Foundation help needed urgently!

Now over the last few months I have built up quite a nice little collection of foundations thanks to all you lovely bloggers, youtubers and twits!!! Since my return to work I have tried a different foundation every day and I am still not happy at all :( The problem is this in the morning it looks like I have loads and loads of makeup on and that it is just sitting on my face - this even happens with my prescriptives mineral foundation! By the time I am finished work by 3pm there is virtually no foundation left on my face or it is very patchy!

I have tried a number of different things, applying less liquid foundation and setting with msf natural, applying a primer, applying a tinted moisturiser with a layer of mineral powder on top! I am still totally unhappy with how my makeup looks! I feel so frustrated as you would think with all the products I have and all the time I spend "studying makeup" on here and youtube that I would look better than this!

Today beat all! I applied clarins fake tan this am followed by my estee lauder tinted moisturiser followed by a dust of powder and blush!!! I really thought this was the way to go. Holy cow, was I wrong, by the time I got home I was like a horrible orangey pinky mess!!

I really want to even out my skintone and cover most of my awful freckles but my skin is in good enough condition at the mo so I do think a tinted moisturiser is the way to go as I want my makeup to look natural at school and not to made up as I have been looking!

Please help, throw me out some other options or combinations that work for you I'm at a loss!!

Weekend = weekends again!

As those of you who follow me will know I have recently returned to work after a looooong time off!! One big plus is that the weekend is now the weekend again if you know what I mean. I have rediscovered that "Friday feeling" again (as well as the Sunday night dread!!). It makes me appreciate my time off and makes me want to try to do something productive with my weekends. Saturday was spent doing a little bit of cleaning and clothes washing, then a long walk (all this before 11am!!) followed by a trip into town with my Mam while my two boys headed off to a game!!

Some Sundays my hubby works and others he has a game on so on the rare occasion he has a Sunday "off" we decided to make the most of it and head off on a day trip. We headed to Howth a beautiful Spot in North County Dublin on the coast. We found a fabulous Sunday market there on one of the piers where we picked up some yummy cupcakes - they even threw in a tiny sample one. Expensive but yummy so well worth it! We also spotted some cheeky seals looking for some grub sniffing around the pier!

After a long walk and a stop off on the swings for junior, we headed into our favourite mexican restaurant for an early dinner. The food was just ok, so a bit disappointed and the place was like a creche - kids everywhere and making a huge racket - made our boy look like a saint!!!

It was a lovely day and we all drove home tired but content. We finished off our weekend with baba tucked up in bed and we tucked into our cupcakes and a cuppa ahhhh....... until Monday rolled around again!! Aw well - here's to next Friday......

Things I'm loving right now!!

1. Primark skinny jeans - I always cover my bum when wearing skinnies so it doesn't matter that the top of these is pretty yuck. They are a dark blue/indigo jean perfect with a long top or vest and cardi and only 13euro!!!
2. Estee Lauder skin care. Especially Time Zone moisturiser and Advanced night repair - my skin has never looked so good!
3. Amber Solaire self tanning spray in medium. This stuff is great its a spray so is really easy to use and I can get my back without calling in the reinforcements. Its also a lot less messy and mucky than my usual st. Tropez. It's half price in boots at the moment too!
4. YSL lippie in 148 it is just the best colour!!
5. Mac msf in refined. This is part of the sugarsweet collection and it is fab. It just gives my face that added omphf in the morning!
6. My HUGE Guess handbag - it should come with a flashlight at the bottom!
7. Go Ahead crispy slices in chocolate chip - yummmm. The perfect snack for my mid morning munchies!!
8. Mayelline Lash Stiletto - I actually love the smell of this!!

Not so bad after all!

So day one back at work was really not as bad as I expected in fact it wasn't bad at all! My colleages were all really welcoming and all made a point of stopping for a quick chat. My headmaster also gave me a great welcome in our morning meeting. It took all of 10 minutes to feel as if I had never been away - just as I'd expected!! In fact part of me felt good to be talking to people on a professional level again and about things that I enjoy and have experience of.

Now as for leaving my little fella, it was as if he sensed there was something in the air this morning!! He woke early and wouldn't settle back to sleep. He wouldn't let me out his sight when I was getting ready around the bedroom (as Daddy tried to wrestle him back to sleep!!!). When it came to handover time he also was very clingy and actually made squinty eyes (his new trick to show hes not happy - cute but bold!) at my Mum for the first time ever! (Secretl y I was quite pleased he didn't jump out of my arms and wave bye bye!!) I did feel a little teary and just had a sinking feeling like "is this my life now, rushing in the morning and dumping my baby on someone else???" Im sure these feelings of guilt will pass and it will get easier with each passing day!

I am completely exhausted though in fact we both are tucked up in bed! We had an early start - Mr. Man woke up at 6.30am and we were all up and raring to go!!! So hopefully we won't rise quite so early think 7.30 will do it from now on!

Thank you all for your lovely comments it means a lot xxx

p.s. Onto makeup related things - today I wore Chanel Pro lumiere with a little mac msf natural in medium and by home time it was almost non existant. So my search for the perfect combo for work begins! Tomorrow I will use a prime (Mac prep+prime), with prescriptives flawless finish - to see if that lasts a bit longer!! Will keep you posted!

Back to work!!

Tomorrow I am back to work after a 1 year absence and I feel sick to my core. I'm in bed now but know I will not sleep tonight! I have never felt this way before, I usually complain about work like everyone else but don't really mind going back - but I am truly dreading it. I really do feel that the longer you are off the harder it is to go back.

I hope it is not too bad and that the day quickly. It's facing the unknown, I am not even sure what room I will be in or what children I will be teaching - awful! I will find all out at 9am though! Will give you the lowdown of day one tomorrow evening... wish me luck!!

Dior glasses - decision made!

I have finally decided after much deliberation and with your help to order these new Dior glasses.

I am really excited and will post some pics as soon as my new specs arrive!! Thanks for all the help deciding - I can't remember how I ever made any decisions by myself!!

New Shoes

I was shopping last night - purely grocery - boring!! I did have to pass River Island so just took a wee look around. I spotted these shoes and fell instantly in love. They have the slightest little wedge heel so they are not completely flat, I think they will be perfect with jeans!! They only had one pair in a 6 so I had to have them. What I normally do is go away to have a wee think about buying something, then when I finally decide "yes I have to have them" I usually return to find them gone!! I am learning from my mistakes - somehow this does not seem all good though!!!!

The second pair of shoes are top of my wishlist. Do you think the shoe fairies might recognise that I've been a very good girl and leave them under my pillow???

http://www.topshop.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?beginIndex=60&viewAllFlag=false&catalogId=19551&storeId=12556&categoryId=73934&parent_category_rn=42358&productId=890086&langId=-1

These babies are £70 from Topshop and I truly love them. I think they would be perfect with dark blue, almost navy skinny jeans a long top (bum coverer) and a tan bag. They are skyscrapers so I'm not sure I can justify buying them. They are not exactly practical for pushing a buggy or walking down the school corridors, and my social life has taken a serious nose dive - yet I still find myself hankering after them.... decisions decisions!! I don't even know if my local topshops have them but I know if I decide I really do want them that nothing will stop me hunting these babies down! Can a girl ever just have too many shoes????

New glasses - help needed!

I was correcting exam papers for my sisters company to earn a little extra cash!! I got paid yesterday and I am torn!! Do I put the money away to pay towards our Summer Holiday or do I spend half and save half...... Think I am already answering my own question!!

I really want a new pair of frames! I wear glasses everyday all day! You would not wear the same coat every day or the same jumper everyday so why should I have to wear the same glasses everyday! These are on your face, its not like people can't see them!! I have narrowed down my search. I have tried on both of these and really like them (getting both is not an option!!). The thicker frames make more of a statement and are a total contrast to my current pair.

These are my current glasses by D&G - not very subtle, but I like em!!

The ones on top have a beautiful pearl finish along the sides and are really nice on too. I sourced a website that sells these at great prices compared to what my local opticians are charging.

To give you an example the one on the top is 270euro and I can get it online with my prescription for £173 and the ones on the bottom are only £126!!!

So the lesson is, we are being ripped off so shop around!
All opinions are welcome please!!

Swap Goodies

International Swapping - such fun!!!

This morning I recieved a parcel that I had eagerly anticipated - my swap parcel from Rani Faye in the US. I grabbed it off poor postie and ripped it open!! I saw two beautifully bubbly parcels very carefully wrapped and a lovely little pink envelope with a lovely card from Rani thanking me for doing the swap - what a lovely little touch!!
Now on to the goodies. I got some nyx, wet n wild, presitge and L.A. colours palette!! I was so excited!! I got two NYX Jumbo eyeshadow pencils in Milk and Black bean. These are brilliant as I love these babies, perfect for a quick stroke of base on the eye!! I also got 2 NYX lipsticks in Tea rose and harmonica (love this its like barrym 101), I also got 2 NYX lipglosses in 159 smokey look a gorgeous corally peach colour and 129 beige a beautiful matt pink colour! I also got a blusher from NYX called Terracotta, and not at all like the name would suggest, it goes on like a peachy colour that leaves a beautiful glow on the skin! Loving NYX!!!

I also got a Wetnwild eyeshadow palette called Ultimate Expression in 397 Paradise cove. I have never tried this brand before so look forward to checking out the pigmenataion. The colours in the palette are gorgeous, there are 2 all over crease colours, 2 highlight colours and 4 contour colours. They are all peachy, plumy muted colours - right up my street - thanks Rani!!

Finally I go a prestige lipstick in Glitz and I love how this lipstick looks so think this will be perfect. I also got a small palette of 5 lovely colours from L.A. colours - I look forward to experimenting with this too.
For anyone that has yet to try out this swapping idea, I would advise you to go ahead! I have had 2 very positive experiences and have also come away with 2 new makeup buddies!!

Mineral Makeup

So far I am liking the mineral makeup. I'm still unsure of the best application method, I used a kabuki brush and buffed buffed buffed but never really felt like I'd enough on. Think I need to just get used to wearing a little less slap!!

It felt lovely and light on my face today as if I had no actual makeup on. I wore it simply with refined msf as a blusher, prestige baked powder as a highliter and a bit of nars laguna as I had to match the tan on my chest.

I think this will be lovely during the day, esp coming into Summer and will be perfect for when I go back to work aughhh!!! It's early days yet but will keep you posted.

Quidam & Shopping

So yesterday we headed to Dublin for the day! Boo hoo that it was only for the day and not the night we had planned but yay as it meant more money to spend on makeup!! My hubby is very involved in sport and he had a match today Sunday and was leaving at 8.45am to travel 3 hrs to play a game so our plans had to change! Aren't I such a loving wife not to complain and stamp my feet - he did promise to make it up to me in the Summer!! We'll see....

So anyway we planned a morning shopping, lunch, then the matinee of Quidam and then a few drinks then home! My Mam was still holding onto our baby so we had a nights r & r at home!

After filling up on coffee I browsed the body shop, lush then debenhams! This debenhams has all been done up so I couldn't believe they had givenchy and guerluain! I didn't buy anything here as I was holding out for sugarsweet and prescriptives but I'll be back!!!

I went straight to Brown Thomas our fancy department store and headed to prescriptives where I had my skin matched to a mineral makeup! I told her I wanted to be warmer as who wants to look a horrid shade of pasty white!!

Next up was mac and as it is the only one in the city it was packed as per usual. So after a quick look at sugar sweet I grabbed the nearest mua and just listed what I wanted! No messing around with me in & out! Especially with hubby trailing along wondering why you need to buy MORE makeup. I got refined msf, penny and cakeshop shadesticks and lollipop loving lippie!

We did a quick pit stop in Zara and then headed to a beautiful thai restaurant for lunch and a beer or two.

After lunch we made our way to the 02 arena to see Quidam. It was our first time in the venue since it was completely overhauled and we were amazed. It is fantastic and no matter where you are sitting you have a perfect view and there is a bar and toilet on every level!!

The show itself was amazing. It was mind boggling! It is really like a circus for adults. There were people in it that could do things that would make you head spin, acrobatics, a clown, dancers.... the works!!

All in all it was a great day, very enjoyable. Pity we couldn't stay over but maybe just as well as I did not need any more shopping!!

Benefit - Crease proof eyeshadow!

Benefit is a brand that I have dipped in and out of for years. I loved benetint and highbeam when they first came out and have tried a couple of the blushers and highlighters - I loved dandalion!

I had seen makeup geeks hauld of Too faced lock down - the new shadow insurance with colours!! I spotted these in boots and went to check them out! I was quite impressed but decided to have a look at benefit while I was pondering my purchase. I spotted these creaseless cream eyeshadow/liner and have never looked at these before. There was quite a few that I loved but finally settled on Samba dy loves me! It is the most gorgeous peachy colour. I intend to use it as an eyeshadow base instead of my beloved paintpot painterly! When I went to wipe off the swatches from my hand they wouldn't budge - so these babies really do work!!

The girl told me she wears it alone with a darker shadow in the crease.

I tried it out today applying it with a small concealer brush and applied All that glitters over the top with bronze on the outer v! It is amazing and I love how this looked and lasted all day! I really think these will be my new 'thing'!!! They have a gorgeous array of colours and come in at about £13.50 each! I would take a photo to show you how well it has lasted but I look wicked after a long day and the camera is in the car (excuses excuses....) Tomorrow - I promise!!!

Estee Lauder = LOVE

I have recently become reacquainted with an old friend! This is my second tube of Estee Lauder Daywear plus tinted. I love it!!! I use it in the summer as a moisturiser and I find it provides a great base for my makeup. It also has a gorgeous formula, it is greenish in colour with little particles in it that transform on hitting your skin giving you a gorgeous tint!

This is my favourite thing to use in the summer and if I have a tan and my skin is in good condition I will wear this and a bit of bronzer and I'm good to go!! I was reminded of this product when I recommended it to Gabriela - Angels with dirty faces blog http://gabriela-lifeinengland.blogspot.com/2009/03/sisley-squad.html (she's brill - check out her blog!!). I remembered I had one stashed away that I had only half used last summer. Don't you just love when you find something you love but had forgotten just how much you loved it! It's like an old friend coming home......

Fashion advice needed!!

I have really been loving that petrol blue colour at the moment and seem drawn to buying loads of it. I think it suits my blonde hair and brings out the blue in my eyes!!

I bought these shoes in Oasis a few weeks ago (20% off) and they look fab with skinny jeans. I also bought this Jovanna dress last week. I was thinking of wearing them together on Saturday/ Saturday night.

My dilemia is this - I never wear short dresses (anything above my knee) so I would be inclined to wear this more as a tunic over jeans or skinny cream trousers I have from Zara. Which look should I go for trousers and tunic or dress with tights and shoes?

My other delimia is are the shoes just "too much" with the dress, would I be too matchy matchy - so should I give them a miss???

Isn't it great I have nothing else to do with my Wednesday only worry about what to wear on Saturday!! You can tell I don't get out much, I'm really looking forward to hitting the tiles!!