The Half Year Review

In a follow up to my post back in March about my quarter year resolutions, I thought I better follow up with my goals and whether I managed to fulfil them or not and what I could do to improve things I want to change, so here goes nothing..

1. Join the gym - NOPE. In all seriousness, it's a working progress, that isn't progressing as much as I would hope. But I am still getting in regular exercise with workouts from home and jogging. Don't worry it WILL happen.
2. Settle in to my new job  - Well I actually managed to do this, much to the guys I work with's dismay, I've very much made myself at home and seemed to of picked up the work quite quickly, onwards and upwards.
3. Get a new hairstyle  - Christ I'm doing better than I expected, also got this done, I had a purple ombre which was bloody awesome, but unfortunately, purple doesn't tend to stick around for too long, I even got a full fringe cut in, which lasted about 10 minutes because I'm too lazy to maintain it everyday.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. Get clearer skin - Lush is all I really need to say here, give your skin a breather, use ultrabland, a face mask now and again, grease lightening and gorgeous moisturiser and your skin will love you, speaking of skin, also been using Dover Summer Glow all over which has been making my skin so much softer and I've even got a bit of colour to me, win, win.
5. Lose a bit of weight - NOPE. Unfortunately, I love food and I have a real lack of will power, but I have definitely cleaned up my diet a lot, it's just clearing it up more so and exercising more regularly, by my third quarter resolution review I'll be well on my way to being ripped.
6. Exercise at least three times a week  - Once again, not quite there yet, but well on my way, I've started going jogging with my friend Heather, going to aim to jog twice a week, badminton once a week and go to the gym three mornings a week when I finally get my act together.
7. Cut down on fast food  - Uhhhhm, yeaaaaaah. Haven't done brilliantly with this one, still eating fast food every week, going to try and aim to go a month without it and go from there in the mission to cut crap food out of my life.
8. Sort out my finances  - Well my finances aren't terrible they could just clearly be better, unfortunately (not that I'm making excuses for myself) I have an expensive couple of months coming up, what with my boyfriend's birthday, Reading Festival and our anniversary I'll just be scraping by for a while.
9. Get whiter teeth  - YES! Something I've actually done and done it well, don't get me wrong, I don't have Ross Gellar's pearly whites, but I'm well on my way, I would 100% recommend the Crest 3D White Strips, the only down side is for the first 24 hours your teeth may be particularly sensitive.
10. Take up Yoga  - To be absolutely honest, I've not made any attempt to do this one, but when I get my arse in gear and join the gym I will start yoga classes too. I know it will be beneficial for me but it's just convincing my lazy arse.

So in the next three months, I will do another quarter resolution review and report back with my results and other things I hope to achieve this year. Hopefully I'll be a tad more successful and motivated.

All my love,

Bex

Top 5 MAC Lipsticks

Hi Guys,

Hope you're all well on this fine day, today I thought I would discuss my top 5 MAC lipsticks. I wear MAC lipsticks everyday, but generally wear certain one more than others so thought I would let you all in on my tips and recommendations when it comes to picking your perfect MAC lipstick.

Number 1 - Sin 

Easily the best lipstick I own in my MAC collection, the perfect dark red lipstick, the only negative is it is a matte lipstick which can be very drying on your lips so make sure you exfoliate thoroughly before application. Teamed with the widely loved Nightmoth lipliner the combination gives you an impeccable ombre lip.

Number 2 - Honey Love

Probably the lipstick that I wear pretty much every day, ideal for a more natural look and what I wear to work with minimal make up for an effortless day time look, also a matte lipstick so exfoliate and moisturise before application.

Number 3 - Heroine

Very much a statement lip, this lipstick comes out more of a pinky purple but particularly long lasting, also matte (you can see a theme here), I do personally find that matte lipsticks have much better staying power than Satin lipsticks but that's just my personal preference.

Number 4 - Velvet Teddy

Velvet Teddy has been particularly sought after due to the Kylie Jenner phenomenon where she declared one of her favourite and most frequently used lipsticks was Velvet Teddy by MAC after hearing all the hoopla about it, I bought it as soon as it came back into stock and I have to say, it lives up to the hype. It's a flawless matte nude brown lipstick that should be a staple in anyone's collection

Number 5 - Rebel

Actually my first MAC purchase so it will always have a place in my heart, I'm also wearing it in my profile photo. Rebel is a beautiful pinky red that would make anyone feel extra girly, with a satin finish Rebel is a highly moisturising lipstick which I would recommend to be combined with the Vino lip liner for the ultimate look.

I hope my favourites and recommendations have helped you make a decision towards your next MAC lipstick and happy shopping!

All my love,

Bex

2015 Wish List

Evening all,

I hope you've had a lovely day, so today I thought I would do a wish list for this year. Ever find yourself scrolling through instagram, pinterest, polyvore or whatever you like and just finding tons of things you need in your life, but a significant lack of finance is keeping you both from being together.

That's why you should have a wish list, so whenever it's a special occasion, a birthday, christmas or you just fancy a treat, then you have your wishlist for reference of what materialistic items you need in your life to make it that much better! Let the wish list commence..

Black and Leopard Print Vans

Ugh these are so nice, probably not everyone's cup of tea, but definitely right up my street, Vans last ages, are very durable and are really comfortable and at only £35 these are pretty much a steal.

Anastasia Beverley Hills Brow Wiz and Dip Brow Pomade

Now this brow duo, I've heard a lot of MUA's rave about it saying it's the best thing to happen to eyebrows since threading, I'm yet to try it, but considering the reviews that these products have had, it's definitely on my wish list to be added to my make up collection.

MAC Ruby Woo

Ladies and gentlemen, the epitome of a perfect red lip is here and it's embodied in the form of Ruby Woo. Ruby Woo and Lady Danger are the most sought after MAC red lipsticks, these need to be added to my lipstick collection.

Topshop Joni Jeans

I live in my black Joni Jeans, but despite the english weather's appearance it is allegedly summer, so I thought I should get some more summery jeans to match the occasion.

Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation

Allegedly the holy grail of foundations, one of my favourite MUA's Belle Jorden swears by this foundation, in a small hope that this foundation may give me her same flawless complexion I will be purchasing it immediately.

Birkenstocks

Oh ugly shoe, how I love thee. Birkenstocks have very much been the marmite shoe of the fashion world, I don't know what it is about them, I just love them so much, even if they are very summer grandad esque, I need them in my life.

Lush's Gorgeous Moisturiser

Considering how much I just love Lush in general, I really don't think I could big up this moisturiser anymore, don't get me wrong, for a moisturiser it's pretty steep at just over £40 for a small pot. But instantaneously after putting the sample on my skin, I could feel the pineapple extract going to work on my pores and my skin felt velvety soft after it's use.

MAC Studio Finish Concealer

I really do feel like I've done the rounds in the concealer world, but I just haven't been able to find anything potent enough to cover up my chronic dark circles. Once again I've heard lots of MUA's rave about the staying power and coverage of this concealer so this could finally be the one, fingers crossed!

Daniel Wellington Watch

I've wanted one of these bad boys for a while and maybe this year will be the year, it's simplistic, smart yet elegant. Could be used to accessorise any outfit and can be dressed up for smart wear or dressed down for casual wear, the staple of any watch lovers collection. 

I hope you enjoyed my wish list, if you're like me, try not to smash your bank balance too much!

All my love,

Bex

M.A.C Haul

Evening all,

So I decided after doing a significant haul of M.A.C cosmetic goodies I would do a bit of a haul review.

M.A.C Studio Fix Powder

Ladies and Gentleman, the holy grail of powder foundation, I already use the studio fix powder and this will be my third powder, it really has fantastic coverage, to the point where it can be used just alone or with concealer if your skin is being particularly troublesome.

MAC Prep and Prime Highlighter in Light Boost

Now don't get me wrong, this isn't a bad product, but in regards to a highlighter, this wouldn't be my holy grail of highlighters, although it definitely lightens up the key areas such as your brow bone and cheek bone, there is no shimmer like what you would get with some other highlighters. I am still regularly using the product along with the benefit Hoola contour powder, but if I was to recommend a highlighter for its shimmer it would definitely be, without a doubt, Benefit's Watt's Up Highlighter.

MAC Prep and Prime Skin Base Visage

I don't think I could big up this primer anymore if I tried, it is absolutely amazing, I've had it before, but then I thought I would try the MAC Prep and Prime moisture infusion and although it's really good, nothing compares to the Skin Base Visage. It's a silky texture formula with a slight shimmer to give your skin a natural glow, it helps even out your skin tone, pores and when applying foundation it helps give the likes of Estee Lauder's Double Wear some moving power to apply evenly but has a lasting finish. I've tried multiple different primers including the highly lusted Benefit Porefessional, which I didn't really rate as it made my skin chalky and made my make up flake off, the prep and prime skin base visage is in a league of it's own.

MAC False Lashes in Extreme Black

I really wanted to like this, I got a free sample with my MAC order and I don't know if it was a dodgy sample or what it was, but me and this mascara did not get along. I usually use the holy grail mascara which is the Benefit Roller Lash and as the mascara was a free sample I thought I'd give it a bash. Now, the positives, it made my lashes look really dark and it gave a really good coverage. For the negatives.. Unfortunately I am a chronic hay fever sufferer so more often than not, I get watery eyes, this mascara ran like a water fall, if I rubbed my eyes it smeared everywhere, it didn't separate my lashes very well and generally the staying power was absolutely rubbish.

MAC Lipstick Sin Matte

Uuuuugh, is all I can say really, such a dreamy lipstick, the perfect dark red, pretty similar to Dark Side which is a satin finish, but I personally prefer a matte finish as it seems to have more staying power. My ONLY criticism, which applies to most matte lipsticks is it can be very drying on your lips. So you really need exfoliate and moisturise those bad boys, because once you've applied that lipstick and you have dead skin all over your lips, it's going to show up like a landing beacon and no one likes flakey, clumpy lips, mmmm.

I hope this haul review has helped you make any decisions towards any future MAC purchases.

All my love,

Bex