Seventeen Poreless Flawless primer

I was really intrigued by this primer as I've never seen one in a cake form before. I bought it yesterday and used it for the first time this morning. Im really impressed with it!

It's a peachy/fleshy colour in the pan and has a really balmy texture. I used my fingers to apply, at first you had to really work your fingers into the product to get any out, but it soon heats up from the heat of your fingers and become really easy to use.

Once on the skin I found it really easy to blend. I loved the matte finish, my skin looked almost airbrushed. I also found that it really minimized pores and blemishes on my t-zone and problem area's. It also made my foundation really glide onto my skin really smoothly and evenly. 

Poreless Flawless Primer is currently on special in Boots for just under €8.

Shopping spree!

A gift voucher to the value of €75 came through my letter box this morning, and after a few moments of celebratory dancing I high tailed it to the nearest shopping centre to spend it. It's actually slightly upsetting how quickly I blew through it! But I somehow managed to save a tenner!

My first stop was to SuperDrug to see if they had the new Smoking eyes pallet. ..... but I was disappointed. Actually their MUA stand was very bare, but I managed to snag the last heaven and earth pallet.

Next, I popped into Hairspray to see if they had any of the €10 innovative fibre clip in hair extensions. I love these. They're not real hair, but they look like it, and you can straighten and curl them as if they were. I have 2 of these now, and when I clip both in my hair looks incredibly full ad luscious. I rarely wear clip in's so the price is phenomenal value. If anyone is looking for cheap extensions just for occasional wear I couldn't recommend these enough.

I made a quick stop in H&M where I just bought a cute skull jumper. I'm really fond of it, I love anything with a skull motif.

Then I hit Boots like a hurricane! They're still running their Buy one get one half price promo so it was really hard to reign myself in. I went nuts at the SEVENTEEN stand, picking up the Miracle Matte foundation and pressed powder, the new Flawless Poreless primer and rebuying Doll'd Up mascara, all for less than €22. Also, because I spent over €20 I got a fiver worth of points on my Boots card!

Lastly, a quick visit to Terrisales to pick up some individual lash extentions and glue.

I'm really happy with how I spent the gift card, and think I did quite well considering I have over a tenner left on it! I can't wait to play with all the make up, but I'm gonna try to be good and put it away until my new brushes arrive....... as if.

SBBC Day 20- 10 under €10!

This is like my dream topic, basically everything in my make up collection cost less than a tenner. Spending the last few years with very little disposable income has given me a great nose for a bargain! The only hard thing about this post will be whittling it down to 10! They're in no particular order here!

10- Cocoa Brown 1 hour tan- Buy it once, wear it once, love it forever. I'm never without a bottle.... or 4!

9- Rimmel Stay Matte foundation- I've been meaning to throw up a post about this for a while. I picked it up for just €5.95 (introductory offer) because the shade seemed pale enough for me. I've always found that even the palest Rimmel shades just don't match me, so was a bit skeptical, but I quite like the matte finish and the colour is a really good match! I'll get a review up asap!

8- NYC Liquid liner- If you read my blog you'll know I'm an avid devotee of this €2.59 eyeliner so I won't bore you with the details. Take my advice and buy it!

7- John Frieda 3 Day straight- I love this product. It makes my hair sleek, straight and manageable. I picked up my last bottle on special in Dunnes for €5.39.

6- Cocoa Brown Tough Stuff- This is a fantasic little exfoliator, I use it even when I'm not prepping for tanning. You can pick it up anywhere that sells Cocoa Brown for just €2.50. I can't wait for the tube to come out in October!

5- Seventeen Doll'd Up mascara- At under €8 this is one of my favourite ever mascara's. It beats the socks off some of the more expensive mascara's I've used hands down, and is actually one of the very few mascara's I repeat buy!

4- Cien Anti aging hand cream- I always have a tube of this around to keep my hands soft. It's also great for healing up damaged cuticles, which I suffer from desperately. I wouldn't even know about it if it wasn't for my mother so I'll have to thank her. Comes in at less than €2.

3- PRO:VOKE A touch of silver purple shampoo- When I was platinum blonde I wen't through so many bottles of this that I could have taken out shares in the company. Since I've changed colour I do use it less, but I still always have a bottle handy to combat any yellow tones in my hair. €4.91 in Boots.

2- Sleek iDivine Acid Pallet- I got this as a present from a very good friend and it's just so much fun to play around with! Most of the Sleek pallets come in under a tenner, and given the pigmentation they are well worth it! I'll definitely be picking up more when I have access to a card for online shopping! You can see some of the looks I played around with in the link.

1- Collection 2000 Pressed powder- Another repeat buy, it's so cheap and so handy. Less tha €4 and I find that it keeps my make up set for hours and gives me a lovely matte finish!

So that's it!! 10 under €10! Who says looking great has to be expensive?

SBBC- Day 19- €250 shopping spree

€250 is honestly a huge amount of money to me right now, as I'm sure it is to most people, so as huge as the urge to blow it all in Penney's and Boots would be, I think I'd have to spend the money on something useful.

For the last few months I've wanted to do a nail course, so I think I'd either put the money towards the cost of a course, or spend it on putting my own kit together. Then I could continue saving for a course that will allow me to train on my own kit and do it at a later date. The ultimate goal would be to be able to be a freelance nail technician, all the while saving to do other courses like tanning and eyelash extensions, so I can offer more.

Having such a fancy array of products just sitting there that I can't use would be a killer, but worth it in the long run!

From pink to blonde!

Finished product with some Hairspray clip in extensions

After months of being pink I decided it was time to join the realm of the fully fledged grown ups and dye my hair a natural colour. I did toy with the idea of an autumn red colour, but after years of running away from my ginger roots, I finally decided to go for blonde.

Before

The process of going from pink to blonde was always going to cause damage to my hair, so before reaching for the bleach I spent weeks growing and washing out the pink. There was a lot of pink build up so I would shampoo my hair twice every time I showered. The day I bleached it there was barely any pink left from the ends up to about my ears, but my crown was still fairly pink.

To bleach out the pink I used a powder bleach and 12% peroxide I got in Terrisales. I left it my roots and crown for about 7-10 minutes,  then brought it down to the ends. I new the result was going to be a bit yucky, yellow-y, a real mish mash of colours. After washing out the bleach I used the John Frieda full repair mask on my hair just to minimize the damage.

After the first bleach (also make up free, gasp!!)

I knew I wanted to darken the colour, it was just far too bright for my skin tone. I settled on this L'Oreal Preference dye in 9.13 light beige blonde. I picked this because it was darker than the colour my hair was, but still a nice light blonde. I left it in for the 30 minutes as stated in the instructions. While it was developing I was convinced my hair was getting a greyish tinge and started to get very worried! But it washed out blonde. 

And below is the end result! It's going to take some getting used to, but I do really like it! I think im going to stick with natural colours from now on. .... but I've said that many times before! 

After L'Oreal Preference Beige blonde

My hair had repaired itself quite a bit while it was pink, because the bulk of it was only ever getting touched up with Crazy color,  which is a conditioning colour. I was worried about undoing all that progress, but thankfully it doesn't look or feel to bad at all!  It'll be getting lots of extra tlc over the coming weeks. 

SBBC Day 18- Desert Island beauty

I'm fully aware that half the products I'm bringing with me to this desert island are useless without modern technology, but the desert island I'm going to comes equipped with hair dryers, straighteners, tanning mitts and make remover. Got that? Okay lets go!!

 1- Sudocrem- There's been a tube of this knocking around my room since I got my first ever pimple, and there will always be a tube of it somewhere. Got a pimple? Put some Sudocrem on it. Get a little burn? Sudocrem that thang! Arm fall of? Sudocrem will fix it! Magic stuff!

2- Schwarzkopf Got to be Oilicious- I only bought this recently, but I really like it. I put it on my hair once it's dry and find it makes my hair really manageable and soft. Also gives it a nice shine.

3- NYC Liquid eyeliner- Are you starting to figure out that I really REALLY love this eyeliner?? It's just the bomb, I'm never without t!

4- Essence eyebrow pencil- This is almost a staple item for me, so cheap and effective, and much handier to carry around than an eyebrow kit.

5- Mascara- I have SEVENTEEN Back Lash mascara pictured there, but basically whatever mascara I'm favouring at the time I'm abandoned on this devil island.

6- Cocoa Brown- One would think that one wouldn't need fake tan when you're stranded on a desert island..... but one would be very, very wrong. I could live on said island for a thousand years and still wouldn't tan. Can't beat a bit of Cocoa Brown for a quick sun fix.

7- L'Oreal True Match- My favourite foundation, and probably the only one I'd trust for a night out. If it can last a boozey night in O'Rielly's, a desert island will be a breeze!

8- PRO:VOKE Touch of silver brightening shampoo- When my hair is blonde, which it will be again by tonight, this shampoo is my best friend. It really gets rid of any yellow tones and is a bargain at €4.19.

9- John Frieda 3 Days Straight- Ever since I got a bottle of this to try at a Slattery's Communications event I've been absolutely in love with it. It's just marvelous stuff! I'm all fingers and thumbs when it comes to straight blow dry's, but even so my hair is lovely and straight until it's next wash! I'm nearly through my second bottle now!

10- Eyelure Dyelash 45 day mascara- I was afflicted with exceptionally fair brows and lashes so unless I tint them they're snow white and I look like an alien! Don't get me wrong, some people can absolutely rock fair brows, but I just can't, my face needs the structure. I use this on both my brows and lashes and find it great, it's really easy to mix and the colour is really long lasting!

So there we have it, my 10 desert island items..... It was like Sophie's Choice :(

SBBC Day 17- BB Creams smeebee creams!

Remember when they first came on the scene and everyone lost their collective minds because they were meant to be the BEST thing to happen to foundation in years? Well..... They lied!

First, lets start with the more budget brand BB's, think Essence, NYC, Collection 2000 etc, all next to useless.

These brands just completely forget the cool toned pale girls. The only way any of these would be remotely wearable on my skin tone would be if I diluted it heavily with moisturoiser, but then it's basically just a tinted moisturoiser and offer no where near the coverage I'd want. That said, you aren't going to be going far above €6 for any of them, so if you're a warmer skin tone, probably worth a look!

Lets take it up a notch and look at offerings from the likes of L'Oreal, Rimmel, Garnier, and Maybelline. Again, the exact same problem as their cheaper counterparts. The L'Oreal Nude magique BB Cream seemed really promising at first, and I got quite excited that it was going to adapt to MY skin tone.... well I don't who's skin it was adapting to, but I was left with a ring of shame that would rival any full coverage foundation. As with a lot of their face products, Rimmel once again underestimated how pale one can be with their BB cream. The Garnier 'fair' shade is actually almost hilarious in how un-fair it is!

The one and only BB cream that has ever even remotely come close to matching my skin tone is the MUA one in the lightest shade, and to be fair, it really is quite good. I'm never going to be a BB addict, because I'll always prefer a full coverage, but if I ever was to wear one it would definitely be MUA.

SBBC Day 16- what makes me happy

Don't get me wrong,  I do like the finer things in life. It's nice to be spoiled, or to treat yourself to something fancy you've been lusting after for months. But I like to think that at the core of it I'm a woman of simple pleasures. I could do without most of life's fineries as long as I have the following to keep me going-

A cuddle from these two fluffy heart warmers

Seeing this little devil rock up at my door to tear my house apart and make me laugh

Sitting inside in cosy jumpers and big mugs of coffee on gloomy days like today.

Getting a cuddle from someone you love. Even better when it's from someone who loves you.

Adorable stuff like this

Thinking about my weird and always wonderful friends and some of the great times we have had together.

Getting good feedback on a blog post. I get all giddy!

See...... such a softie.

SBBC Day 16- My beauty wishlist

I am many weird and sometimes wonderful things, but one thing I am more than anything else, is extremely. EXTREMELY wanty. I want everything and I want it yesterday. If I don't want it right now I will probably want it tomorrow. But I am also perpetually broke, so until I can source myself a wealthy husband who likes to spoil me, the vast majority of what I crave will remain on my wishlist. Le sigh  :(

First up, one of these bad boys please. I'll no doubt pick myself up a cheaper version along the way, but still, gimmeeee!

I'll also have this please. Actually, i'll just have ALL the Sleek pallets thanks!

If you're feeling EXTRA generous, I would love, love, LOOOOOOVE a full set of Great Lenghts hair extensions. Who wouldn't, right? If I ever win the lotto, that will be the first thing I treat myself to. I mean, look!! It's so unfair :(

And I also want an Iphone. I have to stop before I cry...

Wow Brown Ready To Glo Dark tanning liquid

The lovely folk at Wow Brown sent out some lucky Bloggers a little surprise of a bottle of their award winning Ready To Glo Dark tanning liquid. My little pressie arrived in a big purple sparkly envelope, with a full size bottle of tan and a little note thanking me for me previous review, which you can read here. How sweet!

Now initially I was a  bit wary of the word 'Dark' because I am whiter than white and was afraid that it just wouldn't suit me because I don't like to tan my face. I was in fear of the dreaded marshmallow head. I won't lie, I was in 2 minds about whether to apply it at all, would it be worth the hassle just to go a few shades too dark and have to scrub it all off? But I persevered! But Fran and Don were kind enough to send me a bottle, and even if it's too dark for me it may suit someone else down to the ground!

Same as my last bottle, the paraben free liquid comes in a handbag friendly sized bottle, perfect for holidays and weekends away. The spray cap gives you complete control of the amount of liquid you spritz onto your mitt. Remember though, a little bit of this condensed liquid goes a very long way. 1-2 sprays will do an entire arm! The packaging claims to contain enough product for 7-10 full body applications, and I'd definitely agree since I still have a good 1/4 of my first bottle left and have used it on my upper body countless times.

There's a lovely golden glow the second you apply the tan, and the next second you're dry as a bone. The liquid absorbs extremely quickly, making this an excellent 'tanning at the last minute' tan. The colour guide also makes it near impossible to leave you with streaks or missed patches. The 'boyfriend friendly' scent is lovely and floral, and doesn't change during development. I would be quite sensitive to that biscuity smell a lot of developing tans have and can always smell it off others, so I absolutely HATE being able to smell it off myself. But, being so impressed with my last bottle, I really wasn't expecting to smell like a digestive!

Now onto the colour! You're supposed to leave the tan on for 5 hours, then hop in the shower, or leave on longer for a more intense colour. I've never been known for my bravery, so I showered after the allotted time just in case. What I was left with was a lovely, naturally bronzed, streak free day time tan that's completely appropriate for the change of season! Tbh, I would have gotten away with leaving it on longer, and definitely will if I am wearing it for a night out!

I personally find the wear off of Ready To Glo products to be the best of any tan I've ever used, so I'm hoping it's the same with the darker liquid. I'm almost certain it will be, Fran and Don have never given me reason t doubt them! The tan retails at €21.99 and can be bought direct from the Wow Brown website.

Happy tanning guys :)

SBBC Day 15- Eye candy

Lets not get bogged down in words, lets just enjoy his beautiful face...

Looking well Tom! Let's have a another look just to be sure...

You are wearing that suit. Dayuuuuum.

Yes, ok, you're definitely looking well. But what's that..... you want to grow a beard?? Oh, I dunno Tom....

Well, maybe I was mistaken....

I was definitely mistaken. The beard is fabulous! Beards get itchy though, have a little scratch there...

But WHAT??!? Now you want a beard AND an adorable doggy?? I don't think I can take it....

Be still my beating ovaries

I need to lay down....

SBBC Day 12- Advice to the young

My SBBC posts are ever so slightly all over the place, and I do apolagise, but I'm catching up as best I can.

Keeping with a recent trend, This is me exposing my softer side (I'm a big softie and I'm not even sorry!). While I'm writing this post my 19 month old niece is as the forefront of my mind, so I'll dedicate this to her, baby Grace. I'm gonna phrase it as if I was writing to her.

Grace,

Throughout your life you are going to get mountains of advice from many, many different people, and words from your silly old aunt will likely mean nothing to you. But while you're reading this, do remember that I was once young and going through pretty much everything you will find yourself going through. I'm not stupid or naive, I know it's hard to take advice from your elders, so I'm fully aware that everything I say will probably fall on deaf ears.

That said, I want to pass on to you a piece of advice that has been invaluable to me since I was old enough to fully understand it. Always remember that 'Beauty is only skin deep'. Be kind, be thoughtful, be accommodating, be a good listener, be generous with your time and wisdom, be open minded and tolerant, be fun and carefree, be everything I wish I had been, be the kind of person people go to for advice, but also the person that people will welcome with open arms. Give hugs often, and accept them even more often. Let people cry on your shoulder, because you'll need them someday too. Don't pick your friends because they love your beautiful face, pick them because they love your beautiful soul. People can be fickle, but a good person never goes out of fashion.

Grace, you're only 19 months old and I already love you more than I thought I could ever love anything. You have changed, and matured me more than I thought possible. You have taught me more than I will ever teach you, and I can only hope that someday these words have some impact on you. I can already see your little personality blooming and you are larger than life. You're bloody hard work at times, but you brighten my day when I hear you knocking on my door. Please, I beg of you, stay as absolutely beautiful on the inside as you are right now. I daren't dream how you'll grow up, because I'd never set limitations on you, you can be, and do, absolutely anything you set your gorgeous little mind to. Who knows, maybe someday in the distant future you'll read this, and no doubt you'll slag me off to your friends, but please, after you finish slagging me, and have shrugged off the embarrassment, remember what I told you..... 'Beauty is only skin deep'

Lots and lots, and an obscene amount of love, your silly old aunt,

Katrina xx

SBBC Day 14- My inspiration

When it comes to blogging I find my inspiration absolutely everywhere. Somebody I pass on the street with fabulous makeup, a colourful bouquet of flowers that inspires me to try out a new look, new products in store, the change of season, watching my mam get ready for a night out, make up in tv or film.... Inspiration is everywhere if you walk around with an open mind.

But above all, the one thing that inspires me to keep blogging more than anything else is my fellow bloggers. Reading other bloggers posts, and chatting to them on Twitter, is my most vital a source of inspiration. I'm not going to link to all the blogs I read, because it would be an endless list, but I will say this- We have created a very welcoming, inviting and embracing community within our blogs, and all our social media outlets, and I am both thankful, and grateful to be a part of. I adore blogging, because it has given me the opportunity to go to so many events and try so many products, but more so because it has introduced me to so many wonderful people that I just never would have met otherwise. You girls push me to better my blog and myself, intentionally or not, and you should all be very proud of yourselves. There is one fabulous blogger who has pushed me harder than anyone else, and I won't name names, but she will never know how much her belief and encouragement means to me.

So cheers to being a beauty blogger!! We are just the business and each and every one of us deserves a big pat on the back.

SBBC Day 11- My biggest beauty fails

I think we all wrack up some beauty fails throughout the years,  particularly when you're younger and braver and nothing is off limits. I spent most of my 13th year wandering around the place looking like aunt Sally, until my dad finally snapped and refused to drop me anywhere until I sorted my blusher out.

Then there was the time I got handsy with a blue and silver glitter pot and applied it, with no great skill or precision, to essentially my entire face. I looked like a picture a child painted, but at the time I was only gorgeous.

Speaking of glitter, do you remember body glitter? Do you remember rooms full of preteen girls shimmering like human disco balls?

The one fail that stands triumphant among them all (triumphant in that it was the absolute worst) was when I was 17, had just broken up with someone, and thought I had nothing better to do than chop off my lovely long blonde hair and dye it black. In my post relationship haze, I thought I looked really edgy and cool, in reality I looked like a corpse in a school uniform. Im just far too pale for dark hair. Not even pale, ghostly. Then began the 2 year battle to get my hair back a lighter colour without it all falling out. Never, ever again.

SBBC Day 10- My pet peeves

Ohhhhhh, where to begin! Im normally quite a tolerant person, we all make mistakes, but when it comes to make up there are certain things I just can't abide. When I occasionally fall guilty of them myself it's all I can do not to run home and weep into my make up remover. So let's have a look at a few things that make my toes curl with embarrassment

Eyebrows so large they should have their own postcode- some people can pull off the bushy brow, try picture Cara Delavigine without her signature brows, it's hilarious! Most people, however, cannot. Pick your brow shape to suit your face, not to follow a trend!

Drawn on brows- Drawing eyebrows on babies and pets- HILARIOUS. Drawing eyebrows on yourself as part of your super serious make up routine makes baby Jesus cry. On behalf of all people everywhere, please stop that. 

Spider lashes- there's a fine line between adding that extra layer of mascara that makes your lashes look full and fanned out, and the layer that makes you look like you have 3 lashes.

The ring of shame- we've all been guilty of it at one stage. Thankfully most of us grow out of it when our mother/sister/stranger on the street slaps us and teaches us how to blend. Alas Horatio,  not everyone pays attention.

Marshmallow head- also known as the reverse ring of shame. It can actually be tricky to bronze your face up right if you're not used to wearing tan, so im slightly more lenient on this faux pax. But seriously!.... draft in some help if needs be. Looking like you went on holiday but left your head at home has never worked. For anyone. Ever.

The attack of the mascara wand- eyeshadow-perfect, eyeliner- beautiful, foundation- stellar job you did there! Would be a shame if something came along and ruined it all, like, I dunno..... a mascara wand RIGHT ON YOUR EYEBALL!!!!! Give me strength.

Rain sabotage- nothing worse than having an uncharacteristically good hair day, and just while your getting used to basking in your good hair glow BOOM!! Rain. Rain everywhere. And of course you don't have an umbrella because that would just be too sensible

Pink tooth- Lippy is lovely on your lips, not so lovely on your pearly whits. And how would you even know if not for the kindness of strangers? Oh the hugemanity :(

Leaky eye syndrome- You know those beautiful summer days where the sun is shining, the birds are chirping and the pollen is sky high? They suck!! Many days I have left the house with fabulous eye make up, and returned looking like an escaped panda. Nothing is truly waterproof. Long live autumn!

SBBC Day 9- A pop of colour

I absolutely love a pop of colour,  especially during the summer months. It really brightens up my mood,  and makes me a little cheerier. I personally find it a bit easier to incorporate colour when the weather is lovely and bring as you can get away with such vibrant,  bold colours.

I do tend to keep colour minimal in my make up, as my hair is very bright and it can look a bit much. So my nails get a lot of colour.

When I do wear colour it's almost exclusively on the lip. Im a huge fan of a bold,  bright lip, particularly pinks and corals.

NYC Expert last lipstick in Pink Rose

On the rare occasion I'm not sporting a plain cat flick, or dramatic smokey eye, I do like to experiment with colour. I just find the colour and shape of my eyes more suited to a simpler look.

Coming into A/W I'll be obsessed with deeper,  richer colours like plums and dark reds, even browns. I love autumn,  rich colours,  layers and knitwear. Heaven. My current favourite is my Oriflame deep plum lipstick. I love the colour and finish,  there's a lovely sheen to it.