September Favourites :)

Did I say I'd get back to posting regularly? What a load of bollocks that was - sorry! :P

September was madness in calendar form. I went to Kyoto with my mom, I had university bureaucracy to deal with, I came back to the UK and am still in the process of adapting to city life (did anyone try to get on the Jubilee line today?! My goodness, I felt like I was back in rush hour Tokyo!), and I'm starting uni in 2 days! Madness in calendar form.

So I'm back now but not going to make any promises of consistent posting as I have no idea how long this madness intends to continue for! But October promises to be a great month with meet-ups and reunifications with some favourite bloggers - and the TOWIB event of course! :) Excitingggg tiiiimesss!

Anyway, enough babbling :)

My favourite blog/YouTube by far in September had to be Sandra's YouTube. She has such an open mind about products and doesn't just stick to cult products, so she brings in loads of products in her videos that I've never heard of before. She also has really good taste, and has massively enabled me in many of her videos! :) Sandra's also incredibly honest about products no matter how big the hype, and I feel like she's one of those people who doesn't just hoard and never use products, but actually has a reason for a lot of the products she buys which adds to her personality, and also kind of gives a hint as to why and in what situation I would want something :) She also has a lovely voice to listen to! :P

And here are my favourite beauty products of September :)

Were any of these in your favourites too?

What were your favourites? :)

<3yu

Maybe It's a Maybelline Haul!? (& a bit of a mascara rave)

Lol I couldn't help myself with the title there :P

Personally, Maybelline isn't a brand I often turn to at the drugstore. A lot of their stuff are pretty, but just not the style I enjoy.

However, their mascaras are a different story - to me, they are THE go-to mascara brand in the drugstore, and while not all their mascaras are amazing, I'll still be surprised if a girl's never tried a mascara from them! I can already think of 5 I've tried. My first ever mascara was the Volum' Express Turbo Boost, and I think I went through 3 or 4 tubes before I started exploring.

Anyway, does anyone else remember how AMAZING mascaras seemed when you first ever applied one? I remember realising what a big difference it could make, and absolutely LOVING that difference. But it was all downhill from there, and I never quite felt the same about a mascara - the one that came close was the Maybelline Colossal or MaxFactor False Lash Effect..

Until today :)

After my disappointment with the MAC Plushlash (which you can read about here) I was on the search for another mascara to use for the time-being, and the Maybelline Hyper Curl Volum' Express was the one I went for - and boy, I really did feel like I just popped my mascara cherry all over again.

I love the packaging, how it's slim - my MaxFactor False Lash Effect was not so loved by my stressed out make-up bag! I also adore the tiger print and the metallic pink, yom yom yom. And it's so SHINY!

When I first took a look at the wand I was like 'eh'. I have always been SOOOO skeptical about these kinds of wands, as I usually use big fat chunky fibre or preferably plastic wands and found them to work. I felt like these wouldn't separate enough or apply enough. But I thought I might as well find out when the price is less than a tenner (which seems to be a find in the mascara world these days!).

Ohhh how glad I am that I did! On first impressions, I find they make bottom lash application a lot easier, and apply a lot of product and clump a few lashes together which adds volume without making it look too clumpy, so it's absolutely amazing if you want spider lashes - like these!

I have never, EVER seen my lashes like that - EVER. You can see what my eyelashes look like w/o mascara here. They stayed this curled for the whole day, and  the volume and length is perfect. There was no excessive wet formula like with MAC Plushlash so it was great to use straight out of the box. I also never thought I'd like spiderlashes on myself, but I find it balances out my relatively small eyes!

To be honest, this is completely holy grail status and I haven't said that in a REALLY long time! I may have days where I will prefer a fluffier/lots of lashes look, but that's what my other mascaras are for :D

Apparently there's two kinds of HyperCurl Mascara as you can read about on this blog - and this one is limited edition. Is it true? I also checked on the Maybelline UK website, but can't seem to find it - does anyone know if it's available in the UK? Do I need to stock up like a madwoman?

Aaaand this is what I picked up when I was paying for my mascara.. it was less than £3, but I hate it when they leave stuff on the till, it's SUCH a good marketing strategy. I haven't used it yet but I read that it was good in somebody's blogpost (so sorry I've forgotten who :() so I picked the colour and smell I liked most - thank God cuz if the two weren't in one I would've stood there forever trying to decide. This one is Sweet Cherry, and I want to eat it.

So yeah.. I thought my perfect lash quest would be pretty long but it looks like it's coming along quite quickly :P

What's your favourite mascara?

Any from Maybelline? :)

<3yu

Revealed: Birthday Haul :)

Yes, the title's a bit dramatic but I am going to milk the stuffings out of this one as I can't foresee another big haul in the near future - I'm back on my Project Pan! :P

As you may have seen in my birthday post, I got a lot of make up for myself but didn't really tell you what everything was, or show you swatches - yes, that is all part of the milking.

Accessories/Tools..

MAC 129

I got this from Seanna's blogsale, and it's officially called the "Powder/Blush" brush which is a very apt name in my opinion. As I only ever powder my t-zone, the size is perfect for powdering and it also works really well for blush and natural contouring around the face - love.

Quad

Bought mostly for holiday - not a big fan, I find the way you take out eyeshadows quite damaging to the eyeshadow. Also I refuse to use it outside of travelling as I'm convinced the really strong 'clamp!' of closing the thing will loosen eyeshadows over time and make them easier to break.. paranoid? We'll see.. :P

Rediscovering my love for the drugstore..

Maybelline Dream Matte Powder

A mattifying powder was a definite necessity as 1) the warm weather is making me oily quicker and 2) my other 2 mattifying powders have both hit pan and will break instantly if I pop it in my bag/travel with it. I've only used it twice - but am in love.

Eyes..

MAC Brule E/S

I needed a highlight for my new quad and for my holidays, because all of my other highlights are part of other palettes. It's meant to be a satin finish but I think it's quite matte - great for brow highlight :)

MAC Rubenesque PaintPot

A bit of a disappointment - I was hoping for the duo-chrome gold and salmon, but on the eyes it's really just gold. That being said - it's a very pretty gold! So love the colour - it's just not what I wanted. But I love Paint Pots so I don't see myself not getting use out of this :D

MAC Rubenesque Paint Pot

Lips..

L: MAC Honeylove C: MAC Please Me R: MAC Girl About Town

MAC Honeylove

I bought this from Zoe - and while I like the colour, it's just a smidgen warmer than the Faerie Glen from the Tartan Tales collection, so a bit disappointed, as it's 1) a dupe, and 2) not the summer nude I'd hoped for. That being said - atleast I wont be afraid to use up the Faerie Glen ey? :P

MAC Please Me

Favourite of the bunch! Mid-tone, non-nude, warm pink, which on my warm skin, looks cool-toned - I hate it when this happens. That being said, it's bright, but still very appropriate for everyday wear. It's out of my comfort zone as it's pink but I'm learning to like myself in pink :) Love matte finishes!

MAC Girl About Town

Been wanting this for ages, and knowing that, Rachel sold it to me - thank you love! :) Love it - great for those sunny brave days ;)

MAC Jubilee

Never came. Debenhams claimed to have sent it to me but it wasn't in the box, then they offered to send a replacement. The next day they said it was now out of stock and they are now refunding me the 10% off price that I paid for - therefore I can't really get a replacement - absolute bollocks.

Top to Bottom: MAC Honeylove, MAC Please Me, MAC Girl About Town (and imaginary MAC Jubilee. Bastards.)

Cheeks..

L: Illamasqua Creme Blush in Rude, R: NARS Blush in Torrid

Illamasqua Creme Blush in Rude

First off - thoroughly impressed with the packaging. Cheaper than MAC but 100x more detailed/thought-out packaging!

Colour is GORGEOUS. Not a creme-to-powder finish, which preserves the natural look (instead of some blushes that ruin it by making it obvious my cheeks are actually just powder, and ruin that I've not powdered my face), and extremely pigmented - still learning to apply well. Love.

NARS Torrid

So much more buttery-er than Orgasm or Sin, and more of a matte with small gold specks than the sheen of Orgasm (watch video for demo). Finding it hard to work with due to immense pigmentation but that's all part of the fun - VERY pretty and appropriate for summer :) Another love.

Top to Bottom: Illamasqua Creme Blush in Rude, NARS Blush in Torrid.

Overall, a very very VERY loved haul - YAY! :)

Here is a video if you want to know a bit more in detail about what I think about the products. The video includes other products that I got during May, so sorry if it's a bit redundant if you read all my posts :P



What have you gotten recently that you have been loving? :)

<3yu

Superdrug Haul & Christmas Gifts Exchange!

Today I took a day off of working, and went to visit Lisa, who lives in a small town nearby. We started off with exchanging Christmas presents (as we break up for the holidays after this week, and I probably wont go to hers until next term!), and then went shopping (joined by Danni from Frills & Spills!) as well as the pub for some nice good food :)

Here's what I got, both off her and in Superdrug!

 Lisa's Christmas Present:
- Maybelline's MNY My Gloss in.. a really pale colour :)
- Sephora Colorful Palette in Pour des Prunes No.04
- NIVEA Soft mini tub (inside joke..)
- Lebkuchen & a candy cane! :)

Superdrug Haul:
- Collection 2000 Hotlights Lipgloss in Glimmer No. 3 (£4.19) - these have a mirror and a light! :)
- Barry M Nail Paint in No. 284 Emerald Green (£2.99)
- Superdrug Mud Therapy Deep Cleansing Mud Mask (£2.49)
- Superdrug Essential Facial Wipes in Cucumber Fragrance (£0.99)

I have tried both the lipglosses and here they are:

(L: Collection 2000 Hotlights in Glimmer, R: Maybelline MNY My Gloss in a really pale colour :P)

I love both of them! :) Isn't it crazy how they are so different in the tube but so similar on the lips? The Collection 2000 one is darker in real life, but isn't crazy pigmented, but it's a 'my lips but better' shade that I love, with multi-coloured shimmer. MNY is more a less a opaque gloss with pink duo-chrome-y shimmers that tone down my lips - just what I like! :)

Here is my third Barry M Nail Paint - I do like it very much :) I would've called it 'Green with Envy' because this is what I imagine envy looks like.. lol someone shut me up! It was an attempt to get a holiday-y nail varnish, after Danni's lusting after Barry M's red glittery one.

I haven't swatched the Sephora eyeshadow, but it is safely in my 'To-Be-Used' tub (which is basically an empty Flora tub) where all my new items yet to be used temporarily stay :).

As for my mud mask (which was the first thing I grabbed in Superdrug, Idk why but it just caught my eye!), I am looking forward to a nice cuppa tea and a film with this on my face. Lol.

<3yu