The Sunday Edit #54

Sneak peek of an upcoming post!

This week has been a bit more chilled, it was mostly revision but it wasn’t as stressful because I have plenty of time to get stuff done!  

Thursday night, we went to see Jersey Boys at the Bristol Hippodrome and it was amazing! I was so glad to get out and take a break from revision and do something that I enjoy.  It really helped me and I was ready to go back to it Friday which I was glad about.  I also went to Weston-Super-Mare shopping yesterday for a bit of retail therapy and picked up a few bits from essence which I have used twice so far and I am very impressed with, along with a new background for my blog photos which I saw featured in one of Magpie Jasmine’s blogposts a while ago. I may do a whole post on DIY photography backgrounds because I for one know that it isn't easy to find a decent one.  I purchased a marble one like you see on all the high ranking blogs, so I can pretend I have a beautiful marble work surface when really it is just a roll of sticky back plastic with a pattern on it! Some of my future blogposts will be featuring photos on this background so look out for that!

I am writing this blogpost in my revision break, as I have 3 exams this week.  I have history tomorrow, maths thursday and biology friday, so with that being said I hope you all have a lovely week and enjoy the lovely weather at the end of it (fingers crossed).  I am off now to finish revision on public health from 1948-the present day, oh the joys!

Emily xx

Collection Undercover Eyes Palette in Nude | Review

As you would have seen from a previous post, I picked up this palette on a whim in Asda and for the price, I wasn’t really expecting much to be perfectly honest.  I had heard people talk about these before, but I am fussy when it comes to eyeshadows that I had already pre-judged them and decided I wasn’t going to like them.  I picked it up to be doubley sure that I hated it, just out of curiosity.  Well, I have to admit that I was wrong to judge these because I actually LOVE them.  I don’t just like them, I LOVE them!  I have used them every day since I got them and haven’t found a need for anything else. In fact, I love them so much that this is the only palette I brought with me on my little holiday.

This palette comes with 6 shades, 2 mattes, 2 shimmers and 2 satins.  It has everything from a stark white to a deep blackish/brown.  This palette has shades to suit everyone and to create very subtle day time looks and very dramatic night time looks, all in one very small and compact kit.  The packaging is cardboard which is quite sturdy, however the plastic bit that covers the eyeshadows is quite flimsy and would be easily split. The packaging is pretty average, but I wouldn’t expect anything more from something as cheap as £3.99.

The shadows themselves are very pigmented as you can see from the swatches.  I didn’t feel like there was really any fall out which is one of my pet peeves with eyeshadow so as soon as I discovered this, I knew I was on to a winner.  They are a very smooth formula, they glide onto the lid and blend so easily, especially the mattes which is almost unheard of for drugstore eyeshadows.  They aren’t chalky in the slightest and feel a lot more luxurious than the price tag suggests.  There are 2 other palettes in this range, a more golden one and a cool toned silvery one which means that everyone can find something in this range to suit them.  I haven’t tried the other 2 so I can’t comment on the quality of those, but I will definitely consider purchasing those in the future!

Overall, I am so impressed with these and I will admit that I was wrong to doubt them.  If you are in need of a small and convenient neutral palette, then Collection have got you covered with this one for a measly £3.99 (which is actually down to £2.99 at the moment in boots!)

Have you tried these?

Emily xx

Sebamed Clear Skin Range* | Review

I got sent the Sebamed clear skin regime* from the Bloggers Hub Twitter party about a month ago, and the company contacted me, advising me to use the products for 4 weeks before I wrote a review.  The regime consists of a cleansing bar, a deep cleansing toner, and a clear face gel which act as a moisturiser.  The whole regime aims to balance the pH of the skin to help prevent acne, which means the oils in your skin will be neutral.

The Sebamed Clear Face Cleansing Bar* is a rather odd concept.  It is literally like a bar of soap for yourself which I found rather odd to be quite honest.  You just lather it up in your hands how you would a soap and then massage it in to your skin and rinse off.  These made my face feel squeaky clean, however I didn’t notice any makeup that may have been left off being taken off by this like I do with other cleansers. Due to this and me being paranoid about leaving my makeup on, I now cleanse with my magnitone lucid and then go in with this so that I know my face is definitely clean. I found these to be a little bit drying initially, but when you have used the other products, it’s absolutely fine.  I found these to be a bit messy and not really travel friendly for someone who travels a lot so if this doesn’t worry you then it is definitely something to try if you have oily and acne prone skin.

The Seabed Clear Face Deep Cleansing Facial Toner* really is deep cleansing! It stings a little bit, which I like because then I know that it is really doing something! It is quite strong in smell, and appears to be quite chemically so I’m not sure if it is really healthy for your skin, but it certainly helps to clear blemishes.  I think I would probably pick this toner over my lush tea tree water which I never thought I would say! It feels so refreshing and takes off any residual dirt with just one swipe.  It isn’t as drying as I thought it would be which is a bonus and my face feels a lot plumper after using it. Definitely a winner for me and something I will be repurchasing!

The Sebamed Clear Face Care Gel* pretty much does what it says on the tin.  It is an oil-free gel moisturiser with acne fighting properties, perfect for oily and acne-prone skin like the rest of the range. I find it to be very hydrating and not greasy in the slightest.  It is a very cold and refreshing gel that sinks in to the skin very quickly, a little bit goes a long way!  Makeup goes on so much more nicely once I have used this and I really like the way that it makes my skin feel.  This is again something I would repurchase as finding a good moisturiser is something that I really struggle with due to my awkward skin.

Overall, my skin has been a lot clearer and smoother since using this regime.  Any blemishes are cleared very quickly and it has definitely prevented anything else forming which is ideal when you are under as much stress as I am!  I think my magnitone really stole the show this month which is probably why I’m not quite as fond of the cleansing bars, but the other two products will definitely be repurchased in the future I’m sure.  The tiny sample sizes of this product have lasted me the whole 4 weeks so they are definitely worth it, and I think Sebamed are a brand that deserve a lot more recognition! Their products are very cheap and amazing quality! The whole range altogether costs around £10 for all full size products!

Have you heard of/tried these before? Let me know if you decide to try them!

Emily xx

The Sunday Edit #53

This post is up a little later today due to horrific wifi!

This week has been pretty sad really, I had 2 exams and then had to say goodbye to my friends and teachers forever! It was my last day on Friday so we all had a really soppy assembly and spent the whole afternoon taking pictures and shirt signing! I have a few pictures up on my instagram if you would like to have a look, my username is @its_little_em.  There were quite a few tears and it was really sad, but I'm glad I now have some time off to do plenty of revision, ready for the rest of my exams which resume Monday. I am having a revision free bank  holiday weekend to recover from this week and give my brain a rest so hopefully I will do a lot better when I restart on Monday afternoon.

As I am writing this, I am waiting for my fake tan to soak in before I go and wash it off in a bit as we are going out tonight.  We are having a celebratory meal for me leaving school and will be partying most of the night so I am getting ready for that which I am quite looking forward to.  I might try and get some pictures and maybe do an ootn for you, though I feel a little awkward taking outfit pictures in public! Does anyone else have this problem or is it just me being weird? It's a reason why there are so few fashion posts on my blog, I just feel awkward doing it!

Anyways, nothing exciting is happening at the moment, so all thats left to say is I hope you all have a lovely bank holiday weekend and if you are at school, have a lovely half term!

Emily xx

Little Beauty Haul

You know me, I just cannot control myself when I go shopping and more often than not, I leave with a few bits and pieces.  I certainly don't need them, but I somehow convince myself that I do because 'I can do a blog post on it at some point'.  Most of the products I buy do not ever get a mention on here so really I will use any excuse to buy more stuff.  Anyways, I have a few bits and pieces that have been building up recently that I thought I would share with you and get your thoughts on!

The first product is actually something I won from Alexandra at Glam O'Clock.  I received the Makeup Revolution I <3 Makeup Go! Palette in the post on Saturday, and I have to say that I am really impressed so far! This palette comes with 6 eyeshadows (all naked 3 dupes by the way) plus a bronzer, a blush and a highlight which I also believe are dupes of one of the naked flushed palettes, but more on that when I do a full review of this when I've given everything a good go.  On first impressions, the texture and pigmentation of these powders are amazing! I generally find fault with most powder products from the drugstore, so I was pleasantly surprised with these and I have been using the face products ever since I got it.  I will be trying the eyeshadows out very soon so watch this space!

Next, I made a little splurge last weekend.  If you read 'The Sunday Edit #51', you will have seen that I wrote about how down I was feeling and I just didn't really feel myself with all of the stress that I am going through, so what better way of cheering myself up by spending an obscene amount of money on one product! I raved about the Benefit Roller Lash Mascara when I first tried the sample size a few months ago, and as the sample was coming to an end and my Maybelline Lash Sensational was on its last legs, I panicked.  Desperate times call for desperate measures! I did have a voucher though so I didn't pay full price so I suppose that makes it ok........oh well, I have a full review of this product already up here if you would like to know more about it, though I expect you are all sick to death of hearing about it now!

Next I picked up a few little bits from Asda last night (well Monday depending on when this goes up)   because late night shopping is my weakness. I was tired after sitting a 2 hour english paper and really didn't even think about what I was doing, just grabbing things that caught my eye! The first thing I picked up completely randomly was the Garnier Fresh Essentials Hydrating Day Cream for normal/combination skin.  I don't think I've ever heard anyone talk about this before, and I thought it looked good for only £3. I've used it twice since I got it and it does seem very hydrating which makes my makeup sit a lot nicer, so far so good!
Next I picked up the Rimmel London Exaggerate Lip Liner in Easton Snob. I've heard the world and it's mother talking about the fact that this is a dupe for Charlotte Tilbury's Lip Cheat in Pillow Talk and has been on my wishlist for a while so I thought it was about time I gave it a go.  As you can see from the swatch, its a deep, muted, rose pink which is slightly kylie jenner-esque.  The formulation is smooth and creamy and it seems to be fairly long lasting from what I have seen so far.  Definitely a staple lip product for me as I love a good pink lip!
Lastly, I picked up the Collection Eyes Uncovered Palette in Nude as I had seen so man talking about these and it seemed the perfect little palette for travelling.  These shadows are very pigmented and very smooth and buttery and easy to blend so they are perfect for all kinds of looks.  Full review coming soon!

Keep an eye out for some more in depth posts on these products! Which are your favourites from this haul?/what are your thoughts?

Emily xx