Quotes to live by// Lifestyle

For me inspiration is huge! And when inspiration is lacking and I'm feeling slightly mehhh, a phrase or a sentence can turn your whole day around and give you that kick up the arse you need to move forward. That's why I have decided to do a post on my top inspiring words of wisdom. Some are just simply beautiful quotes or just some personal musings from others.

What inspires you?

Katie

X

MUA Mega Volume Mascara//Beauty

MUA is a brand you either love or loathe, for me I personally really like the brand, but had never gone any further than really buying the neutral eye shadow palettes and giving the highlighter a try. So on a trip to Superdrug, I was in desperate need of a cheap mascara just to last me a few days. So I picked up the MUA Mega Volume Mascara which was all of £3. 

MUA Claim- 'This is the perfect mascara to add length with the first application and glamorous volume with the second. And by using the waterproof shade for those cold windy and rainy mornings will guarantee you long lasting full lashes without smearing! This style of brush is made of rubber, with tiny little teeth evenly spaced along the head - perfect for separation and definition' 

After two applications and curling my eyelashes it did not give me glamour volume like it claims or like my other mascaras I use (The Falsies and Benefits They're Real). It made them look rather lifeless 

Before application (excuse my rather untidy brows)

After two applications- not very glamour huh? 

The Mascara brush, has rubber bristles which I love it doesn't leave my lashes clumpy or the brush. But it still didn't give me that glamours look I was after. 

For £3 what did I expect? I will continue using it but it doesn't give my lashes a full and glamorous look like it claims. 

Have you guys tried the MUA mascara and what do you think of it? 

Katie
X

Weekly round up #1

Hello my lovelies,

 I've decided to get a bit more personal and lifestyle-y (not even a word) with my blog. So I'm going to do a brief weekly round up of what I have done in the last week!! 

1) went out with the gang dressed up as Marvel VS DC. 2) Me and my bestie have finally booked our holiday to Gran Canaria which is in 54 days (not that I'm coutning or anything). 3) A new drawing (tattoo) on my body it's a paper airplane to remind me of my travels. 4) Just me being a god damn superhero.

Great week overall (apart from work)

Katie

X

Lush-New Skin Products// Beauty

Yesterday I had a cheeky stop off in Lush in Bath. Lush is one of those shops you go in and HAVE to buy something, it's pretty much illegal to come out with nothing!!!

My skin is being a pain in the arse at the moment so I was in need of a good old scrub  and some new moisturiser. So I treated myself to the Rub Rub Rub Shower Scrub and the Dream Cream Moisturiser

So Rub Rub Rub is a beautiful blue shower scrub, which has Mimosoa and Orange flower which gives it a gorgeous fragrance. Apparently it's also good to use in your hair, gives it more volume and softens the skin on your scalp- Something I'm going to try!!

The Dream Cream is apparently a life partner for sensitive skin. This is simply a simple formula that is great for your skin, appaz! This cream has a very light scent and has plenty of oats within- which is great if you suffer from eczema and to cool down hot damaged skin!

What are you favourite Lush products? And do you use any of these products?

Full review on each product in a few weeks!

Katie

X

Those products we don't talk about// Beauty

Us beauty bloggers are always blogger about these non essential products, the hyped products and usually high end products. But what about those products we use on a daily basis? Well this blog post is dedicated to those products I really couldn't live without.

As I mentioned we never seem to blog about our essential products to get us through the day. These products I defiently couldn't live with out. A razor, every girls best friend right? big night out and you're in-between waxes and you've got your pins out, RUN to the razor. I use the razors, now and again I try and wax as often as I can, but sometimes I cannot deal with the pain wimp. I use the Soleil razors you can get them from most drug stores, to me a razor is a razor, they do the job.
Another product is deodorant an essential for everyone, for me I use random deodorants never typically stick to one at the moment I'm using Sanex and I carry round a mini Dove original one in my handbag just in case I need a spray throughout the day. Again both you can get at any drugstore!
Hand cream is an essential in my life and I need it, my hands get dry very quickly and what better than to have a hand cream which is also anti-bacteria cream too!!! Winning. Vaseline is just a well known brand which I have used for ages, cannot really go wrong with Vaseline at all. Well that leads me nicely onto Vaseline for my lips, I use the plain one, not a fan of tastes and colours all I want it for is to keep my lips hydrated, as I'm typically stuck in a air-con office for 5 days out of the week. It's needed!!!!
Last but by no means least is shower gel, everyone uses this at least once a day, right? So I like using Soap & Glory shower gels my new one I'm going to crack open tonight is the Foam Call, this has frozen yuzu, orange oil, green fig and jungle pomelo essence. It smells amazing and so fresh, this is from Boots. Love Soap & Glory!!!

Would love to know what your daily essentials are? 

Katie

X

Insta Blur//Beauty

Once again I have caved into a hype which is going around us beauty bloggers, "What product is it?" I hear you cry. Well I gave in to the Body Shop Insta Blur hype haven't I? My fave primer Benefit Porefessional is slowly becoming empty *Boooo* and what a better excuse to go out and try this hyped up product. Loads of people have been raving about it especially Gabriella Lindely over at Velvetgh0st.

I'm afraid to say I have never tried any of the Body Shops make up products before, so this is a first for me and I'm excited. I'll probably do a review with the next few weeks, so keep an eye out on that.

Has any of you guys tried the Insta Blur?? If so how do you find it? 

Katie 

X

Micellar Water// Beauty

Many moons again everyone use to remove their make up with wipes (Oh My God). But now pretty much every one seems to have changed it up and moved on to the latest 'it' product........ Micellar Water. Its fair to say Bioderma lead the way in this competitive market, as now every beauty brand seems to have their own water.

The Micellar Water trend has been a massive hit on the French shores, but this beauty product has made a massive impact on us in the UK. So I'm going to talk about my 3 top Micellar Water and I urge you to go out and try them too.

Get ready to become addicted! 

Bioderma £4.99 (for the tiny bottle) - The queen of the Micellar Water and what a marvelous product it is too. I picked up my tiny little bottle, whilst in Nice the South of France, this set me back 5 euros. I was in desperate need of some and when in France you buy Bioderma right?? When I first heard about this product I wasn't the slightly bit bothered, I'm not one to jump on the hype bandwagon but now I'm in love with it. This is by far my favourite Micellar Water. It dissolves away every last little trace of make up with ease and even makes getting that horrid waterproof mascara, easy!

L'Oreal Paris Skin Perfection Micellar Water £4.99- Again this beauty is a high street product and is purse friendly at £4.99 and was my first ever Micellar Water purchase. This water acts like a make-up magnet and removes all the dirt and grime which has been collecting on your face Vile! Like all of these waters it leaves your skin feeling clean and fresh and gives your skin a lovely healthy glow!!

Garnier Micellar Water £4.99- This is my latest Micellar buy and a definite dupe for Bioderma too. The size of the bottle is extremely generous for the price. Again it does the same job as Bioderma  removes make up with ease, cleanses and refreshes your skin.
The only reason I chose to buy this product was because I was running low on Bioderma and for £4.99 it was a bargain. I'm really glad I picked it up. Great product!!


Most of this products (except from bioderma) are available in may high street stores and are reasonably priced, so if you're looking for  a new Micellar Water I urge you to try these. 

What are your favourite Micellar Water? Let me know, would love to try some new ones! 
Katie  X 

Mac Pro Longwear Paint Pot// Beauty

For me a good eye primer is essential when trying to create that perfect eye look!!! I've tried every kind of primer from the high end such as Urban Decay to the drug store brand such as Rimmel. But for me the middle man comes out on top which is MAC!!

 The Pro Longwear Paint Pots has been a hyped product within the beauty blogger world and I was somewhat dubious about buying into this hype. But I have kept on re-purchasing this little pot of greatness!!

So what does MAC claim? 'A highly pigmented eye colour that goes creamy and dries to an intense vibrant finish, long wearing-, colourfast. Creates seamless coverage without weight or caking. Blends Smoothly over the lids. Cream-based can be mixed with MAC shadows and liners'.

I used the Painterly shade, perfect for my skin tone and a great base for my eye-shadow or to be worn on it's own. It hides those little veins on my eye lids and cancels out any redness on my eyes.
There is no need to use a lot of this product and a small bit goes a long way. The price of this product is £15.50 which seems a lot for the tiny little pot (5g). But I am a big fan of this little product.

Have you guys joined the hype??

Katie 

X

July Favourites// Beauty

Hi Guys, I have never ever done one of these (I don't think) anywhoooo. I'm going to share with you what I have been lovin' throughout the month of July.

 How quick is this year going mind?

Bioderma-
First of all this month I have been loving Bioderma, I gave into the hype and purchased my first ever bottle- yep I know, get with the times Kate. But seriously I think I've found my forever product unless anyone can recommend something a million times better? I bought my first Bottle in the South of France whilst travelling and I have loved it every since! Yay to Bioderma.

Dove Shampoo & Conditioner-
This is a old favourite of mine, I change up my shampoo and conditioner so often, but when one is in desperate need of shampoo one goes to the cheapest the can find in their hour of need, and it happened to be Dove and I have rekindled my love with this old favourite, makes my hair smell Uhhh-mazing and makes it look good too. Winning!

Benefit Browzings-
This has been my go to product for strong brows. I love a good Cara brow and Browzings is perfect for keeping those brows looking chic!!

Soap and Glory Butter Yourself Body Cream- I LOVE Soap & Glory and this body cream, has been a favourite of mine for a few months now, It smells so fresh and keeps you super mositurised!!

- This month I've been loving my Shellac nails, I had them down at the beginning of June before I went travelling and they lasted 3.5 weeks with no chips at all, which I was highly impressed with considering I was doing all sorts of activities- mainly drunken ones! But since then I have been having Shellac done religiously.

Literally had these done today (2/8/14)

Beyonce perfume 'Heat'- I don't typically buy Celebrity Perfumes regardless if their an A-list or Z-list. I've never found any which I love. But after smelling Heat on a work colleague I instantly fell in love and rushed out to by myself a bottle, I mean its not going to make me be Beyonce but it's one step closer right? This has now become my everyday perfume, so instead of using all my Chanel up, I have a cheaper alternative and I love it!!! All hail Queen B.

Have you tried any of these? 

Katie 

X

Lifestyle// Bucketlist

I've seen this post on a few blogs no and I've never had a 'Bucketlist' per say. I have always had things I've wanted to do but have never achieved them .  My Bucket list is going to be full of random things, I want to achieve within the next year or two!!

There is non specific theme to my bucket list, just 10 goals to aim for within the next 18 months.
So here it is-

1. To move out
2. To lose weight- Aiming for a stone.
3. To go to Australia
4.To have at least 1 non make-up day a week
5. To earn more money.
6. Increase my blog page views.
7. To fall back in love (I've been single for four years..... It's boring now!)
8. To buy a pair of Christian Louboutins
9. To buy a Bulldog puppy.
10. To be happy

Do you guys have a bucket list? If so what's on them?

Katie

X

Beauty//MY Bad Beauty Habits

So as a beauty blogger, you may think I stick to the rule book when it comes to the do's and don'ts within the beauty world- Oh how wrong you all are!! A lot of my habits come from me just being lazy and other factors such as stress so we all have them and I'm going to own up to mine eeekkk!!!!! 

Don't judge me.......

Mascara Picking
Guilty! I always do this especially if I'm anxious (I suffer from terrible anxiety and panic attacks) or stress. For some off reason I find it really theraputic, obviously it's not the best thing for my eyelashes or even my make-up come 5 o'clock my eyes are looking like a pandas- not a good look!!


Forgetting my bod!
When it comes to looking after my face with expensive beauty products and moistursing it day and night, I'm on top of it. But my body on the other hand, gets neglected horribly. I somehow seem to forget to exfoliate and moisturise my body. Which is not great!

Brush washing routine- pretty much non-existent
Yes I know it sounds vile, but I'm useless at washing my brushes, I mean I forget all the time. When I end up doing them it's a really quick in and out job. This is something I need to up my game on!!

Changing it up
As a beauty blogger you may think I alternate my make up collection regualry and change it up, in fact I don't I'm really lazy with my make up, if I like a priduct and it works for me, I don't bother changing it I will continously keep using it! I'm getting slightly better though- I think!!

What are your bad beauty habits? Please tell me I'm not the only one who does these!!!

Katie

X

Disclaimer- Photo is NOT mine, was lazy and got it off Google. 

Beach Bag Essentials

It's that time of year where we are all jetting off on our holidays (I've just come back from mine, but off to Gran Canaria in 13 weeks- Winning). I know this is something I stress about- What to pack in my beach bag- Dilemma!! So I've put together a list of what I take to the beach. 

Enjoy!

1. Cover Up. When I head to the beach I love to put on a little summer dress to cover up. I tend to raid Primark for my cover up, as they're so cheap, so if they get ruined it doesn't matter! 

2, Sandals. Duh. You obviously need them for walking too and from the beach but also to protect your toots from lava-hot sand. Ouch!!!

3. Purse.  Even at the beach you need some money for ice creams! 

4. water bottle. This is an essential!! You need to keep hydrated in the sun. Don't forget it!!

5. Reading material. My list ... Glamour, Cosmo, Twilight 

6. Bathing suit. I was take a bikini with me, this season I'm loving high waisted bikini bottoms, so flattering and feminine.

7. Wet face wipes. Clean off your face, after getting out of the sea- No one wants to be salty. 

8. Hair accessories. Stretchy headbands keep fly-aways at bay and a claw clip is gentler on your locks than a hair tie.Toss in a small comb for after your swim.

11. Electronics. iPod and Mobile phone are an essential I tell thee. 

12. Moisturiser. My go-to is cocoa butter. Great for healing burns and making you smell yummy.

13. Sunscreen. Nivea Sun Factor 20 usually, I'm a typical English rose, but my skin does tan with a little protection.  

14. Hand sanitizer. I always carry this no matter where I'm going. 

15. Makeup. SPF 15 lip balm and that's it for me 

16. Sunnies. My Ray Bans again are a must on the beach. 

17.. Beach towel. I like over-sized ones and they have to be bright too!!

What do you guys take your beach bag? 

Katie

X

MakeUp Academy (MUA) Undress Your Skin Highlighter Review!

What does a girl do when they run out of highlighter? Try a new one out!! 

I've heard some good things about the MUA Undress Your Skin Highlighter and for £3 its an absolute steal! MUA is typically found in Superdrug, if your unfortunate enough not to have Superdrug you can order online from MUA here!!

For those who are unaware of the brand MUA, it's a very inexpensive drugstore product and is only sold at Superdrug. Most of their products range for £1-£6- nice and cheap! But the quality of these products are extremely high. MUA has always been my go to brand for inexpensive eye-shadow palettes which you can read about here! So it wasn't a surprise when I started seeing bloggers rave about their Undress Your Skin Highlighter.

This highlighter is a beautiful shimmery champagne colour. For £3 you get a hell of a lot of product, compared to others make-up brands! This highlighter I would only recommend using on the top of your cheekbone, it has a pink shimmer to it which would look rather odd if placed on the bridge of your nose, above your lip bow or inner forehead. Just stick to the cheeks! 

It was so difficult to get a good picture of the highlighter.

Overall I really cannot complain about this product, for £3 its so good, although the packaging is a little cheap looking, the product certainly makes up for it!

Have any of you used this highlighter? If so what are your thoughts?

Katie

X

Throwing it back to the old school // Converse and Juju shoes!

This week I have decided to invest in some new footwear and by accident kinda threw myself back to the 90s and early 00s.

Converse, everyone loves them, comfy, cool and reasonably priced, so I decided to purchase like my 100th pair, this time I took it back to when I was about 13 and bought my first pair which were a pink pair of high top converse- Not cool then, you usually got called a jitter when I was teen for wearing them, Strange I know! So I bought a low pair of pink ones, inspired by Tanya Burr's photo on Instagram, I couldn't resist them, cute summer trainer. Like the rest of my Converse I love them and they will be worn down to the ground. FAVE!!!!!!

Juju shoes you either love um or hate um. But me I was impartial- Shock! But until I slipped some onto my now adult feet I realised why I loved them as a child. As a child they were my go to summer shoe- you know, at the age of 6 I clearly knew about fashion, Uhhh Nah!! If you never owned a pair as a child where were you??? I always had a clear glittery pair with a little heel. But I've decided to follow the trend like a sheep and I purchased a black flat pair, less obvious that they're really meant to be for children not 23 year old women!! I'm so in love with them, the smell of plastic is a bit overwhelming but hey ho, only one negative!!

Do you guys love or hate the Juju shoes (I won't get offended) and do you remember wearing them as a child??

Katie

X

European Highlights 2014 #Noregrets

I don't usually write these type of blogs, but I thought I would share my adventures with you my lovely readers. 

Back in June- seems like ages ago!!! Me and my gal pal Lisa decided to take a little trip around Europe and didn't we have a barrel of laughs. 
We headed up to the big smoke (London) to start our European adventure, after staying in a not so luxurious hostel we were rather thankful to be travelling on a comfy plush coach for the next 14 days. We meet up with our other 50 Contiki travelers who were from all walks of life and came from various countries across the world- which was pretty sweet. 

Me and Lisa- Rhine Valley

We managed to conquer 8 countries in 14 days- I know how is that possible? We embarked on France, Monaco, Italy, Vatican City, Austria, Germany, Holland and Belgium. Within that little lot we visited two of the smallest countries in the world- The Vatican and Monaco. 
I was blown away by Paris, being a designer junkie this chic city had everything I wanted- sass, Paris Fashion Week, Louis Vuitton, Tiffany you name it they had it and of course the History- I mean I got excited seeing the Notre Dame Cathedral, Why? I hear you cry, because The Hunchback of Notre Dame was and is my most Favourite Disney film- I know lame reason!!! Second to Paris, was the big boy Amsterdam or the 'Dam' the city of no judgments and what a wonderful and intriguing place it was, defiently recommend it to anyone, incredible city. 

Chilling in Florence

Florence

Eiffel Tower

Selfie!!

Venice

Partying was a strong theme throughout the trip, whiteboard party in Rome, P party in the chatuex in the wine region in France, drinking some tiny little bar dry in the Rhine Valley and of course Shots shot shots shots shots in Amsterdam as well as a live sex show- cray huh? But amongst all of that we got to see the highlights of each city we went to whether it was embracing the Red Light District in Amsterdam, Climbing the Arc De Truimph in Paris, Riding the gondolas in Venice , visiting the Colosseum in Rome, amongst others things I have missed. Incredible memories where made at each and every stop of this trip and it was truly the best experience ever. 

Me and Brian!!!

My Cali Kids

Me and Lisa

This trip was made even more amazing by the great group of people we had surrounding us, we made a little group on this tour, which included some of the most amazing people, who unfortunatly happen to live on the other side of the world!!! Damn you, but even more reason to go out to Oz and the States hey! We experienced some of the most craziest things with these people and its mad to think how tight you become with people after 2 weeks!! Getting drunk with one another, sharing rooms- literally felt as if we had known them a lifetime!

Love these ladies! 

One thing I'll miss is no one will every make a pasta dish like the Italians, I never want to eat pasta again until I'm back in Italy. On a serious note, I've been really down since I've come back, it's made me realise how much of the world there is to see and being stuck inside a office is NOT what I want to be doing. Writing on a beach with a nice cocktail in hand sounds like my kinda job, but that's never going to happen, so back to the office I go *cries*. 

Trying to decide my next trip is difficult, any suggestions?

Katie

X

*These are not all the photos I've taken, as I wanted to keep some to myself :) 

Bioderma

I've never been one to join the Hype, whenever I hear amazing things about a certain products I try to wait until the hype has died down a little, and I really don't know why I waited sooooooo long for this.

BIODERMA!!!

Yes I know it's Cray that I've only just got my hands onto this product, but I'm kinda glad I waited. I purchased this sweet little bottle in Nice the South of France, and have been using it ever since!! It literally takes my makeup off in one big ole swipe. I believe this is probably going to be a firm product within my skin care routine, I'm a bit of a skin care product hoe and change products all the time. But I think I've finally found my forever product!!!!

Katie

X

First World Beauty Problems

We've all got these 'First World Problems' like not being able to see your Phone screen properly because its got a crack on it Or your battery going from 100% to 10% in what feels like 1.2 of a second. But instead of writing about all my problems, I've decided to write about my beauty first world problems and I'm pretty sure most of you will be able to relate to them:

Painting a fresh coat of nail polish and the BANG you've smudge it- It felt dry though!!!

Not knowing how much Touche Eclat is left. Damn you stupid packaging.

Applying mascara then.......... Wait a moment....... Sneeze!!! Mascara is all smudged, I'm pretty sure I wasn't going for the panda eyed looked....Hmmmmm = FAIL!

Being a bit over generous with the hair oil, then end up looking like you've stuck your head in a chip frying pan. Not a good look!

Shaving your legs before a night out- then end up slashing your legs like you've been running through a field of thorns- We all know it's going to end in a disaster!!!!

What are your first world beauty problems? Let me know. 

Katie

X 

Midnight Memories- WWA tour Wembley

7th of June I was very lucky to be able to go and watch the One Direction lads at Wembley Stadium and what a bloody treat it was. After waiting over a year for this concert, me and a few of my favourite girls went up to the Big Smoke for a weekend of fun, laughter and of course 1D!!!!

Armed with suitcases, rain coats (appaz there was meant to be a storm!! It never happened) and 1D t-shirts. We made our way (separately) to London. Me and Lisa went up in the morning, so we could spend the day in London, while Kelly and Amy made there way up in the evening.
We spent the weekend in Wembley and what a dive it was! Council estates, run downed buildings and laced with 99p stores! *Hardly Chelsea or Primrose*, but this didn't dampen our moods!! *I mean we are seeing the biggest band in the world*.

I won't bore you with our non One Direction antics, as I'm sure all you want to read about is the concert. So on we go..........
The day of the concert, we decided to have a chilled morning and not rush around, as none of us wanted to spend hours waiting in a queue for a good spot!! We arrived at the stadium around 2ish, surprisingly the queue wasn't to bad and in the end we got an amazing spot and were so close to the stage!

As Wembley erupted with 80,000 screaming girls and boys, it was obvious to see I was apart of something special. The stadium had a sense of fan girl hysteria surrounding it. Several girls around us had collapsed due to the heat and probs the thought the 1D where literally going to be metres away from them.

After spending 2 long dragged out hours waiting for the concert to begin, finally the lights dimmed and out come Australia's answer to One Direction- '5SOS' and to be fair they were incredible, they sang their hits as well as some new material and a cover of Katy Perry's 'Teenage Dream'. DEFFO a 5sos fan now.
But now to the main reason we where all there, One Direction stormed onto the stage singing their hit 'Midnight Memories' as Wembley lifted, yes I fan-girled and I'm not even ashamed- never would of thought I would be as bad as I was!!!! *cringe* .
I then literally wanted to keel over as soon as Harry doubled over and growled down the microphone!!!

I also spent the whole concert swooning of Harry's shirt of course it was Lavin, thanks for the clarification @styleonscreen. Love a good vintage looking shirt!!!

Through out the concert I also found a new love for Niall to- When he sang Better Than Words OMG I was lost for words!!!

Of course we were all excited and we had a lot of thoughts processing through are 1D hazed heads before and during the concert such as:  'TODAY IS THE DAY', 'OMG its starting', 'If I scream any louder I will lose my voice', and 'Is that Liam?....Louis?.....Niall?.....Zayn?..... Harry?' (as if we thought we were at some surpise concert.)

One pointer if you're going, some people are psychotic, if you're standing don't leave your spot to go to the toilet, some of the fans are Crrrraaaazzzzyyyyy and will literally be abusive. No need for it!!!


But overall it was Uhhhh-Mazing. Simply was the best concert I have and will ever go to!

Katie

XX

All videos and photos are property of Me, Lisa, Kelly and Amy.