Thursday 29 November 2012

The online shopping revolution; Mallzee.

For me there is nothing better than doing my shopping online from the comfort of my warm toasty bed. No crowded shops, no searching for sizes, and no traipsing through the rain/snow/wind. However being the ultimate scatter brain I constantly find myself sat there thinking of where to actually visit and end up with a gazillion and one tabs and bookmarks. Cue then ringing all of my friends, trying to direct them through site to see if they think the particular dress is worth buying or I have a case of 'shopping fever'. So when an email popped into my inbox explaining the concept behind Mallzee I was thrilled. 

"Mallzee is all about creating a new experience for shopping online. Users create their own personalized shopping mall (Mallzee) by picking their favourite brands and stores. Our fancy software then finds products matching their personal style and showcases them in their Mallzee!
There are a number of aspects that make Mallzee social from the integration of Facebook chat to creating polls and browsing friends online wardrobes.  An added bonus to inviting friends to your mallzee is that as the ‘owner’ you earn money every time anyone buys from your Mallzee, including you! (That's right you get paid when you shop?) 
Currently we have over 200 brands signed up to Mallzee (Urban Outfitters, New Look, Feel Unique and St. Tropez to name a few)."

how awesome does that sound! This hasn't actually launched yet, but if you get yourself over to the site you can enter your email address to get a prelaunch invite, you can also help spread the word and win some prizes!


Meg x


Wednesday 28 November 2012

Feather extensions

Feather extensions are actually something I had a year ago, but seeing as they are cropping up once more I thought I should mention them. I don't actually have any proper photos of them in their full glory but here are some webcam pics I shot at the time;
I hope you can see them well enough. I bought my feather extensions from feather ray where I got the "Naturals mix red" I think I might've paid slightly less for them but they do explain that prices have risen in line with wholesale prices. They arrived as individual 'feather' strands with a needle-threader like tool and small metal rings. Putting them in was fairly easy, I worked out which strands I wanted to go together and where I wanted them placed.  Then used the threader to thread a metal ring onto my hair stopping about an inch from my roots. I poked the particular feathers I wanted into the ring, used a pair of pliers (had to call in a favour, not something I usually have lying around) to squeeze the ring shut trapping the hair and feathers inside and hey presto! a lovely bohemian kinda look, perfect for festivals! These definitely gave my hair some pizzaz and I loved the colours. Even better? they can be washed, straightened, curled, anything! you can treat them exactly as you do your own hair.

You do have to be careful when you brush your hair as you can catch the ring, also when putting them in remember squeeze it flat against your head ( I did it the other way and it stuck out). I think these lasted an ok amount of time, a few times when 1 fell out I would just use the pliers to slightly open and close the rings again putting the feather back in. Then when they really were finito I  plaited the feathers into a bracelet, which I then lost (scatter brain).

Overall I would definitely try these out if you are looking to give your hair something extra, there is a wide range of colour combinations and lengths available from feather ray including the ever popular ombre. And also clip in styles if that's more your thing :)

Meg x

Saturday 24 November 2012

November Glossyox


I was really impressed with glossybox this month. There was quite a big full sized product, Indian Rose face cream, although this doesn't wow me in many ways it smells nice and does moisturise. next up we have an exfoliating powder from dermalogica. This is a new concept to me, a powder that you mix with water to create a smooth lather, massage on your face for 1 min then rinse off. I do like this concept as it is a lot kinder to your skin than some harsh 'gritty' exfoliators, though I did kind of miss the feeling of them, this also left my skin feeling a bit tight. The Mango body butter is really thick yet somehow I didn't actually find it to be that moisturising? It's also got a very strong scent which I am not too fond of but if mangoes are your 'thing' then you'll love it. I'm going to skip the nails inc. top coat for now and go to the Burberry body sample, I love receiving these in their little minature glass bottles and this is also a lovely scent that I have really enjoyed wearing. Finally we have the nails inc. top coat, everyone who's everyone raves about this so I thought I would put it to the test a trial it against my Rimmel 5 in 1 base and top coat. I applied OPI's Berlin their done that protecting it with Rimmel on my left hand and nails inc. on my right, I even did the sweep along the end of the nail to seal everything in. Fast forward to thursday where my nails inc. hand is looking pretty shoddy, all tips chipped. Whereas my rimmel hand still looked lovely, not a chip in sight! I took a picture below for reference, its kinda hard to see the chips as it is a white background but they are definitely there! So on first impressions I am not that impressed but I will give it another go nonetheless.



Wednesday 21 November 2012

Real techniques core collection review


Here I posted a little make-your-own buffing brush post, the results of which made up my mind about purchasing the Real techniques core collection kit. Now I haven't owned any ~proper~ make up brushes previously so I can't compare to other brands but I can let you know how I got along with these myself. All these brushes have nice aluminium handles which are the perfect length, lightweight and easy to use.

Contour brush: As the name suggests I use this for contouring and also sweeping powder highlighters on my face. A lovely shape and nice and soft, it does not deposit too much product at once so gives a nice wash of colour, (though slightly denser in the centre which is what you want from a contour)  which can be built up.

Pointed foundation brush: This brush I find too small for foundation and prefer to use the buffing brush for my base. This brush however I use to add concealer to under my eyes and around my nose (anywhere I need it basically) as it is a lot more precise than the buffing brush and smooth it in for a nice finish.

Detailer brush: As I use the foundation brush for my concealer I tend to use this brush for either smudging along my lash line or for my lips (I wash it in between ofc!). This is quite a firm brush, perhaps a little too firm for certain eye types but I am fine with it, lipstick goes on precisely and cleanly and you can really kind of 'buff' it in to all the crevices in your lips making it last longer.

Buffing brush: This is the brush that I had heard so much about and the main reason why I wanted to buy this set in the first place. The bristles were a lot softer than I imagined, but still had quite a dense feel to them, making it lovely to buff in liquid foundations with. I love that I don't get that greasy-finger feeling any more and find this does make my make up routine a lot quicker and easier. I love the finish this brush gives my skin and it is definitely the star of the bunch for me.

Overall I am very impressed with these brushes, and I know I am not the only one. Although some similar brush shapes could possibly be found cheaper I have had no problem with shedding or scratchy bristles  and definitely think it is worth purchasing these. If they are a little out of your price range then just pop them on your Christmas list!

Meg x

Monday 19 November 2012

Breaking dawn part 2; the film (no spoilers), the sound track and the premier outfits.

So on Saturday me, two of my house mates and my boyfriend (yes he actually wanted to come!) went along to our local city screen cinema to see the latest, and final, twilight offering. We also had a 'twilight marathon' beforehand to refresh our memories. Having sped through all the books at ridiculous speed when they were released I found my memory very hazy and was happily unaware of the finer details and plots of the film. Without giving too much away I really enjoyed it, some things did irk me a little bit (the baby and the ending) but a lot of it I really enjoyed. I'm not saying this saga has changed my life or even had as much significance to me as Harry Potter, but for me I found it the right balance of romance with action and not to deep or shallow. I found this saga perfect to put on when having a sleepover with my girlfriends. Numerous arguments would erupt over whether team Edward or Jacob is the best there would be the occasional "Bella is a hussy" shout and collective "ooohs" accompanied by dreamy sighs when a flash of flesh is shown, definitely worth a watch.

The soundtrack to these films I have always particularly loved, from Bella's lullaby in the first film to the later offerings from Christina perri and now Green day. There has been unhappy customers with Green day's accompaniment to the film as it is a cry from their punk rock-y roots, but I love it. The majority of my favourite songs from Green day have been their slower ballads and I think they do both styles well and with ease. I have included a video of both the songs for you to make your own mind up.


Also grabbing fans attentions were the daring outfits Kristen Stewart showcased at the premier. I have a picture of her black ensemble which she donned for the U.K premier and also her gold gown which she wowed the crowd with in L.A.

 I personally prefer the gold more, it is risqué enough for her to be noticed and remembered, shows off her figure gorgeously and she compliments it with minimal jewellery  punchy lips and copper shadow to bring out her green eyes. An all together classier look. The black outfit I thought was a bit off a miss, I am not a fan of the flared trousers, whereas I think the top half of the outfit is beautiful. If the bottom was a long dress or even skinny trousers (she has the figure to pull it off!) I would have liked this outfit a lot more. If you have seen the outfit from behind you would have notice the heart shaped fabric covering her derrière. This was another facet that I wasn't to keen on and would have much preferred it too look more like trousers? (I hope you kind of get the gist with that). 


Anyway that is enough of my incessant ramblings, what did you think of the film/soundtrack/outfits?

Meg x



Sunday 18 November 2012

Hello, my name is Megan and I am a glitter-holic.

To me, nothing says Christmas like a bit of a sparkle! Now I have gone a bit glitter-crazy but I think if there is ever a time it is acceptable then the festive celebrations of December time it is. All these items are from new look and together come in at £86.96. I love the neutral colour palette and the subtle glam of the sparkles on the dress.The longer sleeves and higher neckline will add a bit of protection from the winter winds whilst the embellished collar will eliminate the need for jewellery.  The shoes add a further touch of pizazz as well as fitting in  nicely with the the dress, not too high and with a rounded up sole to make sure your feet survive through the many Christmas parties and events.  I then chose some accessories, again with lots of sparkle! These rings are purchased as a pack of four and I think any of them would look fab paired with some nude-y nail varnish. I then picked a pack of hair bows to add even more shimmer. I would use the leftover change for a bit of fake tan to make sure the pale hue of the dress doesn't wash you out.The rest? well you can get the first round in!




This was a post for this competition hosted by fashion vouchers  the prize is a £100 voucher so go along and take part! If you do I would to see your entries if you leave a link. 

Meg x

Friday 9 November 2012

DIY Buffing brush

So everywhere I turn I see people applying their foundation flawlessly with various buffing brushes. Having always used my fingers to blend my foundations, and not seen any reason to change, I was daunted by the price tag that came with most of these brushes. Without being able to 'trial' it as such I was not going to part with my cash (broke student alert!). So I thought up a quick little idea to try and mimic the effect of these brushes, it is pretty self explanatory from the photos; I used a hair band in order to create a denser more buffing-like brush before using with my foundation. Even just not having that awful dirty-finger feeling you get when applying products was a bonus for me and I presently went out and bought the Real Techniques core collection set (review coming soon)



Meg x

Thursday 1 November 2012

Hallows Eve

Better late than never? I used a Maxfactor eye shadow trio to dead-ify my face, do not rate as an eye shadow at all so didn't mind having to use a fair amount of product and it lasted very well. My lips were lined and half filled in with black kohl eyeliner before a layer of Revlon balm stain in  "Crush" finished it off for a perfectly vampish pout.