Beauty and Fashion blog by Rebekah O'Leary

Wednesday 26 August 2015

The best drugstore beauty products..♡ (Boots & chemists etc..)

Hello my loves,

I want to do a little blog post today on my 5 favourite best drugstore beauty products.
 For those who aren't sure what this means, the drugstore is like Boots, Superdrug and even your local pharmacy. It's the brands we all know like L'Oreal, Maybelline, Bourjois etc. 
I think that the drugstore is so over looked because people obsess over all the high end brands, but honestly you can find some real gems!
 I'm going to pick the ones that will be available to the majority of people, so if you want to find out more, keep reading :)




Maybelline Eraser eye concealer 
Price: €11.99
Buy it here: Boots


This is one of my favourite concealers in my makeup collection, even up against the high end brands. The consistency is PERFECT for under your eyes because although it covers amazingly - it's just never cakey. Also the spongy applicator makes it really easy if you need to do a touch up at any time. I use the shade light because I like to brighten that area, especially in the mornings!

L'Oreal Miss Manga Mascara
Price: €12.99
Buy it here: Boots


In my opinion, L'Oreal is the queen of drugstore mascara - I tried all the rest but I always return to a L'Oreal mascara. What I look for in a mascara is to give me dark black voluminous lashes. That's what this mascara does. It's my favourite from the brand and again I always have one in my makeup collection. Mascara is one of those things that I don't believe you need to go to the higher end brands like Lancome etc. for, the drugstore provides you with many equally as amazing versions.

Rimmel Lasting finish lipsticks
Price: €6.99
Buy it here: Boots


So yes, I love my Mac lipsticks, Velvet Teddy & Faux have a special place in my heart. However, I love, own and will always recommend Rimmel's Lasting finish lipstick collection. There is a colour for everyone and every skin tome,  and their collaboration with Kate Moss has added beautiful nudes and reds to the collection. Some of my favourite shades are 'Asia', 'Birthday suit' & 'Gold in coral'. 

Sleek makeup Precious Metals highlighting palette
Price: €13.49
Where to buy: Boots


From the minute I saw this, I knew it had to be mine & I was so right. As a brand, I adore Sleek and their little convenient, bargainious yet brilliant quality palettes get me every time. This is a cream  & one powder highlighting palette. The bronze shade is your  powder and gives you that subtle J-lo glow because it is very sheer, it's not intended for a contour. All the shades blend perfectly and naturally into the skin. I always get compliments on my glow when I wear the highlights in this palette.

SEVENTEEN Instant Glow tan cream bronzer
Price: €8.49
Where to buy: Boots


I have been wearing this since the day they released it and it's the only bronzer I ever use.
Powder bronzers just do not work on my skin type at all and they leave me patchy by mid day. So I'm a cream girl all day. I use this to warm up my skin and as a light natural sun kissed contour. I think I've probably gone through 5 of these in my life and I will cry eternally if they discontinue this ever.

So there you have it, these are my favourites of the drugstore to date, all the ones that I just have to have.
 I am always trying new stuff from there because I love to experiment and find the best quality products for the best price, so I will do update post when I find new bits and pieces!

With love from,

Rebekah x♡









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Monday 24 August 2015

Rust & burgundy: Autumn leaves fashion..♡

Hello my loves,

I'm not sure if I'm on my own here but I reallllly love autumn, I think it's probably my favourite season - Everything about it. I love the look of an autumn sky, I love the leaves turning the beautiful warm burnt shades and I just love the fashion!
Autumn is one particular season where you can see the tones & shades of the clothes really inspired by nature. You'll always see those burnt, toasty warm shades - exactly like the leaves you see falling of the trees.
Two of my favourite trend colours for the season are Rust & Burgundy. I think these shades are gorgeous on everyone, regardless of skin-tone - they are super flattering.
As we probably know by now I'm a massive Missguided fan & I'm in LOVE with their new autumn/fall range, so I've decided to select my favourite pieces showing these trends and I will definitely be adding most of them to my wardrobe!

Feeling Rusty


(L-R) Trench: HERE, Skirt: HERE Suede dress: HERE, Top: HERE Shoes: HERE


(L-R) Top: HERE, Skirt: HERESuede jacket: HERE, Cardigan: HERETrousers: HERE

I live for this shade. It warms up the complexion and it's perfect with a light tan. If you have dark hair I think this colour has definite Pocahontas potential! 
I'd pair my rust items with gold jewellery & denim. Black is also a very complementary colour of Rust that you can't go wrong with. If you want to hit two autumn trends in one, pick up some suede Rust items, suede is a major trend of autumn 2015 you can read about those trends in my 'Autumn trends' blog-post 

Burgundy Babe


(L-R) Trousers: HERE, Dress: HERE, Bodysuit: HERE, Zip Dress: HERE, Dress: HERE


(L-R) Bomber jacket: HERE, Suede dress: HERE, Maxi dress: HERESkirt: HEREPleated top: HERE

There's something so beautiful about the shade burgundy. Again, it's a warm shade that is so flattering to your fading summer tan. As with Rust, I would pair my burgundy with black jeans or denim & some gold accessories. 
If you want a chance to knock 2 trends out of the park have a look at the laced up, lattice items. Lace up is huge this season, from clothing to shoes.

As always, I hope that this hope this blog helped you and you picked up some inspiration for your own autumn wardrobe with these affordable pieces!
Let me know if you shop any of the pieces and how you'd style them :)

With Love from,

Rebekah x♡

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Tuesday 18 August 2015

My online shopping tips & favorite sites ♡

Hello my loves,

I want to share with you tonight my favourite online websites for shopping, that I love and would recommend in a heart beat. 
I know that it can be daunting shopping online and trust me, I have had my fair share of arguments with UPS and the local postal services to know how the bad side can be. There are so many sites out there it can be very hard to tell the difference between a legitimate e-tailer (I'm going to use this as my short hand for online retailers) and a fake cheap site. 
So I'm going to share with you some of my tried & tested favorites & some little tips for online shopping that I have learned...



My Favorite Clothing e-tailers:

Missguided 
(Perfect for weekend outfits & on trend pieces at very reasonable prices. They also offer very good delivery rates & are very accurate with their delivery times)
ASOS
(I've been shopping here since it was marketed as A.S.O.S 'as seen on screen' and they used to focus on celebrity imitation style. Nowadays they are one of the most popular destinations for online shoppers, they host a multitude of brands and they have you covered for whatever it is you may need)
House of CB
(If you are looking for a special dress for a special occasion where you want all eyes on you, House of CB is my one stop shop. Every dress is stunning and your only issue will be what one to pick)
In The Style
(This brand is known for it's collaborations with the likes of Charlotte Crosby from Geordie Shore and Lauren Pope from TOWIE; they have really good price points & if you sign up to their email list they always send percentage-off codes!)
Pretty Little Thing 
(This site is very similar to Missguided. They have a wide variety of on trend items available and are always adding new pieces. They as tend to stock the same item in a variety of colours so if you love how something fits you can have it in every shade!)
Oh Polly
(I've mentioned this e-tailer on my Instagram before due to their impeccable customer service which in my opinion is invaluable. They specialize in dresses and are will pretty much stock all the clothes you've found yourself drooling over on Instagram. Their shipping is also super quick.)



My Favorite Beauty e-tailers

ASOS
(Again ASOS is basically a department store of beauty goodies. I get my Glam Glow face masks from here as well as my NARS & the balm makeup)
Zoeva
(Zoeva is where I get my brushes. They are a German company and they sell the most beautiful & high quality brushes for very good prices. They provide excellent tracking service on their products so you can see monitor the delivery of your items)
Beauty Bay
(If you're searching for Anastasia Beverly Hills products like Dip-brow and the contour palettes, Beauty has you covered. They also carry very different brands and unique products from america, & makeup artist favorites so it's worth having a good look!)
Feel Unique
(This e-tailer has everything beauty related you could want and they always have really good savings on products like Kerastase, Redken and TIGI!)


My Favorite Shoe e-tailers:

Public Desire
(This e-tailer, is shoe heaven. They specialize in statement shoes in a variety of colours and styles. I dare you to go on to this website and not fill your cart up with a million shoes that you want! I find their sizes run true to size based on my feet)
EGO
(Another shoe heaven, if they don't have your size on Public Desire, try EGO, they stock very similar styles and like PD, it's a shoe lovers heaven)

Some final tips:
  • As irritating as you might find promotional mail, that is where you get the promotional codes and offers, so my advice is to always sign up for the newsletters. Lots of places will even give you a discount code for signing up.
  • Watch the sizing and follow the size guide that each e-tailer provides. Especially note this if your shopping through a foreign e-tailer.
  • When shopping from USA/Australia, if it comes by UPS/FED EX etc, you will be charged handling fees and more than likely customs. To avoid this, try choosing the delivery that will take the longest as this will come by standard post. I can't guarantee you won't be caught on taxes especially if it's a large package or if the contents are valuable but at least you won't be paying handling fees too.
  • Always check out the returns policy for each individual e-tailer. They are all different and you don't want to be stuck with something that doesn't fit or suit. 
  • If you can choose a tracking method for your delivery please always do. It might be a few euro or two more expensive, but you have got so much more come back if your item is lost in the mail if you've chosen a traceable form of delivery. If you're not sure if the method you're using is traceable, contact the customer care and they can tell you straight away.
  • ALWAYS PAY WITH PAYPAL. This is my number one rule. Never, ever pay without this. Again it provides you with both security and comeback.

So that about wraps up my little online shopping blog. Do note that these are only some of my favorites, I would be here till next Christmas if I named them all!
If you have any questions or would like to know about any particular e-tailers, leave me a comment and I will get back to you.
 I'm here to help :)

With Love from,

Rebekah x♡



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Monday 17 August 2015

Say goodbye to dark under eye circles ♡

Hello my loves,

It's been a while and I am sorry:( Work was very hectic for me the past 2 weeks. I work in fashion retail so when it comes to seasons changing I get VERY busy and when I come home I am literally fit for bed. This is actually what inspired me to do this particular post today. Lately, I've been noticing very heavy, dark circles under my eyes. Have you ever noticed that you would put concealer on under your eyes, but the amount needed to cover the darkness would be so thick and obvious that it would actually draw more attention to your dark circles? I'm sure at some stage of your lives you can all relate to this. So I am here to share with you my tips for covering and concealing them pesky dark circles.

What you will need:




1. An eye cream (Any will do I love the no.7 protect and perfect eye cream)
2. Primer (Mac's skin base is my number 1.)
3. Foundation (I'm road testing Makeup Forever ultra HD foundation at the moment)
4. A peach/orange concealer, depending on your skin tone. (Stay with me on this, this is the magic product. A few brands stock orange concealer, I used to get mine from NYX, but it's out of stock everywhere that I look. So Mac is your best option and you can use Mac studio finish corrector in either Light peach or pure orange. Also check out makeup forever. ) If you are fair-light skin I recommend going with light peach as it will be easier to blend out, but once you fall in the medium-dark category, I'd go with the orange & orange is what I use.
5. A concealer one-two shades lighter than your skin tone. (Something not too thick but with good creamy coverage, My 2 faves are The Maybelline dark circle eraser and the Urban Decay naked skin weightless concealer.)
6. A beauty sponge (beauty blender, Real techniques etc..)
7. A loose powder (I use one the Inglot loose powder)


(So you can get a good idea of what the final result can do, these are my dark circles. I have pretty dark ones, with some visible veins too) 



The steps:

1. Apply your regular moisturizer as you always would and apply your eye cream to the eye area. A general rule is to apply it on the the bone area of your eyes so your brow bone & then your bone just under your lower lash line.  Applying it to these places optimizes the product. Pat it in gently with your ring finger. This hydrates under your eye providing a good base for your concealer and stopping under your eye looking dry.
2. Apply your primer to your face as normal & follow this with a layer of your foundation.
3. Next, the orange concealer. This works on the colour correction method. To correct something we use it's opposite or complimentary colour on the colour wheel, so in the case of purple, we will correct with orange. 
What you want to do is pick up a small amount on your brush and with a very light hand apply the orange concealer wherever you see darkness under your eyes. It is essential that you use a light hand  or you will find it very hard to blend out in the next step.


4. Now we are going to cover that orange base we have laid down with our concealer that is 1-2 shades lighter than our own skin tone. Pick up your concealer of choice on a clean brush and begin to pat the concealer over where we placed the orange. Do not drag the product because you will move it around and remember we placed it on particular areas for a reason so keep your product where you wanted it. Continue to pat the product over the orange until you can no longer see the orange visibly.
5. Take your beauty sponge, dampen it and squeeze out the excess water, and again gently pat over the concealers you've applied. This will help to make sure the concealers are blended together seamlessly and there are no tell tale orange signs.
6. Using your Damp beauty blender from the previous step, dip the pointed end of it into some loose powder and begin to press this powder under your eyes. This will lock down the concealer and all your work to make sure that is does not budge for the day & you will not have to reapply.




Et viola, that is it. 
I know reading this it can seem like it is a lot of steps and will be very time consuming but I promise you that once you have done it once or twice you will fly through it and it really does work. If you try this let me know how you get on, I love getting comments letting me know how my tips have helped you guys..:)

With Love from,

Rebekah x♡
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Saturday 8 August 2015

Let's talk *STROBING*

Hello my loves,

There's a word that's been floating around Instagram & Facebook over the past few weeks that i'm sure you've stumbled across. That word is *Strobing*



So what is it? 

Strobing is a make-up technique, basically it's the anti contour. With contouring you shade areas you want to recede and disappear away. With strobing you highlight areas that you want to make pronounced. Strobing IS heavy handed highlighting on an illuminated base. It is a much easier technique for make-up beginners to master, far more forgiving if you make a mistake. It is young, youthful & fresh looking - it's the perfect summer makeup look.

Celebrities you see in this look:

The first celebrities that come to my mind when I think of this technique are the Victoria Secret Angels and Jennifer Lopez. It's that lit from within, fresh & dewy healthy skin makeup look. It picks up AMAZING  on camera.
Here's some examples:


This is my interpretation of the look:


How do I do it?

Step 1: Start off with moisturized skin. My favourite is the Body Shop Vitamin C day cream.
Step 2: Take your favourite foundation and mix it with an illuminator. Mac's strobe cream is the first one people tend to go to for this, but Botanics by Boots do an amazing dupe of this product for a quarter of the price, that product is the Botanics all bright radiance balm
Step 3: My top tip is to apply this mix with a damp beauty sponge. You can use your foundation brush if you please, but a damp beauty sponge will give you THE MOST flawless look. I use the Real techniques Miracle Complexion sponge.
Step 4: Your illuminating step. Taking a concealer that is 2 shades LIGHTER than you skin tone, conceal under your eyes, down the bridge of your nose, the center of your forehead on your cupids bow of your lips, on your tear  duct and under the arch of your eyebrows. The concealer that I use for this is the Nars Radiant Creamy concealer in the shade custard. Blend this in with your beauty sponge or a small fluffy brush. 
Step 5: Your highlighting step. Take a creamy highlighter of your choice. My preference is the Topshop Glow highlighter in Polished or Gleam, at €13 it is a beauty steal. Apply this to the high points of your face with a fluffy blending brush: down the bridge of your nose, directly on your cheekbones, on your cupids bow, under the arch of your brow and on the inner corner of your eye. Blend softly to avoid harsh lines, you want it seamless.
Step 6: Feeling extra glowy (optional step). Take a sheer powder highlighter, I recommend Urban Decay Naked illuminated shimmering powder and apply a dusting of this to the top of your cheekbones for an extra bit of wow.
Step 7: Skip the powder to set this look. Instead, take a makeup setting spray, I use NYX setting spray in dewy finish and I spray this all over my face to set the look in place.

So there we have it, strobing 101. I hope you all find this helpful. If you try this look let  me know how it works out for you ♡ 

Much Love from,

Rebekah x♡

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Tuesday 4 August 2015

Fashion trends for Autumn 2015 ♡

 Hello my loves, 

Today I'm going to talk you through the key trends you'll be seeing in shops this Autumn.
I don't know about you but I love autumn dressing particularly, I actually think it's my favourite season to dress for. The reason I love it is because in autumn you can usually transition some your summer pieces into your autumn wardrobe by adding a few adjustments, You can add a new style coat or some faux fur, some boots to your denims, your options are endless, It's an economical season :)

Trend #1 1970's

This isn't new trend this year, it was HUGE over the summer, but this boho-esque trend is getting a revamp for A/W '15.

Key Items:

- Fringed bags, tops & jackets
- Suede dresses & separates
- Flares
- Velvet
- Turtle-necks
- Floor length skirts
- Shaggy Fur jackets

Beige is your base shade. There's lots of rich, warm shades of tan, brown & rust. With dusty soft pink being a major front player.
Best Shop for this trend: River Island



Trend #2 Lace & Lingerie

This trend does pop up nearly every winter. This year it's proving a little more risque if the catwalk inspiration is anything to go by. There's lots of sheer material appearing, with plenty of skin peek-a-booing through. For night-time this is the perfect show stopping style.
Best Shop for this trend: Missguided



Trend #3 Capes & Ponchos

These had huge presence for last year autumn/winter & now they are making a cameo again. These are great to dress up a vest top and jeans and amazing for this trans-season dressing I mentioned above. They come in a variety of prints, so it's all about choosing your favourite!
Best Shop for this trend: Topshop



Trend #4 Statement Shoes

Statement shoes are in fashion like never before & available at such reasonable price points. Knee high lace ups, thigh high suede boots, ankle boots.. you name it. All beautiful and will all add some spice to your outfits.
Best Shop for this trend: Public Desire



Trend #5 Skinny, high waist Pants

Not everyone will love this, however I love high waist skinnies for creating a longer leg. They are a contrast to the flares and didn't appear as often on the catwalk, but they were there. They popped up in cream, beige & white.
Best Shop for this trend: Pull and Bear


Trend #6 Fun Faux Fur & Feathers

This trend will properly take off further into the season, but for now you can add playful injections of this trend with your accessories. Think bags, earrings, key rings. Those little playful extras!
Best Shop for this trend: ASOS


So that rounds up my Top 6 trends for Autumn 2015.
 I hope that this was helpful & has made it a little more clear for the trends to keep an eye out for when picking up bits for your autumn wardrobe. If there are any request for any blog post leave me a comment below :)

With love from,

Rebekah x ♡









       
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