The Handbag Essentials

Happy long weekend guys and gals! I am so thankful we have an extra day off, so much work to do! The other day on the way to work, I was going through my bag and inside I have a little pouch. This little but rather large pouch contains all the essentials, I take this from bag to bag and switch up small items every now and then. My handbag is a whirlwind half the time, you could get lost in there but this keeps me on track. 

If Money Was No Object

The sun keeps gracing us with its presence and I am not prepared at all. My wardrobe is still full of jumpers and leggings, my makeup is still all deep toned and heavy. It is now time for a refresh and update to everything and anything. Wishlists aren't something I usually post but something inspired me to take all my browsing history over the past few days into a post and talk about what has been on my eye. 

The Must Have Tarte Maneater Collection

The shopping channels do not get enough credit in my opinion, they have some amazing deals available. QVC are a channel that need to be shouted about more, they stock brands such as The Ordinary, Benefit and more! Last week, I spotted on their facebook that they are giving customers an exclusive deal. This deal included a range of products from the one and only Tarte, who are a difficult brand to get your hands on here in the UK. This weeks special deal from QVC is a 7 piece set at only £43.96 (RRP £60), yep you read it right all this Tarte goodness for under £50 and if you opt for the easy installments option like me, you only pay £10 a month compared to the full payment. 

Tarte has been on my radar for a while now, so getting this bargain of a deal was a no brainer! I will be revewing everything in more depth over time, but for now here is what you can pick up in the set.  

Bloggers Made Me Buy It

One thing that blogging has done for me, is a give me a negative credit card balance - all the damn time. Every time a blogger raves about something or a few bloggers share photos on instagram of a product it just has to be mine. Half the things in my makeup collection are blogger enabled so it is no surprise that my collection is so large, I think the power and influence bloggers/youtubers have is incredible. I've received such lovely messages in the past, saying that they're loving a product upon my recommendation. That is the best feeling in the world! I've tried to narrow down to the products that were mainly influenced by bloggers and here's what we have..

Breaking Stereotypes

The weather in the UK has been bloody fabulous these past few weeks, when the sun makes an appearance so do all the British people! We're like bees! To make the most of the spring weather, I took the opportunity to meet up with Aamira one week and shot lots of gorgeous pictures. That girl knows Liverpool like the back of her hand and found the most gorgeous location. It worked perfectly with this floral outfit! Expect to see other outfits over the next few weeks.

Korean Inspired Beauty from Oh K! Life

Korean beauty has taken the world by storm, some say that they are ahead of the beauty industry by at least 10 years. Everything from BB cream to cushion compacts are all now essential beauty items that originated in Korea. They inspire western brands to create packaging that is unique and enables easier application. Products are formulated using ingredients that effective, safe for the skin and hydrating. Oh K! Life have taken all this as inspiration and created a range of products that brings Korean beauty to the UK. 

3 To Try Under £10

At heart, I will forever be a 'drugstore' girl. No matter how beautiful luxury products are, my budget and brain always go back to products from the like of Superdrug and Boots. Saying this, I tend to always go for the same brands including Maybelline, L'Oreal and Rimmel. But recently I've decided to branch out, try different brands and see what else the drugstore offers. Everything from foundation to eyeliner, there is just so much out there. Over the past few weeks, I've been loving these three products in particular. All from brands that I have tried in the past but products I wouldn't necessarily pick up from them. 

Bedside Beauty Staples

Every night I say to myself 'tonight you're going to have an early night, its a long day tomorrow/you  have to get up early'. Every night this never goes to plan, the reason behind it is because I waste so much time getting ready for bed. My whole night routine from going upstairs to actually getting into bed and going to sleep, is such a long process. I love to mess around and take all the time in the world, even though my eyelids can't stay open...

Dermalogica #MyFaceMyStory

It has taken me years to realise that good skin doesn't happen over night, it takes time for your skin to become used to a product, and for a product to work. Some work miracles overnight and others need time. A few weeks ago I went down to my local salon has my skin analysed by Dermalogica expert. 

The whole process took no more than twenty minutes and started by asking me questions about my skin. The lifestyle I live, health issues, sun tolerance and then using a unique technique to perform a visual examinaton of my skin. Using the old tradition of chinese facial diagnoisis, the skin expert divided my skin into 14 different zones and examined each zone throughly and noted down what she saw on a prescription sheet. 

This sheet was then for me to keep and see my skin at a glance, with all its issues present. These included breakouts, hyperpigmentation and the unknown to me, dehyrdation. From this she outlined the products that are best suited to my skin and why. Today, I've got a review of some of the products that were recommended and how they've worked and not worked for my skin. 

Essentials for Oily Skin

Having oily skin is an absoutle nightmare, you have to find products that last till midday or there abouts before having to retouch and check on the shine. Then there's the battle of breakouts, large pores and basically every skin problem possible. Over the past few months, along with some amazing skincare bits my oily skin has been tamed and no shine seems to appear until 6pm in the evening aka home time! 

Becoming a Savvy Shopper with Dealspotr

Before I ever buy anything online or order a takeaway, I always do a quick google to look for the best deals and voucher codes avaiable. 99% of the time there aren't ones that fit the amount I've spent or the area I live in. It's a constant circle of trying to find something. A few weeks ago I joined Dealspotr, the hot new site that promises to save you money whilst making you money at the same time. 

Achieving A Bad-Ass Glow

No matter how much I told myself that there is no need to order the new glow kit, guess who did? 🙋🙋After seeing a hundred and one pictures of it and videos talking about it, there was something inside of me that just had to have it. For so long, I was very much on the fence. This is the second thing from ABH that I have tried and without trying any other glow kit - I've gone straight in for this one. Iqra who's just fabulous,was also on the fence and when she caved, I ended up caving too. But was it worth the price tag and hall of fame reputation?  

The Perfect Everyday Foundation

For me, it doesn't happen very often but don't you just love it when you fall in love with a foundation? The feeling of being able to apply a product in the morning and knowing that when you go home and look in the mirror, it will still be in tact. Buying a new foundation is my pet peeve, can never seem to find the ideal shade, perfect formula or even a brand that I like. In the past few years, I've loved a lot of foundations, majority of which are drugstore. This years aim is to try more high end, I have my eyes on Estee Lauder, YSL and Chanel but for now it is the Lancôme Teint Idole Ultra Wear. It was briefly mentioned in the beauty edit post in collaboration with John Lewis, but it needed its own post.