Rimmel 60 Seconds Nail Polish in Coralicious

You know, I think I'm going through a phase. Two weeks ago I wore a neon red, last week I wore a berry red, and this week I'm wearing a coral red. I tend to lean towards warmer shades in general, though! Rimmel's 60 Seconds Nail Polish in Coralicious was part of a Fragrance Direct order I made many months ago, and have only just got round to wearing it. It cost me just 99p, and although it's not available on there any more, you can buy it from eBay for £2-3, or Boots or Superdrug for £3.69 (and Superdrug currently has free delivery until the 22nd of October). I'm wearing three coats in the photo above, but this is only because I have longer nails at the moment and need to cover the visible nail line. If you have shorter nails with minimal white tips, you could get away with two coats. Although it could be more opaque, I love the formula. It's smooth and applies like a dream. This is also down to the brush, which is slightly thicker and rounder than others I'm used to. The brush alone makes me want to buy more from this range!

What do you think? Are you going through any nail polish phases at the moment?

I have Instagram!

I upgraded to an iPhone earlier this month, and with that, decided to join Instagram! Above are just some of the photos I've taken so far. My profile can be found here, and if you also have one, please let me know in the comments so I can follow you! As for my profile name, the two 'u's after 'lou' represent a 'w' (the beginning of my last name), though they look like I've just extended the 'lou'. uu = double u = w. It's also because other username possibilities were already taken haha. I hope to see you over there!

I went to Primark again...

In Tuesday's post, I said I was also going in town twice more this week, so would probably end up buying some more bits from Primark. I was good on Wednesday, but not so much today. I was still restrained, though! The knitted, navy and white striped jumper was from the men's section, just like the one in my last haul. I love it, and it was slightly cheaper than the other, at £12. My sister and I spotted it at the same time, and she nabbed the last XS, so I had to settle for a S. It's big, but it looks okay! Just after I paid for this, I saw a woman walking around with a giraffe onesie, and I had to have one, too! This is the girl's version of Primark's well known giraffe onesie. I've been tempted by the men's one in the past, but didn't like that it had feet, and the colours weren't that appealing. The colours of this one are softer, the material is fleecier, and it doesn't have feet so you can get away with a smaller or bigger size. There were only two left (I hadn't seen them the last few times I'd been in because they were hidden behind another design!), and they were 10-12s. I thought they may be a little too big, but picked one up anyway because I really wanted it and it was only £11. I tried it on as soon as I got home (It was too hot to try it on in store) and it fit perfectly, so I'm happy! It's my first 'proper' onesie. I've had one other in the past, but it was a pyjama one, not a fleece one, so I couldn't wear other pyjamas underneath and be all snuggly in the winter. I'm warming to the idea of these full body dressing gowns!

Have you bought anything from Primark recently? I'd love to see your autumn hauls!

Wordless Wednesday

Recent Purchases - Primark, New Look, and iPhone Cases

It feels like it's been months and months since I last bought enough things to worthy a post, but really, my last haul was 5 weeks ago. To be honest, 5 weeks is a long time for a girl, and especially for a blogger! It's partly because nothing has taken my fancy, and partly because I'm running low on the money front! 

I'll start with the jeans. Both pairs are from New Look, and they're repurchases. I actually already own 3 pairs of the high waisted ones, but they're all looking a bit worn and faded because I wear them so much, so thought I'd get some more. The top pair were £19.99 and are the 'navy supersoft skinny jeans', and the high waisted pair were £22.99 and are called the 'navy high waisted supersoft skinny jeans'. Since trying 'supersoft' jeans, I haven't gone back. They're just so comfortable!

Moving onto Primark, I actually planned on buying much more, but hardly anything caught my eye. I also wasn't in the mood to shop (shocker!), so that hindered my spending. Every year I plan on buying some knitted jumpers, but never end up doing so. I think it's because a lot of the ones I see are not knitted tight enough, so I know they're not going to hold up. It's also because the material makes it hard to remove hair from, and I have a house full of animals! Anyway, the women's jumpers just weren't doing it for me. The quality wasn't there. So, I went to the men's section and found the knitted jumper you see above. It's tightly knitted and the quality is much better than others I've seen in the past. It was expensive for Primark, at £15, but I was willing to pay it because I've wanted a big knitted jumper for ages. The next item I bought was also from the men's section! The bluey grey hoodie was £10. I love the men's hoodies, and already own a couple, so knew I'd get a lot of wear out of this. The third, and final, items I bought from Primark were the thermal socks for £2.50. Primark's thermal socks are my favourite, so I love it when they bring out new patterns this time of year. I'm going in town tomorrow and Friday (three times in a week!), so will no doubt buy some more bits from our beloved Primarni.

My sister and I upgraded our phones to iPhones at the beginning of the month, and the first thing we did was pursuit eBay and Etsy for cases. The first one, the galaxy case, worked out to be £3.23 including P&P from this seller on Etsy. Admittedly, the case does look better in the picture, but it's still beautiful. Also, for the price, I don't really mind! Quite a few sellers sell this case, and other galaxy variations, so just have a search to find the right one for you. The second, a mix of galaxy and aztec designs, was £3.99 from here. The finish is almost matte, and I really like it. The final case, an aztec design, was £2.99 from here. In the last couple of weeks, I've learnt how hard iPhone cases are to get off! I couldn't get them off for the life of me before. I can now, but still find it difficult haha

This seems to have turned into an autumn haul, hasn't it? Speaking of autumn attire, I still haven't found a pair of black boots that I like! It's becoming mission impossible. 

Have you bought any Primark or autumn appropriate items yet?

Superdrug Colour Effects Conditioning Colours

I tried my first Superdrug Colour Effects Wash In, Wash Out Conditioning Colour back in 2010, and even wrote a review on it here. If you look beyond the terrible photos (!), you'll see that I was pleased with the effects Rich Red had on my hair. 

They're now £1.29 instead of 99p, but I think they're worth the 30p increase. They're also currently 'buy one get one half price', and with student discount, I managed to get the four above for just £3.48. I do love a bargain! 

As I said in my review a few years ago (and in a couple favourites and empties posts), these are not dyes. They're not going to make a drastic change to your hair, but add, for the most part*, warm or red tones (*apart from the blonde shades). 

I used to work them into damp hair and leave for 20-30 minutes, just like any other dye. Now, I put them on while in the shower and leave for 10 minutes. I do this every couple of days until I finish the bottle to build the colour up, and then they last for a couple weeks (or a week if you only apply it once for 30-40 minutes). The packaging used to say to leave in for 5-20 minutes, but it's now changed to just 5 minutes. I wouldn't recommend this because it's not going to make a difference! For me, they last for 3-4 uses, and like I said, I'll do all of these uses over a week in the shower, finish the bottle, and then leave the colour to fade away. Or you could just leave it on for longer and not use it as often. 

In terms of the shades, there's a couple suited towards blondes, and the rest are all very warm or red toned. Even the brunette shades, which I've been using this week, give me a lot of redish tones and leave my hair vibrant (I have auburn hair). The Mahogany shade will give you red tones, like Rich Red, but they'll be much darker. Rich Red is an orange red, whereas Mahogany is a dark red, and these tones are really prominent in the sun. My hair actually looks red in direct sunlight when I use this. True Chestnut is a mix of brown and red, and I didn't think it did anything at first, but you can definitely see a difference in the sun. This is my 'my hair but better' shade. The brown shades, Warm Chocolate Brown and Rich Warm Brown, don't add true red tones to my hair, but they're still very warm and coppery, making my hair a vibrant version of itself. I don't know if they'll have the same effect on brunette hair, but they're the effects the shades have on my auburn hair. 

As for the conditioning factor, I don't think they condition all that much. I don't see this as a problem, though, because you wouldn't buy these as conditioning treatments. You'd buy them as colourants. I really like them, and think they're a cheap way to change your hair colour up a little!

Have you tried any of the Colour Effects Conditioning Colours?

Changing Concealer

I raved about the Collection Lasting Perfection concealer for years, and bought countless tubes of the stuff. I just loved its coverage. I don't look for much else in a concealer because I use a primer to help with ease of application and crease prevention. Then, in January this year, MUA were offering 50% off their entire range, so I decided to add the Cover & Conceal concealer to my basket for just 75p (normally £1.50). It's now been my daily concealer for 8 months, and I'm still on the same tube (it seems like it's never ending!). I tried the Collection one again a few weeks ago, and although great for blemishes, I hated it for redness and under my eyes. I found it so thick and cakey! I'm not used to it after using MUA's light-medium coverage variety. MUA's isn't perfect, though. Like I said, it has a light-medium coverage, so it isn't great at concealing blemishes. It also has a dewy finish, which I don't want around my oily eyes, so I have to set it with a powder. Both concealers have faults (in my eyes, at least), but they work well together. The Collection one for blemishes, and the MUA one for the rest of my face.

I do want to find that perfect all round concealer, though. One that has a high enough coverage to conceal spots, but not so high that it looks cakey on the rest of my skin. I'd also like it to have a normal/matte finish so powder isn't necessary. Do you have any recommendations? I've heard Bourjois and Maybelline have some good offerings.

Models Own Hedonist

First time painting my nails in a month! None of the shades I have were taking my fancy, and I hate the process of painting my nails anyway! Definitely couldn't paint them daily like some. Models Own Hedonist is one of my all time favourite shades, so I'm surprised I've never swatched it for you guys before! It's a neon coral red. Like most neons, it's difficult to photograph. I'd say it's more coral in person, and much more beautiful. It takes 1-2 coats, and dries quickly, almost to a satin finish. I personally keep it how it is, but you can easily add a top coat if you prefer to always have a high shine finish.

What do you think? Are you a fan of super bright nail polishes? I love them, but also love dark, muted shades and everything in between!

My Favourite Brand for Mascara

My favourite brand for mascara has to be Maybelline. I've purchased and repurchased their offerings for years, and always like to try the newest edition!

The four above are the ones I currently have, and I've also had the Colossal in the past. The first three, Mega Plush, Rocket and One by One, have plastic brushes (Mega Plush is different than the other two, though, in the sense that the wand isn't as plastic. The bristles are flexible and try to imitate that of natural ones), which is a quality I avoided before these. I think it's because I tried a Miss Sporty one when plastic brushes were starting to make an appearance, and it was a terrible, clumpy mess. 

These, however, don't clump my lashes at all, and that's one of the main things I look for in a mascara. The mascara also has to darken, but that's a given. I'm not fussed if a mascara claims to curl or lengthen because I use curlers and believe the length is down to how long your lashes are to begin with. 

I normally use the normal version of the Falsies, but the waterproof one is featured here. I keep this one stashed away for when I go swimming or to a theme park etc. It's definitely waterproof! So waterproof that I have a hard time getting it off without pulling any lashes out. So, I would repurchase or try another waterproof formula from Maybelline, but not for everyday. 

Back to the Mega Plush - This is my first tube, and although I like it, I'm more likely to repurchase one of the others. It gives a feathery look and is incredibly lightweight, but it doesn't give me as much volume as I'd like. The others have more of an impact, but still manage to look natural. 

The Rocket and One by One varieties are my all time favourites, and will be the two I'm most likely to repurchase again. Until they bring out another, anyway!

Do you like Maybelline for mascaras? Or do you prefer another brand?

Throwback Thursday

Seeing as it's my nanny Mary's birthday today, I thought I'd show you a few photos I have of us together! I've put them in chronological order (I only know the order because I get bigger in each one!), and the last one shows me smiling very enthusiastically... There's probably more of us somewhere, but I only own these three myself. I'll ask her if she has any more next time we're visiting!

August Update!

Well, the Summer is over and I'll be heading into my final year of university this month - Crazy! This Summer hasn't been amazing, but it's been a lot better than last year, where I was ill for most of it.

In my last update, I said I'd emailed my lecturer about a dissertation idea and was waiting for his approval. He approved it, thankfully, and I've been doing a little research in preparation. When I say little, I mean little. I only have a list of narrowed ideas and a few references at the moment, but I'm planning on finding more before I go back.

It was my blog's 4th birthday on the 3rd August! I made cupcakes to celebrate, which you can see in the birthday post. 4 years is a long time. I wonder how much longer I'll blog for? Could be a year, could be another 4. Who knows?

It was also my sister's 18th birthday on the 18th August. I made her a cake (above), 30 cupcakes, a giant cookie, and chocolate sheep. It was a lot of work, and the cake didn't look perfect, but it tasted delicious. I was so tense when it was being cut and handed to people because I just wanted them to like it! It seemed to have gone down well, but they could've been lying, you never know! It tasted great to me, though, and I'm my biggest critic.

I got my hair cut as well. 6 inches taken off and now I have shoulder length hair! It's the shortest I've had it in years, but I'm liking it. I'm tempted to go shorter, but I want my long hair back for graduation (if I survive the next year, that is).

I had an issue with my modules for year 3, where they'd given me 2 for semester A and 4 for semester B (instead of 3 and 3). It was just my luck, but it's been sorted now! I'm doing 2 compulsory dissertation ones, 2 compulsory English ones (my major), and 2 optional media ones (my minor). These optional ones are in photography and marketing. I've already done a photography module, which I enjoyed, but I've never done a marketing one. Hopefully I like it, but I'll just suck it up if I don't.

The 31st August was the day in which I'd had Jessie for 4 years. I can't believe how fast it's gone! And I've just remembered that I got her the same year I started blogging (and the same year I finished GCSEs and went into A Levels). I posted a photo on Twitter of Jessie sleeping with Jacks (one of our cats. He's the same age as Jessie, so he's only a kitten in the photo himself) just a few hours after we'd brought her home. So cute.

Now, I'm going to bathe the dogs and make a crumble with freshly picked apples (not at the same time. I'm not THAT talented!). I'm also going to be upgrading my phone today, which I'm excited about! The rest of September will consist of meeting up with some friends and starting year 3 of uni. You'll probably hear all about my days on Twitter anyway (where I also post lots of photos of my animals). How was your August?