July Favourites!!

I can't believe August is already upon us, where did July go?  I was just talking to my brother yesterday about how it's the last month of the Summer holidays before he heads back to college which is crazy!! For me July will be remembered for the amazing weather we had here in Ireland and of course going to see Justin Timberlake in concert! We don't get the Sun a lot but when we do we never stop talking about it. For two weeks straight the sun was shining with not a cloud in the sky. Fast forward to the first week in August and already the clouds are back, I miss the nice weather already!  On a brighter note I'm heading to Spain with my family next month. It's the first holiday I've had with my familia for years, I have to admit I'm really excited. Sun, Sea and nice food for a week whats not to like?! The city we're staying in is close to Gilbratar so I'm looking forward to going there to do a bit of shopping of course. Before I start rambling on about my upcoming holiday to Spain, I better start with my favourites as I do have quite a lot to show you this month.

I love finding products that are simple and easy to use, Benefit's Creasless Eyeshadow in No Pressure! is definitely one of them. I picked this up a while ago in Brown Thomas with a gift card I had floating around my bag for an age. It's gorgeous taupe shade with a few specks of gold shimmer. In the mornings I've been applying this to my eyelid and blending it out to create a quick and easy smokey eye. For night I layer it up and use Mac's Embark in the crease. This certainly has been a great addition to my makeup collection as I've been getting a lot of use out of it, well worth the €22.50 that I paid. I absolutely adore the new Colour collection packaging, this product comes in a really pretty art deco cardboard box which I have kept myself. I already have my eye on another shade Bikini-tini that I heard Essiebutton rave about so I know I'll definitely like it.

A nail polish favourite from July has to be Butter London's Cake-Hole*. It's a gorgeous neon pink shade that brightens up any outfit, it pretty much hasn't left my nails all month. I've gotten so many comments this nail polish when I'm wearing it, Cake-Hole is definitely one of those shades that stand out (just look at the name). Only two coats of this is enough to achieve the finish that you can see in this photo here from a previous post. I guess you could get away with one but I'm so used to doing two by now.

When I was in London in June I did go a bit wild and bought a lot of beauty products, two of which have made it into this months favourites. First up is this Crown Brush makeup brush (C45) I picked up at IMATS. It's from their new Infinity line and I've been using it to apply my foundation. Excuse it's appearance, I didn't get a chance to clean it before I took these pictures. The brush is similar to the Real Techniques Buffing Brush but the bristles are tightly packed making it a little more denser. I did buy a couple of brushes from the Infinity line but the C45 is definitely my favourite.

 There has been whispers that a Victoria's Secret store is opening in Dublin Airport which I'm super excited about even though I know it will probably be tiny. When I was in London I knew there was one in the Westfield Shopping Centre beside my hotel in Stratford. Of course I ended up dragging Paddy and if you've already read my Haul you'll know I picked up a lot. One of the products that I bought that I've been loving this month is the Sparkling Citrus Lemon Escape Fragrance Mist (pictured below). This stuff smells amazing, it's a mixture of sweet lemon and coconut which I've been using literally everyday. I haven't taken it out of my bag yet as you can see from the bottle I'm almost half way through the bottle. I bought this is a set for £20 which included a shower gel and a body lotion in the same scent. If you're in Victoria's Secret I'd definitely recommend picking up a set as there's such good value. Just be warned that this spray is 125ml so if you're travelling light with carry on luggage you may not be able to bring it back on the plane. I can't wait until I go back to Manchester at the end of the year as I do believe they're opening a Victoria's Secret store in the Trafford Centre. I'll definitely be picking up another bottle of this scent when I visit and check out some more while I'm there.

At night I've been using the Neal's Yard Beauty Sleep Concentrate*. I was given this at a Press Event a couple of months back and I stumbled upon it while cleaning up my room recently. I've been using this on its on at night but you can use it alongside other products in your nighttime routine. Apart from being moisturising, I haven't been using it long enough to see a significant difference in my skin but I adore the calming scent. It certainly makes me feel relaxed going to bed at night. This product is 90% organic aswell so I'm happy to know that I'm not putting anything nasty onto my skin. The bottle may seem small but you literally only need 3-4 pumps of this stuff so it will last a good while. After busy days on the go I think it's so important to give my skin some TLC and this has been working a treat.

With July being so sunny for the most part I had to include these two products from Hawaiian Tropics. Like everyone I know how important it is to use sunscreen even when the sun isn't shining (pesky UV rays and the likes) so I was using this duo a lot. They are both from Hawaiian Tropics Silk Hydration so aswell as protecting my skin from the Sun they are super moisturising too. Did I mention that they also smell amazing? The After Sun's Coconut Papaya scent reminds me of holidays and I can't get enough of it. I did buy these in Tesco on special offer a while ago so I'm not too sure if that is still on. I do remember it being a great bargain! Needless to say seeing as the Sun is no longer around I may not need these as much now but I'll be bringing them along on my holidays to Spain.

Here are two of my random favourites from July as you all know I'm big into reading. When I was given Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare I left it aside for a while I'm not going to lie. I thought it was going to be another Twilight kinda book which I knew I wasn't going to be interested in. Now that I'm almost half way through the book I couldn't have been more wrong. This has a really good storyline to it which I'm not going to explain as knowing me I'll definitely give too much away. I have a feeling there's going to be a love story in this at some point but the background plot is really good. If you're like me you won't want to put it down. Clock Angel is a prequel to the Mortal Instruments series which is has been made into a movie that is going to be release this month. It stars the babe that is Robert Sheehan (The Misfits & Love/Hate) and Lily Collins, whilst the movie is based on the 1st book in the series the City of Bones which I haven't read yet I can't wait to go see it! Once I do finish this book I'm going to pick up some more in the series as they are currently on 3for2 in Easons. The other random favourite of mine is this bag I bought from Accessorize. I usually don't go for bags with short straps, I much prefer when they're long as I find them way easier to carry around. I was between to minds when I got this but I think I made the right decision in the end. This bag is huge and fits absolutely everything in it, e.g my camera, notebook etc. It also contains a removeable pouch which for me makes the bag more secure as I can put all my important stuff in there. Coming in two different colours I opted for the black/brown option as I think it would go with more compared to the green/navy offering. If you'd like to see a "What's in my Bag?" post in the future let me know in the comments.

What made it into your July Favourites? Did you get up to anything exciting last month?

Laura<3

My New Bag!!

I've needed a new bag for a quite a while. My old one just wasn't cutting it anymore, finally I decided it was time for a new one. After looking around a few shops, I settled on this bag which was on sale in Accessorize. €59 down to €21... Bargain!!

(Ignore my brother's Trainspotting poster in the background)

I know some people may look at this bag and be thinking that's a beach bag/weekender. I thought the same at first, but then I realised how much stuff I carry around with me for work. I'm starting college soon (post to come later), so I'll need alot of space for my course stuff. So yeah the size isn't a issue at all for me.

I really like the nautical design on the bag and how it also has two little anchor charms. Inside is pretty spacious as you can imagine, which is good as it will fit all my rubbish. I like how there's a small pocket on the outside, this is were I usually put my phone and bus/luas cards. Very happy with this bag indeed!

I'm going to try and do a updated "What in my bag?" post soon. I haven't done one since I started blogging in April so I think it's time for a new one. What do you think?

Laura<3

Christmas Gift Ideas #6 - Custom Gifts

Instead of buying someone one big gift why not buy an assortment of small gifts. That's exactly what I'm doing for my sister's present this year. It's something that you don't need to spend too much on as it's the thought that counts! My sister, Lisa loves getting glammed up for nights out so I decided to get her mainly beauty goodies.

I got this pink quilted cosmetic bag in Penneys/Primark a while ago so I don't know if they still have these in stock. Any bag will do though. I like this cosmetic bag as it's the perfect size for your handbag but also quite spacious.

The Body Shop 4-Step Smoky Eyes Palette in Golden Brown & NYX 5 Color Shadow Palette in I Dream of Jamaica

My sister is alot like me and regularly rocks a neutral eye look. I love these palettes as they both contain wearable shades that would take you from day to night. The Body Shop palette also comes with a eyeshadow brush and eye pencil which would make a great gift on it's own. 

OPI Minis in Russian Navy & Lincoln Park After Dark
My sister wears dark nail polishes all the time. I don't think I've ever seen her wear bright shades. I got these two gorgeous nail polishes in OPI's Best of the Best set. I already own Russian Navy and Lincoln Park After Dark so I decided to pop them in too.

 Charm Bracelet

Like a lot of  people out there my sister adores charm bracelets. I got this one from Accessorize and it's beautiful. With a tonne of charms from dices to wishing bones I think this would look nice with anything. I hope my sister likes it as much as I do!

This is everything I've got for my sister so far! I may pick up a nice mascara and some Soap & Glory products the next time I'm in town and pop them in too. I think a custom gift would be great for a family member, friend, boyfriend, girlfriend as you know there going to find something they'll absolutely love. Plus they'll know you put alot of though into their gift.

What do you think of this gift idea?

Laura<3

Winter Woolies

With the cold Winter weather  fast approaching, I went to my local Accessorize to stock up on some Winter essentials.

I love the Winter woolies from Accessorize, they are super girlie and fun. Recently I purchased this gorgeous scarf and the matching fingerless gloves/mittens. They are also available in a cream colour with bright pink designs. Knowing me I would probably end up getting the lighter colour filthy so I stuck with the grey. I'll get plenty of wear out of these as I'm sure this Winter will certainly be another cold one. I have a sneaky suspicion that we'll be getting more snow this year, I love the snow but it did turn into a bit of a nightmare. I'm happy with my purchases, I'm sure this combination will go with everything and add something extra to my outfits.

Laura<3