Lord & Berry Makeup Review

I recently had the pleasure of trying out some Lord & Berry products for the first time, and wanted to share my thoughts and first impressions with you guys. I've had around two weeks trying each of the products, and thoroughly tested them in various situations (I drink a lot of coffee and never have time to reapply my makeup in work!), so I feel I can confidently share my thoughts now.

I don't know why I've never tried Lord & Berry before, it's just never really hit my radar until now. A lovely friend kindly gifted me with some products she thought would be perfect for me, and I was thrilled to take them on a test drive. I've been using the semi-matte red lipstick in 'Vogue', eyeliner in 'Sparkle Black', and the stardust loose eye shadow in 'Gold Black'. Maybe these choices were on a whim, but I prefer to imagine my friends think I'm very suited to smoky eyes and red lips; oooh yes, suave and sophisticated I am.

Is there anything quite like unwrapping a new lipstick, popping off the top, turning the base and revealing that beautiful colour for the first time? Just look at this beauty, it's a stunning shade of deep cherry red.

From the first smooth swipe across my lips, I knew this lipstick was just made for me. It's a semi-matte finish which means it stays in place very well, but is still full of enough moisture to make your lips feel soft and supple. I always fall for a really good red when it comes to lipsticks, and this one is no different. I feel it strikes a good balance between a daytime red and nightwear too, which is usually as hard as it sounds. This has quickly become my new staple lipstick. The formula is beautiful and I'm already looking at other shades in their range.

When I first tried out the sparkle black eyeliner my honest reaction was, 'Ooh!' - I'm easily impressed. But I think I've only ever used plain black eyeliners, so the idea of a little sparkle appealed to me greatly. 

As you can see from the photographs, this eyeliner offers a strong, deep black with delicate flecks of silver/white sparkle. I have to tell you guys, I love this! It's so pretty and powerful all at once. I've only used this for evenings and special, dressier occasions as I find it make me feel a little more 'dolled up', but you could easily rock this style daytime if you preferred. 

And finally I've been using the Gold Black eye shadow that you can see above, which is so beautiful. It really is made for a sultry smokey lid and killer cats eye. I do really love this and I'll be using it as much as possible, however; I do worry it's wasted on my eyes as I have hooded lids unfortunately. Which means you can't always see the work that goes into my eye makeup, but there we go. I'll be enjoying this anyway.
Have you tried any products from Lord & Berry before?





Keep up to date with my latest posts by following me! :)
Bloglovin - Twitter - Instagram - Pinterest - Facebook

Be A Pamper Princess

Aahhh the weekend. A little slice of heaven where most of us get a chance to slow down, relax and take the time to enjoy the simple things in life. Since I work Monday to Friday 9am to 5:30pm, weekends really have become my time. True, I do have to squeeze all my chores, blogging, socialising and plans into these two little days and it does get hard. But I still always make sure to take a chance to pamper myself, and appreciate those down time moments.
Recently I caught up with one of my favourite friends in the world, and she very kindly gave me a beautiful Soap & Glory gift set, among other things. I've taken the past week to try out some of the products and to really indulge in some much needed pampering.

I've been using the Girligo Spray On Moisturising Body Mist, The Righteous Body Butter, Flake Away Exfoliating Scrub and Hand Food. I'll probably adore any Soap & Glory product I ever try, and this bunch of beauties are no exception. 
My absolute favourite has been the spray on moisturising mist, because it's so easy to apply all over and leaves you feeling so soft and smooth. I tend to have really dry skin on my arms and legs, but admittedly I'm usually too lazy to moisturise. I know, I know. But this spray on is now my savior! A couple of pumps, a quick rub into the skin, and I'm done. Perfect.
My second favourite is the exfoliator, Flake Away. Especially for my legs because as I said; dry, dull skin. Nothing makes you feel as shiny and new as a good scrub, and I found this one to be amazing. It's gentle and kind to skin, but tough enough to give it a new lease of life. Plus, it smells delicious!

Next up I've been using The Righteous Butter. This is an all over body butter with the richest, sweetest smelling cream. Since the spray mist is now my go to for all over body moisturising, I've saved the body butter for my feet. When I really need to give my tootsies some extra love, and make them feel super soft; this is the product I'm using. I don't use this all the time, but when I do I can really feel the difference.
And finally, is the Hand Food. Made with shea butter, macadamia oil and marshmallow; Hand Food is a suitable name for sure. This yummy little treasure is something I've began popping in my bag and taking to work with me, or wherever I'm going out for the day. I find it a nice having a reminder to treat my hands kindly and put some love back into them. After all, we put our hands through a lot and it feels good to use a product so scrumptious! 
Do you guys enjoy any of these products? How do you pamper yourself?





Keep up to date with my latest posts by following me! :)
Bloglovin - Twitter - Instagram - Pinterest - Facebook

Purple Rain

I'm never gonna be the cool and stylish fashion blogger, who effortlessly puts outfits together to create a glamorous look. I'm far happier and more at home in a band Tshirt and jeans. Maybe every now and again a cute tea dress/cardigan combo. But more often than not, you'll find me in a hoody. Especially this time of year, when snuggling in my favourite lilac hoody practically makes me purr. That being said, it doesn't mean I want to slum it completely. I use my makeup to experiment and add a little bit of glam every now and again. Makeup is always my mask, my source of fun and my confidence. I can easily lose hours 'playing' with my makeup, storing it all away neatly, arranging it all, testing it out and trying new things.
In one of these recent playtime sessions, I realised I haven't wore much purple in a while. Sure I've gone as berry mad as any other blogger this time of year, but I've stuck to a red hue on my lips more than anything, and I haven't been brave enough to try any eyeshadows other than my nudes really. And this is strange since I used to get a kick out of trying every colour combination under the sun, especially purples. My favourite colour. 
Deciding to change that immediately, I used W7's In The Night Palette on my eyes, and Barry M Vicious Violet on my lips. Bold, Wintery, and definitely matching my hoody. I must say I'm happy to have found a little colour again. Here's to the next playtime session..





Keep up to date with my latest posts by following me! :)
Bloglovin - Twitter - Instagram - Pinterest - Facebook

In Situ Cosmetics Review

Let me tell you something; I'm writing this post at 2am, and this is not unusual for me. You can regularly find me skulking around on Twitter too in the wee hours if you pay close attention. I'm a night owl, always have been, and I only ever get inspired at night. Which means if you run a blog like I do you basically do it when everyone else is asleep. And does this mean I sleep lots during the day? No actually. I sleep until around 9am, or 11 if I'm having a lovely lie in. So lack of sleep is always something I'm dealing with unfortunately. And this means dark circles and bags under my eyes are my signature look. Until now.

In Situ Cosmetics kept popping up on my Twitter feed by multiple bloggers for a few weeks, and so my interest was piqued. After A little mooch around their website, I decided I'd take a chance and order myself one of their customised eye care products. The impressive thing about this is you get to customise and select what you need from this product. So for me, I chose an eye balm, for night repair, to help clear up dark circles with a 'balancing and calming' formula. Now for someone with sensitive skin like me, that sounds sort of dreamy to be honest.

The packaging is beautiful and the cream comes in a bottle with a pump. This is great for popping in a handbag if needed, which I love. And how can I not mention that the bottle is personalised with my own name on it?! I didn't know they would do this so when I opened the box to find my own name printed on, well I felt a little bit special to be honest :] *Little things*.
The formula itself is so nourishing and rich that you can tell this is made for a delicate area of skin like the eyes, and it applies easily. There is no greasy residue, no irritating scent and best of all you feel pampered.
I must say I love this product. I've been using it every night for the past week and I can definitely say it's made my skin feel softer and the bags under my eyes are definitely reduced. I can't see much change with my dark circles, but maybe I need to give it a few weeks to really shift those bad boys, which is fair enough. I'm sure I'll let you guys know! 
What do you think? Would you try your own customised product from In Situ Cosmetics?






Keep up to date with my latest posts by following me! :)
Bloglovin - Twitter - Instagram - Pinterest - Facebook

W7 In The Night Palette Review

As you can see I've been trying out another W7 palette this week, and what a little treat it is. This palette is all about the smokes, and I couldn't have spotted this at a better time. With Autumn/Winter underway and the even more exciting Halloween almost here, I felt a smokey but vibrant palette was just what my eyes needed. So we have: 1. Dusty 2. Wonderland 3. Summer 4. Atlanta 5. Abracadabra 6. Top Hat 7. Razzamataz 8. Lady Luck 9. Laura E 10. Party Pooper 11. Gate Crash 12. Bologna On first look at this palette I definitely think this is more suited for the party season, and it even has some party/magic themed names for the shades, which I love. I feel this is a nice change for me as I've been all about the nudes for the last few months, and this vampy little set is set to shake things up for sure. My favourite shades are 6, 7, & 8; the violet tones. They have great colour payoff and blend beautifully with many of the other shades. I do find 10, Party Pooper a great little shade to pop in the corner of my eyes to brighten them right up without looking too 'pixie-like'. If I had to pick one I'm not so much a fan of, it would be number 1, because you can hardly see it at all on my skin as I'm so pale. But the rest of the shades are absolutely incredible. Overall though like I've said before of W7 palettes, the pigmentation is fantastic and the price is so affordable. I bought this from a one off small cosmetics store locally for around £5 but I have had a look about online and you can get it from Argos at £7.49 or Direct Cosmetics for £4.99. I'm not sure if they charge for delivery though. If so, you might want to keep your eye out in smaller cosmetics stores around town like I did! I think there's something for everyone in this palette whether you're dark or light skinned, or whether you're bold or subtle with your makeup. I'm quite enjoying playing about with these shades to create various looks and I have even discovered a combination which would be great for Halloween makeup! :) What do you think, would you try this palette?

Autumnal Lipsticks

There is so much Autumn themed makeup around right now, it's difficult to keep up. But there really is nothing better than popping on a dark shade of lipstick to vamp up your look while you stay cosy in those blankets. Or if you have to venture out and face the cold/rainy weather, then you can do so knowing you still look like an Autumnal goddess under that big hood!
Personally I'm still on the hunt for the darkest of darkest shades, a purple so deep it's almost black; that sort of thing. One that preferably will compliment my hair and skin tone rather than make me look like something from Edgar Allen Poe's imagination. Although to be honest that sounds AMAZING to me.

So I've been browsing the high street lipsticks this week, and I've come across two shades that I instantly loved. Rimmel Moisture Renew Lipstick in 'As You Want Victoria', and Topshop 'Wicked'.

The Rimmel is instantly silky soft and bursting full of moisture as I apply and pout away, which I knew it would be as I have a few Rimmel Moisture Renew's already. Great for my dry lips.

Looking at the lipstick it seems quite pinkish and light, which is misleading unless you try it first. The actual shade applies much more of a darker, juicer red. I do very much adore a deep red, so this was a winner.

I found the staying power was okay, but not fantastic. I did eat and drink whilst testing this out, and after around 4 hours I needed a top up. But I'm not too disappointed there, given I only paid £6.49 for this in Superdrug. If you're thinking of trying this, I'd recommend swatching a tester first and see if the shade is right for you, because as I say it does apply darker. I'm very happy it did, as I don't suit pinkish reds, but each to their own.

Now onto the Topshop one. I'll admit this was actually the first time I've tried any Topshop makeup at all! I don't know why but there you go. I'll make more of an effort in future to get to know the range, because it's always nice to try something new :)

This is another that applies so differently than it's appearance. If you look at the actual lipstick, it seems like a chocolate brown. So much so, that I had to double check in the shop that it was in the right packaging! I really don't think I could pull off brown..

Applying this for the first time, I found I did need two layers of this to look 'finished', so maybe the pigmentation isn't as good as the Rimmel. That being said, I loved this colour so much more. Topshop had a huge range of shades to choose from, and this one is a deep plum that just screams Autumn. It might not be that perfect deep, dark shade I've been lusting after, but it definitely packs a kick. I also really like that this isn't as shiny as the Rimmel, it applies like more of a matte lipstick without losing any much needed moisture. I have dry lips, so completely dry matte lipsticks are no good for me. 

I found the staying power of the Topshop to be similar to the Rimmel in all honesty. I find it hard to say which was better, as they both lasted around 3/4 hours before needing a top up after eating and drinking. The Topshop Lipstick was £8 though, so maybe I should expect a little more from this?

Above: Rimmel 'As You Want Victoria'. Below: Topshop 'Wicked'.

For high street products with medium price ranges, I'd say these aren't bad. I'd happily buy more from both ranges, and explore more of their shades. 

If I was pushed to choose a favourite, I think I'd choose the Topshop 'Wicked'. I know the pigmentation isn't as great as the Rimmel and it's a little more in price, but it's not enough to put me off the product as a whole. I love this shade and I can see me wearing it plenty this Autumn!

What do you guys think, have you tried from either range?

Estée Lauder Double Wear Review

I'm quite pale but not perfectly porcelain. I'm not one to wear tonnes of makeup, but I still wear enough everyday to cover blemishes, dark circles, and in extreme heat; my many freckles. Speaking of heat, whenever there's the tiniest bit of humidity in the air, or I'm particularly anxious or nervous (daily basis..), my makeup disappears and I look like I've been dragged through a hedge. 
This has come to be the norm for me unfortunately. If I go on a night out, I have to fill my little handbag with my foundation and powder, as well as other necessities like my phone, money for shots, and my address written down for the cab driver ;) Not great unless you love taking a huge bag out with you..
Until NOW. Last week I finally got around to buying Estee Lauder Double Wear, and I was so excited as I'd heard such good things about it. 

I had £10 in rewards available on my Debenhams Beauty card, and there was no way I was letting that bad boy go to waste. I had a look around online, and decided to finally go for '2N1 Desert Beige' as it looked very close to my natural colour, maybe a subtle shade darker - which is what I'd prefer. So I risked it and ordered it. I have to say I'm extremely lucky, because it is such a perfect shade for my skin! And I got to avoid the girls at the beauty counter, yaaay! You feel me yeah?

I was hoping for a gorgeous medium coverage, something that would make my skin look soft and.. well, perfect. Something that would apply really easily over my skin, without looking cakey. What I got was all this and more. I mean it's called Stay in Place Makeup. But now that I've explained how makeup has never stayed in place for me, I hope you can see just how much I really didn't expect this. But oh my god does it STAY. I've given it over a week now to test this out in various situations, and it has passed each test with flying colours. 

Even yesterday, I applied it in the morning at around 8:30am, shown below. Sorry it's not the best photo, it's the best I could get before I rushed out the house!

And I spent the very warm day shopping, lugging around bags, coming home, cleaning and tidying for hours, then finally chilling out in the evening. Then I remembered to get another photo before the daylight totally went..

I know it's always hard to tell with other people's skin, especially when you guys haven't seen me without makeup. But trust me on this - this is still SO in place and held perfectly all day. I didn't touch it up once, not even after getting a bit clammy in the heat. The only thing that needed reapplying was my lipstick and eyeliner. So I just need to find the perfect replacements for those now...

But really guys, I know you've probably seen hundreds of reviews on Double Wear and how great it is. So if you've bothered reading this then thank you so much. I really wanted to reiterate what many other bloggers have said though, and confirm it really is as good as it claims to be. It's just a shame it's not so cheap.. But at least my handbag is much lighter now for nights out!

Here's to being skint forever now. Bye. x

My Relationship With My Palette

If you're anything like me, over time you develop a relationship with your palettes whether you mean to or not. Certain shades come and go, and others are soul mates from the moment you meet.

This is my interpretation of this with a pinch of fun, hope you enjoy ;)

1. The Ex You Keep Going Back To. You want to try something new, but you just.. can't.

2. The Friend Zone. This one is so lovely. It brightens you up when you need it. But that's about it.

3. The One That You Know Would Suit Your Friend More. Oops.

4. The One Your Mum Wants You To Have. It's nice enough, but.. ehh.

5. The Romantic. It sweeps you off your feet every time. It's pretty sweet.

6. The One Night Stand. You think it's a good idea at the time, it never is. You always regret it the morning after.

7. The One You Forget. There's always one that is alright enough, but easily forgettable as time goes on.

8. The One That Got Away. It's perfect! Why did it not work out?!

9. The Soul Mate. The one you know is gonna be great day or night, and you can always rely on.

10. The Party Animal. Great for a night out and to get you in the mood.

11. The Distant Friend. Nice every once in a while, but not your bestie.

12. The Sexy One. The one that always makes you feel good, but isn't necessarily great all the time.

I used MUA's 'Hall Of Fame' palette for this example, but I know you all have your own you can relate to ^__^

I hope you enjoyed this post, please leave me a comment below and let me know!

MUA Lipsticks

As I'm only just beginning to explore MUA lip products (I've usually stuck to their shadows, concealers etc) I thought I'd let you all know what I make of them as I go along. And I can happily see me making my way through them all, as they're so cheap! You can never have enough lipsticks :)

So far I have two moisturising lipsticks and one matte. I've not really been very attracted to matte lips before, as I tend to have dry lips and this doesn't help much. But hey ho, give it a go!

Left - Shade 3, Middle - Peachy Keen (Matte), Right - Shade 2.

Left - Shade 3, Middle - Peachy Keen (Matte), Right - Shade 2.

I am always more likely to go for reds when choosing lip colours, even though I don't wear them on a daily basis. I save those powerful pouts for special evenings usually, but I can't resist them! There's something about a great red lip that always makes me feel really womanly and strong. Anyone else? No?.. Okay. Therefore when you look through my lipstick collection you will see lots of different varieties of red. Pinkish reds, blue toned reds, plum reds, coral reds.. So really you can't blame me for these three MUA picks to be heavily red based.

The first, the creatively named Shade 3 (snooze..) is a like a deep pink/red and a pleasure to wear. Still a hint of delicate 'girlyness' for me to pass off in daytime if I wish. Great formula, oh so soft and easy to apply. Although I realise you wouldn't think so from that photo above.

Secondly, we have the much more aptly named Peachy Keen. Now this is the Matte one of the bunch. And while I love the coral tone, I'm just not sure I love this formula. In fact I know I don't. Look how bad it looks on my lips! Now, I'm not slagging off this poor little matte. It really doesn't help that my lips are naturally dry. When I popped some vaseline over this lipstick, the colour looked gorgeous! But that's defying the point of a matte lippy then isn't it? Sorry to say I'll be straying away from matte lipsticks for a while.

Last but not least we have Shade 2. This is the plum coloured red and oh my gosh I have to tell you guys I love it. Again it applies lovely and feels so smooth and soft on my lips, but the colour is just the bees knees for me! I've wanted to experiment with more plum/darker tones for Autumn/Winter and I think this is the first I've found which looks nice on me and I feel comfortable wearing. Also, it lasted a few hours on me which is quite impressive (for me).

The final plum shade is easily the winner for me. I'll definitely be experimenting with darker shades for this Autumn, and I can see me replacing this MUA one as soon as I've ran out because I've fallen for it so much!

What do you lovelies think? Have you tried any of MUA's lipsticks yet? What are your faves?

Also, thanks for popping by!