Soap and Glory Thick & Fast High-Definition Collagen-coat Mascara

       

Within the past year, I've started wearing individual eye lashes and as you might know, the glue used is a lot stronger than strip lash glue as the individual lashes stay on longer. They look amazing and I don't want stop wearing them but they are such a pain to remove. When I've been taking my individual lashes off, unfortunately my natural eye lashes have been coming with them. Unfortunately, my natural eye lashes are very thin. So now I am looking for a good mascara that lengthens and thickens my eye lashes. I've tried the normal Soap and Glory 'Thick & Fast' mascara previously and I thought it was quite good, so when I saw this 'High-Definition Collagen-Coat' version, I just had to try it.

Soap and Glory state that the mascara gives you "length, definition and drama". So does it do what it says on the tin? I wouldn't say so. It definitely gave my eye lashes length, but as for definition and drama, I'm not sure. It doesn't separate the lashes, it makes them stick together more making me look like I've got less eye lashes than I have, spider legs come to mind and I'm not a fan of that. I applied it again after using a base coat of Benefit Badgal Lash  and it looked better. I wouldn't use this product on its own, but would team it with other mascaras. It is a good mascara, lasts well and feels natural but I'm not sure if I'd repurchase this again as I have tried other mascaras that are better for what I want.

My MAC Lipstick Collection

Hi there! I've been neglecting my blog a bit recently due to personal reasons. I'm sorry blog but I'm back with a lot of posts lined up! Starting with showing you all my MAC lipstick collection. I have four MAC lipsticks currently but it has become a ritual to splurge in the Selfridges MAC store whenever I come into a bit of money. I've never really had a lot of high end make up brands before, I pretty much only buy 'drugstore' make up. Then I discovered youtube beauty guru's like PixiWoo and Tanya Burr a few years back and that is where my lust for high end make up began. I have a few other high end products and I'm hoping to expand my collection, but that is a whole other story. I suffer from dry lips at the best of times and majority of lipsticks I have tried in the past have dried out my lips even more and at an alarming rate. But MAC lipsticks are so conditioning and they feel amazing, even their matte lipsticks condition my lips. They don't feel heavy on your lips and they are so comfortable to wear. They also smell amazing, some of them reminding me of chocolate when I wear them. The colours are incredible, so pigmented and long lasting, especially the reds. I can put 'Russian Red' on in the morning and I will only have to apply it again once through out the day and even then, it's a top up application. There are so many shades I'm lusting after at the moment, I think I would bankrupt myself if I followed my urges to buy them all. One day I will have the shades I lust after, one lipstick at a time. 

L-R: Rebel (Satin), Dark Side (Amplified), Speed Dial (Cremesheen) and Russian Red (Matte)

 

                                                      Rebel (Satin): A beautiful deep fuchsia pink

Dark Side (Amplified): A deep vampy red.

The picture really doesn't do this colour justice, it's stunning.

Speed Dial (Cremesheen): A subtle barbie pink with a touch of shimmer.

Russian Red (Matte): Classic red; think Marilyn Monroe; 50s style.

Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3D Review (May contain Spoilers)

Slightly gruesome header I must admit. (Contains slight spoilers)

Today I saw the new Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3D which overall, I thought was quite good. I'm an absolute sucker for horror films so I knew I was going to enjoy it but there are a few downsides. When I saw the trailer a few months ago, I was so excited to see it as I love the original. Original cult horror films like this, Halloween, Nightmare on Elm Street etc are my absolute favourite. From seeing the trailer, I was under the impression it was just a remake as the trailer doesn't really give much away, which is good. It's actually a sequel. As many fans will know, there has been a total of 6 chainsaw films, (now 7). But this new one carries on from the original 1974 film, which I thought was a good touch. I won't go into details of how it links on because otherwise there would be no point in you watching the film. I do have to point out before I start, the 3D in the film just seemed useless. I wouldn't bother spending the money on seeing it in 3D because it just isn't worth it. Spend less, see it in 2D & enjoy it more. In parts, my eyes couldn't adjust to the 3D because of the angle of the chainsaw. Now that sounds quite silly, but when the chainsaw is pointing at the screen but coming out at you in 3D, it just looks like a straight line, which looks a touch useless.

First of all, I think the plot of the film is really good. It is kind of predictable but aren't majority of horror films? The main character, Heather, is your typical young girl, working a dead end job, who decides to go on a road trip with her friends & boyfriend, Trey Songz who quite frankly should stick to music, after inheriting a house in Texas from her Grandma. She's left the keys and a letter, which she's told to read straight away, but of course she doesn't. They pick up a hitchhiker along the way and when they get to the house, they go shopping and the hitchhiker robs some of the house's contents. But there's a big gold key on the set of keys and he tries to find out what its for & he does. But he finds out the hard way. He unlocks a big door with the key & low and behold, he finds Leather-face locked in the wine cellar. May as well have said "release the kraken!" because he unleashes a whole lot of hell. Anyway, a lot of stuff happens and it turns out that Heather & Leather-face are cousins so she takes on the roll her Grandma had of looking after her cousin who stays locked in the basement. There's more to it but I don't want to completely ruin the film for people.

Now to my opinion. I've read many other reviews on the film and a lot of people are complaining about the concentration in this film on Leather-face being mentally retarded, but this has always been the case. These people may have not seen all the other chainsaw films, because if they had they would know this. His character is a mentally retarded man who has the mental age of an 8 year old. He kills out of self defence because he feels threatened and is afraid of new people being in his house. So he isn't just some sadistic freak like Jason Voorhees or Freddie Kruger. I kind of felt myself rooting for him near the end of the film and found myself saying 'awh' out loud in the cinema! But then I thought to myself, with all the people he's killed he kinda deserves whats coming to him. You do see a different side to Leather-face in this new film. The rest of the characters were very bland. It was enjoyable seeing them get killed, kind of similar to seeing Paris Hilton being killed in House Of Wax. Trey Songz character was, for lack of a better word, an arsehole. He cheated on his girlfriend, Heather, with her best friend, so it was nice to see him be killed.

The scares and the gore in the film were kind of disappointing. Not much of it is actually scary, it's actually quite hilarious. I think I laughed more than I felt scared, not because it's a bad horror though, the humour was intentional. However there was one really jumpy part, simply Leather-face jumping out of the darkness and the whole of the cinema showing screamed, including my sister and I. Bearing in mind the showing was packed, only 3 or 4 free seats. The gore was lacking to be quite honest and with something like Texas Chainsaw Massacre, you expect the gore level to be quite high. The killings weren't that good either, only 3 people actually get killed by Leather-face. So it shouldn't be called Texas Chainsaw Massacre, more like Texas Chainsaw Mediocre Murders. I expected more from a film with 'Massacre' in its name.

All in all, it was a good film and I recommend any chainsaw massacre & general horror fans to watch it. If you haven't seen the other 6 films, I suggest you do as they are horror classics. I'd rate it a 3 star film.

So christmas is over already...

Big sighs :(

I love christmas but for some reason I wasn't in the christmas spirit this time round. I absolutely love christmas so it was really not like me at all. I think its because my last uni deadline was 19th december so I didn't have chance to get in the christmas spirit. It was an okay christmas, was lovely spending time with Abigail, my niece, but other than that it seemed like a regular day. I did well with presents, got quite a bit of money which I spent in the boxing day sales. Got some new vans and the most gorgeous boots along with a few other little things. I haven't had chance to take pictures of them so I'll include pictures off the websites. I did get a few other things as well, not interesting enough for their own pictures though. I brought the Hostel boxset and Batman: Animated Series boxset. Still got £20 left but I'm not sure what to buy. So I got money off my parents because there was nothing I wanted this year and I have put some pictures of a few of my presents at the bottom. Brad is also buying me tickets to see hairspray live! agh so excited, I love hairspray. He cleverly brought me a bottle of hairspray and put a picture of the iconic picture of the girl with blue hair around the bottle.

                             Lush Christmas Gift Set £10       |    Leather Vans £34.99

                           Disney Villans Glass £3.50           |    Studded Buckle Ankle Boots £27.99

                           Cheshire Cat mug from Abigail    |    Suicide Squad: Volume 1 from Brad

                            Heels from Brad's Parents            |   Dressing Gown from my sister, Jodie

 So after eating my weight in food over christmas, I have decided I am going to start at the gym and will loose weight. I want to be a size 12 by my birthday in June, which I think is a realistic goal. This will be about my 6th time trying because I always give up just as before I start to see a difference, but I will stick to it this time! I'm signing up when I get my student finance and I will go everyday after uni. I have to drive past the gym on the way home, so what reasons do I have not to go? I will do this! I will! I will! I'll be doing a before and after, and will keep my blogspot up to date with meals and fitness routines. Time to make a drastic change and really do this for once!

Belated, Happy New Year guys! :)

Along Came Betty Range @ Tesco

I was browsing in work, Tesco, when I finished my shift the other night and I stumbled across these little beauties. As you can see, they're an obvious rip off of Soap & Glory, going for the vintage look but I thought I'd give these a try because the prices were really good! They're at an introductory price at the moment, so I'm not how long they will be this cheap for, (hopefully for a while if they work). I picked up 3 products out of a possible 10-15 products. The cute headband is just cute, so why not? It will always come in handy. I will do a run through of what they are but I won't be reviewing them fully today. In about 2 weeks, after using the products throughly, I will do a full review.

Firstly; Brilliant BB Cream in Medium, £2.99.
I didn't notice whether they did these in different shades, I just grabbed the first one I saw, luckily the shade is surprisingly okay for me considering I'm so fair. Like many cosmetic products I use, I am on the hunt for the perfect drugstore BB cream. Being a student, I can't really afford to buy high end products, unless I splash out on myself when student finance arrives, whoops  I have so far tried Maybelline Dream Fresh 8-in-1 BB cream and Rimmel BB 9-in-1 Cream. Unfortunately, both of those made me break out so bad. So the side of the box for Brilliant BB Cream states "5 wonders of BB cream: 1. Sheer Coverage, 2. Radiant Appearance, 3. Luminous Complexion, 4. Moisturises, 5. UV Protection". It has an SPF of 15, which isn't as high as the other two I have tried, but maybe thats why they made me break out, we shall see. My first thought when I tested it on my hand was how lovely the consistency is. It's not too runny or too thick, it blends really well and makes my skin feel super soft afterwards. I think I might be onto a winner here & at £2.99, it's rude to refuse but only time will tell.

Second; Foaming Lovely Face Wash, £1.99
I'm not usually a massive fan of face wash, but lately I've been getting more spots and dry skin than I've ever had so figured I need to start looking after my skin properly. I haven't used this yet so haven't got a lot to say about it at the moment so I'll go through the basis of the product. You can't really see the writing well in the pictures as I was taking them at half 2 in the morning so lapsed a little, but the bottle says "Introducing Kakadu Plum, Skin Conditioning Super Fruit'. Well I just had to google it because well not every fruit is a super fruit!
"Science has identified the Aboriginal bushfood known as the kakadu plum as the world’s richest natural source of vitamin C, which makes it an excellent ingredient in skincare products. As we know, vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant and an essential nutrient to help slow the aging process. Vitamin C is essential for the formation of proline, an amino acid that is required to make collagen. Due to its massive vitamin C content, kakadu plum is becoming an increasingly popular ingredient in skincare products." 

Well I think that says it all to be honest. I can't wait to try this, it smells amazing!

Lastly; Be Firm Arms & Legs Toning Cream, £2.99

Every time I go into Boots, I stare at the Soap & Glory Sit Tight cream and ponder whether to buy it and my mind always tells me no but my heart really wants to buy it. £16 seems a lot of money for some cream that might not even work, I'm very skeptical of many products until I've tried them but I don't like spending a lot of money on products. I'm my own worst enemy really. So when I saw this in Tesco, it was in my basket within about 5 seconds. £2.99 isn't a lot of money to waste so I thought why not. If this one works, then I know the Soap & Glory one will so I might bite the bullet and finally purchase it. So Be Firm cream has vitamin E, jojoba oil, orange peel and algae extracts and the bottle states that it is a "Cellulite Busting Formula". Unfortunately, I do have cellulite on my legs which I desperately want gone, or if not gone, looked after, toned down if you will. After christmas, I will be hitting the gym and seriously healthy eating, but even that doesn't guarantee the complete loss of cellulite so hopefully this cream will help in some way. The cream is quite thick and you can feel it on your skin for a while which is a downfall for me. I love light creams that you can't even tell you've applied. However if this cream works, that will not bother me in the slightest! Again this is the kind of product I need to use for a while to see the full effect, probably even longer than two weeks. Fingers crossed!

I will write a full review, including how I got along with them and whether I will purchase them again etc on all three products in roughly two to three weeks. I want to give them time to work before I can recommend them. Speak soon!

Recent Purchases;

Recently, I brought these two products which I am absolutely in love with. They are Vo5 Miracle Concentrate Elixir with Argan Oil and Rimmel Scandal Eyes Kohl Eyeliner. I've wanted to get both of them for a while but never got round to it, basically forgot, whoops. Well anyway, I finally got them and I have been using them enough to give a good full review.

First; the Vo5 Miracle Oil. Beginning of Autumn, I decided to dye my hair red as I was sick of having black hair. As you can imagine, the process involved bleaching my hair but I used a different product than usual. I used a Garnier High Lighter Bleach & it was the worst mistake of my life! I had to use even more product because of that terrible product, which in turn absolutely ruined my hair. My friend, Beccy, recommended this to me a while back so I automatically thought of this when I needed something to repair my hair. I've been using it for about 2 weeks now every time I've washed my hair and the difference is amazing. A few drops of this stuff goes a long way, so you just need a few drops in the palm of your hand and rub it through towel dried hair, mainly through the ends. My hair feels so amazingly soft, I can't stop running my fingers through it. I'd recommend this product to literally anyone. Even if your hair isn't damaged, it might help to keep it feeling nice and soft. It costs round about £5, but I brought it on a 3 for 2 offer with my John Frieda Red Shampoo so technically didn't pay for it :3

Secondly; Rimmel's Scandal Eyes Waterproof Kohl Eyeliner. For a while now, I've been on a hunt for the perfect 'drugstore' black kohl eye liner. Majority of the ones I've tried have either not been pigmented enough or have rubbed off and smudged around my eyes throughout the day thus making me look like a panda. However cute pandas are, it is definitely not a good look. I was recently watching Fleur De Force's November favourites video on youtube and this eyeliner was included, in black and nude. I will invest in the nude version as well as it's the perfect colour for the waterline if you want a natural look. So I brought the black and was instantly impressed. The formula is more like a gel eyeliner in the form of a kohl pencil. I am a massive fan of gel eyeliner so this won me over instantly. It's perfect for harsh lines but it smudges easily to make a smokey eye effect. However it only smudges if you do it on purpose. Once you smudge it on purpose, it then doesn't move. I wore it as a harsh line on my lids at work and it didn't smudge at all, no panda eyes! Fantastic. I brought it whilst it was £3.98 on offer in Asda but I think that might be the price of it anyway, which is fantastic considering how amazing it is. I'm a massive fan and can't wait to try out the other colours!

2nd Year Exhibition

For our Freedom & Control project at uni, we've had to stage an exhibition. I'm quite nervous about it as I recently found out I have dyslexia and it's knocked my confidence a tad. I am not good at talking about my photos at all, it's a massive downfall of mine and it's rather annoying. The opening night is on 14th December and I'm excited but nervous. My project is called "Urban Decay", here is the paragraph that will go along side my exhibition to explain it a little better.

"Abandoned buildings have beautifully tragic evidence of nature and time taking its course. You can take so much history from these buildings, whether it’s from the physical construction of the building to the graffiti on the walls, vandalized by modern inhabitants. Time has cruel intentions and these buildings are physical proof"

I will make another post about the exhibition after the opening night :)

finally got myself a blogspot

I have no idea what i'm doing here, it's all alien to me. i'm sure i'll get used to it soon though.

So I'm currently in the middle of making myself a website for my photography but I'm getting annoyed with not being able to share my work. I'm not really fond of flickr, tumblr is no good for that and well. facebook just decide to they own your photos as soon as you upload them so I'd rather not share work there. So until I get my website up and running, which might be a while, I will use this blog :) I will also do reviews on movies, games, make up etc & general posts about daily life. Might even do my week in pictures :)