September Favourites!

It's that time again where the end of the year draws even closer and I take a look to see what I've been LOVING this month.

I've ended up buying a lot of new products recently and, in a bid to save some cash, I'm trying to use everything up as much as possible. I've literally been leaving my bank card at home to prevent any unnecessary spending!

So without further ado, here are the things that have been floating my boat this September!

My Style Icon - Gwen Stefani

We all have one person who we idolise. Over the years I have loved many a celebrity and tried to emulate them through the way they dress, their make-up, even down to what they eat and drink.

However there is one celebrity who I have been, for want of a better word obsessed about from the age of about 12. She embodies so much from being a polite and respectable woman, a rocking musician holding her own in a genre dominated by guitar based groups of men, a style icon and an advocate of fashion and beauty. 

That woman is Gwen Stefani.

Starting off with a little band called No Doubt, from the 80s onward Gwen has always had her own style, her own presence and her own signature look. Everybody recognises her famous platinum blonde locks and bright red lips. 

In the early 2000s Gwen even launched her own solo music career and not one, but two fashion lines, L.A.M.B and Harajuku Lovers.

L.A.M.B was what you would consider "high-end" and retailed in places like Harvey Nichols in the UK and Nordstrom in the US. I literally would get my student loan, go out and blow £150 on a hoodie I loved her so much. Harajuku Lovers was a little bit cheaper and a little bit cuter. Sometimes, if you're lucky some turns up in TK Maxx on occasion and I've grabbed myself a couple of tees and hoodies along the way. 

Gwen performing at Wembley Arena on her Sweet Escape Tour 

GET THE LOOK

Gwen's famous red lipstick has many "dupes" and I've tried them all. MAC's Russian Red, Urban Decay's Tart Lip Gunk (sadly discontinued) however the one lipstick always sited as being her favourite is L'Oreal's Color Riche in True Red - £4.95 In fact, Gwen even was the face of L'Oreal for a while. 

 








Lamb Women's Bindi Special Occasion Heels - £63-£233.47 - 
Gwen even branched out into footwear. Click the shoe above to see some of the styles available.

   
L.A.M.B Perfume - 50mls - £12.14 - I wear this pretty much as my everday scent. It's a lovely mix of floral tones, including Sweet Pea and is really fresh and spring-like. 

If you want to take a listen to where all this started from pick up one of No Doubt's Albums and see for yourself the enigma that is Gwen Stefani!

Till Next Time 

FluffyCandy

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August 2013 Favourites

So September is upon us again. The days draw shorter and it gets a bit colder and we start thinking about what we've done this year so far... or in the world of beauty blogs we think about what we have loved this month. This is my first ever favourites post and I've thought about what products I should include. I've tried to give a good selection of which I've been using over the month of August, plus one extra non make-up item. I would love to hear what your thoughts are on the things I've picked, any recommendations of things you think I might like or perhaps you've not enjoyed them. Please leave me a comment and blog url. I'd love to hear from you

Lush's Ocean Salt Facial Scrub - £7.25 for 100g

I love Lush. In fact the first time I became aware of a lot of the blogosphere was when I became obsessed with Lush hauls on YouTube. I have tried many of their cleansers but always end up coming back to Ocean Salt time and again.

I can't use it all the time because with the salt it's obviously quite drying. I suffer from quite a stubborn blackheady nose and this just gives me the extra push that clears them up. I guess it's kind of in the same way that your skin clears up whenever you go on holiday. It can be picked up from www.lush.co.uk

Essie - Bikini So Teeny - £7.50

Essie - Bikini So Teeny painted on

Please excuse a) my horrific lighting set-up and b) the state of my nail/painting. I've only recently got into doing my nails and, again, I've only just discovered Essie. But oh my goodness, Essie (along with OPI) is hands down one of my favourite nail brands. For cackhanded fools like myself this goes on beautifully and this shade, Bikini So Teeny, is the perfect pastel lilac for Summer into Autumn. 

In particular I've been layering with OPI's Anniversary to give this wonderful shimmery colour. You can pick them both up from Amazon from the links below. 

Essie - Bikini So Teeny  - £7.50

OPI Happy Anniversary Nail Polish - - £7.89

Avon Super Extend Eyeliner - Black - £4

Avon Super Extend Eyeliner - Felt Tip

Avon Super Extend Eyeliner - Swatched in thin and thick

Ahhh Avon! Ding dong and all that stuff. I actually tried to sell Avon earlier this year and I was pretty good at it. My current job is in sales and marketing so it was quite natural for me to pick up a bit of extra cash and a bit of extra make-up. However in the end it just ended up taking up too much of my time and the thought of roaming around the streets picking up soggy catalogues did not appeal so I stopped. However it did leave me with a legacy of some good products.

Case in point is their Super Extend eyeliner. It's a felt tip eyeliner which has a couple of different thicknesses possible dependant on how you use them. I've worn this a lot as my kohls have been melting recently and sometimes full on liquid eyeliner can be too much.

Best thing as well, it's on sale now and is only £4! Check it out at the Avon Shop by clicking here 

LipCote - £3.50

Many people's mums teach them how to use make-up. My mum never did this. She only wore lipstick, mascara and her eyebrow pencil. The one thing she ALWAYS wore was Lipcote. This has recently had a bit of a revival and a strong marketing campaign and too right. This stuff is amazing. It goes with me everywhere.

My lipsticks are bold and my routine is simple, apply, blot, LipCote. It keeps my lipstick on for hours and is great for all the weddings and events I've been to over the last few months.

Pick it up from Amazon for just £3.50 

Lipcote - £3.50

Urban Decay - Naked Skin Foundation - £24

I love Urban Decay. Along with MAC, I think it is one of my favourite make-up brands. From the moment I went to Harrods and, despite being a student, was treated to a full makeover and samples I've been hooked. 

I don't normally wear a foundation unless I'm going out and because my skin colour changes so easily I've never had much luck matching one, however earlier this month for the my birthday I promised myself I would buy myself a new foundation. Urban Decay's Naked Skin was the one I picked.

It's not cheap (£24) and I do think you have to use quite a lot. I've been using mine over a base of Stila's One Step and using a proper brush. The effect I've had has been amazing. I have OKish skin but this just makes me look really good in photos and I feel like it lasts all night. Watch out when matching it though because it can be a bit cakey. There are something like 40 different types as well so although I've linked below I would suggest finding your nearest counter and getting a few testers done.

Urban Decay - Naked Skin - 6.5 - £24
Stila One Step Correcting Serum - £21.50

And last, but by no means least, I have a piece of jewelery. I've always really liked Tatty Devine and I've got a few pieces by them. I was recently lusting over the Radiance Necklace which, although beautiful, was an eye watering £100+ for a perspex necklace. Then, whilst at the Metro Centre in Gateshead earlier this month, I spotted this. A diddy version, on sale reduced from £35 to £17.50. Obviously I snatched it up fast and I LOVE it. It's shimmery and reflects in the light and has a very long chain (Unusual for Tatty Devine necklaces) but I can honestly say that it's beautiful and I've been wearing it every chance I get.

Currently lusting over their A/W Head In The Cloud necklace now... 

I think it might be sold out now but check out Tatty Devine and for slightly cheaper on Amazon too Tatty Devine

Till next time,

FluffyCandy

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I ❤.....

I LOVE lipstick (or even ❤ it!) My favourite brand of lipstick has got to be MAC, purely for the sheer volume and range they have. Other brands I have in my collection are Benefit, Rimmel, Barry M and a couple of chemist brands, but if I had a birthday then MAC would be the one I’d ask for. 

So, whittling it down to just one shade was tricky. A few years ago I was OBSESSED with MAC’s signature Russian Red a bright, blue based red with a shiny sheen. I wore it every opportunity I got. 

Nowadays I love my pinks and my corals, though the red does get pulled out on the odd occasion!

What I did to come my decision is delve into my handbag to see what was in there that I used the most…. the result was…

 

MAC – Vegas Volt – Amplified finish

I ❤ this lipstick so much. It’s bright and cheery but totally works on a day time look. A lot of the Amplified lipsticks that I own (Girl About Town and Impassioned) are beautiful but only work at night. 

I wear this when I’m at work (and I don’t wear a lot of make up at work) but still wear it out and about on the town. It’s a beautiful pinky coral colour and stays on for hours. This can even be further extended by one of my products that I couldn’t live without. Lipcote.

 

I ❤ Vegas Volt

Swatched

The formulation is creamy and thick, the colour payoff is bright and immense. It’ll take a very impressive colour and/or formula to knock this off the top spot.

What are your favourite lipstick colours? 

Till next time,

FluffyCandy

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