Weekend Haul & Mini Reviews (:

Evening, it's Jenn (:

Just a little post about my mini shop over the past few days. I'm actually trying to save but I assure you it's not going very well. However, I got all of these products on offer or at a stupidly bargain price so I don't feel as bad about it! Here we go. 

Tesco

Top to Bottom: L'Oreal Feria Preference in Mango Copper, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce, and The Fault In Our Stars by John Green. 

It pains me to say it but i'm definitely not a natural ginger (more of a mousy brown!) I've been this colour for a quite a few years now and this is the dye that I always reach for. It has a natural tone to it, and it's definitely not too harsh. I've recently seen that Schwarzkopf have bought out a new Live XXL called 'Fiery Copper' but I personally think it's WAY to bright, especially for my super pale complexion. I love Mango Copper, even when it fades I'm still very fond of it and it was £4 at tesco! I usually pay £5.79 at it at Superdrug but that's also been cut down by £1. 

The two books were a bit of an impulse buy. I read an awful lot but lately I've had a bit of a break from it as I was continuously reading classics and they were giving me a heavy head so I thought these would be a bit of a light relief. Part of a 2 for £7 offer, instead of the £7.99 each I was supposed to pay.

Poundland

Not the first place you imagine to bag yourself some beauty buys but i'm so impressed with my finds! Poundland stock a lot of the ChitChat range and also do one offs and discontinued products from famous brands. I got the Miss Sporty nail polish and eyeshadow/concealer duo in a pack, and also this Rimmel Moisture Renew Lipstick too. 

 Miss Sporty Be Connected liquid eyeshadow in Intrigue and concealer in Dark.

 I've never seen either of these products before but I haven't really dipped my toes into the Miss Sporty collection before. I wasn't too bothered about this product to be honest, I bought it more for the nail polish that came with it. The concealer is obviously too dark for my skin, which you can gather from the photos above, but it was very creamy when applied so i'll give it that. I was a bit put off from the look of the eyeshadow as i'm never one for pastel shades on the eyes. I was even more put off when I swatched it but then I blended it in, and to be honest it isn't too bad and i'll be giving this another chance for sure. 

Miss Sporty Lasting Colour nail polish in (what my boyfriend originally called) Brown.

Annoyingly, Miss Sporty don't print the colours of their polishes on the bottle so Brown will have to do. I love this colour, I've been looking for a rich chocolately brown colour for AGES but I didn't want to pay loads for one and I couldn't never find the right shade. You can imagine my surprise when I found this thrown carelessly into the corner of the beauty bit in Poundland and I didn't even stop to think about it. The photo isn't too brilliant, but it's goes on pretty well and it only required one coat for a even finish. 

Rimmel Moisture Renew lipstick in Mocha Cream.

This colour is now discontinued but i've got a thing for dark lips so I snatched this up when I saw it. The stick itself looks remarkably darker then how it actually looks when it's our your lips but i'm not going to complain, it was only a £1 afterall and it's still a lovely nude colour! Always remember to swatch when you're in the shop, just so you're not disappointed when you get home and discover it's not what you thought it was. 

Superdrug

Barry M Gelly Effects in Dragon Fruit & Textured Effects in Atlantic Road.

 Superdrug have an offer on Gelly Effects and the new Texture Effects at the moment, 2 for £6 instead of £3.99 each. Pretty much everyone I know owns a Gelly Effect nail polish so I thought I would see what the fuss is about and I really love this shade of pink. I didn't even know Barry M had released this new polish so i'll be writing a more in depth review later on this month! 

Miss Sporty Dr Balm Honey lip tint in Glam Kiss. 

I got this as Superdrug were offering a 2 for £2.99 offer on selected Miss Sporty items (the Dr Balm tints & nail polishes.) The packaging really does this justice as it was the first things my eyes were drawn to which is always a positive! The balm looks like any average lipstick actually and it smells delicious (fruity!) too which is the main reason I bought it. Glam Kiss is a really, realy sheer pink and doesn't really change my lip colour at all but it's really moisturizing and it's handy just to keep in my bag. 

Miss Sporty Lasting Colour nail polish in It's Too Latte.

I've been looking for a nude for far too long and i've always ended up buying the more pinker shades. I am really fond of this colour though, it's subtle and not too peachy. I've no idea whether this actually lasts for the 10 days it claims it does but i'll definitely give you an update. I only needed one coat and it went on pretty easily and mess free. Part of the 2 for £2.99 offer but originally £1.99.

Overall I think i've done pretty well on the spending front as I've only spent £21.99 for 4 nail polishes, eyeshadow/concealer duo, a lipstick, a lip balm, a hair colour and 2 books! 

XXX

 

Don't Dream It, Be It.

As the title suggests, I went to The Rocky Horror Picture Show on Friday evening with Rosie, Maisy, Hannah and Rosie O and her pal, Phil. It was such a good time, and half of the fun came with getting ready for it! The show started at an awkward time at 5, so getting dressed up was a bit of a quick affair but I guess it didn't really matter what you looked like at the end of it, anything goes. 

I don't have too many photos of my outfit, like I said it was a bit of a rush getting ready, but I wore a mini, black, one shouldered playsuit from Topshop which I got a few years ago for £40. If you wanted a similiar one then click here (: I also wore a pair of lace leggings and black wedges which I got from Primark. 

For my hair, I simply placed it up in a bun and left my fringe down, simple! 

Above is all the products I used to achieve my make up. 

From Left to Right (Top-Bottom): High Lights by Technic, Shade 1 and Shade 11 by MUA Undressed Palette, 168 angled blush brush and 239 eyeshadow brush by MAC Make It Perfect Special Edition Brush Kit, POREfessional by Benefit, Sunset Glow Blushing Blush Blusher by Clinique, Velvet Wine Lipstick by NYC, Liquid Eyeliner, DiorShow Mascara by Dior, and Extra Virgin Minerals Liquid Foundation in shade 105/Rose Ivory. 

Eyes: To prep, I put a fingertip of Porefessional onto my lids, not only does this minimise my pores, it works as a great primer. For my eyes I swept Shade 1 from the Undressed Palette all across my lid and blended it all the way up to my brow bone, making sure it lightened the higher it got. I then patted Shade 11 into the crease of my lid and blended as much as I could and joined the outer of my eye to the top lash line to create a wing shape. I then brushed on a medium thick line of liquid eyeliner and then followed the wing shape I created with the eye shadow. I put on several coats of mascara on my top and lower lashes and penned a mini heart just under my left eye!

Nails: I got my nail wraps from Primark, they were reduced to 50p. They are orginally only £1 though so they're definitely a steal. This was my first time with nail wraps (I know, where have I been) so it was a bit of a fiddle to begin with but they're pretty easy once you get the hang of it. All you have to do is warm up the stickers in your palms, cut out the stencil that is a suitable size for your nail, take off the wrap and stick on as neatly as you can. My nails are quite slim so some of the wraps were way to big so I had to trim them, but there was also some abnormaly small wraps too but I can't make too much of a fuss for 50p!

Lips: I wanted a really dark eye/lip combo for the evening so I managed to bag myself a bargain earlier in the week. I got my first NYC lipstick from the local Lloyds Pharmacy for £1.49.

It's from their Ultra Lasting collection in 'Velvet Wine'.

 In the tube, Velvet Wine looks much of a coffee colour but don't be fooled! This lipstick is actually more of a deep bodied berry colour. 

So, straight away you can see this goes on a little patchy, but the colour is absolutely gorgeous and really pigmented. I've searching for my signature lip for ages and i've trowled through many pinks, red and colours but I think this is definitely the one. The dark wine coloured lipstick really suits my complexion and hair colour. Apparantly, this is an 'ultra lasting' colour. When I wore this on the night it did last all evening (I didn't eat or drink much though), however I've wore it since and as I've eaten/drank it's come off and left a sort of stain.

It's a matte lipstick, there's definitely no sheen or gloss that comes along with this lipstick but for £1.49, it does its job. But for a matte lip, it is quite silky instead of feeling heavy and cakey. 

 Application wise, I found it much easier to use a lip brush instead of just gliding it straight on because it is very patchy and it just needs some extra care to be blended in. I'm not going to compain too much though because it's a really inexpensive lipstick and it does what you pay for at the end of the day.

Pro's 

• Stupidly afforadable.
• Lasts on average 3-4 hours which is fine for a night out (just take it with you, just in case!)
• Silky and smooth to apply.
• A good dark lipstick for pale skin! 
• Highly pigmented.

Con's 

• Transfers when eating and drinking.
• Patchy, remember to blend in!
• Isn't 'Ultra Lasting' and it definitely doesn't last up to/longer than 6 hours.

Overall I had a lovely, lovely night with my beautiful freaks and I can't wait to go again!

XXX

Dior Diorshow Mascara in Black

I discovered this after I got it free when I purchased the Midnight Poison fragrance and I then completely forgot I had it for quite a few months. I did rediscover it a couple of weeks ago after giving my room a proper clear out and I literally haven't used any other mascara since. 

It's a mini, but the packaging is exactly the same as the full sized bottle. I quite like the design of the tube, it's simple yet effective but I can't help think that they could of done a bit more for it considering the £23.00 price lable. However, It's pretty much the nicest looking thing in my make up bag, so I can't complain.

The brush itself is pretty big, so sometimes it's a little difficult to apply neatly and I have found at times that I've got to have a make up wipe on hand, just to clear up to excess off my lids and underneath my lower lashes. It's especially tricky to get it on my inner lashes, where they're smaller and finer. I don't know if this is just because of it being a mini version, and I couldn't say if the same goes for the original.

Dior say that it "gives lashes a triple-shot of glamour, leaving them luxuriously thick, lengthened and curved to the max." 

Eye before mascara. Please excuse my horrible dry skin.

Eye with one layer on mascara. Eyelashes are noticably longer and appear slightly fuller.

Eye with two layers of mascara.

It's a great product, because it actually does what it says it will. My lashes were left looking considerably longer, thicker and actually curved my outer lashes which is quite an achievment for me as they are usually very fair and straight (no curl at all to my bare lashes).

As of yet, I've not found another mascara that has done this so effortlessy (literally glides on), or quickly for that matter. I've always found that i've had to put 4859509 coats of whatever it is on before I got to this stage so I'm really impressed with this one.

 I did find that the mascara clumped a little after the second coat but I think this might be down to that massive brush and I've read that changing brushes solves it immediately (even though I shouldn't have to for the price!) This is only a minor con though, as you really don't need any more than 2/3 coats of it. I do really rely on this now, and I would definitely, definitely recommend it! 

Pro's

• Cute, simple and sophisticated pacakaging
• Glides on effortlessy 
• Makes eyelashes longer and thicker
• Curved my stupidly straight lashes 
• Doesn't irritate my over sensitive skin, especially underneath my lower lashes. 
• Stays on for hours, I found that it didn't flake like most I have tried.
• I don't have to scrub eyes to get it off at the end of the day, comes off with remover pretty easily.
• This could be a pro or con so i'll put it at the end, the black is very dramatic so if this is what you want then absolutely great but if you're worried it's too much then Dior also do it in 'Chestnut'. I imagine it to be a bit more subtle and maybe more appropriate for everyday use.   

Con's 

• For me, the brush is a little too large making it slightly difficult to apply neatly and to my inner lashes. 
• Clumps ever so slightly (!) after a couple of coats. 

 I will definitely be getting this again!

XXX

Models Own Lipstick in 'Hot Pink'

To be honest i'm not the best when it comes to make up, mostly because I have incredibly dry skin, especially under and around my eyes and across my brow line. Because of this, I don't tend to pay big prices for well known and luxury products because most of the stuff I stick on my face really clogs up my pores and makes my problem areas 10 times more noticable.

However, I do like a good lipstick, gloss, balm or whatever as my lips are the only part of my face that doesn't dry up like the Sahara. I've been wanting a really bright lip colour for a while now but I have to be careful that it doesn't clash with my hair, so at first was put off by any kind of pink. But, alas, I was not going to beaten by the barbies, bubblegums and frostings of the lipstick world so searched high and low for a shade that would compliment my complexion and ginger curls.

After many deliberations and comparisons, I went for Models Own 'Hot Pink', which is a semi-matte lipstick. I know what you're thinking! I understand that this is possibly the pinkest of pink I could of gone for but it works and i'm totally in love with it. 

I really like the packaging of the Models Own range, it's simple yet so effective as I can clearly see what i'm buying and I don't have to touch the messy testers. 

I also haven't seen any photos of this product that does the colour justice, as it's so super bright and it comes out exactly as it looks. It's so unbelievably pigmented, and only I need one coat of this on my lips to do the job. Most of time I even have to blot it to mellow the pink.

What I also love about this product is how moisturizing it is, it's so soft on my lips and doesn't dry out and feel flakey or heavy (which I have a lot of problems with concerning other lip colours), it literally glides on. 

Like I said, there isn't any photos that will really show how super bright 'Hot Pink' is, so at a lovely and cheap £6.00, I think you should all go out and see for yourselves (:

XXX