Urban Decay | Naked Palette | Review & Swatches

Naked Palette - £36.00 (Link here)

Hello Ladies! If you follow me on Twitter (@MissEssex) then you'll know that I treated myself to a shopping day on Saturday at Oxford Street, which was heaven. As the saying goes, good things come to those who wait. This is something I know to be true as I finally managed to get my mitts on Urban Decay's infamous Naked palette! I can't believe I didn't take the plunge sooner. There was just something about the £36.00 price tag which put me off up until now, but after buying the Naked Basics palette (read my review here) it gave me all the better reason to see what I'd been missing out on this entire time. The price covers the palette itself and two lovely extras, the sample size Primer Potion and the Urban Decay eyeshadow applicator. 

Yes, granted I know this has been out for absolutely ages. But somebody had to be last! I stood deciding between the original or Naked 2 for quite some time, but went for Naked as it has shades which are more brown toned rather than silver. I also read countless reviews on both palettes before deciding, and I'm so glad I did because I'm completely obsessed with it. One thing that stood out for me was the packaging. The twelve shadows are cased in a chocolate brown felt material palette, which I think is lovely. It may be prone to become covered in make-up, but for the time being it's stunning. I love the inside just as much, especially the metallic 'Naked' motif on the spine of the palette. 

The Naked palette is a dream to use as all colours have organisation to them, i.e they go from lighter beige shades to dark greys and navys. I think this was more of an investment for me, as beige is my go to colour for an everyday eye. I know MUA's 'Undressed' palette is a great dupe for Naked, which I also own, but the quality of these are absolutely to die for. 

Virgin - A pearlised off pink shade, ideal for highlighting

Sin - A shimmer/metallic pink shade

Naked - A matte light beige, perfect for a base colour over the lid

Sidecar - A shimmer/metallic darker beige

Buck - A matte biscuit colour, ideal for shadow in the crease

Half Baked - A gorgeous gold shimmer shadow, essential for brown smokey eyes

Smog - Slight darker colour than 'Half Baked', also with shimmer

Darkhorse - A beautiful chocolate brown with a hint of shimmer

Toasted - A light burgundy shade with a hint of metallic

Hustle - A metallic dark off-purple shade

Creep - A shade close to black with brown undertones, with a hint of shimmer

Gunmetal - A grey/navy colour with a small amount of a metallic undercoat 

Swatches as they appear in the palette 

Left to Right: Virgin, Sin, Naked, Sidecar

Left to Right: Buck, Half Baked, Smog, Darkhorse

Left to Right: Toasted, Hustle, Creep, Gunmetal

As I found with the Naked  Basics palette, every single shade is so pigmented and of such good quality, one swipe of shadow is all you need. Depending on the look you want to achieve, all of them are buildable and offer the best staying power imaginable. I don't necessarily need to use the little Primer Potion as I don't find they crease as easily as other shadows. That brings me nicely onto the extras which came with the Naked palette.

I've been pretty content using my MUA eyeshadow primer, purely for the fact I've never really branched out and tried others until now. I think the 3.7ml size is so cute, and I love the purple metallic finish on the bottle. The texture of this stuff is to die for, it isn't too thick but it's definitely creamy enough to do its job. This definitely helps colour stay put throughout the day, and once I've gone through the sample size, I'll be taking myself down to the Urban Decay stand and buying the full size. I'm aware there are other types of the Primer Potion, but right now the original suits me just fine. I've also developed a bit of a love for the eyeshadow applicator, it's a lovely item to have sitting at the bottom of the palette screaming to be used. I've never used any type of brush from Urban Decay but since discovering this I feel I may need to invest in some. The handle carries the same purple metallic finish as the Primer Potion, and has synthetic bristles so there's not a worry about it shredding and leaving those dreaded stray hairs on the tops of my cheeks. 

All in all, I'm super happy and impressed with the Naked palette and I still can't believe I didn't pick it up sooner. I'm hoping this will take me through the next year or so and I'm still hoping to pick up the Naked 2 palette soon to complete my collection. 

♥

The Righteous Butter & Flake Away | My Skincare Saviours

Soap & Glory Righteous Butter and Flake Away (Link here & here)

I've made it no secret that I have an unecessary interest obsession with Soap and Glory; my products have now somehow managed to spill over three Ikea storage boxes without me realising (see the post on my collection here). Who doesn't love a bit of S&G to add some luxury to their bath time? They're reasonably priced, easily available at Boots, smell amazing and carry the most gorgeous packaging ever. I won't bore you with the details on how fabulous the products themselves are - if you've tried 'Hand Food' or 'Peaches and Clean' then you will definitely already know! I've also made it no secret that I love to indulge in a bit of 'me time' on Friday evenings and have a good old pamper session. Something I religiously include in these is using a body exfoliator and butter to achieve silky soft skin ready for the weekend ahead, whatever I'm up to. I begun using Soap and Glory years ago, and these were actually one of my first ever purchases. I can't count on my hands how many times I've repurchased these little tubs of magic, but I go through them rather quickly so tend to stock up quite regularly. 

I'll begin explaining why 'The Righteous Butter' is a staple in my bathroom cabinet. It's one of those classic products by S&G that has been around just as long as the brand has, so pretty much something impossible not to have come across. Everyone needs a good body butter, something more heavy duty than their everyday moisturiser to use every so often and this ticks that box perfectly. What I love about this is that it comes in three sizes - a miniature perfect for travelling, the standard 300ml tub and even an entire litre if you buy it online. I know it also comes in a pump, so if you can't stand product getting stuck behind your nails then it's perfect. It holds the infamous Soap and Glory scent of shea butter, almond oil and peach and costs a mere £10.50 for a standard tub. Because its a butter rather than a moisturiser, it has a gorgeously rich and cream thick formula which as you can imagine works absolute wonders on dry skin. I find that it sinks into the skin with ease, although not as quickly as regular moisturisers so is perfect for use just before you throw on your PJ's. I also find it a dream to apply, and a little goes a long way. I can finish a tub in a month easily, so I think it may be a good idea to invest in the litre size to save a few pennies and treat myself to an extra tub of Flake Away, which brings me to my next skincare saviour product. 

Just like 'The Righteous Butter', 'Flake Away' is a classic Soap and Glory product and has been part of the range for as long as I can remember. Now although I do love my trusty St Moriz Dark tan and use this to prep my skin, I have stopped being so religious with the tanning process every week. That definitely hasn't stopped me using 'Flake Away' as an exfoliator though! I have quite sensitive skin on my body. No scrap that, very sensitive skin. One scratch will send me bumpy and red in no time (I have Dermatitis in case you were wondering which comes and goes as it pleases). For this reason, I cannot stand overly gritty exfoliators as they irritate my skin and leave me with red skin for days - not a good look! But if you've used Flake Away before then you'll know how thick and oily (in a good way!) this really is. To me, it feels like a moisturiser mixed with a face exfoliator but for the body, so as you can imagine feels amazing. This comes in two sizes, a miniature travel size and a standard 300ml tub - I haven't yet seen a litre version of it! What's also great is it's £7.00 price tag. £7.00 for a product which will see you through a month or two is hardly ever going to be bad. This also carries the signature Soap and Glory shea butter, almond oil and peach scent. I find when I use these two products together the scent lingers for hours which makes them even more loveable. Flake Away is perfect for use two or three times weekly as it isn't as heavy duty as others (yes, I'm looking at you Breakfast Scrub) but I only use it the once. Once you wash it away, you'll notice the difference in your skin immediately. It leaves skin unbelievably smooth and conditioned and makes a great canvas if you happen to be false tanning too. I'll continue to repurchase these beauties until I find something just as cheap which works wonders which is highly doubtful! I'll definitely label these as my 'holy grail' body butter and body exfoliator of choice and if that changes you'll be the first to know about it!

Have you tried Soap and Glory's Flake Away and The Righteous Butter? 

♥

MAC | Viva Glam Nicki Lipstick

Hey Everyone! Hope you're all well! I've recently found myself becoming slightly addicted to MAC lipsticks which is slightly worrying both on my bank balance and storage space. I wanted to take the time to gush over this lipstick and tell you all exactly what I think, even though it's a product which has been out for some time already. I'd been lusting over 'Viva Glam Nicki' for quite some time before I took the plunge and finally bought it a few weeks back. Now I'm not exactly a fan of Nicki Minaj's, but that's not to say I didn't completely fall in love with the colour and the formula. What made it an even more satisfying purchase was the fact that 100% profit made goes to women and men living with HIV and AIDs. It's so nice to see cosmetic companies giving something back, and it was definitely £14.00 well spent. 

I picked this up for the normal price of £14.00 from my local MAC store, pretty chuffed as it was the last one. What I love is the packaging - it still dons the sleek packaging like all MAC lipsticks, but with a reflective red hologram of Nicki Minaj's signature sprawled across the front which I think is a lovely touch. Rather than a silver band and logo on the casing it is also red to match the packaging. I personally really like it, and it's something really nice to add to my ever growing lipstick collection. 
 

 

When I swatched this in store, I noticed it wasn't a Cremesheen formula, but was a 'Satin' finish. I'd never tried one of these before because I'm so in love with my cremesheens, but I honestly can't believe I hadn't done earlier! Whereas Cremesheens have a tendency to be a little opaque with low to medium pigmentation, these require only one or two swipes for full colour pay off which is amazing. I'm so impressed with the finish this gives I'm going to pick up a shade or two from the Satin range and give them a bash. As you'll know if you own this beaut, it is ridiculousy pigmented. What's great about it is you can apply it with a light hand for a pop of colour for everyday, or you need only one or two swipes for full coverage.

I feel like I'm cheating on my Cremesheens! I secretly think I prefer the formula of a Satin lipstick. Not only is the pigmentation immense, but it also feels like my lips benefit from using it too. It's such a rich and creamy formula, very similar to Revlon's lip butters, and it carries the signature vanilla scent of MAC lipsticks. I also find that this doesn't budge throughout the entire day, so for a night out it is ideal. I know this type of colour is great for Summer. I've started stocking up on corals and neons to use when the weather warms up, but I have a feeling this may be the first I'll hit pan with. Other than Creme Cup, this is definitely amongst my favourite lipsticks.

Have you used Viva Glam Nicki by MAC before? What did you think?

Urban Decay | NAKED Basics Palette

Urban Decay Naked Basics - £20.00 Debenhams (Link)

Hello Ladies! Hope you're all well and Monday hasn't treated you too badly. I know this is one of those posts that has been done countless times; but I'm super excited to be adding this to my make up collection that I thought I'd put my own thoughts and feelings out there on the infamous 'Naked Basics' palette by Urban Decay. Unlike most bloggers out there, I don't own the Naked or Naked 2 palette, as I just can't seem to justify splurging £36.00 on 12 pans of shadow. I do think that all of the shades are gorgeous, so I've popped it onto my birthday list, but until then, I have this little beaut to get by with. 

When I first picked it up, I couldn't believe just how small it really was. It's less than half the size of the full sized Naked palettes, so something really compact which will be ideal for going away or popping into my handbag. For a palette containing six high quality shadows for an everyday eye, I personally think £20.00 is a reasonable price. The packaging itself is made from a rubberized plastic material, although not quite like NARS products, so it's easy to keep clean. There's also a cute little mirror in there too which is so useful. From seeing all of the palettes by Urban Decay, this is definitely my favourite. Something sleek, but simple and sturdy at the same time. What I love most about this palette is the fact that five of the six shades are matte, and one is semi-matte or a satin finish shadow. This makes it my idea of heaven when it comes to everyday eye make-up. It's definitely a palette I can work with every single day, plus it gives me more of a reason to crack open the MAC Paint Pots on nights out! 

I've come to notice with other palettes there are only a few shades I'll actually use, but this is different. I can definitely say that all six shadows are wearable colours. If like me you love neutral tones like browns and golds, then this is definitely for you. I know that four of the shades in the palette are brand new to Urban Decay, and two are used in the original Naked Palettes. 

Venus - An off-white semi-matte shade perfect for highlighting

Foxy -  A matte ivory tone ideal for the inner corners of eyes

Walk of Shame - A matte light nude perfect for an underbase colour 

Naked 2 - Matte taupe shade, ideal for blending into the crease

Faint - A dusty brown matte ideal for a brown smokey eye

Crave - Jet black matte perfect for lining lower lash line

Every single shade is a dream to apply and I can't rate the pigmentation of each of them highly enough. One or two swipes of each pan is enough to work with. Not only that, but the staying power of these is amazing. Although I use a primer everyday, these really do stay put without creasing or budging out of place. I reckon they'd still do so even if primer wasn't used. Each shade is silky to the touch and blends into one another with ease. Another great thing about these is the fact that none of the shades are flaky, so you don't end up with those dreaded specs on the tops of your cheek or underneath your eye.

Overall, I'm so impressed with this palette - the hype was all worth it! I can't believe I hadn't picked it up sooner, but now I have it I'm looking forward to trying out different looks using different shades. Have you tried the Naked Basics palette from Urban Decay? What did you think?

♥

Review | Bioré Deep Cleansing Ultra Pore Strips

Hello Girls! Happy Saturday, I'm so glad it's finally the weekend! Once again I'm posting this on the way to my boyfriends. Sorry to go all geeky on you but it still amazes me what phones can do nowadays, it's such a relief knowing that you're able to back up blog posts on Blogger and post them whenever I need to. Anyway, I thought I'd share my thoughts with you on the godsends that are the nose strips from Bioré. I've used Bioré in the past, but unfortunately didn't get on with the Pore Unclogging Scrub as I found it way too gritty for my skin type. I then branched out and tried the Deep Cleansing Ultra Nose Strips and absolutely loved them. A year later, I was watching Zoella's most recent Boots haul video and she mentioned she'd bought these beauties. It then dawned on me that I needed to get down to Boots and pick up what I'd been missing out on for the last year. A box of 6 strips set me back £7.99 which I personally think is a tad overpriced. It works out at more than £1 per nose strip, but a box lasts up to a month so I see it as more of an investment. I had originally used the normal nose strips, but noticed they'd bought out an 'ultra' version, promising a deeper cleanse and removal of even more dirt and oil. Without a second thought I picked them up and boy, am I glad I did! What Bioré say about their product:

'This deep cleansing strip cleans pores with tingling ingredients like tea tree oil, menthol and witch hazel. In just one use, these strips help clean pores of build-up and even the most stubborn dirt and oil that can cause blackheads. Plus, regular use can even help make pores appear smaller (so you can spend even less time thinking about them).'

Following the instructions on the back of the box, I apply a strip to a wet nose after cleansing and leave it to set for 10-15 minutes. To kill time I usually tweeze my eyebrows or make a good old cup of tea! I find that the product works better if I cleanse my face using really hot water and apply it to a semi-warm nose. Doing this opens the pores and makes for easier removal. The strips contain tea tree oil and with hazel which I usually find way too overpowering but these contain just the right amount and smell lovely, not to mention it leaves my nose feeling really refreshed and clean. There's two sides to each strip, a fabric side and an application side and they're fairly straightforward to apply. They dry into a really stiff material, as Bioré describe 'like paper mâché' which admittedly feels a bit uncomfortable but it' the results afterwards which keep me coming back for more. You can feel it really working as it tightens around blackheads and pores with a slight tingling sensation. Because they dry really closely to the skin and lock onto blackheads, I'd recommend pulling it away really slowly from the outer corners inwards as it does have a tendency to sting a little. 

I cannot even bring myself to show you all the awfulness which is left behind after using these. The strip is almost completely covered in dirt, oil, whiteheads and blackheads. Absolutely gross, but it's such a satisfying feeling to see a product really working and living up to its expectations. These do become slightly addictive, but even after one or two uses there is definitely a visible difference. Continued use of these beauties result in smaller pores across the sides of my nose and a massive drop in the amount of blackheads I have too. With this being said, there's no wonder I'll be picking up more in the future once I finish this current box. I may also try more Bioré products as the Ultra Pore Strips have impressed me enough to branch out and give it a go. 

Have you tried the Bioré pore strips or anything similar? What did you think?

Pamper Night In | The Essentials

Hello Girls! Hope you're all well. I keep seeing photo's on my Instagram (@misskendalwestonx) of other beauty bloggers pamper essentials, neatly stacked next to their bath tubs waiting to be used. I thought I may aswell turn my own into a blog post, as I religiously have a 'pamper night' on Fridays as I prepare for the weekend ahead. I think it's so important to take time out for yourself and just relax after a long week because otherwise there's no time to appreciate the little things. I apologise in advance for such a lengthy post! I always start with a really hot bubble bath and can sit there for up to 2 hours. It really is bliss, spending half of my time in there pampering myself beyond belief, and the other half dozing off.

I start off by pouring a rather generous amount of Soap & Glory's 'Calm One, Calm All' bubble bath into my bath water, and also, if I'm feeling particularly run down, I'll also chuck a Lush bath bomb in also. My favourite is 'Sex Bomb'; it contains sage, jasmine and ylang ylang which as you can imagine, leaves my bathroom smelling amazing, not to mention leaves the water a beautiful shade of pink too. A pamper night for me isn't complete if I don't have one of my Yankee Candles burming either! Cinnamon and Vanilla Cupcake are my all time favourites! I use my Soap & Glory 'Whipped Clean' shower butter to wash with and just sit there letting the bubble bath and bath bomb work wonders on my skin. I also like to pamper my hair every week by giving it a treat of a hair mask or ultra moisturising conditioner. I start by doing the usual routine I use which is using Aussie's 'Miracle Moist' as a shampoo, followed by my trusty Lee Stafford Hair Growth Treatment, then followed by Aussie's Miracle Moist conditioner. If you haven't tried this line from Aussie, I seriously can't recommend them highly enough. They works absolute wonders on dry and damaged hair and they smell like bubblegum which is such a nice touch. I'm also a massive fan of the 3 Minute Miracle Reconstructor but if I sat and typed my love for it, we really would be here all day. Although I hate the fake tanning process with a real passion, I don't find it a drag to exfoliate as I'm so in love with my Soap & Glory 'Sugar Crush' body scrub. I must admit I'm not that much of a fan of the scent - don't get me wrong, I do like it but it's a bit too limey for me! That's not to say it doesn't leave my skin feeling silky soft after I use it! I then slather The Body Shop's 'Almond Body Butter' or Soap & Glory's 'The Righteous Butter' over my skin which is probably the reason I can't stop sniffing my skin after a pamper evening! Both of them smell absolutely amazing and are ultra moisturising. So moisturising in fact that I can still feel it on my skin the morning after. Nothing beats that feeling you have when you jump out of the bath into fresh cosy pyjamas! It really is amazing. Once I get out of my bubble bath, I blow dry my hair and put my SleepRollers in to achieve extra volume in my hair.

I also make sure I take the time out to pamper my skin a little. I'm quite lucky in the fact that I had relatively good skin, but I still like to do the whole shabang (if you know what I mean). I start by cleansing my face as normal using Soap & Glory's 'Peaches and Clean' - those who have tried and tested this will know just how amazing it really is. It's come to be one of my favourites ever, and melts away dirt and make up with ease, not to mention it also has the most gorgeous scent ever. I then somtimes use my Remington face steamer and sit and steam my face for a good ten or twenty minutes. I love how fresh my face feels after I use it, and it brings all impurities to the surface of the skin. Then, I use Soap & Glory's (yes, another Soap and Glory product!) 'Greatest Scrub Of All' as an exfoliator, which is a relatively new purchase. I really like it as it isn't too gritty and has a really clever formula where the micro beads in the cream pop open when you apply it to the heat of your skin. I really feel it work into my pores and it leaves me with a nice fresh layer of skin. That sounds really awful! After that I then use a face mask. I have a few favourites, but at the moment I'm bouncing between Lush's 'Cupcake' and the 'Mask of Magnaminty'. Both do absolute wonders for my skin and they're such a pleasure to use knowing that all of the ingredients are natural. I then go ahead and tweeze any stray eyebrow hairs and paint my nails whichever colour I fancy. And if that already isn't enough I slather on Soap & Glory's 'Heel Genius' over my toes and pull on a pair of thick cotton socks to help it soak in.

To help me relax even more, I'll spend the rest of my evening watching a few chick flicks or catching up on soaps, tucked up in bed (yes, on a Friday night) with a big mug of hot chocolate. My favourite chick flicks to watch, not that it's particularly beauty related, are Pretty Woman, Sex and the City, the boxset of Absolutely Fabulous and Bridget Jones. If I'm feeling brave I'll watch the Scream films back to back or some other horror film which will keep me up all night. As many of you know I'm currently on a diet and am fast approaching loosing my first stone already. I make sure that I allow myself one treat meal a week, and this is usually eaten on a Friday or Saturday night. This is the perfect way to round off my pamper night in! Once again, I'm sorry for such a lenghty post. But I would love to see what everyone else does or uses during their pamper sessions!

Review | Lush Lip Scrub | Popcorn

Lush Popcorn Lip Scrub - £5.25 (Link) 

Another day, another lip product! And yet another product from Lush which is very popular within the blogging community. I know a very small number of people who haven't tried the infamous Bubblegum flavour of this product, but those who have will know just how great it is. I was under the impression that the Popcorn flavour was only around throughout Christmas but I jumped for joy when I spotted some near the till when I was last there. 

What Lush say; "Coconut and jojoba oils, sugar, sea salt and polenta are the perfect mix to buff your lips to perfection and leave them smooth and moisturised. Featuring popping candy sweetness and the premier of our all-new salted caramel flavour. The Special Effects are lips that are soft and taste so more-ish that your Best Boy will be begging for no interval!"

Let me start by saying this smells absolutely delicious. Not too much of a popcorn scent, but still amazing. It smells very similar to shea butter which is one of my favourite smells when it comes to products. It leaves my lips feeling ridiculously soft and also doubles up as a lip primer so lipstick glides on with ease and pro longs staying power. Not only this, but as its edible you can lick it off of your lips and it tastes of caramel - amazing. I don't find that I need to use this on a daily basis as the jojoba oil leaves my lips in pretty good condition. As a treatment before bed, I scrub this on my lips and slather on Burt's Bees lipbalm or Carmex and honestly, my lips feel amazing. I can't recommend this highly enough, and I'm rather upset it's limited edition! I'm hoping that they bring out some more flavours. Anyone for a Cookies & Cream or Chocolate flavour.

Have you tried Lush's Popcorn lip scrub? What did you think?

Review | MAC Sunny Seoul Lipstick

MAC Sunny Seoul - £14.00 (Link)

Happy Monday Girls! Sigh. It's that horrible time of the week again where you start counting down the days until the weekend and contemplate why the weekend went by so quickly. Something which is definitely getting me past my own case case of the Monday blues is my most recent purchase from MAC, yet another product which I featured on my mini Westfield haul (read it here). Although I had what can only be described as an unpleasant experience while I was in there, I still can't rate the lipsticks highly enough. After all, who doesn't love a good old MAC lipstick? 

I originally saw this featured on Rebecca's blog over at AutumnLeaves and fell into a love affair where I couldn't wait to get my hands on my own. As with all lipsticks from their collection, it dons the famous bullet style applicator with a sheer silver band and MAC logo across the front. This carried the standard £14.00 price tag, and for a lipstick which will take me through to the Summer months I find this to be semi reasonable. I am yet to try other types of MAC lipstick as I adore the Cremesheen formulas but will take the plunge sometime soon as I spotted a gorgeous pink shade from the Matte selection. As with all of the Cremesheen lipsticks, it is a beautiful creamy formula with a hint of gloss running through it, meaning it moisturises the lips as well as looking good too; not to mention it also carries that gorgeous vanilla scent which makes it a dream to apply. They aren't particularly pigmented, and I find I need two or three swipes to get the desired colour pay off but I still adore the formula.

Sunny Seoul is described as a 'frosted light warm pink' which I think is bang on. I don't notice that there's too much 'frosting' but instead, just a light dusting of sparkle which is ideal. As with MAC's 'Shygirl', it is a perfect shade for an everyday lip. I'm sold on any nude or pink shade for a day to day basis, but don't get me wrong I can't wait to crack out the bright lipsticks for Summer! At first application of Sunny Seoul, it's quite opaque and I do feel that I need more swipes to get a similar colour to other Cremesheen's. None the less it's still a gorgeous shade and is soon becoming to be a favourite. Like I said, it's a dream to apply and I feel it brings my everyday make-up 'together'.

Have you tried MAC's Sunny Seoul lipstick? Which is your favourite shade?

Wishlist Series | February

Hi Girls! I'm feeling down knowing that tomorrow I go back to normality after having two weeks off. But to cheer myself up I've been looking at some bits I'm currently lusting after and hoping to buy once payday comes around! Firstly, I know I have enough bronzers to last me a lifetime but I swatched this leopard print one from Too Faced on the back of my hand and I immediately fell in love! It is such a nice shade and has a perfect amount of shimmer to it, so will be perfect for Summer. I am also close to hitting the pans of my Benefit Big Beautiful Eyes palette and as I use it on an everyday basis I need to get it replaced! I must admit I'm not too keen on the concealer it comes with, but the shadows are perfect and an easy go-to for everyday make up. I also know that MAC are launching their 'Archies Girl' collection sometime this month, so I'm super excited to see what goodies they have on offer!

While I was in Debenhams over the weekend I also spotted this stunning pink nail laquer by Chanel but unfortunately they had sold out in the shade!  I'l definitely be going back because I'm a Chanel nail polish virgin and have heard nothing but great things about them. I also want to pick up these Enrapture heated rollers because having to wait overnight for my extensions to set in normal velcro rollers is a chore and a half. Using these will shorten the process I usually dred by a hell of a lot! I also want to pick up this pretty pastel pink shade from YSL. As you can see I'm starting to stock up on Summer bits early because I am so over Winter and this cold weather. I'm counting down the days until I can get the corals and bright pinks out!

What is on your wishlist this month?

Topshop Highlighter | Sunbeam

Happy Saturday Girls! I'm currently on my way to see my boyfriend and am posting this from my iPhone. Ahh, the joys of the Internet! I featured this beaut in my mini Westfield haul yesterday (read it here) and thought I'd share my thoughts in a more in-depth post. This is a repurchase for me as my old one shattered inside its compact last week which is the worst thing to ever happen to a beauty addict. I don't ever skip highlighter in my everyday make-up as I just love the way it lifts the whole eye area, and this for me is a 'holy grail' item which does just that. This cost me a mere £10.00 from Topshop, which I think is such a great price. It really does last forever and I used my old one for 6 or 7 months. I love Topshop make-up packaging, it's so pretty! A really cute matte white circular compact with scribbled little stars on the top and a black box to match. It's set inside the compact very much like MAC's Mineralize Skin Finish products, sort of dome shaped and raised in the middle. I think this means that it is made similarly to MAC's products, slowly baked to uphold colour and pigmentation. 

Sunbeam is a beautiful deep toned yellow gold and as you can see from the swatch below (with my very sausage like looking fingers), the pigmentation is to die for. It sweeps onto my brow bone with ease but if I'm 100% honest it does have a tendency to speckle into my eyebrows. This is completely fixable though as I just use a cotton bud to swipe away any naughty excess highlighter! After using this for quite some time, I can definitely say that I prefer using gold toned highlighters rather than pinks. I find that pink highlighters can look a little bit ashy and slightly washes me out which is why golds are perfect for my skin tone. I used to use Benefit's 'High Beam' as a highlighter but fell out of love with its cream formula. It just felt too heavy on my brow bone and slightly sticky even after it had dried, so my alternative was to start using powder form highlighters, and I genuinely can't rate this highly enough. In regards to staying power, this ticks the box too. I've worn this on nights out and when I get home it's still firmly in place and doesn't budge at all. One thing that can happen is to slightly overdo it and use a bit too much product. I use a very light hand to apply this, and build it up a little bit at a time using my MAC blending brush. If I wear this on a night out which is more often than not, I use a sheet of tissue underneath my eye to make sure no loose bits of highlighter fall onto my cheek. If you have used eyeshadows or highlighters which drop onto the skin then you'll know how much of a pain it is to get rid of it without blending the colour out onto your skin. Using tissue makes sure that doesn't happen! I think once Summer comes along (please hurry up) I'll be braver with application and apply a little more than I do in Winter. 

Have you tried Topshop make-up? Do you love 'Sunbeam' as much as me?

Some New Purchases | A Mini Haul

Hello Everyone! I hope you're all well and this sudden burst of rubbish weather isn't getting you down too much. If you follow me on Twitter then you'll know that I took my first trip to Westfield in Stratford this year! I go there quite often but unfortunately didn't make it there to the Boxing Day sales and yesterday was my first chance to pick up some bits I had on my wishlist. Again, if you know me then you'll know how obsessed I am with Victoria's Secret - all of their stock is so beautiful and I just can't get enough of their fragrance and make up line. While I was searching for a new lipgloss, I came across the new 'Secret Garden' collection and noticed how many new body mists they have out. I was in absolute heaven as I love finding new scents, especially with Summer coming up (hopefully!). They retail at £11.00 each which is a bit dear if you ask me - that amount of money does pay for a 350ml product though and the smell of them is absolutely to die for. I picked up Pure Seduction, Love Spell, Pure Daydream, Vanilla Lace and Coconut Passion. I picked up a few others which I'll definitely going back for as they smelt so amazing! Afterwards I took myself to Lush; I only went in last week but I was so determined to find the Popcorn lip scrub so was so excited when I saw a couple standing by the till. Don't get me wrong, I love my Bubblegum one but it's nice to have a bit of a change! I found myself speaking to one of the girls in there, who was absolutely lovely, asking for a recommendation of a new mask I could try. I find that I always opt for 'Cupcake' (read my review here) but wanted to branch out further when I was introduced to 'Mask of Magnaminty'. A mask that has the strongest peppermint scent ever and doubles up as a face scrub. Think Soap and Glory's 'Scrub Your Nose In It' and you get a rough idea what its like, minus the fact it contains 100% natural ingredients and doesn't need to be kept in the fridge like other Lush products! 

Now again if you follow me on Twitter then you'll know how rude I found the staff in MAC when I went to pick up a lipstick while I was there. I don't like to put a downer on posts but I know it isn't just me who found this to be true as a few fellow MAC fans agreed with the fact that the customer service in there is awful. For the first time ever I found myself feeling slightly uncomfortable around make-up and found the staff to be quite unpleasant. I asked one of the girls to help me out with finding a lipstick and she put her finger up at me as if to say 'one minute' - how rude! I then asked someone else who wasn't busy to help out and she was so blunt and rude, asking questions like "Have you even tried a lipstick from here before?". I don't think I'll be going into that MAC store again anytime soon, I reckon I'll be taking my money to Brent Cross where the staff are absolutely lovely and happy to help. Anyway, rant over, I picked up a Cremesheen lipstick in Sunny Seoul which I saw featured on Rebecca's blog at AutumnLeaves. It's a gorgeous pink coral shade which is quite opaque so needs 3 or 4 swipes to get some colour pay off. It's perfect for Summer so I'll definitely be cracking it out of its box when June rolls around! I also went to Topshop to buy one of their legendary highlighters as my other one shattered inside the compact. I hate it when that happens! I picked up the shade 'Sunbeam' and it's a beautiful deep gold shade with the most amazing pigmentation ever. It looks stunning on the brow bone and lasts forever, and for a measly £10.00 I practically made money on it! 

During the #bbloggers chat on Wednesday night, I asked for opinions on Benefit's 'They're Real' mascara and I got a mixed response. Not one to be put off I decided to take the plunge and purchase the smaller size to try out before splurging on the full size version. Needless to say the girl on the Benefit counter was so nice and really helpful too! I haven't yet tried it but am hoping for high things as I love the look of the brush. I also picked up Soap and Glory's 'Feel Good Factor' moisturiser to complete my skincare collection from that brand (read about my collection here) and after using the tester while I was there I'm really looking forward to trying it. It's a lovely sheer consistency and not greasy in the slightest while offering SPF25 protection. The last thing I picked up while I was in Boots was the Collection 2000 Smokey Eyes palette for a bargain of only £3.99. I know it was launched over a year ago but it's just never caught my eye before! It has a selection of 8 shadows along with an eye brightening cream and I'm looking forward to trying out a new selection of shades for an evening out. I bought some clothes too, however when I attempted to photograph them it went horribly wrong; I think I need some practice before I do any OOTD posts, put it that way! 

All in all, I had a great day shopping and spent the best part of 4 hours looking around Westfield. If you haven't been before I'd definitely recommend either Westfield centre, but I personally prefer Stratford as it has more high street chains. Don't get me wrong, I love the Shepherds Bush centre too, but Stratford gives me that little bit more of a buzz (is that slightly weird?) 

Have you picked up any great products recently?