Going Cruelty Free

For awhile now I've been toying with the idea of going vegan, but I'd maybe like to just say plant based, to cover any minor slip ups I may have. I stopped drinking milk and have dramatically reduced the amount of dairy I eat in the past few months due to looking into the dairy industry more - lets just say that although I bloody love cheese, for me personally I think it is a much more cruel and vile industry than the meat industry. More on that later if you want, but for now this post is mostly aimed at the beauty industry. 

Beauty Haul | Beauty Bay & Cult Beauty

So, I've been a bit MIA recently. And honestly I've a good reason for being so absent. My relationship with Connor blew up in my face rather unexpectedly and its taken me near enough two months to just come to terms and kind of accept that its over. I'm getting myself back out there and I feel so much better than I have in a very very long time. 
I've honestly over spent so bloody much in the past few weeks to try cheer myself up, all this has done however has lead me to have no money for the rest of the month. YAY. 
I put a couple of orders on Beauty Bay and another in Cult Beauty. I've become a wee bitty beauty obsessed in recent weeks, and as a result I've bought the things I wanted for the longest time. 

 From BeautyBay I got myself a few wee things, in the first order I made I got myself one of the Jeffree Star highlighters, the one I got is in the shade Ice Cold, £25.50. For what ever reason this picture turned out awfully, the highlighter though is unreal, and I've worn it near enough every time I've worn make-up. I've actually been wearing it with another highlighter but I'll do a post on that soon - it gives me such feels. 

I also got myself the new (?) Violet Voss Silicone makeup thing, £10. I gave this a quick try when I got it, but honestly I think I used it wrong, as I hated the finish it gave. Everyone raved about it so much and said how beautiful the finish was. I think I must have used to much foundation, cause the foundation didn't look even slightly blended and there was so much excess that needed blending in with another brush.  

Last thing from Beauty Bay is the Mr. Bright Teeth Whitening Kit, £49.95. I was so apprehensive about buying this, I mean look at the price of it! If this did nothing for my teeth then I'd have wasted so much money on it, half a hundred quids.  

Cult Beauty took some of my cash dolla too. I finally dove in and bought the Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance palette, £41. I'm so bloody glad I did, I've only played with it just the once so far, but I'm utterly in love with it already. The shades are beautiful and so pigmented, the blend like a dream too. URGH, want a good enough reason to wear it out and about but university doesn't seem like a glam enough reason. 

 Two new lovely Zoeva brushes too, both were £8.99 each. I love Zoeva brushes, and I plan to one day own all their eye ones! I own a lot of eye brushes, but the Zoeva ones are by far the best ones you can buy, at least out of the ones I've tried at least. 
Any recommendations on what I should buy next? 

Top Make-up Products Of 2015

2015 didn't seem to last very long did it? Quite frankly I'm glad for it to be over as it really just wasn't my year, lots went wrong for me and it ended up being a very sad year for me. It wasn't all bad though, as not only did I meet my amazing boyfriend in 2015 I tried so many new things and am fairly happy now and hoping to be even happier in 2016. 
But today I thought that I'd share my top products of 2015! 

Foundation - For me I have to say that the Too Faced Born This Way is definitely the one that comes out on top for me. Its just everything I could ever ask for from a foundation: high coverage, great colour match for me and doesn't go flakey or patchy like some others that I've tried. 

Concealer - There's really only one concealer I use, I have others but from trying them they just haven't lived up to the high expectations that my favourite has set. My favourite really has to be the Seventeen Phwoarr Paint - its cheap, its high coverage and it lasts forever! Although its marketed as being an under eye concealer I use it for concealing everything and anything that could do with that little bit extra help. It is an amazing under eye concealer - but I also use it for covering redness, spots, cleaning up brows and around my lips after apply lipstick. Its an absolute dream of a concealer. 

Bronzer/ Contour - I've really only ever tried a handful of bronzers, but of al the ones I've tried NARS Laguna always comes out on top! I've had this bronzer for the longest time - I think about 2 years... - and although it is a bit of an investment (it certainly isn't cheap) you will most certainly get your moneys worth out of it! I've only just recently hit pan and there is still so much more use to get out of it. I think when you have that one product that you just love, its hard for anything else to top it. 

Highlight - The highlighter I've been loving this year is actually not branded, its made by a lovely girl who I originally found on Depop, but I think she now only is active on Instagram... Her instagram is here, and of her highlighters the one I have is Tinker, I've got this tiny tiny little pan of it and its lasted me so long, I'm needing to get a new one soon though so I'll be placing an order again with her soon. 

Brow Product - This one wasn't too easy to decide on my favourite for, I love the Benefit Gimmie Brow, but I figure mine has been empty for months and I've not yet repurchased it, so is it really my favourite? Probably not... My favourite is definitely Illamasqua's Precision Brow Gel. I'm pretty sure this is meant to be Illamasqua's version of the Anastasia Dip Brow, but obviously you can get to look at the colours and ask for help from the counter girls with the Illamasqua option. It is just a dream to use, and it doesn't seem like it plans on running out any time soon! 

Eye Liner - Maybelline Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner Pen - hands down, no question about it! I had won the Benefit Push up Liner and liked it a fair bit, but then I saw this in Boots and decided to give it a go, and fell in love with it. I find that is is so much easier to apply on myself than the Benefit one. It is a really black line too, it does take a bit of getting used to when your applying it, but once you get the hang of it, it looks great and doesn't budge once its set. 

Eye Shadow - This year I've been all about using the Urban Decay Basics Palette. The colours in it are so nice and really compliment each other, you can't make loads of looks with this but for daily wear the colours are perfect
Make-up Tool - BeautyBlender. Hands down the best thing I've used for applying foundation and concealer. I definitely want to buy another one, would save me needing to constantly clean it. I just feel that the BeautyBlender is 1000% better than the cheaper alternatives and is well worth the money. 

I left a few categories out, but thats just cause I genuinely couldn't think of anything to put for them or had too many favourites to list. 

What have you been loving make-up wise this year? 

The Cheap Brush You Need In Your Life | Contour Brush

I can't remember where I originally saw this brush, but I'm pretty sure I saw it on a blog a few months back. Anyhoo, I basically saw it and thought it looked pretty good and for a couple of pounds I didn't really think I could go wrong. I didn't expect big things from this, and I think that's why I'm so blown away by how good this is! 

For such a cheap brush it feels super soft and so far the bristles haven't started to fall out - they don't actually seem like they will fall out which is a huge plus. 
It grabs just enough product - just as a heads up, I've been using it with the NARS Laguna bronzer - I've used it a handful amount of times and it never picks up too much. It gives the most perfect amount of product to blend on the face, its also the perfect size so contouring the cheeks is literally the easiest thing. 

For £1.79p including the postage you really can't go wrong and I couldn't recommend this brush more. I'm thinking I might try it out with cream products to see how it works with them since it does so well with powder. 
Have you found any bargan brushes? 

Best Foundation Ever? | L'Oreal Infallible Matte Foundation Review

I've scheduled so many posts recently meaning I've not actually written a post in ages! Scheduled posts are in short supply now though and my love for this foundation is going strong! 
The foundation is in a plastic squeeze-y tube, different and I find better than the standard glass bottles that are usually used. The packaging is plain and simple, I don't think you could buy a foundation because of packaging - it's jut one of those things that always seems to have really plain bottles/tubes... 
It says it gives a medium coverage and I really think it does, you could easily build it up as well to get a much fuller coverage but I've been finding recently with this I'm not wanting nor needing a full coverage. The coverage it gives me is just perfect for me! 
Despite it being a matte finish, I don't find the finish to be overly flat like some mattes can be. I'm not sure if its how oily my skin is or if it is a slightly dewy finish but I'm really loving this foundation's finish. 
In fact I love everything about this foundation, from the coverage to the finish to how long it lasts. A lot of the time I tend to find that my foundations slip off my face, but not with this! It lasts a really good while, who knows if it lasts the 24 hours it says it does, cause really - who wears their foundation for that long?! I could put this on in the morning though, and still have it looking fairly good by well after dinner time.
When I use this I feel the need to use concealer is dramatically reduced, tending to only really wanting to use concealer every so often on my under eyes when I've had very little sleep.
For £7.99 I don't really think you can go wrong, and if your wanting it be be even more perfect why not try their new matte primer along with it? 

Illamasqua | New In

 I was in the mood for buying something new and to be honest with you I went with the Illamasqua Skin Base foundation in mind, but alas I ended up getting two things that I didn't have in mind! 

The new Precision Brow Gel is something that I've seen popping up on blogs recently, I figured its probably pretty similar to the Anastasia one - but with this I can get matched to a colour before I buy. When the make-up artist applied this to my brows I fell in love instantly, so naturally it came home with me. The one I have is in the colour Strike, they cost £18.50 - so a little more than the Anastasia ones but at least you know what colour to get... 

I also got the Loose Powder, £24, no idea why I decided to buy this. I think I basically bought this in hope that it could help my make-up last a little longer and that it would make it maybe look a bit better... Heres hoping it does that, cause if not I've just wasted a fair sum of money... 
What products do you love from Illamasqua? 

Everyday Make-up

Until recently I very rarely wore makeup everyday, and it was even rarer that I stuck to the same products daily. Something changed recently though, and along with wearing makeup almost everyday - I now wear the same few products daily! 

To start off my face I always use a few sprays of the Urban Decay Deslick setting spray, followed by my Smashbox primer. I just find that between the two of these my makeup lasts longer and looks so much better when it's applied. 

I think with my foundations recently I've been focusing on one at a time to try and use them all up, and the one that I've been abusing recently is the Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum foundation. I do really love this foundation. It works well with my oily skin, any dry patches though it really seems to hate! It's an alright coverage but it is build able and can be made up to a light medium coverage - concealer easily hides anything else I want to cover up. Healthy mix lasts a fairly long time as well on the skin. I could put it on first thing in the morning and maybe only need a slight touch up by late evening ( say around 7/8).

The concealer I've got into the habit of using is the Maybelline Fit Me concealer - my dog recently got at it and burst a whole in the bottom of it - tragic. I got this in a swap box awhile back and I love it! It's got really good coverage, covers all redness easily, hides spots and banishes dark eyes! I'm plagued currently with looking constantly tired and the Fit Me concealer just brightens everything up and makes me look 1000x better. 

Sticking with the face, I've got into the habit again of bronzing up my face a wee bit - by that I do a tiny bit of contouring to make my cubby round face look a bit now shapely. The one I've fallen back in love with, after a short affair with one from Bourjois, is my trusty NARS Laguna. Ah, how I've missed you, it's just the perfect shade and I think the new brush I've been using recently has made the application of it so much better! Blog post will be coming soon on the new brushes! 

For the eyes I've been very minimal, only adding liner or shadows on days where I have more time to play about. But the mascara I've been reaching for recently is the new (is it new?) Maybelline Lash Sensational Lash Multiplying Mascara. I don't know what it is about this mascara but I've gone gaga for it, it just makes my lashes look so black, long and thick. Basically everything I could want from a mascara. It might be love. 

Brow wise, I've been sticking to the always trusty and reliable Benefit Gimmie Brow, I think I'm running a bit low on this now, but I'll be sure to buy a new one. It's just the easiest and simplest way to give your brows that little bit extra - you really can't go wrong with this.  

The last part of my daily makeup would be some kind of lip product, but depending on the day or how I'm feeling would entirely determine what lipstick I wear. A few I've been getting a lot of use out of recently are: MAC Rebel; Too Faced Melted Ruby; and my trusty old Revlon lip crayon. 

What have you been reaching for? 

How Much Is Your Face Worth | TAG

I've seen this TAG floating around for quite awhile, and I love reading a lot of them and found them really interesting as you get to see how much people spend on their make-up and what it is they use on a daily basis. It kind of doubles up as a daily make-up post.

Base

No7 Airbrush Away Primer Full Size £19.50 \\ Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum £10.99 \\ Seventeen Phwoarr Paint £5.49 \\ Soap and Glory One Heck Of A Blot Powder £12

= £47.98

Eyes

Smashbox Photo Finish Lid Primer Full Size £15 \\ Urban Decay Naked Palette £37 Shades Virgin, Naked and Hustle \\ YSL Babydoll Mascara £21 \\ Lord and Berry Brow Pencil £10 \\ Soap and Glory Smoulder Kohl £5

= £88

Cheeks

Illamasqua Blush Lover £18 \\ NARS Laguna Bronzer £27

= £45

Lips

Nuxe Reve De Miel Lip Balm £9.50 \\ Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain Romantic £7.99

= £17.49

Total = 198.47

Thats a bit crazy... Almost £200 worth of make-up goes on my face every day! All the products I've put down are the ones I've been using basically every single day recently, its a routine that I've been really enjoying and will continue to do.

Theres a couple of girls that I'd love to see do this - Zoe, Rena, Charlotte and Ella, if you lovely ladies haven't done this then I've love to see what you write!

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Make-up storage | Before and After

So for the longest time I've not been overly thrilled with my make-up storage. I just really didn't know what to do with it. Its not that I didn't have enough space - it just didn't look pretty. And then Christmas came, and I got given a lot of make-up and beauty items. And of course I bought some beauty items in the sales - it couldn't be helped really.
I had wanted to get one of the IKEA Alex units for ages but they only came in white, and all my bedroom furniture is black. My mum kindly said she would buy me it if I decided on getting one - she said it would look fine since my room is black and white themed. Also its getting shoved in a corner next to my dresser and would probably be hidden by my curtain most of the time. As I type this I pray to god that when it comes it actually fits in the little space - I'm not very good with measuring things out.

 On my bedroom floor I currently have all my Christmas presents that I can't find a home for - there is just no space for all of it! If you can see where the bin is next to the shoe, then that is where I plan on putting my new unit.

 This is basically just an overview of how my dresser currently looks - its a bit cluttered. Also my chair doesn't match with any of my furniture. My brush pot and the little muji dividers will be moving to the new unit, along with my perfumes.

 I got the acrylic drawers from Ryman stationary ages ago - I think they still sell them - it was £12ish and holds most of my day to day makeup. Its drawers aren't quite deep as I'd like them to be, so its not able to house any of my foundations. Hence why they are sitting at the side of the unit.

The final before picture is a little crappy - so apologies for that. But basically what I was trying  to show here was the little bucket and the stuff around it - that you can't actually see. The bucket mostly holds empty boxes - random yes. But the boxes are ones I'm keeping until the post for each product goes up - just in case I lose any pictures and need to retake them. I also have some nail varnish remover and perfume bottles that don't have a place yet. 

When IKEA delivered all the furniture - trust me there was a lot of furniture, i was really excited to build it all - I like to build stuff... 

Inside my Alex unit, I've not yet got proper organisation inside it, but its ok for now. 

So under my dresser is a lot tidier now, my bin now has to go there as I have no space else where for it. I have to little storage buckets there as well, the grey heart one is currently just storing empty boxes of things I need to write a blog post about. The yellow one is basically just got things in it that I can't find a place for - so yeaaah. Hopefully I'll find them a place soon. 

 So I got the ALEX unit from IKEA - I really wish it came in black, but y'know take what you can get. On top of my unit I have my Urban Outfitters Owl candle holder, jar filled with cotton pads, Marc Jacobs Daisy, DKNY Red and Taylor Swifts perfumes.

So this is my rather unimpressive face drawer, most of my face make-up is in here. There is only a couple of concealers, a powder and one foundation left out on my dresser. This drawer is only about 1/3rd full - I NEED MORE!

My eye drawer is even sadder looking than the previous. The majority of the space used is by palettes. I suck. 

My fullest drawer of makeup products. Its still not very full though- I have the Nails Inc set box at the back along with a few tools. My Ciate set and a couple of nail wraps. I've still to find a way to organise these properly.

This drawer is completely full to the brim, it literally has no space left in it. Its a mix of face and body items - mostly body. I also have a few candles right up the back of the drawer. The front is facial products - I wish it was sort of tidier than it is but it does the job. I am certainly not going to buy any body items until most of this is gone. 

So this is my new tidier storage. If you have a make-up storage post let me know!

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Extra Christmas Presents

Again - not bragging. I didn't include these presents because I hadn't seen my dad till after Christmas so I didn't include them in the post. I thought I would do a really quick post because I'm really really grateful and in love with what I got from my dad.

 My dad was really generous and spoilt me and my brother a little. He got me a little Benefit kit, Justine Case - it contains sample sizes of Benetint, Californian Kissin', eyecon and some kind-a-gorgeous foundation. I also got some love to shop vouchers - £16 worth from my dads work. Chocolate coins and Cadbury Wishes - both of which have been finished. A Visconti purse, inside it was some money and a £5 Debenhams voucher - ideas on what I can spend my vouchers on would be much loved. The final thing I got was a necklace and earring set from Clear Crystals. 

I hope you don't mind this small post on what I got from my dad . 

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