My 2012 - just the beginning for hayleyloves

Hey guys, I feel it's important to thank each and everyone of you that has been here to support me and help me carry on with my blog.

2012 has been one of the best years of my life. I am finally in a relationship with a person I could only dream of, I've have the trip of a life time to New York with some of my best friends, turning 18 (finally!) I definitely feel this year has played a vital part to my future.
Running this little blog has opened so many doors for me and helped me decide what I thought would be an impossible task - university. I finally found my passion, and if it wasn't for it, I highly doubt I would be attending university for yet another year.

Thank you to everyone, you are an inspiration and remember, this is just the beginning for hayleyloves. See you in the new year!
PS, don't forget your bread, water and paracetamol tonight ;).

what's in my handbag?

So this is a bit of an odd one for me today! But I do love having a nosy at everyone elses belongings so maybe you will me?! Sorry for the pictures, you guys all know what it's like this time of year to get decent pictures!

I didn't quite realise how much I had in my bag until I set it out like I did!

Since I got my appointments for Benefit and Origins the other day, I've kept my invitation slips in my bag for safe keeping. These are just a few of my rings, I actually picked them up from my boyfriend's house the other day, but I think I'm going to leave them in my bag as I always forget to accessorise.

These are pretty much my go to lip colours. I often decide when I'm on the bus on the bumpiest road that I fancy wearing lipstick, I don't make it easy for myself, do I? These are all Red Rimmel shades, I love Rimmel lipsticks, especially the new Kate Moss Matte ones. The other two are MUA ones, one in shade 7 which is a shimmery pink that I really hate, I don't know why I still have it. The other is shade 11 which is a neutral shade and is my normal, everyday lipstick.

I love this deodorant. I have really sensitive underarms and this is lovely, it doesn't irritate them too much, but most importantly, it doesn't leave white marks! I ALWAYS buy 'invisible' deodorants, it really, really pisses me off when it just falls away from my skin and leave white powder everywhere!
Hand sanitiser and cream, must have for me! My boyfriend's parents got my this hand cream for Christmas and it's doing it's job very well! Most hand creams get very greasy on me and my hands don't really get very dry, just sore, but this one feels moisturising and clean which is just what I'm looking for!
I always keep this foundation in my bag for top-ups. I find it easy to apply over other make-up, it leaves a nice finish and is a good price! It also smells real good...

These are just bits and bobs in my bag, my iPod, house and work keys, gum, nurofen, a train ticket. I love these mini nail files that I got at Leeds Festival this year. Sooo handy haha. I also took a few biscuits into work yesterday that are still floating around in my bag! A few Christmas cards are still hanging around as well like this one from Kyle who insists on calling me Chuckles! I always leave 50p hanging around the bottom of my bag because it makes me all excited when I find a bit of change hahaha.

I got the bag for Christmas, but it was from New Look, and the purse for my birthday from River Island. The picture doesn't do this bag justice. It's structured which I really like and it's just one you can carry on your arm. It does get quite heavy fairly quickly though :(


So, what's in YOUR handbag? Link me to yours, love having a good nosy! Take care guys.

beauty sales haul, but no sale items...

Although I've named this post 'sales haul', absolutely none of these items were in a sale at all (sadly), but it seemed an applicable-ish name. 

When I tried my Origins intensive over night mask, I knew I NEEDED more products, so I begged my sister to take me to my nearest Boots that sells the product, might as well stock up on advantage points whilst I'm there! After a long time searching at home, I knew what products I was looking for so it was easy enough for me. 

I bought Zero Oil Pore Purifying Toner and United State Balancing Tonic, and I couldn't resist picking up a couple of samples along the way! The lovely lady made me feel very comfortable and offered to give me some samples, so I got ones that went alongside my purchased products and got the Balanced Diet lotion and the Zero Oil lotion. 

I nipped into Debenhams and of course, bumped into yet another Origins stall (oops!). On another, longer glance, I got offered even more testers (why not?), so I went with Modern Friction, which is an exfoliater you use before using a mask, and the Clear Improvement Charcoal Mask which I'm SO excited to use! Yet another lovely woman again. I managed to get myself booked in for a free 30 minute skincare treatment session where they'll give me a lovely facial and we'll discuss my skincare routine and offer me solutions. Very looking forward to this!

In a rush, I was desperate to spend my well earned Boots Advantage Points. I was pretty certain I wanted to try something from Benefit, I've never tried anything from their range and heard so much about it. I knew I wanted to get some kind of kit so I could try a couple of products. I thought I wanted to try the They're Real mascara, but it's so much for something I wasn't sure on, I couldn't do it. I then found this brilliant kit that contains the infamous POREfessional balm, Hello Flawless foundation, Hello Flawless powder and (what I think...) is a concealer/highlighter/under-eye corrector palette called Boi-ing 01 and 02. If anyone can give me a heads up on that product, I'd appreciate it! On purchasing my product, the Benefit counter girl offered me a free make-up session where they'll give me tips on certain make up looks I find difficult. I'm already sure on what I'm asking for help with! 

Look out for my reviews on these products. Have you tried them? What are your views on Origins and Benefit? I hope you've had a lovely Christmas, everyone, take care!

merry christmas, everyone! upcoming posts to keep an eye for

Hey everyone! Hope you're keeping well. Sorry posts have been few and far between lately, but with the Christmas period, well, you know how it is! I just wanted to wish you all a very happy Christmas and hope you're all well.

I've got some very exciting posts coming up soon including my first ever Origins products, an insight into my Christmas presents, another Lush product and an empties post. So many ideas, such little time!

So, take care everyone, don't get too drunk ;).

Love Hayley xxx

day to night winter face

Hey guys! Lots of exciting things happening lately in the run up to Christmas, the most exciting is that I'm going to London tomorrow with my best friend eeeeever. So looking forward to our girl date.
With so much going on, I don't have much time to keep swapping my make up over, so I've been finding a look that I can quickly transform to a night time look.

For the day:
For my eye make up, which is definitely the most important thing here, I simply do a feline flick using my Maybelline Gel Liner in black. This look is so versatile, it's definitely the best to go for. I just use a light creamish colour as I base, just to make my whole eye look brighter and ever. I'll also put it on my brow bone to highlight.
I use a pale brown colour to contour. I just blend it in well in my crease, it just makes your eyes look a bit bigger, I guess. I don't wear too much mascara, but enough to make my lashes long.
I use my long-wearing MaxFactor FaceFinity foundation, simply because it stays so much longer than any of my others. I apply it quite thick, but not cakey, just because later on, I want to ensure my skin still looks as flawless as it can!
Another key part of my look is the blush/bronzer. I contour my cheeks with a bronzer, not too much though, my bronzer is a little too shimmery, so I try and keep it minimal. I blend a darkish pink blush into it, but again,  keeping it minimal. I set my look with powder and use a bit of Rosy Lips Vaseline to finish my look.


For the night:
So I have the basics set for me, but for night, I'm wanting a bit of a darker look. I'll go over my gel liner, this time making it slightly thicker and refresh the shadow.
I use the Scandal Eyes mascara that everyone's raving about to make my lashes look dramatically black, thicker and longer. This mascara is perfect for doing this, it's my absolute go-to when I'm creating a darker look.
I don't really like re-applying foundation through the day, it just feels awful. Luckily, with this foundation, my face still looks smooth hours later. I add a touch more blusher, again, aiming for a slightly more dramatic look, and with a touch up of powder, my skin is looking as fresh as a daaaisy! I use my No7 Creme Touch powder as a highlight, so I apply this just under where I've contoured and on the very top of my cheek bone, it just, well, highlights the areas I want to be seen most!
To get the final effect of my night time look, it's time to get out the lippy! With a dark, wine coloured lip, your eyes will look gorgeous. I usually go for Kate Moss Matte in 107 as it's a great look for this season.



So, that's how I transform my day to night look! I hope that's clear enough for you, I couldn't really think of a way to make it easier. I would proof-read it too, but to be honest, I've been proof-reading AS and A2 English Language coursework all day and I'm just sooo tired!

Hope you're all okay and finished your Christmas shopping! Take care everyone :)

my top three winter lip saviours!

Winter is well under way, and lip care is more important now than it ever has been! What with the harsh cold, and matte lips being well on trend, we need to take a lot of care of our poor lips!
These are my three favourite lip treatments for this season.


Blistex Medicated Lip Ointment
I purchased this product way back in February 2012 when I was visiting New York, my lips got dry and uncomfortably numb, which was so weird, I'd never had dry lips before, so I panicked and bought this! I got it for about $3, I can't find it on Boots/Superdrug, but I just bought this from a drugstore close to Times Square. It's a creamy formula, and I just apply it all over, it tingles a bit, and gets a bit sticky, so I only ever use it if I'm in the house. If I have a particularly stubborn bit, I'll apply a little bit more on there and within a day or two my lips are back to normal! I'm going to be gutted when I run out of this.


Carmex Moisturizing Lip Balm Pot
This is an absolute must have product for me. It's thick and waxy and perfect to wear under matte lipsticks to keep hydrated. I wear this every night, I'll apply a thick layer on my lips and a little bit around and sleep wearing it. Like the blistex, it tingles a bit and feels quite cool, but that soon calms down and you're left with a waxy layer that you can instantly feel is making a difference to your lips. It's no more than £3 and lasts forever. I got this alongside the Blistex in New York and it's not even nearly finished. I'll definitely be repurchasing it though!


Vaseline Aloe Vera and Rosy Lips
I don't think I know anyone who doesn't have countless pots of this in their bags and drawers, even my boyfriend found and applied some the other day. These are my favourite of the Vaseline range. Personally, Vaseline aren't my favourite lip products, they feel too greasy for me, they don't feel great on my lips, but they're so convenient. I like the Aloe Vera one to apply on dry skin, it doesn't even have to be on my lips, but I felt I should include it anyway haha. I think the fact it's Aloe Vera makes me think it's doing a lot more good for me than it actually is.
The rosy lips one is my favourite. When I was in the hospital the other day, this was all I had in my bag but I felt I needed a balm. I applied a fair amount of this onto my lips and not only did it help my lips feel a bit healthier, it added that little splash of colour which really complimented my make up. So yeah, these aren't my favourite for a lip balm, but who doesn't rely on Vaseline?



What are your lip saviours? Anyone in the UK know where I can find the Blistex lip ointment?!
Leave me a lovely comment below, I love to hear from you guys! Hope the Christmas shopping is nearly over. After finally finishing up the Christmas decorations, I'm definitely in the Christmas spirit.

I'm also visiting London on the 20th, how exciting! Hopefully I'll pick up a few nice treats to show you all.
Take care, beauties.

perfect stocking fillers for beauty addicts MUA style!

I think you can't go wrong with MUA's make up range, they're ridiculously affordable they'd be incredible stocking fillers, that I know I'd be happy to receive!

I've used their nail varnish before and loved the shade. It wasn't very pigmented but after three layers was beautiful. I'm loving this navy blue pictured above, as if I don't own enough blues as it is!
I would never think of buying a person foundation, if you get a wrong shade, it's pretty much a waste of money. But with there only being a few shades in BB creams, it's worth a shot! You can pretty much guess, or if you're good friends, sneak a look at their latest shades? I still haven't got a BB cream even after all the hype!
I haven't tried their cream blushers, but I'm so eager too! I have, however, used their powder blush and I adore it! Luckily, it's pretty easy to choose blush so no worries!
This palette looks amazing, with a selection of shadows, blush, contours and highlighters it's a face in a box...ish! This would be perfect for a younger girl, or if you want to experiment with contours/highlights. I may have to buy this when it comes into my local store.


So just a short post today, my sister had to go to hospital yesterday so I have a lot on my mind with work as well, it's just getting a bit hectic! No doubt after Christmas I'll be back to before.


Don't forget about my giveaway! Keep an eye out, ladies, it's coming soon!

Take care :)

lush ultrabland cleanser

Sorry it's been a while guys, I've been getting into the Christmas spirit!

It didn't stop me popping into my local Lush store and trying out Ultrabland, a product I've heard so much about, I know plenty of people who swear by it!
As I wasn't completely sure if it would be the same on my skin, I got myself a sample to try out. This product is officially top of my Christmas list. I LOVE it.

"A rich, soft, oily, cleansing cream that cares gently for all skin types. Softens the skin whilst thoroughly cleaning it - this product is super effective at its job"

I was incredibly surprised at the feel of it, you could definitely feel the beeswax as soon as you touching it. It spreads onto your face gorgeously, it feels thick, waxy, and like it's going to do an amazing job. There's no scent to it which I'm happy about, I expected it to smell very floral seeing as one of it's main ingredients is Rose Water!
I tend to use this when I'm in the shower. I'll firstly exfoliate, which can often leave my skin feeling a little stripped and dry. I'll then apply a thin layer of this and leave it on for a couple of minutes. To remove it, I use a muslin cloth and wipe it off in outward motions. You cannot even imagine how soft my skin feels afterwards! It almost feels velvety, it's just amazing.
It's very good at soothing my red cheeks. I have redness on both cheeks, but this soothes it and clears it.

I couldn't recommend this more.

Sorry it's only short, Christmas presents need to be wrapped! Take care everyone, the weather is turning!


ALSO, DON'T FORGET TO KEEP AN EYE OPEN FOR MY GIVEAWAY! 
I'll be hosting it when I hit 50 followers so look out! 

NOTD: dusky mauve

Second post today you lucky people! I just wanted to show you today's chosen shade.

My nails are still a lot shorter than what I prefer, but I really wanted to find out what you guys think of this colour?! Ever since I got it, I've been loving and hating it. It's actually a bit lighter than pictured, but I really wanted to get the purple sheen in the bottle. This varnish is two-toned, violet and mauve, like the Metal Rush ones from Rimmel except it's not so noticable. Fair enough, it's not full of glitter and shimmer like this season is loving, but I love the violet shine which I think will be gorgeous this season.

What do you think? Do you love or hate this?

FOTN: feline flick, dark lip

First off, sorry for the awful images, The lighting is awful, so it's hardly a decent representation of how I looked last night, but hey ho, I'm sure you get the jist! Links to the products are below.

No7 Powder Translucent

MUA Blush Shade 3

MUA Powder

Stay Matte

Avon Arabian Glow Bronzer

One by One Mascara

ScandalEyes Mascara

Fix and Perfect Primer

FaceFinity Foundation

Match Perfection Foundation

Maybelline Gel Liner

Rimmel Eyebrow Pencil

No7 Amazing Eyes

Kate Moss Matte 107

Well, that's a lot of products, it seems! Let me explain myself.

As for the two foundations, I love the smooth finish that Match Perfection gives me, it smooths out my skin. The only problem is that the shade is a little too dark for me, and it doesn't have a full enough coverage for me, I need my red nose to be masked in this weather! So on top of that, I used my fail safe FaceFinity foundation which corrected the shade and masked any blemishes I had. I know what you're thinking, why not use FaceFinity on it's own? It doesn't seem to go on as well on it's own, and if I use a little too much it can look cakey, but with both foundations it create a smooth, natural base. Lovely!

I also used 3 powder, crikey! I used MUA on my cheeks, but only a tiny bit because I still wanted a slightly dewy look, but it was important to set my foundation. I used Stay Matte on my nose, chin and forehead, basically to keep my oily t-zone at bay. I think this powder is perfect for that. I used No7 more as a highlighter than anything. I used it on top of my cheekbones and under my eyes slightly. I also put it just under where I had contoured just to make it look a little more prominent. 

Avon's Arabian Glow is not perfect for contouring, it's shimmery and goldish. More of a bronzer for holidays. But for now, I don't have anything else! It does the job, and if I blend it in well with my blush, it looks so much better! I put a small amount of bronzer under my cheek bones, where when you suck your cheeks in you naturally get a shadow. I'll also brush it up towards my cheek bones and down to my jaw to give it a more natural finish.

I used to love Rimmel's eyebrow pencil, I use  Dark Brown, but I recently noticed the red undertones that it has, which frankly, looks weird. It also makes it difficult to wear certain eyeshadows. Such a mare. So I used my No7 Amazing Eyes eyeliner. I used to use this all the time on my brows as it's a really good shade, no red, but it's pretty much ran out, and they don't sell this anymore, well, they've rebranded it, it now comes with a smudger on the end. So yeah, I used this one last night to make it a nicer shade. I just used Rimmel to get the shape as I love the pencil for this, it's very precise. 

This lipstick is very on trend right now with the deep berry tones, and I thought it was perfect to go with my feline flick, very classy! Especially when I wore a casual dress, black boots and a blazer which I customised with studs. 

Well, that was a longer post than I imagined, but it's been a while since I've done one of these!

I also got some very exciting news last night. I got an unconditional acceptance to study Public Relations at University! I got the email at 00:15 which was a ridiculous time, but how exciting! Just wanted to share the news with you guys :).

So what do you think to my make up look? What would you have done similar/different? Do you have any eyebrow sets/pencils that you love? Let me know below, I love hearing what you guys have to say.

I'm thinking of doing a giveaway when I hit 50 followers, so keep an eye out everyone, and take care.

fashion vouchers christmas party outfit competition

Dress

Shoes

Clutch

Necklace

Over at Fashion Vouchers, they're doing a Christmas Party Outfit Blogger Challenge.
The aim of it is to find the perfect outfit for under £100 and be in for a chance to win your own £100 voucher! Sounds simple enough, right? Find out more here.
I chose missguided.co.uk as they do on-trend, affordable fashion. What more can you want?

If I had this outfit, it would be my go-to for my upcoming Christmas parties!

I'm loving velvet right now, I literally cannot take off my velvet leggings, absolute baaaabes. Not only are they on trend, but they're warm!

It's important to look amazing on your night out but you don't want to be red and goosebumpy too, so with this long sleeved velvet dress you're going to be dressed up to the nines and warm. Burgundy is well on trend this season, so be sure to grab this shade. Mixed with these Jeffery Campbell dupes, your feet are not going to freeze off, but look hot with the stud detail on the heel! (That was so cheesy, but so worth it.)
This necklace will compliment the shoes perfectly, but being only silver and simple, it won't look too in your face.
A simple black and silver clutch won't draw attention from your outfit, but will fit all the essentials in nicely.


This whole outfit comes to an affordable £95.96.

What do you think about this outfit? To find out more about the competition, maybe enter it yourself, click here and have a read, see if it's for you!

This is my first ever outfit post, I do hope you've enjoyed it!

Take care.

h&m antique gold nail polish

First off IGNORE MY GRIMY NAILS. I'm so embarrassed to have them cut so short and ugly, but they were so brittle I thought I best cut them down now and have fresh, (hopefully) nice nails ready for Christmas.

When I nipped into h&m today, not planning on buying anything, I saw their amazing sale, especially on jewellery, then I saw these gorgeous varnishes on top of the stand and I HAD to buy this shade. In the photo, it looks, well, gold, but really it has a lovely pine green tinge to it which is what sold me! It's very shimmery, which fits perfectly for this season. Unlike most shimmer varnishes I own, you can't feel the glitter at all, the finish is incredibly smooth rather than bitty like I find with Barry M shimmers, so much so that I don't feel it needs a top coat which is brilliant because I've ran out!
It's quite thin, I used three layers to get the opaque finish I wanted, but maybe this means it will take longer to go gloopy? You could definitely get away with only two layers though.

Pair these nails with your LBD and neutral lipstick and you've got a perfect Christmas party outfit. I'm definitely going to plan my festive outfits around this shade because I can't get over how pretty it is, especially on longer, non-ugly nails like mine hahaha!

What do you guys think to this colour? Do you have any favourites at the moment?
I'd love to get talking to you guys so feel free to comment, it makes my day!


Take care everyone, and wrap up warm!

my third leibster award? I must be doing something right!

Hello you lovely people! I have been nominated for my third leibster award. I'm so happy about this, and really surprised considering my blogging has certainly gone down hill these last couple of weeks! The lovely Toni at Hearts, Roses & Polka Dots nominated me this time. You have to check out her blog, she's such a nice person and introduced me to my first bbloggers chat on Twitter last weekend. 

Anyway, I'm rambling again, on to the award. Here are the rules:

1. Post 11 Random Facts About Yourself

2. Answer the 11 Questions Asked by Your Nominator

3. Create 11 Questions for Whoever You Choose to Nominate

4. Choose 11 Blogs to Nominate With Less Than 200 Followers

11 facts about me, who'd want to hear those?!

1. It's mine and my boyfriends 11 month anniversary today!

2. I'm ridiculously excited for Christmas, more than I ever have been.

3. I'm loving this cold weather, just another reason to dress down.

4. MaxFactor tweeted me replying to one of my blog posts. I'm sure you can imagine my face!

5. I sent my UCAS application off yesterday.

6. I've applied for Public Relations, exciting!

7. I love Star Wars.

8. I've just had a big delivery from the Avon which I am SO excited to try out!

9. I've written my Christmas list out at least 8 times.

10. I've not cuddled my cat all day, definite withdrawal symptoms.

11. I can't wait to wrap presents up after doing this.

My 11 questions from Toni: 

1. What sort of blog posts do you enjoy the most? I love reviews of products and beauty wishlists!

2. What beauty product is your fail safe item? Oooooh this is a tough one :( I guess Rimmel Stay Matte powder, you can't go wrong with the price and quality.

3. Which is your favourite beauty brand? I think Maybelline, Not all of the products are amazing, I definitely have better foundations and mascaras, but I like all of their products... I hope that makes sense!

4. Which is your favourite fashion brand? Eeeerm, H&M probably, as I don't have a job, the price and quality from here is decent, they do have some amazing items though.

5. Where in the World would you like to live? I love living in England and Sheffield to be honest. I think I might want to live in/closer to London though :)

6. What is your favourite part about yourself? No negatives here please ladies! eeerrm hahaha, I like my eyebrows, and I guess my lips, they don't have a gorgeous shape and aren't as plump as I'd love, but they never get dry or cracked :)

7. Who is your all time favourite band/artist? I literally cannot answer this! My music taste is constantly all over the place, it changes every other month.

8. Who inspires you? There's a popular blogger called Lily Pebbles, she's literally my idol at the moment. That seems so silly, but I don't know, I am! 

9. Who are your top 3 fellow bloggers? I couldn't choose three, sorry! 

10. What is your favourite food? Mexicaaann! Love a good taco mmmm :)

11. If you could be an animal, what would you be and why? CAT. Because cats are amazing. 

My 11 questions to YOU:

1. Most importantly, how are you today?

2. What's your biggest accomplishment/what are you most proud of?

3. If someone asked you to give them a random piece of advice, what would it be?

4. If you could learn one random skill, what would it be?

5. If your life was made into a movie, who would you want to play you?

6. Would you recommend blogging to others? Why/Why not?

7. What do you think people think of you?

8. What's top of  your Christmas list?

9. What would you rather be doing now?

10. All time favourite movie?

11. If you were stuck on a desert island with 5 people/celebrities, who would you choose? 

Tales of a Pale Face

Obsessive Compulsive Beauty

Coleoftheball

Enhance your Natural Beauty for Less

Just Me

Hope, Freedom & Love

Bamblings of Naffy

Love.Life.and Makeup

Ooh La London

CreoqueKim

One Way Beauty

I've said it time and time again, thank you for paying attention to my blog! I really appreciate it, I hope I never let you down! Is there anything you prefer seeing? Let me know.

If I've tagged you in this, give it a go and link me to it, I'd love to give it a read :)

Take care, guys!