Winter walk || November 30th 2014

Mood: Relxed

Listening to: Labrinth- Jealous

Hello beautiful bloggers,

Yet again I've been a terrible blogger and haven't uploaded a blog post in months. To be honest, this blog is only a hobby for me and I don't guilty for only posting now and again. It's okay, to spend time with family and friends and concentrating on work. Whether that time is a few hours, days, weeks or months...if you want a break, take one.

Anyway, as last years post Autumn Walk post was so popular, I decided to take some pictures on a walk I went on today. I am really grateful for the beautiful scenery that is right on my doorstep (literally a 2 minute walk away from me) and I hope you enjoy a few of the pictures I took today. Last year I was accompanied by my niece, Isabelle and my parents. This year my other beautiful niece, sister to Isabelle, Eliza came along too. 

If anyone is interested,

Coat is from Zara

Long Shirt is from H&M

Boots are from Sainsburys

Camera used is Nikon D5000

Setting off

Tiny hands

Me and Isabelle

Load, winding roads

Mossy Fence

Countryside fences are great for posing on

Slightly blurry but I like it

Macro shot

Sleeping Beauty, Eliza

On a big adventure

I love this tree!

Unusually green and sunny for a Winter's day

Walking on fallen leaves

Hope you've all enjoyed these pictures! I'm not going to promise to blog like I usually do as December is usually a very busy month for me. So I hope you're all enjoying the end of November and are looking forward to my favourite month of the year, December! 

p.s These pictures don't look like they were taken in November, but I promise you they were all taken today!

Love from Bethan

xox

How I Keep My Skin Looking Healthy

Mood: Tired from exercising 

Listening to: Dust Clears- Clean Bandit

Hey beautiful bloggers,

I've been wanting to write this post for a while now but I've had trouble finding the time to write it. Today I want to talk about having healthy skin because I don't know if it's just me but when I have a great skin day I feel a lot happier in myself.

I want to start off my saying I have normal/combination skin, depending on that time of month if you know what I mean. I don't smoke and I drink occasionally. Usually I do have pretty nice skin but it's not perfect. I wanted to write a few tips on how I keep my skin healthy, by no means am I an expert in giving this type of advice but hopefully some of these tips may work for you. I obviously understand that not everyone has the same skin type, so what may work for me may not work at all for you. 

1. Water. Drink plenty of water. I can see a huge difference when I'm keeping hydrated, my skin has a natural glow and stays radiant. The European Food Safety Authority recommend that women drink 1.6 litres of water a day and men 2 litres, which sounds a lot but I find if I carry a bottle around I tend to drink more. Without water we get dehydrated which gives us lack of energy so we feel sluggish and tired all the time. I also want to mention eating healthily. It doesn't mean just eat plenty of fruit and vegetables (which is a good thing) try and incorporate a mixture of fibre and vitamin rich foods. Just remember, you are what you eat...so eating all of those vitamin rich food is going to do wonders to your skin.

2. Sleep. You may already know that sleep deprivation can make our skin look tired and dull so it's recommended you get 8 hours a sleep a night. I know it may not be possible for some of you, but try relaxing and getting as many hours in as you can. Also lack of sleep can make us stressed and anxious which is another thing that badly affects our skin. So get counting those sheep people!

3. Exercise. Like I said previously, stress and anxiety is not great for your skin but specialists have said when you exercise, you tend to relax and it eases stress. I'm obviously no expert but I find when I exercise my skin usually stays pretty clear. 

4. Don't go overboard on skin products. Just like every other beauty blogger I love a good skin care regime but I don't go mad. I usually use a cleanser, moisturiser and a face mask. Your skin produces a lot of natural oils and in some cases they can be pretty annoying and make your face look shiny. But trust me, it's okay to have some oils because they keep your skin healthy and glowing. A lot of products have chemicals in them which strip these natural oils; giving you damaged skin so it's best to try and find ones that contain natural ingredients. Personally I don't bother with skin oils before bed right now because I feel they don't do a lot for my skin, maybe in the future I will but for now I'm pretty happy with how my skin looks without all the potions and lotions.

5. Use a foundation with an spf. It may be a cloudy day outside but trust me the sun is still beaming UV rays which can make our skin age quicker and can even cause skin cancer. My advice is try and use a sunscreen as often as you can at least an spf of 15. Most of us love a nice tan, but I think I'll stick to fake to ensure my skin stays healthy. One of the best ways to keep your face protected if you wear make-up is to use a foundation with and spf.

6. Stay make up free. Okay I don't mean all of the time but when there's no need to wear make-up, don't. I actually like to let my skin breathe and have a make-up free day. Make-up can clog up pores and actually make your skin break out in spots. Always ensure you wash make-up off before bed (I'm guilty of not always doing it!) and please, please make sure your washing those make-up brushes people! Brushes can gather up lots of bacteria, and without washing them regularly you're basically wiping all of that bacteria over your face. Not a nice thought, ey?

Hope you all enjoyed reading this post, let me know how you keep your skin looking healthy!

Love from Bethan

xox

VMA Make-up Envy || Top 5

Mood: Happy

Listening to: Stolen Dance- Milky Chance

Hey beautiful bloggers.

After watching the VMA awards this year, I was really impressed by the all of the glitz and glamour of the event. Beautiful men and women graced the red carpet and in this post I want to show you who wowed me with their make-up looks.

(Images source)

So my top five make-up looks from the VMA's were from these five beautiful women. There were so many to choose from but I think these ladies pulled off the whole look give me serious make-up envy! 

Iggy Azalea- I love the natural look Iggy had at the VMA's, she had a wonderful nude-pink lipstick and her skin was just glowing perfection. Her make-up went well with the slicked back hair and drew attention to her face. Good job Iggy!

Jessie J- Jessie's natural bronzed face and fluttery eyelashes were far from her usual bold lip and eyes statement; but I think she pulled off this look well giving her a sophisticated yet pretty look.

Victoria Justice- Her outfit may have been slightly...odd, but her make-up was flawless. Victoria rocked that precise smoky winged eyeliner and beautiful hot pink lipstick. The plaited high ponytail was the cherry on top of the cake and finished the look. Well done, Victoria.

Arden Cho- This beautiful lady's make-up reminded me of Victoria's look but more grown up and classic. Her winged eyeliner was on point and the rosy pink blush on the apples of her cheeks made her a radient beauty.

Olivia Culpo- Former Miss Universe and girlfriend of Nick Jonas, looked absolutely stunning at the VMA's. Her make-up gave off that classic Hollywood actress vibe and her strong eyebrows paired well with her red lipstick. What a beautiful lady!

So those were my favourite make-up looks from this year's VMA's. Who's look did you love this year? Let me know.

Love from Bethan

xox

Brigitte Bardot Inspired Look

Mood: Very Happy

Listening to: Klingande- Jubel

WARNING: This post contains heavy eye make-up and serious pouting. 

Hey beautiful bloggers,

I was reading this blog post by Vivianna does Makeup and I love how she captured Audrey Hepburn's classic look. Anyway to cut a long story short, the reason behind the post was because Max Factor have been celebrating 100 years since they launched their first product so they've been recreating some of the most iconic looks in the last ten decades with Gwyneth Paltrow as their model. The four icons from the last 100 years that were chosen were: Audrey Hepburn, from the 50's, Brigitte Bardot, from the 60's, Farrah Fawcett, from the 70's and finally Madonna in the 80's.

*Source*

I was very inspired to do a make-up look after reading this post and instantly I wanted to do a Brigitte inspired look from the 50's. Brigitte Bardot, in my opinion is one of the most beautiful, iconic people in history. One of many reasons I chose the Brigitte look was because I thought out of them all, I could achieve this look the most; plus we're both blonde so I could picture the look better in my head and I absolutely love the smouldering black eyes and pouty pale lips on her.

Personally, pale lips are not for me at all but I decided to give it a go and try and achieve pale lips without looking ill. I think I managed it.

Products used

Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturiser in Nude

Seventeen Falsifeye HD Mascara

Urban Decay 24/7 Eyliner in Zero

elf Waterproof Eyeliner Crayon

Seventeen Instant Glow Shimmer Brick in Pink Bronze

elf Eyebrow Kit in Ash Blonde

Collection Concealer in Light 2

Eyeko Skinny Liquid liner in Black

YSL Rouge Volupte in 32 

Naked 3 Eyeshadow in Blackheart

I only had my iPhone as a camera, so apologies for the bad quality pics!

So to create this look I moisturised my face and added MAC's Prep and Prime as a base. I went with my Laura Mercier's tinted moisturiser as I didn't want a heavy foundation because Brigitte has beautiful and youthful skin and I wanted to focus more on the eyes. I also concealed under my eyes with the Collection concealer just to get rid of any dark circles.

 For the eyes I covered my lids with the elf Eyeliner Crayon and blended it for a neater look, I then added winged eyeliner using my Eyeko eyliner and then dabbed some Blackheart (A deep black eye shadow with red glitter flakes) on my lids just for a more heavier and dramatic look. I then lined my upper and lower waterline with the Urban Decay eyeliner and applied lashings of mascara.

 If I had false eyelashes in the house I would have definitely used them to finish off the eyes.

For my cheeks, I just dusted some of the Seventeen Instant Glow shimmer brick on my cheek bones, it's a gorgeous natural colour and slightly bronzes your face and just gives you a healthy glow.

For my lips, I lightly dabbed on some of my YSL lipstick and then added a bit of my tinted moisturiser to make my lips a few shades lighter. If you have a very pale lipstick, I would just use that instead but I don't own any pale shades so I had to work with what I had in my make-up bag.

Finally I finished off with my eyebrows using my elf Eyebrow kit and VOILA, the finished look!

I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out! I adore the eye make-up and will actually use it more often. I actually don't mind the paler lips with the heavy eye make-up but I think I prefer a bit of colour. 

So guys, if you had to chose, what look would you go for? Let me know.

*This post wasn't sponsored by Max Factor or any other companies. All opinions and ideas are my own.

Love From Bethan

xox 

Most Used Beauty Products || Summer 2014

Mood: Delighted

Listening to: Coldplay- A Sky Full of Stars

Hello beautiful bloggers,

As you may have noticed, I decided to change the theme of my blog to something more professional. I was fed up of making my own, spending hours making one for it not to look that good. I'm extremely happy with my blog's new look and hope you love it too. I downloaded the template from a site called

 http://www.pipdig.co/

I would definitely recommend using another template by them and the prices are very reasonable for what you receive.

Anyway, back to what I was originally meant to write about; I decided to create a post of all my most used summer products. I was maybe thinking of doing a series of summer/spring/autumn and winter favourites instead of the usual monthly favourites. I haven't fully decided if I will yet, but it's an idea I'm really fond of.

So, as summer is ending (less sun, more rain) I've been looking in my make-up bag and realised I've practically been using the same products more or less everyday. For me, summer 2014 was all about pink lips, winged eyeliner and dewy, highlighted skin. I've really enjoyed using all of these products, and they will always remind me of summer 2014.

Farewell to Summer

Most Used Products

elf Clear mascara/brow gel

elf Cream Blush in Seductress

Dove Summer Glow Moisturiser with gradual tan

Tanya Burr Lipgloss in Aurora

Mac Eyeshadow in Naked Lunch

YSL Rouge Volupte in 32 (could be the colour Jealous Coral?)

Benefit's Watt's Up! Highlighter

MAC lipstick in Bombshell

MUA Eyeshadow trio in Pink Sorbet

Eyeko Skinny Eyeliner in black

L-R- Aurora, Bombshell & Shade 32

These were the lip products I've loved wearing during the summer, I love wearing Aurora(gloss) over MAC's Bombshell lipstick for a gorgeous glossy finish. I can't tell you how much I love these YSL lipsticks, the creamy texture is to die for. The colour pay-off is fantastic and it has fruity scent which is lovely for summer.

Summer Glow

I may have mentioned the Dove summer glow previously in another post, but I swear this stuff is amazing. It gives me such a healthy glow as I'm pretty pale. It doesn't have a disgusting smell like some gradual tanners do and it's very subtle and natural which I love in a tan. Benefit's Watt's Up is such a beautiful champagne coloured highlighter and it's perfect accompaniment with the gradual tan to give your face a healthy summer glow.

A much loved product

Throughout the summer, I didn't bother with heavy eyshadows and dark colours, I stayed pretty neutral as I wanted the winged eyliner to be the star of the show. These eyeshadows are beautifully pigmented and complimented the eyeliner whilst shimmering in the sun's light. MUA products are such a steal and I can't recommend this trio enough.

Naked Lunch

This eyeshadow was my first ever MAC purchase along with the colour Satin Taupe. Although this is a re-purchase as my other one had run out, I still love it as much as when I first bought it. Before summer, it had been neglected and stashed away in my storage box for months, so I decided summertime was the perfect time for it to go on holiday into my make-up bag. When I wanted to keep my eye make-up simple I would just swipe some of this across my lids and it instantly brightens them up. It's a wonderful pale champagne colour and slightly pigmented and perfect for everyday use.

Perfect eyes

This Eyeko liquid eyeliner actually came free with Glamour(?) magazine which cost £2. I've never had such a good freebie and I even re-purchased the magazine just to get the liner in navy. I would definitely purchase this eyeliner full price as it's so easy to use and doesn't smudge. I've also been loving using this clear brow gel from elf, it's been great to keep those rogue eyebrow hairs in place and I like that it's double ended so you could use one for eyelashes and one for eyebrows if you wanted to.

Seductress

Last but not least for my summer favourites is this cream blush by elf. The colour seductress is a beautiful red/pink matte colour. I used a matte colour as it looks more natural and using a highlighter gave my skin the glow I wanted anyway. I was a bit scared to use this as it's quite a dark colour but I used a stippling brush to apply it and it came out natural looking and gave a subtle rosy cheek.

So that is all for my Summer 2014 favourites, I hope you enjoyed reading this post and let me know what products you've been loving this summer.

Love from Bethan

xox

First look at First Aid Beauty Products

Mood: Refreshed

Listening to: Love Runs Out- OneRepublic

Hello beautiful bloggers,

Although I may have been lacking in beauty posts the last few months it certainly hasn't stopped me from buying new ones, trying and testing them and planning blog posts. Out of them all, I was most excited to plan and post this blog post as I've really been enjoying using these products.

So two products have recently come to my attention and after doing my research online, I decided to splash out and try them as I've read so many great reviews. The products I'm talking about are from a brand called First Aid Beauty, I had never heard of the this brand previously so I was curious whether to try their product s or not. Fortunately for me, I went with my gut instinct (and great online reviews) and purchased them. The first of the two is a Skin Rescue Deep Cleanser with Red Clay and the second is the Skin Rescue Purifying Mask with Red Clay. Both skincare items are from their Skin Rescue range which is said to detoxify the skin.

Pretty simple packaging

What drew me to these products first of all was the deep red colour of them, obviously from the red clay used within them. After doing a little research I found out that Red Clay is great for brightening the skin and is fantastic for absorbing extra oils in your skin. So it's a great product if you have oily skin (don't panic, it's also pretty amazing if you have combination, sensitive or problem prone skin.)

Look a bit like Ketchup here!

I'll start off by talking a bit about the Deep Cleanser. Like I said previously it has a wonderful red colour to it and it's a gooey gel consistency. It's quite sticky compared to other gel cleansers I've used but it's something you will get used to after a few uses. Another great thing about the cleanser is that it slightly foams when you circle it on your face and I feel like it really works into my skin and removes any make-up giving it a deep cleanse. The cleanser also says it unclogs pores and reduces the size of them, which is an additional benefit to a fantastic product.

Now, moving on to the second product; the purifying mask. What I really love about this mask is the fact it's peel off. There is nothing more satisfying after waiting 20 minutes for the mask to dry just to peel it off. Just like the cleanser it's gel based and it tightens pores and controls the extra oils in your skin. But because of the deep cleansing of this product I would limit the use of it probably to once a week just because it's okay to let your skin have some of its natural oils in it. I've really enjoyed using both products together and it really does make a difference to your skin pretty much straight away.

Peel off Mask

Another thing I adore about these products is that they don't use any harsh chemicals, colours or parabens. These things can actually do more damage than good to your skin, so it's nice knowing with these skin products they'll actually do you skin good.

One little flaw to the product is the price, I know everyone can't afford to splash out on beauty items all the time so maybe if they do interest you it's worth putting it on your birthday /Christmas present list. 

I purchased both from FeelUnique.com at full price but now they're currently on sale.

Cleanser- £14.40 (original price £18.00)

Mask- £17.60 (original price £22.00)

I hope you enjoyed my review of the products and let me know if you've tried any of the other products by First Aid Beauty.

Love from Bethan

xox

British Tag

Mood: Chilled

Listening to: MKTO- Classic

(Picture from Pinterest)

Hey beautiful bloggers, 

I want to apologize firstly for not blogging more often. Truthfully I've just been super lazy and haven't been up to it but hopefully all that is going to change and I will be back as soon as possible with some posts for you all to enjoy.

Although I may not have posted anything, I have been reading other people's blog and I've seen this tag a few times. I think it was started by Sammi (Beautycrush) on her YouTube channel. As I am British I thought I would give it a go because it looked really fun. Hope you enjoy reading.

1. How many cups of tea do you drink a day? Any sugars?

I love tea but I usually only drink a lot of it in the winter so normally I just drink water. Occasionally I start the day with a Mint Green Tea and when I'm working I may have a cup at break and it's taken black, but the teabag cannot be left in for long and I have a quarter of a teaspoon of sugar. I am very precise with my tea. 

2. Favourite part of your roast?

Hmm...a very difficult decision but I have to say gravy because without it, it wouldn't be a roast dinner. Although Yorkshire pudding came a very close second.

3. Favourite dunking biscuit?

This question is so difficult because I love dipping biscuits and chocolate in my tea. I do love McVities normal and chocolate digestives but another favourite is Fox's Crinkle butter biscuits, I could literally eat the whole packet.

4. Favourite quintessentially British pastime?

I wouldn't say it's stereotypically British but I do love to bake. Especially a good old Victoria Sponge and I love making a welsh favourite; Welshcakes.

5. Favourite word?

I don't really have a favourite word but I love using the words Cwtch* and Lush although it's probably because I'm Welsh.

Definition of Cwtch- An affectionate hug.

6. Cockney rhyme slang?

Well I know apples and pears means stairs and dog and bone is for phone...am I right?

7. Favourite sweets/chocolate?

I do love sweets but I much prefer chocolate! Some of my favourites are a Caramac, Wispa Gold and anything Cadbury. If I had to choose sweets I'd probably either choose the Haribo Tangastics or Fruit Pastilles. 

8. What would your pub be called?

Oh gosh, you've got me thinking now! I'd probably choose something like The Dragon's Fire or Y Mynydd Du (The Black Mountain). 

9. Favourite British person?

I can't possibly choose only one?! I'd probably say J.K Rowling because without Harry Potter my childhood wouldn't have been the same. But I could literally make about a hundred categories and choose a person for each one.

10. Favourite pub/restaurant?

I could be typically British and say Nando's but I'm going to think outside the box and say a place called The Mulberry in Saundersfoot. They do the nicest Sunday dinner I have ever had.

11. What British song pops into your head?

For some reason the song If You Wanna by The Vaccines came into my head. Great British band.

12. Marmite?

Can't say I've really tried it!

Well I hope you all enjoyed reading, why don't you give it a go yourself!

Love from Bethan

xox