#sbbc day 16 -Wishlist

Monday again? Really? Luckily today's #sbbc topic is one that can help us escape the horrible reality that is Monday ( Go sit in the corner Monday, nobody likes you!)
One of today's suggested topics is "Wishlist- makeup,skincare,fashion"

I always have a wishlist as long as my arm...makeup,clothes, shoes, bags, jewellery...I want, I want, I want. However,I'll just mention a few today and hope that my fellow bloggers can help me by suggesting some products (which will, of course, have to wait til post-payday to be purchased)

1. Foundation. I've mentioned it before but I think I need a new foundation, I currently use Rimmel 25hr foundation. I've used it for the past few years and always found it great but recently I've been thinking I need a new one. Which leads me on to no#2 on the wishlist...

2.Moisturiser. I'm thinking that part of the reason  that I'm not happy with my usual foundation is that my skin has seemed dull lately. I admit I am terribly for moisturising regularly, really it's more of a rarity for me to do it but, I'm not getting any younger and I think my skin is telling me that moisturiser needs to become part of my daily routine. So, any suggestions for one that could give my skin a bit of life? Ideally,since the plan is for it to be used everyday, not a super expensive one.

3. Boots. Since Autumn/Winter is upon is boots are back (yay!). To be honest I think my brown boots from last year will last me pretty well again this year, so my search is for a nice flat black pair of boots. The search is on!

These are the top 3 of my current wishlist. Can anyone help me make some of these wishes a reality? All suggestions welcome.

#sbbc Day 15 - Eye Candy

I don't even think much has to be said on this topic..let's all just enjoy the pictures shall we?

#sbbc day 14 Where do you get inspiration?

Where do I get inspiration from ? That's a difficult question to answer. I guess I get it from everywhere.

If I buy something new or use a new product that I love or hate I think "i must blog about this". If I love a product I blog about it to let other people know about it, to suggest it as something they might like to try. If I hate a product or just find it to be disappointing I blog about it to let others know that,for me, I found it to be not so great or not worth the cost.

I probably mostly find inspiration from other peoples blogs. I love reading other peoples reviews,love seeing outfit posts, so I suppose I like to think that people may like to read similar things on my blog.

I also find inspiration for blog posts from awards season. I love to blog about the red carpet gowns,hairstyles,makeup, all the trends that we see at events like the Golden Globes, the Oscars etc. I have always loved awards season and I'm so happy it's almost here again.

So where does everyone else get their inspiration from??

#sbbc day 13 DIY Beauty

I'm not really a DIY kinda gal but two things I do that I guess fall in to the DIY Beauty category are...

1. Mixing two foundations that just aren't right to create a foundation that suits me. Some are too pale, some are too dark, mix them and they can be just right. It's like being the Goldilocks of foundations.

2. Lemon / Sugar scrub. I saw this online a few years ago and it leaves my skin feeling great. Take a cotton pad, squeeze lemon juice on it,add some sugar on top and wipe/scrub all over your face for a minute or so. Wash it away with some warm water and.. voila..super soft skin. Apparently the lemon juice is also great at eliminating scars.

Anyone else have any DIY beauty tips they'd care to share ?

#sbbc Day 12

life advice I would pass to a younger person in my family would probably be similar to my Day 8 #sbbc post.
I can't think of one particular person I'd address it to, but the advice I'd give to anyone younger would be to go with the flow, don't stress too much, cos in the end what will be will be. Let go of stress as quickly as you can cos in a few years time, will it really matter? Will you remember what's stressing you out?

I'd also tell someone younger to accept people for who and what they are, don't think you can change people, accept who they are. Sometimes they're good , sometimes you have to learn to let go of them. It's tough but in the long run it can be better not to have someone in your life.

So,I guess that would be my advice to someone younger, and advice that I should take myself!

#sbbc Day 11 how did your blog get it's name

When I decided to start a blog I went through a million different options trying to find a  name for it. Actually,that's not entirely true, I tried to think of a million different options but I was unsuccessful.

However,  my lovely friend Jennifer (who blogs here) and I were chatting and throwing around different ideas and Jen came up with the title The World in my Wardrobe (she's ever so creative) I immediately loved the name and the rest, as they say, is history. So how did my blog get it's name? It's all thanks to Jen!

#sbbc day 10 Beauty pet peeves

Beauty pet peeves, surely there are so many. I'm sure mine are similar to so many people's but here they are...

1. Foundation stopping at a persons jawline. Blend your foundation down your neck people!

2. Orange foundation and orange fake tan. Both look terrible, especially when they are quite often different shades of orange. 

3. Missing eyebrows. When people apply their makeup and forget to do their brows it is simply not a good look. It looks as if a body part is missing.

4. Lip liner that is clearly about 2cms above and below someone's actual lips...you're fooling no one.

And, finally, I'm going to throw in a fashion pet peeve just cos it annoys me so much...

5. Stickers left on the soles of shoes. We can all see them,take them off!

And so ends my rant.

#sbbc day 9 ways to incorporate colour into your look

Today's #sbbc post is about ways to incorporate colour in to your look. As someone who owns a lot of black,white and cream clothes this is something I do regularly. My way if incorporating colour is with my shoes or my bag. They can really make an outfit pop and are an easy way to add colour without going too far or being too scary. I'm not sure I have the confidence to wear a very bright outfit (but I'm trying) so I find adding a bright bag or shoes the easiest way. Here's some examples of how I've done it, obviously my colour of choice to add is red!

#SBBC Day 8: Letter to someone from your past

Dear 15 year old Colette,

You may think you've got it all figured out...you don't. The 20 year old you will think you'll have it all figured out....you won't. So, don't stress, life will take you where it takes you, overall it'll be fine. Don't worry about things too much cos later on they won't matter, in fact, by the time you're heading for 30 you won't even remember what you were worrying about. Just remember,at the end of the day, all that really matters is that you like you, not what other people think.

Love,
the 29 (almost 30) year old you.

#SBBC Day 7: A Makeup Look

This should be the easiest post for a beauty/fashion blogger, however, lately I have grown so bored of my face, by that I mean my makeup. I feel like I've been wearing the same type of makeup for the past year or so. A relatively simple look, neutral colours, the odd pop of red or plum lip colour. My everyday makeup look and my night time look are very similar, really one of the only differences is the use of black eyeliner at night. I did used to love this look, I wore it a lot..I mean really,for example, here's a bunch of photos that cover the past year or two*

*Warning: The following content contains many pictures of my face!

 hey,there's my friend Sophie :-)

 and there she is again!

Now, I have of course tried different looks at times,I quite like using green and plum colours for my eyes, but the truth is I don't use them nearly enough and recently barely every. I think I used to experiment with different looks a lot more when I was younger. This basic neutral/gold look has become my fall back, my safety net. I've found that I own so many products,yet so many of them are incredibly similar and I always come back to them because I know how to apply them,I know how to do this look quickly,without too much thought.

Does anyone else ever find themselves in a makeup rut?

#SBBC Day 6 Travel Dreams

I want to go everywhere... everywhere!

I feel as though I haven't seen nearly enough of the world. In the past few years I have started travelling more, up until my mid twenties the furthest I had been was to the UK to visit family in London.  Over the past few years the list of places I have travelled to has expanded and now includes Las Vegas,Miami,Key West,The Bahamas, and more of the U.K. and Channel Islands. It's not the longest list but it has some good cities on there I think.

One of the places I want to see the absolute most is New York. It's always been a dream of mine to go there,I've been in airports in New York about 4 times but I have never actually been to New York (I fail!!).

I definitely want to travel more, I'm hoping to go to Berlin this Autumn with my friend Jen, and the list of places I want to see is endless but here's just a few places that are near the top of the list (obviously I want to see more of the U.S.)


 New York

Chicago

 Nashville

 Italy

Northern Lights

Greece

 

#sbbc Day 5 Makeup Remover

I've had many faves and fails in almost every category of makeup that exists,probably too many to mention, so I'm going to write about the makeup remover I'm currently using.

I love this Boots cucumber cleansing lotion. I have very sensitive skin (seriously, I once used a facial wash that burnt my face and required a trip to the doctors,a steroid cream for my face and a round of steroid pills. Not fun!) and this is one of the few cleansers that doesn't irritate it. Now,to be honest,you do have to use a good amount of this to remove all your makeup, or maybe I just wear a lot of makeup! I use this my slathering it all over my face,then wiping it off using a warm washcloth. I usually have to do this twice to remove all my makeup but my face feels so soft afterwards!  I have tried removing it using cotton pads but I found I had to use far more of the cleanser and a hell of a lot of cotton pads to get all my makeup off so I now always use a washcloth to remove my makeup with this product.  It leaves my face really soft and makeup free and doesn't irritate my super sensitive skin, and, for €1.99 you can't go wrong really.

#SBBC Day 4 : Positives about blogging

What do I think are the positives about blogging? This subject got me thinking. When I started my blog I did it because I enjoyed reading other blogs, I liked getting suggestions on products, I liked seeing outfit posts,I liked reviews of products, I found reviews quite helpful, I found beauty and fashion inspiration from reading blogs. I guess all those reasons are why I started my blog. I wanted to write about products I had used,about the products I was buying,the clothes I was wearing,to get feedback and opinions on outfits I had worn.

Since I started blogging I've discovered lots of other positives, I've discovered new blogs through people following my blog and especially through Twitter. The blogger community, again especially on Twitter, has been one of the biggest positives for me. There's a whole online community there that I didn't know about. It's great to chat to new people to,to read their blogs their updates,get their opinions and advice. As I say, I didn't know this community existed but I hope to become more and more involved in it.
I have also found that the more I blog the more I think about the products I now use, I think about whether they're worth the money I spend on them, am I getting value for money? Would I buy them again? Would I recommend them to a friend? How would I describe them? I think blogging had made me more aware of what I actually buy and use.

These are just some of the positive things that I have discovered about blogging. Does anyone have any other positive aspects of blogging that they would care to share? I'd love to hear other people's experiences :-)

#SBBC Day 3: What you bring when travelling

When I travel with a suitcase that I can check in I pack more stuff that I will ever use while I'm away. However,if it's a short journey and I have to fit everything in to a carry on and can only carry liquids  that are 100 mls or less, I have to be ruthless and only pack the essentials!
Firstly I obviously pack my makeup, I never leave the house without makeup on so it's top of any packing list. When I can only carry a limited amount I make sure I have the essentials... foundation,mascara,eyeshadow, eyeliner,eyebrow pencil,blusher,bronzer,lip gloss. Once I have those I know I'll be ok. I generally just take neutral colours so that I don't have to match up any makeup look to any outfit.This is just an idea of what I took on my last trip

Along with my makeup I obviously pack toothpaste, deodorant & perfume. Generally with perfume I'll pack the smallest bottle I have or ideally I'll take any perfume samples I have. When you're packing for a trip with just a carry on ever centimetre of space matters!
If I have to pack shampoo and conditioner I pick up some travel size bottles in Penneys/Primark , they are only €1.50/2 and I find them so useful! I fill these bottles with my own shampoo and conditioner from home. I also fill one of these bottles with my makeup remover.
When I write it all down it seems like so much! Am I high maintenance?? What does everyone else take with them when they travel? What are your essentials?

#SBBC Day 2: Favourite Jewellery

Day 2 of #SBBC and, to be honest, this will probably be the easiest post for me. When I saw one of the suggested topics for day 2 was "favourite jewellery" I knew immediately what I would write about.To be honest I could have blogged about the same thing for one of tomorrow's topics "sentimental item".
When I was about 13 years old, not certain of the exact age but somewhere between 13 - 15, my Mom went on a trip to Lourdes and returned with a name necklace as a gift for me. I loved it then and I love it now! I always complained that there was never anything available with my name,jewellery, mugs,pens..nothing had the name Colette on it! So, obviously, I love, love, loved my necklace.

 I still wear it quite regularly and I often wear it with another necklace...

Obviously, my name isn't Ann, my middle name isn't even Ann, but it is my Mom's name and when she bought me my name necklace she also bought herself one. After she passed away in 2001 I took this necklace of hers and I quite like to wear it along with mine, maybe it sounds silly but I find it quite nice to wear the two together. I guess both necklaces have great sentimental value to me now and I almost feel a nice security when I wear both of them,I feel safer. That may sound silly but it's true.

So there it is, my favourite piece of jewellery. It's been my favourite piece for years and I don't see that changing anytime soon.

September Beauty Blog Challenge. #SBBC Day 1 : Introduction

When I read about the September Beauty Blogger Challenge (SBBC) on Girlfriday's blog I was immediately interested. I am not the most consistent of bloggers , (to put it kindly), even though I wish I was, so when I saw this challenge I thought "this is exactly what I need!". I also love the idea of taking part in a challenge that other people are doing. I look forward to reading other people's posts, especially if they have chosen to blog on a similar suggested subject. I really like that there are suggested subjects to write about as this will no doubt be a life saver for me, I'm not sure I could otherwise think of something to write every day for a month. Also,the choice between posting a beauty or a lifestyle post on any given day also appeals to me, I like the variety. The suggested topics to blog about are just that, suggested, not mandatory. The aim of SBBC is to blog everyday for the month of September.
I hope that this challenge will help me become a more consistent blogger, that it will make me a better blogger and that it will help me become a member of the wider blogging community. If anyone else is taking part in this challenge then let me know, I'd love to read your blog :) Or if you're interested in finding out more about the challenge then just hop over to Girlfriday's post on the #SBBC here

What I wore...

Just a quick outfit post of what I wore on one of the nights I was in Guernsey recently. The steep streets of St. Peters Port,Guernsey meant that heels were not an option during this trip *sad face* so most outfits were slightly more casual.
On this particular night I wore.....

                                                   Jacket- New Look
                                                   Shirt- Dorothy Perkins
                                                   Belt- A-Wear
                                                   Skirt & sandals- Penneys/Primark
                                                   Watch- New Look
                                                   Necklace- Dorothy Perkins

(ignore the facial expressions in the photos,I'm someone who finds it amusing to pull faces for the camera, for me, the funnier a photo is, the better it is)
And since I mentioned in previous posts that I was in Guernsey to visit my friend Sophie, here we are before we went out!

Perfume Purchases!

While on holidays in Guernsey for a few days I purchased 2 new perfumes. Since I was in Guernsey I was able to buy them tax free, yay for bargains!  I'll try my best to describe these perfumes but I must admit I find it much more difficult to describe how something smells rather than how it looks or feels but here goes!

The first perfume I bought was Escada's Cherry In The Air.

 I have always been a fan of Escada as I love light fruity perfumes. I suppose they could be thought of as summer scents but I wear them year round. Cherry In The Air is another fruity light smelling perfume and, unsurprisingly, it has a distinct cherry smell which I love. I find this perfume fruity, light and girly.The only fault I've found with this perfume is its lasting power.I've noticed during the day that after 4 hours or so it's pretty much gone. So if you were to use it as an everyday perfume it would most likely need to be reapplied during the day.
While I was at the till area purchasing my Escada perfume I noticed that they had a Britney Spears Circus Fantasy gift set on sale. I had never even smelt any of Britney's perfumes until a few days earlier when I used another one of her range, Hidden Fantasy that my friend Sophie,who I was staying with, already owned. Having liked that one I decided to give Circus Fantasy a go. 

I'm so glad I did. Again, it's a fruity, girly scent,obviously a favourite of mine. It's a slightly heavier scent than Escada's Cherry In The Air but is still overall a fruity light scent. For an impulse buy, and with it being on sale, I have to say I'm very happy with it and I would definitely look in to buying more perfumes in her range. The gift set also included a moisturiser. To be honest I never really use the  moisturisers that come in these sets but it's still a nice addition to have and it does smell fab!

Overall I'm really happy with both new purchase and like most women, I like how the bottles look on my dresser. Is anyone else reluctant to buy a perfume in an ugly bottle?

Cocoa Butter Formula

I recently visited a friend in Guernsey for a few days. Firstly I have to say that Guernsey is a beautiful island, I'd recommend anyone spend a few days there if they get the opportunity. While I was visiting my friend Sophie I borrowed pretty much everything she had since I was only able to pack a carry on bag (Thanks Soph!).
One of the items Sophie so generously let me use was her Cocoa Butter moisturiser. I've used cocoa butter in the past and, like most people, I really like it. It's a fantastic moisturiser. However, I had always used the liquid moisturiser and Sophie had what is basically a tub of the actual butter. I'd never used this before but now I'm addicted! I made sure to pop into Boots on my journey home and buy my own tub. 

It still smells like cocoa butter, which I love. It still has great moisturising power, my skin felt so soft and silky after using it. The reason I'm now addicted, however, is that I find the butter easier to apply. There's no more incidents of too much moisturiser coming out of the bottle and then having to decide whether to slather more on or decide to watch it wash away down the drain. I also find it absorbs into my skin quicker. I've never been a religious moisturiser user as I simply hate feeling like I need to dry off after applying it. 
So, if anyone else out there is like me and hasn't yet discovered this product, I highly recommended you give it a go.

Tan fan! Cocoa Brown Review.

Recently I finally decided I was sick of being pale, I wanted a tan! I decided to try using a tan I've heard people raving about... Cocoa Brown Tan. I have heard and read so many great reviews of this tan over the last few months that I felt like the last Irish woman to try it.
I rarely use fake tan, I was always fine with being ghostly white, until recently. I have, also, never been a fan of fake tan as I've seen people where it has just gone horribly wrong, people with orange limbs and white hands. However, due to the good reviews I've read of Cocoa Brown Tan I decided to give it a go and now, a week later, I understand why everyone has been raving about it. Consider me a convert!
Firstly, I really liked the actual bottle, it's pretty and pink and looks good on my dresser with all my other various beauty products. It also has a very cute "happy tanning" note.

I was also a fan of the price. I purchased my bottle of Cocoa Brown in Penneys/Primark for €6.90, which I found very reasonable!
The bottle gives little bits of advice on how to apply,what to do in the days leading up to using the product, such as exfoliating and moisturising. 

I was a tad nervous when I went to apply the tan for the first time,as I am with any tan I've ever used. I was afraid I'd apply it unevenly and up with streaky skin. However, I realised straight away  this was not going to be an issue as the mousse is brown and you can see exactly where you are applying it!
I applied the tan, waited slightly over an hour and then hopped in the shower to was it off. I should note that I wasn't desperately waiting for the hour to pass to wash it off as I have been in the past with other fake tans as this one actually smelled quite pleasant. Hurrah! No fake tan stench.
After showering and washing off the mousse I had applied earlier I was quite happy with the initial results, I had a nice healthy glow. The bottle did say the tan would keep developing so I waited until the next morning to see the final results. The next morning I woke to see that the tan had developed more, it was still a lovely natural glow but was darker than the previous night. 

Pre tan...

Just after showering..Mid tan..

Final result...

I feel like photos don't do this tan justice.It is so natural and doesn't even look like a fake tan when it's applied.Several days after using this tan I still had a lovely glow,it is certainly durable. After a day at an outdoor concert where I initially got caught in a downpour that soaked me to the bone, then going on holidays for a few days where I was sweating in the sunshine and paddling in the sea water, the tan still held on and my lovely glow survived!
Overall I have to say, I love this product! In fact I puffy heart it! I would recommend it to anyone. It's simple to apply, gives great results, and is very affordable. You simply can't go wrong !