SUMMER LIP COLOURS

NAILBOX | MAY 2015

NYC BEAUTY WISHLIST

Evening Everybody! How were all of your bank holiday weekends?! I can't believe its over already, Ive been busy all weekend with family meals and BBQs but managed to squeeze in writing this blog post!

MAYBELLINE | LASH SENSATIONAL

BLOGGING & A FULL TIME JOB

Evening everybody, what have you all been up to this weekend?

So i've been quite busy this week with work, which has meant I haven't had the time to focus on blogging - this has led to me writing this post on how I try to manage working full time and blogging!

Working in field sales means that I'm not based in an office which can be both a blessing and a curse, I have the luxury of being able to check emails and do my work from the comfort of my own home, however I can sometimes still be doing work at 9 or 10 at night to fit it all in. Quite often this can impact on the time i'd love to dedicate to my blog, which I also try to fit around having a social life, seeing my boyfriend and attempting to get to the gym.

Since I'm a new blogger I'm no expert on managing my blog and working full time, sometimes it does all get on top of me and my blog isn't updated as often as i'd like. However, I love blogging too much to let it get to me and try my best to make it all work. Here are some of my tips on making it work:

Planning - part of making my blog work is planning posts of the upcoming weeks, I try to have 3-4 blog posts planned or partly written so that when I eventually get the time to write some posts I can get straight to it. I try to post 2-3 times a week, normally once on a weekend and once or twice in the week. I do most of my planning on a weekend and try to get the bulk of the posts written so that when I want to post they are pretty much ready.

Photos - one of the best ways I find to manage my blog is to take all my photos at once, generally on a weekend so it's in the daylight rather than later on if I was doing it after work. Once I have taken all my photos I edit straight away and put then into folders on my laptop according to what each post is going to be. I find that this cuts off a lot of time that would go into writing a blog post.

Posting on the go - I think one of the greatest things about blogger is the app, it's great for writing posts on the go or if you have a post already finished you can publish it on the go. I quite often have posts almost finished and then if I'm away for work or out for the evening I can quickly finish and publish it. I've actually written the end of this post of the blogger app when I was away for the weekend!

Planning my diary - I find that planning my time around work, blogging and everything else helps me dedicate enough time for everything I need to do. For my job I plan my own time and set up my own appointments so my diary is planned meticulously to fit everything in. Once I have planned my working week which is my top priority, I can then plan my social life and blogging around it. I'm actually busy now every weekend unti the middle of June so I'm trying to plan my diary to fit in as much blogging time as possible.

These are just some of my tips for managing my blog and working a full time job. 

How best do you all manage working full time/studying and blogging?

Love,

Samantha xo

TOPSHOP BEAUTY HAUL

So in case some of you didn't know I'm off to New York in just under 4 weeks - I'm getting so excited even thinking about it!! I'm currently trying to save money and not buy any make up or clothes as I know I will be shopping until I drop when I'm out there, I already have a list as long as my arm of all the beauty products I want to buy out there.

My local Topshop doesn't actually have a beauty section so when I called into a bigger store in Cheltenham and saw they had a small selection I had to have a little browse. Also since Topshop make up isn't going to be cheaper in America it was only right I had to purchase some!

I can't actually believe that Topshop Beauty has just celebrated its 5th birthday! To mark the occasion they have released a limited edition collection, with a rose gold twist, of some of the best selling lipsticks, nail colours and a cream blush, highlighter pot and magic liner. In the past 5 years Topshop Beauty has fast become one of my favourite drug store beauty brands out there, with their adorable polka dot and striped packaging and impressive colour selection of lipsticks and nail varnishes!

 

Here are the lipsticks I picked up, the formulation of Topshop lipsticks is one of my favourites, they are well pigmented, creamy application and I find that they are long lasting and don't smudge! 

Nevada was the was the 2013 best selling lipstick in the 5th anniversary, its a pale creamy nude shade. This has a velvety finish but the application is still super creamy, I have only actually tried the colour on to see what it looks like and haven't worn it out so i'm unsure of the longevity of it. With paler nude shades I think they look best with a little colour on my skin so it may not be the best shade for those with paler skin. I have found this shade to be very similar to the shade Going Steady from SEVENTEEN (i've blogged about this previously here), however this shade isn't as peachy as Going Steady.

Innocent was another shade I picked up from the 5th Anniversary collection, it was the best selling shade from 2012 and is a gorgeous pale dusky pink shade with slight purple undertones. When I was in the store I thought this shade was a little more nudey than pink, I'm not sure if the store lighting made it seem that way. This is definitely my favourite out of the three and is such a lovely natural pink shade with a creamy finish.

Brighton Rock was the first one I was drawn to, this one isn't from the 5th Anniversary collection, but as soon as I saw it I knew I had to have it! It is a gorgeous hot pink shade with a matte finish, in my opinion this is one of those staple shades that everyone should have in their collection. Although this lipstick has a matt finish it isn't drying like other matte lipsticks and is just as moisturising as other Topshop lippies. 

I also picked up highlighter in Horizon, which is a gorgeous shimmery bronze shade. I have read quite a few blog posts who all rave about this highlighter so when I saw it I couldn't resist. I normally prefer to use a iridescent pink/yellow highlighters rather bronzey colours, with the NARS Copacabana being my all time favourite (blog post here), but I wanted a bronzy highlighter now that the summer is here. This shade is lovely for adding an all over glow to my face and it makes your face look lovely and bronzed in the sunlight. 

With the lipsticks priced at £8 and the highlighter at £10 these are definitely great value for money. 

What do you all think of these products?

Love,

Samantha xo

MAYBELLINE | COLOUR DRAMA INTENSE VELVET LIP PENCIL

 

Recently I've read so many blog posts raving about these new Colour Drama Intense Velvet Lip Pencils from Maybelline, I knew I had to try them out. Priced at £4.99 these are an absolute steal and I've heard they are a great dupe for the NARS lip pencils which are almost 4 times the price of these. I actually got these three colours on a 3 for 2 so it was less than £10 for all of them!

I was quite lucky when I was buying mine in Superdrug as they had all the colours to choose from, I've heard a lot of people say that they have almost sold out at their local stores! The collection has 10 different shades to choose from, including dark, intense purples and reds to subtle pinks and nudes.

When I first saw these pencils I thought they would be quite drying on my lips as they didn't look as creamy as some other lip pencils I have, however once I had applied them they were just as creamy and moisturising as a normal lipstick. The smaller tip of the pencil also provides you with a seamless application and doesn't smudge around the edges of the lips - you can also use them as a lip liner!

Fab Orange - I was drawn to this shade as I'm really into orangey red shades, this is a great dupe for MAC Lady Danger. 

In with Coral - This is a neon coral shade really is perfect for summer, the pigmentation of this is lovely and really makes your lips pop.

Minimalist - This is one of paler colours from the collection and has a slight hint of shimmer, it has more of a sheer finish compared to the other colours. The finish of this one reminds me a lot of the MAC lustre finish so its great for a adding some shimmer to your lips.

I hope you're all having a lovely weekend and enjoyed reading my blog post! 

What do you all think of these lip pencils?

Love,

Samantha xo

MAKEUP REVOLUTION I HEART MAKEUP | BLUSHING HEARTS

These cute heart shaped blushers, bronzers and highlighters have not been out that long and have already taken the beauty world by storm! I have read that these are a great dupe for the Too Faced Sweethearts Perfect Flush Blush, I have never actually tried the Too Faced version but from the look of them they are very similar just without the hefty price tag.

Makeup Revolution have 12 of these for you to choose from - 3 highlighters, 6 blushers and 3 bronzers!

Blushing Heart Triple Baked Blusher: This is probably one of the darker blushers from the collection, with three different shades inside which you can swirl together to get that perfect blush. This blush is really well pigmented and you get a splash of colour by adding just a little bit of the blush to your brush.

Goddess of Love Triple Baked Highlighter : This golden highlighter is such a pretty champagne shade, perfect for adding glow to bronzed skin. As with the blush this highlighter is very well pigmented and doesn't need a lot to add some glow. The highlighter adds more of a glow rather than a shimmer so you don't look too over done, its more of a sun kissed glow.

I hope you all enjoyed my review of these adorable Blushing Hearts - I can't wait to try out some of the different shades! Makeup Revolution have such an amazing collection of different products and their eyeshadow palettes are especially amazing!

These are priced at £4.99 so are super affordable, and are available from Superdrug or the Makeup Revolution Website.

I hope everyone is having a lovely bank holiday and enjoying the sunshine!

Love,

Samantha xo

NAILBOX | APRIL 2015

I've tried out a few different beauty boxes previously and I do think they are such a good idea. However, when you get several different sample/fullsized beauty products sometimes they can end up sitting and collecting dust as I don't like them or they don't suit me. So when I heard about Nailbox I knew this would be a beauty box I would definitely use all the products from.

With the Nailbox each month you receive three or four full size nail colours and a tool or a treatment for your nails. The Nailbox costs £15 (you can get it for a little cheaper if you pre-pay for a certain amount of time), I think this is such great value as some of the products you receive could cost up to £8/£9 on their own.

The Nailbox is sent out to you on the 21st of each month and mine had arrived within two days so you know when to expect it each month. The delivery is also free which is a great bonus!

So lets talk through the products I got in the box:

Essie Nail Lacquer in Muchi Muchi £7.99 (available here) - this is a creamy pastel pink shade with a glossy finish. Ive actually been after a pale pink nail varnish for a while now so i'm glad I received this colour. I haven't actually tried it yet however it does seem like one of those nail colours that would need a couple of coats. 

OPI Nail Polish in Kiss Me On The Tulips £11.95 (available here) - in massive contrast to the pale pink of Muchi Muchi this is a vibrant hot pink shade, which will help make anyones fingers stand out from the crowd. I was so happy when I saw this shade in my nail box as I'm obsessed with hot pink nail polishes!

China Glaze Nail Polish in Peachy Keen £4.95 - I've never actually used China Glaze nail polishes before, which is quite shameful as I am a nail polish addict, so I'm excited to try out this tropical orange shade. This creamy orange shade is such a lovely shade for summer and will look amazing with a tan, but it would also look great if you have pale skin.

Revlon Colourstay Nail Enamel in Buttercup £7.99 (available here) - this isn't a shade i'd normally be drawn to buying when looking at colours as it reminds me a little of the colour you paint your walls with! However, I tried this colour out the other day and its such a cute colour, the creamy formulation of this polish is amazing and it applied so evenly!

In the April box you also receive an Essie nail file which I unfortunately forgot to photograph.

The total cost of all the polishes is £32.88 which is over double the cost of the box so this is great value for money! Also I am guaranteed to use all the products and they won't sit collecting dust in some drawer with all my other unused beauty products.

I can't wait to receive my next Nailbox to see which selection colours I get, you can also subscribe to receive the box yourself here.

Love,

Samantha xo