Some Elf bits and bobs :-)

Hi Ladies,

I thought I'd give you a quick run down of a few elf products I have purchased in recent months!
First up is two of the single eyeshadows from the studio range, Sand dollar on the left and butter cream on the right.

I bought these when I was on the quest for a natural eyeshadow to wear all over my lid on a day to day basis. These are the two lightest eyeshadows elf do in their studio line, and although they are both pretty I have to say they are not quite the colours I expected from the swatches on the website, butter cream in particular is alot more yellow toned than it looks on the website. Sand dollar is completely white with some shimmer - very pretty for brightening up the inner corner. The pigmentation of these eyeshadows is ok. Not bad but definately not the best, I think the darker eyeshadows in this range probably have better pigmentation. The best thing about these shadows is the little mirror on the inside which is always handy!

Next up is by far one of my favourite elf products - the warm bronzer from the studio range.

I am sure you will have already heard about this bronzer but just incase you havn't the first thing I will say is that it is a total bargain for £3.50! It contains four colours which you can either blend togther or use alone. I mix them together and apply lightly with a big fluffy brush for a lovely natural sunkissed glow! The only problem I have with this product is that this is my 2nd bronzer and both of mine shattered once I hit pan on them, the same happened to my sisters and I don't think the pan holds the product particulary well so you have to be quite careful with it!

and finally, the studio powder brush.

I love this brush! It is so versatile, I have used it to apply mineral foundation, bronzer, blusher, powder and even liquid foundation! It is kind of like a flat topped kabuki but with a longer handle! When I first used this brush I was amazed by how soft it was, it feels lovely and smooth on your skin - definately one of my top elf purchases! I have quite a few elf brushes both from the studio range and the normal range and I'm always impressed with their quality.

Thats all for now! Hope you're having a fab week!

My Favourite Seris part 5......Nail Polish

Hi Ladies,

Today its time for the 5th part of my favourite seris, my favourite nail polish. Picking the nail polish in question was actually alot easier than I thought, because this is the one I always reach for whenever I can't decide what colour I want to paint my nails. So the top spot goes to BarryM's Nail paint in number 280 violet gold shimmer :-)

I absolutely adore this colour, its is a really pretty pale lilac with a fabulous gold shimmer, unlike anything else in my nail polish collection. The colour payoff is fab after two coats and it wears really well with minimal chipping. Big thumbs up for barryM! :-)

and now to the runners up;

• OPI Black Cherry Chutney (I've talked about this so much lately it had to be in here too!)
• Collection 2000 Hot looks in Wham (really gorgeous pale grey colour)
• OPI Mod about you (for super pretty pink nails!)

What is your favourite nail polish?

Ins and Outs :-)

Hi Ladies,

Its been a while since I did one of these posts so I thought I would update you on what is in and whats out for me :-)

In
OPI's Black cherry chutney - I adore this nail varnish and find myself reaching for it all the time at the moment, nails of the day post coming up!

The BBC's new programme Over The Rainbow starting this weekend - I love these kind of programmes and I think Charlotte Church will make a fab judge!

bye bye uggs, hello pumps! - I love my uggs to bits, but it has been nice to wear pretty pumps now the days are getting a bit sunnier. I bought a really cute new pair from topshop last week and I've worn them ever since!

New York - My boyfriend booked for us to go to New York this summer as a suprise for my birthday and I can't wait! I've never been before and its somewhere I've always wanted to go, I feel very spoilt!

(photo from www.weheartit.com)

Out

Essays and exams - They're always in my out's!

Jumpers which leave fluff on everything they touch - I have a lovely jumper from river island and I always forget why it is I never wear it, I soon realise when I put it on!

That broken half a biscuit left in the bottom of a biscuit tin - always a disappointment when you have a lovely cup of tea and no biscuits to dunk. (this happened to me last night!)

Thats all for now! Hope you're all well and the sun is shining atleast a little bit where you are!

REVIEW: Sally Hansen Rapid Finish - Nail colour dryer

Hi Ladies,

I absolutely love painting my nails, however once I have finished painting them I can barely sit still for two seconds before running off to do somethings else and as a result my nails rarely look perfectly polished. I had thought about purchasing the Nails Inc fast dry spray but for £8.00 it was a little too pricey for me! So when I spotted Sally Hansen's rapid finish nail colour dryer in a local discount store for £1.99 I couldn't wait to get it home and try it out!

So what do Sally Hansen say about this product?

''This fast-drying spray guarantees a perfect manicure everytime! Dries to the touch in 30 seconds to help prevent smudges, smears and dents. Exclusive formula with shea butter, jojoba and sweet almond oils deeply conditions hands, nails and cuticles.''

and what do I think?

I am really pleased I puchased this product, I think it was an absolute bargain! Although it doesn't completely dry your nails after 30 seconds, they are dry to touch and not tacky, so you can go about your normal business with less worry of smudging or smearing your freshly painted nails. When using this, my nails feel completely dry much quicker than normal, and they have a lovely shiney finish :-). Although I really like the fact this product is a spray and not an aerosol, at first I was a bit put off by the fact that I couldn't concentrate the product onto my nails, and with just one spray my fingers and hands would be covered in the product. However when I realised how moisturising it is, especially on my cuticles, I didn't mind at all! Although it does have a strong smell, it is of almond oil so is actually quite nice! The only negative point I have is that the spray is very oily, so make sure you're not wearing you're favourite dress when you use it!

Overall I would give this product 4/5 and a big thumbs up, its definately worth a try if you come across :-)

Have a lovely weekend!

My Favourite Series Part 4....Eyeshadow

Hi Ladies!

It is time for the fourth part of my favourite series and todays product is eyeshadow. It was really hard for me to pick this one because there are so many eyeshadows which I really love, then ones that are a bit more boring to look at but I wear all the time - so I went for one which I love to look at and love to wear and it is.....*drum roll!*........Stila Barefoot Contessa :-)

This is actually my 2nd Barefoot Contessa, which is testament to how much I love this eye shadow as there are only a handful of eyeshadows which I have ever had to repurchase! It is a gorgeous dark burgundy/plum brown with a very slight gold shimmer. It applys and blends well, looks lovely in the crease for a smokey look or lightly dusted over the lid for an all over colour. Its really easy to build on this shadow if you want a more intense colour so I use it for day and for night :-) I own quite a few stila shadows and i'm always impressed by their quality. The pigmentation is great, and they staying power is fantastic. My only grumble is that they all come in pan form so you have to pay extra for the magnetic holders and palettes.

and now the runners up!

• MAC Knight Divine (for the perfect smokey eye)


• MAC Brule (A perfect everyday lid colour)


• Estee Lauder Tea Biscuit (really pretty golden beige)

What is your favourite eyeshadow?

Speak Soon!

Some new OPI's and a nails of the day :-)

Hi Ladies!

I just thought I'd share with you some OPI polishes which I have purchased recently. They are (L-R) Coney Island Cotton Candy, Black Cherry Chutney and Argenteeny Pinkini :-)

My favourite of the three has to be black cherry chutney, it is a gorgeous deep plum with red undertones. It so strange but as soon as a saw this polish it made me think of twilight! Its very vampire esque! I'm not normally a fan of darker nail polishes but this one is lovely :-) Coney island cotton candy is a wearable peachy nude - great for understated nails. and below is argenteeny pinkini as todays nails of the day

Argenteeny Pinkini is a cool tone medium pink. At first I was a little disappointed with this polish, and it is probably my least favourite of the three. Althought it is very pretty, there is nothing very special about it and I probably have 3 or 4 similar colours in my collection. However it is a very wearable colour, and has lasted really well (I'm on the third day of wearing this polish and no chips to report as of yet!).

Speak Soon!

My Favourite Series Part 3.......Bronzer

Hi Ladies!

So today its time for part three of my favourite series - Bronzer. The bronzer which claims my number 1 spot, has been my favourite bronzer for as long as I can remember...I absolutely love it! and it is Benefit Hoola :-)

This gives me a natural sunkissed glow - like I have just come back from a holiday on the beach! I have really pale skin, and find a lot of bronzers can look quite severe on me (and often pretty orange too!) but this one is absolutely perfect. It is completely matt with no shimmer which means you don't have to worry about a sheen overload if you are wearing a shimmery blush or highlight. It is really well pigmented, so does need to be used with a light hand, and I find it applys best with a really big dense brush. The colour can be built upon easily, and it blends really well too :-)

There are a couple of teenie weenie downsides to this product, firstly althought the packaging is super cute it is not practical at all and you can see from this pic how tatty mine has become (this hoola is only about 4 months old!). It looks pretty on your dressing table but isn't really a bronzer you can just bung in your handbag! The other thing is the price, it costs £23.50 which is definately on the pricey side. I umm-ed and ahh-ed over this for ages before I decided to purchase it the first time, but for me it is worth the pennies :-)

and now the runners up!

• Elf warm bronzer (really pretty and such a bargain!)
  
• Loreal Glam bronze (I use blonde -a great compact with mirror for the handbag!)


• Benefit Dallas (a lovely blush/bronze mix)

What is your favourite bronzer?

Speak soon!