January Favourites

One of my resolutions for 2016 was to start doing monthly favourites posts to really reflect on the month and to encourage me to mix things up every month. It's the last day of the month today and I have to say it's been a bit of a weird few weeks for me both mentally and physically but I'm getting to know myself a little better and trying to be more confident in myself. One favourite I haven't photographed but has helped me a lot has been the One Line A Day book where you reflect upon your day, like a miniature diary and you do the same every day for five years. Aside from the beautiful detailing like the gold ended pages, making myself see the good and bad points of the day is starting to help me trigger what makes me anxious or can lead to a low point and attempt to change that the following day. 
I'm obviously using a lot of the makeup I received for Christmas and my favourite palette at the moment has to be the Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette as the eyeshadows are so creamy and blendable. They're perfect. So perfect in fact that I need the Bon Bons palette because I have put all of my trust into Too Faced as I know they'll be just as good. As a blonde sometimes I steer away from a lot of brown shadows as I don't like looking washed out but blending Milk Chocolate, Semi-Sweet, Salted Caramel and Triple fudge into a gorgeous crease and outer v look then on the main part of the lid using White Chocolate and Marzipan to lighten the lid up really works for me. Champagne Truffle is the most beautiful highlight shade and I have high hopes for future palettes I buy from them.
I ran out of my Benefit Stay Don't Stray which is my holy grail lid primer and is the best I've ever tried, but since I'm saving for LA I thought I'd try out the Nyx HD Eye Shadow Base which although it dries almost clear therefore doesn't have the same result as the Benefit one it works just as well. My eyeliner and shadow last all day without moving around which pleased me as it's a fraction of the price with the same results. Speaking of primers, I've been loving the Urban Decay De-Slick Makeup Setting Spray  which is targeted at oily skinned people like myself. My makeup lasts all day and this would be so useful for clubbing but I'm yet to test it out for this purpose. 
Aside from the stunning packaging, yes I adore rose gold, I'm a new-ish fan of Charlotte Tilbury lipsticks. Last month I received the lipstick in Bitch Perfect and it's the perfect nude for me. I've loved Mac's Brave but feel like this suits my skin tone more and shows up as a true nude on my dark pink natural lip. For scents, Escada's Joyful perfume is incredible and I can't get enough of it lately. but have been using it sparingly considering when it first came out it retailed for like £40-£50 odd pounds which I definitely cannot afford to replace. It's sweet but not like a teenager's type of scent and I could wear it all the time.

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Nyx Liquid Lipsticks Collection & Swatches

So Nyx announced last year that they were coming to the UK and I was straight onto the bandwagon. I knew I wanted to pick up a few shades of the soft matte lip cream but had heard the odd mention of the liquid suedes too and was eager to pick a few of those up too. They've since announced they're making another lip product called the lip lingerie which I am definitely getting my hands on as soon as they're out, as they look absolutely stunning.

(l-r) Athens, Tokyo, Buenos Aires, Antwerp, Prague, Amsterdam, Monte Carlo, Copenhagen, Transylvania.
So originally I only picked up four shades but have ended up with nine different shades as I just couldn't cope with a few. After using these for a bit I've noticed that the darker the colour, the more pigmented they are. The shades from Prague onwards seem to last a fair bit longer which is unusual but hey ho. Nyx have released some new shades including more purples and even a bright blue, which I wouldn't normally go for but I need to try it out. 

Athens, Tokyo, Buenos Aires, Antwerp.

Prague, Amsterdam, Monte Carlo, Copenhagen, Transylvania.

I have lips similar to Prague naturally, so these shades show up darker on my lips than on my pale hand. Shades like Buenos Aires and Tokyo don't really suit me that well but I'm keeping them for any ombré lip looks I may do in the future as they're gorgeous shades for that purpose. Overall I have to say that the bottom five shades swatched are my favourite and they're pretty pigmented to say the least. They don't drag on the lips, they last for a hell of a long time without the need to reapply and they don't flake off when you eat.

(l-r) Sandstorm, Amethyst, Cherry Skies, Vintage.

The main difference between the soft matte lip creams and the liquid suedes is the texture. The pigmentation is just as good if not slightly better. In the UK they're a pound more expensive but as you can see from the photos, you get a larger product. The applicator for this is larger that the soft matte lip creams and ideally I'd prefer the smaller applicator as it's easier to get into the corners. I've seen some reviews online claiming these crack easy and are quite streaky but I've not found this for all four colours I have, and personally I think there is less chance of these cracking than the lip creams. The online reviews I've seen saying that they are 'complicated' to use seem like a load of rubbish as they're so easy to work with which is one of the reasons I'm encouraging more people to try them.

Sandstorm, Amethyst, Cherry Skies, Vintage

The finish of these is a satin or semi-matte which looks stunning and you could definitely use this on top of another lipstick to boost the colour and finish. They lasted all day and the Amethyst colour is so bold and beautiful, the swatch doesn't do it justice. I've found Sandstorm the hardest to work with considering I have pale skin and blonde hair but that's literally just down to the fact that I'm not used to having a brown toned nude on my lips. I think 'Soft Spoken' would have been a better choice for my complexion and Sandstorm is probably more suited to brunettes. It works a hell of a lot better than the nude lip creams though which you can probably see with the swatches. I'm not sure how the Lip Lingerie will compare but I'm excited to try them when they're released over here.

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Loving: L'Oréal Paris

You may be familiar with my brand focus posts and today I have another. Ever since I was starting to appreciate makeup, L'Oréal Paris has been a brand I've looked up to. Whether it be because they use some stunning women in their advertisements or because their products tend to be of a good quality for an affordable price, I will always have a love for them. I started off loving their lipsticks which are sadly long gone and their power products but branched out and started to use pretty much everything they made in the makeup department. Their lipsticks match up to the quality of Mac in my opinion and they're the only brand I'm really dedicated to for traditional lipsticks (I say this because Nyx have my love for their lip products too).

I featured their True Match Foundation and two of their lipsticks in a brand ambassador post for House of Fraser and it turns out that they read it and liked my post. I was in shock when I read their email saying they wanted to work with me and that was probably the first peak in blogging for me. They sent some products out and I was pleasantly surprised at how perfect their Infallible gloss was as I've hated lipgloss since I was about 17 and it used to make my hair stick to it and it drove me crazy. I've bought another as you can see, but I'm adamant that this is the only gloss for me.

I have a huge love for their eyeshadows too. After receiving the La Palette Nude I began using it as my quick everyday palette and it has a good mixture between the Urban Decay naked palettes colours which means it is perfect to use for both day and night looks. It's thin and compact, with a handy double ended brush, allowing it to be my ideal palette for my handbag. Not long ago I picked up one of their single shadows and it's one of the most pigmented shadows I've ever used. I was annoyed at myself for not picking more up. There's a few other products that I've reviewed, such as their True Match Genius which I use when I'm wanting a full coverage base and apply over foundation since it acts as a powder too.

Some of my favourite products by L'Oréal are the La Vie en Rose lipsticks which not only look incredible on the lips, they smell so nice! I much prefer the black packaging instead of the full gold packaging and would have as many lipsticks by them as I could if the packaging was all the same. That sounds like an odd reason but since I have my makeup on display I love them looking all pretty. The products I'm looking forward to picking up are the Infallible Mattifying Primer and Infallible Fixing Mist as they're both supposed to be dupes for Smashbox products which is fabulous if it's true considering there is a distinct price difference. 

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Why I'm Not Pursuing A Career In Law

Aged 17 I wandered into a mock Crown Court trial for the first time not knowing what to expect. Aged 21 I came out of university with a law degree. I had worked hard for 5 years to gain the qualifications I needed. All seems pretty on track right? There's a few things I've wanted to get off of my chest from reasons why it isn't for me, to answering people's questions about what I'm planning to do with my future.

Why did I fall out of love with law?

It happened in the second semester of my degree. I'd already received pretty average results in my first year with some 2:1s and 2:2s. I had just completed an oral exam and received a good 2:1. So why was I not happy? I was not happy with how the course was going. I had to do a mock client interview and I had never been so nervous. I completed it and it went well in my opinion, only to receive some negative points (and feedback that wasn't even allowed i.e. gave my partner a 0 when the scale was 1-5) and it all felt ridiculous. I loved certain modules but there were more I disliked overall.  The rest of the second year felt like a chore and I had to decide what route to take for the remainder of the course. Did I choose the traditional bachelors (LLB) route? Or did I do what I intended to do and continue the masters course (MLaw) with the qualification to be a solicitor (LPC)? Or, do something I never had thought of and train on the bar course to be a barrister? To be a solicitor or barrister you had to complete four years and complete the masters on the course too. Did I want to do that? Nope.

How did the course influence your decisions?

Of course I picked to do the LLB route which meant saying a little goodbye to some of my friends I had made since I wouldn't be seeing them in lectures or seminars anymore. I became close to a fair few people in my second year and whilst I wanted to still see them in uni, it wasn't possible. Before my third year of uni I had never been to a lecture alone and the prospect terrified me. On the first day of my third year I sat down alone not knowing what to think. I did have some relief knowing that I didn't have to sit down with actual real clients for pro bono work or stand up in the mock court we had on the third floor and moot. I was happy that I had 9 months of studying left before I could say goodbye to it. Having to apply for graduate jobs was confusing since I decided to not make any use of my degree and follow what in my heart, I thought was right. I had been blogging since the turning point in my degree the year before and as the year continued I knew blogging and pr/marketing was something I had wanted to pursue a career in.

What's happening now?

I graduated uni and it felt like a huge weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. I stayed up in Newcastle for a few months seeing friends and then went on holiday in the August. My boyfriend and I moved into my family home in Liverpool which was odd at first but now seems completely natural. I had a temporary job at Boots which I loved and now I'm on the hunt for that perfect job in the media. I volunteer as a social media assistant for a business owned by two of my aunties and I also work right here on this little blog. People have asked me why I'm not just in a random job to get some money saved up but they don't seem to realise that blogging is actually my part time job. I'm working hard on it right now with some exciting collaborations and if the opportunity arose to go full time with it then I would. The thing that bugs me the most is when people ask but there's so much money to earn if you're a solicitor, why don't you just do it for the money? The answer to that is simply because money is not worth my happiness. And I stand by that. I would much rather be in my family home with Andy and work super hard on my blog and be happy. Yes money comes in handy for holidays and new clothes but it really isn't worth being in a job I hate just to have things that I'll barely even get a chance to wear.
All in all, please never ask me why I'm not pursuing a career in law. I don't sit on a pile of money which can allow me to blog whilst I'm in my pjs but that doesn't mean I don't take blogging seriously. When people say "but can you be my solicitor in the future in case I need you?" - NO. I'm not qualified and I personally don't think having a legal representative who is quite close to you is wise anyway. Who knows where my little life will take me. I don't feel like I've 'wasted' my degree as it has taught me some valuable life skills, such as what to do when I buy a faulty product, what to check when I'm buying my first house and what to include in my will in the future. It is a little bit of a ranty post I'll admit, but it is annoying.

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Brand Focus: Mac

I'm really into brand focused posts at the moment and my Nars post went down so well that I thought the next big obvious brand to have a chat about would be Mac. Most of my collection consists of lipsticks as you'll see down below, but I'm trying my hardest to fill my pro palette full of eyeshadows when I can. Since it's a personalised palette, it will be perfect for travelling.

(l-r) Pure Heroine, Relentlessly Red, Flat Out Fabulous, Ruby Woo, Up The Amp, Hot Gossip, Lady Danger, Rebel, Speed Dial, Miley Cyrus Viva Glam II, Hang Up, Chatterbox, Brave.

Obviously I have a huge love for Mac lipsticks, but I have to say my favourite finishes are cremesheen and satin so that will be why you may have noticed apart from the obviously new lipsticks that some don't get as much love as the others. Hot Gossip is my all time favourite and was the first Mac lipstick I bought back in June 2014 (bless me). I always go for bright or bold shades and I've noticed that I don't have many nude lipsticks at all. Brave is a gorgeous colour but still shows up pink on my lips. I definitely want to join in with the Velvet Teddy trend, albeit a little late, purely just to see if I can finally find my perfect nude.

I use this Mac Brush Cleanser everytime I was my brushes and I've finally cracked open my second bottle of the stuff. I do have to use a little device thing from Primark to really scrub the brushes but this stuff does the trick even on foundation brushes. The highlighter is the oldest Mac item I have, dating back to 2012 and I'm aware I should probably throw it out but I don't want to. Despite the underlying white colour with stripes of pink and orange, it looks more like a blusher and that may be why I've not used it as much.
I managed to pick up a brow gel from one of the Estée Lauder outlet shops and since they own Mac (amongst other big brands like Bobbi Brown, Smashbox and Clinique) I purchased it for a few pounds cheaper. It's the perfect shade to go with my blonde hair and it gets a lot of love. I have this separate eyeshadow which is a frost finish in the shade Paradisco and I'm desperate to try to depot it and put it in my palette but I'm so scared that I'll destroy it in the process. It's a beautiful pinky-gold but doesn't have much pigmentation in unless you use your finger to apply it. 
My Pro Palette contains only 6 shades - Gesso, White Frost, Woodwinked, Carbon, Amber Lights and a shade I picked up in the outlet store and can't get it out to see the colour (oops). All the other colours seem to have moved but I've jammed that shade in there. I keep moving the shadows around as I don't know where I'm going with the palette (whether it be dark to light or a mixture) so haven't decided on permanent places for it yet. I'm definitely going to continue building up my small collection of Mac goodies and one day I'll invest in some face products!

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Specspost Sunglasses Review

I've been wearing prescription glasses for eight years now, and until this year I wasn't happy with my normal lenses. I bought some large round ones and I'm really happy with them. The only issue was that I didn't have any prescription sunglasses and I'll hopefully be learning to drive this year and was told that I needed a pair to ensure I was driving safely. When Specspost offered the chance to try on three pairs of sunglasses as a trial, send them back and then receive my own pair I was unbelievably excited. In fact, it made me look into how much driving lessons etc would cost because I was so made up at the idea of it. I chose three styles, the Farrah Cats Eye, the Clooney and the Kane Petite which as you can see, are all different.

The Farrah Cats Eye Sunglasses are £29.99 and the price includes standard lenses (single vision 1.5) or you can have them without a prescription in if you wanted. They're the largest frame out of the three I picked, with a brown tint and Tortoise shell effect on the frames. I didn't pick these lenses for one reason - the size. They're really nice on and go well with my blonde hair and don't get me wrong, I'm all up for big glasses, but another frame suited me better.

 The Clooney lenses were my favourite style overall as they were the perfect size, had a lovely pattern on and the style was more 'me'. These have grey/black lenses and fit like a glove. I think they're the most stylist out of the three and go with more things I own. They're not as full on as my fully rounded 'John Lennon' glasses that I own from New Look which means they'll suit a lot more people. I noticed that I preferred the colour of the lens more on these as I can see better with them on, an obvious advantage if I was driving with them on. These are £29.99 to buy.

The Kane Petite sunglasses were my favourites based on the photos on the website. The style is cute and quirky and they look more expensive than the others. I mean they are, but only by a penny. These are £30.00 and would look gorgeous on some, but the petite frame didn't suit my chubby-cheeked face. I did want to try a petite frame just in case as you can't always be sure online and I'm glad I did.

Overall I preferred the Clooney sunglasses and they've now been sent back to Specspost so they can kindly add in my prescription in and send them back! Then I'll have my own pair to take with me to LA in April which will 100% come in handy. I'm intrigued to see what they'll look like with my prescription as I've never had completely clear vision whilst wearing sunglasses. Specspost have been a friendly company to work with and quickly answered my questions over email which is always great when you're trying something out for the first time. They stock normal glasses too and you can add extras on to your lenses such as anti-glare coatings and bifocal and varifocal lenses which means there's something out there for everyone.

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Organising My Makeup

I recently wrote about my affordable makeup storage and since it went down pretty well, I thought I may as well show you what is in some of the drawers. The 5 drawer Muji acrylic storage is situated between two cheaper storage boxes which are full of random makeup items whilst my Muji is all neat and tidy. I love that the top of the Muji storage is flat so you can see what's in the top drawer but it's the perfect height to have my mirror on and some other daily items I use. I love having my makeup on display, especially because my lip products seem to be my most loved beauty products. I'm currently trying to use a different lipstick every day to use the ones that aren't as loved, especially some Nyx and Mac shades that are near enough new.

On the left storage box I have my foundations including three shades of Double Wear, my primers, and mascaras. Next to those are my L'Oreal lipsticks and a few Bourjois matte liquid lipsticks. Behind them are lipsticks that have been demoted to the back, such as ones from Topshop, Rimmel and Maxfactor since I don't use them very often. On the right storage box are my very much loved Mac lipsticks, and some others from Charlotte Tilbury, Nars, YSL, Rimmel, Kiko and Maybelline. To the side I have 'things that don't fit in any storage' because the rest of it is full, such as my Make Up For Ever setting powder which is perfect for seamless makeup, a L'Oreal True Match foundation, two Barry M face/body glitters, my Nars Hot Sand Illuminator, and a Revlon lipstick in Black Cherry.

The top drawer in my Muji is for liquid lipsticks since they can't be stood up. I have all of my Nyx cream matte lip creams and one lip suede (which is just as good), some Makeup Revolution laquers, one from MUA (which is not worth it but the colour is nice) and one from Sephora. I also have a Nyx butter lipstick, three Nars chunky lip pencils and a mini Nars cheek and lip tint from my November Nars Glossybox.

The second drawer contains some chubby sticks, lip glosses and a few liquid lipsticks that can't fit in the top drawer. I have a L'Oreal lip gloss here which is supposed to have the pink version next to it but must be in my bag, which are honestly the best lip glosses I've ever came across. I also have a HD Brows lipgloss which is more sticky but has a lovely colour. The three Kiko lip pencils are supposed to be the pencil alternative to a lip gloss but they're similar to cremesheen and satin lipsticks. I don't think there is much difference in quality between chubby sticks and I have them from Clinique, NV, MUA, Ted Baker and Revlon. Finally I have a lipcote I've never used and two lip balms to keep my lips moisturised.

I have a love-hate relationship with my pencil drawer. This is part of the reason I'm looking at buying a second Muji box so I can have two separate drawers for lip liners and eyeliners. Anyway, to the left I have lip pencils from Revlon, Makeup Revolution, Charlotte Tilbury, Kiko, Maybelline and Rimmel. I then have three white liners which I use for both lips and eyes (not the same pencils obviously) which act is a little border! My eyeliners are from Nars, Makeup Revolution, Rimmel, Collection, Maybelline and a few random brands. 

My eyeshadow drawer is probably one of my favourites. I never used to be a fan of individual eyeshadows as most of my palettes contain all the shades I need. I rekindled my love for Maybelline Color Tattoos and it grew from there. I've also fallen in love with the good old Barry M Dazzle Dusts as the glittery shades are perfect for intense eye looks without the cost. The blue L'Oreal eyeshadow is one of the most pigmented shadows I've came across and I'm annoyed at myself for not picking more up. Slightly disappointed with the bottom left Nyx shadow as it doesn't have much pigmentation at all.

inally, in my bottom drawer I have some face products I use most days. Underneath my Nars blusher I have Benefit's Brow Zings which is amazing paired with Nyx Tame & Frame pomade. I have a big Benefit blusher palette and luckily Hervana was the only one not in it, as this was purchased before the palette. I used Maybelline powder daily which adds just a touch of colour. The rest of the drawer contains mascaras, brow gels, concealers, primers and eyeliners which don't seem to have much of a place, but they're the ones I use a few days a week. If I did buy more Muji storage I'd definitely give all of these a drawer of their own.

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Brand Focus: Nars

After only owning the Nars Hot Sand Illuminator last June, I decided that Nars was a brand I needed to invest in. I heard a lot of positive comments from other bloggers about the Audacious Lipsticks, the blushers and the eyeshadow palettes and thought I'd give them all a try. In November I bought the Nars Glossybox and loved all of the mini products and my love for Nars continued from there. For Christmas I was gifted some Nars presents and I've already have a list for future products I'll be buying. 

The Dual Intensity Palette is a very pigmented palette and can be used both wet and dry, hence the name. The eyeshadows are creamy and blendable, with a stronger colour when used wet. For me, this is my perfect palette. It has a good colour range and can be used for both natural and bold makeup looks. This is probably one of the only palettes I own where the brush is actually worth using which pleased me as obviously it comes included with in the price (£45). It did hurt me a little to use the shadows at first since they have such a beautiful pattern on them. The packaging is unique too, being a mirrored front with the logo etched onto it. As you can see from the picture below, this does come with the downside that it marks easily, and will remain in it's box when I'm not using it.

I was lucky enough to buy a two items from Tk Maxx; the orange-red lip pencil and the eyeshadow in Grenadine. Obviously there are major plus sides when you want to really get to know a brand and you come across some of their products in store. Sometimes it is really hit and miss when you go in as some products have been tested or the packaging has been damaged but I struck lucky with these. When I bought the Hot Sand Illuminator, which is absolutely stunning, I picked up a double pencil sharpener as I knew if I was investing in high end pencils, I needed a good quality pencil sharpener.

The other three lip pencils I've tried but not worn for long but can tell they are so creamy already. The size of the lip liner is perfect as I can't stand any thicker as I love really defining my lips. Same goes for the eyeliner, it's the perfect size for drawing on your eyes and especially in your waterline and tightline. I adore the mini products such as the cheek and lip tint as it is perfect for applying to the apples of your cheeks, and the small audacious mascara which is ideal to stick in your handbag. I was surprised at the size of the 'mini' lipstick which seems to have almost the same amount of product as a full sized audacious lipstick. I'm head over heels for my audacious lipsticks in Charlotte and Liv and have my eye out for Claudia and Lana in the future.

What Nars products are your favourites?

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Cheap and Affordable Makeup Storage Solutions

I always envy bloggers with the most perfect makeup storage. There never seems to be the perfect answer. One minute everyone is looking at acrylic storage and the next its the expensive Alex drawers from IKEA, and there seems to be little consensus over whether we prefer our makeup displayed in front of us or tucked away for nobody to see. It does depend on how much makeup you have and what you can fit in the space dedicated to it. I'd always wanted a white desk to apply my makeup and to double up to take blog photos on but really don't have much space in the room I share with my boyfriend since we moved in with my Dad and the rest of my family. To make the most of little space on a budget, I came up with this multi-purpose storage system.

To make the most out of the space we had down the side of our bed, next to the window, we bought two IKEA Kallax shelving units side by side in white for £20 each. As they do have space in them for boxes instead of drawers, I have four of the Drona boxes in the floral pattern for £3.50 each to fit in bulky things like hair styling tools, large makeup palettes, skincare etc. Andy has four Drona boxes in black for £2.50 each which holds his camera, photography items and some of his clothes. We bought them in mind that this is temporary storage and when we eventually buy our own house we will separate the two, hence why we have different coloured boxes. They aren't too deep like some desks you'd find so you can comfortably apply your makeup without the storage taking up too much space. As an added benefit, I bought a £5 Ikea fold up chair which is tucked next to the storage which is obviously very convenient since I don't have the room for a fancy chair.
I do have some acrylic storage boxes just so my most used makeup isn't stuck in one of the boxes underneath. I have two boxes from Ebay which I bought about a year or so ago that have lasted well and were under £20 each. They hold small palettes, extra lipsticks, awkward shaped products and minis. My high end lipsticks sit in an extra lipstick storage box that is also from Ebay. I did used to have a third Ebay box but have since replaced it with my new love. In between them I have the 5 drawer acrylic storage from Muji which is an absolute dream with the drawers opening smoothly, deep enough to fit the longest of my eyeliners and have a completely flat top to allow extra storage there too. I have a small mirror that sits on top and is in the perfect place as it allows me to apply my makeup with natural light as I face the window. Overall I love the unique layout I have and whilst I do have a small space, I feel I've definitely made the most out of it.

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What I Got For Christmas

First of all I have to say I've been so lucky this year. I didn't create this post to brag, simply to show you what I received this year as it's honestly made me so excited! There are some things not photographed, like the huge bag of chocolates and the clothes and shoes I bought with vouchers since this post would be so long and I may have eaten some of my chocolates already...

I made a list and distributed it amongst my family and boyfriend since they spend the most amount of money and like to get me things I'll really love. They then sent the list to everyone else which is why I don't have anything the same. Usually from my Dad and Stepmum they give me money and then a stocking, but since I never usually spend money at this time of year on makeup, I said to them that I'd rather open presents instead of sale shopping. On my birthday I received a ton of Mac makeup so decided now to focus on Nars and some other brands I hadn't really tried out. I had no idea I'd recieve the Dual Intensity Palette or the Steven Klein lip trio so that was so exciting to open. The Too Faced chocolate bar palette surprised me and oh my gosh it smells like hot chocolate inside! I was excited most at the Vice 4 palette from Urban Decay since I hadn't used a Vice palette before and Andy must have really understood that I had my eye on it. I received the Nars Creamy Concealer in Vanilla which the perfect match to my skin tone, along with two Audacious lipsticks in Liv and Charlotte.

I still managed to receive some Mac goodies in there from my Uncle and best friend. There are two eyeshadows to add to my pro palette in White Frost and Woodwinked, the Miley Cyrus Viva Glam II lipstick and Lady Danger which are some pretty vibrant shades. The Nyx lip suede and matte lip cream are also pretty daring so I'm excited to try them, especially Transylvania which is so similar to the Revlon Black Cherry lipstick. For when I'm wanting a more natural lip I now have Charlotte Tilbury's Bitch Perfect from the KISSING range, with a lip pencil to match. There are so many products here that I'm so excited to try out, including other bits from Nyx, Sleek and The Balm, and a lighter shade of Double Wear for the winter months.

I laughed so much when I opened this 1kg Family Size jar of Nutella. I'm still yet to open it but definitely want to try making a Nutella hot chocolate with it. Along with the Lindor I've got some fabulous chocolates such as Guylian, Ferrero Rocher, Thorntons and all the rest but I'm trying to eat them in small doses. I was so happy to receive the One Line A Day book as I saw tons of bloggers get it last year and I'm a big fan of documenting things that it seemed too good to miss. The Babyliss Diamond Waves intrigued me as I've never used this type of hair styling tool before but since I have curly hair and have to straighten my hair to reduce frizz, then curl with tongs then brush it out, I'm hoping these make life a little easier. I've just picked up the chopstick tongs by Lee Stafford in attempt to recurl any natural bits that aren't still curly so I'm heading into 2016 with high hopes for my hair.

My best friend bought me this adorable rose gold candle which I squealed at in front of her because she knows how much I love copper and rose gold. My boyfriend's Brother and his girlfriend bought me a similar looking copper mug but I may have drank out of it and forgot to take a photo. To match the candle I have this adorable copper lantern which is just too pretty for words. I want to put a little tealight in it but I don't want to open it just yet. Also from my twinny I have this gorgeous Ted Baker makeup bag from Boots. I worked there over Christmas and was so tempted to pick it up for myself (because I bought her the same one, coincidentally) and was told to wait just in case someone happened to buy it! It is so pretty and I'm not normally a fan of smaller makeup bags but I will happily not bring some makeup with me just to use this whenever I can.
I'm so genuinely surprised at the gifts I received this year and did leave some out of photos because they were personal or because they were too big to fit onto my makeup table such as bags, hats and other items. Hopefully I'll get better at makeup to really make use out of these new products that I have! If you've done a similar post feel free to link it in the comments - I'm just as nosey and love reading haul posts.

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