March Favourites;-

I haven't written a favourites post in the longest time, so I thought I'd show you a few things I've been loving lately!

Cream blushes are one of those products I keep tip-toeing between loving or never using. I'll go months raving about them and then they go back in the drawer until next time. At the moment I'm back on the bandwagon and I've pulled my Revlon cream blush in the shade Flushed (this is pretty old and I can't even find it on the Boots website). I find this really easy to blend and gives you that natural flushed look, so I guess the shade name is pretty accurate! I've been suffering from dry skin and I've found this is one of the few products that doesn't cling to dry patches and I'm really enjoying using this.
I really loved the L'oReal liquid eyeliner, but I've decided I only want to purchase cruelty free makeup so I've been looking for an alternative. I think I've found the perfect alternative in this Barry M On Point Eyeliner. Just like the L'oReal liner this is a felt tip pen eyeliner with a really fine tip. This is really black that I think is really easy to use and I'm glad I've managed to find a cruelty free version of one of my favourite products.
Another Barry M product that I picked up completely on a whim and really like is this Showgirl Mascara. I generally only have one mascara at a time and the mascara I had just before this one game me a reaction which it lead to an eye infection (it was literally disgusting!). After it cleared up I was in desperate need of  a mascara, so I picked up this one because it was easily accessible and again, cruelty free. This has a really large bristle brush, which I usually don't like, but this works for both lengthening and volumising as well as being super black. It's not the most volumising mascara I've ever used, but it also doesn't make your lashes too solid making it easy to layer if you want to up the amp! I've literally never heard anything about Barry M mascaras, but this is really good especially for the price!
I mentioned in my 5 Best Things from Makeup Revolution post that I really like the Makeup Revolution Matte Lip Kits. I wear the shade Reign all of the time to work, which is a really nice, subtle nude shade. I don't really like the pencil because it really tugs on my lips so I don't use it, however the liquid lipstick is really nice on its own. It applies really nicely and doesn't feather when worn alone, it lasts a really long time too! I find this doesn't dry out my lips and wears well, I also like wearing this under a more glossy nude shade to make it last longer.
I recently sorted through my nail polish collection and discovered that for someone who paints their nails a couple times a year I own quite a lot of nail polish, so I've been trying to paint my nails a little more and use some of my polishes. The nail polish I've used a couple of times since is this one I got from Urban Outfitters. I can't find a shade name but its basically clear with a subtle purple glitter running through it. I find that because this is quite subtle, it takes a few days before you can see any chips. I think its a really great low maintenance nail polish.

I don't really talk a lot about hair care on my blog, but I'm quite fussy when it comes to shampoo and conditioner, my scalp can be quite dry but I get greasy roots and dry ends of my hair so I really struggle to find something that works well with all of that. I've literally sworn by using only LUSH shampoos for a really long time, but I ran out of shampoo when I didn't have to get to my nearest LUSH so I picked up the Herbal Essences bio-renew Clean shampoo and conditioner at the supermarket. I've found the combination of this shampoo and conditioner makes my hair soft, but it doesn't make my hair greasy and it hasn't upset my scalp at all. I think I bought this back in August and I'm only just getting near the end of the bottle, so it's lasted a really long time!

What have you been loving lately?

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5 Best Things from Makeup Revolution;-

Makeup Revolution is by far my favourite brand. The majority of my collection is Makeup Revolution products. I've eargerly awaited all of their new product Instagram posts pretty much from the beginning. The price is always purse friendly and the quality of the products usually match makeup at a much higher price point. I thought it would be really nice today to give MUR a little bit of love and share my 5 favourite things from them.

Before delving into the makeup, my first favourite product is the Pro Hygiene Anti Bacterial Brush Cleaner. I've never been a major germaphobe when it comes to most things, except my makeup brushes. I simply have to spray this brush cleaner straight onto my brushes, then wipe away any product onto a clean flannel. This is a really quick way of cleaning excess product from your brushes and sanitising them. I will say it doesn't make your brushes as squeaky clean as using a brush shampoo, but its really good for a spot clean. I use a lot of different eyeshadow colours, so I like using this to stop any colour transfer.

My next favourite is the Pro Fix Oil Control Makeup Fixing Spray. I literally swear by fixing sprays if you want your makeup to stay put, and I wear this every single time I put makeup on. As this is also designed for oil control I sometimes use this in place of a powder because I know it will keep my makeup in place without any risk of making my foundation look cakey. This only costs £5.00, which is a fraction of the price of higher end setting sprays. This does such a good job, I've never tried any high end setting sprays.

Something I think Makeup Revolution are famous for is their eyeshadows. The reason I first ordered from Makeup Revolution was because of the Iconic 3 palette, a complete dupe of the Naked 3. Makeup Revolution have a really extensive line of different eyeshadow palettes, so there's definitely something to satisfy everybody's preference and at a great price. All of their palettes contain pigmented and blendable shadows, definitely comparable to a lot of high end brands. The majority of my eyeshadow palette collection is Makeup Revolution, my favourite palette at the moment, is my Flawless 4 palette. This contains a lot of really on-trend warm shades, and this is definitely a palette that provides me with a lot of inspiration for different eye looks.

Something I really love is baked blushes, I just think they suit my face the most, and Makeup Revolution know how to do baked blushes right. Another one of the first products I picked up from Makeup Revolution was their Vivid Baked Blush in 'All I Think About Is You', which only costs £2.25. I still have this in my collection, and its one of my favourite blushers ever. Since then I picked up this blush palette, with 5 baked blushes and a really bold highlight. So I now have a baked blush for every occassion. The blushes aren't overly pigmented, I'd say they're more buildable, which I personally prefer for a blush so I don't go overboard! All of the blushes provide a sheen to the cheeks, without being full of chunky glitter. They provide a healthy looking glow, without needing highlight.

Just like Kylie Jenner, Makeup Revolution have come out with entire range of lip kits in every finish, but at a fraction of the price. I have a couple of each finish, I probably wear the matte liquid lipsticks most, but I've found the liners to be a bit of a dud as they're quite sticky and uncomfortable. The metallic lip kits are the ones that have stolen my heart. Each kit comes with a lip liner and a liquid lipstick. The lip liners are comfortable and provide an opaque base for the liquid lipstick. The liquid lipstick is comfortable and long-wearing. My favourite shade is 'Worth It', which is a deep berry colour, with a metallic sheen. It makes for amazing, eye-catching lips. 

What are your favourite Makeup Revolution Products?

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February Makeup and Beauty Favourites;

Back in 2015 when I actually posted on a regular basis my one of my favourite posts were my monthly favourites. So to get myself in the swing of regularly blogging again I decided to share some of my favourite makeup and beauty items from the month of February.

The first thing I want to talk about is this Smashbox Primer. I got a collection of sample sized products from Smashbox such a long time ago, and I really didn't like this. This doesn't usually work well with my oily skin as it doesn't mattify and I sometimes find my makeup sliding around on top of it. But I pulled it out during winter while my skin has been a lot dryer. I find this disguises any dry patches and keeps my makeup looking fresher for longer. I think this would be an amazing everyday primer for those of you with dry skin. I featured this in my recent Project 10 Pan which you can check out here, if you want to see me use all of this up.
Last winter LUSH's body conditioner completely saved my skin. So I was really glad to receive the Snow Fairy Body Conditioner for Christmas and I've fallen back in love with it. I really struggle with dry skin during the colder months because central heating doesn't seem to agree with my skin, but the last thing I want to do when I get out of a hot shower is to stand in just a towel and put on a cold moisturiser. A body conditioner means you don't need to do that. You put this on in the shower and then rinse it off, when you get out of the shower you're left with soft, moisturised skin that isn't sticky so you can change straight into your cozy jumper. This body conditioner has the classic, Christmas, sweet Snow Fairy scent. The product also contains a shimmer, but luckily it doesn't transfer onto the skin as I don't think I'd want to go into work sparkling like a fairy. I will also say that it isn't the deepest of moisturiser, I have been suffering with some dry skin on my arms that this hasn't completely got rid of. But I think its really great as an everyday moisturiser and I'll definitely be buying it again next winter. You can't buy this scent anymore as its from the Christmas collection but you can buy other scents from the LUSH website.
Another of my Project Pan products is my Revlon Lip Butter in the shade Macaroon. I chose to put this in my Project Pan because it was one of those products that sat in the back of the drawer for the longest time, but I've really enjoyed using this a lot more. The Revlon Lip Butters are some of my favourite formula of lipstick because as the name suggests these are super are super moisturising, but you don't lose out on colour pay off. They don't last all day, but I don't mind reapplying and wearing a liner underneath really extends the wear-time. This shade is candy apple red, which I think is a lovely wintry shade and subtle enough to wear everyday.

Another thing I've been loving is the Benefit Blushin' Babe, blush collection. The set was limited edition for Christmas that you can't buy anymore, I got it for under £30 in the sales, which was a total steal! The blush that I have fallen in love with from the collection is the shade Dandelion. This is the light pink shade at the bottom left. This is a matte blush, which usually isn't my favourite, but I totally love it. This gives a 'just came in from the cold' flush to the cheeks, which is appropriate considering its freezing outside as I write this from under my blanket.
A long-term face item that I use pretty much everyday is the Collection Highlight & Sculpt palette. This was raved about my just about everyone in 2015 and I can entirely see why. The contour shade in particular is real favourite of mine as you can tell by the pan showing. Its a cool tone shade that is perfect to sculpt out my cheekbones, its also light enough for my pale skin. I've found this really easy to work with without going overboard. You can tell how much I love it by the big dent in the pan. I've also fallen in love with the highlighter recently, it gives a lit within sheen, without being full of glitter. It is one that I can whizz on with ease and brightens up a dull winter complexion.
My favourite eyeshadow palette from this month is the Makeup Revolution Iconic 2. I've been trying to cycle through my eyeshadow palettes per month and the palette I'd picked for the month of February totally sucked (more on that in a later post), so this was a welcomed alternative. This is Makeup Revolution's dupe of the Naked 2 palette, filled with cool toned neutrals and shimmery, pigmented shades. A lot of the shimmery shades are eyecatching enough to blend all over the lid and go. This palette is so easy to work with and I love it!
I rarely paint my nails anymore, but this month I have applied Essie - Miss Fancy Pants twice! I really love Essie polishes as I find them quick and easy to apply, and they dry really quick too. This is a taupe shade, that is really easy to wear and goes with everything. I also enjoy applying just one coat of this so you can still see the whites of your nail through the polish. I managed to pick this up in a four pack of Essie nail polishes from TK Maxx for less than £15, so definitely check them out if you're after a nail polish bargain.

What are you loving at the moment?

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Girl About Village 2015 Highlights;

2015 has been a great year for me. I celebrated some great results in my law course and am continuing my studies at a higher level. I said goodbye to my part time bar hours which was sad as it was a job I loved, but I started my career with a full time job in property law. I've learned a lot in my new job and I'm still really enjoying it. After a long while off I finally decided to start learning to drive again and am hoping to take my test early this year so I can get my car off of the drive. Along with that I think I've learned a few life lessons, I spent a lot of my teen years waiting for 'life' to start but I've realised that I might not be where I hope to be in the future yet, but enjoying the journey is a big part of life. I've taken a lot of opportunities and lived in the moment a lot during 2015 and I hope to do the same this year.

2015 has been a good year for Girl About Village, I started this blog a few years ago but never stuck to it. This year I finally started regularly posting (though it did dwindle towards the end of the year due to a lot of life changes) and I hope to keep it up this year. I found my love for writing and photographing and I love having this as my little project that I'm always thinking about and planning and hoping to improve. So today I've decided to a post of few of my favourite posts from the last year to look back on.

My First Mac Lipstick

My second post of last year (which wasn't actually until March) was a review of my first (and only) Mac lipstick. I really like this as I tried to experiment with my photography and tried a lip swatch. I don't think its the best of quality but I really enjoyed everything about creating this post and its quite nice to look back at.

Spring Makeup Staples

I'm really seasonal with my makeup, pink eyeshadow for spring and red lippy for Christmas. This was something I totally intended to keep up throughout the seasons and unsurprisingly I didn't. I hope that I can continue this year.

Concert FOTN

I love face of the day posts, I love creating different looks with makeup and I think you never know how well a product works until you see it on the skin. This was a look I wore to a McBusted concert, which was absolutely amazing they completely rocked my world (like they always do). This was quite a short post, but I think sharing a look for an event gives me the perfect balance of beauty and real life because I get the excuse to stick some personal photos and opinions on whatever I did.

Project 10 Pan

I'm not sure if I'm really allowed to include my Project 10 Pan as a favourite post, because I've such a fail at updating it. I found out about panning challenges this year, the idea is to challenge yourself to use up products in your makeup/ beauty products. I love treating myself to makeup, but the whole idea of having makeup is to use it and this has really helped me. I do have an update coming soon and I hope to continue panning this year.

Slide The City!

This was such a fun post, and such a fun day. I think shaking things up with a different post is a good way of keeping my blog fresh. I love sliding around in the sun so much that this post was so easy to write the words just rolled off of my fingertips!

5 Looks 1 Palette

My 5 Looks 1 Palette post is the most I've worked hardest on ever, on 5 different days I showed a different look and tried to incorporate as many colours as I could. The Makeup Geek Palette was perfect for this as there's so many shades to chose from. I love experimenting with makeup and this pushed me to use colours that I might not have before. I also think this was a better way of reviewing a palette because I don't think you know how good it is until you see it on the eyes. I really hope to try this again this year.

The Mid Toned Pink

It was my mission for such a long time to find the perfect mid toned pink it all came together. I really like this photo as well, and I found it so fun to review all of the lip colours at once!

My Current Fashion Favourites
Fashion was something I always wanted to include on this blog, but taking photos in a small bedroom with bad lighting makes it so tricky. It took a lot of work and perseverance for this post I had to wait until I had the right light and make a camera stand with various books etc and then stand awkwardly for 10 seconds before the timer went off. This is something I really want to work on and I hope to share more fashion posts in the future.

 Warner Bros Studio Tour

My last favourite was a post about my favourite place in the world! This post is special to me because I had such an awesome time with my family, I loved all of the photos I took here and it was nice to have a blog to share them on.

December Favourites;

January 2016 has come around so fast but before I can sign off on last year, I wanted to look back on the things I've loved for the month of December.

Since my last favourites post (back in October) I've treated myself to a whole host of new makeup pieces, but my first favourite item is something I've featured in a post last year. This is the Avon Argan Oil Leave-In Treatment, I use this stuff all the time! But since the weather has turned cold my hair has been really dry and I've really noticed the effects of this. When my hair's wet this detangles it and leaves it looking and feeling healthier. But I also use this on dry hair and it makes my hair glossy as well as covering my awful split ends!

I recently picked up the Body Shop Cleansing Butter. This is unlike anything I've ever tried, its like a balm that melts into an oil that breaks down makeup. Its gentle on the skin and leaves it feeling clean and pampered. I shouldn't say anymore as I'm hoping to review this soon.

Dry hands are another thing that has plagued me since it got colder, my palms were completely cracked! I picked up this Garnier Deep Restoring Hand Cream at Boots during a break at work. This is a thick cream that really did a great job at repairing my hands, and it isn't at all greasy and dries really quickly. This has earned prime place on my office desk.

Onto the makeup favorites of the month, this first thing I lusted after before it was even released. Of course this is Makeup Revolution's dupe for the newest Naked palette the Iconic Smokey. I'm a sucker for a smokey eye, but as well as some shimmery greys and dark colours, there are some gorgeous light glittery neutral shades and some mattes that are just perfect crease shades. With the party season I've been reaching for this one a lot, and I'm eager to review this too!

Another eyeshadow I've been wearing a lot is this Tanya Burr Eyedust in Creme Brulee, this was limited edition for the holidays from her Beauty Advent Calendar. This is a gorgeous, glittery copper shade, that is so multi-tonal that I've loved wearing this alone all over my lid.

For cheeks I picked up the Collection Contour Kit. This has been all over the blogs and I can completely see why. The matte contour colour is extremely pigmented, but blends out really easily and even works well on my pale skin. The highlight is shimmery without being glittery and works well to create a lit from within look without looking fake. At under £5 this product is a complete steal!

Lastly we're onto lips, something I reviewed a couple of months ago Max Factor's lipstick in Rosewood which I'm still completely in love with. This is quite a natural pink lip shade. Subtle enough that I wear it nearly every day to work, but I still reach for it when I'm going out as it offsets a smokey eye brilliantly.

My other lip love is Makeup Revolution's Ultra Velour Lip Cream in Can't We Just Make Love Instead. This is a liquid lipstick that is neither completely matte or overly glossy, but an opaque brownish, nudey, red (official colour description). This is another subtle colour that goes really well with the smokey looks that I've been opting for over the last month. This isn't the most long lasting, but it isn't at all dry and I've been loving it.

The non beauty favourites include Winter Candy Cane from Urban Outfitters, I really love having a specific candle for the Christmas period because as soon as you burn it you instantly feel more festive. This smells really sweet with just a hint of peppermint which was a really nice change after the spicey scents I was burning in Autumn and early Winter. I already can't wait to get this out again next year.

I also had to include my Harry Potter Colouring Book. Colouring books for adults have been all the rage recently and I can completely see why, dragging yourself away from your TV or iPhone and indulging yourself completely in your colouring is so relaxing. I got this as a Christmas gift from myself and I completely love it, its full of intricate decorative patterns and scenes from the films it looks so cool! I also bought my sister one of these and on Christmas Day we actually sat down together and coloured which was so old school and really relaxed me. But I did forget how long it took to colour a whole picture, and I really want to finish the entire book I'm addicted!

Ferrero Rochers are another favourite of mine, hard chocolate covering soft chocolate centres and a hazelnut, what more could you want? I've definitely taken advantage of the festive season and all of its foodie goodness. My last favourite really just has to be christmas. I'm all for sparkly lights, I love gift giving and wrapping gifts. I spent my christmas amongst great friends and family. I played board games, gorged on buffets, Turkey and celebrated with a few too many glasses. I hope you enjoyed the festive season as much as I did!

October Favourites;

October is finally over. Having started my new job and getting stuck in with my studies it has been one heck of a long month! And these are the things that I have loved throughout it.

First up is the Vaseline Spray & Go Moisturiser. I feel like this is more of a summer product as its really cooling and the added Aloe Vera in this scent is great for sunburnt skin. But I'm still using and loving this now. Its so easy to use, just spritz yourself all over and this requires barely any rubbing in or drying time. Which I think is fab for chilly mornings when you don't really want to be standing around starkers waiting for your moisturiser to absorb.

The last month or so my skin has been (if I do say so myself) fantastic, and I owe is all to these cleaners. I've been wearing makeup everyday for work, which means I've actually stuck to a very simple skincare routine. I firstly use my Garnier Micellar Water to remove my makeup, I like this because its effective, but gentle. I have quite sensitive skin and this doesn't irritate it at all, I can even use it to remove my eye makeup without it stinging my eyes and it makes light work of removing my mascara. After this I like to further cleanse to remove any missed makeup and remove bacteria from my skin underneath it. I think sticking to this step is what has greatly improved my skin. Lately I've been using this Cleansing Lotion from Simple. This is one of the first cleansers I ever used and I still go back to this because it works and it keeps my skin soft and smooth. Being a lotion it never dries my skin out. I take this on my hands and massage it into my skin, which is really relaxing rather than being harsh like some cleansers. I then remove it with a cotton pad. I've only had about 5 spots in the last month so I'm definitely doing something right!

I rarely talk haircare, but I can't not mention my new Tangle Teezer. My hair is the kind of knotty that has had me on the brink of tears more times than I care to admit, but I didn't buy into the Tangle Teeze hype because I didn't think how any one brush could be that good. In fact I still don't how, but it really is. This brush doesn't eradicate knots, however the flexible bristles allow you to work through them without repeated and endless tugging. The one thing I did worry about was the short bristles and my thick hair, but running my hand through it has done its job from top layer to bottom. Not having a handle is still taking some getting used to for me, but the shape does fit really well into my hand. I can use this wet, dry, to style, to create a part, or to section my hair. This means I no longer have the need for 6 brushes because this one really does it all.

For makeup this month I have been going back to basics, I get up a lot earlier in my new job, so I have just enough time in the morning to make myself look like a well rested, organised individual when I am most definitely not. I have been using my Smashbox eyeshadow trio nearly every week day. I usually go for a little more exciting shades, but these are office appropriate and really good quality. Even the lightest is shade is really pigmented enough that I've worn it alone when I'm in a rush, which I find rare. These last all day without fading or creasing. As for lips I've finally cracked open this Lip Primer I bought myself in April. I was definitely intrigued by the prospect of a lip primer and am a little disappointed to report that it doesn't add greatly to the wear-time of your lipstick. However it does have a silicone feel that smooths your lips and dries almost semi-matte. This makes it the perfect balm to apply under lipstick because the colour doesn't slide around like it does with other balms. This Lip Primer has also been a favourite of mine because it actually leaves your lips feeling moisturized for most of the day even under your lippy. My lip colour for pretty much every week day has been this PS Love Lip Liner. This liner is just darker than my natural lips so its subtle enough to wear to work, but leaves me not feeling like makeup is not too 'Plain Jane'. This is a slightly dark, berry pink, with grey-ish undertones, which I really like as it makes the lip colour pop just the right amount. Being a liner it has a matte finish, it doesn't last all day, but when it wears off evenly and for £1 I think its fab.

And breathe, I think that's it for another month of beauty favourites, what have you loved this month?

August... & September Beauty Favourites;

I've had a couple of super busy months, and finally broke my chain of favourites. I've been away twice and spent a lot of time with my friends before going back to my studies. I also celebrated my results, which I am really proud of. As well as attending my first festival and getting a new job. Unfortunately that means my blog has been a little quiet, so I've compiled everything that I've loved over the 2 months for a super favourites!

My only skincare favourite is this moisturiser from Natural Collection at Boots. I put another scent of this in another favourites post and this one is just as good. This is thicker than your average daily moisturiser, but no so thick that it's hard to rub in. It makes your skin feel so much softer and I can still feel the effect of this the day after use.

Moving onto makeup I have to mention this Smashbox Eye Primer again. This stuff doesn't budge or crease and is festival tried and tested. I applied this at 10am and my eyeshadow was still perfect when I stumbled back to my tent at 3am and it even kept loose glitter on my lids!

I also picked up this Rimmel Liquid Liner a little while ago. I tend to prefer potted liner over pen as I find its blacker and lasts so much longer. This is pure black and doesn't dry too matte but also isn't super shiny which is great. The brush on this is super thin making it great for precision and you can create thin lines or build it up. I still don't always get it right but it's easy to remove when wet but will not budge when it has dried.

When I'm not using liquid liner I like to use this Brown Avon Glimmerstick smudged across my lash line for a softer look. I really like these as they're the longest lasting liners I've ever tried.

My favourite palette this month has been my Makeup Revolution Iconic 2 Palette as its so versatile. The deep and shimmery browns are great to create smokier looks for daytime. There are also some cool-toned shadows which aren't usually my cup of tea, but the taupes and greys look lovely for nights out! All of the shades are pigmented and last all day and night with a good primer!
My next favourite is from a Ted Baker makeup set that I was bought for Christmas last year and while most of it was pretty crap I've actually been reaching for the brow pencil a lot recently. I've got to admit that it's not the best I've ever tried, however it isn't too waxy and is a nice cool toned medium brown. It's about the only thing that matches my 'I'm too lazy to dye my hair'.

The last makeup item that I've been loving over the past 2 months has been my Mac Lipstick in Pink Plaid. This is an all-time favourite of mine. Its a middle-of-the-range shade of pink, with cool, grey undertones that makes it understated as well as unique.  I've been reaching for it a lot lately because I think it really offsets the smokier eye looks that I've been going for.

My last favourite is the handbag I bought last month, I had to mention it because I love it and it only cost me just over £20. I live close to Clark's Village which is home to a lot of retail outlets, so I managed to get this heavily reduced from £60. I love it because the darker blue it makes it perfect for Autumn and the snakeskin is unique. Its also the perfect size, large enough to fit alot in it. But not quite enough for the kitchen sink.

What have you been loving lately?

July Favourites;

Its already the end of July, how did that happen?! This month I haven't shaken up my makeup too much, (and I've been on a makeup spending ban) but I thought I'd keep up my string of favourites and show you the things I've loved this month.

My first and favourite, favourite of this month is my Makeup Revolution Iconic 3 Eyeshadow Palette. I've owned this for at least a year now and its come back out of hibernation, I've worn it almost everyday I've worn makeup. The glittery light pinks are great for summery looks, and I still love this palette as much as when I first bought it. The shadows are really high quality for the price too.

I have not one, but two blush favourites to share with you this month, first up is the Revlon Photoready Blush in Flushed. These blushes have a great consistency as they don't feel greasy on the skin, but they blend really easily. Although it looks bright in the pan, this shade actually gives a really natural pinched look to the cheeks. My second blush favourite is this baked blush from Avon. This is a shimmery bronze with pink baked in sections. I use this high on the cheekbones to add colour, if I'm in a rush it acts as both a blush and a bronze.

I also painted my nails for the first time in a while, mostly to try out a product that I hauled from Primark here but I used Essie's Cute as a Button, its a gorgeous corally pink that is perfect for summer. I think it would look great with a tan (if I could tan that is). I also love the formula of these as they're easy to apply and it lasted 2-3 without a top coat or a base coat which is a feat when you work in a bar.
The rest of my favourites are all from Primark, which is a favourite of my store every month. But this month I've visited Primark nearly every week and come away with a bag full of stuff. First up is this rollerball perfume called Midnight Kiss. This smells floral but grown up and reminds me of Katy Perry's Purr perfume a lot. The smell of this isn't overpowering but I can still smell this throughout the day, which is great for just £2, I really want to buy the spray. I've also been wearing this daisy headband so much this month, I bought it last year. Its a contrast to a floral crown as its not so in your face. I also picked up a pack of midi rings for just £1.50, they have a little detail in them as well as some stones so they're a little more jazzy.
My last favourite, also from Primark is my new bedspread that I've used as a photo background in this post. It has a pattern of NYC, it is mostly monocrome with bright details. This really goes with my room as some of the pops of colour match my walls. The bedspread is really soft and it only cost £14.50.


What have you loved this month?

The Mid Toned Pink;

For the past year I have been a woman on a mission, a mission to find the perfect mid-toned pink lip. I've tried and tested a lot and today I thought I'd show you the best of the bunch.

I have to start with my baby, Mac's Pink Plaid. This is my only Mac lipstick to date and out of all the lipsticks they had to offer, this was the shade I chose. This is a blue-toned medium, matte pink with greyish undertones, that sounds really strange but if you want an everyday pink with a twist this is gorgeous. This is the one that started this lip colour love affair for me as the mid-pink really suits my pale complexion.

Another matte option is the Revlon Matte Balm in Elusive. This is a more warm-toned middle of the range pink, with a slight peachy undertone, which makes this a gorgeous everyday colour. The formula of the Matte Balms are also amazing as they're comfortable on the lips and last a long time, though I would still recommend putting a lip balm on first. If the blue undertones of Pink Plaid aren't for you this is a great alternative!

I also have one of the original Revlon Balm Stains in Honey Douce. Honey Douce is completely different to the rest, the shade is a little darker and slightly brown toned. On me this is a real 'your lips but better shade' as its pretty similar to my lips, but perks them up if they're looking dull and adds a sheen. This is as the Revlon Balm Stains are a glossy, sheer wash of colour that stains your lips all day. I had to include this as its my handbag shade, I always keep this on me incase I forget my daily shade as its a fail safe colour that goes with any makeup look.

The next medium pink is actually a liner from Essence in the shade Wish Me a Rose. This is pretty much everything I wanted in a pink, just in pencil form: it's not too peachy or warm toned, but neither is it blue toned. It's just an everyday pink. This looks great under all of the other colours to make them last all day. Or it can be worn alone for a matte finish or under a gloss. These also don't bleed at all, and it's only £1!

A newer option to my extensive pink lip collection is the Makeup Revolution Lip Hug in Good Fun. The shade of is slightly lighter than the rest, and although I love it on myself I'd be wary if you have a darker skintone. This is a great, glossy pink that feels really moisturising on the lips.

One before last is from Collection's Deluxe Lipstick line and is in the shade Talulah. This is a slightly peachy medium pink which can be great for warmer skin tones. This feels quite moisturising when applied. It's not matte but also contains no shimmer. This is the first lipstick I ever bought from Collection and I really quite like it.

I thought I'd leave the the best until last the lippie that is 'the one' to satisfy my mid-tone pink needs is Pink Mallow by Natural Collection. This is quite simply your lips, but better and rosier. It's not cool toned but doesn't have any peach undertones either. Although this keeps your lips feeling soft it lasts for quite while. Not as long as a matte lipstick, but for £1.99 its impressive. This is actually the cheapest of all of the lipsticks, which goes to show you shouldn't overlook budget brands. If you want to end your search for the perfect medium pink, the one I recommend over the rest is this.

Just a little note to say, sorry I didn't post at the beginning of the week, sometimes real life overtakes blog life. But thank you for being patient (and for reading this) and I'm trying to get things up and running again. I also started up a Twitter for my blog so follow me over there @GirlAboutVill
Big hugs x

My Current Fashion Favourites;

When I started this blog I intended for it to be about fashion as well as beauty. I have since discovered that taking OOTDs alone is rather a feat, so while I work on that I thought I'd share my super summery current fashion faves. Beware there are some really awkward poses throughout.

I thought I'd start on top. Crop tops are must have at this time of year, this one is from Topshop. I love the high 90's-esque neckline, the stripes and monochrome make it really easy to style especially with block coloured bright pieces. Another shirt style that I love is off the shoulder, I'm so glad to see these everywhere. I think they're a great way of baring some flesh without being too risqué. This one is from Primark, the pattern is amazing! A trend I've loved this year is the 70's. And I found this shirt which I think is prefect from New Look. The sleeves and bottom are lovely and flowy but with a little bit of off the shoulder action. This is pretty just-ish and perfect for festival wear.

Up next of course is the playsuit, a complete summer staple. My newest addition is this long sleeved number from Boohoo. I love the flowy-ness and tribal (is this tribal) print and the colour. Play suits are the perfect no effort outfits! Something else I love is flowy, non form-fitting little summer dresses like this floral one from H&M. They keep you lovely and cool and look really girly. They're also great to chuck on over a bikini on a beach day.

I thought I'd also pick out a couple of oldies but goodies that I always reach for at this time of year. As for summer coverups the denim jacket is always my go-to when it's warm. Because I'm not wearing jeans I like to wear denim on top. They're keep your warm during cooler nights but not to warm. This is an old favourite from New Look that has lasted me about two years.  I have to say that when I first saw stores selling dungarees again I literally ran to them. I have a few pairs but I thought I'd show you these slightly quirkier ones. These are from Primark and are pretty much styled on the deck chair, but I think they're cute. Dungarees may be my favourite clothing item ever. They're great for summer layering and look great with crop tops or oversized t-shirts. And the nostalgia factor is the icing on the cherry bake well.

June Favourites;

It's that time again! I have been loving quite a few things this month but only a few of them are beauty related. I thought I'd include a few lifestyle-y faves for those of you that are as nosey as I am.

I'll start with those few beauty bits, I've been using this Mango & Papaya Body Lotion from Natural Collection at Boots. My skin has really been through the wars this month as its burnt and is still peeling now, but this has really helped! Its slightly thicker than your average moisturiser, but doesn't take long to sink in to the skin. There is no residue, it just leaves your skin smelling lovely and feeling moisturised all day long. This came in a Christmas gift set and I'm actually pretty impressed.

I really can't believe I haven't spoken about this Maybelline Color Drama in Keep it Classy, I picked this up when there was a big hype surrounding it and I didn't want to write 'just another review'. But these are great, they are dubbed as a Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil dupe. Its basically a matte lip colour, that feels creamy and doesn't dry out the lips, and lasts for a really long time. All this is pencil form too, which is my favourite for application. Keep it Classy is a berry-pink shade, but I actually prefer it when its faded a little on the lips as a more natural stain. I still love this as much as when I bought it and these are so worth the hype.

My favourite new lip products are the I Heart Makeup Lip Lavas. These have the pigmentation of a lipstick, at first are glossy but fade to a matte colour that lasts so long! These do everything they say on the tube, and everything that everyone says they do, and you can get the whole collection of 5 for the price of 4 on the Makeup Revolution website.

This month I have only used one thing on my brows this month the Brow Define Tinted Brow Mascara in Dark from MUA. This does a pretty good job at keeping my brows in place and adds a little bit of colour. Luckily I have some pretty beastly eyebrows so I don't really need to fill them in when I use this which skips an entire step, but I can't imagine its for everyone.

First up in the non-beauty category are these sunnies, they're blue and green and I love the blue tinge to the lenses. They also little penguins, I am obsessed with these and they were only £3! I bought these when I took part in Slide The City which I blogged about here. So they're also a wicked reminder of an awesome day!

Next up is my FitBit Charge, this little guy has slotted right into my life. This is a Bluetooth pedometer and sleep tracker. It tracks steps, flights of stairs as well as calories burned. It's so interesting to see how many steps I walk when I totter around at work, and it gives me the oomf to get off my arse and move from in front of the TV on days off. I'm not sure if pay the full price for this, but I managed to get this for free when my boyfriend bought the Samsung Curve.

Speaking of days in front of the TV I need to tell somebody about the shows I've been watching! Pretty Little Liars has been my favourite show, I bulk-watched the first 5 series in a couple of months but they have really upped the amp in season 6. I'm obsessed with the liars, as well as they're outfits, boyfriends and the mystery of the show. I've spent hours browsing the #PLLTheories tag on Tumblr, but I'm still not entirely sure who A is. I have been suspicious of Aria for quite some time (even though she's my favourite Liar), but I don't think the writers are that cruel. I kind of hope its Wren, but mostly so I can see Julian Morris back on the show.

I've also been loving Once Upon A Time. I love myself a fairytale and this is all about fairytale characters in the real world (minus their memories). I love watching each of the backstories and they're full of twists, you'll never guess who the pied piper really is! I'm currently on season 3, but its such an easy show to binge watch, and Julian Morris stars again.

My Mad Fat Diary has just returned for its 3rd series and the second episode came out this week. This show is just as great as ever, the 90's setting makes everyone a little nostalgic some of those clothes were a little cringe but thank god for dungarees! It deals with teenage issues such as insecurities and 'the University debate', as well bringing mental health to the light. And it still manages to be funny, you need to watch this!

What have you been loving this month?

May Favourites;

2 months have passed since my last favourites post, one of which was my birthday month. So its safe to say I treated myself to a few new things, so I have a lot of things to share with you and my god did it take some whittling down to keep this post short(ish) and sweet. But look forward to a lot of upcoming new product reviews.

I have a new little shower goodie to share with you first, the LUSH Shower Jelly in Sweetie Pie. This is a quirky shower gel, jelly hybrid. The instructions read; 'rub our wobbly bit all over you wobbly bits'. Getting the jelly out of the pot is a bit of a challenge, but I add this to a shower puff and it turns into lather. It lathers up so well that a little really goes a long way. 'Sweetie Pie' is a purple, glittery jelly, thankfully the glitter doesn't seem to stick to my skin. I don't think the Edward Cullen look is too 'this season'. This smells kind of like glacier cherries, or sugary berries, and its a scent that fills your bathroom when you use this, and I'm really enjoying it.

I picked up this Rich Moisture Face Cream from Avon a little while ago for about £3 as I was suffering with some dry patches and my usual face moisturiser just wasn't cutting it. Seriously this stuff cleared them up straight away. Its a little thicker than your average cream and so doesn't sink in straight away, but I've been using this daily and it works well under makeup, doesn't make my skin more oily and is continuing to keep my skin soft. It doesn't smell of anything much, and hasn't irritated my sensitive skin, all in all a £3 well spent!

I have also caught up (finally) to the hype surrounding Argan oil with this Leave In Treatment from Avon. I run this all evenly through my hair when it's wet and it makes my hair noticeably smoother and visibly shinier. The thing I love about this is that the shine lasts until my next wash and it only cost me £2.50 on an offer which is the cheapest I've ever seen an Argan oil treatment.

Onto the makeup favourites I have been loving this Makeup Revolution Ultra Eyeshadow Palette in Flawless. I raved about this in a full review here so I'll keep it to the point. This has every neutral shade you could need in one palette, the pigmentation and blendability is amazing especially when this costs just £8 for 32 shadows. Another great product from Makeup Revolution, I just wish I purchased this sooner.

Another product I wish I'd purchased sooner is the Sleek Blush By 3 in Pink Lemonade, which I got in the Sleek Party Box which I reviewed here (shameless self blog promotion, I know but I've actually keeping up-to-date on my blog and I'm proud!). These are truly as good as everyone claims, two of shades are powder blushes, which have just the right amount of shimmer. They are so eyecatching yet perfect for everyday, my favourite of the two is 'Pink Mint'. The middle is a cream blush, which I haven't used to much of but it is really pigmented for a cream blush.

Something I've recently rediscovered are my Revlon Matte Balms, I bought them about a year ago. They've spent a long winter in the back of my lip drawer as these shades are more spring-y, but since the sun has decided to make an appearance I've been able to bring them out of hibernation. I have them in the shades: Unapolegetic which is a truly unique, bright coral-pink. But showy is shade that has seen the most lovely recently, it is  a statement blue-toned bright pink. I love the formula of these because they're matte, but not drying. And you don't have to reapply often as when the color fades it leaves your lips stained.
Last is a candle favourite, I picked this up in a little store in St Ives when I was on holiday. This is by the brand Our Own Candle Company and is a large Mason Jar candle in the scent Very Berry. I was first drawn to it because its in a mason jar, and they have teeny, tiny ones which my mum picked up one of that are adorable! Secondly it has 3 colours running through which looks awesome, I hope they smell different but I haven't got that far yet as after burning for half an hour my room is filled with the scent. The scent smells like warm berries, the kind you'd put in a pie, which is lovely for this time of year. Plus when its done I have another mason jar cup, what's not to love?

What have you loved this month?