My Little Brooklyn Box

Hello everyone! 

So October is long gone and I didn't even notice. Honestly, I don't know where my head has been! Well actually I do, I've been up to my eyes in work and assignments. Buuuuttt that is no excuse for not blogging as much and I apologise guys. Today I wanted to tell you all about the delightful contents of the October My Little Box :-) 

My Little Box is a deeply fabulous french brand dedicated to concocting a monthly box of delights for us! October's box is the Brooklyn box, celebrating all things from that celebrated hipster hub of New York. For those of us wishing for a holiday, this box is a little peek into one! I think this might actually be one my favourite boxes yet, and yes I am aware I say that most times! This box is slightly edgier than the previous ones and bang on trend! 

The design on the front shows a woman wearing the just-this-minute fashionable mid length pleated, metallic skirt. I love this design, it is so current and stylish. I can hear you all shouting at me to just get on with talking about the contents, so let's dive into the box. There is the usual little magazine filled with fashion and beauty tips, this month interviewing Penélope Bagieu, a french writer who moved from Paris to Brooklyn, New York. A bit of a culture shock to say the least, but incredibly interesting to read about. 

Look how cute the pins are! 

The products this month were particularly good! This little mug is ideal for your morning tea or coffee, personally I'm a hot chocolate kind of girl. You can even use the special leaf stencil to dust your drink with cocoa powder to make it look like a Starbucks! Although, these mugs are enamel so you can't put them in the microwave...very important to know! 

I love the little cards that come with each box, I have a little arty wall of them above my desk for inspiration :-) 

The little canvas bags that come in each box have such a super cute design, I love using them for transporting my makeup on the go. However, I think the contents are infinitely more exciting, don't you agree? This month there is this lovely perfume from Courrèges, called La Fille de L'air. It has quite a strong citrus scent so I think I'll be applying this one lightly! It's a perfect summer to autumn transition fragrance, not too spicy, but also not too heavy on the florals. The nail serum is My Little Beauty's own brand product. This Save My Nails strengthening treatment will be such a god send this winter to help me keep my nails healthy and in good condition. I get such dry nails in the winter, it's what comes from working outside a lot *sigh*. 

I thought swatching the colour on here could look arty...

This khol eyeliner pencil in 15 Gold Ornament By Terry is so decadent! I love the way it is not simply a boring black liner, the fact that it is thick, bright gold is so perfect for the upcoming holiday season! It is also the ideal makeup staple to turn a simple, understated look into a style with much more wow factor. This colour would suit any eye colour and skin tone, and will really pull the emphasis to your gorgeous eyes :-) I have taken to wearing it every time I feel like spicing up my look a little. 

The final product is just as gorgeous as all of the above. These three pins are super cute and stylish. I love the matching green and gold collar pins! They work so well with a collared shirt in a light colour. I wear mine with my silky black and white dalmatian print shirt and a pinafore dress. They really complete the outfit, giving it that extra classy, put-together boost. The other pin is of a strawberry iced donut, my favourite kind of donut by the way. This one is super cute to put on a denim jacket or on a jean pocket :-) 

What do you think of this box? Have you got any tips for using these items? Let me know in the comments below :-) 

xoxo

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Nailing It This Summer

Hello everyone! 

Summer is the time for pretty pastel nails and all things girly! It is the ultimate excuse to wear all the cutesy colours. To brighten up today I have decided to share with you my top five nail colours this summer. They are all from Rimmel London, but I just love all their colours. There are so many options and they are such fantastic quality, gliding on easily and only taking two coats to look finished :-) 

Let's start with this bold red in 310 Double Decker Red. This is the most post-box red I have ever seen! I have been wearing this colour as my go to for toes for about 10 years. It is so beautiful and bright, it really stands out against pale skin and looks quite elegant peeping out of your sandals. 

622 Oh Boy You're So Fine!! is a stunning pastel violet, it's a bit deeper than my spring lilac and is perfect for a sophisticated summer evening. This colour drys with quite a shine to it, which can be enhanced with a clear top coat to really look like a professional manicure. I think this is my favourite of these five colours. I never tire of this one, it goes so well with a maxi dress and clutch bag, I feel like it helps to pull a look together and make you look very polished! 

503 Mind The Gap, Victoria is a lovely powder blue, it's almost a pastel version of duck egg blue. This is a very feminine colour and looks fabulous for a chilled look. I'd wear this for a daytime outfit, for wandering around in shorts and t-shirts or skirts. It's quite a youthful colour and gives you a relaxed vibe. 

413 Orangina is part of the Rita Ora x for Rimmel London collection. This delicious looking burnt umber-pastel orange reminds me of sunsets and cocktails. I would wear this colour for a more beachy look, to pair with bathing suits, sunnies, sandals and of course a floppy hat! Clutching a fruit cocktail in hands with this colour can never fail to look classy and put together!

Finally is 405 Rose Libertine, I am in love with this colour. This pink sums up my entire colour scheme this summer. It is the most beautiful pastel pink, effortlessly girly yet oh so classy. This is the ideal colour to go with a summer dress and girly handbag :-) 

I love how something as simple as a nail polish can instantly transform a look! What are your favourite colours this summer? Let me know in the comments below :-) 

xoxo

P.S. Follow my Facebook here! 

July Favourites

Hello everyone! 

I hope you guys are all enjoying the sun as much as me! I don't think I can count the sun as a July favourite, but if I could then I definitely would. This post was hard to write as I have had so many good things this month, but I had to narrow it down so you wouldn't end up being here all day. 

To kick things off I have been loving Alice in Wonderland retellings this month. I don't know what it is about that story that never fails to fascinate the world. Of course I love the original tales and they are unparalleled in the children's classics genre. However, I also love a good, dark retelling, the kind which the author could never have imagined. In July I read Alice by Christina Henry and loved it so much that I pretty much started Red Queen immediately afterwards. I will soon be putting up a full review of the series (when I finish it) so check that out :-) 

I have also been really enjoying the colour pink... not to wear as I am not a pinky girl, but I have been loving pinks in my makeup routine. All the rose gold eyeshadows, dusky pink lips and peachy blushers have been making an appearance! They are super pretty and feminine for summer. They also provide quite a fresh, barely there makeup look so you can feel a lot more natural without having totally naked skin. Not that there is anything wrong with that, I love a no makeup day as much as any girl! 

My final favourite is a scent, everyone needs a good summer scent. I have been reaching for this Ted Baker body spray a lot recently. It came as part of a set with bath foam and body lotion. The scent is lovely and fresh with hints of rose and raspberry, with an overtone of sandalwood to balance it. The floral notes mixed with the more woody scent is perfect to throw on in the summer. I just love it! I feel pretty when I wear it and almost like I could be in a surfing advert, that's how fresh it is :-) 

What have you guys been loving this month? Let me know in the comments below :-) 

xoxo

P.S. Follow my Facebook here! 

Ransacking Rimmel

Hello everyone! 

Who else is on holiday now? I'm away on a jolly holiday in the south of France with Mr.Gingersnap, but I thought I should keep posting while I'm away, plus it is quite fun :-) Today I thought I'd share my new summer make up with you. I have been surviving on tinted moisturiser for the last 3 months while I decided what new foundation to try. Foundation can be quite a commitment if you don't have the budget to try multiple ones at once, being a poor student this is the case for me...

Bearing that in mind I turned to the high street stores. I haven't used a high street foundation in years! So I had a little look online at what people rave about and thought the best fit for me would be Rimmel's Wake Me Up foundation in 100 Ivory. The formula for this sounds ideal, it's anti-fatigue, skin brightening and has vitamin C to help re-vitalise your skin cells and give you that perfect flawless skin glow. It also has SPF 15 which is not amazing, but better than nothing. 

I have been wearing this for about a week now and really love it. The formula is thin, without compromising the coverage. I'd say it's semi to full coverage and does actually give me a lovely glow. It lasts all day without dehydrating my skin and is super easy to blend in with a brush. My one slight issue is the big jumps between shades in this product, it took me ages to find one to match my skin tone! I think after holiday when I have a bit of a tan I may have to mix it with a slightly darker foundation to match my skin completely. Nobody likes a ghost face! 

I can't really say much more to praise this powder, it does what it says on the box and has a lovely peachy finish to it. 

I was planning on repurchasing my trusty Benefit powder, but what kind of beauty blogger would I be if I didn't trial new products from time to time! Rimmel's Stay Matte powder hasn't really had much hype around it, which is a shame as it is a truly lovely product :-) It's a long lasting pressed powder to smooth and set your foundation or for touch ups of oily zones throughout the day. I went for the shade 002 Pink Blossom because it is a super pretty peachy tone that goes really well with the pink/rose golds I've been going for this season. I was very impressed with the range of shades in this product as well as how nicely it applies. The packaging is fairly standard and easily portable. Some say that a powder is a powder, but to me I think it is a key part of any makeup routine. 

Finally, as it was 3 for 2 I picked up this gorgeous pastel/dusky rose nail varnish in 405 Rose Libertine. Also from Rimmel by the way! This nail varnish is perfect for summer, I am loving all things pink at the moment and this fits in so well. The only small problems are that the formula is quite thin so needs multiple coats to avoid the dreaded patchiness. This then means it isn't a 60 second dry as it claims to be. Yes it is super shiny and beautiful, but if you want it to be batter proof and smudge proof then wait 30 minutes to dry it! Worth the wait though :-) 

Have you tried these products? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below :-) 

xoxo

P.S. Follow my Facebook here! 

Fake nails - Yes or No?

Hello everyone,

I could have written this post a while ago, but I wanted to give you all an accurate review so I waited for the nails to come off, then I could tell you how long they lasted! I have always loved nail varnish and manicures, but I struggle to sit still for long enough to let my nail varnish dry and I am forever smudging or chipping it. Hence my purchase of stick on fake nails. I was a bit wary at first, as I have heard fake nails can damage your natural ones with the adhesive used. However, I was assured that these ones don't do any damage and I can now confirm that it is true! My nails still feel nice and soft and smooth, my only complaint is that I don't have any more to stick on...

See how pretty they looked! I stuck them on, with a little help from my Dad, what are Dad's for eh! I left them alone for an hour, it was agonising to wait that long in case you were wondering, then I trimmed them down to a little longer than the length of my own nails. I bought them for £8.99 in my local Boots and I definitely think they were worth it, even though they only lasted for about 5 days they looked so smart and pretty, I could not stop looking at them. Everyone who saw them commented and said they looked fab. I probably could have got them to last longer, but I kept playing with them, I think I'll get some more and be restrained to see how long they last! The ones I used were the Elegant Touch Express nails and they came in a very handy little plastic box so I could keep the spares and shapes that weren't quite right. If you want to check out their other patterns, click here, their range is huge and deeply fabulous!

I will definitely be getting lots more in different patterns! I bought some red and white spotty ones for my Mam so I may well write a second post with a follow up of her thoughts and some other patterns and colours which I will inevitably purchase.

What do you think of fake nails? Love or hate them? Let me know in the comments below :-)

xoxo