My Top Lipsticks For Summer: Brights

Considering we're now almost half way through the month of May, I have well and truly got my 'must prepare for summer' frame of mind in place and am making all the changes from the colours in my wardrobe, to my footwear choices, to my daily make up picks, to even my breakfast decisions! - You can't eat porridge on a warm morning, it's just wrong.

As soon as the sun decides to come out and play from behind that big old black cloud then there is a handful of lip products that I know I will be gravitating towards with no doubt about it. You might sense a little bit of a theme with this post about what my favourite lip colours are, but here are my top picks for summer lips: 

 (I definitely did not originally spell 'Vegas Volt' wrong and have to correct it....)

MAC
Vegas Volt

My Mac lipstick collection is far from huge, but out of a small range of choices Vegas Volt easily comes out on top as my favourite shade. It's an amplied finish lipstick which means that the colour pay off really packs a punch with an opaquely pigmented shade but a creamy soft and long lasting formula. It's a lovely strong coral shade that can really perk up your day.

Topshop

All About Me

All About Me is a moisturising matte lipstick which again means that there's a strong colour pay off that's going to last all day - that's exactly what you need on a hot and humid day, you don't want pink waxy stuff smearing all around your mouth do you? All About Me is a gorgeously bright hot pink shade with blue undertones to really bring out the pink-ness in it. It's love.

Fire Cracker

Firecracker might actually be not so much of a practical choice, based on what I just said above about a lipstick having the ability to melt off your face as this is a moisturising velvet finish which means it's a lot more creamy, i.e. more slippy and slidey! But, there's no denying that the shade is absolutely to die for. It's an extremely bright red with strong orange hues that makes a huge statement and is a nice alternative to a classic pure red.

Rimmel
Kate Moss Lasting Perfect - Shade 20

Hey hot pink lips. You're my favourite. You can never have too many shades of hot pink lipsticks! I think I would go as far as to say that this is my favourite lipstick that I own. It's very similar to All About Me but it leans a tad more purpley and it is the most flattering shade of bright pink that I have ever seen. 

Kate Moss Matte Finish - Shade 110

More orange?! This is another coral shade but it has a bit more of a red base to it than any of the other coral shades that I own, and for such a bright colour I think that this is one of the easiest ones to wear and is definitely one of my most worn lipsticks, ever. Also the semi-matte finish of it means that it stands the test of time, even in the hottest weather.

Okay, so the running theme of this was post was that I love hot pink and bright coral lipsticks. I hope that you enjoyed my top 5 choices for summer lip products!
Which is your favourite?


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Costa Chic | New Mac Lipstick

I've been wanting to blog about my new lipstick for days now but haven't been able to get any decent pictures of it - I've been trying every single day for about a week but there's just no daylight. I've never noticed lighting before as much as I do now that I blog and try to take product pictures! In December it never really does get properly light at all throughout the day, but by half 3 in the afternoon if you've not taken your snaps yet then you can wave goodbye to the chance of posting on that day! Damn winter and it's early dark nights!! But I can't hold off any longer and I am going to make the best of what I have got, so here we go:

 

A couple of weeks ago I was a very lucky girl and I won Becca's 100 follower giveaway over at Becca Talks Beauty (go and follow - link!!) and her prize was any Mac lipstick of your choice, so I chose 'Costa Chic' after having it on my wish list for months and months!! When it arrived I could not have been happier with my chosen shade and thank you very much Becca for running this giveaway and allowing me to find a new lipstick love!

 

Costa Chic is a frosted finish lipstick and at first looks a very light coral shade but comes out quite differently once swatched and on the lips and is in fact a lot brighter and bolder than expected and it also a lot more on the pink side too. Bright corals are classically a shade for summer, but I'm going against the grain and wearing this now because I love it so much. I tend to stick to bright pinky/purple shades so wasn't sure at all if this would suit me when I saw how pale it looked, but it really is beautiful and I love how the vibrant colour instantly perks up my face!

 

♥

What's On My Birthday List? | Wishlist #2

I don't think I've ever been so reluctant to have a birthday in my life!

10 days from now I will unfortunately be turning the ripe old age of twenty.

Yep, two-zero, half way to forty, no longer a teenager. Old.

 

What this does mean, however, is that I get to write a birthday list and pass it onto my mum who can circulate it to the many kind and lovely relatives that I have in my family and hope that they take my hints ;) I can't be the only person who has grandparents come around for a visit in the summer and pop me the question of what I'd like for my birthday when it's still 4 months until the big day? Keen little grandparents! Unless there's something in particular that I've tried on instore and know that I love and it fits, clothes aren't something that I tend to ask for as presents. My birthday wishlist contains majority beauty related items that are mostly luxury as I don't feel prepared to treat myself to them at the moment but they'd be amazing to receive as a gift:

 

 



Benefit 'Sexy Little Stowaways' Gift Set | Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette | NARS Laguna Bronzer

Clinique Chubby Stick Intense in 'Chunkiest Chili' | YSL Touche Eclat | Paco Rabanne Lady Million EDP | Glamorous Disco Pants in 'Navy'

Ojon Rare Blend Oil | Mac Strobe Cream | Clarins Everlasting Foundation in 'Wheat' | Lee Stafford Argan Oil Trio Gift Set | Pandora Charms

 

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Payday Treats! | Haul

Hurray for payday!! I feel I've worked very hard this month and deserved my shiny pay cheque. Although I'm saving the vast majority of it for university funds in September, I couldn't go without self-rewarding myself with a few little bits and pieces. So these are some of the things that I have treated myself to through the week, most of them being online orders.

Mac Lipsticks

I did a longer post/review on these two beauties a few days ago which you can check out HERE. I got the shades 'Lustering' and 'Vegas Volt', and I am absolutely loving Vegas Volt right now and wish it was a shade that I could pull off for day-to-day wear, but it is a very bright and bold shade and I'm just not that brave.

Please note: This is a picture I uploaded to Instagram and a filter has been used on it so does not show the true shades. For better pictures and swatches please view the post linked above. :)

ASOS Clothes

I have also done quite a lengthy haul post on the orders that I made from ASOS recently, definitely not helped by their amazing and overly tempting sale that they have on at the moment! I got: 1 necklace, 2 skirts, 2 playsuits, and 4 dresses. If you would like to take a closer look at what I ordered then take a look at my haul post HERE.

Accessory Stand Necklace

This was a purchase that was inspired by an OOTD post done by Steph over at Bonjour Belle (LINK). Steph writes a fabulous fashion and beauty blog and also does reasonably priced web designs. (She designed and installed my new layout so if you like it and fancy your own here is the link to her design shop: link). Her blog is definitely one of my favourites so I would recommend that you check it out. If you would like to see the exact OOTD post that I am referring to then I have linked it HERE and when I saw it I absolutely fell in love with the necklace that she was wearing and just had to have it for myself. The 'Ora Necklace' is available from a site called The Accessory Stand in both silver and gold and is just £7.99 with £1.50 for delivery and you can pay through PayPal. The Accessory Stand is a lovely little site with a range of adorable and reasonably priced jewellery and accessories. My order arrived super quick even came with a complimentary cross ring which I thought was very nice of them! Will definitely be ordering from them again.

 

Pandora Charms

I picked myself up two Pandora charms from the JohnGreed website to add to the collection on my bracelet. I used to think that charms would never be something that I would buy for myself and they are only the sort of thing you would receive as a present to give them some kind of sentimental value. But the alpha 'M' charm that I got does have sentimental value as it is a reminder of my recent holiday to Marbella with my boyfriend. We took a day trip out to Torremolinos to visit the water park and we wandered past a jewellery store that sold Pandora. We just windowed shopped and I noticed the alpha charms and just teased 'Ooo you should get me that 'M' to remind me of this holiday forever' and he said that if we'd brought more money with us out on our day trip then he would've got me it, how sweet. But since then it was completely forgotten about and I just thought 'oh well I'll buy it myself and pretend it was from him' ;). I threw in the heart spacer too because I thought it was pretty and was only £15.00. The 'M' charm was £30.00.

Primark Blazer

I've been wanting a blazer for ages and ages because they can really transform an outfit and are an item that should be in every wardrobe - I can't believe I have gone for so long without one! But I've searched in Topshop, River Island, H&M etc etc and just never fallen in love with one where the style suited and I felt that the price was appropriate. So one day when I visited Preston for the day to hand back in my keys to my university halls we walked past Primark and I spotted various blazers on the mannequins in the window and I felt silly for never checking there in the past! They had various colours, ranging from pastels such as mint green, baby pink and lilac, to the standard black, grey and cream. I opted for the black and it cost me just £15.00. I really like the fit and the style, it has no buttons and no pockets (I would've preferred a pocket or two), and also has a cream lining so that if you choose to turn up the sleeves then there is a colour contract on the cuffs. All in all, a fantastic bargain jacket for just £15!

This is me very awkwardly attempting to take a picture of the cuff to show the colour contrast when it's upturned!

Aaaaand that's it for my treats this week!

Do you love to treat yourself on pay day? Or do you treat yourself all the time? ;) 

xxx.

New Mac Lipsticks - 'Lustering' & 'Vegas Volt'

Hi there! I just wanted to share with you all cheeky little purchase that I made last week and I am very glad that I did - no regrets at all in the decision to have £27 deducted from my bank account.

I ordered two Mac lipsticks: 'Lustering' which is a lustre finish (clue is in the name), and 'Vegas Volt' an amplified creme finish. The decision to buy Vegas Volt was heavily influence by the very beautiful Laura from Belles Boutique and her fairly recent instagram pictures and 'What I'm Wearing' blog posts featuring this shade. It's one of those that you see and instantly fall in love with and just know that you have to get it.

Lustering

I found Lustering to be an extremely wearable shade, it's a hot pink shade but also soft and sheer, and glossy too. In the past I have seen it to be described as 'Impassioned's little sister' (Impassioned is a bright, bright hot pink), and I would agree that Lustering is a more muted version. It feels super soft and moisturing on the lips, like you've just put a balm on instead of a lipstick. Overall, great for every day wear and a lovely shade.

Vegas Volt

Being an amplified finish this means that the colours are extremely pigmented, but they are also smooth and creamy - this one applies like an absolute dream and I think I am obsessed with it! I never thought I'd be one for an orange lip but I really do love this. It's not too orange, its more of a coral-y pink colour and would look beautiful on a bright, summers day. I've been finding the wear time pretty good, it lasted about 5 hours on a shopping trip at the weekend before I felt I had to reapply (in River Island changing rooms haha!). 

'Lustering'

'Vegas Volt'

Mac lipsticks retail for £13.50 £14.00.

Have you tried either of these shades? What's your favourite shade/finish?

xx.