Review - MAC Nightmoth lip pencil

9 Nov 2014







Hey everyone!
Today I have a little review of one of my recent MAC  buys - Night moth lip pencil. If you have read my blog before you may know I am a huge dark lipstick fan and with the winter months drawing in I thought this was the right time to share with you the ultimate dark lip colour.
Nightmoth is described on the website as a blackened plum and I would say that is pretty accurate - this color is definitely not for the faint hearted and I have had a few strange looks from people at work when I wear this, it really does look black on the lips - perfect for halloween/ fancy dress or nights out, this color just adds a really cool dramatic vibe to any makeup look. I like to wear this sheered out slightly with my all time favourite lipstick darkside over the top.
If you are really into dramatic bold lips I would definitely recommend this pencil although the formula can be quite dry I find that if mixed with a similar coloured lipstick it becomes a bit more comfortable and wearable on the lips. The only thing I do not like about this is (as you can see from the picture above) it does tend to cling to dry spots and not appear even coloured in parts.
Either way I have really been loving wearing this recently!

The new addition.

20 Oct 2014







Hey guys,
I thought I should introduce this blog to my new little bundle of fluff, this is Thomas my new little black and white kitten - Thomas is a stray cat I found one day walking to work. After weeks of trying to find his owner with no success and him not being chipped, myself and my family decided to take him in.
We have guessed he is about 4 - 5 months old and believe that he was previously in a home as I found him wearing a collar but had been abandoned by a train station near my home. Despite having older cats Tom has settled in really well, he is quite a lot to handle as with any kitten but he is the most adorable little thing ever!

Just for reference I do not condone people finding 'stray' cats on the street and taking them home as there is a chance they may belong to someone, but as this cat was only a baby and very skinny I decided that the best thing to do was to take him home, feed him and attempt to find his owner that way. It just so happens that this particular owner did not want to be found and was happy to get rid of him. 
If you are worried about a stray cat or dog in your area then my best advice would be to try and get the animal to the nearest vets and get them checked for a chip it is the best way to find their home

As a side note, I will never understand why people continue to abandon poor defenseless cats and dogs  - there are so many shelters and options for people who cannot handle their pets - the main one being don't get an animal if you are worried in anyway about not being able to look after it. Animals are a huge commitment and are not something that can be gotten rid of if they become an inconvenience - I fully support the idea that not everybody should have the right to adopt an animal and believe there needs to be more regulations to prevent so many abandoned animals.   
If you haven't already guessed this is something I feel very passionate about this topic haha!

On to something a bit more cheery - I used my brand spanking new camera for these pictures and really like the way they came out I hope you can notice the improvement in quality! I am now using the Canon Eos M and would thoroughly recommend for someone, like me, who is not interested in having a huge DSLR but wants the picture quality, its the perfect little bridge camera between your classic point and shoot and SLR. 

Mini MAC Haul

18 Sept 2014


Hey guys 
A couple of weeks ago I had my first pay  from work so obviously had to make an obligatory order from the MAC website, I actually went on to pick up a few bits from the new A Novel Romance collection but as with all MAC collections, I was too late and all the good bits had sold out. Instead I decided to get a few products I have been desperate to get my hands on for ages. 

The first thing I added to my shopping bag was Up The Amp lipstick - an amplified lavender violet, I've been after this for ages and as I do love my purple coloured lip products. Being an amplified formula the colour is very vibrant and pigmented. I haven't worn this properly yet but from the look for the swatches it is a lot more subtle than I expected!

Following the lip product trend, I picked up night moth lip pencil - a blacked plum. This is probably my favourite of all the things I got, I am a huge fan of dark lipstick but this is the ultimate one, On the lips Nightmoth is almost black with a slight plummy undertone, I haven't been brave enough to wear this out yet as it is quit striking but I love it.

The Next two things come as a pair- firstly I picked up a new pro pallet I decided to get the duo compact as I was looking to buy my first ever MAC eyeshadow, I have been looking for a new eyebrow product for ages - I naturally have really thick dark eyebrows so I find powder shadow the best thing to use as it doesn't look to harsh. After reading a lot of reviews I settled on the colour brun - a cool toned dark brown, because it is so ashy it looks so natural through my brows and suits my colouring perfectly. I would definitely recommend this shadow to anyone with dark brows looking for something a bit more natural looking than a pencil.
   

August Blues.

29 Aug 2014






Hey Everyone!

I have been thinking about dying my hair blue for a long time now, I really love the look of having colourful hair again but it still being quite muted and grown up looking. I love the navy blue colour these girls are sporting on the pictures above and I think that would be a bit more flattering on my skin tone.
 Despite being quite a frequent hair dyer in my past I've had the same brown hair for about 2 years now and I am starting to get a little bored if I'm honest and fancy a change. I have heard a few horror stories about blue hair so If any of you guys have any tips about going blue I would really appreciate hearing about them!

While I'm here I feel I should apologize for going AWOL recently, I find if I don't post for a week or so its so much harder to get back into it and the time just flies by! I have been really busy recently with work and life in general but I won't bore you all with that, I have some posts in the pipeline so hopefully won't be disappearing again any time soon.
 
Also a big hello to all my new followers!!


Review // Sleek blush by 3 - Pink Lemonade

6 Aug 2014




Sleek blush by 3 in Pink Lemonade £9.99 (Link)

I'm a sucker for a pretty pink blush, so a cute set containing three pretty pink blushes was bound to catch my eye. Sleek blush by 3 in Pink lemonade has been in my possession for a good few months now but it has never really made it's way into my everyday routine but however I've been pulling it out lately and really loving the results!
  I've been a  fan of sleek for a couple of years now every product I've tried from them I have been really impressed with. My two stand out products have to be their shadows and blushes - the colours and pigmentation are some of the best on the high street and their prices are unbeatable for the quality of products in my opinion.
Pink Lemonade is a trio of pink hued blushes - two powder and one cream offering the first being Pink mint, my personal favourite in the palette, a soft baby pink with a golden shimmer that gives a beautiful highlighting glow to the cheeks - perfect for when your skin is looking a little more lackluster than usual.
Macaroon is a mid toned cream blush, I have to say I don't really use cream blushes, I find them quite difficult to work with and much more of a 'faf' to apply when compared to powder blush, nevertheless Macaroon is a pretty colour - a lot rosier in comparison with the other two in the palette and the consistency is really creamy and sets like a powder if you like cream blush this one is a really nice one!
Icing sugar is the more coral of the 3 colours, like pink mint there is a golden shimmer running through this blush giving that beautiful glow to the skin - I think this colour would look gorgeous with a tan, like the rest of the blushes Icing sugar is very pigmented, for everyday I like to layer this on top of pink mint for a hint of colour without going overboard.
I am really enjoying using this palette at the moment, I would recommend this to any blush lover like myself and I will be definitely checking more of these Sleek palettes out in the future!


Birthday wishlist!

1 Aug 2014

Birthday wishlist updated





Hey guys! 
So my birthday is rapidly approaching and I will be turning the grand old age of 23 in 3 weeks, so I thought I would share a few items I have on my birthday wishlist at the moment!

Jess x





Quick review // Clinique chubby stick with Glamour magazine

27 Jul 2014


Like a lot of people, I am a sucker for a magazine freebie, the good ones don't come around as often as I like but when they do I will always try to snap them up. Recently I saw a few people buzzing about the current offerings from Glamour magazine, I decided to head over to my local co-op and pick up a copy. There were 3 different products to choose from all from Clinique I opted for the chubby stick - the colour looked pretty and I've actually wanted to try one for a long time. The product itself is of course a sample size but you do get a decent amount of product for the £2 price tag of the magazine.
The colour I got was 06 woppin' watermelon - love the name, not too fussed on the product. The first thing I noticed when first applying this was that it was unscented, slightly disappointing - I know that Clinique are known for their non scented products but for my lipsticks I do like a nice smell. The product itself is comfortable on the lips they're smooth and not at all sticky, the colour  is a pretty mid toned pink which is quite glossy however, there isn't a lot of colour payoff it's more of a lip balm in my opinion.
 Unfortunately I don't actually like the colour and I don't find glossy lips very flattering on me so I probably won't be wearing this a lot.
 All in all I am happy to have got this for free and I will probably use it up at some point but I do not think I would repurchase this particular colour, If I were to find a darker colour like voluptuous violet I could possibly be tempted but at £17 I don't think they are worth the price tag and you can find plenty of comparable lip sticks in boots for a fraction of the price.

Current favourite scents

20 Jul 2014



Dolce & Gabbana pour femme 50ml: £61.50 (Link)
Michael Kors sexy Amber 30ml: £37.50 (Link)
The body shop Madagascan vanilla flower fragrance mist: £7.50 (Link)
Hey guys!
When it comes to beauty if  there is one thing that excites me most - it is fragrance, I think its just that little bit more luxurious than spending money on make up. For a long time I would just stick to a few firm favourites and never try anything new, I can't tell you how many bottles of Marc Jacobs Daisy or Chloe, I've been through over the years. It was only after I started working on a perfume counter and had unlimited access to pretty much every fragrance on the market that I started to discover new some new favourites. I've rounded up my top 3 fragrances of the moment and why I am loving them.


Dolce and Gabbana are on top of their game when it comes to fashion but they also have some of the most popular fragrances on the market at the moment, one being 'pour femme'. The original pour femme fragrance was the first from the brand launched in 1992 and re promoted in 2012 in new packaging and with a slightly new scent, with top notes of tangerine, raspberry and neroli, middle notes include jasmine and orange blossom all resting over the base notes of marshmallow, sandalwood and vanilla. The scent, as you may be able to guess, is quite sweet while still being floral - I am not usually a fan of overly sweet or floral scents, I find them quite sickly and overpowering, this scent however is neither. I would say it is quite age universal not too young or too mature, it is the perfect smell for someone like me who enjoys feminine, sexy scents that are easy to wear and appropriate for everyday and evening. I always purchase the eau de parfum versions of perfumes, it is always worth paying a little bit more for the extra wear time. This particular perfume has a really good lasting power in my opinion it can last anywhere between 4-8+ hours on me. 

Michael kors sexy Amber is part of the Michael Kors collection, before starting work at the counter I didn't actually realise Michael Kors had their own fragrance collection, they are a relatively new release (2013) but I just don't think there has been enough advertisement for them meaning they were always pushed to the bottom of the counters where the other not so popular fragrances went. I discovered this perfume on one of my quests for something to wear on shift and fell in love, with notes of amber, white flowers and sandelwood, sexy amber is a warming, deep, woody fragrance that is a lot more mature than anything else I have, but definitely not verging on 'old lady' mature. I find the wear time to be really good for this particular perfume, again I have the eau de parfum version so and find that I can smell it on my clothes days after I have worn it.  The packaging is really nice and looks sophisticated on my dressing table, it is also the same packaging as Michael Kors makeup collection with corresponds with the names of the scents in this collection. 

This little guy from The Body Shop is the newest addition to my fragrance collection, I have always loved The Body Shop for there perfumes I have spoke here before about my love for the white musk perfume - one of my all time faves. There are tons and tons of perfumes to choose from in this collection but being a huge vanilla fan I went for this one and I absolutely love it I don't know what It is that I like so much but the smell is a perfect mixture of sweet and floral but not overpowering either way, however, if you aren't a fan of vanilla I would recommend you steer clear of this one as  . A negative for me would be the wear time for this perfume isn't great, it is marketed as a fragrance mist because of this they don't last very long at all once you spray the smell has usually all but disappeared within about an hour, because of this I usually chuck it in my handbag and use it to freshen up on the go the packaging is quite bulky so that can be annoying but this problem is easily solved with a travelo.

Do you have any perfume reccomedations for me, let me know I always like to try new things!


FOTD & Mac Candy yum yum mini review

11 Jul 2014





Benefit the porefessional primer 
NARS pure radiant tinted moisturizer 
MAC studio finish concealer NW15 (under eyes)
Collection lasting perfection concealer 
Maybelline colour tattoo in pink gold for base
Combination of Toasted, Naked and Hustle from Naked palette 
Rimmel khol kajal pencil in pure white for inner corners + brow bone
Sleek storm palette black & brown from brows
NARS Laguna bronzer
NARS Desire Blush 
MAC Soft & Gentle for highlighter
L'Oreal volume million lashes 
MAC Candy yum yum 

A pretty simple look from me today, I have really been loving a good old bold lip of late so I thought I would showcase a fairly new addition to my ever expanding lip product collection - Candy Yum Yum.
Candy Yum Yum, as the name suggests, is a matte, blue toned, bold candy pink, just the right amount of bold without verging into unwearable territory. 
 I think this colour is perfect for the summer months, it's the sort of shade you can slap on with everyday boring makeup and instantly makes you look like you've put in loads of effort - anything that saves me time getting ready is a winner in my book!
I would highly recommend this lipstick to any lip product junkie like myself, but if £15.50(?!?)  for a lipstick is out of the question then I really think you should take a look at the Bourjois rouge edition velvet lipstick in 'pink pong', not quite an exact colour match but the finish is almost identical (Bourjois applies as a liquid, drys matte) and for £8.99 they are practically a steal (sort of).

Pros:
Highly pigmented
Long wearing
Vivid colour

Cons:
Slightly drying on lips 
Can settle into cracks and sticks to dry patches 

Have you tried this lipstick? 



ASOS Picks

9 Jul 2014

Untitled #1





A few things I have been lusting after recently on ASOS!

Catching up.

6 Jul 2014


Recording the soundtrack for my friends original musical. Beautiful Carlisle. Ice cream. 3 years in a photo collage. Sayin' goodbye to good old 62.  Lunch by the river in Chester. Graduation ball. Classic English summer.

  • I've been seriously neglecting this blog so badly over the past few months, I even missed my 1st year blog anniversary last month!! I think I've always had big plans for this blog but they have never come to fruition and if I'm honest my heart just wasn't in it enough to bother with posting regularly. I'm feeling really inspired to blog again recently I love writing my thoughts on this page and really miss it when I don't! I'm hopefully getting myself a DSLR camera for my birthday in August and with that I'm planning to start posting better photos and outfit snaps - something I have wanted to incorporate on here from the beginning. I'm hoping it'll make my blog feel a lot more personal and unique to me!

  • I have finally finished university, Hallelujah! I can't quite believe I actually managed to get through 3 years there, I've come a long way from the girl in first year who was planning on dropping out in the summer. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed uni and made some amazing friends and memories but I am definitely happy it's over with, I think I'm just ready to do other things with my life!  I got my final grades this week too and I found out I will be graduating in November with a 2:2, I won't lie I am a little bit gutted that I didn't get a 2:1 as I was on target to but I didn't get the grades I expected in my last 2 modules and it pulled me down (boo). Even though I know a 2:2 isn't a terrible grade I think it will always annoy me that I could/ should have done better.

  •  In other news, this week I also bagged myself my first ever full time job! I'm so chuffed and I didn't actually expect to get it at all after a really crappy 2 weeks this cheered me right up. It is not the most exciting job ever (admin) but it should be fine for me right now as I'm planning on working and saving up to go travelling hopefully sometime next year, exciting!


  • I have a new twitter account dedicated to this blog! I've only ever used Twitter from my personal account but never felt comfortable posting things about my blog on there, so I decided to make a new one I will tweet new posts and update all things blog related over there. If you wanna be a babe and give me a follow I would really appreciate it as I have no followers on there at the moment *sadface* you can follow me HERE.

Hope you have all had a fabulous weekend!

Currently Loving...

5 Jul 2014


Hey guys!
So because I don't get through enough new stuff each month to justify regular monthly favourites posts, I decided I'm going to share with you today a few things that have been tickling my fancy over the past few months.
Hope you enjoy! 
....

Benefit The porefessional primer:
This little guy has been living in the depths of my makeup bag for over 2 years now (yeah, gross, I know) Unused and unloved it wasn't until recently I pulled it out and rediscovered its mattifying wonderfulness! The porefessional does get it's fair share of hype in the beauty community and for good reason, it really is one of  the best primers out there in my opinion. It is oil free and silicone based so feels lovely and silky when applied onto skin, I don't have a massive problem with large pores so I don't know how well it works to minimize them, but I do find that this covers mine up but doesn't clog them up or break me out at all. My foundation applies seamlessly over this primer and I find I don't get as oily throughout the day when I'm wearing this. The only thing that puts me off this primer is the price tag at £24.50 I think it is completely, ridiculously overpriced, yet I will still continue to buy until I find an alternative *sigh*.

Primark aviator sunglasses
A bit of a random favourite this month but I have been loving wearing these aviator glasses, I've never gone for this style before but i'm really pleased with how they look. I love the simplicity of them and how they aren't too chunky or hard to style, they give a really effortlessly chic vibe and make me feel like Mary-Kate Olsen or something. (lol) Despite this pair being a little flimsy they have been well loved and for £2 you can't go wrong!

MAC studio finish concealer NW15:
A new discovery for me, I was on the look out for a  full coverage concealer a while back and after a reading a few reviews I decided on this over pro longwear. At first I found studio finish quite hard to work with and couldn't quite get it to work for me with a brush or with my fingers. After a bit of trial and error I have found this stuff to work best when warmed up and patted on with fingers. The formula is very creamy but this stuff is surprisingly full coverage, I predominantly use this under my eyes as I find it really brightens that area up, doesn't crease and stays put all day.

Maybelline color tattoo in on and on bronze:
Totally a year or so late on the 'on and on bronze' band wagon where have I been?! I really love this colour it's one of those perfect swipe and go products that look like you've made way more effort than you actually have. The colour gives depth to my eyes and really compliments my blue eyes and skin tone but I think it would look pretty on everyone, it is a universally flattering shade in my opinion.

Garnier moisture match for normal to dry skin:
I've been using this moisturiser for a long time now and this is actually my second tube of the stuff and I absolutely love it! I don't have especially dry or oily skin but this just keeps my skin soft and hydrated. There is nothing particularly exciting about this moisturiser, it's basic, it's cheap and gets the job done. Simples.

 MAC mineralize blush in Dainty: 
I'll be honest, I actually hated this blush when I first tried it out and proceeded to push it to the bottom of my makeup bag and continue to use other products. However, not being one to waste money I decided to pull it back out and give it a second chance. Dainty is a yellow toned pink with gold shimmer running through it, I don't find the shimmer in the pan translates on the face but it does give a slight sheen effect which I really like. The colour is really flattering on my fair skin and does a really good job of perking up my complexion and giving me a healthy glow.

Bourjois rouge edition velvet in Pink Pong: 
Oh lord, this has to be my ultimate favourite of the entire year so far! I am a self proclaimed lip product  addict and I will admit I get super excited when I see hype around new lipsticks, so you can imagine how thrilled I was about these bad boys and let me tell you - they do not disappoint. The rouge edition velvet's are liquid lipsticks that set matte on the lips. Super opaque from the first swipe the velvet's feel really smooth and comfortable when first applied (not a sticky lip in sight) they are seriously heavy duty in the staying put department-I can vouch for their longevity, I have worn this lipstick for at least a full day even after food and drink it was still going strong! Pink pong is a really vivid pink colour that looks absolutely stunning on the lips, It is my go to bold lip for nights out and I even wear this in the day if i'm feeling particularly brave. 


Have you tried any of these products?

I'm selling on Ebay!

2 Jul 2014



If you know me you will know I have a really annoying habit of selling EVERYTHING I own on Ebay. Every so often I get this overwhelming urge to have a clear out of my wardrobe and get rid of everything, It's no secret I have far too much stuff so I don't see it as a bad thing to earn a little bit back! 
I have updated my Ebay page and have put quite a lot of stuff up on there including some MAC products so if you're interested head on over HERE


Top 5 Nail Polishes for summer

23 Jun 2014


Cerise Shine, Blueberry, Orange Blossom, Prickly Pear, Coral Glaze


Models own Cerise shine (Buy)
Barry M Blueberry (Buy)
Revlon Parfumerie Orange blossom (Buy)
Barry M Prickly pear (Buy)
Models own Coral Glaze (Buy)

Models Own Hyper gel in Cherise shine:
I absolutely adore the formula of these polishes they go on opaque after just one coat and can last on the nails without chipping for a good week or so if you are careful. Cerise shine is a lovely bright pink colour that looks super glossy on the nails thanks to the gel formula. 

Barry M Gelly Polish in Blueberry:
A blogger favourite I love these Barry M Gelly polishes the wear time without chipping is the best out of all the gel polishes I have tried, the only thing I don't like about them is that they are a little bit wishy washy when you apply one coat it takes a good two or three for the colour to be opaque and even. Blueberry is a really pretty cornflower blue colour that looks super pretty and glossy on the nails.

Revlon Parfumerie in Orange Blossom:
I LOVE this polish the premise of the line is basically scented nail polish, sounds a bit gimmicky but I thought I would test it out anyway and I really really like them! The colour of this one is a beautiful true orange (my favourite) and the scent is an absolutely delicious fruity orange smell. In all honesty I didn't expect them to be as lovely smelling as they are, just don't be an idiot like me and smell it straight from the bottle because it only starts smelling nice once it dries! Oops!

  Barry M Gelly polish in Prickly Pear:
Again I love this polish and it is probably my most worn out of the 5 I've mentioned however as with Blueberry the formula is quite patchy but you can build it up and it lasts a good amount of time without chipping. The colour is a really beautiful lilac colour that looks lovely and a subtle pop of colour to any outfit.

Models Own Hyper Gel in Coral Glaze:
Coral glaze is, as you would assume from the name, a lovely true coral colour that looks gorgeous with a tan. These polishes are my first from the Models Own brand and after using them I will definitely be buying more!