Everything Is Changing.

So I've decided it's probably time to write a post on what's been going on lately as my presence on my blog and channel has been limited lately. I've been going through some huge changes in my life recently and just haven't really had the time to sit down and relax and lose myself in all this.

 

So university didn't go as I planned at all, from the beginning I became very depressed, alone and anxious and instead of getting stuck into my studies; locked myself in my room and distanced myself from everyone and everything. By Christmas I'd decided it really wasn't for me and planned not to return in the new year. Unfortunately, I did a lot better than I had thought I would in my exams which motivated me to continue my course. However, in this time I also lost my grandma. After a few weeks I fell back into my 'I really don't care anymore' outlook and in this time my grandad also became very ill and sadly also passed away on my 21st birthday. During this time I accepted a job offer in my university town and I think if it wasn't for that, I would have completely lost all hope in my life.

 

The weeks after all this made me realise I needed to reassess my life, my attitude towards things and what I really wanted. I spent as little time at home as possible as I knew I really needed to gain some independence. I was very unhappy and let this heavily affect my relationship as things weren't perfect already. I decided to end things with my long-term fiancé and concentrate on getting back on track with university and sorting myself out financially. With everything that had already occurred, this was a very sad time for me and I genuinely can't remember much of that time as it was too painful to not just delete this memory from my mind.

 

So where has all this left me? With a lot of full time working over summer, a failed first year at university with LOADS of retakes and still in the pittance of my overdraft. I'm not quite sure what I'm planning to do with my life in the near future but I've battled my anxiety and depression demons fiercely and feel more adult and able to deal with difficult situations than I've ever been and I couldn't be prouder of myself. Sorry if you've been waiting for me to post things, I've had a few messages asking where I've been. Just bare with me, I plan to come back bigger and better than ever.

 

Thanks for your patience and support, I love you all.
 

Benefit Hoola Bronzer

I'm definitely late on my new beauty lust, but bear with me. Because if like me you haven't felt the need the indulge in Hoola yet then you most certainly need to. I'm a huge fan of a non-orange toned matte bronzer to create a subtle everyday contour on my face. I've been using the Soap and Glory Solar Powder over the past year which is excellent but fancied splurging on a high end product.

The Hoola bronzer is one of Benefit's boxed products. The packaging consists of a very sturdy card with a flap lid which secures down well. Inside contains 8g of the product and on the inside roof of the lid, a small mirror for on the go touch ups. Although fancy packaging looks great, nothing beats something you can throw in your handbag, or luggage if you travel often, and not have to worry about getting dirty or cracking. It also comes with a small flat contour brush with a pale blue wooden handle and soft natural hair white bristles. However, you can't get much control with such a small brush and I prefer to use my Real Techniques Bold Metals contour brush instead.

The product itself is a completely matte, shimmer-free bronzer. It can be used to add a touch of bronze to areas of your face as well as perform a subtle contour. I wouldn't stop there with the uses, as the colour isn't orange toned, you could use it to fill in your brows as well as create a nude eye look as an eyeshadow. Because of the colour, it works well for almost everyone from the palest to darker skintones. The powder itself is very silky with a minimal amount of fall out and lasts well on the face all day without much need for touch ups. The pigmentation is great but as the powder is very light, it can be applied sheerly for a small hint of colour or built up and applied more heavily for a darker pay off.

Although £23 is a little pricey for an everyday bronzer, I'm sure it'll last forever like the other Benefit boxed products and therefore I don't mind shelling out the every pennies for something so long lasting.

July Wishlist #01

 

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

 

[1] Kurt Geiger never fail to have me lusting over a pair of heels. So when I spotted these nude suede Hattie heels, they've gone straight on my KG wishlist. They're perfect for summer to wear with jeans and casual tops. [2] Now I have my Mulberry and a Ted Baker or two, I've found myself eyeing up Michael Kors bags. I came across this blush shade of the staple bag which would team perfectly with the Hattie heels. [3] Viktor and Rolf have never brought out a fragrance I haven't liked, Flowerbomb used to be my staple before I couldn't justify the price tag as a student. Their more recent launch of Bon Bon is something different, very sweet and candy like yet beautiful and long lasting. [4] So I've literally just brought myself a Ted Baker make up pouch to keep in my Mulberry but I still can't resist this Mulberry one in metallic mushroom goat. It's so unusual but stunning, at almost £200 though I think it might be a wish a lot longer. [5] Dolly Bow Bow aka Kate Murrane launched her own jewellery line a few years ago. I've never really had a gander before but she does the most beautiful statement necklaces which have always been a love of mine. This pink piece is definitely my favourite. [6] Is it really possible to own enough white/black blouses? They go with almost everything. This pretty sleeveless embellished collar one will probably find it's way into my online basket soon.

 

 

What's on your wishlist for July?

 

Sparkle With Emily

I've always been a big fan of personalising my gadgets and accessories. I'm also a massive girly girl so being faced with owning something plain and generic looking just isn't my taste. One night, after what was probably hours of Instagram nosing and lurking, I managed to stumble across and interesting page. Before my eyes were squares and squares of little images which hosted a range of different designs of Fiat 500 key covers, phone cases, tablet cases etc. I'm more than aware that 'blinging' things up isn't new and there's many people out there doing it as a part time business but the level of precision and the uniqueness in the designs was like nothing I had ever seen before.

 

 

After a few minutes nosing, I knew for certain that I needed a Fiat 500 key cover in my life. My current plain black one was boring and slightly broken already. After sending Emily an email and a brief description of what I wanted (you can choose absolutely anything you like) she gave me a quote including delivery cost and I went ahead with the order. The price is very reasonable for the final product, I paid using my PayPal which was quick and safe. She told me she would send me an email when she had completed my key cover and then it would take a week for my order to completely dry and then she would send it to me first class delivery so it would arrive within the next 1-2 days.

 

 

The key cover arrived around 2 weeks after I ordered and came with instructions on how to fit the key cover and a little bag of spare rhinestones should any fall off (which I haven't experienced yet). After having my first key cover a few months I decided to order a new one as I'd be lusting over so many other designs which I preferred more. The key cover arrived and I loved it even more, it's super sparkly and sturdy and looks lovely against my fur pom pom keyring. After a few weeks the gold centre of one of my daisy did fall off (my keys do experience quite a battering in and out my bags). I contacted Emily straight away and she offered to replace my daisies free of charge and send it back to me with my current order of a phone case and key cap.

 

 

After loving my key covers so much, when I got a new HTC One Mini 2 and couldn't find a decent phone case, I contacted Emily and she told me she'd be able to do one for me. I decided to have the same design as my key cover but with a gold Vivienne Westwood orb and also ordered a matching key cap. I received my order today as well as my repaired key cover which was perfect and I can't even see where it's been repaired! I absolutely love everything and Emily was such a pleasure to commute with and was extremely helpful with any questions I had.

 

 

Sparkle with Emily creates handmade to order sparkle crystallised phone cases, Fiat 500 key covers, converse, tablet cases, key caps and anything else you desire to be blinged (within reason). She is based in Staffordshire in the UK but ships internationally and will give you an individual quote depending on your shipping location. Emily creates a variety of designs which you can browse on her Instagram, Facebook and website. You can create your own design or choose one she has previously created. She is super accommodating and such a talented lady.

 

 

If you're interested, give her an email at sparklewithemily@hotmail.com.

 

Dove Oxygen Moisture Haircare Range

When we think Dove, we think soap, bath foam, shower gel, you catch the drift? I love Dove as a brand, they have an excellent ethos and they're products are affordable and good quality. Lately I've been dabbling in their hair care ranges, more recently the Oxygen Moisture range which is part of their recently rebranded premium hair care.

 

The range consists of a shampoo, conditioner, deep treatment and a root lift spray. It prices between £5.99-£6.99 although I managed to pick up the whole range half price in Tesco.

 

First let's start with the shampoo, out of it's bottle it's a blue gel consistency. It smells pleasant enough, very fresh and ocean like (if that's a correct term to use). I used an average amount in my palm, lathered it up and worked it through my long locks. I found it slightly difficult to get it to lather up but managed to crack it eventually. When rinsing I found it left my hair feeling squeaky clean, almost the same results as using a clarifying shampoo. Although I have fine, weightless hair, it tends to get very dry and this isn't the kind of shampoo I lean towards using in case I dry my hair out and cause excess damage. However, it's a great product to use once or twice a week if like me you use a lot of products in your hair to get rid of excess residue and give it a thorough cleanse. I've also read claims that it causes dyed hair to run colour badly so I wouldn't recommend this for those of you with dyed or dry brittle hair.

 

 

After shampooing, I went on to use the conditioner. It carried the same scent as the shampoo, very refreshing. The consistency was slightly unusual compared to other conditioners I've used. It was much lighter and less dense, more runny. I personally like to use quite thick heavy conditioners on the ends of my hair so found myself having to use quite a lot of this to build up the desired amount of product in my hair to nourish it enough. Because the shampoo is so light, I didn't have a problem using this even on my roots and experienced no change in how greasy my hair became from after washing it. I left it on for a few minutes whilst I washed the rest of my body and then rinsed out.

Once a week a more intense treatment is highly preferable. After shampooing the slathered on the soufflé formula treatment onto my hair and left it on for 5 minutes to do it's thing. Unlike any other hair masque I've used, it is light and spongy. My hair didn't feel slightly coated and highly hydrated like it would with other hair masques, in fact I didn't see much difference using this to the regular conditioner. The amount of product in the jar is a small 200ml and will probably only last you around 4 uses for those of you with longer hair like mine. The only positive thing I have to pick up on is how lovely it smells (but s does the rest of the range).

 

 Finally the cherry on the icing, the root lift spray. I used the lightweight formula by spraying it onto the roots on damp freshly washed hair. I used around 15 sprays although you can use more or less depending on the level of volume you want to achieve. However, I wouldn't recommend going too overboard as it will leave your hair feeling crispy and sticky. I then massage the formula into my scalp using my fingertips and the proceed to blow-dry my hair using a round barrel brush, concentrating on lifting the roots. It smells gorgeous and helps create a great amount of volume to my hair. I also found that my hair was less greasy the next day as opposed to not using the product. I have nothing but good things to say about this and it has become a staple part of my hair care routine.

I have very mixed feelings towards the range, I hated the shampoo and treatment, found the conditioner very mediocre but loved the root lift spray and have used it everyday since trying it. I have found many positive reviews on the range but believe it is targeted to a very specific hair type. I have fine flat hair myself, however, it is quite damaged due to the amount of heat I use on it daily and the long length too. I feel the range would suit those with short to shoulder length, limp hair that becomes greasy quickly.


Have you tried the Dove Oxygen Moisture range, what were your results?