Billion Dollar Brows.

So I'll start this by saying I am definitely a powder and brush kinda brow girl and have been ever since I can remember.

However, a few weeks ago, I was very kindly sent a brow pencil by Billion Dollar Brows. I was quite nervous to try it, having not used a pencil for these bad boys since I was about 19... so... forever ago!

The packaging I think is actually really well made. You know how most pencil make up items, when they have lids, the lids either break as soon as you put them in your make up bag, or they don't fit properly after taking them off one time, as if the act of removing them has made the size diminish?!
Well! This little wonder has been shoved into the bottom of my bag on many an occasion since trying it and as yet, it is still holding strong. This impresses me very much... little things and all that jazz.
I'm well aware the lid isn't on in this picture - but i'd just used it and forgot to put it back on - forgive me.

Now... does it work...? I do have to say.. it has taken time for me to get used to this... but that's because I'm severely kak handed, so don't necessarily take that as a negative!
I think... I'm getting there though... Here's a few pics from the first day up to today of how I used this.

There's slight improvement there right?

I found it better for me to use it to make the shape of my brow and then fill it in with small light strokes to make them look as natural as possible, and I have to say the spoolie on the end definitely helps with this. After I've done the above, I make sure to brush them into the direction I want them.
I have also been using a bit of powder over the top to make it more defined... as I'm a scaredy cat... This could definitely be done with the pencil... maybe on a night out I'll get a bit braver?
I also use the powder just to ensure that I cover any obvious pencil marks at the start of the brow so the whole brow flows better.

This is how the website describes the pencil:

"Formulated to work beautifully with most skin tones and hair colors, this amazing eyebrow pencil goes on smooth and natural. Plus, the Universal Brow Pencil is automatic—it never needs sharpening and it comes complete with a spoolie brush on the opposite end for effortless blending and a perfect finish."

I will definitely be continuing to use this as although it is out of my comfort zone, I need to get sued to using different products for different things. I have also spied some eyebrow gels on their website that I need in my life to try!


Much Love,

Tk,
xx

Homeware Haul

Back in February me and the boy moved in together... scary stuff I know!

We were very lucky to receive a lot of the furniture we needed from friends and family rather than having to buy new.

We also received some gorgeous presents and I wanted to share some of them with you along with a few bits I got too!

First off are these gorgeous tea light,lantern type holders. They have some beautiful rose gold colouring detailing with the heart and it goes really well with the cream ribbon. The glass also has a rose gold tinge to it so it's not completely clear. I haven't actually used these yet as I am yet to find the perfect place for them and they are currently making my kitchen windowsill look pretty. They were a mega bargain too! I found these in The Range and they were about £2 each I think?! Love me a bargain I do! But how pretty!

My mum brought us this gorgeous wine carafe, it's simple yet got a bit of character with the imprinted seal. Not going to lie... we don't drink masses of wine here... I'm more about the cider and prosecco and Jack is a beer and ale man... so we have been using this for flowers but I love it on my windowsill with some beautiful blooms in it. So it may stay here for now at least... maybe as I get older wine will taste better?! Who knows?! :)

One of my most favourite purchases we made together, was this storage unit. I had seen a similar one in Argos and made the mistake of putting it in my wish list... fair enough for about 3 months... and when I went to go and get it they no longer stocked it... anywhere... rude much!
So on our trip to IKEA I found this beauty and haven't looked back. It's so handy to keep all of our essentials and I'm sure a lot of unessentials in too.
The boxes on the first two shelves were also from IKEA and were dirt cheap! Super handy and I love it so much.

The next thing... admittedly I did already have. It was a Christmas Present from my mum and step dad a couple of years ago I believe but I'd never put it to good use or showed it off enough. It now sits in our front room next to our log burner and I keep all my nicer candles inside. (I do also have a drawer with... no joke... probably about 500 regular tea lights in... because you never know when you may need them...!) I love that it's now pride of place and everyone comments on it when them come over.

Lastly, I have now been able to put up a few DIY projects I had worked on before moving on show also. The first one was one I did for Myself and Jack documenting our first year together with receipts and ticket stubs which will... eventually... end up on our living room wall behind the sofa. The second main one is in our bedroom and is a small one at the moment as I need to find the rest of my tickets but they are in the loft as I have so many what I call "keepsake" boxes that I need a day (or two) to go through them all properly. This makes me smile every day as it showcases such good memories from so many years of the amazing shows I have seen. I love musical theatre and studied it at college, so although I have seen a lot, there are so many more I want and need to see! My mum is taking me to see Jesus Christ Superstar in London this August and it's an open air screening... to say I can't wait may be an understatement.

These are just a few things I love in our house, there are many more and I will show you more in the next few weeks along with our gaming room. (Mainly jacks things tbh... but my Harry Potter bits are in there too... I made sure I had some space!)

Much love

Tklou
 xx

Younique Flawless Four

Ok... as mentioned in a previous post, one of my lovely friends is a Younique presenter and because of this I have access to a lot of pretty amazing make up and skin care.

See my previous blog about their amazing charcoal face mask here

This week It's all about some make up!

I have been using the Mineral Touch Liquid Foundation for a while now, although I only had one shade which was for when I'm tanned (Taffeta) and I haven't got round to tanning for a while so decided to get one for every day having run out of my daily foundation in the shade Velour. 

I have a lot of love for this product as it feels sooooo good on your face. Epic coverage without feeling like you're caked.
It's a liquid to matte finish, and you really don't need much product at all, plus It's got a handy pipette included into the design of the bottle which makes application super easy.
If you're anything like me, this comes in handy too as it means you don't end up wasting a load of product on your hand.

This time I also got the foundation brush which has a small indent in the middle of the brush which it says to use with this foundation. I feel this soaked up the product than anything else and I preferred to use it to build the layers up if needed and buff it out, but actually preferred applying with my good ol' beauty blender. The brush is super soft though and I'm going to give it another go with one of my thicker formulated foundations to see if it works better as I'm thinking it may not soak up the product as much.

I also picked up another one of their Touch Mineral Skin Perfecting concealers in Scarlet.
Again, I already had this in Organza, a slightly darker shade but wanted one to use for highlight and under my eyes to brighten. I have fallen in love with it all over again! 

It's slightly thicker than you would expect but it's easy to blend and the results speak for themselves. I've seen some people use it to cover tattoos just to show you how much it covers! Insane! And it lasts forever.

Lastly, I decided to pick up their Glorious primer. I ran out of my daily one a while back if I'm honest and just kept forgetting to pick a new one up. I know, I know... super naughty of me!

Now... I don't know about you... But I'm all about packaging, it gives me a similar thrill to that of stationary... 

I loved the streamline look of these products all being in black boxes with strong white font. Plus the foundation bottle is a gorgeous frosted glass effect with the writing in black.
However, you will need some scissors near by in order to get into this primer.  I didn't use it for a few days as I kept forgetting and didn't have the time to search around first thing in the am. Although frustrating to open... once opened... it is the nicest feeling primer I've ever used.
 I wouldn't be able to say it kept my make up on all day, but I think my skin is as much to blame for that as the product, and once I have got my skin under control I will report back on that. All in all, it's a lovely product and I would recommend it.

I picked these items up in their Flawless Four collection which they are unfortunately no longer running, but keep your eyes peeled on Emma's page as they always have deals going on and I would definitely recommend trying Younique if you haven't already.

I will do another blog post soon on some of my other favourites from Younique as there are some goodens!