NEW IN: KIKO and Sleek lipsticks

Like many of you, I have recently become obsessed with Matte lip products! I think my obsession started when I received my Kylie Lip Kits! I just really love how easy they are to apply, the colour pigmentation you get from them and the fact you don't have to top them up as frequently. I have loved my Kylie Lip Kit in Candy and wanted to try and find a cheaper alternative in the UK which is much easier to get my hands on. I believe these products are new in but they are certainly much easier to get than ordering online from Kylie Cosmetics. Which I am currently in a email battle with for custom charges, but I am sure I will update you more on that soon!

I first heard of these Sleek Matte Me lip-creams from a fellow blogger who I can't for the life of me find the post of now. She had basically got all of the colours and done a really pretty review which to me seemed to good to be true. Now I don't know if I had just got my hopes up for these lip creams but they weren't as amazing as I had imagined! To start with there wasn't that much of a colour range that would be wearable as everyday. I went for a safe option of Shabby Chic which is a lilac/pink shade. It came out really dark on me and not as nude as I was hoping. But the formula is lovely and it sets really quickly. I will probably use this on days when I am not using Candy. Then I got Fired Up, which is in a red tone. This was always going to be a risky version for me, but it just doesn't apply well. I have applied this with both a liner and on its own and I have the same problem of it being too dark and then light in one section. The formula is just not the same to Shabby Chic which is where I feel it has let them down. I am going to give it another attempt soon, so hopefully I get a better outcome!

 Then I made a quick stop into KIKO and ended up swatching all of their new products. Firstly I saw the smart lipsticks on display. I fell in love with this shade 913 Rosewood. It is a gorgeous deep rose colour and it smells lovely as well. For the cheap price of £3.90 I wanted to see whether it was just 'cheap' or if it works well. I am in love with it and have worn it lots since! I was then drawn in by the velvet passion collection on display. I got shade 319 which is a purple/brown shade. This is very different to anything I have ever tried before but loved the idea of having a matte lipstick as this is something I haven't tried before. I really love this lipstick also. Although it is dark the purple hint to it makes it not as harsh against my skin. The couple of times I have worn this shade I have been given compliments on it which makes it that much better!

Swatches L-R: (Fired Up, Shabby Chic, 913, 319)

Hope you enjoyed this post and loved my little finds on the matte lipstick front. Although I am still on the search for the perfect matte I have started it off well with these little goodies!

Thanks for reading!

Lots of love,

White and Grey : Summer Style OOTD

Summer doesn't only have to be for bright florals and prints. Sometimes the most discreet designs and colours can make for a cool summer look. I went to the New Look sale a couple of weeks and found this little grey top wonder. I have never really owned a top before that was high neck as the shoulders are an area of my body that I am not that confident in showing off, but I loved the frilly design on the armholes. I also really like the speckled grey design on the top and the versatility of being able to wear this with jeans and denim shorts too. I managed to get this in the New Look sale for £7 which I am really happy with! 

I had also been looking for a pair of sunglasses that I can wear when driving or just general everyday use. I have a pair of Ray Ban Wayfarers in black which I wear all of the time, however I wanted a pair that I could wear as more of a fashion statement. I spotted these in Forever 21 for £2! I thought they were cute and interesting as well as very affordable!

To finish off my look I wore my favourite lipstick at the moment Kiko cosmetics, 319 smart lipstick.

Thanks for taking the time to read this blogpost! 

Let me know whether you agree with my theory of greys for summer too! 

Lots of love, 

Francesca xx

Natural Collection Beauty Box!

A couple of weeks ago I received a message which left me very excited! 

Natural collection was the first makeup brand that I ever tried and it saw me through all of the 'awkward' years when attending senior school. (So for that NC thank you!) 

Since then, I will be the first to admit that I had kind of forgotten about the brand, so when I was contacted I jumped for joy at experiencing the nostalgia all over again and I was certainly not left disappointed! 

Natural collection believe in keeping makeup simple with staple products to create an effortless beauty look. This can definitely be achieved with the selection of products I was sent to create 3 steps to a natural radiant glow! First of all, I love the packaging although I am a sucker for shredded anything as a decorative detail! I love the way it looks like it is in a little nest and it makes it totally Instagram worthy! 

So the first thing in the box was the classic Tinted Moisturiser in Natural. This was the first ever makeup product that I owned. It gives you a natural glow and has a sheer coverage. This is perfect for days when you don't feel like putting on a 'face' of makeup, but still want to have something on. It acts as the perfect base for products as well as it leaves the skin feeling really smooth and soft. It comes in three shades. I found applying this using my hands was a lot easier than applying with a brush, it also made the look appear more natural. It certainly doesn't hide any blemishes or freckles, but I think this is what I like so much about it. It truly is a no makeup, with a little bit of makeup look. I am also thinking this is a perfect 'on the plane' moisturiser for my holiday! 

 To go along with the tinted moisturiser was a Pressed Powder in Warm. This can be applied after the moisturiser to leave your skin feeling matte and shine free. I love this powder and after using it prefer it over my Rimmel one! It has a slight colour to it which doesn't necessarily show up on the skin, but could be used for a little bit of coverage if you would like it to. Again, this comes in 3 shades! I use my powder brush to apply this, although tap it on the top of my nose and under my eyes softly with my fingers. 

Next was the Sun-tint Bronzing Powder in Golden Glow. Now, I will be honest, as soon as I saw this product in the box I was a little scared. The powder looks extremely dark and a little glittery? However when applied its a completely different story. I think the idea of this product is that it is a 2-in-1 highlight and bronze, although I could be very wrong! I began to apply it softly in the contour areas and love the glow that it gave me. I love it and can see myself using this a lot in the future! This is a perfect drugstore version of my favourite Hoola! This product also comes in two shades. 

Now, I don't tend to use blush in my everyday makeup routine as I feel like I have a natural pinkness in my cheeks normally due to being pale, but I love how cute this little blusher pot is. This Blushed Cheeks in Pink Cloud, is a pretty pink tone that when softly applied on the cheeks gives a natural blush. This product comes in 6 shades. 

When swatching the products I was really impressed with how pigmented they are. Each product is worth £1.99 each which is really affordable for a lot of people who want to experiment and try out makeup for both first time and experiences users. I know that I am going to visit the Natural Collection stand next time I am in Boots thanks to these products. I am interested in trying out a mascara and lipstick to complete this overall natural look. 

 I hope this blogpost has changed your mind about trying a cheaper alternative to your high street favourites. I love the look that I created from these products and am interested in seeing whether the lipsticks, mascara and brow products are as amazing as the other products that I had tried. The Natural Collection products can be purchased at Boots in-store or online.

Thanks for reading! 

Let me know if you have tried any Natural Collections products in the comments below. 

Lots of love, 

*The products mentioned in this post have been sent to me to review and try out. All opinions and comments are my own.

Summer Style OOTD

I am loving the fact that summer has finally arrived in the UK! We have had some really hot days recently which makes me so excited for my summer holiday to San Francisco in a  couple of months time. Stupidly last year I made the biggest mistake ever by getting rid of most of my summer clothes. Although that does work in my favour seeing as I have lost a little bit of weight since last year, which means a whole new summer wardrobe for me! I have also finally got out my white jeans which is rare for me as I can't seem to go anywhere without getting something down them! 

For this post I am wearing a couple of new items I purchased for the new summer weather. Every year I visit my local primark as I love the affordable fashion that is available! It doesn't last for ages but it does the job! For example, my sandals are a purchase that I make at the start of the summer every year. These sandals are £3 and are really pretty. I have a feeling I am going to be wearing them a lot over the next couple of months. The shirt was also bought from Primark for £3. It is really simple but I love the detail at the bottom of the shirt which adds a little something to the overall look. I also love the colour yellow paired with yellow at the moment! 

I hope you liked this style of post! I am so glad to be back properly blogging again as I have finished my university course for the summer break! (I know crazy!) I had really missed doing OOTD's in a proper photoshoot way other than Instagram shots. Although when taking pictures for this post I had a nosey neighbour looking over the fence at what I was doing, I guess some people don't understand blogging! 

Let me know what your loving for summer in the comments below! 

Lots of love, 

May Birchbox Review!

It's about that time in the month, when I share my latest discoveries in beauty thanks to my subscription to Birchbox! 

First of all, I will admit I probably should have taken a picture of the box before I destroyed it by scratching off all the silver detail, but look how cute it is! This months box was based around being for the dreamers. If you scratched off the top of your box and were one of the lucky two then you won a holiday! For me, unfortunately, this was not the case so I guess I am still dreaming! Before receiving this box, we were able to choose one of the products that went inside which made me as excited as ever when this came in the post!

 In the middle of last month we were asked to choose which Spectrum makeup sponge it was that we would like to receive. You could either pick the pink sponge, which is for applying makeup to forehead, cheeks and chin, OR the purple sponge, which is for applying foundation and concealer around the nose and eye. I went for the purple one as I feel that I will  be able to get more use out of it. I am so excited to try it as I love a good beauty sponge! 

The first surprise goodie I recieved in my box was the LOC One and Done Shadow Stick in Empress Me RRP £8. I love this kind of product where you can apply it using the product and then rub it in using fingers. It makes the makeup process so easy and is going to be perfect for my holiday makeup bag! Next I recieved the Philip Kingsley PK Prep Polishing Balm RRP £18.50. If you read my last Birchbox post you might have noted me saying that I am feud of receiving hair products in these boxes as I think they are an easy filler! However I am keen to try this on the ends of my hair as they are looking a little bit dry and to be honest it could do a cut! Then I got the Caudalie Vinosource Moisturizing Sorbet RRP £23.00. I am so excited to try this out! I have heard some amazing things about the company off of other bloggers and you tubers but never knew where to get my hands on it. This product says it is going to Hydrate, reduce redness and instantly smooth skin. That sounds like all good things to me! Next was Puriskin Resurfacing Formula RRP £13.99. Again this product pretty much says it all. It's a cream that comes in a cute little tube. You can use this on the face and the body so it makes it a perfect handbag essential! Finally we were given a teeny tiny sample of the Yu-Be Moisturising Skin Cream RRP £19.50. This is another cream that you can pretty much apply everywhere. It states that it can be used on lips, legs and anywhere you have dry skin. Again this sounds amazing in the run up to the summer holidays! 

Finally a good Birchbox delivery! I will not be the last to say that I have felt disappointed in the boxes that I had received in the past couple of months. I was constantly being sent hair products which left me feeling rather frustrated! I am glad that I recieved a better selection this time! 

Hope you enjoyed this blogpost! If you liked this then you might like to read my other Birchbox hauls, which you can see HERE: April 2016 + March 2016.

Thanks for reading!

Lots of love,