A Little, Exciting Update..

Just a little update today as I have some exciting news! (You may have already guessed by the photos!)

So this week I've been super, super busy and haven't managed to blog much. My new camera that I worked crazy hours over Christmas for arrived on Monday morning. I was so excited to use it but was heading out to a spa with my mum for the day when it was delivered, and later I visited my boyfriend down south for a couple of days and today I went to Manchester so I haven't had chance to even use it yet!

But the little update is actually about where I went today: Manchester. I went there because there was a recruitment fair being held for Camp America. I applied back in November as I would love to spend my summer in the US as I have never been and I want to have some fun before I get a real job! So anyway, I got hired on the spot!!

It was a horrendous experience to be honest, I had to queue outside for an hour and a half and it was freezing and hailing. It did just feel rather unorganised as we weren't given information on what positions the camps actually needed to fulfil to a lot of time was wasted queuing to speak to camps that didn't even have the right placements! But I was really lucky in that I managed to find one that didn't have a queue and the Camp Director pretty much offered me the job straight away! So as of June the 8th I'll be spending my summer as a photographer in Wisconsin! That job is literally perfect for me as I just love taking photos and all my friends call me "the photographer of the group" when we are out! I am really, really scared.. But also excited beyond words! I really hope it is a great summer, and although I won't be able to blog much, I'll have a ton to write about when I'm back yay!

Have any of you ever done Camp America? If so I'd love to hear about your experience!

Tag: 10 Beauty Mistakes I Used to Make

Hello Lovelies! Bit of a random post today, but I fancied doing something light hearted and amusing as I'm rather stressed with my work load at the moment, but doing this made me giggle! Anyway, this is the 10 Beauty Mistakes Tag. I was tagged by no one in particular, but fancied doing it myself! I've learnt a lot over the years from trial and error, as do we all.. But here are my top 10 beauty fails! Wish I could go back and tell myself: "NO!"

♥1. Wearing foundation... and nothing else

Foundation was one of the first things I started wearing. I went through phases of wearing bright orange ones and white ones, one thing was for sure, none of them matched my skin tone! I eventually realised I was going wrong when I saw a close up picture of my face, which was just a white, patchy, shiny mess.

♥2. Wearing too much eyeliner... and just foundation

This was the next stage after my "foundation only" stage. I then entered a sort of gothic phase and loaded on the black eyeliner. With no mascara..

♥3. Dying the underneath of my hair black

Yep I was well ahead of the dip dying craze! Not sure what possessed me to do this, maybe my gothic phase?! Just picture this with the pale foundation - panda eye look. And I wondered why I didn't have a boyfriend..

♥4. Straightening my hair every day

Aghh I was so guilty of this! Once I got my hands on a pair of GHDs I literally straightened my hair every single day from the age of 12-17! Bad Becca! I swear my hair has only just recovered.

♥5. Washing my hair every day

Another thing I now realise was really bad for my hair! Only stopped doing this after going to uni (and becoming much more lazy with my hair) but my hair has thanked me for it!

♥6. Not plucking my eyebrows

Oh dear, man brows anyone?

♥7. Over-plucking my eyebrows

Discovered tweezers aged 13, consequently had about 6 hairs left per eyebrow.

♥8. Pink eyeshadow

Again I'm probably not the first to make this error, but one of the first eyeshadows I bought was a No.7 one I believe, which was a set of 3 pinks, and had a guide of how to use them. Baby pink all over your eyes, right up to the eyebrow, slightly darker pink over the main lid, and really bright shimmery pink in the crease. Why do this No.7?! Gullible, 13 year old me looked like a clown.

♥9. Going way OTT with hairspray

When I decided to kill my hair via curling it instead of straightening it, I then proceeded to spray it so much that it actually went rock solid and there was no way a brush was going through it. Stiff, sticky curls: lush.

♥10. Dodgy fake tan

Ahh I think we've all been there with this one. At least my pale phase was over! Whilst on the search for the perfect fake tan I tried many that looked absolutely awful! I'm talking orange streaky legs, awful smelling skin, orange hands, scaly brown elbows and wrists, just lovely... God knows what our teachers thought during P.E!

I tag you all! Would love to read more of these so leave me a link to yours in the comments!

Becca x

Bio Oil Review

Another review for you today! If you are unfortunate enough to have the same skin type as me, which is when stretched due to sudden weight gain such as in puberty or pregnancy develops undesirable stretch marks, I feel for you. 

My story is pretty simple, when I hit the age of about 13 and I suddenly developed hips and a bum out of nowhere, I was left with awful red stretch marks all up the top of my thighs and hips. Now some people may not think of these as an issue as these parts of the body are usually hidden, but even though they did fade to a lighter colour over the years, every time I went on holiday I was really embarrassed about my imperfect and marked skin. I hated how the texture of my skin felt too. Whats more, once tanned the stretch marks stood out even more when contrasted with the tan on my skin! But last summer, after working hard for a bikini body I decided something needed to be done about this problem before I went on my two holidays. This is where Bio Oil stepped in.

*Quick disclaimer: obviously I haven't photographed my stretch marks, when I began using this product I didn't have a blog, and also I don't think I'd feel quite comfortable posting those pictures! I hope the description does the product adequate justice without :).

I had read a lot of good reviews about Bio-Oil, however if I'm honest, I didn't think it would really work. I didn't think anything could cure stretch marks since they are such a defined mark on the skin. I think I bought my Bio-Oil from Boots, I got the 60ml which costs £8.99 incase I didn't get on with it.

The claim: 

"Helps improve the appearance of new and old scars

Helps prevent formation of stretch marks during pregnancy and helps improve the appearance of existing stretch marks

Helps improve the appearance of uneven skin tone

Helps smooth and tone ageing, sagging and wrinkled skin on both face and body

Helps replenish the skins natural oils, stripped away by factors such as extreme weather, water with high chemical content and the drying effects of central heating and air conditioning"

Bio-Oil itself does not claim to be perfect. It says "helps improve" not "gets rid of" so I wasn't expecting a miracle.

So here's how I used it:

I followed the instructions and applied the oil twice a day, once in the morning after I had showered, and once just before getting into bed. I applied a couple of drops over the areas with stretch marks and massaged this in using circular motions, towards the heart. I think this is what it says on the instructions. I did this well so it was fully worked into the skin. I should mention I also used body butter on a daily basis as this may have helped my skin too.

Even if the Bio-Oil doesn't do much, it undoubtably makes your skin feel beautifully soft, and it is a relaxing routine before bedtime too as it smells nice and the massaging motion is relaxing for your body.

Bio-Oil recommends you use the product for at least 3 months. I soon got through my 60ml and bought another one, cheaper I believe from Home Bargains, although I don't remember the exact price! 

The Results:

I was majorly impressed with this product. I wasn't expecting much, and to be honest my stretch marks probably weren't even that bad compared to others' and had already faded over time, but now they are hardly visible at all! I used Bio-Oil for 3 months I think. I did stop using it when I had been on my holidays, but I felt so much better wearing a bikini! Although you could still see them slightly, they were so much less visible and the texture was a lot smoother too. 

Now, if your stretch marks or scars are really, really bad, I don't want to get your hopes up and please don't expect a miracle! But I really think this does help speed up the natural healing process and it will definitely make your skin lovely and soft. If you know you are going to put on weight, for example if you're pregnant, I would definitely recommend using this during pregnancy to prevent any stretch marks from occurring, rather than waiting until you already have them. 

I think I will definitely repurchase Bio-Oil again soon, as it's not only good for stretch marks, it's lovely to add a couple of drops to your bath, or just to rub into your skin if it's feeling really dry!

Although Bio-Oil is rather pricey, it's well worth it if you have skin that you're insecure about and want to help, or if you just want super soft skin!

If you plan on purchasing Bio-Oil, I wouldn't from Boots. I would try Home Bargains, or Amazon currently have 200ml for £9.99 here, absolute bargain! However, if you want to try a cheaper alternative, Re-Gen cream is also meant to do a similar job! I haven't tried this on any stretch marks, but it's great as moisturiser and you can buy this at under £4 from Home Bargains again I believe? Or for £4.97 here at Amazon (gotta love Amazon!)

Have any of you tried using Bio-Oil? I'd love to read your thoughts!

Urban Decay Naked Palettes 1,2 and 3: A Review

Hi Lovelies! So I confess I am a hardcore Naked fan. I got given the Naked One Palette as a gift when it first came out and have been hooked ever since! I pre-ordered number Three and have had enough time now to test it out and now I'm ready to compare the three! I apologise now for the photos, these palettes have been used a lot and are not looking their best! Also I haven't done swatches as there are a lot of colours to compare and I think it would just get confusing! Be warned: this review is going to be long and ramble-y! If you make it to the end you should go buy yourself all three ;).

Naked. Shades included in order:

Virgin, Sin, Naked, Sidecar, Buck, Half Baked, Smog, Darkhorse, Toasted, Hustle, Creep and Gunmetal.

The palette also came with a double-ended eyeliner, which I lost a long time ago! But it went on very well. 

You can probably tell which are (or were) my favourite shades! Sin was of course my absolute favourite. I used this nearly every day, it was great as a base colour for an every day look and it also worked great as a highlighter. I did actually go in to buy this separately but they had discontinued it :( My other favourite colours from this palette are Smog and Hustle, which I usually paired with Sin. Again great for an every day look as they aren't too dark! When I was using this palette most, which was a couple of years ago, I really wasn't into matte colours so that's why Naked and Buck have hardly been touched! As for the darker colours, Creep and Gunmetal, although these colours are both very pigmented and you don't need much, they are both rather sparkly and I'm not as keen on glitter in darker colours. I definitely prefer a matte black. However I did use these more when I was going for a more dramatic look. As for the packaging, not too important in my eyes. I am a fan of velvet, and I like this packaging because it's not as bulky as Naked Two and Three, however the palette has got a bit more battered than the others because it's not plastic like Naked 2 and 3.

Naked 2. Shades included in order:

Foxy, Half Baked, Booty Call, Chopper, Tease, Snakebite, Suspect, Pistol, Verve, YDK, Busted and Blackout.

I would say Naked 2 is my favourite palette out of the 3. I use this palette on a daily basis even though I now have Naked 3. I think the colours really do suite my skin tone. Again you can probably tell my favourite colours! I usually wear Booty Call (similar to Sin in Naked) with Snakebite or Busted for a casual every day look. I also like to use Verve with Pistol, and I get a lot of compliments on that one. Since Booty Call has nearly ran out, I went into Debenhams to purchase the full size, but again they had stopped selling Booty Call, the same as Sin! They sold me a similar one; Sellout, but it's just not as nice as Booty Call or Sin, it's much more sparkly and doesn't work as well for my every day look. I think it is a shame that Urban Decay get us hooked on our favourite colours then discontinue them as individuals! However one thing I love about this palette - the matte black colour which is Blackout. I definitely prefer matte blacks for the crease, it just darkens and intensifies any look without a ton of shimmer. Also it is so pigmented and you only need a tiny bit.

Naked 3. Shades included in order:

Strange, Dust, Burnout, Limit, Buzz, Trick, Nooner, Liar, Factory, Mugshot, Darkside and Blackheart.

Now I do love this palette. It just looks so pretty! It's much more pink based than Naked and Naked 2, and I think the others are quite similar, but Naked 3 is definitely a whole different range of colours. I think my main issue with this palette is that it's so pink - and pink doesn't suite me. I never wear pink eyeshadow, I have blue eyes and nearly black hair and the shades just aren't as flattering on me as they would be on someone with brown eyes or someone with a more pink skin tone! Also this palette doesn't have a shade like Sin or Bootycall, which I was really hoping it would. There is Dust, which is in its place, but this shade does go on very pink. However I do like the colour Trick. Liar and Factory are also two nice light browns too that work well as a natural look. I've found myself using this palette alongside Naked 2, as I do love the right side of the palette, I just don't think the lighter colours are really me. As for Blackheart, the darkest colour, I do love the idea of the black with burgundy shimmer particles mixed in, however when on you can't really see the burgundy tone as much as I would like to. And as I said earlier I do prefer a matte black! It is a difficult one this palette, I look at it and just love it but when I wear it I'm just not as happy with it! I think the others just suite me better. However I do definitely recommend this palette if you have the right skin tone for it and you prefer prettier, pinker shades.

Both Naked 2 and 3 also came with a double ended brush, which I know many people don't bother with but I actually love these! I use the flatter brush for patting on the main colour and the larger dome brush for blending.

I do love all three of the Naked palettes and they are still my staple eyeshadows - perfect for every occasion whether you want to go really natural or build it up with the darker shades for a real smokey effect.

What do you guys think of the Naked palettes? Which is your favourite?

New Year's Resolutions and 21st Birthday Celebrations

Happy New Year guys!

I know it's a bit belated, but I wanted to write this post, even if it is a little behind everyone else's! Anyway, as for incorporating my 21st birthday into this post, my Birthday is actually on New Year's Eve so I had a little party because I never had one for my 18th. It was nothing massive but I had a really good night and spent it with my closest family and friends, you can't ask for a better way to start the new year really! I wore a dress from French Connection and heels from New Look (however you can't see those!)

Onto my resolutions! I actually haven't thought too deeply about them this year, they are more just some guidelines about how I want to live my life this year. I am going to be completely honest, I'm not just going to say "oo can't wait for 2014 bring it on etc etc." I'm actually really scared about this year! I have a lot of hard work to do to finish my degree, and frankly after over 15 years of being in education I'm running out of steam!! I cannot wait to finish. Although I know I'll miss my university friends and the lifestyle, the workload is just too stressful! So that's one resolution, to work hard and get my degree. I also know I'll have to get a job this year, whether that be a job concerning my degree or a job just to get some money whilst I'm looking, I will have to leave the job that I'm comfortable in at the moment and go on the job hunt again, which like most people, I dislike!

On a happier note, but still just as scary, I'm hoping to go to America this year to do Camp America. However if this doesn't work out I'll have to think of something else to do, but my resolution is definitely to go to a country that I haven't been to!

Overall I just want to be happy! It doesn't matter what I'm doing as long as I'm happy!

The last couple of years have been good ones, I really hope 2014 is just as good, and brings me exciting opportunities, even if they are scary! I will continue to blog too and it will be interesting to see how this blog and my YouTube channel changes over the year! Speaking of, my latest video is a summary of my year through photos:

What are your New Year's Resolutions?

Victoria's Secret Body Spray: True Escape

Hello Lovelies!
So I am sure you are all aware, the January sales have hit stores in full force. Personally, I hate sales. Working in retail means I have to be around them a lot, and the thought of shopping in them as well as working in them just makes me feel sick if I'm honest! However, when I heard there was a really good sale in Victoria's Secret, I just couldn't resist sneaking a peak on my break!
Sadly I do not have a haul for you, as I am saving my pennies so I had to be a good girl and just limited myself to buying a few body sprays! I bought myself True Escape, and I also bought a couple of others for my friends. They usually cost £10.99 but were on sale for £5.50 - bargain in my opinion!

The bottle is 250ml and the scent is "solar jasmine and pomelo" I'm really poor when it comes to explaining scents, but I would say its lovely and sweet but not too sweet and is just really refreshing. True Escape also lasts hours even though it's only a body spray. I also think the bottle is just beautiful and it looks lovely in my room! I'm not sure I'd pay the full price for these knowing you can get them for the sale price occasionally, so I'll be making mine last until they have their next sale!

Have you tried any of the Victoria's Secret body sprays? If so what's your favourite?

DUO Eyelash Adhesive Review

Hi Lovelies,
I thought I would share with you my experience with DUO Adhesive. I was bought this product about two years ago now (maybe three?!) as a birthday present and I have to say it is the best eyelash glue I have ever used. I don't wear false eyelashes very often, usually just for special occasions, however this is usually at least twice a month, and over 2-3 years that is a lot of applications and I'm only about half way through this product! You only need a small amount of the glue and it will last hours. I never even take this glue out with me because I never have to reapply it as you usually find you do with the glues that are often included in eyelash sets. The eyelashes are still really easy to peel off however and the glue does not irritate my eyes at all. I have also used the adhesive for sticking on gems to my face on my halloween look (as seen here) which lasted all day! However as with all eyelash glues, getting it off your eyes is a whole other matter.. I would recommend an oil based eye makeup remover (try not to pick it off!)

However there is one downfall to this product I must mention. And that is the packaging! Although the product is a good size at 14g, much of this is wasted due to the clumsy nozzle that it comes out of. The nozzle is far to large when applying to delicate false eyelashes and large amounts splurge out. I usually apply some to the end of a cotton bud then apply to the lashes, however some of this is absorbed so I lose some product. Also when used for the first few times too much comes out. I would love this product even more if they created a thinner nozzle for it! If anyone has any tips on how to apply this glue to false eyelashes I would appreciate the advise!

DUO eyelash adhesive is priced at £10 (great value for money in my opinion) and is available at MAC here.

What is your favourite eyelash glue?