Here's to 2013!

(Source)

Since this is my last post of the 2013, I figured I'd make it a soppy one to mark the occasion! The past year has probably been the best of my life so far, and part of that reason is you guys. I started the year as a college student who had just submitted my UCAS application and as 2013 ends I'm currently at my first choice University studying a subject that I love. Along the way, you guys doubled giving me so many amazing opportunities and before I left London I was able to attend two amazing events for Company Beauty Week, along discover my love for photography! 

I just want to thank you guys for sticking around, and helping make 2013 such a great year - I hope there's more good times to come in 2014 and that everyone has a great night! xx

A little Boxing Day sale haul..

I love a good sale, so as you would expect I was up bright and early this morning to make the most of the boxing day sales! To be honest I was a little disappointed, by the time I arrived my local shopping centre was so much busier than normal and a lot of the stuff I was planning on buying was already out of stock! Although I did manage to get a few gems! Normally my Lush sale is rubbish and I never leave with anything - although this year they had a load of gift sets left over.

The first gift set I brought was snow fairy which contained a 100ml bottle of Snow Fairy, a 30g shimmy shimmy shimmer bar and a 70g angels delight soap. Originally this was £13.50 although it was down to £6.75 in the sale. I think this is packed beautifully although my only issue with both gift sets is that the bombs/soaps aren't individually wrapped inside the outer packaging.

Next I picked up Mr Frosty, which contained a mini blue skies bubble bar along with a big blue bath and cinders ballistic. I thought this was great value at just £6.25 (originally £12.50) and look forward to putting it to use.

Admittedly I was left pretty disappointed with the Boots sale since my store looked more like a jumble sale with barely any products left, although I did manage to leave with four things I'm really happy with. Since I love perfumes I picked up this little sampler set to try some new ones out for just £7.50 (originally £15) it contained a 5ml Moschio Pink Bouqet, a 10ml bottle of Ghost Deep Night, a 10ml bottle of Lipsy London and a 5ml bottle of Ted Baker's Sweet Treat Polly. I also picked up a set of four french connection lipglosses for £6 (originally £12) as I really liked the look of them.

Of course I couldn't leave without getting my Soap and Glory fix and picked up two of their gift sets. Face time originally retailed at a whooping £25, although like everything else was half price in the sale. The set contains for items; The Feel Good Factor Translucent BB cream (50ml), Off your face cleansing wipes (25) Puffy Eye Attack Turbo boost hydragel (14ml) and a Smooth Operator lip balm. Next I picked up the 'You do the bath' gift set for just £8 with contained a full sized Foam call body wash and butter yourself body cream.

Finally I picked up some reduced slipper socks for just a pound in Primark along with a DVD in HMV to snuggle up with to night.

Have you found any good bargains?

What I got for Christmas..

 I love reading these kinds of posts, so I figured I'd write my own up while watching Home Alone on TV! I hope everyone has had a lovely day, while I'm sad its over I'm so excited to hit the boxing day sales tomorrow as I mainly received money. Although I seem to have gotten quite a few perfumes this year so thought they were a good place to start, the first perfume I got was Avon's Far Away from my Nan, I've always been curious about Avons perfumes so I'm looking forward to putting this to the test. I was also really happy to see a duo of Space NK's Laughter perfumes, they both smell amazing and are a great size for my handbag! Finally my Mum brought me a massive 100ml bottle of my favouite perfume Vera Wang's Lovestruck.

Make up wise I was also really lucky and received some lovely gifts! My mum got me this Snow White & Huntsman make up palette which I've wanted since it was first released some time ago now, along with my first high end mascara in the form of Lancome's Hypnose Star mascara which as such a beautiful tube! My Aunt also brought me this French Contention gift set which I really love the look of. Finally I received two Boots gift vouchers to treat myself with tomorrow!

While we're on the make up theme I also received another mascara from a friend along with three nail polishes which I look forward to trying. My sister brought me this nail ombre kit and I got these TBS lip balms from my good friend LFA.

My Mum also got me the Soap & Glory Yule Monty gift set which contained a whole host of goodies including; Sugar Crush Body Wash, The Righteous Butter, Heel Genius, Hand Food, Peaches and Clean, Thick & Fast mascara, The Scrub of your life, Butter yourself lotion and a plumping lipgloss complete with a lovely bag.

On the body side of things I also got this mini Space NK Laughter showergel from a family friend along with this lovely bath bomb from LFA. I also got some Christmas themed PJ's from my Mum along with some comfy socks. One of my good friends brought me this amazingly scented cherry candle along with The Hunger Games on DVD.

Finally I got enough chocolate to last me a while with this Galaxy selection box and Peanut Butter Snowman. Last but not least my lovely friend LFA brought me this beautiful teapot!

What did you guys get for Christmas this year?

My Top Five Winter Nail Polishes..

Since coming home for Christmas I've been feeling rather festive, so I figured today I would show you guys my five favourite nail polishes for this time of year. I actually did a similar post to this last year which you can see here although my taste in nail polish seems to have changed greatly over the past 12 months!

Berry Cosmo by Barry M (£2.99/10ml) - I'm a big fan of Barry M polishes and was looking for some more wintery shades at the Barry M stand when I found this, My pictures in this dull winter weather do the pretty polish no justice so be sure to click here to see some other pictures of Berry Cosmo in action, because its a lovely shade!

Crush by Barry M (£3.99/10ml) - Yet another favourite from Barry M, although this matte nail paint happens to be one of my all time favourite polishes! There's just something about Crush which makes it such a wearable shade on all skin tones. Its such a beautiful winter shade, complete with a formula made to last!

Damson Dream by No7 (£6.00/10ml) - I got this Damson Dream mini in a gift set recently, although I'm pretty sure I'm in love! Damson Dream is just a perfect winter shade, It reminds me a lot of Barry M's Crush, only with shimmer thrown in for good measure! It looks stunning on the nails and last for a decent amount of time too. 

Star Spangled by Orly (£8.75/18ml) - I do love a good red glitter at this time of year, although the this happens to be subtler than the others in my collection. I adore the look of this on my nails and think the formula is great!

Maybelline's knitted gold (£3.99/7ml) over Collection 2000's Stormy Grey (£3.19/12ml) - Technically my last nail polish favourite is a combo, although Maybelline's knitted gold is the star of this show! Complete with pink and gold coloured glitter pieces this pretty polish is stunning on the nails and takes a whole new spin on the classic gold glitter!

So there you have it, my favourite nail polishes for this time of year - What are your winter favourites?

The Body Shop Haul!

After chasing the postman down the road yesterday morning, I figured I'd show you guys my latest spend on The Body Shop's website, where I picked up four products for just £15! The Body Shop are known for their amazing deals, although they appeared to outdo themselves this time giving shoppers 50% off  all items along with a free Vitamin E Moisture Cream worth £10 if you spent over a tenner on the site. If that wasn't enough they also had free shipping for good measure!

Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Balm (£12.00/90ml) -I've heard a lot about cleansing balms and really wanted to try one, so with 50% off this seemed like the perfect chance! I'm really looking forward to trying this out and sharing my thoughts with you guys.

Coconut Body Butter (£13.00/200ml) - I'm a huge fan of all TBS Body Butters, although the Coconut one happens to be my all time favourite! It's been a while since I last used one so I figured I'd treat myself while they were on offer.

Almond Hand & Nail Cream (£5.00/30ml) - I needed a new hand cream so popped this into my basket since I found the Hemp I tried from TBS to be really effective - although I hated the smell. I hope that I will get along with this one better as I love the smell of almonds!

Vitamin E Moisture Cream (£10.00/50ml) - Last but not least is the free moisturiser I got for spending over £10 online, I forgot to pack a day time one in my travel bag so I'm looking forward to putting this to good use right away.

Did you make the most of this offer?

Home for Christmas!

Sunday evening after finally finishing my last two pieces of coursework, I made the long journey back to London after a mad rush to pack on time. Sadly my work doesn't end there and I have two exams coming up at the start of January although I definitely want to make up for the slow start to December blogging wise and have a few planned posts to come! In the rush I some how managed to pull together a make up bag full of some of my favourite products and figured I'd show you guys the products I have to work with over the next three weeks! The first thing I made a run for was my Bourjois Healthy mix foundation which gives quite a medium level of coverage while still feeling light on the skin, along with my MUA Undress your skin foundation which is more of a full coverage one for any events I maybe attending over the holiday season. Concealer wise I have my Collection lasting perfection one which is a firm favourite along with Maybelline's Dream Lumi for under my eyes. To set my make up I used the much hyped about Rimmel stay matte powder in translucent.

To finish of the face look I brought my favourite Topshop cream blush in the shade head over heels along with my Soap & Glory Solar Powder which has been my contour of choice for four months solid now! I also picked up my Watt's Up highlighter from Benefit to complete the cheek look.

For my eyes I have my two main essentials in the form of MUA's clear mascara for my eyebrows and Maybelline's the rocket for my lashes. I figured since it's the party season I'd pop a few eyeshadows in my bag, along with my all time favourite primer from MUA. Since its the Christmas season my eyeshadows all have a bit of a shimmer to them! I have a little Benefit cream eyeshadow in the shade Bikini-tini, a Maybelline colour tattoo in the shade on and on bronze and a Rimmel Scandaleyes in the shade rich russet.

I was having a hard time cutting back on lip products so I did the only logical thing and brought all of my favourites! The first product I picked up is my very battered Revlon kissable balm stain in the shade honey i tend to wear this one a lot and will probably get a load of use out of it. Although I'm not a massive lipgloss person, I had to bring my current favourite 'stay pink' from &other stories - this is just a great natural shade for more neutral days - I also love the packaging! If you couldn't tell from the picture I love the Kate Moss for Rimmel lipsticks and have three shades with me 19,101 and 107. Finally I have a Topshop 'Lips' in the shade Innocent.

What products have you been loving lately?

November Favourites!

I normally try to get favourites posts up a lot earlier than this, although as you may have guessed from my inconsistent posting over the past couple of months I've been super busy! I'm hoping that that will all change in just over a week when I make the annoyingly long journey back to London for Christmas! I am so excited to go home,I have quite a heavy work load at the moment so it will be nice to take a break from essay writing, work and house hunting (and study for my two exams in January..) Currently I have two big deadlines which I'm working towards so you may not see me for the next week or so, although I normally check my twitter regularly so if you have any questions feel free to contact me there! Before I ramble on for too much longer here are the products I've been loving this month!

Maybelline Rocket Volum' Express mascara (£7.99/10ml) - I'm not a huge fan of Maybelline mascaras, although for some reason I wanted to try this. I'm so happy I picked it up because I am in love! It really does make a huge difference to my lashes. So much so that on the first day I tried it my flat mate commented on my eyelashes baring in mind I normally wear Benefits They're Real which is so much more expensive than this! 

Bourjois Colour Boost lip crayon in Peach on the Beach (£7.99/2.75g) - I'm a big fan of lip crayons, so finally picked this up when Superdrug had a 3 for 2 offer. It's more balmy than most of these types of products, but I really love the feeling of it on my lips.

Bourjois Radiance Reveal Healthy Mix Foundation (£9.99/30ml) - This foundation is spoken about a lot in the beauty world, meaning I was pretty skeptical. Although I really enjoy using it and find it covers anything I want to cover up really well by also feeling light on my skin.

Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge (£4.99) -  I particularly love this product for blending my concealer it does a great job at covering blemishes!

Batiste Dry Shampoo* (£2.99/200ml) - Normally I'll only used coloured dry shampoo as I worry about having white roots although this hasn't been a problem with this. It keeps my hair looking fresh on non wash days so its a winner in my book!

What have you been loving this month?

Superdrug make up Haul

Although I'm trying my best to be good with my money, I couldn't help but treat myself to a few things this month! I originally went into Superdrug in search of the new MUA range, although when that failed I got a little bit distracted by the make up section and picked up a few new things. Today figured I'd show you guys what I got, along with a few bits I picked up online a couple of weeks ago.

I'm nearly at the end of my second mini tube of Benefits They're real and personally don't want to pay out nearly £20 for another. So I picked up this Maybelline's the Rocket Volum' Express to try which retails at £7.99/9.6ml. I got this on 3 for 2 along with the Maybelline dream lumi touch highlighting concealer (£6.99/6m) although was my cheapest item on this trip so I got it free. I'm hoping that the concealer can help mask my tried eyes when I have those early starts! Keeping in theme with the awake look, I picked up Loreals famous Nude Magique Eau De Teint (£9.99/20ml) back when it was on introductory offer, I've only tried it a few times but so I like it! Finally I picked up this MUA matte palette (£4.00/10g) a while back and still haven't gotten around to using it - I love the shade range!

The final thing I picked up in the 3 for 2 offer was this much raved about Bourjois Colour boost  (£7.99/2.75g) in the shade peach on the beach which i tired today and really enjoyed. Lip wise I also picked up is Rimmel's Kate Moss Matte Lipstick in the shade 107 (£5.49/4g) which I'm really looking forward to wearing in the winter months!

Finally a couple of weeks ago Rimmel nail polishes were just £2 and 3 for 2 meaning I got 3 for just £4, I managed to pick up Sky High, Too cool to tango and instyle coral which were all a snip especially considering they're 8ml each! 

Have you brought anything from the high street lately?

Vaseline Paint the Town

It's been a while since I've posted a good old product review, so today I thought I'd share my thoughts on a product I've been loving lately. I picked this limited edition Vaseline up a while back when it was still exclusive to Selfridges, Although I believe you can now find it in selected Boots and Superdrug stores.

Paint the town red comes in your average Vaseline tin, complete with a fitting design. Although for me its the product itself which makes this so lovely! I'll hold my hands up and say I'm not a huge fan of Vaseline, Perosnally I prefer treatments I can feel working rather than those which simply create a barrier, although there's something different about this. Not only does this leave a beautiful pinky red shade on your lips, its super glossy which means they stay looking nourished! Paint the town red also leaves them feeling lovely after battling the winter air and the effect lasts for a good couple of hours.

Not bad at all for a product which costs less than £3.50 for 20g! What lip products have you been loving lately?

The hangover kit essentials..

Since moving to uni I've had my fair share of student nights, which of course were all in the name of good research since I feel like I've now perfected my morning after routine. Unfortunately for me, student nights seem to fall before all of my early lectures, making looking human just that bit harder and leaving me with the grand total of about ten minutes to get ready after I've missed the first five alarms.

The first thing I tend to reach for is my Origins Drink Up mask, and leave to do its magic while I run around my room looking for my lecture notebooks (You would have thought that after two months of uni, I would have mastered packing my bag the night before). I then make a grab of my Simple revitalising eye roll in in the hope that it makes me look more awake after a grand total of four hours sleep.

For me dry shampoo is a must, there's no way I'm getting out of bed early to wash and dry my hair! One I've washed away the face mask I then apply a BB cream to mask any sins, I'm lucky enough not to suffer from dark circles although I'd recommend a illuminating concealer if this is something which bothers you. Finally, to make myself look more awake I curl my eyelashes to make , I then go in with a coat of mascara if I have the time.

So there you have it, my morning after the night before routine! Believe it or not I'm actually taking Uni really seriously and have even started work experience along side my course, which of course means my time is really stretched - If you ever need to contact me or want to tell me what kind of post you wish to see next I recommend messaging me on twitter (@Summers_beauty) since that gets checked pretty much daily! What's your morning after routine? 

Free Orly with Cosmopolitan

With this months issue of Cosmo (£3.60), readers are offered a choice of one of four Orly polishes. Personally I picked the red glitter which is perfect for this time of year, although the magazine also offers the choice of a stunning gold glitter, nude or burgundy polish. 

Will you be making the most of this offer?

Free Benefit in Elle!

Today I wanted to feature another great freebie from Elle, In this months issue (£4.00) readers are offered a free benefit lip gloss! Readers have a choice of three shades; Dandelion, Corolista and Hoola. Personally I've noticed that stores seem to have a tone of hoola lip glosses and not many others, luckily I spotted Dandelion and made a run for the till!  

Will you be picking up your copy?

Free nails inc in Glamour

 It seems like magazines have really stepped up their game this month, with Glamour (£2.00) offering a free Kate Spade nails inc nail polish to every reader! There are four shades available; Gold, silver, red and black. Personally I picked up the black one as I felt it would be the most useful to me.

If that wasn't enough every magazine comes with a free Body Shop joy card worth either £3, £15 or £100! Will you be picking up your copy?

October Favourites

I didnt fall for many products throughout the month of October, although the ones i did love were complete winners! The fact that its now November really excites me! In just six weeks I will have finished my first term at University and will be on my way home for Christmas!

St Ives Blemish Fighting Scrub (£4.29/150ml) - I've always been a big fan of this scrub, although before I moved out I decided I wanted to use up the others in my collection before buying another. It wasn't until I started using this again that I noticed the massive difference it makes to my skin. I love it, not only does it leave my skin feeling smooth, it keeps it clear too.

MUA Undress your skin foundation (£5.00/35ml) - I've never been bothered by high coverage foundations, although at the start of the month I suffered a serious break out, which was no challenge for this stuff! Not only this foundation pale enough for my skin, it somehow manages to keep my skin looking fresh and not piled on. 

Barry M Matte nail polish in Crush (£3.99/10ml) - I have so many nail polishes that Its not often I repeat shades, although this has been on my nails so much this month! I think its stunning, and so do half of my flat judging by the amount of people who have borrowed it this month! 

So there you have it, three products I was loving last month! What were your October favourites?

October Empites!

V05 Give Me Moisture shampoo and Nourish My Shine Conditioner (£3.99/500ml) - I love these two products which leave my hair feeling both clean and nourished! Personally I think in general the V05 line is of a great standard especially considering the reasonable price point!

V05 nourishing hot oil treatment (£4.29/60ml) - I brought this pack of four 15ml hot oils around a month ago, and completely forgot about them to I found this used one in my empties pile! I really liked this product and will be using another treatment the next time I wash my hair!

Bastiste light & blonde dry shampoo (£3.99/200ml) - This makes an appearance in pretty much all of my empties posts which pretty much proves just how much I love it! Its just a great product for lazy days and I'd recommend the coloured dry shampoos to everybody!

Foamburst body wash gel with cherry blossom & rice milk (£2.99/200ml) - I love the Rituals shower foams, although something about paying £8.50 for a shower gel doesn't sit right with me. So when I spotted these the other day I was sure to pick one up. I love the scent and something about using a foam makes the whole thing so much more luxurious!

Passion Fruit Body Butter (£13.00/200ml) - Like all Body Shop body butters this was a real treat to use, Not only did it smell amazing it left my skin feeling automatically nourished! 

Bioderma Sensibio H2O (£10.00/250ml) - This is one of the most hyped beauty products around and as much as I've looked for cheaper alternatives this is the best and the bottle has lasted me months!

MUA Mascara (£1.00/7ml) - I use this as a cheap eyebrow gel, It does the job and I go back to it everytime! 

What's by my sink?

When I first moved into halls I was pretty excited at the idea of having my very own sink in my room, mainly because at home I'd find myself making a mad dash to the bathroom (and lugging a load of products along) every time I wanted to wash my face. Above my new sink sits a huge mirror complete with a handy light so it pretty much doubles as my dressing table. 

On the left side of my sink I use this wooden basket to store all of my most reached for skincare goodies, These include a things such as my cleansers and moisturisers - although if you're interested in my skincare routine I recently posted a Nighttime skincare one here. Beside that I have a few hair care bits ready for when I need them, then in front I have my favourite perfumes as the sink tends to be the last place I visit before I leave the flat. Lastly I have one of these famous Ikea plant pots to house all of my brushes which are in need of a good clean!

In the middle of  my sink sits a hand soap and lotion from one of my favouite stores in London, &other stories! I don't use these as much as I'd like to because we have a sink in our bathroom which already contains soap although they're a welcome addition to my room and leave my hands smelling lovely!

The final corner of my sink contains mainly boring essentials in the form of my toothpaste, brush and mouthwash along with some muslin cloths I find myself reaching for daily. Finally I have my Bioderma along with some cotton pads which make removing make up so much easier.

So there you have it, everything I currently keep by my sink! Incase there's any confusion as to why I randomly have a sink in my room, I currently share a flat with five other girls, and while we share a shower room and toilet room each bedroom (despite not being en suite) comes with its own sink for some odd reason. What's by your sink?

Student life..

Tonight's post is very different in the sense that I want to talk at you guys on a more personal level for a change. If you've been reading this blog for a while you may know that I moved 150 miles away from home and started university around five weeks ago, which all still seems mad to me as I have already gained what seems like a lifetime of memories. In all honesty I didnt expect to love this place so much, although at the same time I'm gutted that my time is so stretched and I really miss everything about blogging including you guys. So instead of rushing out crappy rushed content I figured I'd ask you guys what you wanted to see next on the blog and put my efforts into producing that. I have a load of posts that I would love to do, so Its up to you what you want to see next. You have the choice of my make up collection (Brushes, face, eyes or lips), What's by my sink (i'm still a tiny bit excited about having my own one!), My top five autumn nail, lipstick or eyeshadow picks and even a review on the famous Lidl BB cream.Just pop a comment to let me know which you would like to see first and I'll try and get a post up this week!

In other news I've been busy learning to bake (as you may be able to tell from the above image), Here's my first ever birthday cake which I made for a flatmate today! No ones come down with food poisoning yet so I'm calling it a success! 

Stormy Grey Lasting Gel Colour

Since Autumn officially hit I've found myself swapping my usual bright nails for much more sophisticated shades. One of my latest additions is this Collection lasting gel colour in the shade stormy grey which seems very appropriate for the weather we've been having lately.  I've never tried any polishes from Collection so didnt know what to expect, although the formula applied smoothly and dried quickly. I was also a big fan of the brush which made it easy to cover the whole nail in a few strokes!

I love how stormy grey looks against my skin tone and it goes a good couple of days before small chips appear! You can pick this up for just £3.19/12ml here.

Free Ren in Instyle

With this months copy of Instyle readers are given not one but three Ren skincare samples worth an apparent £12 in total. Whats more is in selected stores the magazine is priced at £2 rather than its normal retail price of £3.90 - Personally I picked my copy up at Tesco. The samples include a 10ml global protection day cream which i love, a 3ml active eye gel and a 10ml gentle cleansing milk.

Will you be making the most of this offer?

September Favourites!

September has probably been one of the most eventful months of my life, Not only did I finally get the chance to attend a couple of events before I left London, I moved to the midlands or as I like to call it 'up north' and have honestly had such an amazing three weeks. I'm actually really sad that my freshers fortnight has finished, as much as going out every night and getting up for uni every morning was killing me it was worth every moment (and I have the flu to prove it!) This month I've pretty much been using the same old products although there have been a few new additions with I'm loving!

Enrapture heated rollers (£39.98) - I've been out quite a lot recently and was just a little bored of having my hair straight so whipped these out. I get so many compliments on my hair when I use these, If you click here there's a picture on my twitter which shows how these leave my hair. Personally I love the effects and think these are so easy to use! As much as I hate to admit it, I've done my hair with these after a few drinks and somehow still managed to style it! A great investment, I think I'd happily spend double the price!

Osiris Avise BB Cream (£0.99/40ml) - It seems like everyone had been going mad for this BB Cream and I can see why. Its a great light base which I really like, whats more its only 99p in Bodycare too!

Foamburst body wash gel with Cherry Blossom & Rice Milk (£2.55/200ml) - I love the Rituals shower foams, although something about paying £8.50 for a shower gel doesn't sit right with me. So when I spotted these the other day I was sure to pick one up. I love the scent and something about using a foam makes the whole thing so much more luxurious!

Topshop head over heels blush (£6.00/4g) - This blush is so well loved by me as you can tell by the state of it! I apply this with my stippling brush and love the finish it gives me - perfect for that everyday look and the packaging is too cute!

Bourjois Java rice power (£9.99/3.5g) - This powder has had a lot of hype surrounding it lately and I can see why, rather than completely mattifying the skin like most powders, this leaves a beautiful glowing finish without making you look like a disco ball.

What products have you been loving this month?