Craft & DIY: 5 Cheap & Easy Halloween Pumpkin Ideas

I had the week off from work this week and couldn't wait to start getting into the Halloween spirit. Each year, I enjoy this time of year even more and it was fun to experiment with some new ways to decorate our house. Halloween can still be cute if you want it to be! 

If you try any of these pumpkins, please let me know and tag me in social media :) All links at the side of my blog! xxx

Glam Purple Autumnal Make Up

Autumn brings brisk sunny days, crunchy leaves and burgundy and cranberry make up, which is my absolute favourite. I originally filmed a tutorial for this look, but unfortunately the lighting was terrible and it just wasn't the quality I wanted to put out. It's quite a full on look as I went heavy on the eyes and lips, so great for a night out this season.

Base

I mixed together By Terry Light Expert Click Brush Foundation in '2 Apricot Light' with  Soap & Glory Hocus Focus Liquid Highlighter to give a bright base. You can read my full review here of the foundation, but I just love the texture and how it blurs out imperfections like my pores. Covering dark circles and brightening up the eye area is quite important because the eye shadow is so dark and heavy. I used Laura Mercier Secret Concealer in '2' as a colour corrector, then blended in Maybelline The Eraser Concealer in 'Light' to conceal with a beauty blender. For any blemishes and redness Bourjois Healthy Mix Concealer in '52' did a great job as it is very blendable, long lasting and good coverage. To highlight under the eyes further and down the centre of my face, I used one of my staple products - L'Oreal Lumi Magique in '1 Light'. You can read in more detail about my 3 favourite concealers mentioned here.

To set everything in place, I used an old favourite Rimmel Stay Matte Powder in 'Translucent', then added some colour back into my face by way of a light contour with Benefit Hoola Bronzer. As the rest of the make up is quite heavy, I wanted a neutral blush so used Benefit Rockateur Blush and finished with MAC Lightscapade MSF to highlight my cheekbones and centre of the face.

Eyes

I always start with brows and used my every day products - Anastasia Brow Wiz in 'Taupe' to define the shape, the lightest powder shade in the Revolution Eyebrow Shaping Kit to provide more density and colour and finally set everything in place with Maybelline Brow Drama in 'Medium Brown'.

To act as a transition shade, I used a fluffy brush to buff in a warm toned light brown shade, this time it was 'Force of Nature' from the Tartlette palette, before applying Maybelline Color Tattoo in 'Metallic Pomegranate' with my finger as a base for the eye shadows. This cream shadow is so beautiful on its own as well as a base. I used the burgundy shade from my Estée Lauder 'Rasins' palette which has a subtle shimmery finish. To my outer corner I buffed in 'Sexy' a matte burgundy shade with a MAC 217 brush and then deepened the outer corner with 'Serious' a matte black, both from The Balm Nude Tude palette. Starting from the inner corner of the lid to the middle I pressed in Bellapierre loose pigment in 'Cinnabar' that is a shimmery more pink toned cranberry colour. To finish off the look I used 'Super Mom' from the Tartlette palette to highlight my brow bone, drew a thin line on my top lash line with L'Oreal Super Liner Perfect Slim in 'Intense Black' and used lashings of Mascara Terrybly Growth Booster by By Terry. This look is quite dramatic, so I used Eyelure Naturalite Lashes to add volume and drama to the eyes.

Lastly, my favourite product for my lips at the moment. Revlon Colorburst Matte Balm in 'Shameless' provides a deep intense matte purple, without being drying as the formula is really creamy yet still very long lasting.

Do you have a favourite Autumnal make up product? xxx

All Used Up #14 | Skincare Edition |

Once again, I seemed to have accumulated alot of empties over the past few weeks. A large proportion consisted of skincare items so I thought it would be fun to do mini reviews on those types of products I've used up recently for all you skincare junkies out there. Let's start with the cleansers:

- L'Occitane Shea Cleansing Milk: I used this up in my travel bag and it is pretty inoffensive and gentle but not the best for removing make up, so would be more suited for a morning cleanse rather than an evening. I prefer gel cleansers for first thing however, so I wouldn't repurchase. I did like the travel size and the bottle though.

- Tropic Organic Hot Bamboo Smoothing Cleanser: This was included in a set I was given at Christmas and I was pleasantly surprised with how much I liked the products. This was good at removing make up and was gentle with a clean smell. However for a cream cleanser, I like something a little bit thicker (think Liz Earle C+P). I liked the pump dispenser too but there are other cleansers I enjoy using a lot more. This is a good choice for people who use Vegan and natural products.

- The Body Shop Skin Clearing Facial Wash: Featured in my recent What's In My Shower video, I finally used up this giant bottle of face wash. It was a sad day as I loved this. Normally my skin doesn't react to Tea Tree but this was great at treating any blemishes that cropped up, smelt really nice, and did the job in the morning without being too harsh or stripping. I would definitely repurchase and love the toner too.

- Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water (Oily/Combo Skin): My favourite Micellar Water I've tried, you get a lot of product for your money and it does a great job at taking off the majority of make up (although not the best at removing mascara) without irritating or making you tug at your skin. I don't feel like the formula is any different to the original though so I would repurchase either types.

- Nip+Fab Glycolic Fix Treatment Pads: A surprising favourite which was featured in my updated skincare routine, I wasn't sure if glycolic acid did much for my skin before using these as I was left disappointed by Ren's Glycolactic Radiance Mask. You get about 60 pads in each tub, which are soaked in product and I tended to use them every other night as a toner. These really evened out my skin tone, made me look more radiant in turn and aided in healing both active blemishes and marks. I would definitely repurchase, but at the moment I am testing out Pixi Glow Tonic.

- L'Occitane Fresh Face Water: From the same Shea range as the above cleanser, I really enjoyed this product too. It is quite inoffensive and gentle, similar to the Liz Earle Skin Tonic, but for a reason that I can't quite put my finger on, I prefered this. I think the addition of the Shea made it quite 'soft' and left my skin refereshed without feeling tight. This is a great morning toner and I would repurchase.

- Vichy Normaderm Moisturiser: Last year I attended a Vichy event and this was featured in my goodybag, I have only just used it up after putting it on my face every morning so that shows you how long the bottle lasts! I loved the formula, it was hydrating yet not heavy, helped to combat oil without drying out my skin and was a great base for make up. I liked the pump bottle too and I would repurchase now if I didn't have a million other moisturisers to use up!

-Lush Mask of Magnaminty: One of my favourite products from Lush, I have just repurchased a new pot, but this time the self preserving version (you can see it in this video). This is great at treating blemishes and evening out oil production. I also like that as it isn't a fresh mask it lasts a lot longer than the other Lush masks.

What is your favourite skincare item? xxx

Video: Huge Lush Haul | Oxford Street Branch |

Two weeks ago I visited the huge Oxford Street Lush store and had a lot of fun walking around every floor, smelling nearly every single product and deciding on new things to try. In the end I picked up quite a few bath products and some face masks, although sadly I just missed the Halloween and Christmas ranges. I'm going back in the very near future though to pick up some more so there may be another haul video coming your way!

What is your favourite Lush product? Have you visited the Oxford Street store? xxx

Review: By Terry | Light Expert Click Brush Foundation |

By Terry | Light Expert Click Brush Foundation | 2 - Apricot Light | £48 | Space NK

As you may have already seen, I went to the relaunch of the vamped up By Terry Light Expert Click Brush* (long name!) event and it was awesome. I was over the moon to be able to test out and review the product, especially as it is my first item from the brand. I've been using it pretty much every day for the last few weeks so am now ready to give you a thorough opinion.

Lets start with the pros. The packaging feels and looks high end, and is perfect for travel due to the no leakage click brush pump at the bottom. There are 4 holes within the dense kabuki brush where the product is dispensed, to give a more even coverage and finish and the brush can also be unscrewed and washed so is hygienic. I love that you can also take a look at how much product you have left too while doing this.

The elastic formula of this foundation is different to anything else I've tried. It is super light weight and buffs out to the most incredible natural and flawless finish while blurring out my pores, even though the coverage isn't very high. The texture is also great for touching up before a night out or generally on the go as it doesn't even go cakey or unnatural looking, instead it just builds really nicely. One of the most surprising features of the foundation is how long lasting it is. Considering how lightweight the formula is, I thought it wouldn't last too long but it lasts all day and on my combination skin I only needed to powder once during the day, which is amazing! Like all foundations I like to mix in a liquid highlighter, but to be honest this doesn't need it as the finish is luminous enough by itself. 

Onto the cons - firstly I don't really like the brush it comes with. It is so dense and small that I find it really hard to buff in the liquid evenly. Instead I like to dot it on my face and use my Real Techniques Buffing Brush instead. The shade range is also quite small, and they are all quite on the warm side so unless properly blended it can look a little orange (I have the shade 'Apricot Light'). However, with a tan it will be a great shade and the lead make up artist at By Terry explained that the reason they do not have a bigger shade range is because they have not been able to perfect the formula yet. I think this is a good reason and at least they are not putting out a product they are not 100% convinced by. It is also worth bearing in mind that the foundation has quite a strong scent - I quite like this and it smells high end (if that makes any sense) but those with sensitive skin may want to take note. I would also like the coverage to be a bit higher as I do have blemishes and dark circles to conceal!

All in all, this is great for all skin types and ages. Although it is quite pricey, I think it feels luxurious and is great for more natural make up days by giving a flawless texture and tone to your skin.

Have you tried this foundation yet? What is your favourite product from By Terry? xxx