Haul | Primark, Topshop & More

Hello everyone, I hope you're all well and looking forward to the weekend ahead! Today I thought I would share with you all a few bits and pieces that I picked up recently. It's probably not the most exciting haul out there, but I'm really happy with some of the things I have found! I've had my eye set on picking up some new shoes for work and plus a couple of hair pieces, so I'm really excited to be showing you what I bought!

Primark Tan Quilted Shoulder Bag | £4.00 |

One of the first things I picked up was this really sweet shoulder bag from Primark. During the Spring and Summer time I like to carry around much smaller bags and I thought the style and colour of this one was perfect! The quality of this bag is so lovely, the faux leather is soft and it has 2 large compartments to store all of your essentials in. I think this bag will be really popular over the next few weeks, especially because it's so cheap as well! I highly recommend you picking this up next time you're in your local Primark.

H&M Hair Accessories | £3.99 & £1.99 | LINK (similar) | LINK |

 I've been loving wearing my hair in high ponytails recently, so I thought I would pick up a couple of hair accessories to make them look a bit dressier. I've always loved how the metal clips looked on ponytails, so I thought I would finally jump on the bandwagon and pick one up from H&M. I love the dimpled effect on the metal and the fact it's very secure when fastened. I believe these are relatively old stock as this was the last one I could find in this style, so if you want to find one then definitely take a look soon.

The next hair accessory I picked up was a quite an impulse buy, but as it was so cute looking and only £1.99, I thought I'd get it anyway! It's a blue and white polka dot hair scrunchie with little wire bunny ears - I know, definitely something I'd be wearing back in the 90's haha! This is such a sweet accessory to use and I'm really tempted to pick up the floral version. I haven't taken this out since I've bought it, so it's safe to say hair scrunchies are still a winner with me!

Topshop Cream Blush in Prime Time | £6.00 reduced to £3.00 |

 Next up is this gorgeous Topshop cream blusher in Prime Time. I picked this up a few weeks ago in the Topshop sale as I love the formula of their cream blushers. I'm pretty sure I've had my eye on this shade as well so it was great to find it for only £3! It's a gorgeous bright pink shade that, if you use lightly, can give you a pretty rosy glow that's perfect for this time of the year.

Rimmel Nail Nurse Nail Rescue | £4.49 | LINK |

Recently my nails have been in really bad condition and I needed to find a product that would help. A couple weeks ago I was watching a video on YouTube and an ad popped up about the new Nail Nurse line from Rimmel. It really interested me so the next time I went to Boots, I picked up a bottle of the Nail Rescue treatment. It's only day 4 of me having the treatment on my nails and I'm really glad to report that my nails are really strong, healthy and have no signs of peeling or splitting! I've actually read that this product is really similar to OPI's Nail Envy, so if you're looking for a cheaper alternative then I really do recommend this!

VO5 Hair Products | £2.49 & £1.99 | LINK | LINK |

 Next up are a couple a products from VO5 that I picked up in a local discount store. I've been in need of some new heat protectant and as this was relatively cheap (plus I love a lot of their other products) I thought I'd give it a try. So far I really like it, the scent is nice plus it leaves my hair feeling really soft! I also picked up the Plump It Up Dry Shampoo as I thought this was the backcombing spray - oops! Hopefully this will work just as well as I adore the backcombing spray for doing my messy high ponytails!

New Look Gold Detail Boots | £24.99 | LINK |

 The final thing that I picked up were these gorgeous black suede effect boots with golden detail on the front and back. I originally found a similar pair in Miss Selfridge for around £50, but they didn't have my size, so I was really happy to find these for pretty much half the price (plus student discount!). I love that they have a low heel so I can wear these to work without having sore feet after. I absolutely love these shoes, they're probably my favourite pair at the moment!

So these are a few things that I picked up recently. I hope that you enjoyed this post and if you've put up a haul on your blog, then do leave me the link in the comments! Thank you for reading!

Have you bought any beauty or fashion pieces recently?

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Review | Real Techniques Starter Set

Real Techniques Starter Set | £21.99

Hello everyone, I hope you're all doing well and that you're looking forward to your weekend. Today I thought I would finally get a new review up on my blog - my first one of 2014! It's actually been almost 2 months since my last one which is so bad for a beauty blogger, so I thought I would do a much over due review of the Real Techniques Starter Set brushes. I got this set for my birthday last year and lots of you wanted to see my thoughts and opinions on them, so now I've finally gotten round to it! I absolutely love Real Techniques brushes and when it got to a point that I felt that I needed to expand my eye brush collection, it was only natural to pick up their Starter Set.

The Real Techniques Starter Set contains 5 makeup brushes all made from synthetic bristles. They also come in a black brush case that can either store your brushes when your travelling or display them in a stand like in the first photo. All of the brushes have a purple coloured handle that helps define that these are from the eye brush collection from Real Techniques. These brushes are also very light weight and easy to use, which means anyone can have these brushes in their collection - especially if you're just starting out with makeup!

| Deluxe Crease Brush |

The first brush you get in the Starter Set is the Deluxe Crease Brush. This is a big, soft brush that is designed to be used to contour your eyes by applying a shadow into your crease. The bristles are dense which helps pick up plenty of product so that you can create an effortless eye look. I personally think this brush is a bit big for my crease and I much prefer to use this as a base/ lid colour brush. It applies lid colour so smoothly and as it's big, it covers a larger area very quickly. I really like this brush and is one of the brushes from this set I use every time I do my makeup!

| Base Shadow Brush |

The second brush from this set is the Base Shadow Brush and again is a brush that I use every time I do my makeup! This is designed to apply your lid colour and as it's very soft and dense, it does so flawlessly. I also enjoy using this brush as my crease brush - yes I know, I use the first 2 back to front, but for me I find that they work better this way! As the Base Shadow Brush is smaller than the Deluxe Crease Brush, I find that it applies the right thickness of shadow to my crease to create the perfect contoured look. I think if I had to choose to have only 1 eye brush in my collection, then I would definitely choose this one as it is very versatile and works amazingly with powder eye shadows!

| Brow Brush |

The next brush in the Starter Set is the Brow Brush. This angled brush is designed to apply powder to your eye brows to create a softer and more natural brow look. I much prefer applying shadow to my brows compared to a pencil or felt tip brow liner, so I was very happy to have this brush in my set. However, for me this brush is too big and it feels like I can't achieve smaller brush strokes to create the natural look I like. Luckily I do have a smaller angled brush that I use, so now I use the Real Techniques Brow Brush as an angled eye liner brush. When I apply pencil liner to my lash line, I always like to set it with a powder and this is when this brush comes into action. It picks up plenty of product and is slim enough to apply it close to my lash line. This is a nice, dense brush that works really well and is one I do use on a regular basis!

| Accent Brush |

Next up is the one of the smallest brushes in the set, the Accent Brush. This is meant to be the perfect brush for applying inner corner or brow bone highlighters or smudging out shadows or liners. The bristles, like all of the Starter Set brushes, are dense which means it's very good as smudging or smoking out liners. I also think this is a nice brush to apply a lower lash line eye shadow colour as it's small and can blend it out well.

| Pixel-Point Eyeliner Brush |

The final brush in the Starter set is the Pixel-Point Eyeliner Brush. This is the perfect brush for applying cream and gel eyeliners as it's slim and has a fine tip. This is the brush I use the least as I don't actually use any gel/ cream liners (if you have any recommendations of some I would love to hear them in the comments !). This could also work well as a lip brush as it is small and dense so it will apply the colour smoothly and evenly!

So these are my thoughts on the Real Techniques Starter Set! I absolutely love this set and highly recommend it if you're looking to expand your makeup brush collection. They're amazing quality and I think the price is really reasonable as it works out as just over £4 a brush! These are the perfect everyday eye brushes and I always find they apply my makeup beautifully. If you're interested in seeing what I think of the rest of my Real Techniques brush collection, including the Core Collection, then click here for the post!

Have you tried the Real Techniques Starter Set brushes?

What is your favourite Real Techniques brush?

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What's In My Makeup Bag

Today I thought I would do an updated "What's In My Makeup Bag" post. Since my last post (which was made in 2012) I have tried and tested a lot of makeup products, so naturally the products that I use on a regular basis has changed. I don't keep all of the makeup I use everyday in a makeup bag, these products and brushes are the ones that I usually grab when I'm going away for the weekend to stay at my boyfriend's for example. On a daily basis I do use a lot more products so for me, these makeup items together do give me a natural look that I can wear for any occasion!

Firstly I thought I would talk about the actual makeup bag that I use. This is my gorgeous pink and white Ted Baker Leda Large Wash Bag that I featured in my last birthday haul. This was a present from my boyfriend and I absolutely love it! It's big enough to fit all of the makeup I need, plus any skin care bits that I want to throw in as well. These wash/ makeup bags are quite pricey but I think they're completely worth it as they're so big and look beautiful! If you're thinking of buying one of the Ted Baker bags, then I highly recommend you doing so!

I always bring a lot of face makeup products with me when I go away for the weekend. I feel that as long as my skin looks nice, then I can get away with minimal eye and lip makeup! For base products I like to use my Urban Decay Naked Skin Beauty Balm and the Benefit Porefessional. Both of these products prime the skin ready for you to apply your foundation and concealer and I find they both work really well together! The Urban Decay beauty balm also gives my skin a little oomph of colour and glow and helps my foundation blend into my skin colour a lot better.

For my foundation, I'm still in love with the good old Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation. I absolutely love the coverage, consistency and finish of this foundation - for me it's an all time favourite! I'm sure you're all bored of seeing this foundation on my blog, but I feel that if I've found something that works for me, why should I change it for something else? The same is said for my concealer too! I love the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer as it always managed to cover up any redness, blemishes and dark circles. Once buffed into my skin with the Real Techniques Buffing Brush from the Core Collection, these two products create a natural yet flawless looking base!

The final face products I keep in my makeup bag are blushers. On my skin tone, the Benefit Coralista blush works as both a blusher and a slight bronzing powder. It has a warm tone to it that helps gives my cheeks a glow that some people try to achieve with a bronzer. I apply this blusher with my Real Techniques Blush Brush and I find it blends the product into my skin beautifully! The other blusher I've been try is the Topshop Cream Blush in Prime Time. I would use this blush for when I need to create a more "done up" look as it is a very bright pink shade. This looks gorgeous on the apples of my cheeks and gives my skin a nice rosy tint that I like in the Winter time.

For my eyes, I always keep my Urban Decay Naked Basics palette in my makeup bag. It contains 6 different shades that can create all kind of natural looks. I love applying Walk Of Shame as a base shade, Naked 2 as a lid shade and Faint in my crease. This creates a natural brown smokey eye that can be done lightly for the day or, if you use more of the Faint shade, can be brought into the evening. I use the Real Techniques Base Shadow Brush and Deluxe Crease Brush when ever I apply these shadows, the only two brushes you need to create a quick eye look!

I've also been pairing this look with the Soap & Glory Smoudler Kohl in Cocoa Bean as both my upper lash line and my tight line liner. It has a water proof formula that is smooth to apply and lasts all day. Finally I keep this mini Benefit Bad Gal Lash Mascara in my makeup bag as it's small, compact and gives my lashes a lot of volume and length.

Finally, the only lip product I've been keeping in my makeup bag recently is the Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Gloss Stick in Nudist. This lip crayon is amazing! It has a really smooth formula that tastes amazing! The shade Nudist is a pretty nude pink that works really well as a day time lip colour. I can't wait to pick up more of these gloss sticks too add to my collection - I think they may be as good as the Bourjois crayons!

I hope you enjoyed this post and that you've found some new makeup products to try out! Do let me know your thoughts and opinions in the comments below and I will talk to you all soon!

What essential makeup items do you keep in your makeup bag?

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