February Make Up Haul.

1. MAC Lustre Drops - 'Pink Rebel'

MAC is a brand that I've always been a little scared of, I find the shops and their massive array of products a bit daunting. However I got my hands on a few bits and pieces and I'm hooked. Lustre drops is a liquid highlighter. Either used as part of a contour or with a little mixed into your foundation it leaves you with a healthy dewy glow. I think Pink Rebel is a great colour for paler skin tones, bronzed tones can often look fake. Available from MAC for £18.

2. Calvin Klein Ultimate Edge Lipgloss - 'rose' and 'rich&famous'

I'm not a big fan of lip gloss, it brings back teenage memories of feeling like I had glue smeared on my lips (pointing no fingers...Juicy Tubes) and my hair constantly being stuck to my mouth. I converted to lip balm and lipstick years ago. However these little pots aren't lip gloss as we know it. They are light and moisturising while still giving a subtle wash of colour they also last a good few hours. The brown shade is called 'rose' and the pink is called 'rich&famous' which is my favourite. These are available from Fragrance Direct for an absolute bargain at £1.99.

(Left - rich&famous Right - Rose)

3. MAC Sheen Supreme Lipglass Tint - K-Wow

I love this product, it doesn't feel sticky or heavy like other lip glosses. It just gives a subtle wash of colour and a high shine to you lips. The colour is a very natural pink, it is slightly lighter than my natural lip colour but apart from that an ideal everyday shade or to balance out a strong eye look. Unfortunately this is being discontinued by MAC though, so I can't get too attached! 

(L-R - MAC Eyeliner, Lipliner and Lipglass)

4. MAC Lip Pencil - Vino

I am a massive fan of a dark red lip so this lip liner is perfect for me. It is perfectly named and reminds me of the colour your lips turn after one too many glasses of red wine. Dark lip liners can be daunting but this one is easy to apply and glides on smoothly. Use this as a base for your lipstick by lining your lips and then filling them in with the pencil then applying your lipstick over the top, it will stay put for hours. It is also an amazing colour to use to create an ombre lip with a bright red lipstick or liner. Available from MAC for £12.  

5. MAC Pro Longwear Eyeliner - Strong Willed

Because I'm blonde I often think that black eyeliner for an everyday (kicking about uni) make up look can look a little bit harsh, this colour is perfect, it's a sort of deep browny purple shade which also helps to compliment my green eyes. This definitely lives up to the name 'longwear' it doesn't budge once it's on, it lasts all day and night (I fell asleep with it on...sorry I know it's naughty). In fact I had to work quite hard to get it off. I can't seem to find this in the UK...so here is the link to the US MAC site.

6. Real Techniques - Powder Brush

From my last Real Techniques post you will know that I absolutely adore this brand and this brush is no exception. As usual the bristles are so soft and dense making it feel far more expensive than it actually is. It is the perfect size for all over powder, bronzer or mineral foundation. Which is exactly why I bought it, to go with the bare Minerals foundation. It blends product in seamlessly and because it's so big it takes seconds to cover your whole face. Can't fault it! It's available from Look Fantastic for £10.99.

7. bareMinerals Matte Foundation - Fairly Light N10

I've been eyeing this product up for a while now and I finally took the plunge and invested. I'm not a massive fan of wearing foundation daily, I generally wear concealer and powder as my base. So I thought as a compromise between the two this would be perfect. However I was a little disappointed with bareMinerals. It has such a massive hype behind it that I think I was expecting big things and it just didn't deliver. I bought the matte version, when its first applied it looks lovely and even with no dry patches. However I find that it needs reapplying through the day as I've become shiny again. The coverage is not what I would expect from a foundation, it is more like a tinted moisturiser. I don't mind this too much but I wouldn't recommend buying this if coverage is what you need. Maybe I'm doing it wrong, but it didn't dazzle me like I had hoped. Choose from 20 shades at Feel Unique. 

8. Kent Angled Eyebrow Brush No.1
If you want a sharp clean line on your brows this brush is not for you. In my opinion the brush is slightly too big and not blunt enough to create a defined brow. However it would be good if you were doing a quick natural look where definition isn't too much of an issue and you just need a bit of filling in. It's available from Look Fantastic for £6.65.

9. LUSH Liquid Lipstick - Laugh Out Loud

That's a bit of a mouthful! I took a wander into Lush to kill time the other day and saw the amazing colours of these lipsticks, I couldn't resist. My friend had one before and the colour was incredible so I was keen to buy my own and try it for myself. They definitely do not disappoint! The colour is a beautiful two tone pinky orange colour...almost like a shimmery coral, it's so intense when applied. They don't feel heavy or sticky however they do stay wet which takes a little getting use to. I need to buy more of these immediately...get yours for £14.50 at LUSH.

10. LUSH Lip Scrub - Bubblegum

Continuing with my Bubble theme I also bought this little wonder. I suffer with really dry chapped lips, I've tried almost every lip balm/treatment there is, with little joy. I mainly bought this because it smells amazing and I thought I might as well give it a go. But when I tried it out, it works wonders...a little rubbed over lips and rinsed off makes lips so soft and smooth. I use it before bed with a moisturising lip balm or before a night out to make sure my lipstick goes on evenly. Cannot recommend enough. Clearly I need to try out more LUSH products if these two are anything to go by! Lip scrubs are available from LUSH for £5.50.

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February Hair Product Haul.

Originally I thought I hadn't bought too much in February...but when you put it all together, turns out I thought wrong. I've bought a lot of beauty bits and bobs this month. A lot of them being products that I've wanted to try out for a while. I'm going to split this into three posts...hair, make up and fashion. So here is the first...Hair!

1. Phillip Kingsley - Elasticizer

This product has a bit of a cult reputation. Apparently this was made especially for Audrey Hepburn to keep her hair in good condition while having it over styled daily for filming. It is a pre shampoo treatment. The bottle tells you to wet your hair and apply it in sections working it through evenly to the lengths. Leave for 10-20 minutes (or while your bath is running) then rinse well and wash and condition as normal. My hair is completely frazzled at the ends from years of bleaching and heat. So I decided to sleep with it in overnight and I definitely noticed a big difference the next day, it was much softer than normal. It does say for best results use regularly. If I still love it once the tubes finished I will definitely buy the bigger tub. The 75ml tube is available from Feel Unique for £15.

2. Bumble and Bumble - Surf Spray

Another product with a massive following. I love salt sprays, they add texture and volume so easily. This one smells lovely and is lightweight. It says you can apply it to damp or dry hair. If you have fine hair this product would be ideal to spray onto damp hair to give you a bit more texture. I have ridiculous amounts of hair so I tend to style my hair then spray this on and scrunch. I bought the tester from Boots but the full sized bottle is available from Look Fantastic for £21.50.

3. Charles Worthington - Curl Definer Smooth Waves Taming Spray

This is the kind of product I always pick up. Anything that promises to smooth my frizzy wavy hair. Nothing ever works for me, my days of washing my hair blasting it and leaving the house are gone. This is a nice enough product, it just didn't do what I had hoped...which is perform a miracle so I won't hold it against it. It does smell fresh, smooths hair and doesn't weight it down so if you don't need as much help as I do then this would be a good product for you. Available from Boots for £5.99.

4. Natural World - Moroccan Argan Oil Moisture Repair Hair Treatment Oil

I love this product. First off it is soooo cheap. I bought mine from Savers for £3. The oil is a really nice consistency not too thick not too thin and it absorbs into hair so well. I have used argan oil before and I was never too fussed about it. But now I use this all the time. I use it after a shower through the lengths of my hair. I also use it on the ends if they are feeling a little dry, rub a bit in and leave overnight in the morning the product will have completely absorbed. Obviously don't go pouring loads on...that's just silly. All in all I definitely recommend you add an oil to your hair routine especially if it is damaged like mine. You can get this from Savers or Fragrance Direct for £2.99.  

What do you think of these products? Which are your faves?

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The Best Places for Tall Clothes...

As you may or may not know I'm pretty tall (over 5'11) so I know how difficult it can sometimes be to find nice, on trend clothes that actually fit. I don't know if it's just me or do some companies assume the taller you are the wider you are? I'm not particularly big but I am long...I just need a few extra inches added on to cover my stomach and my ankles. I know we all have our own clothing "problems" but this and finding bras that fit (I might go into this another time...) are mine. So I thought I would try and help out other not so vertically challenged girls with a few of my favourite places to shop and a few tips at the end. 

Just to put it into perspective...

Probably most talls girls go to range. What can I say? On trend, not too pricey and generally good quality. I would say that a good idea is to go into a store that holds the tall range at sale time, they tend to have previous seasons stock out the back that they only bring for sales.  

New Look removed their tall range from store and as far as I am aware now it is only available online...which is a bit rubbish because I use to love their tall range it was so affordable and they had a massive choice. Although they still do offer a good variety I find that a lot of it is just the same thing in several colours! Sort it out New Look!

I know this might be a strange one for some people, but in my experience Zaras trousers and jeans they are all pretty long. I'm a 35 inch inside leg and I have several pairs of their jeans and they all fit perfectly or are slightly too long. Definitely worth a rummage in their sales as well!

Hallelujah! ASOS have finally cottoned on! I've been dreaming of this day for years! Their offering is a mix of their own brand and other tall ranges such as New Look and Glamorous Tall. They don't a lot of variety yet but it has expanded since I first checked it out so fingers crossed they keep it up.

For me LTS can be a hit or a miss. I have a few things from them, but I'm often let down by items when I try them on. They look great on the model but in real life it's just not the same and for the prices they charge I expect it to fit like a glove! I also find that a lot of the clothing is more my mums taste than mine, I feel they are missing out on a massive gap in the market by not really catering for the younger customer.

I've only recently heard of this brand, but although they don't have a lot on their website the items they do have are exactly the type of things I have been looking for. Well fitting basics and a plain jersey maxi that touches the ground, dream come true! The prices are reasonable as well. Fingers crossed for them!

There are a few others such as Dorothy Perkins and Next but I feel they only cater for an older age range, unless you are buying staple pieces. It can be hard and it is unfair that we mainly have to buy online but I would never change the fact that I'm tall...I love that I can see at every concert, I can reach things without ladders and that I could pass for 18 at 13 (sorry mum). 

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Tips for tall girls! 

• Learn how to sew, being able to let a hem down and adjust the length is invaluable! 
• Buy trousers or jeans that have a turn up, let it down and steam iron it with a damp cloth.
• Skinny jeans slightly too short? Turn them up once and wear them as ankle grazers.
• Look at the models height when shopping online to get an idea of how it will fit on your height.
• Embrace the current trend for lower heeled boots for a night out.
• Make sure you have a pair of well fitting black trousers, black skinny jeans and a pair of denim jeans and you are covered for all occasions.

Real Techniques Core Collection Review

I've never really been a fan of make up brushes, I've always preferred using my fingers or a sponge to put on my foundation. But after hearing the buzz about the Real Techniques brushes many million times I decided to see what all the fuss was about. So here's my review of the 'Core Collection'.

The set of four face brushes comes in a black carry case which double up as a holder with the pull of a toggle. The elastic that holds the brushes in is a little tight and I often find if I'm in a rush that I don't bother to put them back in because it's too fiddly, but for travelling purposes the case is a great extra! The set costs just £20.99 from Feel Unique.

The Detailer Brush

This brush is probably my least favourite of the four but that's not to say that I don't like it. It has a very small head which makes it good for focusing on detail (like the name suggests)...covering spots, small areas etc. but apart from that I prefer to use it as a lip or eye shadow brush.

Pointed Foundation Brush

I love this brush, but I have no idea who has time to put their foundation on with it. For me it is far too small to use as a foundation brush. Instead I use this to put on my concealer, it blends it in so well and has the perfect pointed shape to get around your eyes and down the sides of your nose.

Contour Brush

Perfect sized brush to contour and highlight the whole face. It blends the product in beautifully and doesn't leave harsh lines. Although I would say it is slightly too big to contour my nose precisely as I would like.

Buffing Brush

I have no idea how I ever lived without this brush. It has completely changed the way I put on foundation. After I have 'painted' my foundation on I use the buffing brush to blend the product in making it look flawless. No tide marks, no streaks! I also feel like my make up stays put a bit longer when I've used this brush. It's also a really good brush for buffing on mineral foundation or powder.

Overall I'm an absolute convert to brushes...they are definitely worth the money and I've even started to build my collection. I would definitely recommend you invest in a set of Real Techniques brushes!

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Erase and Rewind.

The posts below are from a time long long ago when I though I knew stuff about shit. When really I knew shit about stuff. So after a quick re-read of them and a chuckle to myself I've decided to leave them there so everyone can have a wee laugh at me. But honestly I probably still don't know much about anything...

With that said...I've decided that I'm going to give this blogging thing another go. I've always wanted to have a blog. Whether it's successful or just something for me to look back on in a few years and think "What were you wearing Hollie?!". 

I'm not going to pretend I'm an expert on anything, I'm just going to share my thoughts, opinions and experiences on all things fashion, beauty and awkward height related. So hopefully it helps someone along the way. 

Fingers crossed someone reads it...

Hollie

P.S. If you want to know more, read my About Me.

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