What's In My Makeup Bag

I loooove reading what makeup other people are using and what they are loving, so I thought i'd do a little post (probably won't be little at all, so get a cuppa and get yourself comfy!!) on what I have in my makeup bag. I have selected the bits I have been using most over the past few months so my makeup collection is obviously a LOT bigger than what is in my little every day makeup bag! 

Face:

These are my 3 most used base products. On work days, I tend to just use the Mac Prolongwear Concealer on its own just to cover dark circles under my eyes and any discoloration or blemishes I may have. I have used this product for almost a year now and still repurchase every time I run out- it's a lifesaver! 

Rimmel Stay Matte is another well loved product of mine which gets used every single day! It's all in the name really as it keeps my skin matte mostly all day. 

The foundation is one that I use at weekends or if i'm going out in the evening. I have again, used this for a long long time and still find it is the best for my skin type. 

Bourjois Bronzing Primer is a massive favourtie of mine. I love that it is a cream product as I find that it can look more natural than powder bronzers. I use this all year round to keep myself looking a little less 'vampire'! I am quite fair skinned and this still works perfectly on my skin when blended out well. 

Mac Lightscapade is my all time fave highlighter! It is so natural on the skin and gives the most amazing glow. I am definitely after Soft and Gentle when payday comes around as I know that is massively raved about too! 

Finally for face products is Milani baked blush which is a fairly recent discovery and I have used it every day since, its a lovely natural shade with a slight golden shimmer (isn't as scary as it sounds, I promise!).

Eyes/Brows:

I have used Soap and Glory's Brow Archery for as long as I can remember! I don't tend to use the 'tint' side of it but the pencil is the perfect shade for my brows! 

Maybelline's Brow Fibre Filler is a recent purchase and I have totally fallen in love with it! It fills in my brows so well used after the Brow Archery as I don't always have the time to sit and pencil in all the sparse areas and gaps. It is a perfect shade for my brows and as it is real fibres, looks soooo natural. I have had so many 'good brow days' since using this!

I have tried so many liquid liners in my time and not found any that I really like until I purchased this Soap and Glory Supercat Liner pen. It is sooo easy to apply which is a must for me as i'm useless at liner! It has fabulous staying power and is really black! What more could you want?!

Loreal Telescopic has been my fave mascara for a long long time! I've repurchased it so many times and still love it to bits! I recently jumped onto the Lash Sensational bandwagon (extremely late may I add!) and I have been really liking this mascara too. They are both pretty different but both work really well for my lashes. 

Lips:

I have really grown my lipstick collection over the past 6 months or so but these are the 3 lip products that have stayed in my makeup bag and been the most used over the past few months. I love Mac lippies and these two are my most recent lip purchases!
LA Girl lip liner is such a great budget lip liner as it only costs a couple of pounds and works just as well as a high end liner. It is also such a versatile colour and works with pretty much all of my lippie shades. The shade is 'Natural'.

Left is 'Whirl', Right is 'Twig'

So there it is, I hope you enjoyed taking a peek into what is currently in my makeup bag and finding out what i'm loving!

What are your staple makeup products? Leave me a comment below- I'd love to chat!!

Abbie x

January Sale Buys

 Sale shopping is probably one of my worst nightmares! I always walk into shops and skip straight past the 'Sale' section because it is just hell! This year, I was determined to get a few bargains so I got straight online and ordered some bits to save the fights in the shops! (Although, I did pop into lush as I find sale shopping on their website pretty tedious!).

Here are a few of the things I got...

This French Connection gift set was in the famous Boots half price sale. I must admit, I kind of bought this just for the wire basket as I really wanted one for my Lush bath bombs to be displayed in. However, these smellies are actually beautiful and I have already used most of the shower gel and body spray- they smell amazing! This set was reduced from £20 to £10- win!!

I'm a bit obsessed with bags at the moment (especially small ones). The couple of times I did venture into town for quick essentials over the new year, I kept finding myself in Accessorize looking at all their bags and purses. I managed to walk out of the shop empty handed on numerous occasions and regretted my decision, so instantly went online when I got home and found myself purchasing this little beauty. It's very simple but I love it! It is a lot smaller than I expected but it's still a good enough size for your phone, small purse, keys and a little more space for anything else you may need. 

Ok, so, I have lived in these PJ bottoms the past week! I absolutely LOVE Fat Face PJ's and have a growing collection of PJ shorts from there. They are so comfy and the best quality ever. I even have some of my Mum's 'hand me down's' as they last so well but she is also obsessed and has far too many! These are long PJ bottoms and are sooooo comfy for lounging around the house in. 

What were your top sale buys? Did you get any amazing bargains?

Abbie x

It's A New Year!

Sitting back as the new year draws in and thinking about what you have achieved throughout the year and making goals for the year ahead is always something I try to do. I can't say I ever stick to my 'resolutions' or goals though haha!

I am pretty proud of a few things I achieved in the year of 2016. I got involved in a small, local charity and did various crazy events to help raise money. The cause was pretty close to home and there was a massive positive outcome for the family at the end of it if they raised enough money. This is when I came home one day and said to my Mum 'Let's do a half marathon'. Goodness knows what was going through my head this day as our local half marathon event was only 2 months away and is named 'one of the worst' with plenty of hills! I've always been into running and competed in loads of cross country and track events when I was younger. My Mum recently got into it too, so we did it- we entered the half marathon that evening!

The training was hard! I keep saying 'I have no idea how anyone runs a full marathon' but I guess when you put your mind to it, you can do anything, and that's something I definitely learned from doing this half marathon. There was a lot of tears, 'I can't do it' s and tiredness along the way but that sense of achievement when we crossed the finish line was a feeling I can't describe!

The day after New Years Day 2017, my Mum, Dad and I walked a little bit of the half marathon route as we fancied getting out for some fresh air after all the Christmas food and drink consumed over the past week! It made me really proud all over again because walking up some of them hills was tough and I thought 'I ran up these!'. (Probably the many mince pies and pigs in blankets that made the hills hard to walk up! haha!).

This year, i'm going to make it my goal to run another half marathon, whether it's the same one or not.

What are your 2017 goals? I'd love to hear them :)

Abbie x

2016 Makeup Faves

2016 was a strange year. I'm not going to say it was a bad year because I don't ever think we should regret anything that happens in life or look upon a whole year negatively because of a few bad things happening. In 2016 my makeup and beauty interest became more of an obsession! I don't really wear makeup during the week at work, so I tried to make more of an effort at weekends as makeup is something I really enjoy doing. Anyway, less of the rambling... here are my 2016 makeup favourites!

Loreal Telescopic False Lash Mascara
I have probably used this mascara for more than just a year as it feels like it's been my favourite for ages! I use this mascara every day and it is just the best! I have purchased different mascaras a few times just to try and change things up but i've never stuck to using them like I do with this one and I always go back to this one! It gives my lashes an amazing lift, volume, length- everything you could possibly want!

Mac Pro Longwear Concealer- NC15
This is a product I discovered in 2016. I had always heard loads of good things about it but I just couldn't justify spending £18 on concealer when I had been spending £3-4 on the much raved about Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer. I was in duty free at the airport and I just thought 'stuff it, i'm going to try it'. I have loved it and used it every day since. The bottle does last a good long while as well so the £18 is deffo worth it in my opinion! I did love the Collection concealer but I have definitely found this Mac one to last a lotttttt longer on my skin! The coverage is great, lasting power is great- what more could you want?

Zoeva Silk Finish Brush
I have, again, been using this brush for longer than a year so I had to include this in my 2016 favourites as I have literally used it every single time i've applied makeup! It has lasted so well and washes really well. (Check out my 'How I Wash My Makeup Brushes' post to see how I wash it). I use it for foundation application, bb creams etc and it blends it in really well, not to mention, it is super duper soft!!

Soap and Glory Brow Archery- Brownie Points
Again, I have used this for years! I haven't changed it up and used anything different for years which just shows how much I love it! I do get through these pencils pretty quick so a bit more product would be nice as they are about £11. I don't really use the tint side unless I want a darker look to my brows. The pencil side is easy to use, a perfect match for my brows (before I discovered this one, I found most other brown brow pencils to be a little reddish tint which I dont like), and it lasts well.

Bourjois Bronzing Primer
I purchased this just before going on holiday as I thought it would be a nicer alternative to using powder bronzers as it is a lot dewier looking on the skin. I don't really use it as a primer, I tend to just use this without going over it with powder bronzer as it blends out really well, even now, when I'm really pale! This tub has lasted me ages as I've had it for about a year and a half now and it's still going strong even being used every day!

Rimmel Stay Matte Powder- Translucent
I'm sure this is most peoples favourite powder- it's cheap, it works and there's nothing more to it! I use this every day on my t-zone to keep my face looking shine free, and it does just that whilst still letting a slight healthy, dewy look come through!

What was your most used makeup product of 2016?

Abbie x

Wunderbrow Review

I have never really had great brows. I went through the awful few years of overplucking (I think we've all been there in our early teen years-cringe!) and it took a long time for my brows to grow back full and natural looking. I guess it just shows how times change and that what is 'cool' changes all the time. It used to be all about the thin brows but in the recent few years celebs like Cara Delevingne influenced us all to grow out them brows as bushy as we can! I have got my brows in a good enough shape and thickness now but they will never be as full looking as I want them to be. I also have pretty light coloured brows so I have to fill them in hardcore for them to look half decent.

I discovered this product whilst browsing Amazon a few months ago and have used it lots since! I believe I purchased it for £19.95 (which is the price it is still at now). It is something that will last a long time and I know I will get many uses out of it for this pretty reasonable price. It comes with a tube of brow gel which contains a blend of hair like fibres and an extra wand to brush the fibres through your brows thoroughly. It is so simple to use once you get the hang of it. The first time I used it, I must admit was a little scary. I think the key to a good application is to always start with a tiny bit of product and build it up gradually to achieve the look you want and make sure you brush through your brows with the clean wand to distribute the product evenly.

I also like to use an angled brush to get a more precise application.

This product claims to 'last for days'- I would say it would only last for days if you didn't wash your face as thoroughly as I obviously do. I found that it would last two days but on the second day is definitely less noticeable that the first. I do really like this product overall as I don't have to fill in my brows as much when I have used this. It definitely makes my brows look much fuller and better shaped. However, in places where there is no hair, it won't stick as it just rubs off the skin. 

If you have light brows that perhaps don't match your hair colour or brows that are a little sparse and not as full as you'd like, I would definitely reccomend this product!

What is your No.1 favourite brow product?

Abbie x