Liebster Award!

So yesterday I was nominated for a Libster Award by the lovely Hannah from Just Hannah. I would really suggest checking out Hannah's blog if you haven't already, she does a great mix of lifestyle and beauty posts which I really enjoy reading! I'd seen this around on a few blogs so was really pleased that Hannah had thought of me. The award is designed to help discover new blogs, especially the ones just starting out. 

It also helps you guys get to know me a little better :) So here are Hannah's questions...

1. What first made you want to start a blog?

I've been reading blogs for the last 6 months ago, my boyfriend would say I've got a slight obsession but hey what does he know! For quite sometime I've been wanting to start a hobby but finding the right thing was becoming difficult - knitting isn't quite my thing! I love getting all my thoughts out on paper - ahem word documents - so thought this would be a great outlet.

2. What was your first high-end beauty buy?

A few years ago I really started to get into make-up, that Christmas I asked for Benefit make-up without even looking into any products. I was in awe on Christmas day when I opened up loads of make-up goodies. I also got quite a lot of vouchers, and of course I had to spend them on more Benefit products! The first being the They're Real mascara, that was probably the best decision yet! I have gone on to.  repurchase a number of times.

3. If you could only shop in one clothes shop for the rest if your life what would it be?

I have a big soft spot for New Look, the clothes are reasonably priced and quite a good quality. They are perfect for the ever changing trends, which I can only try and keep up with!    

4. If on one of your day off you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?

A white sandy deserted beach. Who doesn't need a bit of rest and relaxation! 

5. Dogs or Cats?

Dogs every day of the week. I'm really not a cat person at all. 

6. Starter or Dessert?

This is a toughie, as I love both so much! But if pushed I'd have to go with starter, anything with cheese and I'm happy. 

7. Shower or Bath?

Shower for convenience and bath for relaxation - is that cheating? 

8. Chinese or Indian?

Indian. I love a good curry and don't be forgetting the poppadoms now! 

9. Favourite childhood sweet/chocolate? 

Hmmm this one is hard. I used to love the white Jazzie's. I still do now. 

10. What Disney Character are you most like?

I'm not sure which I'm most like but my most favourite is Pocahontas. I used to watch that film on repeat all signing along to The Colours of the Rainbow hoping that my John Smith would come and whisk me off my island! 

11. What was your favourite film of last year?

I'm not normally a film kinda girl, more of a series lover - especially CSI!!! So I'm going to cheat and say my favourite series of last year was Breaking Bad, I definitely had an obsession there.  

So I have nominated the following people...

Asia Marie Scott
Floral Fidelity
Sally Says Beauty
Very Jenny
Two Hundred or Less
The Perks of Being Amy
Pearls and Lillies
ZoFlo
Champagne and Lemonade
SweetP Beaut
The Girls Next Door UK

So ladies your questions are...

1. What do you like most about Blogging?
2. Make up or Skincare?
3. Who would you most like to have a sleep over with? Dead or alive.
4. Are you an early bird or night owl? 
5. What would be your dream job?
6. If you had £20 to spend in Boots would you buy?
7. Sweets or Chocolates?
8. What is your favourite type of cuisine?
9. Lipgloss or lipstick? 
10. Whats your lucky number?
11. Whats your favourite cocktail? 

I look forward to all your answers! Don't forget to tag 11 people with 200 followers or less! 

Review | Estee Lauder Double Wear Light

Foundation for me, like most I'm sure, is the hardest thing to get right. Over the years I've tried plenty of foundations but I have yet to come across one that ticks all the boxes. Some have come very close, one being the Estee Lauder Double Wear Light . I've been interested in the Double Wear offerings for quite some time as I'm always on the look out for long wearing foundations as I find that with a lot I've tried they do not last the day, even when I use primer before hand.

With high end purchases I like to do a bit of research as I need to be able to justify paying more for things. I'd taken a look at the actual Double Wear but thought it may be too heavy so this looked like the perfect option to try, hoping that it would give me the longevity I desired, without the heavy cakey feel.

First of all the colour, I got matched to 2.0 which is the perfect shade for me. I like the option of being able to add colour with bronzer so I tend to opt for very true shades rather than one up, as its very difficult to lighten your foundation than it is to make dark. The coverage is sheer but can be built up to medium and gives a gorgeous glow to the skin. I usually tend to set foundation with MAC Studio Fix Powder but with this foundation I have found I don't need to, that even without it it can last throughout the day without any touch ups. It does claim to last up to 15 hours, normally I would never believe something like that but I'd definitely say that was true. I usually put my make up on around 7am and its still looking good at 10pm when I take it off.

Overall I think this is a great foundation, and is worth every penny of the £28.50 price tag. For me I tend to like the high coverage foundations which is why I cant call this perfect but its pretty damn close. I would suggest this to anyone that wants a light coverage with plenty of staying power.

Have you tried the Double Wear Light? Have you found your perfect foundation yet?

Monday Mantra #2

When starting something new or doing some differently from the norm we always strive to see results, and quick. Even the little things from drinking more water to help our skin, if its been a week and things are still not great in the moisture department we throw in the towel. That is me down to the ground. Take this blog for instance. In the short time I've been blogging I've loved every minute of it but at the moment all I've been focusing on is seeing my page views and followers increase. Each day I check the daily view count and get disheartened when its only just got into double figures, something that I really need to snap out of. These things take time and patience, and at the moment all I need focus on is the enjoyment of getting my thoughts into blog posts. Reading Lipgloss and Lashes blogging advice really made me see that as long as you put the effort in to make things work it will all fall into place.

Do you even think about giving up? What keeps you going?

Sink Side Essentials

In my bathroom I like having my beauty routine out on the side. One because I'm not a fan of minimalism and two (well the main reason really) if I don't have it out the chances of using it slip to pretty much zero, you know what they say 'Outa sight outa mind'! This is where my Sink Side Essentials come in, every so often I like to switch things up depending on what my skin is like and what product's I'd like to use up. So welcome to my first installment...

First up we have the least glamorous product of the bunch but an essential nontheless, contact lens solution. This kind of does what it says on the tin, keeps my lenses fresh as a daisy for the next morning. Does anyone else have 10453085 bottles of this under their bathroom sink? Nope? Just me then! 

Next up we have L'Oreal Skin Perfection Micellar Soloution, this has been my go to eye make-up remover since it landed on Boot's shelves. I know there has been a lot of mixed reviews about this product but I love it. I soak two cotton pads and rest them on my eyes for a few seconds and wipe away - voila! - make up free eyes. It even works wonders on Benefits They're Real Mascara and we all know what a pain that is to remove! The only thing I would say is that if you use too much it can sting the eyes a little so remember less is more. 

In the mornings I love a good face wash, something to wash away all the nasties that harbored during the night and something fresh to wake me up because I'm not a morning person let me tell you. At the moment I have the Garnier Pure Active Daily Energising Gel Wash. With extracts of grapefruit and pomegranate this is the perfect pick me up in the morning. This is supposed to awaken skin and tighten pores whilst giving a deep cleanse. I wouldn't go as far as tightening pores but it does make my skin feel fresh and plump. 

The next best thing after putting make-up on is taken it off. There were times when I was young and naive (and lazy) that I thought it didn't matter if you slept in make-up, yes yes I know what was I thinking! I'm not sure what made me change my mind about that but I do know that my skin has been a lot better behaved since.

Once all eye make up has been taken care off I move in for the kill all guns blazing with the much talked about Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish. This hot cloth cleanser is a great first cleanse as it removes all traces of make up and feels so nice when you massage it around your face. The smell of this stuff is amazing and the cocoa butter and eucalyptus really help to smooth the skin. Liz Earle do offer their own muslin clothes but I'm a Primark flannel kind of girl - who can resist 3 for £1.50! When I'm having a bad skin day which seems to be constant at the moment my saving grace is the Ren Clarifying Clay Cleanser. I massage this into my skin for 1-2 minutes as instructed. The smell reminds of my old school days when we used to play with pottery - I'm guessing its the clay bit coming into play. This really helps to calm down any outbreaks and helps prevent them from returning. As this can be quite drying I do only tend to use this every other night.

Toners I can take or leave. I'm one of those people that doesn't really see the point but as I received this as part of the Clinique 3 Step System I couldn't leave it in my draw to gather dust. This is a clarifying lotion which is supposed to de-flake skin and prepare it for moisturiser. Now I cant say I've noticed a difference in my skin by using this but I like the sensation, some would say it stings but I kind of like that feeling.

Next up we have the little extra's I use, not necessarily every day but I like having them close to hand. My lips are always very dry, I've got more lip balms than I can shake a stick at but nothing seems to help so in the mornings after make up application and before lipstick I always use the ever famous Lush Lip Scrub in Popcorn. This is a sugar scrub that really helps to take away those pesky flakes and leave them feeling soft and plump. Its not a smooth paste as the main ingredient is sugar so I always make sure I use this over the sink, it also means that there can be a little bit of waste.

I'm a bit of a hoarder when it comes to beauty samples, as I have a couple of beauty box subscriptions I tend to have millions of little bits lying around so this month I have been making a conscious effort to try out different things. So this is where the Balance Me Face Oil comes in, Caroline Hirons (THE queen on all things skin care) featured this on her blog some time ago and I don't know why I didn't bring it to the front of the skincare queue back then but no fear its here now and its perfect for the pesky outbreaks I keep getting at the moment. It helps to heal spots and my favourite thing about this product it helps to heal scaring - what a god send! Its a handy little roller ball so its easy to apply and has no dodgy smell like some oils have.

Another one of my beauty box goodies is the Dr Brandt Microdermabrasion Skin Exfoliant. This little tube has tasted me so well as you need so little. Its a gel exfliant with tiny grains that really get deep into those pores to bring out the nastys. As the names suggests it is abrasive so you need to rub it in gently in circular movements but when used once or twice a week I find this really helps to smooth out all the dry areas especially on drying spots.

Onto the final piece of the puzzle, moisturisers. I haven't yet come across a day moisturiser that I am in love with, I'm quite skeptable about paying a lot of money for something that may skin may not get along with. So until the time I find my match made in heaven I've been using the Simple Hydrating Light Moisturiser. The Simple range was the very skincare routine I ever had back when I was a teenager. I had the full set of cleaner, toner and moisturiser and it was perfect for me. I find this moisturiser very light as the name suggests but gives a good amount of moisture throughout the day. There's no smell and no sting if I get it in my eye.

The Soap and Glory brand is definitely a favourite of mine, I love their body products and make up, the skin care is no exception, especially the Night in Shining Armour Cream. Although its a night cream and looks rather thick in the pot it glides on so smooth and sinks in without leaving a heavy feeling. Its supposed to help fight aging, something I (thankfully) cant confirm just yet but it does keep my face hydrated during the night and in the morning my skins feels silky smooth. Looking for this online I think it may have been discontinued :( so looks like I'll be using this sparingly!

Last but no means least is another mini sample, its the Balance Me Wonder Eye Cream. Its only been recently that I have started to use eye creams, I never knew the difference they would make as I thought my moisturiser would be doing the job do, silly me right! This little cream has been a good send, it really helps to brighten my under eyes, especially when I don't get my usual 8 hours beauty sleep, which these days is becoming more frequent! After a long day of working infront of a computer screen it notice the soothing properties straight away. When this runs out I will definitely be making a repurchase or looking for something similar. I've heard great things about the Origins offerings so maybe I'll take a look there too.

So there you have it, my day to day skin care items. I hope this wasn't too much of a long post to go through but hopefully it gave you an insight to my routine. What products would you suggest I slot in somewhere? Do you have any suggestions of a new night cream now that my faithful Night in Shining Armour has been discontinued? I'd love to hear from you.

Wednesday Wishlist #2

Somehow and somewhy my first Wednesday Wishlist from last week has gone walkies. Maybe my blog is trying to help my spending ban, well little does it know I have a list as long as my arm of items I want to buy so I can bust out these wishlists like nobodies business. So anywho on to this weeks!

 

1. Topshop Moto Blue Black Leigh Jeans - £38 - I'm slightly embarrassed to say that I have never owned a 'proper' pair of jeans. My favs have always been the £7 beauties from Primark or if I was treating myself, a pair from New Look! I was always quite hesitant to go anywhere else for jeans but I've never know why. I'm more than happy to pay £60 for a pair of heels that I'll only wear once but god forbid spending more than £20 on something I wear all the time! Well ladies and gents times have changed. I want some proper jeans and I've been reliably informed that Topshop is the place to head. So come 1st February when that spending ban is over these will be the first babies that get put through the till.

 

2. River Island Red Zip Tote Bag - £45 - River Island bags for me are the bee's knee's. Not only do they look amazing, the quality is good whilst still being affordable. Normally I go for quite a plain bag which is good for everyday use but this red baby caught my eye. Its the perfect bag for stepping out of my comfort zone. I love the gold hard wear this bag has and the red tassel makes it a bit more jazzy. With it being a tote bag I know that it will be able to hold all my bits including the kitchen sink!

 

3. Amazon Phone Case - £4.95 - Last week I thought my life had come to an end. I was just doing my usual bits, putting my phone on charge when all of a sudden the phone jumped out of my hand and landed on the floor. Not to worry I thought - its happened millions of times, I'll just pick it up and put it on charge as normal. Much to my horror when I picked it up the whole back was in pieces! I could have sobbed, 1 1/2 years I'd had the phone and not as much as a scratch! I was without a phone for a few days whilst it was being fixed and my god it was tough. Which meant I was cut off from the world, no texting, calling and more importantly no Twitter or Instagram! Well that teaches me to have no case on the phone! Well I've learnt my lesson and this hard cute case from Amazon will *hopefully* mean I wont have to go through that trauma again!

 

4. This Works Deep Sleep Pillow Spray - £16 - Recently I've really been having trouble getting to sleep, which is very unlike me. I'm putting it down to the fact that my boyfriend is working away at the moment so isn't here as often as normal (major sop I know!) A few months ago I got this spray and the rollerball version as a little tester and they both really helped to distress and drift away quicker than normal. The rollerball is still going strong as you only need a little bit, I put it on each wrist and behind my ears. The spray however is long gong, so this is a must for me as I need all the help I can get to make sure I get sufficient beauty sleep. Some would say this is an unnecessary product as falling asleep is all in your head, but even if this is the case and its all psychological its working for me!    

 

What's on your wishlist this week? Anything I should be added to mine next week?