Saturday's Outfit & FOTD - Weekend Styling.

Hi lovelies, how is it already Sunday?! I feel like it should still be Saturday, and not have the threat of work tomorrow morning... Urgh. Anyway, yesterday I was a busy bee with a trip to Westfield Stratford to have lunch with the boyfriend and with a two hour driving lesson - I was quite proud of myself actually and bought NOTHING in Westfields, despite my payday wishlist growing almost double in size in the past week alone. For my trips out, I decided to revel in my weekend wardrobe:

(( Dress: River Island

Cardigan: New Look

Leather Boots: Next

Belt: Boohoo))

During the week I tend to end up wearing the same dresses over and over again, as they are appropriate in length and style, so when it comes to weekends I try and wear things that are more student-y and less work just so I can have a bit of variety in what I wear rather than feeling that there is no difference between my work and weekend clothes anymore. This dress is definitely one of my weekend items, and I love just how versatile it can be when dressed up with different accessories. Yesterday, I went for a more natural sort of look with a tan cardigan and brown boots (maybe even a Cowboy feel?). Its also incredible comfortable, a plus when I am just wanting to chill out without having to fidget constantly to get comfortable or worry that its too low cut/too short.

 As it is the weekend, I also went back to playing with my make-up and using black eyeliner which I have cut down using during the week so I feel like I can do something a bit more special on the weekend:

((MAC Studio Sculpt Foundation 'NC15'; Benefit's Stay Put Concealer; Bobbi Brown Gel Eyeliner 'Black Ink'; No7 Creme Touch Powder 'Translucent'; Urban Decay's 'Suspect' 'Snakebite' Eyeshadows; Inika Brown Eyeliner; Benefit's High Beam; Benefit's Thrrrob Blush; Diorshow Iconic Mascara; Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Lipgloss.))

I went for a soft, smokey eye look yesterday to go with the more natural colours in my outfit, using Urban Decay's Naked2 'Suspect' as an all over colour, and then 'Snakebite' on the outer edges and crease line. I absolutely love the blend brush that came with my Naked2, as it blends the colours perfectly without losing too much of the pigmentation or mixing the colours together too much. I've also gone back to using Bobbi Brown's Gel Eyeliner as I love just how dark it comes out in one sweep, and the long lasting power it has - honestly, when it comes to washing my face at night it takes a good two scrubs to get it off my eyes! With a lot of focus having gone onto my eyes wit this look, I went for just a natural lipgloss to give me a bit of shine.

Are you like me and have a bit of your wardrobe designated for the weekends? Or style your make up differently on the weekends?

Love,

Saturday's FOTD: A Half-Baked Suspect.

It has been absolutely ages since I have done a FOTD post, getting waaaay too preoccupied with the new additions to my wardrobe clearly. Anyway, today I spent my Saturday gorging myself on heavenly food in the form of Wagamama's Katsu Curry & All Star Lanes Buttermilk Fried Chicken - Weightwatchers will be mortified with me & the weight gain! If any of you have an All Star Lanes near you, I would wholly recommend trying out one of their restaurants they do just the most American food & shakes omnomnomnom!

I know some of you out there must be loyal users of the Urban Decay Naked palettes, so did the title of the post give you a little hint about what products were used today? 

Here's another clue:

 

Eyeshadows: Urban Decay's Naked2 Palette - 'Suspect' & 'Half - Baked'

Concealer: MAC Studio Sculpt NC15

Powder: Rimmel Stay Matte Ivory

Blusher: Benefit's Thrrrob 

Eyeliner: Rimmel Exaggerated Liquid Liner

Mascara: Diorshow Iconic

The all over base colour is 'Half-Baked' - the perfect deep, shimmering gold shade that since discovering it in my second year of university, has been a staple in my make-up bag. On the outer edges, I blended in 'Suspect' which looks a shimmery silver colour, but actually comes out with bronze undertones which I love. As its the weekend, I decided to thicken the flicks to make the most out of being able to be a little bit dramatic before heading back to work next week. Being a little of a fail blogger here though with no lipstick - but to amend this faux pas, I have been swatching several pink MAC lipsticks that I have my eye on for next payday - shall keep updated...

I always find that I can be my most adventurous with my eyeshadow shades, because the rest of my make-up generally stays in the same style, but the different shades show my mood or if I'm feeling more wild than natural. Do any of you feel this way about eyeshadow? Or is there another make-up item that you show your personality through?

Love,

Inside my Make-Up Bag #1: The Daily Essentials

Hello lovelies!

So, I have been blogging for a little while now and realised that I have never introduced you all to something that is pretty much essential to my blogging, and to my daily life - my make-up bag:

This beast is not all of my make-up, I still have quite a few eyeshadow palettes scattered over my wardrobe, but this is the majority that I use - not all at once though, that really would suggest I have no face at the beginning of the day! Anyway, in the picture it looks quite small compared to its actual size and weight of a tonne. It has products ranging from Rimmel to Dior, and countless amounts of eyeshadows & lipsticks - my two real beauty weaknesses. Today's post is just going to focus on the products I use daily for a daytime look:

Left to Right: Benefit's Thrrrob; No7 Stay Perfect Eye Base; YSL Forever Youth Liberator Serum; MAC Studio Sculpt Concealer; Rimmel Exaggerated Liquid Eyeliner; Rimmel Stay Matte Powder; Diorshow Iconic Mascara; Benefit's High Beam; Benefit Eyecon cream; Benefit's Dr Feelgood; Urban Decay's Naked2 Palette.

My morning goes: get up, shower, get dressed, tie hair up in towel turban, and then go through the 20-30 minutes routine of putting on my make-up - I'm essentially put on a mask - yes lovely readers, I am actually a troll before I put these magical products on my face. So this is my make-up routine:

1)

Since getting the Harrods Glossybox, I have been using the YSL Forever Youth Liberator Serum as my primer because it gives a nice, glowy look and makes an even base for my make-up. It is a lovely silky mixture that dries instantly without making you feel like your face is cracking with some serums when they dry. I only use a little amount each time - the dropper definitely helps with this. 

2)

Next, I am thinking 'hey troll-face, your skin is still a sandpaper-y, better sort that!' and that's where the fantabulous 'Dr Feelgood' comes in. I absolutely love this creamy balm, that you just need to apply a little onto the sponge and smooth it over the face to make your face feel so soft plus an excellent base for make-up. I highly recommend this product for a good primer to give you smooth, matte skin.

3)

Onto the eyes! I carry sooo much baggage under my eyes I look like the luggage pick-up at Heathrow. Its a family trait to have dark circles under the eyes, and it is something that has always driven me insane. After much looking & testing, I finally found a concealer that worked perfectly to hide them - MAC Studio Scuplt in NC15. But it can show the creases after a while during the day, what stops this is mixing it with a moisturiser as a prime - thats where Benefit's Eyecon comes in that helps to lighten dark circles. Win win! 

4)

Its even more powder and prime time! With a quick sweep of powder over the face to achieve the 1950s matte look I adore & an even look, I move onto the eyes! The final primer is used which is Boots No7 Stay Perfect Eye Base that works wonders for keeping an eyeshadow in perfect condition all day. I just use a little on my finger and I'm ready for the most time-consuming part of my morning routine - the eyes:

5)

Starting with the eyeshadows from Naked2, generally I go for 'Half-Baked', 'Pistol' or 'Verve' as a day look, and sometimes blend them with 'Snakebite' if feeling particularly adventurous. Then its on with the liquid eyeliner - the concentration that comes with this takes at least ten minutes! I am incredibly fussy with my flicks, and try not to have it too thick over the eyelid for daytime, so if its too dramatic I have to then fight to wipe the excess off without messing up all the eyeshadow - fuss, fuss, fuss! I love the Rimmel Exaggerated eyeliner because the colour is jet black and the staying power is great, the only problem is it normally takes two coats to get it as dark as I like and then needs a few minutes to dry. 

Final stage - the mascara & highlight. I generally don't curl my eyelashes (huuuuge faux pas, I know) because it takes up that extra bit of time, so for me, its just a few lashings of Diorshow Iconic and sometimes Extase as well. Boom, longer & thicker eyelashes. Then its a little dab of Benefit's High Beam just over my eyelid to give my eyes an extra bit of brightness, and I'm done.

6)

 And its the last bit - the cheeks! I'm always switching about my blushers because I love trying out the different pink shades - always going for quite bright, flushed pink colours. I fell in love with Benefit's blushers from a long, long time ago, and one of my all-time favourites has been 'Thrrrob' which has that deep pink shade you get when you blush. I put my focus on the apple of my cheeks, putting the most of the colour there and then brushing it out across my cheekbones. 

Aaaaand that's it, that's how I look human at the beginning of everyday. I bet you are all a little bit terrified at what I actually look like without make-up, but yeah, that's not ever going to be posted about - ever! 

Hope you have liked this little insight into my make-up bag! The next one I am thinking about all my different eyeshadow palettes, would you be interested in that?

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Eylure Eyelashes - My First Successful Attempt at False Eyelashes.

Hello my dears! Today I attempted false eyelashes for the second time in my life, after the first time it ended in having one of my eyes glued shut. Yes, that is how competent I was at using false eyelashes. So as you can imagine I was not that hopeful when trying them again for the second time today - alas, I surprised myself by having it work successfully! No eyes glued together this time, and the eyelashes still haven't come off - five hours after being put on and being windswept after my adventures outside! I am one happy girl, and pretty impressed.

I tried Eylure 'Gorgerous Lashes' designed by Cosmopolitan and given to me by Dani, who with her gorgeously long natural eyelashes, already looks like she has false ones on - lucky girl! Eylure supply a small tube of glue, which with only a thin layer has kept them stuck on all day, and was an ideal length so luckily didn't have to attempt trimming them which was a concern as some eyelashes can be too long. Once applied with a little pressure, they were on, and I could then fill in the gaps with my liquid eyeliner to blend it all in naturally. Voila - instantly longer lashes, and with a little Diorshow Iconic mascara for a final touch, I was ready for a wide-eye look. 

I love these eyelashes particularly for a day look, as they're not too thick to be over-dramatic but definitely add that something to the day look. I have to admit, I can see myself wanting to buy more for different occasions and to try out different looks now - with my eyes on the Eylure Katy Perry collection and MAC. So I've been won over.

How do you feel about fake eyelashes? Do you have a particular brand that your favour?

Love,

A trip to the hairdressers = a smiling Stephie.

Hello lovelies, and a thank you to all the new followers :-D 

After a long, long day at work and a dragging week, the trip to my hairdresser was a necessity to get me through the rest of the week! I've been 'umming' and 'ahhing' for a good couple of weeks now about what I wanted to get done - staying brunette or going back to the bright red locks of my second year at university. Even as I sat down in the chair, all gowned up and with Maddy (my hairdresser) rearing to go I was still sitting there unable to make a decision. In the end, I decided to go for a mix of both so that when the red faded I would still have the dark brown colour - win/win! Plus I wanted a restyle, but pushing the urge to once again chop all my hair off into a bob into the back of my mind, went for some layers to shape around my face and a full fringe back. After two and a half hours, here is the result...

 Make-up: No7 Creme Touch Powder; MAC Studio Sculpt concealer; Benefit Thhrrob Blush; Bobbi Brown Gel Eyeliner; Diorshow Iconic Mascara; Urban Decay 'Suspect' eyeshadow; Chanel Rouge Coco Lip Colour in Gabrielle.

Dress: New Look.

With the different lights it can look really red, or more brown which is great as love the different colours it has to it. Maddy has done a fantastic job both with the colour, cut and fringe which sometimes don't always get all three - an awkward moment with a very short full fringe... not good. So I am thrilled that this has got everything I want! Not sure what I am going to do when I move away as no other hairdresser has been as good as my current one! Plus I literally adore all the products they use, when I am wealthy all I will use on my hair will be Kerstase products simply because they smell so gorgeous and shine brilliantly!

In other news, I have measured my self and lost almost two inches from all areas of my body apart from my arms, so pleased with that result after a week of strict dieting (even though this week, weightloss seems to have slowed) but need to work weights on my arms to get them a lot more toned. 

Signing off now, how is your week going? Any hairstyles planned?

Love,

Feeling Checky - Saturday Night's Outfit.

Wo-ho-ho did you see what I did there with the title? Hysterical, aren't I? Swiftly skipping along before giving you the chance to answer that, today's post (with probably some more to follow if I get round to it in between my busy schedule of nothing...) is just a looksie over my outfit from last night. Feeling reminiscent of my days as a student, I wore one of my beloved first year shirt/lumberjack style dresses that was always in my mind a 'casual but stylish' dress - perfect for drinks out or dinner out but not an event where you should throw some more effort in. However, with new items in the wardrobe, and not living so much on a student budget (although I do stress 'not so much', hardly rolling in the monies) I gave it a new style than those days back in 2008/09 where going out drinking happened at least once a week:

 Dress: New Look; Long cardigan: Betty Jackson; Tights: M&S; Belt: Next.

The trusty dress in first year - I miss that room!

Sorry for the lack of good quality pictures, these were taken just before rushing out the door to Westfields for some evening shopping & Wagamamas, so didn't have loads of time to try and control the bluriness. Anyway, this dress and I have had some good times together - some drunken, some sober, and I've always relied on it for that 'casual-but-dressy' look. Not feeling as confident as I was in my dreamy-eyed days of 19, I wore a long cardigan with it and thick black tights - more appropriate for Westfields than the Student Union I think.  The belt pulled in the waist to show I actually do still have one underneath all my layers, and add a bit more glam. The make up was the usual cuplrits: Benefit, Bobbi Brown, Dior, MAC, No7 and Urban Decay - just made a little more dramatic for the evening out. 

Anyway, that's it - we went to Wagamamas where we nommed our way through Ginger Chicken Udon Noodles - branching away from my beloved Katsu Curry, bought myself a check skirt from Hollister (post coming) and presents for the bestie for her birthday. Quite restraint for a trip to Westfields if I'm honest! 

Do you like checks? Still dressing in student style?

Love,