Mini Haul!

Hey everyone! I have been doing a little bit of shopping so I thought I would share my purchases with you. I don't know if I have mentioned it recently, but in just under two weeks time I am heading back to Uni for my final year, and so, moving into a new flat with my boyfriend. I wanted to get some scented candles especially, so I picked some up from yankeedirect.com. I thought while I was making an order I may as well get one of my all time faves from Yankee Candle, a large Christmas Cookie to burn over the festive period (I like to be prepared!). Christmas Cookie is a rich, buttery, vanilla scent that I abso adoree. I also picked up French Vanilla in a large jar, similar to Christmas Cookie but not so much of a buttery vanilla to burn until I can grab my beloved Christmas Cookie (It just feels wrong burning it at any other time of year!). I also got a sample of Mango Peach Salsa, a scent I had been wanting to try for ages but didn't want to fork out for the full price before seeing if I would like it. (Turns out it smells soo yummy, so I have already ordered the large size, aswell as a couple of others which I will haul once they have arrived!) 

I love buying jewellery from Ebay, I think its a great way of getting current styles for a super cheap price. I got this double finger cross ring in gold for £1.29 with free p&p from China, and it arrived really quickly. I believe this style ring is in Topshop's current season for more than triple the price so this is a real steal.The rings are adjustable so suitable for anyone too :)

 Whilst in Superdrug, I picked up this MUA eyeshadow in the shade 'Pearl'. Its gorgeous shimmery, creamy gold toned colour caught my eye instantly, plus it was only a pound! This shade reminds me a lot of my Nars cream eyeshadow in 'Mousson' although is prehaps more gold toned whereas Mousson leans more towards the silver side. 

I also got a couple of Tresemme Volume and Lift products. The first is the Touchable Finish hairspray which is meant to add volume to the hair without being sticky whilst also fighting frizz. As always, these come in the huuge bottles and my first impression is that I really like it. The smell isn't over powering and it seems to hold well without giving that 'stiff' look to the hair. The other product I got is the Volume and Lift mousse, which is suppose to give texture and volume to the hair. I bought this to compare it against my Aussie Texturising Spray which I lovee. I definitely prefer the spray application, but I do find that mousse works well to give that extra lift. I will let you know what I think of this one!

So that is my little haul! I will be sure to share my Yankee purchases when they arrive aswell as a few other little bits I have been buying! Have you bought anything you have really liked recently?

DIY Fashion: Going Stud Crazy

Hey everyone! In my last diy studs post, I mentioned I had ordered some gold studs to do some more wardrobe vamping, so I just wanted to make a quick post showing you what I came up with. If you follow me on twitter or instagram, you may have already seen this photo, but I thought I would post about it anyway as I am really happy with how I came out! I had seen the white cross studded vest top on inlovewithfashion for £20 and I thought this design would be super simple to recreate myself at a fraction of the cost. The black vest top I had picked up from Asos a while ago for around £5 (you could use any old vest top or t-shirt), and the studs cost me £1.99 from Ebay (and I still have a bunch left over), so already a big saving, not to mention the saving on time. As vest tops are generally pretty thin, the studs were really easy to push through and I finished this top within half an hour! I think this is a fab way of re-vamping plain old tops and turning it into something special. I am now thinking about cropping this top as I think it would look lovely with a pair of denim shorts, so I will let you know how I get on with that!

Have you been going stud crazy recently? Do you like to have a wardrobe re vamp? 

Nars Cream Eyeshadow Duo 'Camargue' & LOTD!

Nars definitely has to be one of my favourite makeup brands. I love the packaging (although it attracts dirt like nothing else!) and the quality of the products is amazing. I have really been getting into cream eyeshadows recently as I love the finish it gives worn alone and the intensity it gives to a colour when worn as a base. 

I picked up a cream eyeshadow duo from Nars in the colour 'Camargue', which is described as "Golden Moss/ Sienna infused with multi-coloured reflections". 

The Golden Moss colour is a very shimmery gold with a subtle hint of green, which I have been loving using as a base all over the lid.

The Sienna is a warm brown with flecks of multi coloured shimmer throughout, which works lovely alongside the Golden Moss to darken up the eye.

Some people may find the amount of shimmer over powering, but I actually really like it for an evening/night out makeup, and love that the colours are buildable and can look fairly sheer or quite bold.

I have read that these crease fairly easily on some people, and for me, after a few hours I will start to notice some creasing, so I do like to set it with a powder eyeshadow, but still allow the shimmer to show through. I love how the colours work together and the finish of the cream eyeshadows. 'Madagascar', 'Summer Time' and 'Unconditional Love' from this range have been added to my 'to-buy' list!

Have you tried the Nars cream eyeshadows? Or do you have a different brand of cream eyeshadows that you favour?

Bronze Smokey Eye

The classic bronze smokey eye is my 'go to' night makeup look. I have fairly small eyes so I try and stay away from lots of black as it can make them look even smaller, so I try and use a mixture of golds and browns to compliment my blue eyes and really make the colour pop. So, here's how I do it! Prepare for a lot of photo's!

To start, I use Elf's cream eyeshadow in 'Bronze' as a base all over my eye lid, this will give the colours applied on top a real pop.

I then apply a skin tones colour from a No.7 palette all over the eye lid up to the brow bone.

I take a shimmering nude, champagne colour and place it on the inner third of my eye. 

I then apply 'Woodwinked' by Mac from the mid to outer eye lid, from lash line and up into the crease and blend it out with a fluffy brush to get rid of any harsh lines. I also take 'Woodwinked' mixed with a bit of 'Cork' under the eye using a small pointed brush.

I take a white pencil from Elf and put it under my brow bone to highlight, smudging it out with a Frontcover pointer brush. I also highlight the tear duct and inner corners of my eye using this liner. This will make my small eyes appear bigger.

I then use a matte dark brown colour from my Blush Cosmetics 88 palette and apply it to the outer corner of my eye to deepen the colour and add to the smokey effect.

Using a small angled brush and a black eyeshadow, I line two thirds of my upper lash line, blending the product up as I reach the outer corner. 

I then take my Mac 239 and blend to make sure all the shadows blend into one another.

 Using a brown eyeliner, I fill in the outer corner of my water line, going down into the lash line and making sure it blends into one another and up into the flick.

I then add some mascara. I'm using Maybelline The Falsies Volum' Express Waterproof, as this doesn't smudge and will last all night.

 I warm up my cheek bones and temples using Bourjois Chocolate Powder Bronzer and Real Techniques Blush Brush.

 On the lips I use No.7 Lip Liner In 'Nude' and L'oreal Rouge Caresse Lipstick in 'Lovely Rose'. As the eyes are quite bold, I want to keep the lips fairly nude.

 And here's the finished look! I hope you like it! It's perfect for summer nights or even day time, as using brown instead of black makes it a lot less harsh!

 Let me know what you think of this type of tutorial! 

What do you think of the bronze smokey eye? Do you wear it often or go for more of a black smokey eye?

x

Current Faves: Eyeshadow Combo

 When doing my eyeshadow, I almost always stick with neutral colours as I find this is what suits me best. I love a brown smokey eye and I find it really makes my blues pop. My favourite combo at the moment are two eyeshadows from Mac- 'Cork' and 'Woodwinked'. 

Cork is a matte rosey brown colour, that reminds me a lot of harmony blush, though is prehaps on the darker side and little less rosey. Woodwinked is a brown with lots of gold shimmer, which is gorgeous for nights out.

Left- 'Cork'      Right- 'Woodwinked'

For day time, I have been putting a neutral colour all over my lid, then a touch of cork blended through my crease. For night, I do the same, but add woodwinked over the center to the outer corner of my eye to glam it up. I think these colours work so nicely together and really compliment each other.

Left- Cork      Right- Woodwinked

A (not so great) photo of my classic brown smokey eye using these colours, as well as a highlight in the tear duct. (Ignore the shadow from my phone making me look like I have glitter highlight down my face and a solid line above my lashes!)

Ring-a Ring-a Roses

I rarely pay trips to Matalan, but I happened to pass one a few days ago and my inner shopaholic got the best of me so I popped in. To my surprise they had some really nice things, especially a bag which I will definitely go back to get. I also stumbled upon these rings on a sale rack, reduced to...50p!! I thought it was an absolute barg as at rrp they would of cost around £16,so picked up a few.

 I'm not usually one to buy gold jewellery and often favour silver, but I thought these three were adorable.

 I love bows, so this one was an obvious purchase for me. Really cute and a nice accessory for both day and night.

 The other two are more statement pieces, being much larger than the bow. The flower is very chunky ring, a definite accessory for a night out rather than day. Team with a little black dress and a gold clutch and you are good to go!

The last I picked up, is a wrap ring. It's leaves wrap around your finger in an unusual pattern. I love the detail to this ring.

Have you found any sale bargains recently?