July Favourites

[insert usual 'my time has flown' comment here.]

Another month gone, more favourites for me to blog about!

NSpa Replenishing Moistuire Mask: This mask has really made my skin so soft. I have quite dry patches on the side of my cheeks and this has really helped with that. I love that it dries clear as it means I can leave it on for a while, which really helps my skin. My skin looks fuller and plumper (not in a chubby way, but in an 'ah so youthful' kind of way,) and I feel I can see an improvement in my skin after.

Dior Amber Diamond: There hasn't been many days since I got this little beauty that I haven't worn it! I love it so much! It is so versatile, both an eyeshadow and a highlighter. It gives a gorgeous glow to the face, and the bronze in it really makes the product perfect for summer!

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Honey: I've worn this everyday since I bought it, enough said, no?

Avene Cleance K Cream Gel: This has really helped my skin, I'm not going to go into too much detail here, but my full review is here!

Benefit Hoola Bronzer: The perfect bronzer. Not too orange, not much shimmer, just the perfect bronzer really! (Oh I already said that, ooops!) To sum up, it is the perfect bronzer! (De ja vu?)

And another little mention for my Enrapture Totem Styler, I love the looks I've been able to create with this tool. So versatile!

Other Favourites of the Month:

Favourite Nail Art: http://hollyarabella.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/3-step-flower-nail-art.html

Favourite Helpful Post:  http://shen-moo.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/tip-top-summer-shopping-tips.html

Favourite Look: http://jazzabellesdiary.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/inspired-by-audrey.html

Favourite Shopping Partner: http://treat-party.blogspot.co.uk/

Favourite Person Who Tweets Cute Things: http://andpeaches.blogspot.co.uk/

What have been your favourites this month?

Laura xoxo

New Favourite Summery FOTD

Yes, I change my face, just slightly less than I change my knickers, but with all the make-up out there, life is too short for just one face, right?

Anyway, I'm sure you are all aware that summer decided to make an appearance in old blighty last week, and I decided to go for a more dewy look, meaning no powder!!!

Base:

Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation

Maybellne Dream Lumi Touch Concealer

Estee Lauder Double Wear Concealer

Eyes:

Stila Nautral Eyes Palette: Bare//Sandstone

Max Factor High Definition Mascara

Sleek Brow Kit

Face:

Chanel Bronze Universal

Benefit Watts Up Highlighter

Lips:

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain

I have fallen back in love with my Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation, and have been mixing two shades to give ze perfect shade for my skin. I've been applying it with my Real Techniques Stippling brush instead of a sponge, and I'm again loving the effect it gives. Although I do still love just the concealer look, I find for a dewy finish, this foundation is the shiz!

I've also started properly using my Chanel Bronze Universal, as I hadn't found the perfect way to use it before without me looking tangoed, but after watching Lauren's video here, I've found a big fat Kabuki places it on my skin perfectly. 

 I've also forgone blush, and just gone straight to highlight for an over all sunkissed, glowly look (at least that is how it looks in my head.)

 I've also kept it simple on the eyes, as I really wanted a 'oh, I just roll out of the bed looking this natural, bronzed and glowy.' I think people buy it, but again that may just be in my head.

Have you changed your make-up for the weather?

Laura xoxo

P.S I feel the need to point out, I am hygienic and change my underwear a lot, probably more than I need to, just in case you now I think I am unclean haha!

What I Wore this Week

Hello, I hope all you British people have been enjoying the sun this week, it has a made a jolly nice change hasn't it! Let's hope it will keep us going over the next 11 months of rain and misery. And if you aren't from the UK, I hope you've had a fantastic week too.

Monday:
I spent Monday trying to work on my stupid Summer essay, and to be honest didn't get very far. I'm going to have to do more on it next week. But this meant, I didn't get dressed until I had a shower around three, then just put clean PJ's on! I'm a classy lady!

Tuesday: Day: Kimono: Primark // Vest: New Look // Shorts: Asda // Shoes: Miss Selfridge
              Night: Skirt & Vest: Asda // Scarf: New Look
In the day on Tuesday, I took a couple of blog pictures in the morning, then spent the rest of the day chilling in the sun, alongside a quick trip to Asda where I picked up this skirt which I wore to a meal in the evening! I love it! It is so comfortable.

Wednesday: Vest: New Look // Skirt: Asda // Shoes: Miss Selfridge // Scarf: Dorothy Perkins
On Wednesday I took my nan from NZ shopping, which was lovely. I also spent a little time with my baby sister, which always brightens up the day. I decided to wear my skirt again, as I really love it!!

Thursday: Cardigan: New Look // Dress: Asda // Shoes: Primark
I appear to have worn a lot of Asda this week, this dress is over a year old, but I love how well it goes with the cardigan my nan bought me on Wednesday. I really like this outfit, and think I will be wearing it a lot more. I spent the day looking after my sister as my step-mom had to get her hair cut. Her hairdresser asked if I was her nanny!!! Everyone else thought I was her mom, lovely!!!

Friday: Top: George at Asda // Shoes: Primark
Nearly a week went past were I didn't wear my leggings, but as I was volunteering at the library, and had to get up early, they were so easy to grab and put on.

Saturday: Top: Warehouse // Flip Flops: Ripcurl
Ahh, the skirt returns. In case you can't tell, once I like an item of clothing, I wear it, a lot!!! The morning consisted of the usual grandparent visit, followed my lunch then Asda. The evening was a tan, paint nails, and prep evening.

Sunday: See this post!

So today is my sisters Christening, well I tell I lie as I am writing this yesterday, which for me is today (how very weird,) as I didn't want to rush this post. Hopefully the sun will stay out, and my fake tan won't run, 'cause let's face it, that would be a crisis, no? I also thought I would add a picture of what I'm giving my sister as a present. I borrowed the idea from Louise, and I'm rather impressed with how it turned out, although I have changed the picture of me, as the sun made me very orange. Nice!!!

I hope you all have lovely weeks!

Laura xoxo

My Shower Routine

I am a very OCD person, and very particular about how I go about things. I like to eat my meal in a certain order, get dressed in a certain order, and so on. The same goes with my shower. I do things in exactly the same way each time. So instead of doing a what is in my shower post, I'm going to talk you through my whole routine. I can hear your excitement from here!

First up I wash my hair. I'm not too fussy about shampoo and conditioner, although I do have a slightly sensitive scalp, and have found Tres eme really makes it act up, as does Head & Shoulders, but apart from that, I just grab what ever is on offer. I'm currently using these ones from Naked, and though I've only used them once, I really like. 

Once a week I use my Paul Mitchell shampoo, and if my hair is looking slightly ginge then I will use this John Frieda one, as a second shampoo, I like to lather rinse repeat. I then leave the conditioner in whilst I wash and shave my under arms ( I fear that is too much information?) I then wash that out, and leave my Aussie Three Minute Miracle shampoo on for the rest of my shower.

I then go on to wash my face. I start with something exfoliating, at the moment it is this Garnier Exfo-Brush, which is alright, but not the best. I then take a face wash just to make sure my face is fully clean. On a Sunday I use this Microdermabrasion scrub from The Body Shop, which again is ok, but I wouldn't repurchase.

Then, if my legs need a shave, they will be done, but to be honest, I am soo lazy when it comes to shaving my legs. That is the only good thing about Summer being limited to a week, I can just let them grow haha! 

I then like to have a good exfoliate as I have really bobbly skin on my arms. I'm loving Soap & Glory's Flake Away scrub as I find it moisturising too. I then go over my arms with my sponge and some shower gel, again what ever is on offer.

I then rinse my hair off and I'm done!!!

I must say though, this is my 'thorough' shower. Not my everyday one, as I don't like to wash my hair everyday. If it isn't a hair washing day, I just have a quick wash, and clean my face etc over the sink (classy lady!)

Do you have a certain routine, or am I just crazy? 

Laura xoxo

Fashion Friday: Christening Outfit

On Sunday it is my little sister's Christening, and as the weather has been so lovely & I could get outside, I thought I would show you what I plan to wear. It also gave me a chance to prance about in front of my camera. I'm such a cool person!

I picked this skirt up from Warehouse in the sale for a steal of £13.50, and I love it. I think it looks really nice with this top, but would also look great with a black vest top and a denim shirt if I can get my hands on one.

(Yes I'm aware at the stupid picture, but it shows the top of better.)

My lovely Nanny & Grandad from New Zealand bought me this top from Dorothy Perkins for my b'day, and I love it. It is a lovely chiffon material that flows and hangs lovely. I love tucking tops like this in to skirts, and I think the colour is just beautiful.

My shoes are from New Look, but are rather old, but I've just learnt how to walk in them!!!

This is me 'trying' to do the fashion blogger, 'I'm just doing a poop' stance, but bloody hell, just after the camera took the picture, I toppled over! Lavley.

And in case that wasn't evidence enough why I shouldn't be a fashion blogger:

I cut my head out of pictures.... alot!

I enjoy doing this pose tooo much...

So yes, this is what I'm wearing, and I love to make a prat out of myself in front of a camera.  What a worthwhile post no?

What do you wear for Christenings? Have you found anything in the sales? I normally hate sale shopping, but was rather impressed with Warehouse this year!

Happy Friday :)

Laura xoxo

P.S In case the collection round my knee doesn't give it away, my tan is fake!!!

Avene Cleanance K Cream-Gel

Doing my usual Youtube viewing, I watched Ruth's video on how she deals with spots and outbreaks. Although my skin has cleared up quite a lot, I still have a bit of scaring and was having a breakout at the time, so I watched it thoroughly. One of the products Ruth mentioned, and that held my attention was by Vichy. It was a gel that contained Glycolic acid, which Ruth explained, is a natural exfoliant and helps get rid of scarring and spots.(She also mentions that Vichy works in the same way as Liquid Gold, which is on wishlist.)

I owned a lot of products with sacylic acid to get rid of spots, and it really dried my skin out, so this gylcolic acid really stood out to me. I went onto the Boots website to check out the Vichy product mentioned, and also typed into the search bar 'glycolic acid' and this popped up. This was slightly cheaper, and I really like Avene as a brand so decided to look into this too. When in the Boots store, the had a sample of this, and it felt so nice on my hand it sold it to me.

I really like that this is a gel, as it feels smooth on my face (would make a great make-up base, but contains no spf so be carfeul) and it is also moisturising which I like, as I mentioned, most spot treating products really dry my skin out, and although I have oily skin, I do get dry patches too.

The smell of this product is rather vile, but it fades after a while so I can deal with it. I apply it at night after cleansing and all that. I leave it on it's own for a while, then put a tiny bit of moisturiser on the sides of my cheeks before bed as that is where my skin is driest.

('scuse the grumpy face)

This is my face before I started using the product, and even after the first day I noticed that my skin had calmed down quite a lot. I used this instead of my moisturiser and sanctuary oil, which saddened me, but I really wanted to test this product for you.

This is a week after using the cream, and I personally, can tell a difference. It's not massive, but it is still something, and I'm really happy. It may be a slight placebo effect, but to be honest, if it makes me feel better about my skin, I'm not that fussed.

However, after trying out a new moisturiser my skin decided it didn't like it and reacted really badly, think rashyness and spots, and...well you get the picture. Unsure of what was causing this, I stopped using this for a few days. I still have a couple of spots left from this, but, here is my face three weeks after the first use.

Sorry the lighting is crap, but I took this last night (well currently tonight,) but I really wanted to get this post up. But it does show how much my skin has improved.

Overall I would highly recommend giving this product a try. I think I'm going to alternate this with my Santuary oil on nights where I think my skin needs some TLC. But overall I'm really impressed. 

Also, if you go on the Avene website and fill in a questionaire they send you a couple of products to try, you can do that here!

Ruth's video - which is really worth a watch as it contains lots of interesting information. Ruth also has a blog, here!

What do you think, have you tried this? 

Laura xoxo

Island Essentials

(Don't ask how this picture is relevant to the post, just go with it.)

It is a well asked question, if you were to go on a desert Island, what would you take with you. For me, it would me family and friends (how cliche.) But to be honest with you, being stranded on a desert Island does not appeal to me. I would rather build a house at the top of a hill to escape instead. 

Anyway, if you are from the UK, you may be aware of the show Shipwrecked, which is basically a group of people left on a tropical Island, so I had a thought, if I was to go on that show, what would I take with me. I also think that this post could kind of double as a summer essentials type thing? (basically, I wanted to take pictures in the sun, ok?)

First up a bit of moisturiser with SPF in it. Ideally I would take one with a bit of tint to it, which I am on the look out for, so keep your eyes peeled for what I find. But this one is lovely, really nourshing too. It is the Garnier Full Restore one, and  I really like it. If you don't have a tinted moisturier with SPF, try mixing a splash of foundation in a ordinary one.

My Tangle Teezer. The salt water would really get my hair knotty, so this would be essential. Brush it through my hair when wet, then let it dry naturally, for a wavy desert island look!

Eyelash curlers. I would't take mascara with me, it may dry out or run, or just be too much effort. But to still give my eyes a bit of life, and good curl would do me nicely.

The only bit of make-up I would take, concealer. Lets face it, I want to hide my blemishes, but still look 'natural.' So a good concealer would be a must!

Finally, my tweezers, because as we all know, hair grows in the sun, and I do not want to end up looking like I have two hairy slugs living on my face!!! Plus I've just come to realise how much brows can make and shape your face, so I want to look after them.

So a bit of a weird post from me, but hey ho! What would be your Island essentials?

Laura xoxo

Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Concealer

Now, I have loved this product for a long time. I even prefer it to the Cult Touche Eclat. This is my second one now, and I thought that this little guy deserved a post of its own.

First up the aesthetics. This comes in a sleek little tube like pen, with a screw top which pumps the concealer through the little brush section at the bottom. I like to apply this with the brush, and the blend it in with my expert face brush.

What I like about this product, is that I feel it gives a lovely glow to my face, and really brightens it up. It could do a better job of concealing my suitcases, but I'll let it off.

To give you a better idea of the difference it makes to my face I've done two pictures, one with, and one without.

So this is my face without, the concealer. It looks ok, just a bit 'bleuh' which, I think is a brilliant word in a review, no?

And this is my face with it. I think it just looks so much brighter, and more alive. 

Over the last month or so, I've ditched foundation for day to day, and just been using concealer. I don't use this on blemishes, just on my under eyes and nose, but it really just lifts my face, which I love.

Do you like this concealer? Do you use it?

Laura xoxo

Celebrity Inspired: Zooey Deschanel

When I find myself sitting on my laptop, which to be honest is quite regularly, I really hate sitting in silence, so I turn to Youtube. If nothing new has been uploaded, I go onto my 'Favourite Beauty Video's' list and just let that play in the background (am I sad that I have such a playlist?) Anyway, a lot of videos in that playlist consist of Tanya Burr, and one of the videos is this one, of her recreation of Zoeey Deschanel as Jess from the show New Girl. So me, being me, decided to re-create it myself, and here is how  it turned out:

The products I used were:

Base:

YSL Touche Eclat Foundation ( I don't personally like it.)

Collection 2000 Concealer

Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Concealer

Eye:

Sleek Brow Kit in Light

Stila Naturals Palette: Bare//Kitten//Bliss

Loreal Super Liner

Max Factor False Lash Effect Mascara

Gosh Eyeliner in 015 Natural

Cheeks:

Benefit Hoola Bronzer & Watts Up

The Balm Cabana Boy

Lips:

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Lip Balm in Honey

And whilst googling the gorgeous Zooey, I found this picture:

And decided to have a shot myself:

Anyway.....

What do you think of Zooey, yes or no? Do you watch New Girl?

I watched it, but still don't know if I like it ha! Also, check out Shen's post of a whole, hair, make-up & style post for Zooey!

Laura xoxo

What I Wore this Week

Alas, the sun has finally got his hat on, hurrah. Hope it is nice and sunny where you are and you're enjoying the sunshine. I feel like I'm writing this post very late, but I woke up later than usual today (I'm a stickler for a schedule,) and I then had to go over to my Grandmas to take her shopping.
I also apologize that there is no Friday outfit, I went out on Friday, and wore sloppy clothes in the day, but didn't have chance to photograph the outfit. It wasn't all that interesting though.

Monday:

Top: George at Asda // Boots: New Look

In the day I just did some more work on my summer essay, which I am finding impossible, so annoying. I then went out for a lovely meal with me two best friends as we were finally all in the same place at the same time.

Tuesday:

Cardigan: George at Asda // Top & Boots: New Look

I had to do my libarary volunteering on Tuesday as I couldn't do it any other day, so just put on something casual and colourful!

Wednesday:

Top & Boots: New Look // Cardigan: Topshop

On Wednesday I went shopping with my friend, and when we got back to mine I just messed around doing her hair and make-up, 'cause we're cool like that.

Thursday:

Top: Forever 21 // Flip Flops: Ralph Lauren

Thursday morning was my little brothers year six leavers assembly, so I went to watch that in the morning, then I spent the rest of the day curled up in a ball on the sofa 'cause I felt really ill.

Saturday: 

Jumper: Dorothy Perkins // Scarf: New Look // Flip Flops: Ralph Lauren

After driving back from the party I was at on Friday, I went straight to my over little brothers 4th birthday party. I had to wear something comfy enough to soothe the little hangover I had, but dressy enough to look nice.

Sunday:

Top: George at Asda // Flip Flops: Ralph Lauren.

Silly me forgot to write the days on the collage, my head is not with it today, there are probably loads of spelling and grammar mistakes in this too, sorry. But he order is left to right in order of days.

Hope you all have lovely weeks,

Laura xoxo

Fringe Fall Out

I have a bit of a love hate relationship with my fringe, I loved it when I first got it cut in, but to be honest, it was a lot of hassle, and nine times out of ten, I would wake up with an unruly mess that would not play nice in the morning, and often look like this:

In light of this, I had to find a solution that I knew would work, time and time again. Enter the Lauren Conrad side plait. You've probably seen this on me lots and lots, but I thought it may make an interesting post to show you how I do it, plus, who doesn't love photos were I make a complete idiot of myself?

(Well done Laura for cutting the top off :/)

Anddd 'cause I'm stupid, I forgot to take a picture of the finished look, but here is what it looks like in a older picture.

I hope this was helpful? Or at least gave you something to smile at. What is your fringe saviour?

Also, I got the idea of doing the images like this from Kat.

Laura xoxo

Outake?