Eyeshadow discovery!

I found this eye shadow in Superdrug in the MUA (Makeup Academy) stand and I was taken by surprise at what they had there. I always seems to be drawn to the L'Oreal and Rimmel sections that I sometimes miss things like this is the other sections! But last week I was with my friend and were both browsing through all of it and when we saw everything MUA had we were instantly drawn to it. 

They had a large selection of individual eyeshadows all really unique but classy colours, matte or shimmery and super pigmented. Their contour sets, blush, bronze and highlight kits also looked really nice, packaged nicely and with unique features like the marbled colours and their bronzer is a mosaic pattern too! But it was this eyeshadow trio "Legendary" that I picked up and it was £3 so I wasn't expecting amazing things but it is actually really nice! They are golden colours but all with slightly different tints so the top is a lighter shade with white in an then the bottom right has more brown in it. 

I like the texture of them however they are not as powdery as I imagined and they take a little while to break in but once you do they are really nice as an everyday look or with a little more of the darker shade it is perfect for an evening. 

They are a very welcome addition to a makeup collection! 

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My favourite chocolate

This year I was undated with Lindt chocolate for Easter, I'm not complaining because in my opinion it is the best! I ended up getting two Lindor Eggs and then one plain eggs with bunnies and a Lindt gold bunny hutch, all very nicely presented and very cute.

I always think that Easter is the time of the year where it is acceptable to eat chocolate in mass and all of these eggs are perfect for that and they will certainly last me the whole holiday.  

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Too many Easter treats!

These are so quick and easy to do, I had forgotten just how little time and effort they take and how cute they look! I used cooking chocolate on these ones but previously I have used Lindt or other normal chocolate which tastes just as nice!

As you saw, I went a little baking mad as the weather wasn't nice and I think Easter is the biggest opportunity to eat treats and create pretty looking bakes. Although I really do like the easter cupcakes I am a chocaholic at heart and even though (on the day before easter) I have two big chocolate eggs in my room I did want to make something chocolatey and a classic is the easter nests!

I have a section of bun cakes for different times of the year and occasions so these are the 

ones I used!

I've never used the shreddies before but I think they do make them look more nest like which I like and I topped them off with little chocolate eggs, because you can't have an empty nest!

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Easter Cupcakes

Yesterday was a very busy day as the weather was so nice and I wanted to make the most of it! So I ended up going to two beaches and in between other little jobs likes cleaning the rabbit and getting some things from the shops. As a result of that I was quite tired today and fancied just having a steady day, but also the weather is the complete opposite form yesterday, rainy and windy but with the exception of a couple of quick dashes for dog walks I spent today doing coursework, relaxing and then baking!

I made two easter treats today, the first ones I made were chocolate easter nests (which I will put up in a separate post) and then these cupcakes! I am very pleased with the end result, although it wasn't quite as straight forward as I hoped, but ended up alright in the end!

I made sponge cakes with butter cream piping on top, plain and simple but a nice treat which look very fluffy and easter like! The cupcake cases are by The Great British Bake Off and I got them from Lakeland last year I think and I think they are lovely for easter and the colours are very spring like and bright. The other thing I like about them is the petal like top but the only thing I find difficult is that you have to be careful not to over fill them with batter as they spill over when they are rising. Whereas if you put a little bit less in by the time it rises the top is hardened and can stand on its own.  

So first of all I like to lay out of my ingredients to save myself grabbing it whilst I've got flour all over my hands andI used a recipe that I have always used right back to when me and my Mum used to make these when I was little. Its in a very well worn good housekeeping recipe book and it was the fairy cake recipe I used;

4oz self raising flour

4oz  caster sugar

4oz softened butter

2 eggs 

After creaming together the butter and sugar then add your flour and eggs a little at a time, this is one of my favourite bits because after an aching arm from creaming the butter and sugar its an easy ride from here onwards! 

Using these measurements gives you about 9 cakes as I use the muffin cases so a lot of the time I will double the ingredients so that I get enough to last a while. I would also recommend making a lot of buttercream if you want to have a large swirl on top as I didn't have enough for all of mine but the ones I did you I was quite pleased with. The piping was the bit I look forward to most of the whole bake because a couple of years ago I could never pipe and whenever I tried it would always just look messy and like a bit of an accident had happened. After a lot of practice and finding the right nozzle and bags I think I'm finally improving!

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The most amazing hair product

 I have naturally quite dry hair but using heat to style my hair on a regular basis means that it sometimes looks straw-like and dry but this product is the answer to all my problems! My worst nightmare is greasy hair. In the past when I have used certain products it has not washed out easily and as a result my hair has felt gross. But I have been using the Pantene repair and protect shampoo, which in itself is great, and then after styling my hair I rub a small amount of this oil onto my fingers and run them through my hair. It makes soft and shiny but none greasy hair and it smells nice too! 

The best thing about this is that you can also use it on your skin too and just the same as your hair it isn't greasy, just soft! I really would recommend this product and it is the only hair treatment oil I have been able to use and it really does work and does what it says on the bottle, given me nourished hair. I also have the bath milk and a couple of their other products which I am keen to try out soon and see how they compare.   

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What's on my dressing table?

My dressing table is a place I sit and spend time at every morning almost without fail. It's the place where I do my hair and put my makeup on and so I wanted it to be a pretty, tidy and relaxing place so that it is enjoyable for me to sit at and I have to say, I love it! 

Before I moved to the house I live in now I used to sit on the floor in front of my wall mirror to get ready in the mornings and so my dressing table now is such a lovely change from that! My Mum has had a lovely dressing table for as long as I can remember and so when I was picking what I wanted on mine I was thinking about the little pictures and trinket boxes she has. 

So, I got my mirror, dressing table and stool to match the rest if my bedroom furniture which is an Atlanta Two-tone set from Oak Furniture Solutions and throughout my room I have a mauve pink sort of theme with country touches. I love the colour mauve/dusty pink as it was the colour of my prom dress and I would have everything that colour if I could! 

Surrounding my mirror I have a false rose string which are very delicate and pretty and I feel compliment the oak wood very well. They have a valuable wire running through them and the soft fabric they are made from and the subtle colours of the pink and green leaves make them classy and a great touch in a room. They came in a very long string and so I have spread them onto my floor length mirror as well mixed with some fairy lights which create a very tranquil atmosphere on a cosy night.   

Perfumes bottles are a very pretty addition to my dressing table and one of my favourite scents at the moment is the Calvin Klein IN2U Her and it seriously smells amazing! I've had it since christmas and I've put it on everyday because I just love they smell of it, I would highly recommend it!  

Another of my perfumes is the Marc Jacobs Daisy and I got this a couple of years ago and I'm afraid to say that it has nearly run out but I just love the cute bottles they are in and so they will be staying on my dressing table longer after there is nothing left!

I also keep a select few pieces of my jewellery out hanging on a jewellery stand. This is just one of them and it is a tinker bell necklace that my younger brother, who is 12, got me last year when he went to Disneyland Paris and I think it is so pretty and delicate! I never asked him to get me it, he just chose it which, I think, shows what great taste he has and how well he knows me and what I like!

Lastly, this is a small mirror that got I think as a present from one of my family but it was quite a while ago so I'm not entirely sure, however it fits in perfectly it's floral design links in with all of the other features in my room. 

That was a little look into what my dressing table looks like and I hope you like it!

xoxo

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Absolute favourite necklace

This necklace means a lot to me in many ways. It is a gold plated zodiac pendant on a 45cm chain and as you can see my sign is Taurus which is also the same as my Granny's as we have the same birthday! It is from Anna Saccone's collection which she made to share her own personal story of how she wears her father's zodiac necklace since he died and in making her collection she wanted to create something that could be given to someone for them to wear and it mean something personal to them. I definitely think that this is what she has achieved! I was bought this by my boyfriend for Christmas and I have worn it every single day since then, it goes with everything and can be worn casually or dressed up. 

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A very picturesque Padstow

Living in Cornwall is something you don't always appreciate and I ever feel as if we are missing the high end shops or the cool and exciting things that other places offer you just have to go out of a lovely day like this. Padstow is just one of the many idilic fishing towns and its character really shines through drawing you in. 

Looking across from Padstow beach to Rock beach and in the distance is the headland between Dammer Day to Polzeath (all regular doggy walks!)

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Beach walking is so relaxing!

I've had my dog for 1 and a half years and since then beach walks have become a regular thing! Before Monty we used to go occasionally on a Sunday and now I go at least 2 or 3 times a week, even when the weather is horrendous and I'm the only one of the whole a 2 mile beach. He is a working type, all black cocker spaniel and he is such a great dog for our family. Although there are days when we are all out, we all tend to pop home at different times and so he is never on his own longer than about 2 hours and in that time he also goes with a dog walker who is amazing and he just loves playing with all the other dogs! 

We take him everywhere we can, he goes for car rides when I'm just dropping off or picking someone up and we tend to try and go to pubs and places to eat that allow dogs just so that he can come! 

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Weird Photoshoot!

This photoshoot really was the test of my friendship with my best friend! This photo is just one from a series we did and tin foil was not the only prop we used, elastic bands, sellotape and string also featured! As I mentioned in my other post about my project, this is all linked to contortion and distortion of the face and body. So I needed a model to bring all of my ideas into a photoshoot and very kindly I got my volunteer! She was so so good and let me contort her face in every way possible. I plan to draw from these and use them for imagery in my final piece. 

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Art all day everyday

This year is my last doing art at college. After this, hopefully I'll be doing Interior Design at university and so as I am now on my last A Level project, which is an exam, I am putting everything into it! The project before this was a landscape project and it was unlike any of the other projects I have done before. We had these massive A2 sketchbooks which we incredibly difficult to carry and transport backwards and forwards from home to college and also meant I needed a large area to do anything. I like to sit and do a bit of drawing whilst I'm watching a tv show in the evening and so it made things a little difficult. Now I have a lovely LITTLE sketchbook that is square and so just a bit bigger than A4. As much as I disliked the big book it did push me and expanded skills working on a bigger scale and so now I am really appreciating being able to refine my work again and get back to a nice scale I am comfortable with. 

I am a slow and precise worker. I like detailed, pencil observational drawings that take me ages and ages because I like to rub out and redraw, concentrate on shading and getting the contrast of shadow and highlight that bring pieces to life. This sketchbook starts with a stem word, which for me is "Contortion and from this I am looking into artists that concentrate of the face and body and females in particular and hidden beauty. 

I spend most of the evenings during the week in my room catching up on missed shows whilst plowing away at all the artist research and pages I need to create. I find it somewhat therapeutic and relaxing as I have a plan that I just carry out and I do a couple of hours here and then which all add up and I end up with finished pieces. 

I use my time in college to do things such as printing, painting backgrounds and planning as I am in a all girl art class and most of our time is spent laughing and talking and its not easy to concentrate. So my time at home is very different to that as its just me sitting, maybe with the dog, and it seems like the hours fly past and when I look up its 10pm already! 

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Spring Mens Clothing

So, as much as I love clothes, shopping and picking out materials and outfits for myself I have always had a great interest in what men wear and what trends and fashions they have. I think this started when my baby brother was born and I can remember, even now 12 years on, picking out clothes when I was shopping with my Mum for him to wear when he was born. I feel like women fashion and what I wear is just something I like to keep up on so that I feel presentable when I go out. I'm always looking for new outfits so I don't wear too much of the same things and I just like to make an effort no matter what I'm doing and where I'm going! However with Menswear I am just drawn to it. When I'm browsing round shops I will always have a glance over and a route round the mens section and if there is a male I can buy a something for I will not hold back!

One of my favourite things is when my Dad, boyfriend or Brother ask my advice and help to find a certain piece of clothing or that they want a new look and want some help as this gives me the opportunity to go all out and help them. I love how for both men and women new looks can be created by putting certain patterns, materials and piece together and for men I just think that it says so much about their personality and how they want to come across

It doesn't just stop at the clothes, a look can't be finished without details. Details are VERY important. Accessories I think add final touches and personally I look for attention to detail in the way people dress. This watch shown in the photo is a Skagen watch with a classy black face and chrome detailing. A classic leather strap only adds to the sophistication and finer details of the spaced numbers is a nice touch and overall it looks refined and classy on anyones arm.

Colour coordination can make and break outfits and sticking with a theme you can never go wrong. This look uses monotone colours, black, grey and white and the contrast in accessories such as the Mitchell and Ness snapback and as mentioned the watch expose vital personality features that make a look unique to the person. Long sleeves of the grey slim fitting top amongst the black trousers and shoes brighten the overall look and having a slight vary in tone in the middle of the body breaks the black which otherwise could be overpowering if not a little boring and bleak!

I really think this look is suited as the black pieces pick up the person's dark complexion however it is given a little boost and brighten with a bit of variety, top off with a few subtle yet essential accessories.

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