NOTD #6: Petrol Nails!

Ever since the release of Chanel's Peridot, other brands such at Ciaté and Models Own have released 'petrol' inspired duo chrome shades. After looking at swatches online they were all proved to be identical which drove me to find Topshop's version. I knew I had seen a Topshop nail polish similar to Peridot however my tiny stored only had basic shades on offer. So when I went to a larger store I quickly snapped up the shade 'Hidden Treasure'. Even my boyfriend was urging me to buy it because of how cool it looked in the bottle, you know you are on to a winner when a male is impressed by a nail polish!

This polish was priced at £6.00 which I think is very decent as you only need two coats for full opacity. I have had no chips for five days now and it is still going strong which is amazing. I haven't tried any other Topshop nail polishes but after this one, I am keen to try them out. I have decided to add  few more pictures than normal to this NOTD as it was hard to capture its true colour and beauty!

In a lot of light, this polish on your nails can look either predominantly green or goldy orange however in some lights you can really see the mix of blue, green, yellow and orange which makes it look a lot like an oil slick.

I hope you don't mind such a long blog post for one nail varnish but I thought it deserved it as I can stop looking at my nails and I have had so many compliments. What is your current nail polish fav?

Hayley xxx 

 P.s. I know these pictures aren't of the best quality however my camera is playing up and  need to take it back :( Thank god it is still within its one year warranty! 

My Current Wishlist #2

Top Left: Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation Top Right: Naked 2 Palette (really can't decide which I prefer, the original or the second??)

 Bottom Left: No7 Beautiful Skin Cleansing Water Bottom Middle: Chanel Illusion D’Ombre in Emerveillé Bottom Right: MeMeMe Beat The Blues Face Illuminator in Moonbeam

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains

Revlon are quickly becoming my favourite high street make-up brand. I love the colourstay foundation as well as their eyeliners, eyeshadows and lipsticks. I never really used to gravitate towards lip products because frankly, I am far to lazy to re apply and check for smudging or lipstick on teeth situations... Since the release of the Lip Butters which are a more moisturising lip balm/ lipstick hybrid, I have really been getting into a bit of colour on my lips. As soon as I heard about these balm stains I knew I was in for a winner. Moisture + long lasting colour = lip perfection.

I ventured into superdrug only to find they were all sold out minus the colour Crush (a browny mauve) which didn't really float my boat. I decided to take a look in Boots and there were only a few of each so I quickly grabbed the colour Honey. The boots website and the actual store seem to sell slightly different colours as Honey isn't on the website however six other lovely shades are (lovesick I am looking at you). The name Honey to me suggests a browny toned maybe peacher shade but in reality it is more of a dusky, rose pink. It is one of the most subtle and mature shades out of the collection however as I am just venturing into the world of lip products I thought I would go with the safe option and I am in no way disappointed.

From the picture above you can probably see why these stains have been compared to the Clinique Chubby Sticks. In looks they are nearly identical however in consistency they are different. I haven't tried the Chubby Sticks however from what I have read they are unscented and a little bland compared to the minty and vibrant Revlon balm stains. 

The formulation is slightly waxy and very smooth which gives a moisturised sheen to the lips. You can either apply the product very sheerly or pack the product on to create a rather opaque colour. I would say the colour lasts a good five to six hours (being optimistic) before you need to reapply which is brilliant for such a moisurising lip balm. I guess this is thanks to the built in stain (why is this property not put into every lip product?!)

Above is the colour Honey applied to the lips as well as swatches. I love these so much that I will definitely be picking up more. They are priced at £7.99 which is great however in both Superdrug and Boots they are on offer for £2 off which is even better!

Have you tried these yet? Which colours would you recommend me to try next?

Hayley xxx

7 Things for 7 Days: July

Firstly I would like to say hello to my new followers because numbers and views have doubled and tripled in the last month. I normally put around two to four posts up a week and I know recently I have been lacking in that department however with exams I feel I don't really need any more distractions. You will be please to know that from this time next week I will be throwing so many blog posts at you, you'll go into Hayley overload and as I love blogging, I am very excited. 

As a quick post I thought I would join in with the 7 things for 7 days post in which Louise has made interactive.

Read Louise's post here

Revise

With only 3 three exams left until I finish my A levels I have been revising like a mad woman and nearing the end I really feel like giving up and taking the exams as they come. But I have a lot planned for the summer so that should keep me motivated!

Relax

As I said, after my exams are done in three days time I will be able to relax and not feel guilty which hasn't happened in around two years now since my A levels started.

Pamper

As I am soon to leave school, my ball/prom is very soon so I plan to do a whole at home pampering session which will include a manicure, pedicure, hair treatment and face mask. Bliss!

Read

I love to read. It's one of the main reasons I chose English Lit as an A level choice however with revision I just don't have time to read for pleasure. I can't wait to get into it again.

Expand

I know my blog is only a tiny tiny fish in a massive sea of beauty blogs however I have big plans to really expand my blog over the summer and make it as good as it can be. Blogging is something I enjoy a lot so I am excited to expand my blog and create new content.

Organise

Once my exams are over I plan to completely de clutter my room in order to create a more relaxed atmosphere. With all those past exam papers and text books gone everything will seem so much more neat and tidy. Also, as I go on holiday soon, I need to organise what I am taking and stock up on essentials.

Plan

I love planning my weeks and weekends because then I know what I have to look forward too so school and work don't seem as pointless. Before I go to Uni, there is a lot of time and I plan to do as much as possible with my friends before we all go our separate ways.

I hope you have enjoyed this little post and be sure to check out Louise's Blog post too!

Hayley xxx

How to tell if your MAC Blush is a fake

I thought I would write this post after my bad experience with fake MAC products which you can read more about here. After I suspected my purchase was fake I went and googled it to find comparisons however I found it very difficult to find posts that included pictures. As you will see I bought Harmony Blush from cheapsmells.com which when compared with a shop bought blush, was completely different in packaging, shade and texture. Now, I am no MAC expert however this post is just from what I have experienced and seen.

Left: Real,  Right: Fake

The main thing that gave the fake blush away was the packaging and especially the use of slightly yellow tinted writing compared to the more grey toned genuine product. Also, another big giveaway was the code on the fake one (A59) shows that the blush was manufactured in 2009 which seems very old whereas as you can see from the picture, the real blush was made in 2012 (A12). Apart from these two main differences the packaging was very similar.

Left: Real,  Right: Fake 

The MAC logo on the fake was pretty good if only a little larger and thinner than the real. The camera shows up the colour difference quite well as when I got the fake, it was more orange toned compared to swatches I had seen online. The real product is cooler in tone and more rose based which is what makes it such a great contour for pale skinned girls like myself.

Left: Real,  Right: Fake

Another massive giveaway was that the ingredients on the fake didn't correspond with the real product. This shows that you shouldn't be ok with buying fake products for their name just because they are cheap due to all the nasty chemicals that may have been added to them to make it look like the real thing.

Left: Real,  Right: Fake

Last of all, another killer giveaway was the fact that the product name and  barcode on the fake were stuck on whilst on the real thing, they were printed. The stickers just seem like a lazy and cheaper option compared to the real MAC packaging.

I really hope this post was helpful to anyone who suspects a fake product or anyone who wants to get wised  up on what fake MAC blushes look like for the future. Anyone had any other experiences with any fake products?

Hayley xxx

NOTD #5: Jubilee Nails

For the Queens Diamond Jubilee I decided to join in with the festive spirit in the best way I know how... Nail polish! I didn't do a full Union Jack on my accent nail because it was just too fiddly and I thought it turned out pretty well for my first attempt at nail art. I used my favourite red (No7 Ruby Charm, Limited Edition) over the majority of my nails then painted both my ring fingers with a Collection 2000 Hot Looks nail polish in 13 Vogue for the royal blue. The only white I had was old and gloopy so I used a grey which worked fine (No7 Tip Toes, Limited Edition). For the red in the center of the flag I poured a tiny amount of polish out and used a toothpick which worked well, a nail art pen would have made a smoother line however I kind of like the effect it gave.

I hope you like my festive nails and try it out for yourself :)

Hayley xxx

Recent Beauty Buys

In Superdrug at the moment they have a three for two deal on all beauty products so I decided to get a few things I had been lusting over for a while. 

The first item is the  L'Oreal Color Infaillible in 021 Sahara Treasure. I was intrigued to try this as apparently they are similar to the Giorgio Armani eyeshadows as they are both pigments which have a similar stopper design to make the whole pigment experience much more hassle free. This is a great shadow on its own however teamed with the Maybelline Colour Tattoo in 40 Permanent Taupe it looks amazing. Initially I wanted the Colour Tattoo in On and On Bronze however it was sold out in both Superdrug and Boots so I settled for the Taupe which I am now really please with. That isn't to say I still want to get the bronze colour :P I will include swatches of both at the end of the post.

Next up are the two mini nail polishes from Maxfactor. I included the colour Soft Toffee in a recent NOTD post so check that out if you are interesting in buying it because it looks different on the nails to what is in the bottle. The other shade I picked up was Cool Jade which also looks different in the bottle to on the nails. I thought it would be the perfect mint colour however when applied it was a bright jade. This disappointed me at first however I have grown to love it and am still on the market for the perfect mint. Any suggestions?

Smoked Peach is the very first Revlon Matte lipstick I have tried and I really love the formulation. They stay for a good amount of time and aren't too drying. I like the colour however it is very orangy which can look a bit harsh in contrast with my skin tone but blotted out a bit and it looks perfect.

Lastly, I was excited to try the Sleek eau la la liners because they are both smudge proof and waterproof. I picked up the colour 317 Molasses which is a deep brown which I like to use smudged into my lash line. Once applied, there is a bit of time before the product sets before it stays all day which puts it ahead of any other pencil eyeliners I own. The only downside I have found so far is that the pencil is so soft that when I took the lid of, the suction pulled the actual liner out of the inside of the pencil so it is now broken and I have to carefully slide it back in. Despite this, I would like to try other colours including the black and the pinks. Pinks?! I hear you cry. No, I am not using pink as an eyeliner but as a lip liner as these pencils are branded to be multifunctional.

Hope you enjoyed this post on a few bits and pieces I have picked up recently and below are the swatches I promised :)

Left to right: Permanent Taupe, Sahara Desert, Molasses and Smoked Peach

Hayley xxx