Life Update

I've been a bit out of the loop for the past few days because I've had the most wretched cold-type illness. I've got some fun posts coming up but sadly I haven't been able to do proper swatches of things yet because my skin has taken it's dryness to a whole new level so do bare with me! I haven't dropped off the blogosphere just yet. I thought I'd take this opportunity to share a couple of fun, personal things from the last week or so:

Introducing the amazingly glorious oreo cupcakes that I made for my flatmates 23rd Birthday. I used the recipe that Alessandra guest posted on my blog in January (here) and they went down an absolute storm! (Despite my questionable icing.) They tasted absolutely beautiful so thank you for the recipe Alessandra!

I also had a shopping miracle and came across this total bargain:

Super gorgeous satchel which I got for an amazing £10! I was shocked at how cheap it was. I love the little clasp, it looks like an old tap. I think this is going to be perfect for my University interview at Westminster (wish me luck!) as it strikes just the right note of professional and stylish. It's from a brand called LYDC and I picked it up at a local shop that's been here for over 100 years. I'm pretty sure it isn't leather, I'd be shocked if it is for the price, but it definitely looks more expensive than it is. I've been looking for a satchel for ages and they don't come cheap, so I'm incredibly happy with this find.

And I've finally got my order in for the Real Techniques brush sets!

iHerb.com is an American site that ships to the UK and the brushes are so much cheaper there, $17.99 is £11.98 which is just amazing. You're saving £20 if you buy the core collection and eye set which is what I've done. I also picked up a Physicians Formula Happy Booster Blush so I'm looking forward to trying that! There's an offer on at the moment where you can get $10 off when you spend $40 (which isn't difficult) so get on it! It's only $4 for non-tracked delivery so I'm not too fussed about the wait; the saving makes it worth it!

So that's my little lifestyle update for this week, what have you been up to?

Lauren

Review and Swatches: Technic Electric Beauty Electric Eyes Eyeshadow Palette

As promised, today I'm bringing you the swatches from my gorgeous bargain palette that I bought in my recent haul from Love The Make-Up! I didn't really know what to expect from this because the colours are just so vibrant. I know it's difficult sometimes to get that to translate outside of the pan and I imagine even more difficult for £1.99. So did it wow me?

The packaging is exactly the same as the Ultra Violet Palette, sleek, black and easy to open and close. It has a large mirror that runs the length of the packaging and includes a double ended sponge applicator. It's essentially exactly the same layout you would see in a Sleek i-Divine Palette. The shadows themselves are all shimmer finishes and come in a wide range of colours. I have to admit that what really drew me to this palette was the dark magenta pink and golden olive/lime colours in the top centre of the palette. They are just indescribably beautiful! It was difficult to really catch the vibrancy of these shades on camera but I can assure you that they have a serious wow-factor!

Bizarrely the colours inside run backwards to the photo shown on the palette itself. Very strange but I'll let it slide considering the price.

The first group of six is all warm pinks and oranges. The only swatch that I had a little bit of trouble with was the first pale yellow. It came out a little bit patchy but still works as a nice highlight. I really love the peach/copper shade (5) too. I use colours like this all the time and it really didn't seem very exciting in the pan but it's gorgeous! Perfect for a day look with an added touch of glam. The magenta didn't disappoint me either, it shines slightly blue which you can see a little of in the photo.

The second group contains cool tones of green, aqua and purple. By some glorious twist of fate it seems that my favourite colour from the palette is the smoothest and most pigmented of them all! Can I get an Hallelujah?! It's just stunning. A little disappointing is the fact that the middle three colours are nearly identical. I would have much rather they include another green or a cobalt.

Being the excitable lass I am I immediately started experimenting and threw together these two looks. These were done extremely fast, I mean like 60 seconds fast. I just gave my eyes a quick wipe with a makeup wipe to remove any oils and applied the shadows with my fingers. 

This is the pink on the bottom row all over the lid, magenta in the crease and under the eye using the sponge applicator and orange blended up towards the brow. I then applied my Maybelline Master Smoky Pencil in Smoky Violet (review here) to the water line and close to the upper lash line and added mascara. I look like a holiday cocktail and I don't care who knows it.

And of course I had to showcase this! It definitely reads more lime on the eyes but I don't have the slightest problem with that! I simply blended it all over the lid with my finger and added a thick line of Collection Felt Liner in Teal (review here) and an extra line of Rimmel's Exaggerate Liquid Liner in Black underneath. Topped with mascara. People will have to put up with seeing me wearing this all through Spring and Summer. It's so Mother Earth.

I don't know if you'd noticed but I actually wore these at the same time on each eye! Naturally I didn't leave the house but it's definitely an attention grabbing look...
I'm happy to announce that the wear time of these is just as good as the Ultra Violet Palette. There was zero creasing but they did fade a little around the 6 hour mark. Two colourful thumbs up from me!

Final Verdict: Well worth £1.99 and a must for any colour-lovers on a budget.

Lauren

Review: Nivea Extreme Resist Glossy in Pretty Berry

While perusing my local Poundland I came across a couple of interesting bits in the beauty section. One of which was a liquid lipstick stain with an accompanying gloss. What really caught my eye was that they claimed to last up to 10 hours and whiten your smile! I noticed a blue shimmer running through both sections so I'm assuming that this is the way they whiten.

I picked up two shades (at £1 each why not?!) in Radiant Plum and Pretty Berry. (Nails are MUA Plum Noir, NOTD review here.)
Today I'm reviewing Pretty Berry.

Both ends feature soft doe-foot applicators. They're really easy to use but the colour end sometimes picks up a little too much product so you have to be careful about it being messy.

 Colour only

Colour and gloss

There wasn't really any bleeding which I'm happy to report to you! The above photo was after about half an hour of wear and it was looking fine. (Not very well applied thanks to me.) It takes a couple of minutes to dry and whilst it's drying it is quite sticky. Also, the marks on my lips are quite pronounced but I haven't met a lip product yet that disguises that. It is a little drying on its own but nothing that I couldn't handle.

The big thing about this is that it is totally matte. More matte than I have ever seen a lip product be actually and I wouldn't mind wearing it as a matte colour in the evenings but I do love it with the gloss!  It's a clear shimmer gloss with blue teeth-whitening particles which could be used with lots of other products so I know that even if I don't use the stain I'll finish this up in no time at all.

Longevity was pretty astounding, it barely budged after 4 hours, a plate of spaghetti and three quality street but could have done with a top up of gloss. I also think that my teeth looked a little whiter. It's so nice to get a product that lives up to its claims. Mind you, I don't know if it would still be there after ten hours and more than one meal, but it'll definitely get you through the office party and the mini sandwiches at the buffet, which is all I could ask for. Overall I'm really pleased with this purchase and can't believe I got it for £1! What a steal.

What do you think of this product? Have you found any bargains in your local Poundland recently?

Lauren