Cute but Spooky : Eye Nail Art

As its getting closer and closer to Halloween, I thought I'd share with you one of my favourite nail 'looks'! I love doing this as its so simple but looks super cool, I wear this nail art pretty often, but I thought it'd be perfect for this time of year as they are kinda creepy, but very cute! 

Lets get started!

What you'll need:

Nail polish for your base colour - I chose grey

Nail polish for an eye - I chose this light turquoise 

Clear top coat

Nail art pens - black and white

Dotting tool or cocktail stick 

A cuticle pusher (optional)

 The brand of polish doesn't matter, both the grey and turquoise I used are from primary, but you can use whichever ones you already have! Also you can pick any colour! I wanted a quite plain base and realistic eye colour, but you could easily go for a bright pink base or to be extra holloweeny, you could do a red eye! If you don't have nail art pens, you can go for just the black and white polish, and use your dotting tool or even a toothpick or wooden cocktail stick, and the cuticle pusher is optional.

Step 1

First of all, if you choose to do so, push your cuticles back on the nails which are going to have the eye on. I did this just so i get a clean edge, but you don't have to do this step if you don't want to. Then start by painting your nails in your chosen base colour, but leave an oval, eye shaped patch on your nails clean. 

Step 2

Next, go in and paint this space white. This doesn't have to be neat as we will be outlining it in black. I used my pen but if you aren't using one of these, use your dotter or stick!

Step 3

Then, using your dotting tool, draw out a large circle in the middle of your white space. This will make the coloured part of the eye. Make this as big or small as you want, but remember that you'll be adding the black pupil so you need enough room for that.

Step 4

Next, add your black pupil. I used my black nail polish pen, but if you aren't using one of these, use your dotter or stick.   

Step 5

Now for the trickiest part! Carefully outline your whole eye using your black pen or tool. Go around both the top and bottom of your nail. This is why I pushed my cuticle back, so that I have a cleaner edge to this step. Once it is outlined, add as many eyelashes as you like! Do this by drawing slim, short lines coming from the eye.

Finished!

And you're done! Add a clear top coat to seal everything in so it lasts longer and looks more shiny! I only did one eye per hand, however, feel free to do as many as you like! 

For Halloween, the creepier the better! So why not try a green background and a bright red eye? If you do this nail look, please send me your finished photo! I'd love to see your creations!

Tea Tree & Witch Hazel Jelly Moisturiser : My New Favourite Moisturiser

I have been a fan of Boot's Tea Tree and Witch Hazel skin care range for a while and recently, when going to buy some more of their Foaming Face Wash, I came across their new products in the range. These new products have the same great formula but are infused with an extract of cranberry. 

A selection of the whole range.

There is already the classic products, including foaming and exfoliating face washes, cleaners, pore strips and more; all of which, I have tried and love! Last year, they released more which had active clay added to the formula; which I tried an wasn't that impressed with, and now there are 3 new berry products, with more to be in stores soon.

 I was immediately drawn to the Jelly Moisturiser as it is the first moisturiser that I have seen in the range. And I have to say that I am extremely impressed! The moisturiser is described as a jelly but I would say its more of a gel. The packaging also claims to give long lasting shine control for up to 12 hours, therefore it could potentially be used as a primer type moisturiser, however I have never tried it this way yet. When you initially put it on, it doesn't really feel like it would be doing much good at all, it has a very different feel to normal cream moisturisers.

The two newer formulas - active charcoal and berry.

I used it (and continue to use it) on a night time after I have removed my makeup and washed my face. I have naturally dry and sensitive skin, and on a morning I often have noticeable dry patches of skin on my cheeks and chin, however, the first morning after using this moisturiser, my skin was perfect! No dry patches, no redness from the sensitivity and no breaking out from using a new product! I was amazed! I have now had this product for about a week and I still love it! It has pretty much cleared up my dry skin! Even my boyfriend now uses it too! 

Could be my new favourite?!

The packaging of the product has an unusual pump, which I really like as its something a bit different, and has the same type logo and colours as the rest of the range. To use this moisturiser, all you do is press down on the pump and a donut of moisturiser appears! Obviously, the more you press, the more product comes out. I find that it releases just slightly more than the perfect amount with one whole press, therefore I press to just before all the way down. 

The unusual pump and 'donut' of jelly!

The whole range contains tea tree oil which has anti bacterial properties, therefore is often used to get rid of, and keep spots at bay, and also witch hazel which is used to calm the skin, leaving it looking less red and sensitive. I currently use a mix of lots of products in this range and they are definitely my favourite things to use on my face! I use the foaming face wash, the exfoliating face scrub, the peel off face mask, the cleansing and toning lotion and sometimes the pore strips. But I have used loads of their other products in the past. 

Some good old classics.

I really do urge you to try this range, but especially this jelly moisturiser as it is perfect for my dry sensitive skin, but would also be great for a more oily type skin too! Find the range at all boots stores in the UK.

Kylie Cosmetics Lip Kit Dupes

The Kylie Lip Kits are massive right now, but unfortunately there extremely hard to get your hands on! They sell out in minutes and getting them shipped to the UK is quite expensive! Lots of companies are bringing out similar shades as the matte nude lip trend is taking the world by storm! 

Unfortunately when I've been looking online to find dupes, I've found millions or American products, but not many are easy to bet your hand on, here in the UK. So I have been out and found UK based high street products, all under £7, which are extremely similar and really good dupes for 6 of the Kylie Matte Lip Kit collection!

I have compared a lot of photos of swatches online and found these copies. As I don't actually own any of the mattes myself, I can't be certain that they are exactly the same, however they are very similar in photos and all look really nice either way! 

Firstly, I have a dupe for the shade Candy K. This shade is described online as a soft warm nude, and on photos it does have a pinkish hue. The shade I have for this colour is Sleek's Matte Me liquid lipstick in 'Birthday Suit'. This has the same matte type formula, which dries in about a minute and is very long lasting without drying out the lips. You can get this for £4.99 in both Superdrug and Boots, and it is currently on buy one get one half price in Boots. Click here! 

Candy K Dupe

Next, I have a dupe for one of Kylie's newest shades. Its for Exposed, which is described as a light cool toned nude. This dupe is NYX's Lingerie Lipstick in 'Push Up'. I really like NYX for lip products and have worn all the colours mentioned in this blog posts for whole days and they are extremely long wearing and matte. Again, its £6.50 from Boots.

Dolce Dupe

The next dupes are for Dolce K, this is described as a medium beige-nude. There is 3 dupes I have found for this colour, two are by NYX; one is the Liquid Suede Cream Lipstick in the shade 'Sandstorm' here. This formula is slightly not as matte as the Kylie formula, however is still is very matte and is a very similar shade. The other NYX dupe is the Lip Lingerie Lipstick in 'Ruffle trim'  for £6.50, here. And another dupe is the Luxe Velvet Lip Laquer by MUA. This is only £3 and can be bought in Superdrug, click here.

Exposed Dupe

The next is for True Brown, which is described as a deep chocolate brown. This looks like a shade which would be really easy to match with as its just brown, however it has a very unique shade. Fortunately, NYX again have a shade which is very similar. 'Teddy' in the Lingerie Lipstick is a really similar shade for only £6.50, here.

True Brown Dupe

Kourt K, a deep purple shade, is very easy to match. I have included 2 of my favourites in this blog post, however there is many more which can easily be found. The first is NYX's Soft Matte Lip Cream in 'Transylvania'. I love this product! It is a very similar formula to the Kylie Lip Kits and also has a very similar vanilla cupcake scent. This product is £5.50 from Boots. The next dupe I have found is MUA Luxe Velvet Lip Lacquer in the shade 'Kooky' this is slightly more purple than the other one, however it is still quite similar. It is £3 from Superdrug.

Kourt K Dupes

Finally, I have two dupes for the shade Posie K.This shade is a dusty mauve pink. I have firstly a NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in 'Istanbul', this is a really nice shade, I love it! It is £5.50 at Boots. And the next dupe is Collection's Cream Puff Lip Cream in 'Cotton Candy'. This is one of my favourite products too, and is extremely similar to the NYX one too. This product is sometime hard to get a hold of, but It is currently in stock in Boots for £2.99, here.

Rosie K Dupe

Kylie Metal Matte Lip Kits - Review

You’ve probably all heard of Kylie Jenner’s lip kits, they are spoken about all over! Everyone has one, or everyone is waiting to order one in the next batch (which is due this weekend with 2 new blue toned shades ready for the 4th July celebrations in America!) I have seen nothing but good reviews for the original matte shades and I’ve have been loving the look of her new metallic shades. 

So when I was sent 2 of the Metal Matte lip kits, I say kits, but these metallic ones actually just come on their own - without the matching lip liners, I was extremely excited to try them out. 

The Metal Matte collection have the same formula as the matte kits, therefore have long-lasting wear with a very creamy feel. They don't dry out the lips like other matte liquid lipsticks do, and of course, they have a very bold and high impact metallic colour. I was sent 2 out of the 4 shades, Heir and Reign. See the full range here.

Reign is probably my favourite. Its a brown/bronze colour with a hint of red. Obviously this colour is dark, so its probably not a everyday wearable shade for us girls with pale skin, but for a night out or a festival where you want a cold look, its perfect. And for those of you with darker skin, this shade could be worn everyday and on a night out depending on what you're into. 

The second one I was sent was Heir. This shade is a light pink/nude/goldy colour, almost like a rose gold but slightly lighter. From what I had seen online, this is the most wearable shade from the collection, however I disagree on my skin tone. Personally this colour makes me look slightly washed out, however I have seen it on other people and it looks great. This shade is a wearable shade for people with a darker or warmer skin tone as me, I would say. The swatch looks great but its a bit disappointing when I put it on my lips. 

The metallic liquid lipsticks are currently only sold online on Kylie’s Cosmetic website (as with all of her other shades) which you can get to by clicking here. As usual, they're all sold out, however, if you follow Kylie on any of her social media, she keeps everyone updated with when they're restocked and everything. They sell for $18 which is about £12. However there is then shipping to add on and also if you're outside of the USA, there is also import taxes, so the lip kits do end up being around £30-40, or so I’ve heard. 

Swatches of Reign and Heir

There is a few high street companies which are jumping on the metallic band wagon and are bringing out similar shades for a tiny fraction of the price. Currently the only one I have seen in the UK hughstreet is the MUA Luxe Metallic Liquid Lipstick, which is £4, sold in Superdrug (on sale for £2 at the moment!) The shade Blaze is a red/bronze colour so is similar to Reign, here. And there other similar shades in the MUA collection also, including a shimmery black, which is close to the newest in Kylie’s collection, here. 

If you're wanting to find some hightstreet dupes for the matte lip kits, here in the UK, I have a blog post coming up in the next few days showing you similar shades, all under £7! Keep a look out on my social pages and also here! 

Mac Foundations: NC vs. NW

If you have ever stepped foot in a MAC store, you'll know what there are literally hundreds of shades of foundation, and its hard to find the right one! Yes, there are people who work there who can help, but in a busy shop when you're in a rush and a little bit flustered because theres so much going on, it helps if you can kind of pick your own!

I have worked out what the codes mean and what shades are best suited to me, so I have put together this little guide, to help you choose your right shade too!

NW13 and NC15

Mac has a system which is the opposite to most other foundation/makeup brands. This can be kind of confusing, but once you know it, its obviously a lot easier! 

NC = Neutrally Cool - yellower shades

NW = Neutrally Warm - pinker tones

So yellow/olive tones in a Mac foundation is apparently a cool shade, which is the opposite to other foundation brands. And pinker tones are apparently warmer, which again is the opposite.

So now that you have an idea on which tone you need, theres the numbers that you need to work out. These are a lot easier! The numbers will usually start off at 15 and go up to 55 (but can start at 10 and go up higher, depending on which foundation formula you choose and how big the store is) in increments of 5. So 15, 20, 25, 30 etc etc. 

However, there are numbers which aren't in this pattern, for example a 13 or 18. These are similar to the nearest number, but a bit more of a neutral tone. So NW13 is a very similar shade to NC15 (a yellow toned foundation), but with a bit more pink added to make it more neutral. 

I'll show you an example here with my 2 Mac foundations. I am using the Studio Fix Fluid, but this is relatively the same with most of the other Mac foundation formulas. I have a neutral/yellow tone to my skin. Meaning when I am not tanned, I'm neutral, neither yellow or pink, just in between. But when I am slightly or more tanned, I have a more yellow tone to my skin. Therefore I use these 2 foundations depending on if I have been in the sun or not! 

I was first matched to NC15 in the summer, therefore I was a bit tanned, meaning I was more yellow toned. This shade was perfect for me, but when I started becoming a bit paler, I started realising that the foundation wasn't necessarily too dark for me, but it was too yellow. Making me look orange. I went back to get another one and was matched to NW13, which is roughly the same colour, but more neutral so I wouldn't look too orange. 

I was temped to get the NW10, as I thought the difference between 13 and 15 wouldn't be a lot, however NW10, with ending in a 0 or 5 (as mentioned before) would have been far too pink for me. Therefore the more neutral 13 suited my skin a lot better. 

Understand? Hopefully this post has been helpful to you first time Mac users. Any more questions about shades and tones? Just ask below! I'll get back to you as soon as I can to help with your foundation queries! 

Good luck buying yourself some foundation! You'll love it! If you struggle in store, just ask someone to help, and if you decide when you're home that you've come away with the wrong colour, just remember that Mac has a policy in which you can return any of their products, providing you have a receipt and either get a refund or a different product! 

Asarii Vanilla Pod Mud Masks *

Recently I was sent the Asarii Vanilla Pod Mud Mask and I am very happy with it! 

Asarii is a UK based beauty, health and skincare brand specialising in mud masks, using natural and healthy ingredients, which are gluten free and vegan safe, which not only moisturise but detoxify and clear your skin.

Asarii currently have three different flavour masks, the Vanilla Pod, which gives a high quality facial cleanse with moisturing properties, made for sensitive skin. The Chocolate mud mask reinvigorates tired skin and is the best for combination to normal skin, and the newest flavour, Green Tea, which tackles blemishes and oily skin!

Click here to find your perfect mask! 

After using my mask, my skin felt very soft and it did seem brighter! I have extremely dry skin and it did help in some areas, however I don't find it to be as moisturising as it promised. But I still did love using it! The scent of the mask is exactly like vanilla ice cream so I do want to eat it! 

The mud masks are recommended to use 2-3 times a week, for about 15 minutes each time! After a few weeks of doing this routine, you should see a difference in your skin! Simply apply a thin and even layer of the mask and relax! Its made to not dry hard on the skin, so this product is really easy to take off unlike some face masks! 

Remember to post your #asariiselfie on instagram! And tag @asarii_uk !

The pots you get are supposed to last 1 month, and there is an option when buying online  to do a 'subscription and save' which means that you are automatically send one very month, at a discounted price! All masks are £21.99, and postage to the UK is only £1.99, delivery to the rest of the world varies by location! 

Check out Asarii's website here! 

My Top 5 Drugstore Makeup Primers

Hello! I never used to use primer when doing my makeup, but once on a shopping trip a year ago or so, I decided to pick one up and test it out. Since then I have been hooked! I have never put on any makeup without using a primer since then. I have tested out a fair few primers and have came up with a list of my 5 favourite, all from the drug store!

If you aren't too sure what a primer is or how you'd use one, basically it's a product that you use right after any skin care items, and before putting on any makeup. Its primes the skin. Primers come in all different types; some moisturise, some will help to keep the face matte and some help your skin stay clear as they provide a barrier between your pores and the makeup; and usually all of them will try to help your makeup last longer.

So for example, on a morning, I will cleanse my face, then wash and exfoliate it as I have been having very dry skin lately. I then sometimes moisturise I prefer night time moisturisers so I don't always use a day time one) I then use a primer, wait for it to sink in and then put on my makeup. If I'm not wearing makeup that day, I will still usually put on a primer as they keep my face matte without drying my skin out, and also I

 just like them! 

Witch Anti-Blemish Skin Clearing Primer

I'll start by telling you the one I like best but is very hard to find. Its the Witch Skin Clearing Primer. I have reviewed this product before, which you can read here.

I am unsure as to whether this primer is still being sold or if its still being made, as you can sometimes find it in stores and sometimes its like it never existed! Also, every time it does come back into shops, its a different price. I have bought it for £6.99 one month and the next time I went to purchase it, its been 80p. I've just ran out and I have my fingers crossed that it'll come back soon!

This primer certainly does everything it claims! It provides an invisible barrier on the face when used, which is very mustering without leaving my skin shiny. It also stops breakouts of spots almost completely! Its like a miracle product. Read a full review of this product further back in my blog, or click the link above. 

Philosophy the present

My next favourite is Philosophy's the present. I am unsure as to if this actually counts as 'drug store / highstreet product' as I see it as a more luxury brand (that might just be me though) however, I bought this is Boots, which is definitely a high street store!  This product claims to even out fine lines, wrinkles and pores leaving the skin smooth and makeup looking flawless. Before buying this, I did a lot of research on it as its a bit more expensive as I'd usually buy, at £22, however I was extremely impressed at what everyone had been writing about it so the next day, I went out and bought it! 

This primer definitely helps my makeup last longer! I used it at about 9 in the morning and my makeup was still almost perfect looking at 9pm! I am unsure about if it does even out fine lines and wrinkles as I wouldn't say I have too many of those, but it does keep my skin from looking dry and my makeup does look great while using it. Once its on, you do have to wait 2-3 minutes for it to sink into the skin and for it to become less sticky, before using makeup but its worth it. Its also infused with lavender oil which is known to have antibacterial and antiseptic properties which is supposed to help with the skins condition, however the smell is quite strong so if you don't like lavender or are allergic to it, I'd stay clear.

£22 - Boots, online or instore - click here

Nivea Express Hydration Primer

This is my favourite for when my skin is looking extra dry! I'd say its on parr with the Philosophy primer in my opinion, but for different reasons. I have dry patches over my cheeks and on my nose sometimes which can show up when I'm wearing foundation, but this product stops that completely! It absorbs almost immediately into the skin and it helps my makeup to glide on really easily. My makeup looks great when I use it and even though it is mainly for moisturising, it doesn't leave my face looking oily or wet and it does help makeup stay on for longer. I also really like how cheap it is! If you like Nivea products then I definitely recommend this primer. 

£4.99 - Superdrug/Boots, online and instore - click here

MUA Matte Perfect Primer

This is my favourite to use when I'm going on a night out or to a party etc. I don't really like using it throughout the day though. The MUA Matte Perfect primer is used mainly to control and reduce shine, therefore keeping your face matte. When using this, I tend to only use it where I get oily as it can make my makeup look heavier than it actually is, but not in a cake way. I use quite sheer foundations, but when you use this product, it becomes full coverage. Maybe this is because this primer has a tint to it so it does provide a bit of extra coverage than maybe I'm used to. However, I do like this product as it definitely keep your face matte, which is what it claims to do. It doesn't make my dry patches more prominent which sometimes matte products do too. Its also the cheapest primer I've found so is good if you're on a budget! 

£4 - Superdrug, online and instore - click here

Collection Primed and Ready

My last favourite is Collection's Primed and Ready Soothing Makeup Primer. This primer is the first one I have every tried, and the one which has the best looking packaging in my opinion!! This primer is really good short term, however it doesn't help makeup last a long time. But for the first few hours of using it, your makeup will look a million dollars! After then it can start to make my skin look a bit dry and patchy. It helps makeup glide on for an easier application and it does reduce pores and fine lines. My favourite thing about this primer is its feel! It is kind of a gel, which when rubs in almost completely disappears to feeling like nothing which is a really interesting thing to put on! When I use this I alway put a bit extra on my hand just to play with! (Thats probably really weird, but if you go out and test this, you'll see what I mean!)

£5.99 - Boots/Superdrug, online and instore - click here

Hope this post helps you in some way! Each of these primers are amazing in different ways and I hope you find one which works great for you! Once you start to use a primer, you'll never go back to wearing makeup without it - its addictive! 

Let me know some of your favourites! :) 

P.S. my next few posts will be holiday related as I'm going to Fuerteventura in June! Expect some summery clothing hauls and a lookbook or two! :))))

Burberry Kisses *

I was kindly nominated to receive two different shades of Burberry Kisses, Burberry's new buildable and hydrating lipstick. I was really impressed with the samples so I just had to blog about it! 

This spring, Burberry has introduced a new collection of lipsticks, Burberry Kisses. The collection has 28 shades of moisturising but buildable lipsticks which allow you to choose the intensity of colour on your lips as well as giving you up to six hours of hydration. The formula is enriched with lavender, green tea and rosehip extracts which give the lipsticks a really natural smell and very lightweight feel on the lips. 

Firstly, the lipstick samples came packaged in a white box, which when opened, showed all the different samples and your boxed lipstick. The lipstick itself is then boxed in a textured cream box which tells you your sample shade. And then the lipstick is in Burberry's typical packaging, a dark metallic silver magnetic box (I don't know what you'd call the outside of a lipstick? haha) with their brands usual check pattern, on both the box and the lipstick bullet. I reeeaaally like how it was all put together! 

 I received the shades 'Sepia No. 85' and 'Nude Pink No. 05' which are both quite natural pink toned colours. The 'Sepia' one is more of a darker pink, but on the lips gives that "your lips but better" kind of colour. I really like this one! And the 'Nude Pink' is a pale pinky tone which when on looks like a tinted lip gloss, but less glossy, if that makes any sense! It reminds me of a Kylie Jenner type nudey-pink tone.

When on, the lipsticks feel like a lip balm. I really like this as it doesn't feel heavy or sticky but still look like a lipstick. I was also a bit sceptical about whether they are actually bulidable as I thought they may be a bit too sheer, but they are! My darker shade (Sepia No.85)  is definitely buildable, in which it looks like a tinted lip balm with one coat, and a full on lipstick with 3 coats. I love the look of it when I have 3 coats! And the lighter one (Nude Pink No.05)  is less buildable, but still is. I find that it looks sheer, and sticks to the dryer parts of my lips, however with more than one coat, it starts to look really nice. 

Burberry Kisses are available online here, aswell as in stores now. They are £25 each with free shipping and returns to the UK. They are also available in certain department stores such as selected Debenhams and Fenwicks. 

Henna Patterns

A few weeks ago, in a post, I showed a picture of some recent henna I had done and since I have had a few requests to make a blog post all about my henna, so here it is! Its going to be an image based post mainly, just so you can see what I like to do, but I will add in a few little bits of info here and there! Enjoy! :)

(Also, I'd like to say that I am in no way trying to turn Indian culture into a fashion statement or anything. I am not trying to offend anyone and I don't want any arguments about cultural appropriation in my comments. I simply find the traditional henna patterns beautiful and really enjoy doing it.)

I buy my henna from a user on Ebay who makes all her henna fresh. I also always get natural brown henna. 

There are two types of henna; black henna and brown/natural henna. Black henna has chemicals in to give it a dark black colour and also to make it last longer. This is the type which you hear horror stories about, people can have severe allergic reactions to black henna, which in turn can cause them to have reactions to hair dye and cause blisters and stuff. Brown/natural henna is made from henna powder (made from a plant) which is them mixed with essential oils (such as tea tree), sugar and lemon juice. People don't really have allergic reactions to this as it is all natural, unless of course they are allergic to sugar etc…

I did this one on my friend Rachael for one of her belly dancing shows. 

Here's the seller I get it from. She always has a special offer on, which is you get a free cone of henna for every one you buy. So if you buy 2, you get 2 free and so on.

Ebay Username : henna-art

On my friend Megan

To make up my patterns, I look images up on google to find inspiration. I don't copy directly from them though. I like to use parts of lots of different images and join them together. I draw them on the skin using a felt tip and then simply go over it in henna when I'm happy with it!

Huge rose on my sister! Love this one!

Cute little symbols are nice to do too!

Once the henna is applied to the skin, its name changes to mehndi. All the traditional patterns, from the simple paisley and swirly ones, to the mandalas and suns all have different meanings. They are all about happiness and finding inner light etc. Just google it to find their proper meanings, they are all so pretty! 

Sun and moon on my sister's thigh

Instead of doing work, just do henna ;)

Giant paisley piece on my sister!

Even just simple dots are cute!

Henna once on, will last around a week to 10 days. After you've put it on the skin, leave it to dry for at least two hours. It takes time as it needs to dye the skin. Then, if you want it darker, wrap you hand, or whatever its on, in cling film. This will trap in the heat, causing it to dye more. The hotter and longer its stays on, the darker and longer it will last!

Sorry about the image quality. They were all taken on my phone, then put on instragram, and then were put onto this post! If you'd like to know anything else about henna/mehndi just ask!