Review: Boulevard de Beauté eyeshadow palette

Hi guys!

As promised in my Christmas haul, I'm going to review the palette I got. It's from a brand called Boulevard de Beauté which is a brand I'd never heard of so I had a quick look online.

You can buy their products off amazon and a good sized palette costs about 10€ (about £7 or 15$) so very affordable.

I got this palette which is like a double palette with each one containing 10 eyeshadows and an applicator. They're both neutral colours but one of them is more brown shades and the other is green.

The quality of these eyeshadows is really good. They're nicely pigmented, easy to work with pretty long lasting and the colours are gorgeous.

This palette is well thought out. It has a nice mix of matte and shimmery eyeshadows and no dodgy colours that you would never use. I would normally never use green eyeshadows but these ones are a really nice selection and I am going to branch out and try them because they're shades that would suit anybody.

The only complaints I would have about this palette are that you will get a little bit of fall down but nothing major and the packaging isn't great. It looks quite nice and expensive and you do get two pretty big mirrors with them but the lid doesn't close properly on the top bit of mine and it's quite hard to open on the other one. But for the price, I don't expect amazing packaging and these eyeshadows are worth a lot more in my opinion.

So, I think these are excellent especially if you're a young teenager or if you're just starting out in makeup but also if you want to try out a new brand or want to expand your collection! I'm already getting a lot of use out of this palette and it's got some pretty good dupes for some more expensive brands.

Shoe collection part 3: Sandals

Hi guys!

This is the last part of my shoe collection. It's all about my sandals. I even painted my toe nails especially!

Firstly, I'll talk about my flip-flops. I have three pairs and I wear them all. I'll start with these bright pink ones from Gap. I think these are really nice and a bit original with the different straps. They look great with anything in summer. I bought these in New York so they're quite special to me. I think they cost about $20 (15€ or £12). They're made of leather and they're really comfortable and easy to walk in (they don't slip off like some do!).

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Next up are these printed ones. These are from Oilily and I've had them for years. I have no idea how much they cost. They're quite structured so they're not bad to walk in, I often walk the dogs in them in the summer. They look good with casual clothing and would work well with long trousers too as they are slightly "heavier". They aren't everybody's cup of tea but I like them a lot.

This is my last pair of flip-flops. They're from Roxy and they cost me about 40 shekels in Israel (8€, £5 or $11) They give me blisters on the side of my feet so I only wear them when I go swimming but if you have normal feet and not wide feet like mine they should be fine. They look nice with casual or sporty clothes. I really like the pattern on the bottom of them.

Now, moving on to wedges. These are a pair I bought in Marks & Spencer's so they weren't very expensive, I can't remember exactly. They look pretty good with everything and I used to wear them to school in the summer for those of you who don't have to wear a uniform. They're nice and subtle and very comfortable. The only think i would say is that you end up with black marks on your feet at the end of the day.

These brown and gold ones are my favourite pair of sandals. I bought them in a shop called pronto and they were very cheap and pretty good quality considering! They're quite high but still easy to walk in and really comfortable. These look great with jeans but also with anything really. They're very flattering and make your feet look amazing. I love these!

And finally, on to the last section: ballerinas. I have two pairs of these, a smarter pair and a casual pair. I'll start with the latter. These are from a make called edc but I think that's a brand from a shop called esprit. They're from the highstreet again so not very expensive. I really like the look of these but they give me awful blisters on my right foot unfortunately. These look good with anything casual.

 These are slightly more expensive I think they were about 50€ ish (£40 or $65). I bought them from a place called Pied de Terre for a wedding. They're very nice. They look better with smarter clothes but you could wear them with jeans, I wouldn't pair them with shorts though. These are made of suede and they have checkered detailing on the front. The heel is not too high and chunky so they're easy to walk in and comfortable.

Resolutions and goals for 2014

Hi guys,

It's the New Year so I've come up with a few resolutions and goals. To help me achieve these I have decided to put them online so that everyone can see.

I'll start with my New Year's resolutions.

1. Exercise 3 times a week

I'm going to exercise properly every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

2. Eat more healthily and cook more

I have a habit of snacking so I'm going to only eat unhealthy snacks on Saturdays.

3. Be nicer

I'm not a mean person but I can be really stubborn and get a bit angry when I don't get what I want so I'm going to try and stop doing that.

4. Judge less

I'm very quick to judge and I really hate that because I don't like it when people judge me so this year I'm going to start thinking nice things about others.

5. Work more

I'm on a gap year at the moment and I haven't properly worked since September which is really bad. I had planned to take some time off but then I got really lazy so I'm going to do some work.

6. Achieve a least one goal every day

As I said above, I have been very lazy lately so I want to achieve something every day. It can be really small like cook dinner or clean up my desk but it's a goal none the less.

7. Read more

I spend far too much time on the computer so I want to change that and spend more time reading.

8. Cleanse face at least once a day

I'm really bad at cleansing my face and it really does help my skin so I've decided to do it at least once a day.

9. Blog and make a video at least once a week

I was quite good at the blogging bit up until about August and then I went off track. This year I don't want that to happen.

10. Be more positive

I'm usually quite a negative person, I only see the bad in a bit of a rubbish situation which makes everything worse so I want to be more positive.

11. Go to bed at 11 pm at the latest and switch off the computer at least half an hour beforehand

Now that I don't have to get up for school I seem to be going to bed at 1 am, which is really bad. This year I want to have a better sleeping pattern.

12. Stop pulling hair

I have trichotillomania, which basically means that I'm addicted to pulling my hair out. This is really hard to admit and extremely difficult to stop as it's always there. I'm slowly getting there and I want to completely stop this by the end of 2014.

Now for my goals. I'm not going to write a reason behind these because a lot of them are linked to my resolutions and they are pretty self explanatory.

1. Pass driving exam

2. Lose weight and keep it off

3. Be a happier person

4. Go to university

5. Stop pulling hair and grow it long again

6. Read at least 10 books

7. Find work

8. Go to Thailand

9. Gradually update wardrobe to have smarter clothes

10. Spend more time outside

11. Learn to cook better

12. Blog a lot

What I got for Christmas

Hi guys!

Today I thought I'd tell you what I got for Christmas. I'm not bragging, I think it's useful if you're stuck on what to buy someone for their birthday or another occasion or even if you don't know what you want.

Firstly, I got a Pandora bracelet with a security chain and two "clips" which are clip on charms to separate the other charms and prevent them from falling off. I think Pandora bracelets are a really nice gift and I really like the idea of collecting charms.

Then, from my boyfriend I got a heart shaped charm for the bracelet. I love it and I think it's really nice and simple.

From my boyfriend's mum I got a spacer charm (separates the other charms) which is laurel leaves with two zirconium stones. I think it's really lovely.

I also got a double eyeshadow palette from her from boulevard de beauté. This is really nice eyeshadow, I'll do a full review in another post.

From my sister's godfather I got an italian cook book which I would really recommend, It's got some really tasty recipes.

From one of my best friends I got a bobble hat (with two bobbles) and a pair of penguin gloves. They're really cosy and warm.

Keeping with the cosy and warm theme, I got a really soft and snuggly dressing gown from my grandparents side and some cosy slippers from my aunt. The dressing gown is from Marks & Spencer's and the slippers are from Bedroom Athletics.

I also got a set of magnolia hand and body lotion, bath cream and shower cream from my grandparents, also from Marks & Spencer's. These smell amazing.

From my boyfriend's grandmother I got a set of green tea and jasmin hand soap and hand lotion which smells really nice.

From my other grandparents I got these gorgeous wallets or purses. I think they're really cute and they're made of real leather. These are from 1642 Lichfield.

From my sister I got a set of retro shampoo, conditioner, shower gel and body lotion from the croft. They smell like vanilla and are really nice handmade products.

From another one of my best friends I got this set called "flower party by night" by Yves Rocher. Its a perfume and a shower gel and they smell like violets.

From another friend of the family I got this gorgeous wrap bracelet. I think these are really nice and I don't have any so I'm very happy I got this.

From my godmother and her family I got this beautiful soft scarf. It looks like leopard print but it's actually a very subtle floral pattern.

Finally, this is what I got in my stocking. Some very soft bed socks, a mini puzzle, that owl is actually a lip gloss, a candle holder with an E for my name on it, some earrings, a phone case, some shower gel and nail and hand cream from caudalie and some chocolate!

I'm very grateful and happy with all of my presents and I feel very lucky. I got a lot of nice things this year. I hope you all had an amazing Christmas and New Year!

Shoe collection part 2: Shoes

Hi guys!

I'm continuing my shoe collection series. This is the second out of three posts about my shoes. Hope you like it!

Lets start with the ones I wear the most. These are my asics, they're a bit like trainers but with less support. These are very casual and I wear them a lot because they're very comfortable. They look good with most trousers and you could wear them with a skirt if you want a sporty look but I never have. I sometimes wear them with shorts too if I'm walking a lot.

Next are my converse. These are the ankle length ones, I have had the shorter ones and to be honest I don't really have a preference. Both styles are comfortable and go with pretty much everything casual. Notice that I like casual clothing. I like these ones because I think they're a little different and the print isn't too over the top.

I do actually have some smarter shoes. I love these ones for winter. They're so comfortable and easy to walk in thanks to the chunky heel. They also look great with anything and can be casual as well as a bit more chic. I really like these with jeans.

Finally, my posh shoes. Every girl needs a good court shoe. I prefer black because they don't get as dirty and they're easier to find. Nude colours can be hard to find because the shade can look slightly off compared to your skin colour whereas black looks good on everyone. These are very uncomfortable but I love them anyway. I only really wear them on special occasions so with quite posh clothes because they are so uncomfortable but they do look great with jeans too.

Thats it for my shoes (I haven't included trainers). Next time I'll write about my sandals (of which I have a few!).