BRISTOL AND BATH SHOPPING HAUL

 

(Boohoo Order)

(Boohoo Order)

So a couple weeks back after my exams in the holiday, I went shopping a few times and these are all my purchases! They're mostly from Topshop, River Island, Primark and New Look. The one purchase which I was so pleased with was the midi black skirt as I was searching for one all day, and by the off chance of walking past the teenage section in New Look, I found one! I saw that it was age 9 but I tried it on anyway and it actually fit which is pretty ridiculous (it is very stretchy though). I really like some of River Island's jewelry at the moment too, it is really pretty and so so cheap!

AMERICAN MAKEUP BUYS | MAC HAUL

  

This post is WAY over due as I went to America over a month ago now, but I still had to blog about my amazing Mac finds as I am sure you girlies will appreciate it. When I walked into the shop me and Georgia were literally in heaven, we couldn't stop admiring all the makeup in there. We stayed in there for a good hour and came back like four times.

Above are all the MAC products I got for about $50 in Washington (that is approximately £35 in the UK). 

Here is the makeup I bought and how much it is in the UK:

♥ Red lipgloss - £15

♥ Studio Sculpt foundation - £24

♥ Studio Sculpt Concealer - £14.50 

♥ Bronzing Powder - £19. 

Georgia bought a load of makeup too as we just couldn't resist. For the rest of the holiday we were just buzzing about our buys. I just couldn't believe how much of a bargain everything was, I even facetimed my mum to tell her about it. 

Sorry for the lack of posts recently, I just don't have time to do many anymore because of sixform and work - its such a nuisance. Blogging is something I really enjoy and I just feel annoyed I can't indulge myself in my posts at the moment and share everything with you. Hopefully things will pick up soon as I have the Easter Holidays in 4 days wooo!

FEBRUARY VALENTINES SPECIAL | GLOSSY BOX

  

As a Christmas present, my brother and his girlfriend subscribed me to having a Glossy Box! I had one last month but was too busy to post about it; I was away in Washington for 8 days (my next post) and got back to recieve a wonderful delivery yesterday!

This month, my box was a gorgeous pink box that looked very girly! Inside it had lovely pink tissue paper and shreddings. I opened it up to see 5 great products. I have tried any of them except for the cream, I haven't even eaten the lolly yet.

♥ The cream smelt like strawberries which was absolutely delicious, I just wanted to eat it! I put it all over my face and neck and it felt great on the skin! (The photo shows the thickness and colour of it)

♥  I had a perfume tester in there which was Narciso Rodriguez. You can buy it from House of Fraser for £23 which is incredibly cheap (30ml). It is a sweet floral smell which is very unique and doesn't go unnoticed.  I think it is a classy perfume which can be worn at any time.. It is really gorgeous!

♥ I haven't tried the Me Me Me skin illuminator yet but I was so pleased to see this! I have wanted an item like this for ages since my Benefit High Beam one ran out. Wearing makeup like this looks beautiful on your face as it really catches the light in the sun and makeups your skin look radiant. On the leaflet it said to either wear it on your cheekbones or mix it into your foundation - I think the foundation idea is brilliant as I want my whole face to look dewy and glowing!

♥ There was a Helen E lipstick in the colour pink, but I haven't tried it yet so cannot judge. So far I think the shade is quite nice as I really like and want more of pink lipsticks. It isn't a bright pink, but a subtle peachy colour.

♥ Lastly there was a Macabella Mineral Blush Powder - I have never heard of this brand before so I am quite eager to see whether it is any good. It looks like a glittery pinky colour. It looks really natural and glowing so I cannot wait to apply it to my face!

This month was quite pleased with the Glossy Box products, however the perfume tester was disappointing as I could only get about three sprays from it. My favourite is the Me Me Me skin illuminator, and it is only £5.50 if I want to re-purchase so its really cheap!

What did you think of February's Glossy Box? 

MAC TECHNAKOHL EYE LINER | MAKEUP REVIEW

If you have been following my blog for a while then you will know that I have extremely bad troubles with eyeliner. Not a lot of people seem to realise that any eyeliner will NOT stay on me well; it seems to smudge all underneath my eye and make me have panda eyes. I am constantly in the mirror wiping away the black which takes off all my concealer so I have big puffy eyes. I have started to move away from the cheaper Boots and Superdrug brands as I find they are no good on me, and I am now trying places like Mac and Bobbi Brown. I still have my BB gel liner to review so hold your horses!

After trying my Bobbi Brown Gel eyeliner, I found it great, however it was hard to apply. So I decided to try  a kohl eyeliner as I always find them easy to use.

I find that I tend to ramble in my makeup reviews so I will make this nice and simple -

Advantages:

• It is extremely easy to apply as it is a wind up so there are no messy or inconvenient sharpenings. Also, if you twist it up too far then you can turn it back down again which is very useful. (I don't know why but I always want to twist it all the way up when I get one - I am such a child!) 
• The colour is very black and pigmented. I find that some eyeliners come out grey and non-visible, but that is not the case with this on. 
• It doesn't smudge - I put a Natural Collection powder on top and it stays for about 4-5 hours which is great.
• It is easy to remove - I just use normal wipes or take it off in the shower and it comes off easily.
• I only use it on my waterline and I find I can use it to make my eyes look either dramatic or natural depending on the thickness of the line.
• There are 10 colours to choose from so there is a fantastic variety; I use Graphblack as it is a normal and dark colour.
• I find that with some eyeliners it takes ages to dry, but this is dries quickly for a long wearing finish.

Disadvantages:

• It claims to be completely smudgeproof and waterproof so I am quite disappointed as without my Natural collection powder is did smudge quite a lot and run down my face. However I feel that it is easily fixed and prevented.
• The price itself, £14 is a lot of money to be spent on just an eyeliner which I believe isn't as good as some of my other ones. I still will continue to use it every day and repurchase, but not particularly worth the money. But to be fair, it is Mac so what do you expect?

Have you tried this Mac Technakohl Eyeliner - if so that what are your views on this product?

RIMMEL WATERPROOF GEL EYELINER | MAKEUP REVIEW

I wanted to buy a gel eyeliner as I had seen many blogs rave about them and how you can create so many different looks with it. I was in Boots browsing for one when I came across this Rimmel Product - I knew Rimmel was a great brand and that I had been pleased with most of their other makeup so I thought I could rely on them this time. I bought it for £6.49 which I think is quite expensive for a teeny tiny little pot, but at the time I couldn't find anything better

Unfortunately this is the worst eyeliner I have bought, and trust me I have tried dozens. My eyes are just really wierd and eyeliner doesn't ever stay on them usually. When I applied this, I saw that the gel was extremely gloopy and thick, and too wet to apply. However when on, I absolutely loved the look of it on my eyelids as it looked really black and dramatic. Not long after I realised that the gel hadn't set at all and was still wet. It had made my a massive thick messy line all over my eyes and it was extremely embarrassing - It had smudged everywhere and I had to continuously keep checking and wiping.

As well as that, the brush wasn't right either. It was far to thick and had no shape to it. The gel kept drying on and making it go crusty and vile, so I had to clean it nearly every day to stop all that old muck transferring onto my eyes.

The only part I do like is that the design of it is extremely cute and nifty. The fact that the brush is in the lid makes it really handy and easy to carry around with you. It does look like an expensive great product, however the results are extremely poor.

Overall I would not recommend to anybody! - It is possibly the worst eyeliner I have used. I know that quite a lot of people on the boots website too agree, as well as other blog reviews. I now use the brush for my new Bobbi Brown Eyeliner which I really like. (I will be reviewing that product soon!)

17 TATTOO SEMI PERMANENT LIQUID EYELINER | MAKEUP REVIEW

I saw the advert for this new 17 product and the 'semi permanent' caught my attention. For some reason no eyeliner, whether it is expensive or cheap will stay on me and it is seriously irritating. So I thought considering I actually like the brand and it is like a 'tattoo' I thought I would give it a go and hope for the best. It was only £4.99 so I wasn't loosing much.

Advantages

It turns out that this is the best liquid eyeliner I have ever bought. It stays on perfectly well and comes out fairly matte which is what I wanted. It claims to stay on for 48 hours but realistically it stays on me for about 8 hours. I may need to top it up if my eye shadow or powder has melted onto it but that is if I am wearing ALL day. I usually have a shower and nearly all my makeup comes off, but with this eyeliner it actually stays on which is bizarre. I have to use a really good makeup wipe to actually get it off which is annoying but at least it is guaranteed to stay on.

For me, this eyeliner is smudge proof and waterproof; not even scrubbing in the shower can remove it. It is really black which is exactly what I wanted, and I don't think it comes in any other colours. It has an intense pigmented formulation so it gives a really dramatic look, depending on how much you apply. It can be worn any time of the day and can look extreme or natural.

Disadvantages

As much as I love how brilliantly well it stays on my eyes and I have no problems when I have it on, if you make a mistake when applying it, it is the most difficult thing to get off and you end up scrubbing your whole eyelid which therefore removes all eyeshadow and concealer etc and makes your eyes all red and puffy. I am always trying to put it on quickly in the morning before school and it is a nightmare to remove, escpecially when you are in a hurry. My flicks always ten to go wrong too so once you have done it, there is no going back.

Also, when applying it, I find that the wand brush is quite flimsy and it doesn't apply as well as some of the other eyeliners I have used. It tends to be quite thick and therefore makes my eyelashes stick together and so I can't apply my mascara that well. However I find that if I just swap the brush with one of my other liquid eyeliners it is absolutely fine.

I am determined not to write that many negatives as I really love this product too much and will continue to buy it again and again.

RIMMEL WAKE ME UP FOUNDATION | MAKEUP REVIEW

I have so much love for this foundation it is unbelievable. You do not know how much I was uhming and ahming about getting this foundation as I thought it would just be another rubbish high street makeup product which realed you in with great advertising. 

I have tried dozens of the Boots foundations which have all let me down terribly, so I switched to Mac and was extremely pleased. However, the Mac prices are a little off putting and I didnt want to waste such a expensive beauty product on school, so I decided I would put the Mac foundation to one side and use at the weekends only. 

So now I needed one for school so I searched up a load of foundations on boots which all claimed to be brilliant blah blah blah, so I was really stuck. I decided to go onto Zoella's blog and youtube channel as I can always trust her reviews, and there was a video called "High Street/Drugstore Foundation Review #1". She was wearing the rimmel wake me up foundation and she said how brilliant it was.. so I decided not to question her and try it for myself.. 

..And OH WOW, how I adore it. I would even go as far to say that it is as good better than my Mac Studio Sculpt Foundation. So, why would I say this?, let me tell you:

1. The Rimmel Wake Me up Foundation is priced at £8.99 usually in boots, however I got mine for £5.98 at Wilkinsons. (I actually think Boots has an offer on with this foundation where you get £3 off of it) So I got mine for a cheaper price which is why I love it even more! 
2. It gives my skin a very dewy look which is EXACTLY what I was after in a foundation. It has tiny little sparkles/glitter in the liquid apparently so that could be the reason as to why it is nice and shiny on the face.
3. It is medium to full coverage which is perfect for me. However if you only put a small amount on then I'm sure it can look really natural too. It covers up spots, dark eye circles and blemishes nicely.
4. It is very longlasting - I wear my foundation all day at school so basically about 8 hours. Obviously it does come off a little bit by the end of the day but then so does really expensive foundations. I really wanted a product which wouldn't slick off your face and leave you wit horrible, greasy and patchy skin, and I am extremely pleased to say that it doesn't do that AT all.
5. It matches my skin colour well - they have 6 shades to choose from.
6. The best thing about this is that is doesn't bring me out in spots. All of the high street foundations I have tried have brought me out in hundreds of spots and white heads, but this one doesn't at all! 

It is basically a fantastic foundation which I am seriously pleased with. I was so worried about buying this and I really wish I hadn't doubted it before as it is possibly the best foundation I have ever used. Good job Rimmel!

P.S. I also use the Rimmel Wake Me up Concealer with this foundation which makes my skin look even better. Here is the Concealer Review: Rimmel Wake Me up Concealer Review

17 BRONZING SHIMMER BRICK | BEAUTY WEEK #2

This is the second makeup product for my 'Beauty Week'. I am reviewing only the Bronzing Brick, however I must say the brush is also brilliant too!

'Be sun kissed in an instant with 17 Instant Glow Shimmer Brick. Multi shade bronzing for ultimate glow appeal.'

The item is priced at £4.99 and you can only buy it new from Boots as this is their own brand. I think this is extremely reasonable for a good bronzer so I was very happy with the price! I bought the Gold version of it as I prefer this on my cheeks, you can also buy the pink version. The packaging and the palette is very basic - it just came in a plastic wrapper.

The appearance of the bronzer brick on the face is very shimmery, makes your skin glow and really highlights your cheekbones. The multi shades look fantastic because it has a subtle sparkle on the skin. It looks different to other bronzers because of the lighter shades in the palette. I tend to only use the three lightest shades because it makes my skin appear dewy and really highlights the cheekbones. I use my proper 17 bronzer to tan my face.

I don't think it looks like bronzer as most of the shades are lighter, plus it has too much of a glow and sparkle. I have a seperate bronzer which I use as well, but I use this simply to highlight my cheeks, make them glow and make my skin look dewy. I really LOVE this product because it is so different to any other product I have used; I would definitely recommend!

WAKE ME UP CONCEALER | BEAUTY WEEK #1

This is the first makeup product for my 'Beauty Week'. I bought this recently and have left it a short while before reviewing as I wanted to have a proper opinion and view on it.

This is what the brand claims:

'Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer is our first full coverage concealer that visibly reawakens and illuminates under the eyes. Completely conceals spots and other blemishes. Instant anti-fatigue effect. With Peptides and a Vitamin Moisturising complex'

This item is priced at £5.99 which I think is fairly reasonable. However if you compare it to the price of the actual Wake Me Up Foundation (which is £8.99), then it is a little expensive just for a concealer. The bottle is quite bold as the bright orange top is a colour to wake you up in the morning; the packaging is very basic, just a plastic wrapper. 

  

I completely agree that it reawakens and illuminates your skin - I use only this concealer when I go to work and it really brightens up my skin, leaving a dewy fresh look and feel when I wake up first thing in the morning.   It also leaves your skin very moisturising which is a bonus, as many of the concealers I have tried make my skin dry and flaky. 

It covers my spots and under my eyes superbly, so I am really impressed! It can be applied and layered up to give you full coverage, but if you only use a small amount it looks really natural. 

I got the shade 020 True Ivory - there aren't that many shades to chose from which is disappointing, and the colours don't match your skin colour exactly. A lot of people with lighter skin find that the concealer looks orange on their skin because there isn't a wide variety of shades. (I don't have a problem with this as I have darker/tanned skin.)

The concealer applies very well; the wand makes it easy to apply and you only need a small amount. It feels quite heavy on the skin as it is a thick liquid, however I don't particularly mind as it does such a good job - if the heaviness of the concealer is the only disadvantage then hey ho it's not a problem!

It stays on for around 5 hours which is also impressive! Usually concealers just melt off my face, ecspecially liquid ones. You may need to touch it up if you are going to be wearing it all day, but it does a very good job at staying put on your skin!

Overall this is the best concealer (apart from my 17 concealer stick) I have used and I will definitely be repurchasing when it is empty!

MY CHEAP MIRACLE WORKERS | SKINCARE REVIEW

 Re-Gen Cream 

When it comes to my skin, I have a huge problem with red blemishes. After my spots have gone, they seem to leave behind a red small scar on my skin which is such a nuisance for me! They take like a year for them to disappear which is seriously irritating, so going au naturel with my skin is a big no-no! I have been searching for an inexpensive product which would get rid of these scars and I found this miracle worker! 

I have been using this cream for about 3-4 weeks and it has definitely helped my skin! It has a thick creamy texture which feels light and smooth on the skin. It takes around 5 minutes to absorb into the skin and then the cream works its magic! I use it twice a day to remove the red marks - but the handy thing is, I use it as a moisturiser before I put my make-up on and it leaves my skin looking dewy and fresh! 

This really helps improve the appearence of my skin and makes my marks fade quicker, however for me it doesn't help remove the spots on my skin or prevent them, but that wasn't what I bought the product for. It was simply to remove blemishes on my face and scars on my body. For scars, I apply it 2-3 times a day - so far there has been little improvement but I have only been using it for a few weeks so I'm not expecting them to instantly disappear!

I bought this at Home Bargains for £3.99 so this was a serious bargain! You can purchase them at other places such as Ebay or Amazon. It doesn't have the nicest packaging so it doesn't sit well on a girly dressing table, but because it is so good I really don't mind. I would definitely recommend, and for such a small price I wouldn't hesitate in buying it!

Sudocrem 

This anti-septic cream claims to rid rashes, eczema and bed sores; however I only use it to remove my spots. It has a very thick texture and is bright white so it can only be used in the comfort of your own home! I bought a small pot in Poundland, but in boots you can buy a slightly bigger one for £1.25.

I'm in my teen years and I'm sure many of you know that this is a time when spots go crazy! I get them basically anywhere on my face and they usually take a while to go. Whenever I get a spot, I instantly grab my Sudocrem pot and whack on the cream. I leave a thick layer on the spot and just wait for it to absorb in - it takes a long time for that to happen so I usually put it on before I go to bed. The only disadvantage with that is that it can sometimes wipe off to the bedsheets. 

This cream makes spots fade over night which is brilliant! It massively reduces the size and redness of them so they become unnoticeable. Bigger spots of course take a little longer to remove, but nevertheless Sudocrem almost always does the job. It's incredible! 

HOW TO CLEAR YOUR MAKEUP BRUSHES

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

1. First, make sure your brush it really wet. 

2. Put a few droplets of the cleaning solution onto the brush

3. Scrub the brushes with your fingers and...

... with your hands/palms. Loads of the makeup should come off onto your hand; keep doing this until all of the makeup has been removed, and remember to occasionally add a little bit of water to the brushes to lather up the product.

4. Run the brush underneath the tap and remove any excess makeup. Fill your sink up with a little bit of water and add a few droplets of the cleaner. Leave the brush in the sink for a while.

5. Once the brushes are clean, I dry it with a towel and leave it out to dry naturally.

'Strictly Professional Brush Cleaner' - around £5 from Amazon.

This is how I clean my brushes - This product is seriously good as is gets all of the old gross make-up and bacteria out of the brush, they are left so fresh and clean (like it's brand new!) I do this on a regular basis as I hate the thought of spreading bacteria over my face. 

I recently switched brush cleaners because I thought I would try something different. I definitely prefer this one and I will be re-buying when it runs out. The other negative is that this does run out quite quickly, but it is a great product so I don't really mind.