New Year's Resolutions | 'New Year New Me' Cliche?

Happy new year! 

I feel with the turn of 2015 I should talk about my new year's resolutions. As big of a year as 2014 was, I feel like this will be even bigger. I'll be graduating for one, turning 21 for two. So I thought instead of talking about the past year, I'll talk about what I have planned for 2015 and how I seek to improve myself.

1. Graduating uni with a 2:1 and finding a job
2. SAVING SAVING SAVING MONEY
3. With that comes learning to drive - my dad's really been pushing me to at least do my theory for a couple of years now and I think with the end of school, it'll be the perfect time to dedicate myself to driving
4. Toning up - I've had really bad back pains the past few months so the least I need to be doing is pilates. But I also wanna hit the gym just to tone up and feel better about myself. I used to have very severe body image issues but having lost a lot of weight, that mostly passed, but I still have some days where I just wish I looked different and I feel like if I toned myself up, stopped being so lazy, the amount of times I get those days will decrease
5. That brings me to eating healthy - you guys know I'm vegan but I'm literally the most unhealthy vegan you'll come across. I live off of white rice, potatoes, veggie alternatives e.g. sausages/burgers and biscuits. I really hate vegetables but I feel like I need to teach myself to like them, just because I know I'll be feeling way better physically and I really wanna see the effect it has on my skin.
6. SKIN - now, my skin is pretty okay (mA mA) but I'm still prone to breakouts and I think these could really be eradicated if I buckled up and ate decent food - less eating out and more learning how to cook for myself. Also, skincare routine. I don't believe in putting a dozen products on my face but I really want to find a good moisturiser/oil and face scrub as these are the two main products I use on my face.
7. LEARN HOW TO COOK - I'm the only vegan in my family and I'm a terrible cook, which means my mum makes 80% of my meals and understandably she doesn't always have time to cook something separate for me if she makes a meat-centred meal so that's why I really really need to learn to survive by myself and cook, healthy, tasty vegan meals.
8. Visit at least one new country. When I go away, it's mostly to relatives' houses or family friends', which means either Russia or Holland. But with the end of uni, I really want to go somewhere new for a week or so in the summer, somewhere with lots and lots of sun and be a proper tourist
9. Brushing up on my French - I used to be a massive French enthusiastic and got pretty good grades (I learnt it for 7 years at school) but as everyone knows, once you stop using a language, you start to forget it, which has happened to me with French (and Russian) so that means more French reading, listening and speaking. I also need to brush up on my Russian - Russian is my mother tongue but I do little reading and writing so that's my main focus point - I still have Anna Karenina in Russian dusting up on my bookshelf so I need to pick that up
10. READ MORE BOOKS

I hope you guys perhaps got inspired from these resolutions? Anyways let me know what your resolutions are.

x o x o

N

Monday Mani | 'Obsidian' by Models Own

Hi guys!

So, first things first, I'M BACK TO STUBS /wipes tear while violin plays in the background/ but honestly like it was time to start over, I'd gotten a bit bored n I actually always restart growing my nails in time for the new year. Cutting my nails to stubs really signifies something new to me. It makes me feel really fresh n cleansed, like beginning a new chapter. I don't know, it sounds dumb but it's true. 

I decided to do something special this week because it's the new year so I went with 'Obsidian' by Models Own from their Goth collection. 

Honestly, prior to using this polish, I had no idea this brand was vegan but hey it is! This shade is a gorgeous grey colour with specks of different sized silver glitter. 

I was a bit wary at first cos I didn't know if the formula would be thick enough for me to get away without a base colour but after two layers I'm happy to report that it dries completely opaque. I would say it's a matte shimmer finish which I was okay with but as much as I love matte nails on other people, I don't think they suit me much so I put a topcoat on them n I love the result! 

I got this shade in my monthly Birchbox but it retails for £5, which I think is a pretty fair price. 

All in all, it's a gorgeous, unique colour but I'm definitely not looking forward to the removal part...

I hope you guys enjoyed this review! 

x o x o

N

Weekend Reads

So after the chaos of Christmas and family shenanigans, we're back! 

I submitted my last assignment of the semester the other day so I'm free to blog again!...(and to do my dissertation?...clearly my priorities are on point)

To be honest, my fiction reads have all been from memory so far - the last time I read a fiction book was in the summer cos uni just takes up most of my reading material so I'm gonna do a generic fictional read this week and it's /drum roll/....Agatha Christie!
I absolutely LOVE her. I've read about 10-15 of her books so far and I'm slowly working through the collection. What I love about her work is that I can read a book once then go back to it in a couple of months and it feels like I'm reading a new book, like for some reason I always manage to forget the plot as soon as I finish the book so like an idiot every time I read a story for the second time I'm like getting shockers and plot twists as if it was my first time reading it.
Her writing is super simple and easy to follow but the plots are so complex that you (well, me anyway) can never guess 'whodunnit'. I think out of Marple and Poirot, Miss Marple is my favourite, just cos the poor woman is underestimated every time cos she's an old lady from a village but she manages to roast the police officers every time.

Fiction of the week is surprisingly, actually not a history book. It's The Bond by Wayne Pacelle. I was given this as a birthday gift a couple of years ago and it was such a great read because I was still new to veganism and I learnt a lot about the conditions of animals outside the food industry, like zoos, science labs and pet breeders. Let me just say, that I didn't go vegan because I hated the taste of meat/animal by-products. Honestly, the smell of barbecue and roasts still reels me in and I miss it a lot. I went vegan cos I realised that I can't love animals n contribute to their exploitation at the same time. Saying that, I can't recall Pacelle mentioning veganism once. He does well in informing the reader on the condition of animals but in terms of taking steps and making changes to your footprint...not a word. I'm not especially shocked, as it had a lot of popularity and people tend to like books that seem 'revolutionary' but aren't really, just so they can feel like they're doing something to fight injustice. It's okay. In terms of facts, it's great, if that's what you're looking for. If I could (I wish) I'd use it to write an essay but yeah it's not very helpful in giving advice on your next steps once you've internalised the point of the book.

I hope you guys found this helpful, merry christmas and a happy new year!

x o x o

N

Friday First Impressions | B. Cosmetics Lip/Cheek Colour in 'Goji'

You know when you walk into a shop, knowing that you need to grab something essential n leave...but then you end up not finding what you need n leaving the shop with something you don't need...that's me. Every time.

This time I happened to be browsing B.'s range cos I've been contemplating buying a BB cream or tinted moisturiser or something just to even out my skin a bit, but something that isn't as heavy as foundation (suggestions anyone?) Anyway, their range is half price at the moment so I picked up this gem. I don't like any of their lipsticks cos they're far too shimmery for me so I had a look at the lip colours n this one caught my eye. It's in the shade 'Goji' n it's such a beautiful brown-toned red. It's like a lip crayon which is perfect for me because I prefer to just use a lip liner to colour my lips as opposed to lipstick.

Usually it's retail price is £7.99 (too expensive for high street makeup in my opinion) but with the offer I got it for half price at £3.99 (acceptable). 

Now, it is a shimmer (boo) but it's nothing some translucent powder can't sort out. I wouldn't say the colour is anything special. I was kinda expecting it to be more of a mauve/brown toned shade but it's literally just an ordinary pink-toned red. I put this on my cheeks too n honestly, it isn't that amazing. I wouldn't have bought it without the offer and in hindsight, I don't think I should have bought it at all. Oh well, I'm sure I'll use it at some point. 

Have a lovely weekend guys, happy holidays!

x o x o

N

Mid-Week Hype | Daniel Sandler Watercolour Creme Bronzer Fiji + Riviera

L to R Riviera, Fiji

These past few months I've been on the hunt for a perfect bronzer. Now for my NC43 skin (I'll write my foundation shades in the about me page) its hard to find the right depth and tone for my skin. A bronzer to me works as a way to give me a sun kissed glow. Not really a way to contour (though I wouldn't mind if I did found a tone that'd work for that purpose too)

I purchased the Daniel Sandler Creme Bronzer in Fiji first. Which has a red, copperish undertone to it. Its such a beautiful product. Theres a subtle shimmery sheen. Not at allll obvious (and I know when bloggers + youtubers may say not obvious but really 'I can see shimmer' but this is undetectable) it just gives off a beautiful glow.

Fiji on fair skin - Pixiwoo

Now naturally, when you go under the sun you do get flushed. No one tans 'orange'. (I really don't get why people find being stark orange beautiful but each to their own, theres no rules in makeup!) you may turn a warm brown. But when you just get out of the sun, theres that reddish flush which I find soo beautiful. Like you've just been to a tropical country, this healthy glow...no pastiness in sight

I really really like these bronzers. The consistency, pigmentation, tone and depth are just perfect. And I can see these being quite universal (really deep skin tones can use this as a blush or highlighter maybe?) I've yet to try his watercolour blushes but thats for sure on my list. I really get that Daniel Sandler makes an effort with his cosmetic line not just rebranding already done products.

These go for £15.50 each on ASOS, FeelUnique, LookFantastic - They tend to have a sale or discount, so keep yours wide open!

Whats your go to bronzer? I know Nuria likes a Milani one...I might try that

X  O  X  O

Z

Mid-week Hype: Dewy Cheeks | 'Rose Gold' Sleek Blush x Makeup Revolution Ultra Bronze

So you guys know I'm not one for experimenting with makeup - once I find something I like, I literally won't try anything else until I hit the pan with the others. But, one type of product I do like to experiment with is blush n bronzer.

When I'm on the go, I stick to my Milani duo, because it's small, compact and contains both blush and bronzer. But when I have spare time or I wanna make an effort this is one of the looks I go for.


Blush n bronzer are really important to me in terms of makeup cos I don't wear foundation, so I rely on them to brighten up my face and take the focus away from any blemishes. Plus, I'm a huge fan of contouring and I basically do the whole temple/cheek/jawline routine. Only thing I miss is my nose because it's skinny enough and if anything, I wish it was a lil wider.

I use Makeup Revolution's 'Ultra Bronze' (...bronzer?) (RRP £4.49) to contour n hollow out my cheeks a bit and above that Sleek's blush in 'Rose Gold', (RRP £3) using E.L.F's studio stipple brush to blend everything together.

This blush is one of my favourites because the gold specs in it act as a highlighter too giving you a really dewy, glowing look. 
Before, when I did wear foundation, my face used to get suuuuper oily, especially my T-Zone, but it's pretty in check now, so I don't really had to worry about looking greasy. Saying that, I tried a new rosehip oil last night that came in my monthly Birchbox so that may be one of the reasons I stayed matte for so long today.

Also I thought I should add that I have Pixi's tinted shea butter lip balm on my lips in 'Ripe Raspberry'. It's superrr pigmented, n a lil goes a long way. I can't even swipe it on my lips, I have to dab cos the colour payoff is so strong and bright.

The blush and bronzer you can buy online or in store in  Superdrug. The lip balm I got in my October Birchbox, it's the full size and you can buy it on their site too, here.

Hope you guys enjoyed this post, Merry Christmas!

x o x o

N

Alexa Chung for Eyeko | Me and My Shadow in Chocolate and Taupe Review

A while back, I watched Lisa Eldrige's (makeup artist) YouTube video of a makeup tutorial on Alexa Chung. It was the look that was created for the campaign of Alexa's Eyeko range. I picked up 2 out of 3 of the Eyeko Me and My Shadow pencils(?) in Chocolate and Taupe, third shade being Charcoal. 

I'm always on the look for a fuss free eyeshadow pencil that I can smudge on to my eyelid and walk out of the house. And theres plenty of these pencils on the market. I'm also on the hunt for a perfect taupe shade that DOESN'T turn silver/grey on me.

These twist up pencils come with a flat brush on one side to smudge the product. Its a great concept and it actually works. At first I thought this would be gimmicky, I mean would it actually smudge the product well? And it actually does. And as it's flat, I can build the product on the back of my hand, and dab the brush on to it and line my bottom lash line. However on my lid, I much prefer a rounder eyeshadow brush. 

I really like the formula, they blend so easily and they work well on the waterline. So they are quite a soft formula, but not as soft say...like the Rimmel or the Maybelline ones. So you have quite a bit of control to it. 

Eyeko Me and My Shadow in Chocolate 

On the downside, I'm not that hyped about the actual colour of these. I hoped the brown would be a lot warmer. I bought them based on swatches online. But, on me, it has a greyish tinge. This probably won't happen if I applied it to Nuria, or anyone paler than me. Same with Taupe, it turned very silvery on me. Which is such a shame as I find the formula perfect.

Eyeko Me and My Shadow in Taupe

I bought these on Asos and there's a sale at the moment, so you can pick these up for £10.50 each (RRP £15)

Do you have any eyeshadow pencils I can try?

X  O  X O

Z