades to wear on the nails, so the recent release of the 'Les Blancs' collection from L'Oreal was right up my street. i obviously already have pastels in my collection, but nothing quite like the gorgeous shades from this collection, and as the Les Blancs name would suggest, these are very like white polishes with just a hint of the colour thrown in, and L'Oreal describe them as macaroon shades, so i'm guessing the name and colour inspiration comes from the yummy treats themselves! 

i picked up 852 Pistachio Dragee, a gorgeous pale, minty green and 851 Nouvelle Vague which is the perfect pastel purple shade, and my nails have barely been without one of these colours since i picked them up. as you can see, the colours are absolutely gorgeous, and the consistency is really nice and thick and is opaque in just two coats (or one if you apply it super thick). they apply like a dream with equally as dreamy colours, but i do have a couple of woes with these polishes...

firstly, they chip like a you-know-what, which is majorly disappointing, and will do so from the smallest things. i applied this one night before bed, and by the time i'd woken up and got ready for the day 50% of my nails were chipped. i have since invested in a decent top coat (Revlon's No Chip top coat, but that's a whole other review) which is helping, but the constant chipping has meant i've been getting through these little bottles at a speedy rate, which leads me onto my second woe - the bottles are teeny tiny for the price. these are £4.99 each for just 5ml, so compared to Models Own where you can get almost three times as much polish for the same price, you get the jist. 

but even taking all of this into consideration, i know i'll end up adding the other two shades to my collection - a lemony shade called Lemon Meringue and a pinky peach called Peach Negligee - in the near future, i just wish the bottles were a bit bigger, or the price a little lower, but what's a girl to do when she wants pretty pastel nails?!

The Competition | Company #Style Blogger Awards

happy friday, girls! 

today's post may be a bit cheeky, and extremely out of my reach, but the Company magazine #Style Blogger Awards have rolled around again, and i would be so, so grateful if you could nominate my blog for Best Personal Style. i know i have zero chance of getting anywhere with this, but i've stuck at my blog and put a lot of effort into it for two years now alongside studying for a degree, and it's been tough to sit and watch newer blogs grow so much quicker than my little old one, so i'm giving this a go to show that hard work and dedication can pay off. so if you like my OOTD's and very frequent hauls, then please click here where you can nominate me. like i said, i don't anticipate to get anywhere with this, but it would mean a lot if even only a couple of you put my blog forward.

The OOTD | White Noise

Cami - H&M | Jeans - Zara | Belt - River Island | Shoes - Primark | Watch - Michael Kors

hello! another thursday, another outfit - i'm going to try and get one of these up every week now. thankfully, this will be the last lot of photos that will be taken in my shoddy uni room as i'm moving home tomorrow at long last! also, i've just got a new phone with a pretty snazzy camera which i'm still trying to get to grips with, so please bare with me photos-wise while i'm still learning!

this week, i've bought something a little different and picked up some white jeans, and these are from Zara. this may be the silliest purchase i've ever made as i know i'll never keep them clean, but they just look so fresh for the summer, and have really helped update my wardrobe. plus, they are probably the best jeans i've ever bought - they're super soft, and the perfect fit (something which usually takes me a good 20-odd pairs to find), so i'm pretty chuffed seeing as i picked these up on a whim! 

for this look i've gone for the perfect transitional spring outfit that will work for days in the office, but still be fab to meet friends for dinner and drinks in the evening. the little cami is H&M, and the pumps are my new favourite Primark bargains for just £4! 

Currently Coveting | #1

a bit of a filler post today as i'm busy with the last week of term at uni and shooting the photos for my final collection, so i thought i'd share the bits i've been lusting over lately.

as a nude shadow lover, this gorgeous Crown Brush Nude Palette needs to be added to my collection soon, it has all the colours you could wish for! i'm also dreaming of owning the stunning Zoeva Rose Gold Brush Set which needs no explaining - it's just so beautiful. the final beauty lust of the moment is Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer after i fell in love with a sample i had, and i'm desperately waiting for a friend popping to America in the next few months to pick it up to me as it's so much cheaper in the States. talking of trips, i'm tempted to pick up this River Island Suitcase as i've just booked a weekend away in Paris with my best girls Ellie & Pia, and i'm already in full on holiday shop mode. i fell in love with these Dr Martens Abril Shoes on twitter, but the price tag made me wince a little bit, so i'll have to keep on admiring from afar and probably end up buying these ASOS Ridley Jeans, V-Neck Tee and River Island Floral Shirt instead to satisfy my spending addiction!

The Haul | March

make sure you watch via Youtube by clicking here for a better quality video! 

The OOTD | Oh So Parisienne

Dress - Primark | Bag - Next | Shoes - Forever 21 | Sunglasses - Primark | Rings - H&M, ASOS & Miss Selfridge | Watch - Michael Kors

there's something about stripes and a red lip that makes me come over feeling all Parisienne - i just need to throw some garlic round my neck and i'm good to go! 

i couldn't resist sharing this bargain dress with you, and this is one of the Primark £5 beauties. i picked this up a couple of weeks ago and i'm going to guess it'll be pretty popular, so head to your nearest store ASAP to see if they still have any! it makes an outfit by itself and just needs the basics of accessorising. i've again pulled out a tan bag to match my favourite Forever 21 boots, and also added these little tortoiseshell Primark sunnies, too! i'm just wearing my normal selection of rings and Michael Kors watch, chucked my hair up into a messy side bun, and added a slick of Revlon Lip Butter in Cherry to my lips for a subtle pop of colour!

the dress is actually cut so that it accentuates your waist, and i the three-quarter length sleeve is super flattering. the back is a slight scoop neck, but not so much so that you can't wear a bra - what more can you ask for for £5?! i'll definitely be keeping an eye out to see if they bring in any other staple prints for spring and summer!

The Review | Perfect Eyelashes Luxurious Strip Lashes

it's safe to say that i don't get on with eyelashes, purely because i do not have the knack and patience to apply them, and because they are usually too 'in your face' and look very OTT over my normal lashes, but when i was given the chance to try out the Perfect Eyelashes Luxurious Strip Lashes(*) and saw that they did a natural pair, i thought i would try them out and see how i got on.

now i'm going to start off by throwing out a huge negative to these lashes - they didn't come with glue, and weren't pre-glued, which i thought was pretty disappointing, especially as these retail at £19.99, so i did have to go out and buy myself some glue before i could try these out (and lucky old me ended up with one that was almost dried out!). now i know that's not breaking the bank, but glue is a pretty essential part to false eyelashes, is it not? but negative out of the way, there's some definite positives to these lashes.

i did have to cut mine down to size, but then i always have had to with any other lashes i've tried, so that was fine by me. my favourite thing is how thin the little strip is that the lashes are attached to. i don't wear eyeliner on the tops of my lids as i don't think it suits me, and other lashes i've tried in the past have always given me this look which is why i don't tend to wear them, but this thin little strip means that these sit really nicely on my lash line without making it look like i've piled on the liner. it also means that i could get the lashes to sit really closely to my natural lash line as they were much easier to work with and manipulate into place - they just make your lashes look a little fuller in general. i obviously can't comment on how long the lashes last as i was using a different brand of glue, so this would have nothing to do with the lashes themselves. and isn't the packaging just adorable? it's nice to have a little pick me up when you open the lid, and the box makes for the perfect storage to keep your reusable lashes safe in.

as for how they look, i really like that the lashes incorporate longer and shorter individual lashes to give a much more natural look, and also that they are shaped at the inner and outer corners to match the look of your natural lashes. they are also made of human hair, so they're super soft and fluttery to blend in with your lashes and don't have that synthetic, slightly plasticy look of some drugstore lashes. the lashes are also reusable, so i think i could probably get 4-5 uses out of these before they start to look a bit battered.  now apologies for iphone pictures here, but in the first picture below I have the lashes on my right eye (the left as you're looking at it) whilst the other eye is just my natural lashes, and in the second picture i have Benefit They're Real mascara on, just to give you an idea of the volume the lashes create. they give you equal intensity to using the Benefit mascara, and if you wear the lashes alone without any mascara you can see that they do add very natural looking length to your lashes.

Perfect Eyelashes Strip Lashes | Natural Lashes

Perfect Eyelashes Strip Lashes | Benefit They're Real Mascara

overall, i do think these are a little overpriced for lashes, especially with the no-glue situation, but they are a really good quality and actually match their 'natural' description, which i have found with some other lashes can still look very OTT! i'll invest in a decent lash glue, as i would definitely wear these to the right type of event. if you want to give the Luxurious Strip Lashes(*) a go then you can pick them up from their online store for £19.99, where the also come in Intense, Glam and Volume styles if you're after a slightly different look.

The Beauty Post | E.L.F Bronzer in Golden (Dior Amber Diamonds Dupe)

it would seem that E.L.F are pretty on it when it comes to high end dupes. last week i shared their Contouring Blush & Bronzer which is a great NARS dupe, and this week i have the E.L.F Bronzer in Golden which i picked up after seeing on Pinterest that it was a alternative for the Dior Amber Diamonds, and after having a little Google, it does look pretty spot on! i would say that the only difference is that the E.L.F Bronzer is much less shimmery, but then it is promoted as a bronzer, whereas the original Dior palette is described as a shimmer powder, so you can't complain! 

now i love this product. as a pale skinned gal, the top left and bottom right shades work fab as a contour shade for me as they aren't a huge contrast against my skintone, but since pulling out the fake tan recently, i've really enjoyed using this as a highlighter. there are still very subtle shimmery pigments in this, and that makes for the perfect highlighting shade to match a tan, as it helps bring out a really natural and glowy look. this little palette is great for lighter and darker skintones for different uses if you want a really subtle, natural looking finish. 

for just £3.95, this is absolutely worth buying, especially if, like me, you fell in love with the original Amber Diamonds palette but couldn't afford it! do any of you have other E.L.F products which are a great cheaper alternative to high end products?

The OOTD | Fresh As A Daisy

Top & Trousers(*) - Very | Shoes - Primark | Bag - Ebay | Sunglasses - Claires Accessories | Rings - H&M, Miss Selfridge & ASOS | Watch - Michael Kors | Bracelet - Accessorize 

say hello to my new favourite pieces in my wardrobe! i was extremely lucky to win this Very Love Label Daisy Print Top and Trouser(*) duo, and i am in LOVE! i absolutely love co-ordinating pieces, but never quite got round to finding the perfect one and picking it up, but this is absolutely perfect for the spring, and you can get so many looks from just the two pieces. my personal favourite is tucking the top in to achieve a jumpsuit-esque look, but leaving the top untucked makes for a much more casual look, and there's endless combinations when it comes to mixing both pieces with other items already in my wardrobe, so it's safe to say that these two bits will probably become my spring wardrobe staples. i might even treat myself to the matching shorts to carry it through to summer!

i teamed it up with tan accessories here for the ultimate spring-time look, and i'll be wearing this to my best friends 21st which is coming up in the next couple of months, but it will definitely get plenty of outings before and after then! i also added a matching pop of colour to my lips to bring out the pink in the daisies and went for the Maybelline ColorSensational Lipstick in Shocking Coral. 

i am honestly so chuffed with this duo, and can't wait to try it out with other pieces in my wardrobe, if anyone would like to see a lookbook on this, then let me know! it's just the perfect little combo to dress up or down, so thankyou Very!