It's got to be Got2B

It's got to the point where 90% of my hair products are Got2B by Schwarzkopf. They are so unbelievably cheap, easy to get hold of, smell amazing and they are just generally good products. The newly released blow dry spray has become my holy grail hair product. It just does everything - heat protection, detangling, helps your hair dry quicker and also acts as a leave in conditioner, not to mention it smells like a cocktail. What's not to like? I also love the dry argan oil spray because you don't have to get anything on your hands when you are doing your hair which is a huge pro in my books. I'm a major jeans wiper when it comes to sticky hands and I can't deal with it when I'm rushing to get ready (all the time) so this is so easy to just spray in and go. I'm still trying out the straightening spray so expect a blog post in the near future with my thoughts. The whole range is pretty much a 10/10 from me.

Empties!

Simple Anti-Ageing Eye Cream
It's basically a run-of-the-mill eye cream. Doesn't do anything amazing but it does feel nice and soothing to apply and helps makeup go on better.
Repurchase? Maybe

Got2B Volumising Hairspray
I freaking love this hairspray. I'm so fussy about them because I HATE that sticky, crispy feel that a lot of hairsprays give you. This smells delicious and I use it most days but the biggest thing for me is that you can't really feel it once it's in, it just helps keep everything where you want it.
Repurchase? Definitely

CoLAB Dry Shampoo (London fragrance)
Congratulations to the Ruth Crilly for making this hero. I wouldn't go back to using normal dry shampoo after using this because I don't have the patience to be rubbing in the white residue for hours on end. It's just a normal dry shampoo but it's basically invisible. Sometimes it leaves a little bit of residue but it's not unmanagable and nowhere near the likes of Batiste.
Repurchase? Yes

Soap & Glory Hand Food
A cult classic for a reason. I keep this by my bed and use it every night before I go to sleep.
Repurchase? Already have done

Sanctuary Hand Cream
Love this hand cream too, but it's such a small tube I've gone through it really quickly. Not sure if there is a bigger size but I hope so because it's a really nice product.
Repurchase? Yes

Soap & Glory Archery
I do really like the concept of this - it makes doing eyebrows easy but I have found the felt tip end to dry out super quickly. This is my second one but I don't recall either of them lasting for very long which is a shame as I do like the effect that end gives. However, I do like the waxy end too and I use this on days where I cba with proper makeup and just want to shove a bit of something on my brows so my face doesn't look bald.
Repurchase? No

Bleach London Silver Shampoo
Technically I still have a couple of uses left in this but in about a week I will be out. This has been the best purple shampoo I have ever used, I don't really have much to say about it other than it's just really really good.
Repurchase? Hella yes

Topshop sale makeup haul!

I didn't even know Topshop did a makeup sale until I happily stumbled across it about a week ago and picked up a few gems for a fraction of their original price. I love Topshop makeup anyway and happen to think it is extremely reasonably priced considering the quality of the products but the price of these bits was absolutely ridiculous.

The first thing I picked up was the cream blush in the shade head over heels. It's a gorgeous peachy tone and perfect for every day I think and I got this for £3. I'm pretty sure these are usually around the £10 mark but it was marked down because it was part of a set which had the lipstick stolen even though the blush was in perfect condition.

The other things were all lip products, two of which were the lip paints in the colours tallulah and hibiscus. Tallulah is a classic red and hibiscus is a beautiful bright fuchsia. I haven't tried these yet but they swatched really well - the colours were intensely pigmented and the formulas seem creamy and hopefully long-lasting. These were only £2 each.

I also got the gloss ink in smitten - an amazing neon pink which I have fallen in love with. I have used this twice in the last week alone which for me is pretty damn good seeing as I change my lip products on a daily basis. The formula is basically a gloss which is intensely pigmented and has a high-shine finish but leaves a stain behind once the gloss has worn away. I can't rave about this enough, I applied one coat in the morning and headed out for lunch, ate a pizza (not very elegantly I must add), walked for half an hour to get home, went on an hour long dog walk, had a cup of tea then went out to a friend's for dinner, then when I got home and went to take my makeup off the colour looked immaculate and pretty much looked like it had just been applied. It's amazing and will definitely be on the lookout for more shades of these unless they have been discontinued, and I would be willing to pay way more for it than the £2 it actually cost me.

Lastly I bought a lipstick in hazard which is a true red. This cost a mere £4 compared to the usual £8 they retail for. I'm not sure I really needed another red lipstick but that's beside the point, I couldn't help myself when I saw the price and anyway I happen to think that each one of my ever-growing red lipstick collection is different.. That's what I tell myself anyway.

That's everything I managed to find and I'm so happy with how much I got for so little money. I'm also really pleased with the quality of the products as usual; Topshop never fail to disappoint.

Winter skin hero

Halleleujah, I've finally found my holy grail face product. This is The Body Shop's overnight vitamin E treatment oil/serum which comes in this little pot with a glass pipette applicator (I feel so classy using it) which you apply last thing before bed. I must make it clear though that just because this is an oil, it will not make your skin greasy. It is a common misconception that people with oily skin can't use oil based products and whilst this can be true with bad quality products that sit on the skin clogging the pores, this product won't do that. I find that the morning after I have used this my skin looks almost perfect - no dry patches, no redness, no obvious marks or spots. It essentially relieves a multitude of sins and also my skin feels so so soft after using this. I don't use it every night for fear of my skin getting used to it, but rather every few nights after I have exfoliated or used a face mask. I basically squeeze a couple of drops onto my finger tips and distribute it between my hands, then massage it onto your face or any problem areas. I make sure I really work it into the skin so I'm not left with an oily residue, and with the heat from your hands, the product really locks into your skin. I would highly recommend this product, and although around the £10 mark could be seen as pricey for a high street product it is definitely worth it and the product itself actually feels like it should cost a lot more than it actually does. Do you have a holy grail skincare product??

New Year's Resolutions

As 2015 has rolled around, 2014 disappears off into the distance and with that comes nervously looking at last year's resolutions and discovering whether you managed to keep them or not. This year, incredibly, I managed to keep all of my resolutions so with that I have made another little list of things for 2015 which I hope are realistic enough to keep...

1. Drink more water

I've always been terrible at remembering to drink water and sometimes get raging headaches in the evenings when I've been out all day and only had a few cups of tea or coffee to keep me hydrated. I know it isn't enough and I am going to make myself drink glasses of water even when I don't feel thirsty because the benefits to your health and to your skin, as well as how you feel in yourself are unreal. 

2. Be more involved in university - e.g. join a society, sign up for volunteering

Although I do the work that is required to a good standard, I feel like I'm only doing the bare minimum of uni. It is damn expensive and there are so many opportunities to be involved in that I choose not to take, so I've got to the point where I feel slightly like I'm wasting some awesome opportunities. My goal for this year is to have participated in some things which are not compulsory.

3. Do some form of exercise where possible

In summer of last year (2014) I got fit by going on jogs, dragging myself to the gym and at home workouts. I really enjoyed how it made me feel but September came and managed to almost drown me in work as well as continuing with my job and the time for working out was just non-existent. This year I would like to take the chance to do a quick workout or go on a weekly run when I have the time, as I think this is quite achievable and not too unrealistic. 

4. Pursue career options

I've been burying my head in the sand for far too long now about life after uni. It doesn't seem real to me that this time next year I will be starting my final ever semester and will have to actually have a plan of what the hell I'm going to do. This year I hope to come to a decision on what area I would like to work in, and come up with an idea of what exactly I will do come graduation in terms of living situations and so on. I also need to be more active in gaining appropriate work experience for the career I decide on and making contacts now.

...Hopefully i'll be able to keep up these things as well as I did in 2014!! 

The cutest damn thing

After saving up my Boots points to the £10+ mark they start burning a hole in my purse and have to be spent. My splurge was on the Clinique bottom lash mascara which is just the cutest freakin' thing I've ever seen. It's exactly the same size as the Benefit gimme brow but for some reason this is just so much cuter because it lives next to my normal sized mascaras and I can't help but laugh at how ridiculously small the bottle and wand is. Saying that, it's actually a really good product. The formula is designed to be long lasting and smudge proof as a lot of people have problems with watery eyes which leaves them with those annoying black marks underneath the lashes. You can reach right into the inner and outer corners of the bottom lashes to get perfect definition which you can't ordinarily achieve using a normal sized mascara wand. Personally I find using a normal sized wand on my bottom lashes really difficult after using this for a few days - I don't feel like my bottom lashes are as separated and defined without using it, I think they are a bit more clumpy and all over the place. So yeah, love this, it was pricey for such a small mascara but it isn't actually that bad considering you only use it on your lower lashes. 

Body Shop Haul

I actually bought these bits a month or so ago but haven't got round to posting about them but yeah, I bought the all in one BB cream, the instablur primer and the honey bronzer. They were having a 30% off discount sale thingymybob when you spent £30 when I bought them so I went for it as I've been coveting these for a while. I really like them all, but I think the BB cream is my favourite. The point of it is basically that it is a universal shade, it comes out of the tube as a white liquid which when blended blends in with your skin tone exactly. It gives a really nice finish and I like this for most days when I feel like I don't need much coverage. The primer is pretty decent, a bit siliconey but it does what it says on the tin and provides a smooth base for makeup. Finally the honey bronzer I bought because the range features really light shades which are suitable for fair skin tones and I thought this would be a really nice option for winter when you need a bit of warmth to your face but don't want to look like you've just had a spray tan. I would recommend all of these :) I had never tried any of the body shop's makeup before this but I would definitely go back there now I have.