500 Days of Summer

I love love LOVE this film, I don't care if anyone think it's lame or soppy etc etc. Just felt like watching a film tonight with a big hot chocolate... Such a bad day at work today - really should learn you can't trust anyone these days anymore.

"I have tourettes, sorry. So does she."

127 Hours

 Went to see the new film "127 Hours" today, and James Franco plays his character brilliantly... I wanna go watch it again! (despite the gore...)

And god is he gorgeous...

Make-up Collection

What's worse is I have a load more that I've gone off of, just stored away for use "one day"! This spurred me onto giving away some to my younger sister & chucking out the necessary.

'I see in fight club the strongest and smartest men who've ever lived. I see all this potential, and I see squandering. God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars. Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don't need. We're the middle children of history, man. No purpose or place. We have no Great War. No Great Depression. Our Great War's a spiritual war... our Great Depression is our lives. We've all been raised on television to believe that one day we'd all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we won't. And we're slowly learning that fact. And we're very, very pissed off.' 

 

 

Too true...

 image source: unknown (from tumblr.com - these are NOT my own personal images)

NOTD: Nails Inc - Oxford Circus

16/01/11

A few photos from my friend Chantelle & I's Saturday night:

Makeup worn:

Eyebrows - No.7 Eyeshadow Pencil in Brown/Black

Eyeshadow - Ruby & Millie turquoise shade (from an old palette), Urban Decay 'Gunmetal'

Mascara - Rimmel Lash Accelerator

Eyeliner - Barry M kohl pencil

Concealer - mixture of Gosh liquid concealer (shade 2) & Elizabeth Arden smoothing liquid concealer (shade Medium)

Foundation - Laura Mercier mineral in "Natural Beige"

Lipgloss - Collection 2000 Pure Gloss

Bronzer - Elizabeth Arden mineral in 'Deep'

Highlighter - Benefit 'High Beam'

Recent purchases

It's been a long while since I've posted anything, but it's been one hell of a busy time lately - working fulltime alongside sorting out University applications with references etc, and fitting in seeing friends whenever possible.

Anyway I'll cut straight to some recent purchases I've made:

Shu Uemura Mini Eyelash Curlers & Slant Tweezers

 

I was impressed with the way Shu Uemura personalised the delivery - they included a letter (my name handwritten) thanking me for my order - and included a free mini sample of one of their Cleansing Oils, all wrapped up in complimentary tissue paper.

 

Mini Eyelash Curler £17.50 - I'd heard a great deal of good reviews about these, and decided to give the mini version a try. These are ideal for precision - they allow you to reach eyelashes that may have been more difficult to curl with the normal-sized version. It "includes rounded firm silicone rubber to curl gently while providing a protective, stay-put edge for improved safety". The size is perfect for travelling - I'd recommend these over the normal-sized version as not only are these cheaper, I'd say they're better due to precision. 

 

Slant Tweezers £19.00 - Now, I've been using these every day since I bought them (I have to for that price.) ...But I'm disappointed to say that for me, they haven't lived up to their expectations. I'd read many reviews claming these were "the best!", and the website claims these are "professional tweezers with a precision tip for accuracy in hair removal". I don't know if I'm just downright using them wrong (though I'm sure everyone uses tweezers in a very similar way?!), but they take more than a couple of tries before they actually remove the damned piece of eyebrow hair! These may be perfect for you but I would say that I'm sure there are cheaper, better alternatives out there.

Dolce & Gabbana 'The One' perfume set

 

One of my absolute favourites - the smell is divine, slightly more ideal for going out, but is gorgeous to wear in the day nonetheless. I'd avoided buying this for so long due to its price, but when I saw this box-set in the House of Fraser sale, retailing at around £32, I couldn't resist. I'd worked hard over Christmas & New Year so this was my treat to myself! I love the free cosmetic bag, but I've avoided the Body Lotion as I usually break out from perfumed moisturisers :(

Fiorelli Honolulu Cross-Body Bag

 My new favourite bag - this was in the Debenhams 30% off Sale. It's just the right size for stashing my everyday essentials in, and the fact you can wear it over your body saves it putting all the weight on one arm. It's leather so should last a long while too. I also recently purchased a black Fiorelli purse - it's beauuutiful

Elizabeth Arden Color Intrique [Limited Edition] Eyeshadow Quad - Sueded Brown

Browsing the HOF Sale (there seems to be a pattern developing here...), I came across the Elizabeth Arden Sale, where I purchased a Limited Edition Eyeshadow quad, with all the shades necessary for a wintery smokey-eye. The shadow has great pigmentation, with a silky feel to it. The packaging is quite 'quirky' and makes a nice change to Arden's usual product packaging. This comes complete with a handy mirror located inside, and 2 small applicatior brushes.

The Mineral Bronzer in Deep has become my daily bronzer. The pigmentation of this is amazing - you need the tiniest amount (don't make the same mistake as my first attempt - dabbing my brush in and plonking it on my face resulting in looking very muddy/dirty haha). To use, you twist the product very slightly - you don't even need to turn it much to churn out the necessary amount. It comes with its own mirror & applicator brush - but I find this too small, so am sticking with my Liz Earle brush to apply my blusher & bronzer. Would definitely recommend this - catch this whilst it's in the Sale if you can. It's great value for money as this is a product that will last you for months.

No.7 Mini Beautifier Kit

This was a gift from my eldest sister for Christmas. The eye-shadow shades are gorgeous and perfectly pigmented. This comes complete with a handy-sized mirror, a mini mascara, lipgloss, mini shimmer & 2 applicator brushes. Perfect for travelling! You can catch this in the Boots current sale for £5.

The products currently rescuing my skin!

I bought the majority of these products all in one shopping trip, so I can't put my finger on which of the products is really working for my skin right now - so I'll name 'em all! My skin type is spot-prone, oily AND combination... yeah, the best kind ;-) so I'd advise these if your current skincare routine isn't working for you, and you have a similar skin-type.

La Roche-Posay Effaclar Purifying Cleansing Gel  

Purifying Foaming Gel for Oily and Sensitive Skin

Properties

EFFACLAR Gel gently purifies the skin thanks to cleansing agents selected to respect sensitive skin. It may eliminate impurities and excess sebum while leaving the skin clean and fresh. With soothing, anti-irritant La Roche-Posay thermal spring water - pH 5.5 - Soap-free - Alcohol-free - Colorant-free - Paraben free.

This cleanser is the best for my skin I've come across yet - not too drying, yet thoroughly cleanses without leaving the face feeling tight afterwards. I purchased this as a set - it came with...

Effaclar K  Daily renewal fluid for oily skin

Properties

Daily skincare, corrects and progressively transforms the skin surface through micro-exfoliation. 

Innovation: LHA, a keratolytic active ingredient that performs precise, fine, targeted micro-exfoliation without irritation.

Results

The skin texture can be smoothed, imperfections are erased, and the pores are tightened and unclogged. The skin appears finer, cleaner and softer.

I use this morning and evening before a moisturiser - and I do feel that it helps my skin to feel cleaner, softer and appear smoother.

Burt's Bees 

Natural Anti-Blemish Solutions Daily Moisturising Lotion

"Burt's Bees Natural Anti-Blemish Solutions natural light-weight lotion is proven to help control oil and protect against blemises without irritating skin.

Salicylic Acid, sourced from naturally from Willow Bark Extract, penetrates pores to help reduce blemishes and prevent future breakouts. Lemongrass, Witch Hazel, Goldenseal and Hops help reduce redness, resulting in a clearer complexion and healthier-looking skin, naturally."

Ingredients

Active Ingredient: Salicylic Acid (1.0%), Inactive Ingredients: water, helianthus annuus (sunflower) seed oil, glycerin, stearic acid, sucrose distearate, salix nigra (willow) bark extract, sucrose stearate, cymbopogon schoenanthus (lemongrass) extract, hamamelis virginiana (witch hazel) water, humulus lupulus (hops) extract, equisetum hiemale (horsetail) leaf extract, hydrastis canadensis (golden seal) extract, epilobium fleischeri (gravel willow) extract, lecithin, chrondrus crispus (carrageenan) extract, fragrance, glucose, xanthan gum, sodium borate, sodium chloride, glucose oxidase, lactoperoxidase

This product doesn't smell too great, and it did make my face flush red upon first use - but I feel its natural ingredients are doing a great job on preventing blemishes, and it moisturises nicely without feeling too heavy or oily. I like that this settles well into the skin without the feeling it's clogging the pores. The downside would have to be its price, but for me it's worth it if it's stops pesky spots.

 

Burt's Bees

Natural Anti-Blemish Solutions Targeted Spot Treatment

How it Works

Scientifically proven to reduce redness in 24 hours and blemish size in 48 hours. Proven to decrease blemish size by 42% in 2 weeks. This natural spot treatment is proven to help reduce and improve the appearance of blemishes without irritating skin. Salicylic Acid, sourced naturally from Willow Bark Extract, penetrates pores to help reduce blemishes. Formulated with Tea Tree, Calendula, Yarrow and Parsley Extracts to help reduce redness and Borage Extract to promote healthy skin resulting in a clearer complexion, naturally.

How to Use It

Apply to face in the morning and evening after cleansing.

Featured Ingredient

Willow Bark - This extract contains natural Beta Hydroxy Acids, which work as a natural skin exfoliant to help unplug follicles and pores.

Ingredients: Active Ingredient: Salicylic Acid (0.75%) Inactive Ingredients: alcohol denat., citrus medica limonum (lemon) peel oil, water, calendula officinalis flower extract, achillea millefolium (yarrow) extract, borago officinalis (borage) extract, carum petroselinum (parsley) extract, foeniculum vulgare (fennel) fruit oil, salix nigra (willow) bark extract, melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree) leaf oil, eucalyptus globulus leaf oil, juniperus communis fruit oil 

This works a treat - I'd heard good reviews on this product so gave it a try (despite hmmm-ing and debating whether to purchase over its price), and I'm glad I did! It's a hell of a lot better than your usual tea tree oil treatment - you can feel it killing any bacteria and cooling down any aggravated spots almost right away. I just hope my skin doesn't get 'used to it' like it has with other products & as a result the effects stop. You get a small amount for your money - so use sparingly. Oh and I warn you now - the smell is STRONG. It's chemically and to be honest...a bit like liquorice haha.

Penelope Cruz - Mango images

I love the images of Penelope Cruz used for the Mango advertisements - the eye makeup especially. As bold as the liquid eyeliner may be, I love the overall look, and teamed with neutral eye shadow shades it makes a great everyday look.

 

the eyebrows are perfection!

Out of everything I've learnt lately..

..the 'rule' that sticks out true is to listen to your gut instinct on things.

image source: 'jani elizabeth'

New Year...

...a year of change?

Worked all around Christmas & New Year's, but hey it's money ;)

Too much on my mind lately for me to handle - I can't wait to figure everything out so I can chill the f**k out! Causing some major breakouts :-P

Time for me to try grab some sleep before a big day tomorrow,
hope everyone had a lovely Christmas and New Year's. x

P.S. Plenty of hauls & reviews to come!