My Top Picks : America Beauty Shopping List

As you know I will be jetting of to America in just under a month and I couldn't be any more excited and nervous all at the same time! One thing I am especially excited for is shopping! Any blogger from the UK will know there are several cult brands and products that just aren't available over here (or if they are they're either a bugger to get hold of or mega expensive). So I am going to be making the most of my time over there and scouting out some things that have only just caught my eye and some things I've been lusting after for so long (of course)!

Milani Brow Fix

Makeup Forever Ultra HD Concealer

Fresh Beauty Sugar Lip Balm

Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush

Sephora Liquid Lipsticks

Sephora Sheet Masks

Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes Mascara

Tarte Tartelette In Bloom Eyeshadow Palette

Colour Pop Liquid Lipsticks

Lorac Pro Palette

Tarte Amazonian Clay Foundation

Anastasia Beverly Hills Eyeshadows

Dr Jart+ Water Replenishment Sheet Mask

Covergirl Mascara

Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz

Milani Baked Blushes

You may have noticed a lot of Tarte products in my list, but it's a brand that I've wanted to try so badly for so long that I just need to get my hands on at least one of these products. Just look at that palette! On the topic of palette's, the Lorac Pro is one I have had my eye on for so long but is notoriously difficult to get your hands on over here. 

I'm aware some of these things you can get in the UK but I where I live unfortunately I don't have many decent beauty counters or shops.

Fingers crossed I can find as many of these as possible and that I don't run out of money!

Beth xo

Soap&Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Matte-Lip

I picked this up a while ago when in line for the till at Boots and I was so excited about it, but wanted to give it a good test before writing my thoughts. I picked it quite hastily therefore I didn't have time to swatch it first, so I went for the one I thought was most 'me'. I picked this one called 'Choccoberry' thinking it would be brown toned, which it is, just not as much as I hoped it would to be. 

It fits the name pretty well, it is a brown toned berry shade, however it comes out a lot bolder on the lips than I expected, showing more of the pink side than the brown. So if you're looking for a muted matte this isn't it.

All that aside it is a lovely colour that suits me well and one that I will wear. 

So onto the actual product, I picked this up as it was matte and I don't own many in my lipstick collection. I was excited by the bullet shaped product being in the popular crayon effect packaging; what I wasn't excited about was the amount of product you get! This whole product is a mini, I am ok with that, however when the packaging is longer than your finger and the amount of product you get is just a bit longer than your fingernail (1.4g) I am a bit miffed to say the least! But that's what you get for succumbing to the lures of till aisle sales.

The formula is nice and creamy, goes on smoothly and doesn't really highlight any imperfections on the lips. It doesn't go matte immediately and is easy to fix if you get it a bit out of line (as long as you don't leave it too long). I wouldn't say it's the most uncomfortable to wear however it is drying after a few hours, a quick bit of lip balm on before can stave this off for a while longer though.

This product doesn't fare well against eating however is a bit better with drinking. It's not hard to reapply though so just be aware of this and keep a compact mirror handy for reapplication.

Overall it's a nice product in a lovely shade that suits my skin tone. It doesn't have the staying power of most matte lipsticks however does have great colour payoff. I would recommend if you want a nice matte colour to throw in your bag for on the go makeup.

Beth xo

P.s Shop this product below!

A Gallery Wall | Interiors & Design

For a long time now it has been a trend to cover yours walls/a statement wall with pictures, photos, drawings or doodles. I remember when it first started, my sister pritt sticking magazine pages all over one wall of her bedroom and getting her friends to sign and draw on another and being so jealous of how cool it looked and wanting mine the same. Typical sibling rivalry. However when I tried it managed to just look like some silly drawings in permanent marker, which in the end took quite a few cots of paint to cover up! 

Ever since, I have liked the idea of having a designated wall to be covered in colour and mismatched pictures. Pinterest is your best friend for inspiration in this department but my advice would just be to use things you like, as you can't go far wrong with that right? When I started this I sat down one afternoon and just scoured the net for pretty prints. Things that were bright and cute and had a similar theme but were not too restricted to that. After I had a folder full I sat at the printer for a good 20 mins and then cut them to look neat. 

I wanted things that would cheer me up when I looked at them or things that would brighten up my room and inspire me. I already had the bunting up so just worked around it and put things where they fit, spreading the colour throughout the plainer pieces. I absolutley love the Agate water colour painting, the pineapple and the twiggy eyes.

I found all of these prints online free for personal use, you wouldn't believe how much material is out there! And I found so many lovely blogs that create and share free designs. I will credit all of these prints to the sources that I found them from.

I love walking into my room now and seeing this pop of colour and inspiration, I think it's such a great feature for any room. Obviously with the space around this I can continue to add more as well as take things away to keep it fresh and interesting. Using pins makes this really easy; as well as this you can change up the pins to alter the look of the gallery. I used ones we had in the house but I love the look of these. You can really get creative with this and have fun!

Love, Beth x

Sources: Smitten on Paper

Little Gold Pixel (pineapple) (diamond)

The Graphics Fairy

CoCorrina

Persia Lou

Oh So Lovely

A Beautiful Mess

The 36th Avenue

Kristen Duke

Tater Tots and Jello

A Fabulous Fete

Pinterest

Sunglasses Splurge | Raybans

Whilst I was in London and browsing the stands in Selfridges, we stumbled upon a very friendly and helpful sale man in the Rayban section. There was a deal on buying two pair of sunglasses for a discounted price, which drew me and my mum straight in. I have never owned an expensive pair of sunglasses before, mine have always been from H&M or Topshop, therefore I knew nothing about what UV protection they had other than that the more expensive sunglasses are the better, obviously! This man was brilliant in showing us the level of darkness in the lenses and the different finishes the lenses could have. As well as this he was great at telling us which shapes and styles suited us!

I came away with Round RB2180 710/73 in Tortoise Shell, these are in 3N meaning they can be used in high brightness and the lenses are quite dark. This rounded wayfarer style is what I tend to sway towards in glasses whether for seeing or in shades as they suit my face shape well. My mum got similar ones with polarised lenses for antiglare so that she could drive in them easily as this it what she uses them for the majority of the time.

I am so happy to finally have a pair of decent sunglasses that I know will protect my eyes properly as well as lasting a long time too. I think this is a classic frame and colour that won't go out of fashion and I can see myself getting a lot of use out of these, especially this summer! If you don't know what I'm talking about check out this post for more.

Love Beth x

You can get your hands on these below!

America | Camp and Travel

(These are not my photos and are not associated to the camp that I am visiting)

I'm really excited to write a post about this and hopefully it will be one of many. So as I hinted in this post I am going to America this summer and the reason is I am going to be a Camp Counsellor at an America Summer Camp and after that I am going on a trek around California.

I've always wanted to go on a summer camp and and have been incredibly jealous every time I've seen a film with American one's (Parent Trap, Camp Rock haha, Beaver Falls). Even though I know they all may be ranging from slightly to very far from the true camp lifestyle, I have always loved the friendly, team building atmosphere, out in nature, sat around a campfire, making new friends and helping kids to come out of their shell.

So when I was told about Camp America at the start of my gap year (after my original plans had changed), I gave it a bit of research and dived in head first! Now I will say that it is a lot more work than I originally thought and I haven't even left the UK yet! However I'm getting more excited the closer it gets (40 days as of this post going up) and I can tell it will be so worth it! 

I thought I would write this post so that I can see for myself how I felt and what I expected before I went so that afterwards I can look back and see how it met those expectations. As well as that I am going to be out of the country for around 3 months and obviously I don't want my blog to be inactive that whole time, so I am currently trying to plan some posts that I can write and schedule for that time. I will try and post something while I'm out there, possibly some diary like entries just to record my adventures and so that I can look back when it's all over.  

(These are not my photos and are not associated with the trekking company that I am using)

Finally after I finish my camp experience I am doing a trek around the west coast of America. I am so unbelievably excited for this and it will be so nice to relax and just enjoy the sights after 3 months of rallying kids around! I'm visiting so many sights I've always wanted to see, and there will most definitely be a couple of posts on these travels.

I can't wait for the next couple of months, I'm so looking forward to sharing my adventures. All I have to worry about now is the packing!

Beth x

Late To The Bandwagon | MAC Velvet Teddy

In my previous post (here) I mentioned a cheeky shopping trip to London and whilst browsing the beauty hall in Selfridges I couldn't help myself from taking a look at the MAC counter. The closest MAC store to where I live is at least and hour away so I don't tend to get the opportunity often, therefore it would just be unthinkable not to pick something up while I had the chance right?

Or so I told myself and my card was in the machine before I could think twice! 

Obviously this is a well known lipstick, ever since Kylie Jenner admitted to using it, but I've held off buying it just for the hype. I wanted to try it in person to see if I actually liked it. Lo and behold, I did, and now they have my money and I have this. 

Firstly, I love the smell of MAC lipsticks, it's just a bonus really when your applying it. Anyway, for those who don't know this has a matte finish which I was looking forward to trying as before this one I hadn't even tried a matte lipstick from MAC. Including this one my collection is to the extent of 3, Crosswires and Plumful are my other two; both Estee Lalonde recommendations. 

Even though this is a matte finish it still applies really creamy and easily, it's got a brilliant opaque colour and stays really well even whilst drinking; I haven't eaten whilst wearing it yet so I can't comment there. 

I love this brown toned pink on my skin tone and can see myself getting a lot of wear out of it, so I'm very happy with my purchase. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who is still dubious about the hype or even has not heard about it yet (which rock have you been under?) and was looking for an everyday lipstick that will go with everything.

Beth x

Shop this below!

Selfridges, Shopping & Lunch | Visit London

So last week I travelled all the way up to London with my mum for an appointment at the US embassy (I may write a post about why soon). It's quite a journey from where I live so I fully intended to make the most of my time up there! Luckily I was done and dusted with all the serious business by 10 and we had the rest of the day to wonder London and shop to our hearts delight and our banks dismay. 
And shop I definitely did!

I stayed with my aunt and uncle who live near London so we had our own personal tour guide to the best lunch and shopping spots; we wouldn't have known where to start else. My mum is a massive Selfridges fan (the tv series) so of course first stop was the real Selfridges and I wasn't complaining. 

We wondered the endless rails of designers and I looked longingly at the handbags and shoes that I'd never be able to afford, whilst playing guess how much this is (we can't be the only ones who do this?). I love being able to see designers current pieces.

Heavenly place 😍

A photo posted by Beth Reeves (@bethreeves5) on Apr 7, 2016 at 12:57pm PDT

I found a stunning Saint Laurent leather jacket which I would've gladly taken home with me had it only had a couple less zeros on the price tag, along with this beautiful bomber jacket.

After a good couple of hours and a trip to the food court later we finally emerged with only a box full of cupcakes and a MAC lipstick (post coming soon), restraint I know!

We ventured on to Zara, H&M, Forever 21 and finally to Ed's Diner for a well earned bowl of chilli cheese fries, mmm.

The weather wasn't the best and we got caught by the rain just as we were getting off the train but all in all I love visiting London, and truly wish I could do it more often.

Beth x