eBay beauty shopping!

Hey Everyone,

Ever missed that limited edition palette you just have to have? or you really want to try this one product but it's slightly out of your price range?

If the answer is yes to the above questions, then I shall ask you one more question - Have you tried on eBay?

I've got a slightly different post for you today - it's all about eBay! I LOVE eBay! This is no secret amongst my friends and family - I blame my dad entirely! You just become addicted to the excitement of bidding against other people, and that absolute joy when you win!! (It's a problem!)

So - there are a two things I just wanted to share with you about eBay beauty buys...

1) Check the seller - This is obviously true for all eBay purchases and you can find this information on Seller information. When you have clicked on something you want to buy, you will see on the right hand side a small box with two important pieces of info. Firstly, how many sales they've had and secondly their feedback score. These are both pretty self-explanatory so I won't go into details!

2) Be prepared that it may not be the legitimate product - Even though a seller may say that it is the real deal doesn't mean that it is! And in some cases this is fine, if the product works fine (in my opinion!) But there will be some fakes that are really rubbish!

To round off this post, I'll just share a few eBay purchases that I have made - some were successful and others were not…

Laura Mercier Celebration Face Palette - I can not take the credit for this awesome find, it was in fact my dad! So unfortunately I can't give you any details such as the price or seller :( However, it is one of my examples of an excellent eBay buy!

NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk - £3.99 (free shipping), I had really wanted to try this product; as it seems to be a must in all beauty bloggers collections. Unfortunately, living in the UK, means that I have to get all NYX products online! So, this cheeky purchase on eBay saved me £4.50 on shipping alone!

MAC 219 - Sorry to end on a bad note, this is an example of a bad purchase. I've been really wanting to get the MAC pencil brush for ages but at the time I couldn't afford to get one from MAC. Naturally, I turned to eBay - however, (as you can see from the picture) this is clearly not a pencil brush! Though I wouldn't have been too bothered if the quality of the brush had been better! The bristles are falling out and its super uncomfortable to use on the eye.

So, in short, eBay is good for those occasional beauty finds but just be careful! Enjoy shopping!

I hope you enjoyed this post and are having a lovely evening!

Emma
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Benefit Brow Bar!

Hey Everyone,

I think we can all relate to the times when we just forget to pamper and preen ourselves - let's face it, life can get in the way sometimes! It really was about time that I sorted my eyebrow situation! 

Here was the damage - the shape was not totally lost but I really just needed a tidy up! The hairs were getting a bit long in the front and my arch was slowly disappearing in my right brow!

When it comes to getting brows shaped standard procedure seems to be you sit in a chair, and the beautician stays in complete silence throughout the treatment! They never ask what shape you like or how thick? And in that final moment before you get to look in the mirror, you are momentarily scared that they may have taken off half your eyebrows! I have been unfortunate in the past to see that this was not an irrational fear. So, due to this one time bad experience - I have become very picky with who I choose to do my brows!

As I'm extremely fund of my brows, I don't mind splashing out on such treatments like HD brows. However, being a student (not having £30 to spend on brow treatment), I decided to be brave and branch out!

Now, I haven't heard many people talk about the benefit brow bars before, so this was a new and exciting experience. I understand it that they are only in selected locations and I am fortunate to have one at my local boots in Brighton. 

The beautician's name who mapped and shaped my brows was called Meg. Not only was she chatty and lovely to talk to - she really knows her stuff when it comes to brows!  

"Eye brow mapping?" I hear you say - well as Meg described it "…your brows frame your face…" She mapped out where my brows start and end, and where my arch was placed. As I said before I only really needed a tidy up, and she agreed that I should keep the thickness in the centre.

A couple of wax strips later and there is the finished product! I love the way they turned out - my brows look so much tidier and shaped! 

I think they look even fuller now they've been shaped and trimmed - won't need so much brow powder! 

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my experience at the benefit brow bar and I would 100% recommend them to anyone! This is because they really listen to how you want your brows, but also taking your face shape into account! If you live in the Brighton area, definitely pop in and give them a go! 

I hope you enjoyed this post and are having a lovely evening!

Emma 

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#4 What's on my nails?

Hey Everyone,

I've got another "What's on my nails" for you this evening! I enjoy doing my nails so much more now that I have my trusty Insta-dry from Sally Hansen; so I feel this will be becoming a weekly post (may be!) 

So, I was feeling a more natural nail - but I like that it is a metallic nudey-pink. This is Essie's tea and crumpets (such a cute name!), and this is my one and only essie nail polish! That sounds surprising right? But alas it is true. 

I love the way this applies so easily and the formula is great. And I've had no major chips so far which is nice :P 

I shall definitely be trying more essie nail polishes in the future! 

I hope you are having a lovely evening and enjoyed this post!

Emma 

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Best of 2013!!!

Hey Everyone,

I hope you all had an awesome start to 2014 yesterday and I wish you the best year (better late than never :P) So, to start my blog in 2014 I am going to look back to all the products I loved! I won't be reviewing every product; that would be a mammoth of a post! So, I'm simply sharing my top picks from 2013.  

Face products:

Foundation - Make Up Forever HD Foundation

BB Cream - Kiehl's Actively Correcting & Beautifying BB Cream 

Primer - Laura Mercier Foundation Primer - Oil Free

Under-eye concealer - Bobbi Brown Corrector

Blemish concealer - Collection Lasting Perfection concealer

Cheek products:

Blusher - Laura Mercier Powder Blush in Rosette and Apricot Blossom

Contour - MAC Powder Blush in Harmony 

Highlighter - the Balm Mary-Lou Manizer 

Eye products:

Eyeshadow - MAC powder eyeshadow in Satin Taupe, Mystery, Cranberry and Sketch

Eyeshadow Palette - Urban decay Naked Basics palette

Cream eyeshadow - MAC Paint Pot in Soft Ochre 

Eyeliner - Stila Stay all-day waterproof liquid eyeliner in Intense Black

Mascara - Maybelline the Rocket Volume Express Mascara

Lip products:

Lipstick - MAC Rebel and Tom Ford Blush Nude

Lipgloss - Lancome Gloss in Love in 312

Nail Products:

Nail Colour - Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in 660 Pat on the Black and Chanel Nail Colour in 565 Beige

Top Coat - Sally Hansen Insta-Dry 

Special Mention:

Yankee Candle in Black Cherry

Perfume - Chanel Coco Mademoiselle

I hope you enjoyed this post and are having a lovely day! 

And again - Happy 2014 to you all!! :D

Emma

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