My Lipstick Collection - Reds.

This week I am sharing my lipstick/gloss collection with you. I don't think my collection is in any way comparable to the majority of beauty bloggers out there but I think I have a variety of brands and colours and maybe you might see something that catches your eye by me giving you an exclusive look into what I have. I'm going to keep it short and sweet by dividing it up into different colours over the next few weeks.

Stila Lip Glaze in Holly

Rimmel Apocalips in Stellar

Yves Rocher Mositurising Cream Lipstick in 101 Framboise

Sleek True Matte Lipstick in Stiletto

Reds aren't my everyday go to colour and I'm yet to find the perfect shade for me. I'm awful at applying lipstick and reds don't cling to my lips and bleed even with lip pencil. Eventually I will find the right shade though. My favourite of the bunch is the Sleek one as it's not completely matte and is more of a blue toned red which suits me better than orange toned ones. My least favourite is the Stila as it's too sheer to be a proper red and therefore just gives this weird hint of colour; however it looks great over the other lipsticks if you want to add more shine.

Three Beauty Wishes #01

I've definitely been a little restrained when it comes to my spending money on make up lately. I have so much of it that I am taking a few months off buying anything new in order to use things up & make room for some shiny new purchases after the spending ban is up. However there are a few things I'm lusting over in order to give my make up bag a bit of much needed excitement. I don't know about you but sometimes I can get into a make up rut of the same things day in, day out and it's nice to mix things up a little.

I feel I have a lot of pinks, a handful of corals and literally three red lipsticks. I think a bright vibrant orange such as MAC So Chaud or Morange would be a welcome addition to my collection and may suit a dark skin tone more than a red lip. 

I need to rekindle my love for primers. It's always the step I miss out of my routine, yet the step which is most important in keeping my look fresh all day. I'm a big fan of Benefit's The Porefessional so I feel I should dive in & buy a full size instead of trying to pick up samples.

With dark skin I find contour to be quite hard as most bronzers are too light/shimmery/muddy for me and I find some darker one looks like I'm smearing crap on my face. I think NARS Laguna is too light but Casino on the other hand is something I swatch over and over again but never buy. I think it would be between that and Benefit's Hoola at the moment. Any preferences over the two?

Rimmel Scandaleyes Waterproof Kohl - Nude.

A nude eyeliner. Something I never thought I would need in my life. But low and behold bloggers have been going mad for this little bad boy and of course I had to jump on the bandwagon. The purpose of this product is to be used on the waterline to reduce any redness and make eyes look more bigger, more awake and brighter. 

As you can see the colour obviously is a little light for my skin tone but it does the trick on my eyes. It's waterproof which means it keeps it hold for ages, literally you have to scrub at this to get it off if actually on your skin but in the waterline you find this will fade after a good few hours.

Formula wise the product is so creamy & soft, it glides effortlessly and blends so nicely that I have actually used this as a concealer on more than one occasion. I would say that in hot conditions this may be prone to melting so you could always keep it in the fridge and warm with your fingertips. 

There's plenty of other colours but I have to say I think I only need the black one in my life now as I'm not huge on bright eyeliners. These currently only £2.99 in Boots so I would grab a couple if I were you!

Alpha-H Liquid Gold.

I've been keeping from reviewing this product since the beginning of January when Ruth over at A Model Recommends shared that I could find two bottles of it for £35.00. I wanted to give the product a proper trial before I shared my results with you because at £31.50 a pop it's an expensive purchase for something that may not work.

Alpha - H say the following about Liquid Gold;

"Our best selling “cult” skin resurfacing treatment uses a state of the art, low pH delivery system to effectively diminish wrinkles, pigmentation and sun damage.

The Glycolic based formulation works like an “overnight facial” to brighten and revitalise tired, ageing skin, and radically improve the appearance of the complexion.

For mature, sun damaged, prematurely ageing and for acne-scarred skin."

Now I do not fit into any of the skin criteria's for which the product is aimed at but I flat out refuse to get wrinkles before I am at least thirty so I am preparing my skin for the future. 

There isn't a strict routine with this product; some people can use it every other night or a couple of times a week. I use the product about 3 times a week straight after cleansing by applying a small amount of product on a cotton pad and applying all over the face and neck (but avoiding the eyes). I then only apply a small amount of eye cream and leave out my normal nightly moisturiser as they say it works better without. When you apply the glycolic acid makes your skin tingle; not in a stinging way but in a way you know you put something strange on your face. This is due to the pH in your skin dropping which makes your skin work hard at rebalancing itself and therefore giving you tighter skin!

As I said before I can't speak for it's effects on anti ageing or sun damage but I find it really has brightened up my face and has helped improve it's pigmentation after 4 weeks of use. It has really helped reduced my blackheads which I am prone to on my nose. I really think my Mum would love this product and it may make an appearance as a Mother's Day present (it's ok she doesn't read my blog).

Will I be repurchasing? Yes although with 2 bottles of this stuff I doubt I will need to anytime soon. A little goes a long long way.

There's a really interesting blog post over on the Alpha -H website about some unknown facts about the product if you want to find out some new ways to use it! 

You can buy the product at Cult Beauty, Beauty Bay or of course Alpha -H for £31.50 for 100ml.

Spending Ban Week #5

French Toast Sunday is becoming my new thing.

Monday

£0.00

Tuesday

£0.00

Wednesday

£2.00 - Fruit tea at Starbucks
£3.00 - Snacks for the cinema at Saisnburys

Thursday

£0.00

Friday

£3.00 - Charity fund-raising at work

Saturday

£18.00 - Next - A present for my friend's birthday and a top for little Noah!
£6.50 - Lunch at Costa with my friends Lyn.
£4.00 - A duck hoisin wrap, pepsi max and fruit gums for dinner. So substantial I know. 

Sunday 

£0.00

Total

£28.50

I think I'm starting to get good at this! What's everyone been up to today? I've been taking lots of photos for my blog as it's actually been bright for once whilst watching the snowboarding in Sochi. I've decided I need to get my butt to the Alps and grab a snowboard ASAP it looks like so much fun.

10 things that made me happy this week

1. Reorganising my nail polish collection. I've spent the whole evening organising & tidying my room. Who say I don't know how to spend my Friday nights?

2. Finishing the first season of Orange is the New Black whilst tidying my room. I love this programme.

3. Not having to wear my uniform to work today. We all wore red to raise money for the British Heart Foundation. It felt like a mufti day at school. (Does anyone else call it this because my work friends think I'm bat shit crazy for saying it's a mufti day?)

4. Mum buying smoked salmon on 2 for £5.00 in Tesco. It's in my top 5 favourite foods ever. 

5. I got a new pair of GHD's last week as my old pair died a sudden death. Nothing glides through the hair like a fresh pair of straighteners and my hair looks pretty good if I do say so myself. 

6. Making plans to see my lovely friend Andy for a night out next weekend as I will be missing his actual birthday. I miss him so much now he lives in London. Boo his talent.

7. It's rather sad but I'm excited to go to the Doctors. On a Saturday. I've been quite unwell for months now and tomorrow I should finally get something done about it. 

8. The V Festival 2014 website launching. I cannot wait to see the line up and hopefully book some tickets. I had the best time of my life there last year.

9. Fresh bed covers. They make going to bed so much nicer.

10. My dear dear friends Jade & Freddie welcomed their beautiful baby boy Noah into the world on Thursday night. I'm so proud of them and know they will make the most wonderful parents!

Spending Ban Week #4

 Yummy Homemade French Toast for Brunch today.

Monday

£0.00

Tuesday

£0.00

Wednesday

£15.00 - Meal out at Buddies for my friend'd birthday.

Thursday

£0.00

Found this sign in a bar Friday night.

Friday

£20.00 - Curry night in town

£12.50 - Drinks at a local bar

Saturday

£40.00 - GHD Straighteners (I broke mine & got a discount on some new ones)

£5.67 - Magazines & Chocolate. Totally necessary.

Sunday 

£0.00

Total

£93.17

So I haven't blogged at all this week. I had a super busy week at work and have spent the entire weekend watching Netflix in bed.