MAC Binge

Just a quick post to say my MAC stuff has finally been delivered and after a long wait and swatches...I'm really happy with what I got. As you can see below I got Pearlglide eyeliner in Black Russian, Prep + Prime, Powder Blush in Well Dressed and Lipglass in Underage. The pearlglide liner looks divine with it's sparkly effect and the blush looks like the perfect soft pink for me. I have wanted Underage lipglass for ages as I'm a huge fan of the nude lip look. I'm very keen to find out how the primer works for me coz I've heard mixed reviews on it. Expect a FOTD featuring these products over the weekend!

Skincare: Less is more?

Hi Girlies!

I hope you're all having a great Friday...hang on in there...it's ALMOST time for the weekend!

What with all the organic and natural skincare that's around at the moment and a few of my fellow beauty bloggers doing a "less is more" approach to skincare, it got me thinking. Is it more beneficial for your skin to use as little as possible on it? Some people say if you apply too many products (serums, moisturisers, face masks etc) that it just clogs your pores and leads to dull skin.

I could never go completely without moisturiser as my skin would get mega dry really quickly (I sometimes suffer from mild Psoriasis). I generally use soap or a facewash to get the majority of my makeup off, then remove the rest, such as eyemakeup with cleansing wipes afterwards. I use a gentle facial scrub every second day to keep my skin smooth. I then apply an eye cream and moisturiser. This has been my routine for years and I've noticed that alot of other people apply serums before their moisturiser but I'm always conscious not to clog my skin up with too many products. I've found in the past that if I over-use products like face masks then my skin either goes really dry or I get a breakout. I don't really believe in high tech moisturisers that contain loads of different chemicals, I generally prefer to stick to ones with natural ingredients that soothe my sensitive skin. I'm always really cynical about all the science garble they come out with in adverts for brands like Loreal. In my eyes, the simplest products are usually the best when it comes to your skin. My gran has used Superdrug Vitamin E Cream for decades and her skin is amazing!

So are you a "keep it simple" kinda girl or a high-tech skin product addict?

Ebay Makeup

Yahhhhh! It's a F-F-F-Friday!!! I can almost smell the weekend!

I don't know about you guys but sometimes there's nothing better than an Ebay makeup or clothes binge! I had one recently and no doubt you saw my post on the dresses I won on there (the Electric Blue one arrived yesterday and it's gorgeous with a capital G!!!).

As well as the dresses I also bid on and won the following:

Korres Monoi Oil Bronzer in No.2 Sunglow Warm (after seeing Tali raving about Korres products on her YT channel) £9.00 (inc P & P)Korres Colour Blusher in Pale Pink (£7.00 plus P & P)

Benefit Creaseless Cream Eyeshadows in RSVP, Tattle Tale, Birthday Suit, Strut and Skinny Jeans (after much raving by Hele Says) £4.50 each with £3.00 P & P.

Lancome Cils Booster Enhancing Base £4.69 inc P & P (after reading Alpha Blonde's blog and seeing YT vid!)

I then won a few pharmacy/drugstore items from one seller for a total of £10.46 inc P & P:

Loreal Colour Appeal Eyeshadows in Astral Taupe and Real Silver (after watching a YouTube vid by Lollipop26 raving about the colour payoff of Real Silver)

Maybelline Wet Shine in Marquis Peach (I'm sure Tali has also blogged about these)

Maybelline Dream Mousse Blush in Peach Satin (Lollipop26 has blogged about this before)

So people, what does this tell you?....reading blogs and watching YouTube vids increases my 'I want' list ten-fold!!! Lately, my wages are mentally being spent before I even get them in my bank account! When one of my fave beauty bloggers raves about a product on their blog, I am more inclined to go and buy it but thank god for Ebay or this binge would have cost me a hefty sum if I got it at full price in a shop! I will post on all this stuff when I get it.

Some people really don't like buying Makeup on Ebay and prefer to buy it in stores. I love browsing Ebay though coz you can get some amazing bargains and also you can track down limited edition or discontinued products...I get amazing satisfaction from that! I know that Yinka from Vex in The City is a HUGE Ebay fan and is referred to as the Ebay Queen! I have only ever had a couple of products I wasn't happy with over the years I have been using Ebay so I would highly recommend it to everyone. Also for clothes, shoes, bags, jewellery....

Oh and I FINALLY got my MAC stuff delivered today (ordered last Friday with Next Day Delivery!).

You Gotta Have Faith, Faith, Faith!

Just got an email re the launch of Faith's new website...then my eyes fixed on the new Ladiator style due in 28th September. Studded, Platform-Gladiator, Louboutin-esque red sole....I want, I want! Gimme, Gimme!

A Bit of a Rant...

Hi guys,

Generally I am a very laid back, calm person but something that annoyed me lately was someone I know saying to me..."Why do you feel the NEED to wear makeup?...I mean, don't you find it boring spending all that time getting ready in the mornings and don't you think it's a bit vain?"

This kind of comment really bugs me. The fact that I also got an email from someone that said I was a poser after seeing my blog, because I post pictures of myself on there, this riled me even more. This was the main reason why I didn't want everyone I knew to be checking out my blog all the time, coz they just don't get what it's all about. I had told a select group of people about it coz I knew they wouldn't have a problem with it and they know me well enough to know that I'm not a poser and I don't "love myself". It's very hard to explain to someone who doesn't own or isn't interested in makeup. We all know the reason we post pictures of our makeup is to give other bloggers a heads up on what products look like when applied. I always find this is the most useful way of seeing how the product works as opposed to just swatching it. It's also akin to going shopping in town with your mates then emptying your bags out at the end to look through what evryone got...it's just fun and interesting!

It really upsets me that some people might look at my blog and assume I'm full of myself but then again maybe I shouldn't be so concerned with what other people think. Makeup is fun and to me, applying it in the morning or at any other time is rarely a chore. I enjoy playing with makeup and I like the way it can transform the way you look and give you confidence. It really does make people feel better about themselves and I don't see how that can be a bad thing.

Some people seem to have a problem with this and I'm not quite sure why? I love blogging about makeup and clothes and I'm not about to stop anytime soon just because someone thinks it's "sad" or that I'm superficial. I have to say that the girls I have got to know through these blogs are anything BUT superficial. They have been warm, welcoming and all around top girls!

Debenhams Beauty Club

After browsing through Look Magazine this lunchtime, I came across an advert for the new Debenhams Beauty Club Card. It's basically the same idea as the Boots Advantage Card and I'm definitely up for anything like that! Here's the lowdown, you get:

• Exclusive Gifts & Offers
• Free Samples
• Free Beauty Makeovers
• Expert Skincare Consultations
• Insider Tips & Advice
• Beauty Gossip Emails

I don't know about you guys but I'm really excited by this! I love the thought of building up points as I spend and anything that I can't get in my local Boots, I get from Debenhams alot of the time so this could prove useful! I love Gossip and I love emails so the Beauty Gossip emails sound good too. You just pick up a card in-store and then activate it online.

For more info, check out...

http://www.debenhams.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?storeId=10001&catalogId=10001&langId=-1&userType=G&categoryId=103601

Good Times/Bad Times

Good Times this week:

1) I am IN LOVE with the Loreal Studio Smoothing Resurfacing Primer I got at the weekend...despite my rant about how small the jar is, this product is perfect for mattifying the face and making sure your makeup goes on smoothly and evenly. I'm uber impressed!

2) My hair is really behaving itself and has been great the last week or so but I think that's due to regular use of the Lancome Nutritive Intense Smooth & Shine Treatment. I will be getting my highlights done on Thursday so hopefully that won't set my hair back in any way!

3) I watched a YouTube video of 20 questions for Kandee The Makeup Artist http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bmsj6D1Awfs. If you aren't already subsribed to her channel on YouTube then do so right away. She is an amazing makeup artist based in LA and so good at what she does. Plus she always makes me laugh and smile (especially the dancing in the above vid!hilarious!). Watching one of her videos is like popping happy pill coz she is so excitable and enthusiastic about makeup. Check her out!

4) My impending swap of all swaps with Michelle a.k.a. LipstickRules. We have both requested different items in our swap so we are going to get stuff that we have both been lusting over for ages. My requested items include ones from MUFE and Lise Watier. Look out for the post from me...

Bad Times this week...

1) I placed an order with MAC on Friday morning and paid for next day delivery coz I wanted to use the products that night. I waited and waited on Saturday and it never turned up...I hate it when that happens!So I got on the phone to MAC and was told that it hadn't even been despatched yet and won't be with me until the end of this week. It kinda ruined my excitement over getting new goodies :(

I like to have more good times than bad times coz I'm a positive kinda gal! I had to have a wee rant about the MAC thing though...I'm sure that will all wear off when I receive my order and start drooling over what i got though!

What are your Goodtimes and Badtimes this week?