Collective beauty and fashion haul

Hello! Here's some of the beauty and fashion bits I have bought recently! If you have any requests please leave them below as I'm slightly short of ideas at the moment and could do with some suggestions! My YouTube channel is youtube.com/islaayx if you wanted to subscribe!

Keep the car running

pleather shift dress: Fashion Union*
boots: Clarks
bag: La Moda 'tory'*
coat: She Inside
ring: Pandora
necklace: eBay

Can I just say I was literally freezing whilst taking these photos, the jacket is nice and all that but scores zero points for warmth! I didn't realise how much leather/pleather there was going on in this outfit until I was editing the photos, oops! I was recently sent this bag from La Moda, it's such a steal at £16 (extra 20% off with the code 'LOOK20') back in May I did a 'what's in my bag' post with another La Moda bag which, if I remember rightly I won in a twitter giveaway they did on their twitter page @LaModaUK. I used it for sixth form for ages and it lasted really well! I like how the Tory bag in this post has the adjustable strap so you can have it either long like it is in these photos or short.

The dress is from Fashion Union, it's a shift style which is one of my favourite cuts however it is quite short on me (I'm five foot eight ish). It's unfortunately not on their website any more however there are lots of other items on the Fashion Union website and you can save 15% with the discount code 'BLOG15'.

Under £25 New Look party dress wishlist

one/two/three/four/five/six

I was approached by New Look to do a wishlist post featuring their latest collection of Christmas party dresses. With the Christmas party season fast approaching us I'm starting to browse the shops to find the perfect dresses for the different parties and occasions which are just round the corner. New Look have a range of party dresses and I have picked out my favourite six under £25 to share with you. They all are based around a similar colour scheme which is mostly black and burgundy as I feel black is very versatile and will go with a wide range of shoes and accessories whereas the burgundy is very festive and wintery! They're all not too over the top and sequiny (opposite to the one I'm wearing to the Motel Rocks one in this outfit post) and you could get away with dressing them down to wear with boots and a leather jacket on a day to day basis- making them more versatile and meaning you'll get more wear out of them! I like the paisley pattern which a couple of the dresses I have picked out have and I'm pretty sure I have the cami top version of number three which you can see in this outfit post.

Which one of these dresses is your favourite? Do you have any parties organised to go to over the next couple of months?

*

Current beauty favourites

I thought I would share some of my favourite beauty products with you as I haven't posted/filmed anything like this so here's a few products I've been loving at the moment- enjoy!

hanging out the passengers side of his best friends ride

kimono: hidden fashion (£6.99 and free postage!!!!)
jeans: american apparel easy jeans
top: topshop
shoes: sebago
necklace: eBay

*these photos were taken like a million years ago so that's why it's super sunny*

a kimono is something I've always wanted but just never bought so when I saw this one on Hidden Fashion for just £6.99 and free postage I knew I had to buy it! I really love the fit of it, it's so much more flattering than I thought it would be and is perfect to wear over outfits as a cover up, especially in summer (I'm currently sat at my laptop wearing a massive jumper, long pjs and fluffy socks while drinking a hot chocolate- I think summer may be over...). It also comes with a dark green background instead of the black but I thought black would go with more in my wardrobe than the green would so I went with that one. It makes a good lighter alternative to a cardigan for when the weather is a bit nicer and it adds a bit more colour to the outfit too.

I've been wearing my Sebago Docksides a lot recently as I've finally worn them in, they just seem to match everything I wear! I have also been wearing my American Apparel easy jeans on pretty much a daily basis, I wasn't sure on the colour first but now I really like them. I think I'll give them a rest until spring comes round as I have the dark wash indigo ones too but I also want to get a black pair (or maybe the topshop joni jeans instead, what do you recommend?)

what do you think of my kimono, will you be buying one or do you already have one?

Nicole Scherzinger inspired makeup and outfit

created on Polyvore, Nicole Scherzinger photos from itv player

I was recently challenged by Gala Bingo to come up with a makeup look inspired by one of the X Factor judges,  I chose to do Nicole Scherzinger despite not actually looking like her in the slightest because her makeup always looks flawless! I took my inspiration from Last Saturday's show where she had a gold (but not over dramatic) eyeshadow look, red glossy lips and a lot of highlighter on which is what I have done for this look. I chose to do this look as she often wears a lot of mascara and a dark smoky eye which really isn't me whereas this look is much more in my comfort zone and is more within the capabilities of my makeup skills.

The makeup I used for this look is in the photo above- is it just me that doesn't realise how much you're actually slapping onto your face until you see it all laid out like this?! I was recently sent the Too Faced Endless Sun bronzer and Size Queen mascara. I like the bronzer as unlike some which I have tried it doesn't look muddy or very obvious on the skin and it blends out very well. It does have a little bit of a shimmer to it- the glitter particles are very small so it gives more of a overall sheen and glow to the face instead of the obvious glitter which some bronzers can give. The Size Queen mascara has a very very big brush to it, meaning that it's easy to get it smudging onto your eyelid when you're applying it. I'd recommend applying the mascara first before you put any eyeshadow on to prevent it from getting ruined. It does give lots of volume though which is why I used it for this look, along with the false lashes I wore. The Endless Sun bronzer retails for £25 and the Size Queen mascara retails for £18 which puts them in line with the prices of NARS, Benefit etc.

The Maybelline colour tattoo which I used for the base for my eyeshadow is a recent purchase, along with the Mac studio finish concealer and L'Oreal super liner. These are pretty much all blogger 'cult products' and you'll of probably heard about them a million times before so I won't go on about them apart from saying that I'm loving all of them. I also bought the Bourjois java powder recently (totally didn't just buy it for the packaging...) and I'm also really liking it. The powder is so finely milled that it isn't visible on the skin at all like some powders can. I use it on the top of my cheekbones as a highlight and also under my eyes as a setting powder as due to the fact that it's so finely milled it doesn't go cakey and prevents creasing under your eye.

For the lips I used a combination of the Rimmel lip liner in 'Indian Pink', MAC 'just a pinch' gel blush, mac 'Ruby Woo' lipstick and Max Factor 'fashion leader' lipgloss as Nicole was wearing a very glossy red lip on X Factor.

I also created a little set on Polyvore with items inspired by what she was wearing in the show. My Polyvore username is @islaay if you'd like to follow me, I think I'm going to be using more often now as this was my first time actually using it!

*this is not a sponsored post but I will be receiving tickets to go to the

X Factor live UK tour for doing this post. The Too Faced products

were sent to me to review and I was not paid to include them in this post

you need to change direction

blouse: H&M
treggings: Topshop
shoes: Converse
lipstick: Mac 'hang up'
gold chain necklace: eBay
bandeau: New Look

There's no real reason that I'm sat down in both of these photos. I thought I'd do some sat on the banch as a bit of a change buuuut then I forgot to do some normal ones too- oops! The LOVELY Laura from Style and Sushi gave me this lovely lovely (can I say 'lovely' any more in one sentence?!) H&M blouse as a birthday present after I fell in love with one she bought similar to it last winter. I think the polkadots add something a bit extra to it instead of it being plain black and I can't wait to wear it more over winter, thanks Lauraaaaaa! 

NARS 'orgasm' blush dupes, swatches and mini giveaway

Left-right; e.l.f. 'St Lucia blush and bronzer duo', W7 'dahlia', NARS 'orgasm'

The Nars 'orgasm' blush is pretty much the cult blush and I'm sure you'll of heard of it about a million times before of loads of beauty blogs. I recently got it as a birthday present from some of my friends so I thought I would do a post with a couple of 'dupes' of it. Now as you can see from the swatch photos they are by no means perfect dupes but they're the same idea which is a pinky/peach blush with little gold reflects in them and all come off as a fairly similar colour on the cheeks. In the photo above you'll probably be able to notice that e.l.f. 'St Lucia' and W7 'dahlia' blushes have more of a crumbly texture to them whereas the formula of the NARS one is much less powdery. You'll also be able to see that 'orgasm' has more of a sheen to it whereas the W7 and e.l.f. ones have much larger glitter pieces in them, I tried to take a photo of this but unfortunately the macro feature of my camera isn't that great so I didn't manage to show it properly.

As for packaging, I like the NARS 'orgasm' how it's small and compact and has a mirror but the matte packaging means that dirty fingerprints show up really really easily. The W7 one is nice how you can see the product through the top but it is unnecessarily bulky and isn't as good for traveling. The e.l.f. packaging is a similar style to the NARS one, it has a large mirror and doesn't show up the fingerprints as easily. It also comes with the bronzer which I don't use too much as it is is quite glittery but I have used it as an eyeshadow a couple of times before and it is nice for that!

Overall the NARS blush would have to be my favourite because of the longer lasting formula, good packaging, very small glitter particles so that it gives a sheen and colour is the most flattering on my skin. The high price tag of £21.50 on the Space.NK website is very offputting considering the W7 blush is 2.99 on xtras.co.uk and the e.l.f. one is £3.75 on the e.l.f. website

If you've read this far then I thought I'd do a little giveaway of the e.l.f. 'St Lucia' blush and bronzer duo as I have a spare one which I have never used. Simply put your email in a comment below and I'll randomly select a winner on the 25th of November. It's international so everyone can enter and you must be following on either GFC or Bloglovin' for your entry to count (I will be checking)

Are you free and can get to London on Sunday the 8th of December? I'm holding a Winter Wonderland meetup which I'd love you to attend- put your email address down here

I was sent the W7 blush for review purposes by xtras.co.uk but this does not influence my opinion on it and it is 100% honest as always

I am an instagram addict

I'm not denying it because to be honest there's no point. I am an instagram addict. As you can see from above most of the photos I post are girly, pretty floral ones, nail art, makeup and the occasional magazine and Starbucks. I don't think you get much more 'common white girl' than me (and if you don't already follow @CommonWhiteGrls on twitter then why not (I'm kinda ashamed to say it's probably the most relatable twitter account for me.)

Anyway if you wanted to follow my instagram account, my username is islaay and here is a little link to it.

'cos I'm a good girl and you know it

Dress: Motel Rocks Gabby iridescent green sequin dress*
Heels: Kurt Geiger
Nails: using Essie 'mint candy apple, Barry M 'aqua glitter' and Milani 'teal'
Ring: Pandora
Lipstick: Mac 'hang up'

First off I think this dress is the most sparkliest, glitteriest thing I have ever seen/worn- it couldn't be more glittery if it tried and is a perfect Christmas party dress! It's a sort of bodycon style which really isn't something I normally go for but I think the shape of this Motel Rocks one is actually quite flattering because of the long sleeves. It retails for £58 but you can save 20% with Ellie's discount code 'ELLIESFT' making it £46.40 with free delivery! They have around ten different colours/patterns of it so there's something for everyone.

£

£

Please excuse my literally white legs in these photos- I wasn't going to take these photos today but it finally stopped raining (welcome to England) so I thought I would take them while I had the chance to and wasn't able to fake tan before! I wanted to paint my nail like I did in my mermaid nail art post but as i just mentioned I didn't get a chance so I just kept them as this blue glitter ombre which I still like and I think they match all the glitter well!

could be the changing of the seasons

skirt: asos
top: new look*
cardigan: primark
brogues: Russell and Bromley 'abacrombie'
scarf: H&M (last year)
necklace: eBay
lipstick: revlon 'cherries in the snow'

this is one of my favourite outfits, I love how I'm wearing classic Russell and Bromely brogues with a tartan scarf- I feel so British! I feel like I haven't worn this skirt in forever but I'm so glad I've started wearing it more, it goes with pretty much every top I own and is so easy to wear. I have *that* fluffy Primark cardigan on, I just can't get enough of it lately! It's the warmest thing everrrr and is perfect for winter. I love how it adds a different texture to the outfit and adds a bit more interest to it!

18th birthday vlog and haul

It was my 18th birthday a couple of weeks ago and I thought I would share with you what I got and what I did on the day, I hope you enjoy and of course I'm not trying to brag at all- these videos were very highly requested! My YouTube channel is islaayx and is linked in the sidebar of my blog!

 

mermaid nails

Polishes used:
American Apparel 'peacock'
Milani '582 teal'
Seche Vite top coat

I feel like these should be called my mermaid nails, they look just like a glittery mermaids tail in my opinion! I used American Apparel nail polish in 'peacock' as a base. I love this one as it only needs one coat to be opaque. Over the top I layered three layers of the milani nail polish. I picked this up in New York in the summer and as far as I'm aware they're not actually available in the UK but there's a few on eBay and Amazon if you have a look. I wanted loads of glitter so I put three coats of it on to make it very opaque and sparkly. I finished them off with my favourite top coat seche vite to make it extra shiny and to help prevent chipping.


 What do you think of my mermaid nails, will you be trying out anything similar?