NOTD - Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine

Hey guys,

So, I recently went on a little boots beauty haul and bought a ton of stuff...that I really didn't need. I should really be saving my money, but it literally burns a hole in my pocket!

One of the products I picked up is a new nail polish (like I needed anymore right?!). It's Barry M, of course, and it's like a pretty pink…I like to call it my barbie pink shade. It's super cute! It's from the Gelly Hi-Shine range too, so it won't chip or fade as quickly! 

The actual official name of the shade is #313 Dragon. Personally the name doesn't suit the shade...unless your perception of dragons are pretty, soft, friendly creatures, more like unicorns than dragons! I honestly love this shade at it may be a new summer favourite of mine!

What do you girls think? Yay or Nay?

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Also just wondering how many bloggers or non-bloggers are heading to the Dublin meet up on June 1st? It's being organised by Katie Healy from What Katie Healy Did so click here for more information or if you would like go attend! xXx 

Barry M Textured Nail Polish

Hello Lovely Ladies!

As you all know I have an obsession with nail polishes...And unfortunately for my bank account it just keeps growing! Realistically I'll have to stop soon when I've purchased every colour available. So my latest obsession is Barry M's Textured Nail Polish range! I bought this shade from ASOS FOR €5.24 in the 304 Kingsland Road shade which you can find here. Unfortunately my pictures do it no justice but you get the point! They're meant to be textured and have this "grunge" look. I'd disagree with the grunge aspect but they are definitely textured! I honestly don't know how I feel about this nail polish, it does have it's cons. The first con is that its quite watery, meaning you need a base coat. And the second con is that it takes forever to dry...Other than that I do like it. I was lucky enough to already have a shade quite similar to the colour I bought, which I have always loved. It's Barry M also in shade 309 Strawberry. It works great as a base coat for the textured nail polish, which I think you would definitly need.

Below is a picture of them on my nails but unfortunatly my camera is shocking and the textured effect didn't really come out to well!! I'd recommend them for you to try yourself...BUT tbh I was a little bit let down. I love the shade and the textured feel...I just hate that it needs a base coats and that it takes forever to dry...especially if your in a rush out the door! Out of 10 I'd give it a 5...I'm just a little bit iffy on it...

What do you girls think about the textured look? Have you tried this new range from Barry M? Yay or Nay?

Thanks for reading! 

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Barry M "Lash Vegas"

Hello Girlies!

It's absolutely horrible outside, so I suppose it's a good thing that I'm stuck in work until 5! I was of course almost an hour late for work, waking up and hearing rain does not encourage you to get out of bed and without my trustful mammy to pull the covers off me it's even more difficult...but the good news is she'll be home tonight! I'm just a little bit excited to see her!

So, the other day I was on Grafton Street looking for Race Day dresses, but of course no joy! On the way back to my car I decided I'd stop off in boots for an impulse buy... something to cheer me up after my horrible day!

I ended up picking up Barry M's latest mascara Lash Vegas. It was €9.75, so was a little bit more expensive than my usual mascara but I decided I had to try it after all of the hype that had been built up around it. It was so worth it though! The shape of the mascara is different than most and I love the design of it (I find it easier to hold). I have extremely sensitive eyes, and can only use certain mascaras, so I was afraid this mascara would make my eyes itchy. It didn't, it applied really well and I only needed about two sweeps to get the lashes I was after. Because I'm naturally quite fair, my lashes need a good mascara, otherwise my eyes look tiny.

I would highly recommend this girls, a must have for any make up bag (or box in my case). Although it's a little bit more expensive, compared to brands like Lancome and MAC it's dirt cheap....and it does the exact same job!

On a final note, I'm sad (and glad) to say bye bye Mabelline Great Lash Mascara...you have been replaced! You've done me well over the past 6 years, but it's time for change!

Thanks for reading girls! Have you tried Barry M's Lash Vegas yet? What's your verdict? Yay or Nay?!

Everyday Make-up Essentials

I recently done a post on what's in my make-up box and from this I realised I had to do my everyday make-up essentials. As most people know, I will never leave my house without make-up so these make-up essentials are extremely useful...

1.The foundation that I am loving at the moment (and have done for the past 5 years) is Maxfactor Colour Adapt. I have no idea how I was introduced to the product but it is definitely a favourite. It retails for about €15 and it's well worth the price. It has a sort of creamy texture and goes on so smoothly. I used to use the darker shade (75 golden) but it was a little bit too dark for everyday use and with changing my hair colour back to blonde, I thought I would tone it down, so the current shade I'm using is 70 Natural.
2.My next essential is my eyeliner. I've always worn black eyeliner since I was probably about 12...but I only use it on the waterline now so it's not too dramatic. Currently a huge favourite for me is the Soap and Glory Smoulder Kohl. This stays on all day and doesn't smudge. And even better is that it has a sharpener in the lid if you're on the go! It retails at around €7 in Boots stores. Another eyeliner that I love is Barry M's Kohl Pencil. Again, this stays in place all day and doesn't smudge, and is perfect for everyday use.

3.The next make-up essential is my powder and my bronzer. Both are recent purchases and both cost around €3 each. I was running out of powder last week and my bronzer shattered awhile ago so I had to buy more, but I just didn't have the money. So I ended up buying from the cheaper natural collection range. I've had terrible experiences with this brand before but I was pleasantly surprised by my two recent purchases. Although they were cheap purchases, they do their job well. Nothing to rant and rave about, but I probably would buy both again, without hesitation.The powder I am using is the pressed powder in the Warm shade, while the sun tint bronzing powder is in the Sun Shine shade.

4.On to my eye-shadow essentials, and I'm currently using 17 eye trio in the Nude shade. It is compiled of three neutral shades, perfect for every day use. I use the medium shade as the base on my lid and the darker colour to contour. I rarely ever use the lightest shade but when I do, it's to highlight my brows.

5.This brings me onto the next essential, my eyebrow pencil. I'm currently using no.7 beautiful brows pencil in 10. Brown/ Black. Its the perfect shade because it's more of an auburn colour and matches the shade my of my hair quiet well. I only ever really use this pencil to define the shape of my brows and this usually only occurs once or twice a week. I'm not fully sure of the actual retail price, but I know I bought mine at a reduced rate of €5. 

6.The next part of my daily routine is my mascara. I wear mascara EVERYWHERE I go, this is mainly because I have such fair hair and lashes that if I didn't, my eyes would seem so small. I also have quite sensitive eyes so I can only use certain mascaras without them itching or stinging my eyes. One that I have been purchasing since I was about 16 is Maybellines Great Lash in brownish black. I remember all of my friends using this when I was younger, and at least half still do. That's mainly because it is actually a good mascara. It's not clumpy or too over priced and available in most Boots stores and pharmacies. 

FINALLY, my blusher. I don't wear blush everyday, it usually only appears if I want to make an effort, and I usually have blusher from the no.7 range or 17. However, I got a gift set last Christmas with eye-shadows and bronzers and a blush in it. It's called sunkissed and I don't think they're available for individual purchase. It's not a fantastic range or anything but the shade of blush is quite natural and subtle (a brownie-pink) which is the main reason I'm using it. I wouldn't buy it and am only really using it because it's there, but yeah...it's ok! 

Phew, that's a kind of run through of my everyday make-up essentials, and these are all perfect for my hectic lifestyle (some more than others).

Thanks for reading...any comments can be left below!

Dawn x x x

What's in my make-up box...

Okay so I had to do a post about my make-up case. As you can see from the picture my make up case is ridiculously big! My boyfriend bought it for me for our one year anniversary and it was actually a fairly decent purchase. When I first seen it, I was like "YES this is going to be an excuse to fill it", but I've actually found it hasn't been that hard. It's actually the perfect size for me because before I had three make-up bags, each organised into different sections e.g. day-to-day, nights out, random stuff. My boyfriend used to say it was ridiculous, because I would ask him to get me my make-up bag when I was getting ready, and he would give me the wrong one, which would usually result in me getting mad because he didn't know which one I meant #GirlProblems. 

This case is actually perfect for me because of the amount of different sections and I can put my pride and joy (MAC Make-up Brushes) away safely, AND everything is kept neatly together. And it's pink! So the left hand side is my sort of every day make-up, with the essentials being on the top (click here to see the blog on my everyday essentials) and the one off bits, on the lower section. 

The top right hand side has all of my night out essentials (darker foundation, black eye shadows, gel liner, etc) and the bottom section has lots of random eye-shadows and little bit and bobs.

So anyone that really knows me, knows how much I like to make an effort and feel glam. The bottom section of my make up case helps me achieve this...my false eye lashes. I have about 5 individual sets and then I purchased 10 pairs of lashes from eBay last year, which was such a great investment (€1.50 I think for the set with postage and packaging). If you ever see me wearing false eyelashes during the day and I'm not going out that night, you know I'm feeling a little bit low and was in need of a pick me up!

The bottom shelf also has my make-up brushes, baby wipes (essential), brush cleaner and cleansing pads.

My main aim from this make-up case is to eventually get my nail polishes into it, and moisturisers and all that. I want to make sure it is being utilised to it's full potential and that every space is being used wisely!

Am I bit O-T-T with the size of my make-up box?! Do you think I should reduce it down to one make-up bag?! I'd love to hear your opinion...

Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine

I recently bought a Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine nail polish in Boots. I didn't plan on purchasing it, the colour just caught my eye and as we're coming into Spring I thought that I should really stock up on pastel colours and leave the blacks and wines for Winter! I bought the nail polish in "Prickly Pear" and I love the colour. These nail polishes are basically designed to be like a Shellac or Gelac finish, with an ultra-glossy look. I've got Gelac nails done before and I love them, I just hated when they started growing out and the damage done to my nails after. Barry M's Gelly nail polishes are meant to be applied with one coat, and unfortunately I had to do two or three before I was happy with the colour (one coat looks slightly watery). Saying that though I painted my nails on Friday night and they haven't chipped at all (I work in a shop, so handling cash usually means my nail polish is destroyed by the end of a shift). 

One coat wasn't enough

I have to admit I do love these nail polishes and they're reasonably well priced (€5.95 each, and these were on offer at the time as buy 2 and get one free). You could get all the colours available in the range for the same price basically as getting Shellac nails done, and the results after aren't too traumatizing on your nails!

I love the colour after three coats! 

I would recommend these nail polishes, but would say to use more that one coat to get the true high shine and glossy effect!

I'd give the range and overall 4/5 mainly because one coat simply wasn't enough and they only have 9 shades currently available!