Beauty & Life Favs, August.

Astonishingly it's September, time is literally flying. So like every other blogger on the planet I'm going to share with you my beauty and life favourites for August.

Music Favourites: 

Two songs were way over played in my car this month. One is a new single and the other is extremely old school. Little Mix Black Magic and Avril Lavinge Here's to Never Growing Up. I honestly don't know how I ended up listening to Avril Lavinge again, but I LOVE it. 

Food Favourites: 

Ribena is my all time favourite drink (no I'm not five) and I've drank more this month than I care to admit. Cadburys also launched a new Marvellous Creation bar in Ireland. It is Rocky Mallow Road flavoured and it is heaven in a chocolate bar, you have to taste it!

Makeup Favourites:

Estee Lauder Modern Muse Le Rouge has become my new signature scent. Words cannot describe my love for it. I have a first impressions of it here. This is the first month in a long time I have worn the same scent everyday, but this fragrance does the job for both day and night. Its very unique too, it has a creamy vanilla mixed with roses scent. This one is definitely worth a sniff or if your impulsive like me, you'll buy it. 

 

Up until the past few months I had yet to find my holy grail concealer. I wanted something really brightening and light in colour, with good coverage and didn't crease. This was way harder to find than I was expecting. Then on a whim I decided to try the Urban Decay Naked Concealer out. I got it in the lightest shade which is Fair Neutral and it is the most amazing under eye concealer ever! It is too light to use anywhere else on my face but It looks flawless under my eyes and just around my nose. 

The Too Faced Semi Sweet Chocolate Bar Palette has also basically been featured on my face all month. The smell of chocolate when I open this palette makes me want to eat it. It has such a versatile range of colours and I especially love Peanut Butter. I also have a first impression and a look I created with this palette here. I will definitely be bringing this traveling with me next month as the colour range really does cover all bases.

My last monthly favourites featured MACs Fix+ too. However I ran out at the end of the month and went to MAC to get another. When I was there the girl said that they had come out with a range of scented Fix+, however the only scents they had left were Yuzu and Rose. My toner is rose scented so that one didn't really interest me but to be honest I didn't know what Yuzu was. But of course I bought into the gimmick anyway and I'm so glad I did. Scent aside this Fix+ seems way more moisturing! I now spritz it on after washing my face and it instantly re-hydrates my skin. I also still use it as a setting spray for my makeup. In terms of Yuzu I had to google what it was. It is a citrus fruit and plant originating in East Asia. I really love this version of Fix+ and I hope they make the range permanent! (I really want the coconut one!) I cant find the exact product online but they should definitely still have some available in store!

Last but not least is my favourite bronzer in the whole world! I saw a few YouTubers and Bloggers talk about this product so I bought it a few months ago. MAC Give Me Sun! is an MSF like no other. It gives that natural sun kissed bronzed look to the skin. Its not matte but has zero shimmer. It gives a sheen/ glow that looks so naturally beautiful. I have never owned or used a bronzer anything like this one! I can almost guarantee it will be a holy grail product for you too.





As always please share with me your favourites of the month, I love hearing about amazing products I have yet to try! I hope you all had an amazing August and here's to a fabulous September <3




"Be happy... Not because everything is good, but because you can see the good in everything."

Cruelty Free Cosmetics Guide.

A huge amount of cosmetic companies today are cruelty free, however many of the leading makeup brands do test their products on animals. By no means am I saying that all the makeup products that I buy or use are cruelty free but as of the last few weeks I'm trying to make more informed decisions when buying cosmetics, because in reality a bunny rabbit shouldn't have to pay for me wanting to wear eyeliner. A lot of companies may not directly test on animals but their suppliers might, so technically those brands are not cruelty free. I'm going to list my favourite cruelty free cosmetic brands below and a link to their site or to PETA's where they state their products are cruelty free. I'm aware that there are many more brands that don't test on animals but there are too many to list, so I'm just going to reference my favourites.

Before I start some of these cosmetic companies parent companies are not cruelty free, but I will let you know that in each case. All of the information I'm going to list I have found online. It is your own decision whether you want to shop cruelty free (all of my cosmetics are not). Each brand name is clickable and will lead you to area of the site where their animal testing ethos is explained.

Urban Decay: I was so happy to see that Urban Decays products are cruelty free. I absolutely love their eyeshadows, eyeliners, concealers etc. Its such a popular and well known brand and cruelty free! However Urban Decay is owned by L'Oreal, their parent company is not cruelty free. 



Too Faced: Having only recently launched in Ireland, their popularity is really growing in Europe. Their products are fabulous and their brushes are made from 100% Teddy Bear Hair!


TheBalm: I'm not going to lie I haven't tried many products from TheBalm, however I love the products I do own and there is an order on the way to my house *eek*. If you look at the very bottom of their website you can see they are listed as cruelty free.


Smashbox: Famous for their primers Smashbox cosmetics is listed as cruelty free. However their parent company Estee Lauder do test on animals because like many other brands they sell to the Chinese market.


Lush: Bath bombs, soaps, bubble bars etc. are all cruelty free. Lush don't test on animals and don't buy products from suppliers that test on animals either. 


Makeup Geek: All of Makeup Geeks products and ingredients are cruelty free. Most of their products are vegan too, apart from several products listed on their site that contain Carmine.

ELF Cosmetics: Super affordable, brilliant quality and cruelty free! However I'm pretty sure there are some issues with ELF's UK website that also ships to Ireland. Not sure what is going on.


Gosh: Although this company seems to be fading in terms of popularity they do have a really good selection of makeup products. I used to love Gosh so much, and they are listed as cruelty free.


NYX: I have fallen head over heels in love with NYX products since they started selling them in my local pharmacy and online in Ireland. The price point and quality are amazing!


Barry M: I love Barry M dazzle dusts and their nail polishes. They are pretty affordable and have a huge range of colours.


Soap & Glory: I'm a little hesitant about putting this company on my list because although they do not test on animals they cannot 100% guarantee that their ingredients haven't been. However they do have a list of vegan products listed on their site. 


The Body Shop: Their parent company is Loreal which does unfortunately test on animals. However the Body Shop are cruelty free, they have a very passionate article about being cruelty free on their site.

Real Techniques: One of my favourite and most used brushes are cruelty free! They state that all of their products are 100% cruelty free.


Eco Tools: Another company that sells cruelty free brushes, I have several Eco Tools brushes and I love them. Plus they are super affordable.


Sigma: I'm aware that not all Sigma brushes are cruelty free however they do sell amazing vegan brushes that are, and they are definitely worth checking out!





I'm hoping this was helpful to some of you. If I have left out any major companies please leave them in the comments (writing them all out would take years :P). Again I don't shop 100% cruelty free by any means but I will definitely be trying to buy more from these cruelty free brands rather than those that test on animals in the future.



"It takes nothing away from a human to be kind to an animal" - Joaquin Phoenix



Lauren x



Photo: (flikr.com)

New Skincare Favourite! Soap & Glory Face Massage Mini Mitt

I'm definitely a spur of the moment purchaser. If your product has eye catching packaging or a cute name I'm automatically drawn to it, and unfortunately for my bank account I'll probably also buy it too. This was one of those products that I wasn't looking for, hadn't researched but just found on the shelf of Boots. Its full title is the Soap & Glory Face Massage Mini Mitt. It is advertised as a face massage type product which I guess it is but I prefer to use it for something else. This product claims to increase blood flow to your face which will improve the appearance of your skin.

Now I'm not one to massage my face (lets be honest, who does?). I'm partial to the odd facial but that's as far as my face massaging goes. However when I remove my makeup I like my face to feel really clean afterwards, with not a shred of makeup left on it. The only thing is my skin doesn't like exfoliators, brushes etc. I get a horrible red rash whenever I use them. If your anything like me, you are going to LOVE this product.

The picture doesn't do the product justice because it looks like its made from the same plastic as a comb. Hand on my heart this is the softest rubber I have ever felt, super soft and really comfortable to rub on your skin. You can have a feel in the shop as the little rubber pieces are exposed in the packaging. I bought it because I thought if I added a blob of cleanser to the top then this would be the ideal makeup remover, and it was!

I mainly use the area with the longer rubber pieces but there is also a flatter area that really does give a lovely massage. I'm finding it difficult to explain the softness of this tool because the picture doesn't really do it justice. I think a gel foaming cleanser would work the best with this, I've been using my Estee Lauder Gelee Face Wash and these two are a match made in skincare heaven. This little tool also has a handle type thing on the back that I place between my middle and ring fingers. This gives the perfect grip and allows you to remove your makeup (and massage your face) with ease.

So essentially your getting two benefits from using one tool, you'll have increased blood flow to your face making it more beautiful than it already is, and it removes your makeup with ease. You could definitely use this in the morning as well, I think it would really wake up your skin and give it some life. I feel like I've told everyone and their mother this past week about this product but its amazing! I will definitely be featuring it in this months favourites. The device is also super flexible and bendy, as are the little rubber extensions. So you really can get into every groove of your face and make sure your skin is squeaky clean before you leave the shower.

So if your the kind of girl that has sensitive skin, wanted to use face brushes but were too scared? Definitely give it a go. It really cheap too, mine was only €5.49 in Boots. And if you don't believe me about its softness, have a feel of one next time you pass Soap and Glory... You wont be disappointed! <3





"In polite society, a well maintained skincare routine is one of life's great successes" - Violet Grey





Lauren x

Bath Time with Zoella Beauty

So I was strolling around Penneys (Primark) the other day and nearly passed out when I spotted some Zoella beauty in their cosmetic section. Now as far as I am aware Zoella beauty is not available in store to purchase anywhere in Ireland but is available on feelunique.com. Naturally I had to pick up something from her range when I was there and give it a try. I was actually really excited when I saw her products as I was totally not expecting to see them in Penneys. This is her older collection but it was all that was available, and these were the only two products in store. They were €6 each, which is not too bad :)



Fizz Bar: So this is basically a bath bomb divided up like a chocolate bar, so you break off a piece each time you want to use it. There are six large squares in each bar. I'm not sure what type of scent I was expecting from Zoella but this is definitely not it. However I absolutely LOVE it, the scent reminds me somewhat of the Michael Kors Jasmine fragrance. When I opened the packing the scent hit me immediately. It fizzed well in my bath however it did fizz out very quickly. I was tempted to throw another square in but I resisted the temptation (I didn't want to waste it :P). Another thing I loved is that it gave my bathroom a gorgeous perfumed scent which was amazing. Overall I was so impressed with this product and will defintely buy it again when I use it up.



Soak Opera: This is a bath soak and shower cream. It has the same scent as the fizz bar but much much lighter in intensity. It lathers up really nicely with a loofah and the scent does intensify once it starts to lather properly. It has such a creamy texture and is really moisturising, it definitely wont dry your skin out. If you like a really strongly scented body wash this probably isn't for you, but I prefer a lather and soft scent because too much fragrance can irritate my skin.



I'm actually really impressed with Zoella's beauty line. So much so that I'm browsing online for what I'm going to buy next, those makeup bags are calling my name!! Essentially you are buying the products for Zoella's name, but I'm all about supporting YouTubers. Lastly I forgot to mention the packaging, I love it! Really cute pastel colours with splashes of neon and rose gold writing. If you love Zoella then you really need to try these out! <3




"Be the best version of you" - Zoella




Lauren x

Skincare Routine.

I'm obsessed with watching/ reading skincare routines. I feel like I've watched hundreds, no exaggeration. So I decided I'd share mine with you today. Just some background on my skin, I have combination/ oily skin. I don't suffer with acne but I do get the odd breakout, like most other people. I used to have extremely oily skin, like I literally had my makeup slide off my T-Zone after wearing my makeup for an hour. Now I've got my skincare down to a fine art and it really has controlled the oil so much! No more powdering every five minutes. My main skin issues are blackheads and large open pores on my nose, an oily t-zone and I can have very dull, tired and washed out skin. So here are my morning and night routines :)


 

Morning Routine:

•  I feel that I have quite a minimal morning routine. I prefer to shower at night and I'm not a big fan of washing my face in the morning. So I use the Garnier Micellar Water for Combination & Sensitive skin. This is amazing, its cleanses your face so well and really does make you feel like you've just washed your face. 
• Next I use the Boots Botanical Rosewater Toner Spray. Now mine is not in the original bottle because it was too large to carry around with me on holidays so I put it into a smaller spray bottle. This toner is so gentle and refreshing, its so light and not harsh at all. 
• I then put on my Estee Lauder Idealist Pore Minimizing Serum, this has really helped reduce the size of my pores and it smells gorg, it also acts as a really nice base for your makeup as it keeps you matte.  
• I then put on the Simple Soothing Eye Balm to hydrate my under eyes. Never ever put normal moisturiser or serum on your under eye area as these products are too heavy. 
• Lastly I apply my MAC Strobe Cream. It is a really light moisturizer and gives a beautiful glow to dull skin, its also an amazing makeup base. Just because your skin is oily don't shy away from illuminating products, this one just gives a beautiful natural glow without the oil. 

Night Time Routine:

• My night skincare routine is a little more extensive. I remove my face makeup using the Garnier Micellar Water. I then use the Garnier Express 2 in 1 Eye Makeup Remover to remove my eye makeup. I use little circular cotton pads and the product to remove my makeup.
• I shower at night so I wash my face before bed. I use a makeup removing wash in case I've missed any leftover foundation or mascara. I like to use the Estee Lauder Perfectly Clean face wash. It's a foaming face wash which I love and it covers a few steps in my skincare routine. It cleanses, tones and removes your makeup. It also smells amazing!
• Next I apply my Advanced Night Repair. This really is a cult skincare product, it basically repairs all the damage your skin cells go through on a daily and nightly basis. I've really noticed this has greatly improved the appearance and texture of my skin.
• Lastly I apply Estee Lauder's Advanced Time Zone Moisturizer. This is an anti aging night cream. I know I am only 21 years of age but I'm definitely not going to wait until I get wrinkles before I start treating them. This has a gorgeous rich texture but isn't too oily. 

I'm really hoping that these products might help some of you that are suffering from really oily skin. I've found that by not over washing my face or by using products that are not oil free has helped so much. If you deprive your skin from oil it's just going to produce way more, and you'll end up with a total oily mess! I'd love to hear your favourite skincare products or any suggestions you have :)



"Nature gives you the face you have at twenty; it is up to you to merit the face you have at fifty"
 -Coco Chanel



Lauren x

Beauty & Makeup Hacks.

Beauty hacks (basically tips and tricks) can really help you out when you are in a pinch. I've learned these over the years off friends, family, youtubers, bloggers etc. They have seriously helped me out when Ive gotten into a sticky situation, beauty wise that is :)

(1) When your nail polish has reached that point of no return and its thick, gooey, clumpy and over all nasty but you dont want to throw it out? (especially limited edition colours!!) put a few drops of nail varnish remover into the bottle, close the lid and shake it! Your polish will be good as new.


(2) When you have the worlds shakiest hand but you want the perfect winged liner? Pop some sellotape to the side of your eye running just past your lower lashes and extending outwards (remove most of the stickiness on the back of your hand). Now simply do your liner, it doesn't matter if you smudge onto the tape because once you remove it, you'll have a perfect crisp flick!


(3) I have oily hair, its a fact. There is nothing worse than waking up to get ready for work, its too late to shower, your hair is greasy and you have run out of dry shampoo. Baby powder!! It works the exact same, just make sure you brush thoroughly and your good to go. Oil free hair and it smells lovely.


(4) Sun protection for your hair can cost a fortune! My hairdresser gave me this tip to protect my highlights/ hair from sun damage but also save me money. Simply mix in a spray bottle some factor 50 suncream, conditioner and water and your good to go. Sun protection and hydrating your hair all at once, for a fraction of the price.


(5) I hate when I've created an eye look that I love and I ruin it once I apply my mascara and dots on product end up on my lid. To avoid this get a piece of card and place it behind your upper or lower lashes. Now hold it in place so when you apply your mascara the product gets all over the card and not your lids.


(6) Teeth whitening products cost a fortune. A quick, simple and cheap teeth whitening system is to add a little baking soda to your toothpaste every second day. There is no bleach, no chemicals but it gives amazing results.


(7) Do I have cool skin or warm skin? The infamous MAC NC or NW question. Here's a simple way to find out if your skin is cool toned, or warm toned. Pull up your sleeve and look at the veins in your wrist. If they are blue you are most likely cool toned and if they are greenish your most likely warm tones. If your seeing both you have a neutral skin colour!




 (8) If your hair is really light or soft and you cant get bobby pins to grip your hair securely, spray the pins with hairspray and then apply them.



 (9) To make your perfume last longer apply it to your pulse points. These parts of your body produce heat because your blood vessels are closer to the surface of your skin, so they make your perfume smell stronger for longer, kind of similar to melting candles smelling stronger than those not lit. Apply to your wrists, inner elbow, behind your knees, your cleavage and to your neck. Adding Vaseline before your fragrance will also make the scent last much longer.



(10) To make a smoother base for you lipstick and to remove all that dry skin you want to exfoliate your lips. Lip scrubs are damn expensive, but do you know whats not? Simply run your toothbrush over your lips in soft circular motions to remove any flaky skin. Another option is to mix a little sugar with some olive oil and use it to exfoliate those lips! You can also use this as a body exfoliater.


"Beauty is how you feel about yourself, not what you see in the mirror"


Lauren x