Lush Mini Haul

One thing iv not done in a while is pop into my local Aberdeen Lush. So when I had some extra time and a few extra penny's I thought I would see what's new. I landed up picking four new bath products, two of which iv previously had plus really enjoyed and two products iv never tried before.

 I had originally when in for space girl bath bomb only to be told they not longer sell it. This was my favourite Lush smell apart from snow fairy so I'm gutted they don't have it anymore.
I picked up 'Butterball' bath ballistic and 'mmmelting marshmallow moment' instead hoping they can take my fizzy purple bath bombs place. Both of these smell quite sweet which is exactly what I like in a bath. 

'Mmmelting Marshmallow Moment' leaves the water a beautiful peach colour with a mild scent of marshmallow. I wouldn't say its overwhelming like some of there bath bombs so if your perhaps not fond of how strong they can be this would be a great alternative. I didn't find any difference to my skin after the bath. They retail for £2.00.

Butterball leaves your skin lovely and soft. After this one so you may not feel the need to use your lotions and potions afterwards. The smell is quite subtle but relaxing. There's more than enough in this bomb to get two baths out of. These are for sale at £2.65.

I picked up old favourites 'the comforter' and 'Creamy Candy' which I can see slowly becoming staples again of the bathroom.

 You only need ¼ of the comforter to make some fantastic bubbles so its really good value for money compared to some of the items from lush. Plus the best bit is how you smell like Ribena afterwards. Well best bit to me anyway. These cost £4.95 so they are a little on the expensive side.
Candy creamy can also be used as half to get best bang for your buck. This smells like 'Snow Fairy' and gives lots of pretty bubbles at £2.95.

The only down side to the Aberdeen store is how small it is. It was quite awkward to be in with a buggy and I landed up only viewing half the shop due to the amount of people being in meant there was nowhere for me to move. 

What is your favourites from Lush? Let me know down below or tweet me at @umber_phoenix. 

 

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Dolly Mixtures: perfect gifts

 With the Christmas season coming up money can be a little on the tight side. So much to my surprise I came across 'Dolly Mixtures' in Asda.

I'm instantly taken back to my childhood when I give these a sniff. I was half expecting a really chemically smell but they have not let me down. In fact im on my second bottle of the Parma Violets shower gel. The flat just smells amazing after using them for bubble bath. They also bubble up really nicely so its a lovely multi purpose product. One thing is that the scent doesn't last very long on your skin, which is a shame but for £1 im not expecting miracles.

The lip jelly's taste lovely as well as having the same beautiful scent. They are a little sticky but nothing like a cheap lip gloss and leave a lovely clear glossy sheen to your lips. I really like the fizzy cherry flavour and keep one in my bag, car and the others in the flat. Always great to have them on hand.

The body mists are really great too, may be not particularity 'adult' but for little ones it would be amazing to make them feel grown up. I do like them for room sprays though. I adore having a fruity smell in the house and my daughters room smells lovely.

I know if my little girl was a little older I would be giving these to her for birthday or Christmas as it really is such a cute fun little gift to give those younger.

The best part about these? They do not cost you an arm and a leg.

The body sprays and lip jelly's are £2 and the shower gels are £1.

Extremely affordable and fun for those stocking fillers and secret Santa. However make sure to pick up a few for yourself as one sniff will get you hooked.

~*You can pick these up from asda by clicking here*~

Much Love,
Umber x

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Estee Lauder Gel Eyeliner

 

I have two eyeliners that I usually reach for. My Primark pen liner and this Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Gel Eyeliner. In my quest to find an eyeliner that works well for me iv came across this one.

I was a huge fan of the double wear foundation when I was younger, and though the lightest colour was a little dark, it covered my imperfections well. So hoping for the best I had picked up this eyeliner and im glad to say its not done me wrong.

I have the colour in black, and it comes across as black too. Sometimes you get those eyeliners that say they are one colour but they lack the pigmentation and look grey, brown or blue. This however is black. Its richly coloured and very creamy to use.

I only need to load up the bush once and can manage a clean looking eye flick. The creaminess really helps with this as everything is so fluid and no tugging is required.

Once applied it sets and really does last all day. There is no clumping, flaking or creasing just that original black line you drew. With it no worse for wear than when you put it on. What surprises me is though it lasts perfectly all day its very easy to be removed with a bit of micellar water. Just leave it on the line for a few seconds, swipe and off it goes.

The only con I find for this is it does seem to wear off every so slightly on the inner corner of my eye. I tend to rub my inner eyes as they get irritated easily. However tears have not removed this eyeliner as of yet.

 

When I originally bought it was I really unsure about the price point, being far more than what I had planed on paying. The product retails for around £19 which I now don't think is to extortionate considering how product lasts a very long time. As you can see mine is very well loved. I would pay that again for this gel eyeliner. 

TIP: store your gel eyeliners upside down, it will keep them usable for longer.

What is your favourite eyeliner? Let me know down in the comments.  

You can see examples of the eyeliner in use on my 'Makeup Monday' and 'FOTD  Round Up Week 2' blog posts.

Much Love, 

Umber  x

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Makeup Revolution Salvation Lip Collection

For the last few weeks iv been receiving comments about my lip colour. But don't worry fokes today's the day when I finally review the Makeup Revolution Salvation Lip Collection. 

 

Iv been wearing the lip products for a while, trying to get a good grip on there staying power and also how they feel. There's nothing worse than an amazing colour that the only redeeming factor of it is its shade. You have a lip product to last and im happy to say one of the products in this set really does have an amazing staying power.

The set is split up into 3 different types of product: Intense, Ultra Velour and Velvet. Over all the colours are really nice on my skin tone, even though I was a bit wary of three of the colours. The one thing that really irritated me about the set is that once the outer packaging is removed unless you remember the finish, there is no labelling on them. There is no colour names, there Is no finish, it is simply 6 identical tubes with different colours inside.  On the swatches on the right side is where i left them on my arm for 8 hours.

The best of all the products were the Ultra Valour glosses. They had fantastic saying power, and even with eating, drinking and smooching the colour just did not budge. I was a little worried at first as there was still a slightly sticky feel left, but after putting it through its paces they really did surprise me. I would love to purchase more of these lippys and there has been a few added to my wish list from Santa.

Next up we have the Intense. Incredible rich pigment and an average staying power. They are sticky on the lips and never seem to really dry. But I do have to say for the intensity of the colour I think it was worth putting up with side effects. Would I buy again? Probably not, if I could get a similar shade in the 'Intense' glosses I would rather pick them up.

The Velvet lip glosses had a texture I have never felt in a gloss before. They were soft on the lips almost like silicone but did dry a little. Id love to get my hands on some darker shades of these to give them a go. As for staying power they were nether here nor there. I'm on the fence if I like these glosses are not. However I do think that's down to the colours given and not the texture.

-*The Set is currently £12 on superdrug.com*-

Will you be getting your hands on these products this Christmas? Let me know down below and also let me know what your favourite lip product is. 

Much Love,

Umber xx

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FOTD Round up week 2

Today I bring you another weekly round up of my #fotd posts and what I was wearing in each instagram picture. This week has been predominantly make-up free as iv been feeling a bit under the weather, only putting it on when iv been planning to go somewhere then removing it as soon as iv been home. 

Skin: Manic Panic Dreamtone in Virgin, Mac Studio Fix Fluid Nw10, Collection Lasting Perfection in Fair, Collection Pressed Powder in 18 Ivory.
Cheeks: Revolution Bronzer, Blush and Highlight trio.
Eyes: Estee Lauder Double Wear Gel Liner in Black, Great Lash Waterproof Version by Maybelline, Colour Tattoo in Pink Gold.

Lips: Super stay 10H Tint Gloss in Endless Ruby.

Skin: Manic Panic Dreamtone in Virgin, Mac Studio Fix Fluid Nw10, Collection Pressed Powder in 18 Ivory.

Cheeks: Revolution Bronzer, Blush and Highlight trio.

Eyes: Estee Lauder Double Wear Gel Liner in Black, Revolution Amazing Volume Mascara, Make-up Academy  Pro-base eye primer, Colour Tattoo in Pink Gold, Revolution 2016 Eyeshadow Collection

Lips: makeup revolution salvation lip

Skin: Manic Panic Dreamtone in Virgin, Mac Studio Fix Fluid Nw10, Collection Lasting Perfection in Fair, Collection Pressed Powder in 18 Ivory.

Cheeks: Jemma Kidd mannequin Skin highlight, E.L.F blushing rose blusher, MUA Mosaic Bronzer sun kissed glow shade 2.

Eyes: Revolution Amazing Volume Mascara, Make-up Academy  Pro-base eye primer, Revolution 2016 Eyeshadow Collection 

Lips: makeup revolution salvation lip. 

Skin: Revolution Ultra Face Base BB cream foundation

Cheeks: Revolution Bronzer, Blush and Highlight trio.

Eyes: Revolution Amazing Volume Mascara, Make-up Academy  Pro-base eye primer, Revolution 2016 Eyeshadow Collection, Estee Lauder Double Wear Gel Liner in Black

Lips: makeup revolution salvation lip.

What have you been wearing this week?

Much love,

Umber x

PS have you seen last weeks? Makeup Monday week 1

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Quick Fix Facials: Purifying Charcoal Mask - Review

I love a good face mask. There's nothing more relaxing than rubbing your face in goo then sitting waiting for it to harden. OK so maybe I don't enjoy them to much simply because I'm impatient, but I can see a huge difference that they make, so for the blog I decided to give myself a pamper. 

My skins been breaking out since I stared using Mac studio fix fluid, these delightful little spots popping up just before im due to go out in public for a Charity day fund raiser. Especially when I'm there due to being labelled a beauty queen at a pageant a few months back. 

So rushing to boots I came across this little product at half price. Iv been reading a lot about charcoal recently, so I decided to give this ago. Iv used it about 4 times now and there is still plenty left in the squeesy tube, so I can see this lasting far longer than the 10 facial claim. 

Who ever came up with putting face masks in tubes is a genius. I always use that little rip open packets and feel like I waste half the product. But this is just perfect and none of my product is wasted or goes dry in the tube.

As for how it worked I have to say I'm really impressed.  Each time I use it my skin feel smooth and calmer. It also doesn't overly tighten when it dry s on the skin which I really don't like about some clay masks. It also has a lovely smell of cinnamon which I realise can be an issue if you have skin sensitivity so I do recommend doing a test patch first. I notice it tingles slightly on my skin. Next day I do think my skin looks a little bit better, it is calmer and more uniform in colour. As for the break outs they are leaving me quickly and you cant tell where some of the spots have been now. 

Would I repurchase this? I think I would but I would love to try more of there range out first. 

At £2.49 a tube at the moment is is defiantly the time to experiment before they go back up to £5 a tube - which I would pay anyway because the stuff does go a long way. 

-*You can find it here on the boots website*-

What is your favourite skin mask? Or have you tried any more of this range? Id love to know so leave em a comment down below.

Much Love,

Umber x

 

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Makeup Monday

Its Monday again, but instead of being down, why not feel inspired to shake up your makeup?

Every Monday will be 'Makeup Monday' and will showcase the makeup of the previous weeks #fotd or face of the day. Hopefully you will find a new lip colour you enjoy or a snazzy new eye colour.

Skin: Manic Panic Dreamtone in Virgin, Mac Studio Fix Fluid Nw10, Collection Lasting Perfection in Fair, Collection Pressed Powder in 18 Ivory.
Cheeks: Revolution Bronzer, Blush and Highlight trio.
Eyes: Estee Lauder Double Wear Gel Liner in Black, Great Lash Waterproof Version by Maybelline, Colour Tattoo in Pink Gold, Revolution Icon pro 1 palette.
Lips: Super stay 10H Tint Gloss in Endless Ruby. 

Skin: Manic Panic Dreamtone in Virgin, Mac Studio Fix Fluid Nw10, Collection Lasting Perfection in Fair, E.L.F HD Powder.
Cheeks: Revolution Bronzer, Blush and Highlight trio.
Eyes: Estee Lauder Double Wear Gel Liner in Black, Estee Lauder Sumptuous Extreme Mascara, Colour Tattoo in Pink Gold, Revolution Welcome to Plesuredome Palette.
Lips: Revolution 100% Vamp. 

Halloween

Skin: Manic Panic Dreamtone in Virgin, Mac Studio Fix Fluid Nw10, Collection Lasting Perfection in Fair, Star Gazer Pressed Powder White.
Cheeks: Revolution Bronzer, Blush and Highlight trio.
Eyes: Estee Lauder Double Wear Gel Liner in Black, Primark Black Eyeliner Pen, Estee Lauder Sumptuous Extreme Mascara, Great Lash  Waterproof Version by Maybelline, Revolution Ultimate Colour Chaos Palette.
Lips: makeup revolution salvation lip

Skin: Manic Panic Dreamtone in Virgin, Mac Studio Fix Fluid Nw10, Collection Lasting Perfection in Fair, Collection Pressed Powder in 18 Ivory.
Cheeks: Revolution Bronzer, Blush and Highlight trio.
Eyes:Primark Black Eyeliner pen , Great Lash Waterproof Version by Maybelline, 144 eyeshadow 2016 collection from Revolution.
Lips: makeup revolution salvation lip . 



Do you like experimenting with different colours of makeup? 
Leave me a comment below and let me know.

Much love,
Umber x

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Revolution 2016 Eyeshadow Collection

Hello Lovelies

With Christmas already trending on twitter I was the perfect time to start my reviews on the products out this year for Xmas.

One of my favourite brands at the moment is Makeup Revolution so I have bought a few of the gift sets to test out. So my first review will be on there '144 eyeshadow Palette 2016 Collection'.

 

I'll start off by saying this is a great palette worthy of anybody's collection, especially for those with a smaller collection or new to the Revolution brand. There is colours in here to suit everyone as most of the shades are neutral with a subtle splash of vibrancy for a bit more adventurous looks. Even if you have every colour under the sun the layout of this palette makes it an easy option to have on your vanity for those 2minute make overs before running out the door. 

.  

Pigmentation wise it is quite uniform across all the colours. Every shade is a creamy swatch with plenty of choice between the different matte and shimmer textures. If like me you like the ability to build up a shade the palette does give the option - less is more in my book. 

I still have last years palette to hand, so I thought id would give you an image comparison as you may have the previous year too. This years palette is more suited to those who prefer the natural shades as opposed to last years where there were more bright colour options. I do think this years layout is cleaner however.

In all this would be a perfect gift for anybody, beginners and collectors alike.

At £10 at the moment in superdrug its worth going to pick it up before they sell out because Makeup Revolution really has taken off this year.

Will you be picking up this pallet? Why don't you let me know down below or tweet me.

Much Love,

Umber x

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Go To Make Up

Hello Lovelies

Today I wanted to do a little blog post about my everyday makeup using my go to products and brands.
When I say every day I mean when I have the chance, quite often its a bair face day unless going outside.

Foundation

The lightest and best coverage foundation I have found so far has to be Mac's Studio Fix in Nw10. It is a bit dark used on its own for my skin however and I have been using it very sparingly with a touch of white powder over the top especially in winter. I find it does break me out a little though. 

I did splash out on a white foundation for Halloween and today has been the first use of it and I can see it quickly becoming a firm favourite. The white foundation I have is Manic Panic Dreamtone. 

When im not however looking for a full coverage I love using Make-up Revolutions Ultra Face base with a dusting of powder otherwise it looks a bit oily on my skin.

Lips

My go to lip colour which is becoming my staple colour is Endless Ruby which is a lip stain by Maybelline. I can fully believe that it is a 'super stay 10H Tint Gloss' as it really does stay like its meant too. If im not wearing this colour then my lips are usually just coated in a clear lip balm if im not rocking lilac lips.

Mascara

I am yet to find my 'dream' mascara, often just moving between a few iv randomly picked up. At the moment it is the Maybelline Great Lash and Estee Lauder Sumptuous Extreme. I do really enjoy the Estee Lauder mascara but at £24 a pop its not a luxury I can easily afford, only having tried it due to it being a sample, if I did have the money to throw at this product I probably would. It has a great lengthening effect and really makes my lashes have a Wow factor. 

Eyeliner

For eyeliner I also flit between two products. I really enjoy the Estee Lauder Double Wear gel eyeliner but on a very friendly budget price is the Primark pen eyeliner which I have to say is an item I have bought a few times - not because it runs out easily - but because its amazing. Both very different products but I do enjoy the ease of both to be used, the pen though is just a little bit crisper and darker plus easy to do on the go without taking brushes with me. 

Powder Products

Iv decided to pop all these together because they all seem to come down to one brand: Make-up Revolution. From eye shadows, eyebrows, blushes and bronzers this has to be the brand I am constantly looking at. Its the first thing I grab every day, plus is the brand I know I can trust for photo shoots which is a definite must. Iv taken to having to label each pallet because I land up with 5 or 6 black cases on my vanity and have to open them all up just to find that one perfect eye shade.

What are your go to products?

Do you use any of thoes mentioned above?

Much Love,

Umber x

Love Your body

Hello lovlies
Today I posted something different on my instagram. (Ps its Umber_Phoenix if you haven't followed me yet)



To often people strive and hunt for the ideal of perfection. Id much rather be happy and me.
So if I have to bair all to do it you bet im gonna be naked and wiggling my curves in your direction.

Love the body you are in regardless of what people think.
You get only one body in this life time, make peace with it.

When we look back at our younger selves we think how we could have changed things. So why wait for tomorrow for the todays. Be proud of who you are.

Im not the slimmest , tallest and most certainly not the prettiest. But do you know what I love me.

I love my lumps and bumps
I love my wiggles and jiggles
And most importantly I love my inperfect imperfections

A naked body is not to be shunned, hated and spat upon because it does not fit into the medias views.
I will love myself for being who I want to be, not for who im ment to be.

Love Umber x

Mini haul (lashes, nails etc)

Everyone who knows me knows I love poundland.
So suprise surprise guess where I have been.
Theres always something so fun searching through the shelves and spotting bargains. So today when I went for a look I found these fantastic buys that I just can not wait to use.



Just look at thoes lashes and thoes polishes are fantastic and have so many of them now.
Can't wait to try the powder as well.

Eek so excited to try all of these out.

#wearethethey

A few weeks ago I got I got the exciting news that my article for the magazine Twisted Edge was published. I was so thrilled to know that my little piece was good enough to be included along side some beautiful and talented people for the #wearethethey edition.

Iv always loved writing, and I will admit I'm not very good, but to know something of my dislexic pen was published feels fantastic.

I chose to write a little about what I know and how I feel. So picking the subject of plus models just seemed natural. If you would like to read it the article is on www.umberphoenix.co.uk.

I used to blog all the time. I loved writing then like everything else, life got in the way. So today im writing this little post, just over the moon at the magazine being in my hands. Maby I should write more often about my adventures and achievements.

Much love,
Umber x

Red Skye Comic

So I just got something exciting through the mail.

 

After waiting months its finally here. The comic in which I had back cover, and trading cards.

And honestly? Its poor quality.

Im so disappointed by it. There is the printer lines across it, the graphics inside are bad. The story line is awful - how many times can they fit "blam" into it? Far to many. 

Honestly I would not recommend going for this and there customer service is awful too. They 'lost' my first copy to have to send this one out again. One of these images *the one with the brick wall* was taken after I had ordered my copy.  Plus they do not email back to keep you in the loop or do they reply to you at all a lot of the time.

Im lucky they wanted to publish my picture but as a customer buying a product the product is extremely poor. I had to buy this, quite often people believe you will get things for free if your in it. This is quite often not the case. 

Disappointed to say the least. 

Umber x

A Sneek peek into my modeling world

 

Im not as crazy about makeup as I used to be.
But I do have a huge amount still. My love seems have shifted towards shoes and clothes. Im madly in love with colecting outfits for photoshoots. I adore being a model so much, keeps my head in check and constantly looking for the next one.
Iv been published a few times now in magazies and also in a news paper which is great!

Thought I would share a few pics with you. Will write more in depth in a few days x


Umber x

Everything You've Ever Done

Something a little different to write about today. Im writing today about a book, but not just any book. A gripping story about exploring, memories and above all else love.

The author Amelia Whalen puts it best herself when she writes in her blog;

"Dave and I were real-life characters who blasted thought a life stranger than fiction"

From chapter one you are hooked in the tale of herself and husband Dave. From them getting engaged, to the tragedy of being diagnosed with Adrenoleukodystrophy and beyond.

It hit me on such a personal level, and whilst I personally have never faced ALD, I currently am facing a similar but very different tale. With my own father terminal with cancer these glimpses of her memoir were uplifting. Her faith throughout, not drowning in self pity but gathering strength to carry on. Her love never wavering. She is a beautful powerful woman to be admired. Seeing how strong she is to carry on and make the best out of a horrible situation. It gives me such hope for my own future. 

This memoir, I believe, will touch everyone in one way or another.

 Extracts of Amalia Whalen's 'Everything You've Ever Done'  can be found at www.everythingyouveeverdone.com 

You.

You can set your mind to anything you want. 

YOU control what YOU do.

 Be who you want to be.

 Do what you want to do.

 Live life to the fullest. 

Smash thoes goals you set. 

Dream the biggest dream.

 Live only for you.

Umber x