Ciara Sims

I feel like everything has been really up in the air this month. I've felt so unmotivated to do anything and blogging has taken a bit of a back seat which is a shame. However, I have had the opportunity this month to do some amazing things, such as a visit to the Auschwitz-Birkenau museum in Poland as part of a holocaust memorial project. That was such an important and unbelievable trip and I truly believe it is something that everybody should experience at least once in their lives. There is so much we can learn from the holocaust and if you get the opportunity to visit Auschwitz-Birkenau then please do go. Anyway on a lighter note, here's what I've been loving this month:

The *Benefit Porefessional  (£24.50) could have probably been in every single favourites post this year because it's a product that I use everyday without fail. I feel like I don't give this product the recognition it deserves and I've got to the point where I kind of take it for granted and don't even take much notice of it as it's just part of my routine because, come on, primers aren't the most exciting thing in the world. This does everything that I believe a good primer should. It minimizes the appearance of pores, mattifies the skin and helps your makeup glide on smoothly and last all day. If you haven't tried it you must, it lasts forever so it's definitely worth the splurge.

My skin has actually been pretty decent this month and so I haven't felt the need to load my face with products to cover it up. This has been brilliant for me because I've been feeling really lazy and running late in the mornings. So instead of my normal full coverage foundation, I've loved using the Bourjois 123 Perfect CC Cream (£9.99). It's very light coverage but still manages to cover redness and blemishes to an extent and does leave your skin looking very natural. It also contains an SPF of 15 which is great for me because I burn so easily all year around and you can apply it with your fingers so there's no need to wash your brushes (fantastic). The only thing I don't love about this product is that I find when I don't use my *Benefit Porefessional Primer it has a tendency to cling to any dry patches and settle into any large pores that I have, which I find a bit disappointing seeing as it claims to give 24 hour hydration.

The Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer (£5.49) was a new purchase for me this month, but one that I have used every day since. It's really lovely as an under eye concealer and helps to brighten the area as well as sorting out any bags that you might have (I have loads so trust me it does it's job in that department). I really love using this under my eyes because it's super light, doesn't crease or fade away during the day and I think it looks incredibly natural. It also blends really easily which is great because you don't want to be dragging about the skin under your eyes because it's so delicate. Rimmel don't have it down as exclusively an under eye concealer, but I just find that for me, it doesn't cover spots or blemishes at all. I find it much too thin for that and I don't believe the "full coverage" claims. But this is the only concealer that I will use under my eyes from now on.




Top to bottom: Nyx Powder Blush in Mauve, The Body Shop Honey Bronzer in 01

I haven't been that fussed with eye shadow this month for no other reason than that my brushes are dirty and I can't be bothered to clean them but I don't want to use the colours that I already have on them. So what I've been loving instead is just running some of The Body Shop Honey Bronzer in 01 through the crease and outer corner of my eye and softly blending it for a really lovely simple, natural look. I've seen Lily Melrose use her Honey Bronzer as an eye shadow loads of times so thought I'd give it a go and I'm glad I did. 01 is just the perfect warm toned, light, matte brown that compliments my skin tone so well. As an eye shadow, the Honey Bronzer blends easily and doesn't fade or smudge. It's great for a laid back everyday look.

I think it's like a tradition now that my favourites posts have to feature a blusher. This month it's the turn of Nyx Powder Blush in Mauve (£6).  I love this colour so much. It's a beautiful matte, bright pink blush that gives you that lovely healthy glow. It's a lot deeper than all my other blushers so I love it for the colder months, also it lasts so long. This blush is seriously weather proof and I need to add some more to my collection. I did a full review recently which you can read here.

Last but not least I thought I would throw in a non beauty favourite and that is Instagram. I have been loving Instagram in a big way this month. I used to not really post on there at all but lately I've been loving taking photos to upload and I'm really happy with the way my account is looking at the moment. I don't have a 'theme' because I'm not clever enough for that and also I don't like to be restricted in what I can post. If I like I picture then I'm going to post it! If you aren't already, make sure you're following me for a mixture of beauty and lifestyle posts.

What have you been loving this October? Do you have any plans for Halloween?

Ciara x

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*This post contains items which were gifted to me. Full disclaimer.

I think autumn is my favourite season. I love that it gets darker earlier and colder so you can start to bring out the scarfs and big coats and I think everything just looks so pretty in the autumn. I like to mirror this change in season not only with my makeup, but with the scents that I surround myself with. I like to switch up my perfume to something deeper and heavier and crack out the more festive smelling candles. Here are just three of my favourites:

I have been given bottles of *The Body Shop White Musk (£17) as a birthday and Christmas present so many times and I have to be honest with you, that when I first received one, I really wasn't keen. It was a bottle of body mist that came in a set with a scented body shimmer, shower gel and a pair of those exfoliating gloves. I just remember it smelling so strong and really overpowering and I hated it (I actually still have that body shimmer and I got his present at least 6 years ago...). Since then I received a bottle from my friend Kemi for my birthday and I can't get enough of it. I think it's probably one of those scents that grow on you as you get older. It's definitely not a fragrance that I would wear all year round but I think it's just perfect for the colder, darker months.

*The Body Shop White Musk is a gorgeous sensual fragrance containing notes of lily, iris, rose, vanilla and musk. It's deep and strong without being too heavy and overpowering and it lasts all day on the skin without smelling stale (if you know, then you know). I have an *Eau De Toilette (pictured), which I prefer to wear in the evenings, and a *Fragrance Mist which I think it more suited to day time. It's not as strong, but still as beautiful. White Musk is an iconic Body Shop scent that you need to be familiar with.

For my birthday this year, my brother bought me this absolutely deliciously scented Grimhilde Poison Apple Candle. This is the nicest thing I think I have ever smelt and I could just sit there smelling it for hours. It's the most gorgeous spiced apple scent that just gets you in the mood for the festive season and will make you want to go out and buy a Christmas tree and sit by the fire in an awful woolly jumper. I haven't actually lit it yet because it's just too good to burn and I don't want it to ever run out but it's so strongly scented that just having it out of the box fills the whole room. Also, amazing fragrance aside, how cute is the packaging?? The actual candle comes in a heavy red glass jar, that I am so going to use after burning this thing, and then the whole thing comes packaged inside this beautiful black box decorated with gold and a big red apple. And if you still haven't got the Snow White reference then on the inside of the lid is this beautiful little quote:

Unfortunately, I cannot find this candle on the internet anywhere, although my brother has informed me that he picked it up in TK Maxx so keep your eyes peeled there in case it pops up again.

I'd had my heart set on *Tommy Hilfiger Tommy Girl Eau De Toilette (£16.99) for ages, so you can imagine how happy I was to be given a bottle by my mum for my birthday. *Tommy Girl is such a gorgeous scent and one that I wouldn't normally be drawn to because it's jam packed with flowers, containing camellia flower, apple blossom, honeysuckle, butterfly violet, Cherokee rose, wild heather, mandarin, and tangerine. I usually prefer more citrusy scents and I think the tangerine and mandarin is what saves this perfume for me. They give it this fresh fruity burst in an otherwise deep, comforting floral fragrance. *Tommy Girl lasts on the skin for hours and is the perfect perfume to take you from day to night. I'm actually so shocked at how low the price tag is on this product, you can read my full review here.

What are your favourite autumnal scents?

Ciara x

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*This post contains items which were gifted to me (I very rarely buy my own perfume). Full disclaimer.

I've been meaning to write this post for a while now, but lately I've just had zero motivation for anything. I've been feeling quite low and all I've really wanted to do is stay in bed, so blogging has been at the very back of my mind I'm afraid. Anyway, a couple of weeks ago now I went up to Covent Garden with Lauren from Cupcakes & Candyfloss and we spent the day drooling over all the gorgeous beauty bits that they have up there. Now I didn't do as much spending as Lauren did but I couldn't leave without picking up something. I'd been eyeing up Mac's Mineralize Skinfinish in Soft & Gentle (£24) for a while so I bit the bullet and finally picked one up for myself.

This is probably my favourite beauty purchase in a long long while. It is absolutely gorgeous and worthy of the price tag. Mac's Mineralize Skinfinishes are baked face powders that can be used as a highlighter or lightly dusted over the entire face for a luminous glow. Soft & Gentle is the only Mineralize Skinfinish that I have, but I did swatch them all in the shop and I think they are far too glittery to be applied to the whole face, but that's just me. If you are one of those people that manages to pull of having Soft & Gentle all over your face then please let me know how you do it!

As a highlighter however, this is the only product you will ever need. Soft & Gentle is a lovely peachy champagne shade with tiny flecks of gold. It is a warm toned highlighter, but trust me that this shade is universal. Soft & Gentle looks amazing on everybody I have ever seen wear it. I am very fair skinned and so usually use a pearly pink shade like *Benefit's High Beam as a highlight, but Soft & Gentle has pushed that aside massively. Soft & Gentle gives you that gorgeous lit from within summer glow that I'm still not quite ready to give up on.

It is glittery, I won't lie to you there. But there is a balance. On the skin the glitter blends easily to create a luminous sheen to the tops of your cheek bones, and it doesn't fall out around the rest of your face. I love glitter and don't have a problem with it at all, but there are times when I don't want to look like a disco ball.

The wear time on this stuff is amazing, so there's no need to carry it around with you for touch ups. Also because only the smallest bit is needed, I don't think I'll be hitting pan anytime soon. Soft & Gentle is such a cult product and I can really see why! This product is so worth the hype and you all need to stick it on your Christmas lists (it's not too early for them yet is it?) if you don't have it already!

Don't forget to check out Lauren's haul!

Ciara x

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*This post mentions items which were gifted to me. Full disclaimer.

I'm such a sucker for a good neutral eye shadow palette and although I do now have the ultimate neutral palette - the *Urban Decay Naked Palette - in my collection, I understand that this isn't available for everybody and I managed long enough without it. There are plenty of amazing neutral eye shadow palettes out there on the high street and I have a few in my collection that I still reach for even though they may be sat right next to my *Naked Palette. I think the high street brands do neutral eye shadows really well so here are my top picks!

Kicking it all off we have the Maybelline The Nudes Eye Shadow Palette (£9.99). I've talked about this palette plenty of times so you should know how much I love it by now. I took the Maybelline The Nudes Eye Shadow Palette away with me when I went to Ireland in the summer because it's just got every neutral colour you could need to get you through the week. I also really like that it includes a range of matte and shimmer shades so you can play about with textures as well as colour.

The palette is set up into 3 quads and each shade within that quad is designed to go together perfectly. Of course you can mix and match whatever shade you want (which is what I usually do) but it's really nice to have those sections set up for you. It makes the process of deciding what to wear a lot easier and if you're a makeup beginner, there are even instructions as to what colour looks best where on the back of the palette. The first quad contains your standard neutrals: 3 shimmer shades and a matte brown. The middle section (my favourite) contains a matte nude colour that makes an absolutely fab base for any look and 3 bronze/gold shimmer shades to make the most dazzling evening look. Finally last but not least, the last 4 remind me a lot of the colour combos inside the Bobbi Brown Greige Collection Palette. There's a pale shimmery highlight, two browny grey tones and a black that is perfect used as a liner or for a dramatic smokey eye. This palette contains something for everybody and the mix of cool and warm toned shades means it's so versatile and great for travelling when you haven't got room to take loads of products with you.

The quality of the shadows are good. There's no fall out, they blend easily and don't crease. The wear time isn't the most amazing I've ever come across, but they last around 8 hours without fading which is pretty impressive for a high street palette. I also really like the packaging, it's sturdy but chuck away the silly foam applicator that they give you because it's useless.

I mentioned the Collection Eyes Uncovered Eye Shadow Palette in Nude (£3.99) recently in my school makeup look and I have been wearing the colours from this palette a lot to sixth form since. They are just such pretty basic neutral colours that are really easy to wear and perfect for every day use. They're the kind of colours that you can just chuck on and they look good with basically no effort. You don't have to worry about picking complimentary colours because the palette has been put together for you and because there is a range of colours from light to dark, this one little palette is enough to complete a full look including eyeliner.

Shades from left to right: White Chocolate, Buttercream, Biscuit, Chocolate Milk, Brown Sugar and Espresso

My favourite shade in the palette is called Biscuit. It's a really lovely pale gold colour that you can just sweep across the lid and go. All the shades are really buttery and soft so they blend well and last all day without a primer. Everybody needs this fuss free palette in their lives. This palette actually reminds me a lot colour wise of the Urban Decay Naked 2 Basics Palette except these shadows contain shimmer rather than being completely matte.

I'd always heard a lot of good things about Makeup Revolution but never tried any of their products myself. But when I went shopping with my friend I couldn't resist coming away with at least one of these beautiful palettes (Makeup Revolution do every colour combination you could possibly want and I definitely need a trip back). I picked up the Makeup Revolution Redemption Palette Iconic 2 (£4) which is clearly supposed to be a take on the Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette and I absolutely love it.

Iconic 2 contains a wide rage of colours including golds, silvers and taupes that will suit both cool and warm toned skin. There isn't a big range of textures here as the palette only contains 3 matte shades. But they are a peach, brown and black so there's a base, transition and liner colour. I think all the colours are beautiful, but the two stand out shades for me are the gold and copper shades. They are insanely pigmented and I actually wore these colours to prom. Unfortunately, I don't get as much wear out of this palette anymore as my mum seems to have adopted it.

For a measly four quid you get 12 beautifully buttery shades that are well pigmented and last on the eyes all day. They don't crease and there is no fall out at all. If you prefer matte shades then this particular palette isn't for you but, check out one of Makeup Revolutions other palettes because the quality is exceptional for the price. The only thing I would say is that the packaging feels cheap and is even starting to crack where it snaps shut.

Last but by no means least, we have another offering from Collection. After picking up the Collection Eyes Uncovered Nude Palette without realising they did other variations, I went back to Boots and bought myself the Collection Eyes Uncovered Eye Shadow Palette in Nude Bronze (£3.99). This palette is a bronze goddesses dream and I love it with every inch of my being (bit much???).



Shades from left to right: Ivory, Mink, Ochre, Golden Brown, Ember, Nutty

I love every single colour in this palette and get wear out of all of them. Because of the amount of bronze, gold and copper toned colours going on, this will definitely suit people who have warmer undertones more but Collection also do a Nude Grey version of the palette for those of you who do have cool undertones, so don't you worry. I think these colours are great for a night out when you want a lot of drama without stepping out of your comfort zone, they're also really rich colours that will compliment every single eye colour and make your eyes pop.

This palette is insanely pigmented and because the shimmer is very finely milled, you don't have to worry about getting fall out from chunky glitter. The shadows are buttery and easy to blend and last all day on the lid without creasing or fading even without a primer (because let's be honest, I can't be bothered with an eye shadow primer).

So there are my favourite neutral eye shadow palettes on the high street. Have I missed any out??

Ciara x

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*This post mentions items which were gifted to me. Full disclaimer.