LUSH haul

Hello!
I, along with many girls of my generation, am a lover of Lush Cosmetics. I was recently gifted a few products and I thought I'd share what I think of them. Hope you enjoy!

First up was the Frozen bath bomb, that I didn't get a picture of because I just really wanted to try it out! As the name suggests, it was an icy blue exterior, but when put in water it turned the bath bright blue. The glitter looked amazing in the water, though it goes everywhere afterwards- it didn't stain my bathtub though, which I have had problems with in the past. Overall, I would definitely buy again but be wary of the glitter!

I also wanted to mention the iconic Bubblegum lip scrub: unlike many old loves, this has not changed in function or in look since I first bought it a few years ago. It still smells and tastes good enough to eat, and does the job on even the driest of lips- it's hype was and still is worth it.

One thing I've never tried before are reusable bubble bars, so I was excited to try out the Pink Flamingo bar. It does look great,

Another bubble bar I used was the Creamy Candy one. My favourite bubble bar is The Comforter, and in my mind nothing could ever beat it,

I don't tend to like the soaps from Lush as much as the other products, but I decided to give the Maypole soap a whirl anyway.

So that was my Lush haul, these are only my opinions on these products so do feel free to try these and tell me what you think too.
Brit x

April Playlist

Hello!
Apologies for being very MIA recently, and a warning that I may remain so for the foreseeable future; very busy times are ahead! This month I've really been loving music, and since I got a new phone (and as importantly, new earphones) the music quality is so good that I have an excuse to listen to it pretty much every free second I get. Here are some new discoveries of mine this month, and old favourites that never cease to be gold:

1. Sunset Lover by Petit Biscuit. Since the weather decided to perk up ever so slightly in April, something a bit more summery was needed, and this song is perfect. I think I heard this last summer, but only just found it again, and it'll definitely remain on my playlist throughout summer.

2. Into The Fire by Thirteen Senses. This song was on one of my many loved TV shows, Grey's Anatomy, and it's quite special as it was featured on the first ever episode and then repeated recently in it's 11th season. It's all dramatic and the type of song that makes you feel really badass when walking down the street.

3. Partition by Beyoncé. What can I say? She's Queen B.

4. Hate Me Soon by Yellow Ostrich. Yet another song from a TV show, this time from E4's Glue. Not only does it make me think about the show which is amazing in itself, it's just a really cool song with drama and edginess and coolness. Yes, I do need music to make me feel cool.

5. You Really Got Me by the Kinks. I first heard this song on Alvin and the Chipmunks when I was about eleven, so that's all I now associate it with! From only half way through this playlist I think you're all judging my incredibly varied music taste, but there's something about music from other eras that does it for me.

6. Somebody Else by The 1975. I've loved this band since their first album was big, so I've waited for their new music for quite a while, and it hasn't disappointed! I feel like this song is the most overplayed from the new album, but it's my favourite at the moment with the perfect mix of upbeat and mellow. 

7. West Coast by The Neighbourhood. Another old favourite from when my music taste was largely influenced by what was cool in 2013, I still think The Nbhd are awesome and the eerie mood of their 2013 songs is something I've not heard in many other songs.

8. Remains by Bastille. I was weary at first about Bastille's collaborative album, but the more I've listened the more I've grown to love it. I love how this song is an extension of Skulls from Bad Blood, and the other artists who feature on this track offer an extra dimension to the song which I love.

9. Kaleidoscope by Coldplay. This track is easily missed as it's only just shy of 2 minutes long, but it has one of my favourite poems on, Guest House by Rumi, and the melody is so peaceful and calming that it's become one of my favourite short tracks.

10. Lost it to Trying by Son Lux. This makes me think of summer so much, and the Paper Towns movie, which is one of my favourite movies released in the last few years. I listen to the remix version but it's worth a listen!

I hope this has given you song new songs to try out, and given an introduction to my incredibly crazy music taste! See you soon,
Brit x

March Favourites

Hello!

As I said in my last post, March really has flown by, and so has 2016! How are we in April already? If you want to see what I've been loving this month in music, beauty and fashion then keep reading!

Some beauty favourites I've loved for a while but have rediscovered this month are from every blogger's best friend, Lush Cosmetics, and they are the Bubblegum lip scrub and Honey Trap lip balm. The lip scrub is brilliant in the winter months (yes, until this week England was still in winter) and transforms my lips so they feel silky smooth. It also smells/tastes amazing, and so does the Honey Trap lip balm. These products go hand in hand really, as they do the same job but when paired they create the best base for lipstick or lip stain, especially if it's matte.

Another beauty favourite has been my Makeup Revolution Redemption eyeshadow palette. I use the brown shades to fill in my brows most days, and the pearly shade is fab to highlight the inner corner or under the brow. I find I have to use a base for these to be long wearing, but overall they're amazing eyeshadows for the cheapest price (around £4!).

Moving on from beauty favourites to another love of mine: music. I literally can't go a day without listening to music, and an album I absolutely loved this month was Coldplay's A Head Full Of Dreams. Coldplay have been around for so long that they really should be has-beens, but they keep on delivering beautiful music with every album. I can't say it's the best album they've released, because I love their old music just as much, but there is something about this new sound that means I can't stop listening to it. The cover is also really pretty, which is true for all Coldplay albums and singles, so overall I just love the whole album. I'm also loving the videos for the singles and how creative they are with coming up with them (I mean CGI monkeys? Really?). Chris Martin's carpool with James Corden is a hilarious watch too, and made me love Chris (and James, actually) even more.

An odd favourite of mine this month particularly has been my Olivia Burton watch. I was bought this for Christmas and it is the perfect mix of practical and pretty: in exam season, I find it so annoying when you need to know the time but have already put your phone away, and a watch is also handy (pun not intended) with time management once you're in the exam. The black and gold look very classy and go with literally any outfit, even my horrible school uniform. Olivia Burton have so many styles and colours, but I went for Midi as I thought the Large would be too uncomfortable and a bit too flashy for me. 

So those were my March favourites, I hope you enjoyed!

Brit x

last minute/ budget gift ideas

Hello!
March has flown by, and this month for me is always one with a lot of gift giving. I absolutely love making/buying gifts and giving them, though this gets more difficult when you have a lack of cash and/or time! If you ever find yourself in this situation, here are a few ideas for gifts for any occasion that the recipient is bound to love.

This idea seems a bit daunting, especially to someone like me who is a complete novice in the kitchen: baking. Yes, you could just buy the cakes ready-made, but making them yourself shows thoughtfulness and you can sneakily eat a few in the process! I decided to bake and decorate some red velvet cakes for my friend's 16th last week as they are our favourite cakes. As I didn't have a lot of experience with baking, I just picked up a cake mix - it seems like cheating, but this saves money and time browsing Sainsburys for all the ingredients! I then found a recipe for cream cheese icing, which is super simple to make, and decorated them with birthday cake flavour M&Ms and freeze-dried raspberries. They (surprisingly) turned out really good if I do say so myself! 

If the person receiving the gift is a close friend, you will most likely share a couple of inside jokes. If you're completely lost about what to give them, something that links to an inside joke you share together will definitely be appreciated- you'll make them laugh too, which is always a bonus. It shows you've been more thoughtful than if you just got a generic gift, and it will probably cost less too! 

Similarly, something they've been lusting after for ages or that you know they love is always a good idea. For instance, if you know your mum loves a certain brand of perfume or type of flower, getting it for her will show you listen to her and is almost guaranteed to make her smile.

If a friend is part of a group, chipping in to get a group present is an easy (and often cheap) way of giving, you just have to all keep quiet and not let slip what your idea is! Some presents I've chipped in for in the past are Pandora charms/rings and Millie's Cookies with a personalised message, which only cost a few pounds each for a big group.

Another budget idea is filling an old jar with "Open when..." letters. Find an empty coffee or jam jar, decorate with a pretty ribbon, and fill with lots of different coloured cards with different messages on to be opened at a specific time or mood. One could be "Open now", another could be "Open when you're happy" etc. This way, your present isn't used up all in one go but gradually looked back at, and it's bound to be appreciated for longer. In the same way, you could write down memories you've shared with the recipient, or inside jokes. Not only does this look pretty, it shows you've thought of them and doesn't cost anything at all!

If the recipient doesn't live near you, it's a lot harder to send gifts cheaply. My penpal and I experience this struggle every Christmas and birthday, but a few things we've managed to send without extra costs are cosmetics: don't send something that can be easily broken like a palette though, to avoid any nasty surprises on opening. Notebooks are also easy to send as they fit through letterboxes, and if the person is anything like me they will appreciate a pretty book as much as anything else. A funny card, like those from Ohh Deer are also treasured, or you could make one yourself for a cheaper, more personal option.

I hope these ideas help if you're stuck for what to get someone for a birthday/occasion, they're worked for me!
Brit x

revision, organisation and Sighh collection

Hello!
As this year is my GCSE year, I have around 23 (!) exams to revise and prepare for; and although most older people insist that these don't even matter once they're done, I like to be prepared anyway. If you'd like to see how I organise all my notes and see a few tips for effective revision, keep on reading!

As you're probably already aware, I love all things stationery-wise, but a company I just love everything from is Sighh Designs. I've loved this shop since all they sold were pretty hand-drawn phone cases, and now they've grown so much that they stock almost everything you could ever need: from notebooks, planners, stickers to the classic phone cases and laptop skins. I own a (well-loved but battered) phone case and a laptop skin from Sighh, but remaining on the point of revision organisation, they do a fabulous revision planner and also some really cute motivational stickers. These stickers make even the most boring book of Physics notes into something pretty, and I find the messages on them hilarious too.

  

I'm the sort of person who doesn't do something unless I can motivate myself enough to do it, and I find planning short sessions of one subject help me to revise topics. This being said, I also procrastinate a lot by making revision timetables for myself, so a ready-made weekly view at what subjects I need to do every day and when is pretty essential. There are loads of weekly planners out there, and highstreet shops I know have lovely ones are Wilko and Paperchase; however, on one of Sighh's discount offers I snapped up one of their very popular planners which I use almost every week!

Revision cards and posters are actually fun to make, and if you have younger siblings or friends to pass them on to after your exam, they're ideal. I like to bring notes cards in to school on the day of my exam (instead of lugging a load of exercise books and having to fit them all into your locker) and test friends. 

Colours, whether they be pens, highlighters or pencils, make notes much more interesting and make revising (a little) more fun. I actually colour-coded each of my subjects to use on my revision and exam timetable: these timetables are essential for planning revision sessions and managing time effectively, so they might as well look pretty, right?

Some other tips for revision are to take short breaks. I know it sounds unbelievably counterproductive, but I find having slots of 20-30 minutes and then a break of strictly 5 minutes only actually helped me revise for longer and retain more information. Just make sure before you go on a break that you have finished the section you were doing, and don't do anything that you can easily get distracted by in your break: restrict yourself by a set amount of time to make sure you do actually get back into the revision. Make sure you have all the equipment and books you need to start with to prevent wasting time finding them later on, and stay hydrated! Drinking water is proven to help concentration and prevent headaches, so it's essential when revising.

I hope these tips were useful and help you with your revision this year: I follow all of these and I'm happy with the results I get, which is really all you need to be where GCSEs are concerned. Good luck and see you next Sunday!

Brit x

                                     

worth the hype?: maybelline collection

Hello!
This week I thought I'd share my collection of Maybelline products, as this appears to be the brand I have most of! I buy most of my makeup based on reviews from other bloggers, Instagrammers and YouTubers, and don't usually branch out and buy things on a whim (I don't want to waste my precious cash on something that isn't going to even work!) but when I really like a product I'm a lot more inclined to go back and buy more from the same brand. This isn't always a good technique, but it usually works for me! This is a review on items I picked out that were raved about by others, and my opinions on whether they were really worth it.

First up are the Colour Tattoo cream eyeshadows. If you haven't seen these, where have you been? I'm sure I'm last on the bandwagon as far as these are concerned, but I assure you that these are worth the hype! Having never tried high-end makeup, I'm not a credible judge on whether these are dupes for other more expensive products, but these are fabulous as a base if you perhaps have favourite eyeshadows that aren't very long wearing. The right is Pink Gold, which is on the UK website but I don't think this is available anymore. The left is On and On Bronze, which I wore on NYE and it was still on the morning after, so the '24hr' ad is accurate! I am a sucker for nice packaging, and these look a lot more expensive than they are with the glass pot which is great! Overall, I love these and would happily purchase more colours.

Next are these newer ones I got for Christmas. I must admit, as I'm not that great at eyeliner other than gel, I haven't found that I love or hate the Master Precise liner, but the packaging is quite pretty. As the name suggests, the pen does have a really precise tip, and as I prefer a much slimmer line I was more attracted to this than other liquid eyeliners. The Lash Sensational mascara is hugely raved about, and to be honest I was expecting something more from this than I got. It was quite clumpy on application, even though it was new, and didn't 'multiply' my lashes so much as darken them. These are just my first impressions though, and I could grow to love these when I get a bit more use out of them!

Onto an eyeliner I love! The Lasting Drama gel liner comes with this pot and a brush, which is actually good quality considering it comes with the product! This is so easy to apply and is perfect for beginners who are maybe put off by mascara and liquid/pen liners by the application/smudging throughout the day. Gel stays on all day and won't budge even if you're running, rubbing your eyes or crying (haven't tried the crying very meticulously but watering eyes from the cold are my judgement). This also comes in a quite expensive-looking pot, which I like as I feel a whole lot richer than I am!

 Have you just gone back to Instagram 2013? Nope, it's just me being late on the blogger bandwagon again. However, I did get the two on the left a while back, which gave me a lot of time to fall in love with them and want to collect all of the styles, but they changed the formula! You have no idea how devastated I was when I bought my Peach Kiss one expecting a nude colour and getting nothing but sparkly lips! The red doesn't even come off Cherry Me anymore, and I've very nearly finished with my original one. The Dr Rescue ones actually do still work though, but for the sake of the pretty lid you may as well get a menthol one from a pharmacy which would do the same job. Verdict: loved the original formula, but pretty much just a nice lid now.

 

To finish, here is my favourite Maybelline product, and possibly my favourite makeup product full stop. After purchasing the Collection Lasting Perfection and having a disastrous time (I literally looked like an Oompa Loompa and it was incredibly hard to blend at all) I was having a difficult time finding a drugstore brand that I could find in the UK, and that would actually fit my skin tone. I hadn't seen all the glowing reviews about the Fit Me concealer until I bought it, by which time I had already decided it was the best concealer in the world and that I didn't need to look anywhere else. That is, until I get too pale for this one or they discontinue it (touch wood). This is medium coverage, but I would say you can definitely build it up if you need it. It has worked in winter and summer for me as it's blendable and works wonders with my Natural Collection pressed powder in making the perfect shade for my quite pale skin. Many people have said how comparable it is to the Nars concealer, and even by looking at the packaging that much is clear. I've seen comparison videos and they work almost exactly the same, obviously Nars is higher quality but even if I did have the money I think personally I'd stick with this! 

So there we are, those are some of the hyped up Maybelline cosmetics and whether they are worth it, I do enjoy these products and I would say that the brand is a firm favourite with me as it's relatively cheap for the drugstore and is good value for money in most cases. If you would like to see more in this series let me know by leaving a comment below, and which brand/product you would like me to review!

stationery haul 2016

Hello!

I'm absolutely obsessed with stationery, even when I have no use whatsoever for things like year diaries or planners as I don't do anything during the school year! Recently I was given/ bought a lot of new stationery for Christmas, and as I have little use for it than to take pictures of it all and talk about how pretty it is, I reckoned I'd do just that! If you fancy doing a spot of shopping of any of these products, all items (if possible!) are linked to the online store. Happy reading!

Of everything I own stationery-wise, my definite favourite are notebooks. I'm always needing to write something down (or at least that's what I tell myself when attempting to justify the amount I spend on notebooks alone) and they just look way too pretty on display that I can't resist buying them! This white one is an A5 lined Moleskine from Paperchase; because of the big brand it is rather pricey (£15) but it's so gorgeous and it's definitely my favourite one I've ever bought. It is sold plain, I added a sticker from Sighh (a store that is definitely going to have a mention on here soon) The patterned one is from Tesco, it was a gift but it's super pretty and girly and quite unique, too.

Some things that get a great deal of use, especially at exam time, are coloured pens and highlighters. I'm a visual learner, and plus I just prefer colourful notes to boring textbooks. My Sharpie highlighters came in a massive set and have lasted so long, but what I loved is that they came in 5 colours so I can go to town with rainbow cue cards! Also a gift were these fineliners, which are ideal for colouring as well as writing. Stabilo do mini versions of their fineliners that are just so cute and fantastic for fitting in blazer pockets/pencil cases.

Speaking of pencil cases, my family proved that they know me all too well when they got me this London Underground-themed set from Paperchase! I admit tin-style pencil cases can be annoying when taken to school as they tend to rattle but everything matches and it's all so cute! (I have a teeny bit of shame in admitting that I squealed a little when opening this...) The highlighters are my favourite!

I had a gift card for WhSmith, and again let out a small yip of excitement when I saw the gorgeous diaries they had in there! Being in my GCSE year and seeing that my school doesn't have a planner (like what school doesn't have a planner for goodness sake?) I took it upon myself to get my life on track with a diary that would be much cuter than any school planner. After much deliberation, I decided on a deep pink coloured pocket-sized one with a day to a page, this was £8 and I adore it. No one who knows me would say that the colour was necessarily very 'me', and I surprised myself in wanting something as vibrant as pink, but the colour, texture and pattern combo just won me over entirely.

Finally, I was given these little post-it markers. Aren't they just adorable?! Unfortunately I don't know where they're from but I have rabbits, storybook characters and arctic animals... what more could a girl want?

So that was (a glimpse of) my stationery collection, if you would like to see more posts like this in the future do let me know in the comments.
See you next time!
Brit x