Beauty Haul aka "Treat 'yo self!" #1

It's just been one of those days/weeks, y'know? 

Soap & Glory 'Thick & Fast' mascara - I got a sample of this with an issue of Elle last year and I loved it! The brush is really big and it isn't too 'wet', which I'm a fan of, so it doesn't leave massive clumps on my eyelashes.

Urban Decay '24/7 Glide-On Lip Pencil' in 'Ozone' - this past week I've started wearing lipstick more often and since I usually wear quite bright colours, rather than getting lip pencils to match each lipstick I own, I opted for this. 'Ozone' is a white/clear lip pencil that will go with any shade of lipstick. It's easy and smooth to apply and has a really good staying power.  

Sleek 'True Colour' lipstick in 'Mystic'

Revlon 'PhotoReady' cream blush in 'Pinched'

Maybelline '24HR Colour Tattoo' in 'On And On Bronze' (apparently this one is the same as 'Bad To The Bronze', it just has a different name in the UK?)

Rimmel 'Apocalips Lip Lacquer' in 'Stellar'

These are all new products to me, but I've heard a lot about them through some of my favourite beauty bloggers/vloggers, especially the Colour Tattoo shadow, so I thought "why the hell not?" and finally decided to take the plunge and try them out myself. 

L-R: 'Pinched', 'On And On Bronze', 'Stellar', 'Mystic'

(you can tell how cold I was from the goosebumps on my arm! haha!)

I've decided this year is the year of trying out crazy new lipsticks and look how amazing Mystic is! Cannot wait to wear this. I've already tried out the Apocalips and it's a bright neon orange/pink shade. It's kinda looks like wearing highlighter pen on your lips, but I love it! I'm so tempted to pick up another of these in the red shade. Hmm...   

I wanted to try out some new skincare items because, lately I've been getting a lot of redness around my chin and forehead. So I went into The Body Shop and picked up a few things from the Tea Tree range: 'Blackhead Exfoliating Wash', 'Pore Minimiser' and 'Blemish Gel'. Hopefully these will do a good job of clearing my skin up. And because I spent over £18 on skincare, I got a free Body Butter, which is an amazing deal since the body butters are £13 on their own. 

Speaking of body butters, I also got the Soap & Glory 'Sugar Crush' Body Buttercream. This smells like heaven! Urgh! I got the body wash and scrub for Christmas and I've been absolutely in love with this scent. I just want to be surrounded by it 24/7. It smells really sweet, like limes and Cola Bottles, so if this sounds like your thing, definitely check it out. 

I got another shampoo bar from Lush, my choice being 'Squeaky Green'. I tend to have problems with my scalp/dandruff which I've still not found a permanent solution for, but this does help. These shampoo bars last a really long time, I got one at the end of August last year and I only just finished it last month. Amazing value for money! Also, shout-out the woman who served me today in Lush. She was really lovely and complimented my nails and had crazy-bright pink hair. Sigh, now I'm pining for my fuchsia locks..

Finally, I got a couple of things from HMV from their Blue Cross sale that's going on.

30 Seconds To Mars 'A Beautiful Lie' - if you know anything about me, it's that this band are my everything. Such a weird reason for buying this but okay. I already have the CD/DVD version of this album but I wanted the regular as I have the regular and deluxe versions of This Is War. So, in a way I'm "completing my collection." I don't know, don't even ask. 

Surely I'm not the only one who does this? Like, there's something so satisfying about having a bands full discography in your cd collection and not just on iTunes. Am I right?

'The Runaways' & 'Almost Famous' box set - two great films for £6? Yes please. I watched both of these a while ago, probably back in the summer, and really enjoyed them, so why not? 

Also, big news. I've moved into the future and got an iPhone. I'm still getting the hang of typing with these stupid long talons of mine (who needs false nails?). But I've joined instagram, so you can follow if you'd like to see how un-exciting my life is (no, but really). 

MORE SERIOUS/EVEN BETTER NEWS

As part of our second year project we're going to be putting on a fashion show! We're going to be showing the garments that we designed and made last semester and we'll be organising everything from scratch, picking a venue, theme, models, etc. It's kind of daunting but really, really exciting at the same time. I'll be sure to post more details as and when they happen, so keep an eye out!

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go do the whole shower/hair/face/nails thing and try out some of these products!

Artwork + New Music/TV Favourites

I'm terrible at updating, I know. That's why I've made it a goal for the year to consistently update this blog and, in doing so, hopefully figure out what kind of blog I want it to be. Anyway, here's some drawings I've done recently - some fashion drawings for my uni work and some sketches done in my down-time. 

fashion illustrations for uni project.

'Jared x Rayon'

Hayley Williams

As it's a new year, I thought it might be fun to share what music/tv shows/films etc that I've been loving each month or so. There's quite a few things that I'm already eagerly anticipating, so hopefully this will become a some-what regular feature.

Album: Start The Party - The Blackout

One of my favourite bands released their 4th full-length album this week and it's an good-un. Actually, it's pretty damn awesome. As the title suggests, Start The Party is all about having a good time and there's a lot of tracks on here that will definitely get you moving. Listening to the album it's clear that a lot of songs could easily become live favourites, with plenty of catchy sing-along choruses. There's the heavy riffs and dual clean/scream vocals that are like TBO's 'signature' style, so fans old and new will be satisfied. Some of my stand-out tracks include, Radio, Let Me Go, Take Away The Misery and Sleep When You're Dead.

Song: Now - Paramore

When Brand New Eyes was released in 09 a lot of people said it was different to other Paramore material, but I wasn't convinced. Now, however, is actually really, really different. And I love it! It's a completely new direction for the band, some comments online comparing it to No Doubt, and I'm really excited to hear the rest of the album when it arrives on April 8th. (there's pre-orders available through paramore.net & iTunes etc.)

Listen to 'Now' here!

TV Show: Banshee

Not gonna lie, there's been a pretty big hole in my life since True Blood last aired (the pain I'm going through waiting for the new season after that cliffhanger!!) so it's a nice surprise to see what Alan Ball has been up to since. Banshee is a new crime drama/thriller about a notorious thief who is released from prison after 15 years, arrives in the town of Banshee and, in a case of mistaken identity, becomes the new town Sheriff. I won't give too much away, but there's all kinds of strange things happening and the show has barely even started. Needless to say, I'm hooked!
Check out Banshee Origins to watch clips from a mini-series that shows the story before the story and watch the trailer for the show here.

Film: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

I haven't been to the cinema much recently, which is kinda sad. But I did go to see The Hobbit over New Year's and I really enjoyed it. The 3D effects weren't the really obvious/unnecessary 3D that a lot of films seem to have recently, but it gave the images on screen a bit more depth (I'm not bothered about 3D at all, but they gave us tickets for the 3D showing not the 2D which was at the same time. Hmph.) Anyway, it was a good film but a little too long. Though I'll be interested to see how the next two films turn out. 

What new music/tv shows/films have you been loving recently?