MAC lipstick number 12. Yes, I definitely do have a problem...

But how could I resist picking up another while I was over in New York? Afterall, It can be useful having a collection from one brand, as then I don't end up accidentally with two identical shades (I'm looking at you, Stark Naked from Urban Decay which I love but almost twins with MAC Honey Love).


Often at the MAC counter I'm oohing and aahing over a couple of shades, but as soon as I swatched the shade Taupe, I knew it was going to be the latest addition to my collection. For starters, it's a matte. I've come to the conclusion lately, that although MAC's cremesheens and lustres are nice to have, I just don't wear them enough. Time after time, I reach for my matte shades, with an occasional satin. So there was no point in me indulging in another pretty cremesheen when I would get so much more use out of a matte.


That's where Taupe comes in. It is not only matte, but also a lovely, everyday nude which means I know I will get plenty of wear out of it. When I applied it for the first time, I was worried it looked to similar to Velvet Teddy (aka my favourite MAC lipstick), however when I swatched them both next to each other I learnt that Taupe lacks Velvet Teddy's beige-pink undertones, as it is in fact a reddish-brown nude.


 To read more about MAC's formulas, make sure to read my MAC lipstick collection where I spoke in great depth about the differences, but what I do love about MAC's matte formula is how long lasting and non-drying it is compared to any other lipstick. Of course, liquid lipsticks do last longer but I find it so much easier to just apply a bullet lipstick and also prefer the colour pay off.


Taupe's red undertones make it a really unique shade in my collection, and also really flattering. It definitely has become my go-to shade and I can't see that changing through to the autumn, as I think it will be really in then too.


Swatch of the shade above! As you can tell, it's such a perfect brown and I think it would compliment so many warm toned eye looks perfectly. I've been using my Modern Renaissance a lot and after I've completed a look I always think - this would just work so perfectly with Taupe! Hence, I've got a lot of wear out of it already! 

For the best part of two years now, I had dreamt of owning Anastasia Beverly Hills' Modern Renaissance palette, due to the fantastic amount of hype it has receieved. When a product is raved about so much, you can't help but want it yourself to see if it really lives up to expectations, especially when the shades are right down your street.

I finally purchased it in New York last month - it worked out a fair bit cheaper over there and I really wanted to have a good swatch of it first rather than buying it straight online. So, for about a month I have had a good play around with the shades and decided it was finally time to reveal whether it lives up to the hype.


Let's start with the packaging - the lid is a gorgeous pink shade of fuzzy velvet, I am absolutely terrified of getting it dirty but it does look really pretty, especially with the ABH logo embossed in rose gold, a really pretty touch. You open up the palette to 14 gorgeous warm toned shades, including 11 mattes and 3 shimmers, which is a really good ratio in my opinion (although some of the mattes are more matte than others, if that even makes sense).


The palette was named modern renaissance because the eyeshadows were inspired by shades used by Renaissance artists, so I truly thank those artists for using such a beautiful colour selection! I feel like the palette is really versatile and boasts a bit of everything. The palette begins with a few beigey-orange mattes on its left side, the two 'Raw Sienna' and 'Burnt Orange' I have found to be amazing to blend into the crease. Speaking of them being inspired by Renaissance art, a lot of the shades sound more like paint shades than eyeshadow shades (as someone who does art myself) which is an interesting touch, I'm pretty sure I have a pencil called raw sienna somewhere too!


There are then two gorgeous shimmers in a column, vermeer and primavera, which I have fallen in love with using on the lid. Vermeer has to be my favourite of the two, it has a gorgeous champagne sheen and is so pigmented.

I also absolutely love the shade Buon Fresco, it's a kind of mauve shade that I have been after something like for ages, it's a really pretty matte. It doesn't really fit with the oranges of the palette but that just shows how versatile the palette is, it doesn't just create a single look.


The real stars of the show are the more colourful mattes, in my opinion, the 'Red Ochre', the orange 'Realgar', and my personal favourite, the pink 'Love Letter'. A hot pink matte eyeshadow sounds a little scary but it honestly has become my all time favourite shadows. It blends out like a dream and I love pairing it with the Red Ochre I mentioned earlier, they really are a match made in heaven. I like to blend them into the lid sometimes with a bit of 'Venetian Red', which I definitely can't class as a matte, perhaps it's supposed to be a satin? I honestly thought it was a shimmer until now.

The only shades I haven't particularly reached for yet are the two browns, both quite similar but one is a matte ('Cyprus Umber') and one is a shimmer ('Antique Bronze'). I'm really glad they have included a couple of browns as it does make the palette even more wearable and versatile, but with all the exciting reds and pinks to dip my brush into I just haven't gravitated that way yet. I think 'Cyprus Umber' will be perfect in creating a smokier look with this palette.


I love the little brush the palette includes as well, the stumpier end is perfect for popping a bit of shadow in your lower lashline. I love how pigmented these shadows are - there's a little more fall out than I'm used to but once I got used to it it really wasn't a problem. Each shade isn't huge, but they are so pigmented you really don't need to use a lot anyway. My favourite thing about the palette has to be how it is so easy just to use that palette on its own to create a look. I much prefer being able to use one palette rather than grabbing shades from a bunch of different palettes as I'm often strapped for time, so the Modern Renaissance is a dream on early mornings.


So, I've joined the hype, and can hands down say I understand why people call ABH's Modern Renaissance their favourite palette ever, it has easily become one of mine too. I couldn't recommend it enough - it's actually on sale with 30% of at Beauty Bay right now and if that won't persuade you I don't know what will! Make sure to join in the hype in the comments if you own it too, or let me know which other palette is your current favourite (I definitely don't need more eyeshadows right now but I am always curious!).

I have been excited for a new release from 5 Seconds Of Summer for a really long time, I've always loved their music and their latest album, Youngblood could not have come at a better time. I have been listening to it pretty much all the time since it was released on the 15th June, so I'm really excited to share my thoughts and persuade you that this is an album that you need to go and listen to right. now.

One thing that really struck me with this album is how much I actually just listen to it all the way through, beginning to end. Yes, I have favourites that I listen to more than the rest but there isn't a single track on the album I want to skip, they all really bring something to the album so much so that I never get bored by the time I'm half way through, which is a real testament to how good the album is.


The first track is the title track, Youngblood, which they released early so I've been loving this one for a while now - and I still really love it. It was the prechorus that got me (that really catchy I give and I give and I give and you take bit) and can we also talk about how good Luke's vocals are on the chorus? It's a real great start to the album.

We're followed by Want You Back, the first single from the album, of which I was obsessed with months ago and I still am now - definitely one of my favourite songs this year. I love the lyrics, I love the guitar parts after the chorus, and compared to a lot of their singles, a really mature sound from 5SOS, which isn't at all a bad thing!


Lie to me is the first one we get to which I hadn't already heard by the time the album came out, and I really like it. It isn't a stand out track for them or anything, it doesn't have a lot of character, but it's a nice one, very chill. Plus, it works really well next to Valentine, quite it's antithesis in a few ways.

Valentine became one of my favourites on the album straight away, even from the 'dum, dum dums' before the first verse. It's really original, both lyrically and it's sound too; it kind of has an almost robotic tune in the chorus, which I don't think you can understand until you hear it. Obsessed with that one!


Talk Fast and Moving Along are both great songs too, I feel like they both highlight 5 Seconds Of Summer's talent musically, Ashton's drums in Moving Along particularly. 5SOS are really my music taste down to a tee and I'm super glad they didn't go down an electronic route they easily could've done, like The Vamps. They've kept to their own style and I am so glad, it's really what's made it a good album.

If Walls Could Talk is such a funky track, it's one of those you know will be great live straight away; how much it pains me I'm not going to their tour this year! I love how the chorus builds up to the instrumental 'na na na na's. It's another of my favourites on the album for sure.


I actually love Better Man so much too! It has a bit of an acoustic feel to it which I really like. It's very simple but very catchy. More has the rockiest sound of the album, those guitars after the chorus! Those are definitely both two stand out tracks off the album.

I don't like to choose a least favourite track, but it would possibly be Why Won't You Love Me, since I find the chorus a little bit whiny? It has grown on me a lot but isn't my favourite. Woke Up In Japan has that rocky feel More has again a bit and it's one I need to listen to more. Empty Wallets, the penultimate track, is another great one (the 'sugarcoated rain' bit is my favourite).

But it's the final track of the album, Ghost Of You, that stole the show for me on first listen. Everything gets slowed down to a ballad - a change to the fast pace, so probably the most unique song on the album. It is, for certain, the most beautiful. It's like this album's Amnesia, but I actually love it so much more than Amnesia.  The piano in the chorus really gets me. The vocals. The drum build up in the middle of the chorus. The bridge 'too young, too dumb'. Possibly my favourite 5SOS song ever... and that's quite a bold statement.



It was only when I was listening to their previous album, Sounds Good Feels Good, the other day, that I noticed how their music has grown up and matured in this album, both musically and lyrically. Sounds Good Feels Good is one of my all-time favourite albums, but tracks like She's Kinda Hot and Fly Away would feel lost on Youngblood. They've grown and evolved, and unlike for a few albums, 5SOS' change is a great thing, and lead to them producing their next album yet. And I have a feeling they're only just getting started.

We're half-way through the year already?! I actually cannot believe how fast it has flown by!

I'm not one hundred per cent sure how I'm actually feeling about these 'favourites' style posts lately, for bloggers I feel like they're a bit like marmite, both to write and read, and although I do find them repetitive, I do love looking back on them at the end of the year. So, I'm going to continue for this year as I have got half way and they are a fun way to share a little bit of my life with you! So, here's what I have been loving in June.

B E A U T Y /

As I had a huge makeup haul this month, I certainly haven't been running low on new beauty products to love, therefore this section was difficult to narrow down! A firm favourite has to be my Colourpop highlighter in Flexitarian. I have used this every single time I have done my makeup this month which is definitely saying something! The glow it gives is absolutely insane - gorgeous yet natural, and I'm a huge fan. I honestly can't see myself shutting up about how much I love this highlighter any time soon, and I think an amazing highlighter is essential in the summer months!


My latest MAC lipstick purchase, Taupe, has also been a firm favourite. It was, believe it or not, my twelfth MAC lipstick addition to my collection - which is a little crazy! My favourite formula has to be their mattes, so I had no doubt I would love Taupe as much as my others, and I really do. It's a gorgeous brown nude with very subtle red undertones and I can really see it becoming one of my go-to shades.

M U S I C /

Without a doubt, my music favourite this month is 5 Seconds Of Summer and their new album Youngblood. I use the app last.fm to track how much I listen to music and they are well ahead at 108 plays this month (my next most listened to artist, The 1975 had 57 plays!). I am definitely more than a little obsessed with their latest release - you can bet I will be writing up a review of it really soon! However, for now, the tracks I have definitely been listening to the most are Valentine, If Walls Could Talk and Ghost Of You.


As I mentioned vaguely, I have also been listening to The 1975 a lot again - mostly because my most played track this month is their new song Give Yourself A Try. It's a bit different and at first, I wasn't sure how much I liked it (I definitely did, just I wasn't sure compared to their older stuff). But it has actually grown on me and the hook which I found a bit annoying at first I am constantly tapping away to.

T V /

I'm pretty sure I mentioned this one in last month's favourites but this month I finished the show Parks & Recreation which I enjoyed so much! You really wouldn't expect a show about a bunch of people working in the Parks & Rec department of a city to be so funny but Leslie Knope's character is just my fave. I was so sad when it finally came to an end at season 7; the finale was absolutely amazing though! The earlier couple of seasons 2-4 were definitely my favourite, but the later seasons were still good as I loved how the characters developed, especially April and Andy. Definitely a must-watch if you haven't before!

L I F E /

June has definitely been a month of going places for me! I began the month in New York which was the best trip ever, I have spoken so much about this already on my blog with a haul and photo diaries if you missed them, but it was truly incredible.


I have also been loving the warm weather this month! I finished college at the end of June so I'm really hoping it continues for a while - I find it too warm for me at times but I love summer outfits and not having to wear thick coats 24/7!


I've also started going to university open days this month which, although I find at times really overwhelming, I actually enjoyed them a lot more than I thought. I visited both Warwick and Oxford so far - the weather was absolutely gorgeous in Oxford and how pretty are their buildings?!