12DOC- Day One- London Haul!

Hello!

Its been a while...too long! Again, as I said in my last post (which was a while back!) my life has been pretty busy lately. I've been snowed under with work these past few months, had lots of exams and deadlines to meet and just generally had lots of things on. But, with only two more days left and just 9 days until Christmas, I am finally able to relax and write a blogpost. Yay!

I've decided to do '12 Days of Christmas' [or 12DOC for short] on my blog, where I'll be blogging everyday for the next 12 days. I'd have loved to do 'Blogmas' but just haven't had enough time recently to even think about blogging. So, I will be blogging for the 9 days until Christmas day, and then for a few days after that. That way, I can encapsulate the main part of Christmas, and my favourite time of year, on my blog!

Over the past few weeks since my last post, I've bought some nice things, worn some nice makeup and used some nice nail polish colours. I wish I could have shared them! I probably wont be showing them in the 12DOC though, I'm not that prepared! I'll be doing some fashion and beauty posts obviously, and maybe some more random posts too...I haven't quite decided yet. Lets just say I'll be blogging about stuff I love for the next 12 days to celebrate this magical time of year! :D

So, for day one, I want to share a few goodies I picked up in London. Yesterday and last Saturday I went into London, with friends, to do some well deserved shopping. I'm lucky to live in a county just outside London, and my friend who joined me last week lives even closer, so we go shopping in the capital often. And then yesterday I went with some other friends to Westfield, Stratford.

Camera quality isn't the best- it was quite dark and I took the picture on my phone.

Clothes wise, from Camden market [one of my favourite places to visit in London, and where I would recommend anyone to go] I bought two little tops;

White one with a peace sign and a black Jack Daniels one. They were from the market near Camden Lock and loads of stalls were selling them. I think they're so funny! For two I paid £8 and they were size 'small'.

I LOVE CAMO! I've honestly been obsessed with it for the past few months! These were both purchased from Primark in Westfield [I couldnt find them on the Oxford Street store!] and I love them so much! Both size 6, the jacket was £16 and the shirt was £12 or £13, I cant quite remember. I wore the jacket yesterday, it looks awesome!, and am planning to wear the skirt with my camo jeans...will it be too much?

 

My mum purchased these black jeggings at Sainsburys last week, originally for herself, but she ended up giving them to me. They're a lovely material and fit nicely, they look goooooood! Size 8, £9 something [I THINK! They were more expensive but had 20% off]

 

 

Finally from Forever21 I picked up these-

 



Three sets of cross earrings in silver, copper and black colours.

Can you remember my post a while back about crucifixion jewelry? [see here http://sentwithasmile.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/crazy-for-crucifixion.html ]

Well, I spoke about some black cross earrings I'd bought and was loving from River Island. Guess what? I lost them in Russia :( They were my favourites! BUT I found these in Forever21 for only £2.40. I couldn't say no!

I'm really happy with all my new purchases, and can't wait to show them off.

What have you bought recently?

X

 

 

Don't forget to come back tomorrow for 12DOC day two!

Mascara from Mary Kay...Yay or Nay?

Hello!

A while back, maybe even as much as 3-4 months ago, I bought the Mary Kay 'Lash Love' Mascara.

I'll admit it was a somewhat random buy, especially since it had only just been launched in the UK. I had heard about Mary Kay products before however, from Youtube and I already knew it was like the American version of Avon; a reliable company selling good quality beauty products, so I had high hopes of the mascara [black] that I had purchased.

 

Unfortunately, it didn't meet expectations. I hoped it would be a good quality, easy to apply mascara- the pictures on the website showed the brush to be a plastic comb with tiny teeth. Upon arrival, I was impressed. The packaging, although simple, was elegant, the mascara was an inky black shade and the wand looked like it did on the website.

 

However, I HATED the formula. It flaked all over my under eye area and did very little to curl/lengthen my lashes. That wasn't the worst bit though, as it was TERRIBLE to remove. And by that I mean it took a good 10 minutes of eye makeup remover, makeup wipes, and 3 different face cleansers to remove. It was horrible; it just wouldn't come off! I was terrified all my eyelashes would be pulled out...:(

 

Now I don't know whether this is the same for everyone using this mascara, and it could have just been a one of, where I got unlucky. But for now, I'm staying away from Mary Kay [especially the mascaras!] and going back to my faithful Body Shop one :)

 

 

Have you tried any Mary Kay products? What are you views?

 

 

 

 

 

 

X

 





Primark Pyjamas

Wow, long time no post! Oops! Theres no specific reason for my lack of blogging, just that I've be inundated with work over the past few weeks and so unfortunately I haven't had time. Work wise, November has always been crazy; I've had deadlines to meet, essays to write and I'm having my room redecorated...so every things manic! I've actually been meaning to blog about some new purchases since returning from Russia, but as I've been home for 4 weeks, they're not so new anymore. Still, I have a few pairs of Pyjamas to share and a newly purchased lipstick....enjoy!

Recently, I realised that I hadn't bought any new pyjamas in ages, so a trip to primark to find cheap night ware was needed. I was surprised at the range available in my local store and was so impressed by the designs- they were adorable and perfect for Christmas! I always like to get new PJ's in the winter time, ready for Christmas!

I bought two full sets and one extra pair of bottoms, to go with a spare pink pyjama top I got a while back.

The top is soft black material with little white rose designs, and the trousers are grey with the most adorable pandas! The tie is a bright coral colour and the material is again, very comfortable. Love, love love!

Next up, a red cami and teeny tiny shorts combo. The red top is soft and the 'cheeky' shorts are a lovely tartan/lace edged design with a red tie. These are so cute and perfect for summer!

These are my Christmas PJ's! With the penguin and snowflake design and sparkly tie, they'll look great on Christmas morning! They have tight ankle elastics too, which adds something different to usual.

I also picked up a lipstick from MAC....and its gorgeous!

Of course I had to get a pink! Its called 'Creme Cup' and is a cremesheen finish :) The colour is honestly beautiful and I think it suits my colouring perfectly [dark haired girls!]


Have you had any sneaky winter purchases this month?

X

From Russia With Love

Hey! Long time no post! Well, not really, but as I've only been blogging for a few weeks and haven't written a post in over a week....it seems like a long time. Although this is a beauty blog, and I do have a few beauty posts lined up, I'd quite like to write a bit about my recent trip to Russia. I mentioned both on my last post and on my twitter [@missannaashlee] that I was spending a week in Moscow & St Petersburg, to improve my Russian, experience the culture and see the cities beautiful sights. I know this has nothing to do with my other beauty posts, and I do have some hauls to post about, but I thought it would be nice to share a few pictures of one of the best weeks of my life! Beauty posts will resume soon :)

Warning- there will be lot's of pictures [I took over 800 in just a week!]

We arrived in Moscow late afternoon local time [theres a 3 hour time difference from GMT; English time] on Sunday 21st October, at one of the cities 5 airports- Domodedovo.

Since we'd left at 3:30 am, I was relieved to arrive at the hotel after an hour journey through the Moscow rush hour. We were staying, whilst in Moscow, at the 'Cosmos Hotel' - a more than 2000 roomed Soviet building, built for the Moscow Olympic games during the USSR period. It was honestly massive!

Being on the 22nd floor meant we had this stunning view every evening.....

We spent 2 full days in Moscow and they were amazing! Some of what we saw:....

The lake that inspired Tschaikovsky's 'Swan Lake' with a nunnery in the background.

Moscow State University.....with a Snickers advert in front!

Russian McDonald's!

St Basils

Red Square at night

I have LOADS more pictures of Moscow, but if I post too many more I won't have time to show St Petersburg!

After spending a few days in Moscow, we took the overnight train to St Petersburg. I was surprised at how different the two cities were- St Petersburg was very calm and quite in comparison to the busy life of Moscow.

The Cruiser Aurora

Russian Folklore Show!

The Winter Palace

The Romanov's tombs

Russian Matrioshka, at the market...

I bought a HUGE amount of things back- the markets were amazing! I got sets of Matrioshka, Shapkas, Shot Glasses, T-shirts, Key rings....the list goes on! I was planning to blog about the souvenirs, but I've given most of the presents away now so that's a shame :(

I bought some Russian snacks home as well- chocolate, ''Barny'' cakes and loads of gum- they have so many flavours!

All in all, Russia was amazing. The markets, tourist sights, shopping centres were wonderful and I have so many memories of the week.

X

Whats in my Carry On?

Hey!

Just a quick post today because I still have a million things to do before 3am tomorrow! If you've read my other posts, you may know that I leave for Russia tomorrow, and I've still go a few things to pack. So, I thought I'd show you whats in my carry on;

Documentation:
♥ Passport [obviously!]
♥ Vaccinations records
♥ Information pack
♥ Itinerary
♥ Passport photocopy [very important!]
♥ Purse - with GBP's, US Dollars and Russian Roubles. Plus cards & EHIC Card


Beauty:
♥ Body Shop Strawberry Body Butter
♥ Tissues
♥ Victoria's Secret body spray- Tease
♥ Mirror
♥ Makeup brushes
♥ Hand sanitiser
♥ Everyday makeup [see previous post]
♥ Hairbands & pins
♥ Hairbrush

Medication:
♥ Inhaler
♥ EpiPen
♥ General medicines for pain, hay fever, and illness
♥ Plasters

Other:
♥ Hat, Gloves & Scarf [not pictured]
♥ Umbrella- its Russia!
♥ Granola bar [breakfast!]
♥ Mints
♥ Glasses
♥ Water [not pictured]

I think that's it. As far as the bag, I'm taking my Black Studded Alexander Wang.....replica :) Everyone has it, its the Duffel one from eBay, so I'm sure you've seen it. Its  great size and takes a lot of weight, plus it will go with all my outfits.

 

I won't be blogging for the next week, but when I return I'll blog about the trip. Have a great week! :)


What do you bring in your carry on?

 

X

 

MUA Lipsticks

Hey!

As you can probably tell from the title, today's post will be about the MUA lipstick range. Now if you don't know what MUA is, it's an incredibly cheap brand of makeup in the UK [I'm not sure if it's available in any other countries?] that can be bought mainly in Superdrug. The majority of their single products are £1 - single eye shadows, lipsticks, eyeliners for example, and you can purchase full eyeshadow palettes for just £4. The only items I've tried are the lipsticks, bought on a total whim last year sometime. I have 6, and in total they cost...£6! I THINK I bought them online [along with some other items] but I may have bought them in store, I can't quite remember.

To be honest, most of the colours I very rarely use, purely because I don't think the colours are amazing. The deep red and the purpley pink colours are gorgeous though!

 

 

 

The MUA lipsticks are slightly smaller than average, but one thing I love about them is the packaging. For a £1 lipstick, you'd expect the cheapest designs ever, and although these ones are by no means lavish, they're fantastic for the price! The black-with-sliver-writing is attractive and the clear plastic cases at the base [filled with the ACTUAL lipstick!] is fantastic as you can see the definite colour of the product, without having to open the lid.

 

 

From left to right: Shade 1, Shade 2, Shade 4, Shade 5, Shade 6, Shade 12

 

Shades 1 (a deep red) and 2 (a purpley colour) are my favourites!

 

Overall the MUA lipsticks are fantastic value. No, they aren't of the highest quality, have the most exquisit packaging or more beautiful colours, but they do have some pretty shades, good pigmentation and are amazing for those on a budget. You can't go wrong!

 

 

Have you tried the MUA lipsticks?

 

 

 

 

X



A Few Last Minute Things....

Hello!

In a few days [4!] I will be leaving for RUSSIA! I'm staying for 1 week, in both Moscow and St.Petersburg, and so with the count down to departure underway and the majority of things packed- we're leaving at 3:30am!- its now a case of picking up last minute bits and making sure I have everything I need.

So today I popped into town to do just that! Yes, this is a completely random, unrelated post, but I like that :) I had to get a few boring things; hairbands and lip balm [wild I know] but also needed to get two, reasonably inexpensive blankets because I hate sleeping in hotels beds. Its strange, but I hate it- especially since the hotel's we're staying in are...not too appealing; massive, old Soviet monsters with over 2000 rooms!

Luckily, I managed to find 2 blankets in the Primark home section for only £3 each. They're cheap, thin and will probably not survive for much longer than a week, but they'll definitely serve a purpose.

 

 

Actually, they're really sweet! As you can see from the picture, they're a deep red colour with cute little owls patterned all over. I think they'd be really great for winter- the red colour is gorgeous.

A positive of them being super thin is that they will fit easily in my suitcase and won't take up very much room- that means more space for souvenirs!

Whilst browsing in Boots, I managed to redeem a voucher for a free sample of Lancome's new skin corrector that I'd found in a recent issue of 'Red' magazine. It's a new product from the Lancome range- Visionnaire Skin Perfecter- meant for those over 35 who have wrinkles and sun spots, to be applied at night. Hopefully, I won't need this product just yet, so I'll pass it on to my Mum to try out. It's a nice little sample nonetheless!

Hope you enjoyed this random post about some very unrelated items?!

X