Recent Favorites

Hello, Everyone
I have been mighty busy lately, with getting ready for house guests and other visitors and just trying to keep up with my little monkey, who is now climbing on everything and pulling down everything that he can reach. So finding time to finish up one of my 9 draft posts has been pretty much impossible :D I keep starting them and then so much time passes that they are no longer relevant, so I just kind of have to start another one and the same thing happens :D But I promised myself to blog more often this month to keep myself busy. And I need to keep myself busy as my plan to go back home for a month with Oscar is being held back by the lack of passports in our house :D So here I am writing :)
The plan was to do an April favourites post but in the end I decided ''recent'' is a more relevant word :D

I will start with the beauty products.

The RealTechniques duo fibre brush set was a late find for me. I haven't actually tried any duo fibre brushes...ever...and I'm sad I hadn't discovered them earlier because they are AMAZING. They blend all the cream and powder foundations so well and leave no lines. I don't really use the small eye brush for eyes rather than blending out the contour line on my nose, but I'm sure it will be amazing for eye shadow as well, it's just that I have my tried and tested eye shadow brushes I use daily. Both the big face brush and small contour brush are used daily and I can't repeat myself enough, they are sooo goood. The set is meant to be limited addition, but they are still available in most drugstores and also online.

If you find something you like, buy loads of it :D For me it's plum and berry shades. I'm sure you know my obsession with purple lipsticks/glosses and now I've moved the obsession onto my cheeks as well :D The plum colored Expertwear blush by Maybelline is a very very recent find, and even though it looked super shiny in the shop but ended up being quite matte in real life I still love the colour. It's this super buildable blush that is just so pretty...That's it...it's so pretty :D The shade is 79 Flash Plum.

I also got a peachy tone in shade 62 Rosewood because peach is a bit of an obsession as well lately. To be honest they only had these 2 shades in Superdrug and not that they only had these shades left...it seemed that these 2 are the only ones out there at the moment :D But I will look into it and if I can find more shades I'll link them below.

Dry Shampoo. I have been meaning to try out the dry shampoo but never really got round to it, so when my sister came and recommended me this one I had no more excuses any more. I have to say Momma finds less and less time to wash her hair so this is a godsend...or sistersend shall I say :D It smells so nice and once I was taught on how to use it I was set to go. It just gives me an extra day to rock some loose waves or a straight hair do rather than a ponytail. I mean I have worn that ponytail for months now :D This CO Lab dry shampoo in classic fragrance is meant to be better than the Batiste ones, but I wouldn't know as I haven't tried the Batiste :D If you have tried them both and have a different opinion let me know :)

Maybelline Dream Satin liquid foundation in 02 cameo. I will say this right at the start...I have way too many foundations, but this is by far my favourite. It is somewhere between medium and high coverage so not too good for those hot sweaty summer months, but it leaves such a flawless finish that for now (spring) it is perfect. And it is very durable. I walked through rain and wind with this bad boy on my face :S yes that sounded weird and dirty :D but it lasted. So if you want a flawless coverage this is the one.

Moving on to another face product. NYX Born to glow Liquid Illuminator is the bomb. I use it on top of my foundation just on my cheekbones for that glowy dewy JLo glowy dewy look :D And it just leaves an amazing glow without rubbing off the foundation. I'm pretty sure it is meant to be used as an all over the face product just like the similar product from Revlon, but the tone 02 Gleam is just a bit too dark for me at the moment for that purpose...it will be perfect in the summer though :)

And the last beauty favourite is actually an old favourite of mine that I recently repurchased and it's the Intimately Beckham Womens Eau de Toilette natural spray. This use to be my go to fragrance for work as it's really light weight, smells amazing, it's not offencive and it's SOOOO CHEAP :DI bought mine from Amazon fro about 7 pounds and the bottle is 75ml :o I don't think you get any better than that :D It will last me for so long as well, and it's such a nice floral summery scent.

Fashion wise has been a bit slow these past months :D But I have managed to find some things I absolutely love.

Starting with shoes...I mean I won't go into detail, you have seen me wearing them on Instagram and as part of a casual sweater dress outfit. These Missguided flats are so comfortable yet stylish...I love them, I love them a lot :D

I have also given into my obsession with sunglasses and purchased 2 pairs recently (they are on the beauty favourites picture) The balck ones are from Asos and were 10 pounds and the brown ones with gold accents are from Primark and they were only 3 pounds :O

Moving on to 2 more things I found from Primark. The 2 floral gypsy off the shoulder strappy blouses. They were 6 pounds each so I had to get both of them. And this whole off the shoulder look is very in at the moment, so I'm glad I get to try it out without spending a pretty penny. I got a one in colour grey and navy and I got the size 8. I won't be able to link them as Primark doesn't have an online shop :(

Another very affordable brand is Forever21. I mean you can't get better than that. I went in there and you do get a bit blinded by the lights and all the products but once you get right in there and start searching you will find some fabulous gems. I found the Acid Wash  3/4 length jeans in light blue. And they have been my favourites ever since. I only paid 14 pounds and I also have to mention that I bought size w26 rather than the usual w27 that I go for in other shops just because they are very stretchy and I don't want them to stretch out too much and become unwearable.

And then there is the New Look bag. I have worn it as part of an outfit for one of my fashion posts but never got round to actually tell you guys how much I like it. It is also now on sale for just 10.99 (I'll link it down below)

The size is just perfect for all your essentials and because it's nice and compact I can even take it with me when I go out with a pushchair as it goes over the shoulder. It's just this perfect little black bag for days and nights out :)

And this is it for my recent favourites :)

Hope you enjoyed the post 

Stay tuned

xoxo

Meril

Products

Intimately Beckham for Her Eau de Toilette 50ml • Red Carpet • £9.99
Maybelline Expert Wear Blush Rosewood • Maybelline • £5.19
Maybelline Expert Wear Blush Flash Plum • Maybelline • £5.19
Maybelline Dream Satin Liquid Foundation - Sun beige • Maybelline • £8
COLAB Dry Shampoo London 200ml • £3.15
FOREVER 21 Acid Wash Skinny Jeans • Forever 21 • £14
Woven Slip On Skater Pumps Tan • Missguided • £16
Real Techniques Limited Edition Duo Fibre Set • £23.99
NYX Liquid Illuminator - Gleam • NYX • £9
ASOS Oversized 70s Sunglasses - Black • Asos • £10
Black Snakeskin Padlock Chain Strap Bag • New Look • £10.99

Recent Beauty Favorites

Hello, Everyone.

I have recently come across some really good beauty products, that I can just see myself using time after time, day after day. So I thought why not start the month with some favorites. It's usually an end of the month thing to do, but since I haven't done a monthly favourites post in such a long time I figured it doesn't even matter when I do it :D So here are my recent beauty favorites. Bear in mind that all these products are completely affordable and I purchased them myself apart from the L'oreal liquid bronzer that was kindly sent to me by L'oreal team to try out :)I'll go from first to last but not from most favourite to least :)

The first thing is something I never thought I can find. Perfect false eye lashes. If you have been following me for a while on here and maybe on Instagram, you might have noticed a post of a pile of false eye lashes I was meant to try out. But I haven't really had an occasion. But at the end of last month me and D had a chance to have a date night after a very very long time, so I figured I'll go all out. I decided on these Eye Candy 50's 012 style lashes and I'm so impressed. First I'm not a big fan of lashes that actually look fake and these definitely do not. They look so natural, but add a whole lot of volume and thickness and length. So off to falseeyelashes.co.uk I went again and ordered a butt load of them just in case :D they are only 2.49 or 2.99 (can't remember exactly) and they come with next day delivery that you don't have to pay extra for :) and of course with the spring sales there is a discount code to get 20% off when you spend 25 pounds :)  Just use the code EASTER2015 :)

The one thing I will say, is that it's quite hard to get them off the pack :D But that might be because they had been in that pack for a really long time. And the Katy Perry color pop lashes for Eyelure are pretty good as well, but defo for a more intense look :)

Second favorite is the Maybelline Dream Flawless Nude Fluid-touch Foundation. I bought this in a wrong colour hoping I had actually gained some colour. But I hadn't :D still ivory or whatever colour is in the beginning of the row :D So I went and got a correct colour for my current skin tone 10 IVORY. The thing with this foundation is that it's so blendable and stays on the skin like a sheer layer of silk. AMAZING. So impressed with this and it's just the perfect foundation for everyday use. I used this on my Purple Make Up Post as a base and it definitely photographs well with flash as well :)

Another favorite from Maybelline are their ColourSensational lipsticks. I like how they are really velvety and yet quite long stay. And the colours are beautiful. I have yet to buy their new line for the same product, but definitely will. If you have tried it let me know if it's worth buying :) Or do you have a lipstick favorite of your own? The dark one is color 365 Plum Passion and nude color is 710 Sultry Sand. And check me out for getting a nude colour as I have been on a bit of a purple haze lately :D

Look how nicely the plum colour sticks into my arm hair :S :D

L'oreal Glam Bronze Eau De Soleil....weightless fresh bronzer natural healthy tan

When this came through the mailbox I was super exited to try it. It says on the bottle that you can use it to bronze and contour and it's absolutely perfect for both. It has the same liquidy consistency as the maybelline foundation, so it's super easy to blend into your skin or foundation. I've mainly used it to contour at the moment and it just works. Definitely a product worth stocking up on. I might ACTUALLY stock up on it because I'm so scared it will be a seasonal product :D Another thing I'm going to say is that in the recent craze of contouring this is probably the only product you need. rather than buying 7 countouring kits that cost from 10-50 pounds, You just use your usual foundation and this liquid bronzer. So thumbs up for this one :)

I have been liking single eye shadows lately. I just found that I pay lots of money for a cool palette and then only use 3 colors from it. So I have been buying single ones instead and these 3 are MY FAVORITES. L'oreal Nude cream single eye shadows in colour nude204 which is the darker one and nude206 that is the lightest of them all.

I have been using Maybelline Color Burst in colour Bronze on Bronze as a base for so long and I do find it needs a coat of powder shadow on top, escpecially when you are using an eye liner as well, because it doesn't let the liner to dry and it will end up in the crease of you lid. But these nude creamy shadows are in between powder and cream and their staying power is so good you don't need a primer or a setting spray or any powder shadow on top for them to stay on for the day without creasing.....AND the liner stays on perfectly :)
And the coppery Maybelline colorshow eyeshadow in 23 Copper Fizz...see the name matches the color :D I like this color a lot...I like it a lot. Same thing as with the L'oreal shadows...creamy but powdery..I don't know.

Another one is not really a beauty, but rather a skin care favorite and it's a bit hard to buy these ones as the brand is only sold in Poland...I think :D and I haven't actually even tried them yet, but I just know I will love them as my friend highly highly recommended these. I got a few testers from her to try out and I will giving her my order once she goes to Poland to get me a bucket load of the products :D And apparently all the products are SUPER CHEAP as in a pound for a wash or a mask or a cream....I mean...come on...I'm getting loads :D

I don't actually even know what these packets do as I speak no Polish :(

And lastly it's the least expensive thing on my list of favorites. This £1 MUA blusher in color Marshmallow.  It's such a nice berry pink color and it's perfect for spring tiiiime. I like this one. I also got 5 different colours from MUA blusher range, just because they are 1 POUNDS each :D but this color is definitely my favourite. So go get it :) hahaha I'm just kidding, but I'm not as well.

And this is it for the beauty favorites at the moment. I'm still on the quest to find a really good affordable highlighter, so if you have one you have found and love, please let me know. Otherwise I will have to succumb to a splurge buy and get the Charlotte Tilbury one :S :D 

Hope you enjoyed the post guys :)

Stay tuned as I will be posting a recap of the Easter Sunday :) After easter. And if I'll be really good there will be a post before that :)

xoxo

Meril

Daily Makeup Routine

I'm going to start the post by saying, I don't think there is any need to wear make up every day, specially when all you do is stay at home. But even going out...if you don't want to wear make up then I think you have every right not to. It's all about feeling confident in yourself. 

I don't wear makeup daily, I don't think I need to. I do have a few blemishes and a bit of uneven skintone, I've got redness and my skin is not as tight anymore as it use to be, but it's fine...I'm ok with that.

But sometimes there are these days, when you maybe just want a little pick me up, or maybe you don't feel as confident. I mean we all have these days, and those are the days when I have a simple makeup routine. 

I do like playing around with different products and colour, but for my daily makeup I have my old favorites :)

The before and after pictures are completely unedited, just so you can get a clear view of the changes :)

They are also pretty bad quality :D ever so sorry, I am in search for a good compact camera, so hopefully soon enough I would be able to have better quality photos :) Also it's really rainy today and it got really dark, which is why the colours are different...I had to turn the light on

These are all the products  and brushes I used 

I start off by applying the  Rimmel London Stay Matte liquid mousse foundation in colour 100 Ivory.

I love how it just evens out and makes my skin look really smooth. And I use the real techniques stippling brush to apply it.

Then I use the Makeup Revolution Vivid Baked Bronzer. This only costs 4 pounds, but I think it's amazing. The colour is really nice and intense. And the name of the colour is Ready To Go.

I apply it with a big blush brush. 

Then i add a bit of highlighter at the top of my cheekbones, just under the eyes. And I use an angled blush brush. This highlighter is a new buy from Revlon in the clour 020 Rose Glow

The next thing I do is my brows, because my hair is actually light brown ( I die my hair dark) my eyebrows don't really match, so I colour them in using the Collection Work the Colour Eyebrow kit. I use the middle colour and an angles eyebrow brush. The 

One of the last things I do is my eyeshadow. I use the Maybelline colour Tattoo cream eyeshadow in colour 35 - On and on Bronze as a base and then use the Revlon Photoready eyeshadow set in 505 Impressionist on top. 

I use the primer (the bottom right colour) all over my lid on top of the color tattoo shadow, and then with a soft blending brush add the medium brown colour in the creases of the eyes. I then use an angled shadow brush to add the darkest colour in the outer corner of my eyes and blend it out. Finish it off with mascara. Today I used the Estee lauder Sumptuous Extreme mascara (picture above)

And I use the Revlon Colourburst Lip Butter in the 095 Creme Brulee shade :) I really love these lip butters, the colours are so pretty and they do make your lips really soft. I love this nude one as a daily lippy and I keep it with me for a top up when I need one :)

Hope you guys enjoyed the post :)
Also If you have a post request or a product you would want me to try out for you, leave a comment below  :)

Have a happy rainy weekend everyone :)
xoxo

Shopping With The Sister

Good Evening, Everyone :)

My sister came to visit us this week, which meant it was time for a serious shopping trip. I must say the weather has been incredibly horrible...it's rainy and it's cold and it's windy. Nevertheless we made our way to town for the second time today.
We've kind of tried to divide the days with different themes. Yesterday it was Beauty and today Fashion. So in order to not confuse myself and leave something important out I'll write this post about our amazing beauty buys and new finds and do an Outfit of the Day post about my fashion buys. I will also be telling you guys about where to find the bargains at the moment and which beauty stands are giving away the best gifts :)


To begin with, we went to Superdrug to have a look around the makeup counters and find some new beauty products.
I picked up these 4 Maybelline Color Tattoo eye shadow pots. I know they are not quite new products so to speak, but they are new to me. I have heard amazing things about these little pots and I must say hey haven't disappointed me yet.
They had two different types...I went for the 3 classic shimmery colors and one leather effect color.

The colors from left to right are... 65 - Pink Gold (this is my favorite), 55 Immortal Charcoal, 36 On and on Bronze and the leather effect Vintage Plum 97

I also picked up this So Eco brush from TK Max. It's meant to be a shading brush, but it's quite stiff so it's perfect for the color tattoo shadows since they have a creamy consistency. I have found that applying them with my fingers is the best way to go :)

And then I also picked up this lip gloss from the Maybelline counter. I absolutely love the packaging. It's called Color Elixir lip lacquer and I chose the nr 105 Petal Plush tone :)
Loving it and using it daily. I might actually go back and get it in every single color there is because it's just so pretty :D

The last thing I bought was this Bourjois Paris Mega Liner. I tried it on my hand one day and just had to go back and buy it. It's actually 3 pounds off in Superdrug at the moment so it was only about a fiver :) It's just so easy to apply and it stays on for days (over exaggerating here :D). I don't use eye liner daily but when I go out every now and then I do like a little cat eye and it's so easy to get it right with this felt tip liner :)
The only thing I don't like about it is that when I put it on the color tattoo eye shadow the creaminess of the shadow doesn't let it dry completely so it ends up at the top of my lids and gets a bit smudgy. But on a regular powder shadow it doesn't happen so it's all good :)

And these are my latest little buys. I must say I really like all of the products and just feel that lately the high street products are worth buying over the premium beauty products :)

Here are some of the offers I've found in the beauty department :)

In Superdrug they have a Buy 1 Get 2nd 50% off on most products, the only thing is that you have to stay inside the brand. So you might end up buying more than you needed :D
And they have 50% off most skincare ranges at the moment.

In Boots there is Buy 3 for the price of 2 on all skincare products and you can mix and match between brands which is very useful :)

At the Premium Beauty department I must say if you're going premium do it before Christmas, because most of the brands are offering amazing gifts with 2 or more buys :)
Estee Lauder is giving away a whole beauty bag (in Boots and Debenhams, I'm not quite sure if House of Fraser does that offer) if you buy 2 products, one of which is skincare. And they have gift sets designed for Christmas presents :)
Same goes for YSL and Clinique (gift bag with 2 products)
And Lancome and Benefit will give you a free Mascara if you buy any 2 of their products.

The other thing I love about Christmas are all the beauty packs and gifts. It's escpecially good if you're thinking of trying out something new and don't want to buy a full size product in case it doesn't suit you. Most beauty stores do the gift packages and they usually cost less than the counter price.

Who said it has to be a gift for someone else ;) treat yourself :)

Stay tuned for the Outfit of The Day posts that feature 2 items from....wait for it...Primark. So you know it's going to be affordable :)

xoxo