MAC Spring Splurge

As you all now know I recently went on a little trip to Birmingham & hit The Bullring shopping centre (more on that in my post here), now if you are an avid lover of shopping than you will know that they have a Selfridges *starts praying with thankfulness*, and when one's in Selfridges one MUST (well at least that's what I told myself) head to the beauty haul.

Homed within the beauty haul you have a fair few amazing beauty & cosmetic brands to wander around including some of my personal favourites MAC, NARS, Bobbi Brown, Illamasqua and even Charlotte Tilbury (yep it's every girls dream). I headed to the MAC counter & spoke to the loveliest MA ever she was so friendly & gave great customer service, something that can sometimes be a hit & miss from MAC, in my opinion and experience.

I can't remember her name sadly but she grabbed everything I wanted & actually pointed out a fair few things to me to purchase when I'm next instore, I honestly couldn't fault her service she was SO lovely. Shame the same thing can't be said for the lady at the till.....

Anyway enough rambling let's get down to the purchases......

I pretty much just stuck with the eye area for this splurge, looking at what I've bought these are quite autumnal/wintery shades but I just loved them and more on the neutral side if you like.

The first two things I bought were two new brushes as mine had basically had it & now belong to a new owner. I picked up the MAC 217 & 219 both my favourite & I'd literally be LOST without the 217 I use it on a daily basis & it blends eyeshadows like liquid gold it's honestly beautiful & SO fluffy hahaha. The 219 I love because I use it just near my waterline to add the eyeshadow colours underneath so it doesn't look odd.

Eyes wise, I picked a couple of stunning eyeshadows some I've had before & some I haven't.

I bought:

Starting from the top left we have:

Bronze - A golden brown with a hint of golden-bronze shimmer

Amber Lights - Beautiful coppery gold without being too intense, has a slight hint of shimmer without being glitter overload.

Woodwink - A warm gold

Nylon - a pale whiteish gold

One of my all time favourite MAC eyeshadows is Woodwink it's just SO pretty & looks even more pretty in person. I also bought Bronze because a lot of people have said it's beautiful on blue eyes which I just so happen to have. I couldn't leave MAC without Nylon it's a classic of mine and is one of them eyeshadows that I get through like a dose of salt, it's amazing just in the inner corners of your eyes & also works great at highlighting your brow bone honestly if you don't have this in your collection than you need it, seriously trust me it's amazing.

I then picked Amber Lights, up I've eyed (get it? hahaha ;)) this one up for a long time as I swatched it & it was so beautiful. I already have Isolde by NARS and this now completes my coppery eyeshadows. It's beautiful & almost took my breath away. I also finally picked up another mini MAC quad x4 as it's ideal travel size and is a lot better than hunting for that perfect shade in a million little black pots, am I right?

Now I'm fully aware that this is a lot of money but I just couldn't help myself, let's not think about the cost and let's appreciate how beautiful the shades are. 

I will be showing you some looks at some point soon of what these look like on my very blue eyes, and also some looks you can create with these eyeshadows. Let me know some of your MAC recommendations in the comments as I would love to purchase some more soon. 

I hope you enjoyed this post & enjoyed having a little look at my MAC splurge, even if it was slightly on the autumnal side.

What are your favourite MAC eyeshadows?

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Selfridges Spending Spree

If you have twitter or maybe even instagram and follow me *cheeky self promo*, than you will know that yesterday I went to The Bullring in Birmingham, And they have a Selfridges, which I took full advantage of... I went a bit mental, and purchased a fair few things, some new, some I've had before and ran out off....yep..you've guessed it I'm talking about the beauty haul as I like to call it. When you are in Selfridges it's a must that one must go to the beauty haul as it's filled with all the makeup & skincare items you could ever need. I will be doing a few hauls and showing you fully what I bought in the next few days but I had give you guys a little teaser so here are some close up shots of a few beauty items *coughs MAC* *coughs again NARS* hahaha. 

Feel free to send me some of your guesses in the comments.

I can't wait to share with you all what I bought....

Oh Selfridges I do bladddddy love you.

;)

Have you visited Selfridges?

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My Skincare Miracle

A couple of weeks back when I posted my January Favourites, I mentioned a certain moisturiser by Origins. It was the Origins Ginzing Energy Boosting Moisturiser, and I loved using it on my skin & it was one of my most favourite moisturisers....that was until I had a massive allergic reaction....

Yep I was SO surprised & I actually couldn't quite believe it, because I loved it and couldn't understand why it happend, I had used it before and was fine, hence why I repurchased it again in December time, started using it again since the end of December..... a couple of weeks down the line (start of February) and bang I had a face like a bright cherry tomato (just after I posted my January favourites), it was puffed, bright red, itchy, blotchy and just looked horrible. I didn't know why it did this to my skin, I hadn't added anything new to my skincare regime either, it was all a mystery I did phone customer service and they were really lovely and apologised they did give me my money back....however it still didn't make my skin better.

I had a look around for a brand new moisturiser and wanted to get something that would hydrate my face as that moisturiser also dried out my face too, So I headed to the Clinique counter to grab a highly recommended moisturiser, It is the Clinique Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief Gel- Creme. After reading many a review of this moisturiser I wanted to see if it would help my damaged skin and bring it back to life. I'm more than happy and pleased to say that this has been a miracle moisturiser.

I have used this for the past 3 weeks and it has worked an absolute treat, the redness has gone, the dry patches have gone and my skin just looks SO much better, healthier and I now longer support the 'cherry tomato' look *praise the lord* I can't thank this moisturiser enough. It absorbs in a matter of 2-3 minutes and feels so light, It feels like it's water based but I don't think it is, It's hydrating and just makes my skin feel amazingly soft and so much brighter and better. It's soothing and cooling and I'd highly recommend this moisturiser to ANYONE. The redness has gone completely and now there are no more dry patches. I'm pleased to say goodbye to my Origins and hello to Clinique. Everything the Clinique Moisturiser says it really does. my skin has never felt this good.

I do feel disappointed with Origins and I will admit it has put my off their skincare products all together, but I now have something that I don't think I will part with and I'm sure that this will be my holy grail moisturiser. It really has worked miracles and has helped my skin loads, it's like it's put it back to 'normal'. I'm just glad that I've found something that has helped my skin, in more ways that one.

I wanted to write this post as I feel like it's important that I share with you not just the products that worked but also the ones that didn't, I don't want my blog to ever have a 'glass' effect where I only talk about things that have worked or that I love. I want it to be very honest and I think personally that's important and something I look for in blogs. I could of not talked about my reaction, but then I'd feel like I'm lying to you, It's a product that I've come to the conclusion definitely didn't work for me, however it might work for you.

I hope you liked this type of post, and I hope that I haven't put you off of trying Origins products. Some things work for people & some things don't. That's all I wanted to say.

What's your Skincare miracle? 

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Boots Points Splurge

For the past few months, around about Halloween Time (god I miss Halloween and autumn), I decided that I spend & save, spend & save my boots points, as you all know I have a love affair with boots and I can never not walk past and not go in, my family and friends can vouch for this. So after months and months of saving my boots points I finally went a bit wild and bought some things that I loved using and bought before as well as some others that I've heard quite good things about or that I just quite liked the look of. So here is my boots spring treat! 

As you can see I picked up a little bit of everything the best part was knowing that it was being paid for with my boots points, it pays off being a massive boots addict I tell you now hahaha.

The Library Of Fragrance, now I've heard a fair few things about these and loved how each little bottle has a very unique scent. I picked up two as it was two for £25 or £15 each, I picked up Gin & Tonic and Peach. I'd been constantly spraying the Gin & Tonic fragrance on me pretty much every time I walked into boots, and loved it, I also really liked the peach scent as it just reminds me of spring, *starts dreaming of spring and warmer weather* it's very fresh and sweet and slightly different to Gin & Tonic. Honestly they smell amazing and The Library Of Fragrance have so many to select from seriously check them out. I also really love the smell of the Vanilla Cake Batter one (that's next on my boots wishlist as I SO want to buy it), they just all smell de-li-ci-ous.

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer, This is honestly THE BEST concealer I've EVER bought, it last's all day, gives a really great coverage and just hides anything you feel a little insecure about, I have dark circles around my eyes and under and this is the best concealer I've ever bought, it doesn't go anywhere, stays exactly where I want it too and is just brilliant I picked mine up in Fair 1 as I'm very pale, they have other shades such as Warm Medium & Cool Medium. This doesn't break the bank either as it's under £5.00 you can't go wrong. My all time favourite concealer that I'd be lost without.

Eye's Wise (now that's a mouthful) I picked up a palette by Seventeen, this looked really interesting to me and one of my favourite parts about make up is eyeshadows so I picked up the Seventeen Easy On The Eyes Palette In Birthday Suit. This has a massive mirror which is just ideal, now all the shades in this palette are SO beautiful, they are quite neutral shades, I especially love the pretty pink shades, it's just beautiful and I'm really impressed as to how pigmented they are too as I swatched them and was quite surprised, it even contains an eye primer along with 3 metallic creams. I love the names of the shadows they just make it even prettier. I especially LOVE 4. Radiant Gold, 7. Toasted Almond & 8. Baked Chestnut I can't wait to give this palette a whirl.

I lastly picked up two lip products another from Collection & one from my favourite beauty brand it is of course Soap & Glory. 

I bought a Collection Matt Lip Butter in Marshmallow Pink, Now I actually didn't want this particular one I wanted the non matt one in the shade Vintage Rose, I did buy that one, took it back as it looked like a toddler had munched on it, swapped it and grabbed the wrong one *facepalms* never mind. I did swatch this one before hand and was really impressed as they give a great colour payoff it's a pretty blue toned pink. It slightly reminds me of the Brighton Rock lipstick by Topshop it's very similar. These are really really moisturising and they have a few colours to select from I was torn between this one, Vintage Rose and Pumpkin Pie. I'm looking forward to using this.

Soap & Glory are one of my favourite Makeup brands, I especially love their Archery Brows Pen and also their Supercat Eyeliner Pen, and one of my co-workers *cough cough Andrea cough* recommended their lipsticks so I thought I'd make a little purchase of one of them. I picked Perfect Day it's a pretty berry toned nude, the colour slightly reminds me of MACs Velvet Teddy, Now these are a bargainous £4.00 (atm) and they are unbelievable, super creamy, pigmented and just glide onto the lips, I'm SO impressed with these for a drugstore lipstick they are incredible and feel SO nice on the lips, not cakey and super pigmented and under £5. They have a fair few colour to choose from too, so there's a shade for everyone. Check out Soap & Glory's Makeup range they are definitely worth a purchase.

That is everything (for now ;) ) that I bought in boots, I can't tell you how happy I am with the things I've bought knowing that my addiction paid for them hahaha. Not gonna lie I did feel quite chuffed when I saw the balance on my boots card was a very pretty £0.00 hahaha that and I just got £44.17 worth of goodies as a reward for being a boots addict for 'free'.

I hope you enjoyed my little (not so little let's be honest here Jess) haul.

What are your favourite things to buy with your Boots points?

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YSL vs MAC | Dupe

Whilst clearing out my makeup collection and having endless hours of swatching lipsticks and many other make up items, I came across a really great dupe for a YSL lippy. I can hear you all screaming at me saying "TELL ME!!!" "TELL ME!!!". It may still be a little on the high-end price wise put it's a hell of a lot cheaper and it can save you a small fortune. Meet one of my favourite MAC lipsticks of ALL time *drum roll please*......

It's Creme Cup Cremesheen Lipstick.

A lot of people love Velvet Teddy I on the other hand am not a fan *shock horror face*, this to me is the perfect nude. As you can see from the photos down below, on the left hand side it's YSL Beige Charnel coming in at £26.00 (can we just take a moment to appreciate how gorgeous YSLs packaging is) and on the right we have MAC's Creme Cup Lipstick. They are pretty much identical, I will be honest with you I do find that Beige Charnel is slightly more creamy and just glides on, but I also on the other hand love Creme Cup as I find it lasts that little bit longer in all honesty. Creme Cup is £15.50 which again can be deemed on the pricey side and more high-end than highstreet, but instead of £26.00 a pop you now have a new dupe to add to your makeup collection.

As you can see they are pretty much the same exact colour and instead of the *grits teeth* £26.00 you can have pretty much the same colour at £10.50 cheaper (you can thank me later). I love both YSL & MAC lipsticks, they are great quality & you do feel quite special grabbing it out your handbag. However I do wish they weren't so high in price, I feel that they don't need to be that price but I guess as they are classed as 'designer' then that's the price you'd expect to pay.

I'd really love some new MAC lipsticks and would love to have some recommendtions from you guys so please leave me some in the comments.

What's your favourite MAC lipstick?

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A Pixelated Update | Canon 700D

I'm beyond excited to finally type these words, I've recently bought the Canon 700D, This makes me SO happy, I was getting so fed up of not being able to take 'proper photos' for my blog and just in general, so after months of saying "I'll purchase that next month....." I finally hit that add to basket button and before I knew it, it had arrived at my door step on Friday Morning.

I just wanted to share my joy and excitement with you as I have longed to own the camera of my dreams. So meet the Canon 700D EOS, It's classy, and I'm currently snapping away constantly, I thought I'd share with you some photos that I've recently taken on it, If you are thinking about purchasing a 'proper camera' then I'd HIGHLY recommend taking a little purchase of the Canon 700D. It's just amazing, I ordered mine from Amazon and saved over £330 which is a hell of a lot of moolah and it came with a lens 18-55MM which is perfect for blog photos and just photos in general. Honestly if you are thinking should I or shouldn't then the answer I'd give you is YES YES YES!!! every time. Get one if you want one they are worth every single penny.

I told you this blusher was pretty - Bourjois Rose d'OR 34 Pot Blusher

MAC Lipstick in Creme Cup

Yankee Candle in Winter Glow - This smells like christmas aaahhh happy memories

BEST DESSERT EVER!! This is probably my favourite flavour. 

My little doggie

Had to get on a roof just to get this shot hahaha 

I hope you like the photos and I also hope that this helps you make your mind up about buying a 'proper camera' or If you just like the random snaps I've taken hahaha


What camera do you use?

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Six Beauty Must Haves

Affordable, good quality and give amazing results, surely it must be a gimmick? Well It's really not. I wanted to share with you six of my favourite must have beauty items, ranging from Skincare to Makeup items. They are all under the £20 price tag (Some even under £10).

SKINCARE

Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish - Probably one of my all time favourite cleansers and it doesn't break the bank either, what more could a girl ask for? Smells amazing and leaves your skin feeling hydrated and ready to face the world, this come just under to £20 pricetag and it's honestly amazing, I have used many cleansers and I always end up reaching for this time & time again. It's probably my most used cleanser ever. It's never let me down and just works an absolute treat. It's also affordable. It gets rid of the days face in one wash, I sometimes like to double cleanse with it just to make sure all my makeup is off. Honestly make a purchase of this it will change your skincare products forever.

Lush Fresh Facemask in Catastrophe Cosmetic - My holy grail skincare treat. Lush skincare is probably one of my favourites ever to hit the highstreet, some people believe it's sightly on the pricey side for skincare, I on the other hand believe it's good & well it works so I don't mind paying that little bit extra for good quality products that are mostly natural. Catastrophe Cosmetic is a blueberry antioxidant facemask, joined with Calamine, Chamomile & Irish Moss this really strips my skin back to it's factory settings (if you like) and helps sooth everything. It's a facemask designed for combination skin (which I happen to have). This helps calm the oilyness and sorts out them pesky dry patches out too. It's just the nicest skin treat EVER and something I treat myself to once a month & it just works. Smells amazing too.

Sanctuary 4 Day Moisturising Body Spray Oil - I recently purchased this as you know from my previous post, and since then I've used it....now honestly I'm SO SO SO impressed and pleased to say it does exactly what it says on the bottle, I did feel like it lasted 3 and a bit days (not the full four) however I still love it. It's very light and has a fantastic nozzle on it so it makes it easier for direct application. since using this it's honestly transformed my skin in just a few days, it's a lot more softer and just looks so much healthier. This product would be great if you were going on holiday too. 

MAKEUP

MAC Satin Blush in 'Well Dressed' - MAC Cosmetics are more on the high-end price range at £18.50 per blusher and £15.50 for a lippy *Please MAC stop increasing the prices* But they are amazing quality, and well if you don't like MAC cosmetics then there must be something seriously wrong with you. This is probably my most used MAC blush, it's this really pretty milky pink with a slight hint of shimmer. Blends really well and just looks SO beautiful with every and ANY makeup look. I'm very pale and it suits me. So whether you have beautiful sunkissed skin or you're a pale peach (like myself) this blush will suit you. It's a blush that I feel that you literally only need to give one good swirl with your brush to get a good colour pay off, pigmentation is really good and I wouldn't expect anything less from MAC. It's just a staple in my makeup collection I'd be lost without it.

Soap & Glory Supercat Eyeliner Pen - If you don't have this in your makeup bag then trust me you are missing out big style. One of my favourite pen eyeliners, a lot of people recommend this one actually and I REALLY like it. It's REALLY really great it's dark black and super easy to apply. It's basically like a sharpie pen but for your eyes it's that good lasts all day and really great value for your money I love Soap & Glory in general, I really like their packaging too.

Soap & Glory Archery Eyebrow Precision Shader - I frickin' LOVE this. Hence why I'm featuring it in my must haves hahaha It's a pen one end and I'm not too sure if it's a pencil or wax the other end of the pen. It's a bit of a weird combination of both the other end. I love using this it's effortless and it's something I'm forever grabbing. It's affordable at just hitting the £10 mark. It's just perfect eyebrows made twice as easy. Honestly invest in getting one as it's SO good and isn't way over the top price wise. Great quality and SUPER affordable


Those are my Six beauty must haves, I hope you like these types of posts, I really enjoy writing them, I love seeing and reading what other people constantly use or rekindle their love for.

What are your beauty must haves?

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