Back To School Makeup

I go back to school Tuesday :( 
This years a little different as I'm going into sixth form, which is my last two years of compulsory eduction... I'm scared.

I'm the type of person that needs the extra 5 minutes sleep in the morning so quick makeup is a must for me. Aside from being quick, it needs to look presentable.

I actually timed myself doing this makeup and it literally takes 5 minutes, and that's with me taking my time. 
So, imagine yourself in a rush, this should take around 4 minutes or so in the morning... wonderful.

I used a BB Cream as it's lighter on the skin than a foundation and I wanted a lighter coverage. I also find that it's alot easier to blend in than foundation meaning I can get the job done easier and more efficiently...

I then concealed under my eyes and on any blemishes. If you have great skin feel free to just conceal or just use BB Cream. Don't do it if ya don't need it :)

I set my base with a pressed powder to keep my makeup locked in all day. 

I don't need to fill in my eyebrows so I just used a clear mascara to keep them in place. 

I actually used Benefits Benetint cheek stain because it looks so natural and lasts all day! Seriously! Also, it's super easy to apply and gives the skin a lovely glow. If you don't have a cheek stain, you can also use a lipstick by applying a little onto your cheeks and blending out with your fingers.

For the eyes, I used a colour tattoo in Pink Gold to brighten and emphasise my eyes. This is also great because it will last all day and won't come off until you remove it. I then curled my lashes and applied mascara.

Finally I used a tinted lip balm to moisturise my lips but to also give them a little colour and oomph...

Voila. Easy as ABC.

As you can see, it's really natural and 'pretty' and obviously, extremely quick!

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And So It Begins...

So, Thursday came along like any other day. But it wasn't just a normal day.... It was results day!
It's the day I've lost several hours of sleep over, wondering what would be in that brown envelope.

So the truth is, I thought I was worrying about what grades I achieved. However, my thoughts quickly changed as I opened the envelope. My grades were amazing! All my hard work really did pay off and for around 10 minutes, I felt happy. 
But after that brief feeling, I started to feel disappointed and anxious again. I realised that my problem wasn't what I had, it was what I was going to do with them.

Next week I have to choose my A Level options. These are meant to be based on what I'm planning to do in University and then as a job. Now, how am I meant to choose the right A Levels when I have absolutely no idea what I want to do. 

That's quite scary isn't it...not having a desire to be anything. Not having a plan, and a plan B if that doesn't work out.
Right now, my future is a complete blur. 
And some people may say that's great. That I can be anything that I want to be, that "The world your oyster" and blah blah blah... 

All I know at this moment in time, is that I don't want to end up in a job I hate. 

I suppose my problem is that I'm not quite special. I'm not the best at anything, not at science, maths or music. 
I mean, you won't see me making any scientific discoveries or walking down the red carpet any time soon.
If anything, I'd say I'm average. 
And the worst thing is, I've become rather accustomed to being "The Average Eleri", Aged 16 with no ambitions. 
I've only just figured out who I am as now. How am I meant to know who I want to be in 10 years time.

Maybe I'll still be "The Average Eleri", Aged 26 with no ambitions. 

So I realised... Regardless of what grades were in that brown envelope, whether they were the best or the worst, I would still be disappointed somewhere along the line because those grades didn't tell me what I should be doing, what my calling is.

And it seems that the futures all that matters right now. I've been bombarded with the question "So, What do you want to do? What job do you want?" and got bored of the shocked face I see looking at me when I reply with a simple "I don't know"

Well, that's rather depressing isn't it.
Sorry...

Ps... Does anyone else feel/felt like this. Please let me know, it may make me feel less 'eh' and a little more sure that my future may turn out 'okay'

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Cara Delevingne Inspired Makeup Look

I love Cara Delevingne. She's such an influencial figure for girls around the world. Yes, she's a model but she's also a normal person and doesn't shy away from proving that to the public.

This look was meant to go up last week, ideally on Cara's 21st birthday. But I was ill, and along with illness comes tiredness, a lack of motivation and dull, ugly skin. So anyway, it's going up now :)

This is the photo I took inspiration from. It's my favourite 'Cara' look and one that she's often seen wearing.

SKIN PREP

Cara has amazing skin! It glows and looks flawless with or without makeup, something that's definitely desirable for many people.

Of course, you can just create the look of glowing skin with makeup, but it's better to start with your actual skin. It means you need less makeup and it looks alot more natural.

To achieve 'natural' looking, glowing skin, I first exfoliated my skin using the St.Ives Naturally Clear Apricot Scrub. I swear by this stuff! It leaves your face feeling smooth as a babies bottom. mmm

To emphasize the 'glow' in my skin, I used the Planet Spa Facial Gold Glow Gel. It does exactly what it says, creates a really subtle, gold glow on your skin.

Finally, I moisturised because, well, it's necessary. 

BASE MAKEUP

To ensure that my makeup stayed on all day, I spritzed my face with the Urban Decay De Slick Setting spray and then applied the Rimmel Fix and Perfect Primer.

I used MAC's Match Master Foundation to create a flawless base. I would describe this foundation as having a demi matte finish which is great for this look as it means I can control where the shine/glow is.

Next, I concealed around my nose and under my eyes using my Maybelline Fit Me Concealer, just for a little extra coverage.

Cara is known for her gorgeous bold brows. I actually have rather thick eyebrows so I used my Benefit Brow Zing Eyebrow kit to just define and shape my brows. I then set them with a little of the Natural Collection Clear Mascara.

Not all of us have lovely chiselled cheek bones, but luckily we can fake it to a certain extent. I used Avon's Matte Bronzer in Light Glow to contour my cheek bones, around my temples and under my chin. This gave my normally round face more shape and definition. 

In my inspiration picture, I can't really detect any bold blush. However, I can see a tiny bit of natural coloured blush blending upwards from the cheek bones. To create this natural flush, I used Avons Blush in Russet, placed my brush just under my cheek bones and flicked up to create the soft, natural look.

Finally, to bring out my cheek bones even more and add to the 'glow', I used Benefits Watts Up highlighter on the high points of my face; My cheek bones, under the brow bone, down the bridge of the nose and on my cupids bow.

EYE MAKEUP

 I first primed my eyelids and under my eyes using the Art Deco eyeshadow base and then prepared for eyeshadow by applying Maybellines 24 Hour Colour Tattoo in Permanent Taupe on the outer half of my eyelid and below the bottom lash line. 
Using the Sephora Rounded Crease Brush, I applied a layer of Naked 2, from the Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette, over my eyelids, into the crease, and generously under my bottom lash line.
I then darkened the crease and lower lash line using Faint.
Cara has really thick lashes, but no noticeable eyeliner on in the picture. To create the illusion of a thicker, natural lash line, I used a small accent brush and Crave from the same palette. I smudged the eyeshadow in-between my lashes for a natural effect.
Finally, I curled  my lashes and applied several coats of Maybellines the Rocket Mascara for long, voluminous lashes. Yay!

LIPS

In the picture, Cara is sporting red lips, however I often see her wearing the same eye look with a more natural, nude lip. So, that's what I've done :)

For the red lip, I used Kate Lipstick  by Rimmel in 111, Kiss of Life.

For the nude lip, I applied Kate Lipstick by Rimmel in 113.

I love both colours but I suppose it's personal preference.

A final spritz of my setting spray means my makeup will stay on aaaaaaaalll day.

Honestly, the eyeshadow doesn't look as intense in these pictures but I assure you, it was alot more visible in person. :(

As much as I'd rather be Cara Delevingne, I'll just have to settle for similar makeup. hmmm

I hope you like this look and try it out yourselves :)

If you have any requests for other celebrity makeup looks, please comment below :)

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Another Beauty Tag...

If you're wondering where I've been for the past few days,well, I've become very familiar with the constant smell of VIC. That's right, I've been ill... *cue "awhhhhhs"*

So, as I haven't felt well enough to plan and photograph items, I thought I'd just fall back into the safe option and complete a TAG. I don't know who began this, or where I got it from but I'm doing it anyway.

1. Why did you start blogging and how long have you been blogging for?
I started blogging because I knew I was going on a few trips throughout the year so I thought a blog would be a great place to share my adventures. However, before I even went on my first trip, I decided that beauty and fashion blogging would be fun to do aswell, so that's what happened :) I've been blogging for around 6 months now and it really has gone so fast!

2. Whose blog did you fall in love with first?
This is such a common, generic answer but I'm being honest... zoella ! 
I must admit, I didn't know anything about blogs. I was more into Youtube videos and it wasn't until Zoe would say "There's more details in my blog" that I actually thought hmm... this could be interesting.
After I found Zoella, I found so many more blogs that I loved.

3. What was the first hyped about product that you bought? Was it worth the hype?
um... I'm pretty sure it was the Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette. I'm not going to go into too much detail because it has been talked about so so much! But, yes... it was definitely worth the hype! I ordered mine from Beauty Bay and I'm so glad I did :) Highly recommended.

4. What are your favourite things about blogging and being a beauty blogger?
First of all, I love doing all the planning before writing a blog post, form the research to the photography to the actual writing. Doing research about products is so interesting and helps me find similar products that I end up loving!
I also love some of the comments I get. Honestly, I don't get a lot but when I do, they are so lovely and make me so happy to find out that people like my posts. Thankyou :)
Another thing I love is how I can document important things, such as my trips to Paris and Poland. It's somewhere that I can put my pictures and share things that I did on my little adventures.
And finally, I love buying things to try out and include in my posts. I suppose that's a selfish thing, but I love it hahah...

5. What have you learnt about being a beauty blogger?
I've learnt so much about fashion and makeup, including the fact that I buy both far too often. Blogging has also helped me realise that it's okay to have different opinions. Just because a few people love certain items and create a hype around it, doesn't mean I have to feel the same way.

6. Have you changed anything since becoming a beauty blogger?
I haven't changed anything about how I blog, I still use my little digital camera to take pictures, which isn't too bad :) However, I have changed the layout of my blog many times by changing the header, widgets and side bar thingys... 

7. What advice would you give to a beauty blogger starting out?
My most important tip is to not feel pressured into writing posts about certain things at a certain time. Do things your way! Make sure you're writing about things that you love or are interested in writing about... sure, if people request certain things, feel free to write about them, but make sure you want to first. Also, write when you want too, not when other people say you should. 
Also, believe me when I say this, it really doesn't matter if you have 30,000 followers or 3 or 0! If you're enjoying it, it's likely that other people are too. Just because they don't follow you, doesn't mean they don't read your posts. Seriously, I know this as I currently have 3 followers on Bloglovin' but, I have over 3000 page views. I know that's not the most, but it means people make the effort to visit my page and sometimes, even comment to tell me how much they like my blog :) I cherish my three little followers :)

8. What are your top 5 makeup brands?
I love certain brands for certain things so I'll specify as I go along...
MAC- My go to for foundation and eyeshadows. Being super pale, more often than not, drugstore brands do not carry foundation shades light enough for my skin... sigh. Also, the shadows are so pigmented and smooth, perrrrrrrfect :)
Maybelline- I buy the majority of my 'eye' products from Maybelling, including mascaras, they really are just as good as high end ones. I also love the eye colour tattoos as bases for eyeshadows :) And finally, the gel eyeliner is phenomenal! 
Rimmel- Rimmel is definitely my favourite brand for lipsticks/glosses. They are so pigmented and opaque. The Kate line for Rimmel have my favourite colours and formulas.
Benefit- I don't even know where to start. I love benefit for blushes, highlighters, stains eye kits. oh my... I really do just love Benefit cosmetics...
Real Techniques- I know this isn't a makeup brand, but, it's a makeup application brand! I'm really a believer in using brushes as they just makeup your makeup look so much more flawless and 'done'. The brushes are amazing and so much cheaper than MAC brushes.

9. Recommend your top 5 beauty products.
Maybelline Falsies Flared Mascara- I love love love this mascara! It gives me the perfect eyelash look; long, voluminous and 'soft' looking. 
Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette- The perfect palette for beginners, travel, minimalists and touching up on the go. This palette is so small but really amazing! Definitely worth the money!
Benefit Watts Up Highlighting Stick- This creates such a gorgeous glow when applied to the skin. It is quite pricey but you get so much product and a little goes a long way!
Real Techniques Core Collection and Starter Kit- This might count as two but I'm cheating. These really are the best brushes and apply your makeup flawlessly. Buy them... Seriously!
Maybelline Fit Me Concealer- This concealer is perfect for creating a flawless base on top or underneath foundation, or just on its own for a natural look. Cheap, cheerful and such a great product :)

So, this took longer than I though but oh well, better something than nothing :)
I hope you enjoyed this TAG.
I promise that as soon as I'm feeling better, post will go back to normal yay!

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Back To Basics

Recently I've realised that I'm lacking a lot of basic items in both my wardrobe and makeup collection, so I decided to stock up on items and actually managed to do it without breaking the bank.

Clothes

I ordered a few basic dresses from Missguided last week and I'm so happy with them! The grey and orange are normal length dresses but the purple is a midi dress.
The quality is amazing but that's not even the best part... they were super super cheap!
They're from the Sweet Deal section so they were all under £10. In fact, they all cost £5.99! 
There's so much on offer in the Sweet Deal section, so take a look :) http://www.missguided.co.uk/catalog/category/view/s/sweet-deal/id/1005/

I also bought these tights from Missguided just because I thought they were really cool...

They were £2.99 and I bought them because I envisioned them with the grey or orange dress, Doc Martens and a leather jacket.

Aaaaaand that's it for clothes...

Makeup

Obviously concealer and foundation are essentials. I do have both items, (the concealer was a repurchase) but I needed a foundation that really matched my very pale skin.

A few weeks ago I went to the MAC store near me and had a foundation matched. It was such a great feeling walking away with a foundation that matched both my skin tone and skin type! I ended up buying the MatchMaster foundation in 1.0 (The lightest shade) and I love it. It was expensive, cough*£26*cough, but to have something that actually matches my skin is really important to me. Also, there's actually more product in the bottle than in other foundations.

I love the Maybelline Fit Me concealer so this was just a repurchase. My shade is 15 and I paid £5.49 at my local Boots store. 

I also bought an eyelash curler from boots because a few weeks ago, I decided that my eyelashes were kind of straight and lacking in the 'visibility' department. This one is actually Boots own make and cost me £6, but I'm really impressed and it makes a huge difference to my eyes.

I also picked up two lipsticks on my journey through Boots! Both are Kate lipsticks by Rimmel London and these are actually my favourite lipsticks from Rimmel (the ones in the red tubes and the Kates line in the black tubes) because the formulation is great, it doesn't dry out your lips and they're super long lasting. What's not to love? I bought a nude and a red, both staple colours in everyones collection.

I can't tell you how long I've been looking for the perfect nude lipstick. Having very pale skin meant most nudes I've looked at make me look dead, or as if I have brown lips... not a good look. However, this is the most perfect nude ever! It's more brownish/peach than pink and I think that's why I'm able to wear it. It looks really natural and I really love it. It's in shade 113 and I recommend it to anyone who's looking for a nude lipstick.

I also bought number 111, Kiss of Life (I'm not sure why this has an actual name and the others don't, favouritism maybe...hmmm). It's just a basic cherry red and looks beautiful on all skin tones. There's nothing much to say about this colour, it's just really basic and everyone should get it...

I paid £5.49 for each of these colours and believe me, they should be worth a lot more. They're so pigmented and creamy and last for ages without drying out your lips.

So, there you have it. A few basic items that won't break the bank :)

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Weird things you probably didn't need to know...

I did the 25 facts about me  TAG a few months ago, but it just consisted of fairly normal facts.
So, today, I thought I'd reveal a little more things about myself... weird and wonderful facts if you will. Hopefully you will learn a little more about me and if you share something with me, please tell me in the comments so I don't feel so strange... 

1. I cannot tell the time. Okay, so I can kind of tell the time, but I do it wrong. Basically, the hands confuse me and I don't say things like 20 to (the hour), I prefer to say 40 past (the hour). Now, I do have a reason for this, I am able to justify my 'time choices'. If you're in the current hour, you should talk about the time in reference to that hour, not the next one, as you're not in it... does that make sense? 
It's the same as saying, on a Tuesday (for instance) "I'll see you next Saturday". That doesn't mean the Saturday included in the current week, it means the Saturday in the NEXT week.
Am I the only one who understands what I'm saying???

2. I also cannot use a knife and fork CORRECTLY... correctly being the key word here.
I can use a knife and fork to cut my food (or pull it apart, however you look at it), I'm just unable to use it the conventional way...
If I do try and use them in the right hands with the right techniques or whatever, my fingers just slide and the knife doesn't sit right, it's all just very hard for me...

Now, I know what you're thinking "Eleri, you're 16 and you can't tell the time or use knifes and forks? What were you taught as a child???" I know I know... BUT, who said that there is a right and wrong way to do those things? hmmm.... think about it.

3. I cannot sleep in the day. Once I'm awake, I will stay awake until the night... No mid day naps for me. 
I do find this frustrating as sometimes you need the extra hours, but my body does not allow it, believe me, I try.

4. I'm obsessed with the smell of coffee, but cannot stand the taste. I think this is common with quite a lot of people really, but I'm throwing it in any way. Coffee is one of my favourite smells. Sometimes, I'll walk into Starbucks, without the intention of buying anything, ponder for a while, then leave, just to smell the coffee. That's basically why this fact has been thrown in as you cannot deny it, that last part is a little weird...

5. My grandad is sadly not with us anymore, but I have a little picture of him in a frame. This picture comes everywhere with me. Well, not eeeeverywhere, but important places. When I go on holidays, he's there. My sisters graduation, he was there. My cousins wedding, he will be there... I don't know, I just feel like he's actually watching then. Is that weird, or just sweet. I don't know.

And finally....

6. I'm very particular about tidy-ness in certain situations.
My bedroom, for example, is a little messy. I like it that way. It makes me feel safer because my room looks a little more 'lived in'. I feel very uncomfortable in rooms that are minimal and very tidy...
However, when I'm working, I have to have my paper in front of me, my pencil case to the left of the paper, my pen, pencil and ruler to the right side, a rubber just above the pen, pencil and ruler, and a bottle of water directly in front of my paper. I feel like the clearer my work station, the clearer my mind.
I'm a very juxtaposed person

So, it was pretty fun thinking of all these strange things, it made me realise how weird I can be.
Anyway, one of the purposes of this post was to tell you to embrace your 'flaws', 'differences' and 'weirdness' because, if we were all the same, and did everything perfectly, and no one was quirky or different, the world would be a very very very boring place...

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Beach Bag Essentials

Before we start, I'd just like to ask where 2013 has gone...
HALF THE YEAR HAS GONE... what! That's crazy.

Next, I'd just like to apologise for being away from the bloggersphere for just over a week.
I've been on holidays and I thought I'd have internet access to blog while I was away, but turns out, there was no internet. Well, not sufficient internet for me to blog... unfortunately :(

My family and I basically went to our friends caravan in West Wales (My favourite place!) for a week.
The caravan is practically on the beach so I was there a lot.
I thought it would be a good idea to share what I take to the beach with you guys who may be going on holiday soon, or just a day trip to the beach.

Lets get started...

So, this is the contents of my bag.... interesting hmmm?

My first essentials are a hat and cover up. My cover up is just a long jersey top/dress from Primark. I wear this when I'm walking to and from the beach and if I'm just walking around.
And a hat is pretty self explanatory really.

I like to take a book to the beach with me for when I'm not actually in the sea. I'm a little obsessed with Audrey Hepburn and this book is amazing. It's all about how Breakfast at Tiffany's was made and goes through all the struggles of the people involved, including Audrey Hepburn, Truman Capote (The genius who wrote Breakfast at Tiffany's) and Edith Head (The Paramount costume designer). 

Again, Suncream is an obvious essential. I like carrying around this little handbag size, it's so convenient and cute.

I also carry around hand cream and lipbalm because I get really dry hands and lips and the sea salt tends to make it a little worse.

For my hair, I use argan oil, especially after coming out of the sea. It just nourishes it and protects it against the sun and wind. yay

Obviously, Sunglasses are a must! My Ray-Bans do not come off my face when I'm on the beach. In fact, that case right there is empty...

I take my IPod to listen to my favourite songs on the beach. Sometimes I take my mini speakers to the beach, depending on who I'm with.

My camera means I can take pictures of the beautiful scenery and my phone does the same really. Not an essential for some people, but most definitely for me. 

My final essential is the most essential essential... Does that make sense? It does to me but...

It's so so so important to keep hydrated throughout the day and especially if you're swimming and running round the beach. The sun can also make you feel dehydrated so water is only safe... Drink it okay!

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