Summer Holiday Essentials

Hello everyone! 

It is finally the summer holidays :-) I could not be more excited about that fact. I am a massive sun bunny and intense heat is my comfort zone. Keeping this in mind Mr.Gingersnap and I are off to my childhood home in the south of France for a 2 week holiday. 

Now I love watching videos of people's summer essentials and what they pack to go away! If that's not your thing then you should probably stop reading now... I took some snaps while I was packing and thought I'd share my holiday staples with you. 

Firstly I like to pack as many pretty, floaty dresses as I possibly can! Being a tiny person I can get away with a lot more clothes in a small suitcase (it has to have some perks tbh!). I like to vary between the floral prints, bright colours and pastels, that way I am prepared for any kind of day or dress code. I always pack at least one full length dress just in case I have a more fancy evening out. 

I always take my Kindle on holiday just because it's more portable and I can get more books if I run out! 

When it comes to swimming it's important to have a comfy bikini or swimming costume. I love Jack Wills' bikinis, they fit beautifully and have very classic understated patterns. I would also recommend Hollister for quality swimwear, yes it's a bit pricey, but worth it when your clothes last several summers instead of dropping to bits straight away! If, like me, you're pale or fair skinned it could be a good idea to pack a top or pool kimono to keep the worst of the sun off you and cover up a little more. For this I have a cut out cotton, floaty black mesh kimono. It's lovely and quite timeless as a piece. 

 I must admit I love a wide brimmed hat!

Every girl needs a good pair of denim shorts on holiday. I got these ones at Pull & Bear and I adore them. I can throw them on with a bikini top, with a body, a bandeau (another essential for me) or just a normal floaty top. Continuing with easy to throw on looks, a flowery kimono instantly makes a look seem polished and stylish. I've had this one for years, but they seem to be cropping up everywhere so get on out there and buy one! Trust me :-) 

I love high heels and wedges on holiday, they really give me that dressed up and put together feeling. These ones are my essentials this holiday. I do of course have the standard flip flops and converses for everyday wear, but they were boring to photograph!

When it comes to makeup and skin care, it's important to have products that protect your skin. Look for SPF on products and make sure you moisturise and stay hydrated! You want to come home with that holiday glow, not looking like a leather bag left out in the sun... I am feeling the pinks this summer as you can probably tell from the picture! All these pinks are so pretty and feminine, I just love them and I'm sure y'all do too! If you were wondering that is the Naked 3 palette from Urban Decay, the YSL lipstick is a Rouge Volupte shine in 41 , the Too Faced Sweetheart Blush is in Candy Glow and the Rimmel London nail varnish is the 405 Rose Libertine :-) 

What are your summer essentials? Let me know in the comments below :-) 

xoxo

P.S. Follow my Facebook here! 

Star Wars Day Makeup

Hello everyone! 

Today is May 4th, and we all know that means it’s Star Wars Day! Yes that is nerdy, and no I’m not really into Star Wars, but Mr.Gingersnap, like most men, is a fan. So I am being a supportive girlfriend and trying to get into things he likes too. The best way to do that here is through makeup! I have come up with two different makeup looks for you guys today, both of them using the Too Faced Chocolate Bon Bons eyeshadow palette.

These looks are so simple, this is all you need! 

The first look is more of a day time style, I have tried to channel the whole desert, sandy, jedi vibe for this. After I’ve done my whole face of makeup, apart from eyes and lips, I’ll pat some Benefit Air Patrol eyeshadow primer onto my lids. The first colour I like to use is Divinity as a base, it’s a lovely creamy colour to sweep across the whole lid. Then I’ll take my number one favourite Almond Truffle and curve it over the whole crease of my upper eyelids. This shade is so beautiful, I adore the mauve tone to it! Next I’ll pat the warm, sparkly Molasses Chip onto the outer and middle sections of my lids. I then use this same colour to line my lower lashes. Next I’ll dab Satin Sheets into the inner corner of my lids to lighten my eyes and make them look more intense. Then it’s onto the blending stage, do this gradually as you can blend too far and end up with muddy eyeshadow with no real definition. Finally I’ll use Divinity again across my brow bones, below my eyebrows as a highlighter. 

Left to right: Divinity, Almond Truffle, Molasses Chip, Satin Sheets

Mascara and lipstick add the final touches. For this look I used the Lollipops Paris Ladycat’s Power Volume Mascara. It gives me super long lashes, but still with quite a natural defined look. For lipstick I wanted a more neutral colour, but not a nude. I feel this look needs a bit of pink to it. I love this Bigune lipstick in Beige Rosé, it’s a wonderful dusky, matte rose that goes with everything! 

Of course, I had to do a Dark Side inspired look too, it was inevitable. This look is really dramatic and I love it for an evening look, especially a night out. To start I will prime my eyelids, then take Dark Truffle and sweep it across the crease of both eyelids. This deep, rich brown will provide the definition of the look. Then I’ll take Earl Grey and pat it onto the middle and outer sections of my lids. This gunmetal blue will look slightly strange until you blend it with the brown, but I promise once it is blended it looks beautiful. Take Black Current and pull it along the lower lashes, I love how this emphasises my eye colour! Finally I take Café au Lait and pat it into the inner corners and use it to highlight along my brow bones. Then I blend gently to really bring the look together. 

Left to right: Dark Truffle, Earl Grey, Black Current, Café au Lait 

As this is a dramatic eye, I wanted lashes that would stand out more so I used the L’Oréal Miss Manga Punky Volume mascara. It gives my lashes so much volume and a wonderfully vintage spiky look! To pull the look together I needed a real show stopper of a lipstick. It was a hard debate, I hesitated between a matte red or a deep berry tone, in the end I chose a gorgeous plum colour. I love wearing MAC’s Satin in Media in the evenings, it goes on so smoothly and contrasts so well with pale skin! As an alternative Charlotte Tilbury’s So Marilyn is a great red for this look. 

I hope you guys have enjoyed these looks :-) Let me know if you have any great ideas for looks or plans for the day in the comments below. Aaaaaaannnnndddd, May the Fourth be with you! Sorry guys, couldn't resist...

xoxo

P.S. Check out my Facebook here. 

Too Faced Trials

Hello everyone! 

Who loves Too Faced products? Aside from the obvious major plus of their cruelty free stance, they actually have consistently high quality products. I have been using them for years and somewhere in the depths of my makeup collection is a smokey eye palette which is probably looooong out of date… I’m not saying I love and must buy every product they bring out, I try to only buy what I think will suit my style. However, between my friends and myself we have probably tried a good majority of their stuff! It is always good, trust me. 

BUT, I do have a rather large bug bear with them not always releasing products in the UK, notably their recent Peanut Butter and Jelly palette. I had been coveting that palette since they announced it and I was so upset to find out it isn’t coming to the UK. I could, of course, buy it online and ship it from America, but the shipping is more than the product itself and I can’t justify it to myself. As a red head, this palette would be perfect for me, the purple berry tones, combined with the warm brown and umber shades would just look divine *sigh* and I love the smell of peanut butter. 

Look how cute it is! 

If you combined the original Chocolate Bar and Semi-Sweet palettes you could probably achieve almost identical looks, but they are much bulkier and less cute in my opinion! In the vague hope that they might yet release it I am going to hold off considering buying the chocolate palettes. Although, I have purchased the Chocolate Bon Bons palette as it is very different and is just all around stunning (she says whilst desperately trying to justify it!). 

First off, the packaging is very cute. I love the cardboard box the most, it reminds me of in the newer Charlie and the Chocolate factory with the Whipple-Scrumptious Fudgemallow Delight (Roald Dahl nerd in the house!) chocolate bars. You guys agree? When you get in there the packaging is this gorgeously girly pink tin with 16 matte and shimmer shades. Seriously, the smell of chocolate is insane! I can smell it all day, no kidding. Some of the shades look really strong, particularly Totally Fetch and Black Current, but they apply quite lightly so you can build them for a stronger look or incorporate them into a more natural look. The usual Too Faced triple cheat sheet for looks is present and correct, love those, they are super helpful for inspiration. The only small down side is the lack of a brush within the tin, but hey you can’t have everything! 

 In rows from left to right the colours are Almond Truffle, Satin Sheets, Sprinkles, Molasses Chip, Malted, Cashew Chew, Cotton Candy, Cafe au Lait, Bordeaux, Mocha, Black Currant, Dark Truffle, Pecan Praline, Totally Fetch, Eary Grey and Divinity. 

Gretchen Weiners finally made Fetch happen with the gorgeous hot pink shadow! 

I may have been a little bit naughty and also treated myself to a new blush, damn Sephora temptations! I have had my eye on the Sweethearts blushes for quite a while. I think the packaging is very sweet and was pleasantly surprised by the size of the product. I have a feeling this will last a while! So far the blush is gorgeous, as it has 3 shades, you can choose to apply one or mix them all together or even a combination 2, this gives you so many options for different looks and is perfect for spring. I chose the Candy Glow blush as it suits my skin tone the best. There are also 3 other shades, well two at the minute with a third to be released soon. These range from a strong coral palette, to a bronze and then a very gold shimmer palette. I do love the shimmer of these as it almost acts as a highlighter too. It applies and blends beautifully, my only fault being that isn’t very portable, but I can’t really complain about it being too big can I?! 

If you guys would like me to, I will do a couple of eyeshadow looks using this palette for you in a separate post. Let me know in the comments below if you’re keen :-) To take a peek at my Facebook page click here.

xoxo

Making Me Blush

Hello everyone! 

With spring on the horizon it is time to start rocking that rosy glow. “How? Show me your blush wizardry!” I hear you all cry. So let’s go! 

Blush is very subjective, depending on your skin tone, hair colour and the look you are going for, you might want to try very different blushes. As I cannot change my appearance at will I can only really advise you on my tastes. I am very pale, with bright auburn hair to give you a rough idea. I’ll talk about powder blushes first and then move on to the cream blushes, so feel free to skip bits if you like!

For the daytime I like quite a delicate blush, I have been really loving the baby pinks recently, in case you hadn’t already noticed! My all time favourite will always be the Benefit Dandelion blush, it is so light, but so pigmented and really blends well. A total classic really. Another Benefit classic is the Coralista blush, the one I have is very very old, possibly even the first blush from my collection! Unfortunately they have since changed the formulation and it has a much more bronzy tone to it, it would go wonderfully if you have a nice tan, or with a bit of Hoola bronzer. The formulation I have is a very warm pinky-coral, with a terracotta undertone, I prefer this blush in the summer when I have a bit more colour or for an evening out when I would probably wear more makeup. 

Two recent additions to my collection, and probably many of yours too as they are relatively new, are from YSL and Too Faced. I wrote a full post about the YSL Gypsy Opale palette a while back, you can check that out here. This blush is a very light baby pink on the skin and has a gorgeous opalescent finish, if you like that ethereal lit from within look then this is the blush for you. It comes with all you need to finish off your face, with the purple and green sections for balancing and a pearly highlighter for your final touch. Sadly it is limited edition so I don’t know if you can get hold of it, if you can then it may be a little pricey! 

I have heard so many people rave about the Too Faced Sweetheart blushes, I couldn’t resist buying one. Available in multiple tones, they provide three different blushes in one super cute heart shaped palette to be used singularly or in combination. I went for Candy Glow and it is so pretty, I use it mainly for daytime as a light shimmer, but I can build the colour up for a night-time look. 

On to the cream blushes, I’m sorry to say I don’t have much experience with these having only two in my collection, but I will do my best. I have to admit, I’m not a huge fan as I don’t feel like the colour lasts as well throughout the day and does need multiple touch ups. This type of product would be good for if you were just popping out and wanted a light face of make-up or if you are having a beach or park day with friends. Who else can’t wait for picnic season to be back? 

Maybelline’s brand new Baby Lips balm and blush combos are a big hit with everyone already. I prefer them as a balm, but as a blush they do have a lovely shimmer finish. I have the 01 innocent peach shade, but to be honest there isn’t really much difference between the four shades so you really don’t need them all! My final product is another lips and cheeks duo product. It is the My Little Beauty lips and cheeks stick, providing a very matte finish, with a sunny, warm coral tone, with more orange pigment than pink. Perfect for the end of summer when you have a lovely glow from the sun! I prefer this one as a cheek colour than a lip balm, as it is quite drying. I also feel like I am too pale for this right now, so it will have to wait for better use later in the year. 

What is your favourite blush? If you would like me to walk you through a look incorporating one of these blushes, let me know in the comments below :-) 

xoxo

FarFetch Beauty Launch**

Hello everyone, 

Recently I was contacted by Farfetch, an online designer clothes store, asking if I would like to take part in a blogger competition they are hosting. They are publicising the launch of their new online beauty section by inviting certain bloggers to take part. Their website looks really fab and extremely versatile, shipping well-known designer brands such as By Terry, Chloe, Fendi and Kenzo. 

They asked me to create a little wish list of products I would like from their new section and to post a quick glimpse into my own beauty collection and essentials. They ship all over the world and collaborate with over 1000 brands globally, so they are worth taking a look here. 

For my little wish list I chose a couple of brands I know and love and a couple I am unfamiliar with, but would like to try! 

1. Hourglass blush in Diffused Heat
2. R + CO Gemstone Colour Shampoo (I don't colour my hair, but this bottle looks amazing! Often products aimed at coloured hair are very rich, but less harsh on your hair) 
3. Lipstick Queen in Wine Sinner 
4. By Terry Blush Glacé in Frozen Petal
5. Sunday Riley Artemis Hydroactive Face Oil 

Now onto my own beauty products, I'm not going to list them all as that would take forever and a day, but I'll give you a brief overview. You may recognise some products from previous posts and monthly favourites! 

These products are definitely my daily essentials! The lipsticks are the Gwen Stefani for Urban Decay in Ex-Girlfriend for a day to day look and the Charlotte Tilbury in So Marilyn for a pop of colour! 

This photo has a couple of my favourites like the YSL Gypsy Opale face palette and the Clarins Instant Light Lip Comfort Oil (phew what a mouthful!)

Obviously I couldn't do a post like this and not show a few of my favourite lippys!

Last, but not least a quick peek at my favourite palettes :-) 

I hope you have enjoyed peeking into my makeup collection and maybe it will inspire you to try some new products! If you see a product that you would like me to write a specific review for, then let me know in the comments below :-) 

xoxo