Sunday 27 October 2013

My Bedtime Skincare Routine

Whoaaaa, 2 posts in one weekend, what's going on? Well in all honesty I wasn't really happy with yesterday's post and I was itching to write a blog post with my own pictures etc so I thought, why not treat everyone to two posts in the space of 2 days? And that is exactly what I'm doing. I also thought that this could be a little '600 page views' surprise post.

As you can probably already guess, today's post is going to be about my bedtime skincare routine (the routine I do every single night). I don't know about you, but I personally love reading blog posts and watching YouTube videos about people's skincare routines so I'm hoping you'll enjoy this post.

Firstly before I do anything else, I remove all my eye makeup using my Nivea Daily Essentials Double Effect Eye Makeup Remover (wow that was a mouthful).


This is actually a relatively new addition to my skincare routine as when I went into Boots a couple of weeks back to get my usual Garnier one, they didn't have it so I picked this one up, and oh boy I'm glad I did.
This is one of those eye makeup removers that you have to shake to mix the 2 solutions together. 


I have 1 word to describe this; incredible. I seriously couldn't believe how quickly and effectively this took my eye makeup off the first time I tried it. I wear a lot of eye makeup, mascara, eyeliner, eye shadow and all the other shibazz (new word there oooh), but this just removes it all like a dream without leaving an oily residue (as some have done for me in the past). A little really does go a long way as I've had this for 2 weeks, I use it every night and there's hardly any product gone. I am so impressed with this and it will continue to be a staple in my routine. I would recommend this to anyone who wants an affordable, really effective eye makeup remover.

After removing my eye makeup I remove my face makeup. For this is use my Simple Kind to Skin Purifying Cleansing Lotion.


I have used this cleansing lotion for about 3 years now and I don't plan on changing any time soon. It's just so soothing and calming on my skin, doesn't irritate it and removes all makeup fantastically. I used to use this on my eyes but it wouldn't always remove all my mascara and I would usually wake up with panda eyes, it would also irritate my eyes a little bit. 


This is, as the name suggests a lotion. It has no scent and as Simple products are suitable for all skin types, I would recommend this to anyone who wants an affordable, gentle, effective face makeup remover.

Next, I wash my face. On a Wednesday and a Sunday night I use an exfoliator and on every other night, I use a regular face wash.
The exfoliator I use is the Tea Tree Exfoliating Cream Wash. 


This face wash has tea tree and peppermint in it and is an absolute joy to use. It also has added aloe vera in it so after use you're not left with stiff, tight skin, but soft, smooth skin. 


The crushed walnut shell (as you can see in the photo above) exfoliates my skin really well without scratching my face and without making my face feel like I'm rubbing sandpaper all over it. I much prefer this to any other exfoliators I've ever used. The morning after using this I also notice a huge reduction in the number of spots I can see forming under the skin (them little bumps). I have also noticed a reduction in blackheads on my nose, I'm seriously impressed by this and I would recommend this over any other exfoliator I've tried, and believe me, I've tried A LOT. Also it smells amazing, so that makes me love it even more.

The face wash I use every other night is Clean and Clear Fast Action Daily Wash. This is my favourite daily wash ever and I don't plan on changing any time in the foreseeable future.


This is just my holy grail face wash. It does everything it says on the tube and I just can't praise it highly enough. It definitely helps keep spots away and helps clear them fast, and it most definitely doesn't dry out my skin. It's seriously amazing. 


The face wash comes out as a gel like consistency but it lathers up to a foam on your face. I would highly, highly recommend this to anyone that has spot prone skin or is suffering from acne. This is the best product I have ever tried from Clean and Clear. 

Once I've washed my face I pat it dry with a clean towel and move on to toning my face. 
For this I use my Simple Kind to Skin Soothing Facial Toner. I love this toner. It leaves my skin feeling really refreshed and removes any dirt or anything that may have been left on my face, even after washing.


I don't exactly know what a toner does, but I do know it makes my skin feel really nice and clarified. I've been using this for about 3 years and I don't think I'll stop using it as it's served me well and it's just a great addition to my skincare routine. As it's Simple it has no unnecessary perfumes, no alcohol or anything to irritate your skin and is perfect for all skin types.

I then move onto moisturising my face, because everyone wants baby soft skin right?
For moisturising I use my Clean and Clear Dual Action Moisturiser. This moisturiser is meant to prevent spots and blemishes but I really don't know if it does or not. The main reason I use this is because it is oil free and is amazing at moisturising. 


This moisturiser has something like 0.2% salycilic acid in it (don't quote me on that) which is one of the best spot fighting ingredients you can find. As it has such a small concentration I don't know how effective it is but I certainly don't experience any irritation when I use this. I've been using this for about a year and I've been loving it ever since I got it. If you have very dry skin though, I would look for a more moisturising moisturiser as this does moisturise just not as well as some.


If you have oily, combination, normal, or spot prone skin I would recommend this moisturiser as it's oil free and it does make you feel a little better that it does have something in it that helps fight spots, even if maybe it actually doesn't, it's nice to have that there.

Finally I use my Witch Blemish Stick. This is just my favourite thing ever ever ever and oh my word I just love it so much. I love it so much that I actually did a full blog post on it here.


This little savoir has literally changed my life. No more foundation, and only concealer under my eyes. I seriously can't believe I never found this sooner. I just dab it over any spots that are appearing/have appeared and by the morning, you usually would never have known they were even there. I could ramble on about this for ages but just check out the whole post where I declared my love for it;)

Once I have done all of this, I jump into bed and watch YouTube videos, why not?
I hope this post has been helpful and has maybe encouraged you to buy some new products to add into your skincare routine? I hope everything was explained clearly and I'd like to thank you all again for 600 page views, it means the world.





Saturday 26 October 2013

My Wishlist

Before I begin this post I would like to apologise for this post being up slightly later than usual. I've been having problems with my internet and this post just would not upload. But no point grumbling on about that, it's uploaded now so lets just get on with it;).

As you can probably already tell, this post will be a wishlist. It will include things like makeup, skincare, body care, and some occasional fashion items.
Being a teenager with no job (I'm too young), I obviously don't have the money to buy everything I want/would like and pocket money obviously doesn't cover the costs. My parents do buy me occasional things but not everything so I always make up wishlists of what I would like to buy if I had the money and I thought it would be quite good to share 5 things that are on my wishlist with you all. 

Item #1



The first item on my wishlist is the Sleek Face Form Palette in 'Fair'. I have been wanting this for ages, ever since either Zoella or Tanya Burr mentioned it in a favourites video. At £9.99 it isn't too expensive but it's just one of those products I haven't got round to buying and it's also quite hard to get a hold of because everytime I try to order one, it's out of stock. (wehh)

Item #2

The second item on my wishlist is the ever so famous La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo. I have seen so so many YouTuber's and blogger's rave about this product, and it genuinely sounds amazing, but at £13.00 for only 40ml it is a little out of my price range in terms of skincare but hopefully one day I will get my hands on this.

Item #3


The third item I have on my wishlist is the Barry M Lip gloss Wand in 'toffee'. Now to some people this colour looks brown and boring, but from the swatches that I've seen it's a lovely natural colour and looks really nice on the lips.
Now this is only £4.49 but it's yet again another product I haven't gotten round to buying. I have seen VelvetGh0st rave about this so I am hoping to have this in my collection very soon (the next time I go shopping).

Item #4



The fourth item I have on my wishlist is the Origins Super Spot remover. I have heard a lot of YouTuber's and bloggers raving about this and the person who has made me really really want this is EssieButton as she has mentioned it quite a lot and says it's incredible. The 14 pages of reviews on the Origins website also say it's incredible, with not one bad review, so I do hope one day to get my hands on this little gem. At £14 it does seem quite expensive but one day I will make the splurge and get it because in a lot of the reviews I have seen that it lasts about a year, and for £14 that seems very very reasonable.

Item #5




The fifth and final item on today's wishlist is a Chevron Midi ring. Now these may not be to everyone's taste but I personally LOVE them. They're just so pretty. I have no idea where to get one though. I have tried Etsy but I find that the shipping is sometimes more than the item itself and I don't think it is worth it, so if anyone at all knows where I could get one then please leave a comment below.

Now that is the end of My Wishlist #1. This was a really strange post for me to write as I wasn't using my own photos and I don't know if it's of any interest to any of you. If you like these types of posts please comment below and I will do more, but if you didn't like it, then I won't. At the moment I'm just experimenting with my blog to see what I like and what I don't like writing, and also what my readers like and don't like reading. 

Any suggestions on products you think I may like would be greatly appreciated and also please let me know if you have tried/own any of the items mentioned in this post and what you think of them. Suggestions for future posts would also be greatly appreciated.


Saturday 19 October 2013

My Daily Makeup

Well hello again. As you can probably already see, today's post is going to be about my daily makeup. This post will be quite long so grab yourself a cup of tea or whatever, and get comfy.

To start off I do my concealer. The concealer I am currently using is the ever famous Collection Lasting Perfection concealer.

I apologise for the state of the tube, all the writing has rubbed off.
I do find that this concealer can cling to dry patches and make them more noticeable and even if I do moisturise, it does still cling. If you have very dry skin, I would avoid this concealer like the plague. 
Please comment below if there are any concealers which give the same amount of coverage as this, but are a bit more hydrating. 
I use this concealer on blemishes and occasionally under my eyes and it does a great job of concealing the blemishes but I do find it to be a bit too thick and cakey for underneath my eyes. 



I have this concealer in Shade 2 'Light'. It is an almost perfect match but my only niggle is that it is rather pink toned, I don't know if that's just me or not?



This concealer has a doe foot applicator which some people may find unhygenic because you're dabbing it onto blemishes and under your eyes but I think it works just fine and I haven't experienced any problems at all.

Next I do my eyeliner. The eyeliner I use is Collection Extreme 24 Hour Felt Tip Liner. I love this eyeliner so much. It's waterproof, stays on all day, comes off really easily and never smudges.




As the name suggests, it is a felt tip liner. I prefer this type of eyeliner as I feel as 
though you have a lot more control over the thickness of the line etc. 



This eyeliner is incredibly pigmented and is super black and glossy, exactly how I like liquid liner to be. I'd recommend this to anyone that wishes to start using liquid eyeliner as it is easy to use and affordable.

Next, while waiting for my eyeliner to completely dry (even though it is fast drying, I like to be sure), I do my eyebrows. I use an eye shadow from the MUA Undress Me Too palette as it is a perfect colour match to my brows.


I use the shade 'Lavish' which is an ashy brown sort of colour. It's not the most pigmented but it does the job fine. I apply this to my brows using an angled brush.

To set my brows I use my MUA Clear Mascara.


This is perfect for setting your brows as it doesn't leave a white flaky film (as some clear mascara's have done for me in the past) and it's super duper cheap at only £1. This keeps my brows in place all day and is definitely my new 'go to' brow gel.

Once I've done my brows I move onto my eyelashes. Firstly I curl them using my Superdrug Eyelash Curlers.
  

These were actually a 2 minute purchase as I needed a new pair and I had a bus to catch in 5 minutes so I ran into Superdrug and grabbed these. These do the job and curl your lashes nicely but I will be looking into a better pair for the future as there are many others in the market. I would however recommend these to anyone who is just starting out with makeup because they are cheap, and do a good job.

After curling my lashes I then apply mascara to both my top and bottom lashes. This past week I have been using my new Scandal Eyes Flex mascara that I featured in my 'Makeup Haul' post last week.



I have been absolutely loving this mascara. It makes my lashes look absolutely huge without making them clumpy or stiff. The brush is massive but delivers such incredible results. Look out for a full review of this mascara coming soon.

When I've finished my eyes, I then move on to my lips. I always apply a lip balm before applying lipstick as I like to make sure my lips are always hydrated, even if it is a hydrating lipstick. At the moment I have been using my Burts Bee's Beeswax Lip Balm.



This lip balm is a lovely creamy consistency and it sort of melts onto your lips. It smells incredible, a nice minty smell and when it's on your lips, you can feel it tingling. I have a strong feeling that this will be a staple item in my makeup bag this winter.

Over the top of my lip balm I apply a lipstick. The lip colour I choose to wear usually depends on what sort of mood I'm in, but this past week I've been swapping between 2.

The first one I've been wearing is my Rimmel Colour Rush Colour Balm in the shade 'On Fire'. This is another new purchase that I have been absolutely loving. 



I just absolutely love this shade and I think I will continue to love it all year round as I feel as though it is an 'all seasons' lip colour. These are so moisturizing and so pigmented and I just can't express my love for them. They also smell AH-MAZING. Watch out for a full review coming soon.

The other lip colour I have been swapping my Rimmel Colour Rush Colour Balm with is my Kiko Smart Lipstick in Shade 905 'Coral Red'. 



I love this lipstick. It's so creamy and pigmented and it doesn't dry out your lips at all. 


This colour is a light orangey-red with gold glitter through it. It looks so nice on the lips and out of the few Kiko lipsticks I have, this one is definitely my favourite. It is also very natural on the lips and is not too over the top.

Finally to finish my whole face off, I powder using my Rimmel Stay Matte Powder. This is yet again another new purchase, but I still haven't made up my mind on what I think of this. It definitely doesn't keep me matte all day, 4 hours max. The hunt for the perfect mattifying powder continues. If anyone has any suggestions on a good mattifying powder that WILL keep me matte all day, please leave a comment below.



I have this in Shade '001 Transparent' as I do not wish for any colour pay off, just something to mattify my skin.   

Now, that is my whole face of makeup finished. A lot of you may be wondering why I don't wear foundation, truth is, I just feel like I don't need to wear it so that is why I leave it out. Also I do wear more makeup than this for special events etc but this is just my daily makeup that I wear to school.
I really hope that this post has been helpful and may encourage you to try some new products. 


Monday 14 October 2013

25 Facts About Me


As you can probably guess from the title, this is going to be a '25 Facts About Me' post.
Now I'm aware that I only just posted something yesterday and I have previously said that I'd be posting once a week, but last night, I hit 200 page views (eek)! I know to a lot of people it doesn't seem that much, but to me, it's such a great achievement. 
I only started this blog last month and to have already gotten 200 page views is incredible. I am hoping my blog will continue growing and I'd like to thank everyone who has taken time to read my blog. Thank you all so so much. 
Now on with the actual post..
  1. My name is Kirsty and I am 14 years old.
  2. I was born in Scotland, I still live here and I plan on living here for the rest of my life.
  3. I only properly became interested in makeup in the past year or so, before that I only occasionally wore a little bit of mascara and lip-gloss.
  4. I am seriously OBSESSED with YouTube, I am subscribed to over 80 people.
  5. My favourite YouTuber's are; Zoella, Tanya Burr, Sprinkleofglitter, MacBarbie07, FleurDeForce, VelvetGh0st, PointlessBlog, Marcus Butler, Thatcher Joe, Jim Chapman, PixiWoo, Miss Glamorazzi, StilaBabe09, Essie Button, ICovetThee, Caspar Lee and Ava Allan. Yepp, I'm a little bit obsessed, these aren't even half.
  6. I much prefer makeup to clothes, but I do still like clothes, just makeup is better. 
  7. I have never ever seen Lord of the Rings or Star Wars and I never ever intend on seeing either of them.
  8. My all time favourite films are The Lion King (1 and 2) and all the Harry Potter ones.
  9. One thing I physically cannot do, is completely finish a hot chocolate, the powder left at the bottom of the cup is horrible, eww.
  10. My favourite vegetables are mushrooms, brussel sprouts and cauliflower (weird, I know.)
  11. I really really want to start a YouTube channel but I'm scared I'll be rubbish and people will think I'm stupid.
  12. I am incredibly self conscious  I've always had comments about my weight saying things like 'you look anorexic' because I have a high metabolism, therefore I am naturally slim. 
  13. I am a Potterhead and proud, I love Harry Potter an unreal amount.
  14. My favourite book ever has to be Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows because it's just incredible, there's nothing more to really say.




  15. I hate the dark, and I can never sleep with my feet outside the covers because.. well you all know why (monsters).
  16. I cannot sleep with socks on, I don't understand how people can do it?!
  17. I want to go on a gap year to Australia when I finish academy, before I go to Uni.
  18. I have a weird love for reed diffusers, they just smell so good.
  19. I hate it when people are disorganized or really bad at time keeping because I am probably the most organized person you'll ever, ever meet.
  20. I do not like Coke, Pepsi, Dr Pepper or anything that tastes remotely like Coke.
  21. I have a strange addiction to skittles and ice tea (peach flavour of course.) 
  22. I will eat anything because I'm really not fussy at all, unless it's mince and tatties, then I will most definitely not eat it.
  23. I have way more lipstick than I should probably have.
  24. I spend way longer than is healthy on YouTube and on the Boots website.
  25. I have a serious love for Winnie The Pooh, I have Tigger slippers and when I saw them, I ran across the shop shouting 'IT'S TIGGER OH MY GOD'. I am normal, I promise..
    They're so cute though..
  26. They even have tails, I mean, I couldn't exactly leave them there could I?
Now I have finished my '25 Facts About Me'.  That was a lot harder than I thought it would be so I hope you didn't find that too boring. Maybe some of you can relate to some things I've told you about myself? Hopefully;) 



Sunday 13 October 2013

Makeup Haul

Hello again, today's post was meant to be completely different to what it actually is, but I 'accidentally' went makeup shopping yesterday and picked up a few things that I thought I would share with you all.

As soon as I got off the bus, I went straight to Boots.  I was just browsing around, looking at all the offers that were on when I saw Rimmel had an offer where if you spent £10 you would get a FREE Scandal Eyes Lycra Flex Mascara.  I just couldn't resist.
After about half an hour of serious swatching, I finally made my decision.


The first product I picked up was the Professional Eyebrow Pencil.  I've been looking for a good eyebrow pencil for a while and my friend loves this one, and for £2.99 you can't really go wrong.


I got it in the shade '001 Dark Brown' as I have extremely dark hair and my eyebrows are just as dark, I am worrying though because this may be a tad too light for me. I have swatched it below.



 The pencil comes with a brush on the lid which to me, is an added bonus. I'm looking forward to trying this out.

Available here for £2.99

The second product I picked up was one of the new Lasting Finish Colour Rush Lip Balms, which are basically Rimmel's version of the Clinique Chubby Sticks. So many other brands (Soap and Glory, Bourjois, MUA etc) have all brought out their own versions of these, but as there was a deal on, I decided to try out Rimmel's offering.



The packaging is pretty much the same as all the other versions of the Chubby Sticks but I feel like this is a lot more sturdy than some.


After swatching each of the colours on offer numerous times, I chose the shade 'On Fire' as I felt I'd get a lot of wear out of it as this is the sort of colour I usually go for.


As you can see above, this colour is incredibly pigmented.  The above photo is one swipe of it. 
I have been wearing this today and it has lasted a good 5 hours and still counting. 

Available here for £5.99.

The third and final (Rimmel) product that I purchased to bring my final total up over £10 was the most hyped up powder ever, the Rimmel Stay Matte Powder.
I am very late on the bandwagon with this, but I've just never gotten round to buying it to be honest but I finally just got so fed up of my incredibly oily skin, that I got it.


Personally I actually really like the packaging, I like being able to see the product but this of course is my personal opinion, others may not like it

I got the shade '001 Transparent' as I do not wish for any coverage, just something to control shine.  It says on the packaging 'Up to 5 hours natural shine control' but on the Boots website it says 'Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder controls shine for up to 12 hours' confused?!
Anyhow, I am looking forward to using this as I have heard so many good things about this and at £3.99, you can't really go wrong.

Available here for £3.99.

Because there was the 'spend £10 and get a FREE Scandal Eyes Flex Mascara' deal, I also got the, you guessed it, Scandal Eyes Flex Mascara.


The packaging, in my opinion is AMAZING. I love the neon green packaging, it just looks so cool and funky? (does anyone even use that word anymore?!)


As of yet, I haven't actually had a chance to try this mascara but I'm really looking forward to it, I mean, 'scandalous volume, no clumps, soft and flexible lashes' what else could you want in a mascara?


Even though I haven't actually tried it yet, I have noticed that the brush is absolutely GIANT. 

I am really looking forward to trying this mascara.

Available here for £6.99 or FREE until the 29th of October if you spend £10 or more on Rimmel makeup.

After my little Rimmel session in Boots, I hopped off to Superdrug to pick up a few more bits and bobs.

My first stop was the false lash aisle as I have a big party coming up and I wanted a pair of falsies. After a while of 'ooh-ing' and 'aah-ing' I chose a pair from Eyelure called the 'Miss Eyelure Olivia Lashlets'.


These lashes are pre-glued as I can not deal with lashes you have to glue yourself, it's a disaster when I try to do them.


I chose these eyelashes because they're nice and thick, but not overly dramatic. I'm really looking forward to wearing these.

Available here for £2.72 (or £4.09 if the current deal has finished)

Finally I went to the MUA stand. I picked up 2 items, both £1 each.

The first item I got was my usual clear mascara that I use for setting my brows.


There's nothing really to say about this as it does what I want it to do and my brows stay in place all day.  This is my 5th tube and it lasts for forever. Absolute bargain at just £1.

Available here for £1.


My final makeup product that I picked up was a lipstick, also from MUA. I love these lipsticks and I think they're an absolute steal at only £1.


I chose 'Shade 13' as I am just starting to venture into the world of bright red lipstick and I didn't want to spend a bomb on one as I didn't know whether it would suit me or not.


This shade is a true red shade with blue undertones.  This is great as it makes your teeth look whiter. I haven't had a chance to test out the wear of this lipstick but oh my god it's pigmented. 


When I swatched this, I just couldn't believe how pigmented it was, the above swatch is with one swipe. I'm so impressed.


The lipstick also comes with a little pot of product at the bottom that you can screw off an use, genius!
I'm very much looking forward to using this lipstick.

Available here for £1.


Finally, you have reached the end of this post. I really hope this wasn't too long and I explained everything as fully as possible. Please leave a comment down below if you'd like me to do a separate post for any of the products mentioned in this post.




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