Haul: Push down pump nail polish remover

Hi guys!

Just wanted to do a quick post to share this item with you - sorry for the short and catchy blog title but I don't know what this is official call. From now on it's 'it' or 'the thing'.

So what is this thing?! It's a small plastic bottle that you can put liquid in. Does not have to be used for nail polish remover but that's what I purchased it for - 99p from eBay.

Before I go on - very disappointed as my thing does not work. The nail polish remover does not come out when I press a cotton pad down. But I thought I'd share this item with you anyway cos it is a good idea. 

So like I said, it's a small plastic bottle; it's got a screw on lid with a flip cap.

And here's a close up of the 'special' bit - so you're suppose to press a cotton pad down and the liquid comes straight up. With my thing, nothing comes out when I press down :( I was so excited to get this. Oh well. I can still unscrew the lid and use the bottle in the traditional way.

I poured a bottle of Cutex into the bottle but I also purchased the above nail polish remover from Boots and I have to tell you, this is amazing! A great pice and removes polish with barely any rubbing. The only thing some people might not like is that this does leave an oily residue on your nails, but I wash my hands before applying my new colour anyway so it doesn't bother me. If you are in the market for a cheap nail polish remover I would recommend this one.

New make up brushes! Ebay real technique dupes!

Hello hello!

So a few weeks ago I picked up a couple of Real Techniques brushes and i did like them. I was considering picking up the Core Collection but couldn't really justify the price. Whilst I was online browsing reviews to see if it would be worth it I came across a post about some dupe real technique make up brushes available off eBay. And then I googled dupe real technique brushes and read a few good reviews. Got myself on eBay and aftering a bit of umming and arring and tok the plunge and purchased 3 of the brushes. 

The seller I went with was bg4acf and I got my package in 2 weeks - whichis bloody amaxing considering it came from Hong Kong. Postange and packaging was free, and the brushes were £1.87 each. Yes, £1.87! I went with the brushes 01, 02 and 04. (OMG I just checked eBay and they are only £1.84 now lol)

I washed them before I used them and they washed and dried well. I used the stipple brush to put on foundation and I liked it - not super dense but dense enough to make application smooth and easy. I used the contour brush to...contour (perfect size), really nice quality. The other brush is like the expert face brush which I already have but I did dab it around my face to give it a bit of a road test and I like it - none of them are scratchy by the way, and I've not noticed any shedding.

I cannot believe the price I paid and would recommend it - tempted to get even more just for the sake of it!

Review: Revlon Colorstay foundation

Hi guys!

Just wanted to let you know what I think about Revlon Colorstay foundation.

I have 3 shades/2 formulations: 

The first Colorstay I tried out was 320 True Beige in the normal/dry skin formulation. I got this ages ago (2012?...maybe 2011?!) but I've only been using it for a few months. I really liked the coverage and staying power but the colour match was not good. Colorstay oxidises on me very very badly - this shade is dark for me regardless but after about 4 hours, I'm an Oompa Loompa. Scrap that - even an Oompa Loompa would think I was too orange!!! 

Also, skin wise I've come to the conclusion that I don't have dry skin (I'm just dry at my damaged nose area); the majority of my face is normal-ish. This revelation has changed my life (well...it's changed the type of stuff I put on my face).

So anyway, I liked this but I needed a slightly lighter shade and whilst I was looking I thought I'd try out the combination/oily skin type.

First stop was Boots and Superdrugs to try to find a colour match. Can I just say that the cleanliness and overall display quality of drugstore makeup stations are utterly appalling. Disgusting. I'm sure you can catch something deadly from the testers. 

Long story short, there wasn't much of a shade range in stores but I knew from online research that Revlon foundations come in a relatively fantastic shade range. So I decided to colour match myself to a mac foundation using my Estée Lauder's double wear match (in tawny FYI) as I very recently got matched  in store. My dodgy research told me I was probably around the 35-40 mark and interestingly enough that gave me a colorstay match of true beige as the darkest. So I was on the right track I felt.

I have shade Golden Beige in Revlon Photoready and it was too light for me but reviews said that Photoready and Colorstay shades weren't the same (despite using the same names) so I decided that I'd go for this, since if it was too light I could mix it with True Beige.

But then! I realised that in the USA they had a shade 310 Warm Golden. Smack bang between 300 Golden Beige and 320 True beige. Now how do I get my hand on this 'special' shade?

Some retailers were selling Warm Golden for £17-21!!!!! (In the UK Colorstay rrp is £12-13 - and I always buy foundation when it's on offer eg 3 for 2.

I was about to lose hope but then an eBay miracle happened. A lady was selling golden beige and warm golden!!! I entered into a bidding war and slayed all my enemies. Best feeling. (Each was sold separately - total for both was £13 inc p+p - bargain!!!)

So - do I like it? Yes! I won't go on about shade anymore but I'm loving the formulation of the combination/oily skin.

Coverage - great coverage. Covers all my red bits and gives a nice even finish. 

Finish - nice and matte but doesn't leave me looking like I'm wearing a mask. And it doesn't feel tight and heavy. It's probably heavy for some people but this is a full coverage foundation so what do you expect?! Wears really nicely throughout the day. 

Oil control - Does control my oil so it was worth switching formulas. Doesn't leave me totally oil free and I do need to blot but my face is definitely less melty lol I can't make a comparison with any other foundation as I've always gone for dry skin types before.

Lasting power - this says "wears for up to 24 hours". I've never worn my make up for 24 hours but I would say definitely great for a 9-12 hour working day, and pretty fantastic for 16 hours.

I'm really happy with my choice of product and for the price this might potentially be my forever foundation. Very tempted to bulk buy but trying to remain calm and sensible!

Have you tried this? Do you like it? Any recommendations?

Fur and peaches

Hi Guys!

Sorry for the terrible terrible picture quality, posing in artificial light

Just 2 things really:

Peach Melba and black fur collar. Both are mine. Yaaaaaaay!!!!

After wanting wanting wanting Barry M's nail paint in Peach Melba for ages I finally got one (thanks mummy!) - erm, I'll be honest, it was not worth the wait. It's too pastel on me. Then again, it is December so I think I will put this away and give it another go come summer time.

After my love affair with the black racoon fur I purchased another fur collar in black. It turned up on my birthday eve. Love. Nuff said!

Addicted to studs and furs

Hi Guys!

OOTD 1

*Dodgy face pic*

I wore my DIY studded shirt again, and this time I tied a black ribbon to keep the neck closed (ribbon from ebay 99p). I wore the shirt tucked into a black mini skirt. I looked like a jazzed up waitress.

First day wearing my fur! FYI The colour I got was 'black racoon' and I'm really happy with my choice, it complements my colouring and wardrobe really well. I wore it every day this week. (Also got a black faux fur on the way!) Both £11.99 inc p+p from ebay.

Worn with a black elbow sleeved jacket from dorothy perkins. You can wear the faux fur like a collar (opened) but there is also an elastic on the underside that you can tuck the end in (as pictured).

OOTD 2

Leopard print, raccoon and rabbit skin - I kid I kid!!

Outfit basically the same as yesterday but with a leopard print blouse and my greenish gap jacket.

eBay rings

Hi Guys!

Ordered two rings off ebay a while ago and they've finally arrived!

And how cute are the boxes?

I can't remember how much I paid but definitely under £2 each including p+p and possibly nearer the £1 mark :)

I'll be honest - these were purchased in a hazy mist of madness. I am not a ring wearer at the best of times. And these rings are kinda tacky. Oh well, they will make my dresser look pretty :)

OOTD: Studs and leopard print

[Pic 1]

Hi Guys!

Outfit of the day for you featuring my DIY studded white shirt from ebay. Apologies for the crappy photo's but I wanted to show as much as I could and was running late for work!

What I'm wearing:

White shirt -ebay (DIY Studded collar)

Beige mini skirt - Dorothy Perkins £5!

Leopard print skinny belt - Asos

Over sized blazer coat - Primark (a long time ago)

[Pic 2]

[Pic 3]

And just one more photo (sorry about the mess) from a different day but to show you the coat in more detail:

[Pic 4]

The coat is...coat material (!) with cropped sleeves (past the elbow). It is literally just a big blazer jacket (with the most lovely grey leopard print lining!). I bought it maybe two years ago and never wore it. It was too big and just a bit blah. But then I cut off the buttons and when the winter is mild I just wear it open like a blazer [picture 2] and if I want a bit more shape and coverage I belt it [picture 4]. I think it's really cool and laid back and an interesting piece to throw on over skinny jeans.

Thanks for reading :)

Am I going round the twist?!

Hi Guys!

Got another of my ebay parcels today. Was confused when I took out the above [pic] from the padded envelope and couldn't remembered what I ordered but on closer inspection (and unwrapping) I discovered these [below]:

What are they? Well, they are pins for your hair. Twisty, sprial hair grips? Something along those lines. /i first saw these being used in a you tube hair tutorial and goggled them but they weren't quite a bargain so I resisted the urge to purchase some.

But then I randomly came across them on ebay from a Hong Kong seller; 10 grips for 99p, free p+p! Even though they weren't the legit version I thought I'd splash the cash and give them a go.

First impressions: When i took them out of the 'candy wrapper' I was disappointed. I can't really explain but they looked a bit crudely made, no gloss and no safety ends (like those round bits you get on the end of good kirby grips to prevent snagging/breaking hair). Also, they came with no instructions. There were a few poor quality images on the candy wrapper but nothing that could be followed...

However, i brushed my hair and rolled it into a ballerina bun and just stuck in a twisty grip. OMG! I love it!! As you push in the grip you can feel it spiral into your hair, thus securely your bun. I've had my bun up (used a few grips around the bun, no kirbys or elastics) for about 2 hours now and it hasn't budged (though I haven't moved off my sofa so it might fare differently on a windy journey to work).

To take them out, DO NOT PULL them out, but gently grab an end of a GRIP AND TWIST (you will realise which way to twist cos if you twist the wrong way you will feel it)

Likewise, if you feel your bun/hairstyle loosening then just twist to further secure.

As simple as screwing and unscrewing a bottle of water!!

Really happy with my buy :)

DIY: Studded collar

Hi Guys!

I got this shirt of ebay a few weeks ago and was waiting for some studs to start my next diy project.

The shirt was either £7.99 but I can't remember if that was with p+p, though I think that I paid extra for postage, but def under £10 all together.

It is a cream polyester long shirt and it has a very subtle check/square pattern (cream on cream).

Studding a shirt was much easier than shoes, not because of the thickness of the fabric, but because it's easier to get access to both sides of the material.

My studs were also from ebay, gold triangle studs (8mm); 100 studs for about £4 inc p+p.

The seller has a webpage www.idreamcraft.com and the prices are actually slightly lower on the webstore then on their ebay seller page (bigbenworld).

The seller also included a little free gift which was a sweet touch; a few round flat gunmetal studs. Very nice if you wanted a proper grungey rock and roll feel.

So I started studding the tips of the collar - three rows either side and then building up one row at a time, alternating sides so that I wouldn't use up all of the studs on one side and end up with a lopsided collar.

Pic above is what I thought was the final product (6 rows) but I've added another row. I would have liked to do many more rows of studs but 100 studs actually gets used up really quickly. The collar tips used up about 70 studs. I am thinking of getting another 300 studs and stud more of the collar, but also the centre (it's a fly button shirt) and maybe even the cuffs.

The studding is addictive!!!

Eyebrows

Hey Guys!

Another random ebay purchase. This was a bargain at £1.99 and it arrived pretty quickly.

You're probably wondering what it is...it doesn't have a name, or at least not an english name but it is basically a 'tool' used to remove unwanted hair. It supposedly uses the same principles of removing hair as threading does.

I was really excited about getting this because it is a potentially (beauty) life changing item to have on a dressing table. So.....does it work?

Erm, I don't know.

I eagerly ripped it out of the packaging after the blog pics were taken, but I've spent the last few hours trying to 'thread' my hairy legs (no shame no shame!) and I just can't get the hang of it.

I don't want to be unfair and judge the product too quickly, maybe I am just being cack handed (which is totally possible as I am left handed - I can just about use a can opener and that takes ages, and a potato peeler is just aaaaaarrrrrggghh) so I shall reserve judgement for now.

Fingers crossed I can get the hang of using this - my mono brow would really appreciate the effort ;)

I want: Turquoise pendant

Hi Guys,

I really want a turquoise pendant. It's quite the in thing at the moment (swings and roundabouts)and I think it would add a nice fresh pop of colour to my outfits. Also, turquoise is my birthstone so I guess it would be lucky for me to wear it.

What do you think of this retro stone?

Do you believe in the power of crystals?

OOTD: is that an egg?*

Hello Guys!

I am so excited to share this OOTD with you guys!I loved this outfit so much and felt really happy wearing it. And I got to wear a bunch of previously unworn stuff so that was fun. Jesus I am so shallow but whatever.

I am wearing:

Chiffon blouse with dip back from Tesco (loving tesco!)

Mid blue skinny jeans from Forever21

Pendant from Ebay

And once on road also wore:

My beloved Gap coat

Dirty nude suede pumps from Primark

My black Focco

[ABOVE]

Close up of my pendant (and non existent cleavage - where are my boobs hiding!?). I got this off ebay...I can't remember for how much exactly but it was under £2 (inc p+p). The chain is really long (bust length) but I did it up so that it would just peek out from under my collar. It looked really nice like this when my collar was done up all the way but settled with a few buttons undone because otherwise I would have suffocated.

*The title for this outfit of the day is due to SF's babygirl (aged 5). She seemed to find my pendant fascinating and kept asking "what is that?", I told her it was a stone (I don't think 'pendant' is in a child's vocab) and she said that she thought it was an egg. How cute is that!? (I hope she meant it looked like a really nice egg lol)

[BELOW]

Loving my new jeans! I got these from the Forever21 in Westfield Stratford City branch. I will post about my experience in another post but jeans wise I am so pleased! Buying plus sized skinny jeans in store is no easy feat. Firstly, there aren't many stores that do plus size (FYI there is no Evans in the new Westfield) and even stores that do plus size (i.e Dorothy Perkins, Newlook, Next) don't often stock the range is store, and if they do, it's pretty lame with, ironically, slim pickings. But anyway, the important thing is I got my jeans and they were only £15.25!!!! They are a tad long for me, bit they fit great and I can even walk properly and sit down and stand up. Happy days!!

On a side note - it's really weird that my two favourite OOTD's have been different from my usual look. I think I am known for my skirts and dresses but my favourite looks have been my homage to chanel and this one - both featuring...well, no skirt or dress.

This is really sad, but I can't wait until pay day, not for the obvious reason (kerching) but because we usually get a non uniform day at work (actually, we don't wear a uniform so it's official dress down day) on payday and I am soooooooo wearing this entire outfit. *excited squeal*!!!!

OOTD

Back to basics with Thursday's cream, black and grey outfit of the day.

Charcoal grey boyfriend blazer from primark, cream top from gap, m&s trousers with turned up bottom, eBay owl pendant and my 'focco' bag.

Wore grey 'suede' pumps with bow and 'gold' detail from primark. Total wrecked on the way home when the sky split open and drowned my poor shoes. Today is Saturday and they are still damp :(

And I don't know why my feet and ankles are so fat and orange, i blame the angle and lighting. They are about 5% less fat and orange in real life lol

eBay haul

Yay eBay!

I got gifted two handbags from ebay (my choices) and I am happy happy :)

First up we have my favourite bag out of the two. I've wanted this bag for ages. It is a 'homage' to the famous Alexander Wang rocco bag, and fellow bloggers have christened this one the 'focco' (fake rocco). The Wang is £800 so erm, that's why I've got the focco (around £30-35 on ebay depending on seller).

It doesn't photograph very well (or maybe it is the photographer lol) but I think (i hope!!) once it's got some junk in it it will look great. I might do a more detailed photo blog once I've road tested it.

Next up we have a bag (Ostrich kelly bag) that I've wanted for even longer than the rocco, I've wanted this style since I worked at Gap Flagship, which was at least 5 years ago!!!

However, if I'm honest, I'm happy with it, and I like it, but it isn't love.

But anyway, I'll also photoblog this once I've roadtested it.

And lastly, I brought a notepad holder for my desk at work. I love it and I can't wait to put it on my desk on Monday.

These..things..are available from poundland/99p store types places so some people might think I got ripped off since I paid £2 (£1 for thing and £1 for postage) but I don't feel that way. My local shops didn't have it, and even when they did, they didn't have it in pink, so I think for an extra £1 (cheaper than the bus!) it was worth it for getting the one I wanted. Wow - all that for justifying £1 lol

OOTD x3

Hi Guys :)

Just a few outfit of the day's to share:

First up, black caped asos dress with milk maid braids (which provided endless entertainment for my work mates);

My teal primark dress again. I think I love it. I liked wearing it the 2nd time much more than the first. Teamed it with my leopard print shoes, american apparrel leather large clutch and my new ebay purchase - owl pendant.

This owl pendant is my new favourite thing. Ebay for about £1.38 inc p+p. It came on a long necklace but due to my skin allergies I transferred the pendant to a leather necklace I also got on ebay (I got it ages ago - I think it was around £3.00).

As friends and regular blog readers might notice, I don't usually (ever!) wear jewelry so I felt very feminine and a bit flashy with my owl friend. Since I enjoyed wearing it so much, I went a bit crazy and have ordered lots of pendants off ebay - oops!

Once they arrive I shall of course be sharing with you :)

Super duper casual OOTD: oversized peacock asos t shirt (purchased to wear for my marie curie 10k walk last year), primark leggings, primark peachy nude studded pumps, and my owl necklace :)

On a sidenote...

I love living near work. Extra time in bed. No travel costs. No panic attacks on public transport. No need to endlessly snack on the journey (I worry I'll starve on any sort of journey).

BUT....

Argh. Sometimes a girl wants to pop to the post office on the weekend in her big t shirt, ponytail and leggings with a few holes in it without bumping into colleagues who are doing overtime weekend!! You know what I'm saying?! lol

I feel that 'all' the effort I put into my work clothes is lost once someone see's me without eye shadow, hair spray and a clinched waist lol