The products I love but can't repurchase . . .

I've tried to think of a million different days to drop this on my blog (I had a whole post prepared, I was going to slip it into one of my lifestyle posts, I was considering making a video . . . I had a lot of ideas) but as I'm becoming a vegan (permanently this time) I'm going cruelty free with my makeup and skincare and all that jazz too. I'm not going to be preachy about it because it's your choice if you want to follow that kind of lifestyle, but for me I just feel like I need to match up my lifestyle to my ethics.

I'm not planning on throwing out any of my makeup for multiple reasons. Firstly, I'm about to become a university student and I can't really afford to be essentially throwing away money - I know that sounds really bad but I'd be throwing out about half of my current makeup which comes up to a lot of money and mans is gonna be broke. Secondly, even if I did have the money to go and buy a whole new makeup collection, I would feel almost as if the animals were tested on for no reason. I've already funded the companies who test on animals and I can't take that back, throwing away the makeup would make it seem to me as if the animals were tested on for no reason - I hope that makes sense, I just feel as it would be silly to throw away my makeup even though that would make one heck of a cruelty free statement. So, here are the products I love but can't repurchase unless the brands stop testing on animals:

My favourite foundation - Maybelline Fit Me Foundation
As you know, this is my holy grail foundation. It matches my skin perfectly (and has a good shade range), it's easily blendable, comfortable to wear, has a nice medium coverage, and it's cheap, but Maybelline test on animals so I'm going to have to say goodbye to this foundation and hope I find a nice replacement - I'm considering going high end, so if you have reviewed any cruelty free foundations please leave a link to your reviews down below so I can check them out or just recommending some would be really helpful.

My favourite mascara - Maybelline The Colossal Volume Express Mascara
This mascara has unfortunately dried up so I can't really use it now anyway, but this was the bomb diggity. Length, volume, and it held a curl too. Here's hoping I can find a replacement that's not too pricey - again, any reviews or recommendations would be helpful!

My favourite eyeshadow - Maybelline 24hr Colour Tattoo
I have raved on about these so much and I don't know what I'm going to do when these run out (think I've got a while yet, I've used them nearly everyday for well over half a year and not hit the bottom). These last all day without creasing, they're very pigmented and blend quite nicely as well as work as a base. I'm worried I'm going to have somewhat of a cream eyeshadow related dilemma - please recommend some cruelty free ones if you know of any.

My favourite gel liner - Maybelline EyeStudio Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner 24hr
I love love love gel liner, I think it's easier to use than liquid personally and the formulation of this is great. Admittedly, I've not tried out any gel liners from any other brands so hopefully I should be able to find one that's just as good, but I am going to miss this one when it finishes - although I have a couple of these and one of them I've had for about half a year and I've not hit the bottom or anything so this should last me a while.

My favourite lipstick - Maybelline Coloursensational Lipstick in Velvet Beige
This is my everyday lipstick, the formulation is nice and creamy - it sticks around for a few hours before re-application and just the colour is perfect for me. I think good lipsticks are quite easy to find so hopefully it shouldn't be too much bother to replace this one, but I'm going to miss it.

My favourite brow gel - Maybelline Brow Drama (okay I promise this is the last Maybelline product)
This product has been a staple in my makeup routine now, it keeps my brows looking natural but bushy and it keeps them place all day with very little effort. There are quite a few tinted brow gels out on the market now so here's hoping I can find a decent replacement, but I'll miss this one when it runs out!

My favourite kohl pencil - Rimmel Scandaleyes Kohl Kajal Eye Liner (see it's not Maybelline this time okay)
These eyeliner pencils are marvellous - creamy, pigmented, soft but not too soft. Perfect for the waterline and the tightline at a low price, these will be sorely missed. Although, there are a few other kohl pencils I want to try out anyway so maybe I'll find one that's of the same quality or possibly better.

A hella good concealer - Revlon Colourstay Concealer
This is a high pigment yet creamy and moisturising concealer that sticks around all day and has a decent shade range, which is why it really sucks that I'm going to have to not repurchase it especially as it's not too expensive. It's looking like I'm going to have to go high end for foundation and concealer, which I was considering doing anyway because I'm tired of having to make do with the shades they have at the drugstore but now I'm probably going to have to do it anyway.

Some top notch lipsticks - Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick
I think the Revlon lipsticks have such a great formula and their lipstick in Really Red is one of my favourite red lipsticks - it's matte but not drying, I also have one of their lipsticks in Smoky Rose which is a lovely sheer brown everyday colour for me. The lipsticks are around the £7 mark but they're so so good for the price, I'm very sad that I won't be able to repuchase any more from this range unless Revlon stop testing on animals.

My favourite nail polish - Essie Nail Polish in Licorice
This is my staple nail polish, I've used it so many times and about half of it is finished up. It's really black and glossy, dries really quickly, and only chips a tiny bit within a few days. This is a pricey nail polish so it doesn't hurt too much knowing that I can't repurchase this or any more from Essie (y'know unless they drop the animal testing) and I have tried other nail polishes of a similar quality (from Essence, cheap as chips and doesn't test - Essence is kinda bae) so whilst I'll be sad to let this one go when it finishes, I'm certain I'll find a good replacement.

Can you recommend any cruelty free brands/products?

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July favourites

Another month has rolled past and I've fallen in love with a whole new bunch of favourites. In this month's favourites video, I discuss 'the Kylie Jenner lip trend' and how I don't like the phrase anymore, strobing and how I don't like how strobing has become a 'thing', and how I'm grumpy and generally dislike most things . . . Enjoy!

Maybelline Fit Me Foundation (review here) | I've probably raved on about this enough on both here in the review and on my YouTube channel but this foundation is the closest match to my skin I've ever found in a foundation, it's a medium coverage so even if I am a bit paler or darker on a certain day (my skin colour fluctuates tremendously) it still blends in and looks really natural. It also gives a semi-dewy finish which I really like especially around this time of year, in terms of longevity it really stays put if you powder (which I always do anyway to be safe). I also think the shade range of this foundation is pretty fab at least in terms of darker skinned people, like my friend has very dark skin and even she found a match with this foundation which is something that doesn't happen much with cheaper foundations . . .

Revlon Colourstay Concealer | Again, a base product with a pretty decent shade range. This concealer matches my skin very well, has a medium-high coverage, is creamy, and it's pretty easy to blend, so it ticks a bunch of boxes. I like to use a lighter concealer mixed with this one for under the eyes, but this is generally a safe one all around the face and one I think would work on all skin types.

eBay Brush Set | I mentioned this in this haul and I've basically been using it every single day. It has pretty much every brush you might ever need and it was really cheap, plus when you whip this out in front of your friends that's a conversation starter right there. In all seriousness, when I was on holiday with my friends and when I've stayed round at friends' houses since, this brush roll never fails to spark a conversation.

Maybelline ColourSensational Lipstick in Velvet Beige | As you may have picked up on, I am a big nudes girl when it comes to lipstick. It's funny because I never used to be, I thought it was a bit of a waste of time to wear lipstick unless it was like a red or a pink, but I'm a changed woman, and this is now my favourite nude lipstick. It's the perfect mix of pink and brown, it's very a much a MLCBB shade, it's comfortable to wear on the lips and I've been reaching for it practically every day.

Primark Egg Makeup Sponge | When YouTubers and bloggers alike started mentioning makeup sponges that were over £10, I immediately thought it was a ridiculous concept. I didn't understand why someone would spend nearly £20 on a sponge on all things, but after seeing them being used so much, I really wanted to try one and when I saw one in Primark for £1.50, I knew that was my opportunity. Now I can say, this has revolutionised my life . . . or at least my makeup base life. It blends in concealer and foundation like a dream, a well blended dream. It really gives you a flawless but natural looking skin like finish. I've never used it dry because anyone who's ever used one will emphasize how it must be used damp, it takes a bit longer to dampen a sponge and the whole process takes a little bit longer but it's really worth it for that flawless finish.

Primark Eyelash Curlers | Up until the beginning of this month, I was terrified of eyelash curlers - genuinely terrified. I still look at them and think they look like glamorised torture machines, but they seem to make such a difference when I'm watching makeup tutorials or even watching my friends use them, so I decided I wanted to try out a pair and I remembered someone saying the Primark ones were pretty good for the price, at £1 I could hardly say no, and I'm so glad I picked these up. Firstly, they're pink and white so even if you're not into the whole curling-your-lashes-with-a-torture-machine vibe, it'll look pretty bomb with the rest of your makeup. Jokes aside, these curl my lashes so well, and the handle-lever-mabobby is quite firm so you're not going to slam down on your eyelids and injure them (as my friend did and she decided to tell me this story seconds before I curled my lashes for the first time, thanks for that one Ma'Suma . . .) - basically, these are chip as chips (quite literally), they look super cute, and they do a pretty decent job.

Primark Facial Brush | As you can probably tell, I'm having a bit of a moment with Primark's makeup utensils. I picked these all these bits up at the Aisle of Doom in the Primark in Westfield, and I knew that Primark did both a makeup sponge and the eyelash curlers but I had no idea they did a facial brush, something I had been quite interested in since seeing the electronic Clarisonic ones. This one is manual (which I'm not too bothered about at all), pink and white again (important to maintain the #aesthetic in all areas of beauty utensils) and only cost £1. It's made such a difference to my skin, my skin is noticeably softer, smoother and I feel like my skin tone is more even. I only use the more abrasive brush side if I'm exfoliating my skin post-shower-lemon-sugar-scrub-time or if I'm putting on makeup (which is only a couple of times a week at the moment because in the summer people cut me off hence I leave the house less, I joke I joke, but seriously I haven't left the house in days), then I use the rubbery side everyday because it doesn't massively exfoliate, and this has just really improved my skin and it only cost £1 (and I've been using it in conjunction with the next product I'm going to mention . . .)

Simple Facial Wash | I got this because my morning facial routine has been a little bit poor, like I used to use a facial soap and a moisturiser which is fine but now I've amped it up with this facial wash, the facial brush mentioned above, and a moisturiser. This facial wash, even without the facial brush, leaves my skin feeling so soft and smooth. It's not at all abrasive and I can imagine this would work on the most sensitive of skins, plus it only cost about £1.50 so it's not going to break the bank either.

Rimmel Lipliner in Tiramisu | I think I first heard about this from velvetgh0st using it in a YouTube video and I really liked the look of it then but for some reason I didn't pick it up for ages, this is your standard brown/nude lip pencil. I really like Rimmel lip liners, I think they're creamy but not so creamy that you waste a ridiculous amount of the pencil in a short period of time, plus they're pretty cheap. I've been using this a lot with the Maybelline Lipstick I mentioned earlier but I just think this goes well with any nude sort of lipstick, and I've been wearing it every day I wear makeup.

Makeup Revolution Vivid Baked Highlighter in Golden Lights  | As I mentioned when I bought it, one of the reasons I bought this product was because The Smiths covered a song called Golden Lights and it's on their Louder Than Bombs album so I was interested just for that subtle reference (despite the fact, the song is not all that good . . .) but I love this highlighter so so much. I do have another Makeup Revolution Baked Highlighter in Pink Lights but as the name would suggest, it's very pink and icy and it just didn't look great on my skin tone or at least nowhere near as great as this one does. This one is more of a yellow toned highlighter and it is quite pigmented but if you're using the right brush (I've been using a fan brush as of late) you get the perfect amount of glow (and not in an icky sweaty way), plus this only cost about £3 which is a bargain.

Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Brow Mascara | I feel like 2015 so far has definitely been all about the tinted brow gels but I am a bit late to jumping on the bandwagon, I wasn't sure whether a tinted brow gel would be for me because my brows are far from sparse and they're not at all light, but this is really good for a more natural brow look. I like to run this through my brows and then add a bit of shape with eyeshadow, then use a spoolie to blend it all together. This gel does not budge until you use a makeup remover to get rid of it, and the tint isn't super strong so it's actually quite hard to go overboard on it. The brush is a bit weird because it has big ball at the top of it which did make me mess up the first time I used it, but once you've adjusted to the shape of the wand it's really not an issue, and this has really sped up my morning brow routine.

MUA Pro-Base Prime & Conceal in Peach | I don't know if you remember but in my older YouTube videos (now unlisted) I used to use orange lipstick to correct my dark circles, this method works, but for only £2 you can get a proper corrector from MUA to do the same thing and it works much better. This is creamy and really does the job well, it's made it so much easier to correct my awful dark circles.

What have your favourites been this month?

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What I should've taken in my travel makeup bag

Recently I went on holiday with a bunch of friends to Lytham - a slightly different choice to your average Magaluf vacation but it was a lot of fun and the weather was great. I was going to do a travel makeup bag post before the holiday but I didn't really have time, and what I realised when I came back is that I packed a hell of a lot more than I needed, so this is present Bess telling past Bess what she should've taken.

Past Bess actually did pretty well on the base items and they all got used everyday. The only colour correcting item I brought and used was the MUA Pro-Base Prime & Conceal in Peach which I put under my eyes to cancel out dark circles, and believe me I didn't get a lot of sleep on this trip at all so it was definitely needed everyday. For foundation, we had the Maybelline Fit Me Foundation in 220 as it's the only foundation that matches my skin perfectly and it can be built up to a high coverage or left as a light one. For concealer, I brought the Collection Cover Stick in Natural Beige and the Revlon Colourstay Concealer in Medium Deep, Revlon's offering was a good all over face concealer because it's high in coverage whilst being creamy and it matches my skin pretty well, but for under the eyes I mixed it with the Collection Cover Stick as it's a bit lighter and helped brighten the undereye area. To set my under eyes, I used the MUA Matte Perfect Loose Powder in Translucent because cooking is the only method that works to stop my undereye concealer from creasing - how many 18 year olds have to deal with fine lines and dark circles? To set everything in place I used the Collection Pressed Powder in Translucent which is a pretty fine milled powder so you don't result in cake face but everything is set for quite a few hours, although it definitely disappeared a bit on my face when we went to Blackpool because the weather was scorching on that day.

In the brow department, past Bess probably bought a little bit more than was necessary as she packed both a brow pencil and a powder and a clear gel. All I actually used was Makeup Revolution's Mono Eyeshadow in Delicious and the Essence Clear Brow & Lash Gel, the brow pencil wasn't used once.

For the eyes I brought quite a few unnecessary things when really I could've just gone for the Maybelline Colour Tattoo 24hr in On and On Bronze which is basically the easiest eye product to use ever, the Collection Fast Stroke Liquid Eyeliner which is my all time favourite liquid liner and was used basically everyday (so it was a little bit pointless bringing a gel liner as well), Maybelline's The Colossal Volume Express Mascara which is without a doubt the best mascara I've ever tried as it ensures volume and length, and the Rimmel Scandaleyes Kohl Kajal Eyeliners in Nude and Black.

For contouring, I should've just brought the Makeup Revolution Mono Eyeshadow in Mmmm and the Makeup Revolution Vivid Baked Highlighter in Golden Lights - when you're travelling, it's definitely not the time to experiment with a cream contour stick that you've barely used before.

For lips, I brought an abundance of lipsticks as well as buying two more while we were there. I brought three nudes and a red, I didn't use the red once but I did use the Collection Lasting Colour Lipstick in China Rose nearly everyday and then I purchased Maybelline's Colour Sensational Lipstick in Velvet Beige and I wore that a lot too - I just can't be bothered with red lips in the summer, and I don't know why I thought the holiday would be an exception.

Over to you, what are your travel makeup bag essentials?

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Drugstore Beauty Haul - Superdrug and eBay

It's been a long time since I did a big splurge on makeup, but as my exams have now finished I figured it was a good time to go out with my friends and buy some more. I had one of those situations where everything runs out at once, y'know how hard it is going into an exam with a weak eyeliner game because your holy grail ran out? Pretty damn hard I tell you, so it was time for a spree.

Makeup Revolution Vivid Baked Highlighter in Golden Lights - £3.00
Maybelline Fit Me Foundation in 220 - £7.99
Maybelline The Colossal Volume Express Mascara Cat Eye - £7.99
Revlon Colourstay Concealer in Medium Deep - £6.99
Collection Pressed Powder in Translucent - £1.99
Makeup Revolution The One Blush Stick in Matte Malibu - £5.00
Collection Fast Stroke Eyeliner in Black - £2.99
Maybelline Forever Strong Nail Polish in Mint for Life - £4.49
Collection Lasting Colour Lipstick in China Rose - £2.99
MUA Matte Perfect Loose Powder - £2.50
MUA Pro-Base Prime and Conceal in Peach - £2.00

Palmer's Cocoa Butter Lip Balm - £1.89
Simple Kind to Skin Moisturising Face Wash - £1.75
Simple Kind to Skin Soothing Facial Toner - £1.59

24pc Cosmetic Brush Set - £8.95

What beauty bits have you been liking recently?

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Revlon's Smoky Rose Lipstick is a bit like Hole

Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Smoky Rose - £7.49

It's rare that it takes a while for a product to grow on me. Usually I love something immediately and maintain an adoration for it, like The Beatles, or I start off loving something and end up going off it, like The Voice*. Although, there are some cases where I'm just a bit indifferent or I don't majorly love something but I don't dislike it. Like 90s grunge band Hole, I had listened to a couple of songs by Hole and I thought they were alright. I didn't think the songs I had listened to were bad, but I wasn't rushing to listen to every other song they had made. However, for some reason, I returned to them quite a long time after and listened to the Celebrity Skin album and I really liked most of the tracks on it. It's a similar situation with Revlon's Super Lustrous Pearl lipstick in Smoky Rose - I bought it quite a few months ago and liked it but I wasn't crazy about it, and it was by no means a shade I reached for regularly, but times have changed.

I know you're probably thinking this isn't a particularly interesting lipstick shade, but it just adds something. It's quite sheer but you can layer it up to get a lovely rose-brown type colour. It's a pearl finish which, from what I gather because I haven't tried any, is quite similar to MAC's frost finish lipsticks. So it's not super glossy but it does have a bit of a sheen to it, which makes your lips look plumper without the use of lip liner if that's the look you're after. Due to the fact that it's not matte, it only lasts for a couple of hours before fading, but that's not so much an issue for me and if you use a lip liner underneath it will last a lot longer.

What's your favourite everyday lipstick?

*I watched The Voice the first year it was on but when it ended I just couldn't be bothered with reality television anymore, it was goodbye X Factor, goodbye The Voice, and goodbye Britain's Got Talent - I've never looked back since.

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Beauty haul - Boots (and a cheeky purchase from MAC, oops)

As you may or may not have known, I put myself on a spending ban in January because I felt I had been buying too much makeup, but I broke it a few days ago (lasted a couple of weeks extra than I had planned) and did some naughty hauling*. I can assure you I won't be shopping like this again for quite a few months, but I won't be on a full-on spending ban again, I'll just make sure I'm only buying essentials y'know. Anyway, without further ado, I will show you what I bought.

Revlon Colourburst Laquer Balm in Coy - £7.99
Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Smokey Rose - £7.49
Revlon Colourstay Concealer in Deep - £6.99**
Rimmel Lasting Finish 1000 Kisses Lip Liner in Cappuccino - £2.99
Rimmel Scandaleyes Waterproof Eyeliner in Black - £3.99
Maybelline Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner - £7.99
Maybelline Colour Tattoo 24hr Leather Effect in Creamy Beige - £4.99
Essie Nail Polish in Licorice - £7.99
Barry M Matte Nail Paint Top Coat - £2.99
MAC Matte Lipstick in Taupe - £15.50 (currently sold out at Selfridges, sorry)

As you can see, I spent rather a lot but due to A levels I don't really go shopping too often anyway so I probably won't go properly shopping again for a few months (so you can stop judging me now).

Have you tried any of these products?
If so, would you recommend them?

*Makes it sound as if I've been buying toys of the sexual persuasion, I can ensure you that I have not and if I were I wouldn't show you, we cater for prudes everywhere on 'fashion, beauty and an existential crisis'.
**I was under the impression that I had bought Medium Deep, this is a tad too dark for me - darn.

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GRWM - Late Afternoon/Evening Outing

I recently went out to a friend's 18th birthday and it was a late afternoon/early evening shindig meal type of social occasion so I filmed myself doing the makeup for you, the video is down below and the products I used are further below.

Base:

• No7 Colour Lock in Sweet Mango (discontinued, sorry)
• Rimmel 25hr Lasting Finish Nude Foundation in 400
• Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation in 200
• Maybelline Fit Me Concealer in 25
• Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in Warm Medium
• Collection Sheer Loose Powder (Review here)

Brows:

• Essence Lash and Brow Gel
• Makeup Revolution Mono Eyeshadow in Mmmm (Review here)

Eyes:

• Makeup Revolution Focus and Fix Eye Primer
• Colours Complete Makeup Palette by Technique
• Essence Kajal Pencil in Black
• Rimmel Scandaleyes Kohl Pencil in Nude
• Collection Fast Stroke Liquid Eyeliner
• L'Oreal Miss Manga Mega Volume Mascara in Black Angel

Contouring:

• Bourjois Bronzing Powder in 52
• Makeup Revolution Baked Highlighter in Pink Lights

Lips:

• Essence Lip Liner in Satin Mauve
• Revlon Colourburst Matte Balm in Sultry (Review here)

Do you do a bold lip or a nude lip when you go out for a meal?

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How not to do a GRWM: Christmas edition

If you click on the video below, you'll see my very first GRWM/see me fail at doing my makeup on camera if you want to watch. If you see further below that though, you'll see all of the products I used :-)

You may be wondering why my hair isn't resembling a bird's nest as per usual, my sister styled it but it didn't really suit my what-I-call big head so I wasn't a giant fan unfortunately.

Base:

• Rimmel Lasting Finish 25hr Nude in 400 Natural Beige (perfect if you want a strange orange/pink finish, just saying for all of you out there with an ancestry tracing back to those known to work in chocolate factories)
• Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in Warm Medium
• Maybelline Fit Me Concealer in 25
• Collection Sheer Loose Powder (Review here)

Brows:

• Essence Lash and Brow gel
• Dark brown shade in Makeup Revolution Iconic 2 Palette

Eyes:

• Maybelline 24hr Colour Tattoo in On and On Bronze (Review here)
• Light champagne (almost white) shade and Dark greyish black shade in Makeup Revolution Iconic 2 Palette
• Essence Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner (Review here)
• L'Oreal Miss Manga Mega Volume Mascara in Black Angel
• Rimmel Scandaleyes Nude Eyeliner
• Essence Kajal Pencil in Black

Bronzer/Highlight/Attempt to achieve Kim K contour:

• MUA Bronzed Perfection (Review here)
• No7 Highlighter in Makeup Set - super sorry but there are no details about this kit on the back, it's just a pinky/white highlighter

Lips:

• MUA Lip Liner in Red Drama
• Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Really Red (Review here)

What type of makeup did you have on Christmas?

Or did you rock a no makeup/onesie look which I am prone to do but for some reason opted out of this year?

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Autumn favourites

Another season has passed since my Summer favourites, we are all a little older, and most likely a little fatter since Christmas is next week (I'll try and contain my excitement for this post). If you click on the video dooblydoo down below, you can watch me talk about non-beauty and beauty favourites but in the blog post it's more beauty favourites (see you're really missing out if you don't watch the video see)

1. Essence colour and go nail polish - 113 do you speak love? Review here

I essentially declared my adoration for this product in the review but I have literally been wearing this for the past month and a half, which is strange for me as I usually like to shake things up a bit with my nail polish (after all variety is the spice of life). It's cheap, it's a pretty autumn/winter shade, it dries quickly and it gives a nice gel effect without the tackiness for hours after (Barry M, I'm looking at you)

2. Makeup Revolution Rebel with Cause Review here

I made it clear how much I love this in the review I did but again it's just been such a great colour to wear throughout Autumn, it's allegedly a dupe of Mac's Rebel but, classic Bess, I haven't splurged on the high end product to verify this. It can be a bit drying as it's matte but if you exfoliate and let a lip balm (see below) sink in beforehand, there shouldn't be much of a problem with this. 

3. Carmex Classic

This is a bog standard lip balm but surprisingly I don't think I had tried it until very recently, always considered myself a vaseline girl but this is the Beyonce of lip balms, guys it is Queen B. It is so moisturising and it actually sinks in rather than sitting on the lips much like vaseline does. If I know I'm wearing lipstick the next day, I'll exfoliate my lips the night before and slap loads of this on so in the morning my lips are ready for lipstick, it's also just a lifesaver during the colder months when you're more prone to chapped lips.

4. Maybelline Colour Tattoo in On and On bronze Review here

Okay, I'mma let you finish but this product is THE BEST product of 2014. I raved on about it in the review but I just can't get enough, it's pigmented, easy to apply, long lasting and best of all it does not crease at all. I really want to try out some more shades in this range.

5. L'oreal Paris Miss Manga Mascara

I bought this mascara a few months ago and I have been wearing it everyday, it volumizes and lengthens, and it doesn't really go clumpy unless you apply too much but I find this with all mascara. It's also fairly easy to use on lower lashes with is surprising with a volumising mascara as they tend to have bigger brushes and are harder to use down there, but this my friends is a good'un.

6. Sleek True Colour Lipstick in Cherry Review here

Whilst this lipstick doesn't fully set like a matte one making it more prone to moving around my face (that is only if my hair gets involved, it doesn't understand boundaries), I do really love this shade and I do like the finish. As long as you use a lipliner, it doesn't bleed and if your hair is less of a bird's nest than mine I'm sure you won't have a problem.

7. Revlon Colourburst Matte Balm in Sultry Review here

This has been a nice everyday shade for me (although I do wear bold lips for sixth form a lot), it's a matte Kylie Jenner-esque balm stick, long lasting and for the most part isn't particularly drying. After wearing it for a day at sixth form it starts to feel a little bit dry but other than that I have no problems, and it's nice if you want a more interesting lip than just a nude.

8. Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Really Red Review here

How do I put my feelings about this into words..? BEST. MATTE. LIP. EVER. Seriously, not at all drying, doesn't cling to dry patches, long lasting, pigmented, it is just the nicest matte lipstick I own, plus it's a blue-toned red so it makes your teeth look a little whiter. Apparently this is a dupe of Mac's Russian Red, and I think this is something that would suit all skin tones.

9. Leaf Necklace

I was given this by my Aunt when she went to New York a couple of months ago, and it's made by this person on Etsy but this particular necklace isn't on there. She told me that they take the leaves in central park and use it as a template for the necklace, so each one is unique. It came with a card that tells you what the leaf means, apparently this one is a Birch leaf which means good fortune, not sure whether I believe in that but I think it's such a pretty necklace and it really personifies Autumn. Plus it's silver and I prefer silver to gold generally.

10. Advent Calendars

A strange favourite for some perhaps, but I really wanted to share my advent calendars. I was given a Dan and Phil one from one of my friends, and a Disney one from my parents and I absolutely love both. The Dan and Phil one has selfies of them behind each window which is nice, although I have a tendency to forget to eat the chocolate so I end up eating about five in one go to catch up.

What have been your favourites this season?

What advent calendars do you have?

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Review | Revlon Super Lustrous Matte Lipstick in Really Red

For a person who doesn't like looking too over the top for everyday, I sure do love me a red lip (as my growing collection would surely indicate)

As you may have seen in this haul, I picked up a Revlon lipstick in a deal at Boots (spend £9.99 and get a ColourBurst Matte Balm free, seriously it would have been offensive to refuse that). I picked up Really Red as I had read on many reviews of it that it was a dupe of Mac's Russian Red, me being Miss Stingey I can't verify that as I haven't splashed out and bought any Mac lipsticks (commence the mob of beauty bloggers coming after me with pitchforks)

Revlon Super Lustrous Matte Lipstick in Really Red - £7.49

The packaging is really nice and classy, it's very basic but it's nice all the same. It's a matte lipstick, but amazingly this isn't drying at all for the most part (at about the 7-8 hour mark, it started to feel a little dry but not too badly). It didn't cling to any dry patches, although I make an effort to exfoliate my lips and balm up those bad boys before applying lipstick in general so there weren't really dry patches to be clung onto.

It appears a little more orange on the picture but it doesn't come out orangey at all in real life.

As you can hopefully see, it's really pigmented (perhaps not a colour for the faint-hearted) - as the name would suggest, it is indeed 'Really Red'. It's a blue-toned red so it makes your teeth appear slightly whiter, although don't expect to put it on and instantly become Simon Cowell.

Overall, I absolutely love this product - I actually think it's my favourite matte red lipstick that I own (not that I own loads, but I do now own a fair few).

What's your favourite red lipstick?

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Drugstore/high street Beauty haul - Superdrug, Boots, Wilkinsons and more

Remember the days when I would walk into Superdrug and walk out with £10 worth of makeup at most? Yeah, well my bank account misses those days.

Makeup Revolution Palette - £4.00
Focus & Fix Liquid Concealer - £2.00
The Matte Effect Foundation - £2.00
Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner -£1.50

Carmex classic - £1.32

Revlon lipstick in Really Red - £7.49
Revlon single eyeshadow in Onyx - £2.99
Revlon colourburst matte balm in Sultry (Review here) - free with £9.99 purchase

Maybelline Colour Tattoo in On and on Bronze - £4.99
Maybelline Fit Me concealer in 25 - £5.99

Rimmel Scandaleyes Mascara in Extreme Black - £6.99
Rimmel Scandaleyes Eyeshadow stick in Bootleg Brown - £4.49
Rimmel Scandaleyes kohl eyeliner in Nude - free with 3 for 2 purchase

Garnier micellar water - £2.99
Nivea refreshing toner - £1.99
Nail scissors - £1.00

Sleek lipstick in Cherry - £4.99

Essence top coat in Circus Confetti - £1.80
Essence lipstick in Natural Beauty - £2.30
Essence kajal pencil in Black - £1.00
Essence lash/brow gel - £2.00

Stay tuned as there will be reviews of nearly all of these products!

Have you tried any of these products?
If so, would you recommend them?

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Review | Revlon Colourburst Matte Balm in Sultry

Despite the fact that I am an amateur in the world of beauty and I don't like to overcomplicate my daily makeup routine, I had never used a chubby stick before now and I think I really need to buy more as they're low maintenance and idiot-proof.

Revlon Colourburst Matte Balm in Sultry - £7.99

I bought the Revlon Colourburst Matte Balm in the shade Sultry because it looked like a nice everyday somewhat nude or your-lip-colour-but-better for darker skinned people like myself. Plus I don't really have any nude or everyday type lip products (except for lip gloss and lip balm) in my collection which is silly giving that they're a lot more suitable for sixth form, so when my Auntie kindly gave me a £20 voucher for Boots I decided to pick this up as there was a deal if you spent £9.99 at the Revlon counter you could get this for free, there was really no way I could avoid it.. right?

On the swatch, it appears to be a brownish type nude which is essentially what it is but it has hints of dusty pink in there too (a little bit Kylie Jenner) which makes it such a beautiful and versatile shade. I absolutely love it and it's a bit more vampy than your run-of-the-mill nude which I am aware sounds ridiculous but it really does look a bit vampy for a nude!

It glides on like an absolute dream, you would be surprised that it's a matte shade given that it feels so moisturising on application. It does dry matte but it isn't at all dying, however I did find that after a day of sixth form my lips were feeling a little bit dry, but the fact that it lasted me from about 7:30am to 16:00pm is pretty astonishing and honestly not what I was expecting! 

Overall, I would definitely recommend this product and I am already fighting off the urge to dash back to Boots and buy some more from this range (and the other chubby sticks, I needs all the chubby sticks now).

What's your favourite chubby stick?

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November Wishlist

November's always been a favourite month of mine, probably because it's my birthday, but this year is my 18th birthday which means joining the world of adulthood which is pretty scary but who ever said you can't buy your way out of an existential crisis with clothes and makeup? Right? So if you keep on reading, you'll see the things I hope to buy to distract me from the inevitability of death and all that jazz.

I have read many good reviews on Sleek as a brand in general, but I really want to try out their Contour kit, the one I've seen is in Medium but I hope it is dark enough for my skin tone, Sleek is generally pretty good at catering for the darker skinned people so hopefully it'll be okay (I'm hoping to channel my inner Kim Kardashian so the contouring is necessary)

I'd really like a new neutrals palette and I think this one from Barry M may fit the bill, or I'll try to find something similar. What I really want is the Naked Basics Palette but there's the small issue of money and not having enough of it, you catch my drift?

I would quite like a new dress that will suit me throughout the rest of Autumn and Winter, and also help me channel my inner Wednesday Adams, and I think this one from New Look will do. I actually wanted this last year (and I'm pretty certain I used it in a wishlist on my old blog!) and I was really upset when I couldn't find it in stores, so I'm glad they've brought it back and hopefully this year I'll find it or just cave and buy it online.

I'd really like to buy a nude lip of some sort as I too have been slightly in love with Kylie Jenner, and I think the Revlon Just Bitten ColourBurst Balm Stain in Honey will help be achieve that your-lip-colour-but-better look.

Lastly, I'd quite like a gingham top because I have no gingham in my wardrobe - Dorothy Gale would not be proud, and I think this top from New Look will be great for me as I don't wear a great deal of colour in my wardrobe - I am literally Wednesday Adams, seriously I wore my hair in plaits just like her for the majority of my life, I am not joking.

Thanks for reading, who knew I could talk about channelling Kim Kardashian, Wednesday Adams and Kylie Jenner all in one blog post? That, my friend, is something special.

What's on your wishlist for November?

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