NOTD: Maybelline Polka Dots

Hi! Sorry I've been a bit slack with posts lately! I did have a haul planned but I feel the moment's passed now...So a big thank you to my friend Gina who bought me some lovely beauty gifts to congratulate me on my job/finishing uni!!! Spoilt I was!

One of the things she bought me was this very intriguing nail varnish. I couldn't wait to try it and today is the day I did :P

I'm loving the effect this Maybelline Color Show Polka Dots varnish gives in 197 Chalk Dust! I went for simple and painted it onto my bare nail but I imagine this looks even more eye-catching when applied over a nice bright base colour!

Its application is smooth and easy and it is super quick drying. As I've said before, I don't have patience when it comes to painting my nails so this is just perfect for me! I've never owned a polish quite like it before and I can tell it's going to become a favourite of mine! :)

Highly recommend!

Collective Haul: Topshop, Boohoo...

Hello! I've been doing a fair bit of shopping lately so I thought I'd show you what I picked up :)

First up, clothing...

I'm absolutely loving the cartoon inspired look that's everywhere at the moment! Topshop's  'Kaboom' crop top for £14 really caught my eye! I decided to complete the outfit by pairing it with some pale blue skinny high-waisted jeans, perfect for crop tops! Typical for Topshop jeans they were £36 but imo the price is very worth it because their jeans tend to be super soft and comfortable! Love love love!

Next up, Boohoo...my favourite online shop!...

I love the vibrant colour of this dress and the cut out design around the chest area. It's just about as body-con as you can get but I think this is an ideal 'clubbing' dress and I may well be hitting the town in this on Saturday :)

As I say I'm all about the cartoon at the minute, so when I saw this dress it went straight into my basket! I adore the colour scheme of the dress...so very seasonal! And the cute collar design along with one sleeve really appeals to me. Again it's body-con but this doesn't give the uber-tight effect. I adore how unique this dress is so you are very unlikely to meet someone out wearing the same....Bring on bank holiday weekend woop woop!

Fancy dress...

My friend is having a hippie-themed birthday night out in June so I nipped into Luvyababes fancy dress shop yesterday. At £14.99 the costume was pretty inexpensive and, although you can't see from the picture, I like how it has a flower cut-out bit around the stomach! I also bought some 60's style earrings to complete the look...although they are clip-ons so my ears are probably going to hurt like hell by the end of the night haha! Nevermind!

Make-up...

Surprisingly I haven't bought a great deal of the cosmetic types of late. However, whilst in Topshop the nail polish 'hidden treasure' really appealed to me. It reminds me of Chanel's Peridot varnish (I have been lusting over that from afar for ages) and with a £6 price tag I decided it might help to keep my Chanel cravings at bay for a bit!

I also found myself in Boots looking at the new Maybelline mascara. I'm a massive fan of their 'falsies' mascara so I have high hopes for this Mega Plush one. There is also a offer on atm with it reduced from £7.99 to £5.99, so it was a no-brainer really :P

And last but not least, all in the name of fitness...

I popped into Holland and Barrett's to get my protein fix! I may do a separate post about protein shakes and what not because it's a new thing for me...but yeah, got me some powder and bars! Hehe <3

So there we go...

I have also recently bought a beautiful dress, some heels, a clutch bag and some nail polish in aid of my teacher's ball tomorrow! But I will be doing some sort of post in relation to that after the event! So keep an eye out!

Disappointing Products!

Hello beauties :)

This week is half term in Nottingham, so I left my uni abode and came back to home comforts for a bit! 

And, upon opening up my make-up storage (currently a weird shelved wardrobe thingy magig) I was surprised at how many products I'd left behind, like the 'Renford rejects'...Give me a comment if you remember this classic 90's kid programme! :P

But on closer inspection I realised why they'd been forgotten and thought about how disappointing each of them had been. So, maybe in an attempt to prevent others from suffering the same disappointment I thought I'd share what they were and tell you why I don't like them, or why they aren't worth the money. Of course, it's only my opinions so you can take my advice as you will. With a pinch of salt if you wish? :P

If you'd rather watch me talk about these products click above! But if you fancy a read...scroll on down :)

First up, MAC's Cleanse Off Oil. Yeah, yeah, I know a lot of you might love it, but for me I just can't get on with it! Agreed it does literally 'melt off' your make-up without any effort, but for me it also finds a way into my eyes and temporarily blinds me! No matter how carefully I try to remove my eye make-up, it seeps in somehow. Give me Liz Earle's Cleanse & Polish any day thanks!

Goodbye cellulite?! Hmmm. I'm afraid it's true...I fell for the gimmick. I mean as if there's a product to essentially disguise fat cells?! Sure it gives a nice cooling sensation, application is pleasant, and I suppose it helps to moisturise your skin but hard work and exercise is the only thing I've found works in regards to cellulite. Don't fall for the nice idea like me!

Rimmel's Scandal Eyes Mascara. To be fair I think Rimmel are actually doing a fab job at the moment and are definitely in the running for the best high street/drug store brand imo. But, I guess there's always the odd anomaly or 'blip'. The brush is far too big for my liking and this makes application really difficult and darn right fiddly. I'm not a big fan of the formula either which seems to take ages to dry, but perhaps that's to do with the many a clumps this attracts?! It's cheap and cheerful at £6.99 but nope, it's not for me!

Avon's Colour Trend...eye shadow/liner stick? Had this one a while and only used it once...says a lot really! The quality of the cream shadow and crayon liner just isn't great. It blends...with effort, but there's nothing that nice about it. Just a big thumbs down to be honest!

Nicola Robert's Dainty Doll WHITE Foundation by Jelly Pong Pong. Yep, I guess the shade is enough to put you off, unless of sure you're Snow White. But I thought maybe the idea behind this would be to mix it with those foundations that are perhaps a little too dark for you? Waste not want not and all that. Wrong. In fact this questionable foundation contains serious sparkle! I mean I like a bit of shimmer and all that but not over my entire face! It's just odd. Enough said. 

Laura Mercier's eye lash curlers. I'd say be aware of these. Sure the design is really cool and you think 'ahh they're so compact and nifty', but they over-curl like a bi-atch. They don't fit my eyes particularly well either and I remember them to be fairly pricey. I'll stick to my bog-standard cheap curlers for now I think!

Lip stains/ lip pen markers. I guess this isn't all that personal to Maybelline's Color Sensational and Max factor's Lipfinity versions, but they dry out so quick! I mean under the month mark. And then you get that scratchy feeling when trying to apply them. I don't think I can warrant the money for just a few week's worth of use. However, I must say the Maybelline one smells absolutely delicious...like summer fruit berries! Yum.  

Max factor's Lipfinity two step duo. I really like the concept of this, with the glossy texture drying quickly. Application is fairly easy and it leaves a nice finish. It seems to withstand perhaps more than many lip products but it's staying power starts to crumble after an hour or two...literally crumble. You're left with a flaky peeling effect that looks to me like you either haven't applied your lipstick well or indeed you have the driest lips ever known...I mean seriously grab yourself a Carmex quick! These aren't personally looks I like to go for, so I'll pass on this. 

And that's a wrap...some of my most disppointing purchases!