March Beauty Haul

So as today is the last day of the month I thought I'd share with you some of the beauty purchases I have made over the past 4 weeks.

Firstly, there is Tesco's own Cucumber Extract Cleansing Facial Wash, Softening Daily Moisturiser and Hydrating Night Cream for all skin types. For the past year or so I have sworn by The Body Shop's day and night moisturisers, but since I'm recently running low I decided to find some similar creams and wash with a cheaper price tag. These Tesco creams were a great bargain, the Night Cream was £1 and the Moisturiser and Facial Wash were 74p each. I love them, they are great for day to day use and leave my skin smelling gorgeous and so so soft.

The next product to feature this month is the Maybelline FIT ME Pressed Powder. This is the second time I have purchased this powder and I think I've finally found the perfect one. I've tried many different powders but this one is great as it works evenly over my foundation and doesn't need to be reapplied that often throughout the day. The colour I chose is Natural Beige 220 and works great with Maybelline Matte Mousse foundation in Nude and with MAC Studio Sculpt in NW25. I really recommend this powder and it lasts a reasonable amount of time considering I use it everyday. You can find it in Boots and Super Drug for £5.99.

After writing a post a couple of weeks back on my favourite Lipsticks and glosses, I decided to add to my collection. I have purchased a Barry M lipgloss in shade 233 and even though it looks like a peachy pink it actually looks different on the lips. On the lips it's more of a light shine and doesn't give much colour. However I do like it when I'm doing a subtle lip with my make up. You can purchase this in many Boots and Super Drug stores for £4.49. I also bought some new MUA shades in shade 2 (a bright baby pink) and shade 4 (a dark purpley pink). I have found that with shade 2 you have to apply quite a few coats to really establish colour due to lack of pigmentation, so if you're in a rush this is not a good lipstick. Shade 4 is great it is dark and goes great with slightly smokey eyes. They're a great buy for £1 each.

Next up is Clinque's High Impact Mascara in 11 Brightening Black. I have used this Mascara quite a few times over the past few years and absolutely LOVE it. It's really black and tends not to give you the black dust under your eyes when you've been wearing in over the day. Which I hate with mascaras. Another great mascara which I haven't featured in the picture is Boots' 17 Black Jack Mascara, I got it for Christmas but it is soooo good. And for those of you who want to wear fake eyelashes but can't be bothered this mascara gives you that wow look for your eyelashes just like fake ones.

I fell in love with MAC cosmetics years ago and when I get the chance or have the money I will splash out as their products are amazing and last forever . They are quite pricey but as they last so long it's probably to that bad (or at least that's what I tell myself). I recently read some raving reviews on MAC Studio Sculpt foundation so when my Mum an Dad offered to buy an Easter present I couldn't resist. I have previously used the Studio Fix NW25 powder many times but as I'm so in love with the Maybelline Powder I gave the foundation a go in NW25 as well and it is THE best foundation I have ever used! I find it works best when I've just moisturised my skin and it leaves me with a great even tone with no patches. If you want to give it a try I highly recommend it and to use it with a foundation brush for best results. From MAC Westfield Shepherd's Bush £20.50.

For those of you who know me well, know I am addicted to Barry M nail varnish. I love their new Gelly range, even though they aren't that different from the normal varnishes the colours are beautiful and I just keep wanted to buy more and more and more. The two Gelly Hi-shines featured in the picture are Blueberry and Pomegranate priced at £3.99 each. And the other two shades are Cappucino and Aqua Glitter prices at £2.99 each.

Next up is my Sanctuary Spa Covent Garden collection. I swear by these, featuring in this post are the Hand Cream which I always keep handy in my handbag (essential for the weather we're experiencing in the UK at the moment), the Body Butter 100ml and Body Wash 250ml. They all smell beautiful and work wonders! Give them a try, they are a must have! You'll find the Body Wash 250ml priced at £5.50, Body Butter 300ml £9 and Hand Cream 30ml £3 in Boots Stores.

And then last but not least my beloved fake tan. I tend not to splash out when it comes to fake tan and that's how I discovered St.Moriz for £2.99 in Savers. The one I'm using at the moment is the instant self tanning mist. It was awarded the winner of the Cosmopolitan Beaty Awards 2012. It's great and makes your skin look flawless. I hate it when fake tan leaves your skin looking streaky but both the tanning mist and the mousse have never left me streaky! I'm addicted.

Well, thanks for reading today's blog and if you've got any questions comment below, I'd love to hear your opinions on these products too!
Xo

Faux Lashes.

As I am extremely bored on my train journey home from uni, I decided to do my first post from my phone. I'm so excited to be going home but this three hour journey is such a trek!
The other day I was having a mooch around Superdrug and I went in there to potentially just browse as my poor bank account is VERY low on funds at the moment. But while I was browsing I came across the fake eyelashes bit (I can't help myself, I'm an eyelash addict!) and saw that the 'Girls With Attitude' lashes were priced at 51p and I couldn't understand why they were so cheap! I asked a member of staff and she checked them on the till and told me they were actually £5.10 but as they were priced wrong on the stand I could buy them for 51p! I just couldn't resist so I bought the last two that were there! There were some very similar styles by the same brand, however they were still priced at £5.10 :(
I've never tried this brand of eyelashes before so I'm yet to find out tonight how good they are. I tend to buy the Eylure lashes which are priced in most stores like Boots, Superdrug and Miss Selfridge at about £5 a set (and if you're a student like me you can get 10% discount in Superdrug and Miss Selfridge). If I'm on a tight budget the natural look lashes from Primark (yes, PRIMARK) are a great buy for £1 a set. However the glue in the Primark lashes isn't the best, so I have bought a big bottle of Eylure Eyelash glue for about £2.50 from Superdrug and so far it has lasted me since August (so its a very good purchase)!
So when you're next in Superdrug (or any store for that matter) keep an eye out for those wrongly priced items and you may just be able to pick up a bargain as good as these! Good luck! ;) xo

Luscious Lips.

Everyone has their favourite shade of lipstick but for me I have FIVE favourites. The shade I decide to wear completely depends on what I'm wearing or what mood I'm in and where I am going. When I was younger I wouldn't dare wear anything but a clear lip gloss, well how times have changed, now I absolutely LOVE wearing bold and obvious colours, especially red. My five faves consist of:

Clinque's 12 RED-Y TO WEAR - The thing I love most about this lip stick is it's not your average matte Red, it has a very high shine to it and makes your lips look so perfect and the shade goes with both subtle eyes or if you like the smokey look like I do. It's a great colour for a night out or an every day wear, depending on your style. I also try and keep the slanted shape in my lipsticks as it is helpful when putting on your top lip and allows you to be able to follow your lip line accurately.

Rimmel's LASTING FINISH 1000 KISSES 600 CARRY ON CHERRY - This is Rimmel's Transferproof Lip Tint and Balm. I love the colour as its bright but subtle enough for people to believe you're only wearing a lip gloss. The Lip tint is a pen at one end and the balm is to put over the top of your lips once you have applied the tint in order to lock in the colour. It is not completely non-transferable but then again I don't think any of the lipsticks that state they are, ever really are.

Maybelline's COLOUR SENSATIONAL 630 VELVET BEIGE - This shade is my favourite everyday colour. It's a brown-y shade and looks perfect with my brown smokey eyes. I wear this shade to work, uni and just out and about. It's a great colour as it is not as in-your-face as a bright red but its bold enough to make a statement. It's got a great shine to it but I do find I have to keep topping it up. People always ask what brand and shade it is and tell me how much they like it! I'd definitely recommend this shade to anyone looking to add to their everyday look.

Jemma Kidd Make Up School's HIGH SHINE SILK TOUCH LIPGLOSS 17 PETAL - These days I find it hard to find a lip gloss that I like. I find a lot of them are too sticky and you end up opening your mouth and having strings between your upper and lower lip (which is NOT a good look). However, this lip gloss is fantastic. It's not sticky and it appears on your lips the same colour as the tube shows (I find most don't come out the same colour, and sometimes not even a similar colour!). It's such a pretty shade and is great for those who like the lighter shades on their lips (hopefully more people will purchase this and we'll abolish this 'fashion' of wearing foundation for lipstick! YUCK). 

MUA Shade 11 - I was a bit sceptical about buying a MUA lipstick at first as I thought the brand MUA was just Superdrug's version of Natural Collection at Boots and didn't think it would be very good. But after seeing raving reviews of their products by my fellow blogger and friend I decided I'd give the brand a go and now I am absolutely in love with it. This lipstick is a subtle red with a lot of shine. It's no where near as bold or bright as the Red by Clinique but its perfect for the minimal make up look. I like to wear this lipstick when I want my eyes to be the defining feature of my make up but I hate going without something on my lips so this helps to give them a bit of colour. 

If you like any of these shades, or want to try out these brands yourselves, go ahead and let me know what you think of them. Or if you've got a favourite shade that you think I should try, don't hesitate to tell me as I would love to try some new shades.You can purchase these at your local Superdrug or Boots Stores, and you can purchase Jemma Kidd's range on line. xo

Left to Right: Rimmel, MUA, Maybelline, Jemma Kidd, Clinique.

Perfect Brows.

Some may call me a perfectionist when it comes to drawing on my eyebrows. I can however, be extremely lazy when it comes to plucking them and will just let them grow for ages until they desperately need doing and I'll then eventually get them threaded. I am quite lucky in the fact I have light hairs and can, most of the time, get away with it and drawing them on helps to disguise the stray hairs. It has taken me a few years to be able to draw them exactly how I want them and I think it has paid off. I was in a club the other week and these too girls stopped to tell me how perfect and lovely my eye brows were, I loved the compliment (or at least I did until I started wondering if they being honest or if it was just the drink talking?)!! It is a pet hate of mine when people have eyebrows like hockey sticks, slugs, are fair too thin or completely the wrong colour to their hair, it isn't hard to have them professionally done (either plucked, threaded, or waxed), I have mine done at Super drug for £5 which isn't exactly a bank breaker!

At the moment I use MUA's Brunette Eyebrow Pencil which you can easily get from Super drug or online for £1. It is the best one I have used so far because if you go wrong it is easily wiped away without taking off the rest of your make up. The only thing I don't like about it is it doesn't fully dry so smudges quite easily so I have to make sure I don't rest my head in my hands or it prints the shape of my eyebrow into my palm. So if you're like me and take pride in your eyebrows then grab a pencil from MUA and see what you think?! 

Light Up Your Life.

I have a secret (well, not so secret now) obsession for candles. I just think they are so pretty. I love sitting in bed with a few candles dotted around the room and the ones I have lit at the moment smell absolutely gorgeous. When I moved in to my room at Uni I found that it didn't feel like it was MINE, so I decided that I would buy some candles that matched my bedding in order to bring a bit more colour to my pretty plain room. Candles are also great to use when having a relaxing bath but sadly in my Uni house there are only showers so I have to make do with relaxing in bed with my candles. But as soon as I get home for Easter Break I will be spending hours soaking in the bath with as many candles as I can get around the side and have a good relaxing pamper! 

You too can lighten up your life with candles like mine for great prices at high street stores such as Pound Land, Sainsburys and Primark.