It is cold here in England at the moment, really cold! So the winter coat is getting a lot of use (you can read about my favourite jacket HERE). But the days are also rather sunny and for someone who gets headaches just opening the front door, that provides an issue…
I am obsessed with sunglasses, they are just the best thing on a sunny day and recently I was seriously lusting after a beautiful Dior pair. At £295 these “Dior reflected sunglasses” had to stay in my dreams and so I pushed them to the back of my mind and somewhat forgot about them.
The other day I was browsing the MissGuided website and saw THESE lovely sunglasses. At £10 they were a total bargain and I just couldn’t resist.Once again I was so impressed by the speed and ease of the delivery service provided by MissGuided, they really are so good at what they do! For the price I wasn’t sure what to expect in terms of quality but these seem pretty sturdy. It’s always a good sign when the product looks like the picture on the site. I love the contrast of white and gold and can’t wait to wear them all year round! They may not be Dior but they’ll do for me!
Everything is my favourite at the moment, even the word itself. So I thought I’d share some of my current loves with you all. From television to skincare here are just a few for you…
Scream Queens – I absolutely love this TV show! I’m watching along weekly in the UK so no spoilers please!! From the cast to the scripting this show is everything I love, but what else would you expect given that it was created by American Horror Story genius Ryan Murphy?! Despite the name it really isn’t particularly scary but it can venture into the gory zone on occasion. The show is set in a sorority house controlled by Queen bitch Chanel (Emma Roberts) and sees the cast being slowly picked off by the ‘Red Devil’. Jamie Lee Curtis is amazing as the slightly crazy, hard-faced Dean Cathy Munsch. Basically if you like pretty clothes, dark comedy and plenty of cliché rich white girl jokes then you need Scream Queens in your life!
Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Oil – This stuff takes my makeup off in seconds. It’s amazing. I was using the Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm but found that it often irritated my eyes, not enough to put me off using it but enough to make me want to explore other options. So I did my research and found the Clinique one to be a suitable alternative. I have found that whilst this is a great first cleanse you really do need to go in with a second one to get that fresh, clean skin feeling. For this I have been using an Elemis one (review coming soon). The Clinique Take the Day Off Cleansing Oil is perfect if you’re in a rush but want to avoid face wipes. 3 pumps for a full face of makeup, a warm flannel to remove and you’re done in seconds. Love. It.
MissGuided Padded Faux Fur Hood Jacket– When it comes to jackets, I think I have a serious issue. I just cannot get enough! I feel like I need to have a different style for every occasion (funnily enough my mum disagrees). My justification for this most recent purchase however is that I was seriously lacking in the hood department. This jacket is sooo warm and the giant hood makes it perfect for walks in the rain (a must when you have two dogs). So that’s my reasoning, and I have donated an old one to charity in exchange which is a great idea if you want to rid yourself of a little shoppers guilt. On a side note I just have to say how impressive the MissGuided delivery service is, this arrived next day despite the fact I ordered after 8pm. They also have a great returns policy and bonus points for the 20% discount!!
Adele 25 – Despite spending hours and I mean serious hours attempting to buy tickets to her tour *to no avail* I have made the mature decision to forgive Adele. This new album might actually be my favourite of all her work. Hello is of course the ballad of the year but for me the number one song on 25 is When We Were Young (the video above), I bloody love it! I like the mix of uptempo and slow songs and basically I am just one of millions of passengers riding the Adele train right now.
Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge – I wrote about this in a blog post which you can read here. I won’t bang on about it, but I have just been loving using this to apply my concealer recently. I cover the sponge in setting spray, wait a couple of seconds and then lightly bounce it over the concealer until it has fully blended. This is particularly great for the under eye area and once set with powder there is definitely less creasing than when using a brush. Brilliant and affordable at just £5.99, what more do you want?!
What are your current favourites? Beauty or random I would love to know so please do share them in the comments. Or you can tweet me @sophieaiken.
A while back I wrote about an amazing Naked Palette dupe which you can read here. This dupe was a Superdrug discovery that introduced me to the brand Makeup Revolution. So of course I had to go straight back and see what else they had to offer! With a bored friend in my ear telling me to “hurry up” every few minutes, I only picked up three products. I’ve had a chance to use them all and these are my thoughts…
Oil Control Fixing Spray – On the whole I’m a big fan of setting sprays. I normally use Mac Prep + Prime Fix+, which I love, but at £15.50 for 100ml there had to be a cheaper option. And there is! The Makeup Revolution Pro Fix comes in at just £5 for the same quantity. I use this before I apply my makeup and then again once it is complete. My makeup definitely lasts longer when using this, although I’m not sure it’s as long as the ’12 hours’ the bottle suggests. Most importantly it keeps shine at bay meaning I don’t have to powder as much as I usually would. This is a perfect summer night out essential and I won’t be without it any time soon!
Vivid Baked Highlighter – I love a highlight, trust me I have A LOT of them. Up until recently I was using theBalm Mary Lou Manizer Luminzer but it’s £17.50, extremely pigmented and I find it works best with pale skin. I saw this Makeup Revolution one in Pink Lights and at £3 decided it was worth a try. I worried it would be very glittery but thanks to its baked consistency the product is deceptively smooth and blends out into a soft sheen. I have used this on both pale and tanned skin and love it in both cases. It’s gone straight to the top of my collection!
Depraved Lipstick– At just £1 for a lipstick, it took all my willpower not to purchase the entire collection, but having never owned a lipstick from Makeup Revolution before I thought it best to stick with the one. I went with this bright purple lipstick as festival season is right around the corner and it’s just perfect for that. The formulation is quite glossy so it takes a couple of coats, but I like that as it means less room for error. Because of this, I was concerned about longevity so I have found that applying this over a neutral lip liner makes it last longer with less smudging. Cost is everything with this product after all who can resist a quality £1 lipstick?!
I am obsessed with sunglasses, they are just the best thing on a sunny day and recently I was seriously lusting after a beautiful Dior pair. At £295 these “Dior reflected sunglasses” had to stay in my dreams and so I pushed them to the back of my mind and somewhat forgot about them.
Scream Queens – I absolutely love this TV show! I’m watching along weekly in the UK so no spoilers please!! From the cast to the scripting this show is everything I love, but what else would you expect given that it was created by American Horror Story genius 
SOPHIE AIKEN 