Five Best Things About Coming Home

Since I've had the week free of uni classes so I can attend Fashion Week (which I have lost all interest in this season, you see one fashion week you've seen them all) I decided to pack up my car and head home for a few days. For those of you who don't follow my beauty blog, twitter or instagram and have no idea where home is, it's the not so sunny seaside town of Bournemouth. I have to say, it's pretty weird waking up in the morning and hearing nothing but birds. Where are the sirens? Where is the traffic? Why can't I hear trains? Very peculiar. But nice peculiar. I feel like I can really unwind back here, it's quiet, and I can have cuddles with my kitty. This week has been particularly lovely, and has made me very reluctant to head back to London Sunday.

1. Cuddles with my animals. My house is something of a menagerie, coming home for cuddles with my one eyed labrador, tennis ball obsessed Cockapoo and mental kitten with squiffy eyes is the best thing ever. The Cockapoo gets so excited when I walk in the front door after a month away, he climbs into my lap and actually cries. For like half an hour. It's freaking adorable.

2. Not having to cook. Anyone who lives on their own I'm sure will feel me on this one. Not having to go food shopping, not having to decide what to eat, and having a big plate of healthy, organic, gluten and dairy free food plonked in front of me is bliss. This is how I know I'm getting old.

3. My bed. Ahhhh my bed. My bed in London is horrible and springy and even with a big feather mattress topper, just not comfortable at all. This week I've spent half my time snuggled up in bed, sleeping, watching Netflix, and using it as a makeshift work station, since the Boy and I both have deadlines next week. So cosy, plus, isn't my bedding adorable?

4. Long dog walks. This is probably an extension of puppy cuddles, but it's so much more satisfying going on a four mile walk with an excitable dog too. I would have loved to have gone for a walk along the beach but since the wind recently means half the beach is on the prom now, it didn't seem like an option, so we headed up the park with a soggy tennis ball and some now muddy Nike Blazers. It took me ages to get a photo of Finn because he was running so fast, and then I realised my dog is not particularly attractive when he's been rained on! If any of you have any suggestions for nice places to walk in London, please let me know, I'm enjoying my Sunday rambles!

5. Lunch dates with Mummy. The last few times I've been home, my mum and I have made an effort to go for lunch together and catch up (read: bitch about the men in our lives), and I really look forward to it now. Today, we headed to a nearby Café restaurant that has a full gluten free menu for my mum. I had a very non gluten free Ciabatta sandwich with salad and chips which was super tasty!

My mission now is to sneak my kitten into my car and take her back to London with me, and hope my Landlord doesn't notice!

Getting Things in Order - Skincare

Whilst I was back in Bournemouth a few weeks back, my Mum asked about this here corner of the internet. We had a conversation during a mini homeware shopping trip about my blog, the posts I've been doing recently and the products we've been using. A brief discussion led us to the realisation she'd been using her MAC Cleanse Off Oil all wrong (pumping it onto a cotton pad and swiping it over her face, then wondering why it was breaking her out!), she suggested that she, and many other non-beauty obsessives would find a post talking about the order you should apply things would be really helpful. So lets talk skincare.

In the mornings, I've gotten pretty lax with my skincare. I keep things simple, a quick cleanse usually takes place, I like the Vichy Purete Thermale Cream Cleanser for morning cleanses. I like to pop a little of this on a cotton pad, and swipe it over my face to remove any traces of dirt or oil. I follow this up with a hydrating toner that I can spray directly onto my face for ease, right now I'm loving the Caudalie Beauty Elixir, which dramatically brightens my skin. After that it's a case of slapping moisturiser and eye cream on. I've been loving the Origins Ginzing Duo recently, they're hydrating but with a gel formula that doesn't make my skin greasy or oily throughout the day. After that, I just apply my primer of choice, and start with my makeup.

In the evenings things get a little more complicated. I like to start things off with a makeup remover. Oil based makeup removers are great for getting off waterproof eye makeup, but for my standard everyday makeup, I put my trust in the Bioderma Sensibo H20, my favourite micellar water on the market. Micellar waters generally feel just like water on the skin, but remove makeup fantastically, I like to squirt a little of this onto a Kleenex Facial cloth to take off the bulk of my makeup. After that, I like to use a creamy cleanser to remove any remaining makeup, and cleanse the skin. My favourite is the Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish, I take a pump of this in my hands, massage it into dry skin, and then remove with a wet flannel or muslin cloth. If I've been wearing a lot of makeup, or I've been out in the city all day, I like to do it twice, just to make sure my skin is as clean as possible. This is my favourite step, it's always so nice to feel my skin totally clean at the end of a long day!

In the evening I like to use two toners, one to exfoliate and then one to hydrate my skin. For exfoliating, I like Pixi's Glow Tonic, two pumps on a cotton pad swiped over my skin is enough to get rid of any dead skin cells, and keep my skin looking fresh. After this, I spray the Lush Tea Tree Toner directly onto my skin, this hydrates my skin, but the tea tree also acts as an antiseptic, calming any redness in my skin or incoming outbreaks. 

Before moisturising, I like to use any oils or serums that I feel like my skin needs. If my skin is feeling congested, I like to use my La Roche Posay Effeclar Duo,  just a pea sized amount on my skin, which helps keep my skin clear. If I'm struggling with the pores in my T-zone, I pull out the Bioderma Sebium Pore Refiner, which helps unclog pores and minimise their appearance. And if my skin feels dry, I reach for the Trilogy Rosehip Oil, which hydrates, reduces the appearance of scars, and helps spots heal faster.

For moisturiser, I've been using the Origins Oil-Free Night-A-Mins, similar in texture to the Origins Ginzing moisturiser, with the same orange scent, it offers my skin intense overnight hydration. I then use my ring finger to tap the Lancome Genifique Yeux Eye Cream onto my under-eye area, in the hope I won't wake up with massive under eye circles. 

Do you do things differently with your skincare?

Where to Splurge and Where to Save

With a whole wealth of beauty products out there, from MUA to Tom Ford, it's hard to know where to invest your hard earned cash, and where to save. Because of this blog, the nature of my job, and even to a certain extent the uni I attend, I have had the opportunity to try a whole wealth of products from so many different brands, and it's become glaringly obvious that there are some products worth the splurge, and others that high end brands don't do any better than the highstreet.

Where To Splurge

Skincare - There's no point buying a tonne of expensive makeup, if your skins not looking it's best. There's something to be said for spending good money on your skincare routine, since upping the anti in mine, my skin has never looked better. You don't need to spend a fortune, but look for products with natural ingredients.

Brands to try - Bioderma, Origins, Liz Earle, Trilogy, Aesop.

Primer - Along a similar line to skincare, what's the point in expensive makeup if it's looking worse for wear by 6pm? I'm a big believer in primers, not only do they increase the wear of your makeup, but a good one can also blur imperfections, smooth uneven skin, and create a barrier between your skin and makeup to prevent breakouts. I have yet to find a drugstore primer that's as effective as a high end one, if you have any suggestions please leave them below!

Products to try - Hourglass Mineral Veil Primer, Smashbox Photo Finish Primer, Laura Mercier Radiance Foundation Primer.

Foundation - A good base makes the difference between looking okay, and looking incredible. Whilst the highstreet has certainly upped their game on the foundation end in the last year or so, I truly think this is an area still owned by high end brands. There's just something about high end foundations that wins that battle in my opinion. Plus, all the highstreet foundations I do like tend to have a really strong scent, which puts me off massively.

Products to try - Diorskin Nude BB Creme, Chanel Vitalumiére Aqua, YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat, Benefit Hello Flawless Foundation.

Blush - My love affair with blusher has been renewed in recent months. Whilst I do like some highstreet blushers, namely Sleek, Revlon and Soap and Glory, I just find that they've disappeared from my face by lunchtime. I don't ever find that with High end blushes however, they've completely stolen my heart, they all just seem to have incredible staying power!

Products to try - Nars Blushes, Benefit Blushes, Le Blush Creme De Chanel, Bobbi Brown.

Eyeshadow Bases - Eyeshadow base products seems to be something that high street brands haven't really dabbled in much. Whilst Rimmel do have one that I love, on the whole I much prefer higher end offerings, for staying power, increasing shadow pigmentation, and preventing creasing.

Products to try - MAC Paint Pots, Urban Decay Primer Potion.

Eyeshadows - I have a lot of eyeshadows and I've tried a lot of eyeshadows, but to me there's nothing on the high street comparable to the buttery texture, intense pigmentation and blendability of most high end shadows.

Products to try - Urban Decay Shadows, NARS shadows, Stila Shadows, MAC Shadows.

Eyeliners - Whilst I do have a soft spot for the Rimmel Scandaleyes liners, I haven't found anything on the highstreet that stays put as well as some of the high end liners I own, especially on the waterline. You gotta pay good money for lasting power!

Products to try - Smashbox Liners, Urban Decay 24/7 Liners, YSL Waterproof Eye Liners.

Lipsticks - There are brands on the highstreet that do nice lipsticks, but nothing beats luxury lipsticks for me. There are very few high end brands I've tried that don't do incredible lipsticks, they also tend to have shade selections!

Products to try - MAC Lipsticks, Urban Decay Revolution Lipsticks, YSL Lipsticks, Chanel Lipsticks, Bobbi Brown Sheer Lip Colours.

Makeup Setting Sprays - I tried a few of these from the highstreet this summer and they did nothing at all, whereas my high end alternatives are life savers. This is something I don't mind spending on, since they last forever and make a big difference.

Products to try - Urban Decay All Nighter, MAC Fix+.

Where To Save

Concealer -  I've tried a whole wealth of concealers from all over the place, and with the exception of the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer, I haven't found a single high end concealer without a drugstore dupe that's just as good, if not better.

Products to try - Seventeen Phwoarr Paint Concealer, Maybelline Instant Eye Eraser Concealer, Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer.

Setting Powder - Whilst I'm partial to my Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders and Chanel Les Beiges, the drugstore has really upped it's game in the setting powder department recently. Affordable, good, and if they break in your handbag it's not the end of the world.

Products to try - Bourjois Healthy Balance Powder, Rimmel Stay Matte Powder.

Highlighter - Highlighter is a tricky one, I have a good mix of both high end and highstreet highlighters in my collection, and I love them all, but when it comes down to it, I love them all equally, there isn't anything particularly special about the high end ones, the highstreet ones are just as good, so it's worth saving your pennies and going for drugstore this time.

Products to try - Topshop Glow, Revlon Photoready Skinlights, Topshop Sunbeam Powder.

Brows - My three favourite brow related products were all from the highstreet, so this one was easy. I wasn't impressed with the MAC brow pencil, and I found a dupe for the Anastasia Brow Whizz, so drugstore wins this round.

Products to try - Along Came Betty Br-Wow, Maybelline Brow Drama Mascara, Soap and Glory Archery Brow Tint and Pencil.

Mascara - I'll always love my YSL Shocking Volume Mascara, but the drugstore has so many amazing mascaras you really don't need to fork out on a high end purchase.

Products to try - L'Oreal False Lash Telescopic, Max Factor False Lash Effect, Max Factor Waterproof Masterpiece.

Bronzer - This was another one where I have a good mix of high end and highstreet, and I do love a few high end ones, but there are a few drugstore ones I'm currently hooked on. It can be hard to find a non orangey bronzer in the drugstore but there are a few out there!

Products to try - Soap and Glory Solar Powder, The Body Shop Honey Bronzer, Bourjois Bronzing Primer.

Lipgloss - I never used to be a lipgloss sorta gal, I would never fork out loads of money for a non sticky gloss that wore off after a couple of hours, but now that there drugstore has started appearing with non sticky glosses too, I've gotten a lot more into them.

Products to try - Tanya Burr Lipglosses, Revlon Super Lustrous Lipglosses, L'Oreal Glamshine Splash Stains.

To anyone who's looking for a new product, or building up a makeup collection, I hope this helps!

What products do you like to splurge on?

What's On My Face - The Drugstore Edition

Not the worlds most revolutionary makeup look but hey, it was a Sunday. Have you noticed that I like taupe shadows and dark pinky lips yet? 

I wanted to do a What's On My Face post with only drugstore products, I know a lot of you were after some more affordable products to be featured here, and well, consider me your Fairy Godmother. (P.S. I know it looks like my face is a different colour to my neck, it's just a combination of the angle my face is at and the lighting, my face appears to end where I applied my contour!)

Since this was for a lazy Sunday spent walking with the boy, I went for a light base (new blog plug, you can read about that walk here). I used the L'Oreal Nude Magique Eau de Teint Foundation, one of my favourite highstreet bases. It feels like water when you apply it, but it sets like a powder, leaving you with a matte finish that stays put really well, but doesn't feel at all heavy. I then covered up the redness around my nose and on my chin with the Seventeen Phwoarr Paint Concealer, a product I've been reaching for a lot recently because of it's creamy texture and medium coverage. For my under eyes, I used the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eye Eraser, which successfully brightens and covers any signs of my insomnia. I also took a little of this down the bridge of my nose, to cover up my nose and highlight a little. 

I then filled in the sparse areas of my brows with the same product I've been using since Christmas, the Soap and Glory Archery Brow Tint and Pencil, for natural brows that are a little more even. For my eyes, I used the Topshop Eye Gleam in Bronzed, to create a shimmery golden bronze base. I like this because it's almost a mousse consistency, it sets fast and fills in any creases or lines. I then used my Body Shop Shimmer Cubes in Warm, I originally was going to use the golden shades but I decided I wasn't keen, so I built up colour in the crease with the taupey shade, and then covered my lid with the Maybelline Eyestudio Shadow in Iced Fudge. I took a little of the Max Factor Kohl Pencil in Black along the outer edge of my upper lash line, and in my waterline for definition, and then added lashings of Maybelline The Rocket Mascara, I'm still unsure if I like this mascara, I do find it kind of groups my lashes together and makes them look a little spidery, but I'm persevering!

On my cheeks I used the Body Shop Honey Bronzer in the lightest shade to define my cheeks. I honestly can't tell you how much I like this bronzer, it's so pretty! For blush I used the Topshop Cream blush in Morning Dew, a blush I haven't touched since the summer, but I like a lot. It really perks up the cheeks, but it has a powdery finish so it lasts much better than most cream blushes.

On the lips I used the No7 BB Lips in Berry Rose, a super moisturising but long lasting lip gloss.

What are your favourite drugstore products right now?

Dirty Looks Hair Extensions

My hair is currently in the awkward, shoulder length, not a bob but not long hair stage, and as well as being a bugger to style, it just looks a bit strange. I've been on the hunt for a few weeks now for a set of hair extensions to add an inch or two to my hairs length, and add a bit of thickness too. I miss having long hair so much, and was desperate to have enough hair to have more styling options than up, or down. As luck would have it, around the same time the lovely ladies from Dirty Looks got in touch and offered to send me a set of extensions to try. Perfect timing right? I explained what I wanted and they suggested a full set of extensions, in 16-18", they even colour matched me after I sent a few photos of my hair to them.

The extensions I received are the HK Full Head Hair extensions* in the shade Organic. The pack contains 10 Wefts of varying size and thickness, with all the clips already attached and ready to go. The kit comes with a little booklet showing how and where is best to apply the wefts (and if you lose the booklet, the diagram is also on the website), they're all numbered for ease of use. The first time I wore them it took around ten minutes of fiddling with my hair to figure out where they needed to go, but now I can pop them in in under 5.

The extensions themselves are fantastic quality, they are made from natural human hair, they're incredibly soft and glossy, they put the condition of my hair to shame! That being said, they still blend nicely with my natural hair, and the colour match is spot on. They're thick from top to bottom, a lot of extensions I've had before have been thinner at the bottom which can make them look a little ratty.

Since these are 100% human hair, it's safe to heat style them. I imagine that if you continually heat styled them they'd eventually need a trim, but otherwise they're absolutely fine. I personally like to just curl the ends with a barrel curler, to add a little shape and dimension, I've never been one for pin straight hair!

They aren't heavy when they're in and I can wear them all day without feeling irritated by them which is a plus. I love that I have so many more options when styling my hair with these in, and have been trying out loads of different styles with these in! 

Overall I'm really impressed with these extensions, the quality is excellent, delivery was super fast, and they look great! I do think that next time I'm at the hairdressers I may take these along and just get an inch or two cut off, for general day to day these are a little long for me, having had short hair for so long! They've definitely made me excited for when my hair is long again!

You can find these extensions on the Dirty Looks website!

I also just wanted to take a minute to thank you all, I reached 500 Bloglovin followers this weekend and I honestly feel so touched that there are 500 of you who like listening to me ramble enough to follow me! Thank you all so much, you mean the world to me! 

Do you wear extensions?

*These extensions were gifted to me by Dirty Looks, this doesn't affect the opinions expressed in this review!