December Favourites

2016 may be so last year but before we get too focused on the excitement of the new year, it is time to go back and look at my favourites from the month of December. From a month of constant festivities, expect a lot of glitter…

Starting with the more sparkly additions in my stash lately that have been the front of my makeup routine in December, Mac pigments are always my favourite products to bring out for any sort of party season! I am always super excited about the limited edition Mac holiday pigment sets that are released each year and this year was no different. this time around I picked up the Bronze set. The set includes three pigments and one glitter in a range of gorgeous bronze-y shades. They create such an impact on the eyes and have such a gorgeous finish. My favourites are Stardream, and Handsome Prince. For Christmas, I also I added to my pigment collection with the addition of Kitschmas which is totally different to anything else I own. It is a gorgeous pearly shimmering pink! Only a recent addition but still one I am already loving!

Continuing with eye makeup, there has also been a new mascara love recently! To help achieve thick voluminous lashes perfect for the party season, Charlotte Tilbury Legendary Lashes has proved to be a winner. This mascara is responsible for creating a full on look of thickened and lengthened lashes! The only issue with this mascara is that as the formula is pretty wet it does smudge easy which is a pain but the impact it creates makes it worth it!

To create the ultimate party look, I can’t be without a good highlight. Becca is my go-to highlighter brand and I knew before trying the Moonstone Shimmering Skin Perfector that I would love it and of course I did! I love liquid highlighters as they create such a gorgeous natural but glowy look. This shade works perfectly too with my pale skin!

On to lip products, I was super excited to see that Jeffree Star is now stocked on Beauty Bay making it really accessible in the UK! I picked up two of the liquid lipsticks in the shades Doll Parts and Gemini. The two shades are so gorgeous and super wearable, Doll Parts in particular is a shade I’ve wanted for so long. The formula is also easy and comfortable to wear! The shade range for the collection is impressive so these definitely won’t be my last liquid lipsticks from the brand!

Lastly, I mentioned this in my Beauty discoveries from 2016 post here, which already says a lot about this product! It is of course the By Terry Baume De Rose Lip Gloss. I wanted to try this for the longest time and I am now so happy I have. It is such a lovely moisturising balm with a pretty light pink sheen. The perfect no-makeup makeup!

What beauty products have you been loving lately?

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The Christmas Party Makeup

It’s the season of red lips and glitter, my favourite! I had a Christmas party last weekend so thought I was the perfect excuse to show some of my top picks for the party season. Expect the standard cliché red lips, glitter and lots of highlighter!

In terms of base, I like to go for something I can trust to be long wearing and provide the coverage! Of course I opted for my trusty Nars Sheer Glow along with my usual concealer combo of the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer and Mac Prep + Prime highlighter in Light Boost. To top it off, I applied a light layer of the Chanel Les Beiges powder to keep things in place!

To add more warmth to my skin, I bronzed up with the Too Faced Sweethearts bronzer which I love! I then added more definition with the Kevin Aucoin sculpting powder and topped it off with a lot of the Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed highlighter in Pearl because if you can’t have go overboard with highlighter at Christmas, when can you!?

For eyes, the Mac pigments came out to play! I picked up the Bronze set from holiday collection, using the a combination of both Stardream and Handsome Prince. Of course I added some liner using my favourite Kat Von D Tattoo Liner. I finished my eyes with the Make Up For Ever Smoky Extravagant mascara.

Finally, I obviously finished with some red lips for the ultimate Christmas party look using Mac Russian Red.

What are your party picks?

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Things To Do This Christmas

This time of year is my favourite, not just because of the big day itself on the 25th but also the excitement of the run up til Christmas when there is just so much going on! Whilst I may not be concerned on all things festive just yet with exams on the horizon (just a few more days to go til its all over!!), I do love spending time doing Christmas-y things. So I have made a list of some of my favourite things to do around this time of year, both big and small to help get you in the festive spirit!

• Make a Christmas play-list with all your favourite Christmas songs (I personally cannot wait to do this!)
• Do some Christmas baking, mince pies or maybe some gingerbread men?
• Try out a Christmas drink from a coffee shop, I personally love the Starbucks Gingerbread Latte and Frappuccino!
• Tackle the Christmas shopping!
• Visit a Christmas market!
• Treat yourself to a limited edition holiday beauty product! (I love the Nars products!)
• Burn your favourite Christmas candle, I love The White Company Winter candle!
• Decorate your home!
• Stock up on Christmas Lush goodies (see my picks here!)
• Have a Christmas movie night!
• Get all the glitter out cause… IT’S CHRISTMAS!

What do you like to do at this time of year?

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December Goals

The last month of the year is officially here. December has begun which means advent (yum!), Christmas (obviously!) and of course the end of 2016 meaning one last month of goals before the new years resolutions, oh yes the dreaded resolutions! So for the last time in 2016, here is my monthly goals to end this year on a high (hopefully!)…

• Complete my instagram challenge (more on this here)
• Keep spending to a minimum (needed after Black Friday!) – until Boxing Day!
• Study hard and do my best during my exams
• Enjoy the Christmas period!

What do you want to achieve in the final month of 2016?

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Life Lately #11

Happy Black Friday everyone and hope all you US gals and guys had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I swear over the last couple of years Black Friday has transformed from being a one day event to a whole weekend to now an entire week of sales, crazy! So having said that, I have already made a couple of splurges, treat yo self and all that! However I did the smart thing and am trying to stick to items that have been on my wishlist for a while rather than impulse buying! So I have already bought a couple of things from All Saints with their amazing 30% off offer and also I picked up a couple of items from my Holiday Beauty Wishlist on ASOS! I also hope to get my Christmas shopping done or most of it by Monday by taking advantage of all the discounts available!

Life 

Other than crazy amounts of shopping, I have also been finishing up on uni work with my last couple of weeks of the semester. That of course means exams are looming so my December will be pretty hectic with studying towards that so my festive excitement may have to take a back step for the time being! Hopefully my blogging schedule won’t be affected but I can’t predict the future so apologies in advance if I do miss a post!It’s crazy to think that December is starting next week and is of course the last month of 2016, how insane! I am super excited though to get all festive and in the Christmas spirit!

In other news, as you can see above I did a little phone upgrade to the iPhone 7. I wasn’t ridiculously fussed over the new model but I am very much a loyal iPhone user so it was natural progression. I got the rose gold shade, obviously, and it is super beautiful! In my opinion, not much different from the 6 model but the design is super pretty although the whole no headphone jack situation is rather frustrating!

Blogging 

One of my goals for this month was to get back into Instagram! Whilst I left it a little late I have been back on! So my return to Instagram is official! To make it even more official, I thought I would do a little instagram challenge and post everyday from the 1st December until the 24th. Like Insta-mas rather than blogmas, nice! So of course don’t forget to follow me to catch my other content here (styledbylaurenblog).

TV/Music 

In terms of TV, I haven’t been watching much! In the UK, I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here is back on TV so I’ve dedicating my evenings to that! I am definitely a wimp when it comes to bugs and that kind of thing but I love the show! Also, I have started watching the Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt which stars Ellie Kemper who of course played Erin in The Office. I am only a few episodes into the first season however it is already such an easy pleasant watch!

In terms of music, I haven’t quite got into the Christmas tunes yet (speaking of which I have surprisingly not heard much anyway!). There has been quite a few catchy songs released at the moment that I am really enjoying. I am really liking the debut tune from Noah Cyrus and also the song Rockbye is super catchy and always played on the radio! I’ve been a fan of Gabrielle Aplin for a while so was nice to hear her new release which is rather different but again ridiculously catchy, love it! To break away from listening to the same pop songs again and again, I started listening to Catfish and the Bottlemen who I am already obsessed with! Their album ‘The Ride’ is just too good!

Catch up with November posts: Nars Lip Pencil collection, Urban Decay Ultimate Basics Palette, The Repurchase List, How to get Inspired in Blogging Again, Lush Christmas Haul and Holiday Beauty Wishlist.

How have you spent your November?

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The Holiday Beauty Wishlist

Whilst this time of year is super exciting for buying gifts for your close ones and all the festive treats, it is also nice to give yourself a little treat! Being a beauty lover, I get so hyped for the holiday season as all the holiday Christmas collections and gift sets are released! That means little sets which can help save extra pennies in your pocket and also new limited edition collections. Of course you can’t beat festive beauty with sparkly gold eye-shadows and red lip products! With loads of new releases and gift sets available, I thought I would share what is on my list to pick up this year which may also give you a little hint for yourself or if you are picking up a gift for a makeup enthusiast!

Last year, I picked up a mini set from Becca containing two of their popular highlighters in the Opal shade. This year they have brought it back in the same format with a mini liquid highlighter and mini powder version however this time around it is in the Moonstone shade which I have never tried. As you may know I am a huge fan of the Becca highlighters so this little set retailing for £20 is such a steal and I can’t wait to try out this beautiful shade!

I’ve always wanted to try the cult By Terry Baume De Rose lip balm but it is a pricey purchase! However luckily they have released a special festive edition in a lip gloss form. Retailing at £20 it is pricey but still a fraction of the original price and gives you a little trial of the ever so popular balm!

Moving on to Nars, one of my favourite beauty brands who always deliver such a great range over the festive period. This year was no different! The collection this year focuses around Sarah Moon and her photography work which features on the packaging. Whilst there is a great set of gift sets available, I am all about the colour collection. I have two products on my list, the first being this gorgeous matte nude lipstick which looks like my perfect shade! The other is an eyeshadow duo in the shade Quai Des Brumes which features two gorgeous shades with a shimmery lavender-grey and a charcoal grey with specks of shimmer. The two duos available are both gorgeous although I do prefer this one for its smoky look!

Lastly, Jouer have released a trio of their popular liquid lipsticks in three winter appropriate shades! Retailing at £31.50, this trio is near enough buy one get one free and offers three beautiful colours! There is a gorgeous cranberry red, a pink-y nude and an intense shimmery burgundy which I would love to try out! This set will have your winter lip wardrobe sorted and for that reason I may just have to pick this up!

What’s on your holiday beauty wishlist?

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The Best Holiday Beauty Buys

We are well and truly in the swing of all things Christmas now! With the countdown fully on (3 weeks to go!!!) its time to get that party outfit sorted and of course make sure all the Christmas shopping is done. I truly love this time of year when it comes to beauty products as there is so many great deals but also those lust worthy limited edition gift sets that obviously make a great gift but are also a pretty good gift to yourself too! I couldn’t hold myself back this year and picked up a few Christmas beauty products that are a great way of trying products out without the commitment of a full size. There is a million gift guides out there but I thought I would share some of the best beauty holiday sets that would make the perfect gift for a beauty lover or maybe just yourself!

MAC never fail to disappoint at this time of year with their Festive collections. With brush kits, lip-gloss sets and mini palettes there is so much to choose from. Although something I’ve always wanted to try from Mac is their pigments and I am still kicking myself for not picking up the set last year although I made up for it this year. With three pigment sets available from a blue toned set, a purple and a bronze, I went for the more wearable bronze collection that contains 3 pigments and a 1 glitter. Shimmer and sparkle is perfect for this time of year so these pigments are great for the party season. I know loose pigments are a bit intimidating but after trying one of them out I have to say there is nothing to be worried about. I didn’t find them overly messy at all, simply spraying a flat shader brush with face mist, it picks up the product so well without any fall out. I really cannot wait to get these out for Christmas and New Year although any recommendations on using the glitter as it isn’t eye safe? Anyway at £26 its a pretty good deal and a great way to try your hand at pigments!

You can also always count on Benefit to have a fab selection of gift sets at this time of year to suit every budget. I am a huge fan of Benefit and if you haven’t tried a lot of their products then their gift sets are a great way to as they contain some of the Benefit classics that everyone loves. Again I am pretty annoyed at myself for not picking up the blush set from last year but a very similar product was released this year. The Real Cheeky Party set contains 5 of their Box O’ Powders; Dandelion, Rockateur, Sugarbomb, Hoola and Coralista which is one less than last year but also has the addition of a mini Watt’s up highlighter, They’re Real eyeliner and my favourite They’re Real mascara. In terms of the powders, I have only used Hoola before hand so the set is a great way to try out some of their popular blushes as well as their gorgeous highlighter. At £29.50 with a value of over £100 it is a complete steal.

For a budget friendly stocking filler, Too Faced have released a mini version of their Better Than Sex mascara for a more affordable £10. I spoke about my thoughts on this one here but this cute little mini is a great way to try it out if like me you have desperate to see what all the hype is about.

For skincare lovers, Emma Hardie also have the perfect stocking filler, a mini of their classic moringa cleansing balm with a cleansing cloth. I have heard so much about this cleanser and have been wanting to try it out for so long but with a high price tag it hadn’t been scored off the wishlist although this is a great way to try it out especially at a very decent £10! Skincare can be pretty tricky to buy as gifts if you don’t know about how someone else’s skin is although as this is suited to all skin types it will make a perfect gift!

Apologies for mentioning this for the billionth time but I couldn’t miss another opportunity to talk about the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit. A totally gorgeous palette set with six different powders including bronzer, blush and setting powder. It is the perfect palette with everything you need in it making it great for traveling and all the powders are great quality. At £65 the value for money is pretty awful but it looks super gorgeous! Check my full review here.

Lastly, one of my favourite little holiday sets comes from Becca. Their highlighters are super popular and I’ve been longing to try them for so long so the Glow on the Go set is the perfect gift for those trying to get their highlight on ‘fleek’. The set contains a mini of their Skin Perfector Pressed in the shade Opal and their Shimmering Skin Perfector Opal in a spotlight wand. The powder is super pigmented and creamy and the liquid perfector is super dewy on the skin. At £20 it is a fab buy and great to try the Becca range out!

Have you bought any beauty Christmas gift sets this year?

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The Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Palette

Can we all just take a moment of appreciation for how damn beautiful this is! I don’t quite think I’ve seen something so gorgeous! *heart-eyed emojis everywhere* Since I seen the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Palette for the first time back in July as a little teaser of what was to come from the festive season I just knew this had to mine. After falling in love with one of the Hourglass blushes I just needed a little more Hourglass in my life and what’s a better way to try them out than this palette!? Set with three powders, two blushes and a bronzer, it is the perfect all in one palette that would be perfect for traveling and on the go. Encased in the usual gold hourglass mirrored compact with a very handy large mirror, it certainly looks the part sitting on my dressing table. So at an eye-watering £65 is it worth the buzz?

The top row includes three of the Ambient Lighting Powders; Dim Light, Iridescent Light and Diffused Light. Dim Light is the darkest of the three and is a peach-beige shade that is said to blur imperfections and highlight the complexion. Personally this shade is a little too dark as an all over setting powder on my complexion and instead works best to slightly warm up my skin. Iridescent Light is the exclusive shade to the palette and is a light pearly pink shimmery powder. This works as a gorgeous highlight shade for on the cheekbones although it does have specks of glitter running through it so probably isn’t for everyone. The last powder in the top row is the the one I’ve been waiting to try for so long and the classic blogger favourite; Diffused Light. This shade is a soft pale yellow powder that works at concealing redness. This shade is the perfect match with my skin as an all over setting powder, whilst it looks shimmery in the pan it doesn’t translate on to the skin and adds a fresh glow.

The bottom row includes the three colour powders for adding a little warmth and shade to the face. It includes two blushes; Mood Exposure and Luminous Flush. Mood Exposure is a light plum mauve shade which is the perfect natural blush tone and one I’ve had on my wish list for a while. It works perfectly with my pale complexion and adds a natural warmth to the cheeks. Luminous Flush is much brighter in comparison and is described as a ‘champagne rose’ shade. This adds a lovely flush of colour to the cheeks and a shade I think will look gorgeous during the Summer months with tanned skin. Having already used the Hourglass blush formula before I knew what to expect and wasn’t left disappointed. They are without a doubt one of the most gorgeous blushes I have ever used, the formula is super lightweight and lifts the skin by giving it a hint of colour and a soft radiant glow. The blushes have a shimmery finish but don’t appear overly shimmery or glittery on the skin at all. Last but not least, the Luminous Bronze Light also makes an appearance which is a soft shimmery bronze shade. I was never particularly interested in trying the bronzer formula but I was quite looking forward to giving it a try in this palette. The light shade works nicely with my skin and doesn’t appear muddy or orange toned. When it comes to bronzer I am more into matte formulas rather than shimmery so this one was never going to be a favourite although it adds a gorgeous warmth to the skin. Again this is one I think I will reserve for the warmer months when I want that tanned bronzed up look.

Whilst the palette offers a gorgeous collection of powders, the price tag and value for money isn’t so great. At £65 is doesn’t come cheap at all but is particularly poor when weighing up the overall worth of this palette. I am not going to go into all the maths here but what I will say is that at £65 for 1.4g of product compared to the usual Ambient Lighting Blushes which are priced at £28 for 4.2g of product, it really is poor value for money. The pan sizes are quite small as you would expect with the product weighting although I haven’t had too much trouble with fitting my brushes in the pans. If you do own quite a few Hourglass products especially the other palettes then I am aware some of the powders in this palette also make an appearance in others which means I probably wouldn’t suggest splashing the cash on this one. As beautiful as it is, you are much better getting a full sized blush or powder for a cheaper price. Although if you haven’t dabbled too much in Hourglass then it makes a great way to try out a few of their popular powder products. Also I am sure it will make a great Christmas gift! So it may not be great value but I do admit I light up with happiness every time I bring this palette out to play!

Are you a fan of Hourglass?

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July Playlist

It’s that time again when I give you all a snippet into the music I’ve been singing along to for the past month. As I’ve probably mentioned for the gazillion-th time I went on holiday this month so it gave me the perfect opportunity to listen to some new music. One album I had been so desperate to listen to in full was Hozier’s album titled Hozier (genius or what!). I had heard Take Me To Church and Someone New a lot and fell in love with his amazing unique voice. I basically had the album on repeat while lounging by the pool on a daily basis and it really is an amazing album. My favourite song has to be In a Week, which also features vocalist Karen Cowley and other favourites include From Eden and Jackie and Wilson. It’s definitely a great album I recommend giving a listen! As well as the soft sounds of Hozier, I also enjoyed some upbeat songs from the likes of Rita Ora, 5SOS and Little Mix. I also reengaged my love for Mumford and Sons by listening to a couple of new tracks from their album which I still need to properly listen to in full but I am loving their sound (as usual).

What did you listen to this month?

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