Fall Favourites

Hello

Nope I'm not American and yes I love the word Autumn but 'Fall Favourites' just has that ring to it, don't you think? So that's what we're going with today. I present to you my favourites from September/October.

I'm going to split it into categories this season, so if you'd like to skip some sections this is the order;

1. skin care
2. makeup 
3. nails
4. scent
5. Misc

I'm also not going to talk in detail because there are so many things! I hope this is okay and if there is anything you want me to review, leave a comment.

Skin care

Unfortunately for my skin, since my life got a little busier my skin isn't as high in my priorities as it should be. I only cleanse if I'm wearing makeup - even that has slipped to a makeup wipe the past couple of nights (yep, naughty me!), I never tone and I'm always forgetting to moisturise! Night cream just doesn't exist to me anymore. However there are still a couple of things I've been loving recently. 

First of, I am still enjoying my Manuka Doctor hydrating facial cleanser, it does exactly what it says on the tube and bee venom skin products is the number 1 trend 2013.

Second, I picked up the 'Catastrophe Cosmetic' fresh face mask from Lush about two weeks ago and I've used it five times since then. It's only the 75g tub but I've barely got through any and I like a generous coverage. I definitely recommend Lush face masks. 

Make-up

This section has a lot of products this month, but hey! I wouldn't be a decent beauty blogger if I wasn't a beauty addict now, would I?! It's only my bank account that suffers...

First up I've been going crazy for Maybelline 24HR Color Tatattoos! I have four shades in total but my favourites, which I've been getting a LOT of use from include Metallic Pomegranite which is like a bronzey-brown-purple colour (centre), On and On Bronze which is a deep gold colour (right) and my absolute favourite is Pink Gold (left)! The pigmentation is fantastic, I use these as both bases and on their own sometimes. I actually prefer these to my MAC paint pot - much cheaper too. Swatches below.

Something which I bought a very long time ago but I've recently been loving due it's ability to hide under eye bags and cover any blotches that my foundation cannot, is my Witch concealer in shade 01 (Natural). It was just a pharmacy pick up when from when I had really bad skin because witch hazel is great for blemishes but I never really got into it until now. I like the strong smell too. 

Another fabulous product Maybelline has brought to us this year are theBaby Lips lip balms! I have all six available in the UK (very jealous of the wider variety in the US) and I love every. single. one of them. In particular my favourites are Cherry Me for it's colour and taste, Hydrate for it's hydrating qualities and the smell and taste of a sweet I just can't put my finger on, and finally, Intense Care for being all round a great lip balm. I keep the latter by my bed for last thing at night, first thing in the morning and everything in between! Makeup award goes to Maybelline for there brilliant high street products.  

I have been using my Photo Finish face primer from Smashbox almost everyday since August and I love it. It does a great job and you don't need much of it - my tiny 12ml tube is still going strong.

A blush I bought due to it being recommended to me by a friend is Sleek Rose Gold. Now, I was already a fan of the Sleek powder blushes but this one is just so beautiful! It is more a summery blush but I like it for Autumn just as much. Ahh I could just stare at it forever.

I'm not sure if I've mentioned before that I'd picked up the Rimmel Lash Accelerator Endless mascara but I have. I got the brown shade because I feel like black is too much for my eyes and I'm loving it. It isn't clumpy and it looks so pretty. It's made my lashes grow too which although it claims to do so, I did not believe it would. I like the long, slim application wand too. My new favourite mascara. 

Finally for this category I have two lip products; My Model Co lip gloss in Strip Tease which I believe I have featured on here before now (well I'm still in love with it) and my Calvin Klein lip stick in Mesmerize which I talked about waaayyyy back in one of my very first posts here. It's a little bright for Autumn but I think it's great all year round, especially in the season of the crunchy leaves. :) 

Pheww, now that's over. 

Nails

Just the two polishes that I actually own are in my favourites this month;Barry M Red Wine because it's just the perfect October colour and MUA Fairy Dust which is beautiful with just one coat and doesn't chip either. I love this type of polish.

However there is one nail varnish which ALL the gurus have been chatting about and I''ve just been stood drooling over it in Boots. That isEssie's After School Boy Blazer from their new Autumn 2013 collection. Anyone want to buy it for me? I'll love ya forever. 

Scent

I'm a girl who loves her smells and this month I've got a couple of candles for you to try out. 

Mandarin Cranberry is one of my absolute favourite Yankee candles for its beautiful smell and I like the colour too. I've been burning this small votive size one a lot lately and I just find it delicious. 

Also - and we're getting in the holiday spirit now - I have one of the Halloween scents. Witches brew is a lovely spicey scent. I like the label too. 

Last but not least I shopped my stash and found an old NEXT body spritz in lemongrass. I adore this fresh, 'invigorating' spray and I've been using it on a daily basis, I'm a little sad that it isn't available anymore though. 

Misc.

So finally the miscellaneous category. Three things for you this month;

First I've been enjoying to use the Real Techniques Expert Face Brush to apply my foundation with. 

Next I am currently reading (once again, I'm late to jump on the band wagon) The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky and I'm really enjoying it. An older read, yes but I recommend it all the same. 

ANDDD finally the last thing in my favourites is the Halloweentown film series from Disney. I love every single of one these movies, they are some of the very few films I can watch more than once - in fact, I watch these EVERY YEAR. I seriously recommend you go and watch them. 

I hope you enjoyed this slightly too long, wordy post full of my favourite things.

Until next time
xx

My Current Beauty Favourites

Hello

Today I'm trying out something new! I have for you my current beauty favourites. I haven't done a 'favourites' post before so I hope you enjoy!

Another Illamasqua edit.

I will include a reliable link for every product so that should you like the sound of it, you can try it too. 

Let's start with the biggest of them all and by far my favourite-ist (nope, that's not a word. I made it up). Soap & Glory Sugar Crush Body Wash. I. Love. This. Smell. Sometimes I just take of the lid and sniff, it's an addiction almost like drugs. Not drugs though - I don't and never will condone the use of drugs nor do I use any substances not prescribed by my doctor for medicinal purposes. Anyway, getting back on track I really like everything about this product, from packaging (cute and quirky as ever) through scent and price, to how it works. It leaves me feeling clean and fresh. 

Moving out of the shower, I have two moisturisers I've been loving over the past couple of months; first a fantastic facial moisturiser. I have shopped my stash and rediscovered my Clinique dramatically different moisturising gel. It's hard to find since the release of the dramatically different +, but I do love it so all the same. It is super hydrating and a good primer for under foundation. I used it on my poor burnt face during our British heat wave and it worked a treat. Yipee. 

Also I have got into the routine of doing a full body moisturise after I get out of the shower. I tried a couple of products but my favourite is definitely the Soap & Glory Butter Yourself five fruits super rich smoothing body cream. This also smells divine and I find it to be such a good body butter for my skin. Me likes a lot. 

The final moisturising product in my favourites is my beloved vibrant cherry lib butter from Marks & Spencer. I've had this for a while and mainly carried it to school but since leaving school in May I have just rediscovered it. I'm almost out but for now it's my top lip product!

Next up I have been enjoying my real techniques makeup brushes (thank you for these perfect tools Sam Chapman!), the crease brush and buffing brush in particular. If you haven't tried these already then do so right now right here. Go on! You know you want to. 

You may have figured out by now that I am a makeup junkie. I may not have the money to splash out on big brands or buy a lotta products but over the years my collection has more than doubled in size. Let me tell you about some of the things from my collections I have been loving recently so much that they have made it to my favourites...

To start us of it will come as no surprise to you to find my BourjoisHealthy Mix Serum gel foundation in here because in my review I raved about it enough! To read more click here. I have been loving Bourjois on the cheeks as well this month in the form of the cream to powder formula blush shade 02. This is a lovely peachy orange colour which I think is just so pretty.

I have been wearing a nude lip pretty much every day recently and my top two products are my MUA lipstick in shade 16 (nectar) paired with my Collection 2000 love your lips lip gloss in shade 2 (delight). I really like how this looks on my lips and it goes perfectly with the Bourjois blush. 

I feel like this has been a very long post today but only two products remaining, both of which are for the eyes! My mascara which I have been using non stop for its non-clump and super curl qualities is actually a cheapy little thing from a brand called Evie Mae in brown.. It came as part of a vanity kit (which you can pick up from eBay here) from a fundraiser catalog a few years ago when I thought nothing of it. Now, though, I am really regretting not using it more earlier on. 

I have also done a little 'shop my stash' and rediscovered my No7 define & shimmer eye palette which contains four silky looking autumn colours all of which are beautiful on the eye.

 I particularly love the chocolate brown either in the crease or all over the lid. The best part about this product is that I got it free when I bought a No7 mascara. This is no longer available from Boots but you can find it on eBay. 

I hope you enjoyed this post and it wasn't just me rambling on about some makeup I like. I really recommend each product mentioned today and I hope you will try some out for yourself and enjoy the just as much. 

If you have a blog or YouTube channel and have uploaded your monthly/current favourites then leave me the link in the comments so I can take a look. 

Until next time
xx