♥ March Empties!

I've seen a few of these posts on blogger where people talk through all the products they've recently used up, and to make my own more substantial I figured it would be best to post an 'Empties' at the end of every month! I have quite a few as the products I use when I'm in Birmingham stay here and were all used up around Christmas, though being back home means these products really are reaching their end now!

Original Source Cranberry and Honey Daily Scrub.

This is my favourite shower scrub and I usually pick this up in boots for around the £2 mark. It's currently half price, so if you're interested you can pick it up for £1.33 through the link above! Original Source is an incredible brand because all their products ARE in fact made from natural ingredients but come without the often pricey tag that can be on some Lush or Body Shop alternatives! I often wear exfoliating gloves when in the shower just to get dead skin away and this scrub teamed up with the gloves (you can probably pick them up in pound shops or drugstores) works towards getting super soft skin!

Mitchum Deodorant
I use this product every day as it's 48 hour protection really does help defend against any body odour. I swear by this product in keeping your underarms dry all day and not leaving white marks on black clothing. I managed to pick a new roll on and I've recently ventured into their spray deodorant as they were two for four pound in Boots, when usually their roll-ons are about the three pound mark.

Neutrogena Pink Grapefruit Face Wash

This is the last face wash I bought while I was at home before moving to Cornwall and now I've come back and used it all up! I absolutely adore the Pink Grapefruit range that Neutrogena have because it smells so fabulous - and it's pink! I'm also a fan of the acne scrub they do and use both products to the death! This face wash really helps speed up my morning and night skin care routine as it is so good at getting every last trace of mascara and foundation off all while preventing breakouts and clearing up skin. The face wash is really gentle so it's good for delicate skin and isn't too rough as it's just a gel that lathers up really well. With the scrub alternative, however, I use it of a morning in the shower as it would be too harsh on clean skin of an evening. 

VO5 Hairspray
I've been using this hairspray for about seven months now and I can't imagine going for another brand when it comes to my hair products! V05 are excellent and not too pricey at all. I usually pick up my VO5 products from a Superdrug or a Boots store as I can collect points on my purchases, however if there isn't a deal on the product I'm after this brand is also stocked at my local Bodycare (they sell all sorts of toiletries and hair and beauty essentials at discount prices). I managed to get a new bottle of this hairspray today in Bodycare for £1.99! This spray holds all night and to keep my hair straight I'll spray it onto a hairbrush and run it through the length of my hair to stop any flicks or kinks! I also always have more than one can of this on the go, so at two pound I couldn't pass it up!

♥ Current Loves

While I've been back in Birmingham I've been able to really indulge. I've treated myself to a new tattoo (and ruined my overdraft in the process) eaten loads of junk food and treated myself to some stuff I didn't need because I have similar products waiting for me back in Cornwall... But, I figure it's ok to treat myself while

I'm in Birmingham! It is my month off from the stress of uni, after all! 

First things first: FOOD! Being home is such a luxury because I don't have to buy my own food. There's no worrying about mouldy bread or gone off milk as my parents always see to those sorts of things and I don't have to pay to stock up a fridge. My mom and dad also get little treats in too, as they are aware I never treat myself at uni! Because of the time of year in England, in the run up to Easter Hot Cross Buns become widely available. This is brilliant because they're my favourite thing to have for breakfast! Sometimes I will treat myself to cinnamon and raisin bagels which are really similar in taste, but there is nothing like a hot cross bun covered in butter on a Sunday morning! 

Secondly, I dyed my ombre very blonde! It was a home job so it's far from perfect but this will give me a chance to get used to my hair being so light. Naturally I have quite dark brown hair so the blonde is quite shocking at the moment. I used a Jerome Russell Medium Lift Blonding Kit (the link is maximum as the medium isn't available online!) and I will soon be purchasing the same box dye again, along with a light ashy brown, and completely dying my whole head blonde and then working through light brown at the roots! It's going to take a few weeks to get my hair exactly how I want it but I've learnt to become patient. After all, going from a very dark brunette to blonde was never going to be easy. 

I gush about loving Birmingham to everybody. I've lived in the city my whole life and being away from such a busy place does dampen my spirits sometimes. Luckily during my first weekend back there was plenty of sunshine. Check the snap of Council House in the city centre! It was a really sunny spring afternoon and it just looked so pretty. Sadly, though, the fluzy fountain wasn't on so people were sat were there is normally a flow of water! After taking this picture I headed to lunch at Nando's - another thing I really miss when I'm in Cornwall as there isn't a Nando's down there.

Lastly, I've kicked myself back into the habit of drinking water. Lately my skin hasn't looked as nice as it could and I picked up a bottle of Glaceau's Vitamin Water in Defence for my walk home from work yesterday. The flavour for this one is raspberry and apple and it wasn't too overpowering but still really tasty. The brilliant thing about vitamin water is definitely that they're packed full of really good stuff for your body so if you're busy and know that you're not going to get all the vitamin c you need you can pick this up for £1 at Tesco at the moment!

Before I finish off this post I need to say a massive thank you to anyone and everyone who has followed my blog. It's in its very early days but I'm super excited about getting 40 followers in just over twenty days! Hopefully you'll all enjoy my content and I'll try my best not to feature products that have been tried and tested hundreds of times in similar blogs. I'm going to work out a blogging schedule and get really serious about my blogging as I feel like this could be the career for me when i leave university. For now, every other Thursday will see a 'Current Loves' post and I'll surely figure out some other weekly or monthly feature posts! Hope to chat to you all really soon!

Em x

♥ New Tattoo!

If you've ventured onto my page through tumblr or ever saw my tumblr, (constantreminders) you may know that I'm super into my tattoos and for only having just turned 19 and only getting them done legally - since i turned 18 - I have quite a few!

My most recent instalment has been an orange coloured rose on my elbow. It's a new addition to the sleeve which is now in super slow progress as my tattooist, Isobel Stevenson, is one of my closest friends from home and I refuse to let anyone else touch my sleeve! It's hard work going three months without a tattoo; so naturally the first thing I did when I got home was go and have a few hours sitting! I think this one took about two and half hours but I wasn't paying much attention to the clock as I have so much fun while I'm in the studio... That and the pain of being tattooed on the elbow isn't very nice to sit through for multiple hours!

So! Here is the new beauty, tell me what you think!

 

♥ Forever 21 Mini-Haul!

Sorry for this post being so distant from my last one! I've just come home (to Birmingham) for a month and travelling from Cornwall back up country to the Midlands and seeing everyone when I get back home means I've been incredibly busy. Not to mention, I'm back at work for the month! So the next few weeks will be very busy and stressful. The upside to being back in Birmingham is having access to great shopping! Birmingham boasts the Bullring and several other shopping centres like a Kingfisher and Solihull isn't too far. Being back here means I get to go into different stores that I don't get to shop in for nine months of the year now!

The hardest thing about being at university down in Cornwall is the lack of shopping I get to do, and being a student who has to pay for themselves the money I earn isn't as disposable as it was this time last year. However, I did manage to spend just shy of £35 in Forever 21. My overdraft is feeling the pinch!

First up, I know it's getting close to the summer months and I always try to get myself new pyjamas that are lightweight and comfortable to wear on the warmer nights. I contemplated going into Topshop and picking up one of their night dresses as they sell some for around the £18 mark, but i walked past Forever 21 and their visual merchandising looked incredible and I love their underwear section so I thought I'd try something different! This was a great decision. I got a lightweight t-shirt and short set for £10.65. I went for a large, even though a medium would fit a size ten perfectly, because I don't really like the thought of my bed clothes being tight or uncomfortable (I also just think there's something sexy about having your pyjama top hanging off one shoulder, but shh!). The top features the slogan 'He loves me not' with the 'not' striked out, and a pair of black daisy print shorts. The top is more than 50% cotton and is so so comfortable! The shorts aren't cotton, but they're still super comfy and don't show any bum!

Then I spotted the dressing gowns. I'd been lusting after a gown since I saw all my friends at uni lounging about in big fluffy, comfy gowns. Forever 21 were right on trend though, and had some lightweight (practically see-through chiffon) gowns. It has three-quarter length arms and falls just below the bum and has a loose belt to tie it around you. The colour of the one I picked up is a baby pink with black polka dots and it's very girly and cute, though it would also look amazing if you were to just tie it around you with some sexy black underwear if you're trying to impress the boyfriend!! The robe is 100% polyester and cost £15.90.

I then went to pay and as usual with Forever 21 they had stacks of boxes with little goodies in them. Having recently bought a case to keep my nail polishes in, I figured a new make-up bag wouldn't do any harm and saw cute, pastel coloured bags by the tills. At first i picked up a light blue one with a slogan i can't really remember, i then figured there was nobody on the tills on the floor i was at so went downstairs to pay. It was there that I found the incredible make-up bag i eventually bought! The light blue case with pink love heart and the slogan 'You Suck' is very me and very very cute! I think this cost me around £5.80 - £6! It's quite big and i think the vast majority of my makeup will fit in this which is really helpful as just having one bag for them on the long journeys from uni to home is kind of essential!


I fell in love with these three products and i know I'll get plenty of use out of all three. I did notice that everything i bought had many different designs available. For instance, you can pick up a pyjama set that says 'i love coffee' and coffee cup print shorts, or puppy prints for the same price as the set i picked up. The gowns too come in different colours and patterns, though i think they only had two or three on show that i could see, whereas the pyjama set was out in about six or seven different designs! That is probably one of my favourite things about Forever 21... Although it is tedious to sift through their three large floors in the Bullring, they always have a variation of the same product in different colours or patterns on display - there is always something to suit most tastes!

♥ My Bookshelf!

I currently live in the university halls, on campus, at Falmouth University. I'm a Creative Writing First Year and I'm absolutely loving it so far! The location of the university is what makes it such an incredible experience and I've made an amazing bunch of friends during my time here. I only have eight weeks or so left of living in my bedroom here after the Easter break, which is breaking my heart a little. I've fallen in love with the bedroom I've completely made my own. It's massive - huge desk space, huge shelf space, a giant pin board, wardrobe, draws, double bed AND en suite - and very expensive! So I thought while I'm still here I could show you how I organise my bookshelf (it's mostly makeup and candles) while I still have it!

I also apologise for my awful photos, they were taken on my iPad in a rush as I'm going out for dinner (Wetherspoons, oops!) in a little bit!

First up is where I keep all my make up, lotions, brushes and nail varnish collection! I'll go through it all, from right to left. On the end there is a small Superdrug vanity case full of nail stuff and nail varnish remover. I believe i have about 20 different nail varnishes in that case! Also, hanging on the bottle of remover is a Hello Kitty necklace and it's a mermaid kitty because my star sign is Pisces, the fish! I then have my three different Baby Lips, Cherry Me, Peach Kiss and Pink Punch. I then have multivitamins because my mom got super worried I wouldn't be getting everything I need if I was cooking for myself or having lots of take aways. Sudocrem and E45 creams to stop bad skin and fight spots. The E45 is also a massive help for moisturising nearly healed tattoos, so I use that quite a bit. I have other basics in there such as deodorant, scented moisturisers (the Kate Moss one is lush!) and my paddle brush and comb.

In the corner you can just about see some of the make up I use on a day-to-day basis. Maybelline Dream Pure BB Cream in Light and Dream Matte Mousse in Ivory, sample size They're Real mascara, Rimmel Scandaleyes Retro Glam mascara and their Glam Eyes Liquid Eyeliner. I also use Rimmel's Wake Me Up Concealor, as I once saw a Zoella video in which she used it to cover up dark circles under the eyes and that product works wonders for me!

Here you can see the rest of my make up. The only two lipsticks I own are a Barry M one, shade 160, it's a very dark purple/reddish colour. The other one is a Kate Moss Rimmel one, in 107, this one is a more obvious dark red. I barely ever use these as I feel like lipstick makes me look a little strange as I always have such heavy eye makeup!  There are also a few products i love standing out here - V05 high volume hairspray and Texture Spray. These products are amazing, the hairspray is extra strong hold and I always use this to stop fly aways or spray it onto my brush after straightening my hair and brushing through it all to help it stay straight. The Matt and Messy salt spray by L'Oreal is very similar to the VO5 Texture spray, but i find the L'Oreal one just makes my hair sticky and doesn't create any kinks or waves in my hair. Finally on display here are my make up brushes - nothing branded, just ones I've saved from make up sets I've been bought for Christmas. In the very left hand corner is my stationary holder. Pretty boring!

This is the top shelf, where i keep my perfume at an easy reach! I have a bottle of unopened Killer Queen by Katy Perry which was a birthday present off my dad a few weeks ago. It's the most beautiful scent, although I would say it's not for wearing during the day time - it's quite strong so I wear it on nights out! I have my open bottle in the front. I then have a Kate Moss perfume and I can't remember the name of this one but it's my everyday scent. I think it's really fruity and floral and subtle and is great for everyday use. I then have Katy Perry's Purr, which is also really fruity and a good scent for just a normal day! Also there's a massive Hello Kitty mug that I received last Christmas and love to pieces! 

This is the very small percentage of the bookshelf I actually use for books! Even then, it's covered up with Hello Kitty's and candles. I'm using my biscuit jar as a bookend and I'm yet to invest in any cute bookends and I dread to think how old those custard creams are, as I never eat them. This collection of books doesn't really show my taste in books very well as the majority of my books have been left in Birmingham as there's no point in me keeping them in temporary accommodation! I do have about 120-150 books so this is a very small collection and it would look completely different if it was my bookshelf at home!

I feel like you may have learnt some weird things about me through showing you my bookshelf. I'm obsessed with Hello Kitty and everyone knows it, which is why I have so many Hello Kitty items on these shelves. I also love Soap and Glory's Mist You Madly spray, which features in with my lotions on the bottom shelf. There are three bottles on there! This was just a post that was quickly thrown together as I love looking at other peoples collections of toiletries and beauty products, as well as what sorts of fragrances they like and books are a passion of mine (I do Creative Writing, after all) and I'd love to know whether you've spotted a book you love among my collection!

♥ Stay Matte Primer and Bargain Brushes!

Sorry for the quality of the photo's in this post, I was just dying to get something else up and make my page a bit more interesting! The weather in Cornwall has been absolutely beautiful the past two days and I've been spending all my time in the sunshine and by the seaside while I still can. I'm going back to work and the reality of life at home at the end of next week, and leaving behind everyone at uni is really hard. Especially when life in halls is so different to life in the family home! But what I did do today was pop into Wilkinson's and have a little look at any offers they had one and I managed to get these two treats. Wilkinson's isn't normally where I'd purchase any beauty buys, but their Rimmel counter is a weakness of mine and I get student discount, so I was saving some pennies!

Rimmel Stay Matter Primer

This is only the second primer I have used. After getting my hands on a sample size POREfessional and using that as a base coat for my makeup I found the finish was just a lot better. I then settled for using a Simple moisturiser for a while before ending up buying endless BB creams. My usual routine is to just moisturise, add a little bb cream to my t zone, then my foundation... But with using a primer I think I will cut down on the bb cream! 

I was shocked when testing the product in the shop that the primer is the same colour and texture as a moisturiser and not the clear, thick, gel I am used to from these sort of products. It softens the skin and this does show, I think, and I'll be sure to update you on how well the primer wears! 

I only paid £3.98 as an 'introductory price' in Wilkinsons, and then got student discount so overall it would of cost me around £3.50, which was an offer I could not pass up on, espesially as it's a product I've yet to test!

Wilkinsons Foundation Brush

I also managed to pick up a foundation brush from Wilkinsons own range. Having never bought any sort of makeup brushes before, I couldn't really justify spending £10 on a Real Techniques brush or even more on a MAC one, so I thought I'd start small with the brush in the first image! It only cost £1.50 (again, student discount knocked a little off this) so if it turns out to be awful I won't mind at all, and will have learnt my lesson. I'm used to only ever applying liquids with a sponge and at the moment by bare hands suffice any make up application and I can only imagine how awful that must be for the sensitive and delicate skin that makes up the face. The brush itself is super soft and feels lovely on the skin. I would say that it is quite stiff but I wouldn't know if that's what I should want a foundation brush to be like! I'm yet to use the brush but I'll be sure to update you on how good (or bad) it turns out to be!

♥ Maybelline Mini-Haul!

Last weekend I managed to treat myself to these three treats at Superdrug with their three for two offer. Maybelline is probably my favourite high street beauty brand and I've found that their products work the best for me. Although the products are affordable for everyone, they still manage to often be on offer which works out brilliantly for students and those who are shopping with a small budget. The price of the brand doesn't effect the quality, though, which is where most high street brands can fall short.

Baby Lips
'Peach Kiss' is my third in the collection to have purchased. I fell in love with Baby Lips when I first bought 'Pink Punch' and 'Cherry Me'. After trying out all three of the tinted balms available from the brand I've come to the conclusion that it is an affordable way for anyone to have a tinted lip balm that is highly pigmented and lasts longer than others that are available on the high street. Peach Kiss is a lovely nude colour that works well day or night and is perfect to add a touch of colour where a more noticable lipstick would be too overpowering. My favourite, however, would still have to be Cherry Me, as i'm not brave enough to rock a bright red every day! And at £2.99, it's hard to say no!

Colour Show Nail Polish
These are my second and third shades of the Colour Show range. I first purchased the colour 'Orange Attack' and found the brand to be long lasting and chip free for around a week. I couldn't resist getting a few more and the nude shades got my attention. I chose 'Love This Sweater' and 'Sugar Crystals' and found that they work brilliantly together and I feel like they would look excellent with any skin tone. They are two super versatile colours! I find this brand is quick drying, but I still choose to put two coats of polish on and then set with a clear polish to avoid any scratches or easy chipping! Again, priced at £2.99, it's very affordable and high quality for what you're paying.

So for a brilliant combined price of £5.98 I managed to pick up three beauty buys that will be both long lasting and reused week in, week out! Maybelline is currently on offer in Superdrug, so if you're as big of a fan of the brand as I am, I would definitely recommend stocking up!