Which NYE Outfit Should I Choose??

Hope you've all had an awesome Christmas!! I defo have, been super busy but it's been fun! :)

Last year you guys were great at helping me pick a New Year's Eve dress - looking for some opinions again please? :)

 

Gorgeous screenshot, I know. Standard.

So, which one do you like best? You can comment below, on YouTube, or tweet me @CosmeticsKitten.

Let me know!

~ Lauren ♥

Sunkissed Products & November Empties!

First of all, thanks sooo much for all your kind words about me starting YouTube. It was pretty scary but I'm gonna keep it up because the support has been amazing! You can check out my first video here and I now have a new video out, my November Empties:

 

 

But on to the main point of this post!

 

I am a huuuge lover of golds and shimmers with my makeup, and tend to stick to my favourite shades in the Urban Decay Naked and Naked 2 palettes. I also fake tan fairly regularly, I just love to have a tan. So when Sunkissed contacted me to see if I wanted to create a party look with some of their products, I was pretty excited! They're cruelty free, of course. :)

 

This is what I received:

 

A palette with 10 eyeshadows, two bronzer/blushers, three lip colours, a mascara and some brushes.

 

The eyeshadows are lovely! They are shimmery and pigmented and the colours blend so nicely together. There are two kind of colour schemes - golds and pinks, which are both favourites of mine!

 

Left - without flash, right - with flash

 

Top photos are with flash, bottom without. No shades have names.

 

I'm not a huuuge fan of lip colours in a palette, the three colours in the set are all pretty, but quite sheer and I don't like having to use a lip brush.

 

Left with natural light, right with flash

 

 I have to say I also really dislike the mascara, it does nothing for me!!
 

The highlighter is a bit of a surprise, it looks very pale but actually swatches darker. I'd be a bit reluctant to use too much of the bronzer and highlighter as my face would probably look like a disco ball, they're very shimmery!

 

Left with natural light, right with flash.

So the bottom 'highlighter' is actually more of a bronzer too. The large separate bronzer is a lot more appropriate for an all over sweep!

 

They were also kind enough to send a fake tan mousse, which is great!! It is quite yellow toned, which is prefect for me, and blends well and dries quickly! The best part is the SMELL! It actually smells really good, which is so rare for a fake tan. The only downside is it's not very dark, I think I'd have to apply a few layers to get the desired shade.

 

I messed about with the make up to create these simple looks:

 

 Gold shades ('scuse the brows, growing them out. =p)

 

 Top is gold shades, bottom is pink shades.

 

Full face. :)

 

What do you think? You can purchase Sunkissed products in or online HERE.

 

Do you still use fake tan in the winter? Have you tried Sunkissed products? Have you subscribed to my YouTube channel?? =p

Let me know!

~ Lauren ♥

I'm doing YouTube!! (omg!)

EeEEEEeee!! So I've uploaded my first YouTube video. I was wanting to do it for ages, but I was too scared and didn't really have the equipment. My boyfriend surprised me with a wee tripod and shutter release remote control for my iphone, so I had no excuse haha! So here goes....
 

 

Yes, the screenshot it awful.

 

What do you think? Should I do more YouTube videos?? I'm nervous haha!

Let me know!

~ Lauren ♥

Event: Paul's Hair and Beauty World :)

So I mentioned in my previous post that I went to two events within 48 hours, the first was Neal's Yard Remedies (posted about this event here) and the second was for Paul's Hair and Beauty World, which I'll tell you about here! :)

On Saturday morning, I made my way to the official opening of Paul's Hair and Beauty World on Queen's Street Glasgow. It's a 2000 square foot store specialising in mainly extensions, but also some hair and skin products, and Sleek makeup. The Sleek stand is very well stocked, they had several Rose Gold blushes which is usually sold out everywhere!

 

I met Lori and her friend there (click her name for her blog) and we enjoyed the cocktails and looking at all the different hair available. The staff were trying to convince me to get a weave haha - I have to say I'm tempted!!

Melanie Mason from X Factor opened the store and we posed for pics.

 

Yes, I look like an idiot...

It was fun! Paul's Hair and Beauty Boutique have branches all over the UK and you can also shop online at their well-stocked website here. I got a wee goody bag from them too:

I got some bizarre bits like a pen and a bulldog clip (?!) but also some Batiste, Sleek products and Palmer's. The Hairbond Moulder was quite exciting, I don't use product like gel/wax in my hair but my boyfriend does and he's tried it and gives it a thumbs up!

Thanks guys! :)

 

What do you think about stores like this? Have you ever bought extensions from a high street store?

Let me know!

~ Lauren ♥

Event: Neal's Yard Remedies

Beauty Blogger events in Glasgow are like buses - you wait for ages for one and then two happen within 48 hours of each other with another two lined up in the next few weeks! I went to Neal's Yard Remedies on Thursday 15th, and Paul's Hair and Beauty World on Saturday 17th. I'm going to do a separate post for Paul's event (click here for it) so here's the low down on Neal's Yard Remedies Event!

I was invited to an informal evening to be introduced to this brand and have a general look around their store. The staff were so friendly and informative, and I learnt a lot about a brand I had previously little knowledge of. It was a lovely little evening!

NYR are, in a nutshell, an organic skincare and aromatherapy company that specialises in all-over holistic wellbeing. They don't test on animals and use only natural ingredients. What makes them different, to me, is that they offer almost a 'prescription service' - if you go in with a skin/hair/body woe, they can sort you out with a specific product or range of products. They also do therapies such as massages, so you can destress in store! Which is very cool.

I met up with Paula, Lisa and Laura there (click their names to check their blogs) and we enjoyed they prosecco and cheeses (maybe a bit too much haha) and had a general good catch up. We were also all treated to a taster massage - which was very relaxing. :)

Right now NYR is a little out of my budget, but it's definitely a place I'd go to for a special skincare treat. They've also introduced a range of organic cosmetics, which is right up my street! They have a really interested history and there's actually a lot more branches than I realised! You can also shop online here.

 

They were so generous with their goodybag:

 

I got a full size Wild Rose Beauty Balm which is an award winning nourishing, exfoliating and cleansing balm (compete with muslin cloth). I can't wait to give this a try! I also received Organic Facial Wipes and two pieces from their new cosmetics range - Mineral Eye Shadow in Silver Birch and an Organic Lip Gloss in Goji Berry.

Top photos: natural light // Bottom photos: with flash

 

 

How amazing?! I don't really have a silver eyeshadow so will be making good use of this, and the ladies in store mentioned it also works really well applied wet. The lipgloss looks gorg - little iridescent flecks of pink and gold are in it and it's really nourishing! Thanks, guys! :)

 

 

Have you ever tried any NYR products? Do you like reading about events?

Let me know!

~ Lauren ♥

London Trip! (& Harry Potter Studio Tour) :)

Can't believe how long I've been meaning to do this post for! Well I went to London in the middle of October sooo... like a month haha! Well here it is. :)

My sister and one of my best friends live in London, so I always have a base to stay at should I want a wee break away. My boyfriend Scott has NEVER been to London, so when he came in to a bit of money, we decided to go down for a few days and do some visiting!

We travelled down on a Megabus (he didn't come in to THAT much money haha) and the 9-10 hour drive actually wasn't too bad! There was wifi and plugs so we were sorted. I got into my jammies and slept a lot of the way! We stayed at my friend's flat that night, we just went out for dinner and drinks. :)

On the Friday we went to Harry Potter Studio Tour - EEeeEEeee! OMG, I was so close to tears at some points, I'm a massive Harry Potter fan and it was just amazing!! I'm gonna post some pics from it below under a link in case people are planning on going and don't want any spoilers. =p

On Saturday, my sister took us on a guided tour of all the tourist spots for Scott. At night, Scott and I went to Carnaby Street for dinner and out for drinks in Soho. On Sunday, my sister showed us her local area, Kensington & Chelsea.

My sister and I in Trafalgar Square // Scott and I // Scott and I at Buckingham Palace

 

Night out// Soho // St Christopher's Place // Carnaby Street

 

Sloane Square // South Kensington // My sister's street

We had a great time!! If you want to see some of my Harry Potter Studio Tour photos, click below!

Mini Lush Haul! :)

I am suuuuuch a bad beauty blogger - I'm gonna have to admit that I don't regularly shop at Lush. I KNOW, right?! =p

 

I do like Lush, but to be honest I'd rather spend my hard earned pennies on makeup etc. I don't actually go for a huge amounts of baths, so Lush never really crosses my mind. I also find the staff a little overbearing. But, at Christmas time, I do like to go in and treat myself. So here's the goodies I got:

 

 

Obviously I got Snow Fairy because it's a MUST at Christmas. I know most people know what this is, but in case you've been living under a rock, it's a candyfloss/bubblegum/all things sweet scented shower gel, with little bits of glitter in. It is very sweet, which I don't usually go for, but I've never met anyone who doesn't like this scent! I bought the small size for £3.50.

 

 

 

I also got three baths bomb style products. The labels (and my photo taking skills apparently) are a bit rotten, but here's a wee pic:

 

Sunnyside, So White and Magic Wand.

 

Sunnyside - £3.65

I can't WAIT to try this. It's a glittery gold bubble bar that turns your water into 'liquid gold'. It's also got moisturising oils in it. I can't really smell a huge scent off it right now, but when it's melting it will release citrusy scents like yummy orange.

 

So White - £3.20

A white bath bomb that is heavily scented of apple. I left it in my room and the next day I walked in my whole room smelt beautifully of apple - such a fresh, unusual scent! Apparently when using this, you throw it against the side of the bath and the white shell cracks open to turn your water pink & bubbly - I'm exciiited!!

 

Magic Wand - £4.95

This is basically Snow Fairy in a bubble bar. I love the design of it, you can swish it in the water a few times to make it all pink and bubbly, and then you can reuse it over and over. Like Snow Fairy, it smells of candy floss and pear drops.

 

I don't know what I'm most excited to use! I think Lush might be winning me over - I can't wait to go for baths now and just chill out with my coloured, scented water. :) And, of course, Lush is against animal testing which is a huge bonus!!

 

What do you think of my Lush goodies? Have you got any favourites you recommend I try?

Let me know!

~ Lauren ♥

120 Shade Eyeshadow Palette

Hey guys! :)

I was recently sent an eyeshadow palette by BeautyStore4U - I know, kind of random, I don't usually go for more obscure brands. However, since I changed to cruelty free I'm always on the look out for new animal friendly makeup. This brand promises to be cruelty free and the site stocks Coastal Scents which I've never tried but have heard good things about.

Also, I'm a bit dull when it comes to eye make up. I LOVE eye make up, but I swear by my Naked palettes. The only colour I ever use is when I feel like being a bit different and use my Stila Beach Palette (reviewed here). So when I saw the look of this palette, I thought maybe I should be a bit daring and try some colours!

Yup, there's 120 colours! Amazing! They fold into the flat packed box but you need to take one side out and sit it on top of the other to fit. BeautyStore4U have told me that although the box is plain black right now, it will have the logo on it shortly.

Some of the colours are veeeery similar to each other, but there are just so many to choose from. There are pinks/purples, blues/greens, yellow/oranges and neutrals.

The eyeshadows are made of natural mineral oils and there are a mix of both shimmery and matte shades.The quality of shades varies - some are well pigmented, whereas others hardly produced any colour at all. Here are a few quick looks I created:

(sorry for the blur in this one - I was tired by this point haha!)

Lamely enough, I actually like the neutral colour look the best haha! You can kind of see in some of the non-flash photos where there isn't as good pigmentation. I'd say in real life, the colours are somewhere between the flash and non-flash results.

In all, I'd say if you're looking for a cruelty free palette with a large variety of bright colours, this is great value. 120 colours!! Not always great pigmentation but sleek and light and nice to have if you ever feel like a more daring look! :)

This palette is available from their website here for £12.95 with free postage within the UK. You can also use the discount code THECOSMETICSKITTEN to get 10% off - yay! Alternatively, you can get it from Amazon here (currently out of stock).

 

Do you ever experiment with brighter eye colours? Do you like palettes with a huge number of shades?

Let me know!

~ Lauren ♥

 

This product was sent to me free of charge for review consideration. My views are not affected by this in any way and are still 100% honest.

The Cosmetics Kitten's Diary :) --November 4th--

Heeeey guys! Time for my lifestyle post. I was obviously planning on doing this every week, but life is so hectic that I'm just going to try do it as regularly as I can. :)

 

What have I been up to this week?

I have been sooo tired this week. I think now the clocks have gone back, it gets dark so early and my body just wants to go to sleep! I hate this time of year, when I literally don't see sunlight because it's dark when I go in work and dark when I come out. Meh.

 

Weekend before last I went to London to visit my sister and my best friend, who both live there. I took my boyfriend Scott (his first time in London!) and we had a great time! I'll do a wee post on that soon.

 

Us at Buckingham Palace. :)

 

I also caught up with the girls this weekend, we're all teachers and sometimes it's hard to find time to meet up, so I'm glad we sorted something out!

 

 

I also finally got rid of my old extensions last weekend! I had my old set in for six months and although my hair was still ok quality, my own hair had grown in too much at the roots so it was time to replace them! It took six and a half hours to take my old set out, colour my hair and put my new set in. Phew!!

 

old hair / my own hair (yes, all of it...) / new hair

 

And how was work?

Work was actually mostly fun this week. We had an all-day Hallowe'en party on Wednesday, which I scrabbled about for a last min costume for. None of my regular Hallowe'en outfits were particularly... appropriate haha. So I wore my cat onesie and went as a cat! =p

 

 

Easy haha.

 

 

And how are the cats?

My wee cat Pippa was not very well at all, she had an abscess on her wee bum. :( She's 14 and we worry about her, and she had to get a buster collar on. She was SO down and we thought she was maybe giving up. :( But after two weeks on antibiotics, she's making a good recovery!! :)

 

 

 

Anything else?

My watch broke so I'm hoping to get a new one for Christmas, looking for some suggestions of brands/styles?? This is the one I'm kind of drawn to just now, it's a Michael Kors. I'm looking for a big-ish face and maybe a wee bit of bling haha. Not too expensive tho!!

 

 

 

I'm also doing the Photo a Day Challenge on Instagram - if you fancy seeing what I'm up to, you can follow me on there - I'm CosmeticsKitten. :)

 

 

 

Hope you've had a good week! Remember to give me any suggestions of watches if you can think of any. Have you been up to anything exciting??

Let me know!

~ Lauren ♥

The Cosmetics Kitten's Diary :) --October 14th--

Hi guys! I am thinking of starting a feature on my blog which is a bit more 'lifestyley' than what I normally do. I'll still do reviews, OOTDs etc like normal, but once a week I'm going to do a little diary entry on what I've been up to the past week! We'll see how it goes, but I'd love to do it every Sunday. Through chatting in #bbloggers it seems people love having a nosy at lifestyle posts, so here goes!!

 

The Cosmetics Kitten's Diary

 

What have I been up to this week?

Last weekend was so much fun, on Friday night my boyfriend Scott and I went to my best friend Heather's flat to catch up with her and her boyfriend. It was long overdue! She'd recently adopted two bunnies so I got to meet them....

 

Cute bunnies! 

 

And give lots of love and cuddles to her amazing dog, Cody. Now Cody is a 'clearance puppy'. He may be a Chihuahua, but he thinks he's a cat, is the fluffiest thing ever, and most hysterically, has a tongue that he can't keep in his mouth.

 

 

That tongue is like that ALL THE TIME. He makes me laugh so much.

 

On Saturday night, my aunt and uncle joined us for a murder mystery evening with my parents and Scott. I'm no stranger to murder mystery parties, I've done loads, and blogged about one HERE.

 

 

They're great fun, I thoroughly recommend it!

 

And how was work?

In case you don't know, I'm a teacher. A primary teacher, but right now I'm working in a nursery. Obviously I can't give too much info about that (always the fear of being cyber stalked!!), but sometimes I have to share funny stories! For example:

 

Me: Who's got news?

Boy: Me! I do! I'm going on holiday!!

Me: Lucky you, where are you going?

Boy: Uhm... I think it's 'Blackpool'... No, wait, it's BLUEPOOL!!!

 

I honestly couldn't stop laughing. He was determined he's going to Bluepool. Who knew?

 

I got sent home on Wed with a tummy bug and didn't go in Thurs or Fri so it was a short week, I felt lousy tho!! Feeling better now. :)

 

And how are the cats?

For someone who is a self confessed crazy cat lady, I don't feel I give my cats enough blog time. They are literally my BABIES. This week, Dana has learnt where her treats are, and jumps up onto the kitchen counter, knocks them off, and opens the packet on the floor to eat at her leisure.

 

 

But who can resist that face (and slightly chubby body)??

 

Anything else?

Well, yes. My boyfriend Scott sold his car (he's unemployed - sadface) so he had a bit of money. So yesterday we went into Glasgow to go shopping and have dinner. I got some lovely stuff which I'll share with you in other posts. Here's some pics from our day:

 

MUA Constellations in Scorpio, my new cat hat and kitten mittens, strawberry daiquiris in TGIs, me drinking cocktails, a gorg bag I resisted, Scott and I in TGIs, me at dinner. :)

 

 

Well, what do you think of this feature guys? Too boring? I don't have the most exciting life haha! Would you enjoy reading something like this?

Let me know!

~ Lauren ♥

MUA Nail Constellations.. All of 'em!! =p

As soon as the MUA Nail Constellations were released, I knew I had to have them. Considering one Ciate Nail Caviar is £18, £15 for all five MUA shades was a pretty decent bargain to me. I have never tried this form of nail art before, so I was pretty excited.

 

Just for a disclaimer here, this post is not going to show you the Constellations in their full glory. This post will just show you my first attempt and the process I underwent. Trust me, these babies are really pretty and you can go onto the official MUA blog to see how they look, properly, on gorgeous long nails, not wee stubs like mine.

 

But anyways, my experience...

 

 They really are pretty, and there is SO MUCH in every bottle, these will last you forever. However, there is a LOT of spillage when applying these, so I set up a little 'Constellation Station' - nothing fancy, just a folded piece of paper opened back up, with something underneath each side of the paper to ensure all spillage falls into the middle crease. Ta da! 

Haha, told you it was nothing fancy. Worked a treat tho. The application process is relatively easy, you apply your chosen nail polish base colour and allow it to dry, before painting on a thicker second coat which you'll sprinkle the Constellations on to. I struggled with my first attempt, I was way too cautious and I couldn't get any beads out! Don't be afraid to SHAKE that wee bottle. Beads will come pouring out, but your Constellation Station (ha) will catch them all.

 

I didn't like to press down on the beads to seal them with my finger as some came off, so I pressed my nails down onto all the spilled beads that had collected on my paper. That worked really well. You then remove the top of the bottle and either using the funnel or just the paper you've shaken over, return the extra beads to the bottle. Easy.

 

Just for a simple contrast, I painted one hand with a white base and one hand with a black base. This was my messy attempt (thumb nails are rotten because I was too scared to shake lots of beads out). The left picture is always on the white base and the right picture is of the black base. 

I put Seche Vite on my thumb, index and middle finger, but I kinda wish I hadn't as, as you might be able to see, it kinda spoils the affect. On my other two fingers, I just sealed the tip of my nail with Seche Vite and after a few hours I have had no drop offs.

 

 Left - white base, Right- black base

 

As I said, my nails are too short and my first attempt too cautious and messy for this to show how pretty these actually are. For £3 each, I really recommend them. I love all the colours to be honest, can't wait to try them with different bases!

Natural light (left - white base, right - black base)

 

You can buy thesefor £3 each in your local Superdrug or online HERE.

 

What do you think? Have you tried Caviar nails? Would you try these? Which Constellation is your favourite?

Let me know!

~ Lauren ♥