Wednesday 30 November 2011

Recent Purchases.





A few recent buys, including this amazing Topshop Studded Makeup Bag that I've had my eye on for a while now. I think it's quite a good size for carting around what you need daily in your handbag. It will also go very well with the Mulberry bag I'm after! 

I'm on a bit of a mission at the moment, I really want to get out of the habit of washing my hair each day! I hate the feeling of unwashed hair, but I think I'm just going to have to deal with it as my hair sits so much better when I've not washed it. I bought some Batiste dry shampoo and a new Tangle Teezer to help me do it... hopefully over time it won't need to be washed every day.
The Tangle Teezer has been on my wishlist for a while now, and I'm really impressed with it. My hair doesn't really get massively knotted but sometimes in the mornings I do end up being hard on it and probably causing quite a lot of damage. This is a breeze to use, it flows through hair so easily!

The Rimmel Stay Matte powder has been a favourite of mine for the last few months. If you haven't purchased this already, you absolutely must! I use this far more than any other powder, including my MAC MSFs. It's great to give a lovely finish and take away any shine.

Barry M has a new lip colour out, which is 154 Pale Nude. I bought this as their lipsticks are cheap and usually worth the money. I wasn't able to show you the colour, but it is very similar to MACs Creme Cup, probably slightly more on the matte side and not as good quality. The colour is nice, but I think I'll stick to the MAC version, Pale Nude looks ever so slightly dry on my lips! (Here's my post on MAC Creme Cup and Hue)

I also managed to find the new Limited Ed. Creme Brulee Vaseline, I spotted it in a Boots queue the other day. It was the first time I'd seen it so I wasted no time picking it up. It's not very different from the Cocoa Butter version they have in terms of smell, but I do like it and since it's winter, I'll probably get a fair amount of use from it. 

Finally, I picked up the Soap and Glory Fab Pore 15 Minute Facial Peel a couple of weeks ago after hearing good things about it. It's a clay-based mask with exfoliating particles, ideal for problem skin. It's a great mask, although I'm not sure it does anything for my pores. My skin looks healthier after use, so I'm pleased with the results. 

Tuesday 29 November 2011

Winter Jumper.


JUMPER - Primark
SKIRT - H&M
NECKLACE & RING - Topshop

Today has been very eventful, I woke up early to find my future husband Ed Sheeran playing Lego House on TV. I knew the day was going to go well from there on... I was not wrong.
I spent the day with my favourites - Emma and Lily, these girls make me laugh so much! We went to the Debenhams & New Look press days and also the Yuki event this evening.
I had an amazing day, despite being slightly delusional from only 90 minutes sleep last night! 

This afternoon I found out that my little blog was on the front page of Grazia Daily, which is obviously amazing. I only got a cheeky iPhone picture, although I should still be there somewhere! You can see pictures here and here
Thank you for all the love and support, especially all the blog happy birthdays now that gh0stparties is a year old!

Monday 28 November 2011

Blue Velvet.





DRESS - New Look 
NECKLACE & CARDIGAN - Topshop
RING - h&m
BELT - Primark 
LIPSTICK - Rimmel Shake Up Pink 

I bought this dress last week, as you can tell I love anything velvet at the moment! This is one of those dresses that you either really love (which I do!) or really hate.
I'm planning on maybe sewing a lace collar on when I'm home in a couple of weeks, to make it look like the Topshop playsuit I want.

I started my blog a year ago this week, which is pretty exciting! I'm honestly so pleased with how far it's come, so thank you to all my readers and followers - you are amazing! Hopefully this next year will bring even more exciting things. Happy birthday gh0stparties.com <3

Sunday 27 November 2011

River Island SS12 Press Day.















RIVER ISLAND S/S12 Press Day

On Tuesday, Lily and I attended the River Island press day. I always say this, but I'm much more of a Autumn/Winter kinda girl, summer clothes never do much for me.
As you can see, the RI offerings for next season are bright, a kind of Miami Vice vibe. I see studs and collars are still in, which I'm pleased about. 

You wouldn't see me in all of this, but I think a select few of the brighter things I would wear with a dark, block colour. 
Overall, some good things to be had, especially if you're brave! 

Saturday 26 November 2011

Review: MUA Immaculate Collection Palette.









This palette was a gift from my gorgeous girl Zoe. It's a new palette from MUA, a brand which is found in Superdrug.
In all honesty, I don't often wear eye shadow. I wish I could but I always think I look a bit over done. Recently, I've been experimenting a bit more, I only ever really wear natural shades but I want to use some of the brighter colours in this palette as eyeliners by using them wet.

I've found my most favourite eyeshadow in this palette, which is surprising as I own the Urban Decay Naked palette, the Too Faced Natural Eye palette, and several Smashbox ones which all retail over £20, and yet my all time favourite eye shadows comes from a palette which costs £8 from Superdrug!
The shadow in question is the lovely pinky beige shimmery eye shadow above the white one. It's not very out there, as you can see from the bottom picture of me wearing it, it just gives a subtle shimmer to the lids which really brings out my eyes.
I usually use the white eye shadow as a highlighter around the corners of my eyes.

I'm looking forward to playing around with this palette a bit more, especially the bronze shades and more of the natural colours. I think it's one of those palettes which will really come in useful for travelling and just having to hand as it will most likely contain a few "go to" shades for everyone.

In terms of quality, I think you get more than what you pay for. I think the quality is great, I haven't experienced any fall out - and although it did crease, I didn't have primer on. I'd say it's definitely worth more than it's £8!
Next on my list is the MUA Heaven and Earth palette, I've been after this for so long!

Friday 25 November 2011

Glossybox November.








GLOSSYBOX NOVEMBER
Arbonne FC5 Cooling Foot Creme
Dead Sea Spa Magik Facial Wash
Illamasqua Freak Eau de Parfum
Nail Rock Nail Wraps
Philip Kingsley Elasticizer 


As a newly-appointed Glossybox Ambassador (and a blogger/subscriber to Glossybox) I'd like to give my thoughts on this months box. As you may be aware, this has been a lot of controversy surrounding this months box (all publicity is good publicity... kind of) which is in no way fair. I think a lot of people missed the point of Glossybox this month, you're not going to get full sized high-end products in every box, if you want full-sized products, take yourself down to your local department store and wack out your purse, because that's really not what this monthly beauty box subscription service is all about.

The point, of course, is to try out new products each month - to open your eyes to new brands and to experience a product without entering into a full size which may or may not be wasted.
Admittedly, we have tried the Nail Wraps before so a bit more variety would be nice. However, I have seen quite a few people rave about these being included again. This is a service that has to cater for all, one girls junk is another girls treasure and all that.
Personally, I won't be using these as I can't put them on and the design isn't for me. 

The perfume samples were also badly received, I was slightly disappointed that we were sent another perfume sample. Saying that, as far as I know, it's not possible to get the Illamasqua Freak samples over the counter, so in that respect, I think it is worthy of being in this months box.
I know a lot of people have said that you could go to any perfume stockist and pick up samples, but from experience of working on a fragrance counter, this really isn't the case. Stores rarely get samples in to try, and when they do, they are limited and go quickly. It's really only for new releases, and only select Perfume Houses choose to do this. 
I tried Illamasquas Freak at the counter in Selfridges, and although I liked it on myself, I was wearing perfume at the time (and I usually am when I go into stores to try fragrance) so it's great to be able to try this over a few days to see how it smells on my skin and how long the scent lasts.

I've tried Philip Kingsley's Elasticizer before, I'm really pleased this was in this months box as I think it's really overlooked. I've been using this for a couple of months now and I think it's a wonderful product. My hair feels weightless and so soft after use. It's only used on the ends of the hair, so even a sample size like this will last a while. 

I'm not sure if I will use this face wash, as I'm pretty content with my skincare routine at the moment. I'll probably give this to my mum to try instead. I wish I had received the Dead Sea Salts, as they sound amazing.
It's always good to try these new brands, I'm looking forward to giving the Foot Cream a try as well. I'll probably use this overnight, I love anything that gives your skin a boost in these drying winter months.

Overall, I wasn't massively keen on this months box. I do think that it's a great mixture of products and has something for everyone, and I think we can all agree that we've found something new in this box that we wouldn't have tried otherwise - which is the whole point of the service! 

Disclaimer: As an Ambassador, my opinions haven't changed at all. I've been a subscriber since the beginning and have always spoken my honest views of the products. I can also confirm that Ambassadors are not hand-selected items, we get whatever comes to us, and no one is "special". 

Thursday 24 November 2011

Fake Blood.







VELVET LEGGINGS - Topshop
NECKLACE & RING - Topshop 
SHOES - Topshop
LIPSTICK - Look Beauty Double Hit Lip in Rose Riot 

As soon as I saw this top, I knew it had to be mine. It really just sums up my sort of style. The brogues I got in the sale a while ago for £10, I don't wear them too often, mainly because I used to have a similar pair years ago which I wore out too quickly!
I finally got myself a pair of velvet leggings, I haven't really seen anyone else wearing them but I love them, although they did turn my legs a worrying shade of blue! A girl outside Office yesterday stopped me and asked where I got them from, I wish I had the confidence to do that! 

Yesterday was a brilliant day, it consisted of LOLs with Lily, a massive lunch (standard) and a few press days (including River Islands S/S collection) and then a Glossybox event in the evening on the London Eye, which was incredible! I was recently asked to be a Glossybox Ambassador which is great, I've been a subscriber of the box since the beginning and I've always had a lot of love for the brand.
The London Eye was amazing we all drank far too much champagne and had a lovely chat while looking out over the sights of London at night. Beautiful! Thank you so much Glossybox

PS. A really nice picture of me - Lily couldn't even take the photo she was laughing so much. 

Tuesday 22 November 2011

Look Beauty Launch.








Look Beauty Range, coming to Superdrug stores. 

I was invited to attend the launch of Look magazine's beauty range last week, Look magazine is a bit special to me as it was the magazine that got me truly interested in fashion. When I left behind the countryside at 16 and moved to the city, Look magazine was my way of finding myself and really getting into fashion and thinking about what to wear. I used to buy every issue, and often still buy it now.


Look is the first magazine to launch it's own beauty line, so I was interested to see what they had to offer. At first glance, you can see the products are nicely packaged, and although the range is reasonably priced, they don't look "cheap". I think the colours, especially the nail polishes, really stand out and catch the eye. There is such a wide and varied selection of shades, which is great for a high-street (or "drug store") brand.
I think the range has a lot to offer, from swatching I can tell you the eyeshadows are incredible! Excellent quality and colour pay off, and the shades are so lovely. There are a few there that look like they could create a new generation of Naked palette.

I had a lovely night, the photobooth was really fun (we managed to fit 9 of us in!) and the gorgeous Zoe handpicked the goodie bags. She chose me some lovely things, the Double Lip Hit Lipstick and Gloss in Rose Riot has been used daily since I got it and the mascara and blushers are also fantastic. 



Overall, I'm really impressed with this brand, I think it has a great selection of products - they've covered all bases with primers, powders, eyeshadow trios and the "How To..." sets. The prices are great for the quality they offer, and I'm looking forward to doing full reviews over the coming weeks.