Sunday 27 November 2011

Lil Miss Opinionated: Products I love, like and dislike from ELF + :(

 Today I am going to review some products from ELF cosmetics. If you have never of of ELF cosmetics then you are certainly missing out. ELF stands for Eyes Lips Face. It is an online cosmetics company (they also sell in stores in the USA and other countries). ELF is one of the cheapest cosmetic brands I have encountered - and I believe that some of the products are better than MAC and other high end companies. Most of the products sell for as cheap as £1.50, some of the more expensive products sell at £5.50. If you follow ELF's Facebook page, or sign up to their email, you will be notified of special deals (such as 40% off, free gifts and so on). There is usually a special deal every week! 

Here are the products I will be reviewing today: 

Products I love:
 I really love the ELF Warm Bronzer (it retails for £3.50). It is a perfect mix of bronze and pink - and it great for work. The products makes my cheeks glow. Unfortunately, this product did start causing a reaction on my cheeks (a few months ago), but I'm going to buy a new one anyway (and hopefully it won't break me out!). This was definitely my most used cheek product of 2010! I love the packaging - it's very Nars-esque, making it travel friendly.
The next product I love from ELF is the Studio Powder Brush (£3.50) I actually purchased 2 of these! I use this to apply my powder foundation everyday. It helps provide a nice, even coverage. The only downside of this product is that it takes forever to dry once you've washed it (hence I purchased two!). I also like the fact that the product does not waste my powder foundation too much. 

 The ELF Kabuki brush (£5.00) is one of the softest brushes I have ever felt. I use this to apply loose powder on my face. I have felt the Mac Kabuki brush (which retails for over £30!) but I think that this one is more cost effective :)

Products I like from ELF:

A lipstick I like from ELF is called 'Gypsy' (£1.50). This product is a great dupe for Mac's Girl About Town, although the Mac lipstick has more of a blue tone to it. The only downside to this product is the packaging. I recently purchased the same lipstick for my mum but it snapped after one use! If you were to own this product, make sure you handle it with extra care!


 The next product that I like is the ELF Cream Eyeliner in Black (£3.50). This product is very pigmented, it lasted for long (it dried out recently though, after over a year of use). The only downside is the smudging! As I have hooded eyes, I would often notice the eyeliner on my brow bones lol! Obviously the best treatment for this is to apply some black eyeshadow on top ;)


The Elf Studio Blushes in Gotta Glow and Peachy Keen (£3.50 each). I also have other ELF blushes but I gave them away to my mum because I didn't like the shades on my skin tones. These blushes look beautiful in the pan but not so nice on my skin. The pigmentation is mediocre and the products caused little bumps to form on my skin (please note that I have very sensitive skin). I do like the variety of the shades and the price, but these blushes are definitely not so great in comparison to MAC and other brands.

Products I am not too keen on:

 This is the ELF Studio blush brush (£3.50). I do like the texture of the brush and the fact that it does not shed. However, I believe that it makes the product look streaky on my cheeks. Alternatively, I tried to use it as a contour brush, but it didn't work as well as my beloved Sigma brush! It was only £3.50 so I'm not full of regret!

Elf Cream Eyeshadow. (£3.50)  I have always wanted to try a Mac Paintpot but the price was too much! I decided to give the ELF Cream Eyeshadow a go and I think I wasted my money. The product does not last, looks very streaky, the colour doesn't suit me and frankly, I don't think I'll ever use it again. If anyone wants to share tips on how to use this product then feel free...

What do you think of ELF products?

Wednesday 23 November 2011

Lil Miss Crazy: Batiste brings you wild! ^

I was recently sent this fab new dry shampoo from Batiste :) I was ecstatic to see that the packaging was of a leopard print nature. It looks so lovely on my vanity area :) The packaging and variety for Batiste shampoos has changed a lot recently. They are in all shapes and sizes, and have different colours and different uses (e.g. volumising).


The Low Down:
 Unleash your inner animal with Batiste Dry Shampoo Wild for GRRReat looking hair with a clean, fresh feeling. Launched exclusively in Boots, trend setters in the world of beauty, Batiste Dry Shampoo Wild capitalises on the key fashion trend for glamorous animal prints currently flooding the high street. Purrfect for matching your outfit and accessories to your hair care regime Batiste Dry Shampoo Wild is for girls who want to take a walk on the wild side. 

What does it smell like? 
 I love the smell of this particular dry shampoo. It is ''Fragranced with a feminine and daring Oriental aroma with top notes of cocoa, a floral heart and sensual vanilla, musk and wood base notes. Quick and easy to use, Batiste Dry Shampoo Wild refreshes hair between washes, leaving it revived, energised and roaring to go.'' 

Price:
£2.99
Size:
200 ml (this should last me a few months!)

How do you use it?
Just like the other Batiste Dry Shampoos, shake vigorously before use. Keeping nozzle about 30cm from hair, spray into roots. Massage through with fingertips. Brush and style. I also recommend you use it at night time to prevent any white marks in the morning!

Where can you buy it from?
 This product is exclusive to Boots.
(In stores)

Sunday 20 November 2011

Lil Miss Busy: My week in photos +

Hi guys! I've had such a crazy, but exciting week! Let me share some photos with you!

On Tuesday, I went to the Rihanna concert - which was fab! Rihanna is a great performer, and definitely knows how to entertain the crowd! 

My sister and I both got the 'Stars' tattoo which Rihanna has on her back. It's not real btw! I managed to convince some people that it was real lol!
Here's Rihanna wearing practically nothing!

I also managed to see James May at Canary Wharf! I don't watch Top Gear but I felt like taking a photo of him anyway!
On Wednesday, I had to wake up at 5.30am (day after the concert) to go to Bristol for my final year research project. Exhausting or what? Luckily, the train had mini TVs with free programmes! I watched 'How I met your mother' for the first time, and I loved it :)
On Thursday, I went to uni, and when I got home I worked out to my new Tracey Anderson DVD. I think I am addicted to this! I saw results the next day. Review coming right up ;)
On Friday, I had a few hours off between lectures, so my friends and I decided to eat at Vapianos (my favourite restaurant!) The food was delicious as always!

We also did a spot of shopping at Topshop. Here are some lovely cupcakes from 'Lolas Cupcakes'.

On Friday, I went to watch Breaking Dawn. Even though it received bad reviews, I thought it was amazing! It was really funny and definitely lived up to the book (which was my fave one out of the series) .Source
On Saturday, I rushed home from work to get ready to celebrate my brothers 18th birthday! We celebrated it in an Indian restaurant! It was so much fun!
Here is a photo of my friend and I during my brothers party (he's not actually pouting, he was caught off guard!)
 How was your week?

Sunday 13 November 2011

Lil Miss Busy: Reading week (in photos!) :$

Hi guys, I had my reading week last week. Reading week is basically a week off in between term (it's meant to be for 'studying'). I am super sad that it is over though - it always goes by so quickly! As I had a bit more time than usual, I took some photos :)

I went to work on Monday, and studied hard on Tuesday! I can only write neatly with a fountain pen and I love using post it notes to highlight important information!

I went to a comedy club on Tuesday night for my friends birthday. I loved it! I have never been to a comedy club before but I am looking forward to going to some more. They say laughter is the best medicine...

 The rest of the week involved studying during the day (as well as a spot of procrastination!). I cheered myself by buying a Glade candle, in the scent of 'relaxing Zen'. There was a buy 1 get 1 free offer - which I always fall for ;)

 On Friday evening, I decided to watch 'The Notebook' for the first time. It was such a fabulous film! I cried literally like five times, and woke up with puffy eyes the next day! I highly recommend this film!

I went to work on Saturday. I was late to work by 30 minutes (the tubes, trains, buses were all having problems!) I was so annoyed that I kept moaning on the bus lol

 On Saturday evening, I went to a swanky wedding reception in the Sheraton hotel. It was literally the most magnificent wedding reception I have ever been too! Lets just say, if it was on Four Weddings, the couple would have won ;)

There were 17 courses altogether. I have never eaten so much dinner in my life. I was also stuffing myself with sweets! There was also an open bar (I don't drink though), and we had two waiters assigned to our table. They were pouring our glasses with water and pushing our chairs back so we could sit. I felt like royalty!

    Every table was assigned a name in the form of a 'Sweet', and that particular sweet was given to each guest. Guess what I was given ;)
This was the outfit I wore to the wedding reception! I literally came back from work, and had to get ready in less than an hour! I hate rushing - it totally extracts the fun of getting dolled up! 

 All in all, my week was lovely! Next week is going to be busier and I will be taking lots of photos ;) 

 How was your week?

Wednesday 9 November 2011

Lil Miss Made Up: Products I have been using recently :)

As I have a lot of makeup, I feel compelled to constantly change my makeup routine. Here are some products that I have been using recently:


 Products for the face:  
Can you see the difference between Mac C40 and C4?
 
A few months ago, I somehow managed to purchase the wrong shade of foundation. Instead of buying the MAC Studio Fix Powder Foundation in C40, I purchased it in C4. Unfortunately, I threw away the packaging so I couldn't even return it :( I did not want to waste the foundation therefore I decided to use it up, especially so as my tan has faded. I add bronzer on the contours of my face and blend it to my neck to prevent that 'two tone head and neck syndrome'. It doesn't even look bad in photos! :) The foundation on the left is in the shade C40, whereas the right is C4. C40 is more golden toned (it matches my skin colour perfectly) whereas C4 has more of a pink tone to it.


 The bronzer that I use to compensate the paleness of the foundation is Bourjois bronzer in no.51. I use the Mac 129 brush to sweep it across my forehead, cheekbones and on the jaw line! It adds a subtle warmth to my complexion. I really love this bronzer - it also smells of chocolates!

 I am definitely not into pink or red blushers - I prefer a more natural look and opt for warm bronze colours. You may have seen this in previous blog posts. I love the Mac Refined Golden Bronzer - it's got tiny particles of bronze in it to add a lovely sheen onto your cheeks. I actually apply this to the apples of my cheeks. This is the first cheek product I have ever repurchased! 

The next product I have been using a lot is the Garnier Roll on in the shade 'Medium'. I have had this for over 6 months and it is still going strong. The product doubles up as an eye cream and a concealer. It nourishes my under eye area and makes me feel more awake. The only problem is that the product does not stay on during the day, therefore I have to apply it again! When I had a tan, the product did look too light on me, so this colour is perfect for when my tan fades away.

Eye/ Brow products:

I have never been into brow products since an unfortunate event in 6th form. I used to wear brow pencil two shades lighter than my hair - and frankly, it looked ridiculous on me! I received the HD brows set in my Glossy Box. I did not use it for months, until I randomly decided to experiment with my eyebrows! The shades I use is the black shade (top, right) and the grey shade -(bottom, left) mixed together. I feel that the black by itself is too dark, therefore mixing it with the grey makes it more wearable. I only use it very slightly on my eyebrows. I have had a lot of compliments on my eyebrows since. I love this brow set so much! 

I haven't bothered with eye shadows recently - purely due to laziness. I simply wear Collection 2000 liquid eyeliner on the upper lid, lower lash line, add two coats of L'oreal Voluminous mascara, add a tiny bit of Daniel Sandler Mascara 'Baby Jet' on the outer lashes, and then add 'Art Deco eyeshadow in no.29' to my brow bones and inner corners (this is the only eyeshadow that lasts on my lids without any need for primer!)

 This is the Daniel Sandler Baby Jet mascara. It has a tiny, narrow wand which helps you lift up those hard to reach areas! It does not clump up my eyelashes, and makes sure that every eyelash has mascara on it ( I received this product in the Glossy Box).

Lip Products:
Did I mention that I love lipsticks? They can change your whole look! I have many MAC lipsticks, but I am starting to prefer my drugstore ones! Starting from the top: Revlon Lipstick in Pink Pout (A dupe for Mac Creme Cup). This lipstick is too light on my lips, so I add ' Max Factor Lipstick in 'Pink Brandy' to add a coral touch to it. The Max Factor Lipstick is my 'mixing' lipstick - I add it to different lipsticks to change the colour. It has a very creamy formulation and it pretty much lasts all day on my lips. The next lipstick I have been LOVING is Revlon lipstick in 'Cinammon Bronze'. I did not mention it in my Autumn products post, but this is the ultimate Autumn colour. It is a cross between red and orange on my lips - plus it is highly wearable.

Sunday 6 November 2011

Lil Miss Opinionated: Products I love, like and dislike from Sleek *

Today I am going to review some products from Sleek makeup. Sleek is a brand based in the UK which is aimed at selling products for people of all skin colours. I first heard about this brand in 2009 and I think it is definitely one of the best drugstore brands in the UK! I have tried and tested quite a few products, so here is my verdict: 
Products I love from Sleek:
 I absolutely adore the Original Palette from Sleek. This retails at £6.49 and has 12 highly pigmented eye shadows. I love the purple and the bronze colours - and I have used this palette on a night out once. Unfortunately, I accidentally dropped the palette which caused the gold colour to disperse! (Luckily, I don't use gold eye shadows!) The eye shadows are not as pigmented as my Mac eye shadows, but nevertheless the palette is more than worth the price that you are paying for. The only downside is that the eye shadows can look kind of 'crumbly' on the lids - therefore make sure you always tap off any excess product.

The next product I love from Sleek is the contour palette. Here is my review of it. This palette currently retails at £6.50. The brown colour actually defines my cheekbones. I purchased the shade in medium, which is quite dark for me, but once I blend it away it looks presentable.

The next product I love is the Sleek highlighting powder in Peach Shimmer. This product retails at £6.49. Unfortunately I did not take a photo of it because it is in a rubbish state (I have dropped it several times). This highlighter is very pigmented and shows up well in photos :) Here is my review of it.

 Products I like from Sleek: 
I really like the Sleek shimmer dust in Vintage. This product currently retails at £3.05. It is a gorgeous bronze with a taupe-y tone to it. It is such a beautiful colour which photographs very well. The reason I don't love this product is because it is not very pigmented - I had to apply two layers of it. Furthermore, the dust is quite thick - making it quite difficult to apply.

The next product I like from Sleek is the pout polish in Electro Peach. This product retails at £4.30. I love the colour of this product - it is great for the summer. It looks like a peachy-orange on my lips. The reason I don't love the product is because it is full of parabens - and the pout polish is likely to get swallowed once on the lips. The other reason is because the pout polish does not condition the lips - therefore if you have dry lips it will simply accentuate the dryness.

Products I am not too keen on:

 The Sleek Kajal eyeliner used to be my all time favourite, but it doesn't last very long. This product retails at £4.30. The product crumbled up after a few months and now I can't even take the product out of the container. The eyeliner is quite pigmented but I prefer the Urban Decay one for intensity.

 Sleek Pout Polish in Pink Cadillac is not one of my favourite products either. This product retails at £4.30.  The colour simply does not suit me - I'm sure it would look great on other people but the warm pink clashes with my skin colour.

Sleek Palette in 'Storm' is one of my least favourite products (surprisingly).This retails at £6.49. I have seen many blog posts raving about this product - but I have not been able to create a nice look out of it. The matte shadows are too pigmented, which make them difficult to apply. None of the light shimmery products actually suit me - I only like the Cranberry colour (first eyeshadow in the second row). 

What do you think of Sleek products?

P.S - all the prices are from the Sleek website. They might sell it cheaper in Superdrugs. 
I am not affiliated with Sleek and all products were purchased with my own money.

Tuesday 1 November 2011

:) Lil Miss Pondering: In and Out =

I haven't done an In and Out post in ages - purely because I didn't know what to write about. I am back with another one - I think I will do these randomly! 

In: 
My untidy room - well untidy for me anyway lol!
TV - I love cosy nights in. I love how my favourite TV shows start during September - Vampire Diaries, Young Apprentice, Desperate Housewives and Pretty Little Liars (although Pretty Little Liars is on another break and will be back in January 2012).

Quinoa. I tried quinoa (a type of grain, originally from South America) for the first time this month and I loved it. I ate it with goji berries and apples and added some cinnamon powder to taste. It is a great source of protein and also has good iron content. It only takes 15 minutes to prepare and you can buy it from most supermarkets. I will do a separate post on this!

Working out. After Zante and Morocco I stopped exercising and noticed a huge difference in my figure. I was no longer comfortable in tight fitting clothes as my stomach had become wobbly. I have been in denial about it for ages, but in September I decided to work out again. I am aiming to workout 3/4 times a week. My current favourite workout is 'No More Trouble Zones' by the lovely Jillian Michael's. This workout is purely strength based - it involves weights and I can feel a difference in my body the next day. I will definitely be doing a review on this workout!

Healthy eating - thanks to the 'My fitness pal app' I started eating healthily. I used to eat pretty badly before. Once I started using the app, I realised I was lacking iron, Vitamin A and calcium in my diet. Out came the carrots, spinach and yoghurt. I have noticed a big improvement in my skin (I usually break out once a week but I haven't had anymore *touch wood*) . My hair also looks shinier too. This just shows that nourishing your insides is just as important (if not more) as having a good skin care routine.

Being organised. As I have been working out hard and eating well - I feel that I am in control of my life. Conveniently, I have been more organised and life has been pretty stress free due to it! I always set my bag the night before, I am constantly setting myself reminders on my phone instead of trying to memorising things and I try to get up early to prevent rushing. The tough part is keeping everything up.

Candles. I have been loving lighting up candles lately. Personally, Yankee candles are far too expensive for me (I cannot fathom spending £15 on a candle) so I decided to snoop around in Wilkinson's; I found some gorgeous candles. The one I am currently burning right now smells of vanilla - and now my room smells delightfully sweet :) I can't wait to buy some more - they're only £3!

Out:

Eyeshadow. I have so much makeup yet I only use 10% of it. I haven't bothered with wearing eyeshadow lately - I simply cannot be bothered to get dressed up in the mornings anymore. I just wear eyeliner and mascara, as opposed to layering primer and applying several shades of colour etc. etc. I'm sure it's just a phase though ;)

Negative thinking. I am generally a very pessimistic person - I tend to worry too much about certain situations and I always expect the worst; I feel as if I focus my energy on the wrong things! A recent loss in the family has really made me re-evaluate my life. My aim is to look on the brighter side of things and to stop worrying. It will be tough, but being positive is just so much better for you!

What have your In's and Out's been?