Christmas Gift Guide: Stocking fillers

One of the best things about Christmas as a kid was waking up to the stocking at the end of your bed. It's one of the things I miss as a grown up. However I know a few of you still do a stocking and thought a great addition to my Gift Guides this year would be Stocking Fillers. Everything I'm featuring is £10 or under because to me a stocking is always filled with inexpensive, somewhat silly gifts.

Pixi By Petra Mini Lip Lift Max £6: This year Pixi has released miniatures of some of their cult products. The first of several I have my eye on is their Mini Lip Lift Max. One of Pixi's bestselling lip products and enjoyed by the likes of Caroline Hirons, this tiny bauble is perfect for adding a little something extra to someones stocking.
Sleek Matte Me Up Must Haves £6: This kit was available last year and contains the same shades as well. If you know someone who missed out on this, maybe this is the year to surprise them.
Soap And Glory Pouty Popper £6: Soap and Glory are known for their amazing array of gift sets every year and this mini duo of lip glosses is no different. Want to give someone some S&G but not sure what they'll like, this little popper will be perfect. 

 Missguided Da Bomb Bath Fizzers £6: Missguided have branched out into gifting this year and one set that caught my eye is this trio of bath fizzers.These three fizzer would make a perfect add on gift or even as part of a secret santa.
Beauty And The Beast Chip Cup Bath Fizzers £6:If like everyone else this year you've been hit by the BATB craze then this Chip Cup filled with bath fizzers will be right up your street. Not only do you get a cute gift but also a keep sake for when the fizzers have run out.
Boots Extracts Glitter Fizzer £4: If you can't get any of the Lush Christmas Bath Bombs but still want something sparkly and cute then this Extracts Glitter Fizzer is perfect. It comes in a range of scents and costs the same as a Lush Fizzer/Bomb but is also cutely packaged and can even be hung off your tree.

 Sanctuary Must Have Mist £4: Mini mists are perfect if you're not sure of someones fragrance preference. Sanctuary have released their signature must have mist in a bauble this year which not only makes it perfect for trying but also looks adorable under the tree.
Ted Baker Little Petal Opulent Petal Body Spray £4: Ted Baker are doing the same thing with their body mists. I had the Opulent Petal mist last year and loved it. It was perfect for both day and night and for a brand like Ted Baker ridiculously purse friendly.
Soap And Glory Pink Me Up £6: Another cute Soap and Glory set is their Pink Me Up Cube. Containing a mini Clean On M and Original Body Mist, this is a great little filler present which will be loved those of all ages.

Pixi Mini Rose Flash Balm £6: Another Pixi mini that's available this year is their Rose Flash Balm. It's perfect for someone who's been looking to try it but hasn't wanted to splash on the full size just in case it doesn't agree with them. I'll definitely be picking one up before Christmas to give it a try.
Nuxe Winter Treasures Set £6: Nuxe always do adorable sets during the festive period and this mini duo is no exception. Containing their bestselling multi purpose dry oil, this duo won't break the bank but will add that little bit of luxury to someones Christmas.
Champney's One Minute Wonder £5: If you know someone who's always got nice hands/nails then this Champney's duo would be perfect. Containing a miniature hand cream and nail file, this duo will be perfect for those on the go who like to make sure they've got hand cream on them at all times.

 Emma Bridgewater Midnight Spices Luxury Soap £8: Now this next trio may not seem like good gifts but if paired with other items would make a great bundle. This Emma Bridgewater soap is a great start, it smells exactly like Christmas and gives a normal everyday item a luxurious makeover.
Roger And Gallet Sublime Or Hand Cream Bauble £6.50: Hand cream is always a great stocking filler and this one from Roger and Gallet smells divine. And it'll look adorable in a stocking or hanging off the tree.
Barley Lane By Totes Novelty Penguin Socks £5: Tell me who doesn't love socks. I love getting bed socks or socks of any kind for Christmas. And this penguin socks were just too adorable to not feature in my guide. Pair this with the hand cream and couple of other fillers and someone will have a cute little self care package.

 This Works Dream Team Duo Set £10: This Works is a brand that I feature every year in my guides. Their Deep Sleep Pillow Spray is raved about by all and sundry and if you've been dying to try it, this mini duo is perfect for that. Plus it won't break the bank and will still leave you plenty to splurge elsewhere.
Burts Bees Naturally Gifted Set £7: Burts Bees are another brand that are doing cute duos this festive season. Coming in a range of scents, these duos contain both a stick lip balm and a tin of balm which makes it brilliant for it's price point.
Philip Kingsley Polished Perfection Stocking Filler £10: If hair products are more their thing then Philip Kingsley have a cute duo of their bestselling Elastizer and PK Polishing Balm. A tube of Elastizer on it's own can cost a good £10+ so this duo whilst mini is perfect if you're working on a budget.

Being By Sanctuary Bauble £6: Being By Sanctuary isn't a brand I've tried a lot from but when I saw this cute cubes I knew I had to feature them. Coming in a range of scents, each cube is different and features different products from the range as a whole. Perfect for dipping your toe into a new brand.
Jack Wills English Velvet Body Butter Stocking Filler £5: A lot of the Jack Wills range this year is centered around the EnglishVelvet Scent. I did wonder what was so special but when I smelt it I understood the hype. If you like a thick, luxurious body butter then this is perfect and it smells divine.
Jack Wills Bag Of English Velvet Pods £6: To go alongside the body butter I thought this pods would be brilliant. Paired together the receiver of this gift would smell divine and feel ultra luxurious at the same time.

Real Techniques Mini Sculpting Brush £6: If you know a fan of miniatures and Real Techniques, these limited edition brushes are perfect. It comes in the Contour Brush, Sculpting Brush and more. Adorable to look at and perfect to pop in a stocking.
Real Techniques Mini Expert Face Brush £6: Like I said how can you resist these adorable Real Technique brushes. Not only are they cute but they're also travel friendly and the perfect accompaniment for those who live life on the go.
Nails Inc Sparkle All The Way Bauble £10:In the market for a luxurious looking bauble that doesn't break the bank then this duo from Nails Inc is perfect. Containing a limited edition nail polish and matching lip product, their perfect to add a little glam to someones look.

Back To School Make Up/ Simple School Make Up

 

It's that time of year where everyone is gearing up to go back to school. I wasn't big on wearing make up to school but know that there are some who prefer it whether it be to cover blemishes or to just even out the skin. So today I'm going to show you my simple and easy to do back to school look.

The first thing that is vital is a good moisturiser. Making sure your skin is properly hydrated is the key thing to any make up look. Simple's Light Hydrating Moisturiser is the perfect base for make up and helps keep skin moisturised without clogging pores. Plus it doesn't break the bank.

For base it's always best to go for a light base and then work over any imperfections or blemishes with concealer. My favourite for a light finish base is Bourjous' CC Cream in Ivory. It has colour correcting pigments in it that help correct skin imperfections. It's very lightweight, breathable and buildable. A damp beauty blender or a buffing brush are the best options for applying this as they both give an even flawless finish. This may not cover all skin imperfections but you can easily cover those with concealer.

For concealer there is only one that will work wonders. And that's the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in Fair. It works both under the eyes and over redness or blemishes. It's a full coverage concealer that doesn't look cakey or over the top. It blends easily with a damp beauty blender that will stop it from creasing under the eyes and looking cakey over any blemishes. And after all of that it's best to set everything with powder. Collection do a brilliant pressed powder that doesn't break the bank and is so finely milled you won't know this is on the skin. Press it gently under the eye area with a small brush such as the Real Tecniques Setting Brush and all over with a big fluffy brush like the B Powder Brush.

Once you're base is complete it's time to move onto the eyes. It's always best to keep it simple on the eyes so it doesn't look like you're trying to hard or like you've been punched in the eye (me at 14). I'd personally just curl my lashes and pop some mascara on to give my eyes a wider look. Barry M's Showgirl Mascara is a brillant budget mascara that gives a natural yet volumised look and makes eyes look more awake than they may feel. And then it's onto brows. Brows can help shape a face so if you need to fill them in, go for it. Maybelline's Brow Drama Pomade makes filling brows in super easy and because it's a crayon they don't look to harsh or overdone.

For lips I'd keep it simple with a bit of lip balm. But if you want a hint of colour when you're at school then try a stain. They start of as a bolder colour and as the day wears on the colour will slowly fade leaving a stain on the lips. Revlon's Colorburst Balm Stains are brilliant choices. They come in a range of colours and once the intial sheen has worn off you're left with a beautiful stain that lasts for a good few hours.

And finally if you have oily skin or your make up just slides off your face then try a fixing mist. Barry M's Mist and Fix Setting Sprays come in two finishes, matte or dewy. If you have oily skin the matte finish will help control excess oil whilst keeping make up fresh and in place. And if you like a bit more of a glow then try the dewy finish that works the same as the matte but with more of a glow.

And that's it for my Back To School/Simple School Make Up Routine. I hope this helps if you're struggling with products and that if you're back or going back to school to enjoy as best as possible. It's something I wish I'd done whilst at school.

What's In My Everyday Make Up Bag

When I first saw this make up bag in Primark I had to have it. And to begin with I just popped the odd product I had lying around but then it turned into putting my daily make up in there so it was all in one place. And since then I've just used it day in, day out to keep my make up together and today I thought I'd share what I have in my everyday make up bag.

Before we start I must say that I keep an excess amount of the same product in this bag. And the first product I like to have options with is foundation. The two I keep in this bag are the Maybelline Dream Velvet and the Miss Sporty Instaglow. The Dream Velvet is a good foundation if you want a buildable coverage that lasts all day long. A soft gel formula foundation this is perfect for people with oily skin and people without aswell. I did a full review which you can find here. The Instaglow is a light to medium coverage foundation that blurs skin into looking like it has an instagram filter applied to it. It's not the best foundation on the market but I was testing it out for work and it just took it's place in my bag. A full review of it will be going up at some point.

Next up is concealers and this is one where I do go a bit extreme with. I don't just have one, I have four. I do admit that I do use these all on a regular basis. There is the Maybelline The Eraser Eye, Collection Lasting Perfection, Barry M Light Reflecting and Rimmel's Wake Me Up. The most used of the bunch are the Maybelline and the Collection. I use them both under my eyes and around my face on a daily basis. They are by far my favourite concealers on the market as they give great coverage, don't crease and don't wear away as the day goes on. Barry M's and Rimmel's concealers are both light reflecting concealers and whilst they're nice and work well on the skin they can leave skin looking glittery, something you don't want all over your face.

When it comes to pressed powder or powders of any kind I only keep one in my bag. This is the Rimel Clarifying Powder in Translucent. It's an okay powder and works to set my make up but it's not one that I think I'd purchase another one when this runs out. Before this I did keep my MUA Hydro Powder in this bag but it unfortunately met a dusty end when it fell off my bed and shattered.

If you thought I kept too many concealers in my make up bag then my mascaras will be totally over the top. Yes I keep five different mascaras in my bag but in my defence I do use them all on a regular basis. They're all aimed at what I'm feeling make up wise that day. The Maybelline Go Colossal Leather Black and the Barry M Showgirl mascaras are my two go to mascaras when I want a fluttery, volumised every day lash. They both have tapered bristle brushs that really fan lashes out. And then if I want something more dramatic I go for either the Maybelline Push Up Drama, Maybelline Lash Sensational or the Pur Minerals Volume Vixen. They all have plastic bristle brushes that give a more defined, volumised look that is usually more suited to the evening. However if I'm feeling a bit more dramatic with my make up during the day I opt for one of these. And of course with my mascaras comes my eye lash curler. This is just a simple Primark eye lash curler that really does give my lashes a good curl that doesn't droop during the day. Plus I like how the handles don't feel like they're going to slip out of my fingers when I'm giving my lashes that extra oomph.

Surprsingly when it comes to lip products in my make up bag there are only a few. The ones I reach for the most are the Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipsticks. They are the best liquid lipsticks I've tried and I'm definitely going to be purchasing some more shades as soon as possible. I have a mini set that includes the shades Beso, Baci and Ricco. Beso is my most worn shade being a bright red that dries down to a beautiful matte finish. To go along with Beso I have the Rimmel Exaggerate Lip Liner in Red Diva. This can be worn by itself or under lipsticks, most of the time I wear it on it's own as they are so creamy and easy to apply. My other lip combo that I keep in the bag are my Gosh Lip Liner in Raspberry Dream and the Kate Moss for Rimmel lipstick in 107. This is my favourite plummy/berry toned lip shade and I'm constantly reaching for these.

And now it's onto the tools I keep in my make up bag. Before I got my bag I used about ten brushes everytime I did my make up but now I've narrowed it down to 5. My first two brushes are my two most used brushes. One is from H&M and is an angled buffing brush and the second is the F103, a stippling brush. These I use on a daily basis to attempt to give myself a flawless base. The angled buffing brush is a brilliant brush and didn't cost nearly as much as some of my others. For powder I use either my Real Techniques Cheek Brush or my B Powder Brush. And of course I have to have a spoolie for my brows. Yet again this is from H&M and I'm so impressed with the quality of their brushes.

And of course I wouldn't be a beauty junkie if I didn't have at least two beauty blenders in my bag. Please excuse the fact they're dirty, I did use them to get ready this morning. I have two and neither of them are from the actual Beauty Blender Brand. The top one is from B and the second one I picked up reduced from Cosmopolitan. I like my Cosmopolitan blender to use under my eyes as it has a bit more shape to help really blend in concealer or any product that you put under there.

The last thing in my make up bag may shock some of you as I'm so against using facial wipes but these are here not for my face. These are in there to remove any excess foundation from the back of my hand or lipstick if it doesn't look right. I've tried a few different brands but I've found I can only get along with the Simple Facial Wipes or the B Quick Facial Wipes. At the moment I've not got any Simple Wipes so I'm working my way through this pack of B Wipes. But don't worry, I'm not using them to cleanse my face.

So that's what's in my everyday make up bag. What's in your everyday make up bag? Do you have any of the same products as me? Let me know in the comments. 

Everyday 5 Minute Make Up Routine

Over the Christmas period my working hours went into overdrive and there were days when I found I had to be at work earlier than normal and didn't have enough time to do my full make up routine. So I put together a very quick, very simple make up routine which meant that I could do this and still be out the door in time for work. So today I thought I'd show you my 5 Minute Make Up Routine.

After I've moisturised and done my hair, I start my routine with the Bourjois 123 Perfect CC Cream. It's a very buildable formula so if I need to layer it I can. As it's a very liquidy formula, I just rub the tube over my cheeks, chin and forehead before taking my H&M Angled Buffer Brush and just buff it into the skin. This CC Cream has different colour pigments in it to help conceal any imperfections on the skin. And once that's all blended in I move onto concealer.

This is the most time consuming bit of my routine. I go in first with my Maybelline Anti Age The Eraser Eye concealer to cover the majority of my under eye bags. I use a beauty blender to blend this and this is where it get time consuming. I bop my beauty blender under my eye area repeatedly until everything is blended and my dark circles are practically gone. Then I go in with my Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer. I use this as some extra coverage if my dark circles are bad and as a under eye highlight. I swipe some under my eyes and down into a triangle on my cheeks. Then I take the same beauty blender and use the flater end to blend in the concealer on my cheeks and turn it around and use the pointed end to blend in under my eyes. I like the fact the pointed end gets right into the contours of the eye and blends everything beautifully.

Once I've blended my concealer in, I set it straight away with powder. I take the MUA Skin Define Hydro Powder on my Real Techniques Contour Brush. I brush away any excess off the brush and press it along my under eye area to mattify and set my under eye concealer. Any excess that is left on the brush after that I take down the center of my forehead, tip of my nose, cupid's bow and chin. I don't bother setting all of my face as it ends up looking cakey after a few hours.

Onto eyes and it's pretty simple. I just take my eye lash curlers and give each eye two to three pumps with the curler before going in with my Maybelline The Colossal Go Extreme Leather Black Mascara. I love how this mascara can give beautiful fluttery everyday lashes but can still be built up to give a really pumped up voluminous look. A coat of this on my lashes and that's my eyes done for the day.

To make sure everything is set I give my face a quick spritz of the MUA Pro Base Fixing Mist. As my hours have gotten longer I've wanted my make up to last longer and this keeps my make up in place as well as keeping my skin hydrated. A good shake then two to three spritzs of this across my face and my make up is done and ready for the day.

Once my make up is done all I need is a swipe of my Classic Carmex lip balm and I'm ready to go. I like Carmex as it's slightly thicker in formula compared to other lip balms. A little bit goes a long way and it gives lips a smoother, hydrated feel.

So that's my 5 Minute Make Up Routine. What's your routine like? Does it involve more or less products than mine? As always let me know in the comments.

GRWM: Festive Christmas Look

Tis the season to be jolly! Welcome back to one of my last posts before Christmas. As it's that festive season now and a lot of you will be thinking about your Christmas Day Make Up Looks, I thought I'd do my own GRWM. I hope you all enjoy it and hopefully it will inpsire some of you as well.

First off I'm going to wash my face to make sure there is none of last nights make up left on my skin. For that I'm using my Olay Anti Wrinkle Face Wash. It contains exfoliating beads which not only helps remove any dead skin from your face but also gives you and instant wake me up as well. After that I'm going in with my Clearly Youthful Glycolic Peel Off Mask. This is a clear gel mask that dries quickly on the skin ready to be peeled off. This is another brilliant exfoliator for the skin and I love how soft my skin feels after every use. Once all of that is done I go in with my morning skincare and let that sink in whilst I brush my teeth and check my instagram and twitter.

Then it's on to make up. First of I go in with my Revlon Colorstay Foundation in Buff. This is quickly becoming my holy grail foundation. A medium to full coverage, this blends out beautifully on the skin and gives a flawless finish that lasts all day. I use my Real Techniques Buffing Brush to blend this in as it doesn't leave any brush strokes on the skin and leaves my skin looking like it's been airbrushed.

Next up I go in with my concealer. Yes I know three concealers is an excessive amount to use but this is a routine I know like the back of my hand now. I start off with my Maybelline Age Rewind Eraser Eye Concealer. I love the sponge applicator as it gives a smoother application and you're not left with excess amount of product under your eye. I blend all three in with my beauty blender and just use the tip to bop it into my skin. This covers my dark circles like a dream so I don't have to worry about those pesky purple bags making an appearence in any photos.

 After that I go in with my Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer, and yes I know it isn't the best for using under the eyes but instead of using it to cover, I use it to brighten. Yes, you heard me right, I use this to do my under eye highlight. I'm very yellow toned and the Collection Concealer is very pink toned which makes it a brilliant shade to highlight with as it doesn't just blend into my skin like others. I swipe this under my eye and down into a triangle on my cheek then take my beauty blender and bop it into the skin. I love how awake and alert this makes my eyes look and I can't go a day without it now. And finally I go in with my Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer. I put four dots of this on the outside of my under eye area and blend it in with my beauty blender. It gives a beautiful highlight effect to my eyes and the tops of my cheeks without being in your face. Definitely one to try if you aren't sure on actual highlighters.

Then comes the next important part of my look. Setting my make up. My go to powder at the moment is this the Hydro Powder from MUA. It contains Vitamin E and Jojoba to help keep skin feeling hydrated throughout the day. I love using my Contour Brush from Real Techniques to set under my eyes with this powder as it's just the right size. Once I've set under my eyes I use any remaining powder on the brush to brush down the center of my face so that any shiny patches are gone.

Then it's on to mascara. Firstly I take my eye lashes and curl my lashes before going in with a coat of my Maybelline Go Colossal Extreme Leather Black Mascara. This is my holy grail mascara as it gives a brilliant volumised effect whilst still looking natural. The tapered brush fits nicely to the contour of my eye and I find it can hold a curl better than any other mascara I've tried. And if my eyes are looking a little red, I go in with a bit of the Rimmel Scandaleyes Waterproof Kajal in Nude to give my eyes that little bit more of a wide awake look.

And this is where it gets to the fun part. You can go with any lip colour you want for this look but as it's Christmas I couldn't resist going with red. First off I go in with my Essence Lip Liner in Femme Fatale, it's a brilliant bright red shade that goes well under a ton of lipsticks. I did a full review of the range here. I use it to outline my lips and partly fill them instead of completely filling them in. I do this with certain lip liners if I know I'm going to be wearing a matte long wearing lipstick. And now for the main attraction in this look.. Out of my many red matte lipsticks I've chosen to go with my MAC Russian Red. Not only is it matte and long lasting but it's a classic red shade that suits not just this look but many. Once this is on I make sure to clean up any messy edges and blot any excess away on a tissue.

Finally for make up I spritz my face with the MUA Pro Fixing Mist. I absolutely love this mist. It sets my make up in place and makes it last longer than a primer would. A good shake and a few sprays and my make up is locked in place. It also leaves skin feeling ultra hydrated even when your make up has been on for a good four five hours.

Moving on to hair. I actually have two styles for this. One is more going out appropriate and the other is more for chilling at home with the family. The first is a plaited bun. It's actually quite simple, all you do is scoop your hair up into a ponytail and secure with a band. Then I seperate it into three parts and braid them like you do a normal plait. Once that's secured at the end I twist it around the band holding my ponytail in place and hold it in place with pins. A spritz of hairspray and you're all ready to go. And the more relaxed style is simply brush you hair, flip over your head and gather it up into a messy ponytail. Twist the tail around until you've made a messy topknot and secure in place with a festive scrunchy. I got mine from Primark and have been holding back on wearing until it was actually Christmas. And yes I will be going for the more messier bedhead chic look of the two as I'm doing nothing more than going to my nan's and feasting until my hearts content.

Hair and Make Up done, all that's left now is to change out of my Christmas Pjs and dress as Christmassy as possible. I didn't manage to find a Christmas Jumper this year but I did manage to get my hands on a Christmas t-shirt. This is from Primark and is covered in Gingerbread Men. Red isn't always the best colour on me but as it's Christmas I just don't give a damn, I'm going to rock this t-shirt and enjoy the day. It's a little on the large side for me but that's fine as you don't want anything too tight on at Christmas. A spritz of my Rosie For Autograph perfume and I'm all done.

So that's it for my Christmas GRWM. I hope you all enjoyed it and I hope you all have a brilliant Christmas. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, I'll see you soon.

Review: Real Techinques Deep Cleansing Brush Gel

When I saw that Real Techniques were bringing out a brush cleaning gel I was intrigued and excited. Brush cleaning is something I hate doing so anything that made it quicker or easier would be fine with me. Well that's what I hoped this product would do. And unfortunately it just made washing my brushes twice as long. 

 These are what my brushes looked like before I washed them. I use these four everyday to do my make up so they're a lot grubbier than most of my other brushes. So off I went to the bathroom and filled my sink with water. I followed the instructions on the back, dampening the bristles on my brush and adding a dollop of gel to them and then began swirling it on my hand. It started off doing a good job of cleaning them and I was disgusted to see how much excess make up came off my brush. However once I risned away the initial suds it didn't soap up as much afterwards and I was just swirling a wet brush over my hands. 

I wasn't going to give up on it though, so I added a second dollop of gel to my brush and repeated the process all over again.  This time around it came off much cleaner and there was a slight residue that soaped up a second time after I rinsed my brush off. However I found that this was required for my other brushes as well so I gave up on the gel and went to get my trusted baby shampoo. It did a quicker job on the rest of the brushes and I didn't need to use as much. 

 And this is what my brushes looked like afterwards. My stippling brush at the top is the only brush that was cleaned only by the Cleansing Gel. As you can see there is still a lot of residue on the brush even after two lots of shampooing. However as you can see with my other brushes that were washed in baby shampoo, they have come up a lot cleaner and it didn't take as long to get rid of any build up within the brush itself. 

Overall I'm a more than a little disappointed with this product. It didn't do what I would consider a deep clean on my brushes, I would call it more of a spot clean and it got rid of the top layer of make up and that's it. If you're looking for a quick spot cleaner for your brushes then I would recommend trying this product but if you want a really deep clean then I suggest you look for another product or stick with what you're already using. 

Available at Superdrug and Boots

May Favourites

It's the last Monday of the month and that means it’s time for me to share the top 5 products I've been loving this month. This month I have a couple have some new favourites with a couple of old ones thrown in. I've also thrown in a random non beauty favourite this month.

Witch- Witch Hazel Bursting Beads Face Wash 
My first favourite is a new find for me. I happened upon it while strolling through the skincare aisle and it immediately caught my attention. It's a gel like formula with tiny balls of Witch Hazel which burst when rubbed into the skin. It leaves skin feeling refreshed as well as removing any bacteria that can cause blemishes. It isn't highly fragranced and doesn't irritate skin. I use it twice weekly to fight any excess make up or bacteria that's lingering on my skin and ever since my skin has felt softer and looked more radiant. 

Kleenex Soothing Nose and Lip Balm 
My second favourite of the month may seem like a strange one but to me is the key to super soft lips. Back when I found this in March/April I was suffering with a cold and my lips were in a terrible condition. No other lip balm worked for me and one day my mum offered me this. I originally tried this on my nose but found it didn't work so then tried it on my lips, don't worry though I made sure it was germ free beforehand. The results on my lips were fantastic, they looked softer, plumper and more hydrated which made it great for when I broke out my matte lipsticks. I think why it works so brilliantly is because there is no petroleum in it which can sometimes just dry lips out more and leave them greasy looking. 

Rimmel Wonder'Full Wake Me Up Mascara 
This mascara made me stray from my absolute favourite Maybelline one. I was originally drawn in by the packaging but was pleasantly surprised when the formula lived up to the hype. Packed with vitamins and soothing cucumber extract this leaves eyes feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. Alongside the lash hugging brush that gives and holds a brilliant curl this product has seen more love than any other this month. I talk more in detail about in my review here.

L’Oréal 24hr Infallible Foundation in Porcelain 
This favourite is a long time favourite of mine which I'd originally put away until autumn came back round. However I found myself reaching for this a few weeks back when my usual foundation started to look different on me. This is a medium coverage foundation but can easily be built up to a full coverage. I like to concentrate this on any redness I have, using concealer to cover any other imperfections I want to hide. It's not one I'd advise to use all summer long but if the odd blemish or bit of redness needs concealing this is perfect.
 

Real Techniques Sculpting Brush
First off, please excuse how dirty my brush is. I washed it to take pictures of but ended up using it before I got the photos. This has become my new go to foundation brush. Densely packed bristles make it so so easy to apply pretty much any foundation. I really like the sloped shape of the brush, making it easier to slide in and across certain parts of my face. It worked hand in hand with my Infallible foundation giving me an almost airbrushed finish. My so longed for buffing brush has been left lonely in the pot as I can't stop reaching for it, the synthetic bristles brilliant against my sensitive skin. 

Munroe- Bloodlet 
My random favourite of the month is an EP. Bloodlet is the debut self-titled EP from Kathleen Munroe a.k.a Munroe. It has a very folksy laid back with stunning vocals and lyrics which occasionally lean towards gothic. Each song on the EP is unique and as a whole is very easy to get lost in on repeat. Whilst I love every song my favourite has to be On The Briars, there's just something about the opening notes that just catch my attention immediately. If you like something laid back to listen to I wholly advise you go check it out. I can't wait to see what she does next. 

What were you guys favourites this month? Were any of them the same as mine? Did you have any recommendations? 

Until next time beauties
xoxo