Friday, 1 May 2015

April Favourites

The months are slipping away and we're already a third of the way through the year! Despite being in fully fledged revision mode for my AS levels, I have managed to enjoy quite a few things this month, so as always have collected them together for you.
I may or may not have accidentally slipped onto the M&S website and made a cheeky little (or big) order of some Rosie for Autograph lingerie. I am completely in love with her entire collection as there is so much attention to detail, and every item looks luxurious and high-quality while still being wearable. The bra shown above is probably my favourite set, as it incorporates black lace which is extremely flattering without being too raunchy.
I also may or may not have made quite a large H&M order this month (so much for 'saving') as it's my favourite store and they have so many wonderful things in stock right now. One of my favourite purchases was a Black Floppy Hat, I have been lusting over one for a while but I was worried about buying one which was too small as I have quite a big head (to hold all my brains), so I was thrilled when I realised H&M do different sizes. I also got a Blue & White Striped Cotton Shirt which I think will make a great alternative to the many varieties of white shirt in my wardrobe and probably become a staple. The material is really lightweight which is perfect for spring/summer. I have already worn this tucked into a pair of camel tapered trousers, and I can also see myself throwing it over a navy bikini in the summer as a cover up.
My friends were appalled when they heard that I haven't seen or read The History Boys as it is right up my street - random exerts of French, clever wit and a lot of talk about university! I borrowed this copy from a friend and read it cover to cover as I just couldn't put it down. I'm definitely going to watch the film to see how it is interpreted differently to how I read it in my head.
I picked up two bottles of La Roche Posay Serozinc Spray which are currently 2 for £10 at Escentual, after reading numerous blog reviews about it. As someone who struggles with acne, it sounded as if it would be a great addition to my skincare routine as I have never really found a toner I absolutely love. Until this. I love that it's a spray, as it saves me time fumbling around for cotton pads and also keeps germs to a minimum. It's so refreshing to apply and I really do think it has made a difference to my skin, although I haven't been using it for very long.

While in France, I picked up a KIKO Frosted Look lipstick in 04 as again, I had read lots of reviews raving about it. This is now possibly my favourite lip product of all time, which is saying a lot as I have a bit of an obsession with lipsticks and my collection is constantly growing. The colour is really bold and bright, a perfect true red without random orange or pink tones. The formula is what I really love though, as it is a gorgeous velvety matte finish making it long-lasting without being drying. I love that it's a lipstick crayon with the bullet of a normal lipstick as this makes it far easier to apply.
I got the 17 Instant Glow Shimmer Brick as I had heard it was a fantastic dupe for the Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick. I have never tried the BB version but I do absolutely adore this product! Often in the mornings I don't have time to faff about with contouring and blush, but this little gem combines them all while still managing to look perfect. It contains four shades ranging from a highlight to a blush to a more brown-toned shade, all containing a slight shimmer for a glow but not too much. I just swirl a brush around all the shades and apply it to the apples of my cheeks, blending it out, but I think you could use a smaller brush and apply all of the shades individually as they are all gorgeous.
I'm a bit late to the Benefit Roller Lash party, but I have been using the sample I got in the March edition of Elle, and I seriously think I'm going to have to buy the full sized product. I don't normally spend a lot on mascaras as I think it's one of the products which high street brands do really well, however I have never tried anything like Roller Lash before and I don't think I'll ever be able to go back to the drugstore ones without seeing myself as an eyelash-less freak! It grabs every single one of my lashes and curls them upwards, making them super long without too much volume. I'm not really one for thick lashes and I absolutely can't stand my lashes sticking together, and the way it distributes the product and the formula is absolutely perfect to prevent this. It leaves me with long but relatively natural looking lashes, which is always the look I try to go for.

Leave a comment below letting me know what your April favourites are! I'm hoping my posting schedule won't change too much throughout May (exam season) and I'll continue to upload every Tuesday and Friday, but please bear with me if I'm not as active on my social media. I promise I'll create lots of exciting content and be super active during the summer, and I have lots of great features lined up already!

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Tuesday, 28 April 2015

Un Petit KIKO Haul

Whilst on my French Exchange in Rouen we visited a big shopping centre. A majority of the shops were the same as what we have in the UK but I spotted a KIKO store and couldn't resist taking a look, as there is not a store in Cardiff and I often make orders online. 
As soon as I entered the shop I saw the Frosted Look Lipsticks and had to pick one up as I have seen countless raving reviews. I got it in 04 Innovatory Red as we all know I'm a sucker for a red lip. I'm slightly confused about the name as from what I can tell it isn't my idea of 'frosted' (shimmering/glittery) but instead is a lovely bold colour. I swatched a few eyeshadows and immediately fell in love with the colour 118, a taupe with a slight shimmer, and 139, a dusty rose again with a bit of a shimmer. I'm definitely one for natural, barely-there eyeshadow and these colours seemed perfect for me and had fantastic pigmentation. I spotted that KIKO's Long Lasting Eyeshadow Pencil was on sale and as I have been lusting after one for a while I decided to pick it up. I got the shade 24, a gorgeous ash-grey/taupe colour. I swatched it in-store and it was still on the back of my hand hours later, completely unmoved, so it really is long lasting!
This really was a petit post, but I hope you enjoyed it all the same. I absolutely adore KIKO and think they're such a good quality, reliable brand with amazingly affordable prices!

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Friday, 24 April 2015

A Day in the Life - Breakfast, Revision, Cake & Shoes!

I started my morning by going out for breakfast with my mum at Waterloo Tea in Wyndham Arcade, Cardiff. We don't do this all the time but do love a little treat once in a while, and it gives us a chance to catch up as we often miss each other due to her work and travel, and my college and job. We always end up getting into really deep conversations when we spend time together which I love!

On this particular morning, I chose to have the french toast with poached plums, hazelnuts and crème fraîche, which was absolutely divine! My mum decided on the smoked salmon, scrambled eggs and malted toast, which she also said was gorgeous.

After breakfast, my mum went off to run some errands and I stayed in town. I absolutely adore Cardiff city centre and could honestly spend hours just wandering the streets and looking in all of the shops and arcades! I went to Waterstones as I was meeting a friend in the café, and spotted a big guide to Paris with lots of cute illustrations called Taschen's Paris, which I would just love to own as I adore everything about France and especially Paris! My friend Ffion snapped a photo of me posing with it.

Photo credit to Ffion for this super attractive photograph of me revising! We spent the afternoon chatting and going over our A level subjects as exams are fast approaching. I had a pot of tea and a slice of lemon curd cake, which definitely contributed to me surviving the copious amounts of work! We both had a little giggle when Ffion managed to spell "politics" without the "c", and I just had to embarrass her via Snapchat! (i'm jodievoss if you're wondering)

I decided to walk the half hour journey home as the weather was gorgeous, but when I arrived at my doorstep I realised I had forgotten my key which was a bit silly! Luckily, my dad was only round the corner watching my brother play in a tennis tournament, so he popped back to save the day.

When I finally got inside, I was super excited to find that my parcel from Shoe Zone had arrived! I adore these stiletto ankle boots* and they will be featuring in a post in the near future, so keep your eyes peeled! I spent the evening at work, which wasn't really interesting enough to document in a photo, but on a side note I am absolutely loving life as a working woman (finally!) I work as a waitress in a new restaurant called Fish & Field and I love the buzz of such a fast-paced environment, serving and talking to customers (as well as the pay!)

I hope you enjoyed reading about the kind of things I get up to on a "more interesting than average" day! Recently I have been spending an awful lot of time holed up in my house surrounded with mountains of revision, so it was really nice to have a bit of a change in scenery and spend time with some of my favourite people too!

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