The Only Lip Products You Need This Season

Autumn and Winter is my favourite time of the year to wear dark colours, especially on the lips. I don't have as many dark lippies as other bloggers would. The past two years, I have actually started wearing lipstick near enough every day. Before then, I never used to wear it that often because I didn't like any thing too 'out there' and to 'stand out'. I used to stick with a very light nude colour and sometimes I weren't even keen on that because I have such pale skin, it didn't look right, ha. Anyway, in the last two years I have manned up and branched out and have actually bought and tried quite a few lip products. So here are my favourite and only lip products you need this season...

NYX SOFT MATTE LIP CREAM - Copenhagen (SMLC20)

I have loved the soft matte lip creams since I first tried one. I have been using this particular colour for about a year. I just love the colour, it's perfect for this time of the year - I actually thought it would be way too dark for my liking but it's really not. The consistency is very creamy which makes it easy to glide on my lips and it dries evenly and fairly quickly.

BURBERRY KISSES - Military Red (No.109)

This is your typical bright red lipstick. I do admit that it suits me a lot more with some fake tan, but I still love it all the same. I usually wear this a lot more on nights out and near Christmas.

RIMMEL THE ONLY 1 LIPSTICK - One of A Kind (810)

I adore this shade of red, it's more like a berry red than that popular 'out-there' bright red. I feel like this berry red shade suits more of a pale skin than a bright red lippy - so it's perfect for me! One of a kind applies very smoothly and it's also creamy. The only negative thing I have to say about this product is the flat angled shape of it. I think Rimmel designed it like that so it's easier to apply. However, I find it so much harder and I make such a mess. Maybe it's just me though?

NYX LINGERIE - Cashmere Silk (LIPLI18)
When I first bought this, I thought it was going to be a little darker on the lips but I still love it how it is! Like all NYX Lingeries, it has the same creamy moveable consistency. It's the perfect dark nude for this season. It looks more grey on camera - like I'm a walking zombie or something LOL.

RIMMEL STAY MATTE - Rose & Shine (210)

This pink shade is perfect to wear all year round. The consistency is nice and creamy and easy to work with. With matte lipsticks, you can sometimes feel it on your lips but with this one, you don't even know you're wearing it. The only thing that bugs me about this lipstick is that I wish it dried a bit quicker after application, other than that, I love it.

SLEEK MATTE ME - Velvet Slipper (1039)

I love dark purple colours in the Autumn and Winter months. This particular lipstick is my most recent purchase. Matte me is a very creamy product - you don't need a lot of it to glide on your lips, which means you won't need to buy another one for sometime. It also lasts most of the day as well, although it goes quite patchy on the inner lips after eating but I don't find that a huge problem at all.

What are your go-to lipsticks for this season?

Jumper Dresses & Over The Knee Boots

I weren't 100% sure whether to publish this post or not. Although I am in the process of trying to lose weight and tone my body up, I'm not in a completely happy place with my body at the moment. It's crazy how not being happy with your own body can make you feel so down and shit about yourself. I have put on quite a lot of weight in the past couple of months and trying to lose it all again this time of the year is a bloody nightmare.

However, I've got to stay motivated and determined and I will eventually get to where I want my body to be. But right now, this is who I am. I can't wait to look back on this post in a few months and (hopefully) see my progress.

Anyway, cracking on with my outfit... I have been loving over the knee boots and knee highs. Even though I love wearing them with my jeans, I love wearing them with my winter dresses even more. This dress is such a gorgeous colour - I bought it from Primark last year but I'm sure you can find a similar one around this time of the year. This dress is more of a thin jumper material and unexpectedly is really warm. These boots also keep me really warm too and they're super comfy. 

Do you like the jumper dresses and knee boots trend?

Winter Handbag Essentials

I have all sorts of bits and pieces in my bag all year round, but there are certain items that I need to make sure I'm stocked up on for the Winter season. 

HAND CREAM

Hand cream is an obvious 'must-have' for this time of year. The changes of the weather makes my hands really dry so I like to take some hand cream out and about with me and apply it whenever I need to. I currently have 'Soap & Glorys hand food' and 'Ted Baker hand cream.'

VASELINE/LIP BALM

I have always suffered with dry lips - even in the warmer months. But, this time of the year my lips can get chapped quite easily so I like to have a tin of Vaseline in my bag. I don't actually use a lip balm, although I'd like to try the Burts Bees one to see what all the hype is about.

UMBRELLA

I don't normally use umbrellas just because they always catch the wind when I put it up and turn inside out. Then I look like a knob fighting with it on the side of the road to try and put it down. But, I always keep one handy in my bag - you never know when you'll really need it.

A/W LIPSTICK

Duh! I usually carry about three or four dark lipsticks in my bag. Normally just so I can top up on the one I already have on throughout the day. Or, if I leave the house without any lippy on - I have a few colours handy to choose from.

TISSUES

You never know when you'll need a tissue. If you're ill or somebody around you is ill or even if you go to sit on a wet seat etc etc etc, tissues do the job!

WARM ITEMS OF CLOTHING

I always have a pair of gloves sitting at the bottom of my bag during the Winter months. You never know when you're going to get caught in freezing temperatures and winds. I also have now started putting my bobble hat in my bag too. I have thought about putting my scarf in my bag but it would take up so much room, it would just be a nightmare. So, I'll probably leave that in my car instead.

What are your Winter essentials?

A Gift Guide on What to get the Men in Your Life This Christmas

Like every year, I search the internet to try and help you and myself get ideas for Christmas. Men are a bloody nightmare to buy for - especially if they don't give you any ideas as to what they'd like. So, I have found lots of different bits and pieces for the men in your life this Christmas!

If your boyfriend always listens to music from his phone whilst in the shower, what better idea to get him a Bluetooth in-shower speaker!? It's so much easier and waterproof! I also found this amazing self-stirring mug, how cool! If the man in your life is a gamer, then he'd be super happy to unwrap a new controller. I've also included socks in this gift guide too, because what man doesn't get socks at Christmas? 

 1. Stick on Bluetooth Shower Speaker - £14.99 

2. 5 Pack Black Next Socks - £10.00

3. Lazy Man Self Stirring Mug - £7.99 

4. I'd Agree with You Mug - £3.99

5. iTunes Voucher

6. Black Leather Popper Wallet - £18.00

7. Black and Matte Green Xbox One Controller - £74.99

8. Maca Root Grooming Kit - £25.00

9. Light Flow Cable - £9.99

I thought that an LED desk light would be perfect for that guy who's always on his laptop/computer - especially if he uses it in the dark, he can then see his keyboard. I included Ticketmaster in last years gift guide too. I never thought of it beforehand, it's just such a good idea to get tickets to their favourite band or comedian etc. How cool is this USB cookie cup warmer though? All you do is plug it into your laptop/computer, place your cup on top and it warms it up. DVD box sets are a must for Christmas and so are portable phone chargers. They're so handy and a lot easier than carrying around a phone charger.

10. Paco Rabanne 1 Million Gift Set - £46.00

11. Navy Hoody - £29.99

12. LED Desk Lamp - £12.99

13. Ticketmaster

14. Hot Cookie USB Cup Warmer - £8.99

15. Old Skool Vans - £55.00

16. Grumpy Socks - £3.99

17. Portable Phone Charger - £7.99

18. Pirates of The Caribbean Box Set - £27.99

L'Oréal True Match Foundation Review

You all know me, like always I'm late to the party on trying a beauty product. L'Oréal's True Match foundation has been out for years now, so you've most probably tried it yourselves already. My most recent foundation was Urban Decays All Nighter - I did love it although it didn't do enough justice for my oily skin. Anyway, somebody recommended for me to try the L'Oréal brand for a new foundation. So, I headed into Boots and spent a little bit of time with a L'Oréal beauty advisor. We both eventually agreed on the True Match foundation, with the right shade for my skin tone. 

I bought it in the shade '2.N Vanilla' and honestly, it's the most perfect drugstore foundation shade I've found that matches my skin tone. The consistency is so watery and thin, but a little goes a long way with this product. It feels soft and very light on the skin too which I like. Who wants a foundation to feel and look heavy? It also blends really easily - you definitely don't need to worry about patchiness and dreadful lines. The coverage of True Match is pretty good, it doesn't show off my pores or cling to any dry areas either.

My oily skin and foundation don't usually get on that well. So, I put it to the test! Wearing L'Oréals True Match without primer shows my oily skin within 3-4 hours. Wearing True Match with primer doesn't show my oily skin until around 6-7 hours. Not bad. Overall, this is a great little product! I definitely recommend and it doesn't hurt your bank balance either. Have you tried a L'Oréal foundation before?

The Body Shops Instablur Face Perfector Review

I have always sworn by Maybelline's 'Baby Skin' primer and I think I had mentioned on my blog that I preferred it to Benefits 'Porefessional' a while ago. I recently got The Body Shops Instablur primer for £15, which I had been so excited to try out! I love trying out different face primers to see what difference it makes to my skin and makeup. 

First of all, I love the design of this product. I love the bold, black writing on the white background. The silver, blurred, metallic look with 'Instablur' written on it just finishes the design off. There's not much else to say about it, I just love it!

The consistency of this product is thick and spurts out in lumps when you squeeze the tube. It doesn't come out smoothly like 'Baby Skin' or 'Porefessional'. So, it's very easy to waste product if you're not careful with it. A little goes a long way too, you don't need too much product to cover your face. First placed on the skin, it's hard to blend out as little bits of product just fall whilst blending, which is a waste, yet again.

I've never worn this product just on its own so I'm not certain what that's like. But, my makeup glides on really easily with this product and I've never found it to go patchy. As this product is specifically for oily to combination skin, it definitely does what it should. It controls my oily skin throughout the day, although, the oiliest part of my face is my nose which still gets oily but not as much as it does without the primer. It mattifies my oily skin and makes my huge-ass pores look smaller.

I have also found that it makes my foundation last longer throughout the working days. I usually end up having lines where I smile and it goes patchy on my forehead and chin, but wearing this primer with foundation definitely helps. It doesn't stop the lines completely but the lines show up later on through the day and my foundation isn't patchy. 

Overall, this primer is great! I just wish the consistency was a lot more smooth and would stick to the skin better.

What's your favourite face primer?