Lipsticks for fall!

Who doesn't love fall? or as the English call it autumn! Cozy fuzzy socks, boots, leather jacket, chai latte, pumpkin everything..ahhh yes, I could go on and on. I went through my lipstick collection and I've picked my top 4 lipsticks for the fall time! Out of the 4 that I've picked, 3 are from the drugstore. Thumbs up for me :)

New Black, 04, Fabulous Fig, Prolong

17 Lasting Fix Lipstick in New Black

I purchased this not too long ago from Boots on Lisa Eldrige's recommendation. It has a somewhat matte finish which I really like for dark lipsticks 'cause it doesn't move around on your lips as much. The color of this is really close to Rimmel 04 but it's more red. I actually wore this lipstick on Halloween this year and it lasted all night!

Rimmel Kate Lipstick in 04

I've been eying the Mac Yung Rapenxel lipstick for the longest time 'cause I love Azealia Banks! But after seeing this video from DestinyGodley on Yung Rapunxel dupes, I passed it up and got the Rimmel Kate lipstick instead. It's a fraction of the MAC price (my wallet is happy) and even though they're probably not exact dupes, I still really like the Kate one.

Revlon Matte Lipstick in Fabulous Fig

This is probably my faaaavorite out of the bunch probably because it's the most wearable for a day-to-day basis. It's a deep terracotta red that isn't too in-your-face. Despite my pure love for Revlon lip products, I still can't justify their UK price. I bought Fabulous Fig in Thailand for about 4 pounds but in Boots Revlon lipsticks are 7.99, which I think is a bit outrageous. HOWEVER, Thai drugstores don't carry Revlon's dark vampy shades like Va Va Violet or Black Cherry...biggest dilemma of my life.

MAC Prolong Wear Lipstick in Prolong

After months of searching, I still can't find my Russian Red anywhere, so that's why I've put Prolong in this list instead. They're actually very similar but Prolong is a tiny bit more long-lasting and drying. It's just a classic matte red that errrrybody needs in their life.

(From top to bottom) Prolong, Fabulous Fig, New Black, 04

Are you guys sporting dark lips this fall? Give me some recommendations 'cause I definitely need some more :)

Slight Shoe Obsession

Hey guys. Apologies for being gone for quite a while, basically I've been busy with school and work schalalala..I don't need to bore you with the details right? 

Here in England the weather has been bad..just absolute crap (well, at least where I live). I hate that it's so unpredictable...one second the sun is super bright but two hours later it would rain. It's also getting quite chilly so, of course, that gives a reason for me to buy new shoes for the colder weather. I lived in Thailand all my life so buying boots is pretty exciting for me. (I'm so sad, I know) ANYWHO, I put together a little shoe wishlist for the autumn AKA shoes I would buy if I wasn't so broke right now.

1. Underground Double Sole Black Suede Creepers
Last weekend I actually purchased the Single Sole Black Suede Round Toe Creepers from my local Office and I just wished I had ordered the double sole ones 'cause they give you a bit more height. Gotta admit, I used to be one of those people who think creepers are ugly but now I just love them. I wear 'em to school, to Sainsbury's and pretty much everywhere else I go. BUT I NEED THE DOUBLE SOLE ONES!

2. Jeffrey Campbell Litas in Black
I'm an extremely clumsy person..even when I'm wearing flats I tend to injure myself a lot...let alone wearing heels. I've heard from a lot of people that the Litas are comfy to walk in but ahh I don't know. I want them so bad 'cause aren't these just the most perfect shoes for a night out? They're quite pricey though...so I can't justify the price quite yet and I don't even know how often I'm going to wear them since they're really high platforms.

3.Unif Hellraisers
To be honest, I don't really care what color I can get these in but I know that I just want them. These spiked loafers are perfect if someone's trying to mug you...I'll just go HAAI-YAH or something. These could do some serious damage. Seriously though, these shoes are so badass.

4. Tan Chelsea Boots
If you know any brands that do good quality chelsea boots then let me know! I definitely need a pair for this time of year. If I can't find anything I might just get a pairfrom Primark 'cause they're cheap as chips. Tan chelsea boots look really nice with skinny jeans and I think they just add a good amount of femininity to the outfit.

5. Doc Martens Aggy in Cherry Red
I had been wanting the Doc Martens 1460 Cherry Red Smooth for the longest time until I found the Aggy ones. I went to try on the Smooth ones in the store and they seriously make me look like I have Ronald McDonald's feet. *sigh* I've never actually seen the Doc Martens Aggy in person but in the pictures I've been seeing, they look amazing!

*There are actually a number of sales going on at the moment, so if you're not broke like me, you should definitely go check them out!*

Solestruck - http://www.solestruck.com/sale-shoes/
Urban Outfitters - http://www.urbanoutfitters.co.uk/all-shoes/icat/wssaleallshoes/
Office - http://www.office.co.uk/sale
Karmaloop (Halloween Sale) - http://www.karmaloop.com/Browse.htm#Onsale=True&Pgroup=2

Let me know what your favorite pair of shoes for fall are!

merp, have a nice day!

An-An

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Haul: I'm too excited for Christmas.

This is gonna be a super long one since I haven't done a haul in quite some time. A lot of these purchases were, of course, influenced by the usual youtubers that I've mentioned numerous times before - Lisa Eldridge, EssieButton, etc. If you read my last post, it's probably no surprise that the first thing I did yesterday was dropping by a Lush store to check out their Christmas range for 2012. Yes, I did get quite a bit of stuff but surprisingly, I didn't get as many things as I thought I would. Most of the other stuff that I got mostly are from Boots as they are having their 3 for 2 sale for autumn. So, of course, I had to take advantage of it.

Oliatum Cream

Since it's getting pretty cold here, I desperately need a good body lotion. I went for the Oilatum cream 'cause I don't like my body stuff to be scented. The consistency is really thick, but it does the job. I slather this on my legs at night and when I wake up, they are super soft and smooth.

Batiste Dry Shampoo in Tropical

I love Batiste dry shampoos but I wouldn't repurchase this simply because the smell really bothers me. I was hoping the it would be a nice sweet coconutty scent but when you inhale some of it, I can taste the bitterness in the back of my throat. No-no.

L'oreal Elnett hairspray

This tames my frizzy hair and doesn't give it a crunchy feel. Thumbs up.

Yankee Candles in Happy Christmas and Creamy Caramel

I already burnt Lavender Vanilla so I can't show you that one. I didn't want try get one of the really big ones 'cause I'm someone who gets tired of a certain scent really easily. These sample size candles burn for 15 hours, can you believe it? I need to get Christmas Cookies 'cause that one is just YUMMY.

Sally Hansen Polish Remover

I've heard SO much about this from the UK beauty bloggers/youtubers. After using it for a couple of times, I'm really impressed, even though it doesn't take 1 second to remove the polish on each nail as it claims to do. 

Boots Cuticle Remover

I got this since Viviannadoesmakeup and Essiebutton mentioned it in one of their posts. It has little beads that help exfoliate the cuticles and it does work.

Maybeline Ceramic Blue

This is EssieButton's favorite nail polish, so I had to get it to see what all the fuss is about. You need about 3 coats to get it completely opaque, but you definitely still can get away with 2 thick coats. What I really like most about this polish is the brush! Not too big or small..it's the perfect size. I wish I had discovered this in the Spring time though 'cause it would be perfect for that. 

Rimmel Metal Rush Polishes

Out of the two, I like Pearly Queen better. I never try wearing these alone 'cause I think they work best as top coats. They give your plain old polishes an oomph which is metallic and they also look different in certain lighting.

Models Own Ibiza Mix

This, I really like. The formula isn't too gloopy and you get a good amount of glitter pieces with one coat. I have yet to try to layer this on different polishes to give you my thoughts on it.

Models Own Ibiza Mix

(Natural light)

Rimmel Pearly Queen 

(Natural Light)

Obviously my attempt to show you how pretty this nail polish is just fails. Go to Boots and look at it in person!

Now, on to the fun stuff. LUSSSHH! I've had these goodies sitting on my shelf for 2 days now and my room pretty much smells like a Lush store...which I like. Because I live in a dorm, I don't have a bathtub. LMAO. That's right, I do not have a bath tub but I still bought bubble bars and bath bombs. Freaking psycho, I know. So yeah, I don't know when I'm ever gonna use these bath stuff but come on how can you resist these?!

TIP: take a tiny chunk of any bubble bar and put it in the laundry to give your clothes the a nice scent. Obviously if you use something like Christmas Eve with white clothes otherwise, they're gonna turn blue, so be careful! A Lush girl gave me this tip, but I still have yet to try it!

North Pole Soap

The best way that I can describe the scent is:

 Candycane Soap+Porridge Soap without the oats = North pole

I was bummed when I found out Lush wasn't bringing back Candy Cane soap this year but this is almost just as amazing!

Snowcake Soap

This soap is supposed to smell like marzipan. I have no clue what marzipan is but it smells really clean and almondy to me. Definitely a thumbs up.

Ponche Shower Gel

Lush's description: "orange juice with a shot of tequila". That's right, it's a shower gel that is made out of tequila. haha. It's so bizarre, I had to get it. Even though it doesn't smell like tequila (which, for me, is a good thing), it has a scent of a really fruity cocktail. 

Cinders bath bomb

I got 2 of these last year and I had to get one this year. It has popping candy on top that are supposed to resemble the sound of crackling open fire. Mmmm. A bad thing about this bath bomb is the fact that it turns the bath water sort of a urine color. lol. If you can get past that, then this one is the way to go!

Santa's Sack bubble bar

I admit it, I only bought this because it's so darn cute. Just look at it, super adorable right? I'm not too crazy about the scent but i don't mind having it lying around my room. It has this autumn scent that's spicy and soothing.

Father Christmas bath bomb

Again, how can you not get this one? It's a Santa Claus' face shaped bath bomb. COME ON. Its main ingredient is mandarin oil but honestly I don't really smell oranges. To me, it has this nice floral scent with a touch of fruitiness to it.

Christmas Eve Bubble Bar

I love this one because it's super relaxing and soothing, the scent just makes me wanna sleep. It has jasmine oil and ylang ylang oil in it. I don't even know what ylang ylang is but Christmas Eve is one of my all time favorites!

17 New Black Lipstick

It's fall time, so I had to get a vampy lipstick just to go with the season. I've seen tons of fall lipsticks video, so I had to jump on the bandwagon of awesome dark lips. Lisa Eldridge recommended in this video, so I needed this.

Revlon Fabulous Fig, 17 New Black

Liz Earle Deep Cleansing Mask

This purchase was influenced by Amodelrecommends and she said this is one of her favorites. I've only used this once so I can't give you my thoughts on it yet, so there'll be a review coming up! Basically you leave it on for 10 minutes and wash it off with the little handy dandy sponge. I've been watching so much of Amodelrecommends videos, I must get GLAMGLOW and Alpha H Liquid Gold! 

Have you tried any of these stuff? Let me know what you think of them!

An-An

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LUSH Christmas goodies!

Hello beautiful people. 

Just a few seconds ago I visited the Lush website and guess what...THEIR CHRISTMAS GOODIES ARE HERE! Are you as excited as me? Are you, are you?!

I feel like every single year Lush never fails to impress me. Their Christmas range this year is so cute and adorable, I seriously want everything. Good news, So White and Christmas Eve are back. Those are two of my favorites from their Christmas range and they always bring them back 'cause they're cult favorites. Surprisingly, I am not a big fan of Snow Fairy. The scent is too bubblegummy and sweet for me but I know it's their most famous Christmas product and they're bringing it back too! Last year while I was in Japan, I bought 2 bars of the Candy Cane soap, but unfortunately Lush didn't bring it back this year. That soap is probably my second favorite soap from Lush ever :( Man, if I wasn't going back to Thailand this Christmas, I seriously would apply for a temp job at Lush. How incredible would that be?

I already made a list of things I need to get and basically it consists of anything shaped like Santa Claus, Christmas eve, So white and a few more things. Okay, a lot more things. But as I mentioned before, the Lush girl at my local Lush said there would be kind of a party at Lush for the Christmas goodies. Not sure if this is the same of every Lush stores in the UK, but if you're interested, you should check it out. I believe you have to put your name down in the VIP list and they'll notify you. 

Check out there Christmas range here!

(No, I'm not paid to write this post, I'm just that excited!)

Are you planning to get anything from the Lush Christmas range this year? Tell me which products you're the most excited for! 

Autumn nail polish picks

This is probably my first proper fall season 'cause it's pretty much summer all year round in Thailand. But for the last few days it's been raining here in Cambridge and it sucks. It really really does. No wonder why British people complain about the weather so much haha. 

These are the autumn/fall nail polishes I'm excited to wear for this season. Some of them are limited edition and I'm sorry! I'll still put the names at the end if you might want to check these out. 

Neutrals

I love nude and neutral colors on my nails all year round, actually. They look so clean and simple on the nails, plus they go with every outfit. I did sneaked in a taupe and a burnt orange in here even though they aren't a "neutral" color, but they're just pretty for the fall!

 Revlon Bare bones, Topshop Geography Teacher, China Glaze Dress Me Up, Essie Merino Cool, Topshop Country Bumpkin. 

Reds and purples

OPI An A-Bordeaux the Sled, Chanel Lotus Rouge , Revlon Facets of Fuchsia

Greens

So ready to whip these out during the fall because it's all about jewel-toned colors and metallics baby!

 OPI Jade is the New Black, MAC Immortal Gold, Revlon Spanish Moss

I went to Boots quite a few times in the past 2 weeks and I swear the next time I go I have to pick up Models Own polishes up. They're 5 pounds each and I think that's not bad for a good quality polish at all! Here's my mini Models Own wish list.

- Indian Ocean

- Utopia

- Ibiza Mix

Have a lovely week :)

An-An

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Settling in

Hi everyone. 

It's been quite a while! Thanks for the kind comments on my last post. I've already settled into my dorm which was actually not that hectic as I imagined it would be. London, Brighton, Canterbury and Cambridge were the 4 places I went to and stayed at. Even until now, I still can't decide which is my favorite. 

First stop, LONDON. I was really excited to go in the phone booth and take pictures but unfortunately they smells strongly of urine. It's disgusting. haha. I did visit Notting Hill, which I thought was the most beautiful neighborhood ever. The buildings are painted different pastel colors and shops on the streets sell really cool antique items. It took me an hour to find the bookshop that featured in the film Notting Hill and it was really cute as well. Sadly, I didn't find my Hugh Grant. I find it extremely strange that shops in the UK close at like 5-6 pm. Although I've been here for almost 2 weeks now, I still can't get my head around that. 

I wish I could've gone to Kings Cross and pretend that I'm going to platform 9 and 3 quarters but sadly, I didn't have the opportunity.

Notting Hill

It annoys me that I can't remember the name of this funky little shop. They sell really cool metal street signs and vintagey-looking postcards.

 

Brighton was such a beautiful city as well, even though I only got a glimpse of the ocean and the beach. We had dinner at a restaurant called "The China Garden" which was really nice.

 Next up, Canterbury. Again, I didn't have the chance to explore the whole city, but the buildings are ancient and I just looove it. I went there on a Saturday which happened to be the Beaney weekend 'cause there was an opening of an Art Museum.

My final stop was Cambridge. I never thought this little city actually has quite a good variety of shops to go to. I went to the City Centre the other day and popped into Boots and Superdrug. Ah, I can literally spend a day just swatching makeup on my hands, arms and legs. But I won't 'cause that'd be weird.

I picked up a few bits and bobs from this shop that sells antiques. Might do a haul from this trip but I'm still not sure. 

Since it's Sunday today, I didn't go anywhere and had nothing to do..so I put up all of the pictures I printed from home and stuck them on the wall.

First ever cooked meal in my dorm. I'm blessed to have neighbors that happen to know how to cook.

OH, and for any Lush fans out there, I had a talk with one of the Lush girls in the Cambridge Store and she said that the Christmas goodies are coming out on October 6. Did you hear that...OCTOBER 6th!

So yea..keep your eyes open for that. I'm already really excited! She also said that this year's Christmas line is going to be gooood. I'm just so happy.

Have a great day.

An-An

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Nyx Soft Matte Lip Creams!

Hey everyone!

Some of you have been requesting a review on the NYX Soft Matte Lip Creams in one of my hauls so here it is! NYX Cosmetics isn't readily available where I live so I bought this for almost 9 US dollars, which I know is kind of a ripoff but we always get ripped off here in Thailand so I'm kind of used to it. haha. I know that in the US it's only 6 dollars which is an amazing price!

These come in 11 shades so I think there will be something for everyone. I got mine in shades Abu Dhabi and Sao Paolo.

I really liked the packaging on these until the black cap of the red one came off. I think the glue of black cap got dry so it didn't hold onto the white cap anymore. So make sure you get a good one before you buy it! I wasn't too bothered by this just because I didn't expect amazing packaging or anything. The applicator of the NYX Soft Matte Lip Creams are the typical doe foot applicator.

On to the actual product, I really liked these! The formula is very unique and different from anything that I have. I first thought that these might resemble the MAC Kissable Lipcolors, but they're not dupes of each other at all. The MAC ones are more of liquid lipsticks and they do not dry down to a matte finish. When you first apply the NYX ones onto the lips, they are the creamiest thing. Seriously, it just glides onto your lips. It also felt really moisturizing when you first apply it. About 10 minutes after application, it dries down to a matte finish, which makes the color really long lasting. Not gonna lie though, it becomes quite drying once it's settled. So, for those of you who don't like matte lips or have dry lips, I wouldn't recommend this product at all. But if you're like me and you love matte lips, get these noooow. They're amazing.

I've heard from a few reviews that these smell like vanilla. To me, the scent has a hint of florally smell which I'm kind of mehh about. It's a tiny bit strong for my taste and it somewhat lingers on the lips. I much prefer the MAC vanilla scent in their lip products.

I've swatches a few of my red lip products in comparison to the NYX Sao Paolo. It's a tiny bit lighter than MAC Russian Red but the finishes of the two are the same. When I swatched NYX Sao Paolo on my arm, it doesn't go on complete opaque but on the lips it does. Not quite sure why that is :/

(Revlon Lip Butter in Cherry Tart, MAC Russian Red, NYX Sao Paolo, MAC Prolong)

I tried to swatch NYX Abu Dhabi to my nude lipsticks but I don't have any dupes for it. It's a lot darker than anything that I have and I would describe it as a dusty rose color. 

(MAC Hue, NARS Cruising, MAC Kissable Lipcolor in Woo me, NYX Abu Dhabi, MAC Viva Glam Gaga II)

All in all, I would recommend these but only to those who like matte lips! If you have dry lips, steer clear of these 'cause they can be quite drying after about 10 minutes after application. The color payoff is amazing. I would definitely repurchase these just because I actually do like the matte finish it gives. They also do a hot pink one called Addis Ababa that's really pretty! so check that out if you're into bold lips :)

Pros:
- Inexpensive
- Good color payoff
- Unique texture
- Long lasting

Cons:
- Matte finish dries out your lips sometimes
- Packaging isn't the best quality

Let me know whether you prefer a matte lip or a glossy lip?

An-An

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Yet another haul (Lisa Eldridge Edition)

Hi guys!

If you are a beauty junkie like myself and you've never heard of Lisa Eldridge, I suggest you look her up right this second. I saw in one of the comments on Youtube that she's like the Mary Poppins of makeup and I think that's a pretty genius description of her. I love her skincare philosophy, makeup tips and her extremely soothing voice. She did makeup for a bunch of celebrities like Emma Watson, Kate Winslet, Eva Green, Cheryl Cole...the list goes on. So yes, most of the products that I'm featuring in this post are recommendations that I have gotten from Lisa Eldridge.

A majority of the things that I purchased are from La Roche Posay, which is a French skincare line that Lisa Eldridge highly recommended. It's a brand that a lot of dermatologists use as a treatment for their patients with a wide variety of skin types. I've been using these for a week or so now, which I know isn't enough time for me to give a review right just yet. But, so far I'm in love with them! 

La Roche Posay Eau Thermale
This is essentially a facial spray made from mineral spring water. It's really hot at the moment in Thailand, so the mist is really cooling and hydrating. What I love about this product so much though, is the spray nozzle. It spritzes out a really fine mist that covers your whole face evenly. BUT I can't say that it does anything remotely different to my skin to drinking water in a spray bottle. 

La Roche Posay Physiological Soothing Toner
I'll do a separate in-depth review on this later so stay tuned! But let's just say that ever since I've used this in combination with the Effaclar K, I haven't gotten a breakout since so yay :)

La Roche Posay Sensi White Cream
This is targeted towards people who have sensitive "Asian" skin. It's a whitening cream that's supposed not so much to completely white out your face, but rather to even out your skin tone and brighten your complexion. Again, I need more time to test out this to give you a good review.

La Roche Posay Effaclar K
Not that I'm saying that this is a miracle product or anything but I noticed a quite remarkable difference to my skin overnight. It's smoother as well as brighter. It's suitable for oily and acne prone skin which I don't have, however prior to purchasing this I got some serious breakouts on my forehand and cheeks. So I gave this a try. But we'll see how it goes for about another 2-3 weeks.

La Roche Posay Anthelios XL Extreme Fluid SPF 50+
This is a product that Lisa Eldridge recommended in her sunscreen video which you can watch here. Again, review on this on a later day!

Bioderma Solution Micellaire
Because Thai drugstores have gone completely mad, they are charging about £8 for a 50ml bottle of Bioderma that's supposed to only be £1.5 *sigh* All in all, this is a product that lives up to the hype for me. It's a very soothing and gentle cleanser that removes makeup really well.

Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage in SC5

I've seen Lisa Eldridge use this in a lot of her videos. I've heard that it's a very dry concealer and I would agree that it is, but the coverage that it gives is insane. It covers everything and does not budge throughout the day. Definitely a thumbs up for this one.

If you want to see things that Lisa Eldridge uses on herself and her clients, just have a peek at her website here. Click "search" and see her recommendations of amazing goodness there :)

Have you tried any of these products? If so, let me know if you like them!

An-An

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Real Techniques Brushes!

Hi everyone.

This isn't so much of a review of the Real Techniques brushes, it's more of an expression of my love for these Real Techniques brushes. Real techniques is basically a line of brushes created by a beauty blogger, Samantha Chapman aka half of Pixiwoo.

I purchased the RT brushes from a Thai online shop because they are not readily available in Thailand. Surprisingly, the prices of these are quite similar to the UK price considering that almost every beauty things we get here in Thailand are so overpriced. I probably would love these even more if they have the US price tags haha. I find it kind of strange that these brushes originated in the UK but they're cheaper in Ulta. Whut?

How often do I use these? Let's just say that after I've bought the RT brushes, I never had to clean my MAC brushes ever since. I think that says a little something. The bristles are made from synthetic hair which are crazy soft. I've washed these brushes multiple times and so far, they have not shed a SINGLE hair. They also dry really quickly!

These are my favorite RT brushes out of the whole range. I'm not gonna go into details today and explain each one, because this isn't a review. If I had to pick 5, I would choose the powder brush, stippling brush, blush brush, buffing brush and the setting brush. Again, for the price of these, you really can't go wrong.

Pros
- inexpensive considering the quality of them
- do not shed a single hair
- dry quickly
- cruelty free
- fantastically soft bristles
- work well with both cream and powder products

Cons
- not readily available where I live :(

What are your favorite RT brushes? 

An-An

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