Bright and Affordable FOTD

Hello!

I was going out into town today to meet my friend Cat and see Magic Mike at the cinema (side note: after seeing this film you will be so excited at the probability of Matthew McConaughey and Channing Tatum agreeing to do a sequel) so before I went I took some photos to show you girls my makeup! All but a few of my products are high-street makeup brands - cheap and cheerful! I will link where you can buy everything :)

This is a very easy makeup look! No challenging false lashes or smokey eye detail, just two eyeshadows lightly blended at the centre of the lid. I teamed this with a thin line of gel liner starting from the centre of my eye, and drawing out into a flick. You can however use liquid liner or kohl pencil for this look too. My skin is currently back to pale, so I paired this eye look with quite neutral face makeup, and brighter lips. 

Eyebrows: 

No7 Lash and Brow Perfector - Boots £10

Lips: 

MAC Keep it Casual lip and cheek colour - MAC £17.50

Face: 

Revlon Photoready Foundation in Shell - Boots £9.99

MAC Studio Finish concealer in NW20 - MAC £14.50

Maybelline Dream Touch Blush in Apricot - Boots £6.49

Natural Collection Blush in Peach Melba - Boots £1.99

No7 Skin Illuminator in Pink -Boots £11

Natural Collection Pressing Powder in Neutral - Boots £1.99

 Eyes:

Urban Decay Primer Potion (Original) - Lookfantastic.com £14.50

Natural Collection Eyeshadow in Soft Pink - Boots £1.79

17 Eyeshadow Limited Edition from Boots

MAC Blacktrack Fluidline Gel Eyeliner - MAC £14

Too Faced Lashlight Mascara - Boots £16.50

Hope you lovelies liked my makeup! And Magic Mike was sensational! Hope your weekend is fabby

Rachael XX

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No7 Stay Perfect Lipstick Review

Hello!

My second in an upcoming tirade of reviews! Last week I was in a Boots whilst on holiday, and remembered I had a £5 No7 voucher to be used by Sunday 15th July. So in I went! I chose to splurge a little more and pick up a Lipstick from their Stay Perfect collection. It is my fourth No7 lipstick (remember Blooming Pink Vital Brights lipstick from THIS post?) and in my limited experience I have found I prefer the staying power and wear of my Stay Perfect #75 Gay Geranium lipstick (a vivid dark orange!) to that of my Moisture Drench #90 Waterlilly one (- although this is a fabulous salmon pink shade). 

So, having swatched most of their Stay Perfect lipsticks, I chose #55 Glace. Unfortunately for me I had left my voucher on my dressing table at home.. woops! But in my defense I would pay £10 for this lipstick all over again!

The colour of this lipstick is at first tricky to deduce. In the shop lighting, it was quite a strong medium purple, something I've never previously owned. A few hours later I applied it in a cafe bathroom. Confused, I texted one of my friends: 'This is really not as purple as I thought! I put loads on and it hasn't made a difference!' Then, I went outside: 'Oh WOW, this is definitely as purple as I thought..haha I went a bit overboard there..' (profusive rubbing in then took place) 

In daylight this is a medium purple with pink and gold undertones. Indoor natural lighting makes it out as more of a mauve, whilst flourescent lighting brings out its rose gold side. This made it quite tricky to get photos for you! However, it looks really good on, and livens up your makeup look without taking the focus away from your eyes. Hooray! A new favourite.

Rachael Xx
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Lipcote Review

Hello!

Today I am reviewing a product I recently impulse bought from Boots: Lipcote Lipstick Sealer

For me, sometimes lipstick just doesn't stay on - especially the more vivid shades which I really want an even lasting coverage with! So I had been looking into lipstick primers, trying to decide whether splurging on one was pointless or not, so when I spotted this product for the cheaper price of £3.69 I immediately decided to give it a go! 

So, what do I think?

 Application: 

The process is as follows: Liner, blot, lippy, blot, lippy, blot, lipcote.

If you have ever read a review of this product before, a common theme is the stinging that you experience when applying it to your lips. I had not read a review, and so this was rather an unexpected surprise!! However, it's not that uncomfortable, you don't really need to 'man up' in order to take the very low level of pain. The stinging is short-lived. It's rather like the feeling of some lip-plumpers which irritate your lips to bring the blood to the surface and make your lips appear bigger. 

I breathed in whilst applying this.. Bad idea! The alcoholic fumes are ridiculously strong! Quite a shock to the system! You have to keep your lips apart whilst it dries, and a little goes a long way. It does dry relatively quickly, and initially you can taste it, but this doesn't last very long.

Appearance: 

At first the lipcote coat is noticable on your lips with a tell-tale sheen, however this wears off relatively soon. However, the first time I used this I had put rather a lot of lipcote over my various layers of product, and a couple of hours later the lipstick started peeling off in strips.. Using a very thin coat of Lipcote does preserve the wear of lipstick, and I noticed it working for up to around 6 hours.

So, this all said, if you can handle the taste, the fumes, and the stinging - as well as work out how much to use through trial and error, this product is for you! haha. I will probably use it again..

Rachael Xx


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'No more Hauls'? I LIED: Ball shoes, Makeup, Fathers' Day

Hello! I am currently in a fantastic mood having just returned from a very productive shopping trip in town. (in may seem like I'm always shopping.. really, I wish!) I was on a mission with my dad to find ball shoes, (Shopping with me is really not one of his favourite activities haha) and having counted on this taking houuuuuurs walked into Topshop and instantly knew I'd be getting some there.


.. And here they are:

Before buying these, I tried on several pairs of wedges and thick heels but made a joint decision with my sales assistant that these would go best with my dress to add a bit of sparkle to my outfit! These are unbelievably comfy! I don't like thin heels and hate stilettos mainly because I feel so unbalanced and unnatural, but these fit like a dream. Even with the tall heel and platform sole, my dress is still slightly long.. so I shall need to get the hem taken up a bit. These shoes are called Lorenzo Glitter Wooden Sandals and can be found HERE. They cost £55 - but I got a 10% student discount (Good old Topshop!)




Next, I went to pick up some makeup bits and pieces from Boots:

Firstly I picked up a Dove Gradual Tanner. I'm undecided whether to go natural or sun-kissed in terms of my skin for the ball, so I reckon I can apply this, see how it goes, and remove it if necessary!
Next I got a No7 skin illuminator in the Pink shade. I got this with my No7 £5 off voucher, taking the price down from £11 to £6, and I have been looking to get a highlighter and reckoned this would do the trick! (Please tell me if I'm wrong haha! I'm a complete highlighter novice) This shade is quite a pearlised white, and I had been looking at the Peach one, but they had none in stock so I took my chances! 
I needed new foundation, and having watched Tanya Burr's Prom Makeup Tutorial on Youtube HERE settled on the Revlon Photo Ready, and having enlisted the help of a No7 sales assistant worked out I'm shade Shell. (I always find it tricky to guess shades in the yellow lighting of the drugstore makeup section!) This was £12.99
Lastly, I had decided last night with the help of Jen to use the Bourjois Elastic Mascara for my ball makeup look, and as mine is almost dried up looked to purchase some more. There was just one left, and I decided to take a peek at the brush before buying. - Good idea! The stopper seal thing inside mascaras to fine-tune the amount of product which comes out was obviously broken, because it was basically a lump of product on a stick. So instead I decided to try out another Bourjois mascara - the Liner Effect mascara in Black. It cost £9.50




Before heading home I returned to Whittard - the little shop selling fine teas and coffees which I now presume shall be a frequent stop of mine! 

My dad is a lover of ground coffees, so I searched around and found this to be the most interesting (Just because my friend has often talked about Guatemala!) It is also relatively strong, so I think it's a perfect Fathers' Day present. 




I picked up a card from Scribbler - a seller of funny cards and small knick-knacks found on many high streets.

This was £2.50 and seemed appropriate. haha




Thank you! - for reading yet another haul! I'm so pleased to have found ball shoes so quickly, and I'm certain my dad will be happy with a 'real' present rather than the homemade things I usually gift out to him.. ! 


What do you think of my shoes?
Rachael xx

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HAUL: Primark, Topshop, Internationale, Whittard

Hello! I thought I'd post a collective haul for you today. I'm a little late posting this in that all the purchases are at least a week old.. but you don't care! I'm not really sure how much interest this will get, but I love seeing other people's shopping haha!

Primark:

Primark: You either love it or hate it. For me, when accepting the quality and losing any high expectations for survival rate of clothes past a year, I can look past this and appreciate the really nice things they have! Currently there is waaaay too many of these, and I had to really control myself!


Okay so my first Primark purchase was a summery tea-dress. It is black with flamingos everywhere and is one of those wardrobe pieces which just makes you feel happy! The material is quite sheer - but as it's dark you don't see through it when it's on. I love the collar detail which borders on a preppy style.. and the price! £10. woop!
My other Primark goodie was a maxi skirt. Up until buying this I didn't own any, and it was my friend's interest in them which made me try one on! And I love it! It is a really nice material.. more polyester than cotton, and was also £10

Topshop:

Next was a long-wanted Topshop purchase: one of their iconic zippy hoodies. Many people have these, they are reasonably basic and in a nice selection of colours. But this is nice basic. Like they feel almost like felt! But as you may be able to see from the last photo, the material is quite thin (good for throwing on in colder summer days) and a thread has already come loose! I like the contrasting white zip and hood cords, and the little white flecks on the grey hoodie. I practically have not taken this off since buying it! One thing I have found though, is that the hoodie has started to stretch.. I think this is because I always put my hands in the front pockets and sort of push outwards (thus stretching the material!) Not a good idea rachael! This is a habit I must break. I have also heard that wearing Topshop hoodies with a backpack makes the back all bobbly. 
... As much as I seem to be complaining, I'm not! I love this purchase! It was £26 - though only £23.40 with their 10% student discount!

Internacionale

So, first from Internacionale I have a summery cotton dress with three-way straps. They can go halter neck, razor-back or normal. My preference is razor back. There is buttons at the back to attach the straps to, and it is very easy. This was in the sale, for only £7 - wow! I love the colours and the shape when wearing it, and it is a good summery dress. The only issue is that they had my size, but my boobs are sort of too big for it..slightly. So I have the awkward look like you could potentially burst out the chest or wear it open with a vest top and look slightly suggestive issue! We have all been there.. I'm working on it!

My other purchase from here is some sunglasses! I am quite picky with sunglasses as I strongly dislike wrap-around glasses and more circular bug-eye effect ones. But these are oversised squarish lenses with a pink tint, and I love the leg detail. These were £2.50 - also reduced.

Boots

This is a pretty boring one! Just new setting powder from the Natural Collection at Boots. This is £1.99 and I got the shade neutral for my more tanned summery look.

Sainsburies

Anything I get from Sainsburies translates to what I add to my mum's shopping list! 

Firstly, the film Bridesmaids. This was £5 which is a good price to stock up on dvds at! I was supposed to watch this with my good friend Karen (I know she may be reading this..) but as we are re-scheduling I decided to go ahead and watch it myself first because I needed some cheering up today. Bad plan! The main theme of this film pretty much paralleled my own life problems, so it was like watching a sad reflection of this, but with a happy ending. I have yet to get my happy ending, but fingers crossed! *Not all films have happy endings though.. I saw Promethius at the cinema on Monday, and only one person survives to the end of the film! And I'm certain she was emotionally scarred for life haha*

Sorry Karen. I shall watch it again with you! Nevertheless, this was a good movie, and I'd recommend it to chick-flick fanatics! My only irk with this is the cover.. The bride and bridesmaids have completely different dresses in the film. WHY?

Next, magazines: Cosmo and Red. Cosmo is always my magazine of choice. This month it came with a choice of 3 sunglasses for £3.50. I got very dark black ones which I'm yet to wear. Red was £3.90, and its free gift dissapointed me because the Jemma Kidd mascara clumps so easily! 

Whittard

Image from  http://www.whittard.co.uk

Whittard: A 125 year old maker of fine tea, coffee and hot chocolate. I am OBSESSED with their Pear & Guava instant tea. Literally the best thing on the planet. I am yet to venture into other flavours, but the likes of Pink Lemonade sound promising! A 475g pot is £5.50 or 3 for £15

.. There we go! I am so sorry for the length of my rambling haul! Please tell me in the comments if you get to the end! 

Rachael xx


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