January Favourites 2013

Throughout January, I have been enjoying a number of products that have fast become staples in my routine.

This month I have been loving using Wet n Wild Mellow Wine blush. It's a lovely dark pink-red colour, which gives a lovely pop of colour on the cheeks. I have been in love with my MAC 266 and using the centre shade of the top row of the NYX Nude on Nude Natural Look palette. I would not have normally opted for a colour like this, as my hair is darker than the shade, but it somehow works. My lipsticks of choice for the past month have been Chanel Rouge Coco Shine in Rivage and Wet n Wild Spiked with Rum. Rivage a pretty pink colour, which gives a natural rosy colour to the lips. While it doesn't last too long on the lips, I love the formula and the glossiness. I love the long-lasting formula of Spiked with Rum and the colour is great for Winter. The Sigma Precision Round P82 has been one of my favourite brushes for packing on and blending out concealer over redness and blemishes. It's bristles are super soft and leaves such a flawless finish.

For skincare, the Emma Hardie Amazing Face cleansing balm has been a dream to use recently, especially as my skin has been a little dry in this cold weather. I am going to do a full review of this soon. I have also had a few pesky blemishes, which the Origins Out of Trouble mask has been a godsend for. I normally use it twice a week, but recently I've been using it on specific big spots and leaving it on overnight. It really helps to minimise the size and redness of the spot. I have used Lush's Mint Julips lip scrub everyday since I got it and it leaves my lips soft and smooth.

My random favourite this month has been this Jasmine candle from ASDA. I don't like to spend too much money on candles, so I was happy that it only cost £4 and I would say it's definitely on par with Yankee Candles. The smell is gorgeous and really radiates around the room. The packaging is fairly simple, but neutral.

What have you been loving this month?

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

You've Got Mail

Today I received two lovely bits of mail. Over the time I've been blogging, I have been lucky enough to win a number of giveaways and each time I receive the parcel, I'm always overwhelmed with sheer excitedness and am always so grateful that I have been given the opportunity.

In June I won Becca's amazing Cherry Vimto and Missguided giveaway. When my dad opened the door to the postman, he just gave me this look to say "What have you bought now?!" When I opened the box, we were both shocked at how generous they were.

The box the hamper came in was huge! Look at the size of the box in comparison to my Macbook!

The lovely hamper with the Cherry Vimto. I've recently become obsessed with adorning my room with wicker baskets to store miscellaneous bits and pieces, so this will look perfect in my room and I'm going to put my hair styling tools in it :)

Wow-oh-wow, so generous! After taking this photo, my dad didn't hesitate to steal all 3 cans of cherry Vimto as he left for work and I have managed to munch through a packet of the Vimto Chewy Sweets and a few glasses of Cherry Vimto Cordial. Nom :)

The gorgeous cherry red lace dress from Missguided. I am going to a wedding at the end of September, so this will be perfect for the occasion.

At the beginning of August, I won the lovely Christine's Sigma F80 giveaway. I already have a Sigma F80, but since coming home from uni my mum has decided to pinch it, so this came at the perfect time! The package was shipped on Aug 9, so I was impressed at how quickly the brush came all the way from America!

How cool is the Sigma logo? It's like a rainbow holograph!

Have you won anything recently?

Thank you for reading and a massive thank you to Becca and Christine for allowing me to win their giveaways! :D Make sure to check out Becca and Christine's amazing blogs! xoxo, Joy

P.S. Don't you hate when your camera runs out of battery just as you're about to use it?! I had to use my dad's DSLR for these pictures and they came out with a yellowish tinge, so I used Carrie's vintage Photoshop action again to cover it up.

July Favourites 2011

This is my first favourites post. I normally find it quite difficult to pick out monthly favourites, but this month a few products have really stood out for me :) I decided to do a video, because I felt like it.



I've written this in the downbar on Youtube, but in case you don't go to my Youtube I thought I'd just post it here too -
1) My camera doesn't autofocus during videos, so I had to film the 'macro' parts separately and used voiceovers in those sections.
2) I don't know why it's so zoomed in and up close, sorry if that scares you!
3) I think I've overused the word 'absolutely' in this video!
Before I go, I just wanted to apologise about how slow I've been replying to comments and commenting on everyone's blogs. I'm currently in the midst of packing up my uni room (because I finally break up for summer on Friday!) and I'm trying to enjoy the lovely weather we're having at the moment, so please bear with me. Thank you all for understanding :)

Thank you for watching. xoxo, Joy

Home From Uni

I finally got home from uni yesterday! This year feels like it's gone on for so long, yet it also feels like it's gone so quickly, I can't believe I won't be a fresher anymore next year!

When I got home, I was welcomed by not only my family, but a new pair of Uggs and a pile of goodies on my bed from a couple of giveaways that I'd won recently which I'd had sent home instead of to my uni halls.

Black Bailey Button Uggs - I know it's not the ideal weather for them at the moment, but when I found out that my dad was going on a business trip to Boston, I asked him to buy me a new pair, since I'd had my old pair for nearly 4 years and they were completely battered and worn. Also, Uggs are SOOOO much cheaper in the US! I realise Uggs are a bit like Marmite - You either love them or hate them. I know lots of people that hate them, but I personally love them. I don't wear them to be fashionable or "cool", I wear them because they're so comfortable and warm!

I've had a stroke of luck recently and have been privileged enough to win a couple of giveaways. I was absolutely thrilled to hear that I'd won the giveaways, since I never expected to. I wanted to take this opportunity to say a MASSIVE THANK YOU to Sigma, Sarah at I Heart Cosmetics, Faye at Faye Cavania and Kiss Nails. :D


Sigma Makeup - I won the daily giveaway from Sigma's 'Daily Giveaway' on Twitter back in June. I was excited to see that I'd received the SS150 (It has now been renamed to the F30), which is a lovely, soft and dense powder brush.

The Sigma SS150/F30

Korres Body Butter - I won the Korres Quince Body Butter from Sarah's 24 hour giveaway. I've been wanting to try a couple of products from Korres for a while and I was really interested in this scent, since I wasn't really sure what to expect. I've used it once since I got home from uni and so far, I'm loving it :)

Kiss Nails - I won these products by Kiss from Faye's giveaway. When I opened the package, I was overwhelmed at how much I'd been sent, it's so kind of them! I've only ever tried press on nails and I don't even remember what I thought of them, it was so long ago! So I'm really excited to try these products out.


I will do proper reviews for all of these products once I've had the opportunity to use them for a longer period of time and experiment with them. Thank you so much again to Sigma Makeup, Sarah, Faye and Kiss Nails!! :D

Long post is long, sorry! Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy