April Favourites

The weather has been quite nice this month so i think the products i have been using have changed a lot. These are my April Favourites:

Tesco Vitamin E Face Scrub I think this is my favourite product out of all the ones i bought, but i'll do a full review later in the month

Essie Polish in Van D'Go I've been wearing this sooooo much recently. It's just so lovely and flattering for this time of year

Mac Mineralize Blush in Rhapsody In Two LOVE! I'm soo glad this was out when i went to mac otherwise i would have completely ignored it!

Benefit You Rebel Lite I've been trying to get some use out of this whilst the weather has been nice and my skin has been ok

Mac TLC in Feelin' Good Looks amazing with NYX in Orange Soda! I blame Paula for this lip combo! you got me addicted :)

NYX Round Lipstick in Orange Soda As previously mentioned :)

Playboy Lipstick in Miss December This was technically my sisters but i was having a play around and i love this with the gloss mentioned below

Benefit Her Glossiness Lip gloss in Who Are You Wearing? as i said, this looks amazing with the Playboy lipstick

April Haul

I know a few of you have been waiting for this haul as it contains the make-up i picked up in London. As i previously mentioned, i did only get 3 things whilst i was there but i love them all a lot :)

This month I bought:

• Revlon PhotoReady
• Essie nail polish in Mint Candy Apple
• Essie nail polish in Van D'Go
• Mac Mineralize Blush in Rhapsody In Two
• NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Black Bean
• NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk
• Avon Arabian Glow Eye Liner in Deep Purple
• Avon Arabian Glow Eye Liner in Intense Copper

As you can probably tell, I've not been buying a lot of make-up recently. I think because the weather i changing I'm slightly more drawn to summer clothes and I've started driving recently so a lot of money is going towards petrol :(

If you want to see a review of any of these products just leave a comment and i will get to it as soon as possible!

Tag - Likes, Loves & Hates

The beautiful Phoebe tagged me for this and I will admit a lot of the time when people tag me for things I forget to do them but this one I really liked the sound of.

You have to list 12 things you like, 1 thing you love, 8 things you hate and then tag 3 people. These are my answers:

The 12 Likes

1. I like cities. I've never really felt settled with the idea of living in the countryside for the rest of my life.
2. I like stand up comedy. I once dribbled at a Rhod Gilbert joke because i was laughing so much i couldn't close my mouth :) It was easily the best feeling in the world.
3. I like American TV shows. Especially Grey's Anatomy, 90210, Gossip Girl, Nurse Jackie, Scrubs, The OC, Big Bang Theory, House, ANTM, The City, The Hills, Glee, Greek and HIMYM.
4. I like driving. I always thought it would take me ages to learn and I would be too scared to do it properly, but I don't think I'm too bad :)
5. I like make-up. but i think that might have been obvious :)
6. I like fashion design. At the minute (and for the past 6 years) it has been what i want to study at university
7. I like the summer weather, but the winter fashion. I just love wearing scarfs and gloves :)
8. I like fashion magazines. A lot! I just don't know how much space i have left to keep collecting them
9. I like having money. I like the freedom it provides :)
10. I like shopping in big make-up rooms in department stores. Just being surrounded by make-up and people who love make-up is a great feeling. I think my favourite is Selfridges in London!
11. I like Chinese food. I could eat it forever :)
12. I like the Internet. I think it's the best thing ever invented :)

The 1 Love

1. I love Brian. Yes, Brian is my cat and i would quite happily become a crazy cat lady for him :)

The 8 Hates

1. I hate racism. Seriously NOTHING pisses me off more. It makes me sick!
2. I hate horror films. Why would you watch something that you know is going to mess with your head??
3. I hate that i'm not yet old enough to vote. I really want Labour to win the election :)
4. I hate being ignored ... but
5. I also hate being bothered when i want to be left alone
6. I hate when people get involved with shit that does not involve them or does not need their input. If you seek drama then you deserve everything bad that you get. Just learn to keep you stupid mouths SHUT! :)
7. I hate the sea, which is crazy because i like like 100 metres from the sea. But seeing pictures of the ocean makes me cry. I just cannot handle it. They scare the crap out of me. I cant really explain it. It's just the thought of being stuck in the middle of the sea :S
8. I hate how long this post took to write. It's really difficult to think of the things i like love and hate. But i know i say "i love" and "i hate" about a million times a day!

I tag

Jo

Marcia

Sabrina

Updated ... My Mac Collection

Back in October I showed my current Mac Collection. Since then I have bought and sold quite a few bits and pieces. This is what the collection looks like now.

And this is what it previously looked like.

Recently i haven't been buying much from Mac because i am often left feeling disappointed with the quality of some of the products. The nearest counter to me is 2 hours away and i have only ever been to it once. This means a lot of my purchases have been done online. This can lead to misleading swatches and me not knowing what a certain finish to a product is like.

Lip Products

(From L to R) Feeling Dreamy Lipglass, Florabundance Lipglass, Myth Lipstick, Nude Rose Lipstick, Angel Lipstick, Hue Lipstick, Feelin' Good Tinted Lip Conditioner

I sold Bubbles lipstick because i didn't really get much use out of it

I bought and sold Modesty lipstick because it was far too dark for me

I sold my Dazzleglass Creme in My Favourite Pink because i didn't like how it felt

Face Products

(At the back from L to R) Rhapsody In Two Mineralize Blush, Pink Swoon Blush, Well Dressed Blush, MSF Natural in Light Medium

(At the front from L to R) Soft & Gentle MSF, Bronzing Powder in Golden, Studio Finish Concealer, Studio Fix Fluid Foundation

I did have a bottle of Fix+ but i sold it because i really needed some money :)

Eye Products

(At the back from L to R) Cranberry, Woodwinked, Amber Lights, All That Glitters

(At the front from L to R) Painterly Paint Pot, Rapidblack Penultimate Liner

I had Smoke & Diamonds but sold it, i kind of wish i hadn't though :(

I had Et Tu, Bouquet? but sold it because it wasn't very pigmented

I had Hypnotizing but sold it, this is another i kind of wish i had held on to

It's Brian's Birthday :)

You may have noticed that my username's often consist of something like AbbieAndBrian or Abbie.Brian. Now you all know i am Abbie, but who is Brian i hear you ask. Well this is Brian ...

He is my cat and today he turned 3! I can't believe i have had him for nearly 3 years :O

The Best Products You Have Ever Used

I am always really interested to know the exact products that all of my followers like to use. I would love for you to let me know you're favourite product from each category. Once i have your response i will do a post to let you all know the results. Here we go:

Face Primer

Eye Primer

Lip Primer

Mascara Primer

Foundation

Powder

Face Concealer

Under Eye Concealer

Blush

Bronzer

Highlighter

Contour

Eye Shadow

Eye Liner

Lip Gloss

Mascara

Lipstick

Lip Balm

Lip Liner

Nail Polish

If you feel like there is a make-up product i have missed off please include it in your answer.

Also, if you do not use a certain product, please just leave it blank :)

I'm really excited to hear all of your answers :) But I'm sure it will make my wish list super long!!

as an example here are my answers:

Face Primer: Smashbox Photo Finish Primer

Eye Primer: UDPP

Lip Primer: Don't Use

Mascara Primer: Don't Use

Foundation: Mac Studio Fix Fluid

Powder: Mac MSF Natural

Face Concealer: Urban Decay 24/7 concealer pencil

Under Eye Concealer: Calvin Klein eye brightener concealer

Blush: Mac Well Dressed

Bronzer: Boots 17 Bronzing Powder in Light

Highlighter: Mac MSF in Soft & Gentle

Contour: Don't Use

Eye Shadow: Boots 17 Single Eye Shadow in Statuesque

Eye Liner(pencil): Barry M Kohl Liner in Black

Eye Liner(gel): Don't Use

Eye Liner(liquid): Mac Penultimate Liner in Rapidblack

Lip Gloss: Mac Florabundance Lipglass

Mascara: YSL EverLong

Lipstick: Mac Nude Rose Lipstick

Lip Balm: Carmex

Lip Liner: Don't Use

Nail Polish: Barry M Baby Pink Polish

What do you do with your packaging??

What do you do with the boxes that your make-up comes in? I can't bring myself to throw mine away. I just think they look too pretty. At the minute mine are stored in this little basket which sits next to my make-up draws.

As you can see, it's getting quite full so I need to try and come up with somewhere new to put them, I just don't know where :S

I think ideally I would keep all of my make-up in their boxes but then I would have to open the boxes every time I wanted to use something and not all my make-up came in boxes and I think it would look silly to have half and half.

Please someone comfort me and tell me I'm not the only one with this type of box collection :)

It seems as though I spoke too soon ...

My post yesterday said that i wanted to go out and buy all of the other products from Tesco's Vitamin E range. We'll today i got a phone call whilst i was in town telling me that my parents were off to the super big Tesco Extra which is about an hour away. This was the result of the trip ...

Yesterday i showed you:

• The Face Scrub
• The Cleanser
• The Facial Wash
• The Cleansing Wipes

And then today I picked up:

• The Toner
• The Eye Make-up Remover
• The Moisturiser
• The Night Cream

So this means i now have even more things to review for you :). I also saw the Neutrogena invigorating scrub that I have been wanted to pick up for ages but I resisted because I think I should probably get through some of these first :P

Tesco's Vitamin E Range

On Monday night, I went driving with my dad and ended up at Tesco's :) Whilst shopping for tooth paste, I check out the Vitamin E range I have heard so much about. The wipes were 28p (I think) and all the bottles of product were 72p so I just picked up everything they had, it's not like a huge loss if they don't work out.

I got:

• The Face Scrub
• The Cleaner
• The Facial Wash
• 25 Cleansing wipes

and then I went onto the Tesco's website and found they also sell:

• Vitamin E Eye Make-up Remover
• Vitamin E Facial Toner

I really want to try these two products out as well so I'll either get my mum to add them to her basket next time she make an online order, or just keep checking back at the store to see if they get more stock

I'm showing you these products now instead of in my monthly haul because I'm going to be trying them out over the next two week and doing reviews on them. And then if i continue to use them and something changes after the two weeks I'll do an update.

So far I'm impressed with what I have used and am interested to try out some other cheap skincare from other supermarkets :) are there any that you have tried that you think are worth looking into??

What's in my bag ... Updated

I did a "what's in my bag" post like a bazillion years ago so i thought i would do an update :) This is the bag i took to work with me yesterday

Bag from Miss Selfridge which i got for my last birthday

What's in my bag:

• Make-up Bag
• Bottle of Fiji Water
• iPod Touch
• Old Phone :(
• Lip Balm
• Young Enterprise Name Badge
• A Pen
• An Eraser
• My Purse

What's in my Make-up Bag:

• Revlon PhotoReady
• Smashbox Photo Finish Primer
• Mac MSF Natural
• Mac Studio Finish Concealer
• Strawberry Lip Balm
• Boots 17 Blush in Bramble Frost
• Calvin Klein Endless Light Brightening Concealer
• Mac Penultimate Liner
• YSL Ever Long Mascara
• A Kabuki Brush
• A Foundation Brush
• An Angled Cheek Brush
• A Flat Concealer Brush

Admittedly, nothing overly exciting but i figured someone might be interested.

Recently I've been running out of idea's for new posts so if you have and requests please leave them in a comment :)

London Haul :)

London was amazing as always. And i'm so glad we had two days their this time as it meant there wasn't too much of a rush to get everything done :) I didn't really buy a lot because it turns out i am rubbish at saving money :( haha. But anyway this is what i got. I am going to point out that i am not showing any make-up in this haul because i now do my make-up haul's at the end of every month so you will have to wait until then to see what i got :P I am also going to include prices with everything so that if you are interested in buying anything yourselves you know how much it was.

From Zara

Gorgeous Sandals :) I love them and because the weather was nice to day i wore them :) Zara was a little disappointing on the clothes front though :( - £29.99

New purse because i've had my other Zara one for about two years now and i fancied a change! - £19.99

From Primark

Plain white pumps for working this summer - £2.00

I find bracelets like these go with most things - £1.00

The zip on my Topshop bag broke so i think I'm gonna use this as my new school bag - £6.00

I know this is suppose to be over sized but it jut feels WAY too big :S - £5.00

I don't usually wear dresses but i really like the peachy colour on this one - £5.00

I 've been wanting legging like this for ages - £4.00

From Lush

Sugar Babe Scrub - £2.60

Porridge Soap - £2.76

The lady is lush was without a doubt the best member of staff from any shop i have ever met! As soon as we walked in she was just so lovely and bubbly and offered to show me some products and give me a hand massage (which left my hand feeling AMAZING!)

All in all it was a good trip and i cant wait to go again. Seeing the Lion King was amazing and i think if you have the chance then you should get tickets!

Preparing For Summer

It's stating to get to that time of year again when we pack away the cosy jumpers and snuggly scarfs in preparation for the warmer temperatures. This is just a little post on some of the things i find essential for summer :)

Tanning

I always exfoliate with a sugar scrub before i apply fake tan just as an added guarantee that it will apply smoothly and dry with as few streaks and patches as possible. My favourite scrub is Soap & Glory's Flake Away :)

Then we have the actual tanning. The product on the left is Soap & Glory's Glow Job which i tend to use on my face as it is a moisturiser with little tanning beads that burst and provide the colour. It's a really light easy product to use.

The next is Rimmel's Sun Shimmer which is the only actual fake tan i have ever used, and i like it soo much I'm in no rush to change, although i wouldn't mind trying St Moriz. I find that on first application the shimmer can be a little OTT but if you apply it and then sleep on it, most of the glitter disappears and the colour stays :)

The final is Johnson's Holiday Skin which is a gradual tanner. I've gone through a lot of bottles of this stuff because i find it works so well, although i have heard that Dove's gradual tanner is better. I tend to apply this throughout the winter as well as it provides quite a natural colour.

Here are swatches of all three products

(From L to R) S&G Glow Job, Rimmel Sun Shimmer, Johnson's Holiday Skin

The Bronzers

The product on the left is Boots 17 bronzing powder in Light. It has clearly been very loved and is perfect for a natural day time bronzed look. It appears to be slightly more pink toned to the mac one and much much cheaper.

The Product on the right is Mac's Bronzing Powder in Golden which can be built up to give quite a deep bronzed colour for the night or very lightly dusted for the day. I find i cant use this all over the face because there is far too much glitter and shimmer in it but it's lovely on the cheeks.

Here are some Swatches

(Top to Bottom) Mac in Golden, Boots 17 in Light

The Protection

It is sooo important to protect yourself in the sun so i try to keep these kind of products with me at all times! Sun cream is essential because even though i am only 17 i am really not looking forward to wrinkly skin and want to try and avoid it for as long as naturally possible.

Then there is a lip balm with SPF. The pictured product is macs TLC in Feelin' Good but there are loads of other products to choose from that pretty much do the same thing.

And then there are sunglasses, not only do they make you look SUPER COOL! they also help to protect yours eyes and keep hair out of you face (when you pull them to the top of your head).

REMEMBER YOU WANT ABOVE SPF15!!!!

Just To Make You Look Good

And now down to the beauty products that i think are perfect for summer:

Waterproof Mascara. The only waterproof mascara i own is this YSL everlong one and i love it :) Waterproof is essential for me in the summer because who knows when you are going to have a random water fight?

Pastel nail polishes. If you have read this post then you will understand

MSF's. I'm thinking they will just add a pretty glow in the summer which the sun will pick up nicely :)

Dry Shampoo. In heat, my hair gets oily a lot faster so i tend to keep some dry shampoo with me.

What are your summer essentials??

Entry - TheCurrentCustom Everyday Make-up Contest

This is my entry for Lorraine's Everyday make-up contest :) This is the sort of thing i would wear if i was just going out for the day rather than what i would wear for a day at sixth form because my school has rules on make-up that would make this entry boring!

The Face Products

• Bourjois 10 Hour Sleep Effect Foundation
• Smashbox Photo Ready Primer
• A Kabuki Brush
• Calvin Klein Brightening Concealer Pen
• Urban Decay 24/7 Concealer Pencil
• Mac Blush in Well Dressed
• Mac MSF Natural in Light Medium
• Avon Angled Cheek Brush
• Foundation Brush

The Eye Products

• Urban Decay Primer Potion
• Urban Decay Eye Shadow in Sin
• Mac Eye Shadow in All That Glitters
• Mac Eye Shadow in Woodwinked
• YSL Ever Long Mascara
• Barry M Kohl Liner in Black
• A Fluffy Tapered Brush
• A Shader Brush
• A Dense Crease Brush

The Lip Product

• Mac Hue Lipstick

Tag - Don't believe the hype!

It seems like loads of people are doing this post so i thought i would give it a go :) As always, this is just my opinion and these products may work amazingly for you!

Sleek Palette in Sunset: Everyone raved at how amazing these palettes were so i think my expectations were maybe a little too high. With the lighter colours i think pigmentation is a little disappointing and all the colour seem to have lots of shimmery fallout :( This being said, i do still use this and would probably consider buying another, i just don't think they are as good as a lot of people make out.

Nars Orgasm: This is another disappointing product, but not necessarily a bad one. Just about everyone seems to own it and love it and i will admit it is a pretty blush. Bot does it deserve all the magazines calling it the no.1 blush?? no.

Benefit You Rebel Lite: I think for a lot of people they see this Tinted Moisturiser as the best on the market but I'm really not a fan :( It seems to turn orange throughout the day on your face and i find in really difficult to blend.

Gosh Darling: Again, not a bad product, but not as good as some people make out. I was expecting the most amazing nude lipstick and instead i got a nice nude lipstick.

Smashbox Photo Finish Primer: I just feel like this does nothing. It claims to create the perfect base for your foundation/concealers but to me its just an extra layer on my face. However it cost me like over £20 so i still use it just so it doesn't go to waste

Urban Decay 24/7 Eye Liners: I don't think these are any better than my Avon Arabian Glow cream liners (which are my all time favourites and Avon have just come out with 4 new colours :D)

Agree or Disagree??

March Favourites

This month we have some old favourites, some brand new items and some recently rediscovered beauty's :)

Bourjois 10 Hour Sleep effect foundation: this was in last months and i put it in here too because I'm just using it so often.

Ralph Lauren Hot Perfume: I've had this for about 3-4 years and only just found it again since i swapped rooms back in like January. I forgot just how much i love it :)

Mac TLC in Feelin' Good: This smells sooo good! but after using it pretty much all month I'm convinced it's drying my lips out :( so I'm switching back to other lip balms over the next month

Calvin Klein concealer pen: This gives the same kind of glowy/dewy effect as the bourjois foundation :) and its really light and i love it :)

Boots 17 Blush in Bramble Frost: possible the best £3.50 I've spent in a while. I've got so much use out of this i really want to go and check out some of the other colours.

Max Factor Eye Shadow in Burnt Bark: great for every day. great for a smokey evening look. and if i remember correctly i got it on sale for 99p :)

Collection 2000 Hot Look nail polish in Dynasty: easily my favourite pastel at the minute :)

YSL EverLong Mascara: This was also in last months but I've just been using it more than any of my others.

My Top 10 Nail Polishes

I've been re-watching loads of Laura's (Lollipop26) video's recently and noticed she did a post on her top 10 eye shadows, lipsticks, blushers and nail polishes. I thought it would be nice to do so here is the nail one :)

The Close Up's

W7 Nail Polish in Red Dazzle - perfect for christmas time

W7 Nail Polish in Baby Pink - i think i will get loads of wear out of this during the summer

China Glaze Nail Lacquer in Camisole - a great everyday colour

L.A Colour Art Deco in Silver - my favourite nail art polish i have ever used

Collection 2000 MaxiFlex in Rustique - another great sophisticated kind of colour

No.7 Stay Perfect Nail Polish in Damson Dream - looks lovely during the winter months

Collection 2000 Hot Looks in Charisma - this was my summer staple last year

Collection 2000 Hot Looks in Dynasty - another one i know will get lot of use this summer

Miss Sporty Lasting Colour in 251 - super inexpensive and quite a good dupe for China Glaze in Camisole

NYC in a New York minute in Manhattan - Can you tell i really like my deep reds?? haha

I've tried to mix in both cheap and expensive brands so their should be something to suit everyone :)

If you have any questions about any of the products feel free to leave a comment. I moderate them all now so i am guaranteed to read it :) If you have a question you would like a response to please leave your e-mail address or twitter user name in the comment and I'll get back to you as soon as possible :)

I'd also love to hear what your top 10 are! either let me know in a comment or link me to your "Top 10" post or video :)