Festive FOTD.

Ello there! Did everyone have a lovely festive season? I know it's technically still happening with it being Hogmanay and all but yeah...
Does everyone have exciting plans for new year? We're having a few friends up to the flat, should be an enjoyable night.

Now, I know I missed last weeks Wednesday Waffle, but I think I should be forgiven seeing as it was boxing day and I had to work! Yes? Ok. :)
This weeks will be extra special. Promise.

This post is just to show you my Christmas FOTD, or what I had planned to do (these photos are from a test run I did the week before) but I was too tired to do a full face of make-up on the actual day. My eye make-up was done though!
Please, as usual, ignore my strange expressions...

Products used.

Foundation - Rimmel Lasting Perfection - Shade 010.
Highlighter - Britney Fantasy palette.
Blush - Nars - Orgasm.
Lips -  ELF matte lip pencil - Tea Rose + clear gloss (also ELF).
Eyes - Benefit Passport to Posh eyeshadows + Naked palette (Darkhorse + Sin, if I remember correctly)
Brows - MUA eyebrow pencil - Brown + MUA clear mascara.
Eyelashes - Benefit Bad Gal Lash.

I think that's all the products I used, it has been 10 days since I did this so I hope I remembered everything! I wanted this look to be a bit more shimmery so that's why I used the Britney highlighter. The little palette it's from was hiding at the back of my drawer and I suddenly remembered about it, it's got a couple of nice eyeshadows in it too. Maybe a wee review is in order, although I don't know if it is still available to buy.
It's still a very natural look and pretty similar to my last look, I used a bit more dark shadow in the outer corner/crease this time for a slightly more dramatic look.

Did you do any special make up for Christmas day? What will you be doing for Hogmanay?

X

Kittens.

I've been very bad at posting anything for a while now. I guess a lot of people have been because it's such a busy time of year!

Did you all have a good time? I had a nice quiet day with my family, I spent most of the day with my mum, eating and watching Tangled and Lord of the Rings. It was lovely.

I'll be posting more soon, this is just a little update and some more photos of the cats! They love looking out the window. Our window ledge is really high up so they don't get to look out much and they are too small to be left up there on their own just now. They are so cute and inquisitive. N'yawwww!

Benefit Passport to Posh | FOTD.

I was very excited to attend the Benefit event at my local Debenhams last week. The £10 ticket was redeemable so I picked up this handy little set called Passport to Posh for half price at £12.50 (there was also 10% off at the time)! It's also exclusive to Debenhams, full retail price is £25.

It comes with instructions on how to do your eye make-up which is great if you're a beginner, and I am when it comes to eye make up especially! I'm also looking forward to playing around with it a bit and seeing what other looks I can create.

I just did my eyebrows as well, I feel they could go thinner, a bit scared to pluck them more though!

The Wednesday Waffle - Week 2 | Tumblr, Benefit + Taylor Swift.

Seasons greetings!
It's getting so close to Christmas, I still can't believe how quickly this year has gone. It's crazy!

This week has been a little quieter for me, mainly been working. Also trying to get the rest of my present shopping completed. Yesterday was very productive; I did lots of tidying and cleaning as well as present wrapping.
In the midst of all that I did my make-up with the little Benefit set I bought at the event last week. My next post will be about that, I love it!

You can see what lovely things I've been reblogging on Tumblr by clicking on the screenshots below...

Fashion/Beauty/Inspiration Blog.

Personal/Random Blog.

Christmas Time!

This post is just going to be a little collection of some photos I've taken of decorations, work night out, cat paws, random things. There might be a couple that my boyfriend has taken too, they will be captioned accordingly. :)

Is everyone feeling festive? Only a week to go!

Mini Revlon Haul.

Something I really love about Christmas time is the special offers certain shops have on! Boots and Superdrug tend to have them all year round, but they have more around this time of year. 

I popped into Boots a couple of weeks ago and I noticed that it was 3 for 2 on all Revlon cosmetics, this caught my eye straight away as there are a few things I've been looking to buy from them for ages. Here's what I got.

The Wednesday Waffle - Week 1 | Amy Poehler + Benefit Event.

I felt like doing a catch up sort of post, so here we are. I decided to give it a fun title, so seeing as it's Wednesday and I tend to ramble (or waffle) on in posts like this The Wednesday Waffle it shall be! I would go ahead and commit to saying that I'll do this every Wednesday, but who am I kidding?! I'll try though. I also wanted to pay homage to Leslie Knope from Parks and Recreation, possibly my favourite female character in a comedy series ever (she loves waffles)! Amy Poehler who plays Leslie is also one of the most inspiration people I've ever come across, just watch one of her Ask Amy videos and you'll see what I mean...

Pretty sound advice.

What have I been up to this week? Surprisingly, a lot actually. Usually I'm pretty boring and don't do a lot other than work, but this week I've been out and about.

Last Wednesday I went out dancing with my friend Megan, even though I had work at 8am on Thursday! It was great fun though, we had a laugh dancing to Gangnam Style and our favourite Nicki Minaj (we love to rap to Super Bass more than we should).

Thursday was work until 3, then to The Nether for a catch up with Kirsty and her friends. We ate the largest slices of cake ever, think Bruce Bogtrotter in Matilda! I then went home to get changed as I was heading to Nandos for tea with some friends from school. We had a lovely time, it was nice to catch up with them.
We finished up at about half 9, it was then time to get changed again and head up to meet Jess at her flat. We had a few drinks with her friend Katie and then headed to the Union for the Harry Potter themed night. I wish I knew we were going so I could be more prepared, but I had a top with skulls on and was dressed mostly in black (no surprises there) so I said I was a Death Eater. There were some fantastic costumes, such as a Golden Snitch, Fred and George, some owls, a few house elves and Snape. I wish I had some photos!

Friday was more relaxed even though I had work for about 7 hours.

It was my work night out on Saturday, I bought a new dress from Primark. It's lovely, very simple but suits me well and is easy to dress up with accessories. It's a grey capped sleeve midi dress, I'll maybe do and OOTD with it at some point because it's perfect for winter as it's pretty cosy and great for layering!
We went out for a meal then had a few drinks and some of us headed out to Kage nightclub for a bit of dancing and some more drinking! They play some ace music there, such as Slipknot, Pearl Jam, Disturbed, Metallica, System of a Down, and loads more.

Sunday was my day off, thankfully! Another lazy day, went up to visit my mum who cooked me tea and we sat and watched An Idiot Abroad and Americas Next Top Model. I had a great time there too, it's always nice to see her.

Monday I worked all day and went to a Benefit make-up event at Debenhams in the evening. Something I'd never done before, so it was a bit daunting but exciting. I went with my friend Jess. There was a make-up artist there who was showing us how to use Benefit products to create a look for the holiday season. This was very interesting and I think I learned a few new tips and tricks. There was wine and nibbles which was a nice touch. We were then able to browse the products and there were lots of people to help out, I think everyone that works at the counter was there. The cost of the ticket (£10) was redeemable on the night, so I picked up a nifty little eye set for only £12.50 as the 10% Debenhams sale was still applicable too. It was originally £25, so it was essentially half price!
We also were given a goodie bag which included a sample size Posie tint, a mini They're Real mascara and a full size Dandelion lipgloss worth £13.50 on it's own! 
I'll post some photos now.

Christmas Treat - Chanel Lipstick.

Every Christmas I like to buy myself a wee present, last year it was a pair of Jeffrey Campbell Litas (not such a wee present, I know) and this year it is a Chanel lipstick. I've been eyeing it up for a good few weeks. With a price tag of £25 I feel that I could only justify buying it as a gift to myself at this time of year. I also got 10% off in Debenhams, so it was £22.50.

I absolutely love the colour, and it's matte! It's from the Eclats Du Soir collection, and it's called Rouge Allure Velvet Lipstick in L'Impatient. The colour is a deep berry shade, which does look a bit daunting in the bullet but it's gorgeous on. I would say it's the perfect colour for winter! If you're unsure about the colour it's best to swatch it first. I was surprised when I swatched it, but I still loved it!

You can wear it on it's own or with a lip liner, I prefer to use a lip liner and fill in my lips first. This helps show off the colour as I feel that it's not as pigmented as it should be. You will see in the photographs and swatches what I mean. If you don't want an opaque lip it works well just patted on lightly as well.  Like I said it is pretty versatile and you can wear it a few different ways.

"MAC" Brush Set.

Ok, so this post is perhaps going to be a slightly controversial one. Last month I purchased a set of brushes from ebay for £12. The controversial thing is that it's a set of fake MAC brushes. I don't feel bad buying fakes things once in a while because I do usually buy everything from the actual companies.

I didn't have many make-up brushes before, I had a powder brush, a blush brush and a couple of random eyeshadow ones. All of which are very cheap, but I still use them as they have lasted well and do the job!
I wanted to experiment a little and try out a few different types of brushes but didn't want to spend a lot. So ebay it was! These brushes have since been removed from the sellers shop as they apparently sold the maximum quantity they were allowed, although I have a feeling there were perhaps some legal reasons...Who knows. All I know is that they are great quality, and I'm very, very happy with my purchase!
What did I get? Well here we go.

 

Beauty Blogger Tag.

I feel like doing something a little different so it's time to answer some questions!

Why did you start blogging and how long have you been blogging for?  
Well I've had this blog for about 3 years and I was originally sporadically posting my photography here, but I neglected it for a couple of years but I'd say I'm back for good this time! I still occasionally like to post my photos here as it's one of my main passions. I enjoy having something structured to do as I'm pretty lazy most of the time so I find it motivating to have something to write about.

Whose blog did you fall in love with first?  
The first beauty blog I followed was Beauty and Baggage. Seonaids blog is fantastic, so many interesting, honest reviews that I find really helpful. Along with beautiful make-up looks, photos and fantastic style. Ok, I think I'm finished gushing now!
On YouTube it was Grav3yardgirl or Bunny Meyer, she's just so inspirational in so many ways. I guarantee she'll make you laugh and she makes me feel better no matter what mood I'm in. 

What was the first blogosphere hyped about product you bought and was it worth the hype?
It was probably the Naked palette, although it was a gift from my boyfriend I did ask for it. I think it's totally worth it! See my post here.

What are your favourite five things about blogging and being a beauty blogger? 
1 - Being able to review things and helping other people find things that work for them, for example I have very pale skin and I like to share when I find a foundation that actually matches! It works both ways too obviously.
2 - It's nice to find people who are passionate about similar things.
3 - I love going out and buying new things to write about, that's an obvious one I think. It does make it easier to justify buying things! 
4 - It gives me something to do other than waste my time perusing the internet randomly. I feel very productive when I'm blogging.
5 - Speaking to new people and as cheesy as it may sound, making new friends. :)

What have you learnt from being a beauty blogger? 
So many things, even just in these past few months! I used to just watch YouTube videos about make up and things. I then found the blogs of the YouTubers. I've learned lots of tips and techniques for applying my make-up properly, I'm getting much better at applying eyeshadow. I've also learned to swatch things a lot more before buying. I usually swatch things a couple of times before I commit to buying now, I like to think about it and know I'm sure. Saves a lot of money not impulse buying all the time. Another thing is that just because something it hyped up or expensive it doesn't mean it's the right thing for you specifically. There's probably a lot more things.

Have you changed anything since being a beauty blogger?
I've changed the way I apply make-up as I mentioned before. It does take me longer to get ready if I'm putting make-up on though! I take better care of my skin, I only used to mosturise when I really had to. I do spend more money on beauty products now, but I'm not really buying clothes any more so it's alright I suppose.

What advice would you give to a beauty blogger just starting out?  
Well I'm still starting out, so I'll just talk about what I'm doing at the moment. Write about what you like, what you know and what interests you. Chances are there will be other people out there with similar opinions and beauty likes. Don't worry if you don't have many followers, it doesn't mean you have a bad blog or that no-one is reading it. As long as you're enjoying what you're writing, that's what matters! Also, you don't have to go out any buy loads of new things, you could start by writing about your Holy Grail products and things you've maybe overlooked in your collection. Reply to all comments you get, be friendly and comment on other peoples blogs too!

Name your top five brands!
Rimmel, MAC, Elf, MUA and Collection 2000 probably. Bit of a weird mixture, but I have a wide variety of brands, they're the ones I have most products from I'd say.

Recommend your top five favourite beauty products!
1 - A classic red lipstick - my favourites are Really Red by Revlon, 111 by Kate Moss Rimmel and Russian Red by MAC.
2 - Naked palette, really does live up to the hype if you like a nude or smoky eye.
3 - MAC Mineralize Satinfinish SPF 15 Foundation in NC 15 - best foundation I've used so far.
4 - Any Aussie hair product, be it shampoo, conditioner or styling products. They are all fantastic and smell so yummy.
5 - Batiste dry shampoo in the scent Boho - if they ever stop making this I'll actually cry. It smells amazing and works wonders on my hair.

Yup, so that's it. I tag everyone because you should all do this, it's interesting and I want to see your answers! Comment if you're going to do it or if you already have :)

X

Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation | Review.

Recently I've been really enjoying Rimmel products, as you may have noticed! This time I'm reviewing their Match Perfection liquid foundation.
I'm always on the look out for a drugstore foundation that matches my pale skin tone, until now I hadn't found one. I'd say this is the closest match I've found, and for only £6.99! I bought shade 10 - Light Porcelain.

"Introducing a whole new Match Perfection, a makeup match like you’ve never seen before. Traceless coverage with Advanced Smart-Tone Technology reveals a perfectly flawless you, no matter what the light.
From the bathroom, to work, to the pub, your natural colour never changes.
Completely conceals imperfections with no foundation line, no makeup mask. Enhanced with Sapphire Radiance for an illuminating glow that never falls flat.
Natural, flawless coverage with a fresh finish.  Lasts all day."

Rimmel Website.

I would say this is a medium coverage foundation, and it's somewhere between matte and dewy. Which is a change for me, but I like it. It does cling to my dry areas, but most foundations do. Although it's not cakey or anything which is great, it looks very natural. I do like a medium coverage base as I don't like heavy make up and my skin isn't too bad.

Please excuse my sleepy faces that will follow...

Shade 10

Mini Primark Haul.

More lip products to talk about today! This time they are from Primark, as the title would suggest. I was pretty intrigued when they started doing beauty products a year or so ago. I use their sensitive 4in1 wipes, they claim to cleanse, tone, moisturise and remove make-up all at once. They do the job, and have never irritated my skin so I can't complain. A while back I bought one of their lip stains and a lip stick. I wanted to try out a different colour from what I was used to, they were both a bubblegum pink shade. The lip stain was much better quality than the lipstick which wasn't very pigmented.

This time I bought two lipsticks and another lip stain in a raspberry pink colour. They have changed their packaging slightly. I must say I'm not really a fan of leopard print so I don't like their lipstick packaging all that much. Who can complain for £1 each!?

The lipsticks aren't very pigmented, as I kind of expected, but they are nice for when I just want a hint of colour. They are very smooth and are easy to apply. So if you like a sheer lip these are for you.

Kate Moss for Rimmel Lipstick Reviews.

I'm very excited to say that I've bought another two lipsticks from the Kate Moss Rimmel matte collection! The first one I bought is mentioned in my Favourite Matte Lipsticks post (shade 111). I originally wanted shade 107 when I was looking at them the first time but it was sold out. I then found out my mum had it and she let me try it out. I fell even deeper in love with it. When I noticed Superdrug had restocked it I couldn't help myself. I also wanted to try a pinky/nude shade so I also picked up 101. Such a bargain at £5.49 each!

Elf Blushers | Review + Swatches.

Remember a while back I posted about an elf haul? Well, here's another couple of products from said haul.This time it's two blushers, although one is really more of a highlighter. You'll see what I mean in a moment. These both cost £2.25, that's with 40% discount.

I decided it was time to try a few different shades of blush as for the past few years I've mainly stuck with baby pink. My all time favourite was from the Elite range, I bought it because I recognised the name from Americas Next Top Model. At the time it was the model agency the winner would be signed with. Silly reason for buying something, but I guess I'm easily influenced by things like that! I bought it in Superdrug and the range can't be found there any more, which is a shame as I lost my blusher shortly after hitting pan. Sobs.
I now use an MUA blusher in shade 1, which has a little bit of shimmer in it.

Anyway, I bought Candid Coral and Gotta Glow. As you will see Gotta glow is a cream colour with shimmer, so it works as a highlighter more than anything. Which is nice if you're wearing a matte blush and want to add a little glow to your look, as the name suggests!
I really like Candid Coral as well, it's also got some gold shimmer to it which is lovely and reminds me of some of the Nars blushers. The packaging is also reminiscent of Nars, not quite as sleek but for the price, who can complain!

Candid Coral.

Christmas Nails.

I'm not the hugest fan of Christmas, I do like it, but I'm not as mad on it as most people are. Although saying that I felt like painting my nails with a Christmassy theme. Kind of...
Having two days off work is amazing for many reasons, but it also means I can paint my nails!

I used Red Nail by H&M and 150 by Barry M for the accent nail. H&M nail polishes are fantastic, of the brands I've tried they are my favourite. They have a lovely colour range, are very opaque after two coats and are very easy to apply.
I just wish my nails and cuticles weren't so messed up. Years of washing dishes at work and an allergy to sanitiser have destroyed my nail beds so my cuticles don't grow back properly, if at all. It also means my nails grow in bumpy.

 

MAC Russian Red Lipstick

I absolutely love red lips! I can't seem to make myself buy anything else recently, it's red or nothing. My collection has been building up pretty quickly. Recently I have been looking for matte lipsticks more than anything (see my post on mattes here). Also, I'm really loving the Kate Moss matte collection at the moment!

I am always looking for reviews on lipsticks and I love looking through blogs and reading about what people are buying. I always love the colours that Eating Lipstick has, I wish Black Cherry by Revlon would be in stock in just one of the shops I've been looking in!
Beauty and Baggage suggested that I try Russian Red by MAC. I like to see things in person before I buy them, so when we were in Glasgow I had a look at it, as well as Ruby Woo. At that time I couldn't decide so I left it for a while as I knew that I would be going to Edinburgh this week so I could visit the counter there. After swatching them again and getting my mums opinion I decided on Russian Red.
It really is a true red, a lot of people would describe it as a universal red as it suits most skin tones. I'm very pale and it suits me nicely. I've worn it a couple of times since buying it, and I must say I do like it a lot. Perhaps not as much as Really Red from Revlon though, I find it lasts better.

Kitty cats.

For my birthday I got a kitten from my boyfriends parents. We also bought another kitten ourselves, so we have two sisters! They are adorable.


My kitten is called Sparky and is the one with black and white fur. Kyles is the little black one, and she is called Salem.

Here are some photos of the cuties!

Salem.

Sparky.

Looking very serious.

Sleepytime!

 

Just wanted to post a little update and introduce the kittens! Will have more beauty posts later in the week.

X

The Perfect Nude Eyeshadow Palette.

When I was younger it was all about the crazy eyeshadow colours, and don't get me wrong it still is sometimes, but recently I've really been getting into neutral shades for my eyes. It makes it easier for wearing make-up at work, plus I love a bold lip so it's a bit much otherwise!

I'm going to compare/review a few different palettes that I have acquired recently, these are the Undressed palette by MUA, the NYX Nude on Nude set (which also contains lip colours), and lastly the Naked palette by Urban Decay. As you can probably tell already they range in price from £4 (MUA), to £14.99 (NYX) and finally £36 (UD). I will only directly compare the Undressed palette and the Naked palette because they are pretty much the same! There will be a small review of the NYX one at the end. Be warned, this is a very photo heavy post!

Undressed palette from MUA - Top L-R: Shade1, Shade 2, Shade 3, Shade 4, Shade 5, Shade 6. Bottom L-R: Shade 7, Shade 8, Shade 9, Shade 10, Shade 11, Shade 12.

 

Ed Sheeran at Usher Hall, Edinburgh.

On Monday I went to see Ed Sheeran at the Usher Hall in Edinburgh. He is one of my favourite musicians, I think he is so creative and talented at what he does. There were two support acts - Passenger and Foy Vance. They were both brilliant, it was the first gig I've been to where both support acts have really amazed me. You should check them out! This is my favourite song from Passenger, it's called Holes. You should seriously give him a listen. Here is my favourite from Foy Vance - I Got Love.

It was then time for Ed to come on. The noise was deafening, I've been to a lot of gigs but I'd never heard the crowd get so excited when the act came out. Don't get me wrong, I was screaming along with everyone else! He sang pretty much every song on his album (including the hidden track, The Parting Glass), everything except This and Wake Me up I think. As well as those songs he did a couple of covers, these were Be My Husband by Nina Simone and Wayfaring Stranger by Johnny Cash. I had watched him doing Wayfaring Stranger on YouTube and I was hoping he would do it live, it was the highlight of the gig for me. It was just so fantastic, the crowd was so quiet at the end that he took away his mic and sang without it for a line or two, it's worth a watch. Here's my video of it.

For the encore he sang the extended version of You Need Me, this was also fantastic. During this song he tripped and almost fell into the crowd, which was a bit scary but actually hilarious at the same time. Which is ok, cause he had a laugh about it too.
I must say this is one of the best gigs I've ever been to, he was so interactive with the crowd, his voice is even more amazing than I imagined it to be, it is a privilege to get to see him perform live with his guitar and loop station and everything. If I ever get the chance to see him again I will without hesitation!

Here's a few photos, I say a few, there's a lot...

Usher Hall.

Some pretty lights.

Passenger.

Foy Vance.

Ed Sheeran.

Favourite Matte Lipsticks.

As you may have noticed by now I absolutely love matte lipsticks. I don't think that I suit shimmery lips, a bit of sheen at night is enough for me.

These are some of my favourite matte lip colours (minus MACs Russian Red, which will have it's own post soon).

Please excuse the grody state of the packaging!

First one is by e.l.f, it was mentioned it in my haul a couple of weeks ago. It's a lip pencil in the colour Tea Rose and it cost £3.75. It's a lovely cool pink colour, something that is a little odd for me, but this is pretty much the only thing I wear other than red. I do find it to be a little more drying than the other two I'll be writing about, but it is beautifully opaque.

The next one is from the Kate Moss for Rimmel matte collection. It is in shade 111 - Kiss of Life. I was actually looking for shade 107 when I was looking at them as I wanted to try something a little darker for Autumn, but it was sold out. So I went for yet another red! I'm very glad I did, it's a beautiful colour which I have worn several times. It's a slightly deeper red than a classic red, so it's different from anything I already have. Bonus points for it being matte! This is a long lasting colour and it's not too drying on my already dry lips.
I will be keeping an eye out for 107 though as my mum has it and she loves it! These cost only £5.49.

Lastly, this is my absolute favourite, it's Really Red by Revlon. Revlon is a brand that I had never really paid much attention to before this year. The first thing I bought was their Lip Butter in Raspberry Pie, I was looking to try something a little different and I was pleasantly surprised. From then on I kept an eye on the stand and tried a few different things out. I also saw many blog posts and review raving about their lipsticks so I thought it was time to try one. I bought this about a month ago from eBay, for £5.99.

L-R: Tea Rose, Really Red and Kiss of Life (111).

Do you like matte lipsticks? Any suggestions?

X

Elf Lip Stain and Gloss | Review

A while back I ordered a bunch of stuff from e.l.f as they had sale around Halloween time. One of my favourite products from this haul is the lip stain in the shade Red Carpet. First thing, I absolutely love this shade, I think it's beautiful. It's a very blue toned red which I think it really suits my skin tone, and many others too I suspect! I also got this on sale for £2.25, so it's a total bargain. Normal price is £3.75.

The main reason I love this so much is because it is so opaque and matte. It's texture is thick and sticky like a gloss but it dries within about a minute. You can then choose to leave it as is or put the gloss on top of it (you get a clear gloss on the other end). It's lovely either way, but my personal preference is to leave it matte.

You can see below how thick it is.

Wearing stain only.

With gloss on top.

This product is heavily pigmented and stays put really well. Mainly when the stain is worn alone. I had to be very careful when applying this as if you make a mistake it's really difficult to remove. That swatch on my arm was a nightmare to remove! That, to me, is a good thing though.
I like to wear stains as a base for lipsticks as it helps keep the colour for longer and this one is perfect if
you're like me and wear red a lot.
I wore this tonight to the cinema, it lasted pretty well. I ate a hot dog, and drank a lot of juice and it did come off in the centre of my lips. So it can't quite survive that, but I am an incredibly messy eater, so show me something that could survive me eating a hot dog and I'd be amazed! Any suggestions?!

The Good.

Beautiful colour and pigmentation.
Can be worn matte or glossy.
Can be used as base.
Decent price (£2.25 on sale).

The Bad.

Smells weird (I know I forgot to mention that).
Doesn't survive eating or drinking very well (could just be me though!)
The applicator for the gloss gets the stain on it and looks kind of gross.

What do you think, are you a fan of e.l.f? Do you wear lip stains?

X

Birthday goodies.

It was my 23rd birthday on Sunday. Oh my, I still can't believe it. I really don't feel that old and I can't believe how fast this year has passed. It's insane.
The year is definitely getting better and better as it goes on, for me it did not have the best of beginnings. That's in the past though, and so, onward!
Does that even make sense?

There weren't many things I wanted this year, but then again my thoughts are never organised enough to realise what I want until it's too late, so I did better than usual! I've had my eye on the Naked palette by Urban Decay (do I even need to say who it's by at this point?!) for quite some time. It may be apparent that I'm (sort of) new to make-up, beauty etc, and the thing I've heard people rave about the most is the Naked palettes. I've read a lot of reviews and seen many a swatch and I just fell in love. My wonderful boyfriend was kind enough to buy me it, and I couldn't be happier. It came with a little pot of the primer potion as well as a brush. I probably won't go on about it much more as I doubt I could add much more insight into it than others already have done. It's totally worth the hype! I've used it a lot this week.
I also got another palette from my friend, this one is by Technic. It's amazing too, it has a good range of eyeshadows (both neutrals and brights), as well as four blushers and a few lip colours. I'm really looking forward to using it.

We also went to see Maximo Park in Glasgow and spent the day browsing the shops.We did venture into Frasers, but it was super busy and I get a bit freaked out by that. So I stopped by the MAC counter as well as the She Uemura one, but like I said it was very busy as it was Saturday. We also went to American Apparel and Urban Outfitters, I love going there because we don't have those stores where I am. On Sunday as few friends came up to the flat then we went out dancing. Lots of fun! Then on Monday night Kyle and I went to Nandos with my parents and my little sister. She was very excited which was very cute. Overall, I had a great weekend!
Photo time!

Getting ready to leave.

Paul Smith of Maximo Park.

No7 Foundation Match Made Service | Review.

As you may have noticed in photos of me I have very pale skin. Very very pale skin. Which I do like, I'm not complaining, it's just hard to find a foundation to match it. When I heard about the No7 Match Made service at Boots I was very intrigued.

It did take me a while to get around to it because admittedly I'm very shy and awkward in these situations. My boyfriend and I went up to the new Boots at the Kingsway retail park, which was much quieter and the lady from the No7 counter actually approached me. That made it much easier.

So basically she wiped off my existing foundation, and used the little device to take a photo of my skin on both sides of my face. It turns out it came up with a warning saying my skin couldn't be matched (my boyfriend found this hilarious). I wasn't all that surprised really, I realise how pale I am. She did manage to get a reading from the left side of my face, it was for the lightest shade they have, Calico. This was then applied to my cheeks on either side and she blended it in, but it was still far too orange for my skin tone. After a couple more tries she suggested their Intelligent Colour Foundation instead. This worked much better, it's more sheer and comes in the shade Extra Light. Which she informed me was a new addition to the range.

I heart Autumn

SO, I love watching various tags on YouTube, and the one that has been going around lately is the I heart Fall/ Autumn tag. I really want to do it, so instead of video form I thought I'd do it in the form of a blog post!
I've not actually been tagged, but hey...

1. Favourite Fall lip product?

I love dark colours for Autumn - I also love to state the obvious. Had you noticed? My favourite dark lipstick is probably Hang-Up by MAC. Shoddy photo time!

Hang-up (creamsheen) by MAC.


2. Favourite Fall Nail Polish?



Because I work with food I'm not allowed to wear nail polish at work, so I hardly get the chance to wear it. Which is sad. I would probably go for a classic black or burgundy though. My favourite black is by Barry M. Which reminds me, I used to use my mums one, so I'll need to get my own!

3. Favourite Starbucks Fall Drink?



 I don't really drink Starbucks, if I'm going for coffee or hot chocolate (which is very rarely) I prefer Costa. I would like to try out this Pumpkin Spiced Latte everyone is going on about though.

4. Favorite Fall Candle?
 

Well, I very rarely buy scented candles, so I'll have to pass on this question. I hate cinnamon or spice flavoured/scented things. Cloves, EW. Those seem to be the usual candle scents for this time of year.

5. Favourite Fall Scarf or accessory?



 I need to get myself a snood or a circle scarf. Might get my mum to make me one! I love them though. Fingerless gloves too, those ones with the little mitten flap things.

6. Haunted house, haunted hay ride, or haunted corn maze?


None really, only ever been on the haunted house ride things in the fairground. They're not all that scary, but I reckon the other two would be horrible!

7. Favourite Halloween movie?

Hmm, Hocus Pocus probably, predictable answer, I know. It's one of my favourite films ever though, not just at Halloween. I even went to Salem and Marblehead last year and saw some of the filming locations. Dream come true! I also love Beetlejuice and The Shining. 




8. Favourite candy to eat on Halloween?



 My mum had these hard candy things with little pumpkins on the wrapper a couple of years ago. They were orange and had orange sherbet in them. Other than that I don't know, Scream Eggs? 

9. What are you dressing up as for Halloween?!


 I hinted in my last post what I will be dressing up as. So you can guess from that, and there's another hint in this post too! I don't want to give it away just yet...

10. What is your Favorite thing about Fall?

Well, I just love the feel of it, it's very hard to describe. It's cooler and I can start layering and wearing black without people thinking I'm odd. I wear black all the time regardless. I love the smell in the air, I think it's the cold air and crunchy leaves or something. That's another thing, crunchy leaves, it's so satisfying to stand on a nice, big, crunchy leaf. Also, Halloween, my birthday, and the day after that Guy Fawkes night. FIREWORKS!!!

I tag everyone!

That's pretty much it. Keep an eye out for a Halloween post tomorrow. I hope my costume is successful! Have fun :) 

I'll leave you with a painting from one of my favourite artists, Gil Elvgren. It's very appropriate. 

Gil Elvgren

For more Halloween/random photos go to my personal Tumblr page.

X

OOTD | Spikes and Stripes.

This outfit is from a couple of weeks ago, but I didn't get around to posting it. You can probably tell it's from sunnier times as the shoes and top aren't exactly weather appropriate at the moment. Too much rain!

Here I'm wearing my beloved UNIF Hellraiser flats, my Motel striped Jordan Jeans and my RHCP shirt which I hacked at myself.