Going back to the past...a classic 40s make up look

Hey everyone! There is something so elegant and sophisticated about the classic 40's look, think Dita Von-Teese ^^ This look is really simple yet gorgeous, a lovely cat-eye paired with a bold shiny red lip, so I'm here to share my version of it.

Her classic make up will be the inspiration for this look.

The finished look complete with "Von-Teese" beauty spot (that's dedication ^^)

*Cough* Poser *Ehem* ;)

Admittedly this isn't a look I sport very often (as a socially-awkward student I don't get many chances to wear red lipstick, but I take every chance I can xD). The key to this look is a matte, flawless complexion (I tried my best), thick jet black gel/liquid eye liner  a defined eyebrow, and the lipstick- I think my effort ticked most of these boxes, so I'm happy with it ^^

Products used-

Foundation- Max Factor Colour adapt in shade 40 Cream Ivory

Concealer- Collection Lasting Perfection in shade 1 Fair

Powder- Rimmel Stay Matte pressed translucent powder 

 Eyeshadow- I used Tranquil from my MUA Undress Me Too palette to cover my lid and line the lower lash line. I also used Estee Lauder Pure Colour Eyeshadow in shade 10- Ivory Box to highlight my browbone and shade 64 Espresso Cup to fill in my brows ^^ and shade 61 Tea Box to add a slight contour to my cheeks

Eyeliner- Maybelline Eyestudio Lasting Drama Gel Liner in Black

Mascara- Benefit They're real!

Lipstick- Avon Extra Lasting Lipstick in Eternal Flame

Lipgloss- Rimmel Shock Gloss 3D Magnifying Lip Gloss in shade 208 Amp'ed (not sure if this is discontinued or not in store but it's still avaliable on Amazon :)

*Blows kiss* :3

I hope you liked this post! Have a great evening everyone and I hope I did the "classic" 40's make up look some justice. Stay tuned (figuratively) for more reviews/tutorials/raves/and other great stuff and thank you for reading! Feel free to leave a comment with any views/questions/suggestions, all are welcome! ^^

Lots of love, Laura xx

Boots and Superdrug Haul (what I bought in town today)

Hey everyone! Today I'm going to be sharing with you a few make up and skincare products I purchased in town today mostly from Boots and Superdrug, as well as a couple of things I've been given randomly recently. On with the haul then...

Skincare (YAYYYY!)

Skincare

Clearasil Ultra Overnight Wash- I've been having some "blemish" issues lately, so when I saw this wash was reduced to £3 in my local Boots I jumped at the chance.

Boots Skinclear Oil-free Mattifying Lotion, £2.99- I have REALLY oily skin so when I saw all the amazing reviews for this "miracle product" I was so excited to try it! Even more excited when I saw it was half price in Boots (£1.49!!!) which it doesn't seem to be at the moment (however, the range is currently 3 for 2). 

And finally Boots Essentials Fragrance Free facial sponge, £2- Ever since I saw the budget "essentials" for various bloggers on The Sunday Girl's blog, which mentioned using a facial buffer, I was intrigued to try one as I've never considered it before. I'll have to update you on what I think of it.

Make up ^^

I have wanted to try some products from NYC (New York Colour) for a while so I decided to try a few :)
NYC Smooth Skin Perfecting Primer, £3.49 but on offer in Superdrug for £2.49- I have seen SO MANY good and bad reviews about this product so I was so eager to get it and find out for myself! Will definitely do a review soon.
NYC Showtime Volumising Mascara, £1.99 (!?)- For £1.99 can you really go wrong? I needed some new mascara and this looked promising ^^
NYC In a New York Minute (see what they did there ;D) Quick Dry Nailpolish, £1.79 in Shade 246 Park Avenue- On the website this colour looks grey but it's really a GORGEOUS taupe colour (if you don't already know...I LOVE TAUPES!!!! :D) This was really an impulse buy...I literally picked it up and ran to the counter, I regret NOTHING.

Some more Make up (yay)

MUA Lipstick in Shade 2, £1- My fourth MUA lippie...enough said xD

W7 Lipstick in Kir Royale, I think around £3 from Amazon- I bought on a whim but really like it, the second W7 product I've tried (I really like them!) It's a gorgeous plum red/pink ^^

MUA Pressed Powder Blush in Shade 3, £1- I already have Shade 4 which I LOVE so I can't wait to try this!

Maybelline Colour Tattoo 24hr Eyestudio Gel Cream Eyeshadow in 40 Permanent Taupe, £4.99 - What can I say, I'm a sucker for taupe shades ^^

Random stuff I've been given 

Benefit Prrrowl Lipgloss & Mascara Duo- My friend got this for her birthday and didn't like it so she gave it to me (was I ever going to say no to a free, practically unused, benefit product?? :D)

A really random pot of Nivea moistururiser- Can you actually beat this stuff for hydrating dry skin?? I don't use it on my face as it's quite heavy (however, I do used the Nivea Light one on my face in the evenings), but it's really good for dry hands or elbows etc.

A little Estee Lauder bag- My step mum received this with her last order and I thought it would be good for taking my make up essentials in when I'm on the move. It's just so cute!

Look at that shimmer xD So snazzy!

That's it!! That was a very long post, I apologise, I got a bit carried away. I'll be reviewing some of these products in the very near future ^^ I hope you enjoyed it.

Lots of love, Laura xx

Ready...steady...BAKE! #1 PANCAKES!!!!! ^^

I'm on half term so I decided to make pancakes for breakfast this morning (yay! :D) The recipe I use is one that I got out of the Jamie Oliver Ministry of Food book, it's called "One-cup pancakes". It's SUPER easy and delicious so I decided to share it!

Ingredients-

A mug (one that you can use as a measurement)

Plain Flour (if you want pancakes that are like crepes)  or Self-raising flour (if you want them to be thicker- "American" style)

Milk

1 Egg

A bit of sugar (not in the actual recipe but I prefer to sweeten the batter slightly)

And whatever topping to you like...(sugar and lemon, nutella, golden syrup, fruit etc.)

1. Use the mug to measure out the flour and then the milk, adding them to a large bowl. The recipe suggests to use the whole mug for 4 people, so for one I tend to use between half/a quarter of the mug (I'm greedy ^^) which usually makes around 4 mid sized pancakes. As long as the quantities of flour and milk are the same the recipe will work :) Then add the egg and sugar and stir until the batter is smooth.

Mix mix mix mix...

2. Using a ladle (I find it easier) pour a bit of the batter into a mid-heat pan (not too hot otherwise the outside will burn before the inside is properly cooked). Feel free to flip them ;D I never do though, I'm too clumsy/scared to risk having to scrap my pancake off the ceiling...

This is how the underside should appear.

3. Once you've made all your pancakes, make your topping :) The topping I had was natural yogurt mixed with a bit of golden syrup, with sliced banana and a dribble of lime juice ^^

The finished product ^^

I was feeling artistic :)

I hope you enjoyed that! I want a make sure I offer variety on my blog so I think putting recipes on here is a good way to achieve that ^^ Feel free to leave a comment with any suggestions of what I could do next or any review/tutorials you want done, thank you- I'm having so much fun making this

Lots of love, Laura xx

Product Rave! Revlon Lip Butters ^^

I have absolutely loved these products since their release last summer, but now the sun is shining where I live I've been wearing them all the time ^^ I finally decided it's time I review them for you all and give you my opinion! :3

Left- Berry Smoothie, Right- Pink Truffle

I only have 2 of the shades available- Berry Smoothie & Pink Truffle. You've probably seen millions of posts like this so I won't bored you with lots of detail. I love the packaging! It's so cute- with the cross hatched, light design and the colours that are coordinated with the actual lipstick colour.

Left- Berry Smoothie, Right- Pink Truffle

Berry Smoothie

The casing of the lipsticks are so sleek, not the conventional "bullet" design which makes it feel like more of a balm.

Pink Truffle

Left- Pink Truffle, Right- Berry Smoothie- taken in natural light

As you can see from the swatches both of the lip butters are quite sheer, which makes them great for summer everyday wear. The pigmentation of Pink Truffle is better than Berry Smoothie and it has better coverage. The texture of these butters is very "buttery" (funny that xD) and creamy, your lips feel so lovely and hydrated when wearing these. I usually don't like a "glossy" finish but it looks really flattering ^^

Pink Truffle

 The colour of pink truffle is so gorgeous!!! This HAS to be one of my all time favourite lipsticks EVER! I got this last July for my prom makeup and I've loved it ever since ^^ I love how it really makes the colour of my eyes pop. If I had to describe it, it would be a muted pinky brown with coral/orange undertones with no shimmer (great description Laura xD)

Berry Smoothie

 Berry Smoothie is the colour I wanted to get originally but could never get hold of, it was sold out in local store for MONTHS -_- I picked this one up recently while Boots had an offer on them (one for £5). This is also a really pretty shade, not loved as much as my beloved pink truffle but still beautiful! This is a very lovely rosy light pink with slight silver sparkles, I can imagine it would work really well with "English rose" complexions ^^ These beauts can be picked up for £7.99 at Boots

That's it! Hope you enjoyed it ^^

Lots of love, Laura xx

A random Undress Me Too look and hot chocolate...I got bored ^^

Hey everyone! Having a good wednesday? I am currently sat on my sofa watching "Friends" sipping on some Whittards Rocky Road hot chocolate and munching on Oreo Dairy Milk chocolate :D Life's good. 

It's so good :3

As it's snowing where I live I was inspired to create a sparkly look using my new MUA Undress Me Too palette, I also really wanted an opportunity to properly use my new Technic High Lights ^^ So this is a very "highlighted" look, which I've be loving lately. Sorry the pictures aren't brilliant but it was getting dark and I was feeling dramatic

I look gormless xD Oh well, this shows the highlight on my cheek well.

My MUA eyeshadow. The shades I used were  Naked (as a  base),  Shy to highlight the inner corners,  Exposed on the whole lid and a bit of Obsessed in the crease.

Ignore my dodgy eyebrows :L I didn't have the patience to do them properly

The products I used for this quick look are-

• MUA Undress Me Too palette
• Max Factor Colour Adapt foundation in shade 40 Cream Ivory
• Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer
• Technic High Lights cream highlighter
• Maybelline Eyestudio Lasting Drama gel liner in Black
• No7 Exceptional Definition mascara
• The Body Shop Lip and Cheek tint in Rose Pink (on my cheeks)
• and Natural Collection Lipstick in Fig Leaf (A shade I'm loving at the moment ^^)

I hope you liked this look and please let me know if you want any reviews on the products used, or if you have any suggestions for future posts- I'll answer any comments so feel free ^^

Lots of Love, Laura xx

MUA New Undress You Too palette! First impressions and swatches! ^^

Hey everyone! Let me start this post by saying I LOVE Make Up Academy! The brand is so cheap and amazing quality, I own quite a few products and was SO excited to get this palette :D I have the Undressed and Heaven and Earth palettes which I adore! Enough of that...on with the review ^^

Unlike the other MUA palettes the casing of this one is white. I really like it because it looks quite sleek and classy, however the only disadvantage of white may be that it gets dirty quickly- I'll have to update you about how it looks after a few good weeks of use :)

The palette is often considered a dupe for the much-loved Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette, their Undressed Palette being a dupe for the Naked Palette. I don't own an Urban Decay palettes so I can't comment on that, however, there are lots of comparisons on the internet you can check out. 

A great example I found is from "The Black Pearl Blog"

http://www.theblackpearlblog.com/2013/02/naked-2-dupe-mua-undress-me-too-palette.html

 The only thing that slightly annoyed me about the MUA palettes are the lack of shade names (I don't really know why, but the names are always so lovely ^^). This one, however, PROVIDES SHADE NAMES! YAYYYYY!! They are really cute, if you can't be bothered to look they are-

Naked (Coincidence? ;D)

Devotion

Shy

Fiery

Lavish

Dreamy

Tranquil

Exposed

Reveal

Wink

Obsessed

and Corrupt

They are pretty good names, most are relevant to the shades and others are just pretty :)

Naked- A lovely cream matte shade, this would act as a great base for looks or as a simple flush of colour for those "No make-up" looks. It has no shimmer and is quite sheer.

Devotion- This is a gorgeous orange based bronze. It the finish is very metallic and has a frosty sheen, it also has hues of red.

Shy- A beautiful pearl coloured cream which looks pink based in the pan but I would say is more yellow/gold on application. It has a great creamy, shiny finish which would be amazing as a highlighter for the inner corners of the eye or browbone.

Fiery-  This is a really pretty rose gold coloured shimmer with undertones of brown, probably one of my favourites in the collection. It is very pigmented with a gold shimmery finish.

Lavish- Another of my favourites, purely because I'm addicted to taupe brown eyeshadows :) This is lovely matte creamy taupe brown shadow which isn't as pigmented as the shimmers (sad face) but is still pretty good with some eye primer.

Dreamy- A more copper coloured bronze, which is also very creamy and has undertones of pink and gold, with gold shimmer.

Tranquil- A stunning light brown shimmer which more a silver finish. It is also slightly pinkish in colour.

Exposed- Definitely one of my favourite EVER MUA eyeshadow shades. An amazing grey frosty colour with silver shimmer and pretty purple undertones.

Reveal- Another favourite, a lovely slightly pink light grey with a silver shimmery finish. This shade and exposed with DEFINITELY be featured in a look I do soon (spoiler alert ^^).

Wink- Another bronzey colour except a lot more pinky. The finish is like a dark rose gold with added brown.

Obsessed- A simple dark plummy brown with a slight silver sparkle (no way near as intense as the others)

And finally Corrupt- The black. Compared to MUA's previous blacks this one is almost matte, with a slight silver sheen- very pretty and very blendable, making a smoky look easy to achieve.

Now for the swatches-

In daylight with a thin layer of MUA professional eye primer

In artificial light (same as above with the primer)

As you can see the pigmentation varies quite widely between the shades, the only one that isn't great Naked that you can hardly see on the swatch.

Overall I love the palette but I'll have to wait til I use them to create a look (I'll post a few soon) until I can give you a proper review. The shades are great- from neutrals to darks. I only wish MUA would make the pigmentation of their mattes better, as they really are lovely. The best part? This AMAZING palette costs a mere £4!!!! An essential for any MUA/budget-beauty lover!

Lots of love, Laura xx