2014 BEAUTY BASED RESOLUTIONS

Every blogger and their mothers have most certainly came up with a list of New Year's Resolutions which revolve around beauty related tasks, and the majority of them have posted about theirs. Today is my turn, in which I am discussing the 5 things I plan to do this year, and at the end of December I will be reviewing my progress.

#1: Buy New Storage
I have well and truly outgrown the current storage for my makeup, and I have already planned and started a spending ban which will be taking place in order for me to buy the IKEA Alex 9 Drawer Unit which I will be using to store all things beauty; hair care, skincare, makeup, and even a little body care. We'll see how the saving goes, as I'm sure a post will come shortly after if I manage to buy the cliche blogger chest of drawers.

#2: Buy a Cleansing Balm
Notice that the first 2 resolutions involve me spending money - oops. But, ever since I got into the blogging world, I have been lusting after the glorious invention which is the cleansing balm. And my goal is to jump onto that bandwagon this year, and really give my face some cleansing balm TLC. Whether I go for the Emma Hardie, the Clinique, or another brand offering, I hope to buy one which I will get on with well.

#3: Stay Hydrated
Now, I think this one is one most of the lists I have seen so far, but I think we could all work a little harder on how much we have to drink each day. I have been working on having as many glasses of water that I can during the day, and I definitely feel more hydrated by doing so. Lets see how long I can keep it up.

#4 Wear Lighter Coverage
This is the one that I am worried I won't keep up. I have bad skin, and so I love my Revlon Colorstay but I am trying to branch into lighter coverage, at least once a week. I just bought the Rimmel Match Perfection and at a first glance it is really nice, so we shall see how this goes. Maybe I will go for light coverage base, with a higher coverage concealer.

#5: Keep Up a Body Care Routine
Since all the Soap & Glory goodies arrived under my tree for me this Christmas, and then I somehow bought even more in the sales, I have been really enjoying taking the time to use a scrub a few days a week, and use a body butter/lotion daily. I want to keep this up throughout the year, as my skin is looking and feeling so much nicer after putting the effort in.

What are your beauty resolutions this year?

 

 

THE BEST OF 2013 - BLOG POSTS

It is very quickly coming to the end of what was a great year for myself and especially my blog. Today, I will be going through the 5 most popular posts from this year here on my blog, and do not fret, I have some beauty installments of this coming soon too. 

So, please beware of the awful photography (maybe this was a bad idea), I mean the 3rd most popular post on here was the first post I wrote on this blog, so that could be embarrassing. 

#1: ELLE MAGAZINE FREE BENEFIT LIP GLOSS MINI
So, this was a post where I got a little excited that in ELLE Magazine you got a free Benefit lipgloss, and you lot seemed to enjoy that post thoroughly too, coming in at the most popular post of all time on this blog.

#2: URBAN DECAY NAKED 2 PALETTE
You all just seemed to love this post, and it comes in at the second most popular post here on the blog. I still cringe at the fact that I put 'Ooh, Eyeshadows' as the caption on one of the pictures, but lets pretend that isn't there.

#3 MUA PRO BASE EYE PRIMER REVIEW
This was a bad idea, the centred writing and the small picture makes me want to vomit. But, we can accept that this was my first ever post, and since it was posted, I have realised how large pictures, and left-aligned writing really polish off the post.  

#4: DAINTY DOLL CONCEALER - ABRACADABRA (03)
When I posted this, I wasn't expecting it to be in the top 5 of my posts, but apparently so. Just to let you know, I never use this concealer, but somehow I was singing its praises in the post. Maybe I hadn't realised that radiance existed...

#5: PRIMARK DISCO PANTS
This was one of those posts that I thought a lot of you would enjoy reading, because who would pass up a pair of disco pants for £16?! Since this post, I have bought a pair of burgundy disco pants from TkMaxx, and they are a lot softer and less baggy, but these Primark ones still have a good place in my wardrobe. 

Those were the most popular posts on the blog this year (which I started on March 4th, and I cannot believe how fast it has grown!). If you are interested, coming in a 6th place is the AUTUMNAL OUTFIT post. Keep your eyes peeled for the skin, nails, and makeup versions of this post in the next few days. 

 

WHAT I GOT FOR CHRISTMAS 2013 | BEAUTY

Cliche blogger introductory paragraph, but I'll put it short and sweet. I'm NOT bragging, and am extremely grateful for absolutely everything you see here (I also got other non-beauty bits too, but they aren't being featured here, and some of the things didn't get into this photo haha).

So, first with the bath and body items. I got the Soap and Glory Relaxstation set, which basically, I have just been smelling for the past 3 days, and I may be a little addicted. From my little sister, I got the Body Shop Vineyard Peach Body Butter which is the thickest, most nourishing body butter you ever did see, and it literally smells like someone crushed up a peach and put it in this pot - love. On the same front I got the Burt's Bees Essential Kit which contains a cleanser, hand salve, body lotion, foot cream and a lip balm (which I was most excited about).

Onto makeup. So, I was lucky enough to receive MAC Woodwinked, coming in at my first every MAC eye shadow, and the colour is just simply be-a-utiful, a golden, bronzey colour which just pairs nicely with my brown eyes - yay! I got the Smashbox It's Your Prime Set which contains 3 primers; the famous Photofinish Foundation Primer, the new Hydrating Undereye Primer and also the Photofinish Lid Primer all of which at first impressions are great.
 I also got the Real Techniques Stippling Brush which I have wanted for ages for light foundation application and cream brush, and I am loving it. The Soap and Glory Girl-O-Whirl was a total surprise to me, which my mum had picked out when it was on the star offer in Boots (you chose very well mum!), and it has an array of products in it which I have been lusting after for ages now. I also got 2 No7 sets, one of which being the one with 2 brushes, and 3 shadows which you saw in my wishlist post, and another with a compact mirror and case, in it, both being from my Nan and Granddad. 

The Origins Mask Marvels Set turned up under the tree, so I am excited to trail (and review of course) 3 fabulous masks from Origins , 2 of which have gained a cult-status in the beauty world.

Finally onto fragrances. I got the Body Shop White Musk Smokey Rose Fragrance Mist which is a lovely, slightly lighter version of the original EDP, but still smells just as good as it. I also got this adorable set of 4 of the Ted Baker Women scents in a set called Heaven Scent which are so feminine, but not too overpowering, and the packaging on top of that receives an A* from me. 

So those were the majority of the beauty based gifts that I got this year, and I can assure you, the money I received was well spent buying more beauty (and some fashion) bargains in the Boxing Day sales... oops. 

 

MY PICKS FROM THE CIATÉ MINI MANI MONTH

I thought I had resisted the whole 'beauty advent calendar' thing, but when I went to the Clothes Show Live on the 9th, the Ciaté stand were selling off the Mini Mani Month for £10. Yep, a tenner. I couldn't resist, and now I think I have enabled an annual tradition for me... Oops.

24 mini polishes are included, ranging from caviar, glitter, sequin, pastels, brights, and dark colours, and I will be sharing my favourites of the bunch with you.

L-R: Dallas Dolly, Snowglobe, Twinkle Toes, Pink Caviar

Starting with the 'effect' ones, my favourites have to be the Sequin in Dallas Dolly, which is just full on festive, with a range of glitters in gold, red, and olive-green tones. Another I like, but am yet to try is the Glitter in Twinkle Toes, a holographic glitter, which would be messy, but I think would be worth it for a New Year's Eve accent nail. The caviar ones are still waiting for my seal of approval, I like the effect, but they didn't last long. One I do like is a topcoat, which is called Snow Globe full of iridescent flecks and flakes, almost a pastel version of Gosh Rainbow.

L-R: Sugar Plum, Pepperminty, Hoopla, Candy Floss, Chinchilla

The pastels basically owned it in this calendar, and they will be getting a lot of wear throughout spring. I am slightly obsessed with mint green, so Pepperminty got me very excited when I opened the door. Hoopla is such a cute colour. It is peachy, pinky and just incredible. I don't even know how to explain it, I just love it. Another one is Sugar Plum, which is a pastel, pale, lilac-purple colour, which adore. The other 2 pastels are also stunning, and go by the name of Chinchilla and Candy Floss.

L-R: Playdate, Hopscotch, Main Stage

Onto the brights, and there are only 3 I would class as all that 'bright'. The first is Hopscotch, which is a true orange, and believe it or not, I don't actually own any of those (I have an OPI, but it is slightly more red I believe), so this will be worn a lot in the summer. Another is Main Stage, which isn't even all that bright, but I included it in this section anyway. It is a nice medium-dark pink/fuchsia colour, and is Playdate which is a bright, slightly red pink, which is just so summery, and I want to slather it all on my nails now. 

L-R: Starlet, Tweed and Tails, Encore!, Boudoir

Onto the dark colours from the bunch. First up, is Starlet a duochrome bottle of magical-ness. You think it's purple, then it is slightly olive, then it is full on emerald - love. Boudoir is just a classic red, which suits me really well (sadly a rare occurrence for me and red polishes), and is just so classy. Tweed and Tails is something completely original in my collection, being what I would describe as a dusty khaki, and is so Autumnal. Finally, we have Encore! which is a slightly darkened and muted orange, which is another autumnal one, although you could definitely make it work all year round. 

It seems I've been bitten by the beauty advent calendar bug, but I guess we will have to wait another year to find out if I buy one..

PRIMARK'S CHUNKY PATENT BROGUES

Like them or loathe them, I have bought some new shoes. Patent esc. brogues to be precise. From Primark. I have been outfit planning for the Clothes Show Live 2013 (it is still a month until I go..), and I decided I needed a comfortable, chunky soled, closed up, shoe which would match with whatever I decided to pair them with - dresses, jeans, the lot.

I found these chunky looking ones in Primark, no shame - although there may be a little of it, as my entire outfit will probably be from Primark, at a rather big fashion event - wild. But, if I saw someone wearing these, I would most certainly think they were darn expensive, and not from anywhere near Primark - result. The best part? These bad boys were £12. WHAT?!

They don't make my feet look like canal boats, and they look smashing with jeans or dresses, and there was no staggering price. Although I will be sporting Primark based attire for the day, I will feel pretty good about it. I also bought the big, black oversized furry/fluffy/hairy cardigan they have out at the moment, and that will be getting an outing on the day too.

Love them or hate them, these could be up there to be my new favourite pair of shoes, and I haven't even worn them out yet.