Where have I been?!?!?!

Hey everyone! How have you all been?

I have been so busy these past few weeks and have not had a chance to post any blogs :( Soooooooo i thought I would update you with what I have been so busy doing!

Well, I am currently in my second week of a PGCE in Primary Education which I have decided to do after my first degree (Marketing Management)... Why more studying I hear you ask? Well basically this is like a 9 month postgraduate course, so as you can imagine the work load is pretty intense , but the upside is that by next year I will be a qualified teacher!

Anyways, enough of the boring stuff. I have been really excited because I recieved my Konad Nail Art Starter Kit :D
Being a nail techician, I was really excited to try out this amazing stamper kit because it saves alot of time when a client wants a bit of nail art instead of hand paiting it, and the design combinations are endless :) I will put up a post on my Konad kit very soon!

I have missed the wonderful world of blogging! And you would never guess what my first ICT task in uni was?? ................. Creating a blog! it was heaven lol, although not as much fun as a beauty blog :(

What have you guys been doing these past few weeks? anybody else started uni or even a PGCE? Also, did anyone manage to go to the Olympia beauty exhibition on the weekend? I had tickets but stopped myself from going because I was mega broke! It's sad because I waited all year for it, an now I will just have to save up for next year!

By the way, I would like to thank everyone for the lovely comments about my blog, cant believe I have 72 followers woohoo! :p now I dont feel like im talking to myself so much :)

Sonia
Keep Blogging! ♥

Barry M - Dazzling Looks with Dazzle Dusts

Hey guys, Hope you are all having a good day?
I have been meaning to do a little review on the Barry M Dazzle Dusts which I have been using for about 2 years now, so here it goes...

I first came across Barry M like years and years ago when they used to be sold in Woolworths, I had one of my fave nail paints of theirs (lilac), at that time, their colour range was probably the most exciting from the usual high street brands, and now their collection has just got better and better.
Whilst at university, I discovered the Barry M Dazzle Dusts which I used for striking eye looks on a countless amount of nights out!

"highly pearlised powder available in a profusion of colours to enhance your eyes, cheeks or lips." - Barry M

The four colours I'm going to review today are:

• no.11 Charcoal
• no.14 Khaki
• no.80 Blue Grey
• no.39 Tan
  
  

Take a look at these swatches I did on my arm, the lines are just where i have used my finger directly on to my arm, and the dots are where I have pressed Dazzle Dust over a base (Mac Shadestick in Sharkskin).

To touch the Dazzle Dusts sort of feel like a velvety-powder and honestly I only picked up a tiny speck to get these swatches.
After 2 years, nearly all are still quite full and trust me I use them ALOT! It just shows how good value for money they are, retailing at only £4.50, a little really does go a long way :)
I usually buy my Dazzle Dust's when Superdrug have their offer which is a bargain at 3 for £10!

The swatches show the quality of their pigment which really is so good, you could go for a more subtle effect by brushing on the Dazzle Dust or you could go for a more bold look by patting on with a brush or using a base.

Now for some quick looks I did... You might not necessarily do this look when going out, but I tried to do my best to show you how bright the Dazzle Dusts could go, how light and subtle they could look and how they can work well with other products from other brands. Please excuse my eyebrows, as they have not been done!

I have just lightly prepped my eyes by using my Mac Selectmoisture cover Concealer in NW30 as a base and to create a sort of clean canvas for products to adhere to.

I then start to add Dazzle Dust by patting with my Mac 239 brush, but really you can use any brush because the pigments are so good, I also tried to use a cheap make up brush that I got in a Debenhams gift set (I'm sure you all have some of these unwanted gifts!) and it worked exactly the same way :)

The photo below shows the Dazzle Dust 'Tan', a great colour can be used to create a natural look on it's own or enhanced by using different colours. Also great for everyday, kind of a nude shimmer, lovely in the sunshine so i ♥ it.
P.s. I like to put some wet cotton wool underneath my eyes to catch fallout...

These are all the products I used for these looks...

A few minutes later, and we have this...



I think I went a bit too crazy! this eye I used the Tan, Blue Grey and Charcoal Dazzle Dusts which I think work really well together and were really easy to blend...

Not forgetting the other eye...

Using the Tan, Khaki and Charcoal which also work really well together.

Dazzle Dusts are so pigmented and fun to use that I suppose I got carried away :)
The only downside for me is the fallout you get when you first start using them, but once you realise that you only need VERY little, its easy to control the amount of fallout there is... it's nothing that a bit of cotton wool under the eyes cant fix.

I think they are a must for any beauty lover, and with such an affordable price, I don't think you can really go wrong.
They are also easily combined with other brands products, I am definitely going to be expanding my collection! and I have heard there are new colours out, I think I better be off to Superdrug very soon!

What did you think of my review and my little experiments? Would you like to see tutorials?
Have you tried any of the same Dazzle Dusts? If yes, please blog about your looks, I would love to see them...

I love all your comments so please make sure you do and remember...
Keep blogging! ♥

Amazing Giveaway! by I Heart Cosmetics ♥

After doing my first ever blog comp last night, I decided to enter another very different but lovely competition giveaway.
The very lovely Sarah has a very generous giveaway to celebrate her 20 followers postmark...Yay!
These are her prizes:

1. 1 Mac Cosmetics eyeshadow pot or pan whatever you want - your choice on colour as long as it is a current in stock one!


2. 3 Barry M dazzle dusts - your choice of colours


3. 2 Barry M nail paints - your choice of colours


4. 1 Boots Botanics soothing eye makeup remover (this product = love)

(very kind of her to let us choose colours)

I think it's a fab giveaway so here's my entryyyyyyyyy, fingers crossed :p

And if you would like to enter, all you have to do is click hereeeeee and follow the very simple rules :)

good luck & keep blogging ♥

Yummy Mummy's British Icon Contest!

So I just got home after a long days work and then out trying to find a new PC! And I cant believe Yummy Mummy's competition will be over in just under 2 hours!

I really wanted this to be the first competition I entered as Yummy Mummy's blog is one of my favourites and one of the first I ever read! So I quickly put together a little something, it's not great, of course I need a perfect face like Leona's :) and I have just about had enough time to try out the lovely green eyes, take photos, upload them & create this post! Oh, but here it is!





Wish I had more time to take better photos!
By the way I chose Leona Lewis as my British Icon, because she's a stunner and I think the best thing that came out of the X Factor!

eeeekkk 5 mins to go! :s

lots of love xxx