July Favourites: Beauty and Fashion

It's time for my favourites for the month of July! 

I've tried out a lot of new and already owned products throughout this month, which I have been using religiously and have practically become my monthly favourties. Needless to say, fashion favourites must also be mentioned, since I have certain clothing items which I have constantly been reaching  to throughout the month of July.

Beauty Favourites

❤

Perfume-

 I have rediscovered my Chanel perfumes on my vanity this month, and I have been using these two perfumes practically everyday. I find these two scents transition from day to night, and they are the perfect scents for the summer. The Chanel Madmoiselle has a very floral, girly scent and it is very appropriate for either day or night (You can actually notice that this is by far my favourite out of the two- I almost emptied the bottle! - NO!!). However, the Chanel No.5 has the strongest scent, and I preferred wearing it for the night time. 

Hair and Skin-

Gliss Leave in Conditioner Spray- Humidity and hot weather tend to leave the hair dry and brittle, even more so if you love going to the beach like I do. My hair always becomes very dry at the ends during the summer months so I needed some kind of leave in conditioner to soften the hair as well as strengthen it. I started using Gliss hair repair leave in conditioner for dry ends. I spray it on my damp hair and comb it through. It actually does work and I did notice the difference, so I am using it every time I wash my hair, and I can say that it is now part of my haircare routine.

Tresemme Hairspray Superioir Hold- Best Hairspray I have ever used. Humidity resistant and holds the hair in place while leaving it manageable and not extremely stiff that looks like your hair is glued. Believe me I've been there, done that  with other hair sprays. I use this whenever I curl my hair, and it does actually hold the curls in place  for a decent number of hours.

John Frieda Sheer Blonde Highlight Activator Shampoo and Conditioner- FYI- I am not blonde, but it is a highlight activating spray, therefore I wanted it to actually enhance and lighten up my highlights which is why I chose the Sheer Blonde version and not the Brunette. I am not saying that it actually gives you highlights but, it does enhance them. In addition, whenever I washed my hair with this product I did notice that it actually feels softer and looks shinier. Definitely my favourite shampoo and conditioner of the month.

Nivea Sun Carotene Lotion-Definitely not related to the other products mentioned above but definitely worth mentioning especially during the summer months. I shouldn't be encouraging anyone to expose themselves to the sun, but lets face it it is always nice to get yourself a sunkissed tan. This product really helped my skin look tanner and I think it prevents from peeling skin also after long time exposed to the sun. I used to always have skin peeling after I went a day at the beach even if I put sunblock. However when I used this product nothing happened which I am so relieved about, since peeled skin does not look appealing at all. I use this exactly after I apply my sunblock, since this product does not contain SPF, therefore it is still important to apply some kind of prevention. But I found that it does help giving you a bronzed summery look instead of looking like a lobster!

Nail Polishes-

My favourite nailpolishes and top 3 favourite colours were:

Rimmel London - How do you Lilac?

Catrice- Salmon and Garfunkel

Rimmel London - Coralicious

Nailene Miracle Maker- as the name implies, this nail polish does make miracles. It is a clear varnish which helps the nail grow within 7 days. I usually apply it as a top coat after I painted my nails and it works wonders!

Elf Make-up Mist & Set: I use this before I apply my make up and after to set it all in place. I found it very useful especially throughout this hot and humid month, when my make-up pretty much smudges all the time. This product did prevent from smudging and actually held my make-up all in place.

Rimmel Volume Accelerator Mascara : I love trying out different mascaras, actually every time I finish one I do not purchase the same one and search for something different. This month I changed to this mascara and it is my favourite so far. The brush is very thick which helps the lashes looking long and voluminous but still looking natural.

Fashion Favourites

❤

Strappy beige Wedges :H&M- My favourite pair of wedges, not only stylish but oh-so comfortable. I have been almost  wearing these wedges every weekend. They are so comfortable to walk in and they match with everything! They have been my go-to wedges of the month and will probably still be by the end of the summer.

Peplum top from New Look: I adore this top and I have been wearing it quite a few times, always pairing it with something different. You can pair it with a body-con skirt or high waisted shorts, or you can even tuck it in a flowy skirt giving the impression that it looks like a simple top. It is so easy to dress it up and dress it down, it is such a versatile piece.

Buckle Bracelet from Accessorize: May sound silly, but it is one of my favourite pieces of jewellery at the moment. It looks like a dupe of one of Henri Bendel's buckle bracelet, it looks very similar and it is worth the fraction of its price! I love stacking it up with other bracelets and watches. I pretty much wear it every day.

Shorts: I can never have enough shorts. They are so easy to wear, you can simply throw on your favourite patterened shorts and a basic top and you're good to go. My top 4 favourites are the highwaisted striped blue form Pull and Bear, Lace shorts form Promod, Striped red shorts from Miss Selfridge, and Lace denim shorts which I actually did myself and loved the way they turned out!

Hope you enjoyed today's post! Let me know your favourites!

xoxo

Review: Marc Anthony Easy Lites Instant Highlighting Spray

Dear readers, 

Remember my Ombre post? Well now I can say I finally found a solution to my long-awaited decision. A couple of months ago I came across a demo featuring Marc Anthony Easy Lites Hairspray. I was amazed by the demonstration of this new product, it is an innovation which I am sure hardly anyone has ever seen. It is a highlighting spray, all that needs to be done it to just spray on a strand of your hair and flat iron on the same strand around 5 to 7 times and you get instant highlights as a result. As soon as I watched this demo I knew I had to have it, the only problem was I couldn't find it anywhere to ship to Malta. However I recently came across a seller on ebay, and I didn't even think it twice, I bought it immediately. 

 

I applied the product on clean hair, sectioned it into four parts and sprayed on random strands of each section on  the bottom part of my hair for an ombre effect. After the section is sprayed and flat ironed, it is supposed to leave a shade lighter than your natural hair and it actually does! I was very impressed by the results. Don't expect a dramatic change, but it does actually give very natural looking highlights. The whole concept about this product is to highlight your hair easily at the comfort of your home, and how can anyone go wrong with that? It was the easiest method to dye my hair and I have to owe it all to Marc Anthony! 

❤ Pros: 

- Easily done within minutes

- You can spray more than once to lighten the strand of hair. 

- This spray is applicable to all natural or colour treated hair blondes, redheads and brunettes

- Affordable 

❤Cons: 

- It may damage your hair. Well if you are using a flat iron it will damage your hair. And let's face it, dying your hair is damaging enough especially if bleach is used, so luckily this is not as damaging as bleach. Since you have to flat iron as soon as you spray the product, there might be a hissing sound as you flat iron since the heat passes over the product until fully dry, however it is normal to to see the steam as described in the instructions. According to the box description it contains Chamomile Flower and Fruit Blend extracts which leaves the hair healthy and full of shine. 

- I don't think it is suitable for people who have very curly hair and do not straighten it very often. However I don't think it should stop you from trying it since you can still flat iron it just to highlight your hair. 

- Highlight shade might vary according to the colour of your hair especially on dark or textured hair. 

❤ Tips: 

For shades of light brown, dark blonde and lighter hair colours a recommendation is to spray evenly the product after shampooing and conditioning the hair and blow dry. For a maximum lightening result spray and flat iron when styling. 

And here are the results: 

The highlights actually came out even blonder than expected, AND it looks even blonder in natural light. Do give it a try especially for those who would like to try out ombre like I did! In just 2 easy steps you can create sunkissed highlights within minutes.I am definitely giving this product a thumbs up! 

What's in My Make-Up Bag?

Hi Everyone! 

Finally I'm back to the blogging world! This month I did some new make-up purchases for the summer and now I have a revamped make-up bag! So I decided give you dear readers a peek inside my make-up bag and show you my favourite make-up products I reach for in my day to day routine. 

♥Make-up case: I bought my make-up case over a year ago from Peacocks. I adore it not only because of the floral print, but it is the perfect size and perfect material for carrying make-up. I bought it on sale together with a travel case, I am not sure if  they still have the same one but I'm sure you can find a similar type of make-up case anywhere. I think a plastic make-up case is best if you want to avoid it from getting dirty. I used to change my make up cases every few months since they all ended up filthy and stained. However, I had this one over a year ago and it still looks brand new. Plus, it is very spacious and it is the perfect size for travelling. 

So, What 's in my make-up bag?

♥  Face: 

Foundation - First and foremost is liquid foundation. Since I do not have the perfect complexion of skin, I find the need to use some sort of liquid foundation to cover up areas which I am not too keen on showing, and mainly to give an even complexion. The type of foundations I like to use are light to medium coverage, since through past experience using other foundations, it is what I find best to give the right amount of coverage as well as looking natural. My favourite type of foundation is the Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Font de teint Gel in number 52. I love this foundation so far, it gives out an even complexion without it feeling heavy or cakey. It actually feels like having no make-up on and it also has a fruity scent which is not so familiar in foundations. It might be a bit pricey for some, but when it comes to foundation I believe you pay what you get, so it is better to invest at least on a good foundation.  I love it, and it is the perfect foundation for the summer. 

Concealer- Rimmel Match Perfection Concealer and highlighter in soft beige. I generally apply some concealer under my eyes and also on certain spots which I want to cover. I purchased this product for the second time which I do not normally do unless it is something I really like. Most importantly, it really matches well with the foundation. 

Powder-  Elf Mineral Sheer booster. It is a translucent powder and I use just a very small amount using a powder brush just to set all the foundation on my face. It does the job pretty much, and it is actually very affordable. 

Blush- Essence souffle' touch blush in Frozen Strawberry. Oh my gosh I cannot rave enough about this blush. I did not expect such great quality from essence but this is amazing. It has a creamy consistency, and you just apply it with your fingertips and blend it out on your cheeks. It lasts almost all day and the colour might look dark but it actually is very blend-able and looks like a very light pink-ish shade. Perfect especially for the summer if you want your blush to last all day!

♥ Eyes: 

I do not normally wear eye shadow every day, but whenever I feel like applying some when I'm out or when I'm on a rush, these are the ones that I reach out to mostly.

Primer- Elf Eyelid Primer. I normally apply it before applying eye shadow just to make it stay longer. 

Eye shadow- Elf Cream eyeshadow in Natural Glow; Catrice Made to Stay in Lord of Blings; Elf  Eyliner & Shadow stick in brown/basic, and Revlon colour stay eyeshadow in Neutral khakis. 

As you can see, I always end up using neutral colours. I normally like to add some gold cream shadow and add a nude colour blended to the crease for a day look. Or instead of nude adding a dark brown colour and blend it to the crease for a natural smokey eye. 

Liner: L'Oreal Perfect Slim Eyeliner.  I find this the best liner if you want to achieve the perfect slim winged eye on your upper lid. This is normally the look I go for the most, since I have stopped applying eyeliner on my lower lid. It always used to end up looking smudged, plus it made my eyes look smaller. So I found the best way to apply a winged out line. An alternative to the L'oreal pen liner, I also love using the Maybeline Studio lasting Drama Gel Liner. I find that the gel liner lasts longer than the L'oreal and I normally wear it on a night out.

Mascara: Rimmel Day to Night Glam Eyes.  My favourite mascara so far. I am that kind of person that I cannot live without mascara. If I had to choose anything from my make-up bag which I cannot live without has to be it. I just find it amazing how just applying some mascara it instantly widens the eye and pulls the look all together.

♥ Brushes: 


My everyday brushes I reach out for. 


Body shop blush brush- I mainly use it to apply powder foundation to set all the make-up. 


Elf Stipple Brush- I use this to apply my liquid foundation. I find this brush the best way to apply foundation compared to a sponge or your fingers. It leaves an airbrush effect and evenly distributes all the foundation in place. 


Elf Professional Eye-crease brush- I use it to blend eyeshadow towards the crease. Very affordable brush and great quality. I suggest if you want to buy make up brushes Elf is the best place to get them! 


Elf Angled Eyliner Brush- I use this to apply the gel eyeliner and gives the best result in achieving a winged line. 

♥ Lips:


My favourite part! I recently bought 4 new lipsticks and I am honestly obsessed with them. These are the 4 main lipsticks I reach out to the most for every day and they are the perfect colours for the summer. 


Revlon Lip Butters- Finally after all these months searching, they are finally available in Malta. I managed to get 2 for now, but I am surely adding more colours to the bunch! I got the colours in Creme Brulee which is a nude pinkish colour, and Strawberry Shortcake. I absolutely love them! They have a creamy consistency and they are similar to a tinted lip balm. I was undecided about whether to review them, but I figured that so many people were mentioning this product there are tons of reviews out there you most probably have already heard of! 


Revlon Coral Berry Lipstick-  My go-to lipstick of the month! The perfect coral colour and perfect for the summer. 


Maybeline Coloursnesational Intense Pink-   A light pink coloured lipstick, perfect for everyday. 

Essence XXL Shine lipgloss in Sparkling Papaya- It is my every day lipgloss. I normally wear it on its own during the day. But I am actually loving it wearing it on top of the Coral Berry Liptstick from Revlon. They are a match made in heaven!

Elf Lip Stain in Bombshell- Nude lipstain/lipgloss perfect colour for every day !

Revlon Pink Crystals Lipgloss-  This is another lipgloss which I reach out to the most. These 3 lipglosses are my favourite 3 which I normally shift from one to the other according to my mood and what I prefer to wear on the particular day.

So now you know all curious ladies what I have in my make-up bag. I pretty much keep it simple and neutral on the face, and change up the colours on my lips. All items are all affordable and great quality in my opinion so be sure to check out the products if you like them. Let me know what are your favourite make-up products from your make-up bag!

Health, Fashion & Beauty Tips to beat Exam stress

Hi dolls! 

Hope you are all well! I know that many of you including me are having a rough time going through exam stress. It is mainly the reason why I'm not blogging that much, since I have loads of studying to do and I have one hell of a long month to go before my summer officially starts. So, since my life is practically boring, depressing and trapped indoors 24/7, I got a little inspired by writing a post to all you ladies out there going through the same thing. 

Exams are rather stressful, and therefore we tend not to care about our appearance and health as an excuse for having so much to do. I think the woman's natural self comes out during exam period, since probably the majority of you leave your natural hair and wear no make-up. So when it's time to have an hour break from your studies, try to avoid laptops, TV or anything that involves procrastination. I suggest taking some time for yourself and try to release some stress out of your hectic day. So here are some beauty, health and fashion tips I suggest: 

Cleanse, Tone and Moisturise: This is supposed to be an essential everyday routine, however I'm sure that not every one sticks to the routine every single day. So I suggest, since your skin is bare and natural, taking care of it during stressful days is beneficiary. I always clean my face using Ponds cold cream before I go to bed. It is seriously the best make-up remover I have ever had and I have been using it for the longest time. In fact it is a product that has been used in 3 generations, my great-grandmother, my grandmother and my mother all used it. It cleans all your make-up off without leaving panda looking eyes the next day, and it has the consistency of a moisturiser leaving your face delicately soft. I highly recommend it! I also use Clearasil facial scrub and toner after I have cleaned my face. However I do not use them everyday, I use them whenever I find my skin is going through bad breakouts. So technically I mostly use it during this period, since exams do cause hormonal breakouts due to stress, lack of sleep and food reactions. So taking care of your skin is a must and besides, you feel your skin nice, clean and fresh and relaxes you in a way. 

Condition your hair- Most probably everyone tends to leave their natural hair during their study time. Don't get me wrong, it's actually a good thing because you are preventing from heat and damage to your hair. So my suggestion is to condition your hair after showering, to keep it looking healthy and nourishing. You can use any leave-in conditioner, coconut oil, macadamia oil pretty much anything that keeps your hair looking healthy. What I do with my hair, I tend to avoid using oils since my hair is already too oily as it is, instead I like to use a normal conditioner, I like to use John Freida products they really do the job. I like to apply it on the tips of my hair and brush through it using a wide tooth comb. It leaves my hair looking shiny and also prevents from damaging the tips of my hair. 

Avoid Coffee- I for one, am a cofaholic during exams. I tend to take almost 5 or more a day which is really bad. Plus I end up with headaches at the end of the day which doesn't help at all. So try to opt for tea, or green tea instead. If you cannot sleep try taking camomile tea, it might not actually make you sleep, but actually does make you feel at rest. 

Clean/Organise  your room- For some of you this might be the wrong timing to clean your room. My room is always messy during this time. BUT instead of watching TV, I like to dedicate an hour and put some music on and start organising my clothes, shoes and accessories in place. I feel relaxed while doing this, and oddly enough outfit ideas start popping through my head while I'm organising. So that's a plus!

Sleep-I fail miserably at this I'm afraid so. I tend to sleep very late and wake up early. The best suggestion is to sleep early and wake up early but I fail to do so. So an option is to take an hour nap in the afternoon, just to release the stress and keeping your mind at rest. 

Snacks- As hard as it may sound, try to avoid chocolate. Eat your regular meals for lunch and dinner, since eating a good meal is vital since you need a whole lot of energy. But instead of munching down a huge bar of chocolate, or your favourite crisps, why not have some fruit? I love having strawberries, bananas,kiwi and apples.   Or having a fresh fruit salad with some vanilla yoghurt on top. Yummy yet healthy!

Exam day: Make-up- Not many might agree, but why not wear make-up for an exam? I'm not saying to put on a smokey eye or heavy foundation, but your light day-to-day make-up just to make you feel better about yourself and hide any imperfections you might not feel comfortable showing off.  Put on a light foundation, a light blusher and plenty of mascara and you'd look flawless and natural. With just 3 steps I change my mood instantly, and at least you feel better about yourself on the day you dread the most.

Exam day: Wear a Pop of colour- Who says you cannot dress for an exam? I for one am surely not going for an exam with sweats and a t-shirt, I wouldn't feel myself. Why not adding a pop of colour to your top, bag or accessories, to brighten up your day. Wearing appropriately yet fashionably will help boost up your confidence as well on the day of your exam. 

There you have it! Some tips that might help you go through this very tough period. Wishing you all the best of luck during your exams, and let's start counting down the days for our summer to begin!

Side Note: I might not be blogging as often due my incredibly busy exam schedule, but stay tuned for some posts I have in store for you guys for the summer! Only a month away 

xxx

Pastels all the way!

Hello Everyone!

I had my 21st birthday last Thursday and obviously I had to do a little shopping to celebrate! So here is a little haul of  some of the clothing items and accessories I bought. I went a little bit crazy with pastels as you can see. My favourite item has to be those high waisted Monochrome shorts I got from Pull and Bear. I know I will get a lot of use out of them for the summer. I also found an embellished pastel pink top from New Look which I adore and luckily I found it on sale! 

Moving on to jewellery, I found a few pieces that I've been lusting for a really long time. My favourite of them all has to be the spiked necklace I got from New Look. I think it is a must-have jewellery piece to have since it matches with anything. I also got a watch from Aldo which I've been eyeing for ages. The special thing about it is that the straps are detachable and it includes 4 other coloured straps where you can change them according to your outfit! 

This will be surely the last shopping trip before my summer officially starts! At least my pastel lust has finally been fulfilled, and I can't wait to start wearing these new summer pieces added to my kloset. I may be posting an outfit of the day soon with some of these pieces. So stay tuned! 

Playsuit and Mint shorts- Pimkie
Tops- New Look
Powder Blue Trousers- Bershka
Monochrome shorts: Pull & Bear

Accessories:
Spiked necklace - New look
Turquoise necklace and Bracelets- Accessorize
Watch- Aldo& Tally Weijl

Coachella Favourites

Hello readers!

Apologies for my absence, but lately I've been quite busy with school after Easter holidays. With all that aside, today's blog post is about my top favourite outfits worn at the highly anticipated festival Coachella. I just love these kind of events where fashion is not always about the glitz and glam when strutted by celebrities. They bring out their casual side yet still look fashion forward and at the same time inspire the 'nobodies' like us to dress like them. Not to mention, during this kind of event it seems that every celebrity seems to be admiring the bohemian or tribal trend which I LOVE. So here are the faves:

#1: Rosie Huntington-Whiteley-  Love this outfit. I just adore those Christopher Kane denim shorts! The outfit is very simple yet the shorts are what complete the outfit. I think she looked amazing and come on, who would rock a pair of shorts better than her?  

#2: Paris Hilton- Please don't judge me. I know Paris Hilton is not to every one's liking, believe me I'm one of them. However I'm being honest about this and I think she really nailed this outfit. I love the jewelled bandeau and the colourful flowy maxi skirt, the sunglasses however-not so much. But the rest of the outfit was very suitable for the event. The bright accessories went very well with the hippie inspired outfit. The first time I'll be saying this, but Paris nailed this one too! 

#3 Fergie: She looks fergielicious in this outfit! I love all the layering, the fringe detail, and the earth toned colours. I give her a 10 out of 10! 

#4: Vanessa Hudgens- Nobody can rock a boho chic/ hippie outfit as Vanessa. It is like she fits the part and her style signifies her. In my opinion she always looks amazing at Coachella. 

I think you can always find similar pieces at affordable prices if you are inspired by their style. They may not be wearable to everyone, but you can always recreate the outfit in your own way. 

Who were your favourites at Coachella?

Stay Chic 

xxx

White Trousers

I bet most of you have a love/hate relationship with white trousers or jeans. Either due to the fact that they get dirty way too easily, or the material may tend to be see through, or maybe because we tend to deprive ourselves from wearing them because of the famous saying that you cannot wear white jeans after (U.S) Labour Day. Since it is spring, I think we have to make it an exception that white jeans can be worn, since it is the perfect colour to match with either bright, pastels, or nude colours for spring. However I still disagree with that famous term, and I don't understand all the misery of wearing white during colder seasons, nothing should stop you from taking a risk. It depends on what you pair it up with. And most importantly it depends on the colours. But I'll leave it for now since it is actually allowable to wear white jeans today, but I'll keep you posted with the same concept for winter! 

I think the main reason is that  since white is such a light colour it might not look flattering or slimming as black jeans. However the trick is to find the perfect pair of white jeans that should mostly flatter your figure. 

I think 3 of the most basic type of White trousers are:

• Basic white skinny jeans - I think these should be a must for any woman's wardrobe. Since denim is a very thick fabric, I think you should stop worrying about having see through pants. I think you don't need to invest in an expensive pair of white jeans, there are many good quality jeans at affordable prices. You just have to find the perfect pair that flatter your figure either a skinny pair for tall slim figure, cropped skinnies for shorter figures, or boot cut for curvy figures.  
• White chinos- I think these are a classic staple piece. If you like to take a risk and change the normal day to day jeans that you always wear, I think chinos are the best alternative. Wearing head to toe white is very in this season, I think that pairing white sheer blouse, with white chinos, and a white blazer would look very chic! 
• White palazzo pants (wide leg) - They are everywhere! They might not fit to everyone's taste but I think they are very easy to style and perfect for the summer. Pair them with a patterned bustier or a crochet top for a bohemian look. I think this summer I shall definitely invest in a white and patterned pair of palazzo pants.

Check out the sets I created with white chinos and white jeans which might give you an idea of the looks you can create for Spring or Summer with such a versatile colour! 

White Chinos by katia featuring michael kors watches

White Jeans by katia featuring chanel handbags

Stay Chic! 


xoxo