Summer Essentials

As its now nearly official summer for most of us, although with weather like today (typing looking at gloomy grey sky) you wouldn't really be able to tell, Its the perfect time to share with you my top 5 picks for the summer. Of course everyone need the sun screen and other necessities like deodorant, but this is a list of the other little extras that are nice to have.

Magazine-I get really bored just lying in the sun sunbathing and not doing much else, so I like to distract myself. A book/magazine is the perfect to pass time whilst tanning in the sun without getting bored. This particular magazine is ELLE, but whatever you fancy will do the trick.

Sunglasses- Of course its all about this very important accessory in the summer, and in my opinion the bigger the better. This pair is my new buy for the summer and they are £18 from Topshop.

A Bright Lip-  It wouldn't be summer without the chance to play around with colourful makeup. The way I do this is with my lip products. My favourite at the moment is the Relvon ColourBurst Lacquer Balm in the shade Vivacious (£7.99). This hot pink colour is so easy to apply and goes onto the lips so smooth. With the colour pay off being so good its a great product for the price.

Flawless Skin-  Even in the summer everyone wants the flawless base. Well with the Maybelline Foundation Dream Pure BB Cream (£6.99) you can achieve the look you want. No ones got time for the heavy cake makeup that slides off your face, but with this light weight product it doesn't feel like you have any product on your skin, whilst its evens out your face making you look beautiful.

Moisturiser- The sun can really dry out your skin, so it's important that you put in the time to look after every part of your body. Moisturising will also help you maintain your tan for longer, achieving that sun kissed look for a few extra weeks. Boots own brand Soltan Aftersun Lotion is a great product to apply all over your body to rehydrate your skin after a day in the sun. Its non-greasy and quick drying allowing you to get on with other tasks.

Cakes and Confetti

 Pink Blazer - Primark 

Black Cami - New Look

Necklace - Topshop

Floral Trouser - Dorothy Perkins 

Flower Sandals - Primark 

This is a quick post of my outfit that I wore to a family wedding. It was a lovely sunny day and as it was such a long day, I wanted something that would be very comfortable. So i paired casual pieces together to create this outfit. 

Big Bold Brows

For some time now big brows have been seen on the catwalk and are becoming the trend thats seems to be sticking around. No longer are the times of thin tadpoles which are placed above our eyes, but its more about the Cara Delevingne brows. So ladies it's time to put down the tweezers and embrace your big brows.

Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Mascara, Benefit Gimmie Brows Gel,  MUA Clear Mascara, Sleek MakeUp Brow Kit, MAC eyeshadow, L'Oreal Paris Brow Artiste eyebrow pencil.

Personally, I like my brows to be natural but with a bit of definition. I've only been doing my brows for the last couple of years, before that I never really paid my brows much attention. I wish i had started a whole lot sooner, as defining your brows frames your face and overall completes the makeup look.

There are many products out there to choose from to create your prefect brows and its mostly up to personal preference. These are a few of my favourite items to help me create my brows. 

Two very similar products are the Benefit Gimmie Brows Gel (£17.50)  and Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Mascara (£4.99). Both of these products are a gel based formula, with a mascara type wand which you use to comb through your brows. The brush on gel sticks to both the hair and skin creating thick, full brows. The difference between the two is obviously the price tag. But the only other difference between the products if the wand. Maybelline has a much larger wand which can sometimes make it a little harder to create the exact look you want without any smudges around the brows, whereas Benefit have a tapered brushes which is perfect for shaping the brows the way you want. 

Powder products are a very popular choice of products for many people when it comes to filling in your brows. There are many different matte eyeshadows out there which you could buy raging from high street to high end, all essentially will have the same effect as long as you get the correct colour. Make sure that the colour is not too dark and is suited to your skin tone for the product to have the most impact. I prefer to use an angled brush to apply powder products to my brows to allow the best accuracy. Sleek MakeUp Brow Kit (£8.49) is the perfect little set for beginners. With the set containing a shaping wax, setting powder, tweezers and an angle and blending brush its is all you need to define your brows.

Your eyebrows frame your whole face so its time to start paying them some attention. 

UNI.UNI.UNI.

As it's now that time of year when school is nearly over, its time for some of you to be thinking to September. Even though its a few months until then, this summer will be one of the best summers ever (in my opinion) but it will fly by, so its very important to be prepared. As of last week, I was one of the many freshers that finished their first year at uni, not without the many ups and downs let me say. This year has gone extremely fast and its crazy to think about how much has changed in such a short space of time.

I thought it would be useful for you lot who are going to uni in September to get some tips from someone who has experienced it all.

The Basics

The most important thing that any fresher should do is learn how to handle their money, so i suggest you make a budget as soon as your student own comes in. Working out how much money your housing is and how much money you will need for food then you can work out how much extra money you have. This allow you to avoid the embarrassing phone call to mum/ dad/ grandparents at the end of each term asking for money as you've run out.

Along with all your other bits ad bobs that you will take to uni so that you can survive your first year, that include the basic bits such as cooking essentials, toiletries, bedding, towels … etc. I recommend that you only bring two sets of cutlery, plates, bowls and any other cups or mugs that you want to take. I say this so that it will encourage you to wash up as and when you've used each item. Trust me this will save you so much time and uses very little effort. So to solve the problem of not having enough cups for visitors that appear for pre-drinks, just buy plastic cups so you can throw the away afterwards without any hassle.

For some of you, you may have moved far away from home, so to try and stop any homesickness bring along loads of pictures of family and friends with you to decorate your new room. Bringing along any personal times such as cuddles toys or other decorations will make the settling in process easier.

The Social

DON'T BE AFRAID TO JUST BE YOU! This has to be the most important thing that I have learnt this year. When meeting new people don't put on an act as you will then have to keep it up for the next 3 years or so, and that will be pretty hard. Have fun and enjoy every minute of your new experience as the time will fly by.

One of the quickest and easiest way to meet new people is to go and talk to your neighbours. If you live in halls this can be a great way to get to know whole floors and therefore meet many new people. Making new friends can be scary, but everyone is in the same boat.

Try joining a society or sports team as this is another great way to meet new people. Many of my best friends this year have been from my own new club. Many of these cubs may have their own socials (which can involve night outs) which is also a great way to have fun and let your hair down.

The Degree

After having all this fun, the main reason to going to uni is to learn and gain new skills in the case of a degree. I may sound like your mum now, but just remember to balance the fun with the lectures. Remember you are paying £9,000 a year for your course so turn up to your lectures as if you don't just think of all the money you will be wasting per hour. I know the thought of a 9am on a monday morning sounds like death but turn up or you could miss important information.

Lastly, don't leave all your work to the last minute. Some courses will give you the deadlines for work right at the start of the year. So when you're in October, March seems a very long time away. But trust me this time will creep up on you and soon you'll have left it until 2 weeks before the deadline. So do work little and often so you won't be the stress head when deadline come around!