Summer lovin', had me a blast...

Not too sure why I had those Grease lyrics in my head while beginning to write this post, I guess because if there is one thing I love about summer, it's the clothing.

This time of year is perfect for styling the most gorgeous outfits in the evening, since the weather is decent enough for me to not become a frozen iceberg by the time it hits 7pm. Think party dresses, jumpsuits, co-ords - the list is endless, and super exciting, so I thought I'd round up all of my favourite evening wear this season.



Onto the dresses! I've provided quite the selection, as even though jumpsuits and co-ords are in in a big way this year, we can't be forgetting about the classic staple dress!

I'm obsessed with this dress from Miss Selfridge, the cutout detail back adds a little something to the simple enough pink bodycon, and imagine how good this would look with a summer tan! The black spotted dress from ASOS is another favourite of mine - I totally can't pull-off bandeau sleeves but I am wishing I could thanks to this dress. There's something understated about it and you know it would look so fab with a glam makeup look on a summer night.

The second ASOS dress was an unusual pick for me - green almost never catches my eye and the pattern is definitely a little like marmite (love it or loathe it), but it was actually the neckline and sleeves that drew me to it. The long sleeves would totally provide a bit of warmth on a chillier summer night and I am such a fan of high necklines, I can't imagine this dress any other way.

My final pick is the lemon print dress from Quiz - can we all agree lemon print is a trend this year that totally works? I spotted this one and instantly thought of how well Lauren of loulabellerose pulled of the lemon print so well in this look. I think the lemons are such a fun print that screams summer so I couldn't think of a better dress to round up the post.


What have you been wearing on summer nights this year? I would love to hear what you think of this year's trends!

Revolution really does seem to be the brand to watch at the moment. They're affordable (a large bulk of their products cost less than a fiver), cruelty-free, and offer a huge variety of products - what started as a little makeup brand is now delving into the world of body products and skincare.

Even so, apart from my beloved contour palette from Revolution that truly has had good use out of, I have never really explored their brand in great depth, and came to realise I was seriously missing out. When they dropped their 'Revolution Pro' range a few months ago, with even higher quality than usual, and only a slight price increase than their main range, I honestly wanted to buy the whole collection straight away.

I am one to want to swatch products before I buy, so embarked on a search for the Revolution Pro range in Superdrug shops across the country. It was a strange search - the biggest cities I went to didn't seem to have it in, yet at my tiny local Superdrug I was greeted with a glorious stand packed full of Revolution Pro goodies.


I was instantly taken aback when I spotted the brow section the brand offers, and definitely got a little overly excited. I've mentioned on my blog before that I struggle to find a dark enough brow shade for myself in the drugstore - they only ever seem to offer blonde, light brown, and dark brown, which is always still too light and warm toned for my almost-black brows.

Whereas Revolution Pro seemed to offer the exact same range as Anastasia Beverly Hills, even down to the names. Just like my ABH Brow Wiz shade is 'Ebony', Revolution Pro offered a shade the exact same name too, so I figured it would work perfectly for my brows. I decided on a brow pomade, something I had never really tried before, and at only £5 I decided it was worth a go.


Application of the pomade seems extremely simple - you can just dip your brow brush into the pot and then apply to your brows. If I'm honest, it doesn't seem overly pigmented and I do have to work it into my brows quite a bit, but I reckon it will get more pigmented the further I get into the pot.

It really is the perfect shade for my brows, however, and that what I was most excited about from Revolution Pro - their shade range is very impressive, especially compared to the other high street brands.


Since I have never used a brow pomade before, I really have nothing to compare it to, so I am very tempted to pick up one of their brow pencils next time I'm in Superdrug to see if it rivals my beloved ABH brow wiz, at only a fraction of the price. But I am very happy with the pomade and can tell I'll be using it daily - I have a feeling it will last forever too.


Whilst at the Revolution stand I noticed they had in the hugely-hyped about lipsticks by Soph, in their beautiful rose gold and nude packaging. The three nude shades are all absolutely gorgeous, I could have easily picked them all up (believe me, I was tempted), but decided to limit myself to just one.


I chose Fudge, the darkest of the three, which appears really dark in the bullet, but upon swatching, I realised it was the perfect shade for me. It actually is very aptly named, I thought it was a real 'fudge' kind of shade, a gorgeous brown nude.


I really fell in love with this lipstick when I applied it to my lips. I wasn't sure what the finish would be like, but it is a lovely satin finish with the most beautiful sheen to it. It is super comfortable to wear throughout the day, and also is long-lasting which you wouldn't expect so much with such a creamy feel to the lipstick.


The lipstick feels so high quality, you would almost never believe it only costs £4! The packaging is so pretty and they have put so much detail into it, even the embossed 'Soph' logo on the bullet, a really pretty added touch.

You may remember the fab night I had at Lytham Festival a couple of weeks ago, and you can bet my makeup look was a thoroughly overthought part of that. I feel like festivals are the perfect excuse to go a little bit wild and reach for the glitter so it was definitely one of the most exciting looks to create.



To begin I grabbed a little of Benefit's Porefessional primer, I only have a mini size of this so I save it for special occasions, like you know, festivals. I figured I could do with this since I'm going to be out a while, so popped it down my T-Zone. I followed with my favourite base combo - L'Oreal's True Match foundation and Rimmel's Stay Matte Powder. I couldn't think of a better foundation, especially for its price. Of course, it's followed by the Rimmel powder as I am not wanting an oily face half way through the day (which I had no idea looked so gross until I was editing my photos, definitely need a new one of those!).



Benefit's Hoola bronzer is my essential favourite this summer, so it is no surprise I can't be without it. I follow with my Colourpop highlighter as I feel like having a good glow is pretty much a summer festival necessity.



Where would I be without my ABH Brow Wiz?? It's my favourite brow product for filling in sparse areas, and suits my brow shade perfectly. I'm still seriously searching for a dark brow pencil from the highstreet since they all seem to be too light, and I don't feel like forking out another twenty-odd pounds next time my Brow Wiz runs out - but it is an absolute Godsend. Oh, and I had to finish it off with my Benefit Gimme Brow gel as it was raining, and I needed a little waterproof security for my brows.


The eyes, the eyes, by far the most exciting part of the look! I had a wonderful time creating this, although mixed with stress at times as my right eye's shadow never seems to blend? But everything is a little easier with my current favourite palette, the Modern Renaissance from Anastasia Beverly Hills. I used shades such as raw sienna and burnt orange in the crease before blending in Red Ochre, as I wanted a red look to match my red top. With my Morphe SOMETHING brush, I blended more of Red Ochre and the pink shade Love Letter in the crease to define this.


Then came the glitter!!! The Stila liquid eyeshadows make glitter super easy to apply, so I just popped the shade Rose Gold Retro all over the lid. I then went back in with those eyeshadow shades to define what I lost when I put the glitter on, accidentally got a bit on the crease, tried to rub the glitter off and all my eyeshadow came off #glitterlife.


To finish I popped a bit of burnt orange in the lower lash line (I do this pretty much all the time as the shade always seems to pull the whole look together), then pop a bit of the Maybelline Lash Sensational on my lashes. The Luscious blend formula is somehow so much better than the original, it really lengthens and curls my lashes. I apply a bit of their waterproof formula on top too, because again, it's raining and you can't be too careful.


My current classic favourite lipstick, MAC taupe, matches perfectly with a red eyeshadow look so I had to go for it! It lasts a pretty long time being a matte so I'm very glad I chose it.

I may not have gone for a full on glitter look, I decided to focus on the eyes for the love of my new Stila shadows - but if you are going to a festival and want to embrace the full-on glitter trend, I would seriously recommend the funky glitter my friend Bethany used from essence. It went on a dream when I applied it for her with my NYX Glitter primer - a glitter staple not to be forgotten about.

July. I feel like I've just blinked and now half of my summer has gone. What have I been loving this month?


When I think of beauty items I have been loving this month, one sticks out at me straight away - my beloved Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance palette. It truly is the palette of dreams, and I think I've honestly created a couple of my favourite eyeshadow looks ever with it. The shades I love using the most are Red Ochre, Love Letter and Vermeer - I love how there are so many mattes in the palette, but it still pulls through with a beautiful shimmer like that.


Now I'm usually not one to see much of a difference from mascara to mascara, but this one I have seriously fallen in love with, and won't be using any other in future. It's the Maybelline Lash Sensational mascara - but in the luscious blend formula. You would not believe how much better the new formula is! I used the original one a couple of years ago and it was alright, nothing special, but this one (with an entirely new brush, I may add) curls and lengthens my lashes like nothing ever before.




Red seems to be the colour I'm obsessed with clothing wise currently, I have no idea where it's come from but I feel like I'm reaching for all the red tops in the shops at the moment. This one from New Look is one of my favourites, and I don't think it was much more than a fiver either.



Since I finished Parks & Rec last month I've pretty much gone back to watching Friends re-runs, which is hardly a surprise as when in doubt, I always choose Friends. I have began watching it all the way from the beginning with my brother who has started to be interested in it, which since I haven't watched it in order for two years now is fun.

I'm also really trying to get into the series The Crown, I watched the first couple of episodes a few months ago so I've picked up where I left off and am currently just over half way through the first season. I find it super interesting, moreso from a historical point of view than anything else as there are so many different historical events that have affected the Queen and the royal family more than I expected. My only difficulty is the episodes are an hour long and I rarely feel like I have time to commit watching an episode so long, which is why I'm finding the summer the perfect time to settle into it.

*of course, not my own photo :)


I went to the cinema this month for the first time in ages to watch The Incredibles 2 - I mean how could I possibly not? I absolutely adored the first one, which somehow my closest friends have never even heard of. It was really funny, I especially loved how involved the children were in this one.


I'm dying to see Mamma Mia 2, as all I've seen on Twitter are raving reviews of it, however my friends can't seem to get their act together to stick to plans with me to see it, so we will see if that ends up happening this month!


I have been off college for the whole of July, however the amount of work, partly art, mostly reading, I have to do for it means that even though I haven't been there in well over a month, I haven't stopped thinking about it. I really wish I could shut off from it, at least for a little while, but the fact that I'm approaching half way through my holidays and I have so much still to do keeps ringing in my mind.


I visited Cambridge this month, the last of the uni visits until September, which was a lovely city to visit. In all honesty, I am swaying towards Oxford currently in terms of my application, that just feels to be the city where my heart lies, but I enjoyed Cambridge nonetheless.


Lytham Festival also happened this month, the music event of the year in my town, which I decided to save for my life section rather than music as I felt it just fit better here. It was a super fun evening, even if it was typically raining for a lot of it - I think that kind of made it more memorable.

When I first read about Stila's liquid eyeshadows, I don't think I had ever gotten more excited about a product. And that is saying something.

Liquid eyeshadow has always been one of those hit and miss items for me, as has loose glitter, yet combining the two into a glitter liquid eyeshadow was something Stila somehow managed to get so right. I really couldn't decide on a shade so I was super excited to find they made a set of three mini-sized products of three of their most raved about shades; Kitten Karma, Rose Gold Retro and Smoldering Satin.

Let's start with the shades.

Rose Gold Retro, possibly my favourite of the three (are we really surprised though), is a gorgeous, warm-toned shade. I'd describe it best as a bronze with gold glitter in, and works perfectly with orange and red mattes in the crease - I used this with some of the warm shades from the Modern Renaissance and it really was a match made in heaven. When I swatched it before applying I thought it was actually darker than I expected, but the glitter reflects in it make it look lighter on the lid.


Smoldering Satin is the next of the three shades, the coolest toned of the three, maybe I just think this because its applicator is purple, but it would look really good with purple shadows or any cooler browns I think. This one's definitely more of a winter look I reckon, yet it still has gold glitter in bringing in a bit of warmth and making it such a unique shade.


The third shade is Kitten Karma, a very classic gold with silver glitter. This one is definitely the most versatile of the three, I think this one would suit any kind of look. The silver glitter helps to make it the lightest of the three shades, meaning if you were wanting an everyday yet glittery look (if that's what floats ya boat), then this one is the perfect shade for you.


Now as much as I am a fan of glitter on the lids, it can definitely be a bit of a mare to apply - yep, I definitely have walked out looking like a disco ball before because I can't get glitter off the whole of my face. These liquid eyeshadows have revolutionised the way I apply glitter - the applicator makes it so easy to apply an even layer across the whole lid, no fuss required (and absolutely no glitter-covered face). However, blending any areas out is basically a no go - I tried to pat a bit away with my finger and half my lid disappeared, so I suggest tapping a bit off the applicator then blending with that.


The only possible way to do the shades justice was to show you the swatches of them on my arm, showing the way they reflect in the light so beautifully. You can also see the difference in the shades much clearer as well, Smouldering Satin a brown, Kitten Karma a gold and Rose Gold Retro a bronze.


The products look so pretty, and even prettier once on the lids. I'm so excited about these and I think they are such a perfect go-to for festivals or events (I so wish I owned one at my prom last year), especially because they are so quick and easy to apply, while lasting an incredibly long time without shedding glitter all over your face.