Sunday Snapshot #3

My Sunday snapshot this week comes direct to you from my cosy bed in Plymouth, it's been a lazy week in between trips to the Post Office, spring cleaning and avoiding my uni work...

Happy Easter :)

Images I've Been Loving This Week

I WILL get to Paris soon // Forever loving Disney // Pancakes are amazing //
Love to own this bed cover // Soap & Glory obsessed atm // Come on sun...shine!
Pastel balloons // Hello Kitty's still cute when you're 22 going on 7

Seven Successful Things

1. I lost 3lbs at my last SW weigh in :) 
2. J and I celebrated 3 years of our 'togetherness' by him taking me to watch the football...but then cooking dinner when we got home. <3
3. I had a thorough spring clean of my wardrobe in my room here at home, hurrah for less clutter!
4. I finally bought something from the Kardashian Kollection, available at Dorothy Perkins! If you know me then you know how obsessed I am with Kim, and you know, I feel a tiny bit more like her now :P
5. I made a big bowl of fruit salad and it's delightful...I love how colourful and vibrant fruit salad is.
6. Having lost half a stone I am finally starting to feel where it's coming from, the ring I always wear on my right hand turns without getting stuck, and I've gone down a size in Primark! Win!
7. I rediscovered old clothes in my Cath Kidston storage bags underneath my bed and I'm feeling positive and determined that I can get into them again sometime in the near future...fingers crossed!

How has your week been?

Review // Soap & Glory - Whipped Clean

Say hello to my latest love from Soap & Glory, Whipped Clean. J bought this for me as part of a 3 for 2 for Christmas 2012 and, being the true #bblogger that I am, I have only just got round to open it after I managed to use up some other shower gels and body washes! 

What is it?

As a self confessed lover of all things baked (cake, mainly) I was kind of excited by the idea of whipping myself clean, a clever play on words of 'whipped cream'. This body wash certainly is a cream. Described by Soap & Glory as a 'shower butter' this product is an incredibly rich and luxurious body wash that leaves you feeling super clean and your skin soft and hydrated. What sold me with Whipped Clean is it's scent, a more grown up offering than regular Soap & Glory scents, with a blend of almond, sweet vanilla and pistacho. Good enough to eat!

However, the only downside I've experienced with this body wash is that it's so silky it makes it hard to hold the tube sometimes if you haven't rinsed your hands properly (think comical cartoon sketch with a bar of soap sliding and jumping out of the character's hands!)...and the bottom of your shower can get quite slippery, beware!

Packaging

As ever I'm impressed with Soap & Glory's packaging. Whipped Clean is encased inside a squeezable tube, which makes it easy to dispense and store (but unfortunately does not let you see how much product is left). It's fun, fresh and certainly caters to the true Soap & Glory signature style of packaging. The writing on the front and back of the tube appeals to the English Language nerd inside of me, what with the plethora of puns and handy life advice that Soap & Glory put out there, for example, 'Warning: This is not a food. It's a body wash'. 

How to use it

Just like a regular body wash, squeeze out your desired amount, lather up, and rinse off...simples. Whipped Clean is ideal for the night's when you really cba to moisturise, and with 25% oils included in it's list of ingredients this product is, depending on how you look at it, multifunctional or time saving. I love it, and will definitely be repurchasing to replenish it's rightful place in my Soap & Glory stash.

Whipped Clean is available in Boots online and instore, and retails at £8.00 for 250ml.

What's your favourite Soap & Glory product?

Review // Korres Lip Butter - Wild Rose

I'm the kind of girl that's constantly on the quest for super soft lips. I don't have the biggest mouth, in fact it's really small (which makes super bright lipstick look funny on my face *boo hoo*), so any time I feel like my lips are chapped or that they look horrible it really makes me conscious. 

That being said, any opportunity to try out a new lip balm really appeals to me. Recently I've heard/ read a lot about Korres lip butters from a variety of sources, and they've all said/written good things, so I wanted to offer my two cents on this little pot of fabulousness. I got my lip butter for free (usual price around £7.00), using the points I managed to accumulate from filling in Birchbox surveys on their site. I now no longer subscribe to Birchbox (damn money wobbles) but I'd definitely recommend looking in their online shop. 

I didn't know much about Korres as a brand, but with closer research I now know that they're based in Greece and have been in business since 1996. Korres specialise in natural and certified organic ingredients to create innovative and efficient products that cater to pretty much everyone, and although I was originally led to believe they just made skincare products I now see on the website that they do make-up, fragrance, men's products, sun-care and haircare too! Perfect all round brand, in my opinion. 

Korres have this to say about the Wild Rose lip butter in particular: 'The wild rose oil, rich in linoleic and linolenic acid, has significant healing, moisturising and softening properties. At the same time it forms a protective film on the skin that helps cell regeneration and improves the texture of the epidermis...Rosa canina, the very first of all the roses, has been repeatedly used as a symbol of life, soul, heart and love. The word rosa comes from the Greek word rodon, which means red.'

I, for one, am suitably impressed with this little lip butter. I'm quite the fan of anything rose scented so this was a natural selection for me, but Korres also have lip butters in Jasmin, Quince, Pomegrante, Guava, and Mango (I have my eye on Jasmin and Mango next!) in case you're not so much of a floral fan. The product's not overly scented, but it does have a hint of fragrance. 

On the lips my Wild Rose Korres lip butter feels incredibly smooth, and, without meaning to state the obvious, buttery. You know how some lip balms require you to pretty much dig the product out of the pot in order to actually apply it? Well not Korres lip butters, they pretty much melt onto your fingers (which can get messy, their only downside I guess) and then leave a subtle hint of colour once applied. Wild Rose leaves an almost berry hue to the lip, and I believe that the other flavours would leave other hints of colour, considering they're all different on the website. 

As for helping my dry lips, how did it fare? I would say very well. One of the main ingredients in Korres lip butters is shea butter, which is known for its healing properties in protecting hair and skin from harsh climates and this works very well at soothing dry lips in my opinion. 

Have you ever used a Korres lip butter? What's your favourite lip balm to use?

Slimming World // Week Six

After last week's blip I'm determined and back with another loss, -3lbs! That's 1.5lbs off the weight I put on in the 21 days I ended up having off for my birthday and when I was poorly! Happy me :)

I joined a new group this week, which is why my SW weigh-in seems ahead of schedule, and that's because I'm now at home in Devon for the next few weeks for my last Easter break from education (how weird it will be to not have set holidays any more!). It's both easier and harder to carry out my SW plans at home. It's easier because there are no temptations just to sit at home, alone, and munch my way through bags of mini eggs as I write my uni essays, and I feel more comfortable with the choices of food in the cupboards/fridge. But it's harder because I can't eat exactly what I want, when I want as I have to factor in family meal times. Also, sometimes there aren't the right ingredients to prepare my favourite dishes, and I don't feel that I have independence over my food choices. 

But so far so good, I'm aiming to get my stone award whilst I am away from Durham, 7lbs to go...wish me luck!

Loss to date: 7lbs

Time taken: 6 weeks.

Next milestone at: -10lbs

Reward: A new foundation

Review // Benefit FakeUp Hydrating Concealer

You may remember this post when I was lucky enough to be invited to the Newcastle launch of Benefit  Cosmetics' newest product, FakeUp Hydrating Concealer. Now that we're getting closer to the launch date (30th March) I thought I'd share with you my thoughts on this miraculous little concealer as I've been using it daily since I attended the launch back at the beginning of march.

What is it?

Benefit market FakeUp as a 'crease control hydrating concealer - with Vitamin E & apple seed extract -[it] hides dark circles & diffuses fine lines for a silky smooth, ultra-natural look. Fakeup never settles...and neither should you!' This is a nifty, innovative product, available in three shades, light, medium and dark. What sets it apart from other concealers in the beauty world is the fact that the creamy concealing formula is encased in an outer ring of hydration that provides long lasting hydration under the eye, and does not crease. Every time I've used this to conceal any dark circles of discolouration  around my eye area it hasn't creased at all, full marks for FakeUp!

Light // Medium // Dark

Packaging

I am such a lover of packaging, it really makes a difference in my opinion in deciding whether or not to purchase a product when I see it in store. Benefit packaging is usually second to none in my opinion, the products are bright, cheery and usually a little quirky which appeals to me immensely.

 FakeUp is no different. Each inner tube is encased in a gorgeous outer packaging that reflects the colour of the concealer inside (they look sort of ombre all stood together, don't they!) with lovely swirly writing and a damask style pattern. There's no doubting what FakeUp is with the words 'Crease-Control Hydrating Concealer' written on the inner lid!

The inner tube continues the damask style pattern with pink on silver, and to be honest, you might be forgiven for thinking that this is a lipstick on first glance. What I love about FakeUp is that you simply twist the bottom to reveal more product when you need it, no need for concealer brushes or mucky fingers in trying to cover up dark circles/imperfections, you can simply apply this straight to your face from the bullet (very much like a lipstick for the eyes - imagine that!). Brill!

How to use it.

Benefit say, 'stroke fakeup underneath each eye. Using your ring finger, pat gently outward to blend'., At the event the ladies recommended that you apply your FakeUp in a 'V' formation under the eye for maximum coverage and hydration, and then blend in using your ring finger for the lightest touch. I have to say that the 'V' trick does the job perfectly for me, and I like to apply my FakeUp underneath my eyes and on any other blemishes and I do this before my foundation so that I can set it in place with powder etc later on. I have also been told that the medium and dark colours can be used for contouring depending on your skin tone, and although I haven't tried this out yet I could see it working. 

Light // Medium // Dark

So I have to say, as ever Benefit have created a wonderful product that does its job perfectly. My only qualm is that I can sometimes end up with the concealer part of FakeUp bleeding into the hydrating ring once I've applied it, but I guess that won't matter to a lot of people (just me and my obsession with neatness!). 

I'd definitely repurchase this if I was to run out of my shades, and at £18.50 for 115g, even though it's much pricier than other concealers available on in the British 'drugstore' market, my love for Benefit completely supersedes any quarrels about the price. I have no bother paying for something I love, and, as I always justify to myself, you get what you pay for, and FakeUp's sure worth it...!

Have you, or will you try FakeUp? 

Are you as much of a Benefit fanatic as I am?

Sunday Snapshot #2

This week's inspirational imagery

Dream body inspiration // Diet killers that I just cannot resist // I'm convinced I'm secretly a Disney Princess //
I laughed, and laughed, and laughed at this moustache // Unicorns are cute // Too true!

Seven Successful Things

1. I managed to haul myself to the library and begin to work on my next (and final!) lot of essays.
2. Packing up my room in Durham was stressing me out (I have to shift everything back to Devon in suitcases on the train) but I've made one successful trip home thus far!
3. I got out of my SW rut and sat in group meeting even though I knew I'd gained a few lbs, I could have walked out the door, but I didn't :) 
4. J and I officially began the flat hunt - eek!
5. I made £90 on eBay.
6. I made it all the way to Easter without eating fast food (and then allowed myself 1 bag of mozzarella dippers from work and haven't caved again since!)
7. I hugged my mama for the first time in 3 months <3

So that was a little snapshot into my week, a bit of a quiet one to be honest, but hey, what's a girl to do when there's too much month at the end of her money...? 

What have you been up to recently?

Daisy Nails | Paris Hilton for Elegant Touch

It's pretty much been a month of firsts has March. Not only have I managed to perfect the art of applying cream blush and false eyelashes, as well as writing an OOTD post and lusting after gorgeous clothes I never thought to dream about, I've also managed to apply my own false nails...and love them!

Now, don't laugh, but they're designed by Paris Hilton in collaboration with Elegant Touch - apparently. (Well her name and face is on the box...) I found them for the bargain price of £2.99 in my local TKMaxx one miserable afternoon and, seeing as I'm now technically on my Easter break from uni (and therefore do not have to set one foot over the McThreshold), I thought I'd apply them and see how they fared.

To be perfectly honest I'm mightily impressed. Not only do they look like real nails in that they closely resemble my own natural nail colour and therefore blend in quite well, but they've also worn very well indeed (I must have been given magic glue in the packet) and everyone keeps complimenting me on the gorgeous ditzy daisy print on the tips (that's the reason why I bought them you see).

They apply just like your standard false nail, dab some of the glue onto each fingernail, hold the false nail by the tip and press it lightly onto the natural nail for a few seconds to ensure that the two have bonded...and voila! You get 24 nails of different sizes in the packaging, as well as a nail file, but I didn't use that. I think that if I sized them all correctly I could get two wears out of the whole set, pretty good going for under £3 (I think the RRP is somewhere around £7, but, besides TKMaxx, I've also seen these in Savers).

I think I'm slowly being converted to the false nail trend, although I'm constantly wear of situations where they might snap off, these things must hurt if that were to happen! I also don't think I could have them too long, even with these short ones I find myself clawing to pick things up...but they're just so pretty, how could I resist...?

Are you a false nail fan?

Slimming World // Week Five

If you're a regular reader round these 'ere parts you may have noticed that there's been no SW weigh in update for the past fortnight. For the first week I was poorly so couldn't go and ate a lot of rubbish, as you do when you're feeling sorry for yourself, and then last week it was my birthday so I didn't go to that group. As you can tell from my progress I've evidently had a fabulous birthday, consuming mountains of cake, sweets, enchiladas etc. 

At SW they say that 'there's no shame in a gain' and in fact I don't think it'd be human to drop significant amounts of lbs every week, we all have to expect little gains here and there. So while I'm disappointed at that +4.5lbs gain, I know that that's been over 21 days, not 7, and, as they said to me last night, the most important thing is that I realise where it's come from. 

For people in denial about their weight situation, and I can totally understand that, it's easy to blame certain things in your life that actually have nothing to do with the situation you're in. The key thing to note, though is that once you've got past that stage, and start to realise where you're going wrong in your diet, then you can put your hand up and admit, 'oh, yes I did consume x amounts of cake last Tuesday and x amounts of bottles of Rekorderlig on the night'. I've found you can't shy away, and I've learnt that actually no-one at SW's judging your gain or gloating in their losses over yours. 

Before I jumped on the scales last night I took stock of how I was feeling. I knew that I'd have gained since I couldn't make the previous two group sessions, but I told myself I should be proud for even going and facing it head on, and then sitting in that chair afterwards and talking about it. I felt angry at myself, disappointed and sad that I couldn't add lbs to my minus list and instead have to take them away from my overall progress. 

But you know what, I'm ok with that. I still need to remember how far I've come, I mean I've managed to keep off 4.5lbs for 5 weeks (something completely unheard of in my past 3 year weight gain!) and I can only look forward to onwards and downwards. 

Loss to date: 4.5lbs

Time taken: 5 weeks

Next milestone at: -10lbs

Reward: A new foundation

Review // Head Over Heels - Topshop Cream Blush

The other day, when I left J to walk himself up to the train station after my birthday, I wandered into Topshop to buy something to cheer myself up (holla at me now if you're a fellow emotional shopper!). I left with this beauty, my first ever cream blush, a gorgeous peachy coral named Head Over Heels.

Packaging:

Topshop makeup packaging is simple, yet stylish. I love the monochrome combination of black dots on the white compact, and the mirror in the lid is an added bonus. This definitely feels sturdy enough to carry around in my handbag on a day to day basis, and there's no danger of the product shattering in the pan (I'll just have to make sure I don't stick a fingernail in it when I prise the lid open!). 

How to use it: 

Topshop say that Head Over Heels is a, 'Lightweight cream to powder blush that melts into the skin giving a natural luminous, radiant finish'. I'd always steered clear of cream blushes before, unsure of how to apply them, and not wanting to mess up the product in the pan with dust and grime. To be perfectly honest this particular blush has sat in its packaging since I bought it because I wasn't quite sure how to approach it. But then I watched Tanya Burr's latest makeup tutorial viaYouTube and she said that she always applies cream blushes with the Real Techniques Contour Brush, I realised I had that in my brush collection and hopped right to it! It looks lovely dabbed on my cheeks and then blended upwards, merging in with my usual highlighting powder.

Isn't this such a lovely colour? I have no idea why my swatch is so massive, but there you go! It lends itself to more of a terracotta/coral than a peachy coral in comparison to the pan and will look amazing for spring/summer. I'm definitely leaning more towards the cream blush idea, I think I'll use this a few more times and decide...but for £6, and available online and in stores with a Topshop makeup stand I don't think you can go wrong!

What are your favourite cream blush brands?

Spring Cleaning...

Borrowed from here.

I'm currently getting right into the swing of spring. I know that there's still snow coming down for parts of the UK, but with the arrival of all of the Easter gifts in Paperchase I can't help but dream of concocting outfits and makeup for the warmer months (if, and when, they may arrive!). One thing I do every spring, as true to the cliche as I'll ever get, is have a thorough spring clean of my personal spaces, currently my room and bathroom at uni, and my bedroom at home in Devon. I'm not going to lie, I'm an obsessive tidier, and will tidy every day, feeling incredibly uneasy if I haven't made my bed or taken out the rubbish. Everything in my room has a place, I don't know why, that's just the way it's been!

Borrowed from here.

I've recently been watching the Channel 4 programme 'Obsessive Compulsive Cleaners' and it's spurred me on to come up with my top five tips to perform your own spring clean:

1. Take on one room at a time. If you only have one room to work in, for example your bedroom, then you can disregard this tip, but if you're tackling multiple rooms or even your whole house then the best way to go about it, in my opinion, is slowly but surely. If you take on too much at once you'll end up losing momentum and motivation when you're surrounded by stuff and give up. Also, you'll probably find things you never knew you had and may end up getting distracted looking through your memory book from primary school, or your old Mizz magazines and your cleaning will take a back seat. Remember what your mother/gran told you, take one at a time, dear...
2. If you haven't used it in the last 12 months, get rid of it - try and recycle it, or donate it to charity/someone else. If that fails put it in the dustbin. If you've just cleaned out a drawer and found it lying around having forgotten that you owned it then you clearly don't need it. Be ruthless, say goodbye and move on!
3. eBay will become your friend - familiarise yourself with the selling site, or similar, like gumtree etc. I've made a fair few bob selling what I would consider as junk, one's woman's trash is another's treasure! Just remember to be actively communicative on there, no buyer likes a seller to leave e-mails unanswered, oh don't be afraid to barter!
4. Store away your wintery items. I've recently invested in some under bed storage bags from Cath Kidston to help preserve my winter clothes, as well as the bits and pieces I can no longer fit into, but am determined to wear again in the future. This means I can make space in my wardrobe for clothes I know I'll wear in spring/summer and leaves it looking less cluttered. Less mess = less stress!
5. Make a list! I'm the biggest fan of lists, especially when it comes to actual cleaning. Remember to note down to open your windows and let fresh air circulate in your rooms, dust lampshades and hard to reach places and freshen up your duvet. A list helps me to remember to complete important tasks and order my way of doing things so that I don't miss anything out (like checking  my makeup products to see what's gone out of date). 

Borrowed from here.

So there we go, if you're planning your own spring clean I hope you've found a little bit of inspiration here, and I wish you lots of luck <3

Are you a neat freak like me? 

Or are you creatively chaotic?

OOTD // Denim & Lace

It's rare here on ConfettiLetters that you'll see me post an outfit of the day (OOTD). I think the last one I tried to do was back in 2011. But, as it's on this year's bucket list, I thought I'd pull myself out of my fashion rut and mix it up a bit by posting today's outfit. I apologise in advance for the awkwardness of the above photo, and the fact that it's been taken in my bathroom - stupid splodgey mirror...Damn I need to get better at this!

I'm not the smallest girl by any stretch of the imagination, but one style of dressing I've found that actually works for me is this one, the high waisted skirt with a top tucked in. I've gone a bit skirt crazy lately and this is the latest one I've bought, it's a soft denim mix from New Look and cost around £15, which is a bit of a bargain in my opinion! I've teamed it with a casual, but pretty, white floaty top from Topshop, I adore the lace detailing all around the collar. I got this a while back, but it might still be in store, I believe it was £16.

Other bits and pieces I'm wearing include my standard uniform of black leggings, usually £3 from Primark, and my long sleeved thin black cardigan (£8 from New Look). Until I actually put my bum in gear and really concentrate on slimming world I'll be forever living in my leggings...pretty clothes I am not worthy...Oh, and my necklace? I have no idea, I found it!

What'd you think?

Sunday Snapshot #1

I've decided to begin a new weekly feature. I've seen a Sunday summary posted on a few blogs here and there and have decided to put my own spin on it. It will include seven things I've been proud of these past 7 days, as well as any images I've been loving/gaining inspiration from, so here goes...

11/03/13-17/03/13

Inspirational Imagery:

These are the images I've found most exciting/inspiring this week. I sat and went back through all of the pictures on WeHeartIt that I'd pressed 'love' on over the last 4 years and rediscovered some visual gems, a sample selection are above. I love Tumblr purely for the endless re-blogging of amazing photography that I find inspiring, and for images that I love, think are fun or can relate to and Tumblr's the platform where I find all of my exciting images (aside from WeHeartIt). This week it's mostly been about reevaluating myself as I spring clean my uni bedroom and my head. If I want to fill my head with expensive gadgets, cupcakes, rings and fluffy rainbow staircases then so be it...find me in dreamland (I dare you...)!

Seven Successful Things:

1. I handed in the paper and electronic versions of my undergraduate dissertation. It has the swanky title of 'Good Eggs, or Bad Apples? An Exploration into the Academic Worth of the True Crime Autobiography'. I never ever thought I'd be able to waffle on for 10,667 words, but something always comes out of nothing!
2. I celebrated my 22nd birthday in style, consuming copious amounts of cake, cocktails and chicken enchiladas. I was thoroughly spoilt and J was with me. Happy Louise <3
3. I baked cupcakes and they were delicious. 
4. I spring cleaned my uni bedroom, ridding myself of unnecessary paperwork and packing a suitcase of stuff to take home and leave at home. My wardrobe's now tidy and organised, whoo!
5. I began the post-graduation job hunt. Sorry Golden Arches, I no longer wish to work with you. I need an office to swan around in and look fabulous.
6. I've built up a bank of posts to blog with, nothing like being super organised! My blog is my own personal online scrapbook and I absolutely love tending to it <3
7. I discovered that WDW, Florida will be expanding and am on the ball to make plans for my next trip to Orlando...shame that it'll be in 2016 though...

How has your week been? 

Currently Coveting: New Arm Candy

Black Studded Shopper - £39 Debenhams // Perspex Floral Mini Bowler - £35 Debenhams // Tilly Shopper Punch Stem - £78 Orla Kiely @ Asos // Yellow Mini Bowler - £39.99 Zara // Telley Stipe Shopper With Flip Flops - £59 Ted Baker @Asos // Tassel Bowler Bag With Rabbit Fitting - £35 Asos

As the northern hemisphere approaches Spring/Summer '13 (apparently) I spent a lot of last night virtually wandering around my favourite high street brands looking for some new arm candy to see me into the warmer months. I'm a big, big, big fan of black handbags in all seasons so if you're wondering why three of my favourites would look better in Autumn/winter then there you go. I adore the rabbit bag from Asos, it's a slight nod to my favourite animal, and looks incredibly stylish and sophisticated. I'm also documenting my recent love affair with not-too-in-your-face studs here, with the black studded shopper from Red Herring at Debenhams, perfect for taking out and about into the city to mooch about the shops. As for a perspex bag, what shopaholic doesn't love a good plastic, but chic, handbag? Takes the edge off the regular carriers I pick up in Tesco doesn't it...

I wanted to include some pops of colour too as the first hint of sunshine sees me reaching for coral lips and a little white dress. I'd pair such a delightful sunny outfit with either the beautiful Orla Kiely punched out stem shopper (seems as though punched out - or laser cut- shapes are definitely very much bang on trend) or the fabulous Ted Baker beach style bag (complete with flip flops, bargain!). My absolute favourite colour combination is white and pink (well, white and anything really, but mostly white and pink!) and I have the perfect little white summer dress in mind to set these bags off beautifully.

Lastly is an amazing bag I spotted on Becky's blog recently. It's nothing like I've ever owned, and I've disputed with myself over what colour this bag actually is - is it yellow or lime green to you? All I know is that I absolutely love it, it'd certainly brighten up soggy sunny day...now I just need to find lots of £££ to go out and purchase...I'm such a bag lady!

Are you a bag lady too?
What's your favourite colour combination for S/S?

Another of Those Posts...

You know what to do by now, beauty #bbloggers chums...follow ConfettiLetters on Bloglovin', I'm missing just over 200 of you on there and it'd make my day (just in case the apocalyptic prophecy of GFC actually does occur) <3

You can also find me on HelloCotton, Baobella and SheSaidBeauty if you'd prefer...

I'm also on Instagram
And Twitter.

Phew, that's a lot of social media!

Bourjois Healthy Balance Unifying Powder

After my beloved Mac Studio Fix Powder hit pan and then finished as it dropped out of my makeup bag (cue shattered powder everywhere!), I began the hunt for something else that would help to seal my foundation. I've recently discovered Bourjois' Healthy Balance Unifying Powder with a promise of a 10 hour wear, and filled with Asian fruit therapy for hydration and anti-shine. I previously enjoyed using Bourjois' healthy mix foundation, and this powder looks like it complements that - what with the fruit detailing around the edges of the compact. I thought I'd pick it up and pray for good things...

I always like to look one shade darker when applying powder on top of foundation, so I picked up number 53, Light Beige, which was the second lightest shade available in my local Boots. I love it because the colour is not too dark, it doesn't make my face look ridiculously tan compared to my neck/shoulders and it doesn't seem to transfer easily which is an added bonus! I think this powder is definitely better for setting liquid foundation rather than as a powder foundation, but if you wanted a really light coverage with a bit of colour then it'd work well to use it by itself in my opinion.

 The powder itself feels incredibly smooth and silky in the pan, and it's quite easy to remove it from the pan to apply it (I hate those powders where you really have to work at getting the powder onto a brush/applicator, I'm talking those ones where you find yourself swirling your brush/applicator around in the pan a million times before it can be applied to your face).

I always like to apply my powder with the Real Techniques Powder Brush, I find gives me a nice even coverage and makes the application of the powder to your face a lot easier than using a powder puff or a sponge. There's no space in this powder compact to store a sponge/powder applicator, so you'd have to remember to bring a brush with you if carrying this around for the day/night. The mirror is a nice inclusion in the lid, perfect for on the go touch ups.

The only major downside here is that it doesn't include any SPF, which would make this my ultimate favourite powder, that and the claim from Bourjois that it lasts for 10 hours, I found myself looking slightly patchy on my cheeks/nose at around 4-6 hours, but I don't know if that's just because I have really dry skin and it needed a bit of rehydration.

Overall I'd recommend this highly, it's a lovely little powder with perfect coverage over foundation and sets my makeup nicely. At £8.49 for 9g this is a little bit on the pricer side of Boots makeup but I'd say that it's well worth the money and I'll definitely be getting it again if and when I ever hit pan!

How do you set your makeup for the day?

Birthday Day!

Now I don't know about you but I absolutely love reading about other people's birthdays, and I always get excited for people's birthdays, even when it's not my own! My birthday was yesterday, I turned the ripe old age of 22 and sang a lot of Taylor Swift because of it, check out this video to see what I mean!

J came up to Durham to spend my birthday with me, which was amazing because I hadn't seen him since January! On Monday, the day before my birthday, I caught him in Pandora after I had handed in my dissertation - cue squeals with delight. I ended up being so intrigued as to what he'd bought me because he told me that 'it's nice and it relates to our relationship, but you're going to laugh'. So, when midnight hit I wanted to see what he'd got me and unwrapped an adorable little love letter charm for my Pandora bracelet! I didn't understand at first, but he said he'd chosen a love letter because I'm always going on at him about how he should send me some post to my uni house and he never has, so he thought he'd buy me a letter instead. <3

After going to sleep, I woke up to snow, which hadn't happened on my birthday for about 7 years. Luckily the sun came out and melted the majority of it throughout the day so that didn't dampen spirits too much! I had a pretty chilled day for the most part. Being the early bird riser that I am I got up before J and entertained myself on my laptop and waited for him to rise. I couldn't wait any longer by 11am and bounced back into bed with my birthday post to unwrap this little lot. I'm such a lucky girl! 

After I unwrapped everything J finally got up and we went to Tesco to buy brunch materials (pain au chocolat, sausages, bacon, muffins etc) and then came back and feasted. I also fancied making some cupcakes and did so (cheating using a box mix). My housemates then popped into the kitchen and gifted me the Soap & Glory bits you see above and a homemade cake, yummy! 

We did some more chilling out after that and then got ready to venture out for cocktails and Chiquitos, my ultimate night out! I absolutely love Mexican food, so far this week J and I have had burritos, enchiladas, tacos and nachos. I just need a quesadilla to top it all off...! I went out with a group of my best chums, Amanda bought a sash for me to wear and a little cake (and some shots!) and we munched away before Chiquitos gave me a birthday cocktail and a little cupcake and everyone sang happy birthday to me.

Toilet OOTN!

Then it was off out for some more drinkies before I woke up this morning with a cold - boo!

Just want to say thank-you to everyone who took the time to comment on yesterday's post and tweet me, I loved reading all of your messages :) 

I'm Feeling 22...

Borrowed from here.

The front of my card from my boy :) 

I'm excited to say that today is my birthday :) I'll be mostly blasting out Taylor Swift's '22' as today I turn 22, and entertaining myself until my boy wakes up...to make me breakfast...here's hoping!

Other plans include cocktails, presents, food and keeping out of the snow. (It hasn't snowed on my birthday since I was 15 so that's a bit of a downer!)

Hope you all have a fabulous day <3