BATTLE OF THE BRANDS: BEAUTY SPONGES

Hello all,

So today I have a post that I am so excited for! It's another in the 'Battle of the brands' collection I'm trying to start (I did a contour kit one not too far back) and today this is a beauty sponge edition! 

I have been loving beauty sponges for so long as they apply products amazingly, they are so easy to use and also they stop you going crazy overboard as they soak up all the extra product! 

Also theres so many out there that are in competition with each other I thought I should share my thoughts on the two main brands, the original beauty blender and the real techniques miracle complexion sponge. 

I personally love both of these sponges and would use either of them (or both) on a daily basis. 

The first difference between these two products is the price. The beauty blender (pink) is £16 from most websites, such as bots and beauty bay and the real techniques (orange) is £5.99 from boots and superdrug.

The second difference is the shape. Both of these sponges are about 1 inch big when dry, and grow to about twice in size when wet, therefore as far as size goes, they're about the same. 

The shape of the beauty blender is a sort of egg/oval, with one pointed end and one rounded end. I like to use the round end for bouncing foundation all over the face and the pointed end for concealer on blemishes or under the eyes. 

As for the real techniques sponge, it has a similar shape in that one end is pointed however, the other has a flat side. I like this shape as you can use the flat side for foundation or concealer in all the nooks and crannies.

I like the shapes of both of these, as they are both multipurpose and make blending everything so easy! However I personally couldn't pick a favourite as they are both good for different reason! (but in the end they both do the same job)

As you can see in the picture, the two pointed ends are exactly the same shape, however the real techniques one is slightly more sharp (if we're being extremely picky) but the beauty blender is thinner. 

Next up is the most important test in my opinion! The squish/bounce test! I think this is super important as it shows how absorbing (is that a word?) they are, how easy they are to use (because who wants to hit their face with a hard sponge??) and how well they wash.

The real techniques one is very squishy as you can see from the top image the two pointed ends pushes all the way in and the middle is almost fully touching the other side. 

This ones is actually a teeny bit thicker than the Beauty Blender, simply because it is a thicker and smoother sponge material, so it's not as holey! 

However because of this slightly less squishy consistency it's harder to wash and the soap tends to get stuck inside, making it very time consuming to wash and when you wet ir for daily use not as much water can be squeezed out.

As for the Beauty Blender, the point again pushes fully in and my fingers were actually touching when pressing the whole sponge together. This again is because of the sponge material, as this one is a lot more holey, like a typical sponge, meaning it doesn't hold onto the water as much however i do sometimes have to re-wet it if I'm doing a full-face makeup. (eg thick foundation, concealer and cream contour) Also I do think it would be very easy to rip this sponge, as it's a lot thinner, so i find myself being very careful when I have false nails on or when I wash it.
Furthermore this sponge is super easy to wash, however I did notice that the first couple of washes the pink colour ran, which has never happened with the orange sponge!

In conclusion, I think both of these sponges are amazing. They both apply the products exactly the same, both cream and powders. I love both of the shapes, as they both do exactly the same thing! Because of this reason, I would maybe swing towards the Real technique ones, if you're on a budget or just want one to try, however the Beauty Blender is a real wonder and is so highly raved about I feel like even if you don't need it, you'll buy it just to see what the hype is (like me!)

Thankyou for reading I hope you enjoyed and found it helpful! Let me know which one you prefer and why!

Thanks again

Fern :) 

SUMMER HAUL

Hello all,

So, I went shopping...aaaand I have no money left. BUT It was worth it! I got everything I needed to get for summer, from clothes to shoes and also some makeup...(Not that I necessarily need more...but lets be honest you can never have enough) 

I much prefer to physically go into a shop to buy things, rather than online, as I love carrying shopping bags and looking around the shops and trying the clothes on, as my body is such an awkward shape (thankyou swimming for these huge shoulders) So when I go shopping, I go all out, which is why I have quite a few new things, so lets get cracking!

Also I've never done a haul blog post before, so let me know if you enjoy it!

First up, I went to Zara, an unusual spot to find me because sometimes It can be a lil pricey for my poor purse, but I saw a video by Emily Canham (I love her she's the bomb, and she's stunning so naturally, whatever she has, I want) where she had some really nice crop tops from there for a really good price so of course, I had to get on the bandwagon!

my arm is so pale it literally blends into the light..wow fern wow 

The first thing I got was this Pink crop top. I thought it would be great for the summer when it's really sunny and warm! I also love the colour, I have literally 0 pink tops (I'm more of a 100 shades of black kinda girl) so I thought it would brighten up my wardrobe a little bit! The halter neck/ racer style back makes it really flattering and the thin straps are perfect for getting a tan (or a burn in my case!) 

I also got the same style in a navy blue as well! (because you can never have too many crop tops) These two were £4.99 each, which I think is really good for Zara, as you know the quality is gonna be good, which it is. The material is really strong on these, which is good for a large-shouldered-lass like myself! Also the crop tops like this in Primark cost £5, so they're cheaper and better quality than primarny! 

Also from Zara I got this striped crop top. I wish they'd had a few more sizes in the other colours because I looooove this top! Normally, this style makes my shoulders look mahoosive (massive) but this top makes them look like a normal size! Also the horizontal stripes are really flattering!
This cost £3.99, which is again a really good price!

Finally from Zara I got this Khaki green bomber jacket. I've wanted one of these jackets for sooo long! I always think it's so awkward to find a jacket to wear in the spring/summer when it's too warm for a coat, but too cold for nothing, so this thin jacket is perfect!

I chose the Khaki green colour as everyone has black, and sometimes (always) my outfits need some added colour! 

This was a bit more pricey, £25.99, but it is cheaper than ones I've seen in newlook, and it fits perfectly. 

The next shop I went to was H&M, as I know I can get some good quality, pretty tops for a good price, and I had seen somethings I wanted from there online! 

First thing I got was this crop top. (I can't find it online, but I know you can get it in store still!) It's similar to the stripy Zara one, but it's a bit more floaty and loose. I love the colours, as it would go really well with denim or black jeans/shorts, and the design is so pretty! I also love how floaty and airy it is, perfect for those hot days when you don't wanna sweat it out in a tight top! 

I think this cost me around £5.99! 

The other thing I got from H&M was this Coral Bikini top. I saw this online and thought 'omg I need this in my life' So I went out and got it! I have about 3 other bikinis, however I wanted this one because it seemed 'safe.' And by safe I mean it will actually stay up when I do flips in the pool! I have a alot of bikinis that look nice, but don't get on very well with my active excitement as soon as I get in a pool, and this one has a crossed back and thick shoulder straps, so it should be alot more safe!

I didn't get any bottoms to match, because I already have some plain black ones from Primark that would match, why spend more when I already have some?! 

Also the bright colours will make me look more tanned (fingers crossed) 

This cost me £12.99, which seems to be the going rate for bikini tops, which is why I didn't get the bottoms as well. 

Next I went to primark (spent half my time in the queue because it's so darn long all the time) just to get some cheap flip flops! I got these because I wanted some that I could wear to the pool or beach everyday, and not worry if they got ruined or lost. I have some gorgeous flip flops from aeropostal but I would cry if they got ruined, hence why I got these.

They're quite thick, which is good so I don't burn my feet on the floor, or the plastic melts! These only cost me 90p, and were better quality than the £1.20 ones, so it's a no brainer really! (unless you wanted minions on your flipflops!) 

Now this is all the non-clothes/shoes stuff that I bought! (cos gurl you gotta treat yo self) 

So, my family has a thing about 'rescue friends' where if a toy is on offer, or is the last one and on offer, it needs to be saved and taken to a loving home. (I know, we're so sad) SO when we went in the disney store and saw this cutie, our toy-loving hearts couldn't resist! 

This is one of those Pop! Vinyl toys, and it's 'spot' from the good dinosaur (one of the only films I've bawled my eyes out at) AND he was on offer for £7.95 rather than £10, so I had to save him! 

(Also I saw him for £15 in HMV, so my bargain loving heart was also satisfied) 

He's still on sale online - GO SAVE HIM

From Primark, I also picked up a Carmex strawbery lip tube. (the link is boots sorry cant find primark online) 

I've always wanted to try these, as I've heard so many good things about them and so many people swear by it, so I got one and I actually really like it! The tube is so easy to use and the rounded applicator is so fun! I want to get a few more of these as I can tell it's a new fave!
This was £2 from primark.

Next up, the boots I went to (medowhall in sheffield) had a nyx stand! ( i say it as though i was suprised, the whole purpose of the trip was to go to this stand..)

The first thing I got was this 'nyx glitter primer' (its not on the boots website but you can get it in store) I saw so many youtubers using this and wanted to give it a try, as I always end up with glitter down my face or transferring into the crease.
I love the packaging for starters, the holographic cover is amazing! I have yet to fully try this out but will do a full review when I have!
It cost be £8, which is good I think as the urban decay ones are around £18.

From the nyx stand, I also got this Nyx brow gel in blonde. I really wanted to try this for so long, again as loads of youtubers use it and I love brow gels, rather than powders! This actually reminds me a lot of the Anastasia beverly hills dip brow pomade, which is my go-to so I look forward to having more of a play with this bad boy!
It only cost £5.50 as well, which I was pleasantly surprised by!

When I got in the shop, I literally ran straight to the lipsticks (I was shaking because I was so nervous they were all gonna have gone...what has my life come to) And I was so happy when they had some of the shades I wanted! These  are the Nyx lip lingerie  in the shades 'baby doll' and 'satin ribbon' I honestly can't tell you which is which, because they're so similar but different at the same time! I wish I'd gotten a darker shade as well, as some of them look gorgeous! 

These are matte and I tried one as soon as I had paid, and they're beautiful! So creamy and So matte! These are £6.50 each, which I think is amazing! Deffo need to get my greedy lil makeup loving hands on the whole collection!

Also from boots I finally got myself a Beauty blender! I'm so late on the bandwagon with this one I'm ashamed of myself! I LOVE IT! It's so bouncy and squishy and makes you looked so flawless it's worth every £16 I spent on it! And now that boots sell it, it's so easy to get your hands on! (I actually got mine online and bought it with my boots points!) 

I will be doing a full post about this in the near future! 

Next up I got some more shampoo! I have been using treseme lately, but I love head and shoulders for the summer, as it gets rid of all the flaky bits on your head you may get if it get burnt and their 2in1 is amazing for swimming and a quick but proper wash! These were on a 3 for 2 offer at boots, but I think are about £4.99 each.
I also love this as it makes your hair so smooth and tames my lions mane amazingly!

Finally, on my mad shopping spree I got 2 new books from waterstones! They were on a buy one get one half price, so they cost me around £12 for both, but are £7.99 each.
The first is the third and final in the '5th wave' series by Rick Yancey, and is called The Last Star. I've almost finished the second, so I need to be ready to go with the next one!
The other one is called Carry on by Rainbow Rowell. My sister loved the book 'fangirl, by the same author, and this book is the fanfic that one of the characters writes in that book, so I got this one for my sister, and I'll probably end up reading it as well cos I love a bit of cheesy vampire stuff!

Thankyou for reading, I hope you enjoyed! Let me know what your summer must-have is!

Thanks again,

Fern :) 

THE BALM BON VOYAGE 2 PALET REVIEW

Hello all,

So it's nearly summer (WOOO) and that means teeny tiny little travel cosmetics and beauty products! It also means cutting down on makeup and trying to keep your suitcase to the max weight limit, something I find very hard when trying to cram in all the makeup products I need (not a want but a need) SO I have found the perfect solution to all our problems! 

When roaming around the wonderfully bargain filled shelfs of TKMAXX I found this beautiful pallet from The Balm! It's the The Balm Voyage 2, Travel pallet. 

For starters this pallet costs around £37, however you can get it at around £17 like I did from places such as TKMAXX and other online websites. Personally, I would not pay full price for this product, as the pan sizes are quite small, and I love a good bargain, BUT I deffo think it's worth the £17 I paid.

The pallet is such an amazing size for travelling, and will fit easily in any medium size makeup bag, or you could easily just take it on its own! Also, the packaging is really protective and slightly padded, so it wont break in transportation!

This pallet is perfect for everyday use on holiday, with 9 beautiful eyeshadows a bronzer, a highlighter, 2 blushes and 2 cream lip and cheek tints, all of which are so highly pigmented and the colours are beautiful, and I can imagine they would suit all skin tones! 

The picture here shows the 9 eyeshadows. As you can see theres a really nice range of colours, some lighter everyday ones and some darker ones, so you can really do all kinds of eyeshadow looks with them! Making them perfect for travel! Also the names are so cute, I think they mean welcome in different languages! 

My favourite shades would have to be 'Bienvenue' which is a beautiful rose gold colour, 'Tervetuloa' a caramel/burnt orange colour, perfect for the crease and 'Valkommen' which is a gorgeous deep purple with gold specks in. 

Next in the pallet you have the bronzer, blush and highlight colours. All of these are amazingly pigmented (I wish I'd known that first time using the bronzer...) and look beautiful on the skin! Not to mention the highlight..OH MA GAWD! It's so gorgeous and so stunning and the bronzer is the perfect shade to chisel out your cheekbones!
I'm not normally a blush type of person, but these two are so beautiful and don't look too crazy when you put them on, so easily bendable as well.
Another thing I love about these shades, are that you can easily use them as eyeshadows as well! I love using the highlight and bronzer as a super easy eyeshadow look!

Finally at the bottom of the pallet are the two lip/cheek tints. They are both quite summery and bright, but are so creamy and pigmented! (deffo reccomend using a brush to apply rather than just your finger, these bad boys are thick!) 

Personally, I would have preferred a more nude colour, but I will still get the use out of both of these! 

Here are some swatches! The two top colours are eyeshadows, Benvenuto and Welkom, as you can see they are super pigmented and feel so creamy! The next two at the bottom are the highlight and bronzer shades! LOOK AT THAT GLOW! They're so pretty and creamy, just like the eyeshadows!

Oh wow my hand looks so pale in this picture! These are the two creams at the bottom! They're so thick and creamy, and look soo pretty and pigmented when on the lips!

Overall, I think this is a beautiful pallet and is perfect for taking anywhere on holiday! It has literally everything you need for an everyday and night time look! Obviously you need to take any other makeup you need and brushes, but this is super helpful to stop you cramming in loads and loads of unnecessary pallets! (something I'm extremely guilty of!)

Thankyou for reading I hope you enjoyed! Let me know your travel makeup must have!

Fern :) 

FAVOURITE BOOKS

Hello all,

So today's post is going to be a little bit different to what I usually post, in that it's not makeup related. As summer is coming up and that means sitting in the sun or on the beach, I thought I'd share some of my favourite books, as why doesn't love reading a good book whilst getting your tan on? (probably a lot of people but I love it!) 

As far as reading goes, I'd call myself a bookworm, I love to read and dive into the depths of the worlds within the pages, and as for genres, I tend to steer towards the fantasy/romance/comedy type of books. What can I say, I'm a typical teenage nerd-girl. 

HEADS UP - I will try my best not to say any spoilers but no promises as these books excite me very much and I may get carried away! 

First up is I am number four by Pittacus lore. I honestly adore this book and the rest of the series so much. It's about these people called the 'guard' from another planet 'lorien' which was destroyed by these bad ass aliens so they had to escape to (you guesses it) Earth, in total theres 9 of these 'guard' on earth and on the run as they're being hunted by these other aliens who can only kill them in order, so you're from the point of view of 'number four' as number three has just been killed. Throughout the series the nine try to find each other and there's loads of fighting and drama and obviously the romance and love triangles. 

It's just such a good book if you want to get really into and obsessed with the characters and the story line.  The book is so different from the film as well, so it's necessary to read this! 

Next up is hush hush by Becca Fitzpatrick. All i can say to describe this book is: omg. It. Is. Amazing.  Literally. I read this book in a day. I had to have the light on at night in the car as i couldn't bring myself to put it down. I then finished the entire series within the next week! This series is a MUST HAVE!
It's about a fallen-angel and this girl called Nora, who wind up next to each other in biology class, and they both get brought into an old-feud between Angel and Nephilin, as some how Nora's family is more that what meets the eye. (of course) The story is just so well written, making is super easy to visualise and you feel like you're part of the book. There's again, romance and drama and throughout the series the characters develop and get darker and there's so much suspense you literally fall in love with the characters and the story line.
This is one of the few books I actually plan on reading more than once!

Next is The mortal instruments: city of bones by Cassandra Clare. This series is one of the best I've ever read, it may have 6 books (I THINK) in the series but each and every one of them is worth the read. 

It is about a girl named Clary, who is swept into the world of demons, angels, wolfs and much more, as she finds herself drawn to a group of 'shadowhunters' and finds out all about her family when her mother is taken and discovers who she really is and what's been hidden from her for her whole life. She finds out about the dangers of forbidden romance and the PLOT TWIST'S in this series never ever stop! It's so unpredictable. (except for me, I predicted most of it...totally) And I was so attached to this book and series, books never make me cry, but I sobbed like a baby when reading this series.
So worth the read, DON'T JUST WATCH THE FILMS OR SERIES, they are NOT the same, the books are better! (duh!)

Next up is Blood Ties by Sophie Mckenzie. It's been a while since I read this book, but I still remember it so well, it's one of those books that sticks in your head.
It's about these teenagers who have these powers, as they've been like genetically engineered as children so they have these powers they didn't know about, and when the character Theo, finds out his Dad is still alive he tries to find him and meets Rachael but everything is not what they thought and they make discoveries about their identities that will affect the rest of their lives. (ooo mysterious) Then in the rest of the series they find others like them and work together to get rid of the bad guy, it's all very predictable but it's still an amazing story and series.

Next up is very different from the others, it's called one seriously messed-up week in the otherwise mundane uneventful life of Jack Sampsonite by Tom Clempson. Now this book was one of the funniest I've ever read. Honestly, it's so ridiculous and funny, it's full of innuendos and inappropriate humour, but it definitely tickled my funny bones once or twice. (by once or twice I mean every page) It's basically about this boy taking his GCSE's and we get to see a week of his 'seriously messed-up week' as he tries to get the girl and do well in school. And it's from a 1st person view and it's hilarious. Deffo such a good book if you need a laugh or a light hearted read over the summer, or any time of the year.

Next up is my all time favourite called, Finding Sky by Joss Sterling. This has to be one of the top, if not number one, of my favourite book list. I honestly adore this book and series so much, and it's so amazingly written.
It's about people with powers, and I'm trying so hard to not give anything away, but basically this English girl, Sky, moves to america and meets a boy who is all bad ass ,Zen, but they have some mystical connection between them, all is revealed in the book. (it's so hard not to say!!!) Sky then finds out some evil threat that threatens the life of all of the characters... dun du duuun! This is one of those books where you feel like the main character, and as the story unravels, you feel like you're experiencing it with them, so I don't want to say too much and ruin it! This is one of those books where I want it to be real...is that sad? Basically go buy this book RIGHT NOW and read it. Then read the rest of the series as you'll become instantly hooked! All I will say is that it makes a nice change from were wolfs and vampires, not that I don't love them, but this is some next level book goodness.
writing this makes me want to read this series all over again, so I can guarantee I will read this series about 100 times in my life and never get bored.

This bad boy is Ballad by Maggie Stiefvater. This is actually the second in the series and I didn't actually read the first one...I know shame on me shame on me. BUT I was on holiday and I had no other books to read so my sister bought this with her and I had to read it! 

However it was amazing! (totally worth the rebellious behaviour) I honestly don't even think you need to read the first one, as they're kinda similar but different.
It's about this boy who is really talented at music, however he has this faerie who he thinks is helping him get better, as she is but it turns out these faeries take their talent and destroy the human ....sinister I know. Also he ends up falling in love with the faerie (of course) but it's such a chain of events!

I only just spoke about this book in a monthly faves, but it is The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey. This book is about aliens who 'invade' earth in stages/waves, and they're at the 5th wave (believe it or not) and the main character Cassy meets a guy called Evan and she has to decide whether or not to trust him in a life/death situation. It's such a gripping book, like I literally couldn't put it down or stop reading it, and it's like a wild goose chase as she tries to save her brother and there's so many different things happening, as it's from several point of views, it's so intense and amazing.

Next up is The Maze Runner by James Dashner. I absolutely love this trilogy, it's so eventful and emotional (page 250 in book 3 don't even get me started) and if you read one yo have to read them all. 

If you didn't know, it's about this maze that all these boys and 1 girl get put in, only remembering their name and nothing about how they got there, why or who they are. As the main character Thomas arrives, everything in the maze changes as they attempt to escape and figure out why they are in there and what happened to the world outside the maze. 

It honestly so gripping and instantly hooking. Also it's written amazingly, so you can imagine everything so clearly, making it seem so real. 

Finally, is Unwind, by Neal Shusterman. This book is so different to anything I've read before and honestly when I found out it was part of a series (about 3 years after reading the first) I couldn't wait to read the rest. 

It's about people being unwound. So if a parent doesn't want their child as they are too bad and not doing good in school (in the characters case) they can send their child to be physically unwound, as in their limbs and organs taken apart and used to save other people or for rich people to have better features. They also have religious families who 'tithe' their children, meaning they are born to be unwound. It's so messed up but it's so good as an unlikely group of teens come together to try and rebel against the unwinding and as the books go on, it gets so intense and stressful, but AMAZING and so easy to become hooked straight away. 

Honestly it sounds so weird and just like a horror book but I promise it's totally PG and 100% worth reading. 

So that is all my favourite books! Well, not really I have so many but these would be my top few. You may be thinking 'Fern are you insane?! What about Harry Potter and Twilight?!' and yes I have read Harry Potter and loved it, but I wanted to mention some book that are unknown and should be well know! As for Twilight...I never read it... I was too young when it came out and now It's just not my kinda book! 

As I wrote this post, I realise how similar all these books are... BUT OH WELL! 

Thankyou for reading, I hope you enjoyed! Let me know your favourite books and if theres any I should check out! 

Thanks again, 

Fern :)