Instagram Diary #2

I need to start be apologising for my recent absence. I have spent the past three weeks in France with extremely limited internet access. I could only occasionally get internet on my phone, with no use of a computer and it was extremely difficult to type up blog posts. Anyway, I'm back for now! Here's a little look into my Instagram life....

From Top L-R: Bruno Mars Ticket// Germany snow// View of Frankfurt// Eiffel Tower// Delphi, Connemara// The Bay// Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Ticket// Cupcakes at baby cousin's birthday party//
The perfect duo- Justin Bieber & Chocolate!

Giveaway | Win Jewellery with PersunMall!

Today I'm bringing you a giveaway from PersunMall. The lovely folks over there contacted me letting me know about their jewellery giveaway, and as I love any opportunity to give back to you lovely readers, I was on board! You could win one of the jewellery items pictured below.

Requirements:

1. Register at http://www.persunmall.com/

2. Like the PersunMall facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/PersunMall

3. Leave a comment on this post stating the registered email, name and the item you like (the one you registered on PersunMall).

4. Follow my blog on Bloglovin' here: http://www.bloglovin.com/en/blog/3566653

Additional Optional Entries:

1. Share the giveaway on your social media (e.g Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc.) and post your comment with the shared link (for verification).

2. Follow me on Twitter:  https://twitter.com/missbeautyblogg

3. Like my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Missbeautyblogger

Terms & Conditions:

1. If you are under 18 you must have your parent's permission before entering this giveaway.

2. This giveaway ends on June 23rd 2013.

3. If you have ever registered persunmall you are not allowed to enter this giveaway.

4. The more entries you do, the greater your chances of winning!

* Promotional Code: 20% Off orders over $60 with the code PERSUN20%OFF (valid before 30th June) *

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post- I just wanted to let you all in on this great giveaway!

My Obsessions: Brandy Melville!

If you watch any American, teenage beauty "gurus" on YouTube, then you'll have most likely heard of the store that is "Brandy Melville". The clothing store sells cute, Californian-style clothing. The unique selling point of the products is that they are all "one size fits all" excluding their pants of course.  This means that the clothes have a slouchy and comfortable feel to them and tend to look different and unique on everyone.

A taste of some of their clothes

They carry an amazing range of clothing from pretty floral skirts to slouchy knits, and an awesome range of graphic tees. They even have "Mean Girls" inspired slogans, yes that's right! Their clothing is also reasonably priced as you can see from the prices above. The priciest items would be the knitwear. It's all really good quality stuff, you definitely get what you pay for. The tops are so soft and comfortable and the same goes for everything else. They also offer a great range of jewellery, all very inexpensive. However, the quality of their jewellery is not great and tends to break easily. 

The only thing that is a bit of a nuisance is that it's pretty difficult to get a hold of. Of course, this depends where you live. They have very limited locations across the USA and there are locations in Europe also. This can be a bonus in some aspects because it makes it more exclusive, thus less people having the same clothes as you (something I hate!).  See here for a full list of their locations. 

I have been to both their Munich and Paris locations, and the stores are just adorable! They completely embody the brand. They also have a website which you can check out here. They do deliver internationally as far as I know, but I have heard a few horror stories about their shipping and delivery so bear that in mind and do your research before making an order!

Review + Swatches | NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in 'French Fries'

I hope you're all doing well and maybe you're getting some sunshine wherever you may be. Unfortunately for me, as I type this, I can hear the sound of rain pounding against my window (okay, pounding is an exaggeration). Ah, how I long for Summer sunshine...

 Anyway...

Today I am bringing you a product from the brand NYX, which isn't the most talked about brand in the blogging world, especially over on this side of the pond. However, they are quite famous for their "Jumbo Eye Pencils". Their most famous shade from the range is the colour "Milk" (read my review here). This shade "French Fries" is also gorgeous.

'French Fries' is a copper brown bronze shade that make a perfect base for eyeshadow, especially if you're after that bronze smokey eye look. It comes in the typical jumbo eye pencil packaging, which isn't really to my taste. It's very simple and white but it isn't entirely sturdy or very pretty (I know, I'm shallow when it comes to packaging!). Also a tip is to be careful when putting on the cap and take care not to push it too far down as it can squish the tip of the pencil. I speak from experience!

The shade is long lasting and can be blended if desired. The pigmentation is very impressive. As you can see from the swatch below, it only takes one swipe to get a prominent bronze colour. The shade also contains some shimmer, but not so much that it is sparkly. 

Overall, this is a great item to have in your makeup stash as it's inexpensive and has a number of uses. It's also long lasting and good quality. A downfall is that it is a difficult item to track down if you live in the UK/Ireland but checkout the links below to see where to buy them. 

NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil are available here for €5.75

NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in 'French Fries' available here for £4.50

Mini Primark Haul!

I've been seeing lots of Primark hauls around lately and thought I needed to make a trip to the land of bargains myself. Primark is actually called Penneys here in Ireland, just incase you get a bit confused! 

Most of my shopping recently is Summer oriented. I'm off to France for 3 weeks from the 1st of June and then I head to Florida straight after that so I'm doing my Summer shopping now and getting all those essentials, but I'm also trying to save aaaagh! Anyway, on with what I bought. 

I firstly headed to the swimwear section of the store, as Penneys always carry tons of swimsuits, all well priced. I don't know about you, but I find it very difficult to justify purchasing super expensive swimsuits (which most seem to be!). This bright floral two-piece caught my eye and at just €5 for both the top and the bottoms, I knew I had to have it. I then went to the accessories, to take a look at their bags on offer. As I'll be doing lots of activities in France (it's an exchange type of trip) I need a bag I can carry a lot in. I went for this denim acid-wash backpack (€10) because it's cute, a perfect size and will go with any outfit.

Of course, I couldn't leave the store without checking out some of their makeup. Penneys carries the best range of essence makeup I've ever seen, their nail range in particular is amazing! I decided to try out this nail art stampy set (€3.50) because it looked interesting and, as you probably know, I do have a love for nail art! Unfortunately, after trying the set out, it doesn't really work. Maybe it's just me doing something wrong, but the designs didn't come out on my nails. I wouldn't recommend it. 

I would, however, recommend the XXL Shine gel-look topcoat. A friend recommended this to me and, as I did need a new topcoat, I decided to pick it up. It adds a gorgeous shine to the nails and does have a gel-look effect. I will say that it can cause nail polish to peel, if you tend to try and pick polish off. Otherwise, it prevents chipping and is overall a great topcoat. I can't remember the exact price but it's somewhere around the €2 mark.

The last item I picked up is the HASK Argan oil hair treatment. I have seen this floating around the web, with pretty good reviews. I'm always looking for products to add shine and prevent split ends so I thought I'd give it a go. Also, at €2.50, it's a much more affordable alternative to the likes of Moroccan Oil. I haven't really had a proper go with this product yet but look out for a review of this soon.

I hope you enjoyed seeing a few bits I picked up in Primark/Penneys. I only bought these items a few days ago so they should all still be available in-store! 

Have you bought any bargains in Primark recently?

Summer Beach Wishlist!

Summer is right around the corner, and that means barbecues, beach days and pool days. Of course for all these new activities, it's the perfect excuse to go shopping, right? Here are a few things I consider to be essential for those days spent relaxing on the beach or lounging pool side.

Of course, the most important item for anything involving water, is a swimsuit. I love this bikini from Figleaves. They carry a great range of swimwear for whatever shape you may be or swimsuit preferences you may have. They are also holding a competition entitled "Pin To Win" where you could be in the chance to win a £150 holiday collection. Click here for more information.

What I love most about this swimsuit is the pink string detailing at the sides of both the top and bottoms parts of the bikini. It's very unique and there's something very stylish about the look. I also love the colour scheme. The black is simple but the pink adds a gorgeous pop of colour.

Bikini Top- £20/€25.64
Bikini Bottom- £15/€19.23
Both available here.

Now onto styling your swimsuit. I love all of these items and they are all must-haves for the beach.

1. High Waisted Shorts

I've mentioned numerous times how much I love high-waisted shorts. They're especially great to pair with a swimsuit as they cover the tummy area and don't leave too much exposed compared to low rise shorts.

Bambi & Manson Shorts range from £55-70 available here

2. Summer Hat

Trilby hats are huge this season. They add a touch of trendiness to an outfit and also protect your hair and face from the sun. Perfect for hot days on the beach!

Vans trilby £25/€29.75 available here

3. Sunglasses

Sunglasses are a very important item for sunny days as they protect your eyes. That's why investing in a  good pair of sunglasses is a good idea. Of course Ray-Ban are the go-to brand when it comes to sunglasses. They carry a great range and I love this pair- they're lightweight and versatile and a nice change from the typical Wayfarer style.

Ray-Ban Sunglasses available here 

4. Gladiator Sandals

Gladiator sandals are the perfect Summer shoe. They go with everything and allow feet to breathe too. I love these as they are gold, which compliments a tan and is a really versatile colour.

Schuh Gladiator Sandals €45 available here

5. Backpack

Hobo-style rucksacks are the perfect luggage item for Summer. They carry everything (within reason!) and add a laid back, cool vibe to any outfit. I especially love this one as it mixes leather and aztec print.

Brandy Melville Backpack $55 available here

6. BB Cream

On a hot Summers day, you don't want to wear a heavy foundation. It's important to have a lightweight base with sun protection. BB creams are perfect as they add colour to the face as well as blurring imperfections. This particular BB cream also contains SPF 30 which is amazing!

Maybelline 8-in-1 BB Cream £7.99/€11.95 available here

 7. Waterproof Mascara

If you're swimming, you don't want to have to worry about panda eyes! The way to solve this problem is with a waterproof mascara so you can still open up your eyes, without the mess.

Maybelline Colossal Volume Waterproof mascara £7.99/€9.94 available here.

8. Lip Balm

The sun is great, but it does tend to dry out the lips. To stop this from happening it's important to wear a lip balm with SPF in it. Carmex are famous for their lip balms and this one is Cherry flavoured- all the more reason to get it!

Carmex Cherry lip balm £2.69/€4.35 available here

9. Waterproof Concealer

If you have a few blemishes or dark circles that need covering up, a waterpoof concealer is essential.

NYX Waterproof Concealer $5 available here

Those are the items on my Summer wishlist for beach or pool days! What items are you lusting after for this Summer season?

Disclaimer: This is a PR Collaboration. All opinions are my own and are 100% honest, as always.

How I Style: Skater/Circle Skirts

Skater skirts (or circle skirts) are everywhere lately and are a staple fashion item for Spring and Summer this year. They're one of my favourite clothing items for this season and I know I'll be wearing them all the time when the weather (hopefully) warms up! 

Skater skirts can be worn multiple ways. They're also super flattering and suit any body shape so don't worry if you feel not all trends work with your shape, as this one is pretty universal. I'm going to show you two looks, on how I style skater skirts. One is for casual occasions and the other for slightly dressier occasions.

• Casual 

This is the perfect look if you're going shopping, to the pool, meeting with friends- really any casual occasion. It's comfortable and stylish so it ticks all the boxes! I decided to go with a light wash denim skater skirt (€25 River Island) as it's super versatile, and can be worn with numerous pieces. I paired it with this simple cropped tee (£8 Topshop) which is a staple piece for Summer. To finish the look pop on some crotchet Toms (€58 Schuh) and a tan fringe bag (€45 River Island) to carry around all your essentials.

• Dressy

This look is perfect for a night out, whether it be to a party or just out to dinner with family or friends. I adore this lace circle skirt from Topshop (€38) as it can be dressed up or down and adds a touch of femininity to any look. This embellished top (£39 Miss Selfridge) is stunningly detailed and instantly glams up the ensemble. Top of the look with some killer wedges (£80 Topshop) and some rings to add a pop of colour to the outfit (£2.50 Misbehave) and you're good to go!

I hope you like these looks and let me know how you style skater/circle skirts!