Current Most Listened To Albums (September 2016)

How to conceal purple under eye circles

Excuse the creepy peeping eye (left)!

One of the trials and tribulations of us make-up and beauty obsessed individuals is the curse of dark under eye circles. Let's put things into perspective before I begin: this is a real first world problem. A completely vanity-induced issue- but then again, having the knowledge to correct (or improve) this area of make-up application can give you a lot more confidence and project that you are actually part of the living world, even when you feel like a bit of a hag!
I have purple under eye discolouration which shows up splendidly through my pale skin. Using colour theory, I have learned that yellow concealer can brighten this area and counteract the purple tones. Equally, bluish tones can be corrected using peach or orange-toned concealers which I also use. I have experimented successfully with two yellow concealers recently and wanted to share my results because colour correcting is currently being talked about a lot in the beauty community. Make-up artists have been using this theory for decades, but what can the average consumer achieve with it? 
As you can see, the colour wheel shows how skin tone issues can be corrected with the opposite facing colour. There is much hype about this technique at the moment and many products are now on the market that suggest they have the potential to correct redness (green concealers), sallowness (lilac tones) and under eye circles (orange, yellow and even red shades). For under eyes, I have found a cream concealer works best for me. This is because they adhere well to the skin and pack plenty of pigment- something I need! Saying that, I am a bit crepey under the eye, so careful application to the area of concern only is how I apply. I find that careful blending with the heat of my ring finger and a small dab of powder once I have applied some Nars Creamy Radiant concealer in Vanilla works well. 
So what brands do these yellow concealers come from?

The Impractical Jokers: Live Punishment @ Wycombe UK

On Tuesday April 5th, the Impractical Jokers filmed a punishment at Wycombe Wanderers football ground. I was one of the thousands that made a trip up there after seeing their Tweet about the event. 

Review: Bourjois City Radiance Skin Protecting Foundation SPF30

Any product with the words 'radiance' and 'SPF30' immediately get my attention. Pretty pastel pink packaging also helps. The Bourjois City Radiance foundation is a fairly new release and one that I think would be lovely for the Spring into Summer. The colour I chose was the 01 Rose Ivory- a light shade for cool-toned skin. It's a good match for me, but how much coverage and radiance can this so-called foundation really offer?

Review: Lancôme Juicy Shakers (Boom-meringue and Freedom of Peach)

Left: Freedom of Peach; right: Boom-meringue

The latest lip product to excite beauty-lovers are the Lancôme Juicy Shakers. These lip oils come in a range of colours of which I purchased two: Freedom of Peach and Boom-meringue. 

Things That I'm Currently Enjoying (March-April 2016)

Rose gold rings:
I purchased some beautiful, delicate rose gold rings from an Etsy shop called Nikki Stark Jewellery over the last few months. They are handmade, made to order pieces which can be stacked and combined. They go with any outfit because they are minimalist and pared down. I love that you forget you're even wearing them because they are so lightweight despite being real gold.   The rings were bought separately and on both occasions they came within a week and were displayed in a sweet little box with a nice personalised message from Nikki. I'd recommend this designer- you can click the link above to browse her store.

Our adorable kitten, Maisie: aged 8 weeks to 5 months

                               In early December we got a kitten after wanting one for years. Growing up, we always had cats and I've always missed having one around since I moved away in my late teens. We picked up our little black kitten from a lovely lady in Southsea and was told 'she's an adventurer'- little did we know that this was not an exaggeration! In fact, I suspect that she was the most mischievous of the whole litter. Every kitten likes to explore, but ours is particularly curious and fearless. There is no shelf, drawer, cupboard or box she hasn't attempted to enter. For such a tiny cat, she has an amazing pair of lungs on her. On the way home to our house, she meowed LOUDLY non-stop and has since been known to wake us up at 5am crying until we go and give her attention! She is the cutest, funniest little kitten we could have ever hoped for, with heaps of personality. We called her Maisie because it was a cute name for a sweet little girl.

Novel and Unique Christmas Gift Ideas

Co-workers often laugh at how early I get my Christmas shopping done, but a bit of Late October planning and early November purchasing helps me to have a little spending money come December. And yes, I'll also confess that I have a "Christmas spreadsheet"! Ultimately, I love giving presents to people that I care about. Even on a slightly tighter budget this year, it gives me a lot of joy to choose things that might bring some happiness to peoples' days. On a selfish level, I love to shop around for gifts, especially online, because it means I can distract myself from more onerous tasks like housework and lesson planning! 
Here are some novel gift ideas that I have either given in the past, or would purchase for the special people in my life...

Things That I'm Currently Enjoying (November 2015)

Casio Watch: My Casio digital watch in gold with a brown leather strap was a gift from a loved one. I never wore watches before getting this, but as it is dainty and I have scrawny wrists, it is perfect. I used to have one in black and silver as a child, so it has a nostalgic feel for me, but with the colour combo, it has a grown-up edge. It goes with all outfits and as I tend to wear more gold than silver accessories nowadays, it looks classy for a digital watch. I love it! 

Winter Skincare: my picks for 2015

Winter is approaching, the air is turning colder, and the central heating is on for longer periods of time. This can cause our complexions to dry out even more so than usual. The products above are my top picks for keeping my skin calm and happy in these colder months.