Empties #12

Hey guys!


I've got some more empties for you!


My first empty is of course, the Batiste dry shampoo. But this time it is the Oriental one. It works just as well as the others and I always love the big bottles of these. Forever a repurchase of mine!


The next empty is The White Collection Beauty Cream Cotton Camomile. I always used this after shaving and it helps to moisturise my skin, smooth it and stop any bumps coming up after shaving. It is the first time I've ever managed to completely finish a body butter/cream so I am pretty proud of myself! I got it in a bath and body Christmas present one year so it has been a long time coming to finish it.


Thirdly is the Natural Collection Green Corrector Stick. I go through these like nobody's business for years and I truly recommend it to anyone who suffers with red skin and/or acne. It is a green concealer you can use on redness and it counteracts it when you put your foundation over top. I love it and it is only £1.99! 


Then we have a nail polish. I don't think I've ever had a nail polish in my empties before. I always manage to finish top/base coats but never a colour polish. But anyway, this is L'Oreal 2-In-1 Protect Base + Top Coat Nail Polish which I got in a L'Oreal gift box for Christmas a couple of years ago. It is small but from what I remember it did the job well. It got a little clumpy near it's end but wasn't so clumpy that it was impossible to use.


Lastly is my holy grail, the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in 'Cool Medium 02'. Yes, another concealer in my empties! I use 'Warm Medium 03' on my eyelids and 'Cool Medium 02' on the rest of my face and it is a good match. I only ever use this concealer and never stray from it because I know it works so well for me!


That's it for June! Feel free to read May's Empties here.

My First Sephora Haul

Hello all!


Recently I found myself in a Sephora store in Paris. This wasn't the first time I had been in a Sephora store (my first time was in Spain last year), but this is the first time I have bought anything from there. I never knew I could be so excited over a store!


As soon as I went in to the store I hunted down their own brand make up products. I have seen loads of bloggers and YouTubers talk about their liquid lipsticks so I knew I wanted one. I haven't used a liquid lipstick before! I picked up two matte colours, 'Always Red' (a true, bold red) and 'Strawberry Kissed' (a lighter, slightly pinkier toned red). Unfortunately there wasn't many colours left so I didn't get to try out many colours and had to get two reds. I really wished they had some nudes in stock because I probably would have got a red and a nude! However I love them both and I am glad I got them. Of course, reviews will follow!

The next item I picked up was a face mask. Again, I've seen plenty of bloggers and YouTubers talk about the Sephora masks so I felt really intrigued to buy one. I would have liked them all but in the end I chose the Avocado face mask which claims to give intense nutrition to skin and give relief to sensitive skin. I chose this one as I have never used avocado in a mask before and most of my masks are for targeting acne so I wanted something different. I think I will use this if my skin is quite dry and/or sore!

The last item is a primer. I hadn't planned to buy a primer but that day I realised that I had lost mine! I thought that I had left it in Berlin where I was previous, but when I got back to the UK and emptied out my bag I found it! Such a relief. But anyway, I decided to go for the Sephora Prep & Perfect Pore & Fine Line Filler Blurring Effect Primer (phew!). It is a tinted primer that doesn't feel particularly silicone-y and I will let you know what I think of it soon.

That's all for now. I hope this will be the first of many! My brother is currently in America for work so I am hoping he will pick me up some stuff from Sephora there which you can't get in Sephora Europe. 

Soap & Glory Sugar Crush Body Spray

I love Soap & Glory products. I love their make up and their bath/shower products. The products are great, the packaging is great and the brand is just a fun brand over all.

One range they have is called Sugar Crush. Sugar Crush is an extremely sweet smell with vanilla musk, sweet lime, ginger and essential lemon oil. To me it smells strongly of sugary lemon and reminds me of a cross between Lush sugar lip scrubs and lime. I would hazard a guess that the scent is one of those scents that you love or you hate. If you have a sweet tooth I would definitely recommend the scent but if you don't then you might find it far too sickly! I personally love the scent and think it's perfect for a bright summer's day.

The packaging of the body spray is also nice. It is in a tall, pink bottle with a picture of a lovely looking lady holding a lime; the typical style you expect from Soap & Glory products. You get 100ml of product and is £4.00 which I think is a fairly reasonable price.

My downfall with the body spray is that I don't really find it lasts at all. In my experience the smell doesn't linger on my skin for long and I'm pretty sure it is gone by half an hour. Because of this I do like to ensure I use perfume on my neck and wrists so I know I smell nice. It's nice to freshen up with as it's such a fun, sweet smell and could easily be carried around in a handbag to top up during the day but because the smell doesn't last whatsoever I won't be repurchasing this. I don't expect major long lasting power from body sprays but I do expect them to actually make me smell nice after the process of spraying it!

Do you love or hate the Sugar Crush scent?

Urban Decay x Gwen Stefani 'Rock Steady' Lipstick

Hello!

Ever since I saw the Urban Decay x Gwen Stefani range I knew I had to have something. I used to absolutely adore Gwen Stefani in my childhood and was always singing her songs! I also love Urban Decay so it's a good mix. Gwen is known for her bold lips and I nearly *always* go for a bold lip so I knew she would have a colour I'd love.

The packaging of her lipsticks are quite unique and are inspired by Gwen's love of black and gold graphic prints. This has differently angled lines of gold and black which gives me a very rock feel and I love it.

'Rock Steady' is a warm, deep red with a sheen to it which isn't quite as dark as the bullet shows. I've seen it described as glossy but when I think of glossy I think of as shiny as a lipgloss so I don't agree with it. I think it has a sheen to it which focuses mainly on the middle of the lips. The lipstick is a cream lipstick making it really easy to glide onto the lips and gives a slightly slippy feel as opposed to it feeling really dry like some lipsticks can. It is also extremely pigmented and you can achieve an opaque, bold lip straight away.

I believe that this lipstick looks good with and without a lip liner; although I prefer to use it with. This is because I sometimes find after eating oilier food the lipstick can bleed a little at the edges of my month which can be easily fixed anyway. The range does have matching lip liners but I use a far cheaper alternative by pairing it with a L'Oreal red lip liner. 

As for lasting power, because it is a sheen lipstick it doesn't last as long as a matte lip would. If I'm not eating and drinking it is fine but if I do eat and drink the colour on the sides and corners of my mouth will go. Drinking a drink through a straw is okay but if I'm drinking out of a cup it will go. Because of this I always make sure I bring the lipstick out with me and will reapply after I've finished eating. Layering the lipstick is fine and it doesn't go funny like some lipsticks can do (I find that with MAC ones).

In conclusion I do like this lipstick. It is very pigmented so makes a wonderful bold lip and it is a red and finish that I didn't already have in my collection. Nearly all of the lipsticks I own are matte so this is something different, but not too different, for me. It hasn't got the best lasting power after eating but reapplying is perfectly fine. Just watch out for any of the colour bleeding! Maybe if you're going out all day you could bring a cotton bud with you just in case.

The lipstick is £16 making it one of the most expensive lipsticks I have. I'm glad I bought it and it would be something I'd see as making a good gift for a real make up lover or for someone who also had a love for Gwen Stefani years ago!

Do you have any of the products from the Urban Decay x Gwen Stefani range?

Skincare | My Body Scrubs Collection

Last week I shared with you my face mask collection. Today, I thought I would show you my, slightly larger, body scrub collection. The main time I like to use body scrubs is before I shave to exfoliate the dead skin cells and allow a closer and cleaner shave.

• The Body Shop Vanilla Bliss Body Polish- I like the smell of this as it really does smell like vanilla. The body polishes are in quite large bottles so will probably last a long time.

• The Body Shop Cranberry Body Polish- I believe this was a Christmas limited edition one that I am still yet to use! I don't normally eat cranberries or have them in the house but I do like the smell.

• The Body Shop Strawberry Body Polish- I sometimes have an issue with strawberry scented products because a lot of time I find they smell really fake and synthetic. However, this one does not smell synthetic to me and I really like it! 

• The Body Shop British Rose Scrub Sample- This is a sample of the British Rose Scrub which was brought out for Mother's Day this year. I had a hand massage done with the range and the scrub really did make my hands feel soft so I'm looking forward to using my sample. I'm going on holiday so will probably bring it with me!

• The Body Shop Coconut Body Scrub x2- I've got two of these (one in the picture and one in my shower) as I specifically asked for it for Christmas. Like the cranberry one I don't ever eat coconut but enjoy the smell. I also particularly like this scrub as it's thick and creamy. I would recommend it for sensitive and/or dry skin.

• Soap & Glory Sugar Crush Body Scrub- The only non-The Body Shop product! I recently spoke about the body spray of this but I've also got the scrub. Because of the sugary lime smell I bet this would be invigorating for a morning shower and feel nice on a hot, stuffy day.

I should probably also mention the difference between The Body Shop body polishes and body scrubs. The body polishes are in the form of a shower gel as well so foam up like a shower gel. They are more gentle than the body scrubs because they're literally scrubs and not gels.

What body scrubs do you like?

Summer Clothes Haul + Try On ft Boohoo, New Look, Primark & Debenhams

Hello!


I'm doing a post that's a bit unusual for me today and that is a clothes haul and try on post. One of my blog goals is to incorporate more of my clothing into my posts so here we are. As you're reading this I will be away travelling and all of these clothes were bought for that and my upcoming holiday in mind. I needed Summer clothes that would be easy to carry around and wear abroad so here is what I bought!

First we have my first ever playsuit, the Julia Eyelet Detail Suedette Playsuit from Boohoo which I mentioned in my Boohoo Summer in Black post. I wanted a playsuit because they're the whole outfit and would be easy to carry around. I love it! It makes me feel so confident. It is faux suede material with eyelets lacing up the ties in the middle to make a bow. This means that you can have them as pulled together as you want or loser which also allows for various boob sizes!

Another item from Boohoo is the Kaylee Printed Kimono. I wanted this as something more summery to wear abroad as I only really own black cardigans. It is flowy, loose and is light enough to wear abroad whilst keeping your shoulders covered. The background is a off-white with black swirls all over which was my favourite thing about the design.

I then went to New Look and bought these light blue hotpant denim shorts with ripped details. My previous denim shorts are now a size too small for me so I desperately needed to replace them. I don't like shorts that show your bum or shorts that are knee length so these are the perfect shorts for me! I've already been wearing them with tights so I know I'll use them throughout the year.

Another item from New Look is this hat. I've never worn a hat before in my older years as I think they look silly on me but I really wanted a hat to protect my hair colour from fading too much in the sun. Trust me to be more concerned about my hair colour than burning my head! It is a classic black, slightly floppy hat with a thick ribbon around the top. I like it has it gives me gothic, witchy vibes and it'll go with practically anything.

Again from New Look are these black flat shoes. Believe it or not but I actually don't own any comfy flat shoes nor do I own any trainers! I HATE trainers and I only feel comfortable in chunky boots. However, I knew I reluctantly needed to buy some flat shoes for travelling where I'll be walking around all day everyday. It took me ages to find some I liked but I finally found these black ones. They are super comfy and the inside part where your heels sit are so comfy and squidgy that they'll be perfect for walking in! There is no leather material which is good as I won't wear leather and there is a woven pattern which is also a nice detail. 

My final item from New Look are bikini bottoms which I am showing with a bikini top that I bought from Debenhams. I needed a new bikini as I only had 1! I first bought the bikini top from Debenhams as Debenhams is the only shop I really for bikini tops. Because of my small boobs not many shops do bikini tops to cater for my size and I also don't like them to show how flat chested I am. Debenhams do fantastic bikini tops for small boobs that add a bit of oomph to them. This black halterneck bikini top has water padding in the boobs to add size to them and the halterneck also gives a plunge effect for the ultimate cleavage. Now that's how I like my bikini tops! My bikini bottom is then from New Look which are high waisted; but my Mum calls them my 'granny pants'. I don't feel comfortable in bikini briefs as they show too much for me so I like bikini shorts and high waisted ones. These have a cut out effect on the sides which I think makes them less like 'granny pants' and look great on! I can also easily roll the top down if I am laying in the sun to avoid higher up tan lines.

After New Look I then headed over to Primark where I found this top. It is a slightly cropped t-shirt with a cat poking out of the pocket as if I had a cat sat in my pocket. I love cats, so I knew I had to get it! What makes it even better is that on the pocket it says 'You've got to be kitten me!' Ah, so punny. When I'm in Amsterdam I am actually visiting a cat cafe so this will be 'purrfect' for then. 



That's it! What is your favourite item out my of haul? I won't need to shop for clothes for a while now!

My Piercings Updated

Hello!

When I first started this blog my first post was about my piercings. As first posts on your blog tend to go, it was a bit cringy and only got 3 views! In March I got a new piercing done so I thought I would make an updated version of my piercings post.

 I have 8 piercings in total, 6 in my left ear and 2 in my right. The reason for this is that my hair is so thick on the right side of my head that nobody ever really sees my right ear so I don't see much point in keeping the piercings equal to my left! The hair on the left side of my head on the other hand isn't so thick and it tends to be on show. 

My left ear:

• Earlobe piercing: This was the first piercing I had done when I was about 7 years old. I went to Claire's Accessories with my Mum like every little girl and I specifically remember being asked if I wanted my left and right done at the same time or one at a time. I opted for them at the same time because I was scared I would chicken out after the first one! I remember feeling super embarrassed as the piercer asked her colleague behind the till to do the other ear and everyone around was watching me! I don't remember the pain for this and it was done with piercing guns.

• Second Earlobe Piercing: This piercing was also done in Claire's Accessories when I was about 13/14. This time I brought my friend Emily along. I had both ears pierced but I believe I had it done one at a time. I remember a Mother asking me if her child could watch me have it done because she had been asking for her ears pierced but her Mum didn't think she really knew what they do to pierce it! I don't think it hurt too much but I did have to hold Emily's hand and she claims I crushed it. My pain threshold was pathetic at that age so it probably didn't hurt as much as I thought it did. Again, this was done with a piercing gun.

• Helix/Ear Rim Piercing: This is the piercing at the top of my ear. I had this done for my 15th birthday at Blue Banana and I think I found this the most painful of my piercings due to it being cartilage. This time I had it done with a needle rather than a piercing gun which is to be expected from a cartilage piercing so you don't run the risk of shattering the cartilage. This had a really long healing time and for weeks I couldn't lie on that side of my head. It took 7 months for mine to completely heal without any sort of pain or ache when being touched. It didn't bleed which surprised me but one day a boy accidentally kicked a football at my piercing and it did bleed!

• Tragus Piercing: This is the piercing on the inner part of my ear. Now this one has a bit of a story! I had this one done on my 16th piercing at Blue Banana again. Although my helix/ear rim hurt the most overall, this was the most painful process. The process of it being pierced really effing' hurt more than anything, but don't let that put you off. After 20 mins I couldn't even feel it any longer and it is actually my favourite piercing. Please note that if you plan to get this done it does impair how easily an ear bud on your earphones goes in so because of that I won't ever get my right one done too. So the story part of this piercing is that a week or so later I woke up to find it had fallen out. I found the ball but had no idea where the bar went! My family were going on a day out to the seaside that day but on the way there we went to Blue Banana to buy a new bar to put in before it closed over. As my Mum was putting my bar in she spotted the bar was inside my ear! I literally had no idea it was there and we couldn't get it out. When we got to the seaside I had to sit in Costa Coffee whilst my Mum stuck tweezers in my ear to get it out. Probably a weird thing for customers to see. Putting a new bar in made my ear bleed and I think the bar came out because my ear had swollen too much for it. This is why you have to make sure your bar is long enough to accommodate swelling guys!

• Third Earlobe/Ear Rim: This is the third piercing up from my ear lobe. This was my last piercing at Blue Banana and was done when I was 16, not long after my tragus had healed. It didn't hurt too bad and I had no issues with it afterwards. However, this was my first piercing to bleed when getting it done! It bled quite a lot and I had to walk around town holding tissue to my ear. 

• Fourth Earlobe/Ear Rim: This is my most recent piercing from March at the age of 18; a month before I turned 19. I hadn't had a new piercing done for nearly 3 years so I was a bit rusty on what it was like. After hearing bad things online about getting piercings done at Blue Banana I opted to get my piercing done at a tattoo and piercing parlour. My boyfriend came along too, deciding to get his lip re-pierced, and we joked that it was like we were on a date to get piercings together. This piercing is partly through ear lobe and partly through cartilage so it was more painful than the other ear lobe/ear rim piercings but still not that painful and definitely bearable. It bled a lot (you can see a little bit of dry blood around it in the photo as I took it when I got home) and again I had to walk around town with a tissue stuck to my ear. It took 6 weeks to heal.

My right ear:

Although I've mentioned having those done I thought I would tell you that my earlobe piercing is stretched. I first stretched it at 13/14 when it was the 'cool in thing to do' and I chose that one because that ear barely gets seen- meaning my Mum wouldn't find out! I bought a long spike and my friend pushed it through my ear in a cafe in town. Classy. It didn't hurt as much as it did sting and it took a couple of goes of pushing it in and waiting before it worked. I started off at 1mm and gradually over the months I worked my way to a 4.5mm before I stopped. I then changed the spikes to a spiral and I've had the spiral in ever since. I'm not sure if that's yucky or not but I just can't be bothered to change it! It isn't stretched too large but I don't think I could wear a stud in it. Even after about 5 years if I leave it out for a while the hole starts to shrink. I have thought about going up to a 5 or 6mm so maybe in the future I'll do that. It'll be like nostalgia from my young teen days.

My end goal with my ear piercings is to have piercings all around the edge of my left ear and maybe inner ear too if I can brave it. Since I got the 'taste' for piercings at 13 I have loved the idea of having an ear full of piercings and now that I am old enough to do it I still want it. My boyfriend wants to get his nose pierced soon so it won't be too long before I get the next piercing done. I wouldn't say no to facial piercings but for now I'm focusing on my ear. This is going to be one expensive ear! I'll definitely update you guys on my piercings once I've completed my ear masterpiece.

What I will say is that don't be scared of getting piercings. I have the most rubbish pain threshold and I have a fear of medical stuff and injections which anyone who knows me personally could tell you. A nurse wanted to do a blood test on me last year but I started sobbing and refused to do it and she was like "How?? You have plenty of piercings!!" When I see the needle I immediately think "what am I doing? I hate needles! How did I voluntarily sign up for this?!" but I just close my eyes and I do it. So if you're similar to me, you can do it. If I can you can!

Drinking game: Take a drink every time I say the word 'ear' or 'piercing'.

Skincare | My Face Mask Collection

In April I shared with you guys my body butters, creams and lotions collection so today I thought I would bring you my face mask collection. My face mask collection certainly isn't as big as my body butter collection though! I've mostly used Lush face masks before which if you've used them then you know they go out of date after a week or so, hence why they aren't here! For the record I have sensitive skin so please note that if you have sensitive skin I do find all of these masks to be gentle for that.

• Superdrug Aloe Vera Mud Mask- My sister bought me this for Christmas and I've been using it once a week on and off since. It is for normal to combination skin and aims to calm, replenish moisture, cleanse and purify pores. I like mud masks as the tightening sensation really makes it feel like it's doing something for your pores. I don't find it drying and believe it does the job. I use this all over my face.

• The Body Shop Tea Tree Face Mask x2- If you read The Body Shop Tea Tree Edit you would know that I love the tea tree range! This mask is for blemished skin and works to treat and minimise breakouts. I have used this for years and either use it on my whole face or a really bad break out. Works a treat!

• InstaNatural Dead Sea Mud Mask*- This is a huuuge tub! This is another mud mask which actually comes from the Dead Sea. It works to absorb excess oil, dirt, treat acne, pimples, blackheads and even your skin's complexion. What a mouthful! This mask is very drying and feels kind of itchy but it really does change your skin. A little goes a long way and I know this definitely won't be running empty any time soon.

• Proactiv+ Skin Purifying Face Mask*- This little tube comes with other Proactiv+ products which contain salicylic acid. The point of the mask is to fight blemishes, prevent break outs and refine pours. It is definitely something to consider if other treatments aren't helping get rid of those pesky spots. I don't normally use this all over my face as I find salicylic acid quite drying and instead like to use it in select areas where I am suffering from acne.

What are your favourite masks?

*These items were sent to me, all opinions 100% my own. I'm not paid to talk about them!