Look of the Day 13th August 2014

Hi Friends! It's been a long while since I've done one of these posts but I'm feeling extra good about myself today so I thought why not share it with you all!

I haven't been out much on my own lately with it being the summer holidays so when I was kindly offered the chance by local Mary Kay beauty consultant Abe to try out some skin care & beauty products I organised the time to get my natter on.

The look is extremely basic but it's the skin care behind it that makes the primer, foundation etc work at the highest levels. I'm going to be real honest with you, the days I'm not wearing make up and exhausted I often go over my face quickly with a cleanser and a cotton pad then fall asleep (dun dun dun!) but recently I've taken to dealing with my made up face before getting tired and it's really made a difference to my complexion.

A new post will be up tomorrow about the products I tried & tested.

Thanks to the Mary Kay ladies- Abe & her team for lending their time.

Thanks for popping by folks
Dawn x

If you liked this post you might like:
The nails this week
Biore Deep Cleansing Pore Strips

FTC- This post isn't sponsored, caring is sharing!

Bloomin Girls Festival

Hey Everyone!

An amazing festival is coming to the Manchester Academy for one day on Wednesday 23rd July that combines fashion, beauty, fitness and music aimed at girls 14-17.

If your looking to have a good time, Bloomin Girls have got you covered! You'll have all access to the event and a chance to sample your favourite beauty, fashion and hair products as Bloomin Girls  have teamed with MUA, Boohoo and Batiste! 
If you thought that was was the icing on the cake then this has to be the coolest cake topper as Neon Jungle will be having a meet and greet all for free just click here for tickets! This is a fantastic chance to have fun and build on your potential.

How Keeping Active Helped Me

Growing up my Dad and I would sit for hours watching sport and eventually I caught the sport bug and start to run around the track at my local park. Running cleared my head and I felt so much better about myself as well as feeling a lot more confident about my body and meeting new people. I am the youngest daughter with Two older brothers and socializing was something that I found difficult but I didn't have to worry about anything when I was running. The confidence I gained from activities like Phys Ed at secondary school help me to manage personal struggles and look past them.

Something as simple as going for a walk or doing a gentle work out before I sit down to blog or record a video is the difference between the process going smoothly or me ending up in an anxious heap. Looking back on that time I wish I had kept up with it as it was beneficial to getting me through the tough moments and  it could have given my life more direction.

A lot has changed since my early teens and I've recently gotten back into sport and I'm really enjoying working my way slowly towards running with the passion I once had. Not for competition but for Me because I owe it to myself to be the best person I can be mentally and physically.

If your interested there's more information on their Facebook page and exclusive videos and photos on their Twitter page.

I would love to see your posts of your time at the festival so please favourite this so you can I can view your posts. Have a sweet day blogsters!

Recent Posts
Mini Beauty Haul
YouTube Up's & Down's

Thanks for stopping by.
Dawn x

FTC- This post isn't sponsored, just a nice post about a great event.

The Accidental life of Jessie Jefferson by Paige Toon

Hi everyone.

This is the first Paige Toon novel I've read and it most definitely won't be the last. The Accidental Life of Jessie Jefferson is Paige Toon's first teen Novel and even though I'm Ten years older than the age demographic I fell in love with story.

 Jessie is going through a difficult patch in her life. Her Mum has recently passed away and never told Jessie who her real Dad is. Jessie is living in the same house she shared with her Mum and it just her and her step Dad Stu. All that's getting Jessie through this rough time is her new friends and her crush Tom. As Jessie parties away the pain she still can't escape her Mother's memory. Stu seeing Jessie's life is spinning out of control thinks telling her who her biological Dad is will bring her back down to earth. Jessie Dad isn't just some average Joe he's Johnny Jefferson, legendary rock star who has put his wild parting days to rest and now a reformed family man. Jessie has to adjust to her new L.A. life, step siblings and a new love interest on the scene.

I absolutely loved this book. I can't say I love it from beginning to end because Jessie was grieving her mother but after that Stu was stepped up and became the most beautiful character I've encompassed from a novel. I read this Two months ago and I can't wait to read more from this series and her other books. I wish this book was around when I was a teen.

Which books are you enjoying or reading for the summer?

Recent post
Tea Tree cleansing Wipes
Mini Beauty Haul

Thanks for popping by
Dawn x

Tea Tree cleansing wipes by Sainsburys | Budget Buys

Hi Amigos! I've been trying out a few cleansing methods lately and I thought it would be a good idea to go from a budget/ non costly brand that everyone could get their hands on to well known and slightly more costly brands and see how achieve some knowledge of what the individual products do or don't do best.
I've got some great news under this review also!

Sainsburys is one of the UK's big 5 top supermarkets. They often have deals on known name skin care and beauty products so it can be a good place to check out if you want to get a deal. Sainsburys also have their own line of skincare brand that in facial care that mainly consists of cleansing wipes.

A fair bit of fraying on the second round of cleaning my face but
but it did manage to get most of my make up off.  

I've chosen the tea tree variety of wipes as I have uneven skin tone and oily skin which Tea Tree helps to manage. These wipes clain to not only remove make up leaving your skin cleansed and toned, feeling refreshed soft and smooth with added B3 anto help clear clear skin.
In the cleansing wipes range you can choose from Aloe Vera, Vitamin E and eye make up remover pads. Click here for more information.

What I liked about these wipes were as you take them out of the packet you don't have the overwhelming scent of tea tree oil as I have experienced in the past. The scent is nice but too much of it can be over powering and I often remember after using a similar product that I felt as if the scent was following me around 20 minutes after use so the fact that this scent is mild and non offensive is a thumbs up for me.

The wipes are soft and gentle on the skin but it was difficult to get a great deal of use out of one side of the wipe as if you wipe to long on one section the wipe will begin to fray and become fluffy and come apart.
This was disappointing as I try to get as much use out of the wipe before discarding it and I had to use two wipes to remove a light amount of foundation and eye make up.

Final thoughts
These cleansing wipes do stand up to to the test of removing dirt and impurities on a face with zero make up a lot better than a full face make up. I would say it's ideal for a refreshing quick fix in the morning before washing your face or if your out and about during the day.

I've been nominated for my second Liebster Award by Kim  & Kyle so I just want to say thank you both so much for nominating me. Check out Kim and Kyle's amazing blog here. 

I'm going to have a post up every day this week so be sure to pop by and see what happening. I uploaded a new book review yesterday if you'd like to check it out here!
Recent posts:
Beauty haul post
My You Tube story

Dawn x

Mini Beauty Haul

Hey Bloggerinos!

I haven't been on a beauty shop/ haul in a while and sometimes I have no idea what I like but yesterday I was calm and focused as I slowly strode around Oxford Street. As I haven't gone crazy in a while I it would be smart to budget myself. I slightly went overboard but I'm still quite proud (high fives all round). So lets get down to some gandering!

The first area in the beauty department I gravitate to has been the Collection display as I've notice that the Goth Glam lipsticks have been discontinued. I was hoping that I would be able to get my hands on another tube of the delightful Revenge because even though it's summer I'm deeply in love with it.

 No such Luck there but Scorned was available so I decided to give it a go. I think Scorned and I will get on amazingly and I can always mix it with other lipsticks to get the desired effect I'm going for. Blog review coming soon!

I've forever been looking for a fluffy blending brush and it just wasn't happening so when I saw this brush was only £1.99 I snapped it up! If it doesn't work out it only cost Two quid. It can also be used for blending concealer. Keep your eye out for a review!

A White pencil applied in the right place can work wonders on my eyes. It can make you eyes look more awake, make your eyes appear bigger or you could just have fun with it for Halloween look. I've never had a white khol pencil (2 true) before so I'm going to play around with it and see how it goes. Youtube videos, here I come!

I love, love, love a matte lip, who doesn't? I don't have very many in my collection but I use blotting paper to gently dull the shine on my glossies. Cream Puff by Collection is nothing new but it's still popular. To be honest I wasn't sure if any of the colours were for me so I played it safe here but I think can mix it up and make it work.

As well as loving my Burgundy lipstick I have possessed the spirit of Nicki Minaj's lips circa 2011. I picked up Perrie's lipstick from the Little Mix collection and fell for lilac colour immediately so this £1 lipstick from MUA (which was the only shade left) is perfect for me as I'm starting to feel more confident with and with out make up.

If you haven't caught on that I'm going slightly loopy on the lip products and having fun, mixing it up so I got this fair Pink/ Rose gold type shade as I could match it up with any lipstick I choose. It also has a nifty sharpener in the lid so it's great for on the go.

The Eyeko liquid eyeliner pen was free with Glamour magazine last month in conjunction with Alexa Chung's cover. I've yet to try it but if it's a goodun I'll be a loyal supporter.

I hope you enjoyed this as much I love writing it. It's been a right feel good day today and I just desperately wanted to share with you all.

Take care and blog ya soon,

Dawn x

My Story - YouTube, Blog Life Ups and Downs

Hi Amigos!

It's been a while and I'm so so sorry. I've been trying to sort out life, thinking about what I want to do with my blog and YouTube channel.

I've had my YouTube for over a year and it's not been the easy task juggling being a Mother and trying to be consistant with the content on my channel and blog.

I guess I'm writing this blog as a way to get my feeling out as I'm wondering if anyone feels similar to how I do, so here goes!

At first I had no idea what I wanted to do with my blog. This isn't my first try at the blogging scene but it isn't  much different to be honest. Initially I wanted to have my blog site centre around being a new mum, which was a great idea but I felt so much of my time was being a new Mother that I wanted to do something different to break up my time.

I'm not sure how or why I decided to do make up reviews because besides from wearing eye liner and lipstick here and there at school I've never really been into. A strong part of it I would say came from watching many beauty videos on YouTube. I would watch all the Get Ready With Me, Favourites and other types of videos and wanted to be part of that community but it never felt like the real me.

What I liked about the people in front of the camera is their passion.  That's what I wanted most of all for myself, to have the passion to talk about what I loved and cared about and it wasn't so much about beauty, it was books. Sadly by this time I had invested a large of myself into thinking that beauty was the way to go and trying to push myself into something I wasn't 100% about made my anxiety sky rocket on the inside which in turn made me depressed.

That's when I decided it didn't have to be all or nothing.  I didn't have the confidence to talk the beauty talk but I still could share what I loved about beauty in the form of a blog. The anxiety was still there but it was less and I felt better but I still wanted to bring my love of books into my blog.

Writing about books brought me back to square one again and I felt so down on myself. All I wanted to do was share about the book I was reading and if I could do that with beauty why couldn't I do that with books? Luckily for me I had my wonder boys to fall back on and distract my mind from all the anxiety I was feeling.

We have to keep smiling, no matter what.

Over time I started to push myself into doing things I didn't like, for example sitting front of the camera and chatting about anything I could think of just so I could try to get comfortable enough to make sense. I eventually did but by that time the people who had started their path on YouTube at around the same time I did were on the fast track and I had much appreciated tiny audience. I used to get quite upset about it but I would look at my life and think I have a lovely little family of my own, how can I let something so small that was meant to be enjoyable stress me out?

This is my path. Maybe blogging and YouTube isn't right for me but I'm finally starting to feel comfortable in what I do. If anything is going to happen like everything in my life up to the moment of me writing this I'm going to have to be patient.

If you want something you have to work hard a push past the negative and stay in your own lane. That way when you get to where ever life takes us we can enjoy it outright.

I know this was a really long worded blog today but if you got to the end it means a lot.

Sorry if I seem patronising, I just let my hands take over on this post. It's honest and feels raw so it is what it is. I'll gladly ask questions if their are any.

My YouTube link if you would like to have a look around.
I would love to know your story also, please leave links below.
Thanks again x

fan girl freak out and update (video)

Hello Everyone!

It's great to be back on the good ol' blog, how are you all?

I decided to do a chit chat type catch up video to talk about where I'm headed and what you crazy, cool kids will be seeing here in the next few months. I'm not used to talking like this so hope you like it.

See you soon lovelies x

The Nails This Week - Glossy Multi Coloured Nails.

Today I wanted to so something out of the ordinary and mix up the colours I go for and try out some designs too. I saw a similar nail design while shopping for neon/ pastel polishes (naturally) and thought I knew a rookie way to create it myself.

DIY:

1. Applied base coat to nails.

2. Outlined boxes with Black nail marker 

3. Filled in boxes carefully with polish (a toothpick or dotting tool is very handy to spread out colour).

4. Re outlined the boxes with Black nail marker.

5. Applied top coat and to speed up the drying process I used I nail drying spray.

I think using similar shade of green and then adding either a darker or lighter shade gives it a fresh feeling. 

I messed up quite a lot but I'm quite chuffed I did something new and I can't wait to share my ideas with you all. 

Thanks for popping by,

Dawn x

#NOTD Miss Sporty Lasting Colour

Hey Bloggerinos!

It's warm out today and I'm feeling these fresh nails from Miss Sporty. This delicate peach hue is perfect for Spring nail trends as one coat gives a gentle tint to nails which is easily buildable to create a stronger colour pay off.

It's Too Latte (or 525 as the store I visited didn't have the title) shine intensifies as you layer coats but beware it is quite streaky.

All in all for £2 you can't be too fused and for minimal touch to an outfit depending on your style. The brush fits the nail so you don't have to stress about filling in the gaps in the corners. With a base coat I see this lasting on my nails for maybe a week and not the 10 days it claims but I do wash my hands a ton everyday so that my bad. What do think?

Thanks for stopping by folks!
Dawn x

Snack Obession #2 - Treat Yo Self!

Hi Amigos!
It's been a while since we last had a natter but there's nothing like talking about food to bring people together,(other than eating it) right?

Cheat day, cheat treat whatever you want to call it, when my tummy is a grumbling my mouth is mumbling about food and as the seasons change I'm finding new tasty ways to satisfy my appetite.

Teasers is the new delicious chocolate from Malteasers out in time for Easter. Gone are the days these little cheeky sods are rolling away from me! Mini honeycomed, chocolate covered pieces of heaven are light on the tummy leaving plenty of room for tea.

I really liked the cute and quirky advert for Sunbites but Sweet Chilli  is by far the best flavour. Onion and Rosemary tastes, well it doesn't taste of anything really. I found it quite mild and plain. Sweet Chilli has such a strong (not over powering) taste that's blended together perfectly which Walkers always seems to get just right across their crisps.

Today was the perfect day for going to the park, having a run about with kids and eating ice cream while it's hot because who knows when the weather is going to change, right? So I decided to kick it old school and got a Feast for £1 at my local newsagent.

Three Years ago I had no idea what rice cakes were and it was only when my boys were moving onto eating solids that I got into them. We've recently switched from the rice cakes to corn cakes and they taste just as good to be honest. These are a great because you can add to them or just have them on their own. I feel better eating a few of these than a chocolate bar. This has to be my snack of the moment this month.

So let me know what foods your loving right now, caring is sharing! Haha

Dawn  xx

Snack Obsession

I can hold my hand up high and positively say that everyone has scanned the house for food when dinner is just around the corner. While others may satisfy themselves with a packet of crisps or a chocolate bar I tend to go slightly over bored and this is how OTT I was this evening (I already scoffed some of the Oreos and Choux pastry, lol). This could be the tastiest blog I've ever written!!!

Propercorn is the yummiest snack I've had in a long time. It's easy on the pocket (around 79p) and not heavy on the calories. I love making my own popcorn at home but not having to pick out unpopped popcorn is a major plus. A big thumbs up from me and my tum tum. 

I've never tried YOYO in my life before today and I'm not too keen on Mango flavoured snacks but I thought I would give this fruit roll up a go. One packet goes towards one of your five a day pledge (I've been watching a lot of the midnight beast lately) so that's a plus. If a Mango flavoured YOYO doesn't sound up your street I've heard a Grape flavour is available.

Nothing takes my mind off looking in the cupboard repeatedly, just to be disappointed eveytime (why do we do that?) than reading. It's Tuesday aka new magazine day so I've the pick of the bunch to distract myself from the grumbles. New nail polishes ( the Maybelline colour sensational nudes collection is the shiz), trends ( I've always loved an anklet) and catching up on the latest person collaborating with Mac (Lorde btw) is a sure fire way to put those pangs aside.

As I write this dinner is waiting for me so I guess I can add blogging as another beautiful distraction. 

Thanks for stopping by folks,

Dawn x

YouTube Channel / Book Review | Lisa Jewell | After the Party

                     

About Nine months ago created my YouTube channel in which I wanted to share the experiences I was having with whomever wanted to see them. I soon decided that it might me a good idea to share the great books I was reading also so I started (nervously) making videos about the books I like.

I've kept up with my reading but the videos have followed up and that I decide to change today.
I always want the process to be fun and positive and share great books with others who love to read or just want to have a peak.

Here's one of the first videos I made, hope you like it.

Dawn x
                           

LOTD

Keeping you guys updated with another look of the day post for ya!

Compared to my first LOTD post, I'm a lot happier with this look. I'm slowly picking up techniques and my own way of doing things. I also wanted to do something different with my hair so I plaited my hair into little braids and left them over night and took them out in the morning.

Something I do want to improve on is my eye make up looks. I have a lot of ideas but I'm not exactly sure how to implement them so I'm looking for some easy starter eye looks (if you have any links please drop them in the comment box).

Thanks for stopping by

Dawn x

Look of the Day 9th March 2014

Happy Sunday Amigos!

I was in the mood to try something different today so I decided on a bright bold lip and a dark colour on the eye. I originally wanted to do a light to dark brown variation but me being me, I forgot to apply eye primer so had to switch it up.

Feeling a lot better about this look of the day compared to my last one. I'm starting to feel a little more confident and comfortable with different techniques. There will be a few more of these posts this week so keep an eye out.

What I used:

Rimmel London - Fix and Perfect Primer
MUA- Eyes - Undressed - Palette
Rimmel London - Professional Eyebrow Pencil - Black Brown
Maybelline - Dream Matte Mousse - Caramel
Rimmel London - Stay Matte Pressed Powder- Transparent
Topshop - Lips - All About Me
Collection - Supersize Mascara - Black
Seventeen at Boots - Blush - Damson Wine
Seventeen at Boots - Mascara - Doll'd up


Thanks for popping by,

Dawn x

Nails of the Week - Friday 7th March 2014

Hello blog lovers!

Hope you've all been having a great week. I did a bit of a vanishing act this week but I'm back at it so let's me share with you the NOTW!

This week I've been love the nude nails by Topshop.  When I said nude I really wasn't lying as this sexy, light wash of Brown is called Naked and it's number is 101! Coincidence, I think not as I didn't even have to use my trusty Barry M - All in one as base coat to pull off the flawless look but I did use it as a Top coat for extra added shine. The shade is quite light compared to my hands but I think the colour is very complementary to all. Naked reminded me of the colour Rihanna was wearing for the Loud album art.

It was super easy to apply to my nails, glided on with ease. I applied Two coats and then a top coat followed by a nail drying spray as it was taking a while on it's own.

As always, the packaging is cute and stands out from everything in my draw (it's the only Topshop polish I own) and after having it for over Six months, it hasn't turned into a gloopy mess as most of the polishes I own do.

I've been trying out a little nail art  this week so hopefully I'll start posting something other than NOTW.

Thanks for stopping by and have great weekend,

Dawn x

Liebster Award

Hey Amigos,

I'm extremely ecstatic as I've just been nominated for the for Liebster Award by Miss Maxwell, thanks you so much.

I'm really excited to share a bit of myself with you and also get to know more bloggers, so let get to it!

The rules as I understand them are:

• write 11 facts about yourself
• answer 11 questions given by the person who nominated you
• create 11 new questions
• nominate 11 bloggers & tag them in your post.( Most of the blogs I wanted to nominate have been so I'm saving some for awesome future blogs.)

11 Facts

1. I love the smell of freshly laundered clothes 2. Blogging is completely new to me and makes me nervous.

3. I procrastinate too much. 4. I enjoy Hitchcock films (North by Northwest, Foreign Correspondent.)

5. My favourite colour changes from time to time but it's mostly Black 6. I'm a Mother to twin boys.

7. I like pushing myself out of my comfort zone (sometimes). 8. I'm addicted to Mr Simms olde sweet shoppe (yep, that's how it's spelt). 9. I dig candles and incense. 10. As a teenager I used to put sugar in my sausage rolls (smh). 11. I love comics and old Saturday morning tv shows/cartoons 

11 Questions answered 

• Satchel or Rucksack? 

Was thinking about how I wore a rucksack to school everyday and I miss them so rucksack.

• Eggs in or out the Fridge? 

Always in the Fridge.

• Favourite City

I know this may change but I think London may always have my heart.

• Cooking or Baking?

Baking is in the family and it's a lot more fun.

• Lacroix or Louboutin?

Louboutin.

• Favourite past-time?

Watching movies/ reading.

• My role model

I can't name just one person so I have to say My family.

• Meaningful Quote?

'Life is like riding a bicycle, in order to keep your balance you must keep moving.'

• Favourite beauty product of 2014, so far?

Collection Goth Glam lipstick in and Topshop  lipstick in 

• Jelly sandals, yay or nay? 

Throw them away with Crocs, lol

• My theory on the vajazzle craze.

I'm not really into my area looking like a disco ball, but if floats your boat that's great.

11 New Questions

1. Nude or Bold lip?

2. What brings you happiness?

3. Favourite film with fashion influences?

4. Most desired place to visit? 

5. The most embarrassing craze you've followed?

6. Meaningful quoate?

7. Favourite Season?

8. High street or market?

9.Favourite cartoon?

10. Bus or Train?

11. UK or US? 

I nominate:

In Samazement

I would just like to say thanks to everyone who takes the time to read my blog. This is all very new to me and making the time has been difficult but I love it so thank you all for making it more worthwhile. x

Nails of the Week- Friday 28 th February 2014

Hello Everyone!

Firstly, I wanted to say that I really tried this week to gather as much about information about this nail polish so that I could give an honest and fair review as I always do.

Boots had a special offer on Rimmel nail polishes when I picked up It's A Scorcher which was my Boyfriend fantastic pick of the bunch.

I'm not usually into tones this bright but this beautiful, slightly glittered Orange colour works perfectly with my skin tone, making my hands look alive and vibrant. It's A Scorcher isn't just a lovely pop of colour perfect for spring, the polish also has minute flecks of gold glitter to add a further dose wow to your nails.

Unfortunately, colour isn't everything. I found it difficult to build up a strong, bold colour whilst trying to be neat with this shade. The formula is quite thick, streaky and took about Three coats to build the the bold intensity I like. I also found that it took an awfully long time for the polish to dry on it's own. I used a nail drying spray and I could still see my finger print in it with a gentle press. I think it would be easier to use this polish for nail art.

I really hope that I bought a dud bottle because I really adore this colour and I would love to wear it more but it's too much effort and time compared to other polishes I own. I also noticed that the bottle has no label on the actual bottle it's self, just on the brush handle in comparison to other Rimmel polishes that have a print.
I think I picked up a faulty product.

I would love to see your favourite Orange, Whites and Pinks for Spring.

Dawn x

Make-up look of the day- 24th February 2014

Hi Everyone!

A quick, little post of the make-up look I created.

I'm still learning when it comes to eye make up but I think I'm doing an ok job. I feel a lot more comfortable with my foundation and I'm deeply in love with this nude/ slightly rosey shade from Topshop.

Items used to achieve this look:
Eyes- Undressed Palette - MUA
Lips- Rumour has it -Topshop
Eye liner- Fast Stroke -Collection
Blush- Plum Puff - Seventeen
Foundation- Caramel - Dream Matte Mousse - Maybelline
Concealer- No.9 - True Match - LOreal

 Have you tried any of the items above and what do you think of them?
                     Thanks for popping by, Dawn x

Montagne Jeunesse Mud Pac- anti stress

Hey Beauties!

I really adore face masks. There is nothing better than sitting back, relaxing and feeling a mask get to work.
The Montagne Jeunesse masks are super inexpensive and wildly available from drug stores and pharmacies so I tend to pick up Two or Three at a time, tee hee.

The face mask of choice today is the Dead Sea, anti- stress mask which claims to 'draw out impurities and  open blocked pores to leave skin feeling cleansed and soft.'
I heard and read a lot in the past about the properties of Dead Sea mud such as it being effective for healing skin diseases and Psoriasis. Thankfully I have neither and it's just the oily, out of control T zone to take care of today.

After removing all make-up and thoroughly cleansing my face with warm water, I applied the mask to my face, working from my nose and outwards. I like to do this because if I have a good amount of product left over it can be applied on the area I have the most problems with. I always have enough to cover my face twice. The mask can be applied to the neck area but it's not something that I do.



Be as careful as you can when applying mask around the eye area. As the mask hardens and becomes tighter, it pulls on the skin and can feel uncomfortable.

The scent of the pac is soothing and calm, slightly minty like spearmint gum while the consistency is easy to work with and smooth out across the face and under the chin area.
The mud pac started to become tight after Twelve minutes or so and I kept it on for Twenty- Five minutes in total.

my best teenage mutant ninja turtle impression 

Washing the mask off my face was easy as with warm water the mask turns in to a silky, milk type of texture. Without looking into the mirror to see where the mask is, you can feel the difference between the fresh, cleansed skin and where it's partly washed off.

I'm really happy with the end result. My skin feels hydrated, clean, extremely soft and smooth.
I followed up with a light night cream which I massaged thoroughly into my skin before going to bed.
I'm a lot happier with this mask compared to the Simple Deep Cleansing Face mask.
To those concerned, the mud pac is Vegetarian approved and BUAV approved.

I would love to know what skin type you have and which face masks you've tried.

                                                        Thanks for stopping by! Dawn x

Dinner for Two

Hello Amigos!

Valentines Day was the last time I ate at GBK and seen as I love their burgers, milkshakes, sides and sauces, it made sense to spend that loving day doing the thing I love best. Stuffing my face with food.

Now before I go into what we had to eat you have to understand that I'm crazy for blue cheese. I don't know what it is about it but I just get really excited about it and want to gobble it up in an instant. Even thinking about it now has got me dribbling slightly.
I think it's the best thing in the world to know a restaurant well enough that you don't have to look at a menu but the waiting for it arrive at your table is a mixture of torture and bliss.

Kiwi Burger

GBK cater for every appetite. Beef cooked to your preference, Chicken- chargrilled or crumbed & fried and three vegetarian options. Burgers start from £6.75 but they have a lunch menu or something similar which the price is a little lower. The milkshakes are extremely delicious and thick. I love Oreo milkshake is regular favourite. Fresh and Fizzy in Citrus is a great for a refreshing drink and drink up because you get free refills!

Oreo Milkshake 

The Blue Cheese burger has a house mayonnaise, relish and salad. You can choose from a blue cheese sauce or a slice of Gorgonzola (kinda salty). This burger never fails to deliver in flavour and never fails to satisfies my hunger.

Blue Cheese burger

onion rings & chunky chips

Tell me what your favourite meals and drinks are?

Thanks for reading,

Dawn x
a>

Nails of the week - Friday 14 February 2014

Hello Amigos! This week's Nails of the week is all about Claire's nail polishes, more specifically Galactic and Metallic Lavender. 

Metallic Lavender is a cross between a gentle Mauve shade with a splash of silver. I like my nail colour to be quite strong so I used my trusty Barry M - All in One as a base coat and followed up with two coats of Metallic Lavender and All in One as a top coat. This nail colour is perfect pastel shade to add to an outfit that consist of bright colour blocking.

Galactic injects fun and sparkle into a muted nail colour like Metallic Lavender. I would recommend that One coat of nail colour is needed if you plan on having a glitter polish on top as it chipped two days after application.

Earlier this year I fell in love with Matte nail polishes so I was really excited to try the Matte Top Coat from Claire's. The formula wasn't thick or difficult to work with and I felt my nails actually dried quicker so I didn't need to use a nail drying spray. Sadly after a month the consistency of it was stiff, thick (ha ha) like syrup.
My nails kept up for two to Three days before I had a chip which isn't the best but If you like change then it works to your advantage.

Claire's has a great selection of colours, polish effects and tools for producing nail art from the simple to complex. Price starts at £2.50 for polishes.

Link some some of your nail art or recommendations in the comments if you have any.


Dawn x


<a

Biore Deep Cleansing Pore Strips

Hey Amigos! This post is a fresh as my face is feeling right now because of the wonderful, heaven sent
Biore Deep Cleansing Pore Strips.

I've been battling in the war against my pores from my teens and although I have found a lot of great remedies they sadly only gave the desired effect for a short time. I have combination/ oily skin and more frequently the past few weeks I have been reaching for blotting paper in order to manage the situation which has been helping but not targeting the real issue.

I few weeks back I wrote about Simple Deep Cleansing Face Mask and that it seemed to do the trick but I felt I would have to use it everyday to achieve the outcome I wanted. I've since made the decision that I don't think it works for me and that was when I decided to try these cleansing strips.

I wanted to really put the Simple face mask to the final test before I gave it the heave ho, so I applied the mask onto my face and left it  to settle for around ten minutes before massage/washing it off my face.
The deep cleansing strips are best applied on a damp face so no better time than after you have washed your mask off. Each pore strip is in it's own foil packet with an easy open tab at the top so no silly fiddling about.
I peeled of the clear plastic from the cleansing strip and placed the strip sticky side down on my nose making sure it covered below the tip of my nose as that is where I have the most problems.
Applying the strip as smooth as you can is important as you don't want to have uneven of areas which did/didn't take.
After 15 minutes it felt stiff so I slowly lifted the strip from left to right and I instantly feel the already exposed skin was clean and refreshed. Looking at the how much was deposited on to it shocked and amazed me but most of all I'm happy I've found something that really targets the issue (fingers crossed!).

I'm hoping that my skincare routine will feel more worth the time as I feel this was a main reason some of the products I use were not showing their true potential.

Thanks for reading

Dawn x

<a

Rimmel Lasting Finish in Azure

         

Kicking off the week with Azure by Rimmel London from their Lasting Finish collection. This colour is the most adoring mix between Blue and Green, I honestly feel like Ariel from The Little Mermaid. I have never seen such a beautiful teal colour in my life! The colour manages to have an mystical yet remain cute simultaneously. Two coats of Azure will suffice to give full on colour. Each nail has taken on a slight unique shade of it own.

I used Barry M- All in One as a base and top coat and two coats of Azure was enough to have full coverage. The colour tone from the bottle doesn't do the actual application colour justice so give it a go, you won't regret it.

Dawn x

This post was inspired by Beauty Crush's Blue On Blue

<a

Nails of the Week - Friday 7 February 2014

 

Hey Folks, a quick little ramble about a new nail colour I picked up this week by Sinful Colors in the shade Dancing Nails.

I used All in One by Barry M as a base coat and top coat and the two coats glided onto the nail with ease, drying super quick so no need to use dry nail spray.

I adore this beautiful  Rose Gold colour teeny tiny flecks of glitter so small I think my eyes are playing tricks on me. Nonetheless it catches the light gently, adding a gentle pop of colour to an outfit.

Dancing Nails has been the colour of the week and with that comes all manner of tasks to be taken care of.
These two managed to hold it together fantastically throughout the week. I'm not say that I didn't have a few chips here and there but who doesn't, eh? Reapplication was always smooth and dried in no time which is the best for those last minute fixes. For the most part the formulas held to my nails as if I wasn't wearing anything at all.

Tell me what your favourite nail colours are in the comment box, I'd love to check them out. x


With Love

Dawn


<a

Botanics Organic Rosewater Spritz

Hey Everyone, I've been trying out a few toners lately and the one that my skin is loving is from the Botanics range at Boots. If your combination/oily skin has got you down in the dumps you may want to give this a try.

I discovered Botanics Rosewater Toning Spritz after I had tried different product from Boots Rosewater but with Glycerine which I think made my skin a lot more oiler than it was in the first place but that's another blog post.

Botanics Rosewater Toning Spritz is 100% organic so it's all natural and I didn't have to worry about unpronounceable names in the ingredients too much. It claims to refresh your skin  and visibly tighten pores, (thumbs up) enliven senses, remove last traces of make up leaving skin feeling smoother and fresher, ready for moisturising.

What I love about this product the most is that all I have to do is spray a light mist onto my face after cleansing etc and wipe round in circles with a cotton pad to lift the last of any make up or impurities from my skin. No longer do I have to transfer toner from bottle to cotton pad and then to face. It takes removes an unnecessary step from my routine and for me that means a lot when it's time for bed.
I repeat this step until skin feels relaxed and clear.

Since using this toning spray my skin has been less oily and my pores are tighter, less noticeable. Primer application around my nose is easier and I don't have to blot as much. I obviously still get oily from time to time, that's comes along with being a woman but this has really helped out.


If you've tried any amazing toners please comment so I can check them out.

With love,

Dawn


<a

Collection Gothic Glam - Revenge

Hey Amigos,
coming at you with this amazing lipstick from Collection's Goth Glam range in Revenge.

The deep Burgundy shade glided onto my lips with ease. The application felt as if I was applying a lip balm, soft and smooth. The Formula is quite drying but that nothing a reapplication or a little balm wouldn't fix.

The colour held up extremely well even though it drying on my lips. It didn't flake on my lips and after giving it time to settle on my lips it became matte so no need for blotting or transfer issues.

   

I really like the Black/Gold theme in and outside of the casing. I don't think the design on the top of the tube is 'Goth Glam' and looks a little out of place but as I'll be carrying this everywhere because I've fallen in love  with it, it will rub off in no time.          

I really wish I found this last year as I would've created so many more make up looks to go with it.

It's Collection so it's not damaging on the pocket and widely available.

Please let me know in the comments about more lipsticks to check out or what you think about the Goth Glam series.

With Love

Dawn x


<a

Beauty haul

I went out with the intention not to too crazy but as I stepped into the Boots all tame thoughts where cast aside. I don't feel bad about it at all now I have all my pretty, sparkly and dare I say sexy, new make up to toy with. Reviews to follow shortly so keep an eye out!

Rimmel Lasting Finish in Azure
Collection Goth Glam in Revenge
Rimmel Lasting Finish in Disco Ball
Botanics  Rosewater Spritz
Real techniques Starter Set
Boots Cotton Pads

With Love

Dawn x

 <a
  

Simple Deep Cleansing Face Mask

Hello Everyone, I'm on the skin care beat today so if you're a fellow Oily skin type individual you'll enjoy this post.

Spying like I habitually do around Superdrug I discovered Simple Deep Cleansing Face Mask.
The product declares to draw out deep down dirt, eliminate dead cells while being suitable for sensitive skin.
Simple embraces the benefits of vitamins and natural ingredients with no harsh chemicals or artificial perfumes and colours.
The colour of the mask is an off white colour while the texture is thin like a light lotion for the face while the scent is subtle with a slight whiff of what I think is Natural Clay.

My first impressions of the mask was that it was too thin to solve my oily skin issue. I cleansed my face before hand and smoothly applied the mask to face. When my whole face was covered I realised that the mask seemed to evaporate from my face. Simple recommend to leave it on for Three minutes but I had mine on for Six. I washed the mask off with warm water then cold water for the last rinse following up with my night routine.

I was happy with the results I achieved. After using the mask my skin felt smooth and more importantly oil free but I feel like I continued with this product I would have to use it everyday to maintain the results. Simple recommend to use the mask twice a week at most.

It's a shame that it didn't work out as well as I wanted as I love Simple's wipes and other products and the price was reasonable.

Please let me know if it works for you or any other masks you think are worth trying.

With Love

Dawn

<a

Simple Glittered Nails

Today's pretty nail colours were brought to you by the following:

Step 1: Applied one coat of Collection 2 in 1 base coat and Ridge Filler with Keratin.
Step 2: Applied a coat of Claire's Nail Hardener Polish.
Step 3: Two coats of Rimmel 60 seconds Nail Polish In Rapid Red 320
Step 4: One coat of  Claire's Galactic Glitter Nail Polish
Step 5: One coat of Claire's Clear Matte Effect Top coat

I like to do Two coats of Rimmel Rapid Red because I think one appeared  transparent and I wanted a solid base colour even though on the bottle it says only one is needed.

I was really happy with end of product. the finish was smooth and matte, it dried super fast and the glitter particles are fine so my nails weren't bumpy or rough. The overall product was thin on the nail and not soft to the touch but only after a few hours one nail had chipped and two had indentations but that was probably due to me doing the washing up not long after, lol.

Dawn x                        

  <a

                                              

Nivea Pure and Natural

I don't know about you but I think this is the cheapest and most effective lip balm I've ever had.

The one and only Nivea have out done themselves with the beautifully packaged Pure and Natural Milk and Honey lip balm.

Lets start with the packaging. It feels as smooth as your lips are going to feel after you've applied this wonder product to your lips.
The product is encased in a transparent plastic and sealed to a cardboard backing which I love because nothing is worse than checking through products of any sort to see if they've been tampered with. One less thing to worry about.

The lip balm unit has the trusted Nivea Logo a small image of yummy oozing honeycomb and to the left we have the milk splashing toward the honeycomb ensuring me that my lips will be hydrated, soft and supple in no time.

Honey is know for antibacterial, antioxidant and anti-fungal properties as well as being extremely soothing and containing vitamins A, B and D. Milk is very calming to the delicate skin on the lips.

I've heard so many people talk, make videos, blog about this product and in the short time from purchasing it to applying it to my much needed lips (I left my beauty bag at home) and experiencing the magic it can do, I wish I'd bought it sooner. For me, the Nivea Pure & Natural Milk & Honey is my go to chapped lips problem solver.

With love 

Dawn

<a