Bourjois Lip Kit

I've always been a huge fan of Bourjois lipsticks, so when I spotted these lip kits in my local Boots I knew I had to give them a go! Each kit comes with a Rouge Edition Velvet Matte Lipstick Lipstick and a matching lip liner. There are three different shades on offer; Nude-ist, Don't pink of it and Peach club, although I've never been a fan of peach shades so I opted for the other two.

I think these are great value when you consider that one of these liquid lipsticks retails at £8.99 alone, and here you're getting an additional lip liner, and some helpful tips for just £3 more! Before I picked these up I was already a huge fan of the individual lipsticks, which these are essentially an 'expansion' of, as all three of these shades is also sold individually. So if you're not bothered by lip liners save yourself a few quid and just by them on their own. 

With that being said I really enjoy using these lip kits and adore both shades (see below; Nudeist top, Dont pink of it bottom), theyre both really long lasting and comfortable to wear on the lips.They certainly give more expensive lipkits on the market a run for their money!

What's your favourite lip kit?

Primark Finds: Finger Blender Sponges

I love having a nose in the PS Beauty section as I feel like they have a really strong selection of beauty goodies - especially beauty tools! One of the things that stood out to me on my last visit was this twin pack of 'finger blender sponges', at just £2 for the pair I had to give them a go.

Both have a gap running through them which allow you to pop your fingers in as demonstrated below. I was pleasantly surprised with this rather gimmicky product. I have long nails so find that when I'm placing sponges in my jar based concealer products I can end up with product them. These completely avoid that problem and have become a game changer for applying my under eye concealer.

They blend product out with ease and have become a huge hit in my makeup bag"! What has been your best Primark find recently?

The Primark Glow Kit dupe!

 I was browsing Primark the other day when I came across this stunning highlighting palette! At £5 for four beautiful powders I knew it had to be mine! With a shade to suit everyone, this palette would be a wonderful addition to anyone's collection and here's why I think you should give it ago.

When I first saw this on the shelf the Anastasia glow kit came to mind, and while I don't own the £39 palette myself I can definitely see the resemblance after examining pictures online.  Although I would say that these look somewhat more shimmery, I defiantly think that this Primark Pure Glow Highlighting palette is a lovely affordable option for anyone in the market for this sort of product.

The powders themselves are wonderfully soft, I find that applying them with a favourite fan brush gives a wonderful subtle glow and can be built on to get the desired look.

So there you have it, yet another Primark beauty success! You can find this palette in selected stores for just £5! What's been your favourite Primark beauty find! 

Beauty | Barry M Lip Kit in Runway

Since lips became the 'in thing' lip kits have been popping up left, right and centre! Personally I've always found them to be over priced, so when high street brands started offering cheaper versions I knew I had to give one a ago. The much coveted Barry M lip Kits automatically took my fancy. Sadly these were only a limited edition offering sold in Boots and Superdrug, however Barry M have hinted at a restock so keep your eyes peeled! I only managed to get my hands on the darker of the three shades available, However I'm so glad I did! While I didn't expect to fall head over heels for 'Runway' It has become a 'go to' shade.

Each kit (priced at £6.99) contains a lip liner with a matching matte me up liquid lip paint. The limited edition range featured three shades; 'go to', 'pose' and 'runway'.  While I cant comment on the other two, I have found 'runway' to be of a wonderful quality. While initially I thought £6.99 was expensive for Barry M, These lip paints sell on their own for £4.99, so a lip liner thrown in for an extra £2 is pretty good going! 

I find the application to be really smooth, even when my lips are feeling a little dry! While it looks glossy on first application things really matt down and your left with a wonderful long lasting finish. I have received so many compliments on this colour! I can be a little wary of darker lip shades so love that this is a darker nude thats so easy to pull off!

If you're dying to give this a go and your local Boots or Superdrug has sold out, you could always try the Barry M single lip paints! They are the same formula as the ones featured in the kit and priced at £4.99 from selected retailers. 

Have you tried a lip kit yet? Which ones do I need to try next?

Beauty|How I battle my tired undereyes

For as long as I can remember I've been conscious of my puffy under eyes. Add 50 hour weeks, and a stressful job to the mix and my under eye confidence is at an all time low. Whenever I see a photo of myself they're the first thing I'm drawn to and something I now find myself investing in. 

So over the years I've developed a few habits which I like to think help make a difference, including frequently using eye masks.  It took me a while to try these as I never really saw any budget alternatives, although recently they seem to be popping up everywhere, most recently I saw them in Primark! Although some of my favourites are these Purederm ones I found in Bodycare, which were just over a pound a pack for 4 pairs. I love that you can just pop these on and they stay put on the face, meaning I can go about my business without the inconvenience of them popping off! After my under eye area feels so nourished and refreshed! Well worth a try if you're a under eye sufferer like myself.

It goes without saying that eye cream can make the world of difference to your under eyes in the long term, but applied in the right way it can also help freshen things up for a short term fix. I make sure to apply my eye cream before my concealer to ensure things go on more smoothly. There are also a bunch of application techniques floating around - more recently I've been enjoying the Real Techniques Under Eye Reviver to give my cream a more cooling feel. It makes me feel more awake in the morning.

Once I've covered my under eyes in skincare treats, I conceal any signs of tiredness with concealer, Personally I like to use a creamy concealer first (my favourite is the NYX dark circle concealer), I then complete the look with a liquid one such as S&G Trick and treatment. I apply both of these with a sponge rather than a brush as I feel the technique provides more coverage.

Have you got any more tips to avoid tried/puffy eyes?

Three ways I ditched the daily hair wash and how you can do the same!

For as long as I can remember I've been an everyday hair washer. It was a habit my Mum had, so one I naturally picked up whilst growing up. However, when my boiler recently broke and washing my hair daily just wasn't an option. It made me really rethink this habit and just a month later I've gone from washing my hair daily to every 4-5 days. Here's how you can do the same!

1. I got the chop

Within a couple of days of realising my hot water wasn't returning any time soon I decided it was time for a trip to the hair dressers. It's crazy how getting rid of a few dead inches can transform your hair. Without any dead weight my hair is so bouncy, meaning the roots look lifted!

2. I found the right products for me

I've been using canned dry shampoo for years, but they never worked amazingly for me. I switched to baby powder a few months back and haven't ever looked back. Not only are the results amazing (my hair has made everyone in my household convert), the tub is sooo long lasting!

3. I had a restyle

Ok, so admittedly I just throw my hair back for work during the week. But I've found that switching my hair up can keep the grease at bay. The front of my hair gives a lot away, so If I'm getting to the end of the week I may give myself a more central parting.

Lifestyle | Why I'm glad I took a blogging break

I realised a while back that I've never really addressed my months of absence.  I never really intended on taking a 'blogging break', it was just a natural progression when I reached the final stages of my degree. Although If we're being completely honest I'm really bloody glad that I did.

Personally I have always adored blogging. That's why this page still exists five years later , although I've never allowed myself to be completely 'sucked in' by the community. Whilst earning my degree, I also had both a paid and voluntary job. I didn't have time to blog, If we're being completely honest I barely had time to bother with makeup!

So rather than pushing out crappy posts I had no interest in, I took a step back. My personal life will always come first, in the many months I was away, I picked up my grades by nearly a whole classification and spent a lot of time growing up. Fast forward a few more months, I've been working full time in an industry I love and I've just been accepted to study a teaching course at the university of my dreams.

I think for years there's been this misconception in the blogging world that to be a success you need to have a string of consistent content. While there's no denying that regular helps keeps audiences interested, I for one am sick of blogging having to be such a robotic thing. Rather than put out content I hate for the stake of consistency, I took time away. My blog didn't vanish and my followers didn't grow legs and walk away. I look back at my posts from the summer and am proud of that content - that is the type of blogger I aspire to be.

I took a massive blogging break, but I needed that to full back in love with blogging again.