MAYBELLINE:: Rocket Volum' Express Mascara (Waterproof)

Hulluuuu! :) I was scanning Superdrug the other day (as you do) and noticed that Maybelline has introduced a new volumising mascara - the Rocket Volum' Express Mascara! I absolutely love Maybelline and especially their mascaras (my favourites being the Colossal and Falsies mascaras). The only mascara from Maybelline that hasn't worked for me is their Great Lash mascara - it just didn't seem to want to stick to my lashes at all; but their Colossal and Falsies mascara does wonders!!

So I purchased the product with high expectations and I'm proud to say that I was very, very impressed with their new Rocket mascara as it gives enormous length and volume! With each sweep of the brush, your lashes just get longer and longer, and thicker and thicker! It's really as if you're wearing subtle falsies which is amazing because I always feel like falsies are so heavy on the eyes. I purchased the waterproof version because the weather in Hertfordshire is beyond unpredictable (or anywhere in England for that matter!!) and I don't want to have to keep popping to the loo to check that my make up has not smudged.

The brush has loads of small bristles which makes sure that every single one of your lashes are coated and you can comb on extra layers without getting spidery or clumped up lashes. The packaging is pretty much the same as a couple of their mascaras (including Colossal) and I absolutely love the chunky handle bit because it makes the application process so much easier and quicker - you can literally, just roll it down your thumb! 

It's on offer at Superdrug for only £5 at the moment so grab one before they start retailing them at the full price (£7.99)!! And let me know if this mascara works wonders on you too! :)

Wishing you all happy lashes!

♥

CHANEL:: Rouge Allure Lipstick in Exaltée 93

I treated myself to my first Chanel lipstick a few weeks ago and I have to say, I was pretty impressed. "You get what you paid for" definitely works with Chanel haha :) I actually risked buying this product on eBay as I didn't want to pay the full retail price of £25 from Selfridges. In total, I paid about £19 (bargain!!) but I did do some research on the seller before purchasing.. The item was listed as "Brand New in Box" and the photo showed everything that was included. The seller had 1982 ratings, was rated 100% and buyers left feedback about the product being genuine which is exactly what I was worried about! 

I'm not really into nudes or light pinks - I wear lipstains during the day and I love brighter pinks and reds for nights out :) So I chose Exaltée which is a bright pinkish fuschia. The lipstick glides on so smoothly and it doesn't run or smudge all over the place (which is always a plus!) even without using lip liner, and I don't have to keep reapplying either. The packaging looks very high-end and professional and I love how you have to push down the top of the outer shell to bring the lipstick out because I always worry about lids coming loose in my bag and having to clean up the lipstick party that's taken place!

But like all lipsticks, they dry up your lips. I've found that this one moisturises your lips for a little longer than others before it starts to dry up. Nonetheless, I am very happy with this little beauty and I will definitely be investing in a few more Chanel lippys but I think I might give my heart a break and purchase from a store instead of eBay haha. I'm very drawn towards Coramandel which is a bright red and Pirate which is a darker plummy red so they're on my wishlist as of January 2013! :)

Swatch:

Thought it'd be useful to let you guys compare the colour of the lipstick and the colour that actually comes out on your skin :)

4 hours later:

So this is after 2 peanut butter sandwiches and 2 cups of tea and the colour's still there with no reapplication! These photos are unedited so you guys can make your own judgement :)

Top tips for buying on eBay: 

Check the seller ratings (I don't usually buy from sellers below 99%)

Read the comments from other buyers

Take a good look at the photo

If you're unsure, message and ask for more photos

Read the description and their shipping and return policy

(tracked shipping is always safer - you can always ask if they offer this)

Have you guys tried any Chanel lipsticks? What do you think?!

Let me know down belowwww (;

Peace out!

♥

EPISODE HOTEL:: Royal Leamington Spa Review

Our exams finished last week so we took a weekend away in Warwick (totally random, I know!) and initially, we planned this trip as a spa weekend but decided to do some sightseeing instead. Our friends came across a really good offer on Wowcher for a 2 nights stay in a 3-star hotel with breakfast for £99 (for two people!) - it was originally £200. You also receive £10 off spa treatments with a minimum spend of £40! Upon arriving at the hotel, we were very impressed by the exterior and were even more impressed by the interior as we had come across many reviews complaining about the rooms not being refurbished etc.

The entrance:

Once you enter the building, the atmosphere is surprisingly very calming which I think is super important if you want a relaxing weekend away. As we checked in, I snapped photos of the interior as it had this 'shabby chic' look which I really love. There were little chalk boards with offers written on them and a beautiful ball-shaped chandelier looking thing hovering above us! The bar and restaurant were to the left so I took a peek through the glass and noticed the suede sofa-looking seats around wooden tables - it was too good to be true!

As you enter:

We had booked a deluxe room with a double bed. Our room differed a little from our friend's room in terms of its layout but the furniture and television etc were pretty much the same :) We had a shower and our friend's room had a shower and a bath, but we had a fancy headboard compared to theirs so I guess it balanced it out haha ;p

Our room:

Our bathroom:

(excuse my jacket hanging there!)

Our friend's room:

I think the only downside was the amount of noise that you could hear as the walls were super thin! Also, the keys were actually quite bulky but I guess for a 3-star hotel you can't expect electronic key cards (yet!).

The breakfast included in this package had:

two slices of bacon, a sausage, an egg, fried bread, a whole tomato, a mushroom and black pudding.

I actually didn't end up eating most of it so the next morning, the staff were very helpful in allowing us to swap some of the items :)

As we arrived on a Friday, we thought we'd take advantage of the 'steak for £25 per couple' deal but they'd ran out by 9:30pm (restaurant closes at 10:30pm) with only one steak left. So in the end, Tim ordered the steak, I ordered a fish and chips and our friends ordered a burger and chips.

Tim's steak:

My fish and chips:

Earrings: Miss Selfridge (on sale)

Hoodie: Beezbo

(they're doing 2 for £20 on their website and it's only £7 in their store in the West Orchards Shopping Centre in Coventry)

T-shirt: New Look

Our friend's burger and chips:

We were so full afterwards and the service was brilliant considering we were the only ones in the restaurant! They had 'closed' the restaurant by the time we'd arrived and re-opened it and assigned a waitress for us so definitely a 5-star rating for their service! Although I should probably point out that they don't have a wine menu so you'd have to ask about what's available and they're less flexible with changing some items around (e.g. swapping chips to mash).

I think the hotel is more suited for young couples (like us!) and older couples who are looking to get some relaxing time-off from their busy lives. The town centre is about a 10-minute drive away and the Warwick castle is about a 15-minute drive so it's very convenient! The area is relatively quiet, possibly a retirement area so you won't have any trouble with youths etc. Parking can be a bit of a nightmare in the evening as the car park only has about 12 spaces so I recommend coming back to the hotel a little before 7/8pm! Otherwise, you'll end up parking in the streets outside.

Overall, we had very good first impressions, the service in the reception and restaurant were great and the rooms were also very impressive. There are some reviews on the net about their food tasting funny ("The egg tastes like rubber.. The toast tastes like cardboard") but actually, we had some really good food so maybe we were lucky in the hit-and-miss! I would definitely recommend having a look at their spa treatments as there's something for everyone (even manicures for men!) and although they're a little pricey, you could always wait on some vouchers which also come with discounts for treatments :)

Best of luck and let me know what you think if you've visited!

♥

YESSTYLE/YESWALKER:: Zip Detail Shoulder Bag Review

Hello everybody! Firstly, happy 2013! (Although that is a little delayed , oops!)

And secondly, I'm so sorry I haven't been able to post anything since Christmas - exams were absolutely hectic and then I had deadlines looming all over the place!

However, I do have some very exciting news to share with you all :)

I actually did a small collaboration with a very popular fashion retailer called Yesstyle, who are introducing a new sister website called 'Yeswalker'. I have a lot of friends who purchase from Yesstyle as they are constantly updating their products so there is always something out there for everyone (and for every occasion!). Their styles are very Japanese, Korean and just generally Oriental/Asian-inspired - which I absolutely love! Although most of the clothing is best suited for warmer climates, they have jackets and coats for those who live in colder climates (aka. England!!).

Yeswalker is very similar to Yesstyle, but they specialise in bags, shoes and accessories. They were very kind to send me a beautiful bag which I absolutely adore! I don't usually purchase black handbags because if you've seen me around, I like having a pop of colour to my outfits and usually, my bags do the trick! And although this bag came in brown as well, I thought I'd try and style a black one. 

What I love most about this bag is that it is two-toned! The leather on the sides and the back are toned down by the suede panel at the front and the gold zips give a really edgy and chic feel. It also comes with a gold chain and a leather shoulder strap so you can wear the bag in so many different ways! I've worn it with the leather shoulder strap for uni and it's really handy because I can rotate between having it on my shoulder and carrying it by hand :) I've accessorised the bag with the gold chain but you can also use it as a strap which would look stunning for dinner in the evening! 

Oh, and it gets better! In addition to the usual small pocket compartment inside (where you shove all your lipsticks and tissues etc!), there's an extra zipped pocket plus two small open pockets for your smaller items (like your phone, pens, keys etc)! This is extremely useful for someone like me as I tend to pack my whole house with me whenever I go out haha ;p

Anyway, enough talking, here are some photos of the beauty!

So the package arrived in about 2-3 weeks because of the crazy Christmas post and I still get excited about their packaging (even after so many purchases!) because it looks so professional and it keeps the product in perfect condition. Also, the bag looked exactly like the photo on their website (that's always something I worry about haha) so I was super impressed! 

Here's the photo from their website:

They look the same - yay! Hehee ^^

Here's how I styled it :)

Outfit 1:

Snowflake jumper: Boohoo (on sale)

Studded checked shirt: Boohoo (on sale)

Leggings: H&M

Suede boots: Peacocks (on sale)

Gold spike bracelet: Present from my sister

Tory Burch inspired wrap bracelet: eBay

Outfit 2:

Studded leather sleeve camouflage jacket: Missguided (present)

Loose white tank top: Select (on sale)

Same boots and jewellery as outfit 1 :)

You could totally rock this bag to school/uni/shopping or you could dress it up and use the gold chain as the strap! I've already used it so many times for shopping (to hide the ridiculous amount of things I buy from my boyfriend and my mum!) and I am so in love with it!

If you wish to purchase this bag, please click here and feel free to have a look at the other products that they're selling because they have something on there for everyone and the product looks exactly like how they've been advertised so they really are worth the investment! :)

Thank you for reading and hope you are all enjoying 2013!!

Comment if you've made any purchases and your first impressions :)

♥