LOTD - MAC Dish it up.

Hey hey hey gorgeous glitterati.

What a rubbish day, it's pouring with rain here and it doesn't look set to stop. The small silver lining should be the fact I got paid today, but I've had to put a huge chunk into savings for my holiday so I can't even splurge a little to make the day brighter! Boooooo to that.

On a much cheerier note, I've got my Dad coming to stay with me this weekend and I can't wait to see him, it's been too long. We've got lots to see and do while he's here including me having Friday and Monday off work WOOHOO. I hope you all have some exciting plans too for this upcoming dreary rainy weekend.

Anyhow onto my lip of the day, I decided I fancied purple today, but not crazy purple, so I pulled out my MAC Dish it up lipstick.

Dish it up is a Lustre finish and is a gorgeous shiny plummy purple. I know I've featured this in a lip of the day before, but I paired it with MAC Violetta which made it a much crazier deep purple shade, I really like it on it's own for a more soft subtle look.

If anyone is interested, on my cheeks today is the Topshop cream blush in Prime Time which I have also previously reviewed.

I'm still full of cold and flu, but I'm in the mood to blog - Have you guys got any requests for anything you'd like to see soon or should I just continue with the swatches and bits and pieces I'm doing at the minute?

Take care and love to all xox

Real Techniques brushes - They're mine WOOHOOO

Well hello there gorgeous glitterati.

I've FINALLY ordered some real Techniques brushes and I couldn't possibly be more excited if I tried.

Myself and my bestie have a core collection and starter set on the way to us courtesy of a lovely American friend of mine who has acquired them from Ulta for a lot cheaper than they are over here.

That's basically the whole point of this post :) I just can't wait to try them!!

These gorgeous brushes have been designed by Samantha Chapman from the amazing Pixiwoo sisters - If you don't know who they are, get your butt on youtube right this cotton tootin' second and check them out, you'll be hooked just like me.

The blogging / youtube world has been going crazy over these brushes for months on end now and I've just never bought into the hype for some silly reason. I've watched countless videos with these brushes being used and I just decided it was time to invest.

The brushes all have taklon bristles which is synthetic but ultra smooth, they are also colour coded which is super handy for me who can never find the brush I want at the right time.

The gold brushes are "flawless base", purple brushes are "enhanced eyes" and pink brushes are "perfect finish".

Have any of you tries these brushes, what do you think? Do you have any personal recommendations or unusual ways to use a certain brush? I'll of course be reviewing mine as soon as I've got them and had a play.

I can feel the beginning of a new love and I'm fairly certain I'll be needing the rest of this range in my life pretty soon.

Take care and love to all xox

Little Topshop makeup haul.

Hey there gorgeous glitterati.

I'm so sorry I've been absent for a few days, I was planning to do a fair bit of blogging this weekend but I'm loaded with cold and feel royally awful :( (cue violins lol). But I thought I'd do a little blog post on some more Topshop makeup I've acquired recently because I well and truly love it. 

If you haven't already checked out Topshop makeup, you need to do it now, their makeup is amazing quality and really reasonable prices.

As usual onto the swatches and I'll tell you a little bit more after the yummy pictures :

Above left to right then we have the following:

• Neon Rose cream blush - Perfect perfect PERFECT :) can you tell I love this stuff. This is by far the nicest texture of cream blush I've ever experienced. It's so smooth and so blendable, not at all sticky or overly shiny - It provided the perfect dewy look which is just ideal for the hopefully impending Spring / Summer. This is a coral toned orange.

• Prime Time cream blush - As above but this shade is your perfect dolly pink. This gives me the most gorgeous flush from within. 

• Beguiled lipstick - The most beautiful deep wine shade, perfect for a pop of colour during the day or crazy vamped up for a night out. Looks crazy scary in the tube, but you need to swatch it to see it's true potential.

• Firecracker - Orange!! What more can I say :) I love it, it's a warm toned orange so it doesn't make you look washed out, it really warms your complexion up and will look absolutely amazing with a tan.

I'm head over heels in love with Topshop makeup if you can't already tell. I want every single shade of the cream blush and if they don't have enough, I want them to make more!! It's so amazing and for £6 a pop you really can't go wrong. 

The lipsticks are £8 each and are so crazy pigmented and not at all drying on the lips, they feel very smooth and last a good 4 hours on me without needing to be touched up at all.

Whilst I realise it's not the cheapest makeup brand out there, I feel like this is all totally worth the extra pennies. The cream blushes alone are better than MAC cremeblend blushes in my humble opinion and they're practically a third of the cost. I would 100% check out the website here but I would suggest visiting your local store as the selection on the site isn't even close to what there is in store.

Have you tried any Topshop makeup or is there anything you'd recommend for my next purchase? I'm definitely going back for more :)

Take care and love to all xox

New CID Cosmetics mini review and swatches.

Hello once again gorgeous glitterati, I hope you're all well today :)

I've got something new to share with you today, from a brand I hadn't heard of before until this set appeared courtesy of my mum (Awwwwwww) - It's from New CID Cosmetics.

My mum is an avid QVC shopper and they have regular TSV's (today's special values) on various beauty brands, usually they're phenomenal value for money and you get a lot of things to try for your money. So my mum called me and asked if I'd heard of New CID Cosmetics, I hadn't but I was intrigued, so I tuned in that evening to QVC's live channel.

QVC had this amazing kit for sale for around the £30 mark including postage and I thought wow what a bargain, even more so when I checked out the New CID website here and discovered the set was actually worth well over £100! I'll add the pictures of the goodies, then explain what I think :

I need to add that you also get a mascara (i-flutter volumising and lengthening in black) in the set too which I haven't pictured as it was in my makeup bag at the time and hasn't moved from my makeup bag since. It's an amazing mascara, really does exactly what it says on the tube. The rest of the contents are as follows (left to right above) :

• i-gel long wear eyeliner trio in emerald, indigo and midnight blue - This product also came with it's own application brush which is actually pretty useful. The eyeliners are heavily pigmented and dry down fairly quickly and do not budge. There's a little plastic seal on the top which keeps the product extra fresh and stops them drying out.
• i-colour long wear cream eyeshadows in cobalt and purple quartz - These have a mousse like texture and dry down pretty quickly to a powder like finish. I've used these as liners, as a base and on their own and have had no issues whatsoever with creasing or fading.
• i-kiss lip pencils in coral pink and raspberry rose - These are matte finish lip colours that can also be used as liners. Lovely and smooth and do not feel drying at all on my lips.
• i-gloss in coral blossom - Lovely pigmented coral pink shade, not too sticky and the applicator has a built in light and mirror for easy application anywhere.

Overall I'm impressed with this kit, the value for money is second to none and the products are excellent quality too which is obviously the main thing we're looking for in a purchase. The kit is still available on QVC in 2 colour options, the multi (which I've got) and a black version which has darker eye shades and more neutral lips. The price is now up to £34 ish including postage which is clearly still a bargain, click here if you want to check it out.

I'll definitely be keeping an eye on both the New CID cosmetics website and also on QVC, I really like this brand so far and I'd be very keen to try a few other bits and pieces such as their primers, foundations or blush shades and I'm even tempted by this kit in the black variant too :)

Have you ever tried anything from this brand, any recommendations?

Take care and love to all xox

MAC In Extra Dimension haul swatches.

Well hello again gorgeous glitterati.

I hope you're all well :) I'm in a surprisingly perky mood given how grey and rainy it is here today.

I just wanted to share with you the few bits and pieces I picked up from the MAC In Extra Dimension collection.

This was a collection of 3 Extra Dimension Highlighters and 10 Extra Dimension Eyeshadows. The thing that made this collection extra special and unique was the formula of the products, MAC considers it to be a new liquid - powder hybrid that can provide sheer or heavy coverage depending on how you use them.

I found these products to be extremely opaque in just one swipe, they can be smudged out really easily for a more sheer look or even applied wet for a super intense dramatic look.

Left to right in the pans and then top to bottom for the swatches we have :

• Superb Highlighter - THE most gorgeous pinky champagne highlighter. Seriously where has this been all my life?! Gives the most gorgeous glow to your skin. The other 2 highlighters were more white gold (whisper of guilt) and bronze (glorify).

• Warm Thunder Eyeshadow - Gunmetal silver, I'm so drawn to these shades in any collection, but this one is extra gorgeous as it's less pure silver and more darkened almost greyed silver.

• Grand Galaxy Eyeshadow - Beautiful deep plummy purple, really stunning on - Has almost a pinky tone to it when applied wet.

• Rich Core Eyeshadow - A rich dark burgundy. I bought this one on a whim and I'm so glad I did, this looks fantastic once applied, perfect for a slightly different smokey look.

The formula on these is just absolutely incredible, like nothing else I've ever used before. The swatches above are one swipe of the product dry, the payoff is so much more intense when used with a wet brush or if the eyeshadow is applied over the top of say a paint pot.

They feel liquid yet solid to the touch and in my opinion are something you have to experience to understand the beauty. These are well worth the money as a little goes a long long way.

I've been using these every day since I got them and I've experienced no issues at all with creasing or smudging and I've mainly been applying the eyeshadows dry over a standard eye primer and the highlighter just directly onto my cheek / brow bones with a stippling brush.

Have you picked up anything from this collection or is there anything you now want to get your hands on? Let me know in the comments :) I'm dying to get the other 7 eyeshadows, but with MAC releasing new collections all the time, I'll have to hold off and save my pennies. Fingers crossed MAC see sense and make these a part of the permanent lineup.

Take care and love to all xox

NOTD - Barry M Magnetic Nail Paint in 327 Magnetic Burgundy.

2 posts in one day .............. What's going on, I'm officially on a roll.

Hey gorgeous glitterati, I just thought I'd do a quick post showing you my nails today, because I love them.

This is my first venture into the whole magnetic nail polish trend and I'm really loving it. 

I first saw Nails Inc release their magnetic polishes last year, then slowly but surely other brands have hopped onto the bandwagon. I don't know what I was waiting for really but as soon as I saw the Barry M versions, I had to have them.

In my local Superdrug, one of the girls that works there is referred to as my "Superdrug friend" and she's a total enabler!! Every time I walk into that store, she's got something new to show me and that's it, I'm sucked in and I buy it :) Well, last time I was in store a few weeks ago, she told me about these polishes that weren't released yet but they'd be in soon - She held one of each shade back for me bless her and I got my grubby little mitts on them today.

There are apparently going to be 4 shades released, I picked up 2 as they were the only ones available initially, the gorgeous shade I've used in the pictures above which is 327 Magnetic Burgundy and I also got 326 Magnetic Dark Silver which I'm dying to try now too.

These polishes come with the magnet attached on the top of the bottle, you don't have to buy it separately, there are different designs on each of the shades, but I decided to just let my first try be the simple diagonal lines.

I found this polish really easy to work with, you just apply one coat and let it dry, then apply another coat and immediately hold the magnet over your nail for 5 - 10 seconds and then pop your topcoat of choice on. I have to say, I'm really pleased with the effect, it's something a little bit different which I love. Fingers crossed they go on to bring out lots more shades, at £4.99 a pop you can't really go wrong.

Have you tried these or can you recommend any other magnetic polishes?

Take care and love to all xox

New MAC Lipsticks Sqqquuuueeeeee :)

Hey there gorgeous glitterati :)


Sorry I've been so very absent, I've been sick and just haven't felt like moving, let alone blogging - But I'm back now with lots of new up and coming posts. I've had lots of time to mull over what I want to blog about and I've got a few bits and pieces in the pipeline.


Anyway, firstly I thought I'd show you my new MAC lipsticks - I have a "slight" obsession with lipstick as I'm sure you can tell, especially MAC, it's my favorite ever brand of lipstick and I just can't stop myself picking more up as and when I see them as they have such a vast collection.


I've acquired 4 new lipsticks in the past month or so, 2 were purchased by myself from a MAC store and the other 2 were obtained through swaps on good old makeup alley. Anyhoooooooo .... On to the pictures and swatches.

Left to right above we have the following :

• Craving (Amplified) - A deep plumy pink with a hint of brown. So not my usual type of shade but I tried it on at my local MAC counter and fell in love. Maybe I'll do a LOTD with this one, it's so gorgeous for everyday use but could be so easily jazzed up for a dramatic evening look.

• Full Fuchsia (Amplified) - A beautiful bright fuchsia pink, perfect for the incoming Spring and Summer, I love my pinks and this one is no exception. Unfortunately this is a Pro only shade, but it can be ordered over the phone via MAC pro and MAC pro stores so if you love it, it is obtainable.

• Costa Chic (Frost) - A lovely light orange toned coral, very frosty and definitely not one for everybody, it can be very hard to pull off due to the heavy frost finish, but I love it. Teamed with bronzed dewy skin, this lipstick will be amazing in the hot Summer nights we're hopefully going to get.

• Vegas Volt (Amplified) - A very bright orange coral almost neon. I LOVE this lipstick so much, the shade is perfect for the Spring trends about at the minute, it just checks every single box for me.

You can see that 3 of the shades I've gotten are amplified finishes which is 100% my favorite finish of MAC lipsticks, it's creamy and opaque in just one swipe and they last for hours on end on my lips without drying them out at all.

Do you have any must have Spring / Summer shades I should check out or are you now lusting after any of the shades in this post?

Take care and love to all xox

LOTD Yves Saint Laurent Glossy Stain - 13 Rose Tempera

Hey gorgeous glitterati :)

It's me again with another Lip of the day - Sorry I promise I'll do something more interesting this weekend, but honestly I thought you just HAD to see this product.

I've fallen head over heels in love with the Yves Saint Laurent rouge pur couture glossy stains, the formula is like nothing else you'll ever have felt before, so unique and so amazingly beautiful.

I've only picked up one of these and the shade I have is number 13 which is Rose Tempera. I'll add the swatches then explain all you need to know about this revolutionary product:

Well I just adore it, I love how glossy it looks on my lips. The texture is crazy, it feels like a gel almost, but it's not at all uncomfortable or strange. I expected it to feel somewhat like Benefit benetint, but it's not watery at all, it feels like a wet gel on initial application, it's just so interesting and unique.

I put a thin layer on with the sponge applicator and spread it all over my lips with a brush or just my finger, then I add another thin layer and press my lips together before following with a final also thin layer to really gloss it up - This will stay put like you wouldn't believe, you think the gloss is all gone when you can't feel it anymore, then you check the mirror and lo and behold it's still there looking as gorgeous as it did when you first applied it.

You'll notice the swatch on my hand is much lighter than on my lips, as you add more layers of this stain, it definitely gets slightly darker with each additional application - So keep it light or vamp it up, it's your choice entirely.

The price tag on these is pretty crazy at £22.50 a pop and I'd happily own them all (there are 20 gorgeous shades), but for that price it just won't be feasible for me :(

Would this be something you'd consider splurging on or is the price just too much for you? I only have one and I imagine it'll stay this way for a long long time, but I'll be saving it mainly for special occasions as it just looks so dam flipping gorgeous.

Take care and love to all xox

LOTD - Chanel Rouge Allure Laque - 75 Dragon

Well hey there gorgeous glitterati.

I picked up a couple of packages this morning from my local post office, including a couple of swaps from makeup alley (www.makeupalley.com). One of my swaps had a brand new Chanel Rouge Allure Laque in the coveted and now discontinued shade of 75 Dragon.

I fell in love immediately and removed the lipstick I had on and replaced with this. I also wore my new Makeup Forever Aqua cream in number 9 as a blush so thought I'd include that on here too.

I love it, I LOVE IT so much. The lip colour comes in a tube like a gloss with a sponge tip applicator. It applies like a creamy balm, very smooth and opaque in just one swipe. I think I'll be saving this one for special occasions when more vampy makeup is required, but I couldn't resist wearing it today just to show you the beauty of it. Apparently this shade has not been discontinued everywhere, but it's impossible to find in the UK - It's just the perfect deep dark red that shimmers and shines, stunning!!

As for the Makeup Forever Aqua Cream, what a gorgeous shade number 9 is, a lovely peachy coral that can easily be built up for more intensity - These can be used on eyes, cheeks and lips, although each shade has different specifications much like MAC pigments about where they can and can't be used. So far so good with this product, I've applied it quite liberally today and so far (4 hours since applying) it's still there, no fading and no slipping off my crazy oily skin.

Well these were my first Chanel and Makeup Forever products - Have you ever tried anything from either brand, anything worth recommending?

Take care and love to all xox

Topshop Makeup - A new found love :)

Hey hey there gorgeous glitterati.

I thought I'd do my weekend shopping haul in bits and pieces rather than all at once and overwhelm you all with pictures and me blabbing on :)

I had a fantastic weekend with my Leeds lovely and we went shopping crazy in Norwich on Saturday just gone.

One shop I was determined to visit was Topshop, the blogger world has been buzzing with details of their makeup range and I decided it was time to check these lovelies out for myself.

I picked up three items to give them a whirl :

Left to right we have the following glorious goodies :

Topshop Highlighter in "Sunbeam" £9.00

Topshop Lipstick in "Brighton Rock" £8.00

Topshop Crayon in "Sunshower" £7.50

Swatchy swatches :

Oooooooo pretty :)

The Sunbeam highlighter on the left is like a powdered version of Benefit's Moonbeam and I love it - I love goldy toned highlighters sometimes as they really warm the skin up and give you a gorgeous healthy glow.

The Brighton Rock lipstick is THE most gorgeous shade of coral pink, it's supposed to be a matte finish, but it's not drying in the least and looks fantastic in just one swipe - the swatch on my hand is literally one swipe of product, maybe I'll do a lip of the day with this tomorrow to show you how glorious it looks on the lips.

Lastly the crayon in Sunshower - These remind me of MAC shadesticks in a way, except these are a million times smoother and creamier, yet the colour payoff is just as immense. I wore this on my eyelids as a wash of colour yesterday and it wore all day long, no creasing and no budging. I'm definitely checking out the other colours available ASAP.

Overall I'm really REALLY impressed with this range, the pricing isn't cheap and isn't expensive either, it's perfectly middle of the road and worth every penny in my opinion.

Everyone has obviously heard of this range as the stand had been raided completely in Norwich, but I'll be checking it out online and maybe placing a cheeky order for a few more bits and pieces.

Have you tried anything from Topshop's makeup range, anything you want to try? Let me know :)

Take care and love to all xox