Hand Luggage Essentials

I'm going on holiday next week, so I thought I'd show you what I'm taking in my hand luggage. I've tried to keep it simple because I don't want to take up too much space.

The first thing I'm taking in my hand luggage is my laptop. I'm taking this because I'm hoping to watch a film on it, and also I was always told to take any valuables in my hand luggage because your suitcase gets thrown around a fair bit.

The next thing I'm obviously taking is my phone. I need this for a lot of reasons, and wouldn't dream of not taking it in my hand luggage.

The next thing I'm taking is headphones, as they're pretty essential if you don't want the whole plane listening to your music.

I'm also taking my nivea lip balm as I can't survive a whole plane journey without it.

I'm also taking a book to read, even though I don't really read usually. I'm taking Paper Towns by John Green as I want to see what all the hype is about.

What do you usually take on a plane?

IKEA Homeware Haul

Recently I've been feeling a bit bored of my bedroom, so I went to IKEA to find some furniture and decoration that would make me love my room again, as I really like decorating and furnishing my room. Here's what I found.

The first item of furniture I got was this little bedside drawer unit. I also picked up some glass that fits the top of the drawers perfectly, and I think this makes the drawers look even nicer. I'm using the two drawers to put things in that I would usually keep on top of a bedside table, which helps my room to look tidier as I hate having loads of things out.

The other item of furniture I got was the IKEA MALM drawers that I've wanted for ages. They fit into the style of my room really well and the drawers are all really big and spacious so I can fit lots of stuff in them.

The first decorative item I got was this blue vase. It fits into my room really well since my room is blue and white. I couldn't find anything to put in it because it's so thin, but I think it looks nice even without anything in it.

The next thing I got was this pack of 3 cacti (is that what they're called?). I've wanted a cactus for ages, and I love how small and cute these ones are, and I love the containers they're in.

The last item I picked up was this scented candle for just 95p. It smells amazing, and I like that it's white/cream because it looks really nice in my room.

Do you often buy things from IKEA?

Makeup Brush Haul // Wish

I've recently become obsessed with the app Wish, and I ordered a few makeup brushes on there because they were quite cheap. I'm really surprised with the quality of them.

I ordered this blue brush which looks exactly like a real techniques brush. I'm using this for my foundation and I can't recommend it enough. It was really cheap and I actually prefer it to my buffing brush. It gives you a really flawless coverage and I'm obsessed with it.

The other brushes I got came in a set, and they're eyeshadow brushes. I use one for my concealer, and it blends it in really well. I use the rest for my eyes, and they've all got different uses which is really useful. They're great for blending and the quality is really good.

I'd really recommend all these brushes for the price you pay, and I'd also recommend the 'Wish' app for finding some great bargains.

Real Techniques Brush Collection

I don't have too many makeup brushes, and I've actually got a few in the post as I type this, but all the ones I have now are real techniques. I thought I'd show you which brushes I have, what I use them for, and if I'd recommend them.

Buffing Brush

I use this for my foundation. I actually did a post here where I compared the buffing brush and the expert face brush, since I used to use the expert face brush, but I really love the buffing brush for foundation. I'd definitely recommend.

Expert Face Brush

I use the expert face brush for my blusher, since I use a cream blush on most days. I absolutely love this brush for cream blusher, because it allows you to blend it really well into your skin, however if you wear powder blush, it isn't the best.

Contour Brush

I barely use this brush, as I can't contour to save my life, and even when I attempt it I use my Maybelline Master Sculpt Contour Kit which has it's own brush. However, I do sometimes use this for the concealer under my eyes, as it's quite easy to blend with, and even though I haven't found a specific purpose for this brush yet, I really like it.

Pointed Foundation Brush

I used to use this for my concealer, which I wouldn't really recommend because it's not easy to blend with this brush. I don't actually use this brush for anything, but I'd really like to. Any suggestions welcome.

Detailer Brush

I sometimes use this if I'm applying concealer under my eyebrows, and I find that it works really well because it's so small. I'd like to start using it a bit more in the future.

Blush Brush

I use this for my powder, and if I'm ever wearing a powder concealer, I use it for that too. I really like this brush. I'd like to invest in the real powder brush, as I think it would work well because it's so big, but this brush works fine as well.

Deluxe Crease Brush

I use this for my concealer instead of for eye makeup, because it's the perfect size. It works really well at blending concealer onto blemishes and under my eyes occasionally, and I'm a big fan.

Base Shadow Brush

I use this for my eye makeup. I really like it. It's quite big so it's good for blending, and I would definitely recommend it.

Shading Brush

This is a smaller version of the base shadow brush, so I find that it's really useful for more precise blending, or in the inner corners of the eye.

Brow Brush

Fairly self-explanatory; I use this brush to fill in my eyebrows. I really like it, and the shape of it makes it really easy to get a precise shape with your eyebrows.

Pixel-Point Eyeliner Brush

I don't think I've ever used this before as I don't wear eyeliner, but I'd love to find a different use for it.

Accent Brush

I don't really use this too much, but I pick it up occasionally if I want to blend my lip colour in, for example if the colour is too bright and I want something a bit more subtle.

Do you have any real techniques brushes?

Shy Girl by MAC // Review

Hello.

Now as you probably know, I love MAC lipsticks. If you're looking for quality over price tag, I'd definitely recommend them. This is why I was so disappointed when I picked up Shy Girl.

I swatched this on my hand in the shop, and I loved it. At the time I had no nude colours so I thought it would be a great addition to my lipstick collection. Turns out I was wrong.

This may as well just be a lip balm, because I can't tell at all when I have it on. There's virtually no colour in it. And for £15.50, I expected a lot more.

Have you tried 'Shy Girl'? What do you think?

Topshop Cream Blush // Review

Hello.

Ages ago, I picked up one of Topshop's cream blushers because I quite like Topshop makeup, and wanted to try them out. However, I got too invested in my MAC blusher and completely forgot about this blusher that I picked up in Head Over Heels.

I really love this blusher. I prefer it over powder blushers because I think it's a lot more pigmented, and the colour stays on a lot longer.

Overall, I'd really recommend this product to anyone who can't be bothered reapplying powder blush throughout the day, or someone who prefers to actually see the blusher over a 'subtle look'.

Buy it here

June Favourites // 2015

Hello.

It's the end of June (ALSO THE START OF SUMMER), so I thought I'd share a few of my favourite things this month.


MAC 'Flat Out Fabulous' Lipstick
I got this lipstick quite early in the month, and I absolutely love it. It doesn't come off as a scary purple colour, but a really interesting dark pink colour. It's a step closer to being brave enough to wear purple lipstick, and I'm obsessed with it.

MAC 'Pink Pigeon' Lipstick
I've wanted a bright pink lipstick for ages, and after getting a bit too scared of Candy Yum Yum, I picked up Pink Pigeon. It's a gorgeous summery shade, and works really well with yellow clothes in my opinion.

Jewellery
I've spent most of my life being a mixture of afraid and irritated by jewellery. I always thought it looked stupid on me, and I still can't wear rings because they annoy me so much. However, after realising that jewellery can really improve a look, I splashed out (I say splashed out, £4 is expensive to me) on some nice jewellery. I'm still only on 3 watches and 3 necklaces, but it's a start, and I'm really enjoying using them to accessorise my outfits.

Pretty Little Liars
Everyone and their Mum and their Nana and their dog watches PLL, so I thought I'd give it a try. I ended up watching 5 seasons in 1 month, and now that I'm completely up to date I can't wait to watch the next episode!

5 Seconds of Summer
At the start of the month, I went to see 5 Seconds of Summer, as tickets were still available 2 nights before, and they were fairly cheap. I absolutely loved it. Since I returned from the concert, I've had their album on repeat and I really like them. My favourites are End Up Here, Long Way Home and Disconnected!

What have you been loving this month?