My Monthly Favourites - June 2015

It's been quite a while since I did a monthly favourites, (April to be exact,) due to the fact that last month I got a little carried away with birthday related blog posts instead! However, I am now ready to get sharing all of my most-used and most-loved beauty products once again. This months favourites contains quite a few new products, plus a re-purchase of a holy grail item that I could never live without! Furthermore, without running the risk of rambling on about just how quickly this month has flown by, let's jump right into my June favourites!

Urban Decay All Nighter Setting Spray (Travel Size) -  £9.00
The first product that I have been loving this month is this re-purchase that I mentioned above. A few years ago, I would have laughed if somebody said that a setting mist would be one of my holy grails but it really is. This nifty little spray from Urban Decay keeps my make-up locked into place all day long, despite how oily my skin is! It dries within seconds and is truly undetectable on my face! If you have trouble with your make-up looking shabby by midday, then this is the product for you!

The Body Shop Satsuma Body Butter - £13.00
My boyfriend bought me this lovely body butter as part of my birthday present, as I had finally used up all of my other lotions and potions lying around the house! I never usually buy this tub is it is more expensive than Soap & Glory's body butter range, which I tend to reach for instead. However, I am a huge lover of fruity scents and he even caught me giving this a whiff recently in store and he noted it down to buy for me (what a cutie!) So far, I am loving this product as not only is the smell like delicious oranges but it is really rich and effective too!

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Soft & Gentle - £23.00
I won't spend too much time talking about this product because I have already featured it on my blog here but I am seriously in love with Soft & Gentle! Of course, this is a much raved about MAC product and with good reason - it is amazing! It gives the most stunning golden glow to the tops of your cheekbones and it really makes them pop. This is a must-have for anybody who wants to achieve a luminous and shimmery look to their skin!

Urban Decay Glide-On Lip Pencil in Bang - £13.50
After buying the shade 'Turn On' already and loving it, I knew I had to go back and pick up another shade of this lip pencil. Urban Decay's Glide-On range is always talked about highly amongst other beauty bloggers as the formulation of this pencil is so creamy and easy to apply and I have to agree. Plus, once applied - this stuff does not budge! I wanted to buy a more punchy and bright shade so I opted for 'Bang,' which is a beautiful orange based red colour. It really is a show-stopping shade and you should definitely give it a swatch next time you're at a counter!

Rimmel Rita Ora 60 Seconds Nail Polish in Oragina - £2.99
Last but not least, I have always been a fan of Rimmel's 60 Seconds range as I love the brush and how opaque the polishes always are. I realised that my nail varnish collection was seriously lacking when it came to orange shades, so I opted for this super cute colour called 'Oragina.' It's not the most chip-resistant polish in the world but it stays put for a decent amount of time. However, I love this shade so much as it really sets off my tan nicely and it looks equally as great on the toes as it does on my fingernails. Plus, for under £3 you cannot really go wrong - I may even have to go back and buy a few more soon!

So guys, that's it for yet another month of favourites. I hope you all enjoyed reading about the five products that I have been reaching for non-stop for the past 30 days! What have your favourite beauty products been this June? Please let me know by leaving a comment below with your thoughts and recommendations!

Festival Fever At Miss Selfridge!

Calling all festival-goers, I have just the offer for you! Miss Selfridge currently have a brilliant 20% off of all of their festival clothing and accessories (just enter the code 'FESTIVALFUN' at the checkout) - so why not grab yourself a brand spanking new outfit for V Fest, Reading & Leeds or wherever you are going this summer! I am a big lover of music and I have been to a few festivals in my time - you cannot beat the vibe and the atmosphere there! Plus, Festival fashion is really fun to wear because there are no limits, absolutely anything goes! So with that in mind, I just had to share this promotion with you. There are a lot of great pieces within the range and I have picked out a few of my favourites to share with you all today! 

Paisley Fringe Midi Dress / Gold Aviator Sunglasses / Petites Khaki Gypsy Top / Mustard Floppy Hat / Flower Stone Choker / Aztec Wrap Back Top / Petites Denim Tee Dress

So guys, those are my top picks from Miss Selfridge's festival fever range! What item is your favourite? Will you be making a cheeky order on their website? Be sure to let me know in the comments below if you will be going to any festivals this year and what styles you will be rocking!

15 Things I Love About Summer

Lately, we have been pretty lucky weather-wise in the UK! Aside from the odd overcast day or thundery downpour, the Sun has well and truly had its hat on over the past few weeks. Of course, us Brits have therefore been making the most of the amazing weather before it rears its head for yet another year! Summer has always been my favourite season and rightly so because there are so many enjoyable things that come with this time of year. So, I've decided to let you know the 15 things that I love most about summertime in England. Enjoy!

1. The Sun makes everybody feel happier and more positive!
2. Sunkissed skin and glowy make-up.
3. It's still light outside at 9pm!
4. Sunbathing for hours on end whilst reading a good book.
5. Going for drinks at my local beer garden.
6. Cute playsuits and flowy summer dresses!
7. Tasty barbecues with my family & friends.
8. Going to the seafront for ice-cream and hot doughnuts.
9. The smell of sun cream and aftersun!
10. Large jugs of Pimms & lemonade.
11. Festivals - need I say more?
12. Fresh fruit that's perfectly in-season!
13. The sound of the ocean.
14. Waking up every morning to gorgeous blue skies!
15. Adorable bikinis and swimsuits.

Is summer your favourite season too? What are some of your favourite things about this beautiful weather we're having? Be sure to let me know by leaving a comment down below!

NARS' Blusher & Bronzer Duo

For my 21st birthday last month, one of the things that my parents knew was at the top of my wishlist was something from NARS! It was one of the high-end brands that I really wanted to have as part of my ever-growing make-up collection and so in turn, they kindly treated me to a few items that they thought I would enjoy using!

The main item that they bought for me was a brand new NARS gift set called the 'Basic Face Set.' The kit contains three key items; their oil-free primer, a translucent setting powder and a duo compact featuring their 'Orgasm' blusher and 'Laguna' bronzer - two of the most popular and coveted NARS products out there! As you can imagine, I was super excited when I unwrapped my presents that morning and I couldn't wait to try everything out. Of course, my favourite item out of three is the blusher and bronzer duo as the colours are just to die for!

Both of the powders are super pigmented but they are very buildable, which means you can definitely control how sheer or built up you want them to be! They are also very easy to blend - which is especially great if you plan to contour with the bronzer. 

'Orgasm' is the most gorgeous pinky coral colour with gold glitter running through it and that is one of my favourite shades to wear on my cheeks. It is the most perfect blush for spring and summer in my opinion! In regards to 'Laguna,' it is quite a warm-toned bronzer and so I personally would only use it to add some more colour to my face, rather than contour my cheekbones with it. However, it all depends on your skin tone and as I am quite fair, warmer shades of bronzer do tend to look a little muddy on me sometimes.

The only downside to this duo is the size as I find it very hard to swirl my brush around in the product as each pan is rather small (it looks much smaller than in the photograph!) Although, apart from that, this product is pretty much perfect! I can tell that it's going to become a staple in my make-up bag from here on out!

Have you tried Orgasm or Laguna before? What is your favourite NARS product? Let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment down below!

My Sephora Wishlist: Blush

It's been around a month since the last installment of my new 'Sephora Wishlist' series but it's well and truly back! So far, I have focused on lip and eye products (which you can read here & here) and next up is all to do with the blushers that I am currently lusting after! I am a true believer that adding a pop of colour to the apples of your cheeks gives you an instant pick-me-up and can dramatically alter your look. Of course, there is no Sephora store here in the UK and the only way you can purchase some of their products is by paying a crazy amount of money for them to be shipped over. Obviously, there are ways of getting some of the brands readily in the UK but it can prove difficult at times! Nevertheless, being the make-up addict that I am, I love a good wishlist and I love providing my followers with new ideas of products to try and buy. So, with that being said, here are my top picks for all things blush:

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush / Clinique Cheek Pop / Sephora MicroSmooth Baked Blush Duo / NARS The Multiple / Clinique Chubby Stick Cheek Colour Balm / Urban Decay Naked Flushed Palette / Tarte Amazonian Clay 12 Hour Blush

That's all for the third installment of my Sephora Wishlist series, I hope that you enjoyed it! What is your all-time favourite blusher? What is your favourite hue to wear - pink, peach, bronze? Please let me know by leaving a comment below with your suggestions!

MAC Cosmetics: My New Additions

A lot of the lovely presents that I received for my birthday a few weeks ago were, of course, make-up products! All of my friends and family know how much I love all things beauty and so a few of them treated me to some high end products - which I am extremely grateful for! One of my best friends Chloe actually works for MAC and so she naturally wanted to buy me a few of their products to add to my collection.

First up, she bought me a few of their eyeshadows that I really wanted to try and put them into this adorable quad palette. The colours included are; Forgery, Wedge, Naked Lunch and Shale. The four shades included are all ones that I've spoken about with her before that I thought would really compliment my complexion! 

Here is a brief overview and description of the four shades in the palette:

Forgery - A pale white shimmery shade with a lustre finish.
Wedge - A matte soft brown/taupe shade.
Naked Lunch - A neutral shimmery pink with a frost finish.
Shale - A satin shimmery mauve shade.

The other item that Chloe chose to get me is the super raved about, cult product which is their Mineralize Skin Finish in 'Soft & Gentle.' I had been lusting after this for a while after Chloe originally used it on me at the end of the last year, when she used me as a model to promote her freelancing that shes does in addition to working at MAC. It is the most gorgeous highlight that makes the tops of your cheekbones glow like no other! 

Although I haven't had a chance to try out these products properly yet, I have swatched them and I already love them ridiculous amounts! So, I can only imagine how amazing they'll look once actually applied onto my face! Have you tried out any of these products before? What is your all-time favourite MAC product? Let me know by popping a comment down below, I would love to hear your recommendations for when I buy more things in the future.

Birthday Beauty Buys

After receiving some money from members of my family for my 21st birthday a few weeks ago, it was inevitable that I was going to hit the shops as soon as possible! As well as buying quite a few items of clothing, which I am sure that I will haul soon, I wanted to pick up a few new beauty bits too. I didn't go out with the mindset of buying anything in particular, I simply wanted to browse and see what caught my eye. I ended up getting three new products; two new additions and one old favourite! So without any further ado, let's take a look at what I picked up.

One of the first shops that I went into was Lush. Even though I received quite a lot of their products for my birthday because my friends know that I am a Lush addict, it was all bath & shower related items. So, I wanted to treat myself to some skincare too. First of all, I choose to purchase an all time  favourite of mine - Ultrabland Cleanser (£7.25.) I absolutely love this cleanser as it is rich and oily enough to remove really heavy make-up but it is gentle too. I love the fact that all of Lush's skincare is made of natural ingredients that work wonders for your skin!

Whilst I was in Lush, I also wanted to try out a new product that I had heard lots of great things about, which was the Tea Tree Water Toner (£4.25.) A toner is something that I have been missing from my skincare routine and I thought that it would be interesting to see what a difference using one would make to the condition of my skin. Due to the fact that I have an oily skin type, the sales assistant recommended this toner water in particular - especially as I suffer from the occasional pesky spot breakout too. I am excited to see how this mist works out for me!

I also popped into Debenhams as they had 10% off of all beauty products, which is something that I could definitely not ignore. I went straight over to the Urban Decay counter and the 24/7 Glide-On Lip Pencil in Turn On (£13.50) instantly caught my eye. It is such a gorgeous dusky pink colour that really suits my complexion. From what I can tell just from swatching it on my hand, it is creamy and I can imagine that it will be very long-lasting too. As lip liner is something that I am really getting into lately, I'm tempted to go back and buy another shade too - I have my eye on either '69' or 'Anarchy.'

So, those are the couple of beauty bits that I have bought over the past week or so. What do you think of my purchases? Have you used any of these products before? Please let me know by leaving a little comment down below!

My Birthday Trip To Colchester Zoo

As you may or may not know, depending on whether you read my latest blog post about all of the Lush goodies that I received (click here), it was my 21st birthday last Thursday! I wasn't really too sure at first as to what I wanted to do for it but I remembered how much fun a day out at the zoo can be, whatever age you are. Furthermore, me, my boyfriend Kieran and my parents took a little drive up to Colchester Zoo to spend the day looking at all of the gorgeous animals and feeling like little kids again! So, today I wanted to show you what I got up to for this milestone of mine. I know that it may not be the most traditional way to celebrate such an occasion but I had a great time and so I thought that I would give you all a little glimpse into what my day was like. I hope you enjoy reading all about it!

Luckily for us, it was PERFECT weather! It was sunny without being unbearably hot, which meant that we could walk around freely and really take everything in. We took our time to visit all of the animals around the zoo and we also managed to fit in some elephant & giraffe feedings, as well as the sea lion presentation too! We also went on their 'Lost Madagascar Train' where you get driven around a certain route to view some of the animals up close and personal. You're even allowed to get out and wonder around inside the lemur enclosure!

In terms of what all of our favourite animals were to see, my Mum is a huge fan of giraffes, my Dad loved the elephants, Kieran's all time favourite animals are otters and I particularly loved the penguins and red pandas. However, I practically thought that every creature there (apart from the spiders and snakes) were all pretty amazing!

Even though I'm quite the novice when it comes to photography, I am really proud of some of the photos that I managed to capture throughout the day - especially as the animals were almost always moving around! Over the course of the day, I must have gotten my camera out a million times so that I had lots of memories of the day to look back on.

After about 5 or 6 hours at the zoo, you can imagine that our feet were aching quite a bit! So we decided to call it a day, took a quick look in the gift shop and then started making our way back home. After having such a fun-filled day, I decided that I just wanted to chill out at home, open some more presents and have a huge Indian takeaway for dinner as a further treat. It really meant a lot to me that I got to spend my day with the three most important people in my life. Overall, I had such a wonderful day trip and I wish that I could do it all over again!