What I've Been Up To

Hey lovelies,
As my posts at the moment have been few and far between I thought I'd do a quick update post on what I've been up to!


The first thing I've been up to is baking this beautiful creation here with my friend, Lucy (check out her blog here). This is basically a cookie/cake with marshmallow and galaxy chocolate and it pretty much tastes like a Millie's cookie! We will be uploading a vlog on us making this on our YouTube channel, T'n'L (view here) later so check it out for the fab recipe!

The second thing I've been up to is trying one of the bath bombs I bought from Lush, featured in my haul post here. Especially this one as I'm trying to decrease the amount of stress in my life and this particular bath bomb, the 'Blackberry Bath Bomb' for £2.95. I'm not a massive fan of this as I find it is a bit plain and boring for me, but it has definitely helped me de-stress at night and allowed me to go sleep a lot easier!

I've also been reading a new book which is 'The Book Thief' by Markus Zusak. Now, undeniably this is a massive book but so far I'm enjoying it! I do understand this has now been made into a film but I'm adamant to read the book before I watch the film. Here's part of the blurb for anyone interested:            HERE IS A SMALL FACT - YOU ARE GOING TO DIE 

1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier.

Liesel, a nine-year-old girl, is living with a foster family on Himmel Street. Her parents have been taken away to a concentration camp. Liesel steals books. This is her story and the story of the inhabitants of her street when
the bombs begin to fall.

I've also been trying on summer clothes and trying to get into different outfits because I always stick to the same stuff! Here is a jumpsuit I tried on from Topshop, can purchase here.

And last but not least I've just celebrated by Dad's birthday of which I finally got to wear my favourite dress, featured in my haul post here, and my all new favourite shoes from Select, can be purchased here!

All of these photos can be viewed on my instagram, which can be found here.

So I really hope you enjoyed reading this lovelies!
Please don't forget to follow me on BlogLovin or subscribe,
Victoria Louise x

Valentines Day Tutorial {Drugstore}

Hey lovelies,

I thought I'd upload a valentines day make-up tutorial (there will be some outfit ideas at the bottom if any of you are super stuck!). This mainly contains drugstore products but I will leave a few options which you can swap. I've also added a picture of both my sister and I wearing the make-up look so you can see how it looks on people with different skin tones, especially as she's more warm toned and just a different face! I tried to make this look quite youthful and glowing as I wanted to express when you're in love everything seems that much brighter and better! Obviously, I included the colour pink, but not too worry if you're not a major fan of pinks it's a very neutral, light pink and compliments any eye colour - especially blue/green ones.

My sister

Close Up of the Eye Make-Up

Steps

1. Firstly I applied a moisturiser with an SPF (as it's super important to protect your face!). I used Amie's 'Skin Shield', £5.95, although I'm not a major fan of this. 
2. I applied a primer next to fill in any pores, lines and to maintain the fresh look. I used Seventeen's 'Flawless Poreless Primer', £5.99.
3. Thirdly, I applied my foundation using my beauty blender into the skin to give a flawless, natural complexion. Even though I want a glowy look I tried to use a plain foundation as I like to control and add where the glow goes, if that makes any sense? Also, I wanted medium coverage to give that flawless look! I used Revlon's 'ColorStay Foundation' for combination/oily skin, £10.65. But if you want something more natural (maybe you already have perfect skin) I recommend Garnier's 'Daily All In One BB Cream' , £7.99.
4. Next was concealer which I just covered any blemishes and used for my awful dark circles. I used Rimmel's 'Wake Me Up Concealer', £5.49.
5. Powder is ultimately next and I used Rimmel's 'Stay Matte Pressed Powder', £3.99.
6. Sixth, is the dreaded brows! I used a spoolie brush to brush them through and then using an angled eye brush I applied brow powder to fill them in but maintain the texture keeping them as natural as possible. I used ELF's 'Studio Eyebrow Kit', £3.75.
7. Next is the eye's and this is quite an extensive list and I will try my best to describe how I created the look! First I applied a base to hide my vein-ey eyelids and to enhance the eyeshadows, I used Benefit's 'Creaseless Cream Eyeshadow' in 'RSVP', £15.50. Then I went on to use Sleek's 'I-Divine' Eyeshadow Palette in 'Oh So Special', £7.99.Firstly, using a sigma flat shader brush I applied 'Bow' (the white colour) as a highlighter on my brow bone and the inner corners of my eye. Secondly, using the same brush I applied the light, shimmery pink next to 'Bow' called 'Organza' on the inner third of my eye - just until your pupil starts. Thirdly, I applied the other darker, shimmery pink below 'Organza' called 'Gateau' using the same brush to the rest of my eye. Then using a crease brush I used both of the matte pinks (very lightly), called 'Ribbon' and 'Pamper' as a transition colour and to soften the look. Finally using a blending brush I blended all the eyeshadows together!
8. Now, I added a flick using a black liquid eyeliner (you don't have to if you don't want to) using Kat Von D's 'Tattoo Liner' in 'Trooper' for $18, a cheap alternative is Maybelline's 'Precise Liner' for £5.99.
9. Then to contour I used the brush that comes with Benefit's Hoola bronzer with ELF's 'Contouring Blush & Bronzing Powder' in 'St. Lucia' for £3.75. I didn't use this to warm up the face it was just to give a very light definition, of which I applied in the hollows of my cheeks (yes you have to make the stupid duck face).
10. Next, I added a light pink to my cheeks, I used Benefit's 'Posietint' as it's a tint so it lasts ages and looks extremely natural, for £24.50. But, if you're finding you want something cheaper and still natural I recommend a cream blush such as Topshop's in 'Afternoon Tea' for £6.00.
11. Now, ultimately add a bit more glow with highlighting, I applied this just on the tops of my cheek bones, I used Topshop's 'Glow Highlighter' in 'Polish' for £9.00. As it's a cream I feel it looks more natural and pigmented than a powder.
12. Second to last, is lips and I have a few options. You can either have a very natural lip (which both me and my sister are rocking) using a pink tinted lip balm, for example Maybelline's 'Baby Lips' in 'Pink Punch' for £2.99. Or, you could gloss it up with a nice pink lipgloss, such as Avon's 'Plump Pout Lipgloss' in 'Pink Pucker' for £2.99. Or, you could dramatize the look by adding a dark wine coloured lipstick, i.e. Topshop's lipstick in 'Beguiled' for £8.
13. Finally, is eyelashes! Now I didn't add any fake eyelashes but you're welcome to, I'd probably sway for something quite romantic and fluttery. But mascara wise I tried to use a thickening mascara to give a wide-eyed, fluttery, romantic kind-of-look. I used, Max Factor's 'Clump Defy Mascara' in Black for £10.99.

Thank you for reading lovelies,

Sorry the list was quite long but I wanted to make sure it was detailed enough so that anyone could follow it easily and you had options if you wanted to try something different!

Please comment if you gave it a go or tweet me a picture (@SmallFry_xox), also please subscribe and follow me on BlogLovin!

Victoria Louise x

Here's me with the same makeup look but with a dark colour through the crease 

Haul

Hey lovelies!

I thought I'd upload some products I bought a couple of weeks back in a haul I didn't entirely plan on doing! Some of these are also featured in my new YouTube video (watch here when uploaded) as I missed a few in that video, and I don't have photos of some of the items I bought for this post. But, I will still list them (just because I'm nice!) I uploaded these photos to my Instagram on the actual day I purchased them, so if you want to check my Instagram out just click here.

Fashion

First few things I bought are from Topshop and I did intend to buy the leggings as a) I love leggings, b) Check/tartan is in at the moment and it's one of my favourite patterns and c) The colour combination is gorgeous! I purchased them in petite because I have tiny legs but they are also available in regular and tall. You can purchase them here for £25. The second item I bought from Topshop was this stunning bralet as I've been dying to get my hands on one for ages but they've not always been exactly to my liking - until I saw this beauty! It's just black with lace detail and is so pretty. Sadly, it isn't online but the exact same one in a different colour is, for £22 here.

Make-Up

Finally is make-up and as you can see I had a major spending spree in MAC, for no real reason but who ever does? My first purchase was MAC's lipstick in 'Rebel', a product I've been eyeing up for ages and is a gorgeous winter colour and is described as a 'mid tonal plum with a satin finish'. I find I can either wear it with little eye-makeup to draw attention to my lips or dress it up with a full face of make-up! You can purchase here for £15. Secondly, is a blush in 'Fleur Power' and I'd heard so much about this blush but I had never really swatched it nor seen it in real life. As soon as I swatched it in the store I knew I had to buy it, the texture is beautiful leaving my cheeks with a naturally healthy glow. I'd describe it as a warm toned pink and has suddenly become my new favourite blusher. You can purchase this awesome blush here for £18. Next, is MAC'S famous eyeshadow in 'Nylon', a colour I've been dying to get my hands on to fill up my pro-palette as I feel this colour is a necessity. When I first saw this on store I was a tad disappointed as it didn't live up to expectations YouTube had created, but as soon as this colour graced my hand with a swatch I understood the hype - completely. The colour is a gorgeous highlight and is extremely pigmented. It's described as being a 'pale gold with icy shimmer' and can be purchased for £10 here. My final purchase is the 217 brush which is the first MAC brush I've ever bought, and so far it hasn't disappointed me. I've only used it twice as I haven't used much eyeshadow these past couple of weeks but it's lovely to work with. Can be purchased for £18 here.

Other Purchases

This is a list of all the other beauty related products I bought but don't have a photo of:

1. Sleek Blush by 3 in 'Pink Lemonade' - £9.99
2. Topshop Glow Highlighter in 'Polish' - £9.00
3. Revlon Powder Blush in 'Haute Pink' - £7.99
4. Revlon ColorBurst Matte Balm in 'Shameless' - £7.99
5. Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in 'Juicy Papaya' - £7.99
6. Collection Gothic Glam in '1 Seduction' - £2.99
7. Collection Gothic Glam in '3 Revenge' - £2.99

Thank you for reading lovelies,

Please don't forget to comment, subscribe and follow me on BlogLovin! I'd also love it if you checked out my YouTube channel (T 'n' L)

Victoria Louise x

Winter Beauty Favourites 2/2 {Eyes&Lips - Inc. Swatches}

Hey lovelies!
Sorry I didn't post the second half of my winter favourites last week but I have had exams and they have been my priority but, here it is. This post includes my favourite eyeshadows for winter and my favourite lip products. Although, most of these I do wear quite a lot - bar the strong lipstick colours as I've only recently started to venture out of the pinks and neutral colours. If you want to see swatches, please scroll down to the end of the post.

Eyes

From L-R: MAC Woodwinked, Rimmel Smokey Quartz, Look Sexy Smoke,
Guerlain Turandot, Urban Decay Naked 1

First is MAC's 'Woodwinked', £10, and is the first eyeshadow I ever bought from MAC. I adore this colour and love how it can be used on it's own or mixed with other eyeshadows for a look with greater impact. It's a lovely warm-toned gold colour and although I wear it all round I think it's perfect for christmas, especially for a christmas party look! Secondly, is Rimmels Mono Eyeshadow in 'Smokey Quartz', £4.49, this has slightly less pigment but is still gorgeous to wear! This is a more cool-toned soft gold and looks beautiful with a cat eye.  Thirdly, is Look's 'Triple Hit Trio Eyeshadow' in 'Sexy Smoke', £7.50. This is a very basic smokey eye-kit and is quite blue toned, I also find the medium tone isn't very pigmented BUT I adore the look it creates and I'm going to be featuring it in a blog post soon! Next is Guerlain's eye shadow palette in 'Turandot', now this sadly was limited edition but at the moment it is being sold on eBay here. This eyeshadow palette is gorgeous, the colours are perfect for autumn/winter, they're richly pigmented and they're a bit different for me not too adventurous. Finally, is the famous Naked 1 palette, £37, and although I do love the whole palette during colder months I normally gravitate towards, 'Half Baked', 'Smog', 'Dark Horse', 'Toasted' and 'Hustle'. There's not much I can say about this palette that hasn't been said - apart from it's beautiful!

Lips

From L-R: Topshop Beguiled, Sleek Cherry, Topshop Wicked
Topshop Fox, Rimmel Apocoliptic, Topshop Deception

Firstly, is Topshop's lipsticks in 'Beguiled' and 'Wicked', £8.00. I adore these lipsticks purely because they're amazing! The pigment, consistency and just about everything is perfect for me. Although they may look the same, 'Beguiled' is a lot more of a darker wine colour, and you can't have too many lipsticks right? Next is Sleek's lipstick in 'Cherry', £4.99. I love this because it's a sheen and also hydrates my lips which I find necessary during the winter months. Yet again quite a similar colour but it's a lot richer - as you may have realised I started to get quite obsessed with the "vampy" style lip colour. Thirdly, is Topshop's Lip Cream in 'Foxy', £7.00. I love this because it's so creamy, smells of buttercream, looks beautiful and has superb pigmentation. I find this is perfect when I don't feel confident enough for a red lipstick as the gloss gives it a softer look. Fourthly, is Rimmel's famous Apocolips in 'Apocoliptic', £6.49. If you've not heard about these then where have you been?! These are gorgeous and this shade especially is perfect for going out on winter nights. Finally, is another Topshop product, it's Lip Liner in 'Deception', £5.00. This is a lovely lip liner and is a perfect shade for my Topshop lipsticks.

Swatches

Urban Decay's 'Naked 1' Swatches

Rimmel, MAC, Look Swatches

Guerlain's 'Turandot' Swatches

Topshop & Sleek Swatches

Topshop & Rimmel Swatches

Thank you for reading! Apologies if this is long and also for not posting over Christmas but I was super busy! Please don't hesitate to comment, subscribe or follow me on BlogLovin. You can also get my posts sent directly to your email so you never miss out, just fill in the box at the side of this post.

Victoria Louise x