Wanderlust: Copenhagen!

Hey there guys and gals :-)

I'm just home from Copenhagen, so said I'd write a little post to let ye know what I got up to there! I had gotten the flights for only 1.20 return with a recent promotion with Ryanair - YES, you read that right... 1 euro and 20 cents! And what a beautiful and fun weekend we had in Copenhagen, which in my opinion, might be one of the nicest European cities I've ever been!

Day One: 

After avoiding temptation at The Loop in Dublin Airport, and a 2 hour flight, we finally got to check into Wakeup Copenhagen Borgergade, which was only a short 10-15 minute metro journey from the airport, which was great! The location of this hotel was just perfect, as it was within walking distance of nearly everything! If you come out of the hotel and go to the right you have the picturesque scenes of Nyhavn in front of you, as well as one of the longest shopping pedestrian streets in Europe, home to many of my favourite brands, and even if you're not into shopping, it is well worth going for a romantic stroll through this cobbled street! And if you go left, you have the beautiful Rosenborg castle in front of you! Truly the location is perfect. The hotel itself was very nice and modern, though the rooms were on the small side, they were ideal for a short break, and had all the essential you'd need - comfortable bed, flat screen tv, nice shower, and good WiFi! Our first stop was at Hotel Chocolat, where we got a gorgeous hot chocolate, perfect to warm us up in the cold weather! I got 50% milky chocolate with white chocolate cream, and John got the same except with cocoa cream!

We then found ourselves in Stroget, one of the best shopping streets in Copenhagen, home to both Danish and international shops. They literally had all of my favourite shops along this street, Zara, Topshop, H&M, MAC and Sephora to name but a few! The latter being one that I was very excited about seeing as we don't have one in Ireland.. Where I did a small bit of shopping, which I'll be posting later in the week, so if you're interested to see what I picked up in Sephora then keep your eyes peeled :-) All of the shopping had made us hungry, so we decided to stop at Tight for dinner, which we had looked up on Tripadvisor in advance! And OHMYGOD, it was amazing! To start, we got mussels 'sauce poulette', which is just mussels in a creamy garlic sauce with crusty bread, which was so delicious.. We shared a bottle of wine which was recommended to go with the starter we had chosen, which was also beautiful. For mains, I got the Tight burger - which was definitely out of character for me, as I usually don't really like burgers, but this one definitely changed my opinion on that, with homemade burger buns, carmelized onions and mushrooms, bacon, cheese and garlic potatoes and aoli, I thought I'd have to be rolled out of the restaurant and definitely didn't have room left for dessert. My better half got the most melt-in-your-mouth BBQ ribs either of us had ever tasted.. Couple amazing food and wine, with a warm service and atmosphere, leaves you with a pretty fantastic meal, and the perfect end to a great first day in Copenhagen. 

Day Two:

We started our day with a stroll down by Nyhavn, which is along the canal, and was really pretty and bustling with people in the morning, which led us to Christianhavn, where we got some brunch. I love the lipstick I was wearing, which was 'Coralista' from Wet 'N' Wild, which only cost me 2 euro - bargain! 

We had bought Copenhagen cards online in advance, which give you access to most attractions, musuems and sites as well as travel on all metros, trains, buses and waterbuses for a predetermined amount of time - this decision was one of the best we had made and definitely saved us a lot of money, so if you're travelling to Copenhagen, I would recommend you check these out here! Firstly, we went to Copenhagen Zoo, which was a fun way to pass a few hours, I especially loved the hippos and the polar bears, which were so cute! 

Then, we went to the Visit Carlsberg brewery, which was conveniently very close to Copenhagen Zoo, which was fun, and also included in the Copenhagen Card.. Tired after all our adventures of the day, we took a pit-stop in the Hard Rock Café for happy hour, where I got some of my favourite cocktails - Hurricane Blues, and Strawberry Daiquiris - YUM!

For dinner, we went to a warehouse on Paper Island, which is home to Copenhagen street food, and pretty much every cuisine you can think of! First of all, we got a mouthwatering pulled pork sandwhich from Oink Oink, then we got chicken and beef tacos from Tacos Chucos, and finally fish and chips from Toldbodens fish n' chips! If you're ever in Copenhagen, I really recommend that you visit Copenhagen Street Food, no matter how fussy you are you're bound to find something you like, and have lots of fun doing so :-) 

 Day Three: 

On our last day in Copenhagen, we made a trip to the Rosenborg castle, and then unfortunately, it was home time for us, after spending a memorable weekend in Copenhagen <3 If you have any questions about anything in this post, please leave a comment! If you're interested in what I picked up in Sephora, then keep an eye out for that post during the week, along with a mini homeware haul. As always, thanks for reading :-)

Love, 

Becca 

xx

Product Review: Sleek Face Form Contouring and Blush Palette!

Hey gals :-)

Today, I will be reviewing another cult favourite from the Sleek Make-Up line, the Face Form Contouring and Blush Palette in 'Light'. This product is hailed as the ultimate contouring multi-palette, and it's packaging and pigmentation is quite reminiscent of similar NARS palettes. This product retails at 12.99 euro and is available in some Boots stores nationwide, and good pharmacies. Also available on the Boots website here! 

This product in my opinion, is definitely worthy of it's cult status. For only 12.99 you get a product that is both versatile and highly pigmented. You get a highlighter that can be used to emphasis the areas on the face where the light would naturally hit, so the inner eye, cupids bow, arch of the eyebrow and the tops of the cheeks.. The highlighter is quite buttery and gives a 'as if lit from within' glow to your face. You then get a shimmery blusher that can be applied lightly to give a gentle flush to the cheeks, or applied a bit heavier to really give your cheeks emphasis. This blusher has also been likened to NARS Orgasm, another cult favourite but at the fraction of the price!  And finally you get a smooth matte brown that can be used a contour or a bronzer.. And all the powders are extremely blendable and workable, making it even easier to achieve your desired look. All in one beautifully packaged palette, with a perfectly sized mirror for any on the go touch ups! And did I forget to mention that these colours can also be used as eyeshadows?!

My only advice is to go for a lighter palette than you usually would, as you can see I went for the 'light' shade and think that this is the perfect shade for me.. So, I would be inclined to say that the shades are a bit off, so definitely try this in store before buying to make sure you get the right shade!
This is definitely a product that I will repurchase in the future! Here's a quick picture of a natural look that I did using these three powders!

Product list;
Primer: Laura Mercier Foundation Primer in 'Radiance'
Foundation: Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Foundation in 'Light Beige'
Powder: MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in 'Medium Plus'
Concealer: MAC Prolongwear Concealer in NW20.
Blusher, bronzer/contour, highlight; Sleek Face Form in 'Light'
Eyebrows; Anastasia Beverley Hills Pomade in 'Dark Brown', HD brows palette in 'Vamp' and Anastasia Beverley Hills Clear Eyebrow Gel.
Eyelashes: Tanya Burr 'Girls Night Out' eyelashes.
Mascara: NYC BigBold Volume in 'Extra Black'.
Eyeliner: Seventeen High Drama Liquid Liner.
Lipliner: NYX in 'Mauve',
Lipstick: MAC 'Myth'.

Thanks for reading! Keep your eyes peeled for my next blog post - a wanderlust post on Copenhagen <3

Love,
Becca.
xx

Oops, I did it AGAIN! Penney's/Primark, MAC, and BirthdayMini Haul.

Hello there gals :)

Today, I will be sharing another little haul post with you! As it was my birthday, I went into town to pick up a few essentials for the night, and ended up (as usual!) coming home with a little more than I had intended to.. If you'd like to see what I picked up in Penneys, MAC, and one or two of my presents then read on!

MAC:

My first stop was at MAC, as the Cinderella x MAC collection had just come out that morning, and I was very excited to have a quick look before they sold out! Strangely, nothing in particular jumped out at me.. So I ended up leaving MAC with the prolongwear concealer in NW20, which I'm already in love with. Not only does it do the job in terms of covering and concealing blemishes, I also love it for brightening up under my eyes and it doesn't sit into any lines I have around my eyes, which is great! I set the concealer using my MAC skinfinish in medium plus, and you have guaranteed coverage all night long.. I would go as far as saying this is my new favourite concealer <3

The second product I picked up in MAC was the satin lipstick, 'whirl', which I really wanted for ages now! I had wanted to pick up the 'spice' lip-liner which goes with 'whirl' famously well.. But, thanks to Kylie Jenner and her pout - it was sold out!

Penney's/Primark:

The other items I picked up in Penney's were homewear! I got these really cute little lanterns, which look really nice on my bed. They're yellow with little daisy's on them, and I was just weak for them in the shop so I picked them up! And they were 6e.

Also in keeping with the cute flower themes, I picked up this sweet bobble that has pale pink flowers on it. This looks great with a messy bun - something that will definitely feature in future selfies! This was only 2 euro (God, I love Penney's!). 

Birthday Pressies!

For my 21st birthday, my besties got me this AMAZING rose gold Michael Kors bracelet, with a pale pink disc. It's literally so beautiful and I'm in love. It's one of my firm favourites, and I always have it on!

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this post, hope ye enjoyed it! Please comment and let me know any other blog posts you'd like to see.. I'm currently reviewing another cult product, so keep an eye out for that later in the week! And I'm working on a blog post about my recent trip to Copenhagen, so keep your eyes peeled :-)

Love,
Becca
xx

Oops, I did it again! River Island, Lipsy, and H&M Haul.

Hey gals,

Today, I'll be doing a haul post on a few bits I've picked up over the last few weeks.. Firstly, I'll be showing you a few bits that I bought off the Riverisland website recently.. Riverisland is one of my favourite places to shop, and every now and again I've been known to be bold and spend a few euros on their website or in shop! For once, I steered away from clothes, and focused more on some accessories that will help update my wardrobe this season!

Riverisland: 

So firstly, I picked up these 'barely there' black sandals, which everyone and their mother have - or at least that's what is feels like! Though, these sandals are quite uncomfortable, they literally go with everything, and I don't feel like I can have enough black shoes in my closet as the price to wears ratio for black shoes is so worth it! These babies were 60euro, and you can buy them on the Riverisland website here. They have these in like every colour, and I'm still eyeing up the nude pair, and the grey ones! I think I'll wear them with pretty much everything, but I really like them teamed with some skinny jeans and a nice blouse! If you have any suggestions on how you wear your platform sandals, comment below or even leave an OOTD!

The next item I picked off the Riverisland website, was this colour block clutch bag! Colour blocking is always a massive trend, but one that I rather keep to my accessories than my body, as I don't really like colour blocking on me, so this bag was a great solution to this problem - giving a nod to the trend but not feeling uncomfortable about it! Plus, I just really liked this bag, and I love the gold chain! Seeing as most of my going-out wardrobe is made up of reds, whites and black - this accessory is the perfect accompaniment to it! It was 33euro, and can be bought on the Riverisland website here.

The last two bits I picked off the Riverisland website, were these two pairs of earrings. I am literally in love with statement earrings and my heart nearly stopped when I saw these silver ones, which are available here, for 17euro. The black earrings are no longer available on the Riverisland website, but they might still be available in-store, I think these were 13euro!

Lipsy:

I have a lot of events coming up over the next few months, and when I was browsing on the Lipsy website lately, I saw these three dresses and couldn't say no! I have my 21st birthday, race-day and my graduation coming up shortly, and I always find that when I need a dress I can never find anything, so I snapped these up when I saw them!  The first one I picked up is this beautiful monochrome bandeau dress, which was 58 GBP, and available here. I think that this dress is really different, and think it'd look really nice with my new RI sandals!

The second one I picked up is this stunning blue bardot midi dress, which was a steal at 40 GBP, and available on the Lipsy website here. I love the bardot style that is so popular at the moment, and think it's a really flattering cut on a lot of people. Though the blue is a bit out there for me, I'm trying to introduce a bit of colour into my wardrobe for Spring! I'm thinking about teaming this with no jewellery besides my new silver earrings that I bought from Riverisland and just go for a simple look!

My last splurge on the Lipsy website was on this gorgeous red midi dress, with a cowl back, which was a bit pricey at 70 GBP, also available here. I justified the price to myself as this is an iconic dress, and one that I think I'll get a lot of wears out of!

H&M:

I had popped into H&M when in Amsterdam two weekends ago, and picked myself up these three items! I had seen some of my friends wearing this long sleeved black lace top, and had been lusting after it ever since.. So, I jumped at the chance to pick it up when I saw it on the rails in Amsterdam, I picked it up in white too - that's how in love with it I was!

Lastly, I picked up this blue and white floral sweater with a lace trim, and I find myself going to wear it a good bit since I picked it up, I just love the colours and it's perfect for Spring! Here's a picture of me wearing it on my trip to Amsterdam recently :)

This turned out to be quite a long blog post - so I hope ye enjoyed it! As always, thanks very much for taking the time to read this post, and keep an eye out for my next post! :-)

Love,

Becca. 

xox

Product Review: MeMeMe Eyeshadow Quad!

Hey there ladies!

Today, I will be reviewing the MeMeMe Eye Inspire Catwalk Quad Collection in 'Goddess Eyes'. About a week ago I wrote a review of MeMeMe's much talked about Shimmer Stack which is the perfect dupe for Bobbi Brown's Shimmer Brick, so if you want to read that review, you can do so here! If you can to hear how I got on  with this cute little eye shadow quad, then read on..

So, first of all.. I got this eyeshadow quad around Christmas time and literally can't tell you how many times I've been asked what eyeshadow I'm wearing when I have it on.. It's just so pretty! It's really become my go-to eyeshadow these past few months, and I find it more convenient than my much-loved Naked 2 Palette by Urban Decay, just because it's so small and easy to bring around with me, and also is quite similar to my favourite shades in the Naked 2 palette!

MeMeMe Eyeshadow Quad in 'Goddess Eyes'. Source: mememecosmetics.com

This quad contains four beautiful shimmery baked eyeshadows.. This quad is perfect for doing a warm metallic smokey eye! The brown and gold tones are perfect for blue eyes, and really make them pop. This product is very verstaile, as you can lightly apply it for a casual 'everyday' look, or you can really amp up the colours by dampening your eyeshadow brush before you apply them, which really gives a big impact!

The colour pay-off of this perfect, wet or dry, is just amazing, and at 7 euro, you really can't go wrong as this product will take you from day to night - it really is a no-brainer! As you can see below the four colours in this quad, are perfect drug-store dupes for 'Foxy', 'Half-Baked', 'Bootycall' and 'Snakebite' - which are my favourite colours in my Naked 2 Palette. This MeMeMe eyeshadow quad is available in most local pharmacies or online here.

Next up this week on Beauty and the Blog, will be a product review of another MeMeMe product that I've been trialing - the Blush Me! Blush Box in Coral. As always, thanks very much for taking the time to read this post, and hope you enjoyed it! <3

Love,
Becca.
xox

Product Review: Vichy Teint Ideal Foundation!

Evening ladies :-)

Today, I will be reviewing the new Vichy Teint Ideal Foundation, which promises to 'improve the appearance of overall skin texture and radiance, as if corrected'. As a self-confessed lover of dewy, radiant skin, I nearly fell over myself when I saw a poster for this foundation in a local pharmacy.. So what did I do? I bought it of course to review for you, my lovely readers (how I rationalize spending so much money on products to myself)! If you have visited my blog before you'll have heard me harping on (and on and on) about how much I love Vichy's Dermablend foundation in the shade 25, so I was expecting big things from a sister foundation and I was very excited to give it a go! If you're interested in finding out how I got on, then read on!

Firstly, there is three variations of the Teint Ideal Foundation, there is a cream foundation which is intended to be used by people with dry skin, a fluid foundation for those with normal/combination skin, and a compact- easy peasy! The three options means that there's something for everyone too :)

Source: Vichy.ie (L-R) Fluid foundation, cream foundation, compact. 

I would definitely have combination skin, so I went for the fluid foundation, as I thought that this would suit my skin type best, I also bought it in the shade 25 nude, as that's the same colour I wear in Vichy's Dermablend. In my opinion, this foundation does exactly what it says on the tin! On first application, I noticed an immediate difference in the overall radiance of my skin, and I was hooked! In terms of coverage, it is a medium coverage which can be built up to a full coverage, but bear in mind that this was formulated to leave your natural skin shine through, so keep that in mind when you're applying! And even if you do go for a fuller coverage, it still leaves you with a natural and flawless finish!

 It has great staying power, and literally didn't budge all day leaving you with quite a natural finish! Another little bonus is that this foundation has SPF 20, which is great. It is also enriched with spa minerals, and vitamin C and E! The only negative to this foundation, is that the fluid consistency of the foundation makes the application a little messy, as I would usually opt for a more creamy consistency, but at only 22euro beggars can't be choosers!

Me with Vichy Teint Ideal Foundation in Shade 2 (nude) on! 

Thanks very much for taking the time to read this post, and hope it was useful! :-) As an aside, Vichy do an amazing 3-1 cleanser, toner and make-up remover that I can't recommend enough! Have any of you tried any other Vichy products that I should try? Please comment and let me know :-) Keep an eye out for my next blog post, which should be up later on in the week!

Love,
Becca.
xox

Product Review: MeMeMe Shimmer Stack!

Happy March Beauties!

Today, I'll be reviewing the MeMeMe cosmetics, Shimmer Stack in Bronze, which is hailed to be a dupe for the iconic Shimmer Brick from Bobbi Brown which sells for a staggering 30 euro more than the MeMeMe version (MeMeMe = 12.50, Bobbi Brown = 42.50). MAC and Inglot have been following suit with their versions of this handy multi-purpose product, with Inglot's contribution retailing at 22euro (AMC Multicolour System Highlighting Powder in shade 84). This product can be bought online on the MeMeMe website here. Or, it can be bought in any good pharmacy nationwide!

Bobbi Brown Shimmer Stack
Source: brownthomas.com

While most of us will be familiar with MeMeMe cosmetics, there is some corners where this brand has not reached, so fear not - I'm here to give you the low-down on one of this brands hottest products, so read on to see how I got on with it!

This product is definitely multi-use, firstly you can concentrate your brush on the darker browns, and use it as a bronzer, or swish your brush through all the colours to use a shimmery powder for the face (especially the cheekbones!) and décolletage. Secondly, each individual colour can be used as an eyeshadow, and finally the lighter colours can be used as a highlighter on your brow bone, cupids bows, cheeks and inner eye. The fact that this product covers a wide range of functions makes this perfect for anyone travelling, or even just to have in your handbag as an emergency - it's perfect since it's so compact!

MeMeMe Shimmer Stack in Bronze!

However, you would want to be careful if you'll be carrying it around with you everyday, seeing as compacts are prone to breaking, and leaving your handbag (and contents!) in a not-so-beautiful shimmery mess. and that glittery shimmer gets everywhere! Another pro of this product is the large mirror in the palette, great for those on the go touch ups. Though this product isn't the most pigmented I've come across, it is easy to build up to the intensity that you like, or else if you use a damp eyeshadow brush, the colours come up more intense which is handy if you don't have time/patience to build it up. All in all, this is a product that I would recommend in buying if you're just starting your make-up collection, or wanting to expand. That being said, if your an experienced make-up user but don't have many highlighters or bronzers in your collection, I would definitely recommend buying this one - you won't be disappointed! This is the kind of product that gets you super excited for summer!

This also comes in different colours; gold and pink. While, I like the idea of the pink one, I didn't think that the gold one was pigmented enough when I swatched it in the shop.. Here's an everyday make-up look I did using the Shimmer Stack in Bronze as an eyeshadow, bronzer and highlighter:

Hope you found this review helpful, and thanks for reading! :) Later in the week, I'll be reviewing two more of MeMeMe's bestselling products that I recently picked up; 1. Eye Inspire Catwalk Quad Collection in 'Goddess Eyes' and 2. Blush Me! Blush Box in 'Coral' - which upon first swatch is a potential dupe for Benefit's 'Coralista'!

Love,
Becca.
xox