June Favourites!

30 Jun 2013

A couple of beauty products I have been loving this month!


1. Rimmel salon pro nail polish - I have 3 of these polishes in new romantic, summer orange and soul session. have been wearing them all month, my favourite being summer orange a bright red toned orange perfect for summer. I will be definitely be adding more to my collection soon!

2. Maybelline color sensational lipstick: Neon red - I do love a good red lip to brighten any make up look and neon red has been my go to in recent weeks its a neon orange red (sense a theme?) which just compliments my skin tone and colouring perfectly! The finish is not too glossy and not too matte just a lovely combination of the two.

3. Garnier intensive 7 days ultra softening lotion - Basically just a really good, affordable body moisturiser. I don't know about it leaving your skin soft for 7 days I use this after I get out of the shower/bath and it leaves my skin feeling soft and nourished.

4. Inecto Pure coconut leave in conditioner - I picked this up in my local savers a few months ago for about £1.99 and since then I must have repurchased over 5 times. My favourite leave in conditioner, smells amazing and leaves my dry hair soft and tamed. If you have dry unmanageable hair I highly recommend checking this out!

5. Topshop cream blush in afternoon tea - I have such a love hate relationship with cream blushes I always love the colours but never enjoy the way they look on my skin. This blush is a really bright pink that blends wonderfully on to my cheeks and gives such a lovely natural flush of colour. I'm converted! 

(Hey guys if you like what you see on my blog then you can now follow me on bloglovin HERE)

Jess x







Perfect summer Pavlova.

29 Jun 2013


- 3 large eggs
- Double cream
- 175g Caster sugar 
-Strawberries (Or any summer fruit of your choice).
-Preheat your oven to 150°C

Step 1:
Separate 3 egg white into a large mixing bowl and begin to whisk. I would advise to use an electric whisk for a better result, faster.

Step 2:
Once the egg whites become thicker start to add the caster sugar small amounts at a time while still whisking.

Step 3:
When the egg whites have been whisked you should be able to lift the bowl above your head without the meringue moving from the bowl (be patient with this it takes time for the eggs to stiffen). One you are happy that the mixture is stiff enough you can begin to spoon it onto your baking tray, as you can see from the picture above I always use a sheet of baking paper on the tray so the meringue doesn't stick and is easier to peel off. I like to apply the mixture in round blobs in a circular shape so it almost looks like a flower i then fill in the middle section with more meringue.

Step 4:
To create the pretty swirly effect on the outer sections use a straw or skewer and just swirl it in the meringue and pull it up to get the peak at the top.

Step 5:
Put your meringue into the middle of the oven and cook for 1 hour.

Step 6:
You will notice that when you take your meringue out of the oven it will be cracked and if you tap and it sounds hollow and doesn't break then it should be done. I usually leave it out to cool for about an hour.

Step 7:

Once you're sure your meringue is cool you can begin making the cream filling, just simply pour out your tub of cream (or however much you think you will need its up to you, bare in mind once whisked it expands & gets thicker) and whisk until thick and apply it to your now cooled meringue.

Step 8:
You can now begin to add your strawberries, I cut them into halves or quarters depending on the size and arrange them in a circular shape all over the top of the pavlova.

Step 9: 

You're done, Enjoy! :)

Jess x
















Friday Favorite #1: Body shop white musk perfume

28 Jun 2013

Hey everyone!
The Friday favorite is going to be a little feature here on my blog where each Friday I will write up a post about something I have been loving recently, it really could be anything from an eye shadow, a pair of jeans or an app! :)
The body shop white musk 30ML Eau De Parfum £13.00 (Link)

As a woman always on the hunt for a new perfume to add to my collection I've surprisingly always overlooked the body shop fragrances, despite being a huge fan of a lot of their other products. All that changed when I browsing my local branch one day I stumbled across the white musk collection, more specifically the white musk perfume, a best seller at The Body Shop.
From the first spritz of this perfume I was sold, the scent is a light, creamy, clean, fresh scent, perfect for day time wear in my opinion. As a person who doesn't like sweet, sickly, girly fragrances this was right up my street. I also really like the packaging, the bottle is clear but fades into lilac colour at the bottom, it's also small enough to fit comfortably in your handbag!
 I decided to purchase the eau de parfum, as I do in all fragrances because the scent is usually stronger and lasts longer on the skin, however I have to say the longevity of this fragrance isn't that great and I do find myself having to reapply throughout the day. 
If I had to explain to somebody what I look for in a fragrance then I would instantly point them in the direction of this perfume. I don't know what it is about white musk that appeals so much to me but I just cannot get enough!

While this perfume might not be to everybody's taste and can come over a bit 'grannyish' for those of you that prefer sweeter scents but If you are like me and tend to go for fresh, grown up scents then I would definitely recommend giving it a test next time you're in a Body shop   

Have you tried any of the white musk products or any other fragrances from the Body Shop?

Jess x












Update.

24 Jun 2013

It's currently 1.30am, i'm sat in my Pj's watching reruns of Keeping up with the Kardashians so I thought this would be a perfect time to write a little update!

I've had such a lazy weekend, I don't know whats up with me but I much prefer getting in my onesie and watching TV than going out on the town these days, maybe its my age or maybe it's the fact I'm trying to save my money for my holiday In 2 weeks (eek!) but it just doesn't appeal to me much anymore, too many bad memories and embarrassing photos have sworn me off I suppose! 

I am currently in the process of trying to find a job for summer which is proving to be harder said than done. I've never really had much trouble finding jobs in the past and I've worked pretty much consistently since I was 15 but since I started at uni 2 years ago its been impossible to find anything! I worked at a beauty counter for 2 months over Christmas but wasn't kept on after that because I was at university and that would be my main  priority. I don't get it, since when did trying to further your education and working towards a better future for yourself become such a big turn off for future employers?!

Today I was in the mood for a change so I decided to dust off my scissors and cut myself a fringe. I've never had a problem with cutting my own hair and used to do it a lot in my younger days. I am happy with the results, I think as long as you're careful and know what you're doing then it's fine. I'll probably be bored of it in a few weeks but it's nice for a bit of a change, life as a brunette can be mighty dull sometimes!

I hopefully have some exciting things happening with this blog soon, its looking a little bare at the minute but I'm currently in the process of getting a new blog design which is really exciting and I can't wait to see everything come together a bit more! I'm planning to post a lot more regularly too now I have more free time so watch this space!! 

If you fancy, you can also follow me on twitter and instagram here and here
 I'm also on bloglovin' :)

Jess x

First impressions & Review: Maybelline Dream pure BB

23 Jun 2013

So a couple of weeks ago I found myself, as I usually do, trawling the aisles of boots on the hunt for some bits and bobs for my upcoming holiday hoping to find a hidden gem, enter Maybelline dream pure BB cream.
Like everyone else over the past year or so we've all been lured in by the idea of BB creams aka blemish balms; A clever little product that claims to act as 5/8/10 in 1 products moisturising, evening skin tone, minimising pores and providing great coverage all in one handy little tube. Sounds perfect right? Er, well unfortunately not. Ever since BB creams burst on to the beauty scene a couple of years ago I for one have been somewhat dissapointed by the selection on offer, I am a high street girl so naturally I was excited to test out this highly coveted product but what I was faced with wasn't really anything to write home about. The first thing I found a major issue with was the colour ranges, all the BB creams I used were either way to pink or way way too orange for my very fair skin and always looked really odd on me. The next issue was with the skin benefits which I personally didn't experience any of. So after trying out a few different brands and being disappointed by their offerings, I had all but given up on the BB cream dream. 



That was until I picked up this little beauty a few weeks ago, like all BB creams this product claims to be a miracle 8 in 1 product; conceals imperfections, protects against blemishes, hydrates and smooths, compliments skin tone, among others. While I'm not convinced by all of that, I still think this is a lovely little product. Firstly the colour is perfect I picked up the shade 'light' which is the palest colour of the two in the collection and it suits my skin tone perfectly it isn't too pink or too orange and even when applied to the skin I find that this product doesn't oxidize into a different colour and stays looking natural. It glides on smoothly and evens my skin tone, In terms of coverage I would say it is light to medium and isn't as sheer as I would have first thought, it's definitely buildable too in places you need that extra coverage which I definitely do and this teamed with a bit of my 'collection lasting perfection concealer' suits me fine. I find that through the day this product wears well on the skin and doesn't  go patchy however, its definitely not perfect, I tested this on a relatively hot day and combining that with my oily skin I did find I needed to retouch throughout the day which is to be expected but  at the same time something to be aware of. I was also intrigued by the 2% salicylic acid contained inside which claims to fight blemishes, I have quite spot prone skin so anything that claims to help is a bonus for me, so far I haven't noticed much difference but it is only early days. 
All in all I am very pleased with this product. While I did purchase it solely to wear on holiday I've found myself reaching for this everyday, as a full coverage foundation lover its been nice to have something lighter on my skin, especially with the hot weather we've been having in the UK recently! I would definitely recommend this product if your looking for a new base or just something lighter for the summer! 

Jess x




25 Random Facts About ME!

18 Jun 2013


1. My favourite food is cheese. I adore it, and embarrassingly eat it with most meals.
2. My most hated foods are mushrooms, tomatoes, mash potato and ketchup.
3. My favourite place I've ever been on holiday is Florida.
4. I love any form of american reality/ crappy TV, I will literally watch anything!
5. I am 5 foot tall, I actually haven't grown since I was 13!
6. I am a huuuge animal lover, like huge. 
7. My favourite animals are elephants! 
 8. I can't stand tattoos 
9. I used to have my nose pierced until it fell out and closed up *sadface*
10. I actually started this blog over a year ago with a different name but was too scare to post anything
11.I have seen every episode of Friends hundreds of times and could probably recite every one word for word
12. Lateness, fakeness and ignorance are my biggest pet hates
13. I have a very random taste in music, anything from musicals to heavy metal.
14. My biggest passion is musical theatre and am currently studying for a degree in it.
15. cocktails are my fave, more specifically, Mojitos.
16. I hate watching films and on the rare occasion I do and I enjoy the film I will watch it so many times I end up hating it again.
17. I'm a very optimistic person and try to look on the bright side of everything.
18. I'm actually a very reserved person IRL
19. I dye my hair far too much and have probably had it every colour imaginable over the years.
20. I am never wrong...
21. Surprisingly, I can be quite stubborn 
22.  I'm a  total cat person and have 2 of my own 
23. I have an irrational fear of having my picture taken by other people 
24. Everyone I have ever seen in concert has split up not too long after... Fallout boy, anyone?
25. My favourite colour is Neon Orange

Phew, who would have thought thinking of 25 *interesting* things about your self would be so difficult?! I'm not even going to embarrass my self by admitting how long this took me!

Jess x






Everyday Make up #1

17 Jun 2013

Hello there!
So here is a round up of the products I typically reach for on a day to day basis. I opted for fairly minimal make up today as I was just running a few errands. 



- Benefit the porefessional primer 
- Rimmel wake me up foundation in 100 Ivory
-L'oreal lumi magique concealer in 1 light used under the eyes
-Collection lasting perfection concealer in 1 fair used for blemishes 
-Rimmel stay matte transparent power dusted over T zone
- Natural collection duo eyeshadow in mocha/latte for brows 
-Benefit Dallas used to warm up the face
- Topshop cream blush in afternoon tea 
-MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in soft and gentle
- L'oreal super liner in black 
- Benefit They're Real mascara 
-MAC lipstick in Hue
.......

And there we have it, 
 Quite a hefty amount of products for a no makeup, makeup day I have to admit... 



Jess x


An Introduction.

14 Jun 2013

So, this is it! My first ever blog post.

I think I should start by introducing myself; I'm Jess, I am an all singing all dancing, beauty & fashion obsessed 21 year old student currently residing in the north west of England! 

(A very snazzy shot of me took by one of my friends)

I guess the main reason for me starting up this little corner of the internet is because of how much I enjoy reading blogs myself, I've had to desire to start my own for a long time but finally I decided to bite the bullet and just go for it!
This blog is basically a free space for me to play around with and channel my creativity, document life happenings and basically have a bit of a ramble, I am super excited to get stuck in!  

Anyway, I think that's enough from me for now... 


Jess x