At first I wasn't going to write this post because I didn't think there would be much difference to my 2013 favourites,
Ok, So I'm not a big fan of the whole 'monthly favourites' posts, don't get me wrong, I love reading others. But personally, I don't change things up that much and it would be pretty boring to read. So I thought I would just show you what I've been loving over the past few months instead - a sort of Summer favourites. I thought I'd put this up before Autumn gets into its full swing.
E.l.f. Jumbo Eyeshadow pencil.
Now guys, I know you know that I used to go crazy when ordering from e.l.f. and quite franky I do not reach for many products by them. But I have been overly impressed by this jumbo eyeshadow pencil, it is in the shade Turkish Coffee and it looks stunning when you blend it across the lid. It is by far the easiest creamy product to blend that I have ever come across. The lasts a long time, it's quick to apply, you just cannot go wrong! I've had quite a lot of early shifts at work lately, and I've been wacking this on with a bit of mascara and I am good to go.
Makeup Geek Eyeshadows.
I bought these not to long ago and honestly, I have been using them everyday! It's the first time I've bought individual pans so I was a little concerned about not liking the colours, but the website is dummy-free and has a swatch of each colour. I bought these mainly because Jaclyn Hill is always using and praising them and I just had to see for myself (and not just because I absolutely adore her!). I've got a post coming up soon on the colours that I got so I won't talk too much about them. But honestly, if you're new to eyeshadow like myself, then get these babies, they really do bring a look together! I got the small Z-Palette in the Dotted Leaf pattern which is exclusive to the Makeup Geek website.
Blogilates.
I cannot even begin to tell you how lazy I am when it comes to working out. I used to go to the gym a few times a week but since starting uni I have struggled to get into a regime. I will have the odd week where I will work out a tonne and then do nothing for the next few months and it's really beginning to take its toll. I know there is no point in me starting at the gym while I'm at the gym so I decided, alongside my best friend, to try blogilates after a few friends recommended it to me. Guys, I have never felt so motivated to work out so often before! Cassey Ho, the creator of blogilates is an absolute delight to watch, her happiness is so infectious and she really makes you feel good about yourself and motivates you to reach your goals. She produces these calendars each month packed full of workouts to do everyday. Yes, there are days where I just want to curl in a ball and do nothing, but I try and do at least two of the videos - because they are pretty hard. Although I haven't seen any visual results yet, I definitely feel more energized and stronger. I highly recommend checking out her website, she is an absolute babe!
Purple Tropical-Print Floral Kimono.
I have been wearing this out so much the last few weeks, I love the colour, the style, the fit, everything! I love that I can team it with leggings or skinny jeans and it will look goregous. It is so easy to wear and adds so much colour and style to an otherwise simple outfit. It's from New Look and I actually ordered it online, so I'm not sure if it is still in stores.
Pesto.
Yes, you read right, pesto. At uni I always used to cook salmon smothered in pesto and since then I've fallen in love with the taste of pesto. I also mix it in with cream and add it to my pasta.. heaven! A bit of a random favourite really, but I just had to mention it. I'd love to try some other recipes that include pesto, so if you have any reccommendations.. you know what to do!
Multi-patterned nails
So those are a few things that I have been loving lately, I would love to hear what you've been enjoying this summer!
E.l.f. Jumbo Eyeshadow pencil.
Now guys, I know you know that I used to go crazy when ordering from e.l.f. and quite franky I do not reach for many products by them. But I have been overly impressed by this jumbo eyeshadow pencil, it is in the shade Turkish Coffee and it looks stunning when you blend it across the lid. It is by far the easiest creamy product to blend that I have ever come across. The lasts a long time, it's quick to apply, you just cannot go wrong! I've had quite a lot of early shifts at work lately, and I've been wacking this on with a bit of mascara and I am good to go.
Makeup Geek Eyeshadows.
I bought these not to long ago and honestly, I have been using them everyday! It's the first time I've bought individual pans so I was a little concerned about not liking the colours, but the website is dummy-free and has a swatch of each colour. I bought these mainly because Jaclyn Hill is always using and praising them and I just had to see for myself (and not just because I absolutely adore her!). I've got a post coming up soon on the colours that I got so I won't talk too much about them. But honestly, if you're new to eyeshadow like myself, then get these babies, they really do bring a look together! I got the small Z-Palette in the Dotted Leaf pattern which is exclusive to the Makeup Geek website.
Blogilates.
I cannot even begin to tell you how lazy I am when it comes to working out. I used to go to the gym a few times a week but since starting uni I have struggled to get into a regime. I will have the odd week where I will work out a tonne and then do nothing for the next few months and it's really beginning to take its toll. I know there is no point in me starting at the gym while I'm at the gym so I decided, alongside my best friend, to try blogilates after a few friends recommended it to me. Guys, I have never felt so motivated to work out so often before! Cassey Ho, the creator of blogilates is an absolute delight to watch, her happiness is so infectious and she really makes you feel good about yourself and motivates you to reach your goals. She produces these calendars each month packed full of workouts to do everyday. Yes, there are days where I just want to curl in a ball and do nothing, but I try and do at least two of the videos - because they are pretty hard. Although I haven't seen any visual results yet, I definitely feel more energized and stronger. I highly recommend checking out her website, she is an absolute babe!
Purple Tropical-Print Floral Kimono.
I have been wearing this out so much the last few weeks, I love the colour, the style, the fit, everything! I love that I can team it with leggings or skinny jeans and it will look goregous. It is so easy to wear and adds so much colour and style to an otherwise simple outfit. It's from New Look and I actually ordered it online, so I'm not sure if it is still in stores.
Pesto.
Yes, you read right, pesto. At uni I always used to cook salmon smothered in pesto and since then I've fallen in love with the taste of pesto. I also mix it in with cream and add it to my pasta.. heaven! A bit of a random favourite really, but I just had to mention it. I'd love to try some other recipes that include pesto, so if you have any reccommendations.. you know what to do!
Multi-patterned nails
I've been obsessed with Shannon from Shaaanxo's nails! She always has the most stunning designs and they always look gorgeous. Recently, I decided to treat myself to getting my nails done - I never normally get acrylics done because my job isn't so friendly on my nails and my natural nails grow pretty fast as it is. But seen as it was my birthday a few weeks back I decided to treat myself. I got them done at Greenford Nails which is my most local nail salon. They cost me £23, which for me is quite a bit but if they last me for a few weeks then I don't mind getting them done now and then. I showed them a picture of something I found online and they did a good job at recreating it. Overly impressed!
So those are a few things that I have been loving lately, I would love to hear what you've been enjoying this summer!
Neelam xx
Happy (belated) New Year! Hope you all had a lovely Christmas and enjoyed the holidays. I've decided that one of my new years resolutions is to blog more.. knowing me I won't stick to this but I really want to get into the habit of blogging. So I thought what better way of starting the new year with a '2013 favourites' blog post. Original, I know. Sorry it's late, I've been waiting for this nasty rain to clear up so I can take some decent pictures for you (poor excuse, but it's the truth!). 2013 was such a great year for me and it's the year where I've really begun to appreciate makeup and beauty and have learnt so much from YouTube Gurus and beauty bloggers. I'm hoping that I'll start trying out more products and do more reviews and swatch posts like I always promise to. So without further ado, I introduce, my 2013 favourites!
Concealer
The Bobbi Brown Corrector in light to medium peach is by far my most used and favourite product of all time. I've already created a post entirely dedicated to this product which you can see here, but I have to emphasize just how much I like it. It's the perfect formula to cover up those nasty dark under-eye circles that I am way too familiar with. The product lasts a very long time, I bought it around this time last year and I'm currently scraping out the last bits of the product left. Although it is on the high end of beauty products, it is definitely worth the spend, also check out Debenhams for when they have their beauty sales to get it a little cheaper.
I have another concealer that has made it in my favourites and it is a highstreet/drugstore alternative and I have heard nothing but good reviews on this product. It is the Collection 2000 lasting perfection concealer in Deep 4 (the label on the packaging has rubbed off, in case you're wondering). Although I don't find it that good for my under-eye circles, I absolutely love it for covering blemishes and any redness around my nose area. It's uber cheap and lasts a pretty long time! It has an easy applicator and has a formula that makes it real quick to blend into your skin.
Foundation
I'm yet to find my ideal foundation and I've spent the last 3 or 4 months changing foundations every other day. I wish I could show you my favourite foundation here, but I have to be honest and say I still haven't found one that lasts long and is the exact match for my skin. However, I may do a mini foundation review series to show you what I do and don't like about the ones I'm switching through at the moment.
Eyeliner
Towards the second half of the year I fell back in love with a product that I haven't used in such a long time. The Collection 2000 fast stroke eyeliner in Black 1 was my go to liquid liner back in the day but I decided to change to a different applicator. Long story short, I realised this eyeliner is much easier to control and I can get a more accurate cat wing. It lasts a really long time despite the size of the product and the actual product stays on all day! I'm so impressed with this product as it looks exactly the same in the evening as it did when you first put it on at 8 in the morning! I can not find any faults in this product and again it's super affordable.
Bronzer/Contour
The Sleek contour kit in Light has pretty much been the product I've used everyday since about June when I first discovered it. Perfect for bronzing or contouring, although I use it more as a contour. It's nicely pigmented (as all Sleek products tend to be!) and lasts a decent amount of time. I don't really use the highlighter part of it as much as I feel it doesn't really suit my skin tone, but maybe I'm just using it wrong.. Despite using it almost everyday, I haven't yet hit pan on the product so I'm assuming it's going to last me a long time.
Blush
You may remember that my previous posts were almost always about e.l.f. cosmetics and their products. I have to admit I was extremely addicted to the price and not so much the products themselves! However, out of all the deliveries there is one product I use almost everyday and that is their Studio blush in Mellow Mauve. It is the perfect colour for winter and with a light hand summer too! It's perfectly pigmented and long lasting too. Elf blushes are said to be the ideal dupe for nars blushes, but as I don't own a nars blush I can't tell you how true that is.
Mascara
Mascara is my go to product. If I'm going to wear one product it will definitely be mascara. I stick to Maybelline mascaras but the one I discovered this year is The Rocket mascara. I cannot explain how much I adore this mascara. It elongates and coats your eyelashes perfectly and almost looks as if you're wearing false eyelashes! There is one downside to this mascara and that's how difficult it is to remove! Yes, it's nice to have a long lasting mascara but it's a pain in the ass when you come home tired as hell and your mascara refuses to come off! However, it's definitely worth that struggle for thick flared eyelashes!
That is it for my 2013 favourites, I'm sure you'll agree when I say I've made this post ridiculously long but I hope this has been helpful to you anyway :) I hope you all have a lovely year and I look forward to all you new followers!