Eyebrows

I didn't actually intend on writing and sharing a blog post about what products I use on my eyebrows. However, when photographing a lot of products at once for future posts, the idea suddenly came to me. I actually find it quite interesting to see how others shape/fill their brows, as a lot of the time I’m envious of those who have perfected brows, haha.

Especially with being blonde, finding the right shade is pretty hard. As for being a brunette, normally a simple dark brown works perfectly. But with blonde hair, yes my brows would be darker (and are naturally), but I’m always on the hunt for a ‘good’ light brown. I always find when I purchase a ‘light brown’ eyebrow pencil, the colour once applied is way too warm. But I then realised what I was looking for, was an ash toned light brown, but sadly out of the entire ‘light brown’ brow products I've bought all have been too warm toned. Except one, the e.l.f. eyebrow kit in ‘Ash’. The only sad thing is that e.l.f' isn't very easily accessible, as if I was to order from e.l.f. I would have to do a ‘big shop’ to make it worth it – and I can’t justify doing so. So as much as I love this product, its running low and I would really appreciate suggestions of what other accessible (UK) ash toned eyebrow products there are out there!  

Despite the fact I probably won’t repurchase this, I’m still obviously going to talk about how much I've loved the product. Therefore this weeks post will include what products I currently use to shape and fill my brows!

e.l.f. Eyebrow Kit in Ash | £3.95

Before using my e.l.f. eyebrow kit in the morning, I reach for a brow brush (spoulie), which I use to brush my brows with into a good shape for filling. Once brushed I apply the gel side of the kit through my brows lightly, sometimes I will also use the lighter powder over the top.

Nanshy Angled Detailer brush | (Gift) 

To apply the brow gel/powder I use this Nanshy angled detailer brush as it works wonders for a precise brow. I actually own the Real Techniques brow brush but hardly use it as its very thick, therefore making it hard to apply a precise amount of product. But I do occasionally use this to apply concealer around the eyebrow which gives a more defined look, however I normally miss this step.

Natural Collection LashCare Mascara in Clear | £1.99 

To finish off I use Natural Collections clear Lash care mascara, which yes I know it’s a mascara but works just as well as any clear brow gel to set and keep my brows in place!

Hopefully this helped, as all the products I use are definite recommendations. Especially the e.l.f. eyebrow kit which comes in many colours, ranging from dark to light. Have a lovely week, and definitely leave recommendations for any good ‘ashy light brown’ brow products below!

What do you use to fill/shape your eyebrows?

15th Birthday | Outfit & Update

Hello everyone! If you are a regular reader on my blog, you will know I don't normally post on Wednesday. But as its half term, giving me more free time, why not? I'm hoping to post twice a week every now and then; however most weeks it will only be once. This week’s post (I will still post on Sunday as usual) will be a fairly small 'chatty' post, about some updates and a birthday outfit! 

The reason this post will include some 'updates', is because the past few days have included achievements and events I would like to share with you. Last Friday I reached 100 bloglovin' followers, which is actually quite strange if I'm honest. When I first started writing on my blog I felt I was writing to nobody, I still feel this way now. However when I realised 100 people follow me, I was suddenly assured people actually do. As well as this, I hit my 3 month milestone last Monday - so I've gained around 100 followers within 3 months! 

My Birthday took place on the Sunday, and I turned 15. I had a lovely day ice skating with my friends (two of which are also bloggers, Kathryn and Laura), also a lovely meal later that night. So I thought this post could include what I wore too, with some clothes I received for my Birthday! 

Navy Parka - Topshop | Snood - New Look | Joni Jeans - Topshop | Short Sleeve Jumper - Miss Selfridge | Boots - New Look 

This coat was actually one of my main Birthday gifts; it's unbelievably warm for the chilly days, as was the jumper! I already own a parka style coat from Topshop (as seem in this post) but it wasn't lined and didn’t keep me warm enough. Therefore this thick shorter parka with a fur hood comes in useful for days like these. 

After having a skate on the ice, we warmed ourselves up with some hot drinks and snacks! I had such a lovely Birthday and received some lovely gifts. I have actually made some purchases with money I had also been given, one of which was an impulse buy today at Zara (whoops!). So you might be seeing them in future posts. Have a lovely rest of the week and see you on Sunday!

What have you been up to this past week? 

A New Discovery | Hand Creams

Hollister's Solana Beach hand and body cream | £12 (I purchased this on sale for £2.99)

Body Shop's Hemp hand protector | £5 (I purchased this for free with a voucher)

It is really disappointing when you may buy a high end product, for it to then not to deliver the 'high-end quality' you expected. But on the other hand, very pleasing when you get the quality you want in a product you wouldn't expect.

This week’s post I will share with you two moisturisers which I use on my hands - one is a hand and body cream, the other a 'hand protector'. These two products I use together and I've really been enjoying them.

If you've ever bought a product from Hollister's body care range, you'll know their pricing can be high. Well... Compared to a high-end price it's probably cheap. However, I'm not so sure what category you would put a brand like Hollister in, as it's a clothing shop. Anyway (let's get to the point), I wasn't really expecting much - in terms of scent I already knew there was no problem in that region. Hollister's scents are just divine. So when I bought the hand and body cream I knew that aspect wouldn't let me down. But the main reason I actually bought this product was because it was on sale, like I say, I wasn't expecting much. Therefore for £12 I wouldn't have bothered. But seeing a 75% discount I couldn't really go wrong!

The one element of moisturisers and creams for the skin that I always consider, is how fast they are absorbed into the skin. The feeling of sticky, greasy hands that just won't go away can be very irritating when completing day to day tasks. So when I realised the Hollister hand and body cream was fast absorbing I was immediately impressed. As well as this, I realised after only 2 or 3 uses my hands were unbelievably soft. For me, dry hands are something I experience all year round and finding a good hand cream is great. When I realised how well Hollister's hand (and body) cream performs I couldn't stop using it.

The main area on my hands that will become dry easily are my knuckles. The only downside to using this hand cream was it didn't completely solve this problem. So I knew I maybe have needed a stronger hand cream for this particular area - this is where the body shop hand protector comes in. Quite a while ago I came across a voucher on an app, which allowed me to receive some free body shop hand cream. When choosing the scent/intensity of the hand cream, I went for the hemp hand protector for 'very dry skin'. The scent wasn't something I particularly liked, but the fact it was for 'very dry skin' made that element less important for me. This hand cream has a very thick consistency, which takes a while to absorb into the skin - the complete opposite to Hollister's hand cream. 

However, over time I realised these two products work well together. I had found that the Hollister hand cream was great for all over the hands, so I could then use body shops hand protector directly on some dry flaky patches (my knuckles mostly). Even though the body shop hand protector takes a while to absorb, using it only on specific small areas, this doesn't matter so much - but I definitely couldn't use this all over the hands, also due to its thick consistency.

Next time I will try not to assume, as certain products may perform better/worse than you think. Therefore I've mainly focused this post on the Hollister hand cream, as I really didn't expect the result that this product gave. But as well, adding an additional few paragraphs about the body shop hand protector, because this helped recover the dry patches that Hollister hand cream couldn't do alone.

Hopefully you enjoyed this post - I wouldn't call it a review as such but just a discovery I would like to share. So I definitely recommend you give Hollister's body care a go, I also own their body lotion which I love too! Have a lovely week (if you’re at school, have a lovely half term too). Be prepared for a 'birthday post' mid-week, as today is my 15th Birthday! 

Have you tried any of Hollister's body care? 

Organise Your Life

I'm not sure how others feel, but when I'm organised I feel a lot less stressed and a lot more calm. Especially with school, homework, revising and exams etc. (and blogging!) all of us at some point have 'to do' lists or ideas floating around in our head. I find the best thing to do is to just get it down on paper, therefore it can't be forgotten. 

This weeks post will be lifestyle based, and something I actually thought of whilst using these tips! Overtime I have created tips and ideas that work well for me, ways to keep organised and release stress. In this post I will share with you the different ways and tips I've been using to organise, mostly in terms of (for me) homework and blogging. But when it comes to comparing them both, school work definitely is my priority over blogging. That's a main element I've been considering too. Priorities.

The first few points/tips will be in order of what I feel works best, mainly what's most important. Afterwards will include ideas that help you feel more organised. 

Procrastination 

I'm sure at one point you know you should be getting on with your task, but instead you’re putting it off. What you have to do is beat procrastination, and just get on with it. Get it out the way and then you can spend the rest of the time doing whatever you'd like. I remember once been given a large amount of coursework to do over the summer. Instead of getting it out the way I would drag the task out by doing little bits everyday, when really I could have just done it and finished all in one. This then made me feel guilty everyday because I knew I should be doing something, and if I just got it out the way I wouldn't have felt that way. 

Recently I have therefore been completing dreaded tasks as soon as I receive them (...homework). I've also been completing my homework on Friday night, so for the rest of the weekend I can relax and not have it worry. 

Prioritise 
Before begging the tasks, I feel it's important prioritise. Get done what’s most important first. The first (for me) I think is school, then... I prioritise my priority (if that makes any sense). Therefore I complete the homework that's due in first straight away, and so on. Afterwards I can complete tasks that are less important. This was your not leaving important tasks until last minute, and if you don't have time to complete all then the ones you can't complete shouldn't matter so much. 

Reward yourself 

When you feel you've finished the task, and finished it well (don't rush). Its then time it reward yourself. If you tell yourself what the reward is and when you can receive it beforehand, it will motive you and also prevent procrastination. I like to reward myself with food; this may be a lovely cup of tea or a small snack, which I can then enjoy knowing I've completed what I need to. 

Tip and tricks 
Lists - You may think you can remember all the little tasks circulating around in your head, but one can easily slip away and you just totally forget. Instead of making your mind stressed and confused, write it down. Give the responsibility of remembering to a notebook, then your brain can stop worrying, leaving more space for ideas and less for stress. 

I now have quite a few notebooks, some I assign to schoolwork, and some I assign to blogging. They're a useful book to have with you at all times. Whenever you have an idea, you can just pop it down in your little book so it can be safe and not forgotten. 

Schedule and time tables - Hopefully I'm not the only one who does this, but for the people that don't it’s useful to try. Especially with school, homework and exams - we all at one point have numerous tasks to do in a short space of time. When you feel it all becomes overwhelming, take a break and stop. Grab your notebook and schedule what you will do first (remember priorities) and when you will do it. I actually make timetables/schedules telling me at what time I will do what, therefore if I'm behind in my schedule it motivates me to keep going. 

For more 'everyday' or 'weekly' plans, a useful thing is to get a dairy! I haven't had a proper diary in a while, but when my mum gave me one she didn't want, I accepted the offer and found it comes in pretty handy. It's feels great to have a book that you can just organise your life in, to write down what you will do and when. I do really want a dairy which has a page per day, therefore I can write more about my day to actually look back on in the future. 

Sticky notes - These are my saviour. Whenever I have something on my mind that I need to do, I can just pop it onto a sticky note so that I don't forget. Especially before I go to bed, a lot of things come to mind. I just grab a sticky note and write it down, then stick it somewhere I will see in the morning - therefore this way I don't wake up questioning what that 'thing' was. 

Stationary - As well as notebooks and diaries, something I really think helps is stationary. When I have a pencil case full of colours and exciting stationary, the tasks become more fun. When it comes to revision, I'm a visual learner and having nice stationary definitely motivates me.

Sleep - I may be diverting slightly here, but when it comes to organising your life and completing tasks, being tired makes it all a lot worse. I've recently been trying to turn off the lights an hour or so earlier, so I can wake up going to school feeling a lot more alert and ready to learn. As my dad always says... "The bridge between hope and despair is... A good night’s sleep". I do still feel pretty tired in the morning, but I think if I try keeping my sleeping pattern relatively the same, overtime I will definitely benefit from it. 

I hope this post came in use to you, or you just enjoyed reading it. Have a lovely week and a lovely valentines day too!

What do you do to organise and plan? 

~ Writing is thinking on paper ~

Bare Minerals EyeShadow Duo | Review and Swatches

I've been longing to do this post for a while because I've actually been really excited about composing it, to then share it to my readers. However for some reason I've been procrastinating and putting it off, but why?

Sometimes I feel pressure when writing a review. I feel the post needs to have a higher formality maybe? Plenty of detail? Or maybe I will miss an aspect that people are looking for. But this weeks post seemed the right time to do one, and in particular about a product I've loved! 

Urban Decay is pretty much known for their eyeshadows. People even compare eyeshadows to UD's when looking for the quality. I shall not escalate but we all know how impressive and popular their shadows are. I'm still questioning whether to throw away £37 in return of their original naked palette, besides the point... I have found another brand that has impressed me highly in forms of eyeshadow. Bare minerals obviously supply other products, which I'm hoping impress me as much as the eyeshadows do. But today I am going to purely focus on their eyeshadows, in particular their eyeshadow duo in the 'Scenic Route'. I was sent this from a giveaway I won and it was the product I was actually most excited about trying. 

I was unsure how accessible Bare Minerals was to me, but without me knowing it was streets away from my centre town - I wish I had known sooner! Now, the shades may not have been something I'd go for, but despite that fact, the quality I just can't fault. Don't get me wrong, the colours are stunning - the deep gold olive (shade - Spectacular) and bright shimmery white (shade - Breathtaking), both containing gold specks which appear in the light. Bare Minerals have created duos where both colours complement each other so well. Just these too colours and that's all I need, for either a wearable day time or an intense evening look. 

In terms of the formula and how the eyeshadows feels when applied, again I can't fault. The consistency is unbelievably soft and seamless when blended after application. For some reason a feel that using these eyeshadows made it easier to get a more 'professional' and flawless eye-look.

The price comes at around £20 for a duo on the Bare Minerals website, but I believe Boots sell the duo for £19. Obviously I didn't have to pay with it being a giveaway, but paying £20 for two eyeshadows (essentially £10 per one) is quite a lot. If I hadn't known the quality I probably wouldn't pay that amount, but now knowing I'm questioning whether to actually buy one of the quads I've had my eye on. Something I also love is the packaging, now packaging can make a cheap product look the expensive, or an expensive product look cheap. But when it boils down to it, the packaging shouldn't matter and the product inside is what does. However I do think the appearance is in some aspects is important when it comes to the customers buying the product. I happily buy and use cheap brands which I'm fond of, but the packaging looking pretty is a perk to buying good quality brands, in my point of view. 

One of the main elements I look for on eyeshadows is the pigment. As well as the texture, application and packaging, Bare Minerals have also hit it on the spot with the pigment of their eyeshadows. They give a high pigmentation which then blends beautifully into the crease, whilst being able to pack the colour on the lid. At times when I want a more day time eye look, I will sometimes opt for less pigment that can be built accordingly - so in that aspect it can be harder to achieve a subtle look. But I can't really complain can I?

Overall the pros by far weigh out the cons. Even being on the more expensive side, these eyeshadows are the best I own in terms of quality and are definitely worth the price. So if you’re willing to treat yourself on expensive eyeshadows I recommend you opt for Bare Minerals!

Hope you liked this post; it’s actually my first ever full post review! Sorry about the quality of the photos, the lighting wasn’t great when I took these. Have a lovely week!

What products have you been impressed with currently?

~ Hard times will reveal true friends ~