Monthly Favourites: July

July seems to have passed in the blink of an eye and for some odd reason I haven't posted a monthly favourites since May so this was definitely long overdue! Oddly enough I've tried to reign in the whole money spending thing (& I've been making the most of the sun for once - not shopping, shock horror) and as a result I've fell in love with things I'd forgotten about all over again. 

At the start of the month if you've read this post of mine (link here) you'll know I picked up the sample sized Clinique High Impact Mascara featured in Glamour and at first I was seriously dissappointed, there was barely any difference in my eyelashes at all and I'd lost hope a little. I decided that I must have just been having an off day and tried another few times with it but it still does nothing to to the top lashes, only working wonders on the bottom. I wonder if this is just the sample sized that has this problem but at least I know now the full size is not for me. 

Theres a theme for all the things I've been wearing lately - matte, light, simple and long lasting, as worrying about your makeup melting off your face is not top of the priority list, you want something that's going to stay in place and this is where MAC's painterly paint pot comes in. I went on a daytrip to Glasgow in July and applied this at 5am and at 10pm when I came home, it was still sitting perfectly - talk about long lasting. Its so easy to apply, doesn't need a lot of product and just gives a lovely even colour on your lid.

I also realised I had a fair few mascaras in my collection that weren't being used so I've decided to use them up before I buy anymore and the L'oreal Miss Manga mascara is one of them. I loved this when it was first released and then for some reason forgot about it, I wish I hadn't have. It really does give my eyes that extra definition, lengthening and volumising my lashes. It lasts all day, doesn't clump and honestly it might just have to be repurchased.  

As for lips the Kate Moss Matte Lipstick in 101 hasn't been off my lips, its a gorgeous blue toned pink great for everyday wear and it definitely lasts all day (even after eating!). Lastly for beauty/skincare related items is After Sun, we had 2 weeks of scorching sun, completely unusual for us but being the paleish person that I am, my face shoulders and arms got a bit of colour for which after sun was my saviour. This Garnier one was left over from when I went on holiday in April but I love the smell, all after sun in general just smells absolutely amazing and they all basically double up as a moisturiser too. 

Lastly I've been loving 5sos' and Ed Sheerans new albums this month and also my favourite American shows Pretty Little Liars and Teen Wolf, the new series' started back in June and I've been hooked ever since. If you haven't watched either of them I seriously recommend them :)

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo 

P.s what have you been loving through July?

Guest Posting: Five Minute Face

Hey everyone, I'm Jenny from Jennys Everyday Life and the lovely Alice asked me to guess post whilst she's off on holiday  :)  I've a bad habit of rambling on my own posts so I'm trying to keep this a quick one sort of. This post comes in useful those mornings when you oversleep and have a whole five minutes before needing to rush out the door. Whilst living in uni accommodation I practically perfected this routine and I thought I'd share it with you lovely people - no one wants to wake up earlier than necessary after all! 

  

1. Concealer. This is usually a necessity in the morning, no one likes eye bags and potentially looking like a zombie. My concealer of choice is usually the Rimmel Wake Me Up as it has a really nice coverage, gives a slight shimmer and as the name suggests makes me look a little more alive awake. For blemishes the Collection concealer is a must, both take less than a minute to apply and sometimes if I'm really in a rush I'll skip the foundation and just use this and powder - the coverage is that good! 

2. Foundation. This step is optional, as I said if you're a whiz at applying your foundation or don't feel 100% happy not wearing just concealer (we all have bad skin days) then this foundation is great. Its a really good coverage and similarly to the Wake Me Up concealer this has shimmer particles which give the illusion that you're much more awake than you really are! 

3. Powder. If you have oily skin or just like using powder to set your face this can be a life saver. It makes your makeup stay in place all day, perfect if you know your going to be out of the house a while and takes less than 30 seconds to apply. 

4. Blush. Blush can make all the difference to your makeup look, it makes you appear fresh faced and creates a glow livening up your face. My favourite at the minute is the MUA mosaic blush as it works as both a blush and highlighter in one, perfect for when you have little to no time to spare! 

5. Mascara. A must in the mornings! I think if I was really in a rush I could forgo all of the above bar concealer and just wear mascara - theres not many occassions that I go over the door without it. A good mascara can really make your eyes pop and the Maybelline Falsies is my drugstore holy grail - giving both volume and length. 

6. Lips. I'm not really a lip balm kind of person, more of a lipstick gal and the Revlon colourburst matte crayon in sultry is perfect for those rushed mornings. With one swipe you're good to go, the pigmentation is superb and I know it'll last all day, plus I absolutely love the colour - its like a nude but better! 

    I hope this comes in handy next time you're in a rush in the mornings and if you really are a whiz you can always add in eyeliner and bronzer etc. I'd also like to thank Alice again for having me, I really enjoyed this :) Jenny xo  

Where to find me?

I always try and post three/four times a week & lets face it apart from Sunday the rest of the days are usually just when I have free time rather than having my 'schedule' and I know this is a little annoying but a good way to keep up to date with when I do post is usually by social media. I'm an iPad/social media addict fiend.

Therefore I thought a post like this would come in handy, these are all the places you can find me :) 

Bloglovin'

Every bloggers best friend? I think so, although I have the blogger app I much prefer the Bloglovin' app and I spend so much maybe too much time scrolling, its just so easy to use and I love its simplistic design. It lets me keep up to date with all my favourite bloggers new posts and find new up and coming blogs at the same time! You can follow my Bloglovin' here [link] 

Twitter

Even before I started blogging, I had a love for Twitter - then it was a personal Twitter but now I have a new account where I update when I've post and all the other rambling thoughts that pop into my head through the day. Its also so easy to talk to everyone through the #bbloggers trend and chats so if you're reading this pop over and say hi :) You can follow my Twitter here [link] 

Instagram 

If I'm honest my instagram feed is mainly food, scenery, food, makeup, food and more makeup with the odd selfie - a right old mix.... I just love taking photos and I'l go through phases where I'll just post all the time. Sometimes if you're not in the mood to start reading through posts its nice to just scroll through pretty pictures. You can follow my Instagram here [link] 

Google Friend Connect

I feel like this is completely forgotten about by most bloggers but I actually enjoy using this. Its so much easier to just go on blogger on my laptop and see blogs in my feed already. If you still use it let me know, maybe its just me thinking these things. You can follow via GFC on the right hand side of my blog.  

Google+

Another one that just isn't used all that much, I'll be honest I still haven't sussed it all out, I just know that you can follow via it and then when I share my posts you get a notification on your google homepage? I think thats it, if anyone does know the right use please fill me in lol! Anyways you can follow via this link [link] 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo 

P.s whats your favourite social media site or can you think of any I've left out? 

Maybelline vs 17

Lazy mornings and rushing to leave the house are an awful habit of mine and this is where these wonderful little things come into play - cream eyeshadows, making life a heck of a lot easier. There was a lot of hype surrounding the Maybelline Colour Tattoo when it was first released but barely any for the 17 offering so I thought I'd try something new and do a bit of a comparison post for you all.  

It might be slightly noticeable from the photos that both of these are well loved and as unlikely as it seems I've used them a lot since I bought them and there isn't really that much of a dent in them showing that they're definitely long lasting.  

The Maybelline Colour Tattoo in the colour 'On and On Bronze' (top left and bottom right) is described as a 'gel cream eyeshadow' and I would have to agree it does have the perfect mix of the two. As for application its really quick and easy, a whole of two seconds as I use my fingers to apply one swipe, let it stick (so to speak) and then one more swipe to make the colour pop a little more. I tend to use it as an eyeshadow but the colour tattoo's can always be used as a primer as well to prevent creasing from other shadows and really make a wow statement. 

At first it was a bit of a nuisance to get to grips with as the product is solid and you need to let it melt a little on your fingers before applying. The whole 24 hours statement thats something I'm not too sure about, there'll probably never be a chance for me to wear it for a whole day but regardless it lasted a long time so I'll take their word. The packaging although I love the glass bottom is a little bit misleading with how much product there actually is - thats the only downside but overall its just the perfect bronzey colour for everyday use.

The 17 Wild Metallic Cream Eyeshadow in 'Wild Bronze' is more of a creamy, mousse formula compared to the Maybelline offering. This just means its a little messier if you're using your fingers, I usually use a small eyeshadow brush for application. Although I'm a fan of the packaging or pot, I'm not too keen on the lid (this is just personal opinion, I'm not big on leopard print). The eyeshadow itself applies well although slightly slippery and would work well with a primer underneath to stop it from doing so. Its highly pigmented and has shimmer particles - thankfully no chunks of glitter! and less is definitely more in this case. 

In the swatch photo you can definitely see the difference, the 17 offering is more creamy and shimmery and darker in colour to the Maybelline swatch which is more of a matte shade. Both however are wonderfully pigmented, last all day and definitely help when you sleep in. Let me know if you've tried any cream eyeshadows lately or your all time favourite shadows? Or if you enjoy comparison posts like these? 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo

P.s what do you think of the maybelline/seventeen eyeshadows?  

Topshop Makeup: Innocent

Believe it or not this is my first ever Topshop lipstick purchase, I haven't a clue why I haven't got round to picking one up before - maybe its just because I'm used to getting things in Boots and Superdrug instead and then by the time I actually get round to Topshop I've spent an awful lot of money and can't part with anymore #girlproblems but I did get round to it, eventually... 

When I was looking through my lipstick collection (its not that big really) I noticed a pattern - a lack of pink shades, this may be because I went through a 'I hate pink' phase and gravitated instead towards purples and darker pinks but even still I thought I had a couple more than I actually did. Therefore when I was browsing Topshops makeup section I knew right away that Innocent was the one for me, its one of Topshop's more well known lipsticks and its the perfect baby pink.

First of I love love love Topshop makeups packaging and I thought this photo with the background actually looked pretty cool, how very monochrome of me! I also like the fact that the shade and name is on the bottom of the lipstick so it makes your life ten times easier to pack your makeup bag in a rush. Usually I try and avoid light colours because I look washed out being as pale as I am but this is actually a really nice match, its a pinky nude that doesn't actually do that, thats definitely hard to find.   The lipstick formula itself is really creamy, lightweight and seems to last for ages giving a glossy finish to the lips and I'm really liking it. I'm definitely not going to leave it too long before I pick up my next lipstick from the range! 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo

P.s what do you think of Topshop lipstick range?  

Ikea Haulin'

So I know a homeware haul isn't exactly everyones cup of tea but I love them! Its so fun having a nosy and getting inspiration for yourself at the same time. I may or may not have unintentionally went to ikea over the weekend and if you follow me on twitter (link here) you'll know I asked in the #bbloggers chat if this was something you would want to read and surprisingly received an overly positive response so here we are, an ikea haul. 

I've been thinking of redecorating my bedroom for a while but I just didn't know what direction or colour scheme to go in but when I saw these cushions covers from the Svarttall range I fell in love and knew these would look lovely with a monochrome themed room (more white than black) and plain bedding. I bought two of the tiled print cushion covers as I liked the yellow running through it and thought that two of the other pattern would just be too much. Plus when I got to the cash desk, they were on sale, what a bonus! I think the cushion and cover together were £6/7, total bargain since most of the other cushions were over £10.  

Since my room was looking a little empty and I've been going on a print binge as you may be able to tell from the previous photos I decided to pick up this set of five cute prints, all floral and in a range of colours. I then realised that they were a size bigger than all of my photo frames at home and decided to pick up a pack of two white frames which will be hung on my wall as soon as. I'm not sure whether to keep the two prints I have in them at the minute or to change it to one of the others, we'll see.  

This one was a bit random, I already own one of these and probably didn't need another but with an ever expanding makeup collection they do come in handy and keep everything organised. As weird as it is, its actually from their kitchen range and meant to be used to store cutlery in but of course I wouldn't use it for that, plus its under £2 what a bargain. Also they're so easy to keep clean and don't risk me destroying my white desk.  

This is the last thing I picked up whilst I was shopping and again it might seem a bit odd but with white furniture you've no idea how handy these are. I used to have a green, white and pink floral print mat but since I'm thinking of redoing my room I thought a black and white one would be more fitting. I've also tried it out and it makes an amazing background for photos, you'll have to keep an eye out for tomorrows post to have a look ;)

On top of that, it actually does the trick of keeping my surfaces clean, no one likes makeup marks! This again was from the kitchen department and a bit of an impulse buy, I was stuck between this print and another black and turquoise one but I might just go back and get that because they're only 75p or something, absolutely ridiculous. Anyways I hope you enjoyed this sort of haul, be sure to let me know in the comments. 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo

P.s have you bought any nice homeware bits and pieces lately?  

Mac Haul

Every so often its nice to indulge a little and since a couple of weeks ago I got my University exam results for second year and they turned out to be a lot better than I expected (thank goodness) I thought what better way to celebrate than treat myself to a few MAC goodies. 

Although I love MAC makeup I've only just started collecting bits and pieces every now and again - student budgets aren't exactly the biggest! However everyone, their mother and their cat I'm pretty sure raves about MAC's mineralize skin finish in Soft & Gentle, thee perfect highlighter and for whatever crazy reason I hadn't actually got round to purchasing it until now - shock horror and when the package arrived I was over the moon and ever so excited to try it out! 

A lot of mac products have been given a revamp lately (well they're packaging has) and this was in the newer style, its a bit odd not having the traditional packaging as this doesn't have a clasp - a little annoying if you're in a rush and trying to open things but nothing much can be done about that. I'm pretty sure this will keep me going for years with the products dome shape holding a heck of a lot of highlight. I'm pretty sure everyone has seen swatches or read about a billion reviews about the MSF so I'll not keep rambling, this is more of a haul than a review but who knows in the future I might post one, keep your eyes open! What else can I say, ts just the most gorgeous shimmery colour and superbly pigmented, love at first swatch basically. 

Way back I also purchased a quad and since then had forgot that I only had one eyeshadow sitting in it all on its lonesome and decided it was time to purchase a friend for it. I love neutral shades and it was a no brainer that I wanted to add All That Glitters, an all time favourite of practically everyone to my collection. When I was taking the photos of these two I actually realised that the eyeshadow is very similar in colour to Soft & Gentle just less highlightery of course! 

Thank for reading, Jenny xo 

P.s what mac products are well loved or a must have in your collection? 

Catch Ups & Tea Breaks

This weeks flashed right before my eyes, in fact my whole Summer is! Last night and today we were celebrating the 11th of July, its a big thing here, if I'm honest I just enjoy the friendly atmosphere and of course the lovely yet too warm bonfire which singes your eyebrows off practically. I've also been meeting up with friends and of course shopping so in between all that and the sunny weather I only managed to get three posts up and including todays post four. The first post (link here) was more lifestyle related and all about printing photos, the second (link here) was beauty related and based on Glamour magazine and the third (link here) was all to do with summer fragrances.

I've come to realise that may not be a lot compared to other bloggers but it is for me who only used to post once a week - its also a bit ridiculous that I haven't came up with a blogging schedule yet but I'm honestly not that organised. I think if I made one I'd end up giving up after a few days anyways and thats unfair but I'm going to try and post at least three posts per week and one on Sundays! If you have any suggestions or posts you'd like to see on my blog please leave me a comment, I love getting new suggestions about this sort of stuff. 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo 

P.s do you prefer a catch up post like this or my usual weekly rambles?  

Summer Fragrances

Over the past few weeks the sun has been out in full force and with that so have the summer perfumes - I guess it just doesn't seem acceptable to wear something floral and fruity in the midst of winter, July however is a different kettle of fish. I don't usually post about perfumes which is a bit of a puzzlement as last year I went through a phase of constantly buying new perfume for the sake of it - I admit my collections a little extensive now (most of them are untouched and simply looking pretty on my dressing table) but I'll get round to using them eventually. These are my three most reached for at the moment, can you tell I'm partial to the odd sweet smelling celebrity scent?

The Enchanted Wonderstruck perfume by Taylor Swift which I was kindly bought as a present last year is definitely my most used of the three, this is the 30ml sized bottle and its ever so handy for popping in my bag. The packaging however is an absolute nuisance - in fact all three of these perfumes are (this photo was the best of a really bad bunch) to photograph as its holographic with an intricate design on the lid. It has top notes of wild berry and passionfruit and smells perfectly florally without overdoing it which I love and as its a lighter scent its ideal for wearing throughout the day.

The second perfume Our Moment is by One Direction and again I was kindly bought at Christmas there, I hadn't smelt it beforehand so I wasn't sure what to expect however I was pleasantly surprised. The bottle is aimed at younger girls and the bottle lid is shaped similarly to a crown or jewel making them feel like utter princesses - cute. This is much sweeter in comparison to Enchanted Wonderstruck (which is muskier) and is the typical girly floral smell with top notes such as pink grapefruit and jasmine. Again so easy to spritz on during the day and the scent lasts for ages!

My third favourite is Honey by Marc Jacobs and is probably the most summery of the trio. All Marc Jacobs perfumes have beautifully designed bottles and this perfume is no exception, the white and yellow spotty colour scheme just screams summer and I love the bee shaped lid as well. This perfume is definitely a fruity and fresh scent with top notes such as pear and mandarin and base notes of vanilla and of course, honey! Unlike the other two I prefer to use this at night or for occassions throughout the summer as its more expensive and I'm trying to make it last but its definitely a must buy for the summer months.

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo
P.s whats your summer go to perfume? 

Glamour ft Ellie & Clinique

Everyone loves a freebie as much as the next person especially when its beauty related so whenever I read that Clinique was pairing up with Glamour this month and releasing 4 miniature products I knew I'd have to buy at least one copy. 

It was released on Monday I think and I picked it up at the start of the week but I was in a bit of a rush whilst in Tesco and there were only a couple of copies left, mainly those with the lip crayons but I've been eyeing up the high impact mascara for a while now (full size) and I thought if I tried this I'd be able to trial it and see whether it was worth the purchase or not. Luckily this was the only magazine left with the mascara sample and I can't wait to try it! I'm also pretty sure that during this month I'll end up with a lip crayon or two as well....

Surprisingly this is the first magazine I've bought in I'm not sure how long, I just never find myself with the time to sit down and read them but after this I'm going to make a conscious effort to do so. This edition also had the lovely Ellie Goulding on the cover page who I've loved for years and shes a total babe so it was definitely worth buying and for only £2 I couldn't really not. I might just have to keep an eye out for some more magazines in the future :) 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo 

P.s have you tried the high impact mascara? or read any fun magazines lately? 

Stroll Down Memory Lane

In this day and age its a rarity for people to print off or get their own photos developed in order to store away their memories and holidays or basically their life in photo albums (preferably pretty or colourful albums). We're a lazy generation and with technology as a best friend its so much easier to plug a camera into our laptops and have them instantly uploaded and then stored in a desktop folder, or a hundred. 

However I've always loved printing off my photos, I think its because my mum has a lot of photo albums and they're always nice to look back on every once in a while. I've also got into a terrible habit of not taking enough photos as I should when its came to parties and such through the years and its a little saddening that I don't have half as many as I would have liked :(

The whole losing all of my photos if my laptop crashes didn't sound too appealing and having folders  building up for years, I'd just had enough. I've saved the original photos on a pendrive so they can always be put back on to the laptop if I want to view them and decided to get the rest printed. I really have been putting this off for a while since I knew there was so many and I actually ended up printing photos from my school trip to Italy in lower sixth... I'm now just finished my second year of University, wow! I only printed a few to see how they turned out but I'm seriously impressed, the photos are ever so glossy hence why they look a bit shiny (and they caught the light, this is the best photo of a bad bunch) and I can't wait to develop the rest of my photos soon. Out of curiousity, how do all of you lovely readers store your photos? 

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo 

P.s I really need a nice photo album or two which hold quite a lot, recommendations are welcome! :)   

Second Thoughts

When these new additions from Barry M arrived on our shelves at some point last year it was chaos - the hype for these little bottles at the time was something else! Now I'm not someone that'll go out and buy something just because everyone else has it and if I'm honest I think the hype put me off. I did however a few months later pick up one summery shade just to make my own mind up about the range and have only got round to giving it another go again, now.

The Gelly hi shine nail paint is supposed to be long lasting and shiny; giving the illusion of wearing gel nails however none of this actually seemed the case. In fact the first time I wore this I had high hopes and applied two coats (as usual) and was left greatly disappointed! They just appeared the same as any other nail polish in my collection and the gel effect just didn't seem to happen. On top of that within 2 days a couple of my nails had chipped - now I know I like to re-paint my nails alot, but I don't like to that quickly. The sad part was I wasn't even doing anything that would necessarily chip them so I said my goodbyes and stored it way way down at the bottom of my collection.

And that is where it stayed until the other day, I was looking for a nice summery shade and thought it was time to give it another whirl - even if I'm not too keen on a product I'll always try and use it up (I hate wasting things and most of the time the product just needs a little getting used to). I've now been wearing this particular colour on my nails for four or five days and they look as if they've only painted, a bit of a turn around from before! #success I've also had numerous compliments on the coral shade and although it still doesn't look as if I'm wearing false nails as such, the formula is super glossy and gives more of a finished look to the nails. Now that I've passed my hate phase (well dislike) in the love/hate relationship I'm really loving the gelly nail polishes and I'm determined to pick up a few more summer shades to keep me going. Leave me a comment below if you can think of some nice summer shades....

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo
P.s have you tried any colours from the Barry M Gelly range? what do you think? 

Summer Clothing Haul

Summer sales are possibly the best and the worst thing for my bank card - good because I can buy a new wardrobe and not feel guilty about spending a fortune, bad because I tend to go a bit overboard. This year though I seem to have had some self control and my sales shopping has been kept to a minimum but I still thought I'd show you guys what lovely things I've managed to pick up. 

The first place to shop was h&m, I love their clothes and whenever they have a sale if you have the patience you can always find a bargain. I didn't have anything particular that I wanted but then I saw this black and white stripy crop top I thought it would be perfect for a cooler summer night as its a loose material and can be jazzed up or down depending on the occassion.

Whilst I was paying at the till, this little black dress caught my eye and it was only when I picked it up that I noticed the entire back to the waist was made up of lace - perfect for a night out when you don't want to go overboard but still look as if you've made an effort, plus it was only £4 so how could I not get it!

Sadly Topshop was one of the last places I popped into and it was closing (therefore closed changing rooms) and me not able to buy half the stuff I wanted - I was in need however of a plain short sleeved tee to wear with jeans and this fitted all the boxes. This is supposedly a size 8 but I'm pretty sure its way bigger, don't know whether its due to the batwing sleeves or not but just as well I love a baggy tee. 

Another place that I didn't have nearly enough time in was Zara, it was absolutely packed and there wasn't a chance of me looking around everything however I did find this little gem! Its not usually a colour I'd go for (peachy/pinky pastel) but I really liked it together with the bird print.

Urban Outfitters is one of my favourite shops and so visiting their sales was a must! I thought this little top would be perfect with jeans as well (I have a thing for spots too) and its so comfortable - that and it was only £5! Now I know UO have good sales but £5 is an ultimate steal even for them :)

This is probably an odd thing to buy in the midst of summer but I couldn't not buy it - it screamed the perfect Christmassy winter jumper and so I bought it with the intention of packing it away in my wardrobe until at least Autumn. I'm a serious baggy jumper fiend and this is far too cosy! Red isn't usually my colour but I thought why not step out of your comfort zone a tad and I'm seriously glad I did. Urban Outfitters, you've made me very happy (especially as it only cost around£10).

As for accessories I bought a black and white aztec print bag from Topshop, surprisingly I don't have any small bags and I don't want to be hauling around a massive shopper if I'm just popping down the road so I bought this solely for just putting my purse and phone in and being on my way. Also I wanted a brighter purse one that would easily stand out in the bottom of a handbag so I picked this one up from Monki at Asos and so far I love it. 

The last two things that I bought was a gold hexagon necklace from Topshop (if I could buy all of their jewellery range I would), minimal but pretty and a spiky silver ring from H&M which I love. I used to have a ring just like this but I don't know where it ended up so its nice to have another :(

Although all of this may seem like a lot or not to some people, this was all bought in the space of about 2 hours so I think I did quite well in finding it all. Plus there were so many bargains and all together I saved well over £100 - definitely a happy girly! I'm still getting used to photographing clothes, its rather odd but if you'd rather see OOTD's or how I style the clothes, I'd be happy to do that, let me know in the comments below :)

Thanks for reading, Jenny xo
P.s what sale steals have you managed to snap up?