Haul: Rimmel and Primark Beauty

I know I said that I was broke but today I splurged some more money while waiting for my train home for the weekend. Oooops!! I went into Penney’s (the Irish name for Primark !) and went straight to their makeup section. They stock at lot of Rimmel products there and I really wanted to try out the Stay Matte Foundation, having heard a lot of good things about it. The package says that it controls shine for up to 12 hours – sounds good to me. And for less than €6 you can’t really go wrong!

Of course, whenever I get a new foundation, I feel compelled to buy a new concealor to match it!! Many of my friends swear by Rimmel’s “Hide the Blemish” concealor so I decided to try it out. The colour is a bit washed out (I took the picture on the train) and it’s not really that white, but I’m pretty pale so it’s probably not too far off!! This little beauty was only €5.50 – what a steal!!

I was walking to the checkout to pay, when I noticed the Primark Beauty section. I decided to try out their primer (Prime of your Life) and their block bronzer (Little Glow Cheek). These were €2 and €3.50 respectivly. Prime of your Life is packaged (almost) exactly like Benefit’s That Gal primer, and the names of the entire Primark Beauty range are funny/catchy names, like Benefit. It’s not hard to see where Primark got their inspiration... let’s just hope the product quality follows suit. Fingers crossed!!

Now, I’m really and truly broke... ciao girls xx

Haul: Makeup, Hand Cream, Jewellery

Over the past two weeks I have picked up a few bits and pieces.

Firstly, my beautiful friend Rachel got me "Hand Food" by Soap & Glory for my birthday and I absolutely adore it. It describes itself as "non-greasy hydrating hand cream with shea butter, macadamia oil and marshmallow". You can apply it as much as you want (which is a big plus, because it's addictive) and I bloody love it.

Another of my gorgeous friends, Jana, gave me the Lancôme "Star Bronzer" because she didn't like it. I have used it a few times since then, and have started to warm to it. It describes itself as a "cream-to-powder bronzing veil" and says that it gives a "long lasting tanning effect". The first day that I wore this, I had fake tan on, so I put it all over my face. Big mistake! It went blotchy and streaky on the dry parts of my skin (not an attractive look) and I took it off at lunchtime. The next few times, I applied it over my foundation as a bronzer (under my cheekbones etc) and it was really nice. I did brush some translucent powder over it (to stop me from getting oily) but the result was gorgeous. I almost prefer this to powder bronzer, because it is much easier to blend (and remove).

I have been studying very hard recently, and decided to treat myself to some makeup. I stopped off in Benefit, because I am in LOVE with their "Play Sticks" and I had to pick up another one!! I get the colour "Spin the Bottle" because I'm uber-pale but the colour selection is really varied! At €37 for 0.3 oz it is an expensive little tube, but I have truly fallen head over heels in love with it. It leaves your skin looking soft, fresh and natural... and blends superbly. 10 out of 10 for sure!!

Then, of course, I went to Mac, where I picked up a new "Studio Fix" powder. I ran out last week, and nearly cried. I use this every day over my foundation and it is my holy grail powder, hands down. I don't really need to say more than this: you NEED it in your life/makeup bag :P

And last, but DEFINITELY not least, I was looking at Claire's beautiful blog, The Fashion Teller, and noticed that she was selling handmade jewellery for really reasonable prices. I had to pick up one of these gorgeous Russian Doll necklaces, but all the other jewellery was incredibly beautiful too. I would strongly advise you to check out her blog, and her jewellery!!

That's all for now... I'm officially broke. Until next time, take care xx

My Ring Collection

I have been MIA for about 10 days because of uni work - final year is majorly stressful!! I was distressing this evening and decided to organise my jewelery. Here are photos of my ring collection. I'm not a huge ring-wearer but I love the rings I have.

The one on the left is a plain black stone, with a silver band. The one on the right is a silver crown, with I bought in a charity shop in Paris.

 

These are my more "blingtastic" rings. The one on the left is a large, clear (diamond-like) stone, surrounded by little stones. The one on the right is set with white and grey stones, 5 in a row.

 

The colour of these rings hasn't come through. The flower ring on the left is actually a bright blue colour, filled with sparkly blue stones. The ring on the right is my only gold ring (gold doesn't really suit me) - it's a guardian angel ring, with January (my birth month) engraved on one side, and my birth stone on the other.

These are my two shabby-chic rings. The one on the left is an antique-y silver, with clear stones in the middle and at each of the four corners. The one on the right is a similar colour, but with one large, clear stone.

 

And here are some of the rings I wore as a child... can you tell I liked hearts? haha!!

Hope you enjoyed this little post... I'm gonna try and get more college work done this weekend so that I can make more posts next week.

body modification - tattoos and piercings

I was over in my friend Jana's apartment this evening and we decided to make a random vlog about body modification (ie: tattoos and piercings) - Jana's a fan, I'm a wimp. We uploaded the video to her youtube channel, which you can see HERE...

Subscribe to her channel (and mine - HERE) because we're gonna make more vlogs and maybe some makeup videos!! Let us know what you think

Enjoy :) xx

history tag

PART 1: BIRTH

Were you a planned baby?

Technically, no!! I'm adopted so although I wasn't planned by my birth parents, I was extremely planned by my (adoptive) parents!

Were you the first born?

Yep

Were your parents married when you were born?

As far as I'm aware, my birth parents were not married but my parents were.

What is your birth date?

29th of January 1988

PART 2: THE FAMILY

Parents married or divorced?

Happily married.

Are you an only child?

Nope, I have a "little" brother - he's 18.

Are you the oldest, middle, or youngest?

I'm the oldest.

Which parent do you get along with best?

I couldn't chose!!!

Do you have step-parents?

Nope.

PART 3: THE FRIENDS

Do you have more than one best friend?

Yep - my very best friends are twins!!

What do you like to do when you are together?

We do all sorts of random stuff - cinema, dancing, dinner, shopping :)

Do you share the same interests?

We all like makeup (but no one is as insane about it as me), fashion and music but we have different tastes.

Which friend can you tell everything to?

Either of the twins (Emma and Ciara)

PART 4: YOUR PERSONALITY

Do you have a low self esteem?

I think most girls my age do - but my boyfriend usually makes me feel better about myself.

Do you get depressed about things easily?

Not usually - bad grades, rowing with my friends and messiness stress me out but "depressed" is too strong a word to use.

Are you happy right now?

Very - I'm watching Desperate Housewives, I have my scented candles lighting and I'm eating a Wham bar.

Do you live life to the fullest?

I try to :)

PART 5: APPEARANCE

Are you comfortable with the way you look?

Again, I doubt many girls my age are totally comfortable about their appearance but I reckon I'm tolerable.

Describe your hair?

My hair is darkish brown, and fairly long. It's naturally wavy/curly but I usually straighten it.

How do you dress?

I love soft fabrics and floral prints and I absolutely live in jeans. In general, I love girly, shabby-chic clothes... oh, and I really love dressing up all fancy-pants too.

PART 6: RANDOM

Were you a strange child?

Hahaha... all children are strange!! I was quite OCD as a child, so that probably made me seem like a proper little freak!!

Are you scared of growing up old and alone?

Nope... I wouldn't mind being independent!!

PART 7: THE OUTDOORS

Do you prefer indoors or outdoors?

Indoors - it's toasty and dry!!

Favorite season?

Summer or Winter

Do you like walking in the rain?

Nope - it rains all the time here in Ireland and the novelty wears off really fast!!!!!

PART 8: FOOD

Are you a vegetarian?

Nope.

Favorite food?

Any form of junk food.

What food makes you want to gag?

Gluten (wheat, oats, etc) - I'm a coeliac... I'm allergic

What is your favorite dessert?

Crème brulé

PART 9: RELATIONSHIPS AND LOVE

Do you believe in love at first sight?

No. I believe in lust at first sight but I think you have to spend time with someone to love them. You grow to love someone, it's not instantaneous.

Best gift from a wife/husband?

My boyfriend bought me a bottle of Moet champagne for my birthday!! He spoils me so much,

Have you ever been in love?

Yep.

Have they ever loved you?

I'll ask him... yep!!

blog contests galore

The Makeup Goddess Guru

Joanna, aka The Makeup Goddess Guru, is having a 100-follower giveaway and you can see the wonderful prizes in the picture. To enter, you just have to comment on her post about this giveaway (and be a follower of her blog, obviously)

Pearls and Poodles 200 Follower Giveaway

Milly over at Pearls and Poodles is having a 200-follower giveaway (even though she now has more than 300 followers!!) and you can see the wonderful prizes in the picture. To enter, you just have to comment on her post about this giveaway (and be a follower of her blog, obviously)

(Contest ends on March 3rd 2010)

CKK Beauty 50 Follower Giveaway

I absolutely love reading beauty blogs, and one of my favourite's is CKK Beauty. At the moment Cassandra is having a 50-follower giveaway (maybe I should do something like that too!!!) and the prize is a copy of Lauren Conrad's book.

To enter, all you have to do is follow her blog and comment on her post and state why you want to win the book. My reason is because it was my birthday last week and I really wanted this book but I didn't get it... *sob* Hopefully I'll be more lucky this time!!

(contest ends on March 1st 2010)

Topshop Princess 100 Follower Giveaway

Another wonderful contest is being held by Stephanie over at Topshop Princess. You can see all the lovely, lovely prizes in the picture below. To enter the contest, all you have to do is follow her blog and comment on her post saying "Enter me, I'm a princess" and I most definitely am!!

(Contest ends on March 9th 2010)

i gots a formspring

About a month ago, I made a formspring because it looked like a lot of fun... but I didn't really use it!! I'm planning to resurrect it and answer any questions you ladies/gents may have. So, ask me anything here :)

My Holy Grail Beauty Products

Shampoo
Miracle Moist Shampoo (Aussi)

Conditioner
Miracle Moist Conditioner (Aussi)

Hair Treatment
3 Minute Miracle Reconstructor (Aussie)

Styling Products
GHD
Elnett Strong Hold Hairspray (L'Oreal)
Dry Shampoo (Toni & Guy)

Shower Gel
Pink Grapefruit Shower Gel (The Body Shop)

Body Moisturizer
Pomegranate Body Butter (The Body Shop)

Face Mask
BB Seaweed Face Mask (Lush)

Cleanser
Ultra Bland (Lush)
Angels on Bare Skin (Lush)

Foundation
Playstick (Benefit)
Superbalanced Foundation (Clinique)
Perfectly Real Foundation (Clinique)

Powder
Studio Fix (Mac)

Concealer
Studio Finish Concealer (Mac)
Erase Paste (Benefit)

BlushCubic (Mac)
Bronzer
Hoola (Benefit)

Highlighter
High Beam (Benefit) - Liquid
Redhead MSF (Mac) - Powder

Eyeshadows
I always change up my eyeshadows... check out my post to see my (mini) collection.

Eye Primer
Primer Potion (Urban Decay)

Eyeliner
Bad Gal (Benefit)
Long-Lasting Liquid Eyeliner (Sephora)

Mascara
Bad Gal Lash (Benefit)

Lashes
I don't usually wear false lashes... but if I do I wear the Cheryl Girls Aloud lashes.

Lipstick
Shy Girl (Mac)

Lip Gloss
Hot Frost Lipglass (Mac - Dame Edna Collection)

Perfume
Euphoria (Calvin Klein)
Chloé for Women (Chloé)

Nail Polish
Maximum Growth Nail Polish (Sally Hansen)

Mirror Makeover

This is not exactly a makeup related post... but as it involves my mirrors, I reckon I can get away with it!! Basically, I had two old (kinda gross) mirrors in my room and I wanted to make them all pretty... so I got my paint on!!

Before

After (1)

After (2)

 

I hope you enjoyed this little post - I'm so happy with how they turned out. It just goes to show that you don't need to spend much/any money to prettify things :)

Update and Review: Sally Hansen Maximum Growth Nail Polish

I blogged about this Sally Hansen nail polish last week when I bought it. I have always (for as long as I can remember) suffered from dry, brittle nails and I while I could get them to grow, the would break so easily. The really cold weather we've had this winter has not helped.

I have been using this polish for about a week now and I have seen a huge difference in the strength and quality in my nails. They've grown a lot (I've filed them down a lot in the picture below!!!) and they're strong/sturdy. Although I had to remove the nail polish and repaint in half way through the week, which you're not supposed to do... but it started chipping on the second day (btw, it hasn't chipped since then), I would definitely recommend this polish to anyone suffering from the same problems as I was!!

Rating: 9/10 (minus one for the chipping)

Blog Awards: One Lovely Blog and Happy 101

I was tagged by Sarah to do a One Lovely Blog Award tag.

All this tag involves is tagging three blogs that you love reading and letting them know you tagged them. My three favourite blogs are:

Zoella

Gem's Maquillage

We Are Glitter

I tag these three beautiful ladies!

The second award is one that I saw on Sinead's blog called the Happy 101 Award. Although she didn't tag me specifically, she tagged all her followers (including me!!)

This is another simple tag - all you have to do is list 10 things that make you happy :)

1. My Family - I don't know where I would be without my parents and brother. They are the best family I could ask for... even though they annoy the heck out of me sometimes :P

I love them dearly.

2. My Boyfriend - I've been with my gorgeous boyfriend, Colm, for almost three years and I love him to absolute pieces.

3. My Friends - I have possible the greatest bunch of friends in the world. They are all incredible and I can depend on every single one of them. They are always there to hep me out or make me smile.

4. My Macbook - I would probably die without my laptop. I use it every single day without fail (usually for youtube, not actual university work... but still!!) and I absolutely love it - best purchase of my life, easily.

5. My iPhone - I got an iphone in October 2009 for a few reasons (partially as my Christmas present, partially as my birthday present, and partially because I did really well in my Christmas exams) and I completely love it. Would be totally lost without it...

6. Youtube/Blogger - I love watching beauty videos and reading (and writing) beauty blogs. It's easily one of my favourite hobbies... love all you ladies.

7. Shopping - I adore spending my (not so) hard-earned cash on clothes, makeup, beauty products, sweets... you name it, I'll buy it!!

8. Makeup - I can't believe I listed this so far down my list. It is my FAVOURITE thing to collect. I adore my makeup collection - I'd be lost (and ugly) without it :)

9. Lush - This is a recent addition to my list of things that make me happy... but it does make me oh so happy. I love Lush and all their products.

10. Paris - I lived in Paris for almost a year (September 2008 - July 2009) and studied in a Grand Ecole de Commerce (through French). I cannot wait to go back after I've finished my studies in May 2010.

I won't tag anyone in particular, but if anyone would like to do this tag, leave me a comment and link me to your blog. Take care loves xx

Mac Eyeshadow Pallets

Over Christmas I decided to depot all my eyeshadows and fill up my two pallets. Beware, some of my eyeshadows broke when I was coming home from France over the summer - stupid baggage handlers... :(

Pallet 1 - Neutrals (Not Full)

Top Row: Vanilla, Honesty, Satin Taupe, Mulled Cider

Middle Row: Shroom, Woodwinked, Sable

Bottom Row: Honey Lust, Antiqued, Embark, Carbon

Pallet 2 - Colours 

 

Top Row: Riction, Climate Blue, Fig 1, Idol Eyes, Cranberry

Middle Row: humid, Clarity, Vibrant Grape, Sushi Flower, Passionate

Bottom Row: Bitter, Aquadisiac, Beautiful Iris, Stars n Rockets, Hepcat

Hope you enjoyed this post - I don't have a HUGE collection, but I have enough to create lots of beautiful looks.

Peace out xx

makeup collection and storage

I'm currently living in university accommodation, so space is very limited. I had to find a way to store all my makeup. I got this tower in a local homeware store (Atlantic Homecare) and I absolutely love it.

In the top drawer, I store all my concealers, foundations, primers and tinted moisturisers:

In the second drawer I have all my face powders: studio fix, blot powder, highlighters, blushes, bronzers and MSFs:

In the third drawer I have all my eye stuff: mascara, liners, primers, eyelash curlers and random eyeshadows from Rimmel, Gosh, Dior etc:

In the bottom drawer I store all my lip products: lipstick, lipgloss, lip balms, liners and primers:

Beside my makeup tower, I store my makeup brushes in a container from Muji, a Benefit makeup bag with my two mac eyeshadow pallets and my Lush hand creams.

Hope you enjoyed this post - if you have any questions about my storage or collection, leave me a comment and I'll get back to you as soon as I can.

Ciao xx