TEE-ING OFF CHRISTMAS AT WENTWORTH

Hello!

Every year we are lucky enough to be treated to the most delicious Christmas buffet at Wentworth Golf Club in Surrey by my Grandparents. 

This year was no exception and the food was superb. The displays are spectacular  and the range of food is one not to be rivaled. 

I focused mainly on the dessert table as that is my favourite part of the meal! Their sticky toffee pudding is the best I have ever eaten in my life - I don't even order it anywhere else it's that good! There is a standing joke that the first thing the grandchildren do is check to see if it's out (we still do this every year!). 

(Gingerbread mini village.)

The room is filled with Christmas scents, the whole club is packed out with families enjoying their Pre-Christmas celebrations,  and frivolity is all around. Half way through the meal we are treated to several carols by a wonderful choir and a magician that invokes the whole family and makes everyone laugh! 

It's lovely to spend time together as a family enjoying delicious food swapping presents and anecdotes since we last met, it's something we all always look forward to and being invited to the club is a real treat.

I stuck to pinks and silvers for my makeup I wanted something subtle that could take me from day to night but also with a bit of sparkle! Silver and golds make me feel festive and in a celebratory mood.

I recently came across a website called Sheinside.com that sells clothes at discounted prices - they come from china so the delivery time is about three weeks but the prices and the clothes seemed great. (Although out of two dresses and a coat I was only really taken with this particular dress, the other two items are OK).

So anywhere here is the dress - please excuse the photo I had been travelling for quite a whole therefore it is creased and there is a lot of clutter in the background of the photo but you get the jist!

I love the shape it's really flattering, is made of a really thick cotton with a jacquard print embellishment. I love the simplicity of this dress, it's so pretty and versatile. Very pleased! 

I paired it with thick black silky tights and a pair of black suede wedge ankle boots from stylist pick.com a year ago. 

Unfortunately I didn't get any photos of the family together - we were enjoying ourselves too much!

I hope you are enjoying your pre Christmas celebrations! Looking forward to many more 😊

Nicola x

A COMIC BOOK WEDDING

Hello Lovelies!

At the weekend I went to my cousin's wedding in Whitstable - a lovely little seaside town littered with small independent shops and souvenirs. My cousin and his bride are massive comic book fans and therefore based their wedding around this theme - they did it in such a cute and subtle way with decorations such as comic book bunting and individual papers flowers made out of comic book pages in each of the bouquets.

After a last minute trip to Bluewater and a few 'oh my gosh what am I going to wear' moments I settled on this gorgeous spliced flower print maxi dress from Topshop which was amazingly in the sale for £18! Only one in store my size - fate! I paired it with a top knot with pink flower head band from Primark, gold and black Aztec inspired earrings also from Primark, the most comfortable cream canvas wedges from New Look that I bought inthe summer (not available online any more) and my Nanny's classic black handbag and gold chain necklace that I used as a bracelet. (My gorgeous Nanny passed away two years ago and all the women in the family took one of her handbags so she could be there with us =).)

I kept my makeup very simple with neutral eyes using my new MUA palette, Clinique blush and a Wet and Wild pink lipstick, below is the finished look.

The bride and groom both wore comic book inspired converse continuing the theme into the reception with a personalised comic book sweetie corner, comic book wedding cake made by one of the guests and a polaroid camera with costumes to dress up and personalise your page in the guest book. The theme was subtle but done very well running along side a shabby chic element with lace table runners and white wooden lanterns. The wedding was inform and so much fun, below are some pictures from the day.

The Groom showing off his Aqua Man Converse Hi-tops.

The Brides footwear - paired with super cute and fashionable lace ankle socks.

The back of the dress, pleats, lace, diamonds all in an elegant a-line cut with a short double layered veil scattered with jewels. Stunning.

The cake with the Groom as Aqua Man bursting through the top to save his Bride!

I have to mention the gift we got them as I think it is so cute and the company I bought from are fab! Alphabet photography is relatively new but incredibly expensive, after a lot of research I came across Grace and David's website http://alphabetphotodesign.co.uk/. The price is much more reasonable compared to other sites and the service is first class, check them out for special occasions =)

I always struggle with a winter wedding worried that I'm going to be too cold - it took me such a long time to find a suitably warm and pretty outfit that wasn't black!

So what do you think? What would you wear for a winter wedding?

Nicola x

AUTUMNAL MAKEUP LOOK

Hi lovelies!

So one of my many beauty purchases from America was the Cover Girl eye enhancers palette in colour 222 - I bought quite a bit of CG as I have always loved the brand but really struggle to get hold of it in the UK so really wanted to stock up while I was in the US. With my Walgreens card all CG cosmetics were buy one get one 50% so I really went to town! This palette in particular stuck out for the mix of colours and the gorgeous deep shimmery burgundy colour at the end. This palette is a great size to keep in your handbag for touch ups throughout the day or for an easy day to night transition.
 The colours have a silky texture and blend really easily together, for today I wanted to create a deep autumnal look with strong eye make-up and keep the rest of the face really neutral.
I used the burgundy all over my lids, blended it out into my crease along with a bit of the black and used the white shimmer to high light my brow bones and the corners of my eyes. On the rest of my face is:
Benefit They're Real Mascara
Bourjois Perfect 123 Foundation
Rimmel Stay Matte Long Lasting Pressed Powder
Clinique Blusher in 114 Iced Lotus
MUA Pro-Brow Kit
Nivea Lip Gloss
I am a massive fan of CG but I really adore this palette - there are so many combinations without bringing in any other palettes so its really handy for use on the go or last minute plans! The colours wore really well - I always prep my eyes with MUA eyeshadow primer but the intensity of the colours lasted all day with very little creasing. I really like the contrast of strong, dark eyes with light neutral lips perfect for day wear.

Have any of you tried the CG eye palettes? What looks would you create with these colours?
Nicola x

BOURJOIS 123 PERFECT MATCH FOUNDATION: A REVIEW

As someone who suffers from oily skin and has to use blotting sheets numerous times a day (problems!) I am forever trying out new foundations sucked in by their claims of “all day matt finish” and “no more shine” but have yet to find one that stays true to its claim.
After trying a few Bourjois products - adore their nail varnishes and shimmer shine liquid eye shadows - I thought I’d try one of theirs. I tweeted Bourjois asking which of their foundations they would recommend and within no time at all they replied to try their 123 perfect match foundation. Naturally I ran straight over to boots to grab a bottle. I had no problem finding my colour match (I usually find even the lightest is too dark for my skin) paid and couldn’t wait to try it.
It comes in a glass bottle with a fitted pump - love the packaging feels expensive and worth the £10.99 price tag!
One pump is plenty for the coverage I like - the foundation smells slightly fruity not at all like a cosmetic which I LOVE! It has quite a runny consistency which makes it very easy to blend in using my favourite too - Nanshy flat top kabooki brush- and feels almost like there is no product on your skin at all, making it perfect for the summer. The coverage is easily build-able and looks very natural on the skin. I applied the foundation on top of my primer and set it with my MUA translucent powder, added my blush and was ready for the day.
Usually I have to blot a couple of hours into the day around my nose, chin, cheeks and forehead however I was completely surprised to find that my skin FINALLY had that matt finish I have been after for so long.
I must add a note here that I still had to blot my forehead but I have a full thick fringe so this would happen with any product.

I cannot say a word against this product, if you struggle with oily skin or are looking for a new lightweight foundation to experiment with this is definitely worth a try!

STILA LIPSTICK AND LIP LINER: A REVIEW

Here is one of the looks I created with my new Stila lipstick (Michaela) and glaze lip liner (Melon) from www.directcosmetics.com. I'd never used any products from Stila but had read fantastic reviews and seen some gorgeous looks created using them so was intrigued to try it out for myself.

I kept the eyes neutral as I really wanted the lip colour to stand out. The lipstick packaging is really lovely - simple tube with hidden detail inside on the inner tube. Very moisturising feel with good coverage - the colour was much lighter than I was expecting and had more of a pinky tinge to it than it looks in the tube but I have fallen in love with the way it looks. The glaze lip liner looks great with the lipstick even though they are not a direct match or used all over the lips for a more intense look. I would definitely recommend the Stila lip products they feel very light on the lips and have a fantastic range of colours.

MINI MAKEUP HAUL

I came across a website selling branded products for a sixth of the price, so I couldn't resist adding to my ever growing collection! (http://www.directcosmetics.com/)

Here’s what I bought - Stila, Bourjois and Urban Decay, so excited to try these new products!

Have any of you tried these products? What do you think?  

I'M NICOLA AND I'M A BEAUTY ADDICT...

At the age of 25 I have decided that I am OBSESSED with makeup, I spend most of my time watching youtube videos about makeup, makeup hauls and makeup tips. Yes it has taken me a long time to fall in love with makeup but I am now making up for lost time my collecting and experimenting with as many brands and products as my pay cheque will allow! 

(Just a brief insert - here are some of my absolute favourite youtube beauty gurus: http://www.youtube.com/user/CarliBel55, http://www.youtube.com/user/saturdaynightsalrite,  http://www.youtube.com/user/Jaclynhill1 and http://www.youtube.com/user/shaaanxo).

So here are some of the makeup looks I have created:

I have set up my own little ‘beauty station’ and sit there for a considerable amount of time experimenting with new looks, colours and products and I am really enjoying it! I never realised how much you can change and enhance your features with a few simple products and makeup tools!

I have also got my facial routine down to a tea at the moment - it always helps to start on a well cleaned and maintained canvas! 

What do you guys think? How many of you try to recreate looks seen in beauty videos? Do you know what your doing or just playing at makeup like me?! Would love to hear your recommendations or tips!