Sleek i-Divine Storm Pal

I'm really starting to get into the world of eyeshadow lately and have heard that Sleek is the place to go if you want an affordable palette with beautiful colours. After looking at the numerous ones on offer I opted for the Storm Palette. 

The 12 pan palette has a mixture of neutrals and colourful shades and 3 matte shades which will act as perfect bases for the 9 shimmers included. There aren't any names for the colour included in the palette but I never think they are really needed anyways. I was immediately attracted to some of the brighter colours as  I really want to try and experiment with some colour. 

The pigmentation of these are ridiculous! Better than my Naked Palette by far! Bearing that in mind you need to use this lightly to avoid looking like you have punched yourself. Also there is quite a bit of fallout with the shimmers so I would use some tissue underneath or do your base afterwards. 

Colour wise I really enjoy having a matte black in my collection as it can be used to smoke up any look. I love the two blues as they make my eyes look really brown and the two pinky tones are also really beautiful. I can honestly see myself using all the colours at some point so I think for £7.99 this is a brilliant investment.

I definitely need to have good play around with this palette. Does anyone recommend any good fluffy blending brushes? It's the one thing I'm missing for a perfect eye look!

Christmas Wishlist 2013

1. Burberry Body Perfume
2. The Great Gatsby
3.  Lush Christmas Friends Gift Set
4. The Wagamama Cookbook
5. Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish
6. Salted Caramel Yankee Candle
7. Naked 3 Palette
8. Pyjamas

9. Gossip Girl Boxset

The Christmas season is most definitely upon us, I know because I've already had my first mince pie this year! I thought I would share with you the list I gave to my friends/family; maybe this wish list will give you an idea of what you want this Christmas. 

I think Christmas is a time to ask the presents you wouldn't buy yourself and my favourite present is probably perfume as I'm a complete fragrance whore and although my collection probably stands at around 10 bottles there's always room for one more. I had a sample of Burberry Body earlier this year & everyone commented on how nice I smelt. Winner. DVD's and books always make great presents especially when it gets to the 28th, the family are driving you mad and you can escape to your room for a few hours. We all love Yankee Candles and the salted caramel one is the best I've ever smelt.

Being a beauty addict, smellies are lovely to receive and I'm loving LUSH's festive products this year especially the Penguin Bubble Bar - I may have sneakily bought a few already! I think the one product on every beauty bloggers list will be the much anticipated Naked 3 Palette by Urban Decay. It's not available yet but I'm pretty sure it will be WW3 when our mums/sisters/boyfriends hit the counter to get their mitts on us for us. All's fair in love & make up!

I may have an amazing idea of what I want this year as I'm always lusting after something but I'm struggling to think of ideas for my loved ones. I love to scour the shops and websites for really meaningful presents as I love seeing people's face when they open my present. I have a few homemade present ideas up my sleeve that I'm going to share with you pretty soon.

If anyone has any ideas what to get my family please help.

Trip to Oxford.

Me and my friend Luci both had the week of work and thought it would be nice to go somewhere for the day and treat ourselves a little bit. Oxford is about an hours drive from us so we booked into a hotel a few days before and set off on Thursday morning. We headed down into the town centre and had a little stroll through all the streets. We stumbled across a little market and filled up on samples including some lovely nuts and bought a cup of hot spiced apple juice which was just what we needed as we walked along the river.

Knowing we weren't having dinner until 8:30pm I persuaded Luci to try one of my favourite restaurants, Las Iguanas. We both opted for nachos and enchiladas, Luci was spicy chicken and I went for Butternut Squash and Spinach which wasn't my best choice ever.

We checked into our hotel, The Oxford Belfry which is just outside of Oxford for a bit of down time. We collected our fluffy dressing gowns from the spa, sweated it out in the sauna and had a bit of a splash around in the pool. We had pre booked a spa treatment each for 5pm so we headed to the relaxation room which smelt like heaven before we were called in.

Luci went for an Indian Head Massage and she said it was really lovely; they worked on her face, neck and shoulders and used oils to really help her face and scalp. The spa uses ESPA products which are amazing and we both nearly walked out buying some! I opted for a spearmint body polish to get my skin ready for my birthday night out this weekend and loved smelling of toothpaste! They brushed my body really hard and scrubbed me head to toe before I rinsed off. I then had neck, back & shoulder massage which even the therapist said I needed. I felt my shoulders snap, crackle & pop in all the right places and really felt most of my tension go away. It's something I think I might make a more regular thing as I carry all my tension in my shoulders and it gets ridiculous sometimes.

At 8:30pm on the dot we sat down to our three course dinner. We both went for a yummy light hot smoked salmon salad to start, the most amazing sirloin steak with peppercorn sauce and then I had a trifle while Luci went for triple chocolate torte. YUM!

Yesterday morning after a night in our super comfy beds and fuelling ourselves with coffee, juice and full English breakfasts we headed over to Bicester. Luci had never been! I love going to Bicester Shopping Village although I wish I earned like a million pounds more than I do so I can buy all the pretty things. Especially the gorgeous Michael Kors bag I just cried at because I knew it wouldn't be very grown up of me to buy. I did get a birthday present for my friend Aaron and a half price MAC foundation so left happy. Oh and I had my first candy cane. 

I really enjoyed my little trip away and I have definitely spoilt myself lately so am on a strict no shopping and no eating out rule for the rest of this month but it has been my birthday (week) so I'm allowed right?

High Street Jewellery Haul

 I'm trying to take a little break from buying clothes as I have a lot I don't wear. I get bored with my style easily and I go through phases of buying a load of jewellery. I find it's the quickest way to update my wardrobe and bring some of my old favourite outfits come back to life.

Primark are absolutely killing it with statement necklaces at the moment. Of course the quality can be doubted but I put a coat of clear nail varnish over some of the fake gems and so far none have fallen out or broken! I think they look brilliant with big chunky jumpers!

I lose rings really easily (don't ask me how) and love some of the chunky ones I found in Primark especially the plain silver bands which I can stack up or wear alone. 

Forever 21 is one of my favourite shops for high street jewellery; I always have so much fun with the ickle baskets and browsing for way to long. I love the chunky bracelets which I wear with my watch for some good lookin' arm candy. The little heart necklace is so dainty and perfect for everyday wear.

So I definitely feel I have a lot of accessories to add some glam to my dreary winter outfits!

Britney Spears Fantasy Perfume

Britney Spears Fantasy is my ultimate teenage perfume. It's also still one that regularly makes it onto my perfume shelf time and time again. My Grandparents gave me a bottle for my birthday and Nan said "So you don't feel too old!" I'm only 23. Boo.

Packaging wise this is aimed at teenage girls and I loved it back then. Nowadays it's not my favourite but I don't dislike it as it reminds me of being young! It really stands out against all my other perfumes though which are all black, gold and clear! The packaging of course reflects the price as it's a very inexpensive perfume at around £20 or under for 30ml.

The scent is floral with top notes of Jasmine (my favourite) and Orchid with base notes of musk and red lychee. I think it's really sweet but still quite grown up at the same time and is perfect for day or night. The staying power in the Eau de Toilette is actually better than some of the much more expensive EDP's I've used; it lasts easily for 6 hours. This perfume is actually made by Elizabeth Arden which produces some really long lasting fragrances so you are may not pay for the price of one but you are getting high end quality.

I think the best thing about the perfume is that you don't feel guilty about laying this on. Sometimes I have to savour my perfumes as I can't afford to splurge £60 on a new bottle; if I use this one up I can always afford another. 

What's your favourite celebrity perfume?

Halloween Tag.

I'm back with a fun Halloween tag I found online. I've spent my evening carving a pumpkin for a competition at work tomorrow and eating sweets so felt this is totally appropriate.

1. What is your favorite Halloween movie?

I love Practical Magic. I'm not a huge fan of scary films but do have a fondness for the Scary Movie films even if everyone else hates them.

2. 1-10, how much do you enjoy Halloween?

10. It's the only day adults get to play dress up. Please it means 2 days until my birthday!

3. What is your fondest Halloween memory?

Trick and treating with my sister when we were kids. We used to go out all dressed up then get back and bargain with each other to swap the sweets we didn't like. 

4. Have you always been a Halloween lover?

Yes, my parents aren't all that into it but they always took us out until we were old enough to go on our own.

5. How do you get into the Halloween spirit? 

I think a good party always gets me ready and seeing toffee apples in the shops!

6. Favorite Halloween decorations?

Pumpkins are the best!

7. Favorite halloween/fall scent?

I love the smell of caramel around this time of year.

8. Favorite candy?

Toffee Apples or Honeycomb at this time of year.

9. Vampires or zombies?

Vampires.

10. What is your weird/odd fear?

I'm very scared of crabs and have a fear of pure cotton wool touching me. It makes my skin crawl.

11. Last but not least, do you believe in ghosts?

Yes and I believe I've seen one too. 

If anyone wants to take part in this let me know as I would love to read your answers! I'm being very boring as I have lots of plans this weekend so am actually just getting my nails done on Halloween. Sorry how old am I?

Beauty Blogger Tag

I've seen this tag float around and definitely wanted to put my stamp on it. I hope you enjoy it!

1. Is your hair naturally curly or straight?

Up until 16 it was messy ball of fluff. Then I got it relaxed so it blow dries straight but after nearly 7 it is a bit of frizzy mess still. 

2. What is your natural hair colour?

Brown. 

3. Do you dye it yourself or go to a salon?

When I went blonder I went to the salon as I wanted it done properly and carried this on until about July but now Autumn is here I grabbed a DIY jobby and dyed it dark brown at home.

4. How often do you wash your hair?

My hair never goes greasy so twice a week. 

5. Do you wear the same style every day or change it?

I wear it up in bun a lot as I am trying to not put heat on it lately. I only really wear it down on the days it's washed. 

6. Do you do your own mai/pedi or go to a salon?

I always do my own toes as I have extremely ticklish feet so couldn't stand someone else doing them. I do my nails myself unless I go away or have a special occasion; then I go for a gel polish.

7. How often do you change your nail polish?

At least weekly. I love redoing my nails and chipped nail polish is a crime in my books.

8. Do you polish your toes in the winter, or just in the summer?

I don't think my toes have been without polish in over 2 years. I hate my feet without polish. 

9. How long does it take you to put your make up on?

If I have work in the morning, 5 minutes. For a night out or at the weekend about 10. I stick to what I'm good at so it's a breeze.

10. What do you do first? Face or eyes?

Face first, always.

11. Do you "collect" makeup or just buy what you need when you need it?

I will only get the majority of things when I did them, e.g. mascara and concealer but lipstick is my weakness and I have more than I need.

12. How often do you wear false eyelashes?

Just on nights out and even then it's not all the time.

13. Do you do a full face of make up everyday?

I do love make up but as long as my eyebrows are done I'm happy. 

14. Do you wear makeup when you are home alone (or with family)?

I take my makeup off as soon as I get in and only put it on when I have somewhere to go.

15. Will you leave the house without makeup?

Yup, I do it whenever I go to the gym! If I had to pop to the shop I would too!

16. How many high end products do you own?

A couple but not as many as I wish I could have.

17. How often do you wash your makeup brushes?

I have a cleaner spritz but I don't always use it daily. I deeply wash them every 2 weeks. 

18. Do you plan your OOTD every night or decide when you are getting dressed?

When I get dressed I think if you plan your outfits everyday you can look like you're trying too hard and I prefer throwing my looks together on a whim!

19. How often do you change your handbag?

Every season, I usually go for a nice black one from October-April and find a lighter more fun one for the summer. 

20. What time do you get up & go to sleep?

In the week I try to be in bed with the lights, TV and phone off by 11pm and I usually get up between 7-7:30am. I'm really strict with this as a lack of sleep shows instantly on my skin. Weekends I'm not so bothered as I know I can sleep in but I still try to get 8 hours.

21. How often & when do you work out?

I go through phases of being exercise crazy and a complete lazy cow. When I get into the swing of things I usually work out about 5 times a week (even if it's just a quick 20 minute row)!

22. Left handed or right handed?

I'm right handed.

23. How tall are you?

5"10 and apart from loving the long legs, it's the bane of my life. 

24. Do you speak a foreign language?

I can speak enough French to get by ;)

25. How many pets do you have?

None at the moment but I used to have a cat & a hamster.

26. How often are you on Blogger?

Everyday. If I'm not writing, I'm checking out my favourite blogs.

27. Do you read the comments posted on blogs?

I read all my comments and reply to 99% of them. 

28. Do you keep a list of products to try as you see other posts?

I think I keep a mental one but if I actually wrote them down I would probably end up buying more and would then be broke.

29. How did you come up with your blog name?

Well it's my first name and I like to talk about crap.

30. What kind of camera do you use for your photographs?

A mixture between a Canon 600ed, my iPhone 4S and a Fujifilm 6900 DSLR.

31. How often do you clean your house?

Well Mum does the majority but I clean my own room and help out when I can. 

32. What is your favorite color?

Blue is my absolute favourite colour, closely followed by deep pink.

33. What is your favorite beauty/fashion magazine?

Glamour, Cosmopolitan and Company. Sorry but I buy all three and love them all.

34. Do you swear?

I wish I didn't but I do. I don't swear at people but yeah I do.

35. What are you doing with the rest of your day?

In bed nursing a horrible cold and reading a few of my favourite blogs.