OOTD- Preppy girl

Hi Lovelies!

Seeing as it's the end of February today I should really be doing my February favourites post now, but as I don't have all the photos ready for that yet I thought I'd show you an outfit that I wore to uni last week instead...

Top- Miss Selfridge

Skirt- Republic

Cardigan- New Look

Tights- Primark

Brogues- ASDA

Necklace- H. Samuels 

Bracelets- Links of London and Pandora 

To try and stop me from buying too many new clothes I've been trying to rediscover my love for old things that have been at the back of my wardrobe for ages, hence why I'm wearing the pink cardi and floral skirt, as these are two items that I haven't worn in over a year I reckon (well I've worn the cardigan as 1940's costume but that doesn't count!). 

I don't know why I've neglected them for so long to be honest, as I love the preppy girly look they create when paired with my bargain brogues and staple miss selfridge lacy top. I also kept my make up simple and pinned back my hair to finish the look and it made a nice change to the more casual looks I sometimes end up going for when I'm running late for uni!

What do you think of my preppy girl look? Do you dress up everyday or end up going casual to save time?

Right I need to go to the 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' run through that I've got on tonight...I'm so busy at the moment as I'm in four different shows over the next three weeks so I'm out the house for about 14 hours some days and finding it a bit hard to keep up with everything, but I'm still going to try and post more regularly throughout March!

I hope you're all having wonderful Wednesdays!

Love Meg

x

Revlon 'pink pout': MAC 'please me' dupe?

Good Morning girlies!

Even though I recently managed to achieve my New Years goal of owning an Urban Decay Naked 2 palette, my 2012 aim to own a MAC lipstick is looking like it won't be fulfilled for a while as I've got no present buying occasions coming up and I just can't justify that £13.50 price tag at the moment! However, it's all okay because my lovely friend faye from fayesfix swears she prefers her Revlon lippy to her MAC one and thinks it's pretty much a dupe of MAC anyway, so instead of pining for MAC I turned to the more affordable £7.49 a pop Revlon to satisfy my high end lipstick craving...

I went for the shade 'pink pout' with a matte finish, which is part of Revlon's super lustrous range. I went for this shade because the shade I'd buy from MAC would be a pinky blue toned nude that I could wear everyday and I went for a matte finish as I love getting a full pout of opaque colour with one swipe. 

The first thing that strikes me is how similar the packaging, shade and finish is to MAC's 'please me' so it definitely looks like a dupe from the outside! But what about the actual product on the inside...

The claims-

'Revlon® Matte Lipstick gives suede-like application and maximum colour. Rich matte colour glides effortlessly across lips. Suede-like cushion without drying.'

The reality-

This lipstick does glide on nice and smoothly, as well as providing a matte finish full of colour after a few swipes. I also didn't find it drying, although I do prefer it with a glossy top coat (which I'll show you in another post) so that the creases of your lips aren't as defined. I adore the shade as it's subtle enough to count as an everyday nude, but pink enough to give a nice bit of colour (I'm really not a fan of the concealer lip look!). I also find it very long lasting on the lips, as it survived through meals and needed minimal reapplication.

A dupe for MAC 'please me'?

Obviously I've never tried a MAC lipstick, but all I can say is that this is the best lipstick I own, including the many No7 ones I have which come in at a pricier £10. So if you're looking for a cheaper high end lipstick alternative with the same quality and choice of shades and finishes that are much more easily available, then I'd recommend you give Revlon a go :)

Do you think Revlon lipsticks are a dupe for MAC ones? What are your favourite brands of lipsticks and shades?

I'm feeling a bit fragile after Pop Tarts last night, but now I really need to pull myself together and get ready for the two rehearsals I have today for 'Alice in Wonderland' and our next supas show! I also have a tonne of reading to do today, boo :(

I hope you've all got more relaxing Sundays planned!

Love Meg

x

Now trending: Flatforms and creepers

Hiya lovelies!

I thought I'd do a post for you while I'm sitting here waiting for my fake tan to develop (it's all going well so far, but more on that later...). If you keep your eye on fashion I'm sure you'll have noticed the latest shoe trends to hit the high street from the cat walk, which are flatforms and creepers...



Creepers...



Although these types of shoe look very different, the main idea behind them is the same- to give you height and the illusion of heels without the hurting feet. I for one love this idea as at about 5"3 I always want a bit of extra height, but I'm not a fan of killing my feet in the process.

However, I'm not sure I can pull off the quirky creeper look or flatform with no added height in the heel at all, so I've invested in the same black suade pair llymlrs has from h&m, which are a nice wearable in-between with a slight heel suitable for day or night time. They were only £20 and  are ridiculously comfy, but I think also give the impression I'm wearing full on platforms!

I have a feeling flatforms are going to be very big this season so I'd go and snap these up as soon as you can if you're loving the trend too!

What do you think of platforms and creepers? Have you already given in to the trend?

I've had a really fun few days running a sleepover social for my performing arts society and watching Legally Blonde the musical! I'm also super excited for tonight as I'm off to my favourite club night ever- Pop Tarts- for my friends birthday, hence why I'm fake tanning...I've also dyed my hair and put on my falsies so I'm  feeling all nice and dolled up :) I'm planning to wear my black cut out dress and nude heels so look out for an outfit post on that shorty...

I hope you've all got fun plans for tonight too!
Love Meg
x

OOTD- Leather hotpants and Peter Pan

Happy pancake day everyone!

Today I thought I'd show you one of my favourite outfits of the moment starring two of my favourite fashion trends of the moment- peter pan collars and faux leather. I wore this outfit last Saturday when I was at home in the day and out in the evening as it's perfect for both day and night. If I was off clubbing I'd probably just whip the tights off, shove some killer heels on and boom, party clothing sorted!

Top- New Look

Shorts- Ebay

Tights- Primark

Shoes- New Look

Bracelets- Links of London and Pandora

Earrings- Topshop

The shorts are the newest addition to my wardrobe, I've been on the look out for a pair of leather hot pants for ages and after finding nothing on the high street I turned to my beloved trusty ebay and viola- a pair of perfectly fitting faux leather shorts for only £14! I love leather look clothing as it gives more girly items a bit of an edge and makes a statement all on its own. I'm very excited now as I know faux leather is going to be big this spring, so I'll definitely be on the look out for some perfect leather look leggings and maybe a leather jacket or skirt... I got the top last year and it's been one of my favourite New Look finds ever, as I love the bold print and can't get enough of its big peter pan collar and ribbon tie (I'm literally a sucker for anything with a collar at the moment!). I also don't really own anything red so its nice to branch out from the more neutral shades I tend to go for.

What do you think of my look? Are you loving Peter pan collars or faux leather at the moment?

I need to go and get ready now as I'm off to the theatre to see a play called 'Way of the Worlds' tonight, I feel all cultured just thinking about it! But to be honest I'm more looking forward to eating pancakes with my friend Sam afterwards haha! 

I hope you all have yummy pancake filled nights!

Love Meg

x

Nailene false nails review featuring Barbie pink NOTD...

Hey lovelies!

I've had a battle with nail biting ever since I can remember and only last year when my boyfriend said he'd buy me a treat if I finally stopped did I manage to win the battle. However, about ten months of unbitten nails and an amazing Arctic monkeys gig later, I decided that even though my nails were so much better than before I still wanted them to look longer, stonger and more even. Of course pretty much the only way to have continually perfect nails is to wear false ones, which I have for about a month now and I absolutely love them! After looking at the selection in Boots and deciding I couldn't spend nearly a tenner every time I needed a new set of nails, I followed Lily's advise from etcllymlrs and went on ebay to buy 200 plain nailene nails in petite square for only £2.99 plus £1.41 postage. 

Not only are they ridiculously good value for money, but because they are designed for small hands they actually fit my little nail beds perfectly, saving me hours of filing down and shaping (but if you don't have small hands don't worry as they also do regular sized nails too). They are also not too long, meaning they look natural rather than talon-like and are practical for every day wear. I find that my varnishes glide onto these nails perfectly, never chip and that the set last until I get bored of the nail colour I'm wearing, which is usually after about a week. You can then either re-paint and reapply the same set or just use new ones and keep the old ones in stash ready for when you want your nails that colour again. Here is what they look like wearing Barry M bright pink nail paint (which I also adore because it applies so nicely, is dead cheap at £2.99 a bottle and makes me look like a Barbie)...

The only bad thing is that I can't actually use all 200 nails because I only fit the smallest ones, although to be fair if I wasn't so lazy I could just file them down to fit. I also didn't like the glue they came with as it was hard to dispense and dried out quickly, so I had nails pinging off the day after I put them on. This is why I went to Boots and found what could be one of the best inventions ever- brush on nail glue from Elegant touch...

This is so quick and easy to apply (even when I'm trying to drunkenly stick a nail back on when I'm clubbing!), dries in seconds and is really strong so my nails don't tend to start coming off till about a week after I first apply them. It was also a right bargain at only £3.10! After taking a set of false nails off, my real nails sometimes do feel a little brittle so I am making sure that I have a few falsie breaks and keep them topped up with my Sally Hansen hard as nails treatment, but to be honest they look so lovely and perfect when they're on that I don't really mind too much!

Are you a false nails fan? What ones do you use? Any tips for keeping my real nails in good condition whilst wearing falsies?

After a long day at uni I'm actually looking forward to having a night of generally sorting my life out a bit whilst catching up with Dancing on Ice, I sure know how to live haha!

I hope you've all had a great start to the week!

Love Meg

x 

Losing my fake tan virginity...

Good evening girlies!

I've just arrived back at my house in Sheffield to an exciting little parcel from Amazon containing a bottle of St. Moriz instant self tanning mousse...I know for most beauty bloggers this wouldn't be that exciting but it's a pretty big deal for me as it means I'll be losing my fake tan virginity this week haha! I don't know why it's taken me so long to get on the fake tan bandwagon, I think I was just a bit scared of looking streaky or tangoed so stuck to safer gradual tanning with my Garnier Summerbody moisturiser, which you can read my full review of here-review-garnier-summerbody However, I've now decided this gradual tanner isn't enough any more as I've been getting too jealous of girls with gorgeous tans and hating how pale I look in photos, which is why I think it's time I bit the bullet and got my glow on. I did a lot of research into what fake tan to buy and the St. Moriz instant self tanning mousse seemed to come out as the best option for both quality and price as it was only £4.15 from Amazon and is supposed to be as good as the St.Tropez tanning mousse which would have set me back a pricey £22.50!

I got it in shade medium as I'm not brave enough to go any darker just yet, but I'm sure I'll try the darker shade out once I've got the knack of applying it. I also know that preparation is key to a streak free successful tan so I've got all the products together that I'll be using for preparation, application and after care...

I'll be exfoliating my face and body before hand to help ensure an even tan using Soap and Glory flake away and Simple face wash applied with my boots exfoliating gloves, I'll then be applying the St. Moriz tanning mousse with an ultras tanning mit whilst wearing gloves underneath to protect my hands from staining and also be using one of my favourite products of all time, the righteous butter from Soap and Glory, to moisturise everywhere (but particularly feet and knees) before and after tanning.

So that's the plan I'll be carrying out at some point this week, wish me luck and I'll do a post as soon as to show you the results!

Are you a fake tan fan? Which one do you prefer to use? Do you have any tips that might help me to achieve the perfect tan this week?

Tonight I need to un pack and get all my uni stuff ready for my 10 'o' clock start tomorrow morning, but I'll also be watching tonights TOWIE so its not all bad!

I hope you've all had a wonderful weekend!
Love Meg
x 

OOTD- Lazy Days

Hey Lovelies!

I thought I'd do a little outfit post for you today as I haven't done one in a while. As you know I'm home for a few days at the moment and this is what a wore for the lazy day I had on Thursday...

Blouse- New Look

Cardigan- Primark

Leggings- H&M

Boots- New Look

Scarf- Sheffield Market

Necklace- H.Samuels

Earrings- Topshop

First of all I need to let you know that I'm wearing what I think are literally the perfect leggings! I promise you once you've worn these you'll never go back- they are cheap at only £7.99 from H&M, thick enough that you can wear a short top with them without showing everyone what underwear you've got on and last for ages without going bobbly, misshaped or thin- what more could you want? Just don't accidentally pick up the cheaper £5.99 ones available from H&M as they're not as thick and don't last as long! As I was having a lazy day and wanted to be comfy I teamed these amazing leggings with one of my favourite floaty pink blouses I found in New Look's January sale and a warm chunky knit grandad cardi which was also a bargain as it was from Primark. I then used the skull scarf that I recently bought at a market in Sheffield and my big black ear rings to add a bit of detail and edginess to my outfit.

My hair has also finally got long enough to put up so I've been trying out different ways to wear it, but I think the way I have it here in a pony tail with the fringe clipped up is my favourite at the moment and perfect for when I have less time or just want it off my face.

What do you think of my casual outfit? Do you like my hair in it's new up do? What's your favourite thing to wear for a lazy day?

Right I'm off to an early pancake day night now, nom nom!

I hope you've all got fun Saturday nights planned!

Love Meg

x

Hello there Naked 2...

Hello girlies,

Today's post is just to let you know that I'm finally the proud owner of the critically acclaimed and much coveted Naked 2 eye shadow palette from Urban Decay! My lovely boyfriend bought it for me for Valentines day after listening to me go on about it for ages, I feel like a very lucky girl and love it so much already!

 

I spent a long time deciding if I wanted the original Naked palette or the follow up Naked 2, but in the end opted for the second palette as it had more shades I could use to create dark smoky eyes (which is my favourite and most worn look), whereas the original Naked palette contained more bronzey brown shades. I also much preferred its gorgeous tin complete with an even bigger mirror than the original...

 

Another way Urban Decay has improved from the original palette is by including a double ended brush, with one end for application and one for blending. I tried this out today and I'm very impressed by how well it both applies and blends the eye shadows...

I've put some swatches below to give you a better idea of what the shadows come out like on the eye lids. This palette has such a great range of shades and I can't wait to create lots of different day and night time looks with them. I tried wearing a mixture of bootycall, YDK and Busted today for a subtle pink shimmery look and adored the shadows high quality and pigmentation.  I think my most used shades will probably be blackout, bootycall, half baked (which is the only shade that also appears in the original palette) and petrol...

  

 

 

I also got a free Urban decay lipgloss with the palette which I will let you know more about once I've tried it out...

 

At a pricey £36 this most certainly isn't a budget product and definitely not something I could justify buying for myself, but now I have it I'm pretty sure nothing else will touch my lids and I'll wonder how I ever lived without it!

Have you got Urban Decay's Naked or Naked 2? Which one is your favourite and do you think they are worth the money?

Right I'm going to stop drooling over this now and watch a film with my boyfriend and some homemade cookie dough ice cream, yum! 

I hope you're all having a lovely week!

Love Meg

x

MUA and Love Hearts

Happy Valentines girlies!

I thought this would the perfect day to do a little post about the recent collaboration between everyone's favourite budget make up brand,  MUA and everyone's favourite romantic sweeties, Love Hearts. If you've been keeping up with your beauty blog reading this week then you'll already know MUA had their press launch for these and a few other new products on Wednesday night and I for one can't wait to get my hands on these cute little treats!

This new range consists of nail polishes in 6 gorgeous creamy pastel shades and tinted lip balms, also in 5 lovely pastel shades... ...

 The best thing is they are only priced at £2.00 each, making MUA the Primark of the make up world! These products will be available later on in February, will you be heading down to Superdrug to get a sugar fix for your lips and nails. I hope you're all either celebrating being happily in love or being happily single today! I'm off home tonight for a few days so I'll be having a slightly belated Valentines with my lovely boyfriend tomorrow which I'm really excited about!

Mixing up my base face...

Hello lovelies!

As I said in my January Boots haul post, I realised last month that I was stuck in a rut with the products I used to create my base, as I'd been using the same foundation, concealer and powder since I first started wearing make up. I think I just carried on using the same products because they worked alright and were really cheap.  However, since starting my blog I've got so much more into make up and alright products aren't okay any more, I now want to find my perfect flawless base combination! Of course this is a budget boutique so I won't be able to kit my face out with MAC any time soon, but I thought I'd show you the products I used to use and the slightly higher end drug store products that I'm trying out at the moment...

My old base face...

Maybelline mineral concealer in natural 

Natural collection powder in neutral 

Natural collection tinted moisturiser in natural  

My new base face...

Bourjois healthy mix concealer in 52 medium 

Rimmel stay matte pressed powder in translucent 

Maybelline dream satin liquid foundation in ivory

Throughout this month I'll be doing some save versus splurge type reviews (although I'm aware none of this make up is actually expensive enough to count as a splurge!) where I'll compare these products and decide if I need to mix up my base face any further to get my perfect affordable combination. I already have a list of products recommended by other beauty bloggers that I'd like to try when my current ones run out...

Products to try next?

Collection 2000 lasting perfection concealer 

Rimmel clear complexion pressed powder

Bourjois healthy mix foundation

Revlon ColorStay foundation for Normal/dry skin

Please let me know what you think of any of the products in this post that you may have tried and any other recommendations you might have to help me create my perfect base face!

I've had a very busy couple of days with SUPAS (Sheffield University Performing Arts Society) meetings and taster sessions, along with other drama related things so actually really need to do some work tonight as I don't want to leave it all till Sunday evening...I'd much rather be partying at Pop Tarts though!

I hope you've all got far more exciting Saturday nights planned!

Love Meg

x

A sweet treat for your lips: Creme Brulee Vaseline

Hello girlies!

I just thought I'd do a short and sweet post for you tonight as I'm so sleepy from being at uni since 10 this morning. Anyway this post is extra sweet because it's about the very yummy and exciting new limited edition Creme Brulee vaseline that I've finally just managed to get my hands on...

I know it was first released a while ago now, but when it first came out and I saw it in Boots I was like 'oh I'll definitely pick that up next time I'm in here', then shock horror it sold out everywhere almost instantly and I didn't want to pay the £6 it was going for on amazon. So you can imagine what a happy bunny I was when I nipped into the Boots in Victoria whilst travelling back from  seeing my boyfriend  last weekend and found one lonely little tub all hidden away behind the other lip care! Plus it was only £2.99, just a pound more expensive than regular vaseline.

After such a long wait I'm very happy that I'm not disappointed- the packaging is super cute (although it makes me crave pudding whenever I look at it!), it has a really lovely sweet smell and like all the other versions, it leaves my lips feeling soft and moisturised. I always apply vaseline before I go to bed to prevent dryness and to prime them for the lipstick they'll be wearing in the morning, but I'm being very careful to alternate using this one with my cocoa butter vaseline so that it doesn't run out too quickly.

Did you manage to get your hands on this creme brulee vaseline? What's type do you prefer to use?

As I said before I'm exhausted from a really long couple of days at uni and can't wait to just crawl into my bed with a cup of tea and the latest episode of skins tonight!

I hope you've all had a lovely week!

Love Meg

x

NOTD- Getting Grungy

Hello lovelies!

Now I've always been a massive girly girl, but that doesn't mean I always want my nails to be barbie pink (proven by my recent obsession with black nail varnish!), so I thought I'd go for a more grungy look when I did my nails last week for a night out...

I created this grungy look by layering Barry M's black instant effects crackle nail paint over Rimmel's 60 seconds nail polish in 'grey matter'. I go through love/hate stages with crackle varnish as I'm so used to wanting my nails to look nice and pretty, but I really love the cool effect you get when you paint it over a quite dull colour like this grey.

TOP TIPS FOR USING CRACKLE VARNISH- 

• Do a thick coat of crackle varnish if you want to create large gaps between the black chunks like I have or use a thin coat if you want to create smaller gaps and have less of your base colour showing.  
• Always wait an extra long time before painting over your base colour with the crackle varnish as if you don't leave it to dry for long enough the crackle varnish might brush some of the base colour away and leave patches of your actual nail showing.

Do you love or hate crackle varnish? What colours do you like to team it with? Have any of you tried the new 'croc effect' varnishes? 

Now my exams are finally over I'm really enjoying getting back into actual uni again this week and having evenings filled with things that are much more fun than revision :) I've got my friends Matt and Loma coming over for dinner tonight and they're bringing a cake which I'm super excited about, nom nom!

I hope you've all had a great start to the week!

Love Meg

x