Bobble Hat & Smokey Eyes

So, I thought i'd start this post with a little apology. I have been somewhat MIA, and although this may have been a slight annoyance for you lovely lot (or not, depending on how much you like to read my blog..haha) but it has been a positive time away for me. A battery re-charge shall we say! After my last post on "Just saying YES", I took my own advice and started doing lot's more things. Things i'd always been a bit scared to do, meeting up with old friends, making new ones and banishing my anxiety, as it had got quite bad. I also had somewhat of a mental block on the blogpost front. You know sometimes when you sit with a blank page/screen and you just don't know what to write? Yeh, that. FEAR NOT though, I have returned, with a much brighter outlook on life and feeling much more positive about certain aspects of my life. I was also extremely overwhelmed by the HUGE positive response I received from THIS blogpost. That is the whole reason I love blogging, being able to reach out to lot's of people and help in some way, even if it's just a teeny bit. 

So, whilst away from my laptop, I started to get into the habit of doing my makeup a bit more. Feeling a bit "meh" in general, meant I stopped doing creative things with my makeup or even making the effort to do it most days. However, I have started spending more time on it, and I found my beloved "Mekong" eyeshadow by NARS in the back of my makeup draw, and since then I have been having a full on love-affair with it. I have been applying it all over the lid and smoking it out with a blending brush, then applying my eyeliner for a more edgy, smokey look. I haven't been doing it every day, as it is quite full on, and doesn't pair too well with my beloved bold lip, but I feel like it makes my eyes stand out a little more. Mekong is a deep brown, with flecks of gold sparkle in it. Being a Nars eyeshadow, it's highly pigmented and will probably last me millions of years. I highly, highly recommend it! If any of you are also interested in which lipstick I am wearing, it's "Desert" by Topshop. 

Another thing I have been loving is bobble hats. This one in particular is from Topshop. Being small-headed (a pea head..ehem), I didn't ever think they would really suit me, or fit me properly, but I actually quite like them. I also like that they can hide bad hair days, or dress up an outfit AND keep your ears and head warm (it's main purpose). I can see myself wearing hats all of Autumn and Winter. 

♥

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Topshop Makeup | Lipstick Crayons/Pencils

                  Top to bottom: Powder Room, Clueless, Hedonist

Topshop Lipstick Crayons £7*

Next up in the Topshop Makeup "series", is the Lipstick Crayons/Pencils or however else you'd like to name them. I don't see these talked about as much as the actual lipsticks, and I guess that could be because lipsticks are more likely to be favoured over them. Unlike the lipsticks in the Topshop makeup range, these offer a matte finish. I enjoy applying these, as the longer, slimmer packaging allows you to get more precision, almost like you are colouring in your lips with a chubby pencil. They are long lasting and have great pigmentation. If you prefer to wear matte colours on your lips as opposed to something a little more moisturising or frosty, these will be perfect for you. I don't often opt for a matte lip as I much prefer something a little more moisturising on my lips as they are quite dry but sometimes matte lips can look much more effective, and tend to last a lot longer. Although they are matte, they are still very creamy and go on like a dream. Let's also not forget the cute packaging! I absolutely love Topshop packaging, and these are so nifty just to throw in your handbag/clutch and be on your way. 

The only thing about these that I don't like, is that you have to sharpen them in order to get more product once it's worn down. Although i'm sure it's not a major fault for most of you, it's just one less thing you really want to do when you could just grab a lipstick and twist it up, no hassle. It certainly won't stop me using them, as I love to pop a little bit of lipgloss on top to give them a much shinier finish, and be on my way. I'm a particular fan of the orange one (Hedonist) but then does that really surprise you? ;)

Do you own any of these? What do you think of lip crayons in general?

♥

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Topshop Makeup | Blush

Topshop Blush £6 

Next in the Topshop Makeup Series, I want to go over the blushers. These are not my favourite thing in the Topshop makeup range, although I know plenty of people who would say they were. I just want to start with the packaging, I absolutely love it, like all other Topshop makeup items, it has the adorable black sketching, in this case, polka dots. The only thing I will say, is that after a while, the white background becomes a little more cream, and then there's no going back to that lovely white crisp casing, dangnabbit. 

The consistency of these is what makes them a little different from anything else I own, and certainly anything else I have seen on the High Street. They apply as a cream blush, but dry with a more powdery finish. I actually find powder blush easier to apply, as you just apply it with a brush, however, I do like to use these for a much more subtle finish. I think because it applies as a cream and dries to a powder, it gives a much more natural flush than a powder would. I also don't find it that difficult to apply. I just use my fingers, and dot it on my cheekbones or the apples of my cheeks (depending on which mood i'm in) and then blend it out as much as desired. The colours can look a little scary in the pan, but they are very easy to blend, and you can also build up the colour if you want something a little more opaque. They also have quite good lasting power, I wouldn't say it's amazing, but for £6 you can't really expect miracles (plus, you don't want to look like Aunt Sally for over 24 hours).

The colours I own are Head Over Heels (pictured on the left in all photos) and Flush (pictured on the right). Head over heels is my favourite (as you can see it has been used a fair bit...and looks pretty grubby). It's a gorgeous coral pink and I find that this suits my skin tone a little more than Flush, which is a lot more pink. 

What do you think of Topshop blush? Do you own any?

♥

Topshop Makeup | Nail Polish

Left to Right:
Crystal Clouds, Green Room, Sketch, Louder*, Dead Ringer*, Awol*, Parma Violet

Hidden Treasure & Gypsy Night

Polishes from the "Sandstorm" Collection last year.
L-R: Cylone & The last two were a duo called "Wilderness"*

New Glitter polishes! 
L-R: Ice Crush*, Adrenalin*, Razzmatazz*

L-R:

Adrenalin, Ice Crush, Razzmatazz, Sketch, Wilderness Duo, Parma Violet, Crystal Clouds, Cyclone, Awol, Green Room, Louder, Dead Ringer, Wilderness Duo, Hidden Treasure, Gypsy Night

Following on from my post about the Topshop Lipsticks, I thought i'd write about the nail polishes. I own a fair few, as you can see. I am a huge fan of these little beauties. I do remember when they first came on the scene, I wasn't massively impressed with the size or shape of the bottle, I just didn't think they looked very pretty and were quite small, but now I absolutely love them. They could be deemed slightly smaller than the average nail polish, but actually, I think they are just right. I own so many larger nail polishes (like O.P.I & China Glaze) and I never come anywhere close to using the whole bottle up before it goes thick & gloopy. 

The quality is really good, I have yet to use any shade which hasn't delivered a nice opacity, or painted on appallingly. I also think there is a fantastic range of colours. Whenever I see the makeup stand in Topshop, and all the pretty colours lined up so beautifully, I always feel as though I need to own more of them, so I can stand them in my bedroom looking equally as pretty. 

The standard range of basic colours are priced at £5 (your reds, blues, pinks, pastels & brights) & the more exciting/special polishes (The multi-tonal, glitter & crackle) are priced at £6. There are a few on the website at the moment which are part of the "Sisters of the New Moon" collection and they are priced at £6.50. I think the pricing is very fair. I'm quite happy to pay this nice mid-way price for a decent nail polish, compared with higher, more well-known brands at a much higher cost. I don't particularly look for a nail polish with the highest of quality, I'm definitely more of a "if I like the colour, i'm buying it regardless of the price" person. So if it's a gorgeous colour, i'll buy it if it's 50p or £10. I do know that some of you will be reading this who DO look for decent quality in a nail polish, possibly if your job involves you looking immaculate, and chipped nails are a nono? I can honestly say, I've NEVER come across a nail polish that doesn't chip on real nails. I'm an acrylics girl, so my nails aren't real most of the time, therefore polish is usually on there until I decide to change it. However, anytime I haven't had acrylics, and I've worn the Topshop nail polishes on my real nails, they've lasted just like any other polish. I'd say 5-6 days totally chip free (with a top coat). Even the more expensive polishes chip on me in this same amount of time (I don't think my natural nails take well to polish haha)

My current favourites are Green Room, Ice Crush, Hidden Treasure, and the metallic silver one from the Wilderness duo (annoyingly, they don't have separate names that I can see, and they aren't on the website anymore, but they do have a metallic silver which could very well be exactly the same)

Have you tried the Topshop nail polishes? Can you think of any colours that I'd love and don't already own? (not that I need anymore clearly)

♥

Mini Topshop Makeup Splurge

It may not come as much of a surprise to most of you that recently I have fallen in love with Topshop Makeup. I'm starting a series of review posts about each of the things I have tried from the whole range. I've already done one on the lipsticks which you can read HERE.

I recently popped into Topshop to have a little mooch around at the clothes, but ended up buying more of the makeup. Maybe, if I actually go there for makeup, i'll walk out with some clothing? It was the new "Sisters of the New Moon" collection that caught my eye. Topshop often bring out little collections alongside their permanent range, which I think is refreshing, and keeps you interested. I picked up a lip tint in "Crystal" which is absolutely amazing to look at. I feel like it's almost too pretty to use. It adjusts in shade when it comes into contact with your skin, which I thought was pretty cool. The second was a lipstick, which as you can see, is orange in colour, which therefor means I must have it. It's a lot less intense on the lips than my beloved Infared, but I love it. Both lip products were £9. I then also picked up a blush in "Flush" from the permanent line which is a pretty shade of fushia pink for £6. The last two items were nail polishes, also from the permanent line, "Hidden Treasure" (right) and "Gypsy Night" (left) which are both gorgeous colours. Who doesn't love a multi coloured glitter black & blue bottle? Both £5!

Overall, a pretty successful trip to Topshop, even if I didn't intend on leaving with makeup ;)

♥

Topshop Make up | Lipsticks

As most of you may be aware, Topshop released their own makeup range in 2010. Although it didn't really interest me at the time, over the past year I have grown quite the collection. There may not be a vast array to choose from, but what they do have, is of excellent value for money, and spot on in my book. I grew very bored of high street makeup, and Topshop came along just at the right time, and injected a bit of excitement back into my makeup bag, without me having to break open the piggy bank.

I'm going to do a series of blog posts on the different items that I own from the Topshop Makeup range, but first up, is my absolute favourite, the lipsticks.

Nevada, Desert, Pillow Talk, Brighton Rock, Ohh La La, Infared, Rio Rio, Beguiled

When Mac bumped up the price of their lipsticks to £13.50, I knew it was probably time to find a good substitute, as I am a huge sucker for lipsticks but couldn't possibly carry on buying them at £13.50 a pop (except on special occasions, or very rare, expensive, rainy days). There is not one thing I can fault with Topshop lipsticks, they tick every box in my opinion. Cute yet sturdy packaging made of metal, rounded with flat top and bottom, making it easy to store standing upright. They have names. Yes, slightly strange that this is even taken into consideration when reviewing a lipstick, but don't you hate lipsticks with numbers instead of names, they almost lack in personality...poor numbered lipsticks. Not to mention how difficult it would be to remember when out looting them. They have great pigmentation (nothing worse than no colour pay off) They aren't drying, and don't leave your lips chapped beyond repair, but also have great staying power. They're only £8-£9 & although this may seem pricey for a high street lipstick, there are plenty in Boots or Superdrug in the £7-£8 mark (Revlon for example) so it's all relative. I also think the quality is comparable to Mac's, so at £8, it's a great replacement.

Infared, Desert, Nevada

Brighton Rock, Rio Rio, Beguiled

Ohh La La, Pillow Talk (Part of a collection)

It's obvious to many of you which is my favourite of all the shades I own, as it is mostly all I wore through the summer, and that's Infared. I'm tempted to do a whole blog post about that in a little more detail.

If you're a lipstick sucker like me, and feel a little bored with what's available on the high street and in the pharmacies, but can't quite stretch to a Mac or Chanel lipstick but want something with a little bit of class, then check out the Topshop lipsticks. They are my new obsession & they are slowly breeding in my lipstick tin.

♥