TALK THAT TALK

As I'm sure you all know, mac have recently released their second collaboration collection with Rihanna - RiRi <3 MAC Fall. I had been so excited for the collection after seeing Rihanna post pictures on her instagram leading up to the release and knew I had to get my hand on the beautiful dark plum lipstick she's wearing in the promo pictures...

I had been checking my local mac stores and the mac website every day and when I finally saw they had been released online they were already sold out :( so I went to my local mac store (I walk past everytime I go to the gym - uhoh!!) and to my surprise they still had everything left in stock but as a student (who also already has way too much make up) I decided I would just stick with my original plan and just get the 'Talk That Talk' lipstick, and here it is...

Firstly, the packaging. I've heard lots of people love the packaging and lots of people hate it, but I personally think it's gorgeous! I love the metallic pink/gold colour and think it's really glamourous!

and the actual lipstick. It's a retro matte finish, which can be quite drying, that gives a really dramatic look which is perfect for the autumn/winter season and also very in fashion this season! I have been using this for nights out this week and due to the retro matte finish it lasts really well! All in all a lovely lipstick and I would definitely recommend trying it if you can find it!

Thanks for reading!

Have you got anything from the new rihanna collection?

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FAVOURITES || September

I know we all say it every month but WOW! where has the year gone? I can't believe we're already in October! I'm back at uni now and back to the hard work but also back to fun nights out with my uni friends! I've just selected a few of the products I've been reaching for a lot this month and have been really enjoying

1. Victorias Secret PINK fresh and clean

I love the scent of this body splash, and there isn't really a better way to describe it other than the obvious...fresh and clean! It has good lasting power for a body spray and this is great just for spritzing a few times before I leave the house for uni or the gym or something.

2. Urban Decay 24/7 glide on liner in "Demolition"

I got this as part of set from sephora and was really pleased as I wanted to try out the urban decay liners as I'd heard such great things about them staying put and not smudging and we all know the panda eye isn't a great look! The liner has a black and brown end but I've been finding myself reaching for the brown end (demolition) as it gives such a nice soft and natural look for the eyes and really does stay put - perfect!

3. Revlon Lash Potion

This may actually be my favourite mascara EVER! It gives such length and volume to my lashes I only need 1 coat for day time wear and only two for a nightout to give a more dramatic look! I haven't really been monitoring my lash length then so I can't really say if the growing promise is true or not but still all in all a great mascara

4. La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo

This is another raved about product and this month I decided it was time to start taking better care of my skin and this was the first product on my list due to its anti-imperfections claim. This really is a miracle product and has really helped clear my skin up - and quickly too!! I have tried so many things to clear my skin and this is in the handful of products that actually makes a difference - love it!

5. False lashes in general!

I've always wanted to wear false lashes but could never master the art of putting them on but one of my lovely housemates puts them on for me now and I'm starting to learn how to do it myself!! I love the look they give for a night out and how they add to a dramatic eye look, looking forward to trying different styles!

What have been your favourites this month? Any the same as me?

Thanks for reading!

x x x x x x x x x x

REVIEW || EOS lip balms

Right, we've now got baby lips in the UK, now we need EOS lip balms! Not only is packaging awesome, they are actually really nice moisturising lip balms that come in a variety of flavours! I also love the fact that the packaging is the colour of the flavour and that they're nice and colourful. They make me happy just looking at them and even happier smelling them and applying them to my lips!

As you can see I picked up more than a handful in America, but you can pick them online HERE! at a slightly increased price but they're definitely worth trying if you're a lip product hoarder like myself! I would recommend the blueberry acaai and strawberry sorbet in particular and the sweet mint is nice if you like minty lipbalm!

Have you tried EOS? What colour do you like?

Any other lip balm recommendations?

Thanks for reading!

x x x x x x x

Favourites || American Edition

If you read my previous post you'll have seen I have just got back from a holiday in America and I promised an american favourites style post as I bought too much to show you all of it! I love everything I got but these are the products I'd recommend my lovely readers to buy if they have any transatlantic travel plans! Some of these items ARE available in the UK but they are much cheaper in the states (not fair booo :(). Anyway... here they all are....

Tarte Amazonion clay 12 hour blush in Tipsy and Amused - $26
Tarte is a cosmetics company that is not available anywhere but USA and sephora in Canada which is sooo frustrating because these blushes are amazing! They are so pigmented but still so wearable and they do last the whole day - I haven't worn them for 12 hours so I can't comment on that! They also have a huge range of colours, I believe there's 12-15 different shades. I went for a corally pink colour (tipsy) and a scary looking bright pink (amused) and really wish I could increase my collection but I guess I will just have to wait for international shipping on the tarte website! Another plus point of these blushes is that they are full of natural ingredients and contain amazonian clay (duh!) meaning they are good for your skin too and won't break you out if you're prone to acne.

Covergirl outlast 3-in-1 foundation - $10ish
This foundation is an all round winner for me. It has great coverage without looking cakey, doesn't go oily in my t-zone and also has spf 20 and all for around $10! The bottle promises the lasting power of a primer, coverage of a concealer and blendability of a foundation in one - and I 100% agree! Whilst covergirl is not available in the UK, Maxfactor is actually the same company and they sell the exact foundation with a slight different style of packaging (the bottle is the same) which I will purchase when I run out of this bottle, even if we have to pay £12 for it in the UK!!!

BeautyBlender - $20
Paying $20 for a make up sponge seems absolutely ridiculous however this is worth every penny! It can be used on such a variety of products - cream, powder, liquid..! I'd seen on youtube that the sponge needed to be damp to work its magic and it can be used to apply your face product and as I was told by a sephora worker it can be used over your foundation to make sure your foundation is seamlessly blended and it really works! No more patchy, fingerprint/brush marks in your foundation! And the solid beauty blender cleanser is also amazing for cleaning all your brushes and the sponge! This can be purchased on amazon for £20, but like I said it's worth every penny!!

Covergirl Smooches in "sweet tweet" and "tweet me"- $4 (I think!)
These are the covergirl take on the maybelline lips - creamy lightly tinted moisturising lip balms! I actually prefer these to the babylips they feel much creamier and less greasy than the baby lips and the packaging is just so cute! There's a huuuge range of shades too - sweet tweet is a red tinted colour and tweet me doesn't have much of a colour. These are just lovely and moisturising and smell gorgeous! Perfect.

NYX Butter gloss in "Eclair" and "Creme Brulee" - $4.99
These are soo nice and smooth and the colour pay off is perfect to apply over a lipstick! I also think these are a great price and really hope they get added to the UK NYX website soon! There's not much else to say about these!

EOS lipbalm in "Blueberry Acaai" - $2.99
 I will be doing a seperate post on the EOS lipbalms but I just wanted to mention them in this post as they are a firm favourite - adorable packaging, gorgeous flavours and a great moisturising lipbalm at an even better price!

Maybelline dream bouncy blush in "Pink Plum" - $6.99
I love the idea behind this product, it's a lovely soft cream blush that blends beautifully to give a dewy finish and they also have a large colour range so there is bound to be something to suit everyone. I haven't tried many cream blushes before but after using this I think I will be trying a few more. Now we've got the baby lips hopefully we will have these next!! Please maybelline??

Anastacia Brow Wiz in "Ash Blonde" - $21
Being blonde means I have VERY fair eyebrows that need filling in. I also have dense eyebrows nearer the centre of my face but they get more and more sparse towards the ends which is so annoying and hard to manage!! But this eyebrow pencil is just perfect - the colour is perfect for me too as it gives me noticeable brows without looking like a scouse brow! The tip is very thin meaning I can get really good precision on my brows and it also does not smudge at all unlike other pencils i've used and ended up with half an eyebrow missing! Luckily I've managed to find somewhere online that deliver this to the UK :):) HERE!

Revlon Lash Potion Mascara - $4.99
I don't know if this mascara actually has helped my lashes grow but what I do know is that this mascara gives my lashes huuuge volume whilst also adding a good amount of length with only 2 coats! Another major plus for me is that it doesn't print above or below my eyelashes which I have found with a number of mascaras. One massive disappointment with this mascara, well more with revlon, is that in the UK this retails for £9.99!!! Ridiculous compared to the US price tag

Wet n Wild 8 shadow palette in "comfort zone" - $4.99 roughly
Firstly any palette with 8 shadows for less than 5 dollars is amazing value but it's even more amazing value when you know how good the quality of the shadow is! The colours are highly pigmented and do not crease at all and with 8 colours there are so many looks you can create! There's even a handy diagram on the back with mini tutorials

Benefit "Sun Beam" - 1 of 3 in a set for $17
I've always wanted to try the benefit tints and beams but they have quite a hefty price tag if you're not entirely sure you're going to love them so when I saw sephora offering a mini sunbeam, posie tint and cha cha tint for $17 I couldn't resist! The sunbeam has been the standout part of the set for me, it just gives a beautiful bronze highlight that really makes you look glowing!

I realise this is a very long post but it would have been much longer if I had done a full haul!!Have you tried any of these products? Would you want to try any of these products? What are your holiday favourites?

Thank you for reading! :)

Emily

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Where on earth have I been?!

I have been away from my blog for way too long but I do have my reasons! Not only have I been working full time, I have also been on two A M A Z I N G holidays. Firstly, I went to see my Dad, Stepmum Charlie and little sister Freya :) My dad has lived out in Oman for the past 2 and a half years so every summer me and my brothers make the trip out there for 2 weeks, and this year my lovely boyfriend Liam came with me... here's a small snippet of that holiday...

It was so nice to see my little sister as I don't get to see her that often, she changes so much every time I see her! It was a lovely relaxing 2 weeks in the scorching sun - even if it was ramadan and we couldn't eat or drink in public during daylight...

10 days after I got home from Oman, I went on a second holiday this time with my Mum, stepdad Jeremy and again my brothers. We flew out to Vancouver in Canada and then drove down to Seattle where Jeremy's uncle lives. We stayed there a few days before going off on a roadtrip down to Oregon and around Washington state - we did some white water rafting and it was terrifying but also totally amazing! We then went back up to Seattle for a day before flying down to Las Vegas for a few days. Vegas is an amazing city and I will definitely be heading back there when I'm over 21!! We then spent another week in and around Seattle before heading back to Vancouver for 3 days via a ferry through some beautiful islands. I got back yesterday and so far the 8 hour time difference isn't giving me too much jetlag but it's early days! Here's a few photos from my second holiday...

 The Bellagio

 A beautiful lake in Washington State

 Terrifying!!!

 Me and my brother :)

 Up Stratosphere overlooking the strip

 A shot from the ferry :)

 Totem poles in Stanley Park, Vancouver

 The view from our hotel in Vancouver

The Luxor Hotel :)

This has been a fairly heavy picture heavy post so sorry about that but I hope you enjoy looking through my holiday snaps! Obviously as I was in America a fair amount of shopping happened and I will be posting an America Beauty Favourites post in the near future as I have far too much stuff to do a haul so I will pick my favourites to share with you and I will post a few fashion picks too :)

Thank you very much for reading and staying with me on my blog whilst I was away, I'll be back to posting a few times a week now! Hope you've all had a fantastic summer, has anyone been anywhere interesting?

love

Emily

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Favourites || June 2013

I know everyone says it but I really can't believe were already at July!!! This year is going at lightening speed, I can't believe I've already finished and PASSED (YAY!) my first year!! Today I'm going to tell you all about my favourites from the month of June! I haven't been buying much make up due to the fact I'm saving for my holiday in America - and why buy stuff here I can get for near enough half price in a few weeks?! And here they are...

1. Smashbox Healthy FX Foundation
When I first bought this foundation I HATED it! I thought the coverage was too light and it went patchy over the day, however I decided to give it another try and I love it now! With primer and a setting powder this foundation lasts long enough and now my skin has cleared up more I don't feel the need for a heavier coverage. One thing I'm not so keen on is how quickly is goes down, but then at least you can see how much you have left as the product moves up the bottle the more you use!

2. MUA lipstick in Shade 3
So many bloggers and so many of my friends have raved about these £1 lipsticks but I had never tried them until recently! I picked up a couple of shades and this one I reach for the most - it's a lovely deep hot pink. It lasts a fair amount of time and is really nice and creamy - defo more than I'd expect for £1!!!

3. Laura Mercier Full Blown Volume Mascara
I got this mini mascara in a set my mum brought back from America for me, I really like the brush on it and also the formula. It really lengthens and volumises my lashes for the whole day without them dropping at all! I'm not sure how much the full size retails for so I may look in to that in Sephora in a few weeks and pick it up.

4. Mac Blush in "Dame"
This is abit of a cult mac blush and it really lives up to the hype. I've had it a while now but recently I've started reaching for it more and more as it gives a lovely blush of pink without being too OTT and suits my skin tone nicely and I think it would for many different skin tones, definitely worth the money and a great buy for someone looking to buy their first mac blusher

5. MUA Eyebrow Pencil in "blonde"
I'm always looking for new eyebrow products as having blonde hair means I have fair eyebrows that I feel a serious need to fill them in! This was only a pound from superdrug but WOW this is amazing! It is nice and waxy which helps to tame some of my longer curlier eyebrows and the colour is also ideal as I find a lot of "blonde" shades tend to be quite dark and I don't always want that strong brow but this is perfect, definitely recommend this for blonde girls who like filling in their brows but don't want to go too dark.

So there they are! Have you tried any of these products? What do you think of them?

What are your June Favourites?

Thank you

Emily

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Tight'n'Bright || OOTN

Last weekend me and a group of girlfriends had a girls weekend as most of our boyfriends were away on an end of season football weekend so we took the opportunity to have a cocktail night at one of the girls houses before hitting town; so I thought I'd share with you all my outfit :)

White crop top - £4.99 - New Look

Blue/Green Bodycon Skirt - Around £20-30 - Topshop (last season)

Gold chain necklace - £4 - Primark

Nail polish - £3.99 - Rimmel Nail Tip Whitener

I love wearing bright colours in the summer, especially when I have a tan! Unfortunately my tan in this picture is 100% fake seeing as whenever we've had any sun I've been working! The white nails also made me look even more brown! I kept my hair down and straight with some backcombing to create some volume and had a nude pink lip and brown smokey eyes. I also wore some nude wedges which can't be seen in this photo but the photo below shows the whole outfit and some of my gorgeous friends too! :)

Here you can see how the whole outfit goes together...

and as you can see I wasn't the only one to go for a skirt and crop top!

And here we all are just before we went out :)

We had a great night of fun laughs dancing and sangria!

What do you think of my outfit? Do you like wearing bright colours on nights out in the summer?

Thanks for reading

Emily

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Best and Worst || Revlon

I really like discovering new products through blogs and finding out peoples opinions and reviews on products before I buy them so with that in mind I thought I would do a series of 'best and worst' of individual brands and I thought I would start with one of my favourite drugstore brands which is... REVLON as you may have noticed in the title!

The best....

 My first favourites from revlon are they lip products in general! All of these are easily my most worn lip products from my whole collection and I have a lot of lippys!! The Just Bitten stains (in the middle) have A M A Z I N G staying power, they literally last the whole day! However they can be quite drying and as you can see in the picture the mini balm on the other end has snapped off in all of them! I don't really use them but still annoying. The Just Bitten Kissable balm stains on the far left and far right of the bottom row are similuar to the stains but obviously are a balm and these are much more moisturising than the stains but still have that same staying power - the balm wears off after a while but the colour really stays put without being as drying as the previous. And finally, the lipbutters! These are gorgeous - so moisturising and a really subtle colour that is easily buildable and there are also sooo many different shades so you'll definitely be able to find a colour to suit you! :)

These are a couple more of the best products, in my opinion, from revlon. Firstly is the photoready cream blush in the colour "Flushed". This is really good for adding a nice "flush" of colour! ;) I apply this using a stippling brush (the one I use is from Elf) and just build it up to a good colour for my skin tone. This doesn't have any shimmer or anything so I usually apply a highlighter over the top! But it's great for anyone who likes a blush without shimmer but doesn't want it to look "flat" as this gives a nice dewy finish. Secondly is the photoready foundation - this is actually too pale for me at the moment but it has a lovely amount of coverage without looking to cakey or fake. I'm a fan of the dewy finish and this does just that! It also lasts most of the day and even longer when using primer. I also like the colourstay foundation but I've actually run out at the moment but as I'm saving for my holiday in Seattle in a couple of months I'll wait until then where I can pick one up for a few quid cheaper! And finally is the colourstay liquid eyeliner. I love felt tip style liquid eyeliners as I find them much easier to control and apply on my eyes and this one is great as it doesn't smudge like some do and has great staying power.


And the worst...

There's not much I don't like from revlon but this mascara I really didn't get along with! I found the brush to be too big and bulky and didn't do much for my lashes which is unusual for me as pretty much every mascara I've tried works well on me as I have fairly long curly lashes anyway! I also didn't notice any difference in the length of my lashes after using this mascara which claims to have the power to help your lashes grow.

On the whole I haven't really tried any other mascaras from revlon as I usually stick to maybelline for mascaras! The nail polishes are also nice but I don't think they're any better than other nail polishes such as barry m - by no means are they bad I just prefer others but for me the foundations and lip products are the winners for me from revlon!

Have you tried any of these? What are your thoughts? Do you have any other favourites from revlon?

Thanks for reading! :)

Emily

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Top 5 | High End Musthaves...

Yesterday I posted my top drugstore picks and today I thought I'd do the same for more high end products. Though some products can be fully duped in the drugstore, some products I really feel you get what you pay for and are definitely worth splashing out on and I would repurchase all these for sure! Some of which I think are fairly predictable... and so here they are...

1. Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick in "Bronze" - £32.00
This is a gorgeous bronzer and highlighter compact that claims to work well with deep and neutral blush tones and also the 5 colours can be used as eyeshadows. This looks amazing all year round but I especially love it in the summer as it works great with a tan. I got a application brush free with mine though I'm not sure this always comes with the product. I dust it across my cheeks and in the "3 shape" on my face and use the highlighter across the top of my cheekbones and browbone. Though it is pricey it does last such a long time, I've had mine a few years now and haven't hit pan yet!

2. Diorskin Nude - £32.00
I bought this foundation at duty free before I went on holiday last year and I L O V E it! It applies so nicely on to the skin giving a lovely glowy finish without looking oily in my t-zone! It lasts all day too without going patchy or oxidising at all and you only need a small amount to cover the whole face meaning the bottle lasts a long time (mine lasted a year!). In terms of coverage I'd say medium but it still gives a natural finish that doesn't look cakey at all! I'll be buying more of this in duty free in a few weeks!!

3. Mac lipstick in "Creme Cup" - £14.00
It's not secret how much everyone loves Mac lipsticks; there is such a wide range of colours but my all tiem favourite (of the ones I own anyway!) is Creme Cup. It's a gorgeous pinky nude that is ideal for daytime and also going out when teamed with a smokey eye - it's a sort of Kardashian style colour. At £14 they are only slighly more expensive than some drugstore lipsticks and Mac have so many colours and finishes there is definitely one to suit anyone! Love these lipsticks and can't wait to add more to my collection - and a quick tip for anyone going to America in the near future these work out to be only £9 with the exchange rate and price in America so it's worth stocking up... I know I will be when I go out to Seattle in August ;)

4. Benefit Porefessional - £24.50
This primer is amazing - it smoothes skin perfectly for foundation application. It reduces pores and the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines - whilst I can't speak for wrinkles and fine lines it definitely reduces pores and I find it makes my make up stay on much longer and really makes my foundation and cheek products apply much nicer and look amazing. I love this and again is cheaper in America so I'll be stocking up then!

5. Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette - £36.00
I'm sure everyones heard enough about this palette now but it really is worth the money you pay and the colours are perfect for me as I love and usually only wear a neutral eye! Definitely recommend :)

I hope you enjoyed reading this post! Have you tried any of these products? What are your high end musthaves?

Thanks for reading :) Love Emily 

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Top 5 | Drugstore Musthaves...

There are S O O O many great products available in the drugstore/highstreet and for such great prices with quality that matches up to high-end products. I thought I'd write a post to share some of my current favourites available in the likes of Boots and Superdrug!

Yes I am aware it says top 5 and there are technically 6 products but I mean the Nivea lip butters as a whole....

1. Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Gel Foundation
I love love love this foundation!! It's perfect coverage for me and works very well with my skin and hasn't broke me out at all. It claims to last 16 hours, now I haven't ever needed to wear foundation that long so I can't say whether this is true or not but it does last me the whole day with a primer worn underneath. It also contains vitamins and antioxidants as an added benefit for your skin - it's an all round winner for me :) Available here for £10.99 with 3 for 2 on all Bourjois at the moment!

2. Sleek Blush in "Rose Gold"
This doesn't need much of an explanation if you've already read my post on this blush as a dupe for Nars "Orgasm" available here . Definitely my favourite drugstore cheek product, check it out in your local superdrug for only £4.49! *LINK*

3. MUA Palette in "Heaven and Earth"
This is a gorgeous neutral palette that can be used to create so many different looks - it's ideal for both daytime looks and going out looks! There are 12 all shimmery shades with lots of golds, browns, creams and coppery shades, it's ideal for those of you who like neutral to smokey looks and tend to shy away from bright colours (me!). These all have great pigment and are comparable to those in the Urban Decay Naked palettes and it's a bargain at only £4 from superdrug. There are also numerous other palettes in the range including "undressed" (a naked 1 dupe) and "undress me too" (a naked 2 dupe) - great if you don't want to splash out on the Urban Decay palettes!

4. Nivea Lip Butters in "Raspberry Rose" and "Caramel Cream"
I can't even describe how amazing these lip butters smell! They are HEAVEN! and they are sooo moisturising as well and they're also very easy to open unlike most tinned lip butters. There's not much else to say apart from TRY THEM! They're around the £2 mark and are available from superdrug, boots, tesco etc

5. Maybelline Colossal Volum' Express Smoky Eyes
I love all the maybelline mascaras in general but I picked this one as it's slightly more dramatic and I really like big dramatic lashes! I don't feel the need for false lashes on a night out with a mascara like this, and you only need a few coats to get the desired look :) This also doesn't print at all on my brow bone or under my eyes like I've found some mascaras to do - available for £7.99 here 

Hope you all enjoyed this post, I will post a higher end musthaves within the next week :)

What are your favourite drugstore products? Have you tried any of mine?

Thanks for reading, love Emily

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Micellar Water | B. vs L'OREAL

Micellar water is becoming the latest craze in the beauty world after Bioderma becoming a cult product for many beauty bloggers. This miracle "super water" cleanser is water based and removes make up very quickly and easily meaning there is no need to rub on your delicate eye area and it also cleanses and tones all in one step. Whilst I haven't actually tried Bioderma due to the price of postage I have discovered a few drugstore brands releasing their own versions for a much nicer price!

I first picked up the B. micellar water available from superdrug (£4.99 for 150ml, however is £3.32 at the moment). This does remove make up fairly quickly but it does need more than 1 swipe. However, whilst this is very gentle on my face, it does hurt my eye area a little, especially if you get just a small drop in your eye and for this reason when I remove my eye make up I have a spare dry cotton pad to wipe off the product straight away so it doesn't get in to my eye.


I decided after trying this one I wanted to try the L'OREAL version as I had heard rave reviews on it, and I hadn't seen anyone saying about stinging in the eye area. I found it in my local Tesco for £4.99 and it's currently buy one get one free, so I have a back up now too! Though I have only used this a few times I already much prefer it to the B. one as it does not hurt my eyes at all and I think removes make up quicker and easier than the B. micellar water. And for these reasons I would recommend the L'OREAL one :) and if you're going to buy it now definitely head down to your local tescos! :)

Have you tried Bioderma? Or any of the drugstore versions? Which is your favourite?

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Weightloss and Fitness tips...

I will write a beauty post next but I wanted to do a post on my own weightloss and any tips I've picked up along the way that I can share :) and I thought with summer coming up this would be an ideal time!

A few years back I weighed about 3-3.5 stone more than I do now, I lost the weight in a healthy realistic way, I didn't go on a "diet" of any kind I just started making a few changes and gradually completely changed my lifestyle!

This picture is a before and after picture of me, the photo on the left is about 3 years old and the one on the right is a few weeks back (sorry i'm in my pants!). I don't think I really realised how much weight I'd lost until I put the two photos together!

How did I do it?

• Firstly, I started increasing exercise. I used to do a short run about 4 times a week up a country lane near my house as I didn't want to be seen as I was quite nervous about being seen. I gradually increased the distance and time and this really helped kickstart my weightloss, once I'd lost abit of weight and gained some confidence I signed up to the gym and I haven't looked back since :) The gyms a great way of destressing for me, and has helped me through some hard times. I also really enjoy the gym classes such as core and my favourite legs bums and tums class - its much more fun when you're with friends and the hour flys by! I gym about 5 days a week now if I can and mostly do a mixture of cardio and resistance. I tend to do about 30-50 minutes cardio (the cross trainer is my current favourite) and I usually always do leg weights and some core and ab exercises
• I also totally cut out fast food, chocolate, crisps etc to begin with, this was actually a lot easier than I thought it would be as I wanted to change and knew that this was what i needed to do! I realised I wasn't hungry and didn't need the bad food, as if I was hungry I could eat fruit or yoghurt instead
• I've also cut out white bread and pasta. I replace these with brown pasta and brown bread, pitta bread etc but I try not to eat too much of this as it makes me bloat for a few hours after I've eaten! Instead I eat bulgur wheat, quinoa, rice and sweet potato which are ideal substitutes!
• I also like to make as much food as I can from scratch as then you know exactly what you're eating! As some jars and premade sauces or meals are full of hidden sugars, salts and fats! and of course homemade food is much tastier mmmmmm
• I just want to point out that you don't need to deprive yourself of all your favourite naughty foods!!!! I try to eat well about 90% of the time and do allow myself to eat lots of nachos sometimes! It's all about moderation

It really is as simple as eating better and moving more :) and drinking lots of water and green tea!!

What do you do to stay in shape? what are your favourite healthy snacks and meals?
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Reflections of freshers' year....

I've been abit MIA recently and not really properly started writing regular blogs as I've just had my university exams but now I've finished my exams (and first year!!) I will hopefully have much more time to commit to blog posting :)

I thought I'd write a post about my experience of my first year at uni and share any advice for anyone moving away to uni in the next few months! I am studying Psychology (BSc) at Cardiff University which is about a 4 hour drive from where I live so it's a fair distance, but there are some great advantages of moving away....

• Firstly I made lots of great friends who I've made so many memories with already and more to be made in my second and third year. People always say that the friends you make at uni will be your friends for life, and I hope thats true cos the people I've met are all people I hope to stay in contact with for a long time, including Jessie from www.allthingsbeautiful-x.blogspot.com :)
• I've had the chance to explore Cardiff which is a lovely city and AMAZING for shopping ;) it's nothing like the shopping I have anywhere near home! There's also a huge choice of clubs and bars to go to and there's student deals almost every night so it's great for people on a budget
• Moving away from home also helps you learn to become more independent, the fridge isn't filled up for you every week - you've got to know what food you've got and what you need (and how much loo roll you've got!!!) and I've also learnt how to do my washing!! 

My advice to anyone would be to throw yourself in to the uni life and make as many friends as you can and to make the most of every moment because it goes sooo fast! I can't believe I've already finished my first year and now there's only two left!

Do any of you go to university? do you have any advice for anyone going to uni?

xxxxxx

Nars "Orgasm" dupe....

Nars "orgasm" creates a big buzz in beauty blogging and youtube - it's a cult product. However at £21.50 it's also quite pricey, especially for students like myself! I actually bought mine when asos did student discount at 25% so managed to get a few pounds knocked off it. It's a gorgeous colour that would suit any skin tone, its a lovely rosey colour with gold shimmers and is definitely worth having.

The colour looks like its come out a little dark in the photo but you can see the gold shimmers in it! Gives a really nice glow to the cheeks.

HOWEVER, Sleeks blush in "Rose Gold" is a very similar colour for a fraction of the price at £4.49, and not only is it much cheaper you also get much more product (8g worth compared to 4.8g in Orgasm).

This picture seems to have caught the light better than the nars one but you can see how similar they are even with the bad lighting (I blame my halls!). Lovely colour, with really nice packaging fairly similar to the nars, however I do find this quite hard to open but I don't know if I just got a dodgy one!

Rose Gold is one the left and Orgasm on the right, Rose Gold looks perhaps a little darker but you can still see how similiar they are in appearance!

Rose gold on the left and Orgasm on the right. They are very similar when swatched, and I believe Rose Gold is actually MORE pigmented than Orgasm!!

In my opinion if you want Orgasm give Rose Gold a try first, it's much cheaper and as you can see its so similar in appearance and you get much more for your money! If you do want Orgasm and you're a student then the best place to get it is Asos as it's 10% student discount with uni days or an NUS extra card - and you may be lucky like me and get it 25% off :) superdrug also do 10% student discount with an NUS extra card - I didn't realise this until recently as they don't advertise it anywhere - cheeky!

What do you think of the two blushes? Do you think Rose Gold is a good dupe?

Thanks for Reading!

EMILY X X X

Maybelline Colour Show Polka Dots

Sorry for the lack of posts recently, I've had uni exams and haven't had much time to blog, but I have now got a bit of break before my next one so thought I'd do a few posts! :)

It's no secret that I have a nail varnish obsession (I have over 110 now!!!) and I've been really in to confetti style top coats. I'm gutted I haven't been able to find Loreal's "Confetti" but Maybelline have released a new range in their "colour show" polishes that have this confetti effect and I couldn't resist buying some! Unfortunately they didn't have the black and white one that I really wanted! But I did manage to get my hands on the "shooting stars" shade....

It's a gorgeous dark blue colour with black and white confetti style pieces in, they don't really look like "polka dots" but they are still very pretty! The consistency of the polish itself is quite gloopy which makes it hard to do neatly around the edges of your nails and to get a good colour I'd recommend 2 or 3 coats!
Heres a picture of it in action on my nails!

Have you tried any of the polka dots? or any of the other equivalents? What do you think of them? Any colours I should add to my collection?

Thanks for reading

EMILY X X X

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NAILS NAILS NAILS!! Barry M edition..

One of my FAVOURITE things to do is paint my nails. I have soo many nail polishes it's ridiculous...

 As you can see I have quite a large collection of nail polish! I have tried various different brands and my current favourites are Barry M. They're so affordable and have such a wide range of colours, and different nail polish effects. These glitter nail effects below are just gorgeous, and work so well over the top of other colours. I really like painting my nails one colour then painting one random one (usually my ring finger) with a glitter nail effect. The ones in the image below from L-R are Amethyst Glitter, Rose Quartz Glitter, Yellow Topaz and Pink Sapphire Glitter. The only thing is with these polishes is that they are SOO hard to get off!! But I think they're so pretty its worth it :)

 But my personal highlight of Barry M are the fairly new range of 'Gelly Hi-Shine' polishes. They are A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!!!!!!! One coat gives a completely opaque layer that is soo glossy and shiny that they look like gel nails. I am in love with them and will definietly be adding more of these to my collection. The colours are nothing like I've already got, I've never seen such gorgeous nail colours. Lychee is my newest one (the nude colour on the left) and it's a perfect nude colour which I think will go perfectly with one of the glitter effect polishes, but I am yet to try this! Blueberry, is the pale blue in the middle. I already had a pale blue Barry M nail paint (306, also called blueberry) from the normal range and was a little skeptical as to whether this would be much different but WOW!! I much prefer the finish of the Gelly Hi-Shines. And finally the one on the right is called Watermelon. I first drawn to this colour as I really have nothing like it already, infact I don't think I have any greens, or dark greens anyway. It's a lovely colour and I highly recommend it. i can't wait to add some more of the gorgeous colours to my collection :) anyone else tried these and have any specific shade recommendations?

 

This image below is just a quick picture to show you what the Gelly Hi-Shine looks like on the nails, this one is obviously blueberry and my ring finger has Yellow Topaz over the top, so you can see how the glitter nail paints look on the nail :)

Thank you for reading and hope this was helpful :) let me know of any of YOUR favourite Barry M shades!

Emily xxx

ps my twitter is www.twitter.com/emilychristmas if any of you lovelies would like to follow me :)

Hello!

This is just a quick post to say hi really and explain what this blog is all about! For a few years now I've loved reading blogs on make up, beauty, fashion and fitness and healthy eating so I've decided to join the fun and start my own blog.

A little about me - My name is Emily Christmas (yes, really) and I'm a 19 year old first year Psychology student at Cardiff University, and Cornwall is where I call home. I'm still trying to work out how to control this blog and follow people etc so bear with me and hopefully over the next few weeks and my VERY LONG summer (4 months!!!!) I will get better and better at this blog!

Thanks for reading and I hope you'll enjoy my upcoming posts :)

Emily xxx