A Few More Beauty Tips...

I thought that I would share 12 more beauty tips (see my first instalment here!) - there's nothing better than learning a new trick or technique to add to your beauty routine! Here's a few old staple tips, new discoveries and quick fixes that I've picked up!

1. Use a light to see how much product is left in opaque bottles, this works like a treat on the Oskia Renaissance Cleanser!

2. Take note of your cheek colour when you're flushed to find your perfect blush shade.

3. Place a towel under the handles of your make up brushes whilst they're drying. I angle mine quite high so that if any water has worked its way into the ferrule, it should simply run back out again to stop damage to the glue and prolong the life of your brushes!

4. Blow dry your hair upside down. Flip your hair over and dry for maximum volume, keep the hairdryer constantly moving to reduce/minimise heat damage.

5. Look out for the little picture of the pot on the back of your make up/skincare packaging, it should have the number of months that it lasts once opened (e.g 12M).

6. Opt for a natural lip balm - considering the fact that we probably ingest quite a lot of lip balm, especially over the colder months, it's best to keep things natural! Love EOS lip balms.

7. Whilst applying a second coat of polish, run the brush along the very tip of the nail to seal in the colour for a longer lasting mani.

8. Use a Jade Roller or try Facial Yoga for improved circulation and elasticity.

9. Place make up you want to use up in acrylic storage so that it's easy to see and reach for. 

10. Keep Q-tips and micellar water close to hand to clean up any mistakes, great for liner and mascara smudges!

11. Lean on your elbow whilst applying liquid liner for a steadier hand.

12. Keep your iPhone clean. Touching your phone and then your face/talking on the phone can increase the chances of breakouts, it's best to keep it as clean as possible!

I hope you liked these tips!
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13 Things To Do At Home This Halloween

1. Carve pumpkins!

2. Attempt some Halloween nail art, try an eyeball accent nail, a cute cat design or this simple lash embellishment. Or, opt for a fail safe vampy pick like Essie Wicked!

3. Wear comfy, festive pyjamas. I love this cute witches tee, this Lazy Bones set is adorable too! 

4. Add a set of cat ears, like this rose gold set!

5. Build a spooky den and fill it with ghostly fairylights, treats, garlands and mini pumpkins.

6. Add some candy corn to popcorn and drizzle with melted chocolate for a Halloween treat!

7. Whip up a batch of Butterbeer (or hot chocolate with butterscotch syrup) and binge watch Harry Potter.

8. Or pop on some fairylights (if you dare!) and re-watch Stranger Things.

9. Bake spooky gingerbread skeleton men, I normally use this recipe at Christmas and add a tsp of cinnamon, decorate with fangs or with a skeleton design and they're ideal for Halloween (and for dipping in hot chocolate!). 

10. Melt into a long Lush bath by candlelight. The Lush Sparkly Pumpkin Bubble Bar is a divine, comforting and uplifting treat, with citrus and cinnamon it's ideal for Halloween!

11. Start a new book, opt for a magical read like The Night Circus or a fantasy pick with spellbound witches and centuries old vampires like A Discovery Of Witches.

12. Follow a make up tutorial on youtube to re-create a look, I love Katie's fortune teller tutorial!

13. Browse the Halloween sales, pick up a bargain like these cute flats or this adorable phone case!

What are your plans this Halloween?

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A Lush Heavenly Hand Trio

As soon as Autumn hits my hands start to suffer, my parched mitts are constantly sore, dry and in desperate need of hydration! Tasks like washing my make up brushes becomes a painful chore (although I've just invested in one of the Real Techniques brush cleaning kits - life changing!) and the bitter outside saps hands of moisture in minutes. This autumn I've discovered the key to super soft skin, a combination of three dreamy products to perfectly pamper hands!

The first step I follow is to scoop out a little of the Lush Salted Coconut Hand Scrub and massage onto dry hands. Add a little water and then rinse to cleanse, hydrate and gently exfoliate. This heavenly staple contains sea salt, coconut oil, lemon and argan oil and leaves hands so soft, hydrated and completely restored. It's a must-have if you suffer from dry hands!

The next pick in my heavenly line-up is Lush's Dream Cream - a soothing, nourishing lotion for unhappy skin. For a quick fix, this dreamy pick uses a combination of oat milk, rose water and chamomile blue oil to treat sore skin. It's a cold weather saviour that's ideal for any dry patches, not just hands! A worthwhile investment for winter, for sure!

Lastly, the Lush Lemony Flutter Cuticle Butter completes my pampering routine. This buttery, multi-purpose balm treats dry and flaky skin with nourishing shea butter, mango butter and coconut oil - It's packed full of wonderful ingredients! A little goes a long way, it leaves my skin supple, silky soft and it smells divine - like lemon meringue pie!

What are your staples for soft hands?

Crisp Mornings And Spooky Nights

With a little over a week to go before Halloween, it's certainly feeling quite festive around here. Pumpkins scattered in front of stores, dew-dripped cobwebs draped over almost every surface, early morning mists and clowns...let's not talk about the clowns *shudders*.

The crisp autumn mornings call for steaming mugs of cinnamon tea, laced with honey and with a splash of fresh almond milk for a comforting brew. I've been bundled up in cloud like robes, enjoying early Lush baths (the autumn leaf bath bomb is divine!) and marvelled at the rainbows and light dances in my home as the tree's whip wildly in the biting breeze and multicoloured leaves drift past the window panes.

The evening's are spent wrapped up in blankets, reading by candlelight and indulging in Halloween treats. I've revelled at the return of vampy make up and splurged on glittering rose gold eyeshadows, stocked up on Lush treats and filled my home with festive decor!

My shelves are decorated with pumpkins, candles and my beloved Quiddich Harry. The West Elm brass Love object and rifle paper co print aren't really too fitting for Halloween but I thought they looked cute nonetheless!

With plans to carve pumpkins so that they can flicker eerily on our balcony, re-watch stranger things and bake butterscream cupcakes this week, I'm really looking forward to Halloween!

Taking Photos In Autumn & Winter

Autumn/Winter is actually my favourite time of the year to take photographs. It can be hard chasing the light and the darker evenings are a pain when inspiration hits and there's no natural light left to shoot, but for me, nothing compares to the soft light that cloudy winter days bring! 

Here's a few tips and tricks that help me to make the most of the light on Autumn/Winter days..

Timing
Learn the time of day that gives you the best light - this can be quite a personal thing as it depends which way your home faces. I like to take note of where the sun is at my favourite time to shoot and then alter the time accordingly throughout the seasons. For me now, the light is best in my home at around 11am-1pm, whereas in summer it's normally 2pm onwards. If you can bulk shoot at these times, it can help to keep your photo quality consistent!

Work with the weather

Light grey cloud filled or foggy day's are my favourite to shoot on (just not dark, gloomy rainy clouds!). Bright, clear skies/sunny days are ideal for interior shots, but can be a little harsh for flatlays. I find that sunny days can also sometimes be a little temperamental, add scattered clouds and gusts of wind and it can be a nightmare waiting for the right light! 

Plan ahead

I believe that it's so important to be organised in Autumn/Winter for good photo quality. Check the weather for the best times to shoot, plan out and jot down which products you need to include in your flatlays and if inspiration does hit of a dark evening, lay out your products roughly and take a quick phone snap so that you can quickly set up the next day! Knowing your layouts can really help for bulk shooting - you can spend less time sorting (and loosing precious daylight hours) and more time taking pics!

Equipment

Invest in a reflector, or diy one like I have! It's ideal for bouncing the light back and minimising shadows. I also like to use white surfaces or have light and airy backgrounds like marble, soft blankets or fluffy throws to keep things bright! 

Editing

A little editing can go a long way in autumn and winter, I like to tweak and adjust on Pixelmator to brighten up my images. Usually I use the curves tool to lighten, I sometimes alter the contrast, remove some of the blue tones (if needed) and sharpen the image for the finishing touch. 

I hope these help!

My Go-To Autumn Eyeshadows

As the harsh, colder weather has started to settle in I've been reaching for shimmery, autumnal shades to wear. Burnished bronzes, warm coppers, champagne golds and rusts have become part of my daily make up picks - I just love pairing a soft smoky eye, a wash of dreamy rose gold or shimmery champagnes with a berry lip!

I always pull out my Urban Decay Naked 3 palette around this time of the year, with dreamy soft pinks, mauves and shimmery rose golds it's ideal, perfect to carry you through to the December party season too! The buttery smooth texture of the eyeshadows in this heavenly eyeshadow palette makes them effortless to work with, they blend like a dream and last well on the eyes. 

The cult Stila eyeshadow in Kitten is a saviour for brightening tired eyes. I use this as a highlight for the inner corner, brow bone and blended on the centre of the lids, or even just brushed over the entire lid for a shimmery eye. It's such a pretty champagne nude shade that's so versatile, I love wearing it dusted over cheekbones as a highlighter too!

One of my favourite eyeshadows Nars Outer Limits (affordable dupe here!) is a dreamy, sparkly iridescent rose gold. The peach toned base with flecks of pink and gold glitter running through it means that you can simply wash this mesmerising pick over the lids or pat on lightly to give an effortless shimmery eye with a rose gold sheen. 

I'm so smitten with the new Illamasqua Eyeshadow in Jubilance, although this looks like a burnished bronze in the pot, it translates to a divine metallic rose gold with silvery sparkles. Despite the fine glitter particles, it has a buttery texture, applies with little fallout and has a beautiful colour pay off - it's so flattering on!

Lastly, MAC Honey Lust is a gorgeous peachy bronze hue with a hint of sparkle. This dreamy pick looks pretty paired with fluttery lashes and a vampy lipstick!

What are your go-to shades for autumn?

Autumn Dressing Table

As you can probably see, I've been getting into the Halloween spirit quite early this year! I normally throw up a few decorations on the week of Halloween but with an upcoming move on the horizon I'm enjoying the decorations before they have to be tidied up and packed away.

I bought the cute gold Trick or Treat banner for a steal from paperchase in the summer sales (they're available now here), I cut mine to size before hanging it above my dressing area - I love the way it looks!

I've also planted a few diptyque candles atop my dressing table, they look beautiful flickering in the low autumn morning light and help to brighten up the space. Pomander is a favourite, with orange, cinnamon and clove it's ideal for frosty autumn mornings!

For beauty, I'm still so drawn to blush and gold's but I've also added burgundy tones, berries and hints of copper for autumn. 

The Nars blush in Dolce Vita is a beautiful pigmented berry red blusher that packs a punch, you only need a small amount for rosy, flush cheeks!
I'm all about dewy skin this autumn and the Topshop Glow in Polish is a heavenly pick - it's a gorgeous iridescent highlighter, the pearl pink/peach tones lift the complexion and give a divine, luminous glow. 

My eyes are made festive with a smudge of purple along the lower lash line, ideal for the lead up to Halloween. Or, for an every day pick the silvery, sparkly rose gold tones of the Illamasqua eyeshadow in Jubilance brightens up tired eyes and looks unreal paired with a berry lip!

Lastly, I've pulled out my favourite nail polish picks for this time of the year, Essie Sole Mate, a glossy vampy berry is an autumn staple and Essie Summit of Style is a gorgeous bronze glittery pick, ideal for an accent nail! 

What do you think of my autumn set up?

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A Halloween Wishlist

With just over a couple of weeks until Halloween, the shops have flooded with spooky, festive buys. Although my plans on Halloween normally consist of pumpkin carving, baking and a film or two in Halloween pyjamas, I like to sport a vampy lip, cute tee or lbd leading up to the occasion! Here's a round up of some of my favourite picks - I just love the cute cat ear headbands, the tulle skirt and the Lazy Bones Pyjamas!

An October To Do List

1. Visit a farmers market, pick up multicoloured mini pumpkins to decorate and carve for Halloween!

2. Splurge on a soft squashy cushion, I love this blush pink faux fur one from M&S, this affordable H&M fluffy pink pick is also pretty cute!

3. Take advantage of the £15 off £60 spend code at Space NK, I'm planning on treating myself to the Diptyque Vanille candle, an Aesop pick and maybe a Nars Blusher!

4. Watch Netflix with blankets, peppermint tea and fairylights on cosy autumn evenings. The new seasons of Reign and Once Upon a Time are back on this month, two of my favourite picks!

5. Bake pumpkin spiced cupcakes with butterscotch icing (a yearly tradition, recipe here!)

6. Find a good, natural lip balm. Considering the fact that you probably ingest quite a lot of lip balm during the colder months (how gross!), I'm on the lookout for one with all natural ingredients. The Eos lip balms look like a good place to start, they're 95% organic and 100% natural.

7. Seek out the Lush Christmas collection, I love the look of the Snow Fairy Body Conditioner, the Rose Jam Shower Gel is a must-have too!

8. Switch up my skincare for the colder months, pull out rich, hydrating picks to keep my skin in top condition. The Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask and Kiehls Ultra Facial Balm are parched skin saviours at this time of the year!

9. Treat myself to a new pair of Asos pyjamas, I'm torn between this cute lash shorts set and this pink twosie, I'm also so in love with this fluffy cloud robe!

10. Stock up on Fiendish Fancies and Candy Corn for Halloween!

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A Vampy Lip Edit

As soon as October hits, I pull out all of my vampy lip picks ready for the month ahead. October for me means crisp autumn days, huge blanket scarves, pumpkins, spooky things and of course, berry lips! For the lead up to halloween I gravitate towards darker hues, ones to pair with dewy skin, champagne eyes and winged liner. Here are my top picks for a vampy pout!

For a bold pick, Topshop Beguiled is a gorgeous deep berry red with slight shimmery undertones that's ideal to carry you through to winter - it's great for December! The shade is unreal, a flattering burgundy red with ruby tones running through it, one of my all time favourites! The velvety satin/matte formula makes application effortless, it's comfortable to wear and long lasting too!

Next up an autumn staple, the cult MAC Rebel is a rich, bold berry hue that's perfect for blustery autumn days! As a matte formula, once set it's pretty much budge-proof and when it does start to fade, it leaves a pretty stain to the lips. 

The Nyx Soft Matte Lip Cream in Copenhagen is a chic, deep burgundy hue - such an instagrammable shade! This vanilla buttercream scented lip cream applies like a dream before setting into place as a long lasting matte lip. Paired with a pearl highlighter, matte eyeshadows and a velvet choker, its perfect for the lead up to Halloween!

Lastly, the bdellium tools matte lipsticks have become staples in my collection. Last Call* is a gorgeous vampy wine with red-brown tones that's super flattering on and Wait a Minute* is a divine blue toned plum berry. With with macadamia oil and shea butter they keep lips nourished and as a matte formula, they boast impressive wear time. They're paraben free, vegan and cruelty free, plus the packaging is magnetic and so the lid clicks shut - so satisfying!

What are your favourite vampy lipsticks?

Lush Halloween Treats

Last weekend I popped into Lush to pick up a few pieces from their Halloween collection, I wasn't too drawn to the spooky pieces like boo or the goth fairy, (although I've heard great things about them!). Instead I gravitated towards warm autumn hues, cute pumpkins and pretty leaves. I only picked up a few things from the new range, (I'm saving my pennies for the Christmas collection) but I'm so happy with my purchases, they've already filled my home with an incredible scent - fresh, sweet and spiced fragrances, so festive!

Autumn Leaf

This magical treat creates beautiful pastel yellow, red, orange and green clouds as it slowly fizzes and melts away. The scent is ideal for autumn - reminiscent of fresh, crisp autumn mornings and crunchy falling leaves! With sweet Japanese maple, soothing sandalwood oil and uplifting bergamot and neroli, it's the perfect pick me up!

Sparkly Pumpkin Bubble Bar

A repeat purchase for me each year and another uplifting pick for colder, darker days, I simply adore this sparkly little pumpkin! The scent is heavenly, a comforting, bright citrus and cinnamon mix, it lingers on the skin and creates mounds of bubbles!

Pumpkin

This is the main pick that's filling my home with the most delicious fragrance - although it's not really the vanilla, cinnamon, pumpkin pie scent that I had hoped for. Instead it's a sharp fruity, citrus, fragrance with just a hint of spice that transforms the bath into an orange lagoon, it's not my favourite of the bunch, but a great pick for Halloween nonetheless! 

Sea Salted Caramel

I just love the heavenly scent of this buttery, sugary toffee pick - it's sweet, salted caramel notes make it smell good enough to eat! With moisturising ingredients like agave and coconut oil, this pampering soap is ideal for the colder days, it's filled my whole bathroom with it's dreamy fragrance and lingers on the skin!

Have you picked up anything from the Lush Halloween range?