EVENT | Lush Beauty Blogger

Helloooo!

Last Friday I was soo kindly invited to attend Lush's, in Birmingham, first beauty blogger event which, as expected, was full of bloggers who all share the same passion. As this was my first event, I was very anxious and nervous as I did not know the full 'ins and outs' of what was to happen. However, my friend Amy who I went with, soon introduced me to all the Birmingham bloggers, and to name some; Hattie, Gemma, Clare and  Emma- were soo welcoming and general lovely girls. I had such a lovely time and everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves; I was in my element!

REVIEW | The Body Shop- 'Chocolate Body Butter and Body Scrub'

Boo!

As promised in a post last week, I am doing a two part series of my favorite body butters and body scrubs. You can view my review of Soap and Glory's 'Pulp Friction' right here , but for now, I am going to give the 'down low' of The Body Shop's 'Chocolate' set.

PICTORIAL | Brown Smokey Eye

Hello again!

Hiyaa guys, me again! I do apologise for the lack of posts over the last few days but, I am planning to have a few more posts up over the weekend. Starting off this marathon is this matte smokey eye that I have only really used 3 products for.

REVIEW | Soap & Glory- 'Pulp Friction'

Hey!

I am planning to do two posts on matching body butters and exfoliater because it is getting warmer, the sun is coming out and I know we all want to feel smooth and super preened. I think, with the right body butter and body scrub, everyone can feel, and look, summer-ready.

OOTD | Black and Denim

Hello!

Just a quick OOTD, hope you do not mind! My most recent post, (which you can find here) I featured a few tops that I brought from my shopping trip in Birmingham. Today, I wanted to try and incorporate one of those tops with some jeans; Primark jeans are the most comfortable I have found. Anyway, on with my outfit. This was one of tops that I had bought from H&M, paired it with a black blazer- coincidentally from H&M too.  My light weight jeans, as mentioned, are from Primark and they are super soft. I kept the shoes fairly neutral with just some canvas striped pumps. I would also be comfortable with wearing converse or any kind of nude/black shoes with this outfit.

HAUL | New Tops

Hello!

Hi again, today I went to town in search of a top. Unfortunately, I could not find one that I really wanted, however, I did come home with four new tops! ..And even more of a bonus, they were all relatively cheap! YAY. I did go into Primark, as I always do, to see what new stock they have but I found myself getting heavily irritated; you know the drill. Keeping in my routine of regular shops, I went to H&M and New Look. H&M have a HUGE sale on and New Look, in my opinion, had some really nice things in.

PICTORIAL | Using My MAC Palette

Hello!

So, my latest post was my MAC palette that I had custom made by buying MAC refills. I appreciate that that MAC may exceed some budgets, so I wanted to show you how I make the most of mine by showing how I would do my eye make-up, using a few of these eye shadows. By no means am I restricting this look to just MAC products; any product and any colour range can be used.

MAC Eye Shadow Palette

Hello again!

I really love MAC products, whether that be eye shadows, lipsticks etc etc. MAC is recognised for its quality and range. So, after umm-ing-and-arr-ing whether I could justify £10.00 each, I asked for a palette and a couple of eye shadows, in refill form, for Christmas. Lucky me, my brother bought me 6! Ever since, I have been adding to my collection. I used these almost everyday and they still have barely been indented.

The actual palette was brought from eBay, it was only about £7 and many sellers had them in stock. I recommend just buying the un-branded pan, because to me it is just the same as the MAC one; it does the job.

OOTD | Printed Tee

Hey!

I have not quite mastered the art of taking full length photographs of my outfits, as of yet. I will continue to perceiver to find the appropriate place nevertheless.

Today was supposed to be very hot, which is it, so I wanted my attire to remain cool, yet still covered and modest because I am at College. The sun is not shining and it is fairly dull, BUT OH SO HOT. Today's outfit is very casual but I dressed it up with a blazer; I really love turning a boring outfit into something quite special. I went for a skinny, darkwash and lightweight jean so keep me cool and a printed T-shirt. My T-shirt says 'I'd like to chat but I really'..l and a picture of a moustache. Already, I have had people stop me and ask about it! And of course, a leather jacket would maintain the element of 'cas, but I chose the staple black blazer instead. I threw on some white converse (which are scruffy I know). I have kept my jewelry simple with my watch and a simple roped bracelet to match the white of my top.

TTYS,

CLB

Blazer- H&M

Top- Amazon

Jeans- Primark

                                                                       White Converse

REVIEW | Urban Decay Naked Palettes

Hiyaa!

Hello again guys, as a few of you may know, I absolutely love make up and everything cosmetics related. I personally have a passion for cosmetics and trying out different things, whether that is eye shadow, lip colour, the finish of your face- the lot! For some time I have been into Urban Decay products and I really really love 'Naked' palettes.

These palettes, to me, are not raved about enough. As shown in the pictures, they provide a great range of colours and different finishes, ranging from mattes to shimmers. I really love the palettes too, because they descend in colour and pigment, and creates a perfect for a smokey eye or a light every day look by just looking at the palette.

 The eye shadows themselves are really easy to work with and are very bendable, but would you expect anything less? Urban Decay is an expensive, high end brand that do bring good products into the the market. These palettes are £36.00 at the Debhenams, this is expensive for twelve eye shadows, but they are such great quality and have really good lasting power.

As mentioned, the quality is admirable, much like MAC eye shadows, they last long and have a great colour pay off which desired because it means a lot will go a long way. The eye shadows can be blended and softened to create any look you want. There are some great matte transition shades which can be used, in addition to the browns in the 'Naked 1' which is perfect for light coloured brows.

TTYS,
CLB

BBC Good Food and Garden Show 16/06/13

Hello!

On Sunday, I went to the NEC, in Birmingham, to the BBC Good Food Show and Garden Show. This is a regular occurrence for my family as we go to both the summer, and winter food shows. If you are wondering what the exhibition is, it is basically three halls full of different food brands, giving samples and offering bargains that we cannot normally get. The companies, also, are not very accessible, so it is a great chance to shop around and browse through luxury products. We also had tickets to the auditorium which was James Martin demonstrating a quick 3 course meal.

It was a lovely, although tiring day, but I  thought I would share some pictures nonetheless. I did not manage to take great pictures of everything as the photo's were taken with the camera on my phone, instead of all my other pictures, on my blog, that have been taken with my camera.

TTYS,
CLB

I tried an oyster.. It was surprisingly nice-but- very slimy.

Inside the James Martin show where he made a three course meal with squid, fish and a homemade ice-cream! YUM

These were little pods that were for sale. Inside was a luxurious interior that had a lovely dinning table and chair all around, fitted into the wall; they are soo cute.

The weather was not very pleasing and the overcast only made the day seem miserable, but it did not stop my family and I all really enjoying ourselves.

REVIEW | St Tropez 'Bronzing Mousse'

Hi again guys!

During the summer, I love to be tanned. Although all year round I really like a sun-kissed glow, summer time calls for a tan. I have been wanting to get a really nice false tan, that will last and not have an orange tinge to it; St Tropez has always stood out and been my favorite tan since my mom and I brought a set in a January sale.

On Saturday, when we had glorious sunshine all the week prior, I headed off to town with the intention to see what Boots had to offer, in the self tan department. I brought myself St Tropez's 'Instant Bronzing Mousse', which I had had my eye on for a while. Anyway, I wanted the mouse, rather than the liquid to help with the application and blending, to avoid any obvious stripes. Boot's offers this at £13.66, which I feel is a really good bargain for its brilliance.

St Tropez's products, from my experiences, all provide a lovely colour without an orange hew and makes it look really realistic, even though it is from a bottle. Personally, I think that, when developed, the colour is not artificial and is like you have been sunbathing on the coast of the Mediterranean for 2 weeks. From the swatch, the colour and formulation does not look attractive at all- but it develops, instantly, into a summer glow. I put two layers of this on and it really enhances an existing tan too.

The product normally lasts around 4-6 days , which I think it great and encourages the actual length of how long you are able to use the bottle, efficiently; alot goes a long way. It advises you to exfoliate regularly but I do not. I do not, personally, see the point of ruining the time of spent and change of colour in your skin. I only exfoliate and take the colour off when I am fed up of being soo tan.


TIP:  I apply this with my hands and do not really try to avoid 'orange hands' where the tan has stained. I often put a squirt of toothpaste on my hands and use it like a moisturiser, and then rinse off. This erases most of the colour and avoids any obviousness.

TTYS,
CLB

PICTORIAL | Eyebrow Routine in Pictures

Me, again!

The history of my eyebrows is really not too exciting and quite frankly embarrassing. For some time, my eyebrows remained extremely sparse due to over plucking. This was quite horrific as it was mainly through my secondary school years. They really were dreadful. But, I soon started to get into make up so the process of growing them out could be hidden, to an extent. I had them reshaped and threaded which, as you all my know, 'frames your face.' Anyway, I am a fan of arched eyebrows and try to get a (natural as possibly) arch in them by filling them in with both pencil and eyeshadow.

The products I used range. The pencil I use is mainly YBF but I also like using MUA and Rimmel. To me, the pencil does not matter all that much because I then set the pencil/wax with a light brown eyeshadow, which is about 2 shades darker than my hair. Sleek's 'Storm Palette' and Urban Decay 'Naked' both have some really great matte shades which I use; 'Naked' eyeshadow is great. If I have made a mess of them (I do sometimes) I like to conceal them and again, sharpen the shape with my MAC Studio Sculp, which is two shades lighter than my skin tone so adds as a highlight too.

1) I first brush through my eyebrows to remove of the foundation and generally to grrom them into the shape that I want. I brush the hairs up at the front and then smooth the tail of the brows down towards my jaw. This creates a nice effect and helps as a guideline for the shape I want overall.

2) I then lift my brow up so the skin is taught, and create a line where I want my brows to be. Although I may look surprised, this helps the brow to be drawn in an arch.

3) I then thicken the tail of the brow to make it look more balanced as I do not have a lot of hair on the tail of my brow. I do this by, again, drawing a line down towards my ear. I go outside the natual line of my brow to add to appearance of thick brows.

4) I am using a Bobbi Brown fine liner brush to blend in what I have done. This smooths the line and fills in what I have not done with the pencil.

5) I then take my eye shadow and fill in what I have done. This darkens and sets the pencil to increase longevity and helps the brows stay on for longer.

6) Finally, much like step 5, I take my eye shadow but push the brush up towards my hair line, rather than smoothing out the pencil. This makes it more natural looking and not so 'square'.

TTYS,
CLB

REVIEW | Shu Uemura- Eyelash Curler

Hey!

Prior to my investment, I normally used to buy cheap, bad quality, eyelashes curlers that did not work at all. For something that could potentially rip my eyelashes out, I wanted to invest in the raved about Shu Uemura Eyelash Curlers. I had seen many YouTube videos featuring these lash curlers, as well as reading several blogs on the quality of these; I heard nothing but good things.

I brought them from the House of Fraser, at £20.00. Considering I knew nothing other than minimal lasting power and eye watering application, but, I found these a dream to use the first time of trying them. These are great. They are very firm, which I would gather helps the longevity as the clamp your eyelashes without tearing them from the root, and they also seem to be non-damaging to the eyelashes. I have been using them for about 2 months now, everyday, and have found no problem.

I enjoy using these before I apply my mascara because without any product they work soo much nicer and do not pull at your lashes. They remained curled throughout the day, even though I sometimes gently re-clamp the lashes when the mascara is dry (personal preference).

They are pretty extensive as they are £20.00 but they are completely worth it. They ensure that your eyes, and lashes, are not at harm of breaking or being damaged. They are soo much better than cheap ones that you may have to keep repurchasing. I would recommend these lash curlers as they maintain curl throughout the day and do not inflict any harm, or weaken your lashes.

TTYS,
CLB

REVIEW | Nails Inc- 'Elizabeth Street'

Hi!

Hello again guys. Considering the summer season is coming around quite sharpish, I have been hunting through my nail varnish collection in search for the perfect pale pink! To me, the perfect summer pink is Essie 'Fiji', that I no longer have. BUT, Nails Inc never fails to satisfy my needs in terms of colours, quality and longevity. So- whilst pursuing my desire for the summery colour, I came across Nails Inc 'Elizabeth Street'; an all summer long varnish.

I really love Nails Inc and everything the brand has to offer. I deem all their products perfect in, as mentioned, colour pay off and longevity. The at-home manicure normally lasts me about 5-7 days, without chipping, which for me is a winner because balancing college, homework and social time is very demanding, evidently sometimes neglecting a much needed pamper.

Knowing that the manicure will stay all week, I immediately pushed my cuticles back, filing to create a square  tip and painted away. The application of the varnish is a breeze; the paint glides on with ease. Whilst waiting for the first coat to dry, I assessed the colour pay off and decided that it would definitely need a second coat to reach the opacity that I wanted. After the second coat, I was really happy with the depth of colour that I had managed to create. Still on my nails at the moment, it remains, without any chips, a lovely light coloured pink that makes me look even more tan to which I especially love this in the summer time.

TTYS,
CLB

Nails Inc- 'Elizabeth Street'

Face of the Day- Spring Time

Boo!

I do not normally have a set 'every day make-up' because I quite enjoy experimenting with different looks to suit an outfit, or if I have bought a new product that I would like to try, I most definitely incorporate it into my look.

As normal, I firstly moisturise with Lancome's 'Absolute Premium' moisturiser and hydrate using The Body Shop's 'Eye Rescue Serum'. 
Recently, I have been trying to tailor my everyday make-up to fit the latest season, trying to focus on light weight products that have an element of radiance and shimmer. For this, I love a low to medium coverage and a, fairly shimmery, light coloured eye.

The foundation of my choice at the moment is L'Oreal's 'Lumi Magique'. I like a perfectly chiseled face, so I contour heavily with the Sleek 'Contour Kit' and then highlight generously with the 17 'Instant Glow Shimmer Brick'. Benefit's 'Coralista' is perfect in creating a pink cheek; I place this on the apple of my cheek and drag gently up through the cheek bones. Under my eye's, I conceal with, first, MAC 'Studio Sculp Concealer' and then YSL's 'Touche Eclat', to ensure my under eyes stay illuminated.  I do not normally powder, as I have dry skin and do not feel the need to, but through the summer months I powder through the center of my face with Rimmel's 'Stay Matte' face powder.

To prime my eyes, I use Too Faced 'Shadow Insurance' primer, to act as a base so my eye make up stays in place. Urban Decay's 'Naked 2' palette is perfect for creating a sparkly eye. I like using 'Booty Call' from this palette as it is a lovely nude , almost vanilla, coloured eye shadow. I then contour my eye with 'Snakebite' which is a dark golden, still shimmery' shadow. I then take 'Tease' to bled out all the colours on the lid and then make a shadow under the lower lash line. 'Foxy' is a perfect brow bone highlight that I love to use to finish my brows, after I fill them in lightly with my YBF 'Brow Pencil'. To complete the eyes, I curl them with my Shu Uemura 'Lash Curlers' and apply a generous coat of Eyeko's 'Skinny Lash' mascara, to only the top lashes and apply Benefit's 'Eye Bright' to my waterline.

To finish my look, I like to add a bold lip with Rimmels Apocolips in 'Stella' because the eye's have stayed neutral and a pop of colour adds dimension to the look; I often pair a bright lip with a simple make up. To make sure the make up stays on, I spray MUA's 'Fix Spray' on the entire make up.

TTYS,
CLB

OOTD | Peplum Top

Hiyaa!

This week we have had some really nice weather; the sun has been shining and people have been smiling. However, although the beginning of the week was really nice, it got progressively worse. I am pleased that we didn't have any rain but saddened by the overcast on Saturday.

Enough about the weather, I had made plans with my boyfriend to visit Birmingham's Museum. Our initial spontaneity was to explore and see where we end up!

Due to the weather being, to say the least, disappointing, our plans still presumed. Unsure as to what to wear, I went for trusty light weight jeans and a black peplum top. I feel most comfortable in a peplum because I think they are the most flattering to my body shape. I paired the outfit with a navy blazer (which I didn't get to wear all that much because it was soo warm), my standard accessories and some nude pumps.

TTYS,
CLB

Peplum Top- New Look
Jeans- Primark

REVIEW | Rimmel's 'Apocalips Lip Lacquer's'

Hiyaa!

Me again, I am on a role with all this blogging. I am actually really enjoying sharing my thoughts on products and what I am up to, but nonetheless, here is what I have to say on Rimmel's 'Apocalips Lip Lacquer's'.

In my collection, I have two of these Lip Lacquers, one in 'Celestial', and the other in 'Stella'. On a whole, these are good lip products. They do stain the lips with the colour, both with great pigmentation and gloss. However, I do find myself re-applying after an hour or two so the longevity is not as great as the colour pay off!

As for the finish, they instantly appear glossy. I am not normally a fan of the glossy lip, so I stick to matte or frosts, in MAC terms. I was pleasantly surprised by how, after a couple minuets, the finish transforms to a non-shine lipstick. I really like this about these products.

'Celestial' is a pretty pink nude, which is more pink than not. In the swatch, it looks fairly dark, but it actually is more nude. This is hopefully illustrated in the picture where I am wearing it. This is a wearable colour that I wear to college with a lick of mascara and a heavy contour. The 'Lip Lacquer' is a 'your lips but better' colour that I have recently been really enjoying!

As for 'Stella', it is a vivid pink that is very rich and bright. I would wear this as my 'pop of colour' because it really brightens up any look, whether that be your make-up or outfit. The colour is pretty red and can definitely be layered to increase colour pigmentation; I cannot wait till I get a nice summer tan to help sport this lipstick.

Other than that, there is an extensive range of colours, which all have great pigmentation and colour pay off, from what I have heard, seen and experienced. At a cheap £4.99, I really recommend these.

TTYS,
CLB

Top- Bottom: 'Celestial', 'Stella'

Left- Right: 'Celestial', 'Stella'

'Celestial'

'Stella'

Real Techniques Splurge: 'Duo-fiber Collection', 'Blush Brush'

Hello!
During the heavy exam phase, I thought it was best if I invested in some new brushes, you know, a ladies prerogative and such! Since their release in May, the new Real Techniques brushes have caught my eye. I have been watching all their promotions, whether that be by Sam Chapman, or reviews on YouTube. I was convinced I was going to buy them because they seemed such great brushes.

The new limited edition brush set from Real Techniques, to go along side my 'Core Collection' and eye shadow 'Starter Set' and decided it was time to splash out. I brought the 'Blush Brush' and the 'Duo-fiber Set' (limited edition.) Much like all the others I have in my collection, I am incredibly impressed with both the practicality and quality of these brushes.

Although I am really pleased with my purchases, the actual hair of the 'Duo-fiber Set' is white and I know will get incredibly stained. If you have time to clean your brushes every time they are used, then this would not be such a problem, I, however, do not. Also, the hairs on each brush is very long but I suspect this, as well as the duo-fibers, contribute to the light coverage criteria.

In addition to the simplistic, sophisticated and sassy design, these brushes are in all round must; the 'Duo-fiber Set' works incredibly at achieving a light coverage and an easily blended application, and the blush is great for a much needed rosy cheek!

I love the 'Blush Brush' already. Although I brought this mainly to sweep powder under the contours of my eyes because it easy easily manipulate by the way you hold the handle, for example; swiping the length of the brush along your face. It works create when applying blush- surprise surprise. To do so, I put the product on the tip of the brush and the hairs, being tapered, naturally blend the product into my base.

TTYS,
CLB

Real Techniques: 'Duo-Fiber Limited Edition Collection'

Real Techniques: 'Duo-Fiber Limited Edition Collection'

Real Techniques: 'Blush Brush'

REVIEW | Rimmel- 'Wake Me Up' Foundation

Boo!
A post of my adored, medium coverage foundation. During the summer time, much like others, I crave the healthy dewy look with an increased amount of luminosity to give that super refreshed and summery shine. Rimmels's 'Wake Me Up' is brilliant in creating this!

I purchased this foundation last year, and to be honest, loved it all year round. But, I understand its more of a seasonal product for the matte complexion wearers. I am not a fan of this myself; I only powder my under eye area once I have concealed, or, if I know I am going to be out for hours on end, I will powder, slightly.

I cannot rave about this product enough. Say goodbye to your foundation that fades through the day, becomes patchy and makes you look overly greasy, because Rimmel's 'Wake Me Up' is a staple product. It gives a beautifully dewy radiance that certainly embraces the season. The coverage is medium- heavy, but does not look 'cakey' at all. All my blemishes and pesky pimples are covered with this foundation. After searching through Boots for the right colour, it was not long until I found 'soft beige' which is slightly darker for my face, but it matches with my neck and the rest of my body. I really love this foundation when applying it with the Real Techniques 'Buffing Brush' because it add to the coverage and help it blend seamlessly.

Apart from looking great, 'Wake Me Up' is cheap; one of the best high streets finds I have found. I believe it retails at £8.99, in Boots, which is nothing in comparison to the higher end products that, in my opinion, are not worth the entirety of the money.

I love this foundation soo much that it almost reminds me of, in terms of finish, YSL's Touche Eclat! Touche Eclat is a much light coverage but stays put and has a silky finish once applied.

TTYS,
CLB

Rimmel London: 'Wake Me Up' Foundation- Soft Beige

OOTD | College with Colour

Hi again!
So! There's a first time for everything, and today is my first outfit post. I think I will enjoy doing these kinds of posts, when I figure out how to take successful full length pictures. So, my style? My style is normally quite smart, generally girly and advantage taking of basic pieces. Most of the clothes I own have been brought to be used from day- night and from skirts- trousers. Basically, I own several basic pieces that I use almost every day. Individually, these pieces are fairly standard and not very interesting. However, will a little oomph and pzazz, an outfit is transformed.

Today's OOTD consists of a generally smart outfit, some may say 'too dressy for college' but that is what I am comfortable with. The blazer is dressed down and made casual with a pop of purple and a pair of dark wash jeans. I wanted to embrace the supposed sunshine (which seems to have disappeared through the week), and so I have put these fushia shoes with gold studs on. The gold compliments my jewelry nicely and adds an ounce of class to my standard pieces. I really love adding accents of colour to my outfits because I am not quite brave enough, yet, to colour block.

Again, I have kept it quite casual, even though I am wearing a black blazer, as I've paired it with my favorite jeans. I love wearing blazers and I must say this is one of my most favored. Personally, if the shoes were not so vivid, I would have paired the outfit, instead of black, with a bright coloured blazer, for example; a pink. Other than my jeans, near enough all my clothing items are from H&M; their 'basics' range has served me well!

I've kept my accessories fairly standard with my Michael Kors watch, Pandora bracelet and my Hot Diamond bracelet on the same wrist. These are my everyday accessories that I always wear, give or take the arm candy!

TTYS,
CLB

Black Blazer- H&M 

White T-Shirt- H&M Basics 

Jeans- International 

Shoes- H&M 

Bracelet- Hot Diamonds 

Pandora Bracelet

Watch- Michael Kors Rose Gold Chronograph

REVIEW | Benefit- 'They're Real' Mascara

Hello there!
This my first ever post so I might as well explain my reasoning to the hype around Benefit's 'They're Real' mascara. Firstly, I don't own the full size but man am I impressed by what I have! I was intending to buy this in the foreseeable future, but when I realised that  May's edition of Elle Magazine had a sample size, I quickly had to take advantage! After debating whether to buy the smaller tube in Boots, to test, I took this as my opportunity to see what all the fuss was about. Anyway, because there was a decent sample size of the much desired mascara, I was soo excited to see what it had to offer because I wanted to know what all the hype was about.  My favorite blogs and YouTube channels had all previously raved about this being the new 'thing' and ultimate mascara.
OH MY!
I was fairly skeptical about the statistics on the side of the packaging, whether that be about lengthening, the longevity of the lash enhancing mascara and the lack of flakes- but- my mind is now changed. I can officially say I am overwhelmed by the results of what Benefit's new mascara has to offer, in addition to the cute gun metal packaging which makes it so much more appealing, my eyelashes remain curled throughout a full day at college, no flaking and certainly voluminous. I believe the rubber wand with tiny teeth help create this look that I so long for! The wand also has a ball on the end which helps coat stubborn eyelashes on the outer corners which is a incredibly impressive to me because my eyelashes are mainly full on the outer corners. I almost always choose bristle wands on my mascaras as, to me, they give a much more natural and 'fluttery' effect.

Although Boots offer the smaller tube, as mentioned for just under £10, the full size of the mascara is £19.50.  This is quite expensive for just as mascara but I definitely deem it worth every penny. I have ditched my Lancome 'Hypnose' mascara and been converted into Benefit believer. I will certainly be splashing out on the full size once I have run out!


TTYS,
CLB

My very scary bare eyelashes with a full face of make-up!