30 Nov 2014

November Round-up


We have reached the end of November and the countdown to Christmas is well on it's way! As I haven't been using many new products this month I didn't want to do a favourites post as there wouldn't be anything new. So instead I have decided to do a November round-up of the posts I have done this month. 


















Which post did you like most from this month? 
Love Bella x 







28 Nov 2014

Friday Five


1 I 2 I 3 I 4 I 5

The party season is getting closer so I have been scrolling through the shops online looking at dresses. I particularly liked Quiz dresses and thought that I would put them together in today's Friday Five post. I am really loving maxi dresses at the moment, and I love the detailing on the tops of these dresses with the plain flowing skirt. 

Which dress do you like best? Are there any dresses that you have your eye on at the moment? 
Love Bella x 





25 Nov 2014

Sample Products & Try Me Size Products


I have decided that I will talk about product samples and try me sized products today. How do I get sample products? Are they worth it? Is there really enough to test the product properly? Are Sample boxes/sets worth getting? These are the top questions when talking about these product minis so onto answering them!


How do I get sample products?

- There are many ways to get sample products, the easiest and most common way is getting free samples with a purchase. Or also if you spend a certain amount you get a gift with the purchase which is quite often sample sizes of the brands other products.

- Buying magazines with sample products or free gifts is another easy way to get new products to try.

- You can also be given sample sizes from make up counters. Now don't just go up to the make up counters and ask if you can have some sample products. If you genuinely want to buy the product ask at the counter about it or ask for their advice on which product is best suited for you. They will give you advice and help you find the product best suited for you, and from there you may be given a sample to try out the product.

- Another way to get sample sized products is to buy them. Quite often brands sell little sets or miniatures of products for you to buy. Then if you like the product you can get it in full size. Subscription boxes are also another way to get sample products to try, these are great if you love trying new products.



Are sample products worth getting or buying?

In my personal opinion yes they are. They are a great way to get to try out products that are more expensive, and also good if you want to try new products without having to buy full sized products each time. If you have problem skin or sensitive skin sample sized products are the way to go as you don't want to buy a product, use it once and react to it! With a sample size you will know if your skin is ok with it before you purchase it in full size.

It can also depend on the size of the sample, e.g. looking at the image above there are two sizes of sample foundations. The smaller size would be good for testing once or twice but the larger one for a longer time.

Sample sized products can also be very useful for keeping in your handbag for touch ups and also for travelling. So if you hate having to carry around your makeup these mini's are worth investing in!


Is there really enough to test the product properly?

This really does depend on how long you like to test a product for and the size of the samples. For me I think that yes there is. Like I said above the smaller sized products you can test once or twice and larger sizes for longer. I have heard some people saying sometimes the samples are different to the full size product but I haven't come across that yet.


Are sample boxes/sets worth getting?

For me yes. Like I have already said sample sizes are a great way to see how you react to a product and if you like it. They are also a great way of trying lots of different products. Subscription boxes are a great way to try out different products and find new brands. Sets are also worth getting if you are interested in products from a certain brand, or looking to find something new. I will say to be careful and look at the prices. If a sample sized product is only a little cheaper than the full sized product itself,  it isn't really worth getting and you would be better of getting it in full size.



I hope that this post has helped you get to know a bit more about sample products, and answer some questions on them! 

What are your thoughts of sample sized products?
Love Bella x 





21 Nov 2014

Nails of the Day


For today's nails of the day I am wearing a really pretty deep red polish. This is the No7 Gel-Look Shine in Deep Wine. I have mentioned this polish in my Autumn tag post. I really love this polish for this time of year. I don't normally like dark polishes but I have fallen in love with this one and love wearing it! It has such a glossy shiny finish and also lasts for well up to week! Whenever I wear this polish I have always been complimented on the polish and people just seem to love it. 

What is your favourite polish for this time of year? 
Love Bella x 





15 Nov 2014

10 Things You Will Understand If You Have Sensitive Skin Part 2

As you may have guessed form the title of this post I have already done a post on '10 things you will understand if you have sensitive skin' and today's post is part 2! If you would like to read the 1st post then click on this link.

- Being so overjoyed when you have finally found a product that you love, and more importantly your skin loves to! The only thing is that, it is quite often difficult to get hold off so you end up stocking up on it! 

- Going to get beauty treatments or even getting you hair washed can be a very anxious moment, will you react, won't you? Yes I did say getting hair washed, if you have sensitive skin you will most likely also have a sensitive scalp! 

- When you find someone that also has sensitive skin and share your tips on the best product to use, only to find that you react to different things!

- Always being wary of any product even if it says suitable for the most sensitive skins! More often than not it, you will react to it! 

- Having said that after you try a new product and have a reaction to it, after your skin has calmed down you get compliments on how your skin looks better. This then leaves you deciding on whether you should carry on using it, hey if you skin looks great should you just put up with the reaction? (Serious side note, please do not do this it will do more harm than good!)

- Even when you have found a product that works well for you you still want to try other products too! Quite often being told that if you have found something that works just stick to it! 

- Having to use prescription skincare after your skin reacts but really wanting to use anything else! 

- Desperately wanting to try all these different skincare, beauty and make up products but knowing that you probably shouldn't.

- Reading the ingredients lists is a must! Too many ingredients to read quickly, back on the shelf it goes! Researching products online is also what you spend your time doing, and find it extra annoying when you have to search around for the ingredients as they aren't listed on the site! 

- Scented products are a no go, knowing that you should go for the fragrance/scent free products. If you get get scented products it will be natural scents and quite often the majority off products have a cucumber scent to them. After a while you get very fed up of this scent (and smelling like a salad!) and long to use products with all these beautiful scents but knowing you probably shouldn't! 


Do you have sensitive skin too? What other things have you found from having it?
Love Bella x 





12 Nov 2014

You Know That It Is Getting Close To Christmas When ....


As it comes to this time of year Christmas is fast approaching. In fact Christmas has been building up for some time now, pretty much as soon as September arrives Christmas things start appearing and people have already starting writing their wishlists! I have decided to put together a list of signs that show that it is getting close to Christmas and when you know that the festive period is well and truly on the way!

You know it is getting close to Christmas when ....

- Supermarkets start stocking the big boxes of chocolates, mince pies, Christmas cake and pudding (and many other Christmas themed foods!)

- Coffee shops bring out the Christmas/winter themed cups

- Christmas adverts on TV, well known ones being the Coca-Cola advert and of course the very talked about John Lewis advert

- Ice skating rinks start being put up

- Christmas lights start going up in town

- Your family members start nagging you about what gifts you would like

- Beauty advent calendars and gift sets are released (and already pretty much sold out!)

- Christmas jumpers are being sold and advertised everywhere 

- Cosy fluffy socks come with Santa, reindeer's and penguins on them

- You think that you should start writing some Christmas cards


What other signs of Christmas are there for you? 
Love Bella x 





8 Nov 2014

The Autumn Tag



For today's post I have decided to do The Autumn Tag. Much like with my Summer Tag post I have created a few questions of my own.

Go to makeup 
My go to makeup would defiantly be bronze, brown and golden toned, especially eyeshadows! I also like to do some contorting with Benefit Hoola bronzer and theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer highlighter. 

Go To Skincare
Would be Balm Balm lip balm. I love this lip balm all year round but it is defiantly an essential for me when the weather turns colder. 

Go To Beauty Product
I love the Urban Decay Naked Palette at this time of year. I just think that the shades in it are perfect for creating pretty Autumn eye looks. (Here are a few of my favourite shades from the palette)

Favourite Autumn Nail Polish
I love red and berry tones for Autumn, therefore my favourite nail polish has to be No7 Gel-Look Shine in Deep Wine. It is such a lovely deep red and looks amazing on your nails, in fact whenever I wear it I get so many compliments from people wanting to know what polish it is! 

Favourite Autumn Hairstyle
I love wearing my hair in soft bouncy curls during Autumn. It looks great down or up in a pony tail or messy bun.

Favourite Autumn clothing/accessory/shoes
Clothing: I love fluffy cardigans, in fact I have quite a few! They are just so warm and snuggly to wear when the weather is colder.
Accessory: Scarves are my favourite, I love wearing different scarves and I am loving a tartan one at the moment! 
Shoes: Heeled ankle boots are my go to for Autumn, they keep your feet warm and can be worn with so many things too, the perfect Autumn time shoes! 

Favourite Autumn food/drink
I love eating apple pies in the Autumn, nothing says Autumn more than a warm apple pie! Also hot chocolate, as soon as the weather gets a bit colder I love drinking hot chocolates to warm me up!

Favourite Autumn shade
You may already know this if you already read my blog, but I love berry shades during Autumn. Anything in a berry shade and I will love it, makeup, clothing, accessories, the lot haha!


I had fun creating these questions and answering them, and hope that you enjoyed reading them too! If you would also like to do this tag you are very welcome to, but if you do please link back to my blog and of course don't forget to send me the link to it as I would love to read your answers! 

How would you answer these questions?
Love Bella x 



4 Nov 2014

Liebster Award Take 4

I have been nominated for the Liebster award for the 4th time! The lovely Anna has nominated me so be sure to go and have a look over at her blog! 

Liebster means sweetest, nicest, dearest in German. The Liebster award is given to bloggers with less than 200 followers and is about connecting bloggers and helping spreading the word of smaller blogs. 

If you are interested in reading my other posts on the Liebster Award then here are the links to the first, second and third posts.



So onto the questions!

1.) What made you want to start blogging?
After reading a few other blogs it seemed like something fun to do so I set up my own and have enjoyed blogging ever since!

2.) Favourite make up product/brand?
There are so many products and brands that I love, however my current favourite would probably be the Clinique cheek pop blush.

3.) What's your favourite song right now?
I don't really have a favourite song at the moment, there are songs that I like but no particular favourites. 

4.) Why do you like blogging?
I like blogging as it is something that I enjoy doing and I also like getting to connect with other people that have similar interests. 

5.) Decide yourself in one word
Kind

6.) Favourite movie?
Again I don't really have one favourite but I do love rom-coms! 

7.) What is one celebrity that inspires you and why?
There are quite a few celebrities that inspire me but Zoe (aka Zoella) is someone that inspires me a lot. She is such a lovely person and so relatable for a lot of people too. 

8.) Favourite perfume scent?
I love citrus scents and the L'Occitane Citrus Verbena Summer Fragrance has to be my favourite! 

9.) Bloggers that inspire you?
Zoe (Zoella) is a big inspiration and also Beth from Birds Words. They both have such lovely blogs and they are both lovely people too! 

10.) Favourite store?
Probably Boots! Got to love strolling through the isles looking at all the beauty products, haha!



I hope you have enjoyed reading this post and that it helped you get to know me a bit more! 
Love Bella x 






(I have decided not to nominate others as it is very difficult to find bloggers that haven't been nominated already, however if you haven't been nominated for this award or know any other bloggers that haven't send me over your links and I will be happy to create some questions and nominate you!)