Tuesday 16 April 2013

Recent purchases! ♥


Hellooo there! Thought I'd just update with a few things that I've bought recently(ish)! 


I am SO pale!


Firstly, I got these cute bracelets from Primark believe it or not! They cost about £2 (they came as a set of four) and I absolutely love them. I accidentally broke one though. Oops.



This next one isn't really recent as I bought it a good few months ago but this is my lovely bag from Accessorize. It is MASSIVE and fits absolutely everything that I need in it, and of course loads of crap that I don't need but carry around any way. I got this in a sale for about £18 (I think) which is definitely worth it as I use it all the time! I love the light/minty green contrasted with the light brown, it's just so pretty!


I'm a massive fan of dry shampoo because sometimes in the morning my bed is just far too damn comfy to get up and wash my hair. I usually use Batiste dry shampoo which smells lovely and works really well. I've been using the shampoo and conditioner from this VO5 range for the last few months and I really like it, so when I saw that the dry shampoo from the same range was half price, I had to get it. However, I am actually really disappointed with this product. Whilst the smell is quite nice (important for dry shampoo) it just doesn't work all that well. It makes my hair feel full of product and is pretty useless at hiding greasy hair! Would not recommend. 


I've been buying a lot of home deco things lately as I really want my bedroom to look perfect. I saw this photo frame in Dunelm and thought it was absolutely gorgeous! It was only £10 which for the size of it is really impressive. I can't wait to get some pictures in it and put it up on the wall!


I also borrowed this Gosh Primer from my mum (hence why it looks so used and worn!) so thought I'd give it a quick review. The consistency is really odd, quite like hair serum! Despite that, I do think it gives quite an airbrushed appearance once I've finished doing my make up. However, I have quite dry skin and I felt that it did absolutely nothing for it! It also didn't last that long, I found that it didn't make my skin makeup stay on for as long as I would've liked!

 

I've also been trying this Alberto Balsam Strawberries and Cream shampoo and conditioner, and I have to say, it smells INCREDIBLE. Literally it's hard to resist eating it in the shower. However, I find that Alberto Balsam shampoos do nothing for my hair. They're not particularly long lasting so they usually mean that I have to wash my hair every day. It's such a shame because I LOVE the smell!


I literally cannot sleep without an eye mask at night, I'm not sure why! But I desperately needed a new one as my old one was literally falling apart. I had a look on ebay and picked this up for around £3! It's amazing quality and has such a cute pattern on it!


Also, I picked up this purse from Primark for £5! I absolutely love it! I have been searching for a while for a purse that's big enough and has enough compartments to hold all my crap and cards and I've finally found one! I love the baby pink colour of this purse and I feel that it's perfect for spring! And such a bargain!


I also got this lovely satchel bag from H&M! I think it was around £15 and I really really like it. It's SO me. However, I've only had it a few weeks and I've found that there are already some scratches on it which makes me really sad as I really like it!


I also picked up this lipstick as I wanted a colour that I could wear everyday that wasn't as full on as the staple red lip. However, I think I'll still be looking as this is still pretty bright and full on! This lipstick is by Rimmel and it's in 620 Coral Queen. It has a nice consistency and lasts quite a while but not really when eating/drinking. I do really like this colour, I just think I'll keep it for nights out!













What have you been buying recently? Let me know! 

Nail Polishes ♥

 Helloooo! It's been a little while since I last posted but I have literally been SO swamped with working every hour under the sun. Any way, I thought I'd update with some nail polish that I've bought recently.
I've bought Topshop's Pool Party, Rimmel's Caramel Cupcake and Barry M Gelly Hi Shines in Greenberry, Lychee and Papaya! 




First of all, Topshop's Pool Party. As soon as I saw this in Topshop, I fell in love with it. The colour is an absolutely gorgeous turquoise/blue colour and it's SO pretty. I had loads of compliments when I was using this, which is always nice! The formula is really opaque so you don't need many coats, and it's quick to dry. I did find that it chipped fairly quickly though, which is a shame. 



And next, Rimmel's 60 seconds nail polish in 500 Caramel Cupcake. This is a really subtle, gorgeous nude colour. I love the name 'caramel cupcake' too! It's perfect if you can't get away with wearing bright colours at work or just fancy a subtler colour. It lasts for a good few days without chipping and the formula of Rimmel's 60 seconds nail polishes is always good. Perfect for the bargain price of £2.99!

Aaaaaand, on to Barry M's Gelly Hi Shines in Greenberry, Lychee and Papaya! As you probably know, I bought Grapefruit and fell in love so had to pick up a few more colours as the range of them is lovely!



Greenberry

Greenberry

Lychee

Papaya

Papaya





The consistency of the Barry M Gelly Hi Shines is all fairly similar despite the shades, so I don't really feel the need to talk about them all individually! I really love the glossy finish on all of them, it makes them look freshly painted all the time! They all last a good few days before chipping, although I put Lychee on yesterday and already have a few chips out of it! I'll put this down to the fact that I only used one coat and didn't put a base/top coat on. My favourite however has to be Papaya. I just think it's such a lovely colour and perfect for spring!

Have you tried any of these nail polishes? Let me know!



Marisa 
 





Friday 5 April 2013

Barry M, Topshop Blush and Beauty Blender dupe ♥



Hello again! 

Recently stole this Barry M nail polish from my sister as I was really excited to try out the new(ish) Gelly Hi Shine range. She picked up this colour in Grapefruit and it is gorgeous! 






I really want to try out this range in a few more shades but haven't had the chance yet, so let me know if there's any colours that you're liking and I'll give them a go! This nail polish really is gorgeous, you only need one coat as it's super opaque which is my favourite quality in a nail varnish. It lasts really long and doesn't chip for ages. I shall definitely be purchasing more! 






I've been really wanted to try out a cream blush for a while now, and I heard this was a good one. I purchased this blush from Topshop in 'Morning Dew' (which sounds SO nice). It's really lovely and blends really easily into your cheeks. It also lasts a long time. Definitely a new favourite of mine!


Lastly I purchased this Beauty Blender dupe from H&M as I'd heard that they're great but I wasn't prepared to spend so much on a sponge when I don't really use them very much. As for this product, it was good and did make the finish on my foundation look really nice. However, I don't think I'll be using it much as I just prefer the accuracy of applying my foundation/concealer by hand. I feel like sponges just absorb too much of the foundation and not enough actually goes on your face. Makes me very glad that I didn't purchase a real one!




Mini haul ♥


A few more items that I've been spending my money on when I probably shouldn't have! I picked up Neutrogena's Visibly Clear pink grapefruit daily scrub and facial wash, Rimmel 'Wake Me Up' foundation, Rimmel Match Perfection powder and Rimmel's lasting finish 1000 kisses lip stain. 



Firstly, I've been lusting after these products for ages when I saw that Superdrug had an offer of 2 for £4.50, which is an absolute bargain when they're around £4 each any way! I've been in need of a daily scrub and face wash for so long so was really excited about trying this product. For a start, they both smell absolutely gorgeous, and this was the main reason I was so drawn to them! I'm literally a sucker for anything nice or sweet smelling. The scrub's exfoliating particles really feels like they are working, and the facial wash feels really refreshing. As for how my skin looks, I have to say that I haven't noticed a huge difference, but I have only been using them a few weeks so I'll have to keep you updated! 





Next, and the only reason I went in to Superdrug was to purchase this foundation! It's constantly raved about by a lot of bloggers so wanted to see what all the fuss was about and I needed to purchase a new foundation any way. I purchased this colour in 100 Ivory and it's a good match for my skin, if not a little too pale, but the powder evens that out. I do like the consistency of this foundation, it's smooth and silky and has a nice dewy finish. I've been using this a lot, it really is a great high street foundation. The only negative I'd have is that I wish it had a little more staying power. Even with primer and powder, it doesn't last quite as long as I'd like it to as it has quite a medium-light coverage. Overall a good product though. 



As usual, Rimmel had a 3 for 2 deal on, so I picked up this powder and lip tint. I really love this powder. I think I got this in Ivory and it has a really nice finish to it. It's great for oily skin and is really soft. I've also been using this a lot!
   
  

Lastly, I picked up this Rimmel 1000 Kisses Lip Tint & Balm in 130 'Don't Stop Blushing'. It's a lovely shade and I really liked this the first few times I used it. However, it doesn't last that long (30 minutes?) before having to reapply, which isn't what you want from a lip tint. I do like the built in balm as the tint does tend to feel like it dries out your lips. However, the smell is really refreshing and quite watermelon-like which is nice. I feel like this product won't last very long, as the nip is already to dry out a bit! 


If you've tried any of these products, let me know what you think!


Barry M nail polish

Well, it's exam season so naturally I'll be procrastinating as much as physically possible. I've bought FAR too much lately so expect a fair few blog posts coming your way about a variety of beauty/clothes/home related things. 

Firstly, I thought I'd start with this Barry M nail polish in 'Blue Moon'. 


In the Boots, I thought it looked like a gorgeous pastel-y pale blue colour, and was slightly disappointed that it didn't really come out exactly like that. Whilst I still like the colour, it's more of a pale grey/blue and it's not very opaque like most Barry M nail paints are. A few coats and it is quite nice, although not really what I expected! As usual with most Barry M nail paints, it is fairly long lasting and quite chip resistant, even for me!



So there's just a quick review of a Barry M nail paint that I purchased recently. Hope you enjoyed!


If there's any nail polish colours that you're loving, let me know! I'd love to try some new ones out.