OOTD: Peaches and Cream

Topshop Cropped Jumper - Size 8 - £38

American Apparel Riding Pants - Size M - £64
H&M Gold Necklace - £5.99
Mac Sheen Supreme Lipstick in Fashion City - £15.50

Yesterday, I went to see the film That Awkward Moment with my friends Katie, Aimee and Sophie. We went for Pizza Express before which was so delicious, and then to the cinema after. The man at the Ben & Jerry's counter seemed to take a shine to us and gave us more like 10 scoops than 2 which was a bonus haha. I actually really enjoyed the film, it was a romantic comedy with Zac Efron - Who doesn't love a bit of Zac? We turned up late, and we had booked one of the little 'premiere screens' and had to bustle through to get to our seats. In the process I typically spilled Ben & Jerry's 'Smores' ice cream down my beautiful jumper (tasted so good though). It was lovely to go out with these girls, we only ever get together at Body Attack at the gym, and eating pizza, cheesecake and ice cream couldn't be more different. I am so obsessed with my American Apparel Riding Pants, that I bought a back up pair during their 30% off friends and family sale. I also love this jumper from Topshop, the colour is beautiful and it's so cosy. It's definitely not worth the price tag, but I couldn't say no!

The Review: H&M Cosmetics

I took a visit to my local H&M in Chelmsford for a little browse with no intention of leaving the store with anything. However, this particular H&M has the full collection of their cosmetics line, and I thought it my duty as a blogger to pick some bits out to review for my lovely readers - research purposes and all that. I will say when I got to the checkout and the woman said, 'That's £20 something please', I started to think 'Do I really want these?', 'Would I rather go and spend £20 in Boots?'. However, I am so happy I purchased them! Really £20 for 7 items is pretty good, plus I was pleasantly surprised with every single item.

H&M Lip Tint - £2.99

This is honestly one of the best quality lip products that I have ever used, and is now one of my favourite reds. This is superduper pigmented, and a little goes a long way. At £2.99, this is an absolute steal!

H&M Lip Pen - £2.99

Now I know I recently wrote a blog post about the Revlon Matte Balm crayon, saying that stores need to think of something new. But number 1, I bought this before, and 2 it's for research purposes (is it really though ruby?). The H&M Lip Pens are definitely more of a sheer colour to others that I have tried, but this colour is right up my street and has taken pride of place in my makeup bag for every day use. It's a beautiful peachy coral, and I can see myself wearing this a lot.

H&M Lip Pen - Pink - £2.99

This is the only product that I am not 100% about due to the colour. I don't think the colour of the packaging which is a warm rosy pink, really translates to the colour of the product which is a cool toned barbie pink. These colours really do not suit me and tend to make me look ill. Despite this, the actual product is a lovely consistency and glides on so smoothly. This colour is also a bit more opaque than the previous, so anyone into these colours definitely should try this out.

H&M Eye Pen - Brown - £2.99

I recently bought the Collection eye crayon in a similar colour and thought it was horrendous. It didn't blend well and looked streaky on my eyelid. However, this glides on so smoothly, is very pigmented and is in a beautiful metallic brown colour. Plus it's half the price!

H&M Smoky Eye Shadow Palette - Brown - £3.99

Picking up one of these palettes was a no brainer. £3.99 for 5 eye shadows is pretty good I'd say. I love that they have included a matte brown and a golden brown colour. The shadows were all pretty pigmented, the swatches above were of 2 swipes of each shade. I would really recommend these little palettes and cannot wait  to add a few more to my collection. 

H&M Tweezers - 99p

I own a pair of Tweezerman which cost around £14.99 and I am terrified of losing them. I actually bought myself 2 pairs of these tweezers from H&M for a mere 99p, that I can stick in my handbag or use as a back up if I lose my Tweezerman. They aren't as sharp as the others, but they still do the job; and who can complain for 99p?!

H&M Brow Kit - £3.99

This has probably overtaken my HD Brows Kit in Foxy as my new favourite brow powders. I find with HD Brows that it is so pigmented that I end up looking like I have slugs for eyebrows. This however is just right for me, and I can build up the colour and still have defined natural looking brows. As you can see I have been using the middle shade for my eyebrows, but the other two colours are perfect for using as matte eyeshadows.

I am honestly excited to my next visit to the Chelmsford H&M to pick out some more beauty products. Not only have they all exceeded my expectations, the most I spent on an item was £3.99. I would definitely recommend checking out the H&M cosmetics in store or online...

OOTD: Blue Skies

Asos Blue Peplum Top - Size 4 - £16

Topshop Wetlook Leggings - Size 10 - £20

H&M Gold Chain  - £7.99

Mac Lipstick in Russian Red - £15.00

Stila Palette in Gilded - £12.00

I also wore this with Converse and my Mulberry Daria Clutch.

Hi lovlies, I usually pride myself over the quality of my photos, but I just don't have the time or the effort to get out my tripod and photograph single ootds at the moment. So I though whenever I upload one onto Instagram, I am going to also upload it on here. This was just a casual outfit I wore out shopping as I had to take a bag back to Topshop. I am loving powder blue at the moment, and also the peplum/swing trend so I had to get this top from Asos. I haven't worn these leggings in years, but I think they make the look really thought through when I really just threw it all on in the hope it would look okay! I dressed it up a bit with my makeup by wearing a simple brown smokey eye and Russian Red by Mac on my lips. 

Hope you don't mind the new botched outfit posts until I have time for some better quality ones!

Tag Tuesday: 2013 Year in Review Q&A Tag

I was tagged by the lovely Bethan from Bethan Grace to do this tag. She also has a Youtube channel that I love so check it out here.

The rules are: 

1. In your post, be sure to link back and thank the blogger that previously tagged you

2. Answer the questions below and tag at least 5 other bloggers and; 

3. Include the badge in your post

1. Your top five favourite blogs to read in 2013
llymlrs.com
etcllymlrs.com
thesundaygirl.com
beautycrush.co.uk
fashioninflux.co.uk

2. List your five most read blog posts of 2013
BooTea Teatox Review
What I got for Christmas 2013
Bargain of the Week: Missguided Playsuit
Is your 'it' bag still doing it for you?
Dupe Day: The Zara Skort

3. Name one blog you wish you had found sooner
I have the same dilemma as Bethan, where really I only started using Bloglovin in 2014 so didn't discover new blogs until then. However, yesterday I came across a blogger called Jaye from bedinthekitchen.co.uk. I am a sucker for lovely photography.
 
4. Your favourite blog post of 2013
My post 'Is your 'it' bag still doing it for you?' post which you can find here. It was a piece I wrote while at the London College of Fashion studying fashion journalism.

5. What would you like to improve (if anything) on your blog this year?
I would love to do more outfit posts as they seem to be the best received and I really enjoy doing them.

6. Name one blog you have a blog crush on
Rachel from Rachel Says Fabulous. She is absolutely stunning, and posts the best swatches I have come across!

7. How often do you post?

I don't really have a set schedule, which I should. But whenever I feel inspired or have some free time, I'll just bang out a few posts to publish throughout the week.

8. Share your first post of 2013

My first ever blog post was in July 2013 and I created a Missguided wishlist which you can read here.

9. Name one thing you'd be doing if you weren't typing this post right now

Probably sleeping, I sleep a lot.

10. What have you loved the most about blogging this year?

Talking to new people that share the same passion. Now I don't live at university, it's hard to meet new people and socialise. However, the blogging world has completely opened up a little community for me.

I tag:
Rachel: rachelsaysfabulous.blogspot.co.uk
Katie: beautyandlifestylediary.blogspot.co.uk
Meg: theperksofmeg.blogspot.co.uk
Michaela: michaela-la.blogspot.co.uk


And anyone else who wants to do it!

The Review: Revlon ColorBurst Matte Balm

Revlon ColorBurst Matte Balm in Stricking

I had been anticipating the release of the Revlon ColorBurst Matte and Lacquer Balms, and thought I would pop into my local Boots a few days earlier in the chance they might have put some stock out early. Luckily they did, and I stood for a good 10 minutes swatching and pondering over which shades to choose from. I went for a matte bright red in the shade Stricking, because obviously I need another red lip product.

I know it is supposed to be a 'balm' but I just expected it to be a bit more opaque than it was. Despite the fact that the look of it is 'matte', I feel like the feel of it on the lips is more like a satin finish and didn't dry like a classic matte. It definitely isn't drying on the lips, however I do wish it sets quicker so that I could have built it up. When I went in for a second coat, it just moved around the first layer which left it a bit streaky. Because I needed to go out, I just dealt with it not looking 100%. However, I will say after 3 hours of driving to and walking round Lakeside it was still on my lips, and only came off when I stuffed my face with McDonalds on the way home.

I like this, but I don't love it and I don't think I will be buying another. I think the 'drugstore' cosmetics companies have really worn out this whole lip crayon phase, and it's about time they thought of something new.

Have you tried the new Revlon Matte or Lacquer Balms? If so what did you think?

The Sunday Round Up #1

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My life has consisted of nothingness recently. But this week had slightly more going on. 

On Tuesday it was my Nan's 83rd birthday. She didn't want to do much in the day, but wanted to go for dinner in the evening, so I went shopping on my own in Chelmsford. The H&M there has the complete selection of their cosmetics collection so I picked out a few bits to review on my blog for you guys. My neighbor is a caterer and is amazing at cakes and patisserie style deserts, she made the lovely butterfly cupcakes for my Nan (I ate most of them). 

On Wednesday me and my friend Ruth went for dinner at Villagio and went to see The Wolf of Wall Street. We contemplated leaving it was that bad! We had both seen amazing reviews but it was the most awful/boring film I have ever seen. It went on for 3 hours, and was 3 hours of people having sex and taking every drug under the sun. It is definitely not for the faint hearted, and I'd say its more of a guy film as you are guarenteed to see a completely naked woman at least every 5 minutes. I feel like some people that have said it was good are just saying it to be generic. Save your money as it was 3 hours of my life I will never get back!

Thursday was the day of tidying. In my house, the whole upstairs is mine. So I have my bedroom, an office, my own little lounge/dressing room and a bathroom. I have so much space but so much stuff up there that it  often gets very messy very quickly. My office tends to take the role of place to throw things when they don't have a place in my bedroom or dressing room. And I just thought that if I tidy it up and make it look nice, then maybe I will use it for its intended purpose and actually get some uni work done! I also put a ton of stuff on eBay, most of it is brand new so check out my eBay shop: www.ebay.co.uk/usr/rubyyy_x

On Friday I had a checkup with my doctor to see how my hyperthyroidism was going. My symptoms have pretty much stayed the same and he gave me the OK to do some very light exercise in the gym which I was thrilled about.  I got home, put on my gym kit and went straight there. All I did was a brisk walk at about 6kmph on a 3.0 gradiet for 20 minutes. The next day, I kid you not I could barely walk I was in so much pain. Since then I have read that hyperthyroidism causes your muscles to waste away and I'm drinking a protein shake every day to try and build them back up. I am just really depressed that 4 weeks ago I was in the gym doing over an hour of cardio and weights and now I can barely do a bloody walk.

Last night I hobbled round Lakeside because I had some things I needed to return to House of Fraser. As you may have seen in some recent beauty Haul posts, I had a Mac lipstick and a Bobbi Brown blush that I didn't want. On the delivery note it said that cosmetics were not returnable, which is ridiculous when buying online because the swatches are never very accurate. I went into the store and protested for a refund, which I finally got on a gift card. So I went straight over to the Benefit counter and spent it all and more there. I chucked all my pajamas out a few days ago, and Forever21 is my go-to place for pjs. I found this beautiful candy stripe, shirt and short combo for only £16.90. When I got home, the bag I featured in my haul yesterday broke! I only bought it last week so it's going straight back.

I am currently watching Oz: The Great and Powerful while writing this blog post. Definitely regretting buying it because it is just so so odd. Literally sitting here with no idea what is going on. When I've finished this post I'm going to watch the last episode of Pretty Little Liars again. I find it's the sort of show that you can watch multiple times and notice something you didn't the last. If any of you have watched it, seriously do! It's so addictive, I lent my friend Abbey the series 1 DVD and now she is hooked. 

What is the highlight of your week?

The Favourites: Soap & Glory

This isn't really a favorites as such, because I am yet to try something from Soap & Glory that I haven't loved. There is nothing better than amazing smelling bath and body products, and Soap & Glory fits that bill better than any other. They are cruelty free and the vintage branding is right up my street. It isn't the cheapest brand, but it takes me a long long long time to get through the products. I literally have a draw full of unused Soap & Glory products, some still left over from gift sets I received for Christmas 2012! Even though I love them all, I have picked my ultimate favourites to share with you.

Butter Yourself Body Butter £10.50
I love using the shower gel, scrub and body butter in this range before a night out. It has a fruity scent with the main accent being orange.

Sugar Crush Body Scrub £8.00
I feel like getting a spoon and taking a mouthful of this while I'm writing this post, it smells so frickin' good.

The Righteous Butter Body Butter £10.50
This is the infamous scent that comes to mind when you think of Soap & Glory as a brand. I need to repurchase this soon as it is a body butter I couldn't love without.

Sugar Crush Body Wash £6.50
The Sugar Crush scent isn't for everyone, but it is  for me. It's an invigorating sugary lime smell, that will be sure to wake you up on those cold dark mornings.

Pulp Friction Body Scrub £8.00
I honestly wouldn't look anywhere else but Soap & Glory for a body scrub. This scent matches the Butter Yourself body butter. I love to use this on my legs before a night out.

Peaches and Clean Cleanser £8.00
This is one of my favourite cleansers. It smells incredible, like the name says, of peaches and cream. My skin always seems to look clearer and brighter the morning after I use this.

Rich & Foamous Body Wash £6.50

This again isn't a scent for everyone. But I absolutely love to use this at night before bed as I find it super calming. It smells so good you could eat it!

What are your favourite Soap & Glory products and which would you like to try?

Haulin' #11: Feeling Grey

I am fully embracing Winter at the moment, and have no desire to hurry on the Spring pastels. I have this issue where a lot of my clothes require quite a lot of effort, so I wanted some bits that I could just throw on while I'm half asleep at 6:30am and still look relatively fashionable for university. I am also obsessed, I mean literally obsessed with my American Apparel Riding Pants - I probably wear them 5 times a week at the moment. So I wanted some casj-cropped-winter-appropriate tops to wear with them.

New Look Grey Cropped Jumper - Size 6 - £14.99
I pondered over this jumper on a few visits to Newlook, and when I finally bit the bullet, they had 20% off student discount - happy days.

New Look Grey Slouchy Top - Size 6 - £7.99
I bought this in the dark grey, navy and the red because I loved it so much. The navy with my AA riding pants, tartan scarf and a black fur gilet looks amazing with 0 effort required! Definitely going to feature them in some casj oufit of the days.

Topshop Petite Stripe Top - Size 4 - £20
Sammi from Beauty Crush was wearing this top in a recent video and I needed it after that. If you are thinking of getting this, get it 2 sizes smaller than you are, it's very very over sized.

Topshop Faux Leather Jacket - Size 10 - £45
I have this exact same jacket in a size 14 with a different fur collar that I bought in 2012. I bought it in a bigger size so I could wear jumpers under it at the time. However back then I was a lot bigger at over 10 stone, and now I am 8 stone something, so it swamps me. I got this in the sale for £45 which isn't bad, and I am going to stick the other one on eBay.

Topshop Quilted Chain Bag - £32
Sounds odd, but I tend to buy a bag twice a year at the same time each year, always from Topshop. One day I will own a Chanel 2.55, but for now, this £32 alternative will do. Unfortunately I am going to break the tradition and buy another, because this bag is just too small and annoying for everyday use. I don't carry much in my bag, but I had barely any room for even an extra bottle of water to fit in. When you do have something slightly heavy in it, the chain is extremely uncomfortable on my shoulder. As well as that, The clasp is really fiddly and I found myself shouting 'for f**k sake' at it while trying and failing to close it at the till in shops.

Missguided Nagsia Skirt - Size 10 - £17.99
I didn't actually pay £17.99 for this as it was out of stock on the Missguided website, so I decided to trawl through eBay to see if someone may be selling one. I found a seller that was selling several different colours  in it, for £3.99! The catch was that it had some sort of defect, either pen marks, loose stitching or a broken zip. When mine arrived it had a broken zip, which I was slightly bummed about because almost always you have to get a concealed zip replaced. However, I refused to be defeated, and despite every website about fixing invisible zips saying it was a lost cause, I bloody well fixed it!

H&M Rose Gold Rings - Size S/M - £1.99
H&M Card Holder - £1.99
H&M Key Ring - £1.99
I placed an order on H&M because they were having free delivery, and I am a sucker for free delivery. It's quite easy to get carried away in the accessories section of H&M because it's all so nice and so cheap.

Missguided Daisy Dress - Size 8 - £24.99
There aren't really any prints or patterns that I am automatically attracted to accept from daisy prints. Anything black, with white and yellow daisies on I am all over. I saw this on another bloggers wishlist and had to get it.

What fashion items have you hauled recently?

The Review: Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm

Clinique Take Off The Day Cleansing Balm £21

I thought it was about time that I put down the face wipes and invest in a good cleansing balm to take off my makeup. I decided to go with the Clinique Take Off The Day Cleansing Balm, as it is a brand renown for being gentle on skin. It looks like a solid wax in the jar, but as soon as the warmth of your fingers touch the surface, it melts into a smooth buttery texture. It was quite strange opening the jar, as it is fragrance-free, and I am used to the fruity scent of my Soap and Glory Peaches and Clean. However, it's free of any nasties and suitable to any skin type. It's slightly pricey at £21, but as you can see, I've barely touched the surface. I would say, I struggled to take off my mascara with this without losing some lashes, but it does work for the bulk of face makeup. I smooth it over my face and gently massage with my finger tips. I then soak a flannel in hot water and remove. Overall, I would recommend this cleanser, it's good value for money and does the job well. Definitely try this if you are in the market for a balm cleanser.

What is your current favourite cleanser?

Haulin' #10: High End Beauty ft Naked 3, Bobbi Brown & Stila

Sorry lovelies, it's yet another beauty haul. I tend to go through phases of wanting to buy either loads of clothes, or loads of beauty bits - as you may have noticed, it's the beauty bit right now. I really don't have that many high-end makeup items that aren't lipsticks, so I am trying to expand my collection. You get what you pay for right? I bought these items from House of Fraser, Beauty Bay and ASOS and got 10% discount on all of them. You may also notice my photos look way way better. I bought a new lens for my Canon - it's the Canon 50mm f/1.8 II lens. I'll be sure to do a little review on it soon!

Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick in Bronze - £35

I was stuck in a rut, whether to buy a Bobbi Brown eye shadow quad or this Bobbi Brown shimmer brick that could double up as eye shadows, a bronzer and a highlighter. I went for the Shimmer Brick, because for £35, I want to get my moneys worth.  

Bobbi Brown Blush in Nectar - £19

I am a bit disappointed in this blush. In real life it looks nothing like the House of Fraser swatches, or the swatches I found online. I thought it would be a warm peachy colour, but it's actually a more cool rose pink. I have a shade exactly like this from Fashionista that cost me £2 which I never use, so I am definitely going to return this one. 

Stila Eye Shadow Trio in Gilded - £13

I am really into little eye shadow trios at the moment. It takes the fussing of what shades to choose, and gives you perfectly compatible lid, crease and brow bone colours.

Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette - £37

This purchase was just a no brainer. Who doesn't want the Naked 3 Palette right now? I am so excited to try this because the shades are so different from the previous palettes and different from anything I have ever tried. It is a very warm toned palette so should suit my skin tone nicely.

Urban Decay Naked 24/7 Double Ended Glide-On Pencil - £12

I'm not a huge eyeliner user, mainly because apart from the Topshop khol liners, I am yet to find one that actually stays on my waterline. I recently saw Rachel's review of the Urban Decay 24/7 eye liners and was pretty much sold on them. Rather than buy one shade for £14, I thought because I probably won't use it daily, I would go for the double ended in Zero and Whiskey.

Weight Loss Wednesday/Thursday/Sorry! Week #2

Haulin' #9: Highstreet Beauty Haul

Ya'know those times when you pop into Boots for one thing, and then you come out with not a lot but £60 poorer? Yeah, that's what happened to me. 

The Boots advantage card is probably the most worth while store points card out there. They like to send me points offers in the post which results in me buying things I don't really need so that I get an extra 200 or so points. This was bought over a period of a month, don't worry, I didn't go crazy in one go! I also bought a couple of the bits off of eBay, Fragrance Direct and Beauty Bay. 

Barry M Natural Glow Palette - £6.49
Rimmel London Kate Lipstick in 07 - £5.49
Rimmel London Scandal Eyes Shadow Paint in Rich Russet - £4.99
Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser - £7.99
BECCA Lumionus Skin Colour in Toast - £5.99 (Fragrance Direct)
BECCA Luminous Skin Colour in Bamboo - £5.99 (Fragrance Direct)
Soap & Glory Shower Gel in Sugar Crush - £6.50
Macadamia Deep Repair Masque - £13.00 (eBay)
Batsiste Dry Conditioner - £3.49
Mavala Double Lash - £10.50 (Beauty Bay)
Burts Bees Honey Chap Stick - £3.69
Bourjois 2 in 1 Tweezers £4.99
Reeses Peanut Butter Cup Chapstick - Gift
Maybelline Baby Lips - £2.99
Talika Lipocils - £15.00 (Beauty Bay)
Boots Tea Tree and Witch Hazel Blemish Stick - £3.49
Eyebrow Stencils - £1.29 (eBay)

Which high street beauty items are you eyeing up at the moment?