July Empties

Sorry for the serious lack of posts during the month of July, I've been unbelievably busy and haven't gotten a spare second.  I'm happy to say I'm back again, I have a couple of ideas for a series that I'm hoping to start in August which I'm sure you guys will love. I'm not going to say too much about it in case it falls through but it's looking promising so far. Seeing as it's the end of July I guess it's time for another Empties post. As you can see from the picture below I don't have too much to show you guys. I don't think I've done an empties post before that hasn't micellar water, I fly through them at a ridiculous rate.

I'm sad to have come to the end of my Ralph Lauren Big Pony Fragrance (#4).  I got this in a set in the January Sales so it has lasted an age considering it has been my signature fragrance for the last couple of months. Many people have commented on this fragrance when I wear it. It is a light floral scent which isn't offensive so I'm guessing a lot of people get drawn to this one. Of course I love the bottle as my favourite colour is indeed purple. I still have the body lotion in this scent left over from the set so I'll certainly be using that up too. I may make a sneaky repurchase of this in Dublin Airport the next time I'm going on holidays which is in the near future.

I've already repurchased Catrice's Camouflage Cream and it was pretty hard to come by as it was out of stock in most Penneys  that I visited. Penneys on Henry Street was a winner and picked one up in there over the weekend. When I first purchased Catrice's Camouflage Cream I wasn't expecting too much from it but  I ended up falling in love with this product. When I'm having a bad skin day this is a full coverage concealer that will hide anything. Considering I purchased this for around €4 I was super impressed with it and believe me when I say this little tub with go an awfully long way. The only issue I think people will have a problem with is the shade selection. I  use the shade Ivory which is the perfect match for me but it is also the lightest shade and I can see it being way too dark for people.

 Of course as I said above it wouldn't be an empties post without a micellar solution. My Cleansing Water empty this month comes from No7. I featured this countless times already in a favourites and an empties post so I won't ramble on too much about it. I've been using No7's Beautiful Skin Cleansing Water for ages now and I always go back to it. In the evenings I apply some to a cotton wool pad and it removes my makeup effortlessly. I find this doesn't irritate my eyes either which is a plus. I do tend to stock up on these when Boots bring out their No7 vouchers so if you want to try it I'd definitely keep and eye out for those. A makeup remover I wasn't too impressed with was Loreal's Gentle Eye Makeup Remover. I had to go through so much product just to remove my eye makeup. If you want a eye makeup remover to take off your eye makeup quickly this definitely isn't it! It's disappointing considering I absolutely loved the micellar solution in this skincare range but in my opinion this is a product to stay clear of.

Lastly I have a mini bottle of OPI's Nail Envy. Even after using this all up I can't give a verdict on it as I did find the bottle to be quite small. My nails aren't in tip top shape at the moment and I think they would need more than a tiny bottle of nail strengthener to be in good condition again. Saying that I have read really good reviews on this product so I may take the plunge and buy a full sized bottle the next time I'm walking by Sally's in town.

Have you tried any of the products above? Would love to hear your thoughts on them?

Laura <3

Urban Decay Ammo Palette

When people think of Urban Decay, their much talked about Naked Palettes come to mind, I know that's what pops into my head. I do think we (myself included) tend to forget that the brand have so many more palettes on offer. One that is definitely a winner for me is Urban Decay's Ammo Palette* which was relaunched a few months ago in all new packaging and reformulated shadows. They also made room for a mini eyeshadow brush and a travel size Eyeshadow Primer Potion is included in the mix too. I remember having the original palette back when I was 16, I bought it as a treat after I got my first ever job in Penneys (Primark). It was way before I started blogging and I can remember it being my prized makeup possession. I wasn't as good at applying makeup back then as I am now so let's just say I probably came out with some questionable looks using this palette. I for one love the new packaging, first off it has a big purple design on it and we all know that's my favourite colour. Secondly the old velvet style packaging used to get dirty so quickly with makeup fingerprints while the new one would be easily wiped clean.

I love this palette, it would be ideal for travelling as it contains a fair share of neutrals and fun vibrant shades. It's a bit smaller than my hand, so it would fit into a makeup bag easily which is always a plus. Of course like with all Urban Decay palettes there are a few cross over shades, but I do think this would be the perfect addition to anyones makeup collection, as there is a good selection of shades in it. I can see myself using every shade in this palette, at first I thought I'd steer clear of 'Shattered', however after using this palette for  a while this shade is great along the lower lashline for a pretty Summer look. I'm glad that 'Sin' is included in this palette too, I use this shade in so many ways as all over lid colour, on my brow bone and in the inner corner. It's just one of those versatile shades that you're always going to use. All the shadows in this palette are extremely pigmented as you can see from the swatches below. The only one I had some trouble with was 'Polyester Bride', that took some work as it is kind of on the gritty side. My favourite combination at the moment is 'Chopper' all over the lid with 'Last Call' blended into the crease. It's such an easy simple eye look for everyday I love it! One thing to bare in mind is that all these shadows are shimmery and contain glitter so if you don't like either this may not be for you. It doesn't really bother me as I actually always do my eye makeup before applying my foundation, so I can always just wipe it away.

I don't think you can go wrong with this palette, there's shadows for different occasions throughout the Summer, e.g Holidays, Festivals, etc. aswell as neutral shadows that would be perfect for everyday. All these shadows are available to buy individually but it works out way better value to go for the palette as the price for this comes in at €29 (€5 less than two single eyeshadows). I personally find it takes me for ages to finish one single eyeshadow so the Ammo Palette is perfect for me.

What's your favourite Urban Decay palette? Is the Ammo Palette up your street?

Laura<3

Parklife!

Who doesn't love the gorgeous weather we're currently having? We've been having an heatwave in Ireland at the moment and I'm loving every last minute of it. A couple of weeks back Paddy started an internship, he'll be working away there until the end of October. Having a bit of free time on my hands on Wednesday I hopped on the bus and met him after work. With the weather being so nice lately we decided to get some lunch and sit in the park. Whilst Paddy opted to get Supermacs, I went for pad thai noodles from Diep. I've never heard of this particular food chain before so I wasn't too sure on it at first. In the end it was really good, kinda expensive but the fact that it was yummy was the main thing.

Here are a couple of photos we took, Paddy's offices are right beside the sea so he has this beautiful view to look at on the way to work everyday. I never do outfits of the day post for some I don't know why as it's always been something I've wanted to start doing for a while. My dress below is from Dorothy Perkins whilst my cardi is from New Look. My Mum bought me a gorgeous bag from Penneys when I was going to London not too long ago. It's not pictured below but I may feature it in an upcoming post. I love it, it fits absolutely everything into it whilst still looking smart. My favourite nail polish for Summer is Cake-Hole from Butter Londons new Autumn/Winter collection. It's such a fun shade that I can see a lot of people loving, I don't think the picture below does it justice plus my nails are a little chipped. The collection itself consists of  five neon polishes and a white base coat, I'd definitely keep my eyes peeled for these. The only downside of the day was that I broke my sunglasses. This is the second pair I've broke in the last month, thank god they weren't expensive. I want to get another pair of aviator style sunglasses, have you guys seen any nice ones around?

 I'm hoping this gorgeous weather sticks around for a while. It definitely makes people seem in better form that's for sure. I still haven't managed to get a tan but I hear the weather is supposed to be amazing over the weekend so I think a trip to the beach is in order.

What have you been getting up to while the weather has been amazing??

Laura<3