Benefit 'Groovy kinda love' kit

      

      

      

      

      

      

      

      

      

      

Besides owning the 'They're Real' mascara that I recently talked about (and am loving even more since using it this week!) in a previous post, I haven't tried out much else from Benefit, shocking I know!

The 'Groovy kinda love' palette from Benefit contains a sample size of the Porefessional, Benetint and They're Real mascara, four eye-shadows in 'tickle my ivory' 'guilt-y pleasure' 'shimmer down' and 'kiss me, I'm tipsy' a duo blush in 'Dandelion' and 'Bella Bambi' a mini blush brush and a double ended applicator for applying the eye shadows. Although I haven't and won't use the applicator it's a nice extra if you just want to take the kit somewhere without anything else.

The four eye-shadows are extremely pigmented and are in great wearable shades for a neutral lover like myself. The kit also comes with a 'how to' guide for applying the shadows if you need any inspiration! My favourite shade has got to be 'Shimmer down' a gorgeous deep, golden brown that'll compliment any look and I'm loving the addition of a white in 'Tickle my ivory.'

A miniature 'They're Real' mascara has come in super handy to keep in my handbag for touch ups throughout the day and I can see it being great for travelling too. I've never tried any Benefit blushes but heard great things so getting to try two was very exciting! I prefer to use a big fluffy brush to apply them than the brush it came with that I swirl around both to create a sweep of pinky shimmer as I found 'Dandelion' slightly too pale to show up on my skin tone. I have found them extremely soft and easy to blend just like my favourite MAC blush. 

My favourite product from the whole kit, without a doubt is the miniature Porefessional. Benefits Porefessional has been raved about all over the web in recent months and I can see why. I don't usually use a primer but I actually look forward to putting this on. A light brown coloured product that looks naked on the skin that smoothes my face creating the perfect base for my foundation. I've really noticed the difference it has made to how my foundation looks throughout the day and its lasting power, I know ill be purchasing the full size as soon as this runs out! 

Kits like these are such great ideas as it gives you a chance to try multiple miniture products without having for fork out a fortune so you can find your favourites! 

Victoria Secret Nail Varnish in 'Runway Angel'

    

    

    

    

On a recent trip to New York my brothers lovely girlfriend picked me up this beautiful nail polish. Unfortunately I did not visit New York and am still yet to step foot in a Victoria Secret store but one day this shall happen! 

'Runway Angel' is a gorgeous golden, glitter that most definitely lives up to its claims of being 'a high gloss, performance lacquer.' I find a lot of polishes look great in the bottle and once applied barely translate onto the nails at all which is not the case with this. It is not just a polish that looks incredible in the bottle but one that is equally as pretty on the nails. Runway Angel is made up of a mixture of small and large glitter pieces that can be worn as a top coat over other polishes or built up to be worn alone. Most of the time I seem to wear it built up on its own to add a little sparkle to everyday life but it does look great over a neutral base like Essie Fiji. In general I tend to find glitter polishes last longer on my nails with this as no exception. I could easily get away with wearing this for a good 5 days which on my nails is good! On a little side note - I adore the square, unique shaped bottle that I think are similar to the American Apparel polishes? It looks so pretty on my dressing table! 

Since falling in love with the consistency and shade of this polish I've been had a sneaky look on the VS website and found it comes in a variety of shades! 'Just kiss me' and 'Backstage' have already been added to my wish list! Have you tried the VS polishes? 

New Year, New Changes

      

      

      

      

      

A slightly different post from me today but like many I have embarked on a few changes this year to improve myself that I wanted to share here! I feel New Years resolutions are so easily broken because they are so quickly thought about. That being said this isn't a New Years resolution as such but a new change that I am determined to keep. I'm sure 99% of the Country make similar statements as this time of year but I'm fixed on being that small percent that continues past January! To me its all about feeling comfortable with yourself and in your own skin which is where I want to get back to. Healthy eating and exercise for me is the only way to go about this and in turn I think that will help improve a lot of other things. My love for anything chocolate covered and sitting on my butt makes this extremely difficult! (Even writing the word chocolate makes my mouth water!)

Something I really struggle with is knowing how much I can eat and what foods have in them which is where the MyFitnessPal app is really helping. If you are having the same problem I can't recommend this app more as its so useful, easy to use and free! The app in its simplest form is where you can record what you eat and how many calories you are consuming. I wouldn't recommend calorie counting obsessively but its a good starting point to help you know what and how much you can eat. My favourite part of the app is that you can scan the barcode of your food, choose your serving size and it'll automatically add it in in seconds. I can already see by using this just where I was going wrong! 

Just the word exercise fills me with dread! I can't run and never have been able to which I am trying to change. I know I'm not going to be out running miles at a time any time soon but I am slowly progressing. I think being able to see how far and fast I've run really helps me and motivates me to beat that. The Nike Running App has been great for documenting all this and again is free! It maps your run and saves it for you to look at and compare with other runs whenever you like. Without this I would have no record of the progress I am slowly making! As well as cardio I'm very aware of the benefits of strength training to help tone and define which I actually really enjoy. Luckily my brother has many free weights and a bar which is perfect for what I need. I'm looking forward to see the changes weights can make! 

So there we have it a couple to things that have really been helping me keep on the straight and narrow! Can you recommend anything else to help? What helps you?